Happy late New Years! Chapter 10 is up! Shoutout to Sephira1, jamie0360, and XXPay4XtraShippingsXX. Now, onward...

Chapter 10

"So, let me get this straight. You want me to sing, all by myself, in front of all of Parisian society, with my songs that I don't even know they'll like? When I don't know they'll even like me?!"

Monsieur Andre tried to calm me down. "Mademoiselle, please, try to listen to reason-"

I scoffed. "Oh, I'm listening to reason, alright. And that reason is telling me that this is crock! There's no way I can do this!"

Madame Giry decided to intervene. "Mademoiselle Mandy, at least think about it, please. That is all I am asking. We are in our down season right now, so we usually put on performances of just a few songs, nothing like a full-scale opera. We had been trying to find a young lady who would be able to fill in for one of our other performers, as she will be traveling back to her homeland for an engagement there."

"Ah, you mean La Carlotta? I heard from the other girls that she was going away for a while." That means my ears won't be assaulted by her voice for a couple months…

"Yes. She is usually the one to perform, as she is the prima donna, but since she is leaving, there is no one else to take her place." Firmin interjected.

"But why not one of the chorus girls, like Christine Daae? I've heard her in rehearsals. She sounds much better than me. Plus, I have never been taught. She has a tutor, does she not?"

I saw Madame Giry stiffen, her eyes filled with shock. No one else notices, though.

"As true as that may be, mademoiselle, we believe the populace needs a newer, fresher face. Someone they have not seen before. Mademoiselle Christine has been in the ballet and the chorus numerous times as she has lived here longer. But you have only just arrived. As I said before, we need a new face to liven things up a bit." Andre explained.

"And I am sure that they will fall in love with you as soon as they hear your voice." Firmin added.

I was silent, thinking on whether I should accept or not. Well, I'm pretty sure I've already messed everything up by being here, so what would be the harm? Erik already offered lessons to me, so surely he wouldn't mind me singing on his stage…

"May I have some time to think about it, please, monsieurs?"

They nodded their heads, reminding me of the Einstein bobbleheads from Night at the Museum 2, Andre looking even more so with his hair. It took all I could not to laugh. "Thank you, monsieurs, and thank you for your consideration."

I walked back to my room as fast as I could without running. I wanted to see if Erik would be there. Sure enough, he was.

"Erik, did you hear? They want me to sing when Carlotta is away! What am I going to do?"

He gave me a confused look from his place in my now-open mirror. "I thought you would have been excited."

"Well, I am. I mean, it's not like every day you're offered a place on one of the greatest stages in the world. I just don't know what I would sing, or if they would even like me. What is they don't? What if I stink and they throw rotten tomatoes at me?"

"I don't think there will be any rotten tomatoes to throw. One does not usually carry any on their person." He said, a smirk on his face.

I rolled my eyes. "You know what I mean. I don't think I can do this…"

He walked over to me and gently took my shoulders on his hands, turning me to face him. "Mandy, stop worrying. You will do fine. But if you feel like you could improve your skill, my previous offer still stands…"

I sighed deeply. "Okay, if you're gonna keep on bringing it up, fine. I'll take the dang lessons."

A smile crept on his face. "Good. Meet me in Box 5 at midnight tonight. We will start then."

He backed into the mirror, shutting it as he went back down the path to his lair. There was something about how he handled this whole situation. I would have bet all my money on him having reservations about me singing instead of Christine, not him doing the opposite and encouraging me. There was definitely something hinky going on there…

I spent an hour in my room, trying to find comfort in my books. When that didn't work, I tried playing games on my phone. No such luck. I finally decided to turn to the fanfiction I had been reading before I came to this time. It was a really good one, too. Same I wasn't going to be able to finish it. But then I saw a flash of blue in the corner of my tablet. It was the Wifi signal bars – and they were full!

What in the world..? I thought. As I finished the chapter I was on, I hit the next button just to see what it would do. Sure enough, it went to the next chapter.

"Well this is unexpected…" I said to myself. I went to my phone to see if I had signal. Surprisingly, I did. Can I call home and tell them I'm fine?

I tried to place a call, but no such luck. It didn't even ring. It just turned off. I turned it back on, knowing the battery wasn't dead because it had a full charge when it arrived. It turned back on and showed my Phantom lock screen. I tried to text this time, but it still didn't work. I got on the Internet once it booted back up and, finally, it worked. Hmm…wonder if I could get on Tumblr?

I could, and it was most refreshing.

More time had passed until my alarm (Meg coming to my door and trying to knock it down with her fists) went off, telling me it was supper time.

Wow, that time already? I guess things never really change when it comes to me and the Internet…

I walked out my door, only to be tackled by Meg. "I know I never got the chance to tell you before, but you were amazing in your audition! I've never heard that song before, but it was beautiful. How did you learn to sing that well?"

Dang, she could be an auctioneer if she wanted to… I thought to myself. It took me a minute to process that she had asked me a question. "I never really learned. I just…sang."

She raved about my voice all the way down to the dining hall, where everyone stared at me strangely. "What? Do I have something on my face?" I asked no one in particular.

A member of the chorus stood. "We all either heard or heard of your audition and how it went. And may I just say, mademoiselle, your voice is quite good." He said, taking my hand in his and pressing a kiss to my knuckles.

I stared in shock. "Oh! Um, thanks…"

Meg pulled me away from the man and towards the food table. "That's Jacques. He is sometimes over affectionate, but always means well."

I nodded, looking over my shoulder to find some people still staring at me. "Dang, you would have thought I was the Phantom or something."

Meg stiffened. "What did you say?"

I realized my mistake. "I said you would think I would be a phantom or a ghost from the way they're looking at me."

She forced a laugh. "Yes, I suppose so. Shall we eat?" she asked, almost running to an empty seat.

I looked after her, then saw some lingering eyes. I turned away in frustration. "Take a picture, it'll last longer."