Chapter 127 - Scythe to Meet You

School supply shopping was a little less interesting, and Evelyne seemed to try to get more involved, probably upon realizing left to her own devices, Morrigan might not actually grab anything.

Can I really go back to school? Isn’t that kind of crazy? I mean, I’m a reaper. Besides, I don’t want to deal with the rumors and gossip that’s probably been going around about me. I also don’t want to put Emma in an awkward position because she won’t want to ditch me, and then she’ll probably catch crap from people just by association.

These were the thoughts spiraling through Morrigan’s head when Evelyne suddenly pulled her out of it.

“Alright, notebooks, binders, pens, a backpack. What else do we need for you?” she said, trying to get Morrigan more involved as she noticed the forlorn look on her face.

“Mmmm. I dunno. I guess that should cover it. Right?”

Evelyne frowned slightly, then when she looked ahead, something seemed to catch her eye. “Oh, I know. How about a laptop?”

Morrigan jolted. “Ah. No, I really can’t ask you to buy something like that for me.”

“No, I promise it is fine. In this day and age, it’s essential. I do have a computer room, but a laptop would be much more convenient for you.”

Before Morrigan could argue further they were at the computer section. Upon looking at the prices, she jolted again and then started scanning for cheaper ones. The cheapest she saw was still a whopping four $400. The clothes were one thing, and TV another, but by the time this lady was through, she would have spent over a thousand dollars on her. How could she possibly let her do that?

“Evelyne… listen. I appreciate it, I really do, but…”

 The older woman turned to her. “Are you really that worried about the price?”

“You just met me not even twenty-four hours ago,” Morrigan said, turning her face to hide herself behind her hood. “I… I’m really not comfortable with that. You shouldn’t be spending so much on me. It feels like I’m taking advantage of you.”

Evelyne’s voice softened. “You’re not taking advantage of me. You’re my granddaughter. I know we’re practically strangers right now, but…” she trailed, let out a slight sigh. “Okay, you know what? No laptop, then.”

Morrigan let out a sigh of relief. “Alright, thanks.”

Little weird I have to thank her for NOT getting something for me. But geez.

“Well, I suppose we have the essentials for now. Oh, when do your classes start anyway?”

“Um. I don’t know. A couple of weeks, probably? Usually late August.”

“That’s what I thought. We’ll check later.”

Morrigan stopped a couple of steps behind Evelyne as she paid for everything at the checkout counter. Her thoughts began drifting once again, going back through her summer—the demons she’d fought, the one currently quite literally living under her skin, and all the souls she’d reaped. So many. She’s seen so many people die while she just stood by and watched, and she sent so many souls to the next life. It wasn’t always bad. Sometimes she could even convince herself she was doing something good, but that didn’t change the that she wasn’t some ordinary teenage girl, and this woman—her grandmother—had no idea that she had invited a monster into her life.

“Alright. Ready, Morrigan?” Evelyne asked, snapping her out of her thoughts once again.

“Yeah.” She followed Evelyne out into the sunlight.

“So how about we grab that TV for you—and before you feel guilty about it, consider it just a matter of completing the room. I’d like to get one in there anyway.”

“Yeah, that’s alright.”

Another thought gnawed at Morrigan as she climbed into the car. Is this what’s normal? Going clothes and school supply shopping with a guardian – more typically a parent. Her mom never took her shopping. She’d just toss a bag full of clothes on the kitchen counter and tell her to “knock herself out.” She didn’t always mind that, though, because in those bags would be precious supplies she could turn into something beautiful. But this… this was different. As for school supplies, it was much the same, but usually, she had to ask her mom first, and mom would bring home the notebook or pencils or whatever it was. They never went shopping.

Morrigan let out a long sigh, not meaning to be so audible with her distressing thoughts. Then she felt Evelyne’s attention come back to her.

“You alright?” Evelyn asked, softly probing.

“Yeah. Just... thinking,” Morrigan muttered as they pulled out of the parking lot and merged into the flow of traffic.

Eventually, Morrigan said, “You know... I don’t really watch TV. Maybe we could go to Hobby Hut instead? I’ll kill a lot more time just sewing and listening to music.”

Evelyn’s face brightened. “Of course! But how about we also get some speakers or a radio?”

“Um. So, there are Bluetooth speakers that aren’t too expensive, and I can just connect my phone. Actually…” Morrigan thought about her room and everything she had left behind. “If we could just go back to my house for a few minutes, I have a speaker there and a ton of supplies. You wouldn’t really have to spend anything.”

The air in the car thickened. Evelyn’s knuckles tightened around the steering wheel, and for a moment, the only sound was the soft hum of the engine.

“I don’t think that’s the best idea right now,” Evelyn said evenly.

Morrigan raised an eyebrow. “Why not?”

“Well… As you know, your mother doesn’t quite know you’re with me yet.”

“So what? She’s going to find out anyway, so why the secrecy? Besides, she’s my mom.”

“I know it’s just,” Evelyne took a breath. “I spoke to Saffron about it as well, and she agreed—”

“Why does she have a say in anything?”

“Morrigan. I think it would be best to give you a little time to settle. And it would be better for your mother as well if we wait. She’s still recovering, and I don’t think it would be right to put any extra stress on her.”

“Yeah, like the stress of thinking her kid’s in a shelter or jumping around between foster homes?”

“I know it’s not ideal, and we will explain everything to her,” Evelyne said. “Just… not right now.”

Morrigan clicked her teeth, folded her arms over her chest, and shot her glare out the window, just staring at the suburban landscapes drifting by. “So what? I’m supposed to just pretend she doesn’t exist?”

“No. That’s not at all it. Please don’t think of it that way.”

“I mean, what the hell is with you two? I know my mom’s stubborn, but what the hell happened where you’re so afraid of seeing her?”

Evelyn’s voice came out suddenly harsh. “We’ll get into that another time. I don’t want to do this right now. Can you respect that?”

Morrigan froze, cautiously watching her drive for a moment. There was a heavy silence hanging in the air now. Morrigan sat back, pulling herself inward. “Yeah, fine. Whatever.”

The rest of the drive to Hobby Hut was steeped in silence. Once they parked, Evelyn hesitated, keys still in the ignition. “I do not mean to patch things up with Anna, nor do I want to keep you away from her. Just, for now, at least, let's give it some time. Okay?”

“Sure,” Morrigan said simply and climbed out of the car.

As she walked through the parking lot, approaching the front doors of Hobby Hunt, a sense of guilt pulled at her. She didn’t know what the deal was between her mom and Evelyne, so she thought maybe it was wrong for her to judge… right now, anyway. After all, she couldn’t deny that Evelyne had been more than accommodating with her. Nobody, at least no adults, had ever been as kind to her as Evelyne had tried to be since coming into her life only yesterday. Not to mention she’s been willing to spend so much money on her.

The bell above the door jingled as she entered the store, the smell of fabric and craft supplies a surprisingly soothing balm. She didn’t feel Evelyne over her shoulder, and she didn’t wait for her either.

She began wandering through the aisles, eyeing an assortment of spools of thread and bolts of fabric. Sewing was one way she was usually able to keep herself calm. It was something that made sense. She’d take pieces, stitch them together, and make something whole. Something better.

Approaching it like this was new, though. Usually, she’d have some old beat-up thing to fix up. The fabrics were nice, but what exactly was she supposed to do with them? Not to mention, she didn’t have her sewing machine, which turned hours of work into minutes. She grabbed a chord of white fabric that would be good for embroidering new seals.

“So what now…” she said under her breath as she wandered down another aisle. If she could go home, she had plenty of scrap clothes she could work with. Maybe she could get Evelyne to let her run wild in a Goodwill store next. But she didn’t want to directly ask for anything, especially after giving her such a hard time.

She noticed a shadow moving out of the corner of her eye, then heard a familiar sophisticated voice. “Morrigan.”

She sighed and turned to see Noir perched on a shelf.

“What now?” she groaned.

“I have your list for the day.”

“Took you long enough,” she said dryly.

“Did you prefer I bring it up in the car in front of your grandmother? Or maybe in the changing room back at that clothing store? Because you’ve already made it clear how you feel about me approaching you while you are disrobed.”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “Yeah, don’t do that.” She sighed and looked up and down the aisle to make sure nobody would see her talking to a cat. “So, what’s on the agenda today?”

“To names are three and four hours from now. However, another has already died, and he is about a quarter of a mile from here.” His tail flicked lazily, his demeanor of a weatherman who just finished and was waiting for the screen to cut to something else.

“Are you kidding me!?” Morrigan hissed through her teeth. “Well, what do you expect me to do about that, then?”

“I’m only the messenger, you know. Just be glad it wasn’t further away.”

“Well, you should have told me sooner!”

“I intended to, but I already explained the issues with doing so. Besides, I saw you were heading in the right direction, so I the best course of action seemed to be to just tell you now.”

“Okay, so uh… I know we’ve been late before. What’s, like, the window on this? It’s not like he’s going to hollow out right away, so can I swing by later when I do the other two?”

“Any purposeful delay on the part of the reaper will be considered a violation. Being that you’ve only recently been assessed by an arbitrator, it would be ill-advised as it may reopen her case.”

Morrigan shuttered as she thought of Alice, of those creepy scarred lips smiling at her and that cruel, playful gaze in her eyes.

“So, what am I supposed to do exactly?”

“I would suggest taking a short walk a few blocks down and reaping the soul.”

“Are you forgetting something? Like the fact I’m with Evelyne, and I’m already known for running away?”

“I’m not the one who insists on you trying to live this human life, so don’t blame me.”

She put up a middle finger. “Seriously—fuck off.” She turned abruptly away from him and reached into her sleeve to retrieve her list and unraveled it. She confirmed the name was on their current street and the time of death was indeed ten minutes ago, then rolled it up and returned it to her sleeve.

“Damn it…” she muttered under her breath. “Well… I guess there’s no choice.”

She went to the end of the aisle and got a peek towards the front of the store. She didn’t see Evelyne, but she was probably wandering through the aisles herself right now. So, Morrigan engaged her perception blocking.

Just an ordinary non-goth shopper walking through, don’t mind me, anyone, she thought as she casually scrolled past the carts and to the front door. She glanced over her shoulder just once to see Evelyne walking along the aisle on the other end of the store, looking up each aisle as she passed. Crap, she’s already looking for me. Uh. Well, maybe she’ll think I just went to the bathroom or something… actually…

Morrigan made sure nobody was looking her way then went over to the clerk tending the nearest counter. “Excuse me, is there a public bathroom in here?”

“Oh yes,” the clerk smiled and pointed. “It’s just towards the back of the store that way.”

“Thank you,” Morrigan said, waving a hand and walking that way. After several steps she checked back over her shoulder to see the clerk was focused on her computer and then reengaged her perception blocking and doubled back, speed walking out the door this time.

She wasn’t sure which way to go once she was outside, but luckily, when she glanced down, she saw Noir padding along next to her. “Okay, which way?”

“Head left and keep going, I believe.”

“You believe? Well, you better be right; I don’t have time for an easter egg hunt right now,” she said angrily and started moving.

Okay, quarter mile… how long will that take to walk? If I jog, maybe I can get there in five minutes?

She groaned and started moving her legs faster. She couldn’t even shadow step, thanks to it being a bright sunny day. Some heavy storm clouds would have been very appreciated.

She felt the sun beating down on her as she ran, her black hoodie doing her no favors as far as that went. At least she had shorts on, but the jeans still weren’t the best for running in the heat, and she silently made the decision to only reap in the summer while wearing boyshorts and skirts from now on.

As she made her way out of the shopping plaza she already felt herself growing winded, and she crossed over a patch of grass into a neighborhood. Luckily, as soon as she made it onto the neighborhood streets, she saw the flashing lights of an ambulance ahead, just a couple blocks down. “Great…” she muttered, slowly down her speed a little.

“Don’t forget your perception blocking. Blending in as a paramedic may be best.”

“Yeah, I got it,” she snapped at him.

When Morrigan reached the corner and got a clear view of the house, she saw the paramedics wheeling someone out on a stretcher. A sheet covered the still form beneath, leaving no doubt it was a dead body. If that wasn’t proof enough that this was her client, though, the spirit of a fat, middle-aged man stumbled out of the house next, arms flailing.

“Hey! Hey! Don’t just ignore me! What the heck is going on here? Explain yourselves!” he shouted at the paramedics, his voice shrill with panic.

Morrigan sighed, a pang of sympathy twisting in her chest. She didn’t have time for a lengthy conversation, though. She’d have to abandon her usual bedside manner and give the poor soul the short version before sending him on.

She engaged her perception blocking, taking on the image of a paramedic.

Though… why would a paramedic be walking from over here? Oh well, as long as no one looks too closely, it’ll be fine.

But as she approached, something strange caught her eye.

One of the paramedics was looking directly at the spirit.

The fat spirit had given up on arguing, just watching as the paramedics loaded his body into the ambulance, perhaps just beginning to grasp the truth of his situation. But unmistakably, one of the paramedics who was standing off to the side kept his eyes on him.

That can’t be right. Morrigan blinked, He must be looking at something else. But he looks so focused…

Then the paramedic started walking toward the spirit. His hand reached to the side, and a flicker of blue light in his palm snagged Morrigan’s attention—That’s when all the pieces fell into place. She saw the red glow of his eyes, the navy blue of his uniform bleeding into black... A hood materialized over his head—

The reaper swung his scythe as soon as it finished forming. The blade cut through the spirit, who managed only a strangled yelp before dissipating into the air.

“An... another reaper?” Morrigan whispered, her body locking up.

For the briefest of moments, she thought it was Death, just dressed in more modern clothing—There was grey fur around the edges of his and he wore jeans with a chain dangling from one of the pockets. Besides the clothing, all the other details were wrong—the shape of his body and the structure of his skull. This clearly wasn’t Death.

“Noir?” Morrigan’s voice wavered. “Don’t tell me you got my list mixed up with someone else's?”

“That’s not how this works, Morrigan.”

“So... is he an arbiter then?”

Before Noir could respond, the reaper tossed his scythe away, letting it burst into blue flame, then began walking toward her. The faint red glow in the hollows of his skull fixed on her.

Morrigan tensed, wondering what to expect.

The reaper raised a skeletal hand in a wave. His voice came out in a raspy drawl.

“Hey there, rookie. A little late, are we?”
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Chapter 128 - Co-Worker 2