Wow...lotsa people reviewed...thanks!!
Dedication- To Lady Saint VII. She left the longest review!!
Disclaimer-I own nothing Phantom-y at all...
Early-ish the Next Morning...
Katrina stood in the slow moving breakfast line, eyes drooping, head hanging. With a massive yawn, she swiped a banana-nut muffin from a tray, then a mug of milk. She sat with Orry, Liana, and JT at their usual table. She immediately slumped down and closed her eyes.
"Katrina, are you alright?" asked Liana, poking her in the elbow.
"Huh...?" Kat muttered, her eyes blearily opening a fraction.
"That trip yesterday took a lot out of you." said JT, his gorgeous blue eyes full of concern. "Maybe you should stay home today from your school."
"I...yawn...can't." muttered Katrina. "I've got two tests, a presentation in Drama, an Animanga Mime meeting to go to, and-"
"And, you are staying home." ordered Orry, glaring at her.
"Make me." she growled, lifting her head long enough to glare at him. He stood up, looking down at her with hooded lids. She just continued to glower at him. As soon as she had stepped foot into the dressing room where their mission had begun, she had collapsed on the floor, passed out. Orry had to carry her all the way back to her bedroom. How could he not be tired?! What, was he undead or something? "I'm not..AH-AWN...!"
"Yes you are." said Liana, grabbing her by the elbow and jerking her up. She started walking her back to her room, Katrina protesting all the way.
"I don't go to Opera school! I go to the one down-town with Orry!! I have to go!! Monsieur Davis will kick my a--!! I-"
"Listen, Kat. You need to stay 'ome. It iz not 'ealthy. Bezides, I personally will go to your school and get your make-up work." Liana thrust her into her room, and slammed the door behind her. Katrina sat on her bed, muttering and grumbling. But soon, she fell asleep, her shoes still on and her head collapsing on her pillow.
Just as she entered that phase between sleep and wakefulness, a voice started talking to her. She was more than half-asleep, so she thought it was part of her dream.
"Hello." it was a soft voice, speaking as though the person was afraid of frightening her off.
"Hi..." she mumbled back, sleepily. "Who are you...?"
"My name is Erik. I live here." Katrina saw a farm-house in her sleep, with a young farmer's boy standing out there. She smiled.
"Hi Erik. My name's Katrina." The farmer boy smiled. She was slipping deeper and deeper into her sleep.
"I heard you sing the other night." the voice remarked. Katrina wondered slightly why the boy wasn't speaking even though she heard a voice. "You-"
"Katrina!" shouted a very familiar Madame Yowling voice from outside of her dream, accompanied by a pounding on her door. "Monsieur Davis is on the phone for you!" Katrina instantly opened her eyes, and got up. She made her way to the door, pushing past stuffed animals and old books. She opened the door, and Madame Yowling handed her the cordless phone.
"'Ello?" she said, her voice struggling to swallow a yawn.
"Where are you?!" snapped Monsieur Davis's voice on the other end. "School started fifteen minutes ago! Your presentation is TODAY!"
"I'm really sorry sir." she said, managing to make a pathetic cough. "You see, I'm sick at the moment..."
"Oh..." Davis's voice instantly dropped a couple of notches. "I see. Well, I can move your presentation to tomorrow. Is that alright?"
"Yes." she said weakly. Madame Yowling rolled her eyes. "I should be back at school tomorrow. I'll see you then, sir."
"Get well soon, Kat." he said, hanging up the phone. Katrina handed the phone back to Yowling.
"Tell me again why you moved to this room? Why don't you live in the dormitories?"
"Because." said Katrina, closing the door in her face. She walked back to her bed, this time pulling off her shoes. She dove underneath the covers and fell asleep almost instantly.
A shadow within the shadows smiled. He would continue this conversation later...
At 3:00 That Afternoon...
Orry knocked gently on Katrina's door. He heard nothing from within. He tried the knob. It was locked.
'That's odd...' he thought. He tried it again, with the same result. He then banged on the door, resulting in silence once more.
"Katrina!" he shouted, knocking even louder. Still no answer. "Ugh...where's the Madame?" he wondered, turning away to find Yowling, who had the keys to every door.
"Orry?' said a sleep-muffled voice from behind him. "What is it?" He turned back to see Katrina standing in the doorway, looking a little worse for the wear.
"Dude, you've got major bed-head." he laughed, pointing at her hair.
"Shut up." she muttered, about to slam the door in his face. He had woken her up from a very pleasant dream in which she was talking over coffee with a mysterious guy in black. His name was, apparently, Erik. He said that he lived in the Opera House, so she might be able to see him sometime. She did wonder what that meant...Orry placed his foot against the door, keeping it open.
"SO-o-O-o...will we be graced with your presence at rehearsal today?" he asked, keeping his tone light. The J.O.P.s (Junior Opera Players) were putting on the highly popular musical, "Into the Woods". Orry was the Baker, and Katrina was one of the Ugly Stepsisters. (She wanted to be the Witch, but that went to the queen of the J.O.P.s, Rosanna.)
"If you don't come bearing food, I'm not interested." she said, swiping the hair out of her eyes. She snapped it up in a ponytail and sighed. "Yeah, I guess so."
Orry laughed, and turned down the corridor. "Hey, if you want food that badly, I've got some pre-packaged stuff that came from my parents in America. Come down to my dorm and I might share."
"I might just take you up on that!" she shouted, closing the door and starting to get ready for the rehearsal that day. She grabbed her practice costume, and the character shoes. She tried to straighten up her room a bit before giving up entirely. She finally grabbed her IPod, and opened her door.
There, on the doorstep, sat a tray of food; muffins, fruit, a ham sandwich, and two cans of Coke. She stared at the tray for a minute. Then she looked up and down the hall. There was nobody. She bent down and picked up a muffin. A small note fell off the bottom of it. Before it fluttered to the ground, Katrina snatched it out of the air. She opened the extremely complicatedly folded note, and read in a spidery handwriting...
"Enjoy this after your long sleep, Kat. Erik" She looked up and down the halls again. Still no-one.
"That was nice of him." she said, smiling. "Erik may not be so bad." She placed the muffin back on the tray and picked it up. She carried it to the rehearsal, and sat there for the first fifteen minutes stuffing her face. Rosanna and her cronies, (meaning practically every single girl and several of the boys) stared at her. Rosanna giggled.
"Why is she stuffing her face again? It's not like she needs the extra calories, right?" She giggled again, and everyone joined in. Orry came by in his baker's hat and sat next to Kat, who was taking a gulp of Coke. She offered him one of her muffins. He accepted, laughing.
Suddenly, Monsieur Hedgecliff and Madame Yowling both clapped their hands at the same time. "Today, we will begin from the Witch's solo, "Stay With Me". Alright? PLACES!!" bellowed Hedgecliff, and everyone scurried to their places. Katrina sat back-stage and stuffed her IPod into her ears, as she was no longer in the production. (Her character only appeared in the first act.) She scrolled down to her "Into the Woods" segment on her albums and started to hum along to "Hello, Little Girl".
Orry watched as Rosanna kept failing miserably on the stage. She just couldn't hunch right and she was too gentle sounding. Yowling and Hedgecliff were both ready to strangle her.
"It's not my fault!" Rosanna whined. "I'd much rather be Cinderella!"
"Unfortunately, we cast you as the Witch. So...BE THE WITCH!" Suddenly, strains of the correct "Stay With Me" echoed from backstage. Someone was singing it with just the right amount of witchiness. Yowling and Hedgecliff both conferenced for a moment, then Yowling headed backstage. She came out a few seconds later, dragging Katrina by the wrist.
"That...was you?" Hedgecliff asked, incredulously. Katrina nodded, scared. He whipped off Rosanna's rehearsal witch hat, and jerked it on Katrina's head. He then motioned to Cinderella. (Her real name was Claudine Farjeon). She came up with a sigh, as she was quite sure that they would be yelling at her about her character again. She just wasn't nice enough, or pretty enough, or even using the right dance steps. She didn't want the pressure of doing another main role. She was sick of it.
"Claudine, you are now Kat's Ugly Stepsister. Rosanna, you are now Cinderella. Trade books and learn the right choreography by Friday!" he shouted, gesturing grandly. "We will still be holding rehearsals! Get moving! Kat, the "Stay With Me" solo, NOW!"
Katrina immediately jumped to where Rapunzel (played by Leona Phyllis) knelt on the ground. She started singing with just what everyone had been looking for.
A person knelt on the catwalk. He watched rehearsals with a critical eye. Since the parts had been recast, the show was going so much smoother. That Rosanna girl was much better suited in Cinderella's role. Kat...was perfect for the Witch. Why did it take them so long to recognize her talent? Then again...it took those idiotic managers forever to realize that his Angel was perfect...especially since he had trained her personally.
He listened to Kat's voice, echoing up to him. He smiled. That voice was almost as good as his Angel's once was...almost...
Katrina came down the corridor to her room, singing and dancing, hugging the Witch's prompt book to her chest, feelings of hope, happiness and joy flooding her system all at once.
"Greens, greens and nothing but greens:
Parsley, peppers, cabbages and celery,
Asparagus and watercress and
Fiddleferns and lettuce-!" She suddenly stopped dancing and looked at a piece of paper sticking out of the wall. It looked like...another note! Excited, she snatched it out of the crack in the wall and stood there struggling to open it.
"How does he-Ah!" she finally freed the corner that unraveled the entire thing. She opened it, and read in the now familiar spidery handwriting...
"Hello, Kat. Congratulations on getting the part that you dreamed of. I noticed your singing and you are quite good, exceptional even. If you wish to become even better and maybe obtain the lead role of Anna in the "King and I" that the J.O.P.s are doing next, then perhaps you would like more lessons. I am rather good at teaching. Perhaps I could help you...if you would like. Erik."
She giggled a bit, then tucked the note into her pants pocket. She then rushed to her room, as she had all new choreography to learn, new lines to learn (not that she didn't already have them memorized) and homework. Sometimes she regretted not going to Opera school, but the school downtown had a better Literature department and better math teachers. She was also involved in two clubs and was inducted into the International Thespian Society.
She closed her door behind her and threw her new notebook on her bed. She spun around her room, humming the opening lines happily. She stopped humming when she picked her school pack up. She looked at it disgustedly, then with a sigh of resignation, she plucked out her history homework and grabbed her textbook. She plopped down on her desk chair (after clearing her school clothes off) and attempted to finish up her homework. Fifteen minutes into it, she got so annoyed that she threw her textbook across the room. She sat there, glowering for a few minutes. Then she slowly stood up and picked up her book. She grabbed her paper off her desk. She left her room, and started down the hall to the boy's dormitory.
"I hate history..." she muttered, practically stomping down the hall. A few more steps and she stopped. She turned around. There was no-one there. But...she had felt someone watching her from behind. She looked around furtively. There was no-one there or such. She started down the hall again. There it was again! She distinctly felt someone watching her. She whipped around, her eyes flying about the hall. Still no-one. That was creepy.
She started walking faster down the hallway, hoping that the feeling wouldn't come again. But it did. She tried to ignore it, but she couldn't shake the feeling that someone was staring at her intensely from behind. She turned a corner and started to jog. The eyes followed. She slid around a corner and skidded to a stop outside of the boy's dormitory. She banged on the door, slightly panicked.
"What?" snapped Orry, opening the door. His now vivid green eyes softened when he saw it was her. "Oh, need help with history?" He stood back and let her in. Several boys whistled and cat-called. She rolled her eyes and bit her thumb at them. Laughing, they resumed their tasks.
"Yeah, I'm just not good at this." she sat, sitting on his bed. She quickly stood up after hearing the rustle and crinkle of papers. She looked down at them, curious. She saw the quadratic formula and several cross-outs and revisions. "Help me with this, and I'll help you with math."
"Deal." he said, laughing. She grabbed his math papers, he grabbed her history papers. They spent the next hour doing each others' homework. Soon, Orry brought out the pre-packaged chips and cookies that his parents sent over. Katrina almost instantly dug into the BBQ flavored ones.
As they laughed and talked, jealous eyes watched them from above...
The Next Day...in the Catacombs...
"Hey Erik!! You doin' alright? I'm OK...history is such a major bummer! I can't grasp it and it's sooo boring. And, thank you for your kind gift of food yesterday. I really needed that after sleeping for so long. About singing in "The King and I", I would love to. Do you really think I could? I would be forever in your debt. I'm just so sick of watching Rosanna, Valerie and so many others do things that don't fit them because they are popular. If you can help me knock them off their perches, then I would love you forever!! Talk to ya later...Kat."
He folded the note gently and placed it in a box on his desk. His eyes scanned the piles of composed music, the pens and inkwells. His eyes fell on the weakness next to him...the only reason he had to hide...the only reason why he hid himself from the world. That pure white mask...He looked back at the box, mentally picturing the note with a small speck of hope daring to blossom in his heart. She had the same eyes as his Angel...
Only...could he still call her his Angel? She had, after all, turned her back to him. Running off with a fop and a fool! Breaking his heart in so many pieces...just like his mirrors. She had made him afraid to love. Afraid to show his heart. That boy..with the long black hair. He looked so like that fool that he wanted to puke! And Kat seemed to like him. Well...two could play at that game!
He started to write another note, his only light from guttering candles...
The Next Day...in the Corridor...
"Hello Kat. It was wonderful to hear from you. I am delighted to hear that you want lessons. Meet me in the old chapel tonight at 9:00. I shall wait for you. Oh, I shall be leaving you a gift in a few days so we might be able to communicate better. See you tonight...Erik."
"Meet him tonight? But rehearsals are running until Hedgecliff deems them over with." she stared at the parchment, worry and puzzlement etched in her brow. "How am I going to meet him?" She walked to rehearsals, her mind in a whirl. As she mingled with the other cast members, she had a distinct feeling that something was wrong. Fifteen minutes later, Orry came up to her.
"This is odd." he muttered, glancing around him nervously. "I keep feeling like I'm being watched. Always from behind. It's almost...a menacing glare."
"R-really? I hadn't noticed." she said, grinning. Orry gave her a suspicious look.
"Are you alright? You seem kinda-"
"Cast members! Cast members!" shouted Madame Yowling. "Gather around." They all stopped what they were doing and listened in. Madame Yowling took a deep breath. "Monsieur Hedgecliff is ill. It seems that he has caught a bug going around, so you all are given the day off. Tomorrow, he should be fine, so we will be holding rehearsals as usual!" Nobody heard that last part, for as soon as they had heard that Hedgecliff was sick, they were gone!
Katrina sat in her room, doing math problems and literature analysis. She set down her pencil and got up. She just couldn't concentrate. She was excited and scared. She had never seen Erik before. She wondered what he was like. Did he have long hair, like a rock star? Or did he have a crew-cut? Was he as pale as the moon, or as tan as a piece of toast? Did he have sky blue eyes or chocolate brown ones? She sat on her bed and stared up at her bundle of roses. Suddenly, her alarm buzzed.
She jumped up and rushed out, grabbing a water bottle on the way. As she dashed down passageways and corridors, she felt eyes on the back of her neck. She slowed to a tip-toe when she neared Hedgecliff's office. Her pricked ears caught the edges of a whispered conversation.
"..Do you think it to be food poisoning?" Madame Yowling's voice asked softly. A small groan answered.
"Maybe..." Hedgecliff answered hoarsely. "I think someone slipped something into my coffee. That's all I had today."
The conversation died as she turned a corner and disappeared down the stairs. She entered the old chapel nervously. Was Erik already here? No, it was empty. With an impatient sigh, she sat down and stared around her. She hadn't been here for a while, ever since the week she had first come to the Opera Populaire. She would come down here to cry, as she was desperately homesick. She always felt more at home here, for her father was a pastor. That's when she met Orry. He had been here longer than she had and he knew what was up. He comforted her and they became fast friends.
"Katrina?" called a voice. She looked up eagerly.
"Erik? Hey! I'm here!" she called, craning her neck every which way trying to see him. "Where are you?"
"It's wonderful to see you. This is the first time we've actually spoken, isn't it?"
"I guess you could say that..." she said, still trying to see where he was coming from. "Where are you?"
"Uh...I'm hiding. I'm sorry, I'm very insecure." he said, suddenly sounding small and vulnerable. His soft voice struck a cord in her heart. She nodded.
"I understand. You don't have to come out if you don't want to." She could practically hear a smile as he spoke.
"Thank you. You will see me one day, when I am comfortable with our friendship. In the meantime, would you mind singing me a song so I may gage your ability better?"
Two Hours Later...
Katrina sat down, breathing hard. Erik was such a bossy guy! Higher, lower, not so nasally and so on and so forth!
"Well, I believe that is enough for one night." said Erik, sounding slightly amused. He watched Katrina and felt something stir down deep in his soul.
"Erik, thank you so much! This was awesome!"
"You're quite welcome. Shall we do this again?"
"Definitely! By the way, you sing so gorgeously! Even better than Orry, and that's saying something!" There was a pause.
"You...you really think so?" came his voice, once more soft and small. She smiled softly.
"Yes Erik. You are an Angel! An Angel of Music!"
So...? Press the pretty button. I am waiting to hear from you...