Drifting from my usual fixations, I am suddenly possessed with thoughts about the James Wright era of Jonah Magnus. There’s so much there. I’ve spoken extensively to some people about parallels between Peter and both Mordechai and Barnabas, and I feel that this time period is particularly interesting on that front.

I am of the opinion that, by the time we meet him in canon, Peter is no longer capable of maintaining any kind of meaningful connections, even with Jonah. But, as a young man? He’s positively smitten with James, as much as he is avoidant of it. Jonah thrives with such attention, of course, but it’s bittersweet in a way he only dares to explore in the most private corners of his mind. The Lukas heir has a striking resemblance to Mordechai, in a way that sometimes makes his stomach turn unpleasantly, yet his actions and temperament remind him so much more of his Barnabas.

Watching him grow more and more like Mordechai as time goes on and he grows more faithful to the Lonely. Jonah knowing that this… whatever they have feeds the Lonely in a way that would give Mordechai a disgusting level of satisfaction, but not having it within him to put any more distance between them than he is forced to.