; all time sayed t trays of food er inside t and grilled veal; se it as sion of courtly and elegant Frencales about s  bunc and found  t, took  s velvet mout gentle tug. So trot before o tudy in ained and to , seated beside tray of coffee at  pour.

    t seemed to issue from a cave full of ec rumbling groer el-coloured idleness,  seemed an instrument created to inspire terror t t organs bring? Fascinated, almost aed, as if  of t great beast of t Mark. Small talk turned to dust in alk  t of times, been Beautys forte, and stle practice at it.

    But antly, as if  of a single pearl, asked after o be so poor. o master  of a ure, and so, srived to master o suc t soon stering ao tle cupid in t clock on telpiece struck its miniature tambourine, soniso discover it did so times.

    quot;So late! You  to sleep,quot; he said.

    At t, t, as if trange companions  to find toget room in ters nig to rise,   and buried ayed stock-still, transfixed; s  breatiff bristles of ongue and tood: all he is doing is kissing my hands.

    able eyes, in   anot on all fours.

    Next day, all day, till settled ecs rumbling roar: er gone a-ing? Beauty asked t t bad-temperedly, as if to say, t s have answered, even if she could have.

    Beauty e reading or, pertle embroidery; a box of coloured silks and a frame  tle raking and rearranging. An idle, restful time; a ment of t brigty place enveloped , against all ations, s test appre ly intervie. All tural laenderly ed on alk ient cure of ts borroars and tances of ransformations of t still rangeness made o kiss   nervously into  ouch.

    telepher. Such news!

    t sunk  o o me? It will be lonely  you.

    S to tears t  o drop a kiss upon , tretc oouc from , yes, ser is over. taxi came and took her away.

    You are never at ts in London, s t ime to settle; and e friends la. A resplendent el; tres; a  on o parties, to receptions, to restaurants, and life was as s, for her.

    Alt y and talked of en, no timeless spell of  seemed to possess t and finite quality of dream and t rous, so benign, some kind of spirit of good fortune  e roses in return for t t, s freedom, as if s escaped from an unkno intact. Yet, ion, a desolating emptiness. But ing for  tel; tion to buy reat as any girl might be.

    Since tell  er  gone.

    Returning late from supper after tre, sook off  of ty. S isfaction. S to be a spoiled c pearly skin of , a little, s. A certain ino transform tures of ty, and ness and y could sometimes turn a mite petulant  quite as sed to go. You could not   s tle too often, t smiled back  quite tained in ts agate eyes. ead of beauty, a lacquer of ttiness t cerises certain pampered, exquisite, expensive cats.

    t  knoo cry.

    t, scrabbling sound, as of cla her door.

    rance before t once, sly. Spring  it ted spaniel tle barks and gruff murmurings, of whimpering and relief.

    Yet ed  y and snarled, s  been a dog, sears.

    After t first, rapturous greeting, s  for Beauty to order er; sugged. tugged and whimpered again.

    te train t ake o tation y scribbled a note for  round y kne ation master roused a sleepy driver for  as you can.

    It seemed December still possessed s of tle and ts on t bloom. And not one ligopmost attic, test smear of radiance on a pane. t of a liginction.

    t a little, in ed. But noion fed Beautys urgency and, as t door, s of conscience, hickly muffled in black crepe.

    t open silently, as before, but ime, on to perfect darkness. Beauty clicked te ligapers in t to replace ter s, everyion, of despair in ts glamour ained by a crick and noo pull ted to try his luck elsewhere.

    Beauty found a candle to ligaircase, past tudy, past e, tion up a little back staircase dedicated to mice and spiders, stumbling, ripping te.

    a modest bedroom! An attic,   aff. A nig on telpiece, no curtains at t on tead on c, s nest and ick-backed c  into tand but they were all dead.

    ty covers, softly keening.

    quot;O,quot; said Beauty. quot;I ;

    siced before t e eyes  because s ed there?

    quot;Im dying, Beauty,quot; ;Since you left me, I  go ing, I found I  tomaco kill tle beasts, I could not eat. I am sick and I must die; but I so say goodbye to me.quot;

    S tead groaned, and covered h her kisses.

    quot;Dont die, Beast! If youll ;

    ouc-o t s clenc noentatively, at last began to stretcears fell on  transformation, t, ta  mane of range, a broken nose, sucired boxers, t gave ant, o t of all ts.

    quot;Do you kno; said Mr Lyon, quot;I t be able to manage a little breakfast today, Beauty, if you  somet;

    Mr and Mrs Lyon  of fallen petals.