Her eyes fluttered open, slowly at first, but then they grew wide. Where was she? And where was that gentle organ music coming from? She sat up on the bed and got a better look at her surroundings. The four-poster bed she had been laying on had pale purple gossamer curtains, two of which had been opened, allowing her a clear view of the rest of the room. The room itself was rather elegant, even though one could tell that the flowers were obviously fake, it was still lovely, decked out in pale blues, purples, and golds. She cautiously got out of her bed, trying to remember how she ended up in this place, and set about finding out where that organ music was coming from. The song playing sounded very familiar, like a lullaby from her youth. There were two doors present in the room, she first went to one, and then the other, hoping to be able to determine wherein the music was being played. Taking a breath, she opened to second door, and found herself looking down a hall, the end from which the notes of music floated towards her. She walked slowly and silently, the music seemingly the only sound in the quiet hall. When she entered the room, she saw a man clad in dark blue, almost black, playing away at the organ. That's when it all came rushing back to her, her Angel of Music was no spirit, but a man, a man who practically spirited her away to his underground home

"Rapunzel, my dear sweet Rapunzel, come to me!" he had called to her from the walls of her dressing room before the mirror opened, allowing her passage. Once through, she woke from her stupor, and realized with a start that her brilliant tutor, her Angel of Music, was nothing more than a mere man. After that she had fainted, and now she had woken up to find herself here, with her so-called Angel softly playing the organ. She ventured closer, now seeing that he wore a mask over his face, a wide-brimmed hat, and a pair of white gloves over his hands. What was he hiding? The music paused, and so did she, her heart pounding in her chest. She nearly wanted him to turn around so she could finally get a good look of him, even with the mask on, and she nearly didn't want him to either, perhaps giving her a chance to finally escape.

"There is nothing to fear, dear Rapunzel, I mean you no harm," came the gentle voice she had come to know over the years. The figure turned to face her, the mask nothing much but a blank, white mask, only his ice blue eyes were barely visible.

"Why did you bring me here? What are you hiding beneath that mask?"

Her tutor rose almost menacingly, "Do not ask what I am hiding, my secrets I hide for your sake. As for why I brought you here, I brought you here because of that boy." He got on his knees in front of her, "Dearest Rapunzel, I love you so much. Will you accept your poor Jack's heart?" He took her hand in his gloved hands, and pressed it to his mask. Rapunzel realized with a start that the gloves were chilled, should they not be warm? Her curiosity and fear began to grow, wondering what sort of man truly knelt before her, but she spoke of something else to mask her plan.

"My Jack? Is that your name, Jack?"

"It is the name I have given myself, yes. It works better than Angel or Phantom, does it not?"

Rapunzel gasped, "You're the Phantom?"

"Of course, did you not notice? That is how I know so much. The opera house is the only place I can call home, so it's only natural that I know of what's going on." Rapunzel nodded, and took the opportunity she had. She yanked off the mask and the hat with her left hand, and with her right, managed to pull off one of his gloves. Jack gave a shriek and backed up, grabbing a hold of a candelabra as he did so. Rapunzel shrieked in turn as tendrils of ice snaked up the candelabra from where his hand touched it, soon enveloping it in a casing of ice. "Why, you foolish woman, why? Why did you feel the need to know my terrible secret? See, there, now are you happy? You know it! You really, truly see Jack now! I was born with my hair this white, I was born with these powers! My hands are a blizzard, my breath the winter wind! It was by my own hands that my mother froze and by my breath that my father died of pneumonia! Now do you understand why I dressed thus? I dressed like this to avoid the jabs and stares of the common folk, but more importantly, to protect them from me, to keep them, and you, alive!" Jack fell down and broke into tears, Rapunzel's terrified form now backed up against the far wall. "And now, now my ray of sunshine will leave me, my spring flower will wither and die at my touch. Oh, you foolish, foolish woman!" For several minutes, the only sounds were of Jack's sobs and Rapunzel's trembling breaths. Jack glanced up as another sound entered the room, Rapunzel had collapsed to the floor and began crying. Jack walked over to her and picked up the glove that laid on the floor next to her. He put it on and bent to pick up the mask and the hat when she placed her hand on his arm.

"I-I'm sorry, please don't put the mask on, you don't need it with me."

"Are you sure?" A shiver went up and down Rapunzel's spine as the temperature seemed to cool, just from those three words. "You see? My breath itself could kill you."

"No, if I shiver it is because I think of your tragic past or your great genius." Jack raised an eyebrow, but as she rose, he dropped once again to his knees and pressed her hand to his lips.

"Then stay with me for a little while. I shall sing and play for you whatever you wish to hear."

"But, the opera?"

"I shall return you in time for that, my spring flower, do not fear. What do you wish for me to play?"

"Whatever you wish, I am still getting over the shock and the sheer loneliness of your existence." Jack rose and looked intently at her before gently kissing her cheek. With her hand still in his, he gently guided her towards the organ, where he played and sang. If Rapunzel closed her eyes, it was still the Voice that had enchanted her and befriended her in her youth, but when she opened them, she saw that the voice came from the pale figure with the power of winter.

Jack returned her to her room as he said he would, just in time for her to prepare for the opera. After the opera, Eugene attempted to see her, but she turned him away, not long after which Jack whisked her away again, back to his underground home. For two weeks she lived thus, only allowed outside under the watchful eye of Jack to get some warm air, his cave as chilly as freshly fallen snow. She finally got a letter through to Eugene, begging him to meet her at the upcoming Masquerade Ball at the opera house, promising to explain everything then. The day of the Ball finally arrived, and Rapunzel got a promise from Jack to be left alone, though, unbeknownst to her, he went to the ball under the guise of Old Man Winter. Rapunzel easily found Eugene, he was wearing the pirate costume she had asked him to wear, and was waiting at the base of the staircase. He noticed her approach, the blonde hair hard to miss behind the princess mask.

"Rapunzel?"

"Sh! Follow me, quickly and quietly!" she whispered before heading up the stairwell. He followed close behind, glancing around every now and then to make sure they weren't being followed, what she had to tell him sounded pretty serious. He yelped when he glanced into one of the doorways, a large fellow stood there, watching him, as if he'd been there waiting for them to pass.

He walked quickly to catch up to Rapunzel and whispered, "Who was that?"

Rapunzel glanced at the man he was pointing at, "Oh, that's the Russian, he's always at the opera. He's the least of our worries, come on!" Eugene followed her further up the stairs until they came out on the roof. Once the door was closed behind them, the masks came off and Eugene pulled her in for a kiss. "Eugene, please!" she exclaimed after they broke apart.

"But I love you! Surely you haven't forgotten, or has this voice of yours laid claim to your heart?"

"Jack is not a spirit, or a phantom, he is a man, as you thought he'd be."

"Oh ho, so your brilliant tutor has revealed himself, has he? Has he also pronounced his love for you?"

"He has."

"And what do you say to it? Do you return his love?"

"Not . . . exactly."

"Then you hate him?"

"Oh no, far from it! How can I when his love for me is sincere and pure, so much so that he'll crawl on his hands and knees if I wished it?"

"What? How do you even know that his love is sincere and pure?" Rapunzel took a deep breath and explained everything to Eugene, even revealing Jack's secret. When she finished, Eugene just stood there, stunned into silence. He finally broke the silence with, "You've been staying with this monster for the past two weeks?"

"Eugene, he's no monster! He would never harm me."

"Are you sure? You've only known him these past two weeks!"

"And you not much longer." Eugene snapped his mouth shut, she kinda had a point there. "Besides, I've known him for many years as the Angel of Music, my tutor, if he wished to harm me, he's had several chances to do so. But he has kept his distance, kept to the shadows out of fear of harming me. I may not know the world as well as you, but even I know that no man would wish harm upon those he loves."

"So, you do feel for him."

"How could I not at least feel pity for him? He has had no one else even glance at his face out of fear of either accidentally harming them or that they'd fear him."

"Neither of which was a concern when it came to you."

"What do you mean? He was afraid of harming me, and I am scared."

"Scared of what, my sweet?"

"Scared that his mind may have snapped in his years of isolation. How can anyone be so alone and not become crazy?"

"He wasn't completely alone, he apparently had you to talk with," muttered Eugene, crossing his arms.

"But I only knew his voice, as my tutor, I didn't really truly know who he was until now."

"So now what? You bring me here, tell me all of this, and for what? To make him look like a better person in your mind?"

"No, that's not it, Eugene. It's, I don't know, it's confusing and I want to make some sense of this. And I am scared, and not just of the possibility that he may have gone crazy, there's another reason, and I can't put my finger on it. It's all so confusing, and here I hoped that you could help me clear things up, but all you've done is make it worse."

"What? How did I make it worse?"

"By saying things about him when you barely know him! Really, Eugene, simply because he has uncontrollable powers, that means he's a monster?"

"Well . . ."

"How about this? You meet him, get to know him . . ."

"What?" Eugene asked incredulously.

"Then we'll talk."

"Did Gothel put this notion in your head?"

"What? No! Madame Gothel didn't even know that I was with him, though she does know he exists." Rapunzel paused and sighed, "If there's anything that's not confusing, Eugene, it's that though I was in a cave, I've never felt more free. It's always been with you, and now Jack, that I've had a taste of this." Eugene's eyes widened before a thoughtful look passed over his face.

"Alright, fine, I'll meet Jack and try to get to know him . . ."

"Yes!"

"But that doesn't mean I'll like him any less."

"What? Why?" Eugene merely smiled and planted a kiss on her cheek.

"I will say this much, the guy's got good taste." It took a moment for Rapunzel to realize he had been complimenting her, and when she did, her face turned beet red.

Eugene chuckled, "Come on, let's head back down, you've got a meeting to arrange."

Rapunzel nodded, "I'll send you another letter when we're ready." He pulls her in and kisses her tenderly.

"I love you," he whispered.

"I love you too," she whispered back. They kissed again before finally leaving the roof, a figure emerging from the inky blackness behind a statue not long after their descent to the ball.

A few days passed before Eugene received the longed for letter, letting him know that Jack would meet him after the next night's opera. The opera finally came and Eugene kept an eye on Rapunzel, her performance breathtaking, and an eye on Madame Gothel, unaware that a pair of glowing, blue eyes was also watching them, as well as him. About halfway through the performance, the lights went out for a brief moment, but was long enough for the singer on stage to disappear.

"Rapunzel!" gasped Eugene as others on the stage clamored with worry in the search for the missing lead. He dashed down to backstage, his fury growing with every step. How stupid he was! How could he have let himself believe that this Jack would actually want to meet him when all he wanted was Rapunzel? This was just a plot to make Eugene watch his love disappear and leaving him to feel helpless to do anything! His jaw clenched in determination, he was not going to let Jack win. He burst into Rapunzel's dressing room, calling out her name as he looked for the passage to the underworldly mansion. He happened to glance at the door one moment, and yelped, there stood the Russian.

"You search for Miss Canter?"

"Why do you need to know?"

"I can help, I recognised Mr. Winter's handiwork."

"Mr. Winter? Do you mean Jack?"

"That is the name he calls himself, yes, I refer to him as Mr. Winter for obvious reasons. Come, there is not much time." The Russian felt around the wall near the mirror not long before the mirror opened to reveal a dark passage.

"How?"

"Not much time, let's go!" The Russian dashed through the opening, followed not long afterwards by Eugene. "Stay close, no doubt easy to get lost in here. And though Mr. Winter may not know how to control his powers, that does not mean he will refuse to use them."

"Has he ever killed someone intentionally with his powers?" asked Eugene as the two hurried through the corridors.

"Yes, and made it look like freak accident, very easy for him to do in Russia."

Eugene just about choked, "And Rapunzel's with such a, a, a monster!"

"Let me explain, the noble he killed knew that Mr. Winter could use his powers effectively in Russia and get away with it, and wanted to use that to his advantage. But Mr. Winter did not want to kill anybody, though he eventually had to kill the noble just to be able to escape. I alone figured it all out, but by that time, the public understood it as a freak accident and Mr. Winter had already come to Germany. So I did the one thing I felt I could do, retire and come to Germany to watch over Mr. Winter."

"And now he has Rapunzel!"

"I believe we have already established that fact, Mr. Fitzherbert, but I do not think Mr. Winter would have acted thus had her life not been in danger."

"What?"

"Something else is hidden in the opera house, and not just Jack," was all the Russian would say on the matter, asking Eugene to keep quiet so he could lead them effectively to Jack's domain. After dashing through several corridors and crawling through a tunnel, the duo found themselves in a room with a glass wall. They walked further into the room to see what the glass peered into, when a noise from behind them caused them to turn.

"The door!" gasped Eugene as the door they had just walked through swung shut. It now looked no different than the rest of the wall.

"We will be fine, look, is that not Ms. Clemens?" Eugene's eyes followed the Russian's finger. Sure enough, as Eugene got closer to the glass, there sat Rapunzel on the other side. Her back was to the glass, her head glanced down as if she was in a melancholy mood.

"Rapunzel!" shouted Eugene. Rapunzel lifted her head and glanced around, just as a door opened. Eugene took a step back, so this was the monster who was holding his beloved captive. He saw the milky whiteness of Jack's skin and hair and shuddered, his ice blue eyes seemingly the only color about him. Jack's very appearance seemed to make the room grow colder, but Rapunzel seemed to take no notice of it and rose unafraid at his coming. Jack smiled at the gesture, the only thing seemingly warm about his countenance.

Rapunzel spoke, her voice clearly audible through the glass, "Jack, why did you bring me here so soon? Where's Eugene?"

Jack heaved a sigh, "He is nearly here, my sunshine, do not worry, I have made his way clear of any dangers."

"But, why . . ."

"So soon? It is because I fear for your safety, even his."

"What are you talking about?"

"I have discovered a secret, a secret so terrible that it could very well destroy this opera house and everyone in it, including yourself, a secret that has been hidden rather well, even from me. But now I know it, and . . . oh, Rapunzel, I am so, so sorry. Please forgive me, I had no idea." Jack sank to the floor at her feet, the sorrow evident in his voice.

"Wh-what didn't you know?" asked Rapunzel, becoming more and more afraid of this secret, of the danger to her and all those she cared about. "Jack, please tell me," she pressed on when he didn't reply. He merely sighed and brought her hands to his lips, an act which did not quite go over well with Eugene.

"I still have your word?"

"Of course, Jack, I never break a promise, you should know that by now." Jack just nodded as he rose and approached the glass wall. He touched something on the wall intersecting with it, and it opened. Rapunzel gasped when it opened, "Eugene!"

"Rapunzel!" The two quickly embraced, but Rapunzel stopped him when he tried to kiss her. "Rapunzel? What is it?" Eugene asked worriedly.

"I-I promised," she whispered.

Eugene glanced between her and Jack, "What did you promise?" Rapunzel glanced at Jack before sighing and turning to Eugene.

"I-I promised to marry him," she whispered.

Eugene backed up, "Wh-what?"

The Russian glanced at Jack, "What game are you playing at, Mr. Winter?"

"It's not a game, North, this is serious, and for both their good."

"How, how can this be for our good?" exclaimed Eugene.

"What is going on, Mr. Winter?" Jack only sighed in reply and put a ring on Rapunzel's finger.

"You will promise to come back when I send for you?"

"Y-yes," replied Rapunzel.

Jack nodded before putting the hand in Eugene's, "Then go. Make sure they get out of here, North. And the two of you don't come back to the opera house until I say so, is that clear?"

"Perfectly," muttered Eugene as he pulled on Rapunzel to get her out, but she pulled her hand away and faced Jack.

"Jack, why won't you tell us anything?"

"You'll find out for sure in the papers, once it's all over."

"But, I-I promised to marry you . . ."

Jack kissed her forehead, "I know, I release you from that promise. Now go, there isn't much time. Take the boat and follow the river out into the city."

"Wait a minute, hold on. You make her promise to marry you, only to release her from that promise minutes later? What kind of a madman are you?"

Jack smiled sadly, "One of the lonely, downtrodden kind. Now go, hurry!"

"But," began Rapunzel, but North was already ushering them out. They found the boat easily enough, and North rowed them away, safely into the city. As Jack foretold, they found out quickly enough the other secret that lay hidden at the opera house. Not only had Gothel been kidnapping girls from their homes and forcing them to keep alive a dying house, but that she would sell some of the no longer needed ones into slavery. North found out that Rapunzel had been one of those girls and was next on the list to be sold, Jack miraculously finding out only days before the purchase would have occurred. Not long after that, Rapunzel was reunited with her family, and the letter from Jack arrived. North and Eugene went to get him, but they found him already dead, and the three gave him a proper burial. North returned to Russia, and Rapunzel and Eugene were married. But every year, at the same time, they would return to a grave, the only three who would ever remember the Phantom of the Opera.