Are you a Weapon or a Meister?

The entire room went dead silent as everybody froze. Soul was sitting in a chair until he slowly leaned back too far and collapsed. The group of ex-ponies blinked and stared at the new visitor with pure awe. Maka stood at the sink, washing dishes until she looked back to see who was at the door. She turned off the sink and put down the plate she was washing.

She looked confused, but smiled nonetheless. "Oh, hey Professor Stein. What brings you here?"

The man simply narrowed his eyes. "I've come to take these two witches off your hands."

Maka instantly went pale. "O-Oh, uhm, alright." She looked back at the table to see Soul, who had stood and brushed himself off, with wide eyes as well. She glanced back at Stein. "How about we do that instead? They know us better."

"I can see that." He glanced at the group of girls, whom all appeared to be frightened, then back at Maka. "That's not necessary, however."

"Well, can we accompany you to help?"

Stein gave the bookworm a glare. "Marie and I can do it fine by ourselves, thank you."

He started taking steps towards the girls, but Maka stopped right in front of him. "Are you sure? I mean, witches are hard to handl-"

"Move out of the way, Maka, or you'll get a whole month of detention and you'll fail your next test grade." Stein interrupted her. The girl hesitantly yet quickly stepped away, allowing the man to continue walking.

He stopped right in front of Twilight and Rarity. The girls both looked up at him.

"Is... is there something w-wrong, mister?" Twilight asked, quickly glancing at Maka with concern. The young Meister stared at the ground in quiet shame.

"You're going to have to come with me." He motioned to Rarity. "You have to come as well."

Rarity looked offended. "I'm afraid you must be mistaken, good sir. You said you needed witches, correct?"

Stein nodded. "That would be correct."

"Then you are indeed mistaken. We aren't witches. None of us are."

"That, although, is incorrect." He leaned forward slightly, which made Rarity lean back. "I can sense souls, so your lies are useless."

Twilight blinked. "Wait wait wait... what do you mean by 'souls'? How is it even possible to 'sense a soul'?"

Stein turned to the purple-clothed female. "Do you know anything about souls?"

Twilight nodded. "Of course. They're an energy to represent us as beings, in most religions." She furrowed her eyebrows. "Although, I have no idea how that would relate to honesty. Even if you could 'sense souls', you should also sense that we aren't lying."

Stein sighed and leaned back. "No. That's not what a soul is." He twisted the screw in his head slowly. The girls all cringed.

"Doesn't that hur-"

"A soul is the small orb lying inside your body to give you energy to live. With the soul removed, you are dead. All creatures, weapons and humans have souls. Certain kinds of souls look different. Kishins have corrupted, red souls. Witches have purple souls. Humans and weapons have small, blue souls." He stopped twisting the screw. "I can sense your soul, as I said. Both of yours are purple, while everyone else in the room has small, blue ones. Now, I don't have all day. Let's go." He shifted his arm holding the hammer. "It would be a shame if anybody got hurt."

Twilight and Rarity stood up slowly. Stein stepped back and waved to the door. The two girls hesitantly started walking towards it, looking back in confusion and worry.

Applejack shot out of her seat. "Now, you wait just a darn minute. You think you can burst into Maka here's home and kidnap two girls who you 'can sense that are witches'? That's pretty rude and, might I add, illegal."

Stein pushed the bridge of the glasses. "Two witches in the middle of Death City is dangerous. I will admit, their souls don't feel evil. Maybe they didn't kill anyone or do anything bad. Nevertheless, I still need to bring them to Lord Death to see what he wants to do about the situation."

He turned around to face the door but was instead met with Rainbow Dash crossing her arms and glaring. "You're not going anywhere with our friends." She spread her legs to block his path. "Don't you dare take a step closer."

Stein blinked. "Oh? And what will you do if I happen to?"

She cracked her knuckles and neck. "I'll fight you, screwhead."

Maka and Soul looked up and widened their eyes. "Don't do it." They mouthed to her frantically. Rainbow noticed but ignored them.

Stein shrugged. "Okay." He continued walking.

Rainbow raised her fist and slammed it into his stomach faster than you could say "soul." Stein didn't react - he simply raised his palm and pressed it onto her forehead.

The blue-clothed woman blinked before laughing. "You seriously think putting your hand on my head will stop me? Man, I should've known a man with a giant piece of metal in his brain was dumber than avera-"

ZAP!

Rainbow barely had time to widen her eyes before she went flying out the doorway and crashed into the wall, leaving a devastating print. Everyone except Maka and Soul gasped - the two merely looked away, wincing. Slowly, Rainbow shakily stood, looking up at Stein in awe.

"W-wha - how did - when - what...?!" She stumbled, but caught her balance before she could fall. "You just... put your hand on my... head and... then I..."

"Soul Force." Stein muttered. "I sent my soul wavelength into you in the form of a powerful energy." He clucked his tongue and smiled. "Does this mean I won?"

Rainbow blinked. "I don't... understand..." she muttered.

Stein nodded. "I'll take that as a yes." He continued walking, going out the door and into the hallway. He only stopped when he noticed the witches weren't following. They were in the doorway, staring at their injured friend in worry. He turned towards them, raising an eyebrow. "Well? Are you coming?"

Twilight looked up with a furious glare. "How dare you do that! She could've broken a couple of her ribs or maybe even her spine from that impact, and here you are expecting us to follow you?!" She clenched her teeth, baring them. "You better apologize!" She walked out, taking a few steps towards him.

"Apologize for what?" He twirled the hammer in his hand. "She said she would fight me if I took another step. I need to bring these witches to the DWMA, so I kept walking. You expect me to apologize for doing my job?"

Twilight squeezed her fists. "You could have gone easier on her." A faint, purple aura started to slowly cover her entire body. "You didn't have to almost kill her!"

Stein noticed the glow and narrowed his eyes. He now knew that at least Twilight was a witch, and if she ever objected, he would have  proof. "Calm down. If I had gone easier then she would've kept fighting and made this whole ordeal longer. That's not the strongest of my wavelength, either. She's lucky I didn't decide to use Marie on her."

"I don't care about 'if' you used anything else on her. What you did was almost break her back over her trying to defend her friends!"

"I've already said that I'm just doing my job. I'm not going to apologize for something I need to do. Now, let's go."

Twilight placed her feet firmly on the ground, the glow brightening slightly. "I'm not going anywhere unless you at least apologize to her."

Stein narrowed his eyes, contemplating what to do in the situation. If he just said sorry, then the worst that would come out of this was a few rivalries including him. If he didn't, then a fight would most likely occur. It intrigued him that a witch, of all things, was this persistent in defending someone. Then again, he told himself, there have been a few other witches who did the same. Witch Angela and Mifune, for example. According to Black*Star and Tsubaki, Angela had stood in front of an injured Mifune, as if guarding him, and refusing to move despite Black*Star being three times taller than her, two times older and fifty times stronger. So, he told himself, that it was indeed possible, although maybe a little rare considering all the other witches in existence weren't as friendly as Angela or Twilight.

He sighed and turned to Rainbow Dash. "I apologize for injuring you."

The glow around Twilight dimmed and she 'hmphed', brushing her skirt and narrowing her eyes.  "The others have to come with us if we go with you." She sighed, too, obviously trying to calm herself. It was obvious she was still angry, however, even if she tried to hide it.

Stein nodded. "That can be arranged." He turned to Maka and Soul, whom had walked out of the room and now stood in the hallway with everybody else. "If you're late to class then you'll be excused for now. The reason of your absence is understandable, although I do suggest you start getting ready for school now." He then motioned at the end of the hallway. "Back to the situation at hand; ladies first."

_______________________________________

The trek to the mystery destination was confusing, interesting, and embarrassing at the same time. Pre-teens and young teens stared at the group of girls as they passed as if they were aliens from another planet. Fluttershy whimpered and hid behind Rainbow Dash the entire time, trying to avoid everyone's gaze and refrain from being the center of attention. Twilight was sure that a couple of the people who they came across could see souls as well, and from the surprised and disgusted looks they were getting, it made her think about whether being a supposed 'witch' was exactly like being a timberwolf in a room full of rabbits. However, after they finally passed hallway after hallway, Stein came to a stop upon a fancy, decorated door with a large, sharp n' pointy skull on the very top. He opened the door and moved aside for the group to enter.

Twilight's mouth opened in awe once she did. The room had scattered themes, but it was beautiful nonetheless. Upon entering the room, she was met with a very long hallway with red guillotines atop her (which she tried not to be under in case one of the blades fell, even after having reassurance from Stein that they wouldn't fall). After finally exiting the long, cobblestone path, there was a very large dark grey raised platform which supported a golden-rimmed, wacky shaped mirror with candles. In the distance, there was nothing else but steel, random crosses scattered everywhere in the seemingly endless room. The room literally looked as if there was no end - even if she squinted, she could not see a single wall or other obstacle. What baffled her the most was that, even though the roof was a baby blue sky with white, puffy two dimensional clouds slowly inching their way around - actually moving - there were windows that showed what was actually outside. When Twilight glanced at her friends, she could see that they were just as amazed as her.

"Oh, hiya Stein! It's good to see you again, yes?" A loud, goofy voice rang out in the lonely room as the group stepped up onto the platform. Stein nodded.

"It is indeed, Lord Death."

Pinkie instantly saw the silly figure standing next to the mirror and gasped, jumping up and down in surprise. "I know you! I know you!" She repeated, pointing at him.

Death tilted his head to the side a little. "Oh, you remember me? I have to say, I'm quite flattered." A black line sprouted out of his side, which morphed into an enormous gloved hand. He pointed at her, narrowing his eyes. "You're... Pinky Cake, right?"

Pinkie giggled. "Pinkie Pie, actually."

He groaned and snapped his fingers. "Dangit! I was so close, too!" He laughed and then turned to the others. He widened his eyes when he saw Twilight, who widened her eyes as well.

He was silent for a moment before he suddenly exclaimed "OH!" Twilight flinched but kept her same confused yet surprised expression. "You must be Twilight Sparkle! The one that was unconscious, right?"

The purple witch blinked. "H-how do you know my name and that I was...?"

"Maka told me about you yesterday."

"...oh." Well, that sure is comforting.... She thought.

Pinkie seemed to notice her discomfort and wrapped her arm around Twilight's neck. "No worries, Twilight! This guy's a nice pony! ....person? Ghost? Blanket? Enchilada?" She looked at Death. "What are you, anyway?"

Death blinked. "I never told you?"

She shook her head and took her arm off of Twilight. "Nope!"

He nodded. "Ah, alright then." He placed his giant hand on his chest, motioning to himself. "I'm what you would call a Shinigami, or a Grim Reaper."

Rarity choked on air, gasping. "A-a Grim R-Reaper?" She took a step back, glancing at Applejack.

He nodded, then sprouted another arm from his side and waved them frantically as his eyes furrowed in concern. "Yes, yes, I am a Grim Reaper but there's no need to be afraid! There was no reason to before, so there shouldn't be one now, right?"

Pinkie shook her head. "Nuh-uh! I don't see a reason to be scared at all. You seem like a nice Grim Reaper."

"Thank you, Pinkie Pie." He looked at Twilight, then at Rarity. "Anyways, you two are the witches, eh?"

The two girls looked at eachother, then back at Death. "Apparently." Twilight muttered, unsure.

"Ah, I understand. Now, have you ever killed someone or something?"

Twilight widened her eyes and made a disgusted expression. "No! That's horrifying to even imagine!" Rarity covered her mouth in horror while everyone else, except for Death and Stein, gasped.

"Have you ever wanted to kill someone or something?"

"Of course not!"

"Even if it or they were most sadistic person or thing you ever met?"

"No. I would want to teach them a lesson and send them on their way, maybe locking them up in prison if they were that bad."

Death narrowed his eyes in thought. "What if it or they hurt or killed someone dear to you?"

"...my answer still remains."

"You hesitated."

"I hesitated because I'm not sure where you're going with this." Twilight crossed her arms.

"What if the evil person was your most dearest friend, and you had to kill them to save the world? Would you do it?"

"No." She sighed, realizing he avoided the implied question.

"So you would let the world be reduced to destruction and rubble over friendship?"

"No. I would find another way around saving the world."

"Like what?"

"Trying to persuade the 'evil' person to stop."

"What if they declined?"

"I would make them stop."

"Without resorting to violence?"

"Violence would be my very last resort, but if necessary, then yes. Murder would never be an option, though."

Death nodded. "Would you ever disagree with a friend if they were doing the wrong thing?"

"I would try to tell them to quit whatever they were doing, but if they didn't then I would disagree."

"Would you ever be the one to take the 'evil' role?"

"Never, ever, ever in my whole entire life have I even considered that."

"I see." Death became silent, staring at Twilight in hidden contemplation.

She became noticeably uncomfortable and coughed. "Is there an issue?" She instantly felt a flash of déjà vu but ignored it.

Death blinked, then perked up. "Oh, sorry. I was just thinking about things." He turned to Rarity. "Do you agree with everything she just answered my questions with?"

"Absolutely." The fancy witch stood up straighter to look more professional.

Death nodded. "Well, then that solves everything." He clapped his hands together and tilted his head to the side. "You're off the hook and free to do whatever you wish."

Stein raised an eyebrow as the two witches looked completely confused.

"Excuse me, but what the hay do you mean?" Applejack spoke up, raising an eyebrow as well.

"Well, as Stein may or may not have explained, witches are like criminals in Death City. They are seen to always be either captured or killed, although honestly the latter is preferred by most." He paused for a moment before continuing. "Infact, the latter is taught by our students here to be necessary. Witches are rarely befriended by or have become allies of the DWMA - rare enough to where there's only been about one or two known to have done that - so that's why you might have gotten strange looks from passerby students."

Everyone seemed to understand what he was saying and breathed a large sigh of horrified relief, especially Twilight and Rarity, at the fact that they could've almost been killed. Twilight reminded herself to thank Maka and Soul properly later for basically saving their lives.

Rarity blinked. "Wait... excuse me, but are you implying that this is a school or an educational building?"

Death nodded. "I am indeed."

Rainbow Dash scoffed with a smirk and leaned closer to Applejack's ear. "Pretty crazy school, if you ask me." She then winced and stood up straighter again. It was obvious her injury hadn't stopped being sore yet. Applejack snickered at her joke, not noticing her cringe.

"Ooh, so what does this school teach?" Pinkie Pie leaned forwards and backwards, teetering on her heels with a wide, excited grin.

"We teach and train our students to kill evil, corrupted humans called Kishin. The Meister/Weapon pair are required to collect ninety-nine kishin souls and one witch soul in order for the Weapon to upgrade to a Death Weapon, or a Weapon that I, myself, can use. This main goal may take from a few years to maybe even a decade - some students don't even finish because they either sadly lose their life or lose their sanity."

The whole room fell into silence, once again.

"You... teach the students to.... kill?" Applejack blinked. "And risk their lives?"

"Yes - well, no. Yes and no." Death scratched the back of his head. "Gee, when you say it like that you make it sound more brutal than it actually is." He sighed and looked up at the sky-ceiling. "Well... the students have to agree to signing up for the school, first off. They are told what they'll have to go through and what they'll most likely experience. So, yes, we do teach them that but it's at their permission, of course. If anyone is risking their own lives it's themselves."

"But... why would anyone want to do such a terrible thing?" Rainbow Dash asked. "Why are the humans even 'corrupted', anyway?" She tried to pretend she knew what a human was.

"To answer that, I guess I should explain that human souls and kishin souls have the same value. If you consume either one you will get the same amount of power. Kishin souls, however are more difficult to collect because they almost always come with a battle in which only one comes out alive. So, to gain power easier, some decide to consume human souls instead. To become a kishin, you must kill and consume multiple human souls. This, of course, means murder of the innocent. Then, at that point, madness starts to kick in and the newly formed kishin goes insane. The urge for eating more and more human souls grows, which means more death and more murder. That's why our students here are taught to defeat them - the kishin, engulfed in insanity and slowly growing stronger with every soul, has no more reason or order anymore and only focuses on killing the student instead of even considering changing sides. So, really, we're helping Death City and the world by slowly removing the threat of kishin."

Twilight now understood - even if it was brutal and sickening to think about, they really were saving the world by killing. She didn't want to think about what it would be like if ponies had to survive in that way, either. Humans have a hard lifestyle... She muttered under her breath. Then again, she didn't really remember any of this last time she visited the human world. Her skin was also no longer purple, and the moon and sun now had a face and, might she add, the moon could bleed for some creepy reason. Not only that, but there was no mention of souls at all last time - except not in the way she was hearing about them now. Consuming souls? Yeaaaah, didn't really ring a bell. To her, it sounded like some cliché horror thing.

Then another strange thought hit her.

What if she wasn't in the human dimension?

Pfft. She chuckled mentally. Of course I'm in the human dimension. I have fingers, toes, I walk on two feet, and I no longer have a horn, wings, or tail. She was instantly reminded that, although that was true, she was also discriminated on because of supposedly being a witch - she definitely didn't remember that happening last time. So, if she was a human/witch, what's with all the soul business and the mythical creatures and the killing? Perhaps, she thought, I'm in the human dimension but... in a different part of it?

Before she could ponder about where she actually was, Death coughed loudly before laughing.

"It seems the tables have turned." He said in a joking tone, sounding as if he was smiling.

Twilight blushed and looked down at the ground in embarrassment as she heard Stein chuckling. "Oh... sorry, heheh." She looked up at Death. "Was there something you asked?"

"No. I just finished explaining things and the whole room went deadly quiet." He laughed, then gained a more serious tone. "However... you did seem to have some conflict going on inside that magical brain of yours. I'd guess that from your reactions and answers you gave earlier you really aren't from around here at all, like you're from a totally different galaxy." Twilight felt a chill down her spine as he got dangerously close to the real truth - and sounded serious about it. "I can tell this must all be completely different from what you're used to. I won't go any further into detail for now. You all, infact, should just go back home and rest to let that sink in. That sink needs to rest, as well." He chuckled at his own pun, to which Pinkie burst out into laughter at. It took at least ten seconds for everyone else to understand it.

"Let that s-ink i-n! I get it! I get it!" She wheezed in between gasps.  "That one's a-a classic!"

Death's eyes squinted as if he was smiling and waved his giant hand in a gentle pushing motion. "Now, shoo. Go home, little piggies."

Pinkie - still crying from laughter -  turned around and walked towards the door casually, her arms swaying at her sides even if her waist-up was shaking. Everyone else, including Stein, followed her, glancing at Pinkie with a strange look every now and then. But just as Twilight was going to go with them, Death's quiet voice called out to her in a tone that reminded her of Celestia.

"Just a moment, Twilight."