Don't worry. The entire chapter is NOT in Raoul's point of view.

htr17 asked how old they are: Erik is 36, Christine is 18. Oh and I make most of my POTO stories M rated. Nothing will be too explicit, but it is a romance and well this is POTO. Things are bound to get steamy. ;p

Thanks for the reviews! Enjoy.

Raoul

"I want you to find Christine Daae," I told the shadowy man. He was across the room sitting in the darkest corner. I wanted a man that could find my beloved Christine, and this Mr. Barrett came well recommended. I, however, did not know much about him. A friend of the family had given me his name. I needed him to rescue her from the clutches of that madman. Surely the Phantom must have had her under some sort of hypnosis. How else could she have chosen him? I could still see that dazed look in her eyes when she told me she was going with him. He had such power over her. I couldn't understand it, but I had to save her from it.

"And what of this man she is with? This mysterious phantom?" Monsieur Barrett inquired in a dark, deep voice.

I took a seat at my desk. "I know she's with him, but I caution you to be extra careful with this man. He's very crafty. Be sure to keep your hand at the level of your eyes when you think he may be close," I explained. The Phantom was certainly no man to be toyed around with. I had made that mistake once before. It would never be made again.

"Do you want me to kill him?" he asked darkly.

"What? Do what you must with him, but all I want is the safe return of Miss Daae."

"And what makes you so sure she's not exactly where she wants to be?" he asked.

"If she is, then I want to be convinced of it," I answered confidently. I took out a change purse I'd collected for this. "Half now, half when you deliver Christine Daae to me. If you actually manage to catch this Phantom I'm sure you will receive a hefty reward as well." I threw the change purse to him.

He caught it with ease and grace. "And this Madame Giry, you believe her to know something?" he inquired.

I nodded. "She seemed to know more about the Phantom than she led on. She's as good a lead as any."

He was silent a moment as he counted the money in the purse. Seeming pleased, he went to the door. In the moonlight, I was now able to make out his dark features. He had incredibly dark eyes that reflected the moon's light in a rather sinister manner. His nose was skinny and crooked and his black beard was a little grimy. "Consider it done Monsieur de Chagny." He then slipped out of the room.

Christine

The rest of the night was mostly spent in silence. I knew the three of us were quite shaken by the close call. A few hours had passed since the police left, but I still found my hands shaking. I had been so close to losing my angel of music forever.

Erik came out of the bathroom still drying his face off. Madame Giry had advised him to bathe. It was a good idea. Before his bath he had dried blood on his chest and arm. A bath was sorely needed. He wasn't wearing a shirt when he emerged. The shirt he put on this morning had blood on it because his bandage had started to seep with all the commotion. Luckily, there was no shortage of clothing in this room. With Madame Giry's convincing, Henri had agreed to let Erik take as many clothes as he needed. Henri had seemed less generous about the dresses but reluctantly agreed that I could wear some. I was very thankful. I had no clothes since we had run away so swiftly. Madame Giry had promised to bring me some of my own clothing from the opera dormitories, but tonight I was wearing a rather nice white lace nightgown. It was a little big in the bust but it fit me well enough.

Erik's eyes opened wide when he saw what I was wearing. It was the least amount of clothing he'd ever seen me in. Well the least that I knew about. "You look lovely, Christine," he exclaimed with wide blue eyes.

I blushed. "Thank you, Erik." He turned around to grab a shirt, and I noticed his wound had a trail of blood down his back. "Oh Erik…" I grabbed his towel and began to wipe the blood. "I need to replace your bandages and Madame Giry said you shouldn't go anywhere without that sling."

"The sling is annoying," he replied indignantly . "I prefer the full use of my arms."

I glared at him. "Well you won't have any use of this arm if you don't take care of it." I went into the bathroom and found the sling thrown on the ground. When I reentered the room Erik was staring silently into the vanity mirror. The room was dark and a shadow was cast on the distorted side of his face making it to where only the handsome side was visible.

"I like how the night can hide the ugly," he said, staring into the mirror.

I frowned and walked over to him. I placed a hand gently on his shoulder so not to hurt him. "Sometimes though…" I picked up a candle and held it to his face so that I could see all of him. "Sometimes there is beauty in the night…how can you see it if it's hidden?"

He turned his face to me. Tears were rimming around his blue eyes. He looked so lost and frightened. I knew that he was not used to kindness. I kissed him to prevent his cries. It started as a small kiss, but I soon felt a deep ferocity growing within me. I could feel it in him too from the way his lips held mine. The kiss deepened even more. I put the candle down and my hands felt their way up his cold chest as his hands found my hips. His breathing became labored in the intensity of the moment. That godlike voice of his made the sound so erotic! We fell on to the bed with him on top. He started to slowly place kisses down my neck and down the top of my chest…getting oh so close to my breasts. I put my hands to the side, letting him do whatever he pleased with me. I wanted him so badly! I wanted him to take me right then and there and finally pass the point of no return. But he stopped.

He quickly lifted his head and retreated across the room. His breathing was still heavy. I could see his chest moving even in the darkness. "I…I can't," he cried.

I felt like a child that had just been denied the greatest gift of all time. My warm body cooled down immediately leaving me feeling tense and well empty. I sat up angrily on the bed. "Why?" I pleaded. "Don't you want me?"

He came over to me and looked me straight in the eye. I could see the deep lust that was in him. He didn't even have to answer the question, I knew. His breath was still warm as he stared down upon me with those lustful blue eyes. "I…I'm just not quite sure what I'm doing," he admitted shamefully. I knew he had never been with a woman, but it was so sad to see his lack of confidence. I had never been with a man either.

I smiled devilishly. "Erik, just let your body and heart do all the work. I'm sure you'll do fine." I then pulled him down on top of me. I forced his lips to mine. Our kisses were almost feral. He was longing for me as much as I longed for him. I pushed him over and straddled him. He still seemed a bit nervous as I gazed upon him. I rolled my eyes and blew out the last remaining candle. Perhaps he would be more comfortable in the dark. He was.

I awoke the next morning with the sun blazing through the small gap in the curtains. Erik was behind me with his arm wrapped around my naked waist. His soft and steady warm breath on my neck told me that he was still asleep. Our legs and hands were entwined in one another's. I may have been naked, but it was the most comfortable I'd ever been in my entire life.

My whole body felt alive for the first time of my existence. That was what lying with a man was like? No, that was what sleeping with Erik was like. Erik may have never been with a woman, but he certainly knew how to please one. I wouldn't have expected anything less. He had an aura of sexuality around him. His voice was like making love as it was. Then he was so incredibly elegant in everything he did. Every movement that he made, in and out of the bed, was so graceful it was sexual. Making love to him was done without mind. It was deep passion merged with pure carnal instinct; it was the most magnificent thing I had ever experienced. The entire world seemed to fade away when we were making love. I could still feel his hands exploring every inch of my body, and I could feel his tender kisses on my skin even now. The thought sent shivers through my body.

I brought Erik's hand to my lips and kissed it. His body felt warm behind for the first time ever. I turned over to face him. I was careful to make sure I was still in his embrace. After last night, I never wanted to be out of his grasp again. He groaned as I did so. I'd awoken him.

One of his dark blue eyes opened. It shimmered in the bright, late afternoon light. "Good morning," he greeted with a smile.

"You're the god of love," I said sternly with a grin.

He laughed. It was such a good sound. "I'm glad you enjoyed yourself," he replied.

"Enjoyed doesn't even begin to describe it," I admitted shamelessly. I situated my naked body to straddle him again. He was really strangely warm.

"Christine," he whispered. I could feel his desire for me growing. It's the reaction I had wanted. I bent down and kissed him. His face felt really hot.

"Wait…" I felt his forehead. He was burning up. He groaned when he realized that I had noticed. "Are you feeling alright?"

"Well besides the fact that I'm positive I have developed a fever, I've never been better," he replied in a hoarse voice. He helped me move to the side of him but winced as he did so. It wasn't like before; it seemed now like he was really in horrendous pain.

I remembered last night we had neglected to put on fresh bandages since we were otherwise engaged. Gently, I forced him to turn over so that I could see his back. It was hard for him to do so since he was in so much pain. His wound was terribly swollen. The skin around it was a deep red. The actual wound itself had a yellowy tint to it. Blood was seeping out of it slowly and down his back on to the bed. Carefully, I touched around the wound. The skin was burning hot, even compared to the rest of his body. A little bit of puss oozed out from the wound.

"It's infected," I announced sadly. One didn't need to be a doctor to figure that out.

"That's what I assumed," he responded with a slight air of indifference. I helped him to lie back down.

I stood up and found a pair of night pants for him lying on the floor. Madame Giry was going to have to examine him, and I'm sure he would prefer to be clothed. I helped him slip the pants on. He was having trouble using his injured arm at all. After I helped him, I slipped on the night dress that I had worn last night along with a robe.

"I'll get Madame Giry. Hopefully she'll know what to do," I told him as I went out the door and down the stairs. Madame Giry was nowhere to be found downstairs. Henri, however, was eating some lunch in the kitchen as he read the paper. I noticed that it was another headline about Erik and me. I didn't pay much attention though.

"We have a problem," I announced solemnly.

He looked up from the paper. "Good afternoon, Miss Daae. What's the problem?" He seemed to be in a better mood than he had been yesterday, or perhaps it was just because Erik was not here.

"Erik…the Phantom…his wound has become infected. I believe he's running a fever as well," I explained.

He didn't say a word, but he went back to reading his paper. "That's not good," he replied simply.

"No, it's not," I answered rather annoyed at his indifference. "Perhaps something should be done to help him."

"Madame Giry will be back momentarily…hopefully." He still didn't look up from his paper.

"Hopefully?"

I heard him chuckle a little. He then put the paper down and glared down at me. "Yes. Hopefully. The entire city is searching for your…Erik…and everyone suspects she knows something. She went on a little adventure to retrieve you some clothes. I can only hope the police don't find her and decide to bring her in for questioning," he explained coldly.

With everything going on, I hadn't thought about the danger Madame Giry was in. Everyone knew she had some strange affiliation with the opera ghost. It would only be common sense that the police would want to ask her some questions. I frowned. Henri seemed dissatisfied with my reaction, but he went back to reading his paper. "Please inform me when she returns," I stated sadly as I slipped out of the kitchen. I heard him scoff from behind me.

When I got back upstairs, Erik was resting with his eyes closed. I went into the bathroom and retrieved a rag. I wetted it with cold water and went back to Erik. With the wound as bad as it was, I didn't want to clean it without Madame Giry examining it. She would know what to do. I placed the wet rag on Erik's forehead and let the cold water run down his face. He sighed as I did so.

"Madame Giry will be home momentarily," I assured him. He opened his eyes and looked at me.

He looked dreadfully tired but quite content nonetheless. "Last night…it was the best night of my life," he told me.

I smiled and placed a kiss on his forehead. "Mine too."

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