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varianandhugodonotgetrawed · 2 months

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I did a thing

Thanks to @shelobussy for giving me the idea for this little one shot! You didn't think I was serious, did you? But I was, oh, I was.

Desc: Hugo and Varian run into a problem while helping at VBS (vacation Bible school for those unfamiliar. It's literally summer camp but Christian). Warning for minor cursing, past homophobia.

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"And... it's locked." Hugo sighed and slid down the door of the closet. "Who designed this thing? Why would a door auto-lock when you close it?"

"Why wouldn't it?" Varian had already sat down. "If you hadn't dropped the key we would be out of here."

"You're always blaming me for stuff. This isn't even the right closet! This is the damn communion supply closet, and I told you the cleaning supplies were down the hall, but no, Heaven forbid I be right."

"I got turned around! Half the hallways out of the sanctuary look the same anyway." At least they wouldn't starve, though Varian might rather starve than subsist on grape juice and crackers that looked and tasted like Styrofoam. And would it be heretical to eat and drink communion elements outside of the ceremony? Surely God would understand, like that story with David and the sacred bread.

"Uh, earth to Freckles," Hugo's annoying voice cut through Varian's thoughts. "How are we gonna get out of here? The VBS has, like, four chaperones for the middle schoolers including us, we need to get out."

"Can't you pick locks, Beanpole?" Varian had never seen Hugo lockpick, but he looked like the type to know how.

With his long undercut blond hair, piercings, alternative clothing style, and flamboyantly gay demeanor, Hugo wasn't really the sort of person Varian would expect to be a youth group leader, but West Ingvarr Methodist Church prided itself on diversity and inclusion. Varian couldn't help but think, though, that even if it wasn't a sin, Hugo didn't need to make being queer his whole personality. Varian certainly managed not to.

"I can't pick this kind of lock. I don't know the inside mechanisms of the automatic doors. And I'll thank you not to use that tone when asking. I don't why you think you're better than me-"

"I don't think I'm better than you-" Varian began.

Hugo snorted. "Could've fooled me. Anyways, I could maybe figure out how to disassemble the lock, but I don't think Pastor Robin would be very happy with me."

"So we're stuck here," Varian groaned.

"Until someone comes along and sees the key on the ground, yes. Don't look at me like that, Freckles, I'm not pleased about it either. You're stuck in a closet with someone you hate, I'm stuck with someone who hates me."

"I don't hate you. You're annoying as- as heck, and loud, and honestly I don't think you should curse around the kids-"

"They're middle and high schoolers, they've heard the word 'shit' before. Besides, I know what it is. You don't like the way I dress, the way I talk, you don't like when I talk about my homosexuality-" Hugo said the last word like he was an old man deeply offended by it.

Varian rolled his eyes. "That's not it. If it makes you feel better, I'm literally bisexual. I just don't think you need to talk about it as much as you do-"

"Freckles, what would your life be like if you had had an openly queer leader in the church when you were those kid's age? Because I'll tell you right now, mine would have been a hell of a lot better. You can keep your internalized homophobia to yourself, but I'm going to be who I am. And I'm going to be for those kids what I needed." Hugo finished and turned his head away, arms crossed.

Varian couldn't think of a thing to say. He tried not to think about it much, now that he was out of Old Corona, and two years into college, but he remembered growing up in a church very different from West Ingvarr. Forget it being unsafe to be queer, Varian had dyed a streak of his hair blue when he was fourteen and been looked at like he was the devil's child into he finally broke and dyed it black again. Eventually, fifteen-year-old Varian had decided he couldn't take it anymore, and ran away. It'd quickly gone wrong, and he'd fallen in with a very bad crowd before his father found him, and promised they would move away after Varian tearfully confessed the reason for his rebellion.

All that to say, Hugo was right. Varian cringed thinking it. But Varian had been unfair in his judgment of him, and it was the right thing to do to admit that.

"I'm... sorry." Varian finally said. Hugo didn't turn his head, but his eyes flicked over and his eyebrows rose slightly. "I think... I let my biases color how I judged you, and that was... unfair and not very 'Good Christian' of me. I... really don't hate you, Hugo."

Hugo turned his head, and Varian could see him holding back a smile. "Thanks for the self-awareness. I forgive you, I guess."

Varian scoffed. "Thanks, 'I guess'."

"Well," Hugo began, obnoxious grin on his face, before pausing. "I think I hear footsteps! HEY? IS ANYONE THERE?" He yelled, forcing Varian to cover his ears.

"Yes, ominous voice? Wait. Hugo, is that you?"

"Yep!" He replied. "Varian, we're in luck! Okay, Yong, there's a key on the ground. I need you to slide it under the door, alright?"

"I don't see a- oh! There you go!" A second later, the bronze key appeared by the door. Varian and Hugo stood up, and unlocked the door.

"Feels good to be free!" Hugo declared, stretching.

"We were only in there for twenty minutes," Varian commented, grinning.

"Yeah, but twenty minutes stuck with you? Basically twenty years."

"Shut up, Beanpole," Varian pretended to punch Hugo's arm. Maybe he wasn't so bad after all.

#fics that i am the sole audience for #vat7k #fanfic #varigo #fanfiction #varian #tts varian #varian tangled #hugo vat7k

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elijahs-dumps · 3 months

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Cassandra and her villain arc; was it bad? Let's discuss... (Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure)

Just wanted to say before we dive in, I'm currently working on a piece about Gonzo from the Muppets and some Hazbin Hotel stuff too. So stay tuned;)

Cassandra was mainly portrayed as snarky, cold, and even a little rude. She's almost a perfect opposite to Rapunzel, which makes them interesting friends. And it's nice that Rapunzel has another girl she can rely on, since I personally believe female friendships are important in media. Within the TV series, Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure, Cassandra is often seen budding heads with Eugene or helping with Rapunzel's misadventures. And as the show goes on, we see Cassandra actively looking out for Rapunzel more and more.

Even though Cass states many times in the first two seasons that she loves and cares for Raps, their relationship is quite unstable through out the show even before she became a main antagonist. Let's take a look at their relationship pre-season two to get a better understanding:

For example, in The Challenge of the Brave (S1 E4) when Raps joins the challenge, Cass feels like Raps is being a bad friend by trying to win something that means so much to her. She's annoyed by Raps' ignorance, and jealous of the admiration Raps is receiving. Yet, Cass never even told Raps how much the contest means to her. So instead of communicating her feelings, Cass starts to act more snappy with Raps and actively tries to get Raps eliminated from the game. However, it's not unreasonable for Raps to be unaware of Cass' wishes, especially since she struggles with social cue. Regardless of the fact that Cass should've been more patient with Raps, I think this episode would've been nice foreshadowing to her change of heart in season three if they didn't try to paint Cass as the victim in this episode. I don't understand why only Raps apologized, when they both should've acknowledged their wrongs.

In Under Raps (S1 E9), Rapunzel tries to make Cass feel better about being single by making her things and showing her appreciation for Cass. When this happens, Cass sort of gets annoyed for no reason even though Rapunzel's intentions are sweet. She doesn't even really verbalize if Raps is pushing boundaries or not, she's just... frustrated?

This doesn't relate to Rapunzel directly, but in Great Expotations (S1 E8) Cass uses Varian to get what she wants. Even though she does make up for it, it's still a testament to her character. Cass often acts without thinking about how others might feel or think, and the way she treats Raps in season one is a prime example of that. She does take into account how naive and ignorant Raps can be, but she refuses to show any patience for it as Raps recovers from literally being isolated for eighteen years. And Cass is supposed to be Raps' best friend! It's the same with Varian. You see, Cass isn't really a bad person. She just wants her moment in the spotlight, her moment to prove herself. In these episodes, that's often what drives her to make these mistakes towards her friends. This would be a great character flaw, and an interesting writing concept. But this show keeps having Cass in this same situation again and again, and she never grows from it. It gets old very fast.

Not to mention, Cass also tried to force Raps not to tell Eugene how she got her hair back when it first happened. All because Cass "doesn't trust Eugene". I thought this was strange, because I don't really know what kind of friend asks someone to lie to their significant other.

In the flashback episode, Beginnings (S3 E6), we learn that Cass never wanted to be friends with Raps to begin with, and there was a lot of guilty undertones on Cass' part of the relationship at least in its early stages from what we can see. Raps clearly latched onto Cass way too fast, because she was still fresh out of the tower when they met. And Cass wasn't ready to be what Raps needed (which was therapy). Cass was Raps' first friend besides Pascal, and I don't understand why Cass would take on that role if she wasn't going to put in the effort to at least try and be compassionate and understanding with Raps.

Moving on to season two, Cass didn't really do anything of substance until The Great Tree episode (S2 E14) which is a little weird in hindsight. But I thought her insecurities about needing to prove herself and how she always feel second place to Raps were pretty justified. We saw a couple times through out the series that people preferred Raps over Cass, or gave Raps opportunities when Cass worked harder for them. Still, I don't feel like that's Raps' fault. Waiting in the Wings did a perfect job of illustrating Cass' feelings on this subject, and it even made me like her more as a character because it gave her so much more depth. Still, the song talks about how Cass is going to keep waiting until her moment in the sun arrives no matter what, which contradicts her villain arc quite a bit considering the fact she did not wait at all. Anyway, I think Cass trying to insinuate that Raps doesnt trust her judgement anymore in these episodes was BULLSHIT. Raps clearly loves and values Cass, and trusts her completely. All Raps did was mkae a call that Cass didn't agree with, I dont think this meant that Raps wasn't listening or wasn't trusting Cass. The two of them simply disagreed on it, which they do all the time.

Technically, the thing that pushes Cass off the edge is the fact that she finds out she's Mother Gothel's biological daughter. But there was one other incident that set this villain arc into motion before the episodes within the House of Yesterday's Tomorrows. Cassandra's hand wound from Rapunzel.

When Cass injuries her hand during the final fight within the Great Tree, she blames Raps for it even after they talk it out and apologize. I didn't understand this at all, because yes Cass warned Raps not to use the decay incantation. But it's not like they had any other choice! And Raps was not in control of herself or the tree when Cass got injured. Not only this, but Raps also told Cass to leave before anything even happened. Why is Cass upset with Raps for not listening to her when she wouldn't listen to Raps either?

The season three opening episode, Rapunzel's Return (S3 E1), shows us exactly what Cass saw in the House of Yesterday's Tomorrows. We learn that Cass is Gothel's real daughter, and this is a huge turning point in the series. Because in this episode, Cassandra's entire villain arc stopped being about her own struggles and insecurities and how she's felt second place to Rapunzel this whole time, it became about the fact that Gothel chose Raps over Cass. I felt like this was a lazy writing choice, to make it seem like Cass' feelings of being inferior to Raps are more justified. But honestly, I think her villain arc could've stood well on it own if they just planted to the smaller seeds of doubt earlier on, and didn't involve Gothel in it. Of all people. Gothel is a naturally selfish woman who would never do anything that doesn't serve some kind of purpose for her. I find it hard to belief she kept Cass around simply to do house work around her cottage instead of just dumping Cass at an orphanage of some kind.

I also feel the need to mention the fact that Cass was absent for almost 12 episodes in a row, during what is supposed her season as the antagonist and her moment to have the spotlight, probably has something to do with why her writing in season three came out so half-baked. Combining this with the fact that her change of heart was only really hinted at in maybe five out of the forty-five episodes, episodes in which the conflict involving Cass' character is always resolved by the end, makes her entire villain arc seem out of character at first glance.

This season went to great lengths to make Cass' actions and attitude as nasty as possible, especially by having her show no remorse or doubts after Be Very Afraid (S3 E9). This is on of the reasons her redemption arc fell flat.

In A Tale of Two Sisters (S3 E14), we see the last bit of Cass' doubt be outweighed by her need to blame someone for the way Gothel abandoned her. So, she blames Rapunzel. But Cass knows Gothel was sick and abusive towards Raps, and she also knows it's not Raps' fault she was kidnapped. After all their years of friendship, I didn't buy the concept that Cass would let her anger manifest in a way that would blame Raps for a traumatic event that happened to both of them.

While I'm well aware that Zhan Tiri has been manipulating Cass since the House of Yesterday's Tomorrows, it still didn't make Cass's villain arc anymore believable for me. It felt like the show's way of trying to excuse its own crappy writing.

Once a Handmaiden (S3 E16) is when Cass realizes Zhan Tiri has been manipulating her since the beginning, and begins to regret her choices. So Cass disguises herself as Rapunzel's current handmaiden to try and find a way to extend some kind of olive branch. This gives us a little more insight into the headspace Cass has been in these past few months, and it gives the audience more room to sympathize with her (especially in the play scene). Yet, when Zhan Tiri reveals Cass to everyone and the guards start attack her, Cass is quick to become incredibly angry, even though Raps was trying to call off the guards. Cass literally takes over the entire kingdom, almost killing hundreds of people after spending the whole day bonding with Raps like old times. While I have issues with the amber-firing machine Varian made, I feel like the switch up with Cass in this episode was absolutely insane.

Cassandra's redemption arc, if you can even call it that, completely fell apart because it was so rushed. It was similar to Varian's redemption arc in that sense, but even though Varian's redemption arc had flaws he was able to sort of get away with it. Varian's villain arc was shorter than Cass', his crimes weren't as bad as Cass'. and he served at least a year in jail anyway. Cass served no punishment for her actions and got to leave Corona scot-free. This also plays into the constant contradiction Cassandra goes through this season of soul-crushing remorse vs homicidal rage.

Considering Cass was one of our main three characters for the entire show, I just think she deserved better when it finally came time to give her some more depth and complexity. But what do you guys think? Do you think Cassandra's time as an antagonist was poorly executed? How do you think they could've fixed it? Feel free to let me know!

#tangled #cassandra tangled #rapunzel #tangled the series #tangled varian #tangled cassandra #eugene fitzherbert #analysis #moon cassandra #cassunzel #tts #rta #varian #rapunzels tangled adventure

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kazucinth · 3 months

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You write for Varian!

Can you please do a magician/petty thef reader x y/n?

Like they use the sleight of hand to steal and she stole from varian only to get his book “ugh nerd things.” And ends up retiring it to him (due to no use) and they oddly became friends/lovers

Sumary: In which a magician who is secretly a theif, attempts to steal Varian’s book

Note: I’m not really a good writer so sorry if it too simple for you!

The sound of beakers, liquid mixing, and cogs turning filled the room. Varian reached to grab a certain liquid ‘hm? Where is it?’ He says while the Erlenmeyer flask seemed to be empty. Varian sighs because he knows that he has to go out and retrieve the ingredients, While strolling through the market he heard the people talking how a ship arrived at the borders ‘Ship huh?’ He thought. As he was walking he accidentally bumped onto a person “Oh! Sorry!” Varian tried to help the person up till he recognized it was a girl “You should watch Honestly watch your back kid!” Said the girl, he noticed the way her outtfit wasn’t like the clothes of Corona’s it was more foreign. “Uhm your not from here aren’t you?” Varian asked, the girls 'eyebrows furrowed “And so what? Its none of your business” she says as she crosses her arms turning to leave. ‘Hm, That was weird’ Varian thought, going back to his purpose for going to the market, Soon it was afternoon and he had bought the materials and began going home, till he noticed the girl again in a crowd making tricks with a card ‘What’s she doing?’ The girl pulled out a card to reveal 4 of hearts “Was this your card sir?” The audience gasped as it turns out her guess was right, the audience then watch as she handled with more tricks with different objects. Although it soon began going dark, everyone left to go back home yet Varian still stayed, impressed with her Sleight of hand. While the girl was fixing her things in a box, Varian came up to her “Your sleight of hand was good, I didn’t expect you’ve do it professionally” he stated, the girl chuckles “Oh? Of course, It’s one of my talents after all” The girl looked at Varian recognizing him earlier “Wait- your the guy that bumped onto me!” She scoffs “Oh that! Uhm… hah sorry?” The girl then raised her eyebrow, observing him till she saw a book ‘Hm.. that looks.. quite valuable’ she thought. “Here how ‘bout I show you some tricks?”“Huh oh sure” the girl began with some cards for him to focus on, showing him a last bit of her sleight of hand talents. Varian became interested, despite knowing what the backround of these tricks were, it was still nice to see. It was time for varian to go “Hey uh I never got your name?” The girl grins “Y/n” she brungs her hand out for him to shake and he gladly accepts it “Varian” “Thats quite a unique name, I’ll see you around Varian” she says as she began to walk back, and varian smiles as he made a new friend till she pulls out his book in her bag. ‘Wait that bag seems familiar’ Varian noticed as his eyes widen “Hey that’s mine!” As he chased her, the Y/n laughs as the reached the market, going through alleys of the buildings as Varian turned to an alley, Y/n suddenly disappears. “Damn it, she got away” He sighs as he goes back home. Y/n opened the door of her house to be greeted by her father, “Why are you so late?” Ask her father, Y/n took a bottle of water in the cabinet “The show lasted a little more than preferred” She took her water and went to the room, she opened the book and started reading, hoping to find some valuable stuff “what the-!” but hope was turned into disappointment when she realized the book was only filled with science notes, she turned the pages to the very last to find atleast one important information for her but she had no luck, Y/n sighed knowing she’ll go back to the market tomorrow and probably meet Varian. It was next morning, Varian tried to find Y/n but he couldn’t, after all the book may not contain important notes about the castle, yet it had important information for him. Varian went to rest on a nearby tree where he could see everyone and everything, at this point it would be impossible for Varian not to spot Y/n. “The view ‘ere is calming no?” Varian yelped as he saw Y/n come down the tree and dusted herself off

“sorry didn’t mean to scare ya” She took the book out of her bag, and gave it to him “oh uh thanks” he took it with hesitance “found out your were pretty interested in alchemy huh?” Y/n says as Varian looked through the book to make sure the notes were still intact “yeah, how about you?” “Eh, more of astronomy but still part of science yeah sorry ‘bout stealing your book, habbit of a curiousity of mine ” Varian chuckled “its fine atleast you brought it back” Y/n smiled “how about I bring you some of the best view as an apology or treat you, how does that sound?” Varian thought about it then he nods with content, Y/n took his hand to lead him the way as they laugh together.

#tts varian #rapunzels tangled adventure #varian x reader #varian #i love him

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paintbrushnebula · 1 day

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How would you have fixed/ wrote tangled the series if you were the executive producer/ creator?

Hoooboiiii good question!! Haha because like, I’m actually kinda prepared to answer this, because I’ve thought about what I would’ve liked out of a Tangled sequel and, tsk I gotta tell you it’s very VERY different from the series XD

However even though the series isn’t my idea of a Tangled sequel, if I was at this moment granted a wish that would allow me to magically alter the series as a whole, retroactively, I wouldn’t remove anything that the series introduced, because I like a lot it. I like Varian, I like Lance, I like Adira, I like Bruce Campbell, I like all o’ dem fools. Oh and the bangin’ SONGS YELL HEAH! Good food ^^. I also think the Sundrop and Moonstone stuff, the Demanitus stuff, even the Zhan Tiri stuff all sound cool on paper. Queen for a Day was pretty unforgettable for me so I’m not itching to change that in any major way. I honestly wouldn’t want to change the whole series in any major ways. Just, y’know, fix what’s there. Improve the flaws. Develop the underused characters and backstories. Make Eugene’s story mean something and matter. Make Quirin’s note mean something and matter. Add more moms for crying out loud. Explore Rapunzel’s trauma and actually SHOW us her recovery iIn full detail.

Oh wait. Actually I WOULD make a dramatic change: Arianna is the focal parent NOT Frederic. That’s literally going hand-in-hand with “write Rapunzel’s recovery better.” She needs to see what a good mother looks like.

OH KRIFF ONE MORE THING XD yeah Cass being Gothel’s daughter is SOO OUT XD

Moonsandra can stay but she’s gotta have better motives and an actual set goal or smth Jesus

The Zhan Tiri disciples song a villain song. Heck, Zhan Tiri gets a villain song. OOOF could you imagine Zhan Tiri getting a song in the same vein as “In the Dark of the Night” from Anastasia??? That’d be so cool, oh jeez.

Also I’d have the broadway stars be casted a little more creatively, like, I love what they did with Eden Espinosa, Jeremy Jordan, and James Monroe Iglehart, but I wish they went even harder with it. Gavin Creel being casted as that disciple (I dont remember his name) is exactly what I mean. Get Andre De Shields as someone! How about Susan Egan? Ooooh please could we get Aaron Tveit in there somewhere? Sigh, in my dreams I guess.

Oh, and make sure they actually get to sing ^_^

One last major change would be to make Eugene’s mom live alongside Edmund. Literally I dont get the big issue media has with doing the “estranged parent” trope and restricting it to one parent (who is usually the father). Like what is it with Hollywood and writing BOTH parents? What’s wrong with a seasoned older husband and wife reuniting with their son, becoming key supporting characters in the story?

I like Edmund too much to get rid of him, so. Why not have two cakes?

Oh btw Eugene’s mom would be Susan Egan. No debate.

Also I’d have the score be directed a little differently. Have actual leitmotifs that aren’t using music from the songs (as much as I like when that happens). Give Rapunzel and Eugene a “love theme” that also gets used for any time any other character is growing as a person or going through changes, like some type of “dream” theme that represents that character having and pursuing a want or goal. Then when Cass or Varian become evil, you twist that “dream” leitmotif to sound sinister because their “new dream” is something dark and twisted. Then you take that and incorporate it into their themes to make villain themes. Could you imagine if Varian and Cass had leitmotifs used when they were good, then when they betray Rapunzel, those leitmotifs are musically altered to sound sinister???

WOof, sorry, this was ramble-y and has poor grammar/sentences. I hope this is all readable XD

#tangled #brushneb says stuff #tangled the series #rapunzel #disney #eugene fitzherbert #tangled varian #tangled cassandra #tts #rta #rapunzels tangled adventure #asks #disney rapunzel

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nerdasaurus1200 · 19 days

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Cassie, Gleam and Glow

The story of how the gang found out Cass glows in the dark!

“Hey Varian? Next time we go somewhere where you think you might’ve double crossed someone from your Mad Alchemist days…do us a favor and tell us.” Lance wheezed as the gang finally stopped running.

“In my defense, it didn’t help that you and Eugene stole from the Sultana.” Varian pointed out.

“Well, on the bright side at least we got away.” Rapunzel tried to cheer them up.

Eugene leaned on Rapunzel so he wouldn’t fall over, “On the negative, we’re probably banned from Agrabah.”

“So what now? We head home?” Angry piped up.

“No, you girls need rest.” Cassandra instructed, “Luckily I was able to make a crude map of Agrabah the last time I was here. There’s a cave we can spend the night to hide out in and then we’ll take the airship back in the morning.”

“That’s our Cassie. Always so resourceful!” Varian praised.

~~~~

Deep into the night, Eugene groaned as he began to stir. He almost forgot how much he hated sleeping on rocks in the middle of nowhere. If it weren’t for the campfire, spending a night in the desert like this would truly be torture. Of course it was an even greater benefit that his beloved wife was practically a walking furnace thanks to her magic.

“Eugene? You awake?” He heard Lance whisper.

“Yeah, I’m up.” Eugene whispered back, “These rocks are killing my back. I’m gonna have to see the royal masseuse when we get back.”

“It would help if you put out that dang lantern.” Lance muttered.

Eugene chuckled and rolled over, “It’s your blue lantern, you put it out.”

“Nah, it’s yours.”

“I didn’t pack a lantern.” Eugene suddenly raised his eyebrow. Both he and Lance slowly at up at the same time. Neither of them saw Varian turn on his new invention (he called it a nightlight) so where was that strange glow coming from? They looked over near the entrance of the cave and there they saw it, something humanoid eliciting an unholy blue glow. It was too bright for them to fully see what it was.

However just finding the source of the light was enough to make Lance shriek and suddenly the light flickered and rose higher. Quick as a flash everyone else was awake.

“VARIAN, GET YOUR ALCHEMY SOMETHING GOT IN!” Lance wailed.

“Lance, what are you-OOF! Ughh….wha-hey! Get out of my bag! Get off me!” Varian tried to scramble away from Lance.

“Are the girls okay?! I thought I heard them scream!” Rapunzel fretted as she went for her frying pan. Then suddenly the light spoke.

“Would you fiddlesticking calm down, I can’t hear what it was!” Cassandra yelled, and Lance let out a squeak of terror.

“It’s talking! The light is talking!” He panicked. At his words Cassandra froze, and then turned to her friends in both annoyance and realization.

“Guys. It’s me.” She deadpanned. Everyone else looked at each other in confusion as the realization dawned on them.

“I won’t lie, that’s insanely creepy.” Eugene said bluntly.

“Yeah, humans ain’t supposed to glow.” Lance agreed.

“How did this even happen?” Rapunzel asked.

“I think it’s some side effect of the moonstone. I glow in the dark now.” Cassandra explained.

“How fascinating!” Varian marveled, and moved closer to inspect her.

Angry and Catalina however didn’t move from their sleeping bags. Instead they just watched the adults gawk over Cassandra’s strange new power.

“Did they really have no idea about this?” Catalina asked, “Even Varian? She’s been back home for a month now.”

“Adults are dumb, Cat. They don’t notice stuff.” Angry shrugged, “Especially with Cass for some reason.”

#tts #rta #tangled #tangled the series #rapunzel's tangled adventure #nerd talks #fanfic #fanfiction #drabble #rapunzel #cassandra #lance strongbow #varian #eugene fitzherbert #angry and red #kiera and catalina

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chrysochroma · 3 months

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So many ways to see the sunrise

@febuwhump 2024: Day 13: “you weren’t supposed to get hurt”

@badthingshappenbingo: guilty conscience (card is at the end)

Rating: Teen And Up

Words: 1,158

Fandom: Vat7k

Warnings: Violence, Injury, Crying

read on Ao3

first chapter

prev chapter

Title is from Everything Moves by Bronze Radio Return

Varian held his notebook up to the light of his staff, his eyes tracing the lines of the map he had sketched. He was deep in the jungle now, having to fight his way through hanging vines and stalks of bamboo. He was close; according to the map, the temple should be just a few minutes away. So, he continued on, his face set and his steps deliberate. Then, finally, his boot hit the solid stone of a cracked pathway, and the temple came into view.

It was made of blocky structures with carved out windows that were stacked on top of each other, looking like almost a puzzle of rooms. The textured stone was spotted with patches of sunlight where the beams shone through the layers of leafy canopy above. Vibrant green vines hung off it, draping to the ground.

Varian took barely a seconds’ glance at it, though. Instead, he tucked his notebook into his jacket and continued forward, only one thing on his mind—getting to the last key before his mom could.

Varian stepped into the darkness, his staff illuminating just a small circle around him. His eyes scanned the blackness for a second before he reached into his coat and pulled out a vial, then sprinkled the dust it held out onto his fingers. It was a dark maroon, with specks of shimmering lavender and a dark, rusty blue that shone in the light of his staff. He pocketed the vial, then snapped and flicked his wrist forward in one fluid motion, shooting the dust into the air. The dark metal pieces of his glove scraped together as he snapped, sending a spark tumbling across the powder. It caught ablaze right as it was flicked across the room, carried by the small lavender particles it contained. A line of fire was suspended in the air in front of Varian, casting a bright red glow over the room. Then, the line split into two as he moved his hand to the side, dragging the line away from the center by the darker particles, forced to follow the movements of Varian’s glove. He pushed the remaining line to the other side, then stepped forward, farther into the temple.

A voice came from the other side of the room. “Clever.”

Varian nearly jumped, but instead he swung his staff forward and held it steady, ready to lunge forward at a moment's notice. He exhaled. “Thank you. Mom.”

“Of course, sweetie.” She stepped forward, illuminated by a faint green glow. “You really are quite talented, Varian.”

“Thanks, but that doesn’t really mean much coming from you.”

“Well why not?”

He frowned. “Uh, you’re kinda evil.”

“So? That doesn’t mean anything. I can still call you smart, and I’m still your mom.” She continued forward as Varian stood, frozen, still pointing his staff at her.

“Yes, it does.”

Ulla smiled, a tinge of pity in her eyes. “I know it’s been a while-“

“It’s been 17 years!” He shot back, his muscles tensing up. “You’ve been gone for all of my life, and when you finally do come back, the first thing you do is try and get revenge on someone, not to mention the fact that you’re digging up things that shouldn’t exist in the first place!” He gestured wildly with his staff, his eyes wide and screaming.

She cocked her head to the side. “Demanitus spent years making these compounds. He created these powers for a reason,” She explained, her voice careful, but toeing the line of rage.

“Yeah, and he split them up and hid them across the world for a reason, too,” Varian retorted. “This stuff is dangerous, and that means nobody should be able to use it.”

“Not even for science? Experiments?” She moved closer. “Aren’t you curious about what they can really do?”

“I know what they can do, and so did Demanitus.” He dropped back into something of a fighting stance. “Which is why I can’t let you have it.”

Midnight blue daggers of metal shining like oil spills shot out of Varian’s pockets as he lunged forward, pushing his staff out ahead of him. Almost immediately after, Ulla returned his attack with a pillar of crystalline amber, shooting out of the ground in front of him. He jumped back to avoid it, but still continued to attack. Varian shot the daggers forward and pulled them back with incredible precision, always keeping them just out of Ulla’s reach. She, on the other hand, pushed forward with huge walls and boulders of green crystal, forcing Varian back. They traded blows in a careful dance, Ulla pushing Varian back but neither doing much physical damage.

Varian was forced to retreat to avoid getting crushed, but as he did so, he stumbled. One of the daggers wavered in the air for just a second and before he could correct it, Ulla grabbed it out of the air. With her other hand, she scooped a handful of the flaming powder from the line, then swept her hands together.

With a clap that could’ve almost been thunder, molecules crumbled in her hands and melded together, fusing them completely. The new compound flooded the room with a shining white light, seeming to flicker between states of matter every second.

“No,” Varian whispered. The fear in his eyes seemed to soak into his soul before he pulled himself out of his head and pushed his daggers back towards her.

This time, though, they were met with seemingly triple the amount of force as previously. Walls of crystal so tall they scraped the roof of the room hurtled towards him, giving him barely enough time to dodge. Then they would crumble, then dissolve, spreading puddles of acid all around him. Varian was fumbling, barely able to keep his daggers in the air as he tried to dodge Ulla’s attacks.

He looked back, trying to find solid stone to stand on. He looked up to see a flame covered bolt of magic shoot through the air, straight at him. A figure jumped in front of him, then fell to the ground.  Varian blinked. The world snapped back into his head as he stared at the body in front of him, and its familiar shock of blond hair. He spoke so quietly it was almost inaudible. “Hugo.”

Emerald flashed in his peripheral and his head shot up. His arm flicked out and a dagger followed. With deadly precision, it managed to just graze her temple. He wasn’t watching as she collapsed.

He fell to his knees and stared in disbelief at Hugo. “No, no, you weren’t supposed to be here,” He muttered, his voice dissolving into a sob. “This wasn’t supposed to happen.” His voice finally broke. “Hugo I’m sorry. This is all my fault and I’m so sorry, please-“

His world was dissolving around him and his world was laying in his arms. He didn’t think he would get either back.

#writing #creative writing #febuwhump #febuwhump 2024 #febuwhump day 13 #bad things happen bingo #prompt: guilty conscience #fandom: varian and the seven kingdoms #hugo vat7k #varian vat7k #varigo #vat7k #varian and the 7 kingdoms

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donnetellotheturtle · 4 months

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Protector

Chapter 4

Hugo knocked on the door of Varian’s lab as he heard an explosion. He threw open the door.

Varian was sitting on the floor, covered in green dust, laughing.

“Goggles what the hell!?”

“Youre late and I got bored!” Varian defended, still laughing.

“I…got held up what the hell are you doing?”

Varian stood, pulling his goggles off his face. Now his face was mostly green dust with two round circles around his blue eyes.

“Well, those things are after me so I figured a chemical that explodes and creates a barrier in front of me that can stop those things would be good…this was test number 1.”

Hugo paused. “huh. I can help you if you want.”

He raised an eyebrow. “you know alchemy?”

“Yeah. My mom taught me.”

“Okay. Come over and grab some goggles.” Varian grabbed a lint roller and used the entire sticky roll to get the yellow off him.

“Alright. So this is my formula for it.” Varian handed Hugo a paper with the formula. It only took a second before Hugo realized it. One of his calculations was wrong. He quickly fixed it.

“there, it should work better now.”

Varian looked at the new formula. “oh…oh I’m so stupid!” He said that with such glee and it made Hugo confused. Varian grabbed some more chemicals and started the process again.

Luckily this time there was no explosion. Instead, the yellow liquid in the bottle hardened.

“Oh…” Hugo muttered. “That’s not supposed to happen is it?”

“No…it needs to be activated by air…we’ll keep working at it. Ill get it eventually. But in the meantime…let’s get some dinner. I’m starving.”

Hugo smiled. “Where do you want to go? I don’t know where anything is…”

Varian put a finger to his chin. “Oh I know!”

Hugo had to admit, he really didn’t like being out in the woods with one small torch alone with Varian. The boy wasn’t stupid though. He was clinging to Hugo like a lifeline as they walked.

“Where are we going?” Hugo asked.

“The snuggly duckling.” Varian answered. “It used to be full of thieves and crooks.”

Hugo frowned. “and now?”

“It still is. But I’m friends with all of them! and they have the best food for miles.”

Hugo sighed. “How did you manage to drag me out into the woods…you know those things are not messing around, right?”

“Of course!” Varian had an odd look in his eye. As if he was planning something.

“Are you sure we’re going the right way?”

“Well, no…its kind of hard to see.”

Hugo groaned. “Goggles!”

“Look, I’ve been this way a thousand times.”

Hugo pushed the glasses up on his face to rub his eyes, exasperated. “Okay lets go back. Itll be safer in town.”

“We cant.” Varian said.

Hugo raised an eyebrow. “Why?”

Varian smiled nervously. “Okay you’re going to think I’m crazy.”

“I already thought that.” Hugos frowned grew. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw something in the dark. Hugo turned around. “Wait.”

Varian paused. The forest was dead silent. Hugo didn’t like it. “Get behind me.” Hugo ordered. Varian didn’t question it, holding tight to Hugos waist with one hand.

Little did Hugo know Varian was also searching through his bag with his free hand for something. These things weren’t going to take either of them easily.

Then, out of the darkness, a blast of teal light came at both of them. Hugo raised up a hand to defend his face, but it just grazed him, clearly only trying to hit Varian. Varian himself threw a pink vial and hit something in the dark, making an explosion. “Run! That stuff won't last forever!”

Varian grabbed Hugos hand and dragged him. “Varian you-”

“I thought they would come here. Come on I have a plan.”

Hugo was about to argue before he saw the look on Varian’s face. He knew exactly what he was doing. Hugo followed in his stead.

The two of them hid behind a tree. Varian shuffled around in his bag. “Where is it?”

“Varian.” Hugo snapped. “What the fuck is going on?”

The teal haired boy just grinned as he found what he was looking for. An empty vial. He uncorked it and rolled it on the ground. There was an awful squealing and then the sound of something freezing in place. Varian laughed to himself. It was almost evil in nature.

The two of them stepped out, looking at the creature. Just one…Hugo thought that was weird. He didn’t let his guard down as Varian looked it over. “This wont last long. Just long enough to get a sample.”

“A sample!?” This guy was insane. Hugo put a hand over his mouth. “You dragged us out here, put yourself in mortal danger for a sample!?”

Varian cocked his head to the side as he got some of the goop in a vial. “Yeah.” He corked it. “How else are we going to find out what these things are? Running away isn’t solving anything.”

Hugo mentally rescinded his previous statement about letting varian get hurt cause he was about to punch him.

“You’re an idiot. Come on, lets get back to town before more of those things come. And then I can kick you in the shins for tricking me.”

“Would you have come along otherwise?” Varian asked.

Hugo paused. “Probably. But just cause im paid to.”

Varian smiled. He knew that wasn’t the reason he would have come along. He then frowned. In hindsight, he would have told Hugo his plan. Then maybe they could have figured something out together. “…I’m sorry, Hugo. I should have told you.”

“Yeah…” Hugo sighed. “You are right in one aspect…ignoring the problem isn’t going to fix it…lets make our way to that tavern you mentioned before.”

—

Around an hour later, the two arrived at the snuggly duckling. The pathway was brightly lit which made both boys feel better.

Varian had said hello to every person when entering, all of which who seemed to know him quite well. The two grabbed a table towards the back.

“You’re sure that’s not going to pop out and attack us?” Hugo asked as Varian looked at the corked vial.

“Yeah…probably.” Varian frowned. “If only I had my tools with me.”

The goop itself was writhing in the vial, trying to get out and attack Varian who just stared at it. “It looks like opal but liquified.”

Hugo gently took it. “You’re right…hm.” Hugo pulled out his alchemy book, then thought for a second. “I think I know who to take this to.”

“Really? Who?”

“Her name is Donella.”

Varian choked on his drink. “The witch?”

Hugo glared. “Yes the witch.” He didn’t like the way Varian spoke about his mom.

“But shes notoriously not good! She will kill us for even coming into her camp!”

“Maybe shes not so bad.”

“Have you heard the things shes done?”

Hugo was about to retort before someone sat down. Hugo recognized her immediately. Nuru.

“I think, I could be of service.” She said with a knowing smile. Varian raised an eyebrow.

“Who are you?” Varian demanded.

“A surveyor of the magical arts. In other terms, a wizard.” She smiled and snatched the vial from Hugos hands. “A strong spell, only for one victim though…” she reached into her pocket and grabbed a tiny book. She then unfolded out and it got bigger and bigger. She then opened it.

“Woah…” Varian mumbled.

Hugo rolled his eyes. “Witches and wizards are exactly the same, you know. How do we know we can trust you?”

Nuru gave him a look. The conversation he had with her earlier didn’t sit well in his stomach. He didn’t trust this girl. Not when it came to magic and especially not when it came to varian.

“Wizards are not the same. We study for our magic. It’s a very prestigious position in Estelle you know. Meanwhile witches just have magic. They didn’t earn it.”

Hugo and Nuru stared at each other, both challenging each other to say something. Then varian cleared his throat. Both looked at him.

“Anyway.” Nuru said. “I’m more than willing to help. In fact, it’ll suit all our needs.”

“And your need is?” Hugo asked.

Nuru sat up straight. “Classified. Not that I would tell you if it wasn’t.”

“Okay so what do you know about these things?” Varian asked.

“Honestly?” Nuru started. “Not much. But my book might know more.” She opened it up, and only held a hand over it as the pages flipped by themselves. Varian raised an eyebrow. She stopped on a page. All of them looked over the table to see properly. Unfortunately, the boys couldn’t understand what any of the words meant.

“Hm…eternal library…do either of you know anything about that?”

Varian nodded. “My mom went there when I was just a baby…she never came out.”

Hugo looked at Varian. He looked… hurt? Sad? Angry? Hugo couldn’t quite tell.

“I have her journal too. Its back at my lab in the castle.”

“Okay well, these things are connected to that place. The protector of it decides who does and who doesn’t get in…and who dies in the process.”

The boys looked at each other.

“It also protects the magic of it, and those who steal it…only one problem.” Nuru said.

“What?” Varian asked.

“You didn’t steal anything did you Varian?” Nuru stared at him, the boys baby blue eyes went wide.

“I…no.”

“So here’s the question. Why, and how did your mom give you it?”

There was a stark silence between the three. Varian thought about it hard.

“To protect me. She stole the magic of the eternal library. And gave it to me.”

“And now the protector wants it back.”

Hugo frowned, thinking of his book back at Xaviers workshop. The magic in his hands sparked. He shoved them in his pockets. Now was not the time.

“So how do we do that?” Hugo asked.

“No clue. There’s no more information.” Nuru said. “One thing’s for sure, this thing’s not going to stop chasing you. You’re 18 years in debt to this thing, magic wise.”

The sparks fired up so badly in Hugo’s coat pocket that it felt like he got burned. Hugo couldn’t let Varian get hurt. He’d only known him, a little less than 48 hours but something about the other boy made him want to keep him safe.

“I’m not a witch though!” Varian said. “I don’t know how to use magic!”

“If I were the protector, that would make me angrier, I think.” Nuru said. “The magics stolen then never used. Pretty insulting.”

Hugo heard the door open. He poked his head out of the nook, and saw…Donella? What? She was supposed to be back at the camp. The magic in his hands sparked bigger. He’d have to take care of those burns later. Right now, something was wrong. He started at her and noticed something. Her normally blue eyes were teal.

“Guys. We have to go. Now.”

Nuru and Varian looked at him confused. He pointed Donella out. Both looked afraid.

“Why is she here?”

“I don’t know. But look at her eyes, theyre teal. Like your hair stripe. Like the library.”

Nuru and Varian looked at her and then looked at each other. Nuru folded up her book. “Both of you stay close to me. I’m going to get us out of here.”

“No we cant use magic.” Hugo said. Varian gave him a look. Hugo didn’t have time to back track. “Varian, you know this place the best. How do we get out without her seeing us?”

“There’s a secret exit behind the bar.” Varian said. “We just need someone to make a distraction.”

Varian looked at one of the men at the bar, a short man with a long white beard, who was seemingly drunk out of his mind, and smiled.

“Shorty!” Varian whispered. The man looked over. “Distract that woman.”

With that simple command, the bar devolved into chaos. Shorty got up on the table and started singing, making Donella, and everyone else groan. That’s when a big nosed man tried to punch him but missed and ended up hitting Donella. She immediately got angry. The bar turned into a full on brawl.

Varian crouched and tapped the shoulder of a hook footed man. He provided cover for the three of them to get to the exit and varian pulled a beer lever with a duck on the top. Instead of liquid coming out, a tunnel opened. Hugo had Nuru and Varian go first. He spared a look at Donella. She didn’t even see him. He tore his eyes away and closed the tunnel behind him.

< >

Read this on A03!

#varian #hugo vat7k #tangled varian #varigo #nuru vat7k #donella vat7k #my writing #protector #chapter 4 #varian and the seven kingdoms #vat7k au #vat7k fic #vat7k #witch AU

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pansy-picnics · 9 months

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DAD LANCE IS SO REAL TO ME He calls Varian "Little guy" and adopted two minority teenage girls, he's DEDICATED to making sure there's no more kids going through what he went through. He's mature enough to be a dad to two teenagers, he just indulges in their chaos because he's FUN, not stupid. He's a SILLY LITTLE GUY in a COMPLICATED DIRECTION He's not just the funny guy the fandom makes him, he takes care of kids and teens because they remind him of himself. He's SO SWEET, and he absolutely sees himself and Eugene in the three criminal teenagers that would have had an easier life if adults had been kinder to them. He sees Varian, Catalina, and Angry and remembers how close he was to being like them. To being Varian, who was screwed over by the adults in his life. To being Angry and Catalina, who would never let each other go and are thieves, just like him and Eugene. Also in Hugo, but I'm leaving the rat out of this I CAN NEVER SEE LANCE LETTING A KID SUFFER BECAUSE HE'S JUST. A DAD. HE'S THE FUN DAD THAT LET YOU RUN THOSE LITTLE TOY SKATEBOARDS DOWN RACETRACKS THAT HE HELPED YOU BUILD THAT DON'T REALLY WORK BUT ARE FUN ANYWAYS

HES LITERALLY SUCH A DAD GOD!!!!!!! no because he loves the 7k kids so much too. honorary children to him. he got SO close to adopting yong before varian assured him he had a loving family back at home. and him and nuru are literally best friends nuru’s just a teenage girl with the weight of a whole kingdom on her shoulders and she genuinely wishes she had a normal childhood but she’s been surrounded by destruction her whole life. i think it’s why she likes hanging out with the main cast so much. lance is one of the people who is constantly reminding her that she’s ALLOWED to just be a teenage girl.

i’m so tired of him being made out to be childish and stupid when he just WANTS TO MAKE PEOPLE HAPPY AND HE ESPECIALLY WANTS THESE KIDS TO HAVE A GOOD CHILDHOOD!! i think in a way he messes with varian because he sees him similarly to how he sees nuru later. he sees him burying himself in his work and how it’s affecting him and he genuinely wants him to lighten up and just. Be a kid. and i think they eventually communicate this and varian tells him to be more careful with his stuff while promising lance that he’ll try to be less serious all the time…….i’m so ill about them Actually

BIG BROTHERS OF CORONA SHOULDVE BEEN HIS EPISODE AND I’LL DIE ON THAT HILL!!!! SAME WITH WHO’S AFRAID OF THE BIG BAD WOLF!!! HOOK FOOT SHOULD NOT HAVE HAD MORE EPISODES THAN HIM I WILL LOSE MY MIND. THEY ARE ALL SO IMPORTANT. TO ME.

#tts headcanons #ask #lance tag #vat7k #pansy rambling again #tangled ask

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that-one-ranpo-kinnie · 11 days

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SO I FINISHED TANGLED THE SERIES and I feel like saying some stuff!!! TW// Dark subject matters

I understand Varian's villain arc on as close to a personal level as it gets. I think I'm qualified to talk on this subject because, see, when I was 14 myself- my dad collapsed with what I thought was a stroke at the time.

We were arguing over how he sounded drunk and I just wanted to spend some time together on his weekend with me. I panicked so bad, I thought it was my fault for having made him go to theme parks with me frequently, knowing of his high blood pressure. I thought it was my fault for not achieving enough? I panicked, I called an ambulance, I was in absolute hysterics. They wouldn't come fast enough, so I was sobbing on the edge of my driveway HOPING a car would stop and take him hospital right away. I got comforted by some girl from school who I was pretty sure actually hated me up until that point, but no adults came to save the day.

I was on the phone to 999 on and off on my own phone, with the landline being used for the main call. I thought about what would happen if my dad didn't make it. I was pissed that the state of the NHS allowed for this to happen. I was 14, terrified, and angry. I thought if my dad died, I would do something drastic. I'd unalive myself, or I'd fight the government head on. Bonfire night core! It was a badly thought up plan, but what else could I do? The person on the other end of the line to me was horrible I think; she sounded so apathetic- like a kid just wanted their father to be okay, why be so harsh in your tone? But it's a job, a career- how many other crying children call every day? A lot I imagine! Well anyway, my dad came to, and he later got diagnosed with having a different condition after a mini stroke- but if he was having a full, normal sized blood clot in brain stroke- he would've died because the ambulance took too long.

For a while, I was bitter at the NHS- at the ambulance staff. My dad was clearly more important, why couldn't they help him FIRST? But as I grew up, I realised that's what everyone thinks. Why would my family be more important to a grandma with a failing heart? To victims of a car accident? It's the system's fault, not the helpless medical workers.

The same thing can be applied to tangled the series. Varian's villain arc stems from what he thought to be his father dying due to his own reckless actions and Rapunzel not helping. In the eyes of a kid, this is the ultimate betrayal- not realising that his situation was clearly more important. His situation was a priority. Couldn't she see that? Well, that's because she physically couldn't spend her time going to help Varian when the entire kingdom was on the line. Just like how a 999 operator has to work in a 'who called first' and 'how severe' order, Rapunzel had to work with what could prevent the most amount of deaths. It physically wasn't her fault, she couldn't let everyone else die for one person. If she didn't make that choice, everyone would've died. She didn't WANT this to happen to Quirin, but she couldn't stop it or else EVERYONE would've died. Varian wouldn't have understood that though; he was like 14-16, his whole world got shaken up negatively and now one of his only friends is actively refusing to help. Did she not care about him? Did she not care about his dad? Were they lesser citizens as they were from old corona? That was obviously not the case, but that's certainly what Varian was thinking as he got dragged out of the castle. Rapunzel wasn't in the wrong for not being able to help Varian- but Varian wasn't in the wrong for freaking out and going slightly insane after his entire life went to shit as a child.

I pride myself on always being intellectually above my age group, but it took time and actual, intentional reflection for my thought processes to change on the 999 operator who kept speaking to me on the phone when my dad was unconscious- unresponsive. I assume it took Varian even longer as his dad never semi recovered after a few hours. Varian went to jail, where he probably realised he lashed out at the wrong people. Whole heartedly though, just like how I still dislike the Gov't now- Varian had every reason to be mad at the King and the adviser who let the rocks in Corona get as bad as they got. He just took his frustration out on the wrong member of that Royal family. Remember, Rapunzel was 18- she was still a teenager too. Not as young as Varian, but she certainly wasn't a mature adult- ready to handle such a situation.

#tangled the series #Personal take #MY OPINIONS #Guys don't hatecrime me- I spilled lore

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gayleafpool · 8 months

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okay so hugo and varian as wolfwalkers. who bites who

OH UR NOT EVEN READY. IVE BEEN SITTING ON THIS AU FOR MONTHS!!!!!!!!! had 2 scour a discord chat for stuff bc i KNOW i’ve talked about this before and i was right hehe. OK LISTEN UP!!!!!!

k so. donella is a wolfwalker and has been since before she could remember. she accidentally turns ulla when they’re teens but it works out fine bc ulla thinks this is awesome so everything seems cool for awhile. and then ulla gets w quirin and she has varian etc etc u know the drill but all the while she keeps the fact that she’s a wolfwalker hidden from quirin. UNTIL. one day she ends up getting killed by a wolf hunter while she’s in her wolf form. donella sees it happen and has to go tell quirin. oof ouch. then she moves faaaaar away to try and move on. varian ends up not being a wolfwalker and quirin is like oh thank god. but lol sorry man that wont last long. and then the events of tts happen as normal varian commits crimes and goes to jail quirin gets amberified etc. then post tts varian is struggling to fit in and move on cuz he’s got no friends his age and most people in town don’t like him bc of his history and he just feels very lonely and like he doesn’t belong anywhere. and one day he’s just kinda hanging out in the woods outside old corona and he stumbles across a wolf. the wolf is hugo ofc. hugo backstory in a moment. so hugo sees him and assumes oh shit human in the woods he’s gotta be a hunter so he instinctively attacks him and bites him on the arm, before quickly realizes wait nvm this person has no weapons and obviously wasnt expecting 2 see me so he jumps off him and runs away. but too late varian has already been bitten. so he starts doing wolfwalkery shit and is freaking out and trying to figure out what’s going on while keeping is a secret from his dad. meanwhile donella finds out what hugo did and basically tells him to get lost bc he’s too irresponsible and put them both at risk by changing someone who was supposed to be uninvolved in this. and for reference hugo got changed into a wolfwalker by donella when he was a kid bc she figured it would make him a more effective spy/conman. now he can kill people as a person or as a wolf haha 2in1 bonus. so anyway hugo goes back and finds varian and meets him while in human form and tries to be like heyyyy hi i have absolutely no ulterior motives for talking to you. btw have you been having any weird dreams lately. and they sort of hate each other for awhile bc hugo blames varian for being the reason donella kicked him to the curb and varian is mad at hugo for biting him. and wait you know what would be funny what if donella wants to kill varian bc she sees him as a liability and what if she says hey hugo u can redeem urself if you kill him for me bc i know he trusts u and then uh oh choice time. meanwhile both varian and hugo and constantly trying to not get murdered by wolf hunters (quirin probably for extra angst) (maybe idk cass or eugene too even more angst) (this is excessively long) (have a good day)

#asks #im genuinely debating writing a fic #varigo

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theaceofskulls · 3 months

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Fixing WoW's Modern Story: BFA

Got stuck the other day thinking about World of Warcraft story fixes and I've got to get it out of my head.

It began with me thinking of how I've come around to how the faction conflict was handled in Legion, where a complete misunderstanding and actions taken led to two specific members being the ones to duke it out and it shifted into an entire rewrite of BFA and SLands with a quick detour at the start to Legion.

Anyways let's start.

There's very little I'd change about the main story of Legion to be honest (but I have opinions on zones and class halls). But I think the major thing I'd change to start out is not killing Vol'jin.

It feels like it was done for parity because that's something that the community and blizzard at the time were obsessed with. If something bad happens to one side, the other has to get an equal black eye. But it was clear that Varian was the focus with getting Sylvanas into the Warchief seat as the other driving force and I feel like it undercuts a lot of potential down the line.

So to change, he still gets stabbed, he still nominates Sylvanas to take over due to Loa whispers, but instead he's now in a coma. And to add to it, the Horde starts trying everything but his condition keeps worsening. This furthers the bad blood between the two factions as rumors about dark magics being practiced by the Orcs, Trolls, Blood Elves (letting them be edgy again), and even the undead are reaching the Alliance. This also gives the other leaders something more tangible to be working on than the assumption that they're just fighting the Legion elsewhere.

We end things mostly the same way, with Azerite being a thing from the wound but we're going to change some stuff. The big stinger though isn't the goblins mining, it's news that Vol'jin has awoken.

Now onto BFA.

First up, I'm doing this as a fix it, not a replace it, meaning I still want this to be a Faction War xpac with a void twist. But we're going to do some massive changes to get there.

Acknowledging fan discussions done to death by this point, everyone is correct and it's the most common items mentioned: Teldrissal burning is too far and the Alliance has to be the ones to strike first in order for it to play out.

However, we're going to make some changes to things.

First up, let's go to Vol'jin who has come back into things. Sylvanas will attempt to hand over the title of Warchief to him, but he declines, saying that she lead them through the Legion invasion and deserves to command the armies of the Horde. Before anyone can say anything, he then states that the Horde must change and that it will no longer be ruled by a Warchief, but by a new leader. Title pending here but let's go with True Chief.

This rankles some people but others want Vol'jin back. Sylvanas steps back, complicated expression on her face. Vol'jin sees the Azerite found and decides it's time to start mining to fix the damage done by the Legion and to empower the horde. It should be noted that there's a little bit of a mystery on whether or not Vol'jin is benevolent on his return or if there's hidden plans. We'll lean into that later.

Meanwhile the Alliance is now confronted with multiple new items. The Horde emerged from Legion strong. Tyrande fumbled the Nightborne who are looking to join the Horde along with the Highmountain, though they have been bolstered by Alleria and Turalyon, both of whom have opinions on the Blood Elves, the Undead, the Orcs (with the Lightforged also taking some particular umbrage), Theramore, and Genn's reports about the Broken Shore and the mysteries of Vol'jin's recovery.

We make a point here to start to address the concept of the Alliance and what it means and whether Anduin should even be the leader of it. The reports of Azerite being mined add to the fire, as do reports of undead activity (more on that later).

Rather than copying Makani's homework here regarding the undead-be-gone (though it's a great option to also stick here), this does eventually lead to a conflict that escalates to Lordaeron after Blight stores are detonated too close to Gilneas during one of the border conflicts.

One thing that players discover that they're unable to share in time for the battle however is that both alliance troops and forsaken involved in a couple of these conflicts seem... wrong. And some of the damage to the surrounding area doesn't seem like it was the Blight.

Before we get to that we're going to rework Before the Storm into here with some minor tweaks because I like Calia and elements of that story enough to keep and because I'm trying not to toss too much here.

However, a couple of important details here. First up, Sylvanas reveals that despite Vol'jin's proclamation, there have been troop movements in the eastern kingdoms that she hasn't been informed of, including some forsaken, so when Calia appears and the council begins forming, she begins to panic. However, before she does anything, someone else kills the Menethal princess with an arrow that disappears in a puff of black smoke. One of the undead in attendance claims Sylvanas planned this all along to complete her revenge on the family that wronged her, but in the aftermath this undead is not among the captured or dead and no one can identify them.

The Battle for Lordaeron happens. On the Alliance side, we see Anduin take to the field to try and solidify his hold on the fracturing Alliance. During the battle, he is overwhelmed by oddly powerful soldiers after being separated. With his sword knocked from his hand, he tries to reach out for the light only for a darker power to answer, obliterating his foes to his horror. The Light still answers him and he tries to push past this as he regroups with his allies.

On the horde side, we fight a losing battle as something is stopping teleportation magic from working. We suspect it to be Jaina when she's revealed, but the times don't match up. Blood Elf reinforcements along with Nightborne who traveled with them show up but it's not enough to turn the tide of the focused Alliance. As those inside prepare for a last stand, not sure that they would be able to surrender, Blight begins to erupt from the ground. Sylvanas denies this to be her fault to Saurfang (who had been sent with an advance force to hold out), but it's clear he doesn't believe her and at this point it's not clear if she's telling the truth. Eagle eyed players noticed some horde soldiers leaving the battle to retreat underground during the middle portion of the battle before a general retreat inside was sounded.

The alliance manages to teleport away to the surprise of the Horde. While they confirm it's working, they'll never be able to get everyone to the silvermoon gate in time. This is when we see the airships of the Horde arrive, allowing escape just in time.

Vol'jin takes the news poorly as Lorthemar and Thalyssra attempt to console Sylvanas who is fuming about losing her home. It's revealed at this point that a shipment of Azerite was raided, with signs pointing towards the draenei and night elves. Vol'jin declares that he won't have enemies in Kalimdor any more, but promises Baine that he will show mercy to them if they surrender after he objects. Baine is given command to ensure this, enraging Sylvanas who should as Warchief and who is still upset over Lorderaon.

We move towards Teldrassil now, though Alliance players are allowed to learn that the shipment raid is suspicious as it seems to have come from Theramore and the Azerite has vanished completely. An investigation was launched but the ships vanished along the way. Something is wrong but the World Tree is in danger and we have to move to save it.

This battle is more solidly in the side of the Horde. Most of the Alliance's attempts to fight back fail unexpectedly. Dwarven and gnomish ammo and machinery is missing or damaged. Darkshore's nature seems to be working against them for some reason. The Vindicaar is experiencing malfunctions. Something is wrong and it's quickly apparent the battle is lost.

Malfurion stays to buy time for an evacuation but is beaten and captured (I'm not killing him in this because while Night Elves won't suffer as much, I'm not doing that after Ysera went down. Nelves still have to take a black eye but don't worry we'll do better by you before the xpac is over). Unfortunately, not everyone gets out.

True to his word at least, Vol'jin spares those left behind, but Teldrassil is occupied by the Horde. We're going to have some small raiding adventures later for the alliance to rescue people, including some smaller named Nelves to give the feeling of fighting back and a little bit of underdog love to it down the line.

At this point though, it's clear, it's open war now.

We still need our navy plot line but we're heading into this with one big change: It's clear to players who have been following along that someone is pulling the strings.

(Quick aside, we're just going to have the allied races be left alone. I'm gonna be typing too much anyways here and I want them in)

So we'll start with the Horde.

We still have Talanji approach the Horde and honestly we still have Rokhan be one of the primary characters there too along with Nathanos. We're going to edit up the leveling story but this is gonna be a long post so I don't have time for that here. We do raise the question of how relationships will work out between Vol'jin and Rasatakhan all things considered but we're mostly keeping some stuff the same.

When we get to the war campaign, we still have Sylvanas raise Deryk and Baine still gets pissy and eventually sends him to Kul Tiras, but Vol'jin shuts down the plan to use him as a hostage but doesn't condemn Sylvanas for raising him. She does it as she feels she's losing control of the military and isn't actually in command in anything but name and wanted to enact a scheme. She's also concerned that several of her soldiers appear to be MIA or have disobeyed commands.

This culminates in her killing Zelling under the belief of him being a traitor when it comes out that he's the one who alerted Baine to her scheme. Baine is disgusted but it's not enough to make him quit the Horde but he demands she face justice. Vol'jin points out that as Warchief it's in her rights but chastises her as well.

Meanwhile this sets up more conflict between her and Saurfang where the players will eventually pick a side but it's less of an obvious "pick the resistance or the clearly evil tyrant".

Meanwhile on the alliance side we're making some more changes this time around. Sure the fact that Sylvanas isn't in charge changes a lot of the war campaign, but for this side we're starting with some immediate stuff.

The first thing of note is that the theme of Kul Tiras is going to be different. It needs to be about the Alliance being a force of building and healing rather than just gathering up the different nations together to fight together. It still does that part but one big thing is to work on how your actions make peoples' lives better.

(Note: I am primarily a horde player but part of my fix-it for this xpac involves examining the alliance and its justification for continuing to exist after the faction conflict is over. This is not a "The Alliance needs to be the good guys" because trust me that's not going to happen)

Most of the zones need just slight tweaking but Drustvar is where I'm setting my sights on fixing things. Drustvar is so disconnected and while I enjoy it, it also could use some extra touch ups.

To do that, the Drust are just flat out going to be pointed out as a result of a flare up of Death magic. We're gonna do better setup for the next xpac and we're not going to have them be a weird afterthought. We could also maybe use a lore character to weave into here to explore that rather than leaving them until the end but again runtime on this post is too long here, let's keep moving. (I'd pick Vereesa to get her into a story about Theramoore here and have her do something a little more relevant for once)

We do need to weave in more Ghuun things into Kul'Tiras for the raid to make sense though. That's important. We'll eventually have Anduin learn about it and task the players with taking care of it as he's concerned about the Void stuff that keeps popping up.

Going to the war campaign, we're going to work on it in a number of ways. First up, the stuff you don't see on the Horde side is going to appear over there. Horde players will learn about the San'layn and the blood elves using Anima (pandaria era). The San'layn are going to hint that they're throwing in with the horde because events in Icecrown are unfolding.

What we're going to add here is Telaamon as a rising star in the Lightforged army and we're going to have him butting heads with Velen who is looking at finally healing in the wake of the victory over the Legion. Since a large amount of Draenei are vindictaars, more and more have been joining the ranks of the Lightforged, and Telaamon is firmly in the hawk faction of the Alliance at this point, having learned more about Draenor and is furious. Velen is worried that his time has come to an end and that he should step down and let another lead.

In both Kul'Tiras and Zandalar, we're going to have some of those Azerite zones not just have people trying to harvest it, but we'll also have some void stuff going on as an attempt to corrupt it. That's just to hammer home for people who have somehow missed it where we're heading.

We have some patch content to go through now.

Calia has her stuff alongside Deryk but Voss is less... admiring (I charitably considered it shippy but it always came off more as "the rightful heir" until they attempted to change course in SL). Xal'atath is still let go but not due to Sylvanas. In fact this is probably the time to actually have some void elf specific content come up.

We have a couple of reports on the alliance side that the Zandalari fleet is sinking ships, but Shaw and Flynn don't find anything true to that after digging but the ships are missing.

With Vol'jin not dead we instead do a little more with Talanji and him as characters as a questline. Vol'jin will by this point have been a little more aggro than players were expecting and will acknowledge that himself, wondering if the stress has gotten to him.

Quick side trip, let's address Arathi. We're still keeping that warzone but we're building it up more. We're pointing out that the hawk faction is supporting the reconstruction and emphasizing the fact that this was where Before the Storm went down. With the Wildhammer Dwarves and the Arathi Kingdom on the rise, Vol'jin authorizes fighting there, while Anduin is concerned about the human kingdoms splitting. He meanwhile tasks you with finding out who killed Calia. Players will discover an undead corpse, thoroughly corrupted by void magic.

Dazaralor still unfolds though during setup we have Telaamon fight against Saurfang and dies facing the orc but not before rattling him about his actions in the past (because I like that one bit of his story). This eventually deepens his feud with Sylvanas but it's also to allow us to air out the scars the factions have against each other.

Rastakhan is killed, Talanji declares vengeance and things seem worse than ever.

Lastly we have Darkshore with the Night Warrior as a rescue mission (and attempted retaking of the tree, and while the latter isn't successful, we do free Malfurion).

We move to the next patch and we've got to address both of the zones.

Mechagon starts up not because "Bwhaha, I will rule the surface world" but because all of the void corruption that has led to the King deciding that the curse of flesh must absolutely be undone right now.

Mostly things unfold the same way but we fix that zone to be vastly more interesting outside of the dungeon or just make it into just the dungeon.

Nazjatar is a lot different however. Well mostly it's the same. Azshara schemes to get our artifact power to fully free N'Zoth and kill him in one blow but we're doing something fun:

Inciting incident is that both sides have received reports of a giant island of azerite and both rush to get there first. We're keeping the boat the same but we're not having Nathanos leave since this isn't a trap set up by him and Sylvanas. However here's where a lot of the characters learn about the void saboteurs that have invaded their armies and been egging on this war.

While Nathanos and Genn both still want to continue the conflict, when both of them realize that the conflicts that started this fight were done by agents of their own nations with Genn realizing that Gilneas is at risk of being consumed consumed by the void and Nathanos realizing that so much of his queen's suffering has been caused by Azshara's meddling, the two are convinced by their allies to parley. For now.

Btw, the raid happens similarly, and Azshara lives in the same way. Because I love her and support women's wrongs.

Meanwhile, since Saurfang isn't in exile (I don't know what to do with Zappy Boi in this fix but I'm not too concerned with sitting down and figuring out what to do with him since his character seems to begin and end with Saurfang), we need someone else to pull Thrall out of Outlands because we might want him down the line.

And here's where I put Anduin, who has been losing control of the Alliance as the hawk side has begun to really take over as the war has gone on. I'm also using this to parallel down the line for the War Within because let's assume we planned that far ahead.

Anduin goes there in part to try and get someone who Vol'jin respects to tell him about the dangers he's discovered. As the conversation unfolds, Anduin questions if he should just give up the High King position. Thrall realizes the parallel with his own decision to give up the Warchief position to Garrosh, looking to the distance in Nagrand at where the duel in the alternate universe took place. He tells Anduin he regrets the pain he allowed to happen by letting the Horde be led by those who only want war and the atrocities committed because he felt he couldn't be the one to lead it. Both of them leave determined to put an end to the Fourth War.

The Horde players get to have a Saurfang vs Sylvanas questline here as Sylvanas begins executing various people very publicly all of a sudden and the players are asked to pick a side.

Saurfang's side uncovers that Sylvanas has been deteriorating over the course of the war, egged on by the factions own hawk faction such as Gallywix (who has decided to encourage the Warchief in order to help sell more weapons and keep the azerite profits coming), Talanji (mourning her father), Geya'rah (since we don't edit the allied quests too much she's still convinced the alliance is outright evil), and a couple of the sub leaders. Moreover, he learns the Vol'jin isn't blind to the various plots and schemes we see throughout the war campaign and that he's allowing the executions. Saurfang realizes at this point that the Horde will always be at war and feels that the very position of Warchief is to blame, with some shots of him seeing Sylvanas in the same light as the Lich King and shots of his dead son scattered throughout it.

He comes to a decision: he must eliminate the Warchief position somehow if they are to break free from this and finally find peace, with his talk about how honor is a lie being given to someone other than Anduin.

(Sorry I'm robbing anduin of a dad, but he collects those like pokemon)

Sylvanas supporters meanwhile get to see the full nature of how everything was manipulated by the void and learn her executions are targeting void agents. However we also get to learn that there's movements in Icecrown and Sylvanas has been receiving psychic messages from what she believes to be the Lich King, terrifying her. She confides in the player that she has seen the other side and can't die or be enslaved again. We see hints of the death magic radiating off her.

Both of these quests end with Saurfang publicly challenging Sylvanas to Mak'Gora for the position of Warchief with the duel taking place later.

Swapping to the Alliance side, Anduin summons his council. We frame the shot to very clearly show the hawk side is in the majority by this point. Notably, Genn is still among this side. Anduin reveals his findings that the war has been manipulated by agents of the void and Azshara. This is going to be one of those "hard to place if it comes before the raid" type cutscenes so we don't mention Nzoth being freed by this point.

Night Warrior Tyrande points out that while the war may have started under false pretenses, the Horde still hold Teldrassil and still threaten the Alliance as well as how much losses have been incurred by all up to this point. Jaina is the one to break the silence that follows, speaking of her experience back in her home and stating that the scars we gain don't define us, but how we choose to move forward. That continuing to suffer helps no one. She stands by Anduin but most of the hawk faction continues to hold their ground.

Tyrande asks if this want for peace is an order from the High King, asks directly if she and her people, and gestures towards the others, if their people should heed his commands because of his lineage. Another silence follows.

Anduin speaks up sorrowfully and asks "What is the Alliance for? Is it a weapon to strike back against those that wronged us? Is it a shield we only turn to when there are enemies before us? Are we united only by hate, strangers to each other when that is gone? Are we just soldiers who fight alongside each other? Was I a fool to think we were friends and family".

We show several members of the hawks looking to one another. Moira gazes away from the meeting, towards Magni who is waiting a bit away, watching apprehensively. We see a bandaged Mekkatorque looking towards the other members of the three hammers. We see Genn look at Anduin, squeeze his eyes shut before opening them again and striding forward to put a hand on his shoulder.

"We are here for one another when they need us."

Moira comes forth joined by the other two, "We move forward together."

Malfurion looks at his wife and daughter and moves over to Anduin, a look of small surprise on their faces before saying "Together, we protect this world and those that live in it"

Shandris looks at her mother and joins the rest of the others as the slowly drift towards the other side. Squeezing her eyes shut for a second, she opens them and moves forward herself, asking "well then, what path would you have us follow?"

Anduin shakes his head, "Not follow." He gestures to those around him and says "We shall lead our people forward. For the Alliance. For Azeroth."

A smile crosses Tyrande's face only to be interrupted by a messenger bursting into the room with a message, from Vol'jin. The gathered members turn together to hear what he has to say.

(Unfortunately I'm working still within WoW story constraints here so we can't actually sit down and plan what the new direction of the Alliance would be and we still have to have grand but vague gestures to illustrate that everyone is now on the same page but that it's from a position of strength. The forums will still hate it but I don't respect them enough to care).

The duel arrives, and we see a gathered crowd. The horde leadership is seated on a small platform, watching the empty arena apprehensively. As we cut to shots of Sylvanas and Saurfang preparing, a figure approaches the leadership from the side, making his way past the seated leaders, those noticing him showing their surprise on their face. Vol'jin fails to notice as he's observing the arena too closely until the voice shakes him from it.

"Mind if I sit here?" Thrall asks, depositing a chair next to the stunned but slightly gladdened troll.

The two exchange some words but Thrall becomes serious and says "We need to talk. About the Horde."

Their conversation is interrupted by the duel's start. During the battle, which is less one sided but not as much as you'd expect, Saurfang declares to Sylvanas that these wars must end, that the Horde must change. From Sylvanas's side we hear whispers that we can't make out. She blocks one of Saurfang's overhanded blows with her daggers easily and begins to push an advantage, stating that all she's ever done is to protect everyone and that they don't understand the true danger out there. (I'm sorry to those of you scarred by this from the actual story but we're going to have to still keep some vague gesturing right now)

Saurfang rallies, and if we somehow kept Zappy Boi, we'll have the two of them exchange looks before he manages a solid blow and gives her that stupidly small scar. She's knocked to the ground and Saurfang tells her to give up and that she can still serve the horde, but not as Warchief.

We're gonna copy paste the "Serve" bit from the Sanctum of Domination cutscene here, with Sylvanas rising up, whisps of dark energy gathering on her arms. Saurfang closes his eyes regretfully and prepares to charge for the killing blow as the undead elf extends her hand with the expected line of "I will never serve!"

"For the Hord-" We have our blast and Saurfang is dead to the shock and horror of everyone including Sylvanas though she's the quickest to shake it off, loudly proclaiming those in attendance to be blind and that she will be the one to save them before taking off.

Thrall questions if it was void magic only for Vol'jin to say it was something else. Something familiar.

After Saurfang's funeral, Thrall approaches Vol'jin to tell him he needs to end this war, to focus on the true enemy, N'zoth. Vol'jin gets angry with Thrall and during the conversation we see evidence that Vol'jin has a little bit of that void in him, though in a moment of realization, he loudly shouts that this isn't him, and it is expelled by a wave of force. The shadowy figure that emerges from the discarded void energies remarks it's a pity but that all will serve soon enough anyways.

Thrall asks if his friend is alright, and Vol'jin states that he's got one last enemy to fight but afterwards, things need to change. The two nod and say their "For Azeroth"s together before Vol'jin summons a messenger and says he needs to tell something to the Alliance.

Anduin still punches Wrathion cause we gotta though we show the king trying to manage the void corruption with some light magic. Unfortunately 8.3 plays out mostly the same but I'll have N'zoth trapped in the dagger rather than killed outright with the dagger taken by the Light or something at the end.

God that's a massive post. We'll get a part 2 for Shadowlands.

#world of warcraft #god this is massive and the shadowlands one is going to start with me locking you all in a box to talk about zovaal so i'm sorry in advance #look if you hit expand know that it's gonna go on for awhile #battle for azeroth

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