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Death couldn’t help but smirk, as he saw the small boy standing next to the cat. How deeply humans were connected to animals… more than they thought, surely. In the end, they all were flesh, destined to die at one point.
He stepped out of the shadows and approached the young crown prince. Carefully, to not startle the boy, he lowered himself to the ground, eyes examining the small figure. Although Rudolf was only five years old, in his eyes swam a world of pain and hurt. It didn’t surprise Death; he knew how hard the court could be for a child.
Not only for a child. His thoughts briefly wandered toward Elisabeth, who had changed so much. No longer was she the free-spirited young woman he once met, no. She turned into a selfish woman who didn’t even hold much interest for her own son. And yet – he could not wipe her from his mind.
“Do you like the cat?” he asked Rudolf with a friendly smile on his face.
The boy who had up until this point not noticed his presence, turned toward him and met his gaze. It took only a few seconds until his eyes began to beam with joy and a smile spread on the small face.
“You are back!” he almost yelled and threw himself at Death, the little arms wrapping around his neck.
Gently Death took the boy’s hands in his own, pulling himself away from the hug, and winked.
“I have promised you that I will always stay close to you – and promises are to be kept, not broken. You do know that do you Rudolf?”
Rudolf nodded vigorously and then pointed to the cat next to him.
“It is so fluffy!”
Death eyes followed Rudolf’s gesture and he observed the cat, the true reason he had been called here. The poor thing was fading quickly, its breath shallow and from its opened mouth a mixture of red liquid and foam dropped onto the ground.
“Rudolf? What happened to the cat?” Death turned back toward Rudolf and pulled up an eyebrow, studying his reaction.
The boy widened his eyes, before dropping his head to his chin, staring at the ground.
“I wanted to make it all right again. Last time I saw you I told you that I struck a cat until it was dead. I wanted to make it better.”
Rudolf’s eyes filled with tears and Death considered if the boy even knew about the permanence of death yet or if he simply tried to follow human morals about not being “a bad child”.
Rudolf then pointed toward a bush next to them.
“This cat seemed to be so hungry, and I fed it the berries from there!” His shoulders slumped down, as he swallowed before continuing. “And now it lies here, like that. Barely moves. I don’t know why.”
Death took a closer look at the particular berries and let out a sigh, as he recognized the holly plant.
That would explain the fate of this cat.
He put one hand on the cat’s body, taking away the pain it felt. The breath went quieter, but also slower. It would not be long now. Rudolf watched him and wiped away his tears with the sleeve of his coat, before asking something in a whispered tone.
“Did I do something wrong?”
Death didn’t know what to answer. Rudolf had acted with good intentions and poisoned the cat by accident. Yet – he was responsible for its death, in a way. He sighed and laid his palm flat against Rudolf’s cheek, looking down at him with a neutral expression.
“You did not know, that holly berries were poisonous for cats?”
Rudolf shook his head in earnest and tilted his head slightly.
“What is poison?” His lower lip trembled, and Death tried to choose his words wisely to prevent the child from sobbing again.
“It is something that can kill living beings. Not everyone can eat everything that grows in this world. The cat,” he paused for a moment and let his gaze linger on the feline creature, before continuing, “is now sick, and will die very soon. There is nothing that can be done to save it.”
“Does that mean it will sleep like the other cat did?” Rudolf asked with wide eyes, the innocence he held within radiating from his face.
“No, Rudolf. Sleep is temporary. Death is permanent. When someone dies, they move from this world … to another one.” Death tried to explain, knowing it was hard for such a young child to grasp the complexity of it all.
“To God? To…heaven?” Rudolf suddenly asked, his eyes glowing with seemingly having found the answer to his questions.
Humans and their silly little religions. Well. Maybe they weren’t silly. Although they have been the cause of many wars so far. Death and destruction, humans fighting each other about which god was the right one. But in the end, they all would meet Death, all the same, entering his kingdom and facing the truth.
However, there was no need to take that belief away from Rudolf just yet. He was too young to form his own opinions and beliefs and Death knew it would not help the crown prince to start questioning religion in the presence of his caregivers.
“For some people that might mean something like that, yes. It is difficult to explain.” He smiled slightly. “Now, do you see how the cat is barely breathing? Its heart is about to stop beating very soon. And when that happens, it is dead and no longer a part of this world.”
Both Rudolf and Death stared at the cat for a while, sitting in silence.
“It is very quiet now. The screams have stopped!” Rudolf exclaimed with an innocence and almost excitement that only an unknowing child could portray.
“Yes. I took away the pain from it.”
Death watched Rudolf intently and could see the question that began to form in the child’s mind written all over his face. With wide eyes, he stared at Death.
“You can do that?”
Death could feel that it was time to reveal his true being to Rudolf, at least partly. He did not show fear toward him, and it was not in Death’s nature to lie to children. Adults – yes. It was easy to lie to them and many would do everything in their power to be lied to, only to keep themselves away from many truths. But children – they were full of honesty and wonder for the world. He hoped that Rudolf might stay this way.
“Yes. It is my task, to do that. And more. I visit those who die and take them with me to the other world.”
Rudolf tilted his head and thought for a bit. Death waited patiently and raised his eyebrows in astonishment, as the boy did not show any signs of fear. To the contrary – he began to smile widely, and his eyes were beaming as they did before.
“So you are an angel?”
Oh. Well. Maybe Rudolf was still too young to understand fully.
“Something like that, yes.”
“And how do you do that?” Rudolf asked and leaned toward Death, almost tumbling over. Death gently grabbed him by his shoulders, sat him back on his heels and then bent down, bringing his face near the cat's head.
“I give it a kiss. A special kiss. Watch.” He touched the cat's forehead with his lips and slowly felt the life leave its body until the heartbeat stopped and he gently took the poor soul into his arms, slowly petting it until it curled against his chest.
Rudolf could not see that; he only saw the dead body. He bent forward and lightly poked his finger against the cat, focused on understanding what had happened.
“Is it dead now? What happens next?”
“Now I will take the cat with me. Its soul. There it will have peace.“
Death was about to stand up, as he suddenly heard a sentence, that made him freeze in an instant. A sentence, that reminded him so much of Rudolf’s mother.
“Can I come with you too?”
Death turned to look at the boy, who only smiled, displaying trust and finding comfort in Death’s presence. And he could feel that Rudolf meant what he said – even if he did not realise it yet. The longer he looked at the boy, the more he could feel that their paths were destined to cross many times, that Rudolf would die before his natural time.
But that time was not now. He was still a child.
Death trailed his fingers through the boy’s hair and smiled back at him, before slowly shaking his head.
“I can’t take you with me now, Rudolf. You are young and have still a lot to do, in this world. It is not the time nor place for you to come with me.”
For a very brief moment, Death considered if he should just take Rudolf with him, regardless. A thought born from bitterness, vengefulness about what Elisabeth had become, how she was taunting yet denying him. But Rudolf was not to blame for his mother’s behaviour. He was a child.
Tears rolled down Rudolf’s cheeks again, as he lunged forward and hugged Death as best as he could, grasping his cloak with his strong small hands.
“But I have no other friends! You are my friend! Nobody cares about me!”
He sobbed and Death was struck with many different feelings, rage being one of them. What had they done to the boy that he spoke such words at such a young age? Had the world already corrupted him? Or … was he the one corrupting Rudolf? Did it matter?
“Rudolf?” Death took hold of Rudolf’s chin and gently turned his head until their gazes met. “Listen: One day the moment will come when you ask me that question and my answer will be yes. But not yet. But I do promise that I will visit you and comfort you whenever you truly need me, yes?”
Death wiped away the boy’s tears and slowly pulled away again.
“You promise?” Rudolf asked with a shaking voice, his eyes as round as the moon at its fullest.
“I do. As I have already told you: Promises are to be kept and not to be broken!”
That seemed to calm Rudolf, for now. Death stood up, letting the cat’s soul hide itself in his long cloak.
“I must leave now. But I will see you again. Remember my promise.”
To not draw out the moment longer than necessary, Death quickly spun around and vanished in the shadows.
Left alone there sat a boy with a smile on his lips, the sunlight shining upon his tear-stained face. He looked at the dead cat and gently petted its fur, before standing up and finding something else to play with.
“Sleep well, kitty.” He said to the cat, turned around and ran back inside the castle.