The Phantom's Shade

Chapter 6

He reeled back, his hands flying to the left side of his face to conceal it from her. Erik's face was contorted and flushed red in anger.

"Ah, miss! Ah, miss! So you wanted to see behind Erik's mask? You wanted to gaze upon the horror and laugh? Then look for yourself, mademoiselle!" He ripped his hands off of his face, revealed nasty welts and scars only on that side of its face. Celestine looked away in shame and fright, but Erik grabbed her hair and forced her head in the direction of him.

"Ah, now you see! Oh women, such inquisitive little vixens! Do you see now the terrors of poor, unhappy Erik?" She begged him to stop, to let her go, but he refused.

"Look, my dear, look! Erik is crying for you. Ugly, monstrous Erik is crying human tears for you." 

"Erik!" Her cry rang out as a single tear fell down her cheek. It was their sign, only their sign, during her training. If she shed even one tear, they would stop for the day and he would teach her how to control emotions through the mind.

His blazing eyes turned on her fitful state, truly crying and struggling. The fire disappeared from his gaze and his grip loosened. Celestine backed away from him a good six feet. He grabbed his mask and adjusted it onto his face, but he was moaning.

"Oh, what have I done! What have I done to my love?" He buried his repulsive face in his hands and sobbed. Erik's cries were so relentless that Celestine approached him gently, but he shooed her away.

"No! No! Leave me!" The Phantom of the Opera fled to his private study, leaving her at the mercy of the tapestries. She sat, staring at the walls. They were truly beautiful, yet Celestine felt as if they represented something deeper. Perhaps the colors coordinated with Erik's mood? Blue and black were sadness and loneliness, she guessed. Red was anger. Green was, green was happiness.

In the beginning, there was a great deal of red and blue, even purple to symbolize the combination of the two. Then, towards the middle, a hint of green shows up. Then another stroke. Then another space. Then another tile and another. Soon, almost the entire wall was green, full of life. Erik made this three years ago. That was when they had met. She was the true green, the true lively color in his life.

Celestine ducked her head, tears steadily streaming down her cheeks. She took it all for granted. He wasn't a monster. No. Far from it. Erik is a artist, a singer, a composer, and a gentleman. He is simply Erik.