I hope you enjoy this chapter. It may be a little long but I hope it keeps you reading. Please critique me. I would be so happy. I have my story planned pretty much to the end but I always have room for Ideas.
All song lyrics other than Masquerade are my own creation.
I do not own any of the Phantom of the Opera characters.
A Dusty Adventure
"Good morning Geoffrey. Is my father around?" A handsome man stepped from a carriage offering a handshake to the old gentleman before him.
"Good morning to you and yes but I don't think he is out of bed yet." The kindly looking man returned his handshake putting his other hand on top of their grasp. He looked at the young man's face and started to shake his head.
"Master Lucas, you've become a man" He laughed "and I have gained more wrinkles." The old man pulled him close giving him a hearty hug.
The young man returned it warmly and smiled. Geoffrey had been a loyal servant to his father for years and been a stand in grandpa to all the children their whole lives.
"It's good to see you to." Lucas replied.
The two gentlemen made their way up the immense stone staircase their shoes clicking on the freshly sanded stone. Lucas looked at the magnitude of his father's new investment. He hadn't in his wildest dreams thought it would be like this. He could see there was still much unfinished and sighed thinking of how stressed his father must be.
"It's huge! I can't believe it Samus."
"Yes it is. You should hear the maids complain" He chuckled "Your father had to hire at least twenty of them. This has worked out because of all the layers of ash still in some places, well lots of places."
Lucas smiled and followed Geoffrey into the building. He was awestruck by how beautiful the inside of the opera house was looking but was immediately distracted when he saw his two sisters on the grand staircase in front of him. Their soft eyes and smiles were so nice to see.
Isabelle looked up and squealed running to Lucas and almost tripping on her own feet. She was a beautiful, but very clumsy girl.
"Lucas!" She ran to him and he swept her up in his arms kissing her on the cheek.
"Hello little Izzy. I see you've missed me that's good." He smiled and set her back down on the floor. "Well, you're heavier."
"Yes, I grew some. You look so old now" she giggled
Kathryn still stood at the bottom of the stairway looking her dear brother over. 'He has grown up.' She thought. Their bond was very close because they were only a year apart and both babies together. He was quite handsome and his features had hardened more taking the childlike softness out of his face. He had dark brown hair like Isobel and it was fashionably unruly when he removed his hat but he and Kathryn had the same eyes and quiet nature. He smiled walking to her slowly with a soft gate.
"This is a pleasant surprise" Said Kathryn. She stepped forward to except his hug.
"Oh, my little sister, please tell me your well." He looked her in the eyes with a sad expression and Geoffrey led Isabelle away so they could talk. She protested but gave in when Geoffrey whispered something in her ear.
"My body is well and my mind is as it was in my last letter to you." He grasped her hand and averted his gaze past her to the stairs.
"I had hoped things would have healed at least a little by now. I'm sorry I've been away but college has been demanding this year." He turned his head to face her again and she looked at him with complete understanding. Since they were very little they could read each others looks and even finish each others sentences.
"My woes are just that, my woes. You shouldn't worry." She smiled and he patted her hand.
"Still, I'm here so don't feel as though we can't talk about it. He was my closest friend outside this family and I miss him dearly too." He put his arm around her giving her a brotherly squeeze, the kind that are too hard but full of silliness.
Then in his softest voice he started to sing a quiet song to Kathryn. It was from a long gone childhood first sung during a very dark night to calm her fears, as he always tried to do.
Kathryn fair,
With the raven hair
I sing this song for you
Of the quiet night
And the stars so bright
And the pallid moon so blue
Close your eyes
And stop your cries,
For the morn is coming nigh
You'll wake to the sun
And the days begun
With the clouds all floating by
The softly sung notes calmed her with their nostalgia and memories. She smiled at him and said "Thank you" and squeezed him back. Glad he had put a smile on her face he stepped back twirling his hat on the end of his finger and grinning.
"Now on a happier note, let's find father and Benjamin. I have a few gifts to pass out." and she took his arm still smiling and joyous, her best friend and brother had returned.
Lucas smiled and thought to himself how glad he was to be back, where he was needed the most. They both turned in quiet understanding and headed for the family rooms.
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Benjamin brushed the cobwebs from his hair as he crept under a fallen support beam. Small shafts of light shown through where there were holes in the roof and broken windows. They looked like long slender fingers caressing the dusty floor.
As he walked all he found were piles of debris and unrecognizable remnants of furniture and painted scenery props. Eventually he entered an area that actually looked like something. It smelled like moldy cloth and he noticed many rooms with charred furniture in them. 'Did actors sleep in these rooms, singers too?' He wandered his way threw the chaos completely immersed in it. He could almost imagine the actors and actresses running about, practicing lines and singing scales. 'Bet things were a lot more interesting then' he frowned and the thought came to him that maybe it could be haunted, haunted by the souls of those who died in the fire. He'd heard the stories and it made him shiver to think people had died here. Now he had just plain terrified himself and he started to sing a little tune under his breath to take his mind off of it.
"Oh fair sally bring me an ale and dance on the tips of your toes. I'll give you me life and make ye my wife. Kiss your cheeks as red as the rose."
Benjamin remembered his father singing it at a New Year's Eve party when he was tipsy from his Merlot. It had made him laugh so hard to see his father in such a state that he put it to memory to use at just such times. He laughed at the thought and at his crackling singing voice but his fears for the moment were put to the side.
He eventually found his way to a dark corridor that seemed to have escaped the fire. He kept moving down opening each door as he came to it.
There was an odd assembly of junk stored there. Boxes of old costumes and stacks of partially burnt music sheets lay randomly about and there were pieces of furniture that were unburned and dusty. One after the other was the same until he came to a door that was locked. He pushed against it persistently then stopped when something caught his eye. In the middle of the door was a small flat chunk of metal and it poked at his curiosity. Taking the sleeve of his shirt he wiped the dust from it. The word Giry was engraved on its tarnished surface. "Giry?" he said aloud. The sound of his voice startled him in the quiet of the hallway. He yanked on the handle again thinking maybe it was just stuck. It didn't budge. He was hoping to find some opera props, like swords, in all this mess but the door wasn't going anywhere.
He turned to move farther down the hall when he noticed a rusty box of tools and some boxes of dishes against the opposite wall. 'Tools! How convenient' He thought. He grabbed a hammer with initials carved into it. 'G.B?' it meant nothing to him so he turned and readied himself to hack at the lock. The sound of the hammer was so loud he was afraid someone would hear it but nobody did and the door swung open after the lock finally gave in to its beating. 'Oh good' he thought a mischievous grin on his face. Finally something interesting was happening to him.
Benjamin peered into the dark room but couldn't make out anything. He could smell old roses and a strange soft scent very much like perfume. It was much darker than the corridor and it took him a few blinks before his eyes adjusted.
He could see that the room was very organized and tidy except for the dust everywhere. He looked to his right and could see many neatly stacked crates. To his left some stage props, a few lanterns and some paintings leaned against the wall. There was no furniture other than some tall candelabras covered in cob webs.
"What good luck" he said aloud when he noticed a sword lying on top of a crate in the far corner of the room. He ran and picked it up but could tell it was a wooden prop painted silver. 'Not exactly what I'd hoped for but oh well.' Benjamin thought rubbing his hand through his dusty hair.
He stepped back pretending he was a captain on a ship and started to swing the sword with careless abandon. "Back landlubber before I make ye walk the plank! Ha ha ha!" He stepped back swinging his sword all the way around behind him. A loud thud followed and made him yelp. He squinted to see that he had knocked over one of the crates that were behind him. This one was sealed though and had some writing on it.
"I need matches, hmm" There were none in his pockets so he started to search threw some of the boxes. The third one he dug into he had to pull to the doorway for at least a little more light. It was full of old ink wells, browned paper, a little Viola without strings, and more random costume props. He moved an empty wine bottle to reveal some very long slender matches. 'Just like the ones father uses to light the fireplaces. He struck one across the floor and proceeded to light the dusty candelabras.
Light flooded the room and shadows danced across the walls. Satisfied with himself he returned to the sealed crate he had toppled.
Immediately Benjamin saw that the word on the door was also on the crate except it said Madame Giry. His eyes lit up to realize that he was in the room of someone who used to live here. An opera singer perhaps or ballerina. He pulled the crate towards the candle light but stopped dead in his tracks when he heard a foreign sound enter the room. The soft tinkling notes of a song he could swear he new floated threw the air and he shivered with fear wondering where it was coming from. He couldn't bare to move. All he could do was stare at the painting of the stately gentleman on the wall.
'Steady Benjamin, use your head.' The words screamed in his brain as he slowly came to a sit by the crate. After he got beside it he realized the soft music had come from the crate. His body relaxed and he rubbed his eyes realizing they had gotten misty.
The melody stopped and the silence was almost worse than the strange music. It was so haunting and sad but he wanted to here it again. It reminded him very much of Kathryn.
As if a piece of her soul had followed him here. He chuckled to himself. 'Least she can't pull my ear this way'
Benjamin put his hands on the crate and shook it softly. 'Nothing' he thought. He shook it again this time harder. Then the soft notes filled the air again but at a much slower pace. 'A music box!' he said silently.
He quickly got up and grabbed the initialed hammer and started to pry at the nails holding the lid down. One by one he got them out only hurting himself once.
Once the nails were out he set the hammer at his side and took a deep breath. 'So what if I'm curious.' He thought. Benjamin reached his hands up and slowly lifted the lid putting it aside on the floor. 'Time to explore'.
He peered inside to see that the contents had been jostled pretty well but nothing looked broken. As he dug his hands touched a pair of black leather gloves. Nothing he wanted so he laid them aside. Next he found a bunch of little figures of people. Some were without heads and some weren't. He figured that Izzy might like them. Benjamin continued to dig and found all the essentials for sealing letters with wax and an intimidating seal of a skull. 'Now that's mine' he thought as his hand touched something cool and smooth. He picked it up seeing it was a mask, a mask for the upper part of ones face. It looked like a skull and was very menacing. 'Hmm, mine also' he smiled to himself. He noticed another mask under what appeared to be a soft black wig. This mask was different, sad and it seemed to want to scream its story to the heavens. Simple in its design, it stared back at Ben, its empty eye glaring at him and for some reason he started to feel guilty.
"Oh my god!" he said aloud "The Opera Ghost, is real?" Silently he thought to himself in the small room. 'It's not possible. Yet it could be if he weren't a ghost, just a prankster or a magician. He must be dead though because why would he leave his things, and who was Madame Giry? His wife maybe or mother or the name was his alias. No that's dumb." Benjamin squinted his eyes in thought pushing the crate aside.
He was instantly reminded of his original curiosity as those soft notes filled the air. "Masquerade" he whispered softly to the dusty room.
He dug again in the crate until he felt something soft and sort of furry. He pulled it up to see two little eyes staring him down accusingly. It was a little monkey sitting on what appeared to be a box with a red cushion on it. He had a little red turban with a fluffy feather on it. He also wore a little embroidered coat and fancy trousers to match. The monkey's little arms were outstretched, with a little gold cymbal in each hand.
The little monkey's stare seemed to become sad as soon as Benjamin wound its music box. 'Was this his too' he wondered. He set it on the floor and watched as it patted its little cymbals together.
As the music played he took one last look in the box and his eye caught a sealed envelope amongst the opened ones. He picked it up and saw that it was meant for a man named Eric, and Madam Giry appeared once again in the upper left corner of the envelope.
Benjamin turned it over softly in his hands wanting to open it so badly. He wiped the dirt from his hands before he reached for the seal. The soft music played in his young ears and the lyrics came to him from somewhere deep in his mind.
Masquerade
Paper faces on parade
Masquerade
Hide your face so the world will never find you………………
I know cliffhanger but I want to think about how to word its contents properly. Do it justice I should say. The next chapter will divulge its secrets…Mwa ha ha. Also to Allegratree I changed some names and if you notice any mistypes or missing word send me a holler.
One final note, the initials on the hammer is my way of paying a little homage to Monsieur Gerard Butler. So don't wrack your brain. lol
