Ok, I actually have a good excuse for being so long this time! I moved. So I've been crazy busy packing and unpacking, loading and unloading, and now I'm in a new house!
Erik: With no dimming light. AND her room has a window. And Erik doesn't fit in the closet anymore!
Me: I know. I don't like it either, but I've done some extra things to make it up for you guys, the long wait I mean. I wrote an extra little side-fic type thing, and it's….*drum roll*…Under the Opera! Yep, I wrote the whole song!
Erik: I believe it was PhantomWaffles who suggested the idea? Thanks to you, she used the time she was supposed to spend packing and unpacking writing this ridiculous song of hers.
Me: You know you love it Erik.
Erik:….It's catchy.
Me: Anyways, go check that out!
Review responding time!
Little Luxa: That is a lot isn't it. *daydreaming about a swimming pool of maple syrup and pool toys made of waffles*
Erik: Stop drooling.
Me: But…waffles! And yes, everyone here should move down to Canada to come see Erik in my school! Then Erik will have a huge parade of phangirls following after him all the time! It'd be awesome.
I'm in the same situation, lots of syrup but I finished my waffles yesterday morning…*cries in the corner of depression*
PhantomWaffles: First of all thanks for suggesting a few chapters ago that I should write Under the Opera! And yeah I guess people would probably recognize Erik…*runs off to think of excuses Kristina can use*
LadyCavalier: Erik: She knows all too well what you're talking about.
Me: Taaaaacooooooos! Wait you had a funeral and I missed it? Why wasn't I invited? Your ideas definitely helped with inspiration for ideas, thanks! May I ask what this Chandler person did? And I will update more often now that I'm done with moving, I swear. No, I won't I'm too lazy. Erik, you really have to stop doing that! Gerik's pretty cool, but Charles Dance Erik is my favourite!
Also, I had a question. Since the altered lyrics for Learn to Be Lonely are yours, I feel like I should ask you for permission first: Would you mind if I did a vocal cover of Learn to Be Lonely with your lyrics and put it on YouTube?
fanfan: Knowing Erik, it could've been anything. I already kinda had an idea for the whole Erik going back thing, but if mine doesn't work out I like your idea too!
Erik: Yes, I'm definitely going to need some luck…however, in the past I've noticed luck never tends to look favourably upon me, and I have a feeling this will be no different.
Me: Oh I can guarantee there will be grief for anyone who messes with Erik. *pulls out Punjab* LOTS of grief.
Crazyone256: I'm sorry, but as I said, writer's block and moving and. But I'm pretty much over that now and I'm done moving, which means it'll be unpaused (I hope). I can't guarantee fast updates, since I still have to finish unpacking, but I'll try my best!
Alexanne: Surprise, here's an update! Actually, everyone should be thanking you. The email I got alerting me of your review kinda reminded me I have to write more for everyone here. So thank you!
Wappa101: Thank you, and I'm going to update…NOW!
DISCLAIMER: I own Erik! He's mine! You can't have him Leroux! *sticks tongue out at Gaston Leroux*
Erik: He's dead.
Me: Good, now there's no competition over you!
Erik: I think you're forgetting some people who are definitely competition. *points to readers*
Me: Right…fop.
Erik: What?
Me: It's my swear word! Instead of fuc-
Erik: *covers her mouth* Don't use such vulgar language, there may be children reading this!
Me: I was gonna say fuchsia.
Erik: Sure.
Me: Fopping phantom…
Erik: Just start the story already.
Chapter 11
"So, do you own an instrument?" Erik asked, struggling to contain his excitement that he would get to hear her angelic voice again.
"Yep! A couple," she smiled. "I've got a guitar, a flute, and a keyboard. Er, it's a piano, organ type thing but less… good sounding," she tried to explain. Erik was still confused, but he let it go. He was used to her poor explanations by now.
"I would like to see this keyboard, if you don't mind." Though Erik could play all the instruments she'd mentioned, he'd always preferred the sound of the piano.
"Alright, but we've only got about an hour before the rest of the family gets back from shopping," Kristina said, leading him up the stairs. "By the way, I've been meaning to ask this. The first night you stayed here, was it you who moved me from the floor to the bed?"
Erik felt his face flush. He'd almost forgotten about that.
"Erik is sorry, he shouldn't have touched you at all. But he didn't do anything else, he promises," he reassured her quickly.
"What?" she looked confused for a few seconds before understanding washed over her and her eyes widened in surprise. "Wait, you thought that I thought you…" She cut herself off, face turning red. "No, I would never suspect something like that! I was just curious that's all. Don't worry about it." She smiled at him.
"But…you're not bothered by the fact that Erik touched you?" he asked, confused. He had expected her to be outraged and disgusted at the thought of physical contact with him, a living corpse. He was outraged and disgusted at himself for daring to let his cold dead hands touch something so beautiful and…alive.
"Of course not. Though I am kind of annoyed that you didn't just stay in the bed like I asked. Now I feel like a bad hostess, to let my guest sleep on the floor." She frowned at him.
"Not at all, there's nothing more you could have done short of tying me to the bed. Besides, I was awake most of the night anyways. I don't sleep much," he explained. "Now, onto your lessons." He insisted, sitting down in front of the keyboard.
He let his fingers run across a few notes to get a taste of the sounds of this strange instrument that was a piano, but not. He could definitely hear the difference in the sounds it created, and the keys felt different too. He couldn't feel the hammers and the strings inside.
"It's electric," Kristina explained, guessing the source of his confusion.
Erik nodded, though he still didn't fully understand it. Yet another thing he was itching to take apart and see how it worked, but for now he would simply enjoy the sounds it made.
~X~X~X~X~
Even when he played random notes, with no rhythm or anything, it sounded musical. She'd never heard anyone play any instrument so beautifully…it was almost hypnotising. Almost, it was hypnotising. She never wanted the music to end.
"Kristina?" Erik's voice shook her out of her trance.
"I'm sorry did you say something?" she asked, embarrassed.
"No, you just looked like you were somewhere else," he explained.
"I was, I was lost in the music," she admitted, smiling at him. "You're a wonderful musician." She hesitated, but finally managed to get out her next question. "Are you….are you going to sing as well?" she wondered, eager to hear the voice all the books spoke of.
"No." He snapped, his voice suddenly cold and brisk. He offered no further explanation, only turned back to the keyboard and continued with the lesson.
The lessons went well, apart from his irritation at her asking him to sing. Even after just one lesson Kristina could hear the improvements in her singing.
Unfortunately, it was brought to an end by the sound of a car pulling in the driveway. Kristina rushed to the window to see who it was, and saw a familiar grey minivan.
"Erik, it's my parents. Hurry and go back down-" She cut herself off when she turned to see that Erik was already gone. That was fast, she thought, though she expected no less from the Phantom of the Opera.
She quickly wiped the huge grin off her face and rushed to the door to greet her family.
~X~X~X~X~
Erik sat in Kristina's room, reflecting on his angel's first lesson. Her voice was becoming even more heavenly with his guidance, and he knew she would only continue to improve. She was the best student a musician could ask for, eager to learn and eager to please. But also eager for him to share with her what she'd involuntarily shared with him, the music of voice.
He couldn't let her hear him sing. He knew he had a pleasant voice, making even those who hated him stop to bask in its beauty, hypnotising them. The look on her face when he played the piano showed the same entranced admiration that everyone else had.
He didn't want her to like him only for his voice. She seemed to like- or at least willingly tolerate- him without his musical talents, and he wanted to keep it that way. To keep believing she liked him.
"Erik?" Her voice, accompanied by a knock at the door, pulled him to reality once more.
"Again, this is your room. You needn't knock before entering," he pointed out.
"Just because it's my room doesn't mean you can't have privacy in it," she countered, grinning. "Anyways, we should figure out how we're going to get you into my school," she told him. He saw excitement shine in her golden brown eyes.
School. He'd almost forgotten. All the people…but all the learning! All the knowledge he would obtain if he were to attend! It almost weighed out the downside of having to communicate and be in crowds.
Plus, he'd get to spend all day with Kristina.
"First, we need to think of a last name for you," Kristina's suggestion dismissed his thoughts once more, and Erik nodded in agreement.
"Yes, seeing as I don't know my own…" he trailed off, determined not to allow himself to feel sad for the loss of his past. Instead he focused on thinking of a last name. Perhaps the name of a musician? Erik Bach? Erik Mozart? No, he was certain someone would point out the unlikely coincidence. Besides, those names were quite rare. Erik…Phantom? He chuckled to himself. The name would certainly fit.
"Erik Satie." Kristina announced suddenly, her eyes once more lit up. "Your name should be Erik Satie!"
"Why do you say that?" Erik asked. He'd never heard of anyone by that name.
"Erik Satie is a musician. I think he's a bit after the time you left though, which explains why you haven't heard of him," she explained.
"I would like to hear some of his music before I agree to borrow his name," Erik told her. He didn't want to go around with the name of some talent less musician. Kristina may like his music, but he hadn't forgotten about the 'rap' her generation seemed to classify as music.
Kristina nodded and pressed a few buttons on the iPod and soon an amazing piece drifted through the earphones into his ears. It was hauntingly beautiful, and wonderfully sad.
"This is Gymnopedie 1," she told him. I've got pretty much all his songs on here, so if you'd like to listen to them later go ahead. Then you can decide whether or not you'll use his name."
"No, I've decided. I would be honoured to borrow this man's name," he announced decisively. "So, for the time being, I will be Erik Satie." The name sounded foreign to him, but he was certain he'd get used to it.
"Great!" Kristina beamed at him. "Now all we have to do is decide how to get you signed up without anyone asking too many questions."
"Leave that to me, petite ange," Erik grinned. Things like this were his specialty after all.
Will Erik be able to join Kristina's school without trouble? Will he fit in with everyone? Find out in the next chapter of Phangirl or Lover!
Authoress Note: I swear I'll try to update this time. Like I said, moving got in the way last time. But now, nothing can stop me from writing and updating, muahahahaha!
Erik: Except reading. Phantom by Susan Kay has finally arrived in her mail and she's been spending most of her time reading it.
Me: Yeah that could be a problem…first of all, it's a distraction because it's addicting. Second, it puts me into this "nothing bad must happen to Erik!" mood, but if life goes perfectly for him the fanfic would be boring…
Erik: So you do find pleasure in my suffering!
Me: No, we find pleasure in you overcoming obstacles. No one wants to read about Erik's perfect life of coming to Canada and how everyone loves him so much they make him the prime minister and he marries Kristina and her parents are totally supportive and love them both and thanks to Prime Minister Erik's lead world peace is achieved for everyone except all the world's fops who are all gathered together and burned in a bonfire.
Erik:…
Me: Review and you get waffles with some of Canada's trademark maple syrup, eh?
(Also, please check out my new phanfic, Reincarnations!)
