Chapter Four

DISCLAIMER: OK; I don't own phantom of the opera. Plain and simple

Erik's eye shot open at the sound of someone walking through his lake. He had been asleep for two hours before the sound came; he jumped out of bed and grabbed his sword. He placed is mask on his face and dashed out to see Karen stepping onto the land and her dress hugging her legs. Karen shook her head; sending water flying everywhere; and then looked up. Seeing his mask she knew instantly who he was.

"The Phantom of the Opera." She gasped. Erik tightened his grip on his sword.

"What do you want? Why are you here?" He asked viciously. Karen didn't approach him; but she looked around.

"This place is amazing! Did you build this?" Erik didn't answer her question; but kept asking his. "Oh right. I'm sorry. But do you happen to have a skull around here somewhere?"

"A skull?" Erik asked; raising an eyebrow. "Why would you want a skull?"

"It's a long story. But I need a skull to prove to someone that your dead."

"What?" Karen quickly shook her head.

"I meant that- If I don't come back with a skull- then this girl I made a bet with will tell everyone your not dead and They'll come and kill you." But he didn't believe her. He lunged at her with his sword; and she moved out of the way to save her body; but her dress is shorter now.She groped around to find something to defend herself with; but not necessarily kill him.But all she was able to find were notebooks; and a mirror. But she did find a candle holder thing and decided it was better than nothing. When he tried to chop her in half; she deflected it with the metal holder. She used it as if it were a sword; clumsily defending herself; ducking and dodging "I'm not here to hurt you! Really! Let me explain!" She struggled to get him to stop attacking her. When he stopped; she brushed some blood off her cheek where he had hit her; and told him what she had to say. "I made a bet with this girl. She said you were dead; and I said you were probably just hiding. not wanting any trouble. Somehow; she got me to come down here and get your skull. If I don't go back with a skull; then she'll think your alive."

"So you've come down here to prove her right?" He asked strangely.

"Being wrong isn't as bad as being a coward." She responded; setting the dented candle holder on the table and speaking to him. "If your wrong; it doesn't effect your reputation; but if your a coward; it sticks."

"I see." He set his sword down and went in search of a skull. Karen went looking around his home; gasping at the architecture. He returned with a skull that he had dug up from the cemetery in the case that he need it. He tossed it to her and told her to tell them he was dead.

"Thank you." She put the skull in her bag. She looked around before she realized she had better start back. "I better get back. I'm supposed to be sick." Erik watched as she walked through the water; but he stopped her.

"I know a quicker way out. I can get you back in enough time for you to change out of that wet dress." Karen stopped and turned.

"Thank you." She spoke. He went to the boat and allowed her to get on. Taking the Ore; he began to push the boat away from the land.

"You came here." He began while rowing the boat. "You fought me with a candle stick holder; you took "My Skull" and yet. I have yet to know your name." Karen turned her head to him; and grinned.

"It's Karen. Karen Edalene."

"I take it your a ballet girl." He made conversation to keep the uncomfortable silence at bay. Karen nodded.

"My friend told me of you." She responded. "She says you stole away Christine and tried to marry her."

"Yes. Not one of my better ideas."

"I think it's romantic." She told him grinning. "Only someone that really cares would go to that much trouble."

"It wasn't any trouble." His voice sounded smug; but he actually hated talking about it. "She gave me her mind blindly."

"But still." Karen insisted. "You did so much for her. I think she would have been happy with you. My friend told me of the roses; of how they had black ribbons tied around them."

"It wasn't any big deal." He told her; trying to keep his tough guy appearance. "She's happy with Raoul." Karen looked at her reflection in the water; and placed her hand in it.

"I hate guys like that." She told him. "Meg said Raoul was handsome; but I hate guys who are handsome to other girls.If the guy is nice to me; and loves me and only me; I could care less about his face; body; or hair." Erik rose an eyebrow at that; and kept rowing. Their talk stopped; and as they got to the other side and Erik escorted her off and through his catacombs; she asked him how he built all of this.

"The managers pay me 20000 francs a month. Or they used to. Now I'm supposed to be dead." Karen nodded.

"I only wish I'd been able to hear your operas; or see your paintings. I mean, I did glance at them while you were trying to cut my head off; but I mean like-"

"I get it." Erik cut her off as he slid Christine's door open.

"Goodbye." But he didn't respond; he just slid the door behind her and she started off towards the dormitories at a run. She did get there in enough time to change out of her wet dress and into her night gown. She slid her bag under her bed and layed down just as they all filed in. Meg and Iris were the first to come by her bed.

"Feeling better?" Meg asked; Karen sat up and nodded. Her hair was still dripping wet; but when asked; she told them she just got out of the bath. "Karen, is he- I mean-?" Karen shook her head.

"Meg. How did the performance go?" Karen spoke in a tone that in reality was saying "I'll tell you later."

"Well well well." One of the girls from before came over to her bed. "Did you get it? The skull?"

"I don't know what your-"

"Oh please." She cut Karen off. "We all know you went down there. Your not sick at all. Where is his skull?"

"In my bag." Karen told her; Meg got the bag from under her bed and pulled out a skull covered in filth; and a maggot slithered out of the eye socket and onto the floor; making all the others move back.

"So I was right!" The girl giggled. "I knew it!" Karen didn't care; she knew the honest to god truth; Erik wasn't dead; but hiding.


omg. I'm going on Vacation tomarrow. It's not really a vacation because we'll be back Sat. Night. But we are leaving after my mom gets offa work; so I may, or may not, update. I dunno. You'll just have to wait and see .