Events: I might know someone

[lolotehe]

In working on the kitten books, one decision I made was Pavel spoke French. I had to put a barrier between him and his cousins and explain why he was generally so quiet. It also allows him to be a cheeky monkey in his native tongue.

C’est moins un provocateur qu’un pédant (said of Ivan)

Les gens comme cela ne sont finalement jamais drôles. (said of a radio station owner)

...as a couple examples.

But why French? Easy. The cat who raised him spoke French. Les serviteurs parlent plusieurs langues. And, more importantly:

Bob looked down at Pavel. “Êtes-vous du Québec ?”
“Non, du Ontario ,” Pavel said, getting up.

Which is a thing we explore a little more in the third book.

But, I also wanted to have Pavel sing a verse of the lullaby in French. Now, I had lucked out on an earlier song and reached a good approximate rhyme, bu I wasn't going to be able to pull that off and make something that rhymed in English also rhyme in French. I'm just not that good.

Enter my SL friend Jaelle. She's helped me correct my grammar in other translations, or use the correct word, like to know someone vs. know something. Look at the amazing thing she did for me:

Wind and rain will whistle past
Something here will always last
Storms and dark will pass us by
Our family bond will never die

Pluies et vents passeront
Pour toujours il persistera
Ténèbres et tempêtes hurleront
Jamais notre lien ne mourra.

And sure, it switches from an AABB to an ABAB, but I'm totally OK with that. It's still fucking fantastic it can be done at all.