Death was minding his own business one day, when Life came walking up, that same look in his eyes.

He wore a simple white shirt, white pants, and a cloak made of pure light. His eyes were... well, they were usually pale, and appeared to change colors in the light. No one ever asked what color his eyes were.

Death was simply doing the things he always did: collecting the souls of the dead.

That sounds awful, right? Killing people?

Well, he didn't exactly kill. Death isn't finite like that.

He simply moved them along, into their next stage, still death.

He was looking at a soul at that exact moment: Rebecca Cooper. She was unusual. She was young, only 16 years old. She had died in a car crash. Her family wasn't with her, but it didn't really matter. They'd all die one day.

Why Life chose that moment to pop in, only The Fates know.

Probably since Death was looking at a sad one, and Life always knew how to throw people off their balance.

"Hello."

Death simply nodded at him. He knew better than to respond.

"How's your day been?"

He shrugged. It went better if he didn't talk.

"Which soul is that?"

Against his will, Death stiffened. He had a strong dislike for Life, and Rebecca Cooper was just an example of why.

"Rebecca Cooper, I see. How sad of you, taking her away from her family and friends like that."

Life's smile was anything but sad or empathizing.

Death fought back any response. It would get him nowhere.

"You know, you really need to stop it."

Death gritted his teeth, hands balling into fists. No matter how hard he tried, Roman would always be able to play him.

"You need to stop taking all their... Life away. You're making them miserable, you know."

Virgil glared at him, fighting back against the words. It did no good.

"How dare you talk like that!" Virgil winced at the sound of himself speaking. He hated the responses in his head, wished he could just remain silent.

"You made her life miserable, and you act like I'm the one in the wrong!"

"You killed her."

Life had no remorse for his actions, just a cruel smile.

"I'm not the one who made her miserable, and you know it!"

Roman grinned, watching a small dandelion grow from his hand.

"Do I?"

A Virgil watched, Roman blew the seeds away.

"Of course you do, you lying snake!"

"Oh, but look at all those people down there, so happy!"

"And look at all of those down there, the ones that are sad! Whose fault is that?"

Roman grinned.

"Some people just have to be sad, for those others to be happy."

"Well, it isn't fair! People should get to be happy, all of them!"

Roman gave that same smile, the one that hinted at something far past sanity.

"Life isn't fair."

Virgil felt the tears on his face.

"Well, maybe it should be!"

He stormed off.

He knew it was all Roman's stupid game. He just loved to rile Virgil up, knowing he was unable to do anything about his hatred for Roman.

He always did this, he manipulated Virgil. And Virgil always played into his hand, no matter how hard he tried.

Virgil couldn't stand the way Life treated some people.

He was cruel, hurting them and making them suffer so much.

Virgil came by, taking all of their pain away. He saved them from life's miseries, reuniting their souls and letting them be finally, finally happy and... free.

It happened to everyone. After years of suffering and pain, they finally got freedom and happiness. He wasn't the evil being they described him as. Sure, he took their bodies, took their loved ones, but in the end, he let them loose. He set them free.

He hated Life. Always had. It pained him, watching them suffer, watching as their hearts broke and their minds gave way. He was sure it was just Life's nature, always taking and taking. Life was cruel, an awful being. He almost did it like it was fun. Like hurting people made him happy.

That wasn't ok, on any level. Virgil hated having to stand by and watch as he played his games, as he manipulated them! But what could he do? The people were up to The Fates. Virgil didn't control their deaths. They died when it was their time, and only The Fates knew when. Virgil just collected them, moving them to the next stage. He may seem gloomy, but it's just his job.

Sure, he wore black, with the customary cloak and scythe. Sure, he had soulless black eyes. Sure, he was pale, cold, and negative, but really, he cared about them. He hated watching their pain. He hated seeing them cry and wish for him. He hated seeing them suffer.

It was made slightly better by the knowledge that it all had an end. He would come by, and he would take them from their misery. They could be at peace, after all of the things they'd endured. They'd be free, and it happened to everybody. Death was inevitable.

He sat down, in the small realm he shared with Life.

They were alone, always had been.

Death was Life's favorite game. When he was bored, when he was angry, when he was... anything, he went and played with Virgil. He'd mess with him, do anything for a reaction. He always got one. It didn't matter how much Virgil acted like he completely hated him, they both knew the truth. They were both lonely. Hard not to be, as separated as they were.

Sometimes, Virgil almost looked forward to Roman's weird visits. It broke up all of the monotony, and gave him a change of pace.

That didn't mean he liked the a-hole, but it was... different.

As Death, he saw a lot of things. Broken hearts, tearful words, and so many regrets.

Many, many people were left without a happy ending. Many, many people left words unsaid.

People never really realized how sudden Death was. It could happen to anybody, at any time.

They lived in a world that was full of constant risks. All of the people seemed to not care. They lived their lives like tomorrow was a certain thing.

Virgil knew that every day was a risk, a chance.

Every day, around 150,000 people died. That could be anyone.

People kept forgetting that. Maybe it made their existence easier somehow, Virgil mused. Not having to think about how easily they, or someone they loved, could die. Just... there one moment, and lost, seemingly forever, the next.

They weren't lost, just... moved on. Well, that was what Virgil believed.

It was so controversial among the humans. They seemed so worried about what happened once they died, that they didn't focus on living while it lasted. They worried so much about the future that they missed the present.

It was almost ridiculous.

And Virgil always tried to live in the present. Nothing was forever.

Except him and Life. They never seemed to age, never seemed to change.

Virgil thought about it. He didn't want this to be his eternity, always fighting with Roman.

He knew that he wanted Roman to reach out, to fix all of the things he'd broken.

Virgil also knew that wasn't going to happen. They'd been like this for eternity, and nothing was going to change until Virgil took the action.

He had to suck it up.

He had to talk to Roman.

He walked over, hands inside his sleeves, doing sweater paws.

He hated to admit it, but he was extremely nervous.

Roman always found something rude to point out, something mean to say, or one of his buttons to push.

It was rare, that they had a polite conversation, probably not since the Boom of humans.

That was what Virgil called it. It was the time when the human population absolutely exploded.

Roman said it was because he got bored.

Virgil never forgave him.

So many plants, animals, even entire forests; they died. He watched as humans drained the natural life from the world, and it made him mad. They just couldn't seem to exist without killing unnecessarily!

He swallowed back the anger and continued over to where Roman sat.

He stared at the world, and Virgil hung back for a moment, almost entranced.

Roman lightly breathed out golden dust, and they watched as a small patch of land turned green. The green showed where a new forest would soon be, but it would take years for it to fully grow.

Virgil watched as Roman zoomed in.

The view changed to an abandoned barn. A storm was howling outside, but a cat lay in the hay, breathing heavily.

She was delivering kittens.

Roman focused intently on the kittens, keeping a golden thread attached, keeping them alive.

The mother was weak, and Roman supported her too.

As Virgil watched, the kittens grew stronger. He wished he could help, but he couldn't.

The mother grew weaker, and Virgil felt the faint call of her soul.

He held back, giving Roman another chance to save her.

Roman couldn't. She was just too tired.

Virgil tried to resist, tried as hard as he could, but the pull of her soul called to him harshly, and he was pulled to the view.

Roman looked on, absolutely horrified, as Virgil appeared to kill the cat.

There were tears running down his face, a rare sight.

Virgil turned, and saw the look on his face. Matching tears ran down his face, falling to the ground as streaks of black.

He carefully moved the poor cat's soul on, trying to not let his own emotion influence his job.

When she had moved on, Roman began the onslaught.

"Why did you do that?! Why did you kill her?!"

Virgil stared at the ground. All of this time, and he was still horrified by what he had to do.

"It had to be done."

"No, it didn't! You're just cruel, selfish, and mean! How are the kittens going to survive?!"

Virgil continued to cry, knowing the answer: they wouldn't.

Roman continued yelling, as Virgil's hopes for peace were destroyed.

He turned back to the view of the barn. It was a cold, rainy night, and the kittens would surely die. They needed a provider.

As he watched, a tom cat crept into the barn.

Virgil shouted in alarm. Some cats will kill kittens from other males.

The cat crept forward, and Life and Death watched helplessly as he sniffed the kittens.

With a small "Mrrow" he settled in with them, keeping them warm as their mother's body heat faded.

Virgil and Roman watched in shock. The kittens must have been his, but even then, most male cats don't show a whole lot of paternal instincts in the 'wild'.

Virgil finally spoke.

"Why do you create life?"

Roman just stared forwards for a moment before responding.

"It's like a pull, something that calls me. It almost demands that I do it, that I make this happen."

"Why do you think I take that life?"

Roman got angry for a second. "Because you're a jerk that hates everything I do and enjoys killing everything!"

"Why do you really think I take that life?"

"You feel it too. That pull... I'm so sorry. All of this time..."

Virgil smiled.

"You're not the only one at fault. I thought you were exploding the population because you wanted to kill all of the wildlife, all of the things I cared about."

"That doesn't make any sense! Why would I kill something I created?"

Virgil smiled sadly.

"It just... it was easier to believe."

He looked up, meeting Roman's eyes.

"I know we can't undo the past, I know forgiveness may be difficult, but... do you think you could try to forgive me?"

Roman stepped closer, making Virgil inhale sharply, scared of the sharp words or hit he was certain would follow.

Roman frowned, watching as Death himself flinched away.

"I'm not going to hurt you."

Virgil still watched warily as Roman reached out, wiping a tear from Virgil's face.

Virgil was embarrassed, but weirdly leaned into it. He'd never been touched in a nice way, not since the beginning of his memory. It felt... nice.

Roman grinned, gently pulling him closer.

He would never admit it, but he was also touch-starved, and the colder being felt nice.

He understood now. Death wasn't really the one killing all of the wonderful things Life created. Well, he was, but he wasn't. Just like Roman, Virgil had the same urge. Roman had to create life, and while it was wonderful, he hated to see some of the effects. The Human Population Explosion was a horrid thing. He wished humans weren't such prolific breeders and could just stop expanding. They were unbalancing the world, and Roman wished they would slow down.

Roman gently hugged him. He knew an apology was in order, but he just wanted another second, and Virgil wasn't complaining.

After a few seconds of the first contact they had gotten, Roman finally found his words.

"I'm really sorry. I shouldn't have judged you without the information, and I really shouldn't have acted that way. I really just-"

Virgil cut him off, actively snuggling into his chest.

"It's ok. We both made mistakes."

"But... I hurt you. I acted like a jerk, and it's because..."

"You didn't like my job and you didn't understand it?"

"Um..."

Roman wanted to tell Death that it was partly because he was pretty sure he liked him, but... it could just be that they were the only ones, and all that touch-starved-searching-for-attention-in-any-way-he-could mess, but then again, he could blow it, and Virgil would never want to talk to him again.

"I'm sorry I was so cold and standoff-ish to you."

Virgil said.

"I just... I was jealous."

"You were?"

"Of course. You got to bring beauty to the world. You could do incredible things, and I'm just... Well, it hurt. When you said those things, it wasn't entirely me being sad because they were true, or mean. It was just..." He awkwardly chuckled. "I couldn't help thinking 'How could something so beautiful be so mean?'"

Roman stared at him, wide eyed. Did this, did he mean...

"So... yeah, uh..."

Roman knew he should say something, but the words were hard to find. It was awkward, and he didn't want to lose the only person he had.

"Um. One of the reasons I was so mean to you... I, well, I couldn't help thinking 'How could someone so beautiful do something so mean?'"

Virgil blinked up at him, wide eyed and beautiful.

"I guess what I'm trying to say, and I'm sorry if this ruins everything, but... I think I love you."

Virgil smiled, and Roman died on the inside. It was just too beautiful.

"I love you too, you idiot!"

Roman laughed, Virgil with him.

He smiled at the pale figure, felt the feeling of his soft jacket, and basked in his smile.

He made a promise to himself.

Eternity.