"Ladies and gentledogs," Monsieur Levefre said as he took a glass in his paw, "It has been a long 8 years since I took over the role of manager from Monsieur Debienne and Monsieur Poligny, the first managers of the Canine. And after those years, I'm surprised that I have lasted this long. I am deeply honored for having the chance of being part of this wonderful establishment. So here is to all those years." Levefre raised his glass, and everyone else followed suite.

   "Before we start, I would like to introduce you all to the three dogs that will be running the Opera Canine," He then waved his paw over the trio and called out their names in order, who stood up when their name was called, Monsieur Nikki Firmin to the dog on right, Monsieur Kaltag Moncharmin in the middle, and Monsieur Star Andre on the left.

   Everyone applauded the three dogs, and as they sat back down in their chairs, they could hear that someone was still clapping rather slowly. A few of the guests who were seated at the rectangular tables noticed this, and when they looked over to find the source of the clapping, a few of them gasped, and immediately turned there heads.

   "It's the Opera Ghost," One of them whispered, and soon everyone in the Foyer had their heads turned towards the clapping sound, and what they saw made their blood run cold.

   The ghost was seated at one of the tables at the very back, in one of the corners of the Foyer, a table that was far away from all of the rest, which had a black tablecloth over it instead of white one. One of the lights was out at that corner, making that entire place covered with a black shadow, and a few of the dogs near the table could make out a pair of yellow eyes with brown irises, staring back at them. They couldn't see much of his body, for the darkness around him seemed to cover his entire form. Only his eyes could be seen, along with his large, furry grey paws, which slowly clapped in a rather unsettling motion, which broke the eerie silence that had placed over the entire Foyer.

   Monsieur Levefre coughed slightly, as a grave; rather upsetting feeling came over him. I promised I'd pay him tomorrow before I leave…oh I hope he isn't too angry. Upon making eye contact with the ghost, his fears were no doubt realized.

   The other dogs next to him, however, where confused as to what was going on. Star was the first to speak up, "Um, excuse me, Monsieur Levefre, who is that?" He asked, "Is he a friend?"

   "No…not exactly…but he is a very…well-known dog around here." He said, as he looked over at the ghost's table, but saw that he was gone, with the light illuminating the spot where the ghost sat, revealing it to be empty. As soon as everyone realized this, the happy mood returned to the Foyer.

   "That was weird," Monsieur Kaltag said, "Kind of random as well."

   "Yes, indeed," Monsieur Levefre then got up from his seat, having suddenly lost his appetite, "If you please, gentledogs, follow me and I will show you to your new office.."

   "Of course, Monsieur," Monsieur Kaltag replied, as he and Nikki stood up, however Star seemed to be speaking to one of the females at the other table, who was stroking his chin.

   "You know, I'm going to be the boss of this place pretty soon," He said grinning, "and if you want, you can come into my office anyt-wuph!" The purple dog was then dragged out by his suit collar, which was grasped by Monsieur Kaltag, who merely ignored his friend's whimpers.

   "Aw, I was just getting started," Star whimpered in protest.

   "Come on, you can flirt later," Kaltag replied, as the three went out of the Grand Foyer.

   It was truly a miracle that Monsieur Levefre managed to find these three, despite their lack of knowledge of the music business. He was a tad desperate, and despite his lack of knowledge of the three dogs, he thought he might as well offer them a job. It was no surprise that they agreed, for the trio seemed just as desperate for change from their boring, dull lifestyles.

   Kaltag Moncharmin, the head of the three dogs, had previously been a journalist for the paper Le Figaro, in which he was known for his impeccable "pawwriting" and immense use of adjectives, and whilst he enjoyed it, he wasn't really interested in it after writing about bland and boring events.

   Nikki Firmin had previously worked in the scrap metal business, and it was about as dull as you could think of. Having to work day and night in the factory wasn't exactly fun, what with the fear of getting burned by the hot metal and getting covered with soot being eminent, it wasn't all too fitting for the brown husky, who still had a small burn spot on his neck.

   Star Andre worked as a waiter for the restaurant L'Orchidée. He wasn't at all too pleased with his work, despite how easy it may have sounded, but having to wait on upper-class dogs that never really paid him much attention, were rude to him, and having been pushed around like a servant by his boss and staff, it definitely unsatisfied him. It was almost like he didn't exist, and his voice didn't matter at all.

   The three had first met at a small inn, and they became fast friends. They traded stories, and realized that they shared one thing in common: boredom, bored of their lives, bored of their jobs, and just all around fed up with not really being able do anything interesting. So, when the announcement for a managerial opening at the Palais Canine came in the paper, Kaltag was one of the first to get a copy, and told his two friends, and went to Monsieur Levefre for the job. Just the thought of actually running a business instead of working in it sounded exciting for the trio, and they sent their resumes to the Canine.

   Despite the other numerous amount of dogs that also applied for the position, and despite their incredible knowledge of business work and the music world, the trio still managed to snag the position, despite their non-musical background.

   Monsieur Levefre led the dogs over to the area with the Grand Staircase, which, much like the foyer, was polished with gold, which could be seen as soon as someone walked through the entrance. The staircase was made up of 2 separate staircases, with two on each side, which led to the second floor, with both of them being leading to the largest staircase, which led down to the floor. The staircase itself was covered in white marble, and above the area were even more mosaic paintings, with a skylight in the middle. At each side of the different pillars and railings of the Grand Staircase area, were small lamps that illuminated the entire place.

   The Manager's Office was located near the entrance, which could conveniently found on the right side of the Grand Staircase. Monsieur Levefre opened the door with his key, and the 4 walked inside. The office wasn't very big, but it also wasn't so small either. The manager's desk was located on the left; with one chair on either side of the table; with a few papers strewn about the top it, alongside a small cigar box, and a small, silver candlestick. The right side held a bookcase, which took up most of the wall, with a piano at its feet, which was used for private auditions. In the middle was a fireplace, with the portraits of Monsieur Debienne and Monsieur Poligny, the previous managers, at the top; a small clock which was placed on the top of the mantelpiece of the hearth, with two small, marble vases on the sides. At the two ends of the fireplace held two tall candlesticks, which were held up by tall, black candle holders. The office seemed to have something of a homey, peaceful sort of feel to it, as the candles darkly lit up the place, as ones paws felt nice against the red velvet carpet.

   "Now, gentledogs, this is your new 'home away from home' as they say." The old manager chuckled to himself.

   "We thank you, Monsieur." Monsieur Kaltag replied, taking off his hat, "Place looks great, fantastic, splendid, magnificent-"

   "It's awesome!" Star suddenly exclaimed, but only received a smack to the head by the Alaskan Chinnok. That sort of thing happened quite a lot for some unknown reason.

   "Oh, that reminds me," The manager then swiftly walked over to the desk, and opened up one the small drawers, at took out the contents inside, and walked back over to the three dogs.

   "These are the Master Keys, messieurs, of the Opera Canine. These keys are tremendously valuable to the Opera House, as they unlock every single room in this House, over 2,500 of them. Use them with extreme care, and do not let them out of your sight." The trio, standing in a line as they always did, each held out a paw to receive their key. Levefre gave one to Kaltag, then to Nikki, and as Star held out his eagerly, he realized he did not receive one.

   "Why didn't I get one?" He asked, frowning.

   "I'm sorry, Monsieur Andre," The elderly husky apologized, "But ever since I was given the reigns of this House, messieurs Debienne and Poligny had told me that the third key suddenly went missing one day. They haven't found it since. They said that the Opera Ghost had stolen it."

   This sudden statement about a ghost made the three burst out laughing.