Twisted Every Way

Chapter 10~ Masquerade

~Paige's POV~

I stood in front of my full length mirror and straightened my dress. As soon as I saw it in the dress makers shop, I knew that I had to get it. It was just what I wanted, a fancy yet simple dress. The material was an emerald green and it puffed out around the waist. It had short sleeves that had white lace around the edge. There was also a silver ribbon around my waist, revealing a large bow on my back. The dress was tied up by laces and it took over half an hour to get it on. It was worth it though because it truly is an beautiful dress.

I didn't want to tie my hair up, so I let the blonde mess fall down my back. I brushed it quickly and applied a light layer of make up onto my face. I looked to the door as I heard a knocking. I shouted for the visiter to come in. Meg came in wearing her white gown. She had her blonde hair tied up and had quite a lot of make up on, emphasising her eyes and lips. She did look beautiful though, the resembulance of an angel. She smiled and span around, showing off her dress. I giggled and did the exact same thing. She linked my arm with hers and we made our way out of the dressing room.

I was just locking up my dressing room, when I remembered that I had forgotten my mask. I rushed back in and grabbed my mask off my vanity. Erik had made it for me. It was made out of porcelain and was painted black. It had silver detail which matches my dress exactly. I hadn't even told him what colour my dress was, he guessed.

"Ready to go now?" Meg asked from outside. I tied the mask to my face and stepped outside. I locked the door and we made our way to the lobby. There was hundreds of people, dressed in masks so no one knew who they were. Of course, some people knew who others were. I spotted Madame Giry in a black dress, her cane making it obvious to me. Christine and Raoul, standing around talking and laughing. Christine was still being strange around me and would not talk to me. I was still very confused as to why she was acting like this. Erik said that he doesn't know, but I am not sure wether I believe him or not.

I went to stand by the wall and wait for someone to ask me to dance. I was previously talking to Meg, but a patron wanted a dance with her and she agreed. I was about to go and talk to Madame Giry, when a man stepped towards me.

"Could I have this dance, Madamoiselle?" I nodded and took his hand as he led me to the middle of the room. I lifted one of my hands to his shoulder and one to his forearm. We started moving and I was about to start some small talk while we were dancing. I was about to open my mouth to speak when he stated softly, "I see you are wearing the mask I made you."

"Erik?"

"Oui. You look stunning tonight Paige. That dress really brings out your eyes." I blushed.

"What are you doing here? I thought you were going to give the managers your opera."

"I am. I'm going to change my outfit and give it to them later. But first, I want to dance with you," he said, twirling me around. We danced for about three songs but he then said that he needed to go and get changed. I nodded and curtseyed. He bowed and I tried to ignore how sweaty my hands were getting. I walked back over to the wall but before I could, I was spun around by a man, dressed in a black suit, with a black mask on. It was Jacob and I leaped into his arms and into an embrace. He held me at arms length and looked at me.

"You look so beautiful. Come, let's go and dance." We danced for a while and stepped away when a group of people from the Corpse de ballet, began dancing in the middle. Madam Giry, Meg, Monsuier Firmin, Monsuier Andre, Carlotta and Piangi all came cascading down the staircase and began singing.

"What a night. What a crowd. Makes you glad, makes you proud. All the creme de la creme. Watching us, watching them. And all our fears are in the past. Six months of relief, of delight, of elysian peace. And we can breath at last. No more notes. No more ghosts. Here's to health. Here's a toast; to a prosperous year. To our friends who are here. And may it's splendour never fade. Six months. What a joy. What a change. And what a masquerade," they all sung.