A/N: One of my biggest phanphic peeves is when the OC is just a cheap copy of Christine, only a better singer and that she fully accepts Erik as he is. I really didn't want to fall in that stereotype while writing Let It Go… So conclusion, Céleste is Christine's total opposite.

Chapter 1

As the carriage stopped in front of the Chagny's house, Céleste could already feel that her home was in an uproar. And soon, when a maid opened, bowing in the most nervous way, with nobody else, and not even her brothers were there to greet her; she had to know what on Earth was going on. After an absence of a year, she felt like an unwelcomed stranger in her own home. Quickly, she ordered the maid to help unpack her trunk. Lifting her grey skirt up to walk faster, she rushed into the living-room, to meet Philippe, her older brother, looking tensed and tired.

"Céleste," he started with a grin, when he saw her coming in. "I'm so sorry I couldn't be there to greet you, but as you can see, the whole house is going crazy."

"Yes, I can see that," answered Céleste coldly. "Tell me, where is Raoul?"

"Um… Raoul is… busy," muttered Philippe, embarrassed.

"Oh… does that have anything to do with the Opera Populaire?" Said Céleste more calmly, hoping that nothing bad had happened. "I saw on my way that part of it had burned."

Céleste, when she was still in the convent, had heard that Raoul had become patron to the Opera Populaire. A wonderful idea, which even made her want to do the same when she was to be done with her teaching year. She had always loved arts, especially music… though she was never really encouraged to continue, when she was younger, to anything approaching it, to talk in a delicate way.

She even got permission to go to see Hannibal with Raoul, though she wasn't very pleased with the idea of hearing La Carlotta screeching notes more than singing them. But that evening, they had got a quite pleasant surprise: instead of La Carlotta, a young girl was singing Elissa's part. A girl she knew well, a few years ago: Christine Daaé.

To be perfectly honest, Christine Daaé and Céleste de Chagny had never really been friends. Already, only in appearance, they were total opposites. Christine had brown curls, an ingénue face and pink cheeks which made her look like a porcelain doll, and was sometimes a bit clumsy in her demeanor. Céleste was blonde, so blonde her hair was almost in a shade of silvery white. She had a very pale complexion, fine traits, which could sometimes seem a bit malicious when she smiled. And already, at a very young age, she had that natural grace in her movements that made so many girls envious.

When you got to know them better, even their characters were total opposites. While Christine was very sensitive, calm, cried easily, Céleste was an alert, active and mischievous little girl. While Christine loved the story of Little Lotte and of the Angel of Music, Céleste actually find it quite dull, compared to the much more exciting story of the Snow Queen. While Christine was dreaming of being the princess saved in her tower by a handsome prince, Céleste preferred imagining herself being the heroine who had many adventures, and never needed some prince to get her out of trouble.

It was more appropriate to say that Raoul was the one who was really playing and spending time with Christine. Céleste did follow them, but it was more to stay with Gustave Daaé, who was always present to their little games. Monsieur Daaé was so different from her own father. While her father was always stern and cold, always keeping a certain distance between his daughter and himself, paying a lot more attention at her brothers, Gustave Daaé was always caring, always ready to join in the children's games. He could see that Céleste was a bit apart from the others, and with time, he gained her confidence.

The time that Céleste liked most was when he took his violin and played for them. She was fascinated by all the sound which came out from so small a thing. Then, one day, she told Monsieur Daaé how much she appreciated it when he played. Then, with a smile, he had said those magical words:

"Do you want to learn how to play the violin?"

But all this was so far away. Almost fifteen years later, Céleste had seen Christine sing in Hannibal. She was surprised of seeing her there, all grown up into a beautiful young woman. Céleste had become beautiful, too. She actually looked quite like the Snow Queen in Gustave's tales…

Seeing her at the Opera Raoul had chosen to patron was quite a strange coincidence. Actually, she never took the time to know what happened to her after Gustave Daaé died. The violinist was, after all, pretty much her only connection. Though Christine and herself never fought, their relations had always been somehow distant and neutral. So she wasn't happy or displeased of seeing her as the new prima donna… not like Raoul, who looked simply amazed and, right after the representation, rushed towards her dressing room, without Céleste who could only disapprove such an initiative.

She knew her dear brother a bit too well to not realize that he was in love, hypnotized by the voice and the beauty of the siren called Christine Daaé. She hoped that all of this would stay in the state of an idyll, since she couldn't even imagine a Chagny doing such a misalliance, and that her firm Christian morality felt nothing but disgust imagining that the Daaé girl could become Raoul's mistress.

Then, back to the convent, she knew nothing else. After all, Raoul and Christine's engagement had been secret, even for Philippe himself.

Philippe didn't have the time to answer Céleste's question, for Raoul rushed into the room.

"Céleste! I'm so glad you are back!"

Raoul looked like he hadn't sleep for days. His hair was a mess, and purple circles were quite visible on his too pale face. Worried, like every older sister should be, she held Raoul's head in her hands, asking softly: "What happened? What's going on?"

Impatiently, she added:

"I am the lady of this house, and since I arrived, this house is a total mess! Tell me. What happened?"

"Céleste, please, we'll tell you everything." Raoul said finally, with tiredness in his voice. "But please, just sit down."

Céleste laid her grey dress around her as she sat, and crossed her hands on her knees. Exasperated by the awkward silence that followed, while Raoul and Philippe were looking at each other looking totally numb, she asked in a high voice: "Well?"

"You know the Opera Populaire burned last night." started Philippe calmly. "Well, the chandelier crashed down."

"Oh no," said Céleste, truly sorry. "And I suppose the managers have asked from Raoul an enormous sum…"

"No, that's not the problem." continued Philippe. "Not at all, believe me. A madman did all this. And you remember Christine Daaé? Your childhood friend, which you saw several months ago in Hannibal? The madman kidnapped her."

"Is… is she alright?" asked Céleste, feeling truly worried, though Christine had never really been her friend.

"Yes, she's fine. Raoul went to save her." Then, seeing Céleste's puzzled expression, he added: "They… They're engaged, Céleste."

Mlle de Chagny gasped, and looked at her brothers in the most incredulous way. This couldn't be… It couldn't be…

Then, finally, she got up, and said firmly, in a tone that permitted no objections:

"I want to see Mademoiselle Daaé. Now."

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