For my entire life, I was just going through the motions. I'd wake up, eat with the dancers, go to ballet rehearsal, have lunch with the cast and do a full cast rehearsal for the current opera. Life was mundane and boring, but I didn't know any better. I was a naive little girl. Until I met him. My name is Jezebel Lilla, and this is the story of me and The Phantom of the Opera.
The sun rises as I wake up in my dorm next to the other members of the ballet. It is time for another strenuous day of rehearsals for the new opera, Hannibal. I roll out of bed, not wanting to face another day of being ordered around by the strict ballet director, Madame Giry.
I put on my traditional dance outfit, a white leotard with a flowing white tutu and white tights. I would get changes into my slave costume after lunch. As I curl my long blond hair, the other girls are chattering away about the gossip in the Opera Populaire.
"I can't stand another day with La Carlotta. Her voice is like nails on a chalkboard and her voice, it's like a squealing rat!" One of the dancers, Marisa chirps.
"Did you hear about the Opera Ghost last night? Giselle said that she heard singing in the corridors. It must be him!" Another girl chatters.
I honestly can't stand all of these Phantom stories. Why can't they see that they are just legends from Buquet to scare us all? While they are all fretting about some stupid ghost, I'm busy training myself to be the lead dancer. I'm only fifteen, one of the youngest in the group, but I've got talent that could even trump Meg Giry.
Don't get me wrong, Meg is one of my best friends, along with Christine Daae. However, the two of us are always competing for the praise of Madame Giry. Even though Meg is her daughter, Madame treats her like the other dancers.
The three of us, me, Meg, and Christine, are the lead dancers in Hannibal, with Meg in the spotlight. Meg absolutely enjoys the limelight, along with me, but Christine is more of the shy type who prefers to stay in the background.
As we finish preparing for the day, we all rush out the door for rehearsal. For four hours, we spun, twirled and leaped through the complicated routines. Whenever one of us would mess up, Madame would reprimand us and often force us to stay through lunch. That is what happened to me and Christine. The two of us screwed up the dance one too many times and had to practice while all of the others ate lunch. Of course, Meg did the routine perfectly and was rewarded.
As Christine and I practice over time, Madame is keeping the pace with her cane, causing a stressful pounding noise on the wooden floor. Sweat is pouring down my face as I twirl and leap to the music. Finally, after what felt like a thousand years, we are released to go to the full cast rehearsal.
Due to the lack of lunch, my stomach is growling the entire time. But I mange to last through song after song sung by the hideous Carlotta and Piangi. Neither of them can sing, and Piangi just can't do anything right. He stumbles over his lines, mispronounces words and his props always seem to have a way of constantly malfunctioning.
The worst song of them all is the main one, Hannibal. Piangi and Carlotta slaughter the notes and the chorus sings off key. Honestly, this place needs better singers and I know of the perfect person. I've heard Christine singing to herself late at night when she thinks that no one is awake. I swear, it's like an angel is in the room. I can't believe that she's just an average ballet girl instead of a Prima donna. I can't really say the same for myself. Dancing is my passion and I have no time to sing. I'm perfectly fine in the background, doing pirouettes.
As the afternoon wears on, the rehearsal wraps up and we are dismissed for bed. I unlaced my pointe shoes and begin to make my way to my dorm when I could have sworn I saw a shadow move around a corner. That's funny, there's no one here but me.
My curiosity gets the better of me as I decide to follow the mysterious shadow. I duck below cobwebs and turn corners, trying to keep up. The figure doesn't make a sound as it swerves in between sets and costume rack with agility I've never seen before. As a dancer, I'm light on my feet and can also move without a sound, giving me somewhat of an advantage.
After chasing the shadow for about five more minutes, I reach a dead end. There's no way the figure could have vanished into thin air. It was just a brick wall, the ceiling and... wait!
On the floor, a sparkle catches my eye. It appears to be a gold button, hastily concealed by a wooden plank.
I push the wood aside, and take my small hand and, taking a deep breath, push the button.
I hear a whisper of a creak as a small square in the wooden floor opens up, just large enough to fit a person. I silently debate whether or not I should go down there. Then I realize that the answer is obvious. I smile a mischievous grin as I lower myself into the dark pit, and into a new life.
A/N
Do you ever have one of those moments when you're just going about life and BAM! An idea just hits you in the face? That's what happened to me, I just got this urge to write this story. I'll try to update often, but I have two current stories going that I'm also trying to update. (Phantom of the TARDIS and Fearstruck.) Please tell me what you think by reviewing! Thanks!
Angelofmusic4ever