AN: -Thank you to Kimberly84 and the guest who left reviews/comments.

Sorry to have left you on a cliff - this one took longer as I am back at work and all the covid precautions and risk assessments meant I ended-up having to do more work at home than usual.

--xxx--

"Is that what you truly want?" Erik asked, not turning to face her.

"Please don't make me repeat it. It wasn't easy to say", the Vicomtess responded. She hoped Erik would turn to face her and that his gaze would give her more peace of mind.

"And why was that my dear?" he asked, making his way to the drinks cabinet, briefly glancing over his shoulder to see a terrified looking Christine. It was unclear whether she was terrified of him accepting or rejecting her proposition, but he knew she wasn't enjoying her predicament. When she didn't respond, instead picking up her gloves and playing with the fingers , he continued by answering his own question. " It was difficult because you don't wish to come to my bed.You would regret it. It is a betrayal of your husband and your God"

"You love me". She asserted placing the gloves back on the table, "I owe so much to your love. Your teaching, your conversation, and your company - it all made me happy. And I long to be happy again"

Her comment gave Erik insight into her behaviour: she was unhappy and was trying to cling to a semblance of an idealised past. She longed for a time before she knew he was a man, before she had seen his face and before the events at the Populaire and the theatre. She also appeared to believe she owed him a debt of gratitude for those times and wanted to repay him with something he desired.

Erik rocked his tumbler watching the amber liquid swirl. He had torn her life apart for the second time: this time he hadn't lied to her, he had tried to protect her from deciet, but he had caused her more pain and that had never been his intention.

For years he had dreamed of the moment Christine would come to him, offering her love and her body, yet now it felt somehow hollow. She wasn't offering her undying love, she was offering a night born out of confusion and self-doubt. He wanted to be loved for himself, not because of an unpaid debt or unhappy marriage. If he accepted her, than he was chosing to help ruin her, to help her turn her back on God and break her moral code. It would destroy her and leave them both feeling hollow.

Meg had said he was a better man, and now was his opportunity to right some of his wrongs. Taking a large swig of whisky he put on a stoic face. "I don't love you" he said firmly, surprised by how easily the words came.

"Don't lie to me Erik!" she shouted, stepping towards him in a rage, "I know you do. You've told me many times. You've told me everything you have done has been because of your love for me. You've cared for me, protected me, taught me to sing"

"So you feel you owe me one night of sin as payment? Tell me Madame, do you consider yourself a prostitute? Do you think so little of me that I would accept such an offer?"

Christine stepped back, offended by his words, but also shocked by the poignancy.

"I..I...that isn't what I meant", she stutterd, "don't twist my words or their meaning to suit your inner dialogue"

"Like you, I only want to be loved for myself", Erik said calmly - taking a seat opposite her. He knew what to do, and he knew how she would react. He would be the man Meg believed him to be: he would stop lying to Christine.

"I shall tell you a story. You mustn't interrupt and there must be no questions. If you still wish to come to my bed once it is complete, then I will be more than willing to oblidge".

--xxx--

Before Christine returned to the carriage she needed a few minutes to compose herself. The Persian and Antionette had helped calm her, giving her lemon water and a hankerchief, as well as the use of a mirror. She couldn't go back to Raoul looking as she did; red eyes and a face drained of colour. She had managed to gain control of the trembling, but she needed more time to regain her colouring.

When she finally returned to him, she immediately noticed Raoul's agitated state. She had spent longer than she had intended in Erik's house, and although he knew nothing of her proposition she had the unnerving feeling that he suspected something untoward had happened.

Raoul did not ask about the exchange, instead offering his arms as a comfort for his clearly distressed wife. They sat motionless in eachother's arms for several minutes, with him lightly stroking her hair and whispering words of reassurance, before he directed the carriage to take him to The Langham.

Once their embrace ended Christine continued to grip his hand tightly and rest her head on his shoulder, the gentle movement of the carriage lulling her into a light doze, exhausted from the lack of sleep and emotional exhaustion. Raoul gently ran his thumb over the back of her hand; he knew she was both emotionally and physically tired and he hadn't helped. Christine had been through enough drama to last a lifetime and now he needed to draw the line and face the consequences. Christine was going to sing, not because she had promised Destler but because she wanted to. The consequence would be a large reduction in their wealth, but they would weather the storm and he would find work. If his mother and Phillippe severed ties with him then so be it - his mother's actions were unforgivable. She had taunted his wife for too long, and her orchestration of trying to end their marriage had been the final straw.

Once they pulled up outside The Langham Raoul was reluctant to leave his wife, but he needed to speak to Phillippe alone. Christine said she understood but it didn't ease his guilt as he gave her a parting kiss. Before he left she expressed her desire to see Meg Giry. Prior to the disclosure abiut his mother Raoul would've advised against her spending time with the ballerina, but now oroperity hardly seemed to matter: they would soon use up their fiancial reserves, Christine was going to sing, and his mother was going back to France.

--xxx--

Christine had assumed her friend lived in simular luxory to Erik, yet the building that housed Meg's flat was like every other along the road. The enterence itself was quite grand, with large while pillars and a decorative black and white tiled floor, but beyond the dark wood of the foyer and the stained glass in the large green communial door that hallways were plain and uninviting.

Christine didn't know much about the role of Middle class women in English society, having already discovered the standards of behaviour between France and England to be quite different, but she knew middle class spinsters rarely lived in their own and when they did they would live in women's only property, and overall Meg's building didn't seem completely uninviting.

Most unmarried middle class women in England often remained with their families until they married, but Meg didn't have that luxory as neither her nor her mother were of independent means and Antionette had still be in the United States when Meg made the journey across the Atlantic. Meg also wasn't working in the most respected profession for young women, although actresses and dancers for the theatres in England were granted higher status than in France, but nonetheless their meetings in America had given Christine the impression that Meg was living a more elaborate lifestyle.

When she climbed the stairs to Meg's flat she was relieved to see female names listed on the doors, indicating the location only housed single women and Meg was safe from any lecherious behaviour caused by rowdy single gentleman. She recieved a questioning look from an older women, who surveyed her appearance with interest, but she paid her no mind.

The hallway and corridor leading to Meg's flat was quite narrow and there were no windows to provide natural light. Since decended to the bowels of the opera house with Erik Christine had developed a dislike for rooms and passages only lit by artificial light, she found them ominous and compressing. When she finally reached the door with the name 'Miss Marguerite Giry' on it she knocked and waited.

--xxx--

Meg was annoyed at Erik for not leaving her a note, and athough she understood that he hadn't spent much time around people, she still found his abundant rudeness infuriating as he was a highly intelligent man who was capable of interacting within society. She had given him clear instructions not to leave her home untill she was certain her landlady wouldn't see him, yet he had departed unaccompanied and in his own time.

It didn't matter that it was highly unlikely that Erik would get caucaug- he was an expert at espionage - it was his rideness and disregard for her security that upset her.

Assuming the knock on the door was Erik's attempt to apologise she opened it with an angry furvour, only to be dumbfounded by the presence of the Vicomtess de Chagny.

"I'm sorry to bother you, but I didn't know who else to turn to", the brown haired woman said in a quiet tone, before entering the flat once Meg stepped aside.

Once the tea was made and pleasantries said Christine explained that she had been to Erik's home.

"I asked him to spend a night with me", she said. Trying to sound indifferent, but her voice cracked as she spoke and she averted her gaze to aviod meeting Meg's eyes.

After the intial shock of Christine's uncharacteristic behaviour had warn off Meg had to fight the urge to inflict physical and emotional harm on her friend. Erik was currently in an emotionally vulnerable state and if he engaged in such activity with "his angel" she knew another rejection would destroy him. If Christine intended on leaving Raoul and eloping with Erik Meg believed she could reluctantly accept the situation, but if she had no intention of leaving her husband then there would be an inevitable barrage of insults.

"He turned me down", the Vicomtess stated alongside a sigh of relief. "I thought that laying with him would make me understand my feelings, but as soon as I spoke I became terrified for my soul".

"And Erik?", Meg asked trying not to seem overly concerned about her ex-fiancé. She was troubled by Christine's uncharacteristic behaviour, but she as more anxious about Erik and his current mental state. As far as she was concerned Erik must have been behaving erratically to have turned Christine down - her friend may not know him - but he believed she was everything he could ever want or need.

"He told me I needed to know him, she said as the colour drained from her face, "then told me a story about his time in Persia. I don't even think he told me it all, but what he did was awful. I don't understand how he could have done such awful things".

In a strange way Meg felt relieved, Erik hadn't turned Christine down because he had decended into madness, he had turned her down because he didn't think she knew him. She knew he hadn't told many people of his past,l and by sharing it with Christine, suspecting the reaction he apparently got, showed that he had grown as a person. He was no.longer trying to manipulate a vulnerable young woman, instead he was trying to be a better man. The man Meg knew him to be.

"Erik is a product of his curcumstances", he sighed as she poured her guest another cup of tea, "he has done truly awful things, but he does have reasons for doing them".

As Meg passed Christine her cup she saw the look of horror and the gaping expression upon her face. "You knew?"

"Yes", she replied nonchalantly before stirring her own tea and looking wistfully at the swirling water.

Christine furrowed her brow and then relaxed her expression when she realised that Erik and Meg shared a close friendship - closer than she and he had ever had. "You know him well", she stated not expecting a response.

"Sometimes I think so, other times not", Meg said pensively, before immediately becoming more critical and changing her tone, "why did you offer yourself to him if you feared for your immortal soul? If you don't desire him then why make him believe you do? It is cruel".

"I never meant to be cruel. There is something about him. He has an allure,

and a magnetism beyond anything I have ever known. His music permiates my soul."

"You may not have meant to be cruel, but you were", Meg rose to her feet, "did you not consider how.your actions would impact on him? Do you not care for him at all?" she was almost shouting. Her hands were shaking and her voice was cracked as she tried to prevent tears of anger engulfing her

Christine sat back on the chair and raised her eyebrows questioningly. Meg's reaction was much more akin to a lover than a colleague, and although she did not know Erik's feelings for Meg, she was certain that Meg's ran deeper than friendship.

"When did you fall in love with him?"

Meg collapsed onto the chair and placed her head in her hands. She had never admitted her feelings towards Erik out loud, they'd always been trapped within her like a caged animal. They were there and they wanted to, and tried to, escape - sometimes they'd claw their way to the surface and she would find herself in a compromising position - but generally she managed to keep them under control. To admit those feelings would be to admit her own foolishness, but with her sheduled departure for Russia, what could she possibly have to lose?

"I'm not sure. On the journey to England - I think - but things changed once we were here. He became more distant and we barely spoke for three months"

"Because of me"

Meg didn't deny it because it was true. Erik had become distant once they were in England, and it was Christine's fault. She had written him letters and given him hope, and when she didn't come running to his arms he had reverted to acting Phantom-esque.

"I'm sorry", Christine muttered reaching for her friends hand, but Meg withdrew it sharply.

"No need to be. I am the foolish one falling in love with a man obsessed with my friend"

--xxx--

Erik had been watching Meg's building for almost two hours and wa starting ti become impaitent. He was used to waiting and biding his time, but the fact that Christine was currently in Meg's flat - most likely discussing him - was starting to grate on him. He was almost ready to draw the Vicomtess away by spooking her horses and causing a scene, but he needn't bother as the Vicomtess exited the building as he began to stalk closer to her carriage to isntigate the first part of the plan.

Impaitently Erik entered Meg's building and ascended the stairs, not caring if he was seen or for the rules Meg's landlady enforced about gentleman callers. He needed to make sure Meg understood what had happened between himself and Christine, and why he had acted the way he did.

As soon as Meg opened the door Erik pushed past her and forcibly closed it behind him, and without saying a word he took her face in his hands and kissed her. He hadn't intended on announcing his arrival in such a way, but once he saw her standing before him he was overwhelmed with the desire to be close to her.

Meg's immediate reaction was to place her palms upon his chest and push herself away. Followed by slapping him so hard across his face that her hand stung.

"Anyone else..." Erik started,

"and I'd be dead" she finished with a smile playing on her lips, causing him to let out a slight chuckleas he stepped towards her.

This time she allowed him to kiss her and for his hands to bury themselves in her hair, but she still refused him a deeper kiss, causing him to step away in dissapointment. Erik could see the confusion on her face, her nose slightly scrunched and her eyes deep in contemplation as though she was analysing the situation.

Recalling she had been with Christine he

was filled with a sudden surge of panic."I love you" he said almost desperately in an attempt to stop her train of thought, "I love you. It has taken me a while to realise it, but I love you".

But rather than causing her to collapse into his embrace these words had the opposite effect. Meg crossed her arms and shook her head in disbelief. She mentally cursed herself for allowing him to kiss her, believing she should've increased the distance between them after she slapped him. The man was probably an emotional mess and she needed to protect her own heart.

Quickly she retreated to her kitchen, but before she was able to cross the threshold Erik and grabbed her hips and spun her to face him.

"I love you Marguerite Giry"

"Stop this Erik!", he said while pushing him away. "Stop these games. I am not your consolation prize. I am not second best."

"You are not", he said reaching for her, but she batted his hand away.

"I know what happened with Christine. she came to see me. You come to me because you can't have her"

Erik felt a sudden surge of anger towards Christine; he had never taken her for a liar, but if Meg believed he couldnt have Christine then Christine obviously hadn't told Meg that he had denied her.

"I denied her!", Erik bellowed unable to hide his anger. He was standing at his full height, his eyes wide and firey and his body language intimidating and bold."I denied her because I have lied to her for too long. She does not know me, and she never did" he continued in a lower tone but his expression remained the same.

Seeing Meg's wide-eyed shock he shrunk back from the Opera Ghost persona and once again reached for her hands. He could see her reluctance, but she allowed him to take them. Engulfing both her small hands in his he continued, "I never let her know me because I knew she would reject me. She may have been able to accept my face, but never my past", and he lifted her hands to his lips and gave them a light kiss, "she isn't like you. You see me. You accept me"

Meg could feel her resolve crumbling and needed to remind herself that Erik could weave a reality through his manipulation. She needed to be strong and protect her own heart. She once again pulled her hands from his and turned away as she spoke.

"So, I am the easy option? Go away Erik. I've told you before that my heart can't take this"

"I love you Marguerite Giry", Erik said in desperation. He couldn't go through this again- he couldn't face another rejection.

"I have been blind. Tell me, how would I know what love is? How would I know how it feels or what it looks like? I've never seen it or experienced it"

Meg felt tears burn her eyes, she knew Erik had not experienced love in the same way she had and what he said was true. If she remained in his.presnece her resolve would crumble and she would succumb. She wasn't sure what he wanted: companionship or the physical act of love, but she knew that if she remained in his presence she would succumb to whatever he desired due to the longing in her own heart.

"You need to leave",

--xxx--