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Author's Note: Hello loves, Badbutthall94 is back with another one-shot. I hope you guys like it. Please leave me a comment/ review, and make sure to favorite and follow for more. Love ya guys.

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Summary: All a young Victor Van Dort wanted in life was to have a friend, but his busy schedule and parents would not allow it. That is until he met an orphan girl named Emily. Finally, he had his first friend. However, because of their classes, things cannot remain this way. What will little Victor do when his only friend is ripped from his life?

WARNING: I DO NOT OWN ANYTHING RELATED TO CORPSE BRIDE OR TIM BURTON!

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Reunited

A warm, sunny day in London, England 1856 brought everyone out of their homes. The streets were crowded, and idle chit-chat filled echoed off the building walls. Women were dressed in their Sunday best, free from church and the bells that tolled. Men walked tall and proud in their top hats and suits. Puddles filled the street's potholes from the rain the day before. Yes, today was an unusually happy day for most citizens, except for a certain young man.

Victor Elliot sat at his desk in his room as he listened to the street sounds outside his window. For the young lad, life was boring. He was more financially well off than most children his age. He was not a child, but a young man in the making. His parents gave him the best education, coaches, clothes, food, and modern household items. They even had indoor plumbing. But none of that mattered to young Victor. No, he would rather be a normal kid that played outside with others.

For hours on end, Victor Elliot would look out his window at the less fortunate children who played outside with sticks, ropes, wheels, and other children, where he stayed inside and practiced piano, his lessons, or read for fun. Oh, how he wished that his mother would ease up on him and let him outside. Whenever he would ask to play outside, his mother would scoff and nag him about their higher status over "the poor". She would continue with how much better they were and made him feel bad for even thinking that associating with "the poor" was acceptable before sending him back to his room. However, fortunate for young Victor, today was a little different.

Since this was one of the rare, beautiful days in the cloudy, depressing town, Victor devised a plan to get outside. Earlier this morning, he overheard his mother complaining that they were out of some groceries. His mother wanted to send one of the maids to grab them, but they were preoccupied with cleaning their mansion before his father returned home. His father detested a filthy home. This was his chance to get out and enjoy the day. Hopefully, he will make some friends along the way.

"Mother," Victor called as he ran down the stairs.

"What have I told you about running in this house? What are you trying to do, hurt yourself?"

"Sorry, Mother, but I wanted to ask you a question."

"Well get on with it then." she glared.

"Mother, would it be all right if I were to go to the market and buy the groceries?"

"Have you gone and lost your marbles? No son of mine will go to the store for grocery market when we have perfectly fine servants to do it for us."

"But mother, they're busy with making sure the house is spotless before father returns home. You know how much he detests a filthy home. And, if I hurry back, then they will have time to cook dinner before he returns home as well. Oh please, Mother. I only want to help."

His mother gave it some thought as she looked down at her pleading son. After a while, she finally gave in and went to the safe. With delicate fingers, she turned the safe's knob until it opened and retrieved the money.

"Here, this should be enough for everything we need. Grab the list from the cook on your way out the door. Be sure to give it to the Shopkeeper, and he'll do the rest. Do not be gone long and come straight back here. You still have your piano lesson later this evening. Understood?"

Victor nodded in excitement as he took the money and exited through the front door. As he jumped from the last step of the front porch, a sense of freedom filled his small body. With a spring in his step and happiness in his heart, Victor Elliot skipped to the market. Once he got to the market, anxiety shook him to his very bones and caused his hands to sweat. But he pushed onward. He opened the door, was greeted by the Shopkeeper, and handed the man his mother's list. The Shopkeeper looked it over once before retrieving every item on the list. It did not take long before the man had the items bagged and set them on the counter. Victor paid the man and took the change back. He stuffed it into his little pocket as he grabbed the bag that was three-quarters his size before leaving.

On his way back, Victor took this opportunity to enjoy the slow walk back home. He took some scenic routes so he could stay out longer. His mother's warning played in the back of his mind the whole way. Victor did not know how long he had been gone, but he knew that he had to get back soon. He adjusted the bag in his hand and continued his walk until something caught his attention. Down the alleyway to his right, Victor heard a noise that frightened him.

"Who's there?"

No answer.

"Is anyone there?"

Still nothing.

Throwing caution into the wind, Victor entered the alleyway and peeked around the corner. Just as he did this, the young man caught a flash of something small tucked away behind a dust cart. Cautiously, Victor put the bag of groceries down and stepped closer to the dust cart.

"Come on out. I promise not to hurt you."

Suddenly, a small child peered around the corner. She had long, matted brown hair, and large eyes, and wore a tattered dress and worn shoes. She looked no more than six and shook like a leaf.

"Hello. My name is Victor Elliot. I live a few blocks away from here. What is your name?"

"Emily."

"Nice to meet you, Emily. Where are you from?"

"An orphanage."

"Oh, I am sorry. I wasn't aware."

"It's ok," she said as she looked behind him and saw the bag of groceries.

Suddenly, her stomach growled loudly. Emily quickly covered her stomach to quiet the noise, but it did not work.

"Are you hungry?" Emily nodded. "Wait here."

Victor turned his back to her and dug into the bag. He searched the bag until he pulled out a loaf of bread.

"Here, you can have this." Emily's eyes widened as she stepped back and shook her head frantically. "What's wrong?"

"You're rich. The ladies at the orphanage told me I'm not supposed to take things from the rich. They also said that I was no better than the grim on the bottom of their shoes."

"That is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard. Here, just take it. I promise that it is ok and that I will not tell anyone."

Emily stood there for a moment and stared at the bread. Her large eyes shifted from Victor and the bread several times before she reached out and took it.

"Thank you," she whispered as she held it tight to her smaller frame.

"It is my pleasure." At that moment, the church bells rang twice, signifying that it was two o'clock in the afternoon. "Oh no, I'm late! I have to go home. I'm terribly sorry, Emily, but I must be off."

She watched as the young boy picked up the bag of groceries before he turned to leave.

"Will I ever see you again?"

Victor stopped in his tracks before turning around to face her with a bright smile.

"You want to see me again?" she nodded. "Of course, you will. I will try to sneak out again tomorrow. How about we meet back here?"

"Ok."

"Ok then. I'll come back here tomorrow; I promise."

And with that, Victor Elliot turned and ran out of the alleyway with the largest smile on his face. It took him about five minutes to get home, and as soon as he walked through the door, his mother yelled at him for being late. She yelled at him for coming home with a dirty bag, and she yelled at him for not having the loaf of bread. But he did not care. Today, he got to experience freedom. Today he experienced independence. Today, he met his first friend. And tomorrow, he was going to do it again. Now the only question was, how was he going to sneak out again tomorrow.

By the time he got home, Victor snuck into the house without his mother noticing. However, it did not last long when the cook told her that they were missing a loaf of bread. When questioned, Victor simply said that the Shopkeeper must have forgotten it. He offered to go back and get it, but his Mother declined and said she will send someone out tomorrow. That gave the boy an idea. He planned to use that as an excuse to meet Emily again. Victor cried and pleaded for his mother to let him be the one to run the errand. Finally, after a few moments of this, his Mother agreed but made him promise to come right back and doddle. He agreed and prepared for his upcoming piano lesson. Victor spent the rest of the day with a bright smile as he thought of meeting his first friend again.

The next day, after his lessons, Victor retrieved the money from his mother before he ran to the market. When he got there, he lied to the Shopkeeper about the bread. It took a little convincing from Victor, but luckily the Shopkeeper believed him and even gave an extra loaf for the trouble. Just like yesterday, Victor skipped down the street, passing other children and the crowds, before he came to the ally way where he met Emily. And just like yesterday, she waited for him. They talked for a spell, hidden within the shadows until it was time for Victor to return home. Before he left, he gave Emily the extra loaf of bread. Once again, she was grateful, and they promised to see each other again. Soon this would become their routine.

In the coming weeks, Victor found an excuse to go out to meet Emily. Sometimes, he could not leave for a few days. And one time he could not leave for a week. That was the worst week of his life, and his parents could not figure out the cause. They considered calling the doctor but decided against it. Instead, they thought involving Victor in a sport would cheer him up so that he could be with children around his age. Despite Victor not being the most athletic boy, he did well when he played soccer and got to know some of the other boys. But none of them compared to Emily. Day and night, he worried himself sick about her. Luckily, he got to see her again soon.

One day after practice, Victor found a detour that led him right to the ally. And, like always, Emily waited for him. That gave him an idea: after his practices, he would take the detour and meet Emily around the same time three days a week. It was the perfect plan, and with all of the attention he gave her, Emily smiled for the first time. Victor liked it when she smiled, he liked it when she laughed at his jokes and stories, and he liked it when she talked back to him.

Most of the time they would sit in the ally and Victor would do most of the talking. But every now and again, Emily would tell him a fact or story about herself. During the additional time they spent together, he learned that she had been at the orphanage since she could remember. The caretakers there never told her what happened to her parents. Since she was an orphan, Emily never owned anything of her own, including toys. She had to share with the other children and was sometimes teased and picked on by the older children because of her small stature. She could not read or write, but she was good at escaping. Since there were a lot of children at the orphanage, it was easy for her to slip out and in without them noticing. Her story intrigued young Victor and made him want to get to know her more.

"Emily, are there any games that you like to play?" He asked.

"Not really because I don't have anyone else to play with." She sighed as she tucked her knees into her chest.

"Well, maybe next time I could bring some of my toys with me and we could play together. How does that sound?" He smiled as he stuck out his pinky.

Emily smiled back and connected their pinkies. Unfortunately, their promise would not come to be.

"Victor Elliot! How could you!"

Both children gasped as they saw his mother barreling down the alley. Steam practically spilled from her ears and her face was red as a cherry.

"Mother~"

"Save it. So, this is where you have been escaping to all this time. To meet this peasant? I am beside myself. Come home now, Victor before you get in more trouble."

"But Mother, she's my friend,"

"Not anymore. As long as I shall live, you will never be associated with someone like her. Now let's go."

Victor kicked and yelled as he tried to free himself from his Mother's grasp but to no avail. The memory he had of Emily was her tiny hand reaching back for him. Later that night, he received a lashing of his life from his parents about Emily, but he did not care. Thanks to them, he lost his first and only true friend. He was never going to see her again, not for a lack of trying.

For a few weeks, he was grounded and could not even leave his room without supervision. He tried every tactic to escape from the house, but his parents watched him like hawks. Finally, after his punishment was up, Victor could return to his normal life with some supervision. There were a few times he managed to escape and tried to search for Emily, but he could not find her. Victor was sad because he thought that she had given up on seeing him, and he carried that thought well into his adulthood.

Now, at the manly age of twenty-one, Victor Elliot was at the prime age to be married off. He grew into a tall, lanky man with dark hair and eyes. He was still considered handsome, but not the person most women would immediately flock to, despite his wealth. So, his parents arranged for him to get married. On his birthday, his parents told him of a beautiful girl about eighteen that agreed to marry him. Victor argued with his parents for a week about being forced to marry someone he did not love. His parents tried to convince him that love had nothing to do with the arrangement and that he had no say in the matter because it was for the good of the family. Begrudgingly, Victor agreed and counted the days until he met his unexpecting bride.

Finally, the day came. It was a particularly warm spring day. The lilies, bleeding hearts, daisies, and other flowers bloomed throughout the road they traveled on. Earlier in the morning, everyone was up and buzzed around the house as the family prepared for departure. Victor and his father dressed in their second-to-best black suits while his mother wore her best dark purple dress and hat with matching lace umbrella. They shoved themselves into their clothed carriage and traveled to the next town over. Along the way, his parents lectured him about being a proper gentleman and how to make himself more approachable. The information went in one ear and out the other for Victor. All he wanted to do was get the visit over with so he could return home and sulk about the rest of his life.

After about an hour or so, they arrived at a large mansion in the center of the town. The last name "Taylor" sparkled in gold on the outside of the large double doors. They rang the doorbell and were let in by a male servant. In the foyer, they met a tall, shapely, pale woman and a man about the same height with a large nose and small eyes. As they greeted each other, the Taylors dotted and complimented Victor on being a handsome young man, and how excited they were for him to marry their daughter. They called for their daughter to greet their guests. From atop the stairs, a young, beautiful woman with fair skin, long curly brunette hair, and large brown eyes emerged. She wore a beautiful light blue dress that made her glide across the floor. No one could take their eyes off of her, especially Victor.

"This is our pride and joy, Emily Taylor. Say hello to your new in-laws dear." Her Mother smiled.

"It's my pleasure to make your acquaintance."

"Oh, how darling. You look like a porcelain doll that belongs on a shelf. Victor, greet your bride like a gentleman." His Mother said as she pushed him towards her.

Victor did as he was told as he gently took her hand and kissed it.

"Come and follow us to the drawing room. We shall have tea in there and discuss the wedding details," Her father said.

Victor was about to follow them, but Emily stopped him.

"It's been a long time, Victor."

"I'm sorry but have we… met before?"

She giggled behind her hand, "Do you not remember me? I was but a young girl last we met, so I wouldn't be surprised if you did."

Victor squinted his eyes and gave her a once-over before he gasped.

"Emily? Is that really you?" She nodded. He grabbed her hands, "I can't believe it. I've missed you so much. Where have you been? I tried looking for you but couldn't find you. I thought you had given up on me."

"I've missed you too, Victor. After that day your mother dragged you away, I ran back to the orphanage and cried. I thought I would never see you again, but I never lost hope because you always found a way. For a couple of weeks, I went back to that ally and waited for you. I hoped and prayed that you would find me again, but you never came. Then, one day, the Taylors adopted me and took me away to this town. I've been living as their daughter ever since. I studied hard, and even learned the piano, in hopes that I would be good enough to meet you again. It looks like I was right. It's great to know that you're ok."

"I could say the same for you." He said as he extended his arm for her to take.

Emily nodded as she wrapped her arms around his and they followed their parents into the drawing room. Two friends separated by class, ironically brought together by their class, will be wed. There was no better fate fitting for the two of them. And now, there was nothing that would keep them apart. They could laugh, sing, play games, and talk as much as they wanted to; just like when they were kids. It was as if the clock turned back, and time stopped for them. Just Emily Taylor and Victor Elliot forever, and ever.