DISCLAIMER: I do NOT own anything from Phantom of the Opera. However, any original character is indeed mine (duh).
Author's Note: I'm new to this so please be gentle! Any major errors and whatnot PLEASE let me know! I'm not a prude to criticism. With that said, positive feedback would be nice too! Please review! I must know if this is good! Wow, I sound desperate… Enjoy the story!
Chapter One
"Go now and leave me!" the Phantom cried before disappearing into his chambers.
At that moment, something snapped inside the young Christine. "He is going to let me go?" she thought to herself. "He truly loves me. How could I have been such a fool?"
Christine rushed over to Raoul and quickly untied him. "Oh, Christine," he said before trying to kiss her. Before his lips could reach hers, she turned away. "What is it?" he asked, clearly confused.
Christine smiled sadly, "I made my choice, Raoul. I fully intend on honoring my commitment."
"What do you mean? You heard him! That beast said to leave!" Raoul said with a hint of anger in his voice.
"He's not a beast!" Christine retorted.
"He's killed people! His evil is shown by the ugliness of his face!" he yelled. With that Christine burst into tears. Raoul grabbed her forearm and began to pull her towards the boat.
"You're clearly traumatized, you can't think clearly. Now, let's leave this Godforsaken place. As soon as we are out of here, we will be the most glorified couple! Think of it! Monsieur and Madame Raoul de Chagny! Think of all the stories that will be told about us? Two childhood sweethearts found each other after so many years! One was a rich and dashing Vicomte. The other, a budding Prima donna who is trapped by a horrible beast! Then the brave and fair vicomte rescued his damsel in distress! Wouldn't it be grand?"
Christine became enraged and pulled away from Raoul.
"No, Raoul! I am thinking more clearly now than I ever have. It seems clear to me that you love the glory! Not me!"
"You were a packaged deal! I could have a beautiful girl who loves me and all the fame that comes with it! What is so wrong with that?"
"The Phantom was right. You are just an insolent boy! A slave of fashion! I do not want any part of this. Leave me Raoul. I'm staying."
Raoul became angry and screamed, "You'd choose a monster over me?"
"He's clearly not a monster if he would let me go! Who is the monster trying to hold me captive now?"
Raoul had no words after that statement. He was defeated.
"Fine. If you would rather be the whore of murderer, be my guest." With that, he grabbed an oar, climbed inside the boat, and made his way out of the Phantom's lair.
Christine was standing in the same spot. "He was so quick to turn…" she thought sadly. A few stray tears rolled down her porcelain cheeks. "I almost gave my heart away to a boy who didn't truly love me." She slowly composed herself and made her way up to the Phantom's chambers. When she reached the entrance, she just stood and quietly observed the poor creature.
He was sitting on his bed, staring at his music box. He seemed to be in a trance from the Persian monkey. Christine took a small step forward, garnering the attention of the Phantom. He looked up at her, his eyes filled with sadness. "I thought you were leaving," he said barely above a whisper. Christine quietly and cautiously went further into the room and sat down on the bed, next to her broken angel. She sighed and began, "I do not intend to lie to you, so here is the truth." The Phantom looked at the ground, waiting for a rejection.
"When I kissed you, I did it to save Raoul. I planned to stay with you to save his life. I'm sure this is not new to you. But, when you decided to free me, something inside of me snapped."
The Phantom looked up to meet her gaze.
"Only someone who was truly in love would allow me to run away with someone else," she began to smile. "You are the one who truly loved me. Not that 'insolent boy.'"
The Phantom had tears in his eyes. "You, really choose me?"
Christine moved closer and kissed her angel's cheek. "Yes. And I must beg for your forgiveness."
"For what, Christine?" the Phantom asked.
"For not seeing that you were the one I should have picked. All of this could have been avoided. But I was blind. Blinded by the promise of a glamorous life... A glamorous life without love. The boy only loved my potential for being famous, and used our childhood memories as bait."
The Phantom nodded in understanding and put his hand on Christine's. The two shared a smile as they finally understood one another.
"Track down this murderer! He must be found!" was heard in the distance.
The Phantom shot up. "We must go, quickly!" he said. He swiftly grasped Christine's wrist, then a heavy candelabrum. He led her past his collection of mirrors and stopped in front of a curtain. After releasing his hold on Christine's wrist, he drew the curtain to reveal another mirror. "Stand back, love," he instructed. Christine took a few small steps backwards and watched as the Phantom used the candelabrum to break the mirror. To her surprise, there was nothing behind the mirror. All that was there was darkness. After he had successfully destroyed the mirror, the Phantom grabbed Christine's hand. "Follow me," he stated. She followed him into the passage behind the mirror. The passage was dark and dank. The walls were dripping with water and gave off the stench of mildew. After a few steps in, the Phantom quickly pulled the curtain to conceal the passage. Then all was dark. The Phantom quickly wrapped his arm around Christine's waist and led her down the dark corridor. "Trust me," he said softly.
"I do," Christine whispered in reply.
The passage seemed to last forever. There were so many twists and turns that Christine would never had made it without the help of her angel. He kept her close and kept her from falling in one of the many small holes that plagued the narrow corridor.
After what seemed to be hours of running, the couple finally made it to the end of the tunnel. It was a dead end with only one way out, up. There was a small ladder that went up to a grate. This grate led to an empty stall in the Opera's stables. The Phantom quickly climbed up the ladder to remove the grate. Once he was on the surface, he beckoned Christine to follow. She climbed up the ladder and her lover aided her on the way out of the hole. The Phantom quickly replaced the grate and said, "Wait here. Let no one see you." Then he ran to an adjacent stable which held César, the Opera's best horse.
"Hello, friend," the Phantom whispered to the white steed. The horse eagerly approached the Phantom and nudged his hands, expecting some sugar. "No treats tonight, friend. Ready for a run?" he said to his four-legged friend. César neighed at his new master. The Phantom chuckled then grabbed the saddle placed on the wall of the stall and put it on César's back. He then led the horse back to the stall where Christine sat.
"Come, we must leave," he said. Christine quickly got up and rushed over to the horse. The Phantom mounted his steed before offering his hand to help Christine. Once she was on the horse, the Phantom kicked César into a gallop. Christine wrapped her arms around her angel's waist and pushed her weight into his back.
The couple then rode away from the opera house and into the streets of Paris, ready to take on whatever was going to be thrown at them next.