FIRST OF ALL: CONGRATULATIONS TO arra13375 FOR CORECTLY GUESSING ONE OF ERIK'S QUESTIONS, ALTHOUGH IT WON'T APPEAR IN THIS CHAPTER
IM SORRY FOR SUCH A LONG WAIT, I HAVE A LOT OF THINGS TO DO SO I WONT BE ABLE TO UPDATE AS OFTEN AS BEFORE BU PLEASE DONT GIVE UP ON ME, I FULL INTEND TO FINISH THIS STORY
PLEASE READ AND REVEIW
CHAPTER TWELVE
(PREVIOUS CHAPTER WAS ACTUALLY CHAPTER ELEVEN)
If Elizabeth was uncomfortable, she was hiding it well "I suppose it is fair, after all I have asked my three questions of you and...Oh dear"
"What?" he said frowning.
She shook her head "Oh, no, it's nothing, please continue." He held out her hand for effect before dropping it to her lap and sitting rather rigidly. Erik noticed that, but chose not to comment.
Erik was not stupid or easily mislead, he saw how every time he would mention her family, background or past she would suddenly go quiet, look uncomfortable or simply change the subject. What secrets could a girl like her possible have, she was a high society girl, didn't everyone already know her background. Unless she was somebody's bastard?
No, Elizabeth was too disciplined for that, she had all the grace of a full blooded noble, he was sure of it.
So that was why he was going to save questioning her about her family for later. Another time Erik would have used this opportunity to his advantage without hesitation, but not today. Erik didn't want to risk upsetting her already fragile sense of trust. He should have already broken it, Erik was simply fortunate for Elizabeth's forgiving nature.
"I will also reserve my first question for another time" he said to her surprise "but remember, when I ask you, you must answer truthfully."
Elizabeth seemed to understand his meaning as she looked up at him thankfully and nodded "I promise."
Erik scoffed and Elizabeth frowned. "Excuse me" she said "It just so happens that I haven't broken a promise from the day I was born. My word as an Englishwoman is very important to me, it shows honour, integrity. And so when I make a promise I never break it" she paused and said "Ever!" for extra effect.
Her passionate response to defend her honour did not go unnoticed by phantom; really this girl left herself so open. Of Erik needed a confirmation of Elizabeth's noble birth it was her exclamations.
"My first question." He began "Tell me about what's going on out there?"
Elizabeth blinked in confusion "Pardon? I don't understand your meaning"
He sighed "What happening, any wars I should be aware of, any civil arguments, any new discoveries, new epidemics? Speak of the world outside this place."
"Don't you already know?" she asked, obviously confused.
Erik knew he needed to somewhat explain, but how to do so without revealing too much? He didn't want her to know of him completely yet, not for at least two years or so, he felt she wasn't ready to handle anything he would tell her and for his plans to succeed she would need to be ready.
"No" he said "I tend to stay away from the rest of the world, I travel by the pipe system, it is comfortable for me to do so, and I live in a theatre as an influential figure. But unfortunately, it makes it difficult to know of current affairs in the world today, all the information comes from the chit chat I hear from the audience before and after a performance." He admitted. Erik frowned, he had not intended to reveal that much, it had been surprisingly easier than he though.
Elizabeth frowned "Oh...well as you know we are under the rule of our dear Queen Elizabeth and she..."
"I have no need to know of your Queens affairs" he interrupted quickly.
"You-you don't?" Elizabeth looked quite shocked.
"No" he said "I...I grew up in France, your English queen hold no interest to me. Even when I was in France I had no interest in the French monarch, why should I be bothered in the affairs of someone who I will most likely never meet and had nothing to do with me?"
Elizabeth frowned "I understand you point. But then I do not know how I can be of any assistance to you, I also do not know much about the worlds current affairs. The only newspaper I am able to get my hands on are the Society papers." She frowned "Complete and utter nonsense about what this lady did at this party or who danced with whom at that ball and so on so forth. They call it a Society paper, but really it's nothing short of a simple gossip column, in many pages. And so of course my mother loves it. But information wise it's rather useless. I prefer a good book with actual intelligent content"
"You like to read?" he asked "what kind of books"
She smiled "Science, Philosophy, great English works oh...almost anything I can get my hands on actually. I love to learn, it's the only thing I can do right."
Erik approved, Elizabeth didn't seem like one of those girls that had their heads up in the clouds. She was practical, sturdy, and capable. Things he admired in a person.
"I will ask a different question then and the other two later" he said "but not now, I think I will reserve them for another time" He smirked.
She shifted uncomfortably. Erik loved that he could still do that to a person; silence them with one look or one word. She would be waiting in anticipation and how would ask when she least expected it so her answer would be most truthful.
"Umm, what's your question" she finally asked. She had returned to being her shy self.
"Nothing much, simply tell me more of yourself, I find myself curious over what kind of woman would willingly return to the side of a man who had tried to kill her twice."
He watched her flinch slightly at the mention of how he only seconds ago tried to strangle her. But it couldn't be helped, this was the person he was, he may not like it himself, but it was who he was. And tip toeing around the situation wasn't going to help either of them because he wasn't going to change who he was for anyone, not ever again.
She shifted in her seat "well...I must honestly say I do not know where to even begin" she said simply.
"I'm the eldest daughter of my family, my mother and father are still both very much alive and I have four younger sisters, one of them is married."
"You've told me this already" he reminded her.
Elizabeth paused "I don't know really what to say. I...I..." she sighed "I'm nothing special whatsoever, I never have and never will."
She stood "I'm sorry, I'll answer you questions when I come up with better answerers."
She turned to go but Erik stopped her as his hand gripped her forearm "Wait" he said, but then he noticed how Elizabeth whimpered suddenly. He frowned and realised something wet on his hand. Pulling away Erik looked at his hand, blood?
Her shirt was red too. Why was she bleeding? He hadn't thrown her against the wall that hard! Not hard enough to break skin.
He grabbed her hand and pulled her beck into her seat as he single-mindedly began ripping at her shirt. Elizabeth winced slightly at his touch but did not scream, will wonders never cease with this girl, she still believed in him this much? Most normal girls would scream at the sight of a strange man taking of their cloths, then again Elizabeth wasn't a normal girl. She was too trusting, Erik felt while it was a good things about her, one day it would certainly get her into trouble one day.
He pulled down one side of her dress to reveal a makeshift bandage, it seemed to be made out of a riding cloth and it was stained with blood.
Slowly, so as not to upset the skin that had bonded with the fibres too much, he lifted the cloth away and Elizabeth winced horrible.
It was really bad; he couldn't have thrown her against the wall this hard? Could he? A sense of guilt filled him slightly, he was angry with her, cut she didn't deserve this. He had only wanted to scare her a little, not harm her.
It was a wide gash and blood was still coming from it.
"The bandaging was terrible" he said as he folded the cloth over and press it to the cut, stopping the blood flow momentarily, she huffed "it fooled you though didn't it?"
He ignored her as he took her hand and held it to the cloth "hold that steady for a moment" she did as she was told and he stood.
Erik went over to the trunk beside the organ, he liked keeping things in there, opening it he found a first aid kit he kept for emergencies and brought it over to her. Opening it she found the disinfected and a new bandage. "How did this happen" he asked as he took her hand away and poured the medicine on it
Elizabeth winced from the sting, then blushed "It's a little embarrassing" she admitted.
"Tell me" he told her and began winding a bandage around the cut
"I fell of my horse. Our stable hand didn't check my mare's shoes properly, so one came loose and startled her and I fell against this rock. I guess it had a sharp edge, because it cut me"
"How foolish" he said "idiot man, your horse must have been in pain, no wonder the animal three you off its back"
"I know" she said, Erik was surprised to hear the anger laced in her words "I'm going to fire that man so fast he won't know what hit him, I told him to check her hoofs but he completely ignored me, now my Moonlights hurt, from now on I'm going to tend to her or at least hire someone competent to do so"
"Why didn't you hire someone properly the first time?"
"My mother chose him, it was no decision of mine, do you really think I would let someone harm my precious friend? Never" he was secretly pleased to hear the fondness in her voice at the defence of her horse. She liked animals, interesting.
"With a cut like this why didn't you return home and have it mended properly you silly girl?"
She looked affronted "well excuse me" she said a little annoyed "I thought you may become angry if should I miss one of our lessons, and I swear it was only a little scratch, drew a little blood and stopped for a while. It certainly wasn't as bad as this."
Erik, hearing this, frowned, his eyes softening and paused for a moment "I'm sorry" he said softly
She looked at him in surprise "for what?"
"Although I did not put the injuries to your arm , my earlier actions may have opened it, which is why it's so bloody now. I apologise." He sighed "you have to remember this, I have...a terrible temper and when I'm angry I don't know what I'm doing. I never meant to hurt you."
She was quiet for a while, then he felt her cool hand on his "Its fine, I'm a clumsy person, I would have don't it to myself somehow. I don't blame you."
Her easy forgiveness surprised Erik for a moment. She didn't blame him? What was wrong with this girl?
As he bandaged her arm slowly so as to do it properly he noticed how little her underclothes hid.
Elizabeth was actually quite an attractive young woman, he might even go as far as to say beautiful.
She may not be fair haired or fair eyed like all how people perceive real beauty to be these days, but she had a beauty all her won. A soft exotic beauty. Her black hair, usually down to show she was an unmarried lady, was usually tied back in a pony tail or left to cascade down her waist in waves. Her dark blue eyes would lighten sometimes. She skin was smooth; her cheeks in a natural constantly blushing state which most girls strived towards with dollops of makeup and full red lips which she was nibbling on right now.
Even though Erik was a stranger to the ways of sexual intercourse, but he was still a man who could appreciate the female body. And he watched her chewing on her lip with interest.
She seemed to not notice her gaze as he continued to bandage her arm till he was finally finished "There" he said "I don't think it will scar, you rest assured."
She smiled "That's a relief, I can only imagine what my mother would say if she thought I would scar. She thinks a person with a scar is only half a person."
Erik flinched at her words, but hid it well. Scars...he almost forgot.
Standing Erik glared slightly, surprising Elizabeth.
He was becoming too familiar with her.
He was thinking too much on Elizabeth's kindness and soft heart, her trust and her faith. But he knew that the one she trusted was her music teacher, the man in the mask. If she knew of all he had done, all he was capable of and what was behind his mask she wouldn't be so forgiving or so trusting. If she saw the hideousness of his face, she would run from him too. Like all the others did, like Christine did. She claimed it was not his face that frightened her, but face or not it was a part of his being and that was what tore him up in the end.
It was not only his face she couldn't accept, it was his very being. All that he was and all that made him, him. She even rejected his music in the end. The sweet music that had once brought them joy.
Silly female.
Elizabeth was no different. Like how Christine had trusted her Angel of Music, Elizabeth trusted her Master. But it would not be the same if she knew him.
He would continue to teach her, but he would never forget the line that separated them. Elizabeth was one of them and as long as he remembered that he would be fine.
Elizabeth giggled suddenly which drew his attention "What is it?"
She shook her head "Oh, it's nothing. Just..." she smiled "I was just thinking about the first time I ever heard an opera song the opera singer tended to go too much into a song that it ended up sounding wrong. So I never knew until I heard your song that opera could sound so good, I've never even been to an opera before..."
She didn't get to finish for Erik's eyes widened "Of course, that's what's missing."
Over the previous weeks, Erik had noticed something about Elizabeth's voice that wasn't yet there. She reached almost every note perfectly and for a simple performance it was perfect. But in an opera it certainly wouldn't do and now he knew why.
"How can you hope to sing opera if you have never seen it?" he asked her.
She shrugged "I'm not sure, the concept didn't come to me."
He sighed deeply as to not agitate his temper and spoke evenly "You need to come to the theatre."
NEW CHAPTER
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