Thank you all! I was so worried about last chapter. Ah, what can I say? I'm a worrywart. My family says that one day my hair will turn white. (Gasp!) Is that a white hair? No, sorry, false alarm
Erik showing the Opera Company his face went surprisingly well. There were some that wanted to make trouble, but they were ether dismissed or straightened out. There were some that could not handle it and quit, but other then that, they accepted him. Mme. Giry was not happy with him. Like Poppy had said, she told him that it was a very risky, but she went along with it. She was also not fond of the opera Erik wrote. She went around muttering 'foolishness and such'.
The opera it's self was to be a one-time performance, like Don Juan. Practice went well, and life soon became set in a flowing motion. Erik and Poppy would rise in the mornings, Erik going ahead to the Opera House, sometimes walking outside, and some times taking the tunnel under the house. Poppy would wait until Amée woke up. She would feed her and then cleaned the mess up and take Amée with her to the Opera house. Once there, ether Antoinette or Meg who was now married to Armand. She was expecting her first child, so she no longed danced, but she had proved to be a great assistedent to her mother who was training her daughter to take over as ballet mistress. Poppy then would ether work with Erik and or Reyer and Armand. When the day was done, Both Erik and Poppy would get Amée and go home, to get ready to do the same thing the next day.
XxX
It was June when the opening for the once in a lifetime opera was to be performed. Tickets and the boxes were sold out. No one knew who was more nervous. Poppy was only worried about Erik. He kept fidgeting. Finally, an hour before the show was to begin; Poppy pulled him to an empty room. She pushed him against the wall, kissing him. When they broke apart, both were panting.
"Wha—"
Poppy smiled and kissed him again, pulling the full mask off, "just giving you something to think about and look forward to after the opera."
"Why wait till after the opera?" Erik whispered against her neck causing her to shiver.
"You're right. Why wait?" she kissed his right cheek.
XXX
When they came back out, both were straightening their rumpled clothes, looking a bit guilty. Mme. Giry hid a smile as she asked them if they set straight Erik's fidgeting problem. Both nodded breathlessly as they when to take their places.
XXX
The first part of the opera started out that the mangers were giving a last gala performance to mark their retirement, Poppy/Christine singing as the star. It then went to showing the antics of the silly little ballet rats whispering about Le Fantom. They whispered and frightened themselves. The scene then went on to introduce Raoul de Chagny/ Armand, showing him making his way back stage to see his childhood friend. Poppy/Christine was surprised to see him and gave him a hug, but sent him on his way. It was time for Erik's appearance. The audience only heard his silky voice as he berated Raoul/Armand and congratulated Poppy/Christine. Then Poppy/Christine came out of her room and Raoul/Armand searched the room to find it empty.
Act two, had the incidents with the notes, and Poppy/Christine acknowledging her remembrance of Raoul/Armand, and her visiting her father's grave. Again, Erik was in this scene, but no one got to see him yet, only a shadow of him and him playing the violin. It then went on to Faust, and Carlotta/Jammes "croaking" then the chandelier 'falling' next Poppy/Christine disappearing.
This was the part Poppy had been worried about. The unmasking. The audience loved the sudden appearance of Erik. Erik led her down to his 'lair.' Everything went fine, until Poppy/Christine had to sneak up behind him. Lightly she touched his shoulder.
"You sure Erik?" Poppy whispered.
"Yes. The audience will only think that it will be make-up." He whispered back.
Poppy nodded only slightly and with tears in her eyes, pulled the mask away. Erik whipped around screaming at her as Poppy/Christine fledged horror. Too much disfigurement would have been too much for the audience. So, Erik had only made himself ugly, covering the worst of it. But it was still enough for the audience draw a breath. The opera progressed on. To the beautiful masked ball to the rooftop scene, then to the 'kidnapping'. Then the search for Poppy/Christine, the choice of the scorpion or grasshopper. The kiss. Which, nether, meant to drag out.
All three, Erik, Poppy, and Armand were exhausted. But they took their curtain calls. The audience loved it. There were shouts of "bravo" and "encore". Poppy passed Erik a glance that said, "Thank God it is over!"
They didn't join the others for the celebration party afterwards, but with Maierline watching Amée, they went down to the lair for their own celebration party.
"It was a surprise, you know that Erik?"
Erik glanced at as he lit some candles, "That it was excellent?"
Shaking her head, "No, any thing you compose is bound to be excellent. I meant the fact that the audience loved it. Most wouldn't like that kind of story. At least not until100 and some years have passed."
Walking up behind her, and he wrapped his arms around her waist, and pulled her close, "Yet they enjoyed it." He whispered in her ear causing her to shiver.
Poppy turned in his arms, "They will have much to say tomorrow. As to why it was to be an only one-timer."
"I care not what they say. It was something that needed to be done. I only hope I didn't put your so-called British composer out of a job by 114 years."
Poppy laughed; "He'll have another great one." she slowly pulled the full black mask off and kissed his lips, "But the only composer I care about is the French one in front of me. The one that is my husband, the father of my spoiled, but darling child, and the one I love."
Erik didn't say anything only brought his lips to her own, held and kissed her with such infinite tenderness that it made her want to cry. "I love you, I have never felt love before, but I do love you." With those words uttered, her picked her up, Poppy not protesting, and carried her to their old bed.
The next morning, while Poppy was still asleep, Erik went and got the daily newspaper. Nether cared for it, but he knew Poppy would want to hear the critic's review on the opera last night. When he returned, he found Poppy sitting up in the bed.
"Did you get it?" excitement in her voice.
Erik chuckled, "Yes, I did."
"Well, read it!"
Erik set down on the bed with her, opened the paper, and began to read.
"If you was one of the lucky that went to the Opera Populaire to see the one-time opera Le Fantom de L'Opera then you do not need to read this. But those who were not lucky enough to see it, I'll tell you this: it was one of the best-written and preformed Operas ever composed and written! The story was abut a deformed genius who calls himself The Phantom, that lives beanth the very Opera house that it was preformed in. he falls in love with a young girl, Christine, and teaches her how to sing. But she loves anther, Raoul. The Phantom then, scared of losing the girl, takes her to his underground lair, where she pulls off his mask and sees his face. The face was so life like that one should congratulate the make-up artist. The heartbreak and betrayal in The Phantom's voice, was so sad, that my wife cried, as well as my mother. The Phantom then ends up kidnapping the girl, and gives her the choice of ether turning a black scorpion or a gold grasshopper. Turning the scorpion, she had agreed to marry the Phantom, turning the grasshopper, the Opera house gets blown up. The hero, Raoul, shows up, the girl, Christine, kisses the Phantom, and thus he lets both go, him dieing of a broken heart. I am told that the Opera was based on a true story. The Opera truly written by the Opera Ghost his self, the now manager of the Opera Populaire, Erik Leroux. He had made a comment that some of it truly happened, the rest fiction. For, Leroux had said with a slight laugh, he did not die, and is in fact happily married the young woman that played Christine. His wife, fiery redhead, Poppy O'Collen Leroux the diva of the Opera Populaire, played Christine, Armand le Notaire was Raoul, and Erik Leroux played his self, The Phantom.
I believe, that it was an Opera that may be preformed in years to come, may out surpass, Faust. All in all an opera, that was a beautiful and entrancing tragedy.
---Charles de Notre,
Arts Critic"
Erik looked over at Poppy, a thoughtful look on her face.
"That was the nastiest critic ever. And he gave us a great review! Well, Monsieur Erik Leroux, how does it feel to have your music loved by every one?"
Erik thought for a minute, "I feel like the man, that I have always longed to be."
"And truly has been, " Poppy lead over and gave him a kiss.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
(Sob), Almost done. But there will be a huge surprise at the end though.
Jack: what was that?
What? What was what?
Jack: All the mushy stuff. You never paused. And it normally takes you about as hour to write a sentence with the word 'kiss' in it.
I had a mood. Still am in a mood.
Jack: Serves you right. Next time watch your normal horror flicks, not some chick-flick.
It looked interesting.
Jack: You still hated it though, all the sarcastic remarks, it's a wonder you can remember what it was about. What was it about?
Ahh…I can't remember.
Jack: Ha! Do you even remember the name of it?
That I do! It was…Maid in Manhattan!
Jack: Heaven help us!
Sorry about that. He's been insufferable!
Jack: Me? You are the one…
Hon, go be the skeleton in the closet you are.
(Muse walks away grumbling)
There is only a few more chapters left, but as I said there will be a huge surprise at the end!
