Disclaimer: I own none of the Corpse Bride characters… yeah yeah n.n;

Chapter 1

Through the dimly lit hall of the large mansion a young girl walked slowly. She held a candle in her hand just to make it even slightly easier to see. The small flame wasn't much for heat, though. That's what the large blanket draped around her shoulders was for.

She approached the top railing of the stairs. She could hear the echo of a piano playing. That could only mean one thing, of course. She grinned and walked carefully down the dark stairway.

"Victor, darling," She slid gently onto the piano bench beside him. Victor continued to play even as he turned his head to look to his beautiful wife. He smiled warmly, waiting for her to continue.

"Yes, Victoria?"

Victoria let out a shy giggle and lifted her free hand to just barely cover her lips, "It's a rather interesting sight to see you playing in your nightclothes…" She tilted her head to glance at the piano keys. To her, it was amazing how well he knew the instrument. He could play beautifully even in the dark in the wee hours of the morning. They had been married for nearly a year, and this was the first instance that she could recall that he had woken up at this time to play. If he had done it before, then the music had certainly made for some wonderful dreams.

"You really think so?" He replied with a raised eyebrow.

"Why, yes. Surely my mother would never have approved of this!" She continued to laugh, and she wrapped herself a bit tighter in her large blanket. "Hmmmm…." she sighed now, still smiling up at him, "Are you not tired? You can't go without sleep, Victor. Have you forgotten that tomorrow afternoon is when our parents are coming to visit for lunch? You don't want to fall asleep in your soup again!"

Victor smiled hesitantly. Ah yes, he remembered that instance. It had certainly made for a lot of angry stares from Victoria's parents, and then a scorching hot wash cloth pressed against his face from his own mother. Yes, he would make sure that none of that would happen again.

"Not to worry. I was rather sick that day, if I recall correctly," he laughed, and he set an arm gently around her. "And besides, I couldn't possibly sleep tonight. You've been waking up during the night quite alot lately. I just wanted to be sure you were alright," he leaned down to place a soft kiss onto her forehead. "Now that you've woken up yet again, I have to ask you… why?"

"Why?" Victoria asked, blinking. Victor nodded. Victoria tilted her head. She wasn't aware that Victor had noticed. It had only been happening for a little over a week. She would wake up in the middle of the night occasionally with a headache, or sometimes she would feel quite nauseous and have to rid herself of that feeling. She had thought it not too serious and was hoping it would just go away.

"….. Yes….?" Victor waited patiently. Victoria had seemed to daze off a bit.

"Oh…. Yes," Victoria snapped back into reality. "Why… why… well, Victor, I'm sure it's nothing."

"So you're quite alright, then?" He raised an eyebrow. He found that rather… doubtful.

"Yes, Victor, I think so," she nodded. "Sometimes I might feel just a little… unwell… but I'm sure it will stop soon," she smiled reassuringly, not only to him, but to herself as well.

"Unwell? I do hope it stops soon. Haven't you also been having some problems during the day?" He looked straight into her eyes as he asked her this. He hated being so… pushy… but he had seen her run off during the morning, afternoon, evening… while she had been in the middle of just… anything. Whether that be stitching, or attempting to help the maid cook, or even just resting to read a book. He knew she couldn't be running off for just nothing.

"It's not a problem, darling!" She smiled even more. Yes, she was certain of it. She would be fine very soon. "Victor… please come back to bed with me…" she leaned against him, "You and I need to get some sleep. I promise you that everything will be just fine…"

"Well…" Victor sighed, rubbing the small of her back, "if you insist." He gave her one final quick kiss before taking her hand and walking her back up to their room.