Yesterday, Christine and Erik watched as they were relieved of Raoul forever. Erik decided it was time for his big surprise in honor of the occasion.

"Christine, are you ready?"

"Ready for what, dear?" she replied.

"My big surprise." He said tauntingly.

"That surprise would be …" Christine was getting impatient to know if tonight would be the night.

"We're going rat hunting! I've had a problem with them crawling around the mirrors and knocking over candlesticks." Erik seemed to want Christine to admit what she wanted from him.

"OH STOP ERIK! I know what you want to do. And I've thought about it for a long time now. I'm ready." Christine was very serious, and Erik noticed that she had put a lot of thought into their future, so he stopped messing around with her.

"Well Christine. I believe that it doesn't start out by sitting around and talking like diplomats with the lights on.", said Erik, not wanting to admit that he had no experience in this field.

He gave her a kiss on the cheek, then the neck. Filled with passion, he picked Christine right off the ground and set her on the bed.

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Christine woke up first, tired, sweaty, and in pain. She sat up and looked over at Erik, laying still. "I wonder if he's really awake", she thought. Christine tapped her husband on the shoulder. "Erik?"

"More, let's do it again." Erik faked sleep-talking.

"Oh stop it you, we're married, lots of opportunity to come." Christine smiled. She had never smiled this way around Raoul.

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Meg woke early as she normally did. The ballet dormitories were especially cold this winter. She got up to put on her extra nightgown and socks when she thought of Christine. She missed her friend, though Meg was in no hurry to go down into the catacombs by herself. She dressed, and then went back to sleep, thoughts stirring in her head.

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Later that afternoon, Christine was still in bed, very sore. She was still in a state of shock about what had happened last night. Never had Christine imagined herself, well .. doing it. And with the Angel of Music too. The Phantom of the Opera.

What was she saying? He was her husband! Or was he .. ? It had been very informal. Erik hadn't even proposed. Christine had always dreamed of a big romantic wedding with a flowing white gown as a girl. She could see it now.

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"MEGAN ANTOINETTE GIRY! You not earn a place in my corps de ballet by sleeping halfway into the afternoon! Get up this instant and into your rehearsal clothes! Rehearsals for Don Giovanni started a quarter of an hour ago!" At this Madame Giry left to return to her rehearsals.

Meg sat on her bed, startled from her mother waking her up so suddenly. The rumors were true. For days the ballet rats had talked about the next opera, Don Giovanni. It was based on the legend Don Juan.

(A/N- This opera is real and I own neither Don Giovanni nor Don Juan. Don Giovanni belongs to Mozart, and Don Juan is a Spanish legend very much like the Phantom's opera Don Juan Triumphant. For fictional purposes, I am crediting the Phantom of the Opera as the creator on Don Juan, the legend, and the opera mentioned in the play and movie.)

Meg wondered what the Phantom of the Opera would do when he found out that their newest production was plagiarism of his only once-performed Don Juan Triumphant. Don Giovanni could only be Piangi. Donna Anna, Christine, and Donna Elvira, Carlotta. Meg would once again be dancing in the background. There was no doubt that Meg loved to dance, and wouldn't trade her role in the corps for anything. It's just that no one but Christine knew that Meg could actually sing, not even her mother.

Meg realized that she had wasted even more time thinking, and her mother would be even MORE extremely furious with her by now, so she quickly put on her best pair of pink tights and a black leotard. As she ran out the door, Meg remembered how her mother scorned upon "she who did not wear her brand new skirt to dance ballet", and grabbed the black tule and her rehearsal toe shoes.

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Meg quietly slipped into rehearsal hoping that she wouldn't be noted as late. The girls were already in their shoes and warmed up. She sat down on the floor, quickly and expertly tied the ribbons on her toe shoes, and went to the end of the front barre, her normal spot.

As Meg was doing the normal tendu exercise, she thought about how long it had taken her to earn her place in the ballet. Being the mistress' daughter, Meg had started dancing with the girls at a young age. She had to work harder than everyone else to earn her place at the front. Meg was thinking so hard about other things that she completely forgot to start the en quois. This of course was followed by a scold from her mother for not paying attention.

When tendus were finished and all the girls moved towards the middle of the floor, there was an announcement made by Monsieur Reyer.

"Tonight at quarter after 7 o'clock we will be holding auditions for the roles Don Giovanni, Donna Anna, and Donna Elvira in our upcoming production. We discourage those without experience from auditioning. The casting lists will be announced at half past nine this evening. Good luck to those of you who choose to audition. Please be prepared to sing the piece of your choice and read off the script for the production."

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"Erik, I have to ask you something very serious. Come and sit with me." Christine had been thinking all afternoon.

"I want to talk to you about something too, but if it's about getting new curtains, there are no windows in here." He replied playfully.

"Oh, stop Erik, I'm really, really serious about this." Christine took a deep breath and told him everything. " … so even thought I consider you my husband, we're not officially married, or even engaged."

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about, Christine." At this, Erik reached in his coat and pulled out a red velvet box. "Christine Daae, will you marry me?"

She started crying. "Of course." Erik opened to box to reveal a gorgeous ring.

He had obviously made it especially for Christine, it fit like a glove. The silver band had musical notes etched into it, with a three-dimensional red rose in the center. On the inside of the ring were the words 'One love, One lifetime'.

"Now I'll just have to get get used to, instead of Christine Daae, being called Christine..."

Erik thought of what Christine had said, and emotions starting from his early childhood welled up inside of him. He had never known his last name. The strong man he was, Erik burst into tears, knowing exactly why Christine couldn't finish her sentence.