funnygirl | 006 | Action/Voice

[Belle woke up early in the morning feeling a sudden wave of home sickness she hadn't felt in months. But it wasn't Beast's castle that she longed for, but the small cottage she had lived in with her father and their small assortment of animals.

It's this feeling that brings her to the stables. She's only been here a handful of times since arriving to accustom herself with the horses and to take one out for the occasional ride. Things have been so busy she hadn't been able to come by recently.

She spends most of the morning feeding the horses treats and keeping them company. Eventually she gets one saddled and goes for a ride through the forest, though she's careful not to ride out too far from the village. People may catch her during her ride, or they may come upon her while she's at the stables before or after her ride.]

[After she finishes brushing down the horse she took out for a ride, she decides to sit down and pull out her journal. She has a question she would like to ask the village.]

Good afternoon, Luceti. I should also welcome all of the New Feathers who have arrived. My name is Belle. I have a question I would like to ask everyone, out of mere curiosity, nothing more. So no one should feel pressured to answer. But how many of you had animals you cared for back home? Or do you have any here in Luceti? And if neither of these, what kind of animals are your favorite?

As for myself, I grew up caring for my horse, Philippe. I suppose that's why I feel so comfortable around horses. I miss him every day...[She pauses for a moment before continuing, sounding more upbeat.]

Well, I'm curious to hear everyone's answers.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

My family was never that fond of the idea of pets, I'm afraid. They thought they were too messy to want to allow any in the house, even if the servants would be the ones who took care of them.

That's very unfortunate. I believe that pets can be lovely additions to the family. And great friends.

Like this Philippe you mentioned, I assume? He sounds like a wonderful horse-- what is he like?

Yes. Philippe was a constant companion of mine back home. He's very even tempered and gentle.

It always seemed so wonderful, the idea of having a pet that you grew up with. Like a sibling of sorts, almost, but a sibling who can't tell on you and get you into trouble.

I suppose that's one way of looking at it. I'm an only child, so I guess you could say that Philippe took the place of a sibling for me.

I had two elder brothers myself and... well, there were times when I wished I was an only child, I'll say that much.

Oh no, don't say that. Being an only child can be quite lonely sometimes. There were times when my father would have to leave to go to another town, leaving me behind to watch over our home.

Times like those make me wish I had a sibling. Especially when I was younger.

You didn't have any other friends you could go visit during that time? Or what about inviting some of them to come stay with you? That sounds like the perfect setup for a sleepover to me.

Well...[The truth is she never had many friends in the village where she lived. Most of them thought of her as strange, even though they would never say it to her directly. She only had her books. And Philippe.]

I mostly found other ways to occupy my time. Besides having people come stay at your house when they're not relatives wasn't something done very often.

Really? It wasn't considered something normal in your world?

No. At least not by people of our status. It's not that we couldn't invite people to stay the night. It just wasn't convenient because our house is so small. Only big enough for two to live comfortably really.

Ah, I see.

[Contrary to what he's been telling her, he actually does understand what that is like.]

Then perhaps you can think of your time here as a chance to do all of the things you never got to try as a child, like having your friends stay the night.

Yes. I suppose you're right. The house I live in is definitely big enough for...sleep overs. [The term is new to her so she says it a bit uncertainly.]

See? It's the perfect opportunity! All you need is a few friends who would want to stay over, and I'm sure you have no lack of those here, am I right?

No. I don't suppose I do. But...what do people do at sleep overs? Would it be like entertaining a party, except it happens overnight?

Mmm, something like that. You usually tell stories and play games until you can't stay awake anymore. Sometimes that ends up being the next morning, but that's all part of the fun!

It does sound like fun. I take it you have been to one before?

Once or twice... not as often as I would have liked!

That's unfortunate. Perhaps we can change that sometime soon.

I wonder... do you think they'd let us borrow the school to hold a giant sleepover? Think how much fun it could be to have so many people there! We could make a proper party out of it.

I don't know. I suppose we can ask whomever is in charge of the school.

I think I'll do just that.

[Which means he'll do so in a few weeks because it will slip his mind until then.]

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