Discover Top Posts Tagged with #technically tangentially

just noticed that 1) a majority of the posts in ragdoll's oc aesthetic character tag come from tumblr user james cemeterything and 2) absolutely none of those posts relate to ffxiv in any way. incredible character impression to be formed there

#yin-thoughts #technically tangentially #ffxiv

So, there's that thing about Jim's spies that I like to call "No Felix AU" or "Oopsie, all pretend AU" in which as you could have guessed the big plot is pretty much the same but there's no Felix and there's no brainwashing - Agent A is just acting the whole time. Oh, and they totally romance Agent J.

So, when they fulfil their mission, they do go with Johnny who keeps reassuring them that he does want to know the real them – he missed them, he thought they were dead and all that jazz. But the conversation goes something like that:

John: It’s okay, you were brainwashed, it’s not your fault. Agent A: Oh no, I wasn’t, it was just a legend and it wasn’t my ‘fault’, it was my duty. John: You weren’t?!

And he just storms out of whatever backwater London pub they were sitting in. Agent A decides to give him time to cool off, but when he doesn’t come into contact for a while and doesn’t respond to any communication, they get worried and find him anyway.

And here is where it’s getting weird because this is also a “36 Questions AU” because I’ve recently listened to it and of course I was looking forward to using it for some fandom purposes.

So, I like the idea of him going back to the US and actually to his old family house that wasn’t used to a while, so he’s trying to fix it up and Agent A finds him there and persuades him to talk. They can’t play actual 36 questions because these were only worked out in the nineties and we’re still talking 1984. Maybe, their starting point can be the interrogation questions that they'll answer honestly:

John: So, do you speak Russian? Agent A in Russian: I hope so. John: Have you been enlisted in the Red Army? Agent A with a half joking military salute: Colonel of the State Security Committee, at your service. John: *slightly frowns* Agent A: What? Do I outrank you? John: I've never been above captain...

I'd also like to point out that his main problem isn't that they lied to him per se, but that his perception of their relationships went from "he's trying to save them from themselves and their government" to "they're trying to not hurt him in the wake of their own mission":

John: I thought you were an innocent victim! Agent A: Are you sure, you're the one to lecture me on innocence, comrade former CIA agent? John, slightly flinching at 'comrade': Point taken.

So, songs:

Hear me out – Agent A coming there and persuading John to talk. I know you're there / I know you're listening / You deserve to get to know / The person you're trying your damnedest to let go / I know you care / Whoever you are / You have a thousand reasons not to trust / Whoever I am

One thing – Johnny fixing up the house and trying to forget why he’s there in the first place. Also, a metaphor for deeper problems unnoticeable from the surface. Four, kill the black mould / Three, rewire the ceiling / Two, fix the lightbulb / And one, forget about you

Natalie Cook - is not that important, but hey – they’re a secret agent, they definitely have some old fake papers they don’t need anymore. There is something to the ritual / Of setting some old shit on fire / A way of saying this now lives in memory / A way of saying it's only a memory

A little scene about their papers does come to mind though:

"Do you have any real identification on you? Do you even have any non-forged papers?" John asks hesitantly. "Well, I'm obviously here under a fake name, who do you take me for?" Agent A huffs, "But," they pause, realising something, "I have something nice to show you, give me a moment." Agent A reaches into their bag and fishes out an old shirt and a seam ripper and after a few movements, Johnny observes with slight confusion, they fish out a small red book. "Here's my partbilet - party membership card," they explain, handing it to him. He holds it carefully - it's clearly pretty old - trying to remember his Cyrillic. After the cover and a portrait of Lenin on the endpaper, he finally lands on a picture. It's clearly them, though much younger, very serious and wearing a uniform. He carefully reads the name, they don't rush him. "How do you still have this?" he finally raises his eyes at them. "Oh, it's a funny story - I accidentally took it with me to Paris, way back then. When I found it in my inner pocket, I was torn - the right thing to do would have been to burn it and scatter the ashes over the Seine, but I just couldn't bring myself to do that. So, I hid it and dragged it with me the whole way. If that isn't professionalism for unprofessional reasons, I don't know what is," they laugh and he can't help bu join them. "The uniform suits you," he notes, giving the card back to them. "I know," Agent A answers cheekily.

Judith Ford – John is very upset, but he wants to know the truth. I wish it were somebody else / But given the choice of anyone in the world / The only person I'd want over for dinner is you / Yes, I'd have dinner with Judith / So I could ask questions, or maybe one question / Who are you?

For the Record – John is confused and some old memories are coming back and there’s a little part of him who just wants to forgive them right then and there, but he’s trying to focus on the fact that they lied to him; Agent A thought it would be more difficult to persuade him (but unlike Judith they aren’t ashamed of who they are – they’re just worried John wouldn’t be awfully happy about it). For the record, this can still go my way / For the record, I can keep my pride / All I have to do is keep us focused on the questions / Each one of her responses will remind me how she lied

We Both – not everything in Agent A who John knew was a performance – a lot of personal things were real and it’s heart-warming because that means the things, they two had in common, are also still there. We both have dreams much bigger than ourselves / We both think that's how to live / We both put up a fight for all the right reasons / And we both eventually give / I tried so hard to separate / Who you are from who you were / But now I'm reevaluating / How similar you are to her

Our Word and A Better Version can get thrown out of the window because Agent A had a good childhood and they themselves are the better version, not their legend.

In general, here it gets a little more freestyle, since my fluff-loving ass is obviously brining them together, but there’s one more song I’d like to use in a unconventional way:

Listen Back - John managed to save some of the old records of Agent A he had from the time they worked together, maybe even of their interrogation and he’s sitting in his old falling apart house and listening to those thinking of how much of that was a lie. But I wasn't prepared for how it'd feel to listen back / It was a painful little listen back / I had a little listen back / My first and last listen back / And I heard you cry

No conclusion but that they do get back together, probably by fixing up the house and then move somewhere anyway. To Cuba or something.

#jim asmr #Jimち ASMR #jim asmr spies #agent john smith #agent a #36 questions #technically tangentially #yes it is quite funny that I made up the canon for this and now I'm the one AUing it