Welcome to the world of Imaggen, where the make-believe is the accepted reality and anyone without an Imaginary Being is considered certifiably insane. While things like gravity, time and electricity work in very much the same ways that they do in our own universe, their manifestations in Immagen are slightly more elastic, as it were.

Still, it’s a lovely place. In order to enjoy it, one only has to adjust to seeing apparently-unaccompanied children meandering down the street having conversations with thin air, and accept the fact that some of the more complex technologies like automobiles, airplanes and computers do in fact run on faith in the literal sense rather than the metaphorical we are more accustomed to.

When a Person child is born into Imaggen, they are given two things. One is their name, chosen (just as in our world) by their parents. The other is an Imaggen: an imaginary friend that comes from…well, somewhere else entirely. Persons generally call this place the Imaginary World.

The Imaggen will generally appear at the birth of their Person, though a few rare children have been known to wait until as late as their third birthdays before their Imaggen arrives. What this Imaginary Being (as they are called in scientific circles) will look like, no one can predict. They are as uniquely different and eccentric as we Persons are, and their individual bonding styles and abilities are extremely varied. Most choose to look like Persons themselves (or perhaps Persons actually chose, long ago, to look like Imaggens), but this is not always the case. Just like the Persons they bond to, every Imaggen has its own name—but only their bonded Person and perhaps that Person’s family will ever know it.

Ah, but here we reach the rub, as it were: an Imaggen can only be seen by their bonded Person, at least at first. An Imaggen can be seen by someone that their Person is very close to—often a family member or very good friend. In order for this to happen, the Imaggen has to agree, and the bonded Person must tell their loved one the Imaggen’s name—something that is not given out lightly. Most family members can see all the Imaggens in their household, and the average parent has a natural affinity for sensing their child’s Imaggen even before they know its name.

Despite its seemingly random limitations, this bond between Person and Imaggen is both vital and treasured.

At an early age, every Person forms a bond with their Imaggen. This unique and intimate relationship ensures that the Person can utilize things like gravity and electricity, which originated from the Imaginary World just like the Immagen do.

Because of their likeness of state, the Immagen have a natural affinity for controlling these Imaginary Forces (which in our universe we short-shortsightedly call the laws of physics and electrodynamics) that Persons themselves lack in their natural state. Without an Imaginary Being to guide and protect them in their childhood, a Person would be unable to interact with the universe as a whole.

While solid matter is normally out of the reach of an Imaginary Being (except in very extreme circumstances), they can and do manipulate the Imaginary Forces to suit their own desires, or that of their Person. Matter with high quantities of Imaginary Potential (we would call these things biodegradable), like most foods and drinks, are just on the edge of the Imaggen’s sphere of influence. As a result, they can enjoy things like lunch or tea parties, but do not need the sustenance. Food served to an Imaggen doesn’t get eaten; it just disappears into an Imaginary State.

Children can be more easily attuned to the Imaginary World than an adult; as a result, many Person children can see Imaginary Beings they are not directly bonded to, even without knowing their names. This ability inevitably wears off by the age of ten. The healthy child can often be seen interacting with his or her own Imaggen through both play and conversation.

By the approximate age of 21, most Persons’ brains and hearts have been properly attuned to the Imaginary World. Once this maturity is reached, the direct bonding with an Imaggen is no longer necessary for the Person’s basic survival. Though a very few Imaggens leave their Persons at this stage, most continue to stay in close company out of mutual love and friendship, initiating new bonds to carry on into the Person’s mature life. If a Person does not continue this relationship, they are rarely capable of seeing another Person’s Imaggen, even if invited to do so.

It is suggested that the initial bonding is actually a symbiotic relationship: the Person can function within a universe highly influenced by Imaginary Forces, and it has been theorized that perhaps the Imaggen thrives on the emotional energies of the bond itself. Still, this cannot fully explain why so many Imaggens deliberately choose to remain in intimate friendships with their Persons even after the official bond has faded. There have been countless examples of an Imaggen being reported by loved ones at their Person’s deathbed. Some Immagens even stay with the same Person family, transferring official bonds from parent to child throughout the generations as a kind of Imaginary inheritance.

A few Imaggens are more deliberately selective about which Persons they choose to bond with. These Imaginary Beings tend to bond late with a Person they have observed for some time, and have chosen because they see the potential for greatness, power or some other stellar quality in the child’s life. There are six of these Imaggens, which legends call the Greats. The Greats appear very rarely, and when they do Bond it is generally to Persons that change and shape history itself. If a Person is gifted with the bond of one of the Greats, they are the receivers of great wisdom and insight, and will probably be propelled by their Imaggen to accomplish great things—whether they like it or not. They must also be very careful who they tell. Not all Persons are good at heart…and, sadly, neither are all Imaggens.

If a Person can guess an Imaggen’s name without being told, they can see it. Naturally, as they are not constrained by the Personal need to understand the universe, Imaggens can see each other perfectly; they can and do interact on a regular basis, often on behalf of their Persons. Immagens do not appear to ever die, or even physically age, according to the Personal eye. One can only guess what they look (or sound) like to each other.

And so turns the world of Imaggen (an ancient word that loosely translates to the idea of “an interactive conduit with the universe”, which was later used to encompass the Imaginary Beings themselves). It may seem odd to our own more factually-oriented eyes, but at the end of the day it works. So sit down, have a cup of tea, and have a pleasant chat with the empty seat beside you. Chances are it won’t be a one-sided conversation.