History Main / UnrequitedTragicMaiden

* Subverted during [[spoiler: Shizune]]'s path in ''VisualNovel/KatawaShoujo''. [[spoiler: Misha]] fits in this trope well... but [[spoiler: the person she's hopelessly in love with is ''Shizune'', not Hisao.]] Which also makes her [[spoiler:the rare SchoolgirlLesbians version of the trope.]]

** ''The Lady of Shalott'', loosely based on the Elaine of Arthuriana who pined after Lancelot to no avail, depicts the moment when the Lady loosens the chain of her boat to drift away down the river. Waterhouse also painted two other depictions of the same character.
* ''Echo and Narcissus'', based on the myth, shows a lovely young nymph despairing that Narcissus is too preoccupied with himself to love her back. As the story goes, she would eventually waste away.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/waterhouseshalott.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[- "The Lady of Shalott", by Creator/JohnWilliamWaterhouse (1888). -].]]

[[caption-width-right:350:[- "The Lady of Shalott", by John William Waterhouse (1888). -].]]

[[BaseBreakingCharacter Fan reactions to her tend to be mixed.]] Many fans will cheer and push for the Maiden's success, to the extent of calling TheHero an UngratefulBastard if he doesn't fall at the girl's feet (because the -- more often than not '''never asked for''' -- pining and sacrifices are seen by fans [[EntitledToHaveYou as him owing her affection or sex, no matter what he actually thinks or says]]) or SlutShaming any possible female love rival (because TheHero is seen as [[DoubleStandard a tool of women's validation]] and some think that women [[IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy shouldn't act on their own romantic feelings if it interferes with others']]); and if the Maiden doesn't succeed, much bashing of ''the author'' shall be expected. On the other hand, others will turn against the Maiden and call her insulting names, from "idiot" to "bitch" to "slut" to "bad example for women": this is especially obvious if either TheHero has another prospective love interest or female friend [[RealWomenDontWearDresses who's perceived as being "stronger" and "cooler"]] than the maiden herself (because again, TheHero is a tool for women's validation, and a woman seen as "strong" will not be fully completed if she doesn't have the love interest that fans want for her), or the Maiden has a second prospective love interest (who's often male, but at times female) whose canon-or-not feelings she passes up on to favor TheHero (because a woman's feelings for Man 1 are automatically less important than Man 2/Woman 3's feelings for her, and she ''owes'' Man 2/Woman 3 affection no matter what).

(It should also be pointed out that, especially in modern times, several of these Maidens are also full-blooded characters with motivations, relationships, backstories and/or interests that go beyond their {{Unrequited Love}}s. And yet many fans will '''insist''' on [[NeverLiveItDown only focusing on their love woes]], either ignoring or refusing to see their non-romantic {{character depth}}s.)

* ''Manga/DetectiveConan'':
** Several of these appear, with the most tragic case being [[spoiler: Shouko Utakura from the ''Seance's Double Locked Mystery Room Case''. Who ends up '''murdered''' by the guy she loves (Ryuuichi Mifune) because he mistakenly believes her to be involved in the death of his girlfriend Kira. (She sorta ''is'', but definitely NOT in the way he expected her to.)]]
** The reason why [[ShippingTorpedo Sonoko]] dislikes Shinichi is because she thinks Ran will end up as Shinichi's UTM. For all that she knows, he's out there resolving cases while she pines endlessly for him! (Little do the girls know that Shinichi is the titular Conan, however.) [[spoiler:Sadly, the ''Stranger of Ten Years'' OAV implies that were Shinichi not to return to normal, ''[[IWillWaitForYou Ran would be very likely to play the trope straight]]'', or at least he deeply fears that she would do it.]]
** There was a case where Conan, Eri, and Ran met up with a judo champion named Yuuko. She used to be this to her [[SempaiKouhai sempai]] Hajime, a sportsman whom she adored enough to get into sports to follow his example... but was already HappilyMarried when this took place, so Yuuko's love for him was fully unrequited. [[spoiler:Yuuko married another man, Shirou, who believed she was ''still'' hung up on Hajime... and got so horribly jealous that he ''deliberately had an affair with Hajime's wife'' to "punish" the woman who, in his mind, didn't love him enough. When Yuuko realized this, she was so angry and hurt by Shirou's pettiness she ended up ''murdering'' him.]]

* An unusual example is Kate from ''Series/RobinHood'', the [[ReplacementGoldfish Replacement Love Interest]] to Robin after the death of his wife Marian at the end of Series 2. The third series puts a huge amount of emphasis on Kate pining after Robin and [[GreenEyedMonster being jealous of his other love interest Isabella]], though in what is seemingly an {{aversion}} of this trope, she gets a RelationshipUpgrade with him towards the end of the season. As the [[invoked]]CreatorsPet, the writers certainly weren't going to deny her anything she wanted -- only for the inevitability of Robin and Marian as the legend's OfficialCouple to eventually assert itself. It soon becomes blatantly obvious that Robin is still grieving for Marian, his [[TheLostLenore Lost Lenore]], something Kate either doesn't notice or care about until Robin is fatally poisoned, at which point he can't bring himself to give her any sort of farewell more passionate than a brotherly hug, before going on to get a DiedHappilyEverAfter TogetherInDeath scene with Marian. It's only at ''this'' point Kate realizes how little she really meant to him, making her a contender for this trope... albeit in a rather roundabout way.

* An unusual example is Kate from ''Series/RobinHood'', the [[ReplacementGoldfish Replacement Love Interest]] to Robin after the death of his wife Marian at the end of Series 2. The third series puts a huge amount of emphasis on Kate pining after Robin and [[GreenEyedMonster being jealous of his other love interest Isabella]], though in what is seemingly an {{aversion}} of this trope, she eventually gets a RelationshipUpgrade with him towards the end of the season. As the [[invoked]]CreatorsPet, the writers certainly weren't going to deny her anything she wanted -- only for the inevitability of Robin and Marian as the legend's OfficialCouple to assert itself. It soon becomes blatantly obvious that Robin is still grieving for Marian, his [[TheLostLenore Lost Lenore]], something Kate either doesn't notice or doesn't care about until Robin is fatally poisoned, at which point he can't bring himself to give her any sort of farewell more passionate than a brotherly hug, before going on to get a TogetherInDeath scene with Marian's spirit. It's only at ''this'' point Kate realizes how little she really meant to him, making her a contender for this trope... albeit in a rather roundabout way.

* An unusual example is Kate from ''Series/RobinHood'', the [[ReplacementGoldfish Replacement Love Interest]] to Robin after the death of his wife Marian at the end of Series 2. The third series puts a huge amount of emphasis on Kate pining after Robin and [[GreenEyedMonster being jealous of his other love interest Isabella]], though she eventually gets a RelationshipUpgrade with him towards the end of the season. As the [[invoked]]CreatorsPet, the writers certainly weren't going to deny her anything she wanted -- however, the inevitability of Robin and Marian as the legend's OfficialCouple soon asserts itself. It becomes blatantly obvious that Robin is still grieving for Marian, his [[TheLostLenore Lost Lenore]], something Kate either doesn't notice or doesn't care about until Robin is fatally poisoned, at which point he can't bring himself to give her any sort of farewell more passionate than a brotherly hug. It's only at ''this'' point she realizes how little she really meant to him, making her a contender for this trope, albeit in a rather roundabout way.

* An unusual example is Kate from ''Series/RobinHood'', the [[ReplacementGoldfish Replacement Love Interest]] to Robin after the death of his wife Marian at the end of Series 2. The third series puts a huge amount of emphasis on Kate pining after Robin and [[GreenEyedMonster being jealous of his other love interest Isabella]], though she eventually gets a RelationshipUpgrade with him towards the end of the season. As the [[invoked]]CreatorsPet, the writers certainly weren't going to deny her anything she wanted -- however, it soon becomes blatantly obvious that Robin is still grieving for Marian, his [[TheLostLenore Lost Lenore]], something Kate either doesn't notice or doesn't care about until Robin is fatally poisoned, at which point he can't bring himself to give her any sort of farewell that's more passionate than a brotherly hug. It's only at ''this'' point she realizes how little she really meant to him, making her a contender for this trope.

* Played with in ''Manga/MonsterMusume'', with Mero. She ''[[InvokedTrope wants]]'' to be the Unrequited Tragic Maiden to the man she harbors affection for, eagerly stepping on the sidelines and only wanting to be a tangential part of the protagonist's harem. Later on, after she has a brush with an ''actual'' tragedy, [[RealityEnsues she decides that maybe it's not all it's cracked up to be.]]

* Surprisingly, once [[RareMaleExample his]] actual motivations are explored, [[spoiler:Juzo "Ultimate Boxer" Sakakura]] from ''Anime/Danganronpa3TheEndOfHopesPeakHighSchool'' ends up fitting in this trope. [[spoiler:He loves Kyosuke "Ultimate StudentCouncilPresident" Munakata deeply but knows he can't have his romantic affection, would rather step aside and give Chisa "Ultimate Housekeeper" Yukizome the chance to love him and being loved back, suffers enormously for such feelings (even if he shows it in very different ways than the standard trope), and ends up dying in a terribly tragic manner to, among other things, protect Munakata with his life. His FamousLastWords are about how much he wants Munakata to live no matter what.]]

* ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'' has Jo Harvelle, who spends most of Season 2 with an unrequited crush on Dean Winchester, something which the Demon Meg uses to torment her when [[spoiler: Meg is possessing Sam Winchester and spends an episode menacing Jo.]] In Season 5, Jo returns more confident and a skilled hunter in her own right. She even turns down a night with Dean, who offers her last night on Earth sex before they confront Lucifer. [[spoiler: The next day, she makes a HeroicSacrifice and dies along with her mother, but not before Dean gives her a somewhat chaste but still romantic goodbye kiss.]]

* ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'' has Jo Harvelle, who spends most of Season 2 with an unrequited crush on Dean Winchester, something which the Demon Meg uses to torment her when [[spoiler: Meg is possessing Sam Winchester and spends an episode menacing Jo.]] In Season 4, Jo returns more confident and a skilled hunter in her own right. She even turns down a night with Dean, who offers her last night on Earth sex before they confront Lucifer. [[spoiler: The next day, she makes a HeroicSacrifice and dies along with her mother, but not before Dean gives her a somewhat chaste but still romantic goodbye kiss.]]

* ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'' has Jo Harvelle, who spends most of Season 2 with an unrequited crush on Dean Winchester, something which the Demon Meg uses to torment her when [[spoiler: Meg is possessing Sam Winchester and spends an episode menacing Jo.]]. In Season 4, Jo returns more confident and a skilled hunter in her own right. She even turns down a night with Dean, who offers her last night on Earth sex before they confront Lucifer. [[spoiler: The next day, she makes a HeroicSacrifice and dies along with her mother, but not before Dean gives her a somewhat chaste but still romantic goodbye kiss.]]

** [[spoiler:Princess]] Julia from ''[[VideoGame/FireEmblemGenealogyOfTheHolyWar Geneaology of the Holy War]]''. She falls in love with [[spoiler: her half-brother]] Seliph, but cannot be with him... [[GoodBadBugs without glitches and lots of patience in the player's part]]. (And it's even lampshaded in-game, with Seliph's potential love interest [[CoolBigSis Lana]] actually ''feeling guilty'' upon having '''her''' feelings requited.) Averted in the Oosawa manga, where the ending strongly hints at them ending up together even after finding out that [[spoiler:they're half-siblings]], and [[spoiler:Lana's feelings seem to be geared towards another childhood friend of hers, Larcei's twin brother Ulster.]]

[[BaseBreakingCharacter Fan reactions to her tend to be mixed.]] Many fans will cheer and push for the Maiden's success, to the extent of calling TheHero an UngratefulBastard if he doesn't fall at the girl's feet (because the -- more often than not '''never asked for''' -- pining and sacrifices are seen by fans [[EntitledToHaveYou as him owing her affection or sex, no matter what he actually thinks or says]]) or SlutShaming any possible female love rival (because TheHero is seen as [[DoubleStandard a tool of women's validation]] and some think that women [[IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy shouldn't act on their own romantic feelings if it interferes with others's]]); and if the Maiden doesn't succeed, much bashing of ''the author'' shall be expected. On the other hand, others will turn against the Maiden and call her insulting names, from "idiot" to "bitch" to "slut" to "bad example for women": this is especially obvious if either TheHero has another prospective love interest or female friend [[RealWomenDontWearDresses who's perceived as being "stronger" and "cooler"]] than the maiden herself (because again, TheHero is a tool for women's validation, and a woman seen as "strong" will not be fully completed if she doesn't have the love interest that fans want for her), or the Maiden has a second prospective love interest (who's often male, but at times female) whose canon-or-not feelings she passes up on to favor TheHero (because a woman's feelings for Man 1 are automatically less important than Man 2/Woman 3's feelings for her, and she ''owes'' Man 2/Woman 3 affection no matter what).

No matter how painful her yearning for love is, the Unrequited Tragic Maiden never truly achieves her happily ever after with the one she loves. She endures it all with a sad smile and is often reduced to a tragic fate. She is the poster child of {{Unrequited Love|Tropes}}. In the end, she will often sacrifice herself or her happiness [[IWantMyBelovedtoBeHappy to make sure her beloved is happy]].

* ''Manga/CandyCandy'';

* ''Manga/MarmaladeBoy'' :

** Played much straighter with Ryoko Momoi, a local teacher who is this to her fellow teacher Shinichi Namura, who is in love with [[HotForStudent his student Meiko and is loved back]] [[StarCrossedLovers despite how everything is against them.]] [[spoiler:She gets better in the end, but not before much heartbreak.]]

* ''Fanfic/TheFlowerPrincessAndTheAlchemist'': [[GenderInvertedTrope A rare male example]]. [[HopelessSuitor Edward]] comes ''so'' close to becoming this when a [[MonsterOfTheWeek villain]] [[TheVamp seductress]] tries to use his [[HeartbrokenBadass heartbreak and despair]] against him. [[BreakThemByTalking She cruelly breaks him by talking, trying to manipulate him into turning against Orihime]] by [[ManipulativeBitch mocking that as long as Orihime is in love with Ichigo]], [[UnrequitedLove she would never return his affections]], [[AlwaysSecondBest even providing him mental images of Orihime choosing Ichigo over Edward]], something she knows deep down he so ''desperately'' craves [[ForTheEvulz just to rub salt on the wound]]. Once she has him in her clutches, she plants a [[ForcefulKiss Forceful Kiss]] on him, which [[KissOfDeath steals his life energy]]. [[SubvertedTrope Luckily]], [[HeroicSecondWind Ed manages to snap out of it in time]] when recalling his [[DeclarationOfProtection Declaration of Protection]] to [[LoveInterest Orihime]] and giving an ''epic'' [[ShutUpHannibal Shut up Hannibal]] speech that basically boils down to "So what if he's jealous? [[DisproportionateRetribution That's a stupid reason to betray Orihime]]. [[HumansAreFlawed It's perfectly natural for anyone to feel jealous]], or it could just be [[CrazyJealousGuy another strong aspect of his personality when it comes to Orihime]]. At the end of the day, his feelings are his and his alone, and no one has any ''right'' to take advantage of them." This becomes one of the greatest [[SugarWiki/CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming Crowning Moment of Heartwarming]] when Ed passionately admits that seeing Orihime cry would be ''way'' worse than his hurt feelings. However, since most of his energy has been drained, he's rendered too weak to fight back. Ultimately, he is saved once again when Eria pulls a [[VillainousRescue Villainous Rescue]].

* In the ''WesternAnimation/DannyPhantom'' fanfic ''Fanfic/{{ResurrectedMemories}}'': [[spoiler: The biggest reason why Ember (after falling for Danny) is reluctant to reveal the truth of her identity to him, is out of fear that Danny will reject her and she will become one of these.]]

** The {{Trope Codifier}}s for ''Fire Emblem'' come from [[VideoGame/FireEmblemAkaneia from the Archanea continent]]. Not only that, but they're sisters: the LadyOfWar and the eldest of the Pegasus Knights sisters, Palla, is in love with the cavalier Abel [[spoiler:who marries her youngest sister Est]], while her second sister Catria has feelings for Marth [[ChildhoodFriendRomance who is already in love with Princess Caeda.]]

* Played with in ''Manga/DailyLifeWithMonsterGirl'', with Mero. She ''[[InvokedTrope wants]]'' to be the Unrequited Tragic Maiden to the man she harbors affection for, eagerly stepping on the sidelines and only wanting to be a tangential part of the protagonist's harem. Later on, after she has a brush with an ''actual'' tragedy, [[RealityEnsues she decides that maybe it's not all it's cracked up to be.]]
* Surprisingly, once [[RareMaleExample his]] actual motivations are explored, [[spoiler:Juzo "Ultimate Boxer" Sakakura]] from ''Anime/DanganRonpa3'' ends up fitting in this trope. [[spoiler:He loves Kyosuke "Ultimate StudentCouncilPresident" Munakata deeply but knows he can't have his romantic affection, would rather step aside and give Chisa "Ultimate Housekeeper" Yukizome the chance to love him and being loved back, suffers enormously for such feelings (even if he shows it in very different ways than the standard trope), and ends up dying in a terribly tragic manner to, among other things, protect Munakata with his life. His FamousLastWords are about how much he wants Munakata to live no matter what.]]

* ''{{Manga/Parasyte}}'': Kana [[FalseSoulmate believes herself to be Shinichi's soulmate]] due to her unexplained psychic connection to him, but as he explains, she's linked to people like him, and the others are all the villains of TheMasquerade. She takes to seing him as her KnightInShiningArmor, but borders on StalkerWithACrush while he sees them as JustFriends. The last time she sees him with his girlfriend, she pines for him, thinking "Why don't you notice me? Look over here! Feel me. Please...", as she turns away her own unrequited love interest. Shinichi is somewhat aware of her interest, but sends mixed messages, including skipping a date to meet with her. [[spoiler: But on that night, as she resolves to rush to him to proclaim her love, she runs into one of the monsters, who gives her a fatal wound as Shinichi arrives seconds too late, leaving her to [[DiedInYourArmsTonight die in his arms]], still close to him, but not reciprocated.]]

* ''{{VideoGame/Drakengard}}'': Furiae is a BarrierMaiden preventing the coming of the Apocalypse by a number of seals that are successively broken by the Empire, causing her ever-greater pain, in addition to the fact that the man she loves is unaware of her feelings for him (and when he finds out, rejects her), causing her death in all story branches ([[CameBackWrong and rebirth into...]] [[HumanoidAbomination something... in one]]). All in all, it's a shame that man was [[spoiler:her own brother Caim]].

** [[spoiler:Princess]] Julia from ''[[VideoGame/FireEmblemJugdral Geneaology of the Holy War]]''. She falls in love with [[spoiler: her half-brother]] Seliph, but cannot be with him... [[GoodBadBugs without glitches and lots of patience in the player's part]]. (And it's even lampshaded in-game, with Seliph's potential love interest [[CoolBigSis Lana]] actually ''feeling guilty'' upon having '''her''' feelings requited.) Averted in the Oosawa manga, where the ending strongly hints at them ending up together even after finding out that [[spoiler:they're half-siblings]], and [[spoiler:Lana's feelings seem to be geared towards another childhood friend of hers, Larcei's twin brother Ulster.]]

** [[VideoGame/FireEmblemElibe Blazing Blade]] has a DoubleSubversion in [[WhiteMagicianGirl Priscilla]]. She ''does'' have a number of possible lovers she can Support with, but due to her status as nobility, she ultimately ends up in a StarCrossedLovers situation -- with all but one of them [[spoiler:the magician Erk, who has peerage only due to his tutelage under Pent, the Count of Reglay]].

** VideoGame/FireEmblemTheSacredStones has the VERY {{rare male example}}: [[spoiler:Prince Lyon of Grado, who has always had feelings for Princess Eirika and a very complicated bond with Prince Ephraim. Then it all goes FromBadToWorse...]]

* ''VideoGame/XenobladeChronicles'' has [[SquishyWizard Melia]] fall in love with [[TheHero Shulk]]. As Princess of the High Entia and a very attractive girl in general, she would be a great LoveInterest for Shulk... if it weren't for the fact that he was already in love with [[ChildhoodFriendRomance Fiora]].

** The Arthurian canon also includes a strong aversion of this trope. The young lady in love with Lancelot, in this case, opts for a platonic relationship in which Lancelot becomes her friend and champion. It works.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'' fanfic series ''Fanfic/TheStalkingZukoSeries'', Jin is a NiceGirl, accepting of Zuko's DarkAndTroubledPast, and is described by almost every character as pretty with a [[BuxomIsBetter big chest]], but Zuko only has eyes for [[FanPreferredCouple Katara]].

* Glinda from ''Theatre/{{Wicked}}'' is [[EveryoneLovesBlondes traditionally pretty and popular]], seemingly a perfect match for the traditionally handsome and popular Fiyero. Unusually for this trope, the two even date for a while and are engaged at one point. Fiyero however is in love with the fiery, green-skinned outcast Elphaba (who also happens to be Glinda's best friend), and leaves a heartbroken Glinda to go be with her. Throughout the show Glinda struggles with the fact that she's always been able to get everything she wanted ''except'' Fiyero's love.

* Creator/MichiyoAkaishi's stories have two of these:
** There's one in ''Manga/TenYoriMoHoshiYoriMo''... [[spoiler:But it's ''not'' Mio Mizumori, who actually has her feelings for Shou requited very soon. It's Miyabi Fujiwara, the local {{Ojou}}, who falls for Shou at first, then is manipulated by Tadaomi due to her feelings... and ends up dying in a plane crash caused by Tadaomi in an attempt to kill Shou.]]
** Akaishi also provides the ''very'' RareMaleExample: [[spoiler:Naozumi "Kotaka" Yatsuka]] from ''Manga/{{Amakusa 1637}}'', who's painfully and deeply in love with Natsuki and that ''really'' doesn't help him [[spoiler: when he's stuck in the past and ends up GoingMadFromTheIsolation.]]
* ''Manga/CandyCandy'';
** [[spoiler:Annie Brighton]] ''believes'' that she is this to her beloved [[spoiler:Archibald "Archie" Cornwell]] in the BoardingSchool arc, which does ''not'' mixes well with her strong self-esteem issues coming from both [[spoiler:her background as an orphan]] and [[spoiler:her secret jealousy of the titular Candy, her best friend and the girl whom Archie seems to crush on]]. It turns out that [[spoiler: Annie's love for Archie ''is'' requited in the end, as he realizes that while he ''does'' care for Candy, [[SecondLove Annie is the girl he actually loves]]. And Candy is a ShipperOnDeck [[LoveHurts with her own romantic woes]], anyway.]]
** Also subverted with [[spoiler:Susanna Marlowe.]] [[spoiler:She has ALL the signs of being Terry Granchester's tragic maiden -- but he ultimately decides to stay by her side after she falls victim to BreakTheCutie.]]
* In ''Manga/ProjectARMS'', Yugo is clearly in love with Ryo, but knows he loves Katsumi and thus does everything in her power to help rescue her. [[spoiler:She eventually dies saving him and everyone else from the Jabberwocky.]]
* Subverted by Youko Nakagawa in the anime of ''Manga/CardCaptorSakura''. She pines for Touya Kinomoto who (unbeknownst to her) is starting to develop feelings for [[HoYay Yukito Tsukishiro]], and plans to tell him about her love in the SchoolFestival. She does cry when Touya politely turns her affections down at the end of the episode she's featured in, but she actually apologizes for crying and tells him she'll be okay. Her only request is for him to dance with her around the bonfire.

* ''Anime/AshitaNoNadja'':
** Sylvie Arte is a beautiful woman who's in love with a BlitheSpirit friend of hers named Raphael [[spoiler:who simply cannot love her back because he was widowed in very tragic circumstances]]. The trope is also discussed, as Sylvie explains her situation and Raphael's to Nadja and warns her that not everything in love is happiness.
** This is also what [[spoiler:Marianne Hamilton]] turns out to be in the end, since [[spoiler:her love for Francis turns out to be pretty sincere, but she can't do anything to sway him away from Nadja.]]
* In the backstory of ''Manga/PleaseSaveMyEarth'', there is [[spoiler:Enju towards Gyokuran. And arguably Shusuren, [[LesYay in regards to her]].]] In the present, [[spoiler:Enju's reincarnation Issei was about to become a RareMaleExample to Jinpachi, the reincarnation of Gyokuran, but it's averted as he ultimately falls for Sakura aka Shusuren's reincarnation.]]
* Heartbreakingly subverted in ''Manga/FushigiYuugiGenbuKaiden''. [[spoiler:Firuka sincerely believed that she was this to Urumiya Hagas... but in reality, Hagas loved her dearly. He couldn't ever show it to her, however, since he was an IllBoy whose days were numbered ''and'' was planning a SelfSacrificeScheme; Firuka only learned that his other wish was for her to be happy and loved when he was ''already'' dead, and the one who told her was his surviving twin brother Tegu aka the one Hagas pulled his SelfSacrificeScheme for, and who'd eventually become Firuka's SecondLove.]]
* Surprisingly, once [[RareMaleExample his]] actual motivations are explored, [[spoiler:Juzo "Ultimate Boxer" Sakakura]] from ''Anime/DanganRonpa3'' ends up fitting in this trope. [[spoiler:He loves Kyosuke "Ultimate StudentCouncilPresident" Munakata deeply but knows he can't have his romantic affection, would rather step aside and give Chisa "Ultimate Housekeeper" Yukizome the chance to love him and being loved back, suffers enormously for such feelings (even if he shows it in very different ways than the standard trope), and ends up dying in a terribly tragic manner to, among other things, protect Munakata with his life. His FamousLastWords are about how much he wants Munakata to live no matter what.]]
* For such a short story, ''Manga/NatsuENoTobira'' has two of these for TheProtagonist, a PrettyBoy named Marion Fiesse:
** The first is Ledania Francoise, a quiet and gentle young woman who holds secret feelings for him, while [[DudeMagnet all the boys in town have crushes on her.]] Marion is doesn't return her love, [[spoiler: and when Ledania ''does'' tell him about, he's already in love with Sara and rejects her]].
** The second is [[spoiler:actually a RareMaleExample: Claude, one of Marion's school friends. Claude claimed to have feelings for Ledania but in reality, his love is all for Marion, and for worse, he's strongly implied to be [[DrugsAreBad drug-addicted]]. When he gives Marion a disastrous AnguishedDeclarationOfLove with a side-dish of AttemptedRape, a terrified Marion hits him, and Claude is found dead in the river the day after; Marion is [[HeroicBSOD devastated]] and [[MyGreatestFailure heavily blames himself]].]]
* ''{{Manga/Parasyte}}'': Kana [[FalseSoulmate believes herself to be Shinichi's soulmate]] due to her unexplained psychic connection to him, but as he explains, she's linked to people like him, and the others are all the villains of TheMasquerade. She takes to seing him as her KnightInShiningArmor, but borders on StalkerWithACrush while he sees them as JustFriends. The last time she sees him with his girlfriend, she pines for him, thinking "Why don't you notice me? Look over here! Feel me. Please...", as she turns away her own unrequited love interest. Shinichi is somewhat aware of her interest, but sends mixed messages, including skipping a date to meet with her. [[spoiler: But on that night, as she resolves to rush to him to proclaim her love, she runs into one of the monsters, who gives her a fatal wound as Shinichi arrives seconds too late, leaving her to [[DiedInYourArmsTonight die in his arms]], still close to him, but not reciprocated.]]

* PlayedWith quite a bit in ''Anime/PrincessTutu'' -- both TheHeroine Duck/Tutu ''and'' [[AntiVillain Anti-Villainess]] Rue/Kraehe vie for this position. Considering that [[spoiler:Drosselmeyer was trying to write a tragedy]], it's not that surprising. And considering [[ScrewDestiny the theme of the show]], it's not surprising that [[spoiler:they both subvert this role]].
** Duck has an [[UnrequitedLove unrequited crush]] on [[PrinceCharming Mytho]] and at first, she thinks that he'll take notice of her once she starts helping him as [[MagicalGirl Princess Tutu]], but soon she discovers that because she's Tutu, [[StarCrossedLovers she'll die if she ever confesses her love to him]]. Not to mention that although Mytho falls in love with Tutu, [[LovesMyAlterEgo he never finds out that Duck is Tutu]], and only thinks of her as a friend. Ultimately {{Subverted|Trope}}, though, when she realizes that [[spoiler:[[LovingAShadow she was never really in love with him to begin with]]--she ''does'' care greatly for Mytho, but more outta admiration than romantic love]]; therefore she refuses to give up hope as [[spoiler:[[MadArtist Drosselmeyer]]]] clearly intended her to, and [[spoiler: she falls in love with ''another'' man... Fakir, TheLancer to Mytho and the local KnightInSourArmor.]]
** [[DarkMagicalGirl Rue/Kraehe]] is set up as the hypotenuse of the LoveTriangle, TheVamp and temptress who wants to corrupt the heroic Prince. Once [[DarkAndTroubledPast her very tragic reasons to be the way she is]], the massive pain she has gone through thanks to the BigBad and her ''actual'' love for Mytho are shown, though, she becomes more and more of [[AntiVillain a tragic character.]] Mytho starts out [[EmotionlessBoy indifferent]] to her despite Rue actually ''being his girlfriend'', and ends up [[spoiler: downright abusive once she contaminates what's left of his heart]], while he clearly develops feelings for Tutu. After Rue/Kraehe finally manages to express her love [[spoiler:via a mixture of AnguishedDeclarationOfLove and an HeroicSacrifice (and one that Duck/Tutu ''explicitely says that she would have NOT managed to pull off, were she in Rue/Kraehe's shoes'')]], however, [[spoiler: Mytho remembers their shared past]], [[spoiler: recognizes her love as well as his own love for her]], [[spoiler: rescues her from a cruel DeathTrap she's been put inside after her HeroicSacrifice]], and [[spoiler:[[HappilyEverAfter takes her as his princess]]]] at the end.
* In ''Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagica'', Sayaka Miki is a sharp, vicious {{deconstruction}} of the trope. She ''seems'' to play it straight at first sight (she yearns for Kyousuke's love, but he shows no romantic interest in her and [[spoiler:after Sayaka doesn't confess her love for him in time, he hooks up with Hitomi, who ''does'' come forward when she had the chance)]]... [[HiddenDepths but the truth is FAR more complex]]. [[ShyblueHairedGirl Sayaka]] already had serious self-esteem problems from ''before'' becoming a MagicalGirl, and when she's offered to become one and mentions that [[GreaterNeedThanMine she wanted to use her wish for Kyousuke's sake]], CoolBigSis Mami [[ArmorPiercingQuestion immediately questions her purpose.]] She makes her wish for him against Mami's warnings, since [[AFriendInNeed she sincerely believes it would still be worth it]]; only ''then'' Sayaka learns that being a MagicalGirl [[BlessedwithSuck is NOT as sparkly and beautiful as she thinks it is]], which clashes with her black and white view of the world ''and'' her emotional conflicts. While [[spoiler: losing in the LoveTriangle]] is a part of the reason why [[spoiler: [[DespairEventHorizon she fell]] [[FaceHeelTurn out of grace]] and [[AndThenJohnWasAZombie witched out]] and it took her [[Anime/PuellaMagiMadokaMagicaTheMovieRebellion quite a while to recover]] ]], it's not the '''''only''''' reason... but [[FanDumb several of her "fans"]] peg the girl '''only''' as the local Unrequited Tragic Maiden, reducing her to a one-note character and little more.
* Shirley Fenette from ''Anime/CodeGeass''. At first PlayedForLaughs, then for [[PlayedForDrama intense drama]] with a side dish of BreakTheCutie. [[spoiler:And right when it looks like she ''may'' have the chance to get Lelouch's love... BAM! Fatal injury to the gut, pool of her own blood, death in front of Lelouch.]]
** This happens differently in the movies. [[spoiler: Even though she stays safe this time, her and Lelouch's roles are basically swapped because ''his'' death still happens.]]

* Kaede Fuyou from the ''VisualNovel/{{Shuffle}}'' TV series is a rather unusual example, as she plays this straight first... and then dips into ''{{yandere}}''. [[spoiler:Though she gets better, and [[DarkAndTroubledPast she has pretty good reasons]] for her {{Yandere}} episode.]] In the original VisualNovel, whether Kaede is this or not...it actually depends on the player.
* PlayedWith in regards to [[ShrinkingViolet Hinata]] [[NiceGirl Hyuga]] in ''Manga/{{Naruto}}''. For the majority of the series, she ''seemingly'' played this trope straight--Naruto did grow to care for her quite a bit, but [[ObliviousToLove he never noticed]] [[EveryoneCanSeeIt her feelings for him]], even after the times she put her own life on the line to save him, and instead had a [[LovingAShadow one-sidedcrush]] on [[{{Tsundere}} Sakura]]. Even when [[ShipSinking he let go of Sakura]] after Chapter 469, and even when he and Hinata started having [[UnresolvedSexualTension significant]] [[HoldingHands moments]] [[MindlinkMates together]] from the WarArc onward, Naruto ''still'' never noticed Hinata's feelings for him. In the GagSeries spin-off and some of the anime {{Filler}}s, this situation was often parodied for the sake of comic relief. It finally got Subverted in the [[DistantFinale epilogue]], where [[OfficialCouple Naruto and Hinata]] are HappilyMarried with two children. It got completely Averted in the {{canon}} movie ''Anime/TheLastNarutoTheMovie'', where, judging by the dialogue from the other characters ([[ShipperOnDeck including]] [[CoolBigSis Sakura]]), it's heavily implied that Naruto ''had'' been in love with Hinata for quite some time, but he couldn't fully realize it until the movie for two reasons. First, his emotionally-stunted childhood and lack of a stable and loving home environment left him unable to properly tell the difference between familial love or even the love for ramen from [[WhatIsThisThingYouCallLove romantic love]]. Second, Naruto confirms in his HeroicVow that, deep down, [[InsecureLoveInterest he's insecure around Hinata]] because [[ICantBelieveAGuyLikeYouWouldNoticeMe he never thought someone like her]] would genuinely [[WartsAndAll love him for him]]--which was implied by [[ShipperOnDeck Kiba]] in the WarArc.
* Creator/MichiyoAkaishi's stories have two of these:
** There's one in ''Manga/TenYoriMoHoshiYoriMo''... [[spoiler:But it's ''not'' Mio Mizumori, who actually has her feelings for Shou requited very soon. It's Miyabi Fujiwara, the local {{Ojou}}, who falls for Shou at first, then is manipulated by Tadaomi due to her feelings... and ends up dying in a plane crash caused by Tadaomi in an attempt to kill Shou.]]
** Akaishi also provides the ''very'' RareMaleExample: [[spoiler:Naozumi "Kotaka" Yatsuka]] from ''Manga/{{Amakusa 1637}}'', who's painfully and deeply in love with Natsuki and that ''really'' doesn't help him [[spoiler: when he's stuck in the past and ends up GoingMadFromTheIsolation.]]

* ''Manga/InuYasha'':
** At some point, this is discussed... and ultimately defied: [[spoiler:The Baby deals several and ''extremely'' cruel {{Breaking Lecture}}s to Kagome, telling her that she's pretty much condemned to be this to Inu-Yasha himself, due to his feelings for his ex-girlfriend (and Kagome's past self) Kikyou. Kagome is ''this'' close to give in and have a FaceHeelTurn, which is the Baby's purpose... but then she [[ShutUpHannibal snaps back at him]] via first admitting that yes, she ''is'' often [[ClingyJealousGirl jealous of Kikyou]], but then adding that these feelings are [[HumansAreFlawed proper of human beings]], and finally stating that she ''does'' love Inu-Yasha anyway.]] Such emotional honesty, and especially coming from [[spoiler:a {{Tsundere}} and self-admitted ClingyJealousGirl]], is VERY welcome and refreshing. [[spoiler: And even more so when it keeps her from going the "LoveMakesYouEvil" way.]]
** In the anime, Princess Sara plays it straighter. [[spoiler:Her deal is [[BreakTheCutie much]] [[DespairEventHorizon more]] [[DealWithTheDevil complex]], though.]]

* ''Manga/MarmaladeBoy'' :
** In the anime, Anju Kitahara has more than one whiff of this, being a YamatoNadeshiko and loving her ChildhoodFriend Yuu, who already has a girlfriend named Miki by the time they meet again. She immediately [[GenreSavvy recognizes the trope]] and tells Miki that not only she will not step in between them but she'll support them as much as she can. [[spoiler:She ''does'' have a slim chance later when Yuu and Miki break up during a crisis, but since they hook up again later, Anju decides to step aside.]]
** Played much straighter with Ryoko Momoi, a local teacher who is this to her fellow teacher Shinichi Namura, who is in love with [[HotForStudent his student Meiko and is loved back]] [[StarCrossedLovers despite how everything is against them.]] [[spoiler:She gets better in the end, but not before much heartbreak.]]

* In ''WesternAnimation/DannyPhantom'' fanfic ''Fanfic/{{ResurrectedMemories}}'': [[spoiler: The biggest reason why Ember (after falling for Danny) is reluctant to reveal the truth of her identity to him, is out of fear that Danny will reject her and she will become one of these.]]
* ''Fanfic/TheFlowerPrincessAndTheAlchemist'': [[GenderInvertedTrope A rare male example]]. [[HopelessSuitor Edward]] comes ''so'' close to becoming this when a [[MonsterOfTheWeek villain]] [[TheVamp seductress]] tries to use his [[HeartbrokenBadass heartbreak and despair]] against him. [[BreakThemByTalking She cruelly breaks him by talking, trying to manipulate him into turning against Orihime]] by [[ManipulativeBitch mocking that as long as Orihime is in love with Ichigo]], [[UnrequitedLove she would never return his affections]], [[AlwaysSecondBest even providing him mental images of Orihime choosing Ichigo over Edward]], something she knows deep down he so ''desperately'' craves [[ForTheEvulz just to rub salt on the wound]]. Once she has him in her clutches, she plants a [[ForcefulKiss Forceful Kiss]] on him, which [[KissOfDeath steals his life energy]]. [[SubvertedTrope Luckily]], [[HeroicSecondWind Ed manages to snap out of it in time]] when recalling his [[DeclarationOfProtection Declaration of Protection]] to [[LoveInterest Orihime]] and giving an ''epic'' [[ShutUpHannibal Shut up Hannibal]] speech that basically boils down to "So what if he's jealous? [[DisproportionateRetribution That's a stupid reason to betray Orihime]]. [[HumansAreFlawed It's perfectly natural for anyone to feel jealous]], or it could just be [[CrazyJealousGuy another strong aspect of his personality when it comes to Orihime]]. At the end of the day, his feelings are his and his alone, and no one has any ''right'' to take advantage of them." This becomes one of the greatest [[SugarWiki/CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming Crowning Moment of Heartwarming]] when Ed passionately admits that seeing Orihime cry would be ''way'' worse than his hurt feelings. However, since most of his energy has been drained, he's rendered too weak to fight back. Ultimately, he is saved once again when Eria pulls a [[VillainousRescue Villainous Rescue]].

* In the original story of Creator/HansChristianAndersen's fairy tale, "Literature/TheLittleMermaid", the mermaid rescues and falls in love with a prince. He marries a different girl whom he believes had rescued him, and who actually ''did'' help in his rescue (and in some versions, she ''was'' actually his betrothed from before the mermaid incident happened). Because she was unsuccessful in making the prince fall in love with her, the mermaid turns to sea foam, choosing his happiness over her own life. In some versions, she is rewarded for her sacrifice with a new life as an air sprite, during which time she will earn a soul (mermaids don't naturally have them) and go to Heaven.

** The Arthurian canon also includes a strong aversion of this trope. The young lady in love with Lancelot, in this case, opts for a platonic relationship in which Lancelot becomes her friend and champion. It works.
* ''Literature/{{Ivanhoe}}'': Rebecca of York to Ivanhoe, due entirely to the fact that she's [[ValuesDissonance Jewish]]. She warns Ivanhoe not to fall for her at their first meeting and does a graceful IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy bow out at the end allowing [[FirstGirlWins Rowena]] and Ivanhoe to be together and devotes the rest of her life to doing good works. Notable in that even the ''author'' [[FanPreferredCouple preferred]] Rebecca and Ivanhoe, but couldn't pair them up due to MoralGuardians.
* Actually subverted in the original ''Literature/LesMiserables'' with Eponine -- she's more pitiful than tragic, and [[{{Yandere}} far from selfless]]. She despairs when he falls in love with [[TheIngenue Cosette]], so she figures [[IfICantHaveYou she'll just have him die with her]].

* Helen Chao from ''Flower Drum Song'' is one of these. Like Eponine, she gets one of the arguably better songs in the show and does everything she can to be a supportive friend to Ta. He first rejects her by chasing the wrong love object before again passing her over.

* Viola describes herself like this (although she claims to be talking about her sister) in the middle of "Twelfth Night", trying to explain to Orsino that sometimes you don't end up with the person you want and there's nothing you can do about it. She does get the guy at the end of the play, though.

* Naminé from ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'' is drawn to Sora and wishes she were Kairi ([[spoiler:which, in a way, she ''is'']]). In the end, [[spoiler:she wants Sora and Kairi to be happy and merges with Kairi thus destroying her own identity and existence in some ways.]]

* ''VideoGame/DragonQuestV'': Potentially Bianca, provided the hero chooses to marry Flora instead. She helps him complete his EngagementChallenge, then gets her hopes briefly raised and then dashed.
* ''{{VideoGame/Drakengard}}'': Furiae is a BarrierMaiden preventing the coming of the Apocalypse by a number of seals that are successively broken by the Empire, causing her ever-greater pain, in addition to the fact that the man she loves is unaware of her feelings for him (and when he finds out, rejects her), causing her death in all story branches ([[CameBackWrong and rebirth into...]] [[HumanoidAbomination something... in one]]). All in all, it's a shame that man was [[spoiler:her own brother Caim]].

* [[spoiler:Beatrice]] from ''VisualNovel/UminekoWhenTheyCry'' may qualify, depending on [[MindScrew which versions of reality the players believe]].

* Played with in regards to Sakura Matou from ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight''. [[spoiler: Because of [[DarkAndTroubledPast her]] [[RapeAsBackstory past]], she believes that she [[DefiledForever doesn't deserve]]]] Shirou's affections and thinks this is how she'll eventually end up. And while we don't know her fate in the first two routes [[spoiler:(which, considering that Zouken Matou, the one behind her suffering, is still alive by BOTH route's ends...)]] in the third she is [[spoiler:driven mad by a combination of jealousy and being possessed by an evil spirit, but is saved and redeemed]] by Shirou and [[spoiler:her sister, Rin]].

* In ''Series/{{Smallville}}'', Chloe is solidly pining after Clark for the first five seasons, and even after [[spoiler:getting together with Jimmy]] for season six and seven, it is pretty obvious that she would be with Clark if she gets to choose. Not to mention an AnguishedDeclarationOfLove in late season seven. Subverted when [[spoiler:she seems to be HappilyMarried with Jimmy]]. Double subverted when [[spoiler:Jimmy divorced her for always taking Clark or Davis' side]]. ''Triple'' subverted when [[spoiler:she ends up with Oliver. Although that probably counts as being StrangledByTheRedString.]]
* Willow on ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' was this for a while, pining away for Xander, until she [[spoiler:got a boyfriend of her own. And then became (or realized she was) a lesbian or a lesbian-leaning bi.]]

* Liu the slave girl from Puccini's ''Theatre/{{Turandot}}''. She continues to follow and care for Timur only because his son, Calaf ''smiled at her''. Once. But Calaf is in love with the Princess Turandot and doesn't realize Liu's devotion to him until she dies rather than reveal vital information.
* Eponine from ''Theatre/LesMiserables'' is in love with Marius and does everything she can to help him, even though he is in love with Cosette and only views Eponine as a friend. This portrayal contrasts with the one she has in the original [[Literature/LesMiserables book]], where she's more of a StalkerWithACrush.
* Helen Chao from ''Flower Drum Song'' is one of these. Like Eponine, she gets one of the arguably better songs in the show and does everything she can to be a supportive friend to Ta. He first rejects her by chasing the wrong love object before again passing her over.