May looks, pleading at the two men approaching her with wide eyes. "P-please," it came out as a whisper. "I didn't mean to."
"Ha. Just like children don't mean to steal treats from others."
"No, sir. Don't." The man shrugged and looked at his comrade, who motioned him to go ahead. Adjusting the whip in his hand, he lashed it across the girl, once, twice, three times, five, before he felt a hand on his shoulder.
"If you have a problem, you should report it to the guard, not take matters into your own hands." May looked up, her tear-stained face broke into a tiny smile.
He looked on, for the first time in a while, felt compassion for the girl; appearing to be another creature of darkness, just not as heavily tainted with the world as he.
________________
...
Fast forward a month and May curtsies alongside all the other chorus girls in her first curtain call. Madame Giry offered to house her in the opera house's dormitories, and teach her, if Raul wanted to keep her out of trouble. Shaking her head with wonder, she darted in and out, weaving among the many people backstage as she went to pay her compliments to Christine, her idol and teacher, per se.
Poking her head in the dressing room, May giggled as she saw the coast was clear. The perfect time to hide a letter for her friend. As she looked around for the perfect place to put it, her eyes rested on the mirror. Tiptoeing over to it, she ran her hand along the frame, and found a crack to wedge the note in. Turning away, May was just about to leave as she heard a very soft thunk.
Turning back around, she saw that the letter had disappeared. Did it slip behind the mirror? She forced her fingers into the crack, and as she tried to push her hand in further, the mirror slid open. Startled, May held her breath, not wanting to make something happen that wasn't supposed to. Curious, she looked into the gap, forgetting all about the letter. She pulled the mirror open just a bit further and slipped into the unknown.
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...
Cautiously and slowly, May went down into the depths of the gloomy passageways, climbing down stair after stair, not daring to look behind her. Remembering some of the tales the girls and stagehands told of an opera ghost, she wondered if they were true. As if on cue, she froze, paranoid, as she thought she heard the echo of footsteps. Swallowing her fear, May forced one foot in front of the other, determined to see where the passage led. A voice stopped her dead in her tracks, sending shivers down her spine.
"What an honor. An uninvited guest," the mocking voice said. Again recalling the rumors, she dared not face the voice, instead squeezed her eyes shut and brought her hand to her face. Not a second later, May felt a rope drop around her neck, and get pulled taut.
She wheezed for air, barely able to breathe, and just able to get enough to function properly. Not daring to move as she heard the person walking around her, she stood stock still. "A clever one," the silky voice says as they tug the rope, spinning her around to face them. May flinched as she felt a hand force her chin up. "I daresay you've heard of me before?"
