A/N #1: I'm rushing again... and we're about five chapters from being through with the story.

A/N #2: The chapters are going to be short for a while.

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"You killed someone today!" said Francois to Christine severely. "You killed one of the scene - shifters... why?"

"He was bothering me," Christine sighed, shrugging. "What do you do when someone bothers you?"

"I certainly don't kill them!" he exclaimed. "You must be mad. You're really going to get into trouble someday for scaring almost everyone at the Opera."

She sat down on the sofa and was thoughtfully silent for a moment. "I'm rather enjoying this reign of terror," she commented reflectively. "It suits me well, does it not? After all, I am my father's daughter."

He sighed and shook his head as he sat down next to her. "You've got to stop it, Christine, before it's too late," he said in a warning tone. "If you don't stop sometime in the very near future, they're going to come after you, and then you'll be sorry."

"They're going to come after me?" she said, laughing. "Good luck, Francois! I'd like to see them try and get me. They'll never defeat me!"

"Has Monsieur Luc decided who he's going to be with, dear?" he sighed, changing the subject. "You've only got a week left."

"No, he hasn't told me anything yet."

He nodded. "Well, you'd better hope that he makes up his mind quickly. And you'd better hope that it turns out in your favor." He glanced at his pocketwatch. "I've got to go now," he said. "I need to make sure that the sceneries are running smoothly for next week."

Then he rose and walked out of the lair.

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"Have you decided who you're going to be with yet, mon amour?" Emilie asked Cameron the next day during rehearsal for Genius's Mistake.

Cameron turned to Emilie, nodded, and smiled. "Yes. You."

She smiled brightly. "Truly? You're going to leave with me on opening night?"

"Truly I am." He paused. "I've just got to decide how I'm going to tell Christine."

"You're going to tell her? Why?"

"She has a right to know."

She gazed at him thoughtfully for a moment. "I really don't think that that's a good idea, Cameron," she said appeasingly. "You might anger her. Why are you leaving her so quickly, only a month after saying that you love her?"

He bowed his head and stared at his feet. "I - I can't look past certain... qualities that she posses," he said quietly. "I mean, she's a nice and wonderful person when she's not in a temper, but I can't help but think about what lies behind that mask and shudder."

"Neither can I. Just don't tell her your plans... it will be better for everyone."

He stared into space thoughtfully for a moment, then nodded. "All right. I won't tell her."