To those of you who encountered my counterpart, you have...my most sincere apologies. Forgive me if I do not issue a formal and personal apology to each and every last one of you, but I am currently in no state to deal with emotional backlash or philosophical argument.
We will be leaving the ship once Martha has recovered from the death toll. If there are any complaints to that end, I suggest you save them for our return.
[Private to Merlin]
Thank you.
[Private to Molly]
Are –
[And then Snape decided it was time to say ‘screw it’ to beating around the bush.]
Are you all right?
[Private to Sirius Black]
Set aside all that has passed between us for one moment. Refrain from sneers and dismissive replies. Pretend, if you must, that I am anyone else.
Please - please - do not tell Martha the things I said. She may well forgive me if she knew, but no matter what their intent or who I might have been when I spoke them, she has endured enough horrors without those words in the back of her mind.
[Private to Mozenrath]
I do not wish to have this conversation with you in person. I sincerely doubt this will be the most coherent letter I have ever written, and trust you will understand.
To begin, I am not angry. I expect that will be your first question. You acted in a manner which I believe to be honorable and considerate of my own well-being. In the end, you defended yourself against an enemy and I approve of your actions. I am…proud of you. Not as a warden, obviously, but as a mentor.
There are several things of which I believe you should be aware, concerning my counterpart – things which I have known for two years, and have told no one. The first is that he is not sane. His mind was under immense stress. T’Pol was his warden, as well, and used her abilities to control him. She was apparently demoted at some point in their past, though her actions toward him continued during her own incarceration. His new warden – Arthur – employed the same tactics until it drove him mad. He was a coward, Mozenrath, but he didn’t simply surrender. He broke. He became unhinged.
The second is that he loathes us. This Barge. He hid under the protection of one of our own last time, and suffered for it. He believes we abandoned him. He exists in a constant state of paranoia and hatred. There were moments of clarity, and your conversation with him appears to have been one of them. I have nothing of importance to relate to you that you might not have gleaned on your own save this: for one moment, he wanted very much to have the life you described to him.
What you choose to do with that information is your own business.
Martha and I will be leaving for some time, though I will attempt to ensure we return in some days’ time, from your perspective. I promised to take you with me when I leave for good, and so I shall.
I suppose that is what one does for family, after all.
We will be leaving the ship once Martha has recovered from the death toll. If there are any complaints to that end, I suggest you save them for our return.
[Private to Merlin]
Thank you.
[Private to Molly]
Are –
[And then Snape decided it was time to say ‘screw it’ to beating around the bush.]
Are you all right?
[Private to Sirius Black]
Set aside all that has passed between us for one moment. Refrain from sneers and dismissive replies. Pretend, if you must, that I am anyone else.
Please - please - do not tell Martha the things I said. She may well forgive me if she knew, but no matter what their intent or who I might have been when I spoke them, she has endured enough horrors without those words in the back of her mind.
[Private to Mozenrath]
I do not wish to have this conversation with you in person. I sincerely doubt this will be the most coherent letter I have ever written, and trust you will understand.
To begin, I am not angry. I expect that will be your first question. You acted in a manner which I believe to be honorable and considerate of my own well-being. In the end, you defended yourself against an enemy and I approve of your actions. I am…proud of you. Not as a warden, obviously, but as a mentor.
There are several things of which I believe you should be aware, concerning my counterpart – things which I have known for two years, and have told no one. The first is that he is not sane. His mind was under immense stress. T’Pol was his warden, as well, and used her abilities to control him. She was apparently demoted at some point in their past, though her actions toward him continued during her own incarceration. His new warden – Arthur – employed the same tactics until it drove him mad. He was a coward, Mozenrath, but he didn’t simply surrender. He broke. He became unhinged.
The second is that he loathes us. This Barge. He hid under the protection of one of our own last time, and suffered for it. He believes we abandoned him. He exists in a constant state of paranoia and hatred. There were moments of clarity, and your conversation with him appears to have been one of them. I have nothing of importance to relate to you that you might not have gleaned on your own save this: for one moment, he wanted very much to have the life you described to him.
What you choose to do with that information is your own business.
Martha and I will be leaving for some time, though I will attempt to ensure we return in some days’ time, from your perspective. I promised to take you with me when I leave for good, and so I shall.
I suppose that is what one does for family, after all.