Chapter 12: The Final Battle and The Fight For Life

Quasimodo's POV

I looked down at the crowd and said,

"That should be able to stop them from entering the cathedral."

Natalie said looking over the balcony, "Oh you bet, there all scattering."

We did it, we fought back! I was so overjoyed that I shouted as I hugged Natalie,

"We did it Natalie! We've beaten them back!" And she laughed in response.

I then stopped and said, "Let's go tell Esmeralda that everything's alright."

She nodded and said, "Yeah!" And with that, we ran to the room that Esmeralda was in.

Once we got there, we burst in and I shouted to Esmeralda,

"We've done it Esmeralda! We've beaten them back! Come and see!"

As we were about to head back outside, we looked back and we saw Esmeralda still lying there.

We walked up to her as I said,

"Esmeralda, wake up. You're safe now." But she still wouldn't respond.

Then I said as I gently moved my hand on her head and through her hair,

"Esmeralda?" and she still wouldn't respond.

I immediately knew that something was wrong, as I worriedly said,

"Oh, no!"

Natalie seemed concerned as well when she started to hold her hand while I got a spoonful of water and lifted Esmeralda's head up as I poured into her mouth. As I poured it into her mouth, the water just trickled down her face. I immediately realized what had happened, she died! I immediately dropped the spoon and warily said as I lifted up her other hand,

"Oh, no!"

Then Natalie said shaking her head,

"N-No wait, wait a minute, maybe she's still alive. W-We just need to check her pulse, o-or her heartbeat."

She felt her wrist and brought her head to her chest. Natalie rose up and brought her hands to her mouth in shock. She finally said as she began to struggle,

"No, no, no, n-" and she broke down crying.

I couldn't hold back either, I joined her as I held Esmeralda. Then I set her down and held her hand while I held Natalie with my other arm as we continued to weep.

Then we heard the door creak open and we saw that it was Frollo.

Natalie said as she glared at him, "You!"

And she tried to lunge out at him, but I held her back and I said as she fell back into my arms,

"You killed her!"

Frollo said, "It was my duty, horrible as it was. I hope you can forgive me."

Natalie said, "Yeah, right! You evil bastard!"

Then he said, "There, there Quasimodo, I know it hurts. But now the time has come to end your suffering, forever."

I looked up at his shadow and I saw him holding up a dagger right above me. I turned around and I saw Natalie look up and she shouted as she grabbed Frollo's arm,

"NO! DON'T!" And she started to push him away.

As she continued to fight him off, he hit her across the face, sending her into a wall. As she looked up, I saw Frollo coming at her with the dagger and she screamed. Before he could stab her, I grabbed his arm, stood in front of Natalie, and started to fight Frollo off.

As he was gaining the upper hand, I looked at Natalie as she knelt beside Esmeralda and looked on fearfully. Seeing the fear in her eyes gave me the inner rage that finally made me throw my master into a bunch of steel rods. I finally had the dagger. I wasn't going to take this anymore! First he killed Esmeralda, and now he tried to kill Natalie?! The only true friend that I had left in this world?! Enough was enough!

As I walked up to him holding the dagger, he said as he quivered,

"N-Now, l-listen to me, Quasimodo-"

I didn't want to hear it, so I cut him off and snapped as I threw the dagger away,

"No, you listen! All my life you have told me the world was a dark cruel place! But now I see that the only thing dark and cruel about it is people like you!"

Then I heard a weak voice say, "Quasimodo, Natalie?"

We looked back and we saw that Esmeralda was alive! Natalie and I said as I ran to them,

"Esmeralda!" As I picked her up.

Then Frollo said as he pulled out his sword, "She lives!"

I shouted as I held Esmeralda in my arms and stood in front of Natalie,

"NO!"

And we ran out the door and I swung over the balcony, holding onto a gargoyle. I then realized that Natalie wasn't with me! Oh Lord, what have I done?!

Natalie's POV

As I saw Quasi run out the door while carrying Esmeralda, I saw Frollo holding his sword as he was about to go after them. I instantly turned around, grabbed a steel rod and started to battle Frollo. As I continued to battle him, I knocked the sword out of his hands and kicked him in the gut. Then as I went to the doorway to see if Quasi and Esmeralda were out of site, I heard Frollo say,

"They will be mine! You'll see it!"

Enraged, I shouted as I marched over to him,

"I won't let you hurt them you, you inhuman monster!"

As I said that, Frollo brought the dagger to my stomach and stabbed me in the gut. I screamed out in pain as he stabbed me, and he shouted as he knocked me to the ground,

"Now stay out of my way!"

I clutched my wound and saw blood on my hand as I laid on the floor bleeding.

I watched helplessly as I saw Frollo trying to strike Quasi and Esmeralda with his sword. Then I saw Quasi standing on a gargoyle while Esmeralda was on the balcony as Frollo said,

"I should've known you'd risk your life to save that gypsy witch, just as your own mother died trying to save you."

As he said that, silent tears streamed down my face because of having to see Quasi find out the truth about his mother this way.

In disbelief, Quasi asked, "What?"

Frollo then said,

"And it's just a shame, that you couldn't even manage to save this one." As he pointed to me with his sword.

Quasimodo looked at me and I looked at him in despair as he shouted,

"Natalie! What did you do to her?!"

Frollo said,

"Oh, there's no point explaining, now that she's at death's door. Now I'm going to do what I should've done twenty years ago!"

Then he blinded Quasimodo with his cape and pulled it down, making Quasi fall.

I screamed as I reached out my hand,

"NO!"

But luckily, he held onto the railing and pulled Frollo down. Then Esmeralda rushed over to the railing to try to hold onto Quasi. At this point, I knew I had to do something. If I was going to die, I would've rather died protecting my friend and the one that I loved then just lying here, watching them die. Then in horrible pain, I struggled to get up. As I rose up from the ground, Frollo rose and finally said as he cackled and raised up his sword to strike Quasimodo and Esmeralda,

"And he shall smite the wicked, and plunge them into the fiery pit!"

And in that instant, for all that I loved, I ran towards Frollo and lunged out at him shouting,

"NO!"

Then me and Frollo landed on opposite sides of a crumbling gargoyle and Esmeralda gasped and accidentally let go of Quasi, but luckily I caught him before he could fall. Then the gargoyle roared at Frollo and his side broke and Frollo fell to his death.

I kept trying to hold onto Quasi as Esmeralda shouted, "Hold on Natalie!"

I then started to cry out in pain. I had to hold onto him, but it was hard because he was so heavy and my wound was hurting too badly for me to hold anything back. I thought we were going to be up here forever until my half of the gargoyle would break. I just kept saying "Please Lord, please help us."

Quasimodo's POV

I felt something wet hitting my forehead as I woke up. I opened my eyes and I looked up to see Natalie crying in pain as she was holding onto me and lying on a broken gargoyle. Then I saw blood dripping from the gargoyle. I gasped and said as I climbed back up,

"Natalie!"

I gently lifted her up off of the gargoyle as I looked at her wound. She had a really deep cut on her abdomen, and she started to breathe heavily and gasp for air. I knew this was serious, and once I reached the railing, I said to Esmeralda,

"Esmeralda, go get help, please." She nodded in response and rushed off to go find help while I dropped down to the balcony.

Then I gently set Natalie down and she looked up at me and weakly said as tears started rolling down her face,

"Q-Quasimodo."

I said to her, "Shh, It's alright Natalie. I'm right here."

Then I tore a piece of my tunic off and placed it onto her wound as I said,

"Just relax, everything's going to be alright."

She weakly said, "Quasi, I-I'm sorry. H-He was about to kill you, and I-I couldn't-"

I didn't want her to worry about anything, so I said,

"No, no, that's not important right now. What is important is that you're okay and that we take care of your wound as soon as possible."

Then I saw Esmeralda come back with her belt in her hand,

"Phoebus is going to get a doctor, but until then, I have some tools that should help stop the bleeding."

I said, "Yes, yes! Anything will help."

Esmeralda said, "You're going to be alright Natalie, just keep breathing."

I started to hold her hand as Esmeralda wiped away some of the blood. Then she took out a canteen and poured wine onto the wound and Natalie winced and breathed harder.

I said as I caressed the side of her head, "You're okay, it's alright."

She then said looking up at me as tears continued to pour down her face,

"Quasimodo, i-if anything happens to me, I-I just want you to know that I l-love you always."

I then said to try to reassure her as I brushed a bit of her hair back and her tears away,

"Don't talk like that. You're going to be alright, you'll see."

As Esmeralda still tried mend her wound, I looked down at Natalie and I saw her eyes roll back as she uttered out the words,

"I-I love you." And she went limp.

Afraid to lose her, I said as I shook my head,

"No! NO! Natalie! Natalie please, you'll make it through this! I promise you! Just please, stay with me!"

She still wouldn't respond. I immediately looked to Esmeralda and said,

"Esmeralda, her eyes rolled back and she's not moving."

She looked at Natalie and said, "Oh, no. Does she still have a pulse or a heartbeat?"

I felt her wrist and brought my head to her chest. I then said,

"Yes, she still has them."

Esmeralda said, "Then there's still hope, we must not lose it." I nodded in response.

Then I saw Phoebus come with another man. He said catching his breath,

"I found a doctor, he said he could help."

The doctor was a short yet tall man that seemed a little bit old, but I didn't care, I was just so desperate to help Natalie.

He said, "Well, lets see what the damage is." He knelt down and took a look at Natalie's wound.

I saw a serious look appear on his face as he said,

"This isn't good, she needs to be treated immediately."

But then he sighed and said,

"But if we get her to a hospital, it will be too late and judging by the crowd, I don't see how it will happen. Are there any rooms here where I can treat her?"

I answered, "There's one right to the left."

Then he said, "Well, we better help her while there's still time. Esmeralda, can you be able to assist me?"

She said, "Of course."

Phoebus said, "I better go calm down the crowd." and he left.

The doctor tried to take Natalie, but I blocked him, because I didn't trust him. Then Esmeralda said as she placed her hand on my shoulder,

"We'll take care of her my friend, we promise."

I then said, "Please save her Esmeralda. I, I love her."

She said, "We will, I promise."

I then looked down at Natalie as she laid unconscious in my arms.

I kissed her forehead and said to her, "Everything will be alright Natalie, I promise."

I then handed her over to the doctor and he said,

"Now, let us hope for a miracle and that she'll pull through."

And with that Esmeralda and the doctor ran into the room with Natalie in his arms and shut the door.

I started to pace back and forth. I didn't know what to do. My eyes started to fill with tears as I thought about what she said to me when we were still chained up in the bell tower and as she was fading away. She said she loved me. She loved me. I knew now that I loved her. I loved her. I loved her and I couldn't even protect her from Frollo. I then started to cry out of despair and guilt. I couldn't let her die, I just couldn't.

I then saw the gargoyles hopping over to me with sad looks on there faces.

I said to them, "She said she loved me."

Hugo said, "We know kid, we heard everything."

Laverne added, "And we saw what she did."

Confused, I asked, "What do you mean?"

Victor said, "While you and Esmeralda were hanging onto the balcony, She began to get up."

Then Laverne chimed in, "And as Frollo was about to kill you both, she-"

Hugo cut her off and said, "She dove out at him and caught you when you were about to fall."

Shocked, I said, "What? sh-she did all of that for me?" They all nodded in response.

I then started pacing back and forth again. I couldn't believe that she would do something as crazy as this to save me.

I said, "Oh God, if anything happens to her, I'll never forgive myself."

Victor said, "Quasi, this wasn't your fault."

I said facing them,

"Yes it was, I left her back there, I didn't even know that she was back there until I was hanging over the balcony and I heard a scream. Oh if I hadn't left her alone back there, this wouldn't have happened!"

Laverne said,

"Quasimodo, I know Natalie. She is a strong young woman, she'll make it through." I nodded in response.

I then got on my knees and said as I prayed,

"Oh heavenly father, please let this girl survive. Please father, she was the miracle that gave me a reason to go out there, to stand up to Frollo. She became my friend. She's the only one in this world that gives me a reason to live. Please, please give her a chance father. Amen."

An hour went by and I was still waiting to see if anything happened yet. Then I heard the door open and I saw the doctor walk out. Esmeralda walked out and I quickly walked over to her and asked,

"Well, how is she?"

Esmeralda said with a smile on her face,

"She's fine Quasimodo, we were able to get to the wound quick enough to stop the bleeding and we patched her up."

I let out a sigh of relief as I said, "Thank goodness."

She then said, "She's resting now, but you're welcome to go in and see her if you'd like."

I asked, "A-Are you sure?"

She said reassuringly, "I think she'd like that."

I nodded and said, "Alright."

And with that I opened the door and I walked in to see Natalie. As I walked up to her, she looked peaceful as she was covered with a blanket. I knelt down beside her and I started to caress the side of her head. Then I heard her moan as she started to wake up.