This is a short chapter, but it shows the end of season one. I didn't feel right combining the end of this season and the next season in one chapter.
London was up in flames. People were dying by the thousands, and yet their hearts were gone, their souls useless. Black clouds rose from the dead in sinister columns that seemed to hold up the sky. It was among the corpse-strung streets that William found Grell and the Undertaker, the latter explaining what was happening to the former.
"So someone has been stealing souls." William cut in.
"Will!" Grell gasped in surprise.
"While the taking of souls is necessary, it is the provence of reapers. On this one occasion, I am willing to take on unpaid overtime." William went on, giving a small glance at the team that he had brought with him. This had the stench of that angel all over it. He took Sutcliff's death scythe from where it had been attached over his back and threw it to his friend."Here, Grell."
The red-head caught it and began laughing with maniacal glee as he swung it around and revved the engine.
"You are all expected to take out a goodly number." William told his men, ignoring Grell. It wasn't as if he would listen anyway. "The after-party will be at business expense." he added in a disapproving manner. Then with a wave of his hand, they all got to work. The Undertaker and Grell were the most enthusiastic, reaping with passion and flair. William preferred to conserve his energy and reap at a slower, more paced rate. There was no need to waste all of his stamina at once.
"Come on, Willy! Lighten up! This is fun!" Grell called.
"This is work. It most certainly isn't the place for fun."
"Please? For me?"
"Grell..." he said in a warning tone.
"Oh, fine. I won't bother you. But I will be buying you a drink at the after-party, and you have to drink all of it."
William rolled his eyes. It was a small price to pay if it meant he got to work in peace.
"Fine. As long as you don't drug it."
"Yay!" The red reaper squealed before running off in the opposite direction. William sighed, pushed his glasses up farther onto his nose, and continued to work.
By the time the sun rose again, the masses had stopped dying, and all of the wayward souls had been collected. All William wanted to do was go home and sleep, but of course, that was no longer an option.
"Hooray! Ready for the after-party, Willy?" Grell asked, threading his arm with William's.
"If I have to be." he groused.
"Don't be such a wet blanket. Going out will be good for you. You will see."
"You're coming too, boss?" One of the team, Demetri, asked.
"Yes! He's my date!" Grell said.
"Grell, I am not your date." William replied with a raise of his eyebrow.
"Well I say you are. So there."
William just gave a long suffering sigh and did not argue anymore. He did not have the energy to fight with the stubborn reaper.
Thankfully, the after-party wasn't very raucous, even if it was large. Everyone who had been out reaping were as tired as he was, so it was fairly tame in comparison to some to of the staff parties.
"Here you are." Grell said, handing William a cup.
"What is it?" William asked, sniffing the contents.
"Just drink it."
William gave a small smirk and took a sip. He was more of a scotch and whiskey type of fellow, but it wasn't bad.
Grell burst out smiling, as if he didn't believe that he would actually be able to get William to drink.
"Oh, don't look so shocked, Sutcliff. I am a man of my word, after all." William huffed.
…...
William woke up the next morning, not on his bed as he had expected, but on his couch. Not only did he have a crick in his neck, but he also felt as though someone had been pounding on his head with a jackhammer.
He groaned as he sat up, and tried to remember the night before. One drink had turned into two, and two had turned into four... Then he couldn't remember much.
A yawn distracted him, and William turned to see Grell coming out of his bedroom wearing one of his shirts. Well, that explained why he was on the couch.
"What happened?" he asked the other reaper.
"Coffee first, Will." Grell yawned again. "Then questions."
"Grell-"
"You didn't do anything embarrassing, William. I wish you had, it would have made wonderful blackmail. But you just drank until you passed out. Only you would be a boring drunk."
William gave a sigh of relief as Grell made himself at home, fixing coffee in his red mug.
"So you just decided to sleep over?" William asked once the other reaper had sat down.
"By the time I brought you here I was exhausted. And I thought the least you could do was repay me by letting me use your bed. Though I would have much preferred it if you were in it with me."
He gave a lecherous smile and William just rolled his eyes. Everything was back to normal.
