Chapter 7: Conflicts and resolutions
Raoul's POV
The next day was beautiful one. It was warm and pleasane outside, with just a hint of a breeze blowing through the oak trees on our drive. It was around four o'clock or so in the afternoon, and we had just returned from the opera house. There had been no strange incidents today, much to everyone's relief. Since it was such a lovely day Christine and I had decided to to go to an early dinner at a quaint outdoor cafe's taht we had discovered. I was waiting outside as I readied the horses, taking in the fresh November air. I smiled as I gazed upon our home. It was a white victorian style house with a wrap-around porch that was so popular these days. It had red shutters and stained glass in the front door.
It was located just outside the city and had a barn and trails to ride on. The vast acres were green with rolling hills, and even had a small pond at the end of the riding trail. It was truly the home that Christine and I had always dreamed of; the perfect house to begin to raise a family of our own. The horses stomped their hooves impatiently as though they were anxious to get moving. A few moments later, I heard the front door close and saw Christine coming out of it, softly singing the tune to 'Think of Me'. She donned a floaty pink dress, and on her shoulders there rested a long white cloak to keep out the slight winter chill. She had left all of her curls down, and had applied very subtle cosmetics. The eager smile on her face reminded me of our childhood days that had been spent running on the beach and gazing at the stars. She came towards me and gave me a quic k kiss on the cheek , a light in those eyes that always seemed to hold a secret message.
"Raoul,. I'm looking quite forward to this. It will be nice to get away from all that has happened as of late, and have a dinner with just the two of us." she said as I helped her into the carriage.
"Indeed it will, darling." I said as I too climbed in. "And if we see anyone we know, we shall duck and run." I grinned.
She laughed sunnily at this remark. But just as I took the leather reins in my hands, a carriage bearing my family crest pulled up.
"What is Phillipe doing here at this hour?" asked Christine curiously.
"I have no idea." I replied, a bit disgruntled. I was almost sure that this had something to do with Phillipe worrying about me.
I hopped down from the carriage and went to greet Phillipe. He gave me the usual brotherly hug, but when he pulled back I could see that he looked rather frazzled.
"Phillipe," I said, worried now. "You look rather distraught." Christine too, climbed down from the carriage, a concerned expression on her features.
"I must say that I am Raoul. There has been yet another robbery by those damnable gypsies, and the man who was robbed was a partner in my firm!" he said exaperatedly.
"Was he hurt?" asked Christine as she grasped my hand.
"Not badly, thankfully." said Phillipe. "But that is not the only thing that is on my mind. I heard something quite disconcerting about the events at the opera house yesterday."
I gaped at my brother. How was it that he managed to find out anything and everything that went on in this city?
"The Phantom made an appearance, that is all." I said, trying to give him the least worriesome version. My brother had enough on his plate, and I didn't want him fretting about this.
"That is certainly not what I heard from Andre and Firmin when I ran into them yesterday. They informed me that he made an attempt on your life, and he insisted that his opera be performed! Firmin looked quite ruffled about it all. He kept mumbling about how he wasn't going to let the Phantom kidnap his Primma Donna, or set his opera on fire ever again."
"Phillipe you needn't worry about it." I began, but before I could finish he interrupted.
"Not worry!" he exploded. "There is a madman roaming the opera halls, and gypsies robbing all the wealthy of Paris, and you tell me not to worry! You and Christine are the most important people in the world to me, and I will not have anything happen to you." He stopped, trying to catch his breath.
"We'll be alright Phillipe," said Christine calmly as she put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "We'll be careful"
He gave her a slight smile, bout shook his dark blonde head. "I am going to strongly suggest that the both of you leave Paris."
I stared at my elder brother unbelievingly. Leave Paris? We had just gotten settled in! It had taken the both of us so long to be able to permanently return to Paris, and to our lives. Christine was finally back in the opera buisness, and I was to begin work at Phillipe's law firm tommorow; and I refused to give that up now.
"No Phillipe," I said quietly. "We are happy and content here in Paris; we won't be leaving."
Phillipe looked at me, seemingly shocked that I had defied his words. His hazel eyes were clouded with worry, but now frustration was added to that.
"I am you brother Raoul, and you will do as I say." He replied, his tone firm.
I felt a tinge of anger begin to lace my words as I answered. "And I am a grown man Phillipe! I am twenty, not seven. Christine and I will be staying here, and I will report to the office tommorow as planned." I said, a bit more heatedly than I had intended.
Phillipe looked at me with an incredulous expression, his forehead wrinkled, and his fists clenched. His eyes seemed to hold a fiery expression. "Raoul de Chagny, you shall do as I say. When mother and father passed away I promised that I would take care of you, and I shall hold to it!1"
I felt the anger welling up inside me, fighting its battle wit htthe guilt that was building up for defying my brother.
"Phillipe," I said trying to remain calm. "You are and always shall be my brother, and I shall always listen and probably most often take your advice, but as for this, I really think it best that we stay here. I shall not run for fear of what could happen." I stopped, trying to read my brother's face, trying to discern what was going on inside his mind. It was then that the soft voice of my beloved wife spoke up, cutting through the tension.
"You may check on us as often as you like Phillipe, for I agree that there are some dangerous things going on, but the two of you fighting is not right and I don't like seeing it. Besides, arguing solves nothing." she said seriously.
I smiled at her, my eyes thanking her for her wisdom and her patience. She always seemed to know how to settle problems and just how to make things better.
"Christine is right Phillipe, Fighting will do us no good."
I saw his expression soften, and saw the anger leave his eyes. He sighed as he clapped a hand on my shoulder. "I'm sorry Raoul, I had no intention of getting short with you." He said apologetically. "I simply can't help worrying about you. You and Christine mean everything to me, and when I heard about what happened at the opera, I had to come. I almost lost you last year Raoul and I do not wish to go through that again." he said, his voice slightly shaky, as though he were trying to fight back tears.
"I promise that Christine and I will be very careful, and as Christine said, you may check in on us whenever you like. I'm sorry for yelling, you know how my temper is. But you needn't worry so Phillipe, leave some of that to me." I smiled at him, glad that the argument was over; Phillipe and I had hardly ever really fought.
Phillipe grinned at me, then looked down at his watch and his eyes widened. "Oh my, I am late for a dinner appointment! I must be going!"
He turned and gave Christine a swift kiss on the cheek, wishing her good luck with her singing, and bidding her to be careful. He then proceeded to tousle my hair as he had often done when I was a child, and told me that he was looking forward to my first day of work at the firm tommorow. He bid us goodbye and jumped into the carriage. It took off in a rush, leaving a cloud of dust in the air. I shook my head. I often worried that my brother would give himself a heart attack with his constant anxiety. But God bless him, he always meant well.
Christine and I finally set off to the restaurant, just as the sun began to set, sending sprays of pink and purple across the sky We parked the horses at a stable near the restaurant, and walked the rest of the way to dinner hand in hand. But it was a curious thing, for as we were seated at out table for two, we spotted Meg and Lucien sitting together, just across the way.
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A/N: Hey everyone, I hope that you like this! I hope to have the next chapter up sooner than this one was, but school is a killer, plus all of my college applications. Okay, just to say some things; This story is mostly movie/musical based, but there are some influences from Leroux. I made Raoul twenty, as he is in the book, and I also took Phillipe from the book, I just opted to keep him alive, as I like his character. Christine is eighteen as she is in the musical. The course of events, however, follow the movie. Erik is a mix of both, having the appearance of the Webber Erik, but having bits of the personality of the Leroux Erik. Raoul, Christine, Meg, and Madame Giry all have the appearances that they do in the movie.Lucien, my original character is twenty as well. There is a good surprise on the way my friends, and the plot is going to thicken even more soon. You will also see a bit more of Erik in future chapters. Thankyou so much to all of my reviewers, it is you who keep me going. RC forever!
jtbwriter- I'm glad that you liked it! I am also glad that you think I'm keeping Raoul true to form, I really want people to see his real character! Thanks so much, I love your reviews, they keep me writing!
Glitter Queen of the Ice Show- Thanks for reviewing, your reviews always make me laugh(Raoul is sexy!) By the way, I love Kidnapped. Speaking of that, Kidnapped was actually one of the things that inspired me to write this story, thought I'd let you know!
Nota Lone- Ya, I'm a big fan of RC. I'm so glad that you like this, I always love to get new reviewers! Sorry about those typos, sometimes I wonder if I'm dyslexic(lol)
Child of the Seine- Ya, you know I couldn't believe how much EC there was when I first started reading Phanfiction. I'm a huge RC supporter, so I'm sticking to my guns! Good luck with your Erik/Madame Giry fic, by the way, I hope to check it out soon!