As I got into my position Carlotta came up behind me "I hope your precious Phantom doesn't have anything planed for tonight to ruin my performance. Because if he does his little angel will pay for it." She said threatening me. I put both my hands into a fist and started to walk toward her but Meg stopped me. She came up behind me and grabbed my arms as Carlotta stood there practically asking for me to hit her.
Meg turned me around "She's not worth it Christine." She walked with me back to my spot "She'll get what coming to her soon enough. Whether it be me or Erik who delivers the final blow I don't know. But don't worry about it." I nodded Carlotta still glaring at me. I still really wanted to hit her even if it would cost me my job.
"Places people!" Joshua called out to everyone. Meg quickly rushed to her position and the curtain rose.
When I danced onto stage and got the chance to look into box five I was actually thinking that I would see Erik's comforting masked face. But once again I didn't, I saw the two managers and Raoul seating in Erik's box. They were asking for it, all of them and sad to say that even included Raoul. I was panicking on the inside once again and I occasionally glanced at Meg when she stopped dancing. As I went back stage to quickly change into my pants for the next scene Jessica found me and could tell I was panicking. "Calm down Daae. Just breathe and trust him." She said fixing my hair.
"Calm down? In a time like this? I don't think I can Giry." I said almost gasping for breath I was nervous, but not because I was going on stage. Because of the box. I feared for Raoul's life. I feared for what Erik had planned. I feared for Erik's safety and secrecy. I was scared of almost everything but going on stage my mind was so preoccupied that I wasn't really paying any attention, and it somewhat helped that I didn't have any lines to say.
As I began to renter to the stage Carlotta glanced at me with a somewhat threatening look but I wasn't scared of her and she knew I wasn't. I danced back out onto the stage in my page boy outfit, which was just a simple pair of pants and a ruffled top, Erik's locket hidden underneath all the ruffles. Then I felt a change in the air. Erik was near, I knew he was but I didn't know where. "Did I not instruct that box five was to be kept empty?!" Erik's voice said from above. Everyone not only on stage but in the audience as well froze not knowing what to say or even what to do.
Meg looked around at the other dancers and said "The Phantom, it's the Phantom of the Opera. It's the Opera Ghost."
"This is all your fault. You little toad." Carlotta said pointing me out.
"A toad Signora?! I don't think so! Perhaps it is you who are the toad!" Erik's voice said in a threatening manner. Everyone in the box now on their feet Raoul's eyes never left me. The music began again and Carlotta started to sing. Then out of nowhere Carlotta croaked. I mean she literally croaked, it sounded like she had swallowed a real toad. All the dancers and myself tried our best to stay composed and not laugh at her now realistic toad like voice. It had been a joke in the opera house for years that Carlotta was like a toad. Unappealing to almost all with a voice a trochees and annoying. As Carlotta tried to push through still croaking, the audience laughed at her and all the performers just stood there listening trying not to laugh. Carlotta stopped singing and looked around at the audience then up to the ceiling as Erik let out a sort of evil laugh. "I warned you all and now you will pay! For behold the Signora is singing to bring down the chandelier!" Sparks began to fly and Carlotta rushed of the stage and the sparks just stopped. I looked up trying to find him just before the curtain closed; the managers entered the front of the stage.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I urge you to remain in your seats. The opera will resume itself shortly." Firmin began while Andrea came back stage and found me then pulled me up front. "When we resume the roll of the Countess will be played by Miss Daae." The audience broke out into a thunderous applause. Jessica and Meg rushed me to my dressing room as the ballet from the next act started. Meg left to change into her next costume and it was now just me and Jessica. That wasn't right though. Erik always comes before I go on even in a case like this and when Jessica's there he still comes. Jessica looked at me curiously as I moved to the mirror that led into the tunnels.
"What's wrong Daae?" I placed my hand on the mirror and tried to look through. "Daae what's wrong?" She said demanding answer.
I shook my head "No. No this isn't right. Something's wrong, something is very wrong."
I said backing away from the mirror "Christine what are you talking about?" I began to think and as I did the worse came to mind.
My eyes widened "Buquet." I turned and ran out of the room to the stage Jessica calling after me. I repeated the phrase "Please be ok, please be ok." I stopped somewhere back stage and looked up near Joseph Buquet's post. What I saw right then will never leave my mind as long as I live. Bokay with a rope around his neck to amuse himself, and then Erik struggling to get away from him. Buquet tripped Erik as he tried to make his way into the tunnels he was trying to kill Erik. Erik rolled over on his back to face Buquet. He ran toward Erik I couldn't do anything I was frozen where I stood and no one noticed a thing. As Buquet jumped on top of him, Erik kicked him and Joseph went back then fell through a trap door. The rope snagged on a board and there he hung for all to see. Erik got up shocked by what just happened then turned and saw me standing there. He looked to his box and Raoul was no longer there I assumed the worst. Erik looked back to me panicked and out of breath then dashed back into the tunnels.
A hand grabbed my arm from behind, it was Raoul. "Christine are you alright?" He said worried.
"Yes I'm fine but you aren't safe here." He looked at me puzzled. I grabbed his arm and we began to run to the roof. I said to him "Hand at the level of your eyes and no questions until I say so. Now try and keep up Chaney." He did as told his mind possibly filled with a multitude of questions. When we finally reached the roof I locked the door behind us.
"Christine what on earth is going on?"
I turned to him "Raoul if I asked you to take Sophia and leave tonight, what would you say?"
"I would say I'm not going anywhere without you and some answers." He said.
I turned frustrated and walked to a small bench. I sighed as I sat down "I was afraid you'd say that." I turned back to him "Raoul, please you have to listen to me. You must leave now if you don't he might kill you." I could tell Raoul was getting quite annoyed.
"Christine, there is no Phantom." I shook my head
"No. No your wrong."
"Christine he's not real!" He said determined to persuade me.
"No Raoul you don't understand he is real!"
"And how exactly do you know?!"
"Because I brought him here!" A look of shock and horror swept across his face as tears welled up in my eyes. My hand flew over my mouth; I couldn't believe what I had just said.
"What? You, you can't be serious Christine." He said baffled.
"But I am serious, that's just the thing. I was nine. It wasn't long after I came here." I began my eyes closed as traveled back in time to a gypsy fair. "Meg, her mother, and I went. I had been begging Jessica for weeks to take me. Freaks and monsters all sorts of dark, mysterious things were there. We were half way through and Meg got scared but I begged them for one last thing."
I could hear myself pleading not to go "Please Giry! Please one more and then we can go." She agreed and we saw a sign that read 'come and see the devil's child' we all three wandered into the tent. I remember there was a cage right in the center of the room with a boy inside. As the crowd flowed in Meg and I went to the front. The small boy had a sack over his face he looked like he was about my age if not a few years older. A tall man walked into the cage with the boy and we began to wonder what was going to happen. I believe it is very safe to say that Meg and I were both frightened by the not knowing of what would happen. The man pulled the boy to his feet and removed the sack from his face. Everyone but me gasped at the sight of this child's face. Deformed and bruised I felt sorry for him. Then as the boy stood there he braced himself for what the man would do next. The boy fell to the ground as the man began to beat him. The sack was thrown right to mine and Meg's feet. She and I turned away horrified of the man and scared for the boy.
The man stopped and began to laugh along with the rest of the crowd as the young boy lay there crying. The crowd dispersed and the man left the cage as Meg and I waited for her mother to find us. I stared at the boy and bent down to grab the sack.
"Let's go Daae." I heard Jessica call from behind. I ignored her and went to the other side of the cage where the boy was. I bent down to see his eyes and he stared at me scared. He tried to move away.
"No wait. I'm not going to hurt you. I promise." Our eyes meet and he tried to move closer to me. I reached out my hand through the cage to give him the sack and he slowly reached out and took it. He attempted to hide the right side of his face so I wouldn't see its deformity. I smiled at him and whispered "I'll be back, count on it." I got up and slowly walked back to Meg and Jessica I glanced back every few seconds to see him again. And then all of us went off back to the Populaire. When I knew everyone was good and asleep I snuck out through the tunnels. I went right back to the fair grounds. When I found the tent there was a pair of keys hanging by the entrance. I grabbed them and the boy still in the cage stood to his feet. "Hush, keep quite I'm going to get you out of here." I whispered to him as I unlocked the door. It screeched open and I reached my hand out for his. He just looked at me. I stepped closer my hand still out and said "Do you want out of here or what because I can help you. Do you trust me?" He grabbed my hand and we ran out the back way into the streets. Then we stopped for a minute because I forget where I was for a split second.
"Where are we going?" He asked.
"Um, I don't know really I'm kind of just making this up as I go along." I said looking around trying to find a place to hide. The gypsies and police were closely following us. I grabbed his hand; the opera house was just around the corner. "Quick this way!" We ran into a dead end. There was a small caged window on the bottom of the wall that led into the tunnels of the opera house.
"Great. What now?" he said I looked down, saw the window and opened it.
"Quick, get in." I ordered. He looked at me like I was crazy. "Don't be such an infant. Just trust me alright?" He nodded his head and slipped in. I bent down "Ok, go down this tunnel to your left it should take you to the chapel. I'll meet you there."
"Wait what if it doesn't lead me to the chapel?" He asked
"Then I'll come and find you." I replied. He nodded and ran off. I then closed the window tight so the police and gypsies wouldn't notice then rushed back out into the streets. I did my best to avoid all of them as I made my way back into the opera house. I went down into the chapel and then lead him deeper down in the tunnels. At the time it was known as the old torture chamber but now it's known as the Phantom's domain. Some old supplies were down there things no one upstairs used anymore. Old costumes and masks mainly.
I took him to a small room and pulled out a box full of masks. "Here we go." I opened the lid "I think one of these would be better than that old sack, no offence."
He laughed and said "None taken." He went through the box but found nothing that he liked and I will admit none of them were very good. Then I got an idea. I ran over to a small desk and in one of the drawers was my favorite that I took good care of. It was wrapped in an old purple scarf and I brought it to him unwrapping it piece by piece.
"This one's my favorite." I unwrapped a solid white mask that would only cover the right side of someone's face. He took it from the scarf and examined it. Then turned around so I wouldn't see his face when he removed the sack. After he put it on he turned to a small mirror and studied his new face. He turned to me and I smiled "It looks good, but I think we need to get you into some new clothes." He laughed and I pulled out another box full of pants and shirts that would fit him. "By the way I'm Christine, Christine Daae." I held out my hand for a proper greeting.
He placed his hand in mine and said "Mcgalla, Erik Mcgalla."
"Well then, it's very nice to meet you Monsieur Mcgalla." I said shaking his hand. I showed him around the chamber room by room. There were old couches and beds that were still usable. "Ok well I don't think there's much more I can do. I have to go anyway if Giry finds out that I snuck out again it will be my head this time."
We laughed and I ran off he stopped and called out to me "Hey, Christine!" He yelled I turned to him. "Why did you come back to save me? Why would you even care for a monster like me?"
"Because you're not a monster. You're just misunderstood; you and I are a lot alike Erik Mcgalla. I can tell and no one deserves to be treated like that monster or not." He smiled at me and then I ran off.
"I protected him for years. He has known nothing but this opera house since then. He and I began to set traps in the tunnels to scare people off. One day someone just started rumors about a ghost in the opera house tunnels. We let the rumors grow into whatever you want to call this. The only people that know of him for who he really is are Meg, Jessica, Gerard, Joshua, and of course myself. But I can tell you that he is not a killer." I said quickly.
Raoul looked at me like he didn't understand. "Not a killer? Christine were you not in there? He killed Joseph! And if he is not a killer like you say then why do you fear for my life?!"
"Because it involves me. I am in away his only friend. Like you and I once were as children best friends that's what he and I are. He is my brother, father, protector, and angel. As Lottie once wrote of an angel of music that's what he is Raoul. He is my Angel of Music." He looked at me again like I was crazy I shook my head "That's why I can't leave, without me Erik is nothing. I owe him my life as he owes me his. I can't just leave, Raoul please tell that me understand. And I beg you to leave tonight for you have given him a reason to strike. He will not hesitate and I cannot guarantee that I can stop him." Raoul shook his head as I begged. I could tell he was thinking but of what I had no idea.
He looked to me and pitched an idea. "I just got you back Christine and I'm not going to give you up that easily. Come with me to the Liveria house and we can figure all this out."
I looked at him, he didn't understand. "Raoul no I can't leave. He knows where you are staying. I can't go with you, just stop." I began to walk back to the door.
Raoul chased after me "Christine wait, please!"
He grabbed my arm and I turned to him "Let me go Raoul." I commanded but he ignored me. His grip was tight I could tell he was almost as scared as I was. I fought with him trying my best to wiggle free. "Let me go Raoul!"
"No, I'm not going to let you go!" He yelled pulling me closer to him away from the door.
"Why not?" I asked it was as if we were children again.
"Because I can't lose you again. I love you." I stopped resisting and looked at him, I wasn't believing what I had just heard. I was shocked and confused I was trying to figure out why he would want just some performer when he could have some other girl more exciting and less of a hand full. He turned me around and wiped the tears from my face and said it again. "I love you. I'll scream it from this roof top if that's what it takes for you to believe me. I know this may sound so very stupid right now but," He took my hands and looked me dead in the eyes. "I've dreamed ever since we were kids back looking for sea shells on the beach. I knew I wanted to marry you Christine." I looked at him once again shocked. Not wanting to waste anymore time he dropped down on one knee and asked me to marry him. I just stared speechless, tears began to fill my eyes again. I didn't know what to say or do. I smiled at him, my mind swarming with a million questions on why on earth would he want to marry me?
"Yes." I said. He smiled at me then stood up. Raoul once again wiped the tears from my face, and he placed both of his hands on my cheeks then kissed me softly and sweetly. I pulled away as I heard Joshua inside down the hall looking for me.
"Christine! Christine where are you?!" He was in a panic you could hear it in his voice.
"I better go before Joshua loses his head." I said laughing as I left his arms and headed the door, Raoul followed closely behind. I looked to him just before I unlocked the door. "Meet me outside after the performance. My vacation days start tomorrow so I'll stay with you and Sophia at the Liveria house." He nodded to me and kissed me on the cheek. We left and returned to the performance.