| "Secrets Revealed" Chapter 3 Written by: Erin "Did you finally tell him the truth, mother?" Sasha poked her head into the doorway of the living room some time later to find her mother still sitting there with her head in her hands, her expression hard to read at the moment. Frowning, the younger woman stepped into the room and clasped her hands in front of her, already knowing the answer, "You did, didn't you?" As Maggie nodded, Sasha sighed in exasperation. "I hate to say 'I told you so', but I knew all along you shouldn't have kept this from him-" "Sasha, I had not seen Phoebus in who knows how long? I didn't know until a year ago that he was friends with that bellringer!" Maggie defended herself, finally lifting her head, narrowing her dark eyes at her oldest daughter. "At least give me some credit here." "Even then, it wasn't until he wrote you that you decided to be honest." Sasha started to grow angrier by the minute. She and her brother were extremely close, they had been since their childhood, and she could only wonder what Phoebus was thinking at the moment. Betrayal? Anger? Both maybe? "Sasha, I already told you the whole story," Maggie interrupted again. "I don't need to repeat it again; I thought at least one of my children would be on my side-" "This isn't about being on anyone's side, mother!" Sasha raised her voice a notch. "This is about the truth and the people you have hurt because you refused to tell the truth! Did it do any good to keep this a secret for 21 years? What about my feelings about this? To know that I have a long-lost cousin as well...someone who saved my own brother's life, and Esmeralda's life, and also stopped the entire city from being burned to the ground? I've never met Quasimodo before, but Phoebus and Esmeralda have, and just from talking with them, they're all close. What is that poor boy's reaction going to be when Phoebus tells him the truth?" "Look, I don't know, Sasha, and I'm not going to worry about what his reaction is going to be right now. I'm just concerned that my own children hate me now because I tried to do what was best for them-" "What was best?" Sasha repeated, her eyes widening. "You still think it was for the best, mother? Excuse me for saying so, but it wasn't for the best! Lying never does any good, no matter how much you want to deny it. You're our mother, you always taught us that, didn't you? I shouldn't have to be the one reminding you now of that same thing." Shaking her head in disgust, Sasha turned back towards the door without waiting for a reply, and not really expecting one. ***** "Okay, so let's say I do tell Quasi when we arrive back home." Phoebus was pacing the floor of his bedroom while Esmeralda watched his every move. "What in the world am I going to say? How do I start? Is he going to feel betrayed by me? Happy? He's awfully sensitive, Esme..." "For good reason, too," Esmeralda interrupted as she swung her bare feet over the side of his bed. "And I can't answer that question for you, you know that. I'm not Quasi, and even if I were, I'd still want to be told the truth about my family. It could go either way. I may be a gypsy, but I'm not a mind reader, you know?" Sighing, Phoebus sunk down on a hard chair in the corner and ran a hand through his shoulder-length hair. "God, this is going to be so difficult...but I promise I will do it, Esmeralda. Tomorrow. It's too late and too dark to travel back to Notre Dame tonight, so we should leave in the morning." "What made you change your mind so suddenly?" Esmeralda whispered, although she thought she already knew the answer. "I want you as my wife more then anything, Esme," he replied, looking up into her beautiful green eyes. "And I want to keep Quasimodo's friendship; I would be carrying around a load of guilt if I don't do it. You're right, sweetie. He's done countless things for us, it's our turn to do this for him." Sighing softly, he shook his head. "How do you always manage to talk some sense into me when I need it the most?" Instead of replying directly, Esmeralda shrugged her shoulders and asked a question of her own. "What about Maggie, Phoebus? Are you going to continue being angry at her when we leave tomorrow?" His eyes turning hard at the mention of his mother again, Phoebus sucked in a sharp breath. "It's up to her, really. Depends on whether or not she'll even apologize to me; I did nothing wrong, it's all her doing..." "Phoebus." Esmeralda's voice took on a warning tone at the words she heard coming out of his mouth. "Esmeralda, I can't forgive her that easily," the ex-soldier defended himself, lifting his palms in the air. "She's not even sorry for keeping this secret from me. She wouldn't have even told me about it if I didn't write her and bring you here to meet my family." Knowing she was getting nowhere with this conversation, the dark-haired gypsy shook her head and rose to her feet, all of a sudden feeling tired and worn out. "Well, we're not leaving until morning, so you've got time to think that over." Ignoring the roll of her fiance's eyes, Esmeralda walked over to him and kissed his cheek. "I'm going to bed now." Sighing softly, she walked out the door and down the hallway towards the guest bedroom Maggie had set up for her. Almost as soon as the door closed to the room, Sasha walked down the hall just then and knocked on Phoebus's open door. "May I come in, little brother?" A slight smile crossed his face at the sound of his sister's voice. "You're always welcome in here, Sash. No need to knock." He slumped down deeper into the chair, folding his hands across his abdomen. She could tell by his posture that Phoebus was not handling the recent news well at all and so she took a seat in the same place Esmeralda had just sat in. "Mother told me a year ago about Quasimodo being our cousin, Phoebus. I tried to urge her to tell you as well, but she refused. You know how stubborn mother is...I wanted to tell you myself, but I didn't know how to get a hold of you." She lowered her eyes to her hands. "One would have to be stupid to not know what happened a year ago..." "Sasha, I don't really want to talk specifically about that right now," Phoebus held up a hand. "Just the mention of that judge's name sends shivers down my spine...he did totally unforgiveable deeds and those memories are with me wherever I go." He sighed heavily. "So mother told you the truth, but not me, huh?" As his sister nodded, Phoebus looked up at the ceiling. "Esme and I are leaving for home tomorrow morning...did mother tell you that she doesn't want anything to do with her nephew?" "Not in so many words, no; but it's obvious," said Sasha. Phoebus nodded his head. Those were the same words he had spoken to his fiance not too long ago. Just as he had thought, his instincts were correct. "You and Esme are close friends with him, aren't you?" As Phoebus nodded, his head turned in the other direction, Sasha continued, "Mother may not want to meet him, but...I would." As her brother looked up in shock, almost as if he didn't hear her correctly, Sasha repeated, "I said I would like to meet him. He's a member of our family and I've heard all that he went through with Judge Frollo." The shock was still evident on Phoebus's face and Sasha couldn't help chuckling at that look. "Little brother, you can shut your mouth now. It shouldn't be that surprising! I love my family very much, and now that I know that Quasimodo is a part of it, I know that I'm going to love him, too." "You're saying you want to come with us tomorrow?" "Maybe not tomorrow; I do have a husband and children of my own, remember?" She winked playfully before turning serious. "I was thinking more like the day after tomorrow, after you tell him the truth. Once that's taken care of, I would love to see him." To be continued... Back to Fanfic Back to Index |