#bulgarian facts

[myokk]

Sebastian had a few days leave from duty so he visited Eloise😇😇

[easterneuropeancrafts]

Pillowcase. Made by Dobra Dimitrova from Bulgarka, Silistra municipality, 1920s.

Bulgarka, Silistra municipality, Bulgaria.

Bulgarian National Museum of History

[eyeeatskin]

Why are you so close, lady?

[factoidfactory]

Random Fact #6,598

One unique feature of Bulgarian is its use of a postpositive definite article.

Unlike many languages that place the article before a noun (like "the" in English), in Bulgarian, the definite article is added at the end of the noun (e.g., "книга" (kniga) means "book," while "книгата" (knigata) means "the book").

[ynwa4eva]

THE NEW OVERWATCH HERO IS ANOTHER CANADIAN???? IM GOING TO START A BOYCOTT 😭😭😭

[deborahdeshoftim5779]

This is very interesting. I know quite a bit of Russian, and I cannot speak any other Slavic language. My local library has started buying childrens books in Ukrainian since the full-scale invasion.

I looked through one of these, which had food vocabulary inside it, and I already recognised words like картопля (kartoplya), which is potato; помідор (pomidor), which is tomato; хліб ('hlib), which is bread. I knew these because of картофель, помидор, and хлеб.

I just decided to check the days of the week in Ukrainian, and I was surprised to see that Monday is понеділок! Tuesday is вівторок.

This is kind of cool, because I can already work these out! (I can still remember the days of the week in Bulgarian, which is closer to Russian because of the aforementioned Old Slavonic.)

I also thought that Ukrainian was less close to Latin, but I did actually watch a video from a Ukrainian YouTuber a few years ago, where she listed Ukrainian words that are relatively transparent to English speakers because of their Latin/Greek endings.

And yes, as @treibholz-des-universums correctly said, English has been so influenced by French that, as Albert Baugh and Thomas Cable put it, the language seems 'almost as much a Romance as a Germanic language.' I am constantly saying words and then suddenly realising they must have come from French. I am nowhere near a linguist or a philologist. I just have this sixth sense that tells me a word is French (or Latin or Greek) in origin.

One of the things I like about Russian is the number of words I can spot that come from French, German, Italian, Dutch, Latin, Greek, Bulgarian, and English.

I asked some Polish people I know whether they know any Ukrainian. They said no, but they agreed that Ukrainian is fairly similar to Polish. I follow a Ukrainian YouTuber who says in this video that learning Ukrainian can open the door to understanding Polish and Slovak, a sentiment that was supported by some of the viewers in the comments' section.

Nonetheless, I always find it pretty cool that I can understand some Ukrainian without having learned it. I like Ukrainian: it is much softer than Russian and sounds very smooth when spoken.

10 facts everyone should know about Ukraine! by @/jeniasnotes

[estbela]

Okay so my brain decided that it's thinking about robul time right now

[nymphoniah]

Hiiii! May i request training/working out/ sparring (idk😭) with logan and it ends up with us dry humping or something pretty please will all the cherries :)

indulgent desires | logan howlett

pairing: boyfriend!logan x afab!reader

AN: omg your mind... i know for a fact that logan is an absolute menace when it comes to working out. like have you seen his arms? i need to be squished to death by his biceps. they're just so!!! omg!!! you know that man loves hitting his arms.

written with xmen/x2 logan in mind, but honestly can be applied to any other ver. of him! (for once i'm not writing with old man!logan in mind? am i really me?)

content/tags: minors DNI (18+ only), dry humping, pet names (babygirl, princess, etc.), porn with a little bit of plot, cum tasting/eating/facial, hair pulling, teasing

logan practically spends every day at the gym. he always prided himself on his physique, not just for self-fulfilling reasons, but for the mere fact that he knows that his body riles you up.

he can tell when you would "sneak" glances at him, especially when he gets a pump right after his workouts. the way his muscles swelled after working out made you lust for him harder.

you could tell he hit his arms today; his biceps were more defined than usual, with your eyes tracing a thick vein that flows down his forearm. "you like what you see, princess?" he teases, flexing his arm as you continue to stare.

you blink hard and shake your head embarrassingly fast. "whatever, logan!" you shout, continuing whatever workout you were doing, losing track of how many reps you did.

you would tag along with him every so often, but only because he would take hours at a time at the gym. sure, you liked going to the gym, you had to stay fit somehow, but you lacked the stamina logan had; the frequency and duration of his gym sessions were unbearable for a poor little thing like you.

and logan acknowledged this, as he would often end his sessions a bit shorter so the two of you could go home sooner. you felt like a bother, and the last thing you wanted to do was interfere with his workouts.

"fuuuuck, im tired," you exhale, leaning forward, hands gripping at your knees as you try to catch your breath. pushing through your last set of bulgarian split squats had you absolutely winded. logan placed his firm hand on the small of your back, gently rubbing circles against your skin.

"let's go home, bub" he lulled, passing you his water bottle to drink from. nodding at him, you take a long swig, and the ice cold water rejuvenates your body. "let's..." you eagerly reply.

you couldn't bare being separated from him, lounging away at home any longer, so one day, you took matters into your own hands.

eventually you had the idea to buy at-home gym equipment; it was pricy to say the least, but it didn't matter to you, for as long as logan was home.

from the comfort of your own apartment, you had the view of logan all to yourself. whenever he worked out, he wore his plain white wife beater along with a random rugged pair of gym shorts he rotated through.

you'd wake up to his grunts early in the morning, getting up at first light to use the machines splayed out in your living room. the domesticity of it all made it so the early mornings never bothered you, as well as the occasional tsss or oomph he'd let out as he finished a rep.

and just like before, you'd join him. you had bought a yoga mat to do your stretches before your workout. even got one for logan, but he keenly insists on using yours.

this morning you had spot him on seated on the mat, legs stretched out. he splayed his torso out between his thighs, letting out a grunt as he felt his muscles pull as he reached forward.

a yawn leaves his mouth as he returns to an upright position. he glances over to his right to spot you sitting at the dining table, sipping from your mug, eyes focused on him.

when finished with his usual routine, he follows up with a couple of stretches afterwards to cooldown. his arms were thicker, more defined than usual. arms, you thought to yourself. he hit his arms, again.

“morning, sweetheart,” he chirps as a lazy grin slowly wipes across his face. he reaches his hand out, signaling for you to come over.

and so you do, sitting alongside him on the mat, slotting yourself between his legs. you rest your hands on his thick shoulders, tugging at the straps of his tank top.

he leans in, placing a chaste kiss on your forehead. “stretch with me, darlin,” he hums against your temple.

“i’d rather watch you,” you reply, playfully pushing him away. you’re about to return to your spot at the dining table before he snakes his arms around your waist, holding you in place.

“no, no, we gotta get you movin’, doll.” and oh how logan has a way of convincing you. just a simple pet name, and he’s got you wrapped around his finger.

he taps your hips, motioning for you to turn around, and you oblige. with a swift movement, your back is now pressed against his chest, your legs encaged by his own.

you could already feel that his dick was hard, which wasn’t too much of a surprise. logan had morning wood pretty frequently, and would often work out to relieve it, as he felt guilty if he were to wake you up so early in the morning.

but this time, it was different. watching you prance around the kitchen in those shorts that barely cover your ass, wearing a skin tight camisole that put your hardened nipples on display. how could he not get hard—or rather, not keep his hard-on for a pretty little thing like you?

logan rests his head on your shoulder, leaning close to your ear. “c’mon, get started already.” he whispers, warm breath tickling the shell of your ear.

and so you mimic the stretch he was doing earlier. you lean forwards, making your ass push into his crotch. the pads of his rough fingertips remain at your waist, gripping at your skin to bring you closer. you continue to lean forwards, and your back is now parallel with your legs on the mat.

his hands creep their way to the small of your back. “there you go, doll. just like that,” he lulls, tracing delicate circles where your back arches. logan shifts in place, now kneeling behind you as you remain spread out for him on the floor.

you attempt to rise from your position to sit upright, but a firm hand is planted on your back, keeping you in place. "y'look so pretty for me like this," logan teases, his calloused palm now slipping underneath your tank top.

his hands run up to caress your shoulder blades, pushing the straps of your tank top down swiftly. your tits were now exposed to the crisp, cool air, your nubs now even harder than before.

“logan…” you whine as his left hand keeps you in place, while the other roams to paw at your tits. you continue to moan out his name while he works at you, paying sweet attention to the way your breath hitches as he gently tugs at your swollen nubs.

“couldn’t help it darlin’,” he lulls, “how can i ignore a pretty little thing like you?” his hands move their way from your breasts to your hips. tugging at your legs, he manhandles you so you’re now prone on the yoga mat.

logan is still seated beside you, calloused hand now working at the globes of your ass, jiggling one your cheeks in the thick palm of his hands. “you got me so fuckin’ hard, baby…” he hisses, his free hand palming his erection through his shorts.

he leans in, pressing a soft kiss to the flesh of your ass, admiring how pretty you look spread for him. his face lingers for a second as he catches a whiff of your arousal pooling in your cunt.

“can smell how bad you need me, doll.” logan utters under his breath. “don’t worry, i’m gonna fill you right up…” you lazily turn your head around to catch a glimpse of the smirk forming on his face, and you flash him a coquettish smile of your own.

“ass up, princess,” he commands, pushing on the small of your back. and you obey, arching your back so that your ass is presented to him, your lacy panties peeking through your shorts.

“fuck.” he coos, molding your ass in the palm of his hand. logan is tempted to pop his claws out to rip the fabric, but the last time he did, you complained about him ruining your favorite pair of sleep shorts, so he refrains from doing so.

so he decides on something else. pushing his shorts down, logan remains in his boxers, his oh-so needy cock forming a tent in the tight fabric.

you feel him shifting around you, seating himself so he’s on his knees, his cock parallel to your ass. you try to push back to feel any friction against your needy cunt, but he keeps a firm grip on your hips, keeping you still.

“please, need you so bad,” you whine, attempting to wiggle your way out of his grip, but knowing him, knowing his strength, it’s useless to even try.

“you’re gonna have to wait for it, sweetheart,” he says cockily, pressing his pelvis against your clothed cunt, and the both of you hiss out in pain.

logan began to rut his cock against you at a steady pace, angling his hips to that the tip of his cock just about grazed over your clit.

“stop teasin’,” you purr, arching your back to try and get any more friction, but it’s no use. logan reaches over and presses your head into the yoga mat, your cheek squished against the foam.

“you get what i give you, princess.” he grunts, pushing your head further into the mat as his hips move faster, pressing harder into your ass. “gonna use you first, then i’ll stuff you with my cock.”

his hips sputter as he feels the way you bounce your ass against him, your bodies moving in sync, his thrusts matching the way you rut back into him. “fuck, you got me worked up doll, prancing around the house like that…”

you couldn’t respond to his words, only grunt in response. the pressure building in your core was too much, making your mind hazy. all you managed to let out was a little mmh.

“walkin’ around with your tits on display, actin’ all innocent,” he drones on, continuing to pound his hips against yours. he fists a section of your hair, tugging harshly so your face now meets his.

“the things you do to me, doll…” logan mutters, leaning over to give you a hungry kiss. your entangled your tongues sloppily, moaning into each others mouths.

he pulls away from the kiss hastily, and a thin strand of your saliva mixed with his pools from your bottom lip. you look fucked out already, and he’s only been dry humping you.

“dirty little thing,” logan teases, pressing a finger against your clothed cunt as he continues his thrusts. you feel yourself getting close, your panties were drenched with your own arousal.

the way your ass rippled with every thrust of his hips, combined with how wet you were getting from this sent logan into a spiral.

his movements became more erratic, his strained dick begging to be released from the confines of his boxers. he began to rub tight circles on your clit, pushing you further to your limit.

“gonna come soon, baby,” he grunts out, and you moan in response. “where do you want me, darlin’?”

spit dribbles out of your mouth as he continues his relentless attack on your ass, his hips pistoning as fast as he could manage. “o-on my face…” you barely manage to whimper out

and so his thrusts pause, and he manhandles you, now flipping you onto your back. he hastily pushes his boxers down, his cock springing back in protest against his stomach.

your mouth waters at the sight of his thick cock, his hands pumping him at a rapid pace, precum leaking all over his abs.

he hovers himself over your face, his knees caging your head. as he angled his cock at your mouth, he continued fisting himself vigorously. “gonna take my cum like a good girl?” he asks, raising his eyebrow. you nod your head yes, but this isn’t enough for logan.

“words, princess.” he quips, feeling himself close to his release.

“‘m gonna take it like a good girl, i promise lo” you whine, locking your eyes with his, your pupils blown with lust.

“‘atta girl…”

and after a couple more pumps of his dick, thick ropes of his cum coat your face. he’s spurting out more than you imagined—he was really fucking pent up. who would’ve thought that a sweet little thing like you had that much of an effect on him?

after he milked himself of all of his cum, he rolls over to your side. he glances over at you and wipes the mess off near your eyes. you chuckle a bit, licking off the cum that got on your lips.

you lean over and pull logan into a short kiss, allowing him to taste himself on your lips. “fuckin’ hell,” he whispers, his hot breath tickling your nose. he sits up, looking around the kitchen for a spare towel to clean you up.

“soo… does this count as our warm up for today?” you ask cheekily, propping yourself up on your elbow as you watch him pace around the kitchen.

“shut up, kid…” logan replies, groaning at your attempt joke.

[frownyalfred]

Just imagining the JL looks of confusion when Batman and Green Arrow know something very very specific drug related thing because they went to this one party together that got very very weird and very very illegal back in their late teens early 20s, just going back and forth making obscure references to this party and the others are just wtf is happening right now

And they’re so matter of fact about it too! “You can’t do coke like that” “a Bulgarian threesome always has an optional fourth partner” “actually that one is way more effective if you crush it up first and then—”

[txttletale]

sorry, a bit confused on your AI art take. Are you pro-AI art on the simple basis that humans have to input a prompt first? What of the artists whose work was stolen for that data set? Do they just not matter or have you just not considered them?

i'm not 'pro-AI' -- i don't really care about the technology itself as more than a novelty. i think there's some really talented people doing cool things with it but as a new artform the vast majority of the stuff being made with it fucking sucks. it enables a lot of really shitty business practices (that, mind you, were already standard -- it just makes them easier). much like any advancent in productive technology its implementation under capitalism will inevitably be immiserating. i just think that 1. generative art is indisputably art and almost every argument i've seen that it isn't is openly reactionary and 2. many of the arguments against it are equally reactionary petty-bourgeois nonense that drown out the actual labour concerns of how employers' use of it affects the proletariat.

that said i simply don't believe that anyone's work is being 'stolen' when datasets are created and AI is trained on them. they're not being deprived of anything! i definitionally think something cannot be a 'theft' if nothing is lost or taken, and i furthermore think that the ability to freely scrape words and images off the internet is actually incredibly vital to a lot of very important research and the idea that it represents 'theft' when those words and images are not even being reproduced is absolute nonsense.

like when people say that images have been used "without compensation", what do they imagine "compensation" looks like? like, the CLIP dataet that DALL-E 2 was trained on has 400 million images in it. DALL-E 2 charges (after a free trial period) $0.02 per image. so should each of the owners (not creators, mind you, because IP law does not protect creators and in fact demonstrably does the opposite) of the images in CLIP then get $0.000000005 whenever DALL-E 2 generates an image? be serious! barbie playset of the bulgarian presidential palace

[elizadraws]

Bulgarian Music in Studio Ghibli films

”Myth has it that Orpheus was born in what is now Bulgaria. It seemed to be fact, not myth, that his daughters are still singing there”

These words were written by the New York Times in the remote 1963 — the year in which the largest Bulgarian folk ensemble crossed the Iron Curtain to conquer an entire continent with its cosmic art.

The 1975 release of Le Mystère des Voix Bulgares, a compilation album of modern arrangements of Bulgarian folk songs, further popularized Bulgarian music, and in 1977, a vinyl record featuring the folk song “Izlel ye Delyo Haydutin” (Eng: Come out rebel Delyo) began its journey aboard the Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 spacecrafts.

From this point on popularity from the West spread to the East, and Bulgarian folk music made it to the entertainment industry, including legendary Japanese anime films, like the cult cyberpunk “Ghost in the Shell” or the heartwarming Studio Ghibli features.

In this short article I write about two occasions of Bulgarian music playing in Studio Ghibli’s films.

The record that inspired the creation of “Only Yesterday”

“Only Yesterday” is a 1991 Japanese animated drama film written and directed by Isao Takahata, based on the 1982 manga of the same title by Hotaru Okamoto and Yuko Tone. Set in rural Japan, the film draws parallels with the peasant lifestyle present in Eastern Europe.

The original work is a compilation of short stories about 11-year-old Taeko’s daily life in 1966. Director Takahata had a hard time making it into a movie since the manga, told in the form of a memoir, has no plot to hold a feature. Together with producer Toshio Suzuki, they came up with the solution of bringing the narrator of the story, adult Taeko, into the movie. But there is a curious anecdote about how this idea came to mind.

Taeko picks safflower as the Bulgarian song “Malka moma dvori mete” plays in the background. © Studio Ghibli

In a 2021 interview with students from Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski, producer Suzuki recounts how a record of Bulgarian songs performed by the children choir “Bodra Smyana”, introduced to him by director Takahata, inspired the creation of the movie. Moved by the cosmic voices of the children, they decided to make “Only Yesterday” a musical. He also recalls what a tiring process it was to acquire the rights to the music, but if you’ve seen the movie, I am sure you will agree that it was worth it; the haunting, beautiful songs with the pastoral images of farmers picking flowers contribute to one of the greatest scenes created in cinema.

Producer Suzuki showing the record that inspired the creation of ”Only Yesterday”. Source: Studio Ghibli’s Twitter

In “Only Yesterday”, we can hear two songs from the album Bulgarian Polyphony I by Philip Koutev Ensemble. The upbeat “Dilmano Dilbero” [Eng. beautiful Dilmana] sets a happy mood as the protagonist gets changed and ready to go on the field. As the scene shifts and Taeko starts narrating a sad story about the girls in the past picking safflower with their bare hands, the song and mood shift as well.

While the first song has a fast rhythm, with lyrics about pepper planting that can also be interpreted figuratively, the second one, “Malka Moma Dvori Mete” [Eng., a little girl sweeps the yard], is a ballad about a young girl who is forced into marriage but has never known true love.

Both compositions sing about life-cycle events like marriage and the regular coming of the harvests, with lyrics perfectly fitting the setting and plot of the movie, which makes me wonder if the filmmakers chose them by chance or if they had someone translate the words.

Bulgarian Cosmic Voices Enchanting Howl

“Howl’s Moving Castle” is a 2004 Japanese animated fantasy film written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki, loosely based on the 1986 novel of the same name by British author Diana Wynne Jones. Set in a fictional kingdom the movie draws inspiration from various places in Europe. One of them being Bulgaria.

The story focuses on a young girl, named Sophie, magically transformed into an old woman, and a self-confident but emotionally unstable young wizard, Howl, living in a magical moving castle.

A sketch of a Star Child. Source: The Art of Howl’s Moving Castle

If you’ve seen the movie, you surely remember the scene when Madame Suliman ambushes Howl and tries to strip him of his magic powers. Star Children encircle him and his companions; their shadows grow big, dark and intimidating. They start dancing and chanting unintelligible magic words and are almost successful in their devilish act.

This scene, together with the music played in the background, have been a favourite of many fans of the film. Some even recount it giving them nightmares when they were children.

Star Children encircle Howl in an attempt to strip him of his magic powers. © Studio Ghibli

It turns out, however, that these aren’t any incantations, but the lyrics of a folk song. In Bulgarian. And a love song! Contrary to popular belief, the lyrics have nothing to do with magic and are actually about a boy taking his sweetheart, Dona, to the market to buy her new clothes. The excerpt used in the movie is very short and a bit altered from the original, but the words used go like this: Trendafilcheto, kalafercheto, Done mamino, translated as “the rose, the costmary, my darling Dona”.

I am planing a follow up article where I will post the translated lyrics together with a brief explanation on how they are related to the movies.

If you want to comment on or add something, I would love to hear!

Source

[idk6123]

Durmstrang Champion (Viktor Krum X Male Reader)

Hogwarts was quite different now that there are two other magical schools use the same building. That being said, there are barely any problems with it. In fact, the students between the three schools get along pretty well, most of the time. Along the students, four of them stand out, because the Triwizard Tournament. One of which is Viktor Krum from Durmstrang Institute. Since he came from a school where being taught curses is normal, it’s only natural Slytherin students are seeking him and his school mates out. That being said, Viktor found them annoying and just ignore them. However, one student stands out from the crowd.

His name is Y/N. He’s a fourth year. The first time Viktor notices him is during lunch, as his classmates were harassing the other students, Y/N is sitting by himself, eating lunch. The second time he notices him is when the tribute visits the library to notice him study, alone again. The third time is during his physical training outside. As a crowd of girls are following him, eager for his attention, from the side, he notices the teen taking care of some magical creatures.

Then he saw him for the fourth time. It’s again in the library, where Y/N is checking out some books. He’s standing near a desk, where his pet Puffskein observes him. As Y/N grabs a book from the upper plank, a couple of them drops, hitting him and get them on the floor.

“You gotta be…” Y/N sighs. Just before he crouches down to pick them up, a certain someone walks to him.

“Need help?”

And that’s how to the met. Ever since that day, the two became friends. The Slytherin’s don’t understand why someone like Krum would hang out like Y/N. That doesn’t bother him though, since when he got some rude comment about it, Y/N merely said back it says more about them then him.

Viktor and Y/N made sure to hang out whenever they can. Both of them share stories very often about their school. The Bulgarian was very surprised the amount of incidents happened ever since Y/N enrolled the school. It also helps that he’s friends with Harry and his friends, thus getting the information pretty quick.

During a sunny day, Viktor is jogging on the grounds of the school. As he trains, he notices at the magical creature pens Y/N, who’s taking care of some Kneazles.

“Come here, kitty kitty kitty.” Y/N crouches down as one of the Kneazles walk towards him. Once near him, the student brushes him. “Good girl.”

Viktor jogs towards the pen. He grabs the fence and stretches as he waits until his friend is done. After a couple of seconds, Y/N stands up. “You such sweat heart.”

Y/N yelps as he quickly turns around. He feels reassured it’s someone he knows, but he should’ve recognized him by his voice. “And you’re sweaty.”

“It’s that you say ‘hi’ in your country?” With a smirk, Viktor jumps over the fence. Once in the pen, he leans against the fence with his back.

“It sure is in Slytherin.” Y/N chuckles. He walks over to his friend. Once next to him, he sits on the fence. “Training for the first task?”

“Yes, but I’m doing this regular.” Y/N find Viktor’s broken English bit endearing. “It take lot of effort to be fit.”

“I can imagine. Anyway, what do you think your chances of winning are?”

With a smirk, Viktor replies with any doubt in his voice. “I’m sure I’m going win.”

-

Y/N is happy his friend came first during the first task. Viktor faced the Common Welsh Green dragon and used the Conjunctivitis Curse to blind the dragon before quickly retrieving the golden egg. Though being happy for him, he also wanted to congratulate his other friend, Harry. Though the boy who lived quickly called him out for supporting Krum more than him. An argument came and Y/N just left him be. Knowing how he treated Ron and Hermoine; he knows he’s way too moody to be deal with.

So instead of hanging out with people who are just in a bad mood, Y/N hangs out with Viktor more often. The two of them are walking around the grounds. The champion is wearing a bag with something in it.

“I don’t know what’s going on with him.” Y/N confides with his friend. “I understand that it’s all stressful, but he keeps lashing out.”

“Give it time. I’m sure after while he realize what he doing is wrong.” Viktor advice. “You’re good guy. Don’t think otherwise.”

“Thanks.” Y/N replies with a smile. He looks around the gorgeous forest. “How are things with you? Enjoying the attention?”

“Not at all. I’m glad I’m with someone isn’t ogling me.” Though being annoyed by it, the champion smirks. “But that isn’t I’m worried about.” He stops and grabs his bag. Y/N then stops as well and looks back, seeing the Bulgarian grabbing the golden egg. “Everyone knows this is clue to next task.” He hands over the egg, causing Y/N to check it out. “Don’t open. You ears bleed.”

Y/N checks out any angle of it. “I don’t see or sense anything odd.”

“This thing bugging me. I don’t know how figure out.” Viktor admits. “Any chance you can look into this?”

“Sure.” Viktor is happy to hear it. “Before I try anything funny, I grab some earmuffs.” Y/N continues to check it out. “I wonder… would the Mandrakes hurt more, or this?”

-

During the week, every time he has some free time, Y/N tries to figure out the deal with the golden egg. He has a gut feeling it’s revolved around the ear piercing sound but doesn’t know what. He tried to figure out what kind of sound it is. And yet, he didn’t found what. He got to the library to find more info. Didn’t found anything. He then tried different spells on the egg on himself. Didn’t work. He tried some potions. Didn’t work. Y/N wonders what Viktor did, because the chances of him to figure this out becomes lower and lower.

He often takes strolls around the castle to remedy his mind. He sometimes figures something out just by doing something not relating to it. As he walks around in a hallway, he notices something odd happening to the wall. Slowly, a door reveals itself. Curious as he is, he gets through the door, entering a large room with a big bath. Feeling this is a sign, Y/N put his bag to the side and turn on the water.

After a few minutes, the bath become full. Y/N grabs the golden egg and some earmuffs. He removes his shoes and roll up his trousers’ pipes and his shirt’s sleeves. Then, he slowly gets in the water, putting the egg in it. After he adjusts his earmuffs, he crouches down to open the egg. To his surprise, his hears doesn’t start to bleed.

“Holy…”

Y/N slowly removes his earmuffs, hearing nothing. He throws it to the side and slowly put his head to the water. When he gets underwater, that’s when he realized he figured it out.

-

Y/N made sure to tell the news to Viktor in an instant. So, the Slytherin leads his friend towards the bath. Both of them still in shock that they cracked the code.

“Where we going?”

“It’s called The Room Of Requirements. It basically gives you what you need if your desperate of something.”

“You were desperate to figure out?”

“Yeah. I wanted to help you. I can’t go back empty handed.” Viktor smiles at hearing that.

They then get in front of the room, slowly revealing the door. Once revealed, they enter. That’s where they see the big bath.

“It basically gave me the answer.” Y/N comments.

Viktor is quick to turn on the water. They wait again until the bath is filled. This time, the bath is filled with a layer of foam. Y/N grabs the egg from his bag and hands it over to Krum.

“Thank you.” He then puts the egg on the floor. That’s when he starts removing his clothes, surprising Y/N.

“O-Oh. I thought we just…”

“Might as well have bath.” Viktor merely says, finding it not weird. He removes his shirt and pants, with Y/N awkwardly looking away. From the corner of his eyes though, he watches him, right until Viktor removes his underwear.

“Oh!”

“Relax. We’re both guys.” Viktor doesn’t understand why Y/N is being shy. He enters the bath. Once sitting down, he looks back at his friend. “You come?”

“Y-Yeah… Can you turn around?”

Viktor looks confused but doesn’t question it. He can hear his friend taking off his clothes. After a few seconds, he can hear him walking to the bath. The Bulgarian looks at his right, as Y/N enters to his left. Though next to each other, there is some distance between them.

“Are you uncomfortable?” Viktor asks.

“It’s just… I’m usually don’t undress and be naked around people.”

Viktor hums. “Glad you join.” He turns back to grab the golden egg. In his hands, he looks at his friend. “You ready?”

“Yes.”

Thus, after taking a deep breath, they get under water. The Bulgarian man opens up the egg, where they hear the true message.

“Come seek us where our voices sound. We cannot sing above the ground. An hour long you 'll have to look. To recover what we took…”

That’s how the message ends, and so they get back. After a few seconds for both guys to recover their breaths, they discuss the message.

“Let’s see…” Y/N recalls what it said. “’We cannot sing above ground.’”

“Like they live underwater.” Viktor comments.

Y/N nods in agreement. “Must be merpeople. They live in the Black Lake.” He continues to think further about what it said. “You got an hour for the next task, where you need to seek them out.”

“Sounds obvious.” Viktor says. “I’m more curious what they took.”

Y/N thinks a bit but got no answer. “Guess you have to wait and see for yourself.” That’s when he realized something. “Wait, you’re going to be underwater for an hour.”

“I figure something out.” Viktor says without any doubt.

“You better.”

There is an awkward silent between the two. Y/N merely looks around after a few seconds. He still finds it unbelievable that he’s bathing with his friend, who doesn’t have an issue with it.

“I’ve been meaning ask you something.” Viktor speaks up, with Y/N looking back. “The Yule Ball is coming, and we need dance partner. Do you want be my partner?”

Y/N looks surprised. “Me? Like a friend?”

“If you want.” Viktor smiles.

“You don’t want any of the girls annoying you?”

“No. I rather want be someone like you.” Y/N blushes a bit with Viktor smiling at him. “Maybe if I go with guy, then maybe they get message.”

“That you find them annoying, or…?”

“I’m already interested in someone.”

“Oh.” Viktor loves seeing Y/N acting flustered. “Is that why you wanted to bathe together?”

“Maybe. Maybe not.” He slowly put an arm around Y/N. “Is that problem?”

“Definitely not now.”

-

It’s right before the Yule Ball. In front of the hall, Y/N makes sure to dust away any dust on his clothing as he awaits for his dates. That’s when he notices his friends, Harry and Ron.

“Nice suit, Ron.”

“Shut it.”

“Still moody, huh?” Y/N chuckles. “I take it you find someone Harry.”

“Yes. Parvati.”

“Oh, she. She’s sweet.”

“How about you?” Ron asks.

Right before he’s answering, Y/N noticing his date standing on the staircase. Both friends follow his gaze, to see his answer, only to look surprised. The Bulgarian man goes down the staircase, wearing his handsome suit. Gently, he grabs Y/N’s hand and presses a kiss on it. That’s when he holds his hand. Y/N then looks back.

“See you later.” Holding each other arms, they walk towards the ball. Both guys still in shocked from what they saw.

“Bloody hell. I definitely didn’t expect that.”

-

During the dance, Y/N notices a lot of girls staring at him. Some look sad. Others look disappointed. Some other are jealous. Though Y/N isn’t bothered, as he continues to enjoy his time with Viktor.

Eventually though, Y/N wants a break and want something to drink. He notices Harry and Ron sitting by themselves, looking sulky again. With a glee smile, he sits beside them.

“Where are your dates?”

“Gone.” Harry merely replies.

 Y/N merely hums, finding it a bit awkward. He takes a sip from his drink. He then notices Krum at the side of the dancefloor, seeing him talk with his friends. That’s when both eyes meet, and they give a small wave to each other. Ron only groans in respond.

“You’re really fraternizing with the enemy?”

Y/N looks back at him and scoffs. “Really? You consider him the enemy?”

“It’s obvious what he wants. He’s after Harry. To get inside information. Maybe even Jinx Harry.”

“What information? Because last time I check, both of you act crazy ever since this year started. We barely hang out anymore, and this is why.” Y/N put his cup at the side as he glares at Ron. “Unlike you, Viktor can actually treat someone like a friend.”

“Get a room.”

“Don’t worry. We already did. More than you ever will.” With that, he storms off.

Viktor can tell by the side of his eyes to see his upset date. “You alright?”

“They’re being jerks, saying I’m conspiring with the enemy.” Y/N looks back. “I thought he hated the tournament.”

“Hey.” Viktor makes Y/N to look at him. “Don’t let them ruin fun. We have amazing night, we continue to do so.”

After some breaths, Y/N calms down. “Yeah, you’re right.”

Viktor smiles. “Let me introduce my friends. They eager to meet you.”

-

The second task came. Viktor is surprised he doesn’t see Y/N at all. Last time, they chatted for a bit before the tournament starts. Though not letting him bother by it, he does wonder where he is. And so, the second task starts. To deal with the water, he transfigures himself into a shark, though the spell execution wasn’t the best, since only his upper half transformed.

As he swims around, he tries to follow the clue which he got from the golden egg. Eventually, after several minutes, he heard the sound of the merpeople. Exploring further, that’s when he discovers what he needs to retrieve. Being chained on the bottom of the lake, he sees 4 students, one of which is Y/N. He sees Cedric saving Cho, and now he has to safe his person.

With speed, he swims towards Y/N. None of the merpeople or any other creature try to stop him. Without any problem, he bites through the chains and get Y/N. With speed, he swims to the surface. Once he reaches it, Y/N regains consciousness. He quickly screams once he sees a shark head next to him, only to calm down when Viktor returns back to his normal form.

“W-What the-?!” Y/N confusedly looks around.

Viktor grabs Y/N. “It’s alright. Let’s go.”

Once back on the pier, they get a cheer from the crowd. Alongside the glory, they get some blankets to warm up. That’s when they sit somewhere, where they await for Harry to get back. During which, Y/N is shivering from the cold, which Viktor notices. Gently, he removes his blanket to put it around Y/N.

“Y-Y-You S-Sure?”

“I manage.” Viktor assures. He scooches closer to Y/N.

Y/N smiles. “W-Why c-couldn’t they d-d-do t-this in the s-s-summer?” Viktor chuckles in respond. He then puts an arm around Y/N, helping him to warm up.

-

It’s the final task. In front of the crowd, who’s all cheering the champions on. Although he made up with Harry and Ron, he’s still cheering for Viktor, who’s going to wait for some time before entering the maze. During the wait, he talks with Y/N at the side.

“I know it’s not smart, but it’s an option.”

“I get in trouble if I set maze on fire.”

“Like I said, final trump card.”  That’s when Viktor is called to be ready. “Alright, it’s your time. See you later.”

Viktor leans to Y/N and kisses him. “I get trophy.”

And so he enters. After some time, Fleur did as well. The crowd wonders what’s happening in the maze. It takes a while until something happens. A red light appears on top of the maze. Some time has passed, and Fleur reappears from the maze, looking thorned down. Everyone wonders what happened to her, and what exactly is in the maze.

Not too soon later, and Viktor appears as well. Y/N can tell there is something wrong with him, as he slowly takes one step after another. He quickly gets off the stance and helps him get some rest.

“Are you alright?” Viktor remains quiet, looking off. “What happened?”

“…Don’t know.”

“You don’t know?” They get to the stance, where Y/N is checking up with Viktor. The rest of the Durmstrang academy is wondering what’s up as well. “What do you mean?”

“Don’t remember…” Viktor quietly says. “Don’t know happen.”

Instead of pressuring him to remember, Y/N remains by his side. Not only did something happened to him, he lost. Although he caught many victories along the year, not winning is still a blow. Thus, Y/N makes sure to be right by his side.

It takes a lot of time before something else happened. Once it did, nobody expected what appears in front of them. It takes a second before they realized in front of them is Cedric Diggory, dead. Once they did, the entire crowd became silent, only hear the desperate pleads of Harry, and the crying of Mr. Diggory. Harry eventually gets moved away from the scene.

As Mr. Diggory cries, Y/N grabs Viktor’s hand. All he wonders what happened to him, back in the maze.

-

Though the year ended badly, after some reflection, Y/N enjoyed his year. Yes, his friendship got tested, but in the end, it gotten stronger. Not just that, he got an amazing boyfriend of who he forged a strong bond with. Speaking of which, it’s time for the schools to disband. Everyone is saying their goodbyes, as does Y/N and Viktor, who’s at the school’s boathouse, where they watch over the lake. Both of them is sitting down, next to each other.

“You should come to Durmstrang. You make excellent student.”

“And now that Karkaroff, I don’t have to worry about a douchy principle.” Y/N smirks. “Sure, I visit once in a while. I look forward to it.”

Viktor smiles. “I love you; you know?” Y/N can’t help but smile in reply. “You truly an amazing guy. Let’s spend summer vacation together.”

“Definitely.” He leans in to kiss Viktor. “Love you too.”

Viktor puts an arm around Y/N. Both of them look at the lake. They appreciate the last few minutes before they depart. And yet, it’s only the beginning for their relationship.

[lilbeanz]

Now that I'm thinking about it, one school for all of Northern Europe seems pretty bizarre. Durmstrang can't be the *only* wizarding school for all of Norway/Sweden/Denmark/Finland/Iceland etc...

Also the fact that Viktor is the lone Bulgarian from Southeastern Europe djjdksks

And France is like...um.. kinda waaaay bigger than the UK??? Either Beauxbatons has multiple campuses orrr...

Just tryna think of the logistics of it all lmao

[balkanikabg]

December (Christmas) Menu

I don't know how many of you know this little fact about me, but I am from Bulgaria. Although I live and study in Scotland for the last few years. And because this year I won't be home for Christmas, nostalgia hits me quite hard. That's how this month's delights were created. It's a special menu that is prepared for the Christmas Eve (Except for the Banitsa, which is traditionally made for New Year), all dishes are a must for every bulgarian family. On 24th of december is important all the dishes to be vegan and the dishes have to be an odd number, usually 7 or 9.

This month is 'Bulgarian Christmas Eve Cuisine' month!

11/12 - for Donators ; 25/12 for Patrons

Festive Bread - Pogača or Pitta, as is known in bulgarian, is a type of bread baked in the ashes of the fireplace, and later in modern ovens. When we make the festive bread for 24th, the chef puts a hidden coin in it before baking. It is believed whoever get the coin, will have abundance of luck and money in the upcoming year. This tradition symbolizes the hope for prosperity and good fortune in the upcoming year.

Pumpkin Pie - Tikvenik, as is known in bulgarian. There should be a sweet part on the Christmas Eve table, so life next year will be sweet. Tikvenik is a type of sweet pastry made of rolled phyllo, similar to strudel, filled with sweetened grated pumpkin pulp and baked in an oven.

Vine Sarmi - Stuffed Grape Leaves, sarmi is the most famous traditional Bulgarian dish on Christmas Eve. They can be grape or cabbage leaves stuffed with rice, plums, and spices. (I already made cabbage stuffed leaves before, so I alternated now)

14/12 - for Donators ; 28/12 for Patrons

Mulled Wine - Wine is a big part of Bulgarian culture, almost every family make their own wine at home.

Stuffed Peppers with Beans - These are dried stuffed peppers similar to Sarmi, traditionally stuffed with beans on Christmas Eve, although in some areas in Bulgaria they are stuffed with rice. We also add plums or raisins, which go well with the pepper skin.

Oshav - Dried fruit soup (compote of dried fruits), a super easy soup from different dried fruits. In this dried fruit compote, you can find dried plums, apples, apricots, pears, quinces, oranges. The resulting drink is similar to punch, usually drunk with the dessert.

18/12 - for Donators ; 1/01 for Patrons

Mulled Rakia - Rakia, is the collective term for fruit spirits popular in the Balkans. The alcohol content of rakia is normally 40% ABV, but home-produced rakia can be stronger (typically 50%). (I made a functional Rakia Set once, you can download it HERE)

Banitsa - Is a traditional pastry made in Bulgaria. Banitsa is prepared by layering a mixture of whisked eggs, plain yogurt, and pieces of white brined cheese between filo pastry and then baking it in an oven. Traditionally in Bulgaria, lucky charms are put into the pastry on New Year's Eve. These charms may be written happy wishes on small pieces of paper and wrapped in tin foil. Wishes may include happiness, health, or success throughout the new year (similar to fortune cookies).

Baklava - It was one of the most popular sweet pastries of Ottoman cuisine. Due to our shared history, this dessert is very common in Bulgaria and it's usually prepared to be served on Christmas day.

ALL ITEMS WILL BECOME PUBLIC 4 WEEKS AFTER ORIGINAL RELEASE, YOU CAN FIND THEM ON CURSEFORGE ALL FREE ITEMS!

[slavic-roots-western-mind]

Palladius System

I recently learned about the Cyrillic transliteration system for transliterating Chinese to Cyrillic based languages, such as Russian, Ukrainian, Bulgarian and other Cyrillic-based languages. The Palladius system (Cистема Палла́дия) was created by Russian Orthodox monk and sinologist Palladius Kafarov in the 19th Century.

A transilteration system is a way of converting text from one writing system into another, like the pinyin in Chinese or romaji in Japanese. In this case its Chinese to a cyrillic based language, such as Russian. This however does not mean that russian speakers learn Chinese using the Palladius system, they actually also use the pinyin tones in the textbooks.

An interesting fact is that this system does not have tones in transliteration. Zhōngguó would be Чжунго, which as you can see doesn't have the tones represented. Instead, it's a context based system, which relies on the context to help determine the meaning. Some may be easy e.g. Шанхай for Shanghai or Пекин for Beijing, but some other words may be a bit more tricky.

This system also does not use "hui" for 会 and other words that sound similar, and instead uses хуэй, which sounds kind of like who-ey, because the russian pronunciation of "hui" is not a very polite word.

Here's how the system works down below:

[countriesgame]

Please reblog for a bigger sample size!

If you have any fun fact about Bulgaria, please tell us and I'll reblog it!