Disclaimer: We, sadly, do not own any of the POTO characters :sob hysterically calling after Erik, but we do won Alex and Marie.

"Erik...Are you there?"
The silence mocked me, leering at me from the leaden waters; the candle wavered and went out, leaving me trembling with fear, frustration, and mounting panic.
"Erik, where are you?" I screamed, "Erik!"
"Hush...I am here." - Erik and Christine (Phantom, by Susan Kay)
Chapter 2: My Dear Ladies
After a few hours the plane landed on a private airport and a black limousine was awaiting the girls. As they excited piled in, Nadir took care of their luggage and took the liberty to call Erik.

"Hey, we arrived, we should be at the Opera House in about an hour" he said into the phone, he received a response of a dial tone. Nadir went to the passenger side of the driver's section and they limo was on its way.

As Alex, Christine and Marie chatted excitingly about their luck of being chosen to learn at the famous Opera Populaire, Marie brought up the subject of the phantom.

"Hey, you guys, are you sure that the Phantom of the Opera is still there?" she asked in a low voice

"Calm down Marie, it's impossible; it's been over 100 years since it happened! I mean you all read the documents they have on the Opera House, he was reposted to be man, which means he is mortal and at some point he has died. Even of he lived for a long time, he might have gotten to 90 years maybe a 100, plus death age was pretty low back then. What are the chances of him living past his 70th birthday? Maybe whoever our benefactor is just signed it O.G as a mean to be funny, because we are going to be stay in the Opera Populaire" explained Alex

"Aww is someone still afraid of a little ghost?" teased Christine and all three broke in laughter. Just as easily they dismissed the notion of the phantom.

"I wonder if there will cute French boys," Marie sighed dreamily.

"Why, I can't resist a man with an accent!" Alex exclaimed in a mocking southern accent and batted her eyelashes flirtatiously.

"Oui, Oui!" joined Christine and once again they all laughed.

Christine passed out glasses with champagne and raised hers for a toast. Marie and Alex followed suit.

"Well, here is to us and may we all excel in this new adventure. Cheers!" toasted Christine and all took a sip from their glass. As they passed the beautiful city of Paris, all three girls exclaimed in wonder. With the windows rolled down, blowing each of their hairs back they watched in awe as they passed the Eiffel Tower. They marveled in unison as they saw a couple embracing and smiled brightly as they were passing on a bridge, watching the city shine in bright lights.

Within an hour they arrived at the Opera House and Nadir once again called Erik to tell him that they have arrived. The girls exited the limo and with arms hooked though one another they headed up the step and went inside the Opera Populaire. As they entered, he watched from the shadows, mesmerized by Christine. She looked just as he remembered her, a smile kissed his face, knowing that this time she will love him.

After making sure that they were inside the Opera he turned and walked over to the wall that Madame Giry had helped him escape through. He jumped inside, his body agile, and quick. As he walked through the passage his mind unconsciously drifted. He had given specific orders that Christine be put in the room she had taken residence in during their past lives. The other women, where put in rooms of similar design, which had recently been altered to include the shifting mirror.

When he arrived at the vaults he found the disk Nadir had most likely dropped off. The vaults were much different now, he had installed several devices that would help keep track of the operation in the opera house. Most public rooms were camera monitored, after all, he didn't want anything to happen to his precious guests.

He slipped one of the disks into a slot and the sound of female voices filled the air. Their bright faces showing up on the screen.

"Hey, do you guys know who the benefactor is?" Alex asked, curiosity shining in her eyes.

"I heard it was the Phantom of the Opera, you know, the one that roamed the vaults of the opera and kidnapped Christine Daae." Christine said.

Amusement shone in his eyes at her remark.

"A-a-a Phantom! Are you sure Christine?" asked Marie true fear cloaking in her eyes.

"I'm sure that can't be it, it was just a rumor, and it happened in the 1880's. He couldn't possibly still be alive." Alex responded.

"Well he signed all of his letters Opera Ghost, and ghosts don't die do they?"

He chuckled, the girls were smart, they had the intuition to realize that the famous Opera Ghost was somehow involved,

As the girls chatted he noticed that Christine wasn't the meek mouse she had been. She had a more rash personality now. If he didn't know better he'd think it looked like she enjoyed making Marie uneasy.

"Don't worry, Marie, I promise not to let anything happen to you, alright?" another woman's voice interrupted his train of though. Alexandra, her eyes had been the first that drew him. They were deep passionate pools of adark bluelove potion. He remember when he first came across her picture, he had stared at it for half an hour, trying to place her somewhere.

"Well, I actually lived in Macedonia for a while, it was wonderful!" Marie respond in a pure soprano voice, to the question he hadn't quite caught. Marie's simplicity seemed to draw him to her. She was an innocent, yet seemed to hold a kind of understanding in her light blue eyes. However her most radiant future was her hair. It seemed to but spun gold, falling to her mid-back. It framed her face, but did not crowd it, and appeared to always represent her mood.

He knew that he could easily love any one of the woman, but, could they love him, in all his forms?

…It would soon be time to find out.

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