Reaper

Home.

"You know, you've never called it 'home' before. Just, you know... the underworld, the afterlife, so on."
What?
"Mel, are you sure you're okay? You haven't said a word since we left."
Fine.
"Hey, look at me."
What?
"You're pale as a ghost."
You're the one saying that? Your skin practically glows.
"You're avoiding the question. When's the last time you slept?"
Reapers don't need sleep, Jay. I don't know if you've noticed, but we're kind of dead. All the sleeping has been done. The final sleep. All napping is optional.
"So, when's the last time you slept?"
Uh... a few weeks? Maybe?
"And how many jobs did you go on in those few weeks?"
I don't remember exactly... Enough. Enough to get those seventy-five years, and that's what matters, right?
"Mel, take a break. Okay?"
But I don't--
"You have time now. You saved Connor, remember? Heroes can take breaks."
Yeah. Right.
"Okay."
"You sure?"
Yeah. Yeah...
"Really?"
I don't know. I mean... I--I should be happy right now, right? I just saved my baby brother. But...
"Hey, cheer up. You did it!"
Yeah.
"Look, Mel, you're the best damn reaper in the underworld. You can save people's lives, you can tell off the devil, and you can talk to ghosts. You can beat anything the world, or heaven, or hell, throws at you. You can get rid of ghosts, you can talk a soul into anything, you can don't have anything to be worried about, because you can beat it."
Did I ever tell you how glad I am that I met you?
"Only a few hundred times."
Well, I am. Honestly, I don't know where I'd be without you...
"Well, you'd probably have worked yourself to... well, death again. The amount of times I've had to stop you from going out..."
The amount of times I've had to drag you out of your room...
"Well, will you allow me to drag you into my room?"
I thought you were from the nineteenth century, Jay! Where are your prudish sensibilities now?
"N-not like that! You need to take a break, and if I leave you alone in your room you'll never come back out!"
Yeah, sure. Okay. I'll try to find a book.
"I've got a couple mostly-normal ones stockpiled."
See, this is why I keep you around.
"Are you sure you're okay?"
I will be.
... I never thought about what I'd do next. I'd just, you know, save Connor and everything would be perfect forever. But life goes on. Or, well, afterlife or whatever. I have to keep going...
"You can stop for a little. Take a break."
I don't even know how. What do you do when you're not on call?
"Read a book, visit friends, take a nap, visit the garden..."
You've got a garden? Can you even grow plants here?
"Well, it's not really mine... I never showed it to you because you're always out, I guess... You sure you wouldn't rather hang out and read?"
No?
"Change of plans! Come on!"
Wait, where are we going? There's nothing this way!
"Yes, there is!"
If you're this excited, it's gotta be something...
Oh, that's... that's something.
"Isn't it? I think it's related to what makes your voice recorder work. I talked to some older reapers, and they told me about this theory: If someone puts enough of themselves into something, it becomes sort of... Alive. I mean, plants have a life of their own, but it's like giving your possessions a personality. I mean, animals have souls, too, so why not someone's favorite book or a flower they've taken care of for years?"
You're such a nerd, Jay...
"Well, I like it."
No, I didn't--I like your nerdiness, but I love this garden. It's wonderful. I love it. It's like someone made a silent film of Eden...
"That's awfully poetic, Mel."
Well, I have something to be poetic about now... G--wow, you can almost smell the flowers. My mom used to grow honeysuckle in her bedroom...
Are these plants dead?
"Yeah, just like us."
I thought so. I can feel them, sort of. It's like I'm touching an echo of the plant...
"I think it's like how books are hard to read here. Something of them dies, something comes here, and something is lost."
Okay. I... I never knew something like this could exist here... How big is it?
"I'm not actually sure. When I found it, it was already pretty big, and I only added to it. You could get lost in here; I know I have."
Thank you, Jay.
"You're welcome. What for?"
For showing me... this. Your garden. Your place.
...I don't have to take crappy jobs anymore, do I?
"No."
I don't have to do kids, or suicides, or murders...
"No."
I don't have to do terrorist attacks or plane crashes or hospitals.
"No."
I don't have to do anything.
"Not if you don't want to."
I don't have to be on call all the time. I don't have to be on call at all. I don't...
I don't get to see Connor again.
"Don't cry, Mel. You could still visit, if you're careful and keep it short, but..."
Yeah. It'll just hurt more. I got the lecture too.
I think I'm going to go out again, though.
"Really?"
Not like I did before. I... I want to look for plants. I mean, not just plants, but--to make things like this. Something for a reaper that's not a shadow of a burnt book or a ripped-up wedding dress. Just to talk to ghosts. Something beautiful, something that reminds us who we were and why we do this job...
What? Why are you looking at me like that?
"Nothing. I just... keep talking."
I... Not just that, I want to find out why we've been told they're all monsters. I want to know why they go after souls, and why we were told the scythe doesn't work on them.
"Are you sure?"
Yeah. I've got to have something to do. Don't worry, I won't go crazy, but... I like being busy.
"Tell me about it. Just don't spend too long out there, okay? I like having you around."
Hey, I'm not going out just yet! I happen to like your garden. Plus, I think I could use a break.
"Good. I'm glad you like it."
I love it. I don't want to get up. I like having the smell--well, the sort-of smell--and seeing something living. Besides, you're really comfortable.
"What?"
I said, it's nice to be home.