Chapter 4: Humiliation/Justice/Someday

Quasimodo's POV

As everyone cheered, I just felt happy and appreciated. Then everyone started chanting my name, then Natalie joined in, which made me blush a little bit. I felt things were finally going to change for me and that Frollo was wrong. That was until I felt something hit my face. Natalie gasped and she wiped my face and I saw that it was a tomato.

Then one of Frollo's guards exclaimed, "Now that's ugly!"

Then someone from the crowd shouted, "Hail to the King!"

and threw another tomato at me. Natalie seemed to realize what was going on and she said as she tried to pull me away,

"Oh no! No! Quasi we have to get out of here right now!"

But then I slipped on a piece of tomato skin and I fell backwards as Natalie was yanked off of the pedistole by 2 of Frollo's guard's.

She shouted, "Hey! Get your hands off of me!"

As she struggled with the guards. I tried to go after her, but someone yelled,

"Where you going hunchback? the fun's just beginning!"

And he lassoed a rope around my neck and pulled me back down. And somebody tied a rope around my wrists and started to pull me apart. Everyone was laughing as I saw Natalie scream in horror,

"No! Quasi!"

As I saw the agony and horror in her eyes, It made me try to fight them off. As I tried to fight them off, more men came and tied me down on the pedostile. Then they spun me around as the crowd continued to throw food at me. Then I saw Frollo and I shouted to him,

"Master!"

And I heard Natalie scream, "Stop it! Stop it!"

Then I shouted to him, "Master please, help me!"

But he didn't do anything, he just continued to sit and watch. As I stopped spinning and the crowd kept throwing food at me, I thought this torture would never end. That was until I saw Natalie run up to the pedistole, get in front of me and yell out,

"STOP!"

Natalie's POV

After I elbowed the guards to let me go, I ran up to the pedistole, got in front of Quasi and yelled out,

"STOP!"

Then everybody stopped and gasped. As I stood in front of Quasi, I panted as fury filled my eyes. Then I angrily shouted,

"Why? Why would you do this?! All this man wanted to do was to come out here and have a good time just like all of you, and yet you treat him like he's some sort of animal! What's the matter with you people?! He's a human being!"

Then someone shouted,

"But he's ugly!"

I rebelled and shouted,

"So what?! What's your point?! It doesn't matter what he looks like or what's on the outside!"

Then I looked at Quasi and said as I pointed to my heart,

"It only matters, what's on the inside."

He smiled at me in response and I smiled back. Then I turned my anger to the crowd and shouted,

"And all of you should be ashamed of yourselves for treating him this way, including you!" and I pointed to Frollo.

Then Frollo shouted as he got out of his chair,

"You little brat! Get down or I'll-"

I cut him off and shouted,

"Or you'll what? tell me to become your little slave huh? I'm not scared of you and as far as I'm concerned, you are nothing more than a pompous, egotistical, bastard!"

The I felt someone touching my shoulder and I saw that it was Esmeralda and she nodded her head at my statement. Then she said to Quasi,

"Don't be afraid, I'm sorry, this wasn't supposed to happen." And she used the belt on her dress to wipe his face.

Then Frollo shouted to Esmeralda,

"You! Gyspy girl! Get down at once!"

Before I could say anything, Esmeralda said to him calmly,

"Yes your honor, just as soon as I help free this poor creature."

Frollo angrily shouted, "I forbid it!"

Despite that, Esmeralda used her dagger to cut the ropes to release Quasi.

Frollo then angrily said, "How dare you defy me!"

She fired back,

"You mistreat this poor boy and girl the same way you mistreat my people. You speak of justice, yet you are cruel to those most in need of your help!"

I nodded in agreement. Then Frollo shouted,

"Silence!"

And me and Esmeralda snapped, "Justice!"

Then Esmeralda and I helped Quasi up and I took his hand.

Then Frollo angrily said, "Mark my words gypsies, you will pay for this insorance."

I fired back at him, "And you will pay for being a lying, ignorant, pompous, egotistical, sadistic, bastard!"

Esmeralda backed me up, saying,

"And perhaps maybe we crowned the wrong fools, because the only fool I see, is you!"

And we both threw our jester hats at Frollo. Her goat Djali also blew a raspberry at him.

Then Frollo said to Phoebus, "Captain Phoebus, arrest them!"

Phoebus signaled the other soldiers and they all surrounded us. Esmeralda counted up the soldiers and said,

"So there's 10 of you and 2 of us, what's a bunch of poor girls to do?"

Then she pretended to cry and she blew her nose into a handkerchief, causing smoke to pop up and she disappeared.

Then Frollo whispered, "Witchcraft."

Then Esmeralda said, "Oh boys, over here!"

As her and her goat's faces were in a basket of masks and the guards began to chase her. Then 4 guards tried to grab me, but thanks to my fighting skills and watching wrestling, I roundhouse 1, drop kicked the other, and I hit a double stunner on the last 2.

Quasi looked at me stunned and asked, "How did you learn to fight like that?"

I answered, "I was taught at an early age, my parents thought it would be good for self defense."

He nodded in response. Then we saw a soldier go flying after running into a man on stilts' pants after they were pulled down by Esmeralda. As we watched him go flying, his helmet landed on Esmeralda's head and she took a bow.

Then as 3 guards on their horses tried to go after her, Esmeralda threw the helmet and she hit the guards and they fell off their horses. She almost hit Phoebus, but he ducked just before it could hit him. Then he said amazed,

"What a woman!"

Then as 2 more guards on horses started to chase her, another man on stilts tossed down a pole to them.

As they kept running with the pole, they accidentally collided into Frollo's tent with. I laughed in response. Then everyone cheered as Esmeralda climbed up onto a different platform and disappeared.

Quasi and I were smiling until Frollo showed up, glaring at us after ordering Phoebus and his men to find Esmeralda. Fearlessly, I said to him,

"What are you giving us the look for?"

Then Quasi said as he shed a tear "I'm sorry master, I will never disobey you again."

Then I tried to tell him "Quasi, you don't have to-"

But he jumped off of the platform and I tried calling him back by saying,

"Quasimodo!" But he didn't listen.

Before Frollo had the chance to grab me, I shouted, "I claim sanctuary in Notre Dame!"

And I took off after Quasi. Luckily, I made it in just as Quasi was shut the door. Then he looked at me with tears in his eyes and started running up to the bell tower and I followed him.

I called to him as I ran after him,

"Quasi, Quasi I am so sorry! I never meant for this to happen! Quasi, please say something!"

Then he turned around and snapped,

"Face it Natalie! Those people didn't accept me! They thought of me as a monster, an animal! Oh I'll never show my face again!"

Then he sat on a bench and covered his face as he cried. I said as I sat beside him and placed my hand on his shoulder,

"That's because they didn't see the real you. Quasi, there's more to you then you realize. You're a kindhearted person, and if those people can't see that, then they need to change, not you."

Then he looked up at me as he wiped away his tears as I said,

"Quasi, you're something special, and one day everyone will see it. Including you."

Then he asked,

"But what makes you so sure? I mean, everyone sees me as a monster. But nobody has said anything bad about you."

I answered, "Well, I wouldn't say that, I mean I've gotten bullied before and me and my friends went through stuff."

I went on to say,

"Quasi where I come from, people are given labels, whether it would be based on someone's appearance, race, religion and anything that has something to do with someone's situation."

Then he asked me "Like what?"

I answered "Retarded."

Quasi looked at me surprised and I explained,

"Quasi, I have a disorder that affects my learning and keeps me from being able to socialize with others. Some people have it too, whether it would be the same thing or in a different form. And people who don't have it or don't understand, they use words like retard or whatever to describe us and it hurts me."

I went on to say,

"We shouldn't have labels, because at the end of the day, we're all human beings, we bleed the same and we're all put on this earth for a reason. And there shouldn't be any hate or violence in this world either."

I sighed and said, "I just wish things could change, that we could all love each other and be kind to one another and finally have peace. But when, when?"

I began to sing;

Someday
When we are wiser
When the world's older
When we have learned
I pray
Someday we may yet live
To live
And let live

Someday
Life will be fairer
Need will be rarer
And greed will not pay
Godspeed
This bright millennium
On it's way
Let it come
Someday

I got up and I walked outside as Quasi followed me as I sang;

Someday
Our fight will be won then
We'll stand in the sun then
That bright afternoon
Till then
On days when the sun is gone
We'll hang on
And we'll wish upon the moon

When we got outside, I sang;

There are some days, dark and bitter
Seems we haven't got a prayer
But a prayer for something better
Is the one thing we all share

Then the sun and the moon started to show as the clouds cleared as I sang;

Someday
When we are wiser
When the world's older
When we have learned
I pray
Someday we may yet live
To live
And let live

Someday
Life will be fairer
Need will be rarer
And greed will not pay
Godspeed
This bright millennium
Let it come
Wish upon the moon

One day, someday...

Soon

My eyes started to fill with tears as I thought about the people in this world and my world who didn't have it as lucky, and who often end up suffering or dying trying to make the world a better place. But I was able to finish by singing;

One day, someday...

Soon

Then my tears fell and I turned away from Quasimodo as I slumped down to my knees and began to cry.

Quasimodo's POV

As Natalie finished her song about her hopes of the world becoming a better place, I saw tears fall from her eyes and she turned away from me, slumped down onto her knees began to cry. It broke my heart to see her like this, especially after she told me about the labels she and other people she knew were given. It also made me realize that this girl must've been going through a lot things in her life and has seen or heard things that must've affected her. But it also made me think that there must be more to this girl than I thought.

As Natalie still cried, I placed my hand on her shoulder. Then she looked at me as tears still fell from her eyes and I said,

"I-It's alright, please don't cry."

She said as she still shed a few more tears and covered her face with her hands and turned away again,

"I'm sorry Quasi. It just makes me sad that they, treated you that way! And it made me think about the people from where I came from, and how some of them who aren't as lucky in their lives and...and dammit! It just broke my heart!"

Then I said taking her hands away from her face, getting her to look at me once more,

"I-It makes me feel bad too. But you shouldn't have to worry about me, I'm use to the way Frollo treats me."

Then she said,

"But it's not fair! like nobody deserves to treated like that. Not you, not me, not anybody."

I said to her as I placed my hand onto her right tear stained cheek,

"It does hurt me sometimes, but I just keep my spirits up by thinking of how beautiful the world is and everything in it. But now I feel even more better because you came to me and became my friend."

I wiped away her 2 remaining tears and she smiled at me. I smiled back at her and in an instant, she hugged me. I was initially surprised as she said,

"I'm glad your my friend, Quasimodo."

Smiling down at her, I said while returning her hug, "I'm glad your my friend too, Natalie."

After a moment of our embrace, we got up and headed back inside.

Then I said, "I have to go clean some of the bells, but you are welcome to walk around in the cathedral if you'd like."

She asked me, "I can?"

I answered back, "Yes, you have sanctuary here."

Then she said as she was heading down the stairs, "Alright, I'll be back in a few minutes."

I said, "Alright."

And with that, I went to go clean the bells while Natalie headed down stairs.