A/N: Just got back from seeing the stage show and it was AWESOME! We liked it so much we went back and bought tickets for the next day. It was like an 8-hour drive to get there, but it was totally worth it. Sorry- just had to share my excitement!

Is it possible to put back together a life that you shattered with your own hands? Although Erik's comforting words had soothed her, this question still plagued Christine's mind. She sat rigidly in the back of the carriage contemplating all the mistakes she had made. She realized now that it was not only her own life that she had destroyed, but also those of the people close to her- Erik, Raoul, even their son. She was a sickness that infected them, slowly draining away all that made them whole. But could she also be the cure? She wasn't sure if she could put right all that she had torn apart, but no other option was left to her but to try.

Erik could sense the sadness that still weighed upon Christine. He would give anything to be able to lift her from her gloom, but he was not the one she needed. No, the only man who could console her was her precious Vicomte. If he did anything to hurt her upon their return, Erik swore to kill him then and there. But Erik knew that he need not worry about that. Despite the resentment and loathing he felt toward Raoul, he knew that the man would never turn Christine away.

"Christine, there is some bread and cheese in the basket beside you. I think it best that you eat," Erik called from his seat in front of the carriage where he was guiding the horses.

Christine opened the basket and began to take small bites of a piece of bread, chewing slowly. If not for the child inside her, she would have no stomach for food. She gazed distractedly out the window, uninterested in the sights that past her. She only began to take notice when the familiar streets of Paris appeared before her. She wrung her hands nervously. Erik too had become aware of their location. His heart ached as he knew he would soon be forced to watch Christine run once more into the arms of another man. The time passed quickly, more quickly than Erik had expected, and Christine's gentle voice guided him to the de Chagny estate.

"I will need some time to speak with Raoul. If…" she paused, trying to steady her voice, "If he is willing to take me back, I will give you a signal. You can take the carriage around the back. On the right you will see a path that is slightly overgrown. It will lead you to the old stables. You can wait there for a time."

Erik nodded in understanding, unable to speak. He pulled the hood of his cloak up around his head, obscuring his face from anyone who might glance his way. With a trembling hand, Christine reached for the door. Her breath caught in her throat as her eyes fell upon Raoul's form, blurred by the glass of the window. He was pulling open the heavy, emerald green drapes to let the light of the afternoon sun in. Christine saw him pause as he too looked through the window. He moved quickly to the door, throwing it open as he ran out. He stopped a few feet short of her.

Christine took a deep, painful breath. "Raoul, I'm so sorry. I-"

Before she could finish, Raoul had reached out and pulled her into his arms, his body shuddering against hers. She buried her face into his shirt, her nails digging into his back as she clung to him. She couldn't see Erik turn his head away as he pulled the carriage around the manor and out of view.

Raoul suddenly pulled away from her, holding her at arms length. He raised his hands up to move the hair from her face and sighed painfully at the tears in her eyes. He cupped her face in his hands and pulled his face close into hers. "I love you, Christine. You are my wife and I shall always cherish you. But your actions hurt me deeply," he said dejectedly. Her tears began to run anew at his words. She had known that it would be hard to hear the pain in his voice, but it was worse than she had expected; it was practically unbearable. He took hold of her hands, entwining their fingers as he led her to the door. "Come inside. There is much that must be said."

"Yes, a very great much," she replied smiling, thinking of the child growing within her.

Raoul became confused as Christine stopped abruptly, her face crestfallen and her eyes on the door. He looked over his shoulder and saw Nicole standing in the doorway. Christine turned her attention once more to him, anger and disbelief mingled on her face. She knew she had no right to feel that way. After all, it was she who had left. But she had always believed that Raoul would be faithful to her.

"It is not what you think," Raoul whispered quickly, trying to dispel her fears.

Christine turned and straightened herself as the woman stepped forward. She wore a polite smile, but Christine could swear that there was hatred burning in her eyes.

"Christine, this is Nicole, Duchess of Anjou. We were friends in our youth," he gestured to Nicole, who leaned in and kissed Christine's cheek. "Nicole, my wife- Christine, Vicomtesse de Chagny." He took hold of her hand protectively.

"I do hope that your return is due to the improvement of your friend," Nicole said, looking Christine over as a lion evaluating its prey.

Christine glanced at Raoul for assistance and spoke unsurely, "Yes, of course. Thank you for your concern."

"As you can see Nicole, my wife and I are anxious to spend some time together, so if you wouldn't mind…"

"Not another word, Raoul. I understand completely."

Raoul took Christine's arm and turned to lead them inside, when he heard Nicole continue. "You two take some time to become reacquainted, and I shall return for a late supper. Adieu until later." She turned on her heel and stepped carefully into her carriage.

"Who was she?" Christine asked angrily, gesturing to the carriage that was disappearing down the dirt road.

"What I told you was true. She and I were, well I suppose you could say we were friends. She…has made her interest in me known."

Christine opened her mouth to speak, but Raoul interrupted her before she could begin. "She came here this afternoon to discover how I feel about her. I told her how devoted I am to you. She knows that you are the only woman I could ever love; she has accepted that. You needn't worry about her."

Christine smiled softly and Raoul wrapped his arm about her waist. She breathed in deeply the familiar scent of her home as Raoul removed the cloak from her shoulders. She closed her hands around Raoul's as she sat them both on the settee. She felt as though she would burst from the excitement within her.

"Raoul, there is something important that I must tell you." He looked at her and wondered what she could say that gave cause to such joy. "Mon amour, you are going to be a father again!"

For a moment he sat and let her words echo in his ears. A father again. She was going to have another baby. He pulled Christine to her feet and joyously swung her about as he had done that night on the roof, the night he had proposed to her. When they both began to feel dizzy, he stopped and regained control of himself, though he was still smiling blissfully.

"I'm so sorry, chéri. I suppose I shouldn't do that, at least not for some time," he lowered her back down to her seat.

She was still giggling as she spoke. "Then I am to assume that you are happy?"

"Man has not invented a word to describe how happy I am at this moment, my dearest Little Lotte."

Little Lotte. He had not called her that in so long. Perhaps there was a chance that they could be how they once were. Christine feared that she would destroy that chance with what she would say next. But she knew that it couldn't wait to be said. Her voice became serious, her head dropped in shame.

"There is something else that I must tell you. Truthfully it is more of a request."

"Go on," he said soothingly.

Her breath came in short, nervous gasps. His tenderness was making it even worse for her. "It's Erik. He has nowhere else to go. Could you consider… letting him stay here?"