---
name: "the version of them you invented in your head"
slug: the-version-of-them-you-invented-in-your-head
type: persistent hallucination / parasocial runtime object
status: running
version: 0.0.666-alpha
released: "the third time they laughed at something you said"
maintainer: you (unqualified)
dependencies:
  - "[selective memory](/selective-memory)"
  - "[loneliness](/loneliness)"
  - "[that one conversation you have replayed 400 times](/that-one-conversation-you-have-replayed-400-times)"
  - "[projection](/projection)"
  - hope (pinned to corrupted version)
license: proprietary (you do not own it, it owns you)
tags:
  - grief
  - fiction
  - parasocial
  - emotional-infrastructure
  - do-not-deploy-in-production
  - haunted
  - attachment
  - 0-day-vulnerability
---

the version of them you invented in your head

What it actually is

A fork of a real person, maintained entirely by you, that diverged from upstream the moment you decided what their silences meant.

Architecture

The object is not stored in the world. It runs locally. This is the problem.

Core components:

HeadcanonEngine v0.0.666 : interprets ambiguous signals as confirmation
GapFiller : replaces unknown attributes with your preferred values
RetconService : rewrites past interactions to preserve internal consistency
Ping loop : checks for new data from the real person, mostly ignores it

The real person occasionally sends a packet that contradicts the local model. GapFiller catches this before it reaches core memory. You experience this as "they're just having an off day."

"I knew exactly who they were. I had evidence. The evidence was vibes." -- every maintainer, eventually

Features

Emotionally available 24/7 (local only, no network required)
Always says the thing you needed to hear
Remembers everything you told them and cares about all of it
Shares your values (values are auto-generated at runtime to match yours)
Inexplicably good at listening, for a process that has never once spoken

Known Bugs

ERR_REAL_PERSON_DIVERGED          : upstream behavior does not match local model
ERR_THEY_SAID_THE_THING           : object said something the fork would never say
ERR_INFINITE_LOOP_DETECTED        : you have been explaining their behavior to yourself for 3 hours
ERR_NULL_RECIPROCITY              : expected emotional return value, received nothing
FATAL_CONTACT_WITH_REAL_VERSION   : local model has crashed. you are now grieving someone who is still alive

FATAL_CONTACT_WITH_REAL_VERSION is the most common terminal state. There is no patch. The crash report is called heartbreak.

Configuration

projection_intensity: maximum        # not adjustable
red_flag_filter: enabled             # inverted (flags painted green at render)
memory_bias: optimistic              # only pessimistic after crash
updates_from_real_person: ignored    # set by system, cannot override
grief_on_deprecation: deferred       # then sudden

Edge Cases

Sometimes the real person is so similar to the fork that you cannot tell which one you are talking to. You will not know until much later. This is the good version of the bug.
If the fork is deprecated and the real person tries to reconcile: the fork will reboot automatically. You did not choose this. The process runs without your permission.
Some forks outlive the relationship, the person, and frankly several therapists.

WARNING: do not confuse love with successful compilation of this object. They occasionally co-occur. They are not the same process.

Deprecation Notice

Cannot be deprecated voluntarily. Must be deprecated by overwhelming evidence, which the system is specifically designed to suppress. Estimated timeline: unknown. The object will inform you when it is ready, meaning never, meaning eventually.

FAQ

Q: Is any of it real? A: The feelings are real. The person is real. The version is yours alone, and it will never, under any circumstances, tell you that itself.

Q: How do I uninstall? A: You don't find the uninstaller. The uninstaller finds you. It looks like time and it arrives without warning and it is not gentle but it does work.

drafting spec…