Oooh... boy. First time at Hunchback of Notre Dame, tomodachis! Hope I don't screw this up. Okay, for starters, THIS IS A PROLOGUE! NOT THE FIRST CHAPTER! I always start with a Prologue, it's just my thing. Next, IF MY FRENCH IS WRONG/AWKWARD, I DON'T TAKE FRENCH! I know more Japanese, wakarimashite ka?

Disclaimer: Hunchback of Notre Dame © Disney

Now enjoy! I shall post Chapter 1 sometime today, tomorrow, or the next day. Depending on my Beta-reader and/or me finishing quickly.

Outcast

Prologue: Outcast

It was way past little Laraine Allaire's bedtime, but she couldn't get to sleep. She tossed and turned on her 'bed' on the floor. It wasn't really a bed, more like a sheet thrown on the floor of the tent she resided in and a flat, moth-ridden pillow.

"Well, I heard that..."

'Quoi?' Laraine perked up, 'What are they talking about?' She slowly lay up so she could hear better.

"My word!"

"Oui, I know, what a pity…"

Little by little, curiosity got the better of her and she slowly and quietly snuck out of the tent and made her way to where the noise was coming from. Like a little mouse, she peeked around the tent to find a small group of older women huddled around a small fire, gossiping. Laraine sighed, 'Oh, how boring. I might as well go.'

Just as soon as Laraine was going to go back to her tent, someone announced, "Oh, have you heard about Aurore's child?"

Laraine's eyes widened wide in alarm, 'Why is she talking about Maman and me? Did I do something wrong?' She decided to stay a little longer.

"Oh, no," replied one of them. "What about her?"

The woman leaned in and said, just barely loud enough for Laraine to hear, "Her father… isn't one of us."

Laraine gasped, 'But Maman said…'

"Oh, but that happens all the time. You know how they treat us," said one.

The others nodded in agreement.

But the woman shook her head, "Oh no, you misunderstand me. Aurore had an affair. And you know what else?" the woman paused for dramatic effect. "He was a man of the cloth."

Laraine couldn't take it anymore. Was the life that she was living a lie? She rushed back into her tent and fell down on her blanket.

She hugged her knees, swaying back and forth, back and forth, repeating, "But Maman said… Maman said…"

Laraine bit her lip as a tear streamed down her face, "Maman wouldn't do that."

Eeeeh... I've had better Prologues.