A/N: We have reached the end at last. To those that reviewed, thank you so much for your kind words. It has been so much fun to read them and respond. To those who will be reading this in the future after it is finished, please review as well. As I said at the beginning, this story is my baby and I will be checking on it from time to time. I would love to read any new comments and will still try to respond to any reviews that are made. To all that have read all the way from beginning to end, I am honored that you chose to spend your valuable time doing so. That is truly humbling to me. (And this sucker wasn't short either!) Well hopefully by now we have laughed, we have cried, and now it is time to say goodbye. Do read the Epilogue though: it is the true ending to the story.

Now that I am done posting for a while, I hope that I can have a chance to get back to reading all those great fics out there. I promise to go through and read as many fics belonging to my reviewers as I can and write reviews. It may take me a while to get through them all, though. I hope to try my hand at another fic later down the road, since everyone has responded so well to this one. It may be a while, but I will be back!

Anyway, on with the story! Thank you to you all.

DarkestDreams

BellaSorella: Very cute screen name, sister dear! Thank you so much for putting up with my phantom obsession all the way to the Epilogue. Now THAT is sisterly devotion. And to all you other phans out there – for the record, BellaSorella is a talented little author herself. So let's all pester her to write a fic of her own!

Ch. 50 -Epilogue

The funeral for Comte Erik Alexander Frederick de Chagny was a huge affair. Although Erik had given strict instructions long ago for a small family funeral, this one time his family disobeyed his wishes. At the news of the notoriously private man's death, such an enormous outpouring of public grief had taken place that the family felt obligated to allow those that wished to take part in it. It was strange that a man whose interactions with the human race had been so limited had somehow managed to leave a lasting impression on so many.

His beloved family, which had grown considerably over the years, was of course in attendance, once more dressed in black. This time their grief was just as heavy as before, and in some ways greater. In the years of Christine's absence, the man they were here to honor had been everything to them all.

Erik's coffin was adorned with one single red rose for each member of his immediate family. As a tribute to him, his four children performed the requiem he had written for their mother during the long months following her death. Those in attendance stood in awe at the incredible legacy of talent, beauty, and strength that this remarkable man left behind him.

When the four de Chagny children returned to their seats, Father Dominic, now an old man stepped forward to address the crowd. His words were simple and true. "Erik de Chagny led a unique and complex life. It was not always an easy life, and he would be the first to tell you that he did not lead it perfectly." At this, the four de Chagny children smiled sadly in unison. "But the Erik we knew was a brilliant man. He was a man of many talents, a musical and architectural genius. He was a man of quick wit and humor, as well as a man of great sensitivity and insight. Yes, he was truly a remarkable man. And yet of all the talents he possessed in abundance, the one that he is most known for and of which he possessed in greatest measure was his talent for loving his wife and his family steadfastly throughout their time together. Beneath his sometimes forbidding exterior, Erik possessed an incredible capacity to love. Of all Erik Alexander Frederick de Chagny's legacies, this will truly be his greatest."

The priest paused to look over at the tear-stained faces of the Comte's family. His face was kind as he continued, "We weep today only for our own loss. For we know without a doubt our Erik is with his beloved Christine at last, and he is happy."