A/n: Okay, so I couldn't wait till the weekend... Here it is, the final installments of Silence, EVER! -cries- Alright I admit, it took me so long to put this up coz I didn't want it to end... I've been slaving over this since June, its just become a part of me! And now its over! -cries some more-

Yeah so I really hope everyone has enjoyed the ride (I know I have!) and let me know it! Beware the XXX although its not the usual Erik nastiness this time. I wasn't originally going to have it in here (my editor didn't think it was neccessary..) so give me your opinion: Smut or no smut? just for future reference. Without further ado, here it is. Please enjoy :)

15: If You Wish to Live-

Erik's every footstep upon the wooden floorboards in the adjoining room echoed in her mind as he approached the door agonizingly slowly. Alyssa scarcely drew breath as the loud creak of the rusty hinges reached her ears and from her hiding place, she saw the frighteningly calm stature of her lover.

He stood slightly spread stance, surveying the room for signs of life, before slowly beginning to move silently about the large bedroom. As he moved out of her line of sight, Alyssa's gaze fell on Chantelle now visible through the open door. She was standing atop a small stool, her hands bound behind her back and long russet curls shrouding her face. Her cloth was plain, a white day dress covered her small frame which was beginning to tremble with quiet sobs, and her delicate dancers' feet were unclad, balancing her quaking body against the noose now tightened around her neck.

If she had been unaware of the history between Erik and this frightened girl-child before her, Alyssa may have felt something close to sympathy for her. Though having witnessed first hand Erik's pain and suffering caused by her actions, she could not find it within her to pity. She had dragged him through the depths of hell, returning him a broken excuse for the man he once was, and although Alyssa could not condone his current actions, she understood and believed it was the only way he knew how to handle such situations. And it was thoughts like these that bought tears to her eyes.

Alyssa's view of Chantelle was obscured for a moment as Erik's polished dress shoes passed slowly by her face, close enough for her to smell the book-black, and hear the soft straining of ankle tendons beneath the heavy fabric of his freshly pressed trousers. He came to a halt at the foot of the large bed in the centre of the room and, after taking a last sweeping glance, chuckled icily.

"Paranoia," he began, loud enough for Chantelle to hear, "One of the prime symptoms of Morphine addictions. A small price to pay for the ability to escape the pain you so lovingly bestowed on me." He turned and glared at Chantelle, the visible half of his face the epitome of malice and pain.

Chantelle's mouth dropped open in disbelief before a sudden thought crossed Erik's mind and he turned back to the bed, eyeing the valance curiously. Shifting his weight abruptly, he kicked at the base of the bed, his foot connecting with something hard, catching his attention. It took all of Alyssa's strength not to make a sound as the toe of his shoe collided with the side of her skull, making her vision blur momentarily, before the shock of the situation hit her.

He's going to find me…tears sprang to her eyes and she began to wriggle backwards as quietly as she could, pain from her bruised skull washing over her in waves, and sweat beginning to form on her forehead. I am as good as dead…

She watched in slow motion as Erik began to kneel, his deft hand taking the hem of the valance and slowly beginning to lift, before a shrill voice cut through the pulsing air.

"You miserable bastard!"

Erik froze instantly at the address, before dropping the valance and standing quickly, stepping to the left revealing Chantelle to Alyssa once more. She was flushed and furious, her fine features twisted into such rage that Alyssa was sure she felt some of Erik's conceit evaporate from the overwrought air around her.

"Excuse me?" Erik began, noticeably taken aback by her outburst.

"You think you know paranoia!" She shouted piercingly, "you were not the one being watched every moment of your life! Every movement I made Erik, I know you saw it, you cannot deny. Everywhere I went, who I saw, everything I said for God's sake!" She was panting, large tears falling from wide brown eyes to roll down her flawless alabaster cheeks and come to rest on her simple white skirts. "You don't know the meaning of paranoia…" she finished, her voice barely above a tremulous whisper.

Erik merely stared disbelieving for a moment, astonished that she would dare speak to him in such a manner in the position that she was in, her life in his hands. Before long he glared angrily and growled, "That's quite enough out of you, mademoiselle" before stalking through the door, slamming it hard it enough to rattle its foundations.

Alyssa quickly rolled out from under the bed and burst into tears, pushing her skirt fabric into her mouth and biting down hard to silence the gut wrenching sobs now assaulting her body. She owed her life to the small woman in the next room, and for that she would sing her a thousand praises, and return the favour. Chantelle's life nowhung in the balance.

Over the blood rushing in her ears and the splitting pain in her head she heard Erik's haunting voice beating the poor girl, shouting abuse, making her understand, before she was suddenly surrounded by silence. Alyssa removed the fabric from her mouth and crept to the door once more, steeling herself for what she might see through the dreaded keyhole. Chantelle was sobbing loudly, a familiar catgut noose encircled her neck, the tail end looped over the roofing rafters and pulled tight by Erik, who was beginning to rock the stool she was seated upon with his foot, a wicked grin on is face.

He meant to hang her, it was plain to see, though Alyssa couldn't understand why she had not thought it before, it was his trademark after all. Without warning, Erik whispered "Goodbye Mon Ange…" before giving the stool one last push to overbalance it, and with a strangled cry Chantelle plummeted from her seat to suspend by her slender neck a little way from the floor.

Erik wasted no time in his getaway, and hurriedly threw himself out of the window without a second glance, reaching the ground safely on a hidden rope and walking briskly to the back of the estate to his coach that stood waiting, his movements all precisely timed. As soon as he had left the windowsill, Alyssa flung open the door and rushed to Chantelle who was thrashing like an eel, her face already a shade of purple, and slipped a small dagger from beneath her skirts.

Wasting no time, Alyssa hacked roughly through the catgut until Chantelle dropped from her suspended hell like a ripened apple to the floor, still unable to take in oxygen. Lunging at the poor girl, Alyssa wrenched the lasso loose from her neck and unbound her hands, thrusting her head back to allow greater air flow. Chantelle lay gasping for air for many minutes, her limbs curled around her quaking body, her eyes wide with fear.

Glancing at the grandfather clock in the corner of the room, Alyssa cursed suddenly and realized she had only minutes to escape, as the Vicomte was due home momentarily. Reaching out, Alyssa took Chantelle's chin in her trembling hands and turned her tearstained face to her own, their eyes meeting in extreme urgency. "Who are you? My savior…" Chantelle managed, before new tears emerged. Alyssa shook her head and hushed her.

"We have no time for this. You must listen to me, you hear? Look at me! You must leave France. Leave his place and go as far away as you can, do you understand? Should you wish to live, go as soon as you can. Get out, do you hear me?" Chantelle feebly nodded, great fear resonating from her deep chocolate orbs. Without another word, Alyssa was gone, out of the room, down the hall, through the door and out the window to scale the wall down to her coach which had a moment ago arrived.

She paid the same smug Frenchman who delivered her to keep his mouth shut and he returned her to the Academy, though not before commenting on her tousled and flushed appearance, and remarking that the Vicomte must be a man of many talents.

-

As Alyssa descended the last flight of darkened steps to the grotto, she was surrounded by the most wondrous music, the likes of which had never graced the ears of the human race. It assaulted her weary soul, lifting her from the darkness into the light with its delicate harmonies and swelling crescendos. Such sound cannot be produced by a mere mortal…Alyssa thought dazedly as she quietly opened the cellar door to reveal Erik, seated at the organ shrouded in candle light, his ebony hair unsettled by the ferocity of his performance, swaying with his jarring body movements.

She continued unnoticed into the cavern, shutting her eyes and letting the celestial melody envelope her to the point where she was scarcely breathing, before it suddenly stopped. Alyssa opened her eyes slowly to find Erik staring at her from behind the organ pipes, and for a second she was sure her heart had stopped, when slowly but surely a small smile began to tug at the corners of his mouth, a rarity she had barely seen.

Expelling her held breath in a loud sigh she rushed over to him, returning his smile with one many times larger and flung her arms around him, feeling elated as his arms wrapped around her in answer. She buried her face into his chest and breathed him in, before starting as he asked curiously, though with a hint of laughter behind is words, "and what is the meaning of this?"

She suddenly remembered herself and cursed inwardly, realizing her cover had almost been blown on a whim. He wasn't to know where she had been, nor why his happiness filled her to bursting point with relief. "What? Can't I embrace the man I love without reason?"

He chuckled, though this time it was genuine, and looked into her glowing features, before noticing the large purple bruise on the upside of her face, his smile falling instantly. "What is this?" he murmured, gently brushing his fingertips over he swollen area, watching Alyssa wince. "Has that little sow Giry been at you again?" He was suddenly furious and it took Alyssa's gentle caress on his cheek to gain his attention. "No, nothing like that," she assured him, "I merely ran into a prop backstage, you know how clumsy I can be." She smiled as she felt him relax, and placed her head back on his chest, relishing as she felt his chin come to rest on the crown of her ebony tresses.

They stood like this for second, minutes, perhaps hours, enjoying each others warmth and happiness, before Erik spoke softly, cutting the silence in a tone that she knew well. "Alyssa…" he murmured, ever so slightly shifting against her, and before he had a chance to continue, she gazed into his glowing eyes, her own heavy with desire and answered, "Yes Erik, of course." He smiled once more before lifting her gently off her feet, still delighting in he way she nestled her lips against his neck as he carried her across the cavern to their room, placing her delicately back on her feet before the large bed.

No words were said as she reached out to slowly unbutton his white lawn shirt, gently pushing it off his shoulders and letting it flutter to the ground. He followed her lead, stepping closer and reaching behind her to unlace her grey bodice, it too falling to the floor before her. His trousers and her skirts and shift followed, until they were standing before one another in the flesh, admiring the bodies of their lovers.

As their eyes met, Alyssa's mind closed on a thought and she reached to caress Erik's masked cheek, silently asking permission. His eyes fell and he turned his face from her, before heaving a small sigh and slowly, ever so slowly reaching up, he removed the mask. Tears sprung to Alyssa's eyes as he bared himself totally to her, at last shedding the layers of fear and hurt to reveal something, though damaged, far more beautiful than she could have imagined.

He had exposed his soul for her, and in repayment, she reached up and stroked the swollen, uneven flesh, watching him weep silently, before capturing his lips in a kiss both gentle and fierce all at once.

XXXXXX

Without breaking contact, she dragged him down into the black silken sheets and tangled her fingers in his dark hair as he worshipped her porcelain body, leaving soft closed kisses on every inch of her burning skin. She moaned softly as he kissed the lengths of her inner thighs, and arched her spine as his lips brushed her very core.

He pleasured and teased her until she begged for him, and only then did he position himself above her and proceeded to make love to her as gently and as beautifully as he could. Alyssa was overcome as he surged within her, his movements tender as though she was a china doll, and the slightest pressure would break her.

They made love in every sense of the word, murmuring, kissing, rising and falling until Alyssa dug her nails into the soft flesh of Erik's back and cried his name, blinded by his tenderness and passion, loving the sudden flood of warmth within her accompanied by his soft whimper of completion. Before long, Erik removed himself and they lay together, panting for breath, relishing in the afterglow of their souls reunion.

XXXXXX

As Alyssa crawled onto Erik to rest her head on his chest and her legs between his, he shut his eyes and felt is heart swell almost painfully, realizing he could not deny what was in his heart any further. "Erik," Alyssa murmured suddenly, "I love you."

Here he was lying, exposed, with a beautiful girl in his arms who had seen past the mask and had a moment ago whispered the three words that would etch themselves into is heart forever. Tears streamed down his cheeks as he took a shuddering breath, disbelieving the events playing out.

"I…I love you…" he spoke softly, his voice barely above a trembling whisper, and felt warm tears splash onto his chest as Alyssa's tears of happiness flowed unrestrained. Such power was in those shuddering words, such power that Alyssa daren't guess. He had found the key to his freedom, and although she did, and forever would keep the secret of secrets, her heart swam with happiness for him as they wept together.

He was finally free to love, and he had allowed his tortured soul to bind with another's in the hope of a new life.

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A/n: Waaahhh! Hmm, happy Erik! That's a change..

Again, with the smut thing, should it be there or not? Opinions please! Thanking you in advance, and now for the epilogue. See you there

Eric