Disclaimer: I don't own Phantom of the Opera. I own the four girls and any cameos for my friends who aren't a part of fanfiction. I don't own Adi or Naomi or anybody else.

Erik

Ch. 19 – Adventures in Time: The Year 2005

Sam brought a small silver screen out of her own bag. It looked similar to the laptop, but the screen was larger and there were no lettered keys.

Kendall passed her a plastic case facedown (I'm pretty sure that was on purpose) and out came wonder of wonders another CD.

"Again with the music?" I grumbled.

"Yes and no," Sam replied. "There's music in it. But there's also people talking in it."

This made no sense whatsoever.

"Explanation, s'il vous plait."

"It's a movie," said Kayla. "It's a picture that moves, and the people in the picture can talk and sing; it's like… like watching yourself do something. Especially you," she added, giggling.

What am I getting myself into this time?

I didn't have time to ponder the thought because Josie blew out all the candles in the room, Sam set the screen on a table at the end of the bed, and Kayla snuggled against my chest.

"No questions or outbursts until the end," Kendall instructed. "Agreed?"

"Yea," Kayla raised a hand. "Now GET ON WITH IT!"

A candle flickered on the screen, showing a calligraphy-scrawled title: The Phantom of the Opera.

What is this all about?

Wow. Thin Carlotta. But… Thank God! Someone dropped a set. Wait a minute…

"Why don't they show their face?" I asked.

Kayla looked up at me with the most pitying expression. "It's you, dimwit. Faites attention!"

What in the world…?

"How can that be me? I'm here," I pointed out.

"PAUSE!" Kayla yelled, and we all jumped. She stared at me. "We said no interruptions for a reason, you know."

"But I'm here," I persisted.

"It's about your life, of course you're in it!" she exclaimed. "Now chill, we haven't even reached the good part yet."

End of the movie…

Kayla had snuggled into my chest with a ferocity that was only betrayed by the silent tears on her face. Josie sighed happily. And Sam and Kendall were both stretching.

"Let's do it again…" Sam yawned.

"I second," Kayla said hoarsely. All of them had sung along to the songs perfectly. This had actually amazed me more than finding out that I knew all of them myself. The man who had 'played' me, as they said, did a very good job in my opinion.

"He's sooo hott," Kayla slumped against me, and I looked for the others' reactions.

"She just passed out," said Josie, rushing over. "I can't believe she actually passed out."

"Does this happen often when you watch the movie?" I asked.

She glanced up at me. "Actually, it's never happened before. It's kind of freaky."

Suddenly, Kayla sat up with a gasp. She turned to me, eyes wide.

"Pinch me," she said.

"What?"

"Pinch me. Am I dreaming all this or not?"

"No, you're not dreaming, and I won't hurt you," I replied coolly.

"Awesome! That means I really passed out this time!" she hopped off the bed.

"Where are you going?" I demanded. "You might be sick or something!"

She smirked. "Yeah right. Let's go!"

"Where?"

Her face fell. "Are you that dense? We need to go home, and you're coming with us!"

That caught my attention. "How?"

"Back through the mirror, the way we came!"

I looked around at them, all with their bags ready to go, hopeful looks on their faces. "Erik, please? You can meet all our friends and everything! It'll be so much fun!"

"Are you sure they'd welcome me?" I asked pointedly. "If everyone in your time dresses as you do, I'd seem… out of place, no?"

They shrugged. "We won't care," Josie coaxed.

How does this happen to me?

"Fine, let's go."

When we arrived at the mirror, Kendall went first.

"I need to see what time it is," she whispered, "to see if anyone's still up."

"You realize you've been down here for two days?" I interjected. "Won't they have missed you by now?"

Shock covered their faces.

"Oh my gosh, you're right!" Josie cried. "Now what do we do?"

They stood and looked at each other.

"Girls, this isn't going to help," I pointed out. "We need to do something."

"You're right," said Kayla.

And she stepped through the mirror first.

We waited for a few minutes, and she returned with a slightly puzzled grin on her face.

"What's up?" asked Josie anxiously.

"You're not gonna believe this," said Kayla, "but no time has passed since the other night when we first came down here. It's 9:32 PM, and I'm betting it's still Thursday night."

"Are you serious?" squealed Sam. "This rocks!"

"Shall we move before continuing your celebration?" I suggested. "It's more than a little cramped in here." I shoved Sam out of the mirror ahead of us.

Once we were all in Kendall's bedroom, I looked around. The walls were bright, there was a rather large bed with a few chairs, a computer larger than Kayla's on the desk, and…

Something caught on the hem of my opera cloak, and I at first thought it had snagged on the door frame. But when I turned around, there was a snow-white kitten with her claws sank in the material.

"Ah mon Dieu," I whispered, hardly daring to believe it. I picked her up gently and she nestled in the palm of my hand.

"That's Angel," said Kendall, coming over to scratch the kitten's ears. "She's my kitty."

"She's beautiful," I said, stroking the kitten's fur.

"We have two more," she added. "Chloe and Ringo."

I raised an eyebrow at this. "Interesting names."

She shrugged. "My mom and brother named them."

Sam bounced over. "What are we gonna do? It's only 9:30, after all. We have all night still left!"

We'll see what happens. One of the coming chapters is gonna be cameo-city, and I've already got three lined up for some friends of mine at school and church. Let me know if you want one, I'd love to do it!

PS: The bit with Angel was inspired by Phantom, by Susan Kay (the part about Ayesha, of course! )