[PRP] Forequarter Reparations (Temperance & Liam)

[Silverah]

"Indeed?" asked Liam, quirking an eyebrow - but he didn't seem too interested in hearing about how they were different. "You may borrow them," he said, "or if you're concerned about their age, I can make copies for you. Magical xeroxing is well within my wheelhouse as a professor."

He too turned towards the Sisters, motionless in their formaldehyde. "There were many others that didn't even get that far," he said, after a moment's consideration. "It was, and still is, incredibly illegal magic - though the authorities here in Ashdown have always been kind enough to turn a blind eye."

"We took spells from various disciplines," he continued. "Cagecraft and hedgewitch midwifery for a womb. Golemcraft and homunculus theory for the form. Dozens of different spell anchors and blood magic seals. It was very much trial and error - but we were driven by singular purpose."

the semblance of unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

"No need to waste paper - if I treat them kindly, the books should be alright." So, no studying in the park. It was still doable.

Ashdown authorities seemed very strange, especially considering how strict the hospital was. "Didn't the authorities also restrict Sonny's movement, though? Why would they allow the creation and then do that?" Each of the Sisters got a thorough look. "And, um, sorry for asking, but why not a more conventional method of obtaining a child?"

silverah

 

[Silverah]

Liam smirked, as though her question was charming in how quaint it was. "Different authorities," he replied. "Sunny was born in 1902, but her house arrest is a recent development. Recent-ish. The nineties. We stopped aging, but... the world changed around us."

He raised an eyebrow.

"She is no ordinary child," he answered. "She was never meant to be. We feared the existence of a world outside our own - a world where time had curved back on itself and grown cancerous. So we wove a shield. A spell cage. We intended it to keep the worlds separate. Safe. Sunny is the keystone in our protection - without her, the whole arch falls. No more conventional method would do."

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

That the world would change was a constant, she supposed. It only reminded her of how, in the void, in time, she'd seen herself, seen a Liam who knew her. It was strange.

"The previous Sunny - from our place - was also a cage, though not woven by you." Temperance guessed if anyone ever need to really mess things up, killing Sonny would be the best bet. She really hoped no one would try that. "How did you even figure out that was another world?"

silverah

 

[Silverah]

Liam nodded. "Indeed. It's my belief that the Sunny born in your original universe is an echo of the one my husband and I created here - just one many interactions between the two worlds before their ultimate collision."

He cleared his throat. "Renard's specialty is scrying. We discovered your universe the same way an astronomer might discover a distant planet - by observing its gravitational effects. His predictions were skewed, as if affected by the pull of some unseen object. A universe, adjacent to ours, twisting probability about like a string. Once we determined that such a world existed, we made further observations and learned more of its nature... and determined that we needed to protect ourselves from it."

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

Which came first the Sonny or the Sunny - the chicken or the egg... Her lips twitched, once.

"Well, um, sorry for busting into your world, anyway." She looked a little sheepish. "While it wasn't our intent, it still happened. I had thought our Liam and Renard had crossed over, though, as well." Temperance wondered if this was anything like the Spinel Lady and the Burning Man.

silverah

 

[Silverah]

Liam got a peculiar twinkle in his eye. "Well," he said wryly. "You're not wrong. Your Renard and my Renard seem to have reached an... equilibrium. I can only imagine it's owed to their unique position in the universe. As for my double... he did arrive here, but he is here no longer."

If that sounded sinister, it was likely because it was meant to.

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

She looked at him, suddenly acutely aware of where each exit was. "Did you... send him back or, um, kill him?"

silverah

 

[Silverah]

"I negotiated with him," replied Liam, giving Temperance a peculiar look. Did she think him a complete savage?

"I made contact, we had a meeting of the minds, and he agreed that it would be the best for the time being if I be the version present in this new, melded universe. We will revisit the matter at a later date."

He quirked an eyebrow. "Why? Do you miss him?"

The Semblance of Unity

 

[The Semblance of Unity]

"I don't think it's possible to miss him." She paused. "But I do think, if at all possible, all lives should be preserved. We have stolen some, and that cannot be undone, but others, like you, persisted. All should be protected."

Temperance ran a finger along the edge of one of the books. The idea that both Liams co-existed still, one buried beneath the other... was strange. "If you could separate, into two bodies, would you?"

silverah

 

[Silverah]

Liam shook his head. "No," he replied quickly. "I would not. The thought of there being two of me... I would hate to find myself set at odds against, well, myself. I would hate to work counter my own purposes."

He ran a hand along the polished top of the work table - long fingers. Manicured nails.

"Furthermore such a thing is impossible. As they say - there can only be one. Additionally, I got the sense from him that he was tired. He is much older than me. Your original world's time-cancer was quite severe. Rest assured - he is resting now, and he is nowhere he has not asked to be nor gone to unwillingly."

The Semblance of Unity