AN: This is still a work in progress, but the first few chapters are done so I thought I'd start posting. Everything is AU, so if you don't like seeing characters with completely different stories, this won't be for you. Reviews are always appreciated :)
And I'd also like to thank my awesome Beta- UnfairestOfThemAll for all her hard work.
Chapter 1
Emma gazed wearily around her, unsure what had happened. The last thing she could remember was running out the door after her mark. A sharp stinging in her head quickly reclaimed her attention, "Oh yeah, he hit me," placing her hand at her temple, checking for any blood. As the ringing in her ears died down and she was able to regain some focus, she looked around. Nothing looked familiar, for one, everything seemed too bright. It had been nearing midnight, but there was a bright white light all around her.
"How long was I out?" She started to take in that her surroundings weren't just bright but also had changed significantly, instead of being in a busy, well-maintained part of the city, she was now in a place that looked rather abandoned.
"Good, you're up now. Let's go." A gruff voice said behind her, she jumped, unaware that anyone had been there. In fact, she didn't even remember standing up. Emma looked cautiously at the owner of the voice, he was tall, had short messy hair, a beard starting to grow, and wearing a grey button up and vest. She had never seen him before, of that she was certain, but he regarded her with some familiarity.
"Who are you?" Still, she was unable to decide if she should follow him or not.
"I prefer to go by Graham, though I'm sure you're more familiar with my other names." A cocky smile spread across his face as he reached into the back pocket of his jeans. Emma, still questioning who he was took a step backed and prepared to reach for her concealed pistol, just in case things got a bit messy. Graham instead pulled a card out of his wallet and handed it towards her. Emma looked down at it, still trying to decide if she should take it or not, but that was when she caught the words neatly printed across the top. Graham Humbert – Grim Reaper. Her jaw dropped, she was so unprepared for this one.
"Never get tired of that reaction, now come on, I've still got a schedule to stick to, can't be late."
Emma followed wordlessly behind him, still trying to comprehend how she had ended up here of all places, and wait, wasn't the afterlife supposed to be nice and cloudy and not look like the worst slums of Boston?
She really was unsure of where to start, what to ask, or even what to say and the Grim Reaper well, how was she even supposed to address him? Not to mention he really didn't look like the skeleton she'd always imagined him to be. If anything she thought he looked rather attractive, for being dead. Graham paused in front of a heavy steel door, paint peeling off of it, sunken into a brick building. Emma had been so wrapped up in her thoughts that she had almost run into him. She could only imagine how well that would go over, wait, was he a solid form or would she just go right through him?
Graham turned and looked at her, "Do not say anything unless commanded, do not touch anything unless commanded, do not look anyone in the eyes. I will stay with you when we are inside, but I cannot save you from them. You will go straight through to the back of the building, no detours."
The thought of the Grim Reaper not even being able to save her scared Emma slightly and she nodded nervously at him. How bad was this day going to get? And what could they even do to her? She didn't want to know what could be worse than this. Graham pushed open the door and motioned for Emma to lead the way.
Nervously, she stepped inside, going blind in the pitch black of the room surrounding her, and stopped just inside the door. She felt a pair of warm, strong hands, definitely not a pair she would have imagined belonging to death, on her back, pushing her to continue on. She remembered his words, straight back, and cautiously stepped forward, unsure of her footing. Slowly, she made her way across the room, it seemed to continue on forever, or maybe that was just her warped perception, passing through a doorway though, she found the next room was dimly lit. It was also not empty, actually, there were two bodies blocking her path to the next door, quite literally standing just in front of it. Graham coaxed her forward and when she found herself standing in front of them, she stood there, unsure of whether or not to say anything, once again remembering his words.
She looked over her shoulder, noting Graham's gentle eyes as he nodded and gave her a small smile. Her voice came out timidly, she couldn't even believe it was hers actually, "Excuse me". Even though she'd been standing there, the person, or spirit, or whatever they were in this place, looked down as if he was just now noticing there was someone there.
He spoke gruffly, "What d'ya want?" A thick accent, Emma guessed Italian, marring his words.
Graham stepped up from behind her, "Let the lady pass, she's got a meeting with the boss."
He looked down at Emma, inspecting her closely, before stepping aside and allowing her passage. Graham, once again, followed her through into the next room. Emma, feeling like she was willingly going to her own death, except for the fact she was already dead, was unsure why she was leading him around.
In this next room, the lighting was only marginally better, but she was able to make out that well, everything was red, the walls, the floor, the ceiling, the furniture. She imagined that last one to be red as well, but she couldn't really see as there was only a desk and a chair, currently occupied by the one body there was. That body had to be the boss, there were no other rooms for her to disappear into, he was imposing, hair slicked back, and she thought he would have made for a good Mafia boss in any movie. He certainly fit the picture right now, sitting there in front of her.
Emma noticed Graham was no longer right behind her, in fact he stood a few feet behind her, absolutely motionless.
"Nice of you to finally join us, Miss Swan."
Emma really wasn't sure how to respond to that.
"Ah cat's got your tongue? Or are you mute? I wasn't aware of that little development. Maybe you're wondering why you're here?"
She glanced nervously back at Graham before clearing her throat. "Yeah, that'd be a good start" her voice trailed off near the end. She hadn't realized she was so quiet.
"Well, lucky for you, this isn't heaven, or hell. Though you may find yourself in one of them soon. However, I am willing to offer you a deal, if you value your life. I can send you back like none of this happened in exchange for your services."
This was an area Emma knew, "What services are those?" She sounded much more confident.
"See, dearie, there are certain people out there who wish to escape death. They've figured out how to stay just out of Graham's reach, and we need someone living to give him that extra bit. You seem to already have an ability to find those who don't want to be found, and your accident was rather untimely. I'd be willing to return you to the living if you send me those souls in exchange."
Emma stood there stunned; she'd never been asked to outright kill anyone, though this was definitely not the normal assignment. Her bargaining skills were yet to be tested in this area and what exactly do you charge someone for murder? Granted being alive was a good thing, but still, how many lives would she be responsible for?
"It's only one for your life, well this one in particular, he's been a rather tricky one. After that, you'll be paid quite handsomely, though if you fail, you will be brought back here, no second chances. Do we have an agreement?"
"Who is it?"
"Ah ah, dearie, first do we have an agreement?" He held out his hand, long skinny fingers fully extended, waiting for her to do the same.
Emma reached out her hand, not sure exactly what she was getting into, but unsure of having another choice if she wished to go back home. He smiled wickedly and pulled out a piece of paper, crudely photocopied on it was what Emma thought was a driver's license. It had a name, a photo, but no address and another line, Emma couldn't be sure what it was supposed to hold. Just X's in place of that information. She picked it up and read the name, "Will Scarlet?"
"He's been a rather tricky one, seems someone forgot to register him when he was born. Without those blanks filled in, we can't touch him. But you can."
