Cheyenne: Wee! Chapter 2! I would like to thank all my reviewers, and I would like to extend a special thank-you to Auranna, since, even though she is not a yaoi fan, she is still willing to give my fic. a shot! Also, I would like to thank Natoya for constantly supporting me, and Sunrise Phoenix for her comment =D Thank you all!!!!!!
Yugi: Because for some reason I'm here…?
Cheyenne: You're so cute, tho'! I could not resist ^^
Yugi: *Grins brightly*
Cheyenne: *Giggles*
Yugi: Disclaimer! Cheyenne does not own Yu-Gi-Oh! or Phantom of the Opera!
Cheyenne: Italicized sentences are people singing. I am lucky enough to own the ORIGINAL (that's right, ORIGINAL peoples. Be jealous. xD) soundtrack from Phantom of the Opera, which gives me the lyrics for the songs, tho', most of them I know by heart xD
It also gives me some scenes which are vital to plot development. I mainly just use it for vital songs that I don't know ((The Phantom of the Opera theme NOT being one of them. I know that song by heart!!! I could sing it in my sleep. I am that amazing.)). YAY! I won't follow the original script very much. Actually, this chapter is probably the closest ya'll are going to get to the exact original. For this part of the fic, I'm following the gist of the script, BUT, I'm adding a lot of my own little things for originality, and establishing character, blah blah blah. I'm assuming that you'll all be able to figure out which bits are singing and which aren't? If not, PM me or something and I'll explain.
Anyways, on with the fic!
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//Sabine//
"This trophy from our saviors, from the enslaving force of Rome!" Anzu's voice warbled as she changed her pitch until it sounded like it should be shattering glass. Sabine kept her dancing rhythm, watching slightly as Anzu held the "severed head" in her hand. Honestly, what kind of messed up person sends his mistress a severed head as a present? Sabine looked once towards Mai, who looked as if she was thinking along the same lines. Hannibal would, they both concluded silently before returning to their roles as the leading slave girls. As soon as Anzu was done with her line, the chorus joined in. Sabine almost laughed as one of the stage hands crossed the stage itself, carrying a ladder. This was only a practice, after all, and last minute preparations were being made for that night; when they would actually perform Hannibal to a live audience. Sabine didn't want to admit it, but she was nervous beyond belief. She didn't want to let herself down, but more importantly, she didn't want to let her teacher down…Her Angel.
"With feasting and dancing and song, tonight in celebration, we great the victorious throng, returned to salvation!" The girls' chorus sang.
"The trumpets of Carthage resound! Hear Romans, now and tremble! Hark to our steps on the ground!" The men's' chorus followed suite, and the two said chorus' joined into one voice:
"Hear the drums – Hannibal comes!"
Mai rolled her eyes at Sabine, who tried her best to keep a straight mask. Again, she failed. If there was one thing Sabine could not do, it was to hide her emotions. She was always so open, which annoyed her to death. She resumed her position, however, as "Hannibal" strode onto the stage. Sabine heard Mai giggle once, as Tristan strode onto the stage with a haughty look on his face.
"Sad to return to find the land we love threatened once more by Roma's far-reaching grasp!""Hannibal" said.
"Tristan…For Ra's sake get it right! It's "Rome". We say "Rome", not "Roma"." The répétiteur, Bakura, said. His voice was thick with irritation as he glowered at the lead male singer. If Sabine could have turned her head without Anzu trying to hit her with the "severed head", she knew she would have seen Malik laughing behind stage, and Ryou trying not to laugh from where he conducted the orchestra. Marik was probably up in the rigging, doing… whatever the heck he did up there...while laughing his head off at Bakura's misfortune of trying to teach Tristan correct pronunciation. Managing the stage sets as he did, Sabine didn't really know. She listened to Tristan's excuses for why he didn't say "Rome", and she saw Mai smirk again as the blonde watched said male singer try to pronounce "Rome" a few times.
"Once again, then, if you would, Tristan: "Sad to return…"" Bakura said, waving his hand intolerantly.
Just as Tristan started to sing again, they were interrupted by Mr. Otogi.
"Ladies and gentlemen, some of you may already, perhaps, have met Mr. Kaiba and Mr. Pegasus?" Mr. Otogi asked.
Bakura growled, and fixed the manager with a baneful glare. "Mr. Otogi, we are rehearsing. Kindly shut the hell up until we are finished!" ((AN: That was more Bakura-like than the original line, I think xD Can anyone imagine Bakura saying please to anyone but Ryou, when he can just say something like that? I can't ^^))
Since Mr. Otogi was used to Bakura's gruff attitude, he merely nodded with a small smile, saying: "My apologies, Bakura. Proceed…"
""Sad to return", Tristan! And for Ra's sake hurry it up, we certainly don't have all day!" Bakura snapped. ((AN: I'm really straying from the original lines, here xD))
Mr. Otogi turned to the two gentlemen behind him. One was a tall brunette, easily over six feet tall. His eyes were a piercing azure, and his face was set into a stony mask; though he was clearly amused at Bakura. The other was a man with long, grayish hair that covered the entire left side of his face. Mr. Otogi smiled at them both, saying: "Bakura, our chief répétiteur. Rather a tyrant, I'm afraid." The brunette let out a smile chuckle, while the other man simply smirked.
Sabine turned her attention back to her dancing, but she was feeling a little… distorted. She was too busy going over the events of that night, three days ago…again. She knew there had been a fifth voice. That baritone…that familiar baritone…where had she heard it before? Rather, who did it remind her of?
"Sad to return to the land we love threatened once more by Rome's far-reaching grasp. Tomorrow we shall break the chains of Rome. Tonight rejoice – your army has come home!" Tristan finished his line…finally.
Sabine was still thinking about this as she and Mai danced their parts, unaware that she had fallen out of step until Madame Giry banged her cane loudly against the floor. "You! Sabine Languisto! Concentrate, girl!"
"What's the matter?" Mai asked Sabine quietly, but Sabine just shrugged and smile reassuringly at her friend. "It is nothing, I am fine." She continued her dance, before she and Mai finally finished it. Sabine struggled to keep the wince of her face, as she realized just how much her feet were aching. Really, Madame Giry had kept them practicing all morning… Sigh.
"Bid welcome to Hannibal's guests – the elephants of Carthage! As guides of our conquering quests, Dido sends Hannibal's friends!" The chorus sang as the dancers ended their suite.
Sabine watched in awe as life-sized replica of an elephant was brought out, operated internally by two of the stage-hands. Smiling – Or perhaps smirking – Sabine watched as Tristan was lifted onto its back. His head was held high as if in triumph, and he himself wore a heavy smirk upon his face. They really needed a better male singer…Another sigh.
Anzu, playing Elissa, the mistress, stepped forward. "Once more to my welcoming arms my love returns in splendor!"
"Once more to those sweetest of charms-"Sabine and Mai giggled as Tristan said that. Anzu? Sweet charms? Not on this planet. "-My heart and soul surrender!"
The chorus started up again: "The trumpeting elephants sound – hear, Romans, now and tremble! Hark to their step on the ground – hear the drums! Hannibal comes!" This was finished by an orchestra accompaniment, and you could clearly see Ryou waving the little baton-thing around in his hand, moving it downwards in a slicing motion to effectively cut off the music in a dramatic fashion.
Mr. Otogi signaled for silence. His emerald eyes darted around the room, and his black hair was tied back into a simple ponytail. "Ladies and gentlemen may I have your attention please? As you know, for some weeks there have been rumors of my imminent retirement. I can now tell you that these were all true, and it is my pleasure to introduce you to Mr. Seto Kaiba and Mr. Maximilian Pegasus; the two gentlemen who now own the Opera Populaire!" Anzu then stepped forward with a snug smile, talking even louder than the other performers so as to get herself noticed.
"Gentlemen, this is Miss Anzu Mizaki, our lead soprano for, oh, about five seasons now." Mr. Otogi continued.
"Ah, yes. Anzu Mizaki. Of course, we have…experienced your greatest roles," Pegasus said politely.
"And this is Tristan, our lead male singer."
"A pleasure, sir." Seto said curtly, though he looked as if it was anything but.
"If I remember correctly, Elissa has a rather fine aria in Act Three of "Hannibal". I wonder, Miss Mizaki, if you would oblige us with a private rendition?" ((AN: For those you don't know, rendition is just a fancy term for performance.)) Pegasus asked. Seto rolled his eyes. He really didn't have time for this. He was a busy man, after all… "Or, that is, unless Bakura here objects." Said répétiteur turned and scowled at Seto as he said this. The albino then noticed how Seto was clearly hoping he would say no, so Bakura merely smirked and said: "My diva commands." He strung the word diva out, so that it sounded more than a little sarcastic. Seto looked even more put-out now, and he hunched his shoulders as a piano player played two bars of introductory music (on the piano, obviously) before Anzu started singing.
"Think of me,
Think of me fondly,
When we've said
Goodbye!
Remember me
Once in a while –
Please promise me you'll try.
When you find
That, once
Again, you long
To take your heart…" Anzu was cut off as one of the stage backdrops crashed to the ground, cutting her off from half the cast. She let out a shrill scream, covering her face briefly with her arm before stomping her foot on the ground in fury as Mai suddenly sang out:
"He's here: the Phantom of the Opera…"
"He's with us… It's the ghost!" The chorus girls, and all the ballet girls but Sabine echoed.
"You're all idiots!" Tristan snarled as he ran over to Anzu, who was shrieking hysterically again while randomly pointing towards the ceiling. "Anzu! Are you all right? Marik! Where the hell is Marik!" Tristan looked wildly around for the sandy-haired Egyptian, who had appeared on the riggings and narrow wooden bridge-like things above the stage, yet behind the curtain line.
"Whadda ya want?" Marik snapped.
"Get down here! And for gods sake what the hell is going on up there?" Mr. Otogi demanded.
"How should I know? I wasn't at my post!" Marik muttered. Sabine turned to see Malik standing slightly behind the curtain, blushing as Marik said that and looking slightly disheveled. The young girl then turned to see a smirk play across Marik's face, as he said: "There's no one there: and if there is, well then, it must be a ghost!"
"He's there: the Phantom of the Opera!" Mai sung in a more hushed voice. Sabine elbowed her roughly, trying to get her friend to shut up.
"Good heavens! Will you show a little courtesy?" Seto snapped, though with a slight melodic tinge. Sabine giggled mentally at that. Pegasus turned to Mai and the others, a frown crossing his face as he said: "Ladies, please!"
"These things do happen," Seto said nonchalantly.
"Sure, these things happen! Well until you STOP these things from happening, THIS thing does NOT happen!" Anzu said with a temperamental whine as she pointed to herself and signaled for Tristan to fetch her furs from the wings.
"Amateurs!" Tristan grumbled as he went, looking at Seto and Pegasus.
"Rather a bitch, ain't she?" Seto snarled.
"I don't think there's much more I can do to assist you. Good luck! If you need me, I shall be in Frankfurt!" Mr. Otogi shook both the new managers' hands, before hastily departing the theater.
"Pah! Anzu will be back," Seto said as he waved his hand lazily.
"You think so, Kaiba?" Madame Giry said. "I have a message, sir, from the Opera Ghost." As she said that, the girls of the cast started to twitter nervously, whispering to each other in a most annoying fashion. Even the men tried to hide their obvious discomfort at the mention of the Opera Ghost by randomly looking in all directions. Sabine hung back from them, her eyes cast downwards. Mai was beside her.
"Good heavens, you're all obsessed!" Pegasus exclaimed. Madame Giry eyed him quickly, a spark of annoyance evident in her expression as she turned to the letter she was holding in her hand. "He merely wishes to welcome you to his opera house-"
"HIS opera house?" Seto Kaiba hissed. "It's not his op-"
Madame Giry silenced Kaiba with a glare and continued: "-and he commands that you continue to leave Box Five empty for his use and-"
"Whatever for!" Pegasus said in shock, ignoring the frosty look Madame Giry was giving him before she continued: "-he reminds you that his salary is due."
"His salary?" Pegasus asked, looking thoroughly baffled.
"Mr. Otogi paid him twenty thousand a month. Perhaps you two can afford more, with Mr. Wheeler as your patron." Madame Giry explained patiently.
"Pah, I've lots of money already myself!" Seto grumbled, too low for anyone to pick up.
Sabine, however, had frozen as soon as they had mentioned Mr. Wheeler. Could it be…? She had known a Mr. Wheeler. A Mr. Joey Wheeler to be more precise. They had been friends when they were younger, actually. It would be nice to see him again… Sabine shook her head again. Who was she kidding? The girl had been so busy thinking that she lost track of the conversation, before she heard Bakura break in angrily: "There is no understudy! This bloody production is new, for Ra's sake!" Before Sabine knew what happened, she heard Mai say: "Sabine could sing it, sir!"
"The chorus girl?" Pegasus asked with an arched brow.
"She's been taking lessons from a great teacher!" Mai continued, and Sabine looked down at the floor, wishing her friend would just shut up…
"From whom?" Seto asked curiously.
"I, uh… I don't…really…know…" Sabine said quietly, as she looked up with evident unease.
"Oh, not you as well!" Pegasus growled as he turned to Seto. "Can you believe it? A full house and we have to cancel!"
"Let her sing for you, gentlemen. She has been practicing!" Madame Giry said, giving Sabine a gentle nudge forward. Sabine smiled nervously, as she moved forward to take the stage. A piano accompaniment began, and she opened her mouth; letting the melody pour out of her as she closed her eyes briefly, before being whirled away in a blanket of music.
==Hours Later, Right Before the Night Performance==
"Are you ready?" Mai breathed. She was so close that the exhaled air tickled Sabine's neck, making her giggle. They were all kind of squished together, but the dress Sabine was wearing wasn't helping much. Oh, it was beautiful, though. The skirts were full, with lots of under-layering. It was a light, sky-blue, and seemed to sparkle like the diamond flowers that adorned her hair. The torso clung to her figure, and the sleeves left her shoulders bare, instead hanging off them like half-rings. ((AN: Sorry for my failure at describing that xD))
"Ready as I'll ever be," Sabine said, though it took all her will not to let her voice shake, as it seemed to want to.
"Then go for it!" Mai said as she gave Sabine a little push onto the stage, but only a little one to make sure her friend would even move. Sabine took a deep breath and walked the rest of the way, hoping she looked calmer than she felt.
==Later Scene==
Sabine smiled. As the opera went along, she had started to feel calmer. More sure. Now… now was the moment of truth. The aria. Could she do it? The new managers seemed to think she could, else why would they cast her for this part after Anzu's departure? Well, she would not fail them. Moving upstage, she smiled and started singing.
"Think of me,
Think of me fondly,
When we've said
goodbye.
Remember me
Once in a while –
Please promise me
You'll try.
When you find
That, once
Again, you long
To take your heart back
And be free –
If you
Ever find
A moment,
Spare a thought
For me…" Sabine smiled again, reaching the front of the stage.
"We never said
our love
was evergreen,
or as unchanging
as the sea –
but if
you can still
remember,
stop and think
of me…
think of all the things
we've shared and seen –
don't think about the things
which might have been…
think of me,
think of me waking
silent and
resigned.
Imagine me
Trying too hard
To put you
From my mind.
Recall those days,
Look back
On all those times,
Think of the things
We'll never do –
There will never be
A day, when I won't think of you…" 'So far so good,' Sabine thought to herself, beaming happily despite herself. She just felt so exhilarated! She had no idea what other surprises the Opera Populaire was to dump on her dressing room doorstep…
"We never said
our love was evergreen,
or as unchanging
as the sea –
but please
promise me,
that sometimes,
you will think
of me!" Sabine ended with a flourish, as a wave of applause rode through the audience. She did it! Feeling elated, Sabine thought to herself that nothing could surprise her more than the events of this morning (and right now), could.
How could she have been so horribly wrong?
==After the Performance==
"Sabine! Oh, Sabine, you were wonderful!" Mai said, running over to give her friend a hug. ((AN: OOC Mai! Huzzah!))
"Mai! I c-can't breathe!" Sabine choked out, and Mai released her. The other ballet girls were crowding around, too. Sabine, holding a bouquet of roses, handed some of them out. Then, she flopped down onto floor; letting her dress (which was actually lighter than she had originally thought,) fan out around her as the other girls exited the area, no doubt heading off to the half-masquerade party.
"Sabine! You're going to ruin your dress!" Mai said cheekily.
"Oh, phooey on the dress!" Sabine said, her icy sapphire eyes still shiny and glowing. "How did I do?"
"Well, Sabine. From the amount of applause I heard, I'd say you did… eh, okay." Mai grinned at her friend, who was glaring at her in a teasing manner. "And my opinion matters most, you kno-ack!" Mai sputtered as a pillow from a nearby couch was whisked at her head, hitting her square in the face. She looked up to see Sabine grinning wickedly at her from where she had gotten up.
"You're paying for that one!" Mai laughed, tossing the pillow back. Sabine slipped to the side, but the pillow still hit her arm. She laughed and sat down again, this time on the couch. "I should change. I don't think your mother would be too happy if I ruined this dress," she grinned.
"I should think not!" Mai said, disappearing for about five minutes and coming back with a crimson-colored dress. "Here, slip this on!" Sabine eyed it dubiously. "Where am I suppose to change, pray tell?"
"This is an opera house, Sabine. There's bound to be a change room somewhere backstage!" Sabine smiled at her friend and took the dress, disappearing down the hallway.
Ten minutes later, she returned. The dress was uncomplicated, with black embroidery patterns on the hem and sleeves which reached to her wrists. It still left her shoulders bare, and it showed a little cleavage. It was really quite nice, though, despite its simplicity. "So?"
"It looks great!" Mai answered. She, in the time it had taken Sabine to change out of the elaborate blue dress to the crimson one, had slid into a white dress, which was tinged with gold around the hems.
"Mai!" Sabine laughed. "You stole one of the costumes?"
"Who cares? Everyone else probably did, too!" The two girls collapsed into a fit of laughter, until another voice joined in-only with a mocking and sneer-like sound.
"What are you two laughing about?" Sabine looked up to see Anzu glaring at her, arms crossed. She was wearing a pink dress (with some ruffs and tucks as well as a full skirt), and did not look happy.
"Nothing," Mai said.
"I'm not that stupid!" Anzu sniffed.
"Fooled me," Mai muttered. Sabine elbowed her. Hard.
"Huh?" Anzu said, obviously not having heard.
'Good,' Sabine thought.
"I didn't say anything," Mai said simply. Anzu narrowed her eyes, but nodded. "Well," the soprano continued, glaring at Sabine, now. "I suppose you think you're the next big thing now, huh?"
"N-No, Anzu, I-"
"Well, you're not! You only got to sing because I didn't feel like it. That's all you are, a replacement. Used, and then discarded and forgotten," Anzu continued. "So if you think-"
"Shut up!" Mai snarled, tossing a pillow at the bewildered singer's face, messing up her hair.
"Hey!" Anzu squealed, trying to smooth down her brown locks.
"Next time I'll use this!" Mai picked up a candleholder and hit the palm of her hand with it menacingly, narrowing her eyes.
"Mai, please don't," Sabine whispered, eyes downcast; slightly shaking as she tried to cover her shaking voice and now-downcast spirits. She knew she shouldn't let Anzu get to her like that, but... Mai glared at Anzu, and Anzu cleared her throat.
"Well, I suppose I'll see you two at the half-masquerade then!" Anzu gave an indignant sniff, looking at them down her nose before flouncing off down the hallway… but not before a couple of sandbags fell in front of her, earning a loud and oddly satisfying yell from the girl.
Mai laughed. "He's here: The Phantom of the Opera!" She whispered harmoniously to Sabine, who cracked a grateful smile. Was he here? She almost hoped so. She felt strangely happy at this thought. The Opera Ghost… the strange and elusive Phantom.
"Hmph!" Anzu snorted before disappearing around a corner, presumably to the party.
"Well, shall we?" Mai asked after a pause.
"Shall we what?"
"Go to the half-masquerade, of course!" Mai grinned, reaching over to grab a couple of masks. Sabine's was simple and black, covering the top half of her face while Mai's was gold-colored, also covering half her face, as customary masks often did.
"Oh, yes!" Sabine pulled the mask over her face, and was happy when it matched her attire, as did Mai's. She stood up, brushing any dust she might have acquired off her dress.
"Let's go!" Mai said, grabbing her friends arm and dragging her down hallways and corridors; up and down staircases and around corners. As she did this, Sabine got to thinking about… stuff.
No, not just stuff. About the mysterious fifth voice. After three days of pondering (and making discreet inquiries as she pretended to ask questions), she had to grimly conclude that no one working in the Opera Populaire had a voice quite that… alluring. Now, Sabine had begun to think she had imagined the voice after all, despite thinking only earlier this very day that she had NOT been imagining it. Perhaps she had been in denial. Perhaps she had wanted to believe it so much she had pretended it actually happened. Yet somehow, she knew she had not. She knew the voice was there, otherwise she would have imagined the whole conversation, which she knew for a fact she did not. After all, she had stumbled upon Marik, Bakura, Ryou, and Malik continuing the same discussion. So, therefore, the whole thing must have been real, no questions asked. And now she was back to the: "Who was the fifth voice?" question. Also, there was the question as to why the voice sounded so familiar, as if she had heard it many times before, yet…not. How could she have heard the voice IN the Opera Populaire, and then search the whole place finding no other person matching that voice?
'I'm not even making sense to myself anymore!' Sabine perceived to herself in disgust, and it was then she noticed they had arrived at a doorway.
"We're here!" Mai said, smiling as she looked into the room.
The room itself was relatively large. While not quite as big as the grand hallway, it was certainly large enough to hold a huge party. There were tables lined up at the walls, covered with white sheets. Platters of food and drink were piled on them, somehow arranged so they looked somewhat neat. There was a small platform where a small band consisting of five men were playing instruments such as fiddles-and in one man's case, a piano. The music was lively, filling the well-lit room as people danced and conversed throughout the room.
'Well,' Sabine thought, 'this looks like it could be lots of fun!'
And with Bakura and Marik masterminding the whole thing, well, you can be sure you weren't going to forget something like this. Who knew what they had schemed? Well, at least Malik and Ryou were here. They would keep Bakura and Marik at least somewhat in line! Sabine smiled, and this time it was genuine. For the time, at least, she could forget about the voice. For the time being, she could enjoy herself. Sabine turned to Mai and smiled, and was happy when her friend smiled back before tugging her into the room itself, so that they were no longer standing in the doorway.
"Welcome to the half-masquerade!"
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Cheyenne: And that's it for chapter 2! Sorry for the long wait, you guys, and for all those author notes.
*Mumbles* the absence of Yami in this chapter makes me sad, but- *Takes on dramatic voicing* It must be done.
*Back to normal voice* Anyways. Well, a party planned by Marik and Bakura, eh? This should be interesting xD Let's hope Ryou and Marik can keep an eye on them! Or maybe… *Evil grin*
Anyways, please R&R! Reviews make me happy and a happy Cheyenne means more chapters faster!
For those who don't know: There is no half-masquerade in the original Phantom of the Opera. I made up the half-masquerade, hee hee.
Well, I'll shut up now.
Again, a special thank you to those of you who have kindly reviewed my story, and for giving it a shot!