Disclaimer: Not mine. (Sighs heavily.)
Review Responses: I really wasn't expecting so many reviews for my first Phantom story, but I'm more than pleased. It's great to get all the feedback and advice.
PhantomPhanatic: You're not the only one. But our Lily just hasn't progressed that far yet.
amycad: Me brilliant. Oh my. I don't know if I'd go that far. But thank you. Yes Lily and Erik are very alike.
lexi: That is an interesting suggestion. And I promise you eventually trouble will come. Something. No more info though. (Zip the lips Mel)
GerrysISUchick04: Yes Erik has learned something from his mistakes with Christine. With Lily he's not quite so commanding, and has a softer side. To tell you the truth I see my Lily as being very similar to Lily from the movie Legend. Yes I know I'm telling my age by saying that. (I probably need a disclaimer for this review response now. Legend isn't mine either.)
ante mortem: Thank you. I love this story. It will continue.
Starlightcrybaby: Aw we have something in common sort of. My middle name is Sue, which literally means Lily. Thus in my pen name Indil means Lily also in Tolkien's elvish. You reviewed all three chapters. I just love that. I'm hoping you'll keep on loving it.
Larien: I was waiting for you to review before I posted this. Thank you for clearing that up for me. I literally butchered that line. Some one shoot me now. I will fix it. And the mistake I am about to make in this chapter. Maybe I better stick to English. I knew I should have taken French instead of Spanish in high school. No vision problems for me. Its just one of my greatest fears. (Being blind that is.) And believe me you won't regret seeing the movie.
Flame Responses: Anybody who wants to roast marshmallows, here's your chance.
Yikes: Yes I gave you your own category. Aren't I nice? I have nothing against slash. I have nothing against you. I have nothing against fat housewives as you put it. And the summary stays the same. The 'no slash' term is for informative purposes only. Not to offend. And is included on thousands of stories on this site. So I'm assuming all of those stories offend you also. If that is the case I feel sorry for you. You're missing out on a lot of good literature. Thank you for your completely unbiased opinion.
Opening Night
"They all look so beautiful." Madame Giry said standing beside Lily in the wings of the stage watching as the magic begun. Lily had worked harder than ever before to finish the costumes on time, and to her utter delight her eyesight had gone back to normal eventually. And what pleased her most was the fact that almost every night Erik had come to her room to sit and talk to her as she sewed. She had talked very little to anyone in the past five years, and it was a welcome change to speak with someone about her love of the opera. And she did love it, and everything about it. A love he seemed to share with her.
"I do believe we will have a hit on our hands, Madame." Lily said hugging the older woman as tears of joy coursed down her cheeks. After a moment the woman hugged her back not being able to withstand her exuberance.
After Madame Giry had left to give instructions to the dancers Lily stood alone. She looked to the flies searching for a familiar figure she knew would not miss the night. She saw him standing in the shadows watching the performance below. She wanted to be by his side and decided that she would not be missed if she snuck up into the flies.
She avoided the other members of the crew, not wanting any of them to become suspicious and follow her. When she reached the spot he had stood in but moments before he was gone. "Erik." She called into the darkness.
She heard a creaking noise off to her right, and turned in that direction, but nothing was there. "Where are you, Erik?"
"Behind you, Ma Cherie." He whispered into her ear. She jumped at his sudden appearance spinning around and nearly losing her footing. He quickly grasped her waist holding her tight until she regained her bearing.
"You scared me, Erik." She scolded, and then turned her attention to the stage below. "Look at it, Erik. It's breathtaking."
He saw that her cheeks were a shade of scarlet, and she did seem breathless. He watched her reactions to the performance. He could see the longing in her eyes. A longing, that he knew only came from knowing the pure exhilaration of performing on the stage. "What did it feel like when you performed?" He asked in her ear, knowing she was totally engrossed in the production below.
"Oh Erik, it was the most exhilarating and thrilling experience ever possible." She said intent on the Prima Donna's solo below.
"You miss it so." He whispered.
It seemed to dawn on her then what they were speaking of. She turned her face to his with a frown. She began to scold him for tricking her into admitting to her secret, but then realized that she could not keep secrets from him. He knew her mind too well. "Yes, I do miss it." She admitted.
"How can you give up something that is so precious to you?" He asked, not understanding her mixed emotions.
"I no longer have the heart for it." She answered sadly. "It hurts too much, Erik." Her voice held such deep sorrow that he could not bear to push it any further.
His hands still rested on her waist and he wasn't sure what prompted him to pull her close to him, but he felt as if he needed to comfort her. At first she stiffened in his arms but as he pulled her head to his shoulder, and then started stroking her back she breathed a large sigh and then melted into him, wrapping her arms around his waist and accepting the shoulder he offered. For a moment she let him comfort her. She let the tension that had been building inside her for so long release. And for once she felt completely at peace.
He felt her relax against him, and continued to stroke her back as he whispered words of comfort in her ear. "Pain eventually fades, Ma Cherie. I promise this too shall pass." He whispered pressing his lips to her brow in a tender kiss.
"You make me truly want to believe that." She answered looking up into his eyes.
"You should." He said reaching up to caress her cheek. "I would not intentionally mislead you, Lily."
She knew she should pull away, but also knew she did not wish to. His hand caressing her cheek caused a heat to flare inside her that she did not know even existed. She ran her hand up his chest and around his neck tangling her fingers in his hair. He saw the change in her eyes and was surprised to see the desire she was feeling reflected in their depths. "Lily…" He began but knew not what to say.
She stopped his words though by leaning up and placing a tender kiss upon his lips. The kiss was soft and teasing at first, but when he started to respond to her it deepened into one of passion. He pulled her body flush with his raising her up off the ground so they were the same height deepening the kiss. He felt as if it was consuming him. Never before had he felt such passion in one kiss.
"Let go of the woman." He nearly did not hear the command from behind Lily, but the danger tingled at his senses. He broke the kiss lowering her back to the floor. He could see the confusion and fear in her eyes. He looked over her shoulder and saw an armed guard standing on the end of the scaffold they were perched on. "I said let her go." The man said raising a rifle and pointing it at him.
Lily realized what was happening and turned her head facing the guard. "Sir, you are mistaken. This man is my friend. He was not harming me."
"Mademoiselle, I'm afraid you are the one who is mistaken. I have been instructed to keep an eye open for one fitting his description. He needs to come with me, and we can clear this up." The guard said training his gun on Erik. But they could both see his shaking hands.
She turned back to Erik and mouthed the word "Run" as she planned to distract the guard. But as she turned back around she felt Erik wrap his arms around her waist swinging her around behind him just as the man's twitchy fingers tripped the trigger on the rifle. "No." She screamed as she saw the bullet pass through his shoulder. The auditorium below became silent as her scream was heard, and several sets of eyes turned towards them.
"It's the Phantom." A voice screamed from below.
"No." Lily said reaching out and grasping a rope hanging from the rafters forcing it into his hand. "Flee." She pleaded with him.
He let go of his shoulder, which he had been clutching in pain, and she saw the blood coating his hand. He reached out taking the rope from her and slid down its length towards the stage. As if by magic the floor seemed to drop out from below him, and he disappeared below the stage. She watched, as the stage seemed to swallow him praying he would be able to escape them.
The guard had attempted to reload his rifle, but was too slow. She turned on him quickly making her way to stand in front of him, grasping the rifle herself and throwing it to the stage below. "You are the monster." She said reaching out and slapping the man across the face. He did not know what to do as she pushed her way past him, disappearing into the shadows.
Lily made her way to her room without being stopped, and locked the door behind her. She went to the mirror determined to discover how to open it. She saw then that it was ajar. When had he done that she wondered? She made her way through the tunnels feeling no fear of the dark, dank halls and stairs she came upon. When she reached the underground lake she saw no way to cross, so she plunged her lower body into the icy cold water wading through the waterways until she came upon an iron grate spanning the entire tunnel. She peered through the grate knowing what she was seeing was his lair. She saw him sitting at a desk with his head resting upon one arm curled upon the desk.
"Erik." She called out to him, grasping the grate with both hands pushing her face againstthe bars.
His head slowly rose at the sound of his name. "Lily." He said in disbelief. She could only see the back of his head. She watched as he reached out picking up his mask and fitting it back on his face before he turned to face her. "What are you doing here?" He asked clutching his injured shoulder.
"What do you think I'm doing? You're hurt." She called out. "Please Erik, let me in."
He stood and made his way to the mechanism that opened the grate. It was hard to push the lever with only the use of one arm, but he did so anyway. As the grate opened Lily waded into the room and up onto the bank of the underground lake. She made her way to where he stood, and took the lever in her own hands closing the grate behind her. Then she turned back to him. He looked pale, and she could see the pain in his eyes. She reached out to him meaning to remove his jacket, but he pulled back turning away from her and stumbling back towards his desk.
She followed him, but before he could make it there his legs began to crumble. She ducked quickly under his arm supporting his weight on her shoulder. She diverted his direction towards the swan shaped bed she saw in the adjoining chamber. "Please Erik. I cannot carry you. You must help me get you to the bed." She pleaded with him.
She helped him to lie on the bed and then sat beside him. "Please don't fight me, Erik. I only want to help." She said reaching down and unfastening his jacket. She threw the jacket to the floor and stared at the blood covering the shoulder of his white shirt below. Her fingers began to tremble as she tried to unbutton the shirt, but they were shaking too much, and the buttons would not unfasten.
He looked down to her trembling fingers. "Lily, you don't have to do this. If you are frightened, please go." He said placing one hand upon hers.
"I am only frightened for you." She declared trying to sound strong. She could see her words did not satisfy him. But she would not let him down. So she used both hands grasping each side of the shirt and roughly pulling it apart popping the buttons off in the process, and then pulled the shirt off. There was so much blood, she thought in horror. "I need water to clean it with." She asked. He motioned to a small alcove, which she discovered held the opening to an underground spring. She tore strips from her petticoat soaking them in the water, and then returned to him.
She cleaned away as much of the blood as she could so she could take a better look at the wound. She could see that the bullet passed right through his shoulder, which she considered lucky since she knew she could never have removed it herself. She tore more strips from the petticoat using them to apply pressure so the bleeding would stop. When she realized the bleeding wasn't slowing she began to panic.
He could see the panicked look upon her face and guessed the problem. "You must sew them shut." He said pointing to his desk. "There is needle and thread on the desk."
"Erik…I don't know if I can do that." She whispered.
"If you can sew a dress, you can do this." He said trying to smile for her.
She had to stop several times as her hands began to tremble uncontrollably. Each time she took several deep breaths to try to calm her nerves. He began to hum softly to try to help calm her. She knew it was the song he had started to sing for her that first night they met. She slowly began to hum with him letting the notes distract her nerves.
As he heard the sound from her he began to sing the song in honest. It came out slower than usual, but the pain in his shoulder made it difficult.
Night time sharpens, heightens each sensation
Darkness stirs, and wakes the imagination
Silently the senses, abandon their defenses
He was pleased to hear her voice join his on the next part.
Slowly, gently night unfurls its splendor
Grasp it, sense it, tremulous and tender
Turn your face away from the garish light of day
Turn your thoughts away from cold unfeeling light
And listen to the music of the night
Their voices both strengthened as they melded together.
Close your eyes and surrender to your darkest dreams
Purge your thoughts of the life you knew before
Close your eyes, let your spirit start to soar
And you'll live as you've never lived before
Softly, deftly music shall caress you
Hear it, feel it secretly possess you
Open up your mind, let your fantasies unwind
In this darkness that you know you cannot fight
The darkness of the Music of the Night
Let your mind start to journey to a strange new world
Leave all thoughts of the life you knew before
Let your soul take you where you long to be
Only then can you belong to me
Floating, falling sweet intoxication
Touch me, trust me, savor each sensation
Let the dream begin, let your darker side give in
To the power of the music that I write
The power of the Music of the Night
You alone can make my song take flight
Help me make the Music of the Night
She finished the last stitch as they finished the song together. She wrapped the wound then in bandages made from her petticoat.
When she looked to his face she realized that he had fallen into a deep sleep. Her hand rested on his chest so she knew he still breathed. She sat remembering the events of the night. If he hadn't swung her around the way he had that bullet would have ended up in her head more than likely. He had saved her life. She knew that the Phantom would not have saved her. But Erik had.
