An: Hi everyone I know that it's been awhile since I've updated my fan fiction "The Alternate" but I really am working on it. But before I could lose this idea to put it on "The Alternate", I'm putting it out as a Phantom one-shot companion piece. So for those who don't know what "The Alternate" is, all I can say is that this scene will be a turning point scene in that fan fiction. The only difference is that this is written on a third person POV and in "The Alternate" it is written on Lea's Pov. Enjoy!
Christine, Nadir, Madame Giry and Meg followed Lea as she made her way to her typical day of work. Their initial plan was to sneak into her apartment…which was a penthouse that covered two whole floors on the top of the building. However because the elevator in the building was out of order-and they still wanted some energy to confront and tell Lea about Erik's past about being a murderer-they opted to follow Lea as she went through her day of work.
As Christine followed her companions at a modest distance towards Lea, her mind began reflecting on what she was about to do. She and Meg had originally went down the lair in the hopes of regaining his love and trust, after several misconceptions she had experienced. Nadir had followed them because of the proposition that these two held when putting with Erik's stubbornness after the previous incident was not going to be easy. While these three headed down to his lair, Madame Giry ran after them ever so cautious of the traps that Erik had set in for intruders who were too curious for their own good. As they arrived at his lair they discovered that they are not alone, and sense a presence in the area. All four had went to an unknown passage in which the Elder Giry had discovered upon momentum's rite. Running out of time, they quickly stepped in to the metal passage and all four fell in a deep sleep.
Once they woke up they were in an odd time. Women no longer wore long skirts but the bottoms of men. Or if it was not that then they wore skirts short enough to ignite Mme. Giry's Anger for immodest attire. And through various wonderings, they have discovered that France no longer ran at a Monarchial government and instead became a democratic republic. With this they knew that since they have arrived at a different time, they were bound to look odd. So with some mutters of how Allah was going to disapprove of his actions, Nadir sneaked into a clothing store and stole enough clothes for them to look "appropriate".
How they found Erik was not easy. After making various trips towards Paris and eventually the entire France, they made a definite conclusion that Erik no longer resided in the country. Nadir decided that he hack into current documents that might give a hint to where Erik might have gone. Finally he found someone who has no complete records of a man signed under the name "Johnathon Destler." Apparently Mr. Destler does not contain any more records apart from being a man. And to Nadir's hope, he discovered that Mr. Destler had left France over ten years ago to Brazil in the southern part of America. With this new information Nadir went to the four and concluded that although he may or may not be there, it was still proof that he was in America.
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"Well this is a little bit rare for you Johnny." His assistant Joey remarked as he accompanied his boss to a following meeting. Wether or not it regarded the company's problems or not it was still strong enough to get the serious attention of his boss and friend.
Erik put a hand to his face and pinched the bridge of his nose as the two walked towards the conference room.
"What exactly are we supposed to discuss again?"
"Our reasons for buying their company, And from the last time I've checked Johnny, this has to be some sort of new record for buying a company in order to help it grow." His friend replied. But seeing that it had no effect on him, Joes sighed and moved a big risk to both help his boss and his friend.
"Maybe I could explain it to them; I mean with the current mood that you are in today. You could really use a break man." He replied sympathetically to Erik, Knowing that he has sacrificed several weekends for the good of the company.
"But I'm here and they're expecting me anyways."
"And I will cover it from there. You on the other hand-" Joey started pushing Erik towards the elevator.
"Should seriously take a break, I mean the company is in good hands and have I ever done something that would bankrupt the entire company?" Erik knowing that Joey might as well take his place at the meeting did not argue back. Which was interesting and new to almost everyone, Erik and Joey were almost like brothers. Erik being the uptight and concerned Elder brother and Joey being the carefree younger one, it wasn't odd that they almost never agree on something (until one of them would come up with a solution that made everyone happy). So for Erik to be surrendering to Joey's consideration was quite a new one. And even Joey became concerned when that happened. The two then waved goodbye to each other and parted ways.
Erik sent himself to the ground floor and went to another elevator that specialized in going to the basement parking. As he went inside his BMW he can't help but ensure himself that he made the right decision. And that the only reason why he started to doubt his choice, was because he was surprised that the Daroga, Mme. Giry, Marguerite and Christine …the one who caused the incident he wished to forget, were standing on front of him as he opened the door for the unknown visitors. Ofcourse not forgetting to at least be polite to them, he invited them in with mixed feelings that did not come up on his face.
To everyone except Christine, he was generally pleased for them to be in his presence. Nadir after all had helped him escape from the shah's empire to lead a new life. Mme Giry and her daughter were helpful assistants to him at the opera house and were somehow the closest people he had to having a family.
But for Christine…he simply did not know what to feel. On the left hand he felt heart broken and betrayed, rejected, and a loss. After all it is she whom chose her childhood sweetheart over him. And on the other hand there was happiness, hope, and joy that perhaps other things in which he could not simply describe himself.
But it was then proven to be only from the shock, as his heart reminded him of someone feisty and talkative who was not afraid to voice out her opinions to him, especially if both of them have contradicting beliefs. She was a woman that could only be found if fate had chosen her specifically for your own path.
And while he pondered on this thought and absent mindedly answered their questions on how half of his face was healed, the said woman came knocking at the door, to which Erik was grateful of. She rang the buzzer and although he can clearly see it's her through one of the nearby computers.
"Johnny open up, you know that I know that you're watching me from your laptop." With a slight Chuckle the door opened, and came in the beautiful Lea Brass. She just came home from work in the office of being an event planner and decorator. So she was in her office attire of a slightly ruffled blouse, a blazer with a knee length pencil skirt that she wore with skin toned panty-hose, and an inch heel. On one hand she was holding her multi-purpose bag big enough to fit her laptop and some emergency needed necessities. And on the other were two clear books, one being slightly longer than the other.
"So Johnny I was just thinking-" her words halted in her tracks as she came into awareness that they were not alone in the House.
"Wow, I didn't know we were having visitors in the house." She replied with a shocked but emotionless tone.
"Well neither did I, and you can stop calling me Johnny. They know me by Erik." He told her as he helped her put her bag and some clear books down on the coffee table as he lead her to sit beside him. She carefully placed her bag beside her towards the edge of the couch that she and Erik sat, Facing towards Christine and Meg who sat at the couch across the coffee table. While Nadir and sat at the couch in between the two couches. Everyone except for Erik, were probably amazed and wondering of who this girl is.
"Oh so it's safe for me to call you Erik?"
"Yes entirely safe. Nadir, Antoinette, Christine, Meg this is Emily Amelia Brass-"
"But call me Lea." Lea said already standing up with a smile and already holding out her hand to be shaken.
"Why Lea? That seems to be unrelated to your name." Meg asked as she took Lea's hand to shake it. Lea just simply laughed and took her seat to explain.
"Actually I really like my name, it's just that it seems a bit too long. So I took the last syllable of Emily which is Lee and took the first syllable of Amelia, which is simply just "A". So I placed them together and created Lea." Once she finished Erik came back with water and offered it to everyone. And surprisingly everyone seemed to get a long with her quite well. When they've asked her how she met Erik, she said that to put it into simple words.
"We met at a friend's party, and he was interested because I was the only one who thought that the mathematical branch of trigonometry was the only branch of mathematics, that was meant to be solved with calculators."
"And what was Erik's stand on the subject?" Christine asked with only interest to what Erik's opinion was."
"I argued that trigonometry was already unconsciously used by architects before the invention of the calculator even existed in the mind of it's inventor." Erik sighed as he put an arm and rested it on top of the couch to Lea's side. When Erik noticed Meg's questioning face he immediately addressed it.
"Meg do you have a question you would like to ask?" he asked her in a friendly and gentle manner.
"Are you two a couple? And when did you two get married?" The words rushed out of her mouth as if she herself had no control over it that it just had to burst out in the fastest speed that time could allow.
When they both realized what she was asking of they both laughed at it, but then sobered up and Erik allowed Lea to explain it to them.
"Yes we are a couple but no we are not married yet." She said this and took a sip of her water and placed it back on top of it's coaster.
"But how come, only married couples only do the actions that I've observed from both of you so far." Which by the way included, Lea leaning her head against Erik's shoulder, Erik's arm around Lea's side of the couch, their bodies practically touching each other etc. Although in all fairness that there ever was, these actions seemed pretty innocent and decent for any kind of public display of affections.
"Well times have changed now; everyone wants to find someone they love. And they want to be sure that they have married the right person. So in the early twentieth century, to solve that problem, they invented something called dating. Dating is when an unmarried man and an unmarried woman spend some time together privately to get to know each other."
"Wait! Do you mean they already bed together even though they are not married!" Meg exclaimed with shock. Quietly in her mind Lea thought that this was the closest she could get to seeing how culture shock would effect people aside from Erik.
"No, it just means that they're friends and families allow the man and woman some time alone together." Erik replied with the voice that reminded Christine of the days when he used to be her teacher. And how he would use the same tone and voice to teach her how to sing.
"Yes, so if the man and the woman like each other, they become boyfriend and girlfriend to find out more about each other. And then if they really do love each other they become engaged and they eventually get married." Lea explained as she took another sip of her water.
"What if they don't like each other?" Christine asked curious to what would happen if this girl Lea had a hint of implying what if she and Erik did not like each other.
To some disappointment, Lea did not notice the hint at all. Or if she did, then she acted that she did not hear it. "Well if the man and the woman did not like each other, then they simply part ways."
"Ok, I'm just wondering, if there are any private activities that are involved in the bedroom."
"MARGUERITE GIRY!" Antoinette Giry exclaimed in shock.
"Well it depends on the couple; if they want to have sex then they could have sex. If they don't feel comfortable with it then they could wait too. It really depends of what the couple thinks is best." After that Erik steered the topic away, on one hand was uncomfortable to talk about his sex-life with Lea on front of Mme. Giry. But on the other was completely fascinated on what would happen if Christine found out that he and Lea already had sex.
He already moved on from what Christine had done to him, so Lea had nothing to worry about in terms of that. But it still interested him to learn what her reaction would be if she had learned that he had been in bed with another woman.
By that time, it was already sunset and that the Four had managed to get a Hotel room near Erik's house since it was the weekend and that Lea was going to stay in Erik's house until Tuesday. Since Monday was declared a holiday for the state they lived in.
Before they left they asked him to consider coming back to their century where he came from. And as to not make a scene, he'd tell them that he would consider it.
And that was what he has been doing for most of his time alone in solitude thinking seriously. Looking into the pros and cons of going back and staying. He at first considered that the Morality of the old was somehow higher than the ones that occur at the present time. But from what he has witnessed those there are several among society who are hypocrites and who disobeys them anyways. Although he knows that his music with the present times preferences, might have been preferred to be performed in private at a chosen audience. And before, his music might have had a chance to see the daylight. But then, it would be nice to just have an intimate work that outsiders will be ashamed on hearing, and that those among his circle of friends were quite lucky on hearing.
His thoughts would keep on contrasting against each other. That Lea respected that he needs some silence to make the final decision. Then finally on one time after they settled in for dinner Erik has asked her on some advice.
"Well, I don't know how to advice you on since I still do not fully understand your standards of advice."
"Just tell me what are your thoughts on this."
"You mean anything as long as it has something to do within this topic."
"Exactly"
"Well, all I can advise you is, which do you prefer the most here or there?"
"You know I prefer it here in this time. The people here are much more liberal than back then."
"Ofcourse. But Erik." She took his chin up and made him look at her.
"Listen to me. Even though you like it here, are you really sure you don't want your music to see the light of day? I mean I know that there are some Operas that you wrote that I know somewhere deep inside you, you really want the world to see and hear the magnificence of it."
"But I can also do that here."
"With a slightly more limited market since Rock and Pop music have taken over the mainstream lately."
"Are you trying to-"
"No! Erik I'm just saying that just look and reflect on what you can and what you can't live without. Then you have to weigh the scale on what you think is worth sacrificing for. That's it." But secretly Lea wished that he wouldn't choose the past over the present. Because if he goes back to the past, even though his face is already healed of its monstrosities, people will still have doubts of trusting him. And he did have a point, for some reason today seemed more liberal and fair to him rather than the past.
But then again it was not her place to decide upon the offer that he has been bestowed upon.
And as Erik turned toward the corner of an alley, he saw the same four people that came into the present from his past talking to the said Lea…what was going on he thought.
He parked the car in a legal parking space by the Road walk. And went to the party with wondering thoughts.
Lea was wearing a shocked and disappointed look in her face when she saw Erik.
"Erik are you a murderer?" He knew that this day would come to pass, he wishes it did not have to be in the way it was.
"Yes, But I can explain."
"I mean I understand your actions with regards to your prior love for Christine but…you've murdered a lot of people?" In her face he saw tears run down at Lea's face. The face of the woman he knew that he loved and was not obsessed with. No Christine had a remarkable voice, the voice he now knew was what he was in love with. Not with the woman who owned it.
"Yes but Lea please understand that I've changed now." As the couple exchanged arguments Christine quietly smiled to the point of actually hoping that maybe they will tire of each other. Now that Lea has learnt of Erik's cruel past. That Slut will just runaway out of Erik's arms and she and Erik can come back to where they belong.
But what Christine never realized is that despite of what she has done, Lea was only crying and asking questions. While Erik stated his assurances and reasons to her embracing her with calming words for her to listen. Another thing that she and her companions were ignorant of was that there were agents in odd looking green uniform that held the logo of a skull that bore snakes. The symbol of HYDRA the evil organization intent on world domination in an evil way.
Fortunately the woman in Erik's arms have actually stopped sobbing as she spotted their sudden appearance. She quickly tugged Erik's 6'4 figure down and whispered
"Go take the others and find a place to hide right now."
"Why?" Erik suddenly startled by the sudden authority that spoke out of her voice. If this was because she was angry with him he understands but something tells him that there's something more going on.
"Just do as I say and do it fast, I am going to push you away and you should do your best to make it look like you want to apologize to me. After one more go away and hide." Lea then pushed Erik away and began screaming at him. And Erik not wanting to upset her further did as she said. And after wards of one more act he took the others as stealthily and normally as he can as he lead them towards his car.
Once he got in his car he drove away immediately to his second house careful not to lead strangers to his real house. Everyone consoled Erik on his loss until they bumped into something strange. Fortunately Erik reminded everyone to have their seat belts on.
That strange thing that they bumped into was a robot. That had a Drill that was ready to dismantle the car.
"EVERYONE GET OUT!" with that all five of them immediately went out. And headed for shelter in the ally way. However Erik sensed that they had been followed, he took a peak outside and saw that an army of agents were now searching the town. To his suspicions he thinks that Lea might have become a victim of one of those Weapons. The sudden urge to save Lea suddenly arose on him.
"No Erik Lea told you to stay here." His mind told him and calmed himself down before he could possibly do anything to upset the woman he loved even further.
What happened next was completely unexpected.
Lea Brass came to their hiding place. And along the way she was able to be completely intact with not a single scratch. She managed to fool the henchmen by hiding in the alleyway.
"Lea are you alright?" Erik asked as he tapped on her shoulders. Lea turned around to him immediately with a blank expression on her face and said.
"I've been wanting to tell or show this to you some time sooner, but then it just so happened you had a lot to think about."
"What? What's going on?"
"I'll explain later right now can you please hand me my bag?"
Erik immediately gave her the bag. She didn't mind letting him see her change into something else since they've seen each other naked anyways. But what did surprise him is what did she change into.
For all the rumors that have been going on forever in SPADES, for all the repetitive stories he's heard about their number one agent…
He had never thought that one day, he would meet her face to face. And that the Agency's top Spy…The Black Widow…
Was none other than the woman he loved Lea Brass…
…Because only the Black Widow wore a grey hourglass symbol among the SPADES agents.
He wasn't surprised that his companions were once again shocked by what she was wearing. A Blackish Blue Cat Suit, with an hourglass symbol for her belt that held several other gadgets and accessories. Her bracelets in which he assumed would shoot out bullets and a grappling wire.
"Lea what are you doing?" Mme. Giry asked not knowing what to do.
"Lea…You're….You're …" Erik could barely say it.
But before she could say another word. She jumped right in to the battle field.
"What is she doing Erik?" Nadir asked having a peep with his friends on what Erik's "girlfriend" was up to.
Erik simply smiled as he saw the woman he love shoot bullets and put her Martial arts skills to the test.
"She is protecting us Daroga"
"Protecting us? Shouldn't a male be doing that?"
"I thought so too myself but times have changed Nadir."
"Yes Erik." Nadir agreed as they watched Lea knock of several henchmen and disarm the robots that had caused trouble to the city.
Meg was simply in awe of what Lea can do and was in hopes that maybe some day that maybe she can learn those things from her.
Mme. Giry doesn't know what to say, on one hand she thinks that only Men are allowed to fight for protection and on the other hand, she actually admires that it was Erik who needed protecting not his lover.
Christine was enraged and yet rejoicing, on the bright side she may have caused their relationship to become strained. But on the dark side, she noticed that Erik approves of her wholly since now he knows this side of her.
Once Lea was able to dodge attacks and distract the robot with Erik's Punjab Lasso she stole. She managed to deactivate the robots with the commanding switch that the head henchmen had within his pockets. Once all the robots were deactivated she destroyed the switch.
She then scanned the area for anymore possible intruders. When the coast seemed clear she gave Erik the thumbs up signal that it was safe to walk around again.
Erik took her bag (incase she gets even angrier about him forgetting to bring it). He then led his companions outside. They came to Lea's spot where she was waiting for them in a triumphant Grin. Erik had a smirk on his face.
"We'll have to talk about this."
"I couldn't agree more." She replied handing him the now burnt Punjab Lasso due to the Robot she used it in was breathing out fire.
She quickly turned around and went back to the alley.
"Lea your bag is here with me."
"Yes I know, but I'll show you the perfect place to talk in private." She said this as she signaled them to follow her. In the alley way she waited for everyone to come close to her. She then scanned the area making sure no one was there except for them. Then once satisfied. She then pulled the pipe that was attached to the wall. And then the ground square which everyone stood on was descended. Once they arrived at their destination Lea ordered them to follow strictly by her side.
Then they've reached a hall that had a single chair to it. And on that Chair was Gen. Remy Cole.
"Well done Black Widow you have done your job very successfully." He said with a grin.
"My work is not yet done until further orders Gen. Cole."
"And her work is?" Erik asked as he stepped out while the others decided it was best to wait and let him talk to them.
"Erik, do you really think that we would let you go without some sort of protection?" the General said.
"Well, No, but I've always expected this "protection" was a –"
"A male agent that you would just probably mope around and get angry at all day?" the General laughed.
"No, Ofcourse not, we'd knew that you would behave that way if we sent a boy anyway. And besides your guardian should be as undetectable as possible. And ofcourse who else could take the spot than my top one Agent?"
"The Black Widow"
"Ofcourse, you have to be proud of yourself Erik, you're the few lucky guys who will know personally who the Black Widow is."
"Ofcourse."
"But there is even greater news." Erik looked puzzled.
"What's the other great news?"
"You're one of the few lucky guys whom the Widow actually likes." Now at this Erik was taken aback and now faced Lea.
"So you really liked me?"
"Erik why would we have a sexual relationship if I didn't like you?"
"Well, because I've heard you've seduced a lot of men."
"Seduction, is only a process to make someone want you in a sexual manner. It never said that those two people even needed to have sex in the first place." She said with a genuine smile.
"And what about my-"
"Erik I knew that you were a murderer. That didn't really had any effect on me at all."
At this their audience's eyes grew.
"So you being depressed and upset about Erik's past…"
"Was just good acting skills in an attempt to hide the fact that Erik was protected from HYDRA. If they knew he was protected they'd target whomever they think his guardian was. And I like you four too much for any of you to die."
Erik then went nearer to Lea.
"So you're still my Girlfriend?" Lea gave him a seductive grin.
"Only if you're still willing to be my Boyfriend."
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