Chapter 1.22: Death's Rules

Authors Note: This chapter starts Serene into the story, or more accurately her point of view. Now that Toby is dead, she officially gets her debut! Also, their wonderful new house they live in is thanks to Glenkarri from the D.N.A team!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mama decided it was best if they move, because papa and the old house was too sad. The old house was filled with the haunting old tunes of the piano, the laughter from when he told us silly jokes and the sweet sound of his voice when he read her bedtime stories. This house, it meant nothing to Serene. It wasn't where her papa was, and it wasn't where she wanted to be.

  

This house made her feel so lonely, so alone. She had been so sad, and cried all the time at first but now she was angry. She was so angry at her mama; it was all her fault that papa died. Serene had heard something, a very bad something and it changed everything. 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"You took his soul already, now leave," her mama had told the hooded figure. She had watched from a distance as they spoke to each other too afraid to move or say something. The hooded man's voice made her blood ran cold and she had shivered.

"It was not his time, Juniper Bay, you robbed a mortal of his life. A mortal who still had decades to live, decades he would have had with his child and decades that he would have cherished," the hooded man told mama. What had he meant? How had mama robbed papa of his life? It was all so scary and confusing.

"A child he tried to take from me, my daughters. He tried to take my daughters from me, no one can do that," Mama told the hooded man. What did she mean by papa trying to take her and Issy? Papa loved them, didn't he? 

"You are not Judgement, you are a mortal and therefore have no right to take the life of a mortal before their time is over. Even Death has rules, and breaking Death's rules have consequences," the hooded man had said. Serene had wanted to run to her mama, and beg her to make the scary man go away.

"What consequences?" Mama had demanded to know. The hooded man had turned his head, looking in her direction and she knew he saw her. Her eyes had been wide with terror and then she felt nothing. Serene had felt nothing until the next day when she knew what her mama had done to papa.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Serene would never trust her mama again, how could she? Her mama had taken Papa away from her and then moved them to this empty house. "Hey Serene, are you feeling any better?' Isobel asked her. Her sister looked different now, her hair was shorter and she had new clothes like Serene had new clothes. 

"I don't know. I miss papa," Serene said. Her sister was the only one she could count on, the only one who could take care of her and the only one that she liked. She hadn't invited any of her friends over since Papa died, and they were all angry with her. Serene didn't care, they were mean and still had their papas. 

"We'll get through this, I know we will because we are strong and independent women," Isobel told her. It made her smile, she was strong like her sister said. The hooded man had known she was strong too, that's why he chose her to protect her older sister from their mama. Serene wouldn't let mama hurt someone else she cared about.