A mind clouded by swirling thoughts of worry and regret made for a mental hurricane, as well as a completely sleepless night. Christine remained silent but wide awake into the late night, lying aimlessly in her bed and staring up at the Victorian-style crown molding framing the ceiling. Why did I have to pry at his discomfort? It was so careless and ignorant of his obvious discomfort!

Some strange rustling noise distracted her briefly, rushing adrenaline through her veins. She pulled the puffy blanket further over her face and tried to listen carefully for any other suspicious sounds. Now her guilt had turned to fear upon hearing rustling behind her door and hushed male voices.

There was a loud clang and Christine knew she had to get out of the room. She remembered that the other door in her room led out to a hallway, thinking that perhaps Erik could help her even after what happened earlier. After all, this was possibly a dangerous situation and it would be better to ask for his help (and forgiveness) rather than to hope for the best.

So the young brunette snuck out of bed as quietly as possible, trusting that her former ballet experience would help her footsteps be silent. Her delicate hand softly unsecured the lock and turned the doorknob, shutting the door afterwards then tip-toeing towards Erik's flat. The young girl whipped her head around to check if anyone saw her escape before gently knocking on his door, still peering over her shoulder in case someone was around.

The door was shortly opened, an unimpressed-looking Erik standing in its place.

"What brings you here this late at night?" He questioned monotone.

"I think there's someone in my room." Christine whispered, eyes widened in fear.

The masked man raised an eyebrow and momentarily appeared lost in thought before continuing: "Well, then, by all means, come inside. I'll deal with the potential miscreant."

"Thank you so much, Erik. And about earlier, I'm terribly sorry for wha-"

"No, don't worry yourself, there's a much bigger problem at hand." He assured her, pushing himself out of the door and going to Christine's unlocked bedroom.

The young girl crept into her instructor's salon and seated herself on the leather couch, feeling a bit awkward at the circumstances as well as how silent it was. Luckily, the silence was soon broken by the Daroga coming out of the guest bedroom. He appeared quite shocked to see Christine sheepishly smiling at him with anxiety in her blue eyes, and Erik nowhere in sight.

"Hello. It is late, what are you doing here?" The surprised older man asked politely.

"I heard someone in my room and came here for help. Erik went to go see what was going on." The girl explained.

"Ah, I only hope my friend keeps to the promise he made me if there truly is an intruder."

"And what was that?"

There was a nervous pause between the two and Christine quickly defended herself: "Sorry, I shouldn't pry like I did earlier. I'm only curious, especially in this situation."

"It's only natural to want an explanation, particularly towards such a mysterious person as Erik. He is high-strung and often ill-tempered, so it is not entirely your doing."

In the meantime, Erik was inside of Christine's bedroom listening for whoever she'd heard minutes ago, peeking through the very slightly ajar door. At least the girl wasn't delusional- there were indeed multiple men outside of her bedroom, each one armed with some form of weapon and dressed entirely in black. An inconspicuous trunk placed between them was being filled as they placed expensive items from the flat inside of it. The masked man was plotting his entrance, feeling comforted that he'd taken the familiar Punjab lasso with him. He held the catgut rope behind his back and widened the door calmly.

"Ah, gentlemen. Do excuse me, but I believe that this is not your residence?" Erik stared at them intimidatingly.

They all froze, staring up at the unknown figure before them.

The man appearing to be the leader spoke up first: "This is the room of Christine Daae. What are you doing here?"

"Just being helpful. Now I suggest you leave emptyhanded immediately before I'm forced to take further actions." Erik threatened.

"Ha, like what?" One of the other men chuckled.

Another intruder piped up as well: "Yeah, I bet you're some invalid with that mask on your face and can't do a thing."

"I am no pompous windbag, I assure you. This is your final warning, leave now or face me. You have ten seconds to decide." Erik stated blankly, receiving no response from the thieves.

Pulling the lasso out from behind his back, Erik continued: "Alright, you give me no choice."

He swung the rope out at the ringleader's neck, neatly asphyxiating him in a moment, and looking at the others. The man had been wielding his large club menacingly but to no avail against the expert assassin's lasso skills. Bulging eyes told Erik all that was necessary to know about his opponents- their fear would drive them out of the room without any more of his intervention. The remaining men vacated the flat hastily, resulting in Erik's triumphant expression while folding back the catgut. He left Christine's room and returned to his own, a tinge eager to announce his success.

Christine nearly jumped out of her skin as the door opened up behind her, fearing that Erik might've been overtaken by the hooligans. A breath of relief passed her lips at seeing her instructor's thin and familiar frame coming inside. The Persian smiled at his friend as if to notify him that he was aware of the circumstances and received a good enough explanation.

"Well? Please don't tell me I was just being silly." The innocent girl asked.

"You have a well-trained ear, Christine. There were, in fact, four thieves in your room trying to steal various objects from your flat and I don't doubt that they would've done worse had you not escaped in time." Erik informed.

"Well done, dear girl." The Persian complimented.

"Oh, thank you ever so-" Christine began, standing up from her seat with outstretched arms.

The masked man stood stiffly as her warm body embraced his colder one, very much personally unfamiliar with such a gesture. She released him too soon and flashed a dazzling smile at him. As her voice babbled on in gratitude to her guardian, Erik's mind was busy thinking about the foreign twisting of his stomach and strange delight from the interaction. He believed he came to a realization, but quickly shook off such an impossible thought. Christine was like a glittering star in the night sky- untouchable and completely unattainable, lest he wanted to burn up in the process of doing so.