Her Innocence || Phantom of the Opera

Chapter Ten

Christine POV:

I stirred awake to a sound. I blinked my eyes open, listening as the voice of an angel sing in my ears. The tune, a gentle melody, was played alongside an organ. Soft and intoxicating... I sprung up into a sitting position, realisation slapping me in the face. My last memory flooded into thought and I sat in terror as the overfamiliarity of the room came to me. I looked down at the deep red sheets, cushioning my body on a mattress. I quickly stood from the black swan shaped bed, and spun around in confusion. Why was I hear?

The music I heard echoed in the large rock paved room. I decided to follow the melody, somehow already knowing the cause of it's beauty. I walked out the the room, following my feet through a small, dark tunnel and ending up in a place that I thought I would only see in dreams.

Candles, unreplaced, were lit brightly in random positions. 'Just as I remembered,' I thought to myself. At the organ, the same organ from so many moons ago, was the ghost of my past. Erik, I decided to call him, sat humming a tune. His voice was pure, indifferent, and majestic, and the sadness of it controlled my soul. Without mental though, I joined his solo.

"All I want is freedom. A world with no more night-" I barely held the last note before Erik turned around. His face was unreadable as he stood and approached me. I stumbled back a little as he got closer, and knocked over a candlestick in the process. His black eyes, a different emotion in them since the last time I was here, studied me in a quick glance. I held my breath.

"Are you alright?" He asked calmly.

I froze. "Y-yes," I managed, still shocked at his close presence. He inched closer still, now only a foot away. I didn't dare move.

"Why are you frightened?" A sparkle of amusement danced in his eyes. I straightened my poise, and lead my eyes down to the ground.

"Well, don't feel alarmed, but its rather strange to open your eyes and return to the place you wished you only could forget," I started.

I peaked my eyes up at him, and he glanced at me curiously. "Really? I thought for sure you would enjoy the surprise," sarcasm deep in his throat.

I looked at him strangely. Erik, the phantom, had completely changed. Whether for the good or the bad, he had definitely changed.

He lightly smiled--wait, smiled!? It felt so awkward..."Christine, as much as you like staring at me, you should probably be going back to-" he paused, "Raoul." I blinked. What had happened to the destroyed man I left so long ago? Had he truly repaired himself in that amount of time? A heart was really a difficult piece to fix, so to think he had moved on was highly unlikely. But still, there was no explanation for his uncalled for humor and acceptance.

Erik held out his gloved hand, and without a moment of hesitation, I grabbed hold of it.