Erik gently laid the unconscious girl into the gondola and got in after her. She curled up into a ball, wrapping his cape tightly around herself. When he rescued her from the gypsies, he had cloaked her in it to give her some semblance of decency until he could get her a dress.

As he propelled them across the lake, he thought about what exactly he had done. Erik knew nothing about this girl, not her name, her past, her needs and desires. Would she consent to stay with a monster? Would she fear him as so many had before her? Or could she possibly consider him a savior?

Looking down at her unmoving form, Erik wondered what cruel trick of fate caused her to wind up with the gypsies. She didn't have any noticeable physical deformities. Perhaps it was something beneath her skin. For all he knew, she could be mad or have other issues. But it was also highly possible she had been taken through no fault of her own. Erik remembered from his own days with the gypsies that Javert was not afraid to take advantage of young women.

First things first though, she required care. She some wounds that needed tending to. Obviously she needed clothing, because she couldn't wear only a cape for any length of time. The poor girl was also clearly very underfed. She would need food once she awoke.

Once he had reached his home, he stepped ashore and tied the boat up. Erik was about to pick her up to carry her inside when he realized there were two terrified, blue orbs watching his every move.

She watched him warily, clearly still trying to process everything. When he reached to help her out of the boat, she shrank away from his touch. He held out his hands to show that she wasn't in any immediate danger. "They can't hurt you anymore," he told her softly. "You're safe here." The girl didn't respond, but allowed him to step a little closer. Slowly he extended his hand to offer her his assistance. She bit her lip and hesitated.

Where was she? The boat she was sitting in rocked back and forth gently on the lake, but she didn't remember being taken out of the cage. She hugged herself and realized she was wrapped in black fabric. But Javert would never allow her….Her breath caught as she saw the man approaching her.

Oh God, it hadn't been a dream! Someone had taken her away! But was he going to be her hero or would he prove to be an even worse master than Javert? He reached for her, but she flinched. At first glance he seemed concerned and wanting to help her, but then again, so had Javert.

She stared at his proffered hand for a moment, before hesitantly accepting. There weren't any other options. As she stepped out of the boat, her legs wobbled and she stumbled. He gently caught her elbow and steadied her. She glanced up, but when she accidentally locked eyes with him for a second, she quickly shifted her gaze to the ground.

The stone floor was cold against her bare feet. She wrapped the fabric tighter around herself as she tried not to shiver. After all, she was grateful that whoever this man was for being kind enough to give her this much already. He noticed her shaking and motioned for her to follow him. She hesitated for a moment before obeying.

He led her into an adjoining room. Her eyes grew wide in horror when she saw the bed. So he was going to rape her too. She wrapped her arms around herself protectively, and waited for the pain. The only thing she could do was hope he was less brutal than Javert.

Much to her surprise, he simply stood in the doorway. "You're more than welcome to anything in here," he told her. He pointed to another door. "There's a bathroom through there. There are dresses in the wardrobe for you." She stood there gawking as he left. Was she really being treated like a human being? Or was he simply trying to earn her trust before he struck?

Once he was gone, she quickly dashed into the bathroom. For the first time since her abduction, she was able to have a real bath. She relished the feeling of being able to scrub all the grime from her skin and wash her hair. When the worst of it was gone, she drew a second bath, just to make sure she was really clean. It was a beautiful feeling.

As she dried herself off, she realized in just how bad of shape she was. Her entire body was black and blue, covered in cuts and bruises, all in various stages of healing. She pulled on a blue dress from the wardrobe to hide the wounds from sight. It hung on her starved frame. Hopefully she would be able to put on a little more weight for it to fit better.

She spent well over an hour brushing her hair with a comb that was lying on the vanity. Once she had gotten all the knots out, she braided it and tied it off with a black ribbon she had found. She looked around the room. It was elegant and well furnished. The wardrobe was full of stylish dresses that she loved, even if they were a bit too big for her. The man who brought her here must have had a wife or a daughter to have all of this just sitting around.

The smell of food reached her nose and made her stomach growl. She cautiously poked her head out of the room. The man was nowhere in sight. Following the scent, she found herself in a small kitchen. A pot of soup was sitting on the stove. She was so hungry, she wanted to just stuff her face until she could eat no more, but somehow restrained herself out of fear. If this wasn't meant for her, she was scared of how he would punish her.

A small cough caused her to freeze. She whirled around and saw him standing behind her, a bowl in his hands. He held it out to her, but she couldn't help but stare at the bone white mask on his face. How had she missed that earlier?

Erik left the girl to allow her some privacy. He thought about her reaction when he showed her the bedroom. She was absolutely terrified. For a moment, he had wondered why, but then he realized it was a totally stupid idea for him to take her there right away. It was obvious what Javert had done to her. He had been quick to distance himself though, so hopefully she understood that he wouldn't take advantage of her.

In fact, he had no plans on going anywhere near that room. It wasn't meant for him. Originally it wasn't meant for her. It was meant for Christine. But she was gone now, so there was no reason this girl couldn't use it. God knows she needed a space to call her own, a place where she felt safe. Erik hadn't been in there since Christine left, so it was in perfect condition for her.

Realizing the poor girl would be starving, Erik went into the kitchen to prepare something for her. He prepared a soup to cook while she was dressing. When it was nearly done, he went to grab some bread for her to have with it.

As he turned around, he spotted the girl staring at the soup. There was such a look of longing in her eyes he felt a rush of pity for her. He grabbed a bowl and pushed it into her hands. "Have as much as you would like," he instructed.

She began to eat ravenously. Erik remembered from his own past that Javert had always been far from generous on everything that wasn't a punishment. He himself had been starving to death when Antoinette Giry helped him escape. When she finished, she resumed looking at the pot, obviously still hungry. Even though he motioned that it was okay, she seemed to fearful move. Erik gently took the bowl out of her hands, refilled it, and handed it back to her as well as a large piece of bread. "It's okay," he said. "I'm not going to hurt you."

While she finished, Erik pretended to clean, even though he was secretly watching her. She looked worse now that all the dirt and grime was gone from her skin. Her face and arms were severely bruised and he could tell she was extremely underweight. But underneath all that, he could see she was beautiful, with an angelic face, blonde hair, blue eyes, and even though she was thin, she had well-defined curves. He couldn't deny it; he could see the appeal she had to men, especially someone like Javert.

Suddenly her gaze snapped to the floor. Erik realized that she had been staring at him while he had been studying her. She was clearly slightly unnerved by his mask, but too timid to ask or attempt to remove it. Actually, now that he thought about it, she had yet to speak a single word to him. Erik decided that he would give her no reason not to trust him and eventually she would open up a little.