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Fresme is the het ship between Esmeralda and Claude Frollo from the The Hunchback of Notre Dame fandom.
Canon[]
The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)[]
Frollo and Esmeralda first meet at the Festival of Fools. Frollo is attending as a public official, and Esmeralda is participating with the rest of the Romani clan. She performs a seductive dance on stage, which captures the attention of Phoebus, Quasimodo, Frollo, and the rest of the crowd. She takes a moment to approach Frollo specifically, wrapping her handkerchief around his neck. Frollo reacts by calling her performance a "disgusting display". Later, when Quasimodo is revealed to the be the King of Fools and the guards begin to taunt him with rotten food, Esmeralda steps up onto the stage once more. She asks permission from Frollo to cease the crowd's cruelty, and he forbids it. She ignores him, and cuts Quasimodo free. She then throws the King of Fools' jester hat at Frollo, proclaiming him the only "fool" that she sees. Frollo orders her arrest immediately, but Esmeralda escapes.
She takes refuge in Notre Dame, where she meets Phoebus. When Frollo and his guards storm in, Phoebus implores Esmeralda to claim sanctuary so that Frollo cannot harm her. When she refuses to do so, Phoebus tells Frollo that she has anyways. Frollo begins to tell Phoebus to drag her out of the church, until the Bishop intervenes. He ushers all of the soldiers out of Notre Dame, but Frollo stays behind. He grabs Esmeralda and twists her arm behind her. He threatens her, then takes a moment to sniff her hair. When Esmeralda asks what he is doing, he replies that he's imagining a noose around her neck. Esmeralda responds that she knows what he was imagining. Frollo calls Esmeralda a witch, and claims that she is using her powers to "cloud his mind with unholy thoughts". As he leaves Notre Dame, he instructs the guards to remain posted at every door so that he can capture Esmeralda the moment she steps foot outside.
Later that evening, Frollo is alone in the Palace of Justice, where he sings "Hellfire", a song all about his lustful thoughts for Esmeralda. An Esmeralda made of smoke rises from the flames of his fireplace and dances seductively for him. He reaches out for her, but she disappears. Throughout the song, Frollo blames his lust for Esmeralda on her "witchcraft". Before the end of the song, Frollo is informed by one of his guards that Esmeralda has escaped. He replies that he'll find her, even if he has to "burn down all of Paris". The next morning, he sets to work doing just that. Frollo corners citizens of Paris, offering to pay them for information on Esmeralda. When they do not offer it to him, he arrests them, tries to drown them, and even attempts to burn them alive.
While the city burns, Frollo comes to visit Quasimodo. Realizing that Quasimodo helped Esmeralda escape, he lies to Quasimodo and tells him that he knows how to find the Court of Miracles. This causes Quasimodo and Phoebus to find the Court themselves to warn Esmeralda of Frollo's impending attack. However Frollo simply follows them, and storms the Court of Miracles with his soldiers. Esmeralda and her people are arrested, and brought to the town square the next evening. Esmeralda is tied to a stake and put on trial by Frollo for her "witchcraft". Before he sets fire to the pyre, he offers Esmeralda one last choice: "Choose me, or the fire". She spits in his face, and so he tells the crowd that she has chosen not to repent.
Before Esmeralda can die at the hands of the flames, Quasimodo rescues her. Frollo, incensed, breaks down the door to Notre Dame and storms into the bell tower. As Esmeralda lies unconscious on Quasimodo's bed, Frollo enters the room and attempts to kill Quasimodo. Quasimodo fights back, and Esmeralda awakes. Now, Frollo is intent on killing both of them. Quasimodo grabs Esmeralda and flees the room. Frollo follows, and the trio battle atop the cathedral. Just as Frollo think he has Esmeralda and Quasimodo cornered, he slips. As he grabs desperately to one of the Notre Dames' gargoyles, it comes to life and sends him plummeting to the street below.
Fanon[]
Fresme is the most popular ship on The Hunchback of Notre Dame fandom. It currently has over 150 fics on AO3. The ship fits the Enemies to Lovers trope, which tends to be a favourite among fans. It is also sometimes used as a way for fans to project their attraction to Frollo onto the only real female character in the movie. Fresme fics generally deal with Esmeralda helping Frollo become a better person. However, there are also a number of fans who enjoy the more "toxic" elements of the pairing and don't want to see Frollo change.
Fresme is a very divisive ship as, despite being the most popular in the fandom, it is a ship that is either loved or hated. Many say that the relationship between Frollo and Esmeralda is abusive, and that no manner of "change of heart" could improve the power imbalance between the two characters. These fans also cite the fact that Frollo's only feelings for Esmeralda were lust, and that he was willing to kill her if he could not have her. Its biggest rival ship is the canonical Phoesme, with those shippers believing that Phoebus was the only one to truly love Esmeralda for who she is.
Fandom[]
- FAN FICTION
- Esmeralda/Claude Frollo tag on AO3
- Esméralda/Claude Frollo tag on AO3
- Esmeralda/Claude Frollo on Fanfiction.net
[]
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| The Hunchback of Notre Dame Ships • The Hunchback of Notre Dame Characters | ||
| SHIPS | het | Fresme • Phoesme • Quasimaddie • Quasipunzel • Quasme |
| slash | Frobus • Phoebusmodo | |
| femslash | Esmerelly | |
| poly | Quasimodo x Esmeralda x Phoebus | |
| CHARACTERS | f/m | Esmeralda • Quasimodo |