Author's Note
Hello again, fellow Phantom fans! I have returned for another go at
this fan fiction stuff. Did you all enjoy the last one? Should I
bother with a sequel? Kidding! But of course I shall! That's what
everyone's been waiting for, right? Sorry to leave everyone on a
cliffie, but you know you can't have a sequel without a good
cliffhanger. Once again, I just want to praise all the veteran
fiction writers here that have so many wonderful Phantom stories. I
thank those that I have read that inspired me to give it a try. This
is my second attempt at a fan fiction, so I hope everyone will enjoy
it as much as the first. Just a reminder, I'm not a pro novelist or
anything. I just loved the characters from the 2004 movie and it
inspired me to write. I'm a diehard E/C supporter and I try and
keep the characters true, with a bit of my own take on them, for the
sake of my storyline. Raoul lovers should like this story. Heck, my
last fic made me like Raoul!
Regarding Foreign Languages
My French is not perfect, but I do try to add a bit of it in this
story, now and then. Should you find any mistakes, I'll be happy to
edit them in. Just let me know. I'll also be adding a bit of
Italian also, this time around, so bear with me.
Rating Note
There will be intimacy, hence the M Rating for later Chapters. It
will be kept to "Romance Novel" level, not smut.
Special Thanks
To my boyfriend Jon, for putting up with my Phantom and Gerry
obsession. He'll also be aiding me with editing along the way, so I
thank him in advance for having to read and deal with my romantic
fluff.
Read & Review if you'd like. I will do my best to reply. But please refrain from flames.
Thank You,
-Phanatic4Phantom a.k.a. Dyanicess
Disclaimer
I do not own any of these beautiful characters. My heartfelt thanks
to Gaston Leroux, Andrew Lloyd Webber, and Susan Kay, for giving the
world The Phantom of the Opera. Huge thanks to Joel Schumacher for
putting the Phantom on the big screen.
Story Background
This is based mostly on the 2004 movie and its characters portrayed
therein, with a bit of Leroux and Kay references now and then. I'm
going to attempt to put my own spin on Erik's background, so please
keep an open mind. Just thought I'd warn you all now in case people
wonder. I suggest at least reading the last Chapter of "To Be
Held" just so that you can get an idea what is going on in this
continuation.
And now, I present to you…
Truth
Be Told
The
Sequel for "To Be Held"
We last left our lovely characters at the reopening of the Opera Populaire. Raoul has proposed to Meg, Nadir is off in Morocco, and Erik and Christine are in Melun… for now…
CHAPTER 1The magnificent Opera Populaire reopened to its Parisian citizens on the day of the Bastille. The production of Pierre Carlet de Chamblain de Marivaux's "The Game of Love and Chance" was a huge success as was the masked ball that followed. The events of the exciting evening were headlined across the front page of the morning paper.
"Opera Populaire reopens to a sold out audience … … … Monsieur and Madame Delacroix were spellbinding as Silvia and Durante … … … Mademoiselle Giry surprised the audience with her acting debut … … … Le Comte Raoul de Chagny graced the stage with his hidden talent … … … Balle masquée was more than just a celebration for the opera house, as le Comte proposed to Mademoiselle Giry … … … Wedding date to be announced … … …"
The year seemed to be full of promise and it was only half over. One could only hope that the rest of the year would finish without chaos or controversy, a peaceful and uneventful close.
Falling asleep at his desk in the study, Erik was awoken by the loving touch of his Angel. Christine had worried about her husband since he had mentioned he would join her shortly. An hour had gone by and he had not met her upstairs. "An hour too long," she thought to herself as she traveled down the staircase and into the study.
"Erik?" she placed a tender hand upon his shoulder, "Come to bed with me," she whispered.
Erik hadn't meant to fall asleep at his desk. He wrote up a response to Nadir's letter and called to his butler, Nicolas, to deliver it to a messenger without delay. That was the last thing he remembered. "This entire day's events are to blame," he reasoned. All the excitement had finally caught up to him in the end. He would have an even busier day tomorrow though. "How will I explain the need to journey to Morocco?" It was something he chose to worry about after a well-deserved night's sleep. With a sigh, he followed Christine up the spiral staircase and to the master suite.
Raoul brought the Giry's home from the opera house. Upon reaching their flat, he kissed his soon to be mother-in-law on both cheeks and asked her permission to see Meg for lunch and discuss their wedding arrangements. Madame Giry smiled and granted his request without a second thought.
"You must join us for dinner then," she insisted.
He graciously accepted her request whole-heartedly.
Annette was excited to have her daughter married off to a distinguished and honorable young man such as Raoul. She never thought of something like this happening to her darling girl, not with the way the circumstances had come about in the first place. Nonetheless, it had all turned out for the best and everyone she loved and cared about were happy.
Kissing his lovely fiancée goodbye, Raoul climbed into his carriage and settled himself within. Leaning his head against the wall, he let out a long sigh of contentment; closing his eyes and smiling. His driver, Francois, clucked his tongue and maneuvered the horses down the cobblestone street, making their way to the de Chagny estate. Moments later and unseen to all, a second carriage departed in haste, rushing furiously along another route. The unknown vehicle was determined to beat the Comte back to his estate.
The two ominous men stood outside of the de Chagny residence, watching from the east wall of the property as Raoul entered the front door. The lights inside of the estate soon dimmed and the two men made their way back to their carriage and onto the road; driving away from the grand estate.
The burly man yawned as he asked, "What are we going to do for the rest of the night, Ranier?"
"We get some sleep, Guifford, you dullard!" The thin man responded, annoyed at his partner's senselessness.
After several moments of traveling in the dead of night, they came across a quaint little inn. The Roost was a small building a few miles away from the de Chagny estate, which suited their needs perfectly. In the morning, Ranier would make sure to send word to his boss of their location and ask what further plans he had intended for them. "Surely there is more to this than spending all my precious time secretly babysitting some snobby nobleman." That was how Ranier perceived the young Comte, as just another wealthy brat, born with a silver spoon in his mouth.
It was another warm night in Marrakech, Morocco. Nadir stood out on the balcony watching the purple and orange colors dance across the horizon as the sun began to set. "This sky reminds me of Persia," he recalled, almost misty eyed. It had been almost four months since his manservant had called him away from Melun. He didn't wish to leave Erik, due to Christine's condition at the time, but this was a matter that could not be overlooked.
Valente Ramunni, a man Erik had befriended during his time in Italy, specialized in the field of investigation. Upon hearing of Erik's bizarre past, he offered his services to him freely. Erik was hesitant and quite skeptical at Valente's offer, but obliged him nonetheless being intrigued at what the man could possibly turn up if anything. As Erik became more financially sound, he made sure to send him funds to further his work more efficiently. All he had to go on was the name of Erik's mother, Madeleine, and the town he had lived in for all of nine years. Over the course of his investigation, the only thing Valente had been able to uncover was Erik's surname of Delacroix, which he obtained from an old servant that used to be employed by Madeleine. The elderly woman had also given Valente a diary that once belonged to her mistress and upon further inspection of its contents, the information that once seemed such a small reward was now worth its weight in gold. In complete disbelief, Valente journeyed from France to Morocco as he dug further into the Delacroix name. What he stumbled across was an even greater tale than that of which Erik had shared with him about his upbringing.
Nadir had sent his manservant, Darius, to aid in Valente's investigation since the discovery of the surname. His intuitive sense had once again proved to be undeniable, as he received word from Morocco months later. They had uncovered something significant to Erik's past. Once he arrived at the riad in Marrakech, they told him of what they knew. As each account was being told between the two, Nadir listened with astonishment, trying his best to keep an objective mind to the revelations unfolding before him.
"It cannot be true! But if it is, then…" Nadir paused, trying to take in all of which he had just been told.
"Sì, it is possible what you are thinking, mio amico, but we have yet to determine its validity," Valente informed.
Nadir insisted on investigating every detail for himself before sending word to his masked friend. It had taken him months to gather the information he needed to supply Erik with. There would be no room for him to doubt Nadir's own findings.
Author's Note x2
My apologies in advance for such a short chapter. I plan to update once a week (every Friday) or more if my writings permit me.
Disclaimer
I am not affiliated with Pierre Carlet de Chamblain de Marivaux nor do I own the rights to his production of "The Game of Love and Chance."