Hawaiian and the Hunchback
A/N: Yay! I got reviews! Thank you, everyone, you rock! I'm sorry about my complaints last chapter. I was childish and it was wrong of me to complain, but I just like knowing that my work is being read. Oh, and Cathy? I just gotta couple things to say to you: Thank you for the compliments and SHUSH! Don't give away the story! ha-ha Just kidding. Whatever. I'm happy that somebody caught on to what I was going toward. Okay! I'm in an awful good mood right now, so I'll just get on with it. Read and Review, please!
Chapter 12
Lilo awoke to the rising sun, when the morning started in a brilliant stretch of color and singing birds. Quasimodo had disappeared somewhere off into the bell tower, having left her alone again, still clutching tightly onto Scrump's limp body. Probably, Lilo thought as she lifted herself off of her side, to ring the morning bells. She sat up, stretching her arms in the day's first yawn, sighing gently as she slouched in relaxation.
Her eyes were still sticky and uncomfortable from yesterday's cry, she noticed, rubbing them quietly. She exhaled a long and solemn breath at the thought, her chin leaning against her chest as her mind filled with notions. Though her breath had been regained and her eyes dried overnight, her heart remained marred. Until then, she hadn't faced such a blatant reminder of her lost family, hadn't realized so flagrantly how much she had missed all of them. It hurt a lot, and it wouldn't go away, no matter how much Lilo beckoned it to leave. She didn't want to forget them, but didn't want to be affected so harshly by their mere memory. It didn't help her too much. It only made her realize just how hopeless the situation seemed. And Lilo did not like to feel hopeless. It was against her nature, after all.
She pulled herself up, the warmth slipping away with the falling blanket, a slight shiver running up her body. Shaking off the goose bumps, she hugged herself tight and ventured toward the high, open windows. She felt the frigid breeze of a winter morning as it passed through the opening, and she walked away as quickly as she could, back to the blanket and mattress. She replaced herself amongst the warmth, waiting for the slow heat of the blankets to pull her from her frozen state. She was sure she wouldn't find any warmth anywhere other than here in the bell tower. It was too open, too shadowed and shaded, and the pale rays of the sunrise would not yet reach a tolerable temperature.
So, Lilo thought in annoyance, I have to stay in bed all day.
She wouldn't half as minded had she been back home. Especially, she thought, if it were a school day, as she supposed it was now. She had left on a Tuesday, hadn't she? So... if she were at home, it would probably be... a Friday? But, Lilo thought, it was morning when I left home, and when I got here, I'm pretty sure it was night. So, are the days reversed? Is it morning here and night there? Maybe it was sunset, like it was sunrise here. Or maybe, it was a lot of hours behind wherever she was than it was in Hawaii... Now that she thought of it, it was winter here (she drew the conclusion from the cold), and she had left on a summer day... so was everything here warped? Maybe everything...
Lilo shook her head, bringing the blankets closer round her form. No more thinking, Lilo, she told herself, shaking an invisible finger. It's bad for you when you do it too much.
So, having chastised herself for that, she laid her head back down on the mattress and stared up at the high ceiling, tapping her fingers against her stomach, obviously bored. She heaved a frustrated groan and rolled over onto her side, looking Scrump straight in the face.
"What am I supposed to do?" She asked the doll. "Quasimodo isn't here, so I'm probably not allowed to play with his dolls. I don't know where I put my bag, and it's too cold; I don't want to look for it. And I already told myself that thinking is bad! And I know I can't go back to sleep..."
The doll didn't answer, seemingly ignoring the Hawaiian's question and continuing to stare blankly forward. Lilo frowned, and shook her head, lying down on her back again, closing her eyes.
Nothing to do, nothing to do... She repeated the words in her head several times over, muttering, annoyed, to herself as time ticked away in slow seconds. The chiming of a clock's bell sounded, informing her of the time, 7:00.
She was reminded suddenly of her broken alarm clock. She wondered if Nani would by her a new one when she got home.
"Stitch would probably break that one too," she ventured, laughing to herself.
She watched as sunlight fringed the edges of her vision. Oh well, she thought. The sun was going to be warm enough soon. Might as well think. After all, a few minutes wasn't too long was it?
Meanwhile, back in the modern, sun-bathed island of Hawaii, in a fairly average elementary school lined with groves of shady palm trees, a young girl and her group of peers walked along the sands of the playground, nattering and gossiping all the while. The leader of the troupe, standing at the center, surrounded by four or more little girls, held a little doll in her hands with a shock of red hair, a color near identical to her own. Her face was bespectacled, and the expression she wore was pompous and just a smidgeon spoiled.
"-And that's what I got on my birthday," Myrtle said, stopping under the shadow of a great tree, its trunk surrounded by a circular wooden bench.
"Wow, Myrtle," one girl said, a look of awe on her round face, "you're so lucky!"
"Yeah!" the other girls responded in unison.
Myrtle's smile was smug. "That's because I'm special. Even the teacher says so."
All nodded quietly, all but kowtowing to their redheaded queen bee. Myrtle was always the leader, always inspiring and admired by those that followed her like dogs on a leash. Sometimes even when the girls disagreed with the brat, which was more often than they would've liked too admit. They seemed frightened of confessing such a thing, and so, despite all of Myrtle's annoying characteristics and utter bossiness, they continued to follow, frightened of venturing the idea of a world without her.
So there they all stood, shaded by the mesh of green leaves above them, silent and unsure of what to talk about. The sounds of birds in the branches above seemed unusually loud, and the laughter of playing children chagrined them horribly.
"I wonder where Lilo is," a blond, pigtailed girl spoke up, bringing up the subject as if it were something barely fit to mention.
"I dunno," another replied, running her fingers through her doll's hair. "She hasn't been going to class..."
"She's probably back in her room crying like a baby," Myrtle said, a wicked sneer taking her round face. "Look at me!" she exclaimed, jumping before her peers. "I'm Lilo! I'm a baby freakula and I have cooties! Waaaaaaaaaah!" Here, she rubbed her eyes in mock weeping, arousing a laugh from her clique. A smug smile came across her face, her pride swelling ever the more.
"Excuse me," a gruff, unfamiliar voice said, "but are you Myrtle Edmonds?"
Myrtle jumped and screamed as a large, dark hand clasped over her little shoulder, the abruptness of the shriek causing more yelps from her group. The hand was withdrawn, and the voice spouted apologies and such for frightening her.
"But are you Myrtle Edmonds?" It asked again.
Myrtle turned round slowly, the thought of what horrible beast may be lurking behind her sending shivers up and down her spine. Standing behind her was not a monster (though to Myrtle it may have seemed to have been), but a large, black man, garbed in business suit and shades.
"I-I'm Myrtle Edmonds," she answered, not even daring to lie to the stranger.
"Cobra Bubbles," he returned in introduction. "So, you're friends with a little girl named Lilo, right?"
"Weird-lo?" Myrtle asked in disgust. The mere suggestion seemed to force all fear from her mind. Friends? She thought bitterly. As if!
"Excuse me?" Cobra asked, a brow lifted quietly. He stared at the redhead quietly, peeking over the tops of his sunglasses in a curious glare. The glance was so daunting that Myrtle decided not to admit that anything had been spoken.
"I sneezed," she answered, coughing.
"Maybe you should get that checked," the man replied, his look unconvinced. But, preoccupied with his thought, he said nothing about it. "Now, back to what I was saying. You know Lilo, right?"
"Yeah, we know Lilo," she replied, rolling her eyes at the mention of that name.
"I was told you were friends," Cobra Bubbles said, his tone dripping with doubt. "An acquaintance of mine asked me to help them find her. You wouldn't know where Lilo is, would you, miss Edmonds?"
"What, she's lost?" Myrtle asked, arms crossed, foot tapping impatiently. Count on Lilo to get an ugly man to bother her.
"No," he snapped, his voice fringed with annoyance. "Apparently, she ran away a day or tow ago. No one knows just where she is, and we're trying to figu..."
"Lilo ran away?" Myrtle exclaimed in disbelief, jumping yet again. "Why?"
"I was told something upset her the other day," Cobra told her, his expression more tolerable than it had been a few moments before, but still obviously annoyed by being interrupted. "That might've been the reason. So, you haven't seen her?"
Myrtle was silent, a strange, frightened look on her face. Cobra stared at her, waiting quietly for an answer to his question. Myrtle's comrades looked worriedly back and forth amongst themselves, shaking their heads quietly; unsure of just what was happening to Lilo.
"No, we haven't," they answered for Myrtle, sure that her answer would be the same had she spoken. Cobra Bubbles nodded his head in understanding and bid them adieu, taking another curious glance at little Myrtle before departing.
When Cobra had left, the group leapt toward their leader, tapping her on the shoulder, their words and tone dripping with concern.
"Myrtle, what's wrong?" they asked, crowding about her, their expressions softened with worry. Myrtle's face was blank for a moment, but after several more seconds of her clique's prodding, she snapped back from her thoughts.
"Lilo ran away," she said, echoing the information that Cobra had just give her. Her eyes were glued on the rubber tile that surrounded the great tree.
"Yeah," one girl said. "She's probably upset about..."
"It's my fault."
All the girls exchanged glances, and none of them dared to talk. Their loyalty to Myrtle kicked in yet again, odd for little girls who were thought to be so fickle. Though they did wish to help their friend, they all knew, deep down, that it was the truth.
Lilo was rather upset.
The sun had risen to a warmer height, and the bells had been rung in the morning light. Lilo had long since abandoned her morning prison, leaving the warm blanket unfolded on the old mattress. She had found Quasimodo yet again at his table, playing with his whittled dolls as he sat silent in his thoughts. She had approached, saluting him gently, sure that the happenings of the night before had been forgiven and forgotten, only to find out she was wrong. Quasimodo had only glanced back at her quietly, a smile on his face. But Lilo, insightful girl as she was, saw past the false grin, perceiving the unspoken anger and sadness that he still retained within him. Had she questioned him, he would've denied it, good person that he was. But, Lilo realized, he was horrible at lying. Maybe, if he hadn't been limited to the tower, his deceptive skills would've been more developed. Too bad, because Lilo could tell. And it hurt her on the inside.
She had kept quiet and avoided talking to him for an hour or two afterward, distressed by his hidden yet obvious feelings. Why was he still angry with her? She had, after all, apologized, and he had taken her back into the tower.
But, Lilo reminded herself, that was only after I said I didn't have a home. Maybe he felt like he was supposed to do it...
For one reason or another, that did not make Lilo feel good at all.
Quasimodo had walked outside and had stayed there for long; she could here him talking to some unseen soul as she clung to the stone jamb of the tower door. It was probably about her, she realized. So, leaving her post, she ventured yet again through the tower, despite the slight trauma of the night before, her mind clouded with disturbed thoughts. The dusty shafts of light shone golden upon her as she trekked beneath the boards, staring at the unclean floors, ignoring the rats and such that passed by her as she continued further into the gloom.
"It isn't fair," she said aloud after a while. "I apologized! How come grown ups say 'it's okay', when it really isn't? Are they trying to confuse us kids?"
This thought echoed through her head, an annoying monopoly over her brain, creating odd notions. It bothered her, knowing that this wasn't only Quasimodo, but Nani, and everyone other grown up she knew who did it. She could tell sometimes that she was a nuisance to them, that she was forever worrying and maddening them. And yet, they were so bent against acknowledging that simple fact.
At least, she thought sadly, not in front of me. Myrtle was enough to deal with.
As these ideas and thoughts popped in and out of her head, her feet, finding nothing better to do and too anxious to remain still, had moved along without her say-so. The pair had propelled her through the clutter of joists and timbers as she near drowned herself in inquisitions she suspected never to be answered, skipping over stray rats and making turns and twists among the beams. Finally, whether it is by coincidence or fate's interception, Lilo found herself pulled from her deep thinking back into the world with a sparkle of sun against glass shards.
She had inadvertently led herself back to the clearing.
"Weird," Lilo muttered beneath her breath, taking cautious steps toward the shimmering pile that Quasi had swept up. She leaned forward over the mound, dazzled by the lights that bounded off of the pieces as the sun shone upon them. The colors of the spectrum, tainted vaguely by the stained shades of the glass, shone upon the ancient beams in a dazzling mini-rainbow. There was always something so pretty about it, Lilo knew, remembering several times before when the same phenomenon had occurred. Lilo picked up a single piece of glass, hanging it before her eyes into the path of the light, admiring the tainted reflection that it cast upon the floor slats. If only, she thought, she could do that with all of the pieces, have them hanging up in the light all at once, coloring the tower with their translucent beauty. Maybe it wouldn't be so dank if she could only do that. Maybe, the tower wouldn't seem so sad and lonely, and Quasimodo would be happy for once...
Lilo glanced sadly at the shards, picking up another piece and letting the sun pass through. But, she asked herself, how was she supposed to do that?
She sighed, lowering herself down to the floor and lying down amongst the dust. She stared at the pile from her place on the floor, hoping for some bit of inspiration that might perhaps come to her. She didn't' have that many materials, and it would be too difficult to put the window back together again, even if the frame were still completely intact. She noted the black iron that rested to the side, filing that into her brain. Crayons and paper wouldn't help that much, no matter what she was going to try to do... She had twine... but what good would that do?
She thought of the twine, tying it around the pieces in her head... she could hang them from the ceiling like that! It might not be so pretty with the cord round it, but that was the best she would be able to accomplish with the materials she had.
Lilo got herself up, sudden excitement coursing through her little body. She would make Quasimodo happy! And, maybe he would forgive her!
So, happy, she rushed off back to where her bag was set. She would make him happy, if it took her a long time...even if the glass shard cut her fingers. She would get him to forgive her!
Quasimodo finally made his way inside after an hour or so, his shoulders still slumped glumly. As Lilo had suspected, he felt the anger still, and he continued mourning the death of his window. He had taken her back; again as Lilo had guessed, because it seemed that it would be the right thing to do. He was still angry, still unsociable, his temper kept at a low though it bubbled so horribly inside of him. It was almost as if he could barely stand her being there with him. He wanted to be kind... but his emotion seemed to be overwhelming him. It was because of her that his window was broken, because of her that there was nothing left of it but a mangled pile of marred and broken glass!
Quasi clutched his head, taking locks of hair into his fists and growling in frustration.
He had never felt such emotion before! It was a veritable mixture, a blend of compassion, anger, love, and hatred. He wanted her to go, but he didn't want her to be alone! What was he supposed to do? Was he supposed to hate her? Was he supposed to love her? Was he supposed to let every ounce of anger accumulate within him until he felt he was going to die from it all?
Suddenly, there was another scream from the tower, eerily identical to the one that had sounded only the night before. Quasimodo's eyes widened and he felt his chest heaving with anger. What was she doing now? He knew where the scream was coming from. He not only heard it coming from there, but he felt it in his bosom.
"She's destroying the rest of it," his anger whispered to him. "She's making sure you've got nothing left to reminisce over."
Quasimodo felt a new surge of ire at this sudden statement, and found himself racing back to the sacred place that he had only just visited yester night. His feet pounded against the floorboards, his mouth twisted into an angry grimace. He was going to find her, and he was going to stop her from destroying the rest.
He turned suddenly, then ran into the clearing, still fuming, but suddenly surprised when he saw just what was happening.
Lilo was sucking on her finger, a drop of blood running down her lip. Apparently she had cut herself. About her were several pieces of glass, twine tied about their length, and one piece of green glass with a hint of red on one sharp corner.
"Lilo," Quasi muttered, unsure of just what was happening. He stepped forward. "Lilo, what are you doing?"
Lilo seemed to jump at the sudden sound of his voice behind her, and she turned, a disappointed look on her face.
"What are you doing here?" she asked, her finger still hanging from her lip.
"You... you screamed," he answered, his thoughts preoccupied. "But what are you doing?"
"Stupid glass," she said, glaring at the red-tipped green. "It's all your fault."
Quasimodo raised an eyebrow, as Lilo sighed quietly, lifting up a piece of glass by the string that was twined about it.
"Look how the sun shines through it," she said, smiling embarrassedly. "It makes a rainbow. Isn't it pretty?"
Quasimodo noticed the gentle shade of pink that it shadowed on the floor, nodding quietly, but his eyes still glittering with wonder. Lilo sighed, taking this badly, wiping beginning tears from her eyes.
"I'm sorry," she said. "I really am! I didn't mean to break it, so I'm trying to make it better." She glanced at the few near-finished pieces that she had scattered about her. "I know it's not pretty like the window, but its okay right?" Lilo glimpsed Quasimodo's face, noticing his bewildered expression. She sighed, letting her eyes stray to her bleeding finger which was now lying on her lap. She sniffed, her eyes clouding with tears. "I'm sorry," she said again. "I only wanted you to forgive me! I didn't mean to break it... but I guess that I did... and... that's why you're mad..."
Lilo rubbed her eyes quietly, holding back sobs and letting her tears fall in silence. This was stupid, she told herself. Of course he wouldn't like it. And it seemed like such a good idea at first... but now everything's ugly and she didn't make anything better...
From the corner of her eye, she noticed Quasimodo's feet as he approached. Getting down on his knees, Quasi placed himself beside Lilo, reaching out to take a piece of glass by the string. Lilo looked up at him in silence, watching as he put the shard into the light, noticing that gentle smile as he looked at the reflection.
"It really is pretty, isn't it?" Quasimodo asked. Lilo noticed a slight tremble in his voice as he spoke.
Lilo nodded quietly, unsure of what he was going toward.
Quasimodo glanced down at her, tears clouding his vision, and, putting down the glass, he reached out and brought Lilo into a hug.
"Thank you," he whispered, burying his face into her shoulder. "I'm sorry... I'm so sorry for being so stupid and mad... You're a wonderful little girl and I don't ever want to hurt you again."
"It's okay," Lilo said. "So, you forgive me?"
Quasi smiled.
"Of course I forgive you."
"Even after I messed up your glass?" she asked, gesturing sheepishly to the creations that she had worked the past hour on.
Quasimodo laughed.
"They're fine Lilo. I know what you're trying to do... but maybe we should do it differently."
Lilo nodded. "We means both of us, right?"
Quasimodo nodded, wiping away the tears and a smile lighting up his deformed face. "What else would it mean?"
A/N: And... the end! Okay... now, if Fallen Wraith is still reading, which would devastate me greatly if she wasn't, Frollo's coming in the next chapter. Not completely a confrontation between the two characters just yet, but he's there, y'know! So, if you would be so kind, keep reading, and tell me what you think of this chapter! And, um, BookRose? Thank you so much for your comments; they made me happy. But, Inner and Exterior Agony? Was I that good? ha-ha! Okay, I'm just being annoying. But, Review! Please!