Brief Lives (6/?)

[monstrousreg]

Title: Brief Lives (6/?)
Author: monstrousreg
Word count:  3221
Warnings:  Erik having.... feelings.
Pairing: Erik/Charles.
Summary: Erik thinks he's going to seduce, interrogate and murder some nondescript CIA intelligence agent, and winds up biting more than he can chew. Charles is not keen on being murdered, he doesn't favor interrogations, and he's

Comments

[itsthewa]

This series is unbelievably cool.

[monstrousreg]

Thank you so much!

[blackrosefire11]

I think I like Erik having feelings.

[monstrousreg]

lol at least someone does, Charles doesn´t seem to be very convinced it´s a good thing.

[blackrosefire11]

Shh, just come, Charles.

[tahariel]

I am totally in love with your Charles. And your Erik. And your Ororo. And... well, everything. This is fantastic, I'm really enjoying reading it.

[monstrousreg]

Thank you! When you change the characters as much as I did in this fic you´re always sort of wondering if people will welcome the changes. So thanks for telling me and I´m glad you´re enjoying this!

[singingduck2]

Really loved this one too!! (btw, I also read "Blinding" and "Look this life in the eye" and loved them too! Happy endings... I'm a sucker for happy endings!)

You described very well how Erik tries to get closer to Charles, with the help of Raven and Ororo (this litle girl is priceless!)

(Just a little note about Ororo's french 'insult'. 'You ugly tree' doesn't really translate in French. A little french girl would probably say 'Espèce d'affreux arbre', but I guess that Ororo, just learning, would better stick to "Affreux/Horrible arbre". Even best, 'Vilain arbre', because 'vilain' can translate as both 'mean' and 'ugly', and is often used by kids.)

But I'm just rambling, sorry. French is boring, even for french people! What's important is that your story is awesome! Can't wait to see Charles and Erik together in action!

[jen_chan13]

my inner language geek is geeking at your comment here!!!! :D

what does 'Espèce d'affreux arbre' mean, word for word? and why doesn't "you ugly tree" translate exactly? i guess arbre means tree??

my mouth mangles french but i am still super interested in the details - please pardon my weirdness!

[singingduck2]

Literally, "Espèce d'affreux arbre" translates into "blasted/blithering ugly tree".

If you translate "you ugly tree" word for word in French, it gives "toi/vous affreux arbre", and it would convey the same feeling as in the famous line "Me Tarzan you Jane" (= "Moi Tarzan toi Jane"). Your interlocutor would just laugh at you, really!

As I understand it, in English the "you" before an insult adds a little exaggeration/emphasis (maybe exasperation) to it. For example, you could just say "Moron" (=abruti) and make your point, but "You Moron" is more expressive. In French it's the same, but we use "Espèce de/d'" before an insult to convey the same feeling (so "You Moron" = "Espèce d'abruti"). We can also use "Pauvre" (literally, "poor"), but then there's an underlying condescension.

I hope I was clear enough and that I answered your question! Didn't think it was weird, btw (but I'm probably weird myself, so...). Don't be afraid to ask if you have other questions!!!

[jen_chan13]

SO INTERESTING!!!!! i love languages, it's super-fascinating how words shape meaning, how language indicates concepts in different cultures, i get so excited by those things.

/geek

thanks for the explanations! it makes total sense, and thanks for the detailed answer! (i especially loved the tarzan example - great mental image in my head now, *lols*)

you implied that you are not a native english speaker? if so, your fluency is absolute, that's awesome! in any case, all i can say in french is "yes" and "no", so.... you totally trump me. :D

[telperion_15]

This is one of my favourite fics at the moment - I totally adore it!

[monstrousreg]

Thank you! I´m grinning like crazy right now =D