"Erik!" I called as I entered his cave, holding a stack of papers between my hands. He looked up from a book he was reading, Shakespeare, to look at me inquisitively.
"Yes?"
"Look at this." I said, shoving the stack of papers at him. He grabbed the stack, an eyebrow raised, and his expression darkened when he read the title scrawled across the first page.
Don Juan Triumphant
Anonymous
"What the hell is this doing here?" Erik demanded.
"I don't know." I shook my head. "Velluae said that the manuscript was delivered to him anonymously and he assumed it was a shy composer that wanted to see his work performed."
"Well we know that's not true." Erik growled. His hands tightened around it, crumpling the edges. This being my only copy, I prized it from his hands before he could rip it.
"Who could have given it to him?" I asked, sitting on his lap and looking at the manuscript.
"It seems odd, too odd to be coincidental." Erik muttered, running a hand over his chin in thought. "I mean the only person I can think of is Giry, but this seems the opposite of 'trying to leave me alone', and if was Raoul he would have the police here if he knew where I was." Erik shook his head.
Raoul… Surly it was a different Raoul, I thought to myself.
"I don't know." I murmured, crossing my arms.
()
"Alanna, are you okay?" Alice asked.
"What?" I murmured, jerking out of my doze.
"You look sick." She said, squinting at me. I closed my eyes again and leaned on my hand.
"I'm fine. Just tired." I murmured, stifling a yawn. I hadn't been able to stay awake all day it seemed, which was a bad time to be drowsy since Don Juan's first performance is tomorrow. Velluae keeps rushing us, and some of us weren't ready.
"Well you can't be sick, because the first performance is tomorrow, and you need to save the show."
"Why do I have to save it?" I murmured sleepily.
"Because you are the only one who has the opera nailed." She said.
I smiled into my hand. That was because I had been receiving help from Don Juan's composer. Erik has also informed me that the dress he had given to me all those months ago had been the original gown used for Don Juan Triumphant that Aminta had worn. He wouldn't tell me who was the first Aminta, but I didn't need him to. I had the dress tailored to my size (Since the woman it had been originally sewn for was at least 6 inches taller than myself) and now it actually fit. Except the skirts were still too long, but there wasn't anything we could do about that really.
"Don't smirk." Alice muttered.
"I'm not smirking," I yawned. For once we were in Alice's room, sitting in two latter back chairs in front of her vanity while she tried to make her unruly red hair actually behave. I tapped my fingers on the surface of wood and yawned again.
"You need to go to bed, big night tomorrow." Alice chided.
"Thank you." I muttered. I stood and went back to my room and found it empty. I collapsed into my bed and fell asleep immediately.
The next morning my head was pounding something awful. I groaned as I rolled over in my bed and grabbed the rubbish bin and vomited. Well I suppose I didn't have to worry about that letter. I glanced at the clock on the wall as I slid out of bed and hit my knees on the floor, still gripping the edges of the bin. It was already past 10. I had been out a long time.
"Alanna, are you awake?" Alice knocked on the door, and it seemed like she was pounding on it, causing my head to ring.
"Yes," I gasped, whipping my mouth on a handkerchief. I tried to push myself to my feet, but my legs felt weak and wobbly. I braced myself on the bed as I attempted to stand.
"You look horrible." Alice said as she entered my room and got one good look at me.
"I feel horrible," I groaned.
"I don't think you can perform tonight."
"I don't have an understudy," I snapped, pressing a hand to my head. "I have to perform,"
"You can't like this." Alice said, crossing her arms.
"I'll feel better in a few hours."
"Alanna."
"Velluae would have to cancel the show, and do you want to be the one to tell him that?"
"Not really." She murmured.
"I'll get some rest, and I'll be fine." I assured her.
"Yes, rest," Alice said, pushing me back into bed. "I'll be back in a few hours to check on you."
When she was gone and I finally thought I was alone, Erik appeared. Right when I was sick again.
"You can't perform today," Erik said, folding his arms.
"I'm, fine," I said thickly. I pushed myself up from the basin again and Erik helped me back into bed.
"No, you are not getting onstage."
"No I feel better, honest, I just need some rest."
"How did you even get sick?" Erik folded his arms. "Did you eat something fishy, or-" He spread his hands.
"I don't know, it's probably just a bug," I muttered. "but if I did eat fish, it would make sense, but I haven't."
"Don't like fish?"
I shook my head as I pulled my blanket over my body. My stomach was not churning as bad anymore. "Especially oysters, I can't keep those down for more than a minute."
I remembered one Christmas when I was young, when my mother had made oysters. A traditional Italian Christmas dinner is 7 courses of fish. Much to my distaste. My sister on the other hand loved it.
"I still don't want you to perform." Erik muttered.
"I have to, otherwise we will have to cancel the show, and I don't want to do that."
"You're too stubborn for your own good." Erik shook his head.
"You worry too much."
"Well one of us has to."
"I'm fine."
Why did I keep saying that? I mean, was I truly fine?
()
Holding my hair out of my face, Erik ran a hand over my back as I emerged again from the basin before me.
"You can't go on like this," Erik murmured.
"It's only, one more act," I gasped, trying to catch my breath. Concealed in a closet backstage, I had ran back here while I wasn't supposed to be onstage.
"This was a bad idea,"
"I know that," I snapped, "just please don't rub it in, I feel horrible."
"Sorry," Erik murmured.
"Apology accepted."
Erik flinched as someone knocked on the door, but no one entered.
"5 minutes Alanna," It was Rufus.
"Okay," I said. Rufus walked away from the door and Erik's shoulders relaxed.
I stood shakily.
"Just promise me you'll see a doctor when this is over." Erik said.
"I promise," I smiled at him.
()
I sat on my bed, looking up at the ceiling with a thermometer stuck into my mouth. My doctor, a tall thin man with greying hair, stood over me, Alice looming over his shoulder.
"How long have you been sick?" the doctor asked.
"A couple of days." Alice supplied.
"I can talk." I said around the thermometer.
"Well no fever," he said, yanking the thermometer out of my mouth. "I would suggest bedrest for now, and see me again if the illness persists."
"Yes sir," I murmured.
