In Welcome

The next two months passed in blessed reprieve, though it took quite awhile for Erik and Christine to begin to relax once again. They remained ever aware of the possibility that someone less sympathetic than Mr. Crawford could stumble upon the same truth that Edward Markham had discovered. Crawford insisted that they should not worry over things which could not be controlled, and assured them both that they would have his continuing support.

It humbled Erik to know that a man like Crawford could place such faith in him. In the end, he and Christine had decided that there really was no reason to leave Dover. Their history in France had no ill effect thus far on their life in England, and the story that Markham had heard could just as easily surface anywhere they tried to escape to. The more time that passed, the more the truth of the tale would become distorted with each retelling. Even the version Markham had told to Crawford had been greatly embellished…going so far as to turn the Phantom into a living corpse with eyes that glowed yellow. The description had not pleased Erik at all.

Life slipped into a small amount of quiet contentment for a time, the only real excitement being that which Christine felt for the imminent arrival of Meg and Madame Giry. She had written them with instructions to seek out the Gate Inn upon landing in Dover, and on the morning of their scheduled arrival, she had sent Erik off to await them. He'd arrived early, strangely nervous to see Madame Giry and Meg again. It had been six months since they had said their goodbyes, and he'd found himself often thinking of the two women. He had…missed them. Antoinette Giry had been so long a part of his life, he had felt rather lost without her stern, disapproving looks.

Erik saw the hansom slow to a stop from the parlor of the inn and watched the two ladies step to the ground. He waited a few moments, listening for the footfalls that would announce their entrance, and when he heard them, he stepped through small doorway into the foyer.

Meg saw him first, and the words she had been speaking to her mother fell away as her sapphire eyes landed on him. Erik offered a hesitant smile, still thinking it felt rather odd upon his face, although it felt far more natural when Antoinette Giry looked up and smiled warmly at him.

"Erik."

She was at once walking toward him, and he nodded to her, then to Meg. "Madame Giry, Mademoiselle. I…hope you had a pleasant journey."

Antoinette shot an odd look to her daughter. "Only a small unpleasantness on the train to Calais, but no trouble otherwise." Erik saw Meg color slightly, and sensed there was more, but he did not ask and Antoinette looked back to him once again. "You look…well."

"I am. As is Christine. I have been instructed to bring you both to her at once, and it is best not to disappoint her these days." Indeed, Erik tried to please his wife as much as possible, as her moods had for sometime been completely unpredictable.

Antoinette chuckled, "Then we should go at once."

The three made their way to Erik's carriage, and they set off on the forty-five minute ride that would reunite their little family.

xXx

Christine had been pacing the downstairs since she'd sent Erik off into town, every so often peaking out the window to see if she could catch a glimpse of the carriage. Of course, she could simply go and sit in the music room, or Erik's office, or the parlor, and wait for one of his alarms to be set off. She hated that he'd rigged them here, but she supposed it had been the wiser coarse of action.

She straightened a few of the candles on the table, and Katie, who'd been giving a final dusting to the parlor, playfully snapped a rag at Christine's hands. "You stop that fidgeting, Ms. Christine. Go and have a seat…the master will have my hide if he knows I've let you wander all about the house when you should be resting."

Christine laughed, "I certainly do not intend to tell him, and you shan't be telling him either."

Katie shook her head in exasperation and disappeared towards the kitchen. Christine smiled as she watched the woman go, thinking that she really had been a wonderful addition to the house. She was exceptionally tolerant of Erik's moods, and wonderfully caring to both of them. The distinctive ringing of a bell interrupted the silence and a wide smile crossed Christine's face. She pulled the curtain back and saw the carriage turning the corner of the drive. Excitement bubbled up inside her and she hurried to the front door, swinging it open just as the carriage was coming to a stop.

She pressed one hand to her back for support and the other over her swollen belly as she carefully made her way down from the front stoop and towards the carriage. Erik was in the process of helping Meg down from the carriage, and Christine knew by the look in his eyes he was not pleased to see her rushing towards them. He really had gotten extremely overprotective in the past few months. Christine only smiled even brighter, her attention landing back on Meg and Madame.

"Oh, you are finally here! I have missed you both so."

Meg was smiling widely, and Christine threw her arms around her friend. Meg hugged her back just as fiercely, "It is so good to see you again, Christine." The blond pulled back slightly and cast her twinkling eyes downward. "All of you."

Christine laughed. Lord, she had missed Meg. "Yes, there is quite a bit more of me now, isn't there?"

Madame Giry laid a gentle hand on Christine's arm, her keen eyes looking her over thoroughly. "You look wonderful, Christine. And in good health."

Christine nodded, laying a protective hand over her stomach. "I am. We are."

Erik sighed, holding a few of the ladies' bags in his hands. "Come now, ladies, there's no reason to stand about outside all evening."

Christine grinned sweetly at Erik. "That would be Erik's polite way of telling me I should go inside and sit down. He does worry so."

Erik glanced away uncomfortably. In truth, he was still terrified for Christine, and growing more so each day. He heard Madame Giry click her tongue and chuckle, saying, "At any rate, he is right. I would love a nice comfortable seat while my head stops spinning from all this motion."

xXx

Nearly two hours later, Meg and Madame had been caught up on the most important events that had occurred since they had last spoken. Both ladies were eager to make the acquaintance of the Crawford family, and Christine was eager to have them meet, as well. She'd a feeling that Sarah and Madame Giry would get on quite well, although she was rather uncertain of how sweet, shy Victoria would take to Meg, who was decidedly bolder. She so hoped they would come to like one another.

Eventually, Madame had asked about the baby, and how Christine had been faring in her pregnancy. Christine was happy enough to talk about it, but she could see Erik's eyes growing darker. Even with the progress they had made, all his concern for her health, he could not seem to sustain a conversation about their child more than a few moments. It still frustrated her terribly, but Christine had learned to get by with those little moments.

When Meg asked about the nursery, Erik abruptly stood. "If you will excuse me, I am certain this conversation is better suited for you ladies than I."

Antoinette watched Christine's face fall at Erik's retreat, and sighed, "He is still reluctant to talk much about the child?"

Christine sighed as well, "Yes. There are moments when he seems so happy and we talk with ease . Then it's as if he remembers that he has no right to be so content. He'll lock himself away in his music room and compose for hours."

Antoinette nodded, "He is worried for you, child. Surely you can see that."

Christine twisted her hands together to keep from screaming. Of course she saw it, she lived with it, but, "I would rather he be worried with me, Madame. I feel so alone in this sometimes."

Christine felt Meg pry her hands apart, and gave a little squeeze. Christine looked up to see her friend's hesitant grin. "Maman and I are here now, so there will be no more of that."

"Perhaps I should attempt to talk with Erik?"

Christine's eyes went back to Madame, and she smiled gratefully. "Oh, Madame Giry, would you?"

Antoinette chuckled and stood. "Of course. And Christine, you are a married woman now. You really must start to call me Antoinette."

Antoinette?

Christine blushed, wondering if she could really bring herself to refer to the woman with such informality. "Thank you."

Madame Giry…Antoinette…disappeared in search of Erik, and Christine turned back to Meg. Her friend was grinning broadly, her eyes alit with that mischievous glimmer that Christine had so missed. "A married lady. Matronly, even. How droll."

Christine couldn't suppress her giggle. "Stop it, Meg."

xXx

Antoinette Giry found Erik in the music room, scribbling notes onto a page. She idly wondered what melody he was hearing, and what emotion had born it. He drew a ragged breath and looked up to her, annoyance flashing in his eyes, "Did she send you to scold me, Antoinette?"

One regal brow rose, "Do you need to be scolded, Erik?"

His pen was slammed to the top of the piano. "Let us drop all pretense…I can see the disapproval in your eyes. Have at me, then! You will say nothing that my lovely wife has not already said."

"Perhaps not, but it must be said nonetheless, Erik. I told you once that your self-pity would be of no use to Christine. Neither will your fear. Refusing to speak of the future will not hold it at bay."

Erik stood, his eyes flashing. "Nor will speaking of it! I am not a fool, Antoinette. I know there is no scheme, no manipulation, which will change what is to come. I've no control at all…and I despise the feeling."

"Do you think you are the only one? Your fear is no different than the fear that any man feels. Or any woman, for that matter. When I carried Meg, I thought of everything that could go wrong. I was convinced that I would not live to hold her. I made Armand promise that he would not let her forget her mother…that he would tell her how very much I loved her. I wrote letters to her before she was born, so that I might tell her all the things I wished her to know."

Erik glanced away, "Christine has written letters."

Antoinette nodded, "Armand never wrote one. We were both so frightened that our child could grow up without a mother, we never considered that she would lose her father before she had a chance to know him."

Erik's eyes came back to her, and he saw the tears trickling over her cheeks. He suddenly felt horribly ashamed. "I…I am…sorry, Antoinette."

Her shoulders straightened, "Do not apologize to me, Erik. I want no sympathy from you. I only want you to understand that this world is no one's dream. We, each of us, have only this moment to be certain of." She laid a hand on his shoulder. "Embrace it...and know that you are not alone in it. Let Christine know that she is not alone in it."

Erik nodded, looking away again. His soul longed to embrace what lay before him, yet his lingering fears would never entirely allow it. He knew that Christine certainly would not wish to hear his greatest fear. He had kept it as far from her as possible.

I am afraid of what I might do if the child takes my angel away from me.

xXx

"Tell me more about this Monsieur Ranier."

Meg smiled at Christine and raised her brows in mock innocence, "There is not much to tell."

Christine grasped her friend's hands, smiling widely, "Come now, Meg. I am dying to know what has been happening with you."

Christine watched as Meg dropped her eyes slightly and shrugged, "Very little really. You've had most of it in my letters. And Jean is…difficult to describe."

Christine had known Meg far too long to believe that, and she was longing to hear about the man who was planning to reopen the Opera Populaire. She grinned mischievously, "Try."

Meg sighed, her lips curving upward. "Picture Erik without the mask or the moodiness, and then make him a charming rascal."

Christine laughed outright, "Erik is a charming rascal when he wants to be."

Meg raised lifted a brow, "But Erik is not a rake."

Christine's smiled softened, "No, that is certainly one worry I shall never have to face. I know Erik is completely mine."

And I would not have it any other way.

Meg nodded firmly, her tone becoming as stern as her mother's. "And Jean would never be completely mine. So I shall never be his."

Christine eyed her friend carefully. She had the strange feeling that she was missing something, yet she could not entirely put her finger on what. "Why do I sense there is more you are not telling me?"

Meg shrugged again, a half smile on her face. "He is a very determined rake."

"And you are worried his determination will wear down your resistance?"

An odd faraway look entered Meg's eyes, and her cheeks turned slightly pink. "Not precisely, but I am certainly happy to have some time away."

Christine nodded slowly, "Time away can certainly bring a new perspective to things." Christine determined that she would use her time with Meg to pursue this subject of Jean Ranier a little further. Drawing a breath, she broached the subject she'd not let herself think much on these past months. "And speaking of time…how is…Raoul?"

Meg seemed to start a moment, her breath catching, then she composed herself, sitting up a little straighter and meeting Christine's eyes evenly. "Raoul is…doing well. His parents have recently come to Paris, and they have been attending the theater." Meg hesitated a moment before adding, "He seems…happy."

Christine released the breath she hadn't been aware of holding. She'd worried more than she cared to admit that poor Raoul was suffering over what she had done to him. "I am so glad to hear that. I want him to be happy again."

Meg smiled slightly, and Christine noticed her friend's eyes drift to a spot over her shoulder. "I know you do, Christine."

She could feel a sudden tension in the air between them, and she wondered at it. She knew from Meg's letters that her friend had spoken with Raoul at least once or twice after Christine had left Paris. Meg had assured her that he seemed to have let go and would not cause any trouble in her new life with Erik. Though Raoul did not know that her new life was with Erik. Christine suddenly grew nervous at the thought that Meg had been merely trying to ease her mind in that regard. She needed to know that her childhood friend had truly moved on. "Is he…seeing anyone?"

Meg jerked her gaze back to her friend, a strange look in her eyes that Christine couldn't quite place. Meg drew a breath, "I…well…actually… he…is."

He is. He has someone. Good.

Christine smiled slowly as she allowed her curiosity to creep in. "Is it serious, do you know?"

Meg cleared her throat, her eyes dropping slightly, "He…has told me he is...in love…but I…cannot help but wonder if he is really over his love for you."

Christine frowned, thinking of Raoul's honest and chivalrous nature, and she spoke more for her own benefit than Meg's. "Raoul would not profess to love a woman if he does not. He is too much a gentleman."

Meg sighed, "I don't doubt his honor. Certainly…he believes himself to be in love. I only wonder if he is being completely honest with himself."

Christine felt the familiar stab of guilt over the childish mistakes that had hurt so many people. "As I was not honest with myself?"

Meg laid a hand on Christine's arm. "Christine, you must stop punishing yourself for the past. Raoul's happiness is not your responsibility any longer. You should be concentrating on your own happiness."

Christine nodded, a small frown still on her lips. "You're right, of course, but I fear the guilt will never completely leave me." Perhaps if she could know that Raoul was truly happy in his own life, Christine could finally let go of the blame she placed on herself for misleading him. "Do you think this woman will make him happy, Meg?"

Meg looked to the floor, her voice sounding slightly strained. "I…cannot say, Christine. Only time will tell."

And time was much shorter than either of them could imagine.

A/N: The little family (phamily?) is reunited. Yes...this begins the crossover section with the events of LC. I tried to determine which scenes needed to be kept for plot purposes and which could go. And of course, I tried to add a few little scenes I didn't write before, as well as change the perspective of the shared ones. To those who read the other story...forgive me the redundancy. For those that didn't...well...it does seem that dear Meg might be hiding something, doesn't it?