Aphrodite's recovery was slow at first, though her badly scarred face looked slightly better each day. As for her sight, it took almost two full months for her to fully regain it, but once she did, she felt better than ever. She did her best to stay away from mirrors. She only left the catacombs if it was absolutely necessary, -which was almost never- and when she did, she wore a mask, much like her father's. Aphrodite longed to breathe in fresh air and feel the wind on her face. Despite her yearning, she knew it was best to stay in the shadows. For the first time ever, she truly knew how her father felt, being shamed into solitude.
   One night, about three months after the chandelier crash, Vincent and Alice finally convinced Aphrodite to come join them for an opera. They hadn't seen her since the accident and were very worried about her. Apollo had warned them about how badly her face was scarred. Still, they weren't completely prepared to see their friend walk through the door to box five. The right side of her face was so different, so distorted, it was hardly her face. The only thing that was the same about that deformed face were those bright blue eyes. They were like two diamonds amidst a fire. After all the pain she had gone through, those eyes never lost their hope and sparkle.

   "Aphrodite," Alice said with tears in her eyes, "I've missed you so much."

   Aphrodite embraced her friend. "I didn't think that you would recognize me."

   "Of course I would. Why wouldn't I?"

   "Ali, I look so different now. I'm not-"

   "Nonsense. You are still as beautiful as ever. You've just...changed. You-"

   "I'll say," Vincent interrupted. "Aphrodite, how have you been?"

   "I've been healing very slowly, but at least I have sight in both eyes again," Aphrodite replied.

   Vincent put a hand on her scarred cheek. "I still can't believe that this happened to you."

   "I somehow feel as if it is my fault," Apollo remarked with his eyes cast downward.

   "Apollo, this was entirely my fault, not yours. Do you hear? Don't blame yourself, dear brother."

   "But if I had never attempted to crash the chandelier, you wouldn't have followed me to the stage and you wouldn't have gotten hurt. I'll never forgive myself. Never-"

   Aphrodite kissed her brother on the cheek. "Don't blame yourself, love. It was my fault. Please, it hurts me to hear you blame yourself for my mistakes."

   The four sat down and watched the opera. Nobody seemed to notice when Aphrodite donned her mask. She was glad. Every time she wore it, her brother would pull it off. That annoyed her slightly.
   When the opera was finished, Apollo and Aphrodite departed from the Gaston siblings. Aphrodite asked why her brother wanted to crash the chandelier in the first place. He said that he wanted to impress Alice.

   "Why on Earth would that impress Alice?" Aphrodite asked.

   "I don't know. I thought that maybe she would be impressed that I had the guts to do something like that. I didn't really think it through. If I did, well, you wouldn't have gotten hurt," Apollo explained.

   "Apollo, you're forgetting that you weren't actually the one to crash the chandelier. It was the stage hand, remember? Besides, there is a very good chance that I would have been in the theatre at that time anyway. I still would have gotten hurt and I would still be the loathsome gargoyle that you see now," Aphrodite reminded.

   "Loathsome gargoyle? Is that how you see yourself?" Apollo questioned. "My sister, I don't care what you look like. You are still beautiful."

   This brought tears to Aphrodite's eyes. Somehow her twin always knew just what to say. She embraced Apollo. "I love you so much."

   "I love you too."

   In the months to follow, Aphrodite's face healed significantly. It had been seven months now since the accident and you could hardly see the scars on her face. Every time she looked in the mirror, she gave a little cry of delight at finally being able to look like herself again. It was the first time in a long time that she had felt like herself.
   Apollo and Aphrodite were thirteen by now. Apollo looked more and more like Erik with every passing day. Aphrodite had a mix of both Erik and Christine's features. Apollo and Aphrodite seemed to look and act so different, yet when they stood next to each other, the fact that they were twins was undeniable.
   So much had happened to the twins over the past few years. It seemed as if everything was different, yet at the same time, nothing had changed. It's funny how life can be like that. You could wake up one day and everything could seem different. Different, yet exactly the same.