A/N: Wow, the response has been HUGE! Lessee…

PlayerPiano: Well I don't intend for her to be afraid of Victor for the entire FIC. No, she warms up quickly so don't worry.

Chi: huggle I love ya XD

Deyinel: Ok, so maybe I unfairly judged V/E fans in general. I was pretty dang SPOT-ON with the V/E fans on though, and no one can disagree with me. The evidence is EVERYWHERE.

Elwyndra: see, I updated! No killing, ok?

Lydia: Why YES, yes I am happy now:D thanks for asking!

Well, on with the show!

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The church stood empty now.

It had been many hours since that dreaded poison had snatched Victor from her. The dead had long since gone back to the ground, he with them, and the living had gone back to their respected houses. Yet Victoria stayed at the altar, clutching at that accursed goblet, eyes weary from crying. She hadn't the foggiest idea what to do now. Victor…She could still see his eyes, and feel his dead flesh upon her cheek. A tear trailed down her cheek. It really HAD been him, and she pushed him away. And now…now, she thought with a sigh, he was gone. Victoria's mind lingered on that last melancholy glance he had given her as he left the church with the others. It said the words he hadn't been able to.

He loved her.

Tiredly, she rose to her feet, trying in vain to smooth her now soiled and wrinkled wedding dress. The doors were still open, letting a gentle breeze waft through the stillness of the church. Home was beyond those doors, and a life that she didn't want. Idly, Victoria looked to the goblet in hopes of any leftover poison, and then shook her head violently. No, she chided herself. Victor would've wanted her to live.

Victor…

She slumped down in one of the pews, and let herself cry again. It was her own fault for not getting there in time. Victoria thought of the strangely beautiful corpse that now had HER Victor. She had honestly looked horrified at what had happened. Whoever she was, she had once possessed a compassionate heart. Victoria hung her head. What was she to do now?

Slight footsteps jarred her from her thoughts, but Victoria didn't dare look up. She knew who it was. "Well well, so HERE is where I find you…" Barkis put a hand on her shoulder gently. Even with her head down, she could see him sneering at her. "I heard the DISASTROUS news about the van Dort chap…" He leaned in. "Shame, really…He was so young." Victoria shuddered and pulled away, thinly veiling her disgust. Barkis sat down next to her and pulled her close. "Now then, do cheer up. It doesn't become you to frown so." He lifted her chin so their eyes were level. Victoria couldn't believe it. Was—was he actually smiling SINCERELY at her? She searched his face nervously. It was still there: that nameless thing that twisted even his kind smile into something that threatened her, like a lion smiling at its prey. She had noticed it the first time she saw him, when he had walked into the rehearsal, and she had fought to keep her composure then. Now, she was alone, frozen in fear and nowhere to run. Barkis seemed to notice her anxious state and grinned wider. He gently traced her cheek with a finger and leaned forward. Softly, he whispered, "You're too pretty to frown…" Despite herself, Victoria leaned in as well, and their lips met halfway.

She had often wondered, as she had prepared for her impending marriage to Lord Barkis had loomed, what it would be like to kiss him. Would it be as horrid as her imagination had made it out to be? Strangely, as man and reluctant wife sat together in the darkness, it was not as bad as she thought. It wasn't good either. There was nothing there; no love, no passion, no spark…just an empty gesture that meant nothing to either. Parting his lips from hers, Barkis stood and offered his arm to the new Lady Bittern. "Come my dear, your parents are wondering where you are." Hesitantly, Victoria took his arm and stood up, not daring to look at him as they made their way out of the building and into the moonlight. Victoria took one last glance back, and sighed hopelessly.

Victor was the one who took the poison, but it was Victoria who felt dead inside.

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"I've done a terrible thing…"

Bonejangles patted Emily's fleshless arm sympathetically, and smiled the best he could (for a skeleton). "Come on now, babe. You know and I know that it wasn't yer fault." Emily just sighed and let a few more tears escape from her eyes. The skeleton sighed and futilely wiped them away. Putting an arm around her shivering shoulders, he drew her in close. "Come on doll, buck up."

"I CAN'T, don't you understand?" She pulled away and ran to the edge of the balcony and stared up at the night sky. Unlike the land of the living, the sky glowed dimly with the reflected light from the city below. It gave Emily's already haunting figure an extra aura of sadness, a fact that did not go unnoticed by the skeleton behind her. She turned to Bonejangles again, tears flowing freely. "You…you don't think he hates me, do you?"

If he still had one, his heart would've caught in his throat. It was no secret that the hip skeleton was the "ladies' man" of the underworld; every corpse and skeleton that had been female periodically threw themselves at him, much to the delight of the object of their affection. He could've had any of them…. but the only one he had wanted had been too distant, too wrapped up in what might have been for her to notice his advances. Everyone knew he liked her…everyone but Emily. Sighing, Bonejangles got up and approached the distraught bride. "Baby, he doesn't hate ya." For once, he was glad that his face could no longer show emotion. Straining to stay happy for her, he smiled and brushed a skeletal hand over her cold cheek. Whispering, he said, "No one could hate you."

Emily smiled and threw her arms around his shoulders. "Thanks, Bonejangles." She kissed his cheek. "You're the best friend I've ever had." Giggling slightly, she said, "I'd better go find Victor. He…. Well, we have a lot to talk about." With that, she turned and started off for the Ball & Socket pub. Bonejangles stared after her, heart crushed. It figures, he thought bitterly. She was the one for me, but I can't have her.

She wasn't the only one to have broken dreams…

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Back at the pub, the other corpses were having a difficult time getting any sort of reply from Victor. He sat at the bar, staring forward blankly, drink forgotten. Victoria…what was she doing right now? He smiled sadly, and looked over at his reflection in the mirror. He didn't look all that different, though the blue tint of his skin would take some time getting used to. He shuddered. No, it wasn't his new skin color that he feared.

It was what happened to a corpse after death.

He saw it everywhere he looked: rotting flesh peeling from the bones, the sickly yellow glaze that overtook the eyes, body parts falling off, maggots crawling through his carcass…. he felt his stomach heave. Already, signs of decay had become obvious. He had read once in a book that deceased bodies swelled up slightly a few hours after death. It had been true. He couldn't actually FEEL anything, but the sight of his body rising on its own had been enough to send the easily frazzled man into hysterics. Then there had been the insects… Oh, the insects. He'd lost count how many had tried to burrow into him. Despite the sympathetic advice from those long dead to just ignore them, Victor had continued to ward off all critters with six to eight legs. Victor grimaced. He drew the line at things living inside him and eating vital organs without his permission (which he wasn't about to give).

He became vaguely aware of a presence behind him. A soft hand touched his shoulder gently, and he smiled. It was Emily. "V-Victor?" He could tell if something was bothering her deeply. Her voice got soft and nervous. "Are---are you alright, dear?"

Victor sighed, not looking at her. "Yes…I'm fine." After a moment, he turned towards her slightly and gave her a weak smile. "Well…as fine as a man can be just after death." She giggled slightly and sat down next to him. For a while they said nothing, both staring at the other. Emily seemed to be looking at him in a sorrowful, guilty way, and diverted her eyes after a minute. Victor reached out and took her hand gently. "Emily…" he said sadly, "It…what happened back there…" She closed her eyes and clutched at his hand. Victor touched her cheek, and smiled. "Emily, it wasn't your fault. Don't think that I'm upset with you." He sighed. "It's just…"

"It's just that you loved her." She smiled sorrowfully. A tear escaped her eye. "I know you did." She gave him a strange, faraway look before standing and giving him a kiss. "And I won't ever rest with that knowledge." She turned to walk out.

Victor followed her, confused. "Wh-Where are you going?"

She just smiled. "To bring peace to all of us."

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A/N: There! Tis done! WOOO! Go wild. Flames, comments, critiques, I love them all.