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britishchick09 · 2 years

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Where is rewrite?! I’m desperate for rewrite!!😊😊😊

i'm writing it! tomorrow i'll share some of the current chapter, but here's a little bonus for you ;)

Christine yawned as she trudged down the steps to the water cellar. Why did Erik want me to get up at six in the morning? she wondered. I understand why we’d rise with the sun for lessons, but no one can hear us in the water cellar no matter what time it is.

Christine’s eyelids drooped with fatigue. The darkness made her want to fall asleep right them and there!

She suddenly gave a squeak as she slipped on the incline at the end of the passage. She leaned against the wall beside her, blinking and rubbing her eyes to get rid of the tiredness.

Falling in here would be horrible. I could trip over one of the cobblestones and twist my ankle, she thought. I’m too far away for Erik to hear any cries for help and Ayesha doesn’t wander around all the time, so she might not hear either. I’d be helpless! This place is eerie and beautiful… She shivered. And dangerous.

Christine stretched as she moved away from the wall. She made sure she was wide awake before continuing on.

Once Christine reached Erik's house, she knocked on the door. Erik often answered it after a few moments, but there was nothing. Not even a note from the piano could be heard past the door. Christine waited for a minute, becoming worried when the silence continued on.

Maybe he went to the music museum. Christine surmised before noticing that his boat was parked in front of the house.

"Erik?" she asked, giving the door another knock. "Are you in there?"

When he didn't answer, she finally gathered the courage to intrude. She opened the door, noticing that the bathroom door was open. She looked forward with a gasp. Her friend was lying on the floor! "Erik!" Christine exclaimed in alarm.

Erik rolled over to see Christine rushing towards him. He propped himself up on his elbow and nonchalantly said, "Hello."

Christine crouched beside him. "Are you okay?" "Yes, I'm fine." "Then why are you on the floor?"

A mew answered and Erik said, "I know! She's ruining our fun."

Christine leaned over, seeing Ayesha just past the wall.

"She likes having little moments like this," Erik explained. "I pet her, she’s as happy as could be, we have staring contests… and I lose within a second."

Ayesha meowed with a hint of pride and stretched out her paw.

"We'll go after the princess is done with me," Erik told Christine. "I may secretly rule the opera house, but she rules me. …And Nadir since he’s my guardian, but Ayesha’s so bossy about it,” He paused at Ayesha’s annoyed meow. “Yes, you are! Especially when you wake me up early in the morning to go out,” He looked at Christine with a playfully serious expression. “Our moments end under her command."

"I’m fine with waiting for a bit. Where are we going?" Christine asked.

Erik smiled, a twinkle in his eye. "You'll see."

Christine watched as Erik lay back down, giving Ayesha's paw a stroke. The little kitty purred while Erik petted her behind the ear.

"I finished the sampler last night. It's on the table," Erik told Christine as she stepped over his long legs. "My pesky name took me until one in the morning! So much pulling out thread and pricking my finger... I should probably invest in a thimble, but it would be loose around any of my fingers. They're so skeletally thin…” Erik sighed. “But it was fun to do. Well... mostly," He stopped at Ayesha's meow and told her, "Yes, you remember that, don't you? You had just settled down to sleep in my bed and I said that very naughty word and kicked you because of the needle. Don't ever say that word or I'll banish you to the Kingdom of Music. And- again- I’m very sorry for kicking you."

Christine giggled as she picked up the sampler. “Maybe she can go with us to make up for what you did.”

"No, she’d probably cause mischief like that one time..."

Christine picked up the sampler at the table. "What happened?"

"She jumped on the organ while I was composing. As I was trying to get her down, she batted at a piece of sheet music and tore it clean through! The music was easy to rewrite, but I forgot the rest of the melody in my head and it took ages to remember it again. She hasn’t been allowed in the Museum of Music since."

“Oh no!” Christine exclaimed through a chuckle. “I hope she didn’t do anything like that to your sewing.”

“Thankfully, that was all me.”

Christine looked down at the sampler. A wrapped chocolate and a book had been added alongside Erik and Christine’s names. Christine had stitched the three eights of the year and her name the day before, leaving Erik with his name and the year’s one.

“The one is perfect! Your name looks a bit lopsided, though.” Christine noted. “I'm not used to sewing words, especially cursive words,” Erik sighed. “I’m sorry if it ruins-”

“I think it looks perfect!”

Erik sat up in surprise, making Ayesha grumble. “Y- You really think so?” “Oui, I know so,” Christine agreed with a firm nod and a smile. “It’s crooked, but that adds a certain charm to it.”

Erik smiled as Christine showed him the sampler. “It does.”

Ayesha meowed in agreement and got up, hiding underneath the bed. “Thank you!” Erik told her as he rose from the floor. “Now we can go.”

Christine crouched down and smiled as she whispered, “See you soon, Princess Ayesha!”

The little kitty mewed from her hiding spot, making Christine chuckle. She stood up to see a caped Erik holding the door for her.

“Thank you.” Christine said, giving Erik a polite smile as she walked by him.

He smiled back. “You’re always welcome.”

A few minutes later, Erik was sitting in the boat with Christine. He gave the paddle a wide stroke, allowing them to glide along. Erik was silently counting the bricks on the wall and didn’t notice Christine smirking at him. She reached out and touched the end of Erik's paddle. She lowered her hand, causing the paddle to flip out of the water! Erik shut his eyes with a wince as droplets of water fell on his head. Christine giggled before noticing something odd.

His eyelids look gray! Maybe it's just the dim lighting down here, Christine surmised. It makes me wonder what else is underneath that mask.

Erik wiped the water droplets from his hair and chuckled as he exclaimed, "Hey! What was that for?"

"For not telling me where we're going." Christine said.

“You’ll find out soon enough,” Erik rowed out of a corridor. “Very soon, in fact.”

Christine looked to her right, seeing the ladder come into view. “We’re not going to the music museum?” “No, we’re going to my vacation spot.” Erik responded with a smile.

Once they were out of the short hallway, he parked the boat against the ladder and set the paddle down before slowly standing up with Christine. They went up the wooden ladder, went down the little steps and entered the fifth cellar.

“I figured you might be tired of the same old water cellar shenanigans,” Erik said. “The cellars are new territory. …And the auditorium stage. I- I mean, if you want to go there. I know it’s a lot of walking-”

“I’d like that!” Christine replied before covering her mouth to yawn. “I wish we weren’t exploring so early, though!”

“The workers start repairing the chandelier at about seven-thirty, so we need plenty of time to see the sights.”

“Can’t you make them come later as The Opera Ghost?”

“And delay the masquerade? Of course not!” Erik said before walking on wooden planks with coral-colored pipes on the sides. “I know you’re tired, but try not to trip or lean against anything. We have to be very careful around here.”

Christine preferred to walk around the planks. She followed Erik through a hallway and they came across the world of gears and poles.

“Nadir told me these move the sets.” Christine said as she leaned against a pole.

“Indeed they do! They’re called capstans,” Erik replied, lightly touching one of the wooden gears. “The first stagehands employed at the opera house were former sailors since these resemble capstans used on ships. I sure wish I had the agility to maneuver these things! I can barely lift a petite person like you. But…” He pointed to something against the wall. “Those steel counterweights help ease the heavy burden.”

It’s no wonder Buquet was fearful all the time, Christine thought as she looked at the counterweights and the rest of the cellar. Danger was all around him! Not to mention The Opera Ghost constantly haunted him.

“As the sailors often said at sea, ‘onward ho’!” Erik declared, striding over to the concrete staircase. Christine giggled and followed Erik up the stairs. She could easily imagine Raoul calling that out on his navy ship.

The fourth cellar contained multiple heating furnaces while its hallway had an empty crate.

“I must admit, these other cellars aren’t much to look at,” Erik said as he and Christine went up the stairs. “A crate here, a furnace there… Truly, the only interesting parts below the stage are the fifth cellar and- of course- the water cellar,” Erik reached the top of the stairs. “Well… and this.”

He looked at a towering painting leaning against the left wall of the third cellar. Part of a temple was shown amongst a garden and colorful buildings.

“What is it?” Christine asked.

“A scene from Le Roi de Lahore. It’s an opera about a priestess who falls in love with a mysterious voice who speaks to her at night. She’s abducted by the story’s villain and he forces her to marry him.”

“Hmm…” Christine stroked her chin and gave Erik a knowing look. “Sounds familiar.”

Erik looked over at Christine, his face turning pink once he made the connection. “Wha- Oh, but you’re not a priestess and I’m not a king and I’d never kidnap you and force you to marry me. And we’re not in love.”

Christine shrugged as she said, “Well, it’s mostly familiar, then. You can’t deny the mysterious voice.”

Erik sighed. “You sure can’t,” he agreed, striding away from the scene. “Especially if it belongs to a ghost.”

He led Christine through the second cellar, which had a few crates and carts scattered around. Christine began to hum a little song as they walked before softly singing the words.

Hier matin je m’y levai

Laissez-moi planter le mai

Vers le bois je m’en allay

En riant tout en riant

Laissez-moi planter le mai

Moi qui suis gentil gallant!

“Brava!” Erik exclaimed with applause. “Wasn’t that the song you sang at the bistro?”

“Yes, it’s Laissez-Moi Planter Le Mai. It’s a song I used to sing with Papa.” Christine responded shyly as they walked up yet another staircase. “It’s very nice. I could see you singing it in the countryside with him. He’d be playing his violin, I’m sure.”

Christine nodded, her heart aching slightly as she recalled her father playing the song. “Someone played it on the piano at the bistro. You could play it, too!” Erik chuckled. “Indeed I could! You need to find the sheet music for it. I’m always looking for new tunes to master.”

They soon reached the top of the staircase. Just like most of the previous cellars, the first one didn’t have much.

“I didn’t think these cellars would be so empty!” Christine remarked.

Erik chuckled with a little scoff. “Good thing the horses weren’t around to hear that.”

Christine blinked in surprise. “Horses?”

“Yes, little equines that whinny and eat hay and perform in operas. When horses are needed for shows like Aida or Profeta, they temporarily live in the stables over there,” Erik explained, pointing to a wall with bars on the top. “But they don’t take the stairs like we do. That would be rather impractical.”

Christine laughed as she imagined Caesar walking up the cellar staircases.

“Instead, they take the elevator.” “It would be so nice to take an elevator to your house instead of all those stairs.” Christine said with a sigh.

“Yes, I’m sure it would. But you’d lose all that precious exercise.”

“Is that why you chose to live down here?” Christine asked, following Erik down a corridor.

“I mostly did it so no one would find me, but the immense expedition was a bonus.”

He stopped in the middle of the passageway, much to Christine’s surprise. She was about to tell him to continue walking when he opened a gray door that nearly blended in with the wall.

“Let’s take a more… mysterious way.” Erik said with a wink.

Christine followed him into a brick hallway that reminded her of the water cellar. But while that was lit up by candles, near darkness surrounded them in the secret hallway. She hugged herself with a shiver.

Just then, Christine felt something silky on her shoulders. It was Erik’s cape.

“It’s alright,” Erik said softly. “You’re safe.” Although Christine was shrouded in shadows, she felt very safe indeed.

The walk through the corridor wasn’t very long. Christine felt the cape slip away and heard Erik say, “There’s a ladder right in front of you. I think we’ll both be able to get up there at the same time.”

Christine reached out, tensing up at Erik’s chilling touch.

“Now you know how I feel whenever anyone touches me.” he said, gently grabbing her arm to guide her to the ladder.

“Sorry,” Christine apologized as she felt one of the wooden rungs. “I wasn’t expecting it.”

“It’s alright. I tense up even when expecting it. But it’s not your fault! Just…” Erik sighed. “A bad habit.”

Even though she couldn’t see him, Christine looked at Erik with a frown.

I wish you could touch without fear, she thought. Maybe someday-

She cut her thought short at the sound of Erik going up the ladder and followed him. A beam of light shone above their heads a few moments later. She squinted at the brightness that quickly filled her vision and gasped. They were backstage…

And in the floor!

Christine continued going up the ladder and turned around once she was standing on the floor. Erik was holding onto a square that stood behind his head.

“It’s a trap door!” Christine realized.

“Did you really expect The Opera Ghost to use a regular door?” Erik asked as he climbed out of the hole in the floor. “There are plenty of trap doors around here, like in the managers’ office and the library. Some might say I’m a trap door lover!” he said with a laugh. “They’re such clever little things.”

“They sure are!” Christine agreed, noticing how well the door blended into the floor.

She and Erik went to the stage and stood beside each other. Their eyes were on the same thing- the fallen chandelier. It was extremely hard to miss the immense ceiling fixture, which still stood in the middle of the aisle. Seeing the chandelier made Christine feel a wave of dread that brought her back to that awful night, when everything had gone so terribly wrong.

And yet, as the lights had gone out, a bright spot emerged from-

“So lonely.” Erik muttered through a sigh.

Christine shook off the dreadful feeling as she looked up at her friend. “You are?”

“No. I- I mean, yes, but the painting is lonely,” Erik replied, raising his head to see the angelic painting on the ceiling. “Who knew a bright sky could look so dull?”

“It’ll shine alongside the chandelier again very soon.” Christine said with a smile.

Erik smiled back and they gazed at the vast expanse of red and gold in front of them.

“Isn’t it the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen?” Christine asked in a whisper.

Erik nodded. “It’s gorgeous. But I know something that’s prettier.”

For a split second, Christine thought he was talking about her! She noticed that he was going to the right side of the stage and followed him, glad he couldn’t see her light blush.

Erik gave box five a gentle touch. “I think I have the most beautiful box in the world,” he declared before taking his hand away to look around. “But then I see the other boxes and… well… it’s tough to say!” He smiled. “But I know mine is the finest. Much better than box six over there.”

Christine looked to the far left of the stage, seeing an identical box directly across from box five. Erik stepped aside so Christine could go up to the box. She hesitated for a few moments before touching a flower on the side of his box. The tip of her finger barely brushed against the bottom edge of the box when she stood on her tip-toes.

“It’s very nice,” Christine agreed. “I love the flowers.”

“Especially the one you’re touching. I believe it’s a lily.”

“They should’ve made it a rose instead!”

Erik laughed, making Christine’s heart warm. “Did you ever notice that the marble center looks like an upside down tear drop? It fits me very well. And did you know that red was chosen not just to compliment the golden boxes, but to bring out women’s complexions?” He looked at Christine, who smiled. “I- I, uh, I’m not saying that just to impress you, I- I’m serious! There’s an actual theory out there that, uh, that red is flattering to a women’s skin tone. Personally, I think blue is more flattering- not because of you, of course! No, no, not… um…” Erik’s eyes wandered around the auditorium. “Not because of your perfectly pale, uh… um-”

“I think it’s flattering on men’s complexions, too.” Christine said, giving Erik a nudge with her arm as she clasped her hands together.

Erik looked down at his bony hands. “My ashy skin is far from perfect.”

“It doesn’t look ashy at all. It’s a bit pink.” Christine said with a wink.

Erik looked at Christine in surprise, suddenly feeling the blush underneath his mask.

Christine giggled as he looked behind him. “It’s too late to hide it now!” She followed his gaze, seeing Foyer de la Danse in the distance. “Isn’t it funny how there’s such a stunning hallway past such a sea of dingy gray?” she asked once her giggles subsided. “It is,” Erik agreed with a smile. “I, uh, I want to show you something.”

Christine followed Erik through the vast backstage.

“Did you know there’s a pipe organ hiding in plain sight?” Erik asked Christine, to which she shook her head. “It’s not what I wanted to show you, but I might as well since we’re back here.”

He led her to the left side of the stage’s entranceway, pointing to a gated platform on the wall. Wood stood on the platform and a rectangle with metal bars was just above the lumber.

“That doesn’t look much like an organ,” Christine remarked. “It’s certainly not like yours!”

“Like I said, it’s hiding. But they don’t take it out into the light very often. Large temperature differences and dust from the stage settings have caused it to suffer,” Erik sighed. “Poor thing. Well, at least there’s one organ still working around here. Two, actually. But the other organ is the old gas lighting system.”

“And if one of them played loud enough, it can be heard on the stage.” Christine added with a wink.

Erik chuckled and led Christine to Foyer de la Danse. He glanced up at the portraits on the ceiling before spotting the little piano in the corner of the foyer. “This is what I wanted to show you.” Something tells me otherwise, Christine thought, going into the foyer with Erik and taking a look at the portraits. Perhaps he wanted to say something about these-

“I think you’ll enjoy this song I learned recently,” Erik said, snapping her back to the piano. “It’s called Rage Over a Lost Penny.” Christine giggled. “Is that really the name of the song?”

“Yes! I think I know what Beethoven was doing just before he wrote it. Although you’d never guess that from its formal name- Rondo alla ingharese quasi un capriccio,” Erik rolled his ‘r’s while saying the Italian title. “It means ‘Rondo in the Hungarian style, almost a caprice’. It was a favorite with audiences ninety years ago, and it’s certainly one of mine!”

Christine ducked underneath the barre, sitting on the pale sage green loveseat as Erik played the song. It was a lively tune with the quickest notes Christine had ever heard!

Erik finished the song a minute later, smiling as he asked, “Was that fast enough for you?”

“I never knew Beethoven could write something so fun!” Christine remarked. “He seemed so stoic.” “He definitely wasn’t the jolliest of composers. The song is meant to portray harmless frustration, but I’d say it sounds like someone running away from more important things.”

Christine noticed that Erik was giving her a look. “Are you talking about me?”

“Yes, I’m talking about you! The masquerade- you know, the event celebrating our fallen comrade over there- is in two weeks. You haven’t even thought about it. I greatly appreciate all the time we’ve spent together, but I know you’re using me to distract yourself from the party. I’m not just your Angel of Music… I’m your Angel of Diversion.”

“I-”

Erik’s look intensified.

Christine lowered her head with a heavy sigh. “You’re right, I haven’t thought about it as much as I should. I’m so overwhelmed! I don’t know what to wear and the thought of so many people being there makes me terribly anxious and they might want me to sing and what if something goes wrong like the chandelier-”

Erik slammed his hands on the keys. “Christine!” He let the echoed notes linger in the air for a few moments as Christine stared at him in surprise. “You’ll be fine. The only music at a masquerade is a little orchestra, no singing involved. Yes, there will be a lot of people and yes, it’s very horrible for introverts like us, but it’ll be a grand time for you! Everything will go alright. And besides, you have friends to help you with your costume,” He swiftly rose from the piano seat and strode up to Christine, putting his hands on his hips as he said in a playfully stern voice, “Now I want you to march out of this auditorium and work on that masquerade. Understand, little lady?”

Christine giggled as she put her hands on her hips. “Aye, aye, towering gentleman!” she said with a firm nod. “Let’s get this party started once and for all!”

#ask #i wanted to share this for the may 19th history post but it would've made that so long! :o #the whole rewrite is long actually! ;)#it's at 253 pages so far... the longest story i've ever written! :o (the second longest is 202)#it usually takes me years to write a story at this length but it's easier when the plot is already there ;)#idk what i'll do with it after i'm done besides have it sit with all the other stories i've completed #my dream is to have it published alongside those #then the whole story fam will be on shelves! (even the adopted rewrite kiddos) :D #who knows what the future holds! ;)#but for now enjoy these little snippets ;)#and this absolutely adorable part! :D #poto rewritten

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