Here's another chapter, sorry it's taken me so long. My muse took off and was refusing to come back unless it was at least two in the morning on a school night. …So yeah, that sucked. I think we're past that though.

I know this whole story has gone really fast with not much time for them to really get to know each other but someday (after I get rid of the tiny little sliver of a life that I still have,) I'll rewrite the story and change some details and maybe the timeline a bit. And I know, she's way young really but… tough. It gives a teen hope that maybe she'll find an awesome guy out there when she least expects it too.

Thanks to everyone who has reviewed in the past and to OprGhst, Phantom-Phan442 (who reviewed twice :D), WhySoSeriusBlack45, Christy201, Chocoborider92, The Phantom's Scholar, and Emily. You guys are the awesome most ever, thank you for reading my story.

And of course thanks to everyone that's been reading and not reviewing, I appreciate you guys too, even if I don't always articulate it.

The Phantom's Scholar: Thank you so, so much for your advice, I've been doing a bit of research on that period lately and I will eventually fix the inaccuracies, stretch their relationship out a bit more, and… yeah, just basically fix things. I'm really grateful though to get some good crit. (You got published at eighteen? What is it? Will you share the title or would you prefer to be anonymous…)

It seems like there was someone else that I was going to thank because I used an idea they gave me, but I'm too lazy to go and look.

Heehee, I'm so evil, you guys will have to tell me what you think of this chapter ;)

Enjoy!

Erik tensed for a brief moment as Seraph turned over in his arms. She snuggled closer to him and his arms tightened around her automatically. She sighed happily and he felt her relax further, if such a thing was even possible. He would have sworn that he felt the moment when she fell asleep. Her body was warm and incredibly soft against his and it seemed as though she had been made to fit against him. One of her hands slipped onto his side and he reveled in the feel of her unhesitating hand against his flesh.

Seraph… was a contradiction. There were times that he knew she was afraid of him, he'd been able to see it in her eyes, and yet she hadn't acted it. She was sometimes harsh to him and was definitely not afraid to voice her mind, which he liked, even if it was annoying.

She shifted a little, moving her head back, farther onto the pillow.

Her hair was across her face and he couldn't resist brushing it back, even if it meant he had to remove one arm from around her sleeping form.

A frown crossed his face as his eyes fell on a fading mark on her cheek. Remorse stabbed through him as he remembered that it had been he that had done that to her, right after she'd taken off his mask the second time.

He didn't understand why she had done so, the horror of seeing his face didn't really seem to affect her, unless of course she was a much better actress than he thought she was.

Wearily, he touched his mask, slowly removing it. He looked at it for a moment, admiring the shaping she had done on it, as though it had been tailored to his face. Which she would have had to see his face to do…

Tenderly, he cupped her bruised cheek in his palm. He wanted to dip his head down and kiss the soft, smooth skin of her face, but he didn't dare. Instead he contented himself with vividly remembering awakening to find her above him, dripping wet and doing her best to revive him. It had probably been wrong of him to kiss her as he had but she had responded well to his advance, kissing back.

It had undoubtedly been wrong of him to appreciate the way her soaked shift had clung to her curves the way only wet fabric could. She was so young and innocent, and so different than Christine had been.

Suddenly Seraph shuddered and struggled in his arms, fighting frantically to get away. He should have known better than to think that she would actually want to lie here with him. Steeling himself, he removed his arms from around her, pushing her away coldly.

She continued to struggle against the blankets for a minute, tense and obviously frightened. He hadn't thought she would be that horrified, but then what did he know about women, lying, prying little demons that they were.

Seraph lay abnormally still for a moment then half sat up, looking around somewhat frantically. There were tears in her eyes and a broken sob tore its way out of her as she moved back over to him, slipping her arms around his tense body and burying her face against his chest.

She was crying now, tremors wracking her. After a long hesitation, Erik resituated her arms and pulled her a little closer, enfolding her in his embrace.

"Erik?" she asked in a whisper, "What are we going to do when more men come? W-what if-" Seraph's arms tightened around Erik, "what if you hadn't come…? My uncle will never stop hunting me. His eyes will find us here, those eyes that burn. If he had to kill a thousand men… I can't escape from him, I never will. Erik, I'm frightened, he kills without a thought, he murders all that's good, what horrors wait for me…?"

Holding her close with one arm, he stroked her hair soothingly, hushing her softly.

Teary blue eyes peaked up at him and she took a deep, shuddering breath, slowly relaxing against him.

He moved his hand from stroking her hair to rubbing her back and she quieted further, reassuring him that she wasn't afraid of him.

Before too long, Seraph was asleep again, leaving the Phantom and his thoughts alone once more.

* * *

When Seraph woke again, she was warm and comfortable, pressed against something that emanated warmth. She lay still for a long while, enjoying the steady beating of the Phantom's heart, the gentle rhythm of his breathing, and the strength in the arms that held her.

He shifted a little and nuzzled her hair. Seraph opened her eyes and tilted her head so she could see his face. He was asleep. She smiled softly and cupped his scared cheek in her hand, studying his face. He looked peaceful. She pushed a stray strand of hair out of his face, tucking it gently behind his ear.

Seraph allowed her eyes to trail down across what she could see of his chest, the lightly tanned skin, masculine muscles, and smattering of fine hairs that graced his chest. It felt wrong somehow to do so, but he was asleep and she might never get another chance.

Slowly, she became aware of hunger knawing at her insides and frowned. Of all the times to be hungry, this was probably the worst moment her body could have chosen.

She hated to risk disturbing him but she would only get hungrier if she tried to ignore it, so she scooted upward in the bed, trying to work her way out of his arms.

His arms tightened and he pulled her back against him again, a slight frown on his face. He rolled onto his back, pulling her over with him so she was on top of him, murmuring something against her neck.

Seraph sighed. This might be more difficult than she'd thought. His arms were now around her lower back so she shifted her weight to her knees, one on either side of his waist, propping her hands on either side of his head and attempting to push herself into an upright position.

Suddenly one of her knees slipped off the edge of the mattress and she felt herself falling off the bed. Instinctively, she tried to grab a hold of Erik's shoulder, but she only succeeded in having the man fall off the bed onto her.

Seraph hit the floor hard, the breath rushing out of her as Erik landed on her, though thankfully her head landed on something that was definitely softer than stone.

Erik tensed the moment they hit the floor, waking. Seraph felt blood rushing to her face as she took stock of their situation, struggling to breathe with his weight on top of her.

He seemed to realize what had happened because he took his own weight onto his forearms, bracing them on the floor on both sides of Seraph and lifting his face from her chest.

She inhaled deeply, offering a very sheepish smile as she took in his expression of shocked amusement.

"Hello. Erm, fancy meeting you here?" she half squeaked, still trying to regain her breath. He wasn't exactly light after all.

"Pleasure meeting you," he replied with a smirk. "Mind telling me what happened?"

Seraph blushed. "C-can I get up first?"

He didn't respond, but his silence was answer enough.

Her eyes narrowed, not wanting to let him toy with her. "I was hungry so I tried to get up but you wouldn't let go so-"

"So you decided to push me off the bed but something went wrong?" he filled in. He wasn't smiling, not really anyway, but he managed to look thoroughly amused by the whole situation.

"Sure, why not." She said, pushing at his shoulders. "Now get up."

The look he gave her told her that he didn't like being ordered. Well that was just too bad, what goes around comes around. But how to get him off…

Before she could say anything, he asked, "Did you sleep all right?"

Seraph blinked at him for a moment, taken aback. "Yes, mostly I did, thank you. Did you?"

Ignoring her question, he moved off her, rising to his feet.

Seraph shivered slightly as his warmth retreated. She clambered to her feet as well, wondering how he had managed to look so graceful and trying not to stare at his well-formed chest or the line of dark hairs that disappeared downward.

The only safe place she could think of to look was at the floor, so she did, seeing that her head had landed on one of the sacks of clothes that had been brought down.

She looked up at his face with a frown. "Had you ever considered going into politics?"

His eyes narrowed slightly but he maintained his relaxed air, idly rubbing his side. Seraph's eyes darted down to follow the movement but she quickly pulled her gaze back to his face, her blush deepening slightly.

"Politics?" he questioned, his voice low.

Seraph nodded emphatically. "You're quite good at question evasion. Did you sleep all right, Phantom?"

After a moment he nodded with a slight shrug. "Well enough," he said, though in reality he had hardly slept at all, used to being awake at night.

Seraph sighed and moved past him, going out into the main room of the cavern.

The boat was drifting about near the middle of the lake, the current having carried it back to the calm lake. Seraph looked back toward the bedroom but Erik wasn't visible. Perhaps he'd gone back to bed. She gathered up the skirt of her nightgown and stepped down into the water, holding the fabric up to mid thigh height so that less of it would get wet.

Stepping carefully, she waded out to the boat and grabbed the rope that was attached to the prow, towing it back to the spot where she docked it.

She got her dress out of the boat and managed to save the bundle from Christine from falling into the water. She had forgotten about it, and was about to peak inside when Erik coughed several times.

Giving the bundle a reluctant look, she folded her dress around it and returned to dry land.

Erik was still in the bedroom but she figured he must be hungry as well. She went over to the icebox, trying to decide what to make. There wasn't really a very good kitchen set up down here yet and she made a mental note for that to be one of the first things they did. She would probably find something to put into sandwiches…

Erik coughed again and Seraph frowned, turning and going into the bedroom instead.

The man was pawing through the sack of clothes, presumably to find a shirt to wear and she found herself struggling not to admire his strong legs, though she was able to keep her eyes on his calves and not anything higher.

"Are- are you feeling alright?" She asked hesitantly, unsure if this would be one of those things that he would snap at her for. She didn't want to upset him, seeing as though they were likely going to be spending a good deal of time together down here.

Erik straightened and looked back at her. He looked tired.

"I'm fine," he said, though she didn't quite believe him. He stifled another cough and she frowned at him.

"Get in bed," she ordered, ignoring his dark scowl as she did so. He didn't move toward the bed so she went over, fluffing the pillows and straightening the blankets.

"There, is that better your lordship?"

Erik still didn't move from where he was.

"No? Fine, well, don't even think of coming and haunting me because you died of some horrific disease. I tried," Seraph said, shrugging. She moved out of the bedroom, glancing over her shoulder in the opening that led to the main cavern. Erik had moved over toward the bed, though he was watching her. Their eyes met and Seraph smiled slightly.

* * *

He watched her leave the room and then sighed, raking a hand through his hair. He turned to look down at the bed but something caught his attention, a flash of a silvery color that he saw out of the corner of his eye. His mask was lying on the small table next to the bed where he had put it earlier…

His hand darted to his face, just to make sure he wasn't seeing things. He wasn't wearing his mask.

Thoughtfully, his gaze shifted to the doorway Seraphina had disappeared through.

* * *

Seraph stoked up the fire and filled a pot with some fresh water from the spring that welled up in another small chamber off the main cavern. There was a pool there that she used for drinking water and a small stream that flowed down into the lake.

She put the pot on the metal grate over the fire and gathered up the other things that she would need to make a pot of broth.

Erik was sick, she was sure, and she wasn't feeling exactly well herself. She would live, it was just a bit of a cold but Erik had been in the water longer than she had and he'd hit his head… Speaking of that, I should check his head later to be sure he's all right, Seraph thought with a sigh. Why did she have the sneaking suspicion that he wasn't going to be an easy patient?

While the water was heating she slipped back into the bedroom, pleased to see Erik in bed, and located the bag that she'd put her clothes in, quickly finding an outfit.

The man didn't move. She stared intently at him for a few moments until she was able to discern that he was indeed still breathing.

With one last glance at the apparently sleeping man over her shoulder, Seraph left him to rest.

She changed into her dress and went back to the fire again, adding in some vegetables to the broth before getting another, smaller pot and filling it with water to heat for tea.

While she was waiting for things to cook she unwrapped the bundle that Christine had given her. The first things that came into sight were to masks, one very similar to the one she had fashioned for Erik, a quarter mask that would cover his deformity but leave the rest of his face visible, white and made of either porcelain or leather, she couldn't quite tell. The other mask was just as spectacular; it vaguely resembled a skeleton, with large holes around the eyes. It was a rather stunning piece, though she wasn't sure she could picture it on Erik. It would certainly make him more frightening though, which was probably a good deal of the point for wearing it in the first place, and not a more normal looking mask.

The third item was a book. Seraph moved to open it but then Erik coughed again and she thought better of it. She would have time to look at it later; first she should get him some broth. She carefully wrapped the things back up and placed them on a table nearby.

After a bit of rummaging around, she found a bowl and spoon, filling the former with broth. She carried the bowl into the bedroom and set it on the nightstand before walking over to the bed.

"Erik?" she asked softly, "Are you awake?"

He turned toward her, his eyes open, and reached out, taking her hand. Seraph's eyes went wide as she saw the loving expression on his face, trembling and he pulled her gently to him and onto the bed, wrapping his arms tenderly around her.

She couldn't seem to form any thoughts as he nuzzled her hair and she couldn't make out what he was murmuring quietly, but that was fine.

She hadn't had much contact with people in the past four, almost five years, and even before that she'd never had someone hold her like this, as though she was his very soul. As if without her, he would be nothing.

Seraph slipped her arms around him, relaxing and reveling in his scent, leather and darkness, though she wasn't really sure how darkness had a smell, it just did somehow.

He shifted, moving his head so he could press a kiss to her forehead.

After he drew away slightly, Seraph looked up at him, her eyes warm. Her hand moved up to cup his scarred cheek and he tilted his head towards her palm, gazing intently into her eyes.

"I love you," he said and Seraph was sure that she had never heard more beautiful words spoken, and then he added, "Christine."

Seraphina's heart shattered. Her eyes filled with tears and she pushed him roughly away, crawling back out of the bed and ignoring his anguished cry as she left the room, angrily dashing away her glistening tears.

It had been stupid of her to think he loved her; no he still wanted Christine even though she was married and pregnant.

Seraph was shaking with emotion as she made her way carefully over to the table covered in books, the floor seemed to be a little blurry and for some reason her feet didn't want to obey her. She closed her eyes, more tears streaming down her face unheeded and she grabbed the first thing that her groping hand encountered, carrying it numbly over to the couch before she allowed herself to collapse.

* * *

She had come back to him. Erik couldn't quite believe his eyes; she had actually come back. He had been sure that she would run off with that boy, Raoul, and he had resigned himself to life without her, and yet here she was in front of him. He reached out and took her hand, pulling her to him and wrapping her in his arms. Her hair was soft and sweet smelling.

Elated, nuzzled her neck and hair, feeling her slender arms slip around him. There was a dull throbbing in his head but he didn't pay any attention to it, his Christine was here in his arms and there was nothing more important in the entire world.

He kissed her forehead before pulling back to stare into her brown eyes which he had thought he would never see again.

"I love you," he told her, pausing. "Christine."

And suddenly she shoved him away, her face distorting. He reached out, trying to stop her from leaving again but she was already gone. He cried out, trying to call her back to his side, but she didn't stop.

She left him.

Again.

Sobbing, Erik turned away from the light, curling into himself. Eventually he fell into an exhausted slumber.

See, I'm evil. Yes, I know what I'm doing. He's very ooc at the moment but it's supposed to be that way. You'll see. *grins gleefully*

Reviews?

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