There's always a happy ending for a Corpse Bride.

I own nothing but my OC's.

Chapter 1

Emily sighed downheartedly as her fingers hovered over the keys of the piano. It had been a week since the 'Victor Incident'. Sure, she knew she did the right thing, but that didn't mean she was happy about. Emily really thought Victor was the one; her true love.

Sure, she still had her friends; Bonejangles, Oliver, Mary. No one in the Land of the Dead was against her (Well, except Barkis), so she knew they were all there for her; and she was there for them.

Emily let a small smile tug at her lips as she remembered that she was free now, no longer trapped by that vow of finding her husband. Now she didn't have to wait for a random bloke to come along and say their wedding vows and place a ring on her finger.

Emily let out a painful laugh. Her love life wasn't so great. First, she was murdered by her 'lover', then the man she loved was in love, and already engaged, to some else.

It made her think. Would she ever find that one special person? The one she could tell 'I love you' to? Someone who would tell her they loved her too?

Angrily, she balled her hands into fists and slammed them hard on the keyboard. Why was love so hard?

It didn't help that Valentine's day was coming up in two months. Bonejangles had told her that they were going to throw a big party for the undead couples. Like a school dance, one person would ask the other to be their date. Emily could imagine all of the girls who would ask Bonejangles to be their date. He had become quite famous and all the girls loved him. Emily giggled when she remembered a drunken BJ complain about how many girls he could have, but lamenting how he could only have one.

Bonejangles found it easy to win a girl's heart, considering how many already loved him.

As far as Emily knew, no one else was in the pub. The Ball and Socket pub was soon to close until morning.

She started playing again. Playing a song BJ had once taught her, she questioned why she was actually there. All she was doing was letting her sadness out through the ivory keys of the piano. Emily then stopped playing.

"Aw, I was getting in to that!"

Emily turned to the source of the voice. Bonejangles stood, leaning on the frame of the doorway, bowler over his eye sockets. He smiled, the best a skeleton could, as he lifted his hat off of his eye to look at her.

Emily gave him a cheerful smile. Speak of the devil. She thought to herself.

Bonejangles strolled over to her and sat beside her on the piano stool.

Emily looked down at the keys, avoiding eye contact.

"What's wrong, Em?" She heard her best friend say. "Victor still got ya down?"

Emily let out a thoughtful hum and nodded.

Bonejangles placed his hand on her back and rubbed it gently. "It's alright, Emz. He set ya free," Bonejangles was surely hoping this was comforting her. These were the only things he could think of. "Now ya don't 'ave to wait for a man to come along. You can go out…" He removed his hand and looked down at his lap. "…Meet people…" He added, almost mumbling.

Emily looked at him out of the corner of her eye. He seemed troubled. "Bonejangles,"

She began, catching his attention.

BJ looked at her, suddenly brightening up. "Yeah?"

"How many girls have asked you to the Valentine's party?"

"A few. I declined them all. Just tryin' to find that one perfect gal who would make me 'appy."

Emily looked down at her lap, somehow feeling this was her fault.

"Oliver's been asked out a few times." Bonejangles told her.

"Really?" It wasn't that she was surprised. Oliver was Bonejangles' little brother, so it was complete fact that girls would ask him.

"Yeah, but he declined them too. Told 'em he might not be goin'. Love ain't really his forte anyway."

Emily nodded. Oliver was a boy who loved one thing: Science. He wasn't like his brother, who would flirt for the fun of it. Oliver tried to avoid girls asking him out; he wasn't someone who liked to decline people.

Bonejangles would stare at girls. Oliver would stare at telescopes.

Silence fell between them. They were just making small talk.

Emily questioned why Bonejangles seemed so shy. He was never shy. He could jump up on stage and act like a fool, which he had done before, and wouldn't care. But right now, he was playing with his bony fingers.

Bonejangles was trying to find something to say. Anything. This was so embarrassing! He could make small talk like no tomorrow. But not around Emily. He glanced at her and quickly looked away when he saw her eyes on him. He felt so helpless. Bonejangles sort of hoped someone would burst into the room, saving him from this shyness and silence.

He had to ask her. He wanted her to be that perfect gal that would make him happy. BJ just knew it somehow. Whenever she looked at him, whenever she smiled or laughed he could swear his non-existent heart skipped a beat.

Woah! Hold on BoneJ! He thought to himself. She's ya best girl-mate. Not your girlfriend. Besides, she's too upset to think about finding a new love now.

Bonejangles sucked some air in to his imaginary lungs. Oh, c'mon BJ! Even if she ditches ya, you still got time to get a date! Ok, He gulped out loud. Here I go…

BJ turned to Emily, closing his eye. "Em, will you-"

"BJ! Emily! We're closing up!" Miss Plum shouted from the bar.

BJ opened his eye, which felt as if it had shrivelled up from the shock. He was so close!

Emily got up to leave. "Well, I best get home then."

"Um, yeah…" BJ said absentmindedly. He quickly turned to her as she walked towards the door. "Wait! Emily!"

Emily glanced at him. "Yes, Bonejangles?"

C'mon BJ, now's ya chance!

"Will you…be ok?"

Emily smiled at him and chuckled slightly. "Don't worry, BJ, I'll be fine." She walked back over to him. "Thank you for your concern, Bonejangles." She planted a gentle, rewarding kiss on his cheekbone. BJ simply stared.

Emily waved at him and exited the pub.

Bonejangles turned back to the keys of the piano. He threw his skull down onto them repeatedly. "Stupid, stupid, stupid!" He stopped and scowled to himself. "Why can't ask I her to the party? It's so simple!"

"Bonejangles? Are you comin'?" Miss Plum shouted.

"Yeah, yeah. Keep ya knickers on, woman!" Bonejangles replied.

"What did you just say?"

"Nothin', Miss P." Bonejangles said sadly as he walked into the bar and started making his way upstairs to his bedroom. "Absolutely nothin'…"

Miss Plum watched the sad skeleton walk up the stairs. She frowned and clicked the light switch, turning out the pub's lights and exiting though the doors.

Bonejangles sat awake in his bed, which was actually a coffin with pillows. He could've asked Emily to the party, so why didn't he? He had tried before. But somehow got them onto a conversation about tea. He didn't understand. It seemed so easy in his head, but when it came to actually asking her, it seemed as hard as catching butterflies with your bare hands.

"Butterflies," He scoffed, remembering the night Emily had turned into hundreds of the beautiful, silver insects. He wanted to strangle Victor when he had found out the breather had lied to Emily just so he could go and meet with another breather. Victoria or something. But if he did strangle the living man, then Emily really would be married to him. BJ realized he was being selfish. Emily wanted to be married to Victor.

But he wanted her!

Woah! Stop it BJ! Ya don't like 'er like that! She's just a mate! A friend! An amigo!

Bonejangles sighed. "Maybe Oliver's right, maybe I am in love with Emily…"

Thinking about this, he rolled onto his side and drifted off to sleep.

"Brother!"

Bonejangles was awoken the next morning by this word. Refusing to get up, he closed his eye again and rolled over.

"Wake up, Big Brother!"

Bonejangles moaned and covered his skull with the blanket. He didn't really need it to keep warm. Everyone was dead cold down there. No pun intended.

"Brother! Get up!"

Bonejangles swiftly rolled back over and threw the moth-eaten blanket over his younger brother's head. "Would you shut it already? I'm tryin' to snooze!"

Oliver removed the blanket from his head, his one eye going with it. With a swift grab, he pulled his eye from the air before it had a chance to hit the floor. Putting his eye into his right eye socket, Oliver frowned at his brother. "That's what I'm here for. Miss Plum sent me up to make sure you come downstairs and help open up the pub." The corpse explained in his innocent and child-like voice.

BJ questioned why Oliver's voice hadn't deepened like his own during puberty. It did deepen a little, but not as much as it should've. No one made fun of him though, in fact the girls thought it was cute when he first died.

"Tell Miss P that I'm too tired." Bonejangles said as he pulled his blanket back over him and rolled over, his back facing his brother.

"That's the thing, Big Brother, she said she didn't care."

"Ain't that nice?"

Oliver ignored his question and just pleaded helplessly: "Brother, please get up. I don't want to face her wrath again."

"Alrigh', Ol." BJ said, using the nickname he had given Oliver when they were children.

"Thank you, Big Brother." Oliver smiled and watched his older brother get out of bed and stretch…then just get back into bed. "Brother! What're you doing?"

"I got up, didn't I?"

"You need to go downstairs and help open the pub!"

"Don't want to."

"Brother, please!"

"No."

Miss Plum could hear the commotion. "Bonejangles! Get your lazy butt down here now!"

Bonejangles grunted and got up again. He walked down the stairs, hearing his brother shout: "Brother, wait for me!"

When Bonejangles walked over to the bar, he scanned the room for a certain Corpse Bride. She was no where to be seen. He sighed and actually started listening to Miss Plum scold him. She was talking about how lazy he was. BJ simply rolled his eye when she was done and muttered a: "Yeah, yeah, yeah." before getting to work.

Bonejangles had already known how his day was going to go. Girls would ask him to be their date; he'd decline. He'd sell drinks, talk to Emily and chicken out when he tried to ask her. Maybe perform a couple of songs. Which reminded him; he'd might need to change some of the lyrics in Remains of the Day; just to fit the current event. There was no longer a 'groovy young man', he was long gone. But if he did change the lyrics, they might upset Emily. Bonejangles didn't want that. All he wanted was for her to be happy.