Disclaimer: I do not own Erik, or Meg, or Madame Giry, or any other characters from the ingenious mind of Gaston Leroux! Or anything by Sir Andrew Lloys Webber. Anne, however, she's mine...well, she resides in my head until her story is done.

AN: Okay! Chapter 50! The big chapter! It had to be perfect and although I'm not completely satisfied with how this turned out...I wanted to reward all my readers with one of the many moments they've been waiting for! There is a song in here but I did not include who sings what since it's going to be pretty self explanatory. I love you all and the continuous support I get from you! With each passing chapter we're getting closer to the end...which is probably why I'm taking so long with this. I don't want it to end. Black ribbon roses for all!


Chapter 50

The sunlight peaking in from the window fell across my eyes, waking me from a beautiful dream. The dream had been strange, considering I'd never seen a house like that before, but I was standing on a porch with Erik by my side. I was wrapped safely in his arms and he was whispering beautiful words in my ear. The dream slightly shifted a little as I felt his hand slight down to my stomach and when I looked down I saw that I was very much with pregnant. I laid a hand atop his and saw a wedding band sparkle in the early morning light.

That was when I woke up. I found myself smiling at the dream...which, if Meg had anything to say about it, would one day be my future. I rested myself against the headboard, my left hand unconsciously resting on my stomach. The prospect of being married to Erik, and then to one day bare his children was one that sent my heart racing. I loved him so dearly, that it only made sense to think of a future together. But it wasn't something we'd ever spoken of. Indeed, what would be the point? We'd only recently declared our feelings for each other...would we want to even begin talking about a life together? I pushed the thought aside, knowing what my answer would be should he ever ask me to marry him. There was nothing that could ever make me change my mind.

I turned to watch as Meg slowly began to wake up, the sunlight had finally made its way across to her side of the room. I smiled, and tried not to laugh, as it was very obvious that she did not want to wake up. Slowly, her eyes did open and then she quickly sat up in bed.

"It's Christmas," she whispered, as if it was something she'd completely forgotten about.

"Actually, it's December 26th. You slept through Christmas." The teasing in my voice was unmistakable but a pillow sailed through the air towards me anyhow.

"Meanie," she muttered, good naturedly. "Has Mama come in yet?"

I tilted my head, confused. "No...does she usually?"

Meg nodded. "We have a breakfast together and then open presents."

"I see." I pushed back the covers, shivering slightly with the morning air, and quickly made the bed. "If you hurry, we can get ready before she arrives." I heard Meg groan followed by the rustle of her own bed covers.

"It's cold!" Meg complained.

"Well...get moving and you'll get warm." I smiled, smoothing out the final wrinkles. "And you shouldn't be complaining on Christmas morning. We have too much to be thankful for."

Meg was silent and I turned around to find her staring at me with a peculiar look on her face. "What?" I asked.

"Why are you always so thankful?"

I blinked. "What do you mean?"

She swung her legs over the side of her bed and rested back on her hands. "I mean...whenever I complain about something you always try to show me how to turn that complaint into something positive. Why do you do that? Do you just have this natural compulsion to make people feel guilty by being all holier than thou?"

She wasn't angry or resentful towards me, so I knew that she was speaking honestly. "Oh, Meg..." I walked over and sat down next to her, wrapping my arms around her. "You have to understand that I was brought up very differently than you. True we both had humble lives, but my mother always made me look at things in a positive light. I was always very aware of how horrid my life was, but my mother was always making me aware of my life could be so much worse."

"So...it's just a matter of habit for you then."

"Of course it is...and if I've ever come across as anything that would bring offense to you, I am very sorry." I took her hands in mine, hoping that she would understand how serious and apologetic I was.

"There's nothing to be sorry for," Meg replied. "But, I was very curious."

I smiled. "I'm glad. Now...make your bed and I'll pull out one of my best dresses for you to wear today."

"You saved them?" Meg asked, wide eyed.

"Guilty. I couldn't bear to get rid of good dresses, especially since I had a few of them cut down to your size."

In a flash, Meg was pushing me off her bed and pulling up the covers and smoothing out the wrinkles. "Ready!"

I laughed and sat her back down on her bed, preparing to undo the ribbons in her hair that helped make her hair extra curly. As one tendril fell after another, Meg began to chat about previous Christmases she and her mother had shared.

"They were very simple, just like the one we're going to have today, but Maman always made sure that I always knew that I was very much loved. What about you Anne? You must have some memories from when you were a child?"

My hands stilled, momentarily, before speaking. "Well, Christmas with Grandmama was always a very lavish affair, especially when she was trying to find men to marry me."

Meg laughed. "I daresay you were the one who had the high standards."

"Yes, I was." A chuckle escaped me. "Christmases when we lived in poverty...well, they never really happened for me, I think. Mama would always read to me the story of Jesus Christ and his birth, and she would try to sneak me a new ribbon and once she had scraped up enough money for a pretty dress..." Anne forced aside the memory of that dress and when she had been made to wear it. " But, Christmas while Father was alive...those will always be my favorite. Mama always assisted in the kitchen to prepare the Christmas dinner and we always got up really early for presents, and then for lunch Mama and I would pack up some food and take it to the unfortunate in the village. Christmas dinner was a quiet affair and then Mama read the story of Jesus Christ before we went to bed."

I was lost in the reminiscing that when I came back to the present, I had somehow managed to pin Meg's hair up so that the curls cascaded down her back. She would look striking in the dress I'd finished for her.

"Well...hopefully this Christmas will rank highly on your favorites list."

"I'll be spending it with people I love, Meg. It's already high on my favorites list. Now...let's get you into this dress." I moved over to the small closet which hopefully Aunt Giry had placed Meg's dress in. I had been keeping it hidden and it had to be snuck in when Meg wasn't looking. I opened the door and smiled.

"Here it is!"

I pulled out a dark blue dress made of a heavy material that would keep her warm. I had made it over by adding a few ribbons and changing out the lace. It was absolutely darling.

"It's beautiful!" Meg caressed the material and I helped her into her corset and then the dress. "What are you going to wear?" She began rummaging through the closet.

"There should be a dark brown dress in there," I replied, pinning up my hair.

"Brown?! You're going to wear brown today of all days?!"

I smiled. "Well, I'm going to need something that won't show a lot of dirt when I go to see Erik today. And besides, the brown is really quite lovely. There's some subtle highlights that make the dress look like it's streaked with gold and the antique lace is a beautiful cream color. It's one of the dresses I brought with me from England." I pulled the dress out of the closet and it was hard to tell the beauty in the dim room, but it would truly be beautiful when I put it on.

"Well, Erik might just make you wear something else later tonight," Meg grumbled helping me into my own corset and then into the dress.

"Erik won't make me do anything, Meg Giry," I playfully pushed her and we fell into easy laughter.


Erik paced back and forth across the music room, the clock on the wall slowly creeping closer and closer to three o'clock. It was their appointed meeting time and he just couldn't help his anxiety. Nadir had been...kind enough...to purchase the ring which was now tucked safely in his pocket. He'd managed to work his way around the kitchen to prepare dinner and now everything was ready for when Anne arrived.

He ran a frustrated hand through his hair, taking a deep breath in an attempt to calm himself. The box in his pocket felt like it weighed a hundred pounds and every few moments he would take out the box, stare at the ring, and put the box back in his pocket. He was very nervous as they had never talked about the prospect of marriage...but the idea of being forever with the one woman who loved him most in all the world was an imagination he wanted to make a reality.

There soon came a soft knock at the front of his door and Erik had to stop himself from running to the door. He made a quick stop at a looking glass and adjusted his coat and forced himself to assume a calm and collected manner. Taking a deep breath he slowly finished walking to the door and he opened it.

"Merry Christmas, Erik." Anne looked at him with her almost clear colored eyes, a smile on her face and a thin long box in her hands. She wore a striking dress of dark brown that looked more like the color of chocolate and appeared to shimmer in the light with flecks of gold. She looked truly beautiful.

"Merry Christmas, Anne." Erik reached out and pressed a kiss to her lips before attempting to take the box from her hands.

"I don't think so, Erik. You'll have to wait til later before you get this box." She smiled and stepped around him, making her way inside and towards the music room.

He shook his head and closed the door. He followed her and found her situated comfortably on the divan. "Did you have a good morning with your family?"

Anne's smile was contagious. "Yes, I had a wonderful time! I had breakfast with them and then we sat in Aunt Giry's room and shared stories of Christmases past, and then opened presents. I got a heavy winter's cloak from Aunt Giry and Meg gave me some new accessories to help make over my dresses for the new year. I then spent some time in the chapel praying and talking to Mama."

Erik took a seat next to her and held on to her hand. "You miss her most at this time of year, don't you?"
Anne nodded sadly. "Yes. She always would read the story of Jesus Christ about this time of the day. But...I suppose now with her gone, it's time to make new traditions and new memories." She smiled up at him and Erik was reminded of how truly lucky he was. There was none other like her. Christine in her simple innocence could never compare to this grown up woman before him who had experienced hard trials and had come out strong and dependant.

"Did you eat lunch?" He didn't recall hearing her say anything about it.

She smiled sheepishly. "No, I got so wrapped up in everything else that I just forgot about it."

He kissed her forehead and said he'd return with something for her. He got up and went to the kitchen and prepared a small plate of cheese and fruit. He didn't take too long, but when he was making his way back he heard the soft strains of the piano. He immediately recognized the beginning chords of a piece long since forgotten. He heard her soft voice and immediately stepped into the room.

"Erik," she whispered, instantly halting her singing. "The book just fell out. I...I'm sorry."

The look on his face must have been frightening for she looked quite scared. He put the plate aside and joined her on the piano bench. "Whatever are you sorry for? This music was sung by another couple in another time. I wrote it down to always remember that time, but when you came...it was all put aside." He flipped through the pages familiar words passing before his eyes - "we never said our love was ever green," "...so the world will never find you." With the words came memories that had once been so potent but the pain was no longer there. His heart no longer ached. His fingers flitted through the pages til he found a familiar duet.

"Sing this with me?" He smiled at her and she nodded.

"I guess I do a little sight reading when I'm supposed to be on holiday."

Erik's fingers played and his rich voice began the piece that was once sung upon the Populaire rooftop. The song that had once brought him pain...now brought him hope.

No more talk of darkness
Forget these wide-eyed fears
I'm here, nothing can harm you
My words will warm and calm you
Let me be your freedom
Let daylight dry your tears
I'm here, with you, beside you
To guard you and to guide you
Say you'll love me every waking moment
Turn my head with talk of summer time
Say you need me with you now and always
Promise me that all you say is true
That's all I ask of you
Let me be your shelter
Let me be your light
You're safe, no one will find you
Your fears are far behind you
All I want is freedom
A world with no more night
And you, always beside me
To hold me and to hide me
Then say you'll share with me one love, one lifetime
Let me lead you from your solitude
Say you need me with you here, beside you
Anywhere you go, let me go too
Love me, that's all I ask of you
Say you'll share with me one love, one lifetime
Say the word and I will follow you
Share each day with me, each night, each morning
Say you love me
You know I do
Love me, that's all I ask of you.
Anywhere you go, let me go too
Love me, that's all I ask of you

It had been sweet and perfect. Erik's voice had blended with Anne's on such a harmonious level that it could have only been described as heavenly. At times he had stolen glances at her to find her so enveloped in the words and in the music that her eyes had completely closed and she was singing as if she had sung this piece all her life. They had poured out their love for each other through music and it was as if their souls had joined and were now never to be separated.

As the music faded away into silence he watched Anne's eyes slowly open and they were tears shining. The moment was perfect. There would never be a moment like this. Deftly, he pulled out the box from his pocket. He was no longer nervous...no longer anxious. Everything in the world was right so long as she was forever by his side. He opened the box and the rose gold diamond ring sparkled in the candlelight. The tiara style ring held a single stone in the middle but there were smaller stones along the band.

"Marry me, Anna. Share each day with me for the rest of our lives."

The tears that had stood at attention now fell down her cheeks. She hadn't even bothered to look at what he was holding until he had spoken. "Oh, Erik! Yes! Yes, I'll marry you!"

As she made an attempt at drying her face, Erik slipped the ring onto her finger not at all surprised to see that it was a perfect fit, as if it had always been there. "It's beautiful, Erik," he heard her whisper. He felt her hands on his face and then her lips upon his. "I love you...so very much."

Erik returned her kiss whispering his love for her in return.


AN: Alright peeps! If you want to know what Erik sounds like singing that song go to youtube and type in "All I Ask of You Michael Crawford and Barbara Bonney." Have a box of tissues handy 'cause those two singing together is what these two sound like.