Hey everybody! New chapter! Yay! And before you ask, yes I have had sugar today. Part of this chapter may get confusing in the way I typed it, so just FYI the bold italics are a flashback. Thanks to Rosemarie-ouhisama, firebolt669, and xDancingInTheSnowx for all your awesome reviews. Well, that's about it. Disclaimer at the bottom. Enjoy!

She awoke to the sound of a soft knock on the door. Slowly, her eyes flickered open and she began to get her bearings. The sun shone brightly and her neck was sore from sleeping in a chair. The blanket was still wrapped around her, but sometime during the night, the fabric had slipped off her shoulders and gathered around her elbows and torso. Standing up, she faintly remembered meeting Christian. She wondered if it could have all been a dream.

Knock, knock, knock.

Quickly, she counted the raps and found that there were three. It was not Christian, whether he be real or imagined, and it was coming from her door. She stumbled sleepily to the door, unlocked it, and opened it.

Whatever I was expecting, the man standing outside the door was not it. He was taller than I was and had intense, chocolate brown eyes and hair just like Christian's, dark brown and disheveled. He looked friendly enough, but I wondered what he was doing there.

The strange man stuck out his hand as he began to speak. Juliet took his hand and, unlike Christian's hand, stayed solid.

"Hi, I'm Neil Phillips, your neighbour."

"It's very nice to meet you, Mr. Phillips. Is there something you need? A cup of sugar perhaps?"

Neil grinned and withdrew his hand to retrieve something in his back pocket. A moment, later his hand was back, holding a white envelope and underneath that was a parchment style envelope. He looked down at the address and back up at Juliet with a half-grin slowly appearing on his face.

"Are you Miss Juliet Morgan?"

"Yes."

"Marie wanted me to give this to you."

He handed her the letters, the top, which bore the return address of her publisher and the second, which had her name and address written with calligraphy. These letters in white envelopes usually conveyed either good or bad news and Juliet had a feeling that this one was bad. Recognizing that it was his cue to leave, Neil began to walk back to his apartment, but not before bidding her farewell.

"I hope to see you again, Miss Juliet Morgan."

Juliet smiled at Neil's retreating back, and then turned her attention back to the letters.

Once out of the hallway and in the privacy of her flat, Juliet set the parchment envelope on the kitchen counter, for she knew who that was from, and cautiously ripped open the other envelope and pulled out the letter. She scanned her eyes quickly over it and sunk into a chair.

Rap, rap.

"Come in." The arm over her face muffled the words.

Christian's disembodied voice filled the air.

"What?"

She replied not moving from her position in the chair, but she moved her arm so that she could be heard. "Come in, materialize, or whatever it is that you do."

She raised her head slightly to see Christian appear before her. A fine mist moved through the room and settled on the floor. From there the mist swirled up into a tall column and began amassing human features, until the mist took on a male shape. The mist carved out finer features until Christian was visible.

"Hello."

"Hey, Christian."

"What's wrong?"

She held out the letter to him.

"Go ahead and read it. I don't mind."

Christian squinted at the words and read aloud.

"Dear Miss Morgan, I wish to remind you that your deadline has been set at May 25. Failure to send in your work will result in consequences…that's horrible."

"I have less than fourteen days to write and original novel-length story. It can't be done."

Christian was silent for a moment, his eyes downcast. He pondered not only if he should leave her alone with her melancholy, but also if there was anyway that he could help her. Suddenly, his expression brightened as an idea struck him.

"It's actually quite doable."

"No offense, Christian, but I'm really not in the mood for all that Children of the Revolution thinking."

"No, listen." He went to sit on the table across from her, but missed and instead sat suspended in the air. "After Satine's death, I wrote our story. It was a good length when I finished and you could use that."

Juliet sat up excitedly.

"Really, Christian?! That's-that's amazing! Where is it?"

"It's…" Christian's face fell, as did Juliet's.

"Christian, where is the manuscript?"

Christian rubbed the back of his neck ashamedly.

"I-I don't actually remember where I put it."

Juliet fell back into the chair.

"Christian! This is supposed to help me, not have me running around everywhere."

"Well, there are only two places it could be. Here," he gestured around the apartment. "Or the Moulin Rouge."

Juliet looked at him somewhat annoyed.

"You want me to search the entire Moulin Rouge?"

Christian looked at her hopefully.

"Fine," sighed Juliet. "I was going to go tonight anyway, but you're coming with me."

Christian nodded. "Until tonight, then.

With a small wave, he disappeared.

Juliet stood up and realised how hungry she was. She set down her letter on her kitchen table and retrieved a green apple form a small bowl. Leaning against the table, she bit into it, let the juice run down her chin, and got lost in thought.

Christian watched her from the balcony still invisible to her. This was one of the only times he watched people without them knowing. As she bit into the apple, he wondered what it must feel like, what it must taste like.

Ghosts do not need food, drink, or sleep to remain on the earthly plain, just a reason that binds them here. If only he could figure out what was keeping him here and figure out why he could not find Satine.

He looked back at Juliet. She had a coating of sweet, sticky juice on her face and hand, but she was lost in thought and paid those details no mind.

Christian knew what it was like to daydream; dying had not taken that luxury from him. Still, he wondered what it was like to sleep and dream. That was another thing he liked to watch and wonder about--sleep.

Juliet, he remembered, looked so peaceful when she slept; just like Satine. Little things that Juliet did reminded him of Satine and made him miss his love even more.

He sat against the wall with his arms resting on his knees and waited. For in a few hours time they would find the manuscript and possibly Satine along with it.

-X-

Night eventually fell and the streetlights seemed dimmer than the night before. Clouds covered the sky and only a small slice of the moon showed.

Juliet shrugged on her navy blue hoodie and grabbed a flashlight. She flicked on the light to check the batteries. They worked, just barely.

"Christian, you can come out now."

Christian walked in from the balcony. He looked more tired, more spent, yet hopeful.

"Where do we start?"

"If we get into it, we'll start at the Elephant."

They began to walk through the door, but Juliet stopped and turned back to Christian holding the flashlight aloft.

"If you need to pull energy, could you not take it from the flashlight batteries? They have only a limited life."

Christian looked surprised, but nodded nonetheless.

They walked down the street in silence at first. Juliet hugged her hoodie around her frame. A light wind added to the cold that Christian caused. She looked briefly at her companion. He seemed lost in thought and Juliet hated to disturb him from his musings, but she had more questions that she wanted answered. The main inquiry she had was: Why her? Why not someone who had come before her? Why couldn't this have all been solved years ago? Finally, she decided to wake Christian from his thoughts.

"Christian, why is it that you chose me?"

He stopped in his tracks and blinked at the question as if he did not understand what she was asking. That, however, was not the case. He understood; it was just that he had no real answer. The other people he had tried never helped. Was it because she was willing? Why was she willing?

"I guess it's because you were the first to actually help."

"Surely, there must have been others before me. They wouldn't help?"

"It might have been a case of couldn't help. Most of them couldn't see me and those who could didn't have reactions like yours."

"Like mine? What do you mean?"

"Well, those who could see me either thought I was a figment of their imagination or thought I was evil."

"You…evil?"

"Yeah," he chuckled fondly. "One tenant actually tried to exorcise me."

"Obviously, it didn't work."

"Actually, it worked for about three weeks, and then I came back. They moved out a week later."

"So, when I came along you decided to give me a try?"

Christian shrugged. "I tried everyone that resided there. You were the only one who did anything. Why?"

Juliet realised that Christian did not know much of her history even thought she knew most of his. How was she to explain why her mother called her "special"? It was best just to tell it like it was.

"I have had my "gift" since I was very young." She began walking again. It was easier to talk this way. She knew that Christian would not find anything strange about it, but in her experience, the rest of the world would. Early in her teenage years, she had learned either not to talk about it or to tell the person without looking at them for encouragement. "The first spirit I saw was a kitten in my living room. I thought my mother had finally caved in and gotten me a pet, but when I asked her about it, she thought I was imagining things. No one else could see the cat but me.

"At that time we lived in Louisiana and I would see ghosts everywhere; on the streets, in houses, anywhere, but they didn't react to me. One weekend we visited my grandmother and my great aunt. They still lived in an old mansion in the bayous. Other similar manors dotted the area and my grandmother gave us permission to visit anyone that we wished. Being naturally curious, I grabbed my bike and pedaled to the closest one." Juliet smiled at the memory.

The house was old and neglected, but still beautiful. A high wrought iron fence surrounded the property and a similar gate with an iron 'G' started at the dirt driveway that led to the front doors of the mansion. The house itself was amazing. Wrought iron columns matched the gate and a wide stairway seemed welcoming. On the right, connected to the house, was a greenhouse looking structure. Spanish moss hung from the gnarled branches of long dead trees. A young Juliet stared at the mansion from the main road, wishing that she could enter. Perhaps if there was no lock…

"Juliet?"

Christian shook her out of her memories with is concerned tone. She flashed him a small reassuring grin and continued with her story.

"Anyway, I entered the manor and a voice called out to me saying something about foolish mortals. It was then that I met the master of the manor. His name was Edward and he was rather handsome." She sighed happily at the memory of the man.

"How old were you?"

"Fifteen, maybe sixteen. He showed me around the house and then I learned the truth. My sister found me and told me that it was time to come home." Once again, her words faded into memories.

Nichole's voice rang out through the empty rooms. It seemed that Edward was the only one to live in the house. "Juliet!" Her voice seemed to tremble as she searched out her sister. When she found her, Juliet was in a room that looked to be a study. Rows of books lined the walls around the room and behind a grand piano was the greenhouse area Juliet had seen earlier. Juliet sat on a corner of a grand desk at one end of the room and seemed to be looking at the throne-like chair behind the piece like she was listening to someone. A heavy leather-bound book lay open in her lap.

"Juliet," called Nichole hesitantly. Juliet looked up from her book and her would-be discussion. "Mama says to come home for supper." Juliet looked at the younger girl for a moment and then back at the chair before answering.

"Nichole, do you see…"

The younger girl shook her head vehemently. "I don't see anything but you, so can we go now? I'm hungry."

"Sure," said Juliet still staring at the chair this time in confusion. "I'll be right there."

What Nichole did not see in the chair was a man. He was very regal looking, but now a look of sheepishness settled on his features.

"It was then that I realised that I could not only see the spirits, but also communicate with them. I gave him an earful for deceiving me, but in the end, we became friends. I visited him everyday until it was time to go back home. Even after that, we kept in touch. I'd send him letters, and he'd sent news back. It still goes on in fact; I got a letter from him earlier today. I suppose it was your unique way of catching my attention that prompted my reaction."

Christian smiled guiltily. "I did tell you that I was sorry about that, right?"

Juliet nodded. "Yes, but it's nice to hear it again."

They walked on, satisfied with the new information. Juliet hoped that they got to the Moulin Rouge and got to the bottom of this quickly.

-X-

The once magnificent Elephant stood in the center of the Moulin Rouge. Now it was faded, dusty, and falling apart. Juliet worried about the structural stability and promised herself that this would be a quick trip. Quietly, Christian floated behind her hoping that they would find something.

The stairs they were climbing creaked under her weight. The sound unnerved her and put her on edge. Some of the wood had rotted and Juliet had to be vigilant, lest she misstep and possibly join Christian in his afterlife.

Not that it wouldn't be too bad, she reflected. He would be good to spend eternity with, but he may not ever find is love if she left.

Unfortunately, my musings broke my watchfulness and I stepped on a rotted board. My heart and stomach leapt. Fear pulsed through every part of my body. Contrary to popular belief, I saw no flashbacks of my life. I only worried about the pain I would cause my father.

You see, he never stopped grieving for my mother after her death. He would have died himself if I left for the ethereal plain also.

Just before falling all the way through the flight of stairs to the ground floor, a hand grabbed Juliet's elbow and held her so she could regain her footing. While she caught her breath, she looked up at Christian, who looked at her with much concern. Though she said nothing, her eyes, which held the makings of tears, showed a silent thank-you.

"You're welcome."

Juliet resumed climbing the stairs, and her heart still pounded. They finally reached the door that lead to Satine's previous room without any other mishaps.

Like most of the area, the room had fallen into disrepair. Magnificent Indian ornaments that were once gold, were now tarnished. Various fabrics around the room were frayed, faded, and mildewed.

"Christian, are you sure you put the pages in here?"

"Actually, no, but it wouldn't hurt to look."

Juliet nodded ruefully and opened a few of the drawers of the vanity. There was nothing that could have remotely resembled a manuscript.

"Anything?"

Christian shook his head. Juliet groaned inwardly, and, as she kept looking, racked her brain for any story ideas she might have.

Unknown to either of the searchers, a third figure slipped through the door and glided down the stairs. Once out in the open, the figure traveled to what was left of the Gothic Tower. When it reached the Duke's old rooms, the figure stopped and waited to be addressed. A cold, cruel voice rang out in the empty hall.

"Report."

Can't you just feel the suspense?! Yeah, ok. Disclaimer: I don't own anything except Juliet and Neil. I know it's sad. If you can guess where I got Edward and his mansion from you get a cookie (::) and a hug! So review!