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

[Saiyan Princess]

The night was quiet, save the crickets and occasional toad that croaked throughout the dark. Raoul didn't believe for a second that Christine could go through with this wedding. He had to make her understand what she wanted before it was too late. Christine never really went to sleep, and the sound of her lover sneaking in made it harder. "Quickly, get the children." She allowed Christine to grab the babies while he held Alistair and Catherine held her baby sister. "Come with me." They snuck out, but Catherine nearly tripped on a shoe. Feeling that they would soon be caught, Raoul lightly nudged her further and further until they escaped the Phantom. "I couldn't marry him, Raoul. I hate the dark!" Christine confessed, crying into her hands. Upon arriving home, the children and Raoul, Christine and Catherine all bunked together in the family room.

 

[Guile]

Erik lay there, sleeping serenely and completely unaware that his family was being ushered out and away from him as he slept. The night passed on and Erik had no nightmares, as was common now that he had little to fret over. However, when he woke he found himself in one. The bed was empty and, thinking they had all perhaps woken up before him, Erik went out to check. But, no, his entire home was empty. Erik knew this was no trick, no game or play of any sort. They had left, and he had a good idea who they went with, or to, perhaps. Once again, he felt his heart being torn apart - they were so close to the wedding day and...Oh, God. It's that - it's the wedding. It drove Christine off...she doesn't want to marry me. Now Erik understood why she had been acting a little strangely last night as she looked upon the wedding dress. Tears threatened to fall, but Erik wouldn't let them. He refused to cry because this was only little problem, he thought. Christine had told him just the night before that she would always love him - a part of her would always feel empty without him. Perhaps she just needed some space, some time to be free before she was married. God, I'm not going to lock her up down here. Why does she feel like she's going to become my prisoner if she marries me? He still felt broken, despite his efforts to rationalize. Still, Erik didn't know what to do. Should he go after them? Just talk to them, calmly? Discuss it with Christine? Would it even matter if he did? Perhaps she still wouldn't change her mind and at least come home.

 

[Saiyan Princess]

Upon awaking, Christine felt that awful sensation that she had just harmed her Angel of Music, the man that was so much like a father figure to her. He was her guide and she betrayed him. With those thoughts in her head, and the confused children to top it all off, she stepped out of the mansion for a spot of fresh air. "I don't know what to do... I love him and I love Raoul. Raoul gave me light, but Erik gave me music!" She started on her journey through Paris, lost in her thoughts and praying for some sort of guidance. "Erik, I need you." She felt as if her friend heard her, even though they were blocks away from each other. "Erik, don't ignore me. I need you now." She couldn't take much more of this torment. If she were to go through with this wedding, she had to know that she would still live her life above ground if that is what she needed.

 

[Guile]

Erik paced, alone again under the Opera, by himself. His mind was whirling with thoughts, but then one came in rather clear that was not his. Erik sensed something, something from Christine - he felt it in his mind, his gut, and especially his heart. Running as quick as he could, Erik made the climb to the world above once more. He ran through the halls and out the front door of the House - he didn't know what this feeling was, but if it was Christine, she needed him. Naturally, he went to her. Wandering around the streets of Paris, Erik was eventually able to find her - that was even a shock to him for he didn't know how he did it. Pure luck or God's will? Either way, one of them was on his side. "Christine!" Erik shouted to her as he spotted her across the street. Just narrowly dodging carriages whose drivers were in a hurry for one reason or another, Erik made it to the other side and over to her. When he approached her he slowed to a stop, close to her, but he didn't touch her. Not knowing what sent her running from him again made him weary of touching her - he didn't know what would set her off. Because of this, he didn't know what to say either. So, he asked the first thing that came to his mind. "Christine...why did you leave?" Erik's eyes were full of hurt and betrayal that he tried desperately to hide behind casual confusion, but it wasn't working. His pain was, as always, very obvious.

 

[Saiyan Princess]

That question was the one that she truly dreaded answering, but, Erik deserved the truth. "Phantom, I'm frightened." She admitted. "I don't want to go back to the dark. I can't!" She sat down and held her legs tightly to her chest. "I'm scared of going down there again and not being allowed to come back except for performances. I'm scared that one of the children will get sick and we won't be able to provide medical care." The tears stung her face as she thought of what she had admitted to him while giving birth. "I'm so scared that, if I do this, we'll never get a chance to be on stage again. We'll be ridiculed and hated." She wanted to hold him and have him cradle her like he used to. "Please, all I want is more time. I want to be free and not just do it because lives may be at stake. I want to know that you won't threaten anyone if I marry you. I want you to raise Jonathan, therefore, I want to come home, but I need to know that I'm still free and that I don't need constant supervision like a child would. I'm not a baby anymore. You should have started trusting me when I got older." She reached out to hug him, but was frightened of rejection. "Please, be with me."

 

[Guile]

Erik listened in silence to Christine's confessions. He knelt beside her, but did not touch her yet. His eyes were filled with empathy and he let her see that he understood how she felt. Erik allowed her to finish speaking before he did. His heart broke when he saw how hesitant she was to hug him - he saw the fear of rejection in her eyes and it killed him. All these years he had tried to make her see just how much he cared for her, and she was still afraid of rejection. "Don't you see by now that I love you more than anything else on this earth?" He wrapped his arms around her tightly and smiled through his pain at the warmth of her presence. "Oh, sweet Christine!" Erik whispered in her ear, rocking her in his arms, ever so slightly, to comfort her. "Do not be afraid. A marriage between us does not mean you have to chose between me and your freedom, my love. I've been trying to make you see that. I understand how you feel - every time you've tried to leave with Raoul it seemed that I was going to lock you up as a prisoner. I swear to you, Christine, that was never my intention. I was only keeping you from him - not from the world above. Please...tell me you understand how I feel. I want to trust you, I do. But, it seems that every time I opened up and let you be free...you always ran to him." Tears threatened to come, but Erik did his best not to let those that had started to well up fall. "I want you to be free to leave when you wish to - to be your own person. All I ask is for you to come back to me. That's all I want." Now, Erik's voice started to waver as he begged her. "Come home with me, please. I promise I will change. You can be your own person and still be my wife."

 

[Saiyan Princess]

She felt herself be pulled onto his lap as he rocked her. She wanted this so badly right now. No, want is the absolute false description of what was happening. She craved this. Yearned for this. "Master, friend, teacher, Erik, lover, fiance," she listed off everything that he was to her over the years. "I do." She whispered, knowing that he would understand what she meant. "I will marry you at sunset tonight." She chuckled lightly, for she knew that they would not know what time it was if they held the ceremony below their home. "All I want is to come home and have us raise Jonathan together. He needs us both." She had to think of what she would tell Raoul. Should I even say anything to Raoul? Does it matter? Couldn't I just leave a note for him and then bring my family to their father?

 

[Guile]

Hearing Christine agree to marry him that very night made every beautiful emotion in Erik's heart erupted and he felt the warm, wet sensation of tears rolling down his cheeks. He was so relieved that he kept holding her close to him. He took her hand gently in his and brought it to his lips, kissing her palm, then he entwined their fingers and held her hand near his chest. "Thank you, Christine. Oh, thank you! You have truly made me the happiest man alive, I promise you that. If only you could feel the way I feel right now!" Erik started to laugh - all the emotions bottled up inside him just pouring out. "I want to raise Jonathan with you more than anything. My biggest regret is that I was never there for my children as they were growing up. But...now I get that chance. Thank you, Christine. Thank you for giving me that chance." Erik bent his head foreword and kissed Christine tenderly on the cheek. "And don't worry about explaining this to Raoul." It was as if he could tell what she was thinking. "If you want...if you didn't think it would anger him, that is...we can go together - gather the children and explain to him that you've chosen a different path."

 

[Saiyan Princess]

"Yes," she smiled as the wetness of his lips was left on her palm when he broke the kiss. "I love you more than anything, except, perhaps, singing." She teased. "It's your fault for being second place in my heart. You did this to me. Music comes before beauty." She kissed his cheek. "You should count yourself lucky that you're even in second place." Her lips were at his ear. "By the time the moon comes out of hibernation tonight, I shall be Mrs. Erik Destler." She came to a sudden realization that she had never before used his last name. Where did I hear that name? Where have I seen it before? "Ah, there is no more trust?" She teased. "I see that. You're correct. I don't want you out of my sight for an instant." She admitted the truth and nothing but. "As long as you're with them now, it matters not whether you were there before. They adore you to death."

 

[Guile]

Erik laughed at her tease. "Oh, is that true? Second place, huh? Well, then it seems I taught you perfectly." He placed a kiss on her lips, loving the feeling of her skin against his. When she whispered in his ear the name she would take when they were married his heart almost stopped. She knew his last name and he had never realized. Smiling warmly at her, his eyes filled with joy at the thought of them finally becoming one, he chuckled. "I suppose you will. And I will be a very proud husband to share my name with such a wonderful woman. I shall never leave your sight, if you do not wish it." He teased. "And, as for the children, it makes me so glad to hear that they care so much about me. They are my world - you and the children are my reason for living." Erik assured her, knowing it to be the absolute truth.

 

[Saiyan Princess]

She saw the look he held on his face when she uttered his name. "Please, I may be a child, compared to you, at least." She laughed. "But, I am not naive. Nor uneducated. In fact, my soul education that I've received is theatrical arts." She wasn't afraid to admit any of this. "Your name gets around, Phantom. Madame Giry told me your last name when I asked her, as a child, where you came from." She imagined their union. "Hm, we'll be making such a racket." She mumbled. "But, you must be used to causing chaos by now." She curled up even more. "You'll have to channel that old energy to make me come with you." She raised a brow as she hugged him. "Otherwise, old traditions make no sense. For instance, carrying over the threshold, that stems from ancient times when a man would kidnap a woman and take her through the door way in front of her so that she cannot escape." She took a deep breath. "And, what is a ceremony without traditions?"

 

[Guile]

"Now, I never said you were uneducated or naive, my love." Erik laughed and started to tease her. "We aren't even married yet and you're already twisting my words around to make me look bad. No, I am simply surprised that you asked her that. I should have known though...you were always far too curious for your own good!" Erik no longer felt any sadness - being around Christine and joking like this made him so joyful that it made it impossible for him to be upset anymore. "Of course we'll make a racket." He smiled at Christine. "It's our wedding day and everyone else will have to deal with it - this is our day!" Erik let her curl up into him and he kept his arms wrapped around her tightly. "Channeling a little bit of my old energy shouldn't be too hard. And you're right - we must do this correctly, otherwise...it just isn't the same." Kissing her on the cheek again, Erik found that, now that the day was here, he was nervous. This is what he always wanted, and still did - more than anything else. However, everyone gets nervous for their wedding, right? He just wanted it to be perfect for Christine. Erik wanted her to be happy with the moment that would define the rest of her life.

 

[Saiyan Princess]

"Of course we must." She frowned. "You wouldn't want to ruin my big day, would you?" Christine felt her heart start beating faster than ever. In a few hours time, she would be married. At last! At last, their song would come with no interruption. She would be completely consumed and devoted to one man. Bound to him, forever. There were no backward glances. "Now, take me home, please. I wish to ready myself." Her words couldn't express how she felt. "Of course, we'll have much to do! I'm dreadfully sorry to tell you..." she stated, loving acting like a child, "but, I may have gotten the dress dirty." She toyed with him. "We had better go make sure that it isn't harmed."

 

[Guile]

"Of course not, my love!" Erik laughed and stood, lifting her up in his arms still. "I will make sure your day is perfect!" Grinning, Erik kissed her on the cheek and started to carry her home. As she teased him, Erik raised a brow at her and teased back. "You better not have gotten that dress dirty, Christine. You don't know the trouble I went through to get it! I had to go outside, into the world, mind you, and purchase it." Laughing, Erik concluded with, "then again, if it is ruined I suppose you'll just have to wear a different, mediocre dress that is completely unworthy of you or the situation."

 

[Saiyan Princess]

"Oh, please, have mercy on me!" She hid her laughter from him. "It was an accident. I didn't mean to do it. The baby wouldn't stop getting sick and then he threw up all over it." Christine voice sounded remorseful, though hidden underneath was a childish giggle. "I don't want you to go to all that trouble again, Master. You already have all the preparations to attend to. Maybe, just maybe, we can have Meg and Madame Giry come down and help us? Meg's such a dear with these things. I love it."

 

[Guile]

Erik laughed at Christine's words. "Oh, of course. Blame the baby!" He teased her back, unable to hide his smile. "Well, I suppose there's nothing we can do about that!" He considered Christine's request to have Meg and her mother help them. "You know something, dear? That is a lovely idea! If they aren't to busy, now. I don't want to trouble them. But, we must admit, they have more knowledge than I about matters such as this and would be a great asset." Erik smiled at her as he carried her into the Opera House, not minding that it was the middle of the day and he was wondering about - he had almost grown accustomed to being out like this. And, as long as Christine or any of his family members were with him, Erik felt accepted. "Not to mention, I suppose you ladies will want to talk about it - that seems to be all that you do with formal matters." He teased again, laughing. "I want you to have your closest friend there with you."

 

[Saiyan Princess]

"But," she corrected him, "he is going to be there, automatically." She smiled as she spoke up. "You see, he's the bridegroom. I'm sure that you've seen him. Tall, dark in more ways than one, handsome far beyond comparison?" Christine described the groom. "He isn't too bad with the women, either. Very hypnotic with that wretched voice of his." She also looked around the building and was surprised when she spotted Monsieur Debienne speaking with Poligny from across the room. "They're back?" Christine's eyes were wide. "Of course they are, Mama." A voice that she couldn't see spoke up before she felt someone's hair skate across her leg and then disappear. Lilly was hiding underneath her mother, being short enough to go under her and hug Erik. "Surprise!"

 

[Guile]

Erik shook his head, smiling at Christine. "You are far too sweet, Christine." Placing a kiss on her cheek he finished with, "and I love you for that." Looking up, he saw the old managers and stopped, surprised. "I wonder what they're here for..." his thoughts were cut short by Lilly's words and her appearance. Chuckling, Erik placed Christine on her own two feet just so he could hug his little girl. "Where the devil did you come from?" He laughed as he wrapped his arms around her. "And what do you mean 'of course they are'? Do you know why they're back?" He raised a brow at her, then looked up at Christine with a 'she's a clever one' look in his eyes.

 

[Saiyan Princess]

That comes from a certain man that we both know. Christine smiled, having a feeling all day that she was being followed. Now, she knew. "Yeah, Papa. Monsieur Tremaine is leaving. He was just here while Debienne and Poligny left for work in Germany." How she knew that, she wasn't sure, for the old managers were before her time. "Papa, it isn't just me. Well, actually, it is, for now. The rest, other than Raoul, are at the park. De Chagney left for a trip across the sea this morning." Christine had forgotten all about Raoul's work with the queen of England and sighed as she remembered. "That's right! I forgot completely! He has work in England for the next few years. He took over his father's work!"

 

[Guile]

Erik laughed and embraced his daughter again. "That is possibly, second to your mother agreeing to marry me of course, the best news I have heard this entire year!" Standing up and wrapping an arm around Christine he reiterated the situation. "Tremaine had been replaced again and Raoul has gone away to England..." His words were breathless and his smile showed how happy he was that his life seemed to be looking up. Turning to Christine, the excitement blazed in his eyes. "You can sing again! Perhaps the managers will forgive the way I acted before. Perhaps they will let you sing again and you won't be ridiculed for being my wife after all. I shall inform them that I wish to be peaceful with them." Then, Erik remembered the rest of the family. "Of course! Christine, if you wish to stay and get ready, please do. However, someone should alert the rest of the family of the change in plans. I will go, if you do not need me around at the moment, and bring them back to the Opera."

 

[Saiyan Princess]

She took Lilly into her arms. "Of course, dear." She agreed. "But, I'm afraid that you shan't be allowed home until we meet at the alter. It is bad luck." She pointed out. "Perhaps, I should take the dress to my dressing room." She suggested. "Much more private. Andrew and Alistair could stay with you and get ready at home."

 

[Guile]

"Ah, yes, of course." Erik gave Christine one last kiss on the cheek, then kissed Lilly on the head. "I shall fetch them, send Catherine and the babies to you, and the men can come with me." Erik chuckled at this. "I shall see you soon, my love." He whispered as a soft parting for the next time they saw each other would be at the alter, as Christine had said. Erik went out the doors to the Opera and headed for the park as Lilly had instructed him. It took him a little while to find them, but when he did he greeted them all with a genuine smile on his lips. "Children! Andrew!" He addressed the young man separately, of course, for he was not entirely family...not yet. Erik had a feeling, more of a hope rather, that he would be one day. "I have wonderful news - there has been a change of plans. I've talked to your mother and we are to be married tonight." Erik could hardly contain his own excitement. "Andrew, Alistair, Christine instructs that you come home with me and get ready. Catherine, if you could take the babies and meet your mother in her dressing room she would be very pleased. Lilly is with her already."

 

[Saiyan Princess]

Catherine was the first one to acknowledge the Phantom. "Papa!" He wasn't close enough for her to start running, yet. "Papa, you made it! You're alive!" Tears came out quickly. "I never thought I'd see you again!" Of course, deep down, Catherine wanted to sprint to her father as quickly as her legs would carry her, but, being the somewhat dignified woman that she was, she didn't do so. "I'm so glad that you've made it!" Thinking about his words, she nodded. "Yes, sir. I will go with her now." She kissed everyone other than Andrew, who wished to wait for the right time. With William and Jonathan in tow, she hurried down to her mother's room. Alistair didn't care about his teachings as he lost himself in Erik's embrace. "PERE!"

 

[Guile]

"Of course, my dear. I will always be here." Erik kissed Catherine back on the cheek and let her go to her mother. "Thank you, Catherine." His thoughts were interrupted by Alistair's embrace. Erik picked his son up and held him tightly in his arms. "Oh, my son, it's so good to see you again! How long has it been, now? One night?" He teased, though his heart was in the right place - he knew how hard it was on a boy to think he was going to be without his father. After all, Erik had never known his. Teasing aside, Erik kissed Alistair on the head. "No need to worry son. You're back with me now. I will always watch over you...even when you don't want me to." Erik chuckled, then turned and nodded to Andrew to follow as he started heading back to the Opera with his son still in his arms.

 

[Saiyan Princess]

"Shut up!" He spat out. "It still was a long night." At this point, Alistair was just like Christine, even one hint of Erik leaving would set him off now. "Please don't ever leave me again, Papa." He snuggled into Erik as the man continued forward. Andrew followed behind, contemplating asking Erik for Catherine tomorrow at dinner, possibly. He scratched the back of his neck nervously as they continued. Christine was startled when Catherine burst in, as were Madame Giry and Meg, each mending either Christine's hair or the dress. "Catherine!" Christine jumped, startled. "Mother, I'm sorry." She smiled, setting her brother and son down on the old couch. "Let me help." She worked on Christine's make up, though, Miss Daae didn't need it, for her face was lovely indeed. Sculpted by angels, with a voice to match.