My heart hammers in my chest as I wait for his answer. Even if I know he wants to spend time with me, it's still odd waiting for him to confirm.
"That sounds good. If you're sure you're comfortable with me staying..."
"I suggested it."
"But maybe you did that because you think you have to."
I rise to my feet and close the distance between us. I place a hand on his chest, noting how quickly his own heart is beating. It seems I'm not the only one who's nervous about all of this.
"I appreciate you being sweet, but I'm asking you to stay because I want you to, not because I feel like I owe you anything."
He nods. "But just so we're clear, I don't expect anything either. Just to spend time with you."
A small smile spreads over my face. "We'll see how it goes."
He relaxes under my touch, and I'm glad. I don't want him to be stressed out because of me. That defeats the point of the two of us being together in the first place.
But just like when we're out reaping, we're a good team when it comes to being together too. And that's something I plan to take advantage of in all the best ways.
Chapter Five
The street we end up on couldn't be any more different from the moors where we found Rupert, but this is where the map told us to come, so it must be right.
"I wonder how Rupert ended up on the moors," Tobias muses, clearly thinking along the same lines as me.
"Maybe he died there? Or that's where he's buried?" I've heard of both being possible cases for where a ghost chooses to linger.
"It'd be a lonely place to die."
"I think it's a lonely place most of the time," I counter. The moors are beautiful and ever-changing, but I don't think I'd ever want to spend much time alone there.
"True. Hopefully, we'll be able to make it so Rupert doesn't spend much more time there. Now, which house is it?"
"That's number sixty-four there." I point to one of the squished together identical houses. Most of their numbers are so small that it's impossible to make them out, but sixty-four doesn't look like they conform with bright mosaic numbers decorating the space next to their front door.
"Then it should be right around...ah, here." He stops in front of number seventy-one.
The facade is nothing special, especially when sandwiched between two similar-looking houses. There aren't any lights on, but that doesn't mean there isn't anyone home.
"We should stop standing here. If anyone sees us, they might think we're loitering and intending to do something bad," I point out.
"So what do we do, walk up to the front door and knock?"
I give him my best are-you-joking face, but he simply shrugs.
"I know the theory, but I've never actually done this before," he points out.
"Hmmm." I stride forward. If he isn't going to take the lead, then I will.
I raise my fist and rap several times on the white plastic of the door. I try to prepare myself for whatever I'm going to find on the other side, but I'm not sure I'm ready. Unlike Tobias, I have done this before, but it doesn't get any easier. We're here to talk to someone about their dead brother, that's never going to be the easiest of conversations.
After what feels like an age, the door swings open.
My jaw drops as Tobias steps past me to take control of the situation. He has to. The woman in front of me is as ghostly as the spectre we found on the moors.
This is going to be more complicated than I first thought.
"She says we can come inside, the other reapers are already waiting for us," Tobias translates.
"What?" I whisper hastily. How has someone else gotten here first?
Oh, right. They'll have been attracted by the ghost, not knowing that she's connected to one we've already got an arrangement with. Hopefully, they'll at least let us talk to the woman before they port her.
We follow the ghost through a thin hallway and into a living room stuffed with dowdy furniture and porcelain cats. I'm not sure why, but I didn't have her pegged as a cat woman up until this point. Despite her ghostly state, it's clear she's well presented and barely over forty. Maybe she inherited them from someone. I'd keep Mum's collection of impractical teapots if the worst happened. They'd remind me of her every time I saw them.
"Juliet, Tobias," Rosie greets us.
"Hi." I wave awkwardly. What are we supposed to do now? The two girls aren't going to want to give up the reap, not when every point counts when it comes to the Captain competition. But I can't let them take the woman without at least talking to her first.
"What are you doing here?" Eleanor asks, her voice remaining polite despite the circumstances.
"Tobias, would you mind talking to Felicity while I talk to Rosie and Eleanor?" My voice shakes as I ask, but I know I have to. We can't let them port Rupert's sister without seeing if they'll work with us. If this even is Rupert's sister. But it seems like a strange coincidence if it isn't.
He nods, and turns to the ghost, communicating with her in a way I wish I understood.
I focus my attention on my fellow reapers. Eleanor simply seems curious, but Rosie isn't impressed. With her arms crossed and a stern expression on her face, I can tell I have my work cut out for me convincing her this is a good idea.
"What are you doing at our reap?" she demands.
"We didn't know," I promise. "We found a ghost out on the moors and we're trying to help him so he'll agree to be ported."
Rosie raises her eyebrow. "The moors? That was risky."
"I know. But we're at a disadvantage." I don't need to explain why, they're well aware we have less experience than they do. "And we found one. But he refuses to be ported until he can assure himself that his sister is fine. I guess that's not looking too likely." I glance towards Felicity, who seems happily chatting with Tobias. Though I can only go on the animated way she's moving about.
"So, now what? You want us to give up our port so you can have yours?" Rosie asks.
"No," I blurt out quickly, as if I actually have an answer instead of just making things up as I go along. "I want us to work together."
The two older girls exchange a glance.
"Go on," Rosie says. It's clear to me who is in charge of this team.
"I know it's going to delay things and potentially risk the competition, but isn't it more important for us to do our duty? Right now, we have a ghost who wants to find out what happened to his sister, and maybe in the process, we can find out what happened to her to keep her here."
"How do we know you aren't just trying to sabotage us?" Eleanor asks, though I can tell from her tone that she's reasonably sure agreeing with me is the right thing to do.
"What have we got to gain from doing that? The four of us are all in the running for different Groves, we have nothing to gain from you not becoming Grove Captains."
Rosie nods. "Fair point."
They exchange another series of looks, holding their gazes so steady that they must be communicating in some way. I know they're friends, but I never imagined they were this close.
"Okay, we'll work with you," Rosie says.
"You will?" I can't keep the surprise out of my voice, even though I want to.
"Yes. You're Right, our duty should come first, even if it's not what we want for ourselves," Eleanor adds.
"Thank you."
"But we get to port Felicity," Rosie adds.
"Of course. I think we should be able to do them at the same time if we call one another?" I suggest.
Rosie nods. "That's acceptable to us."
I breathe a sigh of relief. "Great. We should head up to the moors then."
"If we want to have ported by the end of the day, then you do," Eleanor agrees.
I catch Tobias' attention and bring him up to speed. He says something to Felicity, and she responds in kind, bobbing up and down more actively than before.
Eleanor chuckles, revealing she's the Seer on her team. "Sorry, it's just nice to see a ghost so ex
cited. She wants to talk to her brother too."
Good, we can work with that.
We wave goodbye and head out of the door. Tobias slips his hand into mine and gives it a squeeze. "That was well done."
"Even if it loses us the competition?" I ask.
He shrugs. "If it does, then it does. I'm not willing to lose my integrity over this. We may not be fully qualified yet, but we've still made an oath to protect the reaper way."
"Do you ever think about not doing this?" I ask.
We arrive at the car, which he unlocks quickly as he shakes his head. "I mean, I did when I was younger. Who doesn't? But the first time I saw a reaping, I knew I wanted to make the most of my powers, even if it led to the most boring career choice ever."
I snort. "Somehow, I don't think this job is ever going to be boring."
"What about you?" he asks as he holds out his hands to take my scythe from me so he can put it in the backseat.
"Mum tried to encourage me to find a different career for a bit. I think she always felt trapped in hers and didn't want the same for me. But I always kept coming back to this. Though I hoped to be a Seer. There aren't enough reapers who respect that part of our powers enough. And they say you should be the change you want to see."
Tobias chuckles. "Somehow, that's exactly what I expected you to say."
"Then I fear I'm becoming predictable. That just won't do."
"Or the simpler explanation is that I'm getting to know you, and there's nothing to worry about."
I can't hold back the smile as I slip into the passenger seat and buckle up. "Maybe."
"You don't seem convinced."
"We've been dating a few days," I point out.
"And we've been friends longer than that. Besides, how long do you need to know that something is right?"
I frown. I don't have an answer to that. Mostly because to me, this does feel right. Maybe that's the crux of it. When things feel right, it's normally because they are. I shouldn't worry about it too much when it makes me happy and doesn't cause me harm.
"Let's go port a soul, then we'll work it out," I say instead of voicing my opinion. It isn't that I don't want to talk about it. More that I want some time to think about it first. Preferably some that isn't taken up by ghost hunting.
Chapter Six
Mist swirls around us the moment we open the car doors. I slam mine shut, scaring it away for an instant, but then it's back around me, keeping me company as we ready ourselves for what's to come. At least we know where we're going this time. We don't have to hunt for Rupert, he should remember us and be waiting.
I hope. I've heard horror stories of ghosts drifting away in the time it takes the reaper to conclude their business for them, though I don't think that's going to be the case here. It's barely been twenty-four hours and we're back with a phone call to his sister planned.
"Maybe we should have tried to bring Felicity with us," I muse as we hike down a small windy path.
"Do any of us have the power for that?" Tobias asks.
"I have no idea. I can't do it, so I guess it depends whether or not Rosie does."
"I doubt it," he admits. "I've heard she's a good reaper, and an excellent student, but she's not the most powerful when it comes to these things."
"Interesting." But it makes total sense.
Becoming Grove Captain isn't all about raw power, otherwise the test for it wouldn't involve teamwork. The academy wants the leaders of the four Groves to embody all of the aspects they look for in their students. The most important one being their ability to work with others. I'm not sure what happened to make the academy so focused on it to begin with, but I don't mind. I think it fosters a positive work environment for everyone.
"He's here," Tobias says unnecessarily as the shiver of a nearby ghost flows through me.
I've heard that even some humans have the ability to sense them, even if they can't see ghosts. I've always assumed it's from reaper bloodlines that have mixed with humans over the years and diluted down. It's not overly common for supernaturals to have children with humans, probably because most of our genetics don't mix well and it just isn't possible. But sometimes, miracles happen. I don't believe many hybrids exist, though. Most either take on human characteristics, or don't live to maturity.
The shivering intensifies as Rupert appears from the mists, bobbing up and down in front of us while he waits for Tobias to communicate with him. I try not to get impatient while that happens, but it's hard not to. Sometimes, being a Porter is no fun.
"Can you make the call?" Tobias asks me after a few minutes.
I fumble with the phone and enter the video call app. We don't have a huge amount of signal here, but it should be enough to at least get part of the call through. None of us know whether or not Rupert and Felicity will be able to see one another over video, but we thought it was at least worth a try. The worst that can happen is that they communicate through Eleanor and Tobias instead of directly to one another.
"Hello?" Rosie says, her freckled face appearing on the screen.
"We're ready on this end."
"Us too." She pans out to reveal Eleanor standing behind her with the faint outline of a woman beside her. It isn't perfect, but at least there's some way for the ghosts to be seen.
I reach out and tap Tobias' arm so he knows we're ready for Rupert. He must tell the ghost immediately, as the pale form floats towards the phone and lifts up a translucent hand, reaching out to touch it with his finger. I look away, wanting to give the siblings some privacy to say what they need to. They'll likely see one another on the other side if all the theories are correct, but as no one knows for sure, I don't blame them for saying what they need to beforehand.
Eventually, Rupert pulls away from the screen and nods at Tobias.
"It's time," he says out loud.
"On this end too," Eleanor echoes.
"We'll leave you to it," I say. "Good luck."
"And to you," Rosie replies before the screen goes black.
"Are you ready?" Tobias asks me.
"Yes. Unless there's anything else Rupert wants us to do."
"Not that can't wait until after he's moved on."
"Okay then. Rupert, if you wouldn't mind floating in front of me," I say loudly.
The ghost does as instructed. Nerves flutter to life inside me, as they do every time this part comes up. There's always a small part of me that worries I'm going to port a ghost who doesn't want it, the danger of not being able to communicate directly to them. But with Tobias being the Seer, I can rest easy that I do know what Rupert wants.
I pull my scythe out of the scabbard on my back and wait a moment for the full extent of its power to flood through me. The wooden handle thrums beneath my fingertips, and the metal head glows dimly.
"It's nothing to worry about," I promise. "It won't hurt, it just opens the path to the place you need to travel." I assume that part is true. It's what we've all been told.
Rupert bobs up and down in what I assume to be a nod.
I close my eyes and swing my scythe towards the spot I know he's in. I hate this bit in a way, it feels so cruel to swing a weapon through someone who used to be alive. But at the same time, it's impossible to hate the sheer amount of power flowing through me. There's something intoxicating and invigorating about it at the same time. A reminder of the fact this is what I was born to do. I could choose a different career if I wanted to, but it doesn't change reality. I'm a reaper, and I was made to reap.
The air around the three of us vibrates as the path to the next world appears.
I open my eyes and smile at Rupert, who floats next to the pathway. I gesture to it. "When you're ready."
I expect him to linger a little longer, but instead, he almost jumps straight into the pathway, disappearing from sight and sealing it behind him.
Almost instantly, the magic in the air evaporates, leaving nothing more than the chill of the growing wind.
Tobias steps up and pu
lls me into his arms, wrapping them tightly around me and offering warmth.
"We need to tell the others that we're done," I whisper into his chest.
"We will. But let's get back to the car first and get something hot into you. There's a flask waiting with your name on it."
I pull back so I can look up at him. "When did you do that?"
He shrugs. "Before we left the academy. You didn't like the chill up here yesterday, and I didn't want you to go through that again."
I give a contented sigh and lean back into him. This is why it feels right. Because he wants to show he cares in the way that truly matters.
"What else did Rupert want you to do?" I ask Tobias.
"File a report with the Supernatural Retrieval Agency."
"He specifically asked that?" I raise an eyebrow. Most humans don't try to involve the agency on purpose.
"Yes. Apparently, it was an ex-boyfriend of Felicity's who killed the two of them." He pulls away so the two of us can start making our way back to the car.
"That doesn't sound like an Agency matter."
The weight of the scythe in my hand is strangely comforting, and I decide not to put it back. If we were in a built-up area, I would, but here is different. Nobody cares that reapers go around dealing with the dead, but they don't like the reminders, and scythes are just that.
"I don't think it would be normally," Tobias agrees, pulling my thoughts away from my tool. "But the ex was a shifter."
"Ah." That would make it an Agency issue. They're the ones who will have to hunt the shifter down and find the proof he did the crimes. Ghost statements aren't admissible in court, but what we heard and saw can be. We'll need to write up a detailed report so we don't forget anything. Hopefully, we can get most of it done tonight so we still have a couple of days to try and find more ghosts to port, both for the competition, and because it's our job.
But before I can think of any of that, I need to get warm.
Chapter Seven
I close my eyes and soak in the warmth from the common room fire. We haven't been back to the moors since porting Rupert, but it's still cold everywhere else, and it seems like I've caught a chill. Hopefully, it isn't anything serious that will affect my studies. I don't want to fall behind. I hope it's all worth it. But even if it isn't, we helped several ghosts move on to the next world. That's the right thing for reapers to do, and we should be proud of ourselves for doing it.
Grove Captain: Scythe Grove Academy #0.5 Page 3