Disclaimer: I do not own Phantom. It belongs to Andrew Lloyd Weber and that other guy (I don't know his name). I also don't own "Taking Over Me." It belongs to Ben Moody and Amy Lee.
Title: Taking Over Me
Summary: Songfic- Erik can't stop thinking about Christine. Meanwhile, Christine is postponing her marriage to Raul because she herself can't stop thinking about her angel of music.
A/N: Just for general knowledge, I have an unhealthy obsession with Phantom and Evanescence. In fact, my friend and I think Amy Lee would make a good Christine Daaé (we know she actually wouldn't, but it's nice to dream).
A/N#2: This is NOT movie based. This is based on the show because the show is better (please don't hurt me).
Genre: Romance/Angst
Rating: PG
Christine was going to fall. She was hanging off the roof of the Opera house. She gripped on to the ledge and tried to pull herself up, but she couldn't. She slowly felt her fingers slip from the ledge. When sheknew she was going to fall, Raul suddenly walked on to the roof.
"RAUL!" she called.
"Christine?" Raul looked around, bewildered.
"RAUL, OVER HERE!" Christine yelled.
Raul looked and finally saw Christine and rushed over to her.
"Raul, help me!" Christine said, desperately.
"I will," Raul said, calmly. "I just need a rope to pull you up."
"NO, RAUL!" Christine cried, tears streaming down her face. "COME BACK!"
But, Raul was off the roof before she could finish her sentence. She looked down at the streets below her. It was a long way down. Her fingers slipped and she fell towards the streets. This was the end……………….
Just as she was about to hit the ground, someone caught her and ran inside the opera house with her in his arms. She couldn't see her rescuer's face, but she recognized the cloak he was wearing. It was Raul's! He'd managed to save her after all!
Raul brought her into her room and placed her down on her bed and then pulled up a chair and sat next to her.
"I thought you'd abandoned me," she said, smiling at him.
Raul untied his cloak and let it fall to the floor revealing his face. It wasn't Raul. It was the Phantom. Christine sat up in shock. What was he doing here?
"Do you really think I'd let you fall, Christine?" he asked.
She didn't reply. Instead she grabbed him and kissed him fiercely, not caring if Raul caught her.
Christine awoke with a start. She looked around for the Phantom, but she knew he wasn't here. It was just a dream. What was I thinking? She thought.
She swung her legs over the bed and walked to the window and stared out at the streets of Paris. Ever since the night of "Don Juan Triumphant" she'd been thinking about him and at night she was dreaming about him. Which is silly, Christine thought. Because I shouldn't be. He almost ruined my life. Besides, I'm engaged to Raul. I love Raul.
But, she couldn't stop thinking about their kiss. She didn't want to kiss him in the first place. She'd thought that his lips would feel like shards of glass cutting into her mouth and she would've rather jumped off the roof of the Opera house and land on the ground head first. But, she'd wanted to save Raul and she'd gathered up her courage and kissed him.
It was the opposite of what she thought it would be. Her kiss with the Phantom seemed moretender andpassionate than any kiss she'd had with Raul or anyone for that matter. Since then, every kiss from Raul seemed like endless torture.
She knew the Phantom was gone. There hadn't been any "accidents" for a month now, so obviously, he'd left the Opera house forgoodor he'd found another women to pursue. Well, good, Christine thought. As long as he's not in my life,Christine thought. then it's fine with me. Yet, the thought of him serenading another woman as he did with her made her green with envy.
This is silly, Christine thought. I shoudn't be thinking about him.
You don't remember me
But, I remember you
I lie awake and try so hard
Not to think of you
But, who can decide what they dream?
And dream I do………
"Christine, are you all right?" Meg asked her the next day after rehearsal.
"I'm fine," Christine answered. "Why do you ask?"
"Well, you missed ten cues. You've never missed any of your cues."
Christine sighed and went into her dressing room with Meg on her heels. She'd been distracted all dayand itwas because she kept thinking of Him.
"You're thinking about the Phantom, aren't you?" Meg asked.
"No," Christine lied, brushing her hair. "Don't be silly. I'm just having a minor setback in my performance. Nothing more."
Christine couldn't even fool herself. Of course she was thinking about him. Everyone, except perhaps Raul, knew she was thinking about him. Christine set the brush back in its place and sighed.
"I miss him," she said.
"Are you in love with him?" Meg asked.
The very thought of that made Christine laugh out loud.
"No, I'm not in love with him," she answered. "I don't even know his name."
"Mmm-hmm," Meg said, skeptically.
"He's my teacher, Meg," Christine said, more firmly. "Nothing more."
"Well, you were more to him than a student," Meg said.
Christine looked at her reflection in the mirror. This wasn't new to her. She could still remember his face when he'd said, "Christine, I love you." Since then, the Phantom had disappeared and no one had found him. But, a small part of her wished he was found.
"If you don't mind, I'd like to be alone right now," she said.
Meg nodded and left the room, leaving Christine alone. He wasn't here and he wasn't causing havoc, but it was obvious that he still had some kind of power over her. And one thing was certain: no matter how much she tried to deny it, she wanted more of that kiss.
I believe in you
I'll give up everything just to find you
I have to be with you
To live, to breathe
You're taking over me
What am I doing here? Erik thought. On the night of "Don Juan Triumphant," he'd briefly hidden from them until he was sure that they'd given up on finding him. Now here he was, back in his lair. But, he didn't see why he was back.
He found his mask lying on the floor and he picked it up. He couldn't believe he'd gone a month without wearing this. He put it back on, not just to hide his face, but because he'd grown accustomed to wearing it so much, he felt naked without it.
Next to it, he saw the dummy of Christine. Before, when he'd seen it, he'd just been more motivated to make her his. Now, he just felt disgusted with himself for being so obsessive about her. He grabbed the dummy by one arm and threw it in the water and watched it sink to the bottom.
When the dummy was completely out of sight, Erik sat down at the organ and took his necklace out from underneath his shirt, revealing the ring that Christine had given him. It was the engagement ring that he'd stolen from her, and then given to her as his own engagement ring to her during their performance, and then she'd given it back to him.
She'd kissed him later on. It was only to save her precious lover, but she'd kissed him.The kisswas everything he thought it would be and more.
But, it probably wasn't the same for her. She probably scrubbedher mouthto no end when she and her lover went home. The kiss was probably a memory to her now. She'd probably forgotten about him. And she should, he thought, sadly. I messed her life up enough already.
Have you forgotten all I know
And all we had?
You saw me mourning my love for you
And touched my hand
I knew you loved me then
The covered side Erik's was burning him. He didn't know what happened. Before he had no sense of touch on that side of his face and now, suddenly, it felt like it was on fire. He ripped his mask off and covered his face hoping that the coldness of his hand would ease the pain, but it did nothing.
"You're only making it worse," said a familiar voice.
Erik turned to find Christine standing by the throne, still looking as beautiful and radient as ever. But, what was she doing here? Didn't she leave with the Vicomte a month ago?
Before he could ask her any of these questions, Christine stepped forward and removed his hand from his face and replaced it with her own. Soon, the pain slowly dwindled down until finally it was gone. But, instead of going back to it's usual numbness, he felt the softness of her hand on his face.
"Is that better?" she asked.
Erik nodded and she stepped out of the way to reveal the mirror. Instead of the monstrous reflection that had started back at him all of his life, he saw a different reflection. His face was different now. The left side of his face looked exactly like the right side. He looked like a normal man. Hetouched his face and didn't feel the deformity anymore. Instead, he felt a normal, smooth, face. He turned his attention back to Christine.
"Thank you," he said.
Christine smiled. She held out her hand and he took it. He laced his fingers through her and they stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity. Erik's eyes flicked from Christine's eyes to her mouth. Slowly he leaned in and…………
Suddenly, she vanished right before his eyes. Erik looked around frantically for her.
"Christine?" he whimpered.
Someone laughed from the river. He looked over in the river to find Christine in the boat with the Vicomte.
"Do you really think I was going to stay?" she asked, as the boat disappeared. "Look at yourself."
Erik looked back in the mirror and this time a different face stared back at him. He didn't have a normal face anymore, but it didn't go back to its previous structure. Instead, on the right side of his face, was a giant gapping black hole.
Erik woke up screaming. He jumped out of bed and ran to the mirror and ripped off his mask. He breathed out a sigh of relief when he saw that his face was still the same. It was nothing, he thought to calm himself. It was just a dream. He never thought he'd be relieved to see his face like that. Well, having a deformed face is better than having a huge hole in my head, he thought.
What was he thinking that Christine would ever want to come back? He was only fooling himself. She doesn't want to come back, he thought. She wants her precious Vicomte and I have to accept that. He knew he should've accepted that a long time ago. It would've made this easier for him.
When he heard her sing, it was like she was hypnotizing him. Shortly, after that he'd fallen in love with her. Soon, love grew to obsession and that didn't end well. Well? He taunted himself. It ended in disaster. Stay away from her. Don't even look at her. He wouldn't speak to her, but he knew he wouldn't be able to stop listening to her or watching her perform.
I believe in you
I'll give up everything just to find you
I have to be with you
To live, to breathe
You're taking over me
Christine stood back stage the next day waiting for her cue. They were once again rehearsing for "Don Juan Triumphant." Apparently, previous audiences liked it and wanted another performance. The problem was the current Don Juan was terrible. He was a good singer, but he didn't have any anti-coordination and stuttered constantly. It was also obvious that he didn't even want the part, but no one could find anyone that was as good as Piangi or the Phantom himself.
Meg walked off stage and approached Christine.
"We have a newcomer," she whispered, gesturing towards Reyer and another man.
"Who is he?" Christine asked.
"His name is Leroy de Remin," Meg answered. "Apparently, he's here to try out for Don Juan."
"But, there are no auditions for the role," Christine protested.
"Well, Monsieur Reyer's letting him audition because of our current Don Juan," Meg said.
"Ms. Daaé," Reyer called. "Will you come over here, please?"
Christineglanced atMeg and then joined Reyer and Leroy.
"I just want to hear you two on pagenine starting with Monsieur de Remin," Reyer said.
The piano gave Leroy his note and then he opened his mouth and sang:
Past the point of no returnNo backward glances
The games we've played 'till now
Are at an end
Past all though of "if" or "when"
No use resisting
Abandon thought and let
The dream descend
As he sang, Christine noticed that he almost looked exactly like the Phantom. His face looked exactly like his without the distortion and the mask and he looked a few years older. In fact, his voice sounded exactly the Phantom's as well.
"Ms. Daaé?" Reyer's voice broke her thoughts. "Ms. Daaé?"
"I'm sorry," Christine said. "Where are we?"
"Pick-up to measure one-hundred and twenty," Leroy answered, gesturing to the page they were on.
"I'm sorry," Christine repeated.
She found her place on the page and sang:
You have brought me
To that moment
Where words run dry
To that moment where speech
Disappears into…….
She trailed off. Suddenly the memories came flooding back. The face…………the Phantom tying Raul up with a Punjab lasso………………..the kiss……….giving the Phantom the ring……………….Leroy sounding and looking exactly like the Phantom………………….
"Ms. Daaé?" Reyer prompted her. "Ms. Daaé, would you please continue?"
Christine tried to keep singing, but for some reason, she couldn't make the words come out of her mouth.
"I'm sorry," she said. "I need to go lie down."
Christine picked up the hem of her dress and ran to her dressing room and slammed the door. She slid down against the door and buried her face in her hands. When did everything become so complicated?
Her gaze traveled over to the mirror. She remembered the night that the Phantom finally revealed himself. She'd thought he was an angel only to find out that he was a living, breathing man. He seemed to hypnotize her as he said, "Come to me, angel of music."
Stop thinking about him! Christine inwardly shouted to herself. You're engaged to Raul! Besides, the Phantom's gone! He's not in your life! Move on!
I look in the mirror
And see your face
If I look deep enough
So many things inside
That are just like you
Are taking over
Erik sat in box five and watched as Christine ran off stage and stared down at Leroy. Erik hadn't seen Leroy since they were children. He never thought he'd see him again and in the Opera House of all places. He thought he'd end up as a Vicomte like their father.
Hearing Leroy sing with Christine was like hearing himself sing with her on the opening night of "Don Juan Triumphant" and he didn't want towatch anymore. He stood up and wandered around the passageway to find himself looking inside Christine's dressing room on the other side of her mirror. She was slumped against the doorway looking right at him, but she didn't know it.
A few minutes later, a knock sounded on the door of the dressing room.
"Come in," Christine said, backing away from the door.
The door opened and Meg walked in.
"Are you all right?" she asked.
"I'm fine," Christine answered. "It's just Leroy sounds like……………………."
Me, Erik finished for her.
"I know," Meg said. "Do you want me to tell Monsieur Reyer that you're ill?"
"No," Christine answered. "I'll be there in a few minutes."
Meg left, leaving Christine alone. Finally, Christine followed, leaving Erik by himself. She looked tortured. Did I really do that to her? He thought. Did I cause so much havoc on her life that the very thought of me disturbs her?
I believe in you
I'll give up everything just to find you
I have to be with you
To live, to breathe
You're taking over me
Christine sat on the stage staring at the empty auditorium. She knew that no one would be here, so she came here to be alone. She figured that the reason why she kept thinking about the Phantom was because she was trying not to think about him. She decided to come in here to think about him for an hour at least and then maybe he would be out of her mind completely.
But, before she could allow herself to indulge in the memories, two hands covered her eyes.
"Raul?" she guessed.
Raul removed his hands from her eyes and kissed her. Once again, her lips felt imprisoned and it seemed to last a long time until Raul pulled away.
"So, how was your day today?" he asked.
"Fine," Christine responded.
"Did anything interesting happen today?" Raul asked.
"We have a new Don Juan," Christine replied. "His name is Leroy de Remin."
"Leroy de Remin?" Raul repeated, sounding a little surprised.
"You know him?" Christine asked.
"I know of him," Raul answered. "His father was a Vicomte. He had a younger brother named Erik, I believe. Erik disappeared and no one knows where he is or what became of him. Everyone thinks he ran away."
"Oh," was all Christine could say. Was it possible that the Phantom was Leroy's missing brother? Christine shook her head. There was no way that it could be possible.
"Christine, may I ask you a question?" Raul asked, breaking her thoughts.
"Of course," she answered.
"When are we getting married?"
And there it was. For nearly a month now, Christine had been postponing their marriage because she didn't feel ready and every week Raul would ask. She loved Raul, but she didn't want to marry him yet.
"I knew it," Raul said, after a few minutes of silence when she didn't answer.
"Raul, I didn't say anything," Christine said, feeling slightly agitated.
"Christine, you've been putting this off for a month now," Raul said, sounding annoyed.
"I know," Christine said. "I'm sorry."
"Look, do you want to marry me or not?"
"Yes, Raul. I've told you a million times. Yes, I want to marry you."
"Then, why are you putting this off?"
"I'm just not ready!"
"Well, you better be ready soon, Christine, or there will be no wedding."
With that, Raul stood up and walked away. Christine laid down on the stage and stared up at the ceiling. It was clear that if she didn't marry Raul soon, then she'd lose him. She didn't want to lose him, but how could she marry him when a mere touch from him made her uncomfortable and all she could think about was kissing another man?
I believe in you
I'll give up everything just to find you
I have to be with you
To live, to breathe
You're taking over me
The End
A/N: I know. It's repetitive and redundant and repetitive and redundant. Whatever. It's my "writing style." Also, yes, I'm making Leroy Erik's brother. I never read the book so I don't know for a fact if he had any siblings, but in this case I wanted him to have one. It's fanfiction I can do whatever I want. And another thing: I don't want Raul to be abusive, so I'm just making him an ass. I hope you liked this story. Please go easy on me.