OK, this is an assignment for my college creative writing class. I was supposed to take a classic (Phantom counts!) and add a character. Because we were supposed to do a book, some of this is like the book, but my prof is a huge phan of the movie and the musical so I get extra credit if I keep some or all of the lyrics in my story. Anyway, I would really appreciate it if you guys would read this and let me know what you think before I have to turn it in. THANK YOU GUYS A TON!

My official disclaimer:
I do not own the Phantom, Christine, Raoul, et al. I do not own any parts of this story that comes from Gaston Leroux nor Andrew Lloyd Webber. However, I do own Odette and all of her antics! They are from my own twisted brain

Chapter 1

A young woman sat quietly at one of the many cafés along the Avenue des Champs-Élysées. She knew that if one listened to all the idle gossip around them one would hear something worth listening to, she always did. Moreover, she knew that someday the gossip would lead to Him; she had to find him, and prove that she had truly loved him. She ran a hand through her loosely curled red hair as her mind wandered up the Avenue, towards the Opéra popularié, if Erik were in this city of lights that would be where she, Odette would find him.
As if reading her thoughts a nearby voice asked excitedly "Have you heard the stories of the Opera Ghost?" Odette raised her eyebrow and turned to look at the voice. A small blond girl, whose actions could only be those of a dancer, was sitting with a man who was undoubtedly noble, a Baron or maybe even a Count, just behind Odette; the dancer had been the source of the gossip.
"Opera Ghost?" The man sounded entirely too pompous.
"Oh yes," said the dancer excitedly "Everyone has seen him, he wanders the corridors of the Opera in dress cloths and a cape. He is hideously deformed, with a head like a skull. The corps de ballet are dreadfully frightened of him. There is a rumor that he will appear at tonight's Gala." The dancer rattled on with her Opera gossip, as Odette stopped listening.
He may be deformed but Erik's face is hardly a death mask, Odette reflected angrily. Sternly, she reminded herself that this "ghost" still may not be the man she was looking for. However, the dancer had mentioned a Gala, a perfect time to see who or what this ghost really was.

Odette slipped into a side courtyard at the Opera, where the cast and crew would enter, she would be less noticed here and could avoid having to identify herself in the front. She had learned from her concierge that tonight's Gala was to welcome new managers and bid farewell to the old, meaning that if anyone who knew the old managers noticed Odette they would assume that she was a guest of the new managers and vice versa. Looking around the courtyard Odette saw a horseshoe nailed to the doorpost, probably hung there by some chorus girl for luck. Feeling that she needed what luck she could gather Odette caressed the horseshoe as she entered the crowded opera instantly blending into the crowd. She wondered back stage keeping to the shadows watching and listing for more news about this Opera Ghost. Soon, she heard the startled cries of five or six girls from down the hall, followed by a group of young ballerinas running towards her from the vicinity of the stage. The girls swept by her and into a dressing room at the end of the hall. Intrigued, Odette followed the girls and stood silently listening outside the door.
"La Sorelli, It's the ghost!" one whimpered dramatically and Odette heard the lock click shut. If you indeed fear a ghost, locking the door wouldn't keep him out she thought with a slight smile. The silliness of ballerinas had always fascinated her.
"Have you seen him?" asked someone whom Odette recognized as the dancer from the café, which must be La Sorelli. Several excited voices went on to explain that the ballerinas had seen a man in dress cloths that had appeared so suddenly he seamed to emerge from the very walls. Again Odette smiled, that sounded just like her Erik, how often had he appeared seemingly out of nowhere startling her. He had once told her that with a face like his you learned to become invisible, and he had taught her most of his tricks, she could now easily melt into shadows and crowds. Thinking about this Odette accidentally brushed the door of the dressing room with her silk skirts, inside the dressing room, the girls had gone silent, and a fearful voice whispered, "Listen!" Afraid they would open the door and find her Odette slipped into an open room across the hall and watched the La Sorelli standing in the doorway holding a small dagger, seeing no one the dancer returned to her room and Odette slowly returned to listen at the door.
"You know, the Persian has the evil eye." She herd one of the girls inside say. Odette grinned slyly as she herd the girls tell of how the ghost had been spotted with a mysterious Persian earlier that week. She left the door and headed towards the noise that could only indicate the real party. So, the Daroga is here too Odette mused he must be trying to control Erik, I must find him, he could take me to Erik! Odette saw the man from the café rushing up the stairs towards her and at the same time herd the ballerinas leave the dressing room at a run, quickly she dropped in to the shadows at the top of the stairs to let the girls pass. La Sorelli and the man from the café paused on the stairs, and Odette learned that someone named Christine Daaé had triumphed at the Gala, and a man name Joseph Bouquet had been found dead behind some scenery pieces. Odette felt her blood turn to ice, especially when she herd that the rope had not been found. So, Erik is here, and he still knows how to throw a Punjab! Odette followed the Ballerinas from the stairs to the foyer of the opera, where she mixed with the crowd. Everyone was buzzing about Bouquet's death, the Opera Ghost, and Christine. Odette began to listen closely to the stories of Christine, she was the daughter of a famous violinist and was rumored to have been an amazing singer in her youth; however, she had lost all interest in her art after her father's death. But tonight, tonight the girl had sung so magnificently that her triumph overshadowed the talk of murder! People were talking about how after her song she had fainted crying and had been herd saying that she had not known her own voice. Odette had caught a glimpse of the girl before she was carried back to her dressing room. Something about this girl was irking Odette, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. Abruptly, Odette was dragged from her thoughts of Christine by a cry of "The Opera Ghost!" by one of the young ballerinas she had been listing to in the dressing room. Odette turned to where the girl pointed and saw a man with pale skin, almost no nose, and a mask covering the right side of his face. His eyes were so deep sunk that they almost appeared to be the holes in a skull. Odette was startled; the man looked so close to death that Odette doubted he was the man she had once loved, and yet it had to be, that lack of nose the mask… Then the man's deep sunken eyes met hers and she saw the look of utter astonishment that crossed his features, and then he was gone, disappeared into the crowd. Odette stood rooted to the ground with disbelief; it had been Erik she had seen it in his eyes, but what had happened to him? He looked so sick and haunted. His usually distorted face had indeed looked like a skull, and he had fled from her! She had not meant to be seen so soon, but if anything she had expected Erik to treat her with anger not…well, not fear!