[002] tell me everything that happened

[themuseabandonsyou]

Who: Orpheus (themuseabandonsyou), Kyle, Bigby, Kassandra, and Michael
What: December 2021 catch-all
When: Throughout December
Where: In memory (the Road to Hell, the Underworld), Cellar Door (a fountain square, a small cafe)
Warnings: drug-like mental effects/mind alteration, dog attack

I. they had lights inside their eyes (cw: drug-like mental effects/mind alteration) (Cellar Door - a fountain square)(closed to Kyle)

It may be a pretty dreary day, even by Trench's standards - a light drizzle of rain falling down on the city streets and the sky gray and overcast, but to Orpheus, the city's never been more beautiful. He turns, slowly, circling around a mostly-empty fountain square as he a sweet little melody he picked up from Fern on his guitar while he dances, as if waltzing with an invisible partner. It's a bit of a sight, dressed as he is in a sharp brown tailcoat and a very strange top-hat, not to mention the fact that he seems to glow slightly, golden-toned as if the afternoon sun was hitting him despite the heavy layer of clouds overhead, but if he knows how much he stands out at the moment he doesn't seem to care. He's having a great time.

"Let me call you sweetheart
I'm in love with you
Let me hear you whisper
That you love me too," he sings, to an audience of crows gathering around the rooftops up above. It's cold and wet, but he sings and dances his way through it without a care in the world.

II. did you see the closing window (Cellar Door, a small cafe)(closed to Bigby)

Well, that was something. Orpheus takes... a few days to recover, from whatever it was that made the world seem so relentlessly bright and beautiful and easy, unsure of how to feel about any of it. In a way he sort of mourns the loss, but he knows by now that being so caught up in dreams like that can make it very, very easy to lose sight of what's real, and important. It's easy to let go (especially when it leaves him with such a tremendous headache in its wake).

Once that's over with, though, he gets back to work. The cafe's owner welcomes him back with open arms, thankfully, despite his multiple sudden disappearances - happier that he's safe and not dead than mad that they had to substitute in another act for him a few times. Once they've negotiated his pay, (as much of the spare food left at the end of the day as he can carry home, which includes, excitingly enough, a basket of oranges they're setting aside for him) he sets up on the little stage in the corner and begins to play.

He sticks to mostly classical pieces, as this particular cafe has a bit of an air of sophistication about it, though he can't help but dip into some light improvisation when his mind starts to wander, a flickering glow of little firefly-lights starting to accumulate like dust motes around him whenever he starts to drift off in his own direction. Ultimately it's not a terribly eventful day, and as the shop starts to close up he steps off the stage to some polite applause from the patrons, smiling and taking a shallow bow. As he slings his guitar over his shoulder and gets ready to go, he glances around the room, looking to see if there's anyone who seems to want to talk to him. It's not too uncommon for someone to have questions for him, or to have something else they'd like to say, and he's more than happy to wait around for that.

III. did you hear the slamming door (cw: dog attack) (The Road to Hell)(closed to Kassandra)

The desert stretches off into infinity all around, no mountains in the distance nor stars above by which to get one's bearings. The only things for miles are a vast expanse of sand, a half-buried set of train tracks, and the occasional telephone pole jutting up out of the ground. Orpheus, bedraggled and dusty and exhausted, treks slowly along the tracks, his guitar slung over his back as he watches his feet. Occasionaly he looks up and around, searching for some sign that he's making progress, but there's none to be had, and he goes back to the endless plodding of putting one foot in front of the other.

He's not sure how long he's been out here. Long enough that the sun should've risen again by now, he thinks? But there's no way of knowing for sure. All he knows is that he's tired, and thirsty, and that he can't stop for anything despite that. He keeps on - looks up again, and this time sees the distant lights of what looks like a city on the horizon. Surprised, he pauses, then steels himself and sets off again, a grim determination settled over him. He sings to himself, quietly, eyes forward.

"Wait for me, I'm coming."

IV. they moved forward, and my heart died (The Underworld)(closed to Michael)

"Young man."

A low and booming voice comes from the balcony above the factory floor, a man silhouetted against the bright light spilling from the open door behind him. Orpheus, standing among the rows of machines with Eurydice next to him, shields his eyes and squints upwards, catching his first glimpse of the Lord of the Dead. Hades watches him with a critical eye, and speaks again.

"I don't think we've met before. You're not from around here, son. I don't know who the hell you are, but I can tell you don't belong. These," and he gestures to the workers at their stations, heads bowed low but watching the proceedings as subtly as they can manage, "are working people, son. Law-abidng citizens. Go back to where you came from - you're on the wrong side of the fence."

Persephone, all in black and looking deeply concerned, strides into the room and surveys the situation, apparently having been summoned by one of the workers. Seeing Orpheus, her eyes widen in surprise, before she sets her jaw and looks up at her husband. "Hades, I know this boy."

"One of the unnemployed."

"His name is Orpheus."

"You stay out of this." Unimpressed, Hades turns back to Orpheus and Eurydice. "You hear me son? You better run!"

All but shaking with exhaustion from his long journey and facing down an unfamiliar and unsympathetic god, Orpheus hesitates only a moment before shaking his head. Alarmed, Eurydice grabs his arm and tries to pull him away.

"No! Orpheus, you should go."

"I'm not going back alone. I came to take her home."

For a moment, Hades seems taken aback. Then, he laughs - a low, bemused chuckle building into a loud bark of disbelief. "Who the hell do you think you are? Who the hell do you think you're talking to? She couldn't go anywhere, even if she wanted to. You're not from around here, son. If you were, then you would know - that everything and everyone in Hadestown, I own."

V. Wildcard

[ ooc: Want to do something with me this month? Let me know at questionableveracity on Plurk or quodVide#2951 on Discord!! ]

Comments

they moved forward, and my heart died

[eudaimonikos]

"Hmmm."

Michael stands off to one side of the scene, arms folded and fingers drumming restlessly against his sleeve. He knows what this is; he's already been drawn into other memories this week. He's less clear on whether or not it's interactive.

Even full of anxious energy, he's quick to note some details: the condition of the humans, mostly. Sometimes, especially early in the reform period, he'd gone down to the Bad Place for inspections, to make sure they were holding up their side of the bargain. This all feels rather a lot like that, like one of the neighborhoods where they were trying to get away with as much as they could. The humans here aren't being tortured, but he rather doubts these are appropriate conditions. They're sweating like it's very hot here, and they're all grimy like they've been working in a mine or something. Which - what? Why?

"What is there to work on in the afterlife?" he questions aloud. Because Hades, Orpheus, Eurydice - this is an afterlife, isn't it? The Good Place isn't entirely free of work, of course; people like working! Michael himself doubts he'd cope well without some kind of project or another, so the proliferation of homemade goods and crafts hadn't really surprised him. But no one has to work if they're not into it. It's the afterlife. What is he, some kind of CEO?

Also - you know what? Michael slips into the crowd, moving over to Orpheus and Eurydice. He's not sure if they'll be aware of him, or even exactly whose memory it is, but he just has to ask. "Hey, this guy's named Hades, and he just called the afterlife Hadestown?"

[themuseabandonsyou]

Michael's presence, incongruous as it is, serves to snap Orpheus out of his immersion in the memory, which stutters slightly as he steps out of himself - leaving behind an afterimage still participating in the scene while his present self looks at the other Sleeper.

"What?" he asks, blinking a little in disorientation. He seems to catch up to what's going on before Michael has a chance to clarify, though, and shakes his head before continuing. "I... don't really know? Eurydice said something about a wall, but I never really thought about it beyond that."

That's a pretty good question, though, and Orpheus glances around at the machinery around him, trying to see if it harbors any clues as to what the factory is for. Unfortunately the memory goes sort of vague around those details, visible but hard to focus on, as he hadn't been very focused on them at the time. He frowns and looks back at Michael.

"It - the Underworld - also used to just be called Hades, a long time ago? But I guess that got too confusing, or something."

(Meanwhile, behind him, the scene continues to play out.

"But I only buy what others choose to sell," Hades goes on to explain, then, feigning exaggerated, mocking surprise at memory-Orpheus's confusion, continues, "Oh? You didn't know? She signed the deal herself. And now she belongs to me."

"It isn't true." Memory-Orpheus shakes his head in denial, pulling Eurydice closer to him and looking to her in the hopes that she'll deny it too. "It isn't true. What he said - Eurydice?"

But she doesn't, doesn't meet his gaze, lets her hand slip from his. "I did. I do.")

[eudaimonikos]

Michael follows Orpheus's gaze, but even if the factory weren't vague and fuzzy in retrospect, Michael's got no experience with actual manufacturing himself. He just makes stuff. That's the point, isn't it?

"I mean, economy's a human thing," he says, turning back to observe Hades. "Immortals don't really need things on a regular basis. Don't need to feed ourselves, don’t really need property, got all the time in the world...there was never any trade going on, where I'm from. Can he just not make his own things?" He's got a pretty fancy suit; didn't he make that? Sick tattoos, too - honestly Michael kinda digs the look, even if he doesn't know that he could pull it off himself.

Everything else, though? "You can't just own people. What kind of legal system even exists, between humans and immortals?" It's not as though he's blind to the concept of slavery; he's from Hell. But who's gonna enforce any kind of contract between an immortal and mortal? The government?? "Doesn't he have anything better to do? This place is a dump, he's gotta renovate in here."

[themuseabandonsyou]

For his part, Orpheus looks a little overwhelmed by what Michael has to say. None of this is anything he's really considered, or if he has there's large aspects of it that he's just taken for granted his entire life.

"I don't know? Everything in the underground is already his domain. I guess he's just - rearranging it? Making them rearrange it."

Could he do it with a snap of his fingers, instead of putting the shades to work, though? Orpheus has no idea. He shakes his head.

"I don't know why he does any of it. It doesn't make sense to me either. Eurydice might know more? But she might not want to talk about it."

("As for you," says Hades, in the background, raising a hand. "Everybody gather 'round! Everybody look and see! What becomes of trespassers with no respect for property!"

The workers on the factory floor, previously keeping their heads low and trying to go about their work as well as they could while keeping a leery eye on the goings-on, rise from their stations and close ranks around memory-Orpheus, two of them grabbing Eurydice by the arms and dragging her off to the side. Baffled and even more overwhelmed than his present-day counterpart, he tries to follow after her, only to be grabbed from behind and thrown to the ground.)

Present-Orpheus, still looking at Michael, winces visibly at the loud thud of himself hitting the concrete floor.

[eudaimonikos]

"...I won't ask her." Michael's only spoken with Eurydice a little, but he likes her. After everything, he knows how traumatic a bad afterlife can be for people. Maybe he doesn't fully understand - maybe he can't - but he knows better than to bring it up casually.

When the workers start to move, Michael moves too, circling around the tallest one and leaning in as if to try and inspect the man's face. It's not easy; he's moving too quickly, and Michael has to backpedal to stop from being walked through. The guy's not looking good, though. Can't Hades even keep his humans healthy? It's not like it's hard, they're already dead.

And apparently, this is all part of some weird punishment handed down to Orpheus. Ugly thing, making humans go after each other.

"Property?" His incredulity nearly outweighs his scorn. Who cares about that? He turns to look at the proper Orpheus. "What's his problem? Is he mad that you just walked in here?" That's certainly unusual, and probably sort of against the rules. But geez, overreact much?

[themuseabandonsyou]

"That's probably for the best?" says Orpheus, flinching again as one of the workers heavy boots catches his memory-self in the ribs. Unsure of whether he should keep watching - is it rude to look away if it's him? If he knows how it goes? Is it ruder to just stand here, even if it's all he can do? - he looks over at Michael, trailing along after him as he puts a hand to his own side, thinking about cracked ribs long-since healed.

"That I walked in, and that I was trying to take Eurydice back with me, I think," he says, worrying his lip. "No mortal leaves the Underworld. Ever. I'm still not sure who I am to have thought I could try something like this? But there was nothing else I could do."

What was his other option? Try to live without Eurydice, knowing she called for him before she went, and he wasn't there to hear her? Let their last conversation be him brushing her off as he tried to work on a song that just wouldn't come to him? He couldn't do that.

"He said - Eurydice told me he calls the dead his children, sometimes. That all this is supposed to be a favor to them. I think that makes it worse? Than if it were supposed to be a punishment. I don't think he understands how bad any of this is, or if he does he thinks there's something worthwhile in it."

[eudaimonikos]

Michael winces at the attack, and shifts as if he means to go over and intervene. But he doesn't. He knows he can't. He'll just stand with Orpheus instead, and watch if Orpheus is going to watch. He finds the violence distasteful, but it's not quite the same viscerally for him.

"Our angels were like that," he says instead, eyes still on past-Orpheus even as he speaks to the present one. "Not like this - their nice afterlife looked nice enough. I guess superficially, it was. But they didn't understand humans. They knew they didn't, and they never just asked. Everyone there was miserable."

Such a waste of time - all that brainstorming ways to make the humans happier, when there were a bunch of humans right there to consult. That's why Michael doesn't tend to make a lot of broad rulings himself. He doesn't want to be...well, some kind of king about it, deciding for others what ought to make them happy.

"It is true that humans don't leave the afterlife. I don't...know exactly what I'd do, if someone turned up in mine like that." It's really not a question he's ever had to consider. The only time humans ever came straight from Earth to the afterlife without dying first, it was his doing. He supposes he'd mostly just be impressed, if a mortal managed it on their own somehow.

Michael considers for a moment, then shrugs. "But of course, if there's a way you can try, you've gotta try it. I got my humans' original deaths reversed on a long shot like that. You just did what you had to do."

[enblightened]

It is a relief to hear Orpheus play once again. The music that Ahiru has guided him to find do help when he's alone, but there's something more familiar about Orpheus' playing that soothes him too. Though, really, he's been happy with all manner of music he has listened to as of late. The people here have been so kind to aid him in that regard.

It is tonight, though, that Bigby waits until most people have cleared out, keeping to a seat as far back away from others as he can. He doesn't dislike people, but often the more he is around them the harder it is on his nerves. Something one-on-one won't be terrible.

Once others are more or less gone, he goes to approach Orpheus.

"Your music is a welcome return, Orpheus. Have you a moment?"

[themuseabandonsyou]

Orpheus smiles brightly as the other Sleeper approaches, happy to see a familiar face in the crowd.

"Of course!" he says. "I'm glad you think so. It's good to be playing again, after being away for a while like that."

He rolls his shoulders a little bit, still healing from the incident at the Sleeper Farm. By now he's mostly fine, but there's just enough stiffness to remind him when he tries to move in certain ways.

"Is there something you wanted to talk about, though?"

[enblightened]

"Well..." For a moment, Bigby trails off, abashed for a moment. "More a favor to request, albeit I know not how I can give you much in return."

But since he's here to ask, there's no point in dilly-dallying about it.

Idly, he fidgets with the end of his cloak. "I have been meaning to explore other avenues to keep myself busy. In particular, I wished to learn how to play music. I certainly do not think it would be a quick and easy thing to learn, but you are the most talented person I thought to ask."

[themuseabandonsyou]

"Oh!" Orpheus's expression lights up, eyes shining. "That's wonderful! And - thank you, I'm very flattered? Being called the most talented person you could ask. I'd be happy to teach you, and it may be a little easier than you think, depending on what instrument you favor. Some may come more easily to you than others."

He speaks quickly, clearly enthusiastic about the prospect.

"Did you have one in mind already? Or do you want to explore your options? I'd be more than happy to help you with either! And - don't worry about giving me anything in return. People have been teaching me what they know about music my entire life, so it's only fair I pass it along when I have the chance."

[enblightened]

"I do not think of myself as someone who has any particular rhythm. Either way, I shall look forward to your assistance; if nothing else, it will be a delight to learn, even if I am terrible at it."

It's heartwarming to see Orpheus be so enthusiastic. Bigby can't help but feel a bit charmed by it. Even if he fails, it's good to see the man joyous.

"I would like to learn the lute."

[themuseabandonsyou]

"Oh, well, the nice thing about that is, rhythm is something that can be learned," says Orpheus, beaming. "It comes more easily to some people than others? But if you're determined, I'm sure you can do it. It's all about practicing, and not being discouraged when thing sound bad at first!"

Which, they probably will. Even Orpheus struggled a bit the first time he picked up new instruments, and if if Bigby's as new to all this as it sounds like it'd be stranger if he didn't. But as far as Orpheus is concerned, that's all a part of the process.

"I'm not very familiar with the lute specifically," he says, thoughtfully. "But I know how to play a couple of string instruments that are like it! Maybe we could learn together. Or I can teach you the things that apply to all instruments in that family, and you can go from there."

they had lights inside their eyes

[kyley_b]

Kyle hears Orpheus before he sees him - it's his voice that attracts Kyle's attention. And then... that hat. Oh, fuck does his mean...?

"Hey, dude!" Kyle calls as he jogs over. He's got a hat protecting his hair from the rain and cold, but he's still pretty easy to recognise.

"You, uh. You doing okay there?" Having had a few rounds himself with the virus Karkat created, he's pretty sure what Orpheus' response is going to be.

[themuseabandonsyou]

"Oh, I've never been better!" says Orpheus, predictably, twirling in place one last time before drawing his little waltz to a close and turning to face the person talking to him. His expression lights up in recognition with all the enthusiasm of someone seeing an old friend for the first time in years. "I know you! You're - um. Triple J?"

Or at least that's the name this boy used on the network, which... probably isn't his actual name? Come to think of it Orpheus isn't sure he ever caught that, but that's not important right now. He places a hand over the strings of his guitar to still them, the sun-glow accompanying his song fading out.

"It's great to see you! How are you doing? Isn't it a wonderful day out?" Throwing his arms wide for emphasis, he gestures upwards at the extremely gray and cloudy sky, before looking at the other sleeper expectantly.

[kyley_b]

Kyle nods. "Yeah. Uh, my real name's Kyle."

Yup. Orpheus is rolling.

"I mean, I've seen nicer," Kyle sys slowly. He doesn't want to piss all over his parade, but it's hardly a beautiful summer day here. Hell, it's not even a beautiful winter day. It's just grey.

"So, uh. Dude. I gotta ask... did you by any chance click on an attachment sent to you by a screaming troll?"

[themuseabandonsyou]

"That's a nice name," says Orpheus, brightly. It's foreign to his ears, like a lot of peoples' names in this place, but it's still nice. He doesn't seem too terribly fazed by Kyle's lack of enthusiasm over the weather, either, shrugging it off easily.

"It all depends on how you look at it," he says. "But - you mean on the Omni, right? I don't use it very often, but I saw a really weird message all in bright red, and it played really strange high-pitched music when I opened it? And I don't really understand what happened, but everything seems so much brighter now!"

It's like he didn't even know what it was to feel happy, before this. He barely has the words to describe it.

[kyley_b]

"The Omni, yeah." Kyle looks vaguely annoyed, but he can't be TOO angry considering he's partially to blame.

"Right. Of course. And you haven't, uh. Kissed anybody since you opened it, have you?" Because if he had, the goddamn thing could be spreading like the flu.

[themuseabandonsyou]

Orpheus proceeds to be entirely oblivious to any annoyance on Kyle's part, just smiling away in a state of mind-numbing bliss. He does look a little surprised and confused by the question, though.

"Oh, of course not!" he says. "I wouldn't kiss anyone except Eurydice, and she seemed, um. A little confused by all of this?"

To put it mildly.

"So I'm giving her some space while she figures it out. Why, though?"

did you hear the slamming door

[metoikos]

"...curious."

Kassandra stood a pace or two away, having trudged along, following tracks in the dusty landscape. She's not sure what some of this stuff is, most of it makes little sense to someone from her era, but she recognizes it all as ruined just the same. Some strange memory this is...and she almost regrets touching it. Almost, though the man's voice stirs something in her. Something about all this feels important, as though this memory has weight and significance.

When she spots the city, she shades her eyes, and stops skulking. Marching right up to the stranger, dressed like a Hoplite girded for war, she gestures towards the city with the trident she's carrying.

"What do you hope to find in this glittering wonderland?"

[themuseabandonsyou]

There's a moment where the memory stutters, freezing in place, the landscape jolting very slightly - and then there are two of Orpheus, one looking at the woman in armor and the other still staring straight ahead, singing to himself.

"Wait, I'm coming with you
Wait for me, I'm coming too
I'm coming too"

Blinking, the first one takes a moment to get his bearings, glancing around at his surroundings, then at the woman, then at his memory-self, before answering. "Oh, um. I'm looking for my wife. Or, I was looking for my wife, back when this happened. I guess the Winter Mournings have a lot more power than I thought?"

Ultimately he seems fairly unfazed by being hurled back into his own memories, though. After nearly a year in Deerington and a few months in Trench, this seems like fairly standard fare. He's about to say something else, only to be interrupted when a low, piercing growl cuts through the gloom. With no moon or stars to see by it's hard to make out, but a dark shape the size of a large draft horse looms just at the edge of vision, and memory-Orpheus and present-Orpheus both stop in their tracks, squinting into the darkness.

[metoikos]

"Quite the place to be looking..."

Kassandra sounds almost amused, but she steps closer, looking at the twin men. What magic this place holds never ceases to amaze her. It's so strange how one can look so lifelike, and yet be so clearly nothing more than a recording. Aletheia had given her some context for this, but it was still a wonder, seeing it in action.

"Am I intruding into your memory? I could turn back."

She would stop following if it was too personal. She knew well that none of hers were likely to be pleasant for an outsider, and that she'd be bothered by having them put on display for a stranger.

[themuseabandonsyou]

Orpheus considers explaining -letting this woman know that it's the Underworld they're walking towards - but he can't quite find the words. Even knowing now that Eurydice is safe here with him, in Trench, it's still painful to think about, especially seeing and hearing himself like this. The exhaustion and heartbreak, pushed past his limits and somehow still going, are evident in his posture and voice, and Orpheus can't help but wonder in retrospect just how he managed any of this.

But the woman is asking him if he's okay with her seeing his memory, and he pauses in thought before shaking his head.

"No, it's okay. This is - I think maybe there's a reason why we see the things we do here, sometimes. If you want to follow, you c-"

And this is the moment when the great, dark shape at the edge of vision chooses to come charging in, a cacophony of terrible, booming barks thundering in the air. Memory-Orpheus has almost no time to react before it's on top of him, one set of its massive jaws locked around his leg while the other two snarl and snap at his arms and face, just barely missing each time. Present-Orpheus staggers backwards, startled, before realizing just what part of the memory this is.

[metoikos]

Kassandra hangs on the words, nodding her head, but then something happens. She jerks away, skipping several paces apart from Present-Orpheus, the rasp of a dagger being drawn drowned out by the booming voice of a massive dog. Aiming it at the shape she prepares for whatever it is...but doesn't attack, not yet.

When she realizes just what it is, she directs a confused look at the hound, but still doesn't lunge.

"Kerberos?!" she gasps out, lapsing into Greek pronunciation. "Malaka! I thought I killed you!"

Shooting Orpheus a look, quizzically, she sizes the man up. The dog, Cerberus, is clearly a figment of memory or it would've attacked her she supposes, meaning that he gets her full attention. The dagger remains aimed at the hound, but her thoughts are clearly elsewhere.

"...Who are you?"

[themuseabandonsyou]

"You thought you killed Cerberus?"

That's - well, it effectively distracts Orpheus from watching himself get mauled by a giant, three-headed dog, so that's something. He's not really sure how to react to that, now looking at this now considerably more mysterious woman with wide eyes. Behind him, his memory-self reaches out and places his hands on one of Cerberus's snouts, trying to keep him from going for his face while he grits his teeth and sings a soft melody, shaky with the pain and adrenaline but surprisingly clear under the circumstances.

The effect is almost immediate, Cerberus's ears perking up as he slowly lets go of Orpheus's leg, taking a steady step backwards and sitting on his haunches, one head cocked to the side quizzically. Just like that, he's as tame as anything, panting softly but otherwise still and calm.

"Um," says present-Orpheus, once the initial shock has worn off. "I'm Orpheus? But, who are you?"