"Hey, Undertaker, can I ask you something?"
Undertaker looked up from the newspaper he was reading to see Lucinda coming into the kitchen. Undertaker smiled.
"You're up early, m'dear. Ready to start training, I assume?"
"Well...yes, of course I'm always ready to train," Lucinda replied, moving her fingers through the ends of her ponytail, "though I wanted to ask you some things before we got to training..."
Undertaker sat the newspaper down on the table.
"Really? Dear little Lucy has other things besides training on her mind? This, might I say, is a great shock!"
He gave a small laugh, causing Lucinda's face to grow bright red. She glared at him.
"S-shut up! All you think about is working on your 'guests!' That's no different from me!"
Undertaker snickered.
"He he he! You don't need to get so defensive. I was just teasing you."
"Like I couldn't tell."
Lucinda sat down in the chair across from Undertaker. She sighed.
"Look...remembered when I told you my hero was Adrian Crevan and you said that you knew him?"
Undertaker's smile grew. "How could I forget? I almost died of laughter!"
He giggled softly but Lucinda ignored it.
"Well...I was wondering..."
She hesitated.
"...Could you, by chance, get me to meet him? I mean, when I'm done being your apprentice and all?"
Undertaker's smile faded away. There was a short silence, Undertaker's eyes drifting to the ground, as if he was trying to avoid eye contact even though Lucinda couldn't see his eyes.
"...I suppose I could arrange a meeting with him... It is true that he doesn't get that many visitors, especially from his own kind... However, I have one question for you."
Undertaker put his hands together and rested his chin on top of them, locking his eyes on Lucinda.
"What are your reasons for wanting to meet him and what will you do once you see him?"
Lucinda blinked, looking surprised by Undertaker's question.
"Well...I'm not exactly sure what you mean," she answered sincerely, "but my main reason to meet him is because I've admired him for a long time. He is a great shinigami who has done so many things, things that most grim reapers only dream about! I could learn a lot from him, and I...also want to thank him."
Undertaker gave a curious expression.
"Thank him for what, m'dear?"
Lucinda's cheeks turned red as she avoided eye contact with Undertaker.
"It is really because of him I've gotten this far," she confessed softly. "He was the one who gave me inspiration to become a grim reaper. He is strong, he is respected, he isn't afraid of anything... He is everything I wanted to be!"
Her eyes grew dark.
"Unfortunately, the thing I wanted to be was not the thing everyone else wanted... And this may sound a bit immature of me...but it would be nice to have my hero accept me as an equal and my decision. Accept who I am."
There was a long silence, Lucinda being too embarrassed to meet Undertaker's gaze. Undertaker studied her for a long moment, many things going through his mind. Silently, he stood up from the table and approached Lucinda's side. Putting his finger under her chin, he made her look up at him. Lucinda blinked while Undertaker just smiled down on her.
"If you plan on meeting Adrian Crevan, m'dear, you need to like yourself more," Undertaker said softly, "and learn not to rely so much on other people's opinions. If you want to meet the hero you believe is strong, then you have to become strong."
Lucinda's eyes grew wide. Undertaker, his eyes never leaving her, offered her his hand and he helped her stand up.
"People have a hard time accepting new concepts that are strange to them," he continued. "People, especially shinigami, are afraid to explore a new idea they have no control over. You already know that the path you have chosen will lead you down resentment, and you cannot let society's views pull you down."
Lucinda blinked.
"S-so you are saying..."
"I'm saying that there is a good chance that you won't ever get accepted," Undertaker explained. "Our kind has already dubbed you strange and crazy because you tried to branch out to your full potential. As long as you are happy with your decision, it should not matter what everyone else thinks. Do you understand what I am trying to say, Lucy?"
Lucinda's eyes watered, her breathing thickening as she tried not cry.
"...I had partly hoped that once I got the higher ups to see how great of a grim reaper I have become, I would get accepted back," she muttered, her voice cracking. "That I wouldn't be an outcast anymore..."
Undertaker smiled sympathetically.
"And what's wrong with being an outcast? Is it worth suffering through the lies and cruelty of others just to find the simplest companionship?"
There was a short silence.
"...No, it isn't," Lucinda finally answered, a single tear falling from her eye. "And it is about time I fully learned that lesson."
She paused.
"...But I'm not completely alone either. I have you."
Undertaker stiffened, feeling a bit surprised. Unexpectedly, Lucinda put her arms around him and embraced him in a tight hug. Undertaker froze, his face becoming slightly warm as he felt Lucinda's closeness. Neither of them said anything, an awkward silence filling the air. Undertaker could sense a desperate need of comfort from Lucinda, her grip on him becoming tighter and tighter. Eventually, he hugged her back, his muscles slowly losing tension the longer he held her.
"You wanted to see me, sir?" Ronald asked as he slowly opened the door to William's office. "Your secretary said it was urgent."
"And indeed it is," William answered, sitting at his desk as he wrote down some paperwork.
He said nothing else, making Ronald just stand there awkwardly in front of the door. Ronald gave a puzzled look.
"Uh...sir, do you want me to sit down?"
"No, for we will be leaving in a few minutes," William replied nonchalantly. "Just need to write down one more thing..."
He wrote a few quick notes. Ronald sighed to himself, feeling slightly annoyed.
If we were going to leave as soon as I arrive, why bother sending me?
"...There, done," William said as he sat the papers to the side.
He got up from his chair.
"Please follow me, Knox. We are going to meeting room A-13."
"Isn't that meeting room being used right now?" Ronald questioned. "I saw the sign saying that it was in use on the way here."
But William did not answer his question, only gently moving Ronald to the side so that he may pass. Ronald sighed and followed him, knowing that all his questions were about to be answered in a matter of seconds.
Walking down a busy hallway, passing by many attractive secretaries, Ronald noticed, the two shinigami soon arrived at meeting room A-13. William unlocked the door with a key and he and Ronald went inside. Upon entering, Ronald's eyes widened with shock to see that only one other person was in the room, and with their whole body tied against a chair.
"Sir...what is this?" Ronald questioned, alarmed. "Why is he tied to a chair?"
"Because he is a criminal that I just captured," William explained with little emotion. "Knox, he is the one who broke into the death scythe department."
Ronald's eyes widened. The shinigami tied to the chair then noticed he and William were in the room, his long red hair falling in his well beat up face.
"Oh Will darling, you are back!" Grell Sutcliff exclaimed, his broken glasses obviously effecting his vision. "I was getting worried that you would leave me here all alone..."
"Quiet, Sutcliff," William spat in disgust. "You are already in trouble as it is. Do not make it worse for yourself."
Grell let out a dreamy sigh.
"Even when threatening me, your voice is always so intoxicating... Even more than Sebastian darling's!"
William's eyes glowed with annoyance. At that moment, Grell's gaze moved towards Ronald.
"Who is this, Will?" he asked. "With my specs all messed up, I can't tell who the other man is, no doubt handsome..."
"My name is Ronald Knox," Ronald said. "I'm with the dispatch department."
"Well...I would say nice to meet you," Grell replied with a crooked smile. "But as you can see...I'm in a bit of a mess. Because someone felt it was okay to mess up a lady's face like this!"
He whimpered out small sobs. Ronald, disturbed by this, turned his attention to William.
"Mr. Spears, sir, I'm still not sure why you brought me here," he said. "Do you think I have something to do with Mr. Sutcliff's robbery of the death scythe department?"
William shook his head.
"No, you are here for a completely different reason."
He cleared his throat.
"Sutcliff here has been hiding within the human realm for months now and knows his way around without bringing too much attention to himself. He was able to disguise himself as a butler for one of the aristocratic humans in London and was able to pull off being a mortal almost perfectly."
"Well, I am an actress!" Grell announced with pride.
William glared at him, causing Grell to give an uneasy smile, before turning his attention back to Ronald.
"Since our sources are failing to find any trace of Harrowine and reap souls at the same time within the London area," William concluded, "Sutcliff here is not only fit for the punishment of finding her, but also will have a better time tracking her down. He has spent a long time with humans and trying to imitate them, so I have no doubt he will be able to find her trying to do the same imitations as he did."
"Ah, Will, you put so much faith in me, darling!"
Again, William glared at Grell to make him silent.
"The reason why I brought you here, Knox, was that I want you to tell Sutcliff all about Harrowine," William said. "Tell him all that he would need to know in order to track her down. Do you understand?"
Ronald nodded.
"I do, sir. But is it a good idea to give this type of assignment to someone like Sutcliff?"
"Hey, what are you trying to say!?" Grell demanded furiously. "Are you insulting me?!"
Ronald ignored him.
"Wouldn't he try to escape again if we allow him back into the human world?"
"I have thought about that," William answered calmly. "And that is why I will be attaching a tracking device onto him. If he tries to escape again, I will know."
He made his way to the door.
"I will leave you two alone so that you can discuss the matter in private," William said over his shoulder. "Within the hour, I will return and then you will be free to go. Just give Sutcliff the information and that is all."
He then closed the door behind him. Grell blinked.
"Well...he seems to have you close leash," he commented. "Did you two get into an argument or something?"
Ronald narrowed his eyes.
"No, it is just we have different view points on this situation," he answered simply. "The only reason I am here is because I know Lucinda the best out of everyone."
"...Makes sense," Grell replied, now seemingly bored. "Is she like your girlfriend or something?"
Ronald shook his head as he sat in the seat next to Grell, to his great discomfort.
"No, she is just a close friend," Ronald explained. "We've kind of had each others' back for a long time and we take care of each other. Though as of late...it has been more like me taking care of her."
Grell raised an eyebrow.
"Her name is Lucinda Harrowine, right? I've heard many rumors about her being some sort of freak."
You're one to talk.
"But I don't know her personally, so I'll just do what Will says and bring her back," Grell continued. "I can't make any promises, but if I don't see anything dangerous with her, I might try to persuade Will on bring down her punishment. After all...who doesn't just want to get away from it all? The life of a shinigami is stressful."
Ronald nodded.
"I agree. And Lucinda isn't dangerous, nor is she psychotic. She's just...different."
"Different is one way to put it," Grell replied. "And hopefully that's all it is."