Raoul said a prayer for Daaé and then, painfully impressed by all those eternal smiles on the mouths of skulls, he climbed the slope and sat down on the edge of the heath overlooking the sea. The wind fell with the evening. Raoul was surrounded by icy darkness, but he did not feel the cold. It was here, he remembered, that he used to come with little Christine to see the Korrigans dance at the rising of the moon. He had never seen any, though his eyes were good, whereas Christine, who was a little shortsighted, pretended that she had seen many. He smiled at the thought and then suddenly gave a start. A voice behind him said:

“Do you think the Korrigans will come this evening?”

It was Christine. He tried to speak. She put her gloved hand on his mouth.

“Listen, Raoul. I have decided to tell you something serious, very serious.⁠ ⁠… Do you remember the legend of the Angel of Music?”

“I do indeed,” he said. “I believe it was here that your father first told it to us.”