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Mar. 29th, 2008 02:53 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
backupmemoriesI am, at last, back from my travels! Well, travels part 2, this time to Scotland. In the course of this trip, I discovered that Scotland is lovely, but a bit boring and certainly nothing to blog about, but also several other interesting facts.
1, I am an obsessive geek. This can be explained by the fact that I'm in the process of refining a S-J fic for![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
maelicia, and have spent about 11 hours in a library doing research on maison de corrections in ancien regime France shortly before the revolution (okay, I may have gotten temporarily distracted by the book with the list of every deputy in the Convention and their votes on various key issues...and some other lovely books and essays...but a lot of the time was devoted to the original topic at hand). I'm still not done - I'm actually applying for a membership in the British Library in order to get my hands on a particular book that promises to be very informative. There is almost NO information out there about this, by and by; I'm making suppositions here and there - some of the details are maybe 20 years too early, others are from a different place (under the assumption that if that's what the maison de correction is like in the provinces, it's probably not TOO different in Paris...), etc.
Two important things I have discovered on that score: 1, if even half my research is accurate, poor, poor, poor S-J! Those were NASTY places, and 2, the more things change, the more they stay the same. This second point is specifically relating to the discussion I had withmaelicia regarding S-J's treatment; my position being that I imagined it much like a (bad) modern juvenile detention center. It was. It so, so was. Further points will wait until the research is completed.
2, I am apparently even more like Robespierre (superficially speaking) than previously joked about... (previous jokes include references to the tinted glasses I wear [grey tint! grey! Not green! And I've had my tinted glasses for years now, give me a break!], my devoted love of oranges, my tendency towards abstinence, etc.; all superficial details rather than anything else) But today I was taking notes in pen - this is unusual for me because I like sketching and require pencil for that - and when I write in pen I automatically shift into a peculiar half-cursive half-print style. And, um, apparently my writing in pen? Is identical to Robespierre's signature. As in, seriously, there was a copy of his signature in a book and I put my earlier writing of his name next to it and it was creepily similar. My letters are even disconnected at the same basic points. This is somewhere between incredibly amusing and creepy.
3, there is a direct corollary between how much alcohol I consume and French Revolution-related dreams or daymares. As most people reading this know, I'm not particularly fond of the taste of alcohol and consume it very rarely. Have never been drunk, have no desire to be, etc. I am, however, very fond of free taste tests. I drank twice in Scotland, and had rather vivid daymares shortly afterwards each time (by daymare I mean a dream had whilst hovering between sleep and consciousness during the day - I wasn't asleep, but it wasn't just daydreaming, either).
Daymare 1
Daymare 1 was...um...odd, I think is the best way to put it. Everyone here knows how much I like dysopias, I hope? Well, the world started out being a pretty ordinary top-heavy dystopia - corrupt Big Brother-type government, no freedom of press or thought, etc. I was following around the main character, and a bit of time into the dream I suddenly realised that he was Maximilien Robespierre.
Well, his name was Maxime, they looked identical, etc. He obviously wasn't the historical Robespierre himself, but he was what Maxime would turn out like if he grew up in a dystopia. And, um, he wasn't doing terribly well. Those ideals he likes so much? Not conductive to a career in a world in which connections, bribery, and corruption are everything. He'd currently been reduced to waiting tables. Yes, my subconscious created waiter!Maxime. He's terribly cute in an apron, for those of you who are interested, which I'm sure you never knew that you were.
He's a bit depressed - he really wants to change things, and he tries, but...well...Maxime after the conviction that people are essentially good and wise is forcibly ripped from him is a very sad person. He considers himself a coward for not being able to do more, and he's almost unable to support himself because he's reluctant to get involved in obviously corrupt business. He does, for some reason, have a black cat named Framboise. Don't ask me why, he just mentioned it off-handedly. Is that even an actual word?
At one point during this dream, he semi-adopted a little eight-year-old boy named Leon, who relatively quickly became recognizable as Saint-Just. Except he's eight, and an orphan, and Maxime loves him but doesn't really know how to deal with him. (For one thing, Leon is exhausting!) Both of them had just been called up in the lottery/draft to work for the corrupt city bosses, and Maxime was moping about it most of the time. And about how he wasn't brave enough to fight back and get himself killed in a properly heroic way. He really harped on how much of a coward he was, verbally, and then promptly went and showed that he really wasn't one, he just thought he was. He needed a hug.
I was sad to wake up from that one, but not NEARLY as much as I was to wake up from the next one. This one was significantly more historical, and also much, much longer. Possibly due to the greater amount of alcohol consumed the night before in comparison to the other time. Either way, I'm warning you all in advance - it's REALLY long, because my daymares when I have them are extremely vivid. And this one was a long one even for a daymare. Do keep in mind, though, that I'm really not that familiar with the French Revolution, though I intend to be, and I figure that my subconscious only knows as much as I do, so there are probably huge issues with the whole thing. I'm just reporting here. ^__^
Daymare 2
This one is a little more complicated, a lot more historical, and looooooong. But I figure that there are FR enthusiastic reading, so I might as well put it up. ^^ Anyway, the dream started in the rooms of the Committee of Public Safety. The time was a bit screwed up: it was before the arrest and execution of Danton and Desmoulins, but at the same time very late in the revolutionary chronology (in the sense that the CPS had gone pretty far in accumulating power, but was starting to rip itself apart already). There was an argument which was descending into petty squabbles, and it got to the point where certain group members were attempting to calm things down, reminding everyone else that they were in effect running France right now and France needed them to work together, or else there would be anarchy. One of the people arguing this side of things, interestingly enough, was Saint-Just, and this was not a very popular position to be holding, as everyone was glaring at him. He got exasperated, and got up to his feet, saying that he needed to go out and get some fresh air for a minute. He was about two steps away from the table when he noticed someone come in the door (which should have been locked) and that they were holding a pair of pistols. The times being what they were, he figured out what was going on immediately and jumped backwards towards the table, yelling for everyone to get down and hide. The would-be assassin, realising that they'd been caught, fired a few shots wildly.
There was panic for a bit (understandably), but people rushed in quickly and captured the assassin. One of the twelve (I didn't recognize him, so I can't give you a name) hastily urged the others to make a statement about how the unified CPS was not going to be cowed by this incident and to quickly retreat back into the room. Wanting to prevent a general riot, they did. They all sat down, except for Saint-Just, who remained standing - specifically, standing in a peculiarly bent over stance, with his arms tightly crossed and one hand pressed tightly against his abdomen. Couthon asked him what was wrong, as he was still standing and had a very peculiar look on his face. Saint-Just blinked, as if just waking up, straightened up and looked down at himself, pulling away his hands as he did so. At that point, the blood wetting his clothing became rather evident for the first time.
Robespierre exclaimed, "Antoine, you're bleeding!" One of them - I think it may have been Barère - exclaimed a split second after, "Were you shot?" Saint-Just sarcastically responded, "No, I usually start bleeding for no reason..." at which point he collapsed into the chair behind him as if he was a puppet whose strings had just been cut. Insert obvious panicking by everyone else, calls for a doctor to be brought in immediately etc. The next few minutes were a confused scene straight out of a medical TV show, but still firmly placed within the time context. Saint-Just was bleeding very badly, and it was relatively obvious by the time the doctor announced to state the obvious that he could not be moved. Lacking space in the room, the members of the committee quickly cleared the green table of all the documents on it and Saint-Just was laid down upon (or rather, lifted from the chair and pushed back onto) the table.
His overcoat was removed and his vest and shirt were cut/ripped off of him to give the doctor better access. It was rapidly determined that Saint-Just was both lucky and unlucky. He was lucky in that he had been turning to warn/push down the other members of the CPS when he had gotten shot, so the bullet entered him at an angle, more at the side than straight in the abdomen. [Note - when he got shot, I felt it. When they put him on the table, I could feel the texture of the rough wood that his back skated over and the hard surface of the table he laid on. Dreams suck like that.] This was a good thing because it meant that the bullet hadn't penetrated any vital organs - as everyone knows, wounds to the abdomen are among the worst. He was unlucky, though, because the bullet had taken a piece of shirt in with it, and was now lodged under one of his ribs, which meant that if it wasn't removed, it would undoubtedly rot and become infected.
I suspect the next bit was inspired by the Aubrey-Maturin/Master in Commander movie, as the solution was much like that, though without the operating-on-himself addition. For those who haven't seen that movie, it means that in order to get to the bullet, they slid a clamp inside Saint-Just's side and opened the clamp up, pushing the rib up and out of the way, then poked around inside a bit to pull the bullet out. Saint-Just was flushed red and sweating very heavily by this point - some intelligent person had put a strip of leather wrapped around a piece of wood between his teeth and he was biting down very hard on it. You could hear his teeth grinding into it when they did something particularly painful-looking. His pupils were dilated and he was panting and clearly doing his best not to utter too many sounds of pain. He was clinging to Robespierre's hand - crushing it, almost. Robespierre was terribly pale, but was in general dealing with getting splattered with his friend's blood better than expected. He mostly kept squeezing Saint-Just's hand back and telling him that he was going to be all right and that it was almost over. Most of the others were hovering around, looking worried - for several reasons, including "oh dear god there's someone bleeding to death in front of me", "that could have been me!", and - let us not forget - political reasons. Saint-Just's allies weren't even thinking particularly coherently at that moment, but I did hear one of the others mutter to another, very sarcastically, "This is just what France needs - another political martyr!" And the other one responded that France might not have need of it, but that Robespierre certainly did.
Eventually, however, they get the bullet and the cloth out of poor Saint-Just, the doctor commenting on how while his youth and health are a good thing in that he should heal up quickly (provided he doesn't get infected or a fever), but a bad thing in that he was staying conscious and aware of the pain far longer than most people would have. Actually, he's been slipping in and out of consciousness, but he's mostly been awake, much to his misfortune. They bandage him up. As they're doing this, he opens his eyes, which have been shut the last few minutes. Couthon asks him if he's all right. Saint-Just is having some trouble talking, but says, "I'm sorry." There is a general moment of "huh?" from everyone else, then he continues, "I know red and green don't go so well together..."
This makes everyone temporarily break down into hysterical laughter. It's not a funny joke at all, but as soon as he makes it the tension in the room snaps almost audibly and they're all just laughing wildly with relief, practically to the point of tears. By this point, quite a few hours have passed, so some hysteria is quite understandable - they're all working on very little sleep, have a the vast amount of work to do and worry about, the political situation, and then this event all combined to escalate the tension. They keep setting themselves back off, too - as soon as they start calming down, one of them starts snickering again and that sets the whole group off yet again. Finally, they manage to compose themselves, just in time to get a bad piece of news: the riot they were hoping to avert is significantly closer to happening than they'd like.
Someone saw them calling for a doctor and word has spread in the last few hours, both of the attack on the CPS and of the fact that they called in a doctor shortly thereafter. Rumours are going around like wildfire - some people are saying that the attack worked and they're all dead, others are saying that there was a coup d'etat by some members of the CPS planning to create a dictatorship, yet others say that the whole thing was a political stunt to continue to justify purges within the gov't and there was never an attack at all, etc. All sorts of crazy things. So there's a huge mob gathered outside agitating to find out what actually happpened. Barère goes out and explains that one of their number got shot, thus the doctor, but that he's all right now. The crowd is not appeased and refuses to disperse, demanding to see ALL the members of the CPS so they can see for themselves if they're alive. Having little choice in the matter, the CPS troop out - Saint-Just has to lean on Robespierre's shoulder, as he's still in quite a bit of pain. One of their rivals in the CPS makes a pointed comment about how of course Saint-Just would choose to share the glory with Robespierre, and Saint-Just snaps back that he just got shot, he's not in the mood, and that Robespierre has something the other person doesn't - namely, Robespierre is precisely the right height for Saint-Just to lean on his shoulders without having to painfully bend either up or down to reach. Saint-Just's shirt is beyond recovery by this point, but as he can't be expected to go out shirtless they steal a shirt from one of the sans-culottes - it's not a very good shirt nor does it fit well, and the neckline plunges down nearly to his stomach, which means the bandages around him are visible, but at least he's within the realms of decency.
They head out and the the crowd is finally appeased and starts rejoicing that they've survived, particularly Saint-Just, who is applauded as a brave political hero a la Marat. They demand a speech from him, and he is obligated to do so - he moves a bit away from the other members of the CPS to get to a slightly higher place so he can be heard by everyone. He does this under his own power as a symbolic gesture. Everyone - including the other CPS members and Saint-Just himself - is expecting it to be a very short speech, along the lines of maybe one or two "Vive la Republic!"s and a comment along the lines of the indestructibility of France, but just as he starts talking - starting with "As you can see, citoyens, I am fine -" someone in the audience starts screaming.
It's a rather hysterical woman, and she's screaming that he's lying, that the whole thing was a set-up done by the Committee of Public Safety as a trick to convince the people to give up more of their liberties in exchange for the "evil dictatorship" of the CPS, things like that. And before anyone can stop her, she scrambles up to where Saint-Just is and starts ripping at him with her nails - specifically, at his bandages, intending to prove that there's no injury underneath them. Saint-Just is too surprised and injured to respond quickly, and she manages to rip off most of the bandages, thereby ripping apart most of the stitches he has too, before she's finally pulled off of him. He staggers back, and now everyone can see blood pouring down his abdomen and that it was pretty obviously not a faked injury.
Saint-Just at this point has entered into a slight state of shock and can no longer feel the pain from his injury. He also completely loses his temper and starts ranting/giving a speech. He doesn't normally give ad libbed speeches, but right now he's really completely lost it (having had the day he's had, no one can really blame him). Most of the speech, he's going with the usual Jacobin line: there are traitors who are trying to rip France apart and trying to kill those who only wish to save it, etc. But the part it gets interesting is when he starts talking about the CPS - he says that he knows that it's difficult to know who to trust nowadays, that people that one would never expect to it are being sent to the guillotine (a reference either my mind mixed up and it was to the Danton arrest or - more likely considering later events - to the fact that it was going to happen soon and to the earlier purges and executions), but that if France wanted to know who they can absolutely trust, it is the twelve members of the CPS. They know this because they are the true representatives of the people's will, Saint-Just roars to the crowd, and because when he got shot not one of the twelve failed to enthusiastically offer forth his aid. (Not technically true, but as I mentioned earlier, this is set when the CPS is starting to rip itself apart, and Saint-Just is getting steadily more worried that they will actually do so, leaving France first to anarchy and then to the invading armies which they're still at war with). He goes on in this vein for a bit, blood still seeping from his midsection, then stops, glares at the crowd, and finishes up with, "As for myself, I wish only the best for the Republic and would happily give everything I have, up to and including my life!, for it. Long live the Republic!" And then he collapses onto the crowd, the blood loss finally catching up with him. (yes, I got to hear the whole thing in the dream and it was wonderful, but I can't reproduce it word for word. I'm sorry, because it was an excellent speech. Also, if you can try to visualise this: you're standing amongst a crowd of excited sans-culottes and a very handsome, almost statuesque, man is making a passionate speech, his shirt torn apart and blood dripping down his front. As he speaks, the crowd is getting steadily more excited, but no one dares interrupt. The light of the sun reflects off his hair and the sheen of sweat on his skin, giving him an almost god-like shine. His gestures are short, almost abrupt, but full of energy. And then at the end, just as he's sworn to give his life to the Republic, he collapses to the ground, his energy spent, just a man once more. Imagine that and you might get an image of what I was seeing.)
The CPS, which has been as mesmerized as the rest of the crowd by the spectacle, quickly organize people to bring Saint-Just back inside, where he's patched up yet again. As they're carting him inside, one of the CPS can't resist commenting, "You know, if he dies, this is much more impressive than getting stabbed in the bath." Saint-Just is in fact deeply unconscious and is starting to develop the fever that the doctor was afraid he'd get - he's burning hot to the touch. They sneak him out through a window and cart him off quickly to the Duplay house, chosen because it was relatively nearby and because Saint-Just obviously can't be left alone right now.
The next few days - weeks? - are interesting. The people are of course immensely riled up by this and they're all incredibly emotional about it, much like they were after Marat's death. The CPS meets and agrees to use this to their mutual advantage - they don't like each other, and they're not in the same party at all, but unfortunately Saint-Just gave the CPS credit and responsibility for saving France (he mentioned all of them by name, though he did give Robespierre slightly more emphasis, particularly in terms of morality, but the majority of his speech was about the CPS as a whole), and no matter what they want, if they want to reap all political capital they can out of this event then they need to work together. Luckily for them, the dramatic nature of this event has completely screwed up the political atmosphere - barely anyone remembers (or cares) what insults, intrigues, etc. were going on before it, and they're able to form a somewhat tenuous alliance with each other. A very tenuous alliance. At any rate, they're able to ramrod through a few motions that they might not have otherwise been able to, unpopular but quite probably very necessary ones, under the claim that they're doing this in Saint-Just's name. I'm not entirely sure what all of those reforms are, but they obviously pull more power to the CPS, in addition to some necessary economic and military changes.
Saint-Just, meanwhile, is sick with a very bad fever, and is unconscious almost all the time, though he thrashes in his sleep and will occasionally ramble incoherently, even with his eyes open. He hasn't actually woken up since the event. His name, however, is getting steadily more popular - he's practically got a cult at this point, much in the same way Marat's already considerable popularity jumped after his death. Saint-Just's following, though, is a very strange assortment of people - he draws people from the Hébertists who see him as more radical than Robespierre, from the Robespierreists who see him as Robespierre's political heir and note that he usually sides with Robespierre, and - ironically - he also draws a few people from Danton's group and others. There is a wild frenzy to discover everything they can about Saint-Just in this period, so as to emulate him better, and his not-entirely-correct past is discovered, which incline some people to view him as someone with the past of Danton and the future of Robespierre, and yet younger and more a viable, active symbol of the Revolution than both of the others - something which attracts a LOT of people. Add in his talent at speaking and his military-related successes, and you've got a cult hero.
Meanwhile, though, the CPS is getting a bit worried, because after a while the people are starting to get a bit antsy - they keep hearing about how all of these motions are being passed in the name of the still-absent Saint-Just, and that he yet lives, but they're seeing no evidence of him. Rumors start up again that Saint-Just actually HAS died, but that the CPS is refusing to admit it so they can try to squeeze as much political power out of it as possible. The CPS is called to the Convention to justify themselves on this matter.
Luckily for them, Saint-Just's fever has recently broken and he's been waking up for steadily more and more time. On the day that the CPS is in the Convention to justify itself, he wakes up, sees people worrying a bit and a notable absence of people on the street and correctly presumes that something interesting must be going on at the Convention. He demands information from the Duplay girls, which are unable to help very much, and so he orders them to go outside and find the first person they recognise as knowing something about politics and to bring them inside. They obey, but the person they bring in is Camille Desmoulins. Saint-Just isn't terribly pleased about this, obviously, but he demands information anyway. Camille asks him, with a touch of sarcasm, if he's going to believe anything that Camille says anyway. Saint-Just replies, "No, but at least I can have a background on the situation when I get the real facts from someone else!" Either way, though, Camille explains - there is an interesting bit here, in which Camille is explaining about Saint-Just's new following, and Saint-Just interrupts: "That's impossible!" he says. "Why?" Camille replies, frowning a bit. "Many others have a following..." "No, it's impossible, I tell you. I mean, what would they call themselves? The Saint-Just-ists? It doesn't work." "Actually," and here Camille looks a touch embarrassed, "They were labeled by their critics before they could come up with a name for themselves..." Saint-Just groans. "What is it?" "They're called Justinians." "...isn't that the name of a Roman emperor?! A Christian Roman emperor?" "Yes, I know, I know..." - but anyway, Camille explains what's going on and Saint-Just insists on going to the Convention. He's having serious issues walking, and is forced to lean on Camille as he does so. He knows that this will probably end up giving Camille more of a political boost than he'd really like to give him, but unfortunately it appears to be his only option.
At the Convention, attacks are being made on the CPS, particularly on Robespierre who has been doing the majority of references to Saint-Just, for obvious reasons. Indeed, one of the opposition is scathingly saying, "You claims to receive and pass on his words and thoughts, yet you give us as much proof of this as those who received gospels from the invisible. Tell me, if this hero of the Republic [Saint-Just] yet lives, then why not bring him here?!" Outside, Camille, who is helping Saint-Just around the corner, comments airily, "You know, you have luck: you wouldn't get a better entrance line in a play." Saint-Just, who is biting his lip in pain, just tells Camille to shut up. They turn the corner, and the crowd which is eavesdropping through the windows roars in acclaim. The people at the Convention obviously can't see what the fuss is about, but they can hear. The people swarm over to Saint-Just, who automatically tightens his grip on Camille for fear that the crowd may accidentally rip him to pieces in their excitement. They want to pick him up and carry him into to the Convention, but he refuses, knowing that if he lets them do that, down the road he'll face not-so-good comparisons with Marat. He does ask them to clear a path for him, which with a great deal of excitement they do. He limps into the stunned Convention (Camille is naturally soaking up the adulation up like a sponge, albeit rather undeservingly). A chair is quickly pulled out for him, and he collapses into it, then turns and smiles at everyone. "I'm sorry for my long absence," he begins. "I have been, as you know, very ill. Indeed, my physician would probably have my neck if he knew I was here, but I heard that something important was going on and couldn't resist." His smile widens a little bit. "Please, whoever was last speaking, go on! Don't let me interrupt. What were you saying?"
Obviously, the CPS carries the day by an extreme landslide, with everyone vowing their extreme confidence in the Committee. Saint-Just is carted on home by the crowd in a sort of procession, and spends another day or so recovering, but as soon as he's able to he gets back to work with a vengeance - adding the arduous "deal with followers" to his already full list of duties, as he seems to have gotten if anything more popular since his reemergence - he has the political credo of a martyr, but he's still alive to use it, and he intends to. He's extremely busy, even before he's completely able to get up and move around - in the first few days, he's actually having to receive people while reclining, which he doesn't like because of the monarchist references, but is unfortunately unavoidable because he risks tearing the stitches again if he strains himself too hard.
Meanwhile, the enemies of the CPS are trying to figure out how to get a foothold back. They know that the reason the CPS is so powerful is because it is (currently, at least) united. They're obviously working on the original tensions in the group, but they notice Saint-Just's successes and they figure that if they can rip apart the most secure bond in the group (that of Robespierre and Saint-Just) then the rest of the CPS will almost immediately self-destruct. So they start subtly pouring poison into Robespierre's ear, knowing of his suspicion of groups - which isn't helped by the fact that Saint-Just's little group is pulling people from Robespierre's group and by the fact that Camille, who is distant from Robespierre by this point, has been showing up at Saint-Just's place too often for Robespierre's comfort.
In reality, Camille has been taking advantage of his little performance at the Convention, and he heads over there relatively regularly. He and Saint-Just glare at each other a bit, Camille makes conversation with some of the others, stuff like that. However, Camille does approach Saint-Just one evening and requests a private conference one evening. Curious, Saint-Just agrees, and Camille basically offers to switch sides to join his, thereby pulling in some of the moderates. He's doing this less out of steadfast political ideals or conversion, but because he thinks the group he's in right now is sinking fast and he'd like to stay above the surface. Okay, he'd also like to have some actual influence and power again, too. He says, however, that he'll offer a bit of advice for free. Saint-Just is wary, obviously, and says he'll consider it, but that he's willing to listen to the free advice. So Camille tells him that knowing people - and specifically, knowing Robespierre - that if Saint-Just doesn't go and make absolutely certain that Robespierre has full trust in him, he'll lose Robespierre to other people's lies and Robespierre's own (by this point in time somewhat justified) fears of conspiracy. Saint-Just considers this for a few seconds, then thanks Camille, dismisses him, and practically runs over to the Duplay house to talk to Robespierre.
He's there too early - Robespierre isn't back from his own work quite yet - but he waits and when Robespierre, who's very tired from the work he's been doing and from having to argue with himself and other people about Saint-Just, arrives home, Saint-Just greets him with no little enthusiasm and relief. They fall to talking, and Robespierre is being a little distant. Saint-Just pretends not to notice and starts asking his advice about various things that are going on, including Camille's little offer (he doesn't mention the extra advice, obviously). Robespierre is suspicious at first, but Saint-Just earnestly presses on, asking for advice and when Robespierre comments that he doesn't know what the best move for Saint-Just would be in a certain situation, Saint-Just says that if Robespierre doesn't know what's best for them, then they're really in trouble. Robespierre asks him if it's still "them" and Saint-Just acts as if this is the first time he's even considered the idea that Robespierre might be suspicious, looking absolutely horrified at the mere thought. He swears to Robespierre that no matter what happens, Robespierre is still the person he looks to when it comes to the ideal and makes a rather passionate speech on this point. He also adds at the end, a little awkwardly, that Robespierre knows how Saint-Just feels upon this point. Robespierre winces a bit, and Saint-Just hastily adds that he knows, they've had this discussion before and he's accepted that Robespierre is unlikely to ever feel quite the same way for him, and he doesn't mean to press the point, but he would like to state for the record that he could no sooner betray Robespierre than, say, Camille could betray Lucille. Well, politically, anyway.
Robespierre is immensely relieved to be able to fully trust Saint-Just again, and they decide to keep their newly reaffirmed connection secret so they can find out who is plotting against them. Saint-Just does point out that not everyone who will be saying that is actively plotting - some of them will simply be more concerned with Robespierre benefit than with Saint-Just's and be seeking to warn Robespierre in all honesty, and that's not a crime. So they have to be careful.
EDIT: At one point, when Saint-Just is still very weak and in bed, Robespierre is visiting and talking to him, along with Le Bas. Robespierre is saying, "...and, of course, Citoyen David was in the audience..."
Saint-Just makes a strange sound - half-strangled groan, half-whimper. "Tell me the worst of it. What does the picture look like?"
"Pictures, actually." Robespierre replies cheerfully. "He was inspired and made two...here, I have some prints - they don't really convey the full effect, of course, but this way you can see the structure..."
The first is Saint-Just making his speech before the people, hands gesturing and fierce look on his face, the blood more of a dramatic splatter than anything else, surrounded by the people. Saint-Just makes a not-entirely displeased sound.
Then Le Bas pulls out the other print, which is Saint-Just, having given up all energy, dramatically collapsing into the arms of the CPS, which are all sketched in there surrounding him and catching him as the people/sans-culottes reach for him from the other side of the image.
Saint-Just stares at the one with with an expression of utter horror. "Oh god!" he cries. "It looks like it should be titled 'And the virtuous maiden Saint-Just swoons dramatically into the manly Robespierre's arms'!"
At which point the two others start laughing. Eventually, one of the Duplays pokes their head in to see what the fuss is about and find Le Bas and Robespierre in tears with laughter, and a very red-faced Saint-Just trying to tell them that his witticism was not NEARLY as funny as they seem to think it was...
...aaaaaand that's when I woke up. *still sulking about the fact that she had to wake up, because that was a really interesting daymare* *damn trains and their arrival at their destination!*
...I'm not even checking to see how long that last little explanation was.
1, I am an obsessive geek. This can be explained by the fact that I'm in the process of refining a S-J fic for
maelicia, and have spent about 11 hours in a library doing research on maison de corrections in ancien regime France shortly before the revolution (okay, I may have gotten temporarily distracted by the book with the list of every deputy in the Convention and their votes on various key issues...and some other lovely books and essays...but a lot of the time was devoted to the original topic at hand). I'm still not done - I'm actually applying for a membership in the British Library in order to get my hands on a particular book that promises to be very informative. There is almost NO information out there about this, by and by; I'm making suppositions here and there - some of the details are maybe 20 years too early, others are from a different place (under the assumption that if that's what the maison de correction is like in the provinces, it's probably not TOO different in Paris...), etc.Two important things I have discovered on that score: 1, if even half my research is accurate, poor, poor, poor S-J! Those were NASTY places, and 2, the more things change, the more they stay the same. This second point is specifically relating to the discussion I had with
maelicia regarding S-J's treatment; my position being that I imagined it much like a (bad) modern juvenile detention center. It was. It so, so was. Further points will wait until the research is completed.2, I am apparently even more like Robespierre (superficially speaking) than previously joked about... (previous jokes include references to the tinted glasses I wear [grey tint! grey! Not green! And I've had my tinted glasses for years now, give me a break!], my devoted love of oranges, my tendency towards abstinence, etc.; all superficial details rather than anything else) But today I was taking notes in pen - this is unusual for me because I like sketching and require pencil for that - and when I write in pen I automatically shift into a peculiar half-cursive half-print style. And, um, apparently my writing in pen? Is identical to Robespierre's signature. As in, seriously, there was a copy of his signature in a book and I put my earlier writing of his name next to it and it was creepily similar. My letters are even disconnected at the same basic points. This is somewhere between incredibly amusing and creepy.
3, there is a direct corollary between how much alcohol I consume and French Revolution-related dreams or daymares. As most people reading this know, I'm not particularly fond of the taste of alcohol and consume it very rarely. Have never been drunk, have no desire to be, etc. I am, however, very fond of free taste tests. I drank twice in Scotland, and had rather vivid daymares shortly afterwards each time (by daymare I mean a dream had whilst hovering between sleep and consciousness during the day - I wasn't asleep, but it wasn't just daydreaming, either).
Daymare 1
Daymare 1 was...um...odd, I think is the best way to put it. Everyone here knows how much I like dysopias, I hope? Well, the world started out being a pretty ordinary top-heavy dystopia - corrupt Big Brother-type government, no freedom of press or thought, etc. I was following around the main character, and a bit of time into the dream I suddenly realised that he was Maximilien Robespierre.
Well, his name was Maxime, they looked identical, etc. He obviously wasn't the historical Robespierre himself, but he was what Maxime would turn out like if he grew up in a dystopia. And, um, he wasn't doing terribly well. Those ideals he likes so much? Not conductive to a career in a world in which connections, bribery, and corruption are everything. He'd currently been reduced to waiting tables. Yes, my subconscious created waiter!Maxime. He's terribly cute in an apron, for those of you who are interested, which I'm sure you never knew that you were.
He's a bit depressed - he really wants to change things, and he tries, but...well...Maxime after the conviction that people are essentially good and wise is forcibly ripped from him is a very sad person. He considers himself a coward for not being able to do more, and he's almost unable to support himself because he's reluctant to get involved in obviously corrupt business. He does, for some reason, have a black cat named Framboise. Don't ask me why, he just mentioned it off-handedly. Is that even an actual word?
At one point during this dream, he semi-adopted a little eight-year-old boy named Leon, who relatively quickly became recognizable as Saint-Just. Except he's eight, and an orphan, and Maxime loves him but doesn't really know how to deal with him. (For one thing, Leon is exhausting!) Both of them had just been called up in the lottery/draft to work for the corrupt city bosses, and Maxime was moping about it most of the time. And about how he wasn't brave enough to fight back and get himself killed in a properly heroic way. He really harped on how much of a coward he was, verbally, and then promptly went and showed that he really wasn't one, he just thought he was. He needed a hug.
I was sad to wake up from that one, but not NEARLY as much as I was to wake up from the next one. This one was significantly more historical, and also much, much longer. Possibly due to the greater amount of alcohol consumed the night before in comparison to the other time. Either way, I'm warning you all in advance - it's REALLY long, because my daymares when I have them are extremely vivid. And this one was a long one even for a daymare. Do keep in mind, though, that I'm really not that familiar with the French Revolution, though I intend to be, and I figure that my subconscious only knows as much as I do, so there are probably huge issues with the whole thing. I'm just reporting here. ^__^
Daymare 2
This one is a little more complicated, a lot more historical, and looooooong. But I figure that there are FR enthusiastic reading, so I might as well put it up. ^^ Anyway, the dream started in the rooms of the Committee of Public Safety. The time was a bit screwed up: it was before the arrest and execution of Danton and Desmoulins, but at the same time very late in the revolutionary chronology (in the sense that the CPS had gone pretty far in accumulating power, but was starting to rip itself apart already). There was an argument which was descending into petty squabbles, and it got to the point where certain group members were attempting to calm things down, reminding everyone else that they were in effect running France right now and France needed them to work together, or else there would be anarchy. One of the people arguing this side of things, interestingly enough, was Saint-Just, and this was not a very popular position to be holding, as everyone was glaring at him. He got exasperated, and got up to his feet, saying that he needed to go out and get some fresh air for a minute. He was about two steps away from the table when he noticed someone come in the door (which should have been locked) and that they were holding a pair of pistols. The times being what they were, he figured out what was going on immediately and jumped backwards towards the table, yelling for everyone to get down and hide. The would-be assassin, realising that they'd been caught, fired a few shots wildly.
There was panic for a bit (understandably), but people rushed in quickly and captured the assassin. One of the twelve (I didn't recognize him, so I can't give you a name) hastily urged the others to make a statement about how the unified CPS was not going to be cowed by this incident and to quickly retreat back into the room. Wanting to prevent a general riot, they did. They all sat down, except for Saint-Just, who remained standing - specifically, standing in a peculiarly bent over stance, with his arms tightly crossed and one hand pressed tightly against his abdomen. Couthon asked him what was wrong, as he was still standing and had a very peculiar look on his face. Saint-Just blinked, as if just waking up, straightened up and looked down at himself, pulling away his hands as he did so. At that point, the blood wetting his clothing became rather evident for the first time.
Robespierre exclaimed, "Antoine, you're bleeding!" One of them - I think it may have been Barère - exclaimed a split second after, "Were you shot?" Saint-Just sarcastically responded, "No, I usually start bleeding for no reason..." at which point he collapsed into the chair behind him as if he was a puppet whose strings had just been cut. Insert obvious panicking by everyone else, calls for a doctor to be brought in immediately etc. The next few minutes were a confused scene straight out of a medical TV show, but still firmly placed within the time context. Saint-Just was bleeding very badly, and it was relatively obvious by the time the doctor announced to state the obvious that he could not be moved. Lacking space in the room, the members of the committee quickly cleared the green table of all the documents on it and Saint-Just was laid down upon (or rather, lifted from the chair and pushed back onto) the table.
His overcoat was removed and his vest and shirt were cut/ripped off of him to give the doctor better access. It was rapidly determined that Saint-Just was both lucky and unlucky. He was lucky in that he had been turning to warn/push down the other members of the CPS when he had gotten shot, so the bullet entered him at an angle, more at the side than straight in the abdomen. [Note - when he got shot, I felt it. When they put him on the table, I could feel the texture of the rough wood that his back skated over and the hard surface of the table he laid on. Dreams suck like that.] This was a good thing because it meant that the bullet hadn't penetrated any vital organs - as everyone knows, wounds to the abdomen are among the worst. He was unlucky, though, because the bullet had taken a piece of shirt in with it, and was now lodged under one of his ribs, which meant that if it wasn't removed, it would undoubtedly rot and become infected.
I suspect the next bit was inspired by the Aubrey-Maturin/Master in Commander movie, as the solution was much like that, though without the operating-on-himself addition. For those who haven't seen that movie, it means that in order to get to the bullet, they slid a clamp inside Saint-Just's side and opened the clamp up, pushing the rib up and out of the way, then poked around inside a bit to pull the bullet out. Saint-Just was flushed red and sweating very heavily by this point - some intelligent person had put a strip of leather wrapped around a piece of wood between his teeth and he was biting down very hard on it. You could hear his teeth grinding into it when they did something particularly painful-looking. His pupils were dilated and he was panting and clearly doing his best not to utter too many sounds of pain. He was clinging to Robespierre's hand - crushing it, almost. Robespierre was terribly pale, but was in general dealing with getting splattered with his friend's blood better than expected. He mostly kept squeezing Saint-Just's hand back and telling him that he was going to be all right and that it was almost over. Most of the others were hovering around, looking worried - for several reasons, including "oh dear god there's someone bleeding to death in front of me", "that could have been me!", and - let us not forget - political reasons. Saint-Just's allies weren't even thinking particularly coherently at that moment, but I did hear one of the others mutter to another, very sarcastically, "This is just what France needs - another political martyr!" And the other one responded that France might not have need of it, but that Robespierre certainly did.
Eventually, however, they get the bullet and the cloth out of poor Saint-Just, the doctor commenting on how while his youth and health are a good thing in that he should heal up quickly (provided he doesn't get infected or a fever), but a bad thing in that he was staying conscious and aware of the pain far longer than most people would have. Actually, he's been slipping in and out of consciousness, but he's mostly been awake, much to his misfortune. They bandage him up. As they're doing this, he opens his eyes, which have been shut the last few minutes. Couthon asks him if he's all right. Saint-Just is having some trouble talking, but says, "I'm sorry." There is a general moment of "huh?" from everyone else, then he continues, "I know red and green don't go so well together..."
This makes everyone temporarily break down into hysterical laughter. It's not a funny joke at all, but as soon as he makes it the tension in the room snaps almost audibly and they're all just laughing wildly with relief, practically to the point of tears. By this point, quite a few hours have passed, so some hysteria is quite understandable - they're all working on very little sleep, have a the vast amount of work to do and worry about, the political situation, and then this event all combined to escalate the tension. They keep setting themselves back off, too - as soon as they start calming down, one of them starts snickering again and that sets the whole group off yet again. Finally, they manage to compose themselves, just in time to get a bad piece of news: the riot they were hoping to avert is significantly closer to happening than they'd like.
Someone saw them calling for a doctor and word has spread in the last few hours, both of the attack on the CPS and of the fact that they called in a doctor shortly thereafter. Rumours are going around like wildfire - some people are saying that the attack worked and they're all dead, others are saying that there was a coup d'etat by some members of the CPS planning to create a dictatorship, yet others say that the whole thing was a political stunt to continue to justify purges within the gov't and there was never an attack at all, etc. All sorts of crazy things. So there's a huge mob gathered outside agitating to find out what actually happpened. Barère goes out and explains that one of their number got shot, thus the doctor, but that he's all right now. The crowd is not appeased and refuses to disperse, demanding to see ALL the members of the CPS so they can see for themselves if they're alive. Having little choice in the matter, the CPS troop out - Saint-Just has to lean on Robespierre's shoulder, as he's still in quite a bit of pain. One of their rivals in the CPS makes a pointed comment about how of course Saint-Just would choose to share the glory with Robespierre, and Saint-Just snaps back that he just got shot, he's not in the mood, and that Robespierre has something the other person doesn't - namely, Robespierre is precisely the right height for Saint-Just to lean on his shoulders without having to painfully bend either up or down to reach. Saint-Just's shirt is beyond recovery by this point, but as he can't be expected to go out shirtless they steal a shirt from one of the sans-culottes - it's not a very good shirt nor does it fit well, and the neckline plunges down nearly to his stomach, which means the bandages around him are visible, but at least he's within the realms of decency.
They head out and the the crowd is finally appeased and starts rejoicing that they've survived, particularly Saint-Just, who is applauded as a brave political hero a la Marat. They demand a speech from him, and he is obligated to do so - he moves a bit away from the other members of the CPS to get to a slightly higher place so he can be heard by everyone. He does this under his own power as a symbolic gesture. Everyone - including the other CPS members and Saint-Just himself - is expecting it to be a very short speech, along the lines of maybe one or two "Vive la Republic!"s and a comment along the lines of the indestructibility of France, but just as he starts talking - starting with "As you can see, citoyens, I am fine -" someone in the audience starts screaming.
It's a rather hysterical woman, and she's screaming that he's lying, that the whole thing was a set-up done by the Committee of Public Safety as a trick to convince the people to give up more of their liberties in exchange for the "evil dictatorship" of the CPS, things like that. And before anyone can stop her, she scrambles up to where Saint-Just is and starts ripping at him with her nails - specifically, at his bandages, intending to prove that there's no injury underneath them. Saint-Just is too surprised and injured to respond quickly, and she manages to rip off most of the bandages, thereby ripping apart most of the stitches he has too, before she's finally pulled off of him. He staggers back, and now everyone can see blood pouring down his abdomen and that it was pretty obviously not a faked injury.
Saint-Just at this point has entered into a slight state of shock and can no longer feel the pain from his injury. He also completely loses his temper and starts ranting/giving a speech. He doesn't normally give ad libbed speeches, but right now he's really completely lost it (having had the day he's had, no one can really blame him). Most of the speech, he's going with the usual Jacobin line: there are traitors who are trying to rip France apart and trying to kill those who only wish to save it, etc. But the part it gets interesting is when he starts talking about the CPS - he says that he knows that it's difficult to know who to trust nowadays, that people that one would never expect to it are being sent to the guillotine (a reference either my mind mixed up and it was to the Danton arrest or - more likely considering later events - to the fact that it was going to happen soon and to the earlier purges and executions), but that if France wanted to know who they can absolutely trust, it is the twelve members of the CPS. They know this because they are the true representatives of the people's will, Saint-Just roars to the crowd, and because when he got shot not one of the twelve failed to enthusiastically offer forth his aid. (Not technically true, but as I mentioned earlier, this is set when the CPS is starting to rip itself apart, and Saint-Just is getting steadily more worried that they will actually do so, leaving France first to anarchy and then to the invading armies which they're still at war with). He goes on in this vein for a bit, blood still seeping from his midsection, then stops, glares at the crowd, and finishes up with, "As for myself, I wish only the best for the Republic and would happily give everything I have, up to and including my life!, for it. Long live the Republic!" And then he collapses onto the crowd, the blood loss finally catching up with him. (yes, I got to hear the whole thing in the dream and it was wonderful, but I can't reproduce it word for word. I'm sorry, because it was an excellent speech. Also, if you can try to visualise this: you're standing amongst a crowd of excited sans-culottes and a very handsome, almost statuesque, man is making a passionate speech, his shirt torn apart and blood dripping down his front. As he speaks, the crowd is getting steadily more excited, but no one dares interrupt. The light of the sun reflects off his hair and the sheen of sweat on his skin, giving him an almost god-like shine. His gestures are short, almost abrupt, but full of energy. And then at the end, just as he's sworn to give his life to the Republic, he collapses to the ground, his energy spent, just a man once more. Imagine that and you might get an image of what I was seeing.)
The CPS, which has been as mesmerized as the rest of the crowd by the spectacle, quickly organize people to bring Saint-Just back inside, where he's patched up yet again. As they're carting him inside, one of the CPS can't resist commenting, "You know, if he dies, this is much more impressive than getting stabbed in the bath." Saint-Just is in fact deeply unconscious and is starting to develop the fever that the doctor was afraid he'd get - he's burning hot to the touch. They sneak him out through a window and cart him off quickly to the Duplay house, chosen because it was relatively nearby and because Saint-Just obviously can't be left alone right now.
The next few days - weeks? - are interesting. The people are of course immensely riled up by this and they're all incredibly emotional about it, much like they were after Marat's death. The CPS meets and agrees to use this to their mutual advantage - they don't like each other, and they're not in the same party at all, but unfortunately Saint-Just gave the CPS credit and responsibility for saving France (he mentioned all of them by name, though he did give Robespierre slightly more emphasis, particularly in terms of morality, but the majority of his speech was about the CPS as a whole), and no matter what they want, if they want to reap all political capital they can out of this event then they need to work together. Luckily for them, the dramatic nature of this event has completely screwed up the political atmosphere - barely anyone remembers (or cares) what insults, intrigues, etc. were going on before it, and they're able to form a somewhat tenuous alliance with each other. A very tenuous alliance. At any rate, they're able to ramrod through a few motions that they might not have otherwise been able to, unpopular but quite probably very necessary ones, under the claim that they're doing this in Saint-Just's name. I'm not entirely sure what all of those reforms are, but they obviously pull more power to the CPS, in addition to some necessary economic and military changes.
Saint-Just, meanwhile, is sick with a very bad fever, and is unconscious almost all the time, though he thrashes in his sleep and will occasionally ramble incoherently, even with his eyes open. He hasn't actually woken up since the event. His name, however, is getting steadily more popular - he's practically got a cult at this point, much in the same way Marat's already considerable popularity jumped after his death. Saint-Just's following, though, is a very strange assortment of people - he draws people from the Hébertists who see him as more radical than Robespierre, from the Robespierreists who see him as Robespierre's political heir and note that he usually sides with Robespierre, and - ironically - he also draws a few people from Danton's group and others. There is a wild frenzy to discover everything they can about Saint-Just in this period, so as to emulate him better, and his not-entirely-correct past is discovered, which incline some people to view him as someone with the past of Danton and the future of Robespierre, and yet younger and more a viable, active symbol of the Revolution than both of the others - something which attracts a LOT of people. Add in his talent at speaking and his military-related successes, and you've got a cult hero.
Meanwhile, though, the CPS is getting a bit worried, because after a while the people are starting to get a bit antsy - they keep hearing about how all of these motions are being passed in the name of the still-absent Saint-Just, and that he yet lives, but they're seeing no evidence of him. Rumors start up again that Saint-Just actually HAS died, but that the CPS is refusing to admit it so they can try to squeeze as much political power out of it as possible. The CPS is called to the Convention to justify themselves on this matter.
Luckily for them, Saint-Just's fever has recently broken and he's been waking up for steadily more and more time. On the day that the CPS is in the Convention to justify itself, he wakes up, sees people worrying a bit and a notable absence of people on the street and correctly presumes that something interesting must be going on at the Convention. He demands information from the Duplay girls, which are unable to help very much, and so he orders them to go outside and find the first person they recognise as knowing something about politics and to bring them inside. They obey, but the person they bring in is Camille Desmoulins. Saint-Just isn't terribly pleased about this, obviously, but he demands information anyway. Camille asks him, with a touch of sarcasm, if he's going to believe anything that Camille says anyway. Saint-Just replies, "No, but at least I can have a background on the situation when I get the real facts from someone else!" Either way, though, Camille explains - there is an interesting bit here, in which Camille is explaining about Saint-Just's new following, and Saint-Just interrupts: "That's impossible!" he says. "Why?" Camille replies, frowning a bit. "Many others have a following..." "No, it's impossible, I tell you. I mean, what would they call themselves? The Saint-Just-ists? It doesn't work." "Actually," and here Camille looks a touch embarrassed, "They were labeled by their critics before they could come up with a name for themselves..." Saint-Just groans. "What is it?" "They're called Justinians." "...isn't that the name of a Roman emperor?! A Christian Roman emperor?" "Yes, I know, I know..." - but anyway, Camille explains what's going on and Saint-Just insists on going to the Convention. He's having serious issues walking, and is forced to lean on Camille as he does so. He knows that this will probably end up giving Camille more of a political boost than he'd really like to give him, but unfortunately it appears to be his only option.
At the Convention, attacks are being made on the CPS, particularly on Robespierre who has been doing the majority of references to Saint-Just, for obvious reasons. Indeed, one of the opposition is scathingly saying, "You claims to receive and pass on his words and thoughts, yet you give us as much proof of this as those who received gospels from the invisible. Tell me, if this hero of the Republic [Saint-Just] yet lives, then why not bring him here?!" Outside, Camille, who is helping Saint-Just around the corner, comments airily, "You know, you have luck: you wouldn't get a better entrance line in a play." Saint-Just, who is biting his lip in pain, just tells Camille to shut up. They turn the corner, and the crowd which is eavesdropping through the windows roars in acclaim. The people at the Convention obviously can't see what the fuss is about, but they can hear. The people swarm over to Saint-Just, who automatically tightens his grip on Camille for fear that the crowd may accidentally rip him to pieces in their excitement. They want to pick him up and carry him into to the Convention, but he refuses, knowing that if he lets them do that, down the road he'll face not-so-good comparisons with Marat. He does ask them to clear a path for him, which with a great deal of excitement they do. He limps into the stunned Convention (Camille is naturally soaking up the adulation up like a sponge, albeit rather undeservingly). A chair is quickly pulled out for him, and he collapses into it, then turns and smiles at everyone. "I'm sorry for my long absence," he begins. "I have been, as you know, very ill. Indeed, my physician would probably have my neck if he knew I was here, but I heard that something important was going on and couldn't resist." His smile widens a little bit. "Please, whoever was last speaking, go on! Don't let me interrupt. What were you saying?"
Obviously, the CPS carries the day by an extreme landslide, with everyone vowing their extreme confidence in the Committee. Saint-Just is carted on home by the crowd in a sort of procession, and spends another day or so recovering, but as soon as he's able to he gets back to work with a vengeance - adding the arduous "deal with followers" to his already full list of duties, as he seems to have gotten if anything more popular since his reemergence - he has the political credo of a martyr, but he's still alive to use it, and he intends to. He's extremely busy, even before he's completely able to get up and move around - in the first few days, he's actually having to receive people while reclining, which he doesn't like because of the monarchist references, but is unfortunately unavoidable because he risks tearing the stitches again if he strains himself too hard.
Meanwhile, the enemies of the CPS are trying to figure out how to get a foothold back. They know that the reason the CPS is so powerful is because it is (currently, at least) united. They're obviously working on the original tensions in the group, but they notice Saint-Just's successes and they figure that if they can rip apart the most secure bond in the group (that of Robespierre and Saint-Just) then the rest of the CPS will almost immediately self-destruct. So they start subtly pouring poison into Robespierre's ear, knowing of his suspicion of groups - which isn't helped by the fact that Saint-Just's little group is pulling people from Robespierre's group and by the fact that Camille, who is distant from Robespierre by this point, has been showing up at Saint-Just's place too often for Robespierre's comfort.
In reality, Camille has been taking advantage of his little performance at the Convention, and he heads over there relatively regularly. He and Saint-Just glare at each other a bit, Camille makes conversation with some of the others, stuff like that. However, Camille does approach Saint-Just one evening and requests a private conference one evening. Curious, Saint-Just agrees, and Camille basically offers to switch sides to join his, thereby pulling in some of the moderates. He's doing this less out of steadfast political ideals or conversion, but because he thinks the group he's in right now is sinking fast and he'd like to stay above the surface. Okay, he'd also like to have some actual influence and power again, too. He says, however, that he'll offer a bit of advice for free. Saint-Just is wary, obviously, and says he'll consider it, but that he's willing to listen to the free advice. So Camille tells him that knowing people - and specifically, knowing Robespierre - that if Saint-Just doesn't go and make absolutely certain that Robespierre has full trust in him, he'll lose Robespierre to other people's lies and Robespierre's own (by this point in time somewhat justified) fears of conspiracy. Saint-Just considers this for a few seconds, then thanks Camille, dismisses him, and practically runs over to the Duplay house to talk to Robespierre.
He's there too early - Robespierre isn't back from his own work quite yet - but he waits and when Robespierre, who's very tired from the work he's been doing and from having to argue with himself and other people about Saint-Just, arrives home, Saint-Just greets him with no little enthusiasm and relief. They fall to talking, and Robespierre is being a little distant. Saint-Just pretends not to notice and starts asking his advice about various things that are going on, including Camille's little offer (he doesn't mention the extra advice, obviously). Robespierre is suspicious at first, but Saint-Just earnestly presses on, asking for advice and when Robespierre comments that he doesn't know what the best move for Saint-Just would be in a certain situation, Saint-Just says that if Robespierre doesn't know what's best for them, then they're really in trouble. Robespierre asks him if it's still "them" and Saint-Just acts as if this is the first time he's even considered the idea that Robespierre might be suspicious, looking absolutely horrified at the mere thought. He swears to Robespierre that no matter what happens, Robespierre is still the person he looks to when it comes to the ideal and makes a rather passionate speech on this point. He also adds at the end, a little awkwardly, that Robespierre knows how Saint-Just feels upon this point. Robespierre winces a bit, and Saint-Just hastily adds that he knows, they've had this discussion before and he's accepted that Robespierre is unlikely to ever feel quite the same way for him, and he doesn't mean to press the point, but he would like to state for the record that he could no sooner betray Robespierre than, say, Camille could betray Lucille. Well, politically, anyway.
Robespierre is immensely relieved to be able to fully trust Saint-Just again, and they decide to keep their newly reaffirmed connection secret so they can find out who is plotting against them. Saint-Just does point out that not everyone who will be saying that is actively plotting - some of them will simply be more concerned with Robespierre benefit than with Saint-Just's and be seeking to warn Robespierre in all honesty, and that's not a crime. So they have to be careful.
EDIT: At one point, when Saint-Just is still very weak and in bed, Robespierre is visiting and talking to him, along with Le Bas. Robespierre is saying, "...and, of course, Citoyen David was in the audience..."
Saint-Just makes a strange sound - half-strangled groan, half-whimper. "Tell me the worst of it. What does the picture look like?"
"Pictures, actually." Robespierre replies cheerfully. "He was inspired and made two...here, I have some prints - they don't really convey the full effect, of course, but this way you can see the structure..."
The first is Saint-Just making his speech before the people, hands gesturing and fierce look on his face, the blood more of a dramatic splatter than anything else, surrounded by the people. Saint-Just makes a not-entirely displeased sound.
Then Le Bas pulls out the other print, which is Saint-Just, having given up all energy, dramatically collapsing into the arms of the CPS, which are all sketched in there surrounding him and catching him as the people/sans-culottes reach for him from the other side of the image.
Saint-Just stares at the one with with an expression of utter horror. "Oh god!" he cries. "It looks like it should be titled 'And the virtuous maiden Saint-Just swoons dramatically into the manly Robespierre's arms'!"
At which point the two others start laughing. Eventually, one of the Duplays pokes their head in to see what the fuss is about and find Le Bas and Robespierre in tears with laughter, and a very red-faced Saint-Just trying to tell them that his witticism was not NEARLY as funny as they seem to think it was...
...aaaaaand that's when I woke up. *still sulking about the fact that she had to wake up, because that was a really interesting daymare* *damn trains and their arrival at their destination!*
...I'm not even checking to see how long that last little explanation was.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2008-03-30 09:54 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-03-30 10:17 am (UTC)If you're interested, I forgot a section and added it in at the end of Daymare 2, but it really just goes on a bit...no subject
Date: 2008-03-30 10:21 am (UTC)Daymare 2 went completely over, or through, my clueless-about-French-Revolution head, alas.no subject
Date: 2008-03-30 09:35 pm (UTC)And, oh dear. ;__; Poor Saint-Just. His childhood can’t have been very enjoyable.
You have such cool daymares, though. I’m impressed.
Saint-Just stares at the one with with an expression of utter horror. "Oh god!" he cries. "It looks like it should be titled 'And the virtuous maiden Saint-Just swoons dramatically into the manly Robespierre's arms'!"
And this part amused me so much. XD
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Date: 2008-03-30 09:42 pm (UTC)*grins* I loved that part. It really looked like it, too - my daymare are really fun in that sense, because it took what I know of David's paintings and used the same style to create these two new ones. It was really pretty. ^___^
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Date: 2008-03-31 06:30 am (UTC)Ooh, cool. That sounds so wonderful and gratuitously homoerotic.
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Date: 2008-03-31 03:40 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-03-31 07:02 pm (UTC)...and admittedly I would really like to see Desmoulins masquerading as a rabbit...
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Date: 2008-04-03 02:24 pm (UTC)Well, it was momentarily entertaining at least, though more bizarre than anything else.
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Date: 2008-04-03 04:31 pm (UTC)Alternate history stories are fun, but they're always going to end up bizarre and not entirely realistic - the whole butterfly effect kicks in at various places, and you can never really tell how one change would have really affected everything. Perhaps the only change would be a delay of the events of the Revolution - but then you'd need to take into accounts the harvests, battles, etc. that are going on. Even just a delay could potentially change everything...I do love alternate histories.
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Date: 2008-04-03 05:09 pm (UTC)Indeed they do. XD
Though Desmoulins had plenty of opportunity to, as you put it, "jump ship" in the real history and he didn't do so, so I'm not sure there's really any reason he would in an alternate history either, except that of the subconscious, which seems to have its own agenda. :/
The nice thing about alternate histories, is you don't have to write exactly what would happen, because there's no way of knowing that. You have to know the history very well to write a plausible one typically, especially with such complex events, but even plausible alternate histories can differ depending on one's view of the causes of a given event that really did happen. Though that's not always entertaining; I once read an alternate history of what would have happened if Bonaparte had won at Waterloo... said history concluded that he would have been defeated at another, similar battle a few months or years later and history would have been largely unchanged. >_>
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Date: 2008-04-03 05:17 pm (UTC)*nod* Agreed, entirely. The French Revolution is an especially complicated things, because something as small as someone tripping and having to go home to change and therefore missing a hugely important event is enough to change everything. I have noticed that tendency of alternate histories to try to circle back to the normal history rather than continue going outwards, like the "If the South won the American Civil War, all would be different, but only in the short run - in the long run, no change". But I must admit that that is a particularly boring example...