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Death was there when the spark of fire kissed a barrel of gunpowder, erupting into a chain reaction of explosions and setting the warehouse ablaze. The bandits thought they’d have an easy job claiming the bounty of the newly dubbed Team Friendship by taking Perrito, the only one incapable of fighting back, hostage. Kitty was given the task to free him while Puss in Boots would make a diversion. A torch was knocked out of someone’s hand and rolled dangerously close to the warehouse stock, and the rest was history.
It took Death’s whistle for the orange tabby to register that Death was sitting right next to him, leaning against the wall he propped himself up on.
“Ah, I was wondering when you’d show up,” the rogue joked. Despite his light tone, he was cradling his side as it was bleeding. A large piece of shrapnel had embedded itself into the side of his abdomen. He held tightly onto it, keeping it from digging further or shaking loose. Death could see the cat was shaking. “I guess this means this is it, isn’t it? This is the day you take my last life.”
“Not immediately, gatito,” he replied. “I’m in no rush this time.”
“Then would you be willing to talk to me until then? I don’t know if I’m ready yet.” The wolf tossed the idea around his head before settling on an answer.
“I don’t mind. I’ve been told I’m quite the conversationalist.” The rogue visibly relaxed, leaning over and resting on the wolf’s side.
“Before you ask, I have no regrets for this life. It was a good one, this one.”
“Really now?” He raised a brow.
“Well, I guess I wanted to see Perrito get his therapy dog license.” There was a pause. “Perhaps I also wanted to visit Donkey and his kids. After all, I can’t deprive the little ones of their favorite tío.” Another pause. “Okay fine, I also regret not drinking all the heavy cream I saved up until now. Are you happy now?”
“There is no shame in having regrets,” Death interjected. “I’ve never met anyone who didn’t have any when they died.” A silence lingered over them with only the sound of fire crackling around them.
“I-is Kitty and Perrito okay?” A shiver wracked through Puss as he spoke.
Puss and Kitty scanned the warehouse from the roof window. Ten bandits all together holding Perrito hostage. Friendly as ever, Perrito talked their heads off until they shoved a rag up to his snout, knocking him out in seconds. The two cats were quick to free the unconscious dog, but a bandit had come around at just the wrong time. The gang was alerted, and Puss in Boots stayed behind to fight off the wave of enemies to give Kitty the opportunity to escape with Perrito.
There were too many of them, and the orange tabby couldn’t count on Kitty coming back in time, so it was time for improvisation. Gunpowder barrels were thrown down onto the floor, spilling their contents. In the ensuing chaos, he knocked a torch out of one of their hands and watched it roll to the gunpowder on the floor.
The rest was history.
“They are outside. Alive.” Death felt the cat trembling against him. He could imagine what Puss was going through. Despite his brave face, Death could feel the fear radiating off of him. He could feel each and every thought passing through the cat. Will they be okay? Did I do good enough for them? What will happen to them when I’m gone? What will happen to me? To lighten the mood, he chimed, “How was the wedding?” Puss in Boots shifted his gaze towards the wolf.
“Lobo, you were there for the wedding.”
“Humor me.” Puss sighed in response.
“Well you saw what happened: fancy chapel, priest, poofy dress. Perrito was a good ring bearer.” He looked on with a fondness in his eyes. “What were you even doing at our wedding?” The wolf chuckled.
“I was wondering if you’d get a heart attack when you got to the vows.” Puss in Boots laughed back at the answer.
“Well, I’ll have you know that I didn’t.” He settled back down, now nestled in the wolf’s fur. “But I got close. It didn’t help that right before the wedding day we had the talk.” The rogue took a deep breath. “You see, the legendary Puss in Boots is one who loves openly, so marriage had always been…” He gestured with his free hand. “But we talked about it, and now if I find another love, I won’t have to pick and choose. I could just love.”
“Have you met anyone for that?”
“No, not at all,” Puss responded suspiciously quickly. “Even then, they’d have to pass Kitty’s test first. If she can’t trust the new addition, then they can’t stay.” He smiled a melancholic smile. “We had a candidate that could join us, but I don’t think I have much time for that now, do I?”
“Well, do you have any questions for me?” Puss’s body was heavy now, but he was still awake enough to think about it.
“Does la muerte have loved ones too?” It wasn’t hard to tell that the cat didn’t ask seriously. “I imagine with your job you wouldn’t have much time to even…” His sentence trailed off as he realized Death had nodded slightly.
“A son.” Death’s voice softened. “A dying man had lost his wife, and he didn’t have anyone to take care of his infant son.” The wolf shifted against the wall so that the orange tabby would have a better angle to lay against him more comfortably. “He wanted to make sure his son wouldn’t be orphaned, so quite a few people lined up to take his son in.” He smiled at the memory as if he was reliving it right then and there. “He rejected the peasant family because his son would probably die like he would. He also rejected the king because he didn’t want his son to be spoiled rotten.” The cat leaned further until most of his weight was on death. The exhaustion that came after the adrenaline rush was setting in. “Both God and the Devil appeared as well. He rejected God because he wanted his son to understand that the world could be cruel, and he rejected the Devil because his son would only know cruelty.” The wolf closed his eyes, recalling the scene by heart. “When the time came for me to take his soul, he looked me dead in the eye and said ‘You, you’ll be the godfather to my son.’ Apparently it was because everyone was equal in death.” The both of them sat in silence. Despite all that happened, the two of them were comfortable just sitting there together. The cat was starting to drift off when he spoke.
“I… think I’m ready to leave now.” The cat could barely keep his eyes open, his grip on his side now loose. “I wonder what’ll happen to me when I go.”
“At the very least, I’ll make sure you’ll be without pain.” And with that, Puss in Boots fell into a dreamless sleep.
***
Kitty kept swatting at Perrito’s face, attempting to wake him up to no avail. Whatever drug they used on him, it was strong. There were complications in the task, but in their line of job, it’s nothing significant. Puss was always one who could charm or fight his way out of anything, so imagine her surprise when a chain of explosions echoed through the area. She watched in horror as the warehouse caught fire and parts of the ceiling caved in. Surely, he must have a plan. She could hear her heartbeat in her ears. He’s reckless, but he always bounces back from it. Her paws trembled. And when he comes out of that building, he’ll wear the stupidest grin and laugh it off.
But there was nothing. She considered rushing back into the warehouse, but all but one of the entryways were collapsed with the only one left blocked by a wall of fire. She was glad Perrito wasn’t awake for it.
There they were, standing in the chapel of Santa Coloma, having a redo of their wedding. The legendary Puss in Boots showed up this time, albeit exceptionally early and in the best dress wear he could afford. Walking the aisle was Kitty in a wedding dress, one even poofier than the last. When they got to the vows, Puss uncharacteristically fumbled his words, and Kitty couldn’t help but grab him by the lapels and kiss him right then and there. Everyone cheered, and an excessive amount of rice was thrown, and she couldn’t be any happier than today.
She stood there frozen for a long time. She couldn’t tell how long she waited until she could make out a figure amongst the fire. Kitty felt a wave of relief hit her. She steeled herself, formulating in her head what she wanted to say. She prepared herself for his smug face and confident swagger, and she wasn’t going to let herself be vulnerable in the face of that. What she was instead met with was a song she dreaded. Her fur started to stand on its ends as her heart rate spiked.
It was Death. There was no arguing about it. He strode towards her, walking through the fire like it was nothing. Cradled in his arms was Puss, a black piece of fabric tied around the cat’s abdomen. Before she could say anything, Death shushed her as he knelt down, laying Puss on the ground by her.
“Silencio, por favor. Está durmiendo.” Kitty rushed to his side, checking his pulse as she came to hold him. It was slow and weak, but it was there. “There is a doctor not far from here. If you keep traveling north, you’ll find a village where he will be.” He then stood up and walked back into the burning building, and Kitty barely caught the tear in Death’s poncho.