Chapter 6: Priorities
It was a rare day that found the opera house nice and relaxed; There was no performance booked for that day or the day after so the residents were happy to use their free time wisely.
Madame Giry's daughter, Meg was very excited to be going for a day of shopping with her classmates,
"Christine! You must come and join us. A new shop has just opened and it is said that they sell the most stunning dresses" the young ballerina encouraged,
"Oh i'm not sure, Meg. I have another lesson this evening with my teacher and... I don't think he'd like it if I was lake" Christine reasoned but Meg giggled gently,
"We have some free time, Christine. Besides, we'll be back in time for your lesson" Meg assured and the singer thought for a moment before smiling brightly and the two women giggled in excitement as Christine grabbed her coat before they both rushed off to catch up with the other ballerinas.
As for Rose; she was doing a bit of shopping herself but found herself at a store that sold second hand books,
"Back again, Miss Rose?" the shop keeper asked with a smile on his aged face,
"Good morning, Monsieur Waterstone" Rose greeted, approaching the counter before reaching into her basket and retrieved a small paper bag,
"One strawberry pastry" she told him, smiling as the old man chuckled as he accepted the delightful treat before pressing a kiss to her hand,
"You are an angel sent from heaven, my dear" he thanked before going over to one of his many shelves,
"Let's see... Hmmmm... Ahhh yes" he said, retrieving a book before returning to the counter and placed it in front of her,
"This was donated a few weeks ago. I believe it is something that you will really enjoy" the shop keeper told her,
"La Belle et la Bête" Rose read the cover curiously and smile gently,
"How much?" she asked,
"For you let us call it... 2 francs and a strawberry pastry when you are next out on the town" Mr Waterstone told her and Rose couldn't help but giggle before handing him the 2 francs,
"You have a deal, Monsieur" she told him before collecting her new book and bid him a goodnight before making her way back to the opera house.
Erik had been waiting hours for Christine so that they could begin their lesson; He finally gave up when the third hour went by... He had intended to return to his lair but found that curiosity got the better of him and he moved through the secret passageways that lead to the small attic room in which Rose Nightingale lived... He watched as she sat upon her bed whilst reading her book contently,
"... Good Evening, Miss Nightingale" Erik said after a moment and saw her jump from the sudden greeting, looking around the room but he saw how she relaxed,
"... Mr Destler?... Is that you?" she asked gently,
"Yes... It's me" Erik confirmed,
"What are you reading?" the phantom asked curiously and saw how she smiled,
"La Belle et la Bête... I only got it today but it is really good so far... Would you like me to read it to you?" Rose asked gently and Erik was stunned for a moment by her offer,
"... Yes... Yes, I would like that very much" he answered, feeling himself smile softly behind his mask and he used an old crate on which to sit as he saw Rose flip back to the very first page,
"... There was once a merchant who had been very rich at one time..." Rose began and Erik closed his eyes contently, allowing himself to relax as he listened to Rose continue reading.
It was sometime later that found Christine rushing into the opera's chapel,
"Angel? Please forgive me! I lost track of time" she said quickly,
"... Angel?..." she called after a moment when no one answered her and she looked down sadly and began to cry knowing that she had let her angel as well as her father down.
Christine made her way up to Rose's room and sniffled sadly, wiping at her tear stained cheeks before raising her hand to knock on the door but frowned when she heard Rose's voice coming from within the room,
"... And so the very next day, Beauty and the prince were married with great splendor and lived happily together for ever after" Rose said,
"That was a wonderful story, Rose... Thank you for sharing it with me. Perhaps you might... Read it again" Christine was horrified to hear her angel say... In her time of absence... He had gone to her?!
Christine heard how her sister giggle before beginning to read the story for a second time and the singer allowed an angry and jealous tear to fall down her cheek before storming away. How could Rose do this to her?
It was the next morning that Rose found Christine going over the music scores for the upcoming performance,
"Good morning, Christine. I thought perhaps we could go to the local cafe later and enjoy some afternoon tea" Rose proposed and was stunned when Christine rounded on her with a glare on her face,
"Don't you dare try and speak to me! How dare you take advantage of the fact that I was late so that you could spend time with my angel!" Christine said angrily and Rose frowned,
"Christine, I can honestly say that I have no idea what you're talking about" Rose assured,
"You insult me by lying! I heard how you read to him last night! I heard how he requested that you read to him just one more time!" Christine scolded and Rose developed a look of realization,
"Ohhhhh... I understand. Christine, you are mistaken. I was reading last night but not to your angel. I was reading to Erik; The phantom that haunts this opera house" Rose explained and Christine was horrified,
"You would spend time with a spirit of darkness such as him?! Are you insane?! Spirits like the phantom are on the side of the devil!" Christine scolded,
"How dare you?! Erik is just as much an angel as your maestro!" Rose defended angrily,
"A woman whom associates themselves with dark spirits is no sister of mine" Christine said firmly before storming off, leaving a stunned Rose behind to look down at the ground sadly as a tear escaped down her cheek.
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TheAuthor1996