Author's Notes: Hello! This is the Final Lair scene at the end of the Phantom of the Opera movie from Raoul's POV. I'll admit, I've probably changed more than I should have. : P They aren't singing, but rather talking all the lines. I did this for two reasons: 1) singing doesn't come off well in written stories like this and 2) it makes it less cheesy. I'm not saying the play was cheesy, but that type of expression just translates so much better when you can actually hear what's being sung. The words aren't exact and I've changed around a bit of the dialogue (removed some, added words, etc.), so hopefully that won't matter that much. D:
This is movie based, although I have seen this same scene from a few versions of the play. I can't believe I've never bothered watching the Phantom of the Opera movie! It was really good, the storyline was so unique. I want to see the play so badly now, because I've heard it's so much better than the movie!
This is canon in the sense that it's Christine x Raoul. I'm not against the idea of Christine x Erik, I just like to (usually) go with the writer's original intent. I'm sorry, this does slightly bash the Phantom, but it's what Raoul would have been thinking. His views do not reflect my own. I just feel like Raoul gets so much hate, so I wanted to try something different and write something that's in favor of him. I actually feel super bad for Erik, he makes me so sad because he's just so… dejected. Poor baby. But I also feel like he went about things in a totally wrong way. He threatened to kill Christine's lover if she didn't go with him, I mean come on… Pardon me if I think that's a bit twisted.
Goodness, did I have to fight to make Raoul not sarcastic. I'm used to writing as overly sardonic characters. I only saw the movie once, so… hopefully he's not too OOC. My apologies if he is. ): Also, I'm sorry Christine is so bland in this. But that isn't my doing, she literally JUST STANDS THERE throughout this whole scene while herfiancée IS BEING STRANGLED. I don't get it, I would've been screaming my pretty little head off and trying to free Raoul.
Also, I've toyed with extending this to where they leave the lair… I don't know.
Feedback would be much loved! And please, no useless reviews flaming Raoul x Christine.
-Indigo
Writing belongs to me!
Disclaimer: Phantom of the Opera does not belong to me! This is purely a work of fan fiction and I claim no rights to the lyrics, characters, or story.
I pulled myself over the ledge and lay there for a few minutes, gasping and coughing up water. I hadn't expected the Phantom–I refuse to call that monster by name–to have traps around, though it made sense. The realization that I had barely made it out of that water alive hit me. My lungs still burned from the lack of oxygen and I was gulping air greedily. Now I was soaked to the skin, the cut on my arm throbbing more painfully than normal. I could see blood coloring my sleeve. But I couldn't linger here, Christine, my beautiful Christine, was somewhere in here with… with that monster.
Pulling myself up to my feet, I started off in the only direction I could: forward. I didn't even stop to consider my own safety. The Phantom had almost killed me once and I knew he wouldn't hesitate to try again. Something told me he wasn't one to tolerate not having things go his way. But Christine was in here! I was no coward; there was no way the thought of leaving her here and saving myself would enter my mind. Even if it cost me my life, I would protect her.
I could do that, couldn't I? Lay down my life for her?
The answer was so immediate, so forthright, that it even shocked me. Yes, I could. I would gladly die to keep her safe. I loved her. Loved her more than myself, certainly.
Voices echoed down the chamber ahead. I was close, and I could feel my palms beginning to sweat in anticipation. Offering up a silent prayer for Christine, I trudged on forwards, my boots sloshing through the water below. Despite myself, a shiver snaked up my spine. It was dark and wet and cold. My dripping clothes snatched away my body heat and I fought to keep my jaw from trembling. Adding to my discomfort, I was still losing blood from the sword cut on my arm.
The voices grew louder and my feet quickened in response. Lights! I could see lights, flickering off the walls, ahead. I put on a burst of speed, ignoring my own pains. He would not have her, I wouldn't allow it! To my dying breath, I would see that through. A heavy iron portcullis barred my way, but I could see past it. Into his lair. Candles were the only light source, and there was a mirror beside…
Christine!
I saw her standing there, looking for all the world like an angel in the wedding gown if it weren't for the look of distress on her perfect face. The Phantom was climbing slowly to the top of some stairs and seemed to be trying convince her of something, I don't know. I don't care. She's safe… she's safe and I have to keep her that way.
"Wait," the Phantom hissed to her, turning around to face me but still speaking to Christine. "I think we have a guest, my dear." I glared at him, waiting to see what intentions he had in mind next. I bit back a gasp at seeing the right side of his face. What had happened to him? The grotesque skin was bubbled and rippled, right up past his hairline. A wild, dangerous look danced in his brilliant blue eyes. He looked like something out of a nightmare. Little wonder that he wore a mask. I fought to keep myself from grimacing.
He began slowly descending down the stairs towards Christine, gesturing wildly with his hands as he spoke, "I had rather hoped that you would come, monsieur. You have truly made my night." Upon reaching Christine, he pounced on her and held her in his grip, his eyes gazing defiantly into mine. My breath caught in my throat. He was hurting her! How could this man claim that he had any love for her?
"Free her!" I shouted, griping the gate with one hand and desperately reaching through with the other. I knew it wouldn't help, but I was in a near state of panic. I couldn't risk her being hurt. "Do what you will with me, just let her go!" Christine stared at me in surprise and worry, silently shaking her head "no."
The monster shoved her roughly away and she stumbled, but managed to keep her footing. I let out the breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding. "No, Raoul! Leave, it's useless!" she shrieked desperately, her voice breaking. I could see tears begin to gather in her eyes and realized I had my own rising in my throat. I swallowed them away. I wouldn't give the Phantom the satisfaction of seeing me cry.
"I love her, does that mean nothing to you? Let me in!" I yelled, genuinely surprised at the steadiness in my tone. "Show some compassion!"
The Phantom gripped his head in his hands, muttering to himself. Then he straightened. "The world showed no compassion to me. Why should that make any difference for you?" He looked so… broken. His eyes were red-rimmed and his hair was in total disarray.
"Christine…" I whispered, feeling all kinds of emotions rise within me. Rage, hate, fear, desperation. "Let me in!" I repeated, and this time, regardless of my best attempts to stop it, my voice cracked.
A smile crossed his face and a shiver ran down my spine. He put his hand on a lever and slowly, agonizingly flipped it. The portcullis began to rise. Hope sprung to me and I crouched under the gate, stepping over the threshold to his lair. "Be my guest, sir. I bid you welcome." His words were cold; a note of danger lurked deep within them. A flutter rose in my chest. This man was treacherous; I had to be careful or a may be of no use to Christine.
He slowly started to make his way to me through the water, leaving Christine standing there trying to keep herself from sobbing. She seemed… torn. My jaw stiffened. She couldn't honestly be pitying him, could she? He was a monster. I glanced up at the portcullis, which had closed again behind me. In my distraction, I hadn't realized how close the Phantom had come.
I prepared to dodge, but he was quicker than me. We struggled for a minute–he had gotten a rope from somewhere, I don't know–and for a moment we seemed evenly matched. I was roughly shoved against the gate and the rope was thrown across me. He caught my wrist and tied it to one of the grates on the gate, pinning me there. I wiggled my wrist, desperately trying to get free, but he looped the rope across me again. I stared into his eyes, begging him not to do this to Christine. Let her go… Please…
"Did you honestly think that I would harm her?" he sneered in my face, tightening the rope around my free wrist and binding it as well. "Why should she pay for the sins that are yours? Nothing can save you now, boy."
He had turned from me as he spoke, walking away. The indignity I would have felt at being called a "boy" was nothing in this current situation. I was safe for the moment, but I knew that wouldn't last must longer. I struggled against the ropes, but only succeeded in digging the coarse cord into the wound on my bicep. Blood was running down my arm, my sleeve was now entirely soaked in blood and water. It hurt, but I paid absolutely zero mind to it. Christine had a tortured expression on her face as she just stood there, shocked. I can't believe how idiotic I had been, allowing the Phantom to restrain me. I lowered my head in shame.
The Phantom had dragged himself out of the water on the other side. I couldn't ever remember a time in my life when I was so helpless! He would kill me and keep Christine… I had failed, I couldn't save her, the bonds were too tight… I couldn't, I couldn't.
I've… failed.
"…Except, perhaps, Christine," the Phantom continued. Sobs welled up in my throat. I was powerless to stop them, no matter my unwillingness to show weakness. Something wet slid down my cheek. I hoped it was water from my still dripping hair, but I knew it wasn't. The tear dropped from my chin and into the water below.
The Phantom stooped and when he rose, a coil of rope with a noose on one end dangled from his hands. I shut my eyes briefly. So this was how I was to die. I looked into Christine's eyes, begging her not to do anything for my sake. I didn't deserve her love, I couldn't save her. The Phantom's voice was just a whisper, but clear as day, "Choose, Christine. Buy his freedom with your love for me." An excruciating pause followed.
"…Or refuse me send your lover to his death." He now began to walk toward me, slowly, silently, smiling. The Phantom began uncoiling the rope in his palms as he waded through the knee-deep water. I already felt like I couldn't breathe because of all the thoughts and emotions swirling around in my head.
Christine let out a little gasp and her bottom lip began to quiver. He couldn't have her! How could I let this monster, this murderer, have her? I thought of all the times we might have shared, now doomed to die because of the Phantom. The Phantom of the Opera. "The tears that I might have shed in pity," Christine said, her eyes darting around wildly and then coming to focus on the Phantom, "turn to tears of hate." I swear I saw the Phantom's eyes flash darkly.
"Forgive me!" I yelled at her while I still could. "Forgive me, Christine, please… Forgive me." My eyebrows drew together as I fought back more tears, my face wrenching into a look of pure defeat. "I did it for you… But now that's nothing." Don't do it Christine, let me die. Don't choose him to save me… I thought.
Christine turned her eyes from mine, looking at the Phantom with a mix of emotions. Hurt, betrayal, anger, sadness. "You were nothing but a false idol, a false friend. Farewell. What hopes I had for…" She stopped, biting her lip, and began to cry quietly. My heart wrenched at the sight.
She had to let me die. I knew it would be one of the most difficult things she would ever do, but I couldn't bear the thought of her spending the rest of her days with that monster. Then I glanced at her again. Was that pity, for him, in her expression? I must be imagining it. This creature had lost all rights to pity after all the wrongs that he'd done.
"It's too late to turn back on all the things that you've done, too late for useless pity," the Phantom sneered. He glanced away. I watched him approach, glaring through my tears.
I realized either way the monster would win. If she did what he wanted, I would die inside. I would rather die physically than emotionally; I couldn't bear it if she went with him to save me. "Say you love him and my life is over," I said softly, looking into her eyes and hoping she got the point.
"There's no point in fighting, you're past the point where cries for help can save you." I saw the bloodlust in his eyes. Despite my better judgment, I looked at the ruined side of his face again. My stomach churned in disgust. He had reached me and was now lifting the noose up, preparing to swing it over my head.
I remembered the words far too late: "Keep your hand at the level of your eyes."
He yelled, "For either way you choose you cannot win!" right as I screamed, "Either way you choose he has to win!" The noose was around my neck now, but he paused a brief and agonizing moment before tightening it. I swallowed nervously, wondering what it would feel like to die. I was weak, I couldn't save her.
I tried tugging at my bonds uselessly again, getting desperate and a bit panicky. Strength was waning from me, probably because I was chilled and had lost too much blood. I swallowed past the lump that had formed in my throat and stared at Christine, trying to convey all my love for her in that what might be our final exchange of glances. The Phantom looped the rope through the grating above me, so that it would act as a lever. In other words, he would yank the rope and I would choke.
"So do you end your days with me, Christine," the Phantom said between clenched teeth, a tortured, frantic look on his deformed face, "or do you send him to his grave?" He tugged the rope for emphasis and I immediately felt the noose constrict. I winced visibly, but thankfully I could still breathe. Christine put her hand on her mouth and made a little sound, akin to a whimper.
"Why would you have her lie to save me?" I growled in his face, baring my teeth. The Phantom began to step slowly through the water back towards Christine, letting the rope slide through his fingers as he moved, but his face still turned towards me. He pulled the rope again, this time harder, and I let out a grunt of pain. The noose was positioned just below my jaw, biting into my skin.
"You're past the point of no return," the Phantom murmured hauntingly, and I knew he spoke the truth. There was no chance of turning back from here. One way or another, there would be an outcome to all this. I could only pray this would all end with Christine being safe and free.
Christine's eyes glazed over with tears, which promptly overflowed down the sides of her face. She closed her eyes and whispered almost inaudibly, "Angel of Music…"
I couldn't stand the suspense anymore. I would die of desperation before the Phantom could even yank that dreadful rope again. "Christine, just say no! For pity's sake, just say it!" I gritted my teeth. "Don't throw your life away for my sake…. Please… please…. Don't." My words trailed off, tears constricting my voice along with the rope.
As he walked, the Phantom keep his gaze centered on Christine. I didn't understand his obvious fascination with her. Did he really love her? Or was it just some twisted emotion that he called love? If he hadn't done all those horrible things, I realized I would feel sympathy for him. I couldn't even imagine the life he must lead, damned to be shunned by society forever. It wasn't his fault, but neither did it justify his actions.
"His life is a prize that you can must earn, my dear," the Phantom called to Christine, water splashing around his boots as he began to slow his walk.
My resolve gave way to despair and I lowered my eyes in dishonor, shamed that I couldn't save her. "I fought so hard," I said in a hushed tone, "to free you." Glancing up, I tried to imprint her face, her beautiful, lovely face, upon my mind and hoped it would give me strength.
Christine gazed intently at the Phantom, her brow creased. "Angel of music…" she whispered again, obviously in the midst of some internal debate. "You deceived me. You lied to me… I gave my mind blindly." Her words were soft, but I knew her well enough to hear the malice in her voice.
"You try my patience," the Phantom shouted. "Make your choice!" He threw himself against the rope and I immediately straightened in attempt to relieve the pressure on my windpipe. I opened my mouth, reaching for air, yet I could not draw breath. I'm choking, I realized. The force lessened slightly as he released his hold, waiting for Christine's answer. Despite that, I had to fight for breath now.
There was a brief pause, and Christine took a step forward. She kept walking until her feet and ankles were submerged in the water, the helm of her dress floating. "Pitiful creature of darkness… What kind of life have you known?" She was now just mere paces away from the Phantom, her chin tipped upwards to look into his face. "God give me courage to show you that you're not alone…" I froze, my shock and horror doubtlessly visible on my face, as I saw her straighten up on her toes and kiss him full on the mouth.
My mind panicked, jumping to one conclusion after another. Had she been unfaith to me, loving him this whole time? No, I wouldn't let myself believe that. But what else would process her to kiss him? Had she done this to spare my life? Pity was the only thing that made sense to me, that she pitied him. She had always had a kind and compassionate heart, so the thought didn't surprise me.
I experienced an entirely new and different version of helplessness as I watched them kiss passionately, her hand on his chest. All I could do was watch, frozen in place. She drew back and looked him in the eyes–I couldn't see her face because he was blocking my view, but I felt it–and kissed him again, her delicate hand on his ruined cheek.
Consumed with the impulse to shout and scream and yell in protest, it took all my willpower to hold my biting words back. The rope had fallen from the Phantom's hand, and I began to entertain the notion that I might survive this encounter. Instead of feeling relieved, I just felt ill. What would me going on living do for Christine? The Phantom would take her far away, I knew I wouldn't be able to find her if I lost her again.
Sobs echoed through the chamber and I was shocked to realize that the Phantom was crying. Far off, I heard people shouting, but I couldn't understand their words. Maybe they could help, I thought optimistically, if they came soon enough… maybe it wouldn't be too late for Christine. Though this seemed unlikely, since the Phantom could also hear them.
He backed away from Christine and stepped past her. His voice was so hoarse and filled with agony as he choked out, "Take her, forget me. Forget all of this!" His steps quickened as he pulled himself up out of the water, still weeping softly. "Leave… leave me alone!" The words seemed to have a numbing effect on my body and I had to struggle to comprehend them. He was leaving and letting her free? Letting me live?
"Forget all you've seen. Take the boat. Swear to me never to tell of the secret you know of the angel in Hell. Go now! Go now! And leave me…" His words sounded strangled, and he shuffled miserably into a back room, out of sight.
Christine ran over to me instantly and loosened the noose from my throat. As I panted I realized just how long it had been since I was able to completely fill my lungs. Disbelief filled me, then an all-consuming feeling of joy. Christine–my Christine!–was safe and we could be together. She began working her fingernails into the knot that restrained my right wrist and when the that was freed, she started untying the other. I shrugged off the ropes from my chest and pulled her into a deep embrace, my chin on her shoulder. My arms wrapped around her slender form and I closed my eyes, scarcely daring to believe this. I breathed in her intoxicating scent like a man dying of thirst.
I would never let her go again, never.