#Biography-ish

[battersweet]

Welcome to my blog mate!

You can call me Batter, Batty, Battery, Loki or Adal! İ'm Mainly a Billie Bust Up fan blog, i do Headcanons, arts and shi :p

İ don't share my age or dead name for personal reasons, but i'm a minor.

İ'm lesbian, Non-binary,transmasc genderfluid, and cupioromantic. But i don't identify as a boy.

İ'm muslim☪️(if ur gonna call me kafir or you're islamphobic DNİ and get the fuck out of my account)

İ mostly go by He/hım/They/them, but you can use Ze/Zir/Zirs, And Hir/Hyir/Hyirs.

Self-diagnosed ADHD(pls don't attack me)

about me(???):

İ love, love, LOVE bats.

İ like doing pottery and drawing

İ have thanatophobia and aracnophobia

İ'm Turkish and Albanian

Fandoms that i'm in;

Billie Bust Up!

Deltarune

Far cry 5

Undertale

Witcher 3

Lunar chronicles

Gravity Falls

Skullgirls

Murder drones

The Amazing Digital Circus

Final Fantasy 14

Final Fantasy 15

God of War: Ragnarok

Sonic Boom

Steven Universe

The Last Of Us

Yakuza 0

Fnaf

Adventure Time

Chikn Nuggit

Detroit: Become a Human

Spooky Month

My writing blog: @sleeplesswixard

Bbu Headcanons masterlist

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6 (Mainly Billie)

Part 7 (Mainly Barnaby)

Part 8 (Mainly Dimitri)

Part 9 (Mainly Jack)

Part 10 (Mainly Lewis)

Part 11 (Mainly Z)

Part 12 (Mainly Barnaby, angst-ish)

Arthurstotle (Arthur x Aristotle) Headcanons Masterlist

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Dutchstotle (Dutch x Aristotle) Headcanons Masterlist

Part 1

Char x Oc Masterlist

Fantoccio x Mel

Oc introducitons

Roxanne

Valentine

Loki

Nehir

[al-luviec]

vito

[katyahina]

This was just a quick doodle for an ask that I decided to not answer eventually.. so here it is just on its own

[theoryandahalf]

Hot Take: I can only listen to so much of old GTLive episodes (circa 2018, aka the Theorist year of hell) before I want to repeatedly smack MatPat AND Steph outside the back of the head.

Look, I know that was a very bad time for them, but trying to listen to them complain about candy flavors for 20 minutes while trying to determine Amy's first GT Live episodes is...special.

So very special.

(but its nice to see baby MatPat and Steph before Ollie caused them to rapidly age lol)

[mtd2productions]

Asha khan : book 1 "the unraveling" - AUNT (on Wattpad) https://www.wattpad.com/1434429599-asha-khan-book-1-the-unraveling-aunt?utm_source=web&utm_medium=tumblr&utm_content=share_reading&wp_uname=MATTEODELORT Synopsis: In the first installment of the Asha Khan series, titled "The Unraveling," readers are introduced to Asha Khan, a spirited teenager navigating the complexities of life within her traditional and affluent family. Set against the backdrop of a bustling city, Asha finds herself torn between the expectations of her parents and her desire for independence and self-discovery. As Asha grapples with the pressures of her family's traditional values and societal expectations, she forms a close bond with her rebellious friend Diya. Together, they embark on a journey of self-exploration, challenging the norms and conventions that have long dictated their lives. However, Asha's world is turned upside down when she receives news of an arranged marriage to a wealthy aristocratic suitor. Caught between duty and desire, Asha must confront her own identity and make difficult choices that will shape her future. As the story unfolds, Asha navigates love, friendship, and betrayal, uncovering secrets that threaten to unravel the fabric of her carefully curated life. With each twist and turn, Asha must summon the courage to forge her own path and embrace the woman she is meant to become. "The Unraveling" is a captivating tale of empowerment, resilience, and the transformative power of self-discovery. Through Asha's journey, readers will be transported to a world filled with passion, intrigue, and the timeless quest for freedom and authenticity.

[north-wilkesboro-moonshine-cave]

I think the main issue I have as I continue to interact with historical media is that i actually don't think historical media or even inaccurate historical media is inherently bad, but jesus i cannot STAND the people that try to cram historical media into their lives so it doesn't make them uncomfortable

[gallusgalluss]

Update: HEY!! The wiki has been up for around a month and we've already made a ton of progress! We've got a lot of important pages up currently, but as always we'll still need some help. So again if you're able and want to, please feel free to help this wiki out.

We've also recently added an option that allows people to edit pages directly without the need for coding. If you were interested in contributing but all the code n wikitext seemed daunting, hopefully this Visual Editor feature would be of interest to you :]!

hey Hey i'm shouting out this new Bugsnax Wiki (The Bugapedia) by @betterdonutgalaxy, separate from the Fandom/Wikia wiki! Go check it out n help contribute some stuff if ur able to!!

[pathfinderyderss]

So hello! I'm sitting here stewing over the Watcher news. Like. I too, firmly believe in creators getting paid. But like, also, they have to create content people WANT to watch. I don't watch any of Steven Lim's stuff.

A lot of people have talked about it but, there's something so viscerally infuriating about watching someone eat, which is basically half of my paycheck or more on a single dish. I don't like it! I don't watch it. And the fact that they've confirmed that at least a portion of their content is going to be that moving forward means that that would be the content I'm paying for.

And I won't do it. I will go back and watch podcasts. I actually stopped listening to most of their content in favor of other channels at this point, like I swapped over a lot of the content to Simon Whistlers channels (shout out to him and his writing team) because it covers a lot of the topics that Watcher covered, but it greater detail and with the same-ish bias.

Sure. Creatives deserve to be paid for their work. But when you're asking your community, which is barely getting by, suffering record inflation and a housing crisis "please pay for our videos" the answer for a lot of them is going to be "no" because they can't afford it or don't think that the content you make is worth it.

You can make it about the righteousness of paying creators if you want, but realize, most of these people are supporting creators. I'm subscribed to about five patreons which are about the cost of Watcher. I do not value Watchers content more than these others creators I'm subscribed to currently, and will not cancel one of those subscriptions for this. And that's fine. One third of their content being unpalatable (haha) to me means it isn't worth that money.

So I'll unsubscribe. I'll watch other content and be on with it.

Edit: I'm home now and can add links for alternatives.

Decoding the Unknown > Historical Mysteries Channel, goes over things like The Bermuda Triangle, Jersey Devil, Urban Legends, etc.

The Casual Criminalist > What it says on the tin, True Crime Show, thoughtfully researched and abstains from unnecessary gore

Into the Shadows > Darker Social/Historical Topics

Biographics > Also what it says on the tin, Biographies of different people, spans all throughout history

Highlight History > Look into a variety of historical topics, unfortunately, does not have a gameshow-like element, but informative

[apollosunshineisdead]

my favorite lyric or two from every will wood song

Everything is a Lot:

6up 5oh: "they shoulda fried me, I'll give ya PTSD!"

skeleton Appreciation Day: "give me all your LSD so i can feel my mind unweave again!"

front Street: "you said let loose, but now you're lost"

aikido!: "i told doctor tillis to prescribe an illness, but he said his schedule's filled with children with need Prozac, prilosec and lo-jack, triple-sec and lexapro"

white Knuckle Jerk: "i wonder how i woke up in the middle of my surgery, and i watched them botch my heart"

cover This Song!: "i'm just a little bit crazy 'bout you, just a little bit out of my mind"

Thermodynamic Lawyer: "so all that i see, absolute entropy as the chemical bounds fall apart"

red Moon: "the crescent rests, tethered to the west"

lysergide Daydream: "ooh, i wanna be on the picture on the postcard, pouring pitchers in the backyard by the garden we tend"

the First Step: "i lost count after 21 in the college crawl"

jimmy Mushrooms': "i think the truth is that everyone's wrong!"

Compound Fracture: "bienvenidos a la villa de arañas españas"

everything is a Lot: "night sky, i wonder why i am alive until i die / i find that at this size, no answer can be right"

destroy to Enjoy: "lao tzu, chaung tzu, yin-yang tattoos, FUCK your mystic wisdom! find your own way home from Bonnaroo!"

SELF-iSH:

self-: "i'll shake the apples from my family tree, so when the autumn comes to take the leaves..."

2012: "testing my hypothesis, never finding a theory!"

cotard's Solution: "rolling my third eye into the back, of my head and squinting through the black"

mr. Capgras: "eulogy or biography, i'm who i ought to be, and that is God to me"

the Song with 5 Names: "WHAT IS "IS"? WHAT IS "NOT"? WHAT IS "WHAT"? WHAT'S UP PARTY PEOPLE! WHAT? / WHY I WONDER WHY I'M NOT WHATEVER, WHAT THE FUCK!"

hand Me My Shovel: "looking up, i could say Heaven sent me! / hand me my shovel, i'm going in!"

dr. Sunshine is Dead: "i'm noone if i'm nowhere in between!"

-ish: "well at 27 will i see, that i was born to be the man i'll be?"

The Normal Album:

greetings from Mary Bell Township!: "so give me your half-life crisis / i can tell that you know where paradise is!"

(vampire) Culture: come on, drink that BLOOD! didn't they want your blood?

Love Me, normally: the Lord looked down, said, "hey, you're only mortal"

2econd 2ight 2eer: "my grip on the secrets' slippin' while i'm speakin' in tongues!"

laplace's Angel: "so if you wash your hands of where you've been until you flood the second floor / neatly fold your skeletons, but still can't shut the closet door"

i/Me/myself: "eating your prosthetic, meet your anesthetic"

...well, better than the Alternative: "she's gonna be a lot like me, but i don't wanna be at all like me"

outliars And Hyppocrates: "i am the shadows cast aside by gallows, and you, the red hot sky"

blackBoxWarrior - OKULTRA: "his ribcage was a hornet's nest, his palpitations set the beat!"

marsha, thankk you for the Dialects: "doctor, what's my prognosis if the studies show that / disease is in the eye of the beholder, tell me "so it goes!""

love, Me Normally: "is there nothing to fear, cuz shit's getting weird!"

memento Mori: "no need to fear cuz when it's Here you won't be alive / try not to think about it!"

Camp Here & There: Campfire Songs:

venetian Blind Man: "string on his finger, a tourniquet ring"

yes, to err is Human: "if you don't hate me, then reanimate me!"

your body, My Temple: "furthering the fever of your fervor for believing, I will"

when somebody Needs you: "fishing lure moon on a string for you, didn't you say you need space?"

"In Case I Make It,"

tomcat Disposables: "what's the moon made of? meet me there after i'm gone"

becoming The Lastnames: "weeding out the garden where the milestones gather moss"

Cicada Days: "here at the end of days, my god, what have I done? / christ, now it feels damn inhumane to get all i dreamed of"

euthanasia: "and every, everybody dies / fighting for their lives, just trying to survive"

falling Up: "airplane eclipses over spirals of math – would or could the impact kill me?"

that's Enough, let's get you Home: "but CO2 and fish tanks do enough to get you home"

um, it's Kind of a Lot: "sorry darling, please excuse my constant need to self-aggrandize!"

half-Decade Hangover: "but i can't make amends for things i can't remember"

vampire Reference in a Minor Key: "the seraphim on my shoulder, whispering "please don't turn your head""

you liked this: "Ten Red Flags that a Neurotypical Narcissist is Trauma Dump Gaslighting You into Sex-Negative Self-Abuse Emotional Labor and Internalised Reverse Racism Against Post-Modern Flat Earthers with Facts and Logic (Number Seven Will Destroy Your Family)"

the Main Character: "judge me by what my cover shows, author becomes beyond reproach"

Against the Kitchen Floor: "i'm not a good person, i'm barely a person at all"

Sex, Drugs, Rock 'n' Roll: "and i hate proving that i'm still human after all"

BFB's Blueberry Pie: " "

Willard!: "so gather 'round pandora's skinner's box, look through the one-way mirror / if you can see in shade's of grey, the colors are much clearer"

White Noise: "it begs the question just to tell you the answer!"

ICIMI outtakes:

misanthrapologist: "I hear your hear beating under the floorboards" and if i did, you deserved it: "that i really don't carе what you think or what you say, either that or I do way too much, oh well whatever, either way"

thank you for listening

[lil-luvxo]

Can u plsssssss make Alisa Ortega headcanons

I would also love it if u included how she would be in a new relationship!

thnxxx

alisa ortega head cannons!!

- she has definitely watched all those police or law series on tv

- she also watches/listens to true crime documentaries

- i have a feeling that her mom died when she was young (like 5-6 ish) so she had to teach herself loads of stuff such as like fashion tips, how to do hair and keep things nice so now she’s really good at it

- she keeps her nails painted either autumnal colours or just a pinky top coat

- it’s said that she wears suits/blazers a lot but she actually has really good style. their so good they could probably be found on pinterest

- is it neat freak. literally every corner of her house is spotless.

- i feel she gets over hers and nash’s relationship after a while and accepts nash and libby’s but she misses the friendship they had as kids

- i feel like in a new relationship her way of flirting is being sarcastic and kind of cold but really on the inside she’s just like love me already

- she has a thing for muscles. like she just finds them attractive

- her love language is little acts of service and words of affirmation so she will leave notes inside their notebook, make dinner, get fluff of their clothes (idk) and will build someone back up

- at avery’s wedding she deffo cried as she kind off took avery under her wing and made it her duty to make sure she was okay and now ave’s all grown up

- kept her relationship COMPLETELY SECRET as she felt like everyone would freak out but they all found out eventually and were shocked

- would much rather go out than stay in, so she gets really excited when avery wants to bring her along to events

- sees all the brothers as her own brothers as i feel like she is an only child

- it’s not mentioned that she has a middle name but if she does i think it’s something like marie

- she went to either stanford or princeton and did track

- is secretly camera shy but when she does have to go on camera/tv you would never suspect it

- is a huge reader and her favourite book genre is classics or biography’s

- has some form of curly/wavy hair but started straightening it when she and nash split. she will let it be natural when she’s around people who she really trust e.g family, new partner

[warcholica]

i really like the how the olgimskys designs in the first pathologic play around with material. obviously – mainly with fur.

big vlad has his huge fur coat – it's very much in spirit of his hes bourgeoisie caricature like design. it's arguably not the best looking and i dont think that's intentional – his coat in patho 2 is clearly supposed to look very cozy and nice. i actually like how symmetrically the fur falls in the upper back of the original design. it's charming. overall the coat really emphasizes this very old school idea of wealth.

it reads to me clearly as fashion, not as an uniform – alexanders outfit is very elaborate as well, but it does read very, well, governorish. vlads quite extravagant compared to the other rulers.

and that design philosophy is not really typical for pathologic, i don't really think it is – grief does fall into it a bit, but that's all. it makes vlad stand out in some really cool ways, as he has an unique silhuette. it's kind of insane how well theyre able deal with a character that has to overpass the barriers of their standard design. everyone knows that his face in p2 is like. insanely well made. but did you maybe notice how good his voice acting in the original pathologic is? ridicoulously good compared to like. anna. it really makes me wish they decided on more variety regarding other characters. oh well.

let's talk p1 kapella because shes obviously a showstopper. besides her obvious cuteness, i like how much it focuses on jeans as a material. it is, i think, a symbol of wealth in her case. i am polish and for me there was always this idea floating around than during the PRL period jeans was considered to be a luxury good.

(here it is represented in ryszard zamorski's sculpture "playboy"-- a pop art image of a smiling man covered in jeans from head to toe. fun. hip. well-off)

and so she is draped in jeans, just like her father is draped in fur – her wealth manifests clearly as well.

its also worth noting, that she has fur details on her collar too. that plays into the visual identity of them as a family – she is his daughter, she is a successor. i love her biig satin bow. so cute. makes her look like a very pretty rich girl. old-school wealth with a modern-ish twist.

and i think you already know where i'm going with this. yeah... vlad jr does not have any fur element in his p1 outfit. i like to overinterpret that.

like in the context, i feel fur represents mainly wealth – but it's also worth noting that it's a material foreign to the setting. i really like the spindle touch quote from p2

and i think it works for fur in p1 as well, although, obviously, every textile material comes from outside town.

but whats fur outside of that? lets think fur as a symbol a cruelty that also connects man with nature. fur as a terribly sensual material. ​

and vlad doesnt wear it: what are the reasons for that?

1. hes working with dirt. it would get dirty

2. he doesnt really like looking wealthy – hes not like the other olgimkys! the unusual simplicity is, to me, kind of reminicent of what victor is wearing – and vlads a successor to victor. in utopian ending hes supposed to tame maria/nina a little with his normalguyness. when you choose to do an utopian ending as artemy, he notes that maria will be dangerously wild without a husband

3. i think he denies himself luxury. because of how his shed looks i think hes an utopist that separates himself from the reality of his feelings – and so he separates himself from such a sensual material. but thats reallly a material for another, much more headcanonish post in which i will incorporate fragments from czesław miłosz's biography. i will make that one when ill play p2.

and btw: its a strange model, right? but i like it, i actually really do. i like how obviously blonde he is -- it is a soft callback to victoria. hes similar to her. her son.

also, i dont think it was intentional, i like how big he is in game. it feels like there is too much room for his soul in this body and so it echoes. i have the same feelings about like. ross from friends so thats more like a throwaway point.

it does manage to make him very much like a bussiness man – and vlad sr in his bourgouise caricature swag is very bussinessmannish as well. so maybe in that way he takes after him too? just a bit.

this is all very surface level analysis, but i do think about it a lot. i think p1 managed to communicate what it wanted to do with those characters very clearly through visual language.

[mtd2productions]

Asha khan : book 1 "the unraveling" - AUNT (on Wattpad) https://www.wattpad.com/1434429599-asha-khan-book-1-the-unraveling-aunt?utm_source=web&utm_medium=tumblr&utm_content=share_reading&wp_uname=MATTEODELORT Synopsis: In the first installment of the Asha Khan series, titled "The Unraveling," readers are introduced to Asha Khan, a spirited teenager navigating the complexities of life within her traditional and affluent family. Set against the backdrop of a bustling city, Asha finds herself torn between the expectations of her parents and her desire for independence and self-discovery. As Asha grapples with the pressures of her family's traditional values and societal expectations, she forms a close bond with her rebellious friend Diya. Together, they embark on a journey of self-exploration, challenging the norms and conventions that have long dictated their lives. However, Asha's world is turned upside down when she receives news of an arranged marriage to a wealthy aristocratic suitor. Caught between duty and desire, Asha must confront her own identity and make difficult choices that will shape her future. As the story unfolds, Asha navigates love, friendship, and betrayal, uncovering secrets that threaten to unravel the fabric of her carefully curated life. With each twist and turn, Asha must summon the courage to forge her own path and embrace the woman she is meant to become. "The Unraveling" is a captivating tale of empowerment, resilience, and the transformative power of self-discovery. Through Asha's journey, readers will be transported to a world filled with passion, intrigue, and the timeless quest for freedom and authenticity.

[bronzedspring]

WARNING!! RDR2 SPOILERS Greetings folks! Welcome to uh... a beginners experience to RDR2 itself. I HAVE played a bit of the game (8-ish hours fiddling around grabbing the concept of the sandbox-like elements..), but I'll be here to post my daily experience on this game. Without further ado..... Log 01

alright firstly I will admit, before even starting for the day with my intents I had a look around camp. Hosea was teaching Jack to read, Abigail waving Arthur off... .. and (being the curious fool I am) decided I'd eavesdrop on this interaction.

...needless to say, I don't think they were too impressed. My first mission I took to start Chapter 2 was Uncle's mission. I was stoked to start this... cause.. VALENTINE! (but seriously why is this town so close to horseshoe overlook??? that thought was consistent in my head...). Being the goody two shoes I was I prompted to help the coach with his horse.

disaster struck me soon after.

SO I HAD TO MISSION RESET... .. not the first time I failed the first part of the mission Eventually though we did get to Valentine. The prospect of the saloon sitting right infront of me nearing this mission had me STOKED. Not to mention when exiting the general store I was convinced Arthur was drunk... (I played GTA5, I'm familiar with when Rockstar wants to throw in the being drunk feature). Alas, he wasn't. So the mission continued!

SO THEN WE FIND OUT THE GIRLS GOT THEMSELVES INTO TROUBLE.

"Did you shoot him?" no. kinda wish I did, I don't like seeing a women get disrespected like that :(

The usual went down from there as most RDR2 players probably know -- save Tilly, accidentally knive the guy Karen was having problems with... (that's intended in the game right? cause I gasped when I stabbed him) .. OH, AND THE CHASE!

No pictures I'm afraid but I can clarify, Jimmy was saved. Is that going to cost me? Probably. I mean later on in this gametime Arthur was telling Dutch about Jimmy... that's gotta hold some importance, right? Ahh... I like to be civil.

I AM SO MAD AT MYSELF FOR NOT FINDING THE HORSE OWNER. I AM SO SORRY, SO SO SO SORRY :'(((((

As I was still in Valentine after Uncle's mission, I noticed Javier was in the saloon so I went in there. Had a good giggle at the "he about to kiss that guy or punch him?" comment and did NOT hold my composure whatsoever when the bar fight itself started.

never thought I'd get so offended at getting my hat knocked off though........

IT HAPPENED TWICE! yes, I am saying after this first bit I picked up my hat, then Tommy comes in and WHERE IS MY HAT. GONE. VANISHED!!!!!! (I died to Tommy on the first go too... what an absolute loser I am to this. All because I forgot how to block......).. I passed the hurdle on the second go. Felt bad for Arthur being covered in dirt after the cutscene happened, and I nearly lost it into a giggling fit when DUTCH showed up. My thoughts were fixed on it; WHY IS DUTCH HERE?!

Now listen, after my hat got knocked the second time I waited patiently for the lore to settle and the cutscene to finish, and I made a beeline for the saloon. Wasn't leaving without my hat, no sirree...

this resulted in me finding out about Cigarette Cards! Apparently according to Google there's 144 in total. Uhh... that's another thing on my bucket list! (Alongside completing William's first task with the Harlow's, and Deborah's bone collecting task). Oh, and dumb dumb over here didn't realise my hat was back on my horse back in the camp. Pretty dumb guy if you ask me...

There were 2 "strangers" I met after this mission, both inside of Valentine; The biographer and the homeless vet.

I came across the biographer first, this guy RAVING about a gunslinger. I found the whole thing delirious considering there's a sheriff.. . ain't gunslingers like outlaws? (Talking about the fact Valentine's SHERIFF was nearby. This biographer had a lot of guts rambling on about his tales and actively wanting to track historical outlaws for this biography of his...)

i'm onto you mister. You shady fella you...

Now in my opinion, the homeless vet had me in a HEARTBEAT. Had me confused as heck at first because his dialogue startled up whilst I was behind the same house he was infront of.... I was crashing into everyone to be generous to this guy. However I found him!

Believe me, hearing about this guy had me down. The one arm caught my attention first and really, REALLY I felt for this guy. (Of course I gave him the hug, the guy needs it if you ask me...)

FINALLY I made my way back to the camp. All these prompted missions interested me, However it was Kieran who had my attention straight away. The darn O'Driscoll who was tied up? THAT GUY? A MISSION???? How can you not be sceptical of that! Dutch was going to castrate this guy. CASTRATION. CASTRATION?

Yeah, pretty big stuff. Soo... Kieran admits to an O'Driscoll camp. I was reminded of that whole 6 (was it 6?) gangs index you can find index, and generally stuff about overrunning the camp spaces. Of course I was invested... and John being up? I took full advantage of poking fun at this guy on the way there... (in my defence Jack was literally staring me down earlier today. Gotta set my priorities straight.../joke)

The ambush occurred, and uh... things went "smoothly" (that's a lie, our silent ambush went straight to charging). I was sat there questioning everything at one point because both Bill and John were scattering. WHERE ARE YOU GOING? ... .. we did it though.

The kicker where Kieran protects Arthur stabbed me good. I have the clip... "oh my god.. wait WHAT?" -- (me, today)

or this. This encapsulates my reaction just as well.

My main question though is how QUICK Kieran was to jump on and join the Van der Linde gang.. Kieran... buddy I'm starting to see why Dutch was so eager to castrate you. You my friend have got balls of steel....... I'm suspicious though. Undeniably, the guys sketchy to me.

I'll catch you round on Log 02 when it comes...... hoo boy, we're only getting started and I know it...

[return-to-ravenbrooks]

Return to Ravenbrooks:

Biography

Entry 7

Name: Nicholas Roth

Date of Birth: 1996

Gender: M

Current Address: 910 Friendly Court

Height: 5'6 (5'3 when hunched)

Hair color: Brown

Eye color: Brown

Key features: Freckles, messy hair that sticks up on the left side, hunched posture, goggles

Role: Spy

Abilities: lock picking, pickpocketing, gadget inventing, climbing

Occupation: N/A

Status: N/A

Biography:

I had been used to bouncing around towns and cities for dad's work, friends had become less and less important as their faces blended into one another, if I made any at all, just passing figures I'd likely never see again. People who existed briefly just to mock the new kid, the dweeby nerd, and his weirdo family. I began to become more invested in just myself. I'd always enjoyed the fidgeting and picking at technology. But by the time we reached our old brown house, I'd made the goal of becoming an expert on the lock-picking set I was given by my dad.

Our latest trip had been to a much smaller town than I was used to, a place called Ravenbrooks. Despite being only twelve I could remember driving past the gates vividly, the crow that screeched at me as it made eye contact, flapping its wings madly. I'd flinched at the noise. As we pulled up to their new, likely temporary turquoise home, I felt numb to its appearance. Sure it wasn't a bad house, it could even be called a nice-ish home, but I knew we wouldn't stay long. Through the whole school year at best and at worst? ...I didn't want to get attached. While my parents began to unpack I found myself just staring at the building silently. A disappointed sigh escaped my dad's lips as I sat on the sidewalk and began fidgeting with my newest project. A knot of locks I'd found at our previous house, of different types and difficulty. It must've weighed 5 pounds. I love the way it jingles in my hand, the weight and feel of the cold metal. It gave me a joy I don't think I could explain with words.

I was interrupted about an hour in when a kid yelled "Think fast!" only a long enough second for me to lift my head before a basketball hit me square in the face. Knocking me over and scratching the back of my head against the sidewalk.

"What the heck Aaron! You're supposed to yell it before you throw the ball!" A little girl yelled from across the street. I sat up, vision slightly fuzzy from impact, and noticed the perpetrator stepping foot on the lawn "our" lawn, even though we didn't own it.

"Well maybe if he'd put his hands up." The boy, Aaron declared in his defense. I barely managed to grab the ball from rolling away, ready to hand it off and be over with it, but in return, Aaron grabbed my lock pick. "HEY! THAT'S MINE!"

"And that's mine." Aaron countered, fidgeting with the set.

"I like your set, where'd you get it?" I stood up to grab it back, but Aaron was at least a foot taller and easily held it out of my grasp. His height gave me a brief second to recognize the words he'd spoke.

"I- it's- I" I stammered, struggling to regain my composure. "My dad- well- not all of it. These ones I bought off a kid a few months back, and this one-"

"Lock picking huh? Does it work on any lock?" The little girl peeked out from behind her brother. I hadn't even seen her cross the street.

"Go away Mya, you don't even care about this stuff." Aaron shooed. Mya stuck her tongue out at him.

"We've got a lock that needs opened." She told Nicky. "Would it work?" Aaron turned to his sister, a puzzled expression on his face as he furrowed his brows.

"What? No, we do-" She shoved her elbow into his stomach. He gave her a disgusting glare and she looked back at him with an expression I couldn't read in the slightest. Then suddenly they both looked at me, expectingly.

"Uh- yeah...probably." I admitted hesitantly. "If I open it for you will you go away?" Aaron and Mya exchanged another set of glances before nodding. In an instant, Mya began dragging me across the street with vigor. Aaron walked not far behind us.

"Our dad locked our bikes in the shed for the winter, it's finally warm enough to get them back out but he lost the key and said he wouldn't look for it until he was done with his project" Mya explained.

"And you can't wait?" I asked.

"No, because then It'll be dark!" Aaron piped up and shook his head. The two had such an odd couple of expressions between them. It seemed almost mischievous, and for a moment I worried I was being led into a trap.

As I dealt with the lock I could hear footsteps approaching from behind. "I told you I need space," I muttered, shooing backward with one hand. However, the footsteps didn't stop or back away like before. I turned my head, expecting to shoot the seemingly much older boy a dirty look but instead saw brown jeans on much longer legs, before a gloved hand grabbed me by the back of my old shirt. He lifted me like I was nothing, his hulky muscular frame dressed in an argyle sweater vest.

"I don't believe I've seen you around before." The man proclaimed. His hair was a reddish brown, neatly combed back to match a mustache that "most men would kill for" or at least that's how my father later described it. I felt a chill roll down my spine as the man eyed me up and down. Where had Aaron and Mya gone? Was I right and this was all a trap? "Are you just going to stare or are you going to explain yourself?"

"I- uh- I was asked to open this shed to get out bikes..." I explained quietly. The man shook his head, setting me back down on the ground. Even out of his grip, I felt myself frozen in place with fear. A grin curled across his lips and he let out a bellowing laugh, the kind that shook me to my core. "Such impatient children. What's your name, young man?"

"Narf- uh- Nicky. Nicholas Roth," I said before quickly adding a 'Sir'. "My family moved in across the street" I pointed. The man looked across the street and smiled. "You should be careful boy, that house is very important to the cult."

"Cult?!" He felt a lump form in his throat and a knot in his stomach.

"Dad!" Mya again seemed to appear from nowhere, wrapping her arms around his leg, "Are you done?"

"Not quite, but I heard someone messing around out here." He looked back at me. I tried to force my body out of it's paralyzed state.

"Uh- um... I have to help my parents unpack!" I finally managed to declare in a voice much louder than I intended and took off running before anyone else could even react.

"Careful in there! Don't run into any cultists!" Mr. Peterson yelled after me, laughing again. I tucked behind the moving truck and breathed a sigh of relief. Something about this side of the street just felt- safer.

My second encounter with the Peterson kids was only a day later when Aaron knocked on their door with my lockpicking kit in hand. I hadn't even realized I didn't have it in my pocket anymore.

"You forgot this when you ran." He said, with a gentle smile. It was awkward looking, slightly forced.

"...thanks" I accepted quietly.

Appearances from Aaron became more and more frequent after that, Aaron's excuse for every visit being "Well you never unlocked it so we don't have to leave you alone" and slowly but surely I began to feel less awkward about the visits less and less. I'd learned quickly that Aaron could've undone that lock himself. Not only did he know about lockpicking, but he was better than me, way better.

Aaron was my age, although still older by several months. I barely believed him when he told me. He already had the early forming of his dad's broad figure and an Adam's apple. He looks ready for high school.

Aaron was a weirdo, a nerd, a horror movie fanatic, and a junk food aficionado. He was weird, weird like me. We became almost inseparable even when we were in our own houses, sharing notes across the street with each other via flashlight and making stupid faces to one another. The summer days were spent pulling pranks, making stupid jokes, and babbling on about the supernatural, even though Aaron didn't believe in alien overlords and the inevitable overthrowing of Earth.

"And Nicky," I'll always remember the empty look in his once warm amber-brown eyes as they met mine from the top of his stairway. I felt like a failure that day, and the weeks beforehand, like something about our friendship had fallen flat on its face and I was the one who pushed it over. "Don't come back."

[slaviclore]

Chopin biographies from 2010+

keeping track of my chopinology resources, and I figured someone might find it useful -- this is not an exhaustive list of available literature, just stuff I've personally read, and I will be adding to it over time.

Chasing Chopin: A Musical Journey Across Three Centuries, Four Countries, and a Half-Dozen Revolutions (2020)

by Annik LaFarge

English language, audiobook available

Summary: This is a partial biography of Chopin from the perspective of his composition of the funeral march. This book is written in a super engaging, conversational style, and it comes with a fun multimedia web site with music and videos for context.

Major pro: What sets this book apart from the other biographies in the field is LaFarge's exceptional empathy for her subjects. This may not seem like a big deal, but it is for a field that has been at times unnecessarily cruel to some of the humans in the story. That's partly why this book is my top recommendation for anyone wanting to understand Chopin's contentious relationship with his famous life partner of 9-ish years, George Sand (a woman using a man's name).

Major con: Using the composition of Chopin's arguably most famous work as the blueprint of his life story works well organizationally, but it doesn't actually add much to our understanding of the funeral march itself, beyond its personal impact on the author or, perhaps more broadly, the modern music lover.

Best for: anyone just wanting to read something engaging about music and history. If you don't know anything about Chopin, the history of Poland, or the funeral march, this is perfect.

Chopin. Miłość i pasja (2020)

by Iwona Kienzler

Polish language, no translation available as far as I know, audiobook (in Polish) available

Summary: This is a full biography with emphasis on the various romances that have been linked to Chopin over the last 200 years or so, real or not, even the ones we're not talking about anymore.

Major pro: There has been so much flowery language dedicated to the many and varied romances that Chopin did -- or maybe did or definitely didn't but we still talked about it a lot -- engage in, this book is refreshing for its sober tone and healthy skepticism on the subject. The author tells us what we know, what we don't know, and gives a historical perspective of the shifting notions the field has entertained over time.

Major con: The biography is fairly standard and doesn't expand the field much.

Best for: the casual reader of history, or the serious reader of the history of shipping.

Fryderyk Chopin: A Life and Times (2018)

by Alan Walker

English language, audiobook available

Summary: This is a full biography meant to encompass not only the entire course of Chopin's life but also the relevant social, political and cultural environment, the fates of people important to the story, and the musical context.

Major pro: Walker's effort to recreate the rich historical and social background of Chopin's life is unique in the field for its scope and detail, i.e., he gives a lot of information where most biographers stick only to summaries of critical events. This fact, as well as Walker's efforts to introduce or emphasize unknown or marginalized resources and documents, make his book an important blueprint for anyone studying Chopin, or even the early 19th century overall.

Major con: Walker's interpretations of Chopin's correspondence are dated and dense, which is a problem because the correspondence is the most important primary source we have (the musical compositions cannot be directly analyzed for concrete meaning). Most of Walker's takes on the content of the letters can be traced to interpretations made by previous biographers (whether or not he cites these is a toss-up), so it's not like anyone has ever done better per se -- however, the field now has the resources to do this work more perceptively. Walker had the opportunity (and I believe the responsibility) to step up to do that, but because he didn't, his biography was outdated the day it came off the press.

Best for: the reader already somewhat familiar with Chopin's biography, who is interested in developing a more complete image of the story, but who is also able to make critical judgments on the historical analysis, or at least recognize where such were made by the author. Also good for historians.

Chopin's Piano: In Search of the Instrument that Transformed Music (2018)

by Paul Kildea

English language, audiobook available

Summary: This is a partial biography of Chopin from the perspective of his composition of the Preludes and one of the pianos on which he composed them. The history picks up long after his death with a partial biography of Wanda Landowska, the famous pianist who eventually came to own the piano, through WWII.

Major pro: This approach is unique in Chopin biography for addressing his impact on the difficult history of the 20th century, with Nazis stealing the piano and Landowska's efforts to get it back. This creates depth of perspective where Chopin biography usually ends shortly after his death. It's a different type of story than the field is used to.

Major con: Because the scope is so broad, this book gives less of Chopin's own story overall, and sometimes the thread feels disjointed.

Best for: casual readers looking for an interesting, well-written story, or a historian interested in WWII-time chopinology.

Chopin: Prince of the Romantics (2010)

by Adam Zamoyski

English language, no audiobook

Summary: This is an updated edition of Zamoyski's 1979 Chopin biography (which I did not read, so I can't compare). This is my personal recommendation for a casual reader looking for a full biography, Chopin birth to Chopin death, and a good read.

Major pro: engagingly written, hits all the important points, and contains ample citations to direct the reader to major resources in the field.

Major con: contains some mythology that historians wouldn't take seriously today.

Best for: the casual reader, no previous Chopin knowledge required.

[enlitment]

Never mind, scratch the part about me saying Scurr's biography seems to be well-researched so far. As was pointed out by @anotherhumaninthisworld (thank you!) she just gets Camille Desmoulins' age wrong by 3 years when describing what is arguably one of the most important events of his life/of the revolution itself

Like I get that the biography is about Robespierre, but still, I'd be dragged for a thing like that if I had it in by undergrad thesis and she's an academic

I'm just incredibly confused as to why/how? He was born in 1760, which, you know, makes the calculation incredibly easy even for the less mathematically gifted.

There's barely any big difference between 26 and 29, at least in my mind. Like both is late-ish 20s? Is 26 fine but 29 already too old to be seen as 'attractively boyish'? What's going on there?

I'm probably overthinking it. It does, however, show that her research/writing is sloppy, at least in this particular instance.