Four hearts and a fourth black rose were carried to what once had been the famous Christine Daae's dressing room. Her daughter, Aveline, who bore the objects to the room, felt the ice that had collected at her hemline begin to thaw indoors. She walked slowly, catching her breath from the mad rush she had put herself through.
Her steps seemed steadfast enough, but her heart felt only trepidation. The Phantom of the Opera would be waiting, somewhere, for the black rose that she possessed. Surely she had seen every part of the enormous Paris Opera. She was certain that the end of their game was near.
As she walked back from the crypt, she contemplated what she would say to her captor. What could she say to him that she hadn't? Perhaps, at this point, all that was left to do was plead with him. Or would it be better to just listen? He had murdered before...she did not wish to be his next target.
When she arrived to her mother's room, she placed the remaining four colorful hearts in the holes in the wall. Nothing changed.
Had she missed something?
Aveline looked at the colors: white, blue, black, pink, and red. They probably had a specific order to them. Where had she seen those colors before...
She left the room and searched for the scrap of paper that she had found on one of the sewing tables. After pushing some swatches of material, she located it.
Ladies, the following costumes will be neededfor the Phantom's opera, "Don Juan Triumphant":our hero in royal blue, his love in pure white, thesister in a seductive crimson, their friend in pink,and, lastly, the villain in black. – A.
She was about to return to the room, but she recognized the characters from another piece of scrap paper. Having used the elevator multiple times, Aveline no longer worried for her safety. She picked up the piece of paper that she had discarded what must have been hours before.
Daroga, I am aware that Mssr. Andre has already
informed you of the cast order. This shall be yourlast reminder. First, the villain appears, shroudedin darkness. Next, the valiant hero and the delicatematron will come onstage. Please give them generouslighting. After them, the provocative sister of theheroine will appear. She is to be bathed in a red light.Lastly, the heroine herself will come onstage. Shemust have an ethereal glow about her. Do not losethese instructions...or you will lose your job. – F.
Aveline made her way back to the private room and stood in front of the wooden wall. She switched the hearts, according to the order on the stagehand's paper. Black, blue, pink, red, and white... The ground her began to hum and quake, while the mahogany wall sank into its depths. She was unable to scream, but she moved away from the sinking wall and held the vanity table to steady herself. Her eyes betrayed her fear.
As the wall moved, it revealed a mirror the size of a doorway. Once completely exposed, the mirror changed from its reflective purpose to a window. The Phantom was backlit in the mirror, with one hand outstretched to her. The purple lights in her room dimmed, so that he was the only visible entity.
"Are you ready to end this journey? Bring me another black rose, and a new chapter in your life will begin!"
Aveline shakily held up the rose she had found in his crypt.
"On that night, on the rooftop of my beloved Opera, you broke my heart. But now you are with me...and I am whole, again."
The glass slid to the side, and the Phantom, as real as a man could be, stepped through the doorway. She contemplated running, but her body merely cowered against the vanity, shrinking away from his intimidating presence.
"I gave you everything, but you chose him over me! The pain I felt from your betrayal would not lessen with time. I destroyed this Opera House, determined that no one would sing in your place ever again!"
His hardened eyes softened at her meek appearance. He crossed by her and locked the door that led away from him. He strode back to her terrified form and stood beside her, facing the spot he had just vacated.
"Through this very mirror, I taught you how to sing."
"Why have you brought me here?" The words escaped Aveline's lips before she could register thinking them. Her hand flew to her mouth, but she stood straight up to face him.
His eyes, the only visible part of his body, raked over her. There was...longing. Desperation. Almost as if he couldn't believe that she was there with him.
"Destiny brought us both here," he replied.
He left her side momentarily and pushed the curtain away from the closet. Aveline watched, flabbergasted, as the Phantom picked out an emerald dress with black and gold trimmings. He placed it over the changing screen and pointed her toward it.
"I beg your pardon, but I am NOT going to change in front of you."
Erik's eyes narrowed. He grabbed her by her upper arm and dragged her to the screen. He flung her behind it, and then he walked back to the center of the room and stood with his arms folded over his chest.
"You will not be dressed as a street urchin in my realm. Change. NOW."
Aveline winced and looked down at her dress. What had once been her favorite new garment was now a stained, torn rag. She dutifully changed behind the protection of the modesty screen, wondering if she was putting on a dress that her mother had previously worn. It was most likely.
She left her yellow dress in a heap on the floor. She checked the pocket, but realized that she had used everything that she had placed in it. The barrette that had graced her locks was long gone, most likely in a snow bank that she had run past. Her shoes were in a dreadful state, so she removed them and found a like pair in the closet. Fully dressed, she stepped away from the screen and twisted her hands around nervously.
"Come with me."
Without warning, the Phantom grabbed her wrist and pulled her through the open doorway, down a spiraled stone stairway. Aveline could not pull away, or she would risk falling. Instead, she struggled to keep up with the Phantom's quickening strides.
"Wait!" she called out. "Where are you taking me? I'm not who you think I am!"
He did not turn to face her, but continued their hurried descent.
"Have you already forgotten your Angel of Music? No matter, I shall make you remember!"
At the bottom of the stairwell, the Phantom ushered her into a small boat. Her confusion and breathlessness would not allow her to question him further, so she settled herself on the wooden seat and prayed that he wasn't rowing them toward her final resting place.
"Welcome to my lair," the Opera Ghost exclaimed proudly. "Here, our lives will begin anew. And this time, you will stay with me...forever."
The humble craft made its way across the underground lake, until it arrived at a large iron gate. As they approached, the Phantom steered the boat toward a lever on the side of the gate's archway. Once prodded down by the oar, the chains noisily lifted the metal toward the basement of the Opera House.
On the other side of the gate was what appeared to be the entrance to more catacombs. The boat idled, as the Phantom swerved to close the gate behind them. Aveline's heart sank in time with the wrought iron that blocked her way out.
They pulled up to stone steps, and he gestured for her to disembark. Erik tied up the boat, placed the oar inside, and escorted her up the small stairway. His gloved hand gently held her elbow, leading her on the path to his home.
Inside, candles saturated the room with their tender light; Aveline took in the beautiful surroundings. There was a large pipe organ on one end of the cavernous room, and several doorways leading to more mysterious rooms. Ecru lace and blood-red curtains hung from the stone walls, deceitfully covering the fact that they were, in fact, housed in a cave. Opulent furniture that had been collected over time was scattered about. Some of the more elegant prop pieces from previous shows had been brought down, and they both added to the décor and paid homage to the madman's love for the theatre.
"Welcome home, my love."
When she looked back to the Phantom, she found that he had been unashamedly staring at her. She blushed at the attention and pulled away. Keen on her situation, she began to search for a way out. Her eyes scanned the room, no longer appraising its contents. Erik moved to the organ and began to play the same complex melody she had heard while still hunting for black roses in the Opera House. Every door that she tried was locked. There appeared to be no way out...without his consent.
"Please, Monsieur Erik, I have done what you've asked. Please let me go!"
He continued playing, unmoved by her words.
"The first thing I require is for you to sing. My dear, it has been too long, and I need your lovely voice to soothe my spirit."
"I AM NOT CHRISTINE!"
The Phantom halted his playing and twisted to face her.
"I SAID SING!"
She had invited him to yell at her, she understood. She sighed and shook her head.
"No, please sir, I-I cannot sing. I haven't my mother's voice."
"Have you forgotten everything I've taught you?"
Why does he not understand me? Does he just refuse to listen to truth?
Aveline slowly stepped toward him, stopping mere feet away from where he was seated.
"Please, monsieur, listen to me."
She hesitated, but sat down beside him. The Phantom was taken aback by her volunteered act. He did not interrupt.
"My name is Aveline de Chagny. I am the only child of Christine and Raoul. I haven't the talent for singing, as my mother does...did." Her voice softened at the confession. "I wish I could sing."
"You can," he tenderly replied. "Try."
Relenting, Aveline stood and tried to sing a simple scale for him. Her voice was not unpleasant, but it was juvenile in sound. When she reached the highest note, her voice cracked and faltered. The Phantom angrily stood and threw the bench he had been seated on away from them. The violent action reverberated through the cavern, and Aveline stopped singing.
Erik let out an enraged yell to the ceiling and clenched his fists. Fearful that he would kill her, she collapsed to the ground in defeat. He quickly grabbed her upper arm and yanked her back to a standing position.
"Where is she? Where is my angel?"
"M-my m-mother? She is back home with my father. I don't underst-"
"I need her!"
"Then why did you kidnap me?"
He turned away from her, and she reached for his mask.
"Who are you?"
Erik shielded himself from her approaching hands, then grabbed both of her wrists and held her struggling frame.
"Don't you dare raise your hand to me! What you see is who I am, who I've always been, and who I will always be!"
He let go of her hands, satisfied that she would keep them to herself. Aveline rubbed her wrists, still afraid of the man in front of her. She had tried reasoning with him, she had tried yelling at him, and she'd even tried to attack him. Nothing had worked.
I am still playing his game, she realized. I need to try placating him. If I can get him to sympathize with me, he may let me go...
"I am so sorry, Erik. I won't do that again, I promise."
The Phantom glared at her, suspicious of her sudden apology. Undeterred, she continued.
"I wish I could sing. I really do. Growing up, I always loved music. It's my passion. My parents-"
Erik's eyes went hard, but she pressed on.
"My parents took me to see Madam Durand, when I was eleven. I'll never forget listening to her play. I had already been taking piano lessons, but, when I heard her, I became almost obsessive. I wanted to play the piano as well as my mother sang."
He glowered down at her.
"And? Do you?" His voice dripped condescension.
"I-I'm not sure-"
He grabbed her wrist, again, and pulled her to one of the locked doors. Out of his breast pocket, he pulled a ring with several keys set in it. Finding the right one for the door, he led them through to a magnificent black grand piano that sat in the middle of a room with mirrored walls. Off to the side of the instrument was a music stand, but no sheet music was present on either the stand or the piano.
The Phantom let go of her and used his open palm to gesture to the piano bench. She nodded and gingerly sat down. She breathed deeply and took a moment to familiarize herself with his instrument.
Behind her, Erik watched in amusement as she lovingly stroked the ivory keys.
She played one of her favorite pieces. Luckily, she knew much of the music she studied by heart, and this one best of all. She had first heard Madam Durand play this haunting melody at the concert, and she did not give her parents any reprieve until they had secured a copy for her.
Erik moved to her side and seated himself on the bench beside her. Her hands hovered above the keys, awaiting his next move.
"Please," he whispered into his mask. "Continue."
She did. She focused on her playing, and, out of the corner of her eye, she could tell that the Phantom was focused on her hands, too. The last few notes called for a ritardando, and she played them with as much emotion as she could possibly manage. When she finished, she shyly glanced over at the man next to her. He was still staring at the now vacant keyboard, looking as though he was in absolute disbelief.
She cleared her throat. "Erik?"
"Thank you," he finally spoke. He looked up at her and stared into her mystified eyes. "I have never heard it played so beautifully."
She blushed at the overwhelming compliment.
"That is an honor, sir. You've heard it before, then?"
He still studied her.
"Yes...it is my original composition."