Thank you so much another new follower of my story Welcome.

As well as everyone already following or just reading as well as those who have favourited my story. I hope you enjoy this latest instalment, please let me know. Thank you.

To Leonie, thank you for your review, If I knew of a grumpy masked Musical genius with an ability to sculpt stone, I would have a set of those gnomes myself… Alas they are a figment of my imagination. There are still a few more chapters before the end of this story. I am already preparing the next story, so I am happy you wish to continue reading. Enjoy this next instalment.

I do not own anything by Gaston Leroux, Susan Kay or Andrew Lloyd Webber, everything else is my own work.

An Urgent Meeting.

Erik and Christine were still lounging in bed the following morning when there was knocking at the front door, Erik sat up in bed, and climbing quickly out he grabbed his robe, putting it on, he then raced to the door. Erik cracked it open to see Jean there looking troubled,

"What on earth?" Erik demanded as Jean stared at the door step and shuffled his feet nervously,

"Monsieur Erik, Please I need your advice please!" Jean beseeched to the doorstep. Erik opened the door and almost dragged Jean inside,

"Wait in the sitting room whilst I get changed," Erik barked at Jean as he turned on his heel and strode back into the bedroom

Christine was now respectably covered in her night robe and dressing gown when Erik came charging back grabbed some clothes from his armoire and rapidly throwing his robe on the bed dressed in a foul mood.

"Erik, who is it?" She asked nervously

"Jean the little idiot!" Growled Erik, "He needs urgent advice it seems from me!" with that Erik finished dressing and stormed back into the sitting room to see a very nervous and distressed Jean pacing in front of the fire.

"What is so god damned important that it could not wait until later?" Erik asked as he returned to the sitting room and looked at the clock on the mantle. "It is half past seven for heaven's sake!"

Jean stopped pacing and looked like he was about to cry, Erik turned around and realised that Christine was peaking around the corner and looked concerned,

"Angel could you be so kind as to get the cat's breakfast and put some Coffee on for us I think Jean and I need a men's talk," Erik informed her as she retreated into the kitchen, Erik then turned to Jean, "I think the best place to have this talk would be in the garden room," Erik declared.

I am so sorry I did not mean to disturb you and Christine," Jean exclaimed looking even more miserable.

Turning to the liquor cabinet Erik grabbed a bottle of brandy and two brandy balloons and headed into the garden room placing them on the table,

"I have the coffee to bring in. Just head in there," Erik said looking with something akin to pity for the distraught looking young man.

Erik was slightly taken aback as Christine suddenly rushed out of the kitchen and knocking him then Jean out of the way she raced into the garden room where there came the frantic sound of a taut rope being twanged at regular intervals. Jean just stood at the side of the sitting room looking perplexed, Christine had never shoved anyone before, then Erik realised what he had done and stifling a smirk bade Jean to take a seat on the couch whilst he went and helped Christine remove her underwear from the washing line in the garden room. Shortly after Jean heard muffled words in Christine's voice and Erik apologising profusely before he left the garden room grabbed his cloak from the rack in the hallway and returned. Shortly afterwards Christine looking perturbed, exited carrying something hidden under Erik's cloak and blushing brightly she then went into her dressing room and shut the door.

Jean was confused, Erik stuck his head out of the garden room and indicated that it was safe to enter. Jean wandered in and sat on the stone bench as Erik left to finish the coffee, Jean then noticed what was obviously a washing line and the scattered clothes pegs on the ground and smirked mirthlessly, as he realised what Erik had nearly shown him, no wonder Christine was not impressed. Then as Jean glanced further around at the garden room, a weak smile once again at the Raoul gnome swinging in the air as he noticed two small brown puffs of fur appear amongst some plants, then they vanished, another two puffs appeared further down by the fountain and again vanished, then another two puffs of fur appeared very near where Jean was but quickly vanished again,

"Ha, ha very funny Erik," Jean said getting nervous, Meg had warned him that Erik was a master of practical jokes especially when he was annoyed.

And Jean had no doubt that he had annoyed Erik by turning up early that morning, but what was a man to do when the issues he had come to ask Erik about could change his whole life? True, Jean mused that this could have waited until later but never one to dally Jean decided to strike whilst the iron was hot or more importantly whilst his courage lasted.

Erik was in the kitchen and had noticed that the cats had not touched their breakfast, as he came out of the kitchen with the tea tray, he noticed the cats were not in the sitting room by the fire, this was troubling Erik for some reason so, putting the tray on the table by the couch he went to find Christine in her dressing room.

Back in the garden room Jean had poured himself a measure of brandy and whilst sipping it, was contemplating how he was going to ask Erik for the advice he sought, and he knew Erik was going to ask why Jean felt that he was the person who could best advise him. That was going to be a bit awkward to answer, when he noticed that the puffs of fur appeared again all four of them, just behind the tomatoes, then the puffs came out from their hiding placed and Jean realised they were the points on the cat's ears as slinking towards him came Saya and Ami, ears now nearly flat and tails to the ground.

Meanwhile after slipping into her dressing room Erik was distracted silently watching Christine put her now dry intimate apparel into the chest of drawers. Turning around Christine gasped,

"Erik what are you doing in here?" She asked,

"I wanted to ensure you were not cross with me amongst other things," Erik replied now looking like he was about to cry, "Erik feels so guilty when he has angered his lovely Christine," Erik finished wringing his hands.

"Oh Erik," Christine sighed, it still hurt her to know that occasionally he was still scared she would run from him. "Oh, my darling Erik, I was not angry with you, more shocked that someone nearly saw my under things," Christine told him as she wrapped her arms around him and rested her head on his chest. "Please do not feel guilty, I love you so much I could not bear you tormenting yourself like that, I love you and always will forever, I could never leave you," Christine told him as she lifted her head then pressed a kiss to his lips. Erik returned the kiss and then held his lovely wife, relieved that she was not angry with him.

Whilst Erik was currently distracted; Jean was watching Saya and Ami with interest as they approached him. The cats seemed to know their master was not around and started sniffing around Jean's legs.

"I get it," Jean started to address the cats, "You can smell my new leather shoes," the cats stalked closer and Saya took a swipe at Jean's shoe laces, followed by Ami; the next thing Jean realised was the cats leaping at his shins…

In her dressing room, Christine looked up at Erik; "Erik, can I ask what made you come in here since you have Jean in the garden room?"

"I presumed the cats were in here with you, since they are not in the sitting room and they have not touched the breakfast you gave them," Erik replied sensing that he really was missing something but could not put his finger on it.

A loud howl of agony met Erik and Christine's ears and Erik realised what it was that his intuition had tried to warn him; Jean was in the cat's territory and they hated him, and he had left Jean in there alone. Erik quickly released Christine and shot back to the garden room to see Jean standing frozen, yelping in agony with two furry gaiters wrapped around his legs hissing and clawing.

"Saya… Ami Enough!" Erik barked, as the two furry gaiters dropped off Jeans legs and scarpered out of the garden room. Erik surveyed the damage and turned his head towards the door. "Christine… Angel can you bring my medical kit from the bathroom and a large bowl of warm water in here please!" Erik asked as Christine walked into the garden room, took one look at Jean's tattered legs and quickly left to do as Erik asked.

Jean's legs were a mess, his trousers from the knee down were puddles of shredded fabric around his ankles detached from the rest of the garment and his socks had been annihilated down to where they met his shoes, and all that was left intact were his sock garters, each with a tiny shred of sock held in their clips. His new leather shoes had been trashed. His legs were covered in puncture wounds, bite marks and scratches, and to add to that Jean was shaking from head to foot.

"I…I… I thi… t.t. y. cats h.h.h…hate me!" Jean stuttered as Erik sat him down on the bench and then poured him a large brandy.

Handing the refilled glass to a still shaking Jean Erik sat down beside him, and sighed,

"I can only apologise for our pets," Erik stated, as Christine entered with the bowl of water and medical items, he requested and between them they started to clean up the mess that was Jean's legs, Erik ensured the brandy balloon was kept topped up throughout.

By the time Jean's wounds were dressed and Erik had loaned him a pair of trousers to wear, the large amount of brandy had not only numbed the wounds but also Jean's fear of the cats. Erik and Christine stood open mouthed as a drunken Jean staggered up to Saya in the sitting room and grabbed her up in his arms hugging the cat who was so shocked she did not fight back and just allowed a drunk Jean to pet her.

"Pretty pussy," Jean cooed as Saya sat in his arms, the cat's facial expression was one of resignation, as Jean continued to pet her.

Ami padded over and sat down at Jean's feet, unsure of what to do to help her friend, Jean tucked Saya in one arm and reached down for Ami, who suddenly found herself picked up by Jean's other arm and snuggled by him. The two cats seemed to stare at each other and then at Erik, the pitiful look they gave him seemed to ask Erik to help them. Erik looked at the two cats as Jean continued to hug them and laughed.

"That is what you get for being mean to friends," he told the two cats, as Jean finished hugging them and let them gently down on the floor of the sitting room.

The two mighty huntresses had been tamed and humiliated by their prey, and with heads down and tails dragging on the ground, Saya and Ami crept in an almost embarrassed fashion out of the sitting room and into the kitchen. Jean looked up at Erik with bleary eyes, and yawned,

"tired now," he declared as Erik guided him to the couch where Jean sat down and almost immediately fell asleep.

Christine bent down and removed Jeans shoes, Erik then lifted Jean's legs onto the couch and covered him with a blanket. Erik looked at Christine,

"I have got to leave him there until he sobers up," Erik sighed, "then I might actually find out what advice he wanted," he finished. Christine nodded,

"I will get dressed and head straight up to see what I can find out from Meg," Christine told Erik as she turned around and headed back to her dressing room.

ooo

It was nearly two hours later when Jean awoke curled on the couch in the Lake house, he noticed a cup of some strangely familiar liquid on the table beside him just as the hangover headache kicked in.

"Drink the liquid and you will feel better," Erik informed him as he walked over to Jean and handed him an ice pack. Jean took the ice pack and placed it on his head as he drank the contents of the cup and smiled weakly at Erik.

"Thank you," Jean said as Erik took a seat in his reading chair,

"Now what was so urgent that you needed to speak to me?" Erik asked.

"M…M…Meg thinks I am boring!" Jean declared holding his head,

"Pardon?" Erik responded,

"M… Meg," Jean started,

"Yes, I get that Meg thinks you are boring, so what has that got to do with me?" Erik asked getting irritated,

"I… I need your advice, please what can I do to not be boring?" Jean asked now wringing his hands together. Erik was now really confused,

"Have you tried talking about ballet?" Erik asked, "Meg does not think that boring," he added.

"N… not boring to talk to," Jean replied,

"Then how does she think you are boring?" Erik was beginning to get exasperated, this was getting them nowhere, fast. Jean took a deep breath and grabbed his courage in his hands.

"Meg says I am boring in bed!" Jean declared then clutched his head and went scarlet.

Erik blushed at Jean's frank declaration and sat silent for a moment recalling how embarrassed he felt a long time ago, when a teenage Erik spied the inner workings of the Shar's Harem in Persia and started asking Nadir awkward questions, that is how Erik was given his first copy of the Perfumed Garden, since Nadir felt seriously uncomfortable talking openly about such matters and Erik could now see why.

However, before Erik could get into the subject matter, there was one point that he could not help but be curious about.

"What made you think that I would be the best person to ask about such matters?" Erik asked as Jean squirmed in his seat. This was the part that Jean had been dreading, more than actually asking for the advice.

"Err…Umm… Meg told me?" Jean shakily replied.

"Meg told you what?" Erik questioned,

"Meg told me that…" and Jean started to cry in earnest. Erik sighed and handed Jean his handkerchief,

"I think you had better explain from the beginning," Erik said, as Jean wiped his eyes and blew his nose noisily on Erik's handkerchief.

ooo

Upstairs in the opera house meanwhile Christine was trying to calm a sobbing Meg who was curled up on the chaise in the dressing room as Christine came through the mirror.