Kuroshitsuji © Yana Toboso
OCs © reaper-of-lost-souls
A/N: I felt it was about time to post another chapter. I honestly don't have to review this story to get out of writer's block, for now, but it's been a while so here's the next chapter =D Oh! And I'm sorry if I haven't been replying to anyone's comments. I've just been busy. Homework is always getting in the way, it seems, but some of the homework I want to do so there you go ^^' Well… ENJOY!
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There, there it was… a dying person right in front of her. Sophie's eyes lit up, hunger growing in her features as she crept closer, keeping herself hidden in the shadows. Wasn't… a shinigami supposed to show up right now? "N-no?" Sophie thought aloud, looking throughout the trees waiting for something to appear. She didn't feel any presence, except for the man lying on the ground before her. "No… s-someone will come. T-hey always do," she reassured herself, slowly retreating back into the woods until she heard a faint voice calling to her.
"H-help me…" the man laid on the ground, coughing up blood and reaching up for the sky, "H-elp m-meee…" the man said again, Sophie's breath catching in her throat as she watched the man throbbing in pain.
Should she – No she can't. She's not a shinigami. She doesn't have a death scythe. She wasn't turned. She can't even touch another soul… but… yet… the man kept asking for help. Would it be so bad to walk over to him, perhaps comfort him before death comes to grab hold of his throbbing heart? After all, if a dying body is neglected for too long they'll turn into the same thing she is… and sadly Sophie didn't really know what she was right now. Her mind told her to leave, but her heart and her stomach was telling her to go towards the man. Sophie slowly walked out of the shadows, the man barely registering what was going on till she hovered over him, looking down at him with an emotionless expression.
"Please!" he gasped, coughing up blood as he reached for her, "P-please help me. Help me! –"
"I cannot," Sophie told him, his face growing pale, "but I will wait with you –"
"Wait? I'm d-dying! What is t-there to w-w-ait for!?" the man narrowed his eyes; his body enraged as he shook violently and continued to reach for her. "Save me! Help me!"
"I-I can't –"
"I w-ill g-give you my soul, just h-he-elp me!" he snarled, Sophie's eyes widening at his words.
Give me his soul? Why? Just because of the pain of death? "W-wha –"
"D-do it! Help me!" the man cried out, his body reaching up to grab her.
She quickly moved away, her eyes widened in horror as she stared at him shocked. "N-no, I can't –"
"Help me! Help meeeee!" he screamed, grabbing for her as he shuffled towards her.
Sophie backed away, walking backward towards the trees. Yet, her body was beginning to tell her to stop. Perhaps… perhaps it wouldn't be a bad thing to help the man. Place him out of his misery, after all there was a shinigami out there neglecting his duties. The sensible thing would be to take his soul so he could rest in peace, right?
"Take… m-meeee…" tears began to stream down his eyes, the light in his eyes widening as the ghost began to walk back towards him, reaching out her hand to the man. A smile came upon her face, gesturing for him to continue to grab for her, and she reached to him, her hand coming under his and close to touching him.
"Oh god, I'm late!" Sophie heard a voice coming from the trees, her hand snapping back before the dying man could touch her.
He stared at her horrified, watching as she turned her back on him and ran as fast as she could into the forest. "Wait! Help! Help me!" he cried, a gurgle escaping his lips as a death scythe embedded itself into his back.
"Sorry for being late," the shinigami huffed, wiping his blade with a handkerchief as he stared at the body laying motionless on the ground, "but I was a bit preoccupied –" The shinigami paused, noticing the last reels of the human's cinematic record. There was a girl there; no… that's not a girl. It's a demon. "… I better tell Mr. Ness about this," he thought to himself, taking off into the forest.
! #$%^&*()
Sophie shuddered in fear, looking down at her hands in shock. They didn't look like hands anymore; the nails had lengthened into sharp points. "No… no!" she gasped in horror, running to a nearby river and looking at her reflection in the water. Her eyes widened in terror, noticing the dark red, mystical eyes staring back at her. She was slowly becoming a demon… but why? Why?! She hadn't eaten anything and it's been years now! Her stomach was killing her, but she didn't do anything wrong. "I didn't do anything!" she yelled, slamming her fists into the ground and indenting the landscape around her by a few inches. She shivered in fright, tears streaming down her face as she shook her head. "I… didn't… do anything w-wrong…"
"Perhaps you didn't," a voice ran out from the trees, Sophie's eyes looking up as she backed away and began to tremble in fright, "perhaps you didn't~, but only you can decide what was right and what was wrong."
She gasped, her eyes darting around looking for the voice. All she saw was a dark purple glow coming from the densest part of the trees, her eyes narrowing once Sophie had realized that it was a demon, and not just any demon… it was Dorren. "W-wha…" Sophie gulped, her voice whiny and naive to everything that was going on, "What do you mean –"
"I was like you, once," he smirked, appearing out of the shadows as he ran a hand through his short, wavy and messy hair. Parts of his hair hid his eyes, but Sophie knew exactly who he is. Yet in this world this Sophie didn't truly know; even though she saw her father died she couldn't recall the demon that had done the act. "I was frightened too. Those shinigamis, they forgot about me," he chuckled, kneeling down to her and showing off his sharp, canine teeth, "they forgot you too, didn't they?"
"Why… y-yes," Sophie nodded lightly, "but what a-re you –"
"They call me the Apep, but you many call me Dorren," he smirked, slowly walking around her as she began to tremble uncontrollably. "Now, now~, don't cry. I won't hurt you~~" he grinned deviously, reaching his black glove to her chin and running his finger over her cheek. "My~~… no wonder Undertaker is keeping you from us," he chuckled lightly, "because… you have those eyes… of one who has been created for death." Sophie roughly swatted his hand away, shuffling away as he laughed at her. "If you have been created for death then why hasn't Death taken you yet? Why spend your life with Sleep? You shouldn't be living as a wandering soul, you're more~ then just a shifted demon like myself."
"I… I don't know –"
"Well if you want any help you'll have to come with me~" he smirked, "if you wish to… be shown what you have now become –"
"No," Sophie answered bluntly.
"No~~? –"
"No!" She yelled even louder, jumping to her feet, but falling back down as she scurried backward. "I'm not staying for you! I'm staying for mother and I'm staying for Uncle Taker! You hear me?! I'm not going with some damn demon –"
"You don't have a choice," he snarled, his claws growing as his teeth barred at her, "and I'm not leaving without you –"
"Undertaker! Death! Someone! Help me –"
She eyes widened, the demon grabbing her in a choke hold to keep her quiet, "Shut up," he snarled. "He's near –"
"Help!" Sophie continued to cry, tears streaming down her face, "I'll let you take me, death! I don't want to be a demon! No! Help!"
"Pesky little parasite," Dorren sneered, holding the young girl by her neck and began to walk away from the river with her in his grasp, "you're like your father. You don't know when to shut up!"
"You shut up!" she snarled back, gasping for air as his hold on her neck suddenly became tighter.
"You don't know when to quit. You know what you are. Just accept it!" Dorren growled at her, throwing her onto the ground as she let out a whine and tried to shy away from his grasp. He stomped on her chest and punched her in the face, Sophie letting out a frightened whimper as he pummeled her body. "You don't get it! You're like me! Just accept that you're a monster and be like me!" he cried out, the girl spewing out a large amount of blood as she tried to hide her face behind her hands.
"No, never!" Sophie yelled, keeping her head away from the demon as tears streamed down her face, "I'm not like you! I'll never be like you! –"
She let out a gasp, feeling her insides being ripped apart as the demon shoved his hand through her chest and squeezed at her heart. "You. Will. Be. Like. Me. Where you like it. Or not! –"
The choke hold around Sophie's neck disappeared, the girl falling and hitting the ground hard. She looked around in fright, noticing a large man suffocating the demon by gripping him around his neck. "You stay away from her Apbolos," he snarled.
"Or what?" the demon spat in his face, "What's the mighty Death God going to do to me now –"
"She is my family. You don't ever threaten my family –"
"If she's your kin why won't you reap her soul?" Dorren smirked, watching as the shinigami narrowed his eyes and let out a low snarl. "She's like us now –"
"You heard her loud and clear," the man huffed, "she's nothing like you –"
"Then what is she then?" Dorren tilted his head, the shinigami letting out a huff as he threw the demon to the ground and held his long silver death scythe against the man's neck. "What is she to you, Undertaker?!"
"None of your business," he snorted, stabbing his blade into the demon's neck and watching it roll onto the ground. "That's for Maurus," Undertaker spat on the decapitated creature's face, stabbing his scythe into the demon's chest and collecting the cinematic records that streamed out around him in an incredible rate. In a flash they disappeared into his scythe, the shinigami barely giving the records a fighting chance to escape as he ran a hand through his long silver hair and let out a tired sigh. He looked around; the spirit vanished before he had a chance to grab her. "Once again you've escaped Death's grip," he sighed, turning his back and walking back towards the city, "but one day I'll get you, my darling Sophia. Just you wait."
! #$%^&*()
Sophie ran till her legs gave out, falling to the ground with her head in her hands. The memories of one life and another, intertwining with each other in an attempt to confuse her. "Okay, okay," she breathed heavily, trying to wipe away the terror her body just felt. Dorren, demon, chains, torture, darkness… she had to remember this was a different world. His motives are probably obscured. The demon didn't seem as forceful as he once was; rather this was an attack on her life or attempts to avoid loneliness, not vengeance against her father or her family or any of the sorts. The demon must have had bad blood with her father, but he wasn't recognizing her as his kin. Rather as a species like himself, destined to fall as low has he fallen… the workings of a soul trying to avoid the enviable fate of falling into their own eternal hell.
Now Sophie had this problem. She was running from Death, yet she was no longer living. A ghost, wandering the world looking for a place to rest. Yet she couldn't, not yet. If her mother was still alive she would not rest… if Undertaker would not accept her then she would continue to run. If he simply gave her a reason… the poor girl had none. She roughly shook her head, a snarl escaping her lips. Sophie had to remember this wasn't her world, but even so there were so many hidden occurrences that pointed back to her real life. She simply wasn't certain on what was real anymore… if this was all one dream or her new reality. Perhaps this is the life she was supposed to have lived, tormented by her own mind with internal demons telling her to turn… become them… become a demon. Falling… that's what she was supposed to do, correct? In order for her other spirit to move towards the heavens she'd have to fall… or that's what she always thought. In her own world she simply let life live on, but here if she continues this game it will surely kill her from the inside out.
If she didn't feed on a soul soon her own soul will begin to feed upon her, slowly eating her from her innards out. Then the demons. They kept coming, smelling her as a wandering soul and a meal to be devoured. That, Sophie realized was the point to these demons. They are like vultures, wolverines, wolves, even dung beetles and maggots. They feast upon the remains of those that have been left behind like scavengers. That's what Sophie always saw them as… yet was she supposed to be this way too? After all Death picks up the pieces Life left behind. She kills every single day and barely thinks about the consequences. No wonder her own kind is considered daemons in Naum's world. It was so easy to say that… they were scavengers also. Taking the souls that are left behind, letting death come to the dying. Yet it's necessary, as everything is in these worlds. Life has to come, Death has to come, Light and Darkness has to come… some will rise and some will fall from their places in life, but it's up to Sophie to decide where she was going to go next. Will she follow the low road and eventually let herself be killed by Death or follow down the high road and become a demon like Dorren, feast on the souls of the dead, and survive for perhaps a few more years then she would as a shinigami. Both ideas… both ideas were internally ripping her apart.
She didn't know what to do… she didn't know anymore. Everything she had worked to obtain was slipping through her fingers; the sanity she would regain with Sleep was quickly leaving her whenever she was awoken from her naps. This thirst, this internal hunger for food and to survive was killing her… Sophie didn't know anymore if she should go one way or the other. Perhaps… she could create another way? One way she could go that bypassed the two paths and let her wander away from what she was supposed to be? The more she let her heart do the talking the more her mind told her to turn away. The more her mind told her to go one way her heart told her it was the wrong thing to do. She needed help, she needed someone… but there was no one who could understand her… no one… ever. Not even the Undertaker… not anymore…
Sophie chuckled lightly, realizing that she was crying. Quickly wiping her tears she stood up, looking up at the rising sun as an idea dawned on her. She was still herself. She had her natural fighting abilities; she remembered everything that she learned in her real life. She could still morph and change her appearance… she could alter her aura to become that of a shinigami. Sophie was afraid; especially the girl of this world, but it had to be done. She has to go to the shinigami realm; she has to find out what was going on. She has to find the Undertaker… she has to confront him once and for all. Before her consciousness deteriorated completely into insanity she had to confront him, ask him why he wanted her dead and why she wouldn't turn into a shinigami. She had done so before, what was so different now? She sighed, closing her eyes and wiping the blood and dirt from her knees. Her clothes slowly changed, a clean white robe clinging to her body as a large black cloak wrapped around her neck and a hood settled on her head. Rope tied around her waist, sandals appearing on her feet as the cuts and bruises disappeared from her body. This didn't mean she was still injured, but at least no one would be suspicious. Opening her eyes revealed bright shinigami green eyes as dull and unresponsive as she could make them. Once she entered the realm she would have to find one of the storage units, finding an appropriate outfit to wear before resuming her wandering. She wouldn't be able to find glasses without being caught or stealing one from another shinigami, which, if she could find a simple minded one, would be possible, but Sophie wouldn't do such a thing. Not here. No, she'll find her own or create her own. Perhaps the glasses she wore in her real life would appear to her… but it was a thought. Once everything was together the wandering spirit took off towards the shinigami realm, knowing full well that if her appearance doesn't keep up the beings will be upon her like flies on a smelly dinner plate.
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)(*&^%$# !
She held a grimace demeanor, a frown upon her face as the shinigamis walked past her. They all seemed… dull, well duller than normal. She came across Ronald and he seemed tired and frustrated. William looked boring, like normal, but Sophie could tell he was starting to feel bored, bored with his job and tired of working. Alan and Eric… well she didn't know where they were. And Grell… he wasn't around the complex either. Alexander wasn't there, of course, because she didn't sense any sort of half breeds running around. And Veronica... she wasn't there either. Which, she guessed, made sense, but she hoped she was alright without herself to guide her in the Americas and keep her demons away from her. Everyone seemed dull… gloomy. Sort of like mindless robots that did as they were told without much thought. It was getting on her nerves, but what could she do? Start talking? There didn't seem to be many female shinigamis running around, but hey in her own world there weren't a lot. Just… it was quiet, except for the footsteps being heard down the hallways.
Still, despite the annoyance that was apparent on her face, Sophie had a mission. After changing into the proper attire she was making her way up the stairs, only to find that after a certain level she needed an ID. Stealing one from a passing shinigami she went through the door, continuing up the stairs till she came upon another locked door. Trying again the card didn't work, sighing and shaking her head as she ran a hand through her hair. "How is anyone supposed to get around this place –"
Hiding she noticed a familiar face, a woman with long dark brunette hair grumbling under her breath as she took out a card and swiped it in the machine. Changing the format on the ID on her hand to match the woman's, Sophie swiped the card against the machine and the door instantly opened. "Sometimes this is too easy," she smirked, walking through and letting the door close behind her. The set of stairs seemed to stop there, which was odd because there were usually more than fifteen levels in these shinigami buildings. Once again Sophie had to remind herself she was in a different world, but even though the walls were painted white the rooms was very gloomy. The lights were dim and the place seemed empty, yet there were voices being heard down the hallway. Secret meeting perhaps?
She slinked her way around the hallway, hiding behind the cracked door and looking inside. Her eyes widened. This was the council, sitting among a circular table conversing with each other while they seemed to be waiting for someone else to arrive. She instantly spotted the Undertaker sitting on the far side of the room, who didn't seem to notice her quite yet. "So it has been reported that there's a new demon in our mists –"
"From a ripe, un-reaped human I believe," someone else commented. "Does anyone have the records of any humans that have not been reaped yet?"
"We keep a tight schedule," one of them said, taking out a folder to prove their point, "and in the records all humans have been reaped and accounted for, as of late –"
"What about souls that were supposed to have changed into shinigamis?" a gray bearded man asked, a few of the younger shinigamis looking over at him confused as the one who was holding the folder quickly looked to confirm his suspicions.
"… There are a few," the shinigami mentioned, a few eyes looking over at the shinigami speaking, including Undertaker's eyes from behind his thin, black framed glasses. "There are a few souls that have escaped our grasps and haven't come here to become shinigamis."
"Who are they?" the old-looking shinigami asked.
"… In the last two years there was a young boy named Leonardo Ainsley," the shinigami began, "a teenage woman named Celeste Keegan… Julian Quentin of Blackpool… and a young girl who lived in the London mortuary named Sophia –"
"This is rather ridiculous," the Undertaker snorted, getting everyone's attention as he interrupted the man's useful information. "What's the reason for discussing the souls that should have been altered if we have enough shinigamis already to fill in the jobs?"
"Undertaker's right," the woman next to him nodded, Sophie instantly recognizing to be Fiona, "We have enough shingamis here with many more to spare. There is no need to change them –"
"But now they are running about causing havoc!" a shinigami interrupted her, Fiona narrowing her eyes at the shinigami as he ignored her and continued. "They're falling! They're turning into demons!"
"Are you sure about this Kurtis –"
"I am certain," he huffed. "If the souls don't turn where do they go? Nowhere. So they eventually feed and become demons."
"Not necessarily –"
"Forty nine out of every fifty wandering souls will do this," another shinigami decided to comment, "and I would think the Undertaker, of all beings, would know this –"
"Though the other ones become angels," the Undertaker explained, "and, in all honestly, if we have enough shinigamis but the other species have very little."
A few of the shinigamis stared at him in shock, but the oldest looking man in the room, though Sophie knew that didn't mean he was the oldest, looked over at the Undertaker with an emotionless expression. "… Undertaker, what are you saying? Should we let the demons repopulate themselves, even after the accursed Black Death years ago?"
"Exactly," Undertaker nodded. "Think about this. If the world is imbalanced strange accordance will happen. Perhaps a horrible disease will infect our kind and wipe us to the brink of destruction. If we are as complex and superior to other species, as many of you seem to say, then shouldn't we also have in mind all the other species? Shinigamis are the only types of death bringers in the world. There are demons, angels, shape shifters, giants, monsters, all sorts. If these souls have already fallen they have fallen. It is their destiny to do so, I suppose," the man shrugged, "and if they don't then they don't –"
"Yes, but should we truly let them disappear into the swarm of demons just because we are repopulating faster than the other supernatural beings?" Fiona decided to comment, quickly getting Undertaker's attention. "Isn't that very heartless to think like that –"
"We are beings of Death," Undertaker snorted, "and we are supposed to work levelheadedly, indifferently, heartlessly… we are only supposed to judge whether they should live or die, where they go in life once they die. That's our jobs, nothing more. If you wish to go against Death and the rules of the Universe be my guest, but I won't stay around for long if it is our own faults that this world is destroyed by your own visions and ideas." He narrowed his eyes at one man, a being sitting across from him on the other side of the room and caused that shinigami to glare back at him. "Isn't that right, Earthborn? You wish to control death, but yet you're only a human soul that was changed. You can't possibly think you can acquire this unless you were already born supernatural –"
"Undertaker," he chuckled lightly, Sophie trying to catch glimpse of this man, but was unable to because of the dim lights, "are you still against me? Even after all that I've done, after all I have acquired for our species? Huh?!" He stood up, slamming his hands on the table, glaring the man down as the others shifted slightly or narrowed their eyes at the shinigami. "I was born for Death like those souls Stephen had described and many here among us would agree. What you say is against our rules –"
"Not the rules that have been established since the beginning of time," Undertaker huffed. "Your so called rules~, Earthborn, have only been around for two thousand years, perhaps less if I recall. Yet the rules I talk about have been around since the beginning of Time. Do you really think Death and Life were the first created beings? Do you even know there are these types of beings? Probably not," he chuckled lightly, "because you're simple minded, like a human, and you only think of yourself and your own needs, like humans do."
The man sneered, a death scythe suddenly appearing in his hand. The others stood up and pulled out their scythes to defend themselves, but Undertaker slowly stood up and gave him a monotone expression, waiting for what the being would do as Earthborn growled and hissed at the being. "You… you don't understand us. You don't! You think you're so high and mighty, well you're not Undertaker –"
"I wasn't the one who put me on a pedestal," Undertaker snorted, "and I'm not the one who tried to control death. Death cannot be controlled, Earthborn… simple as that. Not even I can control him, so don't expect your pitiful self to do the same –"
"You bastard!" Earthborn narrowed his eyes. "You think you know everything, but you don't –"
"Of course not," Undertaker smirked. "How could I? I don't have infinite wisdom. The being who does disappeared from existence to make this place more fun~. This is all a game Earthborn, and you're close to losing, I see."
"No, oh no," the man growled. "I'm not going to lose anything, you are! Temperance, Hawk, pin him down!"
"This is mutiny!" one of the shinigamis yelled back, a swarm of shinigamis jumping upon each other to keep each other restrained. "What are you doing Earthborn?!"
"This is my place and my rules!" Earthborn snarled and turned to glare at Undertaker, who stood tall and proud as the rest of the council members began to fight around him, either on the man's side or on Undertaker's side. "I say that the Undertaker's time is done!"
"Oh~~?" Undertaker tilted his head to the side, making no movements to summon his scythe as he crossed his arms over his chest and gave the being as smug expression. "You plan on killing your creator Earthborn? After all~ I've done for you –"
"You've looked down on me since the beginning!" Earthborn growled, "And now it's time for you to disappear Undertaker! I'll kill you with my bare hands and then I won't have to listen to your crap!"
"Now who's~ the one that has fallen?" Undertaker smirked, Earthborn narrowing his eyes and letting out a yell. The man made no moves to pull out his weapon, Fiona letting out a startled cry to him to move as he stood firm and waited for the being to chop him in half.
His eyes went wide, unable to cut through as the Undertaker stared at the man confused and looked down. "What the –"
"What are you doing here?!" Undertaker snarled, grabbing the small soul be the back of her collared shirt and pulled her behind him. "Earthborn, back off –"
"Never!" he yelled again, his shinigami green eyes beginning to glow a bright red glimmer as he slashed at the other being. Undertaker quickly evaded, keeping the child behind him as he shoved past the others towards the door. "I'll kill you! I'll kill you and everyone who stands beside you! I'll kill you all –"
"Demon!" Undertaker snorted, his hand on the door as he glared at the turning shinigami, "You're falling Earthborn and now you're at the bottom. Go to hell and live like the demon you are! I should have never turned you into a shinigami! I knew you would end up like this, but hey it was an experiment." He chuckled lowly, causing the man to growl and run at him with as much force as he could muster, "You're just a bloody experiment!"
Laughing the Undertaker slammed the door, Sophie letting out a frightened yell as the shinigami called Earthborn smashed the blade of his scythe into the door and let out a frustrated snarl as he began to turn the knob and pull his death scythe out of the door. "You shouldn't have come," Undertaker huffed, continuing to pull Sophie by the end of her shirt as he hastily walked down the hallway to the stairs. "You shouldn't have Sophia! –"
"I wanted to know why!" Sophie began to cry, tears streaming down her face, "So now I know! You never wanted me?! Never?! You wanted me to be a demon! –"
"No my dear –"
"Yes you do!" Sophie cried out, trying to squirm free, but unable to get out of the shinigami's grasp as he shoved the door open and jumped down the spiraling stairs to the bottom. "I'm like that Earthborn! You should have changed me! Now I feel so… hungry and… cold." Undertaker paused, stopping for a few moments before shoving the door open and continuing his jump down the stairs. "I thought you cared! I thought you wanted me to be like my father –"
"Never," Undertaker huffed. "You should have let me reap you at the beginning Sophia. You don't want to end up lonely and alone like your father and I –"
"But I won't be if I'm with you!" she cried, yelping as he pulled her closer under his arm and began to dash at the bottom of the stairs and down the white colored hallways. "I just want to belong somewhere! Is that too much to ask –"
"Yes it is," he told her, causing Sophie to quickly become quiet as she stared at him baffled, the man suddenly pausing as he stopped at the large doors that led out into the world outside. Then the Undertaker began to laugh, holding his other hand up to his forehead as he stared at the ground and laughed. Sophie shivered in fright, his laughter increasing as the seconds wore on, the laugh of a madman… a shinigami that has cracked and has thrown themselves off of the line between sanity and insanity to plummet into the insane abyss below. "I don't want you to become like me! You are a brighter soul then myself! Even brighter than your father! Do you expect me to just let you stay here, let your soul become twisted because of these senseless shinigamis? No! You're mine! And I won't let you fall to my level! –"
"UNDERTAKER!" they heard from above, the man letting out a snort as Sophie began to yell and he flew through the door. He ran as fast as he could past the white shinigami buildings, out of the shinigami realm, and further into the human realm beyond.
Her vision became blurry, but all she was thinking was the words the Undertaker had spoken to her. He didn't want her to become like him?... Why not? What's so bad about being a shinigami? "… Why Uncle, why?" Sophie sniffled quietly, her face in her hands as tears streamed down her face. She couldn't control herself, she began to cry. She simply didn't understand what was happening and now she didn't want to figure it out anymore. If forty nine out of fifty unturned souls become demons then she was supposed to, right? That's what he wanted her to be… right? She wouldn't stop crying, even as the world stop spinning around her and they found themselves far away from the shinigami realm, even far away from the foggy smells of London and past the salty air of the sea. She didn't care where she was, but she knew one thing, the Undertaker was going to take her now… and she shouldn't keep running away.
She felt the grip on her collar loosen as Sophie continued to shiver in fear, her eyes widening in horror as a gloved hand lifted her chin up to stare deeply into the Undertaker's bright shinigami green and yellow eyes. Undertaker frowned, the frown on his face causing the girl to stare at him in an unsettling way as he sighed and ran a hand through her long, auburn hair. "… I didn't mean to upset you," he began softly, speaking quietly, but enough for the spirit to hear, "but… you shouldn't be here anymore –"
"Why not?" Sophie frowned, tears continuing to steam down her face as she choked back tears. "W-why not? I just… w-want to be w-ith you... Did… d-did p-apa say you should do this –"
"Don't blame your father," Undertaker shook his head, "this isn't your father's fault… it's mine." Sighing again he gently put his hand on her shoulder, standing up to look at the scenery around them. Sophie gasped, realizing where they were. They were out in the middle of nowhere, out in the sands of a cool, crisp desert. "I…" he began again, quickly getting the girl's attention, "I wanted… I didn't want you to become like me." He shook his head and sighed again, looking down at the ground as chuckles began to leave his lips. "You ask why? You saw. I turned that being, that Earthborn you saw. I was his creator… actually I was a creator to many shinigamis," he shrugged, "and I can turn you with the simple touch of my hand… but I don't want to –"
"Y-you hate me –"
"Nothing of the sort," he smiled, looking back down as he ran a hand through her hair, Sophie sniffling and looked away. She knew that if she tried to run the being would grab her, so she stood under his grasp, letting him stroke her hair, which felt so nice after being away from his touch for so long… almost twenty eight years… and yet it felt like eternity. Sophie hadn't noticed she was cuddling closer to him till it was too late, yelping when she felt her body right next to his leg and tried to move away. When she began to struggle he gripped her closer to his body, tears streaming down her face while she tried to run away. "… You have a chance to become an angel, you know," Undertaker decided to continue, tears streaming down her face while she was pinned close to the shinigami's body. "You have a chance… if you continue in this world your father will surely come back to make you pledge his oath… but… if I let you pass on… you won't have to worry about those things. You can be dead and not have to worry about the troubles… all these troubles I face because I am alive… alive but not yet dead for many years… a living dead man." Then he crouched down to her level, a smile on his face as he ran a hand through her hair to push the bangs out of her eyes. He frowned, noticing the look of anger that glimmered in her eyes, noticing how far she had already fallen after only less than a lifetime. "Sophia~… let me reap you. You're too perfect for this world… you don't deserve to fall like a shinigami. You shouldn't become a demon… Don't… end up as twisted … as myself –"
"N-no," Sophie sniffled, grabbing his face as she looked at him through worried eyes. "I… I want to stay with you, and if you wish for me to vanish… I'll disappear." She blinked, letting the tears in her eyes fall down her cheeks as she noticed the sadness quickly appearing in his eyes, "Uncle Taker… I love you. I love you so much that it pains me that you want me to disappear. Why do you want me to leave… w-why –"
"I just… don't want you to be around," He frowned at her, her eyes widening at his words.
"You… don't want the pain of losing me, huh?" Sophie realized, the Undertaker blinking at her waiting for her to continue. "You… think that bottling up your emotions is good for you? Huh?"
"Yes –"
"You shouldn't do that!" Sophie began to cry again, causing the man to take a step back as she stepped forward and clutched her hands tightly. "One day you'll end up imploding! You'll start crying uncontrollably and you won't be able to stop! You're start killing when you don't have to, causing people pain even when you don't want to! I know it's hard to see those you love die, but it happens! It happens Undertaker –"
"I know!" Undertaker snarled, "I know! I'm sick of this! I'm sick of seeing everyone I love die and I can't! All I got left is Fidda and you."
Sophie stared at him confused, "Fidda? –"
"But if I know you'll be fine then… then I won't worry," he chuckled lightly, his hand shaking as he held back all his emotions deep in his heart. "I can't stand to pass you on till I know you'll be happy… but… you're not letting me do this Sophia. This is very hard, you know… now you know…"
She blinked, wiping the tears from her eyes as she took a few steps backward. "So… are you going to kill me now –"
"Only if you wish for me to do so," he smirked. Sophie gave him a slight smile, but then looked away and shook her head.
"Uncle… I love you, but you must understand that I should stay alive," she told him, his smile waning as she continued, "and I wish you would understand this, but I guess not… We love you Undertaker. We love you. I don't know why you insist that I die, but I won't move on till you're done being lonely. Like my mother Undertaker… I won't be able to rest till I know you've passed and you've stopped your tears. That I know you've passed on and are happier… that's my wish. You should know that."
He chuckled lightly, though he held worry on his face as he gently petted her hair. "Sophia… please, let me reap you. I can't deal with this anymore. Please…"
She shook her head, taking a step back away from his hand, "N-no –"
"Sophia, please –"
"No –"
"Pleeease~… for me –"
"I-I don't want to die yet –"
"Come on –"
"No –"
"Sophia –"
"No! Please no!" She shook her head, her eyes widening as he reached out his hand to grab her again. Sophie let out a yelp and evaded his hand, tears falling down her face again as she clutched her chest in pain. "I don't want to die! I don't want to leave you Undertaker! –"
"There you are!" a voice came from above, a being suddenly grabbing hold of the Undertaker while he pulled out his long silver scythe to defend himself.
Sophie let out a yell, being thrown backward by the Undertaker's hand as he stood between the soul and the tainted shinigami. "Earthborn," he growled, "you shouldn't have come –"
"Die! Stay dead for once Undertaker!" he snarled, slashing his death scythe at the man, but Undertaker skillfully held back his attacks while keeping Sophie behind his back. Then the creature reached out his hand for the soul, Sophie letting out a cry as she slipped through his fingers, but Earthborn gripped hold of her necklace and snapped the chain in two. "Get back here –"
"Don't you dare touch her!" Undertaker yelled, forcing himself upon the being as Earthborn's bright green shinigami eyes widened in shock and he was forced to retreat backward. Undertaker began to move on the attack, the other being trying to block his attacks, but ended up getting slashed several times in the shoulders and along his hands.
Sophie stared from afar as she held back her cries, feeling empty without the necklace around her neck. Then something suddenly wrapped its arms around her body, the spirit looking up in shock to find a being with dark bat-like wings grabbing her tightly to his chest, his light silver-green hair falling over his eyes as he hugged her tightly. "I thought I had lost you, but I found you before it was too late," he smiled, Sophie's eyes widening in shock.
"N-naum? –"
"If we stay here you'll die," he continued, looking over at the two creatures before pulling her tightly into his arms. "It's time we leave now."
"But, but Naum –"
"This isn't your world. These events aren't real," he told her, narrowing his bright silver steel and emerald eyes at the soul as she trembled in his grasp, "Do not worry. This Undertaker isn't the real thing… this was made up by the voices. Now let's go. We must leave."
"But, no –"
"Come," he continued, pulling her tightly as a bright light shined behind him and he spread his wings out to fly backward into the beam.
"No! UNDERTAKER! HELP ME!" she reached out her hand, the shinigami looking over in shock only to get slashed in the arm by the Earthborn. Sophie gasp in horror as she watch the man stagger, tears streaming down her face as she began to disappear. "I DON'T WANT TO LEAVE YOU! DON'T LET ME GO!"
)(*&^%$# !
A/N: And… end scene! Yes, another cliffhanger =D Just so you know I haven't been writing this story for a while. I don't know. You know the feeling of working on something for too long? Yeah, I feel that way right now. So it's hard to continue with this. Plus there's other stories and I'm currently doing a 100 themes challenge on my deviantart account, also starting a new tumblr blog with an 'ask japan' type of thing… but yeah. That's why this story hasn't been updated in a while and why my other stories haven't been either. I suppose I've been working on my Hetalia stories, but not really those either… because of the theme challenge. Well I'll talk to you soon. I'll try to start commenting you guys more often and responding. I'm getting lazy in that department. Well… BYE! =3