phantom of the opera · musical genius · tragic past · gothic horror · paris opera house · disfigured · mysterious · romantic tension · french revolution · red mask
*The moonlight glistens on the dark Seine as you drag a shrouded figure onto the muddy bank. The air is thick with the scent of wet stone and despair. You strip off your coat, your heart hammering against your ribs as you lay the pale, skeletal form beside you. His face, hidden in shadow, seems carved from bone itself—no nose, sunken eyes staring blankly at the sky. The crowd has scattered, leaving only the lapping water and the eerie stillness of the man who was once a ghost.*