Author's
note: Hey Everyone, this is my first phanphic after years of reading
and being the casual observer, so be nice! I don't accept flames,
they're a useless waste of space, though I do accept constructive
criticism; if you can justify why you don't like something, or
can make suggestions on how I can improve my work, then please, feel
free. Like any Author(ess) I LOVE reviews, so please review for me,
it helps me to know what you guys want to read! Other than that,
buckle down for the Journey and ENJOY! Disclaimer:
Lest we Forget
Prologue
To the aristocratic high-end of Parisian society Christine and Raoul de Chagny were the public eye's most prized couple. So happy, so incredibly in-love, and almost everyone knew of their fairytale romance; childhood sweethearts, and young lovers at Christine's tender age of seventeen. There was no better way to put it, it simply seemed as though they were made for one another. Although, however well-versed these people thought they were on the past and present lives of their ideal couple, none of them knew of the true way in which Raoul de Changy had come to marry Christine, all they knew was that Christine Daae was a former ballet rat with the Corps de Ballet at the Opera Populaire, who mysteriously turned prima donna over-night. Though why her success was so short-lived none of them knew, and Raoul was quite content to keep it as such.
He had taken it upon himself to squash any rumours circulating Paris about Christine and his involvement with the infamous Opera Ghost, and nobody but he, Christine and Madame Giry knew of what had occurred down beneath in the cellars of the Opera house that fateful night of the Opera House fire.
The reputation of the de Chagnys could not be compromised any further, after what had happened between Raoul and his brother Philippe. Philippe had always thought Raoul was spontaneous in everything he did, with his business and with his women. Philippe had taken it upon himself to publicly express his disdain for Christine as she was in his eyes, purely not good enough for his younger brother and he had even gone as far as to try and get their marriage annulled. This immediately caused a rift between the two once-close brothers, and Raoul has never forgiven him for his treatment of Christine. Instead he gave him an ultimatum; accept Christine as his wife, or lose the only family that he had. In the end Philippe had grudgingly accepted, though he had never fully welcomed Christine into the family, and any politeness shown by him was purely in the interest of keeping the peace between he and his younger brother.
However,
it was only a few short weeks after Raoul and Christine's honeymoon
that a police officer come knocking on the door of the de Chagny
estate.
Officer Bonnaire had spoken quietly to Raoul before the
younger de Chagny has collapsed to the ground with a cry of anguish.
Philippe, who had been on a business trip, had been mugged by a band
of thieves on the road, and left for dead. The coroner had said that
he had died from substantial blood loss due to several knife wounds
to the chest and abdomen. Raoul, who had argued with Philippe before
his departure, was terribly grief-stricken and as he was now the
oldest, the responsibility of running the de Chagny estate had fell
upon him. Raoul did not take the news of his brother's death
lightly, he became introverted and distant with Christine and all
that knew him, and had buried himself deeply within the business and
maintaining the good name of the de Changys. Christine rarely saw her
husband anymore, the life she came to lead was not the fairytale she
had imagined. When she had imagined her married life she had thought
of all the wonderful things her and Raoul would do together, how they
would have beautiful picnics in exotic places, how he would read to
her like he had once done so long ago, how they would share their
stories and make love to one another by the candlelight… in none of
these visions had she ever imagines herself to be alone, but she soon
came to realize that to live the life of nobility was to be alone…