!Mirrorverse Logan and Veronica Who: Mirror Verse Logan What: He's confused by this Madison Valley Where: the park then WAMM offices When: Saturday Warnings: brief mentions of violence and death
When Logan went to sleep that night, it was in the bed of a townie he’d started sleeping with in the last few weeks. She was cute enough, but this was an arrangement for both of them. She got sex, and he got somewhere to sleep for a night. This place? This felt like hell, even more so after he lost Veronica. While the woman, whose name he thought was Emily, but he didn’t much care, slept, Logan rolled over and wondered where his life had gone so terribly wrong.
He and V were together when they ended up here. Thankfully, they were both scrappy enough they could survive in this hell like dimension. Unfortunately, for both of them, that asshole Dean decided he wanted to run things. Not that it bothered Logan, exactly, but Veronica had issues with it. Could he blame her? Rich assholes weren’t something she could abide by, given her past. Logan warned her to be careful, but he couldn’t stop her. That was something nobody could do when Veronica’s sense of right and wrong kicked into high gear.
And in the end it cost her. Logan still couldn’t be sure who told Dean, but his bet? James. James wanted Dean off his back, and what better way than to tattle on Veronica. Logan found V, and the only way he could identify her was by her engagement ring. Dean, of course, didn’t take any responsibility, claiming it was V’s fault for investigating. Either way? Logan didn’t have his fiancée anymore and he hated Dean.
When he opened his eyes the next morning, he found himself on a park bench. Not the first time he’d slept there, although...when did the bench get a new paint job? He sat up and stood. Which is when he noticed kids. On swings. The swings at the park were long gone and no self-respecting parent visited the park.
Okay. Where the hell was he? He took a deep breath, about ready to approach a parent to ask, when he noticed… “VERONICA?!” No. No she wasn’t here. This wasn’t the first time this particular nightmare occurred. He’d wake up and she’d still be dead. But usually the scent of coffee didn’t accompany this particular nightmare. Nor did the laughter and shouts of kids. So he tried again. “V?”
***
Veronica was enjoying the nice weather and decided to detour through the park after her afternoon Starbucks run. The kids playing gave her a pang of emotion, allowing herself to think about Keith and Steve, thoughts she didn’t often allow herself to indulge in. Over the past year and a half, she had lost so much, including almost losing herself at the bottom of a bottle. Luckily, Leo arrived and saved her from herself. Jessica wasn’t that far off when she called him her knight in shining armor.
Things were going well enough now, even though she knew that she had to tell Logan the truth about the future in their world sooner rather than later. It wasn’t a conversation she was looking forward to, but she knew it was necessary and was glad that Leo was willing to be there with her when she finally got the courage to do so.
Her reverie was broken when she heard Logan calling her name. Damn, had she conjured him? This certainly wasn’t the time or place for that conversation, so she plastered a smile on her face when she turned to greet him. “Hey, Logan,” she said. “Where are you off to?”
***
Logan stared at his dead fiancée. So many things were wrong in this fucking scenario. For starters, the fake smile she hadn’t worn around him in quite some time. But more so this whole situation felt wrong. Really wrong.
“Where am I off...where am I? I’m in a dream aren’t I? Because the Madison Valley park isn’t full of kids, but graffiti and broken equipment. And you’re...not with me. Dean hated your investigating and…” Logan broke off. This didn’t feel like a setting to say, ‘I had to identify your burnt body by your engagement ring.’
“I would like to wake up from this dream now. Please. I don’t care if I wake up in hell again, but this is a particularly lousy piece of torture.”
***
The way he was staring at her made Veronica’s stomach churn in an unpleasant way even before he spoke. As she listened to the words he said, her head joined the party, a dull ache starting to throb behind her eyes. Fuck. This wasn’t her Logan. This was some other Logan who was apparently from a different version of Madison Valley. It wasn’t the first time she’d encountered such a thing, but the look on his face was one she recognized from the mirror after Logan had arrived here. And her face paled when he mentioned identifying her body.
“Logan,” she said, her voice softer and the smile faded. “It’s not a dream. It’s an alternate universe.” If he’d spent time in any version of Madison Valley, he should understand that concept. “Let’s sit,” she added, leading him over to a nearby bench.
*** Another alternate universe? Logan found himself chewing the inside of his cheek, a new habit that he didn’t remember having even a few months ago. A new habit he didn’t like, but a habit nonetheless. He felt his fists unclenching and, not for the first time, could tell his nails dug into flesh. However, he followed V to the bench where he’d been sleeping moments ago.
“I barely got used to the other Madison Valley. That one hasn’t fared so well, V.” He noticed the catch in his voice as he spoke her nickname. This conversation? It was certainly giving Veronica a headache. That expression seemed universal for all Veronica Mars. “Wait. Does this version have enough food for everyone?” Logan got used to not having enough food, even though Eliot tried to grow a lot of produce for the town. ***
“Yeah, we get regular deliveries,” Veronica said. If Logan was here from some other Madison Valley, she suspected there might be others as well. Hopefully this time wouldn’t involve vampires. “Do you want to go grab some food? Or… something else? I don’t know? My office isn’t far from here.” She could offer to take him to the house, but then she’d have to explain she was with Leo and she wasn’t sure if he was ready to hear something like that.
She sat next to him, her body turned towards his, and rested one of her hands on his arm. “Sounds like you got the short end of the stick in the AU lottery,” she said. “Do you want to tell me about it?”
***
Logan nodded at the food offer. He honestly couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt full. Or anything approaching full. “Food would be great. You have an office?” This fact shouldn’t surprise him at all, and yet, being in an alternate universe, without much food and always being on guard certainly dulled his perception.
He let out a breath he hadn’t realized he held for months when Veronica rested her hand on his arm. That felt like home. “In the other place, a different version of you and I showed up a couple months after the dome went up around the town. Except we don’t get regular deliveries. Think off a dystopian version and that’s what we had. Some guy named Dean and his brother Sam decided they wanted to take over part of the town. You being you...you tried to stop it, V. You didn’t survive this investigation.” Logan’s voice broke multiple times. His shoulders sagged and his body language returned to his holding the weight of the world. Did he blame himself for Veronica’s death? Of fucking course. How could he not? They looked out for each other. And he failed her when it mattered most.
***
Veronica automatically pulled him into a hug. She knew what it was like to lose someone you loved and hated that there was a universe where their situations had been reversed and he’d lost her. “Oh, Logan,” she said softly.
After offering some comfort, she pulled back and gave him an odd look. “Sam and Dean are bad guys? That’s interesting.” She didn’t know Dean well, but Sam had consulted at WAMM in the past and she knew they were both among the folks who did what they could to protect the town when weird things happened. It didn’t surprise her that she got herself killed trying to investigate and stop them though. That sounded like her.
“I own a private investigation firm here,” she explained. “Started it seven years ago with Mac and a couple other guys. Mac and Angel aren’t around anymore, but Wes is here. We’ve got a good crew working for us these days.”
She stood and offered her hand. “We’ll get you fed and then go from there.”
*** While this Veronica wasn’t his, the hug helped ground him. It still felt like any normal Veronica hug and for that he felt grateful.
“Sam and Dean aren’t bag guys here?” He couldn’t hide the surprise, but given how much nicer this place was, he probably shouldn’t be surprised.
As they walked he peppered her with a few more questions. “Are there things here to investigate? And I’m sorry Mac isn’t here anymore. Is anyone else from home?” Logan wouldn’t mind if Wallace was here. Although they hadn’t always been friends, Logan liked the other guy quite a bit. Plus, he was V’s best friend. And, if someone forced the truth from him, probably a better best friend than Lilly had been.
***
The idea of Sam and Dean being bad guys didn’t even compute to Veronica. “No, definitely not. I mean, we really don’t have any bad guys around here. With the dome, most people are on their best behavior.” They had occasional moments where people did stupid shit, but for the most part, they were all aware that they were stuck here and needed to get along.
“There’s plenty to investigate though. Lots of cheating spouses, as always, but we also investigate the dome and the weird things that happen.”
When he asked about people from home, she sucked in a breath. “Do you remember Leo?” she asked. “He was a deputy when we were in high school.”
*** “Isn’t Leo the one who helped me destroy the sex tapes of Lily and my dad?” Had that been shortsighted of Logan? Probably. Would he change what he did? Logan didn’t know. He’d grown up and realized how it hurt the chances of his dad remaining in jail. But, since his dad ended up dead not much later, overall he didn’t care. He thought Leo a decent guy.
“Glad to know cheating spouses are a universal thing.” Logan chuckled a bit at that.
As they walked, he marvelled at how well kept the town was. Sure, there were a few pieces of litter here and there, but overall? People seemed to love this town, unlike his version of Madison Valley, where nobody wanted to be there.
“I can’t get over how much like a real town this is.”
***
“Yeah, that’s him,” Veronica confirmed. At some point she was going to need to tell Logan that she and Leo were together even though she really didn’t want to. Somehow, this seemed worse than telling her Logan about his death in the future. Speaking of which… “Hey, this might be an odd question, but what was the last thing that happened back home for you? Before you ended up in Madison Valley?”
Was he from their reunion too? Or had he experienced more than that? Did he know that he died at home? Maybe she could ask this Logan for advice on how to tell hers what happened.
*** “Um. I was on my way to the courthouse for our wedding. And then we...ended up in the shit version of Madison Valley.” Hopefully that wasn’t too far ahead for Veronica or anything, because that would suck a lot for her.
“I’m happy you have someone from home here, V, not just me.” He knew how important Veronica’s friendships were, and while he’d rather know she had Wallace or Mac, he knew Leo was a good guy. A good guy who definitely hadn’t gotten over V, but still a good guy.
***
Veronica winced ever so slightly at the mention of their wedding. "It was a few months after that for me, " she said. "And I don't know how to tell you this, but… you died. That douche Epner had my car rigged to explode and you went to move it."
Somehow it was easier to say to this Logan, maybe because he'd gone through losing her.
*** Logan just stared at her for a minute before he burst into laughter. Bitter laughter, and it stopped as abruptly as it began. Of course in no situation could they just be a happy couple. Because, somehow Logan knew, they could fight tooth and nail to be together, and the universe still said ‘Fuck you’.
But then he looked at Veronica. Really looked at the person who knew him better than anyone, including Dick. “Are you okay? I don’t know how long it’s been since that happened to you. But...I was a wreck after...well, I didn’t expect to see you again.” He considered another hug, but didn’t want to make anything more difficult for V.
***
It was very on brand for their relationship to be destroyed in such epic ways so Veronica understood the bitter laughter and didn’t comment on it. When he asked if she was okay, she took a deep breath before answering. “A year ago I was on a dark down spiral,” she admitted. “Turning into my mother.” After a pause, she said, “Leo pulled me out of it.”
Though she’d come to the realization a while ago that no matter how much she and Logan loved each other, they were not good for each other and made her peace with it, it was hard to remember that when he was standing there across from her looking at her that way.
“The you that came here a few months ago doesn’t know any of that,” she said. “He’s from our reunion and I haven’t been able to figure out how to tell him.”
***
“Are you and Leo together?” Why wouldn’t they be? If the other him died in their world well, Logan couldn’t blame her for that. He wondered how the other him handled it, because the current him felt...overwhelming sadness, but with a strong dose of understanding.
Logan had never come to that realization. He’d had three serious relationships, and the most serious? Veronica. He couldn’t imagine her not in his life, if she was still alive. Sure, they had some ups and downs, but they loved each other, so to him that felt like enough.
He returned to the cheek chewing, a habit he knew he needed to break. “V. You have to tell him. Especially if, because I know you, you’re avoiding him. I doubt he deserves that.”
***
The relief that he had figured that out without her having to outright say it was palpable as Veronica nodded. “We are,” she said. “I’m not entirely sure why he puts up me with, but I’m grateful he does.” It was a very different relationship from the one she and Logan had. And she wasn’t even going to try to explain her marriage to Steve or how she’d lost him. This Logan was dealing with enough already.
She sighed at his admonishment, knowing he was right. “I know. I just… I don’t know how. Though weirdly, he and Leo have become BFFs.” That was still kind of weird to her.
*** “He puts up with you, because you’re you, V. The same reason I fought time and again to be with you. Man, I wish Wallace was here. He’d do a better job explaining this to you, than me.”
This time when Logan laughed, it held genuine amusement. “Leo and Logan are BFF’s? How the hell did that happen?” Logan could see them being friendly, but his experience obviously differed.
“Well, maybe ask him for coffee? I would say have Leo do it, but I don’t think you can come back from this if you let someone else tell him. Ask him to a neutral spot? I think I’d rather you just tell me we need to talk and be as upfront about it as you can be.”
***
“I have no idea,” Veronica said. “They decorated our house together. I stopped asking questions.”
She nodded at his advice. “You’re right. I will. Assuming he comes back.” It felt wrong to hope that they could swap them back since this Logan was clearly from a terrible place, though she was pretty sure she couldn’t handle having two Logans in town. Maybe they could send him back home? Except then he’d die. Ugh. This was complicated.
Luckily, they arrived at WAMM and she opened the door to let him inside. “What do you want me to order?” she asked. “There’s coffee and water in the kitchen.” She pointed in the direction of it so he could help himself.
***
“They...decorated your house together?” Actually the more he thought about it, the more Logan could see that. “I mean, I, or well other me, knows your taste. And God knows I lived through enough interior decorating growing up with my mom. But it still seems a bit weird to me.”
At that Logan grimaced. He didn’t know how it worked, but he liked this version of Madison Valley MUCH MUCH more than the version he just left. Of course, it meant that other him was probably there. “I hope he ends up back here. He’ll...not like where he is.” Logan thought of this Madison Valley as a vacation. He could eat real food. Sleep in a bed without bargaining with sex. Drink coffee. He didn’t see this lasting long for him.
“Honestly, I could go for Chinese or pizza. But, really, I’m just looking forward to enough food to actually be full for once.” He missed cheese. A lot. Not even fancy cheese. Some good old cheddar bricks one could buy at a grocery store anywhere in the USA...minus the Madison Valley from where he came.
He helped himself to water. It even tasted better here.
***
Since Veronica had no way of controlling if or how long he might stay, she was going to do her best to spoil him while she could, which meant that she went into her office while he went to the kitchen and pulled up the websites to order both pizza and Chinese. More than enough food for the two of them and anyone else who might be around the office. She knew she needed to let Leo know what was going on and she should probably check in to see if the rest of her staff was themselves.
This was a lot and she honestly had no idea how to deal with it, but she was going to put on her best brave face and do whatever she could. That was the Mars way.