Disclaimer: I don't own Phantom of the Opera or Wicked.
Remember: Keep your hand at the level of your eyes, and nothing matters but knowing nothing matters.
A/N: This chapter has a bit from the stage production, dealing with the chandelier. Aside from that, thanks so much to Galasriniel, I was starting to think I'd never hear from you again. And Snape's Opera Rose, I'm glad you guys are friends. :)
Chapter X – What is This Feeling?
Erik was seething as they returned to the opera. The problem was, he didn't even know why he was so angry. Elphaba had found Fiyero, and now she was happy. He should be glad for her; they certainly seemed right for each other.
Elphie was content with the world, a rare occurrence. She rested her head on Fiyero's shoulder as they walked.
"I thought I'd never find you," she sighed.
"Technically speaking, I'm in hiding, so you shouldn't have found me in the first place," he chuckled.
"In which case," Erik countered from a few paces ahead, "you shouldn't go around saying it for the world to hear."
Fiyero's reply was cut short by a heavily made-up woman in the doorway of a dimly lit building.
"Sir, if you wish, I could take that whore off your hands."
All three of them stiffened, and Fiyero regarded the woman with an icy gaze.
"What did you say?"
She peered around his shoulder at Elphie. "If you wish to dispose of her after the evening—"
"How dare you!" Elphie spat. "To say that I am a common whore!"
The woman looked taken aback. "Forgive me, I merely thought, with a cloak that dirty—"
"You know what I hate?" Elphie hissed, now trying to pull away from Fiyero's restraining hand, "I hate people who judge on first impressions, instead of taking a closer look or getting to know someone."
The woman bowed respectfully and backed into the whorehouse as Fiyero hauled Elphie away.
Erik strode into the opera in a barely controlled rage. He had stormed off a few minutes before the encounter ended, to stop himself from strangling the woman on the spot. Paris hadn't grown any kinder since his last venture out. It was one thing for people to look down on him; he acknowledged his… eccentricities (more aptly put, madness). But it was something else entirely for them to judge Elphaba. Thank God the woman hadn't seen her face.
He paced through the maze of tunnels, thinking aloud. "Well, now that she's found His Highness, I can go back to my life and get Christine… yes… but I'll have to find a way to tell them that they… he… is not welcome here when I leave…"
Erik breathed in the cool air, savoring the total quiet. Not for long, however.
"People are so empty-headed they'll believe anything!" Fiyero's angry tone cut the silence, echoing along the stone walls.
Erik snatched a quill from his cluttered desk and wrote hurriedly:
Fondest farewell to Miss Elphaba,
I am leaving to seek out Christine and I am glad you found what you were looking for. However, Monsieur Fiyero is not welcome here, and it would be in your best interest to take him away with you; lest a disaster beyond your imaginations will occur. I will return when you least expect me.
Your obedient servant,
O.G.
Their voices grew louder as Erik moved to his throne. When performing this trick in the past, he had always left his mask behind. This time, he would leave the note. Covering himself entirely in the cloak, he remained perfectly still for a moment, allowing the material to settle over his frame. He touched a small gear in the chair's arm and the seat dropped out, depositing him to the pitch-black room below. Overhead, he could hear Elphie's voice:
"Erik? Oh…"
He knew she had found the cloak. Sure enough, there was a whisper of material as she whipped it away, and an audible gasp.
"Fiyero!"
"What is it, Elphie?"
"He's gone!"
"What? Where?"
"I… I thought he was here, and, well…"
"Don't worry, we'll find him. I promise."
Not if Erik had anything to do with it. As much as he didn't want to scare Elphie, he needed to know that both of them were gone. He threw his voice into the walls again and roared, like on the night of the chandelier crash:
"GO!"
There were pounding footsteps, and silence…
Erik smiled grimly and swept down the passage. Worked every time.
At that moment, it didn't matter to him whether he saw Elphie again. On the outside, anyway.
However, something stirred deeper within his soul…
