#v { distortion }; sometimes there sometimes not

[powerpolyculeshowdown]

Mod's Self Indulgent Polyship Poll

Vote for your favorites!

Geralt/Jaskier/Yennefer:

Not Canon. I'll be honest I never got around to season 3 for some reason, but it doesn't matter cause I've been a shipper since season 1, and season 2 had really good Yennefer/Jaskier moments which strengthened my love for them. Geralt is a lot kinder to Jaskier in the books, I think the way he shows his love is more earnest, but even in the show with his harsh words and major fuck up I still read it as him being in love, he's just an idiot about it. I actually kinda see Jaskier as kind of the glue that unites them, because Yenn and Geralt are a bit emotionally constipated (I don't blame them, they went through some shit in life), and as a poet and a romantic, Jaskier helps with that. On the other hand, him being a mortal, I like to think Geralt and Yennefer are very protective of him! They're a triangle to me.

Georgie/Melanie/Helen Distorion:

Not Canon. Once again, I refuse to separate Georgie and Melanie. Melanie seems to form a very close bond to Helen during the time Jon is in his coma, and sometimes you just fall in love with the monster in your basement, it is what it is! I think it works as both a V with Melanie in the middle or a triangle, seeing as Helen makes Melanie happy and Georgie wouldn't be scared of the Distortion, I could see them eventually falling in love. I imagine Helen would be fascinated by Georgie's lack of fear, and the fascination could grow into fondness and love.

[s3899602]

Blog #10 - Week 10

Wednesday

Upside Down People

Today Mai Han and I showed Sara and Helen our progress in the Capitol. They thought the colours I chose worked well, I thought they fit with the colours in the video so that was a relief that they thought so too. Sara and Helen said the colours that I used were fantastic even though the purple on the ceiling was a little mistake, so that was extremely lucky. 

Mai Han and I will also be working on the Dragon Tree Story scene, which is a low flickering candlelight. This should be pretty simple, I have already created a few different states already which I didn’t show Sara in the space but showed her after and she thought they were good. I think it would be best to avoid the arch throughout the whole scene and just focus on the walls. I’ll see how I go with improving what I have so far.

Thursday

Kingdom Dance 

I’m not sure that I liked it when it played in the Capitol and I’m not sure if it was actually bad or if I was just imposter syndrome and I wasn’t watching it right. I was really excited to see it in space so I don’t know why I wouldn’t think it was good if it was so I’m confused. Darrin and Nik didn’t seem to dislike it (apart from the music and a few colour choices). I’m going to have a look over it this week to see if there’s anything to change. I recorded another work in the capitol that I thought was exhilarating, they used a lot of techniques that I hadn’t thought of before so I will watch that again and see if anything inspires me to change what I already have. 

Jo’s Project 

Light’s Project 

Light and I had a long chat about his project and the kind of feeling he wants the sound to evoke and what he wants the sound to highlight in the video. We decided that I can just go crazy and do what I want with the sound which, admittedly, I am slightly afraid of, but Light has given me a lot of direction and has sent me a lot of inspiration from games and movies that he thinks I can draw my own inspiration from. We have very similar tastes when it comes to sci-fi movies so that’s a relief because I know I can make something that not only will fit the video, but that he will enjoy. 

We had a talk about surreal and how Light’s other project is now very Surreal and we could chage up the word in this project. We settled on uncanny, but depending on how the sound design goes, Light says I can change it again if need be. I think with the visuals we probably can’t go very far from surreal or uncanny because the stop-motion AI is so out-there that no matter what the audio is, the video would still have surreal elements. We were also talking about movies and both thought the soundtrack to Arrival (2016) was spectacular and really fits the eerie, uncanny feeling that we are going for. There’s also Coraline and a few other movies that fit the essence of the video so I will have a deeper look at all of them and see what ideas emerge. 

I had a listen to the Arrival soundtrack and really liked Sapir Whorf https://youtu.be/m87uapjnvKU?si=p4T4K9-K6JmnFtLf and Transmutation at a Distance https://youtu.be/swD1eqFSdYQ?si=AvKczhmvViMRgs0x because they both have a very otherworldly ethereal sort of feel to them which is what Light really wants the audience to feel. I love the use of vocals throughout the soundtrack as well. The whole soundtrack is honestly genius. Another great track was One of Twelve, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8adiipvZTRg&list=PLff_8M2LCnlCP3deJhXdYJCxlqCIJjItL&index=18 I really loved the use of (what I’m pretty sure was) distorted string instruments to create a sense of realisation and a heightened sense of danger. 

Research

https://www.tate.org.uk/art/art-terms/s/surrealism

Surreal artwork is about artists finding ‘magic and strange beauty in the unexpected and the uncanny’ 

As we settled on the work Uncanny, I thought I would do some research on surreal and uncanny. They’re have very similar meanings and sometimes used synonymously. Something uncanny is strange and unexpected, and surreal artwork is the celebration of that. AI is something that is widely considered to be ‘uncanny’ because it’s new and is not something we have seen before. Especially when talking to chat AI’s, it can feel as if you’re talking to a real human being and that can be jarring for a lot of people. What Light is doing with the AI generated images is quite uncanny and surreal already so so far it hasn’t been difficult trying to match that feeling. 

[jcorrachcomics]

A couple days late for @michael-diswhoretion‘s b day, BUT he wanted some jonmichael and I’m more than happy to oblige

ft. @yuusukekitagawaa‘s Helen design

[acemenagerie-a]

random tarot starter for @praemetuere​ { melanie } 3. High Priestess (Intuition, Higher powers, mystery, subconscious mind)

Helen is, technically, bending down, but, given the fact the door is on the floor, it appears as though she’s popped up out of nowhere.  Her hair appears to obey the “gravity” that exists from her perspective rather than “true” gravity, further heightening the sense of visual dissonance.  She waves, the typical blur of movement replaced by curling fractals and colors.

“Well, hello, Melanie!  Fancy seeing you here!”  She considers stepping out, because she likes Melanie and it would be polite, but honestly she is having fun playing with perspective in this way and is reluctant to stop.  “Anything I might help you with or did you wander down here just for fun?”

[ritualwritten]

Helen lists the Distortion’s halls on Zillow

[equalseleventhirds]

what’s ur opinion on fanon Helen in regards to race? Both distortion and Richardson. I think out of all the characters her fanon and canon character is very very different. Idk I’m not good at wording things

i think like, fandom largely headcanoned her as a woc (sometimes as 'vaguely brown', ofc, which is an Issue) bcos she was fun, they liked her, they had sympathy for helen richardson bcos jon did too, helen distortion was occasionally helpful, etc etc. bcos even tho she was ostensibly a 'villain', she was a villain people liked (and who ppl considered hot) so she was specifically the Type of aracial character ppl like to headcanon as a poc. and like, there wasn't much in canon to go either way! we didn't know a lot about helen richardson, to begin with.

i know the s5 revelation that not only was helen distortion absolutely not helping, but that helen richardson had been a secret tory, upset some parts of the fandom who'd grown very attached to the depiction of her as a woc and were... real upset. once again this is an issue of the 'aracial' character, combined with late-canon revelations that go against popular headcanon and sort of leave fans scrambling?

it's also an issue of fanon characterization taking control of the fandom. people project! it's what people do!! but v often ppl will project like, simplifications, archetypes, and Personal Wishes onto a character and then become convinced that that's canon. (see re: tim as a himbo/slut/reduced to just anger, martin as the soft crybaby who does no wrong, etc etc.)

bcos like, canon helen, race aside, is a fascinating commentary on the 'friends who are not really your friends' thing! and a lot of that got lost in fans being angry that she was no longer what they'd imagined her to be, even tho that imagination was not in any way canon.

in certain ways, she's also a commentary on how we do not know everything about a person and may just project things, which does actually like, reflect on fandom's whole Thing with her, but oh boy some ppl did not learn that lesson.

[hsmiththebody]

Week 3

The Nude lecture

greek athletes used to compete in the nude - female nude was not subject for interrogation and male athlete was looked to as perfection

well fed was idolised - round faces, pregnant etc

aphrodite of milos - sometimes we do get women in the Bc - the drapery is for modesty, again people are always curvy - wellfed etc

michaelangelo - muscular depiction of woman, he didnt have access to naked females so used men for models

vitruvian man - represents ideal human body proportions

resting venus - equivalent of gentlemans club image, eye contact, made for appreciation of male viewer (often was a general rule in the 1500s)

Venus Verticordia - semi nude depiction of the goddess venus

Picasso - deconstructed nude

Eadward Muybridge - interested in movement

Clarence White - family and social life of america was influence well known for pictorial and subtle use of light - has a soft poetic unfocused romantic sublime quality

Imogen Cunningham - bold and affectionate very dramatic

Edward Weston - celebrated female form often ommits the faces of his subjects - displays an affection for the female nude, big interest in light

EJ Bellocq - photographed posed prostitutes for clients selection

Paul Outerbridge - surrealistic nudes

Irving penn - non idealised body - objectification, very little eye contact

Andre Kertesx - lots of mirrors, distorts the nude

Laslo Moholy Nagy - inverting, lots of different techniques

Bill Brandt - british society but most well known for close ups of nudes often v contrasty v wide angle

Harry Callahan - domestic environment

robert maplethorpe - b/w medium, known for controversial work

Duane michals - dream like quality

Lucian Clerque - interested in light and how it wraps around the body ✨✨

fashion photography can be about dreams and living the idealised life

My idea and 1 on 1 with Helen:

Intimacy shown through using the body as art using handprints etc graphite? paint? Longing for that touch

use pigments

maybe photograph the remnants of intimacy

agrees intimacy doesn't have to be sexual and likes the subtle touches of it

try pastels?

[archivessuggest]

I’m planning an overall series where the Fears still exist but instead of them being fears they’re just the overall 13-14 magics that make up the world they live in but also it’s a Harry Potter crossover which is ONLY important in so much as one of the previous Magnus employees was a warlock that liked to play around with the old archival staff and made them what basically amounts to a secret door that they open and it’s a full ass living area sorta like one of the Hogwarts common rooms (cozy and lots of stone walls and such cause my personal HP theory which is way more important than canon cause a lot of canon was racist and ignorant, is that it’s not that magic can’t be around tech it’s just that magic sorta makes tech evolve because magic lives in the air like tech waves which means magic and wifi too close tend to get weird n shit like that) and when Jon gets the archivist position there him and Martin (who becomes a worker there too) get debriefed by Elias (who is still Jonas but Elias actuallyWILLINGLY gave his body over after one too many failed suicide attempts ooof and Jonas is ACTUALLY a good person bent on the preservation of magic knowledge n shit but also rich af lol) and Jon was informed that if he took the job the Archivist position would change him but for the better in a lot of ways and so he said okay and they moved down there but after they get attacked by Prentis (gotta keep some villains but it’s just easier if they work for a non-evil place lol) they hire additional security for the archives which are Barisa and Daisy (cause ACAB even in UK so let them have redemption arc where they leave the force) and Georgie and Melanie eventually get jobs there too and move in with them and bring The Admiral and it’s found family in the basement. Sasha is alive and happy but she works out in the actual basement beyond the secret door because she works with computers, Daisy basically follows Jon around like an oversized puppy to bodyguard him if he leaves which makes Martin hella jealous when he realizes Jon likes her but Barisa is basically the only person Daisy likes like that and she finds it hilarious and it’s amazing.

Anyways. One day Jon and Daisy are heading home from a grocery run (they have a secret entrance from the outside of the archives so they’re not tramping through the whole ass institute with groceries and getting weird looks) and they find two kittens in a cardboard box in an alley. So obviously they bring the babies home too. The Admiral immediately claims them as his children, which is good cause Georgie and Jon have fostered kittens before and after their checkups and shots they are ready to take in the new babies.

But the hilarious part. The fuckin hilarious part. Is one day. One of the kittens. Follows Jon out of the archives (he tends to let the cats choose if they want to go to his office with him or not since he still uses it as his office outside the communal living quarters, and one of them chose to cling today) and he gets pointed out by one of the Less Magically Inclined staff upstairs. So. Jon. Is like. ‘Oh shit.’

But Daisy suddenly pops up behind him and picks up the baby (who loves his giant momma) and asks why Jon brought him to work today. And Jon catches on. Cause the guy who pointed him out legit just accused him of hiding a kitten in the basement and ‘that is SO not allowed, is it???’ And Jon wanted to stop the guy before he got reported to HR, so he’s all ‘oh. Okay. Bag? Baby made nest in bag??? Didn’t see!!! Took baby to work!!!!’ And it’s the dumbest excuse ever but they buy it with the simple fact that Jon is the biggest workaholic ever and probably wouldn’t run a kitten home just cause he accidentally brought him in lmaooooo.

Anyways. I just need a FIC where they have a secret cobblestone cottage in the basement that can be infinite and is v cosy and they all love it. Tim and Martin basically control the kitchen and even tho a lot of them like making their own food, sometimes Martin and Tim take it over for a day to stuff the fridge full of leftovers and meal prep. Sasha and Barisa like sitting in the main room’s armchairs and reading books for hours. Jon and the cats love the giant fireplace (which def works for floo too but it’s a closed system so you need permission to get in first) because warm, Georgie does her podcast still and Melanie goes to therapy because she’s still got a lotta issues, even when she doesn’t hate Jon and the Institute (and acting as tho those are her only issues when she’s openly stated that she’s had anger issues for as long as she could remember and have lead to a lot of self endangerment both past and current... ya my girl needs help) and can be in the same room as Jon with them only minimally hissing at each other, Daisy is happy and safe knowing that her charge (Jon) and her mate (Barisa) are safe and well cared for, (maybe she’s a werewolf... tho not the same way HP does it cause that’s a mega homophobic and evil way I like writing them like Teen Wolf wolves cause let them be growly and in control at times but yes they v much still belong to the Hunt) and it’s just nice all over.

Everyone is happy. Deal with it. The only reason why I really came up with HP crossover to begin with cause my OTP Draco/Harry/Luna came to smack my brain and I decided that Harry woulda been grabbed by The Distortion right after Hogwarts cause he walkin around with the elder wand, the invisibility cloak, the philosophers stone, the sword of griffendor, AND the resurrection stone.

Trust me. That bitch was like ‘wtfffff’ and stalked the kid till he was disappeared. Then Luna (who’s existence was only known cause of Harry) found the yellow door like four years later and walked in without hesitation. She later on takes over Michael instead of Helen and she’s strong enough to keep things sane. Then she ejects Harry (who’s still somewhat human but becoming an avatar) and drops him on Draco’s doorstep and tells him to take Harry to the Magnus institute so they can make sure he’s as harmless as he seems. Which she already knew and it was mainly just a slightly long term plan (lmao long term it only took three months) to get Draco to willingly leave with them too lmaoooo Luna was all ‘hmmm... why have ONE ex bf when I can have both of them???’ And now. Ships. Harry is their... pet? Ya.

Anyways byyyye.

[spiralise]

Misc meta-sliding-into-Spiral-Archivist-AU talk.

I really like thinking of the Distortion as, yeah, fear of “what’s behind the smile,” but not in the Stranger-esque “Is this thing just secretly a monster out to eat my face, a la not!Sasha” but more like “Is their idea of friendship actually good for me / ‘true’ from my perspective?” Yeah, it’s smiling, but is it out of sympathy or sadism? It does want to be your friend, but why?

“Just because it’s love doesn’t mean it’s okay” → “Just because it’s your friend doesn’t mean it isn’t going to manipulate and torment you.” Or something like that.

Also I don’t think this exactly undoes anything about “also it just kinda Existentially Sucked being Michael and still Existentially Sucked being Helen.” Sometimes being a monster sucks, even if it’s also the only thing you can be anymore. :V

I am also. very happy(/relieved, really lmao) that this does not actually conflict with stuff going on in my fic, ha ha. Maybe more specifically, this interpretation, since The Question here is/will be: wtf does “a relationship” mean to the Distortion, anyway, is this a definition that Jon actually wants, etc.

Anyway instead of just thinking about ELOD I should uhhhh go back to writing it. Or the goddamn almost-meta JonElias fic, aa.

[acemenagerie-a]

♬ Distortion? whichever embodiment of lost and helpless is easiest to find a song for

both bc im not a coward jdfhjdsfjhgfsd || ACCEPTING

Micheal  ( this one is abt the Vibes, lyric threads may be tenuous but there are Sannikov Land Vibes™ )

The Miserable Story of My Destruction - Ferry ft. Gumi

And they say, "Go down there and you're dead!" But believe me, it's all nonsense crazy talk Take my hand, I will show you how fun it is To take part in the coolest party on the block, oh yeah

Oh no, this doesn't look good I'd run from this, if only I could Such haunting light is now glowing in her eyes My demise Seems a guarantee

Helen ( ngl this is also mostly the upbeat distorted Vibes & also helen being beautiful bc... listen )

There’s Something Happening - Jack Stauber

What have I been saying? Time and time again Why would you listen now? You didn't listen then! Get along, please understand me Your fancies are commanding Hangman, for any...

[acemenagerie-a]

WHICH TAROT ARE YOU?

tagged by stolen from: @baseyra tagging: continue the tradition of thievery my friends 

(( i always do So Many so they’re under a cut

all t.ma muses this time tho, brain has chosen its focus dshjgdsjhgfhdsgfjhsgdfjhsdgf ))

Helen

THE HERMIT

It’s a skill, to look inside yourself, one you have mastered. The endless corridors and shifting thoughts are mapped to very carefully. This all takes time, of course. And those twisting hallways are so very difficult to map. It would be so easy to get lost. You know this space so well. Wouldn’t it be a lovely place to stay? So well-known and comforting. Why go back? How nice, how easy, to dissolve, to hide from the rest of the world and all the people in it. Why bother, when you are so good at looking inside yourself. Like enlightenment, the self. Retreating this far inwards is like retreating just as far out, into the vast ether. So comforting. The thing that was you looks at the thing that was the old woman. There is no you anymore. Goodbye.

Elias

JUSTICE

What would you do to ensure justice? You know full well I don’t speak of lofty ideals and courts and magistrates, dearest. What would you do to those that hurt you? If I dropped them in your lap, what would you do? What kind of pain could you possibly inflict upon them? You are right to do so. You are right to want to do so. Ignore the screaming, dearest, you are the hand of justice now, and they hurt you. Do not look too closely at their faces, dearest. You are within your rights. You spell out your own rights, now. Are you happy about it? Are you certain that this is the right person you hold by the hair? Does your anger hurt less now?

Jonah

THE WORLD

Power is a heady thing. Do you have what it takes to control it? You thought you did, for a long time as you gained more and more. Power only begets more power, after all. Mind your breaking point, mind your load, mind how high you’ve climbed up the ladder; it’s against regulation to stand on the top rung. You could get hurt up there. You could fall. I’m not sure that I could catch you, so high above the rest of us. Don’t look down. Mind the ceiling fan.

Gertrude

DEATH

A cheery woman’s voice chimes from above. "Game over! Please restart and try again." The old woman holds a baby in her arms and makes to pass it to you. Will you take it?

Georgie

THE EMPRESS

You are only independent insofar as you have others to care for. This makes you dependent in your independence. They want your knowledge, your skills, your talents, your affection. What can they give in return? “Teeth” is not an acceptable answer, nor is “keeping the shadows to the corners”, nor is “glory”, nor is “love”. There is no acceptable answer, no gift of a magnitude which can match the thing you know, which is that they are taking from you. They are stealing from you. You should stop them from doing that, darling. You only have so much to give. You are not infinite, and when they have taken their last they will remind you of that. My advice is this: give enough to keep them at bay, but be careful. Their teeth can turn on you too. There is no easier way to make an animal dangerous than by feeding it.

[acemenagerie-a]

(( y’know sometimes u think abt the good hugs of one of ur muses before bed and, as u’re trying to sleep, remember the mortal kombat’s best cuddler unraveled video and have this image beamed straight into ur brain at 2:30am and then have to produce it 12+ hrs later bc u slept past noon

y’all know that feel right? #sorelatable

anyway! commentary under the cut!! ))

Pure Distortion : Bad cuddler for many reasons.  First off, just infinite hallways of doors and mirrors.  How’re you supposed to hold that?  Secondly, it is a being of pure lies and deception and is completely incomprehensible to the human mind so, like, not gonna be there for you when you need it.  Third, will eat you.

Michael Distortion : Adds knife hands to the cuddle experience more than Pure Distortion, however, has chosen to not use knife hands that one time with Sasha, so, is slightly less dangerous overall.  Has also let people out of infinite corridors so.... Unfortunately still not very emotionally available.  Refuses to outright answer questions.  Even if he does finally open up about his deep brimming self-loathing and unimaginable rage, he’ll only do it right before attempting to murder you.

Helen Distortion : Much more emotionally available.  She is here for you if you’re undergoing an existential crisis.  She’s accepted having a self and we love self-acceptance here.  Unfortunately, still got knife hands.  Also still eldritch being of pure lies and deception and infinite hallways so, like, you may get eaten.  And maybe get a real estate pitch while you’re getting eaten.

Elias : Unfathomably touch-starved.  He will cry the second you put a hand on him and it will be A Lot.  If this is after Jonah’s eyes are taken out, his tear ducts are messed up to the point that moisture levels of the cuddle will be unaffected, but like... it’s still A Lot.  Even after, he can be a bit overly attentive, afraid of ending up utterly alone.  He does want you to have a good cuddle and 1000% deserves to be held, but you need to be ready for some emotional baggage before you walk in.

Jonah : Bastard.  Admittedly, the immediate physical risk is pretty low compared to the Knife Hands Squad, but he will not be there for you and is definitely trying to get something out of you in some capacity.  Does he want money?  Is this a powerplay?  Is he and/or his eldritch patron drinking in your paranoia regarding what he could possibly be after in this cuddle sesh?  Yes.  May beam some trauma directly into your brain for the hell of it.  Absolutely terrible man.

Gertrude : Like Jonah, the immediate physical risk is minimal, though if you are spending a lot of time around Gertrude, then you will probably die horrifically sooner rather than later.  Absolutely emotionally unavailable.  Between you and Gertrude is a wall of trust issues a mile thick and she is constantly making it thicker, good luck.

Georgie : Very good cuddle.  She is the right amount of attentive and willing to take initiative in the cuddle.  Bonus points awarded because she also has The Admiral and a big, fluffy, purring kitty instantly elevates a cuddle session.  

Joshua : Very solid and warm and stabilizing.  Very good cuddler and will 100% make it so easy to ignore all your problems even of the spooky eldritch variety.  Is prone to zoning out, though, and that can make him seem a bit distant if you’re trying to vent a little during the cuddle.  But also, again, his cuddles are about ignoring the outside world for a bit so.

Robin : Pretty emotionally available, ready to hear you talk for a long time about something you love if you’re ready to do the same in return.  Can find it hard to sit still, though, so there’s going to be a lot of shifting and moving.  Your arm will never go numb, but also Robin has sharp elbows so you may get grazed while you shift positions.  

[ritualwritten]

DISTORTION TAGS

[acemenagerie-a]

Five of those #JustEnormousHandsThings HC's for various Distortions?

5 HC’s || ACCEPTING

(( Distortion, prior to Gertrude forever fucking up its whole deal, very seldom chose to appear in a humanoid shape.  It didn’t like it, preferring the stalking and mind games of being a random weird door that stole kids’ jump ropes sometimes.  It refused to spend time to comprehend human anatomy and general human fears were such that like big hands were scary so all the “bones” ended up there.  Big boney knife hands.

As seen in canon, Michael can be like ‘no what knife hands? i dont have knife hands. see? hold my hand, look they aren’t knife hands’ but that takes some concerted effort to make the hands not knife hands and can really only be done in short bursts.  If he has to make an effort to feign at humanity, he’d definitely prefer pointedly not shaking someone’s hand over temporarily making even one hand not a Knife Hand.

If offered a handshake, Helen’s previous existence as a real estate agent would likely compel her to want to complete the handshake to be polite and, honestly, she is still slightly offended Michael didn’t shake her hand when they met.  Whether she puts her mind to not having Knife Hands is... it would depend on how she’s feeling that day.  Sometimes you have to stab someone for fun.

For the hands being giant knife hands, they are weirdly curved?  When it points, the finger would curve up as if double jointed, but also seems to curl inward into a spiral but also you can tell where it is pointing.  It’s an off-putting, maddening effect.  The fingers can also curl and be placed in ways physically impossible.  Like making a fist should absolutely not work and yet somehow it could make a fist happen and visually it would simultaneously look fine but also like someone turned no clip on.

Distortion Gertrude is slightly different.  She is, overall, a much sharper, angular Distortion.  Her fingers still do weird impossible spirals, but they’re much sharper spirals, the turns are like 90°. ))

[acemenagerie-a]

(( sdhfgjshdgfjhdsgjfgsdf i just realized that veronica and helen would probably get on like a fucking wildfire ))

[acemenagerie-a]

Helen: examine cassette tape

RPG Item Descriptions || ACCEPTING

You pick up the tape in too-long fingers, grinning as you look at it.  It seems to be labelled #0160210.  A faint memory that lingers from when you were and yet were not Michael stirs and, perhaps, if you chose to turn that corridor, open that door, you could glean enough information to decipher the string of numbers into something cognizant.

>_ CHIDE

Instead you laugh at the little tape, gently scolding it for getting lost so far away from where it belongs, with its little Archive and Archivist.  

You could always return it back to its proper home.

>_ KEEP

You may have decided the Institute worth your ally-ship, but you see no reason to hand over everything, not if the Eye is being so careless with its things.

Besides, there is something in the spooling tape that makes you think that this is yours.  Though you have no intention of finding a tape player and learning exactly what.