Music of the Night: The Phantom of the Opera Returns (Guile & Melody)

[Saiyan Princess]

Her vision was cloudy as the tears came, but she wouldn't let her father see them. What did I do? What was I thinking? How could he love me that way if he had only known me a short time? She felt all sense of happiness leave her at that moment. He was her father! How could she have such views of him! Pushing these feelings aside, she followed him along the corridors and outside. "Yes, Father." She choked these words, then cursed herself for showing that she was upset, and remained silent. Her hood was up, hiding her face. She felt just the way her father did before she was ever born.

 

[Guile]

Erik walked on beside her as they got outside, and realized something was wrong. He wished he couldn't care, wished he could ignore it - pretend he hadn't noticed - but he couldn't. Catherine was his daughter and he loved her, he couldn't bare to see her upset. Once they had gotten outside he stopped walking and placed his hands on her shoulders, stopping her as well. "Catherine?" His voice was soft and his eyes showed his concern for her. "What's wrong, my dear? Please tell me. I can't bare to see you upset."

 

[Saiyan Princess]

She took hold of her hood and held it over her face. "Surely you understand how I felt that night." She paused. "Surely you.understand how hurt I was at rejection from you." She waited for his response. "Father, I know I'm being stupid and that you are my father, but I just want to be happy. Surely you understand how badly I was hurt when I saw the man that I loved love another. Surely, you saw the hurt I was feeling. The feeling that I would never be loved. Then, I found someone and he was snatched from me." She refused to show her face. "Father, you were everything to me and then I kept hearing my mother's name escape your lips instead of mine."

 

[Guile]

Erik still had his hands on his shoulders as she spoke. He bowed his head, ashamed of himself for ever letting that kiss happen. "You aren't being stupid." He finally managed. "I know exactly how you felt and I'm sorry that I hurt you. I wish I hadn't come across as so heartless. I never meant to, but I just...I couldn't move on from your mother." He let his hands fall slowly from her shoulders and down to his sides. "I hope you can forgive me for that someday. I want you to be happy - I always have." He looked up at her, but couldn't look her in the eyes because she wouldn't show her face. "What happen to William was a tragedy. I..." He took her hands from her hood gently, and pushed her hood back so that he could look into her eyes. Erik's own eyes were filled with a deep sadness and sincerity that no human could ever fake. "I wish it had been me. I would have gladly taken his place so that you could be happy." He paused for a moment, gathering his thoughts. "You will find someone again, I promise. You are young, beautiful, smart...it's inevitable that you will fall in love with a man who would capture the moon just to give it to you."

 

[Saiyan Princess]

She looked down as soon as her hood was lowered. "No, if it had been you, Mother would have quickly followed you. You, her angel of music." She covered her face with her hands and continued walking. "I don't want you to worry about me anymore, Father. And I don't want to hear talk of you dying!" She had bumped into people and refused to apologize as she picked up speed. She bumped into another hooded figure and the man in it stopped, but did not show his face as he watched Catherine disappear into a dress shop.

 

[Guile]

"Catherine. Listen to me, please. Catherine!" Erik shouted after her as she started running, but she either did not hear him or ignored him. He quickly lost her in a crowd of people and soon just standing there, looking around frantically trying to see where she could have gone. He pushed his way through the crowd, half-apologizing to the people he was pushing past. When he got through he thought he caught a glimpse of her going into a store, but he wasn't sure. He took no notice of the man watching Catherine and decided to investigate and see if it really had been his daughter that had gone into that shop.

 

[Saiyan Princess]

She hid herself among dresses and wiped her face quickly and quietly. A woman asked her if she was alright. "Yes, ma'am. I'm fine." She assured the woman. "I'm just...lost, that's all." She had to say something even remotely close to the truth, for she was not raised to lie. The woman hugged her. "Where are your friends? Your parents?" Catherine smiled still. "Oh, my father and I had a fight. I ran away." The woman looked stunned. "Oh, dear!" She pat Catherine's head. "You poor thing!"

 

[Guile]

Erik entered the shop, looked around for a few moments, and almost immediately noticed Catherine. He went up to her, just as the woman was comforting her. "Catherine," he sounded relieved, "you scared me to death. I know you aren't a child anymore, but if you had gotten lost I wouldn't have known where to find you." His heart started to slow down from it's abnormal speed now that he had found his daughter. "You know I'm not...familiar with the town." He added, trying to be casual about how he didn't know his way around a town he'd lived in practically his entire life. Of course, the people that might find this odd - everyone but he and Catherine - wouldn't know that he lived here that long. So, it didn't worry him too much.

 

[Saiyan Princess]

The woman froze. "This is your father, dear?" Catherine nodded and hugged her once more. "Thank you for your kindness, my good lady." She kissed her cheek. Turning around, she faced her father. "Pere, I'm alright. I've only been in here for five minutes or so." She smiled at the fact that he was so worried about her and felt bad for leaving, but she wanted to prove how much she had loved her father and how badly she wanted him to see it. "I didn't mean to frighten you." She hugged him. "What is it you wanted to tell me?" The woman cut in between them. "Hold on! This poor child comes in here, crying her eyes out about how she just had a fight with her father, and you mean to tell me that you were just here searching for her! Well, sir, I don't think so!" Catherine was shocked by the demeanor of her friend.

 

[Guile]

Erik didn't realize that he had been shaking with fear until the shaking stopped. He let out a sigh of relief when she hugged him, and a smile spread across his face. "It's alright, my dear. I just want you to be safe." He didn't get to answer her before the woman cut in between them, causing Erik to take a step back. "Excuse me, dear lady, but Catherine is my daughter." He tried not to sound harsh, which worked for the most part, although he was burning up inside. "I thank you for being the decent one to make sure she was alright, but she's fine now." He reached his arm around the woman - causing her to step aside a bit - and held his hand out for Catherine to take. "Now, if you'll excuse us, we'll just be leaving." He forced a smile at the strange woman.

 

[Saiyan Princess]

Catherine looked from the woman to her father. The woman had reached up for Erik's face and yanked his mask off. "Monster!" She shouted and pushed Catherine toward him. "OUT! OUT OF MY SHOP! BOTH OF YOU!" She threw his mask back at him and Catherine saw how cruel humans could be. She sprinted across the street to wait for her father.

 

[Guile]

Erik had been shocked by the suddenness that his mask had been taken off. It had been there one second, gone the next - with his mask, this woman had taken his pride. He let out a blood-curdling "no!" the second he realized he had been exposed, but screaming was useless now. She had seen, and everyone curious enough to look. He caught his mask as she threw it at him and he put it on before he left the shop. He walked, did not run, for he was trying to cling to what little pride he had left. When he reached Catherine his face was still burning red from embarrassment. He cleared his throat, straightened his mask and turned to her sheepishly. "I'm sorry if I have shamed you. I shouldn't have come - your mother is better suited for things outside my dark, little world below the Opera." His voice was quiet, but very matter-of-fact. He didn't show any emotion in his words, but they were in his eyes.

 

[Saiyan Princess]

She took hold of his arms. "Papa, stop this. You are beautiful, my father! You are no monster and I can prove it. You go home and I'll handle this." She stormed back inside the dress shop. "You...you horrid, vile, evil, toad!" She lunged at the woman's throat and it took three men to pull her off. "My father is an angel! He's never hurt anyone in his life!" She kicked and screamed and struggled. "You are the monster, not he!" She spat on the woman's dress. "And you should be ashamed of humiliating a child of God in such a barbaric manner!" She shook loose and went back to Erik.

 

[Guile]

Erik put his hand to his face and shook his head in shame. He tried to respond to Catherine, but couldn't. He made an effort to stop her from going back into that shop, but Catherine was gone before he could open his mouth. By the time he realized what she was doing in the shop, hearing the commotion even from where he stood across the street, she was already leaving the shop. Erik saw Catherine coming and held his arms open for her to embrace him. "My child," he said when she did, "my sweet, darling, little girl - you are too good to me." Of course, he wished she had never had reason to do that to anyone, but the fact that she did - for him - made him very proud of the decent human being that she was, always had been, and always would be.

 

[Saiyan Princess]

Catherine wasn't proud of herself at all. She just did what any decent person should have done. "Father, you needn't be proud of your offspring. I only did what others should have done. And, if I hadn't run away, that wouldn't have happened." She felt yet more tears, not from sadness, but from rage at humanity. "No one deserves what just happened to you, Papa." She walked with him to the next shop and was glad to see it empty except for a sales lady. "Hello, my lord and lady. May I help you?" She asked. Catherine smiled. "We're looking for a ball gown at the Opera Popular tomorrow." "Ah, follow me, dears." She led them to the dresses and Catherine giggled at her father. "Sorry, no men allowed back here."

 

[Guile]

Erik held her close. "I but I should be proud of you. Though any decent human would have done what you just did, there aren't many decent humans around anymore. I thank you for being one of the few left." He placed a kiss on her forehead and walked with her to the next shop. He stood silently and allowed Catherine to do the talking - this was her dress, plus she knew shops and such much better than he. He followed them back to the dressed and waited. He felt a bit awkward standing around in a shop full of dresses, but laughed at his daughter's delight. "Take your time, my dear. I'll just..." he looked around for something to draw his attention while she looked for one, but found nothing, "I'll just wait here." He said with a smile, and folded his hands behind him.

 

[Saiyan Princess]

She smiled at him as a way of saying, "you're welcome", and escaped to the back of the shop with the woman. The hooded man from earlier entered and saw Erik standing there. He lowered his hood and mask. "Ah, hello, Erik. I see you are enjoying my family still." Raoul whispered in a sort of warning tone. He was inches from the Phantom of the Opera. "Tell me, how did you like my cousin's reaction in your last dress shop?" He was no longer the kind man from years ago. "I saw your little brat defend you. She's just as foolish and naive as ever."

 

[Guile]

Erik hadn't recognized the voice for is was lowered and much more threatening than he remembered. "Vicomte?" He asked in disbelief, his own voice lowered so that Catherine would not overhear. Then, he got angry. "They are no longer your family - they never truly were, not entirely." At the realization that it had been Raoul's cousin in the other shop, his fury grew still. "Your cousin is just like you - she judges humans for what lies on the outside rather than what's on the inside." He growled. "Not that I expect you to care." He turned to look at Raoul, threats lashing out at the vicomte from his eyes. "Do not speak of Catherine in that way," he warned, "she is a much better human being than you - decent and caring. She obviously got her personality from her mother, not the man that raised her. Thank God for that." Even still, Erik wished that Catherine hadn't been raised by this crude man that stood in front of him.

 

[Saiyan Princess]

"Ah, that's right." He chuckled to himself. "You're ready to take responsibility for her now that she is a woman and no longer in diapers." He chuckled still. "Just leave good, noble men to pick up the broken pieces of a poor woman's life. She was frightened of you when we left that pit of hell you call a home now. She told me so." He tried to be as quiet as possible. "And now, the Phantom of the Opera doesn't kill any more. Has he lost all of his strength now that you've missed your children growing up? Pathetic." "Daddy, I think I l-..." Catherine had walked out and gasped when she saw Raoul and stood behind her father. "Daddy, I want to go now."

 

[Guile]

Erik grew more furious with each word the vicomte said. "That's a lie!" He hissed back at Raoul and grabbed him by the shirt collar, shoving him up against the wall near them. "Catherine isn't afraid of me - she never was." Erik tried to convince himself, but he wasn't sure. He tried to hide the doubt in his eyes. Did she really fear me? He thought to himself. "I don't kill anymore because I have changed into a decent man. Taking lives is wrong, for any reason - it just took me time to realize that. However," he said glaring at the vicomte, "I'm starting to think some people deserve to die." Catherine came out and Erik heard her voice, causing him to turn his head to look at her and let go of the vicomte. He went over to his daughter and placed his hands protectively on her shoulders. "It's alright, my dear. As you wish." He started to make his way out with her, keeping her on the far side of him, away from Raoul.

 

[Saiyan Princess]

Catherine, with her new dress in her arms, along with one outfit for her entire family, was breathing heavily as she walked down the street with her father. "Daddy, it isn't safe for you out here. The Vicomte will not let you get away with that again. He will kill you if he gets the chance." This thought frightened her. "Please, we have to go back to Mother and the children at once!" She pulled him along as fast as she could, while holding her shopping and into the entryway of their home. She threw herself in the boat and started shaking. "Daddy, this was my fault."

 

[Guile]

Erik ran with her, making sure to keep her close to him at all times. He was afraid of every corner - though he wouldn't show it. He tried to stay calm for Catherine's sake, but really it was her that he was worried for. "I know, dear. Just stay close." When they got into the Opera House he relaxed a bit, and he felt almost at ease when they got into the boat. "It was not your fault, Catherine. It was no ones. How were we to know he would be out there?" He placed his hand on the back of her head and kissed her forehead, seeing how frightened she was and that she was shaking. "Everything is alright now, we're almost home." He said as he started rowing.

 

[Saiyan Princess]

She got up and helped him. "Alright, you are wise. We must remain strong for the family." She smiled and leaned against him. "It means nothing, for Raoul cannot find us." She continued. "Can he?" She listened as she heard her siblings losing their minds at the thought of their father and sister coming back, and Christine trying to hush them so that she could open up the gate. "I wanna do it!" One of them argued. "Enough!" Christine shouted. "We'll do it together!" The gate started to rise.

 

[Guile]

"Yes, we must." He agreed, smiling at her. "You are very brave." He complemented her. "For that, I am even more proud of you." He contemplated her question. "No, darling, he can't find us." He tried to sound convincing, but he wasn't entirely sure. After all, the vicomte had been there before - when he had come for Christine the first time, and when he came for Catherine with Christine once. "We'll just have to keep ourselves aware for a little while." Erik laughed at the sound of the little ones arguing over who would get to open the gate. The sight of the rest of his family - safe and sound - made him smile and almost took the fear completely out of him.

 

[Saiyan Princess]

Without waiting for the gate to reach the top, all three ran as fast as they could through the water and tackled their lost family members. Christine tackled her future husband with a kiss, knocking him off of the boat and into the water. "I was so worried about you!" His mask was floating on the surface. "Oh, my God! Erik, it's been an eternity!" She kissed him again. Catherine was struggling with Alistair and Lillith, who were asking her about her trip outside. "Woah! One at a time, please!"