Hey there! Long time no seek! Yeah, yeah, been gone forever, now feel really awkward about starting a new fic. Many people are probably not going to read it anyway. Oh well. Because I love the story so much, I'm doing my own little parody of "Pride and Prejudice" with characters from PotO, Sherlock Holmes, one or two from other stories related to one of them, and my own characters that relate to either one story or the other. Some of the original characters in this story are characters I'm using in another story I'm in the process of writing. That, however, will probably not show up for a while. Anyway, to the disclaimer:

I do not own any Phantom or Sherlock Holmes characters, nor do I own the plot to Pride and Prejudice. Kudos go to Leroux, Doyle, and Austen. You guys are awesome. I also do not own several of the names that I am giving to places and buildings. I do make them up to a point, but they are inspired by names of things that already exist.

I do, however, own the original characters. There are one or two that I don't particularly care about, but in general, please don't take my characters. You got that? No touchy.

(Warning: Family trees are going to be pretty mucked up by this end of this story. Please do not take this to heart. Repeat to yourself, "It is only fan fiction, it is only fan fiction ...)

And now, ladies and gents, I give you Pride and Prejudice . . . my own twisted version.

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Prologue

Thought you were gonna just dive right in, eh? Well, this is an AU story with a lot of family tree confusion, so I'll just lay out the setting for you so you can settle in.

Erik is the son of Charles Noir, the son of a stone mason who inherited a gentleman's fortune from an estranged relative. He built a mansion on a well-to-do estate just outside the town of Rouen. The estate was named le Château de Jumièges. (Sue me, I don't know French!) Anyway, Charles and his wife Madeleine had several children, the first being Erik. Despite the will of the mother that the estate should go to the next eldest son rather than the "creature," the father insisted that the law could not deny Erik's rights. Madeleine passed away first, then Charles shortly afterward, leaving the estate and all the wealth to a disfigured young genius. His heart was claimed by a young soprano named Christine Daae, foster daughter of Professor and Madame Valerius. She was also being pursued by the ambitious Raoul, the Vicomte de Chagny. Despite his superiority in wealth and position, Christine eventually chose Erik over Raoul (yay!), married him and went to live in his home. Due to depression and destitution that followed Christine's refusal, Raoul squandered much of his inheritance and was left with nearly nothing. His only relief came when he fell in love with and married none other than one of Erik's sisters (gasp!). This, of course, caused a great deal of tension in the family, but in the end Erik was willing to give them a humble dwelling in Brittony granted to his father from the same relative, which happened to be right next to the very opulent estate of Lady Dorothy de Vernier. But that is for later.

While Raoul and Erik's sister (whose name will not be mentioned since it is not important) had one son, Christoph de Chagny, Erik and Christine were encumbered with five daughters. The eldest was Charlotte Noir, considered the most beautiful of all the girls and the most similar to her mother in appearance (except her eyes were sea green and her darker blonde hair). The second eldest, and the heroine of our story, was Angelique Noir. She was considered the most rebellious, clever, and witty of the girls, with beauty that nearly competed with that of Charlotte. Madeleine Noir was the middle child who was somewhat of an oddball. She preferred to sit at home and either practice on the piano or read a book. Although she had her own form of beauty, she was the plainest and most nerdy of the girls. Rose and Lottie Noir were the youngest and silliest in the family, Rose the elder by two years. They were rambunctious flirts who loved parties and loved to make spectacles of themselves.

Unfortunately, these girls were now forced to find husbands before their father passed on. Why? Since Erik and Christine gave birth to no son, all of Erik's estate would be entailed away from the female line to Christoph de Chagny, who was at the time an orphan and a clergyman. (Talk about the past coming back to nip you in the butt.)

Now, a leap in the other direction . . .

Sherlock Holmes was the descendant of a long line of country squires, a line in which his other family members hoped he would follow. He was the second-eldest son of Siger and Violet Holmes, Mycroft Holmes being the first. While Mycroft was originally supposed to inherit the estate of Wold Newton and all of its wealth, he managed to escape by receiving a high and important position in the British government. So the buff was passed to Sherlock. In his youth he had hoped to pursue a career as a consulting detective and had begun adopting the "Bohemian" lifestyle. His relatives, however, including his aunt Lady Dorothy de Vernier, wished to encourage him to pursue a life more fitting for a gentleman of his "proper" status. In the end Holmes was permitted a residence at 221B Baker Street in London, but was at the same time required to tend to his residence at Wold Newton after his father's death. After said father's death, Mycroft and Sherlock became the joint-guardians of their younger sister Sigrin Holmes.

Among other things, Lady Dorothy was planning for her nephew and her daughter Violet de Vernier to be wed at some point, although Holmes had thus far rejected most women and had no intention of even courting other women. There is one woman, Irene Adler, of who was part of his little social circle. There was also her cousin Victor Trevor to whom Holmes had been for many years a good and trustworthy friend. Holmes' only other close friend was Dr. John H. Watson, who shared his quarters at Baker Street and sometimes accompanied him through the country along with Mycroft. Beside this small circle of friends, Holmes was not a very gregarious fellow. At social gatherings he was often viewed as being "disagreeable," "resentful," and even "proud." Holmes made no effort to contradict anyone's negative views of him, for he did not care about their opinions. Victor Trevor, on the other hand, was one of the most agreeable and amiable gentlemen one could ever meet in their lifetime. While he was always eager to approve, while his closest friend was determined to be displeased. It was amazing that such opposites could be such good friends. This was partly due to the fact that Trevor acknowledged Holmes as a clever man, even more than himself who was to his own estimation quite intelligent, and often sought his advice on matters great and small. Holmes, on the other hand, found Trevor's vivacity and wide-eyed eagerness a comfortable and entertaining hiatus from the strict decorum and stuffiness that he often faced every day of his life. Yet his friend's extrovert behavior would not rub off on the part-time detective.

All right, that's enough. I think you get the idea. So, let us FINALLY get on with the story. Dim the lights . . .