the power of the music of the night, open

[CARLEY A. C. MCINTYRE]

outfit: outfit
tagged: open
notes: notes

"In sleep he sang to me,
In dreams he came
That voice which calls to me
And speaks my name"

Carley felt at home, standing on the stage of the auditorium. She was close with the theatre instructor, and she got permission to use the auditorium to practice. Really, she didn't necessarily need to practice because there wasn't a show going on, but teacher let her in anyway. After warming up for a while, she set up her phone, which had a playlist of musical instrumentals already pulled up, and plugged it into the sound booth. Since she was alone, she had an awkward rush to the stage after she pressed play, but luckily there was enough intro so that she made it in time.

"And do I dream again?
For now I find
The phantom of the opera is there
Inside my mind"

Carley breathed as the Phantom's part played, feeling almost afraid yet intrigued as Christine Daae was. She connected with the song in a way, because of the voice in her head, the darkness deep down. And even if she knew it wasn't a man in a mask, she knew how it felt to always have a voice speaking to you, all around you, frightening you.

"Those who have seen your face
Draw back in fear
I am the mask you wear

It's me they hear. Sometimes Carley wondered if she could keep fighting that voice. It told her to do things that she didn't want to do, and sometimes she listened. She couldn't help it. She didn't have control over it, it had control over her.

"Your spirit and my voice
In one combined
The phantom of the opera is there
Inside my mind

Carley kept singing, anxious for the end of the song, which was what she was really wanting to practice it for. She got the notes maybe half of the time, and usually it was because she got so nervous that she couldn't do it.

"He's there, the phantom of the opera..."

But she took a deep breath, and sang out. This was one of her favorite moments of the musical, when Christine sang these notes. She loved how it sounded so beautiful and yet almost sounded like she was screaming in fear. She sang every note beautifully, and the song ended withv Carley smiling, proiud of herself.

Carley had planned a break and had put The Phantom of the Opera overture in between this song and the next. She took a drink of water from the bottle she had brought with her and breathed in deeply. This was where she felt at home, when she was alone in this auditorium, singing songs that she loved.

But wait, what was that? "Hello?" she called over the sound of the overture, looking out into the audience. The lights were turned up, though, and she couldn't see very well. "Is someone there?" Jesus, was this going to actually be The Phantom of the Opera? "Angel I hear you, speak, I listen," she sang under her breath sarcastically.

and do i dream again for now i find
the phantom of the opera is there inside my mind

[EMILIA C. WYNN]

IN A TIME OF MONSTERS

even a wise man may fall

TAG: carley

NOTES: emilie can be a creep -shrug- (hover over the lyrics it looks cool!)

Emilia had always enjoyed the mood of an empty auditorium. The cavernous emptiness held the potential to be something amazing and meaningful, just like she did. Occasionally, Emilia would sneak into the school's auditorium and close her eyes as she walked down the aisle, pretending there was a heavy crown atop her head and that her steps were weighed down by an ornamental ball gown, the seats filled with similarly (but not as beautifully) dressed guests. As she would make her way to the stage, she would envision it as an ornate altar, where she would be named queen.

Of course, this vision always came to a shattering halt when Emilia opened her eyes and the empty, slightly worn, red seats were the only things staring at her. Emilia would then sit down on the stage and do her schoolwork, occasionally humming to herself. It was much better than the library, where most of the gross scholarship students took up tables, having no problem sitting right across from her without even asking (not that Emilia would allow it if they asked). And there was no way she would confine herself to that tiny dorm room that she was expected to live in, especially with her annoying and too-much-space-occupying roommate. Honestly, Emilia wished she could just...get rid of her.

Anyways.

Emilia was startled to find the door to the auditorium unlocked and slightly ajar, and even more surprised to hear music coming from the sound system. An annoyed scowl crossed her face before she pushed the door opened and strode in, Louboutins clicking against the floor. As Emilia took in the scene, she realized that to the person on stage, she was invisible. Taking advantage, she sat in an aisle seat, squinting (honestly she really did need to go to an eye doctor) at whoever was singing. Red hair, nice body, proper way of holding herself...there was something familiar about this performer. Emilia racked her brain and realized that she was watching Carley McIntyre singing. The scowl once again returned to her face. Emilia used to never think anyone besides her sister Hannah was worthy of being a rival, until she discovered the existence of her. Now, Hannah was six feet under and here was Carley, singing on the stage while Emilia watched from below.

Well, that just wouldn't do, would it?

Emilia strode over to the sound booth, getting noticed along the way. As the overture came to an end, Emilia cut the music and walked up to the stage. In a dramatic tone, she said,"Sing, my angel of music!". Crossing her arms, Emilia stared up at Carley. This wasn't a position she was ok with, and Emilia was quite familiar with a lot of different positions. "I wasn't aware Baum was putting on The Phantom of the Opera, or that you got a lead role."

♔ nickdiazfan outfit

[CARLEY A. C. MCINTYRE]

outfit: outfit
tagged: emilia
notes: notes

Carley pursed her lips when the mystery person cut the music. This had better be important. She peered into the darkness and saw the shadowy figure getting clearer as they approached. Her heart pounded in her chest. Was it her? The voice she heard in the back of her mind? The one she kept hidden from even the person who knew the most about her?

And then she heard her voice, and she calmed down a little bit, but not all the way. It was a different "her", one that was a lot less frightening but a lot more annoying. She crossed her arms, popping her hip, full white-girl bitch mode. "I wasn't aware you were in charge of the auditorium." She remained stoic, not fidgeting except to put her hair behind her ear out of instinct.

She felt intimidated, but there was no way Carley was going to let that show, especially not in her house. Well, Emilia was in the house, Carley was on the stage, and that's exactly how it should have been. Or maybe they could be on the stage together, but Emilia standing a little off-center and Carley staying center-stage. Anyway.

She always respected and admired Emilia for who she was (actual royalty? Carley was so secretly jealous), but that was exactly the reason that she also hated her. She generally hated rivals, because they just made more work for her. But she always hoped deep down that they could be... friends. Yeah. But also, no, she couldn't think that way in this situation. She tried to focus on how awful that mint green color looked on her (even though it really didn't). "There's not a show going on, anyway. I just like to come here sometimes. Think. Sing. What about you? What are you doing here?"

and do i dream again for now i find
the phantom of the opera is there inside my mind

[EMILIA C. WYNN]

IN A TIME OF MONSTERS

even a wise man may fall

TAG: carley

NOTES: emilia is kind of kanye west i just realized?????

"I wasn't aware you were in charge of the auditorium."

Emilia pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes. How unbelievably sassy of her. Then again, Emilia expected nothing less from Carley. Still, anyone acting sassy towards her rubbed Emilia the wrong way, and now was no different. In her mind, it was an act of disrespect, and she had been raised knowing that you never disrespected someone of higher rank, and as far as Emilia was concerned, Carley had no rank at all. Carley's hair glimmered in the light, and instead of envying how shiny it was and how unique and beautiful of a color it was, Emilia decided that the color was tacky and looked like it came from a box. Emilia's own dark, glossy hair was much better; plus, she had never had to endure a "does the carpet match the drapes" question. A smirk briefly crossed her face, Emilia wouldn't have minded knowing the answer to that question. Hate sex was was almost at the top of her list of things she enjoyed most in the world, right behind making sure everyone felt insecure in her presence. "I'm no more in charge of this place than you are." As she said this, Emilia stepped up onto the stage, making the two girls even, both physically and in the metaphorical ownership of the auditorium.

It felt nice to be up on the stage, Emilia could understand the appeal of practicing vocal talents on it, even if it was to an empty audience, with no one to give any feedback. Emilia also understood, though, that people like her and Carley didn't appreciate feedback, because they already knew that the things they did were done perfectly. A small wave of calm washed over Emilia when Carley said there wasn't a production in the works; even though Emilia lacked the ability to sing, she was amazing at bossing people around and thoroughly enjoyed being an assistant director.

Emilia carefully put her purse on the floor, making sure it stood up and didn't tip over. She, too, came to auditorium to think, but Emilia wouldn't admit that shared trait. "I'm here to work on an English paper. I come in here a lot, actually, I'm surprised we haven't run into each other before." Emilia was a master planner when it came to plots and schemes against people, but she always saved her schoolwork until the last minute. In two days, her character analysis of Hamlet would be due. It had to be ten pages, and so far she only had an introduction, and, of course, her analysis of King Claudius. That had been laughably easy, considering the character himself lurked in her head (which was something she was still trying to adjust to). Emilia wondered what their dynamic would be like if they had run into each other in this auditorium long before she cared about out doing anyone but her sister. Perhaps they could've been friends before her power hungry urges took over and pushed Carley away. Hell, if they had met long ago and Emilia was sure that Carley wasn't straight, they could've been a little something more for a while. But Emilia knew it did no good to linger in the past, and in her present, her and Carley were not friendly.

♔ nickdiazfan outfit

[CARLEY A. C. MCINTYRE]

outfit: outfit
tagged: emilia
notes: carley is kim k so

Carley definitely felt insecure in Emilia's presence, but then again, she felt insecure most of the time, and she couldn't help but pull down her romper and smooth down any wrinkles that might have occured anywhere other than her pride. Her lips pursed and she couldn't help but sigh. "You got a point there, but I did ask permission to use it." She didn't ask her to leave. Actually, Carley was kind of looking back on how she sounded earlier and decided maybe she didn't want to sing anymore. Emilia being present for her practicing made her feel even more self-conscious than usual.

Oh, so she was getting on the stage? Cool. Whatever. Carley totally didn't care that she was getting closer to her, and that something about that made her heart beat faster. It was some strange mix of fear and intrigue, neither of which Carley wanted to admit. She wasn't afraid of Emilia (which she kind of was), and she was 100% straight (which she wasn't sure about anymore looking at the way Emilia walked, tall, powerful...)

Okay, no, Carley. Heterosexuality. Yeah. "What a strange coincidence." she sassed, hiding how insignificant she felt with Emilia on the same level as her. "Isn't there a library for that?" Carley realized that if she sounded bad earlier, she needed to practice, and this was the best place to so. And while she definitely could with Emilia there, she felt so terrified of any criticisms she might make that she wasn't sure if she could sing with her there. And there was no way that she was going to choke in front of Emilia Wynn.

Folding her arms, Carley tapped her foot in annoyance, wondering if she was really going to work on her paper here. Carley felt the urge to sing and she was getting impatient and flustered with this whole situation, but tried not to show it because that was probably just what Emilia wanted.

and do i dream again for now i find
the phantom of the opera is there inside my mind