Phantom Love

Chapter 1

            It's been years now since Christine and I had come to the Opera house and became friends with each other and Meg. It's also been years since Christine's Angel of Music had become my Angel of Music as well. 

          I was sitting on my bed, singing softly to myself when another voice interrupted me. "Estel, it is I, your Angel of Music. Come to me." He said. His voice was deep and melodious and he wasn't even singing. I stood, looking around. "Where are you Angel?" I asked. "Look at your face in the mirror, I am there inside." He sang. I looked at the full body mirror on my wall and walked closer to it, noticing the edge was lifted on one side, as if it was a door. I found myself wondering how long it had been like that. I opened it and beyond was a tunnel and a tall man with a mask covering part of his face and slicked back black hair. He wore a suit and a cape and his hand was held out to me. Along the walls of the tunnel candles lit the way. I took his hand and the mirror rushed closed behind me as I stepped through and allowed him to lead me. 

        I found myself watching the back of his head and wondering what was under the mask. Perhaps a deformity. That would be the only reason I could wear a mask but deformities weren't bad at all. If he did have one I wasn't sure why he would hide it. We arrived at a small boat and he helped me in and I looked around, wondering where we were going. "You're the Phantom here aren't you?" I asked. "I am." He said. "I see." I said and smiled as we arrived at his little home beneath the Opera House. "It's beautiful down here." I said as he helped me out of the boat. "You are taking this quiet well." He said and flipped his cape off, resting over the back of a chair. 

         "I seem to take things well as everyone says. I am not sure why I do, I just do Monsieur. Does that bother you?" I asked him. "Not at all. I brought you here to ask you for a favor." He said, walking around me. I blushed, my mind going to dark places a maiden's head shouldn't go to. "Yes Monsieur?" I asked. "I want you to help me. Help me woo Christine. I'll consider it payment for the lessons over the years." He said. My face fell for a moment but I regained composure and smiled. It shouldn't be too hard. "Of course I can try to help Monsieur but if the pursuit should fail, will I be charged?" I asked. "If it should gail, though it will not, I will not charge you. I may be a harsh man Estel, but I am not entirely cruel." He said. I nodded. "Well, first off you should know our Patron is a childhood friend of Christine's. She spoke of him often as children.  I suspect that she and the boy were in love as children, though I cannot be sure he remembers her now. It has been years since the two seen one another." I said. He nodded, taking off his overcoat and vest, revealing a loose white undershirt with a deep V neck and slipped off his gloves. 

           "I see." He said. "More than that, she remembers him. The managers plan to make her Prima Donna in place of the one that no one liked. I will help as much as I can but you are battling a childhood love if he remembers her as well." I said and he nodded, sitting beside me on the small piano stool. "Do you think she could love a man like me?" He asked. "I do. I know not a lot about you but you I can sense you are a good man. Or. At least a man with pure intentions." I said. He looked at me and took his mask off, revealing burned skin. I blinked for a second and then nodded. "She is a kind woman. She accepted me even after I told her what my uncle had done to me. A physical deformity is no different than if you had one on the inside." I said and he nodded, setting the two things he had removed down and looking at me.