Chapter 19:
Death was not at all surprised at the size of the party waiting for him when he entered the Realm of the Dead with an unconscious Jack in his arms.
More than half the Reaper corps had shown up, along with dozens of death fey and what looked to be nearly all of Earth's Death Gods.
As expected, the other three Horsemen were the first to greet him, gathering about him as he brought his horse to a stop. They were dismounted, they and their steeds getting as close as they dared to Death without disturbing Jack.
"Poor sprite," Famine murmured, brushing a strand of hair out of Jack's face.
"It's about time though," War muttered, expression tight. "Kid's been essentially dead for three hundred years, he deserves some peace and quiet."
Pestilence simply hummed what seemed to be an affirmation as the three steeds took turns gently nuzzling Jack with their noses. When they stepped back, Death nudged his horse into a slow walk down the pathway the gathered crowd had formed for him. Persephone tucked a small white daisy behind Jack's ear, whispering softly to him in ancient Greek. Black-haired Hades wrapped an arm around his wife and nodded to Death, laying a gentle hand on one of Cerberus' heads when the hound whined softly.
Anubis and Osiris were both silent, simply dipping their heads in respect. The Emperors of Youdu bowed deeply. Kalma and her sisters were next, then Xibalba and La Muerte, Cernunnos, Yama, Camazotz, Morrigan, Hel, Erlik, and dozens of others.
When they reached the end of the seemingly endless line, Death gently nudged his horse into a canter, guiding him in a very specific direction.
Death's horse snorted in approval when Death brought him to a halt in front of a decent sized two-story farmhouse in the Fields of Asphodel. They weren't nearly as drab as myth made them out to be; green grass as far as the eye could see, dotted with meadows of flowers and orchards of fruit trees the spirits that lived here chose to cultivate. Beloved pets ran about with their deceased human companions while a variety of wild animals romped in the unclaimed fields.
As Death dismounted, the door of the cottage opened and a young sheepdog came bounding out, barking at the top of its lungs.
"Oh, goodness, must dogs ALWAYS be like this?" Death's horse muttered as the canine wove between his legs, yipping all the while. When he didn't stop after a few moments, the horse lowered his head and stared the dog directly in the eye. "I will EAT you, dog, if you do not cease this nonsense immediately."
Yelping with fright, the dog darted back to the door, ducking beneath the legs of the brown-haired woman who'd opened it.
She'd been in her late thirties when she'd died, Death remembered; her features were as youthful here as they'd been the day she passed. Brown eyes widened in surprise when they fell on him, and she quickly dipped her head.
"Lord Death," she murmured, giving a quick curtsy.
"There is no need for formality, Sophie," Death said. "I come bearing rather… bittersweet news."
The woman raised her head with a frown tugging lightly at her mouth. Then her gaze fell on the bundle in Death's arms and her eyes widened, filling with tears as her hands flew to her mouth.
"J… Jack?" She whispered, eyes flying to meet Death's gaze. "Is… is it… truly Jack?"
Death nodded. "Yes. He has finally passed."
"You… you're the one who retrieved him?"
"Yes. I brought him here so that he may be reunited with his human family; he has no memory of you, but I do not doubt that he still holds you dear to his heart."
"Thank you," Sophie whispered, a tremulous smile visible behind her palms. "Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for watching over my brother."
Death dipped his head in acknowledgement. "I do not know what he will remember when he wakes; I'd suggest you take things slowly when reintroducing yourselves."
Sophie nodded, carefully taking Jack from Death's outstretched arms. "I will be," she whispered, tears streaming unchecked down her face. She smiled. "Wait until he learns I married his best friend!"
Jack woke to see an unfamiliar woman staring down at him. His brow furrowed… no, she wasn't unfamiliar… she…
The woman smiled at him. "Not in a tricky mood, Jack?"
Something clicked.
"Sophie!" Jack cried, launching himself forward and wrapping his arms around her so tightly it was surprising he didn't break a few ribs. She held him back just as tightly, not noticing or not caring when he buried his face in her shoulder, soaking her dress with his tears. When he raised his head again, he saw two more familiar-unfamiliar people standing in the door, clutching each other's hands, tears shining in their eyes as they watched him and his sister -his sister- hold each other.
"Mom! Dad!"
Two more bodies soon joined the hug-fest, and then three more – "You married DAVID?! Why?!" "Thank you so much, Twig!" "Jerk! And you had KIDS?!" – and soon there was a huge pile of people in the room as Jack was introduced to his extended family- Father and mother in-law, a nephew and niece, three grand-nieces and five grand-nephews, and several more great-grand nieces and nephews. There were plenty of tears, even more laughter – it was a very good thing spirits didn't need to breathe- and after hour upon hour everyone piled out the backdoor to the patio. Mei whinnied exuberantly, trotting over from where she'd been grazing under the apple trees, nosing Jack until he finally gave in and gave her a hug (and Sophie gave her a sugar cube).
"Wait… where's Death?" Jack said suddenly, glancing back at everyone from where he was scratching Mei's head. His family shared looks amongst each other.
"We don't know. He left right after he gave you to us," Sophie said, holding David's hand.
"He is likely in council with the other Horsemen and elder Reapers," Jack's father said. "There is still the threat of Mephistopheles to deal with."
"He will come and speak to you at a later date," David said. "I don't believe he's asked you how you wish to spend your afterlife."
Jack blinked, baffled for a few seconds, before realization dawned. "Oh. Yeah, you're right, he hasn't asked me yet."
The looks that passed between his newfound family didn't escape his notice.
"You've already decided, though," Sophie said, as though not quite certain of her words.
Jack ducked his head. "Yes. I'm glad to see you again, Sophie, David, Mom, Dad. And I'm glad to have met the rest of you, I really, truly am, but…,"
"Jack," Sophie interrupted, laying a hand on his arm. Jack raised his head, mirroring his sister's smile when he saw her face. "We love you. No matter what you choose, we'll love you."
"Yes," their mother said quietly, coming to kneel beside Sophie while their father stood beside her with a hand on her shoulder. She smiled at Jack; Jack's own smile widened and no, those were not tears he was feeling in his eyes, thank you very much.
"And we will always be proud to call you family," Jack's father said.
Jack's face crumbled as he launched himself into his family's arms. There were certainly tears, but, well. You could hardly call that surprising.
As David had said, Death eventually returned to speak with Jack.
It was the middle of the night, as far as Jack could tell when he woke and found himself in his room (his room!), not entirely able to say what had roused him. Jack almost didn't see him, standing in the corner by the door; his black robes made him look more part of the shadows than anything else.
"Death!" Jack shout-whispered. Before Death could respond, Jack had leaped out of bed and wrapped him in what to a human would probably have been a bone-crushing hug.
Jack buried his face in Death's chest as he felt the entity's arms wrapping around him, one skeletal hand carding through his hair.
"Thank you. Thank you so much for returning me to them."
"And I was to do what else, precisely?" Death asked. He didn't comment on the tears soaking the front of his robe.
Jack just clutched at him more tightly, staying pressed against his taller form for the boy didn't know how long.
When he at last pulled back and met Death's gaze, the entity said, "I trust you know why I'm here."
"Yes. I want to become a Reaper," Jack said.
Death tilted his head slightly.
"I know you might think it's sudden," Jack said quickly. "But I've thought about this for a while… like, I was thinking about this way before I died. The second time, I mean. I'm really happy and really grateful you returned me to my family, but with what's going on in the living world right now and seeing what you and the Reapers do…,"
"If you were still alive, I'd be telling you to breathe," Death interrupted, amused. "I know how firm you are in this decision; I can sense the state of your being much more clearly now that you are fully dead. And I will gladly accept you as one of my Reapers."
Jack's expression would have lit up some of the deepest caverns Death had ever visited. The entity laughed softly, running a hand through Jack's hair again. "Go back to bed; I will return in the morning and we can begin your training."
Hello, everybody! Sorry for the super late update; there's been another death in the family and some people aren't handling things very well, so the rest of us are trying to get them back on track. Thank you for your understanding; I have a general idea for the next couple chapters and I'll try to get them written ASAP.