In Which Acquaintances are Made

Christian looked around nervously. No one was in the hallway. He looked around once more then slipped into the storeroom and shut the door. It was a bit musty and slightly dank, but it would do. He set his lantern on an empty shelf. For a moment he wondered how to start, but quickly decided to just let the music take over. Christian took a deep breath and began warming up. He did some scales then started in on a simple folk song he'd often sung as a child.

Christian's confused and mixed-up emotions melted away to be replaced by the pure joy and bliss of singing. The words flowed from his mouth, almost of their own free will, and he could tell he still had some talent. Perhaps it would be good to get over his stage fright. Christian knew he sure wouldn't mind singing more.

A plank creaked nearby. Christian immediately stopped and looked around, terrified once more. He saw no one.

"H-h-hello? Is anyone there?"

At first there was nothing, then a beautiful voice spoke out. "Yes. But do not be afraid. I have come to teach you."

Christian looked around again. The voice seemed to come from everywhere at once. "W-who are you? What are you?"

A pause then, "I have come to coach you. I am a voice tutor"

Christian was suddenly reminded of a childhood story his father had often told him. "A-are you the Angel of Music? My father always told me you'd come someday."

"Yes… yes. I am the angel of music and I have finally come for you. I am here to teach."

"You're going to help me improve my singing?"

"Yes. You are very talented, it's true. But you still have much to learn if you wish to be truly great."

Christian hesitated a bit. "Er, I'm sorry, Angel. I'm only a sailor. When will I ever have the opportunity to sing?"

"The ship has a musical night, no? Could you not sing there? If you wish, you could later make a career as a singer."

"Well, ah, I don't… like to… sing in front of people, really. I have a bit of stage fright."

"Then that will have to be remedied," the voice replied crisply. "If you don't mind, I'd like to begin."

"Oh, all right. But, I'm still not sure if I should do this."

Christian could hear the impatience in the voice's reply. "I am the Angel of Music! Do you dare refuse the Angel of Music?"

Christian wriggled nervously under the pressure he felt from the voice. "I'll do it, I'll do it! We can start now."

"Good. Now I'd like you to do a warm-up scale... what is your name?"

"Angel, shouldn't you know?" Christian asked in confusion. "Weren't you sent specifically to teach me?"

"Yes, of course I was, but even we angels do not know everything."

"Oh, of course. My name is Christian Daae."

"Very well, Christian Daae. Please begin with a warm-up scale."

Christian obeyed the voice's commands swiftly and obediently, fearing its heavenly wrath. He performed a number of simple songs, always receiving feedback from the voice, mainly criticism. He had just begun to get tired when the voice declared the lesson over.

"That's all for tonight. However, I would like you to meet me here at the same time next week for another lesson, and I would like you to practice before our next session. You may leave now."

"Thank you," Christian replied wearily. He was a bit surprised at how tired he suddenly found himself. "Thank you for everything."

He waited for a response, but the voice was gone. Now exhausted, Christian gathered up his lantern and headed for the crew quarters. He wouldn't have another shift for at least three or four hours. It was time to sleep.

Esther bustled around her cabin humming cheerfully. She was still coming to terms with the previous night. The new sailor had an amazing, if untrained, voice and looks to match. His blonde hair and pale blue eyes coupled with his still slightly pale complexion showed off his Swedish ancestry rather nicely. It was a rarity to see a sailor on the Rose with cropped hair and Christian's short hair just added to his delightful personality. He had been so adorably hesitant and nervous last night! He was perfect...

Of course, she was a bit worried that he was so eager to believe she was an angel sent from Heaven to teach him to sing. That couldn't be a good mark of his mental health. But it didn't matter, she could worry about that later. He had been such a welcome distraction from the last night's earlier events. Killing that nosy bastard Buquet had helped a bit with getting out her anger, but it hadn't helped repair her shaken state of mind. If a mere glance of her face could strike so much fear into a hardened sailor that he actually screamed and fainted…

Crash! One of the porcelain plates in Esther's arms slipped and fell to the floor. Esther jerked herself out of that particular reverie and set to cleaning up the shattered dish quickly, quickly back to dreaming of Christian.

"Esther? The door seems to be stuck. Could you possibly let me in?"

Esther dropped the porcelain remains in the rubbish bin and slid open the secret door. Not even an interruption from Nader could spoil her mood today. Once he was in, she resumed her cheerful cleaning.

Nader gaped. "Are you cleaning? As in, picking up your things off the floor and table and furniture? Not leaving the mess?"

Esther sidled up to him and grinned, though he couldn't see it through the black material of the bandana. She sighed dreamily. "Have you met the new sailor Christian yet?"

"Er, yes."

"He's a wonderful addition to the crew, isn't he?"

"Well, I suppose so."

Esther sighed again and continued cleaning. Nader stood silently and tried to piece the puzzle together.

"Are you in love with Christian?"

Esther stopped briefly, but remembered herself and quickly resumed cleaning. "Of course not. Whatever gave you that idea?"

"Esther, take it from a friend. This won't end happily. Don't get involved. Just try to forget about him and move on. You'll only get hurt." Nader braced himself for the resulting attack.

"Are you suggesting he can't love me?"

"No, I'm just saying it's not likely," Nader replied slowly, choosing his words carefully. "The boy scarcely knows how to play cards. I doubt he's ready for anything serious yet, and I know you like to go all in. When he does fall in love, well, I'm just saying you should try to be realistic."

Esther plopped down the sheaf of papers in her arms on the table. "Thanks for the advice," she replied sarcastically. "Now, if you would please escort yourself out…"

Nader took the hint and headed for the door. "I'm not saying it couldn't happen. You never know. By the way, I have information on our destination."

Esther sighed, but not in a dreamy fashion of any sort. "Just write it down and leave it on the table. I'll get to it later."

Nader bowed his head slightly in understanding and scribbled a few words on a spare scrap of paper. He set it on the wooden table and left Esther to her conflicting thoughts.

"Mademoiselle, hurry or we shall be late!" Angeline's voice echoed off the walls of the buildings surrounding them.

Rochelle silently cursed her brother for forcing her to wear her most elaborate dress the day of her voyage. It was far too long and the train dragged on the ground. "I'm coming, I'm coming!" she replied, hurrying along as fast as her restricting outfit would allow.

The maid had stopped and was now standing in the middle of the path, tapping her foot impatiently. "You don't want to miss the boat. Hurry!"

"I'm trying," Rochelle muttered under her breath, unconsciously slowing a bit. How she wished she didn't have to ride across the ocean to an unpleasant future! To an arranged husband…

"Mademoiselle, be careful!"

Rochelle didn't notice the rather long leg stretched out before her until she had tripped over it. "Ouch! Be careful!" Rochelle rubbed her ankle where she had fallen upon it. "Lazy brute," she muttered under her breath.

"Does that mean you won't give it a try?" the man in the doorway asked, grinning suggestively.

Rochelle shuddered. She picked herself up with as much dignity as possible and limped quickly away. "You vile man!"

The man just grinned again. "Don't worry, it never would have worked out."

This time Angeline pulled Rochelle away and dragged her to a wooden bench. "Are you all right, mademoiselle? Are you hurt?"

Rochelle touched her ankle gingerly and winced slightly. It was already beginning to swell. "I'll be fine," she assured her maid, "As long as we don't walk too quickly."

Angeline nodded and rose. She began off at a slightly slower pace. "Can you keep up?"

Rochelle gritted her teeth against the pain and limped off after Angeline. "Yes."

"Good."

The two continued at their fairly brief pace until reaching the port. There Angeline proceeded to bid Rochelle farewell.

"Aren't you coming with me?" Rochelle asked with concern when she realized what Angeline was doing.

The maid looked down. "I dearly wish I could, mademoiselle, but your brother wishes me to remain here. I will miss you dearly. I'm sorry. I've always wanted to travel some day, but it seems this is not the day."

Rochelle patted her back consolingly. "Don't worry. I'm sure you'll get the chance to travel someday and I'll visit you."

Angeline looked up and Rochelle was surprised to see there were tears in her eyes. "Thank you. I look forward to it." She took a deep breath and smiled slightly, though her eyes were joyless. "We should probably get you on the boat before it leaves, don't you think?"

"Yes," Rochelle agreed. She took Angeline's hand and the two young women boarded the boat. After one final embrace, Angeline departed and Rochelle was left alone.

Rochelle sighed and looked around. A couple of the sailors winked at her. She sighed, looking away and rolling her eyes. Was she being punished for being forced to leave Angeline behind?

Rochelle took a step forward and collapsed. She sat on the deck, clutching her throbbing ankle tightly. Suddenly the pent up tears began to fall. Rochelle sat silently, weeping, and dreading even more the journey ahead. Suddenly a hand reached out and brushed her tears away.

"It's fine, don't cry. Everything will be all right."

Another sort-of cliffhanger, though this one will be a bit more suspenseful, I'm afraid. These are the end of the rewritten chapters, though more are on the way. I'll try to update as soon as I can, which will hopefully be sometime within the next week or so. You can always review!