DeathPuss

DeathPuss is the slash ship between Death and Puss in Boots from the Puss in Boots fandom.

Canon
Death and Puss are canonically natural enemies who ended up developing a mutual respect towards one another, at the end of their final encounter in the 2023 film. Death is depicted as an intimidating force of nature, the grim reaper himself. He witnessed Puss's eight deaths while Puss in Boots, the protagonist, showed no consideration towards his own mortality and the concept of death itself, during the lead up to the point where Puss found being on his final ninth life. This has driven Death to the point of anger towards towards Puss and made it his mission to hunt him down through out the story. Along with Death filling Puss with consistently instilling fear and anxiety. In an attempt to "avoid" death and remain a legendary hero, Puss went on a journey to find The Wishing Star, so he bring his one life back up to nine lives. Death himself, however, does not take lightly to this and makes an effort to take Puss' life numerous times until Puss is forced to realize the value of his own mortality and earn Death's respect by fighting for his life and finally accepting him as an undeniable fate that he cannot overcome.

The two first meet in a an empty bar where Puss was bantering about not wanting to "retire" after losing 8 of his lives. Death appears next to him after hearing an ominous whistle that catches Puss' attention, until he sees Death sitting next to him at the bar counter. Death greets him with an eerie but respectful attitude, making an effort to compliment Puss' attire and even asking for his autograph on a wanted poster. Puss, however, takes discomfort from his presence, sensing the off-putting energy that Death puts off. Puss automatically assumes that Death is a bounty hunter when the dark cloaked wolf shows Puss his wanted poster, and the feline hero quickly challenges him to a fight, though Death is unprovoked by his efforts. It is not until Puss attempts to physically attack him does Death react aggressively, and he pushes Puss back with ease, even managing to cut Puss' forehead for the first time, leaving Puss stunned. Upon defeating him, Death mockingly tells Puss to "pick up" his weapon, and Puss is filled with immense fear and reluctancy. The hero runs from the fight, abandoning his sword, and Death pursues him with a calm anticipation, even after Puss escapes the bar and leaves town.

Their battle led to Puss fearing for his life for the first time ever, resulting in him not wanting to face the wolf ever again. So he decides to take retirement, in order to live out what remains of his final life without the dangers of his old life. As well as using it as an escape from the death wolf. Until Puss learns about the Wishing Star from Goldilocks and the Three Bears, and decides to go after it as well. Believing that the power of the wish can bring back all of his lives to avoid Death. This journey with Perrito the dog and Kitty Softpaws joining him, however, has Puss encountering Death more than once since he came out of retirement to escape him. Since after Puss used spilled gold to make his and his party's escape, while he is in the middle of his triumph, Puss is shocked by the familiar sound of whistling among the crowd. For a tense moment, he sees Death standing among the civilians, whistling and looking at him with deathly intimidation that causes Puss to desperately encourage Perrito to drive the carriage faster until Death is out of sight.

Puss' third encounter with Death takes place after the trio finds themselves inside of the Dark Forest, a magical dimension that is said to be where the Wishing Star resides. During the battle for the map between his party and the parties of Goldilocks and the Three Bears and Big Jack Horner, Puss realises that his life is at risk if he keeps fighting and his fears of dying only grow when he is frozen stiff by the sounds of Death's whistling. He spots the wolf standing behind him in the distance, watching him imposingly as he flashes his sickles with deadly intentions. Puss panics from this encounter and abandons the fight, as well as Kitty and Perrito for a temporary time. This small experience sends Puss into a state of major anxiety, causing him to see Death everywhere he runs until he can no longer keep running. Puss Confesses his fear of death to Perroit, as he offers his friend comfort and support on the matter. Knowing that the wolf as followed Puss to the woods fouls his need for the wish, as he doesn't believe that he'll ever be able to face the wolf or any other dangers like him with only one remaining life.

Inside the Cave of Lost Souls, Puss learns what Death saw in him when the feline hero meets all of his past lives instilled inside of crystals. As Puss quickly learns how lonesome his life was and how selfish he used to be, while his lives attempt to convince him to abandon his friends and seek out the Wishing Star for himself in order to go back to being a lone hero. Puss proceeds to attempt to leave the cave, not wanting to bother further with his lives, but is quickly stopped when Death enters the scene, re-igniting his fear. Through-out this scene, Death begins to reveal to Puss his motives behind his aggression, emphasizing his power by smashing each crystal that represents Puss' lives. He tells Puss that he was always around to watch him lose every "frivolous" life he had, showing his proof by displaying 8 carved marks of Puss' lives on one of his sickles. Because of this, Puss realizes who he is, and Death confirms his suspicions by finally telling him that he is "death, straight up." Death tells Puss he has come for him, but Puss responds with confusion, acknowledging that it is not his time to die yet. Death takes his concerns with amusement and confesses that he never liked the idea of cats having 9 lives. However, his prime source of bitterness is caused by the reality that Puss never valued "any" of his lives to begin with. Death believes he is doing a favor by wanting to kill Puss off early, having no faith that Puss will value his final life. Puss runs away from him, barely managing to escape his grasp, until he is left running from his friends and directly to the Wishing Star where he decides to make his wish to have 9 lives again.

At the Wishing Star Puss gains wished that later helps him in his second battle with Death. As Perrito helps Puss gain this wise insight as the dog talks about how special a life can be, as well as how one life can be enough. Before Puss is able to make a decision, everyone including himself are stopped by the familiar sound of whistling. Puss fearfully looks in the direction of Death, who strolls into the scene, sickles ready for action. Puss momentarily responds to Perrito's confusion towards this new opponent, saying "He is here for me". Without any warning, Death uses his sickles to create a powerful barrier of flames, leaving Puss trapped and isolated from the help of his friends. Terrified, he looks at The Wishing Star map, seeming to debate whether he wants to wish for his lives back or not. Death calls out his cowardice, telling him to fight. He throws Puss his sword, telling him to "pick it up" the same way he did in their first battle. Puss proceeds to remember all of his experiences through out his journey to The Wishing Star, only thinking about his friends and the love they shared with him for the first time in many years. It is in this moment that he realizes his life is worth fighting for, and that he does not have to live alone and stuck in his lonesome "Legendary" ways. Death questions if his lives are "flashing before his eyes", but Puss confidently denies it, telling him that "just one" is all he saw. He has decided that he is tired of running for his life and proceeds to face Death head on, weapon in hand, much to Death's excitement.

The two proceed to fight, clashing blades and dodging one another. However, as the battle intensifies, Puss loses his sword once again, causing himself to be left seemingly defenseless and giving Death the advantage. But, just when all hope seems lost, Puss pulls out his "gatito blade", a newly acquired gift from his close friend, Kitty, which allows him to deflect a critical attack from Death just in time. With a new determination, Puss manages to regain his sword and fight earnestly against Death with both of his weapons at the same time. For the first time, Death is pushed back, and Puss finally gains advantage over the wolf. He kicks Death down, causing him to lose his sickles and fall back, putting distance between themselves. Then, in a show of true bravery, Puss gives Death one of his sickles back, telling him to "Pick it up". He then tells Death once and for all that he knows he can never defeat him, but that will not stop him from fighting for his life. His words appear to impact Death, who makes a final stand against him in an effort to intimidate the hero. But Puss does not back down, showing off his willingness to survive by staring Death in the face. Death is left frustrated by this, regretful that he took so long to kill Puss.

However, Death quickly lets go of his anger, and acknowledges that Puss has changed, and that he is no longer the same arrogant little "legend" he use to be. Puss is relieved by this, and Death expresses his mercy and respect by telling him to live his life "well", before turning away and leaving. But, before his final departure, he looks back at Puss. He reminds Puss that they will meet again someday, and Puss, no longer afraid, but no longer cocky either, smiles at Death and accepts his warning without denial. Death calmly disappears through the flames, whistling one last time.

Fanon
DeathPuss is a growing ship within the Shrek fandom, and is one of the most popular ships involving Puss in Boots. Despite the canonical hostilities the characters share, many fans enjoy expanding on both characters in fun, soft, and loving ways. For example, one popular fantasy is that Death, after leaving Puss at The Wishing Star, finds himself incapable of forgetting Puss and how he impacted him enough to make him break his own rules. He realizes that Puss, being at the exception of his rules, has left an imprint on himself. He develops a curiosity towards the cat, wanting to know why he was so invested in him in the first place and allowed him to be a rare subject of his mercy. What follows is Death coming to develop feelings for Puss, who causes him to experience mortal desires for the first time. He feels angry and confused with himself for wanting to form a relationship with Puss, who, depending on the circumstance, fears him any way, which restricts his confidence in earning his trust. But, these new desires combined with Death's primal instincts, create a potent drive inside of Death that encourages him to seek Puss out and begin to meet with him more and more, hoping to see for himself if what he feels can be put to rest until he is too far gone.

In scenarios like this, Death can be depicted in his usual creepy, aggressive fashion, becoming obsessed with Puss and only wanting to experience his fear and irresistible cockiness. He toys with him and spooks him, appearing when Puss least expects it in order to satisfy his sadistic desires. In this case, sometimes Death will realize he wants more than just fear from Puss. His hunger for the feline grows outside of natural territories until he cannot even fathom taking his life, and instead, he wants to earn Puss' attention and claim his heart for himself, finding the idea of Puss desiring him back to be more intoxicating than him being afraid. Alternatively, Death can be depicted as lonesome and misunderstood. He wants Puss' love, but knows he cannot over step his boundaries as a God and as a natural enemy. But, his affections tempt him into making an effort to win Puss over, and the two of them develop an unexpected, forbidden romance that causes Death to feel his first experiences of attraction and desire to protect a living soul.

The two of them clash together pleasantly, and most of the time, Death is shown as possessive and protective of Puss, while Puss is either distrusting of Death at the start, or willing to show his heroic side and give Death a chance. If he trusts him, Puss enjoys using his charms on Death, flirting with him and teasing him in his usual lover-boy fashion. These are traits Death tends to find cute and amusing, his own affections for the feline stemming from how determined Puss is to make him happy and flustered, even though Death does not fluster easily. Often, Death views Puss as a prized partner in most situations. He admires Puss for his cockiness, sass, charms, and skills in battle. He watches over Puss often, and uses him to develop a better understanding of mortals and what it means to value a person outside of his work as a grim reaper. Puss is the one person he cannot bring himself to kill, which can open room for angst when ever the time comes for Puss to pass on. In cases where morality is a prime factor in this ship's dynamic, fans enjoy the idea of Death losing his immortality in exchange for Puss' love. The concept that Puss makes Death feel alive for the first time is a popular preference, one that is used to focus on the idea of Death losing his immortality because his love for Puss fills him with mortal emotions until he develops his own heart, or becomes so invested by Puss that he neglects his duties as death and loses his powers.

The ship is often related to Romeo and Juliet because of these ideas, their love being deemed as "forbidden" and "once in a life time". One way or another, the ship can become a tragedy, because Puss' fate to die is always prominent. Therefore, realistically, Death will have to suffer the heart ache of taking Puss' soul when his time comes, a bittersweet end to their love that neither will forget. Alternatively, however, if Death loses his immortality due to the love he feels for Puss, then he, too, will die, abandoning the world and his purpose all for the one he cares for most. This selfish choice of loyalty to Puss is something shippers have developed on in various ways, through both art and writing, and is considered one of the more preferable methods of tragedy and romance that this pairing can have due to its risks and effects it has on the character's universe, and the sheer message it carries about how much Death and Puss are willing to sacrifice for each other.

Fandom

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