Ah, the usual: Still don't own the characters. Plot is MINE -:menacing growl:-
First off, the answers to two unasked questions:
No. I have no intention of giving up on this story; my muse has been on haitus and I've only recently started the process of trying to coerce her back to work. If such a calmity were to happen, there would be plenty of notice so no worries there.
And yes. I DID fall off the face of the earth. Sorry it's been so God-awful-long since I've updated. Haven't been up to typing or much anything else for that matter. I've been more than a little sick this summer but after two rather hellish months I think I might actually be finally free to recouperate and enjoy the last month before I start college here. After 3 seperate trips to the ER, more doctors visits than I can count, a 5 night stay in the hosptial, and a 7 night stay that included an 8 hour drive to transfer up to Mayo clinic (because the docs here admitted that they didn't know anything else they could do for me), I think I've earned a break. But I'd rather just forget about all that and think about Erik here. Still trying to beseech my muse -:readies platter of chocolates:-.
OH! Before I forget (like I could): when I got back I was absolutely thrilled to see that I broke 100 reviews! -:sniff, wipes tear:- it's a dream come true, thank you all so much!
phantomann: -:giggle:- my lips are sealed :). Thank you!
Emmanuelle Lisselle Grey: yay! glad to have caught your attention. Thank YOU!
Victorian Dream: ha, glad to add to your collection. :) We'll see if I stay in character this time around; I had some issues. Glad you're still there. Thank you!
DragonheartRAB: nope I wouldn't. Couldn't kill Erik like that anyway yet... nah. sorry it took so long. Thank you!
Lady sernna Valerious: awww thank you!
gavvie: star wars? oh my. Thank you!
Killer Veggies: they will be together in time, I promise. Thank you!
Neori: yeah, you might still feel bad for Christine at the end of this one too... oops... :) anyway, thank you!
Midnight Tango: yes! it was the Joker. I love superheroes... and because everyone seems to need some reassurance: YES, IT WILL BE AN E/C. I just don't want them to jump into it illogically; I'm trying to make it fit a little more naturally I mean Erik's been hurt, he's going to be a little wary but he will get there, I promise. Thank you!
decadentserenity: ooo, interesting name! glad you like phillippe but I don't know if I'll ever be able to give up vampire Erik. Thank youso much!
twinlady: actually he doesn't make it back but you'll see what I mean. aww shucks...thank you!
cm1000: hey, no problem.Thank you so much!
GerikMuse: hee hee, I got another couple of those interactions planned ahead. aww, I've been favorited! Thank You!
phantomgoddess34: Aww, thank you! again, sorry to make you wait so long. :)
Elizabeth:-:blushes:-I'm honored :). Thank you!
Omega Davin: aww shucks. Thank you!
Captain Oblivious: yes, vampires are rather fun indeed. glad to catch your interest. Thank you!
Kitty Felone: we'll just have to wait and find out, won't we? (I'm not entirely clear myself-:smirk:-) btw, if you'd still like me to edit stuff, just send it to me anytime. Thank You!
I really like responding individually to reviewers (because you guys are just so cool!) but I might have to stop with responses like that...hmm...I'll just have to fill the space with more story then...yeah...that'll work. :) Jeeze, I hope half of you come back...
ANYWAY...Let's get back to what Erik is doing, eh?
Erik didn't remember falling asleep but he woke up with his head resting on Christine's bed (or rather, the reflection of it), sitting next to it with his legs sprawled out and his cape functioning as a makeshift blanket. Christine shifted in the bed and the sun was in full glory, thankfully on the other side of the bed for the moment, though even that was blinding to his eyes. He pulled his cape over his head while Christine pulled the covers over her own, moaning that morning had come too early. Baking under his cape, Erik threw it off and slid under the bed's reflection, staring out of the mirror and just watching Christine, grateful that the angle made it possible.
He had no idea how long he watched her; his only clue was the sunlight creeping across the room…dangerously close to the mirror. He edged away from the bright rectangle that appeared with the rest of the reflection, squinting even in the shadows left. As close to the edge of the frame as he could manage, Erik alternated between watching Christine and hiding from the brilliant sunlight that was scalding his eyes.
The sunlight stretched further. Erik was running out of space to move. Again, his choices were limited.
"Christine," he hissed. She stirred lightly so he tried again a little louder, "Christine!"
She sat up and blinked heavily. "Erik?" she murmured groggily.
"Yes."
A smile bloomed on her face as she met the gaze of his form in her mirror. "I didn't dream it. You're still here."
"So I am. Christine, I need you to do something."
"Anything, Erik."
"Cover this mirror."
Confusion crossed her face. "Cover the mirror? But why, Erik?"
"The sun," he replied simply.
Still not entirely understanding, Christine assumed that either ghosts were beings of the night and therefore not accustomed to the sun or perhaps it was just Erik's way after having spent much of his life in a cellar as she moved toward the mirror with one of the extra blankets from her bed.
"Erik, how do I know you won't disappear?"
"Does that matter, Christine? You must do this. Please." Erik hated having to beg, preferring obedience especially as the sun drew closer and brilliance of the room made his eyes ache and his skin burn.
He sighed with relief as she placed the dark cover over the mirror. The objects that had once settled in the reflection were gone; only the hazy grey memory of Christine's furniture was left in this empty world.
"I will not go yet, Christine," he stated in a voice slightly muffled by the blanket, answering her unasked question.
She lifted the corner of the blanket and, surprised, he ducked away from the light. At his abrupt reaction, she dropped the cover back into place. "Please don't leave. I will return later tonight. Rest well, my Angel of Music."
"Goodbye, Christine."
Christine froze in her steps as a flash of memories flooded her thoughts. She shook off the question that was about to bloom from her lips. How did one broach such a question? Besides, Erik was obviously limited to the mirror as far as she knew; he could not have said those words in the alleyway. Shrugging away dark thoughts, Christine called to Erik one last time: "I'm off to visit Madame Giry and Meg. I shouldn't be too long. Please don't go," she pleaded again.
He didn't answer, refusing to promise anything he was uncertain of.
After a moment of enduring his silence, Christine nodded although she knew Erik probably couldn't see it and walked out the door.
Erik sighed and relaxed into the fathomless dark, stretching his arms behind his head and leaning back into a cushion of nothing. He had seen Christine and just as in the past, it was never enough. He wanted to be like any normal person and be able to care for her the rest of his life…without the curse of his abhorrent face and now this new blessed condemnation. But she didn't want his care before; to hope now would be a mistake.
One thing for sure, he couldn't spend the rest of his life in a mirror at this small inn; it was best he leave before he grew too attached. Or starved to death. Somehow Erik doubted that the blood of beams of light forming a reflection would be very satisfying nor could he expect to sustain himself on the inn staff for eternity, all too certain even the most simpleminded fools would find a pattern eventually.
His cognitive path lead to the focus of his problem: how was he to escape and still continue this charade? Christine had not apparently connected him with anything outside of visiting her room at this point; how would she react if he emerged from the mirror, solid and whole? No, the half-baked explanations would never satisfy her, it was too complicated. Undoubtedly she would return before dark and to venture out now would be suicide. His thoughts drifted around his problem and he eventually fell into a troubled sleep.
Sometime later, Erik woke to the sound of fluttering sheets as the maid came in to turn down Christine's bed. The woman was singing to herself in a horribly off-key voice and Erik cringed with each malformed note. He smirked to himself; this could be a lovely opportunity to strike up a bit of fun.
That and he was famished.
In his most eldritch tone, Erik threw his voice: "A curse." Throwing his voice to a new direction, he continued: "A curse."
After his words sprung from several different directions, the maid called out shakily, "W-who's there?"
"A curse. A curse. What else can speak without being seen?"
The poor wretch swallowed nervously. "Are you a ghost?"
"Brava. A curse. A curse."
"W-what curse?"
"You have fallen under a curse."
"I-I do not believe in such things."
"Nor did I, once a long time ago. (A curse, a curse.)"
"Pierre, is that you? This isn't funny."
"I'm afraid it's rather grave. See I, too, did not believe but that has not saved me the wrath of this curse."
"What can I do to appease you, spirit? What have I done?"
Erik smirked; it was all too easy. "Why you have entered this room, simple as that. I carry the curse; now it is yours."
The maid's lower lip trembled as she stammered, "Please, spirit, have mercy."
"Perhaps there will be hope for you yet," Erik spoke in a low tone. Dropping his voice further to a dangerously sultry level, he beckoned her, "come. Come to the mirror."
Without questioning, she made her way over and stood before the mirror. She started to lift the corner of the makeshift cover cautiously…then screamed as Erik's arm seized her wrist and yanked her underneath the cover and into the mirror.
Covering her mouth with his hand to muffle her protests, Erik whispered, "You are released."
Rejuvenated, Erik licked his teeth slowly, attempting to remove the remnants of his meal. Best not to have any evidence when Christine arrives. Dragging the corpse over, he stowed the poor woman underneath a darker shadow, where the bed would be reflected later. As long as the real bed was never moved, the reflection would conceal her and none would ever see her body; even then, what could they do?
After he congratulated himself on his genius, the door creaked softly and Erik listened cautiously.
"Erik, are you still here?" Christine whispered tentatively.
Relieved, Erik asseverated with a murmur of yes.
Christine sighed. "I was afraid you'd leave me again."
Not trusting himself to form a suitable answer, Erik said nothing for a moment before changing the subject: "How was your visit?"
"Well, you know Meg and she's as lively as ever. She's likely to be engaged to a Baron soon."
Erik made a noncommittal sound. "And how is her dear mother?"
"As formidable as ever but I think she's worried about losing her daughter."
Erik nodded understandingly, though the cover blocked Christine's view. Her fingers itched to reach over and rip the blanket off but the last few bars of the sun stretched through the sky and it was still too bright to risk it yet, she reasoned. Something in the back of her mind nagged her, what if this was the last chance she'd have to speak with him or could look into his crystalline blue eyes? Preferring to avoid such thoughts as long as possible, Christine searched for another subject to speak on even just to assure that he was still there.
"What of your mother, Erik?"
"I barely knew her. She couldn't stand the sight of me."
Bad subject choice, Christine. "Oh, Erik. I'm so sorry."
"Why? It wasn't you. You came later." Again, the bitterness seeped into his words.
"But to grow up like that, it's just horrible."
"It got worse," he murmured darkly.
"Erik, please tell me."
"And dwell in self-pity? No, I would not have you pity me, Christine."
"I'd like to know Erik; I want to understand."
"That's the problem, you don't understand. I don't think you'd be quite so willing to hear the details."
In a small voice and with no small amount of courage, Christine stated, "Tell me, Erik. Maybe it can help you." With that, she pulled the cover off the mirror and looked unblinkingly into his eyes, maneuvering so her own reflection was not in the way.
He squinted slightly but met her gaze and she didn't turn away, allowing him to comprehend her sincerity. "Do you really want to know?" She nodded. "Once I start, there is no stopping. I have lived a truly wretched existence."
"I understand."
"Alright. If you are certain. Turn the mirror slightly, it is still too bright." Performing as she was bid, Christine then sat down on the bed, letting herself be comfortable for what promised to be a long story.
Erik took a deep breath. She really wanted to know; well I'm not going to sugarcoat anything…
He started at the place most life's stories began, at his eventful birth. He'd never related his story in its entirety before and he was surprised at what details he disclosed so fluidly. Erik hadn't even privileged the good Daroga with such complete information that now tumbled from his lips. Christine didn't flinch when he spoke of his mother's hatred for her own son or how many betrayals he'd suffered, only silent tears poured down her cheeks. Erik wished she would stop; it only provoked his own forgotten tears and choked his voice. He sat down next to her reflection but resumed pacing when restlessness overtook him.
"…Then I made a home in the cellars of the opera house. I believe you know much of the rest from there." Or at least, all that you should know at this point.
Christine didn't say anything at first. Erik waited patiently for her words of pity, certain they would come knowing Christine's caring nature, but for the moment, he breathed deeply relaxed with a sense of catharsis and relief that he hadn't felt since…well…ever. Well possibly once he had finished his opus Don Juan Triumphant or perhaps that brief moment before Christine had removed his mask, either time, or maybe when they sang...
Forcing the thoughts back to his subconscious, Erik fought to retain his moment of peace.
Christine finally regained her voice: "Oh, Erik." Watching her movements in the mirror, she tried to manipulate her reflection to reach her arms around a vision. She closed her eyes sharply to restrain the growing stream of tears as she could feel nothing in her own arms. "I've only added to your pain. I'm so sorry. I would gladly take some of this from you." The sincerity of her words was moving but Erik said nothing, merely stared at the floorboards. "Suddenly you make a little more sense, Erik." She sighed. "What can I do to ease the passing of your spirit?"
Erik frowned in surprise, her response was not what he suspected but then again, she did think he was dead. "I don't think there's anything you can do." Especially since I'm not entirely dead yet.
Somehow, they managed to change topics and speak of happier things, fond memories of the opera house and the croaking Carlotta. Erik even allowed himself to laugh, not even noticing that the sky had darkened and night had slowly come upon them.
A loud knocking at the door interrupted their conversation. "Miss Christine, it's Ella. Would you care for some supper?"
"Yes, please, just a moment…" She flew over to the mirror and turned it slightly, catching the look in Erik's eyes as he understood and sent a message of his own. Christine prayed that she had misinterpreted the 'goodbye' reflected in his melancholy gaze.
Lighting a few candles in the now dark room, Christine called to Ella, "come on in."
The sweet woman brought her gift in cheerfully. "Good evening, Christine. Since you didn't send for anything at your usual time, I thought perhaps you'd be hungry eventually." She set the tray down on the table and neatly folded the towel she'd used to protect her hands, tucking it under her arm. "Who were you talking to, child?"
Blushing a royal scarlet, Christine stammered, "I-I wasn't talking to anyone."
Ella was a shrewd and observant woman, despite her airy nature, but said nothing even with clues such as the rose settled in a glass by her bed and her obvious fidgeting distress nor did she mention the heavenly duet overheard by the entire inn.
"Well if you or anyone else needs anything, don't hesitate to call."
"I will, Ella. Thank you."
Closing the door behind her, Ella shook her head lightly and returned her mind to her other problem: Daphne hadn't returned from her rounds. She was a good maid, well skilled, but perhaps the girl was off with a gentleman caller in a dark corner somewhere; yet Ella couldn't shake the nagging feeling in the back of her mind that perhaps something had happened to the girl.
Christine secured the door behind Ella and immediately ran over to the mirror. "Erik, she's gone. Erik?" She turned the panel to face her and only met the eyes of her own reflection. "Erik? Erik?" She called to him a few more times before cradling her head in her hands.
Erik left the room as quickly as he could, sliding along the walls as a shadow, but he could not escape the sound of Christine's sobs as they echoed in his ears.
∞†∞
Authoress Rambling: well there we have it. Poor Christine. No worries, I don't intend to leave her desolate for too long. Still patheitically begging my muse to return but I'm confident that they shall be swayed soon...one way or another...-:readies spygear:-
Happy Writing/Reading/Whatever everyone! Hope all's well on your side of the internet.
And as always: Love it or hate it, please let me know what you think! Mini-monkey-music boxes to reviewers!