Shit.

His fingers were wrapped around my neck as he pressed me up against the wall, his eyes looking furiously into mine.

"How did you get here?" The Opera Ghost demanded icily, his grip on my throat tightening as he did.

I could barely even breathe, let alone respond to his question as I tried desperately to pry away his fingers.

"The... mirror." I managed to speak.

His eyes narrowed as he stared intensely at me, his grip loosening slightly, but not enough to the point where I could feel breathe again.

"Does anyone else know about this?"

"Only me," I spoke, my voice coming out raspy.

The Phantom tightened his grip again as of he were about to kill me and I knew I would have to come up with something so that he wouldn't, but what could I possibly say to him to prevent him from killing me?

"You're seriously going to murder me in front of Christine?" I managed to say as I gasped for air quickly.

He glanced over at Christine, where she still lay in the boat completely knocked out to the rest of the world.

My vision was starting to go in and out of focus, my breathing becoming shallower and shallower until suddenly he released me.

I fell to the floor, gasping and coughing as I rubbed my sore neck, surprised and shocked that he had let me go.

The Ghost towered over me, I could feel his gaze burning into me as I was recovering.

"You're a friend of hers?" He asked.

I was so confused by the sudden question when moments before he had been trying to murder me.

I just stared at him incredulously for a moment, as the expression on his face was emotionless, revealing nothing of what he was feeling.

"Oui... What did you do to her?" I said as I scrambled up, looking over where Christine was.

"She's sleeping, I didn't do anything to her." He said as he looked at me as if I were an idiot.

"If she were only sleeping, wouldn't she have woken up by now?" I said with a suspicious raise of my eyebrows.

A frown appeared on his face as he stared at me.

"Susanna, I would be very careful with your accusations, may I remind you this is my domain and I could still very much so kill you?"

My heart momentarily stopped, but not at the threat, but of him saying my real name.

I could see a smirk play across his face before I could even say anything, but I had a chilling feeling that he knew.

"Now comes a little deal, in exchange for you not speaking a word of you being here or how you got here, I will keep your secret and let you live, deal?"

"How do I know you even know anything?" I challenged, even though in my gut I knew he did, but I could only hope that it was wrong.

He let out a sharp breath of irritation.

"Susanna Wells, your Uncle is Henri Moncharmin, the manager of the Opera Populaire, and you are hiding from him disguised as a chorus girl, do I need to say more?"

My heart pounded again and I shook my head.

"No, I-I supposed not, but if I don't say anything about this or how I got here, you won't tell anyone about it, right?"

"That is what I said, isn't it?" The Opera Ghost said, once again giving me the are-you-stupid look.

"But how do I know you'll keep your word, how can I possibly trust you?" I asked with a frown.

"Or I could just kill you."

I took a sharp breath, he was obviously not giving me any choice in the matter.

"Fine, I won't tell anyone as long as you keep your end of the deal."

"Perfect, now I believe it is time you leave," He said as another smirk appeared on his face.

Before I could even say anything the floor beneath me opened up and I was falling into darkness.

I slammed onto my back, the wind knocking out of me momentarily, my head slamming against the ground.

I sat up, my eyes beginning to adjust to the dark as I rubbed my throbbing head.

"Fucking asshole," I grumbled, really despising this Opera Ghost.

Once I was standing up, my eyes adjusted to the darkness I could see what seemed to be reflections of myself on either side of me. Jumping back, only slam into yet another mirror behind me.

I looked forward as I saw what seemed to be a path of mirrors, no not a path more like a maze of mirrors.

"Oh God.." I breathed out loud to myself, not knowing how I was supposed to get out of this.

I was never good with the fun houses they would have at the circus that my parents would sometimes take me to, constantly getting lost and just running into mirror after mirror and I knew this would be no different.

There was nothing fun about it.

I had to try anyway, I didn't have a choice.

I took a deep breath, trying to calm my racing heart. I had to think logically if I wanted to escape this labyrinth. Placing my hand on the cool surface of one mirror, I began to move forward slowly, feeling my way along the path.

The silence was deafening, broken only by the sound of my shallow breathing and the soft tap of my shoes against the floor. Every few steps, I'd encounter a dead end, forcing me to backtrack and try another route. The mirrors seemed to stretch endlessly in every direction, distorting my reflection and making me dizzy. I was already terribly exhausted, not even knowing how much time had passed since I even came to this God-forsaken place.

As I stumbled through the maze, my mind raced with questions. How did the Phantom come to find out who I was? Would he harm Christine? I hope to God he wouldn't lay a finger on her.

"Are you all right?" A voice suddenly asked.

I spun around quickly, a surprised yelp escaping me. My gaze landed on the man in front of me, and I immediately recognized him as the Persian.

"I'm fine..." I said, feeling suspicion rise in my chest at his presence.

He looked at me for a moment as if making sure I was truly okay.

"Good, now follow me, quickly."

The Persian turned beginning to walk away and I stared for a moment, still very suspicious of him, not sure if I should trust him, but considering he seemed to be my only way out, I was going to have to, for now.

I hurried after him, my footsteps echoing in the eerie silence of the mirror maze. He moved with purpose, navigating the twisting paths with ease. I struggled to keep up, nearly bumping into more mirrors as we rounded sharp corners.

"How did you find me?" I asked as I caught up to him, raising an eyebrow, making him know of my suspicion of him.

The Persian glanced back at me, his dark eyes unreadable. "I have my ways of knowing what goes on down here, the Phantom's tricks are quite familiar to me."

That did not help in easing my growing skepticism of him.

"You know the Phantom?"

There was no response as we rounded another corner and I nearly collided with his back as he abruptly stopped. He ran his hand along the edge of a mirror, fingers probing for something.

"Ah, here we are," he murmured.

With a soft click, the mirror swung open like a door, revealing to my shock, what seemed to be the foyer of the Opera House. The Persian ushered me through quickly, closing the mirror behind us with another click.

As I turned around I saw it was no longer a mirror behind me, but just a plain, dark wall.

"Are you sure you're all right?" The Persian asked softly.

I turned sharply to him as I shook my head.

"All right, how the fuck am I supposed to be all right, I was almost killed and now my friend is down there with a madman, and you're asking me if I'm all right, what do you think?"

The Persian raised his hands in a placating gesture, his dark eyes gleaming with sympathy.

"I understand your distress, mademoiselle, but I assure you that Erik will not harm her."

"Erik...is that what you call that bastard?" I said my voice laced with venom, showing my contempt for this Opera Ghost.

The Persian's expression hardened slightly.

"He is a man, Mademoiselle, a deeply troubled and misunderstood man, but a man nonetheless."

"Oh yeah, just an obsessive, murderous man that lives beneath the Opera House, some man," I said with a frown, instinctively rubbing my neck.

He took a deep, but heavy sigh as he rubbed his eyes and in that sigh, it seemed like he held a million unspoken burdens.

"It is... complicated, Erik has suffered greatly in his life, but I give you my word, he will not harm your friend."

"And you just expect me to take your word, to trust you, your word doesn't mean shit!" I yelled furiously, breathing heavily as my fists were clenched to my side.

The Persian's eyes flashed with a mixture of hurt and frustration. He stepped closer, his voice low and intense.

"Mademoiselle, I understand your anger, but I am your only ally here, I have known Erik for many years, and while his actions are often... extreme, he values music and beauty above all else. And these are all qualities your dear friend has so I assure you she is completely safe."

I felt my resolve weakening, the adrenaline from earlier fading into exhaustion.

"But how can you be so sure?" I whispered.

The Persian's expression softened.

"Because I have seen him spare lives for far less. Now, I suggest you go back to the dormitories, I'll keep an eye on things."

"But-"

He raised a hand as he interrupted me, his dark eyes into mine.

"Please, Madame."

I took a deep breath but reluctantly nodded my head.

"Fine, but if anything happens to Christine, I'll hold you personally responsible."

The Persian nodded solemnly.

"I understand. Now, go."

Reluctantly, I turned and made my way through the foyer, my footsteps echoing in the empty space. As I reached the grand staircase, I paused, looking back at the Persian. He stood there, a dark silhouette against the dim light, watching me. With a deep breath, I ascended the stairs.

The dormitories were eerily quiet when I arrived. All of the girls silently sleeping in their beds, night had fallen from the time I had been down in that dark underground world.

I collapsed onto my bed, my mind racing as I stared at Christine's empty bed, remembering how she was in a deep sleep in the boat, hearing my real name echoing in my head from the Phantom. How he came to know of my secret I hadn't a clue, but now I was forced to secrecy. Breaking a deal with an unstable of a person such as Erik seemed unwise, I had escaped death from his clutches once, and it's highly unlikely that would happen again.