#re8oc

Lazarus was "abducted" (in quotations because it was more like.. he was manipulated into coming to the village on the promise of all the time space and resources he would need to create his Art on the condition he also aid Miranda with her, as she put it at the time, 'cutting edge historical recreation project'. The deal was too tempting and he dropped his old life as a struggling young ~edgy outsider~ artist -he was doing some wild stuff with taxidermy and had some Wild ideas about Life and Recreation and Rebirth, which is what drew Miranda to him in the first place- in Amsterdam to travel to what.. turned out to be an isolated fairy tale Mold Cult in the middle of nowhere on the other end of the continent.) by Miranda in the mid-late 1970's, when he and Heisenberg would have, by my age head cannons, been roughly 25-32? give or take..(Lazarus is actually like a year or two older than Heis, fun fact!) and was brought to the village as a hired artisan, tasked with Creating a perfect vessel for Eva in a time when, after so many failed experiments on already-extant individuals, Miranda thought change of strategy may be in order. (This was the beginning of the path that eventually led her to reach The Connections, though not directly through anyone Lazarus knew or was involved with back in the Netherlands)

After some brief testing to determine if he could handle it he was "gifted" his own Cadou implant, to serve as a sort of "Loyalty Insurance". During this procedure he also received the "brainwashing protocol" mentioned in-game (Which I am choosing to interpret as something being physically done to the brain and/or memories with Miranda's mold powers and not just.. typical cult conditioning.) And was introduced to the Village and other Lords as Lord Bosch. (A name and identity he selected for himself after waking up, as he felt whoever he had been upon coming to the village had been killed, and he was.. someone, or something, else. My Boy is weird and esoteric in All Things All The Time Always.) He was not a new child, he wasn't to be part of the Family at all, (As he has no connection to anyone or anything from the village Nor was he meant to be a potential vessel for Eva at any point.) but he was still a Big part of Miranda's plans, and someone for the villagers to fear and respect as they would the other four. A shiny new Obedient little Servant. Left all alone in a crumbling Manor House to do his dark little deeds....

Heisenberg was both furious that Miranda had taken yet Another victim but was also.. quiet willing to take it as an opportunity to Finally get someone on his side. And in a chain of events I will Not reveal (because at that point this Basically becomes a fanfic and not a synopsis and I also want to save Something for my eventual dive into telling the story via the medium of Comics..) He makes an attempt to break the brainwashing, he knows it can be done, he did it to himself, he.. Almost got Alci, he has suspicions about Donna but nothing confirmed... and so he tries, leaving at the end of his attempt a photograph of the Factory with a note on the back; "come to me when you understand."

it doesn't work.

There is a period of time, in the history of these two knowing each other, when Heisenberg only looked at Lazarus with rageful disappointment and contempt. A failure, just another worthless Peon in Miranda's ranks for him to fight against, and clearly nothing he could do, or could have done, about it. (During this period Lazarus was wound rather tightly, confused and afraid and very alone and spending quite a bit of time with Alcina, he found Karl's attitude to be quiet Distasteful in turn. But still, in secret, Lazarus did his fair share of Looking. Though is certainly wasn't with Contempt.)

Patience is a Virtue however, but the problem is that Heisenberg is not a very virtuous man. His plan Did Work, Lazarus's brainwashing did break, it just.. took some time. And some significant effort on Lazarus's part. What follows is Another series of events I don't want to spoil but it starts with Lazarus reaching out to bridge the gap between them in a scene that features my head cannon that Karl doesn't have much of a sweet tooth and proves true the idiom that the fastest way to a mans heart is through his stomach. (don't worry, it's not literal.... This time.)

And so the two.. Meet!

Officially and on their own terms! They are both very cautious at first, Lazarus has not seen a very good side of Heisenberg at this point so he's unsure how good of a potential companion he may make and Karl isn't 100% sure this isn't some kind of twisted plot of Miranda's to find out what he's planning and keep him subdued. (Both of them are also Deeply insecure about their Own ability to connect with someone else but would either of them fully admit this? Nah.)

The more time they spend together the more they find they are.. actually quiet similar.. From the parallel kinds of work they do, to the fact Neither of them seem to be able to shut the Fuck up ever, to just their general Nasty And Devious Vibes..

What starts as a Professional Team-Up.. becomes something of a Genuine Friendship, becomes well.. Two Terrible Old Men In Love, as I like to put it.. -Tale as Old As Time plays in the distance- (There is, of course, a long part in the middle there where they are both mutually pining idiots who just don't realize what's going on during which both of them have a number of "oh.. oh........ Shit." Moments culminating in a very melodramatic encounter on a dark and stormy night where both of them have to tend to the other ones injuries and it opens them both up to trust and intimacy and vulnerability v-v... That both of them immediately run away from and hide for a few days before realizing they Can't -and more importantly Don't Want To- let this slip by and they come back together to.. shall we say.. Open Themselves Up To Intimacy and Vulnerability ;;;;OvO )