alwayskayaking | Duplicity Inbox

I'm glad you weren't. I didn't like seeing him like that and I don't think he would have appreciated someone else witnessing it.

[Big Tim's joy at the ride just reassures Tim that he's made an okay decision this time and he makes more risky turns and speeds faster, just to hear him cheer]

I can, and I can also teach you how to ride if you really want?

He's survived monsters and killer worms. You would think a little bike ride would be nothing for him by now! [Tim says that but he knows better. They were pretty different things.]

Really? Teach me in a way that would keep me from breaking my neck? Because that does sound pretty fun! [Cheer he does at those fun turns just for Tim. He deserves it.]

As I said to him, fears aren't really rational though are they? and he said he's fine with Alessandro's sidecar so apparently it's just my driving that's terrifying.

[Tim smirks at the joke, even though he had been really worried about Jon when he realised how terrified the man was. And he had explained the flashback that had been triggered by the ride. He's not sharing that with this Tim though]

Well, I'm not going to teach you in a way that has you breaking your neck so I guess not dying is the only option.

I look forward to the lessons. I can even pay for them if you'd accept it. And I mean more than just with lunch today.

I will not say no to payment. One of the most annoying things about this city is how hard it is to get the resources needed.

[He's so used to having an almost bottomless amount of resources and access to gadgets. Even if he has had two years to adjust, he still wishes somethings were easier]

Shall we head inside though? Start with you treating me to lunch.

Then feel free to ask for cash or some sort of resource. What kind of things do you need? And will it need to be bat-shaped? Because you might be able to save a bit of money if it's not custom made. [He asks; clearly joking as they head inside.]

How old are you, anyway? Are you even allowed to drink? [This is asked because Tim plans on ordering himself a beer.]

[Tim snorts out a laugh at the bat question] Nothing needs to be bat-shaped, that was not my brand to maintain even if I did have it here.

Honestly, cash would just be the easiest because I can funnel that into the Community Centre but if I need help purchasing things I might get back to you on that.

[Big Tim gets a sour look at the enquiring about the age thing. At least the man asked and didn't presume he was too young]

And I'm 19. Not technically old enough in my country, old enough in yours and more than old enough here since 15 is legal age here. I won't be drinking though

I'm good with cash.

[Tim nods his head.] You sure? I think I'm going to grab myself a beer. [Which he leans over and gives his request to the bartender on duty.] What about a soft drink or something?

[Tim shakes his head] A grape soda would be nice but yeah I don't drink alcohol.

[He had a small phase here in Duplicity where he went a bit wild but he's realised that he can very easily do these things without the assistance. He waits for Tim to get their drinks and beacons him to a booth towards the back.]

So where would you like to start? In regards to telling me everything about the Magnus Institute.

[Setting down their drinks and sitting down Tim sighs.] But I haven't even had my eggs yet! [He weakly protests without any real seriousness to his words.]

Where to start really? From what Jon tells me we've ended the world back home so that's pretty exciting, I guess.

Did you order eggs? with your beer? [Look, that is completely a combination of food that Tim would eat if he drank alcohol but he also knows that it's not exactly a socially normal choice]

Jon always gives only bits and pieces of information everytime I see him. I'm vaguely wearing him down but it's hard to establish a timeline from it all.

So start from the beginning? I suppose that's when Jon became the Archivist?

No. Not really. Ordered some chips. [Because talking about work? That called for some grease.]

No, I guess if you want the beginning, beginning it was when Jon got the job as head archivist even though he was not at all qualified for the job. I'm still not sure he really understands what real archivists even do.

How did Jon get hired as the head archivist if the man wasn't qualified for the job? No, wait, I already know. Elias.

So he wanted Jon in the position and you ended up as an assistant? were you qualified for it?

[When the chips turn up, Tim will just start stealing them. He will also combine condiments to just smear his chips in. Doesn't matter if those flavours were supposed to go together or not. Vinegar and BBQ sauce? totally works according to little Tim]

Eh? [Tim shrugs lazily.] Yes and no. I was in research before that and some of the work I ended up doing for Jon felt much more like research than archiving at the end of the day. Tracking down old leads to see if there were any updates on old cases. I won't lie and say I didn't enjoy the challenge or the thrill of finding something that might have been missed in the past, but it wasn't exactly archiving either.

[He raises an eyebrow at the younger Tim's eating habits, but says nothing about it.] You know I swear one day I walked into his office to ask him a question and I'm pretty sure he was googling how to be a head archivist.

It really sounds more like cold cases for a supernatural police department with a side job of filing to me.

[Tim snorts out a laugh which he tries to cover with his hand]

Oh god, why did he even take a job he clearly didn't know how to do? No, the answer to that is probably Elias too. That man clearly has had a hold on Jon for a while,

[Tim can read a lot of the signs of an emotionally abusive and manipulative relationship and he's never actually talked to Elias. It's all in Jon's body language and the way he seems to always get deeper into trouble anytime he interacts with the man. Tim has seen it a lot in Gotham and he considers again about the emotional support attack dog that Jon could clearly benefit from]

He probably didn't really get a choice about taking the job.

That's probably the best description I've heard for the job in a while. [He smiles as he crams several chips into his mouth. Respectfully chewing and swallowing before he continues.]

That and there were some perks with the job. I think he got a pretty good place to live in, the pay wasn't terrible, and it's hard to not want to climb up the academia ladder when you have the chance to.

Elias was more of an subtle, sweet talking asshole back home. He actually wasn't a terrible boss as much as I hate to admit it. Couldn't take a joke, but he was alright.

Honestly, that sounds like a relaxing job until you factor in the supernatural and fear factor.

[Honestly it doesn't sound that bad even with the supernatural element. Although Elias would be a pain to deal with, especially with his ability to see through cameras and alter visual data]

I suppose he had to actually worry about consequences back home. Here as a Dominant, he has a lot of the power just from existing.

I suppose if you think constantly surrounding yourself and having to bring up people's past traumas on a daily basis is relaxing. Some of the people we go back to interview are not always the most calm and rational sort.

I also think it's just because he has Jon right under his thumb so he doesn't have to be. He says jump and Jon says how high while already jumping.

Well, there are multiple professions that fit that description though. Psychiatrist, social worker, cop, judge and well they all are doing it to help a person.

Sometimes just talking through trauma can really help a person out. These people seek you out a lot of the time right?

[Unless Jon has gone statement zombie, this is the way Tim thinks it works]

I can't really speak for Jon and his reasoning behind obeying Elias but things have obviously changed since then. What happened?

And that's the key difference. Those people want to help. We were just there to bring up bad memories for our own amusement. We didn't care what happened to people after they left our offices. Some people do seek us out, others are pointed in our direction, but most seem to come to us in the hope that we'll believe them. Half the time we don't even give them that satisfaction. Jon usually tells them they had a night where they drank too much and sends them on their way.

No idea. Maybe he just likes being bullied. [Or maybe Elias would dangle people's safety in front Jon like a sadistic toy which Tim was well aware of.]

Okay, true. I will give you that. The Magnus Institute wasn't exactly established to help people through what they experienced. You can't blame yourself for what was set up or really Jon's behaviour either.

But we've gotten off track, you said it started with Jon's weird promotion. How did it change after that, you took statements, Jon was rude to people. When did it start becoming real and not just drunkards and the easily frightened?

Personally it was before I even joined the institute. I joined because I thought they did more to try to track down the monsters of the world. There was something I was hoping to find and also learn a way to kill.

Except it wasn't really anything like that. It was like any other desk job until these worms started to show up. At first that's all they were. Just really weird worms to be careful around until they started stalking people. It just got worse from there.

[Well there are a couple of lines that ring a lot of bells in Tim's brain. Tim wasn't just around to be a researcher or for just a job. He joined the institute to kill something in the name of someone. Revenge and retribution is easy to recognise when you've felt it yourself.

Something to bring up later perhaps.]

And what caused the worm? Is there a major fear involving bugs? I believe Jon went over some of the different categories with me but he's rather cagey about voicing the information.

[How do worms stalk people??]

Who were they stalking? Jon, I presume?

I mean many people have a fear of bugs. There was a man in our world, Robert Smirke, who broke many of our fears into categories. I think bugs would have fallen under the idea of corruption.

And I believe they were. Although Jon is probably the better person to know why. He mentioned about Elias needing him marked by every single one of those categories so that is probably the reason, but that's just my best guess.

Jon has mentioned the different categories but he wasn't really willing to tell me all of them. I guessed a few and he confirmed but if I couldn't figure it out at the time, then no confirmation.

[Tim has some more ideas of possible fears. He knows a lot of things people are scared of but sorting them into the categories that Jon's world has is different.]

Okay so the worms started stalking people, or rather Jon? so what happened next?

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