As Far As I'm Concerned [Ziam Palik AU]

iv. The Cautions of a Reaper

       His father and “the girl he loved with all his heart”, as Ed had put it. Zayn remembered him whispering to Josh about seeing them again, and though it was unknown to him how they had died, Zayn supposed it didn’t matter. Death was death, and to most humans, it hit harder than anything else out there.

         There was another lapse in silence before Louis spoke, finally breaking his cover-up smile and sighing heavily. “I wonder what his last words were,” he murmured, words laced with curiosity and sadness.

          Zayn thought back and didn’t actually remember there being any last words, at least not after he came. There was just the usual tension and internal gears whirring with the stress the hell-demon was putting on them, and that was it.

         “I’m sure he’s alright now,” Zayn offered after that, though he discretely looked down at the grass under his feet, wondering if ages below, Josh Devine was being dragged to hell. It wasn’t a pretty thought, but definitely a possibility, especially with Ed being involved.

         “Grand,” was all Louis muttered in response to that, turning away again with a slight scowl that told Zayn he didn’t really believe it either. Hey, at least he was a realist, even without knowing it.

           Zayn remembered that most humans weren’t. At least, he wasn’t, even when he died.

         “Wait, you’re serious? All you have to do is touch people?” Zayn jogged a bit to catch up with Isaac as he walked away from the smoldering remains of Zayn’s accident.

        “Well when you put it that way…” Isaac trailed off and sent Zayn a suggestive smirk before turning serious. “Really though, this isn’t supposed to be some peepshow gig, mate. And just touching people is what it becomes after a while. At first, it’s more complex than that. Takes more focus.”

           Zayn frowned a bit. Being a reaper hadn’t seemed that hard before in description, considering he didn’t have to wear a black cloak and guide spirits to the “other side” or anything. Apparently, he still did have some work to do though.

            “Okay, so… what more is there to it then?”

            Isaac smirked again, something he seemed to do a bit too commonly for comfort. “Baby steps now. First, you need to learn cloaking, which is kind of supernatural slang for being in your true form, which is also invisible to humans, by the way. It’s also the only way you can reap, then you’re at your full potential and all that.”

         Zayn wondered what his true form looked like then. He didn’t think anything had changed when he died really, considering he felt like a ghost of some sort and Isaac did too.

         “No one likes the term,” Isaac continued. “But we’re technically demons, which are darker to humans, more like light shadows in true form. You’ll rarely be noticed, only glanced by at most.”

         This continued to go on and on. Zayn walked with Isaac and asked the occasional question while Isaac was surprisingly patient in answering and explaining them. Once they had cloaking down – essentially just relaxing and letting the natural form reveal itself – Zayn was taken to actually reap someone.

      He wasn’t going to deny it, Zayn had been nervous. It was supposed to be focusing on someone’s soul and pulling it from the body in a gentler way – which sounded literally terrible – and though it wasn’t technically killing them, it felt like it.

         “Loosen up, mate,” Isaac said, but Zayn was finding it hard with the sudden discomfort in his gut, confirming that reaping was now his nature and he needed to get it done. Zayn Malik was no longer human. “This one is really easy.”