"How rude, I was enjoying myself."

"Madame,"

Valérie's mouth gaped when he spoke. How silky his voice was. With ability, grace, and a voice like that, he must have hundreds of women pining for his attention, thought Valérie.

"My memory must betraying me but I do not recall asking for any accompaniment. Why have you bothered for so?"

The question snapped her back to reality.

"Oh, I liked how you play, is all" she smiled. "You play almost like a first violin."

And as if the soprano struck just the wrong chord, the man answered with a hint of contempt: "Almost? And what is it that madame has picked up from my playing?"

"Well," Valérie rested her elbows on the gazebo's railings, turning away from the masked man. "Elissa's aria is a melancholic piece, yet you play it with a slight touch of …anger. For an ordinary listener, it sounds splendid. But I'm no ordinary listener, monsieur."

"Perhaps, I am quite angry," the man replied.

"Then that is quite unfortunate," she looked at the roses. "Are you from here, monsieur?"

"You could say that," The man put his violin back to a case with a red velvet interior that compliments the instrument's classical hue. "Farewell, Madame Valérie Faivre."

"Farewell, monsieur," she replied absentmindedly.

Oh, how Valérie wanted to listen to that voice for days. She was quite tempted to pay him just to say her name as he did just now.

"My...name," The soprano's eyes widened. She turned to face the man, "Wait!"

He's gone. No signs of there ever being a man with her.

"…What in the world?" were the only words she could mutter.

The short scene in the garden had stunned the soprano for the whole night. Her mind mused several thoughts regarding the man. First, why was he wearing half a mask? How did he leave the premises in a blink of an eye? How could she get that voice in a bottle for personal use? Can you bathe in a tub of one's voice?

Ettie, who visited the estate felt quite ignored by the dazed hostess. "I'll splash hot oil on your face if you keep ignoring me," Ettie exclaimed.

Immediately, the soprano raised her arms to shield her face:"No! Not the face!"

Ettie rolled her eyes. "Narcissistic gosse."

"Such kind words, mon amie," Valérie straightened. "My apologies, I have been rather lost in thought recently."

"I barely noticed. How are you liking the place?"

"Pleasing," Valérie played with her hair. "Quite perfect for me. And, having you close is frankly not so unwelcomed as I first thought."

"As I figured. And your work, you have left Garnier, have you?"

"Not quite. I'm coming back tomorrow. The managers begged me for at least one more season, I agreed. Gives me more time to transition properly," Ettie said as she curled a small section of her hair with her fingers. "Having said that, I've informed them I won't be playing the lead anymore. I've had my fun with Hannibal."

A surprised Ettie opened her mouth in an 'o' shape, "How so? I thought you liked being the lead?"

"Tired," replied Valérie with a blank expression, though in truth, she wanted to complain about a certain "ghost," but resisted. To her, there are much more pressing matters at hand.

"Say, Ettie," asked Valérie. "Do you know a tall slender man who wears a mask regularly and plays the violin well around the area?"

"Well, there's Louie who plays the violin well."

Valérie raised her brows, her curiosity piqued.

"But she is hardly a man, let alone a tall one. A runaway daughter of a composer," Ettie answered with a visible self-satisfaction. She had always taken pride in her ability to remember such things.

Valérie only gave a small silent "oh." One hand stroking her chin.

"What's this talk about a mystery man? Don't tell me you're back on the market again?"

The brunette waved her free hand furiously: "Oh, shut up, Ettie. I was merely curious."

"It's quite strange that you mention this man wearing a mask. I don't recall a masquerade ball happening anywhere nearby. And you know me when it comes to gatherings."

Hands still on her chin, Valérie simply replied, "Indeed... strange."

A/N: After chapter 6 was published I was very troubled with how I wanted Erik to be, so much so that the time gap between chapter 6's first publication and this chapter was extremely long. It was a case of being trapped between choices. I apologize for the wait. But as for the "trouble" itself... At first, he dons an ALW half mask, but last month I made it (but did not publish) that he had the Leroux mask to reflect what I initially had in mind for the fanfic, which was full Leroux style. But fret not, no change was officially made in chapter 6.

This is my first time writing a fanfiction, or a longer story in general, and I believe you can tell but I'm so happy for everyone's support. Thank you so much for the kind reviews!