Okay, Chapter five… just to let you know, chapter six might not come for a couple days, because I don't really know what'll happen… but I should figure it out pretty quick, though so don't worry!
rukakou- I didn't think your comments were negative… and thank you, a lot of people liked that line!
Erik'sTrueAngel- Isn't it though? And thank you!
Venus725- that's okay… hey, at least it wasn't a flame! And- thanks, I'm flattered!
Willow Rose- I agree! And thank you!
HoVis- Maybe he is… and yes, I'm going to try to do that.
Kytten- He does look good in red, doesn't he?
Saber- Thank you! And yes, we will see more of Nadir in this very chapter, in fact!
La Foamy- OMG, THANK YOU! You've just inspired me…
Neon signs at 2AM- You're welcome! And thank you, I always thought the whole "perfect prince (or vicomte!) charming gets the girl" thing was a bit skeptical…
Loverofbalto- Yeah, I thought she needed a friend who was in the same situation as she was, so, Brava! Instant OC.
Thanks also to LostSchizophrenic, lillymunster, unknown, Angel, Mini Nika, and Koneko-chan16 for reviewing. (Wow, lots of reviews… that means I'm loved, right? Yay!)
A/N- Eternal thanks to La Foamy, who gave me a better idea for this chapter than the one I originally had!
And I know I haven't updated for a few days, I had marching practice until 4:10 every day this week, and then I had homework on top of that. And then the website was being a bitch and it wouldn't let me upload, so yeah…
-Immediately after leaving Nadir's flat, Erik headed towards the shady section of Paris. He absolutely hated going there, but it was the only place to buy information.
Upon reaching his destination, (an unsavory pub called The Vagabond's Alehouse) Erik strode over to the bar.
"Can I get ya anythin' Monsieur?" the barkeep asked.
"Information only." Erik said quietly.
"What 'choo need to know?" the bartender said warily. A masked man was not that remarkable in these sorts of places, but it was unusual enough to cause comment.
"I need to know the location of the Duke of Normandy's Paris estate." He remembered Christine telling him that she and her husband were going there for dinner.
"Duke o' Normandy? That information's gonna cost you…" the man looked at him slyly.
"Ten francs." Erik said, putting the money on the counter.
The barkeep eyed the money. "Ar'ight. 'Is estate's right outside o' town, ya go past that ol' cemetery…"
Erik knew that it was wrong to eavesdrop. This, however, did not stop him from crouching outside of an open window and listening to Christine's conversation with the Duchess of Normandy.
He had reached the estate just in time to see the women enter the room, and couldn't resist listening to what they were saying. He was, after all, here to get information, and the easiest way to do that was eavesdropping.
As he listened to Christine proclaim her lack of love for the Vicomte, hope swelled within him. Maybe, he thought. Just maybe I can have another chance… and this time that meddling Vicomte won't be there to interfere.
Then, Christine said something that made him actually smile with joy, which was an emotion that he had scarcely ever felt.
"The knights in shining armor… they aren't really knights, are they?" He heard her say. "Maybe I would have been better off with the dragon… He was an angel, you know…"
"Christine…" he whispered softly.
He heard her gasp. "Did you hear that?"
"No… I didn't hear anything." The Duchess said, sounding worried.
"Let's go back to the sitting room, shall we?" Christine proposed. "I'm sure our husbands will wonder what has taken us so long."
He heard the door shut behind him as they left. "Oh, Christine…"
"I think I'll go to the shops again today, Raoul."
He looked up from his paper. "When you went yesterday, that monster approached you. Christine, I'm very concerned."
"Don't worry." She told him. "I won't let Erik- th- the phantom talk with me again."
He glared at her, and stood. "What did you say?" he asked quietly. Anger was very evident in his face now.
"E- Erik." she stammered. "That's his name."
"His name? His name?" Raoul yelled, throwing his paper to the ground. "You would refer to that monster by name?"
"Raoul, I-"
"Be quiet!" he shoved her to the floor.
Normally Christine would have bowed her head and begged for forgiveness. But her realization the night before had made her bolder.
She pushed herself upright. "Don't overreact. I was only-"
With a cry of rage, he kicked her hard in the chest. She immediately curled into a fetal position on the ground, struggling to breathe through the pain.
"Apologize," he told her, "Or else you'll get much worse than that."
Christine felt her resolve slip through her fingers like so much sand.
Sorry! It seemed to say. Raoul's too much for me. Maybe we'll have better luck next time.
She looked up at him, but the intensity in his gaze "I'm sorry." She said.
He didn't reply, just watched as she struggled to her feet.
"You wanted to go into town?" he asked.
She nodded, not trusting her voice.
He sighed, picked up his newspaper. "Very well. You're lucky that I'm in a good mood. Be back in two hours."
"Thank you." She said quietly, leaving the room.
On the carriage ride into town, Christine tried to ignore her pain. But every time the motion of the carriage jostled her, or even if she breathed too deeply, she felt a sharp pain in her chest.
Maybe I have a broken rib. She thought. Surprisingly, she found that she did not care. She had reached a point where her life was so miserable; she didn't even care what happened to her anymore.
I used to be afraid that Raoul would end up killing me. She thought. Now I don't care. In fact, I might even welcome death, because I have nothing now to live for.
-Morbid, huh? If this chapter seems weird, just say so. Originally I was going to make it completely different, so stuff might not run together well.
