He pounded his fist on the stone wall and screamed in anger.

"Why do you tempt me, so?" He gritted his teeth and rammed his fists to the wall once more. His mind kept flashing back to the confrontation that had just occurred between Arabelle and him. He couldn't stop thinking about the pain he saw in her eyes, the rage, and the near helplessness she felt. He couldn't let go of the sensations that filled him whenever he touched her. He couldn't stop thinking about the way she cried, about how she just let the tears silently fall, how she never whimpered. Why was it that every time he looked at her, he saw a little bit of himself? That he could almost understand her pain. Maybe she was his other half?

"What is wrong with you?" Erik growled at himself. "All you're after is the money, that's it!" He desperately reminded himself.

"She doesn't matter, she's just a pawn." He slumped over and tried to convince himself, pounding his forehead in an attempt to push the idea into his brain. "She doesn't matter." His voice broke every time he uttered those words, his heart sinking with them.

"Maybe she's not," a familiar voice came from behind him. "Maybe, Erik, she's something more." The voice had a thick French accent, one he remembered well.

"I take it you are well, Madame Giry." Erik turned to face the ballerina that had saved him so long ago.

"I'm doing better, considering all the trouble and pain you caused." She took small steps with her cane, not wanting to move too fast. "You, though, my old friend, seem more twisted inside than ever." He turned his head away from her and went to the area that had once served as his bedroom.

"What business is it of yours?" His remark was snide as ever, she only smirked.

"It is not any of my business. I simply thought you were dead and came down here to pay my respects and say goodbye to you, this time, forever." She limped her way up the rough stone stairs to him.

"Well, obviously, I'm not. Now leave me be." He waved his hand at her.

"You must let her go, before she destroys you completely." Erik looked at her confused. She sighed and sank down on the torn up bed. Madame Giry knew not how else she could explain.

"You will never be satisfied or happy with anyone, unless you let Christine go." He sneered at her remark, not wanting to face the truth of her words. Christine was his first and only love, he was sure of it. Erik refused to just forget her. But he knew that Madame Giry would not leave unless he convinced her.

"I have let her go," he grumbled. She shook her head, not buying into his words at all.

"Then why do you still hold her ring?" The Madame stood and began heading out, Erik chased after her.

"I will not let her go!" He huffed and turned his back to her, acting like a child.

"Then I'm afraid, old friend, you'll be lost forever." Madame Giry's face was filled with sorrow along with her words. Erik refused to look at her.

"I guess this is goodbye for the very last time," he heard her cane clack on the stone and slowly fade away.

For several hours, he laid on his bed, staring up at the ceiling thinking, thinking about all the events of the past few days, thinking about her words, the words of his oldest friend, his only friend.

'Then I'm afraid, old friend, you'll be lost forever.' The pain in her voice made him cringe as it echoed through his mind. He was brought back from his trance when he suddenly heard a crunching sound.

"So I've been thinking," he sat up to find Arabelle, sitting on a ledge by the iron gate, eating an apple.

"How'd you get in here?" His words having a touch of venom to them. She took another bite of the apple and smirked.

"Ah ha, a thief never reveals her secrets." He raised an eyebrow at her.

"I truly did underestimate you."

"Most people do. Now, wouldn't you like to hear what I've been thinking about?" Erik sighed heavily then nodded.

"Yes. What were you thinking about?" He stood and stretched wide then sat on the edge of the steps, his feet in the water.

"I've been thinking about what you said," Erik's curiosity peaked a little and he couldn't help but smile slyly.

"Really?"

"Don't let your head explode," she glared at him a little. "Going on."

"By all means," his hands making the 'roll on' motion.

"I was also thinking about when Cornette came to visit. How she was just a little too happy about everything and how she wasn't very surprised about how Pierre was taken. Then I began to try and find a connection between Cornette and Pierre. That's when it clicked."

"What?"

"I met up with an old friend. Someone I knew could help me out-"

"Wait, I'm confused," Erik sighed again and rubbed his temples. "What clicked, who is this friend, and helped you with what?" She sighed in frustration then bit her apple holding it in her mouth. She then jumped off the ledge and walked towards him, trudging through the water.

"I remembered that a few years ago, my friend Joshua told me that he heard Madame Cornette saying she'd finally found a way to get me back in the house. He said that she was laughing wildly and saying something about sending in someone to spy on me, someone she truly trusted. From that point on I waited for someone to randomly enter into my life and try quickly to gain my trust, so I waited. For a few months, nothing happened. I assumed that what Joshua heard was a drunken Madame Cornette ranting.

So I forgot about it all. Then I realized, that that's when someone very close and very special to me, entered my life."

"Sabine," He looked up at her, she was excited about having figuring this out. He could tell by how fast she was talking, how detailed she explained it, and because she couldn't stand still.

"Exactly! I also realized that this was about four years ago and that every time since then, Madame Cornette started to either make my deadline shorter or make my quota more. Also, every time I met her demands, she got angrier and angrier. That's when it hit me!"

"What! What hit you?" Erik stood in frustration, waiting for her to get to the point, not being able to stand it much longer.

"Sabine got too close! She couldn't do it; she couldn't go through with what Madame Cornette had sent her in there to do! That's why she 'kidnapped' Pierre!" She was practically jumping up and down with excitement. He couldn't help but let out a small snort of laughter at her. She looked ridiculous, but it was funny as hell.

"So Pierre isn't in any danger?" Of course he already knew this, but then again, there was more too this than she thought.

"Yup!" She smiled.

"Problem solved!" He raised his arms in the air for emphasis, trying to pull off a small smile. But he quickly lost it when he saw hers fade.

"Problem not solved," her voice becoming low now and her body still. "This isn't a 'win or lose' situation, it's a lose/lose situation."

"How? He's not in any danger, so you don't have to go back and work for her."

"That's the thing, even if I did figure her plan out, I still don't have the money for her," she rubbed her arm and looked at her feet. "This has been the toughest deadline yet, and the fact that business has been slow, made it impossible. I won't make it, and I know she came up with the rest just to ensure this."

"Then you are in fact giving up..." Arabelle looked up at him, her eyes narrowed.

"No! Certainly not! I'm going to confront her and quit. She broke the agreement!" She put her hands on her hips. Something about her plan didn't feel very reassuring and they both felt it when the words left her mouth.

"And she's going to let you? Come on now! You need to think this through!" He talked to her like she was a child. It didn't faze her in the least.

"I've already gone to see her. I threw what money I had made this deadline at her and told her I quit. I threatened to out her thievery by turning myself in and telling the police of our little bargain. She caved instantly and it was done!" She smiled triumphantly. Something seemed out of place, something Erik couldn't quite put his finger on.

"That's amazing, congratulations." He tried his best to sound emotionless. She didn't notice how sarcastic his words were, instead, she gave him a warm smile in return.

"I also have a real job, at the bakery. Monsieur Adolpha said that I can help in the back, and with deliveries." He didn't know what to say, other than wanting to question all of this. But, he decided, however, that he would instead just follow her every once in a while, to see if she was telling the truth.

"That's great. I'm glad everything is working out for you." Arabelle walked towards him and took his hand, opening it up and setting a sack of coins in it.

"This was a pay day in advance. I thought that you could use this more." Erik's jaw dropped a little, but he quickly found his cool and nodded in thanks. She patted his arm.

"Thanks for everything as well. I guess I'll see you when I see you, Erik." She smiled and disappeared down the canal.

There was something definitely not right about all this, and Erik felt it with every fiber of his being. Trouble seemed to constantly follow this girl and it was definitely too good to believe that Madame Cornette had given up that easily, especially after all the trouble she went through to get her. Something was amiss, and he was going to find out what.

It had taken everything she had to keep from spilling the truth to Erik. The words were like acid when she told him those lies about having a job, about successfully confronting Cornet and putting her in her place. It took everything she had to smile and act like everything was perfect. The truth was, things were far from perfect, in fact, they were a million times worse.

When she had gone to confront Madame Cornette about her deceit, she had smiled and praised her for figuring things out. From the moment she had told Madame Cornet that the deal was off and that she quit, things got much worse for her, for Arabelle.

"I don't think so," she had sipped her wine and smiled a devilish smile and cackled like a witch. "You're not getting away from me that easily." Arabelle immediately stood and made clear the Madame's actions and what they cost.

"The deal was off the moment you sent in a spy. You violated the terms of the agreement, I owe you nothing!" She spat at the Madame, steam coming from her ears. Arabelle was determined to walk out of this place a contract and duty free woman. The Madame just let out another cackling laugh and narrowed her eyes at the prize she had been seeking since she first laid eyes on it.

"You really think that I'm going to give in that easily?" She hooted and laughed even harder. "It seems you've underestimated me, my dear." Arabelle glared at her and her face getting hot with rage.

"If you don't drop the agreement, I will go to the police and expose us both!" Arabelle pounded her fists on the table and looked the Madame straight in the eye. She wasn't giving up either. There was no way in hell she was going to let the Madame win this time. She was going to come out of this the on top, no pun intended, no matter what!

"You would be willing to go to prison, and possibly be executed, just to avoid working in the house?" She smiled at her epiphany, and a twinkle came to her eye.

"I would rather live the day of my father's death a million times than work here." Arabelle spit, he voice gritty and hoarse. She began to dig her nails into the table. Madame Cornette found this new information incredibly fascinating and was now more than ever determined to make Arabelle hers.

"Even if that meant sacrificing your friend's life?" She raised an eyebrow and her smile widened in sheer evil. Arabelle was taken aback and her rage dissipated. She took a step back and her breath began to quicken. Bingo, Madame Cornette thought to herself.

"What are you saying?" Arabelle narrowed her eyes at the Madame. Knowing exactly what she was getting at, making her heart almost burst.

"A simple..proposal, as it were. You make some house calls to a few of my high paying customers."

"What if I don't accept this proposal of yours?" Arabelle's voice cracked just the tiniest bit, any normal person wouldn't have noticed, but the Madame had. In fact, her pain made this all the more fun, gave her all the more pleasure.

"Then I kill Joshua. I have many resources, you know? I can have him shot, poisoned, hung, stabbed, and so on. After all, my business is the most successful in all of Paris." Arabelle gulped ever so slightly. She shook her head at Cornette.

"I don't believe you!" She shouted at her, not willing to back down in the least.

"Are you sure you want to take that chance?" Cornette's voice was thick and oily. Her personality and features looked more and more serpent like every time she spoke.

Arabelle thought about her old friend. The person that had saved her the last night she was here; the one person that had never lied to her, never gotten or wanted anything out of their friendship. The only friendship she had that wasn't built on lies. "Was I willing to risk it?" Arabelle asked herself. She already knew the answer, so did Cornette.

"All you have to do is make a few house calls a week," Cornette gulped down the rest of her wine then stood and walked towards a desk in the corner of the room. She picked up a piece of paper and handed it to Arabelle.

"You do this, and nothing will ever happen to Joshua." Arabelle sighed in defeat and reached for the paper, looking at the name and the address. There was no escape. She should have known.

"Fine," was all she said before walking towards the door.

"There's one more thing," Arabelle stopped and faced her warden. "If you tell Joshua of our new proposal-" Cornette cut herself off, knowing that Arabelle knew all too well the consequences.

"I understand," she nodded solemnly.

"And here's your first payment in advance," she threw a small sack of coins to Arabelle. "Welcome back to the Scarlet Palace." Her smile and words were slimy and tormenting.

After that she had decided to pay a little visit to Erik. She wanted to make sure he stayed away from her, so he would not find out about her new job. It was amazing even to her at how easy it was to find him, to find her way to the hidden cavern in the canals. But what was most surprising was that he hadn't even heard her. She knew he had no idea she was hear when she bit into the apple and saw him jump a little. The conversation felt like it went on for hours. When she was finished, Arabelle ran as fast as she could back to the old building and to her room.

"The worst is over." She thought to herself and truly believed it, until her eyes came upon a few boxes sitting on the top of her trunk. They had not been there when she had left. Cautiously, she lifted the lid of one of them and peered inside, only to find her stomach twist and have a wave of nausea fall on her. The box was filled with her 'uniform' for when she made her house calls. There was also a note inside, something she absolutely did NOT want to read.

"I almost forgot to give you these. You can wear them underneath any clothes you like, they're expecting it. Enjoy your first call. Madame Cornette." She almost puked, but managed to hold it in. But the feeling didn't leave her, it never would. But this was the only way. She had to save her friend, and she was willing to anything to keep him alive, anything.

A/N: Alright, here's seven. I'm particularly proud of this chapter. I love the dialog between Erik and Arabelle at the end! I don't know why, but I felt so witty when I wrote it last summer! I'm a nerd, I can't help it! For those of you who were waiting for a development in Erik, I hope this is a bit of what you were craving! Plus, this is longer than usual!

Unfortunately, from here on out, updates may not be as regular as they were this last month. School is starting and I've got a lot of writing for classes and clubs and what not! They won't be weeks at a time though, since all I have to do is edit. After Chapter 10 updates are going to really slow since that's as far as I wrote last summer. I'm really sorry! I will not leave this story unfinished! I promise you that much! I couldn't live with an unfinished story! It may take weeks, but you will get an update! I swear to you!

As always, please read and review!

Luce, Your Surly Mermaid!