Evangeline's POV:
Christine continued with her story as she told Raoul about how frightened she had been when she had felt what she called “stone-cold, boney hand” laid on in hers. I could see the boney part but not the cold part. I liked to hold Erik's hand. I loved holding his hands as much I loved him. She went on to talk about how Erik had taken her to down to the lair on the back of a horse. I didn't know he had a horse. Well, I was learning a lot that day. Then she went on to talk about the crossing of the lake and what had happened when she got there. Of course I knew what Erik had said, I had been there. She stated how shocked and horrified that the voice was a man. To tell the truth I was a little disappointed in her. She wasn't thinking. I shook it off and listened some more. I glanced behind another statue and saw Erik crouched low. He glanced at me and I shot him the hold-your-tongue look. He glared but didn't move. Christine and Raoul were arguing now about whether or not to leave and I plugged my ears. I couldn't listen. Erik would die if she left him. She went on to talk about her time there and then she came to the part I wanted to hear.
“… Suddenly, I felt a need to see beneath the mask. I wanted to know the face of the voice and, with a movement which I was utterly unable to control, swiftly my fingers tore away the mask. Oh, horror, horror, horror! …” She stopped talking and held close to Raoul as if he was her life line. Whatever was under the mask must have terrified her. Finally she gathered the courage to speak,
“Yes, if I live to be a hundred, I shall always hear the superhuman cry of grief and rage which he uttered when the terrible sight appeared before my eyes … Raoul, you have seen death's-heads, when they have been dried and withered by the ages, and perhaps, if you were not the victim of a nightmare you saw his death's-head at Perros. And then you saw Red Death stalking about at the last masked ball. But all those death's-heads were motionless and their dumb horror was not alive. But imagine, if you can, Red Death's mask suddenly coming to life in order to express, with the four black holes of its eyes, its nose and its mouth, the extreme anger, the mighty fury of a demon; and not a ray of light from the socket, for, as I learnt later, you cannot see his blazing eyes except in the dark … I fell back against the wall and he came up to me, grinding his teeth hideously, and, as I fell upon my knees, he hissed mad, incoherent words and curses at me. Leaning over me, he cried, 'Look! You want to see? See! Feast your eyes, glut your soul on my cursed ugliness! Look at Erik's face! Now you know the face of the voice! You were not content to hear me, eh? You wanted to know what I looked like? Oh, you woman are so inquisitive! Well, are you satisfied? I'm a good-looking fellow, eh? … When a woman has seen me, as you have, she belongs to me. She loves me for ever! I am a kind of Don Juan, you know!' And, drawing himself up to his full height, with his hand on his hip, wagging the hideous things that was his head on his shoulders, he roared, 'Look at me! I am Don Juan Triumphant!'” Christine was sobbing as she said this and I quickly covered my ears. The way she talked about my friend was horrible. I could imagine that he would have been mad. Furious even. That was the way he was. I wouldn't listen to another word she said. I watched them but didn't listen. I had known enough. I didn't care that Erik was ugly. I didn't care that he looked like a corpse underneath the mask. I wanted to see him, to love him, to tell him I loved him, to hear him say he loved me! That is all I wanted. After a while Christine kiss Raoul and they left. I watched Erik glide from behind the statue and over to where they had been sitting. He leaned down and picked up something from the ground. I walked over and saw it was a gold ring. Erik surprised me by saying,
“You can go now, Eva. Surely you don't want to stay near after hearing that.” I shook my head and walked over to him. I laid my hand on his shoulder and he jumped.
“Erik, you are my friend. I won't leave you. I don't care what is under that mask. You will show me when you are ready.” I hugged him and he held me close. I wanted to stay there forever. He was crying. I wasn't sure who was holding now. He sobbed into my hair and I rubbed his back. It was then that I felt the scars. They crisscrossed his back in painful patterns. Suddenly he pulled away. Holding onto my shoulders with his hands he whispered,
“How can you do that? How can you hug Erik?” I smiled at reached up to wipe away his tears gently.
“Because you are my friend.” He looked down at the ring his hand and I heard him whisper,
“Let it be war on them both.” As he said it I knew that there would be trouble. Erik never did or said anything he didn't mean.
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The Fifth Cellar (Phantom of the Opera)
قصص الهواةEvangeline is a common ballerina at the Opera Populaire. she finds her way into the torture chamber of the Phantom of the Opera. She survives by some miracle and decides that the Phantom is as good a friend as any. Set during the time of Christine.
