Revealed Unintentionally

Today was the big day. Everyone was going to get together in the Secret Garden. Rebecca left the cathedral early in the morning and headed to the Secret Garden to round up all her friends. When she got there, she saw that they were all lying in the grass. Did none of them go home? Then again, the blonde figured that she shouldn't be surprised. The flow of time is different here in the Pure Valley.

"Guys," Rebecca called to her friends. "Guys, get up."

They all got on their feet and Guilmon said, "We were just resting. What's going on?"

The blonde laughed. "It's already morning back in Paris. That means Moki and I get to bring you-know-who here to see you again."

Rin became ecstatic. "He's coming here?" she asked with glee. "I can't wait to see him!"

"We should give him a big welcome once he gets here," Shippo suggested.

Rini got an idea. "Let's hide in the shrubs, then we'll jump out and surprise him."

Rebecca liked that idea. "Great. You guys do that and I'll head back to the cathedral." And she ran back to Celestic Falls while her friends went to hide in the shrubs. Rebecca walked through the door back to the world of Medieval Paris, but rather than wind up back in the bell tower, she chose to appear at the entrance to the cathedral knowing the morning mass would be starting. She stood at the pews waiting for Mokuba so they could attend the service and pray that good fortune would come their way today.

By the time Mokuba made it down the stairs, the bells began to ring, signaling that mass was now starting. The two young lovers listened as the Archdeacon began his service, reciting passages from the Bible and asking everyone to join him in prayer. Mokuba closed his eyes and clasped his hands together, praying for God to keep him and Rebecca safe in this world and for Quasimodo and the others to get along and become friends. Rebecca also closed her eyes and clasped her hands together. She prayed for help in making sure she and Mokuba would help Quasimodo safely make it to the Secret Garden and have him back to the tower before Frollo would even find out.

About an hour later, the service ended, but Mokuba and Rebecca could not go back to the bell tower. They were about to until they heard a dark voice asking, "Lovely service, wasn't it?"

Mokuba and Rebecca shuddered, knowing who the voice belonged to. They turned around and gasped as they saw the evil Judge Claude Frollo standing behind them. The raven-haired lad stepped back, stuttering, "Oh, g-g-g-good m-m-morning, Minister." Rebecca whimpered and hid behind her boyfriend.

"Indeed," the minister returned, grinning. "We haven't met before, have we?"

"No, sir," Mokuba weakly replied. He gulped and added, "but we've seen you around town many times."

"I was going to say the same thing about you," Frollo returned. "I've seen you two out and about and coming to the cathedral."

"We're just a couple of church-goers," Mokuba lied.

Rebecca smiled nervously. "Right, so, umm, we should be going now," she said nervously. "Our folks will be expecting us."

"Yes, run along," Frollo told them. "But be careful, or people will think you're up to something," he said coldly, gently patting their heads. As he turned around, Rebecca scowled and stuck out her tongue at him. The minister turned around and said, "Oh, and I'll tell the bell ringer you said 'hello.'"

The children silently gasped. Did Frollo know about their friendship? Did he see Mokuba come down from the bell tower? As they saw him walk up the stairs, Mokuba asked himself, "Oh, jeez, does he know?"

"If he does, then we've gotten Quasi in big trouble," said Rebecca.

"I don't think trouble's the right word to describe the situation," Mokuba said, facing her. "But I don't understand. How would he know? We've been avoiding him for weeks. We've been hiding from him carefully whenever he came to the tower."

"He's like a fox," Rebecca commented, "sly, sneaky, persistent, and he's clever too." Then her eyes widened. "Oh, no!" she silently cried.

"What's wrong, Rebecca?"

"Mokuba, do you think it's possible he's been eavesdropping on us?" she asked him. "That he's been listening to all the things we've been sharing with Quasi?"

Mokuba's eyes widened in shock. This meant that if Frollo was there when Mokuba and Rebecca told Quasimodo the stories of the Children of Millennia and their adventures in the other worlds, and if he had a shard of the Cobalt Star after all, then this meant he would be after the heroes. But if he had known everything all along, why didn't he come after him and Rebecca earlier? What was he waiting for?

That wasn't on Mokuba's mind right now. All he could think about was going to the bell tower to make sure his friend wasn't being brutally punished. He turned around and headed for the stairs.

"Moki, wait," Rebecca cried, following her boyfriend. But the boy didn't stop or look back. He was too worried about Quasimodo.

He made it inside, calling out to his friend. "Quasimodo," he cried, climbing up the steps.

The hunchback turned around and saw him coming his way. "Moki," he responded, catching him as he ran into his arms. "Are you okay? What's wrong?"

"Where is he?" he asked, frantically looking around the tower. "Are you all right? Did he hurt you?"

"Whoa, whoa, take it easy," the hunchback said, trying to calm him down. "What's wrong?"

At that moment, Rebecca made it up the stairs. Much to her relief, her friend was safe for the moment. "Oh, Quasi, thank goodness you're okay," she said, hugging him.

"Of course I am," he said, hugging her back. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"He knows," she told him. "He knows about us and he knows about the stories we've been sharing with you."

"Slow down, slow down," Quasimodo said calmly. "Who are you talking about?"

"Frollo," Mokuba cried. "We saw him in the cathedral and he knows everything! He approached us and said he would meet you for us. That's how we know he knows everything."

Quasimodo was shocked to hear that. How could his master have known about Mokuba and Rebecca when he had been hiding them so carefully from him for over a month? He was also worried about how much his master knew. But right now, all he could think about was helping his friends calm down. "Shh, it's all right. It's all right," he said gently. "Frollo's not here. I don't know how he would know about you two, but I swear, I haven't told him anything."

Mokuba took a few deep breaths to relax himself. "I know you didn't and I know you wouldn't. Then again, whether or not you told him anything, I can't be mad at you either way."

"What do you mean?" the hunchback asked.

The raven-haired lad finally calmed down. "I know you promised me and Rebecca that you'd keep us safe, that you wanted to be someone we could trust. I know because I wanted the same thing. But a promise like that is hard to keep; especially when loyalty comes first. Your loyalty to your master would eventually cause you to give in to him. Believe me, I know. I know because my loyalty to my brother has almost caused me to break my promise to you." Then he began to break down and start crying again.

"But it doesn't matter because he was going to find out either way," Mokuba sobbed. "I figured that much out when he sent Guilmon to spy on me. Now it's only a matter of time before my brother comes to this world and finds out about you and that scares me," he cried.

Quasimodo held Mokuba to comfort him. "Hey, I'm scared too. I always have been. I've always been scared that I would end up betraying you, that I would lose my only friends. But then I thought about you and how loyal you were to your brother. When I feared you would reveal the truth to him, I knew I couldn't be mad at you because you were loyal to him." He softens his grip and holds Mokuba by the shoulders. "Whatever happens, Moki, it's not your fault and it's not Becky's fault."

"It's not your fault either, Quasi," Mokuba returned. He wrapped his arms around the hunchback to hug him and Rebecca did the same thing.

"That's not the only thing that scares us," the blonde was saying. "We're worried that if Frollo heard the story about the Children of Millennia and if he's interested in them, then what if he has a shard of the Cobalt Star? I know it's too soon to know for sure, but even so, Moki and I are scared; scared that he'll come after us for more information."

Quasimodo pulled Rebecca close to him. "I don't know, Becky, but I promise, whatever happens, I'll protect you and Moki."

She sensed the seriousness in his words and knew he was telling the truth. And so did Mokuba. The both of them knew that Quasimodo would never hurt any of them or do anything to betray them. They knew he was a good person who fiercely cared about them.

Quasimodo released his friends from his embrace. "Now go on. I'll see you both later." The children nod and turn around and make their way out of the tower. He looked out the window and watched them. "Moki's such an understanding person," he silently told himself. "He really is empathetic, always putting himself in someone else's shoes and understanding their problems. And Becky, she's so supportive and caring."

From out of the shadows, Frollo emerged. "Well, I thought they would never leave."

Quasimodo gasped at the sight of him. "Master, I didn't realize-"

"Of course you didn't, dear boy," he interrupted. "But I knew your friends would be coming, so I decided to wait."

The hunchback began to feel his heart racing, worrying about the punishment that awaited him. "How long have you known?"

"For a long time now," the minister answered. "I didn't say anything earlier because I was waiting, wondering when you were going to tell me." Then he asked, "Were you ever going to tell me?"

Quasimodo sighed dejectedly. "Oh, Master, I would have told you sooner. I mean, I wanted to, but I was too ashamed and scared."

Frollo forced a thin smile and gently ruffled his hair. "Well, I suppose I can't punish you or blame you for that. It is quite understandable that you would feel that way. You were worried about those children."

He was. "I didn't want them to get hurt or have to suffer for my faults."

"Still, I wish you would have told me sooner," said Frollo. "I would have loved to have met them and learned about them. Then you would have avoided the fear of whatever you might have imagined would have happened." He stopped smiling and asked, "But do you really think you can trust them?"

Quasimodo did trust his friends and knew they were serious about wanting to be someone he could trust. "Since we met, they've been sincere."

"Children are known for being deceitful and manipulative," Frollo told him. "It comes naturally."

"Mokuba and Rebecca aren't like that at all, Master," Quasimodo protested. "When they said they like me-,"

Frollo laughed in disbelief. "Like you? Quasimodo, that's absurd." He laughed again. "This is why I never wanted you to meet anyone. People will say anything to take advantage of you and when the time is right for them, they'll hurt you without care or remorse."

Quasimodo didn't want to believe it. To him, Mokuba and Rebecca were honest and good and very understanding of him.

"Honestly, boy, what were you thinking?" the minister asked. "That you would get to the children and Millennia's warriors would welcome you with open arms?" He laughed again. "What an idea." Then he thought to himself, What an idea! This presented a perfect opportunity. If Quasimodo were to get close enough to the children, the hunchback could earn the trust of the Heroes of Millennia and when the time was right, Frollo would attack.

Quasimodo was in even more shock. "You know about the warriors of Millennia? How?"

"I have my ways," Frollo said, composing himself. "But I know it's just a children's fantasy."

The hunchback was becoming even more concerned, fearing that his master was a servant to the Dark Lord. No, he didn't want to believe it. He trusted his master and would never see him as someone who would tread on the path of evil.

"When Mokuba and Rebecca return, tell them to enjoy their time with you while they can," Frollo said, leaving the bell tower.

As Quasimodo watched his master leave, he found himself becoming even more scared for his friends, fearful that they were in danger from the minister. Still, he promised Mokuba and Rebecca that he would protect them.