Another Light of Life

I don't own Erik, nor the other Poto characters, the poto story itself, nor the opera populaire and Charles Garnier. However, I do own, my Dianne Elizabeth, Ian van Stewart and two more charaters that will appear throughout the story. I also, would like to thank wikipedia for the historical resources I needed. Enjoy reading.

Chapter two

Waiting outside the Opera House for about an hour was something a man will never appreciate, specially when people who happened to pass by on the streets of Paris would looked at him like he'd grew another head for just sitting on the steps of the once fame Opera. Muttering some words a child will never want to hear, Ian was about to barge inside the music house and seek his cousin out if it weren't for the fact that said person came out. Releasing a sigh of relief, the red head jogged off towards the pale looking Diane Elizabeth.

"What's wrong with you? You look like you've encountered a ghost or something..." Ian asked in a jesting manner, though his companion never catch the humor on it as Elizabeth simply shook her head and assured him that she was just exhausted from inspecting the Opera. The unease feeling Elizabeth felt in the library lingered in her mind as they started walking on the way back to the hotel they rented rooms for the mean time.
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As soon as the two were in their respective rooms, Ian immediately ate his dinner and went in Elizabeth's room with no preamble of acknowledgement. The chocolate haired architect after entering her room, on the other hand, has no desire to eat dinner so she simply wrote a letter to the new owners of the Opera. Elizabeth was about to put the parchment inside the envelope when all of a sudden her door slammed open revealing a red headed male. Narrowing her stormy grey depths at the sheepish Scott and with mirth amusement spoke her musing outloud,"Ian... Do you know the existance of knocking?" Elizabeth asked in which Ian only ignored and asked back a question, "What about you? What took you so long?" "If your going to ask me on how's my tour. The rooms are simply in a dire need of cleaning. You?" the female architect answered back, disregarding the last question as she installed the paper inside a blue envelope then sealed it with their family emblem. "Well, nothing much. The alcoves too has the same condition with yours... Except for box five, it looks like a hurricane ravaged it." replied Ian with a knowing look to his cousin who in return pinched the bridge of her nose, a story told by her father which centered on the construction of the Paris Opera House came flourishing on her, though she wasn't the only one thinking about it.

Beneath the Opera House, if a sane person would ever survive the traps set on the maze of tunnels, this person might get a chance to catch glimpse of a lair before receiving a death grip around the neck from a person they never want to meet.

Erik sat at the bench of his organ, recalling what had occured earlier. It was now clear to him that the woman was an architect whom will reconstruct the Opera house to dazzle the audience once again. 'But a woman?' his mind asked, surely it was something new to him and maybe, in the society of France. 'Because... I'm a Garnier.' a female's voice echoed in his mind as if answering his question which made his green-blue eyes to widened in shock as a thought crossed his mind, "It couldn't be..." he stated. Abruptly, Erik stood up and walked inside his room then opened a drawer of the cabinet where he took an old folded newspaper before sitting at the foot of his mother's bed. Eyes scanning the headlines, the dark haired musician allowed his mind to race back to the past.
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Since early childhood, Erik Destler has wished to eventually become the designer for a Paris Opera House. Unfortunately for him, the contest for the position was over by the time he learns of it in his perusal of his mother's old newspaper after her death. Erik decided to approached the winner, a young brunette architect named Charles Garnier wherein he made a deal with him to help design and build the Palais Opera House. Garnier pacing a problem with the ground water underneath the opera house reluctantly complied to the offer.

Below the Opera House, an artificial lake was created by the two architect. They used eight hydraulic pumps to deal with the groundwater level that kept rising. And
by the end of the year, the substructure was essentially complete and Charles Garnier was enlighten that he gave the young masked man his approval to build a maze of tunnels and corridors in the lower levels. While Charles and his construction team worked feverishly to complete the Opera House, Erik not only builds the maze of tunnels and corridors but makes a lair for himself, past the underground lake, where he may live protected from the public.

"What is your connection on Charles Garnier?" Erik asked himself as he placed the newspaper on the other side of the bed before blowing off the candles letting the darkness consume him. The song the woman sang awhile ago played in his mind lulling him to a peaceful sleep for once in his entire life.

Elizabeth snapped back to reality as her cousin cleared his throat, "Sorry I left you on Earth.. Its just, I remembered something my father told me." she said, giving Ian a soft apologetic look. Shaking his head, Ian flashed the brunette a cheshire grin then, announced to retire for the night. Hearing the click of the door being shut, Elizabeth turned her attention on an additional piece of paper laying on the table as she again started to write another letter, this time to her father.

'Dear Papa,
I do hope that you are alright and having a break from days of hard work. If your wondering where we are currently staying for the time being, Me and Ian rented two rooms in a hotel near the Opera house since I don't want to go back on our old house in Sarthe for it brings memories about mother. Speaking of the Opera, I must say, I feel relieved as the only place we needed to reconstruct are the Grand staircase and the interior. Nevertheless, I assure you Papa, me and my team will bring back to life your wondrous creation.

But papa, there is something I wish to tell you. It concerns the tale you once told me before I left Italy to travel here in france. I have no idea why I remembered it, specially when me and Ian checked the Opera house. I felt someone was watching us. Papa I do not want to worry you for I think the unease I felt is only fatigue from the events happened today that it made my mind to play tricks on me. Tomorrow, Ian and I shall fetch his father and his work team to start the reconstruction as soon as possible.

May God preserve us all.

Your loving Daughter,
Diane Elizabeth'

Smiling at her work, Elizabeth folded the paper and slid it on a white envelope with a sealed emblem of their family name. Placing the envelope next to another one. The twenty five year old Architect stood up, walk silently on her bed and layed on it after turning off the gas lamp. A song she'd performed inside the Palais Opera House played in her dreams together with an unknown voice of a man singing with her.

A/N:

Bonjour ma cheres~! Sorry for not updating so soon. A lot of important events got on my way. Anyway, I would like to thank those who read and review the first chapter of my fiction story although I would like to say sorry as well because I never notice the wrong grammar and spelling. But I do hope you guys enjoy this second chapter specially with our phantom's assumption. What do you think? Does he have a strong and correct assumption? Tune in next time for the third chapter to find out.

P.S
I really enjoyed and appreciated your reviews, so keep reviewing and give me a confidence boost and motivation! Thank you~ (w)

Your humble writer,
HikaruElric