Chapter 11: The Hunt

Frollo was eager to round up some sinners. It pleased him to hear that a band of thieves needed to be caught. The judge immediately set out to capture these criminals. He first sent his soldiers to interview every person who had been robbed by the thieves. When some information was gathered, they began to search the the areas where the thieves were likely to be hiding out.

It was a time consuming effort. All day Frollo pushed his men around the city to search. It was fruitless. Eventually, the sun started to set with no trace of the criminals.

"Judge Frollo," The Captain finally piped up. "We need to rest. Our search can continue tomorrow."

"It will continue now!" Frollo insisted. "No one shall rest until the thieves are found!"

"But Sir-"

"We will find them! No one shall say I allowed evil to run free for a moment in this city!"

The truth of the matter was that Frollo needed something to keep him from Esmeralda. And from sleep.

The night became dark. The soldiers continued to complain. But finally, there was a breakthrough. One of the thieves was miraculously caught stealing in the dead of night! The soldiers restrained and interrogated him, but the crook was determined not to reveal where his companions hid. Frollo grew tired of his men's incompetence.

"Enough!" The judge finally snapped. "I will take over the interrogation from here!"

He shoved the soldiers aside, drew his dagger, and immediately threw the captured thief to the ground. Frollo pressed his blade into the man's face.

"Where are the others?!" He demanded.

The criminal grunted.

"...Somewhere you won't find them."

With that, Frollo plunged his knife into the thief's shoulder. The man shouted in pain.

"Does this change your mind?" Frollo asked bitterly.

"...No!"

Frollo twisted the knife, making the man cry out in more pain. He then balled up his fists and started to beat the thief's face.

"GIVE IT UP!" The judge ordered.

The crook wouldn't speak. His cries of pain were all Frollo heard. The judge pulled the knife from his captive and stabbed him again, producing another scream, and pulling the knife out just as painfully.

"Your honor!" The Captain interfered. "We won't learn anything if he dies!"

"Nor will we learn anything if he lives..." Frollo said coldly.

At that, the thief panicked.

"Alright!" He cried. "I'll tell you!"

He spilled his guts. Frollo learned that the band of thieves used a silversmith's attic as a hideout. They'd been stealing silver to be resold.

Proud of himself for getting the information, Frollo grinned.

"We will go there at once!" He ordered.

"But Sir," The Captain said. "The sun is coming up."

Sure enough, the sun was beginning to rise.

"So?" Frollo asked.

"So we should wait until dark. They'll see us coming if we attack in broad daylight."

Perhaps a brief respite was in order. Frollo decided that he could benefit from a break. He could visit Quasimodo, have something to eat, and get a proper sword so he would be safer when confronting the thieves. He agreed to the Captain's suggestion. A day to rest would do no harm.


Esmeralda was speechless when Frollo suddenly showed up for breakfast. He didn't even acknowledge her presence at the table when he sat down to eat. And after finishing his food, he walked away without a word. Esmeralda followed her husband furiously.

"Where have you been?!" She demanded to know.

Although Frollo was taking a break from his work, he didn't want to end his break from her. So, he pretended she wasn't there.

"I'm not going to disappear just because you give me the silent treatment!" Esmeralda continued. "You said you would be back at night, but you never came! I hardly slept because I didn't know what happened to you!"

Frollo continued to ignore her. He went into the bedroom, picked up a book, and sat down to read.

"Do you really have nothing to say to me?" The gypsy asked.

Frollo turned a page. He was confident that Esmeralda would leave him alone if he ignored her for long enough.

"I've been so bored..." Esmeralda went on.

Frollo kept reading.

"And I'm really feeling quite... needy."

Frollo looked up from his book. Esmeralda saw fear in his eyes. What was going on?

The judge put his book down. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, then stood and began to lean in to Esmeralda. She stopped him.

"Wait," She interrupted. "Are you okay?"

Frollo looked miserable, as if he'd resigned himself to some awful punishment. It was strange. This was the first time he'd shown anything but enthusiasm toward intimacy.

"If I'm to be honest..." The judge finally spoke. "...I don't want to do this."

Never in a million years would Esmeralda have expected this, that she would want Frollo and he wouldn't want her. It defied reality!

"But I married you in the house of God." Frollo continued, his voice full of dread. "So I won't neglect my job of satisfying you."

Esmeralda was speechless until Frollo tried to kiss her again.

"No..." She whispered.

She backed away from him.

"It can wait." She asserted.

"Excuse me?" Frollo said with confusion.

"I don't want it if you don't." Esmeralda said compassionately.

"But..." Frollo muttered. "I don't understand..."

"I don't want you forcing yourself to make love to me." Esmeralda explained. "Don't you see why- oh..."

She trailed off with a frown.

"I understand." Esmeralda said disappointedly.

"You understand what?"

"That you're confused because... If you were in my position, you wouldn't care if I was only giving you intimacy out of obligation."

Frollo was uncharacteristically stunned. Esmeralda turned her back just to break eye contact.

The judge felt as if something suddenly changed in him. Maybe it was because of sleep deprivation. Or maybe because he was overwhelmed by Esmeralda's ability to read him. He was too tired to think.

He returned to his chair. Involuntarily, his eyes started to close. He struggled to keep them open.

"You look tired." Esmeralda commented, now facing her husband again.

"I'm not." Frollo denied.

"You must be." Esmeralda insisted. "You were up all night."

"I have important business to attend to tonight." Frollo shared. "I won't sleep until I've taken care of it."

"You can sleep now." Esmeralda suggested. "Even a few hours would make you feel better."

"I'm not interested."

"Is it because of the dreams? Are you afraid to sleep?"

Normally Frollo would have argued, but he didn't have the energy. He simply stared.

"You should rest." Esmeralda reiterated. "I'll wake you up at noon. Or sooner if you have one of those dreams."

Frollo yawned. He was much too tired to fight, and sleep desperately called him.

"You promise?" He asked.

"I promise." Esmeralda confirmed.

Frollo was finally able to bring himself to go to bed. Esmeralda pulled the sheets over him and pulled up a chair beside the bed to keep watch over him. As Frollo started to fall asleep, he pondered the situation.

He'd been scared when Esmeralda had asked him for sex. Scared of fire in his dreams if he did it, and scared of fire in the afterlife if he refused. Her willingness to wait was an incredible relief. But her analysis of him was something else. She'd rightly brought up that Frollo wouldn't have offered her the same lenience. And she was willing to grant it to him anyway.

Esmeralda was a kind person.

For the first time in many years, Frollo felt an ounce of guilt for the way he treated someone.


I'm getting so excited about this story, and I hope others are too!

Thanks for reading this far, and thank you very much for the reviews! They really motivate me to keep it up!

I hope you look forward to the next chapters!