.
Death And The Dove
.
There once was a girl named Mercy Jones who had fallen ill to a sickness who'd no wish to fade. She had taken her last breath on a cold December night but Death, who had watched the girl suffer through her illness, took pity on her. He let her stay in the land of the living, though she was quite dead.
Her parents had not taken her return very well and threw her out of the house, not even bothering to pack a bag of clothes for her. They said a dead girl was to be buried, not kept alive. Some may say they were right, but Death did not agree.
Their insensitivity enraged the horseman, who had reaped them on the very same day they had closed the door on their daughter's face. Orphaned, Mercy took a liking to Death and before long considered him her Father. She loved him with all of her little dead heart and thought the most of him with her dead little brain.
Though Death could not spend his days with her, he always made sure so visit twice a week and was always there on special anniversaries.
School wasn't very easy for Mercy Jones. No one wanted to befriend a dead girl, even when the dead girl sang very well. But she never spoke of her troubles when Death came knocking, for though the kids disliked her intensely, she loved them with all of her dead little heart and had no wish to see them perish.
There was one boy in particular that she loved. His name was Sam Evans. He was blond with green eyes that twinkled when he smiled. He often did – smile that is – and sometimes the curve of his lips was meant for her. Never once did he mock or ignore her. Such petty behavior was below him.
Mercy had come to realise that Sam Evans was not troubled by the unfortunate status of her livelihood. This however, she had told Death. In fact, she had called the blond boy her 'Breath Of Life'. The boy who gave her hope.
Sam Evans was kind. Sam Evans was not afraid. Sam Evans was not disgusted.
But Sam Evans was not her friend.
And so began the courting of Samuel, which Mercy learned was much harder than the films claimed it to be. It seemed showing him the wonders of corpses was not the ideal activity for courtship. Still, Sam was not disgusted merely amused. He showed her better things, like ice cream and fresh flowers. He told her stories of his family and of his friends, and had even offered to sit with her at Lunch.
But Mercy refused. She was a dead girl, Sam was not. She would not make his life miserable when he'd done nothing to deserve such treatment. So, by her demand, they kept their newfound friendship secret from all but Death.
It was a cold Tuesday afternoon when Mercy came home weeping. Her house was a small white box on a narrow stamp of lawn, with grass that had died months ago. The house was easily the most visible one on the street, but only because Mercy had insisted on shades of gray rather than the colorful colors of the other houses in the neighbourhood.
To her surprise, Death was waiting for her inside. He extended his long bony arms and enveloped her in a hug.
"And what, my dove, brings tears to your eyes?" He asked. "Come now, love, and tell me no lies."
"'Tis the Evans, Death." She wept. "They've come and stolen my Breath."
Death felt anger surge through his frail body but willed himself to relax long enough to ease her pain. "Has your Breath broken your heart?" asked Death, stroking her hair. "Does he wish for you to part?"
"'Twas his parents, dear Father. We were down by lake, at first it was no bother but then they claimed my Breath to take." Mercy wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. "Sam was not elated and his mother struck his visage. She claims we are not fated, it is bad pour l'image."
"And your love for this boys is more than your heart can contain? You would love him with no fear of the mundane?"
"I will love him when the sun goes black, when the enemy will sound the warning bells of attack, when the last flower will wither, and should he ever stop loving me, to his heart I would whisper 'come hither'."
"And so it is done!" exclaimed Death. "I shall fetch my new favorite son."
He left Mercy alone in her little white house, her little dead heart filled with pain. When the clock indicated that five minutes had past, Death was in her presence once more. He was back faster than she had expected. Beside him was Sam Evans, handsome and smiling.
Sam Evans was not alive. Sam Evans was not disgusted.
And Sam Evans was joyous.
"How different life seems, much better than any of my dreams!" He said, hugging her. "Dare I say, death is child's play?"
But despite Sam's happiness, Mercy was worried. "I love Death with all of my tiny dead heart, but with life did he force you to part?"
Sam shook his head and kissed her mouth. "Life was a burden, but Death with you is Heaven."
So the dead girl and the dead boy lived together, never quite one with the world but surely never lonely. Death visited his children twice a week and never missed an anniversary. And Mercy found, for the first time since her untimely death, that someone understood her completely. That someone, as shocking as it may be to his parents, loved her with all of his tiny dead heart.