The Phantom Of The Opera - MLPA

Chapters

Key/Guide To Reading This Fic (IMPORTANT)
Scene One — Introduction/The Auction
Scene Two — Enter: The New Owners
Scene Three — Think Of Me
Scene Four — Explinations
Scene Five — Reintroduction/Voice Of An Angel
Scene Six — The Lair Of The Phantom
Scene Seven — Of Curiosity and Folktales/Behind The Mask

Key/Guide To Reading This Fic (IMPORTANT)

Guide To Reading This Fic.

~>Characters:
----• The Phantom — OC
----• Christine Daaé — OC
----• Raoul/Vicomte de Chagny — My OC
----• Madame Giry (Past) — Granny Smith
----• Carlotta Giudicelli — Rarity
----• Meg Giry (Present day Madame Giry) — Applejack (Past)/Old Applejack (Present)
----• Richard Firmin — Flim
----• Gilles André — Flam
----• Ubaldo Piangi — Doctor Hooves

~>Symbols:
----• /)TB(\ — Time Skip Backwards
----• /)TF(\ — Time Skip Forwards
----• (\CP/) — Change Perspective
----• [[___]] — Out Of Character/Author Notes

Scene One — Introduction/The Auction

Mares and gentlecolts, gather round..! Listen closely, and tune in your ears, as you are about to hear a most mystifying tale of love and hate.. Of the songs of life, and the dance of death..! Of two choices, and of one chooser.. You are about to hear the story of.. The Phantom.. Of The Opera..!

Our story begins in the year of 1919 in the city of Maris. The bustling streets and people going in and out of old stone houses causing less commotion than you would normally imagine the beautiful city to have. This was because of one certain structure, with its stunning exterior design. There were pillars holding up the balcony right at the edge of the circular stairwell, which branched off in two directions with a ramp going up the center of it all and meeting the two paths at the center on the opposite side. The stone statues of men on horses and of gargoyles resting forever atop the buildings walls highly complimented the design of the building itself, with its old structure and all. This building was the Maris Opera House.

The old Opera House was hosting an auction on this day, and the people in charge were selling off anything and everything they could find among the rubble of the dilapidated building. Since the auction was open to the public and anypony could venture forth and bid their bits on items of choice, the streets were surprisingly less busy than normal.

As the auction goes on inside, a black painted cart pulls up outside the Opera House, pulled by two colts in formal attire. One of them unhooks the other from the front of the cart and then the freed one repeats the process. The two proceed back to either side of the cart and open both doors. One of the two colts brings around a wheelchair as the other helps an old stallion out of the cart.

Once the old stallion had been seated comfortably in the wheelchair, a blanket was draped over his shoulders and lap to keep him cozy as he was wheeled through a bone chilling wind and into the Opera House. As he drew closer and closer to the entrance, the sounds of the children playing outside and the people going about their daily business slowly died away and was replaced by the sound of the auctioneers voice, loud and echoing throughout the large structure. Once inside, it was very clear how far along the auction was. Most of the things were gone and they were already starting the bidding on-

"Lot 663, then!" the auctioneer announced with a bang of his gavel on the podium he stood behind. The auctioneer was a dark blue coated male unicorn with a lighter shade of blue for his mane and tail. Although his red streaked mane was neat and combed, his red tipped tail seemed to be malfunctioning. He stood taller than most ponies and had a gavel and sound block as a cutie mark. He spoke quickly yet clearly as he announced to every pony what the next lot would be.

"A Poster for this houses production of 'Hannibal', by Chalumeau. Sowing here." At his last words, a colt with a dark green mane and even darker blue eyes, who looked to be about the age of 20 or so, with the exception of the small amount of acne that could be seem from a close distance through his orange coat, cantered over to the podium and held up the poster for everyone to see. "Do I have ten bits?" the auctioneer asked, glancing round the room with a smile.

When no pony responded, he dropped the price by a half. "Five bits, then?" At this, a pony in the far back raised a sign with his number on it. "I have been bid five!" announced the auctioneer gladly, watching for anypony willing to raise the price. Not to his surprise, somepony in the first row rose their hoof and held up their number within a few seconds of the last pony putting his down. "Ah, six!" exclaimed the navy blue stallion, correcting himself at the sight of a mares hand a few rows back. "Seven!" There was a short pause before one last colt put his hoof up on the opposite side of the front row than the gentlecolt from earlier. "Eight from you sir?" the auctioneer said, taking a breath before stating to everyone with a raise of his gavel, "Eight once. Selling twice." Nopony objected otherwise, so the gavel was swung downwards with a loud crack. "Sold, to monsieur Lefevre!" And that was the end of that.

"Moving on," the auctioneer started, "to lot 664: a wooden pistol, and three pony skulls." he announced, the colt from earlier pulling the items over on a small cart like device. It looked more like a plank of wood with a rope and one end and wheels attached to its bottom. The auctioneer stood tall as he proposed the initial price. "Can I get ten bits for this?" Almost instantly, a hoof went up. "Ten, thank you." the auctioneer said with a nod. As the auctioneer spoke, a older mare from across the room looked over casually to the old stallion that had just come in. Her face darkened slightly at the sight of him as she stared, analyzing his every feature. "Still ten." He finished his thought as he looked around with a smile. He'd noticed another hoof go up near the back row with a sign in it. "Fifteen!" he announced gladly. It wasn't long before the the old stallion noticed that he had become the mares object of interest. The man slowly turned his head and shakily looked up himself, only to have the same darkening result. They stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity as the lot came and went. They broke their gaze to the sound of the auctioneers gavel hitting the sound block on the podium.

The auction went on still. "Lot 665, everypony: a papier-mache musical box in the shape or a barrel organ." The item colt cantered up to the front of the stage the podium rested upon and held up the box. "Attached, the figure of a monkey in Persian robes, playing the cymbals." he described to everypony. The display colt (as I will now call him) held it up for ponies to see, one of his hooves curiously placed behind the box. "This was found in the vaults of the theater, and is still in working order, fillies and gentlecolts. Showing here." he said as the display colts hoof lowered, the box springing into temporary life. The song it began to play sounded sweet to the ears, and as it played, the monkey slowly clapped its cymbals together.

The auctioneer proceeded with the bidding price after the music had ended. "Shall I commence at fifteen bits?" he asked, glancing round the audience. After a second had passed, someone in one of the back rows out their sign up. "Fifteen." the auctineer said with a nod. One of the colts who had helped the older stallion in earlier raised a hoof, signaling the stallions bid. "Twenty from you, sir, thank you." he said, looking over with a smile. Suddenly, the old mare from earlier put her sign up, taking a quick glance to the old stallion as she did. "Twentyfive, thank you Madame Giry," said the auctioneer gladly. "Twentyfive, I am bid. Do I hear thirty..?" he asked, slowly turning his gaze upon the old stallion. His helper colt put a hoof up again. "Thirty. And thirty five..?" he said in the same tone, looking back towards the older mare. She looked unsure and eventually shook her head no, not wanting to bid any higher.

The auctioneer nodded once and levitated his gavel again with his magic. "Selling for thirty bits. Thirty once," he began the countdown, "thirty twice. Sold, to Vicomte de Chagne." he finished with a crack of the gavel. "Thank you, sir." he said gratefully in a quieter voice, looking directly at the old stallion as he was handed the box.

As the geezer took the box into his hooves, a thought seemed to emanate through his head. 'A collectors piece, indeed.. Every detail exactly as she said.. Will you still play when all the rest of us are dead..?' he sang softly to himself and himself alone. He took a hoof and ran it along the side of the monkey figurines face, examining its feeling as he silently sang the last line in his thought. His time was cut short though, as the auctioneer was moving on.

"Lot 666, then: a chandelier in pieces." he said, looking towards a large object, covered by a tarp of some sort. As he did so, everypony in the room followed his lead, their eyes filled with curiosity and wonder. "Some of you may recall the strange event of The Phantom of The Opera: a mystery never fully explained. We are told, fillies and gentlecolts, that this is the very chandelier which figures in the famous disaster. Our workshops have repaired it, and wired parts of it for the new electric light." The auctioneer droned on for about a minute before calmly saying, "Perhaps we can frighten away the ghost.. Of so many years ago.. With a little illumination." He turned to his assistants, who were all standing ready by the chandelier. "Gentlemen?" he said, motioning for them to raise the tarp.

[[This next section (if you've seen the movie, then you know what I mean) is just one big time warp backwards. Just use your damned imaginations.]] As they threw the tarp from the chandelier, each light upon it flickered into existence and a large wave of dust flew in every direction, powered by a mighty gale that seemed to have the chandelier as its source. The epic wind began to wisp across the stage, each footlight at the base igniting with fire and lighting the newly polished and repaired wooden floor. The gust blew all the cobwebs and dust off of all the seats in the theater as well, causing them to turn from dull grey to a luscious rose red with golden trim, the cleanliness hard to believe after seeing this in such a bad state. The statues around the balcony area were also affected by this strange power, their chipped and broken features instantly being repaired and polished to a shine, as they always were so long ago. All the while, the chandelier itself was slowly being risen into the air, suspending itself where it once was so long ago upon the roof of the building.

/)TB(**
**Maris, 1870

Scene Two — Enter: The New Owners

Maris - 1870

The streets of Maris were bustling with life. The ponies were going about their daily business, men were hard at work while women worked hard at home, and children were playing in the streets and on the steps of the Maris Opera House. Yes, the gorgeous Maris Opera House, a place of great performances and even greater voices. The stone and bronze exterior shining in the sunlight, the green painted status of men on horses upon the buildings walls, the fountain out front.. It was truly a masterpiece of architecture.

A strange looking carriage pulled up out front and stopped by the Opera House. The tanks upon its back and the strange tubes and funnels spouting in every which way gave it the appearance of something out of a science fiction novel, where the basic structure of it gave it the look of any normal cart. Once it had come to a full rest, the part of it that held the two drivers inside of it opened and they hopped out gladly, smiles upon their faces. Their clothes also looked only similar. They both wore the same black bow ties, blue button-up striped vest with a white undershirt, and straw hats to complete the ensemble.

The two looked to be brothers, perhaps, as they both had the same orange hair, cream colored coat and smug smiles upon their faces. They looked the Opera House up and down and then nodded at each other as they made their way inside through a private route in the side of the building. Once inside, they could clearly see that things were quite busy. Fillies in costume were rushing up and down a spiral staircase while another group argued over something unknown over in a corner. The space was somewhat crowded and would take some getting used to, but it should be fine.

The few colts and fillies walking around in the small balconies and rafters of the establishment were all either checking props for the future show, checking costumes and fixing things that were wrong, or just standing and relaxing where they were. As the two brothers walked through the building, they got a few odd looks from a select few ponies, but they paid no mind to it as they approached the main stage area of the theater.

As the two brothers approached the main area of the Opera House, they could see the orchestra setting up its instruments and the age old conductor handing sheet music to everypony. The ensemble was quite large and, like most, sat in a small pit in front of the stage. After a short moment, a voice came into a very, very audible range. It was the voice of a mare, a soprano singer by the sounds of it.

As the two brothers watched in pure interest at the sound of the singers voice, her appearance became more than clear. She had a light grey coat and luscious purple hair, most of which was covered by the ridiculously intricate costume she was wearing. She was a unicorn as well, it seemed, as a portion of the headpiece looked as if it had to be trimmed to let her horn show. Her eyes were a shade of beautiful shade of blue, complimented in color by the makeup she wore to go along with the costume she wore in preparation for the show. Although her accent was clear as crystal through the lyrics of the piece, it still only added to the effect. The soprano they were gazing upon was none other than the famous Rarity.

Her voice rang loud and high throughout the small stadium as she sang the lines of her intro in a song. "This trophy from our saviors, from our saviors, the enslaving force of Rome!" she bellowed proudly, as few maids in the seating area silently complaining to one another about their dislike of her rich accent. They would never say something to her face about it, as they did not wish to upset her, but to themselves, they would hold nothing back.

At the last line of the verse, the orchestra boomed and she turned almost angrily to a small group of people of to the side. To one, she shot a glare and he quickly left the scene, to another, she demanded that her pet be given to her. "Madame!" the woman exclaimed, practically bowing as she handed Rarity her precious fluffy cat, Opalescence.

As this took place, the orchestra began to play along to a choir of costumed mares and fillies who marched in unison from offstage onto the main area. They sang together the words, "With feasting and dancing and song, tonight in celebration, we greet the victorious throng returned to bring salvation!" As they marched, the smacked a hoof to their chests and then threw it back down in a traditional Roman salute. A few people in the back of the group were holding up large Roman flags on poles, symbolizing their characters origins.

(\CP/)

The laborers outside by the carriage drop off area waited patiently for someone to arrive. The walls were covered in ropes and locks to keep people's transports from being stolen whilst they were away. [[The original text for that part was: They would arrange things stored on their walls, such as bridles, ropes and tethers, and other such objects. After typing this in the sense that it was something in our world, I realized that I had created a MLP BDSM room and had to change it. xD]] Then, as if on cue, a cart pulled up, drawn by a single colt and holding none other than Grey Byte himself.

"Welcome, Grey Byte!" one of the laborers said, rushing over to the cart as Grey hopped out. He began to trot towards the building for whatever reason he had to do so, a smile upon his face. As he did, the two brothers came out and met up with him, smiles on their faces as they spoke quietly to one another. As they walked back into the building, a male choir could now be heard singing.

(\CP/)

"The trumpets of Carthage resound!" they sang, their voices loud and booming in the acoustically perfect room. "Hear Romans now, and tremble! Hark to our step on the ground!" For the last lines, the fillies and mares joined in as they all sang, "Hear the drums, Hannibal comes!" During these last words, Rarity stepped back int the group and began to do a small routine with the others. At one point though, she had tripped slightly on her dress and with a sharp glare, placed the blame on a random bystander.

After a moment of holding the last note of the verse, a light brown coated earth pony stepped forward, his dark brown mane gelled back beneath the large red wig he wore with his costume. He looked around and took a deep breath before emitting the sounds of song. "Sad to return to find the land we love, threatened once more by Roma's far reaching grasp!" but as he sang the last word, the conductor tapped his wand against the wood of the floor repeatedly, saying as almost a warning, "Gentlecolts, gentlecolts!"

"Rehearsals, as you see, are under way, for a new production of Chalumeau's 'Hannibal'." a white coated pegasus stated as he walked in, guiding the two brothers onto the stage. He had his hair pulled back behind his head, hanging loosely around his neck and his cutie mark resembled something like a sound wave emanating from either a mouth or speaker of some sort. This was the current owner of the Opera House, White Noise.

"Monsieur Noise, I am rehearsing!" the conductor said a bit furiously, the people on the stage parting like the Red Sea so that the two stallions could see each other clearly. "Monsieur Reyer, Madame Smith, mares and gentlecolts," said White in a semi-urgent fashion, looking around the room as he nearly interrupted the conductors protest, "please, if I can have your attention, thank you!" The staff of the building gathered around curiously, all eyes directed either towards White Noise off the two brothers behind him.

"As you all know," he began, "for some weeks, there have been rumors of my imminent retirement." He paused for a moment before looking down towards the floor slightly and saying with a minority regretful voice, "I can now inform you that these are all quite true." He turned his gaze towards the two brothers and his mood lightened some. "But it is my pleasure to introduce you to the two gentlecolts who now own the Opera Populaire; Mr. Flim, and Mr. Flam!"

The crowd of staff members and vocalists stomped in congratulation, the two brothers smiling and giving small waves to the group. As the group continued to stop their hooves gladly, White interjected and said calmly, "I'm sure you've all read about their recent fortune amassed in the produce business?" Flam turned and corrected him within an instant. "Cider making, actually." he said, turning to his brother with a look of slight discontent. The crowd continued to stomp, and a filly whispered to her friend somewhere in the back, "They must be rich..!"

White turned to face everypony, smiling lightly as he made another announcement. "Also, we are very excited to introduce our new patron." He paused and let Flam introduce, "The Vicomte de Chagne!" he said as he turned to watch the stallion enter the building.

As the grey coated colt walked into the building, the two fillies from earlier moved closer to the front, each of them wearing a curious expression on their face. Once the blue and red maned, black eyed stallion was truly within viewing range of the two girls, the white coated one spoke. "It's Grey.." she said with an astonished tone in her voice. Her eyes were fixated on him as he walked, his head swaying happily from side to side.

The other orange coated filly looked over to her, a bit surprised. The white coat turned to her friend and began to whisper, "Before my father died.. I guess you could say we were childhood sweethearts.. He called me 'Little Lotte'..~" She smiled warmly at the memory, her sky blue eyes still fixated on the stallion of her past. "Christine, he's so handsome..!" her friend said to her brightly, her happy spirit not fading for a single moment.

As they finished their brief conversation, Grey took stand next to Flim and Flam and turned to speak to everypony. "My parents and I are honored to support all the arts," his gaze turned to meet Rarity's, "especially the world-renowned Opera Populaire." he finished with a slight nod and a smile as Rarity casually walked over to him. She placed a hoof in his and giggled as she did a slight bow.

"Gentlecolts," White began, "Señora Rarity, our leading soprano for five seasons now." At this, a small applause of stomping broke out as a select few ponies shouted "Bravo!" from the back. White turned his head and looked to the brown coated tenor from the earlier rehearsals. "Doctor Hooves." he said with a slight hoof gesture towards him. Again, a small applause of stomping began. Flattered somewhat, Hooves did a small bow. "An honor, sir." Grey said with his usual smile. "I believe I'm keeping you from your rehearsal. I shall be here this evening to share in your great triumph!" he announced. "My apologies, señor." he apologized to the conductor, turning his head for a more direct look.

"Thank you, Monsieur Le Victome!" he waved his stick as he peered over the crowd, motioning for Hooves to come near. "Once more, señor.." And with that, White trotted his way out with Grey, escorting him to his cart outside. At this, everypony went back to their business, Hooves going back to practice his part and Rarity cantering over to a group of serving mares. "He loves me, he loves me." she said egotistically.

As the two stallions left, they passed by Christine and her friend. Nothing in particular happened at the moment and Christine looked a bit saddened by this. She turned to her friend and spoke quietly with a small smile. "He wouldn't recognize me." Her orange friend, quick to respond, encouragingly stated, "He didn't see you." Granny Smith cantered over to the area that everypony was standing and gave a slight motion with one of her hooves. "If you please, Monsieur."

Suddenly, a look of happiness and realization popped onto Christine and her friends face and they dashed out onto the stage, beginning to perform the glorious ballet routine they had been practicing with many others. A they did so, Granny Smith cantered over to Flim and Flam and guided them to the back area of the stage, letting them observe the ballet at their own will.

"We take great pride in the excellence our ballets, Monsieur." she stated, continuing to slowly stroll along the back line of the stage. "I can see why!" exclaimed Flim, looking to a certain blonde in the group, "Especially that blonde angel." Granny Smith laughed softly. "My daughter, Applejack." she informed him with a smile, proud to see her daughter being admired. "And that exceptional beauty! No relation, I trust?" Flam asked, pointing out a certain brunette in the group as she danced. "Christine Daaé, promising talent Monsieur Flam, very promising." she stated.

A look of surprise came over Flam's face as he stopped and turned to face Madame Smith. "Daaé, you say? No relation to the famous *Squee*dish violinist?" [[It is. So hard. To ponify. Sweden. Enjoy my troll name or suggest a better one.]] Madame Smith was quick to respond. "His only child, orphaned at seven when she came to live and train in the ballet dormitories." A small smile of minor amusement seemed to appear on Flam's face as he said quietly to Madame Smith, "An orphan, you say?"

She turned and looked at him with a small smile of her own. "I think of her as a daughter, also." She broke the conversation by realizing that their little group had been pacing in a circle around the stage. "Gentlecolts, if you would please stand to one side." she said, ushering them smoothly over to one side of the stage. As they did so, the performance was just finishing up its practice session, and a large model elephant had been rolled onto the stage.

Everypony was standing around it and singing in unison, with the exception of Rarity and Hooves, who had their own parts to go about on. During one of the final routines, Hooves tripped slightly on Rarity's dress, causing her to turn and break her part momentarily to complain. She quickly got back on track though, and proceeded to sing the final few notes of her part in the exact direction of the new owners. Her mouth was wide open as she sang, her throat tensing up almost from the intensity of the high notes she was having to sing.

As the music ended, so to did the practice, causing everypony on the stage to strike a particular pose. At this point, White had already walked in and was standing to the side of Flim and Flam. Rarity blared out as everypony disbanded, "Daaé, all they want is dancing..!" Her rant ran short, and off to the side, White turned to Flim and Flam. "The Vicomte is very excited for tonight's gala..!" he said with a promising grin. As he did though, Rarity cantered over and nearly shouted at the two new owners, "He's excited by dancing girls as your new managers, because I, will not be singing!" she spat, turning and making her leave. [[Don't ask me what the hell she said, it's the exact text from the movie, and I still barely even get it.]]

As she spewed random things, such as "It's finished!" and "Goodbye!" A she strutted by a group of serving fillies, she commanded quite rudely to one of the, "Where is my kitty, bring me my kitty!" and the maid did exactly as she was told. No pony in the entire building besides the two brothers seemed even mildly worried by this.

The two of them turned to White worriedly. "Well, what do we do?" Flim asked. White simply nodded and spoke calmly. "Grovel." When there was no reaction from either Flim or Flam, he reiterated his statement with a motion to get them moving towards the bratty soprano. "Grovel, grovel!" he repeated, the two brothers taking off for the ever-fleeing mare.

As they trotted after her through the crowd of actors and actresses, they shouted compliments and words of praise to calm and collect her to a state where she would stop and listen to them. When they had caught up, she turned to them and simply spouted, "Si, si?" This was only interrupted by Flim's attempt to ease her temper by calling her the 'Goddess Of Song'. Sadly, this actually worked temporarily, and the diva was quickly calmed.

"Ah, Mr. Noise," Flam said, turning to White to continue his question, "Isn't there a rather marvelous aria for Elisa in act three of 'Hannibal'?" The conductor looked a bit worried at the question, but bit his tongue and stayed silent as Rarity quickly responded with as much anger in her voice as ever. "Yes, yes, yes. But, no!" she screeched, looking Flam rad in the eyes, her sky blue iris's digging deep into his own grassy green eyes.

She quickly turned away though, and shouted across the room, "Because I don't have my costume for the act, because sompony didn't finish it!!" It was clear that she was indicating the workers, but Flim and Flam turned to look anyways. A this point, Rarity was throwing an almost full-on tantrum over everything.

She lifted a hoof and pointed defiantly to her headpiece, distaste fully shouting, "And I hate my hat!" Flam approached the diva cautiously, gently saying to her, "I wonder, señora, as a personal favor, if you would oblige us with a private rendition?" He turned to White. "Unless, of course, Mr. Noise objects?"

White quickly shook his head to show his acceptance of the situation, a look of slight worry hidden behind his calm demeanor. As Rarity shed false tears for effect during the question, she eventually just turned to Flam and said, "No, aspetta, aspetta..!". [[For those of you who are saying "'Da hell?", 'aspetta' translates to 'expected' from Italian.]] After a deep breath, she let out a small giggle and put on her best smile. She looked Flim and Flam over and gently stating, "If my managers command..~"

Flim let out a satisfied sigh and took a step back, both him and his brother quickly relaxing. Everypony else in the building still seemed totally unaffected by the situation, which came as a small surprise to the two red-haired brothers. "Monsieur Reyer?~" chimed Rarity, turning to look at the grey haired colt who was the conductor of the orchestra section of the Opera House. He raised an eyebrow and spoke with a sarcastic tone. "If my Diva commands?" he said in a way that made it almost sound like he was asking her. Rarity's expression suddenly turned serious as she raised a hoof and sternly said, "Yes, I do."

With the conductor walking back to his stand, Rarity walked back out onto the stage. "Everypony be quite!" she shouted as she took position. Flim cantered over to White Noise and quietly asked him, "Why, again, are you retiring..?" White quickly responded with, "My health." and nothing more. Flim let out a deep exhalation in understanding of what he said. "Psht psht!" hissed Rarity, quickly silencing Flim and White.

As Rarity found her position on the stage, she turned and swiftly pointed her hoof across the room to two actors. "You as well!!" The two colts who were talking smiled and turned to watch her as a serving maid trotted over and held out a box with a breath spray inside of it. Rarity pushed down on the squeezer at the end of the tube, causing a small blast of the spray to go down her gullet and moisten her throat. The conductor was standing tall at his position, his expression slightly impatient as he waited. "Señora..?" he said quietly, his hoof raised with a conductors wand in it. "Maestro." she replied, taking a stance as she readied herself to begin singing.

Little did she know, a dark figure lurked above in the high rafters of the Opera House, waiting..

Watching..

Plotting..

Scene Three — Think Of Me

The conductor nodded to the solo piano player seated inside the orchestra pit, and with a count off, the mare began to play a lovely melody. When the correct time came, Rarity began to sing, her voice ringing high and mighty through the quiet Opera House.

"Think of me," she sang, "think of me fondly when we've said goodbye." Her voice was forced to stretch when she sang the word 'goodbye', causing her to slowly glissando up to the note she needed to hit, then slide back down in a painfully graceful manner. Several of the cleaning maids had already began putting ear-plugs in to drown out the deathly melodious voice of the soprano on stage, and everypony else was either watching in awe or shushing somepony else. Flim and Flam shot each other a nervous glance as they noticed this, and then continued to watch the mare rehearse.

Rarity continued still. "Remember me," she rolled both of the 'r''s expertly, "once in a while, please promise me you'll try." Again, on the word 'you'll', her voice need that extra little stretch, causing her to once more perform a glissando. She paused and took a breath for a short moment.

Unbeknownst to the crowd of ponies below, the figure in the rafters was quite displeased by Rarities performance, and he did not hesitate to take action against it. As rarity took her breath, he silently dashed over to a certain area of the rafters and began undoing several ropes.

"When you find," Rarity chirped, "that once again you long," almost there, "to take your heart--" Before she could even finish the line, a curtain and the large block of wood it w connected to began to drop from the ceiling, exciting the screams of terror out from the mouths of several mares and colts. Rarity took a moment to notice as it fell directly towards her, eventually hitting her near her flank and causing her to fall over. This caused her to emit her own shriek of confusion and fear.

"Señora!" the conductor exclaimed, shocked and confused by the sudden event as several ponies rushed over to help the wailing maiden out from beneath the fallen stage piece. The strange figure above, silhouetted by a sunbeam coming through a high window, simply stood and watched before promptly leaving the scene as not to be noticed by any of the bystanders to the situation.

Applejack quickly turned to Christine and took her fore-hooves in her own. "He's here; the phantom of the opera..!" she said in a hushed whisper, the only people hearing her being Christine and Granny Smith. She paid little mind to this though, and began to walk off in another dielectric, away from the crowd.

Flam was busy comforting the fallen diva worriedly, occasionally asking, "Are you alright, señora?" While he was busy doing this, Flim shouted up to where the fallen beam had once been, knowing that somepony was supposed to be there. "Fasten, what's going on up there?!" he shouted, a yellow coated earth pony with a messy brown mane rushing over to the scene of the happening. He began to pull the beam back up using a system of ropes and pulleys, innocently shouting back down, "Please, Monsieur, don't look at me! Witty Celestia as my witness, I wasn't at my post!

Granny Smith was still curiously pacing about in one of the areas behind a few stage props when she saw a small letter twirling down towards her from somewhere up above. "Please, sir, there's nopony there!" The pleading shouts still came from the previous room, the old green mare carefully reaching down and picking up the letter. It had a wax seal in the shape of a 3D ponies skull and the edges of each fold were traced with a black outline.

"Or if there is.." Fasten began, his voice mildly unserious as a grin spread upon his face, "He must be a ghost..!" This accusation caused a few gasps and chuckles to come from the small group below, the curtain now safely secured above once again. The two brothers simply ignored the preposterous idea and went on to speak to Rarity.

"Señora, these things do happen..!" Flim chuckled, a smile of hope nervously creeping onto his face as he spoke. A look of anger and disbelief appeared upon Rarity's face as she spoke sternly. "For the past three years, 'These things do happen'!" she said, her voice showing obvious signs of anger. She turned and glared at White. "And you did not stop them from happening! No!" she blared louder than a trumpet, quickly turning and pointing a hoof at the two new managers. "And you two are no better than him!" she spat, causing both Flim and Flam to take a half-step backwards. "'These things do happen.'!" she said again in a mocking tone, letting out a grunt of pure frustration.

Her rant finally ended with a simple threat. "Until you stop these things from happening, this does not happen!" she shouted, pointing a hoof at herself before turning and angrily storming away. As she went, she commanded the serving maid from earlier to bring her Opalescence, then promptly left the building completely.

Doctor Hooves turned to them and shook his head. "Amateurs." he called them before walking off himself. The two brothers wet simply left standing in place with a look of disbelief and confusion as things went back to normal. White took a few steps forward and looked at them, then with a nod said, "Gentlemen. Good luck. If you need me, I shall be in Australia." He nodded his head once at the final word and began to walk off towards the door.

"R-Rarity.. She will be coming back won't she..?" Flam asked the conductor fearfully, getting nothing but an annoyed shrug in response. Granny Smith had walked up behind him during this short period, holding the fallen letter from earlier. She smiled slightly and turned to talk to the two brothers. "I have a letter, sirs, from the Opera Ghost." she bluntly stated.

"Oh, Celestia above, you're all obsessed!" Flim quickly retorted, his look of disbelief growing even more apparent as Granny Smith began to read. "He welcomes you to his Opera House-" She was interrupted by Flim, "Oh, his Opera House..!" Granny paid, again, no mind to this as she continued reading. "-and commands that you continue to keep Box 5 open, for his use." She pointed a hoof towards one of the viewing boxes in the seating section of the house. She turned to Flam and handed him the letter. "He also reminds you that his salary is due." she finished.

This provoked a very confused look out of Flim and Flam as they looked over the letter for themselves. "His salary?" Flam questioned the proposal. Granny Smith shrugged and said carelessly, "Monsieur Noise used to give him twenty thousand bits a month." Flim's mouth hung agape at this as he snatched up the letter furiously. "Twenty thousand bits?!" he proclaimed, scanning over the letter diligently. "Perhaps you can afford more," Granny Smith spoke slyly, "with the Vicomte as your Patron." Sha began to walk away but stopped when Flim began to shout.

"Madame, I had hoped to make that announcement public tonight, when the Vicomte was to join us at the gala," he yelled a bit louder now, the rage in his voice clear as crystal, "but obviously, we shall now have to cancel, as it appears we had lost our star!" he finished, and with a jerking motion with his hooves, the letter was ripped to pieces.

Flam began to try and think of some sort of solution, and stuttering as he spoke, he proposed something simple. "S-surely there must be a, um.. A, ah! An understudy?" The conductor was quick to respond to this. "Understudy? There is no understudy to Rarity!!" he spat, clearly just as troubled as the two new managers.

Flim turned to his brother and spoke softly, his voice raising though the sentence, "A full house, Flam, we shall have to refund a full house!" "Christine Daaé could sing it, sir!" Granny smith announced swiftly, nearly cutting off Flim last word to an extent. Christine looked up curiously and directed her line of vision to the two managers. "The chorus filly? Don't be silly." Flam said, turning his face away from the group.

"She has been taking lessons from a great teacher." Granny Smith said persuasively, mildly peaking the interest of the stubborn Flam. "Who?" he asked after a moment, his snout raised in the air in a doubtful fashion. Christine took a moment to reply, but spoke sweetly with a smile when she finally did. "I don't know his name, Monsieur.."

"Let her sing for you, Monsieur." Granny Smith pleaded, encouragingly placing a hoof around Christine neck. "She has been well taught." After a moment of thought, he caved and said, "Alright, c'mon. Well, don't be shy, go!" he said after the white mare was a bit reluctant to try. Eventually though, she cantered slowly towards the stage, her eyes fixated on nothing in particular, yet still gazing off into the distance.

As she took her place on the stage, the conductor was getting set up at his stand. "From the beginning of the aria, mademoiselle." he instructed Christine, the choir girl quickly fixing her posture and taking in a deep breath as the piano began to play. "Flim, this is doing nothing for my nerves.." Flam, said to his brother, who had taken his place standing next to him. "Er, well.. She's very pretty." he said back, trying to keep calm as she began to sing.

"Think of me. Think of me fondly when we've said goodbye." Her voice was like a softly flowing river, her range in pitch unmatched by that of Rarity. She could hit the single note that the purple haired diva had a fair amount of trouble on, which was much to the astonishment of the two new managers. "Remember me," she continued with a voice as smooth as silk, "once in a while- please promise me you'll try."

At this point, many of the other actors and singers had gathered around to see the spectacle in motion before them. Christine turned her face towards Flim and Flam and internally smiled at the look of amazement that they had before turning back the other direction and taking a few steps forward. "When you find that, once again, you long to take your heart back and be free.." [[another time skip forward now, much like when the chandelier was unveiled. Imagination time!!]] The lights around the room dimmed as a beautiful white dress faded into life in place of the previous costume Christine had been wearing, a few spotlights aiming towards her now for effect as the backdrop of the stage changed to that of a starry, cloudless night on a beach before a city.

"If you ever find a moment; stop and think of me!" she sang, the orchestra in the pit below her quickly bursting into life with a beautiful melody of brass and string instruments. Christine was doing an amazing job, and her voice was absolutely exquisite! As the roar of the orchestra died down, she began to sing again, a new verse now beginning.

"We never said our love was evergreen, or as in hanging as the seas," her voice became soft and tender now, like a freshly bloomed flower, "But if you can still remember, stop and think of me." The crowd before her was in a respectfully silent state as the gazed upon the beautiful songstress before them, a few workers up in the rafters of the House gawking and listening as well.

"Think of all the things we've shared and seen- don't think about the way things might have been.." The song sang by the sweet songstress began to stimulate the senses of a special certain someone in a box near the stage. [[... Why did I just do that..?]] As the grey stallion continued to stare in absolute wonder at the beautiful mare before him, he couldn't help but drift into a deep state of thought whilst the next section of the song began.

"Think of me, think of me waking, silent and resigned." Her voice was still as sweet and light as ever. "Think of me, trying to hard to put you from my mind." The only time her voice would ever fail her was a simple moment on the word 'my'. She went slightly askew on the note she was so sign, but managed to manipulate this error to her advantage and make the song just that much better.

"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!" As if she had been singing this for ages, Christine held out the note on 'you' expertly. The crowd of ponies standing or sitting before her all burst into a loud applause of stomping and clapping, their shouts of approval echoing quietly through the Opera House.

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A dark figure paced deep beneath the floors of the Opera House, plotting how he was going to out everything into place as the beautiful mare sung high above him. He paused for a moment in the harshly dim torchlight and listened to the majestically loud voice of the white coated goddess all the other ponies called 'Christine'. It rang deep into the catacombs of the Opera House, as did the sound of the orchestra, but his relishing didn't last long, Nd he continued along his path.

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As the crowd of the ponies cheered and applauded, the grey coated stallion in the booth high above the rest of the crowd leaned forward slightly in his chair. "Can it be.." he wondered, "Can it be Christine..?" He stood up fully and began stomping gladly. "Bravo!" he shouted before taking his leave out the side door in the booth.

As he trotted down the stairs in the main room of the Opera House, he sang softly, but still loud enough for anypony else to hear. [[This is a musical, people, remember?]] "Long ago.. It seemed so long ago, how young and innocent we were..!" He basked in the wonderful memory of his childhood love as he reached the bottom of the stairs. As his front right hoof hit the ground, he sang his last line. "She may not remember me, but I remember her."

At an almost simultaneous moment, Christine began singing the next verse, the crowd having died down shortly after the Vicomte had left. "Flowers fade, the fruits of summer fade," it sounded almost like an explanation, despite the aid of song, "they have their season, so do we, but please promise me that sometimes: you will think.." The song began to slow now, mostly for effect, but also because Christine was going to ad-lib with what sounded like a vocal warm-up of some sort.

In a sense of pitch, it went like this: 1 2 3, 1 3, 2 4. Each time she ran the process though, it went up a few notes before she slowly began to glissando downwards in a melodic fashion, only to end with a loud and high pitched, "of me!" along with accompaniment from the orchestra.

When all was gone and done, the performances received a standing ovation for any ponies who were seated and a resounding applause from theses who had already been standing. Roses were thrown as the crowd shouted "Bravo, bravo!" The two managers who were also in a booth were stomping as well.

"Brava! Magnifica! Stupenda!" Flam shouted proudly at his new leading soprano, his words eventually earning him an awkward stare from his brother. The applause did not stop though, as even the ponies backstage were stomping and clapping happily.

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The chubby filly trotted, which for her looked more like a rushed waddle, down the stairs out front of the Opera House and made her way to a stopped carriage. Seated inside it, next to a nameless colt was Rarity, patiently (well, more or less) waiting for the results of the Opera to be told to her. When the filly arrived at the open window of the carriage, she simply smiled awkwardly and gave a light shrug. Within a second, Rarity performed one of her famous fainting sessions and fell into the arms of the nameless colt.

Scene Four — Explinations

Applejack was attempting to move herself through the jumbled cluster of ponies backstage, all partaking in an after-show party of sorts. Congratulations and laughter were abound, but Applejack's mind was set on another topic at this time: to find Christine. She pushed and shoved a few ponies out of the way, but they didn't seem to mind. Eventually, she came to a clearing in the crowded backstage hall and found a small hallway leading to another area of the theater.

She navigated her way through it past a couple who, at the time, were exchanging a bit of a 'lip lock'. At the end of the quiet hall, there was an open arched doorway and staircase leading down. Above it, engraved in stone, was the word 'Chapelle' with a crucifix above it. She quickly proceeded down the stairwell, gently calling, "Christine..? Christine..?"

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'Gustav Daàe', the portrait was labeled, its worn bronze exterior complimented by an equally worn red banner bearing the label. This was a portrait of Christine's father. She kept this portrait of him down here in the Chapelle by a candle holder which bore many candles to it's name. She gently picked up a lighting stick from the holder and lit it from another source before using it to light a single candle nearest to the portrait.

As she did, she sat back on her haunches and gently hung her head in sadness. She still had the dress on from the show, and it was so large in comparison to this room that it covered a good portion of the floor when she sat down. Then, a voice seemed to ring throughout the room. It was a masculine voice that spoke in a sort of song it seemed, and to Christine it said, "Brava, brava, bravissimo."

The voice made her pick up her head slightly. As she had heard it many times before. "Christine..? Christine..?" she heard the voice of her friend say from afar. She perked up a bit more at this, but the voice we still there. Just before Applejack entered, it mimicked her words in a mocking sense. "Christine.." it said, fading into nothingness quickly afterwards.

As Applejacks unmistakeable orange coat approached the doorway into the room Christine had been in, she began to speak. "Where in the world have you been hiding?" [[This part is done in mostly song, yes, but I'm fuzzy on how to express the fact that they're singing without sounding incredibly repetitive, much like in the Think Of Me chapter.]] She seated herself next to her friend as Christine put on the best smile she could. Applejack lay a hoof on her shoulder and with an encouraging smile said, "Really you were perfect..!"

Christine smiled a bit more at the kind words of her friend before looking away slightly. "I only wish I knew your secret, who is your great tutor?" she asked sweetly, Christine's smile slowly fading into a slightly more serious expression. "Applejack.." she began to re-tell the story of her childhood now, as Applejack could only sit and listen.

"When your mother brought me here to live, whenever I'd come down here alone to light a candle for my father.." She paused for a moment, unsure of how to explain things to her dear friend. "A voice from above." she said calmly, "And in my dreams.. He's always there.." Her voice grew softer as the memories flowed through her brain once more. "When my father lay dying.. He told me I would be protected by an angel.." Her smile began to come back now. "An angel of music." she finished.

Applejack's expression seemed a bit doubtful and almost sympathetic as she spoke. "Christine.. Do you believe?" she asked, worried for her friend. "Do you think the spirit of your father is tutoring you?" Christine simply nodded and smiled even more. "Who else, Applejack?" Applejack turned her face away from Christine. [[Again, this part's in song. Please don't hate me.]] Christine's voice rose now, and she began to sing once moe.

"Father once spoke of angel.. I used to dream he'd appear.. Now as I sing, I can sense him," she was slowly turning her eyes towards the painting of the virgin Mary upon the wall beside them both, "and I know he's here." She slowly began to stand up, keeping the song going still.

"Here in this room, he calls me softly, somewhere inside, hiding." She was now fully standing and as she sang, Applejack began to stand as well. "Somehow I know he's always with me, he the unseen genius." Applejack's face was that of worry and concern as she took her friends hoof in hers, chiming into the song gently.

"Christine, you must have been dreaming.." she explained, "Stories like this can't come true.." She began walking back towards the doorway to the room, tugging her friend along as she continued to sing softly. "Christine, you're talking in riddles, and it's not like you..!" she finished her turn as they headed back up the stone stairwell.

As they paced through the now mostly empty theater, Christine took the chance to continue the song now.
[[Since there are some overlapping vocal parts here, I'm going to write this like a kind of sheet music. It'll be fairly easy to figure out if you're smart enough~]]"Angel of music, guide and guardian, grant me to your glory!"
[[comes in on 'glory'.]] "Who is this angel, this-
[[Harmonization]]
"Angel of music, hide no longer, secret and strange angel..!"
[[This part sounds almost like an argument between the two of them, so keep careful track of who's talking.]]
"He's with me even now." "Your hands are cold!" "All around you." "Your face, Christine, it's white!" "It frightens me." "Don't be frightened.." [[Song's done!!~]] And with this being the final word, they cantered off in another direction, a colt high above having been watching them silently.

He was no threat to them, as he was only a simple earth pony working in the props department. As he took a quick swig of his drink and leaned up against a railing on the rafter he was standing on, the entire past day having taken a toll on his patience and his sanity.

Sorry for this being such a short chapter, but I was a bit rushed to finish! I'll go over it later and possibly add a few things in/fix some stuff. Hope you're enjoying the story thus far!

Scene Five — Reintroduction/Voice Of An Angel

Granny Smith led Christine through the double doors and into a small room, the floors and walls littered with bouquets and gifts of all sorts. "No." she said to the crowd of ponies outside, wanting to speak with Christine. Once she and the songstress were both inside the room, she shouted "No..!" once more before quickly closing the door and locking it afterwards.

She sighed and then turned to Christine with a smile. "You did very well." She turned and plucked something from a nearby table, proceeding to canter over to the white coated mare and hand her a single rose, a black velvet ribbon tied in a bow around its midway. "He is pleased with you." was all that she said before slowly making her way from the room, leaving Christine alone.

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"Ah, Vicomte!" Flim said exuberantly, a large smile on his face as his brother called out as well. "Vicomte!" he said, quickly drawing the attention of the smiling grey stallion and stopping him in front of them, and right in front of Christine's rooms door. The two brothers were each holding a bundle of flowers in one of their forelegs and wearing very bright smiles.

The stallions spacey black eyes stared back silently as Flim spoke once again. "I think we've made quite a discovery with Miss Daaé!" he said gladly, his brother suggestively adding, "Ah, perhaps we could, um, present her, to you?" he said, raising his eyebrows slightly.

Grey spoke calmly as he struggled to keep his smile through his serious thoughts. "Gentlecolts, if you wouldn't mind, this is one visit that I'd prefer to make unaccompanied." He smiled forcefully and began to turn away to continue in, but paused and turned back around. He gently took one of the flower bundles from the brothers as he said, "Thank you." and proceeded into the room.

The two brothers beheld equally confused and stunned impressions as they spoke to each other. "It would appear they've met before." Flim stated, his brother quickly responding with a simple "Yes." Their expressions remained the same as they watched the pale grey stallion open the door slightly.

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Christine sat peacefully in front a circular mirror as she tended to getting the crystal flowers from her hair. She had yet to change out of her costume from the show, as her procedure was undisrupted by an opening door behind her. A grey head poked in through the ajar door, and then a full body.

The face spoke softly as it smiled. "Little Lotte, let her mind wander." it said. The voice slowly made Christine pause what she was doing, her expression that of thought as she slowly lifted her head. "Little Lotte thought; am I fonder of dolls, or of goblins, or of shoes..?" the smiling unicorn continued, closing the door behind him with his magic.

Christine now knew for sure who it was that had entered her room, a smile gracing her white face as she watched him stride closer still. "Grey.." she said gently, Grey giving off a light chuckle as he continued his reminiscent speech. "Or of riddles or frocks..?"

Christine let off her own silent giggle as her mind drifted to that of childhood memories. "Those pick-nicks in the attic.." she said, watching as the unicorn set down the flowers on a table. "Or of chocolates..?" he continued still, finishing his thought as he slowly sat down beside the white mare.

"Father playing the violin." she said, smiling brightly at the presence of her old friend, so close to her again. "As we read to each other dark stories of the north." Grey finished her thought, his own smile only growing larger as Christine spoke. "No- what I love best, Lotte said, is when I'm asleep in my bed.."

She gently sang the next words to her former love. "And the angel of music sings songs in my head." Christine and Grey gladly repeated the line together, their two voices harmonizing in a dramatically dark and beautiful way. Afterwards, Grey leaned forward and gently wrapped his forelegs around his long lost friend.

"You sang like an angel tonight." he said sweetly to her, his embrace being returned for a short moment before ending entirely as he sat back. Christine looked at him and smiled tenderly, speaking in a calm and happy tone. "Father said; When I am in heaven, child, I shall send the angel of music to you." She paused for a moment to let Grey absorb this minor detail before continuing. "Well, my father is edad, Grey, and I have been visited by the angel of music."

Grey's eyes widened as he sat back slightly, nodding his head once and saying matter-of-factly, "Oh, no doubt!" He paused and then stood as he spoke his next words. "And now, we go to supper." He began walking back towards the door, but stopped when he heard Christine say "No, Grey." At this, he turned to face her, a confused look on his face.

"The angel of music is very strict..!" she said with a slightly sad tone, smiling faintly up at Grey as he began to smile back. "Well, I shan't keep your plate." he said sarcastically as he turned towards the door once more, Christine insistently denying herself the ability to go.

"Grey, no." she said, watching him as he turned again, his horn glowing as the door slowly began to open. "You must change! I'll order my carriage, two minutes Little Lotte!~" he said brightly, trotting out the door and ignoring the final plea of the white mare. "No, Grey, wait!" she said, standing quickly and stretching a hoof towards the door, clearly to no avail.

(\CP/)

As the door shut, it became apparent that the crowd of ponies that had crowded the area earlier had left. A dark figure lurked in the shadows of the darkened House, watching silently as that certain blue and red maned unicorn trotted away from Christine's room.

Unbeknownst to Grey, there had been a key hanging from the lock in the door, and he had left it there when he had left. Once he was clearly out of earshot of any movements the figure may make, he slowly walked forward, reaching out and turning the key slowly and quietly, locking the door fully before removing the key without a whisper and departing the scene.

The only pony left to see this act at the time was a certain older green mare, standing idly by against a wall as the figure did its business. She turned away after a moment and slowly walked away in a different direction, knowing fully what was happening at the time.

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Christine stepped out from behind a changing station [[If anyone knows what those stand-up things are called that people change behind in dressing rooms or whatever, please tell me!!]] as she buttoned her blouse, the candles in the room suddenly going out with an unnatural gust of wind. Little to Christine's knowledge, this was happening all around the House; the lights all suddenly dying out like this.

She was utterly frightened by this, and quickly tried to make her leave, but she was stopped by a loud booming voice from nowhere. "Insolent boy! This slave of fashion, basking in your glory!" it said, the voice a familiar deep song welded into Christine's mind. She was stuck dead in her tracks as she turned to try and see the carrier of the voice.

"Ignorant fool! This brave young suitor, sharing in my triumph!" it sang in a disappointed and displeased tone. Christine's face remained blank and calm as she sang in a soft voice back to her angel, "Angel, I hear you! Speak. I listen. Stay by my side, guide me!" she pleaded, her voices loudness never reaching that above a conversation level.

"Angel, my soul was weak. Forgive me.." she sang. Her face contorted slinky into an expression of guilty sadness as she apologized to her unseen tutor. "Enter at last, master!" These words were close to being interrupted as the angel began to sing once more, his own voice now calm as it echoed through the room.

"Flattering child, you shall know me," said he, "see why in shadow I hide!" Christine began slowly walking towards the mirror as if an unseen force was beckoning her to do so. "Look at your face in the mirror. I am there, inside!" the angel boomed, his figure slowly coming into view behind the shining glass pane of the mirror.

"Angel of music, guide and guardian, grant to me your glory!" Christine begged, ever so slowly approaching the mirror, the 'angel's figure coming into clear view. "Angel of music, hide no longer! Come to me strange angel!" As she neared the mirror now, the 'angel' began to repeatedly sing a single line to her. "I am your angel of music.. Come to the angel of music.."

(\CP/)

Grey desperately tried to jiggle the door handle open, but his success was unobtainable. "Christine!" he shouted, trying to gain her attention. Suddenly, he heard a voice from inside. A loud, echoing voice. "Who was that voice.." he asked himself as his motives suddenly grew twice as urgent. "Christine!!"

(\CP/)

"I am your angel of music.. Come to the angel of music.." the figure repeated still, one of his hooves gently outstretched in wait. Christine continued to approach the figure, as if in a trance of some sort. "Christine?! Who is that in there?!" a voice called from outside the door, barely being heard thought the nearly soundproof walls.

Eventually, it was to late, and as Christine placed her hoof into the phantoms, [[IMAGINATION TIME!!~]] an organ blared a solidly dramatic chord. She stepped through the now nonexistent mirror with the 'angel's hoof still in hers. He was leading her somewhere. Somewhere that the light of day [[Sponsoring my own story on accident, woo!]] did not dare reach; the domain of the Phantom Of The Opera.

Scene Six — The Lair Of The Phantom

As the mysterious figure led Christine down a candlelit stone corridor, it was clear that things were not normal here. The golden bronze hands that held the candleholders moved and parted like a river around a boat as the Phantom and Christine passed by them. On occasion, the Phantom would glance back and look at his loyal student as they walked. Christine slowly began to sing as her mind wandered and a secret music played somewhere in her head.

"In sleep he sang to me.. In dreams he came.." she sang, her face be holding a look of wonder and thought. "That voice which calls to me, and speaks my name." As she sang of her past experiences with the so called angel, they entered a larger area, the Phantom grabbing a torch from a wall as they began to descend a staircase.

"And do I dream again, for now I find: the Phantom Of The Opera is there, inside my mind!" she said in a knowing tone, the organ blaring once more as they approached a small passageway. "Sing once again with me! Our strange duet." the Phantom sang in return to Christine now, his voice clean and mystical as it boomed through the acoustically sound corridors.

"My power over you grows stronger yet..!" he said, which in truth, was correct. As they walked down a sloped area of the passage, the Phantom boomed his last notes. "The Phantom Of The Opera is there, inside your mind!" he sang, stopping the both of them in front of a gondola set to rest in them underground water system beneath the Opera House.

He carefully helped Christine into the little boat before himself getting in and beginning to push them off. As the floated along casually, Christine continued to sing. "Those who have seen your face, draw back in fear.. I am the mask you wear-" The Phantom interrupted her softly, in tune with the song. "It's me they hear..!"

[[They start to sing in unison here, so I'll write both parts underneath each other.

C: "Your spirit and my voice, in one combined!"

P: "My spirit and your voice, in one combined!"

C: "The Phantom Of The Opera is there, inside my mind.."

P: "The Phantom Of The Opera is there, inside your mind.."

As they neared a large metal portcullis, Christine sang out a certain familiar line. "He's here, the Phantom Of The Opera!" a few times over before simply singing a few notes as 'Ah's. [[The way she's doing this is (pitches): 4, 3-4-3-2, 3-2, 1-2, 4. Each time she repeats it, she goes up in pitch.]] As the iron gateway opened to allow them passage, the Phantom encouraged her as she sang in a forceful, yet kind, "ing, my angel of music..!"

Once they had passed through the fate, it began to close itself once more Christine's voice and the Phantom's way of keeping it goings continuing strong. "Sing for me!" he shouted, Christine finishing off the short lived session by holding onto a high Eb note for as long as she could muster.

Now, they were both fully inside the strange cavern of the Phantom. Christine's eyes wandered in curiosity at all the hanging curtains and the abundance of candle-holders. She paused to watch the strange brown coated masked-man step out from the gondola, proceeding to take the hem of his cape in his teeth and pull it off of himself.

He stood on his hind legs and spread out his front in a showcase like manner, much like Trixie would do. He glanced around slowly as he sang, "I have brought you.. To the seat of sweet music's throne.." It was now clearly visible: the desk covered in papers, the various sheet music papers thrown about, the feather quills, even the large pipe organ in the far back of the room, which he now made his way to.

"his kingdom where all must pay homage to music.." The Phantom paused for a moment in front of the organ before continuing, his voice now raised in pitch and volume. "you have come here, for one purpose and one alone. From the moment I first heard you sing, I have needed you with me, to serve me, to sing for my music.." he explained his face insistent and hypnotically calm at the same time.

Christine didn't know how to respond to this. This was all just to much for her at once. She didn't know whether to be terrified, flattered, confused, appalled, or even all of these things at once. Her expression was as blank as a fresh sheet of paper, her eyes like skyline pools of nothing and everything as she watched the Phantom continue.

He turned slowly, beginning to walk back to his original place as he started to sing once again. "Nighttime sharpens, heightens each sensation. Darkness stirs, and wakes imagination." He was now closing in on the gondola which Christine had been sitting in this entire time, his voice remaining soft and tender the entire time.

He sang a final line as he eyelid out his hoof to help Christine out of the boat. "Silently the senses abandon their defenses.." he sang, taking Christine's hoof in s and helping her to step out of the little boat and onto the rocky formation he had built his domain upon.

As he led his brown maned angel through his lair, he continued to sing sweet words of song. "Slowly, gently, night unfurls its splendor. Grasp it! Sense it! Tremulous and tender.." Christine looked back at the semi-lit path they had taken into the home of the Phantom, a hoof gently placing itself upon her cheek.

The Phantom gently turned her face back towards him as he sang in an almost pleading manner, "Turn your face away from the garish light of day! Turn your thoughts away from cold unfeeling light.." He glanced down at a diorama he had crafted of the main room of the Opera House, a figure of Christine in her dress from the most recent performance standing upon the stage with the crystal chandelier hanging above it all.

Christine looked at it as well, her mind telling her something was wrong, but every other part of her body saying something else. "And listen to the music of the night..!" the Phantom said, interrupting her thoughts about the display before her. He released her hoof from his and took off up a small ledge of stairs leading up to the organ, much as he did before.

"Close your eyes and surrender to your darkest dreams, purge all thoughts of the life you knew before!" he bellowed, once again stretching his forelegs out wide. Now, everything grew more calm as his pitch raised slightly. "Close your eyes," and so she did, letting the music envelope her as she listened, "let your spirit start.." He took a short pause now to gain his voice.

"To soar..!" he said, his voice in a range that any normal man would have to go to falsetto for. This sent a light shiver up the spine of the white mare as opened her eyes and listened to the voice of her angel once more say, "And you'll live.. As you've never lived before.." With this, he gave a slight motion to bring her over to him.

She willingly obeyed this motion and took his hoof in hers, letting him begin his song once more. "Slowly, deftly, music shall caress you.." he said, slowly leading Christine up the small stairway that led to the platform his organ was on. "Hear it, feel it, secretly possess you.." Suddenly things began to get dramatic as he leaned in a bit closer to her, slowly walking in a semicircle around her as he sang.

"Open up your mind," he commanded in song, "let your fantasies unwind, in this darkness that you know you cannot fight.." Slowly now, a small smile began to grow onto his half-masked face, giving him a slightly mad yet gentle look as he finally said, "The darkness of the music of the night..!"

But he was far from over with this, as he continued to sing with just as much power as before. "Let your mind take a journey through a strange new world, leave all thoughts of the life you knew before!" said the brown coated stallion, his figure slowly pacing around the various tables and candles spread about the platform. "Leave all thoughts of the life you knew before..!"

Instead of calming things now as he did before, his voice only intensified and grew in volume. "Let your soul take you where you long.." he took a very short pause before suddenly bellowing the next two simple words, completing the intense piece with, "To be!" But just as quickly as things had gotten loud, they got quiet once more, his voice going to a lower and softer pitch as he approached Christine once more.

"Only then.. Can you belong.. To me.." he explained, his hooves gently standing them both up on their hind legs as he gently began to caress Christine's soft white coat with his front hooves, leaning her into him carefully.

He took a short pause before once again, letting his soft voice serenade the white mare. "Floating, falling. Sweet intoxication.." He took Christine's hoof in his and slowly brought it up to his face, trailing it down one of his cheeks as he sang. This brought an almost aroused response from Christine, but he continued nonetheless. "Touch me.. Trust me.. Savor each sensation..!"

They looked each other dead in the eyes as Christine could only listen. The Phantom's voice was more than captivating as she listened, it's user causing it to raise in volume and in intensity. "Let the dream begin! Let your darker side give in, to the power of the music that I write.."

Suddenly things were more calm and Christine noticed that she was being led through the maze of crafts and creations that littered the Phantom's workplace and home. He stopped momentarily at the bottom of a small staircase and turned to her to finish his uncompleted line of song. "The power of the music of the night..!"

And with the sustained note on 'night', the Phantom continued to lead a smiling Christine down a small path along the edge of the area. He stopped them both at the entrance to a small, semi-hidden room dawned with red curtains around the doorway. Christine wasn't looking into the room though. She was instructed to do so by a nod of the Phantom's head, and when she did so, her smile almost instantly faded to a look of shock.

Behind the door was a perfectly sculpted model of herself, clothed in what looked like wedding garments. Christine's mind couldn't take the amount of things happening at once right now. In short, Christine fainted. The Phantom was quick to catch his white angel though, and while walking on his hind legs, he used his forelegs to carry Christine carefully over to a luxurious bed.

Even though Christine couldn't hear him beyond the void of sleep, he sang still as he lay his sleeping beauty down upon the velvet sheets. "You alone can make my song take flight.." he said quietly, letting himself get in close to the white mares face. "Help me make the music of the.." a pause filled the gap between the rest of the song and this one gentle note of the last word.

"Night." he said, slowly standing as he held the note for a reasonably long period of time. When he had stood once more, he reached up and tugged a long rope with his left hoof. This caused a black tarp to slowly fall and surround the circular bed with the magnificently carved eagle at its headpiece. And then, the Phantom left her there to sleep. Things were going perfectly.

[[Hey there everypony! Just a, quick apology letter here, it isn't that important and has no relevance to the story, so if you don't want to bother reading it. I wanted to formally apologize for not updating.. Well, anything in the past while. I was going through a rough time in my life and didn't have the spirit to write anything. But, I am back now and shall be tying to update as frequently as possible. Also, I shall be making a promise to you all; starting now, this story will never have a chapter with less than 2,000 words in it. Ever.

Thanks for taking the time to read my story and for being such great people in general! ^_^]]

Scene Seven — Of Curiosity and Folktales/Behind The Mask

The orange mare gently pushed open the wooden door, peering inside it cautiously. The keys she had used to unlock the door jingled lightly as she strode into the room, curious as to her friends disappearance. Once she was fully inside the dark room, she removed the keys from the lock and slowly closed the door behind her as silently as she could.

Applejack glanced around for a moment before saying in a hushed whisper, "Christine..!" When her call aroused no response, she began to inch forward farther into the room. Her grassy green eyes darted about the room as she looked around, analyzing every little thing she passed. She eventually came to a stop and looked down at a small table.

That's when she noticed it. A very faint light coming from somewhere across the room. She carefully set down the keys on the table and turned around to check if anypony was watching her. When she was sure that she was alone, she ever so slowly cantered over to the source of the light: a small shaft of dim light casting through a crack between a large mirror and the wall it was mounted into.

Upon further inspection, Applejack discovered that she could push the mirror to the side, making the gap between it and the wall grow enough to where she could step in with ease. Once behind the mirror, she turned around and a look of out astonishment was impacted onto her face. The mirror was made of one-way glass. She could see back out into the room.

The source of light that had directed her to this discovery was really nothing more than a candle mounted upon the wall. But this wall was not that of a small room. It was of a long tunnel, and Applejack was determined to see what lies within it.

She turned slowly and looked down the dark corridor wearily, little to no light inside of it at any point. This wouldn't stop her though, and as she slowly began to walk down the tunnel, she realized that there were small puddles of water strewn about the cobblestone floors. These were most likely caused by the continuous drips and drops of water falling from the ceiling, or what may be the floor for somewhere else.

As she looked around at the arched structuring of the passage, Applejack couldn't help but step in one of the small puddles littering the floor. When she looked down to see what she knew she stepped in, she let out a small squeak of horror. This passageway had very large, hairy rats scurrying about on its floor, and one of them had brushed against her hoof.

She sighed lightly at her own foolish reaction to the small mammals and continued along her path, now watching both the floor and the rest of the area. The moment she began to let her guard down though, a single green hoof was placed on her shoulder, causing her to shriek slightly and turn around to see the unknown pony.

To her surprise, Granny Smith had come into the tunnel to retrieve her. The old mares expression was that of annoyance with a very small hint of disappointment. As she took Applejack by one of her forelegs and began to lead her out, the orange filly glanced behind her to try and see the end of the tunnel. In short, it was no use, and she was led back out of the corridor.

(\CP/)

"Rahh!!" the brown colt with scruffy hair snarled at a few stage fillies, throwing his forehooves out to either side of himself for effect as they and all the others around him giggled madly between their playful screams of 'fright'. He grinned and turned slightly, doing the same to the fillies behind him now.

The colt stood hunched over slightly now as he spoke, telling what seemed to be an old story of folklore. "Like yellow parchment is his skin..!" He said, snarling slightly behind his grin as he turned and looked around. It was as he said this that Applejack walked into the room, trailing away and sitting herself in a corner near a small window. She listened as the colt continued his tale.

"A great black hole serves as the nose that.." he paused as he raised a hoof to his face, looking off towards another group of fillies as he finished his lined with a shake of his head, "Never grew.." He lost his smile and grew a more serious look now, glancing around the room before out stretching a single hoof and motioning to everypony. "You must always be on your guard." he warned. "Or he will catch you..! With his magical.." his sly smile returned slowly as he drew out a noose and held it up for the rest of the group to see. "Lasso!" he finished, looping around a closer filly mischievously and pulling her into him. "Rah!!" he growled again, teasingly gnashing his teeth as she threw her head back.

It was then that Granny Smith stormed into the room, her path aimed directly towards the brown colt. As she reached him, she tugged the yellow mare away from his grasp and snatched the lasso from the unplaced colt. "Those who speak of what they know," she chimed, speaking mostly to everypony, It was then that Granny Smith stormed into the room, her path aimed directly towards the brown colt. As she reached him, she tugged the yellow mare away from his grasp and snatched the lasso from the unplaced colt. "Those who speak of what they know," she chimed, speaking mostly to everypony, "find to late that prudent silence is wise."

She turned to face the colt now, and spoke directly to him with a stern tone, "Earthen Bouquet, hold your tongue!" Much to the surprise of everypony in the room, Granny Smith laid a well placed slap across the face of Earthen at the end of her statement, wrapping the noose backwards around his neck afterwards.

"And keep your hooves at the level of your eyes!" she commanded, a gasp filling the room as she insistently tightened the noose around his neck.

(\CP/)

A paper mâche music box played its gentle song in the background of the room. The figure of a monkey, in Persian robes, playing the cymbals was donned upon its top, and as the song played, it clapped its gently crafted cymbals together with a soft clang. This small noise stirred the sleeping Christine back into her awakened state.

With this awakening, Christine looked around curiously, not knowing where she had been lain. Then she noticed a pulley hanging from the ceiling beside her. When she tugged on it, the sleek black curtain around her began to lift, revealing the large cave she was inside the bowls of. She glanced over at the music box as it began to slow its playing, and eventually come to a stop.

With now no reason to stay in place, Christine rolled out of the large bed and onto her hooves once more. She glanced about slowly once more before taking a few steady steps forward, her voice sweet and soft as she began to chime her thoughts into reality. "I remember, there was mist.. Swirling mist upon a vast glassy lake.." as she sang her tune to herself, she continued to stride forward, the same look of confusion and amazement stuck on her face the entire time as she kept serenading anyone who could hear.

"There were candles all around," she said, now passing the exit to the section of the cave she was in and seeing all the many candles strewn about the place, "and on the lake there was a boat.." and so there was. Upon the still waters separated from her by many a candlestick, there rested a small boat. A gondola, to be exact. Now that Christine's attention was fully captured by the spectacle of all these things, she began to turn her head to the right.

"And in the boat, there was a stallion.." she stated, fully turning her head and noticing the figure in the sleek black cape sitting at the organ across the room. He turned for a brief moment from the instrument and the music he had been writing to look at the now awoken Christine and as he did so, Christine simply stared back at him until he turned back again.

Christine said nothing at first, but gracefully began cantering over to where the masked stallion was seated, composing his music. As she approached him, he took no mind to her, but as she began ascending the small staircase by the organ itself she also questioned things in the form of gentle song. "Who was that shape in the shadows..?" she asked, now quite near the Phantom compared to her previous location.

"Whose is the face in the mask..?" she finished, gently laying a front hoof upon his neck and caressing his brown cheek with her other. The phantom closed his eyes and leaned his head back slightly, not noticing the clear intentions of Christine. As she began to slide the mask off of his face, she gained a glance at what was before hidden and at this, the Phantom threw his hoof up and covered it back up defensively, standing quickly and pushing Christine to the ground.

"Damn you!!" he shouted, his voice loud and angry. "You little prying Pandora!!" he accused, glaring down at her and baring his teeth in rage. It was clear to Christine now that he did not want his face to be seen. "You little demon!!" he called her, storming over to a mirror covered in a large white cloth before tearing the cloth off and throwing it to the ground. "Is this what you wanted to see?!" he asked, throwing his hoof down to look at himself momentarily.

This was a short lived event though, as his hoof shot back up nearly instantly to cover the section again. "Curse you!!" he screamed, trotting back over to Christine who was still on the ground. "You little lying Delilah, you little viper!!" he called her, Christine's face wielding an expression of pure fear and confusion as she began to back away slowly. "Now you cannot ever be free..!" the Phantom explained, turning and walking away angrily as he shoved over a few candlesticks. "Damn you.." he said, "Curse you.."

It was now that Christine began sitting back up, perching herself up upon her haunches as she listened for the Phantom's song. "Stranger than you thought it.." he began, still facing away from the terrified and worrisome Christine. He sang once more, "Can you even bear to look, or bear to think of me:" he turned around and began walking back over to her. "This loathsome gargoyle who burns in hell but secretly," he was pacing about the room now as he sang, "yearns for heaven, secretly.." He paused in his place. "Secretly.." he said again. "Christine.." he said to himself, staring at the mannequin of Christine from earlier.

"Fear can turn to love - you'll learn to see," he said hopefully, beginning to calmly pace over to where Christine was seated, "to find the man behind the monster: this repulsive carcass, who seems a beast," he sang as he crouched down beside Christine, looking deeply into her eyes, "but secretly dreams of beauty, secretly.." He stopped for a moment now and looked away. Christine realized now the terrible inner pain the Phantom felt, and she began to pity him. "Se.. Cret.. Ly.." he sounded out each syllable as if the world depended on it.

"Oh, Christine.." he said sadly, looking down and away from the one he so longed for. Christine said nothing in response, but simply watched. She began to feel the gentle touch of tears staining her soft white cheeks. She looked at the miserable stallion in front of her and carefully nudged his mask back over to him in a caring manner. Without question, he took the mask and slowly placed it back upon his face, standing up as he did so.

Christine stared up at him innocently, her cheeks wet from the stream of tears she had endured. The Phantom regained his serious demeanor from earlier and looked down at Christine. "Come, we must go." he said, staying in place as he looked forward now while speaking. "Those two fools who run my theater will be missing you."