Grishaverse Oneshots

The Girl and The Ghost

(A/N) I really like this idea and have so many more for a story like this. I honestly might make a story out of it. I even got a title idea: Dead Men's Secrets. Would anyone read that? Anyway...

The boy hugged himself as he walked. His coat clung to his frame, drenched with water from the harbor. Water dripped from his clothes and hair. He was wet. He was cold. He was utterly alone. His dull eyes scanned the crowd that moved past him as if he didn't exist, hoping to see his brother's face. He lost his brother. He wasn't supposed to lose his brother. He failed.

"Help!" He called out to anyone that would listen. But no one did. No one glanced his way. No one reacted to his cry. "Help me, please. I lost my brother. I need to find him." He could beg all he wanted. No one heard him.

A young girl walked alone down the street. Her coat had a hole in it and was two sizes too big. But it kept her safe from the chilled Ketterdam air. The girl walked among the crowd like a shadow. Swiftly dipping her hands into peoples' pockets and looting them of their valuables.

Her routine was interrupted when she heard the voice of a boy her age calling out for help. She glanced up to see who the voice belonged to. It was indeed a boy her age. He looked pale and wet. His face was distraught as he moved from person to person trying to get them to look at him. But no one did.

For they couldn't see him.

"Help me please." He begged. "What's happening? Why can't you see me?" The girl watched as the boy reached out to touch a passing woman only to recoil in fear when his hand just fazes right through.

The girl's faze fell. She knew what happened. The city was after all swarming with ghosts after the plague. This poor boy doesn't realize he's dead. The girl looked at the boy studying his features. His dark hair hung wetly on his head; he looked crafted from sharp edges and thin lines.

The boy looked up and met the girl's eyes. Could she see him?

When she realized she'd been made, the girl looked away ignoring the spirit. But the boy wasn't going to give up. He ran after her.

"Hey wait!"

The girl winced when she heard him call after her. Oh, how she hated the gift that was trusted upon her. She turned down an alley and the boy followed.

"Wait, please. You have to help me."

With no one to call her crazy, the girl whipped around to look at the boy. At this distance she could tell he grew up on a farm. What was a farm boy doing in the city? He smelt of the harbor and sickness. He must have caught the plague. "I don't owe you anything. Stop following me." She snapped.

The boy paused. "That's–that's fine. I just have questions. Please."

The girl sighed. Everyone always has questions and the moment she tells them they're dead they piss off. "Fine."

The boy relaxed slightly and twisted his hands. "Why can't anyone see me?" His voice was small, like he knew the answer deep down but didn't want it to be true.

The girl felt pity for him. "No one can see you because you–" She sighed, "your dead. You died."

The boy's mouth hung open, "What? I'm dead?"

"Yeah, that's what I said." She crossed her arms.

"How come you can see me? Are you dead too?" The boy asked.

"What? No! I'm very much alive thank you." The girl uncrossed her arms and fiddled with the end of her coat sleeve. "I have this gift–curse that allows me to see the dead." She explained.

"Are you a grisha?" The boy asked.

"no." The girl shook her head, "I'm not." She turned to walk away but the boy moved in front of her.

"What if I don't believe that I'm dead? How do I know you're not lying to me?"

The girl scoffed. "Trust issues much?" The boy didn't answer and a look of pain flashed in his eyes. " Fine you want proof?" The girl turned toward the harbor. "Come on."

The boy followed behind silently. When they finally arrived the girl pointed to the barge across the water. "They call it reaper's barge. It's where they take the dead." She turned to him. "You're probably on their somewhere, burying under the weight of death. Most souls feel a pull when they get close to their bodies, but it doesn't matter. You can't return to it."

The boy was silent. It was like stepping into a dream. He remembered the boat and the bodies. He felt the pull the girl was talking about but it wasn't toward the boat. It was further down the coast. He began walking along, letting the pull guide him.

The girl turned to leave but something told her to follow him so she did. Eventually they got to small bridge. Under the bridge there was a body. She sighed and looked away. She wasn't surprised that no one cared enough to move it. She followed the boy down to the water's edge. The two sat in silent until the boy spoke up.

"Can–can you close my eyes?" He asked softly.

The girl nodded and moved toward the body of the very boy standing next to her. She swiftly closed his eyes and wiped her hand on her shirt. She stood up next to the boy.

"Can I stay with you?" He asked. The girl went to retaliate but the boy spoke up again. "I don't want to be alone."

She sighed. "It's not that easy. We're strangers. I don't know you, I can't remember you. You'll fade away."

"What if you had something? To remember me by?"

The girl raised her eyebrow in question. "What?"

The boy pointed to the silver chain around his neck. "There's a ring on the chain. It was my father's. I want you to take it."

"Why?"

"Because you're the only kindness I have met in the city so far and I need your help." The boy explained.

The girl sighed. "Kindness is a rarity on these streets." She bent down and unclasped the chain allowing the ring to fall into her hand. The cold metal seemed heavier in her palm. She looked at the boy as she slipped it in to her pocket. "I will help you. In exchange you must help me."

The boy gave her a funny look. "How am I suppose to help you?"

"I will explain later but if you want my help then we need to come to an agreement." She explained.

The boy nodded, "Okay I'll help you."

The girl smiled, "The deal's the deal. I'm Y/n."

The boy smiled. "I'm Jordie."