Dressed in Feathers | K.TH FF

4: Truth Unveiled

(From here, I would recommend you play the Osirois Music orchestral cover of "Quiet Water" provided at the top for scenic vibes.)

Raven hair, flawless skin, blackhole eyes, heavenly face.

I paused. "Y... You...!?"

"Hi, Gyeowool..." He sighed. It was that gorgeous man that I bumped into who bought me lunch.

"YOU kidnapped me??"

"I didn't kidnap you."

"You didn't let me leave the boat!"

"To help and protect you."

"Why didn't you say anything?? Or tell me who you were??"

"That I cannot tell you." This man was quite frustrating.

"You haven't told me anything this whole time! Every question I asked you ignored! Is this a dream??"

"No."

"But I saw you when I fainted!"

"You did not faint." He quickly corrected.

"What do you mean??"

"Gyeowool... You're dead."

"Ha ha. Very funny. Now tell me what's actually going on." I wasn't going to fall for that. I'm not an idiot.

"I assure you, this is not a dream."

"Sure it's not. In an hour or so, I'm going to wake up and find none of this ever happened."

"No... You will not... You are forever asleep... I was tasked to retrieve your soul. You are but a mere spirit, Miss Gyeowool."

"Tell me something realistic."

"Allow me to demonstrate." The dreamy man reached out to me and I tensed. I saw how his hand didn't touch my body and instead went through. Something about that sight was uncomfortable.

"Okay...? Weird. I'm still not convinced, though."

He pulled his hand away, then my body glowed blue and green. He waved his arm around, my illuminated body flinging from one place to another. I couldn't do anything. The man in black was controlling everything. Shortly after, he sat me back down across from him in the boat.

"That's freaky... How are you able to do that?" I was becoming more convinced.

"It is psychínesis—soul manipulation. Another name would be animakinesis."

"What? I'm still not convinced. If you're not human, then what are you?"

"Perhaps this will help you understand."

The handsome man brought something from behind his back beneath his feather cloak. It was all folded up and I couldn't make it out. That was until it snapped open, making me jump and flinch. The object he had in hand was a scythe, and it looked pretty old. The wrappings on it looked aged and worn and the blade seemed like it could be old iron. Even the wood handle appeared to be aging and damaged.

I gazed at the foldable scythe, then at the man, and then his mask.

Wait a second... all black clothes, scary black cloak, skeleton crow mask, and he carries a scythe? "You're the Grim Reaper...!"

"That is correct."

"No wonder your dialect sounds 100 years old."

"Dialect has nothing to do with it."

"Who knew Death was so beautiful?" I complimented him.

He folded his scythe back up and placed it behind his back where it once was. "Death is a beautiful thing. It is a natural part of life. Death does not mean the end. With every end comes a new beginning. Your new beginning has just begun, and I am merely your guide."