To GerrysLittleMissSunshine08- I didn't mean for Carlotta to come across so nice. I'll try to change that the nice time she comes. And I agree—she should leap off a cliff!
Don't own anything, obviously. Course, I won't know what to do with it if I did, so maybe that's a good thing.
And…action!
It didn't take Amme long to finally memorize Carlotta's part in the opera. To be exact, it took three run-throughs and she had the entire opera down. That was a very good thing, because a week after Amme had become her understudy, Carlotta got sick and threw up onstage. Amme didn't even have time to practice her new part before she was rushed on.
Erik was unsure whether he was happy or annoyed with this situation. While he didn't want Amme singing the lead role in his own opera, which she ruined on the opening night, he was very amusing with Carlotta being so humiliated.
He supposed it was good luck Carlotta waited to get sick until the end of act one. Act two was shorter, so he'd have to put up with Ms. Eledhwen for a smaller time frame.
The first thing he noticed when she came on was how she looked. The Phantom hadn't realized before that Amme never wore make-up, but with it on, he could understand why she didn't. The make-up didn't make her ugly, per se, but it did cover up her natural beauty and made her more…human.
Erik wondered why he never saw how…inhuman her beauty was. Completely natural, for her, but inhuman nevertheless.
And then she opened her mouth.
From the first note, Erik fully realized why people had made such a fuss over this strange woman. That is, if he could think straight, that's what would have been it. From the first note, his mind blanked out, and all he could do was listen.
When Amme was finished with her first song, the thought that was stated in the first sentence of the previous paragraph finally occurred to Erik. He was in complete shock…his body trembled from head to foot as if an electric current had passed through him. A quick glance around revealed that no one else was having the same reaction to Amme's singing that he was. Amazed, certainly. Awestruck, perhaps. But none of them looked as if they had just been electrocuted. What was going on? Maybe he was the only one there who could hear properly.
Deciding it didn't matter, he focused his attention back to the stage, waiting for Amme Eledhwen to return. Luckily, he didn't have to wait long; she now was the leading lady and the leading lady always got plenty of time onstage. Though, he reflected, not as much as this leading lady deserved. Why couldn't Carlotta have gotten sick before the curtain went up? He was irritated with the prima donna more than usual now for waiting so long to throw up.
A voice in the back of his mind whispered that he should be so quick to forgive Amme Eledhwen. After all, it was that beautiful voice that ruined his opera so much before. But the larger part of him was thrilled when she returned and started singing again.
Amme walked out of her temporary dressing room, feeling slightly disgruntled. Not at anyone, except Carlotta who had put her in that situation in the first place, but herself.
"Amme!" Christine greeted her when they ran into each other. "You did wonderful!"
Amme stared at the other woman. Couldn't she have heard all Amme's horrible mistakes? "I did awful," she corrected.
"Don't be ridiculous, dear," Christine replied breezily. "Now, there's someone here who wants to meet you. Just a second. Monsieur!" She called over her shoulder. "Mr. Eddison!"
Amme looked around Christine curiously to see a tall, lean young man with sharp blue eyes, pale blond hair, and a rather pointed nose.
"Amme, this is Joshua Eddison. He's from London, England." Christine introduced. "Mr. Eddison, Amme Eledhwen."
"You're from England?" Amme asked.
"Ah, yes, mademoiselle." His voice was sharp, like his eyes. "I don't believe you're native to France, either."
"No, I'm not," Amme agreed. "I'm from Ahsela."
"I've never heard of that place."
Amme shrugged. "How do you know Christine?"
"Oh," he looked rather sheepish, something Amme might have thought impossible before considering his haughty features. "We really don't know each other, but the manager, Monsieur Andre, introduced us, and I asked her to introduce me to you."
"How do you know Monsieur Andre?" Amme asked, smiling very slightly.
"We meet very briefly when I was in France two years ago."
"I see. I apologize for prying." Amme's small smile grew the tiniest bit more. "It was wonderful to meet you."
"As it was to meet you." Joshua Eddison turned slightly. "I'm afraid I must go now. Perhaps we can get to know each other better some other time."
"Perhaps,"
With that, he completely turned and left.
Christine looked up at Amme. "Well, he seems like a nice person, doesn't he?"
"Indeed," Amme concurred.
"I'm afraid I have to leave too, Amme. Raoul will be worried about me if I'm gone too long. Have fun with all your admirers!"
Amme shook her head before realizing all the people surrounding her with awe and, in the men's cases, love in their eyes.
Getting back "home" was a tricky business for Amme. At long last, Madame Giry threatened some people with her cane, and, in a few cases, carried out her threat. Amme was then able to rush out.
Amme's temporary home away from home wasn't actually a house or apartment. Nor was it a hotel, motel, or inn. It didn't have four walls, and it's ceiling was the night sky, while the floor was made of dirt, moss, and crushed pine needles. Perhaps not the place that you, the reader, would want to stay for a long period of time, but Amme had never liked sleeping indoors before.
That, and the fact she couldn't, at that moment, afford anything more.
And it was a nice place—except when it rained.
Amme sighed. That was exactly what it was doing at that moment: raining. Amme hated getting wet more than almost anything else.
She brushed her soaking hair away from her face and called, "Starlight!"
There was no answer. She frowned and tried again. "Starlight?"
Fate, who had trotted over to her side from the first call, neighed softly. Starlight isn't here right now.
"Where is she, and what does she think she's doing?" Amme asked, annoyed. Usually, she wouldn't have minded, but tonight, she really wanted to talk with the tiny kitten.
I don't know where she is, nor do I know what she's doing. Fate shook her head and whinnied she just disappeared.
Amme let out a deep breath slowly. That wasn't especially strange for Starlight; all cats liked being mysterious. But, mystery wasn't particularly welcome at that moment.
Amme weighed her options. "I could wait out here in the pouring rain for her, or I could go out in the pouring rain to look for her. One way or another, I'm going to get wet."
We both already are wet.
"Fine. Wetter."
Fate tossed her mane. If you want to talk to her so badly, I'd go look for her if I were you.
"Yes, well…I suppose that's what I'll do."
Before Amme left, she dug out a blanket she had managed to saved up to buy and covered Fate with it, so the horse wouldn't get too much wetter.
The path in the woods was dark, but that for Amme, that was fine, 1, because she didn't follow the path, and 2, she could see pretty well in the dark. But that didn't make it any easier to find a small, black cat.
The rain didn't help much, either—it washed away her paw prints, which would be hard enough to follow as it was.
Amme soon found herself walking along the streets of Paris, still calling out Starlight's name. Several people still out looked at her like she was crazy. One person in particular made an extremely rude gesture at her. Amme shook her head—some people were so impolite.
Unfortunately, that distracted her for a brief moment, and Amme slipped on the wet pavement (stupid heels). Steadying herself, she suddenly came to realize her surroundings—she was once again at the opera theatre.
The woman rolled her eyes—Starlight would never go there, she wasn't interested in opera in any way, shape, or form. Amme herself shouldn't have even come that way.
Shaking her head at her own foolishness, Amme turned and started to stroll back down the long streets.
She had just taken what she knew to be a shortcut back to the forest, down an alleyway, when she heard someone calling her name.
"Amme Eledhwen."
That was all, but it was enough to make Amme freeze. Slowly, she turned 360 degrees, carefully scanning the alley, but saw nothing that would, or could, say her name.
"Hello?" She said tentatively. "Is anyone there?"
There was no answer. Mentally, Amme cursed herself—she had probably just heard that voice inside her head. She started walking back in the direction of the forest.
Then the call came again, closer this time. "Amme."
Amme spun around. Again, she scanned the area, but still saw nothing. "Where are you?"
The response was laughing at her, she could tell. "I'm right here."
"All right, genius," Amme snapped. By that time, she was thoroughly annoyed, and slightly scared. "I can tell you're 'right here', but where pray tell is 'here'?!"
"Take a guess," the voice, wherever it came from, was certainly male, and was certainly laughing at her. He didn't even bother hiding it.
Amme took a deep breath through her nose and released it through her mouth, as her mentor, Sophia Súrion, had taught her to do when she got frustrated. "You are, without a doubt, the most aggravating person I have met since I first came to France."
"That hurts," he teased. "Especially considering the people you were with when you came to Paris."
"Now, how could you possibly know that?"
"I'm a genius. You said it yourself."
Amme took another breath through her nose and out her mouth in an attempt to keep her temper, which had not flared up in almost five months, in check. "If you are going to continue being like that, I'm leaving."
"That's alright, I'll find you again."
Amme, who had indeed started to leave, froze. "Excuse me? Who do you think that you are? How in the name of…how do you think you can find me again?" She paused. "Come to think of it, how did you 'find me' in the first place?"
"Are you finished yet?"
Amme considered for a few seconds. "I believe so."
"In that case, I'll tell you tomorrow."
"You'll what?" Amme's voice got deadly quiet.
"I will see you tomorrow night at ten o'clock in your dressing room. Then I'll answer all your questions."
"I don't have a dressing room," Still deadly calm.
"Carlotta can't get better so fast, you'll have to keep her part for a few more performances. Which is a good thing; you're much better than she is."
"Why do people keep saying things like that? She does fine."
"But you do better, so you'll be getting the lead role in the next opera."
She frowned. "How do you know that?"
"Tomorrow night," he promised. "Your dressing room at ten, by yourself. I'll answer everything as best I can."
Amme bit her lip, and then nodded before remembering if she couldn't see him, he definitely couldn't see her. "I'll be there."
"Good,"
After waiting to find out if he would say anything else, Amme finally turned and strolled back to the forest.
Starlight, it turned out, had been out hunting. Then, she got it into her mind she wanted to hear Amme singing, so she did head towards the theatre. When she got there, however, she discovered the opera was already over. She couldn't see Amme, so she decided to go back "home". She made it there only fifteen minutes after Amme had left again.
"That's what happened?" An incredulous Amme asked the kitten.
So Fate says, and you know as well as I that she can't lie to save her life.
"So I did all that wandering for nothing?"
It seems that way.
Fate whinnied. Is something wrong, Amme? You look worried.
"I…" Amme shrugged. "I just…met a man when I was looking for Starlight."
Oh! Starlight looked excited. Who was he?
"I don't know! I couldn't tell where he was!"
And that's why you're upset, Fate inferred. That's a good reason. Are you going to…meet him again?
Amme nodded. "Tomorrow night at ten in…my…dressing room."
Technically, you mean tonight, don't you? Starlight asked. After all, it is after midnight.
"Fine," Amme sighed. "I'll…meet…him again tonight."
At nine-thirty, Amme was in…her…dressing room, finger-combing her hair and wondering what she was supposes to do for the next fifteen minutes. She glanced moodily at the door, hoping he would come early, answer her questions, and then she could forget about the whole experience.
10:00—there was no knock at the door.
10:15—Amme stood up so she could look into the hallway. There was almost no one there. Frowning, she leaned against the frame.
10:25—she decided that he probably wasn't coming, and he really meant the night after this.
10:30—she turned around and gave a scream. Standing right behind her, only three feet away, was a man.
He smiled. "Mademoiselle? I am the Opera Ghost."
And…cut!
Just to clarify, Erik is not in love with Amme. Yet. He has determined she is, after all, a very good singer, and he doesn't dislike her anymore. It's more like a crush—like how some people will get crushes on famous actors/actresses etc. But there's no actual love between the two of them right now.
Oh, and just out of curiosity, do any of you readers actually listen to me when I say review? I don't mean to be rude or bitter or anything like that, but I am getting a little, shall we say, discouraged? I know, I know, this is my first story; it's only chapter four, blah blah blah. I also know more than one or two people are reading this. Please, please review! I don't know how many more ways I can say it.