Undertaker

The night air was sharp with the lingering chill of winter's end, a damp cold that seeped into the bones of London's cobblestone streets. Undertaker had been returning late from a consultation—a particularly tedious affair involving a baron with more money than sense, who wanted his deceased wife embalmed with rose petals and lavender. The request had been absurd enough to amuse him, and he’d hummed a soft, tuneless melody as he walked, the silver chains on his coat jingling faintly.

It was the sound that caught his attention first—not a sob or a cry, but the shallow, ragged pull of air, the kind that spoke of lungs fighting for every breath. He paused at the mouth of the narrow alley beside his shop, his long silver hair shifting like mist in the dim gaslight. His green eyes, usually hidden beneath his bangs, glinted with curiosity as they adjusted to the deeper shadows.

There, huddled against the damp brick wall, was a figure. Small, shivering violently even beneath tattered layers of clothing that were more hole than fabric. The scent of sickness—fever-sweat, damp wool, and the coppery hint of blood—drifted toward him. Undertaker tilted his head, a slow, deliberate motion. "My, my…" he murmured, his voice a low, melodic whisper that seemed to blend with the night. "What have we here? A little lost soul, waiting at death's door… and so very close to stepping through."

He took a step closer, his boots making no sound on the wet cobbles. He crouched down, his long coat pooling around him like a shadow given form. With a gloved hand, he gently brushed aside the matted hair from the figure's forehead. The skin was burning with fever, yet clammy with cold. Their breathing hitched at his touch, a weak, unconscious flinch.

"Ahahaha…" The laugh was soft, almost pitying, but his eyes held a sharp, calculating light. "Not quite your time, is it? How dreadfully inconvenient for you." He observed the pallor, the tremors, the way their fingers curled weakly against the stone. A peasant, abandoned. Left to die in the cold. How… tragically common. And yet…

He straightened, looking down at the frail form. His mind, always working, always recording, filed away the details: the angle of the shoulders, the rhythm of the breath, the faint pulse visible at the throat. A living Cinematic Record, playing its final, desperate scenes right before him. But something… stopped him from simply walking away. Perhaps it was the sheer fragility. Perhaps it was the defiance in that weak, stubborn breath. Or perhaps it was simply the boredom of another predictable night.

With a sigh that was more theatrical than weary, he bent down again. "Well then," he said, his tone shifting to something almost gentle, though it was edged with his usual macabre amusement. "It would be terribly poor manners for a funeral director to ignore a guest who hasn't even arrived yet, wouldn't it?" Carefully, he slid one arm beneath the figure's knees and the other behind their back, lifting them with an ease that belied his slender frame. They were frighteningly light.

He carried them the short distance to the side door of his shop, nudging it open with his foot. The warm, heavy air inside smelled of polished wood, lilies, and the faint, ever-present scent of preserving chemicals. He didn't head for the preparation room in the back. Instead, he turned toward a small, rarely used sitting room off the main parlor, where a worn but clean chaise lounge sat near a cold fireplace.

Gently, he laid them down, arranging the thin blanket that was draped over the back of the chaise around their shivering form. He then knelt, removing his gloves with deliberate slowness before placing the back of his hand against their cheek again. "Burning up," he mused aloud. "And cold as the grave at the same time. Quite the predicament."

He stood and moved to the fireplace, quickly laying and lighting a small fire. As the flames began to crackle and cast flickering shadows across the room—illuminating the shelves of urns, the sample coffins, and his own collection of morbid curiosities—he returned to the chaise. From a small cabinet, he retrieved a clean cloth and a bowl of water. He dampened the cloth and began to gently wipe the grime and sweat from their face, his movements surprisingly deft and careful.

"Now, let's see if we can't postpone your appointment, shall we?" he whispered, his green eyes glowing faintly in the firelight as he studied their features. "I do so hate it when guests are early. It ruins all the preparation.” he smiled as the back of his knuckles brush against their cheek “so pretty…half dead, haha.. rest up now hm?”