#types of death

[scarlettundrhett]

dying; oh, it’s nothing but a dream by stardustvx

An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

Relationship: Vegas/ Pete

POV : Vegas

Words: 6931

I wasn't really up the day after New Year's Eve, I had a hangover and was a perfect victim for this story. This one-shot grabbed me, choked me, and spit me out as a crying bundle.

Over and over in the series Vegas wants to die, asking first Porsche, then Pete for a gentle death. Whoever was hit in the heart by these scenes will need a heart transplant after reading this.

So, by all means, have some tissues ready!

Pete smiles at him and asks, “what do you want?” To die. Vegas wants nothing more in this world than die by Pete’s hand. That would be quite poetic; for the devil to die in the hands of the only person he has ever loved. Though after everything he has done in this life, Vegas isn’t sure does he deserve that kind of mercy.

Unwrap first handkerchief.

How many times do you have to die to find forgiveness for your actions? Find out!

In this line of business, in a world like theirs you do not die of old age surrounded by your friends and family. Especially if your last name is Theerapanyakul, you are not going to get a happy ending. Instead, you will die in a gruesome way in some back alley and your family will get your head delivered to them in a box. If they are being generous, they might add a little bow on top as a decoration.

Finding the love of his life finally gives Vegas the courage to ask for his death. It seems paradoxical, but it makes sense with a person as lost as Vegas. He is no longer a lifeless tool of his father. He desires peace, to be able to break out of this eternal cycle of suffering. And death comes, sometimes agonizingly, often tenderly. Vegas always dies with a smile.

Pete insists on feeding him. At first, Vegas thinks it’s just one of those typical Pete things. Of the other wanting to be gentle, offering him the kind of softness he doesn’t deserve. Vegas realizes how wrong he is from the first bite. They do say the forbidden fruit is sweet. The poison is bitter but all Vegas can taste is relief.

Handkerchief!

I won't tell you how many are already on the sofa. Vegas dies lonely and alone, but mostly in the arms of Pete, his angel of death. What greater love can there be than to grant the loved one's wish to die?

“Look at me,” Pete says again, as his fingers fall from Vegas’ cheeks to his throat. (…) It’s comforting, the finality of it. Knowing that he truly is never going to close his eyes again. That Pete will be the last thing he ever lays his eyes upon; all that beauty. Pete will also be the only memory he wants to hold onto and carry into the afterlife, into the next life. Into the nothingness, whatever comes after this miserable life of his.

And I'm lying on the sofa, the day after New Year's Eve. Around me, a mountain of handkerchiefs. Slowly, the realization dawns on me that nothing in this story is as it seems. Fortunately!

[fixyourwritinghabits]

Deathbuilding Part 1: Choose your Death

Death is a mayor point in many stories. It affects, directly or indirectly, any character, at the same time, death can be defied, suspended, glorified. It can take many forms and names. This particular post is about two different types of death: physical death and social death.

Physical Death The most popular death in works of fiction, since it erases the physical presence of a character. Usually physical death means the absence of a presence in a body. In a physical death the body loses all of its functions, warmth, and mobility. Since the body has different functions, and they all can be meassured by different methods, but this stillness needs to affects every organ. A physical death leaves behind a corpse that needs to be dealt with. Social Death Death takes many faces in a society. A social death works as a counterpart of a physical death, since the first one doesn’t require the presence of a death body. A social death is a living death, since the person, or people, are still around but not longer belong to a group or society. The first social death can be the erasure of a person’s memory from the collective memory. Not longer remembering someone can lead to their social deaths, it can happen to any person with time playing and important role. Death by exclusion, in every society there’s someone who’s been excluded by people and institutions in power. Not having the same rights, not being able to receive the same resources, and not being treated the same way are part of social death, since people on the “wrong” side tend to be forgotten while still alive. This situation usually leads to revolts, creation of new groups and institutions. Retirement and nursing houses, old people face a social death before their phyical death since they are excluded from work, access to loans, and certain places. Despite their wisdom the years provide, in some societies old people are seen as a burden before anything else. This is the main reason behind retirement and nursing houses, to provide a safe place where old people can live their last years in charge of people who have proper training. No matter if it is a physical death or a social one, death is only effective when it’s recognized as such. Without the proper certificate physical death can mean nothing, without a society to endorse exlusion, oblivion and/or retirement, social death can not occur. When it comes to a work of fiction, a character can face a social or a physical death, or both. While killing a character seems to be a must for every story, their deaths can be very different. Physical death can be a character, can be a process instead of a one-step event, it can be reversed, defied, or even glorified. Social death can provide sub plots, it can be a breaking point for a character, or an obstacle to overcome. Give your characters a reason to die, give them a proper death, and then, let them vanish forever, or let them live a different life. Lia.