[So. Here we are again. It has been over two years since I last updated this story. In truth, I'd forgotten completely about it. (I've also basically forgotten my planned storyline so I'm working from scratch now.) I logged in to this account at a whim and discovered people were actually liking and following my stories! I must thank you for that. I've decided to try my best to finish some of them for you guys (and perhaps rewrite the earlier chapters into something slightly more sophisticated…), though I ask you not get your hopes up too much. There are too many things going on in my life right now and it may be a very long time between updates. If any of you are interested, I am also planning to try and continue one of my other POTO stories, Fallen Angel. Though if any of you might kindly like to beta my work, it would certainly speed up the process a bit *wink wink nudge nudge*. And now, to present the long-awaited continuation of Of Masks and Time Machines…]
"Are you sure about this?" Rose murmured quietly, tentative doubt slowly seeping into her mind as the pair followed the Opera Ghost down the dim corridor.
As dictated by the conditions of his release, Erik was now in the process of leading them up through the twisting and winding hallways of the Paris catacombs, supposedly up to the Opera House. Rose had initially been reluctant to abandon the defenceless TARDIS, though the longing to be outside again and in the fresh air soon won over. Now, however, as they ventured what only seemed deeper and deeper within the catacombs, those doubts were soon coming back. Unlike that first hallway they had materialized in, with nothing but the grey, dripping cobblestones all around, their current surroundings were a great deal more sinister. Rose finally understood why this place was called the Catacombs – quite literally, skulls decorated the expanse of every wall, arranged in neat little rows that made her stomach flip on itself, clear as day in the bright light of the Doctor's lantern. Skulls were not the only bones on display, femurs and tibias also clearly visible, made into little designs such as crosses or hearts along the line of skulls.
If Erik spent all of his time down here, she needed to congratulate him for not losing his mind long ago.
"Don't worry, it's perfectly safe down here, unless you count the murderous musical mastermind. Regardless of how eerie you find the bones, I promise spirits won't pop out of them and get us," the Doctor said with a smirk, trying to inject some humour into their situation.
Rose, however, wasn't taking any of it, their gloomy surroundings putting a damper on her mood. "This place is pretty creepy. The sooner we get out of here the better," she muttered.
Luckily, it didn't take all too much longer to reach their destination. Before long, Erik slowed down to a stop, waiting until the other two caught up with him before gesturing above. There was a rusty ladder secured along a portion of the wall not covered head-to-toe in rows of skulls, leading up to a circular hole in the ceiling. When Rose stepped closer to peer upwards, she could just make out a tiny pinprick of light that must be the surface.
"It's a long ways up. If you continue at a steady pace it should take the both of you less than a quarter of an hour to reach the surface. You will come up through a secret entrance disguised as a sewer hole directly behind the Opera Garner," Erik explained hastily, wanting to be rid of these intruders as soon as possible.
"Thank you," the Doctor said sincerely. "We'll be back as soon as we figure out how to get the TARDIS working —"
"TARDIS?" Erik asked. "You mean your wooden box? Is it a travelling device?"
The Doctor quirked up a smirk. "Of sorts." He paused a moment to look over the other man: the Ghost seemed worried and agitated, though he assumed it was to be expected. Restlessness over the coming opera and his intense vocal training with Christine must be putting strain on someone with an already shaky mental stability. The Doctor needed to keep an eye again.
Though, he'd said before: he read the book. He knew the story, so getting seriously involved would cause too much of a paradox. He'd never actually witnessed the events himself, however, so there was no reason to assume he couldn't gently influence the whole affair towards a more pleasant ending, and then convince Monsieur Gaston Leroux that novel with a more a sinister conclusion would sell more copies. Then there was the task of tracking down the author to begin with. And how did he know so much detail about it all? Perhaps many details were embellished or made fictional to enhance the story. The Opera Ghost did seem a great deal less menacing in person.
"Anyhow, we'll be back," the Doctor repeated, pulling himself out of his thoughts. "Quietly, though, so you won't be bothered too much. And.. try not to do anything rash, my dear Ghost, alright?"
Said Opera Ghost let out a little huff at being addressed in such a manner, but did not reply. The strange man grinned, which served only to annoy him further, handed him the lantern, then started up the ladder; the little lassie forced herself to make a little smile as well and hurried up on after him.
Well, that was that. If he found them in his realms again, so help them. He couldn't waste his time on such strange people, not when his lessons with Christine were now oh-so-crucial in preparation for the Hannibal auditions.
The Opera Ghost turned and left on his heels without another thought to those two strangers, his thoughts completely filled with another. Oh, Christine…
"I can't see in front of my face!" she moaned.
The Doctor chuckled. "Rose, we're almost to the top. It's really not that dark. Hands one in front of the other, come on..."
Rose's arms were absolutely killing her. It had surely been more than fifteen minutes of climbing upwards, far longer than the Opera Ghost had claimed. She felt like they had been climbing forever... And in pitch black darkness no less. Her mother would have a field day.
"I can see the surface! Don't worry, my Rose, just a little longer."
"I'm not your Rose!" she squeaked out, a small blush brushing its way onto her face, though there was no way either of them could see it in the darkness. Luckily, it quickly faded just before the Doctor reached up to unscrew the cover to the manhole and did some fancy gymnastics to push himself up using the ladder onto the street above.
Just as Erik said, they came out just behind the magnificent Opera Garnier, directly in front of large stone gates that were the back entrance. The Doctor let out a whistle at its immensity, even from the back. The building was gigantic: many stories high and built of a beautiful beige stone, with intricate details chiseled into the rooftop. It didn't have quite the color of the front of the Opera House, with its magnificent green roof in rusted ore, and its two huge golden sculptures of angels on either side, but it still held that regal grandeur one imagined of the most famous opera house in Europe.
The Doctor helped Rose up to the surface as well, replacing the grate over the secret passage and chuckling as his companion gaped at the theatre.
"It's... it's..."
"I know," he laughed. "It's magnificent. I'll never get tired of seeing it. The Garnier's even more beautiful from the front!" he exclaimed with a grin.
Rose smiled. "Wow, really? I can't imagine... It must be spectacular."
The Doctor grinned again and hooked his arm under hers. "Shall we go and see, milady?"
Rose laughed, her eyes twinkling up at him mischievously. "Lead the way, good sir!"
The pair of them began to make their way across the cobblestone streets around to the front of the Opera House, all the way giggling and marvelling at the beauty of the French architecture. Not only the Garnier, but every building around seemed to have been pulled straight from a history textbook because, well, they sort of were. Everywhere Rose looked were beautiful, picturesque apartment buildings, cute little shops and cafés, all designed in the gorgeous Parisian architecture that she was soon coming to love. Not only the buildings, but the air of the city was quickly getting to her: the smell of freshly baked baguettes; the sound of horses trotting along the stone streets and their carriages being pulled behind; vendors yelling their prices at passerby: Paris.
They had almost reached the front of the front of the Opera House when the both of them heard a female voice calling from behind them. Well, it wasn't so much of a call as it was a shrill squeak, causing Rose to wince and want to hold her hands over her ears.
"Meg! Meg Giry! Meg!" came the little mousey voice.
The voice came from a little girl, small and skinny, thin pale skin stretched over her collarbone. She was wearing an off-white ballerina ensemble, complete with a tutu bodice, skirt, and stockings, as well as a holey grey sweater pulled on as if at the last moment to brave the Paris cold. Her face was slightly less of a ghostly while color, with a gentle rose on her cheeks, and light blond hair pulled into an incredibly tight bun out of her face.
"Little Jammes," Rose murmured before she could stop herself, or realize how, and why, she knew this girl's name.
Instantly little Jammes made a tiny little smile, nodding and grabbing Rose's hand. "Your maman is very upset! Rehearsals are about to start and her enfant is nowhere in sight! You are lucky I found you! Hurry, Meg, let's go!"
She raised an eyebrow and turned her head to look back at her Time Lord companion, who was now staring at the both of them quite suspiciously. "What an interesting development," he observed, scratching at his chin. "Go on. I'll meet up with you later. Don't break an ankle in ballet rehearsals!"
Rose's eyes widened impossibly. "N-No – Doctor, you can't seriously – Doctor!" Little Jammes was already desperately tugging her through the crowds, in direction of the Opera Garnier.
The Brit let out a groan, reluctantly letting her feet following the young ballerina. Her mum was definitely going to have a field day with this one.
[Hmm... the length of time it takes me to write is probably inversely proportional to the number of comments and favorites I get *wink wink nudge nudge*. Anyhoo how do you guys like this?]