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No Easy Way	By : secretlysecretly Category: M through R > The Phantom of the Opera > Het Views: 7568 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own The Phantom of the Opera, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

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Chapter 13

Erik was waiting for Marianne’s visit. He found himself in an excellent mood at the prospect and was determined to present an impeccable appearance. He chose a dark blue suit, crisp white shirt and completed his outfit with a blue vest. He combed his hair back and adjusted the mask upon his face. His hands slowly trailed over the rigid material.

‘If only it weren’t for this…’ he thought to himself. However he immediately took control of his senses as he gave one last look to his reflecting image in the mirror and exited his bedroom. Yet, instead of heading downstairs he decided to pass the time in his music room.

Erik turned the knob of the beautifully carved door and entered the room. He easily found his way in the darkness as he closed the door behind him. Lighting a few candles on the way, he approached the organ. The music room was almost as large as a ball room would normally be. Erik had instructed his servants never to enter this particular room; the only person other than him allowed entrance was Vincent.

This chamber was always to be kept in darkness. When Erik had been redesigning the various rooms of the house, he had hoped that this particular space could serve as his refuge from the outside world. In contrast to the luxurious decoration of the rest of the house, the music room had been kept as simple as his extravagant taste would allow. The most imposing piece in the room was an immense organ as one could only expect to find in a church. Heavy dark drapes impeded natural light from coming through the windows. The only remaining objects in the room were a mahogany bureau where Erik kept under lock his compositions and a couch.

He insisted upon keeping this room private. Subconsciously he knew that this was the only place within his estate where he could truly feel like himself. The Phantom still remained a part of him, refusing to disappear from the face of the earth just because he wished to be free of that other part of him.

He gazed at the pipes which reached as far as the ceiling and gently caressed the ivory keys. Sitting upon the bench, he closed his eyes and began to play a soft melody. Less than a minute later, he found himself lost in the magic of the music that poured straight from his soul.

A radiant Marianne stepped out of her carriage. The light beige gown she had chosen seemed to give her an unearthly glow. Her heart was beating fast as she started walking towards the manor’s entrance. The excitement she felt wash over her was completely opposite to the anxiety she had felt as she had been standing in front of the grand mansion that first time in order to apologize to her neighbor.

She knocked on the front door and a few seconds later Vincent appeared, opening the door for her.

“Good morning Mademoiselle de Duchess, please come inside. The Master has been expecting you.” This time, Vincent had been informed of the Duchess’ upcoming visit and Erik had instructed him to make all of the necessary arrangements in order to make his visitor feel comfortable.

“Thank you.” Marianne smiled gently as she entered the imposing hallway.

“If you would please, follow me, Mademoiselle de Duchess.”

As she followed the butler into the salon, she couldn’t help but turn her head towards the grand staircase, an enchanting music drifting in their direction from the second floor of the house. ‘Only he could be playing such a soulful, melancholic tune’, she thought to herself.

“Excuse me while I inform my Master of your presence Mademoiselle de Duchess.” said Vincent, bowing to her cordially.

Marianne let out a heavy sigh as soon as she was left alone. She inspected her hairdo with her hands and then took a seat at a nearby sofa, unconsciously straightening invisible creases at the skirt of her gown and fixing her eyes upon the door, growing impatient to see Erik as the seconds rolled by.

A few moments later she couldn’t help but admire the beauty of the room. It was an impressive chamber, with large windows that allowed sunlight to bathe her surroundings. The fireplace was enormous and on the mantelpiece she could see ornaments that seemed to be gathered from various countries all around the world. For instance, she recognised a Chinese vase that apparently had cost him a hefty amount. She was also impressed by the Persian carpets that covered the floor before her. The intricate designs enchanted her. On the walls she could see magnificent paintings of landscapes representing exotic places. The furniture was elegant, making evident his excellent taste.

Vincent knocked on the door of the music room. Erik, feeling as if he were waking from a dream, stood up and approached the door, opening it slowly and seeing Vincent standing before him.

“I am very sorry for interrupting you Master, but Duchess Pinon is waiting for you in the salon.”

“Inform her that I shall join her shortly.” Erik closed the door, all of a sudden feeling himself grow nervous at the prospect of seeing Marianne again. He walked around in the room blowing out candles, until he was left in utter darkness.

As he stood there trying to relax his tense muscles, he felt as if he were about to take a step into uncharted territory. The thought frightened and elated him at the same time. Shaking himself out of his reveries, he opened the door stepping into the light and headed toward the staircase.

The moment Marianne saw him coming in through the salon door, she gasped. She made an effort to breathe as Erik approached her. His masculine form was imposing as he stood before her.

Erik was the perfect host as he took her right hand in his and kissed her knuckles softly, never breaking eye contact.

“Good morning Marianne. I am so happy to see you.” Erik said, trying not to let her see how nervous he was. This was all so new to him; even the mere fact of having a guest in his house was foreign to him.

“Good morning Erik.” Marianne responded, gracing him with a sweet smile.

He took a seat at an armchair close to the sofa where Marianne was sitting, fixing her with his eyes.

Marianne blushed under his scrutinizing gaze and bowed her head timidly to look at her hands. Erik, sensing her embarrassment smirked. He was enjoying this more that he could imagine. “Vincent, please bring us some tea.” he turned his head towards Vincent who was waiting by the door of the salon.

“Yes Master.” Vincent responded and left the room.

The two of them remained silent until a few minutes later the elderly man returned carrying a tray and poured a cup to each.

“Thank you Vincent that will be all.” Erik said dismissing his housekeeper with a nod. He took the steaming cup in his hands. “I hope I didn’t bore you the other day down by the lake. Personally, I found our little discussion very interesting.” Erik smiled and took a sip from his tea.

“No Erik, not at all.” Marianne returned the smile. “Quite the contrary, it had been a while since I had a stimulating conversation such as ours. It was a real pleasure conversing with you.” At this, her cheeks blushed again. “I really enjoyed you reading to me. That poem was wonderful.”

“I would be more than happy to read to you any time you feel like it my dear Marianne.” Erik stood up offering her his hand. “Would you care for a short tour of my house?” he asked pleasantly.

“That would be lovely.” she replied standing and taking his hand.

Passing through the numerous living rooms on the ground floor, they came to a stop before a curved door that she remembered distinctly from her childhood years. She knew that behind the door was the grand ball room, and she was curious to see whether Erik, the new tenant of the house, had made any changes. The room used to be decorated in such a manner as to impress the visitor, but she always found the decoration too extravagant for her taste. She could remember her mother commenting on the poor taste of the previous tenants, saying that their “new money” was evident to all by the way they had decorated this particular space.

As Erik opened the door, Marianne couldn’t help but gasp in surprise. Apparently he had changed everything in this room. All of the tacky furniture was gone. The colour on the walls was now tasteful. The room was elegant in its simplicity, but the thing that impressed her the most was the spectacular chandelier hanging from the ceiling. It was made entirely of crystal and glowed with an ethereal light as it reflected the morning sun coming through the windows.

Erik could see that the tour that he was giving Marianne was enjoyable to her and he was pleased that she no longer seemed to be angry at him. Perhaps he could make up for his prior rudeness towards her after all.

He decided to show her the second floor next. They ascended the stairs, and headed towards the library. Upon opening the door for her, he could see an astonished look crossed her face. Her eyes lit up as she took in the bookcases before her stacked with books on all subjects, from philosophy to the sciences and from poetry to light literature. She resembled a child in a candy store.

Erik smiled inwardly as she approached the bookcases and run her fingers upon some of their ridges. She recognized many of the books she had also read over the years, saw many that she had always wanted to read and was intrigued by many of the titles as she realized that he was a man of countless interests. As she turned to him smiling brightly, she saw a copy of Dante’s “Divina Commedia” resting upon the table close to the snug couch.

“I can’t believe it, this is what I’m reading right now. It is an extraordinary book, don’t you agree?” she said, beaming.

Erik was astonished once more. A woman reading Dante’s work? This woman seemed to have a knack for surprising him.

“It truly is. Would you like to see the rest of the house?” he asked her.

“That would be marvellous Erik.” she replied truthfully.

They exited the room, walking towards his study. She could see a number of paintings hanging on the walls of the hallway, and admired the great collection of artwork he had gathered.

Entering his study, she saw papers scattered all around the room. On them she could make out architectural designs and what seemed to be plans for mechanical inventions of all sorts. She turned to him amazed. Who was this man that seemed to be a genius? He looked at her and simply shrugged.

Again they exited the room in silence and walked towards the staircase. Marianne hesitated in front of a black polished door as Erik walked on before her.

“Aren’t you going to show me what lies behind this door as well?” she asked him.

“That is the music room.” he replied sternly.

Marianne didn’t say anything. They were getting along so well, she didn’t have the heart to challenge his volatile temper by insisting on the subject of his music. She walked towards him and he extended his arm to her. She took it and they walked in unison toward the stairs.

As they passed another door to their right, he lingered saying “Perhaps you would like to also see my personal quarters?” raising an eyebrow and smiling in what she could only describe as a suggestive manner.

She blushed profusely at this and gave him a shocked look, trying to appear as stern as possible. Yet, when his hearty laugh reached her ears, she could stop herself from swatting his arm playfully in mock annoyance.

They smiled at each other and proceeded, descending the stairs and exiting the house, walking toward the gardens. Marianne was instantly captivated by the beauty all around them.

The trees were green and heavy with leafage. Her eyes were traveling over the thousands of colors, while the air was scented with the various blooming flowers.

“I have not completed my designs for the garden, but I hope that soon I will be able to fully focus my attention on the matter and finally amend this mess.” said Erik, as he looked around him with a critical eye.

“Mess? Erik, what are you talking about? This garden is absolutely beautiful and you managed to bring it together in less than a year!” Marianne protested.

“Marianne, thank you very much for flattering me, but there is a lot that has to be done in the garden for it to be truly to my liking. What you see before you is simply a temporary solution to my problem, namely because I didn’t have time to attend to the outdoors before summertime arrived. I was far too busy with redecorating the interior of the house. I don’t know whether you have ever visited the estate prior to my purchasing it, but the taste in furniture of the previous tenants was absolutely horrible.”

Marianne just stared at him speechless for a moment.

“Erik, do you mean to tell me that you have attended to all this yourself? Redecorating the house, furnishing it with all of the elegant pieces I just saw, designing the gardens…”

Erik stopped walking. “Neither the house, nor the gardens are anywhere near perfect yet, but I guess they will have to suffice for the time being.” he looked straight into her eyes and she could see his gleaming in anticipation.

“Actually, there is something which I have always dreamed of and was the first thing I was intent on creating upon coming to my new premises. Would you like me to show you?” the look in his eyes was that of a boy, ready to open a present on Christmas morning.

“Of course Erik, I would be delighted to.” Marianne smiled at him sweetly as, once again, she placed her arm over his and started walking.

As they walked along, she could now see that what had appeared to be a cluster of trees to her, was actually the entrance to a labyrinth. She looked at his face and saw that his eyes were lit up, urging her to enter the labyrinth and wondering what she would think.

All this time, her arm was resting on top of his as he had been leading her through the gardens, but now she drew back from him and took a turn as she tried to take in as much as she could of the beauty that surrounded her.

The labyrinth appeared to be a diverse one, as various paths were laid out before them. Normally, labyrinths were made solely out of bushes that raised quite high and were carefully trimmed so as not to be distinctive enough for visitors to recognize a spot they had already passed once. However, the labyrinth Erik had designed was a strange one in that respect. The “walls” of the structure were made out of high bushes, but in between the green leafage were tangled roses. Hundreds of rose buds seemed to beckon at her to touch them, the air filled with their glorious scent.

Marianne turned to where Erik was standing. He was smiling broadly at her and given her reaction to his creation, she couldn’t blame him for the smug look that was reflected in his eyes. She smiled back at him unable to hide her enthusiasm.

“It is really beautiful Erik. Nothing like I have ever seen before in my life…”

“I will take that as a compliment, thank you.” he replied, bowing to her.

“I really mean it Erik. It’s like a small garden of Eden. From the trees, to the flowers, to the song of the birds… It’s just…perfect!”

“Thank you Marianne. I am happy you find the labyrinth to your liking. Actually, you are the first to see it.” he said, looking around him and resuming his walk.

She started walking next to him again, but couldn’t help asking him.

“Erik, I hope you will not be offended by my curiosity, but how is it that you have made no acquaintances for all the time you have been at this part of the country? We live next to each other, yet even I hadn’t seen you before our little ‘run over’ the other day”.

She felt rather than saw him tense at her words. Turning to see him, she couldn’t help thinking she shouldn’t have been so forward. He was looking away from her and once again she realized that he was a complete stranger to her. As the seconds passed and he didn’t turn to look at her, she started wondering if maybe he hadn’t heard her.

“Erik, I’m sorry. I …” but she was interrupted by the deep timbre of his voice.

“I have been quite busy as you can see my dear. I had to redecorate the house completely after purchasing it and although it’s still not quite finished, I believe it’s a great improvement to the state it was in. It seems that the previous owners weren’t too interested in the garden either. It was almost in ruins before we started work on it.”

“I see. Well, you have certainly done the place justice Erik. I can’t remember the estate ever being so beautiful. It is amazing what you have accomplished in so little time.”

“Well my dear, now you can see why I have been hiding away” he said, smiling at her. “Yet, I must admit I made some very interesting acquaintances at the soiree that the Count du Gaultier organized.” Erik’s thoughts drifted back to Olivier Dervaux and the latter man’s attempts to kiss Marianne.

“Baron Olivier Dervaux was certainly one of them.” Erik finally said, not being able to constrain himself. Marianne turned to look at him, sensing Erik’s irritation by the tone of his voice. She chose not to speak as she didn’t want to interrupt him when he seemed so eager to open up to her.

“I wouldn’t want to rouse problems in your relationship with him Marianne.” he said as they continued their walk through the labyrinth. He was feeling insecure but decided to follow his instinct and moved on. “All those things you said to me the other day by the lake made me think.” he paused. “The Baron seemed extremely annoyed by my presence at the ball. I could sense by the look in his eyes when he found us on the balcony together that he has strong feelings for you. If I didn’t know any better, I would go as far as to say that he felt threatened by my presence there that night.” Erik regretted the words the moment they left his mouth.

‘Olivier felt threatened? Does this mean that Erik would venture “threaten” Olivier’s role as my suitor?’ Marianne thought. She felt an irrational feeling of fear and joy overwhelm her simultaneously. Joy because she felt that Erik was growing more and more fond of her as the days pasted and fear because she felt the same way for him, even though she knew it wasn’t proper for a woman of her stature to become romantically involved with a man. “My relationship with Olivier is only of a friendly nature. It couldn’t be any other way regardless of what Olivier might think.”

They kept walking side by side in silence for a long while after that, Marianne enchanted by the sights and sounds that surrounded them, occasionally stopping to smell the flowers across their path.

Erik was stealing glances towards Marianne’s direction every now and then, all the while thinking about everything she had confessed to him. He was impressed by her attitude. Olivier was obviously the safe choice for her; as Raoul had been for Christine. The comparison was inevitable. A perfectly logical choice to be made by any perfectly logical woman. Which woman wouldn’t want a young, handsome, rich, noble man by her side?

Marianne seemed a perfectly logical lady… at least at the present moment. Why wasn’t she taking the opportunity to make a perfectly safe marriage? Apparently, there were some differences between Marianne and Christine…

“I couldn’t help but wonder why you aren’t already married to the Baron. Why Marianne? Isn’t he the type of man that any woman would want to share her life with?”

“Perhaps I am not “just any woman” Erik.” she responded calmly, turning to look at him. “I feel different than the other women of my circle. As I have mentioned, I could never imprison myself in a loveless marriage.” She moved a few steps away from him to caress the petals of a red rose. “I bore witness to the love my parents felt for each other. They were in love with one other until the last day of their lives. They lived together and they left this life together.” She looked him in the eyes. “How could I compromise with anything less than that Erik?” A tear rolled down her cheek. The memory of her parents and the love she had felt would be something she would cherish for the rest of her life.

Erik wiped the stray tear from her face. He was moved by her words and obvious sentiment at the mention of her parents. Hearing her speak he wondered more than anything to obtain that love she had just described for himself. To love someone unconditionally and to be the recipient of such a selfless emotion was a dream he had never allowed himself to ponder upon. For a few moments he simply stood there, watching her as she tried to compose herself, his mind searching for something to say in order to make her feel better and bring the smile back to her lips.

“My dear Marianne, I couldn’t help but notice how much you seem to love flowers. You have not stopped admiring them during our walk and smelling their scent whenever you got the chance. I thought I would make up for my previous ill manners by offering this meagre peace-offering to you.” he looked like a young schoolboy, trying to get on the good side of a strict teacher.

He offered her a bouquet of flowers he had picked during their stroll and she brought them to her face, inhaling their scent deeply. Marianne was touched. She looked up at him and broke out in a genuine smile directed solely at him.

“Thank you Erik”, she simply said.

What was that look reflected in his eyes? Could it be he was … embarrassed? He looked up at the sun and cleared his throat.

“It’s getting pretty late my dear. Would I be too forward if I were to ask you to join me for lunch?”

“Oh! Is it past noon already? I am sorry for prolonging my visit so…”

Had she stopped blushing since the first moment she had laid eyes on him that very morning?

“Don’t even mention it Marianne. You have brightened up my day simply by coming here. It would be my pleasure if you would accept my invitation for lunch.”

The look in his eyes was almost hopeful as they started walking towards what apparently was the exit of the labyrinth, but she knew she shouldn’t abide.

“Thank you Erik, but I really must go. However, I would be delighted if you will visit me soon, so that I may revert your wonderful hospitality.”

“Alright then, I won’t pressure you. Furthermore, I too will be glad to see you again soon.”

She smiled happily.

“Should I expect you tomorrow then?” Marianne asked smiling sweetly.

“I’m afraid that tomorrow I am expecting some furniture I have ordered and need to stay at the house…” he replied, somewhat disappointed.

“I understand. How about the day after tomorrow then?” she tried again.

“Of course. I would be more than happy to spend some time with you.”

They had reached the house once again. Erik walked Marianne to her carriage and helped her get in. Closing the door, he bowed to her and softly touched his lips to her hand.

“Thank you very much Erik. I enjoyed myself immensely today.” she said politely.

“Thank you Marianne, for coming and keeping me company. I will see you soon.”

“Have a nice afternoon.” she said smiling at him.

“You too my dear” replied Erik.

The carriage was off. Marianne couldn’t stop smiling as her eyes drifted to the bouquet of flowers that lay in her lap.

As the carriage took a turn, she shifted in her seat, stealing a glance towards the spot were Erik and herself had parted a few moments ago. Erik was still standing there, looking straight at her with a knowing smile spread across his face.

She had been caught!

Turning again in her seat, she looked straight ahead as the carriage took another turn and was lost from Erik’s sight and she saw the gate to her own estate.

Marianne buried her face in the flowers he had offered her not half an hour ago, inhaled the fragrance that emanated from the synthesis and…blushed.

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No Easy Way