Hey everybody! Thanks for all the lovely reviews! I can't believe how sweet people are. I'd just like to assure everyone that this will not be a Mary-Sue at any stage. Thank Gawd…

Anyway, I hope that people would like this chapter. I love any kind of reviews or destructive criticism, so review away!

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It seemed like hours had passed. Maybe they had. It was impossible to tell in this world of unending night. She hadn't slept, even when Erik had retired for rest. Her eyes were bloodshot from the strain of keeping them open. She was frightened of what lay beyond the shadows, in the darkness that was keeping her imprisoned. A tear slipped down her cheek. She would never see daylight again…

Angelique pulled at her bonds with her teeth, but the knot was so tight it seemed to be melded together. She dropped her hands into her lap, choking a stifled sob. She was still dressed in her red dress from Don Juan, and it was soaking up the moisture from the damp air. Her feet were aching in her tight pointes. She felt dirty, cold and, claustrophobic.

"Don't give up," she muttered to herself. She forced herself to her feet, using the organ to steady herself, then wandered towards the lake, dragging her rope carefully behind her. As she began to paddle into the water, she got as far as her shins before the rope went taut. That gave her about twenty foot of moving room, easily enough to traverse the whole of Erik's dungeon.

"Going somewhere?"

Angelique jumped at the sound of Erik's voice, and turned slowly to face him. A grim smirk spread across his face as her eyes widened in shock. He stepped towards her, and she strained against the rope as he approached her.

"No," she said in an almost whisper. Her throat was dry from dehydration, her voice cracking.

Erik took hold of the top of her arms firmly, steering her towards the shore. He let her fall limply beside the organ, and she rested her head upon it.

"My feet hurt," she muttered. She wanted to be an annoyance to him in every way possible. He knelt down, seizing one of her ankles.

"Ow!" she cried, pouting at him like a child. He disregarded her and pulled off her shoe.

"A ballet brat," he said. It wasn't a question. "Are you good?"

Angelique shook her head.

"Not very," she whispered.

"No" Erik agreed, "you're too small." He pulled off her other shoe, and threw them to one side.

"That's not my fault!" she said indignantly.

"I never said it was," he growled. She pulled herself away from him across the dusty floor, eyes fixed upon him. He walked over to her and stooped down, catching her ankles roughly and straddling her. She wriggled under him, tears welling up quickly in her eyes. He leant in to her, until his nose almost touched hers. She trembled from head to toe.

"Child!" he hissed. The word seemed to bite her. She struggled to breathe under his weight.

"Get off me!" she screamed, digging her hands into his shoulders. Her pulled her off by her wrists, pinning them down.

"I could kill you right now!" he said.

"Why don't you, then? End both our suffering!" Angelique squeezed her eyes shut. She could feel Erik's breath, hot on her skin.

"I am the Angel of Music, not the Angel of Death." A plague of frost seemed to encase her heart as he spoke the last word.

"Go on, coward! Just do it!"

"Don't tempt me!" he shouted. Angelique jumped, shock inducing more tears.

"Please, get off me," she begged, "you're hurting me." Erik stared down at her for a long moment, a whimpering, dirty creature. He got off of her, jarring one of her ribs as he did so. She squealed, curling into a ball with the pain.

"Thank you," she whispered as she cried. He started to walk away, but then stopped, took a cloth from his pocket, and threw it to the floor beside her. Angelique stared at it for a moment, then seized it and wiped her face. She then pressed the damp material to her parched lips, giving herself momentary relief from her thirst.

"Oh, God…" she moaned. She hurt so much, and she was so very tired. But she couldn't sleep, she daren't! She sighed, rocking back and forth, forcing herself awake.

"Don't you dare," she muttered to herself. Erik watched from his throne as the rocking became slower, smaller, until finally her eyes drooped, and she slumped heavily against the organ.

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Well, what do we think? Be honest. I'm a bit worried Angelique was too weepy in this chapter….