For the unreligious, please bare with me. This idea came by itself, and it just happens to, you knwo, be moral. For the most part. I can't start having fun with it until I set the whole thing up.
Awareness came in degrees. First, the sensation of warmth. The security of a warm embrace, the comfort of a friendly hug. The heat of a bubble bath. But she couldn't tell what part of her was warm, simply that she was. She existed, and existence wasn't a bad thing...
Then came pressure. Pressure on her back, pressure on her legs, pressure everywhere. It started out small, just the barest of touches along what she thought must be her skin. The feeling intensified, grew clearer, sharper, until little pinpricks of pain began to flash behind her eyelids in tempo to the pain slashing through her body. Just a pinch, then push, then an all out crushing of every fiber of her being.
She could feel the stars crashing into her body as they forced it into a small little area, like trying to jam her living body into a space the size of a computer harddrive (or, 1ftx2ftx6in)...
Pain followed, crushing her beneath the dead weight of her body...
Then, nothing...
A white light, a feeling of comfort. The pain was pushed away as something wrapped itself around her, holding her close to a presence that emanated love. She wanted to smile, to sigh and hug the feeling closer, but it disappeared before she could find a hand to lift towards it.
Eternity passed, the centuries and eons fading together as she floated in a bliss of nothingness...
She opened her eyes, squinting in the faint light that reached her eyes. A mirror candle would have blinded her in that instant, a signal that her eyes hadn't been used for a long time. "Hello?"
Her voice tore from her throat, and she brought her hands to her neck quickly, feeling the rawness of her unused vocal cords. Around her, the light swirled with the darkness, until she couldn't tell one from the other. Her eyes closed instinctively against the confusing whirl, and she moved her hands from her neck to her head, rubbing at her temples.
She felt lathargic, as if she was just rousing from a deep slumber and her mind hadn't fully awakened yet. She wanted to sink back into that void, but she forced her eyes open instead. Violet eyes blinked, blurry. There was a pressure at the back of her neck, and it made her want to shut her eyes again.
"I will not sleep." Her voice was husky, even to her long-neglected ears, and she winced as the sound reverbrated through her head. "I! Will! Not! Sleep!"
The world tipped, and she dropped backwards, her arms flailing. Instead of hitting the ground, her body floated for a time before she realized that she was on her feet again.
Eyes open, dizzyiness, fatigue, determination, eyes closed...she repeated the cycle several times until a vague figure seemed to step out of the whirling cloud of light and dark. Her mouth opened, her lips trembling as she tried to form words. A blanket of complacency was settled over her, and she watched as the shape drew closer, until it stood directly in front of her.
It looked human, but her eyes couldn't focus, and she could barely think.
"Hello, Duet." She sighed, shaking her head in defeat at the unwillingness of her body to work. "Have no fear, Duet."
"I died." The words tumbled forth, causing her to cough as she fought with the thickness in her throat.
"Yes, you did. However, you may be given another chance." She wiped tiredly at her eyes, where tears had formed during her bout of coughing. "Your last moments on earth were spent in humility and selfless love. A martyr and a saint could not have died better. On earth, you have already learned the lesson of forgiving. That part of your test is done."
She blinked slowly, forcing her eyes to stay open. She licked her lips. "Part?" The word came a little easier than before.
"Only part of it. In a way, you have challenged what was originally planned for you." She opened her mouth to question the pause, but the figure continued. "That's not a bad thing, Duet, just different. It seems that you made quite a few statements while alive that someone has taken an interest in."
"Really?" The figure laughed.
"Really. I am Shinigami. The god of death. I was called forth to take you on to eternity, but they have an alternative for you. If you so desire."
"Alterna-" She inhaled sharply, feeling a burning feeling in her chest that began to spread through her entire body.
"Another choice. You can go on to eternity, and a forever of bliss." The figure paused. "Or, you can return to earth. You will be given a new body, because the one you had was damaged beyond repair."
"Catch?" She wanted to put her hands on her hip and glare at this...this person, but her whole body was trembling, and it took most of her concentration to stay on her feet.
"You gave a very pretty speech about love, and all about how much you would do for love, and all the pretty rules and regulations of love." She cocked an eyebrow, ignoring the pain. She wanted to deny that it had been that much, but she simply stared at the outline of a person she could not see clearly. "It has been decided that you have challenged Death."
"You." A laugh.
"Yes. You have challenged me, and it has been offered me to challenge you. Go on to your Eternity, or return to earth for the purpose that has been agreed upon.
"Purpose?"
"I can not tell you that. You will know when the time is right. Until that time, you will be given a new body, complete with your memories. A life will be given to this new body, but you will have complete rein over it. All choices are yours, and all decisions are yours."
"Control?"
"Absolute. When the time comes, you will know the reason that you have been sent back, and at that point in time, it will be up to you. You can stay in that life, with all the hardships that it entails, or you can return here."
"I don't understand." She grimaced as the force of three words did more damage than her one word questions.
"You will return, and begin a new life with full knoweledge of the life you have lived before, including the memory of your death. You have a lifetime to fulfill the challenge, and you can do whatever you desire in that time. However, if at the end of a time it has been decided that you have failed us, we will remove you from that life, and reincarnate you to earth to be retested."
"Fun." The figure laughed again.
"I'm glad you think so. As of now, you belong to Shinigami. Your life is mine, and your life belongs to you. Just remember, that happiness can only be achieved through love, and the purpose of life is to find happiness."
~~~~~_____~~~~~
The nurse watched as violet eyes blinked open, staring up at the world with a vague look of interest. "Doctor! He's awake!" Footsteps echoed in the sterile little room, as a man came to stand beside the hospital bed.
"Well, hello!" The eyes turned to the smiling man, gazing at him with growing focus. The doctor and the nurse watched as first realization, and then confusion clouded those eyes. The doctor held up a hand when his patient started to speak. "I wouldn't advise talking right now. Your throat was damaged in the accident, and it's going to take some time to heal."
The nurse smiled comfortingly, but the violet eyes that peered at her took a suspicious glint. One brown eyebrow raised, and the stare turned into a glare. The woman smiled nervously, glancing at the doctor to gauge is reaction.
"The nurse will bring you something to drink in a moment." He waved to the woman, who left hurriedly. "I'd ask you how you're doing, but your eyes look rather alert. If you'd be so kind, I'd like to make sure that no damage was sustained to your spinal cord. We'll start by wiggling your toes, then your fingers, and then lifting her legs and arms."
Violet eyes blinked, and then the brunette nodded, flashing a warning through dark eyes that seemed to threaten bodily harm if the doctor tried anything funny.
"I'm thinking that you don't like doctors in general. That's okay. I'm not really a doctor, I only play one on television." Eyebrow up, eyes glaring without amusement. "Sorry, a little bedside humor. How about those toes?"
The patient wiggled toes, fingers, and eyebrows upon command. The legs followed, somewhat stiffly, as if the brunette wasn't certain if the limbs would respond to the silent command. The arms went up and came down easily.
The nurse returned. She tried to smile again, but the patiently simply held out one slender, long-fingered hand, took the glass, and sipped at it daintily. It was lukewarm, probably from a neglected pitcher in the hallway, but it worked to relief some of the tension in an otherwise dry and tight throat.
"Well, everything seems to be in working order. I'll be back in a few hours to see how everything else is working. You should be able to get up and move without difficulty, though I would advise against leaving the room. The bathroom is through that door, and there's a robe on the chair by your bed."
The brunette nodded carefully, turning the malevolent violet gaze toward the window. "If you need anything, just push the button to the right of the pillow. There is someone in the nurse's station at all times." The slender hand waved at them in dismissal, the patient refusing to glance back at them.
They left, leaving the brunette in the stuffy silence of the hospital. A sigh, and then a slight smile. The hands came up, and the violet eyes stared at them for a moment, acquinting themselves with the look and feel of the tools. The right leg came up, and was scratched by one slender finger. The smile widened.
The fingers tapped on the metal railing of the bed, before the patient grew suddenly restless and sat up. A careful manuever brought two feet to the floor, causing the brunette to wince at the feel of the cold linoleum. Hesitant steps to the chair, the watching of the hand moving to the robe, and then the ungraceful and hesitant act of putting it on.
The patient moved slowly towards the bathroom, taking small steps and glaring as the door approached so slowly. Open the door, step inside, shut it again. Glance in the mirror. Violet eyes meshed in the mirror, so familiar, and yet different. The same brown-red hair, though the bangs were a little longer.
A heart-shaped face, with a single thin scratch down one cheek. Quite unremarkable, really, though amazing in the differences as memory met reality in the reflective glass.
After several moments of study, the patient frowned, taking in the strong jaw, and the angular nose. Very sturdy, very reassuring in firmness, very...male.
Violet eyes swept down as slender hands moved the robe and hospital gown aside to stare in wide eyed amazement at what the slight coverings hid. A gasp and a knock at the door.
"Mr. Maxwell? Are you okay?"
Awareness came in degrees. First, the sensation of warmth. The security of a warm embrace, the comfort of a friendly hug. The heat of a bubble bath. But she couldn't tell what part of her was warm, simply that she was. She existed, and existence wasn't a bad thing...
Then came pressure. Pressure on her back, pressure on her legs, pressure everywhere. It started out small, just the barest of touches along what she thought must be her skin. The feeling intensified, grew clearer, sharper, until little pinpricks of pain began to flash behind her eyelids in tempo to the pain slashing through her body. Just a pinch, then push, then an all out crushing of every fiber of her being.
She could feel the stars crashing into her body as they forced it into a small little area, like trying to jam her living body into a space the size of a computer harddrive (or, 1ftx2ftx6in)...
Pain followed, crushing her beneath the dead weight of her body...
Then, nothing...
A white light, a feeling of comfort. The pain was pushed away as something wrapped itself around her, holding her close to a presence that emanated love. She wanted to smile, to sigh and hug the feeling closer, but it disappeared before she could find a hand to lift towards it.
Eternity passed, the centuries and eons fading together as she floated in a bliss of nothingness...
She opened her eyes, squinting in the faint light that reached her eyes. A mirror candle would have blinded her in that instant, a signal that her eyes hadn't been used for a long time. "Hello?"
Her voice tore from her throat, and she brought her hands to her neck quickly, feeling the rawness of her unused vocal cords. Around her, the light swirled with the darkness, until she couldn't tell one from the other. Her eyes closed instinctively against the confusing whirl, and she moved her hands from her neck to her head, rubbing at her temples.
She felt lathargic, as if she was just rousing from a deep slumber and her mind hadn't fully awakened yet. She wanted to sink back into that void, but she forced her eyes open instead. Violet eyes blinked, blurry. There was a pressure at the back of her neck, and it made her want to shut her eyes again.
"I will not sleep." Her voice was husky, even to her long-neglected ears, and she winced as the sound reverbrated through her head. "I! Will! Not! Sleep!"
The world tipped, and she dropped backwards, her arms flailing. Instead of hitting the ground, her body floated for a time before she realized that she was on her feet again.
Eyes open, dizzyiness, fatigue, determination, eyes closed...she repeated the cycle several times until a vague figure seemed to step out of the whirling cloud of light and dark. Her mouth opened, her lips trembling as she tried to form words. A blanket of complacency was settled over her, and she watched as the shape drew closer, until it stood directly in front of her.
It looked human, but her eyes couldn't focus, and she could barely think.
"Hello, Duet." She sighed, shaking her head in defeat at the unwillingness of her body to work. "Have no fear, Duet."
"I died." The words tumbled forth, causing her to cough as she fought with the thickness in her throat.
"Yes, you did. However, you may be given another chance." She wiped tiredly at her eyes, where tears had formed during her bout of coughing. "Your last moments on earth were spent in humility and selfless love. A martyr and a saint could not have died better. On earth, you have already learned the lesson of forgiving. That part of your test is done."
She blinked slowly, forcing her eyes to stay open. She licked her lips. "Part?" The word came a little easier than before.
"Only part of it. In a way, you have challenged what was originally planned for you." She opened her mouth to question the pause, but the figure continued. "That's not a bad thing, Duet, just different. It seems that you made quite a few statements while alive that someone has taken an interest in."
"Really?" The figure laughed.
"Really. I am Shinigami. The god of death. I was called forth to take you on to eternity, but they have an alternative for you. If you so desire."
"Alterna-" She inhaled sharply, feeling a burning feeling in her chest that began to spread through her entire body.
"Another choice. You can go on to eternity, and a forever of bliss." The figure paused. "Or, you can return to earth. You will be given a new body, because the one you had was damaged beyond repair."
"Catch?" She wanted to put her hands on her hip and glare at this...this person, but her whole body was trembling, and it took most of her concentration to stay on her feet.
"You gave a very pretty speech about love, and all about how much you would do for love, and all the pretty rules and regulations of love." She cocked an eyebrow, ignoring the pain. She wanted to deny that it had been that much, but she simply stared at the outline of a person she could not see clearly. "It has been decided that you have challenged Death."
"You." A laugh.
"Yes. You have challenged me, and it has been offered me to challenge you. Go on to your Eternity, or return to earth for the purpose that has been agreed upon.
"Purpose?"
"I can not tell you that. You will know when the time is right. Until that time, you will be given a new body, complete with your memories. A life will be given to this new body, but you will have complete rein over it. All choices are yours, and all decisions are yours."
"Control?"
"Absolute. When the time comes, you will know the reason that you have been sent back, and at that point in time, it will be up to you. You can stay in that life, with all the hardships that it entails, or you can return here."
"I don't understand." She grimaced as the force of three words did more damage than her one word questions.
"You will return, and begin a new life with full knoweledge of the life you have lived before, including the memory of your death. You have a lifetime to fulfill the challenge, and you can do whatever you desire in that time. However, if at the end of a time it has been decided that you have failed us, we will remove you from that life, and reincarnate you to earth to be retested."
"Fun." The figure laughed again.
"I'm glad you think so. As of now, you belong to Shinigami. Your life is mine, and your life belongs to you. Just remember, that happiness can only be achieved through love, and the purpose of life is to find happiness."
~~~~~_____~~~~~
The nurse watched as violet eyes blinked open, staring up at the world with a vague look of interest. "Doctor! He's awake!" Footsteps echoed in the sterile little room, as a man came to stand beside the hospital bed.
"Well, hello!" The eyes turned to the smiling man, gazing at him with growing focus. The doctor and the nurse watched as first realization, and then confusion clouded those eyes. The doctor held up a hand when his patient started to speak. "I wouldn't advise talking right now. Your throat was damaged in the accident, and it's going to take some time to heal."
The nurse smiled comfortingly, but the violet eyes that peered at her took a suspicious glint. One brown eyebrow raised, and the stare turned into a glare. The woman smiled nervously, glancing at the doctor to gauge is reaction.
"The nurse will bring you something to drink in a moment." He waved to the woman, who left hurriedly. "I'd ask you how you're doing, but your eyes look rather alert. If you'd be so kind, I'd like to make sure that no damage was sustained to your spinal cord. We'll start by wiggling your toes, then your fingers, and then lifting her legs and arms."
Violet eyes blinked, and then the brunette nodded, flashing a warning through dark eyes that seemed to threaten bodily harm if the doctor tried anything funny.
"I'm thinking that you don't like doctors in general. That's okay. I'm not really a doctor, I only play one on television." Eyebrow up, eyes glaring without amusement. "Sorry, a little bedside humor. How about those toes?"
The patient wiggled toes, fingers, and eyebrows upon command. The legs followed, somewhat stiffly, as if the brunette wasn't certain if the limbs would respond to the silent command. The arms went up and came down easily.
The nurse returned. She tried to smile again, but the patiently simply held out one slender, long-fingered hand, took the glass, and sipped at it daintily. It was lukewarm, probably from a neglected pitcher in the hallway, but it worked to relief some of the tension in an otherwise dry and tight throat.
"Well, everything seems to be in working order. I'll be back in a few hours to see how everything else is working. You should be able to get up and move without difficulty, though I would advise against leaving the room. The bathroom is through that door, and there's a robe on the chair by your bed."
The brunette nodded carefully, turning the malevolent violet gaze toward the window. "If you need anything, just push the button to the right of the pillow. There is someone in the nurse's station at all times." The slender hand waved at them in dismissal, the patient refusing to glance back at them.
They left, leaving the brunette in the stuffy silence of the hospital. A sigh, and then a slight smile. The hands came up, and the violet eyes stared at them for a moment, acquinting themselves with the look and feel of the tools. The right leg came up, and was scratched by one slender finger. The smile widened.
The fingers tapped on the metal railing of the bed, before the patient grew suddenly restless and sat up. A careful manuever brought two feet to the floor, causing the brunette to wince at the feel of the cold linoleum. Hesitant steps to the chair, the watching of the hand moving to the robe, and then the ungraceful and hesitant act of putting it on.
The patient moved slowly towards the bathroom, taking small steps and glaring as the door approached so slowly. Open the door, step inside, shut it again. Glance in the mirror. Violet eyes meshed in the mirror, so familiar, and yet different. The same brown-red hair, though the bangs were a little longer.
A heart-shaped face, with a single thin scratch down one cheek. Quite unremarkable, really, though amazing in the differences as memory met reality in the reflective glass.
After several moments of study, the patient frowned, taking in the strong jaw, and the angular nose. Very sturdy, very reassuring in firmness, very...male.
Violet eyes swept down as slender hands moved the robe and hospital gown aside to stare in wide eyed amazement at what the slight coverings hid. A gasp and a knock at the door.
"Mr. Maxwell? Are you okay?"
