Disclaimer: Please don't sue. I don't own POTO... All I own is an overactive imagination.
Summary: Continuation of Hardest Thing. ErikRaoul slash fic.
Warning(s): homosexual content, slash!
Pairing(s): ErikRaoul
A/N: Hmm... less angst in this one. Okay, I lied. There will probably be a lot since I'm never satisfied with them just getting together. Of course I love angst, but writing it is just a pain because you know that you could just write "they kissed and made up and lived happily ever after" but that would never happen. And it would lose its overall effect.
There is a time differential from the last chapter to this one. So…
As a quick summary: Raoul ditches Christine in the boat after she kisses Erik. He goes back to the Phantom who he's realized he's attracted to and while talking to him gets shot so that the two spend time in a dark tunnel (not really doing much -- ) hiding out from the mob. Erik denies his feelings, hurts Raoul's, then sends an injured Raoul away. However, once Raoul's gone, he feels the need to be sure he's made it home okay. Raoul's sick and has nightmares, Erik sings, and they end up sleeping together (really sleeping, not much else besides major snuggling -- ). Erik goes home in the morning and Raoul after giving money to Andre and Firmin for repairs goes to the Opera House. Raoul gets wet because of rain and Erik catches him when he faints from a fever. Erik undresses him, so that later when Raoul wakes up he propositions that Erik should get in bed with him to keep him warm. This time they don't do anything that could be misconstrued (because if he got into bed with a naked Raoul there would be no need to construe anything) because they both realize it wouldn't work and deny their feelings once more. Raoul leaves in a daze and Erik is probably more or less depressed and suicidal, thinking that he will die slowly since the opera house has burned down (since he doesn't know Raoul's rebuilding it).
That's "Broken", "Torture", "Dilemmas and a Naked Vicomte", and "The Hardest Thing" in a nutshell. Now, onto the real story.
Oh yeah, ummm, whatchamacallit, there will be a masquerade because though it's trite, it serves its purpose and Phantom can mingle with everyone else. So sorry for this common idea, but I just like this plot, but hopefully it won't be just any other story.
o.o.o.o
Pass Time : Updates on our heroes o-
o.o.o.o
By: Lucifer Rosemaunt
o.o.o.o
Last Time: there's no need for this here because I just recapped everything in the above paragraphs
o.o.o.o
-.-
A couple months had passed since that second incident. The Opera Populaire was actually almost complete, close enough to finished that the managers were already calling back all the old stage hands, chorus girls, prima donnas, and even Christine to live in the opera house in order to start rehearsals. Andre and Firmin had had to fill in the gaps for a couple of the orchestra members and stage hands who were too afraid to work in a "haunted" opera house, but most of the others were loyal and rather believed that the Phantom of the Opera was truly nothing but a ghost now that the mob had ransacked and scoured the lower cellars to the best of their ability (which we all know wasn't that much ability at all).
Rumors had been spread that nothing but a mask was left. No body, but there was blood. Not enough to ensure a death, but it showed that the 'monster' could bleed, and probably died since the months that the opera house had been under construction no peep was heard and no incident had occurred to give the impression that the phantom still existed. With that belief, those wealthy thrill seekers, who sought nothing but stories to tell, had already bought of the first few weeks of whatever opera Andre and Firmin had chosen. But as always, when celebrating a new event, there was to be a masquerade, and it was well known that the Opera Populaire threw the best masquerades. With the threat of the phantom gone, it still had an air of danger to raise the adrenalin a bit. Completely opposed to the overall atmosphere, the opera to be performed was actually in commemoration of the devil of the opera house, the phantom, Faust. Still, the audience bought the tickets. It filled the managers with a new hope that money would not be a problem and the opera house would continue to be a success.
Raoul stood nervously just outside of the entryway of the famous and now rather infamous opera house. Raoul had his doubts on the rumor though. He didn't believe that the phantom could be dead. He was too much of a survivor, but sometimes when his guard was down, he would worry about the health of the man and not the ghost. The Vicomte had avoided the opera house like it had the plague. Rather, he opted to stay within the compounds of his own estate that had no one but himself and just a handful of loyal servants. He had let the others go with his mother since more help was needed at the main estate. He had wanted to have the whole house to himself, but his mother insisted that left to his own designs, the house would be in shambles. It would not be appropriate for him to be doing the housework anyway, she insisted. She left eventually and he had the whole house to himself to be depressed.
For days after the second incident he hadn't left the house. His mother was coddling him as much as she could but she was scheduled to leave. Not wanting her to remain much longer, Raoul put on a tolerably cheery face and ensured her that he would take good care of himself and that he was completely better. His mother almost convinced him to leave Paris, but he couldn't. He didn't have to continue his patronage, but he loved the music too much. He couldn't leave it behind. So, she left and so ended Raoul's isolation.
With the cheery expression in place, he resolved to not let the event rule his life, so he searched for the proper amusements any wealthy individual in Paris would be involved in. He met and joined other young men in trivialities as hunting and just generally smoking and talking. It was nothing compared to what life he had led when he was involved in the opera house.
And, in the end, he stayed on his estate. He stayed on his estate because every evening when he returned from his daily excursions, he would always have to return to the cold, empty bed. His nights would be filled with swordfights, jealousy, gunshots, dark tunnels, music, and the warm comfort of another's bed. Then, morning would come, and he never wanted to wake up. He never wanted to leave his dreams no matter the pain he felt in them, for the pain in being awake every moment away from Erik was harder than he thought it would ever be. Get up he did though after having to remind himself that he didn't love the phantom.
Instead of having to place that happy façade on his face over and over again, he decided to fill his days with activities he could perform at his own home. He sought the employment of a fencing master in order to become stronger in the art. His tussles with the phantom while he had vied for Christine's heart only proved to him that he needed to improve more in the area of self defense, and the defense of his loved ones. That and the constant attack and defense motions kept his mind clear of anything else.
He also decided to pick up the violin once again. Christine's father had tutored him as a child, and though he was sorely out of practice, it was slowly returning to him. Not only were his nights filled with thoughts of music, but his days were haunted by tunes he could feel thrumming through him more than hear it. Some internal song was trying to escape and he could no longer fight the urge to play. Not realizing how similar to the phantom he was beginning to act, Raoul would lock himself in his study and play on his violin for hours on end.
The servants found the Vicomte to be acting rather unusual, but most of the rich were unconventional so they excused his behavior. They had to remind him to eat his meals sometimes, but they were rather glad to have a wealthy patron who was eccentric in a minor matter such as music. Besides, the music that filled the de Chagny estate was beautiful if not haunting. The Vicomte told his staff to not allow anyone entrance, and if asked to say he had left Paris.
The only individuals the Vicomte had contact with outside of his own staff were Andre and Firmin. All business meetings were held at his household and the Vicomte had been surprised at how smoothly everything was going.
He kept his continued patronage of the opera house a secret to everyone but the managers. He even had the managers swear to not tell anyone and in the process, to find a lesser patron to parade as the main contributor. He went so far as to tell them to not mention his name ever again, and if asked that he had left with his family. He did not mind fading into the background. They, of course, agreed since most of the money was obtained from Raoul himself so he could do as he pleased. He decided to relinquish Box 3, but instead obtain a different box seat so that he would remain relatively unnoticed.
Said patron, however was not being completely honest with the managers. In their last meeting together, they had inquired about the phantom of the opera and if he had heard anything from or about the ghost. They had heard stories that Raoul had gone back to kill the monster himself and did not dare ask about it until now when everything was going so well. They had not wanted to jinx any good luck. Raoul had flinched at the mere mention of Erik, but luckily, it went unnoticed or rather the managers thought it an understandable reaction. Feigning ignorance, the blonde brushed their ideas aside as though they were ludicrous. He may not have killed the phantom, but he assured them that someone must have. Nothing was occurring at the opera house so far.
In order to steer them away from the topic of the phantom, he had brought up the masquerade that had been in the making. With this topic came the topic that Raoul should visit the opera house before the masquerade in order to see what his money had been put to rebuild. He denied adamantly saying he would like to be just as surprised as everyone else was. Seeing the validity of the statement, they let him do as he pleased.
The managers spoke praises of the new play and how wonderfully Christine was in it. That was another stab in his heart. It was the reason he left Erik. He would never be able to compete with opera and Christine. He lost that battle once already. Christine did love the phantom, or at least believed she did. She would go after the phantom now that she was unattached, now that she did not know Raoul was still within the city. He had made certain of that sending her a letter stating the same fact.
Unfortunately for Raoul, he could not avoid the opera house forever. So there, in cognito, he stood nervously just outside of the entryway of the famous and now rather infamous opera house dressed in a neatly pressed tux with a black cape to cover his ponytail, black mask that covered the top half of his face, and a top hat which covered his blond hair.
o.o.o.o.o
Erik had been surprised when a few days after he felt his world collapse that there were intruders in his opera house. They had been making enough noise for him to hear them from his lair.
He, however, did not have the energy or desire to investigate until he heard the hammers begin to fall. Swiftly he raced to the surface and spied from the shadows the many workers that filled the building. He could not believe it. Someone had decided to rebuild.
He could feel his throat tighten at the thought of having a different patron besides the blonde Vicomte. Somewhere deep inside he hoped that Raoul was the patron, but it was just as likely that he had left Paris. He had hoped for his happy ending. He hoped and dreamt of it every night. But, every morning he would remind himself that he would destroy anything he ever loved. Yet, he was constantly plagued with thoughts of blonde hair, bright eyes, and the feel of a body pressed tightly against his own. His eyes burned from the emotion, so he returned to his home beneath the floor. Those workers were completely unaware of the potential danger they were in, but knowing he would be unable to survive without the opera house above, the phantom would let them work unscathed.
Sometimes Erik stayed below the construction site, listening intently to the sounds above, but he would often spend most of his days overseeing the construction and insuring that no one found a passage they should not find. As a contingency plan, he locked all the entrances save for the ones that he alone could find and reach.
He would come up with hundreds of tricks to play on those workers, but he no longer felt the desire to act on the urges. He would have spent his time below ground to play his organ, but that had been destroyed by the mob. He would sometimes pick up his violin to play, but something felt wrong whenever he tried to play. As if his inspiration was no longer obtainable, the melodies he played were all dark and morose and would remind him of Raoul though he did not understand why.
He found himself daydreaming more than once of what he could have done differently to have kept the Vicomte, but he had to reprimand himself for doing so afterwards. So more often than not, he would find himself upstairs roaming the shadows staring blankly as the opera house was rebuilt back to the high standards and grandeur of its previous glory.
He was only snapped out of his trance one day when Andre and Firmin entered the opera house speaking loudly and gesturing wildly at the new improvements. They began to speak of calling everyone back, and the phantom was mildly surprised to hear that Christine would be returning to the Opera Populaire. He wasn't sure what he felt toward that new development. He thought he had loved her at one time, but that unexpectedly did not last long because of her suitor.
Erik was about to introduce himself to the two but at the mention of a masquerade he halted. After hearing the specifics of the event, Erik knew that his grand entrance would come in time. It was as if the two were inviting him to the whole event.
A flicker of the old Phantom of the Opera came back. He would create mayhem on that given day. He would no longer think of a certain blonde. He would bide his time and make yet another grand entrance to the entire opera population. With a smirk, he left the shadows to go downstairs to begin a plan that was quickly forming in his mind.
His plan already set, he would go upstairs to watch the rehearsals. Although not everything met up with his standards, he allowed them this one moment of freedom before he would take control back after the masquerade.
Madame Giry had tried to contact him a couple times, but he decided it prudent to wait until after the fiasco he planned to occur at the masquerade before contacting her. He did want to ask her to try and obtain an organ for him though he did not know how she could do so discretely. He would worry about that later.
Christine had also tried to contact him. His alarms had gone off numerous times because she had been trying to open the mirror in her room that led to his lair. He was glad that he had locked most of the entrances. Too many people now knew how to enter his lair so those entrances had to be permanently sealed. It did not take Erik much time to build a wall behind namely Christine's mirror because he knew she would be too nosy to not try anything. He refused to speak with her either until after the masquerade if he ever spoke to her at all.
Said event was about to begin and he recalled the last one he had been to. That had been most exciting. He would be sure to let the performers know that he was still around. He had planned to let the opera go on, but as it continued he would enjoy seeing how they would react to falling scenery missing singers and chorus girls. It would all be too easy. He missed Carlota that one time but he would not miss again if he had his way. No one on stage would be safe from him. And all in front of a sold out audience, it would be most enjoyable.
o.o.o.o.o
Christine cautiously looked around her old room. Her eyes lingered longest at the mirror. The phantom could be watching her this very instant and she would be none the wiser.
She called his name out softly, "Angel."
Hearing nothing move behind the mirror she hoped that he would not be watching her, so placing her hands tentatively against the mirror she tried to feel for a latch that would open it. Finding none, she was beginning to become irritated. She wanted to see her angel. She was certain that he was still alive. Raoul did not say anything about killing him and she was certain that her angel could not have been killed by a mindless mob.
Raoul had not only broken off their engagement, he had left town. She was now free to pursue her real love, the phantom of the opera. He was her angel and she wanted him back now. She desired to hear his voice and to continue her tutelage.
She had been cast in one of the major parts but Carlota had still taken precedence over her.
She began to bang on the mirror, and yet nothing occurred, frustrated she placed her belongings away. She was confused as to why he was not answering her. The thought occurred to her that he believed them still to be engaged and was enraged. He must be angry with her still for going away with Raoul. Why else would he lock the passage in the mirror? Why else would he not answer her call like he had done every time before Raoul had ever come into the picture? She had chosen Raoul. She had denied the Phantom's love. He would not be pleased with her at all. With that frightening thought, she hoped that he had not heard her call or the banging on the mirror.
After the first few weeks of rehearsals, she asked to be moved to another room because it was beginning to work on her nerves that she was uncertain if the phantom was watching her. The silence was frightening considering that he could enter her room and kill her in her sleep.
After consulting the managers, they decided to move her to another room that was quite far from her old one. They would keep that one hallway empty for now. No one wanted to have a room near that one since they all had heard the stories of how the phantom entered the room and kidnapped Christine. They had enough room to place all of the staff on a separate floor so instead, they began to use that corridor for storing props and reusable backdrops. No one wanted to be near the area.
The phantom was rather amused when he saw Christine move to another room in which he had an easier entrance. The irony of the situation was enough to brighten up his usual somber mood considerably. It would be fun to play with Christine's mind. Erik found that he no longer had any interest in Christine at all. She had used him and betrayed him time and time again. She would pay for it.
Christine was finally at ease in her new room, and the rehearsals were going so well. She began to believe that the mob may have been able to kill the phantom. At least then, she figured, he couldn't be mad at her for choosing Raoul.
Time had passed quickly as she found herself already putting on her costume for the masquerade. At the last masquerade, she had been engaged with Raoul with another suitor. In this one, both men she had loved were gone.
A knock at the door signaled her that Meg was waiting for her to finish. Meg had been a great help during these past few weeks and it was fun to have her back to gossip and tell stories with.
She spared one last glance at the mirror before heading out for the masquerade.
o.o.o.o
A/N: Don't forget to R/R (Read and Review)!
Hahaha, quasi cliff hanger (not really since that was more of a recap than anything, but whatever).
I would do that whole I need five reviews before I put the next chapter up, but I don't know how well that would work. You never know, the next chapter could never go up. Heck I only got three reviews for the last 4 chapters. You really may never get the good part.
But... just to see, five reviews before the next chapter goes up. Which is actually already the masquerade since I jumped numerous months to get straight to the drama. Christine's back of course. She's way OOC, way. But that's just a warning. That's just how the galleta crumbles, ne?
Whatever will happen?