Hey guys! Sorry it took so long! I finally got around to Role playing again. So here's chapter 14!
Chapter 14: Notre Dame part 4
When they all took refuge in the sanctuary, Alphonse (being the tallest) took a head count. He sighed at the end result.
"What's the matter?" Sora asked, "Everyone's here."
"Not everyone. Quasi's gone."
"Maybe the judge took him away somewhere," Donald suggested, "I'm sure he's okay."
Alphonse shook his head, "I don't know... that was one scary old man. I mean, he gave me the creeps. And did you see that dark aura?"
"Pete," Sora replied with a frustrated huff.
Ed sighed. "Maybe he's back up in the bell tower..." he mumbled. He then looked over to see that they weren't alone. "OH! It's you!" Ed said and blushed a bit.
The gypsy girl, Esmarelda, turned to the group a bit surprised. "Oh! Hello..." she said and smiled. "Sorry, I thought you guys were a couple of Frollo's guards..."
"Oh no! Don't worry, we won't tell them anything! We're actually glad you're okay," Kairi said and looked to Sora and Riku. "Right?"
"Y-Yeah..." Sora said blushing sheepishly.
Alphonse nodded. If armor could wear its emotions...
"Have you seen Quasimodo anywhere?" Donald asked her, "We're worried about him... I mean, after what happened and all."
Esmarelda shook her head sadly. "No... If I knew who he was, I would have never pulled him up on the stage..." she said sadly.
"It's not your fault. You didn't know..." Ed said and frowned. "Oh! By the way, thanks for the new power," he said, referring to the blizzard attack he received earlier.
"No problem. After all, I couldn't make very much use of it..." she said and smiled, but her smile suddenly turned upside down when she saw the man in gold armor walk in behind the group. She quickly pushed past the group and shoved Phoebus to the ground, pulling out his sword and pointing it to his neck. "YOU!"
"E-Easy, easy-I just shaved this morning!" he said, holding up his hands in defense.
"Oh really? You missed a spot!"
"It's Captain Phoebus!" Alphonse exclaimed in alarm.
Sora looked at the armor and then at the man on the floor, "Hey! He was with Frollo!"
"But he's not a bad guy!"
"Al's right, Sora!" Donald exclaimed, "He actually helped the gypsies before!"
Phoebus nodded to the others then looked to Esmarelda. "All right, all right. Just calm down. Just give me a chance to apologize!"
Esmarelda sneered at him, despite the others' protests. "For what?"
Phoebus then grabs the sword back from her and knocks her down. "That, for example."
"Why you sneaky son of a-" she growled, but Phoebus interrupted her.
"Ah, ah, ah! Watch it-you're in a church."
"Are you always this charming or am I just lucky?" she asked, getting up.
Ed snorted and rolled his eyes, crossing his arms.
Riku smirked at him and shoved him in the side. "Jealous?"
"NO!"
Sora and Donald snickered as well. Alphonse on the other hand was more concerned with the Captain's presence. "What the heck is he doing here?"
"I dunno, but he seems to be on a date with Esmerelda," Sora laughed.
"Hmmm... It's not really going all that well for him, is it?"
Esmarelda then takes a candle staff and swings it at Phoebus, but he blocks it with his sword.
"Ah! Candlelight...music... Can't think of a better place for hand-to-hand combat! You fight almost as well as a man," Phoebus laughed as the two fought.
"Funny...I was going to say the same thing about you!"
"That's hitting a little below the belt, don't you think?"
"No...this is," she said and was about to hit him in the crotch, but Phoebus blocks with his sword. She then quickly hits him in the face with the other end of the staff.
Phoebus shakes it off. "Touche!" he said just as Djali head butts him in the chest. "I didn't know you had a kid..."
"Well, he doesn't take too kindly to soldiers..." Esmarelda said, putting the staff back down.
"Eh...I noticed," he said, holding his chest. "Permit me. I'm Phoebus. It means... Sun God," he said and smirked. Esmarelda and Djali just looked at each other.
Ed rolled his eyes again. "Sun God? That has nothing to do with Letoism, does it?" he asked, disgusted.
"Er...no, I don't think so," Phoebus said, almost forgetting the others were there with them. "And you are?" he asked Ed.
"Is this an interrogation?" Ed asked, raising an eyebrow.
"It's called an introduction."
"So you're not arresting us?" Esmarelda asked, surprised.
"Well, not as long as you're in here. I can't."
"Oh, thank goodness," Alphonse sighed, "Claiming sanctuary actually was a good idea then."
"You really think he'd arrest us anyway?" Donald asked the armored boy.
"No, but you never know who's watching."
Sora shuddered at those words, "That sounds creepier than you think, Al."
Riku nodded. "Yeah, thanks a lot, Al... I'm sure Pete wouldn't give a crap whether we claimed sanctuary or not."
Phoebus blinked at the group. "Pete? Who's that?"
"You mean you don't know?" Kairi asked.
Phoebus just shook his head. "Nope, no clue..."
"Then you're probably just one of Frollo's puppets," Ed mumbled, but not loud enough for Phoebus to hear.
"You're not like other soldiers..." Esmarelda said, looking up at his face.
"Thank you."
"So if you're not going to arrest us, what do you want?"
"I'd settle for your names first," he said to her than looked to the others. "There are some new faces here."
"I'm Riku. This is Edward and Sora. I'm sure you've met the others."
Phoebus smiled and nodded. "Pleasure. It's also good to see you guys again," he said then turned back to Esmarelda.
"Esmarelda," she said and smiled.
"Beautiful... Much better than Phoebus anyway."
"Brother!" Alphonse scolded, lightly jabbing Ed in the ribs for that previous comment. But before another word could be said, Frollo and his guards appeared at the door of the cathedral.
"Good work, Captain! Now arrest her!"
Sora jumped a bit and then his confidence came back. "Wait," he whispered to the others, "We claimed sanctuary! He can't get us in here! You better do it too, Esmerelda!"
"I'm waiting, Captain!" Frollo called, getting impatient.
Phoebus quickly looked to Esmarelda. "Claim sanctuary!"
She just glared at him.
"Say it!" he whispered loudly.
"You ticked me..." she snarled.
When she didn't say it, Phoebus quickly turned around and faced Frollo. "I'm sorry, sir. They claim sanctuary. There's nothing I can do," he said and folded his arms behind his back.
Ed huffed and glared daggers at Frollo. 'Like he cares!' he thought, but stayed hidden behind Al a bit. He wasn't going to take a chance. Not after the trouble he caused.
Frollo growled and the dark aura surrounded him again. "Then drag them outside at-!"
But before any Heartless could appear and Sora could summon his keyblade, the Archdecon came out of his quarters. "Frollo! You will not touch them!" He approached the group and smiled warmly, "Don't worry. Minister Frollo learned years ago to respect the sanctity of the church." At the Judge's name, the Archdeacon looked at him and sneered.
The judge then approached Esmerelda and hissed, "You think you've outwitted me, but I am a patient man, and gypsies don't do well inside stone walls..." He paused and breathed deeply, smelling her hair.
"What are you doing!" Alphonse exclaimed in frustration.
"I was just imagining a rope around that beautiful neck."
"I know what you were thinking, you sicko!" Sora growled.
"Such clever witches. So typical of your kind, to twist the truth to cloud the mind with unholy thoughts. Well, no matter. You've chosen a magnificent prison, but it is a prison nonetheless. Set one foot outside, and you're mine!" And with that he left.
Djali started head butting Phoebus. "All right, all right! I'm going!" he said and started to exit the church.
Ed was about to run up to Frollo and punch him in the face, but just stood next to Esmarelda when he left. "Bastard!" he yelled a bit too loudly.
Riku quickly put a hand over Ed's mouth and told him to shut up. One, because they were in a church and two, they wanted to avoid causing anymore trouble at the moment.
Kairi sighed. "Now what do we do? We're stuck in here!"
Esmarelda quickly ran to the door and pulled it open, looking outside to see guards. "Frollo's orders. Post a guard at every door." Frustrated, she then slammed the door shut and Djali walks up to her. "Don't worry, Djali-If Frollo thinks he can keep us in here, he's wrong."
The archdeacon shook his head. "Don't act rashly, my children. You created quite a stir at the festival. It would be unwise to arouse Frollo's anger further."
"You saw what he did out there, letting the crowd torture Quasi!" Sora protested.
But again, the archdeacon shook his head. "You can't right all the wrongs in this world by yourselves." He then bid them a good night and retired to his chambers.
"Well, no one out there's gonna help, that's for sure..." Kairi said and sighed.
"You think maybe I could transmute us a door and get us the heck out of here?" Ed asked, looking at all the walls.
"Transmute?" Esmarelda asked, raising an eyebrow. "You mean like an alchemist?" She knew what alchemy was, but she had never seen it performed before. The only alchemist she had ever heard of was one named Nicholas Flamel.
Ed grinned sheepishly. "Yeah, my brother and I are alchemists..."
"Still...we don't know this building very well. We don't know where your exit will lead us. And it could cause attention..." Riku mentioned.
"We are already being accused of witchcraft, Ed," Alphonse warned.
Sora shoved his hands in his pockets, "Well, Frollo was right. I myself don't do well behind walls for a long period of time. But if this is the safest place we can stay..."
"Reminds me too much of Liore," Al thought a loud. As he said this, he walked down the aisles past the pews where praying parishioners muttered their wishes to God. "But the cathedral sure is prettier... I really enjoy the stained glass."
Ed shrugged as he walked down the aisles with his brother, shoving his hands in his pockets. "They all look the same to me..." he muttered angrily.
"Must have been some pretty bad experience, huh?" Kairi asked Ed, seeing that he got moody every time they talked about religion.
"You have no idea... God must hate me or something."
"Well, if it makes you feel any better, I'm an outcast too..." Esmarelda said and looked up at the statue they were standing in front of. "I wonder if He will listen to any prayers from us..." she said sadly and looked to the ground. "My people need help…"
Alphonse didn't want to tell Esmerelda that he, like his brother, was an atheist, but he humored her. "Yeah, I hope someone will listen. If anything, we need some kind of hope."
"I get the feeling that Alphonse is an optimist while his brother's a pessimist," Sora whispered to his friends.
"Well," Donald snickered, "I'm sure Ed would argue that he's a realist, not a pessimist."
"What's the difference?"
"Uh, well...I think realist looks at thing as they are and a pessimist looks at life negatively. That won't be good when we get back on the gummi ship. We need to make sure Ed is smiling!" Goofy said and smiled.
Riku sighed and shook his head. "Never mind..."
Esmarelda sighed. "I hope so... I need some kind of sign that things will be alright for my people. I don't even care what happens to me..."
Ed shrugged. He knew how she felt. He would do anything to make sure his brother was safe, even if it meant giving up his own life.
As they all talked amongst themselves, Quasimodo had climbed down from the bell tower to the steeple to check up on his new friends. But he lost his footing and knocked over a candelabra. A parishioner spotted him and stood up.
"You! Bell ringer! What are you doing down here! Haven't you caused enough trouble already?"
Sora whipped his head in the direction the man was shouting and he too saw the hunchback. "Quasi!"
But he was too shocked to notice Sora had greeted him warmly. He then began to run back up to his roost.
"Wait!" Esmarelda called and chased after Quasimodo before anyone could say anything. "I want to talk to you!"
"Well, let's go follow them," Kairi said and took off second.
"I guess maybe we should have just gone up to the bell tower in the first place," Ed said and sighed.
"That may sound like a good idea now, but I doubt it would have been a good idea before," Alphonse said, chasing after his brother.
Sora shrugged, "Whatever gets us to Quasi faster. Quasi! Quasi! It's us! Your friends!"
But the bell ringer didn't hear him as he stumbled into his chambers. At the same time, his gargoyle friends began to encourage him.
"Congratulations!" Victor exclaimed.
"Got the girls chasing you already!" Hugo said, nudging Quasi in the side.
"Here you are. I was afraid I lost you," Esmarelda said, finally catching up to Quasimodo.
Kairi pounced out after her, a big smile on her face. "So you're Quasimodo! Nice to meet you!"
"Oh look! He has two girls chasing after him!" Hugo whispered to Lavern and Victor so Esmarelda or Kairi wouldn't notice them.
Just then Ed and the others ran out as well. "That's a lot of stairs!" Ed huffed.
"Not as much as Yen Sid's Tower," Goofy reminded the boy.
"PLEASE don't remind me of that EVER. AGAIN!"
Quasimodo smiled briefly at Ed, Riku, and Sora, but turned away at the girls and the armor. "Yes. Um, well, I uh, I have chores to do. It was, uh, nice...seeing...you...again. Ohh..."
"I knew he'd be afraid of me, everyone's afraid of me..." Alphonse groaned as he sat down next to the 'frozen' gargoyles. As he did so, Victor shot a quick glance at Al in surprise.
"Quasi," Sora started, approaching him, "Look, we're sorry, we tried to help you back there, but the crowds-"
"It's fine. Like Master Frollo said, I deserved it..."
"No wait!" Esmarelda called as Quasi took off to the safety of his bell tower again. "I'm really sorry about this afternoon! I would never in my life would have...pulled you...up on the...stage..." she said, stopping to examine the room she was standing in, looking at all the handmade decorations. "What is this place?"
Ed came in from behind Esmarelda and smiled. "This is where he lives. He made all of these. Aren't they amazing?" he asked.
"You made all of these, yourself?" she asked.
"Most of them," Quasimodo replied sheepishly, calming down a bit.
Sora smiled, "Finally, you're warming up again! That's the Quasi I know!"
"We barely know him!" Donald hissed to the boy.
"SHHH!"
Alphonse looked at the gargoyles and poked Hugo in curiosity, "So well made, I wonder who carved them?"
Riku looked at the gargoyles confused and wondered why they didn't move this time. "Actually they're..." he then stopped and shook his head. "I don't know..." he said, thinking its best just to let Al believe they're just stone. It's possible they didn't want to become animated because there were too many people here.
"This is beautiful," Esmarelda said, fingering the mobiles. "If I could do this, you wouldn't find me dancing on the streets for coins."
"But you're a wonderful dancer," Kairi said, Ed nodding in agreement.
"Well, it keeps bread on the table, anyway," she said and looked at two figures hiding under a cloth. "What's this?" she asked, lifting the cloth off of them.
"Oh, no, please oh, I'm not finished-I still have to paint them..." Quasimodo exclaimed, trying to get her not to touch his carvings.
Sora examined the table as well, "A blacksmith and a baker. You're a surprising person, Quasimodo!"
Donald nodded, "Not to mention lucky. All this room to yourself." He remembered how crowded a Gummi ship can get; even with only three people... well, now there were seven...
"Well, it's not just me-there's the gargoyles, and of course the bells. Would you like to see them?"
"Yes, of course! Wouldn't we, Djali?" Esmarelda asked, turning to her goat.
Djali paused and looked to her, half of a model of a shepard sticking out of his mouth before he sucked it in and ate the rest of the wooden model.
"I wouldn't mind seeing them too," Kairi said and smiled.
The others nodded and followed Quasimodo higher up to where the bells were kept, "I'll introduce you. That's Little Sophia, and... Jean Marie, Ann Marie, and Louise Marie. Triplets, you know."
"Heh, how funny!" Sora giggled to himself.
"And who's this?" Alphonse asked, touching a particularly large bell.
"Big Marie."
Esmarelda suddenly ran under the bell and yelled "HELLO!"
There was a loud echo and Riku peeked underneath it at her. "I think she likes you."
Ed and Kairi ran underneath the bells as well and had fun making their own echoes. "YODEL LE-HE-HOO!" Ed yelled and Kairi giggled, which echoed as well.
"Would you guys like to see more?" Quasimodo asked.
Donald turned to Sora, "How 'bout it?"
Sora, now too under Big Marie, belched loudly, which in turn echoes and resonated richly much to everyone's pleasure.
"I'll take that as a yes," Alphonse said between giggles.
"Good," Quasimodo said excitedly, "I've saved the best for last!" He led them outside onto the balcony to a beautiful view of Paris and the Seine. Everyone was breathless.
"I bet the king of Paris doesn't have a view like this. I could stay up here forever," Esmarelda said, leaning on the wall and sighing.
"So could I... This is beautiful!" Kairi said in awe. "This is a much better view than the one we have back home. All there is is a wide open sea."
"That still sounds beautiful," Ed said, letting the wind blow through his hair.
"We've never seen the ocean," Alphonse added.
Sora looked at him with a smile, "You should! It's really nice, maybe we can take you to our world sometime."
"Going to your world sounds nice. Our country is just surrounded by other countries and a desert... The only large body of water we've seen is a lake surrounding Yock Island," Ed said, staring down at the Seine River.
"I wonder how many worlds we'll visit before we can even go back to Destiny Islands," Goofy asked in wonder. "Maybe we'll stop at Atlantica on the way. Though that's under the sea..."
"Oh! I can't go in water!" Alphonse exclaimed, "My blood seal will wash off!"
"Blood... seal?" Sora asked, clearly not understanding how Al was bound to the armor.
Ed looked up at the group. "That's right, you guys don't know much about alchemy..." he said and walked over to Al, pulling off his helmet. "See that seal in there? That's what keeps Al's soul bonded to the armor. If it washes away...well..." he then bowed his head, not wanting to think about it.
"I saw that seal when Kairi and I first found him at Radiant Garden. It looks like it was drawn in blood..." Riku said, looking inside the armor again at the blood seal.
Ed nodded. "It was drawn in blood. My blood... After I lost my leg, Al was already taken, so I drew the seal on the armor and sacrificed my right arm to summon his soul back from the other side..."
"The other...side?" Kairi asked and tilted her head.
"The other side of the Gate of Truth..."
"It's a bit complex," Alphonse laughed as he took his head back.
Sora scratched his head and laughed sheepishly, "My head hurts already trying to figure it out..."
"But I'm sure if we go to Atlantica at all," Donald said with a smile, "I could use magic to protect your seal."
"Could you? That would be great!" Alphonse said excitedly.
"Well, maybe we won't have to go to that world at all. Or if we do, hopefully Al will have his body back before then..." Ed said and shrugged, pulling that book he received from the king out of Al's little pouch and reviewed it again. He then sighed as he flipped through the pages. "Wish I knew what the King was trying to tell me..."
"Maybe with the keyblade, human transmutation is possible?" Sora suggested.
Alphonse shook his head, "That's crazy. Alchemy and magic can't suddenly mix together for those kind of results!"
"I doubt even with magic it's possible to bring back the dead..." Ed said and sighed, snapping the book shut. "The sooner we find the king, the better."
"It may take us awhile to find him... He's always on the move," Riku mumbled, sticking his hands in his pockets.
Sora tilited his head to the side, "Whoever said Alphonse was dead?"
"He didn't mean me... I just don't have a-... never mind..." Alphonse figured it was useless to explain something to someone who wasn't even paying that close attention. He laughed to himself at Sora's air-headedness though.
Ed sighed again. "Never mind... It's not your problem anyway," Ed muttered and went back to look at the view.
"That's not true..." Kairi said and frowned. "You're our friends now. We care what happens to you guys and we want to help."
"So did the Colonel, and because of us, he's losing his heart to the darkness..." Alphonse mumbled.
Sora laughed, "And who says the same thing will happen to us? It's already happened to this idiot over here," At 'this idiot' he jabbed a thumb at Riku.
"Hey! WHO'S an idiot?" Riku asked, glaring at Sora.
Ed shrugged and frowned, remembering the Colonel. "That bastard better not lose his heart... He's not that weak!"
"He does have that lady friend to take care of him, so he should be fine," Goofy said, smiling.
Alphonse nodded, "Yeah Ed, there's always the Lieutenant. She'll whip him back into shape like she always does!"
"Just 'cause I'm naive, doesn't always make me stupid," Sora argued with his friendly rival, "Besides, I only turned into a Heartless once, you did it..." He then began to count on his fingers on how many Ansem battles he had to go through.
Donald face-palmed. You're further proving his point by doing that, Sora...
Riku sighed. "Yes, but sometimes you need to rely on the darkness at times too... You can't have light without darkness."
Kairi shrugged. "Man...here we go," she said, placing her hands on her hips.
"So what you're saying is," Sora smirked, "That your powers don't exist without me? Aww, how sweet, Riku! You're welcome!"
Alphonse giggled, "See Ed? Sora's pretty smart when it comes to cracking jokes!"
Both Riku and Ed face palmed. "Never mind..." Riku said and rolled his eyes.
"Uh huh...Sure he is," Ed said sarcastically then smirked.
"I just hope all the worlds will be at peace again," Kairi said and leaned against the wall to look out at the scenery again.
Quasimodo looked over at Esmerelda. They had separated themselves a bit farther from the others. "You could, you know... stay here."
"No, I couldn't..." Esmarelda said and spun around, leaning against the wall this time, her back against the view.
"Oh, yes you could," Quasimodo said to her excitedly, "You have sanctuary here! You'll be safe!"
"But not freedom. Gypsies don't do well inside stone walls," Esmarelda said, crossing her arms.
Quasimodo looked down shyly, not wanting to look Esmerelda in the eyes, "But you're not like other gypsies. They're...evil."
"Who told you that?" Esmarelda asked, surprised, looking to Quasimodo.
Quasimodo lowered his head even more in shame, "My master, Frollo. He raised me that way..."
"How could such a cruel man raise someone like you?" Esmarelda asked him sadly.
Quasimodo was shocked at Esmerelda's statement. "Cruel? Oh, no. He saved my life. He took me in when no one else would." He looked back down at his hands. "I am a monster, you know."
"He told you that?" Esmarelda asked, tilting her head. "Give me your hand," she said, holding her hand out to his.
Quasimodo began to protest Esmerelda, but she was too overpowering, "Huh? Why?"
"Just let me see," Esmarelda said and examined his hand. "Hmm, a long life line...oh, and this one means you're shy... Hmm. Hmm, hmm. hmm...well, that's funny... I don't see any."
"What? See any what?" Quasimodo asked, confused.
"Monster lines. Not a single one. Now you look at me. Do you think I'm evil?" Esmarelda asked, holding out her hand.
"No, no, no! You are kind, and good, and-" Quasimodo said, grabbing her hand. He paused a bit to think of another adjective to describe Esmeralda, but was too flustered to say one.
"-and a gypsy. And maybe Frollo's wrong about the both of us," Esmarelda said, continuing his thought.
Quasimodo thought about that for a moment and then suddenly made up his mind. He looked over at the others and waved them over, "Hey, come here a minute!"
"What is it, Quasi?" Sora asked.
"You helped me. Now I will help you get out of here."
Alphonse whimpered, "But there's no way out. There's soldiers at every door."
"We won't use a door."
"You mean...climb down?" Ed asked and gluped, looking over the ledge.
"No thanks!" Kairi said a little too quickly.
"And just how will we do that?" Riku asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Well," Quasimodo started, picking up Djali and handing him to Esmeralda, "You carry him, and I carry you."
"I can take Brother on my shoulders and someone in my armor," Alphonse suggested.
Sora laughed, "I'm going down solo! I've never been church surfing before!"
Donald sighed, "I don't think that's the idea..."
Ed shrugged. "Nah, I'll be fine on my own..." he said and hopped over the side before Sora could.
"Okay..." Esmarelda said and let Quasi carry her.
"C-Can I ride inside your armor?" Kairi asked, shaking a bit. "I-I've never been up this high before..." she said and poked her fingers together sheepishly.
"I'm going down solo as well..." Riku suggested.
"Er...Donald can ride on my back if I can ride on yours," Goofy said to Alphonse.
Alphonse nodded to both Goofy and Kairi and opened up his chest for her to climb inside, "Don't worry, you'll be safe in here."
"Alright then, Quasi! Lead the way!" Sora said, cracking his joints.
"Ready?" He asked Esmerelda, "Don't be afraid."
Donald quacked as Goofy picked him up and then climbed onto Alphonse.
"I'm not afraid..." Esmarelda said but as soon as Quasi jumped over, she looked down. "Now I'm afraid!"
Ed was slowly inching his way on the edges then dropped down, hanging from one of the stone gargoyles by the neck. He then swung his legs until he had enough momentum to swing over to the next gargoyle. He sighed, thankful he had enough muscle to do this. Riku was close behind him.
Kairi climbed inside Al and huddled in a ball inside him, wishing there was something she could grab onto to keep herself steady.
Alphonse laughed at his brother for almost losing his grip, "Brother! Just think of this as training on Yock Island! Remember all that climbing we did?" He was second after Ed, but Riku, Sora, and Quasi were way ahead of him. It was probably because he was so heavy.
"I would climb trees all the time back on the island at home!" Sora said. His acrobatic skills he actually learned from his adventures, but no one really needed to know that... but it was apparent when he slipped on one of the roof shingles. Luckily, Quasimodo was there to help him back up.
"You okay, Sora?"
"N-Never better! Heh heh..."
Ed rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, Al..." he said and swung again before flipping onto a nearby roof with ease.
"Careful Sora! I don't think there's a cure spell for being splat on the ground," Riku called to his friend, half teasing, half serious.
Goofy was clung tightly to Al, gulping as they swung and climbed.
"This would be so much easier if I could transmute a ladder..." Ed grumbled, continuing to maneuver his way down the side of the church.
"Why didn't you suggest it then!" Sora whimpered, finally landing next to Ed.
Quasimodo shook his head once he landed too. "That would be a bad idea. What if the guards saw it?"
"Oh yeah..." Alphonse said with a sigh, "'Witchcraft'... How can we tell them it's a science and not magic?"
Ed rolled his eyes. "Cause they're stupid!" Ed muttered and began to climb down the next few stories when the roof tile underneath his feet slipped loose and made him fall, riding the thing like a snow sled. "WAAAAAH!"
"ED!" Riku yelled, seeing the boy fly off the roof and catching himself on the side of the building as the tile flew off into a dark alley.
"Check the alley!" one guard yelled.
"This way!" another yelled, making them all run off into the alley.
Ed sighed and quietly jumped down when the guards disappeared, looking up at the others and grinned sheepishly, shaking a little in his boots.
"Ed how could you!" Alphonse hissed angrily as the rest of them made it to the ground.
Sora groaned, "Maybe we should get going then,"
Quasimodo nodded and smiled, "I'll never forget you guys. Especially you, Esmeralda."
"I-It was an accident!" Ed muttered, still shaking as the others joined him.
Kairi climbed out of Al's armor, falling to her knees, glad they were now on solid ground.
"Come with me," Esmarelda said, clasping Quasi's hands in hers. "All of you!"
"What!" Quasimodo asked in shock.
Sora tilted his head to the side and crossed his arms, "Huh? Where to?"
"To the Court of Miracles!" Esmarelda said excited. "Leave this place."
Ed shrugged. "The court of miracles? Is that where all gypsies gather?"
"Sounds fun!" Sora exclaimed excitedly.
"Oh, no." Quasimodo said sadly, "I'm never going back out there again. You saw what happened to me today. No. This is where I belong."
Alphonse appeared to frown, "Oh dear... that was awful what happened earlier..."
"All right, then I'll come see you," she said and smiled. She then turned to look at the others. "What about all of you?"
"I guess we have no choice. We don't really have anywhere else to go..." Riku said and shrugged.
"Yeah, maybe we'll see Clopin again," Kairi said and smiled.
"To the Court of Miracles!" Donald chimed in.
Quasimodo panicked a bit at Esemeralda's suggestion however, "What? Visit here? But, the soldiers, and Frollo, and... it's too dangerous!"
"She can come at sunset!" Sora suggested, shrugging, "No harm there, right?"
"But at sunset, I ring the evening mass, and after that, I clean the kooisters, and then I ring the vespers, and-"
Esmarelda then leaned over and kissed him on the cheek, making Ed twitch slightly.
"Whatever's good for you..." Quasi said, sinking into happiness from the kiss.
Esmarelda then pulls a talisman off her neck and hands it to Quasimodo. "If you ever need sanctuary, this will show you the way."
Kairi blinked and leaned over, looking at the talisman.
"But how?" Quasimodo asked.
Alphonse looked over his shoulder and awed at it, "It's so pretty..."
"I bet she made it," Sora said with excitement, "I want to learn how!"
Riku just smacked Sora across the back of the head. "This isn't the time, Sora!"
"Just remember: When you wear this woven band, you hold the city in your hand," Esmarelda said, just as the guards started to return.
"Crap, we have to get out of here..." Ed whispered.
"R-Right!" Sora stammered before waving to his new friend, "Bye Quasi! We'll come back for you!"
"That wasn't creepy at all..." Alphonse groaned as they all took off.
Donald looked up at Esmeralda, "So how do we get to this Court of Miracles?"
As the rest of them said good-bye, they ducked into dark alleys to keep themselves hidden.
"It's hidden beneath a graveyard," Esmarelda said as they ran through the shadows. They needed to move quickly before someone heard Al's clanking.
"Gee, that makes me feel safe..." Ed said and shivered.
End chapter 14