Full Summary: They say "true love conquers all"...but at what cost? 2018. Modern day England. It had been years. Years since the days of Ciel Phantomhive. Yet still, the grim reapers roam the land of the living, screening and collecting the souls just as they've been doomed to do. When a new name appears on the "To-Die" list, Grim Reaper Grell Sutcliff-Spears discovers that she must collect the soul of another pre-op transgender woman. With a feeling of fascination and admiration for the other, she toggles between her head and her heart as she assesses her in the months leading up to her death. And soon, she finds herself faced with the most terrible, tragic reaping she has ever been charged with. A reaping that will be the ultimate fight between her heart and her head. A reaping that could ultimately lead to a most brutal downfall...

A/N: I'm posting this because I think it's an interesting concept and because I want to, and Chaplin Sukegawa is underappreciated and needs more love. Barely anyone knows who she is. Which is sad, considering the fact that she is such a great character. Basically, she's a canon transgender woman who appears only in the Deadman Wonderland manga as a supporting character. She's a deadman, and someone who sees herself as a "bright figure". I love her, and I think she has a touching back story. You don't really need to know every detail about "Deadman Wonderland" to understand her character, all you have to do is go read her biography, which I'll link in the text.

And yes, I ship her with Grell Sutcliff. I feel like they'd get along very well if they met, and they'd become fast friends, just judging by their personality traits. I feel like then, after some time, their relationship would blossom into something more. So yeah. That's what I'm going with for this story.

We know Grell Sutcliff is canonically bisexual anyway. (Recall that she was in love with Madame Red. If you don't believe me, there is literally a quote in the MANGA that says "You could say I fell head over heels for a woman.." (I actually took my hard copy of volume two of the manga to look this up, so FIGHT ME. Jk.)

As for Chaplin, well, there's a lot of room for interpretation for her character.) Anyways, justification over, onward with the story...

**Also, side note. At first, I use male pronouns for Grell, only because Chaplin doesn't yet know that Grell considers herself a woman, and that section was in her point of view.

The Warning

It was near sunset. The sky was painted in lovely hues of pink, yellow, and orange as the sun slowly sunk over the horizon. There was chilly breeze in the air. It was quiet, except for the murmur of the wind, the ambiance of the white waves crashing against the rough sandy shore and the squawking of gulls as their silhouettes flew passed the setting sun.

The beach was empty- well, almost. A trail of lonely footprints made by bare human feet, surrounded by the white fragments of seashells, made a straight path along the shoreline. Off in the distance, a single figure could be seen. She walked slowly across the sand, with the evening breeze buffeting her shoulder-length blonde hair. As she walked, she used one hand to hold up the long skirt of her bohemian peacock printed dress so that the hem of the skirt didn't get covered in sand.

She had decided to take a walk along the beach after a particular stressful theatre rehearsal to unwind, but she quickly found herself regretting that choice when the cold had suddenly picked up. She hadn't brought her cardigan with her, and now she was considering turning back because the cold felt like ice against her bare arms.

She was about to, until the sight of another figure a couple leagues ahead caught her attention. Her curiosity worked against her, and she found making her way towards them. They seemed to take no notice of her. Their back was turned facing the waves, and whatever long, dark garment they were wearing was flowing behind them in the breeze. They stood straight and stared blankly at the large expanse of water.

She stopped and stood a few paces away from the other. She realized that they seemed very out of place. The garment that was on was a black and red hooded cloak, and it covered the person's face. The only feature visible were loose strands of dark red hair that the wind had blown out of the cloak hood. The figure also seemed to be holding something. What it was, she couldn't tell. She was at a sudden loss as to if she should talk to them or just walk passed them.

"Curious." the sound of the figure's accented, mid to high toned male voice startled her. She jumped. She stood like a deer in the headlights, confused. Was she supposed to respond?

"I know you're there. No need to be so silent."

She inched a few paces forward before she stopped again, "What's...curious?"

"The world's endless cycle of life, love, and death that never seems to have an end." the cloaked figure replied, "Like a Shakespearean tragedy, wouldn't you say?"

"Eto...I suppose so…" Why did he feel a need to point that out?

"Do you ever sit and ponder your existence?"

"I-I...sometimes?"

A glint of bright white indicated the mysterious figure's smile. A smile that, for some reason, sent a sort of chill up her spine.

"Then tell me, Masaru 'Chaplin' Sukegawa," Her heart dropped to her stomach with a powerful lurch. How the h*ll…!? The figure turned his head to face her. She was suddenly met with the most piercing pair of yellow-green eyes she had ever seen, "Are you afraid of death?" Those eyes filled her with terror, and a sudden unpleasant foreboding as they bore into her. They were so piercing they almost burned, and it was almost like they could see through her. She couldn't stop her plain brown eyes locking into the piercing green ones, widening and her mind from filling up with poisoning terrors of her passed. She took a few steps back.

"How do you know my name? Who are you?" she was suddenly overcome with a feeling of fear and unease.

"That's an answer for another day, darling." the crimson-haired figure replied, "But for now, I'd like to know if you're afraid of death."

"I've seen my fair share of death, and I'd prefer not to witness anymore." she said.

"It's all around you, darling. You can't escape it, no matter how hard you try. And it may come for you sooner than you think."

She felt her heartbeat increase, fear claw it's way up and out from her core. What did that mean? Was she going to die soon? There was no way.

"What are you talk-" she stopped mid-sentence. The figure that had been standing there just now was gone. It was like she had blinked and he'd vanished. She blinked a few times more. She managed to convince herself that whatever she had seen was a fatigued hallucination and nothing more. So, she simply turned and fled the beach. She needed to go home and sleep.

-xXx-

From the top of a rocky cliff overlooking the beach, Grell Sutcliff sat unhooded, with the wind buffeting her crimson hair, and watched Chaplin Sukegawa flee the beach. She glanced down sorrowfully at the woman's name on the to-die list, and she once again reread the first couple sentences of the profile that had written itself:

"My name is Chaplin Sukegawa. I am a transgender woman. I am stronger than men and kinder than women. That's why I can punch anyone equally. I try to be a bright, inspirational figure for anyone and everyone around me... "

"Oh Chaplin, Chaplin, wherefore art thou Chaplin?" she spoke aloud to the profile with sympathy, sorrow, and pain. She couldn't remember the last time she had felt sorrow for a human. Normally, she could do her job with no problem or remorse...but this...this was a special case. In a few short months time, Chaplin was going to die, and Grell was responsible for reaping the soul of the only other woman like her that she had ever encountered.

The Meeting

Two days later, everything was back to normal. Chaplin was able to push the unsettling meeting to the back of her mind and carry on as normal.

"Alright my dears!" she announced to the acting class she was dismissing, "Remember, auditions for Romana and Juliet start next week! Make sure to show up thirty minutes before your audition time, with your monologue ready! Those of you auditioning will do wonderfully, I know it!"

Upon stating this, she dismissed her class. With a loud cheer and noisy chatter, everyone left the stage where class was held. Besides for a straggler or two, the theatre had essentially emptied and the Proscenium set up went almost silent. There was no sound except for the hum of the air conditioner and the quiet murmur of the stragglers as they made their way out through the backstage exits into the green room area. Now, she would get to enjoy a few hours of quiet before the cast of A Midsummer Night's Dream showed up for the evening performance.

The theatre she worked at had decided to have a year of modernized Shakespearean classics. It didn't surprise her though, Shakespeare had originated in England after all.

She had left Japan and moved to the United Kingdom about a year ago. She'd left Japan to escape harsh discrimination and bad memories, as well as so she could start her transition process sooner. She wanted to start fresh.

After being released from Deadman Wonderland and from prison, she got a job as a director at a small local community theatre in Japan. It was fine for a while. She enjoyed coaching and directing children and juveniles, yet something never felt quite right. Her students and staff respected her pronouns and who she was as a whole, but that didn't change the fact she suffered discrimination and ridicule. It also didn't change the fact that everyone knew the infamous story of Deadman Wonderland, and the fact that she was one of the fabled "Deadmen". She did not like that so many knew about it, because she honestly preferred not to talk about her branch of sin. She had tried to fix her reputation, and try to make it so that she was seen as a successful director, mentor, and mother figure to her students and actors as opposed to a "deadman". People took notice of her, but it still didn't work. Everyone still remembered the fact that she was a "deadman"-the fact that made people wary of her didn't go away.

So, she decided she'd wanted to go to a place where no one knew who she was. Thus, she applied for, and surprisingly was given a job as a play director and teacher at a local theatre in Brighton in East Sussex. During the day she taught acting classes and director workshops, and during the late afternoons and evenings, she directed and put on productions.

Life was so much better now. She was happy with her job, and she was happy living as a single woman in her little flat on the fourth floor of her apartment building. She also loved Brighton. She was near the beach, and she loved to take walks down the streets. And to top everything off, she was finally on hormones,which she both loved and hated. She loved them because she was starting her process of becoming a woman, but she hated them because they were hormones and they made her mood swings zany. Despite the mood swings though, everything was as it should be.

-xXx-

The sudden noise of one of the heavy entrance doors swinging open interrupted Chaplin's thoughts as she tidied up the stage. It startled her, causing her to jump slightly. She turned. A bright figure entered the room. Their long crimson hair flowing behind them as they strutted through the doors in shiny black Mary Janes and red thigh high stockings adorned with little black bows on the top. The figure also wore a black pleated miniskirt with a form-fitting quarter-sleeved red shirt tucked into it, that accentuated feminine curves and an usually flat chest, as well as a long crimson coat at the elbows that seemed out of time.

"Hello~" the red figure greeted brightly. They waved from the aisle between the seats as she made her way towards the apron of the stage where Chaplin was currently seated. As the figure drew closer, Chaplin immediately recognized them and stood up. The flamboyant voice on the fence between male and female and the long red hair and piercing eyes were the telltale signs that it was the strange person from two evenings ago. As the figure grew closer it filled her with more and more unease. Again, Chaplin felt her blood run cold, followed by the bubbling of her nerves.

Why? It was because of the eyes. Those beautiful, terrible yellow-green eyes that were so bright they seemed to glow. Those eyes that bore into her and seemed to see through her outward guise. Those eyes that were so bright and strange it was like they weren't fully human at all.

"It's you-y-you're the person from the beach." those were the only words that formed in Chaplin's mouth.

"Yes, that would be me." the redhead replied. They stopped at the base of the stage and sprung up with almost no effort. They did so with such agility and grace that they landed with two feet on the shiny wood, with only a slight bend in the knees before standing up straight again. They were uncomfortably close and the blonde found herself taking a few steps away from them.

"No need to be so afraid, darling. I'm not here to hurt you. I'm simply here to make an inquiry." the redhead stated simply.

"Okay...go on then?"

"But before that, let me introduce myself. My name is Grell Sutcliff. I am a lady with a passion for theatre, and a strong adoration for the color red and men in black suits." She held out a hand that Chaplin warily shook.

"Chaplin Sukegawa. I'm a director here." The blonde replied. They made eye contact.

"So I've heard. Pleasure to meet you!" Grell smiled. Chaplin was taken aback. Beneath the bright red lips were two rows of pointed, shark-like teeth. She'd never seen teeth like that on a human before. It was chilling, but she wasn't about to say that. It'd be rude of her to do so.

Other than that, though, Grell Sutcliff had a pretty face. It was pale and flawless. Her cheeks were lightly dusted with natural blush. Over her piercing eyes, she wore red glasses that were narrow framed and a bit like an upside down pentagon. There was a beaded chain on them, with little skull charms that were level with the bridge of her little nose, nearest to the the tip. The eyes were lined thickly, winged, with the the kohl color both tightlined and on the waterline. They were also adorned with fake lashes. Her lids had vibrant red shadow that matched her lipstick. Her eyebrows were slanted upwards, giving her expression a permanent appearance of sorrow or confusion. However, it also seemed to add some sort of youthful innocence about her as well. The hair at the top of her head had spikes that stuck out on the sides. Her red fringe swooped over her forehead, with a strand down the middle of her face and curved to Chaplin's left hand side. There were also two long strands of hair that pooled down over her chest. She also looked like she was around the same age as Chaplin was.

"Umm hello? Are you even listening to me? Hello there! Wake up, Chaplin!" the blonde was pulled out of her trance with Grell's pale, slender hand waving in front of her face.

"Come again? I'm sorry, I spaced out." she snapped back to reality and blushed when she realized she'd been so busy scrutinizing the pretty redhead that she completely missed what she was saying.

In irritation, Grell frowned and blew on the piece of fringe that brushed over her nose. "Who can audition for the productions here?" she asked.

"Anyone, really. We have youth productions and normal productions meant for high schoolers and young adults."

"Oh brilliant! I'd like to audition for Romana and Juliet. Do you have any audition forms left?"

"I do. They're in my office. Would you like one?"

"Of course! That's why I asked! I adore Shakespeare and I've been in my fair share of Shakespearean plays, with the classic tragedy of star-crossed lovers included! It's one of my personal favorites, you know! Forbidden love, drama, and tragedy is what I live for!"

Chaplin couldn't help but smile. Perhaps this peculiar woman wasn't so bad after all.

"Alright then, let me go and get you an audition form and a sc-"

"No need for the script, honey! I know this play like the back of my hand!"

"Well alright. Just the form then." and with that, she exited the theatre and headed into the main hallways of the old building.

-xXx-

Grell watched the pretty blonde woman leave, before she sat on the edge of the apron, swinging her legs over the empty pit. Normally, she would not put such an amount of effort as this into assessing a soul she was to collect, but there was something special about Ms. Sukegawa. She was going to thoroughly assess her, because the emotions part of her brain were telling her not to reap her, but the rational part of her brain said she had a job to do.

-xXx-

A few moments later, Chaplin returned to the stage and handed Grell the small stapled packet.

"There you go." she said, "Auditions start next week."

"Alright!" Grell jumped off the stage and swaggered down the hall towards the back doors, "I'll see you later then, darling~" and with that, the strange redhead was out the door.

-xXx-

That evening, after she had grabbed something to eat, Chaplin was back at the theatre. She hadn't yet gotten the chance to see the theatre's modern production of A Midsummer Night's Dream, so she was going to see it tonight. She was there quite early, and since she worked, she had no need to stop at the box office first.

She picked a seat in the middle of the audience, once where she could clearly see the stage from a comfortable distance away. With the program she didn't need in hand, she waited quietly for the director to come up and introduce the production. While she waited, she messed around on social medias on her cell phone, primarily Instagram and Facebook. She barely noticed the person coming down the aisle towards her. She only became aware of her presence when a voice cut into her thoughts.

"Do you mind if I sit here?" the person asked.

Chaplin looked up for a fraction of second, "No, go ahead." With the ruffling of fabric and paper, the person took the seat beside her.

"I'm surprised you didn't recognize me." the voice cut into her thoughts once more.

The blonde looked up again. Lo and behold, there was Grell Sutcliff in all her crimson glory sitting beside her.

"Oh, hello Sutcliff-san." she said politely.

"Grell, please." the redhead replied, "No need to address me so formerly, it makes me feel old."

"Oh...I'm sorry. Force of habit."

The redhead laughed, "It's alright. I'm merely joking, darling. Anyway...a modernized version of A Midsummer Night's Dream, hmm?"

"Yeah, our theatre is doing a Shakespearean theme this year. Two comedies and two tragedies."

"Oh, how lovely!" Grell replied excitedly, "Which ones?"

"For Fall we're doing this one, and Hamlet, and spring is Romana and Juliet and Twelfth Night.

"All fantastic Shakespeare plays! You know, I was in a production of Hamlet once. A long time ago. It was a charity performance for orphans."

"Oh. I see. Who did you play?"

"I was Ophelia."

"Aww." Chaplin commented, "That poor girl is the most innocent character in the play."

Grell laughed.

"The performance was a mess, and most of the acting was atrocious. And it strayed so far from the plot it ended up not being a tragedy in the end."

"Oh, goodness. That sounds terrible."

"Oh, but the children loved it. So it was definitely worth it."

Chaplin chuckled, "That's good. I'm glad it worked out. How long ago was this?"

"A long time ago. I don't even remember the year. 88 or 89. I don't exactly remember."

1988 or 1989? How old was Grell exactly? She only looked to be in her early thirties like Chaplin herself was, not her 40's or 50's. However, she knew it was impolite to ask a lady her age, and she assumed Grell probably would take offense if she did.

"Oh, I see."

"Anyways! A Midsummer Night's Dream! It's one of my favorite Shakespeare comedies. I do prefer tragedy, but I love a good comedy every once in awhile."

"I'm indifferent to both. It depends on the day."

The lights suddenly went dim.

"Oh! It looks like the show's starting!" Grell said with realization. She turned to face the stage and the show began.

-xXx-

At intermission, the two women could be found conversing in the lobby by the concessions. It seemed that they shared a few interests, and each found the other to be pleasant company.

-xXx-

The show ended later than scheduled, as was expected. Chaplin was quite tired by the curtain call. She was ready to go home and crawl into bed.

Her and Grell walked together out the double doors of the theatre, and they stood outside and conversed for a few moments.

"That was a wonderful show!" Grell declared, "What did you think of it, Chaplin?"

"I enjoyed it." she replied.

"The acting was good and I liked the modern take on it." Grell said, "And it makes me all the more excited for Romana and Juliet."

The director smiled. She was glad of that, and it was safe to say that she was looking forward to seeing Grell's audition.

"I look forward to your audition."

Grell steepled her hands and rested them on the back of her head with a smile, "Trust me, you won't be disappointed." she replied, "Anyway~ I hope to see around, Chaplin. You seem like an interesting person. Perhaps we can go out for luncheon sometime."

"Umm...sure. That sounds nice."

"Wonderful! Well, in that case I bid you goodnight!"

"Goodnight."

With that, she walked down the street, stopping at the corner and leaping up, disappearing into the dark, gone without a trace. It was like Chaplin blinked and the mysterious woman had disappeared.

The blonde stood for a moment and stared at the spot on the street that Grell had been standing on only moments before. She blinked several times and shook her head, before she made her way towards the street corner to hail a cab, walking with haste, heels clicking against the cracked pavement. On her way, and as she climbed into the back of the cab, she thought once again about how strange Grell was.

-xXx-

With her chainsaw limply in her hand and her "To Die" list in the other, Grell stood on the edge of building, with the wind her hair and coat billowing behind her, and sorrowfully watched Chaplin get into the cab and disappear.

It really was a shame. With a sigh, she ran and jumped across to the next rooftop, going the opposite way Chaplin was, disappearing into the night. She had had enough for today.

-xXx-

Grell sighed as she twisted her key in her lock and entered her dimly lit flat. She closed the door behind her with a louder thud than necessary, and clicked the lock in place. She hung up her crimson coat next to the familiar black trench.

"Will, I'm home." she said, fatigue and unhappiness in her voice.

She followed the familiar light of the office down the small hallway. Her partner was sitting at his desk on his laptop, his office lit only by the floor lamp beside him. His hair was slightly tousled, as a few strands had come loose and hung limply on his forehead. His rectangular glasses were on the bridge of his nose as he stared at his screen and typed away on his keyboard. He barely looked up long enough for her to give him a chaste kiss.

"Still working at this hour?" Grell asked with a sigh.

"You seem less energetic than usual." William stated bluntly, dodging the obvious answer to the question.

"Long day." she replied. There was a block of silence, with only the sound of fingers drumming on the laptop keyboard.

"...Are you hungry? It's too late to cook something...but I can warm up leftovers."

"Fine." his voice was monotone as usual.

"Are you going to eat in here...or did you want to eat at the table with me?"

"I'll just eat here. I've too much paperwork to take a break."

"Okay." Grell didn't hide the disappointment in her voice. With that, she turned and left the office to leave him to do his work. She stopped at the doorway and glanced over her shoulder. She didn't know why she did, but she did. However, he had already fixed his frowning expression back on the laptop screen and took no notice of her, so she simply turned and went into the kitchen.

-xXx-

A few minutes later, she returned to the office with the small, steaming plate of leftover spaghetti and set it on William's desk.

"Thanks." he said half-heartedly, adjusting his glasses.

"Yes, of course." she turned to leave the office once more.

"Grell." Will's voice stopped her at the door.

"Hmm?"

"Did you take your hormone pills?"

A ghost of a smile appeared across her lips, "Yes. I did earlier."

"Good."

No other words were exchanged between them as Grell made her way into the dining alcove to eat dinner alone, as she always did. Once she'd finished that, she rinsed the dishes and put them in the dishwasher. She went to collect William's plate, which he'd scarcely made a dent in. She knew there was no point in urging him to eat anymore, unless she wanted to be coldly dismissed by him, so she simply gave some of it to the dog and threw the rest out. She then went to take a shower, before retiring to her bed for the night, with a book in hand. With his short little legs, their corgi jumped up on the bed and wriggled his way into her lap and arms, bumping her arm with his nose.

She chuckled half heartedly, scratching him slowly between the ears. She was suddenly feeling down, and it seemed that he sensed it.

"I don't understand, Charlie." she began, "Why is it that even though I have a husband...I still feel so lonely?"

The dog's ears twitched and he cocked his head. She sighed, and wrapped her arms around him, picking him up and burying her face into the fur on the back of his neck. He licked her hand as if to say: I don't know why you're upset, but I want you to feel better.

She smiled softly. She then proceeded to put the dog back down in her lap, and picking up her book after she did so. She didn't read for long though, because she was quickly ready for bed. She glanced sadly at the empty left bedside. William hadn't come to bed, and probably wouldn't until after she was asleep. Her only bed mate was the dog, who was currently asleep at her side.

"Goodnight Charlie." she said, and clicked off the bedside lamp and then slid down under the covers, pulling them over her and turning on her side.