#jonahshawe

[magnus-rar]

Hi hello;;;; i come with a query. Do you mind explaining how you think jonathan got into that fleshy business? Did he read a cursed book? Did he have a mentor who pushed him towards it?

hello!

I should preface this by saying that I have 2.5 versions of his story in my head. aside from Flesh avatar Jonathan (Fanshawe, to be clear. I don't really talk about him much here), I am also an eye-aligned-but-not-an-avatar Jonathan believer (I think this is actually the most possible scenario, though that is a rant for another time). That Being Said I do have extensive headcanons about that

this is about to get very self-indulgent, so be warned. and note the discussions of drug addiction, Jonah Magnus (manipulation), self image issues and other Flesh-typical stuff

so, the way I like to see it going down goes like this: in the late 1820s Jonathan develops an opioid addiction (morphine, to be specific, as this part of his story is highly influenced by Bulgakov's Morphine. the plot revolves around a doctor who had the drug injected as a painkiller and became addicted to it). it soon becomes a very pressing issue as it starts to interfere with his day-to-day life and work, and as he realizes that he can't, actually, just drop it. Jonah, being his dear companion of many years, notices that something is wrong with him, maybe even Knows about it, and confronts Jonathan about it. while I do believe that by that point Jonah made peace with having to kill off his friends occasionally, I don't think it's something he does for fun. plus, having a doctor as your friend of very useful (and even more so since they are both trans, which means Jonah can trust him with his health), so Jonah volunteers to try to help him

they try a couple of things (lowering the dose gradually, quitting it cold turkey with Jonah overlooking Jonathan – diy rehab of sorts) and all of them fail miserably. so, Jonah decides to apply his knowledge of the supernatural to it: loss of control over yourself, your urges, your life sounds like a Web thing. then what is the opposite of it? which Fear would grant you total control over your body, balancing out Web's influence? it's the Flesh

or so he tells Jonathan – by that point Jonah did not believe in the ideas of balance, so he didn't really think Jonathan could "balance out" anything. he knew from the start that if Jonathan tried to flirt with the Powers, he would not walk away unaffected. he did mention to him that he may or may not end up in the service of the Flesh if they tried that, but Jonathan was desperate enough to agree anyway, which was very good for Jonah: he wanted to know what will happen. it was a very new Fear at that point, so he didn't know how it would interact with a human, since he never met an acolyte of It, and so... he made one

Jonathan was a good fit for the Flesh. as a trans man with no access to any kind of gender affirming procedures and in a very dangerous environment, he dealt with a lot of dysphoria. Jonah was trans as well and had similar feelings, but while Jonah's dysphoria came from being afraid that other people don't see him for who he is, Jonathan's came from the very experience of living in his body. plus, Jonathan was always curious about human anatomy, limits of the human body, its inner workings etc etc – it was one of the main reasons he wanted to pursue medicine. his personal philosophy resembled the Flesh's ideas too, even though it was mostly informed by his experiences as a doctor (a talk for another time). so, the only thing that Jonah had to do is suggest that path and maybe lead him a bit, but he was sure Jonathan would get the hang of it very quick. and he did

to be fair, it did help with the addiction, even if just by replacing one urge with another. it also made Jonathan rely on Jonah even more to navigate his new nature. Jonah suggested writing everything down to try to make sense of it (and to keep an account from his perspective, which Jonah could then study)

Jonathan was grateful to him for his help – he believed Jonah was fully sincere in that. and he was sincere, but... to an extent. at the same time, there was a faint feeling of betrayal, which he tried to suppress because (technically) he knew what he was signing up for. nevertheless, he couldn't come to terms with his new way of being, what occasionally led to him lashing out at Jonah for making him like this and then apologizing profusely. rinse and repeat for a couple of years

when Jonathan finally cuts ties with Jonah, he quickly realizes that without his help, it is very difficult to continue surviving. especially since he doesn't want to be a monster – never wanted to, but at least before there was Jonah to tempt him – so he struggles to keep himself fed. it gets worse and worse and eventually resolves in his suicide around 6 months after he sent the letter to Jonah. before doing that, he donated his diaries to the Magnus Institute as a way to preserve the knowledge about who Jonah Magnus is. no one would publish them, obviously, but he knew that Jonah didn't have it in him to destroy them, so the Institute seemed like his best bet

a brief pause for applause, and now we are in the paragraph where I address historical accuracy. Morphine was published in 1926, and they had modern syringes by that time. Jonathan died before their invention in 1853, but they already had morphine – it was isolated in 1803-1805. which means that he'd have to take it orally, which in turn would require a higher dose to cause addiction (but it's still the most addictive substance according to wiki, so it wouldn't take that much). does it have to be morphine? no. but I want it to be, so now it is

I'm not going to ponder how possible it would be for two Regency trans men to meet, but I want to mention James Barry who was a surgeon and a trans man born somewhere in 1789 just because it makes me happy to know about him :)

[nonbinaryeye]

I'd like to imagine that Jonah didn't hold grudge against Fanshawe after he decided to cut the connection and disappear from his life nor he planed to act against him.

However he kept sending him letters. He wasn't writing in them anything interesting. Mostly about weather or about boring paperwork or simply about his day. The content of the letters really wasn't the point.

Jonah just wanted to remind Fanshawe from time to time that no matter where he moved no matter where he trief to hide he still knew his exact position. At even though he was not about to hurt him in any way he could if he wanted...

[insomnia-productions]

Kiss prompt:36 Jon x (1800s) Jonah

*Malevolent laughing*

36: "we can never be together" kiss

Ahhh thank you Elle! This probably isn’t what you had in mind, but I needed to drop in a bit of optimism, so here’s a Jon-as-Fanshawe AU! 

.

“I can’t do this,” Jonathan says, and his voice is as ragged as the look in his eyes. “Every time I look at you, I see him - I see those things inside of him—”

“I didn’t do that,” Jonah whispers. “I didn’t put them there.”

Jonathan laughs, a brittle sound. “You didn’t put the eyes inside him, but Jonah, you did this to him. And you knew what you were doing, what you were condemning him to. And I cannot—” He stops, rakes a hand back through his hair. “This has to end now, Jonah.”

“What?”

“This - this institute, this affair you have with the darkness. Or—” He sucks in a breath, squares his shoulders. “Or us.”

It is only through years of practice that Jonah does not flinch. He makes his voice cold. “If you have something to say, then say it outright.”

The look Jonathan gives him is exhaustion and grief. “I don’t want to fight with you, Jonah. But we cannot go on like this - I cannot go on like this. I cannot stand by and watch you sacrifice everyone I care about to these powers you’re chasing - including yourself.”

“Get to the point, Fanshawe.”

“The Institute - or this.” He gestures to the space between them. “I need you to choose.”

Jonah is silent. They both already know what his answer will be.

Jonathan sighs. “Yes. I thought so. Then, this is farewell.”

He takes a step forward. Jonah jerks back before he can stop himself. “Don’t—”

He is silenced with a kiss. Featherlight, and controlled, and over too quickly. Jonathan doesn’t look at him as he walks away.

“Goodbye, Jonah.”

.

“Hello, Mr Bouchard.”  

Jonah looks into the warm brown eyes of the interviewee on the other side of his desk, and feels an ache in his chest so sharp and so familiar that it threatens to overtake him. But Jonah has had two centuries’ worth of practice, and so he draws in a slow, controlled breath, and smiles.

Another chance.

“Hello, Jonathan. It’s a pleasure to meet you. Shall we begin?”

Another chance.

And this time, Jonah’s going to be more careful.

This time, Jonah’s not going to let him go.

.

[trustworthy-liar]

Can I request Jonahbashawe? I think Jonah, Barnabas and Fanshawe should all cuddle together.

I feel sorry for you Mr. Fanshawe you just want to study and these two boiz are annoying you.

I cannot help it but headcanon Jonathan as ace. Jonah just dragged him into this madness and he just went with it like "okay this is what we're doing now..."

[nonbinaryeye]

Jonah: Don't be so hard on yourself, Jonathan, everyone does mistakes sometimes.

Fanshawe: Thank you, Jonah, that's-...

Jonah: Except for me of course. I am perfect.

[nonbinaryeye]

Early mornings and the visits of Mr. Magnus

Written for @jonahmagnusweek

Day 3 - Pressure

Jonathan  Fanshawe has been having a problem sleeping lately. Name of that problem is Jonah Magnus.

Read on AO3

...

Jonathan Fanshawe is awakened by the sound of insistent knocking. Few years back he might have been concerned by such urgent peruse of his attention in the middle of the night. Is someone dying? Has anyone been deadly injured? Or struck by a sudden illness?

Nowadays emotions that sudden late visitors strike in him could no longer be described as worry. It is mostly just an annoyance.

He yawns and sits up. His hand reaches to his night table for a candle and matches to light it up with. Then he considers if he should change from his night clothes since he doubts he will be able to fall back asleep after this interruption. Another set of urgent knocking makes him finally grab the candlestick and head towards his entrance door.

“What took you so long, Jonathan? I could be dying!”

“Good morning to you too, Jonah.” Jonathan haven’t check the clock but the color of the sky is seeming to be more shade of the dark blue than the blackness of a night. Rubbing his eyes he lets his friend in. It would be only waste of time trying to reason with him to come at another time when the sun has fully risen – he tried that in the past.

“I apologize but you know that I would never interrupt you if it wasn’t important. But this time it might really be matter of life or death!” Fanshawe in fact does not know that. Probably because what he finds important and what Jonah finds important are two very different things.

“Hm…”

“Are you even listening to me Jonathan?”

“Yes… please feel free to elaborate. What are the symptoms of your illness?” He resists adding this time for it would only lead to melodramatic cries about not being taken seriously enough. For how knowledgeable his friend usually is he has never met anyone more paranoid about being struck by a sudden illness. Not even any of his elder clients living past their expected age are so worried by the littlest sign something might be out of order.

“I’ve come here as soon as I noticed it,” Jonah starts quite pointlessly since Jonathan was not about to assume that symptoms appeared yesterday’s afternoon and Jonah simply chose to visit him in the most inconvenient hour. “I’ve just finished work in my study and started to undress to go to sleep. But as I was untying the bandages-…”

“Wait. Pardon me but have you said you were just about to go to sleep? It is… well, I am not certain what time it is exactly but the sun is about to rise. Jonah I thought we talked about your sleeping regime quite thoroughly last time.” Only real health issue that Jonah presented to him in past few months was his tendency to unexpectedly faint sometimes. At first Fanshawe was naturally very concerned for it might be just first sign of something more serious. However upon further interrogation of Jonah and one conversation with Mr. Bennett which provided him further context Jonathan was successfully able to pinpoint lack of sleep as the culprit of described problems. Jonah seemed not very happy with his verdict. Nor he has seemed to take his advice to heart.

“I am trying to improve my schedule it is special case this time. I could not simply leave in the middle of work what if I forgot till the morning what I was about to write? Anyway that is not important right now Jonathan!”

It is way too early to try arguing with him. “Apologies. Please continue.”

“Yes, so just as I was changing my clothes to sleep I have noticed the pain in my chest. Well not pain exactly more of a pressure? As if I was lying on my back and someone has trapped me under a heavy rock. It appeared out of nowhere I might have had it for a bit longer but you know how hard it is notice needs of the flesh sometimes when one is occupied by work.”

Jonathan is doing his best to keep his eyes open. “So, sudden pressure in the chest and… is it all?”

“It makes breathing harder. And also actually when I move in certain direction there sometimes appear a little stab of pain too… Before you ask it cannot be broken rib I haven’t been doing anything that could lead to me hurting myself in such a way and I also already examined my ribcage myself. Oh, something like stabbing pain was a symptom of heart failure isn’t it? Do you think it might that? Jonathan you must help me!” The panic on Jonah’s face is rising as he decides to self-diagnose himself first and ask questions later as per usual. He takes back all those wishes for his patients to be more aware and educated about their bodies. His dear friend knows way too much for his own good.

“No. Calm down Jonah. I think I might know what the problem it. But first you are still regularly binding your chest because of… your condition?”

“Naturally since as I said before it makes my condition a bit more comfortable. Now how exactly is this relevant?”

“I was just wondering.”  His dear friend Jonah Magnus happened to be born with a wrong body which is something he never heard about before. Though he can imagine whoever was unfortunate to be born this way would very unlikely be able to get someone to believe them.

After all even he had a bit of hard time to overcome the conflict between the clear biological evidence and Jonah’s manners and intelligence which has undeniably been pointing towards him being a gentleman. But after enough consideration he must have admitted that it probably is not even the biggest curiosity he encountered during his career.  As morbid as that may sounds if Jonah died sooner than him he would love to do an autopsy to study more of his condition and whether there really is no biological prove of conflict between one’s body and one’s psyché…

Ah but this line of thought is a bit off topic. He probably tortured his friend enough with uncertainty.

“Well? Can you finally tell me what illness I have? Can you cure it?  Do you not wish to examine me closer?”

“No need for that. You would have much less problems if you followed my advice for once Jonah. I’ve been telling to you for a while you should not be tying the bandages around your chest so tight. And also there is no reason why you should wear them at your home. They are most likely cause of the discomfort as they are pushing on your ribs.”

“But… You don’t understand I need to… uh, are you completely certain it might not have any different cause? Or maybe…-” Jonah whines and Jonathan would probably feel much more pity for how uncomfortable his friend must feel if he didn’t wake him up. He might have been awake but all his compassion is still asleep.

“Do as you wish Jonah. But if you want to get rid of the feeling of pressure in your chest this is the only cure I can recommend to you. Stop binding yourself so often and so tightly.” Fanshawe stands up to make it clear that this is end of the discussion. “Now if it is all… It would be pleasure for me to continue in our conversation in later hours.”

[nonbinaryeye]

I already share few of my Jonahbas headcannons but may I interested you also in some of my headcannons about Jonathan Faneshawe and his relantionship towards Jonah Magnus (Jonahtan... Jonahshawe? Okay neither of those are probably a real ship names... Does it have a real ship name...?)

Jonathan Fanshawe was from good enough family and he could have lived quite comfortable life treating rich men but he was always much more interested in gaining new knowledge though he was excusing it to himself that examination of dead bodies and illnesses will have bigger impact and might do more good.

He might have even partly work as a coroner - government or judicial official who is empowered to conduct or order an inquest into the manner or cause of death (since he could just request Von Closens body for post-mortem)

He was also performing operations/autopsies in Operating theater*  in which students and other spectators could watch surgeons perform surgery. Jonathan was regularly going off the script and trying to do his own inovations. It caught Jonah's attention as he might have been sneaking there in his own pursue of knowledge. However the univesity was less thrilled and Fanshawe was eventually forbbiden to continue his practice there. 

Jonah was trying to make acquaintances with Fanshawe who couldn't be less interested after just getting dismissed. But in the end Jonah managed to hunt him down on the cemetery where Fanshawe was trying get bodies to experiment on in a less legal way**. Being caught in such an incriminating situation he had no other choice than to listen to his proposal of cooperation.

Jonah wanted to help him even though he still lacked enough monetary means. He got much more important thing: plenty of connections in higher society to whom he could introduce his new good friend 'who was an amazing doctor' and 'yes indeed all the rumors about him were not true at all!'

Jonathan was overall quite introverted and not so much interested in most of the small talk and pointless conversation but when someone asked him about a topic which was of his expertise he started to ramble about it as much as Jonah did

*I wanted him to be doing public autopsies but after a deep research I found that they on the contrary seem to be illegal to perform. However if anyone have some better reliable source about it please let me know!

**funfact - grave robbing for fresh corpses was quite a thing in the beginning of Victotian era. The grave robbers were called Resurrectionists and they were selling the bodies for autopsies. Fanshawe wanted to simply cut the middle man.