Fans of Incarceron and Sapphique by Catherine Fisher

Theories and speculation

jeweledeyes — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 07:02:17 GMT

I've been thinking a lot about Finn and Giles, and I wanted to share my theories and speculations here. After careful consideration, I don't think Finn is mashed potatoes, I think he really is Giles. First of all, the timeframe—how could Giles have died so quickly and then been reassembled into something that's made up of 99% Giles, anyway, and then still had enough time to live in the Prison for so long? Especially since he woke up in the cells Claudia wound up in when she entered Incarceron through the Portal.

Not only that, but why would he have such vivid memories of Giles' life when other Prison-born characters—like Keiro—don't have any memories other than their own?

But the biggest reason for this comes from a very convincing Q&A off Catherine's website:

Q: In the book incarceron, Keiro could not leave the prison with the key because he is part of incarceron. I don't know where I read this but some where in the first book it said that incarceron uses the bodies of the deceased and creates new prisoners/people. If this is the case, that means Finn must have came from the outside world since he is able to leave with the key. In the second book though when Claudia asked the warden if Finn really is prince Giles, he doesn't give her a real answer. But he would have to be prince Giles to have been able to leave the prison with the key included. This leaves me thinking that Finn is prince Giles since he also remembers being the prince and has that symbol on his wrist which only prince Giles had.

A: OK I give in..... no wait. Keiro can't leave because he had metallic parts. Finn doesn't. So maybe he isn't Giles......? Can I get away with that?

AHH, BUT that's not actually what it says in the book, BECAUSE in Sapphique Keiro says that the reason Incarceron needs the Glove of Sapphique to Escape in its new body is because the Keys—which Incarceron already had, and could have used if it was possible—won't let anything that has been made by Incarceron out. If metal was the only stipulation, Incarceron could have used only organic parts on its special body and then been able to use the Key. Because, after all, if Finn had been Prison-born, he managed to escape with the Key, which would have meant he was made of only organic materials—why would the Prison have been able to do that for Finn and not for itself? Clearly, the Key won't work on anything made by the Prison, which means that Finn was not made by the Prison.

The reason Claudia was able to Escape with the Key is because she was born naturally, even though her parents were Prisoners. Finn, though, would have had to have been a Prison-born person who was assembled and spat out fully matured, because he's only been around for 2-3 years. Therefore, the Key shouldn't have worked on him—unless he was always Giles, and he entered the Prison with his memories erased by some kind of drug, just like Claudia and Jared originally theorized.

I think Catherine kind of came to this conclusion herself, because when she answered a later question, she said,

Q: You can't tell me no or leave me hanging. Because I know, Finn HAS to be Giles. Just admit it!! Please?

A: I think maybe he is but I never actually made up my mind. The only person who really knows is the Warden. and he would just smile acidly and say "My dear, that is my business, and not yours...."

She might have gone into it thinking, "I'm not sure which way I want this to go, so I'll leave it ambiguous," but, without realizing it, she trapped herself into only one possible outcome: Finn is Giles.

And as for Finn's seizures... I know Finn thought that if he got his memories as Giles back, they'd go away, and the fact that they didn't made him doubt whether he was really Giles; I hate to break this to him, but the real world doesn't work that way. Obviously, whatever drug they gave him to erase his memories had the side effect of giving him epilepsy. It's like if you had a head injury that caused both memory loss and epilepsy—even if you manage to recover all or part of your memories, that's not going to make the epilepsy go away. They may have been caused by the same thing, but they're not mutually exclusive. Sorry, Finn. Look at it this way—some of Earth's greatest rulers had epilepsy. Just ask Caesar and Alexander the Great.

Anyway, I thought I would open it up for discussion and see what others thought about this. Also, I posted a lot of semi-coherent ramblings about feelings and ships and general reactions publicly on my Dreamwidth, so if anyone wants to help me flail and fangirl, please do so :3

Wake up, comm! [Intro post]

jeweledeyes — Sat, 06 Oct 2012 05:17:38 GMT

Name/Nickname: Lisa/SailorDonut
Age: 26
Location: USA
When did you become a fan? This week
Favorite character(s): All of them. Don't make me pick XD
Favorite pairing/ships: Jared/Claudia and Keiro/Attia
Favorite scenes/quotes: If I made a list it would be practically the length of an entire book
Why do you like Incarceron? I have been a huge fan of Catherine Fisher's books since I first read her Oracle Prophecies series several years ago. It took me a few years to get around to reading this set, but now I'm sorry I waited—I wasn't sure if I was going to like it as much as her other series, but lololol I should have known better. I love Catherine Fisher's world-building, I love the depth to all her characters, how they're all so multi-faceted; and in particular, I love the complex relationships she's woven into this particular series. I mean, I guess that's a staple in all her books, but for some reason this series has really yanked me in, I've been kind of flipping out all the way through Sapphique and it's been quite awhile since I've had that level of obsession for a book series XD
Other fandoms: I'm very involved with the Oracle Prophecies fandom on DeviantART; I've also been really into The Avengers on Tumblr, and I've been a hardcore Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon fan since 2004. Those are the fandoms I'm most "into" currently XD
Favorite books: pretty much anything by Catherine Fisher, Malinda Lo, Meg Cabot, Sarah Diemer, Cornelia Funke... I loooooove the Howl's Moving Castle books by Diana Wynne Jones, and my all-time favorite book is Mara, Daughter of the Nile by Eloise Jarvis McGraw
Anything else?:

Introducing the yalit100!

aimmyarrowshigh — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 06:48:45 GMT

yalit100 yalit100 yalit100 yalit100 yalit100

Love YA lit? Love writing fic? Love writing fic for YA lit and wondering why there doesn’t seem to be very much for most books?

Join the YAlit100 challenge!

You MAY claim more than one table at a time.
You MAY do crossovers, fusions, and AU fic! If you intend to write crossovers and/or fusions, claim the table for the MAIN WORK (so, for example, if you want to write 100 godly-parent-fusion fics, your claim would be “Percy Jackson,” unless all 100 fics would star characters from Anna and the French Kiss or something. SOME ASPECT of all 100 fics must be constant for the book/table you choose!)
Fics can be ANY LENGTH. You may write 3-sentence fics, drabbles, one-shots, six-word-ficfests, whatever. The whole point is just to encourage more YA lit fic! :)

So far, there are just the first few tables up, but I will be adding my usual amount of ALL THE YA BOOKS. :P Join and/or Watch the
comm on LJ for updates, and make sure to suggest any book(s) that you may think I’ll miss or that you want to see sooner!

awefuloffkilter — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 23:44:58 GMT

Time to wake up people~

Name/Nickname: I go by Lycoris or aweful on the interwebs.
Age: 18
Location: US of A
When did you become a fan? Last year when it was first released over here.
Favorite character(s): Incarceron. No really, I heart that crazy AI so much. I also love Ritz, Keiro, and Finn. EVERYONE IS MY FAVORITE OKAY
Favorite pairing/ships: Keiro/Finn and Jared/Claudia are my top two (and the ones I see the most evidence for hoho). But I literally ship everything.
Favorite scenes/quotes: Anytime Saphiqque is mentioned. I love the sort of half-life he has. ALL OF INCARCERON's DRY COMMENTS. Anytime Finn and Keiro are being stupid, obsessive boyfriends with each other. THE ENDING ♥
Why do you like Incarceron? What's not to like? It's such a fresh take on the YA genre. I'm usually a pretty harsh critic but Incarceron's world captured me from the first. All of the characters are brilliant.
Other fandoms: Hetalia, Doctor Who, and the Tales of videogame series are my top three. For books I looooove Diana Wynne Jones and her Howl's Moving Castle. I have a complete list at my journal.
Favorite books: Howl's Moving Castle, Steppenwolf, Incantation... omg a lot more. okay.
Anything else?: I'm going to be starting a "Let's Read" of these two books over at tumblr. Basically it's me commentating on each chapter alongside specific quotations and interesting tidbits. A labor of love and my attempt to get Incarceron noticed some more. I'll post the link here when I'm done. I WOULD LOVE IT IF I HAD SOME OTHER COMMENTATORS : D

Sapphique discussion

jadeswallow — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 11:07:57 GMT

Hi! I just finished reading Sapphique yesterday, and I have some questions in my mind. I hope it's okay to ask these questions here, since I'm interested to know what other readers think.

Does Sapphique really exist, as a person? Or is it just the name of the exit
door, and a legend, therefore the legend comes to live because Jared becomes Sapphique?
What exactly does Sapphique's glove do? If Sapphique doesn't really exist as a person, how could Sapphique's glove exist? Could it be that the Warden takes the legend from Inside to Outside and use Sapphique's name for the Steel Wolf's leader? If he does exist, why the story about him is so unclear?

How do you guys feel about the ending? I LOVE the Incarceron world, but somehow I feel like there are so many unclear answers in the ending and while it's good because we could think about the ending ourselves, I can't help but think that it will be better if there are more explanations towards the end.

Thanks!

Fisher answered my question!!

aurora_requiem — Thu, 02 Jun 2011 16:54:58 GMT

I have one of those long, totally crazy questions, don't I?

Q: I very much enjoyed Incarceron and Sapphique and thank you for introducing us to their universe, even if there were a bundle of unanswered questions I was left with (although food for thought is fun too). My most prominent concern was the situation with Claudia and Jared. I know you intentionally left out overt romances, but I was curious as to why Finn and Claudia remained destined for their dynastic marriage when you'd made it clear that Jared and Claudia harbored a great deal of love for each other while Claudia could barely stand Finn. There were a lot of hints about a potential romance between them (what with false rumors of an affair, Jared struggling to live on to see Claudia again, and Claudia threatening to kill Sia herself should she hurt him), and I was wondering why you included them. And of course, what did Claudia mean when she said, "I love you, Master"? It seemed to be a pretty intense moment between them. Again, thank you for writing these books!

A: Well there are all sorts of love. The truth is Jared is now Sapphique and that changes things- he can never presumably, return to the Realm. I didn't mean to suggest Finn and Claudia hate each other- they make a good partnership, and dynastic marriages are just that. But I don't know if they will marry or not. I am so relieved to get the characters to the end of the book that i just stop thinking about them after that!

--

Discuss.

Fanart: How much is real?

kissingdaylight — Mon, 02 May 2011 08:16:54 GMT

This lovely piece of fanart is by our own ana_br. (Click the banner to see the full size at her deviantART account.) The quote is taken from Sapphique and this is the dream cast she featured for those who are curious:

Finn - XAVIER SAMUEL
Claudia Arlexa - BRITT ROBERTSON
Keiro - HENRY CAVILL
Attia - STEPHANIE LEONIDAS
Gildas Sapiens - RICHARD DREYFUSS
Jared Sapiens - LEE PACE

Check out the...

kissingdaylight — Mon, 02 May 2011 08:04:37 GMT

YA Lit Fans' Friending Meme

(everyone welcome!)

Collection of Q&As with the author: her thoughts on sequels/prequels and the movie

kissingdaylight — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 07:30:23 GMT

Catherine Fisher has a Q&A section on her site, so I thought I'd copy some of her answers here to clear up some questions in the fandom.

Will there be third book to follow Sapphique? No.

Q: Why are you only writing two books in the Incarceron series? Your work is so impressive it must go on!

A: Incarceron is not a series. It was originally conceived as a single book, but the plot became so long I needed a sequel. And now it's finished. There are so many other stories to tell...

Would she write a prequel? Not likely, but possible.

Q: Is there anyway you would maybe write a prequel to the books? I think it would be very interesting to know what exactly happened during the Years of Rage and how the moon got to be the way it is. please please write a prequel!

A: I'm into something else at present, but maybe one day. Who knows.

Did she participate in Taylor Lautner's casting? No.

Q: Did you have any say in the casting of Taylor Lautner as Finn in the Incarceron movie? I'm sorry, but why him? Not that I don't like Taylor, but he's just not the kind of actor I pictured Finn as at all. I have to admit, though, I love the books enough that I will still go see it at any cost.

A: I have no say in casting. But, maybe you've answered your own question. All his fans will go to see the film because of him.

What does she think of Taylor Lautner being cast as Finn? She's okay with it.

Q: My question is what do you think of Taylor Lautner's being cast as Finn, if that's an appropriate question. Also, as they are set in the future, what sort of accents did you imagine the characters to have?

A: I am perfectly happy about Mr. Lautner's casting- I'm sure he'll be great. As for accents, it'll be strange to hear US ones [since she's British], but if they're the ones making the film...

Who would she like to play Claudia? An unknown.

Q: I heard that there is going to be an Incarceron movie. Since there is already a Finn chosen (Taylor Lautner), if you could pick out the actress for Claudia, who would you have in mind? I was just wondering who your dream-Claudia was.

A: I don't really know enough young actresses to pick one. It would be good if it was someone unknown. But she has to be good, because Claudia is a very important part of this book.

Does she have a preference for a director of the movie? Anyone with an usual vision.

Q: If you could have any director direct the screen adaptation who would that be? Me personally I can see Terry Gilliam, he's into dystopian films and very imaginative!

A: As for directors, I think Terry Gilliam would be great, or anyone with an unusual vision.

General thoughts on movie interpretations of books: books are more powerful than film.

Q: Hello Catherine, given that all goes well with film production in Incarceron, would you have any hopes of your other books becoming film adapted or would you rather preserve the art of a book in a book?

A: [...] But in essence I am a writer and I think the written word is more powerful and has more potential to really explore people and situations than any film.

I'm also collecting a series of questions and answers that have to do solely with the book. I'll publish the first part of those in the next few days, but there are 256 pages of questions to get through so it takes a little while. Hope this illuminates a little about her feelings relating to the future and the movie though!

If you have another question to ask Catherine Fisher, you can submit it here at her website. Let us know if you get an interesting reply!

Incarceron on tumblr

kissingdaylight — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 01:53:02 GMT

We now have a tumblr! Check out Fuck Yeah! Incarceron and follow. :)

Catherine Fisher: Claudia not meant as "the romantic interest" for Finn

kissingdaylight — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 04:32:41 GMT

“My idea was just to suggest relationships and leave it to the readers to puzzle over- which everyone seems to be doing! Certainly I don’t want the film to polarize everything into a conventional romance, as I think the very fact that things are not spelled out is what readers find intriguing. It’s interesting that in the hype regarding the casting of Claudia, she is referred to 'the romantic interest' for Finn, (they obviously haven’t read it) which I think she’d find really infuriating. I agree with you that the other characters are just as important, Attia and Keiro, Jared and the Warden in particular.”

--Catherine Fisher, author of Incarceron

Any thoughts on Fisher's quote? How do you feel about Finn/Claudia and their relationship's importance and their personal importance as characters in the novel compared to the other characters?

Taylor Lautner Talks Incarceron

kissingdaylight — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 10:24:37 GMT

Taylor Lautner recently did a very short interview (~59 seconds) with MTV about Incarceron. You can watch the video here:

In case the video cannot be viewed in all countries, here's a brief summary: Lautner says that the movie is in development, the script is being written, and right now he's just in a waiting period and focusing on his other projects. He says that the reason he was attracted to the project/wanted to do the movie is because: "It's a crazy, cool, dark world. The character is awesome. I think it's a great story. Just seeing that book come to life would be pretty awesome."

Claudia Casting Rumors + Plea for Help

kissingdaylight — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 04:47:08 GMT

I'm sorry that I have been such a horrible moderator of this community. Since there's not much going on, and my real life is so busy at the moment, I've let it fall by the wayside. I could you some help in these two areas if anyone is willing:

to be a moderator for the community; someone that has the time and energy to keep an eye out for news and poke the community with discussion every now and then to keep it alive

to take the amazing header that ana_br made and make a layout for this community (you're not expected to make one from scratch, you can obviously modify layouts made available by others)

If anyone would be willing to help, I'd be extremely grateful. Please just comment here or PM me. Thank you all in advance.

Now for the interesting tidbit!

Someone at the Incarceron Fans deviantArt group (which you should check out since there is no Incarceron fanart on lj and some beautiful stuff on dA) asked me if Emma Watson had been cast as Claudia. I hadn't heard anything about this so I went looking and found a link to this Deadline article: "Taylor Lautner Making 8-Figures Per Movie; Will Produce & Star In 2 Studio Tentpoles During 2011; Now Casting His Love Interest".

It talks mostly about Lautner and his upcoming projects after The Twilight Saga finishes, but it mentions Incarceron and briefly the casting of Claudia:

Fox 2000 and the filmmakers now are looking to cast his love interest in Incarceron, and I'm told the frontrunners are Blake Lively, Jennifer Lawrence, and Emma Watson.

I looked further into the Emma Watson rumor and found this at a fan site for the actress:

Emma is in the short-list to be the love interest for Taylor ‘Twilight’ Launter in “Incarceron” according to Deadline alongside Blake Lively and Jennifer Lawrence. The movie is based on Catherine Fisher’s sci-fi/fantasy novel. Before you get to excited please keep in mind nothing is confirmed.

Edit! Snitch Seeker have tweeted on behalf of Emma’s reps to tell fans that she is currently not attached to any project at the moment, but she is reading scripts.

ETA: The above Deadline article is from January 13 and I found an article from February 9 on JustJared that lists Emma Watson as the top and only contender. Again, no one has been cast so far, but Watson is looking like the most likely Claudia.

Since Jennifer Lawrence has recently been cast as the lead in another hot franchise, The Hunger Games, it seems unlikely that she would also star in Incarceron, but one never knows.

What do you think? Think it's all all load of hooey? Do you like these frontrunners? Is Watson, Lively, or Lawrence how you imagined the character? Do you think they could do her justice?

Remember, if you hear any news about the movie or casting or author or anything related, please post it here! That's one of the reasons I made the community, so we - the fans - could not only fangirl/boy over the book together, but share what is going on in the fandom in one place so we could all know about it.

Thanks again, you are all awesome! :)

Why I ship Jared/Claudia (with bonus fanfic!)

rj_anderson — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 03:12:18 GMT

Now before I say anything, I just want to affirm that by explaining a little of why I ship Jared/Claudia with the burning power of a million white-hot suns, I am not in the least wanting to put down people who ship Claudia/Finn or Jared/Science or Rix/Dentist* or whatever takes their fancy. Nor am I trying to badger people into shipping as I do. The nice thing (or not so nice thing, depending on your preference) about things being left so open-ended at the end of Sapphique is that just about anything could happen in the months and years to follow.

That being said, I do believe that if there is any canonical love relationship in the series, it is the one between Claudia and Jared. One can debate whether there is any romantic component to that love or not, but I don't think it's possible to dispute that the two of them love each other in a deep, abiding, unfailingly loyal way that we don't see expressed between any other characters in the series, or at least not any that I can think of.

From the very beginning of the series we see Jared and Claudia working together in secret, planning to access her father's study -- Jared's ingeniously crafted electronic devices and clever strategy teamed with Claudia's daring and determination to accomplish something that should not be possible. And it very quickly becomes clear that although Jared is technically employed by the Warden and ought to owe his allegiance to him, he's completely devoted to Claudia and their shared cause of unlocking the secrets of Incarceron. He admits to being terrified of the Warden (at the time), but still he doesn't hesitate to risk the Warden's wrath and vengeance in order to give Claudia the help she needs.

But there's something else we find out almost immediately about Jared, something that many readers overlook in the quite natural assumption that Finn and Claudia, being the two protagonists of the series and close in age, are destined to fall in love with each other:

1. Jared is young.

Older than Claudia yes, but not by that much. And from the beginning, the two of them speak and act as peers and partners more than anything else. He's not some crusty middle-aged guy she sees as a surrogate father (despite the Warden's jealousy on that point). He's her tutor yes, but he's also her closest and most trusted friend.

Also:

2. Jared is good-looking.

I don't think we have Jared's handsomeness absolutely confirmed until Sapphique (where Claudia notices the two women following Jared appreciatively with their eyes, and immediately glares daggers at them because Jared is hers, lay off), but there's enough positive physical description of him to imply it even in the first book, I think.

Still, it would be easy to overlook points 1 and 2 if it weren't for:

3. Half the characters in the books assume that Claudia and Jared are, or want to be, lovers.

Caspar implies it, much to Claudia's fury (which is interestingly enough on Jared's behalf and not her own); Jared warns Claudia at the inn about how it will look if they're found together; Fax salutes Claudia ironically when he finds her sneaking out of Jared's room; Sia baits Claudia with the idea; even the Warden brings it up, if only to say that he doesn't believe the rumors because Claudia is not stupid enough to put her position at court in jeopardy. Nobody seems to think it's implausible for Jared and Claudia to be romantically involved, though; and most people even seem to assume that they want to be even if they aren't.

It seems to me that if Catherine Fisher didn't want people thinking along Jared/Claudia lines, she could simply have avoided implying it or bringing it up at all. And yet there it is, again and again.

But frankly, reasons 1-3 aren't why I ship Jared/Claudia. Jared could have been a bit older, or not quite so good looking, and even if none of the other characters had brought up the idea of him and Claudia together, I think I would still be shipping them. Because the relationship between Jared and Claudia is just so beautiful in so many ways. She relaxes around him, she becomes gentle and even tender around him, in a way we never see her doing elsewhere in the books. The only time Claudia unbends herself far enough to break down and giggle, it's with Jared -- and it's largely provoked by sheer relief that he's safe and unhurt.

I could go through a million other scenes and little character touches throughout the series that seem to underline their love and trust of each other over and over, but it all culminates in Claudia telling Jared straight out that she loves him near the end of Sapphique. Of course it can be read as just another way of saying that she trusts him (except that she just said that), but matched with her despairing thought about how hard her life in the Realm will be without Jared in it, and how she is not at all looking forward to being the Queen, it just seems heartbreaking to me. She believes in Finn (mostly), she thinks they can help the Realm together, but there's no eagerness to be with him. Being his Queen will be just another role to play, another part in the game, and she feels "desolate and sick" just thinking about it.

Really, that's a pretty awful place to leave our fierce, determined, resourceful Claudia, and one of the biggest reasons I feel the need for a third book (or fanfic) to soften the blow. It is possible that in time she could learn to love Finn, but he has to at least try to meet her halfway, and that's outside the scope of what we see him doing in the books.

And there's the other question that baffles me: Why does everybody (including the Warden and Jared) assume that Claudia marrying Finn now is going to accomplish anything? Wasn't the whole point of abolishing protocol to put the people of the Realm on an even footing instead of centralizing power in the aristocracy? So what point is a dynastic marriage between the daughter of the Warden (who's been discredited anyway) and the heir of the Realm anyway?

These and other thoughts led me to write a post-Sapphique fanfic about Jared and Claudia, which would make some sense of not only what happened at the end of the book but also resolve things in a way that seemed more satisfying to me. So here it is:

Title: The Warden's Daughter
Author: rj_anderson
Rating: K+
Characters/Pairings: Jared/Claudia, John Arlex (the Warden)
Warnings: None
Spoilers: Entire Incarceron series by Catherine Fisher.
Disclaimer: "Lots of people ask ... what happens to Finn and Claudia [after the end of] Sapphique. I don't know, and I don't think about it. If you enjoyed the book, you can carry on the story the way you want to, in your imagination. I'm usually too busy trying to think up the next thing." - Catherine Fisher
Summary: When Claudia Arlexa's position at court is threatened, she must look for a new way to help Giles hold on to his throne and keep the Realm from shattering into civil war.

THE WARDEN'S DAUGHTER
by R.J. Anderson 2011

Six weeks, in a Realm without power. That was all it had taken to bring her father's lofty ambitions, all the painstaking craftsmanship of her life, crashing into dust. Claudia stalked through the ruins of the Wardenry, chin high and hands clenched in the folds of her faded skirts.

When the Privy Council had banished her from Court two days ago, she had been angry at first, then humiliated. As though she had failed, and had only herself to blame. But after the first shock of realizing just how badly the Warden – and she and Jared too -- had miscalculated, she had felt a fierce and sudden liberation.

Why should she be disappointed? She had what she had always wanted: a world without Protocol, free of the stultifying restraints of Era. The missing Havaarna heir found and restored to the throne. The door to Incarceron open to anyone who cared to pass. And one more thing she had not even dared to dream of: Jared cured of his deadly illness, and raised to full life and strength again.

And if the cost of all these things was the queenship her father had coveted for her, the position she had been raised to believe was rightfully and inevitably hers, then so be it.

Claudia picked her way through the abandoned husk of her childhood home, stepping over fallen beams and heaps of crumbled plaster, until she reached the crude ladder that had replaced the staircase to the upper floor. She put one foot on the bottom rung, stood still a moment. Then in one savage motion she ripped her heavy skirts off at the waist and flung them away. Beneath it she wore breeches, close-fitted but supple; with a tight smile she gripped the ladder and began to climb.

*

Her father's study remained as she had left it, a cool grey space humming with light and energy, though there was no such power anywhere else in the Realm. She touched the panel and spoke. “Incarceron.”

The screen flickered and there he was, dark hair drawn back from an austere face, his temples and narrow beard shot with silver. “Claudia,” he said. “What is it?”

Of course he could tell at a glance that something was wrong; he knew her too well. She resisted the urge to wipe her dirty hands and smooth her unruly hair, to make herself presentable for his inspection, and said instead, “Giles will be crowned in three days.”

“Excellent,” said the Warden. “And the plans for your wedding?”

This was the moment she had dreaded. She took a deep breath and spoke the words. “There will be no wedding.”

A cold silence, while his eyes raked over her. “Impossible. Finn needs you; he is obligated to you. He would never put you aside.”

“It wasn't his decision,” said Claudia. “The Privy Council made it for him. They support Finn's kingship because they believe he is truly Giles, because the common people embrace him as one of their own. But two days ago, Keiro caught a man trying to put poison in Finn's food. And when they searched the assassin, he was carrying the emblem of the Steel Wolves.”

“I gave no such order.” The Warden's voice was brittle with contained fury. “None of the Wolves would dare to act without my authorization--”

“I know. I talked to Medlicote, and he denied any knowledge of the man. But it was enough to raise the Council's suspicions about your loyalties -- and mine.”

Which was what Keiro had wanted, she was sure of it; if he had not orchestrated the assassination attempt himself, he had certainly been quick to turn it to his advantage. By now everyone knew that the Wolves were loyal to the Warden, and Claudia was the Warden's daughter. She was already known to be haughty and self-willed, and few people liked her; now, with such close connections to an apparent traitor, she had ceased to be an asset to the throne and become a dangerous liability.

Finn had defended her before the Council, reminding them that Claudia was the one who had found him and brought him back from Incarceron, and had no reason to wish him dead. But under this fragile new regime, where the luxuries and intrigues of Court were a thing of the past and the skills that mattered most were the simple ones of daily survival, it was hard to see the merits of making Claudia queen even if her loyalties had not been in question. If she had loved Giles, or he her, the Council might have been swayed to sympathy. But there was no chance of that, and never had been.

“This is unacceptable.” Her father's gloved hand curled into a fist. “Without you Finn cannot succeed, and everything we have worked for will be undone. I will find a way to expose this plot against you, and restore--”

“There's no point.” She spoke firmly, determined not to let him change her mind. “In a world where Protocol still reigned, I could have helped Finn. I could have smoothed his way in court, guided him through its schemes and taught him to avoid its dangers, as you trained me to do. But there is no power outside Incarceron anymore, and the courtiers of the Realm are reduced to huddling around bonfires and begging the common folk for their next meal. If Finn succeeds in holding onto the throne, it will be because the people believe in him, because they think he can show them how to survive. Not because of me.”

“What a relief it must be to you,” said her father acidly, “to have such a burden lifted.”

She stiffened, anger sparking to life. “I would have married Giles,” she snapped. “Without complaint, without question. Because I believed it was the right thing to do. But in all my life, there was one thing you never asked me. Whether I wanted to rule, or whether I only accepted the task because my whole life had been crafted to that purpose. Because the two men I loved best in all the world had taught me it was my destiny.”

The Warden was silent a moment, as though her words had given him pause. When he spoke again his voice was softer, though far from gentle: “You were made to play this game, Claudia. You will never be content to sit idle and watch others control the board, whether you are queen in name or not. And you also know that Finn will never be safe, or his kingdom secure, without a powerful ally to protect him and guide him on his way.”

“I know,” she whispered.

“Then I leave it to you to devise a solution. My hands are bound at the moment, it would seem.” He gave her an ironic nod, and his image winked out.

Claudia leaned on the desk, letting out a slow breath. Then she smoothed her bodice, passed a hand over her hair, and spoke to the console a second time.

“Sapphique.”

*

“I can't do it, Master.”

Claudia spoke quietly, her eyes on the dim lamplights that dotted the far-distant horizon. There were no stars here in Incarceron, but she had grown up studying the constellations with Jared in his tower room, all of them blazing bright in her memory, and she did not miss them.

“Marry Finn, you mean?” His voice was mild, without surprise, as though he had anticipated all of this: her call to him through the Portal, her return to the Prison-world that had given her birth, and now the two of them sitting together, high on a wall with the plains of Incarceron spread out below, side by side as though they had never been parted.

“Giles,” she corrected automatically, more for herself than Jared. Part of her still wondered if Finn truly was the lost prince or not, but it made no difference now. “And yes. That is what I mean. But I don't have to explain, do I? You heard what I said to my father.”

Jared was silent, his spare, delicate profile clean as a statue's, and as unreadable. His right hand, the one that still wore Sapphique's glove, rested on his updrawn knee, silken scales and metal claws catching the light. How much of Jared was mortal flesh now, and how much the undying circuits of Incarceron? She wondered if even he knew.

“I did hear,” he admitted finally, “though I didn't mean to pry. I apologize.”

“Don't. I wanted you to hear it.” She wanted to touch his ungloved hand, but her pulse was beating fast and she was afraid he would feel it. She had to be careful, very careful, now. “Master, I can't help Giles by becoming his queen, but I have to help him somehow. Keiro is jealous, and dissatisfied, and that makes him dangerous. I know they swore an oath to each other, and Finn seems to think he can count on Keiro because of that. But I don't think oaths mean anything to Keiro. And if he decides he wants the throne...”

She left the sentence unfinished, knowing Jared would understand. Keiro was handsome, confident and ruthless; he might not be able to win the common people's hearts as Finn had done, but he could easily raise an army, and possibly sway a number of dissatisfied courtiers to his side as well.

“The Realm is fragile already,” said Jared. “Civil war would destroy the little that remains.”

“And yet Keiro has the Privy Council convinced that the Steel Wolves, and my father, are the greatest threat.” She clenched her hands in frustration. “If I could stay close to Finn, and keep an eye on Keiro, then I might be able to get to the bottom of this, but--”

“There is a way,” said Jared. His voice was oddly flat and remote; it frightened her a little. “And you know what it is.”

Claudia bit her lip. “Yes. I have to disown my father, and take over his position as Warden. Become the sole liaison between the Realm and Incarceron, so that no one can contest my right to be at court. But I don't know how to do that, Jared. The Privy Council could just appoint someone else to be Warden in my father's stead, and I think – I think they are considering that, even now.”

Jared's green eyes turned distant and she knew he was thinking, his Sapient's mind weighing all the possibilities and drawing out each to its logical conclusion. At last he said, “We know that your father conspired with Queen Sia to have Giles sent to Incarceron and her son Caspar made king in his place. We know that Sia ensured the Warden's cooperation by threatening to expose the truth, that you were not his natural daughter but a child he brought out of Incarceron. You have kept those things secret, because making it public would endanger your position as Giles's betrothed, but now...”

“Yes. It's time the truth was known.” If exposing the full extent of John Arlex's treachery was not enough to prove that Claudia was not the Warden's pawn, then renouncing her blood relationship to him would be. It sickened and excited her at the same time, to think of denying everything she had been, everything her father had made her. “But if I admit that I am not the Warden's daughter, what right do I have to take his place?”

“You are the only heir he has. Even if you disown him, he cannot disown you or the Wardenry will die with him. And he loves you, Claudia, as much as a man like John Arlex can know of love. He will understand. He may even approve.”

I leave it to you to devise a solution, the Warden had told her. Was that his cryptic way of telling her that he accepted his own failure, and giving her his blessing? She could only hope so. Otherwise he would never forgive her.

“But the Warden was appointed to rule Incarceron,” she said. “And the Prison is yours now. It's an empty title, unless--”

She could not say it, could not bring herself to ask. Jared had always been hers, loyal to the death, but if she tried to compel his obedience now it would destroy everything. She stretched out her toes into empty air, flexing the worn leather of boots that would not last much longer, and finished lamely, “unless we can convince the Privy Council otherwise.”

For a moment Jared remained motionless, eyes still on the far-off lights of the village. Then he reached into the shining grey folds of his Sapient robe and drew out a single feather. His slim fingers twisted it into a circle, metallic rachis bending smoothly beneath his touch, ends merging into a seamless whole. Then with formal gravity he took her hand and slipped the bracelet over it.

“My token,” he said. “Wear it well, Claudia Arlexa. Be my eyes and ears in the Realm, and speak with my voice. Tell the Council you are Warden of Incarceron... and I will have no other.”

As he spoke the last words, his voice and the Prison's eerily doubled, the bracelet molded itself to her wrist. It shimmered darkly in the artificial light, strange and beautiful as Jared himself, and she realized that this was no mere symbol; she could feel electricity running through it, a power only Incarceron could bestow. Claudia's heart swelled with incredulous joy. “Thank you, Master,” she breathed.

He turned to look at her then, a smile on his lips. “It's good to see you happy again.”

She longed to hug him, but an odd, unfamiliar shyness made her hold back. She touched his hand instead, fingers resting lightly on his skin. “Remember when we used to dream of Incarceron, when we thought it was a paradise?”

I am Incarceron, whispered the Prison through Jared's lips, and I will be everything I was meant to be. Then his green eyes turned upon her, fathomless, and she felt a stab of fear. Attia had said that Incarceron would corrupt Jared, that he was too gentle to control it. What if she had been right?

No. Jared was stronger than anyone had given him credit for, the most resolutely selfless and courageous man she had ever known. And Incarceron needed him. Before they merged Jared had been dying and the Prison mad, but together they were whole. She tightened her grasp on his hand. “I believe you,” she said. “You are Sapphique.”

Jared blinked. Then the alien light faded from his eyes and he said, “You should go, Claudia. Finn needs you.”

She nodded reluctantly. The Privy Council had already gained too much control over the kingdom in the confusion that had followed Queen Sia's death, and if Finn did not stand up to them soon it would be too late. “I'll come back,” she said. “As soon as I can.”

“You are always welcome,” he said. “But there's no hurry, Claudia. As long as you wear my token, I will be with you.”

She slid down from the wall, wiping the grit from her palms, and turned to face him as he climbed down after her. “I know,” she said. “But I still want to come back.”

It was the closest she dared get to saying the words aloud, though she had already spoken them once. I love you, Master. He had heard her say it, and yet he had still put on the glove and merged his consciousness with the Prison's, had bound his life to its power, had sent her away to marry Giles and live the rest of her life without him. Queens don't have tutors, he had said.

Perhaps becoming Sapphique had put him beyond human feeling. Or perhaps he had never loved her in that way. Perhaps he had already given her all that she could ever have of him, and she must learn to be content. She forced a smile. “Goodbye, Master.”

She lowered her eyes and would have walked away but for Jared's sharp intake of breath, as though he had just remembered some vital detail too long forgotten. Surprised, she looked up.

He said, “In the legends, Sapphique has no consort. His whole life is bent on Escape, and he is always alone.”

His expression was quizzical and a little wistful, and her heart began to pound again. “But you were born outside the Prison,” she said. “I was the one who Escaped.”

Under the wing of a black swan, mused Incarceron, in the voice that was and was not Jared's. But this time it did not frighten her.

“Yes,” she said. “It caught me up and carried me away. But I came back, and brought Sapphique with me.” She moved closer, laying a hand on his arm. “Everything has changed, Jared, don't you see? We make our own legends now. We are the legends.”

Jared did not move. His dark head was bent, his features drawn in a frown, as though she had presented him with some insoluble riddle. This was the true game, Claudia realized, the hardest she had ever played – because it was not a game, and if she failed they would both lose.

“Just because you want something doesn't make it wrong, Jared,” she said quietly. “The Realm won't suffer if you love me. And you already know how I feel about you.”

For a moment he did not answer, and she feared she had gone too far. Then his expression softened into something wry and unexpectedly tender. “The look on your father's face, when you said that,” he said. “After that, I could never be frightened of him again.”

But you never saw that, she wanted to protest. Only Incarceron did. Except he was Incarceron, and now he saw everything.

She held her breath as he took her hand and raised it slowly to his lips. Then he drew her closer. “Claudia,” he whispered. “My brilliant, fearless, beautiful pupil. My queen. My love.”

Exultation leapt inside her, but with a fierce effort she kept her body still. “Tell me what you want,” she said.

He exhaled, his eyes darkening, and now she saw he was a man after all. “I want you.”

“Now?”

“Always.” His fingertips traced the curve of her cheek, and she trembled. Then with aching slowness he bent, and pressed his lips to hers.

*

Later, but still too soon, they stood together at the edge of the Portal, Jared's arm around her waist, her head on his shoulder. “I'm so selfish,” said Claudia with a shaky laugh. “I want to forget Finn, the Realm, everything, and stay here with you.”

“But you won't.” He smiled down at her, a smile no longer haunted by sadness. “You're not as selfish as you think.”

“Only because of you. You taught me everything I know of duty. Of loyalty. Of love.” She turned her face against his throat and kissed it, relishing the way the muscles of his neck tightened, the hard beat of his pulse beneath the skin. “Will you tell my father, when I am gone?”

“Of course.”

She was quiet for a moment. Then she said, “He said you were too lenient. But I don't think that's true. You still have all the power Incarceron took from the Realm, and you haven't given it back.”

“No.” His face sobered. “The people of Incarceron have suffered too long while the courtiers of the Realm lived in luxury. For now, that power is needed here. But whatever help Giles may need to secure his throne, I will give him.” He touched the feather bracelet on her wrist. “My Warden will.”

“Always.” She raised her face to his and they kissed again, lingering. Then Jared took her hand and helped her down into darkness, and the warmth of his fingers faded as the Portal took her away.

But there was no bitterness to the parting this time, and as Claudia stepped up into the grey light of her father's study her eyes were bright and her mouth curved in a confident, secretive smile. It might be weeks or months before she returned, but that did not matter. Jared was hers, as she was his, and the token she wore would keep him close until they could truly be together again.

And more than that, it would prove to Finn and to Keiro, and everyone else in the Realm, that she was the Warden of Incarceron, now a kingdom more powerful than all the houses and lands of the Havaarna dynasty. All that would have been empty without Jared. But with him... it was all she could have wished for.

Lightly, tenderly, Claudia touched the bracelet on her wrist. Then she lifted her chin high, and walked out to take up her destiny.

THE END

Comments on the post or the fic or both are welcomed!

--
* You can blame aurora_requiem for that one.

Sapphique Book Discussion

kissingdaylight — Sun, 30 Jan 2011 00:07:39 GMT

I know not everyone has finished Sapphique, but as it has been out for a month, I thought it was time to talk about what we think about the book!

So what did you think of where the characters ended up? How Finn survived on the Outside? Finn and Claudia's relationship once they were in person? Keiro and Attia's relationship once they were alone on the Inside? What about some of the new characters?

Did you think the plot was realistic? Did you like the ending? Were you disappointed that this is (seemingly) the end of the series?

Share your opinions with your fellow fans!

Choose the New Header for incarceron!

kissingdaylight — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 23:30:07 GMT

The amazing ana_br has created a header with two variations. I love them both and can't decide between the two, so I thought I'd let you, the members, decide what will be the header of incarceron.

Here are your choices (both have been reduced in size for the purpose of voting):

Version 1
Claudia Arlexa and Finn (Yes, not Taylor Lautner, but not everyone agrees with the casting.)

Version 2
Features not only Claudia and Finn, but also in the background Keiro, Attia, Gildas Sapiens, Jared Sapiens, Warden John Arlexa

View Poll: Choose a Header

Get your votes in soon, because I'm anxious to fit a new livejournal layout to our new header!

Hey there!!!

ana_br — Sun, 23 Jan 2011 16:49:46 GMT

Name/Nickname: Ana (or AnaB)
Age: 24 years recently turned
Location: Brazil
When did you become a fan? About a year ago... I think... maybe a bit longer
Favorite character(s): Keiro, Finn and Jared
Favorite pairing/ships: Finn/Claudia, Keiro/Attia, Finn/Keiro (friendship), Claudia/Jared (friendship)
Favorite scenes/quotes: I like a lot of moments in it... when Finn and Claudia first learn to communicate through the Key; the whole incident with the Maestra's death; when they go on the flying ships; when Claudia and Jared find out about the Warden's secret office...
Why do you like Incarceron? Mainly because of the world Catherine Fisher has created... that mix of steampunk, dystopian scifi and action... I really love stories like that! I also love the way she wrote it, with the double POVs and how it moves back and forth... it leaves you eager for more! =p
Other fandoms: Ugh, so many I can't even count... I'm a huge movie and TV geek!
Favorite books: Harry Potter, LOTR, The Hunger Games series, The Host...
Anything else?: THANKS SO MUCH Elisabeth (kissingdaylight) for opening this community!!! More people need to know about these books... they are too good to be left in the dark! =D

Intro post! Hello. :)

shoopshoop4shiz — Sun, 23 Jan 2011 06:16:28 GMT

Name/Nickname: Katie
Age: 17 (I'm a baby, I know)
Location: USA
When did you become a fan? I read the first book ages ago...maybe a little less than a year?
Favorite character(s): Attia, Jared, Claudia
Favorite pairing/ships: Claudia/Finn, Attia/Keiro
Favorite scenes/quotes: Can't think of anything at the moment. Sorry.
Why do you like Incarceron? I love the fantastic world that it's set in, as well as the characters. They're not as one dimensional as they seem at first. They have layers.
Other fandoms: God, what a list that is. Some of the top favorites: Skins, Glee, Doctor Who, Misfits, Firefly, Pushing Daisies, Torchwood, Spring Awakening. I'm also a bit of a youtube nerd, but I don't think that really counts as 'fandom'.
Favorite books: Again, quite a long list. Select few: Harry Potter, Stardust, Hunger Games, the 'Gone' series, Never Let Me Go, The Thirteenth Tale, Goblin Wood, The Book Thief, Paper Towns.
Anything else?:
I'm so happy there's a comm for this book (and now second book) now! I read Incarceron ages ago, like I said, and there was NOTHING as far as fandom goes for it. So yay! :)

Intro for Elisabeth

kissingdaylight — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 03:30:11 GMT

Hi everyone!

Name/Nickname: Elisabeth
Age: just turned 26 (eek!)
Location: Washington, DC
When did you become a fan? Just recently, maybe 2 months? ana_br recommended it to me and I'm so glad she did.
Favorite character(s): probably Claudia
Favorite pairing/ships: Finn/Claudia, Claudia/Jared (but platonicaly)
Favorite scenes/quotes: nothing off the top of my head
Why do you like Incarceron? It's just such a great an interesting world. I love all the competing motives and trying to understand Incarceron and exactly what it is.
Other fandoms: So many, I am a total TV whore. If you actually care, I have them all listed here.
Favorite books: Many, but I fan The Host (check out my website http://thehostfan.com!) and The Hunger Games.
Anything else?: I hope some people actually post.

Introduce yourself!

kissingdaylight — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 03:15:58 GMT

There's very little going on, so I figured we could all introduce ourselves and get to know each other better. Just copy the text in the box below and answer the questions in a new post. (Feel free not to answer any questions you don't feel comfortable answering.)

PS - Please don't include any spoilers for Sapphique in your answers because not everyone has finished it (myself included).

Incarceron DeviantArt Group

kissingdaylight — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 02:33:27 GMT

There isn't any Incarceron art on lj (that I've found - let me know if you know of any!), but there is on deviantArt so I made a group to collect art and fans.

Check out the gallery there to see all the pretty. (I'd post them here but I don't know if the artists would want that and I don't have time to ask each one individually.)

Also, if you're on dA you can join the group. :)

Page-A-Mod

kissingdaylight — Mon, 10 Jan 2011 06:13:05 GMT

In an attempt to encourage members to ask the mods more questions, we will be using the Page-A-Mod system. (Borrowed from the original at lion_lamb.)

The purpose of this system is to allow members to answer those repetitive, miniscule, tricky, annoying and/or private questions. Comments will be screened until answered (then it may be unscreened depending on if it is private in nature or could help other posters). Don't be afraid to ask anything, even if you feel it is a silly question. We would much rather you ask than have you make a mistake (like posting entries that don't belong, tagging entries incorrectly, etc.).

This system can also be used to voice your opinions on the community, give us some suggestions, and report any complaints regarding the community and/or its members.

All of the mods will be tracking the post, so you should get a speedy response.

Ask, ask, ask, as many times as you like. We find it no burden; in fact, we prefer it! It should make everything run a lot more smoothly.

Comment away!

Wallpapers and icons

kissingdaylight — Mon, 10 Jan 2011 04:51:33 GMT

Catherine Fisher's official website has some very neat extras. There are wallpapers, blog avatars, AIM icons, and twitter icons.

Be on the look out for a new layout for this community very soon!

Book Trailers

kissingdaylight — Mon, 10 Jan 2011 04:44:08 GMT

As with many books these days, both Incarceron and Sapphique have their own trailers. Check out the beauty yourself and then use them to encourage your friends to read!

Welcome and Affiliates!

kissingdaylight — Sun, 09 Jan 2011 07:23:28 GMT

Welcome everyone to the community! This community is for any and all fans of the Incarceron series by Catherine Fisher, which so far includes Incarceron and the recently released Sapphique. There is also an upcoming movie in pre-production that will start Taylor Lautner (of Twilight fame) as Finn. (No other cast announcements have been made.)

This community will focus on both the books and movie. Feel free to post fanart, fanfic, discussions, dream casts, news, or anything else you like related to Incarceron!

Make sure to join if you're a fan and feel free to pimp the community using this banner:

If you have any questions or would like to be an affiliate of this community, please comment here!