Disclaimer: I own the villain. Nothing more. None of the rest. Please don't sue me.
Hello. I have exams at the moment, so this is to keep all waiting for the next chapter of 'Cross Fire' happy for the next while. This was written before 'The Empty Child' so forgive me if it's a little behind.
I dedicate this to, and place all the blame on Jillybean and Sparks. Constant references to 'The Phantom of the Opera' lead to constant listening, in turn attracting tiny masked plot bunnies.
I made a game of putting references to 'Phantom' into the story, both incredibly obvious and a bit more subtle. Pick all of them out and you get a cookie.
Enjoy.
Stranger Than You Dreamt It.
By Chaimera
Act 1
"So, where to now?" The Doctor leaned back against the console and grinned at his young companion
"How about somewhere a bit… classier."
"Hey, the mud pits of Sangruda are perfectly 'classy'… until they turned them into a
dumping site for radio active waste. I swear I didn't know that had happened."
"Hmm, you said that. I'm sure you didn't know about the vicious flesh eating mutants either."
"I didn't." he protested as he avoided a swat on the shoulder.
"Hey, tell you what. I'll take you for a night out. Make it up to you."
"Better be somewhere nice."
He paused, looking deep in thought and then a grin spread across his face. "I've got it!" he said with a look of triumph. He pushed her in the direction of the door. "Go on.
Wardrobe. Late eighteen hundreds. Hurry up. Get dressed up."
"How dressed up?"
"Let me put it this way; we're not going to Cardiff."
She grinned and hurried out of the control room.
"Alright. I'm ready." She gave the legs sticking out from the floor a light kick.
"Ok, ok. I'm coming, I…" He paused as he took her in. She was a vision in black and purple. Her skirts brushed the floor, sleeves off the shoulder, belled out slightly at the end and to his delight…
"Your damn ship's got me in a corset. Again."
He shut his mouth and grinned, thinking it wiser not to comment. He knew how much
Rose hated corsets, though he had never told her how much he liked her in them. He turned and patted the TARDIS controls affectionately.
"Well?"
He turned to see her standing there, tapping her foot impatiently.
"Where are we? Where are we going?"
He sighed and held out his arm. "Come on."
They stepped out of the TARDIS and looked around. Rose pulled her wrap tighter around her against the cold night air.
"Well," she said with a grin, "it's not Cardiff."
"You're right. It's Paris."
"Paris? But why…"
"Ball."
"Eh?"
"I'm taking you to a ball."
She let out a small squeal of delight and threw her arms around him. "Oh thanks Doctor. Where?"
"The Paris Opera House."
"Are you kidding me? That is brilliant."
He smiled. "Thought you might like it. Now, come on."
She took his arm again with an excited giggle and the pair continued down the street.
Rose's eyes grew as they stepped inside the lavish foyer of the opera house. There were a lot of ladies and gentlemen milling about the place looking awfully grand. Suddenly she felt very out of place. A door man approached the two and bowed respectfully, though he was eyeing the Doctors attire with some suspicion.
"May I see your invitation sir?"
The Doctor winked at Rose. "Of course." He pulled out the slightly psychic paper proudly and presented it to the man, who inspected it carefully.
"Is there a problem?" asked the Doctor.
The door man shook his head and blinked the paper. "No. I'm sorry sir, what is your name?"
"Just the Doctor and this is Rose Tyler, my plus one."
The door man nodded and gave the paper back to the Doctor. "Of course. I'm sorry sir."
Rose shook her head and laughed. "Such an old move. You know, someday someone's going to see past that thing."
"Never."
"Right, come on. I want a dance."
The Doctor blanched slightly. "I don't dance."
She frowned slightly. "Yes you do. I've seen you dance."
The Doctor glanced about, avoiding her gaze. "Oh look. Champagne."
He wandered off in the direction of the alcohol and Rose gave a defeated sigh. It was going to be one of those nights. As long as she didn't have to drag him back to the TARDIS she wouldn't mind too much.
She wandered through the crowd and headed to the main ball room. It was certainly a sight to behold. There was a lot of gold and red velvet. Rose gasped at the massive chandelier which glittered above the crowd of rich Parisians. Rose descended into the grand room and grabbed a glass of wine from a passing waiter. She glanced behind her, eyes scanning the stream of people entering the room for the Doctor. She decided to move so that she could see the door from where she was standing but before she had gone more than two steps a young man intercepted her.
"Excuse me my dear." He grabbed her hand and touched it to his lips. "I couldn't help but be caught by your distracting beauty from across the room."
Rose blushed slightly. "Thank you."
"I am Philippe. May I have the pleasure of your name?"
"Um, I'm Rose."
"Ahh, a beautiful name for a beautiful flower."
She giggled slightly at his bad joke and looked around again for the Doctor.
Unfortunately for her, her companion was nowhere in sight. Philippe removed the glass of wine from her hand and set it on a nearby table.
"I apologise for my forthrightness, but I must have this first dance with you."
"Um…" Before she could object the orchestra had begun playing and she was pulled on to the floor. Philippe pulled her firmly against him as he swept her around the room and she shifted uncomfortably in his grip. It wasn't that she didn't like the attentions of attractive young men, it was just if he moved any faster, they'd be having sex in five minutes. The waltz finally finished and she extracted herself from his grasp and stepped away.
"You know, I think I'm going to get a drink."
"Well, I must accompany you then."
"You know I…"
Suddenly a young woman with ridiculously high eyebrows and a pointy nose came up behind Philippe and grabbed his arm.
"Why, Count. Are you here all alone tonight?"
"I…"
"Such a shame. Dance with me."
Rose smirked slightly as her admirer was dragged off to the floor. The woman had reminded her a bit of Cassandra. She smiled to herself again and headed back towards where the drinks were. She grabbed a fresh glass of wine and turned to be confronted
with another man.
"Making friends already, are we?"
She shrugged, watching the couples dancing. "I might be. I just wanted to dance. I needed to find someone."
"Hmm." Was his only word as he took a drink.
"Just remember, I won't be taking on any strays you pick up."
She rolled her eyes at him. "Will you ever let that go?"
"Probably not, no."
"I made a mistake, get over it."
"He nearly got both of us killed. I didn't want to take him with us."
"I said I was sorry."
"Yes, well it still happened, didn't it?"
Rose let out a low growl and stalked off into the crowed.
The Doctor sighed and ran his hand through his hair. He didn't mean to be snappish with her, bringing up old wounds. He shook his head at himself. When he saw her dancing with that man… he was acting like a love sick teenager. The night was not quite going as he had planned.
Rose scowled at the happily dancing couples and took another drink of wine. They were mocking her, she was sure. The Doctor was being annoying and idiotic. He always got like this on nights out. It would start out great and then he would get all ratty and sulk in a corner all night. It was times like this she wished that they were running from trigger happy aliens, hand in hand. She gave herself a small mental slap and listened absently to a conversation that was happening, rather animatedly, beside her.
"I am telling you, it is utter rubbish. Ghosts, phantoms. Pahh. There's been enough of that in the past."
"Ahh, but it happened back then, didn't it?"
"He was just a deranged mad man."
"But what if he's still here. He survived long enough down there."
"I really don't think so. His body was found."
"What about the Viscount and Daaé? They never resurfaced again."
"Nothing but a pair of foolish lovers who ran away together."
"The chandelier?"
"An accident. If you are so fervent that ghosts exist, go look in a grave yard. We're in Paris. You'll find a good one."
"Fine, be ignorant André but you must admit, there have been some strange goings on lately."
"That I will accept. Now, what do you think of the presidents recent words?"
Rose tuned out of the conversation and frowned. She wandered back over to where she left the Doctor, not really surprised to find him still standing there. She stood beside him, returning her gaze to the twirling dancers.
"Hey."
He slid a sideways glance at her. "Hey."
She looked at him. "Doctor, was there really a Phantom of the Opera?"
He raised an eyebrow. "Yes. Strange man. But we're a few years too late for him. Why do you ask?"
"I heard some men talking about phantoms, ghosts. They said some strange things have been going on."
He smiled. "This is Paris. There's always something happening. I wouldn't worry."
"I'm not." She said quickly.
They stood there some more in silence before the Doctor grabbed her hand. "Let's dance."
Rose looked surprised as she was dragged back on to the dance floor. "I thought you didn't dance. At least not tonight." She added bitterly.
"Well, I do now."
"Right."
"Look, this is me apologising for being an asshole. Just accept it."
"Oh."
He placed his hand on her waist and they began to move across the floor to the music. She saw Philippe looking at her from the side of the room and hid a little smirk as she moved closer to the Doctor. She felt the Doctor squeeze her hand and she squeezed back gently. He smiled down at her and gave a small sigh. He was in real trouble. The music finished and they stepped apart. Rose looked up at him, a little flushed.
"I'm just going to get some air."
He nodded and watched her disappear into the crowd. He moved off to the side, snagging another drink from a passing waiter. He moved through the chattering groups, listening for some snippets of interesting conversation.
"God, Richard. I cannot take anymore of this talk of ghosts."
"I'm telling you André, there's something in this opera house, human or not."
"This is ridiculous."
The Doctor stood beside the taller of the two gentlemen.
"I'm sorry, I couldn't help overhearing your conversation. Were either of you present for the events of several years ago?"
Richard turned to him with a small smile. "I'm afraid no. Fascinating though, the whole situation."
"Yes, if you like all that sort of children's tales."
The Doctor raised an eyebrow. "Murder and kidnap? Not for children I think, Monsieur."
"Just what I said."
"What makes you think there's another Phantom taken up residence?" asked the Doctor with interest.
"Well, many people have gone missing while here sir."
"People? How many?"
"Seventeen in the last four months. All young women. No distinction. Dancers, singers, servants, seamstresses. All of them have just seemed to disappear in to thin air. All while here."
"No obvious signs of kidnapping though? No demands, signs of struggle."
"No one even saw a carriage leave the grounds. Front or back. It's a complete mystery."
"Yes, and one for the police to solve, not some idle ghost hunter."
"Yes. Well, maybe a job for me." He said with a smug smirk.
"And who are you, good monsieur?"
"I'm the Doctor. Just when have these women been disappearing?" He looked to Richard.
"Well, they all go off on their own and then never return."
A chill ran down the Doctor's spine and one thought raced through his mind. Rose.
"I apologise, but I must go and find my friend."
The two men nodded.
"Try not to run into any ghosts." Added André with a laugh as he retreated through the crowd.
Rose leant against one of the panelled walls and fanned herself with her hand. She couldn't help herself. She was painfully attracted to the Doctor. She had tried to pass it off as a meaningless crush for months but the feeling had just grown stronger. She had been trying to simply ignore it for weeks, considering the Doctor obviously didn't return any of the feeling she felt towards him. She didn't want to ruin the whole experience by confronting him and creating an awkward situation for the both of them.
She looked curiously down the long corridor. There were gas lamps along the walls but their flames were dim and, to her relief, not flickering ominously. There were several doors along each side. Rose opened one or two of the door and was met with several wardrobes and dressing rooms. She was obviously back stage. Suddenly, one of the doors further down the flew open and a tall man with a large moustache came storming out. He seemed furious and his face was an interesting shade of puce.
"I'll go to the police. Evil girl."
"Non, non monsieur. Please, I beg you. I did nothing."
"I caught you red handed girl. Don't lie to me. Stupid child. You will pay for this."
Though Rose couldn't see the girl, she could hear that she seemed to have broken down in tears.
The man looked down contemptuously, then he caught sight of Rose.
"You there. You are with the ball?"
Rose nodded.
"You shouldn't be back here, but see this girl." He grabbed her arm and pulled her down to the room which he had come from. There was a young girl on her knees by the door. She had red, curly hair which fell around her face as she sobbed into her hands.
"This girl, I want you to watch her."
"What did she do?"
The man drew Rose aside.
"I'll tell you, I almost couldn't believe it. It'd make a good opera though. I tell ya, if it's sung loudly and in a foreign language, anyone'l buy it."
"What did she do?" repeated Rose, beginning to get annoyed with the man.
"Well, ya see, the lead violinist, his wife went missing here a few weeks ago. Turned up two days later, dead. Shredded to pieces she was. Grizzly sight it was."
"Well what has this to do with her?" she gestured towards the room.
"That's the thing, I walk in on them tonight kissing like there's no tomorrow. Now, I know he didn't kill his wife, 'cause he wasn't here. She must a done it."
"Uh huh." Rose was a little sceptical.
"Well anyway, I'm off to inform the police. Won't be half an hour. Maybe I'll get
some cash out of this."
Rose frowned at the man as he ran off down the hall.
"Prat." She muttered as he vanished from sight.
She walked into the room and knelt down by the girl, grabbing a tissue from a dressing table.
"Hey. Here now. Come on, sit up here." She gave the sniffling girl a tissue and moved her up to a settee which was against one wall.
"Right, what's your name?"
The girl hiccupped and looked up at Rose. "Meg."
"Right, Meg. Want to tell me what happened?"
Meg shook her head, red curled flying about. "I didn't kill her. I swear. I didn't even want to kiss monsieur Lefévre. He made me."
"He forced you?" Rose asked with a dark look.
She nodded. "And I didn't kill that woman. I swear. I swear it. I…"
"Ok, ok. I believe you." Rose laid her hand on the shoulder of the hysterical girl.
She looked at Rose through damp eyelashes. "Really?"
"Yes, really. Now, he said a half hour, yeah?"
Meg nodded again. "The police station's a little while from here."
"Well then, I'll go find my friend. He'll be able to help me get you out of here and somewhere safe. You wait here, ok?"
Another nod. Meg looked at herself in the wall of mirrors on the opposite wall. "God, I look a mess."
"You look fine. Now, I'll be back in a sec."
Rose exited the room and hurried down the long hall. The girl didn't look capable of vicious murder but even so, having the Doctor along to help probably wasn't a bad idea. She had just reached the door that led back to the main ball room when she heard Meg scream. She spun around and flew back down the hall, hiking up her skirts as she ran. She skidded to a halt in the door way to see a rather odd scene. Meg, who now seemed perfectly calm was walking through where one of the floor to ceiling mirrors had slid back to reveal a dark corridor, while a man was putting back on a mask. Rose darted forward.
"Meg!" she called to the girl but she disappeared into the darkness.
The man turned to her and Rose backed towards the door. He smiled, at least she thought he smiled behind the mask, his black eyes glittering. And they were pure black.
"Ahh, two for one tonight I think. And who are you pretty lady?"
Rose frowned. That was not the language for an eighteenth century person, phantom or not. She went on a hunch.
"You're not human."
The 'man' laughed. "You say that like it's a bad thing my dear. And who are you to
know what I am or am not?"
Rose turned and ran for the door but something grabbed her and threw her against the wall. She cried out as she hit hard but when she looked up the figure was still standing exactly where he had been, across the room.
"Did you kill that woman? The violinists wife?"
"I've killed lots of women here." He approached her slowly.
"And why would you do that? I mean, why would you want to?"
He laughed again. A curious, tinny sound. "Ahh, that woman was an isolated case.
She broke free. If she hadn't, there wouldn't have been anything left of her."
Rose began to inch towards the door but an arm shot out, blocking her way, stretching much further than an arm should.
"Ah ah. No escaping."
The figures other arm reached up and removed the mask. Rose screamed. The face that lay behind the mask was indeed not human. There were what seemed like a hundred black eyes all glittering in the low lamp light, vicious looking fangs dripping.
The creature laughed again, this time much louder.
"No, don't be afraid. Just, look into my eyes."
Rose couldn't help but look as he got closer and closer and as she did, a strange sensation came over her. She felt like she was floating, everything was going to be ok if she just let it all happen. She was warm and safe. She could feel her body moving of it's own violation, obeying the orders of the soft voice in her head.
Go through the mirror, go down until you reach the lake. There, wait for me. You will be safe and soon you will be with…
The voice paused momentarily.
With your father. He is waiting there for you. Go on.
Rose walked towards the mirror when a jolt went through her brain. Her father? He was dead. She had been there. She had seen him die. Another jolt. The Doctor. She was going to get the Doctor.
She kept walking.
A final jolt and her mind was suddenly painfully clear. She ran for the door and screamed again when she was grabbed and thrown to the floor.
The ghastly face got closer.
"Well, looks like you're the same as the wife. Too bad."
End of Act 1
Refreshments and drinks will be served in the foyer following the submission of a review. Act 2 will follow shortly.
Slán.