Author note: APs and Illness and Work, oh MY! Oh well, the school year is winding down so. . yay! Sorry for the while update again. I was actually stuck where to move this story and then . . it hit me!

Thank you for reviews go to:

Lady Wen

OG

Nyasia A. Maire

Penmora Zenith

PorcelainMask15

It made me happy with the number of responses. When I get so few I feel as though my story has taken a turn down boring avenue. But yeah, on with the chapter.

TheDragonEye

I want the truth!

Bang. Bang. Bang!

Erik scowled and shifted impatiently on his feet he didn't wait longer after that before he jerked open the door, entered the room, and shut the door with another loud bang behind himself.

"Sober yet?" he asked in a cold voice as he gazed at Raoul De Changy who was spread out across the bed in the room with a worn paperback book in his hands with the binding now resting on his stomach as he looked over at the person who had dared to intrude on his silence.

"Oh, great. You." Raoul merely replied before gazing down at his book once more.

The masked man didn't change his posture, once more his mouth was drawn in a frown and his eyes were narrowed behind his mask as he gazed over at the young man. The color had returned to his face and his hair was slicked back out of his eyes, unlike the day he had more or less kidnapped him away from his brother for the better good. In Erik's opinion he looked just as he did the night of the masquerade, much more tidied up but with the paled and worried look across his features after he himself had arrived as red death.

"You don't seem at unrest by my presence in this room." He commented, once more his voice monotonous and cold.

"Why should I? Had you wanted to kill me you would have done so already. As for why you are here right now I do not really care."

"Why is that?" Erik raised an eyebrow from underneath his mask, clearly some of Philippe's attitude had rubbed off on him, a lot more bolder and with indifference when he spoke.

"Because, the only reason you would come in here is because you want something of me; Which, of course, I will not give you. Why? I have my reasons, especially because if I asked something of you, you would not give it to me. Besides, it's only a matter of time before Philippe comes along and decapitates you after having his fun. Christine will be his and then I'll be free to go about my ways once more."

Erik probably would have fired back with his own comments, his anger boiling but he let out his steam in one large exhale. "You know, Christine kissed me, a lot more passionately then I have ever seen her. I say it could only be called an open mouth kiss." He murmured smugly.

Unfortunately his words seemed to have no effect on Raoul what-so-ever which came as a shock to Erik, but his reply made him all the more confused.

"Philippe will only be all the more mad." Raoul spoke, folding down the corner of the page of the book he had been reading before closing the book and tossing it to the foot of the bed.

"Are you ill boy?"

"Now it sounds like you're actually beginning to care about me." Raoul shook his head a few times.

"Alright, are you daft boy?"

"I am quite alright in the head, Phantom. I know for a fact you aren't so you should probably seek some attention about that."

Oh, Erik had never wished he had his Punjab in his hand more than this moment. "When have you begun to cease to care for Christine?"

Raoul gave a sigh and cracked his knuckles before swinging his legs off the bed, staring across the room at the masked intruder. "You have me all wrong, Phantom. I do care about Christine. I care about what happens to her. After all I thought I loved her at one point, but it was merely an infatuation, just as your love is. I was living in the past, I love Christine. Just not like a man and woman should. More like a brother and sister type thing." He replied.

"Why do you keep bringing up the fact that Philippe will only hate me more because of my love for Christine then? He hates me, I know that. But why-?"

"You are the one who is daft Erik. Philippe is in love with Christine!"

Philippe gazed into the blood red that was his wine in a carefully ornate glass. Only the best for the De Changy family. The best material possessions, the best aged wines, the best of everything that money could buy. But he couldn't buy love, he couldn't buy her. Ever since that first day he saw Raoul with Christine he knew he had to have her for his own.

It was so easy . . just so terribly easy to lay his path had it not been for the Phantom perhaps things would have been a bit easier. But it didn't take much for his brother to once more fall head over heels in love with Christine once he saw her again, but it was just a childish love, or was it? Who knew, but Philippe knew it was easy enough to convince Raoul later out of it more from many a drinks and repeating his lies.

Yes he was quite the manipulating person. He easily convinced his family how awful it would be for Raoul to marry someone like Christine Daae and he continued to try and talk him out of marriage when Raoul began to grow desperate and finally settled on eloping. Oh that night his carriage was right next to Raoul's ready to interfere should need call for it. It would have been easier that way, but the Phantom had other plans.

When he went back into the opera house after seeing Raoul's carriage still empty he knew it had not been his brother who pulled off whisking Christine off stage. No, he was never that clever, especially when he had been in the audience at the same time, a different seat, but none the less. Plus Raoul never seemed the person to be aggressive enough to use henchmen. But when Philippe had seen Raoul's gun case and hat back in Christine's dressing room and the mirror slightly ajar things began to add up. With his own gun in hand he began the descent down to the fiend's lair to find his brother and Christine.

Of course, he had never counted on the Siren or nearly drowning, or his brother nearly escaping either. Guilting Raoul was far too easy, he had claimed that he had left him to die a watery grave, that his infatuation and want to be a hero had put Christine even before his own flesh and blood. That had at least managed to halt Raoul's plan to escape across the English channel with Christine, and the weeks further afterwards had been for Philippe and his own brainwashing and revenge scheming. The only points left were to make Christine loyal only to him and to finally slay the Phantom who so many times had gotten in his way. Damn him!

"Damn him straight to hell!" Philippe slammed his glass down on a fine oak wood table, uncaring as some of the wine splashed over the rim of the glass and began a slow trickle down his hand that was clenching the glass all too tightly.

Why had women needed to be so difficult to figure out? Possibly it was the reason that they changed their minds all too quickly, for as of now Philippe didn't know where that wench's loyalties lay. With his brother or with the beast of a man. If they lay completely with Raoul then she was as good as his, for he was like the puppet master above the stage. Raoul was loyal to him now. That at least he knew full and well. Christine knew that as well. . since Raoul was one he knew full well was loyal and in knowledge of what he thought. Damn her too! He would have to drive that out of her when she was finally brought back here. With Raoul over there then Christine could worm her way back into his brother's mind, she had the one that was loyal to him and the one who knew the most besides he himself.

"Sir! Sir!"

Philippe's blazing eyes turned and bore holes at the wall from his heavy gaze.

"Did I not say that I was not to be disturbed unless you had any information that could be proven of a great value to me?" he spoke before whipping his glass at the door as it creaked open just a bit. Instantly the door was shut once more and the voice spoke again.

"But Sir, it is new. .well. . as of use. . umm. ."

Philippe rose to his feet and walked over to the window, gazing out it with his hands clasped behind his back. "I want information that is of use to me and seeing as I am not getting any then it is time to take some action. Spread the word, tonight I want fifteen men, no less, go out to that manor and bring all three back alive: Raoul, Christine, and the Phantom. Kill any others who get in the way, or have your own way with them. If the Phantom resists use force or else threaten Christine to bring him to his knees in submission. Do you understand me?" he asked, his voice having gone strangely calm.

"Tonight? Wouldn't they-"

"No, I don't think they will be expecting me to come back so quickly. Sure, even if they are expecting an attack they won't know how to counter it. No, instead of fifteen men I want sixteen, four to cover each side of the house and then later on to be able to divide equally to keep the levels of the house in check. Any more if that is possible, but I want a good number here in case. After you retrieve the men I want them here by ten for review in my tactics. Do you understand?"

"Yes. Of course sir!"

"Good." Philippe paused for a minute or so before once more his scowl was back once more. "I want it done now and quickly!"

"But sir, the inform-"

"It's of no use to me!" he roared. "Nothing right now that you could tell me could possibly of some use unless you have any of those three back here. Now move!"

Philippe put a hand to his forehead, massaging his temples as the man scrambled away. Good help was always so hard to find, once you think you find the right men for the job they never complete it because something else interferes. Just look at the men he had sent with Christine to retrieve the Phantom in the first place. They were supposed to bring him here after breaking him down some. He hated interference. Tonight would have to work out or else some heads would roll. Although, he was only hoping it'd be one.

One hideously deformed skull.

"I don't believe it." Erik murmured to himself, picking over what he supposed was his supper. It merely looked as though someone had taken some of the dying vegetables from the gardens outside, stem, roots, dirt, and all and masked them together prior to sticking it on a plate and giving it to him to eat.

"And they wonder why I'm so skinny." With a sigh Erik rose and stuck the plate back on the counter for someone else to clean up later. But what he didn't believe was that Philippe loved Christine, or still did. Christine would be in more danger if something happened to him and she fell back into Philippe's hands. If Raoul had been at the manor with Philippe then Christine had also been. What more was that Raoul knew a lot of the situation in hand and that information he would not give up.

Maybe his nerves would be much more calm if he had simply allowed Christine to proceed further with that kiss from before, but he had been stupid and pushed her away claiming he was still exhausted. Oh what fantasies in his mind could have happened. Christine had been so close, touching him, kissing him. .

Erik gave a grunt and pressed a palm to his masked forehead. There was no time to think of those things, no time to let physical wants block his mind.

"You didn't eat."

"Nadir. Shut up! You eat that crap if you want, but I'd rather starve then wind up with some parasite in my body that I ate. And yes, look at that mash and do tell me that there is no possibility of there being something completely straight from the dirt in it. Plus I don't trust eating food that I have not seen prepared myself."

"What if I said Christine made it?"

"What?" Erik turned to look at the Persian man who was hiding a look of disdain as he looked over at the plate on the counter.

"You heard me. Now, just what did Christine tell you?" The man's dark brown eyes looked over at the daunting masked man, he hadn't seen him look this way since back in the opera house, previous to that night and looking fit. He knew that was not the case, however, Erik hid his weaknesses quite well when he could.

"She didn't tell me anything that we don't know already. I figured things out for myself. Why do you assume she is bad? She just has changed in the past weeks. We all have, but that is what conflict can do to a person, and worry, and stress."

"I merely assume it because you two were alone in your room for the longest time, that's all. And just what is it you figured out, Erik? Or can you not tell me that as well?" Nadir asked.

"No, I cannot tell you that, Nadir. I'm sorry." Erik spoke and left the kitchen. "I suggest finding someone new to prepare meals or else I shall have to do it myself. My proportions of eating are meager though."

"Erik. Do not forget who your true allies are. You know I hold no loyalties to those who seek to hurt you, Christine could." Nadir spoke, grabbing his arm as he passed. "She is once more tempting you and you are following her straight into another disaster!"

Erik looked down at the Persian and shook his arm from his grasp. "You forget that I am the one who caused the disaster." He took a few more steps out of the kitchen and away from Nadir. Then he stopped and without looking at the man he murmured, "You also forget. . you were once loyal to men who wished to harm me. And you disappeared, I wish you had stayed that way Nadir."

"Once more you are letting your pride and inhibitions get in the way." Nadir retorted in response. "You refuse to believe what I say is the truth."

"I am not the person you met in Persia, or the thing. . whichever you believed me to be. I have all this figured out, but it is your own pride and your want to be right that is in my way Nadir. You should just leave, take your friend Darius and just go home." With that he left the kitchen leaving Nadir alone to lean back against the wall.

A small smile slowly grew on the tan man's face though. "I always knew you were a good man Erik, but I am not going to let you handle this on your own. A promise goes to hell and a curse still festers, my good friend."

Erik closed his eyes as he ascended the stairs before he glanced skyward. He was not an atheist, but a Deist, and God was watching now. Not interfering, but allowing himself to be amused with the creations he had made.

"I'll put a show on for you." Erik spoke and his hands curled into fists and with that he headed back to his room.

There were things that needed to be done.

Ending note:

Ta-da! Now I'm back off to bed, damn illness. I swear my AP exams made me ill.

Reviews are always wanted, hoping to break fifty with this.

TheDragonEye