The InBetween

Fifteen Past Excuses (Life's POV)

Life tended to think they were a good person. Yeah, unfair, cruel to people at times and seemingly very biased. But that's just how they've changed according to humanity. At heart, Life was a good person,  willing to excuse any kind of transgressions one may have pulled in their life and give them a second chance. Plus these are KIDS, if anyone deserved a second chance it would be the ones with the untimely deaths. But of course, just as they were about to change fate's design, Life's aforementioned 'better half' had to step in the way.

"Life, dear," Death said calmly at first before snapping "What in the four dimensions do you think you're doing?!"

"How do you know it's me?" Life retorted. When all else fails, gaslight.

"You are standing right in front of me." Life's other half said flatly.

"No I'm not."

"You are."

"How can you be sure I'm even here?"

"Life-"

"This could be your mind messing with you? Pulling out those morbid illusions huh?" 

"Life!" Okay, so the gaslighting was a trick Life had pulled a few times in the past. Almost worked on very rare occasions but they'd get caught in the end anyway.

"Um, sorry," Connie spoke up from behind Life's leg "Who are you?"

"Is this your accomplice?" Miguel asked enthusiastically "Your better half you mentioned earlier?"

Death smirked "So you admit I'm the better half?"

"Never met this man before." Life stated, pulling the kids along with both hands "C'mon, we've got places to be."

"I'm Death," The reaper introduced themselves, making Connie and Miguel turn in shock "Or the grim reaper, or Anpu, Hela, Thanatos, or whatever mythology you kids believe in. Pleasure meeting you. I'm glad you made it to the light safe and sound."

The light? Life couldn't help but read Miguel's thoughts on this I remember him.

Life felt the odd emptiness yet safeness Miguel felt as the boy remembered a figure made of shadows leading toward a light.

The boy took Death's hand and shook it firmly "Oh, you're freezing."

"Sorry about that," Death replied "I was just in Greenland overseeing a father's overdose when I got...a feeling."

Life felt themself break out into a nervous sweat "A feeling?" 

"Yeah, a bizarre feeling that things aren't really as balanced as they should be," Death narrowed their eyes at their other half "Life, can I take a moment to discuss that with you?"

Death didn't wait for an answer. They brought out their cloak from nowhere and tossed over the pair. The darkness of the cloak fully encased the two, and suddenly it looked like they were just standing face-to-face in a pitch-black but wide room.

"Tell me the truth."

"You should be the one to tell the truth. I know you're not actually sorry about your hands being freezing. That's just the way they are!"

"Life."

"Okay, okay! So, I was in the castle right? Just minding my own business when I heard a child desperately crying for me!"

"I can already tell where this is going, so say no more. Just listen, you are NOT going to hell to save the two other sacrifices that had been taken and bring them back to their previous life, do you understand me?"

"Now what makes you think I was gonna do something silly like that?"

Death went on to list off fifteen past events where Life had tried to cheat the system and interfere with the balance of the life and death count. Whether it was encouraging a dumb teenager to keep swimming in the frozen lake or showing a ninety-seven year old all they have to live for and how their life has 'only just begun.' Over the billions of years those two spent on earth, Life had become more and more persistent on letting humans live longer. They got what they wanted eventually with human life expectancy being way higher than it was in a time like the 1930's. 

"That didn't satisfy you though," Death said "And now here you are trying to once again to cheat me out and save souls already long dead."

"They aren't long dead. It's only been half a day. Maybe a full day at most! But in Earth time it could be minutes if we're lucky!"

"Minutes would be pushing it. Besides, aren't these two happy with their new afterlives?"

"They can't be if one trespassed the castle begging for my help."

The blazing warmth and light of the sun hit like a train as Death removed their cloak from the pair. Miguel and Connie were about twenty-feet away, looking around confused and calling out for them. "We're here!" Death said. To Life, he simply spoke with an inside voice. But they both knew Death prefers to throw his voice over rather than actually shouting. 

"Where did you guys go?" Connie asked wondrously "You brought out that pretty cloak , then SWISH you both disappeared with a black wisp!"

"I needed to sort things out with my other half," Death explained with an uncharacteristically warm tone in their voice. "But it's all okay now. You guys have a new accomplice working to help!"

Life gasped as the kids cheered and high-fived "Thanks!" All three of them said.

Life stared right into Death's eyes. Death looked back and copied the same serious look.

Why?

Why not?

No seriously, why?

You know how much I love saying "I told you so," when your terrible plans go awry. This right here is a golden opportunity to say it.

Well damn. As rude as that was Life felt relieved that Death just wanted to rub it in their face without any ulterior motives. With that the newly assembled team of four headed off to exit the gates of Utopia. 

Possibly for good. 

"We need a team name." Miguel said.

"Team doomed?" Connie suggested.

"I was hoping for something a little more optimistic."

"Team LDMC!" Life spoke up "It rolls off the tongue and has all our initials."

"What do you think Death?" Miguel said. Life was surprised neither of the kids were as intimated or scared of Death as they assumed. Maybe already being dead made them realize they have nothing to lose.

"Team," Death decided "It's easy, done and efficient. Team it is."

Death pulled the cloak over them as they arrived at the gate. On the other side, an angel was just opening it up for an elderly couple. Miguel and Connie awed at the darkness as Death led them out of Heaven. "How exactly does this thing work?" Connie asked.

"It works like an invisibility cloak," Death described "Though sometimes I use it for private talks with clients."

"Clients?"

"Some might recognize they're dead before I have a chance to reach the light. So while they're in hysteria I'll keep us both inside the cloak until they are fully ready to go."

Death removed the cloak and the four found themselves just in front of the stair case. Below was Limbo and the river. Right away Death descended and Life kept the kids occupied by answering their questions.

"Are you an angel and is he a demon?" Miguel asked.

"Oh no," Life explained "We are neither angels nor demons. We're deities of sorts. Think of a hierarchy, Death and I are just above omens and just below God and Satan. It's why we can travel anywhere we want in the four dimensions. But our work of keeping the balance often grounds us on Earth. Been like that for centuries now."

"Why did we find you in heaven then?"

"I was taking a break, just going to collect a smoothie then I'd be right down to see another thousand childbirths when Gabriel and Destiny knocked."

"Do you guys have your own palaces? Seems like you would."

"Whenever we can," Death answered this time "We go to purgatory and look through the lost and banished souls there. We have a temple of our own their seeing as we're the only ones looking after them."

These questions continued until they were all the way down the steps and once again in the mystical forest. Death looked at Life, a half smile of cockiness forming "Okay dear, run that plan by me one more time please."