A/N: Hold it RIGHT THERE! If you have not yet read part one of this story, 'In Dreams He Came', then go find it right now and read it. Otherwise you're going to be utterly confused, and I don't feel like explaining everything. (I also make a few references to 'Never Alone', so you might want to read that one as well.) Anyway, thank you, readers, for returning for the continuation! This one might be a bit deeper, but I'll still try to capture the same crazy chaos and confusion of the first part! As always, I do not own 'Phantom of the Opera' or any of its characters.
"YAAAAAAAA!" I screamed as I went through the glow. And then I remembered I wasn't falling. I covered my mouth in embarrassment, but it was too late. My scream was now echoing off of every single wall of the caverns. Way to go, Sarah...nice way to make an entrance into the nineteenth century. The organ music stopped then, and I turned to see Erik whirling around on his organ bench.
"Oh good. You got my message." He smirked.
"Congratulations, Erik..." I smiled back, and as he stood and approached me, I noticed a sparkle in his eyes I had never seen before, not even when he was plotting his biggest act of revenge a year before.
"I have you to thank, Mademoiselle. That's why you are here."
"I'm honored that you remembered me..." He was right in front of me now, and we both shifted, unsure of what to do. Finally, he pulled me into a hug.
"Mademoiselle, it would be impossible for me to forget you...you opened the door of friendship to me and encouraged me to speak to Meg..."
"Stop it. All I did was throw water at you and scare you half to death countless times."
"And for that, I am truly grateful." We pulled apart then, and I took in my surroundings. I had seen the movie hundreds of times, and yet it did nothing to prepare me for the vast, damp, darkness around me. A chill ran up my spine, and my heart cracked at the thought of spending one's entire life down here. I knew we were under the opera house, but we might as well have been in another galaxy. No wonder he had gone after Christine with so much urgency and passion.
I began walking around his living quarters, touching things that had been shown in the movie, and discovering countless others that had not. There was something missing though. I must have circled around the bedchamber fifty times, and yet for the life of me I couldn't spot it.
"It's not here..." He had silently approached me from behind, and I jumped a mile before whirling around. "The music box...I gave it to Christine."
"Really?" My eyes widened, and he nodded.
"I...it was a wedding gift. Perhaps one day...she can pass it on to her own children...I also gave her the drawings..." At this, I did a double-take. Now that he mentioned it, there was an obvious lack of art pieces. "You said things could change...that those colorless scenes didn't need to happen."
"That's right, Erik..." I felt myself tearing up, but not from sadness. It was an overwhelming sense of pride.
"Oh...before I forget..." Erik disappeared around a corner and came back within minutes, holding a small, familiar object.
"My camera! How did...I was looking for that for months!" I grabbed it from him, staring at it in complete shock.
"I...it was in my pocket..." He looked down.
"It's okay, Erik. You didn't know. And I have it now." I turned it on and scrolled back through the pictures he had taken. None of them had been taken here, I noticed. Seeming to read my thoughts, he spoke up.
"I kept it hidden. I didn't want to alter anything...in case it should affect the future."
"Thank you. I appreciate that..." I smiled, setting the camera aside. "So...are you still living down here?"
"Until the wedding..." he nodded. "I'm having an addition built onto the back of the stables."
"Oh, really? Not above them?" I smirked, recalling my story 'Never Alone'.
"I figured that would be too obvious, Mademoiselle." He returned the smirk. "Now if you're quite finished poking around here, there's some people I'd like you to meet." He stepped aside, motioning towards the waiting boat on the lake.
"Now? Erik, I'm a mess! I'm wearing jeans and a t-shirt!" I panicked.
"Don't worry about it. They know of you and where you come from."
"Still...at least let me change into this dress..."
"Oh, very well. Behind that curtain will do, just don't take too long." He rolled his eyes, pointing to the 'showcase' curtain where the mannequin of Christine had stood. I hurried to change, brushed my fingers quickly through my hair, and stepped out into the lair. "About time..." Erik mumbled before helping me into the boat. As we sailed through the underground waters, I was immediately thrown back into the 'Phantom of the Opera' scene, just in reverse. I highly doubted that Erik would want me to sing it, however, and so I kept silent, watching the darkened scenery around us.
All in all, the boat trip took about two minutes, and we soon stepped out and onto a landing at the foot of the spiral stairs. I whirled around then, raising an eyebrow questioningly.
"Yes?" He matched my expression.
"Any chance of me falling through one of those steps and into a water trap?"
"Oh yes...I have long since secured that step, Mademoiselle, and I can assure you that the stairs are quite safe." Deciding that I would have to trust him, I began the climb, relieved to hear his footsteps close behind my own. Three minutes later, I was on my hands and knees, crawling onto the very last step. "So much for a neat appearance..." Erik smirked down at my breathless self.
"Very funny. This might come as a surprise to you, Erik, but I'm not in the best shape for climbing all those stairs." At this, he chuckled before helping me to my feet, and I did my best to brush the dust off my robin's egg blue dress. Once I was satisfied that I had done the best I could, Erik took my arm and led me through the twisting maze of passageways until we reached what I recognized as the two-way mirror. Not missing a beat, he slid it open and helped me through, and I was soon standing in Christine's former dressing room. "Wow that's a lot of flowers..." I observed.
"What do you expect? A room of thorns for a prima donna?" He raised an eyebrow.
"Good point." We were silent as we made our way into the corridor.
"They'll be in rehearsals now...it's the beginning of the week, so they'll be focusing on the dance routines before adding music. That's why I was able to wait underground for your arrival."
"There's something you're not telling me..." I rubbed my forehead.
"Oh, did I not mention it? Monsieur Reyer is retiring after the wedding. I will be taking over for him. In the meantime, I sometimes take charge of at least rehearsing the orchestra." Sensing yet another smirk on my face without turning around to face me, he continued. "You see? It's still not like the story you wrote. Not exactly."
"No, but it's close." I argued. He did not respond, instead leading me to Box Five, where I could see the dancers moving around the stage. "How long did the reconstruction take?"
"Not as long as you might think. It turns out the fire wasn't as large as I had thought." I nodded, then turned my attention to the dancers as Madame Giry appeared. She approached one of the younger dancers, moving her into the correct position. Two dancers in the back giggled, and the ballet mistress whirled around.
"That's enough! You were beginners once, and you will remember that!" The giggling stopped right then and there, and I had to admire the older woman for showing her compassion as well as her no-nonsense attitude in that one sentence. The dancer in the middle of the stage reached out to squeeze the younger girl's shoulder encouragingly, and it soon dawned on me that that was Meg. Seeming to see the recognition in my eyes, Erik smiled.
"She's made it to prima ballerina...and I had nothing to do with it. She did it on her own..." I looked him in the eyes then, and immediately saw the love he held for her. He seemed to be staring into the distance now as he continued. "She really is beautiful...I can't wait for you to meet her. She's been dying to meet you."
"You...told her about me?"
"Of course. It was you who brought us together." I could only smile in response then, and so we silently watched the rest of rehearsals.
By noon, the routine had been worked into at least passable, by Madame Giry's standards, of course. Erik escorted me down to the stage, and I hung back as soon as I saw Meg running up to him. "Were you watching, Erik?" She asked eagerly.
"Of course. I was a little late today, however..." He stepped aside then, revealing me. Meg and I stared at each other for a moment, but as soon as she realized who I was, I was immediately yanked into a crushing hug.
"Mademoiselle Sarah! Erik's told me so much...I feel like you're my sister!" She finally released me, looking me over with a wide grin on her face.
"Please...Call me Sarah..." I smiled. "You'll have to forgive me, Meg...this just all feels like a dream...or at least a scene from one of my stories..."
"That's understandable." Meg nodded. "Come...the noon meal is being served, and you can meet Mama...afterward we'll show you to your room..." With that, she took me by the hand and led me down the hallway. I looked back at Erik, but he merely shrugged and smirked.
"So...you are the one behind the mystery voice." Madame Giry concluded. I silently nodded, swallowing my mouthful of soup.
"Yes...forgive me for acting so..."
"Bossy?" She raised an eyebrow.
"Yes...I simply didn't know how else to go about it."
"Perfectly understandable, Mademoiselle. No need to explain." Beside me, I heard Erik let out a very soft but unmistakable chuckle at my nervousness, and I resisted the urge to kick his shin.
The rest of the day was mostly uneventful, although I had to admit that it all still felt like a blur or a dream. Yes, Erik had in fact been in my time a year ago. But this was different. I was in my stories. Ish. Erik had made it very clear that nothing was exactly the same. But he couldn't argue the fact that they had all taken place right where I was standing.
The afternoon especially felt like a blur, because while Erik was with the orchestra, Meg and Madame Giry swept me along with them to get measured for an entire wardrobe, and then Meg took the liberty of showing me the dorm rooms and introducing me to the dancers and chorus girls. Every. Single. One.
We were rounding a corner, on our way back toward the stage to listen to the orchestra, when I nearly ran right into a pink, feathery, perfumey figure. "Watch where you are going, leetle girl!" An Italian voice huffed. Oh no. Carlotta.
"My apologies..." I mumbled, trying not to breathe in the fumes of her perfume.
"Who are you anyway? Yet another dancing girl to get in mah way? Hmm?"
"Carlotta, this is Mademoiselle Sarah Wilkins...she's a visitor from America..." Meg spoke up, and the diva's eyes narrowed in suspicion.
"America, huh? And what makes you think you can wander around 'ere just because you are from America?"
"She's a friend of Erik's and mine, if you must know. She's here for the wedding, and I'm showing her around."
"And 'ow do you know someone from America, leetle ballerina girl? You spent your 'ole life here!"
"What makes you so interested in my life all of a sudden, Carlotta? You've spent all your time here never looking any further than yourself, what makes you such an expert on me?" I had to applaud Meg for standing up to the much taller woman. But then, that's how she'd always seemed to me whenever I wrote for her in my stories.
"You are safe for now, leetle girl. But I will geet to the bottom of thees, I'll have you know!" With that, the diva pushed past us, and we waited until she was out of sight before surrendering to our giggles.
A/N: More to come eventually…I have a couple surprises in store, so please be patient! Feedback is always welcome! Stay tuned! :)