Mia closed her eyes and leaned back in the tub, relaxing in the warm water. After her cold, wet dress, this felt wonderful. As she toyed absent-mindedly with the bubbles, she thought about how she had convinced Erik to allow her to go see the performance tonight.

It was all working out according to plan. Not only was she allowed above ground, which was a lovely change in and of itself, but in a her bigger scheme, it meant that he was beginning to trust her more and allowing her more freedoms, which was the key to escape.

She glanced over at her dress which was folded neatly, waiting for her. Since the other dress was wet from the rain, Mia had no choice but to wear the short-sleeved dress. Mia stared at her scarred arms, trying to bring herself to get out and put it on, but she couldn't just yet. Instead she shut her eyes again, enjoying the warm water a while longer.

There was a knock on the door. "Nearly done?" she heard the Phantom ask. Mia sat up and looked around wildly. The water was cold now, making her realize that she must have been in here longer than she thought. In fact, she was pretty sure she had fallen asleep.

"I'll be done in a few minutes," she replied quickly.

Erik chuckled as if he knew exactly what had happened. "I was just making sure you hadn't drowned yourself."

"No, you're not that lucky."

He remained silent for a moment, before changing the subject. "Well if you hurry, I have dinner so that you can eat before the performance."

It was then that Mia became aware of the scent of delicious-smelling food wafting through the lair. Her stomach growled hungrily. "Alright, I'll be out soon."

Mia climbed out of the tub and grabbed a thick, luxurious towel to dry herself off. She wrapped the fluffy towel around her body before stepping in front of the mirror to comb out her hair. Once all the knots were out, she began to pin it up, like she used to do every morning when she was home. If someone were to spot her, she needed to blend in with the other socialites that were going to be at the performance.

When her hair was done, she turned and faced the dress. Was it really so hard to expose her scars? The answer was yes. After being forced to hide them for nearly ten years, Mia couldn't bring herself to show them to the world. Not yet. But, at the same time, she had to. For a moment, she toyed with the notion that this was all an extravagant plot concocted by the Phantom, but of course it wasn't. He didn't give a damn about her. Why would he care?

Erik paced back and forth, waiting for Mia, every so often glancing at the table, which was set for one. He had prepared dinner for her before the show, hoping to get on her good side. This manipulation was hard work.

"This is a terrible idea," the Phantom murmured to himself as he paced. "She could attract attention, or escape, or be recognized by someone. It isn't worth the risk."

"But she promised she wouldn't," Erik reminded himself.

"And what good is her promise?" he asked, turning sharply on his heel and switching directions. "This could all be a ploy."

He ran his hand through his hair. "But you promised her."

"No actually you didn't," he admitted. "You said that you didn't see why not. That's not actually a promise."

"She'll be uncooperative from now on if you back out."

"Amelia is here for you to get back at the Vicomte, nothing more. If this doesn't work, you can always go back to square one."

"It's a little late for that at this point. Her husband will notice her absence any day now."

"Well do you have a better plan?"

"It looks like we're going to that damn opera."

Erik froze when he heard Mia's footsteps. He turned to face her and his jaw nearly dropped. She was beautiful. He hadn't realized just how beautiful she would look in that dress. The pastel pink gave her face some much needed color, the short, sheer sleeves looked like they were about to slide down her creamy white shoulders at any moment, and the neckline was far lower than he had thought. No, no, no! Erik screamed internally. She is a de Chagny! And worse, the Vicomte's sister!

Mia's eyes slowly rose to meet his. Her cheeks colored slightly as she realized he was staring at her. Erik quickly averted his gaze. Instead, he pulled out a chair at the table for her. "Sit," he ordered. She raised her eyebrow, but obeyed. "Eat."

She glanced at the sole plate on the table then back up at him. "Aren't you going to join me?"

He shook his head. "The mask makes it uncomfortable."

"You could take it off," Mia suggested quietly.

The memories of hundreds of screams over the years echoed back to Erik. "I don't think so," he said coldly.

"Aren't you hungry?"

"I've never eaten much," Erik replied with another shake of his head as he sat across the table from her. "Now eat or you're going to miss the opera." Mia fell silent and obediently picked up her fork.

As she ate, Erik sat and watched her, due to a lack of anything else worthwhile to do. She seemed slightly uncomfortable, but didn't say anything. Finally, she put the fork down and stared at him. "Don't you have something Phantom-y to do before the show?" she asked in exasperation. Erik smirked and shook his head, knowing that she was getting annoyed.

When she was finally done, Erik helped her into the boat. "Why are we going this way?" Mia asked. "We used the other passage earlier."

"This is more direct," Erik answered. "And if I'm ever followed, I'd rather them find a lake then have them wind up right in the center of my home." He made sure to neglect the fact that he didn't want Mia to learn how to navigate the other route, especially not how to open the mirror, because she'd be able to escape.

He led Mia through the tunnels, directly up to Box Five. No one knew it, but one of the walls was a false panel that connected to the secret passages. It was his secret to getting in and out of the box without being detected, and it was the only one with a secret doorway, which was why he demanded that particular box. If they all had secret doors, Erik would have been less picky.

No sooner than they settled in their seats, the curtain began to rise and the show began. Usually Erik would get swept up in the music immediately, but he wouldn't allow it this time. Not when he needed to keep an eye on her.

But he probably needn't have worried. Once the cast began to sing, Mia was entranced. Erik watched the excitement in her eyes, and couldn't help but smile. It had been a long time since he had seen anyone as genuinely interested in a show as him.

About halfway through the third act, just after Romeo and Juliet's wedding, Erik noticed her eyelids were beginning to grow heavy. She had had a long day; she probably was tired. By the beginning of the final act though, Mia was leaning against his shoulder, sleeping soundly.

When the opera was over, she showed no sign of awakening any time soon. Erik sighed and scooped her up, before carrying her back down to the lair. Mia sighed contently in her sleep and nestled closer. Erik just shook his head and placed her gently into the boat, so as not to wake her.

As he paddled back, Erik thought about the performance. The first bassoon's tone quality was still horrendous, even after a year of Erik's complaining the managers still hadn't replaced him. And the third trombone was still as out of tune and seemingly deaf as ever which was irritating beyond belief. He had ordered their dismissal before the Don Juan incident, but somehow they were still here. Although he knew that it was hard to find musicians willing to work in a haunted theater.

And as for the Prima Donna, Violet, he was not happy with her. While technically, her voice was fine, she wasn't projecting very well. There were times when Erik could barely hear her at all. Whether it was due to bad technique or just plain laziness, Erik didn't care, but it needed to be fixed. What I would do to have Christine back, he thought with a sigh.

Erik remembered the first time he had brought Christine to his lair. She had been so innocent, so naïve, so trusting. How had it all gone so wrong? He looked down at the sleeping girl with a smile. It didn't matter now. Everything was going to be alright. Christine had forgiven him and returned to her true home, to her angel. When they arrived back at the lair, Erik scooped her up and tucked her into bed.

He stood over his sleeping angel for a moment before reaching down and smoothed her curly brunette locks. Christine smiled softly in her sleep and shifted as Erik gently caressed her cheek. But when he blinked, Christine disappeared and was replaced with the blonde Mia de Chagny, and his heartbreak came rushing back. Maybe it was possible to love again, Erik thought to himself. He yanked his hand away as though he had been burned. No, no, no, no one will ever love you! he shouted internally. Especially not her! You can't love her and she won't love you! She is not, and never will be Christine! Besides, she shares the blood of the man who took your angel away, he reminded himself. Someone has to pay!