[Private] The Hunchback of Notre Dame (AdAstra)

[UncoordinatedPisces]

Aimee was in fact looking at the girl in an opposite way. She could sense that the gypsy hadn't had the best of times in the past, no gypsy really did. She wished she could be within their community again, the gypsies were so much nicer than most people, although they tended to confuse her. Although Aimee did not like to admit it, she sometimes envied the gypsy girls who had darken skin and darker hair, because it took a while to be accepted because of her skin colour in the past.

She did see the girl's attention turn to her face, she remembered the bruise at that point. Sub-consciously, she raised a hand to touch it. It stung. Her eyes trailed off to Frollo, whom she stared at long enough for Roseriya to notice. Fear swept her eyes, she never wanted to be hit like that again. When the girl spoke again, Aimee answered, smiling a little.
"Nice to meet you too".

[AdAstrα]

Roseriya saw him too. Frollo. The man that had ruined so many lives, sent so many people to their brutal deaths. The man everyone feared, and with good reason. She shuddered, unable to look at him for more than a few seconds; for he frightened her more than she wanted to admit to anyone, and especially to herself. She had vowed so many times not to give in to fear, but to defy it and try her hardest to overcome her past, to focus on the future and all the great things it might hold. Sometimes, however it was impossible. Her mind had a life of its own and countless nights had therefore been spent wide awake, the sound of silence ringing in her ears; the surrounding darkness threatening to swallow her soul. Thinking. Crying. And perhaps most of all, wishing there was a way to go back in time.

Had it not been for Judge Claude Frollo, her parents might still have been with her. Instead, they had been burnt alive, screaming in agony as the life drained from their eyes.

And therefore, she was afraid. She was afraid of this man and all that he was capable of, and had to, as she looked up at him now, fight a strong urge to run. Glancing at Aimee, she could immediately tell that she was also scared...but for a different reason. Roseriya frowned, once again looking at the ugly bruise. It was so clear to her now, in fact she could almost make out the shape of a hand...a large one, with long, thin fingers....

Then, it all hit her at once. Letting out a gasp, she automatically took a step backwards, almost tripping over a little herd of chickens that had for some reason been set loose. Aimee. Aimee Maria. The niece of Claude Frollo.

[UncoordinatedPisces]

Aimee could see she had finally come to the realization about who she was. Well, not exactly. Aimee had so much to her past, but people just saw the man she was related too. The young girl had a look of dismay as she buried her face in her hands for a moment,
"Please...", she murmured. Looking back at the girl, her eye's pleading with her not to run. All her emotions were in her eyes as she spoke again, "Please don't go, I can't-I can't...".

She couldn't get the rest of the sentence out. Aimee had been needing to get her emotions out to somebody, and Roseriya was there. She felt as though she could poor out her whole story at that point, even to a stranger who's name she had learned not minutes ago, "But Roseriya would be too scared to stay now", she thought. "Because of him". She was thankful Frollo hadn't noticed her, and she doubted he would. He was still talking, and everyone was waiting for the entrance act on the makeshift stage.

[AdAstrα]

Roseriya merely stared at Aimee; completely awestruck, yet intrigued. She had no clue what to do; her urge to run was stronger than ever and her heart was racing, yet she could not bring herself to leave Aimee there all alone. The expression on her face was that of an incredibly lonely person, desperately begging this new aquaintance to stay, to not judge her the way others had done. Roseriya could relate to that feeling, having been a subject of prejudice among most people her entire life. But the fear was so overwhelming, so unbearable. She did not know if she could handle it much longer. The knowledge that any moment now, Frollo could turn around and see them. It terrified her, for there was no way of knowing what he might do if this happened. He was not known as the type to ask questions first, and act later. Sometimes he was said to act mainly on impulse, which made him about a hundred times more dangerous.

"I...I don't know." Roseriya stammered, lowering her voice into almost a whisper, "If...If he sees us..."

She was surprised that she was even able to make sound. The lump in her throat was growing so big she wondered if she was about to suffocate; she was literally gasping for air at that point. Looking up at Aimee, she tried to put as many of her thoughts and emotions into her gaze as she possibly could, for there was no way she could tell her. The words she needed weren't there.

[UncoordinatedPisces]

Obviously, Frollo had been feared more around here then, Aimee first thought. The girl looked terrified, but Aimee found it hard to come to a conclusion about what to do. She didn't want to get Roseriya in trouble, and when the girl spoke she glanced at Frollo again. Then she looked into the girls eyes, they were just as emotive as hers. After a few moments of staring Aimee replied,

"I...I can understand if you want to go". As much as Aimee didn't want her too, she didn't want her to be harmed. "Just...please promise me...", the girl was tearing up, "That I could see you again...I don't want to be on my own-", a few tears escaped and she rubbed the away hastily, "With him".

[AdAstrα]

Roseriya gazed at Aimee, noticing that she was on the verge of tears. Almost tearing up herself, she sighed deepily, nervously looking down at her feet and biting her lip. Pity for the poor soul hit her like a tidal wave; she simply could not imagine what it must be like to live with Frollo. Or actually....she could imagine it, somewhat. Having spent the majority of her childhood working for a cruel man and getting brutally punished so often she'd lost count, she could quite easily imagine life at the Palace of Justice. But, Roseriya thought, At least I managed to escape. There's no escaping Judge Frollo. You can hide all you want, but he'll always find you sooner or later...

She also felt bad for the girl because of all the horrible things that had recently been said about her; none of which appeared to be true. There was hardly a gypsy in Paris who did not know who she was by now, but her reputation of being a snobby upper-class girl was far from well-earned. There was nothing snobby about her now where she stood, shaking from head to toe at the thought of Roseriya leaving, desperately longing for company.

"I..I'm sorry. I...you seem like a lovely person, but..." She immediately fell silent as the show was set in motion up on the stage. Everyone, including Frollo, immediately looked up, focusing on Clopin and the group of dancers and acrobats behind him. Roseriya couldn't help but stand there and just stare in wonder and anticipation. The show was never exactly the same every year, and she actually could not wait to see what they were all going to do.

[UncoordinatedPisces]

Aimee was lost in thought just as Roseriya was. She was thinking about what lay ahead. Even though at a time like a festival, she shouldn't be thinking such things. When she heard the girl talk again, she smiled just a little, 'lovely person'. But she knew Frollo would be furious if she was seen talking-

He was looking directly at her. Panic engulfed her for a moment. She quickly removed traces of it, it would make her seem like she was guilty of something. Frollo gave an unmistakble jerk of the head which meant 'come here'. Aimee noticed the show was about to start. If anything, it would be a better view from where Frollo was. She glanced back at Roseriya,

"I-I have to go. Maybe we'll meet again soon...", she said quickly, "I hope so...". She made her way through the crowd, getting murmurs and glares. Aimee blanked them out. Again, she bumped into something. This time, is white, soft, and taller than her. It was a horse. It whinnied at her in response and she gave it a tender stroke. "Sorry", she mumbled to the creature like it could understand. "Not the first time I've bumped into someone today". She then noticed two legs either side in armor. Looking up she saw Captain Phoebus.

Aimee could feel herself blush and she gave an embarrassed smile. He had obviously heard and see all that. She lent back on one of the beams of the tent like platform that Frollo was stained on. She heard her the excited cheers of the crowd. The show was about to start. Clopin had just got back up on the stage after pushing people forward, encouraging them to get a better view. Quasimodo, who had sneaked out against Frollo's orders, was among them. He was nervously excited, he prevented himself from glancing at Frollo too many times. But saw Aimee in the distance, he smiled. He liked her, she was kind to him.

His eyes were drawn back to the stage when Clopin started to sing,
"See the finest girl in France
Make an entrance to entrance
Dance la Esmeralda
Dance!". A cloud of red smoke appeared, and Clopin vanished.

[AdAstrα]

Roseriya merely nodded as Aimee left, because Frollo was now staring directly at her and she felt the blood drain from her face once again. Avoiding his gaze stubbornly, she couldn't help but wonder if he remembered. He had been there that night, that dreadful night when her parents and nearly everyone in their camp had been murdered. He had seen the children left behind, sending them off fully aware of what would become of most of them. But whether he remembered her.....it was impossible to tell. And she didn't exactly want to find out, either.

It took a while before she dared look up towards the stage again, and when she did, Aimee was already up there with him. She hoped she understood that it was not her she judged; for Roseriya never judged people based on rumours. It surprised her that so many gypsies did; discriminated for centuries now, they should all know better. She gazed at Clopin, frowning slightly. Had he not said only days ago never to trust "that Frollo girl"? He had either forgot that now, or was trying his hardest to impress Frollo; he was now glancing at Aimee with a smile on his lips. Plucking up enough courage to quickly glance at the Judge, she noticed how bored he looked, which somehow made her feel a tad better about this whole situation.

Make an entrance to entrance! Dance la Esmeralda....dance!
It all happened so quickly. Clopin vanished in a cloud of smoke, and a woman appeared seemingly out of nowhere, in the exact same spot he had been standing on only seconds ago. Stunningly beautiful, she moved to the rhythm of the music, the fabric of her red dress flowing like a tender breeze around her slender body. Looking out over the audience, she smiled, her green eyes sparkling like emeralds, the dark hair framing her face thick and wavy. She danced like it was all she had ever done, like moving her body to the music came as naturally to her as breathing, or sleeping. A natural force she would never question, only follow in order to stay alive.

Roseriya smiled as she watched her. What would she not give to be as talented as her! She had once been a good dancer herself, but now, her badly broken and never fully healed leg made that impossible. She was still a decent singer though....not that she would ever dare perform in front of so many people. She grinned as Esmeralda quickly glanced her way, giving the dancer a little wave which she returned by blinking, her red lips curving into a smile as she did so.

[UncoordinatedPisces]

Aimee stood, smiling dreamily at Esmerelda, who had replaced Clopin in the cloud of smoke. She was the gypsy she longed to be, her dark hair and skin, her emerald green eyes. And her dancing, it was amazing. Her eyes were drawn to her every movement, and as she drew her eyes away she could see about every guy in town, from gypsy to normal citizen, were enjoying it. Then again, she was as well, but more in an admiration way.

She glanced back at Captain Phoebus, who was also watching with the same interest. He was grinning. As much as Aimee loved the smile, she knew what he was smiling at. The girl felt a little jealousy tingle it's way up her spine, but she fought it back. She wasn't going to get jealous. Her eyes then trailed to Frollo, to see what he made of it all as Esmerelda danced closer to the him.

[AdAstrα]

Despite his efforts to stubbornly look away, Frollo found himself staring at the woman before him, mesmerized by her beauty and the way she moved. She made it look so effortless, and he could not help but feel a tad amazed at this. But after all, as he kept having to remind himself; she was a gypsy. Gypsy women knew exactly how to capture an audience, how to hold their full attention and leave them wanting more. It was witchcraft, nothing else. Heathens as they were, this illusion of beauty and innocence was all part of their spell. The spell she was putting on everyone....even on him...a righteous, faithful man...

"Look at that disgusting display." He muttered, more to himself than anyone else. Disgusting, that was the word. The way this witch was enchanting every single Parisian...hypnotizing them to adore her every move...yet another good reason for why he had to put an end to all of this, as soon as he possibly could. This could not be allowed to continue...

Temporarily lost in thought, he looked up to find that the gypsy was suddenly right in front of him. Staring at her in confusion, he wondered what her next move would be. Surely she wasn't going to....

His suspiscion was confirmed as she, in one single motion, leapt onto his lap. Her warm body was as light as a feather. Gazing at her, he found himself mesmerized by her expressive, green eyes once more, even more stunning this close up. As her soft hands playfully touched his face, he found himself go hot to the point where he was almost sweating. Yet....he did not want her to stop. Hours could pass, and he would still be staring into her eyes. Into the depth of those emerald hues...into her very soul...trying to figure out what secrets could be hiding there.

Then, everything went black. In his dreamy state of lust and confusion combined, it took a few seconds for him to register what had happened and when he did, any feelings of admiration and fascination were immediately replaced with anger. Placing the hat back firmly on his head, he shot her a look that would have made anyone else fall onto their knees begging for mercy, but she merely returned it with a cheeky smile as she continued to dance.