"What do you mean you sold my soul to the grim reaper!" Courtney shouted at her parents. She was on a complete rampage, "How could you do this to me! Why not Hillary? Kyle? or the twins?" she screamed and kicked her brother for no reason. Kyle bent over in pain and wobbled away, Courtney turned to her mother, "How come you never told me?"

Mrs. Marinez was crying into her husband's shoulders, she wiped some of her mascara away, "I was going to wait until tomorrow but Duncan showed up unexpected, like he does most of the time". She turned to glare a bit at the Duncan who was browsing through their CD collection. He shrugged, "It's my job. Oh and tell the drama queen to calm down" he said motining to Courtney.

Courtney growled at him, "Mother what happened?" she asked is utter exsparation. Her mother sat down on the couch, "Well it wasn't exactly what we did it's what the family did. About fifty years ago one of your relatives sold a daughter's soul to Duncan's great, great, great, great,great, woah that's a lot of greats, grandpa. The deal was that some girl in the family on her sixteenth birthday will have to take on the family's burden and serve the reaper in anyway".

"But why did I get chosen?" Courtney asked. Her mother shrugged, "Everyone else got around it or they lied".

Courtney burst iut laughing and crying, "So what I was the next best thing! And what if I were to decline?"

Courtney felt slight breath on the back of her neck and she turned around slowly to Duncan's smirking face. "If you were to 'decline' then you and your entire family will be cursed for always and eternity. Oh and you will have to spend eternity in the underworld with me, forever". Courtney rolled her eyes and pushed him away from her or so she tried.

Her hands were stuck inside his chest and when she tried to pull away her hands wouldn't move. "Oh my Gosh! So nasty, let me go you disgusting, no living, red death!" she screeched. Duncan laughed and took her arms and pushed her backwards. Courtney had black goup covering her whole arm. "Ew, what is that?"

"Just my body" he said smiling. "Or whats left of it"

Courtney gasped and backed away from him a little, "So what this is my choice?" she asked her parents. They nodded and grandma Perkins whispered in Courtney's ear, "You do whatever your heart's decide Court. Don't let the family business ruin your life". Courtney glared at her grandmother and hissed back at her, "I don't have a real choice do I? If I say no then I go to hell! If I say yes then I still have to go with the red death over there".

"Courtney just take one for the fam" Kyle yelled from across the room where he had still rubbing his leg. Everyone was looking for her answer, Courtney sighed and rolled her eyes, "Alright alright, I'll take on my family's burden" she mumbled. Duncan laughed darkly and the whole room froze and the other weren't moving, everything was cold.

Courtney waved a hand in front of her mother's face and she didn't respond. "What did you do to them!" she cried.

"Nothing compared to what I'm going to do to you" Duncan used his scythe to create a portal we grabbed Courtney's arm and pulled her in. She squirmed agaisn't him, "Put me down you pervert! Where are you taking me!"

Duncan was tired of this girl complaining and whining over everything so he used some of his powers to knock her out for a while. He looked down at her limp body, for the first time that day he never really got a good look at her. He had to admit she was pretty, she was even hotter when she was knocked out it a deep sleep.

Duncan shifted her weight on his back so he could glide through the depths of the Earth until he was home at the place where death comes true. He checked the death-o-meter which now read Over a 1,456,986 Served Today. "Hmm the numbers really low for today, but hey it's early" he said walking through the gates. He checked to see if everything was in order, "People moaning? Check. Scuffy fed? Check. The fates are here? check. Wait woah wait a second. The fates are here!"

He ducked down behind a large carcass and looked to where the fates were drinking from the River of Souls. "Dammit!" he cursed and looked around for his little slaves. Courtney was starting to groan and wake up from his back, "Oh great, now the princess is about to wake up more to deal with. If those little asses aren't here in like five seconds I'm going to seriously show them what angry is".

His two little slaves, Death Mask and Trouble were making a fool of themselves by shooting off souls into the air and watching them float back down. "Death Mask! Trouble! if you I don't see your pointed little butts in five seconds I'll tear off your horns and feed them to Scuffy" Duncan growled from his hiding spot. Courtney was opening her eyes slightly and starting to come around. Duncan threw her towards Death Mask and Trouble. "Take her to the dungeon and keep her quite, while I deal with the fates".

"Right away boss" Death Mask said as he pulled Courtney's legs and Trouble got her arms. "Hey I can see down her shirt!" he called out as they pulled her down the hall. Duncan straighten out his cloak he pulled back his hood at fixed his mohawk, before walking over to the chambers. The three fates were pulling out each others maggots and eating them. "Ladies!" Duncan exclaimed.

The short one with the third eye hissed her snake like tongue at him, "You're late Duncan. But we already knew you would be late". Duncan laughed nervously, "Yeah yeah I had to make a little pit stop and-"

"We know!" the two eyed one said. "You were at the Marinez house picking up their uh small payment". The eyeless one said, "Was she wearing the necklace?"

Duncan thought back a second and remembered that he was looking a her boobs as she ranted. "Yeah she was wearing it and it was red. But hey I thought you knew everything" he said smirking. The eyeless one stole the third ones eye and popped it in to hers, "We can only see the events of the past, present, and future. Not details".

Duncan walked over to his big chair and sat down, "So I'm wondering when my little future will take form? When do I get my old body back and when can I kick this loser job?"

The second fate floated over, "Never."

Duncan was reclining back in the hard chair and he sat up straight gaping at them. "What do you mean never. This isn't a permanate job!" The first fate laughed by when she did some spider webs flew out her mouth. "This will be your permanate job if you don't have a child to pass the uh, luck on."

Duncan scowled, "So what I have to get married?"

"No. You just have to get some chick knocked up. How about Gwen? she's a lovely dark girl" the eyeless fate said rubbing her worm infested head. Duncan thought for a moment, "No, no I can't just get some girl preggers and then drop her and then come back to claim her child as the next grim reaper. No I need to marry someone, it has to be the right one. I could marry Gwen and have some goth child".

The eyeless fate took Duncan's hand, and the other two grabbed his head and chest. "Duncan were going to give you back your human form to go above ground only in the daylight, but when night falls or if duty calls you must return to your regular form. Understood?" They didn't give him a chance to answer because the transformation was already rubbed a hand over his face and skin, "I can't believe it. No more mucus!"

The fates started to disappear but they kept speaking once they were gone, "You must pick a bride soon. You have until the child's necklace turns black again, Duncan. Oh and clean the place up some! It looks like hell!" their voice faded out until it was no more.

"Where am I going to find a girl dumb enough to marry the grim reaper. I need to find Gwen and take her above ground with me" he sat back mumbling in his chair. Death Mask and Trouble came teetering in, "Um master...the prisoner girl is awake and kicking. Literally! She demands to see you again" Trouble said rubbing his ankle.

"Oh for the love of bloody hell!" Duncan exclaimed. Death Mask walked up to him and ran a hand over Duncan's skin, "Wow is that skin? Boss you look like your old self again". The skin wasn't permanate and when Death Mask touched it, it turned back to it's original gray color until he took his hand away. Duncan growled and picked him up by the horns, "Keep your filthy hands off my skin! Is the girl tied up of is she loose?"

"Loose boss!"

"Great" he mumbled and began to walk out of the chambers almost bumping into Gwen the mistress of life. "Hey watch it reaper boy!" she said fixing her black dress. Duncan smiled at her, "Sorry, I'm a little preoccupied right now. Just had a little meeting with the fates and we got our skins back!" he said running a hand over his arm. Gwen laughed, "Yeah I noticed but it goes right back to corpse gray if we touch anything related to death".

"I know, well we go above ground in a couple of days alright. Me and you have some business to attend to in Japan tonight so meet me here in about four hours. You need some juice?" he asked noticing the color of her eyes. Gwen nodded, "Yeah in case you haven't noticed I sporting a lovely eye color of pus yellow!"

Duncan rolled his eyes at her constant yelling and nagging. "Alright make it quick I got a princess waiting in the dungeon" he leaned in and gave Gwen a kiss on the lips for a good twenty seconds. She pulled back and walked over to the river of lost souls, her eyes turned to their deep purple. "Thanks Duncan. What was that about a princess?"

But Duncan was already running off, "I'll tell you later!" he ran up the steps and down a dark corridor to the last most nastiest cell in the whole underworld. He peered in and saw the girl crying on the floor, he opened the door slowly and marched in. The girl looked up startled but then her expression changed to complete rage.

"You! you killed my soul! You took me away from my family and my world!" she was pounding on his chest tears coming down her face. Duncan pushed her away from him with a thrust of an arm, she fell agasint the wall. Duncan looked in disgust at her, "Yo drama queen, you done blubbering yet?"

Courtney curled into a ball, "I'll never see them again. You didn't even let me say good-bye. I'll never see them again." It took Duncan a moment to realize she meant her family and all of a sudden he felt bad. "Look uh...princess-"

Courtney glared up at him, "It's Courtney! Red Death" she spat back.

"Well if I can't insult you then neither can you. Names Duncan. Come on, I'll show you to your room" he started to head for the door when he realized that she wasn't following. "My room? But I thought..." her voice trailed off. Duncan sighed, "You really wanna stay in the dungeon than a nice bed hey be my guest".

Courtney wiped her tears and walked with him but not next to him just beside him. Duncan smirked because he could hear her sniffling again,

"Good princess"