Christine opened her eyes. She had had that dream again. The one she had dreamed for many nights over the last 5 years. As she got up, she pondered why she still had that dream. Erik…her first love. The rumor was he had simply disappeared after her night with him. He was gone, and no one was entirely sure where he was. Though, there were rumors that the famous composer and patron of the Populaire Theater was Erik. But this man was never seen, and was only known by the name of Destler. Mr. Destler.

She sighed and began to get ready to go to work. There was no way she was going to survive today's rehearsal. Not that I don't love my job, she thought to herself as she washed her face and brushed her hair. She loved it more than anything; it was something she had always wanted to do. But lately, it didn't seem the same. Not since she began having the dream more and more often. And that night…

Christine shook her head and rushed to the stairs. No time to take the almost always broken elevator, she had a show to do.

---

As Christine neared the corner, she saw a small blonde girl standing on the corner. Smiling, she crept up behind her and grabbed her shoulders. The girl screamed and flailed her arms.

"D-don't DO that!" Meg gasped. The petite girl put a hand to her chest and glared at Christine.

"Sorry Meg. It was too perfect." Christine laughed, "I do it every morning anyway. How can you not be ready for it?" Meg blushed.

"Oh shut up. Let's hurry, or we'll be late!" The two young women ran down the street, dodging other people on their way to work.

It didn't take long to run the rest of the way down the winding streets to the square where the Populaire Theater stood. Christine looked at the magnificent building, its statues and columns shining in the morning sun. How can I not love working here? I'm so lucky to be, she thought as she began to walk across the square. Meg grasped her arm, smiling, and pointed at a nearby street performer. They stood and watched him juggle, applauding as he caught the balls and bowed. Christine dug in her purse for a few coins.

"Christine…" Meg said. Christine turned to see a sleek black car parked in front of the theater. "Is that legal?"

"I don't know…"

"Oh. My. God." Meg said as they walked over towards the performer's entrance. "It's him."

"Who?" Christine opened the door, feeling the air conditioning blast her hair out of its messy ponytail.

"The patron! Mr. Destler!" Meg began to run towards the dressing rooms, craning her neck to see the man. Christine rolled her eyes.

"Meg you aren't going to see him. He's probably in the office." Christine called after her. She laughed, knowing full well her friend was entitled to see the mysterious man. Who knows? Maybe he had a fetish for seeing chorus girls change into leotards. She laughed again, harder this time. Smiling, she entered the dressing room and to her spot on at the mirror. She looked around at the other women, who were smiling primping themselves in the mirror. The summer show was the opera Aida. Somehow, dressing in skimpy Egyptian costumes made them all giddy.

Christine felt slightly claustrophobic watching the others crowd at the mirrors. She finished putting on her ballet slipper and walked out of the room. Allowing her feet to lead her, she found herself on the stage. She smiled as she looked out at the blackness that was the house. Today was to be a dress rehearsal, so the lights were off, only the blinding stage lights were on.

Christine stood in the middle of the stage, imaging herself to be a leading lady, something she never intended to be. She slowly raised an arm to music that only played in her head, and rose up on her toes.

As the song continued, she began to dance with more feeling and grace. Her body seemed to choreograph a dance as intricate as any she had done professionally. She smiled as she leapt into the air. There was no greater thrill than dancing for Christine.

"Miss Daae!" a voice called out to her. She stopped and whirled around.

"Mr. Andre!" She said, blushing.

"Miss Daae, may I remind you that we have less than half an hour until our curtain rises? Why is your makeup not on? Why are you not warming up with the other ladies?" Mr. Andre scolded. He turned to the man next to him. "I am terribly sorry Mr. Destler, but sometimes our Chorus Girls have minds of their own! You know how women can be." Mr. Andre chuckled, clearly uneasy.

"There is nothing to be sorry for." The man said. Christine tried to get a glimpse of his face. He was a tall man; that was no question. But why must he stand in the shadows, she thought, I finally see the famous patron and he is not showing his face!
"You are very good Miss Daae." Mr. Destler continued quietly. "I enjoyed your little…display." There was something familiar about his voice. The way it sounded, deep and smooth. Taunting her.

"Have we…met?" Christine asked rather boldly.

"Miss Daae! I would appreciate it if you did not irritate our patron! He is here to watch the rehearsal, not be interviewed!" Mr. Andre cut in. "if you would Sir, this way…"

Mr. Destler did not move.

"Miss Daae! The dressing room or wherever you are supposed to be! NOW!" Mr. Andre cried, beginning to look flustered. Casting one last look at the patron in the shadows, she hurried away as fast as her shoes would allow.

"I am terribly sorry Sir. These chorus girls, you know how they can be…" Mr. Andre explained to him as she left.

"I have a feeling she may be more than a chorus girl." She heard Mr. Destler say softly.

---

"Where have you been Christine?!" Meg whispered. "Mr. Firmin is furious!"

"QUIET!" yelled Mr. Firmin, the choreographer. "Miss Daae, if you expect to hold a position in this theater, you will be on time for warm-up! You will have your makeup and costume perfect! Do you understand?"

"Yes sir. I'm sorry. It won't happen again." Christine said almost mechanically. Head down, she took her place behind Meg. The other girls clucked their sympathy, a few giggled. They began their warm ups while Mr. Firmin walked around them, correcting them.

"Now, ladies. This is the first –put your arm down Miss Brenan- official dress rehearsal. I do not expect it to be perfect. I do not expect it to go smoothly. But may I remind you that this is not Community Theater! This is the real thing! For some of you, this show will tell us if you are good enough to stay.

I want all of you to try your best at this rehearsal. I have heard that Mr. Destler will be review whether or not this company is good enough to debut his musical-in-progress. Miss Redford, if you do not straighten up I will ask you to leave." He corrected her before continuing.

"I know we are good enough, you know it. So get your head into this show and do it right! You are not the ensemble of Aida, but ancient Egyptians!"

The women tittered. The news of Mr. Destler was particularly exciting. Each woman had her own fantasy about the patron. It was rare he came to a rehearsal, though he supposedly had Box 5 to himself.

"Curtain in 5 ladies!" A stage hand called into the room.

"Curtain in 5 thank you!" They responded.

"Now, go get ready for curtain, and find your partner in the wings. I am going to address them." Mr. Firmin instructed as he left the room. As he closed the door behind him, Meg turned to Christine.

"Hurry, I have to do your makeup in 5 minutes now!" She complained. "Where were you anyway?"

"I was…onstage." Christine said, following her best friend back to the dressing room. "I saw him." She said as an afterthought.

"You saw…Mr. Destler?" Meg's mouth dropped open.

"Yes. But what does it matter? I couldn't see anything about him except that he was sort tall. And he was wearing a black suit."

"But don't you realize what this means? He is an actual person! He could still be the handsome, brown haired, godly man!" Meg gushed, putting golden eye shadow on her friend. "If he's tall, he's the perfect man for me. How come you couldn't see him?" She sighed.

"Meg. Every single woman has her eye on a man who we don't even know!" Christine put blush on her cheeks. "Besides, he didn't come out of the shadows. I don't think he wanted me to see him. "

"And? Are you saying you don't love him?" Meg asked, staring at her friend in the mirror. "Don't tell me you're still dreaming about that guy you got with when we were seniors! Why wouldn't he want you to see him?"

"No! I just think it's not logical to fantasize about someone who only composes music! He's our patron for God's sake! And who knows why? He's so damn mysterious all the time! Who knows what he has to hide?" Christine snapped as she put her brush down harder than she meant to, making a loud cracking sound. She did not want to think about Erik. Feeling more irritated than she needed to, Christine got up and brushed some of the curls out of her face. "Can we just go?"

Meg looked taken back, but began to move toward the door. Christine frowned at herself in the mirror. What was that all about anyway?

---

"I am not impressed." He said quietly.

"B-but Mr. Destler! What is wrong?" Mr. Firmin stammered.

"How may I put this? The chorus is entrancing but the dancing is a lamentable mess." Mr. Destler turned away in disgust. "Do you think they can improve by the opening?"

"Sir, I know Mr. Firmin is doing all he can to get the choreography down! Please, wait until opening night!" Mr. Andre pleaded.

"I do like the orchestra however…" The patron continued. "Monsieur Reyer does a good job with orchestra. Of course, my musical would require a bigger orchestra."

"Yes sir."

I hope you like it so far! This is totally on a whim! But i do think i know where its going!

AOD