"Damaged?" Grell gasped, concerned.
"Yes, and I'll thank you to keep this quiet. You see, the conversion process was extremely rough for him."
"Conversion? Then he was…"
"Yes, a former human like you, predestined to join our ranks. For whatever reason, his body and soul fought against their fate and kept trying to veer towards death instead of immortality."
"So he's having flashbacks from his mortal past," Ronald said, realization dawning.
"Exactly. Which means that the Binding is coming undone."
"Coming undone?!" Grell cried. "How?! I thought that when the conversion and Binding was finished it was permanent! Could this happen to anyone, this coming undone?"
"If you're worried about it happening to you, it's highly unlikely," William assured him. "Especially since you were harvested and converted by Undertaker himself. That level of expertise isn't easily reversed."
"Wow, sempai, Undertaker?" Ronald asked, marveling.
"Oh yes," Grell replied.
"You see, it takes quite a bit of experience to perform a successful conversion. Should a recent graduate find themselves with a shinigami-to-be, they need to contact someone in at least management level. Unfortunately, that didn't happen with Collin. The one who reaped him panicked and tried to handle it himself."
"I've heard it can be alarming to realize you have a future death god on your hands," Ronald remarked. "At the academy the instructors warned you that the only way to tell was that the human's cinematic record would 'act up' when you tried to view it, cutting out then starting back up and such."
"It's a very delicate process, like overseeing a high-risk childbirth. One ham-handed mistake and you can wind up with problems, to say the least. The soul and body need, lovingly and gently, to be guided towards their final state of immortality."
"It sounds like you speak from experience, Will," Grell said.
It was definitely odd, hearing "that old stick-in-the-mud," as Grell called William, speaking about being loving and gentle. Then again, Grell had suspected that something had happened; William had been acting differently lately.
"Yes, actually. I ran across my first one about five years ago. It was young Mr. Plainfield, to be specific."
"Alan's tag-along?" Ronald asked.
"The same."
It was then that Grell and Ronald noticed a slight coloring of the manager's face. Grell broke into a huge grin as realization dawned on him.
"Why, Will, you dog! You've been robbing the cradle!" the red reaper teased.
"I'll thank you to keep it to yourself, Mr. Sutcliff," William said, becoming stern again.
"You harvested him and then fell for him! How romantic!"
"Enough!" William shouted. A few seconds later, he spoke again, having managed to get his annoyance under control. "Although he is old enough to decide for himself, some might still take a low view because of our age difference and the fact that I am his superior."
Just then, Thomas himself burst into the room.
"Oh, Will, is he all right? I saw Collin have that horrible fit!" he exclaimed.
"Calm down, Mr. Plainfield," William responded, with a look that was clearly meant to remind Thomas to maintain formality while at the office. "We are attempting to formulate a plan. For the immediate future, Mr. Burrwood will need regular infusions of Immortal Essence until the Council of Elders can convene."
"That's the substance in all of us that makes us what we are," Thomas nodded. "Born shinigami get it from their parents, and the converted from their harvesters."
"Exactly. It creates a bond between converted and harvester that, while not always romantic, is only surpassed in strength and intensity by a mate-bond, which is why even the temporary donor for Mr. Burrwood must be chosen carefully. He must be comfortable with the idea that Mr. Burrwood could possibly develop an unhealthy dependence on him, at least until a more permanent solution can be found."
Ronald took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and then spoke.
"I'll do it," he said.
"Are you sure, Ronald?" Grell gasped. "After what happened this morning?"
"Yes, I only want to know one thing; why can't the reaper who originally harvested him be his donor?"
"He passed. It was the Thorns of Death."
"No!" Grell breathed.
"I should warn you, Mr. Knox, the method of transference of Immortal Essence may prove unsavory for you," William announced.
"What is it?" Ronald asked, a bit apprehensive as to what the answer might be.
"It is commonly done through a kiss. The donor visualizes the Essence as a golden ball in their core, then draws a tendril up and out of their mouth and into that of the recipient. This will need to be done at least once a day, possibly more if Mr. Burrwood should have another fit like this."
Collin stood in the Gray Place. The ground seemed like clouds, and all around him was nothing but dark, cloudy skies like one might see before a storm.
Finally, you're here, a mellifluous male voice said from some indefinite place above him.
"I'm dying all over again!" Collin screamed. "First the fire, now this!"
You were confused and frightened, not to mention the clumsy job that reaper did converting you.
"You killed me! You didn't think! All you could feel was rage at my circumstances- you didn't stop to realize that I was still in the building!" Collin accused. "You bastard, you said you loved me!"
A mist formed, then coalesced into the figure of a winged man with long black hair, black feathered wings, and black curled horns like a ram's sprouting from his head.
"I did love you, pet," the angel said.
"You go ahead and tell yourself that, Raziel," Collin said bitterly. "And I ceased to be your 'pet' the moment I drew my last mortal breath. You forfeited me through your crazed revenge on my owner."
"I tell the truth! I literally fell for you! Look at me! Cursed with darkness and trapped here for the crime of loving a human! The Divine is not forgiving, Wisp."
"Never call me that again! It was the name of a starving boy-whore who believed your lies! It's Collin to you!"
Collin reached out into the ether, summoning his death scythe. Raziel laughed uproariously.
"I'm afraid not, pet. Your little toy won't respond to a reaper in Purgatory. Poor, poor prince."
The angel moved behind Collin, catching the reaper's wrists and drawing the young shinigami up against his body, trapping him.
"From the moment I saw you in that brother, you were mine. Mine, Wisp."
"Not any longer!"
"That's where you're wrong. I promised you forever and I meant it," Raziel snarled. "I don't like sharing my pretties, especially not a rare one like you."
"I'm a reaper now, an immortal death god and therefore your better!"
"Not so immortal now, are we? Tsk, tsk. If I could get ahold of that fool shinigami who first made you one of his kind I'd torture his soul for eternity."
"I thought angels were meant to serve the Divine," Collin spat. "Torturing souls; isn't that more of a demon thing?"
The angels shrieked, a terrible sound like pieces of metal being scraped against each other.
"Your soul is mine! I could not interrupt the Divine plan for you, but I did give you everything that helped you survive! I gave you beauty that surpassed all the other boys there, and this is how you repay me?"
"Which got me more disgusting men who wanted a taste of young meat!"
"Which earned you favor with your pimp, which spared you beatings," corrected Raziel.
"Which didn't save Davey," Collin retorted. "I died trying to save him; he was trapped in his room by a broken lock when the fire broke out. The fire you started. You killed the only friend I had in that hellhole, my only comfort!"
"You lifted your tail for that shinigami, pet- how could you? I thought we had an understanding that when your life was over that precious ass would be reserved for me."
"That was before I knew I had another destiny as a reaper! You took advantage of me when I was desperate for a savior! Besides, I never had a clue that you would literally be the death of me! I'm meant to fuck my murderer? I don't think so!"
"That pitiful lover of yours will never have you. He can try, but I ultimately hold you. When I saw that you were coming Unbound, I seized the chance I lost the first time you died. You've been a very, very naughty pet, and naughty pets get punished."
To his horror, Collin saw that the angel was shifting aside the lower part of his robes.
"No!" he cried, all bravery fleeing as he realized what was coming next.
The angel's monstrous cock sprang out- it could easily have been a foot or so long and the girth was alarming too. Collin's trousers were ripped away as if they were made of paper, and Raziel brutally thrust himself inside the shinigami. The blond screamed in pain as he tore; it was far worse than even his first time had been. If he had been in his body, he was certain that he would have passed out.
"See what you make me do?!" Raziel shouted as he raped Collin, as if the whole thing was Collin's fault. "You little slut!"
Just when Collin thought he couldn't take any more, things went dark and he didn't see the angel any more.
Ronald gasped as the cot beneath Collin was soaked with blood.
"What's happening to him?!" he asked William frantically.
"Wherever his soul has gone, it's still tied strongly enough to his body that damage inflicted upon it is being inflicted on his body also," the manager replied. "Quick, Mr. Plainfield, look for a towel and a blanket, something to soak this up and warm him!"
Ronald looked to make certain that the blinds were closed as he tried to ascertain the source of the bleeding. He cringed as he removed Collin's trousers and underwear and saw what had happened. The awfully torn flesh; it was as if he'd been raped!
"Do as I told you earlier; hopefully a fresh infusion of Immortal Essence will bring him back," William instructed.
Picture a golden ball in your core. That's it, he encouraged himself.
He felt warmth moving up his throat into his mouth and leaned forward, using a tender kiss to transfer the Essence. Slowly, Collin began to get color to his skin and to stir a bit.
"Careful, Mr. Knox, we can't be certain what condition his mind is in after that assault," cautioned William. "He's back physically, but he could well be severely traumatized."
"Nnnnngh," groaned Collin, coming to.
His eyes widened and he whimpered, giving Ronald a pleading look as if begging for help.
"Oh, Collin!" Ronald cried, wrapping his arms around the younger reaper as Thomas placed a towel beneath Collin and wrapped a blanket around his lower half to replace the ruined garments. "Don't worry; I've got you."
Collin's eyes lost focus, and he curled into a fetal position and whined.
"You've got to stay with me, Collin," Ronald said, trying to stay calm. "You're safe now."
"Ra…Raziel…raped," Collin managed before dissolving into tears.
"Shhh, don't try to speak yet," Ronald soothed. "We've got plenty of time for you to explain. Just rest and heal."
A human would likely have died from the sheer amount of blood lost, not to mention required reconstructive surgery. Ronald knew that Collin's remarkable shinigami physiology was already at work healing his bodily wounds, but there was no telling when he would be mentally healed.
"Take him home. I don't intend this as punishment, Mr. Knox, but it would be best if the two of you were on paid leave until the Council meets. Look out for him; he needs you now more than ever," William said.
Author note: Geez, I'm so sadistic to poor Collin! First a horrible past, then raped! Don't worry, I'll make things better, I promise!