Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters of "Corpse Bride." Tim Burton does. I own Grace, Hector, King Lucas, Chela, Gabi, and Artsohn.

Always be my Home

I won't be afraid
To turn back down the road
Cause Your heart will always be my home

- Rachel Lampa

Grace Calman looked up from her notebook and gazed out the carriage window. As the carriage crossed the bridge, she turned her head toward the town in front of her. Ice patches, nearly melted for spring, covered the edges of each gray, stone edifice. Cobblestone roads circled around a jaded fountain in the middle of town. Grace looked up at the dreary clouds and closed her eyes, smiling. She felt good to be home.

And yet…

She opened her eyes as the carriage halted to a stop. She peered at the dark mansion in front of her. On the mansion, an "E" in a familiar design stood above the front doors. The coach driver got off the carriage and walked over to open the door for her. Grace took his hand as he helped her out. After carefully stepping off of the carriage, the coach driver immediately hopped back onto the carriage and drove away. He had no reason to stay. Grace had already paid him and she had only one bag that she carried.

She sighed as she tucked her notebook into her bag. She walked up the steps, wrapping her shawl tighter around her shoulders to ward off the cold. She knocked on the door. The door was opened by a stiff man with a large moustache under his upturned nose. He remained stiff for about two seconds until he recognized who she was. He loosened a little, his eyes widened.

"Miss Grace?" he asked, in a thick English accent. Grace smiled.

"Are you going let me in, Emil?" she asked. "Or are you going to let a friend stand outside in the cold?" He gave her a very small smile, which was actually a good thing since he hardly ever smiled, and opened the door wider. Grace walked inside the large, dark yet warm room. Emil closed the door behind her.

"Hildegarde is in your room," he told her. "I have to make breakfast for the lord and lady."

"Thank you, Emil," she told him. "Oh and please do not tell Victoria I'm here. I want to surprise her."

"I won't," he promised. He sauntered over to the kitchen as Grace walked up the large staircase, heading to the east wing. At the end of the hall, she stopped at one of the many doors and opened it to a small room. Inside were two small beds, each beside a wall with a trunk underneath the one window. Grace smiled at the old woman, looking at herself in worn-out mirror, fixing her hair. She saw Grace in the reflection, turned around, and gasped.

"You're home!" she cried, smiling. She ran over to her and hugged her. Grace hugged her back.

"Hello, Mother," she said. Hildegarde let her go and sat down one of the beds. It made cringing spring noise as she sat.

"How was the country?" she asked. "Is your dear cousin Thomas feeling better?" Grace laid her bag on the other bed and started to unpack.

"The country was lovely and Thomas is doing well," she said. Grace looked down and sighed. Her mother gave her a sympathetic look.

"What's wrong, Grace?" she asked. Grace looked back up.

"Mother," Grace began. "I'm glad to be home, but…I don't know…I feel like I need to be someplace else."

"What do you mean, deary?" she asked. Grace turned to the window.

"I don't know," Grace said. "I know that there is something missing in my life, but I just don't know what it is." Hildegarde looked down and shook her head.

"If your father were still here, he would say to look inside yourself," she told her.

"But I don't know who myself is," Grace said looking back down. Hildegarde gave a comforting smile.

"Why you're Grace Calman, a respectable young lady," she said. "You are clever, kind, and a wonderful writer." Grace smiled and walked over to the window.

"What was father like?" Grace asked, looking out the window. Hildegarde shook her head and smiled.

"Don't you already know this story?" she asked.

"Please Mother," Grace begged. Hildegarde breathed in heavily and out slowly.

"Alright," she said. "Your father was a nice and bright man. He came here, visiting his brother. He was an American, you know."

"And an outcast," Grace commented. Hildegarde clasped her hand together and walked closer towards her.

"But that never stopped him," Hildegarde told her. "Listen, deary, I have to wake up Miss Victoria with her breakfast." Grace immediately spun around to face her.

"Oh, please, let me do it!" Grace pleaded. "She's my very dear friend and I want to surprise her that I'm home."

"Well…alright, deary," Hildegarde agreed. "Besides, it tis' your job." Grace grinned and quickly ran over to the kitchen.