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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 23

He rode frantically on the back of his black stallion. He didn’t even register the moment when he reached his estate. His head was spinning; so much had happened in just one day. Erik left his horse in the stables and trudged towards his labyrinth. It was the perfect place for him to find some solace.

He walked into the labyrinth and for a moment looked around him appreciatively. He had created a wonderful design; his taste in flowers had proven excellent. The high “walls” were filled with red, white and yellow roses which set off an intoxicating scent, which reminded him of Marianne when she had visited his house for the first time. All of a sudden, his heart felt at ease at the mere thought of her sweet smile. The few times he had held her in his arms, he had been enchanted by the wonderful scent of her hair and skin.

He sat on a bench and tried to relax. He had always considered it quite impossible to ever cross paths with Christine again. He had traveled in many places, trying to forget, to change his life.

Turning his gaze to the sky, he felt strange. It seemed only yesterday he was still living beneath the Opera House; he was reminded of the first night Christine was up on that stage, when he had been listening to her singing and looking up, trying to picture her pretty face.

Meeting her today had proven to be a callous move on his part. Why did she have to return now? Why couldn’t she leave him at least with the memory of those few rewarding moments they had shared during their years at the Opera Populaire? His wounds would be hard to heal. Seeing her again after all those years had only made things worse. He had come to terms with his situation; he knew exactly what he looked like. He had been born with a disfigured face he could do nothing about. He realized he had used his deformity as an excuse to behave irrationally, but scoffed thinking to himself it was fate that had destined him to lead an unconventional life all alone.

He was willing to give himself another chance; to try and live a life like everyone else. He had made up his mind three years ago that he wouldn’t let his disfigured face arrange his life. He preferred a solitary life rather than one filled with extortion, betrayal and pain. That was all that Christine represented in his mind.

What could be worse than a distorted face? A distorted soul perhaps? Erik had never had a proper guidance all through his life. Most of the times, he had followed the instructions his heart had given him. He was thirsty for affection and human contact. Nevertheless, he had always thought about the welfare of only one person; Christine.

He still couldn’t believe the person Christine had turned out to be. Could it be possible for a beautiful creature like her to have a distorted heart? Her father had been a wonderful man, but he had left her alone very early in life, when she had still been a child. Perhaps, that could explain many things.

What about Madame Giry’s guidance? Wasn’t her affection enough for Christine? The girl had been like a second daughter to her. Antoinette had offered Christine all that she had given to Meg. Surely, she would feel gravely disappointed if she were to know of her protégé’s behaviour.

On the other hand, Christine had always behaved like a spoilt child and partly he was to blame as well. He had taken her under his wing after her father had passed away. Fortunately, she had acquired some sense of discipline from the lessons he had given her and from Madame Giry’s instructions in order to become a skilled singer and dancer. It was true that he had cultivated the sense of ambition in her, but only for professional purposes. His desire had always been to see Christine perform as an accomplished soprano. Unfortunately, he realized now that Christine had used that lesson of discipline in order to be patient and get what she wanted. A good place in the Opera House, let alone the position of the leading soprano. A wealthy and handsome husband. Nothing could ever be enough for Christine. What a fool he had been for hoping she could accept to share a lifetime with him…

Erik had never expected to see this side of Christine. He felt disappointed and hurt. Giving everything to her had made him think his life was worth living. And now this… he had done everything in his power to make her happy and all for nothing…

He stood and started pacing again in the maze. Could Marianne turn out like Christine? He felt so frustrated. Nothing seemed impossible to him any longer. However, he couldn’t abandon his last hope. Marianne was his last hope. Could she betray him like Christine, making the safe choice of a handsome nobleman such as Olivier? Why should she choose a monster over a good-looking man?

Even so, her kisses had told him quite the opposite of what he thought logical. He had felt her body shiver under his touch and it wasn’t out of fear or loathing. He had felt her respond to his kisses with equal fervor to his. There was something different in her eyes when she gazed upon him. Marianne could have anyone she wished to. So, why did she react like this when he was holding her in his arms?

Suddenly, all thoughts of Christine vacated his mind. His heart was beating faster when Marianne was close to him or even when he thought of her. He turned around hastily and stepped out of the maze. He had to see Marianne! He had to see her even from a distance, since he was sure Christine would have returned to the house by now. It was an urge he couldn’t stop from rising within him. He mounted his horse again and galloped though the fields towards Marianne’s estate.

“Thank you Mathieu.” Marianne said to her servant who assisted her in mounting her horse. She needed to get some fresh air. She needed to clear her mind from all of the events of the previous days.

“Mathieu, you are dismissed. Please, inform the rest of the stuff that you may take the rest of the day off. You may return tomorrow after noon.”

“Thank you, my Lady.” Mathieu said as he bowed his head cordially to her.

Marianne smiled at the young lad’s appreciation and galloped away in need of some solitude.

Could her impression of Erik prove to be so wrong? Wasn’t he the same man who a few days ago had promised never to hurt her feelings? She did not wish to dwell on Erik and Christine’s meeting any longer. She had sensed that Erik had been very much in love with Christine in the past; could it be possible that he wanted her so much that he would try to make her leave her husband?

Marianne couldn’t find another explanation for Erik’s lack of interest toward her at the ball. She had been looking forward to that night and it had turned out to be a great disappointment to her.

Christine’s presence had changed everything. Despite the fact that she had altered the situation between her and Erik, Marianne thought her cousin Raoul had made a poor choice of a wife. In fact, it was curious to her that he had not invited any of his relatives to his wedding.

Marianne dismounted her horse and tied the reins to a tree. She entered the forest and, after walking for a little while, sat upon a log lost in thought. She didn’t realize that someone had followed her and was now approaching her crouched form from behind. Erik had seen her leave her estate and decided that it was a great chance for him to see her alone.

She looked so sad. She was playing absent-mindedly with a wild flower she held in her hand. ‘She is so beautiful.’ Erik thought to himself.

As he took another step in order to get closer to her, he stepped on a little twig causing it to snap under his weight. The noise brought Marianne back to reality and made her jump in her seat.

“Who is there?” she inquired in a loud voice.

“Don’t be afraid, Marianne. It is only I. I apologize if I scared you. It was not my intention.” He bowed his head to her and walked over to where she was sitting.

Marianne’s breath caught in her throat. The last person she had expected to see was her neighbor.

“What were you doing hidden back there?” she asked.

Erik sensed her discomfort, but his voice was calm as he spoke. “I felt the need to see you but did not mean to disturb you. You just seem to be so … perplexed.”

“Why are you following me? What do you want from me Erik?” she demanded from him.

“I don’t understand. Why are you talking to me like this?” he asked her, annoyed.

“Don’t bother acting surprised Erik. I know everything!” she yelled at the top of her lungs, unable to control her temper.

“Everything?” he asked, confused. “Whatever do you mean?” he tried to console her again, moving closer to her, but Marianne raised a hand to stop him in his tracks. “Marianne, I had such a difficult day today. I just felt the need to see you, even from afar. That is why I followed you here.”

“Erik, I am tired of these mind games you are so fond of playing. If you are merely in search of information on Christine, I should tell you right now that she left less than an hour ago. Please go back to your house to mourn your lost love and leave me be.” she said, turning her back on him.

Immediately he strode after her and, grabbing her arm, turned her to look into her eyes. “What nonsense is this?” he demanded from her.

“I know everything Erik. Christine told me everything that transpired between the two of you.”

“Are you mad? What could she possibly have told you to make you so angry at me?”

She tried to break free from his grasp and when he didn’t release her, she started yelling at him. “Let go of me this instant! I never want to see you again!”

“Tell me what she said to you right now!” he demanded between clenched teeth. When she didn’t speak, he seized her by the shoulders and started shaking her violently. “I am not going to let you go until you recount all of the lies she fed you Marianne!”

“Lies? You are calling your lover a liar now? I never expected you would stoop so low!”

“My lover! Are you daft? I cannot begin to imagine what she could possibly have told you to make you so livid.”

“Let me go!” she ordered him, trying to break free once again.

“Tell me what that snake told you right NOW, and I promise I will let you go.”

“Fine then. Christine confided in me that you requested to see her today by the lake because you wanted to speak to her, and she agreed.”

“What? She said I wanted to see her? This is preposterous. Yester night at the ball I tried to explain to her that we have nothing left to say to each other, but she insisted on seeing me and today I received a message from her, informing me that she wanted to meet me by the lake.”

“It doesn’t matter. The important fact is that you finally met with her.”

“I see. And what, pray tell, was so important that I felt such an imperative need to meet her?”

“Christine explained to me that you once were her music teacher and that you fell in love with her. When Raoul spirited her away, you became mad with jealousy and did everything in your power to keep her to yourself, but eventually the couple succeeded in escaping you.”

“Yes Marianne. All she said is true, no matter how much it pains me to admit the foolishness of the man I was back then.”

“I had figured as much myself. What made me furious though is the fact that you insisted that she abandon her husband and stay here with you, because you are still in love with her.”

“Excuse me!” he screamed, beside himself with anger.

“Don’t deny it Erik. I saw you with my own eyes last night. I noticed how you couldn’t take your eyes off of her. Don’t act so surprised.”

“Marianne, it’s all lies. I never did anything of the sort. I have no interest in Christine de Chagny, you have to believe me when I say this. I never expected to see her again, I never wanted to see her again. She hurt me terribly; she was the sole reason that led me to leave Paris in the first place. Last night I saw for myself that Christine is no longer the girl she once was. I know I have made mistakes, I know I behaved like a madman back then but I am trying to create a new life for myself. Yester night, I tried to avoid her but she just wouldn’t go away. She wouldn’t leave me in peace and today, when I received that note from her, in which she was asking to see me one last time, I knew it would be the only way to finally put my past behind me and move on with my life.”

“You don’t have to lie to me. I saw how you couldn’t take your eyes off her all through the night.”

“No Marianne. That is not true! I only have eyes for you. Can’t you see that?” he tried to console her.

“Don’t lie to me!” she cried.

Seeing that it was futile to try and reason with her, Erik embraced her despite her resistance and whispered in her ear “Trust me.”

However, her reaction was exactly the opposite of what he expected. She pushed him away in agony and screamed. “Leave me alone!”

“Why are you doing this? Why are you pushing me away? A few days ago you seemed to enjoy my company and now you can’t get away from me fast enough. How can it be that you changed your mind so quickly? Could it have something to do with the Baron?”

“What does Olivier have to do with anything?” she said, fixing her eyes in his with fury.

“I believe this has everything to do with Olivier Dervaux. Yester night you seemed to only have eyes for him. After all, you made it perfectly clear you did not wish to be escorted to the ball by such a brute as myself.”

“This is nonsense. Don’t change the subject. I explained to you that I merely did not wish to complicate things any further, because of Christine's arrival. You know very well that I only see Olivier as a friend.”

“Is that why you danced all through the night in his arms? Is that what friends do?”

“I danced with Olivier because you did not pay any attention to me you fool! You acted as if I were invisible and did not ask me even for one dance. You were too busy talking to your precious Christine the entire night.”

“How many times do I have to tell you that she was the one who wouldn’t leave me be! Why can’t you get that through your head?”

Marianne shook her head in dismay. “This is futile. We have nothing more to say to each other. I have no interest in a man who is as heartless as yourself. A few days ago you promised you would never hurt me. How can I trust you ever again when less than a week later I see you running after that woman?”

She walked away and mounted her horse while Erik stood and stared at her saying nothing. “Goodbye Erik. I would appreciate it if you would see to it that we never meet again.”

She galloped away on her horse, tears running down her cheeks, while Erik stood frozen to the spot, tightening his fists in fury as he watched her run away from him.

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A/N: Please, feel free to read and review! And stay tuned for the next chapter!
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No Easy Way