Sunrise/Sunset

Death's Embrace

"He's just a child! Ten years old, and now he's dead. Why? Once was enough but twice is just... just cruel." her tone was laced with hatred, the type of hatred rooted so deep that she wondered if it could ever be forgiven.

"I cannot control who falls into my arms, you must remember, I am only responsible for catching them. Your brother is safe and he will be okay, but for now my concern is that you are okay. Which you will be again, even stronger than before."

"I don't want to be stronger, I just want them back. My mom, my brother, and everybody else you took from me."

"I'm sorry you're hurt, I truly am, but time heals all wounds and that is all I can give you. Time. Do you wish me to leave now?"

"No," her voice fell to a whisper.

"As you wish," the figure nodded his head, "I'll be here as long as you need."

With that, there was silence. Aislyn's mind swirled with grief and anger, and eventually the two emotions blended into numbness. Her limbs were limp and her shoulders sank, while Death stood near and watched.

Hours passed before Aislyn peeled herself from the floor and shook off the ache in her heart.

"I hate you so much." she meant to shout, but the words barely formed a whisper.

"And why's that?" his voice was calm, steady.

"Because you hate me. And you don't even try to hide it."

"Now pardon my bluntness, but I would argue that is rather hypocritical of you. I do not hate you, not at all, and I believe you do not hate me either. I am not the one to blame, however I will take it upon me if that eases your sorrow."

"Why?" Aislyn muttered.

"It's my responsibility." and that was all.

Time went on, months passed as Aislyn couldn't stop thinking about him. She felt for him, although she couldn't tell what that feeling quite was. And instead of slowly forgetting him, as she had before, she began to miss him. She longed for the peace he brought her, yet she wondered if she would ever see him again.

Until a few months later Gwendolyn Brooke, Aislyn's older sister, was reported dead.

"I understand this feels unfair, and perhaps it is. Three losses in less than a year, that's truly awful." Here he was again, heavy yet comforting.

"I know," Aislyn replied apathetically, staring blankly at the tile beneath her feet.

"Is there anything I can do or say?"

"Distract me. Please, somehow." she sighed. "Tell me how you became like this."

"Well by like this I assume you're referring to how I became a being rather than a human."

Aislyn nodded sheepishly.

"The boring answer is that... I don't know. This is the only life I have known." he noticed the dissatisfaction in her face, and he decided to go on. "But I've come up with a sort of theory. A theory that I was once a human, like you, full of love and pain and all of the wonderful emotions I've witnessed.

"I believe that my time on earth was cut short when I lost myself, perhaps from a tragedy or some sort of heartbreak. My spirit was corrupted from this, and I was never able to move on to a better life. Sort of like this is my punishment for allowing my heart to become so cold. I try not to think of it as a punishment, though, but more as an important experience that allows me to heal people. People like you."

"I see," Aislyn said thoughtfully, intrigued by his answer. "If your theory is correct, I hope you can be human again. Maybe that way you wouldn't have to leave me, and we could be together forever."

"Oh." now, Death had heard some bizarre things in his time, but this may have been one of the most interesting, "I suppose that's not such a bad idea."

"I thought so." she smiled, "You're good. I know not very many people see it, but I do. And I dare admit that I may love you."

Neither one made a sound, and perhaps they weren't even breathing. They didn't know what more to say or what not to say, so they said nothing at all. He was pensive, she was wishful. He considered this, though her mind was already set.

"I'm afraid I don't know what love feels like." he at last admitted.

"Well, what do you feel for me?" Aislyn asked softly.

"I care for you," he began, slowly.

"And? What else?"

"I want you to be happy, and I want to help you heal."

"Darling, that's what love is," she said with a smirk, "A feeling that you can't quite place, it's scary yet you can't control it. In fact, it practically controls you. And I think we love each other. We care for each other an awful lot, wouldn't you agree?"

"But..."

"Don't worry, you'll know if I'm right." she shrugged confidently.

"I suppose. If care is love, then I do love you." then he vanished.

This time it was a mere three days before he returned. But Aislyn wasn't distraught from her grandfather's death, she was simply elated to see her lover again. And, she had a plan.

"You know my stay won't be long today," Death whispered.

"Why's that?" Aislyn's heart dropped.

"Because you're not hurting. If you recall, I only stay with you as long as you need my presence."

"But I always need you here, so why would you leave me?"

"People only ever need me until they're healed, and you are practically healed already." he sighed, "I've noticed a sudden shift, Aislyn. The deaths of your loved ones are no longer a burden for you, for whatever the reason may be, and that is why I must let you go. And you must, in turn, let me go."

"But isn't that a good thing? That I don't mourn them anymore or dwell in grief? I've moved past it, I'm stronger, I could have everyone I care for die and I would still be okay! Isn't that what you wanted from me?" her words spilled out of her mouth in scattered sentences.

"No, no, you've got it all mixed up. Grief is normal, it helps the heart heal, and as soon as that pain is gone, so am I. I have to leave now, because you're not hurting. You don't care that your grandfather has just died, nor your sister Gwen, your brother Bruno, your mother Sylace. It would be one thing if you had healed completely, but you have not. Aislyn, you simply do not care. Goodbye."

"How could you say that to me, I love you!" the young woman stood up frantically, turning her head in every direction to find him.

He was silent.

"I... love you," she repeated.

"You love me for the comfort I provide you, and that is all." he thought to himself.

"And... you love me, right?" her voice broke and her lip quivered.

"I do. I love you along with everyone else in the world who needs my help. I'm afraid of what has happened to your heart, and what may have distorted it. You've become obsessed with the idea of death, with the idea of me, and my only wish is that you can recover from this."

"I'm not obsessed," she cried, "For a while, I thought the only way I could see you was if somebody I loved died. But... dear, now I know. That was foolish of me, and I'm sorry. I said that I wished we could be together forever, and I now know how. I love you still and I know you love me too. Which is why I have to do this."

Death watched, puzzled, thinking of what she could be referring to. He had tried to be honest with her, he had tried to be kind, but perhaps she was too far gone to be saved. He wondered where it all went wrong, and if it was his fault.

"No!" he then called out, as her body fell towards the floor. He caught her, though, as he promised he would. But she was cold, pale, still. Her chest did not move, her eyes were glazed over.

And it is here that we find ourselves back where we were at the beginning of this story, although perhaps you have gathered a different meaning now. For it seemed she had found what she had been yearning for, a stroke against her cheek, the sweet embrace of death.