Cat and Ghost

Chapter 13

There was absolutely nothing about the way that Death smiled down at them that was malevolent or even threatening. But still, Edwin was the most scared he'd ever been, save for a few key moments in Hell.

He released Charles' hand, then reached up to take Death's. She was warm, but it wasn't like the effects of the collar or the distant memory of life. She was warm in the way a pleasant fire or a ray of sunshine is warm. Even though she'd done nothing to coax them on to eternal rest, he felt the tug of the afterlife just by touching her. She helped them to their feet.

When Death smiled at him, Edwin felt a wash of familiarity. She knew him, and he knew her. He felt it in the very depths of whatever stuff he was made of.

"Uh, hi...hi," stammered Charles. He was clearly just as taken aback by Death and her monumental presence.

"Hi," said Death, still smiling benevolently. "You don't have to worry, boys. I'm not going to force you to go anywhere. I never would have, for the record." She folded her hands in front of her. "You've been a great help to me for all these years. For all the souls you've helped find their rest and come to me. Thank you."

"You mean to tell me we ran from you for decades and you wouldn't have taken us anywhere?" said Edwin, not meaning to be quite as sharp and incredulous as those words came out.

"Edwin," said Charles, as he touched his shoulder.

"I said I wouldn't," said Death, still as calm as a trickling stream. "But I don't control the demon that was hunting you. Lost and Found was able to take care of that, though. So you're perfectly safe. Walk with me? I have some work to do down the hall."

Edwin and Charles exchanged looks, then they fell into step behind Death.

As they travelled with her, the world seemed to...shift. It slowed down. Edwin glanced into rooms as they passed. Some people felt flushed and full of life, others dimmed. Others, felt sickly, as if their lives were hanging in the balance. "Is this how you see the world?" he asked, morbidly fascinated by the shift in perspective.

"Yes. Well, I can see the world in many ways, but this is how I see it when I'm doing my work. You could learn to see it too, if you wanted."

"I'm not sure if I'd want that," Charles admitted as three nurses ran down the hall, pushing a gurney with a young man whose light was visibly fading.

Death had such an aura of comfort and peace that Edwin couldn't help but be drawn in. He followed close behind her, as she walked in no particular hurry toward a different wing of the hospital.

"Do you know why we've come to meet you?" Edwin asked. One thing that was very unclear about the Endless is how omnipotent (or not) any of them were. Their powers seemed nebulous, but also seemed to change over the ages.

"No," said Death. "But it must be important. I imagine you don't particularly trust that I won't make you leave the mortal realm."

"We do now," said Charles. "But we didn't before, yeah. You Endless are a slippery lot."

"That we are," said Death. She chuckled softly.

"Your family is why we've come to see you," said Edwin. As he got used to being in Death's presence, the urgency of the situation reasserted itself. "Desire has a friend of ours captive."

Death stopped in her tracks at the name of her sibling. She swiveled to face them. "Boys..."

"Now, I know you're probably going to say something about not mucking about in the business of your siblings," said Charles. "There's not a lot of info about you, but we know there's family tension and a lot of rules. But this is a special case. Desire hasn't got a mortal captive, they've got one of yours. The Cat King. From what we understand, him being a cat and all, he's under your domain."