The Demon's Child and the Phantom

Chapter 26

Rosella's POV:

In his kiss, I was shown just how much he does love me and just how much passion he had to offer but I also knew that he did this now just to distract me for a moment about his mask. I can't seem to argue with him though as I pull myself closer to him in the kiss, drowning myself in his passion, and clinging to him in the embrace after.

He gently kisses me on the forehead as I feel my entire body relax in his arms, the only place I've ever wanted to be and the only place I've ever felt safe. I smile as I feel my own mask shatter as the emotions I try so hard to hide finally shine through. And for once I'm truly and utterly happy, as I breath in his strong scent and listen to his heart beating as fast as mine is right now.

I know that while he is relaxed is my chance though, my chance to show him I'm unafraid of him. I slowly reach up and stroke the left side of his face, the unmasked side and I hear his breath catch in his throat. He keeps his eyes closed as I stroke his cheek, and in a moment of utter bravery or perhaps stupidity I remove the mask from the right side of his face.

"I love you." (Rose)


Erik's POV:

I felt the cold air of the lair on the right side of my face, and before I could stop it the insanity took over. She removed it, she betrayed me, just like Christine did!! I throw her away from me, watching as she hits the ground and freezes, staring at the ground with a blank expression. I yell into the unmoving air of the lair, clawing at my deformed face until blood starts to drop down onto the floor. I turn back and see she has yet to look up from the floor, and the insanity gets the better of me.

I feel my feet rush over to her and grab her shoulders forcing her to face me. I see her look at me once with a fearful expression before she looks back down. I hear a bitter laugh rise from my chest as I look at her. I see Christine looking back at me with my mask still in her hand, her innocent blue eyes holding fear in them as she tries to look away from the horror that is my face.

"NO! You wanted to see this! SO LOOK AT ME! LOOK AT THE ANGEL OF HELL!!! LOOK AT ME YOU LITTLE LYING DELILAH!!!!YOU LITTLE VIPER!!!"

She looks back up, just as I toss her aside again. I hear her hiss in pain just once as her head hits the cold stones of the floor, and the sound seems to remind me who she is. She isn't Christine, she's my flower, my precious little Rose. And I've hurt her. I feel my knees give out as I stare at her with blood now running down the side of her flawless face, from a cut on her forehead. I cover the right side of my face with my hand as I crawl towards her.

I watch as she looks at me once with a pain so great in her eyes I feel my own soul burn in agony. She blanks her expression as I get closer and instead looks down at the stone floor. I reach out to touch her but I watch as her entire body tenses in fear. I look at my hand, my repulsive yellow hand, before I pull away from her.

"I'm sorry my Rose, I'm so sorry. It.....it wasn't.....it's not...Erik is sorry you had to see the monster. Erik is sorry!"

I feel the tears and the sobs start to fall from my eyes, and I hear the quiet movements of her dress as she stands. I have no doubt that she is leaving the tunnel, never to return to this Angel of Hell, this demon of the night, this Devil's Child. It wasn't right for me to ever try to claim her heart anyway, not with as beautiful as she was, but oh how I do so love beautiful things.

Rosella's POV:

I had seen his face, his entire face, remain peaceful and calm but only for a second after I had whispered my pledge of love to him yet again. Then he opened his eyes and the gold that swirled in anger seemed to scorch my soul. I didn't feel the pain as he threw me down to the ground. I didn't feel fear at his face or his deformity as I had barely seen it at all. No, I felt fear at the fact that Lord Byron often had the same look on his perfectly sculpted face and the same amount of hatred and anger in his perfect blue eyes, before he would beat me.

I was caught in the memories of my own mind, as my face blanked itself in defense, and the man I loved was lost to his own insanity as I became trapped in memories that became reality.I felt hands dig into my shoulders as I was forced to look at him, but it wasn't my Erik, my sweet Erik I was seeing. It Lord Byron, with hate and anger rushing into his blue eyes as he yelled at me for whatever it was I did wrong today as his golden blond hair hung down around his face.

He threw me down again, and I let out a hiss of pain as my head hits the stone floor of the courtyard. I knew he hated it when I made any noise during a punishment and soon I hear him move towards me again and without thinking I look at him, and in doing so break another of his rules. His eyes are still so full of anger and hatred, they are glaring at me as he walks towards me with his whip with the added spikes on it.

I blank my face again so he won't think I'm challenging him, as I look back at the stones, watching as they are stained with my blood as it falls to the floor from my head. I tense as I see him reach towards me, no doubt to rip my dress to give him easier access to my skin for the whipping. I had only briefly to wonder why he hadn't chained me to the ground yet as I began to prepare my mind for the beating to come, but it never does. Instead I hear my Erik, sobbing near me as he speaks.

"I'm sorry my Rose, I'm so sorry. It.....it wasn't.....it's not...Erik is sorry you had to see the monster. Erik is sorry!"

I look around and see that I'm not with Lord Bryon in the horrible courtyard where so much of my blood had been spilt before, but with Erik in his lair. I look over and see his right hand shielding his face from me, while blood seeps through his fingers. I look at the white mask that I'm still holding in my hand before I stand up. I take a few cautious steps towards him before I kneel down in front of him, the guilt of what I had done to him in removing his mask washing over me like ocean waves.

"Erik, forgive me?"

I hold out the mask to him as he looks at me with his left eye, as the other is hidden from view. He looks shocked as I hold out his mask to me, but he takes it with a shaking hand before he turns away from me and puts it on. He turns back to face me, taking his gloves from me as well and putting them back on. He looks at me with a sad, mournful expression, before standing up and walking towards the tunnel I came here through. I stand up and follow suit in silence behind him, only stopping once we reach the dressing room. I watch as he turns toward me and tries to say something but he stops before he looks down at the floor and disappears back through the mirror.

I stare at the mirror, knowing he's probably still behind it, watching me. I take one last look at the mirror, avoiding looking directly at my reflection before I leave to go to Daroga's office. My poor sweet Erik thinks I hate him, thinks I'm scared of him, but I'm not. I only hate myself for betraying his trust the same way that she did. No matter what his face may look like, as I did not get a decent glance at it, it will not be the worst thing I've seen in my life. Though I now feel as if it won't matter as I've betrayed his trust in the worst way possible.

I look around the room, the shrine for his lost love once more, before deciding that I cannot take the sight of it any longer. I know that he will not willingly speak to me again after what just happened, nor would I ever force him to even as the thought of it kills me on the inside. I flee the room and make my way through the winding hallways of the opera house to Daroga's office. I held the tears and sobs that wanted to break free within me, only a single sob escaping as I made it to the office door and slipped inside.

I walked over to the fireplace and fell down in front of it as I watched the flames start to dance around. They seemed to be full of rage just as I was, but all my anger and rage was directed towards a single being. My hatred was only for her, because she broke him. She broke the only man I would ever love.