"Um? That's kind of sudden, king man. I don't even think I know your name," I said, completely unsure of what to say.
"It's Pluto. And, just so you know, you'd probably have to marry me. But then you'd become the queen of hell, and I would get to keep being the king. It's a pretty good deal, right? Plus, I've got a lot of potato chips," he said.
That one got me. Queen of Hell, free potato chips, and probably some other benefits. It was strange, though. Every girl my age, when I was little, had dreamed of being a princess. Except for me. I had been too busy idolizing necromancers. Perhaps this was the perfect situation for me!
Yeah. Seriously, take it. Queen of Hell, you genius! Anybody would jump at this chance!
"I don't know," I said. "I mean, this is actually not my dream come true, as much as it might be someone else's. Why me, though?" I asked, crossing my arms. He wanted something from me, so I might be able to trade. But... did I really want to be the Queen of Hell? Did I want to stay here, not go home, never see Ness again? Remain in Hell? I wasn't even dead yet!
An idea hit me. I knew what I could bargain for, but I would have to be sly about it. Everything depended on his answer. My love, my life, my death.
"Why you? Well, the people of the City of the Dead love a good misunderstood hero story. Your tale is being followed closely by them. If you marry me, I get to keep being the king. Half of all the power is better than none," he said, shrugging like it didn't matter.
I nodded. "Well, then. You want power, and I don't want to give up my life right now. So I've got a compromise. Do you want to hear it?" I asked.
You think you're so sly, don't you? But you're just another idiotic protagonist whose only desire is to go home! I'm getting sick of it.
He raised his eyebrows. "Go ahead. I'm listening."
"You can announce your engagement to me, but when this is all over, I'll go back to Earth. Or to the mainland, whatever you call it. I'll live out my life, and when I die, you can do whatever so that I can be your queen then. Does that sound good?" I asked. It was actually better for him this way, too, because he got my life's worth of unfettered power before I arrived to take half. And I got something to look forward to. I wouldn't fear death, because as soon as I experienced it, I would become its queen.
He looked thoughtful for a moment. "That should work. But first, you have to leave Hell. That's going to be a big problem. I'm not supposed to let humans out, even ones that are half reaper. You have to prove yourself, and then you can go."
I nodded. "Fine. What do I have to do?"
The King of Hell smirked at me. "Well, you have to do what you came here to do. Win the war. It's been raging for thousands of years, anyway. If you die, you become mine then. Got it?"
I frowned. That wasn't advantageous at all for him. Unless... he either loved me or he wanted to be a good king and stop the war threatening his people's safety.
It was probably the first one.
YOU ARE READING
Death
FantasyMortician hates her name, loves her father, misses her mother, and is obsessed with the idea of death. Then again, who wouldn't be, with the relationship with death that comes from having such a name? She has one good friend, a girl with a name that...
