"What do we do?" Meg asked her mother.
"I don't know. I wonder how Raoul will be, when he gets back from his trip with Erik. I'm glad that I'm not him." Madame Giry was worried about Erik the most. With the tings he had been doing.
"Maybe we should go after him." Meg was just saying that to make her mother think she was concerned about them both. But really, she didn't care if Erik was gone. They could actually get some rest, and not have to worry about Erik trying to fly off of anything.
"No I don't think we could catch up to them. Its already been 15 minutes since they left. And there going at a pretty good pace."
"But how are we going to explain to the Opera
house that Christine has gone missing? I mean, she has a show in
about a week!"
"We'll just have to say she's missing.
All we can do, is hope that Raoul, and Erik, fine Christine in time."
---
Raoul had stop to let the horses rest. But Erik wanted to ride one of them.
"Please, please, please!"
"NO! They need to rest." Raoul was now wishing he had brought Erik back to Madame Giry's place. But he was now to far to bring him back. "Just let them rest. Maybe, and i mean maybe, you can ride one in a while."
"YAY YAY YAY!" Erik was jumping up and down in circles. "I'm guna ride the horsies! I'm guna ride the horsies!"
"Ok, ok. Just sit down and rest. Then you can ride the "horsies"" Raoul said mocking the same words Erik used.
Erik and Raoul started back up again, traveling to the outskirts of Paris, it was getting late, almost 10:45 by now and they still had not had supper. And as much as Raoul didn't want to, they had to stop.
"Come on, Erik." he said, stopping the carriage in front of a building on a city street, "We're going to go have supper and get some rest at this nice Inn here. One of my old boarding school friends owns it, I'm sure he'll give us a room at a reasonable price."
"Okey Dokey!" exclaimed a too-excited Erik.
After properly securing the horses, they entered the building. It was much more beautiful on the inside, the moment the doors where open you caught sight of a lavishly beautiful entrance hall, a front desk, and two hallways, one towards the rooms, and one towards the restaurant section of the building.
"Ahh, my good old friend Gregory!" Exclaimed Raoul at the sight of a young man working the front desk.
"Why if it isn't little Raoul?" he said, surprised, "And who is this with you?" The man's face softened, "Why...it isn't...The Opera Ghost?"
"Yup! That's me!" said Erik proudly.
Not wanting to carry on this conversation any further he told Gregory, "We'll just be having supper tonight, and a nice room afterwards."
"Oh...of course" he replied, obviously quite distracted by the presence of the Phantom of the opera.
He led them into the dining hall, where many men and women in formal dress sat in round tables scattered throughout the room.
"Here you are" he said, presenting them with a table, "A waiter will be with you momentarily," He still did not take his eyes off of Erik.
"Buh Bye!" Erik said quite loudly after the man. This confused poor Gregory even more.
Raoul was looking over his menu...while Erik on the other hand, had produced a pencil out of his pocket and was decorating his napkins.
The Waiter came and asked what each of them wanted.
"Oh, I'll have the duck l'orange" said Raoul, closing his menu.
"And you?" he asked Erik.
"Oh, I'll have grilled cheese. With the crust cut off."
"Mhmm." said the waiter, slightly confused as he walked off.
Erik continued decorating his napkins.
"Erik!" whispered Raoul, "What in heaven's name are you doing?"
Erik looked upon Raoul in utter confusion, as if he thought it was so obvious, and that every grown man drew little pictures on the napkins. He didn't answer.
"Give me that." said Raoul, taking Erik's large napkin, and looking at it he saw child-like pictures of stick people doing various things.
"What is that?" Raoul asked, pointing to the picture in the corner.
"Oh," said Erik casually, "That's me killing the guy that ran my freak show, with some rope."
"I see," said Raoul, quite disturbed with his violent little images.
"And this?" Raoul asked, pointing to what looked like a leashed dog hanging over a beauty pageant.
"Oh, that's my hanging the stagehand over the ballerinas" he said, obviously very proud of his drawing.
"And this?" Raoul asked, pointing to the last picture.
"Oh, that's just me and Christine kis--" Erik had realized what he had just said, or rather, what he had just almost said, so he lied: "That's just two dogs fighting."
"But they look like people." said Raoul confused.
"uhh...yes...they're people that are fighting."
"With their mouths?"
"umm...yes" said Erik, hiding his face behind his menu.
"Why does one say 'Chrestane' above it?" Raoul then realized what 'Chrestane' actually said.
"THIS IS A PICTURE OF YOU KISSING CHRISTINE?" he whispered angrily so only them could hear.
"Yeah...so?" Erik said defensively
"Christine is MINE!" Raoul replied, his face turning slightly red, "I will not stand you drawing out your little fantasies of kissing her!"
"Who says they're fantasies?" Replied Erik, quite smugly
"WHAT?" Raoul was quite angry now.
This whisper-argument was interrupted by the arrival of the food.
"Here you are boys" Said the waiter, putting Raoul's fancy-looking Duck l'orange in front of him, and Erik's grilled cheese in front of Erik. But after the waiter had left the argument fumed on.
"You MAY NOT lay your hands on my Christine!" Raoul was still whispering.
"Too late! Nah nah nah!" Said Erik, sticking his tongue out at Raoul! "I already did!"
"Well," said Raoul, "she doesn't even like you, she said you just made her kiss you!" Raoul lied.
"Hmph. You don't know anything!" But Erik truly thought that maybe Raoul was right.
"That's it." Raoul stated, "Let's just eat." He lifted his knife and fork, cutting a piece from his duck-steak and put it in his mouth.
"Meanie face!" yelled Erik, pelting Raoul with his grilled cheese sandwich.
"My god, Erik! Act civilized! We're in a restaurant."
"I'm not gonna act civilized and YOU CAN'T MAKE ME!" Erik then jumped up on the table and banged his fists against his chest, Tarzan-style, with the monkey-yell and all.
It got quiet, really, really quiet, everyone looked towards Erik and Raoul's table as Erik took the other half of his grilled cheese, seperating the two slices of bread revealing the gooey warm cheese.
"Here's civilized for you" Erik said, squishing one of the cheesy pieces of bread onto Raoul's head, cheesy side down.
"You little brat!" yelled Raoul, dumping his glass of water over Erik's head.
"You...you...you" Erik obviously couldn't think of a sufficient insult, so instead pelted him with the last piece of the grilled cheese.
"FOOD FIGHT!" Yelled a small child from the next table over, throwing some pasta on Raoul. Erik cheered the boy on.
Suddenly everyone was throwing food. Women with fancy dresses screamed as they where caught in the crossfire. Children laughed, and laughed, throwing everything in sight. Erik and Raoul where right in the middle of it, being strewn with everything from baked beans to custard.
"YOU CHILDISH FOOL!" Yelled Raoul, "LOOK WHAT YOU'VE DONE!"
Erik didn't listen, he only dumped a bowl of pudding onto Raoul's already cheesy head.
"So much for civilized" Erik said as the pudding dripped it's way down Raoul's angry face.
