Chapter Four

Hours after sleep had claimed Christine, after midnight, Claire woke and began to bawl. Christine shot up, trying desperately to calm her before she woke the entire household, but the little baby continued to cry loudly. Henri, still half asleep and rubbing his eyes stumbled into the room and climbed up on the bed with her. "Mama? I can't sleep... I keep having bad dreams..." Christine sighed, and reached out and patted his back soothingly, still trying to comfort Claire. So much for a goodnight's sleep, she thought to herself.

Erik awoke to an unfamiliar sound. What the hell is that? he thought, alarmed. It took him a few slow seconds to realize that it was Claire crying. He settled back against the pillows, willing the crying to cease, but it did not. Knowing that he could not fall back asleep, Erik rose from the bed, drew a robe around him, and began walking downstairs, going as quietly as he could past Christine's room, not wanting her to know that he had been awoken.

"Erik's awake," Henri announced from where he was kneeling on the bed, waving to him. "See Mama? Claire wakes everybody up when she cries. Everybody."

"I'm sorry," Erik mumbled for no particular reason. "Good morning, or... hello, everyone," he said awkwardly, noticing that the family had regrouped at some point in the night.

"Claire woke me up too," Henri continued to ramble, "but I was having bad dreams anyway, so it didn't really matter, and then I came in here and she kept crying. Claire is the loudest crier ever,"' he said with a small nod towards his baby sister.

"Oh, well, that's alright," Erik replied, edging away from the door, feeling uncomfortable.

"Where are you going? Do you eat breakfast this early? Or are you a vampire that goes out at this time of night to get his dinner? One time, I heard a story about a vampire..."

Christine interrupted Henri. "There are no such things as vampires, darling." She rocked Claire back and forth, trying to get her cries to cease. She had no idea what was wrong with her, but sometimes babies just cried for no reason at all.

"No... I'm not a vampire," confirmed Erik quietly, "And I don't eat breakfast this early. I was going downstairs to read, in my library. Please excuse me," he said with a polite nod.

"You have a library?" Henri said, crawling off of the bed to follow him, "I like books... Sometimes my mama reads to me..."

"Henri, get back in here!" Christine practically shrieked, embarrassed by his behavior, "Where are your manners?"

"It's fine," Erik said, heading down the stairs, not wanting to look at Christine any longer. He did not expect Henri to follow.

"Wait! Wait for me!" Henri called, hurrying after him. Christine did not even bother to stop him, she was too tired, and preoccupied.

Erik turned to find the small boy toddling after him down the stairs. He shrugged and slowed his pace so he could catch up. Erik led him to the library, where Henri climbed up onto the couch. Erik moved to the shelves and began to select a book for himself, unsure of what to say to Henri.

"My mama and papa used to read to me... But then, when he went to heaven, we had to leave the books behind because they didn't belong to us anymore," Henri babbled.

"I'm sorry to hear that..."

"When my mama was talking to Aunt Meg, she said that my grandmother thought she was a whore so they kicked us out onto the streets like she was a common prostitute," he said cheerfully. Erik blushed in spite of himself.

"I don't think you should be using those words..."

"They thought I was asleep, but I heard them," he added proudly.

"All the more reason not to use them."

"What's so bad about them?"

"Ask your mother."

"My mama... She hasn't eaten in a real long time... Well, except tonight."

"Did you have no food at all?"

"She gave me food but it was yucky... I told her she should eat it 'cause it tasted bad and she said it was 'cause she loved me."

"I see... Well, you will not have to eat 'yucky' foods whilst you reside with me, I hope. If it is, just tell me and I won't make you eat it." He sat at the opposite end of the couch, a book in hand.

"Okay," Henri said cheerfully. "Do you like to read?"

"Yes, very much." He nodded, and scooted over to where Erik was sitting, examining the book.

"Do you like to read?" countered Erik, his awkwardness undetected by the toddler. "Or be read to, rather."

"Yes. Is this book about vampires?"

"No... I'm afraid it is not."

"Oh. What's it about then?"

"The French Revolution... that happened before you were born."

"Are you sure? I'm three... My birthday is on March 5th... I'm pretty big..."

"I'm positive, son."

"What is the French... rev... loo... What's that?"

"A large war which caused much destruction and death."

"Was there blood?"

"Yes, I'm sure there was."

"I'm almost four, you know... Are you sure this happened before me?"

"I am quite sure... It happened when I was younger."

"Are you old now?"

"That depends upon what you would consider old. To you, most likely." Erik found his bold honesty quite refreshing.

"Are you older than my mama?"

"Yes."

"Oh... Did you know she used to sing at the opera?"

"Yes, I know this..." he answered with a small smile.

"She doesn't sing anymore though."

"Oh? Why ever not?"

My papa... it made him sad," he said with a shrug. "It makes her sad too I think."

"Oh... That is unfortunate... I wonder why..." he said as he began to read the first page.

"Can you read to me?"

"I suppose," he said, slightly surprised. "But I very much doubt you will find it very interesting... It is not a children's book."

"I'm smart though."

"Yes, of course you are." With that, he began to read the text which he was sure would put the child to sleep. And sure enough, by the end of the first chapter, it did. He picked up the boy and carried him up the stairs to Christine's room. "Christine," he said. "I was... reading to him and he fell asleep," he said, lingering awkwardly at the doorway.

He heard no response within a few moments, so, figuring she had nodded off, he quietly opened the door and crossed the room, lying Henri down on the bed next to his mother. Erik gazed on Christine's sleeping form, employing much self control to not reach his hand out and caress her cheek. Abruptly, he turned from the room and entered his own, undressed, and fell to the bed, suddenly exhausted.