"Erik?" Katja cried. The doorknob rattled as she attempted to get into his bedroom, but he had locked the door. He knew it was cowardly, but Erik just couldn't face her right now. "Erik, open the door!" she pleaded. "Say something Erik!" she began to shouted, banging on the door.

Suddenly the door swung open. Katja threw herself into his arms, kissing him passionately. Erik started to give in, but twisted away. "Erik, I need you."

"I…I can't…I won't…not to you," he stammered.

"But I want you to," she whispered. "I want you as much as you want me."

No one had ever looked at him that way before, or ever expressed any desire to be near him. Yet as Erik looked in her eyes, there was most definitely lust burning in the blue orbs, no doubt mirroring his own. Erik had always been a predator in the opera house, but now, he was the prey. "No," he protested. "I will not take advantage of you."

"Please." She grabbed his hand and brought it to the buttons of her dress. When he stepped backwards, Katja undid them herself and let the dress fall into a mess of fabric on the floor. Their lips met again, shattering what was left of Erik's self-control.

He allowed her to undo the buttons of his shirt before he untied the laces of her corset. Erik tossed it aside, as Katja walked backwards, pulling him with her until the two tumbled onto the bed. She moaned as he gently cupped her breast with his hand and brushed his thumb against her pink nipple. "Oh, Erik," she moaned.

Her fingers moved to the waistband of his trousers, fumbling with the button. After his pants were off, he laid over her, kissing her tenderly as she moaned. Erik placed a trail of kisses from her lips, down her neck, to one of her soft mounds and…

"Erik?" He whirled around and saw Katja watching him from the kitchen doorway, confusion in her eyes. "Erik, what's wrong?"

"You're upset and scared, now is not the time for you to be making decisions like that," he replied gently. "Besides, men have always taken advantage of you, and I refuse to do that to you. And for that exact reason, I am going to ask you to please leave me alone for a while."

"But…"

"Katja," he said softly. She immediately fell silent. "You cannot possibly imagine what you do to me, how you make me feel." Erik swallowed hard, before continuing with, "What you make me want. And that is exactly why I need you to leave me alone."

She stared at him; her blue eyes seemed to pierce his soul. "But Erik…"

"Please Katja," Erik begged. "Just do as I ask." When she lowered her head in agreement, Erik locked himself in his bedroom.

He buried his face in his hands, taking deep, shuddering breaths. Why did she do this to him? Erik wanted her so badly, more so than he had anyone ever before, more than Christine even. It had taken all of his willpower to leave her standing there in the kitchen. If he had stayed in there one second more, he wouldn't have been able to stop himself.

When he rescued Katja, he had no idea that having her around would be this big of an issue. Erik had been so focused on Christine that he hadn't even considered what having such a beautiful girl around would do to him. Katja awakened something in him that made him feel things he had never felt before.

Not to mention the dreams he had been having. He had no right to be thinking those kinds of things about Katja, no right to imagine her like that. Erik knew that Katja had never been treated with any sort of dignity, and he was doing everything in his power to give her some. But if he kept seeing her in various states of undress in his mind…no, it just couldn't continue to happen.

She vomited violently, before beginning to sob. She felt so…so violated, so dirty, and used. It had hurt so badly, how one could consider it an act of love was beyond her. He ignored her screams and made her bleed. "Let me go home," she cried, wrapping her arms around her breasts in an attempt to hide her body from him. "You got what you want."

Javert just laughed cruelly. "Do you really think I'm going to let you just skip out of here to the police? No my dear, I'm glad to say we're just beginning to become acquainted."

"No!" she screamed. "Please, let me go!"

"Katja?" a voice called. Katja instantly recognized the voice as her father's. She immediately rushed to the door of the cage and was about to scream for help, but Javert's arm wrapped around her waist, the other one clamped over her mouth to muffle her cry. He grabbed a spare piece of fabric and used it to gag her, then tied her up as she struggled to escape. "Katja!"

He left her in a crumpled heap on the floor. "Can I help you Monsieur?" she heard Javert ask.

"My daughter's missing! She was coming here!" Her father's voice was panicked. "Where is she? Where is Katja?"

"No one has been here for several hours. The fair closed at sundown."

"She was coming here!" her father protested. "She wanted to see the fair! For God's sake, she's only fifteen!" Katja tried to scream for her father, but the gag muffled the sound. Tears slid down her cheeks as she fought to be able to move. All she needed to do was get his attention.

"I'm sorry Monsieur," Javert replied. "But I have seen no one. But if I do find her, I'll make sure to let her know she's missed."

Minutes later, Javert came back into the tent. He pulled the gag out of her mouth. "Vati!" she screamed. "Vati hilf mir!" When she didn't get a response, she broke down and began to sob. She had been so close to rescue.

Katja woke with a cry. The entire room shook from the thunder. She had always had a fear of thunderstorms. When Erik didn't appear like he always did after she had a nightmare, Katja poked her head out the door. To her surprise, the house seemed empty.

A few minutes later, Erik walked back inside and into his room. He was drenched like he had been outside in the storm. Thunder boomed again, making Katja cringe in fear. She ran into Erik's room.

He had changed into dry clothes and just climbed into bed when she burst in. Erik sat up instantly. "Katja, what is it?"

The room shook again and Katja crawled into bed beside him. "Hold me," she begged. "Please. I…I can't stand thunder."

"It's just a little rain," he cooed. "It can't hurt you." She rested her head against his chest and closed her eyes and listened to him hum until she fell asleep.

German Translations

Vati-Papa

Hilf mir-Help me