Apologies for the delay in the next chapter but Redecorating a house took up my time.
This is a two part chapter as when I finished it was huge! So, it has been split.
Thank you for all the wonderful reviews.
Thank you for following me and I hope you will enjoy this instalment.
I do not own anything by Gaston Leroux, Susan Kay or Andrew Lloyd Webber, everything else is my own work.
Old Habits Die HardErik had to admit that despite the rocky start, employing Jean as his aide to clients was one of his better ideas. However, that decision was almost reversed when two weeks after the incident in Pere Lachaise, Erik had to go over to the Folies Bergere, and apologise for his clients dancing on the tables in the bar before they signed their contract and went home. Still Angel Architecture was gaining an even better reputation not only for the defining designs Erik created but also for their hospitality.
ooo
It was on the journey back from cuffing Jean smartly around the ear and paying the managers of the Folies for the damaged tables, that Erik was delighted to discover something that brought back some of his more pleasant memories of his time in Italy.
Stuck in a carriage jam on the rue Faubourg de Montmartre, Erik looked out of the carriage window and spotted a newly opened little delicatessen shop with some of its wares hanging around the front of the shop that lifted his spirits. Quickly indicating to his driver to find somewhere to stop, Erik paid the driver to wait as he shot into this small palace of delights and exited triumphantly a short time later, holding a strange smelling, paper wrapped long cylinder. Still clutching his prize, Erik directed the driver to the back streets and a quicker return to his office.
ooo
When Erik finally arrived back in the office the strange cylinder held proudly in his hand, Nadir looked up from his desk and started sniffing the air before pulling a disgusted face.
"Are we expecting an attack of A'frit?" he enquired as Erik went to enter his private office.
"No!" Erik replied stopping in front of Nadir's desk, "Why do you ask that?"
"Because suddenly there is a strange odour in here, spices and mostly garlic!" Nadir replied suddenly eyeing up the object Erik was holding. "Hang on!" Nadir called suddenly realising what Erik was holding, "Is that a garlic sausage?" Nadir asked as he rose from his desk, "I hope you have not started eating large amounts of garlic again!" he moaned
"It is a Garlic stuffed salami a rare treat I love from Italy, And… So, what if I am eating loads of garlic again" Erik retorted, clutching his purchase to his chest.
"Erik, really Garlic Salami in the office?" Nadir protested, "it stinks!"
"Now you are just fussing Daroga!" Erik grumbled as Gilen came through the front door and promptly grabbed his own nose,
"Eww what is that?" Gilen asked, dashing into the back room, as Nadir looked directly at Erik with a smug smirk.
Erik scowled, "it is a fine Italian cured sausage with whole cloves of Garlic in it!" he defended still clutching it to his chest.
"It is also going to become a perfume if you continue to crush it to yourself like that!" Nadir pointed out.
"Just because you do not like salami!" Erik argued,
Nadir pinched the bridge of his nose, "I am very happy without salami, and even happier without huge amounts of garlic. The office day is nearly done, take that… stinky salami and go home!" Nadir declared pointing his finger at the door.
"Philistine Persian," Erik grumbled as he turned towards the front door and stalked back out.
ooo
Arriving back at the lake house early did have one advantage, Erik realised, Christine was still at rehearsals for the upcoming production of Faust and therefore Erik had the house to his self and after placing his snack on the kitchen table, he removed his hat, cloak and mask, swapped his shoes for his slippers and wandered back into the kitchen. A pop of a cork from the wine cellar and a swift decisive stroke of a knife later, Erik, with a chunk of his salami and a pleasing glass of red, made his way into the sitting room and after stoking the fire he settled into his reading chair to peruse the newspaper and enjoy a piece of his treat. He had barely reached the society pages when he realised that more of his treat would go nicely, so putting the paper down he wandered into the kitchen and emerged with the remaining salami, a knife and the rest of the bottle of wine, topping up his glass and cutting off another chunk, Erik placed the knife on the table and took a large bite of salami as he perused the latest in the upper classes.
ooo
Christine was just entering the front hall of the lake house when she felt something was not right, then she noticed Saya and Ami curled up under the coat rack. Shutting the front door before the cats could escape into the cellars, she took her own cloak off and tried to encourage her pets into the sitting room. Giving up when the cats refused to budge, she wandered into the sitting room to a peculiar sight.
Fast asleep in his reading chair with the newspaper on his lap and his hands folded over his chest was Erik, but it was the sight of what appeared to be half a sausage, a knife, a wine glass and an almost empty wine bottle on the table beside him that caught Christine's eye and then her nose.
"What on earth?" Christine declared, waking a dozing Erik in the process.
"Wa, What, Who!" Erik yelled as he sat up and reached to his pocket for his lasso, stopping when he realised who had woken him up.
"Erik what is that?" Christine demanded, pointing to the contents of the table top, "Are we trying to kill Vampires?"
Wiping the sleep from his eyes, Erik tilted his head to glance at the remains of his snack, "That… that is a little Italian snack," he replied sweetly.
"Ugh, a snack?" Christine grimaced, "All I can smell is Garlic!" she pointed out before realising something else, "Erik, my dear, whilst I am always happy that you now have an appetite…Just how much of that did you eat?" she asked cautiously.
"Only a little bit," Erik said then as he looked fully at the partially demolished treat, "Oh, err, um," Erik stuttered blushing, as Christine raised an eyebrow.
"De Capo, Maestro?" Christine asked dangerously, "How much of that salami did you eat?"
Erik was staring with horror at the remains of the salami, "Half," he mumbled, "It was so good that I seem to have absent mindedly eaten half of it!" he replied sheepishly.
Christine did not know whether to laugh or cry, "You have eaten half a salami containing whole garlic cloves! Erik you know what too much garlic does to you!" she finished exasperatedly.
"I like lots of garlic!" Erik declared sullenly,
"Lots of garlic does not like you Erik!" she pointed out and as if agreement, Erik's stomach rumbled loudly.
"I think we shall be having a simple broth with bread for supper!" Christine declared staring at Erik's stomach, she began turning towards the kitchen, before suddenly turning back to her errant husband, "Get that salami out of the house right now!" she instructed sternly before resuming her journey to the kitchen.
Erik joined Christine in the kitchen, "What no good evening kiss for your loving husband?" he asked,
"You are not kissing my lips… or any other part of me until you get rid of the smell of garlic on your breath!" Christine informed him coolly, "go chew some mint or parsley!".
Grumbling under his now garlic infused breath, Erik first removed the salami from the house, he had a small external meat locker on the side of the wall of the house from when he was building it, he checked the door still locked and placed his now precious salami in it, before returning to the house and locating the mint and parsley that was growing in a large pot in the garden room, plucking several stalks of mint for a refreshing tea, he ambled back to the kitchen and put some water on to boil whilst chewing some parsley leaves and watching Christine preparing their supper.
Parsley chewed, mint tea consumed, and supper cooking Erik finally was allowed a kiss from his wife. The rest of the evening passed pleasantly, supper then lessons and then the couple sat curled up on the couch with Erik reading a book as Christine fussed the cats, before they retired to bed.
ooo
A strange distant hiccing noise awoke Christine from her early hour slumber, lighting the candle on her bedside table, she looked at the clock, it was only three in the morning, then she noticed Erik was missing from bed, listening more closely to the noise she realised that it was an Erik with hiccups, quite a lot of hiccups.
Reaching for her dressing gown, Christine sighed, "Here we go again!" she muttered as she located her slippers and putting them on her feet went to seek out her missing husband.
Erik was located in the kitchen, trying to control his hiccups by drinking a glass of water with a teaspoon in it. Christine was less than impressed, as she silently watched him trying to drink the water and to not poke himself in the eye with the spoon, she rapidly formulated a plan for getting some more sleep.
Waiting until Erik had positioned his lips on the rim of the glass and around the spoon she grinned evilly before sashaying into Erik's view, "In all the furore with that silly salami this evening I completely forgot to tell you some exciting news!" she brightly declared as she watched Erik still trying to drink the glass of water, "I am pregnant!" she finished.
No sooner than she had finished speaking, Erik did several things at once, he went whiter than a ghost, and inhaled the contents of the glass, spoon as well before turning blue in the face as he choked, then spat the spoon out with a spray of water and before nearly dropping the glass.
"What!" he squeaked in shock, before clearing his throat, "Pregnant! How?"
"I am not pregnant!" Christine replied with a smirk, "but the shock stopped your hiccups at least!" she pointed out as a weak and shaking, hiccup free Erik placed the glass carefully on the kitchen table before using the tea towel to wipe the excess water from himself, before picking the spoon up from the floor.
"You can be really evil at times!" Erik grumbled,
"I know, but at least we can get some sleep now!" Christine sleepily responded kissing his cheek before turning to head back to their bedroom.
Erik stood up straight and sighed before joining his wife for a few more hours rest.
ooo
The clock was just arriving at six that same morning in the Chateau de Chagny and the resident Vicomte was receiving a rather rude awakening, as from nowhere it seemed his bed chamber was flooded with light. Raoul sat up and sneezed, blowing his sore nose, he winced, and glared at his valet who was now stoking the fire whilst one of the other servants was in the bathroom filling the bath.
"Good morning sir," Louis intoned, "Is the cold still as bad?" he asked as he placed the fire tongs back in the stand and started to prepare Raoul's clothes for the day.
A very stuffy headed Vicomte, glowered first at the clock and then at his valet, "Good grief man it is six o'clock in the morning, I do not rise until at least nine!" Raoul mumbled through his blocked nose as he sneezed yet again.
"Madame Vicomtess, has insisted that you start the day early with a cold dip, she stated that her father has always sworn by an early morning chilled swim for his abilities to quickly recover from colds!" Louis informed his boss.
Raoul was blowing his blocked nose again when Louis finished speaking and as his cold riddled brain processed the last bit of information Raoul started to choke.
"She was quite insistent sir," Louis added, as Raoul got his choking under control, "she said if you tried to get out of it then I was to mention two words, sir" Louis continued.
Raoul, stopped choking long enough to blow his nose again before his muffled voice asked with dread, "What two words?"
"Negligees and fireplace, sir!" Louis calmly informed him.
Raoul felt himself pale, "Good god! Has my sweet wife been taking lessons in torture from Erik Jardinier?" he asked weakly,
"No Sir," Louis replied evenly, "I believe it was Madame Jardinier with whom your wife was corresponding." Louis informed him.
Raoul sighed, he was trapped, if he did not agree to the cold dip, then his adorable wife would burn her most diaphanous nightwear, and most likely not ply him with her favours either, something Raoul was enjoying more frequently, since the gala night.
The decision was already made, "Get me my swimming suit!" a resigned Raoul choked out in monotone mumble.
"You do not need to venture out Sir!" Louis cheerfully informed the resigned Vicomte, "We have taken the liberty of filling your bath with cold water and ice," he finished.
"ice!" Raoul squeaked before choking again,
"Yes sir, a ten minute dip in the iced water, I am informed by the Vicomtess will normally kill or cure most colds!" Louis intoned as Raoul struggled to find words to express his horror at such an idea which would, he thought most likely kill him.
The Vicomte could only find a few weak squeaks before Louis gave him a polite yet jaundiced look "Negligees sir!" he reminded.
Raoul gave up and got up, swaying a little with his stuffed up head from the cold, then steadying himself he walked slowly to the bathroom door, "You are really enjoying this!" he mumbled to a straight faced Louis, before entering the bathroom and slamming the door shut.
"Never sir!" Louis intoned with a smirk before leaving his boss to his chilly fate.
ooo
Raoul was not the only man to be discovering the horrors of a wife enforced early morning dip. Erik was also in his bathroom currently standing naked under a cold shower, listening to Christine, as she scolded him yet again regarding his perchance for garlic.
"Really what possessed you to eat that much garlic in one go!" Christine chided from where she was located in the bedroom stripping the Pillow cases.
Erik groaned and stuck his head under the shower spray trying to drown out a nagging and very angry wife.
ooo
Half an hour earlier Christine remembered that the hiccups were not the only problem that Erik's excess garlic consumption could cause, and after being rudely awakened by the absolute stench of garlic seeping from Erik's skin, Christine could stand it no longer she sat up and lit her bedside candle. And eager to avoid the argument sure to start the moment she told her sensitive husband that he stank, she tried to wake him gently.
"Erik," she softly called as she stroked his arm, and tried not to take too deep a breath, "Maestro, Angel," she called again, this time she was rewarded with a snort and a half asleep muttered response she could just about understand.
"Very tired! Can we have sex later?" Erik mumbled before he turned over putting his back to Christine and pulling the covers over his head.
All pretence of being subtle fled Christine's head at that point, and she shook him awake. "Erik!" she yelled in his ear, being rewarded with a flurry of garlic scented limbs. Suddenly Erik was sitting up in bed and lighting the candle on his bedside table.
"Damn it woman!" Erik snapped, "what is it?" he grumbled as he turned his head to see the expression on Christine's face. It was not an expression he wanted to see too often; in fact, the last time he saw that expression in their bedroom he was in trouble. That was the time he had been dreaming that he was happily applying his foot to Nadir's backside, when a yelp and a thump woke him to see Christine in a heap on the floor at the side of the bed with that very same angry expression on her face. Much yelling at him later, Erik discovered that whilst he had for once been having not a nightmare, but a lovely dream of kicking Nadir's arse, he had in reality applied his foot to Christine's posterior and had actually kicked her straight out of bed in the middle of the night.
Erik groaned at the memory, and the fact he spent the rest of that night in the sitting room on the couch. Rapidly adjusting his attitude in the vain hope to avoid being told off for whatever he had done unaware in his sleep, he tried again, "Yes my sweet?" he asked.
Christine had had enough, "Erik you stink!" she sharply informed him.
Two unmasked hairless brows rose in perturbation as Erik processed what his normally taciturn wife had just told him. "Erik does not stink!" he retorted.
"Erik all I can smell is second hand garlic!" Christine declared waving her hand in front of her face, "go and have a shower!" she instructed him, pointing to the bathroom door, her face still wearing that angry expression.
Erik realised he was not going to get out of it so with a resigned sigh he climbed out of bed, grabbed his robe and slinging it over his shoulders he sloped off to the bathroom, as Christine lit the gas lamps and started to strip the bed.
Turning around by the door of the bathroom to face his wife, Erik looked puzzled, "Why are you stripping the bedclothes at this time in the morning?" he asked.
Christine looked at him like he had grown a second head, "Erik, you stink of garlic, the sheets stink of garlic… Heavens even I stink of garlic. This is the last time you ever eat garlic in such a quantity, otherwise you can sleep in the boat, do you understand?" Christine barked as she tore the comforter from the bed and started on the sheets.
Erik nodded and with Christine still chastising him and his apparent garlic fetish, he sloped of to the shower, and did as instructed, anything to stop his angel being angry with him.
ooo
Back at the Chateau de Chagny Raoul was blue with cold and huddled back in bed. True the earlier ice bath had helped the cold… it had apparently helped it turn into a nasty cough as well.
Meredith had taken a personal interest in her husband's recovery and was sitting on the side of his bed stroking his forehead before she helped him sit up, removed his pyjama jacket, then dipping her hand into a large jar containing an oily golden coloured substance, she scooped out a large dollop and smeared it on Raoul's chest and back, as the poorly Vicomte blew his nose again.
"You have really caught quite a chill," Meredith soothed as she smeared another dollop of the substance on Raoul's chest. Before motioning Louis to hand her a large sheet of brown paper and some string.
"Why can I only think of sautéed potatoes at the moment?" Raoul mumbled staring at the jar, before another paroxysm of coughing started.
Meredith waited for the coughing to subside, "That is because we are using a cure recommended by your doctor," Meredith informed him as she carefully wrapped his chest and back with the paper and tied it around him with the string before helping him back into his pyjama jacket and buttoning it closed. "Goose grease and insulating brown paper, he said it works well," Meredith informed him, before turning to a bowl placed on Raoul's bedside cabinet, also he said to try this!" she brightly declared as she picked the bowl up from the cabinet and with it a spoon.
Raoul cringed, grateful for once that he could not smell anything, for there in the bowl was a sliced raw onion covered in sugar, a clear syrup was forming where the onion touched the sugar. "Now two spoonful's of this every hour and you should start to feel better!" Meredith instructed as she spooned out some of the syrup and offered it to Raoul.
Clamping his mouth shut like a child Raoul shook his head, and grimaced. Meredith huffed in annoyance, "Louis!" she called "Make sure he takes this and rests, I have a coffee morning to attend but I shall return, and I expect my husband to take his medicine like an adult!" she declared as she placed the spoon back in the bowl and handed it to Louis, before rising from where she had sat on Raoul's bed and with one last fluff of Raoul's hair, she left the room.
"Now sir!" Louis started as he walked over to a table where a decanter sat waiting and placed the bowl down on it, "Shall we try that again with some brandy?" he asked. Raoul nodded; Brandy seemed a far better idea.
ooo
Erik was relieved that once he had showered, used a large amount of dentifrice and chewed some more mint, as well as almost marinated himself in his cologne, the garlic smell had vanished, and with it most of Christine's anger.
"You smell like my husband again," Christine commented, as she wrapped her arms around Erik before giving him a loving kiss, "But I meant what I said, get rid of that salami and never buy another one!"
"Yes dear!" Erik replied,
Christine drew away from Erik's arms, "Do not 'yes dear' me!" she retorted, putting her hands on her hips, "Get rid of the garlic salami or the only kiss in this house is a kiss goodbye to your most favourite non-musical personal past time!" Christine declared her eyebrows raised suggestively.
"And yours!" Erik pointed out smarmily.
Christine had been anticipating that reply and her repost hit Erik metaphorically right where it hurts, "Not really, when you banned our intimate moments for several months last year, I learnt I also enjoy reading a book and drinking hot chocolate!" she pointed out, grinning.
Erik pouted, "You do not fight fair woman!" he grumbled,
"And I wonder who it was that taught me that trick?" Christine asked rhetorically tapping her index finger on her bottom lip,
Erik was about to pose another argument, when Christine looked at the clock in the bedroom and gasped, "talking of fair, it would not be fair of me to be late for Madame Giry's coffee morning!" Christine declared as she dashed towards her dressing room.
ooo
With Raoul tucked up in bed and a fresh smelling Erik on his way to work, Meredith and Christine joined Meg, Delphine and Madame Giry for Coffee.
Meg, Christine and Madame Giry were chatting about the previous day's rehearsals and the fact that they were grateful that only the orchestra were required for today allowing them a nice day off. Delphine was listening and Meredith was sitting quietly not really listening, her thoughts back with an unwell Raoul.
"Is not the story of Faust pretty much similar to Don Juan?" Delphine asked as Meg poured a second cup of coffee for everyone.
"It is!" replied Christine, "that is why the managers have decided to put on a smaller production first!" she finished taking a sip of her coffee.
Meg giggled, "Yes indeed, they have acquired the Offenbach operetta 'Orpheus in the Underworld' and I for one cannot wait, we start rehearsals next week for it and it has a fantastically naughty dance in it!" Meg continued with a grin. "The notorious 'Gallop Infernal', Maman has already started working with Bernadette regarding the costumes for that scene!" Meg ended with another giggle, as Madame Giry nodded.
"Good grief!" Delphine sniggered, "the Opera Garnier putting on such a provocative piece, What I would give to dance that gallop!" she retorted with a smirk.
Meredith sighed, and all attention moved to the now forlorn looking Vicomtess. "Right now, I would give anything to have Raoul well again," Meredith murmured.
The chatter ceased immediately, "What has happened?" Christine asked as she placed her hand on Meredith's arm supportively.
"He has a cold that is getting worse!" Meredith replied looking worried, "He is currently bed bound and not getting any better," she sighed.
"Is he taking his medicine?" Madame Giry asked, as Christine and the other ladies looked on concerned.
"No!" Meredith replied as she looked at Christine, "He hates taking medicine, says it tastes nasty!"
"I would have thought that now he has found true love he would be willing to take better care of himself!" Christine stated, all too well aware of Raoul's dislike of medicine.
"True love?" questioned Meredith, "What made you think that true love would make a man take better care of himself?" she asked, genuine curiosity in her eyes.
The most stubborn and unhealthy man I had ever met is now my husband!" Christine declared honestly, "He hardly slept, hardly ate and drank like a fish" she continued, "Now he has true love he sleeps properly eats properly and has seriously reduced his alcohol intake, he has a reason to take better care of himself." She finished.
"I see what you mean!" Meredith agreed, "Raoul has reduced his partying and his fatty food intake and now has at least one healthy walk a day, when he is not in bed ill!" Meredith announced, "But I still cannot get him to take medicine… It would take a magician to do that." She finished with a sigh.
"A magician… Humm!" Christine replied with a sly smile, "I have just the person!" she declared brightly, "this is a job for my Erik!"
"Erik is a magician?" Meredith asked dubiously, "I thought he was an architect?"
Christine grinned before declaring, "I will let Madame Giry explain,"
Meg looked at her mother as Madame Giry put her cup down and held one hand up as she ticked off on her fingers a few details about the former Phantom. "Architect, Musician, Composer, Ventriloquist, Magician!" she sighed "I shall run out of fingers before Erik runs out of talents!" she finished, before turning back to Meredith, "Enough about Christine's husband. What medicine is Raoul not taking? She asked,
"Onion Syrup!" Meredith replied,
"Onion Syrup…That is for children!" Madame Giry pointed out.
"I know but he would not even consider the Garlic syrup his doctor suggested!" Meredith responded frustration clear in her voice. "Even the Goose grease and brown paper makes him think of sautéed potatoes!" she groaned, "But I thought he would at least try the onion syrup." She finished.
Christine shuddered, "Garlic ugh!" she grumbled under her breath.
Christine's remark was not quite quiet enough and Meg heard her, "Why Christine, what have you got against garlic?" she asked.
"I personally have nothing against garlic, just my husband eating large quantities of it!" Christine moaned, "he should have given his garlic to Raoul," she finished with a huff, but it was too late, all eyes were on her expecting an explanation.
"Do tell?" Meredith asked keen for a diversion from her worries about Raoul.
"When I first met Erik, that first night I vanished," Christine started, "His music was entrancing and I did not notice anything untoward, however the following morning, when I awoke, I noticed there was this strange smell." She continued, "Suffice to say it reminded me of the smell of death, and it scared me. Anyway, it was not until the morning after the night of Don Juan Triumphant, that I finally got the answer." She finished handing her cup back to Madame Giry for a refill.
"And?" Meg pushed,
"and…" Christine started taking her refilled coffee cup back from Madame Giry, "I found Erik in the music room, hiding down the side of his pipe organ with a jar in his hand." Christine continued before sipping her coffee.
"A jar of what?" Meg demanded!
"Meg patience!" Madame Giry barked, before turning to Christine, "What was in the jar?" she asked,
"Torshi Seer!" Christine answered, knowing full well that her reply would irritate and infuriate Meg. Madame Giry just grinned.
"What on earth is that?" Meg questioned, "Chilled monkey brains?" her voice betraying her frustration.
Christine grinned, "No spiced pickled raw garlic, Persian style! It appears that before they left Persia, Nadir got my husband addicted to Pickled Garlic to help him get rid of another bad habit!" she finished, the look at Meg defied her to ask in front of everyone, what the other habit was. Thankfully Meg got that message loud and clear.
"So why was Erik hiding behind his pipe organ eating pickled Garlic?" Meredith asked now completely fascinated.
"He was nervous, and the garlic helped calm him, but he thought I would disgusted that he was addicted to the stuff as it was rather pungent!" Christine replied with a tender smile, "it took a little time, but I managed to wean him off the garlic and he no longer smelt horrible," she added before her expression changed to one of annoyance, "That was until last night!" her tone becoming angry, "He sat at home and ate half a large garlic stuffed salami!" she growled, "Claimed he was just slicing lumps off and eating them without noticing how much he ate as he read the newspaper!" she continued as the other ladies tried to hide smirks.
"Oh dear!" Madame Giry winced,
"My whole house smells of Second hand Garlic" Christine complained bitterly.
The ladies sat in silence for a moment, then Madame Giry piped up, "I have a plan, first we visit a florist to help Christine remove the garlic from her house, then Christine can you get Erik to come up with a plan to get Raoul to take his medicine and get better, then we can all be happy again!" she finished with a smile.
"I like that idea!" Meg declared as Delphine and Meredith nodded their agreement.
With that the ladies finished their coffee and set off to the nearest florist.
