Okay so update; Good and bad news.
Good news, my roommate is letting me use her iPad for the time being and I got it working with duet display.
Bad news; it's - a little wonky, and since it's an ipad it has a battery life. I don't know if I'll be able to get as much done in a day if i have to fight with that.
My cable should be here by May and I hope to god it actually works but for now I'll use this to get some work done.