Loup Égaré Chapter 4, a phantom of the opera fanfic

Loup Égaré

Authoress' Note: I finally got to a place where I could end this chapter and have it be a decent length. I was originally going to start on the actual plot of POTO but found the chapter to be really bloated at that point. I'll most likely start on the main plot in the next chapter. If you guys have any suggestions, I would like to see them in any reviews—who knows, I might even put the ideas in. Speaking of: You are all leaving such wonderful reviews! I'm surprised and quite pleased that people are liking my story.

Rating: M (Warnings in first chapter)

Disclaimer: I don't own POTO.

...Beep...

'That noise is really...really annoying,' Kit thought, trying to peel open her eyes. She found she couldn't, them feeling like they were glued shut. Her body felt heavy and numb, though her left arm and leg felt like they were bundled up tight. She could feel an edge of pain all over her body but it was through a haze.

'I must have a bunch of painkillers in me or something...am...am I in a hospital?'

The ever constant beeping sounded like a heart monitor. Trying not to panic as she couldn't move she focused on what she could hear, muffled voices and a pressure curled around her hand.

"Sir...Test result...Broken ar...eg...no idea...still un...ay wake up...ny time..."

The voice fluttered in and out of clarity. She fought hard to open her eyes but found it futile. Kit couldn't tell how much longer later of hearing muffled voices and her struggling that the beeping started to pick up, but the pressure on her hand was removed instantly, pressure in various places on her body. Vaguely she could feel a burning sensation in her arm by her elbow but her senses flickered, her terrified as she was losing the little sensation she had, the emptiness and nothingness pressing in on her.

'No...Please—!'

XxXxX

The next thing she knew, she felt something cold on her forehead, little trickles of water running down the sides of her face. "Wha..." She mumbled, her throat scratchy, her tongue feeling dry and clumsy in her mouth.

"You started convulsing and screaming in pain...You've been unconscious for the better part of an hour." The familiar voice and blur of white in her fuzzy vision brought back clarity, her blinking to focus her eyes.

"Erik?" Her voice was a raspy murmur, her mind drifting back to the strange dream, it slipping through her fingers like sand. 'What...What was that about? Beeping...and a pressure on my hand...? no, it's gone.' It nagged at her in the back of her mind, almost as if there was something important she had forgotten.

"You're all right now... I believe..." He spoke hesitantly, concern in his eyes.

This woman was different. While she was very strange, she didn't pester him with questions about himself, and didn't really stare at his mask. 'That's because she hasn't seen the horror beneath,' He couldn't help that dark, sad thought, trying to not get his hopes up, to find someone who would treat him like any other man.

Even his dear Christine thought he was an Angel of Music...not a mere mortal man.

"C...Can I have some water?" She rasped, still having a jelly-like, numb feeling in her limbs. "I don't think I should try to walk..."

"Of course, hold on..." He got up from his spot beside the couch, only slightly pained from his own wound. He had been shot before, and much more severely—this was nearer to a graze, and had been a mercifully clean shot. If he hadn't been feeling weak from a cold, which is why he had wandered out in the first place, he would have been able to make it the rest of the way to his home. He was ever grateful to the redhead because without her he would have probably either bled out while he was unconscious and fevered, or taken a long, long time to recover. He returned with a cup of water and helped her lean up and drink it, as her hand's grip was far too shaky to keep the glass from falling.

"Thank you," She smiled gratefully, though she still looked pale, the dark smudges beneath her eyes darker.

"It is no problem...Do you have those...episodes...often?" Erik asked, helping her sit up slowly to make sure she wouldn't pass out.

"Well...No. I never did before I woke up in that cavern... I've only had one more like that, before I found you in there." Kit bit at her lip as she thought. "Maybe the hit to my head is causing some light swelling in my brain, pressing on part of it and causing that..." The redhead trailed off, seeing his thoughtful look. 'If this is the year 1894 I'll have to be careful about what I say... unless this is a dream. It might be...But if it's not, I can't let too much slip. An inquisitive mind like his would latch onto it all, and if he knew I knew what was going to happen...' She couldn't help the sadness that squeezed her heart. 'He's going to do some crazy things for love. I mean, he's crazy, sure, but driven mad by love he's a lot more dangerous, and then he gets his heart broken...I wonder if he's more Leroux or more Webber...Maybe even Kay? He only has a half mask so I'm guessing more Webber.' Her mind swirled with thoughts.

"...ello? Mademoiselle?" Her host's voice broke through her deep thoughts.

"Oh, sorry," She gave an apologetic smile.

"I was worried, you weren't acting like you were hearing or seeing me..."

Kit opened her mouth to respond when her stomach gave a loud, gurgling growl. She flushed at the rather unladylike noise and glanced down to her stomach. 'Why am I hungry? I usually don't eat much at all...'

"Are you hungry?" Erik's golden brown eyes had a glint in them and his lips were twisted lightly with amusement.

"Maybe. You know, it's a possibility," Kit joked, him relaxing.

"I'll be right back. Don't try to get up, I'll be going...somewhere...and I don't want you to fall and get hurt without me here."

Kit gave a nod, him going to leave when her eyes caught a collection of Poe on a table across the room, next to his seemingly normal seat. "M...Monsieur Phantom?" She blurted out before he left.

"Yes Mademoiselle?" He turned his head back to her, hand resting on the door frame.

"Can...Can you hand me that book of Poe's works?" The redhead asked, feeling flustered for her sudden outburst. "I don't want to be bored with you gone."

He eyed her carefully, retrieving the book and handing it to her. "You enjoy Poe's prose and poetry?" He asked, curiosity lighting up his eyes.

Kit nodded, brightening. "Very much so! The Telltale Heart, Masque of the Red Death, For Annie, The Raven, The Lake: To _, The Black Cat, The Cask of Amontillado, the Pit and the Pendulum..." Kit trailed off, her cheeks tinted pink as she realized she had gotten too excited and had begun rambling, opening the book and looking over the table of contents to distract herself from her embarrassment.

Erik's eyes looked her over closely, finding he had a new appreciation for his house guest's strangeness. "Enjoy, then," His lips curled in amusement as he turned and left.

'He's probably going up to the kitchens of the Opera,' Kit hummed to herself, shifting on the couch as she brought the book more onto her lap, now actually reading the book of contents. 'I wonder if I'll be able to persuade him to let me go up there, if I don't have another episode like this.' The redhead shuddered, flipping to For Annie, burying her thoughts in the familiar words.

The distraction didn't work for long, as her thoughts drifted to her predicament. 'How on earth should I react?' Her fingers traced over the page, the feel of paper beneath her fingertips comforting and familiar, her eyes staring at the black printed words but not reading them. 'I should just let things be. I know what to stay away from in order to stay safe...even if this might just be a dream or delusion I don't want to get hurt or die. Why...for what reason would I even be here?'

Kit bit at her lip, picking up the thick page and running her fingertip carefully along the edge. 'Although that pain from earlier... Usually in dreams you don't feel pain like that.' She let the page drop back down and absently smoothed her skirt as her thoughts wandered. 'I could try to make things better for Erik. I could try to help him...I could at least be his friend. I don't know...there's just something different about him—before I really knew he was the Phantom I felt...drawn to him. I guess I'll just go with the flow and if I see an opportunity to make things better I will.' The redhead nodded to herself and pulled her legs and bare feet up onto the couch, sinking down with relief against the arm of the sofa.

Kit rested the thick book onto her knees and flipped to The Black Cat, her buzzing thoughts calming down for a little while as she began devouring the words with a smile of fond remembrance on her lips at the tale printed onto the pages.

She didn't know how long it had been later, engrossed in the book and starting to read The Oblong Box.

...There is a countenance which haunts me, turn as I will. There is an hysterical laugh which will forever ring in my ears...{1}

Kit was reminded of things that would forever haunt her, jumping as a shadow fell over her. She closed the book and drew it close to her chest defensively as her head turned—and she gave a sigh of relief. "Hello Monsieur Phantom," She greeted.

"Comfortable?" He asked, a slight smile of amusement on his lips at her position.

"Oh, quite." She grinned slightly back.

"Not very ladylike, however," His voice was light, eyes glittering with amusement as he let some humor show, but it hit Kit sharply. It twisted into a harsher, more judgmental tone in her ears. She pulled herself up and folded her hands in her lap, the book to the side of her legs.

Darren's dissapointed voice ghosted over her mind. She half felt like she was sitting with him in his home again, her legs crossed as she relaxed and crocheted. "Now my dear, that isn't very ladylike..." A feather-light tone with a lurking edge.

"I'm sorry..." She spoke softly. Even though she knew it was irrational she couldn't help the reflexive feelings that he was angry at her. "I will watch my behavior from now on."

The masked man was slightly stunned at the sudden shift in his house guest. Her eyes were on the floor, tinged with shame and even a bit of fear.

"Mademoiselle," Erik began, attempting to draw her attention from the ground. "Your behavior has so far been adequate. You may react and act as you wish to."

Kit slowly peeled her eyes from the floor, and though she couldn't raise them to his eyes, it was a start. "Okay, Monsieur." The redhead whispered, her stomach giving another quite loud growl.

"Ah, the food. I've already prepared some soup...Do you feel well enough to walk?"

Kit worried at her lip before she began easing herself from the sofa, him holding his arm out to her as she straightened and wobbled. She tested out her legs, her limbs feeling rather weak. "I should be fine." She gave what she hoped was a reassuring look to him.

Erik gave a quiet nod as he led her to the dining room, watching her carefully as she rested a hand on the wall, never straying far as he saw the trembles in her limbs. The redhead gritted her teeth and pushed through it, not willing to bother her host any more than she had to.

{1} = Excerpt from The Oblong Box by Edgar Allan Poe.