A Doctor in the Opera House

[fifthdoctor]

The Tardis wheezed and groaned its way into being, the sound echoing off the dark cavernous halls as it rematerialized. Inside, the Doctor was finishing flicking of switches and turning on the screen. "Well, where are we this time?" he asks of no one in particular. It was too dark right outside the window to tell so, with a shrug, he rummages around for a torch before going to the door to open it. Might as well work out where and when he is the old fashioned way.

Clicking on the flashlight as he exits the Tardis. "Hello...anyone here?" he says carefully.

Comments

[keening_phantom]

Erik heard much within the Opera house. The halls had been built so mindful of acoustics that the wayward stage hand or lost extra could hear the play even on the underground lake. One could follow it all the way up to salvation.

Erik used it to keep an ear to the heartbeat of the opera house, and today, while it was a relatively light day of little more than cleaning crews and lackadaisical stage hands, one sound completely out of place reached his ears.

He had been doing some writing for his final work when it interrupted him, and his head picked up from the page. Quickly he tossed on his mask and took one of the round-about ways out of his underground home. One didn't need the boat to escape his abode, and he made his way through the maze-like halls of the opera house.

He heard a greeting called out, but did not answer as he pinpointed the sound, and saw what appeared to be some sort of torch in the figure's hand. Carefully, he kept to the far edges of the darkness, as he watched, and noted the strange box the man stood near.

[fifthdoctor]

Well, the Tardis seemed to have wanted to put down here for some reason. So the Doctor might as well investigate. He knew they were in France, sometime in the 1800s but beyond that, well...he'd just have to look around. There was an overall scent of dust and age about the place.

The beam of light flashed around, looking for some kind of telltale markings or something to tell him where he was. It caught the colored glass of the window in front of him and glinted off the candlesticks. The Doctor made a pleased sound of discovery as he bent to light one of the matches and lit a few candles. "There, that's better," he says to no one in particular.

He could now see the room was a smallish one, even smaller now that the Tardis stood in it. Turning, he locked up the blue box, putting the key in his pocket.

[keening_phantom]

Keen eyes watch the key turn and which pocket it goes into. If there is reason later he may need to retrieve said key he would at least have an idea where to start.

Erik needs no light or lantern to move about the opera house, but the candles do help illuminate the most curious figure. What terrible fashion was this, and what was that? For some reason the man wore a vegetable upon his lapel like it was some grand military decoration.

He says nothing, quite curious to see what this man is on about, and remains watching from behind his trap door.

[fifthdoctor]

It's telling that the Doctor pats the door like an old friend, calling her 'old girl' with a smile before venturing forth.

Funny he feels like he's being watched....

The corridor is empty though and gives even less information about where he is. Flashlight in one hand and a candle in the other, he walks slowly along it, looking for a door, window, anything.

[keening_phantom]

He will find nothing but a dark corridor, and Erik leaves his hiding spot, using the crawl-spaces between walls to head off this arrival. From the far end of the hall the Doctor will hear something at last.

"This way, Monsieur." The voice is haunting and disembodied, beckoning the Doctor toward the hall's end. Erik will show him the way out, if only to protect any secrets this stranger might stumble across.

[fifthdoctor]

As Alice would say, curiouser and curiouser. The Doctor's flashlight plays against the walls and down the corridor, trying to find the source of the voice. "Hello? Anyone there?" he asks. Not able to see anyone.

[keening_phantom]

"You should not be down here, Monsieur. The rats, they are not picky about what or whom they eat." There is a faint chuckle to the tone of the voice, but it's not a pleasant sound.

[fifthdoctor]

He follows the voice carefully. "Well, I've never been good with directions..." Sure sounded like a ghost. Which made it even more interesting. "What place is this?" he asks the mysterious voice. After all, they seem to be the only two here.

[keening_phantom]

"Do you not know?" Another dark chuckle, the voice leading him down the hall, to turn a corner. Off in the distance he'll see the dim light from a lantern. Erik is actually helping instead of guiding a fly into his spider web for once.

"This is the Opera Populair, Monsieur."

[fifthdoctor]

"The Opera Populair?" Funny how the Doctor sounds eager, almost pleased to hear that. What a place to land himself in and what a time to be here. "One of the most famous opera houses of all time, marvelous."

It still begged the question, who or what was leading him on. "I'm the Doctor by the way, who are you?" And why were they hiding? "Where are you??"

[keening_phantom]

Well, it was the best opera house in Paris at the time, and it strokes Erik's ego to hear it called both marvelous and the most famous opera house of all time.

"Turn left when you reach the lamp, Doctor. You only need to follow the lanterns to reach the upper levels." Erik doesn't bother to answer the questions levied at him.

[fifthdoctor]

"What's on the upper levels?" he asks, doing exactly as instructed. This was a mystery and the Doctor was intrigued. He clicked his flashlight off, putting it away in his pocket. It wouldn't do to get caught with something as anachronistic as that, the candle would do well enough.

[keening_phantom]

"The opera house, of course." The voice follows as Erik keeps to his hiding spot. What a curious fellow to be having a conversation with a disembodied voice. He was either quite mad or possibly too inquisitive for his own good.

[fifthdoctor]

Opera, he could do with taking in a show. Maybe it would help him find out who the voice was as well. "I do enjoy a good show now and again...." The Doctor finds himself after the lanterns somewhere backstage. He can faintly hear the music even though he's far from the singers. Whether it is rehearsal or the actual show, one cannot tell from here.

"Wonder if there will be a seat left?" he muses to himself aloud. With a name like Opera Populaire, it was bound to be packed.