Ash filtered to the ground, slipping through Death's fingers before disappearing in soft flashes of light. God turned and walked away, the archangels following behind him. Death sighed, shaking the last remnants of the note from his ungloved hand, before putting his glove back on. I hadn't seen him take it off. Death followed the others, and unlike God, he looked back to make sure I followed too. Soon, the elegant halls turned to wide open space, a courtyard filled with beautiful plants, each one more beautiful than the last. My eyes caught on a flower with leaves of metal and petals of gems; Death's hand closed around the back of my shirt before I could walk towards it.

The archangels flapped their wings, launching into the air. God sighed and shook his head, though I caught a glimpse of a smile when he looked back at me and Death. He led us into a study. The room had a lot less decor than the entryway, but the large windows made up for it by offering a spectacular view of the city below.

Gabriel, Raphael, and Michael piled onto the worn couch which sat pressed to a wall. Their wings crossed over each other, other limbs tangling together. God sank into an armchair, while Uriel swiveled his office chair from side to side.

Death's scythe dropped to the ground, any sound absorbed by the thick carpeting. Just like his scythe, Death dropped gracelessly into the last remaining seat: the armchair directly across from God. Burning blue eyes fixated on me as my eyes engaged in a desperate search for a place to sit that wouldn't be rude or demeaning. I didn't mind sitting on the floor, sometimes I liked it better than chairs, but would it be considered rude? Maybe? Probably? Other words that carry similar meanings?

Like a dog beside its master, I moved to sit next to Death's chair. Before I could lower myself to the ground, Gabriel extracted himself from the tangled mess of heavenly guidance, grace, and perfection. He slid onto the ground and patted the space beside him. Perry walked over from his platypus bed and curled on Gabriel's lap.

"Here, Ardia. You can sit with me and Perry," Gabriel said.

The corners of my mouth twitched. I nodded and sat beside him. As soon as my butt hit the carpet, I had a platypus on my lap. Perry stretched out, bill resting on Gabriel's leg. I stared at Perry, before looking at Gabriel with an eyebrow lifted.

"It's okay. You can pet him." With a smile on his face, something about Gabriel made me want to hug him and stab anything that ever tried to hurt him. He kept staring at me with unabashed eagerness, which turned to joy when I started petting Perry. His eyes, misty blue, held a light absent from Raphael's. They glowed softly as he looked down at Perry.

"Great, so now I know the kid's going to get roped into platypus sitting," Death said with a sigh. "Why'd you want me here?"

"We both know the answer to that question, Death," God said. He tied his hair into a half-bun, as he remained either unaware or impervious to the glare Death sent him.

"Uh, no. I don't think we do. Not all of us are all-knowing, all-powerful, all-loving, all-annoying, you know."

"What did you just call me?!" God asked, shooting to his feet with his hands clenched into fists. The sunlight intensified. Despite this, Death didn't seen the least bit concerned; his hand didn't so much as move towards his scythe.

"You heard me. Now, can we hurry this up? I still have-" he reached into his pocket and procured a small book. He flipped through it. "-seventy thousand people to reap today."

God opened his mouth only to shut it when Raphael stood and walked out. Dangerous silence cloaked the room until he returned with coffee mugs. He forced one into Death's hands and the other into God's.

"Thanks, Rafe," Death said. He took a sip and made a face. "Too sweet."

"I'm sorry, we make our coffee as dark as our souls," Uriel said, not looking up from whatever game he was playing instead of taking notes.

With a sigh, Death sat the cup on the small table beside him. He slipped the book back into his pocket. "What's the deal? Need me to murder some firstborn sons again?"

God shook his head. "I want you to talk to the deadbeat and tell him to meet up with us."

"Okay, but what's in it for me?" Death asked.

"The satisfaction of a job well done."

I shook my head and continued running my fingers over Perry's well maintained fur. When has satisfaction ever made for a good reward? Even dodgeball tournaments end with the winning class getting bragging rights.

Apparently, Death shared the same sentiments. "That's not going to cut it, God."

"I'll give you one less present this year."

Death pressed his lips together and counted on his fingers before nodding. "I'm fine with that."

"Uh, does that mean we get one less too?" Gabriel asked. God shook his head.

"Only him," he said. He looked at me. "So Death, are you going to tell me why you have a mortal with you or am I going to have to be all-knowing?"

I raised an eyebrow and looked at Gabriel. He leaned over and whispered, "Dad is only omniscient when he wants to be. Said he hates watching shows when he knows how they're going to go."

"You know I can hear you right?" God said.

"Sorry, Dad."

A soft laugh broke from Death's lips. He waved a hand. "She's just my apprentice. I, uh, I just got her today." Death messed with his gloves.

"And what makes her so special?" Raphael asked, giving up on getting back to his original spot. Instead, he plopped himself down on Michael's stomach.

"Rafe, get off!" Michael said. Raphael rolled his eyes and put his hand over Michael's mouth.

"Hush. Go to the light."

"If I tell you, will you stop trying to murder Michael?" Death said.

"It's not murder if he can't die."

Death sighed. "She wasn't with her body. I know you guys couldn't care less about my job, but you have to know how hard that it. For a mortal to beeak their chain on their own, it's unheard of. I mean, normally I have to have a hand in it and-" he started talking faster and faster, until I could no longer make singular words apart. It was like listening to a soap opera in Spanish. I knew there were important plot points somewhere in there and I was missing them, but I wasn't about to learn Spanish to figure out what they were.

Instead of asking Death to slow down or repeat himself, I kept petting Perry. God said something under his breath, causing Death to shoot to his feet. An aura of dread hung off him. Gabriel snatched Perry from me. Perry woke up and crawled up Gabriel's chest. I didn't get a chance to coo at Perry's behaivor. Death's hand latched onto the back of my shirt, and he pulled me up.

"Come on, kid. We're leaving," he said. He dragged me out of the room, letting me stumble over my own feet. I didn't get a chance to wave goodbye.

Death grumbled the entire way to the door, his grip on my shirt ever tightening. Honestly, I worried he would rip it, and I didn't know if I could change clothes. The grumbling stopped once we stepped foot outside the palace. Not to say Death released my shirt, because he didn't. He pulled me through the streets in silence. Only when we reached the gate did he say anything.

"You'll never get to live here, you know that right? You'll never see your family, your pets, your friends again. They'll be forever out of your reach," he said, finally releasing my shirt. I didn't say anything. I didn't have a choice when he made me his apprentice. This wasn't a roundabout way of asking if I regretted my decision; I had no decision to regret.

This was him telling me what he took from me.

He pressed his hand to the small door and pushed it open. He held it and gestured for me to go ahead. I passed through and waited for him on the other side. Death shut the door behind him, its edge blending perfectly with the larger gate.

"This way," he said. He led me through the crowd of souls past where we originally appeared. The farther we went, the less sould we encountered. Eventually, we were the only beings in sight. Death sighed with a smile on his face. "Isn't it beautiful?"

"Huh?" I looked at him. He gestured to the area in front of us. The clouds making up the ground ended and gave way to a sea of light. I stared on in wonder, watching it roll and crest like waves. I could feel Death watching me, but I didn't care. I'd never seen anything like it. It was mesmerizing. But before I could comment, we disappeared.

Chapter: 1,549

Book: 6,074

I don't think this was the greatest chapter but...eh

I did my best

Anyway... I uh... Crap

*thinks for a minute*

I made a new Fem Percy Fanfic called Just Observing so please check that out of you want

And

See yah