A/N: And it's back! The much over due update for this fic! Like usual this chapter contains less events then I originally hoped but that just means this story is going to keep getting longer. I know I've mentioned that this chapter would include a vampire masquerade but that was the thing that's been bumped to the next chapter but there is an upside, since I've already started writing it.

Thank you all so much for your reviews so far! Writing this fic has been so much fun for me. And now for the question... is this a slash fic? Well that's kinda hard for me to answer without saying too much. Catherine does have a thing for Christine so there will be some slash elements here and there but I am an E/C shipper and Erik will be making his entrance in chapter 7. So to be blunt, no, Christine and Catherine do not "do it".

...

Catherine and Christine became inseparable after that night; Christine finally happy to have a friend and confidant, Catherine all too happy to fill the roll, winning the girls trust effortlessly. Not since that night had Christine witnessed any kind of strange behavior from her new friend, instead she found the companion she had been missing these past few years.

Pretty soon Christine was spending almost every evening with Catherine, touring the various restaurants and theaters in the area late into the evening. It had been so long since Christine had felt such freedom! After the scandal at the opera house she was reluctant to go out anywhere at all, even after her marriage. Eventually, over time, she resumed her place in society, but was still fearful and never eager to be seen about.

At first, it was indeed the fear that the man of her past would return to her, that he was not in fact dead, but then it gently grew to the fear of those around her. Christine knew Raoul's society did not approve of her, so she really didn't enjoy making herself open to be a target. With Catherine, Christine felt a new confidence; for once it was she turning up her nose to those who would give her a spiteful glare.

Raoul, on the other hand, did not like Catherine nor did he trust her, but then he knew how lonely his wife had been and was not about to deny her a friend based on a subtle suspicion. Finding him self increasingly alone these evenings, he began rekindling old friendships which had fallen to the wayside due to his constant attentions to his wife and her reluctance to leave the house. It wasn't until he was once again actively a part of the Parisian elite that he realized how much he truly missed it. So while Christine and Catherine shared drinks at the most expensive restaurants in town, Raoul dined with some of the most respected families in Paris, both returning home to one another after a full evening of activities apart.

...

Catherine sat in the Chagny's parlor, sipping a glass of red wine while her hostess stared deeply into her own. "I was thinking tonight we go to the theater, I have tickets to the new comedy playing over on Rue de ---. What do you say?"

Startled, Christine looked up from her glass. "Hmm? Oh, I'm sorry, I can't tonight. I was hoping to spend some time with Raoul; we've seen so little of each other lately."

Hiding her disapproval with a kind smile, Catherine briefly nodded before finishing off the contents of her glass. "Oh, I understand. After all a wife's first duty is to her husband is it not? I've been keeping you away from the poor fellow for so long, he may start to think himself a bachelor."

Catherine's last line was said in jest but Christine did not at all enjoy its possible implications. Smiling faintly at her friend, Christine too, finished her glass. The two girls talked on contently for the next hour until Raoul's arrival at the door interrupted their conversation.

Christine at once greeted him in the entrance with a passionate kiss firmly planted on his surprised lips. He grinned down at his wife; happy to see she was obviously in a good mood. But then, as he glanced over her shoulder, was disconcerted to see Catherine staring coldly at him from the shadows of the other room. Not at all happy with their witness, Raoul moved away from Christine and nodded politely to the woman standing behind her. "Mademoiselle du Merrets, I am happy to see you in good health."

"And you, Monsieur le Vicomte." She answered bitterly, keeping a keen eye on Christine's smiling face. "Well Christine, I suppose I'll be taking my leave now that I see you're in good hands. I shall see you later then, good day to you both."

The two embraced lightly with Catherine placing a light peck on Christine's cheek before exiting the home. Once she was gone, Raoul regarded his wife once more. "I don't like her," he said shortly.

Christine sighed. "I know," she breathed lightly before looking up at him with a gleam in her eye. Casually she snaked her arms around his neck, pulling him down towards her lips. "But she's not here right now."

Lightly she brushed his lips with her own while letting a hand slightly wander through his hair. He was about to kiss her again when she pulled away playfully. "You know," she began in a contemplative voice, her hand lightly tracing over his shoulder. "There's this old floor board in that room of yours that I think is coming loose. Perhaps it would be a good idea for you to take a look at it?"

Raoul gave a short laugh before taking a more serious stance. "A loose floor board? Well we can't have that, now can we? I think it'd be best if you showed me it right away."

They both stared at each other straight faced for a moment before a wide grin spread across both their mouths. In a mad dash and barrage of childish giggles, the couple raced for the stairs leading to the master bedroom, only to break out into greater laughter when they were forced to push past a rather perplexed Sarah, who was about to clean up the front entrance. The poor, disheveled girl simply shook her head as she watched the two continue down the hall, Christine giving Raoul a light check in order to gain the lead, and musing how they really did look like a couple of playmates. She also took note not to go upstairs for a while; Christine was a natural soprano after all.

An hour later, Christine rolled over in bed to the disappointing sight of Raoul getting dressed. "What are you doing?" she asked in a tired voice while propping herself up on an elbow.

"Getting dressed?" he answered innocently, fastening his pants.

Christine took a moment to admire her husband as the light shone through from the window behind him before replying. She watched with a smirk as his defined muscular form bent to pick up his shirt, which had been tossed carelessly to the ground, while his golden locks fell in an unruly state over his brow. It was no wonder to her why she was the envy of most women in Paris. "I can see that, but why? I was hoping to spend the evening together."

"I'd truly love to but I have already promised Monsieur Tome that I would be a guest at his household tonight. I'm sorry but I assumed you were going out with Mademoiselle du Merrets." He looked apologetically at his wife as her brow creased with disappointment in a manner which he found undeniably cute. "Perhaps another night."

He then moved forward and kissed her crimson lips, which she returned in a way, which seriously caused him to reconsider getting back into that bed. Reluctantly he parted and with a loud sigh of regret, continued to make himself presentable.

Christine, not at all pleased, waited for her husband to leave before she too washed and dressed for the evening. While continuing to mutter under her breath, she decided to see if she could track down Catherine at the theater. If Raoul had better things to do, then so would she, and she'd be damned if the first one home tonight was her. After picking out one of her more flattering dresses and pinning up her hair, she grabbed her cloak and rushed from the house.

...

"Christine! My goodness, what ever are you doing here?" Catherine stood out side the theater, surprised yet pleased to see her friend step out of a carriage and walk towards her, smiling brightly.

"Raoul had plans," she answered shortly while straightening her dress, which had been wrinkled from the carriage ride. "I hope I'm not too late to take you up on that offer?"

"You're lucky, I was about to give away our tickets. My you look stunning this evening." Catherine looked over the attractive girl in front of her approvingly before taking her hand and moving towards the entrance.

Christine blushed slightly, still not used to receiving complements from anyone but Raoul, but she was happy her desired effect for the evening was working. "Thank you."

After an evening of laughter at the theater the two dinned on the patio of a small restaurant not far from their location, taking their time and enjoying the summer's warm night air. Candles lit the small scattered tables with a few lanterns strategically placed around the patio, illuminating the area with a soft glow as the two girls nursed their drinks... Christine was determined not to return home till at least after eleven o'clock and Catherine was all too happy to comply.

The woman who was beautiful in the light but could be mistaken for Diana herself once under the stars, made a frantic gesture with a shocked expression on her face. "You mean to tell me that he just left you there, alone in his bed? And he didn't even invite you to go with him? That alone would cause me to raise an eyebrow. If it were I, I'd have half a mind to find someone else to warm my sheets if he was so incapable of doing so!"

"Oh don't be silly, it's perfectly understandable that he assumed I would be out," Christine replied with a laugh.

"That doesn't change the fact that he'd rather spend the evening with Monsieur Tome and his two prissy daughters, than with a beautiful woman. Don't act like you didn't notice how many heads turned in your direction when you walked into that theater, the man's a fool."

Christine only gave a half smile as Catherine spoke, she had forgotten about his daughters. "I can't say I ever liked Mademoiselles Jaclyn or Marie. They tend to enjoy my husband's company a little too thoroughly."

It was then Catherine's turn to laugh. "Now who's being silly? Even if you don't trust your husband, which I know you do, they are still respectable woman, not at all the kind you have to worry about. Neither would dare take a lover without being married first. They're proper, good woman, the kind who would make excellent wives. Their main priority is catching that husband who would cause them to be the envy of most women in Paris." Catherine grinned confidently while watching Christine, who did not look at all impressed, with a scrutinizing gaze. "Let us leave this ridiculous subject. I've actually got something I'd like to give to you."

Christine watched incredulously as Catherine pulled from her purse a long, thin, red silk ribbon and moved to stand behind the confused girl. Gently, she placed the ribbon around Christine's neck, taking care to allow her fingers to lightly brush her skin before tying it securely at the back of her neck, allowing the two loose strands to hang down her exposed back. Christine could not help but close her eyes and savior the feeling of that cool fabric sliding across her skin in combination with Catherine's caress. When she opened her heavy lids, Catherine was once again seated across from her, looking on very seriously.

"I am throwing a sort of masquerade at my estate this Friday, of which I would like you to attend. As I have mentioned before, my circle of friends vary greatly from the ones you're used to, so it is imperative that you continue to wear this ribbon till I remove it for you. Think of it as a sort of guest pass, if you like, but do not remove it! It will be seen as a great sign of disrespect, and I do not trust all of my associates to act with restraint if you do." Christine was startled at first by the serious manner in which she was being addressed but then as she continued to listen and nod, she became filled with intrigue and anticipation. Never before had Catherine invited her to her home, but often she had alluded to its less than typical occupants.

It was not long before they decided that it would be best to retire for the night. The streets had grown bare, and though Christine wished to annoy her husband with her absence, she did not entirely want for him to begin to worry about her. So after a short carriage ride, the two parted ways in front of the Chagny estate, Christine rushing to the door while Catherine watched, knowing it would not be long now.

...

Please R&R