Disclaimer: I do not own POTO or Elisabeth.

A/N: I edited Chapter 1 to make this chapter work. It was a quick revision but very important to the rest of the story: Erik doesn't kiss Christine.

Chapter Fifteen

Death At Work

"What?!" Christine cried. The messenger repeated his statement. "This can't be true! Raoul has no right-"

The messenger calmly protested, "The Comte de Chagny has every right to take total custody of his rightful son. I might add that it is in your very best interest, Mademoiselle, to obey this decree."

"Decree? You make him out to be some sort of king!"

"Mademoiselle, I do only as I'm told. Good-day." He walked away with cold indifference. Christine shut the door, and her anger immediately gave way to sorrow. She collapsed on the chaise, her tears flowing freely.

"I'll get him back," she assured herself. "Raoul can't keep Vladen away from me forever…" Deep inside, though, she knew that her chances in that time and age were extremely slim, and that very thought made her cry harder. Lurking in the shadows, her angel heard her.

XXX

Erik scoffed at the ornate decorations in the room in the Chagny mansion. He decided that the Chagny family was really entirely useless. He had no time to go over the reasons why the Chagny family was this way, though, for he had work to do.

Silently, he stalked up to the bed. Sometimes he missed the challenge involved in taking lives. Now he just had to kiss them and their immortal souls floated (or fell) to their place in eternity. Reaping souls was simply his job now. He had no time to get creative with their deaths.

Even though Erik had instructions on whose life to take he had bent the rules. He thought back to Christine's friend, Beate Svanbäck. She hadn't put up any fight and numbly allowed her demise to take place. When she finally realized what was happening and let out a screech, it was too late. He let out a dry laugh. She had been so foolish trying to cast that spell to rid Christine of him. Did she think that she and Christine, barely more than girls could've meddled with black magic successfully? Sometimes, he wished that Christine hadn't done the wise thing and had attempted the spell with Beate. Then he might have been obliged to take her soul too. Instead, he used Beate's passing as a sort of dark way to encourage Christine's coming to him. This time, Death had a different motive. The person lying on the bed in front of him had caused his Christine so much pain. He should've done this a long time ago.

After removing the mask from his face, Erik leaned over and planted a soft kiss on Dacio's lips. Now her soul could go to Hell were it belonged.

XXX

Christine numbly paged through L'Epoque as she swallowed the piece of croissant that she was eating. On the second page was the headline:

DACIO JETTER, SISTER OF THE COMTE de CHAGNY DIES MYSTERIOUSLY

She gulped, but read on anyway.

"Yesterday morning, when Dacio's personal maid, Zoé, went to wake her mistress she was met with quite a surprise. Zoé says, "I came in, as usual, and said, 'Madame, it is time to wake.' What struck me as unusual was her failure to respond. Normally it woke her up easily. I repeated my greeting, this time a little louder. Still there was no response. Frightened, I went for Monsieur Jetter, Madame's husband. The first thing he did when entered the room was check for a pulse. There was none. A doctor came in and double-checked Monsieur Jetter and came to the conclusion. Madame had passed into immortality.'

The cause of Madame Jetter's death is still unknown."

Christine dropped the paper on the table. People die everyday. In fact, it was actually a relief to know that Dacio wouldn't be around to make her life miserable anymore. Now it might be easier to get the slightest bit of custody on her son. She sighed and told her herself that she had nothing to do with it. Of course, she didn't believe herself.

"Christine…" She could feel Erik's presence right behind her. He took her hand and pressed it against his cheek, savoring the moment. Softly singing her name over and over again, the syllables flowing out of his mouth like a soothing waterfall, he used his free hand to bring her face until it was inches away from his. Uttering her name one last time, he went to steal the kiss that would make Christine forever his, but she had broke trance when his voice had faded.

"No, Erik, not now." She got up from the chair and walked into the front room.

He followed her persistently. "Come, my dear, do not tell me that you wish to avoid me? To avoid fate?"

"I don't want to die. Not yet, Erik."

Erik eyed Christine angrily. He seized her shoulders and turned her around. "I am tired of this little game of cat and mouse! If you refuse me now, you will spend your eternity alone. Are you quite aware that everyone dear to you has left you? Raoul has gone away already, and he has taken Vladen away with him, whatever friends you had back at the Opera Garnier hardly remember you at all, and even your dead father disapproves your conduct!"

"My… My papa?" Christine stammered. If she knew her papa he would love her no matter what. The Papa she remembered would never dream of abandoning her.

"Yes, your papa! He is disappointed with his little star. I am quite sure that you see now that without me you will be alone until the end of time."

"This is insane!" Christine cried finally, writhing out of Erik's grip. Now her anger had built up and would contain itself no longer. "I am my own woman, Monsieur Death. It would do you good to know that."

Erik replied coldly, "Goodbye, then, Mademoiselle."

A/N: Ha! Y'all thought I was going to kill off Raoul, didn't you?

Please R&R!