Disclaimer: I do not own Erik, or Meg, or Madame Giry, or any other characters from the ingenious mind of Gaston Leroux! Anne just currently resides in my head until she's done telling her story.

AN: He'll always be there singing songs in your head if you review/favorite/follow!

Chapter 22

I spent the rest of my Sunday evening resting, or rather I stayed in bed for the rest of the day. Jane came in and tended to me like the good friend she was, and Meg talked on and on some of the new things that she and her mother bought that day. She had found a new hat, a new pair of gloves, and found some new ribbons and lace for making up some of her old things.

"And, Mama has said that I can use some of my earnings to buy a new evening gown! The managers are putting on some sort of party in a few weeks to open up the season, and I have been invited."

Some of the troupe had managed to take time out of their lives to come by and make sure I was alright. Some of the ballet girls and chorus members came by to make sure I was feeling better. Madame Carrolton didn't come in person but she did send me a card with a note written on it, wishing for my speedy recovery. The only person who I refused to see was Faucher. Just hearing his name made my skin crawl and I couldn't really place the reason why. His attentions earlier in the summer had been unwanted and very forward, yes, but wasn't that how most boys acted?

"Why won't you see him, Anne?" Aunt Giry had asked, when Meg and Jane had stepped out of the room for a moment.

"When I went to have my first lesson with Erik, I caught Faucher following me."

"How did you catch him?"

I bit my lip, a little nervous at answering her question. "Well, I sensed someone was following me and then Erik grabbed me out of nowhere and pulled me into a corner."

"What?"

"Don't worry, I'm fine. But we both watched Faucher walk past, obviously looking for me. And I didn't like the look on his face." I gave her such a pointed look that she understood my meaning perfectly.

"You can't avoid him forever, Anne, but we shall do everything we can to keep him separate from you, if that's possible."

"Thank you. Now, tell me about this party Meg is going to be attending."

She stayed with me until Meg came back and then we prepared for bed. When Meg had retired for the evening, I made a list of all of my obligations and a list of all the things I personally wanted to get accomplished. I came up with an easy, schedule as my obligation to the troupe was going to be over in a week or two since the orchestra was about finished learning their parts. I rested well, but I was troubled about what I had done to cause Erik to be so upset with me, aside from being so stupid. I realized, now, that I should have been more aware of my health since I had pushed myself too hard. I had pushed myself in order to keep my mind focused on the present rather than on the past…and my mother. I couldn't let myself fall ill again. I couldn't afford it.

Monday came and went without any great upheaval. Rehearsal was easy, since I knew all of my music by now. It was staging for the troupe, and choreography for the ballet. Aunt was kind enough not to push me to play so much as the corp apparently needed to know their rhythm before they could learn anything else.

"If you can't feel the beat within you, then you make the orchestra look bad. The orchestra doesn't follow you. It's the other way around."

At times, I thought she was hard on them, but then I realized that she was hard on everyone…even me, when she chose to be. She demanded perfection, but she wanted everything to look good. I thought at times, she was the hardest on Meg, regardless of the fact that she was her own daughter. If Meg wasn't on pointe, she would know it. If her arms looked like noodles, she would know it. If she was even a split second behind, she would know it. I wondered why Meg didn't break under all the constant nagging, but it was apparent she desired perfection of herself. Like mother, like daughter, I supposed. But there was no sign from Erik. Not even a note.

I dreaded Tuesday, since it was the day that I was to go down to see Erik for my lesson. It was the day that rehearsals were done early since the painting crew needed the stage to paint, and everyone had to be refitted for their costumes. Aunt Giry worked her girls so hard they almost always lost weight, and Madame Carrolton worked herself into a frenzy by eating one too many chocolates.

I had left rehearsal without anyone seeing me, since I was the pianist and not many people took notice of me. I had managed to avoid Faucher fairly well. He seemed quite intent on finding me alone, and I had no desire to see him…alone or otherwise. I made quick time returning to my room to pick up my music, but as I made my way to the hallway that would lead me down the underground, I was hesitant in going. I was probably going down, only to be sent back, yet I was puzzled as to why he would be so upset with me that was well over forty eight hours ago.

I looked around me to make sure that no one was following me, and then pressed against the false wall which gave way. I stepped through, heard the door close behind me, and I picked up the torch that he kept burning for me. I took it as a positive sign that I was welcome, thinking he would not want me to fall to any harm if I came to see him for my lesson. It hadn't taken me very long to remember my way down because I had a tendency to look no where other than where I was going. I made a mental note to ask him if he could show me where some of his passageways led as I would like to see more than just what commonly known of the Opera House.

It seemed like an eternity had passed when I saw light shine from the end of the tunnel. I stepped out of the darkness into the light, smiling at the sight of the candles and his home. I placed the torch into a wall sconce and descended the few steps to reach the edge of the lake. Picking up my skirt, I made my way to his home, feeling a little fearful when I didn't hear anything coming from the inside…not even music. I thought it strange that he wouldn't be playing right now, but I made my way to the front door and raised my hand to knock.

Erik did everything in his power to keep himself from feeling happy when he opened the door and found her standing there, her hand poised to rap on his door. Happiness was not a commodity he was to allow himself to have…especially not with Anne…especially after the incidents of Sunday afternoon. But she had returned. He had let her walk out his door and had come back. That had to be some sort of sign…didn't it?

"What are you doing here?" He asked, trying to sound as brusque as he could.

"I…I'm here for my lesson." She tilted her head and looked at him quite confused at his question. He had to confess he liked the way her eyes sparkled with the glow of the candles.

"And what, may I ask, would make you think that I'm to teach you today?"

Curiosity turned to frustration than to anger so quick he wasn't prepared for it. "Look Erik, this is ridiculous. I'm sorry I passed out in your kitchen on Sunday, but I thought I could manage myself quite well. Either you move on from it, and we can continue with our arrangement, or I can see myself back up to my Aunt and Meg and we can forget that the other exist."

Now Erik was the one who was confused. "Move on?"

"Well, you holed yourself up in the music room for so long that I thought you were angry with me. But really, I am only human, and if you're going to be angry with me because I'm human…than we've got a serious issue."

"You…don't remember…do you?"

"Remember…what?"

He took hold of her hands and brought her inside. "Come sit down." He shut his front door and guided her to the music room. After situating on the divan he sat next to her, still holding on to her hands. "You were delirious on Sunday, that can be the only explanation." He took a deep breath and looked into her eyes. "While I was taking care of you…you said things."

Anne ripped her hands away and her eyes widened in fear. "What…what did I say?"

"You talked of your mother, a lot. I asked you questions…and you answered."

"That isn't fair!" She shouted, but Erik could see that it wasn't because she was angry. "You took advantage of me!"

"No, I did not! I was trying to see if you were awake and conscious." Erik stood up and paced around the room, running his hands through his hair. "You didn't tell me anything damaging, if that's what you're worried about."

"I'm not worried, Erik. I'm angry! I'm furious!"

"But I didn't know!"

"I'm pretty sure it's easy to tell what a delirious person looks like."

"Not when you've had very little contact with the human world or have you forgotten that?"

Anne was silent and hung her head in her hands. After a moment, she raised her head but it wasn't to look at him. She looked away from him and her eyes were unreadable but they appeared to be filled with tears. God, he didn't need a crying woman on his hands! He had no idea how to deal with one of those!

"What…did I say?"

He took a hesitant breath. "Anne…try to understand…"

"What," she said loudly at him. She took a breath and brought her voice down. "Did I say?"

"Nothing to incriminate you or to make you seem like a bad person."

She laughed almost maniacally and it scared him. "That is the least of my problems. But there are things about me that you should not know about." She gave him a pointed look. "If the situations were reversed, I would not take off you mask just out of curiosity to see if you were awake."

"That's not the…"

"Don't even say it! It's exactly the same thing and you know it! Now, either you answer my question, or I walk out that door and don't come back!"

He sighed, wondering what had gotten her into such a fit. It wasn't anything too terrible. Honestly, he had asked a few questions about her family…most specifically about her mother, but he had managed to find the address of her grandmother. He was intending to pay his respects to the lady who could beat such a rare person as Anne. But, any questions he may ever want to ask Anne, would seem entirely out of context if he didn't explain what he had learned on Sunday…and what had happened because of it.

"Please, Anne, sit down, and I'll explain it to you." This wasn't going to be easy, and he had no idea of how she would react, if she would even react at all. When she had made herself comfortable on the divan, he walked about the room trying to put all of his thoughts together because he couldn't start launching into his tale half told. He would have to start at the beginning, but he had to make sure that he included everything. When he felt he had it all into his mind, he sat stopped pacing, resumed his seat and took her hands again. He took a deep breath, and began his tale.