Kaylen pulled her cloak more tightly around her as she went deeper and deeper into the depths. Birdy had sent her down on an errand to fetch a bolt of cloth from one of the many storage rooms underneath the opera but she should have been there by now. She must have taken a wrong turn somewhere.

The shadows her candle threw on the wall made it hard to forget Megs stories of the phantom. Soon it became apparent that she was hopelessly lost. Still she went deeper and deeper until her small candle was virtually useless in the all-encompassing dark. Suddenly, her candle was blown out by some unseen force and she found herself wondering around in the dark. With every passing moment she became more afraid. Not of the dark. She loved the dark, she was afraid of being alone with everything in the dark especially spiders and rats. And she knew there were rats here. She could hear them scurrying around her and she quickened her steps to avoid them. The only sound was the wind rushing past her ears and the tapping of her shoes against the stone floor. As she wondered through the darkness she began to remember why she hated the night.
It was about thirteen years ago. Kaylen and her father had gone out to explore the caves that he discovered at the edge of the village.

"Come on now Kaylen nothing is in here that can harm you as long as you stay with me."
Kaylen had nodded in agreement. How trusting she had been back then. She had learned her lesson though. At first she had thought it was great fun never knowing what she would see next. It was an adventure, a safe adventure with her papa to protect her. There were all kinds of treasures down there shiny rocks and stones made smooth with years of wear. Kaylen got distracted by some purple crystals and didn't notice when the light of her papas candle slowly left her side. She was alone for hours in the cave with a lone candle. She remembered how she had tried to sing to ease her fears, but she had stopped when her candle had blown out. She had stayed in the caves for hours with only the bats and rats for companions before her father had finally found her. She had gone home that night a little shaken but fine as her father had said, but from that day on she had always slept with a candle by her bed.

She shook the memory away. She was too old to be scared of the dark anymore. She was trying so hard to reassure her self that she stopped looking where she was going and tripped over some unseen object. She fell down to the ground with a loud scream, not from pain but from surprise. She could feel a sharp pain in her ankle. She wasn't sure but she thought it might be broken. For a while she sat in the dark trying to think over her situation. She was alone in the cellars of the opera. How far down, she didn't know. Surely too far for anyone who worked at the opera to come regularly. There was little if any chance of anyone finding her on their own, and there was no way that she could walk with her ankle the way it was, even if she could find her way out (which she was fairly sure she couldn't). As much as she hated the whole damsel in distress look, it seemed as though she had no choice.

She began to scream for help at the top of her lungs, fairly sure that no one could her cries anyway. She was just beginning to give up hope when all of a sudden a hand reached out from behind her to clap her mouth shut.

"Silence." an unfamiliar voice hissed from behind.

Kaylen tried to turn her head to see who the stranger was but she could make out a face in the dark. Kaylen stopped screaming at once. Whoever this stranger was it seemed as though he was one who was used to getting his way. When he realized that she had stopped her screaming he slowly let go off her mouth as if unsure if she would start again. But Kaylen remained silent, her eyes never leaving the stranger, not that she could see him in this gloom. She knew where he was merely by some kind of sixth sense. When he was finally content in believing that she wouldn't scream again he set to examining her ankle, somehow knowing it was injured even though she had no said a word about it.Erik examined her ankle with all the scrutiny of a trained physician. He carefully felt the bone asking if it hurt.

" A little."

Erik made a sound of acknowledgement to her answer but kept examining the injury. There was no doubt about it, the ankle was broken. Erik had newfound respect for this women trespassing in his underground kingdom. Had it been any other women in the opera they would have screamed at the slightest touch to this kind of fracture.

The break was pretty bad and needed immediate attention. There was no question of trying to get her back to her room unseen. Sneaking one person through the opera was thing but two was just out of the question. He had no choice.

"Come, we must see to that ankle." He said as he lifted her up in his arms and made his way towards his lair.

The first thing Kaylen had noticed about this stranger was his voice. It was as beautiful as it was commanding. As he carried her through what seemed like an endless maze, she noticed something else about him, he was strong. Very strong, but not muscular. In fact he was remarkably skinny.

She soon lost all sense of direction in the gloomy cellars and finally allowed herself to relax, lying her head on the stranger's shoulder. He tensed when her head touched his chest but continued at a steady pace.Erik looked down at the girl he held in her arms. His eyes had long ago grown accustomed to the dark. Her face seemed totally relaxed even though she was in the arms of a total stranger, a stranger who was a monster. 'She has not seen the mask yet.' he reminded himself.

Finally they arrived at the lake that separated his domain from the rest of the world. He gently placed her onto the cushions on the boat being careful to mind her ankle. His eyes never left her as he poled her across the water. She was intriguing. Neither frightened nor alarmed that she was with someone she didn't know going to an unfamiliar place. Finally they reached the opposite side of the lake and Erik carefully lifted her up and deposited her on his black couch.

Kaylen lay on a black couch admiring its velvety softness. The stranger disappeared into another room without a word giving Kaylen a chance to observe her surroundings. On the other side of the room a fire crackled softly in the hearth. A large armchair was placed in front of the fireplace with a small table to one side. On the table a violin was lain haphazardly as if the person who had been playing it had left in a hurry. There were books all over the place. Not to say that they were scattered around, it was just that they lined the walls and covered the tables in an orderly fashion as if the reader had accumulated more books than he had room for. The room conveyed a powerful message of wealth. The furniture was of high quality and went well with the Persian rugs that covered the floor.

Finally the stranger returned from the other room carrying bandages to wrap the ankle in.

Erik worked fast, with all of the professional detachment of a well-trained doctor. Only when the ankle had been set and wrapped did he look at the face of his houseguest.

If she had been surprised at discovering he wore a mask she didn't show it. She seemed perfectly content in these alien surroundings.

Not knowing what to do next his mind reverted back to his childhood trying to remember basic manners when having guests. Though he was never allowed to be seen by company, he made it a point to pay attention to what they said and did.

"May I offer you something to drink?" He said hoping it was the right thing to say.

" May I have a glass of water?"

Erik nodded and returned presently with a glass of water which Kaylen sipped at thoughtfully.

Erik sat on a stool next to the couch wondering what to say next.

"Thank you "

"Your welcome." Erik said taking the glass and setting it aside.

"May I ask your name?"

"Erik"

"You have a very nice place here."

"Thank you."

"Um. Where exactly is here anyway?"

"You are in the fifth cellar under the opera."

"I knew I had taken a wrong turn somewhere. I came down here to-"

"To fetch a bolt of cloth, I know." Erik said cutting her off.

"How?" She said looking more curious than surprised.

"I know everything that goes on in my opera, Kaylen. What kind of phantom would I be if I didn't." He had said to much. He eyed her face expecting her to scream or try to run. Instead she only seemed to accept the fact that she was in the company of a murderer.

" I trust you will be comfortable staying here until the morning." he continued. She nodded. Erik stood up debating over where she should sleep. There was the spare room, but that was Christine's room. No she would sleep where she was. He couldn't bear to see someone else in that room when even he would not go in there. He went into another room returning with an extra pillow and blanket.

When he was assured of her comfort he turned to go to his own room.

"Goodnight." Kaylen called after him.

"Goodnight." Erik said turning back for one last look at the sleepy figure before blowing out the last candle and going to bed.