I wanted to write something for halloween, but I couldn't really come up with something scary. That's why I made a story about Death, which is at least a bit in the right direction.
The story is based on the story of the brother's Grimm (also called Godfather Death) and I made my own interpretation of it. Some of the dialogue is litteraly out of the original story, because I really like the writing style of old stories. Be sure to go read the original, it isn't that long. And somehow mine turned out as a love story.
I really hope you like it.
Godfather Death
By Neko Erza
The grim reaper. Thanatos. Magere Hein. Father time. Sephtis. The Black Angel.
Death goes by many names and with every name comes a different story. A walking skeleton or a bony figure cloaked in a black hood. A man with black wings and a scythe. A cold wind that slowly froze and took your soul. A god that kept the deceased souls in a large river in the underworld.
But of course there was only one true story. No walking skeleton, cloak or river. Death went by in the appearance of a young man with raven hair who lived in his own world outside the flow of time. And that world was completely frozen over. The passed souls rested within the ice and cold. Death wasn't reversible or couldn't be undone. Once life stood still, it was impossible to go back into its active form. Ice that is impossible to melt.
As for his name, he listened to all of them, but the one he preferred to go by was neither of them.
Gray.
That was the name he had appropriated himself.
The reason for this was because whether you are poor or rich, small or big, woman or man; he will come to get you one day. Everyone is equal since Death doesn't discriminate. He's neither good nor evil, light nor darkness, white nor black. Gray.
One day Death sat by his mirror of ice to look down onto the world of the living, but one particular moment caught his attention.
A young couple was recently blessed with the birth of their first daughter. The father, Jude Heartfilia, had once been a very wealthy man but recently lost all of his fortune. He had had already a tough time to just feed his wife and himself, so when the little girl came into the world he went out to search for a godfather for her who could take care of her.
The reason Gray looked at the situation with interest was because the first person the man encountered while on his search for a godfather was none other than God himself.
"Poor man, I pity you. I will hold your child at her baptism, and care for her, and make her happy on earth."
"Who are you?" The father of the girl asked.
"I am God."
"Then I do not wish to have you for a godfather," said the man. "You give to the rich, and let the poor starve."
And with that he turned away from the Lord, and went on his way again. Not too much to Death's surprise after that the devil came to the father and said, "What are you looking for? If you will take me as your child's godfather, I will give her an abundance of gold and all the joys of the world as well."
The man asked, "Who are you?"
"I am the Devil."
"Then I do not wish to have you for a godfather," said the man. "You deceive mankind and lead them astray." The man continued his search.
Death looked at it all with slight amusement. God and the Devil. Those two always compete to win over the living, because unlike most people believe they don't have any saying over the dead. Neither heaven or hell exists, because all the dead are Gray's to reap. It would go against his believe to divide them into good and bad. Death was equal. Every soul became pure again and rested under his care.
Intrigued by the situation the raven did something he hadn't done in ages: go to earth for something other than reaping.
And so the father of the girl encountered the dark haired man on his path. Jude Heartfilia halted his steps, as he got an eerie feeling of the man in front of him. The raven man radiated a cold that could be felt deeper than just flesh.
"Take me as your child's godfather."
The father asked, "Who are you?"
Gray smiled and answered, "I am Death, who makes everyone equal."
The eerie feeling vanished instantly and the father smiled. "You are the right one. You take away the rich as well as the poor, without distinction. You shall be my child's godfather."
Death answered, "I will make your child rich and famous, for he who has me for a friend cannot fail."
The man said, "Next Sunday is the baptism. Be there on time."
And with that the raven went back to his own world for the time being. As promised he appeared at the baptism and served as godfather in an orderly manner.
It was the first time he saw the little girl and immediately felt she was special. As he looked into the big brown eyes, he felt the connection that would bind them. But what surprised Death most was when he held her in his arms, she didn't seem to mind the cold that was part of him.
The next years Gray fulfilled his duty as godfather and looked after little Lucy. He even left his realm regularly to spend time with his godchild. He was at every important point in her life and watched over her. She was a happy child and loved spending time with the raven.
Gray felt closer and closer to her every time he saw those beautiful golden hair and big brown eyes. Never in his existence had he felt something like this, since he was only ever surrounded by the quiet, resting souls of the dead. The life and energy the child emitted was slowly warming him up.
As she grew older, he started spending more and more time with her. Death taught her about the world and everything in it. He taught her about the constellations and the stars which she loved the most. On her sixteenth birthday he asked her what her wish was.
"Oh Gray…" The girl sighed as she lay her head down on his lap and he stroked her golden locks. "Even Death can't grant me this wish." Then she smiled up at her beloved godfather. "But even so: you are my godfather; anything you give me will be fine."
"What is your wish?" Death insisted as his cold gray eyes looked in her big brown ones.
The girl looked up at the sky. "I would love to walk between the stars."
A sting of pain went through Gray's heart, for he couldn't grant that wish. He felt guilty because if he could he would give the girl anything she wanted.
But as the stars reflected in her eyes Death had an idea. "As your godfather I already had a special gift in mind, something only I can give you. But as it seems, it will have to wait for a next birthday since your current wish doesn't ask for this gift yet." The raven said. He wanted to do everything in his power to make her happy. "I can't let you walk between the stars, but I can give you something else. Something that might come close to it."
Death stood up and pulled the blonde with him. He firmly held her hand and felt her warmth seep into his frozen skin, but just like always she didn't seem to mind the cold. This girl was the only human who had ever treated him as her equal and as a friend. No, even more as a friend, she saw him as family.
And because of the special gift of friendship he felt like she deserved something special in return, so he took her to a place where no living soul had ever been: Death's realm.
When they arrived all the girl could see was never ending ice. She looked around a bit confused. "Gray, is this where you live?"
"This is my world."
"Although it is magnificent to see," The girl started. "I don't see how this gift relates to the stars."
"Because you haven't seen that part yet." Death answered with a smile. He took her hand and within the land of ice it felt even warmer. He led her to a cave where she saw something she couldn't believe.
The whole cave was filled with thousands and thousands of candles burning. Some were large with a bright flame, others medium-sized and others small with a tiny flame. Every instant some died out and others relit.
Lucy looked at the flames in awe. The thousands of flames were reflected by the ice and multiplied. The girl walked between the lights with big eyes and a bright surprised smile. Walking along the candles made her feel like she was walking between the stars after all.
"This is beautiful. What is this place?"
"This is my life." The raven smiled with a bit of irony by his choice of words. "These are the life-lights of mankind. The large ones belong to children, the medium-sized ones to people in their best years, and the little ones to old people. However, even children and young people sometimes have only a tiny candle."
Gray looked at her as she swayed between the lights. And in this moment something happened that had never occurred before: Death understood what it meant to be in love.
"Can I see my life-light?" The girl asked hopeful.
And death led the girl to the middle of the candle-cave. Right in the centre stood a large candle with one of the brightest flames. "This is your light."
Lucy looked at it in amazement. "It's so big and bright."
"It suites your energy and spirit." Gray answered. "And someone who has me as a friend is gifted with a long life."
The girl looked at the candle and Death could not only see the light reflected within her eyes but also the light that burned inside of her. And with his growing love for her the candle shined brighter and brighter.
"It shines so bright. It's hard to believe it will ever become like the small smouldering candles."
That comment stung Death's cold heart, because one day this girl would indeed become one of the died out candles and her flame will be replaced by someone else's. Then she will rest between all the other souls for the rest of eternity in his unmeltable ice. She would become his property, but also be lost to him forever. He wouldn't be able to enjoy her light any longer.
However, the girl didn't seem shaken by the knowledge she would once become an empty wick and she turned to look with as much amazement at the rest of the candle cave. As she walked between them, the raven followed her every step, unable to keep his eyes from her. As she came by the ice mirror she stopped and looked down upon the world.
"Now it feels like I'm a star myself."
"I promise you that it will be a long time before you become a true one yourself. Only when your light dies out here it will light up in the sky." Death reassured.
The mirror glazed over and returned back to ice. The girl was now looking at a reflection of herself and the raven behind her and smiled. "I've know you for years and I have changed so much in that time, but you still seem the same. Time doesn't seem to have a grip on you."
Gray smiled. "I am time itself."
"It must be hard sometimes." The blonde smiled with compassion. "You're always all alone here, outside of the flow time."
"I have you now, Lucy."
"I'm glad you took me here." The girl smiled. "I could look at this for all of eternity."
"Believe me, you get bored of it after a while." The man smiled.
She couldn't image she would ever grow bored of this beauty, but the raven had already spent all of his time here so he would know. "Then I don't understand why you don't come to earth more often, Gray." The blonde stated.
His smile slowly vanished as he said the bitter truth. "People don't particularly welcome me as a friend."
"I will always welcome you." Lucy smiled. Her words fueled his love for her and her light burned a little brighter. "But I hope I can come here again one day."
"Although you get used to this, some lights make it special again." Gray smiled as he slowly let his cold fingers run over the warm life-light of the blonde.
Then the girl did something Death hadn't expected as she placed a kiss upon his cheek. "Godfather, this was a beautiful present. But I'm still very curious which present you intended to give me before taking me here."
"That gift you will receive on your eighteenth birthday." Gray said as his smile returned.
The raven took the girl's hand and let her back to the human world. They spend the rest of her birthday together but when the day came to an end Death had to go.
"I have work to do."
"Thank you for the best present ever, godfather Death." The blonde smiled. "I hope you come spend time with me again soon. I love it when you come visit."
The words warmed the raven beyond believe and his love grew even deeper as he felt she loved him too. It was a feeling a creature like Death never imagined to experience.
When the girl came of age Death returned with his present as promised. It had been a long time since he had come to visit his beloved woman, but his love for her became only more passionate. As he came down to earth he hurried as fast as he could to her side, but when he met her he wasn't greeted by her usual smile.
"That isn't a face you should make on your birthday."
The blonde turned around and her sad eyes locked with his icy gray orbs. "Please tell me the truth… Are you planning to claim her?"
Next to the girl lay her severely sick mother. Every person could see she didn't have much time left.
"I came here with your gift. And as it seems you could use it very hard right now."
"You didn't answer my question."
"Come with me and it will be answered."
The girl never had a reason to believe her beloved godfather would deceive her so she followed the raven haired man into the woods.
"Now you shall receive your godfather's present and it will be more special than the stars. I will turn you into a famous physician. Whenever you are called to a sick person I will appear to you. If I stand at the sick person's head, you may say with confidence that you can make him well again; then give him some of this herb, and he will recover. But if I stand at the sick person's feet, he is mine, and you must say that he is beyond help, and that no physician in the world could save him. But beware of using this herb against my will, or something very bad will happen to you."
The girl's eyes lit up with her usual energy as she heard Death's words. "This herb can cure my mother?"
Death didn't answer but just placed the herbs in her hands. They walked back in silence and when they returned to her mother's chambers she watched the raven hopeful as he walked over to her mother's bed. To her relief he went to stand at the woman's head and he smiled.
"Thank you, godfather. This is indeed the most beautiful gift I ever received. From now on I will be able to help others."
The girl gave her mother the herb and she was saved from her illness.
In the years following Death and Lucy worked together. People said of her, "She only needs to look at the sick in order to immediately know their condition, whether they will regain their health, or are doomed to die." And people came to her from far and wide, taking her to their sick, and giving her so much money that she soon became a wealthy woman. Although this wasn't what she pursued, she wanted to give people help and closure if the sick were beyond help, then she would say;
"Death is like family to me. He takes care of the passed souls like they are family too. They don't have to be afraid him."
And Death's love for her only became stronger.
One day however Lucy was called to the royal palace. The king had become very ill and they summoned her to take care of him. The girl had always admired the kind because he treated his people with care and respect and she was honoured to be able to nurse him. But when she approached the bed, Death was standing at the sick man's feet, and so no herb on earth would be able to help him.
The girl didn't know what would happen if the kingdom would lose their king. "If I could only deceive Death for once," thought the girl. "He will be angry, of course, but because I am his goddaughter he will shut one eye. I will risk it."
And so the girl lifted the sick king up and laid him the other way around. His head was where his feet had been, so Death was now standing at the sick man's head. According to their agreement, she was now allowed to give him the herb. The king recovered and became healthy again.
Gray was stunned by this deed. Not only he hated to be deceived, it had been none other than his beloved Lucy. He boiled with anger as he went to the girl, made a dark and angry face, threatened her with his finger, and said, "You have betrayed me. I will overlook it this time because you are my goddaughter and I love you, but if you dare to do it again, it will cost you your neck, for I will take you yourself away with me."
"I'm very sorry, my beloved Gray." The girl begged. "I couldn't let you take him yet. Please, I won't do this again."
As he loved her too much he forgave her right away.
Though, some years later something happened that Death hadn't expected. He had always believed that the girl loved him as he loved her but when she was one day called to a severely sick man's bed that idea was crushed.
Death was standing at the man's feet, which meant he was his to take and come with him to rest in the ice. But as soon as the girl entered the room she fell in love with not the raven, but the sick man. And in return the man, sick as he was still fell in love with Lucy too.
He was a young man with pink hair, whose candle should be tall and bright. However it had melted down and only a simmer of a flame remained. It was just the way it was meant to be. Death didn't take lives for pleasure.
But after seeing this, Death was jealous of the man since he received the love he had believed was his. He had never felt any emotion when he took someone's life. After all, it was his job. But now he felt happy that the pinkette's candle was about to die out and he would become Death's property.
However, blinded by her love for the sick man Lucy did something she had promised to never do again. She lifted the pinkette and laid his head where his feet had been so Death was now standing at his head. She gave him the herb and he recovered.
Death was robbed of his property once again.
Deceived and betrayed.
Death seized her so firmly with his ice-cold hand that she could not resist, and led her back to his realm.
"You have deceived me once again!" The raven burst out. His heart was broken.
"Please godfather! I couldn't let you take him."
"You cheated me out of my property! Now it is your turn, you are finished!" The raven yelled. Whoever deceived Death was bound to find his own. You didn't betray the dark angel without paying for it. "Come with me."
He pulled the girl with him and let her to her candle. The candle that had once been large and bright now was small with a flame that could barely be seen. "See, there it is. Your light is about to end."
The girl's eyes went big with shock. She had never feared her own death, but now that she had found someone to share her life with she was afraid to see her candle ready to die out.
She no longer welcomed Death.
"Oh, dear godfather," said the horrified girl, "light a new one for me. Do it as a favour to me, so that I can enjoy my life with Natsu."
Hearing the man's name only made him more angry. Why couldn't he be loved by her like him?
"I cannot." answered Death. "One must go out before a new one is lighted."
"But godfather…" The girl cried, afraid of losing her love after she had only just found him.
Death felt once again cold inside and he wouldn't get any warmth from Lucy any longer. Fuelled by his anger he pretended that he was going to fulfil her wish and took hold of a large new candle, intending to let it fall to the ground and let it go out, ending her life.
But as he hold the candle he felt the warmth she had until recently voluntarily given to him and somehow he couldn't let it die out.
"Get out of here." Death whispered as he sent her back to earth.
Death was alone again. Alone with his candles and never melting ice. He couldn't kill his beloved godchild even though she had deceived him and broken his heart, but neither could he ever face her again. It would only hurt him. He couldn't face her and the pink haired man again.
He looked at her candle which was back to shining with a normal brightness and he did something he had never done before. He took the candle of the pinkette and the blonde and let her warmth seep into him one last time. Then he put them down next to each other on the ground.
"We will never meet again as I grant you to spend the rest of eternity with him. You'll never become a star in the sky, because your light here will never die out. You will never return to this place, not even to rest your soul in the ice. Your flames will never die out, neither will they change. Both of you are banished. You will no longer be affected by time."
Even though she had broken his heart, Death still loved his godchild. Even after all this, he wanted her to be happy and never fail. She was the first to treat him like family, something he never imagined possible. Knowing she was the only friend he had ever had, he couldn't just drop her candle. So to at least spare his broken heart a little, he would never face her again. Not even to do his job. Just like he was no longer welcomed by her, he wouldn't welcome her either. He granted her eternal life with her love, so he could spare his own heart.
Death never loved another again.
He looked down at her one last time before she would start her eternal life. After that, she and her love would be ignored by Death.
"You'll never become one of my stars." Death said as a frozen tear slipped down his cheek. "This will be my last gift and curse, godchild."
And with those words he froze over both the forever lit candles with his unmeltable ice.
End of Godfather Death
I know it isn't a happy end but somehow it didn't fit to be one.
This is the first time I have written this kind of story, so please let me know if you liked it or not. I really liked writing it so if enough people enjoyed it, maybe I'll write something like this in the future again.
Thank you for reading.