"Congratulations, weary travelers, for none have been able to evade Death and live to tell the tale."
It was time to stop hiding.
Just the sight of the mysterious being in front of Ignotus Peverell immediately made the latter suspicious. One does not evade Death and expect to walk away unscathed and able to tell the tale. Where his eyes should've been, there was only black emptiness, adding to his gothly appearance.
He had lived a long, fruitful life with no regrets.
"Your efforts will be rewarded. I will grant each of you one wish of anything you desire."
His true desire hadn't been an invisibility cloak; it had been the everlasting love of a woman. Kathrine shared his Cadmus's arrogance, but fell in love with the humble man who helped her gain new respect for those around her.
"I want a wand. One that will always win duels for its rightful master: Antioch Peverell, evader of Death!"
Nodding only once, Death climbed down from the bridge and sauntered to a nearby elder tree. A wary Ignotus fingered his wand, ready should anything happen to him or his older brothers.
"You would curse the one who spares you and your brothers? And when the opponent has his back turned?" Death asked without turning around.
"It is no trick, foolish little Ignotus," Antioch announced haughtily.
"I would see through his deception if there was one!" Cadmus added.
Outnumbered, Ignotus reluctantly released his wand and continued to watch as Death cut a branch off the elder, then murmured something that straightened and polished the wood, making it resemble an actual wand.
Antioch had always been ready for a fight. His combative nature masked a haunting paranoia of being seen as weak as his youngest brother. When Ignotus had heard someone slit his brother's throat and stole his wand after the latter boasted about killing Ancelot Orlebar, he honestly hadn't been surprised. Antioch had asked for invincibility, and he got it, along with an unforeseen gift: jealousy.
"And you, second brother?" Death practically cooed, facing Cadmus with a kind facade.
"Make it possible for me to bring back the deceased," Cadmus demanded. "Surely, it could be made possible, now can it?"
Ignotus held his breath, fully expecting Death to blast his egoistic brother to bits, but the former merely bent down and picked up an obsidian stone from the river banks. It glowed in his hand and Death handed it to an eager Cadmus.
"Here, son," Ignotus said, shedding his sole protection from Death and handing it to Henry, his fourteen year old son, who looked at him questionably.
"This cloak saved my life and protected me from Death, who gave it to me."
"It's his real cloak?" Henry asked, eyeing his new present skeptically.
"It is. Death is cunning, and I'm afraid my end is fast approaching. Particularly after asking for this very cloak." The fact he would be looking for vengeance went unspoken. "Expect limitations, if any, from this gift." The warning had a hidden meaning; it was the reality that even a powerful object such as Cadmus's stone had its limits. That was what drove him to suicide by hanging.
"And you, youngest brother?" Death turned his skeletal face to Ignotus, who stared back just as calmly. He hesitated, wondering how to outsmart the creature before him.
"My trust in you is questionable, Death. You've given me reason to doubt you. Therefore, I ask for something that will not allow you to follow me."
A grimace spread on Death's face, a gesture that went unnoticed by Antioch and Cadmus. Ignotus kept his face impassive, but he felt a sinking feeling in his stomach that his suspicions were correct.
Death, still frowning, pointed his finger and ran it across the folds of his own cloak. Magically, a section was severed off and fell over a rock, which promptly disappeared.
Ignotus stood, waiting. He'd lived much longer than he'd expected. Most witches and wizards would wind up in duels, which always guaranteed deaths. He acted kind and compassionate, yet firm and fair to all he met.
"You are either very foolish, or very wise to shed your sole protection," Death whispered , the words a small surprise to Ignotus, who turned to face the other.
"Death. It's been a long time; however, I've lived a long life. Made few enemies, settled down, married, had a son. It would be selfish of me to want more."
"I trust you said your goodbyes." Ignotus nodded, still unafraid. Death surveyed him with interest.
"Very few men I've met with while he was still alive. Even fewer were like you."
That was the last Ignotus heard as he felt the life leave his body. It felt as though he'd been carrying a heavy weight around for a long time; he finally felt free.
And so he greeted Death as an old friend, and went with him gladly, and as equals departed this life.
Thank you TheLilyReviewer for your review.
~daydreamer626