phantom of the opera oneshots, originally published on AO3, FFN, and Tumblr (under the same username!)
all of my phantom oneshots will now be published here instead of in my oneshots book :)
cover by BrendaDaaeDestler!
The baby's cries from down the hall caught Raoul's attention, the estate documents that he had been reviewing immediately forgotten. Usually, the nanny would hurry to tend to his son, but with her taking some well-needed time off and Christine getting some rest down the hall, he decided to rush to his son's aid instead. The idea, quite honestly, made him happy; so rarely was he the one that actually got to tend to the baby's needs, what with the staff or Christine usually being so quick to rush to his aid. So, with a smile on his face, he got to his feet, shirked off his jacket (as he had learned quickly that a baby so often made a mess of one's clothes one way or another), and paced down the hall towards the nursery.
He was at the cradle in three quick paces by the time he entered the room, and he looked down at his infant son, who had his body scrunched up and his little fists waving in the air as he cried.
"Shh, Gustave, it's okay," he whispered as he leaned over and lifted the boy into his arms, planting a gentle kiss on his forehead. "Papa's here, you're okay."
"I hope you don't mind that it's me instead of Mama," he continued, bouncing as he walked towards the rocking chair by the window in an effort to sooth Gustave as best he could. "But she's sleeping and Nanny's not here right now, so you've got me. I think I'll manage, I'll try my best."
Gustave's cries had seemed to lessen, but he was still upset and squirming unhappily in Raoul's arms. Perhaps he had had a nightmare? That was at least what Raoul was hoping for; he could manage to change a diaper, but if it was food that the boy wanted, he would have to wake Christine and he really wanted to avoid that if at all possible.
"Perhaps a story would help, hm? Those always helped Mama to feel better when she was sad," Raoul said softly, smiling at his son as he sat down and pushed back in the chair to get it rocking gently. "Stories of the north, in Sweden. That's where Mama and I met, you know. She lost her red scarf in the sea and I dove in to catch it for her. Maybe that was silly—your grandfather wasn't too pleased with me—but hey, it got me here, didn't it?"
Raoul chuckled to himself at that, thinking back on that time in his life, when things were so simple. When he didn't have to try and manage an estate now that he was to be the Comte after his brother's death, and he didn't have to cope with both his and Christine's trauma that the masked Phantom of the Opera had left them with for the rest of their lives. How easy life had been then.
"We're going to be moving to Sweden soon," he continued, brushing his son's cheek with a feather-light touch. "I think you'll like it there. There'll be beautiful fields for you to run around in and we can take you to those same beaches where Mama and I played when we were little. Mama will be able to teach you about your grandpa too, about her father. He used to play his violin for us while we told stories to each other about little goblins and fairies and things. That's who you're named after, and I know Mama is excited to tell you more about him."
As he leaned down to kiss Gustave's forehead again, Raoul smiled as the baby looked up at him with wide eyes, his cries having quieted in little coos as he curled against his father's chest. "There, that's better," he said softly. "No more tears, my boy. I'm here, everything will be alright. Papa will always be here for you."
~
yes, I actually wrote from Raoul's POV for a change and it was weird, but I actually had a lot of fun with it!
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