It was late at night when I woke. I could feel it in the way my eyes took an extra moment to come open before I swung my feet out of bed. Across the room, a shaft of moonlight fell through the thin curtains, leaving watery patterns on the floor and giving me enough light to see by. I ran my fingers along the wall as I went, navigating my way downstairs in the dark somehow without hitting a thing. In the dim light, it felt like I was walking through a museum of strange objects. They lurked around me in the shadows, still as statues, watching my every move. Daylight would have revealed the mysterious shapes to be nothing but normal furniture, but when night fell, the coin of reality seemed to flip to the opposite side. The darker side. Things became different.
A chilly breeze slapped me in the face when I poked my head out in the door, bare feet exulting in their contact with the smooth surface of the concrete. As I walked, I caught a glimpse of my reflection in the neighbors' windows and almost changed my mind. No one at my office job would recognize me now, not with the 2-sizes-too-large t-shirt and sweatpants. But I continued on, following the slight tugging on my heartstrings. I had a reason to be wandering the apartment complex at 3 am.
I turned a corner and padded down the stairs. The further I descended, the more a strange smell increased. It somehow managed to roll the scents of black coffee, pine needles, cigarette smoke, and rain into one. Those were only the aspects of it I could define. If someone had to think of one word to describe it, they would probably say "wild." Moonlight puddled in the parking lot outside the archway at the bottom of the stairs, all except for a hulking shadow on the sidewalk. When my feet left the last step, the shadow shifted and turned in my direction, glowing yellow eyes opening without a sound and staring down at me. I walked up to it without fear. The same smell wrapped around me like a loved one's sweater, along with a warmth like a sunny afternoon even though it was the middle of the night. The closer I came, the more details I could make out. The shadow most resembled a huge black wolf, but its paws were lost in the darkness of its tail.
It lowered its head to my level, and I felt a puff of air on my face as it smelled me, ruffling the wisps of hair on my forehead. Satisfied, it sat back and studied me for a moment longer.
"Hello again." A soft yet strong voice like a forest breeze spoke into my mind.
"Hello." I smiled and sat down on the ground across from the wolf. "How is the job treating you?"
"Heh, I've had worse occupations. I'm getting better at it with every day. It's not as shocking now, but it still takes getting used to sometimes."
"I can imagine." The words left my mouth before I could properly consider their meaning. How could I possibly imagine what it's like to be Death?
The wolf had a similar thought. His fur appeared to bristle around the edges and he shrunk into himself a bit.
"Forgive me, but I don't think you can."
"You're right. I'm sorry, I didn't think."
"Like always." The words sounded spiteful, but the wolf's tone softened when he spoke, rather like an older brother teasing his younger sister.
"Wow, you just had to play that card." I laughed to myself and shook my head. "But yeah, I've gotten us into so many...scrapes." My voice dropped on the last word. My mistakes were the reason why he was even in this mess.
Every hundred years, Death has to retire and choose a new form, and every hundred years, that someone is chosen from our family. That's how it's always been. Tradition. And out of all of my brothers and sisters, Death just had to pick me. I was so young at the time, nowhere near old enough to take on the weight of the position. While Death is a dark character, he is reasonable, so he'd accept a trade if someone was brave, or stupid, enough to offer. Enter my brother. He'd always been there to look after me, by my side while we walked home from school, a towering defense to keep the bullies away. One look from him and their insults would retreat the way they'd come.
My brother.
I looked up at him, edges of his fur lit from behind by the moon, and in that moment, I wanted nothing more than to have him back. A silver tear trickled down his angular snout, and I realized he was crying. Never in my life had I seen him cry. And then I remember. He wasn't much older than me when he was chosen.
"It feels terrible, sisi." Hearing my old nickname after so long was enough to rip my heart to shreds inside my chest. "When I come to some of the souls, it's their time to go, but others... they're too young. Some of them are just kids. Orphans, sometimes. And all of the people who've jumped off of bridges or vanished in the woods... I can feel all of them, and when they call, I have to go to them. I have no choice. I have no choice..."
He lowered his head, shoulders shaking, and I scrambled to my feet, ran to him. I stretched my arms as far as they could go, placed one hand on either side of his enormous snout, and rested my forehead on the bridge of his nose. For a moment, all we could do was stand there. I twirled my fingers in his fur and felt his tears run over my arm. They left silver trails on my skin, and they burned a little, but I didn't mind.
"Sisi." He pulled away slowly to look me in the eye. "I'm not a terrible person...am I?"
"Oh no. No no no no no." I shook my head, tears blurring my vision as I looked back at him. "You're one of the most amazing people I know. Life just hasn't been kind to you. If you were a terrible person, you wouldn't have taken my place when Death picked me. You'd have left me to do the job myself like I deserved. The choice was up to you, but you chose to do the right thing even though it cost you, and it cost you a lot." I buried my head in his fur, saying the words aloud and in my mind so he could truly hear me. "Don't you ever think you're terrible. Everyone else in the world might, but you've always got me. I love you more than anyone else on this earth. You hear me? You are good."
Those words echoed over and over again in my head. He sat silent for a moment before he let out a sigh. It sounded like the weight of the world had been removed from his shoulders. A small breeze chased a few dead leaves across the street, ruffling his fur, and he shrank, his form changing until a darkly dressed human stood in front of me. He looked just like he had the day he left, like nothing had changed. I reached up, hardly daring to believe it was him, but when I wiped the tears away from his cheek, he was still there.
"You are good." I wrapped him up in a hug and held on tight, held on even when I felt his tears soaking the shoulder of my shirt, held on like the world was ending, held on for dear life because for just this moment, I had my brother back. And for this moment, even though I couldn't hold onto him forever, having him here was enough.
Author Notes: 'ello everyone! really hope you like this story. it was a random pinterest-inspired idea, but i had fun writing it. please comment and tell me what you think. :D
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