Yes, I know a lot of you would have liked to see the phantom remain "in" Gerard for a little longer...

to that I say...patience.

Enjoy!

Nico

The letter fell from Rae's hand with a soft flutter.

"He's back," she said, her voice void of emotion.

Gerard ran a hand through his hair, the last several moments of closeness between he and Rae still surging through his body.

"Who's O.G?" He asked.

Rae raised her eyes to his. "It's him…you…I mean…the Phantom…the Opera Ghost." She wrapped her arms around her body, suddenly feeling impossibly cold. "And he wants me back."

"You're not actually thinking of going back there, are you?" Gerard asked, disbelief in his voice.

Rae shrugged. "I suppose I am," she replied.

"This is ridiculous, Rae," Gerard said suddenly. "Even if this letter is from…him…what's to say he doesn't mean you harm?"

"He would never hurt Christine," Rae replied defending the man she had never met.

"How do you know that?" Gerard asked.

"I just know," she replied.

"I can't let you do this, Rae," Gerard continued.

"Why not?"

"Because." Gerard fought for words. "Because it isn't safe."

"You don't have anything to do with this anymore, Gerard," Rae informed him.

"Of course I do!" Gerard protested.

"No, you don't," Rae disagreed. "He has left you…you are no longer obligated to him."

"That doesn't mean I'm just going to walk away," he said.

"You should," Rae told him. "He doesn't need you."

"He doesn't need you either," Gerard protested. "Look…whatever you may believe…this man…he cannot possibly be real."

"Then who sent the letter?"

Gerard pushed his hair from his eyes again.

He had to admit, the entire situation was spiraling out of his control.

"If you insist on going, I'm coming with you," he announced.

"You don't have to do that," Rae said softly.

"Yes, I do."

"Don't you want to get back to your life, Gerard?" Rae asked again.

"What is your big fixation with my life?" He said suddenly. "Do you really think it was that glamorous? Do I appear that eager to get back to it?"

His harsh tone caught Rae off guard.

"Why are you getting so angry?" She asked him. "You're the one who wanted to be 'cured!"

Gerard sighed. "My life was a mess before all this happened to me," he confessed.

"It seemed like you were successful," Rae said quietly.

"We were," Gerard affirmed. "But I had nothing. And when all this happened to me…I was, at first, frightened and angry…but for a brief period of time…I felt like I had a purpose…"

His voice sounded so hurt, Rae was inclined to grasp his hand.

Instead, she sat down slowly on the edge of one of the plush sofas, once again completely overwhelmed.

Gerard moved to stand in front of her.

"I intend to see this through to the end," Gerard informed her.

"Why?" Rae asked.

"Because," Gerard said. "Because any man who would come back from the dead for the woman he loves deserves all the help he can get."

Erik paced the floor of what was once his lair. Angrily, he picked up paper after paper from the ground.

It seemed that his former home did not remain as secretive as he would have liked.

It had been difficult to break free from the body he had been granted. He still wasn't completely certain how he had done it, but he was here now, back in his former skin.

Skin that had cruelly remained marred, even more than a hundred years later.

It seemed that whatever powers saw fit to give him a second chance at life did not see the need to repair the disfigurement he had always been forced to endure.

The image of the girl that now held Christine's soul captive flashed before Erik's eyes. She looked nothing like Christine, yet when he was inside of Gerard's body, he could see Christine's spark behind the green eyes of Rae Browne.

He had to get Christine back. There was simply nothing more to it.

He had come back for a reason…he had been given a second chance…and now it was time for redemption.

Gerard came in from the balcony, straightening his hair haphazardly with his fingers.

Quietly, he walked past the couch where Rae slept.

For the first time in a while, Gerard had the urge to drink.

He moved over to the fully stocked bar, pouring himself a glass of whiskey.

Then, he walked back over to a plush chair facing the couch.

Mechanically, he sat, easing back into the chair and lighting a cigarette.

He could barely make out Rae's features; he only knew that her brow was knitted together as she slept as if something was troubling her.

Gerard inhaled deeply, allowing the plume of smoke he exhaled to hide Rae's figure from him briefly.

Several times, he brought the glass of whiskey to his lips, only to lower it again without taking a drink.

He crossed his legs, the slim black pants he wore hitching up just slightly to reveal his black boots, which were in desperate need of a polishing.

"Do you ever sleep?"

The question came from Rae, who hadn't moved save opening her eyes.

Gerard inhaled again, the silence in the room interrupted by the sound of the paper on his cigarette burning.

"Not really," he admitted.

"You look tired," Rae replied.

"I am," he told her.

For several long moments, neither spoke.

Gerard lifted and lowered the glass of whiskey once more, his eyes never once leaving Rae's.

She looked impossibly beautiful in the moonlight that was streaming in from the balcony.

Her outfit was simple…a black tank top and small white shorts…but it was what she wasn't wearing that drew Gerard's gaze past her eyes.

Her hair tumbled down her back and over her shoulder, looping around the arm she had tucked underneath her head.

It looked like living fire against her paleness.

Rae's eyes burned as she fought the urge to blink, instead wanting only to stare at the man sitting across from her.

He looked impossibly dark and imposing where he sat, a cigarette in one hand, the other clasping a glass of amber liquid.

His eyes were shaded, as always, by the makeup he either applied every day or never took off. Tonight, he had added a bit of red shading to the outside of the kohl liner, making him seem all the more ethereal.

He wore all black tonight, making him look as if he was one with chair he sat upon.

Before she realized what she was doing, Rae stood slowly, making her way over to where Gerard sat.

She stood next to him, the top of her thigh inadvertently brushing against the back of his fingers as they tightened around the glass.

She reached out and caressed the side of his face, watching as his eyes slid closes against the sensation.

"Gerard," she said softly.

"Yes?"

"Will you kiss me?" She asked.

Gerard looked up at her.

She looked fearful…younger than she was.

"I just…I just need…" she stammered.

"It's alright," Gerard said, dropping his cigarette into the untouched glass of whiskey and standing. "I understand."

He stood facing her, watching as tears formed on her lashes.

He used his thumb to gently wipe the tears away as the leaked down her face.

Then, he lowered his mouth to hers, allowing his lips to gently press against hers.

It was a kiss of promise…a kiss that spoke of protection…of understanding…

And as gently as it began, it intensified. Rae whimpered as she accepted Gerard's velvet tongue into her mouth. Her arms wrapped around his neck, her fingers clutching at his dark shirt.

She felt his large hands roam down her back, stopping briefly to cup her rear.

As she pressed further against him, Gerard made a sound akin to a growl and pulled her even closer, pushing the breath from her body in a whoosh.

So involved in the kiss were the two of them that they failed to see the dark figure looming just outside the balcony doors.