Disclaimer: I sadly own nothing related to The Phantom of the Opera or X-Men. Only original characters belong to me.

AN: I won't be able to post Friday because of the 4th of July weekend, so I'm putting this up early. It's a semi-romantic chapter, though the good stuff won't be happening for a while. Remember, Erik's going to do his best to go slow with Annora, so please try and be as patient as Erik is…or as patient as he appears to be (wink). Anyway, please be kind and review! Thanks!

Chapter 11: Just a Friendly Picnic:

Wincing, Erik adjusted the ice bag on his shoulder and closed his eyes. 'I don't think I've ever worked so hard in my life,' he thought, groaning as he sank back into the bed.

Today had been full of surprises, both good and bad, though the good outnumbered the bad.

First, the bad thing was his shoulder. Apparently Erik was not as physically fit as he believed himself to be, but then, the Danger Room was unpredictable, and he hadn't known what to expect while training with Mr. Summers.

He had soon found out.

Between the battle droids, huge robots, and other weapons the Room had thrown at him, Erik knew that each and every one of the X-Men had to be in prime condition. With every second that passed, his respect for them grew, and by the time he'd finished with the "easy levels," Erik felt that he was bound to regard them all as professional fighters.

The training had left him bruised, battered, and exhausted, not to mention smelling foul. A hot shower had cleaned him up while soothing his muscles, and Dr. Grey had treated his wounded shoulder with care and kindness, something he had rarely received in his life. That had been a very good surprise for him, since he'd never been treated by a doctor before.

So far, the biggest surprise thus was when Erik had discovered another power he didn't realize he'd had: the gift of generating force fields of his own.

He'd thrown up his arms to protect himself from an attacking robot, intending to sink himself into a shadow and flee away from its plasma blasts. Then, out of nowhere appeared a large, swirling black shield, completely absorbing the powerful blasts aimed for his head. Erik could not have been more stunned than he was then.

Scott and the Professor were astounded as well. Both had observed his actions in the Danger Room from above, and when the exercise was over, they had called him in for careful questioning about his mutant abilities. Both men listened carefully, and the Professor eventually nodded his head.

"I'm going to guess that you've always had this shielding ability, but simply never had the chance to use them," he told the two younger men. "It's extremely rare for a mutant of your age to develop new powers, so it must have always existed. I'm assuming you've never been fearful like that before, and your instincts produced a shield you always possessed, but never had to use."

Xavier had had a point. After he'd moved into the Opera House, Erik had never been attacked by anyone; he'd only suffered harm before then, at the hands of his parents. Then, once he'd begun showing mutant powers, he had used his abilities to be the attacker, and to extort money from the Opera's managers.

So now Erik honestly did need training with his powers, and that, for some reason, pleased the Professor.

He soon learned why. After Erik had been treated by Jean Grey, Xavier asked him to his office, and there Erik got another good surprise: the Professor had not told any of his X-Men, not even Annora, what kind of powers The Phantom possessed. They would never know that Erik and The Phantom were the same person.

"Basically, you now have a clean slate," explained Xavier. "Annora knows that The Phantom had strong telepathic skills, but so do many other mutants. As long as you keep your telepathic 'signature' hidden from her, she will not make the connection between you and the Phantom, other than you're both French and have telepathic abilities."

Erik had almost jumped across the desk to hug the man. A clean slate in every way! Annora would not have to know who he'd been until long after he'd won her heart. Once that happened, he'd explain why he'd taken her, that it had been a mistake and that he'd never intended to harm her.

Xavier had proceeded to dismiss him, recommending another hot shower for Erik's sore muscles, lunch, and a good rest before dinner. "Believe me, you'll need it," he said with a smile.

Erik had done all of that, and woken up before dinner, but still sore. He took another hot shower, and was laying back to close his eyes for a moment when someone knocked on his door.

Groaning, he slowly got up and went to the door, praying it wasn't a youngster –he might just yell at them for bothering him.

Lucky for him, it was someone much more preferable: Annora herself stood there, a tray in her hands as she smiled up at him.

"I came to see how you survived against my big brother," she teased. "And to bring you dinner. I figured you'd be too tired to join us in the dining room, so I brought the dining room to you."

He smiled and motioned her inside. "I hope you brought enough for two, since I wouldn't want you missing your own meal just to bring me mine."

She chuckled and placed the tray on a small table that sat underneath a window, where two chairs sat across from one another. As she set the table with silverware, he took a seat and watched her, slyly but closely.

Her cheeks were slightly pink, probably from the warmth of the sun flowing through the window onto her face. Steady hands set things up quickly, and he noticed that it was a meal for one, much to his disappointment.

"Sorry," she apologized. "I would join you, but I have a dance class tonight. The end-of-semester recital is coming up in a few days, and my girls aren't quite ready yet."

If there was one thing Erik understood, it was dancers that weren't fully ready to perform; he'd seen too many ballerinas and chorus girls slow or destroy their careers, all because they hadn't practiced enough to become a soloist.

"I understand," he said, reaching for the plate she'd just uncovered. "Perhaps another time?"

She cleared her throat with a nervous cough. "Actually, I was wondering if you'd like a tour of the grounds. There are a lot of nice picnicking spots, so I thought you might…you know…want to see them."

Erik felt his heart beat faster. She was asking him on a…what did they call it? A date? Yes, that was it. Antoinette had gone on 'dates,' and explained them to him, so he knew what they were. Either that, or she was being kind, but either way, he'd go anywhere and everywhere with her.

"I would like that very much," he shyly replied. "Unless Monsieur Summers has more training for me."

Annora gave a small laugh. "No, you have tomorrow afternoon off. You'll only have class with my father tomorrow morning, to develop your shielding abilities, but after that, you're free. I've got dance classes in the morning, but nothing after that, so it works out perfectly. I'll swing by your room at around noon, and we'll head out from there. Okay?"

Speechless, he nodded, unable to reply as she vanished out the door. 'And I thought I was supposed to make the first move,' he thought, grinning. This girl certainly was full of surprises!

'I can't believe I did that,' Annora thought, stunned at her actions. Still, Rogue would be proud of her for doing it.

'But it's not a date,' she stressed to herself. 'Nope, not a date; just me showing the new guy around so he doesn't get lost whenever he wonders outside.'

Yup, just two colleagues out on a picnic and a walk, nothing romantic about it.

'Okay, fine, it's a little romantic, but it's not supposed to be!'

Annora tried to keep her cool as she sat down beside her father at the dinner table, hands reaching to accept a plate of roasted chicken from Beast. Mashed potatoes joined the meat, as well as a roll with butter, but she didn't taste any of it. Her mind was on the class coming up in a couple hours, as well as tomorrow afternoon.

She felt her father brush her mind, silently asking if she was alright. ::I'm fine,:: Annora assured him, sensing his worry. ::Just got a few things on my mind, that's all.::

His amusement showed on his face, but thankfully, he said nothing. Instead, he turned to Storm and asked how the history classes were going. Annora took the opportunity to bolt down her meal and run before anyone else asked any embarrassing questions.

After her meal had settled in her stomach, Annora was stretching in the large ballroom, which was rarely used for its designed purpose. The 'grand ballroom,' as the kids called it, was old, fancy, and only used for dance classes, self-defense courses, and the rare dance or prom that the school held for the older students. Tonight, it belonged to her and her class.

As she readied the music, her students slowly drifted in, each of them in costume, as ordered. They wore Indian garb, but a conservative version of a belly-dance outfit; her father would never forgive her if she handed out the revealing ones!

"Okay, ladies, from the top!" she yelled, clapping her hands.

The room filled with muttered words, shuffling feet, gasps of breath, and squeals. Annora hid a smile as she waited for the girls to take their places. Once the last skirt had settled, she hit the play button on the CD player.

An hour later, her students were exhausted, but progress had been made. Two of the girls had finally remembered every single one of their steps, and Kitty had managed to relax a little while dancing. Not bad, for a rehearsal, and Annora dismissed them to bed with a 'good job,' something she rarely said before a final performance.

Leaving the empty hall, Annora switched off the lights and began to wonder if her invitation to Erik Garnier had been a good idea. Tomorrow, she would wait and see.

For Erik, dawn came far too soon for his taste. It seemed that he'd barely closed his eyes for sleep, and then it was time to get up. Once more, the sounds of children laughing and playing woke him, and he wondered how they managed to get up so early and be cheerful about it. Even after he'd showered and dressed, Erik was still rather grumpy about having to wake so early.

Things looked a bit brighter, however, when Annora once more showed up at his door. The smile she gave him perked him up, and he was inclined to return it as she led him downstairs. Breakfast was another 'smoothie,' with some sort of powdered vitamins.

"To give you an extra boost," Annora explained as she poured out his cup. "You'll need it later!"

After an hour with the Professor, Erik was beyond glad she'd thought ahead –Annora Xavier knew her father too well, and the energy needed to train with him. By the end of two hours, Erik felt worse than he had after a morning with Cyclops!

"That's because this is a power you are unfamiliar with," the Professor explained. "You aren't used to using it yet, so it will take time and energy for you to adjust accordingly. Annora was much the same way while I was training her; you're welcome to ask her how she managed it."

Heading for his room, Erik made a note to do just that. But first, he needed to clean up.

As it turned out, getting ready for his picnic 'date' with Annora was harder than Erik thought it would be. He'd brought everything he believed he might need when it came to winning over a woman: cologne, shaving and hair care kits, and an assortment of his best clothes. He chose a white dress shirt and black jeans for today, thinking it might be best to save the others for fancier evenings out.

'I normally hate jeans, but this is an exception,' he thought, combing his hair back from his face.

Antoinette had bought several pairs of the coarse pants for him years ago, and he'd never worn them. However, knowing that he needed to blend in with others, Erik had brought the damned things with him. He planned to use the blue ones for training, and the black pairs for whenever he was out with Annora. He did, after all, want to look his best for her.

The last hair was brushed into place as a familiar knock sounded on his door. Nearly dropping his comb, Erik ran to answer it.

"No, she should wear the blue dress," Jean had insisted, using her telekinetic powers to pull a dress out of Annora's closet.

Storm had rolled her eyes. "The crème dress with brown flower designs suits her better," she said, holding the garment up.

Rogue hadn't agreed with either choice. "She's always looked pretty in pink," the Southern belle put in, a pale rose summer dress in her hands.

Annora, however, had the final say: no dress!

Instead, she'd chosen blue jeans and a brown baby-doll top shot through with gold threads. It wasn't too dressy, but wasn't too casual. The others complained, but were overridden.

"It's just a picnic!" she huffed. "It's not a date or anything like that." Of course, her friends didn't believe her, but wisely kept their comments to themselves.

Now she was here, and wishing she'd listened to Storm and worn one of the damn dresses. Erik, who was looking fantastic in black jeans and a white dress shirt, was smiling at her, and she, oddly enough, felt underdressed, even if it was a picnic.

"Shall we?" he asked, reaching for the basket she'd brought.

Wordlessly, she handed him the wicker container and took his arm, blushing as he escorted her outside. She saw a few of her female students grin, wink, or give her the thumbs-up sign as she passed, embarrassing her further. The boys, meanwhile, were doing the same, though there was a lot more elbowing than there were with the girls.

Deciding to ignore the attention, Annora steered Erik out a side door and led him into the foliage surrounding her father's property.

Having grown up in an underground maze of tunnels, Erik thought he could easily find his way back to the mansion if he became lost among the trees.

He was wrong. One tree looked like another, and after many twists and turns, Annora led him into an enchanting little glade, where a stream bubbled and an open area offered the perfect spot for two people to picnic. He raised an eyebrow at her, but said nothing as she stood there, thinking.

"Okay, you're right, it's too…intimate," she said, pulling him another direction. "Come on."

She led him through the trees once more, but this time, they came out near an open-sided structure of elegantly carved wood. Erik remembered seeing a drawing of something like it in a book once. What was it called? Oh, yes, a gazebo. Nearby, just on the other side of a row of trees, was the mansion.

"Here we go," Annora said cheerfully. "Open, friendly, nothing that screams 'intimate' or stuff like that. Let's eat, you must be starved!"

Erik immediately followed her up three wooden steps and put the basket down on one of the long benches, quickly following her lead of unpacking it, if only to have something to do.

Several sandwiches were soon spread on the wooden floor before them, as well as a small container of what looked like chopped cabbage mixed with mayonnaise, and something Annora called 'potato salad.' Bottles of water and lemonade stood along the wide wooden benches, the liquids shimmering in the sunlight. Glancing upwards, he watched as the thin layer of clouds hovering overhead miraculously began to clear.

"That can't be normal," he muttered, shading his eyes as the light shone in his face.

Annora, who had been in the middle of unwrapping a ham sandwich, paused in her movements and followed his gaze. Then she scowled.

"That would be Storm's doing," she muttered, handing him the sandwich. "She's probably watching us from the observation level."

She pointed to a large dome at the top of the mansion. Erik couldn't see anyone, but he wasn't surprised; Storm had probably done her 'good deed' and left by now. He shrugged and accepted the sandwich, taking a healthy bite as he watched Annora scoop out the salads onto paper plates.

Soon, the food was devoured and Annora decided that they could leave the nearly-empty basket at the gazebo. Erik heartily agreed and offered his arm, inwardly thrilled that he'd rolled up his sleeves before he ate; the feel of her warm fingers on his skin sent a thrill up his spine. He caught the slight blush on her cheeks, and knew that she felt the same way.

"Where to, Mademoiselle?" he asked, gently placing a hand atop the one that rested on his arm.

'Oh, boy, he's really got nice arms,' she thought, leading Erik towards the trees. 'And he smells good, too!'

Damn it, she shouldn't think about him like this. She'd only known him for, what, a day and a half? They were barely even friends; how could she think about Erik like this?

'Besides, he probably doesn't think of me like that anyway.'

Not that she had any experience when it came to men. Life had been too full of learning, training, and traveling to think about boys (or, as she grew older, men). Plus, there had been no young men around during her teen years, and by the time males were running around the mansion, she was either too old or too young for them. The students were definitely off limits, and the X-Men males were all taken or considered family –dating them would be like dating an uncle or older brother. Ew!

'Better stick with the friends idea,' she decided, liking the feel of his arm under her hand. 'It probably won't move any further than that.'

But, oh, how she wished it would…

AN: More romance coming up, I promise! Thanks for reading, and please review!