Reapers

Chapter 64: Gotta Explain to the Parent Now

"I see..." Death murmured after being told the whole story. Virgil and Janus were in their office, having just told them everything. Not long after the fight they were called to talk with them. Roman and Remus were standing outside, waiting for them. "I can't believe Ren was summoning phantoms. I... I felt Sal fade away, I should have called you all the moment I did. I am a bit disappointed that you had killed her, Virgil."

"I only apologize for breaking one of your rules."

Death softened. "I know you are angry with her, and you have every right to be. I'm appalled by her actions, but I still see every soul as precious, so I am upset that she faded. I wish that she had crossed over instead."

"If I may," Janus started. "She had plenty of time to cross over, she knew she was fading. She also had plenty of time to revert to an orb to rest. I believe that she wanted to fade, rather than do anything else. Maybe she wanted to avoid punishment or-"

"She wanted to find Alice," Virgil interrupted. "She loved her to the point of hating me and doing all of this. It makes sense that she would want to fade to find her, even at the risk that she would be reduced to nothing."

"I wish that I could keep you all from fading or turning," Death sighed sadly. "Then all of this could have been avoided."

"Guess no god is all powerful."

"Virgil!" Janus hissed, slapping his arm.

"No no, he's right. Neither I nor Life is all powerful, we're not even omniscient. No, cause that would have made things too easy," Death said, the last part slightly sarcastic. "I am sorry that you had to go through that all. But... I would like to meet Roman. Do you mind bringing him in?"

"I will." Janus stood up and turned to the door, leaving Virgil fidgeting in his chair. He knew he had to face punishment sooner or later, killing is one of Death's biggest no-no's. He really hoped he wouldn't be forced to cross over, anything but going to Tartarus.

Death must have noticed his discomfort because they asked him, "Are you okay, Virgil?"

He simply shrugged, not wanting to look up. The door opened and closed behind him, but he didn't want to turn around for that either.

Roman froze slightly when he first saw Death, their long hair braided and a kaleidoscope of colors. Their skin was black, and they wore a white shirt under their black cloak. Then he noticed how tense Virgil was and quickly made his way over.

"You must be Roman," Death greeted him, trying to give a welcoming smile.

He set a hand on Virgil's shoulder, feeling a small flinch that the purple reaper probably tried to repress. He gave Virgil's shoulder a light squeeze to ground him. "Yes, and you must be Death."

"That I am, they/them please."

"Of course, I've picked up on that."

"Why don't you take a seat?" Death gestured to the chair Janus left, the yellow reaper didn't return to the room. Roman sat down, taking one of Virgil's hands. "I hope you're... adjusting well. I know you've been eased into this more than any other human, but I'm sure you didn't plan on..."

"Dying so soon? It's alright, I'm getting used to it. It was a shock, but I'm handling it better now." Virgil squeezed his hand, and Roman lightly squeezed his back.

"I apologize for what Ren did, truly I am. I'm also sorry that we couldn't fix the veil for you."

"It's okay, besides, I'm glad the veil was never fixed. I wouldn't have gotten so close to Virgil. I'm grateful for that, it made my last months alive the best."

"If you say so, but it's still a shame when a life is cut short."

"Well, my only family died, and both of my friends can see the spirit world. I had lost my job as well, and I didn't have any pets, so it'll be easy adjusting to being a reaper. Someone passing away will always be a sad thing though, and I'm a bit hesitant to break the news to my friends."

"I hope it goes well. Still, I am thrilled to have a new reaper! You'll need to have your own phone of course, but I'm sure you've had plenty of training from Virgil so we don't need to do that. I heard you went toe to toe with a class five, now that's impressive."

"I was just trying to keep out of its reach and keep it distracted." Roman rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand.

"Still well done, even if you did get hurt. If you would like, you can go back to your city and start there as an official reaper."

"I would appreciate that, the city will need another reaper anyway."

"Unfortunately, yes. Especially since I still have to give Virgil a punishment."

Roman frowned, squeezing Virgil's hand tighter. "That's not fair, Ren attacked us!"

"I know, and I'm aware that it was done in self defense and while grieving, which is why it'll be a light punishment." Virgil sighed in relief, letting the tension leave his shoulders. Death frowned in worry. "You do know that I would never give you a harsh punishment for something like this, right?"

"Yeah, yeah but you know... my mind likes to over exaggerate things," Virgil admitted.

"I do wish that I didn't have to punish you, however if word gets out about what you did and that you didn't get punished well... I dread to think what others might do."

"It's alright, I understand. As long as you don't make me cross over."

"Oh Life forbid it, no! That is the last thing I would ever do! I was just going to have you work in the ocean for a while. Maybe a hundred years at most!"

"I thought the punishment for making someone fade was a hundred to a thousand years?"

"Yes but I don't want to send you there for that long. Let's just do... 75 years? Is that good for you?"

Virgil's eyes lit up. "Only 75 years! I mean, that's still a long time, but still! It's usually worse!"

Roman still pouted. "Guess that means you'll be missing the first few decades of me being a reaper."

"I know dear." Virgil reached over, cupping one of Roman's cheeks. "But it's still much better than it could have been. Plus we can still text or call, and even when one of us has a vacation we can visit. Or when we need to sleep, we can meet back here around the same time. We'll be sleeping, but we'll still be together."

"I'm still sorry that you have to be sent to the ocean."

"Not the first time I've been there, hope you like the smell of fish and the sea."

"Fish? No, but I do love the smell of the ocean."

"Just be sure to find Janus or Remus if you need their help, and don't forget to tell Logan and Patton what happened."

"I know." Roman turned his head till his lips were pressed against Virgil's palm. "I miss you already."