When Tenn awoke in the morning, she found a note from Purple in her bedside table.

Good morning, my dear!

I left a little present for you in your wardrobe. Meet me back here at seven.

Your Angel of Music

Curious, Tenn opened her wardrobe and found a beautiful scarlet gown hanging from it. She found it oddly familiar; it's the dress she saw at the mall the other day! Well, almost, this one's patterns were different. Purple most likely sewed it himself; he had made her a wedding dress, so it wouldn't surprise her.

After her morning performance, Tenn left the Opera House and went straight to her home to give herself a long, aromatic bath, then went out into the city to have some time to herself. She returned to the Opera House at half-past six and changed into the scarlet gown, examining herself in the mirror. She had to admit, Purple did outshine himself this time.

Before long, the mirror's secret doorway opened and a familiar purple-eyed Irken stepped out of the shadows, clad in the usual dark clothing and white mask. Purple stared at her, eyes wide. His exposed cheek had turned a deep purplish-magenta as his lekku straightened up.

"Tenn? I think I'm dead because there's an angel right in front of me."

Tenn rolled her eyes, smiling a bit. "You don't look that bad yourself, you know."

"Did you like it?"

"Like it? I love it!" Tenn twirled around in front of the mirror, the dress's long skirt flowing along. "It's even better than the original. You should consider working as a fashion designer."

Purple chuckled. "Nah, I don't like the idea of making clothes for a bunch of spoiled, paper-thin models. Besides, it's just a hobby. Music is my true calling." He held out a hand for Tenn. "Shall we go, then?"

"Where are we going?"

"It's a surprise."

Tenn accepted his hand and stepped into the secret passage, the mirror closing behind her. It was dark, but somehow Purple found his way through the corridors; he's moved through them for years, so he must know all of the secret passages like the back of his hand, even without light. He asked her to keep her eyes closed as he led her through some passageways she didn't know about. She was tempted to open her eyes after bumping her head or foot for the fifth time, but decided not to.

A while later after climbing what she assumed were spiral stairs, she heard a door opening. A breeze of cool air brushed against her body, sending shivers down her spine.

"You can look now."

Tenn opened her eyes; she let out a small gasp of awe and surprise. They were standing on a rooftop; the majestic city of Irk surrounded them with its tall skyscrapers and flying ships. She noticed they were a bit too close to the edge and unconsciously stepped closer to her companion.

"What do you think?" Purple inquired, smiling.

"It's so high…" was the only thing Tenn managed to say.

"Don't worry, I won't let you fall." The Phantom assured her as he led her to a spot further back. It looked like he had set up a sort of picnic, with a basket and all. "Shall we?"

Tenn wasn't sure if she wanted to eat right now with vertigo overwhelming her, as part of her was afraid she'd throw up. She's never been that fond of heights. Perhaps that's the reason she clung so close to Purple as he led her towards the picnic. The basket was filled with snacks such as nachos, donuts, and a few pastries such as muffins with colorful frosting. Accompanying them was a blue wine of sorts.

"Did you make this?" Tenn asked curiously.

"Not exactly. I had help." Purple admitted as they sat down.

"From who?"

"I'm not sure if he'd be happy that I told you, but… Oh, what the hell. It's Red."

Tenn blinked. "Wait, Reddok? Our Red?"

"Yup, that one," Purple admitted in-between munching a muffin.

Red? Of all the workers in the Opera House, she didn't imagine him as the Phantom's accomplice. But then again, this would explain why he was always the one to deliver the letters, why he didn't seem to be afraid of the Phantom, and why Purple had gone so far to make Spork give Red back his job. He was always chastising anyone who spoke ill of the Phantom of the Opera, warning them to mind their tongues.

Her stomach reminded her that she hadn't had anything to eat just yet, so joined Purple in eating. The pastries were really good. Tenn grabbed some of the nachos and started eating them avidly.

"How did Red get these up here, anyway?" she found herself asking.

"He knows some of the secret passages I use. Not all of them, though." Purple explained, swallowing the donut in his mouth.

"You two are friends?"

Purple sighed sadly. "He's the only friend I've ever had in my life."

"Hey, can I ask you something?"

"What is it?"

"How exactly did you end up living under the opera house?"

Purple raised his lekku. It's… been a while ever since he last thought about the past. Part of him didn't want to relieve it, but he went ahead anyway. She did deserve some answers, after all.

"You probably know this already, but I was born like this," his fingers gingerly touched his mask. "From what I was told when I was old enough, my mother couldn't bear to look at me, so she sold me to a carnival. Naturally, I was put with the freaks. The ringmaster was a nasty person. He forced me to live inside a cage, feeding me nothing but scraps. Not only that, he forced me to wear a dirty bag over my face so no one could see me. He only removed it when…" Purple clenched his fists and his lekku flattened.

"You okay?" Tenn asked.

"I'm fine, my dear. Anyhow, I was one of the main attractions at the freak show. The ringmaster would bring crowds of aliens around my cage, then he'd come inside to beat me and remove my mask…" Purple closed his eyes shut as waves of long-buried memories returned. "The worst part was the laughter. All of those people always laugh at me, calling me a freak and making fun of my pain…"

Tenn almost felt like crying, especially as she noted how Purple was doing his best not to cry himself. She had imagined his life must have been hard, but this is another level.

"One day, I decided I had enough. After the last beating of the day, I saw a rope at the edge of my cage… the ringmaster was distracted collecting money, so he didn't see me grab the rope and creep up behind him until…" Purple sighed. "That was the first time I stained my hands with blood.

"Then I saw someone in the tent's doorway. An Irken, like me, was staring at me in shock. I recognized him: he had come with the last crowd. I thought he was going to rat me out, but instead, he opened my cage and led me away from the scene. My companion helped me escape from the angry mob when they found the body and he brought me here, hiding me from the universe and its cruelties.

"...Red," Tenn said.

"Yes. He taught me about the secret tunnels throughout the opera, but I was the only one to fully explore them. I learned to move around without being seen to bring food and stuff down to my house in the lake, rarely seeing the light of day, if at all…" Purple turned to her, smiling as his hand touched hers. "Until the day I first heard you sing.

"You were so young back then, but your voice was like a chorus of angels. Ever since that day, I knew I needed you to compliment my music. However, I was afraid to introduce myself to you because I didn't know how you'd react to… Well, me." Purple shifted. "I found a way to talk to you, though."

"You mean the singing lessons? Is that why you've been teaching me all these years?" Tenn inquired.

"Yes. For that, and because…" Purple gave her a tender look. "Because I love you."

"Oh, Purple…"

Tenn didn't know what to say. Hearing his story and what he's gone through made her look at him in a new light. He never experienced love in his life, and now that he felt it he wanted to keep it. He wants to feel loved and thought that she could give it to him… but could she? Sure, he's been very nice, and she found him charming and liked his sense of humor, but… she wasn't sure if she'd ever grow to love him the way he wanted.

Looks like Purple can plan a decent date for someone who's been living underground for years. Good thing he has Red to help him.