Before the Phantom

A System

   The two saw each-other almost every day, except for Sundays, when Nadette's Mama took her to church, or on days when Erik could not sneak out of his room.  The two had come up with a system of knowing when the latter had happened: if he could not get away, the curtain was not outside of the broken window.  If he could make it to the forest, his curtain would be outside. Erik had stuck a nail into his wall so that he could tie the curtain to it if he was not able to come to the woods. 

This rarely happened though, since his Mother didn't care to make sure he stayed in his room, and the servants were too afraid of him to go anywhere near his glorified prison.

Nadette and Erik had grown quite fond of each-other.  They made each-other laugh, a feat not easily done to the sullen boy.  They told each-other secrets, such as how Erik wasn't really allowed to leave his room, or how Nadette had never had a secret to keep before.  He would ask how Nadette's pianoforte lessons were going, and she would tell him in great detail how her teacher - Monsignor Cousteau - was so old he could hardly see the music notes. "Once," she said, "He fell asleep during our lessons!" And the pair laughed and laughed until their stomachs hurt. It was bliss.

They told each-other almost everything.  Erik was more than happy that the young girl did indeed keep her promise, and never broached the subject of the mask. Erik was shocked to find that, not only was Nadette his only friend, but he was hers as well!

This revelation made his feel special in the best way. For now, someone, even though he was five years her senior, someone wanted him. Someone liked him.

This went on for weeks. The pair would meet in the forest, and Nadette would look to his window to be sure the curtain floated from it, and she would grin and quicken her pace.

But, one day, the curtain floated as usual, yet Erik was nowhere to be seen.

This confused the girl, and she was about to turn back in the thought that perhaps Erik had simply forgotten to tie his curtain back, when she heard a sharp yelp.

She knew that voice.

She began to run, following an odd thudding sound and an occasional whimper until she found him. 

There, in a patch of grass behind his house was Erik, but not alone.  A woman, who she though must be the widow, his mother, was hitting him repeatedly in the stomach and the back with a lump of wood.

"You cursed, wretched child!  How many times have you been told never to leave!  You are despicable! You are nothing!" The woman screeched at him. 

Her arm raised again, and before she could stop herself, from the edge of the forest, Nadette shouted, "NO!"

It worked, of course, in distracting the widow, but now all of her attention was directed at Nadette.

"And who," she seethed, "are you, my pretty little thing?"

"My name is Tabatha Nadette, Madame. Please, please don't hurt him anymore!" She pled.

Erik finally raised his head to look at her, "You need to go! Just go home, Nadette!"

"This little demon left his room when he was told not to do so. He disobeyed my orders, and he will be punished." His mother growled, "But he seems fond of you, do you know him, pet?"

Nadette glanced at Erik, who was staring at her in slight fear for what may happen to her. Well, Erik had already been hit enough, if the woman was still angry she could hit Nadette.

"Yes. I was walking through the woods and I saw him through the window," she lied, "I, well, I told him he had to come play with me or else I... I would... I would tell everybody that the widow had a son!"

The woman laughed, not buying into her tale for a second. Erik was just shocked. Nadette was willing to take the blame for a monster such as himself?

"My dear child, has nobody told you that little children shouldn't lie?" She laughed, and then stopped, reaching out to caress a strand of Nadette's long, dark hair, "You are everything I had hoped to have in a child. So beautiful. So sweet." She crooned, "But instead God thought to curse me with this...thing." She spat.

Nadette stood in shock as Erik flinched. And she grew angry. She grew far more angry than an eight year old ought to be.

Her eyes darkened slightly, and in a low, dark voice she seethed at the woman, "I would never want you to be my Mama."

The woman was angry too. And she argued with little Nadette, "But him? You care for him? He is repulsive! A curse! He is the Devil's child!"

"No! No he isn't! You are!" She yelled back.

Erik's mother smiled a cold, cool smile, "Am I? Well, just look and I'll prove that he has been lying to you."

Then, with one harsh motion, she ripped off the mask from Erik's face.