Work Text:
My no-good father probably thought he was doing me a favor, Zagreus thought darkly, using his power as governor to get me this position, lowly as it was. Or maybe he was just banishing his layabout son as far from the capital as he could. That, he decided, was far more in keeping with his father’s tyrannical bent.
At least the solitude would let him practice his discipline and focus, he mused, hearing the words in Achilles’s voice. And he was steadily growing used to the simple repetition of the day’s tasks: maintain the lighthouse, the small launch, and the grounds in the morning. (He was pleased to find he had inherited his mother’s knack for growing things, with the modest garden’s produce adding some needed variety to his diet.) Steal a few hours of sleep when he got the chance, usually around midday, when it was too warm to do anything else. Top up the oil lamps, clean and polish the lenses, mirrors, and windows as the sun began to fall from the sky. Make sure the lamp stayed lit and bright through the night, and put it out in the morning as the sun came up. Grab another few hours of sleep after his bleary-eyed vigil, and rise refreshed to determine what needed painting, polishing, or mending today. Write it all down in his log book.
Occasionally, though, there were visitors. Tourists who wanted a picture; locals making deliveries as part of the arrangement with the state. But this was different. He recognized the young woman cycling towards his humble abode: his ex-girlfriend. “Hello, Meg,” he called, brushing the dirt from his hands as he rose from his vegetable patch. “What brings you out here? Come to torment me some more?”
She frowned. “The opposite, actually. I got a job as the bailiff in town. Brings me in contact with all sorts of low-lifes. Which is where I heard three interesting things. The first was that Thanatos was working as the undertaker.”
“Old news, I’m afraid. We…sometimes have occasion to interact.” His glance shifted meaningfully to the edge of the cliff and the ocean beyond. He had, in fact, rekindled a friendly working relationship with his old chum.
Meg winced. “You don’t think about that aspect of the job,” she allowed. “Sorry to hear that.”
“It’s not too often, fortunately. I like to think I help with that.” He smiled fondly up at the simple tower he called home. “This is where you accuse me of finally being good for something.”
“Well, if I’m not needed for this conversation, I can always leave,” Meg said with a smirk and it cut into Zagreus how easily they had slipped back into their old banter.
As if summoned by the speaking of his name, the town’s dull black hearse pulled up, and a leanly muscled man stepped out. “Hello, Than!” Zagreus called.
“Zagreus. Megaera.” The laconic newcomer inclined his head at each of them in turn. “Heard you were paying our lighthouse keeper a visit. Thought my services might be required,” Thanatos added with a tight, wan smile.
“Hmph, I was just about to tell Zagreus that I had heard he was in town and that I thought it might have been nice to see him.” Meg tossed her hair in her chagrin. “But I suppose it makes things easier for me, so I only have to repeat this once.” She gestured for them to move closer, and Zagreus let them in the spartan lighthouse. “Gods, you really live here by yourself?” she murmured.
“Offering to change that, Meg? I get an extra stipend if I’m married.” Zagreus batted his mismatched eyes at her.
“Don’t get ahead of yourself,” she whispered back.
“I’m right here,” Thanatos reminded them, leaning back against a rounded wall to try and create a bit of space between the three of them. “Anyway, what’s this big secret news, Meg?”
Megaera drew herself up to her full, imposing height. “I heard that your mother is still alive, Zagreus. Your birth mother.”
“What! How?! I-I’ve got to find her! Meg, please, where is she?”
She sighed. “That I don’t know. But I can look into it. I know how to make people talk.”
“I can check the state death records,” Thanatos volunteered. “See if there are any irregularities.”
“Great, I’ll–”
“Keep tending the lighthouse,” Thanatos and Megaera said in unison.
“It’s literally a full-time job,” Megaera pointed out. “We’ll check in every week, whether we find anything or not,” she promised.
“We can handle this, Zag.” Thanatos placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. “You make sure I’m not too busy, okay?”
“I– yeah, okay.” Zagreus closed his eyes to feel tears on his lashes as his heart roiled with emotions. “Thank you, both of you. This means the world to me.” He brushed the moisture away and poured them each a small glass from the emergency brandy to celebrate. “To finding Persephone!” he toasted.