Disclaimer - I don't own Phantom of the Opera, any of the music, characters, content, setting, etc. It belongs to Andrew Lloyd Webber and the original creators and the movie company, etc.
The first night she heard him sing was nearly six months before the Opera Populaire burned down. It was late in the night; she bolted upright, spilling her blankets down onto the ground as his voice pierced the night.
You will curse the day you did not do
all that the Phantom asked of you!
There was anguish in the voice, but at the same time, it was beautiful. Evelyn continued to sit upright in bed, startled by the mysterious voice.
"Lay down, Evy. I'm cold." Evelyn was shaken out of her reverie by the voice of her younger sister, Carrie.
"Did you hear that, Carrie?" Evy breathed, her voice creating blue puffs of air in the cold room.
"No. Go to sleep." Carrie commanded drowsily from her nest of blankets. Reluctantly, Evy lay back down and arranged the blankets back over herself. She stayed awake till well past midnight, hoping beyond hope to hear the intoxicating voice again...
Six months later...
It was the middle of the night once more, but this time no silvery voice awake her. The bedroom door was flung open.
"Evelyn, Carrie, wake up!" It was their mother, Sarah. "Girls, quickly! The Opera Populaire is burning down! Your father is going to try and help put out the fire!" she sobbed, collapsing onto the girls bed and gathering them into her arms. Seventeen year old Evelyn quickly roused out of her sleep numbed state and pushed her mother's arm off her.
"What has happened?" she cried, thanking the Lord that the night was warm and that she would take seconds to dress. She pulled off her nightgown, leaving her in her shift, and pulled on her frock for the day.
"They say a phantom...they say the Phantom of the Opera started it! They say he brought down the chandelier!" Sarah gasped. Evelyn put a hand on the wall to steady herself as the word 'phantom' sent a course of ice flowing through her veins. "Evy, where are you going?"
"I need to help Fatherཀ" Evy said quickly. She couldn't even understand the desire to go to herself, let alone her delirious mother.
"You cannot go! It's too dangerous! Evy, come back!" Sarah cried as Evy bolted from the room. Sarah tried to follow, but Carrie cried out for her mother's comfort. Evy raced outside, where the air was thick and heavy and hot. They lived close to the opera house, so just by stepping outside she could see it. It would have been a glorious sight, if not so disastrous and deadly. Flames were licking the sky, hanging out of window panes. The horses of the stable nearby were trumpeting and bellowing with fear; ash flowed through the air. Evy watched in fascination as a stable boy leading three horses hurried by her, and she darted out of the way to avoid being trampelled. Quelling the tongue of fear rising in her chest, she ran towards the opera house.
"Papa! Papa!" she shouted in the heavy air. It was useless. The screams of women tore through the night and so did the frantic hustle of everyone around her. The fire wagons were already there, and the men were hard at work. She approached them to try and find her father, but a man not wielding a hose shook her away. Evy ran now, in fear for her father. Had he entered the building? Surely he wasn't that foolish. Suddenly, she noticed people being carried out of the opera house. Breaking into a sprint, she neared the grand doors. There was her fatherཀ He was coming out of the building, dragging the hysterical Prima Donna, who was wailing. Evy bristled with anger as the vapid woman struggled to get back inside. Her father, Joe, was having enough trouble with her as it was. There was a snapping sound, and Evy's heart thudded twice as fast as usual. Joe glanced up; his eyes widened in alarm, and he brutally shoved the Prima Donna through the doorway, where she tripped and fell down the stairs, landing safely at the bottom. Onlookers hurried over and gathered her up, directing her to a physician. The cracking sounded again; louder, more immediate.
"No!" Evy screamed, taking the steps two at a time. A fiery beam swung downwards. "Papa!" she shouted, desperate for him to come outside where it was safe. Joe looked up and saw his daughter; he had time to blow her a kiss before a wave of searing heart erupted, propelling her backwards, and the burning beam crashed into place - blocking the last exit. Evy felt like her heart has burst into shattered pieces. "Please." she sobbed, stumbling towards the doorway, trying to bear the heat that was intensifying as she got closer. Sweat beaded her forehead before she was anywhere near the door. There were shouts coming from the bottom of the staircase.
"What is she doing?" one of the bystanders yelled. The shouts barely registered in Evy's mind. Her father was in there, and she couldn't leave him there. Suddenly, one of the firemen shoved her aside, and she fell hard onto the stone. Another volunteer joined him and together, brandishing a hose, they put out most of the fire.
"My father is in there!" Evy shouted at them. One of the men glanced over at her, soot lining his face.
"So is Christine Daae, the Vicomte de Chagny and the rescue party!" he answered. Evy knew it would be futile to impress up on them that her father was so much more important. When the fire had been cleared from the entry, they rushed in...and rushed right back out, pulling something with them. The same man glanced at her. "Is this your father, girl?" he asked. Evy swallowed the fear that was biting at her heart and knelt next to the burned corpse. Gently, she touched the fire branded cheek.
"Yes. Yes, I'm afraid it is." she said thickly, her throat closing with tears, and her eyes spilling over. The man sympathetically touched her shoulder, and then followed his partner into the building, where Evy heard the hiss of the hose again. She looked around. Everywhere, people running and people standing still, some crying and some ashen faced. There was life around her. And yet...her father had none. With a hasty sob, she proceeded to hold back tears. She wished her father would tell her what to do, but obviously that was no more. Feeling helpless and hopeless, she did the one thing she felt she owed her father. She sang the lullaby that he had sang so often to deliver her to sleep.
Dark demons lurk in the night
Angels hold candles, burning bright
Fear and anguish extinguish good
Faith and hope bring strength as they should
And when the stars burn out, my dear
And when the dogs do growl, don't fear
I'll be here for you forever
Here for you until the end of never
Not alone, not unguided, you have me
Even if I'm gone, you'll see
My spirit lingers with you
My love will always save you
It certainly wasn't much, but it was all she had to give him. He had always said he preferred the sound of her voice above any other in the world. Suddenly, the window beside her shattered. Evy screamed as the glass cut into her skin. Tongues of fire came leaping out of the broken window. Blindly, Evy staggered to her feet. The pain attacking her body was overcoming her mind. She felt something in her heart instruct her to guard her father, but her mind was telling her to flee from the shadow of the burning building. Struck dumb by pain, she mindlessly staggered, and she came too close to the steps. Without warning, as one foot landed harshly on a step, the sudden change in footing uprooted her, and she fell down the stairs, the cruel stone scratching at her back. When she came to a stop, she was lying on her back. She couldn't even call out; instead, she just let the tears leak from her eyes. Suddenly, someone swept her upwards into their arms.
"Fire is not to be toyed with, girl. Didn't your mother teach you not to sit too close to the hearth?" the voice asked somewhat mockingly. Evy couldn't say anything, the pain was closing off her mind. The man looked down at her. "Where do you live?" he asked. Distractedly, Evy told him.
"Who are you?" she asked numbly. His dark hair gleamed in the fire's light. He smiled at her, but it was a sardonic smile.
"I heard your song, girl." he replied, not answering her question. Evy struggled to open her mouth in reply, but couldn't. "As for my name, it's Erik."
TBC...
Please read and review! I haven't yet read the original book (I hope to someday!) So this is based off the movie. Please tell me what you think, positive and negative. Thanks!