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Fear & Death
I… am Death Personified. The Grim Reaper. Feared above all manner of monster or demon that has ever arisen from the depths of the Underworld. At least, second most feared. I now believe that the most feared of all creatures happens to be me lovely husband, the Boogeyman. By Hades, I never thought I would see the day that I would considered Boogey to be scary or refer to him as my husband, but I guess things do really changed. Still, it's a lot better than being the laughing stock of the Underworld, which I was when I met them… when I met Billy and Mandy. Where do I begin with' those two? Hmm…
Well, it all started over a sick hamster and a limbo contest. For my failure, I became "best friends forever" ugh with Billy and Mandy. A thought I utterly loathed and truth be told, I'm positive Mandy knew it, especially since I said so many times, which prompted the rarely smirk on her atrociously dour little face.
Mandy, you see, hates and loathes the world about her. She was a very, very contentious and morbid child, thought not your typical angsty protagonist. She had very cute dog by the name of Salivia, and oddly enough, never wore goth clothing. She was a domineering type who reduced me, The Grim Reaper, to a veritable 'slave'.
Billy, on de other hand, is an idiot. A complete and total nitwit with an I.Q. of -5, somehow losing to a shovel and two candy bracelets. I do believe that if the world was populated by his ilk, zombies everywhere would starve to death. A loathsome, flatulent child, prone to picking his nose and eating grotesque amounts of junk food, one wondered where he ever stored it, but I'd rather not take a guess. If ignorance is bliss, then Billy has truly cornered the market. He was nicer to me than Mandy, though I was the first one to discourage looking for him when he'd get into trouble. Why did Mandy hang around him? Simple really, she wanted to exploit the stupid and had clearly hit the jacketpot.
During our time together, we went on many, many adventures (some would call them grim), and most of the time, I would be de one getting the short end of the stick. The adventures of Billy and Mandy seemed like they would never end, and every day, I hoped it would be their last…. at least, that is how it started. Oh sure, the world would blow up, or we'd be horribly disfigured, or there'd be some cosmic rift that caused reality to be torn asunder, but it always turned out right in the end.
Hanging around with dose two all the time seriously affected my status in de Underworld. My reputation had plummeted to an all-time low. Fear of death waned, as time after time those brats continued to diss me. Me! Might I remind you I am Death Personified! My ego took many slings and arrows from dat pair. I had really felt personally doomed to a a 'life' sentence of a completely menial existence.
Nonetheless, as time went on, I had developed… feelings towards them. I would sometimes comment things such as "If anybody's gonna take their heads, It's going to be ME!" or "I'm sorry, killing dem is my job, and unfortunately for the world, it's not their time." When they were in trouble, I felt the need to rescue them. When they left to do whatever, I would have a case of empty nest syndrome. I did their chores (no matter how digusting it was), cooked food for them, put them to bed, and more. Ironically, I was there for dem more than their own parents were. Billy looked up to me and wanted to be de a Reaper, and Mandy… well, she still treated me horribly, but we do play card games and insult Billy as bonding activites, so dere's a start. Yes, whoever is reading dis, I, Master of the forces of life and death, was becoming a… parent. Despite my infertility, I had always dreamed of having children of my own and in a weird way I gained that through dem though I would rather eat Billy's stinky sock than admit that .
How does Boogey come into play? Well, dat's also calls for an explaination. You see, Boogey and I have had a long history with each other. It all started back on me first day of kindergarten. I was on the swing, minding me own business, when that no good jerk pushed me off! Then, he had the audacity to ask if we can be friends! As if! I told him no which only made him bully me more! Since dat day, we have been enemies, always getting on each others' nerves and trying to kill each other. Even after I won the Scare Elections and gained the title of the Grim Reaper, he continued with his pranks and trickery until I finally got rid of him after graduation.
Thousands of years later, Boogey decided to come back into me life, claiming that he "missed me" and wanted to visit for "old time sake". I however saw through his pathetic lies; he only came to visit because he like me had his reputation in de Underworld in the dumps. He wasn't scary anymore, simple as that. Modern children were growing up desensitized by the world around them, so de ol' "jumping out and yelling boo" strategy wasn't going to work. He even lost a scaring contest to two bunnies and a paper towel in June of 1988. Not wanting to admit that he was losing his edge, Boogey wanted to relive his glorly days, those glorly days being when he was shoving me head into toilets and giving me wedgies when I performed Shakespeare on stage. Fed up with him, I challenged Boogey to a scare off, which I won without breaking a sweat, and as a part of our deal, I banished his smug face to a realm of terror.
Unfortunately, like a roach, he came crawling back into my life, having escaped the dimension and now hungry for revenge. Using the many times I the kids misused me powers, Boogey was able to convince the Underworld courts to strip me of my rank, title, and powers as the Grim Reaper, as well as allowing him the honour to exile me. This was only phase one of this plan; once Boogey got rid of me and the kids, he would sail to the Isle of Horror to capture Horror's Hand: an anicent, powerful artifact that would allow the user to be the most scariest being alive. But like always, he failed in the end. Not only did he faced his fear of not being scary, but thanks to the multiple bunks to his noggin', he lose his memories and became afraid of everyting. The best part was dat the Hand wasn't even on! I tricked Boogey into thinking the Hand was showing him his worst fears, that fool!
After those events, things went back to normal (well, as normal as Endsville could be). But as always, fate had something else in stored for us. One day, the Underworld Courts send a letter to me explaining that after careful consideration they have assigned me to be Boogey's caretaker for the time being. Due to Boogey being unable to perform his duties, mortals were becoming more and more fearless with every day. If not taken care of, it would lead to people thinking that they were invincible and incapable of dying, making my job a whole lot stressful from reaping those foolish souls. So, I was tasked with gettin' Boogey back to his old self. At first, I couldn't believe the letter. I was already dealing with the world's most destructive children to have ever walk the Earth, and now they wanted ME to whip Boogey back into shape?!?
But then, a thought came to me head. What if this could benefit me in some way? What if I could gain the former respect and glorly I had by fixing Boogey? A smile spread on my face. This was perfect! I immediately agreed to the deal. "This would be a piece of cake," I thought to myself.
Oh boy, was I wrong.
Working with Boogey was the definition of a living nightmare. He refused to get out of Billy's closet during the first few days until Mandy threatened to poke his eye out. Then even when he was encouraged, his attempts in scaring fell flat on his face and sometimes he scared himself instead. You, dear reader, may think that I experienced schadenfreude at Boogey's suffering. Yet, there was… nothing, absolute nothing. It was so pathetic to see that I couldn't feel anyting towards it. These strings of endless failures continued for days, weeks, and eventually a month. Then on one blisteringly hot day in the middle of August, I got the kids and Boogey ice cream from a truck that was passing through.
Billy decided to gulp down a tray of ice cubes to cool off and was recovering from a major brain freeze. Mandy was "enjoying" her strawberry ice cream while making sure Billy didn't die from said brain freeze. Meanwhile, Boogey was sitting next to me on de bench, nervously nibbling on a ice cream sandwich. It was quiet at first, none of us saying a word and eating our ice cream. But then, Boogey cut through the silence to ask me one, single question.
"Grim, why do you bother helping me?"
The question took Grim out for a split second. He stopped licking his chocolate ice cream and turned his head to Boogey, raising an eyebrow.
"Because the courts said so?"
Boogey huffed, not looking the reaper in the eye. "Yeah, I know that. But… why do you continue to, ya know? I've been here for months and have no progress to show."
"Boogey, dese tings take time. Ya can't expect to the best in a month. Remember the saying? Rome was―"
"Wasn't built in a day, I know, I know."
Boogey crumbled up the wrapper of the now finished sandwich into a ball before throwing it into the garbage next to him.
"Be honest with me, Grim." he turned towards the skeleton with a straight face. "Am I a lost cause?"
"Eh?" Grim played dumb. "What ever do you mean?"
It didn't work. Boogey glared at him, causing Grim to sweat bullets.
"Don't play games right now. I'm serious! I have nothing: no family, no friends, no job! I used to be a someone, someone that I can't even remember! I need to be scary again!"
Grim scratched his head, giving Boogey a sheepish smile. "U-Um, well, I'm sure you'll make it back to de top someday! Ya just gotta work harder!"
Realizing that the conversation was going nowhere, a frustrated Boogey got up from the bench and began walking away from Grim and the kids. The skeleton cringed before faceplaming himself.
"Oh, why do I gotta open me big mouth?"
Boogey left me alone dat day. But as the weeks passed, he continued pushing himself to de limits. I always told him to slow down and not rush himself, but he didn't bother listening to me. Just like the old days, he was obsessed with being scary, and all I could do was to watch over him to make sure he didn't hurt himself. Finally, one day, which started off regularly, changed the course of my and other's lives permanently.
Grim let out a relaxed sigh as he lay back on his sun lounger. Today, Billy's family was hosting a pool party to cool off from the summer heat. Everyone was busy eating or slashing around the pool, leaving the skeleton undisturbed as he soaked up the sun. With a green face mask covering his features and slices of cucumber resting over his eyes, he reveled in the moment.
"Aaaaah, this is the life~"
"Grim."
The reaper growled, annoyed at what he assumed was one of the kids trying to bother him.
"I'm busy, ya brat…"
Suddenly, one of his cucumber was snatched away, prompting Grim to slowly open one eye in irritation.
"You better have a good reason ta―"
He stopped mid-sentence as the other cucumber slipped from his eye, and a blush crept onto his cheeks. In front of him was Boogey, wearing a purple bikini. The top was a triangle style with a halter top, while the bottom was a sarong wrap tied around his waist.
Noticing Grim's gaze lingering on him, Boogey nervously broke the silence.
"I… had to borrow one of Gladys' swimsuit."
Grim snapped himself out of his stupor and scratched the back of his head. "N-No, it's fine. Sorry for snapping at ya earlier. I thought maybe Mandy wanted something from me. So, what do you want?"
Boogey shuffled on his feet and twiddled his thumbs, looking like a child hesistant to share something important with their parent.
"I've been thinking about this for a while, and I decided that I'm giving up on being scary."
Grim's jaw nearly hit the ground.
"WHAT?!? Are ya crazy, mon?! You were doin' so well!"
Boogey shook his head. "Grim, please don't lie to me. I haven't made any progress, no matter how hard I try. You don't have to hype me up anymore."
Sadness clouded the Boogeyman's face. "The courts will have to assign a new Boogeyman now. I'm just too rusty for the job."
As the green monster closed his eyes and let out a tired sigh, a big spider hanging from a branch fell on top of his pointy noise.
"Uh, Boogey?"
"Yeah?"
Grim pointed at the nose. "Ya got something on ya nose."
Boogey's eyes travelled to his nose where the spider rested without a care in the world. A loud shriek pierced the air, drawing the others at the pool party. They all saw Boogey, as pale as white, nabbing the spider before throwing it away in a state of panic, it landing on Billy's nose.
"SPIDER!"
Billy frantically tried to remove the spider, but to no luck. He left the pool party screaming his head off. Boogey tried to go after him.
"Wait, Billy! I'm sorry, I didn't mean―"
But he was stopped by Grim's hand resting on his shoulder. He looked over his shoulder to see Grim in a state of shock.
"Ya did it…"
Boogey gave Grim a look of puzzlement. "What?"
"Ya finally scare someone!" Grim exclaimed. "Sure, it was an accident, but hey, it's baby's first steps!"
Grim saw the cogs turning in Boogey's head before the realization hit him.
"I did it. I finally did it."
A rush of memories flooeded the Boogeyman's head. Everything from his 5th birthday to the day he met Grim were all coming back to him. Yet, it came with a sudden pain that striked him like a hot knife. Boogey kneeled over in pain, wrapping his arms around himself. Grim helped him and allowed him to lend agaisnt him for support. Then just as the pain came, it faded away into a dull. Boogey slowly lifted his head to see Grim with worriness in his features. When he spoke again, his voice contained an element of recognition.
"Grimmy?"
Boogey started off small with scaring the most wimpy, crybaby children. Then, he targeted the cruel school bullies who acted high and mighty. Then came the teenagers who didn't believe in him anymore, then the adults, then monsters, then demons, and eventually the gods themselves. Before long, he had not only regained his reputation back, but also amplified it tenfold. Mortals were back to living in fear, business was booming for boogeymen, and Boogey himself was rising in fame and power with each day. Though I regained some respect back myself, I was also dealing with my infuriating co-workers comparing me to Boogey! Every time I travelled to de Underworld, they would make fun of me and ramble about how sooooo much scarier Boogey was just to piss me off! Jerks, the lot of them! Yet, a part of me felt… encouraged, challenged even.
In my early days as a Reaper, I striked fear everywhere I went. I spared no one regardless if they were a king of a nation or a poor chimney sweeper. I remember now, the good ol' days and the joy of reaping. Yet here I was, now ashamed of what I had become. What have I been doing after those glory days, huh? Ever since living with Billy and Mandy, I've degraded myself to a lowly spirit who reaped the souls of hamster and cried when someone roasted me with a Yo-Mama joke. "Well, no more!" I thought to myself. I wasn't gonna let some kids keep me from my full potential! For the first time in ages, I felt so excited, so… alive, and it was thanks to Boogey, my rival and now, my equal.
I never thought I would say it, but ―
Tank you, Boogey! Tank you… for making me inspired to beat you once more!
Ahem, sorry about dat. I get a bit giddy sometimes.
Where was I? Oh right!
Eventually, time moved forward. The children of Endsville weren't getting any younger while the adults got older. Billy and Mandy survived middle school, high school, and the Lovecraftian horrors in between. Mandy of course was the more successful of the two: a straight A student, two scholarships for one of the most prestigious universities in the country, and the leader of the debate club. Billy, while not as successful, was doing better than one might expected. Thanks of Mandy's (surprisingly) patient tutoring, he was able to pass his classes with C's and even B's. He was getting more smarter, which honestly was a terrifying thought. Billy? Being smart? The world would spilt apart if that happened! Thankfully, he was still clueless and scatterbrained.
Then, the unthinkable happened.
Billy and Mandy… started dating.
Everyone was shocked when they announced it. They couldn't believe what they heard: stoic, cold-hearted Mandy got together with ditzy, oblivious Billy?! Now they've seen everyting! Eventually, the shock worn off as people had different reactions. Billy and Mandy's parents were supportive, Mindy and her croonies made fun of them, and pathetic Irwin cried himself into a bucket of ice cream.
As for me? Well, I wasn't too suprised. I frequently joked about the two kissing and making up when they got on each other's nerves, so I guess I predicted that well.
What I didn't expected was the conversation with them afterwards. I remembered it like it was yesterday: me cleaning up the living room in a ridiculous pink apron, Billy playing games on his gaming console, and Mandy was watching as Billy failed to do a double jump. After Billy gave up, Mandy turned her head towards me, her eyes as emotionless as ever, and told me that she needed to say something.
"You're no longer our friend." The words hit me like a train.
Billy frantically clarifed that she meant that the deal was off and Grim was free now. The blonde girl nodded, explaining that they've been planning to tell me dis after they started dating.
My eyeholes were widen and my mouth agape. I asked with hesistation if it was a joke. It had to be! They loved telling me dat they were gonna set me free before revealing it was just a prank! Then I looked at them.
Billy was smiling like always, but dis time it was with a twinge of sadness. His lips were tight and didn't reach his beady, black eyes. Mandy seemed to be holding it a lot better than the redhead, her hand on top of his to comfort him.
They weren't joking…
They were serious…
I was finally… free.
And yet, I wasn't as happy as I hoped to be.
I kinda felt like an animal that's been injured and nursed back to health, and the masters finally told it to go home. You know, a sappy Disney-esque moment.
Summoning me scythe, I tear a fabric in the air to create a vortex. My fingers brushed against the portal as I reached into it.
This was it.
No more chores, no more of the world getting blown up every Tuesday―
No more grim adventures of Billy and Mandy.
I muttered goodbye and stepped through. Numb from head to toe, I could have returned to my palace, Castle Grimskull, but my mind had different plans. And soon enough, I found meself at the steps of Boogey's apartment.
Boogey opened the door, confused. ‘What’s Grim doing here?’ He thought. He stood in silence, tapping his foot waiting for an explanation.
Grim felt embarrassed having to admit the reason. He felt like some lovesicked puppy going from one master to another. "De kids... Dey decided to free me from my servitude from dem."
Boogey raised a brow. “Come in.” That was all he said before turning on his heel and entering the house.
Grim came inside, minding his step. He sat on the living room couch and watched as Boogey left to head inside the kitchen. He surveyed his surrondings and was pleasantly suprised by its cleanliness. The minimalist, calm color palette of white and beige constrated with the bold, loud personality of the Boogeyman himself. Speaking of the devil, the green skinned monster returned from the kitchen, carrying two purple mugs topped with whipped cream and rainbow coloured sprinkles.
“Here you go, some hot cocoa," Boogey said, handing one of the mugs to Grim as he settled onto the couch. "My mom used to make this for me whenever I was feeling down."
"Tank you." Grim murmured, taking a sip of the hot drink. He hummed with satisfaction as the creamy, sweet chocolate flavor delighted his taste buds. Boogey giggled at the sight of the Reaper himself melting at the taste of hot cocoa.}
"Still a chocoholic at heart, eh Grimmy?"
Grim's cheeks flushed at the tone his rival took. He quickly covered his mouth, hoping that Boogey didn't see. "You still love to rile me up, don't ya?"
“Of course I do! What kind of rival would I be otherwise?~” Boogey chuckled awkwardly and took a long sip of his cocoa. If Grim were to look closer, he may notice a small dark greenish blush tinge his cheeks.
Grim pretend to not notice that, instead he continue talking about his situation. "They decided that releasing me would be the best thing for me. They were even thinkin' about it since they started dating."
“They sound annoying. Shouldn't you be happy that you’re free?”
"I should. But, it's complicated."
Boogey sighed. “Alright. Talk to me.”
"I... I tink I have empty nest syndrome. And I shouldn't have that! I'm de the Grim Reaper for cryin' out loud! I shouldn't see dese brats as me own and yet... and yet I got too attached to dem. And now, I feel like I'm in a state of grieving."
Boogey sipped his drink thoughtfully. “Damn. That’s rough.” He didn't know what else to say, so he awkwardly placed a comforting hand on Grim's shoulder.
Tears streamed down Grim's eyeholes as he started sobbing.
“Oh!- oh.. jeez. There, there, Grimmy….”
Boogey shuffles a bit closer on the couch, and pulls Grim into a side hug.
"S-Shit. S-Sorry for dat."
“…It’s.. it’s fine, Grim. I’m here for you.”
Boogey felt as Grim hid his face in his neck as he muttered another "sorry". The monster just sighed again and rubbed Grim’s back in circles, trying to help calm the skeleton down.
“Don’t apologize. It’s fine.”
The sobbing slowed down, but Grim was still breathing heavily.
"I don't even know why I'm letting meself get so torn up about it."
“It’s fine. I think that’s natural. You don’t gotta feel upset ABOUT feeling upset. That’s just overkill~”
Finally, his breathing was back to normal.
"Yeah, I guess you're right... Ohnoyou'reright."
Boogey snorts at that. "Heyyyy! Rude. He playfully punched him in the arm.
Grim let out a small chuckle. "What? It's true."
Boogey rolled his purple eyes. “Yeah, yeah, whatever. Drink your cocoa. Loser.”
Grim couldn't help but to crack a smile. "Sure ting, ya dork.
We started hanging out more after our little heart-to-heart. I wasn't sure whether we were friends now or we were so lonely in our private lives that we needed any kind of connection. Either way, we were becoming close… much close. Our Underworld co-workers started whispering behind our backs, speculating on what exactly were we. I heard them all: "there's just friends!" "maybe they're working on a new business deal!" and the most stand out, "are they dating?"
Back then, I thought, "Dating? Ha! Dat's a joke!"
How wrong past me was.
My feelings for Boogey had grown from being "just friends" to something much more deeper. Yet, I felt hesistant to confess them. Everytime I pursued a potential relationship, it ended with a breakup and me going back to the bachelor lifestyle. And I didn't know if Boogey was as intersted in me as I was with me. So, I devised a plan. Undergoing an alter ego named Samedi, Boogey and I started dating for a couple of months. And when it was the right time, I finally had the nerve to ask him.
The Boogeyman was in the middle of doing paperwork when a knock came at his door. Peeking out the entrance was Creeper who had bits of smudge on his face, no doubt because of him working on another invention of his.
"Sir, there's a Mr. Samedi who wishes to see you," Creeper said, his Cockney accent thick.
The mention of Samedi brought a smile to Boogey's face.
"Thank you, Mr. Creeper. Send him in now."
The door was closed for a couple of moments before opening again. Out walked a dark skinned man, around 6 feet tall and a lithe figure. His black dreadlocks were tied into a bun and his green eyes seemingly glowed in the dark coloured office. His outfit consist of a fitted red dress shirt with rolled-up sleeves, paired with a black vest, matching pants, and black boots.
"Well, well, if it isn't the man himself," Boogey purred, biting his lower lip. "You're here to pick me up for our date, yes~?"
"Actually," began Samedi, "I'm here for someting else."
"Oh, really now? What is-"
Before he could finish, Samedi got down on one knee, retrieving a small red box from his pockets. Opening it revealed a luxurious ring with a red eyed skull adorned with a diamond on its head. Boogey's eyes widened in disbelief, utterly dumpfounded by the gesture. Although nervous, Samedi managed to stammer out these words.
"Boogey, would you… ᵐᵃʳʳʸ ᵐᵉˀ
The ring is worth about $3,467, but to Samedi, the look on Boogey's face was priceless.
"I know… It doesn't seem like me, but― "
Whatever he was about to say dissappeared the moment Boogey's soft lips connected to his ravishingly. Samedi froze for a moment before kissing back with equal restlessness. The two were in their little world; their hands grabbing each other, heavily breathing on each other, and their lips moving like there was no time left. This continued until Boogey pulled back with liddled eyes.
"I knew it it was you, Grimmy," cooed Boogey as he released the Reaper's bun and ran his fingers through Grim's dreadlocks. "I knew since the beginning, but I didn't want to burst your bubble."
Letting go of Grim, he quickly headed to his phone on a table and pressed it.
"Creeper."
"Yes, sir?"
"I need hotel accommodations for two in Hawaii."
"Right away, sir."
"Eh?" Grim questioned, still dazed from the kiss.
"Our honeymoon, darling," answered Boogey.
Now I was certain what exactly I was getting into, and it turned out to be de best move I had ever made.
As promised, we had our honeymoon in Hawaii. I still have a photo of the event, one of me most prized posessions: Boogey looking at the camera with his signature smirk as he laid on the bed on his side in a red and black silk robe.
Oh mama. I never thought Boogey would look so… so…
Well, dere's lots of words I could use, but since me diary will be our new family album, I can't say dem.
As for how we got our kids? Well, dat's a secret, and I got a good feeling that they're reading dis right now.
Junior, Minnie, whatever questions you two have, keep them to yerselves until yer older.