"I wasn't actually expecting you to be here."

Ella was so intimidated by those intense eyes and just his very presence. Every movement he made was fluid, graceful, and powerful, like a predator stalking his prey, and that fact alone was enough to make her very nervous. "Well I guess that makes two of us."

"So why are you here?" he asked suddenly.

The question threw her off. Wasn't the answer obvious? "You were right. I want to sing, and you're the only person who can help me, the only person who's ever believed in my voice."

He raised an eyebrow. "And just how many people have ever actually heard your voice? No one can believe in what they don't know exists."

She looked away so that she wouldn't tell him everything. "Isn't that why I accepted your offer?" Ella finally replied.

"Is it?"

"My name's Ella," she said, switching subjects. She didn't want to get caught up in his mind games. Just because he seemed willing to help her didn't mean he wasn't trying to get inside her head.

"Yes, I know," he replied smoothly. His response sent her spinning off guard again. Granted, he was the Phantom and probably knew everything and everyone in the theater, but still, just the fact he had paid so much attention to her amazed her.

"So," Ella began cautiously. "What's yours?"

"My what?"

"Your name! You have to have one."

Now it was his turn to be surprised. "No one's ever asked me before."

What kind of life could a person lead where no one even bothered to attempt learn your name, Ella wondered. No wonder he stayed in hiding. "Well I'm asking you now. I swear I'll never tell another soul."

His eyes searched hers for a moment, as if he were trying to judge her sincerity. Finally he took a deep breath. "Erik."

She cocked her head to one side and considered it for a moment before giving a brief nod. "It suits you." A few minutes passed in silence. "So what are we going to do now?"

"Nothing," he answered.

"What?!" she asked in shock. "What do you mean nothing?"

"I mean nothing," he replied frankly. "You just got over that fever and by now you ought to have learned what happens if you strain yourself too much."

"So that's it? You said you were going to help me!"

"And I will. But it's not an overnight process. It'll take time and patience," Erik said. "Tonight was just to make sure I wasn't wasting my time by continuing to offer you my assistance."

"So you decided to waste my time instead?"

He smirked smugly. "But I didn't, did I? You're already making progress."

Ella was confused. "I don't follow."

"You haven't screamed or run away yet." The confidence of his response and the fact it was utterly unexpected cause Ella to smile, but she turned away so hopefully he couldn't see that she found his comment amusing.

When she turned back around, she was completely alone. "Really?" she cried in exasperation.

"We'll be in touch," Erik's voice rang out.

After a few moments of silence, Ella decided he wasn't coming back. She headed back up to the dormitories, praying she hadn't been horribly missed. Luckily the only person who seemed to pay attention to her absence was Meg. "There you are! I was starting to get worried," the blonde said.

"I just went on a walk," she replied to set her friend's mind at ease. Ella looked up and saw Jacqueline glaring at her. "What's her problem?"

"Oh, when you were sick, I saw her trying to cozy up to your friend 'Monsieur Handsome Patron'. I think she's jealous that he's interested in you and now that you're feeling better, you're competition again," Meg explained.

She raised her voice just enough for everyone to hear. "Well, Jacqueline can have him. As sweet as Monsieur Dubois is, I'm just not interested. Perhaps eventually she could catch his fancy."

As the other girls snickered at her remark, Jacqueline's glare grew even more intense. If looks could kill, Ella would have been dead. "You've been fighting a handful of battles," Meg whispered. "But now you just made it a war."

"It's been a war," Ella whispered back. "I just returned fire for once."

"I'm proud of you for sticking up for yourself. If you keep doing that, maybe she'll leave you alone."

"I don't even know what possessed me to say that."

Meg smiled. "Well whatever it is, keep it up."

Ella shrugged before preparing for bed. As she combed her hair, her thoughts drifted back to her conversation with the Phantom, or as she learned, Erik. She had felt extremely comfortable with him, and that worried her. Was this what he did to Christine? Earned her trust then tried to take advantage of her? But he didn't seem capable of that. She decided that she would proceed with caution for now.

"Ella?"

She jumped, shaken out of her thoughts. "Oh, I'm sorry Meg! I just was daydreaming. Did you say something?"

"You have such a pretty voice."

"Wha…what?" Did Meg somehow know about her time with Erik? Was their secret meeting not as secret as they believed?

"You were humming just now, and it was amazing. You, if you tried, if you auditioned for a lead, you could really be someone someday."

Ella looked in the mirror, but instead of her own reflection, she could see those deep emerald eyes, that dark hair, the stark white mask of her new tutor. "Maybe someday I will."