What Fate Holds
By: Koneko-chan

First off I want to state that I don't own any of the Phantom characters, especially my beloved Erik. Drools I wish I did, he's so hot! And he's all mine in this fic! My first one too hehehe.

Summary: Victoria and her baby girl, Emily, were abandoned after Victoria's husband died of an illness. They came to the Opera Populaire with Victoria's hopes of using her talent in singing to earn them both some money. What she didn't know was that the infamous Phantom still lurked in the shadows of the Opera House. Set 5 years after Don Juan Triumphant.

A/N: SORRY TO ALL THOSE WHO READ MY STORY AND DIDN'T GET CHAPTER 1! I had a small mishap with fixing chapter 5 and accidently put it in instead. Here's chapter 1, and again SORRY!

Chapter 1: A New Life

Victoria sighed, staring up at her home for the last time. She looked at the baby girl down in her arms and smiled when she saw her sleeping peacefully. Looking back up at her house, she remembered her life there. She was only 25 years old and had only been married for 3 years before her husband passed away. Hearing the hooves of a horse, she turned and looked down the road, seeing a carriage making its way toward her and her old home. She bit her lip in nervousness and grabbed her suitcase with one hand, her other arm holding her little girl. She glanced back at the house one last time and turned away, struggling to stop the tears in her eyes from falling.

When the carriage stopped in front of her, the driver jumped down and grabbed her bag from her, putting it inside before helping her up. "Where too, Madame?" the driver asked her politely. "To the Opera Populaire, s'il vous plait," she said with a polite smile, hugging her daughter close to her. The driver nodded and climbed up onto his seat at the front, grabbing the reins. Victoria gave one last look at her house, her old life, before the carriage started on its way.

She leaned back against her seat, cuddling her daughter close to her. As they ran through the streets of Paris, she closed her eyes and tried to think of the new life before her and her daughter. She had an amazing talent for singing that she never pursued, no matter how much her husband encouraged her. She used to sing for him and him alone until their daughter came along, then she sang her lullabies to get her to sleep. She looked down at her daughter and smiled to herself. Emily looked so much like her father, she had black hair of her father and the beautiful blue eyes that she inherited from her mom. Victoria ran her fingers through Emily's soft black hair and smiled when Emily shifted in her sleep, reaching out her little hand to cling to her mom's cloak.

After about a half hour, the carriage pulled to a halt in front of the Opera Populaire. "Here we are Madame, Opera Populaire," the driver said, helping her out of the carriage. She stared up at the opera house that she had heard so many stories about. It had been repaired as much as possible after the fire of 5 years ago and was back in working order performing operas. She picked up her bag when the driver set it next to her and took a deep breath. "You best be careful Madame. The stories of this opera house are not just stories, they are very true," said the driver, climbing back into his seat. Without another thought he took off into the night, leaving Victoria there with her bag and her daughter.

Victoria looked around slowly, feeling that someone was watching her. Shaking it off, she held Emily tighter to her and started toward the opera house. She stepped into the dark opera house, her shoulders squared and her chin high. Two women, both with the same features, greeted her only one looked older than the other. "Welcome to the Opera Populaire, my dear, " the older women said with a warm smile, "My name is Madame Giry and this is my daughter, Meg." The younger girl smiled at her and curtsied. "I'm very pleased to meet you both," Victoria said with a small bow. "My name is Victoria Beauchamp, and this is my daughter, Emily." Meg crooned when she saw the sleeping Emily in her arms. "She's beautiful Mademoiselle," Madame Giry said with a smile, "Come, Meg and I will show you to your room while you are staying here." Victoria nodded and picked up her suitcase, only to have it pulled out of her hands by Meg. "I'll carry it for you, you've got your hands full," Meg said with a smile. Victoria smiled in appreciation and followed Madame Giry down the halls of the opera house.

"So Mademoiselle, you've told me that you sing. How long have you been singing?" Madame Giry asked, trying to make conversation as they walked though the dark halls backstage. "I've been singing my entire life really, since I was five," Victoria said, looking at her surroundings. As she looked up at the rafters she thought she saw a shadow move across the top, but shrugged it off as her imagination.

They reached the room a few minutes later and Madame Giry opened the door, revealing what was inside. As Victoria stepped into the room she smiled at the simplicity of the room. It had a vanity, a bed for her, a crib for Emily, and a door leading to a bathroom on one side. The one thing that stood out though, was the large mirror at the end of the room. Madame Giry noticed her eying the mirror and looked between her and it. "There is something I must warn you about, my dear," Madame Giry said, gently placing her hand on Victoria's shoulder. Meg set her suitcase down beside the bed and looked nervously between her mother and the new girl. "There are stories about this opera house that you must heed. There once lived a Phantom here, though he is believed to be dead now, that does not mean that there are dangers that lie within in the Opera Populaire. Be careful, mademoiselle," Madame Giry said before taking Meg's arm and heading out the door, shutting it behind her.

I've heard the stories of the Phantom of the Opera and I do not fear him, nor any trap that may lie dormant in this opera house, Victoria thought to herself, walking over to the crib. She placed her sleeping daughter in it and covered her with the blanket. She smiled to herself as Emily sighed and snuggled deeper into the blanket. Taking off her cloak, she walked over and hung it on the door before lying down on her bed. "I think this is the start of a wonderful new life," she whispered to herself, falling asleep almost instantly. She never noticed the pair of piercing blue eyes that watched her from behind her mirror.

I know, it's kinda short, but I'm working on it. Review please! But I beg you, don't flame me! This only my first fanfic, not to mention my first phan-fic. Lemme know what you guys think! Chapter 2 will be up soon. Thanx!

Koneko-chan