Seasons don't fear the reaper

[controlsthedie]

Who: Thanatos & OTA
Where: sleeper/passenger car hallways, greenhouse, training gym
When: Kazoo, Day 2 or 3 (after Jack's "Musical" Mayhem, before dance)
What: Death is being a dork: chores, flower growing, sword practice
Warnings: none

Chores: Death approaches the dust

[ A new month means a new type of chore assignment, apparently. At least this one doesn't need someone coaching Thanatos on what to do. He takes to the passenger area first, dressed in the train's standard blue hoodie and cargo pants to keep his own stuff clean. (Zagreus wanted to wear red not blue, so Thanatos just gave him the spare red hoodie he had.) Floating towards the ceiling with a feather duster in his hand, Thanatos gets to work.

Thanatos may not have paid much attention to Dusa while she worked (or at all really...), but he knows that she was always up high dusting the rafters. Sorry if he startles anyone going through a door to see legs dangling down. He's dusting the top of the door frame. ]

Greenhouse: Thanatos's Poppy Pot has sprouted!

[ Done with chores for the time being, Thanatos has returned to his usual way of dressing (chthonic death god style) and is crouched low to the floor. Mort is perched at the edge of a pot. They stare at nine tiny points of green pushing out of the soil. Thanatos is smiling, awestruck. (An expression that wasn't as rare when he was a godling days ago.) ]

They sprouted… they actually sprouted....

[ Thanatos speaks softly as if he fears being too loud would bring destruction upon them. Green. Growth. Life. He thought they would never sprout. They would never grow. Yet, here they were. Poppies, his and Hypnos's shared symbol, growing in this pot. Nurtured by Death of all people. ]

What do you think, Mort? Do they need more water?

Training gym: Trying not to float like a butterfly

[ There should be a mission coming up soon, and Thanatos is determined not to have a repeat of the last time. He had lost his powers, his divinity, and had become useless. He would have been a liability if other passengers hadn't come to his aid.

Gods, if Thanatos froze like that while Zagreus needed his help.... No. That's not going to happen. He's going to make sure that he can still fight, still protect… well, more than just Zagreus. It's still strange to think that he's developing a new role for himself on this train.

He summons his sword, not his scythe, and sets his feet upon the ground. Thanatos starts with a few basic motions when he notices he has company. ]

Pardon me. I'm not taking too much space, am I?

Comments

[sos_pilot]

Aw, that was nice of you! I'm glad you're making friends here!

[ Having not yet met Zag, she's yet to realize they're from the same world. ]

[controlsthedie]

It would be more accurate to say they are making friends with me. I don't have much input in the matter.

[ It's a joke. Honest. ]

[sos_pilot]

[ Now that makes her laugh! ]

Yup, that's just how some of us are! I can already think of a bunch of people who'd just barrel into friendship without you saying a word.

[ And yes, she's including herself. ]

[controlsthedie]

[ It's brief and soft, but Thanatos gives a chuckle. She understands the type, though she is a prime example. ]

Although, in this case, Zagreus has been at it longer than most. He's a friend from home.

[sos_pilot]

[ Della finally begins to connect a few dots. ]

Oooh, right! Isn't he the guy you accidentally gave Persephone an existential crisis about?

[controlsthedie]

... Yes, he is. In another world, he's her son.

[ What a mess it's all been. This has been especially hard for Persephone. ]

She's talked to you about this, huh.

[sos_pilot]

Yeah. I tried to calm her down about it... don't know how well it worked, but hopefully she'll be okay. I kinda sorta had some experience with it - I once met my future kid in a time-travel thing.

[ as usual, said ever so casually, like discussing dinner plans. ]

[controlsthedie]

Thank you for being there for her. I wasn't the best help then.

[ Says Mr. 5 Mental Breaks within a month, 4 in his first two weeks. ]

[sos_pilot]

Hey, don't go blaming yourself. You didn't do anything wrong - you didn't have the info available to know what you were getting into.

[controlsthedie]

Still, I will not be making the same mistake again.

[ He tried to convince Persephone that she was more than a minor goddess, not knowing that people telling her who she should be has happened all her life. Her surprisingly short life. ]

[sos_pilot]

Okay, but... don't put that weight on your shoulders forever. Or your friends will get worried. And that's the last thing anyone wants, right?

[ Because if he won't take care of himself FOR himself, maybe he will for the sake his friends. Loophole get.

She then tries to lighten the mood. ]

Besides, I still think I win for "worst first impression" when I went screaming bananas 'cause I thought you were going to take my soul.

[controlsthedie]

[ It's a loophole that is starting to get bigger the more friends he has, and the more he feels, the harder it is to push those concerns aside. ]

No, that's usually the impression I make on people. It's strange that I don't have more people reacting to me like that once they learn I'm Death.

[sos_pilot]

Well... Death itself is nothing to be afraid of, it's a natural part of life. It's the sudden part that threw me, and probably a lot of people, off. I'm not going anywhere until I'm at least twice as old as Uncle Scrooge.

[ and given that scrooge is, like, over 100-ish, that'll be a while. ]

Besides, you're a pretty chill dude. It's not like you're going around laughing evilly at people's demise.

[controlsthedie]

[ Thanatos moves backwards. ]

I apologize. I didn't realize... I've been told I'm cooler than most, but I didn't think we were close enough.

[ He completely took that the wrong way and focused on that. ]

[sos_pilot]

... What?

[ She mentally goes over what she just said, trying to find anything potentially offensive in there. Compares it to what he said. ]

... Oh! No, no! "Chill" is slang! It doesn't mean I'm cold! It means... you're a nice guy! You're calm, relaxed, easy to be around!

[ Oof. Is this what her kids feel like when they explain stuff like "yeet" and "floss" to her? ]

[controlsthedie]

Oh.

[ He stays put and doesn't attempt to move further back. Thanatos... has heard something like that, usually from Zagreus making some jest while having Demeter's boon. He should have realized it wasn't just a Zagreus thing. (A mortal thing? But, he's a god... Tsch, always confusing, Zagreus is.)

He fights the urge to flick some of his hair out of his eyes. Don't mind if there's a slight golden tinge appearing on his cheeks from being embarrassed. ]

I suppose that comes from being the God of Gentle Death.

[sos_pilot]

[ ... Dawww. Hidden adorable side? Urge to mother and adopt rising. ]

Suits you to a T, my man. But don't sweat it! I'm still struggling with some lingo myself - I was away from home for a long time, so there's plenty to catch up on.

[controlsthedie]

[ Thanatos tries to hide that he feels things, but it's growing increasingly hard to. No place to escape. Nothing to distract him like constant work. He's being forced to feel more. ]

How long did it take you to adjust to how the technology is on the train?

[ Because... he's from ancient Greece, and he still thinks Della is a daughter of Zeus. ]

[sos_pilot]

Well... the VR head-set was pretty new, but I got adjusted to that pretty quickly. I've always been a gamer. Aside from that... it's all pretty much the same tech we've got back home.

[ Which is Duckburg. Which is not Ancient Greece. ]

[controlsthedie]

[ A daughter of Zeus in a world with more technology like Persephone? ]

Ah. Much of this is new to me.

[ He looks up and sees footprints on the car ceiling. How??? Well, the good thing about floating is that he can reach that easily. A duster won't do it though. ]

[sos_pilot]

Hey, if you ever need any help with understanding what does what, I'd be happy to help! Wouldn't be the first time I've helped a god with some day to day modern shenanigans.

[controlsthedie]

I'll keep that in mind when next we switch chores.

[ Although half the time, he wonders if it's a mortal thing or a modern thing the thing in question isn't an object. ]