#nicolas nerdy musings

[ourgreatergood]

hi! what kind of petnames would be common in german during the time they met, if you dont mind me asking?

I don’t mind at all, I have to say I am not an expert on the history of pet names, though (but that sounds like such an interesting field of study!)

In my earlier post I was talking merely from experience with contemporary pet names, but I did a little research on 19th century pet names (which apparently is a niche field of study, also because the source material is scarce but I found some articles). From what I see, though, there are no conclusive findings regarding what pet names really were popular and whether the results that can be deducted from letters etc. are generalisable.

But here is what I found out: It seems that often women got more pet names than men, i.e. there is a whole conglomerate of flower related pet names that were only given to women. Often men were given nicknames, not pet names. Often there was a lot of creativity involved, too.

Pet names for men that were apparently used around 1900, are: Liebling (darling), Schatz (honey/sweetheart), Geliebter (lover) - as I had mentioned already, but moreover: Theuerster (dearest; modern way of writing would be Teuerster), Herz (heart), Engel (angel), Süßer (sweetie). I have to admit, I read that Schatzi was actually used as well, so I guess it is indeed somewhat historically accurate.

That does not mean that I don’t cringe at it when reading it in fanfic, though, and I think many germans feel the same. Same would go for Engel or Süßer ngl.

Also, all of those (plus combinations of it like mein liebster Schatz) can be found in letters, which of course is basically the only historical source for that kind of thing we have. It could be debatable, though, whether those pet names were also used in spoken conversations as much as they were used in written correspondence. Especially when we look at more poetic pet names that can occasionally be found (i.e. Süßes Wesen von des Himmels Macht - sweet creature from the power of Heaven).

Thank you for the opportunity to look into it and hope this helps!

[hallowsnothorcruxes]

honestly thinking about changing my url - the marauders fandom is becoming so unhinged (and like good for them but not my cup of tea) that I really don’t want to be associated lol

[ourgreatergood]

since we’re sharing grindeldore playlists, here is mine ✨

[hallowsnothorcruxes]

I feel the same way tbh, I’m a og wolfstar shipper but they (the current marauder stans) kinda ruined the marauders era for me lately. The wolfstar tag isn’t even remotely related to them any more 💔 Fanon and headcanons that I don’t vibe with have taken over everything it feels. idk just don’t like the vibes lately :(

I’m sorry you’re experiencing this, it can be really frustrating and sad! 🫶🏻

I have to admit I this started out as a marauders blog 10 yrs ago, too (love remus!!) but quickly turned into a general hp blog, because I was never a big wolfstar shipper or anything, so it was really just the name that stuck. (Everyone knows I’ve always been Dumbledore’s man anyway lol)

But I can imagine how alienating it must feel to be an og in today’s marauders fandom. I also feel like it has gotten a little out of hand with fanon taking over canon and like if most people in the tag enjoy that, they should, but as you said I don’t vibe with that either. (Literally came back on here after hiatus and was so confused to see regulus/jegulus in like almost every post??)

I feel like maybe a lot of it is due to a new generation of marauders fans that have decided to ditch canon altogether (or weren’t even HP fans to begin with) and simply focus on fanon - fueled ofc by some popular fanfics and absolved by JKR’s increasingly problematic online behaviour.

But I also feel like, while it’s sad, there’s no point in being bitter or seriously annoyed about it. It’s still media, people may enjoy whatever they enjoy and if so many people are vibing with it, well they can have their fun. Perhaps there’s something I don’t get about it and this is really just the musings of an old fan, too long in the fandom already. I don’t know. But since I’ve come back, I made my peace with the fandom. I won’t argue with bashers anymore, I won’t get annoyed at canon-ignoring takes anymore, I craft my small bubble and stay in it and only engage with the stuff I enjoy. (Took me the hiatus to do that tho - was necessary because I feel like the grindeldore fandom shortly went through what the marauders fandom does, too, when FB came out. Just on a smaller scale and it was really overwhelming for me who was used to the grindeldore fandom having like a handful peoples in it for more than 10 years.)

Anyway, sorry for rambling - all that is to say I feel you and I’m sorry that it sucks!

[ourgreatergood]

still thinking about how there exists a fragment of the achilleis (lost tragedy by aeschylus) from myrmidons in which achilles speaks to antilochos after patroclus death and says: “antilochos, pity me, the living one, more than the dead one.”

albus confirmed classics nerd, bye

[hallowsnothorcruxes]

Hey

Favourite each fantastic beasts movies scenes??

Hi! Thank you!

So, fbawtft: central park and Jacob and Queenie under the umbrella

Cog: Salamander Eyes (close second: basically any interaction between newt and jacob)

SOD: the Qilin bowing before Albus (honorable mentions: the restaurant scene, dinner between Albus and Aberforth, Albus and Jacob on their way to and in Buthan)

[ourgreatergood]

okay but why are albus and gellert literally the tortured poets department???

[hallowsnothorcruxes]

marauders4evr i a Rowling anti, just fyi.

Disclaimer: This will be the one and only time, I publish such an ask.

Well, I don’t know why you are telling me this, since I have never once interacted with this person on here, at least to my knowledge, but in your favour I will assume you were simply seeking to protect me from a unpleasant encounter.

Nevertheless, if you do so, I would prefer you do it off anon or message me in private, because this way I get a kind of feeling, I am being dragged into a dispute that is not mine.

I believe everyone knows I am very pro JKR, pro Dumbledore, general pro almost everything HP related except for hate/negative discourse. And while I avoid antis and discussions that I know would be exhausting and leading nowhere, for the sake of my enjoyment, I can be very vocal about my opinions on the matter. But I will not attack or block anyone, whom I haven’t even had personal interaction with. That would be disrespectful and very much against every form of mutual respect and etiquette I believe in.

That being said: this blog as well as my FB/Grindeldore focused sideblog @ourgreatergood is a space of positivity and I do hope everyone feels safe and valued on there and everyone is always free to talk to me or start a discussion on anything! I do try to keep the negative discourse off of these blogs. So, anon, feel free to message me again properly if you’d like to talk about the matter.

[ourgreatergood]

⭐star⭐

Thank you so much! <3

So, let me tell you about the evolution of "The Life and Lies of Albus Dumbledore"

Even though "all too well" is definitely more popular and also close second in my favorite stories, its older sister is still even closer to my heart.

I literally started writing Life and Lies almost ten years ago. I wrote it in German (my first language) and I wrote it in the span of one summer. I wrote it after I experienced terrible heartbreak and (at least emotionally) the whole impact of my dysfunctional family dynamics came crashing down on me and honestly it just felt like my world was collapsing - in short, I was suffering from severe depression and adjustment disorder. And I did what I've done my whole life to survive: I started living in my head even more than usually and I wrote to stay some kind of sane. And what did I write? Which fictional character had to suffer for me? Of course Albus. Always Albus.

You have to imagine at this point in time all the grindeldore information I have is from the HP books and from a couple interviews with the author. No CC in sight, not even dreaming of FB ever happening.

In the beginning it was three parts: Summer of 1899, Ariana incident and the Duel in 1945 and they were actually written in that order. Only much later I put them together and filled the blanks to form one cohesive story.

Now, in the very first version of the summer of 1899 Albus and Gellert kissed exactly once. I was still going by the whole unsure if Gellert returned Albus's feelings kind of vibe - I always believed he did, but at this point I believed he was only going to be aware of it much much later in life. (At this point shout out to some exceptionally inspiring fanfic, a character study of Gellert in Nurmengard. It's German, but if you understand that, give it a read! Nebel über Nurmengard)

I wrote Albus very in love and Gellert being very manipulating.

And there's more: The first version of the 1945 duel? Albus was almost ready to confront Gellert, after years of everyone begging him. Almost. He went to meet him and he still tried to talk Gellert out of his whole war one last time. Gellert, in turn, offered Albus to join him again and when Albus declined, what was the breaking point for Albus to get his courage up to fight? It was Gellert telling him that he had been manipulating him all along - and believe me, he was cruel at that. (Of course it was always up to the reader to decide whether to believe Gellert or not and the story was always going to end with making it clear that at least in later life Gellert realised that he'd loved Albus all along.)

I swear to you I think I have never written anything as painful as those early versions of Life and Lies. I remember very well that I cried writing some of it, but I'd sworn I would stay true to canon (at the time) and just fill in the missing scenes. I think, looking back now, that it was very cathartic for me, that I needed exactly that but, boy, am I glad that I get to write a different story today - canonically!

That story was edited so many times over the years, I can't even count and tbh I would have to edit it again with FB and all, but I won't. That's what it's got its sister for now.

(Honestly, feel free to ask further questions about this. I'm not sure I've still got the early versions, but I remember them so well lol.)

[hallowsnothorcruxes]

4, 16 & 19 for the HP meme :D

Ohh, you really want to get me rambling <3 thanks!

4. Favourite character and why?

For everyone, who doesn’t know yet: Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore!!!

Why? Well, so many reasons, but I will try and keep this short: Dumbledore has been my favourite character since I first read the books. I was 8 yrs old at that time and looked up to Dumbledore so much. He was my superhero and at the same time the grandfather I always wanted to have. He was wise and kind and witty and I loved that.

When I grew up, I had a few rough times and a lot of issues with myself and I found comfort in HP, which I had been reading over and over again. So, 12 yrs old me basically was convinced to be good at nothing, to be unlovable, etc. and I read DH and Elphias Doge wrote in his Eulology: “Albus Dumbledore was never proud or vain; he could find something to value in anyone, however apparently insignificant or wretched.” And that really meant the world to me back then, bc I could imagine that Dumbledore would be able to find something to value in me and if he could, maybe there really was something and maybe someday, somebody else could see that as well. (I am much better now, thank you, don’t worry.) So yeah, this character just meant immense comfort to me, like I used to write letters to him (yes, actual letters adressed with “Dear Professor Dumbledore”) and have mental conversations and it helped. I felt somehow loved and valued, even if it was just fictional. Moving on, I turned 16 (still rereading HP over and over again) and experienced first heartbreak. Yep, that was super bad, very complicated, it put me in a very bad place again. And I remembered Dumbledore’s history with Grindelwald. I don’t want to get into a character analysis now, but basically, for the first time I could indentify with Dumbledore, I could relate. (I wrote a 50k fanfic about that summer, yes, compensation is my thing.) And I thought “I’ve looked up to him my whole life and he experienced this horrible thing, when he was my age and still became someone I admired, maybe I can get through this.” And that really gave me some hope. That was again great comfort to me.

So, this character is just super personal and super important to me, which is why I love him, ofc, but I also want to point out what a great character he is in general: He is multilayered, he is great and powerful and wise and kind. He’s got a good heart, but he is also deeply flawed. He’s got a manipulative strike, he’s secretive, he is isolated, detached, lonely. He’s got fears that take time to overcome, he makes bad decisions, but he tries to learn from them. He constantly tries to do better and constantly tries to make the hard decisions (that nobody else would want to make) as best as he can for the greater good. He is trying and he is great and I think that is very inspirational!

16. Who would be your enemy or enemies at Hogwarts?

I’ll go with golden era, yeah?

Well, given I’m a hufflepuff I seriously think I’d have a problem with Ernie Macmillan. It’s just that I really can’t with people like him irl, like I get so angry and frustrated with the way he talks and what he says and just urgh. But obviously, Draco Malfoy and his aquaintances would certainly be a pain in the ass for me.

19. Favourite Weasley?

Now, this is just rude. How am I supposed to decide? :D

I think I’ll say Bill. I can’t even pinpoint it. I mean I obviously love all of them and all of them are super great, but like Harry says Bill is just cool. And he is pretty chill about everything, he just gives me a good feeling and he’s like evrything. Fun and serious and all. I guess he’s just the kind of big brother I’d want to have, as well!

[ourgreatergood]

honestly nothing is less surprising to me than the fact that Albus is an oldest sibling

[ourgreatergood]

just re-read the last few chapters of ootp as research for that fanfic and damn, I love Albus with all my heart but he is such an idiot (also breaks my heart bc I know why that is but still)

[ourgreatergood]

torn between wanting to write baby albus and old man albus, what should i do

[ourgreatergood]

I’ll put here, what I said under a different great post by bloodtroth a few days ago:

As a historian, might I add, that anti-lgbt discrimination has a long, long history in Europe and certain concepts of prejudices that are still prevailing today are dating back even into the early modern period (i’m not educated enough on medieval history to talk about that) - like that stereotype that all gay men are “feminine”? That was an early modern nightmare.

I don’t want to go into too much details, bc people probably don’t care for that (let me tell you it had a lot to do with how people thought human bodies worked - completely different from what we know/understand/think now - and therefore everything that had to do with human bodies - and ofc christianity) but basically these “scientific”/clerical stereotypes and prejudices mixed with secular laws, so that it was present in every part of societal life. So much, that even today, when we know a lot more about how bodies work and the pope doesn’t really have any say anymore (regarding state laws and all) - these ideas have prevailed in society, without people knowing where they even came from.

So, the statue of secrecy was implemented in 1692 - until then muggles and magic folks lived in the same society - meaning the magical society is permeated with all these same ideas that shaped those of the muggles. And while muggles have shown a lot of invention, Wizarding society in general seems to be a bit slow with change, so I am sure they would not have been in any way faster than muggles to unlearn and undo these attitudes.

Anyone else think that Dumbledore and Grindelwald would have encountered a lot of homophobia from both Muggles (especially), and Wizards if they had stayed together in a loving way? I think so. They are the only cannon LGBT relationship we have for a reason. I think in the wizarding world it would take the form of heteronormativity and erasure. In the Muggle world it would take the form of abuse and cruelty.

I could totally see Grindelwald telling Dumbledore the horrors of Muggle homophobia and telling him “We can’t be who we are openly until we are rid of them. We can’t love the way we want to unless we subjugate those who would subjugate us.” Because as a seer who can look into the future of what happens during WW2 he must have seen the Pink Triangle thing coming. He must have seen the Gay panic and thought “ the muggles will kill people like me so I should get to them first?” Like I’m not excusing all his actions because they’re awful, but honestly that thought makes me feel so bad for both of them as gay men. If he saw that in the future it must have been overwhelming. I could totally see Albus seeing that and feeling like Grindelwald might have the right idea in the beginning.

The whole “Love Freely” thing comes to mind.

[ourgreatergood]

Working on the prompts and wow did not expect the restaurant scene to make me so emotional again

[ourgreatergood]

🌿 🪲 ❄️ 🧩

give some advice on writer's block and low creativity

well, I've been writing for pretty much all my life (since I learned how to write) and I really just try not to put much pressure on it. There are just going to be days/weeks/months perhaps even years that you don't write - and that's okay!

But if you have the urge to write but have a hard time starting, I always like to get some simple prompts. something that inspires me, that I have an idea for and just really want to write and then I write that without any expectations of it being good or anything - I write it like a self-indulgence and usually that helps already. Or sometimes maybe you also just have to take a step back in a WIP and think about why a scene/chapter/whatever isn't working and then try different angles until one IS working.

add 50 words to your current hip and share the paragraph here

On the first day of September Aberforth went back to Hogwarts – begrudgingly so, but still. He had insisted that Albus didn’t have to accompany him to King’s Cross but, naturally, Albus had insisted that he did. Gellert had offered to stay with Ariana – something that Albus found endearing while Aberforth thought it offensive.

what's your dream theme/plot for a pic, and who would write it best?

That's hard because I just tend to write the things I want to read myself lol

I think I'd be interested in reading a really good, creative interpretation of the 1945 duel, since I suck at writing action scenes. I just read one that was pretty cool, but I think there's also still room for improvement but tbh I couldn't say off the top of my head who would write it best since there are so many talented people out there!

what will make you click away from a fan fiction immediately?

Ugh, many things, unfortunately. I am rather picky, sadly. Generally: Wall of text, misspelled Character names, anything weird or graphic that wasn't tagged, too much swearing...

More grindeldore specific (since that's what I read most): Gellert's name shortened (like Gell or Gelly or whatever), other cringe nicknames/petnames, Aberforth portrayed as the bad guy...

thank you!! <3