The Angel, the Songbird, and the Monster
Summary-
Madame Giry never got the chance to help Erik, but he never needed her help, for when the Gypsy Clan that held him captive came upon a small village in Sweden, Erik made his escape. As he was hiding in the woods, nursing his wounds, a small girl found him and helped him. The young girl, Christine, convinced her father to let Erik stay with them and Erik found himself drawn to the young girl. After helping the girl's father get a job at the Opera Populaire in France, the girl's father took ill, and as the man laid on his deathbed, Erik vowed to help his little songbird take flight. But when an old face comes to the Opera Populaire, will Erik be able to help his songbird stay a flight, or will his songbird be caged forever?
Chapter Two-
Erik silently stood in the shadow of a tree as he watched as Christine, who was now a beautiful ten year old, walked along the beach. It had been about five years since he began to live with Christine and Gustave and Erik found him drawn towards Christine, making it impossible to leave.
He had tried to leave a few years ago after he had lost his temper and yelled and threw things, scaring his precious Angel so much that she had run from him. But as he had gotten to the edge of the woods, something made him turn around and look back at the small cabin and found Christine standing at the door watching him with tears in her eyes. She had not said anything, knowing that he did not have to stay there, that he was free to leave whenever he wanted, but Erik could sense that she wanted to stop him, that she wanted him to stay even though he had frightened her earlier that day.
He had forced himself to turn back around, back towards the woods, to force his body to walk, to leave her behind. But his body would not budge, and as he closed his eyes to will his body to move. The picture of Christine's crying face appeared and with a small groan, he turned and ran back to Christine, to his Angel. He had pulled her into a tight hug and began to cry into her hair and he whispered about how sorry he was that he had lost his temper and that he would never try and leave her again.
Christine had fallen asleep in his arms and he had carried her back to her room. As he had been leaving her room, Gustave has stopped him and welcomed him back home. After that night, Erik kept his promise to Christine and had never tried to leave again.
Erik was brought back to the present by Christine's distressed cry and noticed that her red scarf that he had made her for Christmas last year had been blown from around her neck by the wind and was now in the ocean. Erik moved to go fetch it for her but was stopped when a boy about fourteen, a year younger than him, suddenly appeared and ran into the ocean. Erik watched as the boy struggled to reach the red scarf, but when the boy had finally reached the scarf, he grabbed it before quickly making his way back to Christine. As the boy finally made it to Christine, Erik was able to get a good look at the boy, he was Raoul de Chagny. Gustave had been offered a job to teach Raoul how to play the violin, Gustave accepted it before packing up their home and following the de Changys to their summer home on the beach. Though why there were here now when it was still too cold to swim, was beyond Erik.
Erik shook his head an turned his attention back to Christine and was shocked to find that she was not where she had been. He quickly searched the beach and noticed that she and Raoul were heading back to the guest house that the de Changys allowed them to use. Erik quickly followed them, keeping to the shadows, his eyes narrowed as he heard Christine laugh at what ever Raoul had said. He did not like it when someone besides him made his Angel laugh.
He slipped into the house after them and followed them as they went in search of Gustave. "Oh my, Raoul, what happened? You're soaked." Gustave stated when they had found him.
"He rescued my scarf from the ocean, Papa." Christine said giggling a little and Erik's eyes narrowed.
"Oh my, well, I thank you Raoul. Now, let us get you into some dry clothes before you catch your death." Gustave said before leading Raoul out of the room.
"Papa." Christine called to him and Gustave popped his head back into the room, "Do you know where Erik is? I thought he might have been out on the beach, I know he likes to sit and watch the ocean, but he was not there." Christine said shocking Erik, his Angel had been looking for him?
"Have you checked the attic? I do believe he likes to go up there and write." Gustave told Christine.
"No, I haven't." Christine said and turned to head up to the attic. Erik quickly turned and rushed up to the attic and into the spot in front of the attic window where he like to sit and write, or draw. He quickly picked up the drawing he had been drawing when he had noticed Christine's outside, just as the attic door opened and Christine walked in. "Erik?" He heard her quietly call.
"Over here Christine." Erik called and watched her make her way to him.
"I've been looking every where for you." Christine said walking up to him.
"You have?" Erik asked before noticing that she still had her soaked scarf in her hands, "What happened to your scarf?" He asked nodding towards the scarf.
"Oh," Christine said looking down at the scarf before looking up at him bashfully. "The wind blew my scarf into the ocean, but Raoul rescued it for me." Erik clinched his jaw as an unknown feeling came over him.
"Oh, how, thoughtful of him." Erik forced himself to say. "Why don't you go and hang your scarf by the fire." He said before she had a chance to comment on his tone, "I will still be here when you get back." He added when he saw her open her mouth to protest. He watched as she nodded before turning and hurried out of the attic to hang her scarf up by the fire to dry. Once he was sure she was gone, he left out a frustrated sigh and ran his hands through his hair. What was coming over him? Why did he feel the way he did when she had mentioned Raoul? Why had he not told her that he had seen the whole thing?
A noise at the attic door caused Erik to snap his head up to look at it, he saw Gustave walk in with his violin, and stood to walk over to him to sit with Christine and listen to him play. But stopped when he saw Raoul follow Christine into the attic wearing some of his clothes. Why was that boy in his clothes? Why hadn't Gustave let Raoul wear his clothes? And what was the boy still doing here? Shouldn't he have returned home after changing? It was after supper and the sun was setting, why was he still here?
Erik moved so that he was hidden in the shadows and watched as all three of them looked around, he could tell Christine and Gustave were looking for him and that Raoul had no idea what he was looking for. "Are you sure he's still up here, Little Lotte?" Gustave asked, calling Christine by the name of the girl from Christine's favorite story about a girl named Little Lotte and her Angel of Music. Gustave had started calling her 'Little Lotte' after Christine claimed that Erik was the Angel of Music. Christine nodded as she continued to look around the attic for him.
"He promised me that he would still be here when I got back." She said.
"Maybe whoever you're looking for went down stairs." Raoul said and Christine shook her head.
"No, Erik wouldn't brake a promise to me. If he says he was going to be here when I got back, then he would not leave the attic. He's still here, he's just hiding." Christine said and Raoul looked at her.
"Why would he be hiding?" Raoul asked.
"Because you're here." Christine said and Raoul looked at her in shock.
"Why would he hide just because I'm here? Is he scared of me, do I intimidate him?" Raoul asked and Erik scoffed and rolled his eyes, as if that boy would scare him.
"No, he just doesn't like meeting new people." Christine said Raoul gave her a look stating that he clearly didn't believe her.
"Well, if he doesn't like new people, then there is no point in trying to convince him to come down and listen to your father play." Raoul said before grabbing Christine's hand and began to drag her towards the attic door causing her to stumble. Erik snarled and went to pull Christine from the boy but stopped when Christine pulled herself free from Raoul's grasp.
"No Raoul, if Erik doesn't want to go downstairs, then we will stay up here with him and listen to Papa play." Christine said then walked over to a box in front of Gustave who quickly got his violin ready.
"You cannot be serious." Raoul said looking at them in disbelief, but when Christine and Gustave did not make a move to leave, Raoul huffed before storming over to Christine. Erik feared that Raoul would try to drag her out of the room, but was shocked when Raoul sat down next to Christine. Erik's shock quickly turned to anger when he noticed how close Raoul was sitting to Christine.
Throughout Gustave's song, Erik constantly switched from glaring at Raoul to staring at Christine trying to mentally will her to move away from Raoul. After Gustave was done playing Raoul and Christine clapped for him. "Oh that was so wonderful Papa!" Christine cried and Gustave smiled at his daughter.
"Maybe one of these days I will be able to play as well as you, Gustave." Raoul said and Erik scoffed at that. Erik let out a deep chuckle, allowing everyone hear how he disagreed with Raoul. Sure, the boy was good, but no matter how much he practiced or played, he would never be as good as either him or Gustave, and that was because the boy only played the music, he never felt the music like him, Gustave, and even Christine. He nearly laughed again when he saw Raoul jump in fright. "What was that?"
"That would be Erik." Gustave said before looking around to try and catch a sight of Erik. "And what do you find so amusing, Erik?"
"The fact that Raoul, believes he will one day be a good as you, my dear Gustave." Erik said throwing his voice so that they would not be able to find him.
"And what makes you think I will not?" Raoul demanded to know.
"You do not feel the music. You shall never be as good as Gustave, nor I, unless you stop playing the music and feel it." Erik said, once again throwing his voice. Raoul huffed and puffed, opening and closing his mouth before turning and storming down the stairs. Once he was sure Raoul would not be returning, Erik allowed himself to step out of the shadows.
"Erik, that was very rude of you!" Christine cried walking up to Erik.
"I only told the boy the truth." Erik told her and was shocked when Christine glared at him and folded her arms over her chest, never had his Angel glared at him before.
"Even if it were the truth, you should not have told him that! Go an apologize to Raoul." She demanded and Erik stared at her in outrage. How dare his Christine, his Angel, demand that he apologize to that boy!
"I will not apologize for tell the truth!" Erik yelled causing Christine to flinch back which caused his anger to calm a little not wanting to frighten his Angel like he had a few years ago.
"If you don't apologize to Raoul, I shall not speak to you again!" Christine cried and Erik's anger flared once again.
"I will not apologize to that boy!" Erik growled to her. The two of them stood there glaring at each other for a minute before Christine spun around
"Then you leave me no choice Erik, from this day forth, until you apologize to Raoul, you are no longer my friend." Christine said before running out of the room. Erik stared after her, his heart clinched in pain as his eyes began to water. Christine, his Angel, had chosen that boy over him, her Angel of Music!
"I shall go see if I can go talk to Christine and calm her down." Gustave said before he left with his violin, but Erik barely heard him. Erik reached over and grabbed the first thing that his hand came in contact and threw it giving out an enraged cry. He continued to yell and scream as he threw things, not caring if things broke or not. Once he had gotten all of his anger out he collapsed to his knees panting, a noise outside caused him to crawl on his hands and knees to the attic window. What he saw caused him to let out a painful sob as he began to cry, there was his Christine, his Angel, in the arms of Raoul, letting him kiss her. He bowed his head and curled in on himself as his tears fell faster. He didn't even jump when he felt a hand on his shoulder.
"I'm sorry, I know how you feel about her." He had Gustave say softly as he felt Gustave kneel down beside him, and began to rub his back in a comforting way. "But you must realize, she is just a child, she does not realized that what she feels for Raoul now, is just a crush that will fade over time. I believe, that given time, Christine will mature and see what I see."
"And what is it that you see, Gustave?" Erik asked pathetically as he lifted his head up to watch as Christine watched Raoul leave with a dreamy look on her face. A look that Erik felt that only he should be allowed to place on her face.
"That you and her are meant for each other. I see it in the way you act around each other, it is like the two of you are drawn to one another. Give her time Erik, she will come around, and I know she does not mean what she said to you today. You are still her best friend. Just give her some time." Gustave whispered. The two sat there in silence for a few minutes before Erik found the strength to stand up. He couldn't stay here and watched that boy prance around here with his Christine on his arm. And though he felt that Gustave was right, he wouldn't, couldn't, stay here and wait who knows how many days, weeks, months, years, it might take for Christine's little crush to fade. But Erik felt it might not be that long, he felt that Raoul would get bored of playing the violin and this little game he had started with Christine. Which one he would get bored of first, he did not know, he just knew that both would happen. And when that did, Gustave would not only be out of a job, but him and Christine would be out of a home.
"I'm leaving. Tonight." Erik stated.
"Erik-" Gustave started as he stood up but Erik stopped him by holding up his hand.
"I cannot stay here and watch them." Erik said and Gustave did not need to ask who he was talking about. "I shall come back, or I will send for you once I find you another job." Gustave opened his mouth but Erik once again held up his hand stopping, "I have a feeling that once Raoul gets tired of either the violin, or this little game he is playing with Christine, he will have his father fire you and you will be in need of a job."
"And were will you go?" Gustave asked.
"I do not know, Paris perhaps, Christine has always been interested in visiting Paris." Erik said, the last part more to himself. Gustave nodded before walking up to him and placed a hand on his should.
"We will miss you." Gustave said.
"And I shall miss you." Erik said before turning and left the attic to go to his room and pack. As he was packing he heard his door quietly open, he glanced up and used the reflection of his mirror to see Christine standing in his door way ringing her hands nervously. "Can I help you?" Erik asked, trying keep his voice calm and emotionless, instead of harsh and biting that the thought of her with Raoul caused him to feel, as he turned back to packing.
"Is what Papa says true? Are you really leaving tonight?" Christine asked, and Erik heard that she was fighting back her tears and his heart clinched but he forced himself to keep packing.
"It is true." Erik said and closed his eyes to keep from spinning around to face a now crying Christine when he heard her sob loudly.
"But you promised! You promised me you would never leave me!" Christine cried out to him causing his hand to pause for a second before he forced it to continue packing.
"I'm sorry Christine, it seems that that promise is one that I will not be able to keep." Erik said as he tied his pack closed. He pulled it over his head and onto his shoulder before he turned around and nearly fell when Christine collided with his body.
"Please, don't leave me. I didn't mean it." She whispered and Erik closed his eyes to keep from crying before he gently pulled her body from his, he stared into her eyes before gently taking her face in his hand and kissed her forehead. He squeezed his eyes closed as he felt a tear fall from his eye.
"Do not worry, we will see each other again." He whispered against her forehead and her arms flew around his waist.
"When?" Christine asked as he felt her gently squeeze him.
"That I do not know." Erik told her before letting her go, and removed her arms from him, before he swept out of his room and nearly ran out of the house, forcing himself to not look back, knowing that if he did he would not have the strength to leave. And as much as this was hurting him, he knew that if he stayed and were to see Christine and Raoul together every day, he would surely die, either by his own hands or from a broken heart.