A/N: Thank you to all of my reviewers! I appreciate it so much! Either the following chaptr or the one after that will be the last one. But do notret! There will bea sequel! Yay! So look for that one soon. Please review thanks!

Chapter 21

"Erik!"

Christine and Erik stood there staring at each other for some time, until Raoul showed up standing behind Christine.

"You are not welcome here," Raoul said bravely. "I suggest you leave."

Erik looked straight into the Vicomte's eyes and smirked. "Do you really think it wise, Monsieur, to threaten me?"

The Vicomte moved forwards and placed a protective hand around his wife, which made her flinch at the sudden movement. "You are not going to harm my family anymore. I shall not permit it."

"I do not need your permission for anything, Vicomte!" Erik roared. "All I came here for is Emma!"

As my family was arguing, I was nearing the front door to get a better look. I peeked my head around the corner as I crouched down into a squatting position. I saw my father standing there with an arm around my mother and behind the door I also saw a very upset Erik. I had not seen Erik this mad since the time that I had seen him without his mask on, which was a very long time ago. Even though I was sorry that I had seen his face for the first time in that manner, I did not regret being able to see his entire face. Seeing him without his covering gave me a higher respect for him, though I had not realized this until now.

A smile faintly spread across my face at my memories with Erik, but that smile quickly turned to a frown when I heard more arguing from the door.

"Move aside, Monsieur! I refuse to leave until I get to speak with her!" Erik bellowed.

"I am not going to let some monster have any more to do with my little girl!" replied Raoul darkly.

Gasping at my father's last words, I was surprised that he would dare to say something like that. I looked over at Erik and saw the murderous flicker in his eyes, telling me that I had to intervene.

"That is enough!" I declared while I stood up and came into view. All eyes fell on me, all of which were taken aback by my sudden appearance. "I am appalled," I continued, "that you all are acting so rudely towards one another!"

"Why should we show him manners, when he obviously doesn't have any himself…" Raoul mumbled. I shot him a glare and he quickly looked down in embarrassment.

Christine finally spoke up for the first time. "Why don't we all go into the living room and I'll prepare some tea." She said this as more of an order rather than a suggestion.

She walked away from Raoul and into the other room, and I closely followed behind. Not far back the two men were following as well. I sat promptly on the couch, where my father sat close by. Erik, on the other hand, decided to stay standing, and paced anxiously around waiting for Christine to return.

As I sat on the couch, an awkward silence crept throughout the room, drawing me to say something, but nothing came. I glanced around at the two men and noticed how nervous and anxious they were. Deep down, I really did want to strike up some sort of conversation in order to lighten the mood, but I couldn't think of anything decent to say. When Christine entered back into the room, it seemed like everyone let out a breath that they didn't know they were holding.

As Christine poured tea into each of the cups, I noticed that her hands were shaking terribly. Peering at her face, I saw that underneath her calm demeanor, Christine was actually extremely worried.

After Christine had handed out the cups of tea, she went and took a seat by me, placing a comforting hand on my leg. She withdrew her hand after I gave a small smile of reassurance, though honestly I had no idea how I was going to go about this. There was more silence filling the room as still nobody said a word. Christine looked over at me expectantly.

"Do not expect me to say anything. I did not ask him to follow me and come here," I said defensively.

"I would not have had to come here, my dear, if you would not have run out in the middle of the night," replied Erik matter-of-factly.

"That would be your fault as well then," I retorted.

"Really? Do tell," encouraged the masked man.

"You did not want me there, so I left," I said simply.

"If I did not want you, then why would I come here after you?"

"To see my mother again of course!" I shouted as I stood on my feet.

For a while, Erik just stood there and stared at me standing before him. At last he replied. "Is that what you think, Emma? That I just took you in to be able to see Christine again?"

"Why else would the great Phantom of the Opera take in a girl, if not to get close once again to his one and only love?"

Erik gathered himself together and made ready to leave. "Yes, of course that is why I took in a girl, not knowing at first who her parents were, and raised her like she was my own. I show mercy all the time." He went to the door. "Bonsoir." Erik then left the home in a fury, desperate to get away from being misunderstood. He needed to visit someone who had always been there for him, saved his life even, his old friend, Nadir.

Back inside the home, all was silent once again. No one had dared to say a word after Erik had left. Christine found it hard to tell what Emma was feeling, whether it was sadness or anger, she was not sure. Raoul was no longer in the living room; he had gone to get a drink form the cupboard. Sadly Christine had noticed her husband doing that a lot lately, mainly when Emma was away at Erik's. But now that Emma was home and the Vicomte was still drinking, Christine prayed that it wasn't becoming too much of a problem.

Though deep down, she felt that she might have to confront her husband sometime in the near the future, which she was deeply dreading. She was afraid of what he might do. While they were at the Opera House those seventeen years ago, Raoul was a sweet man, and Christine truly believed that he had the best intentions in mind. Over the years, however, after Emma had disappeared, her husband had become overly depressed. Trying to help him proved to be no good, for he would not listen to her. He believed too truly that he had no problem to be fixed, causing all Christine's reasoning to go to waste.

In the next few days, Christine knew that she would have to face her husband once more, but she would have to make sure that it was when he was sober. Otherwise, a disaster beyond her imagination would occur.

A/N: I need to take a vote for the title of the next book:

A) Three to Tango

B) Clouded Days ahead

C) Couds shroud the light

D) Night time Sharpens Each Sensation

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