I am on a roll with this one :) Another chapter to keep you guys entertained until I go to Venice on Monday :) As you know I own nothing from Phantom but I own my own character :) And yes I have referred partly to the original Leroux novel :) Go me :) Thanks for the reviews, follows and favourites so far and on with the show :D

The Rose of Self

Chapter Twenty: Feast your Eyes and Glut your Soul...

Caroline's POV

~October 15th 1907~

Once I got into the bathroom and ran the water I realised the fact I would need some help getting out of my dress due to the corset in the back. I left out of the bathroom to see Erik sitting at the vanity looking into the mirror; that was when I saw his deformity fully for the first time. I felt my eyes widen a little in shock as I looked at it curiously; it looked like a burn but it only covered half of his face. The right side of his face was flawless and looked so handsome; however the left hand side was disfigured with redness and some skin that looked slightly chafed and irritated. But I couldn't look anymore as he covered it with his hand before getting up from the chair and looked at me with fire in his eyes.

"Why are you not screaming girl?! Feast your eyes and glut your soul on my accursed ugliness; even my father could never bring himself to truly love me as his son. He only saw me as a demon and a monster; the demon who stole his one true love away from him on that fateful night that changed my life." He suddenly yelled in reply as he got up and approached me quickly with his eyes glowing angrily causing me to back away slowly.

"Please don't hurt me." I pleaded as I found myself backed into a nearby wall. However he seemed lost to the world so I tried to make my escape into the nearby bathroom; but it proved futile as Erik grabbed me harshly around the wrist before pulling me closer to his face.

"How dare you run from me girl? You are my wife and we are to be together; until death do us part." He said coldly.

"Let me go please; you're hurting me." I pleaded tearfully as the fear began rising in me and I feared of what he might do to me.

"Not until you look at me without fear in your eyes; I can tell you fear me and my face but you will have to live with this for the rest of your life." He said coldly as the grip on my wrist tightened a little causing me to struggle hard in his grasp. Why was he being so harsh towards me? I thought he cared for me and that's why he didn't mind the arrangement so much but I guess I was wrong. I then decided to use a self defence manoeuvre that I learnt to use over the years; I usually used it when I really wanted someone to leave me alone. I opened my mouth and screamed as loud as I could until it became unbearable for Erik; he let go of my wrist and covered his ears a moment later and I ran into the bathroom before barricading myself inside. But I panicked when I could hear him banging hard on the door and shouting for me to come out.

"Come out of there or I will break down the door!" He yelled and I backed away from the door hoping he would stop what he was doing. However as soon as the banging started it stopped and a silence descended the air that you could cut with a knife. But what stopped him from banging down the door; did he come to his senses or did someone prevent him from doing so? I listened intently for a moment and I heard two voices I recognised well coming from the other side of the door.

"What are you doing Erik?!" Nadir asked demandingly.

"Can't you see you've probably scared the princess away from you?" Antoinette continued harshly.

"She saw my face; no-one is supposed to see my face and live to tell the tale!" What was that comment supposed to mean? How many people have died by his hands just because they have seen his face? Did that mean he would have killed me too until Antoinette and Nadir stepped in?

"Erik; I want you to take a walk or a ride for ten minutes until you have calmed down then I demand you apologise to the princess. That is if she will even speak to you after what you've done." Nadir said slowly and a moment later I heard the door shut; did that mean it was safe to come out? I tensed however when there was a knock on the door.

"Caroline? Are you in there? It's ok you can come out; you're safe now he can't harm you." I heard Antoinette say gently and with that I slowly opened the door; ready to close it the moment I felt threatened once again.

"Where's Erik?" I asked curiously.

"He's gone for a ride or a walk to calm down. That should give you enough time to get out of your dress and ready for bed." Nadir explained and with a nod towards me he left the room.

"Goodnight Nadir. Thank you for your help this evening." I called out as he walked towards the door.

"No trouble at all; I live to serve and protect you princess." He said and he left out of the door.

"Now let's get you out of this dress shall we? I think a bath will calm your nerves and relax you ready for bed." Antoinette said soothingly and with that I nodded before turning around to show her the back of my dress. As she untied the dress I thought back to Erik and his face; why did he hide it from me? I know it is not the most handsome face in the world but his face didn't frighten me; it was his temper that frightened me and I was afraid of my safety when I was with him. When I could finally breathe I stepped into the bath and breathed a sigh as the water washed away the aches and pains from the day.

"I'll put this dress away and leave you alone to have your bath. I'll also leave your nightgown here to change into before you go to bed."

"Thank you Antoinette." I said quietly and with that I lay back in the bath and closed my eyes a little. However I found myself so relaxed I didn't notice anyone come in until I felt a hand on my shoulder causing me to look up to see who it was. I tensed and sunk lower into the water when I saw Erik standing over me.

"Please darling, hear me out. I'm sorry if I scared you earlier; it's just I have always been overprotective about my face and mask. People normally react strongly about my face and so I just presumed you were afraid of my face rather than my temper. Please say you forgive me; I could not live with myself if you come to hate me because of a misunderstanding." He pleaded and he knelt down beside the bathtub and took hold of my hands gently in his larger ones.

"I don't know; you scared me. I was afraid you would hurt me in your anger. I also heard you talking to Antoinette and Nadir; you said no-one is supposed to live to tell the tale once they have seen your face. How many people have died by your hand after they have seen your face? Please I want the truth; no more secrets between us." I pleaded beseechingly.

"No-one has died by my hand; but my temper tends to get the best of me and I say things that I shouldn't say or something I might regret later. I didn't mean to scare you darling. But I promise you this; I would never hurt you and I vow to protect you no matter what." He replied. Even though I couldn't tell by looking in his eyes; somehow I could tell he was telling me the truth. I guess everyone tends to lose themselves when they are angry at someone.

"I'll forgive you this once; but promise me we will talk about our problems rather than hide them." I said gently and I stroked his knuckles as a sign of reassurance of my feelings towards him.

"I promise; do you need help with anything darling?" He asked curiously.

"Could you do my back for me? And help me with my hair please?" I replied politely and I leaned forward a little to allow him to reach my back with the sponge and soap.

"I've finished your back; could you lean back so I can do your hair darling?" He asked and with that I leaned back. As he massaged the soap into my scalp I closed my eyes and gave a little sigh of contentment.

"Are you enjoying that darling?" A voice asked teasingly and I nodded in agreement as he continued his ministrations on my hair. Once he was done he held out my towel for me and I stepped out of the bath before he wrapped it snugly around my body.

"I'll leave you to change into your nightgown; I'll see you in a moment." He said gently and so I proceeded to dry off my body before slipping the nightgown on over my head. I stepped out of the bathroom to see Erik sitting up in bed as if waiting for me to join him; but was he expecting me to carry out the duties as a wife or was he just waiting for me to join him?

"Are you ok darling? You've gone pale." He asked soothingly as he got up before gliding towards me with something akin to concern in his eyes.

"What do you expect from me?" I asked quietly as I began to feel a little lightheaded.

"I don't expect anything from you darling; if you don't want to proceed any further you don't have to." He said reassuringly as he reached out a hand to touch me. However I must have misinterpreted his actions as the darkness consumed me and I fell to the floor...