Violi

Violi stood stoically on the street corner. For a moment, he gazed at the passersby wistfully, letting them blur before him, blur together, become one and the same. Slowly, he opened the case of his violin. It was a luminous night with a breeze that murmured through the trees. Vio smiled sadly and began to play his violin. The first note was prolonged and hushed, as if he had put a mute on it. He gazed into the glowing eyes that peered through the f-holes. He played a sparkling tune as he wanted to make the passersby smile, but he truly would prefer to be playing Beethovan's Seventh Symphony Movement 2. Many of the passersby did smile at him, or perked up as they heard him play, and none of them seemed to notice the ghastly hands that mimicked the strokes of the bow. He played and played, played until he could no longer stand his sadness that only grew as he played cheerful music. He began to feel guilty that he was trying to spread positivity when his own positivity was falsified. He was gently placing his violin back into its velvet-lined case when he began to feel a job calling to him. Another lost.
He encountered Death at their usual spot, violin in tow.
“You know what you’re to do.” Death said, pointing Vio in the direction of the lost soul. Violi walked until he could see the slight glow of the soul. Then he began to play the same tune as he had played on the street. The soul, who had been wandering aimlessly, was drawn to the cheerful tune. Here, it matched Vio's melancholy. It was dreary here, always, but End knew the afterlife was not so. He dreaded dying. The soul finally reached Vio and he began to play them on their way. The soul soundlessly began to swirl and fade. Vio played until it had reached the afterlife, hoping he had made the soul’s journey pleasant. He smiled sadly.
He had always been able to see the souls, but hadn’t always had this job. Death had approached him one day as he was mournfully and passionately playing Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde, one of his favorite pieces.
At first, Vio did not acknowledge Death, and continued playing.
“You see me here.” Death spoke to him.
“Yes.” Vio replied softly. He did not need to be introduced in order to know he was speaking to Death, nor did it surprise him that Death had chosen him for such a job. It was a lonely one, as souls were unable to speak, but it fit him. Death had even given him his current violin. It was always perfectly in tune.
Vio decided to stay in the dreary forest of lost souls for awhile, composing melancholic tunes. He was just winding down when he sensed another lost soul. It was rare to have more than a single lost soul within a days time. Regardless, Vio began the search for this lost soul.
He wandered through the bleakness for a long while before stopping and deciding to find Death. Death always knew where the lost souls were. Vio turned and Death was immediately behind him.
“You see me here.” Death spoke to him.
“Yes.” Vio replied softly. “Where is the lost soul?”
“Look down.” Death said. Vio looked down and found that he himself was glowing.
“Oh.”
“You must play yourself into the afterlife.” Death demanded. “But the violin will stay here with me.”
“But you will have to find another musician.” Vio whispered, surprised to find that he was a lost soul. He did not want to go into the afterlife, where things were bright and happy. He liked his melancholic existence and he didn’t know what the afterlife would hold if he were not able to take his violin. “You will have to replace me.”
“I have someone in mind. Someone who would resist their position at first but could rise to the occasion.” Death replied solemnly.
“I could stay.” Vio said quietly. “I could stay and I could play all the lost souls to their destinations forever.”
“You would not be happy here.” Death said, though he knew in a way that this was the happiest Vio would ever be. “You would eventually want to pass on.”
End knew this to not be true. “Until then,” he whispered, knowing well that there wouldn't be a then, “can’t I stay here and play?”
Death was silent for awhile. Vio busied himself with looking at the ground where his soft glow was illuminating the moss. “You can stay. You can even go back to the living world, but you will not be alive and no one will be able to see you.” Death left him alone with his violin.
Vio sighed. He had not been ready to be in the in-between, but he was glad that he could spend even more time here.
A few days after being alone in the in-between and guiding souls on their way, he decided to venture into the world of the living. He went to his same street corner and stood, watching the passersby wistfully. None took notice of him, and Vio remembered what Death had said. He took out his violin and drew the bow across the strings. He began to play a cheerful tune, and realized that passersby would sense him and his song and smile. This filled him with sort of a sad, nostalgic happiness. He could still effect the living world. But soon, another lost soul called to him, and he returned to the in-between to play them on their way. His “life” was just about the same. He could spend his time composing melancholy tunes in the in-between, helping lost souls to their destination, and yet he could still make the living happy. He was fulfilled.

lore idea brought to life by rian