Sympathy For the Devil [Keith Richards]

Made Damn Sure That Pilate Washed His Hands & Sealed His Fate

"Charlie?"

Keith couldn't believe his eyes, but right before him was indeed sitting Charlie Watts. The probably last person he ever had suspected to end up in Hell. He rubbed his eyes, but the drummer stayed where he was, sitting in a chair and having a cup of tea like everything was perfectly normal. It looked like something Keith had at least seen a million times in his life, that it nearly seemed ridicule to see now in Hell.

However no matter how he looked at it, it was Charlie Watts. His mannerism, his looks, his clothes, everything was so Charlie that Keith had to accept the fact that indeed the gentle drummer had ended up in Hell and he wondered if it was their fault... Charlie never had done any wrong, he was probably the most reasonable person Keith knew. So why should Charlie out of all the people end up here, Keith asked himself and that was the moment he realised he had missed a certain little detail before. Why was Charlie even here to begin with? He couldn't have died too, could he?

"Don't tell me you kicked the bucket too!" Keith exclaimed.

Charlie chuckled. "Oh no, I am who you want me to be. Most refer to me as the Reason and if you see me as your friend that only means you think he's very reasonable." Keith nearly wanted to laugh out loud. He didn't know out of relief that Charlie was still alive or about the circumstance that for him the personification of reason was Charlie Watts, but well it did make sense that it was Charlie, rather then one of the others. "So what brings you to me?"

Keith scratched his neck. He had no idea why he was actually here, beside that Persewhatever had dragged him here for some reason he had no knowledge of, but hadn't she said that Charlie or well the Reason would explain everything? "Eh... Perse something brought me here. She said you would explain everything."

Charlie sighed and gestured for Keith to sit down in a chair next to him. "Well, have a seat then. Do you want some tea?"

"Don't you have something stronger?" Keith asked as he sat down on the opposite side of the Reason, which he decided to call Charlie in his mind, simply because it was easier and seemed less ominous than Reason. Couldn't these people have normal names like John or James, he asked himself.

"No, do you think I would be called the Reason, if I got drunk?" Charlie remarked as he filled a cup up with tea for him.

Keith nearly laughed again, because he couldn't believe that he had managed to find an even more boring version of Charlie than the one he already knew back home. If this situation wasn't so strange and fucked up he might have laughed about it or maybe he would even have enjoyed this trip.

"So what's going on?" Keith asked as he took a sip of tea, which he nearly immediately spat back out. He had no idea what crazy shit he had taken in his life, but this was the most disgusting thing he had ever encountered. "And seriously what's wrong with this tea?"

"Oh it's a special blend, it's healthy and good for your digestion, but I am sure you're not here to talk about tea. So what did Persephone tell you?"

Keith sighed and pushed the poisonous yet heathy tea aside. He surely wouldn't drink that again. Once had been bad enough and he wasn't sure if he could ever chase this taste away. "Nothing much, beside that she wanted to collect my soul and that you would explain everything..."

"Oh my! That girl... Well that means I really have some explaining to do. I know you might have a lot of questions, but please don't interrupt me or this will take even longer and I fear we don't have much time." Keith just nodded, because again what other choices did he really have? And he surely could manage to be quiet for a minute if he finally got some answers. Slowly but surely he was getting really tired of this mystical, mythical shit.