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statementends · 3 months

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So who do we think is listening?

Last time of course it seemed like the tape recorders were beholding aligned, but turned out to be the Web using the Beholding's need to archive against it.

We're in a new universe now and a new story with new motives behind the recordings. They're just as sinister as the old ones, but now with internet access in a world where everything has internet.

The spying on the employees of the OIAR certainly aligns with Eye Powers, but it might be a redherring. What if the spying is done by humans this time?

Like, oh spooky the technology is listening into them oooo~~~~ but that sort of technology has been around for a long time. The tape recorders were 'analogue.' They turned themselves on and off, but the computers and phones, and things attached to the internet? That happens in real life right now. Someone can hack your computer and gain access to your web cam. We're in sketchy government department of literal horror. Let's tap everyone's phones!

To what end? Probably something that started as 'for the greater good' and has become a monster of its own.

Time for some conspiracy theories!

So. Here's another question. Was the Magnus Archives listened to by someone in the TMAGP universe? Is that why the OIAR was made? Because they heard the tapes and what happened and have used Jon, Martin, and Jonah(?)'s voices to, with a mixture of horror magic and technology, be able to find incidences.

I'm assuming the Voices in the computer are reading out the real statements. Maybe The Archivist's Voice is doing it automatically. It Knows everything all the time but that's useless if you can't see or search for the information. Whoever built the program needed a way to use the Knowing. So it puts in the data and the Archvist sorts it. Archive gotta archive.

My theory is the Archvist's voice is being used as a tool rather than having any agency or mind.

The OIAR needs to find and document horrors. You have three beholding alligned entities trapped in magnetic tape. You put them in a computer program and boom. You have things that can start monitoring the data you're already stealing from citizens and weed out the real horror from the fake ones.

I wonder if this time corporations and governments will be more overtly trying to use and control the dread powers. Like rather than cults and worship it will be people trying to bend the dread powers toward their own end.

Because the biggest question is, if the Voices are sorting real statements, and someone is listening in part for that reason, then what do they do when real ones are found?

Guess we'll see!

Oh and one more thing. It's called the Magnus Protocol

A protocol is the official procedure or system of rules governing affairs of state.

So when something happens, the protocol gets put into place.

So what is the Magnus Protocol? Is it to do with finding the TMA tapes? Or does it have to do with what the Magnus Insitute of this universe was doing with children (see the ARG).

So like Jon was actually the Magnus Archives, is Sam going to be a part of the Magnus Protocol?

Only time will tell.

#tmagp #tmagp spoilers #feel free to reblog and discuss #statementends conspiracy board #the magnus protocol

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honeysuckleharringtons · 6 months

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"In Your Dreams" ~ J. Byers

Summary: When Reader is having a hard time with her Halloween makeup, she uses Jonathan as her canvas to practice.

Pairing: Jonathan Byers x Fem!Reader

Word Count: 634

Content Warning: mild sexual humor, mild horror movie talk (Freddy Krueger is mentioned a couple times), lmk if i misses anything!

Extra Notes: this reads a lil bit like they're in high school but i promise that wasn't my intention lol! no established ages so Reader and Jonathan can be 18+ if you so wish, or not if you'd rather they be younger than 18 lol

Originally Written: 10/26/2023 through 10/27/2023

honeysuckleharringtons main masterlist can be found here!

halloweek masterlist can be found here!

"Hold still," you complained, eyeliner pencil in hand.

Jonathan grumbled, though a smile never ceased from his lips. "I am holding still!" he rebutted. "I'm just scared you're gonna take out my eye with that thing."

This started about twenty minutes prior, when you were telling him how nervous you were about your Halloween costume. The two of you had settled that you would go as Freddy Krueger and he'd go as Glen, but the prospect of all that makeup seemed a bit daunting to you after you'd agreed.

Thus, you found yourselves lying on the floor of your bedroom, eyeshadow palettes and lipstick tubes spread about as you practiced the makeup on Jonathan. He'd been ever the sweetheart about the ordeal, simply letting you paint his face however you'd like.

"You'd never make it as a woman," you argued, going back in with the eyeliner.

Jonathan ran a hand through his already messy hair. "I don't know why you're so stressed about this. I mean, isn't Halloween supposed to be fun? Isn't this stress taking the fun out of it for you?"

You countered his statement with a look of exasperation. "Of course you get to say that. All you do is have to throw on some sweatpants and an old tee shirt and call it a night. I have the hard job."

He sensed your frustration, a loving hand meeting your knee as he flashed you a sideways smile. "Sweetheart, it's just a Halloween costume. You don't have to freak out about the whole thing. I just want you to have fun."

Your heart swelled with adoration for the boy in front of you, a million butterflies fluttering around in your belly at his kind words. "I know, and I appreciate that. But it's our first Halloween as a couple, Jon. And I really want to see the look on Carol's face when we beat her and Tommy at the couples costume contest."

A light snicker tumbled out of him as he pulled you closer, his hands settling on either side of your face. "And you will. Because you have one thing that Carol doesn't."

"A brain?" you laughed. Your eyes met his, a thousand hidden emotions swirling around in those chocolate brown eyes you loved so much.

"Okay, two things," Jonathan chuckled. "A brain, and the fact that you're already gonna be the prettiest girl at the party, with or without makeup."

The butterflies somehow increased tenfold as your lips met his, chapped skin against chapped skin that was somehow your favorite feeling in the world. The bergamot scent of his cologne filled your senses as he pulled you close, tugging your body down with his as he fell back on the carpet. The action elicited a giggle from you, tumbling out of your mouth and into his.

Finally, you pulled away, looking down at him with slight confusion. "What are you up to, Byers?"

"Nothing. Can't a guy compliment his girl?" he asked, faking innocence.

Your eyes narrowed in on him. "You keep acting like this, and you'll be doing a lot more than complimenting me."

"Maybe," Jonathan pulled you down for a short peck, "that's the point."

Your bubble of bliss was popped by a knock on your door, followed by your mother insisting that it was time for bed. You scrambled up from the floor, pulling Jonathan with you and rushing him toward the window where he'd climbed in earlier.

"Good night, Freddy," he joked, leaning in for one last kiss.

"Oh, it will be. I'll see you later… in your dreams," you joked, wiggling your fingers at him to emphasize the spookiness of your words.

The boy simply snickered as he began to make his way out of your bedroom window. "I look forward to it, then."

taking this time to make a formal apology for posting so late in the day lol! it was never my intention to not post today (since it's now after midnight here lol) but the day got away from me and i never found time to edit and post until now lol! hope you guys are well and enjoying all the fics so far! 🫶🏻

-> taglist: @ducky-died-inside @aftermidnightwriting @esoltis280

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saintbleeding · 2 years

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[ID: Comic page depicting Jon Sims from TMA. He is a thin man with medium brown skin and chin-length, grey-streaked curly black hair. He is wearing a light blue button-up shirt and green tie under a grey jumper with the sleeves rolled up to the elbows. He is seated at a desk with a few sheets of paper in one hand and a pen in the other, with a tape recorder sitting on the desk in front of him. Behind him are a bookshelf, a filing cabinet, and a picture frame on the wall with yellowed paper reading “litchrally not a library science degree”.

Panel one shows Jon reading from the paper. He says: “Statement ends. Anyway this person was definitely on drugs and this statement is fake poorly written bullshit.”

Panel two shows him looking up at the corner of the room with an unimpressed expression. He says “what.”

Panel three shows an eldritch apparition lurking in the corner of his office. It is the figure of a man with its hands joined as though in prayer, surrounded by a formless black haze. In the midst of it, two glowing eyes can be seen. Text in a runic-looking font is overlaid in all caps, reading: “No, it’s not, you soggy scrap of wet bread.”

Panel four shows Jon, his hands folded over the paper and pen which are now resting on his desk. He stares at the entity with a judgmental expression and says “Don’t care didn’t ask.” End ID.]

hey so you know those somewhere else fics where it’s time travel? yeah i love all of those. because i also love chaos, i thought wouldn’t it be funny if post-200 jmart got put in separate but near-identical iterations of season one? i bet a bunch of shenanigans would ensue.

here are the ensuing shenanigans

(1/4) (next)

#the magnus archives #tma #jon sims #somewhere else tma #tma aus #my #saint draws #double time travel au #saint writes #(the fic already technically exists but. im not gonna post it till i finish vegas lmao)#described #unreality #scopophobia

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fiendfluid · 2 years

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ok, 100% projection but i think jon should collect postcards, specifically only ones with correspondence on the back, he doesn't care much for the front picture.

he enjoys reading them and learning the small stories attached by heart. though the new position as head archivist puts his collecting to a dead stop, and then, much later, after worms and a coma and losing everyone- he can barely stand to look at them, because they remind him of statements, his own personal archive. all those little insights into a strangers life leaves nothing but a sour taste in his mouth.

he has so little now after the coma, whats one less box?

(then, in the safehouse, martin buys a post card for him from the little shop they frequent. he painstakingly filled out the address and the correspondence spots, and penned in a little fake stamp. it has a picture of two highland cows with their noses touching.

martin presents it earnestly, as a chance to rebuild his collection, his passion. a little bit of hope in a 4x6 photograph of highland cows, and a poem he doesn't hate on the back.

jon carries it with him across a ruined world, inside his coat and tucked between several sheets of paper to protect it from outside horrors, in hopes of someday fulfilling that hope.)

#tma #the magnus archives #jonmartin #YES im reposting this from twitter i think its GOOD #jonathan sims

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immaturegrandma · 1 year

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i think that tim would make jon read reddit aita posts to see if they had the same effects as statements

tim: dude, you have to try it

jon: fine. statement begins: “i (29M) faked my qualifications for my job application. my boss seems suspicious of me, but i honestly do my best to act as normal and kind as possible-“

jon: this was a stupid idea.

tim: so… it worked?

#tma #the magnus archives #tim stoker #jonathan sims #jon sims

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pandorem · 2 years

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Season 1 Jon recording discredited statements tho. Still having to archive them and get an audio file, reading the most ridiculously fake stories that people could come up with. The obvious explanations and the prank statements and the conspiracies. The stories that made the entire ghost enthusiast community see The Magnus Institute as a joke.

Season 1 Jon, full persnickety skeptic mode, without the aspect of the real statements that makes him read them and experience them, audibly restraining himself from stopping reading and going off on a rant as the statement strains credulity to the point of insult. How absolutely vicious his post statement tear downs must be.

I find it a crime that we did not get Jon being forced to read discredited statement content.

#tma jon #tma #the magnus archives #the magnus pod

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gammija · 1 year

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@a-mag-a-day weaver weaver weaver weaver

I love the final line, "perhaps I've never even seen a beach ;;;;)", but honestly, I generally interpret this statement as being truthful, though ill always keep the door open for a different interpretation. But the way i see it, Jon's statement-reading-compulsion wouldn't work on stories that wouldn't make an actual statement, aka fake ones. Even 160s statement is an actual account of events from Jonah's POV, apart from the first and final lines

So you're telling me this Web avatar had a childhood marked by a neglectful mother, an absent father, a penchant for lying and a habit of using being underestimated to their advantage? Interesting, interesting...

this entire statement is full of quotes you can pluck out and parallel to other parts, this time this one stood out to me: "[...] the Mother got exactly the result she no doubt wanted, one that would lead to a fear of spiders so acute that I could later have that horror focused and refined into a silk-spun apotheosis."

Apotheosis caused by an acute fear of spiders, eh? [looks at 160]. [looks at 200]. hmmm.

#a mag a day #gooood ebbysoad #web!martin #tma theory #annabelle cane #tma s5 #tma #joos yaps

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sometimes-love-is-enough · 10 months

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Seeing as AO3 is down for the foreseeable immediate future: here's a bunch of my fics accessible via Google Docs, if you feel like rereading/reading any of them. It's not all of them - I don't have the time to upload them all! It's just the ones that I already had saved for beta-reading purposes. Enjoy!

(Note: not all of these might be in their final form as they exist on AO3! I tend to edit a tiny bit when it's in the AO3 posting form, and since I can't access those versions right now... this is what you get! Hopefully there's not too many egregious errors in these documents.)

Eucatastrophe - (12 chapters, in separate documents, 99k.) - Thomas gets kidnapped by fairies, the Sides go to rescue him, and then things get all eldritch and weird. Gen canon relationships, some OC M/M. Happy ending!

Janus Sanders and the Cassandra Fallacy - (four chapters, single document, 20k) - canonverse crossover with Percy Jackson, Janus narrates in first person the tale of demigod-Thomas's first big ol' quest. Except, well, it's Janus, so you probably shouldn't believe everything he says. Gen, with undertones of Janus being in love with everyone/everyone being in love with Janus/who knows.

lying in a box with a lid on it - (oneshot, 5k) Virgil and Thomas get buried alive together, and take the opportunity to have a panic attack and a chat about DWIT. Gen.

Eye, Me Myself - (oneshot, 7k, script format) - crossover with TMA. Jon and Martin stumble across c!Thomas (and the sides, sorta) during the Fearpocalypse, have a little chat, take his statement... and things get meta. Gen, with background Jon/Martin.

melliferous - (3 chapters, single document, 22k) - Thomas dies and goes to hell, the Sides go all Orpheus-and-Eurydice to get him back, and also there's a lot of bees and a lil bit of cannibalism. Tragic ending. Gen canon, some OC F/F.

tangential chromatics (the mary’s room remix) - (oneshot, 3k) - Logan and synaesthesiac!Virgil have a chat about science, colors, and fake animals. Gen.

if at first you don't succeed, never try again - (oneshot, 8k) - I still don't know why I wrote this one. Canonverse car racing AU where things get all time travelly and paradoxical and weird. Tragic ending. Gen.

#my fic #tss fanfiction #sanders sides fanfiction #any other fics of mine were not in the google drive and therefore i can't upload them here (including pick a side. sorry)#syzygy technically IS there but all of the chapters are covered in so many comments and annotations that it'd be a pain to share so.#you may have to wait until AO3's back to read that one.#but hey there's well over 150k here! enjoy

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joeyclaire · 6 months

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i love how jon will read a statement he believes and then just go “fake didn’t happen” like girl you are LYING!

#tma lb #the magnus archives #chit chats

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somanyfuckedupiftruebooks · 1 year

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Mag 76

Melanie: I'm sorry, let's not fight anymore.

Jon: Okay, I'm sorry too.

Melanie: Just kidding, fuck you.

Jon: Okay, fuck you too.

Fabric rustles??? Between Jon and Melanie???? Oh no wait, she's showing him a stab wound, that's makes way more sense for those two.

Happy Galentine's Day Jon and Melanie! <3

I often talk about TMA worldbuilding, and something I keep stumbling over is how professional paranormal researchers can be oblivious to actual paranormal phenomenon. This finally explains that away. Researchers know enough to stick to the safe subjects, and freaks like Jon and Melanie are outliers who should not be counted (and live to regret not letting things go).

Also very good to confirm that not all statement-givers go to the Institute, plenty of them write into ghosthunting YouTube channels. And another parallel between Jon and Melanie; Ghost Hunt UK deals with fake stories the same way the Archives deals with fake statements.

And this whole section is just about confirming what we already know: Melanie's character and professional development is mirroring Jon's.

I'm reading this as confirmation that it's possible to replicate the Archivist's experience of joining with the Eye by reading statements by finding and reading enough genuine ghost stories online. Melanie's method must be a lot slower and less efficient than working within the established power structure of the Institute, but I bet it would still work eventually. It's probably possible to end up as the Archivist of r/ghoststories

Confirmation that the skills and desire to break and enter in search of information is a necessary component of serving the Eye. Melanie would probably make a great Archivist.

#a mag a day #mag 76 #reeah reacts to tma #melanie king #the slaughter #not!sasha

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lycanlovingvampyre · 1 year

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MAG 121 Relisten

Activity on my first listen: baking something with apples

This is the last episode with my favorite ambiance track :´) We haven't heard it at all in S3. All in all, the ambiance music in S3 got a lot less melodic than the one in S1 and S2. Although, S2 already used the less melodic tracks as well.

Oh right, the Patreon thanks are starting now! I haven't given all of them a listen, I think I'll do it here.

To add something about Jon's coma: I read in a post yesterday that someone wondered how they even found out Jon was still alive. I'm kind of guessing there is something like Section 31 in medical as well. People who are somewhat trained for "weird" cases, even though they don't understand them. To fix that plot hole I'd say Elias called in, telling them this particular person is still alive even though he's neither breathing nor has a heartbeat. And considering, that Jon is dreaming, I'd headcanon his closed eyes rapidly moving.

OLIVER: "Um. Hello, Jon. Do you… mind if I call you Jon? I, I mean, you don’t actually know me. It’s just, well. 'Archivist.' It’s so formal, isn’t it?" Reasons why I love Oliver Banks, exhibition #658 xD No seriously, I think Oliver Banks is one of the most interesting Avatars out there and I'd say he's my favorite of all those Avatars we only meet tangentially. Death is such a complicated subject in itself and Oliver makes it look so... neutral. I mean, the End in itself appears relatively inactive, not having a Ritual and all. Anyway, Oliver calls Jon by his (human) name, is even unsure if he's allowed to do that, since they don’t "actually" know each other. But he respects that this is, who Jon is. Who he wishes to remain, regardless of which choice he’ll make. Oliver thinks of this although he has kind of lost touch with his name(s), since he'll just take any identity which works best for him at the moment.

OLIVER: "And I do kind of know you…? Haven’t had much choice, really. Dreams are like that, you know." I really, really wonder what that means. Did he see Jon's life hanging by a thread. Did he see nothing at all because he’s in a place where the End can’t touch him? Or does he already see a root piercing his heart? Does Jon actually have any agency in this? (He has been denied to die once before, MAG 101...)

OLIVER: "No matter how lucid you think they are, there’s always that part that just drags you along." Meta-comment about said agency?

OLIVER: "That’s how it works, right? Give you a terror; give you a dream?" Oliver in his dreams being like "Alright, I'm done checking out how person A, B and C will die, time for my Point Nemo date with Jon..."

Hmm, is there a soft crackling sound in the background?

"So. My name is Oliver Banks. In my other statements, I used the name Antonio Blake" When I was first listening I still could recall the general premise of MAG 11 quite well, including the name of the statement giver. So I already had my suspicions after all this talk about dreams, especially when talking about Gertrude. And then he says this sentence! I love those "I knew it!" moments^^

"I knew exactly what I had to do. He didn’t look anything like me, not really" Not really! Iirc, this season will have tons of not reallys. So I'll start counting! S4 Not Really #1

"There were a couple of marine biologists on board, a meteorologist, an engineer, someone who called herself a “macro-ecologist” – though at times, she looked almost as out of her depth as I did." Fake it till you make it!

“This too shall pass.” If I had a nickel for every podcast with a troubled, with eye imagery associated Eldritch character named Jo(h)n who owns a mysterious lighter and had a life altering experience while in a coma I'd have 2 nickels. Which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice...

"The rest of the crew didn’t seem to notice, walking through the immense, grasping tendrils like they weren’t there at all" Wasn't there something about "TMA will not have tentacles!"? xD

"But I barely got the first word out before the falling satellite debris hit the ship at 200 miles an hour, killing us instantly." So, did Oliver just walk on the ocean floor back to London?

OLIVER: "Honestly, I’m still not exactly sure why I’m here. But you know better than anyone how the spiders can get into your head. Easier to just do what she asks." More of the Web shenanigans to make sure Jon stays on the right path...

OLIVER: "Oh, I, I’m a friend. Of Jon’s." GEORGIE: "Are you, now." OLIVER: "Uh, y-yes." I mean, Oliver seemed to be a kind of hesitant type there at the beginning of the episode. But this seems like he's a bit intimidated? Considering this is no-fear-because-touched-by-the-End Georgie, it would fit.

OLIVER: “…have I upset you, miss –” GEORGIE: “No, you just remind me of someone.” OLIVER: “Ahhh, I’m sorry! Were they –” GEORGIE: “Evil. Yes.” Hm, another throwback to MAG 101,“Is a thing evil when it simply obeys its own nature?” What makes someone evil? It sounds like Georgie is implying that she considers Oliver evil as well? But if we going by that definition, Jon would be evil as well.. I think Oliver and Jon are quite similar. Neither of them asked for this but here they are.

GEORGIE: [sigh] "Sorry about that, but you really don’t need friends like tha…" Arg, this makes me so angry again! This constant patronizing... Georgie knew this was an End avatar, I mean she said he reminded her of someone evil - the corpse who took her fear. What was she thinking Oliver was doing here? That he had come and finally claim Jon? And she shooed him away because she didn't want that? Because she's not too happy about him waking up either, so was that the reason she wanted Oliver nowhere near Jon? Status quo can’t remain forever. So what's it gonna be? A dead human friend? Or an alive something-else friend?

@a-mag-a-day

#a-mag-a-day #mag 121 #tma #tma spoilers

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yaboyspodcastpalace · 1 year

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KISS PROMPT 75 JONTIM

75) Kisses Meant To Distract The Other Person From Whatever They Were Intently Doing

hiiii arin sorry for taking two years to finish this 😭 i kinda tweaked the prompt when I started and then ran w/ it, hope you like it still :') ♥

[on ao3!]

Maybe Tim was growing comfortable, yes, what with the increasingly foolish stories that he had to transcript and research everyday washing away the bitter and terrified taste at the edges of his mouth, what with Jon providing some warmth he never thought a man like him could give at first sight, what with their new colleague Sasha inserting herself into their lives proving herself as a good intellectual rival and a great friend. All things considered, part of him (a rare, ashamed one) knew he was getting comfortable, yet whenever he would read a particularly circus-themed and/or skin-prominent statement he would take a deep breath before setting it on a special little pile on his side drawer.

And maybe his mood dropped slightly once he started piling them on his desk, having outgrown the drawer faster than he could go check on the fake lead. (Because they were always fake leads) (it was a disappointment every time, and an embarrassment for the relief he always felt).

That day in particular maybe he was a bit quieter than he often was, maybe side-eyeing the static little pile in opposition to the dynamic one on the left a bit too much, or maybe it was something else entirely, because the way Jon approached him to offer some help nearly at the end of the day was almost a kindness. Almost.

Smiling, the feeling was familiar enough for it to look natural for anyone other than himself, the edge of his mouth feeling almost painful.

"Didn't thought you liked bad pulp this much." Jon rolled his eyes, pointedly touching the barely dusty folder at the top with the tip of his finger.

"I don't," He assured him, instead looking over at the last folder on the left followed by the small pile on the right, "but even for you this is a bit much, for a day’s work."

"Insinuating I can't do it?" He teased, knowing that wasn't it. Jon didn't deal too much with insinuations and double meanings, that was a thing he liked about him.

"Well, no, but... " The disdain on his eyes turned into something a bit awkward, something softer, despite the twist of his mouth. "I suppose you would probably do the same, and I'm all done with my work, so... I wouldn't mind lending you a hand, is all."

Tim's smile wavered with a glimpse of genuinity in it, knowing how Jon felt about those fake statements and feeling his chest warm at the offering, but the way he started to pick up a folder from the pile to read at the title brought him back to reality. Standing up to distract him from it he could feel his time closing in as Jon now looked at him with a raised eyebrow, and before any other idea or excuse could pop on his mind he did the first thing that crossed it instead.

Taking Jon's head lightly he kissed his lips like so many times before. Tim could feel Jon tensing for a second, chest heaving deep against his own and eyes looking behind his shoulder for a few seconds before relaxing against him, kissing him back slowly and certain, and hooking his hand on Tim's back with an acute absence of files that made him sigh with relief.

Feeling him draw circles on his back with his thumb made him hum, too, and the near imperceptible tug at Jon's mouth made him smile inside the kiss. Taking a breath Jon put on some -yet not much- distance between them without quite taking his hand off his back, looking at his lips for a second before looking at him, a question on his dark eyes beyond the fuzziness at the edges. Tim would laugh, charmed at his attempts of helping and mourning just a second the fact that he simply couldn't, not yet. Instead, he smiled. A small, effortless smile.

"You're a darling, Jon."

Jon's face did something strange, then, between a frown and a pout and a smile, as if he didn't know how to take the compliment.

"I'm a what?"

"A Darling."

"Am I?"

"Yup." His mouth twisted with the pop of that final p, and this close he could almost feel the warm flush of his cheeks, before huffing with faux annoyance.

"So...?"

He smiled again, getting giddy just by looking at him, before kissing his nose. He finally let him go, putting himself between him and the desk.

"As much as I appreciate the offer, it really isn't as much as it looks like. Besides, I’m just leaving it all prepared for tomorrow.” Not a lie, if Tim actually did it. Jon raised an eyebrow, but apparently something on his face dissuaded him enough to nod slowly.

"Okay… If you say so." Taking one last look at his lips, he nodded again, taking a step back as he circled his own desk. Tim looked at the clock, now realizing just how late it got for them.

"If you really want to help me, though... I would appreciate if you'd go grab something to eat while I wrap this up. If you're not doing anything later, that is." Jon stood in silence a few seconds, coat already on his hands, before stating with a squint.

"I refuse to stand at your door for half an hour until you actually show up. Again." Tim barked an embarrassed laugh, politely referring from pointing out (for now) that they've both committed similar crimes, before fishing his keys from his pockets and flinging them to him. Jon managed to caught them in the air with a startle.

"I promise I'll be there in time."

Looking down at the keys for a second and back to him, Jon smiled a little smile and took off, none the wiser to his reason to be there.

Tim waved at him, before letting his smile drop a bit and closing his eyes, throat hurting a bit by the contradicting emotion.

Tomorrow, he’d take home his entire drawer and a little more, and he’ll look into them on his very next day off. No matter the dread he felt.

Tonight, he’d have dinner with a beautiful man.

He took a deep breath, held it, and slowly let it go, before taking the folder on the left with renewed energy.

A thing Jon noticed once they both got acclimated to each other at the very beginning of their friendship was the fact that Tim liked talking. Not that Jon didn't like it, he could spend a good amount of time just ranting about whatever he had read the day before if it was interesting enough, but Tim seemed to just know a little bit of any topic that could came up between them or with Sasha or the rest of their coworkers. Jon respected that. Jon liked that.

There were times, though, that Jon could see something different in the way Tim carried himself when talking about certain topics. There was always something strange on his smile -or the lack thereof- and a weird glint on his eyes whenever he mentioned the works of Smirke (if Sasha's former side comments were to be believed) and for a while Jon thought it was because it was one of his favorite topics, but the more he spent with Tim the more he realized that maybe that was wrong.

He got into heated arguments and, at times, entire monologues about the man's work, yes, but Jon began to suspect there was something else at play that he couldn't quite get. A missing piece that didn't let him see the whole picture.

Right now, too, in the midst of their coffee break, and taking advantage of the fact that they were alone to actually sit down and relax, Jon could notice all these little things now that he was paying attention. There was a tension on his posture and on his hand movements that felt so unlike him. He wanted so bad to know the reason for such, and to smooth the creases on his forehead, but he knew what it was to keep something tied tight inside. Maybe one day he would tell him. Maybe one day they both could.

Instead, Jon listened well past the point where he could add anything to the conversation as he waited for the water to boil, and then as he prepared their respective beverages (plain coffee for Tim, tea with three spoonfuls of sugar for himself, both with a splash of milk), and finally did something Tim did to him when he got wrapped up in a thing.

"Your coffee."

Tim blinked a few times at the mug in front of him like it was a strange object, before sighing.

"Right... Right. Thanks J-"

As he handed him his mug, once he was sure Tim had a firm grasp on it, Jon pressed their lips together on a brief kiss. Immediately, the vague distress on his features was replaced by surprise, trying to read Jon's face the same way Jon tried to read his, but as his frown softened so did his shoulders, and with only a brief pause to make sure that was okay, Jon kissed him again.

The silence felt heavy after the past few minutes, yet it quickly diffused as Tim sighed through his nose. Jon heard a clunk on the counter before feeling his warmed up hand against his shoulder, dragging him closer as he kissed him back. Neither of them pointed out the way Tim's hand trembled slightly, anchoring on his flesh with something that felt alien to his person. Desperation, perhaps? Jon tried to ignore it, his own hand wrapping around his back, bodies pressed together in what he hoped was reassurance.

When they parted, Tim had his eyes closed, only opening them when Jon pressed his forehead against his. When he laughed it sounded tired, yet genuine, and it was a relief to feel the leftover tension drop from his muscles.

"What was that for?"

"What do you mean?"

"Here I was, thinking there was an unspoken 'no snogging on the clock' rule." Jon huffed through his nose, shrugging a bit.

"We are on a break." Tim's gaze jumped between his eyes, before breaking in another laugh, this time screwing up his entire face with it. Jon felt his chest tighten at the sight, throat hurting a bit by the smile that wanted to join him. He let it pull his lips for a second, before clearing his throat as he disentangled from the other man. "Come on. Before the drinks gets cold."

Tim hummed, languidly, as any proof of their past conversation was buried under the mixed smell of the coffee and the tea inside the small kitchenette. Jon was glad.

At least, until another hum, short and deeper this time, echoed in Tim's mug.

"Too late for that, love."

Jon grimaced, and Tim patted him in the shoulder with a sympathetic smile. It wouldn't be the first that that either of them drank their drinks past their prime due to losing the track of time, yet it somehow felt more embarrassing to it together.

Oh well.

A lukewarm cup of tea was well worth to see the relaxed bliss in Tim's closed eyes, he supposed.

#the magnus archives #tim stoker #jonathan sims #jontim #magnus archives #statement ends #my art tag #tim centric bc i love tim bro..... i love him so much ;_;

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ollieofthebeholder · 1 year

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to find promise of peace (and the solace of rest): a TMA fanfic

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Chapter 1: October 2015

It was, quite frankly, probably the worst day Martin had had since getting moved to the Archives, which was saying something. His alarm hadn't gone off for some reason, so he'd had to rush out the door without eating in order to make his train on time; there'd been trouble on the Northern line that had caused him to miss his connection and have to wait for the next one, meaning he'd only just made it to work before he would be considered late; Tim had accidentally knocked over his tea and it had barely missed the stack of files Martin was trying to research (he just knew that would have been his fault somehow); he'd been hung up on three times trying to verify statements; and when he'd tried to call his mother to wish her a happy birthday, the nurse on duty had been the bossy one who'd never liked him anyway and had told him, condescendingly and specifically and with a spiteful emphasis on the last word, that Miss Liliana doesn't want any calls from you. He was stressed, he was tired, he was strung out. He was on his fifth cup of tea and hadn't brought one to Jon all day, he'd forgotten to pack a lunch and didn't have the money to buy until payday, and at this point he was just counting the hours until he could leave, something he hadn't done in months—not that being home would be any better, just that he could at least bury his face in his pillow and scream his frustration out.

He was the last one back from his lunch break, clutching his cup in both hands. Tim and Sasha were hard at work, Tim frowning and Sasha intent, but she was the one to look up and wave at his desk when she saw him. “We got a statement that mentions a Leitner. Jon wants you to check it against whatever catalogs you can come up with so we can figure out how his edition is different than the original. Says it's top priority.“

Martin made a noise of what he hoped came across as acknowledgment and agreement and sat down at his desk, opening the laptop and reaching for the sticky note with Jon's familiar loopy handwriting on it. He glanced at it, and his day went from lousy to full-on shit when he saw the words Ex Altiora.

“Oh, bloody hell,“ he muttered under his breath.

Tim looked up briefly from his computer. “You know the book?“

“Never read it, but I've heard of it.“ Martin began calling up all the catalogs he could think of, but he knew it was going to be hopeless. They'd never known much about Ex Altiora, but they'd all known it was never mass-produced; there had only ever been one copy, and that much sought-after. The old bag had been furious when…

He terminated that thought quickly. His last encounter with…her…hadn't been pleasant and wasn't one he wanted to relive. Not today. Not at work, anyway.

“How many Leitners are there, anyway?“ Tim asked, sitting back and stretching. “I mean, how many books did he have in that library of his?“

“Nine hundred seventy-eight,“ Martin said automatically. “According to rumor, anyway. Not like he ever let people have access to his collection.“

Tim let out a long, low whistle. Sasha cocked her head at him. “How do you know that?“

“I did my master's thesis on Leitners.“ It was a lie. An old lie, one Martin had trotted out rather a lot in the last eleven years. It had always served him well, but just then, he wished he hadn't said it. Tim knew he didn't have a degree, and he was sure to press Martin about it later.

Fleetingly, Martin gave a thought to cluing Tim in on what was really going on. What was out there. At some point he would need to tell them anyway; they were going to get too close, sooner rather than later, and it was better that they be prepared. Elias hadn't seen fit to tell them, apparently, if Jon's skeptic act was anything to go by (he had to be faking it, nobody could work for the Magnus Institute and disbelieve that hard), but surely he wouldn't have assigned Martin down here if he didn't want them to know. That Elias might not know had never once crossed his mind. It was definitely possible to work for the Magnus Institute without some idea of what it was about, witness the other three people in the Archives, but no way would he be able to head it up if he didn't.

At the moment, however, he put his head down and kept working.

“Martin.“ Jon's voice jerked Martin out of his work haze. He looked up to find Jon scowling at him…or at least in his direction. For once, Martin didn't actually think it was directed at him. Yet. “Have you been able to find anything on Ex Altiora in the catalogs?“

“No, sorry. I don't—it was a pretty rare book,“ Martin hedged. “I mean, there was only one copy.“

Jon's scowl deepened. Now it was for Martin. “Just because it hasn't turned up on any lists so far doesn't mean it isn't on any of them. You're going to have to try harder than that. We can't just give up because it isn't easy.“

Normally, Martin would have apologized, stammered out an excuse, something, but he was tired and overwhelmed and stressed all to hell and gone, and it all combined to make him snap back at Jon in a way he normally only did with people he trusted implicitly not to punish him for it, or didn’t care what they thought of him. “I'm not giving up. It's not just that it won't be on any of those catalogs because it was unique, it's because it wasn't any kind of history or instruction book. It was just a story, somewhere between an epic poem and a fairy tale, about a monster threatening a village that turns out to be bigger than they think every time they start preparing until they throw themselves off a cliff to escape it. The people who understood what it was and what it meant had a vested interest in other people not knowing, so naturally they'd be keen to keep it off of any publicly-available lists, and since there was only ever one copy of the original because nobody ever survived owning it long enough to duplicate it, there aren't going to be other editions out there. Jurgen Leitner's library wasn't all special editions of books expurgated for the general public, you know.“

He stopped, partly because he was out of breath and partly because his brain had just caught up with his tongue and was trying to throttle it. Jon looked rather like Martin had slapped him, and behind him, Sasha and Tim were both gaping at him like he'd just stripped naked and sung a lounge song. His cheeks burned, probably a bright red, but he pressed his lips together tightly to keep himself from apologizing. He hadn't actually said anything he needed to be sorry for.

Finally, Tim reached up and manually shut his jaw, then spoke up in a voice that was almost his usual jovial tones, which told Martin that was as much an act as his own usual soft-spoken awkwardness. “Martin's thesis was on Leitner's library, remember, boss? I think he knows what he's talking about.“

“I—yes, that's right, I'd forgotten.“ Jon sounded slightly off-balance and…almost subdued. “I—I apologize for doubting you. Undoubtedly you're correct about this.“

Was it Martin's imagination, or did he put slight emphasis on the word this? He decided not to mention it. “It's all right,“ he said, and he wasn't sure if it was true or not.

Slowly, he felt himself calming, at least a little. His computer beeped softly at him, telling him he needed to plug it in, and he twisted around to get at the cord. As he did so, Jon turned to Tim. “Have you had any luck in tracking down Gerard Keay?“

Martin fell off his chair.

#ollie writes fanfic #the magnus archives #tma #to find promise of peace (and the solace of rest)#the project that tumblr enabled #martin blackwood #tim stoker #sasha james #jonathan sims #implied emotional abuse #hey look it's been posted for less than two hours and I already had to make an edit #whoops

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