Sorry it took me so long to update. I lacked motivation. Oh, by the way, after I finish this story I will probably write a prequel to this story. It will be Christine's life in modern times. It will be short, but hopefully it will answer all questions you may have.

Escape

The first order of business was to find Erik a mask since his was still lying on the stage of the Opera Populaire. Unless, of course, someone had burned it, stabbed it, ripped it to shreds, or moved in any way. In that case, it would no longer be on the stage. Focus! Okay, so the first thing was to find Erik a mask. That would have been an easy task if Erik wasn't wanted for "murder" (one which he never committed) and extortion. Also, it would have been easier if I wasn't wanted for aiding a criminal. Ah, well. Life can be "complicated" sometimes.

Once we procured a mask (a nice, decorative black velvet mask. Definitely only a temporary one, as it had flowers painted on it.) we decided that it would be best if we just jumped ship and left the country. The problem was, where should we go?

"Christine, I think that we should go to London. I believe that it would be easiest for us to adjust to life there," Erik commented. I loved London (after all, Dream Christine hadn't been confined to the USA) but something told me that we should move out of Europe. We should go to… America!

"Erik, I have an even better idea! Let's go to New York City!" I exclaimed, suddenly excited. It would be great to see the bustling city where my "alter-ego" had once resided.

After a few moments' consideration, Erik replied, "Well, I guess we could…But let us first sail to London, maybe spend a few months there, then ultimately settle down in New York." That made me very happy. Yay!

"Sounds great!" I exclaimed. Well, now all we needed were two tickets to London…

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We left Paris as quickly as possible, traveling to a smaller fishing town on the coast. Our plan was to find a fisherman who would be willing to ferry us across the English Channel. If no one was willing to take us to England, we would simply rent or "borrow" a boat. It was a relatively simple plan.

After about a week of walking and riding horses (yes, it wasn't as bad this time as it was last time) towards the ocean, we came across a costal village called Cherbourg. It was a pretty town and suited our needs perfectly.

Fortunately, Erik was not lacking money, so a large enough bribe secured us a ride on a fishing boat. Unfortunately, the boat was miniature! I swear, there wasn't enough room on it for one person, let alone three! And how did the fisherman fit the fish on?

For four days we were confined to that little barrel on the open sea! Four days smelling the oily, pungent smell of fish! Four days of retching over the side of the boat, our faces green from sea sickness! FOUR DAYS WITHOUT A BATH!

If we had been on that boat for another day, I am fairly sure that I would have pulled my hair out and jumped overboard!

We finally landed inLewes, England. It was a small port city, and in every way normal. Or so it seems. I learned upon our arrival, however, that every November 5th, the whole town turns into a haven for pyros! Something about burning a treasonous jerk who wanted to blow something up… And apparently this isn't the only town in England that celebrates fire! I believe Erik and I have just entered a country run by the criminally insane…

We quickly made our way from Lewes to London, not wanting to linger in the town. It was nice, to be sure, but we were in a "hurry" to get to London.

We reached our destination after three days of travel. London. I gasped as soon as I saw the city. It was…a disappointment! A hundred years in the future it was a refined, exciting city teeming with diversity. Now, however, it was just a dirty, industrialized city. It was, unfortunately, not all it was cracked up to be. Sigh.

Erik, however, seemed to be in architectural heaven. I wanted to point out that if he had ventured out into the light of day while in Paris, he would have seen many magnificent structures. Ah, well, at least he was having fun. And, at least we weren't spending the rest of our lives here. I could handle a few months in London if necessary.

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It was our last week in London. We had spent the past four months in this polluted, dirty city. We definitely stayed longer than originally intended, but Erik enjoyed it here. There had only been one "incident" the entire time here.

We had been walking down by the river on a flower-lined cobblestone path. It had been, of course, nighttime since Erik still refused to go out during daytime. We had been minding our own business when a little street urchin had jumped from behind a bush and threw rocks at Erik and me. Erik wanted to kill the boy, but I quickly calmed him. After all, the boy hadn't thrown rocks because he had seen the mask. It had been too dark out. The boy had only acted out of his own amusement.

Tonight we had decided to go for a walk along the river again, not in the same spot, but at some other romantically secluded area. After all, we were now officially "an item." We deserved a time to just go and make out in public for no reason other than that we wanted to.

Tonight, however, was a little different. We were standing underneath a huge tree, surrounded by various flowers. The perfume of the opening blossoms lay heavy and thick in the spring air. I wanted nothing more in that moment than to kiss Erik passionately. Can you blame me? I mean, come on! It was just so romantic!

My night took a turn for the better when Erik, his eyes never leaving mine, knelt down in front of me. He held a single crimson rose in his gloved right hand. I took the gift and was about to thank him when my heart stopped. Inside the petals of the rose lay a ring. It was subtly made, the platinum band twining around the tastefully large diamond. An engagement ring. A gorgeous engagement ring. For me.

"Christine," Erik said gently, "you mean the world to me. You are my morning, my day, my night, my everything. I love you. Will you marry me?" He asked.

For a moment, I was speechless. When I finally found my voice, I whispered, "I love you, Erik!" and knelt down beside him. I slipped the ring onto my finger, allowed Erik to tuck the rose behind my ear, and threw my arms around him. We held each other close, our lips meeting with a passion neither one of us had known existed. He was in love, and I was in love. We needed wait no longer before we two became one.

Before we could share our love physically, however, Erik tensed. He then threw me into one of the bushes, jumping in right behind me. I would have asked what he was doing, but I realized as soon as I heard a voice. A male voice. I knew that voice…

Raoul was walking with a woman holding his hand. What was he doing in London? From what I could see, the garishly made-up woman was a prostitute. Damn! That bastard was going to ruin my time just so he could fuck a whore! (excuse the language, but "making love" wouldn't have been the appropriate term as they wouldn't have been making "love")

Uh, oh! I had to sneeze! Goddamn allergies! I held it in as best as I could, but, though there was no sound, the leaves on the bush trembled. Unfortunately, Raoul had been looking in this general direction and had seen the bush quiver…

ooh, I is evil! hehehehe! Aww, fluff-ish stuff! And a cliffie-ish thingy! hahaha, i amuse myself sometimes