A new chapter! Thanks for all the kind reviews!
You Were All That Mattered
Chapter I
Christine opened her eyes. The sun streamed in through her window in all of its golden glory. She gave a sigh of contentment, realizing then how young and wonderful she felt. It was if all her inner-conflict had melted away. She felt strangely hopeful and a burst of excitement coursed through her body. This was certainly different from how she had been yesterday!
Glancing around the room she noticed some new pieces of furniture. Her armoire was strangely larger, and there were new sheets on the bed, made of the finest silks in all of Paris. There was also a new mirror in the corner of the room. A mirror that looked oddly familiar. Could it be...?
Christine sprung off the window seat and moved closer to examine it. She almost fell over in shock as she realized that this was indeed the mirror from her old dressing room. The mirror that had led to her Angel of Music. How had it come to be in her room?
She pressed her palms against the glass, gazing at her youthful reflection. She moved her hands to the side of the mirror and gasped as she felt the mechanism that would open it. But it wouldn't open anything, would it? The mirror only led somewhere in the Opera House, it would lead nowhere in the Chagny mansion. She cautiously triggered the mechanism and was astounded as the mirror swung open, revealing a short passageway to a brightly lit stairwell.
"C'est impossible!" she muttered as she took in the sight before her. After taking a moment to recollect herself, she turned opened her bedroom door. Upon hearing no evidence of anyone awake in the household, she locked the door and summoned up her courage. She lit a candle and proceeded into the secret passageway behind the mirror.
Her heart pounded as she climbed the stairwell. For a moment she imagined she was once again on stage at the Opera, mounting the stairs as she performed the Phantom's opera, Don Juan Triumphant. She remembered every detail of that performance, from the tone of his voice to the way the fire made his skin glow, to the feel of his rough hands as they caressed her skin, causing electricity to course throughout her body.
She pushed these thoughts away, allowing her curiosity to consume her once again. At the top of the stairwell was a little door. She stopped to stare at it, some of her bravery melting away. For a moment she considered running back to the safety of her room, but something inside her pushed her to open the door, so she did.
It was a tower, and from the single window she could tell she it was a very tall tower indeed. The room however was lavishly decorated in the finest furnishings and décor the City of Light had to offer. A large divan sat in the corner to her left, and the room was lit by massive candelabras. Blood-red roses filled the room, and she was just beginning to think it strange when she noticed the grand piano on her right, almost completely hidden from her view.
She walked towards it, her mouth slightly open in anticipation. She was just a few feet from it when she stopped dead in her tracks.
For there in front of her sat the legendary Phantom of the Opera, staring back at her with the smirk she knew all too well plastered upon his masked face.