Belle was disgruntled to so immediately be put to work. She had been woken in the morning and told she needed to eat and drink right away, as she was to fulfill her new role. Once she quickly got ready, Belle and Beau were hitched to the cart for their first day on the job. And Belle's first day ever doing a proper job.
As they were directed through town, the horses had chances to examine the damage. It broke Belle's heart to see the extent of what had happened from the coup. Thankfully, most regular civilians seemed mostly unharmed. But at a few of the drop-offs, Belle overheard rumors about nobility, some of which she was related to, meeting horrible fates.
Between the effort of pulling a cart around and the mental stress of hearing what had happened, Belle was eager to be done. But they had one more stop to make.
They came to a stop outside a noble looking mansion. When Simon went up to the door, Beau leaned over to whisper to Belle.
"I recognize this estate. The family of one of your old hunting compatriots owns it."
"Is his family loyal to mine?" Belle asked.
"Last I heard, they were leaning towards siding with the rebels," Beau said. Belle sighed. "I regret to inform you, Princess, many of your former allies have grown disillusioned with your family."
"I will have to rectify this once I take the throne," Belle murmured. Beau nuzzled her.
"I have complete faith in you," he said earnestly. Together, the horses watched the front door of the mansion open to reveal...