Hello, readers! I know, shocking, I'm back and here is a new published work! It's been quite a while since I've been on here, and while I regret the unfinished stories (that could possibly be continued , hopefully, maybe), during my absence my love for Phantom of the Opera has grown increasingly. I've been coming on FF more and more recently to read some POtO fanfics, and I'm willing to admit that I ship Christine with Raoul... AND Erik. I know, I know, some of you are going to hate me. I'm not here to say Erik is blameless in everything. But I have grown so very fond of him, and of him and Christine, and while Love Never Dies has quite mixed reviews, I have to say I love a lot of the soundtrack and Til I Hear You Sing and Beneath a Moonless Sky sung by Ramin and Sierra, two of my all time favourites, are exquisite. In fact, listening recently to Beneath a Moonless Sky, I realized just how forlorn and hauntingly beautiful of a song it is, and I thought, doesn't this song deserve a one shot to convey the same emotion? And not to mention I couldn't resist the idea of writing of that night between Erik and Christine, because it wasn't just passion and smut and whatever else, it was full of vulnerability and a rawness I was dying to write. So, enough of my excessive noting, here is the one shot!

P.S. Christine: italics
Erik: bold italics
Both: bold

Flashbacks: same but underlined

Also the Erik and Christine I see remind me more of Ramin and Sierra, but feel free to imagine whomever you like!

He was alive.

Her Angel, her teacher... her Phantom.

There in the doorway, tall and dark and radiating an intensity that reached straight for Christine's core. As she looked at him in awe, she felt as if she was staring at a stranger, and yet he was no stranger at all. He was still clothed in dark materials, seemingly still a man who preferred the shadows to blinding light. All those years that had passed and he still found solace in darkness. Pity shot through Christine's heart, but only for a moment.

Christine had begun shaking as soon as he stepped into the room, and she was overcome with a multitude of emotions. Was she scared? Was she looking at a hallucination of her own making? Was she in terrified shock... or would the tears in her eyes turn to tears of joy? It was all too much, and he was getting too close. She bolted away, trembling behind the sofa in her dressing room. A new feeling arose inside of her, making her wide-eyed expression of surprise turn to one of hardness.

"I should have known that you'd be here,
I should have known it all along.
This whole arrangement bears your stamp,
You're in each measure of that song..."

Her melodic voice was full of accusation, and as the Phantom tried to step towards her, she scurried away to stand behind the table on the other side of the room. He stopped and waited, knowing she was frightened and upset. He could not blame her. This first meeting after years and years of separation was certainly not what he had anticipated, but then again, love blinded everyone in it's way. Christine shook her head, pointing a slender finger at him in anger.

"How dare you try and claim me now?
How dare you come invade my life?"

Erik could not remain silent any longer. He had to remind her of the night he could not forget, of the night he hoped she had not forgotten. He moved slowly towards her, not wanting to frighten her and yet needing to be closer. To his relief, she did not run again, but instead watched him through watery dark eyes.

"Oh, Christine, my Christine...
In that time when the world thought me dead-
My Christine, on that night just before you were wed..."

Her furrowed eyebrows and tightened jaw loosened up and her lips parted slightly. So she did remember. He was unable to detect how she felt about this reminder, but he had to continue.

"Ah, Christine, you came and found where I hid,
Don't you deny that you did!
That long ago night..."

"That night," she breathed out, her shaking legs taking her from behind the table. The attraction to him still burned within her. She couldn't stop herself. A slight smiled curled the visible half of his lips up, and his heart hammered in his chest. But then the lovely soprano was too close and he felt a shyness strike at him, a nervousness about the distortion that still plagued him behind the mask. Erik turned slightly away from her, and her expression flickered briefly. Then he began to sing once more.

"Once there was a night, beneath a moonless sky.
Too dark to see a thing, too dark to even try."

Christine wandered through the darkness of the trees with only a lantern to guide her. The moon was in hiding, clouds keeping it from shining it's rays. The situation struck her as incredibly similar to the man with the mask who hid from the world, unable to shine his hauntingly beautiful light. She shivered under her cloak, stopping to glance around. She had to be close. Madame Giry had given her very specific directions, and so far they had been right up until then. Now there was no trail, no signs, nothing to guide her.

And then- there it was- a single lit up window. She squinted to look at the light several feet into the trees. A shadow flickered in what she thought was a window, dimming the light momentarily. And then it was gone and she a shout got stuck in her throat. She stumbled ahead, gripping the skirt of her gown to hold it up as she hurried. It was a small cabin, the cabin Madame Giry had told her of. He was in there. How anxious and frightened she was, but she had gotten so far, she could not turn her back on him now. The door was soon before her and her small hand curled itself into a fist to rap on the chipped wood. No response. Christine hesitated momentarily, and then reached for the handle, pulling with blind hope. The door creaked open and she pulled it all the way open to stick her lantern ahead of her with trembling arms.

A gasp escaped the young woman as her light went out with a whoosh and the door shut behind her. It was so dark in the cabin, and she could hear nothing. Where was he? What if she had entered the wrong cabin?- No, there was only one. He must be in there.

"Phantom-" she called out softly, then stopping abruptly. "Angel. Show yourself, please."

She heard something stir not far from her, and she dropped her extinguished lantern in fright. But she pushed herself to be brave, and her mouth opened to release the music she knew he could not resist.

"Angel of music... hide no longer," she sang quietly, her eyes slowly adjusting to the room. Shapes revealed themselves to her, but not before she ran into something hard. She cried out, a sob bubbling out from within her. Someone caught her from behind, a warm and familiar figure.

"I stole to your side to tell you I must go-
I couldn't see your face, but sensed you even so."

Christine reached out tentatively to pressed a gentle hand to the uncovered cheek of Erik's face, moving it so he would look upon her again. He complied, eyes cast downward. She waited for him to look up at her, and when he did, she gave him a small, sad smile. Nostalgia gripped his veins, pumping blood too fast for him to relax.

Her sobs ended swiftly as the person held her gently, cautiously stroking her curly hair gently to calm her. She leaned back weakly, lifting her right hand to confirm her feelings. Her hand met smooth porcelain, and the wearer of the mask jolted. She twirled around and a lantern burst to life beside them, finally showing Christine her surroundings. The cabin was small, old, and sparsely furnished. The most lavish things it held were a dusty piano and a bed covered in luscious blankets and pillows, draped with translucent materials like a canopy. Christine finally allowed her eyes to look up at her tall host, who seemed himself unsure. He waited for her to speak, explain herself. There was nothing he could say that would rightly convey how he felt, or theorize why she was standing there before him, his once angel.

She could not speak herself, poor Christine. Her hand came in contact with his cheek and she caressed it tenderly, their eyes never leaving each other's gaze.

"And I touched you-"
"And I felt you-"
"And I heard those ravishing refrains!"

Erik finally made a move, deciding to do what he knew best, reaching up to take her hand and pull her towards a mirror on the wall. It was cracked from what looked like had been contact with a fist, and Christine's heart ached for her angel.

"Look at your face in the mirror,
I am there inside."

She whirled around to face him, tears escaping the eyes that darkened when emotion took hold. Erik shook his head, worried he had ruined his moment with her.

"I must go," she said in a voice full of pain. "Tomorrow I wed... I am to marry Raoul."

The visible side of the Phantom's face contorted in sorrow and he took her face in his hands gently, begging with his body language for her to wait.

"Say you'll share with me one love, one lifetime.
Save me, lead me from my solitude-"

"Say you want me with you here, beside you-"

The lyrics floated out of Christine's mouth before she could stop herself. It was so natural- so right.

Now Erik and Christine's hands were joined and she pulled herself closer, her heart leaping within her just as his.

"The music of your pulse-"
"The singing in your veins..."

Christine reached up to pull the mask off, setting it aside hastily. Erik backed away and covered his face, his reaction not angry as the first time when she'd torn away his facade, but instead ashamed.

"Angel, please," she begged, stepping closer. He backed up further and shook his head, tears welling up in his eyes.

"Christine, I am a monster," he told her harshly, trying to turn away.

"I am not afraid, Erik."

His head moved slowly to look back at her, one visible eyes wide.

"You-"

"Madame Giry told me your name," Christine told him gently, finally able to go up to him as he stood frozen in shock. "Angel, I-"

"I'm so sorry, Christine," he whispered in a broken voice. "I know I deserve no forgiveness, and I do not expect it."

Christine grabbed his hands and wrenched them away from his face, staring intently at him. He shut his eyes, embarrassed and ashamed. He felt sick, so sick, until.. her soft lips made contact with his. She threw her small arms around Erik's neck and kissed him so passionately the world around him seemed a haze. But he found the strength within himself to kiss her back, wrapping arms around her petite frame to pull her close. The fact she was to be wed the next day was lost on both of them as they created a new ballad of their own.

"And I held you-"
"And I touched you-"
"And embraced you-"
"And I felt you!"

Erik brought Christine's arms up, twirling her around, and she removed them from his grasp to touch the sides of his face with her hands. She ran them down mask and skin, letting them finally rest on the arms around her waist. How many years had it been since he had stood behind her, holding her, cloaking her in his protection?

Erik finally released himself from her passionate embrace to run his trembling hands down her torso, feeling as if it was all just a dream, a torturous dream. But she was real and there before him, nodding her permission as he glanced into her eyes. He was so used to to the warm brown, hazel-centered gaze that the heated darkness he saw shocked him. The normally cold cabin burned with the passion that raged between the soprano and her Angel of Music.

Christine reached for his uncertain hands and led them to the laces of her gown. Erik broke free of his nervous trance and pulled them loose, until he was able to pull the corset apart, and after removing her skirt, down Christine's body. She watched him move, knowing this was incredibly new to them both, but feeling confident all the same. Now all she wore was a sheer chemise and stockings.

"Christine," Erik breathed out, forgetting his face was bared, or that what was happening was something he had once decided was no longer realistic. All he knew at that moment was that Christine was so beautiful he could barely bring himself to touch her, not wanting to taint her. But she smiled lovingly and took his hands again, placing them on her hips.

"Do not worry, my angel," she told him reassuringly. "I love you, Erik. I love you."

She had once looked at him with such sorrow when he confessed his love to her, turning to leave him without a reply. And now she had finally responded. His nervousness and shyness abandoned him as he caught her lips in his, completely and utterly besotted with Christine Daae.

"And with every breath and every sigh..."
"I felt no longer scared."
"I felt no longer shy."
"At last our feelings bared,
Beneath a moonless sky..."

Christine raised her hands off the strong arms that embraced her, and as they began to move back, she crossed her own over each other to reach for his hands. The Phantom realized what she wanted and kept his hands open so she could entangle her fingers in his. He sighed in content and rested his lips on the back of her hair, pressing a tender kiss there. Christine smiled to herself and rested against his chest, melting in his arms.

"And blind in the dark, as soul gazed into soul,
I looked into your heart, and saw you pure and whole."

Erik let go of Christine for a single moment to take a deep breath and turn the lantern down until they were cloaked in darkness once more. He led her through the shadows to the bed and gently laid her back. Christine felt the blankets underneath her, gripping a velvety cloth in her hands. She heard rustling and realized Erik was removing his own jacket. She sat up to reach for him, needing to do something, anything. He let her undo the buttons of his shirt and trousers, running fingertips over her arms as she worked. His touch made it difficult for her to work, but nevertheless she managed, and soon he was bare as she. He climbed onto the bed to pull her stockings off, his soft breathing warming Christine on the inside and out. She took her turn tenderly running her fingers along his face, hoping to show him she loved all of him, including his deformity.

Erik was comforted by Christine's compassion and equally inflamed by the soft skin of her body. As he ran hands along her legs, moving to her hips as well, Christine's breath caught in her throat. After a moment a gasp made it past her lips and Erik was pleased by the sound. She had never felt anything like this, not the intimate touch of man like she was receiving at that moment. She raised her hips so Erik could slide her chemise down her frame, completely exposing her. She was suddenly relieved that they were in darkness, embarrassed in her very pure body. Erik, however, wished he could see every detail, but knew that this darkness was somehow better, tranquil and safe.

"Christine, my Christine," he murmured, bending closer to kiss her lovingly. His lips moved to her neck and collarbone area, light as a feather. Her sighs and occasional moans were enough to satisfy him at the moment, and everywhere his hand went her body responded eagerly. He almost couldn't believe that his touch could do this to her, entice the reactions he was presented with.

"Cloaked under the night with nothing to suppress,
A woman and a man, no more and yet no less..."

Erik kissed Christine again and allowed his hand to wander to the sensitive area that was warm with her anticipation. She moaned so prettily, Erik almost froze. But he continued to caress her and give her the attention she trembled for. It was taking all of his willpower to not just have her, but he knew this was an important step before they could go any further. He would never want to hurt her.

Christine was almost unable to take the intense feelings rolling through her body as Erik touched her. She didn't know how it was supposed to feel but she thought it felt just right for her. Her hands ran over her lover's shoulders and upper arms. Her thoughts suddenly blanked as something built up inside of her while Erik rubbed her tenderly, and then it just exploded within her. She cried out, not sure of what she was experiencing, and fell deep into the blankets as she came down. Her angel slowed his touch and kissed her lips as her breathing tried to steady itself again.

"Erik, I've never- that-"

"I know, my love," he told her, smiling in the darkness. He was so incredibly pleased that he was able to do this to her. Raoul never had, and a smugness settled on the Phantom as he acknowledged the fact.

"And I kissed you!"
"And caressed you!"
"And the world around us fell away!
We said things in the dark...
We never dared to say..."

Christine faced Erik and gripped his upper arms, bringing her face close to his desperately as the memories barraged her and brought back feelings she thought she had long since repressed. Erik could see in her eyes that she was in deep, unable to let go of the past. He knew she could see the same in his own eyes. He continued singing to her, not ready to let it end yet.

"And I caught you-"
"And I kissed you-"
"And I took you!-"
"And I begged you!-"
"With a need too urgent to deny!"

"Erik, please, I need you," Christine urged him, her skin radiating a heat to match his. "I love you. Please."

Her pleas were too great for him to ignore, and so Erik kissed her forehead and centered himself before beginning to push himself into his angel. He hoped dearly that she would not feel any pain, and so far she had only let out a few gasps, but nothing that seemed as if she was in too much pain. After a few minutes, he was able to enter her completely.

"My angel," she moaned, putting a hand on the back of his neck.

"What is it? Are you all right, my love?"

"Keep moving, please."

He complied and began sliding out and in, slowly increasing his pace over time. The sounds Christine was making were driving him over the edge. But she slowed her breathing to murmur, "I love you- my angel- my Erik."

"And nothing mattered then,
Except for you and I.
Again and then again,
Beneath a moonless sky..."

The two suddenly stopped their duet, and remembrance changed the atmosphere. Erik looked away as Christine let go of his arms, her chin trembling. His eyes filled with sadness as he began to sing alone, suffering coating every note.

"And when it was done,
Before the sun could rise...
Ashamed of what I was-
Afraid to see your eyes-
I stood while you slept and whispered a goodbye,
And slipped into the dark beneath a moonless sky."

Christine's eyes fluttered open as light entered the cabin through it's two small windows. She shivered and wrapped the blankets around her tighter, looking over where Erik... no longer lay. She shot up in the bed and looked around.

"Erik!- Angel- where are you?"

She received silence. No, surely he had just gone out for a moment- he would be back. She thought back to the previous night, skipping past the parts that made her heart race to just moments before she fell asleep. She remembered lying tangled in the blankets, head propped up on her hand with her elbow pressed into the bed, watching as Erik sat at the little piano and played. Even from such an old and sad piano his music came out heavenly, no note containing any sorrow. How could Erik produce a sad tune after such a joyful experience with his Christine? After a while of music floating around her, she drifted off to sleep, peaceful.

Now where was her angel of music, no longer playing songs for her? Christine got out of the warmth of the bed to retrieve her clothes and quickly pull them on, fixing her hair before clasping on her cloak. With a final glance around, she left the cabin, calling out for Erik as she walked through the woods. Light sprinkles of rain began to fall on her as the previously sunny sky darkened. Her voice traveled through the leaves and air, but it seemed her words reached no one.

There was no use. He was gone. Christine accepted the truth, found her bearings, and looked for her way out, sobs shaking her body the entire way back. It had been she who had abandoned her Angel of Music before, and now her debt had been repaid.

"And I loved you!
Yes, I loved you!
I'd have followed anywhere you led-
I woke to swear my love,
And found you gone instead!"

Christine stepped away from Erik, infuriated, and the feelings of betrayal returning. He watched her walk away from him and panicked. The once opera ghost strode over to grab her arm pleadingly, and she faced him with fiercely dark eyes. He decided to sing first, not wanting to lose her attention for good.

"And I loved you!"

Christine whirled to face Erik, shaking her head as if to say 'How dare you pity yourself?'

"How I loved you!"
"And I left you-"
"And I loved you!"
"And I had to, both of us knew why!"
"We both knew why-"

Christine's anger died down as they admitted the truth to each other, Erik taking the opportunity to grasp her hands again. She gripped his hands tightly, to his surprise. Her eyes saddened once more as the pair continued to sing, now their voices melding together.

"And yet I won't regret,
From now until I die,
The night I can't forget,
Beneath a moonless sky..."

Christine forced back tears and took a deep breath while Erik brushed a piece of hair back from her face. He looked for something in her face, anything, some confirmation that despite the way that night had ended so long ago, she understood. And not just that... but that the love she had admitted she once shared with him was still alive.

"And now?" he asked, consumed by a need to know.

"How can you talk of now?" Christine asked, frowning slightly as she finally looked into his eyes. "For us... there is no now."

Wow, that took a while to write. I tried to be detailed but not so much you were distracted from the present entirely by the past. Hopefully this oneshot mostly conveys the emotion behind this song, and the need and yet gentleness between Erik and Christine that night.