Spotlight - 28th November 2013

SPOTLIGHT

Interviews Sons of Pitches Cassiah Joski-Jethi Emma Crowder

Reviews Spring Awakening Blue/Orange The Process of Painting

SPOTLIGHT Contents 2

Blue/Orange

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Emma Crowder

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Sons of Pitches

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Cassiah Joski-Jethi

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The Barber Institute

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Spring Awakening

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Short story

What is Spotlight?

Spotlight is Redbrick's biannual culture pullout, bringing students closer to on-campus culture. This term's content includes interviews with some of UoB's rising stars, reviews of theatre and art, and 'Souls', a short story written by Kristine Bagdasarian.

Blue/Orange

Spotlight haiku: Please enjoy this work It is full of Christmas cheer Happy holidays!

Editorial Team Editors Susie Dickey Josh Holder Sam Dix Proofreaders Charley Ross Lucy Moseley Isabel Mason Contributors Lily Blacksell Diana Murgulet Ciaran A-Campbell Bethany Barley Alice Matthews Dan Baird Contact us: spotlight@redbrick.me

Cover image by Lucy Percival

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Spotlight: Winter 2013

Lily Blacksell reviews 'Blue/Orange', Joe Penhall's award-winning play which explores the country's mental healthcare system.

Joe Penhall's award-winning 'Blue/Orange' is an intrusive, often uncomfortable, exploration of our country's mental healthcare system. We are presented with trainee Dr Bruce Flaherty (Ben Norris) as he talks with his soon-to-be-out patient Christopher (Jamal Hue-Bonner). The exchanges between the two are charming in their awkwardness.

An intrusive, often uncomfortable, exploration of our country's mental healthcare system Christopher's frequent 'do you know what I mean's serve only to illuminate the fact that Bruce absolutely doesn't, but there is an undeniable bond that is conjured by the two actors. 'I like walking,' declares Chris.

'I know,' Bruce says, 'it's how you get lost.'

This introduces us to a significant aspect of the play; trust. Whether this is between a patient and his doctor, a trainee and his supervisor, a member of the public and those around him, or trust in a national institution, Penhall makes sure to pull the carpet from under everyone's feet at one time or another.

Dr Robert Smith (Ciaran Cresswell) joins Bruce and Christopher as part of a consultation. Bruce has expressed concern that his patient is not ready to leave the hospital, not least because he thinks the oranges in the fruitbowl are blue. Smith's presence immediately changes the tone of the exchanges between Bruce and Christopher. It is always interesting for a theatre audience to notice how characters onstage react when they know they're being watched, and Cresswell handled his authority and influence well. He labels Dr Flaherty's methods as 'unorthodox' whilst acknowledging that his own tend to 'follow the path of least resistance' and we can instantly see that this is problematic.

A real credit to the cast, however, is that we are seldom presented with a case of good versus bad. Each character has the capacity to frustrate us. Just as Dr Smith's dated and dangerous stereotypes rankle with a modern day audience, so does Flaherty's naivety and the prevalence of his careerism. Jamal Hue-Bonner's Christopher never sat still for a moment. His eyes darted between the two doctors, though often they talked as though he wasn't there, and his well-timed outbursts dripped with all the humour and honesty the play has to offer, 'laugh and the world laughs with you, then they lock you up.'

Truth is another aspect frequently brought to light. Christopher's bouts of delusion are extremely effective in blurring the distinction between true and false, right and wrong, but so too is the nature of diagnosis. We were lucky enough to hear an original musi-

cal score throughout the play, composed by Josh Sood and performed by backstage musicians on a keyboard, guitar, violin, cello and percussion. The acting was so consistently strong throughout that it is difficult to assess whether music was in fact needed to sustain the atmosphere and tension created by the cast.

'Blue/Orange' is a challenging play, both to produce and to watch. Infinity Stage Company succeeded in presenting us with a sophisticated, tense performance that did justice to the questions Penhall throws at us and made no assumptions in trying to answer them once and for all. Less a case of political correctness gone mad, more a troublesome attempt to make 'madness' politically correct, 'Blue/Orange' is important theatre and we are lucky to have had it at the Guild.

Less a case of political correctness gone mad, more a troublesome attempt to make 'madness' politically correct

INTERVIEWS

Emma Crowder Diana Murgulet talks to Emma Crowder, a rising star from the University of Birmingham A third year Psychology student at the University of Birmingham, Emma Crowder beat out fierce competition to support Gabrielle Aplin at the Institute earlier this year. She talked to Spotlight about her creative process, her plans for the future, and how it felt to have her talent acknowledged by her favourite artist.

Where do you see yourself in 10 years time?

In an ideal world, I’ll hopefully be selling my music, playing for big crowds; making a living out of music, which is obviously something that a lot of people want, so I’m not one of those people that’ll 'put all of their eggs in one basket' and pin all my hopes on it. After uni I want to move to London and give it a good go for a few years. Ideally in 10 years time I’ll be making a career out of music, but if not then I want to go on to do a postgrad in forensic psychology, so maybe working along those lines.

Could you name a few artists who influenced you? How do you think their work shapes and determines the way your music evolves?

When I was little what got me into signing was when I got CDs for Christmas like Steps, B*witched, and 90s pop bands. They used to have the lyrics booklets so I just sat and sang through the lyrics, spent all my day singing, so for me those were the big names that got me into music. When I grew up a bit it was Eva Cassidy and I would learn her songs on the guitar, but now it’s more Bon Iver and Ben Howard. Looking back to the first song I ever wrote, I thought it was brilliant at the time. but I was really young and had no idea how to write lyrics so it was a proper cheesy love song, it was ridiculous. I look at it now and I cringe!

You played at the Institute with Gabrielle Aplin. Can you tell us a bit more about that? How did it feel?

Gabrielle Aplin did the John Lewis adverts for Christmas. She was a small acoustic artist, playing small shows, but she recorded a cover of the Power of Love and that brought her into the spotlight and made her famous.

I’ve been following her for years. I’m a big fangirl of her music and she put a support competition online. You had to upload a video of you singing an original song or a cover of hers and then get your friends to vote for it, so I uploaded an original song I

was hoping to perform at the Birmingham gig and thought, 'I’ve got no chance, there will be loads of entries'. There were over 200 entries for the Birmingham date but my friends and family were really supportive and managed to get my video up there. In the end it was Gabrielle herself who chose me to support her. Imagine your favourite artist! I already had tickets for that gig!

had a few people approach me whereas before it was so difficult to get a look in; I was just another girl with an acoustic guitar.

There are so many people doing the same thing as me so you’ll email promoters and they’ll say “we’ll get back to you” but they never do. But now, they are approaching me, so the tables have turned which is quite nice!

Do you consider music to be your way of dealing with the world, your way of making your voice heard, or just an experience that can mesmerise the public?

Do you think an amazing voice can sell music just as well as a pretty face can?

I write songs to make myself feel better when I’m upset or sad. I’ll play my guitar and everything will just go away and in a way it’s such a bonus that people actually like what I do. I never expected it.

Now we've got a sense of your taste in music: how about arts, or film?

Shutter Island is my favourite film; it’s about a mental asylum and I’m studying forensic psychology at the moment so we talk about the old mental asylums and how it has changed over the years. Books wise, reading for my course keeps me away from any other reading!

Future plans?

I’ve got quite a few gigs in December, I’m playing at The Yardbird in town, at a few places in Selly Oak, and at the Flapper. A lot of good things have come from this gig. I’ve

There are artists at the moment that use their image to sell their records (take Miley Cyrus and the bad girl image) in the charts.

But at the same time there are more acoustic singer-songwriters like Ed Sheeran and Passenger. Years ago you wouldn’t have seen something like that in the charts. I think it’s nice that there’s such a great variety.

Tell us about your lyrics: you write your own songs; how do you find that? What inspires you? Do you find the lyrics harder to write than the music?

All of my lyrics are about things that have happened to me, or the way I feel about situations, so it’s personal. If I’m not going through anything at the time, like right now nothing really interesting is happening in my life so I’m not that inspired, but everything I do write is about things that have happened.

When I write lyrics about how I’m feeling or what I’m going through it makes me feel better, it’s my own kind of therapy. But

because it is so personal I get friends asking me 'is this about that event?' so it’s like having a personal diary, putting it on the table in front of everyone and letting people look through it. I always come up with little parts of songs, I’ll play around with a few lines and 20 seconds of guitar. I find writing the music harder. I would like to do some collaborations with other acoustic artists and ideally, I would like a backing band cause I have so many extravagant ideas in terms of a full band; like maybe a cello, and drums, some base, some piano, but I can’t do that myself.

Who would you like most to be on the same stage with?

It was Gabrielle Aplin. Maybe Ben Howard, Ed Sheeran, Lucy Roads, or John Mayer.

Tips for beginners?

Make use of the internet and play live as much as you can, even if it’s at open mic nights or small gigs. Get used to playing in front of an audience and remember that at first it is nerve racking. I’ve been playing for years, when I first started playing guitar (when I was about 15) I remember being so nervous, sweating with cold, shaking, my mouth getting dry so no words could come out, but you just build up from there and now I don’t get nervous at all. Now I just feel excitement but it’s taken so many years.

But if you don’t push yourself and if you don’t put yourself out there, step out of your comfort zone, you’ll never progress.

Emma's upcoming live dates: 6th December at The Flapper 18th December at The Yardbird Spotlight: Winter 2013

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INTERVIEWS

Sons of Pitches It has been a busy few months for the Sons of Pitches. They spoke to Alice Matthews about controversial songs, their influences, and Christmas jumpers.

The Sons of Pitches performed in front of over two thousand people at the LG arena in November, after recording their EP in September, touring the UK running workshops, and initiating two new members into the fold. In the Summer they entered Voice Festival UK, and before that they performed in New York in the finals of the International Championship of Collegiate A Cappella.

I met The Sons of Pitches in the "Room of Requirement". I was invading a rehearsal, and when I arrived The Sons were passing around the lyrics to Keane's 'Somewhere Only We Know'.

Joe Belham: Shall we just give this a sing, then? See what happens, see if we like it or not?

Max Dickerson: Shall we do the interview first?

Everyone laughs.

AM: Is that how your creative process normally goes?

Joe B: Yeah, generally, we'll start brainstorming ideas and someone will come up with a song, and then we'll bring up the lyrics and start jamming it out, lay down the basic chords for it...

Joe Novelli: Someone will start singing it and then be like (to Jamie) 'Hey, you can do the solo on this!'

Jamie Hughes: Aw thanks, man! Thanks for that, that's cool.

Joe B: Yeah, it's pretty laid back, probably too laid back.

AM: Let’s get ethical. If 'Blurred Lines' is controversial, is it ok for you to sing Jason Derulo's 'Talk Dirty'?

Jamie: I think in some sense culturally (the ban on Robin Thicke) hasn't caught up with 'Talk Dirty' yet, which isn't a good reason for us to do it: the video is quite horrendous.

Joe B: There are worse songs out there, though.

Jamie: As a pop song it's a good tune. When people watch us singing 'Talk Dirty', I don't think they think we're saying that we're misogynists.

Max: The way we approached it, like when we did 'Blurred Lines' as well, we were thinking that we don't endorse the song in any way, but it's almost like a parody. We do it because the song sounds good and we like to do it in our own way.

Joe H: I think with A Capella it's important that the audience knows the song. It's better if they do, they enjoy it more, and that's the main reason why we like to pick either classic songs or chart songs.

Joe B: Jamie's our new tenor-slash-sometime soloist, so we wanted to do something with him as the solo so that everyone got a

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Spotlight: Winter 2013

taste of Jamie. He's wicked, and we knew that if he did a Jason Derulo solo he'd do it better than Jason Derulo.

Jamie: It was probably the wababwab wa bit (referring to the riff that everyone loves) AM: I love the way you do that bit, it was like The Muppets all over again.

Joe B: That's it, we just think 'this song is probably quite offensive, but we'll just make it look really silly.'

"We don't introduce ourselves as 'just an A Capella group', we just try to entertain."

AM: You do that a lot. I noticed last night and in your YouTube videos as well that you bring a comic element in, but at the same time you manage to keep all the harmonies and timings tight. How much practice does that take and how artificial is the comedy and the good cheer?

Joe N: Apart from Jamie and Midé, a lot of us have been singing together for a long time, so actually doing a new song doesn't necessarily take that long, it'll be a few hours, but there's been a lot of hard work done already.

Joe B: Last February and March we had the Voice Festival competition and we rehearsed

so much for that every day.

Max: We worked out we spent, what was it, 21 days together? It was really intense. Then we got the two new guys - beatbox is always obviously easier to fit in but it helps that Midé is just insane at beatboxing.

Joe N: With A Capella stuff it's more about getting the right blend and the right fit with the voices as opposed to just getting the right notes.

Joe B: We all do it because we love it, so why not have some fun with it?

Max: We performed in America earlier this year and all the American groups are absolutely crazy, and they sound musically out of this world, but they take it so seriously, and of course we take it seriously, but in taking it seriously we want to still look like we're having the most fun in the world.

Joe B:'Look like' Max: Yeah inside we're dying.

Joe H: She's going to write that in the paper: 'Inside they're dying.'

and Pitch Perfect, do you think that's had a positive effect getting A Capella out there or has it had a negative effect?

AM: So Jamie and Midé, you're new to the group, had either of you done anything like this before joining The Sons?

Jamie: Do you reckon? I'd love that.

Joe B: That happened in Liverpool, we sang One Direction.

Jamie: Who's the strong silent one, though?

Midé Adenaike: This is my first time working as a group. I thought I'd just do it because it's somewhere where I can beatbox and I was kind of expecting that it would be a pretty serious thing. I thought it would be a bit too intense, but this is more than I could have hoped for and the diversity of music and how they find it so easy, it's crazy, so I love it.

Joe H: Tears in my eyes.

AM: It's pretty intense in America, with Glee

Joe B: There's definitely a stigma attached to the A Capella groups. We were interviewed by a lady from The One Show at a competition, and she said 'Everyone at the university must make fun of you, because you're a bunch of geeks that do A Capella.'

Max: (putting on an Americanised lisp) It's the only way I can express myself!

Josh: Also, we're now trying to branch out of the A Capella scene. We're doing gigs with other people who aren't A Capella and have a more common audience.

Joe H: Instead of being referred to as 'just an A Capella group'; we don't introduce ourselves that way, we just try to entertain people.

AM: You do have kind of a boy-band vibe going.

AM: If not inspired by Glee then, who are your influences?

Max: There's a group called The Pentatonics, from America, and they're coming to perform in Birmingham at the Glee Club!

But we like their style, there are only five of them and it’s sort of like five soloists.

Joe H: I'd like to think we don't take that many influences though, because I think one of the main things, especially when we're

doing group arrangements, is just bringing our own.

Joe B: When we come together to do a group arrangement everyone has the chance to put in their ideas, and it comes out as something completely different every time. It just makes it a more natural process, it's completely different - I don't think we've met another group who do it the same way.

Max: The funny thing about that is that 'Talk Dirty' is the one that we've done with just this group, and we're all so much more comfortable singing that together than we are the ones we've had to teach to the new guys.

Joe B: It's so much easier to sing a part that you've made up yourself.

Joe H: At the risk of sounding cheesy, you feel quite proud of it, like it’s cool because we all did that. At the regional competition last year in the Bramall, we won the award for 'Lose Yourself', and it was wicked to all have won that together.

No one can take higher credit for it.

AM: What's next for the Sons of Pitches?

Joe H: This term we're singing in Selfridge's on the 7th of December from 1-5pm, in the menswear department on the third floor, and we'll be singing Christmas songs.

AM: Are they giving you free clothes?

Max: They're giving us jumpers, I really hope we get to keep the Selfridge's Christmas Jumpers.

Joe B: We've got an EP coming out.

Max: Oh yeah that... But Christmas jumpers come first.

Joe B: Hopefully, the EP will be out by Christmas, probably £4 on iTunes, £5 otherwise that's quite exciting.

Cassiah Joski-Jethi 'The Bridge' is the first feature-length film written and directed by UoB Student Cassiah Joski-Jethi. Ciaran A-Campell spoke to her about the production.

'The Bridge is really about self-discovery' is Joski-Jethi’s brief summary of her film, and it’s made very clear that this is not a romantic, glamorised look at the self – the action mainly takes place in deprived, working class neighbourhoods in the urban, ‘dark side’ of London.

Though this is not, in itself, anything unseen in British films, Joski-Jethi has added another element to The Bridge's atmosphere – the use of dance. And no, this isn't the hip-hop/street dancing normally seen in movies about downtrodden, working class families: the main character, Lynn, is an avid ballet dancer, frequently retreating to her ‘sanctuary’the eponymous bridge - during various points of the film to practice.

Rather than being focused so much on the story of the film, Joski-Jethi feels that the character of Lynn is the focal point. 'A strong female protagonist' is

how Joski-Jethi describes Lynn: 'I wanted to create someone who was her own character and followed a changing attitude in films'.

Along with this, we learn that only 1 in 10 monologues in film is taken by a woman, and women directors barely feature at all.

As she describes Lynn, however, she is certainly in keeping with the emerging trend of female protagonists in films, most notably the incredibly successful Lizabeth Salander from The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and The Hunger Games' Katniss Everdeen; unlike her popular counterparts, however, Joski-Jethi has worked hard to make Lynn a character without too much romantic attachment. 'She's got a good friend who she sort of has a romantic entanglement with' Joski-Jethi explains, 'But it's not a love story and it doesn't define her. Her life isn't about chasing a guy'.

In keeping with the inclusion of Lynn's hobby of ballet dancing, Joski-Jethi has

taken a more theatrical approach to producing and directing The Bridge, having been more accustomed to directing theatre in the past. 'I've used a lot of wide angle shots where we've gone for long takes' Joski-Jethi notes. Though this is part of her 'style' of directing, it has given the cast the advantage of being able to run scenes as full pieces, without too much interruption, though she also notes a 'surreal' feel to the film overall, one which we're assured adds to the overall image.

Joski-Jethi describes The Bridge as her 'learning curve' for film, through which she is not only showing her development to ascending into mainstream cinema, but also discovering the process of making a film. Therefore, this has hardly been an individual project, more a group venture, produced and acted by students of the university. 'It's been a good experience and really fun too' is how Joski-Jethi describes the process of filmmaking, 'I've been really lucky to work with the cast I got, and Elisha (Owen, the producer) has been really helpful'. Using social media, the cast were assembled for auditions before filming in Birmingham and London. 'We had a really good time!' she laughs, 'It feels weird, it was only a few months ago, but it feels like years. It was stressful, but I wish it had gone on for longer'.

Spotlight: Winter 2013

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WHAT'S ON? The Barber Institute

John Monks The Process of Painting The Barber Institute of Fine Arts is an undeniable campus luxury. Bethany Barley visited to review its most recent exhibition.

'The Process of Painting' is now open in the Lady Barber Gallery 15th November 2013 - 26th January 2014

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It is rare to see such complexity within four paintings of stark scenes, but the work displayed by artist John Monks in the Barber Institute truly takes your breath away. Each comprised of oil on canvas, the pieces create a sense of balance between illusion and reality through their experimental portrayal of colour and form. Monks has added a sense of playfulness by pouring the paint, splattering droplets onto the canvas and spreading it on thickly with a palette knife; each effect adding a depth that would have been lost had he merely stuck to a paintbrush. By looking closely, Monks’ use of a palette knife becomes clear, creating an effect

Spotlight: Winter 2013

that seems both careless and abrupt.

Stand back, however, and you are presented with the true shape of his work which is, in distinct contrast, very meticulously formed.

The first of his paintings displayed upon entering the gallery is called ‘Yellow Chair I’. Like the other three, the colours used are extremely impressive in their range. Monks ignores any preconceptions about colour and instead puts streaks of blue against a dark wall; bursts of orange and yellow on a brown floor. To describe the colours used in all four of the paintings accurately is to make them sound incongruous, yet they inject a warmth into each scene that stops his work from becoming too intimidating. His method of glazing the surface in layers is particularly noticeable in ‘Yellow Chair I’, as it creates a shimmery ethereal haze over an ordinary scene, thus challenging viewers to study each object in a new light.

‘History II’ – Monks’ biggest piece – is the most impressive of his work, but not merely because of its size. The intensity of this work is what makes it so great, despite the subject matter

being, simply, an empty room and arguably not the most interesting of his topics. The bare floorboards and lack of furniture would normally create the feeling of isolation and neglect, but Monks has managed to reverse this by once again adding light and colour in ways that make the whole painting come alive. Indeed, this energy is continued through the final two pieces – ‘In the Night’ and ‘The Bed’; both of which reveal a sense of vibrancy and animation whilst being contained within a scene of darkness.

Visitors of the gallery have labelled Monks’ work as 'a triumph'. One commented that each painting was 'a feast of colour', and certainly his blend of light and dark is what sets him apart from his contemporaries. 'The Process of Painting' exhibition will be displayed until the 26th of January, and provides the perfect opportunity for every student to go and explore the entire Barber Institute. It is an incredible privilege to have such amazing work on our doorstep, and John Monks’ four pieces are indeed some of most striking pieces displayed there in a long time.

‘History II’ – Monks’ biggest piece – is the most impressive of his work, but not merely because of its size Visitors of the gallery have labelled Monk's work as 'a triumph' It is an incredible privilege to have such amazing work on our doorstep

WHAT'S ON? The Invincible Virgin Horror Film Festival Thursday 12th December TC's (Coronation Road, Selly Oak) 5PM (for the Classic Horror Film) or 7PM (for everything else) Classic Horror Film (vote for your choice at redbrick.me) Antiviral Rabies Secret Late Night Film Also, there'll be a horror art gallery (from Sabeena Wantoch, who did the poster) and some art installations.

Spring Awakening Ciaran A-Campbell reviews GMTG's production of Spring Awakening.

If you're looking for catchy hooks and an overall happy feeling in GMTG's latest show, you won't find it – Spring Awakening is a deeper, darker, and more moving piece, far different altogether from the stereotypical view of musicals.

Spring Awakening is, in short, a musical set in late 1800s/early 1900s Germany, following a group of young teenagers experiencing their 'sexual awakenings'.

While there's no central plot as such, instead various characters' awakenings being shown tied in together, Melchior (Callum Livermore), the most sexually literate of a group of schoolboys, is central to a number of the storylines, both introducing the rather ashamed Moritz (Jack Alexander) to the workings of heterosexual sex and engaging in a somewhat controversial scene with his equally sexually illiterate childhood friend Wendla (Fran Handley). All three make great performances, though really it's Alexander who captures the audience attention most, taking an awkward character under social and parental pressure and making him a likeable and relatable part.

Though there's a good story at the centre of the show and some examples of wonderful staging (The cast at one point

assemble a boat through physical theatre as part of an extended metaphor) it's a shame that Spring Awakening feels a little rough around the edges in places. Though the staging is clearly meant to be simplistic, sometimes it feels too brash, two large projection screens at either side, meant to accompany musical numbers, come a little too close to distracting attention from them, and there are a few assemblies of chorus members which feel a little messy. Though these are not in themselves too large an issue, it's the overuse of strobe lighting, particularly during Act 1, which is most disruptive, at some points flashing too brightly for the audience to see the stage. Also slightly jarring is the use of white face paint (with the odd stylistic black streaks) on the characters – though Director Jake Dorrel ties it into the general expressivism and surrealism of the show (cue a scene in which pubescent boys are seemingly attached to girls' genital regions), it appears without any real cohesion, making scenes with some of the adult characters, which already play up the “overtly evil image” (In particular the scene with teacher Herr Sonnenstich, played by Adam Christe)

A PERFORMANCE by Holsam (who did last year's Guild Horror/ Comedy Sketch show 'The News from Holsam'. They will also host the event.

And Burn FM's Podcast of the Mohicans will be giving away brand new DVD prizes in a live podcast.

seem dangerously close to pantomime.

Fortunately, due to the general darkness of the show, it actually pays off, particularly in the second act, and it's safe to say that it becomes something one can really appreciate about the production.

Whilst there are a few lines that could be straightened out in Spring Awakening, one thing which is unmistakably excellent is the vocal talent of the cast. Alexander portrays Moritz's angst-ridden numbers with a great energy, while Martha (Ella Darbyshire) has a bewitching number about her father abusing her. It's numbers such as “Don't Do Sadness” and “Left Behind” which really win the audience over – haunting, quite simplistic ballads which the cast convey deftly.

Though the staging is clearly meant to be simplistic, sometimes it feels too brash Overall, though Spring Awakening has a few less smooth moments and takes a while to get across to the audience, it is a satisfying and thought-provoking production, with a good handful of vocal power. It's not one to miss and certainly not one to forget.

Spotlight: Winter 2013

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Spotlight Short Story 'Souls'

By Kristine Bagdasarian Death reckons that hundreds and thousands of millenniums ago, when the Spirits were first created by the Higher Power and the world was nothing but an endless, hovering ball of energy, the concept of good and evil, happiness and sorrow, love and hatred, were nothing but the vague, overlapping waters of the same indiscernible and infinite ocean of possibilities. Back then, humanity and its petty, fragile values, the matter and the boundaries it so selfishly creates, was nothing but an insignificant future, whose existence and purpose was yet to be decided.

Back then things were uncomplicated.

Back then Death did not embody the idea of finite, annihilating darkness.

Now, so many fleeting years in the future, he is standing on the rooftop of a tall, murky building, his death scythe crooning quietly in his hand, and his calm, black eyes staring at the figure near the end of the rooftop. It’s Christmas night tonight – and it’s a white, promising Christmas at that, with the crisp kisses of the snowflakes skimming and landing on any willing or unwilling tangible surface. The human energy, a cadence of billions of pulses and breaths, all across the globe, is palpable and inescapable in the watery texture of the atmosphere. The world is high off its importance. The skies are low and reachable for once, almost as if the universe is tiny, small, confined, locked up in its own nonexistent glory.

“It’s that time again,” Death finds himself speaking in a leisurely, dismissive manner as he makes his way across the snowcoated rooftop, leaving no footsteps behind, and no vestiges whatsoever of his presence.

Nowadays, he’s opted for quite an extravagant look. If the human eye could perceive him before its ending time, it would see nothing but a tall, lanky teenager, dressed in black from head to toe, with dark hair, pale skin, and a very noticeable silver earring bouncing around his lower lip. Death finds the rebellious rock look amusing – it seems to suit him perfectly, and he always likes to observe the souls’ first reactions when they see him ‘in the flesh’. You’re not what I expected, they’d say, staring at his leather finger-less gloves, at the combat boots and the piercing, I thought you’d look a bit more...

What?

Aged?

Skinless?

Bony?

Please.

Yes, he does the occasional transformation every other decade or so – he likes to be fashionable, see – but the inky hair (currently perhaps a bit shaggier than usual), the pitch-black eyes and the scythe never, ever go away. He insists on looking young, too.

Image is so important in this appearancebased 21st century humans keep blabbering about.

Death doesn’t want to fall behind on civilization, now does he?

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“Every year,” the figure replies with a weary sigh. “Same old line.”

“You’re cruel, Chris. You know I lack imagination. Spare me, I beg you.” His voice is cocky and adolescent, and awfully human, but he prefers it that way. He watches the Christmas Spirit turn her head to cast him an unimpressed glance, and he’s struck, once again, by how beautiful she is.

Once every 365 days – that’s all he gets – and if she doesn’t feel like it, he might not even see her. She’s wearing a long festive dress as one might imagine, the iridescent colours fusing and swimming away from one another, the fabric glossy like silk, yet untouchable, ethereal, pure energy. Her hair is a strange mixture of white and pale blonde, rolled neatly at the back of her head in a pristine bun, with just a few loose strands falling by her face and framing its divine, soft features. And yet, as she looks at him, her eyes are cold, piercing, loathing.

Death knows why.

For a minute more he pretends to be oblivious. He doesn’t look in the direction she’s been staring at. He doesn’t step closer to the edge and doesn’t comment on her unusual location. But eventually he has to give in – his eyes swipe across the horizon and then rest on the building across from them and on the secluded silhouette, scrawny and trembling, poised on the very edge of the rooftop.

“Another one,” he mutters, trying to diminish the value of what is going on. Chris doesn’t fall for it: her glass-like blue eyes only narrow, pivoted on the man about to jump, and on the cold, pre-dying aura that is flickering around him.

“You can’t take a single day off, can you?” she whispers, accusation and repugnance blatantly clear in every single syllable that drips off her pretty little lips. “Not even today. Not even for me.”

There is one vacant moment – so brief he nearly misses it – when Death feels the distant graze of guilt trying to scrape its obnoxious nail against his fort of energy, but soon enough the prowling emotion is gone. He is

just where he is. On spot to fulfil his job.

“It’s not really up to me,” he says at last, having repeated the same thing countless times before, on this very same day of the year, to this very same spirit. Besides him, Christmas only huffs in resentment and lifts her arms in one graceful, fluid motion, folding them in front of her chest.

“No,” she scoffs, unrelenting. “No, you’re just doing the dirty job.”

Death scowls at that remark. He doesn’t like the implication that he’s nothing but a pet dog for the powers above. He doesn’t like the way she always seems to manage to put him down for the fact that he’s never the one who can decide on the ending of a mortal life. He’s one of the most ancient spirits in existence.

No one can do the job that he does. But still, she doesn’t seem to appreciate it.

“They feel nice, you know,” he tells her, jerking a single shoulder in a careless shrug.

“To the touch. Souls, they feel nice.”

“They would, wouldn’t they? For you, they would. You’re just so empty.”

Another jab. Death resists the urge to heave a sigh. Just because she has a soul and he doesn’t, does not mean she needs to rub it in his face every single chance she gets.

At the end of the day, The Reaper can’t have what he must collect from his victims. And at the end of the day, it’s probably more of a blessing than a curse and he’s so, so hollow.

“Let’s leave professional disagreements aside for now, shall we?” he offers diplomatically, clearing his throat as he steps closer to her and arranges the scythe more comfortably over his shoulder. “How about that thing we talked about last year? Have you given it some thought?”

There is a short, vacant pause. Then Chris rips her eyes away from the opposing building, steps to the side and finally faces him fully.

“I don’t know why you even try,” she sneers, shaking her head in that incredulous,

unsympathetic manner he’s learned to recognise so well by now. “You and I, we are never going to be anything. Just look at you.

You reek of destruction and misery. I can’t have anything to do with you. Ever.”

He doesn’t even blink when she says it.

He doesn’t want to think about what she’s telling him, he doesn’t want to comprehend, memorise or accept it. There is always the next year, after all. That’s what he keeps telling himself. And if not, there is the year after. And the one after. One day. One day it will happen.

One day she’ll forgive him for who he is.

A trice later he’s standing on the rooftop all alone again.

Christmas has gone, but his job is still waiting for him. Putting the tip of his combat boot on the edge of the building, he pushes down and soon he is flying, floating with the wind, mocking gravity as he leaps effortlessly over the vast, hammering traffic of the street below.

His scythe slashes through the air and catches the man across from him just as he lets himself go, the blade cutting him open with competent and admirable ease.

He catches the soul by the collar a second before it has managed to plummet to the ground along with its hot, throbbing mortal shell, and he hums in approval when he feels its nearly imperceptible weight hang down from his fingers like a wet rag.

The soul is slippery and effervescent – the saddest, most broken ones always are – but contentment washed over Death nonetheless as he peers down at the ghost and grins.

“You’re not what I expected,” the soul mutters grimly and Death laughs before bending his knees and jumping again, high above the city, with the fresh load of energy in his arms.

“I get that a lot,” he admits, his all-consuming, all-destroying gaze directing towards the dark sky in front of him.

“I really do get that a lot.”