Chapter Twelve:

(Some Mature terms at the end of this chapter. Beware!)

I cringed when I realized my mistake.

I had given myself away.

Grell leaped up to the roof, glaring down at me as I desperately tried to crawl back from him.

"It's such a shame that you couldn't have died the first time." he said in mock sadness.

"Well maybe if you were careful enough to not kill me with your death scythe, I wouldn't be here," I countered. He bristled at my comment about his precious "death scythe".

"How dare you, you little brat!" he yelled. I jumped to my feet and backed away farther. He jumped at me, and I leaped out of range. He tried again, and I slid under the swing.

Strange, it's like my body is controlling itself.

He growled, and attacked me again, only this time, as he swung over me, he tripped me as I went under.

I landed on my butt, staring up at him. He had a satisfactory smirk on his face. "It seems as though you haven't been practicing you're skills, young reaper. Sadly, even though I'm having so much fun, I'll have to exterminate the little fly." he brought the chainsaw over his head and a brilliant idea popped into my head. I quickly grabbed the damp cloth around my shoulders and held it above me, just as Grell swung down.

The immediate silence stunned him.

"Wha-" I didn't give him time to react as I swung my feet under him, making him fall back. He dropped his chainsaw on the way down, and I caught it.

Proud of myself, I tore the cloth from the blade and brung it back to life. He tried to back away from me, but I advanced on him easily.

"Who's the fly now?" I laughed.

"Please no!" he cried as I brung the scythe to his face. He backed away a little more then, and I tried to swing at him, he grinned. Not like before, but like a predatory grin.

Almost like the Cheshire Cat's.

He swiped my legs out from under me, and I landed on my back.

I cursed. I was so stupid to fall for the same trick he fell for.

Ha ha, get it? Fell? Because he...never mind.

He jumped to his feet, holding his chainsaw.

"Well, well, well. It looks as if you're the fly." he said. I tried to back away, but he stepped on my skirt, making me stop from struggling.

I couldn't do anything to stop him from bringing the weapon down on me, so I closed my eyes and sent undertaker a silent farewell. Then, braced myself for the blow.

He swung it down, and a metal clunk was heard.

Metal?

I opened my eyes to see a metal pole that stopped his chainsaw half an inch from my forehead. Both of us turned to whoever was holding the pole to see William T. Spears.

Nice timing, Will.

Will jumped from the roof and kicked Grell to the ground. Before he had the chance to get up, William had jumped onto the back of his head, rubbing his face into the ground.

"Grell Sutcliff, you are hereby suspended from field work, and your death scythe shall be confiscated for these reasons; you have reaped souls not on the To-Die list, you've used a death scythe that was personalized without permission, and you have attempted to kill a fellow reaper." he listed, using the back of his heel to stomp on the red head. Grell groaned in pain when Will stepped off of him.

"I am deeply sorry for all the trouble this wretch has caused you. He will be put on trial for all he has done in the past few months, so don't worry about him.

"Thank you for saving my life there," I said.

Will slightly chuckled. "He wouldn't have killed you with his chainsaw. There are three ways a reaper may perish; being slayed with a demon's sword, being slayed with their own scythes, or for the women, the Decaying Process."

"That's a relief. By the way, what is the Decaying Process?"

"I don't have enough time to explain that at the moment. If you would be so kind as to ask the Undertaker, I believe he can answer that for you. Come along Grell," he said, grabbing the red head by his hair and his chainsaw. "I will see you later, Jasmine." he said.

I nodded and stood there awkwardly, watching William open a portal and step through it.

I crawled back over to the edge and peered over it.

Ciel had covered Madam Red's corpse with Sebastian's overcoat. I felt a ping of sympathy go out to the young boy, seeing as he had already lost both parent's, and now his last family member.

I brushed away a tear and turned away from the sad scene. I stifled a sneeze and left the top of the building.

"Undertaker, I'm back," I nervously said.

The room was dark, and I slowly ventured to the middle of it, wary of the fact that he was in the room somewhere.

A pair of arms wrapped around my waist, pulling me to the source.

"William called and told me what happened," Undertaker said softly. "I was so worried,"

I blushed slightly at the embrace, but buried my face into Undertaker's chest. He was worried about me?

"I'm sorry for yelling at you, dear." he began to stroke my hair.

"No," I said. "You're right. If I wasn't so curious, none of this would have happened."

He chuckled softly. "But that curiosity brought you here. And for that, I'm glad for it."

I nodded, fighting the urge to cry.

Why am I so emotional? I asked myself. He hugged me tighter and I felt a burning sensation in my hand. I gasped and he quickly let go of me, backing away from me.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Th-there's something in my hand. It feels like a needle," I said. He gently took my elbow and led me near a lamp. When he turned it on, I gasped.

In the palm of my hand was a large gray spot. That hurt like hell.

"What is it?" I asked, looking at him. His smile disappeared again, which wasn't a good sign.

"It's has begun," he said.

"What has?"

"The Decaying Process," he said.

"What is the Decaying Process?!" I asked.

He sighed.

"The Decaying Process is something female shinigamis go through. Their bodies rot and decay when they begin to run low on a certain nutrient. You see, their bodies aren't made to function on their own for very long. Especially if they weren't born shinigami." He explained.

"So what do I do to get rid of this?" I asked.

"It's not as easy as you think. Your body needs a certain nutrient that will keep you alive..." he trailed off.

"Ok, so what do I need to do? I don't wanna rot away!" I said, tears threatening to spill over.,

"You have to mate," he said quietly.

"Oh." I whispered.

Not only am I forced to be a grim reaper, but I have to have sex to live. I guess it's the male's sperm that is that "certain nutrient".

I looked down at the floor, not wanting Undertaker to see my blush.

"So I have to mate." I sighed.

"And you only have less than a few months to do it before your body rots away."

"So I have to find a mate and-"

"You can't find a mate," he interrupted me.

"What?" I asked.

"One was decided for you while you were unconscious." he explained.

"Who...who is it?" I asked, although the feeling at the bottom of my stomach knew.

"It's me," he said.

Uh oh...CLIFF HANGER! Please Review and tell me what you all think!