I'm mildly amused by the fact that everyone seems to have thought that I'm a Victor/Emily person… because I'm not at all. The point of this story was not to be a pairing between anybody, it was supposed to ask what would've happened if nobody got what they wanted.

I wasn't planning on this being any more than a one shot, but since my story apparently didn't have the effect I wanted it to have, I'm adding this.

Life in the underworld had never been more sobering. It had been two days since the botched wedding when Victor had died and Victoria had disappeared with Lord Barkis. Victor had walked heavily about, his head hanging, not speaking to anyone. Emily had tried on more than one occasion to speak to him, to console him in his depression, but he had simply turned and walked away, giving her a sad glance.

Emily was surprised: not only because of Victor's detached mood, but also because they had only had two new arrivals in the past two days… and neither of them had been Victoria. Wherever Barkis had dragged her off to, he hadn't killed her yet. That had to be by far a worse fate than death.

Sighing, she walked into the lounge where everything was silent. No new arrivals, no party, and it was peaceful. She started toward the piano, her place of solace, when she heard the mellow sound of the instrument floating to her ears. It was a familiar melody, one that she had heard him play along with her that one day that seemed so long ago. She peeked around the corner and saw him sitting there, tapping on the keys. After a brief moment contemplating whether or not to join him, she turned and walked away.

Victor hadn't heard her approach at all. He was too deep in his music to notice much of anything. This had all gone wrong. He hadn't been ready to die. He thought he was, but he wasn't. Victoria was supposed to have been married off happily, having forgotten him—she had been crying out for help. Emily was supposed to have gladly married him—she had stopped him. He wasn't supposed to die yet.

He thought back to Emily. She had been so sad watching his depression knowing there was nothing to be done about it. He wished he hadn't hurt her like that, but it was too much. He couldn't help the way he felt.

His thoughts drifted to Victoria. He was so terrified for her. Following his death, he had hoped and prayed that she would soon follow him. The thought of her being alone with that horrible Lord Barkis was too much for him to bear. But she hadn't come. He was keeping her alive, for some unknown reason, and God only knew what he was doing to her.

His fingers froze over the keys. He couldn't do this anymore. This song, this lovely song that had once filled him with such joy… it now reminded him of his sweet Victoria, of meeting her and falling in love with her. And it also reminded him of dear Emily, when he finally saw her as more than a corpse. He'd lost either way.

He was alone.

The thoughts of Victoria paralleled Victor's. She wasn't dead…but she had died.

For all of them, there would be no happy ending.