Alia gave her head a little shake, letting her meticulously combed hair fall neatly down onto her shoulders. She smiled into the mirror, pleased with her success. It was the night of the masquerade, and after almost an hour of effort she finally looked perfect for it. Alia got up from her vanity and, though feeling a bit silly doing it, twirled a little in front of the mirror to admire her new dress, and reminded herself to thank her mother again at some point for helping her pick it out. This was going to be a wonderful night!

A soft mewing came from the corner, and Alia turned to see her two cats, Glace and Cristal, looking at her curiously from their cushions, probably wondering why their owner was so unusually excited. Alia smiled and hurried over to say goodbye to them.

"I'm leaving now," she said, scratching their ears. "So you two be good while I'm gone, all right?"

The cats purred contently in response, and Alia giggled. "I'll see you later tonight." As she headed for the door, Glace settled back down on his bed, but Cristal, always unhappy to see Alia leave, ran after her, rubbed up against her leg, and when Alia stopped she meowed endearingly in an attempt to make her stay. Alia, bending down to pet her some more, said, "I'll give you both an extra piece of salmon when I get home, okay?"

Cristal seemed to deem this acceptable, and ran back to her bed to lie down next to Glace, as Alia headed eagerly out the door and down to the first floor, where her parents were waiting.

Maman smiled at Alia as she came down the stairs, beaming. "You look beautiful, darling," she said, putting a hand on her daughter's shoulder.

"Thank you, Maman," Alia said, before turning to her father. "Papa, what do you think?"

"Lovely, 'Lia," Papa said, though he still didn't look very enthusiastic. Alia heaved a sigh. Was he still uneasy about her being at the masquerade? She understood that her father was protective of his only child, but did he always have to act like this anytime she was out of his sight?

"Papa, we talked about this," she said wearily. "I'll be okay. It's just a party, and my friends will be with me the entire time."

"I know, Alia, I know," Papa muttered, not sounded convinced at all.

"Just stop worrying and enjoy it," Alia suggested, smiling to try and help. "You and Maman are coming too, remember."

Papa looked like he might say something else, but at that moment a servant came in and informed them that the Giry twins had arrived – their parents had opted to stay home together, and arrangements had been made for them to go with Alia and her parents instead - and Alia bolted to the door to greet her friends.

"Oh, 'Lia, you look gorgeous!" squealed Jacqueline, rushing over to her.

"Thanks, Jacqueline," Alia said, smiling. "You look beautiful, too!" Jacqueline had chosen a more elaborate hairstyle and more elegant dress than Alia, and looked positively stunning.

"You really think so?" Jacqueline asked, cocking her head slightly to one side. "Because I wasn't sure about – "

"No, no worries," Alia said quickly, putting a finger in front of Jacqueline's lips to stop any misgivings about her appearance. "You look lovely; now don't give it a second thought."

"Yes, I'm fairly certain Signior Giudicelli will approve of your fashion choices," Dominic teased as he sauntered in, making Jacqueline yelp indignantly and Alia giggle. Once her brother had found out about her affections for Fabien, he had found it extremely funny and enjoyed poking fun at her about it. Dominic smirked. "Well, let's not keep your man waiting. If we leave now, we'll be right on time. Unless you two want to be fashionably late?"

"No, thank you! I've been waiting for this all week!" Alia said. "Let's get going!"

With that, she and Jacqueline hurried for the front doors and to her father's carriage, with Dominic striding along just behind them, chuckling.

~0~

As she and Raoul followed Dominic and the girls, Christine had to resist sighing like her daughter at Raoul's still-nervous expression. He was usually a little uneasy every time Alia went out – she and Alia had gotten somewhat used to it by now – but this time it seemed to be worse than usual, and she wasn't altogether sure why.

"Raoul?" she asked softly. "What's wrong?"

"You know how I feel about these things, Christine," he said, sounding harried. "I just don't like anyplace she might be – "

"Out of your sight?"

"I was going to say hurt," muttered Raoul. "Or anything else. I just don't like having to think about the things that could happen to her, especially here."

"Raoul, we'll be there the whole time, and so will her friends," Christine repeated Alia's words. "Compared to most other places she goes, this is probably one of the safest. You'll be able to be where she is the whole time, and if you're not nearby Dominic or Gabriel will keep an eye on her." She thought that would help; of all Alia's friends, Raoul trusted Dominic most – and was beginning to trust Gabriel more - with her safety. However, he looked only a little calmer.

"I know that," he said. "I just…" He hesitated, and then turned to meet Christine's eyes. "I just have a bad feeling about this. I don't want anything to happen to her. Especially after…"

"What? What is it?" Christine prodded.

"After what happened last time," Raoul said quietly, sounding as though he had been reluctant to admit it. "After what…happened with him."

Oh, thought Christine, understanding. So that's what's bothering him. "Raoul," she began, as soothingly as she could. "You know it's not like that anymore. He's kept his promises up to now: he hasn't so much as threatened anybody, and he wouldn't go near Alia. It's all right now."

Raoul's eyes narrowed. "He is not a man to trust, Christine," he muttered, a trace of anger showing in his voice. "I don't entirely believe anything he's said, and I wouldn't put anything past him. And besides, there are plenty of other things that could happen to her even if none of them involve him."

Again, Christine resisted the urge to sigh. "What exactly do you expect to happen?"

"Anything and everything," Raoul immediately replied. "I just have a bad feeling that something will happen."

"Don't worry about her, Raoul," Christine said calmingly. "She'll be just fine. Like I said, you can keep an eye on her while we're there, and even if you're not watching her, you know Gabriel would never let anything happen to her."

Raoul's fears didn't seem to have been completely eased by her words, but they had left the manor by now, and when he saw Alia, grinning and laughing with the Giry twins and their mother, he couldn't resist a small smile too.

"Ready to go, Alia?" he called to her, putting on a cheerful face and letting no trace of nervousness remain in his voice. He was rewarded with a truly delighted expression on his daughter's face, as she obviously thought he had recovered from whatever had been bothering him. Christine knew his worries were still there, but Alia didn't. However, that wasn't too bad, Christine reasoned as she climbed into the last remaining seat in the carriage and Raoul, in the driver's seat, took the reins and started the horses.

It's not much progress, she thought as they made their way to the opera house, but it'll be enough for one night…I hope.

~0~

Gabriel ran a hand through his hair worriedly, mussing his formerly well-groomed hair even further. He was here, but she wasn't yet…What time was it? He yanked his pocket watch out from the inside of his jacket and flipped it open. Oh…It was only five minutes to nine. Gabriel closed his eyes and sighed. Just because she doesn't always come early like you, doesn't mean she's not coming, he had to remind himself. Gabriel wondered about why he had gotten so nervous about the prospect of Alia not being there. His father had dropped him off fifteen minutes early, and none of his other friends were here yet, but for some reason that didn't bother him at all…only her absence did. It was strange to Gabriel – he didn't quite grasp the reason for it, and yet he felt that he should…

He didn't notice the rattle of the carriage wheels on the cobblestones, as the sound of arriving guests was all around him, but the sudden call of his name make his head snap instantly up. Eyes wide with anticipation, he glanced around like a startled animal for the source, and a smile spread across his face when his eyes lit upon hers. A chill ran through his body as he watched her get out of her father's carriage, followed by the Giry twins, and rush towards him – so beautiful, even more so than usual tonight – and he, ecstatic now that he saw her, went quickly to meet her.

As Alia reached him and made to hug him, Gabriel, in a moment of sheer excitement, wrapped his arms around her, lifted her off the ground, and spun her around once. When he put her down in front of him, his smile grew wider when he saw she was giggling happily.

"Well, someone's excited," Jacqueline remarked, coming to the pair's side.

"Now that Alia and the rest of us are here," added Dominic, passing them by with a wave and heading for the entrance. "I'm going in before all the other chorus girls are too busy to notice me. Jacqueline, you might want to go and find your redhead before he becomes occupied with somebody else." Ignoring the scandalized noises his sister was making, Dominic gave a wink at Alia and Gabriel and then sauntered into the opera house. Opting not to glare daggers at her brother's back, Jacqueline smiled at the pair to try and show that his remark hadn't affected her in the least, and gave a little giggle, but it was clear she was nervous; though Gabriel couldn't be sure whether it was about Fabien giving his affections to another girl or the idea of approaching him to keep this from happening in the first place.

"Fabien's not here yet," he informed her. "I checked to see if he was already." Yes, he thought with some bitterness, checked to make sure he wasn't sneaking down in the tunnels alone again. "No need to worry about it just yet," he said to Jacqueline, hoping nothing in his voice or face betrayed his own worry for his friend.

Jacqueline's face visibly relaxed, to Gabriel's satisfaction. "Oh," she said, relieved. "...Thank you, Gabriel. Well…should we go in, then?"

"I think that would be a good idea," said Alia's mother, smiling at the three of them as she approached.

"Yes, I agree," said her father dryly, following close behind and shooting an 'I told you so' glance at his wife, whose cheerful expression faltered slightly. His glare then turned to Gabriel, who was immediately worried – he knew that the Vicomte wasn't someone you wanted angry with you – and wondered what the problem was. Then he realized that his arm was still wrapped around Alia's shoulders, and everything Alia had told him about her father's overprotectiveness came back to him. Oh, he thought, understanding. His friendly embrace probably didn't look so friendly to the Vicomte, and that glare was telling him "Take your hands off my daughter before I take them off of you." Gabriel quickly dropped his arms to his sides, earning himself a nod of something resembling approval from the Vicomte and the glare softened into a more neutral expression. Alia looked like she wanted to say something to her father, but opted not to, probably wanting to avoid an unnecessary argument.

"Don't worry about him, Gabriel," she whispered to him, so nobody but him could hear. "Papa's just being protective." Then, louder, to everyone – "Come on, let's not wait any longer." She took Gabriel's hand and, with Jacqueline accompanying them, they headed past her parents and towards the entrance to the opera house. Gabriel felt a rush of delight run through him as her fingers brushed against his, and even though it had barely begun, he had a feeling that this would be the best night he'd had in a long time.

~0~

Having been deprived of beauty and magnificence for most of his childhood, Luc had developed a profound appreciation for both. Because of this, he was enjoying the spectacular scene he overlooked from a hiding place high above it even more than he had thought he would. The masquerade was unlike anything he had ever seen before in his life, and he took in every little thing there was to see and hear eagerly. The always-pristine entrance hall was now positively sparkling as part of the largely successful efforts to make the opera house look its best for the occasion. All of the different costumes Luc saw as the guests poured in amazed him, and the brightest and showiest of them caught his eye over and over. More than this, however, Luc loved the atmosphere of the place. Everyone was just so happy – smiling and laughing and dancing, and just enjoying themselves in general. It made Luc feel nice just watching the party, even if he couldn't be a part of it. It felt as if he were watching a new performance of some kind.

Surprisingly, Luc hadn't been watching out for anyone in particular up to that point, as the masquerade itself had enthralled him so. However, when he happened to see a noticeably exquisite pale gold dress and party mask, and saw that they belonged to Jacqueline Giry, his mind immediately connected her with her best friend: "If Jacqueline's here," he thought excitedly, "then Alia will be here soon too!"

Luc began to scan the spacious room from his bird's-eye view to see if he could spot her or her friends or parents. There was Jacqueline's twin, Dominic, over on the opposite side of the room – his bright shock of blond hair was combed back for a change, and he was trying to flirt with one of the ballerinas. He clearly thought he was being witty and charming, judging from the look on his face, but the girl appeared to Luc as though she thought he was a joke. He snickered, wondering how long it would take Dominic to catch on, and kept looking. Fabien Giudicelli had just arrived, looking just as disinterested with the party as Luc was with him, though he did wonder why Jacqueline squeaked and hurried into another room as soon as she caught sight of him. Is she frightened of him? Luc thought, puzzled. He couldn't see why; Fabien was reserved and somewhat cold, but he didn't seem the type to hurt or be cruel to anyone. Dismissing it, Luc's eyes roved around the entrance hall for another moment, back and forth over every face, looking carefully, until –

Ohhh… Luc couldn't hold back a soft sound of surprise when Alia entered the room. She was just so beautiful…even more so tonight than usual after she'd made an effort to look nicer. He looked her over again and again, marveling at her. She was dressed in a bright, rich blue gown, and an elegant silver necklace glinted from around her neck…Luc liked that, blue and silver always seemed to complement Alia. She'd spent time carefully styling her hair, he saw, into a more intricate style than its usual wavy curtain. A job well done, Luc thought, it looked lovely. And, more importantly, she looked thrilled to be here. Her bright smile made Luc feel warm inside when he saw it.

Never mind that he couldn't know her, never mind that the Renard boy – who made something inside Luc twinge unpleasantly each time he saw him with Alia – was accompanying her (and from what Luc could see, looking to share a dance with her) instead. Alia was clearly very happy. And if she was happy, it made Luc happy to see it as well. Adjusting himself slightly in his hiding place to get a better view, he kept his eyes locked on Alia, no longer watching anyone else. A smile was spreading across his face, one to rival Alia's. He promised himself that when he went back home, he would thank Erik profusely for letting him come. Just watching Alia dance gracefully across the room, looking so gorgeous, with that bright, beautiful expression…this was perfect.

~0~

After almost ten minutes of keeping it back, Christine let out a small noise of irritation. She wasn't one to beg for attention, but couldn't Raoul focus on her instead of Alia and Gabriel for five seconds? Just because Gabriel had put his arm around Alia's shoulders before was no reason for him to spend the rest of the party watching them like a hawk. Saying his name quietly, she cupped his face and gently turned him back to face her. On seeing her exasperated expression, Raoul sighed a little, knowing exactly what had caused it.

"I'm sorry, Christine," he said in a low voice. "I only want to be certain that – "

"Alia's all right?" Christine finished, and Raoul nodded. "I understand; I want to know she's safe as much as you do. But she'll be just fine even without you watching her all the time."

"I know, I know," he said somewhat dismissively. "But there's just something I can't ignore…"

He was glaring behind them again, and Christine didn't have to look to know who he had his eyes on. "Raoul," she began. "There's no need for that. She and Gabriel aren't doing anything wrong…not even by your standards."

"Not yet, at least," Raoul said darkly, glowering at the dancing teenagers behind him, blissfully unaware of his glaring at them.

"They're just friends," Christine said, beginning to find his suspicions partly amusing and partly irritating.

"So were we," Raoul countered, turning back to her, raising an eyebrow as though daring her to find a way to deny that.

"Raoul," Christine admonished. "Sharing one friendly dance doesn't mean they've suddenly started to have feelings for each other. Look at them…" She gestured at Alia and Gabriel, unlike Raoul trying to be subtle about it so they didn't notice. Not that the pair looked like they would notice anything anyway. They were smiling and laughing nonstop as they danced, wrapped up in each other, but even Raoul would have to admit that there was nothing romantic between them.

"They're just close friends sharing a good time at a party," Christine said. "I think it should be okay to leave them alone for a little while to do that. Don't you?"

Raoul didn't look completely convinced, but he nodded, seeing his wife's point. "If you say so," he muttered concededly.

"Just let them enjoy themselves for the night," she said, smiling. "She'll be perfectly fine."

Raoul took a deep breath, and then said, "I suppose so." Then, as if a nice thought had just occurred to him, a playful grin lit his features, surprising Christine. "And speaking of that," he said, sounding much less harried and much lighter and easier, "I believe I've been keeping us from enjoying ourselves for the past while. I'm sorry."

"That's all right," said Christine. She was just happy at having apparently gotten through to him.

"Now," he said, moving them both into a better dancing position. "May I have this dance, ma belle?"

"Of course," she replied, delighted. As they waltzed across the room among all the other couples, Christine wondered if Raoul was thinking of the masquerade of sixteen years ago. He had proposed to her just the day before, she remembered, and attending the masquerade together had been the first thing they'd done as an engaged couple. She'd been afraid of what Erik would do if he found out – and with good reason, she thought bitterly – but Raoul had tried his best to ease her fears, and as they danced together, all her worries had faded, leaving only the joy of sharing those moments with the man she loved. Together with him now, she felt that same joy all over again.

At that moment, Alia and Gabriel moved close to them. As they passed, Alia smiled at her parents, looking like she was having the time of her life. They both returned the grin, Raoul deliberately ignoring an equally-happy Gabriel, seemingly feeling better about them together now that he saw how much his daughter was enjoying herself up close. Just before she and her partner moved away again, Alia mouthed, 'Thank you!', to them both – for letting her come tonight, Christine guessed, despite her father's misgivings. Right then, she was as pleased as Alia to be here, and she knew Raoul was as well. I hope this never ends, she found herself thinking. I hope the three of us can always be happy with the people we love, no matter what.

~0~

Alia clinked the glass of water Gabriel had brought her with his, and she sipped down the drink earnestly. The masquerade was one of the most enjoyable things she and her friends had ever done. Though she was shy and quiet, she did still like parties. But after about an hour or so, it began to get a little too overwhelming, and left Alia in need of a short break. Gulping down the last drops of water, she turned to Gabriel, hoping he wouldn't be offended by her request.

"Gabriel?" she asked, and he turned to her. "I'm getting a bit tired – would you mind if I took a few minutes to myself?"

"Of course not. I know how these things get to you," Gabriel said understandingly, and Alia guessed he was remembering when they were children and she had gotten overly anxious even being around a crowd. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," she assured him as he took her empty glass. "I just need a little fresh air, that's all. I think I'll just go up to the roof for a while." Her mother had told her quite a few times about how she and Papa had shared their first romantic moment up there, and as far as she knew people were still allowed to go up. "I'll be back in ten minutes, twenty at the most," she told Gabriel.

"What if your father notices you're not here?" Gabriel's brow furrowed. "What am I going to tell him? I don't particularly want to have him irritated with me."

"Tell him…" Alia thought a moment. "Tell him that I just needed to step out for a few minutes, and if I'm not back when I said I would be, you'll go looking for me."

Gabriel nodded, satisfied. "I'd have done that anyway. I think that should do."

"Thank you, Gabriel," Alia said as she started to go. "I'll be back soon."

~0~

The closer Alia got to the stairs that led to the roof, the better she felt as the rooms and halls grew emptier and quieter. She found herself letting out a sigh of relief at the welcome calm. She loved being with her friends and family, but sometimes she just felt better by herself. Besides, Alia had never been up on the roof before, as her mother had only pointed out where the stairs up to it were and hadn't had time to actually take her up and show her, and she was curious.

Alia reached the metal spiral staircase and hurried up eagerly. A soft gust of cool air greeted her as she pushed open the door at the top and stepped out onto the stone floor, slowing down to look around better. She found the statues that dotted the place nice-looking, but what truly captured her attention was the view. Amazing, she thought as she gazed out past the edge. She could see a huge expanse of the city from here, looking different and intriguing in the moonlight. She looked up to the clear night sky, admiring the bright full moon and the thousands of stars. She rarely saw them this well from home, as the trees obscured the sight. It was so pretty tonight, Alia thought – countless spots of shining silver against a backdrop of deepest black. A small, content smile appeared on her face as she took it all in.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?"

Alia spun around, startled at finding out she was not alone as she had thought, and found herself looking into the dark eyes of a boy with a black mask.

~0~

Kaen: Ha! Finished!

Luc: *nonchalantly* So in your mind, updating "regularly," means posting a new chapter three months after you said that?

Kaen: Hey, I'm doing the best I can! It's winter break, so I could finally get this done. School's a b-

Raoul: Ah ah ah! Watch it in front of Alia.

Alia: Never mind the schoolwork, let's just get the chapter up before anyone has to wait any longer!

Kaen: You're right. And I'll do my best to get the next one up as soon as I can! Thank you to everyone who reviewed, favorited, and put my story on alert! You guys are great.

~0~