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I should be dead. Everyone else is dead. Why am I alive?

The biting wind snapped at Nadezhda’s skin, whipping her dark hair away from her face. Snow soaked through the thin fabric of her dress, but her cold-numbed skin felt nothing. Even the large burns on her side and leg were painless.

Maybe I am dead.

She stopped staggering through the blizzard, gripping the trunk of a tree for support. The mountain trail she had been following was invisible through a thick layer of snow. Grey clouds smothered the sky, suffocating the world. The snowstorm wasn’t going to be stopping any time soon.

If I die here, will anyone find me? Or will I be covered by the snow before someone comes along?

Nadezhda sank to her knees, fingers still gripping at the tree’s bark.

Don’t be stupid, Nadya. Nobody’s going to find you. Who’d be stupid enough to be out in this weather?

She lurched forward, catching herself on her hands, before they too gave way and she hit the snow face first. She turned her head slightly to the right, only to see the snow swirling down the path towards her in an impenetrable wall. Some of it stuck to her eyelashes and melted like tears. The girl smiled slightly.

It’s a good thing if I die; I ran away. I am a coward. I deserve this.

Her shoulders shook in a fit of coughing, smoke-scarred throat itching.

How can I go into battle when I run away from the enemy?

A black-clad figure materialised from the fog. It appeared to be a tall man carrying a large axe, with a sack slung over his shoulder. As he approached, Nadezhda saw that he was wearing a long coat and a thick fur hat.

Ah... so this must be Death, come to carry my soul away. Nadezhda’s thoughts grew sluggish as she felt the last of her energy disappear. I hope the Afterlife is warmer than here.

With that last thought, she slipped into unconsciousness.

~

The young man screwed his eyes shut against the driving wind. He hated the snow, hated it with a passion. Storms were even worse. They had a tendency to roll in when nobody was expecting them. Nikolai sighed. Of course he would get caught in a storm when he ventured out to search for decent, dry hardwood. It was just his luck.

He shifted the heavy sack of wood to his other shoulder. At least he wouldn’t have to go out again for a while; he had deliberately cut enough wood to buy him a few loaves of bread and maybe even some meat. That was unlikely, though. Meat was expensive in winter.

Nikolai glanced up and frowned. There was something curled up on the side of the road. From a distance it looked like a dead animal, but as he approached he saw that it was in fact a girl. She was wearing a sodden blue dress, tattered gloves, and her brown hair was damp with snow.

He crouched down next to the unconscious woman. She looked about seventeen or eighteen, a few years younger than himself. She was shaking uncontrollably and her lips were blue; that wasn’t a good sign. Nikolai removed his glove and searched her neck for a pulse. Eventually he found it, but it was worryingly weak. He had to get the girl somewhere warm, if she were to have any chance of survival.

Dumping the sack of wood and his axe by the side of the path, Nikolai gathered the girl up in his arms, lifting her with ease. He glanced forlornly at his sack, then scolded himself. It was much more important to get the girl home than the wood. He would come back for it later.

If he remembered.

Clutching the girl securely in his arms, Nikolai started to trudge home.

~

Finally...

Nadya’s eyes flickered open as she felt Death scoop her up into his warm arms. Where she had expected to see withered, grey skin and hollow eye sockets, there were smooth, young cheeks and forest-green irises. The snow plastered his blonde hair to his forehead. He didn’t seem to notice her staring.

It’s not supposed to happen like this, she thought. He’s supposed to put my soul in his sack, not carry my body away.

She watched a thick puff of breath rise from his mouth. The rocking motion of Death’s walking reminded her of the hammock she used to sleep in when she was younger.

Nadezhda closed her eyes and let her head rest against his chest. His fur-trimmed coat tickled her nose, and it smelled like wood smoke and sweat.

It smelled like home.

Like a human, even.

Before Nadya could start to panic, she passed out.