#‘...Always a Caian’

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‘Tammy Chen Fund a “Godsend”’

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The Tammy Chen Postgraduate Studentship is transforming the lives of postgraduates at Caius.

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One of the first recipients of the Tammy Chen Postgraduate Studentship says she would have probably quit the University of Cambridge, had it not been for the support she obtained from Caius.

Tiéphaine Thomason (History 2017) says the help she received during her undergraduate study at Gonville & Caius College was “pretty amazing” — and getting the funding to study for an MPhil in Early Modern History was “an absolute godsend”. Tiéphaine said: “I’d had a bit of an odd second year, and applied with my grades from then. I ended up getting a starred first in my third year, topping the College for History. Getting funding meant that I could do the MPhil work and that my grades from third year were acknowledged.”

The Tammy Chen Postgraduate Studentship provides financial support to postgraduate students studying Humanities subjects at Caius. It was established in memory of Tammy Chen, a PhD candidate at Caius killed in a terrorist attack in Burkina Faso in August 2017. Tiéphaine says she felt humbled to receive funding from such tragic circumstances. Had the bursary not come through, she would have had to defer her studies.

Tiéphaine ended up getting the joint-highest MPhil grade in her cohort, and was jointly awarded the Members' History Prize for the best MPhil dissertation in Early Modern History submitted in 2020/21. She largely credited the support she received from the College, particularly her Directors of Studies Prof Peter Mandler and Dr Melissa Calaresu. She says: “The College has been so supportive in every single way. I would not have made it through Cambridge at all, had it not been for Caius.”

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“The College has been so supportive in every single way. I would not have made it through Cambridge at all, had it not been for Caius.”

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One of her most surreal memories of College was during the first Covid-19 pandemic lockdown in 2020, towards the end of her third year and going into her MPhil year. Tiéphaine says: “The whole University was in the ‘red phase’, which meant that everyone had gone home, apart from a select group of us, who couldn’t go home.”

She adds that being cut off from their families was a “very odd” experience, and thanked Senior Tutor Dr Andrew Spencer for his support during this strange period. Tiéphaine says: “In my case, my dad lives in Hong Kong. You couldn’t fly back to Hong Kong during that time. The same with a few friends of mine. We were all revising for exams, so that’s quite intense. Town was absolutely silent during this period. It was a very eerie feeling but it was also very exciting because you were left in an empty Cambridge to your own devices.” The students relaxed by having sing-a-longs to Simon & Garfunkel songs in the evenings and cooking international meals from their home countries, using the limited ingredients available at the time.

Growing up in Hong King, Singapore and Zurich, Tiéphaine, who is half-French, half-English, said she was “sent to the UK to straighten out my English” at the age of thirteen, having previously studied in French. Becoming a boarder at Oakham School in Rutland, one of England’s smallest counties, was a culture shock, so finding a multicultural community at Caius was a big relief, she says. She adds: “Caius itself is a wonderful environment, we’re one of the few colleges with very regular formals in the evenings, which means we go to them quite casually. When you go to formals at other colleges, people are always dressed in a very fancy way, whereas at Caius we’re all desperately trying not to get tomato soup on our gowns.”

She also enjoyed helping out in the College Archives and now volunteers through mentorship schemes such as Zero Gravity and Insight Outreach, encouraging other students to apply to university.

Tiéphaine has a final message to those who contributed towards her bursary, saying: “Thank you so much for all the support that you give to Caius and to students here. It makes a real impact and difference to our lives and on the future careers that we can have and hopefully we’ll be able to give something back at some point through the research that we do or what we end up producing.”

Tiéphaine recently discovered that she has been successful in receiving full funding from the Harding Distinguished Postgraduate Scholarships Programme to study for a PhD in Early Modern History at the University of Cambridge, based at Murray Edwards College, from 2022/23. There, she will be looking at the spread of spoken French across the early modern Francophone Atlantic. While the College is sorry to see Tiéphaine leave, we know she will stay in touch with the fellows and students at Caius.

Outstanding students like Tiéphaine continue to require funding, especially in the Humanities and Social Sciences, for which financial support is increasingly difficult to access. The appointment of Dr Calaresu as the new Deputy Senior Tutor for Postgraduates is indicative of the College directing focus on our postgraduate community and creating additional sources of funding to attract the best postgraduate students.

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written up by Tali Iserles | ‘Once a Caian’, Issue 22, p. 355 (15 November 2022) | ‘Caius News’ (22 May 2022)

[musicofglassandwords]

The Guardians

sorry, I’m posting this before the next battle scene, but I really enjoyed writing it. constructive criticism or anything you find a little off in the scene is VERY much appreciated!!

if you haven’t seen this The Vanished Kingdom around yet, this is basically an intro to the MCs of this tale!

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The rest of the skylals filed in, leaving seven chairs on one side of the table empty. After a few more minutes, whispers floated in the air, and the queen looked around anxiously.

The guardians were the skylals who worked the hardest and fought the worst battles among the council. Their services were required all over the world in order to fulfill the peace treaties Ciana herself had arranged, and it made sense for them to be late. But she wasn’t sure if the rest of the council would understand that.

The Seven’s reputation had been torn apart and sloppily sewen back together by rumors and gossip. More and more the skylals would argue against them, angered at their cold words, and supposed haughtiness.

After so long without participating in battle, few on the council still believed in the power of the Seven. 

Ciana let out a sigh of relief as she saw the first glimpse of movement down the open doors.

A slender boy with a neatly tucked tunic, polished glasses, and combed hair came in, his slight smile sheepish. His collar was stiff, his clothes neat and clean. He tapped his fingers nervously on his leg as he nodded to Ciana.

“Apologies for being late.”

“No worries, Fortunato,” Caian said gently, glancing nervously at the rest of the council.

The legendary Charmer, who could change fate with a snap of his fingers. Death and life were only a game for him, all else beneath his notice. 

He nearly tripped settling into his seat, a bright flush spreading up his pale skin. Someone laughed harshly, and he looked down into his lap, fingers tapping quicker and quicker against his side.

Screams cut off the derisive laughter, as a cloud of indigo smoke appeared in the seat near Nato, and formed into a boy covered in bruises. Kyran rolled his shoulders back, looking perfectly at ease, despite the purple and indigo marks across half of his face.

 He bowed to Ciana, sprawling casually in his seat, glancing around the table.

The Assassin, the ruthless killer, who was spoken of with both horror and reverence. He had killed whole cities, forging forward despite his wounds. Scars were painted all across his skin. 

Who was currently doodling on a piece of parchment, as two more Guardians entered the room.

Some of the Shifters coughed as Valera walked by them, absolutely covered in fine dust. Clouds of it rose up off of her, as she took her seat by Nato. Every movement she made, caused more dust to fly off, and it wasn’t long before half the room was coughing.

“I’m sorry,” she said, tying her red waves back, “I just came back from Lerain.”

The girl who had come in next to her had taken soft, quiet steps, as if stepping on thin ice. Her dark green hair was twisted into a bun, her clothing loose and flowy, a dancer in the night. Her dark skin shone under the light, and she slipped into her seat as silently as a snowfall.

The Passion and the Silencer.

A girl with emotion and firepower more explosive than a volcano. Her ability to ward and attack had been allegedly unmatched for centuries. She left horror in her wake. 

The Silencer had been whispered about for just as long. With a flick of her fingers, she could put an entire town to sleep, she could heal any disease. One of the strongest warriors in the world. 

“The other three are coming,” Valera said clearly, in response to Ciana’s nervous, questioning look. She glared fiercely around the table, noting the sneers and derisive glances the four of them were currently receiving. 

“Thank you, Passion,” Marsem said, his chin tilted up, “Might I respectfully remind you, that in the future to polish yourself up a bit before a council meeting especially?”

Valera’s face reddened, her brown eyes turning distinctly scarlet, and she opened her mouth, just as a crash sounded in the hallway, and her attention was temporarily diverted.

Sahrina covered a smile with her hand, as a slow voice said from the hallway, “I hope you didn’t like that vase too much.”

Marsem swelled up, stomping towards the entryway, intent on avenging the vase as a light blue glow flashed temporarily in the hallway.

“There we go,” that same voice said, “Calm your feathers, Marsem.”

Seconds later, a shabbily dressed boy with wild blue hair, stumbled in. He raked a hand through his hair, winking at Ciana. A thief with no sense of respect. 

“Sorry for making you wait,” he said carelessly, immediately tripping and faceplanting onto the floor. 

The Jester, renowned for his unpredictably mad actions and his lack of remorse for anything he did. Ruthless, uncaring, and able to call lightning to his will.

“Seth,” Sahrina whispered, sliding out of her seat and helping him up, “Are you alright?”

“I’m good, I’m good,” he grinned at her, lowering his voice, “Glad you’re safe, Rina.” 

“Your Majesty,” a girl with ombre hair, and savage features turned towards Ciana, “How much longer must we wait for these so-called legends to stumble and stagger their way in? If any Sources saw them, the reputation of the council would crumble.”

“Give it a second, darling,” Seth drawled, lounging in his chair, legs hooked over an armrest, “We always strive to be fashionably late.”

Skye swelled up, then considered it beneath her to even acknowledge her comment, venting her anger on the piece of parchment in front of her, puncturing holes in it with every stab of her quill. 

But true enough, only moments later, the last of the Guardians entered the room. The instant the boy and the girl stepped through the doors, bruise-colored light ringed the doors and they gently closed shut.

Black obsidian swung on a pendant against the girl’s collarbone matching her black silk tunic and pants. Her expression was grave as she pulled back her bright gold hair into a plait, slowly gazing around the table, assessing the expressions of the others as she sat down.

The Uniter, the one who bent both darkness and light to her will. If she needed, she could cause blindness in an instant, or pierce one’s heart with a shadow spear. And she very often found need to. 

The final guardian slid into his seat, his hair casting a shadow over his eyes, his posture slumped and inelegant. He was so perfectly still, he was almost a statue, frozen in the light.

He acknowledged no one in the room, remaining silent as Ciana began the council meeting.

The Mystic, the schemer and planner behind the war and peace of the world. He had the ability to absorb magic, and learn the tactics of other magic users.  Nothing was impossible for the Mystic, and no one was safe from him. 

Silence ruled the room, as Ciana continued her recitation of the details of the murder, and informed the skylals of their duty regarding the trading season. At the end, she set her scrolls down, and opened the floor to questions.

No one moved for a moment, then the Uniter’s hand rose up.

Ciana nodded to her, and she spoke, her words clear and unmistakable.

“What was the point of this entire meeting to be called?”

“What do you mean?” Marsem spat, chin tilted in defiance, “How can you question the decision of your queen?”

“She means,” Kyran said lazily, ignoring the dark red stain that had begun to spread on his tunic and the blood that had started dripping down his temples. “We have better things to do.”

“Assassin, you’re bleeding badly,” a skylal observed.

“Oh, I know.” He glanced at Ciana. “Go on.”

“Answer us.”

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Tagging: @lmorasey, @nomadian-novelist, @onthewingsofwords, @feathered-quill, @stories-by-rie @sunlight-and-starskies, @coffeeandcommas @notquitenovelist @whatwasmyprevioususername​ @writingqueensworld

[thecika-stylediary-blog]

El amor de mi vida y sus demonios

Y entonces... Despues de aquella tormenta me queda mas que la tranquilidad que emana el dia, mas que verme en soledad o mas que estar en mi cama sola, pienso que cada una de las lagrimas que derramé fue con justa causa, claro! Es cierto, cada una de esas lagrimas que caian de mi rostro yo las busque nadando en contra de la corriente, arrastrando un sentimiento tan roto y sin remedio, un sentimiento tan grande e inigualable, ese sentimiento que mas nunca volvere a sentir por que nunca una tormenta se repite y asi mismo la gente cambia, el tiempo pasa y el humo se disipa y cada una de las cosas que pasan por nuestros ojos no volveran, por eso ccada instante lo vivi al cien por cien y supe que era el amor y todos los demonios con los que viene, entiendo por esto que no volvera aunque siempre eperare a que lo haga. Karen Soto Carpe Diem Hache, always on my mind forever in my heart. The Cika-Style Diary