Open: And they're gonna bend their branches down to lay their fruit upon the ground

[vineleaves]

Dionysus is in a kitchen, apron tied over a purple dress with vine details, singing to himself as he uses a melon baller to scoop out a watermelon. The large bowl next to him is already full of honeydew melon and cantaloupe, and he's got a few other ingredients nearby ready to add in once he's done with the watermelon. Mint leaves, some honey, some lemon juice, and some lime juice.

It has been quite an eventful time lately, but overall his life is pretty great right now.

Comments

[wickedwit]

“Paperwork,” Claudius says, with a sincere smile. “I love paperwork. I’m happy to look over the details … more generally, I’d like thy blessing. Master Lan Wangji and I have been observing the effects of different forms of energy at the cellular level, but I believe thou hast a divine energy that is thine alone.”

[vineleaves]

"Of course you have my blessing," he says, hastily, before leaning over and kissing Claudius' forehead. "Claudius -- dear -- this is so amazing, and just -- important. This kind of hope that you've given me -- it's -- I don't even have words, you know?"

[wickedwit]

"Hope is a precious thing, dost thou not think? Perhaps it's because I come from a tragedy ... or perhaps it's the clinical depression we all seem to suffer from." The last he says wryly and knowingly. "But I can't help clinging to hope wherever I happen to find it. Even if it's a fool hope, I intend to persist."

[vineleaves]

He can't help it, he has to give Claudius a hug or he's going to burst right now. "How soon can we start working on everything?"

[wickedwit]

"Now, if you like. I can take you to my workshop and show you what I've been working on, and you can give me advice on transplanting the seedlings outside." He slips an arm around Dionysus, who is so infinitely embraceable, and enjoys the hug. He's grateful in a way he can't express, but he supposes that's the essence of true religion. Thank you, he prays, trusting Dionysus will hear it.

[vineleaves]

"Of course, sweetheart. No need to thank me though, I'm beyond thrilled that this is even an option of something to help with in the first place." He offers his arm for Claudius to take as they head off toward his workshop.

[wickedwit]

“I needed thee,” Claudius says, in a moment of sincerity. More wry, but still with that core of sincerity, he explains, “I’m far too vain for atheism. I need to believe in beings older and more powerful than myself, who’ve seen the rise and fall of civilizations, the lives and deaths of martyrs and kings, and still care for the fate of my trifling soul. ‘Tis to thy credit, know thou, to have known and mourned so many mortals, when a lesser man would’ve closed his heart off ages ago, for its own protection. Thou still hast so much love and joy in thee. And now that thou hast me, thou art unlikely to lose me. I can always live that much longer by thy example.”

[vineleaves]

Dionysus has been around for a long time, and -- not to brag or anything, but he's an Olympian. He has been the subject of a lot of worship in that time. A lot of festivals and tributes and offerings and parades have been specifically for him. And, not to discredit those -- they were great! Who doesn't love a festival, you know? But it has always been the moments like this, that make him happy to have the powers he does, happy to be able to do the things he can. To know that he has been able to give something to Claudius that he wouldn't otherwise have had -- and Dionysus knows all too well what Claudius' life could have been like -- and to hear it first hand from him, with such sincerity... He very nearly starts crying. He doesn't, but he comes awfully close.

"Thank you, dear. You mean so much to me, you know." He leans over to give Claudius a kiss on the cheek. "I don't think -- I don't think there's a limit to how much someone can love, and how much joy they can have in their life, even if it's as long of a life as mine. It's -- oh! Okay, so it's like the bathtubs and sinks here, y'know, with running water and all. I can fill my tub up¹ as often as I want². There's things in life that might feel like all that love and happiness has been drained from you -- people die, people act cruelly, but it sometimes just takes a little time until you're ready for that faucet to turn on again." He pauses, then laughs. "Or something like that. Not the best metaphor. Have you seen the tub Étienne and I have, by the way? I can't remember if we've shown it to you before. It's nice. Huge."


1. Actually usually the mansion spirits prefill his tub up for him, due to not wanting to sit through seventy tags of characters waiting for the giant pool-sized tub to fill up before bathtime shenanigans can happen, but work with him on this okay?

2. In the real world you should conserve water, please. :)

[wickedwit]

"I must see this tub," Claudius says with a short laugh, only short because he might start shedding tears of gratitude in the middle of it, and that would hardly be becoming. He smiles over at Dionysus, and asks, "Should I take this as an invitation?"

[vineleaves]

"Oh, please do! Whenever you want! We can go later today, if you would like. Maybe after we get done with the plants?"

[wickedwit]

"How is it the day's plans always improve whenever I run into thee? I must be blessed," Claudius shamelessly flirts, leaning comfortably on Dionysus's arm. "That sounds excellent."

[vineleaves]

"And see, here I was thinking how lucky I am to know you!" He presses a kiss to the side of Claudius' head. "Anyway, the tub is massive. I really should have a small party in the tub some time. Or better yet, convince the mansion to create another room somewhere that's just a full on properly sized Roman bath, and then it could be a large party instead of a small party." Of course, as this conversation is taking place many months ago, Dionysus is unaware that the mansion has recently-for-typists given them a full ski lodge with attached hot springs, which could also serve a very similar purpose.

[wickedwit]

"What I wouldn't give for a sauna¹," Claudius sighs. "A sauna after an ice-bath ... but we love our extremes up North."

¹ The irony lever, long since abandoned, has been given a little nudge.

[vineleaves]

"I'm less on board with the ice-bath part, but a sauna would be lovely!"

[wickedwit]

“Some take their ice-baths after the sauna — a cold shock to awaken them after lingering too long in the heat. Either way, it’s an excuse to stay in the sauna longer.” With a lightly teasing tone, he asks, “What manner of party wouldst thou host in a Roman-sized bath?”

[vineleaves]

"Oh, well, an orgy, of course," he says, completely conversationally, as if they're talking about a grocery list or something. "I mean, if we have a small enough one it could work in the tub I've got now. Maybe... maybe me, you, Étienne, Laertes, and Sagramore. Might be a bit of a tight squeeze, but I think, given the, y'know, theme, that'd be alright."

[wickedwit]

"Quite so," Claudius laughs, pleased to hear Dionysus say such things so frankly and pleasantly. "Dost thou know, such parties have been among the most relaxed of my life. One might think close quarters would increase tension, but there's far less shame and embarrassment when everyone's cramped together. There's a lesson there."

[vineleaves]

"They're a good way to be reminded that everyone is equal, in a way. You're all just humans trying to live your life and find as much joy as you can while doing so. The closeness helps with that, I think."

[wickedwit]

"This is why I need a good like thee. Once, I would say it's because we were all equally sinners -- or, more practically speaking, equally able to be blackmailed." He smirks and shakes his head. "But we were all searching for joy, weren't we? I no longer need think of that as sinful."

[vineleaves]

"There are so many joys to be experienced in the world. I want you to get to experience as many of them as you want. I can't imagine trying to deprive people just for the sake of depriving them."

[wickedwit]

"It's a shame thou hast never met Gertrude." He means met the same way he imagines Dionysus himself would -- seeing every play and performance a person has been depicted in doesn't count. "She thinks much like thee. 'Twas often a source of real contention between her and the more staid, traditional members of court ... but a woman encouraging joy without shame wins many more allies than a scowling priest. She understood men need more than bread and water to live; they needed cakes and ale and simple pleasures to have a life worth living."

[vineleaves]

He smiles. "Every single thing you tell me about her just makes me want to meet her even more. I hope I get a chance to one of these days."

[wickedwit]

“So do I. She came here for a short time, knowest thou,” Claudius says, a wistful tilt to his smile. “In that short time, she still found a way tease me, asking when Galahad and I would marry. A very clever way of seeding a thought by treating it like a foregone conclusion.” Naturally, Claudius admires Gertrude’s ability to manipulate men as much as her forthright manners, quick to move to the heart of the matter even if it means using less art. “I, of course, was preparing my heart for the day Galahad would outgrow me, which I also treated as a foregone conclusion.”