A/N: Okay, so I took a long look at this story and decided I could do better with it if I started from the beginning again and re-did it. Hopefully I can get to the end this time.

Disclaimer: As much as it pains me to say this--I…do……not…own Erik, or any of the other awesomeness that is Phantom of the Opera. Only Gaston Leroux, Susan Kay and Andrew Lloyd Webber can make such a claim. (tear)

A/N: Oh, yeah, for people who didn't read this the first time, it is mainly ALW, musical and movie based, with little bits of Leroux and Englund and maybe Kay mixed in.

Chapter One

Christine gazed absently out the window at the pouring rain, from her seat on the sofa. She pressed her forehead against the cold glass and continued to watch. She was so intent on this activity that she hardly noticed anything else going on around her.

It had been exactly three years since what was now known as the Great Disaster at the Paris Opera House. Tomorrow was Christine's third anniversary to Raoul. At the thought, Christine sighed deeply and stared through the carriage coming up the drive without actually seeing it.

In the past three years, she had reflected on what had happened down in the catacombs that last night in the opera house and realized that she wasn't in love with her husband; she wasn't in love with Raoul de Chagny. Oh, sure, she loved him, but she wasn't in love with him. She considered him more of a best friend than a lover.

The thing that truly made her miserable was that she knew that she carried that intense, passionate type of love for someone, but not for Raoul. No, she was in love with Erik. She knew that now. If she was honest with herself, she'd known that when she left him there, standing among the candles, tears running down his face. Christine, I love you…

Christine jumped nearly a mile when the front door shut; Raoul was home. She had been so deep in thought that, even though she'd seen the him coming, it hadn't occurred to her that the Vicomte was on his way. Raoul crossed the room and kissed her gently on the cheek, sweeping a bouquet of lilies out from behind his back and handing them to her. Christine smiled and accepted the flowers. She gave them to a passing servant who went about putting them into a vase and setting it on the table.

Raoul had never given her roses. Never. That image of Erik's red roses, tied with black ribbon seemed to set off alarm bells in his head. So she hadn't seen a rose, in any color, since the day she'd married him. She felt a tear slid down her cheek and brushed it away hurriedly. What was the matter with her?

"And I've brought you the newspaper." he said with a smile. He handed it to her and took off the top hat he still wore. She opened the paper eagerly as he went to see that the horses were properly stabled. Every evening, for three years, he had brought her the paper from Paris, knowing it was all she had connecting her to her past there. Heaven knows, she'd lived in the Opera's dormitories for ten years!

Christine looked at the front page for several moments before it processed in her brain. Then, she gasped, realizing that it was a picture of the Opera House, fully restored to its former beauty. The heading read:

'Grand Reopening of the Opera Populaire Tomorrow Night!'

Christine's eyes widened and she read on.

'The world-renowned Opera Populaire is reopening under new management with a premiere showing of Tosca tomorrow evening. The new managers, M. Pierre and Duprè have also added a new building to serve as a hotel for the Opera's guests, aptly called Hotel Populaire. The managers were ecstatic about buying the Opera for the ridiculously low price of one-thousand francs from former managers, M. Andre and Firmin, who refused to comment, except to wish the new managers good luck. The part of Tosca in tomorrow night's show will be played by Mademoiselle Adrenna, at age fifteen, the youngest lead soprano in the history of Paris. Why the prominent La Carlotta will not perform is currently unknown, as she declined to give a statement.'

That was all. After that, it went onto an interview with the new managers about the renovations. There was nothing else mentioned, not the Great Disaster or…the Opera Ghost. At the thought of Erik, Christine suddenly, desperately wanted to go to the premiere. The desire was so unexpected and so strong that she felt as if the room were spinning around her. She felt a comforting hand on her shoulder and looked up into Raoul's concerned brown eyes. Wordlessly, she handed him the paper.

His eyes narrowed as he scanned the article. After he'd finished reading, he looked down at his wife, having an idea of what she was about to ask and worried that he wouldn't know how to answer.

"Can--can we go?" she asked, finally finding her voice. She knew she sounded childish, but that didn't matter at the moment. For three long years, Christine had been forbidden from singing in public, and she hadn't been to a musical performance in that time, either. She knew Raoul meant well, that he was just trying to protect her, but she resented it. Just the other day, he had heard her singing a piece from Don Juan Triumphant and reproached her, irate. She hadn't spoken to him for the rest of the day.

Raoul hesitated before answering her. True, he had not allowed her to sing outside of the house, but he certainly didn't want to take away her love of music. Besides, their anniversary was the same day, and a visit would mean so much to her. It wasn't like she wanted to go to find the 'Opera Ghost', right? That man was probably dead anyway…

"We will go." he replied finally, feigning cheerfulness. "But we will have to leave tonight and stay in the new hotel." A smile blossomed on his wife's face and she wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him, beaming.

"Thank you, Raoul!"

But even with his wife's joy at the decision, the Vicomte could not help but let dark thoughts worm their way into his mind. Nonetheless, he called for the carriage to be made ready for the journey.

A/N: Yeah, I know it's a bit short, but don't worry. As with all other stories I write, the chapters get longer as we go along. Please R&R!