Archive of Our Own ^beta

Usually, Hanzo knew how to hold his liquor. Especially when going out with Genji and Livy. But this time, he was so fed up by a combination of work issues, lack of good sleep and his annoying neighbour that the shots the two of them ordered for him were more than welcome.

"It's the truth!", he rambled, a little too loudly.

Livy and Genji were just laughing their asses off, which only added to his irritation.

"It finally happened!", Genji said gravely, "My own blood lost his mind!"

"But they are staring at nothing!"

"That's what cats do, conejito", Livy chimed in.

"I'm not your bunny", Hanzo wanted to growl, but it was more a whine than anything.

Livy just laughed again and pet his hair, obviously delighted that Hanzo was more inebriated than usual.

"Listen", Genji said, mock-serious, "I will believe you, my dear brother. If! You manage to catch this ghost on tape."

Hanzo narrowed his eyes at him. "Deal."

The light through the curtains was too bright, and the headache too splitting to be anything else than a hangover. Hanzo groaned. What had he expected? Fragments of last night came trickling in his consciousness, the shots, the hammering music, the tale about his staring cats and his worry about housing a ghost (which he had sworn to not tell anybody).

As if on cue, Muffin wailed an extraordinarily pathetic meow, indicating the lack of food in their bowl, a dirty toilet or just a random bug in the apartment. A glance on his phone told him it was 6 minutes after feeding time, which meant he would have to rush for them to not starve.

A low chuckle got caught by an unusual roughness in his throat, followed by more memories about staggering through the streets and howling the He-man version of "What's Up" at the literal top of their lungs. Hanzo winced. He didn't remember a phone being pointed at him, so maybe there was no evidence of this and his dignity wasn't completely lost.

As he reached for the water, Muffin jumped on the bed and whined once more while rubbing her little head on his arm. Grumbling good-naturedly, he stroked her soft, grey fur until he felt something sleek and odd on her back. Upon inspection, the last piece of memory came crawling back to him. In his drunken mind, he had remembered Genji's words of catching the ghost on tape.

And yes.

He would have loved to say he had done it as a joke, but his own, scoffing voice was still in his brain, saying out loud: "I will give you a ghost-tape."

His duct-tape had been easy to find (he was organized, after all), but placing chunks of it on every available surface in his small apartment had taken longer than he would have liked. He closed his eyes in shame when he fished for his hair to feel a couple of strips there, remembering when he had keeled over and fallen into them while laying them out on the bathroom floor.

Muffin sniffed on the tape in his hair, then she yelled once more. Hanzo groaned again. With a quick movement, he liberated his cat from the tape, which luckily didn't seem to cause her any pain. She still licked the spot frantically, which at least gave Hanzo enough time to take a few deep swigs of his water. At least, this whole disaster and its aftermath didn't have any witnesses that could tell the tale in anything but meows.

While he would have loved to stay in bed and ignore the horror he would have to deal with now (in addition to his hangover), he knew it would only get worse. Who knew where Wonky was and what he was up to, but usually it was nothing good. Perhaps he was caught in so much tape that he was sitting somewhere, waiting to be rescued. This thought made Hanzo sad enough to immediately get up, very much to Muffins delight, who walked in front of him, telling him off for letting them starve.

Wonky wasn't in the bathroom, so he turned to the kitchen across the hall, where he froze in the doorway.

There his other cat was, sitting on the small table, staring over to the stove with the same expression he usually held. This time, he wasn't staring at nothing, though. No, right on top of the stove sat the translucent upper body of a very disgruntled looking man with a scruffy beard and a cowboy hat, a piece of duct tape plastered on his forehead.

The adrenaline that shot through Hanzo's body made his headache pump stronger for a moment, before seeming to get rid of it all together. His eyes widened, and his feet forced him to take half a step backwards.

That's when Wonky turned his head towards him and chirped happily, tail up in the air.

Hanzo only saw it from the corner of his eyes, gaze still locked on the figure inside and on top of his stove, which in turn made said figure stir.

"Ya look like ye've seen a ghost", he mocked in a rather deep, but strangely empty sounding voice.

"I... What the fuck", was all Hanzo managed.

The man tilted his head. "Wait. You actually do see me!"

The foolish "No" was already on the tip of Hanzo's tongue, but the apparition didn't even let him speak.

"Good lordy, finally someone ta talk to! I was goin' insane with loneliness o'er the past few months, let me tell ya! Interacting with cats 's about the most fun an' company I've had! I mean, yours have always been more curious than scared, plus you're a sight to behold, but here I go ramblin' again without havin' introduced myself properly! How rude. Name's Jesse McCree, yer local haunty dude!"

Hanzo had tried to follow his words and hand movements, but was still too stunned to say anything but a strangled "Hanzo".

"Yeah, read it on the doorbell a few weeks ago-- I hope that's not creepy? Couldn't always call ya "Asian dude" when I told Gabe 'bout you. I mean. Not that I talked about you much!" A nervous chuckle. "Just the usual, ya know? Conversations with that wraith of a man, and I mean quite literally, ha ha, it's pretty one-sided. Guess he's been like this for too long? He's nice enough though, doesn't leave his husband's side, even though he can't see 'im." He finally paused for a second. "How can you see me, anyway?"

Still processing what was happening, Hanzo pulled the corners of his mouth down and shrugged helplessly.

The ghost (Hanzo shivered at the word) frowned at him. "Well, before we figure that one out, you gotta help me outta this cage or whatever this is. There's like, a mysterious force keepin' me in place. Floated through yer oven and boom, stuck like a fly on honey."

While Jesse the ghost talked on about how he had counted the tiles 8 times out of boredom until the cat arrived, Hanzo's eyes were stuck on the tape on the shimmering form. He took a sharp breath, immediately shutting the other up. "I have an idea."

Jesse pulled his eyebrows up. "Yeah?"

Cautiously, Hanzo took a step towards his new acquaintance. Then he looked him up and down, weighing the danger of the situation.

"Come on, don't look at me like that. I'm no evil spirit! I'm harmless, I swear!"

That, he must admit, were the vibes he had been getting from the start, but it wasn't every day that he met a supernatural creature and how was he to know if that was just a ploy to lure him in and then attack him.

"Hanzoooo", he whined, and Hanzo felt odd at the familiarity. "I swear I won't do anything! I've been stuck here for six hours! Pleaaaase!"

On the other hand, Jesse would probably not stop whining at him if he didn't free him. Also, cooking would be a hassle. Before he could change his mind again, Hanzo stepped forward and plucked the tape from Jesse's forehead, bracing himself for the worst.

It came, in the form of a bone-wrenching noise and a charged, ice-cold sensation through his torso.

"What the fuck!", Hanzo yelled, scrambling backwards into the bathroom, half-slipping on the rug, but managing to catch himself on the edge of the sink.

The feeling and the noise had stopped, so Hanzo looked back up, only to see Jesse the ghost hovering in the hallway, looking sheepish. "Sorry, I just tried ta hug you."

"Never", Hanzo panted, "never do that again."

"Hey Hanzo?"

A surge of adrenaline shot through Hanzo before he remembered his newest acquaintance. "Jesse?", he answered and turned his head to where the voice had come from.

And there he was, floating mid-air, with a grin so bright it almost made something fond flutter in Hanzo's stomach. He would have accepted the sensation, if Jesse hadn't taken half the previous day to babble non-stop about the most uninteresting things this world had to offer. Not that Hanzo could blame him, who knows how long Jesse hadn't had anyone to talk besides the mystery wraith "Gabe". If he had to guess, Jesse must be quite old, since he wore traditional Cowboy getup you usually only saw in Westerns. Still, Hanzo's patience was not something he was known for, in stark contrast to his need to be undisturbed. He additionally had had a short night, because his neighbour had blasted music until 3 A.M. again.

"Phew, I'm happy ya still see me!"

Hanzo frowned. "Why shouldn't I?"

"Dunno", the ghost shrugged, "Ya slept in between, so maybe the spell wore off?"

"What spell?"

"The one you cast?"

"I didn't cast a spell", Hanzo scoffed. "There is no such thing as spells."

"And ghosts." Jesse nodded sagely.

Hanzo gritted his teeth, then he shook his head in defeat and sighed. When he felt a cold sensation on his shoulder, he yelped and looked up, seeing a shimmering blue hand retreat.

"Sorry! Sorry. Just wanted ta console ya."

"Me?! You're the dead one!"

"Now that is just rude."

"But true", Hanzo pointed out and rubbed his shoulder. He didn't like the feeling of ghost-touches at all.

Jesse hummed thoughtfully, and then shrugged. "Either way, I don' feel like I need consolation." Then he tilted his head to Hanzo's laptop screen. "I've been wantin' ta ask, but never could before, ya know. Ha ha. What's it yer doin' there? 'n why dontcha have a job?"

Hanzo pressed his mouth in a thin line. "It is called programming and is my actual job."

"Ooooooo", the ghost replied, sounding slightly spooky with the quiet echo his voice was constantly accompanied by. "That's awesome! So that's why yer at home all day!"

"Mostly, yes", Hanzo sighed and turned back to his screen. He was happy when he could be at home and didn't have to be in the office for an appointment. He liked his peace, and his quiet, both of which seemed to be dangerously close to being shattered.

"I myself don't know that much 'bout computers 'n how they work. I mean. I can access the internet, ya know. I mean, I could, back when I was still alive." A small, self-conscious chuckle.

Did the man ever shut up?

"That reminds me o' somethin'! Hanzo?"

"What."

"I need yer Wi-Fi password."

Hanzo turned on his chair to face the babbling menace. "What even for?" It was difficult to hide the rising annoyance.

Jesse did a little, weird shimmy. "Ya see, the Wi-Fi waves kinda disturb my form, if ya will. It doesn't really hurt, but it's uncomfortable as hell."

"You could just leave, you know", Hanzo replied as neutral as possible, and still felt like a jackass for saying it.

The ghost seemed unfazed by it, and Hanzo didn't know if he was happy about it or not. He probably should be, who knows if Jesse could turn into some sort of poltergeist if he angered him.

"Reckon I could, but I feel drawn to this place here, so I'll just stay if I may."

"Why are you even still here? I mean, do you have any unfinished business with the living or something?" A part of him was actually interested in the answer from a curious point of view, but for the most part, Hanzo felt like he was entitled to know if the creature decided to stay and get on his nerves.

"Nope, no unfinished business", Jesse shrugged, "Jus' like it here amongst the living. A lil' too much to just float off into the void or whatever it is that's awaiting us after death. Not that I haven't been coaxed! The Reaper that's supposed to get me 'on the other side', as she said, she's quite pissed that I refused ta go. She's still on my ass, so sometimes I have ta bail if she shows up."

Maybe he saw Hanzo's alarmed look, because he quickly added: "Dontcha worry yer pretty head, she's harmless to the livin'. I think." He smiled broadly. "But what was that about the password?"

Hanzo squinted. "Will you at least let me work after that?"

Jesse smirked in a way that would be attractive if he was still alive. "For a bit."

Grumbling to himself, Hanzo shuffled to his router and picked it up. Jesse wasn't supposed to attract him. As if the situation wasn't troublesome enough. Hanzo was surprised he was rolling with it so well. Maybe he had really gone insane, just as Genji had claimed.

"Here", Hanzo said, and shoved the underside in Jesse's face for him to read.

"Ah, no, you gotta read it out ta me, ya know, all mysterious-like."

"Like an incarnation?", Hanzo scoffed incredulously.

Jesse's face lit up. "Yeah! Exactly! That was the word, incarnation."

"Oh my god", Hanzo groaned, and turned the router around. "How do you even know that?"

"Ah. There's a shady lady I met a while ago, calls herself "Sombra" and knows a helluva lot about jus' anything. She's funny 'n witty, but I'd keep my distance from her if I were you. She sure as hell smells like trouble. Don't even know why she can see me, but hell, if I ever cross her path, I'm a happy ghost, 'cause I have someone ta talk to besides Gabe. Although Gabe 'n I don' really talk that much, at least he doesn't, jus' listens, but even of that I'm not entirely sure..."

"Jesse." The cowboy was worse than a chihuahua with ADHD.

"Ah, yeah, right! So, will ya read it out? All spooky 'n mysterious-like? I'm sure it'll be fun!"

Hanzo let his breath flow out of his nose and asked himself when his life had started to go downhill.

"Pretty please?", Jesse asked, giving him the best undead puppy-eyes Hanzo had ever seen. Not that he had seen many of those, but still.

"The things I have to put up with", he grumbled under his breath, but before Jesse could comment, he started reading out the code in the most mysterious voice he could manage without feeling too dumb.

"Capital e... nine... g... f... minus... capital h... six..."

It went on for 16 digits with a minus every 4 digits, and by the end of it, Hanzo hoped that his life had even the slightest chance to return to its old, ghost-free ways.

Jesse shimmied again, closing his eyes, and Hanzo grunted a "you're welcome", while returning the router to its rightful place. He'd really have to dust his surfaces again, but for now he allowed himself to feel satisfied with being able to place the machine at the exact same place as before, thanks to the outline in the dust.

"Err... That wasn't correct, I guess?"

Hanzo hissed quietly. "What?"

"It's still uncomfy. I mean, I don't wanna trouble ya too much, but it's really annoying. Wish I could describe it to ya, but I'd have ta start with the whole sensation of bein' weight- 'n bodiless, and let me tell ya, that's a real thing ta get used to! I mean--"

"I'll just read it again", Hanzo cut him off, picking the router back up and disturbing the dust in his hurried motion. He gritted his teeth once more, feeling the thread of patience thin by the minute.

"Sure, yeah, prolly just a mistake with all the letters 'n' numbers, huh?"

Hanzo grunted an affirmation and began again, making sure he was reading it out correctly. Not that he hadn't done so the first time, but whatever.

When he was done, he looked up to the floating form. The apologetic expression told him everything his mouth was about to spill, so Hanzo stopped him before he could start with an angry "But it was correct! I know it! I made sure!"

Jesse waved his hands in defense. "I believe you! Geez! M... Maybe y'have ta read it three times? Ya know, like the Bloody Mary thang?"

It was the dumbest explanation he had ever heard, but what was he supposed to do? Internally screaming, he read the password once more, carefully, and mystically.

He didn't know what he had expected, but of course it hadn't worked. "Maybe ya read it wrong the first time, and have ta read it again for it ta be three times correct?"

Hanzo was scathing. "I know I read it correctly all three times. Maybe you are misinformed. I will not read it out again!" It took all of his anger management to not slam the router down, but place it gently on the side board. It still swayed dangerously, but Hanzo managed to stabilize it, which saved its miserable life. If it had fallen, Hanzo would have thrown it out of the window.

To his dismay, Jesse was still unfazed. "Huh. Alright. I mean, it's not the worst feeling ever, so I'll just endure it, I guess. I might bitch about it from time ta time, though, which I think is only fair, since it's not the correct password or somethin'."

Hanzo was about to screech at him that it was, in fact, the right password, when a small bubble of remembrance popped in the back of his mind. "Oh", was all he managed, feeling humbled in the face of his anger.

"What's that, sugar?", Jesse asked curiously.

"I... I just remembered that my password has been changed from the default." How could he have forgotten? But of course, since his funny brother had pulled that joke, he didn't have someone new over, and his own devices were obviously already connected.

"That explains it then!", the ghost exclaimed brightly, "No wonder the default password din' work. What's the new one, then?"

It was only a small moment of horror when he called upon that information from his brain, but horror nonetheless. It was no use, now, and Hanzo somehow felt like he owed the apparition, so he just sighed deeply, yet again. "Hanzo-is-dumb-and-can't-change-his-wifi-password."

There was a small pause. "Uh, what?"

"You heard it", Hanzo just said, toneless and defeated.

"How are you not able ta change the password?" Jesse's voice was a mix of confusion and amusement.

"I probably could, if I tried, but I didn't see the necessity until... Do we have to talk about this? You said you would let me work, if I gave you the password, which I did." Hanzo felt himself pout, and that wasn't a good look on him, so he just crossed his arms and scowled at the ghost.

"Ah, yes, that's the password, but y'have ta read it letter fer letter, like before, ya know?"

Hanzo let his eyes flutter close, and inhaled deeply. What had he done. What had he done in his past life to deserve this? He would murder Genji. It was about time, anyway. He heard Jesse clear his throat, so he muttered a Japanese curse, and turned to his laptop to write the password down. He was not trying to spell it from his mind, the risk of failing and having to repeat it multiple times with rising anger was too great. Jesse was uncharacteristically quiet, which was all the better.

Then, slowly, letter for letter, and with as much epicness as Hanzo was able to conjure after the whole ordeal, he read the password out.

Just as he had finished saying the last digit, he was rewarded with a deep, happy sigh, and a whispered "thank you so much". He turned his head just in time to see Jesse's form droop and melt, his eyes closed, and a satisfied smile on his face.

And for that, all of it somehow seemed to have been worth it.

Hanzo had been right to fear the shattering of his peace and quiet. Jesse was a frequent visitor, usually lounging mid-air in Hanzo's peripheral view, increasingly often during his working times. His repeated "I have to work"s didn't seem to register with the man. Most of the time, Hanzo could at least tune him out somewhat, as he just rambled about this or that, mostly telling him about the things he had seen since the last time of visiting Hanzo. Not that it was particularly uninteresting all the time; the trouble was the frequency. Hanzo was not used to someone talking so much. The only thing that helped was the way the stories were told. Even his voice was nice to listen to, although it had probably been nicer while he still had been alive, without the ghostly echo to it. So Hanzo let him talk in the background, almost like an audiobook, and he started to get used to it.

That was, unless the ghost tried to actively get something out of him that was more than the occasional hum.

"Hey Hanzo?"

The line of code started to dissolve in front of his eyes as his focus was disturbed. "Huh?"

"You got any snacks?"

Hanzo squinted at him. "You're a ghost."

Jesse squinted back, and then pouted. "Stiiiill."

"Can you even have snacks?", Hanzo wondered aloud. It didn't seem like the ghost could interact with much around him.

"I don't know, we should find out!", Jesse replied cheerfully, and wriggled around in a semicircle.

"I have to work!" It was the same sentence as always, but Hanzo didn't grow tired of reminding him that he actually had a life to take care of.

Jesse whined a scary little noise. "Pleaaaaase. I really crave some Cheeze-Its! The shop is right down the road! And they're not expensive! And if I can't eat them, you can, and I can marvel in the way they crunch in your mouth!"

"Alright, alright!", Hanzo yelled in the increasing volume of the ghost rant. "I'll get some. I should get a break anyway."

With a creaking back, he got up from his desk, and stretched his limbs. He had sat in one place for five hours straight, and his body wasn't happy about it. So, he dutifully made his way down his complex to get the desired treat - and a sandwich with a coffee for his stomach and his nerves. On his way down the stairs, he pondered if this was what single parents felt like when their toddler wouldn't shut up about wanting a certain thing, and then getting it, just so they could have a moment of blissful peace. His own toddler was dogging him faithfully.

"Yer so kind, Hanzo! Sometimes I wonder if I'm jus' going on yer nerves, but really, it means the world ta me ta have someone I can talk with, or rather, to, since yer so busy all the time."

Hanzo's stomach made a little swoop with something like guilt. Was really Jesse the annoying one, or was Hanzo the bitter one? "It's alright", he just groused in return, but the echo in the hallway made him halt. "Listen, Jesse. I can't answer you in public; people would think I'm insane."

"They sure would, he he. That's alright. I'll not take it personally, but it's cute that ya care!" The little wink and grin made Hanzo wish he hadn't said anything, or more, who knew.

"Whatever", he grumbled, and stepped out on the street.

Being accompanied while going shopping was... Nice. In his flat, the constant noise from being talked to was almost suffocating at points, but out on the streets, it felt more like he had a friend to walk with, almost natural even. And now that he was really paying attention to what the ghost said, and not only lamenting his lost peace, he realized how funny he actually was.

"Ya see that lady o'er there? She always stuffs her dog in that tiny red jacket. Does that look like a happy face ta you?" Hanzo had to admit, the dog didn't look happy, but maybe it just looked like that with its bulging eyes and lolling tongue.

"What a time ta be alive! It's Michael Jackson!" The person Jesse pointed at really did look a little like the King of Pop, albeit a run-down version of him. Hanzo bit his lip to not snicker.

"Look! There's two birds humping in the tree up there!" Hanzo was fairly sure that they were fighting instead, but he couldn't quite say that, so he just shook his head with a quiet snort.

It went on like this for the whole way, and got worse in the store. Jesse made him pay attention to his surroundings in ways he hadn't since, huh, probably since he had been a child. It was a strange experience, but also so refreshing that Hanzo was smiling when was back home and unlocked his front door.

"I am pretty sure the birds were fighting, Jesse", was the first thing Hanzo said after he closed the door behind the both of them.

"Ya think?", came the chuckled reply, "There wasn't enough ruckus for that goin' on, fightin' birds're usually a helluva lot louder."

"Huh", Hanzo just replied, and unpacked his groceries. He had bought more than just the snack and his sandwich, as he had already been there.

"But I was right about Michael, was I not?" Hanzo just snorted again. "Come on! It was almost uncanny!"

"Yes, you were right about Michael. Happy?" There was no venom in Hanzo's voice anymore, and it felt strange to just bicker with the man.

"Ha! Knew it!"

"Do you want your snacks now, or not?"

"Hmm. Dunno. I don't know if that's what I'm cravin' anyway."

Hanzo glared at him, but still not as heated as he used to. "So I walked all the way for nothing?"

"Ya got yer groceries", Jesse shrugged.

"I could have gotten them at any other time! I'm still on the clock!"

"Yeah yeah, alright, I'll try them, don't get all moody on me again", Jesse snickered, and hovered down a bit. "Jus' toss 'em in my mouth!"

Hanzo just looked for a moment, already knowing what was probably going to happen, but he also found that he didn't care much, so he ripped the package open, fished for a crisp and threw it at the shimmering face in front of him. As expected, the treat flew right through the translucent body. Jesse eyed the fallen snack with bleary eyes.

"I don't know what you expected", Hanzo huffed, tone gentle enough to take the edge off of it.

Jesse just made a non-committal noise, somersaulted once, and hovered upside down with his face as close to the crisp as possible.

Hanzo stored the last of his groceries in the meantime, and unpacked his sandwich for a quick late lunch. He'd maybe cook something in the evening, if he felt like it. Upon turning around, he saw that Jesse was still eying the crisp, but upright again. "Are you sad that it didn't work?", Hanzo asked, feeling a little sorry for the other.

The ghost looked up at him, eyes a little brighter. "No, my cravin's actually gone. Or, I don't know, it's... Different. I don' think I actually really craved food itself, but wanting to eat, if that makes sense?"

"Hm. In a way, I assume", Hanzo mused. It must feel weird, being a ghost. "So you don't have any bodily needs anymore, but would like to have them again?"

"Kinda, yeah. I'm quite used ta not needing anythin' anymore, but I guess sometimes my soul remembers what it used ta be like and wants it again? Like, the feeling of needing ta breath, eat, sleep, that sorta thing."

Hanzo nodded in understanding. "Not that I fully understand, but yes, I can imagine what you mean. It probably feels really weird."

Jesse's eyes brightened even further, along with his smile. "Thank you. For tryin' ta understand", he just said, almost shyly.

A bubble of warmth formed in Hanzo's midsection, and he smiled at the ghost. Maybe he could get used to him, after all.

"Do ya like crisps more when they're fresh 'n crunchy or old 'n soggy?"

Never mind, then.

"Hey Hanzo?"

Even though it was nothing new anymore to be visited by Jesse, it still took him off guard if he just appeared next to him and talked, more so if his head popped up through the wall where he was relaxing on his bed, scrolling through the news.

Garbling a shocked noise, he half-dropped his phone on his face. "Argh! Jesse! I told you to not scare me like that!"

"Aw, sorry", the ghost replied, retreating a little into the wall so only half his face was still visible.

It looked weird, but also somehow cute, and Hanzo was a little unhappy that he wasn't able to stay mad at the guy. "Just keep it in mind already."

"I'll try", Jesse said quietly, voice wavering slightly with the whole being dead thing. A beat of silence passed, and he started again, peeking at Hanzo's phone. "Do you have any games on yer phone?"

"What?"

"Yer just browsin' through the news, like always, do ya never do anythin' fun?"

"Are you sure Genji didn't send you?", Hanzo grumbled, and turned his back to the ghost to continue to read the article about the 10 best ways to turn your tiny city flat into a green paradise.

"I used ta play Farmville on my phone back then, 's that still a thing?", Jesse asked, obviously ignoring Hanzo's grousing. It had become a habit, on both sides.

Still, Jesse's answer made Hanzo sit up and turn around again. "Wait a minute. How long have you been dead if you used a phone when you were still alive?"

Jesse floated all the way into the room, pretending to settle in front of him, and cocked a brow. "Why would you ask that now, and not when I told you 'bout the Wi-Fi, the Cheez-Its and such?"

"I had other problems in those particular moments", Hanzo replied dryly.

"Fair 'nough. I've been dead fer six months, give or take."

Hanzo almost choked on his spit. "Six months? I thought you were dead for hundreds of years!"

"What, because ghosts are usually old? That's racist!"

"I'm pretty sure that's not racism!"

"It's a prejudice either way, and ya should be ashamed of yerself." The hint of the crow's feet around Jesse's eyes told Hanzo that he was still joking.

"That's not what this is about. I assumed because you are wearing cowboy gear. You're a literal cowboy ghost!"

"A cowghost", Jesse said proudly.

"No", Hanzo said, exasperated. "Did you die on Halloween?"

"Nuh-uh. On a regular old day, was drivin' my old pick-up truck, whistling to myself, when the much larger truck across the road hit me face first."

Hanzo grit his teeth awkwardly. He didn't know what he had expected, but of course, there had to be a death story. "I'm sorry."

"'s alright", Jesse said cheerfully, "It was fast 'n painless, so I can't complain much. Plus, now I'm here, roamin' free, like my cowboy soul always wanted, nay, needed, with the wind not only in my hair, but--" He interrupted himself, gaze flicking to the upper right corner of the room, and a shudder went through his body.

"Jesse?", Hanzo asked anxiously.

"She's here", he croaked, still staring into the corner. His form continued to shiver and bend in a strange way. "I will NOT come with you!", he roared, voice distorted. Again, a shudder through his body, and then it looked like the lower part of the ghost was being sucked into the direction of where his gaze was fixed. "No, no, please", Jesse whined, eyes wide, and jaw clenched.

That shook Hanzo out of his stupor, and he jumped to his feet, facing the invisible creature tugging at his companion. "Show yourself, reaper!", he yelled, hands balled into fists and an anger in his stomach to punch someone in the face.

To his surprise, she did show herself. In the corner of the room, there she floated, surrounded by a dark, pulsating matter, a pale blue lady, clad in what seemed to be the remains of a black robe, with a hood, knee-high red and black boots, and straps around her bare thighs. She had a weird head piece on with what looked like a couple more eyes than she would need. With a cackle, and a hue of a French accent, she wailed: "I will take him with me, and you can't do anything about it!"

"Leave my ghost alone!", Hanzo shouted back, shaking a fist at her, as if he could take on an angel of death.

And yet, the reaper screeched in anger. "Non! You claimed him!" Another screech, and she dove right towards Hanzo in a black mist, who screamed in terror and felt a nauseating, freezing punch in his chest where the puff of black shot through him. He staggered back, and turned around, fists in the air again, but the smoke only curled up with a sickening wail, and bolted through the ceiling.

Both Hanzo and Jesse were frozen in place for a moment, the only sound in the ringing silence being Hanzo's laboured breathing.

"Is she gone?", Hanzo finally dared to ask.

"... Seems ta be so? I don' feel that tug anymore that I used ta feel. I mean, now that it's gone, I realize I had it. Even before she came here, t'was always there, but now it's gone."

Hanzo's shoulders sagged, and a deep breath left his lungs. He felt his chest up and down, but apart from a light soreness, he seemed to be alright. Letting himself fall on the bed as the adrenaline left him, he wondered when he had decided to try and fight a reaper for Jesse the ghost.

"So. Ya claimed me?"

"I suppose so", Hanzo just answered, endlessly tired.

Jesse's face split into a grin. "I like that."

"Yeah, well. Don't get too comfortable, cowghost", Hanzo huffed, but shot him a warm grin.