[The Phantom of the Opera] The Beast and the Canary

In a blink of an eye, a month has passed.From that day on, after getting up every morning, I would go to the musical instrument room to work with him.In the first few days, he seemed very uncomfortable with people being around him. Every few minutes, he would put down his pen and look back at me.I had no choice but to suppress my breathing rate to the lowest, curled up aggrievedly on the sofa farthest from him, and read a book.Once I was so sleepy that I fell asleep watching it, missed lunch time, and was not woken up by him until the evening.

"Get up." He grabbed my wrist and gave me a cold look, "Who allows you to skip lunch. Next time, go back to your room."

That's what he said, but as soon as it was time for dinner, he would put down what he was doing and ring the bell to call the servant to deliver the meal.

Slowly, he began to get used to my presence, and he stopped looking at me from time to time. When I was by his side, he could calm down and compose music.Sometimes when he is free, he will teach me how to use some rare musical instruments.It was only then that I realized that this is not an ordinary musical instrument room at all, but a place with countless treasures.

Here, you can see the violin made by Stradivari, who is said to be the greatest violin maker so far. This violin is not necessarily his proudest work, but it must be his most extravagant work. The body of the piano alone is inlaid with several expensive and shining gemstones; you can see the manuscript that Mozart gave to Alocia, and the yellowed staves record the deep and passionate love of this genius; you can also see several Letters from music critics were full of praise for Hirst, praising him as the French Schumann, and the music he wrote was romantic and shocking.

Eric saw me flipping through these, but he didn't show off on his face, and he was very different from him who actively showed me how to use the instrument.He leaned on the chair, crossed his legs, and looked at the score without looking sideways: "They say that Hearst is the French Schumann, but it's not that Eric is the French Schumann. What does it have to do with me?"

Aren't these two people both of you?

I looked at him bewilderedly, wondering why he had to distinguish himself from Hearst.But he closed his eyes, propped his forehead, and didn't continue the topic.

In addition to these, I also saw a wooden box with dust.When I opened it, I found that there were some odds and ends inside, including cigarette cases, mirrors, candies, and snuff bottles. Without exception, they all had Hirst's profile portrait printed on their packages.Even Liszt, who was famous for a while 30 years ago, the effect it brought was nothing more than that.No wonder that during the performance of "Two-Face Man" before, you could meet fanatical fans who imitated him in any box.

At the bottom of the box was a hard-shell book, with a letter of appointment from the Paris Conservatory of Music in it. The dean hoped that Hearst would be their music professor.

You know, even the piano master Liszt was once rejected by this conservatory, but Eric got their letter of appointment without any effort.This shows that the musical achievements he has achieved with the identity of Hearst are even more amazing than I imagined.

However, when I looked at him with admiration, he turned his head indifferently, not only did not blush as before, but also mentioned this impatiently: "Didn't you say that, these are all 'Hester ' Honor. Can't you tell him from me?"

I never understood what he meant.

Hearst, Eric, aren't they all the same person?

After this conversation, although he didn't say it clearly, I could feel that his mood was obviously depressed.He no longer stays in the instrument room for a long time. For several days, I can't even meet him, and even if we meet, he doesn't talk to me. However, he doesn't completely ignore my existence, more like a child talking to me. I'm angry.

Finally, I realized that he didn't want me to think of him as Hearst.Why?Could it be that they are really not the same person?Then he shook his head, denying this speculation. After going through so many things, if they are not the same person, then it will really become a ghost legend.

Hold on, ghost.

The "Double-Faced Man" performed in the theater showed the audience his two sides, one is Hearst, and the other is the... ghost that everyone fears.At that time, I always felt that the idea of ​​this play coincided with that of "Faust". The devil in the play seemed to be judging someone. Now that I think about it, the object of this trial is probably himself.

Hearst is handsome in appearance, elegant in temperament, and has countless fans. Even cheap cigarette cases are valuable for collection because of his portrait. object of praise.And Eric is a ghost hiding in the shadows. He has the power to soar in the sky, but he is despised by everyone because he does not have colorful and beautiful wings.

All this, just because he has a frightening face.

The opera he wrote as a ghost was ridiculed by laymen and despised by former music fans. However, when he took off the mask and revealed Hearst's face, he received cheers and applause.The audience's response was a sharp knife, telling him brightly that all the unfair treatment he had suffered since birth was because of his ugly appearance and nothing else.

That's why he's so disgusted with me looking through things about Hearst.

What I saw was not honor, but the fear deep in his heart.

I couldn't help being a little frustrated, except for Phantom and Hearst, I really don't know him at all. Obviously his demands are written in the opera, but I didn't understand the meaning until now...

That day, he put me in a cage and told me in the blazing fire that he was not a ghost, he had a name, it was Eric.

So, removing the fog of theater ghosts and the glory and aura of Hearst, what kind of person is Eric...?

I found a diary in the corner of the instrument room.It's not good behavior to pry into other people's privacy, but the valet told me that everything in the instrument room is at my disposal.I opened it half guilty and half curious.On the first page, there was no text, just a sketchy sketch of the magnificent Cathedral in Florence.The footman once said that Eric learned to read and sing in the sewers of an opera house in Florence.

On the second page, there was still no text, but a drawing of a lion lying in a pool of blood.Compared with the sketch on the first page, this page has a lot more details.Can't imagine where these details come from.

The third page is a catchy song with concise phrases. I only read it once and memorized the melody.Eric titled the piece "Mouse".

This is the case for the next few hundred pages. There are very few long texts, and most of them are sketches and scores.Eric condensed what he saw, heard, and felt in the first half of his life in this small diary.Different from the majestic symphony written by "Hearst", there is no gorgeous and complicated ornamentation, no elegant and symmetrical harmony and polyphony, but only a simple, repetitive, but shocking main theme.

The latest page depicts the busy backstage of the theater, with everyone coming and going in a hurry, only a girl bent down and focused on tying the straps on her dancing shoes.The light and fluffy swan dance skirt bloomed on her body like flowers.It was only when I saw the pearl headband on the back of her head that I realized that this girl was me.

Eric didn't mark a single word for this painting, but I was more shocked than reading a thousand words.

I put the diary back in place.I asked the valet for a rag and a broom, and cleaned the dust in the instrument room.

While cleaning, I dug out some music scores and scripts.Different from the love operas that "Hearst" is best at creating, these scripts have humorous lines and humorous tunes. Just humming the melodies above will make you laugh unconsciously.I didn't expect Eric to have such a side.But think about it, the joke that he satirized the third trombonist in the theater band as a deaf man is still circulating in the theater today.

This man has a strong learning talent, from Baroque style organ music to African folk instruments, he can master it with ease. The name "Hurst" seems to be the same, but in fact it only shows his most inconspicuous side.

Days passed and Eric still didn't come.The good news is that in the past two days, my throat has gradually recovered, and I can already make a weak sound.Although it is still some time before I fully recover, it has given me a lot of hope and confidence.Now, I just wait for him to return to the underground labyrinth, then apologize to him and explain all misunderstandings.

Unexpectedly, only his servant came.

"Miss Geary," he held a valuable light gold dress in front of me, "the theater is holding a masquerade ball. Viscount Shany, Miss Daye, and Mrs. Geary are all here. The master hopes that you It's an honor to be his dance partner."