Rio Vidal approaches a large clearing deep within the woods in Salem Massachusetts as a hollow entity. Soon she feels a familiar pulse of magic course through the soil composed body as she crosses the protective barrier that shelters the only home she ever knew from the outside world, the tattered homestead across the horizon a reflection of her current state. Her dark robe wraps around her torso, unmoved from when she last walked away from her wife, providing the only comfort she’ll know in the near future. Death doesn’t know how much time has passed since the events of the Witches’ Road, nor does she care. When Agatha’s heart stopped beating, Rio’s did as well, yet the nature of her existence persists.
Rio can’t quantify the amount of overwhelming emotions she experienced in the time between her wife’s final breath and the present. Of course she’d known since the moment they became acquainted with one another that eventually Agatha Harkness would die, but she never imagined it was because of herself. As someone who isn't allowed to kill, it was insulting for her wife to die by siphoning her own powers. When Death realized what her wife had done, it was too late. Just like always, she's left alone to walk the Earth.
Despite the circumstances, the sun shines bright in the sky with a gentle breeze brushing through the meadow, filling the air with nothing but nature. Usually, Rio enjoys days like these, nature in its purest element with no man made disturbances cutting through the atmosphere, but today, the silence is deafening. She’d do anything to get her family back, if only for the briefest moment, but even the cosmic entity is limited in what she can and can’t do..
The familiar scene should have brought her comfort, but instead it feels entirely foreign. It had been quite some time since she last visited; the flowers surrounding the cobblestone home are long dead, the weeds reaching further up Rio’s leg than it had decades ago, yet the structure of the cottage remains intact.
She slowly opens the wood door, the sound of the hinges creaking at the sudden movement revealing the remnants of a life she once knew. An old cloak is thrown over the couch, a pot of stew sits on the enchanted stove now home to a new ecosystem of mold, wood toys are still scattered in the small open space untouched, collecting a thick layer of dust. She laughs bitterly as tears start to swell in her eye sockets, as she sinks to the creaky floorboards.
And when I die, a long long time from now, I don’t want to see your face.
The words were spoken with such a conviction that Rio never expected. Once again the scar that she wore thanks to Agatha had been reopened and it hasn't stopped bleeding. The thing is, Rio couldn’t rid herself of the face she’d been wearing for centuries, it’s the only face who knew Agatha Harkness deep down. If Rio shed her human form, who would be left to remember Agatha in the way she deserved?
Death doesn't know how long she sits there motionless in the living room until she feels the familiar call of her job taking her away from the cottage. At least that is the one constant in her existence that will never go away. She doesn't need to personally guide every soul, her essence is always around - when Nicky was still alive, she learned how to be everywhere at once while still in her human form so she could be there to watch Nicky grow, something she had never gotten the chance to witness before - wut now, without her family, she’s glad to know that in spite of everything, she has the endless task to fall back on when lost everything else, but still it isn't enough for her..
Rio goes outside, leaving the door ajar, before taking the dagger that was gifted to her as an anniversary present and rips through space and time until she finds herself in the Void heading towards her nearest caller.
Time is a social construct devised by humans in order to feel some semblance of control over their existence. To Death, time is infinite, consisting solely of guiding souls. It wasn’t until the young purple witch stumbled her way into Death’s companionship in 1693, when she started measuring time in the same way humans did.
Rio loses track of the days, silently guiding countless souls before she comes across a young man in Switzerland who greets her as if she were an old friend.
“You are not what I imagined to see when I took my last breath,” he says softly from the bed. Rio takes in her surroundings, noting the beautiful Swiss Alps in the distance, still wearing the face of her deceased wife and her signature dark robes that shield her pale ghostly form from her companion. The interior decor reflects that of a sea cottage and not usually what Rio finds when in this part of the world, but she remembers which country she is in and realizes how this man died. These cases always interested her, it’s not uncommon that someone who chose to euthanize themselves dies with peace, survivors of those deceased even blame her for plaguing their loved one’s mind but that’s just their grief taking over, but something about this man who had so much life still in him compels Rio to take a seat in a nearby chair. She hasn't spoken since she let the boy go in Agatha’s yard and doesn’t trust herself to speak, so she only turns her head in question.
“I imagine this task of yours takes a lot out of you and after a while you become numb to it, but what I perceive is not that. No, I sense something closer to heartbreak,” he observes politely. His words were gentle, with no traces of accusation or intent to press further. He lay beneath the bed sheets, unmoving, as he patiently waits for the next move. “You don’t have to tell me, I’m sorry if I overstepped.”
Finally, Rio finds the strength to speak. “There’s no need to apologize…”
“Will.”
Death bitterly laughs at the spoken name, being reminded once again of the two souls that continue to cry out for her. “You are not wrong, Will. My wife died recently.”
It’s the first time Rio spoke of Agatha since her passing. She thought it would be more painful, but instead she speaks as though she were not experiencing grief at that very moment.
Will is lost in thought for a few moments before choosing to speak again. “I am sorry for the loss you are experiencing. If you knew this is what you would feel, would you still have chosen to be with her?”
The question surprises the cosmic entity, expecting inquiries about the fact that she had emotions, or was even married, but none about her own wellbeing. “In every lifetime, but I never thought it would happen this soon.”
“That’s unfortunately a part of the human experience, we don’t know what we have until it’s gone.”
Rio sits motionless, staring at the view outside as she marinates over the words spoken by her companion. In her recent memory, it was quite rare for a soul to be willing to have a conversation with their guide, most were keen on cursing Death out or just moving on in fear Death would bring them to a worse fate. She can count on one hand the amount of times she was willing to engage with a soul as if they were still alive. “Sounds like you speak from experience.”
Will doesn't look surprised at her prompt, assuming it’s customary for Death to know how each soul dies, but soon his features morph to match the somber display of Death herself as he recalls his story.
“I was in a motorcycle accident. It left me paralyzed from the neck down but I was resilient and fought with everything in me to recover. My first year in rehab, I only regained slight mobility in my hand, but the small progress was enough to operate a wheelchair so I could regain some autonomy. But before, I loved my life. I traveled across Europe with my friends, started passion projects, and was about to be married myself. In an instant, I lost everything and I was bound to the confines of my house, physically and mentally. I blocked everything out, my friends hung around but life still went on around me and there I sat purely existing. I met someone a few months ago who showed me the joys of life in my condition. She tried to show me that despite my body breaking down, my life didn’t need to. It worked for a little bit until I realized I was in love with her. Her heart is so pure and she would have stayed with me until we both grew old but she had never really lived beyond our small town. I couldn't let her stay tied down to me, nor I didn’t want my joyous memories replaced with the realities of my condition, hence my choice.”
Death realizes that in a way, she completely understands Will’s choice. She wonders what she’d do if she were allowed the choice to die, but she doesn't have that luxury. “How did you endure the confines of your own mind?”
Will realizes that Death needs someone to talk to more than she needs to know why he died, and that maybe he didn't need to tell her in the first place. “I mainly lived through my memories. If I closed my eyes, I could be anywhere in the world. I remembered every scent and every motion of each memory. I remembered what made me feel alive.”
Rio thinks about what makes her feel alive. The only entry on the list is Agatha.
“May I ask you something?” Will asks as he sees the cosmic entity stare off again, lost in thought. He’s familiar with this very look, having been a victim of it in his final years of life, and would do anything to save someone else from the horrible storm of oblivion. Rio only questions what he intends to ask next, seeing as he’s done nothing but ask her questions since she showed up.
“Are you capable of living?” It’s a simple question really, but one that Rio doesn't know how to answer.
“Yes and no. I’ve always been present. It is the nature of my existence and it will never go away. I didn’t even have this form until I met my wife. Humans always fascinated me, but they’ve never felt the same in return. They’ve always feared me because of their uncertainty of whether or not their life had meaning, which is ironic because it is the one thing you all have in common,” Rio says as she composes her thoughts. “I’ve always watched from a distance but never knew what it meant to be alive, until I met a young witch many ages ago. She was the first human to never show fear of my existence and in all honesty, it was the first time I knew of fear myself.”
The cosmic entity thinks back to the first time she met Agatha as a skeleton at her attempted execution where she revealed herself out of sheer curiosity of the corpses before her, never having seen anyone die in such a manner before. She was expecting fear from the young survivor, but instead she was met with pure curiosity. Death hadn’t spoken any words during their first meeting out of fear of scaring off the woman.
“Eventually, she taught me every other emotion a human can experience. We traveled the world together and fell in love. I don’t technically have organs, this form is made of Earth’s soil, but a heart blossomed within me and beat only for her. We loved and lost so much in the centuries we knew each other, she is the only life I have ever known. Without her, I don’t know how to simply go back to the way I was.”
Will stares back at her not in pity, but in understanding the weight of her experience and her existence in the universe. “She gifted you life,” he finally says. Rio hums in confirmation, still staring at the mountains in the distance through the window but with a hint of longing in her eyes.
“Can I offer you some advice?” Rio turns back to him finally and nods, hopeful that his words provide a secret key to unlocking the cage of despair she finds herself trapped in.
“Love is not the only aspect of being alive. It is a great privilege to have loved and lost someone as fiercely as you. Some dream of being able to experience a love as powerful as yours, but there’s so much more than love than what defines our life. It’s in what we do each day that makes us unique. Another thing humans have in common other than death,” Will chuckles to himself remembering the words Rio spoke just moments prior, “is that we’re all chasing after something. Whether that be love, a childhood dream come true, world domination, the secret of life’s mysterious questions, or the mere hope that one could recover from such a tragic motorcycle accident. It is all cut short in the time of our deaths, or when we’re exhausted chasing something out of reach and reality comes crashing down, but time is a luxury that most do not understand they are granted until it has flown by faster than they can capture it. Seeing as you have endless time among humanity, you must ask yourself, what do you seek next?”
“Are all British people this introspective?” Rio asks, trying to lighten the mood. The insight isn't unwanted, but she hadn’t expected an impromptu therapy session when she began her task of guiding this young soul.
Will seems unbothered by the comment and merely shrugs. “I’ve had a lot of time to think about life and death.”
A long silence envelopes the cozy room as Rio considers the man’s question. She thinks about the last time she felt alive, and hates that it was on that abomination of the Witches’ Road. She knew instantly that it was the Maximoff boy’s doing, having been made aware of Agatha’s con since its inception, but still the fruitless journey on the fake Road granted her the most fun she’d had in a long time. But she doesn't want fun, she had her fair share of it with her wife and wasn't willing to share it with anyone else. No, she seeks something else.
“What do you know of inner peace?” Rio asks, bringing herself back to the present from her thoughts.
“I’m afraid I’m the wrong person to ask about that. I haven’t known peace for quite some time. I do know that it can come in many forms and that to each person it means something different. Overall I believe it is a form of balance and takes a lot of effort to maintain.”
Rio grunts at the lack of clarity in his response but still is grateful for the hint he gave. All her existence, she knew of balance, it is her nature, but had never considered herself to be out of balance.
“I do not mean to take up so much of your time, I presume that you have a busy schedule,” Will finally says.
“Someone’s in a rush to move on,” Rio comments, ignoring his other claim. She isn't in any rush to leave Will’s rare soul.
“I have studied various topics regarding the Afterlife. I have accepted that my time among the living has come to an end but I am curious to see what awaits after.”
Death contemplates whether or not to divulge the truth with him, the decision is easy. “Do you truly wish to know? I don’t want a rare soul like yours to be disappointed.”
Will hesitates, surprised at Death’s offer, but still nods.
“In short, there’s nothing. There is no Hell or Heaven or an Underworld where your souls get judged and sorted. Humans may be wise but they’re also incredibly ignorant. Most of the tales spread throughout humanity are created due to their denial and fear of what happens when you die.”
Will looks confused at the newfound knowledge, but still awaits further explanation. Rio hums internally, this is the first time anyone had actually tried to understand what happened after they died. It’s refreshing but she knows it’ll be a while before she meets another accepting soul. She savors this temporary connection for as long as she can as she continues.
“The closest concept anyone has come close to being correct is reincarnation, but still, culture and religion get it wrong. There is no reason for a soul to be reborn, it just does, and at random. The universe is made up of an infinite amount of energy, growing and decaying at the same time. As life continues to grow, so does its complexity, hence why some are born with powers, some are mutated part way through their lifespan, and some never come to such fate. By the time a soul is returned to the Afterlife, the pool of energy has already become more complex than when it last left. It’s been mixed with the experiences of those that have already passed. When souls are reborn, no two are alike.”
Will’s eyebrows furrow as he wraps his mind around the explanation. “I have a few questions.”
Rio laughs lightly, she actually loves talking about this beautiful cycle, and once upon a time, there had been only one other soul who thought it beautiful as well, until everything went wrong. “I would expect so, it is not an easy thing for the mind to grasp.”
“Do souls retain memories?”
“Sometimes. It’s not entirely like soulmates but it does aid in attraction and those you surround yourselves with. It’s why some people have such strong relationships with one another, platonically or romantically.”
“Do actions in one soul’s life have consequences in their next life?”
“No, each soul composition is unique. Thoughts, feelings and beliefs may be inherited but in the end it’s all up to an individual’s choice for what happens. You will not be reincarnated as another quadriplegic, nor will you remember how you died in this life,” Rio saddens at the explanation, knowing that when Agatha’s soul is reincarnated, she won’t be the same as who she was in this lifetime.
“Do you have a soul?”
“I don’t know. All souls must expire but I cannot, yet I have grown to know emotions that the other cosmic beings can only imagine.”
“Isn’t it lonely?” Death had never considered this question, whenever Agatha inquired about her past she was only endeared with the way of her existence bringing life to the cosmic being.
“This is all I’ve known. I don’t see the point in connecting with the living because I know they all die eventually, and I’d be caught in an endless cycle of loss and grief. The weight of two souls is already enough for me. I learn about their experiences when I help guide them back to the Afterlife. The other cosmic beings do not hold forms the same way I do, but they’re all around us. Before my heart grew, I existed in the soil and then many millennia ago, the Earth’s energy shifted so that I could take the physical form of a skeleton.”
“Maybe as life grows more complex, so does Death?” Will offers.
“Perhaps.”
“I have one more question and then I shall be ready.” Rio nods for the final time, another wave of grief washing over her in preparation for his departure.
“Does the multiverse actually exist?” She lets out another light laugh at the randomness of the question.
“No.” Will looks saddened at the news, hoping on another Earth, he may have been able to be with his final love, in a body that didn’t act as a prison. “I regret to inform you that the multiverse is simply another thing humans have created out of denial that the path they walk is the only one they live. The concept gives them false hope and makes them blind to what is right in front of their eyes.”
When Rio finishes speaking, she stands from her chair, wiping the excess tears that dared fall from her eye sockets, and goes over to the bed to free Will’s soul. Instinctively, he stands up and is surprised that his soul had full body function. His eyes widen at the opportunity to stay on this Earth for a little while longer to experience this Earth as a fully functioning man but before he can speak, Rio beats him to it.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you. If a soul remains a ghost, their purity weakens and you are less likely to reincarnate in another life,” Rio explains briefly. She grows furious at her wife once again, knowing she walks this Earth as a ghost. She knew instantly when she met Agatha that she would never meet another soul like hers again and still the ghost is deliberately harming her chances to be reborn into another life where Rio would have searched the entire Earth over again for a glimpse of her first and only love.
Will nods in acceptance and gladly walks with Rio to their destination. Before his journey ends, he turns to speak to Death. “I know you may feel burdened with the nature of your existence, but I do hope you find peace within yourself.” He smiles one last time before stepping through the fog, leaving Rio alone in the Void.
After stepping back to Earth, Will’s words echo through the hollow skeleton as she slowly walks through the woods, reaching her home.
A form of balance, it takes a lot of effort to maintain.
That is something Death has experience with. As soon as Rio steps through the barrier, she ventures back to the cottage, but instead of going inside, she sits in the overgrown weeds, staring at the abandoned structure. She remembers building it for the first time using nothing but her own two hands and feeling proud of herself. It was her first home above ground but in time, she opened her home to Agatha for protection and she immediately left her mark. When her family expanded, so did Nicky. To this day, Rio never regretted opening her home to two mortals, but she couldn't bear the thought of taking residence in the cottage once again surrounded by memories of what she had lost. Still, she craves sanctuary once more.
Eventually, Death makes her way over to the nearby lake, seeing it for the first time in a few decades. Rio makes note of the type of land available to her near the shore and before she knows it, she grows a large cedar tree among the nearby oak, pine and birch trees. While the tree develops its branches rapidly, she makes her way over to the other side of the lake where Nicky’s final resting place sits.
“Hello my sweet boy,” Rio says to the pile of rocks. She knows that his soul can’t hear her even in the Afterlife, but she noticed that the living of those who had known loss tended to find solace speaking to their graves as if they were still there. She couldn’t comprehend why until she had lost her own son, and then she understood. “I know it has been too long since I last visited you. I’m sorry, I traveled a little too far but I’m home now, and I promise to visit more often, maybe I’ll bring your mama here too, to keep you company when I cannot.”
Rio’s breath shudders as she processes the words she just spoke. She hasn’t considered returning to Westview since everything that happened, unsure of what she would do if the boy or Agatha’s ghost caught her remembering the purple witch in her final resting place. Death also isn’t eager to see the boy who stole a second life. The same boy her wife sacrificed herself for, even if she’ll deny those facts in death.
Death feels a storm brewing within her once again at her wife’s ignorance. It seemed that in the heat of everything that happened under the Hex and Wanda’s subsequent spell afterwards, Agatha had forgotten the very nature of the Sacred Balance. Rio doesn’t know if Agatha actually forgot how the Balance works or if she chose to die through Death’s love to shock Rio into letting the boy go. Either way, Agatha got what she wanted in the end, ignoring Rio’s own needs.
It doesn’t matter that Agatha died, it wouldn’t have restored the Sacred Balance anyways. When Rio said one of them would walk free during the stormy backyard battle, she really presented the choice in hopes the boy would see reason, but he still saw her as an evil, toxic force. She did her best to prolong her last fight with her wife, knowing full well that their deal was still in effect and this would be the last time she’d ever see Agatha Harkness.
Rio still accepted their deal, despite the gaping wound beneath her soil though, knowing that while her soul was still walking the Earth, there’s hope of reconciliation. It was as if Agatha pushed Rio into a pit of molten lava when at the very last second, Agatha turned around and siphoned Rio’s powers. Death’s form felt her power escape through her lips yet, still she felt forgiveness in her wife’s final act and she merely consumed as much as Agatha as she could, pouring all of the love she felt for the witch into the passionate kiss, before her body hit the ground and Rio accelerated the decomposition process, planting a beautiful display of azaleas where her body lay beneath the soil, enchanted to never wilt.
But the Balance wasn’t restored then. In order to rebalance the scales, Death needs the soul of William Kaplan, who currently is held captive in his own body by one Billy Maximoff. In fact, Agatha aided the abomination in helping him guide his twin brother’s soul into the body of Tommy Shepherd, doubling the weight of the imbalance. She doesn’t feel physical pain for trapped souls, but she had also never had the scales remain unbalanced and grew weary of the consequences, not for herself but for the souls of William and Tommy.
Rio also knows that if she continues to pursue Billy and his twin, and by extension Agatha’s ghost, they’d not understand the predicament she was in. She thinks that Billy would use that uncontrollable chaos magic of his to rewrite the fabric of reality and Death would be damned if she let that happen. Besides, Agatha had said even in death, she didn’t want to see Rio and she’d never been able to deny her wife anything.
She notes the negative emotions she feels deep within her body when she thinks of her wife in the past few moments, between remembering her with Will and just now with Nicky, and realizes she doesn’t want to sustain the dangerous garden she grew all those years ago for Agatha. Deep down, Rio still loves her, despite the centuries long tumultuous relationship they cultivated together. There once was a time that the garden within Rio that resembled Agatha had once been healthy, simple and beautiful. She knows she can return the beautiful garden to its former glory once again, even without Agatha’s soul but in order to do so, she needs to let go of the wife she knew and remember the wife she fell in love with all those years ago.
Rio bows her head in resignation and resolves to leave her wife’s body alone in Westview, but can’t bear to leave Nicky alone for any longer. Instead, she finds a giant flat rock, and lays it next to the pile of small boulders, becoming a solid foundation to a cairn.
Once satisfied with the memorial, she returns to the newly sprouted cedar, and assesses their quality. The time is near for Rio to cut down the branches and while she waits, she ventures back to the cottage. She has never needed money, but centuries ago Agatha hid a huge pile of cash in the big oak tree that sat nearby in case of emergencies. When they fled the homestead, the cash had gone untouched, Agatha resorting to theft when she was in dire need of money or food. Death figured that Agatha wouldn’t care about the near $100,000 that was stashed away and withdrew a few thousand dollars from the bark encasing. It has been quite some time since Rio has dealt with anything as common as money but she’s determined to build herself a much sturdier sanctuary.
She changes out of her robes into more common clothes, now sporting a pair of tan overalls, dark brown work boots, a dark green tank top and a pair of black aviators with the sun still high in the sky, before venturing towards the nearest civilization.
As she emerges from the dark treeline, Rio notes how Salem has changed from the late 17th century to the present day. The small village square where witches were executed is now replaced with a fully developed downtown, looking similar to Westview. There’s no hatred or discrimination among the people who resided in the town, only a form of companionship. Maybe in a different lifetime, she and Agatha could have lived among the town together.
Rio spots a Home Depot nearby, but realizes she’d need some way to get all of the equipment back home without causing too much suspicion and is suddenly glad she took out more money than necessary for this rare venture into civilization. She diverts to a nearby auto shop and asks for the cheapest, yet most functional pickup truck that could handle what she has in mind. The owner points her in the direction of an older light blue Ford F-100 and sells it to her for seven thousand dollars. He’s surprised that she’s carrying that amount on hand but doesn’t question her further, glad for the quick business transaction. Rio’s grateful she remembers how to dampen her powers while in her human form to divert suspicion, she had entirely too much fun on the Road hiding her true identity from the makeshift coven.
Death never learned how to drive, but it’s simple enough and if she got into an accident, it wouldn’t technically be her fault. Rio drives back to Home Depot and makes a mental checklist of the equipment needed and starts adding things to the flatbed. Soon she’s pushing around a faded orange cart that contains a chainsaw, a draw knife, a shovel, a power sander with a variety of sandpaper and grits, and a variety of hand tools and lots of screws, hinges and bolts for furniture and checks out of the store.
The drive back to her cabin is peaceful and she’s glad to know that her truck can pass through the protected barrier around the 50 acres of land she’s now the sole owner of. As she drives, Rio makes sure to smooth out the tire tracks the truck left behind, not wanting anyone to follow. If anyone does, they’d get a bout of amnesia and promptly return in the direction they came from.
She unloads the truck and makes a game plan. Rio takes a shovel and traces a decent sized plot in the Earth near the water, marking the foundation of the cabin she envisions for herself. Throughout her existence, Rio guided countless souls who lived in a variety of homes, but she found that those who resided in log cabins seemed to find the most peace in their life, and death.
She climbs the cedar tree with the chainsaw and begins chopping down logs. The tree promptly regrows its limbs with an uncharacteristic speed and for what feels like days on end, Rio sits among the leaves, cutting more than enough wood for what she envisioned for herself. Occasionally she’d leave to guide a soul if she wants a change of scenery but finds no difficulty in multitasking.
As Rio strips the bark from the branches, she feels as if she were peeling back all the layers of herself that Agatha had tainted. All of the hurt inflicted on Rio when they encountered one another in the aftermath of Nicky’s death, all of the pain she feels for Agatha’s loss. When the time came to sand the logs down, she senses an eerie calm within herself and wonders if this is the peace that Will spoke of.
With lots of time and genuine hard work, a modest two story log cabin begins to take form. She finds it fulfilling, creating something (almost) entirely from scratch and Rio is instantly reminded of the last time she did. Nicky was the greatest thing she could have ever created, she only hopes he would have loved the cabin Rio is working so hard to build for herself.
The seasons shift before her and soon enough, her cabin is finished. It’s a large two story cabin with a huge open floor plan on the ground floor, a small kitchen tucked away in the corner leaving enough space for a fireplace, a small table, a rocking chair, and several reading nooks tucked away where a whole wall acted as a bookshelf. The second floor contains a single loft where a bed sits overlooking the lakeside view through a large glass window. There’s a small balcony outside her quarters with adirondack chairs made of the same cedar wood looking out to the lake. She looks forward to nights when she could watch the sunset with a warm mug of tea in hand with nothing accompanying her except the noise of nature filling the atmosphere.
It’s an entirely different design from what the cottage had been and Rio even questioned on occasion if Agatha would like this cabin, but she stopped herself, being reminded that Agatha is dead and would never be able to voice her opinion.
Rio loves nature in its purest form but still, she thought it beautiful what nature can create. The cabin is insulated with dried bark from the trees, mixed in with water to create natural chinking and she even created man-made pipes for plumbing. Rio developed a large garden nearby for crops to harvest for a generator. Death doesn’t technically need to eat or sleep but she finds the mundane acts grounding. She never learned how to cook but she wanted to learn eventually, tasting the food of various cultures around the world.
Her favorite part about creating the cabin was decorating the interior. Rio’s job brings her all over the world and each time she re-enters various civilizations, she brings back various items she’d found in nature to fill her inner sanctum. She traveled to Iceland, returning with a pair of sheepskin throws she’d placed over the porch rocking chairs. While in Madagascar, she found a beautiful slab of petrified wood she was instantly drawn to that she later turned unto her kitchen table. In Spain, she came across hand-painted ceramics she later used for plates and bowls when she missed the taste of foods she once loved.
While traveling in Eastern Europe, she nearly runs into Agatha’s ghost and the boy, but before he could recognize Death’s presence, she disappears into the Earth. It was her first form, and after she developed her next step in evolution with being able to become a skeleton, she missed the feeling of the soil around her bones. Death was sad when she realized that even on Earth she could overhear life around her and chose to stay above ground for her sanity. When he asks Agatha about the eeriness he feels in the air, all she said was “death is always around, kid. 120 bodies every minute, remember?” Rio overhears of course among the other voices around, but she’ll always be able to hear Agatha’s voice among a large crowd. She notes defeat in Agatha’s words, Rio’d never heard Agatha so lifeless, not even when Nicky died and it felt as though they were both missing huge parts of themselves, but it isn’t because she’s a ghost. She sounds as if she’s disappointed at Rio’s disappearance. The nerve , Rio thinks before returning home.
Her cabin becomes her sanctuary, the only place on Earth where she is not feared nor sought out. Her final touch on the cabin are the runes carved into the interior walls, protecting her from the very beings she hates most: ghosts. Rio knows that in doing so, she’s literally blocking Agatha out, but there was nothing Agatha’s ghost could give Rio that would make her feel better. Not everything was about Agatha anymore, Rio has always hated ghosts.
One night, Rio found herself laying out under the stars. She’s never traveled to outer space, nor does she know if she can but she sees the beauty among the stars. At some point many centuries ago, she saw their pattern and realized each time the sun fell below the horizon, the white bursts of energy held a different orientation against the darkness of space. Rio stargazed with Agatha in the past, but truthfully she was only paying attention to the words spoken by her lover and found herself getting lost in an entirely different galaxy. An idea sparks in her skeleton as she commits that night’s pattern to memory.
The next day, she seeks out to guide souls, but only those who were painters in this lifetime. She asks them about art and what it meant to them and their life, and learns all she can about different styles and techniques. When she’s satisfied with her research, she returns to Salem and purchases the necessary supplies for her next project. The locals attempt to bring Rio into conversation and join the community, but it’s a futile effort.
When night falls, she stands out on the shoreline of the lake, recreating the constellation from her memory against the canvas. She paints all throughout the night and barely registers the next morning’s dew blur the horizon of the lake. When her first painting is completed, she can’t put the brush down.
She spends several thousand moments planted in the same spot as her personal collection grows. Rio starts with simple landscapes of places she’d visited in her existence and experiences a newfound wave of grief as she paints the Swiss mountain backdrop she laid witness to when she guided Will. Eventually, her thoughts return to Agatha as she captures her silhouette against the large blood moon the last time she rode a hexenbesen. Soon enough, she began painting memories of her family. Her favorite is easily the one she paints of Agatha and Nicky together in the meadow, neither aware that Rio was paying attention to them from her garden. Rio makes sure to hang this one on the wall opposite her bed so that when she wishes to lay down, her family is always with her.
Death misses Agatha more than anything, despite the new journey she found herself on. She had long accepted that her wife’s soul would succumb to whatever fate her siblings had in mind for her, considering she’s still a ghost, but the quiet in her cabin became suffocating. Rio has endless memories and to choose from but still she craves something different.
It has been too long since she last guided a soul and she departs her homestead once more in search of inspiration. The first place she finds herself in is in the heart of Salzburg with uneven cobblestone and music filling the atmosphere. It isn’t the first time Death visited Salzburg but today, it is as if Rio saw the beautiful city for the first time. Rio had never taken an interest in music prior, even when Agatha turned their son’s song into a con, but she’s instantly reminded of Alice’s trial.
Rio never played a musical instrument before the impromptu jam session, but she’d heard Lorna’s Ballad enough, it’s truly hard to escape even now, to memorize the simple drum beat and played well enough to aid the coven in ridding the curse from Alice’s bloodline.
When she finishes ferrying the soul of a middle aged woman, Rio doesn’t move to leave the historic town square. Instead she sits in a cozy cardigan and dark green slacks and people watches from a corner of a cafe. There were hundreds of people around in every direction, tourists visiting the local attractions, mothers and sons having a shopping day together, a local performer playing a beautiful rendition of a song on a violin.
She notices a quiet emotion in the performer’s facial features; he plays with passion which is evident in his body language, but also dedication. Of course Death had heard humans often describe music as a way to communicate with others, but Rio never paid much attention to anyone other than Agatha. She sees how his brows furrow and his body sways slower as the melody of the song he plays grows somber, but as she hears the notes grow from somber to hopeful, his body language matches that.
When he finishes performing for the night, Rio finds the nearest music store and enters the cozy shop. The ring above the bell echoes through the vacant space and Rio wonders if anyone is even working at this hour. It’s a small space, all of the walls covered in bookshelves that stocked various catalogs of classical pieces, some native to Austria, other’s from various corners of the world. The sound of a soft stringed instrument fills the air as Rio feels the music wrap around her body.
“Grüß dich! How may I assist you today?” The thick accent of an old man greets her from the back room. He looks far too old to be working in Rio’s opinion, but the smile he displays only shows true joy and Rio only hopes she’ll find that same joy herself one day.
“Hello. I’m afraid I don’t know what I seek but the music of this city has captivated me like no other.”
“Ah yes, Salzburg has been home to some of the world’s most compelling inspirations. Do you have much experience with music?” Rio shakes her head in embarrassment and tries her best to hide the blush that creeps up on her cheeks. “There is no need to be embarrassed my dear, everyone starts from somewhere, but I assure you, this journey you are about to embark on will be one of the most fulfilling, though perhaps I am a bit biased.”
They continue chatting away through the evening. He gives Rio a few books on music theory to read while he plays an accordion. He doesn’t rush her, all too happy to enjoy the company for the night. When Death asks if he has anywhere he needs to be, all he says is “there is no place I belong where music doesn’t call for me.”
It’s like this for a few more hours. The people in the area eventually retreat back to their housing for the evening and soon the square becomes vacant. He picks up his violin and motions for Rio to follow him outside. Before she can question him, he starts playing a serene violin solo and soon the air feels magical again. For a moment, Rio thinks he’s a witch himself, but she realizes that it was the power of the music he was playing that shifted the atmosphere in the night. The music sounds hopeful to Rio, but soon she feels what else he’s saying. Thank you for the companionship.
When he finishes playing, he gives Rio a curated collection of sheet music for her practice, as well as one of his very own Stradivarius’ to take with her. She insists on paying him but he refuses, citing that it has been some time since he’s met anyone who truly wants to learn music for the sake of themselves, instead of in pursuit of becoming the next prodigy.
Rio returns to the confines of her cabin and immediately starts practicing. At first, the sound she created is no different than nails on a chalkboard, but when she revisits her research, she finds the tone she’s looking for and opens one of the catalogs. She’s grateful she can’t feel pain since she plays nonstop for what feels like days on end. After Rio gains a better understanding of the music on the page, she starts playing with passion, mimicking the actions of the first street performer she witnessed in Austria as the music comes to life. The emotions she experiences while playing aren’t foreign to her, but she feels a great warmth radiate throughout her body, one that she’d never known prior, adding her own statements to the music where she feels fit.
When she’s happy with the sound of her music, she returns to Austria where she plays for the shopkeeper. He’s impressed at the speed at which she picked up the instrument but is instantly captivated by the way she controlled the music she creates.
Soon the streets of Salzburg are filled with the music they play together in the night. To anyone else listening, it sounds beautiful but to them, they’re communicating together about their experiences and emotions they’d felt that day. No matter where Rio travels by day, she always finds herself in Salzburg by night, where she eventually befriends the shopkeeper as he imparts as much as he can about music to Death, unbeknownst to him. He introduces Rio to other instruments, the next she learns being piano, guitar and accordion, as well as techniques and various genres of music.
When his soul eventually expires, Rio feels a deep sorrow she knew she’d feel when she returned to play for him all those nights ago, but Death feels she owes him the truth prior to his safe journey to the Afterlife. He’s surprised to be greeted by the same face he’d been playing with each night for the past few months, though it quickly morphs to curiosity and gratitude.
“Did you know, when you stepped into my shop all those nights ago when my time would come?” He asks. Usually, Rio rolls her eyes at this question, this being the exact reason she doesn’t like being around other living beings, but this time, she’s sad for the pure soul before her who taught her so much about a new art, and gives his last few moments on Earth.
“No, I was simply inspired by the power of music,” she says genuinely. “I don’t know when people die, I just show up when they call.” Once he detects sincerity in her words, he hums, his usual smile returning to his tired face.
“You have been one of the rarest students I have ever had the pleasure of teaching, not because of your status but because of your passion for this art. I presume you have a home somewhere in this universe?” Rio nods as tears begin to swell in her eyes. “I leave all my possessions with you my dear.” Rio starts to speak but before she can speak, he interrupts her. “Please, I do not have any family. I will be glad to know that someone who has as much to say and feel as you will continue to play while I cannot. You do not have to play here every night as we have done, but please do come back every once in a while, Salzburg is truly a magical place and it would be delighted to be graced with your music.” Death can’t help but give in to his final request as a tear wells in her eye.
They play one final duet together in the Void before he embarks on his journey to the Afterlife. He communicates through music his gratefulness for their relationship and wishes Rio the best for herself.
When Rio returns, she collects the instruments left behind throughout his shop and packs them away. She transforms his shop into a memorial for the musician, and enchants a vinyl player to continue playing through the night, filling the streets with various classical pieces when night falls and she doesn’t know what to say.
Death transports the carefully protected instruments, sans the truly invaluable pieces which she keeps on display within the locked shop, through the Earth to be brought back to her cabin. Rio ends up playing various instruments and various pieces of music at Nicky and Agatha’s graves, hoping that if there were somehow, some way that Nicky’s soul could hear her, he’d be able to hear how much she missed him through her music.
It takes her some time for her to revisit Salzburg once again. Rio’s nervous to play for the sleeping souls of Austria, but when she starts to play a love ballad for the city, she finds she can’t stop. She plays to remember the old man and hopes that her playing is as good as his once was.
She’s in the middle of playing simple guitar chords on her balcony, getting lost within the music when she feels an undeniable call for Death. Rio hasn’t felt a call this personal since Nicky and she fears it’s Agatha, finally ready to pass on to the Afterlife.
At first, she’s torn on how to proceed. If Agatha’s calling for her after all this time, what would be the reason. Has Agatha finally come to regret her harsh words? Has she finally decided she wanted to see Rio’s face again? She almost doesn’t answer the call, but it pulses through her body once again and she has no choice but to answer.
Rio’s surprised to emerge in a beautiful penthouse in New York City. She looks around frantically, hoping to identify the caller. Instead of her wife, she’s met with none other than Jennifer Kale. In her rage induced storm, Rio completely forgot about the survivor of the boy’s chaos magic.
“Oh, it’s just you,” Rio says as the tension in her shoulders relaxes. Death stands before her in her signature dark robes, her face half a skeleton half mortal so in case it was Agatha calling, she couldn’t say that Rio didn’t listen to Agatha. When she realizes that it’s just the potions witch, she changes her form to be fully human again, still in her robes.
“Don’t get too excited on my account Rio,” Jen greets cheekily. When she looks at Death, she’s not what she’s expecting. Gone is the chaotic Green Witch she grew to know on the Witches’ Road and what stands before her is all too tranquil. The potions witch found it unsettling. “Shouldn't you be glad? You said on the road you’d be excited to get your bodies when Agatha killed us.”
“I am not the same being I was on the Road,” Rio simply responds. She’s surprised herself when realized she isn’t angered by the mention of her deceased wife.
“I suppose a century is a long time for an immortal being to change,” Jen comments. Rio’s eyes widen at the newfound knowledge. “Or maybe not long enough, time is probably different for you than it is for the living.”
“Yeah, something like that.” Rio hadn't meant to lose track of time. Sure she noticed changes in the seasons and found beauty in both night and day, but current events bore Death. It doesn't matter what year it is, Death is always around. When she’s faced with the truth that she spent a century building a life for herself, she wonders what other aspects of life she could conquer.
“You seem… calm, at peace even, especially after the storm you brewed in Westview.” Rio tilts her head, questioning how Jen even knew about what happened if she wasn't there.
The potions witch seems to be able to read the question on Rio’s face and answers for her. “Billy, Tommy, and Wanda came to visit a while back and explained everything from the beginning, which according to Wanda started with her meeting Vision and the whole Blip situation that led to the Westview Anomaly. It all made sense really, I’m still a little pissed that Teen essentially killed Alice, Lilia and Sharon, and you know, that I was bound for a century, but I still got what I wanted. The kid is still a brat though.” Rio beams at the knowledge that the boy hasn’t changed from the sound of it, but doesn't miss the detail that Agatha wasn't present for the visit.
“Aren't all kids brats?”
“Yeah, but that’s what we love about them,” Jen says. “Was yours?”
Rio’s stunned to know that Jen knew Rio had a child herself. Most of the world knew that Agatha had a child and even believed the rumor that she traded him for the Darkhold, but no one ever thought Death had a child. She detects no hint of judgement, solely curiosity in Jen’s question.
“Oh absolutely, but I still loved him with every matter of grain my body is made of.” A brief silence hangs over the duo as they look out over the nightscape of Manhattan.
“For what it’s worth, I’m sorry for believing the rumors.”
“It’s not necessary, but I appreciate it.”
When there’s nothing left to say, Jen makes her way through the Void. Death doesn’t hate Jen, but she’s glad there was one less soul out there who seemed to take a liking to her human form. Rio doesn’t want many people knowing her, she doesn't need the pity or the confusion or even denial that they’d died and stick around as a ghost. It’s easier this way.
Rio thinks of Agatha again, wondering where she is in the world, if she’s still on this plane or if she found her way to the Afterlife. When she feels an overwhelming wave of grief wash over her, she returns to her cabin to ground herself.
Mindlessly, she picks up her violin and makes her way over to Agatha’s cairn, which now holds a dozen perfectly balanced rocks next to Nicky’s long decomposed corpse. She instinctively starts the beautiful opening Adagio in E Major, K 261 for Agatha and Nicky, letting the music speak for itself. Rio pours herself into every note and eventually when the notes she memorized comes to an end, she continues playing the melody of her emotions. She plays with grief, loss, love, adoration, and longing until she feels a presence change the air around her, invading the blanket of warmth she grew to love when playing any instrument.
“Don’t stop on my account, it's beautiful.” That voice she’d recognize anywhere cuts through the atmosphere. Rio tenses at the familiar sound, but doesn’t acknowledge it. Instead, she simply turns and heads back towards her sanctuary. The feeling in her chest pulses within her, it’s been so long since she last felt the once comforting beat but this time, if she could, she thinks she’s having a panic attack.
Rio feels the presence of a trail behind her and can’t wait to be in the confines of her cabin where she’ll be left alone. The sliding glass doors open smoothly and Rio closes them as she starts her kettle for a cup of tea as she tries to settle the earth within. She’s surprised to hear the sound of the doors opening again and hears the faint echo of footsteps on her logs, only then does she acknowledge the intruder.
Rio feels certain her heart beneath her soil starts beating again as she stared into the deep ocean blue eyes of Agatha Harkness. She doesn’t look any different than the day she died, she stopped herself from aging long before she gave birth to Nicky, but instead of her favorite purple robes she usually wore, she’s dressed in a black silk button up and her purple dress pants, holding a bouquet of white chrysanthemums.
The flower's meaning isn't lost on Rio, but she still stands motionless in her kitchen wondering if this was real or if this is really happening or if accidentally drugged her tea again.
Agatha looked back at Rio, expecting a range of reactions to her return to the living, but in staring at her estranged wife, she thinks she somehow gave Death a stroke. She’s also aware of the very deep water she’s in with the entity and waits there for Rio to make the first move.
Finally, after what feels like hours, Rio finds the strength to move closer to her wife. She takes the bouquet from her and is shocked to feel skin instead of pure energy, as all ghosts were composed of. Rio heard of some ghosts developing abilities to interact with Life but it’s still artificial. Agatha’s skin, however, is very real. To be absolutely certain, Rio finds Agatha’s pulse point on her wrist and sheds a tear when she feels the familiar synchromatic thump beneath the muscles.
“How are you alive?” Rio finally asks, looking all over Agatha as if she’s savoring every minute in case she wakes up from this horrid nightmare and finds her gone once again, her words barely above a whisper.
“Perks of reconciling with the Scarlet Witch and her son,” Agatha says easily. “Wanda really owed me after I looked after Billy, and eventually Tommy. I taught them everything I could until they didn't need me anymore, and so they gave me my body back and I came back for you.”
Rio searches her wife’s face for traces of manipulation, but finds none. She then takes the beautiful apology from her wife and tosses them to the nearest chair. She cups her wife’s face and brings their lips to meet in a passionate kiss. It rivals their last kiss easily but is infinitely better since Agatha made no move to siphon Rio’s powers this time.
With each kiss, the couple grow hungrier for each other. Rio doesn’t need to breathe, but she still inhales the essence of Agatha Harkness and commits it to memory in case she wakes up the next morning and finds Agatha gone once again. Agatha pulls back and chuckles lightly when Rio nearly lets a whine leave her mouth at the lack of contact.
“We have all the time in the world, my love. But we do need to talk about this first.” Rio can’t find the words to speak so she only nodded, knowing that Agatha is right. She does find it odd that Agatha’s being the sensible one, usually it’s Rio. Maybe she truly changed in their century apart.
Rio puts the flowers in a vase and places it on display at her table as she finishes making two cups of tea. Agatha summons a chair with her magic and they sit together in front of the fireplace, neither knowing where to start, letting the crackling of the fireplace fill the air. It’s Agatha who speaks first however.
“I know this is long overdue, but I am sorry. Not just for, you know, dying. But for everything.”
Never in a million lifetimes did Rio expect to hear an apology for any reason come out of Agatha’s mouth, but still her wife continues.
“I blamed you for something you couldn't control because of my own ignorance. I pushed you away when you were the only one to truly know what we were going through, and that was wrong of me.”
“You're the first person who never feared what I am, and yet you used my entire existence against me. Do you have any idea how much that hurts?” Rio asks calmly, recalling the memory of telling their makeshift coven Agatha is her scar, but the hurt is present in her voice.
“I won’t pretend to understand what I put you through, but it took me a long time to see the damage that I had done. I just hope it’s not too late to fix us.” It’s odd for Rio to hear Agatha pleading outside of the bedroom, but still she hears the hope in her voice.
“I didn't think I’d ever get you back after him. I’d hoped, but each time I approached, you always shut me away,” Rio recalls. Agatha only hums in agreement waiting with a baited breath to see where Rio was taking this. “I never stopped loving you, I just needed to find less harmful ways to do so.”
“I regret you needing to do so in the first place.”
“I don’t. I needed to find who I was without you. I still am.” Rio lets the words hang in the air for a few moments before she continues. “You never stopped being my wife, but we need to do this properly if we don't want to repeat our past.”
Agatha’s head snaps toward Rio’s, letting a small bubble of hope rise in her chest as she considers her words. “What? No more killing?” She tries, trying to gauge where she sat in Rio’s life now.
Death chuckles at the absurdity of Agatha’s line of thought, recalling the last time they were like this, Agatha was stuck in Wanda’s spell and spewing nonsense about a makeshift Jane Doe case. She missed this feeling, more than anything.
“I never said that, you are who you are and I love you for that. But I mean if we are to continue our romantic relationship, we need to truly listen to one another. You wouldn’t listen any time I tried to truly tell you something. You never did, you only heard what you wanted to hear.” Agatha absorbed wholeheartedly to what Rio is saying, recalling all the times they loved one another only for them to be ripped apart by heartache and grief, and on occasion, emotional incompetence and lack of patience on Agatha’s part. Death can see the gears shifting in her wife’s head and she smiled, truly smiling knowing that at the very least, Agatha is listening to her now.
“You are not easy to love, mi amor, still I’d never trade you for anything. But I can’t keep chasing after you just for you to shut me out, or to be used in the only way you’ll allow. I may not be human, but my heart started beating the moment I met you and you blessed me with experiencing these emotions you make me feel. I don’t know if it can survive being tormented as it was before.”
“I’m not going anywhere, I can’t promise it’ll be easy, but I can promise that’ll I’ll show up and try for you,” Agatha declares as she reaches for Death’s hand, squeezing it gently. Rio knows this isn’t an easy fix, nothing worth fighting for is, but it’s a start.
After a few more moments of silence, Agatha looks around the cabin for the first time and truly taking it in the space her wife created in her absence.
“Nice place. I love what you’ve done with it.”
“Thank you m’lady. I built it myself and it’s entirely self sustainable,” she said proudly.
“It’s very you.” Agatha continues looking around, but notices the runed engraved in the logs. “Did you really carve these runes to keep ghosts out? You hate them that much?”
Death looks to her wife, sheepish. She knows that Agatha knows that she carved them in case Agatha ever came knocking, but is glad her wife is currently turning a blind eye. “I needed a place where I’d know my existence would be safe, I’ve never had one before.”
Agatha hums as she considers her wife’s words, growing sad at Rio being hurt so much she needed to carve the runes in the first place.
“I can help you make one if you’d like,” Rio offers.
“Kicking me out already?” Agatha teases. It’s easy going back to the way they were, but there’s a newfound hesitation over the development of their continued marriage
“Never, just offering you a space where you'd be able to decompress on your own.”
“I’d like that, I don’t want to take this place from you, and I don't want Señor Scratchy destroying any of the antiques in here.”
“We can get started in the morning my love, but please, get rid of the chair, it doesn’t match the vibe in here.”
Agatha chuckles as she makes the chair vanish and brings the mugs to the sink to be washed in the morning.
When she joins Rio in her loft, she’s surprised to see the painting of herself and Nicky on the wall. She remembers that day vividly, the way that Nicky had been staring at a flower Rio sprouted in the meadow and he did his best to uproot it without causing any damage adding it to his collection in the cottage. Agatha tears up at the way Rio captured Agatha’s pure love for Nicky in the painting, unaware that Rio caught the tender moment.
Agatha changes into an oversized purple shirt and green sleep shorts and refrains from commenting how the outfit is nearly identical to what she wore during her trial. She climbs into Rio’s extremely comfortable bed and nestled in Death’s warm embrace. Their limbs become tangled together as Rio finds a peaceful night’s sleep for the first time in three centuries, letting the steady rhythm of Agatha’s heartbeat lull her into a deep dreamless slumber.
They still have over three centuries of hurt and heartbreak to work through, but for now, they have each other, and for Rio, that’s enough.