Dedicated to my favorite reader, 

   Later that evening, Celi received her first lesson in reading and writing. Erin read a passage to her from a book called  Jane Eyre, and had her look at the letters, write the alphabet, and a passage from the book, which she then had to read back to him. He knew he expected too much from her, but if she was to keep up with his life, she had to have a  large capacity for all things. He gave her a brief history about the author of the book - her two sisters, he claimed, he would teach her about another time - and at last concluded their lesson.

   Erin stuffed cloth into her shoes, but she kicked them off under the dinner table and forgot about them. Erin didn't seem to notice, even as he gave her another tour for a couple hours. When he did notice, he only stated she would have rough feet when she was older. She replied saying she didn't care and would rather feel the ground beneath her feet. It wasn't put very well, but Erin laughed nonetheless.

   He sent Celi to bed around nine thirty, figuring that was a good enough amount of time for a child to sleep. Since Celi still did not have a nightgown, he gave her an old shirt of his to put over her slip. The shirt barely hung above her ankles, and the sleeves had to be cut away so she didn't lose her hands in bundles of material.

   Celi however, was not tired. She stood looking around her room - she could now refer to it as her room - then decided she would like some air. She walked out to the balcony, the soft carpet tickling her feet with each step.

    She stood on her tiptoes and looked down at the expansive estate. Celi's attention fell upon a garden which was comprised of a single type of flower - roses. Mostly red roses. She loved roses, and she could almost smell them from her balcony, as if a bit of their scent had drifted over on the wind that was ruffling her hair. Speaking of hair, Celi still had not been able to do anything about the nest on her head. At least it didn't hurt.

   Her face, thankfully, was clean now. Erin had stood in the bathroom inspecting her skin after each time she washed her face until he was satisfied that she'd rubbed all the grime - and a couple layers of skin, she thought - off.

   She smiled at the memory. But if only her mother were here....

   A knife twisted Celi's heart and she couldn't breathe for one terrifying moment. Her mother would never know what had become of her until she died too. If only she could just say goodbye to Maman, or feel her arms around her one last time.

   As if she were trying to stay together, Celi wrapped her own arms around herself, and, after abruptly feeling the night taking on an unfriendly chill, and that the stars and moon above had dimmed, she walked back inside, sad.

   Celine sniffled and glanced one time at the bed before lying down on the carpet and curling into a fragile ball.

   That night, Celi had nightmares so real, her heart was shaken.

   It was not yet midnight when Erin began to hear the screams.

                            🌹

    "For only the night can set love free." Erin had just finished writing the last word, in pencil, above the final note, when a scream of pure terror echoed faintly above him in the house. Celine. He dropped the pencil and  raced up the stairs as another scream pierced his ears. He was horrified something was wrong - was she dying? Had she been caught in one of his traps? - he burst into her room. Erin was unaware that his body was bare of cloak, so his mask was openly exposed.

   She was having some kind of fit on the carpet, twitching, crying, wailing. She was calling for her mother. It struck him she was having a nightmare. And that she had been sleeping on the floor. Was there something wrong with the bed? And what on earth could cause a child to have a nightmare of this degree? He winced, knowing what. He had experienced the same thing himself.

   He crouched down and gently shook her shoulders. Sitting next to her, he saw her eyes open; fear in the hazel orbs too big for her face. She was sobbing uncontrollably. Feeling pity, the single emotion he hated, his heart of ice thawed and he pulled her onto his lap, slowly rocking her. (Because an unmarried man of nineteen knew how to comfort a child.)

"It's okay," he cooed. "Calm down." His voice was a soft command, and Celi felt herself obeying, involuntarily unable to resist. "Everything is alright. Now tell me what's wrong."

   Celi sniffled, still trembling. "I saw my maman. She wasn't moving. She wouldn't look at me. I wasn't with her when she died." Celi started crying again, and Erin had difficulty understanding her. "She would never have wanted me to live on the street, or fall into Red's hands. She'd be so upset that I let her down. But the Monsieur  -"

   Erin asked her to explain who the Monsieur was. Celi ended up telling him her entire story.

    She finished by saying "My mother w-was a good person. As much of a lady as she could be. I respect her. She did what she had to - but she could never respect me after being caught by Red! And now she's gone!"

  Erin remained silent for a long time. He sat there, rubbing Celi's back until her eyes were red but dried. He could not relate to her missing her mother - the man he'd become told him to push Celi away, to scold her for being childish and weak; weeping for her mother would not do any good and mothers all died at some point. But the boy he'd been told him to keep his heart - his mother might have hated him, but what did that matter?

  He finally spoke. "Celi," he used her nickname, "Your mother  would be happy for you because you are with me. She'd be happy with the education I'm going to give you. I think she'll love anything you love, anything that brings you joy, that makes you feel proud. She, as far as I can tell, wanted only the best for you, so you should be the best you can be, for her and for yourself. It sounds like she wanted to instill pride in you, to make you value yourself and enjoy your life.

  "And she's not gone. You will always have memories of her." Erin paused, feeling a bit awkward at this next part. "And you will always have me. Anytime you need help. I'm a friend." Erin didn't have friends... but if he guessed, Celi would be the closest thing.

   She pulled back and stared up at him, blurting the first question she thought of. "Erin, why are you wearing a mask?"

   "Why do you ask the most unconventional questions? You ask too many, ma chérie."

  Erin was as close to being disheveled as he was physically capable, as Celi would later find; and even in this level of untidiness, he was quite neat, to any other person. He might have been devoid of cloak, coat, and cravat, but his ruffled white shirt was practically without wrinkles and tucked perfectly into his black pants, and his mask, covering a little more than the upper right quarter of his face, was molded perfectly over his features - features showing calmed distress which Celi was now seeing for the first time. Large, deep coppery brown eyes flecked with green, hazel, and gold, a straight nose, and high pronounced cheekbones. But her eyes drifted back to his. There was something in their depths that chilled her blood, scared her, while simultaneously making her feel protected. His eyes were cold, hard, cruel, relentless, and unsympathetic. But they also were warm, kind, and familiar. How this could be, she didn't know. Not wanting him to pick up on her feelings, she burrowed her head back into his chest. His arms were comforting and gentle. Erin's muscles cushioned his bony embrace, making his much less sharp than Catherine's. It wasn't like being held by her mother... but he had Catherine's warmth and her mother's gentleness. It was enough for her.

  Erin was still thinking about her question. A version of the truth would be best for her. It could double as a story to help her sleep too.

   "There's always a monster lurking in the shadows, Celine - remember that. But it would be equally beneficial to you if you also remember that there are many definitions to every word. Synonyms.

   "I wear a mask because I have shadows and secrets to hide. You will like me better with it on than with it off. It's safer for you to be oblivious to a part of me that should never be visible." Erin paused to situate himself more comfortably under the angular little girl, who was currently calm at last and curious. Thank goodness for her short attention span.

  "Monsters and demons were children once."

   "Then how do they become monsters?

    "Here's an example.

   "There was once a little boy born into this world of humanity. He possessed great gifts that few others had, and he was envied for this. However, he was unable to really use his talents, for he was cursed just as much as he was blessed. There later was a little girl too, whom he fell in love with. She had a single talent, but a talent he loved nonetheless. Sadly life can be cruel.

  "Horrible things happened to the boy because of his curse, while the girl had a brighter future, a brighter life. He began to do very bad things. The two of them were reunited eventually. But she did not understand him anymore. He had been turned into a vile creature because of his past... she was still often compared to an angel... and their story still goes on today."

   He didn't finish because Celi's breathing had evened, and she was drifting on the edge of sleep. The last thing she said was, "The boy should find a different girl. He seems nice... not his fault he's cursed."

   Erin smiled and hummed to her a little song she had inspired. A few moments later, she was dreaming.

    Erin lifted her up and placed her on the bed, tucking in the sheets around her. She had been through hell, but her face, unlined, untroubled, and missing it's bright smile, did not show it. He had gone through hell once. But his face would always show it.

   He had only felt positive emotions for one person. He had only found one person he could tolerate, who was deserving of affection. The only one he wanted to give affection to. But looking at Celi, he wondered if he could ever like her as much. He thought he could. He doubted she could ever care for him. Yet with as much as he'd done, all that he'd been... he was still human and could not resist a feeling of fondness for the child whose past was so similar to his own.

  Sighing, he closed the door to Celi's room and leaned against it. He wondered if they'd like each other if they met. But she might get mad at him for not asking her about the child first, even if she did like children. Oh, children. Children. She didn't even like him and he was already thinking about the issues they'd have if they were in a relationship - that relationship didn't even exist yet. But it was in his mind anyway. He would never give her kids for fear they would end up like him. She'd hate him for it. But maybe she'd come around here more often if she took a liking to Celine. Still, then he'd have two people to watch out for. They could trigger any of his traps.

   Ah well. He would consider everything later. Right now he was itching to play, from the emotions and music Celi inspired, and he did have Christina's aria to finish for Act III of his play.