Hello again. I've been grounded, which is of course why I haven't updated, so now that I'm finally free, I can update! Yay! And a note to you all: Talking back isn't a good thing, no matter how good it feels at the time. Trust me.

Disclaimer: I don't own PotO!

"All right, Alyssa. Calm down. I suppose it's dark enough now," Erik gave in at last. For the past hour, Alyssa had been badgering him nonstop about the surprise (and had actually started to get rather annoying), her being as impatient as she was. Now she smiled, though, glad that her curiousity was about to be satisfied, and Erik donned his cloak and motioned for her to get in the boat. Carefully Alyssa seated herself on the cushion, and then he stepped in behind her. He grabbed the pole and began to propel the watercraft forward.

"The water looks so beautiful," Alyssa murmured, her head resting lightly on one hand as she gazed at the tiny ripples made by the boat as Erik poled it forward.

"It isn't anything compared to what I want to show you," Erik replied. Alyssa fell silent, staring at the glassy surface of the water with half-shut eyes, and she sighed quietly.

After a while of slowly poling it forward, Erik stopped the boat. "Here we are," he muttered. "Now it's only a bit of a walk." He got out and held Alyssa's hand as she followed. Their footsteps made barely a sound as he led her down the many passages.

Before long they came to the back of the mirror that had once been Christine's. Erik expertly slid the glass into the side of the gold frame and ushered Alyssa through the room. She followed hi quickly,though she secretly wished that he would let her look around for a while. In the months that she'd been living with Erik, he had never taken her here, into the actual opera house, and she was already intruiged.

"Why are we going this way, Erik?" she asked, looking around incredulously. "You've never taken me here before." She was stunned to find that some of the walls looked charred, as though they'd been burned.

"This is the only way to get where we want to go," Erik replied simply. He opened a door and led Alyssa up a flight of stairs, around a small (again, seemingly burned) walkway, then up more stairs. Alyssa was just beginning to get tired (What the hell does Erik consider to be a bit of a walk?) when she saw that they had reached an iron door.

"Alyssa, close your eyes for a second," Erik commanded softly. Alyssa groaned, but eventually she complied and did what he asked.

The metal hinges of the door creaked as it opened, and Erik gently guided her outside. The air was cold, and made tiny bumps spring up all over her skin, but Alyssa did not so much as shiver. She held Erik's arm as he directed her down a few steps.

"Just a little farther now. Keep your eyes closed," he muttered in her ear. Alyssa was about to go insane, but at last Erik allowed her to open her eyes. She gasped quietly the moment that she did.

"Oh my god..." she breathed, her hand coming up to her mouth at the sight before her. Once, when she was very young, her uncle had sent her a postcard with the skyline of Paris on the front. She had adored it as a child, and dreamed of one day seeing the real thing for herself. Now there it was, right in front of her. It was the most beautiful view of anything she'd ever seen. Of course, there was no Eiffel Tower (since, as Alyssa knew, it hadn't been built yet), but it hardly mattered. Alyssa took a step back, nearly overwhelmed, and then she looked up at the sky. Stars spread above her endlessly, sparkling diamonds against the black velvet darkness, and she smiled.

Then suddenly Alyssa heard the soft sound of music, and slowly she turned around. Erik was standing a few feet behind her, and now a violin was carefully balanced on his shoulder. His eyes werealmost shut as he passionately moved the bow back and forth across the strings, spinning the web of an entrancing melody. It made Alyssa want to cry and laugh, scream and stay silent, and jump around and go to sleep, all at the same time. However, she contented herself with simply staring out at the skyline of Paris, swaying ever so slightly to the music.

Erik's eyes wandered over the ground, though he didn't really see anything. He concentrated on only the song he played, and he was so focused that it seemed to Alyssa like he cared about nothing else in the world. But then suddenly he looked at her, and, though he never skipped a beat of the melody, she somehow felt that she was wrong in thinking so. It was something she saw in his eyes.

Finally the song came to an end, and Alyssa clapped softly and grinned as Erik lowered his violin. He bowed, and then carefully set the instument back into its case, which was lying on the ground beside him.

"That was... beautiful," Alyssa whispered, staring at Erik as he straightened up.

"Thank you, mon ami," he muttered. He swiftly removed his cloak in one smooth, mystical gesture, and set it about Alyssa's shoulders, then he suddenly took her hand and led her over to a statue on the edge of the roof. "The view should be better from up here," he explained, climbing atop the back of the rearing horse made of stone. He turned and extended a hand to Alyssa, who clambered up after him.

Of course, Erik was right. Now Alyssa couldn't even see the rooftop of the opera house, and it seemed as though she was merely suspended between the city and the sky. She took a deep breath and glanced down at the ground below, but the shock of seeing how high up she was made her hurriedly withdraw her head.

"Do you like it?" Erik asked, adjusting his position on the statue and leaning against the stone wing of an angel. Alyssa copied him before answering.

Her eyes were as bright as the stars as she breathed, "I... love it. It's so amazing. I mean, it's like, the most beautiful view I've ever seen. Thank you so much, Erik."

"I thought you might like it," Erik murmured, gazing at the city. "You seem to enjoy things like this. I'm not sure how to word it. ...Simple, I suppose. But elegant. You seem to enjoy simple but elegant things." A half-smile crossed his face, and he sighed. "I haven't been up here in... such a long time." The memory of the last time he had been there suddenly hit his mind sharply, and he shook his head in sadness.

Alyssa turned to look at him, and saw that his eyes had become glassy. "What's the matter, Erik?" she questioned. "You look like you're going to cry." Erik shook his head again.

"Nothing is wrong, Alyssa. It must be a trick of the light." He stared at her for a second, trying to appear as sincere as he could, and at last Alyssa shrugged. Erik could sense a rather annoyed (or depressed, it was hard to tell) air about her, so he quickly mumbled, "Alyssa, I need your help." Quickly Alyssa snapped to attention. "No, it's not that," Erik added hurriedly, "I just... if I ever do something- anything at all- that one of your other friends from your time wouldn't do, then I'd like it if you'd please tell me."

"Why?"

"Because... I don't want to make you uncomfortable or anything. I can't really say that I've had a real friend before, as pitiful as that sounds, so I don't really know how to act. On top of that, I have no idea how anyone from your time would behave. The only example I have, of course, is you. I want you to help me be more like your other friends, so that I can make you more comfortable."

Still staring into Erik's eyes, Alyssa smiled. "But I don't want you to be just like them, Erik. I'm your friend because I'm fine with the way you act now. And, okay, I don't have much choice, given my situation, but that's beside the point. I'm not uncomfortable around you, Erik. Maybe I was before, but come on. I thought you were a freak slash kidnapper slash rapist! No offence, of course. What I'm trying to say is... Erik, you don't have to be more like my other friends. You're fine just being you."

Erik nodded once, his eyes downcast and away from Alyssa. Fine... just being me... A strange sensation sparked through him, but he shrugged it off. "Thank you," he murmured. There was a moment of silence before he asked, "Alyssa, would you mind leaning against me?"

"Umm... why?" Alyssa was taken aback.

"You have my cloak, and it is snowing."

It took a couple of seconds, but at last Alyssa gave in. "Fine, I will. It's weird, I mean, cause... you know, that's the sort of thing that couples would do."

With a small sigh, Erik replied, "Yes, that may be, Alyssa. Then again, you and I are both fully aware of the fact that our relationship does not exceed friendship, and there's no one around to tell us differently, now is there?" One of his eyebrows raised ever so slightly, and Alyssa tilted her head a little to the side.

"You're such a dork, Erik," she smiled, then she gingerly scooted toward him and laid her torso against his. He chose not to react to what she'd called him, since he wasn't in the mood for an explanation of any futuristic words.

For a long time they sat there, gazing at the stars and the city below. Erik soon felt very warm, and he gave a small sigh of contentment. It was almost another hour before either of the two spoke.

"How long are we staying out here?" Alyssa asked quietly after what seemed like forever to her. Her eyelids were beginning to droop, though she fought as hard as she could to stay awake. She loved being where she was, staring at the billions of stars and hundreds of city lights, rested softly against Erik's chest.

Erik turned his head and looked at her. "I was planning on staying out here for a while longer. Are you getting tired, Alyssa?" He did not wait for an answer. "You do look it. Well, in that case I suppose we can-"

"No, no," Alyssa interrupted. "We can stay out here. I'll stay awake, I'm sure."

"Well, I don't want you to fight it. If you do fall asleep, I can always take you back myself. It all depends on what you want to do."

Alyssa considered it for a moment. "We don't have to go back now, but if I do fall asleep you can wake me up if need be. You pick for once, Erik. I feel guilty making all the decisions."

"All right, then. We'll stay, and if you fall asleep I'll carry you. I wouldn't dream of waking you. That's too much of a battle for this late at night."

Both of them laughed at this, then they fell silent again. Erik hesitantly put an arm around Alyssa, and was strangely pleased when she did not protest. Her hair was soft against his cheek, which he gently lay upon her once she had lost all consciousness, and he smiled.

For the second time, Erik felt warmth spread through his chest, but this time Alyssa's shared body heat had nothing to do with it.

Jeez, freedom never felt so good. Please review, and I promise I won't get grounded again any time soon!