A/N: Hey everyone! I would have updated sooner but I've been busy and time got away from me. Sorry this is kind of short but it's a filler for the story. This is just the beginning of what poor Emmy has to endure. Muhahahaha! Thank you Halley for the stupendous betaing and please don't forget to review! Erik-shaped cookies for those who do!

Chapter Sixteen:

Goodbye to You

Emmy remained out in the hall and not once did anyone else come out to check on her. For all she knew, Maggie could have told the teacher she was ill and was in the office waiting to be picked up. She thought it might be best to do just that, but she made no attempt to move away from her self-loathing.

This was her fault. There were no words she could say to make up for the time wasted. She should have listened to her conscience from the beginning and then she wouldn't have been in this position. If only she let her common sense to come through when Erik had asked, "And you will accept your payment when I need it?"

That was the red warning light and she was too blind and naïve to see through the request. So caught up was she in the moment of his splendor presence that her best judgment fled. And look what happened from her selfish wants. She had gotten what she asked for and it was too late to dissolve the accord.

Maggie turned her down, her parents would think she was nuts, and Sarah would used this as new gossip to destroy her; Emmy truly had no one to help her out of this mess. There was always Trey but would he believe her? He hardly knew her and he would never know she had existed had it not been for her fainting. Would he be the Raoul she needed more than ever? Would he be her light in the growing darkness?

Emmy prayed that she really did see Trey the day Erik blew up on her. She could count on him if his words were true.

Gazing up at the digital clock, she realized the bell would ring any second and she didn't want to be caught in the stampede of students. Forcing herself to stand up, Emmy made her way to the office, preparing herself to act as a sick student, which wasn't hard to do. She already looked the part.

xxXXxx

"Trey… Trey…" she called out softly. "Make it stop…!"

Her body trembled underneath the touch of her maestro, the lovesick man becoming furious at the lack of cooperation from the host. The boy's name repeating on her lips as she whimpered fearfully. He could not lose her.

"You're MINE!" he growled, placing his large palm on her cold forehead. "My love will live through you and no BOY will prevent it!"

The pang that went through her body was electrical, causing her to jump from the jolt. The tingling aftershock became stronger than the last, her sense of self decaying rapidly as a foreign, unpleasant chill swept through her. Only this time, it didn't fade and the unwanted guest remained. Her heart beat faster and faster, no sign of slowing down as the apparition was attaching herself to the soul of the young girl.

Erik gazed down at her, a pleased grin flitting across his visible lip. It was working. At last they will be together again!

Then at once, the tingling ended, the chill no longer present, but her heart was still erratic, her breathing coming in short, quick pants. The choir room was spinning before her very eyes and all she could remember was the anguish scream of the man she had thought she loved…

Emmy bolted right out of bed, stepping accidentally on Phantom's tail. The poor dog yelped and scurried away to the corner of the room, his curious honey-brown eyes staring at his owner.

She stumbled over to her mirror, hands grabbing her hair and face, checking to see if it were really her. The pinching and the sharp sensation were the evidence she needed to know she was here, and not her.

Sighing in relief, Emmy turned around and smiled sheepishly. The Black Labrador tentatively crept over and licked her face. She laughed quietly, wrapping her arms around her big puppy. His furry, black tail wagged and for the moment she forgotten the danger she was in. It must be an innate ability that animals must possess; she mused and giggled as he continued to give her a face-washing.

If only a dog's love could take away the hurt for good, she thought. Scratching behind his ear, Emmy's eyes drifted and hardened at the sight of her collection. Everything in her room reminded her of her debt to Erik and what will become of her once Christine Daae has successfully completed her possession of her. She would no longer walk the Earth as Amelia Sawyer, but as Christine Daae reborn. How it made her sick to her stomach.

Emmy now knew the electrical storm a year ago wasn't just a freak occurrence in nature. It was the coming of the spirits. Thomas Myers's disappearance wasn't a disappearance per se. He still existed… but as Erik. The Phantom took control of the college boy's life and this whole time was searching for the right mate to be his beloved protégé. The late Shirley West and the others weren't useful candidates, but she was. Why?

Could it have been my lessons? She pondered. Is that what made me different? Maybe the voice was mine from the start and now she has full control over what I sing? Or could it be my susceptible state as a phangirl?

They were a couple of the possibilities that made her stand out from the rest and probably made it all the more easier for her to be taken over. Yet, wouldn't there be a way for her to break the connection?

Emmy didn't know much about possession and she was sure this wasn't the typical case. Normally it's the Devil or some demon and Erik and Christine were neither. Though now I wonder if they're actually a demon in disguise, she thought cynically.

Giving Phantom one last pat, Emmy stood up and headed over to her statue of Erik and Christine in her wedding dress. She never dreamt that she would suddenly come to loathe her favorite couple. But she did with all her might. And if she wanted to put an end to this, she had to be the one to make the first move in this twisted tango.

"No more auditorium," she whispered. "No more lessons. No more music. No more movies. No more books. And no more figurines."

With that said she picked it up and smashed it to the floor.

TBC…