I don't recall what had happened. I found myself being awaken from a deep feverish sleep but the touch of cool water across my forehead. With my eyes still closed, I reached up my hand to my forehead to touch a wet cloth lying over it. Yet I still felt water fall unsteadily over my face. I opened my eyes.

Erik's black mask stared back at me. His eyes were shut and above my head was his hand, dripping water from his fingertips onto my face. His hand shook as if he were freezing. His breath was no more than labored gasps.

"Erik…" I called.

His yellow eyes opened.

"Erik you are trembling…"

He pulled his hand away and brought it under my head. I then realized his other hand had been there as well and they both quivered underneath me. I looked into his mask and tried with all my might, not to think of that mad look in his eyes and his face contorted with rage when I had unmasked it. Here he was crying over me and I could only conjure that mad horrible face.

I had to see it again. To know that like the man that owned it, that face was capable of other emotions. Slowly I reached my hands up to the touch the mask.

"No…Christine..." He murmured.

I managed to pull myself up. A quick glance around and I saw I was no longer locked in Erik's room. He had brought me out and we both lay on one of the chaises, my head in his lap. His mask was finally in my reach. His hands shot up to grip mine.

"Please…" he begged.

"No, Erik I must." I reasoned. "Or I will be forever haunted that the face behind you mask is one full of hate for me."

"Christine…I could never hate you." My fingers managed to stretch enough from his grip to reach the edges of his mask.

"Then let me do this." I pleaded.

His eyes closed in pain as he let his hands relax their grip. Gently my fingers reached around his head, lost in a tangle of coal black hair. The straps fell away and pulled back the mask. His eyes were still shut as I set it aside. I saw that he had indeed been crying and I reached up to touch him.

Except his chin and lips, there was no trace of fat underneath his flesh. Each outline of his taught skin was accented by the bones of his face, protruding out. I felt them. If he had the face of normal man with these elegant cheek bones, he would have been exceptionally handsome. Instead these features made him appear more misshapen. I touched the patches of flesh that had been rubbed raw by the tightness of his mask.

"Oh Erik…" I moaned. I could not help it. My heart was full of sorrow. For all his deception and wicked acts, I still felt sorrow for him. This man, this musical genius was forced to cover his face. But something else must have happened to him in his life, to cause him to hide himself from the world. Something terrible had happened to him to drive him to hide in the shadows and live underground. To drive him…into madness. The cloth on my forehead had started to slip away. I caught it then used it to press against his sores. Some were so bad that they were bleeding. Erik must have hated the sight of his face so much that he did not bother to tend to the injuries his mask caused him.

"Erik, do you always wear your mask?" I asked.

He sighed, a low painful expression. "It's the face of a monster. Even though it has been mine since birth, I am ashamed to look at it. One look is enough." His gaze met mine. "Tell me Christine, what you think of me now? Now that you have seen me"

I examined the rest of his face. His captivating eyes were set deep in the sockets, surrounded by shadows. When they were closed they looked like the eyes of a skull. This effect was enhanced by that fact that where his nose should have been, there was a scared black hole with only the smallest hint of skin.

"I had to look again." I started. "And now I see the face of any other man who has been hurt. A sad face…"

He pressed a hand over mine, holding it against his cheek. "Oh Christine…but when you look at me, I see your eyes are full of pity…not love. And because of that, you will want to leave me."

I sighed and returned his mask. I wanted to tell him that he could leave it off, if he wanted. But his quickly retrieval of it from hands was enough of a hint that he wished to remain masked.

"Is it so wrong of me to pity for you? Doesn't it show that I care?" I pleaded with him. His eyes remained shut so I turned away. "Erik what am I to you?" I asked uncertain if I really wanted to know the answer. "How can I expect to sort out my own feelings about you if….you keep me in the dark about yours?"

Erik had told me he loved me. He waited at my side and groveled at my feet like a dog and he did all these things in the name of his love. One moment he would be astoundingly tender and gentle with me. Then his temper would flare and he would say cruel things to terrify me. That kind of love frightened me. Surely he did not think I could return it, not after what had happened between us. Not after what he had done to me.

He adjusted his mask, and brushed a few stray locks of black hair away from his face. "I saw you when you first came to the opera, for not much escapes my notice around here. I saw you going about your duties and I found myself more than often coming up from my home to watch you from the shadows. I watched you and I saw this beautiful, kind…innocent young woman…and I thought 'What a shame that such kindness is wasted on such vanity'."

He leaned back against the couch as he spoke. His tone was capricious as he recalled these events, but his eyes did not focus on me. "I started to wonder how sweet it would be to pass an hour in your company. If you were so kind to others, perhaps you would not be…repulsed by me. Then one night, I heard the most un-earthly voice ring out over the auditorium. It was a clear as a fine tuned bell and most beautiful. It was indeed the voice of an angel. So imagine my surprise when I saw that it belonged to you. I was struck dumb and I knew in that instant you were destined for more Christine. That you would waste away scrubbing costume and dressing foolish actors. I knew in that moment that I didn't want to hear any other voice for as long as I lived. I knew that you deserved to be on that stage. But you seemed so shy and I thought…if I could only help this girl."

His hands sat in his lap and he rubbed his long fingers together nervously. "I knew in that moment that I loved you. Something had drawn me to you before and when I heard you sing I knew I had to help you. I almost died when you agreed to sing for me and I kept my excitement restrained during our lessons. I was so frighten to tell you, afraid I would hurt you and also…that you would refuse me." He stood up and started to pace in front of me, planning out what he would say next.

"Forgive me, but I became obsessed." He confessed. "Those hours we passed together were the happiest ones… I have ever known. I didn't want them to end. I wanted you for my own and I hoped that you would let me know how wonderful it would be to be blessed by your kindness. So I brought you here with me." He brought his hands together in a pleading gesture. "You asked if it was wrong of you to pity me. Now I'm asking is it so wrong of me to love you?"

"No. No one can make the decision of when they will fall in love, so I do not condemn you for it." I admitted. "But it was wrong of you to take me away…and you can't keep me here…forever." I recalled his chilling words as he dropped me into the coffin that served as his bed.
Another one of his mournful sighs sounded around us. "I was afraid you would say that."

"When is my audition?" I asked, desperate to change the subject.

Again, the expressionless black face stared back at me, but his eyes moved about in thoughtfulness. "In two days…"

"What will you do with me then?"

"I will escort you up to the opera at the right moment. You will sing and then we will both return home to celebrate your triumph." His voice was now the steady calculated tone I had become familiar with.

"Home? You mean here?" I asked

"You seemed repulsed at the idea, my love?" The cynical unfeeling tone had returned to his voice.

I shook my head, fearing that he had returned to that mad state of his mind. "You know I must leave you at that time. You must let me go." I reasoned.

He turned away from me. "Are you so anxious to leave me?" he asked bitterly.

"I have to leave. I have friends and people who care about me. Don't you think they have been concerned as to where I am?" I explained. "I can't simply walk onto the stage and expect everyone to welcome me back..."

He waved a dismissive hand. "I have arranged for everything, Christine." I could imagine. If Erik had the power as the Opera Ghost he was rumored to have, I was sure that any role he had in mind for me was already secured. Whether I audition for it or not.

"But you didn't plan for this? I have to explain to Genevieve where I have been, and my guardian." My thoughts suddenly turned to Madame. "My guardian has been kind to me, and she is a very old woman." I explained. "She has probably been very worried by me. It's not that I want to leave, but I must. I need to see her."

He stood up and went to his piano, trying to distract me. "But what of the man?"

My face grew red hot. I thought for a brief moment that he had seen Raoul with me and he knew about us. About that innocent kiss. "Who?"

"The one who took your necklace." he growled. I let out a deep breath. He wasn't talking about Raoul. Then I realized that he was speaking about Frederich, and that if I returned home, I would once again be at his mercy.

"Please Erik!" I cried. I went to his side. I did not want to beg him.

He paused and gazed at me intently. "I will think about it."

"Please don't try to deter me. Will you let me go, to visit my guardian?"

"Christine, I am only concerned for your safety. Is staying with me such a terrible option?"

"No, you are twisting my words. I'm more concerned for Madame more than anything else." I protested.

He did not answer right away. I collapsed back into the cushion of the chaise. I looked around the room. Erik had captivated my attention that I did not notice the state of disarray in the sitting room. The floor was covered with sheets of music. The end tables had been turned over and the delicate objects they once displayed on top were reduce to broken bits. I realized I was seeing the evidence of Erik's extreme temper. He had been driven to such rage at what I had done. There was no doubt in my mind that his anger would only intensify if I left him. But I had to try.

"Erik, I will tell no one of where I have been. I swear." I offered. "I will continue to be your devoted pupil if you wish to still be my teacher. But you must let me go. At least to see my friends. To let them know I'm well." I threw out my last attempt. "It would kill me to have them not know what has happened to me."

Erik put his elbows on the top of the piano and slowly leaned forward on them. He was in his shirtsleeves. For so long I had only seen him in his long black coat, so that sometimes his body faded into the dark shadows that were his familiar surroundings. Now I could see clearly how incredibly long his arms and limbs were.

"Christine, will you make me a promise?" he asked.

I paused, unsure of what he would ask. "Yes." I answered tentatively

"I feel with confidence that you would not tell anyone about me. I trust you not to run away, because you have not made an attempt to do so as of yet. Please visit your family and your friends, and get your affairs in order." He stated. "But you must promise me this one thing."

My heart was pounding at the thought. "Yes, anything…"

He turned and stared at me. His voice was no longer light or mocking. It had deepened in tone. "If you feel for a moment that you are unsafe. If anyone tries to hurt you, promise that you will call on me…That you will return to me for help."

I had expected a more trying demand. I thought I would only have a few days before Erik might realize his mistake and bring me back to live with him. But he had set no deadline or made any threats.

"I can only protect you within the walls of the opera house. Outside my world, you can only rely on yourself." He continued. "You are a brave girl, Christine, but there is only so much you can do alone."

He did not need to make any threats. I knew his unspoken apprehensions. Here he had made a world, safe from the jeers and taunts of human kind.

A place where a man like him could live alone and in safety.

To him, his home was not a prison. It was a sanctuary.

My two weeks were over. I awoke the morning of my audition shaking from nerves. I lied to Erik saying I was only anxious about singing, but we both knew the real truth. I was concerned on what I would say and how I would explain my disappearance. I was only a dresser, not of great importance in the hierarchy of the opera company, but my absence was bounded to be noticed.

Erik did not offer me any advice on this matter. His only concern was my audition. He had drilled me on my music and vocal technique with a relentless pace. He had managed to secure a new outfit for me, made up of a fashionable blouse and skirt. This was only after I had pointed out that some one was bound to recognize that my dresses had once been former costumes.

I finally saw the world of the cellars behind the closed doors. His house looked out upon a small lake. At my surprise, he explained to me the mechanics of the lake and how when the opera was built over the water system, it made more sense to leave the lake in place and build around it. He rowed us to the other shore in a small boat. Looking at his home from the outside, I couldn't distinguish it from the walls surrounding the cavern. It was that well hidden.

He led me through endless passages and stairs, climbing upward. I didn't even think of trying to keep track of every turn we made. I saw that there was no reason for Erik to keep the path to his home hidden from me. It was too secreted for me to find if I tried. We finally came to the door that led from the hall with our music room to the backstage. I stood on the landing, peering over the fly and rails to see the company rehearsing. The stage seem packed with the entire company, with one end taken up by the ballet girls leaping about; to the chorus shoved off in a corner focusing on M. Gabriel.

Erik's hands rested on my shoulders. "I must go." He whispered.

"Wait, where do I go now?" I asked.

Erik's lips curled into a thin grin, his gaze shifted to the side. "I told you Christine, I have everything planned."

As soon as he spoke, I heard the voice of M. Gabriel call out to the company. "Ladies, we will be having open auditions for any chorus members who wishes to try for the role of Cherbunio."

I looked at him surprised, but I shouldn't have been.

"Go on Christine. You are ready."

"Will you be watching?" I asked unsure.

"I will always be watching." he replied. I turned to go but he stopped me, grabbing my hand and pressing a kiss upon it. "Remember your promise."

"Yes, Erik." I walked out of the shadows and through the wings. Those who passed me by seemed to pay no attention. I took a deep breath and stepped from the shadows onto the stage.

I had taken no more than two steps before I heard my name screamed.

"Christine!"

All eyes turned to look at Genny, who stood staring at me with her mouth a gape. Then they turned to me and I heard gasps and whispers.

"Christine, oh God." Genny threw her arms around my waist. "I thought you were dead!" She cried and pressed her face down into my shoulder. Behind us I could hear whispers and could feel the stares directed at me.

Genny backed away, holding my hands in her face, like a frighten mother who's lost child has just been returned. "What happened?" she asked.

"I managed to get away. Who ever was chasing us stopped when we split up. But I got lost in the opera house, and by the time I made my way out, I was so exhausted that I collapsed in the street." My made up story seemed almost as fantastically as what had really happened. "A family found me and put me up in a hospital for a week until I got my strength back."

"I was so frightened for you. Christine, do you have any idea who that was?" she asked.

"No. Do you?"

Genny shook her head. "May have well been the devil or the Opera Ghost." She admitted with a shudder. "I just pray that I never see him again." She looked at me sternly. "Why did you not tell me you were all right? Why did you wait so long to come back?"

I didn't have a good answer for that. "I'm surprised I'm allowed to be here in the first place. Madame Valerius was most insistent that I quit my job after she heard what happened."

"Christine, I told the managers what happened that night. Everyone here thought you were dead or worst. You should have sent word!" her lips formed a pout. "You are no longer staying here alone late at night. Promise me that Christine." She chided me.

I almost smiled. "I promise."

"Ladies…" Gabriel had come from behind Genny and looked over. "While I am surprised and grateful to see Mlle. Daae has return to us unharmed, I am on a tight schedule here. Would you mind having your reunion elsewhere?" he asked annoyed.

"No." I said firmly. "I came here with another purpose. I want to audition." I told him.

That drew more surprised exclamations from the small audience gathered around us. Gabriel's serious face broke into an expression of complete befuddlement.

"But you're not even in the chorus!" he exclaimed.

Genny rushed to my defense. "Oh please Monsieur Gabriel, let Christine sing for you. She has the most beautiful voice."

He shook his head. "But it's highly irregular."

Genny stood with her arms cross, glaring daggers at the chorus master with the attitude of a true diva. "Please let her sing as a favor to me. I would hate to have to tell my brother that you refused me that." She said coolly.

Gabriel's mouth hung open speechless. I put a hand on Genny's arm. "No. I want to do this myself." I told her and then turned my attention to Gabriel. "Please, I would very much appreciate the chance to sing for you. Even if it might convince you that I could have a spot in the chorus. But if you feel I'm not ready after hearing me, then I'll return to my old job and not waste anymore of your time."

He seemed surprised that I had such courage to address him in such a manner, but he relented. "Very well mademoiselle, but please let the other ladies who are already in the chorus audition first." He said bluntly. "You are excused for now, Mlle. De Chagny. You are singing the role of Susanna any way."

Genny smiled and titled her head. "Oh no, I'll say here for the time being. I don't want to miss this." She took a seat out in the stall among the other members of the company. To my discomfort I noticed many of them had followed Genny in mingling around after my shocking entrance, intrigued at the notion of a costume girl auditioning for a leading role.

Five ladies were ahead of me, each one sparing a nasty glance in my direction. The same aria was repeated over and over before it was finally my turn. M. Gabriel leaned against one of the columns in the stage, a look of disdain written over his face. I searched among the faces in the stalls.

"You're next Mlle. Daae." Gabriel informed me. I took a step out towards center stage. I did not see my maestro any where. I even glanced up to the box I had seen him hiding in at our first meeting, but he was not there.

"Christine?" a voice called to me.

I turned to my left and saw Camille there. She looked at me concerned.

"The music? Don't you want it?" She asked, holding out a folio in her hands.

I sighed. "No thank you, Camille."

Her smile warmed me. "Good luck." she whispered.

The conductor looked at me earnestly and started the opening bars. Suddenly there was the slam of a door and at the back of the auditorium; Carlotta waltzed in with the managers in tow. I felt like my knees would buckle and I fall down right then and there. They continued their chattering, oblivious to what was happening on stage. The conductor simply shrugged, waved his hands to stop the violins and stared the piece over again.

I began trying hard to keep my voice steady among the thousand unseen distractions in my head.

"I can't give you a good explanation for the new and confusing sensation…."

I tried to remember everything Erik had told me over the past few weeks, but the piece moved so fast there was no time to think if I had reach the right pitch on each quarter note.

"Makes me tremble with pleasure and pain…makes me tremble with pleasure and pain…" My eyes darted around the auditorium, looking at the blank faces that stared back at me, not seeing the one I wanted to see the most.

Erik, where are you?

"I am spell bound and rapt with attention. I weave romances and daydreams together." I recalled our music lesson before I had unmasked him. I had agreed to sing for him. Even though I had been filled with emotion, I did not express any of it in my singing. And now I found myself doing the same thing here. I was not giving myself to the music. I knew the notes by heart and their patterns by memory. But no one would be impressed by a girl singing this music in such a mechanical fashion.

"Filled with longing…filled with longing I cannot explain."

I closed my eyes, recalling the emotions Cherbunio would have. A young lover singing about someone he cannot have. Envious of his dear friends who spends their time in the company of his love, while he watches from the shadows.

"Love, that word that sets me hoping and fearing. Love, that word I'm always hearing .Love, ah love how can I dissemble, those desires that I hardly dare name…"

I looked out briefly across the heads of the people seated in the stalls. In my mind I conjured an image of Erik standing at the back, watching me. Every detail was clear in my mind's eyes. The silhouette of his jacket against his tall thin frame. His graceful long fingers moving to the tempo of the music as I sang and his amber eyes filled with pride.

It is enough that you sing for me…always and only for me

Pride swelled in me as I reached the final phrase.

"And even if none be near me, I talk of love alone, talk of it alone."

I remembered the sweet sensation of Erik's hand as he steadied my breathing on my stomach. I let the memory fill me as I let the last note soar from my throat. As soon as it ended, I looked up towards the empty box

A shadow stood there; just barely noticeable from the curtain he stood behind. But I could make out his trademark features in the black outline I now saw. I could not see his eyes but I knew he was looking at me.

Then I heard applause.

My eyes still fixated on Erik, I saw that he was making no movement with his hands, which brought my gaze away to follow the direction of the sound. It seemed everyone was staring at me…and clapping! The violinists in the pit tapped their bows against their stands to show appreciation. The smile on Genny's face was from ear to ear. Even the managers and Carlotta had moved from their originally positions and were now right in front of the pit, watching intently.

Confused and overwhelmed, I made a quick curtsy to the conductor and then did the same to M. Gabriel. "Thank you, monsieur." I said. Again the chorus master was speechless.

I turned to leave, still hearing the clapping all around me. Behind me, I saw a multitude of chorus members, ballerinas, and even stagehands who had gathered. Some of them had delighted looks on their faces other looked stunned. But they all put their hands together as I passed. My ears were filled with the whispers of my name.

"Christine…Christine…Christine…."

Not surprisingly a blush filled my face and I tried to exit without making more of a scene. Someone tapped my on the shoulder. I turned and saw the well worn face of Madame LeRoy.

My joy abandoned me in the face of my employer. I did not even think of how I would explain my lengthy absences from work. She looked upset as our eyes locked.

"Madame…" I started. "I am so sorry that I didn't come back…to work… and now that I was trying to audition…." I stumbled over my words. "Please…I really did enjoy my work and if you would have me, I would like to have my old job back if…"

She pressed a finger to her lips as a motion for me to be silent. And then I saw that what I had interpreted as disappointment in her eyes, were actually tears instead. She reached out and embraced me. It felt strange this action from such a reserved woman.

She sighed. "Christine, Mademoiselle De Chagny told me what happened. I wasn't angry. I was worried. We all were…"

"Thank you for your concern, Madame." I replied sincerely "But my job…"

She shook her head and smiled. "No Christine, I think the next time I see you in my department, I'll be taking measurements for your costume."