Epilogue

Raoul sat wearily on the altar steps, fatigue weighing down his every limb. Manservants and maidservants worked around him to remove the decorations from the walls of the chapel, while kindhearted members of the wedding party carried bouquets of wedding flowers out the doors at the end of the nave. Though he was grateful for what they were doing, watching it happen only seemed to drive the spike of Christine's abandonment deeper into his heart. He wished they would stop, if only for a moment. He wished that everything would just stop. He had worked tirelessly all day to make sure that none of the day's events would reach the tabloids, paying off whomever he needed to ensure the privacy of the de Chagny estate until he was ready for news of the catastrophic wedding ceremony to be made public. Now all he wanted was rest — and to forget, just for a moment, that any of this ever happened.

He passed a hand through his blonde waves, resting his elbows on his knees and staring at the ground.

He supposed he he'd known for a while now that a part of Christine would always belong to her so-called "Angel of Music." He just hadn't anticipated that it would be her whole heart. He shook his head. It was his fault for not noticing. He was foolish to believe that he could ever compete —that he could stand a chance against the years of the music, and the strange, unnameable relationship that Christine shared with that monster.

What a lovesick idiot he had been.

"It isn't your fault, you know," said a soft voice behind him. Quietly, a small figure in a pale blue dress sat beside Raoul. "Whatever you do, you must never allow yourself to think that."

Raoul's gaze shifted sideways for a moment, catching on a familiar mane of blonde curls and light blue eyes. He returned to his intent study of the flooring.

"Then what must I think, Meg? That I am a fool instead? A fool for never noticing that ever since Christine left the Opéra, her heart belonged to someone else? Or perhaps I am a fool because I gave so much of myself to rescue her from the clutches of that vile demon, only to lose everything I fought for in the end."

Meg shook her head.

"No, Monsieur le Vicomte. You are no fool. You must understand: Christine's heart belonged to Erik long before she left the Opéra. She has loved him ever since an Angel came to comfort her in the days of darkness following her father's death. It just…took her a while to see that."

Raoul lifted his pain-stricken gaze to meet Meg's serene expression.

"So she lied to me? Is that what you're implying? You have a strange way of offering comfort, Miss Giry."

"Let me finish," Meg insisted steadily. "Yes, Christine has loved Erik for years, ever since she was a girl. But she loves you, too — in a different way. She loves you in the way that she loves the memories of her childhood, with a warmth that burns brightly and beautifully. You belong to the happiest days of her life. You are one of her dearest friends. And for the past year, she has desperately needed you. Without you in her life, amid all the darkness and confusion that swirled about her…I tremble to think what Christine would have become. Her spirit was always so fragile. It would have broken entirely without you. When she waded through the darkness, to find what her heart called her toward, she needed someone to light the way. You were an anchor. You were always there to remind her that life is worth living, and that good is worth fighting for. Your constant love for her through her darkest time showed her that love can bring someone back from the shadows. And I think, in the end, that helped her learn how to love Erik, and how to love herself. She learned to make her own choices."

Meg laid a gentle hand on Raoul's arm.

"So you see, you really made a tremendous difference. Without you, Christine would have become nothing but an empty shell. You kept Christine's soul alive when it could not stand on its own. She would have given up on the man she had always loved, and the music along with him. Because of you, Christine will finally be happy. As someone who loves her, don't you think that's worth something?"

Slowly, Raoul raised his head. He turned his tear-rimmed eyes to Meg's. Imperceptibly, he nodded his head.

"Thank you, Meg."

She smiled tenderly in return.

"You're a good man, Monsieur le Vicomte. Never forget that."

She began to rise to her feet, looking around for her mother. But a warm hand caught hers.

"Meg…will you sit with me awhile? I don't wish to talk, it's just….I need a friend to be my anchor right now."

Quietly, Meg resumed her place next to Raoul on the altar steps. Without a word, she simply held his hand in hers. They sat like that, hands joined, until the decorations had been cleared, and the sun started to set.

When the last servant had gone home for the evening, Meg slowly rose to her feet, and turned to help Raoul up. Together, they walked down the aisle to the doors of the de Chagny chapel, which stood open to the sunburnt sky. The clouds were painted in the vibrant orange and purple of a perfect summer evening.

"What a beautiful day it was," Meg said softly. "And to think, we hardly noticed."

A small smile lifted Raoul's lips. He looked down at Meg. He realized he had never really seen her before. Of course, he had spoken to her many times, and watched her dance with Christine on the stage of the Opéra — but he had never really seen her, as a person all her own. Suddenly, this seemed to be one of the greatest missteps of his life.

When he returned his gaze to the sky, he felt the weight of his heartbreak drop onto his shoulders once more.

"For the first time in my life, I have no idea what I am going to do next," he said. "My future was Christine…after we married, we might travel the world, have a family, retire to the country, perhaps. Now what? What is the next step of a disgraced, heartbroken Vicomte after he has lost everything?"

Meg reached out to grasp his hand gently once more.

"This is."

She smiled up at him, tugging him gently so that he would step down from the chapel doorway. Raoul's eyes met hers, the hint of a smile lifting the corners of his lips.

"Christine isn't the only one with a happily ever after waiting for her," Meg said, gesturing at the beauty of the sunset and the city of Paris stretching off into the distance. "You will find yours."

The tatters of Raoul's heart lifted as he looked around him. He drew himself up straight, and breathed in the twilight air.

It was time for a new beginning.

And there you have it. Thank you to all who have joined me on this journey, and thank you to all future readers. Seeing all of the reviews, favorites, and follows this story has received has really warmed my heart in the midst of an increasingly busy time in my life. And for those of you who have added me as a favorite author...I am so humbled. It means more than I can say.

A note on the epilogue: I really felt that Raoul needed one. I take issue with stories that just kind of leave him in the dust, or completely change his character, just so it's easier for Christine to end up with Erik. They may be my OTP, but that doesn't mean I take the cheap way out.

Glacifly4POTO: Our headstrong Christine has finally found her place at last - beside her Erik. :) And Raoul has found his place as well.

You Are Love: This review will be something I look back on for encouragement whenever I think my writing isn't good enough. I am so floored that my vision of Erik and Christine has made it onto someone's list of "best reconciliation scenes ever." I have my own mental lineup of such scenes, and it's pretty tough to get a spot on it, so I understand the depth of that compliment. Thank you so much.

Gaby1964: Yours is another review I will look at whenever I feel like my writing isn't going anywhere. Thank you so much. I'm overflowing with gladness that I was able to touch your heart so completely.

PhantomFan01: Thank you very much for the pleasant barrage of reviews! I appreciated the blow-by-blow response to each chapter - they really made me smile! I hope the epilogue was to your liking.

Melstrife: I love Erik/Christine happiness, too! It also inspires me to dance, on occasion! :) You are most welcome. That chapter was extremely challenging, but such a blast.

Not a Ghost3: Wow! Thank you! I aim to please. :)