Disclaimer: Victor Hugo and Disney own most of the characters and the setting within this work.

Rich, dulcet tones rang through the clear skies of Paris. The sound reverberated throughout the splendorous gothic cathedral, making her stones shudder with excitement. Each note hammered through Quasimodo's body, seemingly commanding his very heart to beat in time with the peals. He swung down Big Marie's rope and landed deftly on the floor, sucking in a deep breath in exhilaration. It may not have been his choice to be raised among the bells, but they were his first family, and he loved each one dearly.

The morning mass had been rung, and Quasi plucked out his earplugs as he strode out to his balcony to watch the parishioners stream out of Notre Dame, many greeting the various statues that lined the entry on their way out. He heard one child shout, "Love you, St. Peter! You're my favorite! See you tomorrow!"

Quasi laughed as he imagined the statue smiling and waving back at the girl. He loved how loud the children could get, though he could tell their parents were embarrassed by the outbursts. Lately it was the only way he could actually hear them properly from his roost in the bell tower. He knew eventual deafness was an occupational hazard for any bell ringer, and he'd actually gone longer than most without losing his hearing completely. Most bell ringers went stone deaf within a decade, while Quasi was going on 27 years hearing the bells up close every single day of his life. But there was still just a tinge of sadness when he thought about the fact that someday he probably wouldn't be able to hear his beloved bells at all.

But at least he could still feel them. Their rhythm was imprinted on his soul just as much as their tone was imprinted on his memory. And he still had time to memorize the crystal clear, magnificent sound of the newest addition to his iron and brass family before she fell silent to his ears forever.

The hunchback turned his attention to the bell in question, picking up a polishing rag to begin his work. The bell had not been hung yet; her smith was expected at any moment with a crew to assist with that bit. Quasi had only gotten hints of what this beautiful new bell was capable of.

Well, she was beautiful to him, anyway. On the outside, it looked like just a normal bell, cast in iron and coated in bronze. It was slightly smaller than Big Marie, but it had a different shape. The concave was deeper where one would expect it to be shallow, and broader where one would expect it to narrow. The bell was cast using a brand new process pioneered by a bell maker known as Joseph of Mur Rouge. Quasi had no idea where Mur Rouge even was, but apparently this Joseph was very well known all over France as the greatest bell maker of his time. His new bell was supposed to have the clearest, most beautiful tone anyone alive had ever heard. For such a plain looking bell, she was expected to be the greatest of all the bells that hung in the tower.

As he worked on the cathedral's newest acquisition, he spoke to it as if to a beloved mare. "La Fidele, you are going to love it here. Notre Dame is the most beautiful cathedral in all of France—maybe even all of Europe—with the best views. Esmeralda says that not even the king himself has a view like ours. And when the pope hears you, I bet even he will be moved to tears. I can't wait to hear your voice for the first time. And to feel your notes in my chest. That's the best part, you know. I-I won't be able to...to hear forever. But...I'll never forget what your music feels like."

Quasi was just completing his polishing job when the Archdeacon appeared at the top of the tower stairs. "Good morning, Quasimodo," the old priest greeted.

Quasi stopped his polishing and gave a polite head bow. "Good morning, father," he replied. "Has the bell maker arrived?"

The Archdeacon shook his head. "No, and I've come to tell you there's been a delay. Monsieur Joseph has encountered some travel difficulties, and we can expect him the morning of the pope's arrival."

"That close to the deadline?"

"I know," the priest shrugged. "I'm not pleased myself, but I'd rather the man arrive safely than not at all. I've already asked Captain Phoebus if he might spare a few soldiers to ride out and greet Joseph, and see that the rest of his trip is made as smooth as possible."

Quasi sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Well...if it comes down to it, I know how to mount a bell. I can't do it completely by myself, of course, but..."

"We'll hold out for the bell maker as long as we can," the Archdeacon said. "We can't take any chances with La Fidele. Not with his holiness coming."

"Understandable, father."

"In the meantime, have you a spot chosen for her?"

"Oh, yes, the best in the tower," Quasi said with an excited nod. "She'll stand out among all the bells. I think Big Marie might just get jealous."

The Archdeacon chuckled. "I'm glad La Fidele has been entrusted to your care. And do try to smooth things out between her and Big Marie should any envy arise."

Quasi smiled as the Archdeacon turned to head back down the stairs. He gave La Fidele one last pat and turned his attention to a few other chores before he set out on the town for the day. He had some shopping to do, and he'd agreed to babysit Zephyr for a while. The boy wore him out, but they had fun together, and Quasi reveled in his status as "uncle."

Speaking of Zephyr...

A shout Quasi knew well rang out, and before he could turn, he was hit by a blur of yellow-clad child.

"Uncle Quasi!"

"Hello, Zephyr," Quasi coughed, wrapping his arms around the boy clamped firmly around his neck. He pried the excited child off of himself and ruffled his dark hair. "How are you today?"

"Super excited! Because in two more days, it's a very important day!"

"Oh, and what day is that?" Quasi asked teasingly. "Because, you know, it's Wednesday every week, so I'm not so sure it's all that special."

"Ugh, you know what day it is!" Zephyr protested dramatically. "It's my birthday!"

"What? No way! I distinctly remember you having a birthday just last year."

"Birthdays are every year, Uncle Quasi! You know that! And this one's super important 'cause I'm gonna be five whole years old!"

"That's half a decade," Phoebus said as he and Esmeralda emerged on the landing. "Kind of a big deal."

"The huge-est deal!" Zephyr shouted, spreading his arms wide.

Quasi laughed. "Well, I bet Clopin has a big ol' party planned for you and everything."

"You're coming, right, Uncle Quasi?"

"Wouldn't miss it for the world, Zeph."

"So where is this new bell, Quasi?" Esmeralda asked.

Quasi waved them over. "Up here. I can't wait until she's mounted and rung for the first time."

He led them to the bell in question. Zephyr exchanged an uncertain look with his mother's pet goat Djali as they studied the bell. "It just looks like a regular bell."

"One should never judge by appearance," Quasi said with a smile. "It's not about what she looks like. It's about what she sounds like. It's about how and why she was made. The pope is going to be so honored by this bell."

Esmeralda put a reverent hand on the bell. "La Fidele, you are magnificent," she whispered.

"The Archdeacon caught us on the way up," Phoebus said. "I can arrange for two or three of my men to ride out to meet the bell maker. Hopefully we can get him here at least 24 hours before the pope's arrival."

"And then he can come to my birthday party!" Zephyr cried.

The adults just chuckled and shook their heads. At Zephyr's age, he was convinced all of the excitement surrounding the papal visit was for his own benefit.

"We hate to impose on you, Quasi," Phoebus said, "but between this new assignment and some business I have to help Clopin with..."

"We were wondering if you could take Zephyr a little early today," Esmeralda finished. "I have an advanced dance class to teach, and Zephyr...has trouble behaving himself there. And Clopin has to meet Phoebus, Chat is studying, Jeanine's little one has colic, and after what happened with that cat in the bakery, the twins are barred from babysitting ever again." She ticked each cousin off on her fingers as she listed them.

"I can take him," Quasi said. "If he doesn't mind going to the market with me."

"I like the market," Zephyr said. "Are you gonna buy my birthday present while we're there?"

"Who said I'm buying you a birthday present at all?" Quasi teased. He swept an arm behind him, gesturing to his craft table. "I'm already so busy with all my projects, and—Djali, no! Get away from those!"

Quasi silently cursed himself. He knew better than to turn his back on the goat for one second whenever it was in his loft. He rushed toward his table, but Esmeralda beat him there, grabbing the goat and hauling him back.

"Bad Djali!" Esmeralda scolded, plucking a half-masticated wooden figurine of Clopin out of the buck's mouth. "I'm sorry, Quasi. He's worse than a human kid some days."

Quasi accepted the mutilated likeness of the jester and sighed. "It's...okay, Esme. He's just being a goat."

"This isn't the first time he's eaten an effigy of Clopin," Phoebus said. "Remember the day he managed to take that puppet right off of Clopin's hand?"

Everyone got a laugh out of that memory. Djali had been in the proverbial doghouse with Clopin for months after that. It was the only time the jester had ever threatened to eat Esmeralda's pet.

"At least he didn't get ahold of my important project," Quasi said.

"Yeah, at least he can't eat bells," Zephyr offered.

Quasi couldn't help but chuckle. "Not what I was talking about, but you're definitely right about that."

"Then what were you talking about?"

Quasi glanced at Esmeralda, smirking, then looked back at Zephyr. "It's a secret. You'll find out soon enough."

The boy's face lit up with excitement. But before he could start peppering Quasi with questions, his father stepped in.

"Alright, I've gotta get going, and so does your mama. Are we gonna get hugs before we go?"

"You sure you gotta go now, Papa?" Zephyr whined. "You could come to the market with us."

"Positive," Phoebus said with a shrug. "I need to send someone out to meet the bell maker before I meet Clopin. You know how important it is that we work together to keep the peace in this city, or the French citizens will go right back to fighting with the Roma citizens."

"And then our family can't be together safely," Zephyr said glumly. "I know it's important, Papa. Tell Uncle Clopin I'm real proud of you guys."

Phoebus feigned a dramatic blush. "Aww! Now, get in here and give your old man a hug!"

Zephyr ran into his parents' open arms and let them pepper him with kisses before they stood to leave.

"Be on your best behavior for Uncle Quasi, Zephyr," Esmeralda admonished.

"I will!" Zephyr chirped.

As Phoebus, Esmeralda and Djali disappeared down the stairs, Zephyr turned to Quasi. "So what are we gonna do today?"

Quasi collected a couple of bags and handed one to Zephyr. "Well, first I have to go to the market, then bring that stuff back here and check on La Fidelle again. After that, we'll go to the park."

Zephyr pumped a fist. "Yes! Can we bring a ball?"

"Absolutely!"

Zephyr giggled as he grabbed Quasi's hand and practically pulled him downstairs. "Then come on, Uncle Quasi! The market's waiting!"

"Zephyr, wait, aren't we forgetting something?"

"Oh yeah," Zephyr said, halting. He turned to wave at the various objects that decorated the loft. "Bye, bells! Bye, gargoyles! Bye, Victor! Bye, Hugo! Bye, Laverne! You're my favorite!" The boy paused his waving long enough to run and pat the stone figure of Laverne on the head.

Quasi laughed. "She says you're hers too, Zeph."

Zephyr turned back to the stairs. "Okay, we said goodbye to everyone! You coming, Uncle Quasi?"

"I'm coming, I'm coming!"

Peace was not easily kept in Paris, particularly with a new king on the throne who would look for any excuse to restart the persecution of the Roma. Phoebus and Clopin had worked hard to maintain a delicate balance of power and representation among all the citizens, and had largely done so purely by leading by example. Of course, it did help that Clopin was the closest thing Phoebus had to a father-in-law.

But a threat to that balance was rolling into town that very day, in the form of a train of colorful wagons with signage for "Cirque du Sarousch" splashed across them.

Sarousch halted his wagon train for a moment and looked upon the magnificent Notre Dame Cathedral for the first time in many years. The church housed the bell he required for his revenge plot against the Gypsy King who had sent him into exile. He chuckled to himself. The city was busier than he'd ever seen it. Word on the street was the pope was coming in just a few days. The timing couldn't be more perfect.

He turned to the timid girl in the wagon behind him. "Madellaine, my darling, it's time to prepare for your performance. We will soon have an audience fit for a king."

The girl obeyed wordlessly, gathering things from a trunk and drawing a curtain around herself. Sarousch turned his attention back to the road and smiled darkly. "And it'll be the last audience that 'king' ever sees," he muttered to himself, "before the one that will be gathered for his execution. Get your affairs in order, Trouillefou. Your reign is coming to an end!"