[completed/closed] Characters: Lethe (lethe) & Thanatos (inexorablefate) Date/Time: Early May Location: Thanatos' workplace (nursing home) Rating: PG-13 Warnings: Lethe is adorable. Summary: Uncle and niece.
While she couldn't recall if she left the house earlier with the specific intention of visiting Thanatos or if the loaf of bread and package of socks she somehow acquired along the way was indication she had other plans at some point, well, Lethe didn't give it much thought. He'd given her the address to his work, probably for more important matters than I miss you, but there she was waiting in the Alzheimer's ward listening with full interest to an old man ramble off fragmented delusions of a life he never actually led. She was neither quite sure of what hours he worked nor what he did there, but content enough to sit around and provide company to the lonely elderly until he showed up or they eventually kicked her out.
Thanatos would learn of her visit shortly after arriving an hour of her showing up. At first, he thought it was some student, wanting a topic or information for a paper or someone who wanted to keep the elderly company. Both reasons lead him to want to stomp in and see if she needed to be shooed away.
But when he saw her, a dull pang of recognition hit him. The small icons weren't the best of help but he did believe she wasn't just anyone and this had him move in and fold his large frame into a chair nearby.
"You have a reason for being here?" To the point. He was terrible with small talk. Terrible with most socializing, really.
Did she? Lethe considered the man's inquiry with a quiet tilt of her head, fixing him with a lazy but knowing stare. There was no mistaking the god as anybody else, and nowhere more appropriate meeting him than somewhere swarming with those teetering on the very brink of death. It was comfortable and familiar, a feeling she sought after her apartment unceremoniously drained of the unexplained river earlier that week. Maybe that's why she was there.
"No," she replied anyway.
"That's odd," he commented. "To come to a place like this and have no reason. It's not really a park or a museum. Tell me your name at least. And if you're related to anyone here." A small shrug followed that statement. "We can handle lying about it if anyone asks about you."
Why he wanted her to stay, he didn't quite know. But she was familiar and maybe that was a good enough reason. She also made him feel mildly...fuzzy. It was rather nice though it would hinder productivity later.
"Yet those with most reason hardly visit at all," she noted, not too familiar with the way nursing homes operated but picking up on that truth quickly enough. And maybe she had encouraged a few of those who still clung to the fading memories of the loved ones who had forgotten them to let go themselves. It had to be better that way, less painful. "A bit like a museum," she observed, disagreeing but unchallenging.
"Lethe," she spoke with no amount of secrecy, knowing it meant nothing significant to anyone who might overhear but him. Any other name she might be going by at the moment held no importance, was not worth speaking. While not addressing his other questions, her identity should serve as enough for him to come to any necessary conclusions.
A truth. He knew of so many residents whose families had just abandoned them to this building, content in remaining far and paying the bills until their 'loved ones' passed. He knew for a fact that some didn't even turn up for the funeral but only went to the reading of the will.
More than once, he took satisfaction when he heard of their disappointment at being left little to nothing while he himself sometimes was a recipient of something. It was never something major, though on occasion he would receive a tidy sum of cash. Thanatos wasn't very good at rubbing elbows with people but he would always be a comfort to those in their last years.
"Niece." He smiled in a faint manner. Those who overheard wouldn't care or would dismiss it. There was also a chance he would be pestered later and then Thanatos would have grunt something akin to 'leave it alone' at them. But, for now, there was no grunting or displeasure. "You came to me."
Slipping out of her seat where she'd been curled up for the last hour and away from the old man who had already forgotten her presence in favour of drooling on himself in his sleep, she took a few hesitant steps forward. While glad to finally meet him in person, and hoping he wasn't upset by her being there uninvited either, seeing Thanatos so alive and so mortal would take some getting used to. Even though he looked like how she pictured he should. She considered reaching out and touching him when she was close enough to do so, to confirm that he was just as much contradictory flesh and blood as she, but thought better of it.
"I meant to come sooner," Lethe admitted almost apologetically after a noticeable delay in response, digging through her worn out shopping bag before offering the entire thing over as an awkward gesture of... well, maybe he needed new socks. "But I got distracted with my need to escape reality," a light laugh in reference to what they all went through that last week, although uncertain if anyone's experience was even somewhat similar to her own. Everyone else had spoken of an invasion of family, whereas Lethe had nothing but the emptiness she always craved yet somehow had left her feeling a bit lonely.
Such a curious creature, his niece. His nephew was similar to himself in way, with his sense of humour and curt ways. His niece was a bit different (less curt certainly) but he saw the awkwardness, the understanding that came with being a creature who handled those who passed on. He had to wonder how she and Morpheus would get along.
The shopping bag was eyed with some curiosity before he accepted it. Peeking into it and discovering socks, he wasn't sure what to say about it. But he did offer her a look one that suggested that the gift was quite random and odd. The bag was set aside before he rested his forearms on his thighs, fingers twining together. "What was so bad about reality?"
Undeterred by his clearly read look and no intentions of allowing their meeting to be cut short, Lethe lowered herself to the floor in front of Thanatos' chair, tucking bare knees up under her chin and staring up at him like a child expecting a story. "Oh," she began vaguely, scrunching up her nose in thought of the topic. "Well, I was never much a fan," Lethe quietly confessed with a tiny shake of her head. "Being human, existing as something tangible..." trailing off, murky green eyes studied him for any amount of understanding. Of everybody, maybe he would. Hades certainly didn't, though she didn't fault him for such.
"When I close my eyes," and she did so, looking quite relaxed, "I can almost pretend to slip away for a moment." Then her eyes were open again, peaceful expression replaced by a troubled frown. Hugging her knees closer, Lethe sighed and refocused. "My offer still stands," she gently reminded, ready to let the subject drop if he was unwilling.
Understanding she would have and a measure of sympathy was offered. "It's disagreeable. To fall and become something everyone can touch, can poke. Being unable to do our work as we once did. We're not ourselves, not entirely." A small laugh, though perhaps it fell somewhere closer to being a hum. "I was never a fan of being tangible even in our time." Except when it came to Nyx or Hypnos. Only them.
Her offer had been something that had sat in the back of his mind, tempting him, telling him it would be fine. And then another part of him said how could it be if he died again? He would go through that angry period again, where he shut out even his own twin to try to cope with what had happened to him. Was it worth it?
Fingers unlocking, he reached out to touch just a few strands of her hair before pulling back his hand, wary of how such a gesture would be received. Especially after what she had said about being tangible and not being a fan of it. "I know. It may be better not to, Lethe. We don't know what the future holds."
"Not ourselves," she repeated with a resigned whisper. The very first moment of awareness of her true self had outright rejected any other identity, taking with it a lifetime of memories years later Lethe never attempted to recover, never found important enough to try. "I never wanted to be anybody." Words that she had never dared speak aloud before for lack of a proper audience, giving voice to them only solidifying the truth that she was somebody and she couldn't escape no matter how many times she changed names and lives.
But there had never been anything in life worth holding onto before, not until now. Feeling vulnerable and slightly embarrassed, Lethe looked up at the ceiling for a long moment. "You didn't fall too far from your tree," she noted with a sighed laugh that caught in her throat, startled by his brief and unexpected contact. It wasn't entirely unwelcome, and Lethe grasped at Thanatos' fingers with her own to pull his hand close again, fascinated by the slow beat of his pulse underneath her fingertips. "Then I won't."
He had not expected her to take his hand and, when the initial hesitation passed, he relaxed, allowing her hold on him. Often it took him a moment or so with others outside of Hypnos. With Hemera or even Pasithea. He liked to ease into it, grow accustom to allow his family some liberty. Besides, if hundreds of people could knock into him, brush past him and even push him on occasion (and that didn't include what happened at work), then he should welcome the more kinder touches from family.
"Nor I but here we are, people with families that we will never see again, making marks on the world like any other mortal. But now that we have started to find one another, at least it's a little better." Smiling lightly down at her, he wiggled his fingers a bit. "And thank you."
"Do you think of them?" she asked with only a touch of curiosity, slowly turning Thanatos' hand over to expose his palm. Lethe had learned once, or maybe somebody else had, what the crisscrossing lines and creases supposedly meant, and she remembered hours of vigorously grinding away at her hands with sandpaper until they were raw and bleeding in attempts to remove the terrifying uniqueness of her fingerprints. "Your mortal family," she clarified, shaking her head to clear her thoughts as she fished through the pockets of her sweater until she produced a pen with a satisfied hum.
It took a couple shakes of the pen before she jotted down a series of blue numbers and dashes across his palm, stared at it briefly with a confused frown as it was certainly not her own, and then crossed it out and rewrote her phone number. "You can be the first to have it," she whispered secretively, though not caring if Hades took offence if he somehow found out that she had changed her number without notifying him.
If he had known what she had once attempted, he would have been displeased and insisted that those lines meant nothing. The only thing certain in life was death. And Death did not care for his niece to injure herself, especially over what would likely change in the next life (wouldn't they?).
"I have so little mortal family," he admitted, watching her. "In fact, of my immediate family, only my mother lives. I have a few cousins but we rarely speak." He then peered down at the number, a secret pleasure of being first rolling around in his brain. It may have even shown on his face. "Thank you, niece. I can give you mine, if you like."
A small, decisive nod before passing the pen over, and Lethe held out her palm expectantly for his number. "I don't remember mine," she admitted without even the slightest hint of remorse, hadn't even thought of her mother since she had silently fled in the middle of the night all those years ago. Her mother's name and face had been long lost, and Lethe didn't like the idea that she had ever existed at all. She wasn't Eris. It wasn't personal... or perhaps it was too personal was the problem.
But the idea of a family didn't seem as disagreeable when it was Thanatos sitting in front of her, even if he was now just as mortal as she. It was a conflicting twinge that she chose to ignore for now. "You... Ah, look well," she acknowledged awkwardly, hoping to change the topic.
Pen taken, he was careful to print his name as well as his number. With consideration to how the girl seemed, he thought it best to include as much as possible. In truth, he even was debating on pin a little note on her that said 'if lost, please return to' and then his address filled in after that.
But if she had survived this long, she would likely be alright. Maybe. Perhaps. He desperately hoped. She was growing on him quite quickly but the quiet, well-behaved sort always did.
The topic change was a success. "I smoke regularly and drink about as much," he offered as an explanation, lips tilting into a smirk. "If I look healthy at all, thank your Aunt Hemera. She cooks like a pro and feeds me well. You should come over one night. I think she'd like more family. Think she's about your age, too."
There had been several occasions where such a note would have been helpful, although Lethe was always more comfortable being lost than found. But as opposed as she was to having somebody or somewhere to always come back to, she wouldn't really have minded if it were him. Maybe she wouldn't mind Hemera either, nodding silently at the offer, though she wanted to limit who she came in contact with for the meantime. "You know," Lethe began seriously, "those things can kill you." And then she giggled a bit louder than intended, nose wrinkling in amusement.
Bringing her hand close to her face, she blew lightly on the ink to keep it from smudging when the name caught her attention. His name. It seemed silly to think he wouldn't have one, but she hadn't really considered. It still felt strange to think of Thanatos as human, that he had managed to cope and lead a seemingly normal life. "Gregory," she sounded it out a couple times, as if reading a foreign language, clasping her fingers into a tight fist to keep the information safe until she managed to transfer it to her phone.
She'd gone through an entire collection of names, known by a different one in every class she took and a handful of IDs in her purse to match, but really didn't have one to call her own. Couldn't remember, refused to remember what he mother had called her. Lethe closed her eyes to overcome the twinge of discomfort. "Right now, you can call me Charlotte. Lottie," she offered the name all her current bills were under, the name that Hades used, but didn't truly belong to her. "I'll let you know when it changes."
The sound of her giggle had him lift a brow as well as the corner of his mouth. "Everything can kill someone. At least if I go down because of lung or liver cancer, I'll not know it was an accident or something I didn't know about." It wasn't his reason for smoking or drinking but it helped. He doubted that Khaos would let him die peacefully in his sleep. He doubt she would let any of them die in some non-violent manner.
That and he was a terrible addict. It was so terribly human and he just wasn't willing to rebel against it. Just as she tried out his name, he sounded out the nickname of hers in his brain before on his tongue. "Lottie. It sounds properly English. But why should it change?"
No intentions of actually lecturing him on the dangers despite poking teasingly at the issue, Lethe merely pressed her fingertips to her quirked lips as Thanatos needlessly justified his bad habits, stifling any further giggles. A small flash of her own humanity, and in that moment she forgot to feel self-conscious about it.
"It's not exactly mine," Lethe explained a bit reluctantly and with a hushed whisper, glancing away avoidantly as she did so, not sure how far into detail she should go with her less-than-legal lifestyle. That the name wasn't just fake, but belonged to somebody else entirely and her use of it certainly wasn't consensual. Using the same stolen identity for too long posed a rather high chance of getting caught, but there was an almost uncomfortable number of people who now knew her that she couldn't so easily shake as she had always done in the past.
He eyeballed her (without sternness or severe judgment), over her amusement triggered by...what? Thanatos couldn't really figure it out but there was nothing malicious or even wrong about it. Not from family anyway. Most of the time.
"What do you mean by that?" Of course they had names that really didn't belong to them. He was and wasn't Gregory van Denend, he was and, again, wasn't Dutch. But he imagined Lethe of all people grasped this and surely she meant something else. Just what was something he was curious about - if she allowed him.
Nibbling on the edge of her thumbnail, Lethe came to the conclusion that there was little harm that could come of telling Thanatos the truth. She didn't figure him the sort that would turn her in to the police or use it as any sort of blackmail. That had happened before, resulting in a rather rushed and sloppy move across several states before she ended up in New York. She didn't want to have to leave again, not when she finally found people who could understand what she was. Even if that meant enduring whatever Khaos put them through.
"Ah," Lethe started without knowing how to explain, scooting much much closer and placing her hands on Thanatos' knees, balancing on her toes as she crouched. "You can't tell," she whispered quite seriously, "Anyone, anyone." Even family, not yet. Leaning forward, she grasped at the front of Thanatos' shirt to pull him the rest of the way in. "I stole it."
It'd certainly be a very story later on if he did turn her in. Should Eris arrive, it would also mean the end of him. He doubted the discord goddess would appreciate her brother playing against one of her offspring.
When she had gotten in closer, he dismissed the lurch of uneasy at being close to someone else (it's fine, it's only Lethe, odd little Lethe) even if his eyes widened more than a fraction at her ability of manhandle him. He hadn't had that happen to him in some time, not since probably when Mrs. Ritter had been alive (last year, December). What an odd picture they must have made. Thank goodness no one in the room was about to give a damn or would remember.
"You stole it," he repeated softly, attempting comprehension of what she'd admitted. "I won't tell a soul but...are you speaking of identity theft?"
Confirming with the tiniest of nods, Lethe pressed a finger so very lightly against Thanatos' lips with a hushed shh, unconcerned with any need he may have for personal space. But she trusted his silence on the matter not to worry, always viewed Thanatos as the type to take a secret to the grave. Literally.