A/N: It has been SO LONG since I've had time to write. Pandemic stress and having everyone at home 24/7 really killed creative pursuits for the last year. I feel quite rusty, so please let me know if anything sounds out of sync. Any comments at all will be deeply appreciated and used as fuel to keep going with this!

Lord Death forced himself to leave his nearly demolished office and shut down. He felt guilty as hell for doing it but recognized his need to process recent events if he wanted to handle them effectively. Between them, his secretary, the Death Room puppet, and Spirit could keep things running for a while. They'd notify him if something earth-shattering occurred. Well, publicly earth-shattering. On a personal level, he couldn't imagine things possibly being worse. Hence, the pacing and swearing in his private rooms with what he imagined a headache might feel like.

Reduced to only five senses, cut off from the rest of the world, Lord Death confronted his demons. One of his best people was a broken mess. His beautiful Sophie was in a coma that he'd put her in, turning her into a sleeping beauty he was afraid to wake. After missing her for so long, Death wanted nothing more than to transform, by some magic he didn't possess, the mad creature downstairs back into the vibrant, intelligent, complex woman she'd been. The woman who had cherished him for two centuries. Who had been his loyal eyes, ears, and strong right hand out in the world he could not enter. Who unhesitatingly called bullshit on him when necessary. Who had given him their son.

And that son must also be considered. The boy was in absolute pieces, and Lord Death only had himself to blame for it. Liz had been right the night before. He should have set some time aside for once, revealed the truth, and helped Kid through the difficulties the revelation about his mother was sure to cause. It would have been hard, but nowhere close to the level of horror and heartbreak his delay had caused.

His chest tightened, and he couldn't breathe for a minute. When he finally got air into his lungs, he used it to swear at the bathroom trash can and gave it a good kick. Long ago, Death thought he could remove his capacity for fear - to embody it in his oldest son and turn it into a weapon for good. Now he knew better. Fear can't be thrown away like an old shoe because it's a living thing. A seed in the soul that remains dormant until love comes along to nurture it. When he'd fallen for Sophie and worried about her ability to live as a Reaper, that seed began to regrow, although he refused to acknowledge it. When he watched his son take his first breath, his heart nearly cracked in two with the force of his love for the squalling, red-faced baby boy. And right on joy's heels came fear; that the tiny baby would grow up to follow in his brother's footsteps, that Death could never be the father that Sophie expected and that Kid deserved. You can't; Lord Death knew now, truly love without terror.

He stalked past a bathroom mirror, and his reflection startled him. His crumpled grey suit and right cheekbone were splashed with Kami's blood. The less said about his tie, the better. His hair looked as bad as Patty's did in the morning, and Patty always woke up looking like she'd been in a train wreck. He wasn't as fastidious as Kid, but Death was never slovenly. The suit went into the dented trash can; there were dozens just like it in the closet. He took a quick shower, then indulged himself in the comfort of silk pajamas and a robe before settling on the bed for some weighty introspection. He'd barely started before hearing a tentative "knock-knock" out in the hallway.

"Come in!" he said and was startled again, this time by the exhaustion in his voice. Liz finagled her way in with a tea tray and nearly dropped it at the sight of him lying down.

"You look like hell," she said, alarmed by his ashen face.

Death managed a tight, fake smile, "So do you." He wasn't wrong, but it was heartwrenching to see his pretty daughter looking ten years older than she had the previous night. It felt like a very long time had passed since he'd sent her, dressed in blue and all excited, to her concert.

"Should I come back later?" she asked, "I mean, if you were gonna take a nap, you should. You really don't look good."

"No," he sighed, and she put her tray down," I'm just thinking. Trying to, anyway. I can't seem to work through this."

Liz padded over and handed him a cup of tea made just as he liked it, with some of Patty's peanut-butter cookies piled on the saucer. "Cookies for breakfast?" Death asked, lifting an eyebrow at her.

"Can you think of a better day to start with junk food?" Liz curled up on the end of the bed; her sparkly toes nails out of place with her baggy pajama pants and messy hair. Her somber mood reminded Death once again of her at fifteen, copping every attitude she could get her hands on while sipping the first of hundreds of cups of tea with him.

"So what's up?" he asked, "Is everything okay?"

"You mean, is anything worse?"

"That's exactly what I mean."

Liz rolled her eyes, "How does it get worse than having a psycho wife, a beaten-up Deathscythe in the hospital, and your son being a legit lunatic?"

"What kind? " Death asked warily, "Like normal-level lunatic or panic-button lunatic?" He wasn't sure he had enough left in him to deal with the latter.

Liz shrugged, "Somewhere between the two? He was a total mess last night, and today he's trying to pretend like nothing's happened. I got him to eat and sleep a little last night, but I can't do anything with him this morning. He woke up with a mad on, drank six cups of coffee in utter silence and, shut himself up in his study. He's a freaking time bomb. Patty's watching him in case he goes off. "

"I'll go talk to him"

"Be careful, " Liz warned, "He's working on that stupid Death List, and I think you're on it."

"I don't blame him. He's mad as hell about his mom."

"Well, yeah, but he also broke up with Maka last night," Liz said, "Soul texted me because they were having a huge-ass fight. The neighbors threatened to call the cops, and Kid almost set their apartment on fire. That's when I got ahold of you and sent the car over to get him."

"I was hoping they'd get things straightened out this morning, but their bond is still closed," Death sipped his tea wearily, "They're both stubborn as mules, and I've been worried about a break between them affecting your team. I need that weapon Maka's devising. I don't know how close you guys are getting, but sooner rather than later would be nice."

"And If Kid and Maka won't work together because of their personal shit, later might turn into never." Liz finished glumly, "Let them chill out for a couple of days, and then I'll see what Soul and I can do. Pretty sure"

Death gazed at her fondly, and this time his smile was genuine, "I'll make a politician out of you yet," he teased. She snorted at him.

"Doubt that. If Romeo and Juliet decide not to play nice, I'm gonna let Patty and Black Star loose on them and whip their asses into shape."

"See? Perfect politician!" Death finished his tea, took a deep breath, and stood up, "I'm going to see Kid." he announced, looking far from pleased by the prospect.