#bilingual characters

[writingraven]

Characterization

Bilingual Characters

Note: I am not bilingual, so please add or correct me if you can. This is what I have observed/learned from friends who are.

❃

➸ forgetting terms in [language A] and trying to explain with context clues or hand gestures ; it’s common to forget terms even in their primary language, not just a secondary one

➸ usually it’s just repeating “the thing” while trying to remember the term or using a synonym even if it doesn’t make as much sense

➸ inner dialogue switching between languages depending on connotation of thought and which language they have been conversing in lately

➸ counting in [language A] and then translating the final number into [language B] because it’s easier that way

➸ translating slang terms from [language A] that do not actually translate with the same meaning or make sense in [language B]

➸ speaking with grammar rules from [language A] that are incorrect in [language B]

➸ asking non-bilingual person if there’s a translation for a word before realizing they would have no idea

➸ never say something like “oops, it’s hard to switch back sometimes” — that’s lazy writing and doesn’t happen in real life

➸ language is a conscious action so when speaking [language A] people aren’t just going to throw in words from [language B] unless they are struggling to find a translation and then that struggle will be obvious

➸ if a character throws in a word from [language A] while conversing in [language B] it’s on purpose, usually because they’re messing with the other person or the word in [language B] doesn’t have the same connotation

➸ for example, curse words, nicknames, or other exclamations from [language A] may commonly be thrown in while conversing in [language B] but it is purposeful

➸ the only exception could be children who grew up bilingual; they may genuinely combine languages without thinking about it

➸ switching between languages may take a second for their brain to compute, even if they’re switching back to their primary language ; especially if they’ve been using one language consistently for a while

➸ when in an adrenaline-rush situation (like being panicked or in pain) a person will usually fall into their first language

➸ don’t try to transcribe accents — if your character has one, describe it and move on ; messing with dialogue too much will confuse readers

➸ there are different kinds of bilingual: fully (speak, read, and write), conversational (speaks fluently but does not read/write as well; this is common with immigrants), and comprehensible (can understand what someone says to them, but struggles to speak back; common with those who took school classes)

➸ people who grew up speaking primarily [language A] will commonly get anxious conversing in [language B] even if they are fluently bilingual ; this is something people can overcome with time

➸ when researching a language you do not speak but your character does, make sure to understand the culture too because it will influence how they speak

➸ culture affects expressions, idioms, forms, even basic vocabulary — you’ll need to understand this because every language breaks formal rules while in casual conversation & using this will make your character more realistic

➸ find a bilingual beta reader!

#writing #writing tips #story ideas #reference #characterisation #fantasy #knowledge #characteristics #character #character traits #writing characters #writing reference #writing fiction #character design #character development #bilingual #bilingual characters

[jaybirdstab]

You know what’s cringe?

People who don’t know what bilingual people speak like. Cuz like I speak English and Spanish and you know “Spanglish” is super fun. (I mostly see this in fanfics).

But I never go: Yeah and I was at la playa, you know— sorry I speak Spanish and I mix up words! Silly silly me, no se hablar English!

It’s more like: Y estaba en la playa when my mom called me and she was yelling at me and I didn’t even know what I did! I was like ‘Mami, Que hice? Why are you yelling!?’ (More or less something I told my friend a couple of weeks ago)

Then theres the whole “character forgets a word because they’re thinking in Spanish!”

“No, no, the flecha! You know, the thingy that lights up! Like— ugh, what’s it called? Its like— its a flecha! I can’t think of the English word!” (Arrow, its a light up arrow)

Its so awkward to read those.

Idk but being bilingual isn’t just adding a random non-English word into a an English sentence.

Or like having characters just go: “you’re my hermano/hermana, man!”

Or (the very cringe) “come on foo!” // “ese!” // “vato!” // or literally any other word associated with cholos or Chicano gangs.

Like pet names I get. I understand those. I used to call my ex “mi amor” “corazón de melon” “Bebe” “lindó” “guapo” and nothing else in Spanish. Those are understandable cuz those are pet names.

Make Spanglish sound real! (hmu if you want someone to look over your Spanish, specifically)

#spanish #english #spanglish #latino characters #hispanic characters #spanish speaking characters #bilingual characters #voltron #lance mcclain #hoo #leo valdez #reyna arellano #marvel #miles morales #dc #jaime reyes #literally any character headcanoned as Latino #i love them #cuz im latino #but like come on #especially yt fanfic writers #put a little effort

[thebisexualwreckoning]

Bilingual (technically i speak enough languages to be considered a polyglot but eh) problems are that I speak Bangla at home but we have guests over who do not speak Bangla and I was taught it’s rude to speak in a language when other people in the room don’t understand it as well but I’m still in Bangla headspace because I didn’t know guest was at home so I just asked my mother the weirdest Hindi/bangla mash up of where we’re going, realised and just awkwardly walked away because just no

All of this is to say that there is some merit to it when authors write about how their characters forgot how to switch languages when speaking with someone else, they just don’t make it awkward enough

#polyglot #multilingual #bilingual #writing #bilingual characters #Bangla #Hindi #Bengali #what is the Bangla Hindi mashup called #hingali? #that just sounds weird #kismet’s day to day bullshit

[cepheusgalaxy]

Things bilingual people do:

We slow down our speech when we're unsure if we're speaking right

We may mix up things sometimes (not in the way switch languages by no reason but more like phrase structure things. like, in portuguese the adjectives always come after the noun, and in interrogative phrases you guys put the verb before everything while i don't)

We forget words

"Where is the thing?" "What thing?" "You know, the thing, the thing that locks that door" "Oh, you mean the key?"

Sometimes, we forget words in our own language

We mispell things pretty often

We may cannot say consoants separately

We may make up new words by accident, thinking they exist in [language]

We may swear or joke in our first language, so you don't know what we're saying

We may also say dirty things in our first language but you wouldn't know

We may completely forget how to speak [language] sometimes because we we're watching/reading something on our mother tongue and we didn't switch to [Other Language] Mode yet

We may also literaly translate things sometimes

Example: In portuguese, the phrase "she has nothing to do with it" would be something more in the lines of "she has nothing to see with it", if you translate each word separately. And we use the same word for "tongue" and "language" so sometimes i would say something like "yea but the english tongue is [...]" which doesn't make sense at all

"And least but not least" in portuguese would be something more like "And last but not less important"

"Once upon a time" also would be "It was a time" btw

We may mix up languages, when we are speaking two different languages in a single conversation too

Speaking to person A, "...and I lost it completely". Person B arrives: "do que vocês estão falando (what are you guys talking about)?". Turns to person B "About the... quer dizer, sobre a vez que eu perdi o subway, quer dizer, o metrô."

(...i mean, about the time i missed the [], i mean, the subway)

"Missed" and "lost" are the same word in portuguese btw

So i could acidentaly say something in the lines of "i almost lost the subway"

(Edit:) Example: i recently forgot my own language's word for cliffhanger

(Edit:) We may also simply not know a simple and basic word you would assume we'd know, simply because we haven't needed that word before. (Until recently I did not know the word for "bangs")

#bilingual #portuguese #writing bilingual characters #writing advice #bilingual characters

[cxrelesswhispers]

#writing help #character development #bilingual characters #bilingualism #i made queue look #repost from pinterest

[6vaguebook]

Advice for writing bilingual characters (from a bilingual person)

I see a lot of people go bilingual people do this, bilingual people do that, bilingual people don't do this and that, and I'm just sitting here like it's not such an open and shut case, there are so many factors that can influence a character to do both options, the ones people agree happen and the ones they say don't.

For example; a common complaint comes from the classic:

"¡Hola! ¿Que passa?"

"What?"

"Oh, sorry. Sometimes it's hard to switch back."

From my experience, there are reasons this both could and couldn't happen.

The reason it couldn't is that your brain is pre-wired to speak to specific people in specific languages. If you've always spoken to your best friend in English, it's second nature to do so, and might even be uncomfortable for some people to switch to their first language with someone they're not used to speaking that language with. It is also an instinct to respond to a person speaking to you in the language they're speaking.

But on the other hand, if you're not paying attention and are thinking in one language, and someone speaks to you, you'll probably respond in the language you were thinking in, regardless of which language you were spoken to in, as well as wether you were thinking in your first language or not. (And also, yes, sometimes people will talk to themselves internally in a second language, especially if a specific word or phrase doesn't exist in their own, they like the way it sounds, or they've been using it a lot continuously). However, if a bilingual character is instigating the conversation, as in the example above, they will very likely use whichever language they know you speak, and if they do not, it is a conscious decision to do so, for whatever reason, usually that they know you can understand this specific phrase and either cannot remember it in the other language or it does not exist in it.

Additionally, we can be "in the mood" to speak one specific language, usually but not always our first one. From my own experience, this is usually the cause of too much people-ing, but I do not know if this applies to all bilinguals or if it's just me.

If we forget a word while speaking, we will insert the other language's version of it into the sentence, but also some of us, especially those making a large effort to learn the language, will, after saying the word in the first language, pause and try very hard to remember the word in the language we were speaking originally, not for the benefit of the person we're speaking to, but simply because we want the satisfaction of remembering. Additionally, if you've always heard something referred to in a specific language, you will refuse to refer to it in the other language, regardless of whether or not you know the word.

Finally, your native language is not necessarily your first language. I, an Arab who has never been to any non Arab country, have English as my first language, despite everyone around me speaking Arabic, because my family thought it would be good for me to speak both English and Arabic and so spoke it around me very often when I was younger.

I would also like to say that most of these are from personal experience and may vary from person to person.

#writeblr #writing #writers on tumblr #Writing advice #Writing advice for bilingual characters #Bilingual writing advice #Bilingual characters

[my-secret-shame]

Look, all I'm saying is Miles using the watch to call up Miguel to help him prepare for his Spanish test.

"Your mother speaks Spanish."

"And she thinks I do too!"

#spiderman across the spiderverse #spiderman across the spiderverse spoilers #miles molares #miguel o'hara #miles getting a B in spanish is just something that is so perfectly in character for a bilingual child

[sirhinkjinks]

it's beginning to get concerning, dad

#dc fanart #batfam #bruce wayne #oh em gee bilingual king #keep it in the bat pants old man #im not tagging all of them #spinning a wheel: which character who can and will beat the shit out of batman is he going to kiss today #me and my three jpegs of the same panel minus eyes having a jig and a stroke arranging them in order #thought about coloring this and then stopped thinking about it #dennis doodles #dennis comics

[k-wame]

Harris Dickinson for dir. Xavier Dolan MATTHIAS ET MAXIME (2019)

#is he bilingual? bc he spoke a bit of french in this and i got hard #harris dickinson #filmedit #xavier dolan #matthias et maxime #matthias et maxime 2019 #filmgifs #moviegifs #film #movie #queer characters #queer media #beautiful men

[sharpace]

33. Bilingual

Such a fancy man.

Crank It Comics  |  Leave a tip! (Ko-Fi) |   Twitter  

#crank it #comics #the original title was #putting the bi into bilingual #but i have character counts to worry about #so here we are #implied #until you read my deep dark secrets in the tags #jayvik #jayce talis #arcane viktor

[godofstupidsentences]

I believe Theo not only can speak french, but is even MORE fluent in reading french than english. The Doctors may have talked to him in both languages but I bet most of their books and notes were in french and Theo got used to only reading in this language

#all of this to say that theo barely got Cs in English class #he was the slowest reader #and i don’t think he knew half the authors they had to study lmao #on the other hand he was in advanced French class and often corrected the teacher #also #Liam looses his mind every time theo speaks in French #even if he knows very well Theo is just insulting him #i love thinking about these silly things #headcanons are my best friends #imma give the bilingual struggle to every one of my fav characters #i have this whole fic where after 6B Theo and Isaac become bff and ends up living together in France #theo raeken #(I missed talking about my boy) #teen wolf #thiam #(this whole post is kinda influenced by Emotional by MalloryMadeIt which I strongly recommend)

[smolmakerel]

"You can't leave me! I won't let you!"

"Christina, lo juro por Dios [I swear to God], get the fuck out of my way or -"

"Or what? You'll hit me? Hit me then! Give me a reason to call the cops!"

"Mamá?!"

"You're fucking crazy! Just like that bastard's father!"

"Don't talk about him like that!"

Tara curled up under the kitchen table, one of her favorite hide-and-seek spots because of the table cloth. She couldn't understand what her parents were screaming about, Sammy piping in every once in a while, but she knew she didn't like it.

It sounded scary.

With caution, Tara lifted the cream table cloth and peaked up.

Mamá was beating her fists against Papi's chest, face creased in rage. Sammy was fighting to place herself between the two, but neither of the two noticed.

Tara flinched when Sammy was shoved out of the way by their papá. She scrambled out from beneath the table and stood, unsure, behind her mamá.

"¿Mamá? ¿Papá?" Tara uttered. Both of her padres² stopped arguing and turned to her, and she shifted awkwardly. "¿Esta todo bien?" [Mom? Dad? Is everything ok?]

Papi's eyes softened while his shoulders sagged. "Sí, no te preocupes. Me quedaré con mis padres por el momento si quieres venir conmigo." [Yes, don't worry. I'm going to stay with my parents for the time being if you want to come with me.]

Tara blinked in confusion. Why was her papi leaving? Why did it sound like he didn't want to take Mamá or Sammy with them?

Before Tara could ask, Mamá was screaming again. She slammed her palms over her ears with a whimper. She never did like whenever they fought.

"Stop fighting!" Sammy cried out. "Can't you see that Tara's scared?!"

Papi narrowed his eyes. "Shut your bastard mouth!"

Sammy took a wounded step backwards.

Papi's eyes then went wide. He looked between Mamá and Sammy, then he turned his eyes to Tara.

"Is she even mine?"

"Listen -"

"Tell me the fucking truth for once in your miserable fucking life, ¡puta!" Papi roared out, and it shook the house into silence.

Mamá looked away. "Of course she is."

"... I don't believe you."

Tara stumbled out of the way when Papi shoved her out of the way. She followed behind the small group and gasped when she saw Papi's business suitcase full of clothes sitting on his leather recliner.

"¡Papi!" Tara began to cry, finally realizing what was happening. "¡Por favor no te vayas!" [Please don't go!]

Papi continued to pack up despite Mamás furious threats of calling the police, Sam's panic at the escalating situation, and Tara's full-blown meltdown.

Tara was close to hyperventilating as she threw her body at her papá and clung to his leg. He tried to shake her off, but she held tightly to his gray slacks.

She was the last person he was with when they both heard yelling coming from the master bedroom. Papi had begged her to clean her room and get ready for bed, going as far as to bribe her with a homemade caramel flan. But then he abruptly left.

The yelling only increased in volume, and, after an hour, Tara crept downstairs to hide out.

Was this her fault somehow?

"P-Papi, por favor -" she wheezed, chest constricting. She could barely breathe, let alone get her words out properly.

Hands roughly shoved her away, and Tara stared up at her Papi in horror. He stared back with an equally distraught expression.

"Tara," he gasped. "Lo lamento -" [I'm sorry -]

Mamá burst into a fit of rage.

Tara sat on the floor for the rest of the night. She blocked out the rest of her parents' argument and sat there. She sat there while her Papi left them.

He slammed the door. He never slammed the door.

Sammy tried to help her. Tara took the inhaler but remained on the floor by the stairs, watching the door for when Papi would come back.

He never did.

#scream #scream 2022 #scream vi #my writing #sam carpenter #tara carpenter #Based on one headcanon where Tara couldn't understand what the argument was about because she couldn't understand English yet #Idk who it was but credit to you #fuck christina carpenter #The way I know Christina would rather defend Billy than her daughter says a lot about her character #Poor Tara's going through it #So is Sam but she's not the focus right now #Tw domestic violence? #Probably #I mean Christina would probably do shit like this #Then wonder why no one in her family speaks to her #I'm sad so I wrote this #I figured out how I want to structure my bilingual moments #Bilingual Carpenter sisters

[elbiotipo]

I know I made this post a dozen times already, but I have no idea when and how I learned to speak English. My cousin borrowed me some basic English books and I just read them as a kid because I read literally everything I could get my hands on, a couple years later I was already playing videogames in English, and by when I graduated high-school I watched movies with no subtitles and already was thinking (internal monologue) and writing in English. I think I must have whole books written in English if we add all the stuff I write. The few times I talked to native English speakers in person or virtually they all asked me where I learned it so well and I just don't know. I got a little paper that says "you can speak English lol" just this year (and I had to pay for it) and everybody asked me "how did you learn" and I really don't know.

I'm the world's first non-native native English speaker. Me siento sucio.

#I'm cursed #cosas mias #there's a lot of commentary about the domination of English and so on and such and so forth but that's for another post #this means that I also don't know how to write bilingual characters because I MYSELF have no idea how I became bilingual

[cepheusgalaxy]

Latin and latin languages

So, in many many books we see latin, right? And it is, mostly, ununderstandable. Since, well, latin is a dead language, and no one use dead languages.

It is nice to use in fantasy settings, in my opinion. And I also thought in an interesting (?) thing lately: Bilingual characters and latin.

Specifically, characters who speak French, Portuguese, Spanish, Romanian, Galician, Provencal, Catalan, Sardinian (a dialect) and Italian. Specially italian and sardinian.

Why? Well, these are latin derived languages. That makes them way more alike with latin than English, for example.

Cute Latin terms, like "vita mia" (my life), "sol et luna" (sun and moon), and so on, I don't remember many right now, are completely off of English, but for a Portuguese speaker, they are easily understandable!

Vita mia (my life) -- Minha vida

Sol et luna (sun and moon) -- Sol e lua

Specially if they speak italian: Since, well, Italy used to be Rome, and they used Latin there before Italian popularized.

I'm not sure of why Sardinian is even more alike with latin, but well, it seem like it is.

So, a latin-american or someone who speak any of these Latin derived languages would have way more ease to understand latin things in your book

So, yeah, just thoughts.

#latin #latin american #bilingual characters #writing #thoughts #writing thoughts #ideas #portuguese #italian #french #spanish #this may or not be useful #romanian #galician #catalan #provencal #sardinian #if i said any shit here please correct me #i tried not to but sometimes ppl make mistakes

[ranchracoon]

Ch 1. The Beginning

            A/N: I can already see the comments, so let me clear up: no, everyone is not related. Instead of saying "ma'am" or "sir," everyone is called auntie, uncle, or cousin as a form of respect.

The waves lap against the beach shore as the rising sun sets the entire island and ocean ablaze with oranges and yellows. Fishers tie off their boats from the early morning catches and heave them up the sandy coves to the mainland. Chickens, pigs, and dogs welcome the morning with a symphony of howls, grunts, and clucks while awaiting their own breakfast. Children who have already been awake since before the sun, run amok through the tall trees, banana plants, and orchids while their sleep deprived parents inject themselves with caffeine. At the hub of all activity is the common place kitchen, where everyone cooks, everyone cleans, and everyone shares. The roof is sturdy made from clay and palm leaves to keep out the sun's harsh rays and the frequent downpour of rain. The walls have hanging curtains that are rolled and tied to the roof so that the warm salty air blows through without any obstructions. The mouthwatering aroma of spam wafts through the nearby homes and awakens anyone still trying to linger on last night's dreams. Soon the hub is full of people, some old, some young, some in between but all of them catering to one another while passing around the dishes of spam and rice wrapped with seaweed.

The head chef searches the crowd for one person, knowing this day is one she has been looking forward to; she just doesn't know it yet. Finally she spots them, weaving in and out toward the bar where breakfast awaits but the chef beats her there. The young woman and the chef stare one another down, their eyes locked in a showdown of who will move first. The young woman makes a dash for the nearest plate but the chef is quicker, she holds it away from the young woman. She groans loudly with frustration and annoyance, drawing the attention of a few people nearby who merely chuckle at the altercation. This happens every morning.

"Come on mamá, I'm too tired for this. I even got here early!" The woman whines.

(mom)

"AH! I don't want any attitude from you, okay? Hoy es especial and I need you to help me get things ready. Ahora, go eat and report back here as soon as you are finished." Her mother scolds.

(Today is special. Now,)

"Ugh.." The woman groans.

She takes the plate from her mom and scurries away to the outside of the shelter to the nearby tables and chairs made from bamboo. She settles herself down into a spot and pulls her black hair away from her face to keep it from getting in her food. Only one bite in before three others join her; the first one is her best friend Alo, wearing only baggy shorts, a tank top, and nothing else with their hair clearly sporting the 'just woke up' appeal. The second is her other best friend Diana, she has on a red tank top with high cut shorts and hand-crafted sandals, her brown hair is braided back into a single braid with flowers interwoven. The last is her sister Neyla, two years younger than her and they are exact carbon copies of each other with the same sun kissed brown skin, black hair, and brown eyes.

"Good morning, Alo! Good morning, Diana! Good morning, Carmen!" Neyla announces.

"Morning." They respond simultaneously.

"So, what is your mamá making you do today?" Asks Alo.

"No idea. She just said to report to her when I finish eating. Did she tell you anything?" Carmen responds.

"No, she told me the same thing."

Diana taps her chip in thought, "is it someone's anniversary? Maybe someone found their mate? We didn't forget a birthday, did we?"

The other shrug their shoulders and finish their meals, chatter about the latest drama, clean their places, and report for their chores. There are others gathered with her mom delegating the chores. The tasks are divided by who can do what the best; cooking, cleaning, decorating, but no one tells Carmen about why they are doing this. She tries to overhear conversations, but no one spills anything she can run with. There is one possibility, but it can't be that. She would have been told about it. She approaches her mother and two other women who are currently sharpening utensils behind her. 

"Hola aunties." She waves to the two women.

(Hello)

They wave back and return their focus to their task while her mother approaches her and grips her shoulder tightly. 

"Carmen, I have a muy importante task for you. We need something to cook. Something big. The biggest you can find ¿bueno?"

(Very important. Okay?)

 Carmen beams with excitement, she was only allowed to hunt for very special ceremonies like weddings. Someone must be getting married, but she can't think of anyone recently engaged. Her heart flutters in excitement, it has to be what she's thinking right? Her mother smiles at her and released her shoulder, and she takes off like the start of a race. She dashes from the shelter and makes her way to the edge of the jungle. Carmen is the best hunter on the island; the record for biggest kill used to be held by her great, great, grandfather who killed a 200lb deer. That is, until she beat it by taking down a nearly 235lb jaguar that kept killing pigs. It took her three days of stalking and waiting to capture it.

She breathes in deeply and allows herself to unwind, as she lowers to her hands and knees. The grass tickles between her fingers that enlarge and widen into large paws. Her hair thickens and grows to coat her entire body before shortening to appropriate fur length. Her spinal collum extends behind her backside into a thick but fluffy tail. Everyone on the island can transform into a wolf, just like her. Her senses heighten, she inhales deeply and smells all the creatures within miles and the freshly washed fauna from the rain. 

The breeze shakes the tops of the trees, a few birds chirp in the distance, and she listens. The song of her island drawing her in, frogs, cicadas, birds, and then a twig snapping. Her ear twitches in the direction of her desired prey, a Boar grunting in the distance. She barrels through the foliage, vines and plants whip past her as she maneuvers and weaves expertly through. As she approaches, she slows to a steady walk, crouching into the thicket while stalking closer. Her snout and eyes look through the brush to see her prize snorting away at the ground. This will be easy, all she has to do is go for the hind leg, snap the tendon then break the neck. 

Carmen stills, her black fur blends with the shadows around giving her the perfect camouflage as the boar snorts the ground. When it stops and proceeds to dig for whatever it found, this is her moment. She leaps from the brush, lands directly behind the boar and slashes her fangs into its hind leg. It barely has time to react before it attempts to dash away only to fail miserably onto the ground and kick its legs wildly. Carmen stalks around the back of the boar, places one paw on its side and her mouth on the neck before jerking upward in a quick motion; the snap of bones echoes through the now silent jungle. Nearby prey scatters to the wind, and the birds fly off through the canopy after being startled by the sound. 

She lifts the boar and maneuvers it onto her back, it has to be 160 easy, this should be plenty for the celebration tonight. She trots back at a slower pace so as to not lose her precious catch, stopping every few moments to readjust then proceed. Back at the shelter, her mother and the two women gasp at her catch, they reach their newly sharpened tools and gather some extra hands to remove the boar from her back. Her mother strokes Carmen's ear proudly then tsks upon seeing the state of which she returned. 

"Ay mija, look at you! Go wash up and help your cousins with their chores. Be back here tonight." 

Carmen twists her head to examine her body, seeing the matted fur with mud, leaves, and blood. She shakes herself only to be scolded by the nearby women and threatened with a chancla (slipper) before she runs off. After returning to her humanoid form, she returns to the comfort of her home to rinse off and change out of her filthy clothes. Then she goes and finds Alo to help them with whatever they were assigned. Everyone takes a break when the sun hits the peak of day, it is too hot to continue so they all take a well-earned swim in the lagoon. The warm water is refreshing on their overheated skin, children splash and play while the aunties serve cold coconut water and finger foods. 

Once break time is finished and the sun is on the other side of the island, casting their side in a cool shadow do they return to their work. The shelter beams to life with lanterns and hanging lights, there's ribbons strung from the trees, and of course a roaring bonfire with her boar roasting over it. The bar is flowing with drinks for the adults, fresh mojitos, margaritas, all mixed with spirits and fruit from cultivated from their land. For the niñas and niños, virgin mixes and sodas to fill their sugar crave. Carmen invites Alo to get ready at her home, she puts on her best sleeveless, strapless crop top that she weaved and dyed herself with shorts that stop at her midthigh and her sandals. The final touch is flowers braided into her hair; she does a singular braid that flows over one shoulder. Alo went shirtless with a lei around their neck and on their head with a traditional grass skirt, and their best sandals. 

Carmen and Alo walk together to the center of the island, everyone is dressed their best but she sees no distinct pattern so it's not a wedding. People laugh, they drink, Carmen is about two margaritas in when all goes silent except for a bellowing horn that is blown when a ship is approaching. Carmen's heart races once more, she is the first to run toward the bay where she sees an approaching tugger boat that usually brings them imported goods. Only this time, the cargo it wields is much more precious. The others stay back on the beach shore letting her be the only one on the dock, she grabs the rope from the captain and ties the boat off then stands excitedly. The boat rocks as the captain leaps off the side then holds his hand out for another. 

The tears blind Carmen's vision as her heart explodes in unrelenting delight, her legs move forward without warning. She leaps into the air and grasps onto the man who steps off the boat, her legs locking around his torso with her arms around his neck. Her head buried into his shoulder as she shakes violently with happy sobs. The man is tall with the same brown skin and black hair as her, with a curly black beard around his chin and upper lip. He spins Carmen around happily, laughing wildly and nearly sending them into the water when he almost loses his balance. She unlocks from him and drops down onto the dock, her hands immediately finding his face as she smiles up at him and he smiles down at her, his eyes also wet with tears.

"Ben." She whimpers. 

"Hola hermana." He chokes out. 

She lets out a sob ridden laugh as she shakes his face in her hands, "I knew it! No one would tell me anything! I knew it had to be you! Look at you. Look at this beard! Oh my and..." she pauses, she looks him up and down then scowls, "are you wearing insoles?!" She accuses. 

His ears turn bright red giving him away as he sputters to try and come up with a lie, Carmen shakes her head and pulls him down by one of them. 

"My little brother is not going to be taller than me!" She threatens. 

He laughs loudly before Carmen releases him and wipes the tears from her eyes. Five years ago he left to become the person he always felt he was, and now he is back. Him and Carmen exchanged letters every month, he told her everything that was happening and even sent her souvenirs. The last she heard from him was before he was going in because there were some complications with his bottom surgery. She feared the worse, fearing that this boat carried his remains but here he is. She can't help but cover her mouth as tears start to fall again, taking him in. He straightens up and turns his body slightly back toward the boat. 

"There's someone I want you to meet." He motions toward the boat where a woman is stepping off. 

She has fire-red hair, her skin is white with freckles peppering every inch, especially her face. She gives Carmen a bright, wide smile, her eyes are a dazzling green like the lagoon. She approaches the two of them and stands beside Carmen's brother who wraps his arm around her shoulders. 

"Carmen, Clara. Clara, Carmen. She is my mate and also happened to be my surgeon." He chuckles. 

"It's a pleasure to meet you. Ben has told me so much about you." She greets. 

Carmen opens her arms and hugs Clara, at first the woman is tense but eventually relaxes and hugs Carmen back. 

"Welcome Clara." She greets. 

The three of them walk together toward the beach where Carmen and Ben's mother happily awaits and drowns Ben in kisses. She also hugs and kisses Clara while welcoming her to the family. The crowd swarms Ben and Clara, bombarding them in questions, excitement, and welcomes. Eventually the crowd wanders back the bonfire where a band strikes up with live music and the drinks flow once more. Carmen tried to give Ben drinks but was quickly told no by Clara due to the medication he is on, so, Carmen got Clara drunk instead. The boar that Carmen caught was devoured until only the bones and fat remained and would be used for other things tomorrow. 

The night carried on, children crashed from their sugar highs and were carted away by their parents. The music eventually died down with the embers of the fire as only a few stranglers remained. Carmen sits by the dying fire with her feet outstretched, her face and body warm from the alcohol as she stares into the embers. Ben joins her, groaning loudly as he lowers himself down onto a stump nearby with his virgin drink in hand. His eyes droopy with sleep but he's too happy to be around his family again to fall asleep now. Clara is passed out in Carmen's hut because Ben will need a bigger one to fit him and Clara, and the hundred grandchildren that their mother wants. 

They sit together in silence, Ben exhausted from answering all the questions about himself and his mate. Carmen exhausted from the many drinks shes downed that are finally catching up to her. Carmen sighs heavily and leans forward to start undoing her hair, she has a splitting headache and she's unsure if it's from the spinning landscape or her braid. Ben watches her unbraid her hair and toss the flowers aside, he picks one up and examines it thoughtfully. 

"How long are you staying?" Carmen whispers sorrowfully. 

"What do you mean? You don't think I'm staying?" Ben chuckles.

"You said Clara is a surgeon, and you're still going to school ya?" She replies. 

"Ya." He sighs, "It's not permanent though. We agreed that once I'm graduated, we'll move here for good. I already talked to Mrs. Eka about taking over the school and Clara wants to open her own study here.” Ben is silent for a moment, “you should come with me.”

Carmen stops her hands, she fiddles with the bit of hair between her fingers as she digests what Ben suggested, a sudden sobriety washes over her.

“Why?” She asks almost bitterly.

“You said you wanted to find your mate. You said, and I quote, ‘there’s nothing left for me here. I am happy, but I am sick of all the sympathetic looks I get from the elders and aunties. I know they whisper about me.’”

“You don’t need to use my words against me.” Carmen bites.

“I’m just offering.” Ben shifts his glass between his hands, “when is the last time you went up the mountain?” He asks quietly.

The mountain is home to the moon pool where many of their elders go to seek guidance from their goddesses or ancestors. Many go up there when they turn 25 to seek out their one true mate, leading them to a life of fulfillment and happiness. Carmen shields her face away from Ben to hide her expression.

“Not since the first time.” She mumbled.

“So…almost seven years. Maybe you should try again, and no matter what happens, the offer still stands for you to join Clara and I when we leave.”

Ben stood from his seat and wandered off most likely to go to bed while Carmen finished unbraiding her hair and looked up toward the mountain. She sighed defeatedly, maybe he was right. Carmen shifted and started the trek up the mountain, in human form it would take hours to climb all the way up but in her wolf form she cut that down to an hour. Once she was at the top of the mountain she shifted back into her human form, the moon pool glowed even without a full moon present. She wandered around and used some nearby matches to light the incense surrounding the water.

She kneels on the warm volcanic rock beneath her knees as she peers into the clear pool. She closes her eyes and begins to pray. Seeking anyone. Her goddesses, her ancestors, anyone who can answer her. Her prayers are said without failure, she thinks them in her mind then whispers them aloud while focusing on her intention. After her prayers she opens her eyes, the pool swirls and shimmers with life. Carmen leans forward, searching the now cloudy waters for any sort of symbol, sign, anything. The water continues to swirl, growing more and more cloudy until she can’t see through it anymore then it stops. The water remains cloudy but slowly unclouds from the center to the outer edge of the pool. Nothing. Just like when she tried the first time.

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#resident evil village #re8 #alcina dimitrescu #lady dimitrescu #mother miranda #mother miranda x female original character #alcina dimitrescu x female original character #alcina x miranda x female OC #fanfiction #wlw fanfic #polyamory #bilingual main character #woman of color MC

[spyderschaos]

If bilingual character what do I do so ppl know what bro is saying

#I hope it doesn’t sound weird bc I’m just saying it how I would #like yeah full English convo but then I say a sentence in Spanish bc I sounds for dramatic or sum #should I put like translation at the end #? #idk i’ll figure it out #ig #do ppl make bilingual characters just say words in their language that their friends don’t speak #I’d do that irl tbh #like not a lot just a lil #spyder’s chaos