War and Hate
Mercedes and Erik just stood there, hand in hand, staring at the enraged Christine. Both of them noticed that there was an odd glint in Christine's eyes, almost as though she had gone insane.
Christine strode across the room and stood in front of Mercedes. Her hatred burned in her eyes as she faced this repulsive bitch who had moments ago been passionately kissing her beloved Erik. What had really sent Christine over the edge and into madness, however, was the fact that Erik now seemed to love this whore who stood beside him.
Christine looked over Mercedes, and would have been intimidated by her if she had been of sound mind. Christine barely noticed, however, the fact that this woman was a good head taller than her and was deceptively strong. Christine taunted her, saying, "You slut! You murderess, you seductress, you prostitute! You're nothing but a weak, stupid, whore!" Almost casually, Christine pushed Mercedes, catching her off guard.
Mercedes stumbled backwards, off balance, clearly surprised that Christine dared attempt to fight her. Erik tried to grab Mercedes' arm and steady her, but Mercedes waved him off and found her center of balance. She was no stranger to wrestling matches and brawls, although her skills had not been used since she had been a teenager. She settled into a steady half-crouch, only bending her knees slightly to allow herself maximum balance and speed. She watched Christine for any signs of movement, any hints of the attack that her opponent.
All that Erik wanted to do was to get these two murderous women away from each other. He could see that Mercedes was sizing up Christine to see how easily she could be thrown out of the window. Christine seemed to be calculating how high on her toes she would need to stand to throttle Mercedes. But when Erik had tried to intervene and help, Mercedes had brushed him aside. She obviously wanted no more than to settle this issue once and for all. He felt frightened, not for Mercedes' life, but for Christine's. What frightened him even more, however, was how similar this dispute felt to one that he had partaken in only a few months before.
Erik picked up his mask cautiously. Leaving the room silently, he did the only thing that he could think of that might be able to keep these women from harming each other. He quickly mounted his horse and galloped back to the Opera Populaire to get Madame Giry. He just hoped that he would get back in time to stop this madness.
Mercedes and Christine were too busy assessing each other to notice that the object of their quarrel had left the premises. Mercedes could tell that Christine had no experience fighting, and yet Mercedes saw that insanity controlled Christine entirely. A madwoman is a very dangerous opponent, mostly because of their lack of fear, she mused. She definitely needed to keep her guard up.
What little sanity was left in Christine's head told her that it was foolish to fight an older, stronger, larger, and more experienced woman. She paid no heed to reason.
"Why have you come, uninvited, into my home?" Mercedes asked lightly, her voice seeming carefree. Her sharp grey eyes, however, smoldered an angry black color, betrayed her rage. She hadn't even hated this woman when she had met her! On the contrary, she had liked Christine Daae, or should she say Christine de Chagny. This lunatic, however, was not the same person as the young woman whom she had met at the opera house.
As if in response to Mercedes' question, Christine lunged at Mercedes, trying to punch at her stomach. Mercedes had been prepared for this. She smiled coldly as she caught Christine's hand in her own.
"Madame Giry! Please open up the door!" Erik shouted, not caring who heard him. Madame Giry's face appeared as she opened the door quickly. Erik quickly explained the situation to Madame Giry, who immediately rushed out of the room and towards the stables. She asked the stable hand for two quick horses and both her and Erik were out of the stables in no less than a minute. They were not headed towards Mercedes' house, not yet.
They went straight to the police station, and Madam Giry went in while Erik hid in the shadows. Madame Giry walked out, accompanied by two burly sergeants. She silently pleaded with her eyes, telling Erik to stay a good distance behind them since he still had a price on his head. People never forget when you have committed murder. Then, all of them swiftly rode to Mercedes' mansion.
Christine kept on raining blows on Mercedes' body, not noticing that her punches merely slid off of Mercedes' body without harming her at all whatsoever. Tired of being "pummeled," Mercedes took hold of Christine's upper arms and shoved her roughly, though not painfully so, against the wall. She did not like the idea of hurting anyone any more, no matter how much she loathed them.
They both just stood there for a moment, Mercedes keeping Christine safely pinned against the wall, causing no harm to either one of them. She seriously hoped that Christine would stop trying to kill her. She couldn't understand why her love for one man would make her want to kill another, but then she thought of how her love for the very same man had almost driven her to kill herself. This was slightly ironic, she thought. At first I want to kill myself, but now I find myself fighting to keep my life. A sudden flash of malice crossed Christine's face, and she swiftly kicked Mercedes hard on the shin.
The older woman's defenses dropped momentarily, and Christine took advantage of the situation by lunging for Mercedes' throat with both hands. Both of them tumbled roughly to the ground, each trying to get an advantage over the other. Christine had her hands around Mercedes' neck, but she never had enough time to tighten her grip. She found it difficult to be fighting both an offensive and defensive war at the same time.
They rolled on the floor, nearing a nightstand. Mercedes was clearly winning the fight, her experience and power overwhelming Christine. The odds would change, however. On that nightstand was a sharp letter opener. With a feeling of victory, Christine grabbed the letter opener, pointing it at Mercedes.
Madame Giry and the two policemen entered the mansion, and could immediately hear the screams and thuds of the battle raging overhead. They ran upstairs and followed the sounds of the fight. They were followed by a shadow. Standing in front of a large wooden door, they pushed it open.
The room was in a state of disarray. A broken vase lay smashed on the floor; obviously it had been hurled at the wall in frustration. Furniture had been knocked aside or broken entirely. In the midst of all the chaos, they could see two women on the floor. The larger woman, a woman with black hair, lay on the floor. Her cheek was covered in blood. Kneeling beside her was a petite woman with chestnut hair. A mad glint was in her brown eyes, and she stood with a bloodied letter opener poised over the other's heart.
Sorry, I could not resist having a fight scene between Mercedes and Christine!
