Vampyra: no, I don't think we're going for a Disney theme xD I probably just own a few too many Disney soundtracks ^^' THank you for the review!
Sasuke Kouken: Thank you! I'm trying my best and tell me when you've written your piece, please!
CD One, Track Five: Outside is Freedom
Alfred: Under this roof
Lives the loveliest person in the world
Can it be chance
That we met here?
Sarah, are you awake?
Please come to the window!
I'm standing here in the moonlight
And wishing I was with you.
Leon looked up at the façade of the Ambassador Theatre and took a deep breath. He'd played here, too, one year or so ago. Now D was leading "lady" in Mary Poppins. Amused the blonde shook his head. Well, D had got the porcelain doll looks all right, still – seeing him in western skirts had to look strange. But he was probably going to see it in a moment. If he would muster the courage to go inside, that meant. So far, he'd only come as far as the stage entrance. Couldn't D just come out like all the other guys were doing right now?
One of the actresses stepping outside into the cold recognised him beneath jacket and scarf and came over. "Leon, what a surprise! Do what do we owe the honour of Broadway's golden boy stopping by our humble theatre?" she teased and hugged him. He returned the hug awkwardly, hoping that D wouldn't step out right now.
"I plan to kidnap your leading lady," he replied dryly. "Doin' a recording with him at the moment and have to talk to him about some songs."
Elisa – she'd played with him in Mamma Mia – tilted her head to the side. "You are? Honestly? And Daddy Count's letting his precious son go with a stranger?" she asked, surprised. Leon harked up.
"We-ell, D didn't say otherwise," he stretched.
The woman shook her head. "A wonder! He won't even let the boy party with us, and he's doing Mary P. What did you do to earn Daddy's grace?"
The blonde shrugged and grinned. "Dunno. Is D still in there?"
"Yeah, he's still getting dressed. God, those Chinese things he wears for sure look pretty, but they're damn hell complicated if you ask me." Her companion called out for her and she let go of Leon. "Well, see ya 'round, golden boy! And good luck with the pretty princess!"
"He's not -" a princess. Leon sighed softly. Well, considering all, D probably was more of a princess than any of the other girls around here. And he'd have to rescue that princess from her dragon father, if he'd gotten Elisa right.
No time to do things like right now. Determinedly Leon went through the stage entrance, greeting the guard in passing, and started searching for D's room.
Sarah: Not so loud!
Yes, I'm here
Don't make a noise
Or my father will hear.
D smiled at his reflection in the big mirror and carefully erased every last trace of Mary Poppins on his face. Some guys would have been irked at having to play a female role, but he was used to it. In fact, it was his speciality, what made him famous and sought-after. He could play both male and female characters, and his voice spanned enough octaves that he was able to sing them, too. He didn't overly like Mary Poppins, but engagement was engagement.
He hummed as he chose one of his rather female-looking cheongsam and wriggled into it. He just loved the soft violet fabric and the silvery dragon on it. The long, black gloves, yes, perfect. He was ready to go out with Leon.
A knock on the door made him startle. "Yes?" he called, and his father entered.
"Are you ready, Son? I want to leave soon. You have to sleep," he said and scrutinized him with an appraising look. "Do you have anything planned?" he added, lurking. D tugged at the high collar.
"No, Father, why should I have something planned?" he said as innocently as possible.
"You do not usually dress up like this for the walk back to the apartment," Mr. Count said and then sighed. "Well, get ready. I still have to talk to the conductor, it cannot be that this violinist keeps making that mistake. I will wait for you at the entrance."
"Yes, Father," D answered and held his breath until his father was gone again. Then he sat down on his chair and sighed heavily. He appreciated that his father was worried for him. But sometimes, lately, he felt suffocated by his care. He wanted to go out with his colleagues, wanted to celebrate with them after the show, even though he knew he would only be sitting in a corner watching them. He just wanted to participate.
His conscience raised its head. He should have told Father Leon had invited him for today evening. But he already knew what the answer would have been. "You have the recording and a show every evening. You cannot spare time to dine with Americans." Such or similar would be his father's reply. D wasn't willing to pass on the dinner.
Quietly he took his coat and slipped out of his cloak room into the theatres backstage, breathing in the typical scent of make-up, sweat, dust and coulisse. He loved this scent, had always loved it since he'd been a boy and his father had taken him along to his own plays.
"Hi D, are you ready?"
Alfred: Can it really be?
Sarah: It's quite late.
Alfred: You and I alone!
Sarah: I couldn't stand it any longer.
Alfred: I'm happy.
The blonde appeared right behind him so suddenly that D startled, but he quickly caught himself again. "Leon-san!" he exclaimed. The lopsided grin made his heart skip a beat.
"Yeah, hi. So, you're all done? Make-up, clothes, everything to your satisfaction?"
"I do not use make-up behind the scenes," D sniffed, but let Leon take his arm. He sent a glance around. "Leon-san, we should perhaps take the stage entrance… My father is waiting for me at the main entrance," he said uncertainly.
Sarah: No one must know!
Alfred: I wanted to see you!
Sarah: I feel suffocated inside.
Outside is freedom,
There, where the horizon is
There is a land
Where all miracles are possible.
The American stopped and looked down on him. "Are you sure you wanna do that?" he asked. "I mean, won't he be angry?"
"I left a letter on my table." D tugged at Leon's arm. "Do not worry. He will only be angry with me."
"D, that's what I'm worried about. If your dad thinks you shouldn't go today, then we can go some other evening," the blonde said and almost managed to hide his disappointment. The young Chinese shook his head decidedly.
"No, Leon, my father's answer would be no different on any other evening," he said. "He is a very concerned mother-hen."
Leon smiled at the newly learned word, but was still not convinced. "Still, shouldn't you at least tell him yourself instead of just slipping out?"
"I am 24 years old." D pursed his lips and the American found he looked even cuter when pouting. "It is time my father learns that I can decide for myself. Believe me, if I had told him, he'd made sure I wouldn't be able to slip away. He is very peculiar when it comes to other people."
Alfred: No wall can separate us,
There's not barrier we can't overcome
Come with me
Because with you
I can go to the stars
Outside is freedom
And hope that you don't have here.
Outside is freedom
Far away from anything that separates us.
Alfred and Sarah: What they call life begins.
"Well, if you say so…" Leon gave in and followed D through the stage entrance. The guard looked surprised, but wished them a nice evening with a knowing smirk. Leon almost blushed, but stopped himself. What the hell, he could take out whom he wanted. It was not as if the guy had never seen him with anyone.
He directed D into the direction of one of his favourite bars, where one could sit without being seen and watch all other guests. As they went through the nightly city, he watched the young Chinese's face curiously. D was taking in the neon sights and passers-by with wide, shining mismatched eyes. "Oh, it's beautiful!" he breathed. Leon swallowed.
"You've never been to a big city at night?" he asked and D shook his head.
"No, my father deemed it too dangerous," he replied and stopped in front of St. James Theatre.
"This is where you are playing?" he inquired.
"Yeah. I'm Jekyll. It's a good role." Leon smiled down at him and waved in the direction of the stage entrance. "You wanna have a look inside?"
"Yes!" D actually squealed in excitement and tugged Leon to the entrance impatiently. He laughed and fumbled out his key. "Don't tell anyone I've got a key," he said and cast a quick glance over his shoulder. "The caretaker's an old buddy of mine and he got me those."
Quickly he opened the door and closed it behind them again. Only the dim emergency light was on, casting yellow light over the corridor. Leon took D's slim hand and noticed he was wearing gloves. "Wow, a true diva, aren't you?" he said and laughed, guiding D through the narrow passages to the stage. It was still showing the coulisse from the last scene, the church.
D stepped onto it with wide eyes. "It must be wonderful to sing here," he breathed. Leon shrugged.
"Not better and not worse than the Ambassador," he answered. D started examining everything closely. Then he looked up into the dark overhead.
"Can we go up there?"
Sarah: How romantic to stand in the moonlight
Unfortunately I've already been invited
You can come a little way with me
But promise me that you won't tell anyone.
Alfred: Where do you want to go?
Sarah: It's a secret of mine.
Alfred: Not through the forest!
Sarah: If you're afraid, stay here.
Alfred: It's dark and cold
Sarah: That doesn't matter to me.
Alfred: You'll get lost and freeze to death in the snow!
Sarah: I know where I'm going.
Alfred: The wolves come out at night!
Sarah: I'm bored to death at home!
Leon stared at him for a moment. "What do you want up there? It's just ropes and ladders and such stuff," he said. D turned pleading eyes to him.
"Father never allowed me to go up there. I've never seen the stage from above. Please?"
Leon shrugged. "Well, but if you fall down, I'm not responsible," he said and lead D to one of the ladders. The young Chinese chuckled.
"I promise not to lose my balance," he responded earnestly and climbed the ladder up first. The blonde carefully made sure that he could catch him if D fell, but he was indeed sure as a cat on the unsteady boards. Carefully they felt their way to the middle and stopped there, now looking down on the stage. D sighed softly.
"Oh, it's like in Phantom of the Opera!" he breathed. "Don't you think so, too?"
Leon smiled at him and sat down. The Chinese fluttered his eyelashes and let Leon help him sit down, too. "Yeah, but there's no phantom around here. I made sure of that. Don't want to have my leading lady being kidnapped," Leon answered and D laughed again. It sounded like silver bells ringing.
"Why do you have a key?" he asked curiously and looked down on the dimly lit stage. The American shrugged.
"Just for fun, I guess," he replied. D tilted his head to the side and scrutinized him. Leon blushed under the gaze of those pretty strange eyes and sighed deeply. "No, that's not it. I just like being in the theatre alone. It's so different from when all the lights are on and the whole place is buzzing with people."
"I know what you mean." D's voice was soft and he looked down again. "My father used to take me along when I was young. My mother died early, and he couldn't afford a babysitter for me, so he just took me to the theatre and told me to stay in the audience during the rehearsals."
"You really grew up on the stage, didn't you?" Leon asked. The young Chinese nodded. "My father started teaching me early, and whenever they needed a child for a play, they took me. And sometimes, when they were busy setting the scenes and not watching, I would climb onto the stage and pretend to be one of the grown actors…"
His voice trailed off, and he cast a shy, embarrassed glance at Leon. But he was listening to him with honest interest. "Since I can remember, I always wanted to become an actor. Not so much a singer, but an actor. I love being someone else for a little while," he confessed. "And I wanted to see the world, wanted to see foreign countries, other people… A singer is never bound to just one place, he can travel the world and find engagements where he wants."
Leon smiled. "Yeah, true. So you came to America."
"Yes, so I came to America. Well, Father of course came, too." D sighed softly and then brightened again. "It is such a great land! I hoped I would come across an adventure here, and I did." He looked young, and expecting, and hopeful, and simply adorable.
The blonde stared at him in amazement, and a blush crept up in D's pale cheeks. He lowered his eyes and squeezed Leon's hand. "Thank you, Leon," he whispered.
The American cleared his throat. "For what?"
D shrugged and smiled at their intertwined hands. "For taking me up here. For singing with me. For inviting me today."
Leon didn't know what to reply. So he just leaned closer. D looked up, unsure, his beautiful eyes widening in understanding, but he did not draw back. The blonde wrapped an arm around his slim waist and went for it, touching D's lips ever so slightly with his own. He could feel D's heart beating hard and knew his own was just as fast.
Then he pressed his mouth on D's and stopped thinking about everything else.
Both: Outside is freedom,
There, where the horizon is
There is a land
Where all miracles are possible.
Alfred: No wall can separate us,
There's not barrier we can't overcome
Come with me
Because with you…
Both: … I can go to the stars
See into the future.
Outside is freedom
A happiness that knows no limits.
Outside is freedom
Far away from anything that separates us
What they call life begins.
I apologize for the translation -.- My German isn't that good and the song originally is german. Still - please leave me a comment!