Thank you for the kind reviews. I'm thrilled to know that there are people out there that enjoy my 'God-awful' writing.
Thanks Phanatic01 I shall try to continue with that style. Indeed there is an intruder, but what will Erik do?
Also thank you to Idonquixote, he will most definitely make different choices, but how will this affect the story?
Let's find out.
As i'm sure we all know, this famous Phantom is not adored for his patience and good will to all men. Or women for that matter. How many lives of intruders intruders has he taken with his Punjab lasso? Yet this time it is different. This time there are more lives at stake, even if he hasn't quite realised it yet...
Anger bubbled up, deep in his core. He clenched his fists tight as he pulled out his Punjab lasso. This petty woman, this wandering tramp would pay for disturbing his solitude.
"Take out your blackboards children, today we are observing." Her sickly sweet voice stung his ears. How dare she come here and speak in my domain! The enraged specter ran to the nearest window to scare her away, prehaps throw his voice so it boomed behind her and she would think him a ghost an flee. But when he finally reached the view, he could only watch.
"Miss Armelle? Miss Armelle? Why did we come here?" A little girl asked, wiping a little mud from her cheek as she tugged on the teachers dress. The bright young Lady laughed musically and knelt to her level.
"You all wanted to be closer to the wildlife, didn't you?" All of the children looked to each other as if they expected someone to answer. Clueless. But then they all nodded.
"And how much closer to the wild can we get than this?" A small white butterfly flew past her nose and she giggled. Then cupped her hands around it gently. The children all gasped believing she had squashed it, but when she opened her hands again, slowly, it fluttered out. Bright smiles appeared on their faces and suddenly all of their energy was back.
"Miss! What kind of butterfly was that Miss?!" A boy shouted, his clothes stretched over his growing body. Miss Armelle put a hand to her mouth to giggle a second, obviously tickled by their sudden outburst of enthusiasm.
"Antionette, I believe your father is an Entomologist. Do you know?" The little girl, with long pig-tailed hair nodded rapidly.
"It's a white cabbage butterfly Miss." The woman clapped once and the girl with the pig-tails turned to her friend, sticking her tounge out at him. Erik chuckled quietly to himself.
"Well done!" The teacher praised. "Okay, is everyone sat in their table groups?" The subservient class nodded harmoniously. How Erik craved that life.
The teacher set them off on a task, each to find and identify insects. They would catch them in containers and draw a picture. Erik found himself smiling and joining in his head. Naming the insects, laughing at their recklessness and smiling at the warm feeling he got. He envied these children. So innocent, so beautiful.
But it seemed as if he'd been to complacent. A fearful child ran to Miss Armelle and Erik frowned. Then his heart stopped as the child pointed up to the window he was stood at. The teacher looked up and locked eyes with him. So he recoiled quickly, as if burned by her gaze.
humdrum proceeded to break out as the children screamed 'Ghost! Ghost! It's a Ghost!'. Stories began to whip around as the younglings tried to frighten each other. Many cried and ran into the arms of their teacher.
"Children I-I'm sure it's nothing. Just the curtain moving in the wind." Though she was trying to sound confident and protective, the Phantom heard the fear laced in her voice.
"Don't you all know?" One boy stood above the rest, pale skinned, dark-haired and his clothing looked richer and more fitting than the rest. The fearful children looked up to him and Erik drew gently back the window looking out through the net curtain.
"This used to be a grape field for making wine." His voice was dark and menacing as he told his tale, " That house was rife with servants, maids, workers and Lords. But one day, things went wrong." All of the children quaked nervously, glancing back up to that window. Erik froze as their eyes glazed past him. Phew.
"That's enough Damien." The teacher said in a stern tone, her usually sweet eyes dark and commanding. But with a playful smirk the child continued.
"Large streams used to run through here, giving water to the soil, that's how the wine was so ripe. But the Lords child went out o play with a servant boy. A worker. They went to the stream to play. The servant boy fell in, being dragged away by the strength of the water" The teacher growled as the children seemed entranced by his tale. BUt he continued still.
"And the Lords son jumped in to save him." Some of the children were crying now, tugging onto their teacher for support. "Their bodies were never found." Though he was far away Erik could see. A tear rolled down her cheek. She was hurt. "After that the Lord spent all of his money trying to find him, going insane, determined to find him. His servants soon left, then his workers, then his wife. And he took his pistol," He mimed a gun with his hand and stuck it in his mouth, then pulled it's fake trigger.
Erik shuddered and moved forward slightly, but tripped. Falling forwards onto the window. All of the children screamed. "He's there! The Phantom of the Chateau!" Damien smirked. Erik quickly withdrew from the window and stormed down the stairs, to the door. His hand ready to open it.
He was tired of being seen as: a phantom. a ghost, a specter. Tired of endlessly living having to hide from the world. But he couldn't. A hand rose to his deformity and he heard the children leave. There was a reason he had to live in solitude. A reason he was not allowed to interact with the world.
"I'm sorry." A voice came from the other side of the door. The teacher. "I didn't realise there was someone living here. This place has been abandoned for years." He heard her hand touch the door. "It's just...This place means something to me." For a moment he stayed silent. Hoping she would leave. But she was waiting for a response.
"I understand." Was all he said. He heard her gasp as he moved from the door. How did she know? How could she tell that I wasn't a ghost?
" No ghost I've ever heard of lights up at a childs laugh." Erik stopped still. Listening as she left. Maybe...just maybe, he was human after all.
Thanks again for reading. So it seems that someone sees past the Phantom and through to Erik. Their paths are assured to meet again. And it seems that the Phantom is not the only one with the mysterious past. And what about the dark child Damien? Do tell me if you would like me to explore them better.
Next Chapter: Who is this woman? This angel of Wisdom?
