Disclaimer: I don't own Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame or any other animated films used/mentioned in this fanfic, nor do I own any of these characters or the songs used. I'm merely having fun by practicing writing skills and sharing them online for feedback. I gain no money from any of this, please don't sue me because I have no money to begin with. ;A;

"Ugh," Was the first noise to come out of Nathalie's mouth, as she held one lens her glasses over her notepad to read the address scrawled on it. The library that hosted the old archives was all the way on the Île de la Cité, for goodness' sake.

She surveyed the tram timetable, still not quite willing to wear her eyewear. All the times and dates made her head spin. "This is definitely not like in the countryside," The brunette murmured.

Nathalie heard music and turned to see a man in a business suit, singing like he was the star of an opera. The whole music craze that had hit Paris recently had weirded her out to no end. He swaggered past, until he disappeared into another street, and she shook her head.

Where these people managed to hide their stereos so that the background music was playing with them, she didn't know. Oddly enough, some citizens of Paris were actually desensitized to these spells of music, even joining in. She would never understand city folk.

Nathalie managed to catch a tram that crossed to her destination, and she sat at the back, uneasily watching the crowded, places that passed by the window. The magnitude of what she was about to seek had hit her, and her nerves were getting the better of her. Then, she frowned, wondering why she could hear soft music. Some strange feeling filled her, and before she knew what she was doing, she opened her mouth.

"Heart, don't fail me now,
Courage, don't desert me,

Don't turn back now that we're here."

She paused for an instant, the thought: 'No way; what the heck is going on?' ran through her head, but the music had mingled with her emotions, and taken her.

"People always say: "life is full of choices",
No one ever mentions fear,"

Nathalie took a deep breath, and the song poured out of her, unaware of some of the looks she was getting.

"or how the road can seem so vast,
on a journey… to the past."

The motivational music was too much to resist, and the scenery changed as she travelled. Scenes of Paris revealed themselves in endless picturesque scenes, which mimicked paintings melding into a large gallery. Nathalie steeled herself, looking ahead.

"Somewhere down this road, I know someone's waiting.
Years of dreams just can't be wrong!
Arms will open wide; I'll be safe and wanted,
finally home where I belong."

The brunette hugged the folder to her chest at the thought.

"Well, starting now I'm learning fast,

on this journey to the past."

Looking from her position at the back, a mother and father were doting on their young child a few seats in front of her, and Nathalie looked on longingly.

"Home, love, family; there was once a time I must have had them too.
Home, love, family; I will never be complete until I find you!"

Nathalie was resolute as the tram pulled to a stop, and no longer was thinking about the atmosphere around her. It was time she found her roots, as she stepped off the tram and examined the traveller's handbook she had in her pocket as she began to walk.

"One step at a time,
one hope then another.
Who knows where this road may go?
Back to who I was,
on to find my future,
things my heart still needs to know.
Yes, let this be a sign!
Let this road be mine!
Let it lead me to my past.

And bring me home…
at last!"

THUD.

Welp, the brass was gone and the feeling left as quickly as it came. Nathalie found herself standing out of breath, facing the front door of her destination. She shook her head, wondering where the heck that came from. Obviously, the 'Singing Sickness' she'd been hearing about was more than a clever gimmick.

"Weird, I usually can't sing to save my life," She said to herself, and then pushed the door open. Nathalie had other things to think about at that moment.

It was about as old and musty as she had expected it to be, with dull lighting, old green carpet flooring and a thick, neither pleasant nor unpleasant smell. There was a sign to the left of her that read 'archives', and after a bit of wandering, she found the help desk that supposedly belonged to the one person she was looking for. She spotted a small bell and rang it a few times.

Then she stood, waiting.

Waiting still.

She rang the bell a few more times, until finally, a disgruntled looking man opened the door with a creak, and stomped up to the desk. Nathalie unconsciously stepped away when she saw how damned angry he appeared.

"What?" He said in a scratchy, grouchy voice.

"Um," She clutched her folder, blinking, before tentatively setting it down on the desk and sliding it towards him. What was this guy's problem? "Hello, I'm looking for a few records, to find someone - my biological mother. Do you have anything on a Blanche LeClair, from 1991 and onwards?"

He shook his head. "Look, there's been a… problem with the archival room at the moment. Some issues with the electricity, thanks to some snot-nosed kids getting in and messing up the place. No one but authorities and university students can access the place at the moment."

"Oh?" Nathalie said. "Surely there's something-"

"Nope, can't help you. Come back in a week or so, when I get this mess cleaned up."

Her blood was pumping at this point, and she couldn't believe her ears. "B-but you don't understand! I'm running low on cash, I'm only in Paris for another two days, and I can't take any more time off work back home, or else my boss will-"

"I'm sorry," The man said, though it didn't sound as though he was. In fact, he just looked even more irritated, if that was possible, and held her precious manila folder to her. "Look, there's nothing I can do, and frankly, I don't care. I can't help you."

Nathalie took it without a word, and as the man walked back into the back room and slammed the door with a bang.

"After all that work…" The young woman said to herself as she quietly quietly walked away.

Nathalie rested her hand on the door handle of the exit, and then stopped as her eyes rested on her wristwatch. It's digital numbers dutifully showed the time: 12:24pm. She stared at it for a few seconds, her face changing as an idea came to mind.

This idea lead to her hiding behind a bookshelf, peering at the archive's desk and waiting for that grouchy guy to take a lunch break. An elderly lady passed her, giving Nathalie an odd look, but the senior citizen left carrying her large-print romance novels without saying anything.

Finally, the man seemed to leave, putting an 'out to lunch' sign on his desk before stomping off. Nathalie took her chance, making sure no one was around before sneaking towards the door. It was left slightly ajar, she realised, and the brunette pushed through with no trouble. Inside was a hallway – one doorway leading to what looked like an office of some kind, and one other doorway. Choosing the latter, she found a large room filled with filing cabinets.

"Bingo," She whispered. Nathalie probably only had 15 minutes, tops, before the man returned, and she quickly began to sift through the papers.

Loose papers littered the floor, and more that were obviously arranged in piles as the man had obviously attempted to clean up. A few children's movies were also around, namely Disney DVD's and whatnot. There was also crayon on some of the shelves and a few folders, and she supposed this was what he meant by 'snot-nosed kids' running rampant. She stifled a giggle as she saw the colourful, misshaped drawings. Even without her glasses, she could see how bad the damage was. Cute little brats.

In the end of the room, Nathalie noticed a wooden door, which looked surprisingly old and out of place. Nathalie was distracted by how ornate it was – there was something odd about it. There was an unusually decorative letter-opening in the door where mail would come in though a copy of Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame was tastefully jammed into it. Oh, the memories that old movie dredged up. She smiled at that.

Nathalie shook herself, realised that she had a job to do, and then froze when she heard footsteps. Had she really been standing, staring at that hypnotising door for so long? Behind the glass panel of the door to the archives, she saw a figure move to the offices. Her mind whirred, as she knew that he would soon return to continue cleaning.

The brunette approached the door, pulling out some bobby pins and frantically attacking the lock. "13 years in foster care, don't fail me now," She whispered.

There was a click, and she immediately dropped the pin and opened the door. It opened with a creak, and she then shut it behind her.

Nathalie stood there, pressing her ear to the door and hearing nothing. It was then that she turned, to see that the room was… an attic of some sort? It looked old and musty, with cobwebs on the ceiling. There was an old bed, covered in dust, and a small amount of light filtering through a hole in the ceiling. A window was also on the opposite sides of the room, with rough wooden shutters closed to the outside world.

In short, it looked like the whole room was an antique.

After a few moments, Nathalie turned back to the door, wanting to open it cautiously and check if the man was still there. She then frowned when she realised that the doorknob was stuck, and in fact, there wasn't even a keyhole, and there was no sign of the dvd in the letterhole. Was she trapped? Scared, she gave a few hard tugs on the door.

It was then that Nathalie heard it, softly at first, and vaguely familiar.

"Olim, olim deus accelere…."

Bells? Chanting? Oh God, that tune… It both figuratively and literally rang a bell.

"…hoc saeculum splendidum,"

She cautiously approached the window, hands resting on the wooden handles as the bells continued ringing. Dare she?

"…accelere fiat venire olim."

Gathering her courage, she opened the shutters, and was greeted with the sight of an old landscape, peasants milling about. However, she was distracted with the Notre Dame Cathedral being startlingly close down the road, and the sound of a blaringly large orchestra, singing an all too familiar tune.

Nathalie slammed the shutters closed before they could end the last note, and backed away. "Oh my God," She whispered, as her knees buckled under her.

Of all the movies to end up in, why did it have to be the darkest of them all?

A/N:

Phew, that was a monster of a chapter. I hope you enjoyed!