Disclaimer:I still don't own any characters sighs it never gets any easier.

Authors note: Just to tell you all, where the opera house in concerned, we are at that part in the history of thePopulaire just before the whole finale with Christine, Erik, and Raoul, involving Don Juan. (Please review, I hold nothing dearest than the word of my reader(s)

Ignorant Fool

Kristen awoke at her mother's gentle touch. Good, it was all just a dream, right? The moment she opened her eyes she realized where she was and remembered what had happened. Hell, it seemed, still consumed her. She reached for her mother in hopes of not falling over. She hadn't seen the room she slept in, in the doctor's office. It was at least 6 hours after she finally fell asleep.

"My darling Kristen" Her mother said warmly, "It's all going to be OK" she held her daughter close. Normally Kristen would have shunned such comfort, she was strong, right? She didn't need it, but right now, it seemed, that in this bottomless pit of darkness, her mother was all she had.
"It won't be ok." Kristen said, "It won't be ok. I'll never write again, you know I cannot live without my writing. My pages were all I had to confide in and you know that." Her words were of more truth than any truth that could have ever been spoken. Kristen had relied on her diaries to vent out her sadness, her frustrations, and her pain, and now there was nothing. She could not very well tell her mother her deepest secrets, her desires and her hatred, every emotion and hidden thought that an adolescent girl thinks.

She squinted her eyes, tears begged to be released but she held closed her lids to stop them. Crying wouldn't fix anything, and in most cases it only made things worse. Inside, she felt cold, and lost. "When are we going home?" she asked her mother, her voice trembling. Her mother let her go, but Kristen could still feel her form sitting close to her, dipping in the mattress of the bed provided.

"Oh, Kristen, I don't think we are going back there." Her mother replied.
Kristen, in immediate confusion and wonder, turned to her mother, starring once more into blind darkness.

"What do you mean we are not going home? We have no where else to go," Her mother nodded,

"Yes child, I know that. I should have said that you will not be returning there. Kristen, all hope is not lost for you. They have invented a writing system for the blind, it is called braille. She went on to explain to her frightened daughter just what this was. "There are type writers for that, my Kristen, you will still be able to read and write, they have books in braille as well."

Kristen was silent. Braille? she thought, yes, she had heard of it, but it never occurred to her that she would have to use it someday, therefore she never further looked into the strange form of writing. The thought of her sitting somewhere reading with her hands was almost enough to make her nauseous. She loved to see, but all she had left now, were memories.
"How will I learn such a thing? We have hardly enough money for food, and where will I stay, if not in this horrid building? Our house is gone!...The house is gone" she suddenly remembered. "Where will I stay and where will you be, with me right? and what about my father?"

"Dr. Perdoux is taking care of everything Kristen, you must put your faith in him, be brave, all will turn out fine. Someday perhaps things will return to normal. Someday perhaps you will be married, maybe you will even publish something."

Marriage...Kristen thought. She snorted. She should have been married already! But small town life in France did no good to her where marriage was concerned. She was confined to the house doing chores and of course, writing, there was never time to venture out in search of a man.
"Where am I to stay?" she asked.

"No, M. Perdoux, the lady cannot stay here" Madam Giry said in protest. Dr. Perdoux had known Antoinette Giry for almost a decade, they were old friends before any of the nonsense of the Opera Ghost had ever introduced itself into the public eye.

"I don't understand" he replied, confused "You have more than enough empty rooms around this old Opera house, I know you do. How can you be so selfish? The girl is only 18, she just lost her eye site, her house is gone, her family is poor, and she has no one else but her parents, and they no longer have the money to keep her. She is far too old now to be living with them any way. I am going to provide for her to learn to read and write again, I will even pay rent if you need it, but please, please allow her to live with you in the opera house." He pleaded.

Madame Giry shook her head, "It is far too complicated for you to understand" she said. "There are too many things happening in this building that cannot be explained, and it is not safe for someone like her, especially since she hasn't her eyesight."

"Oh, you're not referring to those foolish rumors are you? You cannot possibly tell me that you are keeping her from shelter because everyone thinks that the theater is haunted by this... Opera Ghost?" Dr. Perdoux turned his back to her, annoyed at this idiocy. This was impossible. She was such a loving woman, how could she turn the poor girl out? Madame Giry opened her mouth to speak, but the doctor silenced her,

"She has nothing left. She was in love with her ability to write, she can no longer write, she can no longer read, and soon she will have no parents. The only way she can learn is if she stays here, I cannot keep her at the hospital, too many sick people enter every day, she could catch something awful and die within months, the sanitary conditions of my practice are quite satisfactory, but I cannot let her stay there. She needs to know there is something left for her in this god forsaken world." He spoke fiercely, and quietly. He could not believe that a stupid story would sway Giry's judgment and heart.

Antoinette's thoughts debated with each other for what seemed like a lifetime before she finally turned to him and nodded,

"All right, doctor, if she is as desperate as you say, I will have a room made for her," She put a hand to her forehead, "But I will not be responsible for her, should anything bad happen!" She snapped, "This is your foolish idea, you are responsible for letting her live here, after all the... accidents that have been occurring. La Carlotta, Joseph Bouquet, Christine Daae, who next?" Madame Giry grew frightened. The Opera ghost had no hospitality where these people were concerned, and now someone was coming to live there whom didn't belong. Someone who had no business where performances were concerned. He would knock her off without a thought for invading his theater.

"Oh I thank you, I thank you" Said Perdoux, his voice just riddled with burdon lifted sighs, so obviously relieved by her change of heart. "She needs this more than you know. And perhaps you could allow her to attend some of the rehearsals, music may do her good, she still has her hearing." The doctor said, and paid Giry thanks once more before quitting the theater to retrieve Kristen.

Madame Giry was now flooded by unease. Perdoux had no idea what he was getting Kristen into, the dark truth of what she was warning him of did not even register with him. She could see it now, Erik, as if he did not already have disaster on his mind involving Mademoiselle Daae. The moment he learned of her arrival he would be planning her death from his shadowed dwellings.

(It will get more exciting soon, I promise, I have a lot of chapters already, I just have to post them, they'll be up before tomorow, then sadly, I must depart on my journey to the cottage sighs no computer there, i'll be posting like mad tonight)