To Walk Through a Dream Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven With Wavering Footsteps Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Stone Song Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three A Tale of Winter Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Destiny Inescapable Prologue Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Epilogue The Cycle's Continuing Beginnings Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Two Spirits Akin

A Tale of Winter (In balance, Imbalance) Chapter Two He still hadn't quite gotten used to the feel of it, even after he'd come down here so many times. Even now, as he followed Esmerelda's torch and tried to remember the other times, he knew his memory could not compare with reality. A stumbling, scrambling journey through dank, dark passageways, some of them ankle-deep with muck, then a glow ahead, the mystical scent of exotic spices, lilting foreign music, and the sudden shock as he stepped into an explosion of colour and majesty that rivaled the stained-glass splendour of Notre Dame Cathedral itself. Such was the gypsies' Court of Miracles. And so it was again this time, a burst of light and colour, as upon breaking through a magical portal into a new world. Phoebus reached for Esmerelda's hand as they stepped into the Court and she took his, smiling up at him. There were fewer people than usual in the center today, most were huddled around fires near the walls of the great cavern. Drafts blew in from the open entrances of the catacombs now and again. Next to Esmerelda's tent, a small group of children were dancing to the tune of a flute, partly to drive off boredom, and partly to keep warm. A shiver ran through Phoebus while he waited for Esmerelda to return from her search for Djali. This winter was the coldest anyone could remember. He noticed a small boy he had seen the other day in the marketplace. The child had stolen a loaf of bread and been caught, but he had seen the hunger in the child's eyes and paid for the bread himself, letting the boy go. There was something hollow about the cheerfulness of the colours. Life was only slightly easier for the gypsies since Judge Frollo's death. With a startling clarity, for the first time in his life Phoebus saw the pain, hunger, and sorrow that was mingled with the bright fabrics and lively music. Lost in reverie, Phoebus began to roam the cavern, thinking. If only there were some way to help... He did not see the young gypsy girl watching him silently from the shadows. Esmerelda returned with Djali in tow to where she'd left Phoebus, but he was no longer there. She noticed the quiet figure standing nearby. "Marya, have you seen where Phoebus has got to?" The girl indicated the direction in which he'd wandered off and smiled to herself in the shadows. One cannot have balance without imbalance. Chapter Three