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Madellaine/Quasi Para// Give Us This Day

All his life, Quasi had been told about Heaven and the elation he’d feel upon entering such a place, but it was only now, feeling the warmth of Maddelaine’s palm pushed against his, that he got a glimpse of what that could possibly mean. It took a moment before he was able to focus, at first all he seemed capable of was staring down at their laced fingers and trying to keep his breathing even. Once the feeling subsided, he looked straight into Maddelaine’s soft blue eyes and smiled back, the nervous twist in his stomach smoothing out into deepseated peace.

“You’re welcome.” the boy said, giving her hand the gentlest of squeezes. “It’s nice to have a chance to share it with someone.” He moved up a step and waited for Madellaine to follow before taking another, quickly leading her out of the basement until they reached the main lobby. A thick hush lay over the church, it was still far too early for any worshipers to have made the pilgrimage from their homes, and many scowling saints and grimacing martyrs frowed down from high upon the walls as if scolding the couples for distrubing the silence.

Quasi, who had seen all this everyday since boyhood, walked under their judgemental gaze without showing any signs of distress. The only time the boy appeared at all anxious was when a ginger cat slipped out from behind a pillar to wind itself around his ankles.

“Marius!” he whispered, his voice frantic “You’re supposed to stay upstairs. Do you have any idea what would happen if Father or the Bishop found you here?”

He leaned over and gathered the purring cat into his arms, offering the ginger head to Maddelaine as he leaned towards her.

“Here, you can pet him if you’d like. He’s very good natured.”

#para:give us this day #para:Quasi

Madellaine hardly ever got the chance to set foot inside the church’s hallowed halls. As Quasi led her through the place, she took the opportunity to take a glance at her surroundings. The dazzling stained-glass windows were lit up in brilliant color as the early morning sun filtered through them, and the tall stone statues stared down at her with their disapproving, almost frighteningly detailed eyes.

And yet, their gazes didn’t unsettle her at all. Perhaps they would have, if she’d been alone in the church, or if she hadn’t been given the reassurance that the intimidating Frollo wasn’t about to appear at any moment. Regardless, with Quasimodo by her side, she wasn’t afraid.

Admittedly, that didn’t stop her from being momentarily startled by the cat’s sudden appearance.

She almost laughed at herself once she realized what it was, and she drew a bit closer once Quasi picked the cat up with a familiar sense of ease.

“Hello, Marius,” she greeted the cat with a smile, reaching out a tentative hand to gently stroke the cat’s orange fur. “It’s very nice to meet you.” She lifted her gaze to meet Quasimodo’s gaze again, and her smile widened slightly. “He’s lovely,” she told him. “He’s yours?”

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Madellaine/Quasi Para// Give Us This Day

Quasi nearly fainted with relief when he heard Maddelaine’s agreement. She wasn’t going to leave him.

“Yes, the doves live up in the bell tower, we have them for weddings and christenings and other celebrations. It’s my job to take care of them, as well as clean the sanctuary, ring in the morning services and vespers and donate my time to the soup kitchen when I’m able.”

Quasi listed off his duties, counting each one off on his fingers. He snuck a peek at Maddi again, his dark eyes filled with concern.

“I’m sorry. You came here to see the church, not to hear me chatter.

Taking a deep breath, Quasi held out his good hand to Madellaine, palm and hopes up, wondering if she’d take it. So far, she had been very kind, as many people had, but he wondered if this was pushing a boundary. She hadn’t touched him yet, not intentionally anyway, even though he desperately wanted her to. Deep down, Quasi knew it was rude to ask directly. Besides, nobody ever wanted to touch him anyway, not even his father, though he did out of duty, especially if a punishment was needed. The thought of Father finding him here, especially with a girl, no less, made Quasi’s heart jump in fear but rather than coil away, he stretched his hand out further.

“If you like, we can go up to the sanctuary, up to the bell tower and then down here again. The bread will be ready for baking by the time we’re done.”

#para:give us this day #para:Quasi

Madellaine held her smile as Quasi spoke, and gave a light chuckle to calm his nerves, at least slightly.

“That’s quite alright, Quasimodo, I don’t mind at all,” she told him. “Besides, I like listening to you talk. It does sound like a lot of work for just one person; though I have no doubt that you do it all very well.”

Inwardly, she was happy that Quasi wasn’t entirely alone up in the tower, even if his only companions were the doves.

She took his hand when he offered it to her, without any hesitation whatsoever. There was no need for her to, this was Quasi, and despite what the bell-ringer no doubt thought, she had no aversion to his touch at all. In fact, she found herself welcoming it. It just felt natural to her, though she couldn’t quite place why.

“That sounds fantastic,” she said, her smile growing a little wider in her anticipation. “I’m looking forward to seeing them for the first time.”

She paused for a brief moment, her blue eyes focused intently on his darker ones and her smile lingering as she spoke again.

“Thank you, by the way, for inviting me here with you, Quasi.”

Madellaine/Quasi Para// Give Us This Day

“It’s quite alright, Quasimodo, really,” Madellaine reassured him as she steadied herself on her feet again, giving him a warm smile. “No harm done, I promise.” She had been momentarily worried for him, seeing how flustered he was. Though her smile remained constant, she felt a pang of sympathy, mixed with guilt, in her chest when he hurried to hide his face. Admittedly, his scars had startled her when she had first seen them, but they were no reflection of the good in his soul.

She often wondered about the Judge’s methods when she spoke to Quasimodo, for it brought a sorrowful feeling to her heart to see someone so kind and gentle be so disgusted by their own appearance. Despite her desire to lift his spirits, she didn’t reach out to him just yet.

“I suppose I should have been watching where I was going,” she went on, giving a sheepish chuckle. She brushed a stray lock of her blonde hair back behind her ear, her blue eyes scanning quickly over him, looking to see if he was also unhurt by the tumble they’d taken. The bell-ringer was so concerned on her behalf that he often seemed to forget about himself on occasion. “Are you alright?”

Quasi’s eyes flickered from Madellaine’s mouth, momentarily entranced by the movement of her lips before he realized that they were moving for a reason, she was talking to him and expected an answer.

“I’m f-fine.” the boy said, not sure who the boy was trying to convince, Madellaine or himself? And was he really fine? The tumble and sudden rush had made the ache in Quasi’s head resurface, the cut was now throbbing underneath his bandaid. He forced back a wince and hoped Madellaine hadn’t noticed. Another deep breath and the dizziness subsided, leaving Quasi with an overwhelming sense of panic. Everything had gone silent again, his frantic heartbeat reminding him of each steadily passing second. Still, she hadn’t run away as some others had, that was something.

“Would you like to see the rest of the church?” Quasi offered, fighting his usual shyness “The rolls aren’t ready just yet, they still need time to rise…but we could always look at the sanctuary and visit the bell tower in the meantime. I-I have birds, d-doves. They’re very tame and always love company.”

Peeking out from beneath his hood, he watched Madellaine carefully, trying to gague her response and hoping against hope that she would stay.

#para:Quasi #para:give us this day

Madellaine smiled at him, hoping to put him at ease. “Of course, I would love to. That sounds wonderful, Quasimodo,” she replied. “I’ve never had the chance to see them for myself before.”

Regarding him for a brief moment, her voice masked the concern she felt as she noticed the small flickers of pain in his face. She wasn’t entirely convinced that he was as alright as he claimed to be, but decided not to press the issue further for the time being. Nonetheless, she felt an internal desire to tend to the bell-ringer, one that was becoming increasingly more difficult for her to ignore with time.

“I didn’t know that you kept birds,” she went on, her smile growing a little wider. She hoped that addressing the subject would help keep Quasimodo’s mind off of his injury, at least for a little while. She had noticed the bandage on his head when they had first tumbled to the ground, and she couldn’t help but wonder how he had gotten hurt in the first place. The image of Judge Frollo, with his stern, intimidating figure, appeared at the back of her mind, and she had to forcibly push it away.

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Madellaine/Quasi Para// Give Us This Day

Quasi tried to stammer out a reply, but the tangle of his thoughts seemed unable to reach his lips. His whole body felt as though it had been set aflame, and he suspected that his usual blush had spread far beyond the span of his face. The boy knew that Madellaine was waiting on him, the silence between them growing as he continued to fumble for a response, but something more important than finding a way to answer Madellaine was fighting for Quasi’s attention, and that was the matter of covering his scars.

Quickly, he wrapped his arm more firmly around Madellaine’s waist, setting the girl to rights before he shoved one hand in the pocket of his sweater while the other groped for his hood. He could still feel her warmth where she had been pressed against him, her sweet smell still lingering in the air. Her beauty made Quasi feel even uglier by contrast, and he tilted his head downwards, hoping against hope that she wouldn’t want to look into his face, or even more so, that she wouldn’t run away. She was like an angel to him, her blue eyes and kind smile an image he had seen duplicated many times depicted in the scenes that adorned the sanctuary ceiling. He was a gargoyle, frightening, awkward and better left for the bell tower to gather dust.

“I’m sorry if I fr-frightened you, I didn’t mean any harm.”

#para:Quasi #para:give us this day

“It’s quite alright, Quasimodo, really,” Madellaine reassured him as she steadied herself on her feet again, giving him a warm smile. “No harm done, I promise.” She had been momentarily worried for him, seeing how flustered he was. Though her smile remained constant, she felt a pang of sympathy, mixed with guilt, in her chest when he hurried to hide his face. Admittedly, his scars had startled her when she had first seen them, but they were no reflection of the good in his soul.

She often wondered about the Judge’s methods when she spoke to Quasimodo, for it brought a sorrowful feeling to her heart to see someone so kind and gentle be so disgusted by their own appearance. Despite her desire to lift his spirits, she didn’t reach out to him just yet.

“I suppose I should have been watching where I was going,” she went on, giving a sheepish chuckle. She brushed a stray lock of her blonde hair back behind her ear, her blue eyes scanning quickly over him, looking to see if he was also unhurt by the tumble they’d taken. The bell-ringer was so concerned on her behalf that he often seemed to forget about himself on occasion. “Are you alright?”

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