#These are the sort of things we figure out later

[aunteutis]

TLDR;; my personal Severance theory for what the hell is Lumon's deal. it's a cult, but with great benefits (plus dental!). also, the MDR Orientation Booklet! yay!

hi, so,,,, hyperfixation time:::

the Severance Reddit guys (they're the real heroes and we're all a family here at Lumon) said there was something called the 'Lexington Letter' - it's sort of a proof of concept letter/story for Severance's worldbuilding, probably more intended for the studio rather than audiences at first, apparently published as promo later.

SPOILER WARNING HERE, just this once.

so i read it all, and the letter in itself has some elements of the base/what i guess is the original story: car accidents, severing because of depression, Lumon appearing misteriously, innie-outie communication, people following people. it's written as an exposé on Lumon, sent to a small newspaper in hopes they will publish it. it's very interesting (and another piece of media to obsess over), so i'll leave the link here in case you want to read it:

the thing is:: this letter includes a copy of the Orientation Booklet, and it explains the refining process as if the readers were innies.

it goes on about the process, but it defines the data to refine as part of four different categories: WO, FC, DR and MA.

each of these categories ellicits the following emotional responses that we are told about during the show:

WO=melancholy

FR=joy

DR=fear

MA=rage

NOW::: i'm probably not the first to notice this, so please chime in if you did. but i think each of these categories corresponds to each of the four Tempers that Kier believed to conform every human soul/personality. those being WOE, FROLIC, DREAD and MALICE.

so the (human) refiners are !!instinctively!!!! classifying numbers that correspond to each type of the four Tempers that their biotech-founder (and presumably god) believed to make humans, well, human. and every time they put the numbers in each bin, the bin shows a progress report defining how much of each of the four categories there is already. much like the 'balance' between tempers Kier talked about.

small interruption here (i promise it'll be relevant later): in the Lexington Letter, three things are mentioned that stood out to me. first, the letter itself tells about the explosion of a truck of Lumon's business rival, Dorner Therapeutics. the accident kills 6 people, and the explosion is triggered barely two minutes after one of the files has been fully refined. so -at least according to the original show's plan- the refining process is an actual thing with a tangible function. it actually IS encrypted data that they're looking at all day.

the second thing was very brief: some sort of controversy regarding Lumon's feeding tubes that had caused a libel suit (by Lumon) that made another small paper go bankrupt. it's mentioned as a deterrent, and the Lexington Letter is not published.

third (last one, i promise):: Peg, who writes the letter, says at one point that a Lumon employment ad came up on the radio just as she said, alone in her car, 'Fuck this job' (her former job). as if it heard her, basically.

so, end of interruption. bringing me back to::: THE THEORY.

we have the Four Tempers; Lumon, a biotech/generally huge everything-corporation with (according to Devon) influence everywhere; and at the center of it all, Kier, who is effectively a messianic figure.

we have the Gemma reveal (Mark says in s2ep2 that he identified the body, so there WAS a body).

then there's Ms Cobel/Sigwell's shrine and //feeding?// tube, with the name Charlotte Cobel on it, and an apparent lore-compliant, unknown controversy to go with it.

finally, we also have a fuckton of encrypted data that:: a) needs refining b) actually serves a purpose in the real world c) we are very briefly shown that the file's progess is related to Gemma (dead, but also alive, personality-lacking, and in the experimental floor) and, presumably, other people. and goats.

i don't really know the purpose of it, but i think they might be sequencing the human genome and personalities of everyone //related to Lumon//? to like. make replica people??

like,,, sure, maybe they want Mark specifically to chill forever with his not-so-dead-anymore clone of a wife, but it IS a biotech company that plays god with life and death, and HAS a god like in their company policy. they have legends, and paintings, and rites, and scripture, and mysteries.

like. Lumon is -BY DESIGN- THE ultimate intersection between a literal religion and corporate loyalty/devotion that plagues and defines the current job market paradigm. the work is mysterious and important, and the company provides or punishes as an absolute and final entity. Kier is all-knowing father, overseeing judge, the origin and ultimate motive for everything. you don't even need to exit the Lumon product ecosystem to live, because they're already everywhere outside. hell, they've existed from the beginning of the only history you need to care about--late industrialism!! the rise of the market economy!! wouldn't it make sense for them to give you a solution to the final problem of death as well?

so, my current theory (To Be Forgotten Tomorrow) is that they are trying to deliver on that promise that every religion out there gives. they're ending the finality of death, and making people again. not just physically; they are literally bringing back complete reproductions of people, body and soul. they use the severeds' intuitions (and probably some sort of conditioning in their chips) to estimate the precise balance of tempers that make up distinct human personalities, just as Kier said.

because think of Ms Cobel, or Mark. for me, they are the most extreme cases. if you had lost, say, your wife. or your mother, or daughter. the person you loved the most, dead. and if a family company that you've seen everywhere, and known all your life, stepped in and told you they'd be able to rid you of the pain. or bring them back. if they told you that if you're loyal enough, blindly trust them with your own agency, they'll make everything right - wouldn't you take them up on that offer?

and now that's out of my head yaaayy. sorry for the long thing. i hope at least the letter and manual helped.

if you read all that, congrats! you've been awarded a fingertrap.

kiers!!! (as in 'cheers'. like. you get it, right? right.)

❤️❤️❤️

[valewright67]

YAY!!

So I'm just gonna start writing and hope it's at least like, half coherent. Also, blatant honesty, I am absolutely just copy pasting some bits and pieces from your works, cuz it is LATE, and I do not have the energy to paraphrase EVERYTHING.

Edit: wow, ok, I got very carried away, whoops. Hope you enjoy anyways?

Edit 2: I actually DO have more where this came from, regarding Ximena Talis, the commune, how Viktor is going to shift his focus, how he's going to "disconnect them" while still keeping them healed, but also about the commune react to the fact that The Herald Has A Child??

Some things for context, might be helpful!

Like I mentioned, it's a fusion of "Not Alone Anymore" and "Pull the Blanket Tight Now"

This is what a newborn (ish) baby harbor seal looks like. I believe this one is only a few days old. Quite possibly one of the cutest creatures to exist on the entire planet. (I have a soft spot for seals.)

Here is information on the name I opted for. I almost went with "Ciela" instead, because it's a Spanish name girl's name meaning "Sky" and I thought "Oh hey, Jayce would totally do that to honor Sky, and Viktor would like it too." But then I realized I'd be calling the selkie baby "seal-a" and that was a BIT too heavy handed. So Ilona instead! It's a Czech name!

It doesn't diverge too heavily up until the point baby is born. I opted for daughter, just because, like... Jayce just feels like a Girl Dad, y'know?

It took me a bit to figure out how to get around Mage Viktor realizing that Jayce is a selkie, but I got there eventually! If a selkie gives birth while in human form, their baby will also be in human form. Their Coat is formed instead upon their First Swim, when their parent takes them into the water for the first time, a thick, glowing swath of bubbles (in lieu of seafoam, if not in the ocean) will form around them and sort of compress into a Coat.

And because of Plot Reasons, Mage Viktor isn't looking during this brief moment. Maybe he's checking other realities, maybe he's overwhelmed and having A Moment with his own Jayce, (or what's left of him) who he never got to have a child with.

OK, WE BEGIN:

Jayce clings onto her, dried tear tracks from the hours of pain and fear being quickly overriden by more as he traces dirty fingers over the moles dotted on her cheeks, making a little hiccupping laugh as her tiny hand wraps all the way around his index finger and grips with all her Itty bitty might.

Gods, she's perfect.

He presses a shaky kiss to her forehead, and begins the long, arduous process of hauling himself to the pool at the edge of the cave. The water is uncomfortable chilly, even for him, and he murmurs frantic apologies as her wails begin anew, distressed at the cold. It's a sorry excuse for a First Swim, and he cannot even join her as he should, but it is all he has to offer, and his mother drilled into him the importance of selkie children touching the water within an hour of birth. Otherwise, their Coats will never form, and they'll be left untethered to the world, permanently adrift within their own minds.

The wave of relief he feels when a cradle of bubbles forms around her in iridescent swirls is almost enough to make him pass out, and he only barely manages to hold onto her.

The shimmering condenses into a glowing pelt, then the light fades away. Instinctively, she curls herself up, and he helps, lifting the edges of the tiny pelt to wrap around her tiny body. A moment later, there's a seal pup wiggling half heartedly in his hands, and he chokes on a laugh. She's so very beautiful, a soft gray with white underbelly, and splattered in black spots. She'll look different when she's older, of course. All pups start a bit like this. But he can't help but think she's the best of them all.

She shifts back easily enough soon after, and though he leaves her Coat with her to lie in (it's so cold, he won't take that away from her) he keeps her swaddled against his chest, pelt and all tucked within the torn and retied remains of his coat and hammer that form a sling. Protecting her from the eyes he sees everywhere.

The eyes. Eyes of those lost, those dead. Those angry, who would seek to tear her from him, just to see him hurt. Reality fluxes, and she remains his tether to it, only emerging from the haze of hallucinations to tend to her.

She's hungry, whining for milk constantly. He's hungry too. He eats as much as he can, grateful that against all odds, the amount of lizards (those damned, disgusting lizards) seems to have somehow increased, despite the loud cries of his infant. Still though, resources his body can spare are precious few, and he knows she isn't getting enough. They'll both starve, at this rate.

It's with a new sense of determination he starts trying to find a way out of this cursed hole. She's two weeks old when he finally manages to claw himself over the top ledge, and he collapses with a ragged grunt. She makes a startled, sleepy noise against his chest, and he chuckles softly, stroking over the sling. "Yeah, darling, we made it. Halfway there, right?" She gurgles, tiny fist freeing itself from the fold and waving under his nose, and he presses a kiss to her knuckles before hauling himself upright to continue onwards. UPwards.

Really, he should have known it was Viktor. It's always Viktor. This lonely, regret-plagued man is Viktor. Not his Viktor, but it matters little to Jayce. He cannot bear to see any iteration of his partner suffer.

And... he might know how to help him. His arms tighten ever so slightly around his daughter, and he lifts his chin.

"Do you still have it? My coat?" He interrupts the older man’s speech.

Viktor eyes the ruined tailcoat Jayce is wearing as a sling, confused.

"Your… coat?"

"The blanket, I mean. The one I gave you when you woke up fused to the Hexcore."

This time, Viktor's eyes light up with understanding and sadness.

"…I do, actually. I have never parted from it."

There is a deep longing in his voice, one that makes Jayce’s heart ache, as he slowly opens up his cloak to reveal what’s underneath.

There it is, his pelt, neatly wrapped in a tunic around Viktor’s body. It has become worn and tattered with time, surely due to the derelict state of this world’s Jayce, but the ribbons and little metal accessories Viktor has added to it show that the garment has been deeply loved and cared for.

This constatation leaves Jayce breathless. Years, maybe decades have passed since this Viktor received his coat, and not only has he kept it, but he is clearly treating it like his most prized possession. He can even sense some reluctance in the mage’s movements, as if he is hesitant to disclose what is obviously a mirror to his soul, even to Jayce himself.

And the blanket he is wearing thrums with Selkie magic still. Just like Jayce’s own.

Which means there might be hope.

“Put it over his shoulders. It might not work, but… it’s worth a try.”

Viktor nods, without asking for any further explanation. The absolute trust he puts in him has Jayce’s heart racing once again.

With trembling fingers, Viktor refastens his cloak, then he calls forth his powers to have the blanket materialize into his hand. Jayce cannot help but watch in awe as he bends the Arcane to his will so easily. Although he knows it is not a desirable outcome, the prospect that his Viktor could master such an intricate art has him weak at the knees.

It is with infinite gentleness that Viktor puts the blanket over his petrified companion. For a second, nothing happens, and Jayce fears to have been mistaken, to have only caused Viktor further distress, but then the stone starts cracking as the transformation takes effect. And just like that, the lifeless statue gives place to a shaking, breathing man.

“Now take it off,” Jayce instructs before his counterpart’s selkie nature can be revealed.

Viktor doesn’t have to be told twice. He follows his advice to the letter, then rushes to hug his revived partner. Jayce’s alter ego lets his corrupted hammer fall to the ground to better welcome him in his arms.

Years of complete immobility have shrunken his muscles down and his body has become emaciated with hunger, leaving him in a pitiful state, but whatever strength he has left, he uses to cling to Viktor. Worrying as his condition might be, Jayce has no doubt he will soon flourish again under Viktor’s care.

They stay intertwined for a long while, both of them sobbing quietly in immeasurable relief, and Jayce knows better than to disturb them.

Then Viktor lifts his eyes towards him again.

“How?”

Jayce smiles and shakes his head, then points toward his counterpart with his chin.

“It’s for him to tell, not me. Do you... Do you want to meet her? Hold her?"

There's a sharp intake of breath, wide eyes darting from his face to the bundle on his chest. His counterpart, too, looks up in startled awe.

Slowly, the Mage nods, and Jayce doesn't hesitate to undo the sling, to transfer her over into the waiting arms before him.

The Mage - Viktor - releases a trembling breath as he carefully glides a thumb over her cheek, silvery tears trickling down his own. His Jayce presses the sides of their beards together, trying to wiggle impossibly closer to get a better look. She whines a little as she wakes, scrunching up her whole face and then blinking up at them with brilliant amber eyes. Viktor husks a laugh. "Hello, beautiful one. What- What is her name, Jayce?"

"...She doesn't have one, yet." He murmurs guiltily. "I... I could not THINK well enough to give her one worthy of her. Would... YOU name her. For me?"

Those startled wide eyes are back again, looking up at him in shock even as silvery tears continue to escape. "Wha-? You want me to-?"

Jayce shrugs. "Who better? You are her father, after all."

Viktor looks back down at her, brow scrunched in that way Jayce had always adored, that meant he was trying to think through every possibility of a problem all at once.

"Ilona... For I have never seen a light in the dark as bright as she," He manages at last, and his Jayce runs a shaking hand over her downy soft hair. "That's lovely, V."

"Hm..." He traces the mole on her forehead, "C-Can I-?"

"Go ahead," Jayce whispers, trusting him fully, and the ache in his chest swells when he brushes a lingering kiss to that spot, laughing quietly when those tiny fingers grasp onto his graying beard. A moment later she slips back into sleep, and Viktor almost reluctantly passes her back over.

"She'll sleep through the teleportarion now, and know no pain from it. I'm sorry that I can't offer you the same, but..." his hand sinks down fully, fingers twining with his Jayce's, squeezing apologetically, "there is no world in which I would choose the Glorious Evolution - in which I'd choose my own pride and ambition - over the two of you. Over... over her. You won't need to resort to violence to convince me, not once I see her."

"Really? You mean that's all it would have taken?" His Jayce teases with a raspy voice, "I just needed to let you knock me up? That's it?"

"Wha- Jayce!" Viktor blurts with a sputtered laugh and both Jayce's managed twin snorts at his horrified amusement.

Jayce nodded once, then nodded again as he strapped her securely back to his torso. "Right. Send me back," he declares, tone ringing with determination as he wraps his arms around the bundle on his chest, "I'll get through to him. We both will, won't we, Ilona?"

Then the world flares with pain and color, and reality breaks. When his senses return, he's in the chamber room of the hexgates, groaning as he hauls himself back to his feet. Fucking FUCK, but that hurts, like every cell in his body turned to firey static.

The first thing he registers is... "Salo? What are you doing here?"

"...One could ask the same question." His voice sounds... distorted, almost, and Jayce grits his teeth as he tries to determine if that affect is a hallucination or not.

"How are you walking?" He demands, arms still wrapped protectively around his chest.

"Who do you think could mend such a broke creature?" Salo replies easily. "Would you want... to speak with him?"

A moment of tense silence passes, and every hair on his neck rises in alarm as Salo's body is- is taken over, somehow.

"Jayce," Viktor's voice rings through Salo, as soothing as it is disturbing, "I feared I wouldn't get the chance to speak with you."

"Viktor?" He breathes, slowly moving forwards, grasp around Ilona loosening ever so slightly.

"I would prefer to converse in person," he starts, raising Salo's hands out between them, "but there is so... so... what is that?" He cuts himself off, staring wide eyed at the bundle against his chest. "Jayce, is that-? Is that a ba-?"

"Stop!" He barks out, talking a couple limping steps backwards, hands shifting to cradle her firmly, to CONCEAL her. "You- I do not want the first time you see our daughter to be through any eyes but your own. I do not want the first time you hear her to be with any other ears. And I demand that the first time you touch her be with your own hands, metal or not, just YOURS!"

Viktor/Salo is still staring with his mouth agape, not having moved a muscle. Jayce breathes heavily. "I... I have to... Fuck!" He snarls, and staggers as another hallucination strikes him, a pained moan slipping out as leg wobbles. "I have to find her milk, I'm- I'm starving, my body won't produce, she's hungry, I have to- I need to make sure she's ok. She's- She's my priority now, Viktor, not you, I need to-"

"We have milk here," Viktor blurts, interrupting him, "There's a couple nursing mothers, I'm sure they'll help. Piltover is- it's dangerous, right now. Please, Jayce, there is a place for you, with me, for-for both of you!"

Jayce couldn't help a weak smirk at the reversal. "Piltover is dangerous, huh? Does that make me scary?"

"A little," Viktor admits in a whisper, "You're scaring me a little. Mostly, I'm scared for you. I don't understand- but you can explain, when you get here? I'll meet you on your way, as soon as I leave Salo, I'll start running. I can run now."

"I need a promise from you first."

"Anything, Jayce."

"Listen to what I say. Believe me. Use your kinda freaky mind powers to see what I saw. Then and only then will I let you hold her."

"Done."

"Then I'll see you soon."

Salo shuddered, and when his eyes rolled back, they too trained onto the bundle. "...Damn, Talis. Get it, I guess."

Jayce snorted inelegantly, and started limping past him towards the exit. "C'mon then. You're my guide, aren't you? I hope so, because I have no idea where I'm going other than 'down.'"

Their pace is slow, but they're still well into Zaun when he hears rapid footsteps coming from ahead of them. Jayce tenses, lips twisting into a snarl as he prepares to defend against whatever is-

"Jayce!!"

Oh.

It's Viktor, a bit of a frazzled mess, and chest rising and falling as he forces his body to regulate to the exertion. His hair is longer, and-

And he's wearing his coat in a manner that's frankly FAR too attractive for his current state of mind. As a matter of fact, he's pretty sure that it's the ONLY thing he's wearing, minus some straps holding it in place. Jayce only barely manages not to collapse to his knees then and there, but he does muster a wobbly smile.

"Hi, Viktor. I missed you."

Viktor has his hands over his mouth as he looks him over and takes in all the little details Salo's eyes didn't know to pick up. "Jayce... You look like you've been dragged backwards through Hell, what's happened?? What, you, baby?? And?? Is that Arcane Scarring??"

He honestly doesn't think he can say he's EVER seen Viktor THIS flustered, and its a bit entertaining. "You're not actually entirely wrong. I'll tell you everything when we've got some more privacy. REAL privacy. Your ears only." He takes another step forward, and Viktor's eyes train down onto the brace that creaks around his crooked leg.

"Is that... your hammer?"

"What's left of it, yes. Vik-"

"Yes?" Viktor almost cuts him off in his urgency to attend his needs, and Jayce firmly resists the urge to laugh.

"I'm- tired. Really really tired. And I haven't had a proper bath in months, nevermind a shower. The sooner we get down to wherever it is we're going, the sooner I can rest. Can we-?"

"Of course, of course, I'm sorry! Here- it'll make it easier to walk," he holds out his staff, which Jayce wraps a roughened hand around shakily, and smiles.

They continue further into the depths of the undercity, which would make him nervous were it not for Viktor's kind of frantic hovering offering a thorough distraction. Normally, it might have annoyed him slightly. But honestly, after all those months with only his own hallucinations and a mysterious swelling bump for company, it's... kind of nice.

He stops in his tracks when the commune comes into view. "Wow," he mutters, and Viktor's worried glance shifts slightly to one of pride.

"There's a forge too! It's useful to have, of course, but well. I mostly made it for you, if you ever joined me."

"Viktor..."

"And a greenhouse! Do you remember that first plant we grew with the hexcore? It thrives down here! And I had a lab made as well, and There's chambers for you already! They're attached to mine- oh! I didn't mean to be presumptuous, I just, I thought- well, if you want ones with some distance, that can be arranged-"

"Vik-"

"There's not a nursery beyond the communal one, I'm afraid. I wasn't... exactly expecting... but no matter! We can design one, however you'd like it!"

"Viktor!"

"Do you like it?" He breathes, and Jayce stares at him, then huffs out a little laugh.

"You've never done things by halves, that's for sure. It's... incredible, Viktor. But first-"

"Oh! Oh yes, of course, thats right, ah, Salo, please show Jayce to his chamber, I'll go grab some things!"

Salo gives him a shallow bow, and Jayce watches as Viktor hurries off, before turning away to follow his guide.

Time passes strangely once he collapses onto the small couch, in an odd, distorted blipping. Vaguely, he registers that his chambers - that Viktor had no guarantee would ever be used - were, frankly, resplendent in comparison to some of the others he'd glimpsed. A large mattress is tucked into a corner, no frame, but it's covered in soft blankets and pillows, and there's a wide desk and chair against another wall, complete with a shelf full of notebooks and tomes. A large, plush rug covers half the floor, and he curls his toes into it curiously, delighting in the soft texture. Plus the couch, which even he can admit is luxurious. Though, even the toughest couch would be achingly soft right now, after months of nothing but stone, so maybe he's biased, but he's hardly complaining about that.

"Sorry I took so long," he hears Viktor murmur, and he lolls his head to look at him as he enters, carrying a small wooden crib under one arm, and holding a bottle in the other. "I had to warm up the milk, I wasn't sure how- one of the nursing mothers stores her extra, I guess she produces a lot. Comes in handy at least. She helped me, and someone else had a spare crib their little one is too big for now-"

"Viktor,"

"Yes?"

"Come sit."

Viktor does, obedient as a dog, wide eyed and eager to please, and Jayce feels a surge of amusement. Who's the puppy now, huh? The reminder of their days before, bantering in the lab, pulls an ache into his chest. He shakes it off as he finally, at last, undoes the sling and settles her into his arms instead, letting the ruined tailcoat fall to the ground with a quiet thump. She's still sleeping, though her fist clenches and unclenches a little as she's moved.

"Oh..." Viktor breathes, eyes trained solely onto her, and Jayce smiles. "Go ahead," he whispers, "She's your daughter too. You can touch her."

Viktor bites down on the inside of his lip, and raises a finger to trace delicately over the moles on her face, unknowingly following the same pattern his post apocalyptic counterpart had. And- "Hello, beautiful one. What- What is her name, Jayce?" -his words, too, uttered in that same whispy reverence.

"Ilona," he tells him, and she scrunches her entire little face in a yawn, blinking her eyes open at last, "her name is Ilona."

A silvery tear coursed a quick track down his cheek, and he pulled his hand back when Jayce readjusted her. "Bottle, please?"

"Oh, yes, right, here! She showed me how to test the temperature, It should be good."

"Dab a little on my wrist then," Jayce requested, one arm still cradling his daughter, "I've seen my mother do it enough times when she used to babysit for extra money."

Viktor did, and Jayce flexed his wrist a little as he gauged it. "That'll do," he took the bottle and held it to her lips. "C'mon, sweetheart, please latch, please- Oh, thank you," he whispers in relief as she tentatively wraps her mouth around it, then starts suckling, "that's good, hm? Sorry darling, I know you've been hungry, I tried my best, but you won't go without anymore, I'll make sure of it." She whines when he takes it away from her, still about half full, and he murmurs apologies as he passes it back to Viktor, shifting her to bounce a little against his shoulder. "Sorry, love, sorry, but we gotta start small, I don't want you to get sick, there, go ahead and burp for me, yeah? Not like this shirt can get more ruined than it already is, that's a good girl."

Out of the corner of his eye, he catches Viktor looking at them with an adoring, dare he say Reverent expression. He's almost impressed that his face doesn't so much as waver when she spits up down his front, beyond reaching down to grab the tattered tail coat and pass it over to be used as a wipe.

Ilona yawns, and then shows off her brilliant gummy smile, and Viktor just melts. "Hi, Ilona," he greets her, sinking down into the couch to be eye level with her. "She's got your eyes, Jayce."

"Oh please, she's you in miniature. Look, the moles, the nose, the shape of her eyes. Even her hair is more your shade of brown, I bet you anything it'll be fluffy like yours too, once it grows out some more." He shifts to address her, nose rubbing against hers gently. "Nine months, nine months you spent inside my womb, and all you inherited was my tan? Outrageous," he declares in good humor, and Viktor shakes with laughter. Jayce let's it go on for an indulgent moment, and then sighs, lowering her gently onto the couch between them, her little Coat plush underneath her. "We have to talk now, Viktor," he says quietly, "and we'll decide what to do from there."

Viktor's smile dropped slowly, and he nodded. "Yes, I... can we start with where you were? You just- vanished, Jayce. Right off the face of Runeterra. No one could find you anywhere, *I* couldn't find you anywhere, no matter how hard I looked. Everyone thought you were dead. You had a funeral!"

"Well. I kinda DID vanish off the face of Runeterra. THIS Runeterra, at least."

"What do you mean."

"I'm sure you've noticed the Arcane anomaly under the hexgates by now?" At Viktor's confirming nod, he continued. "Long story short, I got stuck inside of it. And it took me to a future. A... A really really bad one. It's difficult to explain, but... ah..."

"I can- Look? At your memories? If that's easier."

"Yes, but! But I have a condition."

"Name it."

"As soon as you touch me, you're going to notice the damage to my body. My leg, the Arcane corruption rotting in my wounds, the way... the way I know my mind has fractured from my time there, I can tell it has, and-"

"I can heal all of that! I'll heal you, Jayce, I'll take away your pain-"

"No! No, you will not. That is my condition, Viktor."

"What?"

"Don't heal me. Not even a little bit."

"But- you're in pain, and I can fix it-"

"No, that's final. This will just have to heal the old fashioned way. Do NOTHING but look at my memories. And when you see what I have seen, you'll understand WHY. Am I understood?"

"....."

"I don't like giving ultimatums, Viktor, you know I hate it. But I'm not budging on this, it's agree, or I leave right now, and I take Ilona with me."

"Very well," Viktor finally agreed, albeit reluctantly. "I swear I'll only look."

Jayce smiled a little as he relaxed, and when Viktor's hands raised, he held onto his wrists and pressed them to his cheeks. Their foreheads pressed together, and they fell into his mind.

He's glad now for his foresight in setting down Ilona, because his grip squeezes tightly enough around Viktor's wrists to leave dark bruises, had he been anyone else, as they relive everything.

His arrival into that apocalyptic wasteland, the hollowed remains of the Evolved Ones, the petrified corpses stuck in a permanent state of terror, his fall into the chasm, the sharp, overwhelming pain of his leg being shattered, his descent into madness and his confused paranoia as his belly began to swell with something unknown.

Her birth, his first bit of happiness in months and months, her First Swim, and his climb to the very highest point in Piltover.

Seeing their counterparts in this world gone wrong.

Viktor is breathing raggedly by the end of it, and tears himself away with a sharp gasp, falling off the couch and onto the ground as he shakes with all this new knowledge.

Jayce is panting too, and he knows he's crying. "Do you see now? Do you see why I can't let you continue on the path you're on?" His partner manages a little nod, and then a sob tears from his chest, and he covers his face.

"What have I done? What have I done, Jayce?"

"Nothing we can't fix," he slides a bit clumsily down to the ground with him, and lifts his head between his hands, thumbs wiping away silvered tears. "Partners, right? You don't have to do this alone."

"But I left you alone first-!"

"I forgive you,"

"You should hate me-"

"Well, I don't."

"I caused that apocalypse-"

"So did I."

"Why- Why do you persist? After everything I've done?"

Jayce bumped their foreheads together. "Because I promised you. Because I missed you. Because I don't want our daughter to grow up without you. Because I trust you. Because I know you can do so much good in this world, even without this Glorious Evolution business," he pressed a chaste kiss to the corner of his lips, tasting the salty, metallic tears gathered there, "and because I love you, Viktor."

Viktor's whole face scrunched up, in a way that greatly resembled Ilona's when she was about to start wailing, and Jayce felt a surge of fondness as he realized where she'd gotten that expression from. Then Viktor's arms are around his neck, and he's clinging with everything he has, and Jayce let's them fall back onto the carpet to cling back, fingers twisting into his Coat.

It takes a bit for Viktor to loosen his grip a little, and Jayce starts running a hand up and down his back soothingly.

"...Ilona's a selkie," he whispers at last.

"Yes." Jayce confirms quietly.

"That means... you're a selkie, as well."

"...Yes."

Viktor draws in a shaky breath. "Where's your Coat, Jayce?"

"...I think you already know the answer to that, V."

"Confirm it for me. Please."

Jayce's fingers flexed into the blanket, into his Coat. "You're wearing it."

He let out a wounded noise. "I-I took your Coat away from you-"

"No," He shook his head, rolling them onto their sides so they could be eye to eye, "no, Viktor. I gave it to you, because I wanted you to be safe and warm, more than anything else. And I never went after it, because I knew... I knew it'd be safe with you, and it'd keep you safe in turn. There's a big difference between that and stealing it."

"But-"

"How long are you going to try and argue that you're a monster before you realize that I'm not going to let you?" Jayce asks light heartedly, and Viktor scowls. He snorts. "Alright, come on, help me up again. Please tell me there's a warm bath somewhere in this place? I think I'd murder for one right now."

"There's baths, yes," he assures him, helping him rise back up and settle onto the couch next to Ilona, "Just through that door over there, I'll go run it for you-"

"In chamber bathrooms? Now I know those weren't in most other people's spaces, I saw the communal baths."

"Yes, well," Viktor scowled a little, then sighed, lifting Jayce's hand's to pepper kisses to his splitting knuckles, "you're my partner, Lásko. My other half, my equal. It's only fair you get a bit of extra luxury. Especially- especially after all you've been through. Alone." His eyes drifted down to Ilona, who gurgles at him, and his face softens a little more. "I'll be back."

He vanishes into the side door, and a moment later, Jayce hears the creaking of pipes as water rushes in. He looks at his daughter and smiles, brushing her cheek. "Your father seems determined to spoil us, Mi Vida. I'll have to keep an eye on him as you grow up, won't I? Make sure he doesn't spoil you rotten."

"Do you need help getting to the bathroom?" Viktor asks, poking his head out, and Jayce shakes his head, scooping up Ilona and rising to his feet. "Nah, if I can climb out of a chasm, I can walk across a room. Might need some help getting things off, though."

He does end up needing that help, unfortunately. It takes everything in him not to scream - though he doesn't quite manage to stifle the pained groans completely - as Viktor helps pry the fabric of his clothes off of his festering wounds. Multicolored pus oozes from it, and strings of the same sickly tints connect and snap and drop back against his skin. It's disgusting, frankly, and they have to resort to cutting his clothes off of him and pulling it off piece by piece.

By the time Viktor helps him climb into the tub, he's shaking all over, and barely manages to cling to him as he's lowered carefully into the water. Ilona is laying on her pelt in a basket that had held the vials of soap and shampoo and oils, which are now lined up on the ground by the tub. She seems happy enough to be there, cooing and gurgling and waving her tiny arms.

He blinks as his attention is drawn from her back to Viktor. "What?"

"Where do you want me to start?"

"Oh- Vik, you don't have to, I can-"

"I want to, Jayce. Please, I can't heal you, so please. Let me at least take care of you?"

He sighed, sagging back into the tub. "Yeah, alright. If you want to pamper me so badly, I won't kick up a fuss. My hair? And the beard, gods, It's itches, just shave the damn thing off if you've got a razor."

Viktor almost pouted at that, before quickly schooling his face. Not quick enough for Jayce to have missed it though, and he raises an eyebrow. "What?"

"Well, it's just... can't we try cleaning and trimming it first?"

"What? Why?"

"It-It suits you, that's all."

Jayce stared at him for a long moment, then tossed his head back and laughed. "You think my beard is hot?? YOU??"

"What's that supposed to mean??"

"I once asked you if thought I'd look good with a beard, and you didn't even say WORDS, you just looked so utterly DISGUSTED at the thought! It kinda hurt!"

"Well, clearly I was wrong about some things! Do you have any idea how much I want that beard against my a-"

"Viktor!!"

They both laughing as he sputters out a scolding about Little Ears, and Viktor picks up some shampoo, raising a brow. "So?"

"Fine, fine. We'll give it a chance."

Viktor set to work, and frankly, Jayce lost some time in the haze that settled over his mind. It felt so good to be touched again, to be held, to be cared over. Even when those touches hurt as his wounds were cleaned, it was still blissful. The bath had to be drained and refilled twice before Viktor was satisfied, and drained it a final time, helping him climb back out and support himself against a wall while he patted him down with a fluffy towel.

"I'll clean out the tub real quick, and then we can give Ilona a bath too. She's cleaner than you were, but... that's not a high bar."

"Thanks," he mutters sarcastically, but he doesn't think it quite makes it through that way, not with how fond he looks.

It's only a few minutes of Viktor scrubbing the tub with the rag he'd used to wash his body, rinsing away the grit and infection that lingered against the walls, when there's a knock on the door.

"My Herald? I've brought the supplies you requested."

"Come in!" Viktor calls, and footsteps sound through the chamber before a man opens the door a touch and peaks through, holding up a box with a red plus on it. "Thanks you, Hutch," he smiles, waving to the counter, "just put it there, please."

"Of course." He bows, and leaves again as quickly as he'd arrived. Viktor shoots Jayce a nervous smile. "Bandages and ointments. Sutures, though I don't think we'll need them. For your wounds. I sent out the request after you'd told me not to heal you, but... before I saw what you saw. May I-?"

Jayce nods, and he rinses off his hands, shuffling towards him with the box. He hisses through his teeth as various poultices are spread over his wounds, and ointments rubbed into his stretch marks, then sighs as cool relief blesses the burning skin. By the time Viktor is done wrapping him in clean bandages, he looks half mummy.

"Thank you," Jayce murmurs, eyes half lidded as he sits back against the wall. Viktor combs his fingers through his hair once, and turns back to the tub. Satisfied with it, he fills it up a few inches with clean, lukewarm water. When it's ready, he glances back over his shoulder. "...Do you want to-? Or should I?"

"Go ahead. I'll help if you need it, but... I don't think I can kneel that long right now. I'm barely awake as is."

Viktor nodded and, almost hesitantly, lifts Ilona from the basket. "You can put her Coat in, too. Just wait until after you wash both separately to let her shift." He hummed his understanding, and then... did nothing. Just kneeled by the tub and held her for a long moment.

Oh, right. Right right, that- it's his first time holding her.

"She's-" his voice breaks, and Jayce nods encouragingly, "She's so perfect, Jayce."

"Yes. She is. Go ahead and give her a bath now, Amado. She's not old enough to bite you yet, I promise."

He hiccups a laugh, but obediently lowers her into the warm water. She squirms, startled and fussy, but decides she likes it enough to allow it with minimal whining and settles. Viktor keeps one hand cupped around her head, murmuring sweet things to her as he runs a soft, soapy cloth over the rest of her body, washing away the grime. Jayce loses time again as he fights the urge to sleep, only drifting back into Wakefulness when Viktor comes to pass him his baby, clean and bundled up into a fluffy towel. He takes her, pressing kisses to her face as his partner turns back around to pull her Coat into the water as well, carefully washing it with gentle reverence.

When it's clean, and the worst of the moisture has been wicked from it, leaving it only slightly damp, Jayce starts pulling himself to his feet, leaning heavily on the walk without his brace. Viktor is there a second later, lifting one of his Jayce's arms over his shoulders and sliding his own around his waist. They don't exchange any words as he helps him hobble to the mattress, and Jayce sighs almost dreamily as he sinks into the plush pile of soft things. Even Ilona makes a tiny content sound, and he smiles at her as she drifts back off to sleep against his chest, soothed by the rise and fall of his breath and exhausted from all the excitement.

Finally, he glances up to Viktor, who is still hovering, unsure, and he holds out an arm. "Well? I'm waiting."

Viktor jolts, and crawls in next to him. He's heavier than expected, though Jayce supposes that makes sense with the metal augmentations, but they soon adjust to a position that's comfortable. Ilona doesn't stir once as Viktor pulls blankets up around them and glues himself to his side, one hand resting over his stomach. The metal of his body is cooler than normal skin, yes, but not so cold as to be uncomfortable. Rather, he feels like a wonderful relief, like a cool cloth pressed into a feverish brow. He sighs happily again, and turns his head to nuzzle into his hair.

"...You're really not mad at me? For everything? Anything?"

"Mmm... My mother will be mad enough at you for the both of us, when she finds out," Viktor winces, remembering the glimpses he'd seen of her wrath, and Jayce chuckles, pressing a kiss to his temple. "But no. All I wanted? Was to have my partner back. And now I have you, right?"

"You have me. All of me, however much of me you want," He lifts his hand to brush over Ilona's head briefly, "You both do."

"Then that's all that matters. We can discuss all the rest later, ok?"

"Alright. Jayce?"

"...Hm?" He managed, already starting to drift off, one hand twisted into the Coat that Viktor still wears, the other covering his daughter.

"I love you."

He smiled.

I know I already wrote a whole fic about it, but I am once again having lots of thoughts about selkie Jayce giving his coat to Viktor, unafraid to put his life in his hands because he just trusts him that much.

Or, alternatively, Viktor picking up Jayce's selkie coat along with the rune bracelet when he talks him out of jumping in s1, entirely oblivious to what it means, which results in Jayce internally freaking out over getting accidentally engaged.

[knaveumineko]

Umineko Episode 2 Blog: Fool's Gold

Despite its similar setup, Episode 2 diverges wildly from Episode 1 in how frequently and explicitly it depicts the use of magic to the point where its existence seems almost undeniable. Of course, the story is only able to do this because it spent so long teaching us to question all that we see.

The biggest curveball the story is throwing at us is the appearance of Beatrice in the flesh. After spending a whole episode hiding, she's now showing up on screen every 5 minutes in her sick new outfit just to mock me for doubting her.

Since the first Tea Party, it's been interesting to observe how Umineko blurs the line between the main murder mystery subplot and its meta B-plot where Beatrice and Battler flirt at each other in-between arguments about keys. Episode 2 Battler and Meta-Battler are sort of the same person but also sort of not: it's not like Battler is discovering his parents' bodies and thinking "oh my god, Beatrice is going to be so smug about this" but at the same time his emotional breakdown at having to accuse his own family is framed as equivalent to Meta-Battler resigning the game, and after becoming furniture he bursts back in to demand a rematch as if he's been Meta-Battler the whole time. He also has that whole "it's not my turn" thing while napping. I don't think of this as a puzzle, really: the two narratives are seperate but related, each commenting on the other, and the boundaries between them blur at times so that we can have a satisfying emotional payoff to both parts of the story.

As a consequence, we do not have to accept Beatrice as "real" simply because she appears in the meta plot. Taking this perspective also lets us explain the banquet at the end of the episode without having to doubt Battler's narration in general. Of course, he was also drunk when all the magic stuff was happening, but I think it's a bit too convenient to say that he somehow had a one in a million reaction to the alcohol and hallucinated these scenes in particular, although if he did do all that stuff while drunk out of his mind then I can see why Rosa was in such a hurry to flee the island.

Beatrice's early appearances are as a character in Shannon and Kanon's (and Sayo's) psychodrama. She appears out of nowhere only to them. She's the serpent offering the fruit of knowledge and granting them the opportunity to escape their roles as furniture at some vague cost. She later says that she's just doing this because it will be funny to watch them fail, but I think this reflects Sayo's complicated feelings about whatever decision she's made. Framing it as a malicious plan by Beatrice is just drama for the sake of the witch story.

After the fact, Shannon clearly sees herself as responsible for the killings, and I'm guessing there's more to it than the mirror thing. I was very suspicious of Kanon and Shannon going into chapter 2, and dedicating so much time to their characters only reinforces that. Throughout the story so far, the biggest problem has been motivation. Even if I manage to guess who's a culprit or accomplice, it's hard to untangle why they're doing any of it. Somebody solving the epitaph and figuring out where the gold is, then telling everyone else to try and find it too, but also slowly killing them to stop them from actually doing it?

I wonder if Shannon meeting Beatrice for the first time while standing at her portrait is meant to tell us that she solved the epitaph. It would seem she's in a fine position to do so, visiting every day and being familiar with the person who wrote it. We have that little exchange where Beatrice says that furniture is resistant to her because they lack desire, and Shannon's character in episode 2 revolves around a contradiction between her identities: she's caught between joy at her miracle and horror at what she had to do to achieve it, and she accepts the proposal even though doing so will get her killed. Is there something about understanding the epitaph that forces the killings to occur? Solving it is an expression of desire, contradicting her role as furniture, and it also brings with it immense power and wealth, allowing her to escape her situation in life, but it also brings ruin in the form of the sacrifices? I don't know precisely how that could be the case (some dark family secret?) but it fits the story being told on an emotional level, and we know that the epitaph was indeed solved. It also provides some coherent motivation for why someone would try to get others to solve it after already working it out themselves.

Something that really stuck out to me while reading was Beatrice's dialogue in Shannon's death scene.

In general, I'm not a fan of how Umineko likes to throw grammar and punctuation out of the window in emotionally intense scenes. I understand it's supposed to feel raw and unfiltered, but it unfortunately just strikes me as amateurish and undercuts the seriousness of the scene. Still, this is extreme even by Umineko standards. Her dialogue is almost incoherent as her screed continues, to the point where I, continuing in my denial of the Witch's existence, wondered if what I was really reading here was Sayo having a breakdown as she realises that her wish has gotten her and George killed.

Beatrice is not just confined to Sayo's mind, however. She appears in the flesh, albeit only once, or maybe twice depending on how literally you want to take Kinzo's study. While some of these witnesses aren't reliable (Kanon and Shannon's conversations are easy to write off as allegory, and Genji would 100% lie about the meeting) we still can't deny Kyrie, Rosa and Maria seeing her, although it's interesting that Kyrie has her doubts, even in the chapel scene where she accepts the existence of the witch.

I think here we see the payoff to the alter ego theme: there are still 18 people on Rokkenjima, and Beatrice's one and only appearance before vanishing is because she's being impersonated. After all, in chess, even if you vary which opening you play, the pieces on the board when the game begins are always the same ones. If I want to remain consistent with my other guesses, Shannon seems like the obvious candidate. It would explain why Genji gives her the duty of bringing Beatrice food: if anyone else went then they would question why the room is empty. It also lines up with this Beatrice knowing everything that happened in the conversations that didn't really happen (I'm not really suggesting that Shannon is hallucinating or anything - I just think the conversations Sayo describes are metaphors for an internal struggle). Could the scene of all the parents in the chapel have been Sayo luring everyone there with the reveal of her solution to the epitaph, which she proved by showing them the gold bars? It would explain everyone accepting her as a witch. If she was less forthcoming, she also could have remained in-character as Beatrice that night and used the gold to verify her alchemy.

The biggest flaw here is everyone recognising her from the portrait. If I had to throw out an excuse here, I'd question who exactly modelled for that portrait. Surely, it would be a young woman who was already on-hand at the mansion? I suppose we'll see if they dive into the origins of that painting.

Kanon is also a pretty good candidate for the witch: he was already "Beatrice" in Episode 1, so it would make sense for him to be her in Episode 2 as well. His doppelganger also starts cackling like the witch, and while he is initially critical of Beatrice, he also clearly has some of the same repressed desires that Shannon does. His voice is high enough that him impersonating a woman isn't totally out of the question. Kanon being the witch mostly fits for the same reasons Shannon does, and it also gets around Shannon's pretty convincing corpse. I really doubt that one could be fake.

Beyond this, I think most of the locked room mysteries in Episode 2 aren't all that interesting. The main roadblock to solving them is really that Battler doesn't want to think about who the culprit is, so he doesn't bother with the easy out of the servants just lying.

I do have a pretty out-there theory about Kanon's doppelganger. I would compare Kanon's death in Episode 2 to the story I came up with in Episode 1 (my Fifth Twilight post): Kanon was originally in on the Demons' Roulette, but after a loved one of his gets killed he betrays his co-conspirators and attacks them. It is interesting that the bodies of Kumasawa and Nanjo are found in the courtyard, which is the same place that Kanon's killer fled to in Episode 1. I would suggest that a similar confrontation happened in this case, but the servants can't reveal how much they know, hence how vague they are on the details of murders that they personally witnessed.

Of course, this is complete nonsense, because Kanon is dead. There's no body, but it was stated in red. Even at the very end of the story, Kanon's body is nowhere to be found. I already brought up that I think Red Truths could be misleading, even if they're technically true. In Kanon's final moments, he dies trying to speak his real name. This theory offers another payoff to the alter ego theme: Kanon died in the sense that he rejected his identity as Kanon and reclaimed his identity as a human being. Therefore he can be "dead" while still appearing later to kill Nanjo and Kumasawa, and potentially to impersonate Beatrice again in Kinzo's study.

That's pretty much all I have to say on the major mysteries and the presence of magic in the story. I even managed to avoid mentioning the hilarious lightsaber thing! There'll probably be one more post to wrap up Episode 2, unless I decide to skip it and go on to 3 immediately. You'll find out pretty soon, either way.

[monipue]

[nina-ya]

GOOD MORNING EVERYONE HAPPY MONDAY!! First monday of the new year!! I hope you all have a good day lets get this new year off to a great start!!

[tj-crochets]

Good news: after a lot of weeks, my air conditioner is fixed!! Also good news: I caught an error in the software at work that was impacting both contractor pay and customer invoicing! Bad news: going through large amounts of data loosely falls under the purview of the department I am now sort of in charge of, which meant my department (which is me and two other people) had to individually open every single order from [specific subset of customers] since the beginning of the year to manually check if either error had occurred. Hundreds of orders, even with a few different criteria we could use to narrow it down. It's done though! I mean the error is not fixed but previous instances of it causing problems are caught and now that we know it exists we can catch future problems before they are invoiced/paid out I have done zero crafting today and I honestly doubt I will get any done lol

[starbuck]

[musical-chick-13]

Realizing that I would come back to performing full-time for one (1) reason and one (1) reason only: if someone could guarantee that I would get to do one of those interviews where you just play with a bunch of kittens while people attempt to ask you questions.

[mechanicalbowtye]

read the scratch upd8. little too close to home

[thebigqueer]

maybe the reason im so upset about it isnt cuz she broke up wme but because all that waiting over the summer just feels so worthelss now. like i know we couldnt talk as much or be around each other as much but i was waitingall summer like when we get back all we'll do is be together!!!! all of the 'new relationship syndrome especially now that its long distance' stuff will be fixed when we get back!! but were over and theres no chanec of fixing it because were over and its just like what if we waited what if we just figured it out for another few weeksand see where it went form there

[termagax]

i dont knowwwwwwwwwww i just. my thing is that i think the changelings could have an interesting place in the narrative given jims whole conflict is about trying to navigate his place in two worlds neither of which he completely fits in but both of which he needs to be his complete and authentic self. but they shoot themselves in the foot by making strickler the main one and they get sooooo close to doing this with nomura before getting bored and doing it again but worse with strickler. so in my mind i think this is why i was so set on addy being a changeling because i want her to fill that narrative role of someone who's ACTUALLY chill about this dichotomy and who really loves this part of herself without the baggage inherent to nomnoms situation (not acknowledging strickler he did most of that to himself). i just think he needs someone who can show him that its actually genuinely very possible to have both halves of his heart especially post-potion. but man. you cant really get there without dancing around the janus order stuff. and i know if she was real it would just be a cheap lampshade like "welllll shes a polymorph so. no familiar no problem" but that opens up a can of worms that i feel responsible for. and just in general the entire thing has so much baggage. i wish this show was GOOD.

[kakusu-shipping]

Speed Ran through Mario Galaxy 2 Yesterday while sick because I couldn't remember why I disliked it so much and wanted to see if that was just younger me being biased. It was not.

But I regained my love for Lubba and Dino Piranha, so that's something at least.

[erythristicbones]

there are two kinds of people: my gf & her mother, relaxing on the beach as the sun comes up, and me, standing 20 feet away circling some sort of decaying corpse/skeleton for 2 hours trying to figure out what it is

[dashiellqvverty]

i wanna be into comics so bad but at a certain point, after starting and stopping so many comics so many times, i may have to admit that i am just not a comics guy

[dbphantom]

I figured it out

You haven't done shit

I figured it out

[chaser]

While I'm posting here and no longer under any obligation to rep the company, I might as well share this incredibly funny story from behind the scenes that I don't think ever got out: Due to the constant problems we had around "The Chaser" being also a name of a sex thing online (you would not BELIEVE the kind of confused fan mail I had to sort through), in 2019 we had very seriously planned to rebrand our online channels.

After a laborious process whittling down hundreds of potential names we settled on another alcohol related term, a popular Australian slang term for wine, as we thought that was in the spirit of "The Chaser" but also uniquely Australian.

Literally the only reason we didn't end up rebranding was the whole company fell into an omnishambles in 2020, and we were all too busy both figuratively and literally putting out fires to even think about doing a full company rebrand.

And that, my friends, is how The Chaser through sheer dumb luck, managed to avoid what would have gone down as possibly one of the worst company rebrands in the history of everything, when that same name came to mean something else VERY different a few years later: