Chapter Text
I’ve let Christine go. I’ve told her I love her, and because of that love, I’ve let her go. I try to block out the sound of their voices, Christine and the Vicomte. I can still hear them whispering together as he coaxes her away. He is right to do so. I cannot force her to love me; I cannot imprison her down here in this tomb.
Something changes. Something is different. I detect a shift in Christine’s tone, in his tone. She sounds frightened again. She sounds as if she is pleading with him. He sounds angry. He sounds as if he is berating her. I follow the sound of their voices through the dark labyrinth until they are back in my sight. He has her wrist in a vice-like grip, dragging her away. She is fighting him. There are tears streaming down that beautiful face again and she is fighting like Hell to get away from him. Her nails dig into his hand as she tries to pry it from her wrist. The sight is like a blow as I know it must be exactly how we looked as I dragged her down here.
She looks back and sees me. Her hand reaches out for me. I can see that the two of them are shouting at each other, but something in my brain has clicked off. It is no longer able to interpret sound. Her eyes…her eyes are pleading with me, her hand is reaching out for me. They are shouting, but it sounds like cymbals clanging in my head. She is reaching for me and I have only one coherent thought: He will not take her if she does not wish to go.
A sound like a wounded animal tears from me as I charge towards them. “Take your hands off her!” I bellow. I’ve always been blessed with an unnatural level of strength. It serves me well as I tear the Vicomte’s hand from her wrist and throw him into the wall. He hits his head on the stone and slumps to the ground unconscious.
Christine throws her arms around my waist and buries her face in my chest. It still feels nearly impossible to wrap my arms around her, but I force myself to overcome a lifetime of fearing to touch and be touched. I hold her, tentatively at first, but then my arms steady and become firm. She’s trying to say something, but she’s sobbing so hard I can’t understand her. The mob is coming, but we are in one of the better hidden tunnels. We have time.
“You have to calm down, Christine. I can’t understand you. Shh…that’s it deep breaths now, just like in your lessons.” She tries to perform one of the many breathing exercises I taught her, but it still takes some time for the shuddering sobs to stop. “There now. What happened? Did he hurt you?”
“I told him I wanted to stay with you. He said I was simply in shock and not thinking clearly. I told him I was finally thinking clearly for the first time in months. I tried to turn back and he grabbed me and told me he would drag me out of here kicking and screaming if that is what it took.”
I should have let him take her. I would have if he had not been hurting her. I take a deep breath and steal myself for what I must do. I tilt her lovely face up to mine. “Christine, you cannot stay with me out of pity. The Vicomte was right, you deserve to live your own life. You deserve to be free and happy. That’s why I let you go.”
“It’s not pity.” Her lower lips trembles.
I take her by the shoulders and push her back from me. “What then, Christine? We both know you cannot love me.”
“I…I’m not sure. I think maybe I could, in time. Either way, I just know that I want to stay with you.”
I sigh. It feels like my heart is in a vice. “Christine, you cannot. Once you’ve had time to calm down and think, you’ll realize it, too.” She grips my shirt with a desperate tenacity. Now I am going to have to pry her away from me. It is what is best for her. I must do what is best for her. I think it may kill me. “It’s for the best.”
I start to pull my shirt out of her tight little fists. “No!” She throws her arms back around my waist. “Please! Please, Angel, don’t make me leave you.”
She’s starting to cry again and it’s more than I can bear. “I’m no angel. You know that.”
“You’re my angel.”
“I’m nothing but a foolish, selfish, bitter man. I cannot give you the life you deserve. If you stay with me, you’ll be miserable.”
She pulls back from me and straightens her spine. Her eyes burn into mine, her hands curl into fists at her sides, and she stomps her foot. She actually stomps her foot at me! “I…am…stay-ing!” She declares. “If you try to leave me, I’ll simply follow you like a pup.”
I bite down on my frustration. We are running out of time. “Fine,” I snap. “Fine, on your own head be it. Remember this when you begin to grow resentful of me. Stay here. I’ll be back in a moment.”
“Do you promise?” She’s looking more like her old, hesitant self. The one who needed the firm hand of the Angel of Music to guide her.
“Yes, Christine,” I take her hand and place it over my heart. “I promise.” All my irritation with her has vanished. She’s simply an uncertain child who needs someone to care for her. If she will not allow the Vicomte to do it, then I must. Even if it is against my better judgement. Even if I fear one or both of us will end up even more deeply wounded. I cannot leave her alone. I don’t want her to be alone.
I grab the Vicomte’s feet and begin to drag him down the tunnel. “What are you going to do with him?” She asks nervously.
“I’m going to put him somewhere he’s sure to be found…helped. Stay here, I’ll be back soon.”
I place the Vicomte in a tunnel the mob is certain to find. For a moment I stare down at him, my erstwhile rival. He loves her, of that I’m certain. He’s clearly a brave young man. I can hardly blame him for losing his composure when she told him she wanted to stay. If I had been in his position, I would have tried to drag her away as well. I wish I could say without manhandling her, but the way I dragged her down here from the stage disproves that. I can’t help but think he was right, once the shock wears off she’s going to regret her decision. The two of them could have been happy…if not for me. I sigh. “Good luck, my young friend. I never thought I would say this, but you deserve better as well.”
When I return to Christine, she rushes down the tunnel to meet me. “I thought you’d never come back!”
“I promised you, didn’t I?” I stand, uncertain for a moment, then tentatively offer her my hand. She takes it without hesitation. “Come along, there’s not much time left. I have to secure all the entrances to my home so that mob cannot find it.”
She stares at me with raised brows. “Is that possible?”
“Of course. Do you really think I’d live in a place I can’t completely protect?”
I return her to my home. “Stay here. This will take some time.”
She clutches my sleeve. “Can’t I come with you?”
“No, I will not be able to concentrate sufficiently to get this done in time if I’m concerned with your safety.”
Her breath quickens and her gaze darts around the chamber. “Please, I…”
“You have nothing to fear here, Christine. You will be completely safe. I wouldn’t leave you here if I believed otherwise.” I run a knuckle gently down her cheek. It’s coming easier now, touching her.
“Please…”
“Enough!” I keep my voice firm. “You decided to stay with me, and now you’re going to obey me. Stay here.” She gapes at me for a moment then nods. I go and secure every tunnel that leads to the lake and my home with an undetectable stone door. If the mob enters any of the guarded tunnels, they will think they’ve hit a dead end. They will not be able to activate the stone doors without finding the hidden switches for the counterweights, and they will never find those. Madame Giry must have shown the Vicomte how to find me, just as I hoped. I wanted him to find me; if not, it would have been too easy to stop him.
I return to find Christine pacing and wringing her hands. She throws herself at me, wrapping her arms around my waist again. It’s getting easier to let her touch me now as well. She’s trembling from head to toe. “Christine!” I hold her tightly. “I told you, you’re safe here, do you think I would lie about that?”
“No…I just…it’s…very unsettling to be here alone. Are you certain they will not be able to find us?”
“Completely certain. I would never compromise your safety.” She relaxes against me and I stroke her hair. “Come let’s sit down. You must be exhausted.” I show her to a couch and sit. She presses into my side and I put my arm around her. “What can I do to help you feel at ease, Christine?”
“Just…just sit here and hold me. Is that alright?”
“Of course.”
We lapse into a thoughtful silence which lasts some time. Christine breaks it by hesitantly asking, “Angel?”
“Erik.”
She looks at me with a quizzical brow. “What?”
“My name is Erik. I am not and never have been an angel.”
“Erik.” She says it as if she is tasting it. “Erik.” She smiles. “I like it.”
I chuckle. “And what if you had not?”
“I suppose I would keep calling you Angel and you would have to deal with it.”
I can’t stop the grin that spreads across my face. “Would I now? I believe we already established that staying with me means you must obey.”
“I take it you intend to be every bit as strict as the Angel of Music?” She pouts.
“Perhaps even more so. Our position is quite perilous now. They will continue looking for both of us for some time. Our safety is my highest priority. In order to ensure it, it is vital that you do exactly as I say.”
I can sense the battle going on in her mind. What she chooses to do now will set the tone for our relationship moving forward. I keep my expression unreadable as I await her choice. Finally she murmurs, “Yes, Erik.”
I start to rise, but she takes hold of my shirt. “Where are you going?”
“To get a mask. You’ve been forced to look at me long enough.”
“No.” I raise one brow. “I mean…please don’t, Erik.”
“Better. Why not?”
“I don’t want you to wear one when we are here and safe. It’s like you're hiding from me. Still lying to me.”
I shift uncomfortably. “Christine, I…”
“Please, Erik. I’ve seen you, and I’m here. Please don’t hide from me.”
I close my eyes and take a deep breath. “Alright.”
She smiles and slowly reaches for my hair. “May I?” I nod. She attempts to smooth the unruly mess. “Do you have a comb?”
“Yes.”
I start to rise and retrieve it for her, but she jumps up. “Let me get it.” I tell her where to find the comb and she returns with it shortly. She combs my hair and then stands back to observe her handiwork. “There, perfectly presentable.” This causes a pang in my chest as “perfectly presentable” is something I will never be. She returns the comb and resumes her place at my side. I wrap my arm back around her shoulders. She lays her head on my chest and drapes her own arm across me. Somehow it feels so natural. “Erik?”
“Yes?”
“What now?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, for starters, what are we? Are we friends?” She hesitates for a moment then adds, “Lovers?”
“Did you not have an idea when you decided to stay?”
“No, not really. I just knew I wanted to be with you.”
“Why? Christine, I need to know. Why did you decide to stay with me?”
She shrugs. “I’m not entirely sure, to be honest. I just know the thought of being without you suddenly broke my heart, and so did the thought of you being without me.”
I lift my hand from her shoulder to stroke her hair. “Perhaps we should simply focus on getting to know one another.”
She nods thoughtfully. “Yes, that seems wise.”
“What else?”
“Hmm?”
“You said, ‘for starters,’ so what else is on your mind?”
“What are we going to do now? Aren’t we trapped?”
“They’ll give up eventually. For now, I have plenty of food to last us some time. Much of it is likely not food to which you are accustomed. Much of it is dried and shelf stable. I do have some fresh items, we should eat them first. I suppose we will just stay here and work on the getting to know one another plan. Eventually I will venture out and see if they have stopped looking for us. You’ll be comfortable here. There’s much more to my home than you saw last time. I have a bedroom for you and a wardrobe full of clothing.”
She’s staring at me wide eyed. “You have a bed and clothing for me?”
“Of course. From the moment I first saw you, I hoped for this…for you to be with me.”
“May I kiss your cheek?”
My stomach lurches. “Why?”
“Because I want to, and because it feels right.” She is sitting on my unbroken side. I tilt that cheek towards her, but she reaches up and gently turns my head. She presses her lips purposefully to my deformed cheek then lays her head back on my chest.
“Once they stop looking for us, then what?”
I’m still trying to recover from the kiss, but I manage to find my voice. “Then we can start going out when needed. We’ll have to be much more careful than I was before. The stone doors will have to remain shut when we are not going through them.”
“The what?”
“I’ll show you when the time comes.” We fall silent again and eventually Christine starts to doze. “Time for bed, my dear.”
She looks at me with heavy eyes. “Will you come with me please?”
This brings on a wave of apprehension. “Christine…I…” I try to swallow the enormous lump that has formed in my throat.
“We just hold each other, that’s all.” Her lower lip is trembling. “I don’t know if I can sleep here on my own.”
“Christine, I need you to understand…I don’t know if I can lay with you in a bed without…touching you…without…taking more than you are ready to give. I never want to do that.”
“What a load of nonsense, Erik! If you were going to do such a thing, you would have done it the first time I was here.”
I stare at her stonily. “Are you talking back to me, Christine?”
“No,” she replies airily, “simply stating facts.”
I burst out laughing and she gives me a cheeky grin. “Alright, my dear, we’ll try. That’s all I’m promising for now. If it becomes…too much I’ll have to leave.” The pleading look in her eyes prompts me to say, “Look, the bedroom is here.” I show her to the room. “If I have to leave, I’ll just be right out here at the organ. Very close.”
She stares between the bedroom doorway and the organ for a moment then nods. We separate to prepare for bed. Once we are ready, we lie down in a position very similar to how we were sitting on the couch. Christine snuggles into me. It’s…heavenly. Before long I doze off and get the best sleep of my life.