A/N: Yeah, a quick update for chapter two because I'm not going to update now until at least next week, and I always feel bad about having finished chapters on my computer with no one able to read them. Lots of reaper goodness. I feel a kind of empathy for them; my job has crap hours, useless juniors, strict bosses and way too much paperwork than required. I feel sorry for them. And this chapter feature how I envision Ronnie's first meetings with the others, because we really need more official info on this or my imagination will run wild, and some adorable Eric and Alan. And, ok, first chapter, I'm ok with no reviews, but I'd like to get some from now on please. They make me feel good.


"Shh, Eric, Ronald's sleeping."

Eric laughed and Ronald opened one eye a crack before burying his head in the pillow again. "That boy could sleep through the end of the world. He didn't wake up last night, no matter how loud you were."

"Eric."

Ronald groaned and pulled the duvet up around his head. He didn't remember a while lot of the night before beyond a certain point. Alan spent most the night sitting quietly and reading while Eric and Ronald drank and amused themselves. It was how they often spent nights together. Sometimes Ronald felt incredibly sorry Alan, having to put up with their antics. He quite often ended up comparing them to a pair of rowdy teens. Ronald had the excuse of being young, but Eric really should have known better at his age.

Much as Ronald would have liked remain in bed, he probably did need to get up. It wasn't even his bed- he wasn't sure if the idea of Eric and Alan letting him sleep in their bed alone or having shared it with them was the better option. He groaned and sat up slowly and patted the bedside table for his glasses. He couldn't find them. He groaned and glanced around the blurred room and could just about make out Eric and Alan weren't around, but the bedroom door was open so he assumed they were in the next room. He managed to get to his feet, his pounding headache not being helped by his lack of glasses.

"Guys," he called. "Where are my glasses?"

"Told you," Alan said. There was movement from the other room and Alan came in a moment later. "Here you go."

His glasses were pushed into his hand and he slowly pulled them on. He blinked a moment to clear up his vision and Alan smiled. Eric was leaning against the doorway. He smiled.

"Morning, Puppy."

Ronald wrinkled his nose in disgust at the new nickname. Since Eric had decided he looked like a Labrador he'd decided the name suited him. Obviously, Ronald tried to talk him out of it but once Eric decided on something he was never going to change his mind.

"There's an hour and a half until we have to go to work," Alan said gently. "Take a nice long shower and clear your head, ok? The last thing we need is you working with a hangover and running into a demon. You're stuff's still in the bottom draw."

"Sorry about crashing out," Ronald said.

"It's fine, Ronald, you passed out on the couch and we moved you in here this morning, it's not like you were an inconvenience."

"Only because you're so small," Eric said. "And you're a heavy sleeper, nothing we did disturbed you. Not that it would matter if we did, you're free to join us if you can keep yourself awake."

"Eric," Alan snapped.

"Well, if I don't have anything better to do tonight, I might take you up on that offer, Eric," Ronald said with a smirk.

"Ronald, don't encourage him." Ronald just grinned. He didn't take Eric seriously, and he knew Eric was the same. Alan must have known they were only playing. "Just go and have a shower and get dressed, ok? Hurry up and I'll make you a coffee."

Ronald grinned and nodded. Eric and Alan's relationship was something everyone knew about but no one really acknowledged. Even though everyone knew, they still all acted like it was a secret. Mainly because Alan liked keeping his private life private. He didn't see why it was anyone else's business so they only really acted like a couple around their closest friends. Ronald was fortunate- or unfortunate depending on the day- to be one of the ones they were completely open and comfortable around. Of course, Eric wasn't nearly as modest about it as Alan, especially not around Ronald.

When Ronald had showered and dressed- he'd left a spare set of work clothes at the apartment for this kind of occasion- Eric was sitting with Alan in his arms. Ronald smiled. Neither had noticed him yet and for once they seemed completely at peace. Alan was sitting on Eric's lap, leaning against his chest as Eric whispered into his hair.

"Coffee's on the side, Ronald," Alan whispered, just loud enough to be heard. "Help yourself to breakfast."

"Thanks," he said quietly, moving over quickly and quietly, trying not to disturb them.

It was rare for the pair to be completely calm like that. He didn't know if they were like that more often when they were alone and he just didn't see it often or whether there was something more. He envied them in sometimes. They were so devoted to each other. Ronald didn't doubt for a second Eric would do anything for Alan and probably the other way round as well. He leant back against the kitchen counter, watching silently as he sipped his coffee. It was good coffee at least, not like the cheap stuff they got in the office. Sometimes, he wished he had someone to care about him that much.

Of course, the people he worked with cared. If he was attacked by the demon, he was sure they'd be concerned. Alan and Grell, along with many others who they didn't know nearly as well, pointed out that he and Eric were a lot like brothers and of course, as he got closer to Eric, he ended up being almost mothered by Alan as well. Grell... he wasn't sure what went through Grell's head sometimes, but he cared in his own way even if that way was kind of annoying sometimes.

Then there was William.

He'd been out of the academy for roughly five years now. Five long years since he'd met William and he was no closer to figuring him out. Grell had flittered around the new graduates, looking for anyone of interest. He'd picked out Ronald because he'd paid enough attention to what people said in passing and had called Grell 'Miss' on their first meeting. Grell had declared him simply adorable and pulled him away from his new supervisor, who had just watched in shock then called after them to just make sure his work was done. Grell might have been strange, but he was respected enough that once he'd claimed Ronald, no one had really argued.

Ronald hadn't minded following Grell. He knew Grell was one of the best field agents there were. Having his help so soon out of the academy was an opportunity too good to miss. They'd gone to the cafe just down the street from the office first and picked up some coffees. Grell had listed what everyone liked, while Ronald did his best to remember, saying it was for endearing himself to his new team.

It had been daunting, entering the shared office the first time. Eric had been leaning back on his hair, feet on his desk, with Alan having move his chair to sit next to him, trying to get him to at least look at his paperwork. Eric looked half asleep, although not so asleep he couldn't make a snide comment about Grell being late and having pulled in a kid. Ronald had simply flashed a charming, innocent smile as Grell explained he was his new project. While this seemed to amuse Alan, who welcomed him and apologised for Grell, Eric only warmed up to him when he set the coffees down.

William had appeared out of nowhere looking as stern and cold as ever, wanting to know exactly who he was and why Grell had acquired him. When Grell explained again he nodded, told him not to let his own work suffer or let Grell lead him astray, then thanked him for the coffee and left.

Next thing he knew, no matter what shift he and Grell were doing, Ronald would get coffee for when they got in, William said thanks- the only sign he even knew Ronald existed- he and Grell worked through their lists together and Ronald generally ended up doing the majority of both their paperwork. Ronald had tried to talk to William sometimes. It never worked. Still, in return he got to work with and learn from some of the best reapers around and that in turn got him invited to a lot more parties and dates. It was better than working with his own partner, he was a complete control freak who graduated top in his class and liked to let people know about it. According to him there was no way Ronald deserved to work with him let alone be allowed in the offices of such respected reapers.

"What did the coffee do to deserve that look, Puppy?" Eric called.

Ronald looked up and smiled, ignoring the nickname. Alan was running his fingers lovingly through his hair, something Ronald wished he could do sometimes. Eric's hair always looked so soft and silky and kind of fluffy, it was no wonder Alan would run his fingers through at every chance he got.

"Just thinking," he said quietly.

"Isn't that a sign of the apocalypse?" Eric laughed.

"Don't be mean, love," Alan whispered.

"I should get going anyway," Ronald said, finishing off his coffee and washing up the mug. "I need to get in the coffee run. I'll let you two have some private time."

"Bye, Puppy," Eric said.

He smiled and pulled on his jacket as he left. Outside the sun had barely risen. He groaned and shaded his eyes with his arm, catching a glimpse of his watch as he did. Six o'clock. They were expected to be in at half past so he had plenty of time. He just wished the people up in personnel would consider not giving the people who worked the night shifts the morning shift the next day. Since he was running early, he decided to stop in at the cafe today for some better coffee.

By the time he'd picked up the coffees and got into the offices it was twenty past. Grell was sitting on the reception desk, doing his nails, chatting with the pair of girls there. He waved as Ronald came over.

"It's... this one, Miss Sutcliff," he said quickly, gesturing to one of the coffee cups. Grell picked it up and opened the plastic lid as if inspecting. "I'm not sure you can tell how many sugars are in it by looking at it, Miss Sutcliff."

"Thank you, Ronnie darling," he said, sipping it and smiling. "You got it right, sweetie, and I've told you enough times you can call me Grell. Miss Sutcliff makes me sound like an old maid." He laughed and patted his head. "How was your night with little Alan and Slingby? Didn't get into too much trouble with them, did you?"

"Ronnie!" the receptionists squealed in dismay. Ronald winced and the blonde continued. "You wouldn't ever do something like that, would you?"

"Yeah, we need you free to take us on dates when we're lonely," the brunette said.

"You can't be getting involved with Eric and Alan."

"You can't be getting involved with men full stop."

"We need you too much."

"Ladies, ladies please," Ronald said, stepping back slightly. "We just had some drinks and I crashed out at theirs so there's no need to worry. If you stress too much you'll get wrinkles." They gasped and started chattering over each other. "Hey, calm down. You both look beautiful."

"Oh, that's right, I almost forget," the blonde said. "Mr Spears wanted you to go meet him up in the hospital wing as soon as you got in."

"Right, thanks girls."

"Bye Ronnie."

"Ronnie," Grell called, running after him. "Wait for me. I want to come and see Will too. He wasn't in his office last night. It's like he's avoiding me."

"He'd have to be paying attention to you to avoid you, Miss Grell."

Grell ignored him and talked about things Ronald really didn't care about- what colour of red was on his nails, what outfit he wanted to wear to impress Will, what that demon butler had done to set his soul on fire... He really wasn't that interested but he nodded politely anyway as he put Eric and Alan's coffee's on their desks.

They stepped into the hospital wing and Grell's voice pierced the quiet air. It was always like that in the hospital. No one seemed able to raise their voice- except Grell who could be loud anywhere- and it all seemed cold and dead to Ronald. All the reapers who were attacked by the demon had been put in two rooms, to keep rumours from spreading without any real foundation. If everyone who went in and out was monitored, the theory was so was the information.

"Will!" Grell cried, running over to where he was waiting and throwing his arms around his neck. "Will, I finally get to spend some time with you. To think if it wasn't for those girls in reception telling Ronnie you wanted to see him I'd have never known you were up here waiting for me."

William shoved him off and turned his attention to Ronald, who handed him his coffee. "Thank you, Mr Knox."

"No problem, boss," Ronald said with a smile.

When he'd been transferred from his old team- division, group, what it was called varied depending on who you asked- to working under William, coffee duty was one of the few things that didn't change. William had requested a temporary transfer for one job since they were already stretched to complete all their jobs between the four of them without even taking into account Alan's illness and Grell often causing trouble. They were one of the best collection divisions in the country- perhaps the world- having a very high collection rate. Lots of people would have given anything to have even a temporary transfer.

The problem was, as Ronald had found out very quickly, that they were a difficult bunch. William was overly strict and cold, Eric was extremely protective of Alan, Alan had checkups at least once and month so his workload was off loaded onto the others and Grell was just Grell. He'd heard stories of honour students, who were supposed to the best of the best and able the handle anything, having break downs coping with the stress. They were a bunch of misfits and trouble makers, but they somehow got the job done and forcing someone new into the mix could have disturbed the delicate balance.

Apparently someone in personnel had been paying attention to the situation though- not only that Ronald was already mixing well with them but that he was very uncomfortable with his own work colleagues. He'd been amazed when his supervisor handed him the papers for transfer and told him that he was to fill them out that instant and head out to help William on a job he was already on. He'd been even more stunned when the transfer turned out to be permanent, especially after hearing all the stories. He wasn't sure why he'd been so nervous his first official day with them, he'd been friends with them so long and they welcomed him with open arms, or just a passing acknowledgement and stack of paperwork from William. It had all been uphill from there really, despite William's annoyance at getting yet another troublemaker to deal with.

"Sutcliff, stay outside," William said. "Sign the list, Mr Knox."

Ronald nodded and signed in on a sheet posted next to the door. The control over who went in and out was tight. There were a few large, intimidating reapers guarding the doors making sure no one who wasn't signed in could enter. He glanced over the list. Supervisor and higher mainly, although there were a few lower level reapers. Every one of them had to write who gave them permission to enter too.

"Security's really tight," he muttered.

"We don't want just anyone getting in, Mr Knox," William said. "Consider yourself lucky I was able to get you permission to enter given you're not a close colleague of anyone attacked."

"I probably know them," Ronald said. "I know most people."

"Yes, probably. Sutcliff, your paperwork is on your desk. Please try not to cause too much trouble."

"Oh, but Will-"

"Mr Knox." He strode into one of the two private rooms and Ronald followed quickly. "Goodbye, Sutcliff, don't make me give you more overtime than you already have."

Inside there were six of the twelve victims. There were three nurses and one doctor watching over them. On each bedside table was a set of standard academy glasses until the victims were awake enough to get a new pair. He wasn't completely sure why William had wanted him there. He didn't think he could make much difference. Maybe he was just there to take notes for him.

William led him to one of the beds and Ronald hurried up next to him. He froze as he recognised the reaper there though. William took a sip of his coffee and adjusted his glasses without even glancing down at him.

"I should be getting on with work, boss," he said, his voice slightly hoarse. "I'll go and-"

"Mr Knox, I didn't ask you to be here simply to make you uncomfortable," William said sharply. "He was your partner before you were transferred to my division." Ronald swallowed and nodded. "Are you alright, Mr Knox?"

"He was better than me," he said quietly. "He was always better in the field than me. If the demon got him-"

"It could simply be a coincidence, we don't know it's all the same demon. I wouldn't have allowed your transfer to become permanent if I didn't believe in you, Mr Knox. If it helps you focus, personnel had suggested transferring Mr Doyle a long while ago. I watched him working. I told them I didn't want someone so arrogant working beneath me." Ronald smiled slightly. If it was anyone else, he would have thought it was a sweet lie to make him feel better. William didn't lie though, not even to spare someone's feelings. "We have work to do."

"Oh, of course."

William walked out and Ronald followed on his heels, something he seemed to be doing more and more often, signing out again a moment before he was handed his death list for the day. He glanced at the first soul and the second. They were pretty close together and had a few minutes between them. That wasn't too awkward to start the day with.

"Umm, boss?" William glanced over his shoulder and pushed his glasses up his nose. "Is there a reason you wanted to see me, or was it just to show me Doyle?"

"We're working in the same area today, Mr Knox," William said. "I wanted to make sure I knew where you were. Be careful today, as I said, I don't want to see you in the hospital too. If you run into a demon you're to retreat and come and find me, understand?"

"Sure thing," he said.

"Don't confront it alone."

"I won't, I swear. If I didn't know better I'd think you were starting to go soft, boss." William glared down at him and Ronald grinned. "Alright, maybe you're not. So, we should get going right? Where are your first few souls so I know where to find you?"

"I noted them down in your book, Mr Knox, just like I took note of where you'll be in case you're late meeting me. I took you to see Mr Doyle to make sure you know how serious this is. Don't play games."


The morning went quickly. Ronald checked his watch and his list. It was almost nine and he had one soul left before he had to check in with William again, who had said they'd get a coffee in the twenty or so minutes before either of them had another soul. This one was a kid. He hated doing kids. He wasn't as sensitive to it as some, but he didn't like it. This one was a sick little boy due to collapse in a back alley in two minutes.

Ronald ran through the streets, hurrying to get there in time without having to watch for too long. These few alleyways were all but deserted and the sun wasn't quite high enough to light them well. It was like from some kind of horror or crime book that Alan often read. For a nice guy he had some morbid tastes. Ronald had flicked through one of his books once, they were horrific and gory. He didn't see the appeal, they saw enough death on the job. Still it played on his mind as he strode through the abandoned streets. For a moment he had to remind himself he was a reaper, there was no need to get worked over silly human books. Ronald gripped his scythe and slowly made his way to the corner he'd seen the kid staggering passed. He was coughing a spluttering just out of sight. All he had to do was wait for the coughing to stop and then he could just step in and take his soul.

Simple.

The problem was, Ronald had a very uneasy feeling in his stomach. He frowned and glanced around. There was no one around. The only sound was the child's weaken, rasping coughs- which were horribly reminiscent of the one time he'd seen Alan have an attack. Maybe that was what the funny feeling was. It all reminded him that one day Alan wouldn't be there anymore. That idea alone was enough to make him feel sick without adding to that what losing him would do to Eric.

Something moved behind him and he almost managed to turn before a hand clamped down over his mouth and his arms were pinned to his side. A startled cry tore from his lips and he managed to drive his elbow back into his captor's ribs. A moment later he was slammed against the closest wall, cracking his head against the bricks and drawing a low groan.

"Stupid kid."