NOTE: I own nothing except Orva.

Months passed. It was now December, and their home had cooled accordingly. Everything was perfect. Almost like one of Orva's fairytales that she had liked to read when she was younger. They had progressively gotten better at the physical relationship business, becoming so skilled that Erik was eventually able to get Orva to orgasm, much to her breath-taking surprise, and his chagrin.

Currently, however, Erik sat at his organ, composing a suitably Christmas-themed opera. Orva came up behind him, watching him scribble away on the music sheets. She pressed a hand against her stomach, a buttery warmth filling up inside of her. Her period was a month late.

"Do you remember, when you first got here?" Erik asked.

She smiled, and wrapped her arms around him. "I-I d-do. You d-didn't like me v-very much then."

He gave an appreciative smirk. "You know, I never did figure out how you got down here."

"Y-you w-wouldn't believe m-me if I t-told you."

"I used to believe that Christine was my soulmate. Try me."

She sighed, and leaned back. "L-let u-us say, th-there was magic i-in the air that n-night. Christine and I happened t-to be singing the same note a-at the same time, and her voice l-led me to you."

"That's rather fanciful."

"T-truth i-is stranger th-than fiction."

He chuckled, then looked over at her, a thoughtful look in his eyes. He still wore his mask and wig, despite Orva's persuasions. He told her it was more of a matter of his own personal embarrassment over his deformity, than his trust in her. "You know...when you focused, and practiced, you were a pretty good singer."

"Hmph, y-you th-think s-so?" She crossed her arms, arching an eyebrow.

He turned back to his organ. "Though you have become quite handy at the pipe organ, it would be beneficial if you could create beautiful music with your own pipes."

She giggled appreciatively, and moved beside him. "I-I m-might as w-well. How could I-I possibly turn down m-my faithful teacher?" He grinned, and they began the lesson. What she had learned from Christine came in handy, and found that with a few tries, she was able to strike many of the notes. Higher and higher the notes climbed, closing in on the high C. Orva took a deep breath, shut her eyes, and vocalised. Perfect. The note rang out, clear and high and true, without any sort of cave reverberations to ruin it. Such a feeling of nostalgia washed over her, it made her feel warm. Really warm.

"Orva?" a familiar, yet long discarded voice suddenly asked. She choked in surprise, and opened her eyes.

What she saw made her heart stop.

She was back in her living room. There was the white couch, there was the glass coffee table. And there was her father, sitting there with one of the pillows tucked under his arm.

"Orva," he gasped, his voice cracking and tears spilling down his face. "Oh, Orva." He leapt up, wrapping his arms around her and giving her a tight hug. She couldn't respond, only staring and looking around her. Her mind felt slow, like the cogs of a clock trying to turn through sludge. She looked outside the window, and saw that there was a blizzard, blanketing the outside world. Some familair music touched her ears, and she twisted her neck around to look at the tv. Phantom of the Opera was playing, at the scene where Erik had first taken Christine down to his lair to seduce her, immediately after her vocalisation. It clicked, and she took a shuddering gasp, trying to suppress a scream, and turned her attention back to her father.

"Orva, Orva my love-bucket, my pumpkin..." He was blubbering, moving his hands all over her, as if afraid that she might disappear if he didn't maintain constant contact. "I'd thought I'd lost you. You were gone for over a year. Even your mother was worried. Oh, where did you go? You missed your birthday. It was dreadful, it felt like the anniversary for a funeral or something. Oh Orva." His eyes widened a bit, flicking up and down her trembling frame. She kept gasping and swallowing, desperately trying to remain calm and keep the tears in check. "Orva...what's happened to you? You look so different, you're wearing such strange clothes, your eyes..." He stopped crying. "You're older. So much older."

"F-F-Father..." she choked. "I-i-is t-today...Friday th-th-the 13th?"

"I...it is." She cried out, no longer able to hold anything back. She crumbled onto the floor, sobbing. "Orva! Orva, what is it? What's wrong?! Please, tell me! What's the matter?"

"W-w-why w-were you w-watching Phantom of th-the Opera?!"

"It, it was your favorite movie, I remember. I though that maybe, if I watched it, I could feel a little bit closer to you." He stared at her. "Why? What's wrong?"

She couldn't answer for a few minutes, the grief felt so raw. Oh god, he's going to think I've betrayed him. After all this time... After all we've been through. I can't just leave him! "I-I h-have to g-go back."

"Back? Back where? Orva, you just got here!" He gripped her shoulders, forcing her to look at him. "Orva, please, tell me what's wrong! Are you in trouble? I can help you, please, just tell me what to do!"

She swallowed, and focused on steadying her breathing. "I-I-I h-have... to e-explain everything. And y-you need me to b-believe me, in order to h-help me."

"Yes, of course."

"N-no m-matter how f-far-fetched."

"Orva, I'll do anything for you. Please, let me help you." He relaxed his grip, and she forced herself to calm down. Looking back up at him, she began. Her long, improbable story of where she'd gone, and what she'd been doing. He simply stared at her the entire time, his expression blank. She left out the innapropriate bits, and abridged the songs, but otherwise the story stayed very close to the truth.

"A-and n-now..." Her throat felt a bit sore from how long she'd been talking. And now... Now what? What am I supposed to do? Sreams emitted from the tv. Orva turned to watch, the movie having already reached its climax. Once again, everyone was suffering the exact fate that she'd worked so hard to prevent. An imaginary light bulb lit up above her head. "I-I h-have to g-go back," she breathed.

She stood back up, her mind working furiosuly. "A-a d-door out i-is a door i-in. It's still Friday th-the 13th, it's still storming o-outside, and I can get back in. I-I just have to sync with Christine once m-more. We just have to rewind."

"...Orva, this is impossible." She looked over at her father. His face was unreadable. "It just...it just isn't possible, Orva." He caught her eye, and they looked at each other for a long time.

She didn't reply. She simply reached over for the remote, and rewound herself. She timed it so that she would have plenty of time to prepare her throat. She breathed carefully, concentrating on the timing. The song drew towards the end, with Christine's vocals. Suddenly, a hand gripped her wrist. She looked back down at her father.

His warm brown eyes that she had so loved pleaded with her, begging. "Orva, please."

She sighed, a few tears rolling down her own face. "I-I'm s-sorry, father. I-I love him." Her father continued to protest, but she tuned him out, listening carefully. When the high C came, she didn't allow herself to make a mistake. She struck the note perfectly, and could already hear it begin to echoe back at her. She barely bothered to finish it.

She looked around, and there was Erik and Chrsitine, just like how she'd first seen them.

"E-Erik!" she cried out, running to him.

"Stay back!" He held his punt up between her and him, forcing her to stop. She looked at him in confusion. He glared back. "Who are you? How did you get down here?"

"E-Erik... I-it's me. O-Orva." His only continued to glare, his eyes still scanning her as if this was the first time he'd ever seen her. "...D-don't y-you recognize m-me?"

His eyes widened. "Why would I recognize you? This is the first time I've ever even seen someone like you."

She felt her heart shatter, splintering and pricking every part of her chest, and creating a dull ache. Her insides felt cold, and empty. She felt her throat close up, and her mind raced. No, this can't be happening...we were together, just a few minutes ago. I was only gone for a couple minutes. I came back, I came ba- Her breath stilled, and she continued to stare at Erik, but wasn't really seeing him. I came back... at exactly the same moment as when I first entered. That's it. Because I came back right when this had all started in the first place, none of it has even happened yet. My plans, those deaths, his recovery...our love. None of it has happened yet. I'm stuck with a clean slate.

She blinked, and realized that he had moved right in front of her. She looked up, tears rolling down her cheeks. "Get out," he ordered, his voice and face stern.

She gulped, and nodded. "Y-y-yes... I-I'll show m-myself out." Just like before, she stepped into the water, and began to wade her way to the surface.

"Um, are you alright? Do you need any help?" Christine asked, a concerned look on her face.

"N-no n-no, it's o-okay." She looked over her shoulder to smile at them. "E-enjoy y-your evening." Water sloshed all around her, reaching chest height. The music was an echo down the catacombs, a song which she paid no mind to. With the way she'd left her father, there would be no way for her to return. With the time constraints, she'd panicked, and didn't think to try and wait for the next stormy Friday the 13th to return. But then, what were the odds of that? Quite good, apparently. But still, it was inadvisable to harbor such a hope.

She had none of the resources she'd had the first time around. She didn't have her contacts to disguise her eyes, and she didn't have that rainbow earcuff that had somehow proved useful later. She hadn't left quite the impression she'd left last time, which had at least suggested that she was harmless. And worst of all, she was still pregnant with Erik's child, which he hasn't impregnated her with, yet... But it was still there, and it would make everything all the more difficult in the coming months. She was, for all intents and purposes, completely alone.

But that was okay.

This time, Orva knew exactly what to do.

And...The end! :)

I should like to thank you all for reading this story, it truly means a lot to me. :) Thank you for the wonderful reviews that make me smile in glee, and thank you for each and every follow and favorite you've bestowed upon me. It made this story great fun to write, and it's amazing how over a year passed in the process(ironic, considering that's approximately the same amount of time that passed for Orva.). Again, I just cannot feel more gratitude. Thank you. ^^