Disclaimer: All originating characters and storylines belong to their respectful owner. This is mostly a continuation of ALW's work, but I do throw GL a couple of good nods. All new characters and sub-plots are my original work and are not to be used/reproduced without my expressed permission. Enjoy the story and shoot some feedback my way if you can! Thanks for reading.
Chapter One
Her fingers would not stop shaking uncontrollably. Christine could not decide if it was from the bitter, cold night or her nerves. Emerging from her carriage, she asked the driver to stay. The knitted shawl wrapped tightly around her body did little to shut out the piercing wind. This winter seemed particularly colder than the previous few years. She tried to stop her body from trembling but the icy breeze nipped feverishly at her nose and ears. After searching the city trying to find answers for over a week, she finally had the courage to return here. There was no other place that he could be. It was almost as though she were watching herself from a distance as Christine timidly stepped into the courtyard of the Opera Populaire.
Standing stoically, its spirit still haunted the Paris night sky. She had to take a moment to stare at her familiar childhood home. Christine felt her face grow hot as waves of guilt and trepidation filled her mind. She was not supposed to be here. Breathing faster and deeper, Christine contemplated whether to stay and finish what she came to do or abandon her search and retreat to the safe, but droning, comforts of her home. Nervously, she tiptoed frantically back to the carriage. Wrapping her glove around the door handle, she couldn't stop from taking one last look. As she turned towards the building, a heavy fog curled around the ominous building, swirling furiously around its marbled columns. Christine's presence, it seemed, brought the Opera House to life. Like its former master, it responded to her, demanding her attention. His obsession drew him to her. The passion they once shared brought her here this night. After paying and thanking the driver, Christine slowly turned back. In a trance, she found herself gliding across the stove-paved square to the footsteps of the theater.
Another four months would mark the third anniversary of the night that Christine chose beauty and youth over love. Now a wife and mother at nineteen, Christine often found her mind lingering back to her days at the Opera Populaire. Performing on stage had given her great satisfaction and now she felt docile playing the role of happy housewife and mother. Christine missed the attention she once received while performing on stage. Most days, as she mindlessly watched over her son, she daydreamed of her mysterious masked suitor and the connection she shared with him.
Raoul seldom mentioned that night, or even the events leading up to the burning of the Opera house. Anytime Christine was asked about her past, it caused awkward silences that she could not rescue herself from. Raoul could not find a way to come to her aide, either. Christine knew he was trying to protect her from the horror that the Phantom inflicted upon them all. There were many times that she wished that she could confide her fears with Raoul, but found herself once again comparing his companionship with Erik's. Inside she knew that Raoul felt Erik's presence in their marriage. Christine felt Raoul knew she would always belong to her teacher in most ways. He was good at masking his disdain. If Raoul was hurt in any way, he was able to shield his unhappiness from her.
Living without her self-appointed "Angel of Music" was hard for Christine to transition to. For years she thought he was the spirit of her father sent from Heaven to help her in her loneliness after his death. Christine thought of him as guardian, mentor and friend. She confided her inner thoughts and fears with him. After realizing that her supposed Angel was a real man preying upon her innocence and naivety, she felt hurt and betrayed. Even more so, she was confused. Though he betrayed her, she still had a sense of loyalty and duty to him. Raoul was a good and faithful husband, but he did not fill the void Erik left in her heart. Many times, when she found herself in an argument with Raoul over silly matters, she would secretly wish that Erik would mysteriously appear to rescue her from this life. She immediately felt guilty, but could not deny the fact that Erik was the first person she thought of when she sought comfort. Her childhood friend, Meg, didn't even have the depth of understanding of Christine as Erik did.
In fairness to Raoul, Christine was deliriously content in the beginning of their marriage. Raoul wasted no time after their escape to fulfill his promise to protect her. He was extremely doting and his "Little Lotte" was to have everything that her heart desired. They married in May, just two months after the Opera house incident. To keep Erik away, Raoul kept Christine by his side at all times. He felt a duty to shield and guard her. Christine couldn't blame Raoul in his zeal to keep her from Erik's menacing interference. They both feared that Erik might have regretted letting Christine go and return to take her away.
At Raoul's request, she cut off all ties to her former life. The hurt of isolating herself from Madame Giry and Meg was almost unbearable. They were like mother and sister to her. She knew, though, how fiercely loyal Madame Giry was of protecting Erik's secrets. Christine could not guarantee with any certainty that Madame Giry would keep their location safe from Erik. While she couldn't bear to think that she would reveal her whereabouts, Christine thought it best to err on the side of caution. Raoul didn't even have to ask her; Christine decided on her own to stop singing and live life as normally as possible. Both she and Raoul were determined to start their life together on a clean slate.
The Count and Countess de Chagny were more than willing to help their youngest son and his fiancee. After learning of Gustav Daae's death so many years ago, they often wondered of Christine's whereabouts and were thrilled to welcome her back into their lives. They even took it upon themselves to hold a lavish wedding for Christine and Raoul. Philippe, Raoul's older brother, was astonished to see how Christine had blossomed into such a captivating young woman. She could tell that Raoul was pleased.
Whether or not Christine felt it, in many ways she was obligated to Raoul and his family. She had alienated herself from everyone she knew and was thrust into a world foreign to her. Her father was well respected and had been an important figure in society, but Christine had no real training in proper etiquette and decorum. Sarah, Philippe's wife, became a close friend during the short time Christine spent there. They spent endless nights together planning the small details of Christine's wedding. After returning from their honeymoon in Madrid, Christine and Raoul were shocked to learn that Raoul's parents had given the newly wedded couple their first home, an estate in Champigny-sur Marne, as a wedding present.
Only fifteen kilometers from Paris, the seven-bedroom home was more than enough room for the two of them. It was along one of the more coveted banks of the Marne River. The community they lived in included many of France's most elite and prestigious families. Christine had her own handmaiden for housekeeping and a cook to prepare their meals. Raoul had spent his entire life being pampered and doted upon, but Christine was not used to the attention. She found it difficult to allow them to wait upon her and regarded them more as friends than her staff. The stableman and gardener of the manor had watched Raoul grow up. Raoul looked to them for guidance and comradeship. They had watched him grow up and were proud of the man he had become. Their household served them with great dignity and respect and Christine felt blessed to regard them as family.
On the days leading up to the year anniversary of the Phantom fiasco, Christine became sick with anxiety. So much had happened to her in the course of just one year. Taken to her bed, Raoul forced her to meet with the local physician who immediately prompted her to meet with the town's midwife. It was on the very anniversary of her ill-fated performance that Christine learned that she was pregnant with their first child. Raoul could not have been more pleased. Christine could understand why. Raoul reasoned that any doubts of Christine's happiness would be laid to rest when they became a family. Their son, Jean, was born December 14.
Now a boisterous boy of almost two, Jean was a mirror of his father in almost every way. He had Raoul's boyish good looks to his arrogant, but proud demeanor. The only defining trait he shared with Christine was the thick, curly brown hair that swirled chaotically on his head. She knew, however, that he would grow up to be like his father – noble, strong, but complacent. Raoul was captivated with him. He loved nothing more than to come home and play with his son. Raoul was thrilled with parenthood. For a while Christine was, too.
Being a mother and wife satisfied her primal existence, but as the days turned to weeks, then to months and years, she started to feel that a small part of her was dying. Every day was the same as the last. Christine felt that she was just going through what every woman went through. In between feedings, playtime, and meeting with neighbors and associates of Raoul she found herself daydreaming and reliving her memories from the Opera house. She would make excuses to leave the house and would leave Jean in the care of the cook. She would catch herself humming and singing songs from her past. On one trip to Paris, she stopped at a tailor to fit herself with new ballet slippers. She began to collect odd trinkets and mementos from the Opera Populaire and kept it all in a hatbox hidden in a spare bedroom. Her heart would race each time she added something new to the collection. She knew that Raoul would not be angry with her, but felt guilty nonetheless.
Then one night as she lay awake next to Raoul, she could not stop tears from dripping down the sides of her face. Her heart felt sad and empty. Her marriage, while safe, did not provide her the passion she craved. She knew that this was the life Raoul offered, but found herself brushing off his affection and advances. He never questioned or forced himself on her. She sought after this normalcy and now detested it more with each passing day. Raoul's mannerisms, voice and even his presence made her cringe inside. Upon hearing him come into the house, Christine would immediately move from room to room, avoiding him as much as possible. He seemed content to play with Jean. At night, it was Erik's voice that lulled her to sleep each night. As she closed her eyes to fade into sleep, she was comforted by the face of a man who wasn't her husband. Though she tried to fight it initially, she began to fantasize about Erik.
Every November, right before Jean's birthday, Raoul and Christine would join his parents and his brother's family for a vacation in the French countryside. She dreaded the thought of going again and wanted to spend sometime alone. She wanted to find Erik. Christine wanted to know if he was safe. She felt that this would be her only opportunity. Devising a plan, she decided that on her next trip to Paris, she would have an invitation commissioned at a stationery shop. It would be her only legitimate excuse to avoid the trip. Returning to Paris the second week in October, she placed it in the mail to be delivered to the manor in Champigny.
It conveniently arrived three days before they were to travel to the de Chagny estate. Christine enthusiastically showed her husband the invitation asking her to attend a gala in her honor in just one-week time. When Raoul offered to forgo their holiday and escort her, she quickly dismissed him. Raoul was hesitant to let her go. It might not be safe for her to go to Paris unaccompanied. She knew that Raoul's family was looking forward to seeing Jean. Christine feigned disappointment, but insistently asked if she should go. She argued that it was time to put the past behind them. Besides, she reasoned to him, his parents were so looking forward to spending some time with their only grandchild. Raoul could rarely deny her anything she asked of him.
And so it was decided. Raoul would escort her to Paris, where she would be able to stay at a local hotel for an extended stay. Francois, the stableman, would bring the carriage in two weeks so that she may return and spend the remaining week of her holiday alone resting at home. Raoul and Jean would return right before Jean's birthday. Christine was jubilant over the success of her scheming. It was only until she kissed her son farewell excitedly, that her guilt set in. She was betraying the oath she made to Raoul and the intrinsic trust she held as the mother of her family, but now it was too late to go back. She had to find him.
No one in town could even validate Erik's existence, let alone his whereabouts. The newspapers were able to convince the majority of the town that the closing of the Opera house was merely to blame on a simple stage fire that escalated into the destruction of the building. When Christine tried to locate her former cast mates and dancers, she was saddened to discover that they were unable to find work in Paris and had scattered across the country. The local playhouses refused to let them perform in their troops fearing that the Phantom would follow and lead them to ruin. Madame Giry and Meg seemed to have disappeared as well.
Most tragic of all, Christine learned that La Carlotta had passed away seven months ago. After returning to Italy, the theaters refused to accept her. She was far too old and dated to debut as a headliner. Not finding success, she returned to Paris in the hopes that the "Phantom fiasco" was finally over. After two months of no work and her landlord threatening to put her back on the street, she resorted to joining a brothel. Soon after, the local authorities reported that she was found dead in a hotel room, an empty vial of opiates lying next to her. Christine was comforted only slightly after she learned that her body was laid to rest next to Ublando's.
She knew the horror that Erik was capable of. He was largely regarded as a murderer and manipulator. However, Christine was one of the few people who knew that there was a gentle and vulnerable man behind his mask. The tenderness that he held her with was what brought her here. Christine could still remember the release he had after she kissed him. She did not doubt that Erik had changed since that night. There was only one place she thought he could be. Hiring a coach, she traveled back to the theater. Erik could no longer be the monster he once was. Christine had to believe that her love changed him.