#-but they come to a tepid sort of respect when daisy tried to quit the hunt and gerry is sorry for basira and jon when daisy dies. there))

[welcometogrouchland]

AU where it's possible to take Gerry out of the book so that he's alive?

1. Gerry survives by becoming an avatar of the end. It wouldn't be his first choice. He's still fairly aligned with the eye, in a way that his role is to be the Spectre who Observes and catalogues, unbeknownst to the living. He's not really thrilled about being an avatar, especially considering the only people who can See him is those with a connection to the eye, meaning his only human contact is the archives staff. But it doesn't hurt the same way the book did, and he figures he can still find some way to make himself useful. Not ideal, but when has his life ever been ideal?

2. Y'know the bit in the retrospectives where Jonny and Alex say Jon and Gerry would be a great buddy cop duo? Yeah that's Jon and Gerry in this au. Assuming Gerry makes The Choice to be an avatar soon after meeting Jon, they probably spend a lot of late season 3 together, bouncing ideas back and forth, Gerry not letting on everything he knows because he's just really not in the mood to be used shockingly enough, and Jon, despite and insatiable want for knowledge, respects this boundary as much as possible, trying to let Gerry know he doesn't see him as an encyclopedia. For a while it's nice! And then the unknowing happens and when jon wakes up again it's not so nice...

3. Speaking of which, in season 4 Gerry doesn't exactly go out of his way to talk to basira or Melanie at first- basira doesn't trust him (she doesn't trust anyone at that point), and she only talks to him when she needs something from him (a dynamic Gerry really doesn't appreciate considering his history with Julia and Trevor). Gerry and melanie actually got along before everything went down hill. They had similar taste in a lot of things and Melanie was excited to talk to a ghost that didn't want to hurt her, but after a while, Gerry's awkward attempts to reach out just frustrated Melanie. She kept lashing out and Gerry could tell she wanted to be alone. So he left her alone, left basira alone, and consigned himself to being alone too. He never really gets along with basira until the end of it all, and he at least makes up with Melanie before she blinds herself (she stops being able to see him after that)

4. But speaking of being lonely, oh boy the Gerry and Martin dynamic in this au. Look, everyone and their mum has gone on about these two, but I gotta reiterate how much potential there is for their dynamic. Late season 3 when Gerry becomes an addition to the archives martin is predicably jealous. Of course, right when he's starting to think Jon might like him (though martin doubts Jon returns his feelings it's nice to at least be friends), some hot goth has to swoop in and steal his thunder! It's all very funny and petty considering Gerry is really not paying attention to any romantic drama in the archives- including the drama supposedly involving him. Gerry just isn't that type of guy. The period in between seasons 3 and 4 (one of my favorite pieces of unexplored canon tbh) has a different Gerry and Martin dynamic. Lots of them silently sitting beside jon's hospital bed, awkward exchanges. At least one stilted conversation where they almost bond over their relationships with their mothers. Then in season 4 even after martin turns to the lonely Gerry keeps trying to reach out, much to Martin's annoyance considering he's not allowed to talk to people (there's lots of snarky "well I'm not technically a person anymore, am I?" Remarks from Gerry in response). By season 5 martin has basically warmed up to Gerry and considers him a good friend, as does Gerry. It's something neither of them have had in a long while.

5. In season 5 Gerry keeps watch over the archives in the eyepocalypse. He has a domain, the twisted corpse of pinhole books which I can imagine is similar to the "endless library that's always shrinking" idea that Alex mentioned in the Q and A. It's a bit of a metaphor for the way Gerry's life, social circle and opportunities narrowed the more knowledge he gained of the supernatural world, as those trapped in pinhole books learn more and more, gaining more incentives to keep them locked away in the library forever, even if they find the exit, until they waste away and die. You can imagine Gerry wouldn't want to be there very often. He spends a lot of time with wtgfs- Georgie can see him because of her connection to the end and relays all the things Gerry says to Melanie. It's not perfect but they're happy they can talk again. I like to think Gerry is one of the avatars who ends up somewhere else, but honestly? I think his last moments are spent in the newly restored earth, before fading away. He's finally rid of the entities. He can rest now.