I had a scrape with Death the other day.

Unknowingly, I walked right past him;
I wish I had realized his eye was on me.

My brooding mind was hidden from sight.
A confident facade replaced my true self.

Wind was cold. He traced lines on my body,
Then whipped my hair into a vortex of life.

Night was black, but not as emptiness--
He's always held the shadow of unimaginable life.

I could tell there would be no playing that night.
No one would dare play with Darkness acting this way.

                            I've always been able to hear their whispers.
                            Death, Darkness, Night- even Wind and Ice.

When I realized something was wrong,
I stopped and turned to Wind.

Before I could ask the words on my lips,
He suddenly fell silent. All was still.

Night was quivering. Darkness lay
Almost in fear of another governing force.

That's when I knew-
Death, the most brutal lover, was after me.

I was frozen for a moment, maybe two.
I wanted to deny that it was him.

But when the partner of my words
Stepped out of the shadows, I ran.

Careful, I thought, I must be wary.
Death has many ways of leaping out.

He could lie on the road behind the wheel
Of a taxi cab, or a semi truck.

He could wait for me behind the walls
Of a rickety, abandoned factory.

All this and more ran through my mind.
I shook it off, and ran harder.

Breathe. In. Out. RUN.
Escape. Breathe. In. Out.

I kept running, but there's no place to hide
When the person you hide from is the one
Who knows every nook, every cranny of the earth,
Who waits in every shadow, who knows every hole,
Who has been your acquaintance in days gone past,
But is forced to exist and to reign by a force
That is greater than all.


Realizing at last that to run was frugal,
I stopped, turned, and called out his name.

With his hooded, impassive face covered,
He stepped out to meet me.


A memory flashed between us-
For that is how Death speaks.

I was holding a rose. It was my friend.
I moved my finger to caress its petals.

With the first-experiencing innocence of a child,
I gasped as a thorn drew rubies out of my skin.

I knew what Death meant. He was trying to say
That even the most beautiful friend can betray you- it must.

I sent a torrent of feelings back. I knew (and know) this is
His purpose, but I couldn't accept it was my time to die.

He stopped me by moving a single glide closer,
For he doesn't trod the earth- he sails the air.

He moved his hand up towards his hood,
Which is made from the darkest strands of fate.

I tried to mentally prepare myself
For the vision that was to appear.

I've seen his face before,
But it still strikes the chords of my heart.

Not a horrible face is shown, but neither
Is a human face revealed, when Death pushes back his hood.

Though inhuman, his eyes hold the most intoxicating
Power over my entire body and soul.

His mesmerizing face was shown.
I could hardly breathe.

Finally, my bittersweet smile appeared-
I met one of my darkest secrets.

You want to take me?
I sent through a memory.

Silence and stillness reigned for
A moment, maybe two.

A horse was riding in my direction.
In fear, I thought it intended to trample me.

However, it stopped just before me.
Lowering its head, it breathed into my face.

Death wasn't succumbing to his power and purpose.
On the contrary, he needed to talk to me.

As I stood there waiting, he did the unthinkable-
He broke a rule-- He spoke to me by voice.

"You know I'm meant to take you."
His words were the whisper of madness on my heart.

"And you know I refuse to be drawn into
This web, spun by a cruel pretender of destiny."

Death passed a hand over his face.
"Why must you awaken feeling in me?"

"I know not why we are doomed to this love--
Before you interrupt, you know that is truly what it is."

I could hardly speak a word for the
Thousands of emotions that pushed at
The unstable bindings of my fragile heart,
Once torn in childhood, taken by a master
Of all things dark; a friend of Night and Darkness,
If fear and respect can be melded into friendship.

Inwardly, my brain shook my head at my own
Emotional, silly words. So dramatic!

Yet my soul knew my words spoke
The unchangeable truth.

"Love." Did his voice shake? I didn't know.
I still don't know and can't feign to fathom.

"Why do you refrain from taking my soul,
From tossing my being to Oblivion?"

Death turned, and his blackened wings
Were the only thing I could see for some time.

After a moment, he turned back.
"Because I realize now that you are what makes me feel."

I tried to interject, but he wasn't finished.
"You are the only light in this unending hurricane."

He took a breath. "You saved me from becoming just
A force; an unemotional statue with an unending purpose."

The first emotion I've ever seen on his face appeared,
And my heart leapt into my throat.

"After all this realization, how could I take you?"
He advanced. "I'd rather die myself to save you."

His bitter laugh echoed. "Of course,
In a way, I'm already dead."