A/N : This is based on Kay's version, of course with some minor changes here and there to advance the storyline. Unfortunately, my beta was unable to complete her task, therefore there may be goofs here and there, please if you see one, let me know so that I may fix it, goofs in my stories make me twitch severely. I would love a review to hear what everyone thinks. I'm not a novice writer, but certainly not a pro, so suggestions are always taken if given nicely.
Disclaimer: All characters are property of either Gaston Leroux or Susan Kay with the exception of Lenita. I do not claim ownership of anything Phantom related, anytime, anywhere…although I wish I could own Erik, but hey, don't we all?
Quelle Beauté
Part One:
Erik
Although with my efforts to do so otherwise, I simply could not stay away. I loathed Paris for the most part and its inhabitants, but it was my Opera House that I could not leave behind. More than a year had passed since the fire, to be precise, eighteen months since I lost all below the cellars and still, to my dismay it stood alone and untouched. The broken windows had not been replaced, the exterior still black with soot and the whole….in overall neglect. My heart sunk as I felt I could wretch where I stood. I continued to walk around the exterior, my accursed mask hidden from view by the familiar black hood, shaking to control the despair that threatened to erupt from inside me. It appeared that no one even noticed, nor cared that such a landmark was crumbling before them.
All except one person, that is.
The woman that I spied out of the corner of my hooded sight was looking up in awe and admiration. That, I could not understand. Awe at a destroyed building? I had to see her more closely, for surely, she was new to Paris and did not understand.
I could only see her from the back at first. Her sleek, dark hair hung midway down her back, pinned only up from the sides and contrasted with her soft blue gown. Yet, as I inched closer, moving softly from one hidden corner to another, her face came into view.
That unmistakable face.
That olive skin accented by eyes that were bluer than turquoise.
In shock, I mumbled only one word, "Lenita?"
A/N: Sorry for being so short, it is just a setup. The next part is divided into two sections and you will set up the story nicely.