Hans approached the wardrobe and opened it. He was greeted with a punch to the jaw. He grunted from the pain and rubbed his jaw. The girl jumped out and grabbed his neck with both of her hands. She easily threw him into the floor and choked him.

"Why did you lock me in that wardrobe?" she demanded.

Hans couldn't even speak.

"You little coward!" she growled.

Uncontrollably, Hans' hands started to heat up, despite his gloves being on. The girl felt her wrists burn and screamed. She let Hans go and stood up.

"What in the name of God was that?" the girl asked, pointing a shaking finger at Hans.

He ran out of the room, but she followed.

"Wait! Wait, please! I know who you are!" she called out.

Hans ignored her words.

"You're the one who rings the bells. Everyone talks about you!"

Hans stopped and turned to look at her in disbelief.

"The people talk about...me?" he asked.

She nodded, catching her breath. "Everyone wonders who the mysterious bell-ringer is. You must be him."

He rubbed the back of his neck. "Y-Yes. But, you can't stay here. You should leave."

"Don't you have a family?"

Hans paused. "I have a father. He took me in when no one else would."

"You were abandoned. But, why?"

He hugged himself and shrugged. "I really shouldn't talk about it. Please, just leave."

"I can't leave. That wretch is looking for me. He's accused me of being a witch again."

"Who?"

"That Peter Black. He claims to bring justice to Paris, but everyone knows better. He's a wicked man who lives off the tears and suffering of others."

"R-Really?"

"Yes, but let's not talk about him. Do you ever leave the tower?"

He shook his head.

"Why not?"

"My father forbids it. He says the world beyond the church is dangerous and cruel."

"He's half right." the girl shrugged. "What's your name?"

He blinked. "Mine?"

She nodded with a smile.

"H-Hans. I'm Hans." he replied.

"I'm Elsa. It's a pleasure to meet the bell-ringer of Notre Dame. You know, Paris has this grand festival every year."

Hans lowered his eyes. "Yes, I know."

"You should go. I plan on going. Peter Black will be there but he's usually reading a book or something."

"I can't. I have to stay here."

Hans reached out and traced a crack on of the pillars.

"This is where I belong."

Elsa grimaced. "Why? I know the world can be bad, but is your father that paranoid?"

"That's not even half of it."

Elsa stretched her arms and yawned. "Well, I'm not spending the rest of my life up here. Hope you find a way to convince your father."

She headed out of the room, leaving Hans alone.

"I gave up a long time ago." he said to himself.

"What are you waiting for?" Venn asked, coming out from under his bed.

Hans gave her a confused look.

"Go with her! She's going to the festival!"

Hans rolled his eyes. "Don't start with that again."

"Nobody wants to spend the rest of their life in here."

Exhaling deeply, Hans shook his head. Venn gave him a look and folded her arms.

"I just met her, Venn."

"You don't have to be with her the whole time, redhead. Just give it a try. You might even enjoy yourself and the fireworks." she said, giving him a small nudge.

Hans bit his lip. "Alright."

Venn smiled.

"I'll go!" Hans said, excitedly.

Venn shooed him off. "Hurry up! Have fun!"


Hans hurried after Elsa, trying to keep up. He reached the front doors of the church and froze. How long he had dreamt of this moment. Holding out a shaking hand, he pushed the doors open and stepped outside. The town square was packed with people. They were all talking at once and laughing, enjoying themselves.

Hans noticed a cart standing all alone. It had some weird objects sitting inside them. Hans got closer and noticed the objects were on long sticks with a piece of string attached to them. Curiously and excitedly, Hans held the string in his gloved hand.

"Oi!" a voice yelled.

Hans gasped and stepped away from the cart.

"Hands off what isn't yours, boy!" a man yelled.

"I-I'm sorry." Hans said.

Suddenly, he heard a small noise. A hissing sort of sound. The string had caught on fire and was heading straight for the red thing at the end of the stick.

"Put that fire out!" the man yelled to him.

Hans panicked. "Right, right."

He didn't know what to do. He clapped his hands over the spark but it did nothing. His powers were increasing due to his panicking. They made the spark go faster.

"Make way for the judge! Peter Black is coming-"

FWOOO!

The firework zoomed into the crowd and people screamed. A man turned to his friend in surprise.

"It's time already?" he asked, lighting the fireworks before him.

More fireworks went off and everyone was confused. Hans watched as many people ran for cover as fireworks and people filled the area. In the midst of it, Hans noticed only one person staring at him. His father.

Peter Black approached him, pushing people out of his way. Then, when he reached Hans he raised his hand and gave him a hard slap in the face.

Hans stumbled back and put his hand on his cheek. It stung and he felt tears building up. But, Peter wasn't finished. He threw several punches at Hans, causing many people to stop and watch the scene.

One punch managed to make its way to Hans's jaw and he groaned, falling to his knees. Peter gave him a good kick in his side, causing Hans to wheeze. Now, everyone was watching.

"It's the bell-ringer from Notre Dame!" someone cried.

"He really does have powers! He's a sorcerer!"

"And, the judge has him now!" someone else cheered.

In the midst of all the yelling, Hans only heard his father's angry whisper.

"You pathetic, little nothing." he hissed.

"Stop it!" a voice cried.

Peter paused, wondering who dared to order him to stop. A young girl with strawberry blonde hair appeared. She had her hair in two braids and wore a simple green gown.

She hurried and stood between Peter and Hans. Hans looked up from the ground, bleeding at his lip.

"Stand aside." Peter growled.

"I will not stand aside and let you hurt this poor boy." the girl said aloud.

"You and your insolent sister have caused me enough trouble as it is. I would hate to add another crime to your record." Peter sneered.

"Is it now a crime to stand up for the helpless while you beat them publicly?" the girl asked.

The people began to talk amongst themselves, agreeing with her. The girl bent down and helped Hans stand up. Peter cleared his throat.

"Very well, gypsy. I think he's learned his lesson." Peter said, glancing at Hans.

Hans didn't return the glance and looked down.

"You treat this poor boy the same way you treat those that are lower than you."

Peter smiled. "And, how is that?"

"With injustice!" the girl yelled, holding her fist in the air.

Many people cheered and applauded. Peter saw the situation getting out of hand. Suddenly, everyone was silent as one figure made its way through the crowd. It was the Norwegian king. Peter felt his blood turn cold.

"Your Highness." he said, slightly bowing.

"What is the trouble here, Peter?" the king asked.

He had red hair and bright blue eyes. On his head was a golden crown and he wore long blue robes. Peter cleared his throat and grabbed Hans by his shirt collar.

"I was simply taking this rule breaker to justice, sire. The gypsy was simply helping me see the error of my ways. I got a little carried away, perhaps."

The girl scoffed. "You think."

"Peace, my dear." the king advised her. "Let's clean up and continue the festival. And, Peter, I hope that you will deal with the boy accordingly and fairly."

Peter's eye twitched. "I will, sire."


A/N: So lemme just say that I am SO sorry about not updating this story for those who are still following it. I totally forgot about this story and I've been so caught up in my other fics that I forgot about this one. It's happened with a few other of my stories, but I've just been really bad with managing my time. Hope you enjoyed it!