Book of Life The First Encounter and the First Wager

The First Encounter and the First Wager (A Xibalba and La Muerte Story)

'_Ah, what a lovely night for Dia de los Muertos,_' La Muerte, the queen of the Land of the Remembered thought as she glided through the graveyard.

_Dia de los Muertos _or Day of the Dead was La Muerte's favorite time of the year. She loved watching the mortals as they decorated the tombstones with flowers and candles, placing offerings on them such as clothes and food for their loved ones that had passed. And she just simply enjoyed seeing the children play among the graves. Oh, how La Muerte adored children, both here in the living and the ones in her realm.

She suddenly stopped when she noticed one family seemed to be having a bit of trouble lighting the candles on one of their ancestors' grave. The goddess strolled up to them until she was standing right next to the tombstone. They didn't see her of course no human could ever see her unless she wanted them to. But now that she was closer, she could offer them her help. La Muerte gave a small, but elegant wave of her hand, causing all the candles to light up. The parents looked shocked while the two children stared in wonderment.

La Muerte smiled, clasping her hands to her chest. No doubt they thought it was the spirit of their grandparents (there was a picture of an elderly couple on the altar) that had caused the candles to become a lit with flames, but that was fine. She didn't need any sort of praise-it had been worth to see their joyous faces.

She continued with her stroll, wondering what she should do next…when she saw something move out of the corner of her eye. The queen turned her head to see what it was, but there was nothing there. Had she just imagined it? She could have sworn that-wait there!

It was almost too fast for her to see, but she definitely saw what appeared to be a blur of black zipping its way throughout the graveyard. Whenever it got close to the graves, it caused the candles to go out.

'_What is that?' _She wondered and without a second thought, she turned herself into flower petals and followed after it.

A line of black tar slithered through the cemetery, moving from shadow to shadow until it stopped. Once it came to a halt, it quickly reformed into Xibalba, the lord of the Land of the Forgotten, with his snake staff clutched in his left hand.

He was having a wonderful night! Oh, how loved toying with the living! They were so much more entertaining to mess with then the ones that were in the Land of the Forgotten. All his subjects ever did were groan and moan and wander aimlessly about his realm until they eventually turned to ash in the wind. It was nothing like the screams and cries that the mortals make when they run away in terror.

'_Now, what shall I do next?' _He wondered silently as his red skull-shaped pupils swept across the graveyard, searching for his next prey. Just then a wicked smile appeared on his skeletal features as he found the perfect victim.

He glided forward, which caused more of the candles on the graves to lose their flames as he moved past them until he was standing right behind an elderly woman that was placing a picture of her late husband on his tombstone. Xibalba could see that she didn't have much time in this world…he might as well help her along into the next one.

The woman was completely oblivious to the gloved hand that was slowly reaching out towards her. Just one little touch was all it took to send her spirit into the afterlife. His long, spindly fingers were just centimeters from touching her when-

He felt it. Xibalba jerked his hand back and turned his head to the side. '_What's this?' _ He was picking up someone's presence…but what could it possibly be…another spirit perhaps?

His curiosity to know what this disturbance was actually outweighed his desire to put an end to the mortal woman's life. With that, the god vanished and headed towards the direction of the source.

'_Where did it go?' _La Muerte wondered quizzically as she reappeared on the top of the church bell tower. She had been following that black object and relighting all the candles it caused to go out when she lost track of it. She went to the top of the church, thinking she might be able to find it if she was higher up. Her golden eyes flickered back and forth, searching for any signs of that strange thing from before.

So focused on that, she didn't noticed that very thing she was looking for had appeared right behind her and changed back into Xibalba.

Xibalba landed on the roof. The source of this new presence was coming from up here. He looked to see what it was and was surprised. It was…a woman. But what was she doing here?

She didn't seem to notice him so he cleared his voice loudly to catch her attention.

La Muerte whirled around at the sudden noise only to be shocked at the sight before her. It was another spirit, a man judging by the long white mustache and a curly beard. And although he had very skeleton-like features, she noticed he didn't seem to be made of bone as it was shining faintly in moonlight. He was dressed in a conquistador's uniform and wearing a tall, spiky crown that had these black, dark teal striped branches that had skull-like ornaments hanging off of them along with black candles with green flames, similar to the ones on his armor-plated shoulders. In one of his gloved hands was a wooden staff that appeared to be a purple snake with two heads. But what really got her attention were the two large, black wings that spouted from his back. They appeared to be crow feathers and looked very ragged and worn…battle scars perhaps?

While the queen continued her examination, Xibalba was doing one of his own. The woman's white skin was glittering and covered with golden swirls and a flower-like design around her eyes that reminded him of those sugar skulls he seen the humans eat around this time of year. Her long, raven hair flowed down her back and had two large marigolds in it on each side of her head. She was wearing this intricate patterned, red dress with even more marigolds that ran down the bodice and all the way down from her slim waist to the long hem that trailed behind her that had a ring of candles on it as well. On the top of her head was the largest, most decorated sombrero he ever seen and he wondered how she kept it on her head when she moved.

She was admittedly quite beautiful…but he couldn't let that distract him from his mission.

Raising a bushy eyebrow at her, he asked, "And just who might you be?"

His deep voice snapped La Muerte out of her inspection. She gave him a kind smile, one that caused the king to blink surprise. Well, that was different. Most people were usually too afraid to look at him let along speak to him. He's never had someone give him such a genuinely, friendly look before.

The goddess bowed her head slightly, her large hat following smoothly with her movements. "I am La Muerte," she introduced, "ruler of the Land of the Remembered."

"La Muerte?" He repeated, brows furrowing slightly before realization dawned on him. "Ah, yes I have heard of you. But I do believe this is the first time we actually met face to face."

"Indeed," she gestured to him with her hand. "And you are?"

He gave a small bow of his own, his wings spreading out behind him in a dramatic flourish. "I am Xibalba. Lord of the Land of the Forgotten.

The queen nodded. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Xibalba."

"Likewise," He drew back up to his full height, wings tucking in behind his back once more. "So tell, my dear, what brings you out on a night such as this?"

"I'm simply here to enjoy the festivities." She answered. "And you?"

"The same." A mischievous smile appeared on his face. "Toying with the mortals can be so much fun."

Here she cocked an eye ridge at him "Excuse me?"

"My favorite part is scaring them. The looks on their faces is hilarious! They make it so easy sometimes." An idea suddenly popped into his head. "Would you care to join me, perhaps?"

"No, thank you." La Muerte said flatly with an unimpressed look on her face. "I find torturing the humans like that to be rather cruel."

"Oh please, it's just a bit of harmless fun." He waved a careless hand in her direction. "Besides it's the least they deserve. Humans are nothing more than selfish and greedy creatures."

Her eyes narrowed while her red lips pressed together into a tight line. "Surely you don't really believe that."

"I suppose you believe otherwise?"

"As a matter of fact I do." She said firmly, placing her hands on her hips. "I believe that all humans have the potential to be good. And that their hearts are pure and true."

"Pure? Good?" Xibalba repeated astonishingly. He let out a small laugh. "Ha! What utter nonsense! It doesn't matter how 'good' or 'pure' they may seem because in the end all humans have some form of evil in their heats. Not even children remain innocent forever. The moment they grow up, they'll be just like every other human and only care about no one but themselves."

La Muerte visibly bristled. '_How dare he?!' _How could he possibly say something like that? She knew he was wrong about the mortals. They did have a potential to be kind and good. She had seen it in every gift and every candle and flower they leave for their loved ones. Surely a being who still loves someone who is longer with them couldn't be all that bad.

"If you excuse I think I'll take my leave," She bit out, her eyes flashing dangerously at him. "I bid you a good night."

Seeing he was losing her interest, Xibalba quickly disappeared only to reappear right in front of her. "Now wait a moment. What's your hurry?"

"I am not going to stand here and have you insulting my beliefs! Now stand aside!" When he refused to do so, she glared at him. "What will it take to get you to leave me be?"

This wasn't good. He didn't want her to leave just yet. It had been so long since the last time he had been in the company of another immortal, especially one who actually wasn't afraid to talk to him. He wanted to get to know this intriguing beauty better. But how could he get her to stay? He wracked his brain for an answer and that's when he got an idea.

"Wait!" Xibalba said just as she was about to force him to move.

"What?" she asked sharply. The winged deity leaned in close almost as if he was trying to get a better view of her face. She immediately back away from him. "What are you doing?"

Giving her his most charming smile, he asked "Why don't we…have a little wager?"

Xibalba expected her to scoff at the notion, but much to his surprise, all traces of anger vanished from her face as this strange gleam overcame her eyes.

"A wager?" La Muerte had to fight hard to keep herself from sounding too intrigued, but she couldn't stop the way her fingers twitched slightly in anticipation. "What sort of wager?"

Xibalba didn't miss seeing the small action with her fingers and seeing he had caught her attention, he pressed forward. "How about…a simple chase? If you can avoid capture for say…seven minutes, I will leave you in peace."

"And if you should win?" she asked quizzically.

He smiled. "Then you must spend the rest of this night with me."

La Muerte knew she should have just left. She should have just said no, but the thing is… she just couldn't. Everyone has a weakness and for La Muerte…well she could never resist a good gamble.

"So what do you say?" he asked when she was silent for more than a minute.

The queen glanced back at him and nodded, "Very well then."

His smirk widened before he extended his hand out to her. "Then by the ancient rules…" When she slipped her small hand into his larger one, he shook it. "…the wager is set."

She took her hand away from his. "How will we know how much time we have left?"

Xibalba grinned and snapped his fingers. A small ball of green fire appeared and formed '7:00' in the air. "This will appear anytime we stop." He explained. "And since I'm feeling rather generous, I'll let you have a head start."

La Muerte shot him a glare. '_Generous? Ha!' _ More like he was overconfident that he would win. But despite that, she took the head start by disappearing in a whirlwind of marigold petals. Xibalba waited a good ten seconds before transforming into a puddle of tar and going after her.

La Muerte traveled throughout the town. When she came to a stop on top of one of the roofs, just as Xibalba had said the small bit of fire appeared and showed there was still five minutes left of the clock. She searched the area around her, looking for any signs of the other god. She didn't see him anywhere.

"Hmph," she let out a small huff. "I knew he wouldn't be able to keep up."

"Are you sure about that?"

The goddess' head jerked in the direction of the sudden voice and saw Xibalba standing at the other end of the roof. The dark god couldn't help but chuckle at the bewildered look on her face.

She quickly schooled her features back into an indifferent mask and commented lightly, "you're faster than I expected."

Xibalba gave her this small, mocking bow, "_Gracias, mi señora._"

She tilted her head up at a haughty angle, "but you have yet to catch me."

She took off once more with Xibalba following right behind her not even a half second later. From there, La Muerte started to bring out all her tricks. She went up and over the sloping terra-cotta roofs, twisting around sharp corners and squeezing through small narrow spaces. But it seemed more matter what she did, the king was able to stay hot on her trail. There had been quite a few close calls. Xibalba had gotten close enough that just a flex of his fingers would have had the woman in his grasp, but she was slipper then he anticipated and always mange to move away at the last second.

And although La Muerte wouldn't say it out loud…she was actually having quite a bit of fun.

Xibalba was having similar thoughts. This chase was exhilarating! When was the last time since he had a challenge like this?

La Muerte came to halt and saw there was still one minute left on the clock. '_Alright, no more fooling around,' _She thought as she changed into flower petals once more and zoomed through the alleyways as fast as she could.

When she finally stopped in one of the allies there were only ten seconds left and no sign of Xibalba. La Muerte let out a sigh of relief. '_I finally lost him._'

10

9

8

7

6

She moved her head side to side-still nothing.

5

4

3

2

A hand landed on her shoulder. La Muerte froze. No…it couldn't be.

She glanced over her shoulder and there was indeed Xibalba, sporting a triumphant look on his face. And looking back at the clock, she could see why. The little fire clock showed there was still one measly second left on it. The game was over. Xibalba had won.

"I win." The king said smugly.

"It would appear so," the queen said, gently removing his hand so she could turn to face him completely. "And as promised, I'll spend the rest of this night with you. So…" She crossed her arms over her chest. "What have you planned for us to do first?"

She assumed he was probably try and convince her to join him in playing tricks on the humans, like ruining all the work they put in decorating their ancestors graves or something like that.

What came out of his mouth, however, was, "Why don't we take a little stroll?"

She blinked. "Excuse me?" Had she heard him correctly?

"Let's take a stroll around the town and perhaps we can just…talk?" Xibalba offered with a sheepish grin.

La Muerte was surprised, but pleasantly so. "That sounds…rather nice actually."

"Then by all means…led the way, my lady." He made a sweeping gesture with his arm.

La Muerte gave him an amused look at his attempt to be chivalrous, but leaded the way none the less. From the alleyway, the two immortal rulers strolled all around the town and just simply…talked.

They talked to each about their respective realms, the important things and the little things as well. They laughed and threw witty and playful banter back and forth. They were so different from each other, complete opposites really and perhaps that's why they found each other so fascinating and felt drawn to one another.

When they came back to the graveyard, it was then La Muerte noticed the sun was beginning to peek out from the horizon. "_Dios mio!_" She gasped. She hadn't even realized it was getting that late.

Xibalba noticed this as well. "It appears our time has come to an end."

"Yes, it would seem so." La Muerte turned towards the god and gave him a warm smile. "Thank you."

Puzzled, he asked, "For what?"

"For giving me an evening I will not forget."

"Oh, well then you're welcome." Just as she was about to leave, Xibalba quickly cried out, "La Muerte?"

She paused, looking over her shoulder, "Yes?"

He nervously tapped two of his fingers together. "I was wondering-if it's not too much trouble-perhaps I could visit you in the Land of the Remembered? That way we could talk some more if you like."

La Muerte was surprised by the request, but smiled gently a moment later. "I'd like that. As long as I can return the favor and come see you in the Land of the Forgotten."

The king was shocked. She actually wanted to come to his domain? After everything he had told her about his land, he thought for sure she would want to stay away from it. But he nodded his head in agreement irregardless.

The goddess did a small curtsy. "_Adios,_ Xibalba."

Xibalba bowed before taking a hold of her hand and planted a swift kiss on the back of it. "_Adios_, my dear," he took great pleasure at the bewildered look that crossed her face. "Until we meet again."

With that the two disappeared back to their own realms, both looking forward to the others next visit and thinking that today had been a good Day of the Dead indeed.

**Author's Notes: More Gravepainters Stories! I got to go see the Book of Life again today and it made me so happy to do so. I could never get tired of see these two on screen. Seriously people, for those of you who haven't seen it yet-Go see it! You won't regret it!**


End file.

Book of Life