Death & Belle Reunite -Grim&Belle-

All the lights in the hall seemed to fade slightly, flicker for a moment, and then return to normal. Everybody looked around for a source, but after a few seconds, people shrugged it off and continued in their frivolity. Then there was a tremor through the floor and all the lights flickered, and cut off completely.

A chill seemed to spread through the room, frost growing across the windows, fog rolling in all around the mansion and seeping through any doors to cover the floor in a thick, ankle-deep, mist. People we're beginning to panic a little, unsure of what was happening. They had began backing closer to the walls, seeing as the tremor had seemed to come from the center of the room.

Then a greenish glow shined through the fog in a thin slit in the very middle of the room. It grow long and wider until it was plain to see that it was not just light, but a crack splitting in the floor. Large, clawed black hands reached up at the floor, hundreds of them, but they could only be seen up to the elbow. The hands reached for legs that were just out of their arms length, but suddenly they stopped.

Something was rising from the middle of the hands and the crack. The upmost part of a hood broke the barrier of the fog, rising slowly higher and higher until the bottom of the robe was even with the floor. One bony hand gripped an enormous and gleaming scythe. Everybody's eyes were on the tall figure. From the deep black of the hood, two glowing eyes were suddenly visible. Some people jumped back in fright, others stared back in amazement.

The figures free hand reached up and grabbed the shoulder of the robe, and in one long sweeping motion he dragged his robe from his body and threw it. The second it left his hand, all the lights burst back into life, and his robe and scythe burst into smoke high above the crowd. The fog, crack, and demonic hands were all gone. In the center of the room stood a tall, extremely handsome looking man that was smirking at the crowd. His black hair hung a few inches from his head, his eyes just as black as his hair. Long before they were a beautiful blue, but there was no longer any color to them. His skin seemed pale, but given who he was, it was to be expected. He wore a perfectly tailored suit that fit his figure and only complimented his dashing good looks. The collar covered a mark on his neck, that only one other person in the world knew about.

He brushed his sleeves with each hand and stared around at everyone. "Well, good evening." He flashed a brilliant smile at them all, who after a few stunned moments burst into applause. A drink was rushed to him immediately and he graciously accepted. Nothing would ruin this night. Since he had become The Reaper, he hadn't attended any Immortal balls, but he felt it was time to treat himself.

He smiled at everybody as they stared and praised him. He was one of the more powerful Immortals there, being Death and all. But something was wrong, but only on a few peoples faces. People he recognized, but hadn't seen for a long time. Not since....a pain shot through his neck. A shock that made him drop his glass, sending shattered glass across the floor.

He grabbed his neck, but realizing the mess he made, he waved a hand and it all reformed together once more, hovering just in front of him. "Sorry bout that everybody. Been awhile since I've had my skin on. It's a little tight." He and everyone near him laughed. "If you'd excuse me for a minute." He kept his grin on until he reached the doors that lead out of the main hall and into the rest of the house. He chucked the glass and ran to the bathroom where he stared into the mirror as he pulled down the collar of his tux.

There it was, vibrant and almost glowing with life. For a long time, it had become faded and unnoticeable. But now, the rose was in full bloom, redder than the devil. The skull seemed to even move a little, a small smirk on its face. There was but one explanation.

...She...was here.

Several of the females, of various races, went running to Belle's aid. They picked her up and asked her if she was alright, she smiled sweetly and nodded "Just a sudden shock.. Guess I'm getting old" she managed with a little laugh "In need of some blood" she added as she moved away heading for the bar. She propped up against the table and took a breath, she glanced around, she couldn't find him. "new approach" she whispered to herself. She leaned more on the table, he was here no doubt about it, her neck was hurting her more than ever. She swore that she would never have to see him again, and yet she was wrong. This was one of the last places she thought he would ever show his face, he hated crowds and had never been a huge fan of dancing though he was phenomenal at it. She looked up, a hand on her neck she focused on every bad memory she had she wanted him to suffer, and she was one of the only ones who could make him. As her anger and frustration grew, so did the pain, the only side effect was that she was hurting herself as well. She moved out of the dance hall, into the foyer, no one was there as she barely made it to a chair, causing him pain brought her to the point of tears. "I hate you!" she thought, focusing it well to make sure it would arrive in Death's head like a scream.

It was as if somebody was slowly pushing a dagger into his neck and ear. The pain was unreal, which surprised him because he had not felt pain in so long, he forgot how much it hurt.

He had to find her, make her stop. He was going to go on a rampage if he went through much more after being numb for so long. He shook slightly, but looked into the mirror, trying to settle himself. He ran his fingers through his hair, combing it back and down his shoulders. He put on his social smile and exited the bathroom.

The second he entered the main hall again, the pain grew worse. He was getting closer. He craned his neck over the crowd to get a look, but couldn't see her anywhere. As he walked to the far end of the room, where there were less people, the pain steadily grew more and more harsh. She had to be here somewhere.

Then he spotted a figure through a partly ajar door leading into the foyer. With every step, he felt a pulse of pain. It had to be her. He grabbed placed a hand on the door and pushed it open. "Belle..."

Her eyes never moved from the spot they were watching on the floor. She hated him so much at the moment, as she heard her name she cringed. She pulled her legs up to her chest as she cast her view in her opposite direction. "Fuck You" she replied as tears rolled down her cheeks, the pain growing a little more, for once she thought she was really going to die. Everything was starting to look hazy, probably because of the pain, she knew it she had been close to death three times in her entire six thousand years. The sounds of people hurt her sensitive ears, everything was too much at the moment, even the air seemed to be crushing her.

The room seemed to have its own pulse. As he passed through the door, he waved his hand at it and it closed, sealing the sound out. "Belle, I know you hate me, but if you have to make this stop, or I'm going to kill everybody at this party."

He was clutching his head and couldn't take the pain much longer. It felt like his head was gonna pop. "Please Belle..."

She stood slowly because of the pain, but she was a strong one. She turned slowly, locking eyes on him, walking ever so cautiously towards him. "Would you like to kill me too?" she asked sternly tilting her head watching him as she held her neck and walked closer and closer to him. "Oh that's right... You can't kill me.. You should know that.. When I die, every life force I've ever consumed with expel, their pain will be my pain and my pain will be your pain and you will die.." She chuckled arrogantly "Death can take his own life, did you know that?" she growled. She shook her head as she stopped walking about ten feet away from him. "Why?" was all she asked, no real reference to anything but she was sure he knew. Tears rolled down her cheeks as her anger subsided on its own and was replaced with sorrow.