Death's Apprentice

18

"No!" Death rushed to the window. As he looked out, hands grasping the frame, he tensed. He looked back at me. "Come on, kid." He jumped out of the window. 

I moved to follow his example, only for what happened at the Eiffel Tower to come rushing to the front of my mind. "Uh, Death?"

"What?"

"Won't I just float?"

Death stopped and turned. He stared at me from his place halfway up a hill. "Not if you want to fall." And then he started running again.

"How does that make any sense?!"

"Just do it!" he yelled, not bothering to look back at me.

"Since when were we in a Nike commercial?!" I hopped the windowsill. True to Death's words, I fell. Wind whipped around me, tugging at my cloak until I landed. A grunt tore from my lips as sharp vibrations carried up through my legs. I straightened and took off after Death. The world moved at its usual pace.

Mud squelched under my shoes, belying the rain that had passed through the area earlier. I did my best to avoid the numerous holes littering the soil, but, eventually, my foot slid into one. I winced, somehow managing to come away unscathed. The longer I ran, the longer I went without any sign of Death, the more I wanted to haunt the cross-country runners. 

After entirely too long spent running, I saw black contrasting against the field. I shifted course so I would come up behind Death. When I neared him, I slowed to a stop. "Where'd she go?"

He sighed. "No idea." He glanced back at me. "But she couldn't have gotten far. You go that way, I'll go this way." He gestured in two directions. They weren't quite opposites. I nodded, and we took off. 

 The way he had me take was mostly field. The rest of it was rocks, with a ruin thrown in for diversity. That was made of stone. The open grass gave way to a pocket of close-packed trees. Little streams of sunlight dappled the leaves littering the forest floor. My pace slowed past a walk. It was hard to maneuver around the trunks, low hanging branches, and thorn bushes; my feet slipped and slid because of mud and leaves. I almost fell a couple of times, narrowly saving myself by catching hold of a tree. I stepped on twigs, and they issued loud snaps in protest. 

The longer I walked, the further I ventured into the woods, the smaller my hope of finding her became. If I tried, I wouldn't be able to find myself. I had been turned around and knocked off of the singular direction I had been given the moment I stepped into the treeline. To my left were trees, to my right were trees, in front of me were trees, an, behind me were more-

"Holy Jesus!" I yelled. I meant to swear on, you know, Jesus, but the same force that prevents swearing on heaven and hell forced the name into that of the bartender from Paradise. My scythe slipped from my hand. Wings slapped the air as birds launched from their perches, releasing sharp calls in protest.

Harper stared at me, her eyes glowing in the shadows. She didn't make any move towards me; she just kept staring at me with unseeing eyes. A shudder ran down my spine, and I took a step back. Before I knew it, I was pressed against a tree with a hand wrapped around my throat. 

"If you say a word, you'll regret it." Her voice was soft, barely audible above the rustling of leaves. Her hand tightened around my neck. My heart clenched, and panic shuddered through my veins. That lasted a brief moment; it ebbed when I realized that I was dead, meaning I didn't have to breathe. It returned a moment later. I had no idea what she was going to do with me. I had no idea if she could destroy me or not.

I swallowed as best as I could and threw my legs up, expecting to drop to the ground and slam her head against the tree. Nothing happened, except my feet were left dangling.