George Lass (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
toiletseat_girl) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
hadriel2018-04-15 02:54 pm
toiletseat_girl) wrote in hadriel2018-04-15 02:54 pm
Entry tags:
Video 4 - George's room
[the video opens on George, sitting on the edge of her bed with her legs crossed. she looks curious, but also a little sheepish as what she's about to ask is . . . personal.
no, she's not asking for flirting advice again.
that was one time.
stop looking at her like that.
no, this time what she's asking is even weirder]
So, uh, I was kind of wondering. How many people here died before they came here? And how many are now immortal?
I was just. Wanting to know?
no, she's not asking for flirting advice again.
that was one time.
stop looking at her like that.
no, this time what she's asking is even weirder]
So, uh, I was kind of wondering. How many people here died before they came here? And how many are now immortal?
I was just. Wanting to know?
no subject
I was the lucky millionth soul taken, so I got drafted into becoming a Grim Reaper. No arguments, no take-backs. It sucked.
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You never even had a choice about becoming a Reaper? That does suck! But what was the job like?
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No, never did. It was. . . awkward, annoying, upsetting, weird? All kinds of negative words.
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You actually had to show up at people's death beds and convince them to go along quietly to. . . well, where do people go, in your world, when they die?
It does sound weird, at the least!
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Not exactly. All I had to go by was their first initial, last name, the place, and the ETD. Estimated time of death. So I basically was stuck hunting for a needle in a haystack. Most of the time, I just kind of lucked into finding the right person.
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Hmm. Doesn't sound very organized, does it? Who were your superiors? I wonder, how did they even know that a person was due to die soon? And how did they know to estimate? It must have taken a lot of patience and painstaking searching, on your part. But maybe you had a natural gift for finding such persons?
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It really wasn't. I had a boss, his name was Rube. I'll always think he knew more about our--our targets than he let on. He carried the information in a leather-bound notebook and wrote out the details for us on post-it notes. And sometimes, it was easy. If you run into someone trying to fix their lawn mower at 345 Sycamore, it's a good bet that he's your guy. Sometimes, there would be a crowd of people and you kind of had to depend on someone else giving you the right name at the right time.
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Post-it notes, right. What a strange medium to carry such dire, essential information. Doesn't seem quite respectful of the dying person, does it? But it sounds like you gave this job and its soon-to-be-dying-person location techniques a lot of thought and attention. I hope Rube appreciated his very conscientious employee!
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Yeah, that's what I thought. But since all we got was the first initial, last name, place, and ETD, I guess it was enough. [she squirms] I. . . tried? But at first, I tried saving the people. Didn't exactly work.
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You tried to save the people? I admire you for that. Did you get into trouble for it, though? Or was it considered acceptable to try?
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Thanks. And I did. It wasn't even close to acceptable. My first Reap. . . was of a six-year-old girl. She was supposed to die in a train accident. But I saved her.
And then I got told that because I had, her soul would rot away inside her.
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A six-year-old girl? In a train accident? No wonder you saved her!
And that seems very unfair -- not to mention inhumane! -- that the child should be punished for surviving. And it seems you were punished, too, by being made to feel responsible for the fate of her soul, when you hadn't been told in advance.
I didn't get the notification, sorry!
Yuuuuup. Sweet kid, too. Had a pet frog.
...that's what I thought. That it was all unfair and that it was bullshit that she should have to die, anyway. And I didn't know. Had no idea. She was my first, after all.
No problem!
A frog? Who would fail to save a little girl who loves and cares for a pet frog??
And how could you know the rules in advance, anyway? [ Even if that's the natural state of life and death -- that we never know the rules in advance. It's still not fair. ] And what happened after that? It sounds as though the job always remained problematic for you?
yay!
I know! It was just--dirty pool, assigning me something like that as my first Reap. And I know Rube knew, he had to know. And he did it to me anyway.
They didn't explain any of the rules other than it was a destiny thing. [short, bitter laugh] Some destiny. And. . . yeah. It kind of never stopped sucking.
XD
This Rube does sound like he has a bit of malice in his nature.
Destiny. Oh, right. That answers every question. [ Eye roll. ]
(cw: suicide mention)
...yeah, a little bit. He just didn't seem to get that anyone would have a hard time doing reaps. That it was a lot to get used to right after dying myself.
That was my reaction. Destiny sounds great unless your destiny is to deal with the dead. Especially since I was assigned to murders, accidents, and suicides. Basically, all of the people who are gonna ask you to take it back.
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Sounds like Rube is a little bit lacking in empathy?
Destiny can go fly a kite!
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Yeah, that's putting it mildly. I think he's been reaping for at least eighty years, but that's no excuse to be an asshole.
I know, right? I mean, I'm obviously out of a job here, so I wound up volunteering at the Clinic. It started at first as a middle finger to the whole Reaper thing, but it turns out I like it.
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Eighty years of being a Reaper -- maybe that would make anyone grouchy? But right, no excuses.
I'm glad you're working at the Clinic! Saving lives is a nice change from taking them. I volunteer as a sort of ambulance service. That used to mean carrying people slung over my shoulders, or on a tarp with two or three people hauling. But now we've got the Fire Brigade, for which we built some fire engines. We use them for ambulance trucks now, since we almost never need them to put out fires. What do you do at the Clinic, exactly?
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No excuses. None. Not for being that big of an asshole on purpose.
Yeah, you guys were all over that fire we had a few months ago, weren't you? And I do a little bit of everything but mostly basic first aid. Though, now I know how to do stitches and set bone. [she calls out] Thanks, Null!
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Need an I HATE RUBE t-shirt? I know a couple of seamstresses. [ Joking, but what an entertaining idea! ]
We had the devil of a time putting out that fire, but at least we didn't have to do it by beating it out with wet burlap sacks. So you're qualified to be a field medic now! Let's hope the Null don't give you a reason to practice your skills again soon.
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Nah, it's cool. Just so long as he doesn't show up here.
Is that what you had to use at home, wet burlap sacks? That would suck. And, I am! Fuck, I hope they don't. Once was plenty, thanks. Two whole weeks without any food or sleep? I can do it, but I didn't like it.
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I hope he doesn't. But if he does, he'll have earned a lot of dislike from anyone you've told your story to. [ He's imagining Rube being met by a about fifty irate Hadrielites! ]
Yes. Mostly for fires in the woods or fields. If a structure caught fire, we just pulled everybody out fast and let it burn down. But as for war with the Null. . . I strongly suspect we will be fighting them again. They seem to have a knack for finding the gods, and therefore, us. Yes, we can all do it, but nobody likes non-stop action without food or rest.
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Ehh, I don't think he'd care. He never seemed to give a shit about whatever anyone thought of him. [she is also imagining Rube coming here and basically being a wet blanket over everything]
Glad to know I'm not the only one who thinks that. Those fuckers are persistent. We need to figure out some kind of plan for what to do when they show up again. And you can say that again. By the end, I was so wired and tired, I barely knew which way was up.
(no subject)