Chapter 16: The Greatest Treasure

Christine had been participating in rehearsals for the upcoming production of Dracula but rehearsals kept being interrupted by a giggling Gustave whom was playing tag with Nadir's son Reza,

"I do apologise, Director" Christine bid awkwardly before smiling towards Hope,

"Mrs Y. Would you mind watching my son for the day?" she asked and Hope seemed surprised,

"Errrrr... Yes of course. It would be my pleasure" she said before looking towards Nadir,

"Shall I take Reza too?" she asked but Nadir smiled and shook his head,

"No it's ok. It's time for his afternoon lessons anyway" he told her, lifting his son it his arms as Hope took Gustave on a tour of Phantasma.

Gustave looked around with amazement and wonder at all the rides,

"This place is amazing, Mrs Y" he said with a giggle and Hope smiled brightly,

"You're welcome to call me Hope" she told him gently and he giggled once more before following her as they both went to get a hot dog.

Gustave smiled as he enjoyed his hot dog,

"Hope? Can I ask you a question?" the young boy asked and Hope smiled,

"Of course you can" she replied,

"Why do you and Mister Y not have any children?" he asked curiously causing Hope to nearly choke on her tea,

"I... Well..." she began nervously with a slight awkward giggle,

"I guess my husband and I... Just haven't been blessed with children yet" she finished,

"And that is such a shame because you would make a wonderful mother" a voice said making them both look up,

"Vicomte?... What brings you here?" Hope asked and Raoul smiled as he took a seat beside Gustave in the booth,

"I am doing my own exploration of Phantasma... And what I have seen so far is truly beautiful" he said with a charming smile and Hope looked at him unimpressed,

"Yes, Phantasma truly is beautiful. My husband designed every detail himself" she said firmly and Raoul chuckled,

"Well I am sure its beauty was inspired by something" he said with a wink and Hope folded her arms,

"Vicomte, do you usually flirt with married women whilst being married yourself and do so in front of your son?" she asked unimpressed and watched as Raoul sighed,

"I am sorry, Mrs Y... Things have been difficult for myself lately" he told her causing Hope to frown,

"How so?" she asked,

"Well... My own foolish and stubborn nature has caused increasing gambling debts upon my family and this is why my wife accepted this job in hopes that we may begin raising money to pay my debts off" he explained,

"So that's why you wanted a pay rise" Hope said in realisation, watching as the man before her nodded sadly,

"Finding work for my wife has been difficult since she lost her ability to sing. It was even harder for her when our son was born for she could not sing him the lullaby his grandfather had sang to her when she was young" he told her and Hope glanced at the table's surface sadly,

"Yes... I'm sure that would make a mother sad" she said in a murmur,

"Can I go and play in the play area, father?" Gustave asked having finished his hot dog and Raoul smiled, ruffling the young boy's hair,

"Of course. Don't talk to strangers and don't wander off" Raoul told him and Gustave giggled as he headed outside into the fenced play area,

"I won't!" he called back and Raoul offered Hope a sad smile,

"I suppose you have noticed that... Gustave looks nothing like me" he said causing Hope to frown,

"It is not my place to comment" she replied gently and Raoul smiled,

"You are a kind and polite woman, Mrs Y. You are dedicated and faithful to your husband... Which is more than I can say for my wife" he finished with a sad murmur,

"Gustave isn't your son?" Hope asked gently already knowing the answer to her question due to the vision she had had,

"No... Gustave's true father is... Long gone. In life he was Christine's singing teacher" he admitted,

"I see how Christine looks at me sometimes... She resents me for not being Gustave's father but I love her and I love Gustave as if he were my own... I believe Christine's hatred for me grows with each failed attempt to return her voice. For you see, all the places we have travelled we search for a physician who might hold some kind of remedy that could return my wife's voice. This was my reason for searching Phantasma today. I thought one of your husband's foreign employees might have an answer" Raoul explained sadly and Hope placed a comforting hand over his,

"I am truly sorry for your struggles" she told him with a heartfelt expression.

It was sometime later that Hope walked into Erik's office with an exhausted expression,

"Urrrr... I can see why you hate him" she mumbled causing Erik to look up from his paperwork with a curious expression,

"Who?" he asked,

"The vicomte... I'm afraid he knows who I am. He attempted to charm me by giving me a sob story of how Gustave is not his son in an attempt to try and convince me to return Christine's voice" she explained and Erik gripped the pen in his hand even tighter causing it to snap and ink went everywhere,

"He did what?" he growled causing Hope to giggled as she came to Erik's side, removing the remains of the broken pen before cleaning the ink from Erik's hand,

"No need to be jealous" she teased,

"Well you are my wife. He has no right to try and attempt to charm you" he pointed out stubbornly,

"Stage wife" she corrected gently and Erik frowned,

"Yes... Stage wife" he murmured and watched as Hope used her magic to remove the ink stains from Erik's paper work,

"Hope?... Can I ask you something?" Erik asked gently causing his friend to smile softly,

"You sound like your son... Go ahead" she bid gently, sitting down in one of the chairs that sat in front of Erik's desk,

"I... Well... It is about the upcoming performance of Dracula" he said and Hope leant forward with a look of concern,

"Is everything ok?" she asked and Erik nodded quickly,

"Yes... Yes, everything is fine" he assured,

"I just... I wanted to ask if... If you would perform the role of Mina Murray" he told her causing Hope to look stunned,

"I... I thought that was to be Christine's role" she murmured but Erik shook his head,

"No, Christine is to play the role of Lucy Westenra, Mina's best friend" he explained,

"I have yet to find someone to play Mina" he finished and Hope smiled softly,

"Well... If you think I am worthy enough... Then I would be honoured" she told him gently and Erik smiled brightly,

"Thank you... You do not know what a great favour you are doing for me" he said and Hope giggled before standing as she hugged Erik and pressed a gentle kiss to his cheek,

"Goodnight, Erik" she bid before leaving to head to bed and Erik smiled softly,

"Goodnight..." he murmured and it was only after Hope left that Nadir popped his head up from behind the couch,

"Erik... You were meant to ask her if she would join you for dinner after the production ended... Not make her the main role!" he yelled causing Erik to wince,

"I know... I panicked" he said and Nadir slapped a hand over his face.

Awwwwww How adorable is Erik?! hehe

Kind Regards,

TheAuthor1996