Tales From the Orchard

What comes After(death)

A/N: Hello again.

I've gotten TONS of questions and requests about the afterlife situation for all of these guys. I always had plans to address it, so I decided today is the day. A mixture of bittersweet, so hold on to your souls.
Of course, takes place after the Bad Apple End.

Enjoy(?)

Grim, the twined god of death, was a patient person, no one could deny that. He worked his job tirelessly, guiding peacefully passing souls from this life to the next. It was a job full of sadness and grief, but also one of joy and peace. He got the honor of escorting each soul through the threshold of the mortal world and that of the afterlife, and it never grew any less touching to see these souls put to rest. He knew his brother's job was less thankless, and often if people cursed death for what they stole from them, it was Sans they were cursing. He always had bore that heavy burden of reaping the tormented, the unexpected, and the restless souls. He had claimed he didn't mind, that he understood the necessity, but Grim had never believed him.

His patience did run thin with his brother, however. Especially when he was running behind on delivering souls that needed to pass through him into the next world.

Grim continued to linger at the edge of the Veil, slowly losing more and more patience as he waited. He knew it could take some time to coax the more rebellious souls along, but this was ridiculous!

Finally, a dark portal swirled open and revealed his brother. He gave a sigh of relief as they passed through, though he could tell the other was weary. It must have been a much tougher collecting than he had originally thought. Grim softened a bit at the clear exhaustion the other was in, trying his best to give him a smile. "I was wondering if you had gotten lost on your way back!" He remarked, watching as the other instantly pushed down his exhaustion to give him a kind smile.

"Heh... well, these bunch were always a little tough to control when they were alive, let alone when they passed." Reaper insisted as he dug around his soul bag, though two smaller spirits rested on either of his shoulders. "Plus, there were quite a few surprise stops I had to make along the way." He assured as he withdrew quite a few souls with a sad smile.

Grim observed all of them, seeming surprised as well. "Is that Dream and Nightmare?? I didn't think they were supposed to pass through here!" He glanced at Reaper with confusion, but the brother only gave a careful shrug. "That's not a good enough reason, brother!"

"Look they..." Reaper sighed as he continued to hold an armful of restless souls. "They all... ended their own lives." He glanced away at the tense silence that followed this, feeling uncomfortable recalling everything.

"Oh."

It was a simple answer, and Reaper could tell the conversation was over instantly.

"Well!" Grim continued after a moment, reaching his hands out carefully. "Leave the rest of this to me! I will make sure they all arrive safe and sound in the same place!" He insisted with the same cheeriness he normally had. He paused as he reached the souls, scoffing a bit as he examined them a moment. "What is the matter with all of them?!"