New chapter schtuff:
Translation of title as far as I know - "Nothing shall be held hidden any longer"
Dedication: To all the people who so loyally review every (or almost every) chapter. I love you all.
Reasons it was late: Russian grammar sucks. A midterm pwned me like no ones business.
Preview of next chapter: I decided to do this, I know what the next chapter is about and so I know what to call it so I thought I would give you the name. Kind of like when famous authors release the title of their next book early, not to compare myself to famous authors.
"Ingemiseo Tanquam Reus"
Megan swallowed hard as she walked toward her destination. She would apologize and beg him to let her stay. She would promise she would bury those cursed emotions and pray that everything could go back to being the way it was. She didn't mind being in the shadows so much, not really. She didn't mind sitting on the floor and reading in his study. She didn't even really mind his temper. After all that he had been through in his life he had a right to be so angry with people and she could accept that, she would learn not to answer before she thought and she wouldn't mind, she really wouldn't, if he would just give her a second chance she would never burden him like that again. She shouldn't have in the first place but it had just sort of come out before she could stop it, she wouldn't do it again.
"Megan." Jammes stepped out of the shadows and startled Meg. Plenty of people came and went around here; the little ballerina just wasn't used to the people jumping out at her. She smiled at the other woman and hoped that for now Jammes didn't hate her enough to do something terrible.
"Hello Jammes." Meg's voice held neither hate nor anger. Meg felt neither towards the other girl. She was sad to see Jammes had never been a friend, but she would not hate Jammes for it, she would take the punishment in quiet until Jammes did something horrid, and then Megan would talk to Sorrelli
"Your Shadow-Lover is done for, don't bother going down to see him, it's useless at this point and we wouldn't want you straining any of those perfect muscles." Jammes said, the words tumbling out as though in the shadows she had been practicing them, perfecting what she wanted to say. Which, to be honest she had, perfecting the lies she'd told the Baron, and perfecting what she would say to Megan now that she'd won their little game. She knew she was the only one playing, but she was spoiled and she would get what she wanted no matter how she had to go about it, and in this case it was cheating.
"What?" Megan was confused, about everything. She was confused enough about Erik and her feelings as it was, Jammes flood of words wasn't helping any. There had been police here earlier but they came and went all the time, people of all classes came to the Opera. Sometimes they needed more protection than the others.
"I saw my dear friend suffering at the hands of the dreaded Phantom of the Opera, so I told your friend the Baron and he was more than happy to get fifty officers and sent them down to capture that monster once and for all. They've gone for boats but you will be safe now." Jammes did not act for a reason. Her voice dripped malice and she tried to suppress her laughter. The police had left guards, Megan could never get down to see the beast unless there was another route, which the Phantom would never have trusted a rat with and Jammes knew that Megan did not receive letters from Christine. Megan was not smart enough to read. She did not deserve to learn like Jammes did.
Neither of the women expected what happened next. Jammes knew that what she told the Baron was not true. She knew that for some reason Megan cared for that beast. Megan knew that she was angry and she didn't want to believe the horrid words pouring from Jammes's dirty mouth. But still, neither expected Meg to lunge forward, attacking Jammes with an almost primal yell and pin the richer girl to the floor. "You dirty horrid cow! Tell me you're lying! Say it's not true! Say it's not true or I'll knock your dirty head off!"
Jammes was so surprised by the action that she could only lay there and scream. Megan shook her hard, and the taller girl's head thumped against the floor a few times. Reason did not strike Megan but the realization that beating Jammes would leave Erik with no idea of what was happening did. She had to get to him and try to warn him. Surely there were other ways free of the labyrinth beneath the Opera. She could live her life without him if she knew he were alive. She was off of Jammes in a moment, leaping in a way that would have made any Prima Ballerina jealous. She paused before the bolder as she heard the guards entering the Opera. "It's too late for you and your Shadow. They're here." Jammes managed, spitting blood. Megan stared in horror at Jammes, realizing the girl was right.
Megan was never intelligent but her mind had never worked up a lie faster than in that moment. She rushed to the sound of the commotion and rammed straight into the Baron, who pulled her into a hug before she realized it was him. "Sir, sir." She breathed, glancing around as though she were a field mouse entrapped by a snake. She gripped his jacket tightly and swallowed a lump in her throat. Now or never. Erik's life was all that mattered. "I need to come as well." She remembered his eyes, the only time she saw fear in those perfect golden eyes. "Send one boat across he's just one old man. The rest of you can guard the exit." She swallowed and started to cry. Those gathered would have sworn it was fear mixed with hope that made her cry. Fear of the monster in the dark and a hope that she may at last be free of him. The truth of the matter was that she was horrified at her actions. She hated the poison words that fell from her mouth. Her intentions were good but she still despised herself for the things she said. "He will think it is me crossing the river and won't harm you. Once you've crossed he will be unable to escape. He has hundreds of paths down there, if you come without me he will vanish like smoke and yo—I'll never be free." She felt as though she were betraying him.
She felt as though she were following the same path as Christine. But there was a difference, she would rather die than let harm come to the angel in hell.
The Baron held the trembling girl and smiled at her sadly.
"She is right, it is the only way. We have to be smart about this, he escaped a mob once before, let us try something new. I'll go with you, to ensure your safety." She nodded and looked away.
Two officers carried the small boat to the lake and she and the Baron followed a few steps behind. She saw the edge she skirted when she first came to see him, the Angel of Music. The only man she'd ever loved. The man she loved as her mother had loved her father. The Baron had wrapped an arm around her shoulder, offering to protect her every time she shivered. She was helped into the boat first and then the Baron and lastly the two officers. She sat at the head of the boat, looking out over the dark waters, glittering by the light of the Rue Scribe.
She prayed as hard as she could as they traveled until they reached the center of the lake and once there she took a deep breath and lunged back toward the others in the boat. She caught one of the officers off guard and they both fell into the water, while the sudden displaced weight tipped the entire boat into the cold waters. She screamed the whole time and thrashed wildly. Something in this lake scared even Erik, she would draw it and if she was lucky it would kill them all and drag them into the depths where they couldn't do Erik any harm at all. The bodies would alert him to danger and he would run.
As she flailed and drifted away from were the two guards were trying to right the boat she realized how rash and foolish her plan was, but it was not as though she had much time to come up with anything better. She trashed more wildly than the normal girl who realizes she is drowning, for Megan was trying to draw the creature. She'd heard from her father that sometimes sailors fell in the water and the more they moved the more they drew creatures larger than them.
Please, please whatever you are come. I'm not very tasty but those guards and the Baron are quiet plump. Save Erik for me and you may eat me if you like. Just let Erik live. Let him live. Just let him live.
Hands grasped at her and she felt arms about her waist. This was it, she was dead. She was dragged under with untold force and—having never been eaten by a creature in a lake before—she discovered that ballerinas could not breathe water and instead filled her mouth and lungs with a great gulp of the vile water. To her it tasted of old bathwater or even dishwater. The creature drew her down and she let herself be dragged away. Just let him live. She would not even mind if her death brought pain. Just let him live.
Her lungs were on fire and she opened her mouth to scream, filling her lungs with water once again. She trashed weakly and unintentionally, her frazzled mind just did not understand her willingness to give up her life. The creature thrust her forward with that startling force again and she exploded out into the air with a splutter. She scrambled away from the water's edge and her body shook and convulsed as she vomited up more water than she realized she'd swallowed. A hand came down hard on her back and more water gushed from her mouth. It struck her twice more and finally came to her back once more. It touched lightly then, rubbing softly, encouraging her to take breaths of air rather than water.
"The little rat wishes to be a fish." A voice nattered. It sounded like bones rattling together, not that Megan knew that sound and the words exploded out all at once. "Rats escape sinking ships because they are not fishes little rat." The hand ran through her hair then and she tried to sit up, only to vomit water once more.
"Leave her be you've done enough."
That was Erik's voice and at that she did manage to scramble up and look at him while her body trembled and twitched. "Erik." She breathed his name like a prayer to the god she had surely angered by sacrificing those men in exchange for this man's life. Erik sat a few meters away, leaned against a carved wall of the cavern and dripping wet. His hair hung in tangles about him and his white shirt clung damply to his chest, but all Meg could do was thank the Lord he was alive. She did not even question the other man, who tugged at her skirt and her hair as though they were novelties to him.
"What the devil is wrong with you? Foolish girl." He snapped. She opened her mouth to answer but Erik talked once more. "Cease your pestering of her." The hands ceased and Meg dared a glance. She had no fear, Erik was there. Erik was safe. Erik was safety. That was all that mattered. But out of curiosity she looked and saw a man huddled an arm's length away. He was tall, taller than any man she had seen before, and yet his limbs bent in odd directions, as though he were so tall he could not control which way he grew. She would later learn that the cloak he wore concealed his body's odd angles, but that when he sat or removed the cloak they were exaggerated. She would never—in all her time—learn why he looked so strange. "Megan, your childhood savior, the Ratcatcher. Do excuse him, his manners are as horrid as mine. Rats and shadows do not mind such trivialities." Erik said motioning with a wave of his hand.
"You're a rat. A dancing rat. DanceRat." The man said pointing one long knobby finger at Megan. She stared at him for a moment and then nodded.
"I am. And I feel a bit like a drowned rat." She only said it because she had heard the expression once before, maybe in one of her Father's stories, but she did not know.
"You're not." The man said. "The Singing Shadow saved you." That caused Megan to glance to Erik and rather than comment on the name the Ratcatcher gave him, it was no better than being a dancing rat, and she bowed her head.
"Thank you Erik." She whispered.
"I told you to beware. I told you not to go in the lake! What is the matter with you?" He asked again, his voice coming out rough and sharp.
"Jammes has seen me coming down here." She whispered, slow at first, unsure. But suddenly she was explaining the story as quickly as she could. Trying to get it all out before Erik decided not to listen anymore, he'd given her a precious chance to explain herself and she would not pass it up. She explained everything, her hasty plan, the way she tipped the boat over, and then she trailed off looking at her hands and then glancing at the Ratcatcher who smiled at her in a simple sort of way. "And then you saved me." She whispered. "I didn't mean for any of this to happen. I didn't mean for her to see and when I realized that I was just as bad as Ch—as my mother I thought that anything I could do…anything at all, would be better than nothing."
Erik stared at her as she looked at the Ratcatcher, her now bare feet, anything but him. Her hair hung limply around her and she was shivering violently. He lifted the coat he'd shed before leaping into the water and tossed it at her. She missed it and it caught her head, hanging there for a moment before she pushed it aside and looked at him. "I risked my life to save you, do not think I'll allow you to freeze to death after that." She nodded quietly and struggled into the large coat.
She didn't presume to know him but she could understand that. He was not sure if he would forgive her for her stupid tongue or accidental betrayal, but he seemed to accept that she had meant to help and to warn him. So as far as she was concerned he didn't want her dead. Which meant all the world to her.
He stood and the Ratcatcher seemed to unfold and enlarge like smoke billowing from a fire. He offered a long hand to Meg and lifted her easily to her feet. They followed Erik to the doors to his house. The Ratcatcher nodded and was gone into the shadows down a path Megan had not even seen—and she wasn't too sure there was a path at all—before she could say goodbye.
"He came here of his own will, simply showed up one day and started to herd the rats. The first manager let him stay and the others never even noticed him. I don't know what place he calls home, nor what he does for food, but I know I've never seen a rat without him far behind." Erik explained opening the door to his home and offering to allow Megan in first.
She didn't know what he was planning, nor why he seemed to willing to allow her back into his life, or even to risk his life to save her before he had known all that went on since they last spoke. All the same she was going to enjoy it while she could.
As she walked into the home the dream that maybe she'd never said those foolish things, the hope that maybe everything could go back to the way it had all been before died.
Standing there, dripping wet and holding a dangerous-looking pistol, was the Baron.
Megan didn't scream, but she took a step back, throwing all her weight into the movement and learning that Erik was standing right behind her. She turned to him and she looked up into his eyes. So many times she had struggled to form a fledgling trust with this strange and wonderful man. Every time that trust had been destroyed by some means or another and she had tried again and again. However she feared that this time, this time the break would be permanent, and even more she feared that he would never dare to trust anyone again.
"Get away from that monster Little Meg." He shouted. "I won't let him hurt you."
"Baron wait! Please you don't understand!" She pleaded, wishing she could stretch herself wide like a blanket, wishing she weren't so small. Wishing she could do anything to protect Erik.
The Baron was a good shot, if he wanted he could miss her and still find some vital place on Erik to hit. "Don't hurt him."
"You're not under his control any longer Meg. He can't hurt you if he's dead. Just come towards me." He coaxed. Behind her she could almost feel the anger radiating off Erik, and she was sure it was directed at her and that made her question why she stayed alive. He hated her, she did not want to live in a world where he hated her. She could stand it if he didn't trust her, or even sent her away; but for him to hate her…and compared to someone so smart and talented, what did she have? All she knew was dancing as she wasn't even very good at that.
Her death would not save him though and she could see that. However there was a fate worse than death that was waiting for her. She could trade her life away and save him that way. It was all she could do and she would do it and save him. It would be her last gift to him, to repay him for all he had done for her.
"Spare his life." She finally managed. "Please. Let him live, tell them you killed him if you like, but let him live." The Baron looked at her confused.
"Why would I do that?" He asked, not lowering his gun.
"I will marry you, and this is the gift I request in return, please, it's all I ask. Just do that for me and I'll marry you and move wherever you like, do whatever you want me to…just please, let him live. Let him go." She whispered. She did not dare look at Erik.
"What is the matter with you Meg, I'm setting you free, he can't hurt you anymore. I know you're too kind for your own good, but why would you spare his life after how he has treated you?" The Baron asked. Behind her Erik was silent and still. The Baron had always known that Megan did not love him, but love was not important in marriage, what he could offer was.
He had offered everything he could think of to convince her he could provide, and still she had turned him down, turned him away. The sudden admission that if he did not destroy this beast, this hellish creature so twisted that he couldn't even focus on it's face was what would at last give him that pretty dancer-girl...It did not make sense.
Then again, nothing about the blond made sense.
"Because I love him more than life." She whispered after a long pause. "I would rather die than see him hurt." Nothing in all the world could have been said or done instead that would have startled both men so much.
Forensic Photographer711: You made me laugh so hard. And then you made my ego inflate like a balloon. I'm so happy to hear when people think I've gotten in the heads of the characters. Which I am sure you are all sick of hearing me say but it's true. It keeps me going. and I love telling people about the reviews all of you leave, even if no one really cares to hear about how much I love some of you.
Sailor Heva: Yeah, pesky school. Seriously, you guys can never tell me that enough. Every time I hear that I characterize well or that she's so not a mary sue it's like I'm hearing it for the first time. I get this silly grin on my face and squeal and think "Wow! I should write more right now!"
WonderingChild24: Yeah I've had that happen, a story I've been waiting for an update for finally updates late at night right before I need to go to sleep if I actually want to attend class the next day. of course, Then I realize that the stories that always happened with were those uber uber uber amazing ones that I would share with everyone. So then I get all giddy that somone (and from the sounds of my reviews lots of someones) actually wait for updates from me.
Quixotic Feline: One of my loyal reviewers. Whenever I see you've left a review I get all smile-y cause you always say just the perfect things. I get tired of Madam Giry always being either the perfect mother, or completely out of it and having no idea what is going on. I tried to model her after how a real mother would act. She wouldn't know what was happening in her daughter's life and that hurt a little but in the end she is more worried for her child. About the scene being rushed, which was the perfect word to use, I was going for that, at least a little.
I wanted everything to just sort of go from dreamy and almost perfect to dust in little to no time. One because you're right, life does that sometimes, and two because Erik seems the type to do that. One moment he's happy and then something happens and BAM he's like a whole other person. Evil!Erik if you will.
Yay! SOMEONE LIKED MY FAVORITE SCENE! I had so much fun--wrong word maybe--I was so proud of that scene. It turned out just the way I saw it in my head. So that someone commented about it in particular. I am thrilled. I miss writing this too but I keep getting distracted by real life and nasty midterms which come out of nowhere and probably destroyed me. Bah. Who needs it. I try to write more...often, but whenever I sit down to write, either I get an idea for a different story, or something happens that I need to go deal with. Just have faith I will eventually get chapters out. I know I take a long long time sometimes. But a lot of times it's just because I'm trying to perfect what I have.
Rising Twilight: there is a bit more to it before they get back together but I hope that the following updates come much faster than these last few have at least.
TelegramSam : Wow. Your description of what my story could have been made my day almost more than the fact you think I'm doing well and NOT treating it like that.
Especially since I was the little girl who smashed her dolls into each other and then threw them apart and announced they weren't together anymore.
Alexis: Thanks for your kind words, it is getting easier but I have to say my imagination does help and I am so grateful that...there are some sections here where hard work spent getting minor details researched and corrected and getting everything perfect and no one appreciates or even notices it, or at least it doesn't sound like it from their reviews and the other stories in the section. So when people love what I do this much, it encourages me to work all the harder at it. And I like writing angst. I don't so much like reading it cause I always end up BAWLING my EYES out but...it's fun to write just the same so I am glad you appreciate it. About her never seeing him as ugly. I wanted to be very careful how I did that, I didn't want her to totally ignore that he was disfigured, because love can't totally hide flaws like that. But I wanted her to focus on the parts of him that were beautiful. His heart, his sould, and ever since I read that line in the novel about them being like cat's eyes I've though his eyes must be gorgeous.
Beta-Beatrix: Oh yeah. I actually had to go back and re-read the chapter to see what you meant. I guess I've heard the songs too much I didn't even KNOW I had done that. Thank you for pointing it out, I do agree, I think it's trite and terrible to use song lyrics in the writing short of extream circumstances, which I did not fit into. I'll have to go change that sometime...I'm glad I'm improving at least a little in the structural bits. To say: YAY! I was so thrilled to hear I fit on your favorite author's list. It made my day, week...no probably at least year if not life to know that someone honestly put me on their favorite author's list and it wasn't just a mistake or something. I also love that you call Megan real because that's something I'm going for. Christine and Erik and even Raoul and the Persian all seemed like dreamy perefect characters so out there you would never meet them on the street so when I set out to "create" a megan I wanted her to be real, because only someone real can understand that Erik's not mean, he's just been hurt too many times to trust people...
Amy, Whitedragon235, livworld, satha, and rowensage thanks so much for all your kind words. They make me smile and write faster.