Chapter 3:Sun God
Instead, I went back to the tent and carefully began to change. A few minutes later, I heard Clopin proclaim Quasimodo as the king of fools and Esmeralda returned seconds later. I helped her change until I realized what I had heard Clopin say. I was so used to calling him Athelstan I didn't realize until it was too late what had happened.
I gasped and turned to the entrance of the tent, staring at it in horror before running out. "No!"
"Asperity wait!" Esmeralda followed me and we both reached the edge of the crowd just in time to see a flying vegetable hit my brother's face.
Tears began warming my face against the oddly warm January day and more people began to throw garbage and rotten produce at my brother. I was frozen, unable to move even when he tried to get away and they tied him down to a spinning table. Despite his efforts to escape, the townspeople succeeded and spun him around, now throwing eggs.
Clouds began rolling in and I finally snapped. "No!" I pushed forward through the crowd with Esmeralda close behind. What should have taken us mere seconds, took us minutes and many painful elbow jabs and blows to make it to the steps of where my brother was tied down.
His cries for mercy rang hauntingly in my ears as we ascended the steps.
Time stopped. People froze, their arms drawn back behind their heads, wound up to strike again. their faces fell in astonishment as I knelt beside him, staring into his eyes with sorrow, and covering him with my sob racked body and as my sister took off her gypsy sash and gently began to clean his face.
"I'm sorry," she said softly. "This wasn't supposed to happen."
I drew myself off of Athelstan's back and brushed the hair out of his eyes.
"You there! Gypsy girls! Get down at once!" Frollo's shrill voice rang across the square.
I looked at him hatefully and bleary eyed as Esmeralda addressed the evil looking man in black robes. "Yes your honor," –I snorted at the ill given title- "Just as soon as we free this poor creature." She tied her sash back on and I stiffened at the title she had given him. He was no creature… I began to murmur sympathies into my brothers ear, reassuring him that it was going to be all right.
"I forbid it!"
I could almost feel the venom dripping off his words even as Es whipped out her knife and snapped the chords holding my brother down. The crowd gasped as we openly defied the judge and helped Athelstan stand up.
"How dare you defy me!"
"You mistreat this poor boy the same way you mistreat my people!" I glared daggers at the judge. "You speak of justice, yet you are cruel to those most in need of your help!" I put as much venom in my words as I possibly could, hoping it would poison him enough to shut his mouth. It didn't work. Sadly.
"Silence!" he thundered.
"Justice!"
"Mark my words, gypsies, you will pay for this insolence." He pointed a pale, bony figure at us, as if he was threatening. Don't get me wrong, he was increasingly terrifying me to the point where I thought he would grab the captains sword himself and decapitate us right there, but from this distance, he just looked like an old man scolding his granddaughters.
"Then it seems we've crowned the wrong fool," I stated, taking the jester's crown off my dear brothers head and holding it up after a small mock bow. "The only fool I see, is you!" I tossed the hat at his feet and sneered at him in disgust. I suddenly realized as Frollo order the captain to arrest us that we would be lucky to make it out of this with our lives. I wondered where Clopin was through all of this, even as the guards pressed in around the stage.
"Let's see. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten of you, and two of us," the green eyed gypsy counted. "What's a poor girl to do?" she pretended to cry and pulled a handkerchief out of her petticoat and blowing her nose. The explosion of smoke that ensued allowed us to disappear to 2 different ends of the square.
"Oh boys, over here!" we called the guards at the same time and it took them a while to locate the both of us. Gee, load of Paris' finest you have there, Judge.
At least they were smart enough to split into two groups and chased us as we led them in a magnificent tease. It was great fun. Especially since the townspeople were cheering us on.
At one point, a helmet of one of the guards lend on Esmeralda's head and with it, she knocked out two guards on horses, and it flew into a post, sheering a flag in half.
"What a woman!" the captain sat up, having ducked to avoid the violent projectile.
I managed to pull the pants down on a stilted man and de-horse another few soldiers.
In the end, we both end up on the roof of the stage I had danced on and disappeared under a cloak. Frollo's small throne ensemble had been torn down and the thought of it made me laugh. It began to rain as I hid in an alley and watched Es and Djoli enter the cathedral under the guise of an old man. We were wanted fugitives now; I heard the judge charge the captain with finding us and taking us to the palace of justice. There was no way in Hades I was going there. I slipped into the cathedral as well, by some miracle unnoticed. At least that's what I thought.
I met up with my sister inside. "Are you okay?" I asked her absently, wondering where my brother went off to. I hadn't seen him since before we escaped.
"Yes. Are you?"
I nodded, suddenly acutely aware of the captain of the guard behind us. Esmeralda noticed as well and in a second, we had him backing up to a pillar on his back with his sword in Es' hands. "You!" she snarled at him.
"Whoa… easy, easy. I just shaved this morning."
"Really?" I asked.
"You missed a spot." I really don't think Es liked him very much.
He couldn't back away anymore. "I just wanted to apologize."
"For what?" I took a small step back warily, eyeing him suspiciously.
The captain of the guard kicked Esmeralda's feet out from under her and she dropped his sword into his hands trying to grasp me for support. We both went down and landed on the hard marble floor. "That, for example."
I hissed and curled my fingers like claws.
"Down tiger." He was already standing up and gave me a pointed, warning glance.
"You sneaky son of a-"
"Ah, ah, ah! Watch it. We're in a church." He glanced around to see if anyone was watching.
With a small flip, we both stood up and swung a candle staff at the guard. "You always this charming?"
We began pushing him towards the doors.
He laughed. "Candlelight," he's so punny, "Music. Privacy. Couldn't think of a better place for hand-to-hand combat!"
We only pushed him back harder, blocking his blows to us.
"You fight almost as well as men," he commented. Was he surprised?
"Funny, we were about to say the same thing about you," Es grunted.
"That's hitting a bit below the belt, don't you think?" he wasn't so happy now.
"No. This is." I aimed a hit to 'a bit below the belt', but he blocked so Esmeralda hit him upside his chin.
He shook the blow off, grinning. "Touché."
Was this seriously funny to him? What an-
Djoli butted his stomach, making him groan in pain.
"I didn't know you had a kid."
"He doesn't take kindly to soldiers." We backed off, in case he attacked again.
"I noticed." The captain straightened up and lowered his sword, releasing his middle. We didn't flinch. "Permit me. I'm Pheobus. It means, Sun God." He seemed rather self-righteous and maybe a bit smug about his name.
Esmeralda and I glanced at each other and back at Sun God, un-amused. "And I'm Asperity, in case you didn't catch that at the beginning of my performance. It means I have a sharp temper." I set my candle stick down. "I thought the sun was supposed to be bright."
"That's not very nice."
"Does it look like I care?"
He ignored me and turned to my sister. "And you are?" his voice softened.
"Is this an interrogation?" her voice stayed the same. It made me proud.
"It's called an introduction." Sun God sheathed his sword and clasped his hands behind his back.
Now I was confused. "You're not going to arrest us?"
"Not as long as you're in here." He gestured around us. "I can't."
"You're nothing like the other soldiers." My sister set her candle post down and crossed her arms across her chest. "So if you're not going to arrest us-"
"What do you want?" I finished, crossing my arms as well.
"I would settle for your name." Sun God's eyes never left Esmeralda's. I almost became sick.
Sure you would, I rolled my eyes, sighing, and looked at Djoli. He just looked back me.
"Esmeralda." She smiled softly and met his gaze.
I threw my hands up in defeat. Even Djoli seemed disappointed.
We're doomed.