In Her Eyes

The next morning brought gray skies and misty fog to match the somber mood that filled the household. Marigold awoke the next morning feeling fatigued. She had barely slept much after the other night. Her mind was filled with memories of the frightful ordeal but her heart ached deeply over the way she had screamed when she saw her father's face for the first time. Though she was slightly asleep last night when he came into her room, she could hear him whisper her name and the sound of his weeping from behind the door. After she got dressed, she mustered up the courage to go downstairs.

Peering from behind the newel post, she could hear quiet sounds coming from the kitchen and the soft crackling of the fireplace in the sitting room. Quietly, she tiptoed toward the kitchen when she found Christine putting preserve jars, tea leaves and eggs in a basket hamper. Christine turned her head toward her daughter's direction and she stopped what she was doing to walk to her and kneel down at her level. "How are you feeling, darling?" she asked.

"I'm alright, Mama. Where...is Papa?" she whispered.

"In the sitting room. He's sitting in his armchair by the fireplace. I hope you aren't afraid to go and talk with him."

"No…but I think I hurt his feelings. I heard him crying last night. I'm sorry for being so afraid, but I didn't mean to hurt Papa's feelings," she said sadly looking down at the floor.

Christine gently cupped her daughter's cheek in her hand. "Darling, your father loves you with all of his heart. He is not angry with you. He's just very sad because he thinks you're frightened of him. I know you love him very much, and I think what he needs more than anything in the world right now is for you to remind him of that. Can you do that for me?"

Marigold nodded silently as her mother stood back up to get her basket. "Now, I have a very quick errand to run. I'm going to bring these to Monsieur Lamotte's grocer shop in the village. I'll be back home in a short while. Why don't you go into the sitting room and try to talk with your father while I'm gone? I'm sure you can help him feel happy again," said Christine. Giving her a quick kiss on the forehead, she went outside toward the cart and coaxed Artemis to walk on down the lane.

Now when it was only her and Erik in the house, she slowly walked quietly down the dark hallway towards the sitting room. Walking beside her, Kit nudged her nose against Marigold's hand as a gesture of support as Marigold smiled softly and pet her head.

Tiptoeing into the dimly lit sitting room, she found her father sitting in his armchair with his hand over his forehead, looking tired and fatigued. She walked very quietly and carefully so as not to startle him. Even when she stood just at the side of his chair, he didn't seem to even hear her. Reaching forward, she gently placed her hand on top of his hand as it rested on the armrest. Then, suddenly aware of her presence, he turned toward her direction and looked at her with slight surprise.

"G – good morning, Papa," she said shyly.

His eyes softened a little as he gave a small, nervous smile. "Mari...good morning," he said softly.

Shyly, she walked over and stood in front of his chair as he kept a hold of her hand. She looked slightly nervous and unsure of what to say first. Seeing how nervous she looked made Erik feel twice as skittish. "Please…you needn't be afraid," he pleaded. "Would you like to sit with me?"

She looked as though she wanted him to hold her but was hesitant. Knowing what she wanted, he looked at her and held out his arms invitingly. Eventually, she slowly climbed up, settled herself onto his lap and rested her head against his chest. Feeling the warm, comforting embrace of his arms, she kept thinking about the way he cried in agony after she had screamed. After a few moments of silence, Marigold started crying softly. "Papa?" she whimpered. Slightly startled, he looked down at her. She choked back a sob and he turned her face to look up at him.

"I'm sorry, Papa," she whimpered. "I'm sorry I screamed when I saw your face and made you sad. I forgot that you told me to look with your heart and not with your eyes. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. Oh Papa, I'm so sorry!" She sobbed, burying her face in his chest.

"Please don't cry. It's all right, you don't have to apologize, sweetling. You have nothing to be sorry for. And you are my sweet girl. Don't you think otherwise. I know how frightened you were. You see, I was frightened too." He said in a soft voice.

"Y-you were?" she whimpered, tearfully glancing up at him.

"Yes. I thought I'd lost you. But, I didn't show you my face to frighten you. The only reason I had to do it was because that horrible man was going to harm you and I wouldn't have let him do that. I didn't want you to see until you were ready, but I had to do whatever was necessary to save your life." He gently caressed her cheek. "I would never hurt you, my fairy. Never."

Marigold buried her face in his chest again and softly wept. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her head. "I really thought you w-would hate me," she whimpered. Erik sighed sadly as her little voice broke with sadness.

"Mari…Look at me, sweetling, please," he whispered. As she looked up at him with tearful eyes, his face softened. "You truly think I would hate you? That's not true! Please, don't ever think of such a thing. I could never hate you."

"Truly? Do you still love me?"

Chuckling, Erik smiled. "Of course, I do. I love you so much. I always have and nothing in the world could ever change that."

Contentedly, she rested her head on his chest. "But, what happened to your face, Papa?"

"It's a little hard to explain to you now, since you're still so very young. I was like this ever since I was born. My mother was frightened of me. She did not love me. Ever since then, I have been alone and had to wear a mask. I felt sure that no one would ever learn to love me until I met your mother."

"Was Mama afraid too? Did she see your face?"

"She did and yes, she too was frightened. But eventually, she learned to see beyond my face and love me for who I am. I wanted you to do the same someday. But even though you saw my face, do you perhaps still love me?" asked Erik.

Marigold embraced him tightly. "Oh Papa, I do love you! I've always loved you!" She looked up with earnest eyes. Erik gave a small gasp of relief. He held her closer to him and sighed, content with hearing that she still loved him. They held each other in silence for a moment, watching the fireplace.

"Papa?"

"Hmm?"

"May – may I see your face?" she asked, timidly.

"But I…I don't want to frighten you again," he said, hesitant.

"I won't be this time, Papa, I promise. I want to show you that I'm not afraid. Please?"

Erik trembled as he allowed her to take the mask from his face. He kept his eyes shut, fearing her reaction. She looked again at the deformed right side of his face. With no fear, she gently touched her father's cheek and he put his hand on hers. He opened his eyes to meet hers. She smiled and nestled against his chest as he cradled her in his arms.

"You aren't frightened of me now, are you?"

"No, Papa. I never will be again."

"I'm so glad to hear that." He wiped away any remaining tears on her face. The sight of her smile gladdened his heart. "There's that beautiful smile," he said, chuckling. She smiled and nestled her head on his chest as he stroked her hair while she looked up at him. He softly hummed her lullaby to her with his hypnotic voice.

Lavender's blue, dilly dilly, Lavender's green
When I am king, dilly dilly, You shall be queen

Who told you so, dilly dilly, Who told you so?
'Twas my own heart, dilly dilly, That told me so

Lavender's green, dilly dilly, Lavender's blue.
If you love me, dilly dilly, I will love you.

Feeling comforted, she closed her eyes and sighed happily as she rested against his chest. Soon, she just fell asleep in his arms. He caressed her face, not wanting to move from the chair for fear of waking her. He listened to the gentle crackle of the logs in the hearth. His heart felt full as he held his child, safe and loved, in his arms. He then felt a gentle hand on his arm as Christine stood by the chair, having returned from her errand. She gazed over at their sleeping child as she went to sit down on the settee.

"Poor dear is exhausted. She's had quite an ordeal. But I'm glad to see her content in her father's arms." She smiled. She then noticed Erik's unmasked face. "You let her see your face? How did she react this time?"

"She accepts me and loves me, just as you do. Some men take many things for granted. To have a family and feel loved. To have a wife and daughter who both love and accept you. I never imagined having such luxuries." They both smiled and gazed lovingly at their daughter as she slept.