A/N: I hope the confrontation was all you hoped it would be. And now as some of you mentioned, Christine is going to have to chase Erik for a change. About the black ribbon: in my mind, the ribbon had come with Christine unnoticed from the opera house and had simply been put away with her clothing in the dresser when she moved into the de Chagny household. Remember, I did say it was in the "dark recesses" of the drawer. You know, kind of like finding cereal underneath your couch cushions, only much more romantic. The fact that she happened to find it on that particular day was just a coincidence. Or maybe it was Fate...
One more quick note. In this fic, Erik's mother did indeed commit suicide shortly after his birth, but I am thinking three or four years after, so he does remember her.
lafemme540: Hearing that you have been so affected by my story is one of the most wonderful compliments you could give me. So thank you, milady, thank you. (I am assuming you are female, judging by your screen name.) And the chapter title was simply referring to the "bitter end" of Christine and Raoul's marriage, not the fic. There is so much more to come! We haven't even gotten to all the EC fluff yet.
ilustgerik: Me too. Your screen name I mean. And you shall have more, much more.
phantomann: Yes, Christine does indeed have a spine. Shocking isn't it? Thankfully, she will become more familiar with it as the fic goes on. And technically, Raoul did not call Christine a bch. I quote myself from the previous chapter: "And yet you pine for him like a btch dog in heat." I couldn't quite picture Raoul saying the b-word to her face no matter how angry he was, so I made it more of a simile; although comparing her to a dog isn't much better. Oh, and Erik slap Raoul? I have a feeling Erik would have a hard time restraining himself to something so civilized. Now hanging him from the rafters by his own entrails – that sounds more befitting of our Erik. Perhaps the two should meet in a dark alley someday, no witnesses around of course, hmmm...the idea has potential...
Pertie: Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. And you are most welcome!
diveprincess: Good, because here is the next chapter!
Captain Oblivious: Ah, your illustrious name precedes you. I am honored that you have joined the fic. Unfortunately, my limited ability to read French (one semester in college), is far surpassed by your obvious talent to write it. (Although just to see it in print was a treat. It is so beautiful!) I think the general tone of your response was positive, from what I could tell, so I thank you. And if it wasn't, well, then please forgive me and I really feel like an uncultured idiot.
erikfan: I'm sorry if I sounded impatient. I was just doing all my normal review replies and came to your screen name, realizing I hadn't heard from you for a while, and I kind of missed ya. Thank you so much for the compliments and I am glad the confrontation was all you hoped it to be. I am honored that I am part of the way you start your day.
Twinkle22: I was relieved to hear that you have gotten over that sympathy-for-Raoul stuff. We can't have that in this crowd of Erik lovers. Anyway, as you say, on to the EC stuff!
Jema Moda: Careful now. Did Raoul really own up to everything? Wasn't there one tiny detail that he failed to mention? He gave Christine a rather oversimplified version of what he really said to Erik. Raoul calls it a "half-truth" rather than a lie. Check it out. Christine still has one more detail of Raoul's "scumminess" to discover, but that revelation won't take place for a while yet. Ah yes, crippling truths. Her words truly are the death knell of their marriage, aren't they? And yes, that line from the movie always rips out my heart as well. Perhaps I should have Christine explain that phrase in a better light later on in the fic. Those words do seem like a sticking point that needs explaining.
xo-little-lotte-xo: Thank you. If there was one adjective I would hope someone would use to describe my writing style, it would indeed be 'elegant'. You have given me a great compliment.
Ch. 10 – Diverging Paths
Christine smoothed the wrinkles from her pale yellow dress. Even though she knew her Angel would not be there, standing on the doorstep of his former home sent a wave of expectant electricity through her veins.
She raised her hand and knocked, praying that her hunch was right. Christine was certain that her Angel would not have been able to sell his Paris residence in such a short period of time, so it seemed logical that he would leave a trusted servant to look after it until a sale could be arranged. And whoever that was would no doubt have a means of contacting the owner. She hoped to convince the caretaker to share that information with her.
A shadow appeared behind the glass, and Christine smiled what she hoped was a winning smile as the door opened. She took in the care-worn copper face and the dark, kind eyes that greeted her with vague surprise.
"Vicomtesse, it is good to see you looking so well. I am Nadir Khan, a good friend of Erik's." The exotic looking man smiled and bowed deeply.
Though she was fairly certain she had never seen this man before, his voice seemed comfortingly familiar. Christine smiled warmly in return. "I am pleased to make your acquaintance, Monsieur Khan, though I feel somehow that I already know you. Is it possible that we have met before?"
Nadir gestured Christine into the grand foyer. He closed the door behind her, and then extended his hand towards the sitting room. "Perhaps we might continue our discussion in here, Madame, where it is more comfortable." Christine followed the dark-skinned man into a room that had obviously been very fine at one time, but now stood nearly empty - the furniture entirely covered with white dust cloths, except for a small divan and a lone wooden chair.
Nadir motioned Christine to the comfort of the sofa, seating himself opposite her on the chair. His eyes held only kindness and no trace of reproof when he answered her question at last. "Yes, Vicomtesse, we have indeed met before. It was on a rainy night nearly three weeks ago, although you are not likely to recall my face."
Christine blushed and lowered her eyes. "I apologize, Monsieur Khan. I'm afraid that I do not recall much of the events of that particular evening."
Nadir's voice was gentle. "You owe me no apologies, my dear, nor any explanation. I am very pleased to see you have recovered fully."
Christine nodded shyly. "Yes, thank you." Something he had said when he introduced himself had caught her attention and her curiosity was quickly becoming overwhelming. She could not contain herself any longer. "Monsieur Khan, who is the 'Erik' you speak of? Is he the owner of this house?"
Nadir's brow rose in surprise. "Yes, that is his christened name, although there is a good deal more to it, but I would have thought you of all people would have known that."
"Erik," Christine spoke the name aloud, saying it slowly as if testing it on her tongue. "It suits him." She smiled softly and raised her eyes to meet his questioning look. "I used to call him my Angel of Music. He never gave me any other name by which to address him," she explained.
Nadir nodded in understanding. It was just the sort of mysterious game his enigmatic friend would love to play, but he also knew that Erik must have had his reasons for withholding the information from Christine. The Persian wondered now if he had inadvertently revealed something that he shouldn't have. If so, Erik was likely to be angry with him. Well, it wouldn't be the first time, and it is not likely to be the last. He thought to himself.
Nadir quickly changed the subject. "We have not yet discussed the reason for your visit today, my dear. I assume it has something to do with the Comte de Renoir."
Christine looked blank for a moment.
Nadir chuckled. "Erik, Madame. I warned you there was a good deal more to his name."
Christine's face paled with shock. "He is a Comte?" she whispered.
Nadir nodded. "Indeed he is, though he seldom wishes to speak of it. What few memories he has of his family are not pleasant from my understanding."
Christine sat pondering all that she had learned of her mysterious Angel in the past few moments. She remembered suddenly that he had told her on the night of the opera fire how his mother had loathed him, giving him his mask and his first taste of the cruelties that the world held in store for him.
The more she thought of it, the more incensed she became at the utter unfairness of his life. The man was a genius, more talented than any man she knew of, and a Comte as well, yet he had been forced to hide his unique and brilliant self all because he had had the misfortune to be born with less than a perfect face. The injustice of it cried out to her very soul.
She had to find him, if for no other reason than to make him aware that someone on earth cared of his pain. Christine reached her hand out to touch the Persian's own, her eyes bright with determination. "Monsieur Khan, I want you to help me find Erik."
Nadir's face held momentary uncertainty. He had expected her request when she had appeared at the door, but he was unsure how to respond to it.
Frowning, he considered the potential consequences if he were to offer her his aid in the matter. He did not particularly wish to entangle himself in the affairs of his friend. He knew Erik would certainly not appreciate his meddling. And the Vicomtesse was hardly free. She was the wife of a powerful noble, a man who quite obviously adored his wife and loathed Erik.
Christine could sense his hesitation, but she persisted, leaning forward to make her earnest plea. "Please, I have so many things that I must tell him. There is so much that I must make him understand. Please, I beg you Monsieur Khan. You need not fear that I will cause him any more pain. If he will have me, I intend to stay with him for the rest of my life." Her eyes pleaded with him to understand.
Nadir sighed. "Vicomtesse, I ..."
Christine interrupted him, a look of distaste coloring her face. "Please do not call me that. I do not intend to be the Vicomtesse much longer. As soon as it can be arranged, my marriage to the Vicomte de Chagny will be annulled."
Nadir's brow wrinkled in confusion. "I do not understand, Madame. You have been married for some time, surely the Church will not approve."
Christine laughed bitterly. "Money and power can purchase approval, Monsieur. Surely you are aware that the rich are quite often forgiven the very sins that the poor would be condemned for. One need only be willing and able to afford the asking price." She looked away. "And of course, setting aside a wife who has failed to provide an heir is often seen as a duty rather than a sin amongst the nobility," she said softly.
Nadir began to understand. "So your husband is leaving you?" he asked quietly.
Christine raised her eyes and smiled. "No. I am leaving him."
Nadir searched her face. "Might I ask why?"
Christine's voice took on an endearing vulnerability as she released the secret she had held for so many years. "Because I am in love with Erik and I have been as long as I can remember. I wasn't strong enough to tell him before and then somehow everything became so complicated...," she trailed off, staring past him for a moment lost in her thoughts. Finally she continued, her words an open plea. "Monsieur, he needs me. And I need him. Please help me find him so I can make this right."
Nadir considered her words for a moment. Had she been anyone else, Nadir would have gently informed her that Erik needed no one. Now, however, after having seen the two of them together, he believed Christine may very well be the one exception on earth.
He smiled sadly at her anxious face. "Christine, I truly wish to help you, but Erik has not provided me with a means to contact him, nor has he given me any information concerning where he is going. He has said only that he plans to travel abroad for an extended period of time and then eventually settle somewhere outside of France. My instructions were to stay and arrange the sale of his home. I do not doubt that he may contact me in the future, but is certain to be at a time and in a manner of his choosing."
Christine looked crestfallen, and he patted her hand. "My dear, Erik chooses to remain a mystery, even to me, though I have known him a good deal of his life. I can not predict nor direct his actions. But if you wish to keep me informed of your location, I promise to convey that information to him and make it clear that you wish to speak with him. I'm afraid it may be some time, however, before I am able to do so."
He pulled a slip of paper from his pocket and handed it to her. "This is the address where I can be reached after my work here is complete."
Christine nodded and accepted the paper miserably. She paused for a moment, then whispered faintly, "Nadir, why did he leave?"
The Persian looked mildly uncomfortable at her question. "Madame, it is not my place..."
Christine apologized quickly, "Of course. Forgive me." She smiled sadly. "It is just that he is as much of a mystery to me as he is to you, perhaps more. There is so much I want to know of him, so much I long to understand. And yet Fate seems determined once more to have her way with us – drawing us together and then driving us apart." She blinked back the tears that had sprung unbidden to her eyes, as she rose to leave.
Nadir had come to like the Vicomtesse immensely, even in the short time of their visit. He sensed that her words were sincere, though she seemed to have a tendency to allow her emotions to cloud her judgment. In that respect, she was much like Erik, he mused. He watched with sympathy as she attempted to manage a brave smile in the face of her disappointment.
"Monsieur Khan, I thank you for your listening ear, I have no doubt wearied it today."
Nadir chuckled. "Not at all, my dear, it has been a pleasure." He bent and kissed her extended hand lightly and walked with her to the door.
"I will be leaving Paris in the morning for Italy. I hope to seek employment in an opera house there. As soon as I am settled, I shall write you at the address you have given me to tell you where I will be staying."
Her face clouded with uncertainty, as she suddenly realized it was entirely possible Erik would never seek her out, even if provided with her location. This man was her last desperate link to both him and her eventual happiness.
Sensing her reluctance to lay her future completely in his hand, Nadir gave her a kind smile. "My dear, you must put your trust in the knowledge that your path and Erik's are already decided. What is destined to be will be."
Christine nodded. Nadir watched her cross the street to her carriage. She was a strong woman, despite her sensitive nature. He thought of all she had revealed to him today. Slowly the pieces of the puzzle were beginning to slide into place. Erik clearly loved Christine. Christine admitted that she loved Erik, but events had conspired to keep them apart. It had all the makings of a classic tale of romantic tragedy.
The Persian stroked his chin thoughtfully. Though it was certainly true that destiny's hand could not be forced, neither could it be denied. He had a strange feeling that Christine and Erik were indeed meant to cross paths again one day, though perhaps it would not be as soon as either of them would have hoped.
