So...if you guys aren't caught up with the manga I suggest you get caught up with the manga before reading this chapter. I don't drop any major spoilers, per say, but I do explain several things about Shinigami that is directly cited from the manga (hence the title).

And...knowing these facts about the shinigami plus the fact that I'm meshing Kuroshitsuji II in with the manga for the plot of this...well...I did some things. I did some things with characterization and all I have to say is that I am a terrible person. I made myself cry a little bit with what I have just done but apparently I also have #NORAGRATS.

ENJOI! Or try to! lol

United States 2014

Artie

For the most part, Spring Break was pretty uneventful. I hung out with Sebastian for pretty much all of it, he creatively found ways to avoid meals by playing with the cat, but he did find out that he likes potatoes. Sweet potatoes, regular potatoes, mashed potatoes, cheesy potatoes, anything that has the word "potato" in it. And randomly assorted meats so long as they're seasoned correctly. Basically, Sebastian found out he was Irish and Dad found out that he liked the demon way too much to play the "intimidating father" card.

It was ironic that the Irish Catholic parents were in love with their daughter's demon of a boyfriend. Granted, they didn't know that Sebastian was born and raised in hell (he also found creative ways to avoid that question). They also didn't know that he developed a habit of wandering into my bedroom every night under the façade that he was "following Luna" in an attempt to entertain himself during the nocturnal hours, only to crawl straight into my bed and aggressively cuddle me until my parents stirred the following morning.

I swear, the only other thing I've seen that man fixate himself over more than a cat was me. Granted, I couldn't complain. I liked the attention and was slightly relieved that I stole a slightly bigger slice of the demon's heart than the world's population of cats had. If demons had hearts…that was one of many questions I had about demons. I mean, I knew they had anatomical hearts; the man had obtained scrapes and bruises in the time that I had known him and I could hear his heart beating through his chest every time I went to hug him. But if he had a figurative heart, that was another question entirely…Sebastian raised his eyebrow at the question whenever I brought it up out of curiosity and either shrugged in confusion, not to sure himself, or laughed and insisted that demons didn't have that kind of heart for it wasn't in their nature. But I would beg to differ! I mean, what kind of heartless being could care so tenderly for his mate and—

"Artemis?" Sebastian's voice brought me back to reality as I realized that my thought train had taken off to ramble city yet again. I shook my head, trying to focus one whatever I had missed in the conversation while I was spaced out.

Beside me, Chris snorted from laughter. "Sorry, Sebastian," my brother guffawed, "You're dating someone who only lives on earth about 40% of the time."

I shot the kid a glare, "Hey! Look whose talking!"

Before the two of us could erupt into a daylong battle of wills, I felt my phone buzz in my pocket. I glanced at the screen to see Trent's name pop up and without thinking, I pointed to my parents that I would be in the living room and answered my phone.

"Trent!" I answered.

"What's up Pancake!" Trent responded. I rolled my eyes at that but couldn't keep from smiling as Trent continued, "Listen, I have a huge favor to ask you. And by that I mean I basically just need you to help keep me sane for a little bit."

"Isn't that always my job?" I teased. "But sure, what do you need?"

"Gabe's coming to visit for a few days," Trent answered and that was all I really needed to know.

Gabe was Trent's older brother. I never talk about him because…well…I met the guy once and that was because he helped move Trent into the dorms back when Trent was Theresa. I knew that Gabe knew that Trent was nonbinary because I had to hold the kid's hand during the entirety of that phone conversation and he seemed really okay with it. But that was part of the problem. That was on a phone conversation. Trent had really only talked to their brother on the phone over the course of the last three years. And half the time Trent couldn't even get hold of him on the phone because he was always traveling. Well, that's what he told his younger sibling, but I could never be sure. Casey hadn't even met the guy and Casey was Trent's girlfriend! Now that I think about it, she hadn't really met Trent's parents either, but we all had a pretty good feeling as to why (and how Trent has been able to pay for college is beyond me…I can only imagine the student loans).

So in summary, the fact that Gabe was coming to visit was either going to go really really well or really really bad.

"Shit," was all I could manage. "What's he visiting you for?"

"I dunno," Trent groaned. "He just called me out of the blue last night and said he was nearby and wanted to see me. Said he'd take me to lunch tomorrow."

"Huh," I raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah," I could practically hear Trent's grimace through the phone. "Listen, I hate to do this but is it possible if you come with me to meet with Gabe?"

"Of course!" I responded before I could even process the information. And that's when the thought hit me: "Trent?"

"Yeah?"

"I thought you were with Casey this week."

"I…was…" Trent squirmed through the phone.

"And you're currently not because…?"

"She and her parents kind of got into a fight the first couple of days of spring break so I excused myself before I could give her dad any reason to disown her."

"Oh shit," I groaned, pressing my thumb and index finger against the bridge of my nose. For an agnostic family, Casey's parents were really devastated by the news of their daughter being bi. And while we had all thought they had gotten over it, her dad was getting pretty agitated about the whole thing lately and you better believe that her parents treated her sexuality like a joke as if it didn't exist. Needless to say, Trent and Casey didn't make it too widely known to Casey's family that they were actually an item (much less that Trent was planning to propose to her within the next few months—which was really hard for Trent who at least wanted to ask her parent's permission to marry Casey). But I think they were still picking up on their relationship and Trent was becoming less and less welcome amongst Casey's family.

"So yeah, now I'm in your neck of the woods since you're on the way to school from Casey's. Figured I'd get a head start home," Trent explained, before adding, "And apparently Gabe happens to be in town as well."

"Trent," I began, "Do you need a place to stay for the next few days?"

"Artie—" Trent began, as if they were trying to stop me, but I cut them off.

"Trent, it's fine! I can ask my parents," I shrugged.

"No, Artie, really, you don't need to," Trent pushed. "Besides, isn't Sebastian taking the guest room currently?"

"Oh come on Trent," I rolled my eyes. It's not like the demon slept anyway. And if we needed a façade, Trent could always double up with one of us. "Let me call you back, okay?"

"Artie-!" I heard Trent's voice protest as I hung up the phone. I felt kind of bad, cutting my friend off from whatever they were going to say, but I could always resume the conversation once I got Trent's sleeping arrangements figured out.

Sebastian

He listened to Artemis's end of the conversation in the living room while simultaneously observing her parents' reactions. The moment Artemis said, "I can ask my parents," he watched the couple deflate slightly and glance over at each other, as if they knew exactly what was said on the phone and exactly what sort of situation was about to play out. The demon held in a sigh, there was a time when he shared that kind of telepathy with his mate, though that time had since passed and Sebastian was still in the process of building that intimacy up with Artie, whether the human realized it or not. He heard Artemis hang up the phone and he presumed she was returning to the kitchen table. Before she reached them, however, the demon felt his own phone buzz within his pocket. He pulled it out and stared down at the screen.

A text message from Trent.

Sebastian opened it to find a speech bubble, typed out in all capital letters, "DO NOT LET ARTIE ASK HER PARENTS ABOUT LETTING ME STAY WITH YOU GUYS!"

He raised an eyebrow, both recalling a conversation he had about his mate's sexuality days before sided with a conversation said mate had had with her parents at a dinner table months before where they gently teased her about her relationship with Trent in a presumably accepting way. Sebastian sighed heavily and could guess easily where Trent's mind was going, but he also knew Trent's tendency to panic about the smallest things all too well.

But still…he trusted Trent's instincts. Probably more so than he trusted his own.

Artemis returned to the kitchen with an unassuming expression on her face, unaware of Trent's panicked text message and the peculiar glances her parents were exchanging with one another.

"Artemis, while you are up, could I also borrow you for a moment?" Sebastian asked, rising to his feet. Artie held up a finger signaling that she would comply in a moment, her intentions fully dedicated to talking to her parents.

"Hey Mom?" She began, but before she could continue, her mother let out a heavy sigh.

"Artie, we don't have the space for Trent to stay with us," she answered. She then gave Sebastian a tired look as if she knew full well that her response—though firm and unwavering—would not be accepted.

Sebastian knew that expression all too well by this point in his long life.

"I know, I know," Artie pried, "But hear me out, Trent got kicked out of Casey's place and needs somewhere to stay. It's just for a few days until we go back to school on Sunday!"

"If Trent needs a place to stay, then why doesn't she just go home?" This time is was Artie's father's turn to speak up. "Is it just me or does she bum places to sleep off of you girls a lot?"

"They are not bumming off of us, Dad," Artie argued, "And it's not like Trent has anywhere to go!"

"If that's the case then how is Trent still in school? Where is the money to pay tuition coming from if Trent has nowhere to go?" William persisted.

At this, Artemis didn't have an answer, yet she still insisted, "Guys, please. Trent is my best friend and it's only for a couple of days. I can share a bed with someone if need be!"

"You are not sharing beds with anyone!" Karen erupted suddenly. All present froze under the suddenly tense silence. Artie stood in place, her shoulders trembling slightly and her blue eyes wide, both women stared into each other's eyes with a ferocity that was unmatched unless up against the current opponent.

"Mom," Artie spoke in a low voice, "That was three years ago…"

"I don't care," Karen snapped back.

"Three years ago," Artemis trembled, "I was a confused eighteen year old girl who didn't know anything about the real world because I spent my whole life sheltered under a rock. What was I supposed to do, Mom? Tell me! You still can't let me live that down! You still get mad at me for it! You tease me for it on a good day! Even when I've grown up and found the love of my life! You still can't let me live that down and you still can't trust me!"

By this point Artemis was roaring she was so upset. Karen, in turn, reared back as if she was going to go for a counter strike. Instead, however, she submitted to her daughter and let the woman have her moment to cry.

"Alright, fine," Karen grumbled, "If you want to run around with Trent this weekend then be my guest but I suggest you figure out a way to arrange their sleeping quarters on your own."

Artemis glared at the woman in silence for a moment before quickly turning around and stomping to the front door, opening it, then slamming it shut as she exited with her keys and wallet in hand, leaving Sebastian to sit there uncomfortably with the woman's unusually tense family.

As Artemis disappeared, William let out an exasperated sigh, "Well that could have gone better."

"You think?" Karen retorted. "When will that girl learn?"

"If I may ask," Sebastian dared to venture into dangerous territory, "What does she need to learn?"

Karen let out another groan in a way very similar to Artemis and responded, "Artie…got a little confused when she was a freshman. She was exposed to several things and for a time there she thought she was gay."

The demon raised an eyebrow at that and the woman continued, "As a result she and Trent had a bit of a fling and…things haven't really been the same ever since."

"How do you mean?" Sebastian asked.

"She won't talk to us," William admitted. "She used to talk to her mother about everything in high school. About the boys she liked, about her homework, her extracurricular activities, and so on. But now…she's got it in her head that we don't trust her."

This time, it was Tristan's turn to speak up, "Well, you basically just told her she can't share a bed with her friends."

"I don't want to hear it from you, young man!" Karen barked before she held her face in her hands and admitted, "Okay, that part was unfair of me, I know. It's just…I'm not comfortable with the whole homosexual thing. I'm trying, and I love Trent, she is a great kid but…that lifestyle…that's not my daughter, is it?"

"Well, I wouldn't call it a lifestyle," Sebastian grumbled. Karen looked up sharply at Sebastian, her gaze suspicious. The demon concluded that what Artie had said of her mother was true. She accepted others as they were, but she couldn't wrap her head around the fact that her daughter might not be a part of the token majority. However, his mate was wrong in one area: it wasn't so much that Karen wanted her daughter to conform so much as it was that Karen's thinking had yet to evolve to a point of accepting her own children as being a part of something she couldn't understand. Sebastian smiled politely and added, "But to be fair, Mrs. Thomas. It's not Trent who Artie is in love with, is it?"

Karen glanced up at the demon, her eyes a deep blue much like her daughter's. She seemed rather taken aback for a moment but then she laughed and said, "No, Sebastian. I suppose you're right. She loves Trent dearly, yes, but…my daughter's heart belongs to you, Sebastian. Even an old lady like me can see that."

Great Britain 1888

Agni

Sebastian and Ciel looked downright deflated upon returning to the townhouse the next morning. Apparently they had left early to inquire with a photographer to see if he knew anything about the recent murders. And by the looks of it, the inquiry didn't go so well.

"Unbelievable!" Master Phantomhive grumbled as he stomped his way through the door. Artemis stepped gently behind him to grab his hat and overcoat, but the boy all but threw his belongings to the floor.

"I take it Mr. Turner wasn't very helpful?" Artemis guessed.

"The buffoon didn't know anything!" Ciel roared before promptly stomping up the stairs and into his office, running Prince Soma over in the process. Agni ran to his prince's side as the boy cursed out in pain—Ciel appeared to have stepped on his head in his rampage—and attempted to soothe him as he helped him to his feet. Agni couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at Ciel's statement however. Sebastian had discussed the information related to the case in detail with both Agni and Artemis that morning as they prepared to wake their masters.

"I thought Mr. Turner was your only suspect?" Agni asked as he stirred a pot of curry. Sebastian responded with a gruff sigh and made a little more noise than usual putting tea in the kettle to brew. Agni sense that Sebastian was either exhausted or frustrated and he began to offer the butler help but was stopped when his gaze met Artemis's. The woman gave him a stern look and shook her head, apparently sensing that Sebastian's mood was beyond frustration.

Instead of allowing Agni to approach, she chose to step into the danger zone and carefully phrased her question, "Do we think Mr. Turner was just playing coy?"

"Oh, I can tell if someone is playing coy with me," the butler snarled and Agni observed as the statement warranted an intense eye roll from Artemis. The action forced Agni to stifle a laugh and the current wariness of his friend's temper was the only thing that kept the laughter at bay. "But this man," Sebastian continued, "He was completely clueless. He didn't even recognize the faces of his own customers! We brought in records of the victims that had visited his studio in the last week and he didn't recognize a single face, save for the two victims that made it into the papers yesterday, and he only recognized one of them because he delivered the photograph at her funeral!"

"That is very strange," Agni observed. "What causes a man to forget something as simple as his customer's faces?"

"He claims that due to the number of customers he sees in one day, he spends all his time photographing and developing the photographs. His wife is the one who actually interacts with the customers."

"Did you speak to his wife?" Artemis asked. Agni felt himself jump and give Artemis a stern look, trying to warn her of the same perils that she had saved him from moments ago.

Sebastian stiffened, "She was out on business and gave no indication of when she would return. No matter, I will just have to go deeper into the records of these serial killings. I need a more extensive trail to prove that Turners photography studio is involved."

"Still," Artemis thought out loud. Agni felt a pit form in his stomach as she continued, "That could take at least two days, even for you. And we need to be home tomorrow night to prepare for the banquet."

"Artemis," Agni felt himself hissing, trying not to look at the glaring daggers that emerged from Sebastian's eyes. Attempting to divert his friend's anger, the man added, "Even so, it is quite suspicious that Mr. Turner couldn't even recall his customers' faces. He photographed them all and developed all of their photos, did he not?"

"You have a point," Sebastian crossed his arms, pausing long enough from his meal preparation to try and puzzle the riddle out. Again, Artemis spoke up.

"It's not as surprising as one would think," the nurse said. "For someone with a profession like photography, you have to take in several details in one day and it's often easier to compartmentalize details such as a person's face into long term memory so you can focus on the precision that's required to use the camera of this era and then develop the photographs themselves. All your brain needs to do those things is the big picture, so your brain focuses on that and tosses aside the fine details so that it runs more efficiently."

When Artemis looked up from her train of thought, she found herself being stared down by two very confused men. The logic made sense, Agni thought, but Artemis had ways of applying her logic to situations as if it had, what she called, "scientific backing". Granted, while it all seemed sound to Agni, he was also familiar with Sebastian's arguments that such things had yet to be proven and typically an argument would escalate from there.

Agni also had to note that such arguments—like every other argument the two were notorious for—had subsided completely as of late. It's not that Agni was complaining, however. He was very fond of Artemis—she was very kind and beautiful and had a great sense of humor and she treated Prince Soma with a kind of love the prince hadn't felt since Mina had left him. Additionally, Agni could tell that Artemis cared deeply for Sebastian in ways the Englishman also dearly needed, and the friction that seemed to always erupt between the two was both exhausting and heartbreaking for Agni.

Yes, the cease in the arguments was a very very nice change of pace. But Agni also could've sworn that he sensed something else forming between the two. Another form of friction, it seemed. But this wasn't caused because of tense feelings and distrust but rather it was caused by words unspoken.

Agni had been meaning to ask Sebastian what English customs said about two servants marrying, but he figured that the right time had not sprung just yet.

The three carried on with their day as usual. Ciel seemed to get gradually more and more frustrated about the case as the day went on and that was certainly reflected in Sebastian's mood. At first, Artemis attempted to keep the butler calm but even she was getting exhausted from his temper and elected to humor Prince Soma for the remainder of the day.

Late afternoon arrived and Agni found Sebastian hunched over his desk scribbling notes that were unintelligible to the Indian man.

"Sebastian, can I be of assistance?" Agni asked, though he knew what the answer would be.

His friend sat up and let out another gruff sigh before turning to Agni and smiled, "Thank you for the offer, Agni, but I can handle this."

"Very well," Agni nodded. "However, you appear to be overworking yourself on this case, if you would allow me to distract you for just a moment I'd be happy to help you get your mind off of this."

Sebastian raised a brow but allowed himself to turn his chair to fully face Agni. The butler had grown accustomed to allowing himself to engage in friendly, mindless conversation with Agni whenever a case got frustrating for him, and Agni enjoyed the fact that his friend allowed himself to relax in such a way.

"Very well," Sebastian said, leaning back in his chair slightly, "How are things with you?"

"Very good, Mr. Sebastian," Agni answered with a smile, "Though I must admit things are always so uneventful when you and the others aren't in town.

"Well, I am glad we can serve as some form of entertainment," Sebastian joked.

"If I may ask you, Sebastian," Agni averted gaze with the butler, knowing full well that this could either elevate his friend's mood or send it crashing back down in a dangerous way but he was too curious not to ask, not since he caught Artemis emerging from Sebastian's room that morning. He didn't want to comment on that specific instance but he did want to know: "How are things between you and Artemis?"

Sebastian froze in place, his rose colored eyes widening in almost a panic, "I beg your pardon?"

Agni gave a friendly chuckle at that, "Oh come now, Sebastian, we're friends, remember? A short while ago you were practically seething in anger at the very presence of Artemis and now…well, now you two are, as the English phrase would say, 'two peas in a pod'. You can't expect me to not notice such a change."

"I suppose you are correct," Sebastian placed a finger to his mouth, deep in thought. Agni wasn't sure what that meant of the butler's mood but he had a feeling that that probably wasn't the best question to distract his friend with. "Agni, do you think others are noticing this?"

"How do you mean?" Agni asked, confused.

"When you say that Artemis and I have changed in behavior, what are you implying?" Sebastian asked, not at all clarifying his question but asking a different one entirely.

"I mean that I think you two are getting along very well," Agni answered. He then shifted his weight in his seat slightly and added, "Though it does appear that there is some unspoken affection between the two of you."

"Affection," Sebastian repeated, looking blank as a post.

"Yes," Agni responded.

"Between myself and Artemis," Sebastian clarified.

"Yes," Agni nodded his head.

Sebastian's expression contorted slightly and a soft blush ran along his cheeks and his nose, but before he could say any more, Artemis walked into the room as if something had dawned on her.

"Sebastian, did you say it was Mr. Turner's wife that dealt with the customers?" she asked before she stopped abruptly in the room and observed the two wide-eyed men gawking back at her. She narrowed her eyes slightly before she asked, "Did I just walk into the middle of a bro-talk?"

"A what?" Agni asked, the phrase completely foreign to him as Sebastian groaned and said, "No you did not walk into whatever that is."

"It's a—ugh, never mind," Artemis sighed heavily, mild frustration briefly overcoming her before she shook her head and repeated, "In any case, you said that Mr. Turner's wife is the one that dealt with customers?"

"Yes," Sebastian answered, watching the woman's movements very carefully. Artemis wandered over to the butler's desk and skimmed through the pages of notes he had written down over the course of the last several hours.

"Have you called Mr. Lau yet?" she asked.

"I did an hour ago, but he wasn't in," Sebastian responded. "That's the trouble with trying to investigate on a weekend. I'm going to call him again in about an hour."

"Mmkay," the woman hummed in response. Sebastian narrowed his eyes, but allowed a smirk to form on his lips. Sebastian knew that Artemis had figured out something, Agni to tell that much.

"What did you find?" the butler asked. Artemis shrugged.

"Nothing yet, but I have a hunch," she answered. "When you do get a hold of Lau, ask him who places the orders for Magnesium Oxide at Turner's studio. I have a feeling that Mr. Turner is in fact as oblivious as he seems, but I'd like to check out the studio for myself to see if I can get a little more information."

At that, both men rose to their feet and followed Artemis as she grabbed her overcoat to head into town. Agni felt his brow furrow. While it was still in fact daylight and most shops were open, it was getting a little late for a young woman to wander the streets by herself…wasn't it?

"You're heading back to Turner's studio," Sebastian mused, "and just what sort of information do you think you're going to get from there?"

Even Agni could tell that his friend had just walked into a trap when Artemis turned to face him with a rather flirtatious gleam in her eye. The woman sauntered forward and wrapped her arms around the butler's waist, catching Sebastian completely off guard as she rose to her feet and pecked his cheek with her lips before stating, "I'm going to inquire about some engagement photos, of course!"

And with that, she smiled and took her leave, leaving both Sebastian and Agni completely dumbfounded, the former letting out an exasperated, "Engagement what?"

United States 2014

Artie

I wandered around town for a while on my own, trying to cool down. The nice thing about home was that you could walk from end to end in under an hour and still have a million things to stop by and do while on course. I chose to do neither and eventually wound up stopping at the local playground and plopped my butt down on a bench to sulk for a little bit.

I leaned my head back against the bench and groaned to myself, "Why is my mother always on my case…?"

Allowing myself to let out the question was soothing enough and I sighed heavily, enjoying the only response to my outburst being wind and chirping birds. Slowly, I closed my eyes. And then a loud voice behind me spoke up.

"I don't know, it's such a bother, isn't it?"

I jumped out of my seat and let out a yelp. There had been no one around when I sat down. So where…?

I turned my head to find piercing green eyes staring intently at me behind red-rimmed glasses. I couldn't help but let out yet another shriek and this time fall completely off the bench. A red-haired individual smiled devilishly with razor sharp teeth and let out a sharp laugh.

"Oh, sorry, Artemis, didn't mean to scare you!" the man cackled. Or woman…to be honest I couldn't tell. They had really long bright red hair and was evidently wearing make-up. But the sharpened facial features and broad shoulders told me he was male, yet they still wore really tight skinny jeans and a bright red v-neck with a matching leather jacket, an outfit that arguably both sexes could wear but definitely shifted to the more feminine side of things. But another look at red manicured nails and black stilettoes and I settled for probably a woman…it wasn't rude to ask, right?

The red head let out another cackle, "I must say, your senses have dulled a bit since last we met!"

"Uhm…" I muttered, feeling my shoulders tremble. One more look at the woman's vibrant eyes, sharp teeth, and overall demeanor and I realized that man or woman or some other gender, this person was not human. A demon maybe? I didn't feel the horrible tingle run up my spine like I did when I met those two other demons after Sebastian months before, but still, it was clear that this person wasn't human and I couldn't tell if that was really good or really bad.

"H-have we met?" I finally mustered up the courage to ask and the being's wild grin vanished and was replaced with a rather perplexed look. The red-head drew back slightly, subtly, and reached out a hand to help me up, which surprisingly, I felt relieved to take hold of. The red-head's grin then reappeared and she curtseyed before me once I was standing again.

"Grelle Sutcliffe, Grim Reaper," she introduced.

I felt my chest hollow suddenly. "Grim Reaper?"

"Yes," Grelle responded. She then swung her arm around my shoulders, practically leaning all of her weight against me. "I collect the souls of the dead and assess their worth—you know, I decide if the souls on the to-die list are actually cleared to, you know, die."

I gave Grelle a really uneasy look. It was clear that this reaper liked me…but I couldn't tell if it was because I was slated to die or not. And frankly, I wasn't ready for that. At all.

"Oh don't worry!" Grelle cheered, as if sensing my distress, "I'm not here to reap your soul, oh no! I'm just coming back from my last assignment and couldn't help but notice your pretty face sitting on the park bench! So I thought I'd say hi! It's been a long time since I've gotten to sit down with my good friend, Artemis Thomas!"

At that, Grelle plopped down on the park bench and crossed her legs, half expecting me to follow suit as if we were going to go on talking for hours and catch up as if we were old pals. Instead, I gave the grim reaper a really really confused look. And that's when the realization dawned on me.

"Are you referring to Artemis…the angel?" I asked hesitantly. Grelle practically beamed in response, only to deflate slightly when I added, "Because…that's…not me…"

"Why of course it is!" Grelle shrieked, leaping to her feet. She then grabbed hold of me by the shoulders and shook me, "You have the same soul, don't you!"

"I don't know!" I shouted back, "But I'm not an angel, I can tell you that much!"

"Of course you—wait a minute," Grelle looked me up and down, pivoting me slightly by the shoulders here and there before she pressed her hands to her head and screamed, "YOU'RE HUMAN!"

"Yeah," I responded flatly. "Like I said, different Artemis. Easy mix-up, trust me, I know."

"DOES BASSY EVEN KNOW ABOUT THIS!" Grelle shrieked so loud I almost had to cover my ears.

"Who the hell is Bassy?" I asked, before my mind caught up with me. "Wait, do you mean, Sebastian?"

"Yes, unfortunately," an oh so familiar voice said behind me. I jumped (again) and spun around to find my mate glaring past me and at Grelle. "Hello, Grelle."

"Hello again, my dearest Bassy!" Grelle cheered as she practically launched himself at Sebastian and wrung her arm around his. I felt my eyebrow twitch slightly as I watched the reaper hang all over my mate.

"Bassy, are you aware that your Artemis is human?" Grelle asked, completely redirecting our attention. Sebastian sighed, looking visibly annoyed.

"Yes, Grelle, yes I am aware that Artemis is human, thank you for pointing that out," the demon rolled his eyes. He then turned to me and said, "Artemis, I do hope this reaper didn't startle you too much."

"Oh, it's fine, she didn't mean anything by it," I shrugged. And suddenly two very dead panned faces met me.

"She?" the two immortals repeated, staring at me with wide eyes. I jumped again and covered my mouth. Crap, did I guess wrong?

"Did I say she?" I asked. "I am so sorry, I just—I thought—I couldn't tell—I—"

Before I could muster out a full sentence Grelle had decided to transfer her affection back to me and was spinning me around in her arms by this point.

"Oh, Artemis my dear, you never change!" the reaper cheered, crushing my lungs with a hug.

"O…kay…?" I breathed, trying to get air into my lungs. Grelle set me back down, giggling uncontrollably. "Can I ask how you two know each other?"

As opposed to answering my question, Grelle continued babbling on and on about how I "hadn't changed".

Sebastian, thankfully, managed to push the reaper to the side and answer, "I met him—" the demon paused and his gaze shifted from me to Grelle and back for a moment before clearing his throat and restarting, "I met her back when the young master was still human. We were investigating mass killings of young women that he—or rather, she was behind along with the young master's aunt."

"Those were back in my more mischievous days," Grelle ran her fingers through her hair and winked at me. "Of course, that did give me one hellish suspension and a tarnish on my otherwise perfect record! I could be done with my time as a reaper by now if it weren't for that stupid little incident!"

"If you hadn't gotten involved in the first place you wouldn't be griping about it," Sebastian lectured. He then sighed again and continued, "Since then, I have had to work alongside him—I mean, her, for brief stints during my time as Ciel Phantomhive's butler."

"You are really struggling with the pronouns, there, Love," I noted, crossing my arms. Sebastian looked away with a slightly flustered albeit, defeated look on his face to which Grelle just giggle.

"At least he's trying," the reaper grinned.

"Grelle, can I ask you one more question?" I asked. Grelle nodded for me to continue and I asked, "What did you mean by the whole 'I could be done with my time as a reaper'? And why did you kill a bunch of young women?"

As the last question popped out of my mouth I found myself backing away slightly. To which Grelle laughed at me hysterically.

"Well the latter question is a long story! But don't worry, like I said that was during my younger years and I wouldn't dream of killing a friend. As to your first question I simply mean I could be retired by now. Well, my soul I mean."

"Your soul?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Oh yes, we reapers, we're the souls of people who took their lives via suicide and as punishment we must serve time as grim reapers, reaping souls of those who so desperately wish to live and watch them cling to life until a time that we too are forgiven and can rest in peace," Grelle explained.

I felt a pit form in my stomach, at a complete loss for words. "Oh my god," was all I could say.

Grelle raised an eyebrow, "Oh come on, I thought you knew this stuff!"

"Grelle," Sebastian pressed. "Not now."

"What do you mean?" Grelle turned her head back to the demon and the two had some sort of silent conversation before Grelle turned back to me, still horribly confused but added, "It's not so bad. I like being a reaper! Most people do! It gives us a slightly different perspective and allows us to see the tides change. I'm sure you can imagine why I went, and look at me now! Out and proud! Trans as fuck! Flawless and-!"

"We get the picture Grelle," Sebastian cooed before the reaper could get too carried away.

"Well, I'm happy for you Grelle," I smiled. After another brief pause I asked, "Have you gotten a chance to go to Pride Fest yet?"

At that, Grelle stomped her foot and cried out, "No! I keep trying to ask off but Will keeps putting me on overtime the weekend of! It's so aggravating!"

"Well, I guess you'll have to tag along with me and some of my friends this year!" I grinned and at that, I received a look of complete and utter adoration from my new reaper friend.

"Ooooh! That sounds lovely!" Grelle cheered, giving me another lung-crushing hug, "Well, I would love to stay and chat more but I best get going before my partner hunts me down and yells at me for dawdling again—"

"Grelle!" the shrill cry from a mousy voice came at oddly perfect timing. Both Grelle and I turned our heads to face the blonde-haired reaper stomping towards us, looking royally pissed at Grelle and probably for all the reasons she had just listed. At first glance I thought it was Maddie approaching us, which wouldn't have surprised me considering that Maddie lived three neighborhoods away from me. But the bright green eyes and the familiarity with Grelle told me otherwise. Plus she looked young. Really young. And that's when the saddest realization hit me.

This girl must've taken her own life when she was just sixteen. Maybe a little younger.

I glanced up at Sebastian, trying to keep from looking as pitiful as I suddenly felt but Sebastian kept his back turned to the approaching reaper, his face pale and a strangely pained look in his eye.

"Sebastian?" I muttered slightly. But before I could say anything, the girl's voice overtook the air.

"Grelle, what the hell are you doing wandering off here for! You know we can't interact with humans!" the girl snapped at her elder. I couldn't help but notice her British accent. Because apparently everyone from England was making a pit stop in the middle of nowhere Midwestern United States as of late. Grelle, in response, groaned, her eyes practically rolling into the back of her head.

"You know, you were a lot more fun when you played the dumb innocent act," Grelle groaned.

"Well, that's a shame then isn't it," the girl snapped back. She then shifted her gave towards me and she stiffened, her firm expression turning to that of pure anguish. I cringed, because I just knew what was coming: "A-Artemis?"

Too exhausted to even explain everything I meekly lifted my hand and waved, "Hi."

"I don't understand," the girl continued, "Y-You're human! How are you—?"

"Different Artemis," Grelle whispered loudly.

"But it's not," the girl stuttered, tears welling up in the corners of her eyes. I felt knots twisting uncomfortably in my stomach. Words could not describe how both uncomfortable and generally awful I felt in that moment. "But if you're Artemis, then…" the reaper girl continued. Her gaze shifted from me to my mate's back and the tears that had welled up ran down her cheeks to escape the blinding rage that overtook that girls small frame as she spat out, "Sebastian!"

I swallowed a painful lump in my throat as I watched Sebastian's form tense up even more, but instead of appearing to prepare himself to fight like I expected, the demon frowned as if he had either already been defeated or planned to submit himself completely to this girl.

Frankly, I didn't like that look on him.

Sebastian turned himself slowly to meet the girl, I could see his jaw tighten visibly uncomfortable, almost mournful even, as he faced the girl.

"I'm sorry, Elizabeth."

A/N: GOD DAMMIT I AM A TERRIBLE PERSON I AM SORRY BUT ALSO NOT SORRY AT THE SAME TIME! *sob*