#and that’s the story of how Varian got out of jail

[tangledbea]

I know you already talked about Adira, but what are some other things that felt like they'd be a bigger deal when they debuted but kinda got shafted? I, for one, think of the scroll, which kinda served its purpose, got destroyed, and left more questions than answers, and Varians connection to the brotherhood most of all. I don't even think we got a scene of Quirin telling Varian about the brotherhood, but by the season 3 finale, Varian already knows. That was a conversation we missed.

I agree about the scroll. There is so much in the design that I thought was going to be touched upon. Like this section:

What does all that mean? Control over plants and animals? I thought the combined Sundrop and Moonstone were going to represent this whole... power of creation thing, or something.

Frankly, I've never been particularly interested in the "Varian's connection to the Brotherhood" angle. Quirin's life as a member of the Brotherhood is well and truly behind him, and Varian isn't actually "connected" to them at all. They're people his dad used to work with, long before he was born. Does this mean I don't think they'd be interested in getting to know him and vice versa? No. At least, not necessarily. But while Adira was clearly aware of Varian, she made no attempt to make contact, even when the kid was completely alone. But I never thought that would be a big deal in the story, which is what you're asking me.

I thought Lady Caine was going to be a much bigger deal than she turned out to be. As the primary villain of the pilot movie -- and with a very good point and driving force behind her -- I definitely thought there'd be more to her than the occasional escape and needing to be stopped and returned to prison. (Ever think how she and the other criminals took over the prison barge, but there's not a guard to be seen? She killed those people, or had them killed, and threw them overboard.) I thought she was going to join forces with Andrew in jail, since they had a common goal. (And yeah, by the end of S1, I thought Varian was going to be involved in that gang as well.)

I know I've talked about it recently, but I thought the hourglass in "No Time Like the Past," the shell in "Day of the Animals" and the dragon egg in "Pascal's Dragon" we all pointing toward Matthews laying a subtle attack of chaos on Corona, trying to weaken it from the inside. I thought he and Sugracha were going to make a return, even if it was just because they were still trapped in the Lost Realm, and would spend part of the finale making the lives of the heroes who got trapped there hell (instead of the goofy nonsense we got instead). I expected this so much that every time they weren't used or mentioned, I expected them to show up farther along down the road.

I thought we were going to learn what exactly Gothel's role was with the Disciples of Zhan Tiri. I thought they'd explain why she split from them (if she split from them) and talk about how her greed over the Sundrop flower resulted in her not getting a powerful spirit form or something. I thought the fact that she was one of them was going to be a bigger deal.

I thought Cassandra's burned arm was going to be a bigger deal, especially considering how it was the catalyst that caused Cassandra to close herself off from Rapunzel and let Zhan Tiri in. But once it served its purpose to cause a rift between them, it didn't even matter that it had been so severely injured. That's even the hand she grabbed the Moonstone with, and the glove on that side was blue, making it stand out. I thought the decay was going to be spreading over her body under the suit, and the Moonstone was going to be the only thing keeping her strong and well. But the injured arm didn't even matter anymore.

I thought Eugene's past was going to be a bigger deal. He knew Lady Caine. His best friend from the orphanage and thieving days returned as a supporting character. He has an ex-fiancée, who is the daughter of the most powerful man in the criminal underworld outside of Corona. But the next time we saw Stalyan, she didn't even have anything to say about her dad who, the last time we saw him, was dying from a spider bite. Not only did she not mention him, she was even semi-reformed (and not by Eugene). Eugene's entire past was only really touched on here and there. I appreciate that they shed any light on it at all, but it was much less than I was anticipating.

There's probably more, but I slept terribly last night and I've got a headache, so this is all I can think of right now.

#Tangled #Tangled the Series #varian #the scroll #Lady Caine #eugene fitzherbert #cassandra #mother gothel #stalyan #the baron #Andrew #matthews #sugracha the eternal #TTS #Answered #The Brotherhood

[whaleiumsharkspeare]

*at Varian’s trial*

Varian: Your majesty, I’m not trying to bribe you, but would you like the other half of this cosmic brownie?

Frederic, whispering: Dear gosh

Frederic: This boy goes free!

#and that’s the story of how Varian got out of jail #tangled the series #rapunzels tangled adventure #tts varian #varian the alchemist #incorrect tangled quotes #incorrect quotes #source: vine #cosmic brownies

[rocksandrobots]

Phantoms of the Past Chapter 16 - High Voltage vs The Super Sonic Skaters

"Nana, Nana, look what came in the mail!" Stu rushed into the room waving a letter in the air.

"Not now Sugarcakes," Sue sweetly sang, "Nana is busy planning our next crime spring."

She looked up at the blackboard before her. It had a map on it and push pins marked the locations of her potential targets.

"Now that my dear old friend, Kensei, is in the slammer, we don't have to lie low any longer. This whole city is just ready for the picking." She chuckled in her throat.

Stu pointed at the letter in his hand again, "That's great Nana, but I also..."

"Now what did I tell you about interrupting people, Stu?" His grandmother said, ironically interrupting him while at it.

"Not to do it." Stu replied with a sigh and hung his head in shame.

"That's right, darling. Now go get your gear, we're going for a test ride." She grinned and Stu hurried off to find his stakes. Pocketing the letter as he went.

                                                 ------------------------

"And that's why my baby girl and I decided to give up crime. Ain't that right sweetheart?"

"That's right mama, and the police said that we could get time off on our parole if we attended therapy."

"That's how we found your little reform school."

Varian and the rest of the members of the Supervillain Reform School listened intently as mother and daughter finished their story. They both had long blond hair and held each other's hands as they recounted their unique crime spree. They both controlled electricity through dance. Where they got the technology to do so was still a mystery, but with it they had held up banks and fought superheroes. Until they got tired of going to jail whenever they lost that is. 

"Well thank you Barb, and Juniper, for that touching confession." Globby said from behind the podium. "While our meetings aren't a replacement for any needed physiatrist visits, support groups like ours can be a beneficial addition to regular therapy. In fact I know many of our members also attend regular counseling. Why don't we go around the room and each introduce ourselves to our newest members. Carl, will you do the honors of starting us off?"

Carl stood up, holding Noodle Burger Boy in his arms. "Hello, My name is Carl."

"Hi Carl." the group stated, though everyone already knew who he was. Carl nodded his recognition before continuing on. "I used to be a goon for hire, but it's been a full six months since my last shake down. Since then I've straightened out my life, found love, obtained new legal employment, and most rewarding of all I've become a foster parent."

He hugged Noodle Burger Boy afterwards who returned the embrace gleefully. Globby beamed proudly at both of them, and even Trina couldn't help but give a little smile at that.

"Yeah, and you're the bestest stepdad ever! You and Globby both!" NB crowded.

El Fuego busted a gut laughing and slapped his knee. "Aye! You are in good company, senoritas. We're just one big happy family here."

"Would you like to go next, Salinas?" Globby asked.

The large man became uncharacteristically sheepish. "Uh yeah.. My name is Salinas and I'm also known professionally as El Auga, formerly the mecha wrestler El Fuego, and I may have tried to beat up a fourteen year old."

"You tried to beat up a little kid?" Barb asked.

"Well in my defense, I didn't know that he was a kid at the time." Salinas pouted. "I thought he was just a really short guy. Besides you fought him too, remember? He's the head of Big Hero Six?"

"Captain Cutie?" Juniper asked.

El Fuego nodded yes.

Varian snorted despite himself and coughed to cover himself.

"He's only fourteen?" Barb asked, "Huh... that must be why we ran into them at a high school dance."

"Are they all in high school?" Juniper innocently asked.

"No college." Trina corrected. "'Captain Cutie' got into undergrad school early."

Both Varian and Trina started snickering after she had finished.

"What's so funny?" Barb asked.

Globby gave both teens a frown and they straightened themselves up. "They happen to know 'Captain Cutie' personally. Many of us have befriended Big Hero Six since reforming ourselves."

"Really, what are they like?" Juniper asked.

"Annoying." Trina snarked, and Varian snickered again despite himself.

Globby gave the teens another stern look.

"What?" Varian defended. "You don't have to live with him."

"You live with a superhero?" Barb asked.

Varian nodded his head sheepishly.

"Doesn't that make dinner kind of awkward?" Juniper followed up.

"W-we usually don't discuss such matters at the dinner table." Varian answered.

"Then why are you here?" Barb asked.

"Yeah, what is your story anyway?" Salinas said. "I've never heard it either."

Varian pressed his lips together tightly.

"It's ok," Globby reassured him.; resting a slimy hand on his shoulder gently. "You don't have to talk about anything you do want to. Share as little or as much as you would like."

Varian looked around the room wide eyed. Everyone was sitting in a semicircle inside  the conference room of the community gym. They were all staring at him expectantly. This was only his third meeting with the help group but he already knew most of the people here. 

His eyes rested on Trina who sat next to him. She was one of the few people he had ever confided in, and here she was now ready to give him her support as she rested her hand on his other shoulder.

She understood. They all understood. They were all broken just like him; that's why they made this support group.

Varian took a deep breath and squeezed his shut before blurting out. "I led a violent revolution against my home country's ruling class; designing deadly weapons, overthrowing the royals, and subjecting loyalists that supported them."

Awkward silence fell over the crowd and Varian timidly opened one eye to see everyone's shocked reactions. His eye landed on the newcomers last, whose mouths hung open agape.

The mother, Barb, tapped her daughter on the shoulder eagerly. "Now see that Juniper," She said, "that's a man with ambition." 

Juniper sighed and rolled her eyes to the heavens, "Yes, mama." she moaned as if she was used to such lectures.

Varian only blinked in confusion.

"You said you were dealing with bullies," Carl added, "I can't think of any bully that's meaner than a corrupt government."

"Aye, amigo. No wonder you came to America." El Fuego said.

Globby coughed, "Well yes, while we don't want to encourage violent behavior, it would seem that your situation is rather a unique one, Varian. However, we're very happy that you're here with us now."

"Told you so." Trina whispered in his ear.

"Hey you skipped over Sis!" Noodle Burger Boy called.

Trina rolled her eyes. "I caused a robotic uprising and tried to conquer the city." She recited annoyed.

"And I used to be a master thief." Globby said, taking the attention away from Trina so she wouldn't feel placed on the spot any longer then needed to. "We all have our pasts. The important thing is that we do what we can to work for a better future. That's why I want to challenge each of you to do at least one good deed for this week. It doesn't matter what it is, big or small, but try to do something for someone else and give back to the community. Now, who wants cookies!"

And with that Carl brought around a plate of his homemade cookies.

                                                ------------------------

"Welcome to Big Hero Six's headquarters!" Fred shouted as Wasabi parked the car.

"It looks like an abandoned candy factory." Tadashi commented as they all got out of the vehicle.

"On the outside that is..." Fred said as he opened the doors to the building.

Tadashi looked around at the worn out conveyor belts, machines, and scaffolding. "Yeah, it still looks like an old candy factory."

Hiro walked past him with a smug smile and punched some numbers on a nearby keypad.

Suddenly the wall unlocked, split in half, and slid open; revealing a high tech office space with monitoring screens and super-suits lining the walls.

"Woah."

"See I told ya!" Fred cheered. "We're superheroes now!"

"Wh-where did you get all this gear?" Tadashi whirled around looking every which way at the electronics and custom armor.

"Made most of it myself," Hiro said,"uh, with some input from the rest of the guys. As for the headquarters itself, Fred hired a specialist to build it out of his family's old factory."

"Specialist?" Tadashi asked.

"Roddy Blair, King of Lairs." A middle aged man with a bushy red beard proclaimed as he walked out of one of the adjacent rooms carrying a tool box. "How ya doing?"

He handed Tadashi a business card as he introduced himself.

"Uh... fine?" Tadashi responded as he read the card completely bewildered.

"Good, good." Roddy nodded absently before turning towards the rest of the teens. "The last of the bedrooms is finished and I installed another bathroom. Seems like you'll need it with this many folks comin' and goin'."

"Oooh, did you paint my room pink?" Honey Lemon eagerly asked.

"All bedrooms have been built to the requested specifications; including the dinosaur shaped bed with the interior drawers." Roddy replied.

"Aaaandd the inside pool with a water slide?" Fred asked.

Roddy looked at him deadpanned. "No." he said and then turned to leave.

"Thanks for all your hard work Roddy." Hiro said, stopping the man from leaving. "We appreciate it... uhmm, but we might need another bedroom. See my brother just got back an-"

Roddy held up a hand. "Sorry Hiro, but you'll have to leave a note with my secretary if you want any more commissions. Now, I need to hurry or I'll be late."

"Late for what?" Wasabi asked.

"I gotta date tonight." Roddy winked. "See ya later. Bye."

"Awe, how sweet." Honey Lemon exclaimed as he walked away.

"I guess there's someone out there for everyone." Gogo commented once he was gone.

"Okay, so Fred has enough money to build an elaborate clubhouse, and you've come up with some pretty cool cosplay costumes, I'll admit," Tadashi said. "but you don't really expect me to believe that the five of you go out and fight crime on a daily basis. Come on."

"No, of course not." Wasabi said with a sly smile. "There's also Baymax."

"Together we're Big Hero Six." Fred shouted as he wrapped an arm around Tadashi.

"Big Hero Six?" Tadashi echoed. "Let me guess you came up with the name."

"Sure did!" Fred beamed.

Just then an alarm rang out. Hiro ran over to the large computer screen on the back wall. 

"Looks like Supersonic Sue and her grandson are back." He commented as a news report flashed up on the screen. 

"Who?" Tadashi asked as he watched an old lady on roller skates exit out of a bank carrying a large sack of money on her back. 

"Hey, this is great!" Fred cheered. 

"Why are two supervillains holding up a bank, 'great'?" Gogo asked. 

"Because this gives Tadashi a chance to join us!" 

"With what armor?" Wasabi pointed out.

"Hmmm…." Fred thought for a moment and then snapped his fingers as he came upon an idea. He ran to his chameleon suit hanging on the wall, pulled it down, and flung it at Tadashi. "Here, you can use my spare suit. It turns the wearer invisible." 

Tadashi looked down at the dead-eyed head of the lizard mascot suit and made a face. "Yeeeeaaah, thanks, but no thanks. Y'all have fun though." 

"Oh please." Fred begged and gave Tadashi his best pouty face. 

"What's the matter? Don't think you can handle it?" Hiro teased with another smug smile. 

Tadashi threw him an annoyed glare and then looked back at Fred's puppy dog eyes. He rolled his own eyes and began to put on the suit.

                                                ------------------------

"Bye, see ya later Trina." Varian waved goodbye to his friend as the support group dispersed from their meeting. Trina waved back and Varian made his way to the bus stop. Barb and Juniper exited the building behind him.

"A good deed huh?" Barb mussed. 

"Maybe we can donate our old dance shoes to the needy?" Juniper suggested.

"Now what would a homeless person need with ballet slippers, Juniper?" Barb shot back, and her daughter shrank back from her disapproval. Barb ignored this as she continued her thought. "No, what we need is to do something big. Something important. Something that utilizes our unique talents....' Barb suddenly stopped and snapped her fingers. "I got it! We'll become super heroes!"

"Super heroes!?" Juniper protested, "But mama, I thought we were trying to have a normal life. What part of being superheroes is normal?"

"Now, Juniper, why would you want to be normal when you have all the makings of a star!? Besides, we have a debt to society to repay, and who better to catch supervillains than former supervillains? If Globby can do it, so can we."

"But mama, we don't even know the first thing about superheroing. Where would we even start?"

"Oh nonsense, baby girl. It's the same as showbiz. You got to know the right people... remember?"

"It's all about contacts." Juniper recited in a tired fashion.

"That's right, and I think I see our contact right over there." She grabbed her daughter by the hand and dragged her over to the bus stop.

"Yoohoo, hello!"

Varian looked up from his phone to see Barb waving at him.

"Uh... hi?"

"Juniper and I were just so inspired by your story today. Imagine going through all that, running away to America for a better life, and finding it with superheroes as roommates. That just.. must be so.. so.. um.. thrilling."

"Uuuh... I guess?"

"Tell me, do you do any superheroing as well?"

"Well, not exactly... I mean I help out sometimes b-but I'm not-"

"Good! Then you can show us the ropes!" Barb interrupted and both mother and daughter each hooked an arm around his.

"Oh but I'm not exactly a superhero..." But his protests were ignored as they escorted him onto the bus.

"That's okay neither are we." Juniper said as the door to the tram slammed closed shut.

                                                ------------------------

Tadashi tripped and fell for what felt like the millionth time that day as his friends raced ahead.

"How does Fred move in this thing?"

Honey Lemon skated to a stop beside him to help him up. "It's okay, Fred can't move very well in it either. That's why he prefers his regular monster suit."

"Great, my first time superheroing and I get a defective suit."

"No, the suit is fine, you just both need some practice with it." Gogo said as she also skated past, turning around and skating backwards just to show off. She gave Tadashi a cocky little salute as she did so, just to tease him a bit.

Tadashi felt his cheeks grow red, both in embarrassment and admiration. Damn, was she cool.

Honey Lemon gave him an apologetic smile and followed after her best friend.

"Okay, gang, if we're going to take down Sue and her grandson then we have to get the drop on them." Tadashi heard Hiro's voice over the intercom. "We don't want a repeat of last time."

"And by 'last time' you mean when she disarmed both you and Varian, crushed Baymax's personality chip, and locked the two of you in a giant shipping crate?" he heard Fred say.

"Wait? She did what now!?" Tadashi asked. He was ignored.

"Or are we talking about how she attacked us with an army of robot ninjas and almost sucked us all into the void before blowing us up?" Wasabi asked, finishing Fred's first inquiry.

"You guys are kidding me right?" Tadashi asked, but he was still ignored.

"To be fair, the portal going boom was Callaghan's doing." came Gogo's radio.

"When was this? I thought he was in jail?" Tadashi jogged after.

"Also the robot ninjas was Momasake's doing." Honey Lemon helpfully offered up.

"Is this intercom just not working?" Tadashi shouted.

"It'll be fine." Hiro slyly smiled, "this time we got a secret weapon."

"Wh-zz 's th- zz?"

"Oh sorry Tadashi, you cut out. Try using the intercom again."

All Hiro heard next was an annoyed groan on the other end.

                                                ------------------------

"Ah, Look! Look-look-look!" Barb called out as she shoved a phone into the two teens' faces. "Looky here Juniper! There's a jewel heist in downtown. We're in luck!"

"B-but downtown is in the opposite direction of where we're going." Varian pointed out.

'Not for long!" Barb grinned and pulled the emergency brake on the trolley. "Sorry, it's an emergency!" She called out as everyone around them grumbled in irritation.

Before Varian knew what was happening Barb and Juniper were hurrying him off of the tram. As soon as they got off Barb took off running towards downtown.

"Hurry up, Slow pokes! We don't want to miss them!"

Varian and Juniper shared a look before she apologetically shrugged and ran after her mother. 

Varian had a mind to get back on the bus but the trolley was already driving away when he turned back around. He gave an aggravated sigh towards the heavens before also running after the two women.

                                                ------------------------

"I don't know about this, Hiro." Tadashi said as the wind whipped around his ears.

Baymax had finally picked him up and was just carrying Tadashi in his arms as they flew through the air. It was embarrassing having to be carted around, and Tadashi was frustrated by how hard it was to keep up. The chameleon suit was in need of a complete redesign, he had decided.

However, what was even more upsetting was just how natural everyone else moved in their own armor. They had been doing this for over a year now and they soared, skated, jumped, and drove around with practiced ease. Even Wasabi had taken to driving faster and with more confidence than Tadashi had known him to do. And it was all just more reminders of all that he had missed out on in the year that was stolen from him.

So rather than acknowledge this uncomfortable truth, Tadashi preferred to complain about the ridiculousness of the situation he found himself in now.

"You seriously want me to fight armed criminals while dressed like a giant lizard?" He continued.

"It'll be fine." Hiro assured him. "All you have to do is distract them so that we can get the drop on them and capture them; and with the cloaking system turned on in your suit, they won't even know what they're 'fighting'."

"Ooookay and how do I turn that on?"

"Just press the little button on the palm of your hand?" Fred's voice came over the intercom.

"Which hand? What button?" Tadashi asked as he fiddled with the suit. Finally he pressed the button on accident and he disappeared from view.

"There see, you got this." Hiro assured him.

"Yeah, but I don't know how I did it..." Tadashi complained, only for Honey Lemon to interrupt.

"There they are! They're heading into an alleyway!"

                                                ------------------------

"Woohoo, boy, look at all this loot!" Sue cheered as she and her grandson hid in the alleyway. "Ain't it just like I told you? Stick your good old Nana, Stu, and you'll make it big in this business."

"Uh-huh, Nana," Stu agreed as he shifted through the stolen jewels. "This will pay for my tuition easily!"

"Tuition!?" Sue asked. "What tuition?"

Stu was going to answer her when a loud noise sounded behind them.

"Ssshh, hold that thought, dumpling." Sue whispered; pressing a finger to Stu's lips.

They heard someone shout in pain and a trash can lid rolled across the alley and clattered on the pavement.

Grandmother and child shared a knowing look. Together they snuck behind the trash bin, each taking an opposite side in order to pin down whoever was hiding behind it. Only no one appeared to be there, the space was empty.

Both looked at each other confused. Only to hear another sound as someone kicked the lid. They looked towards the noise and suddenly a giant lizard fizzled into view.

Well not a real lizard, but a person wearing a lizard suit.

Giant chameleon and supervillains stared at one another in surprise for a brief moment.

"Oh shoot!" The person in the lizard suit said before trying to runway, only to trip and fall almost immediately.

The super skaters stalked towards him, wicked grins forming on their faces.

"Well, well, well, what have we here, Stu?" Sue said in amusement. "Another wanna be superhero?"

"Uh.. Hiro? I need you to come in now!" The lizard-man shouted as he struggled to get away. "Hiro!? Guys!?"

He continued to trip over the suit's tail even as the larger of the two villains reached a hand out to grab him. "Uh.. fellas? Are you there!?  Stupid intercom !?" He cursed.

Just then he felt himself being lifted off the ground and his helmet flipped back revealing his face. He gave a nervous grin at the two villains.

                                                ------------------------

"Uh-zz... Guy-zz... I need-zz"

"What does he need?" Fred asked as they heard Tadashi's broken intercom call.

No other sound came.

"We better move in," Hiro said. "Let's go."

                                                ------------------------

They found Tadashi strung up and hanging from a lamp post, with some old sheets the speedster villains had found in the dumpster.

"Let him go!" Hiro yelled. 

"Ah, I knew you goody-two-shoes brats were in on this." Sue said. "You ought to train your newest recruits better." 

"Get me down from here!" Tadashi struggled with his bonds.

"I can take her." Gogo said, itching to fight her rival.

"Sue, this is your last warning." Hiro said.

Sue laughed. "You wanna him? Come and get 'em."

With that Gogo rushed forward, and the fight was underway.

                                                ------------------------

"Hurry up! We're.... we're almost there." Barb panted before leaning against a street lamp to catch her breath.

Varian and Juniper easily ran past her and towards the flashing lights in the sky, indicating the fight that was happening down the block.

"Wait for me!" She called out before picking back up the chase. "Kids these days."

                                                ------------------------

Gogo and Sue raced around the block trying one up each other as the rest of the gang worked to free Tadashi.

"Give it up girly. You know you can't beat me in the speed department." Sue gloated.

"I'll admit, you may have more speed, but do your old bones have the agility to do this?" Gogo led Sue to an out of order construction sign and slid underneath it, like a limbo dancer on skates.

Sue had to jump over it instead, avoiding getting slammed in the face, but breaking the board with her skate. The rocket on the back began to smoke. She failed to notice it as she growled and rushed to catch up to the younger girl.

                                                ------------------------

Varian, Juniper, and Barb made it to the end of the block that the fight was taking place on, just in time to see the supers battling Stu.

The large burly guy quickly dogged the projectiles flung at him and bulldozed his way through the heroes, knocking them all down. Save for Wasabi who was in the middle of freeing Tadashi.

Sue skated onto the scene, tripping Gogo up with a sudden stop.

"Let's blow this popsicle stand, Stu." She said and both began to skate away at top speed.... right towards the trio.

"Oh no you don't!" shouted Barb as she ran after Sue, shooting lighting bolts from her fingertips.

"Barb, wait! What are you doing!?" Varian turned around and ran after her groaning in frustration and huffing and puffing all the way.

Juniper readied her own lighting and took a shot at Stu.

She hit her target, but her victory was short lived when Stu lost control and ran right into her.

Both teens went tumbling into each other and landed on top of one another in the grass by the roadside.

"Get off of me you, you , oaf-" Juniper paused in her insult when Stu's helmet fell off as he lifted himself upon his elbows. Their eyes met and suddenly Juniper didn't mind having him on top of her.

"Hi" She breathed.

"H-hi" He whispered back.

They laid there for a moment more, just staring at each other, until reality sunk back in.

"Sorry" Stu blushed, as he got up.

"No, I.. I shouldn't have shot at you with my electricity. " Juniper apologized as he helped her up.

"I'm glad you did." He smiled at her and she blushed an even deeper crimson.

"Stu! Stop Lollygagging!" Sue called as she rushed by them a second time breaking the spell.

Barb hurried after her, using static electricity to surfer on a trash can lid.

"Don't let her get away, Juni!" Barb called out.

"Uh... I guess I better catch up to Nana..." Stu awkwardly said.

"Yeah, Mama will be expecting me to help her as well." Juniper agreed as she stared at her toes.

"Hey.. umm.. since we're going the same way, we could.. go together?" Stu asked.

"I'm supposed to catch you though." Juniper sighed, as their eyes met again.

"Well consider me caught then." Stu grinned. "Shall we?"

He offered her his hand and Juniper nodded enthusiastically, before jumping into his arms. Together they skated away while Juniper giggled with delight at being carried by the man of her dreams.

Varian came back around just in time to see them both flying by. He called out to them but they were already out of ear shot. He let out a whine as he slowly slumped after them.

                                                ------------------------

Baymax landed on the rooftop where the rest of Big Hero Six had gathered, carrying Tadashi in his arms. 

"Don't ever make me do that again!" Tadashi snarled as he struggled out of the robot's grasp, only to land on his butt with an 'ooofff'. 

"On a scale of one to ten, how do you rate your pain?" Baymax asked him. Tadashi didn't dignify that with an answer. Not that anyone was paying attention to him though. 

"Do you see where they went to?" Honey Lemon asked. 

"No." Fred said as he perched on the corner ledge and scanned the sky line. 

"As fast as they skate, they could already be in San Jose by now." Wasabi pointed out. 

"Grrr, and I almost had her too!" Gogo pouted. 

"It's okay Gogo," Hiro said as he joined them last, using his electronic whips to swing himself up onto the roof. "We'll get 'em. Baymax, start scanning the city for Super Sonic Sue's bio readings. The rest of us need to come up with a new game plan to take them down." 

"Are you kidding me!?" Tadashi shouted, finally gaining their attention. "This is what you've all been doing for the past year!? Picking fights with crazed lunatics on super steroids or something!? What's next? Giant man eating monsters?" 

"Naw, that was like two semesters ago." Fred said. "We're at the start of phase four now." 

Tadashi only stared at him in disbelief and the rest of the gang gave Fred an annoyed look. 

"You know what? This ends now." Tadashi firmly ordered. "I'm telling Aunt Cass what's up, because I know for a fact she wouldn't let you do this Hiro." 

"You… you wouldn't?" Hiro looked completely startled by this revelation. 

"I would, and I am, and the rest of you guys ought to be ashamed of yourself for going along with this scheme and letting Hiro put himself in danger." 

"I'm not in danger," Hiro protested, "and leave them out of this! They only went along with this 'crazy scheme' to help you!" 

"Help me!? How does risking your lives help me, Hiro?" 

Hiro pouted in confusion. He looked towards the rest of the gang for support. This wasn't what he had been expecting. He thought Tadashi would be proud of him. He thought his brother would want to join them in their noble mission. 

However, his friends seemed as equally surprised as he was and were too uncomfortable with the conversation to butt in. 

"Let's call the police," Tadashi continued, as if he had just won the argument. "They can handle the robbers and we can get on with our lives. Ugh… as soon as I can figure out how to get this stupid suit off, that is." He grunted in annoyance as he struggled with finding the zipper. 

"The police can't handle them." Hiro argued. "That's why we do this. We're the only ones with tech to match what the supervillains in this city come up with." 

"Then why not donate your tech to the police?" Tadashi argued back even as he continued to fight with the lizard suit. "Face it Hiro, you do this cause you like it. It's a high thrills game, same as the bot fights." 

"This is nothing like that!" Hiro shouted back, and everyone's eyes went wide. 

Tadashi stopped struggling with his super suit. "You're right Hiro, this is nothing like bot fighting. It's even  more  dangerous, and probably just as illegal. You finally have a future now, and you're wasting it on playing the hero.

"Says the guy who threw his life away by  running into a burning building !" Hiro screamed. 

Everyone stood still in shock at that. 

"Oookaaay, I think we better… not be here right now…" Wasabi said after a moment of awkward silence. "Maaybee we should go over to the next rooftop, what do ya say?" 

"Yeah, we...we can scan for the Super Skaters over there." Honey Lemon agreed. "Come on, Baymax." 

And with that everyone left save for Tadashi and Hiro, who simply stood there staring each other down. 

"Why are you doing this, Hiro?" Tadashi quietly asked after they had left. 

"Why did you run back to the fire?" Hiro angrily sobbed. 

Tadashi sighed. "I was trying to help…" 

"Well so am I! Why do you get to risk your life and be the hero, and not us!? Why can't we do what's right too? You said 'someone has to help'.  You  said that. I heard it. It- it was the last thing… the last thing you said be-before…" 

Hiro couldn't fight back the tears as he broke down again, and he hated it. Tadashi was back. Everything should be good again. So why did the memories still hurt so much? 

"You're… you're doing all this because of me?" Tadashi asked softly. 

Hiro nodded as he wiped his nose. He didn't trust himself to talk without bursting into tears again. 

Tadashi for his part looked utterly lost. As if he was only just now coming to terms with how much of an impact his actions had. 

"My god... Hiro… I'm so sorry." He whispered as he knelt beside his brother and placed a hand on his shoulder. 

Hiro blinked in confusion. "Sorry? F-for what? For doing the right thing?" 

"I'm.. I'm no longer sure if what I did was even the right thing anymore." 

Hiro searched his eyes in confusion, and it finally dawned on him that his big brother was… scared?... Tadashi was frightened, but when was Tadashi ever afraid of anything? 

"Wh-what do you mean?" 

"I mean… look at you! Look at our friends. Look at what's been going on; how much everything has changed… and... it's all my fault." 

"No… no. It's not your fault. It's Callahan's, a-and the Super Skaters, and all the other villains that we've fought." 

Tadashi shook his head. "It's not that simple Hiro. I'm still the one who chose to go back in. You… you're still the one who chose to dress up like a comic book superhero and stop crime…. And these choices have consequences. Mainly, making those you love worry about you." 

"Aaand what's the consequence if we choose not to do what we do?" Hiro asked. "Who gets hurt instead?" 

Tadashi sighed and then gave Hiro a sad smile. "You got me there. I don't know. Hiro, I act like I know it all, because I'm your big brother and I know you look up to me, but the truth is… I'm just a dumb college kid trying figure things out the same as everybody else… and right now, my whole world has been thrown for a loop." 

"Now there's an understatement." Hiro joked, and both brothers snickered. 

"I just don't want you getting hurt." Tadashi reiterated, getting back to task. 

"I won't. Honest… The guys and I have actually been really careful. We know what we're doing. Just give us a chance… Who knows, with a bit more practice, you might find that you like it too? " 

Tadashi slowly nodded. "Alright… I'll give it another shot, and regardless of whether or not I'll join in any more superhero outings, I'll support you and the rest of the guys." 

"Promise?" 

"Promise." 

"And you won't tell Aunt Cass? 'Cause she'd never understand." 

"And I won't tell Aunt Cass." Tadashi agreed. "I'll spare her from having another heart attack. That is, of course, so long as no one gets hurt. The moment anything goes wrong, anyone gets injured because of this, then I'm telling her  everything . The superheroing, the lies, Varian being from an alternate dimension, all of it. Got it?" 

Hiro nodded in agreement. "Okay, fair. Nothing is going to happen though. I have this under control." 

"Do you? Well, okay then. I guess San Fransokyo has nothing to worry about, Hiro Hamada is on the job." Tadashi teased. "So long as he doesn't blow the city sky high." 

He gave his little brother a playful shove and they both started to laugh. 

"I'm glad you two made up." Wasabi said over the intercom. 

"Wait, you guys were listening the whole time?" Tadashi complained. 

Fred ignored this. "We spotted Super Sonic Sue." He said. "And you'll never believe this but High Voltage is with her!?" 

"I thought they got out of prison early for good behavior?" Honey Lemon chimed in. 

"Well, it looks like they're back to their old ways. There goes Stu being all chummy with Juniper. " Gogo pointed out, as the couple sped past. 

"High Voltage teaming up with the Super Sonic Skaters could mean big trouble." Hiro said. "Meet us back on the roof. We'll head out after them."

                                                ------------------------

Varian finally caught up to Barb and Juniper at the corner of Main Street and First. He's legs ached, his stomach growled with hunger, and his head hurt from dealing with both of the two women's stubbornness. They were way in over their heads, and it just wouldn't do to show up at the next SRS meeting having to admit to everyone that two latest members had died because Varian couldn't save them from themselves. Trina wouldn't stop laughing at him for weeks if that had happened. 

To his horror, Barb and Sue were in the middle of a major brawl, causing a vast amount of collateral damage while trying to one up each other. 

Varian ducked as the window shattered next to him from being struck by a stray lighting bolt. This was even worse than he thought it would be. They were surely all going to be arrested for property damage, and going to jail again would be even more embarrassing than dying. 

"Barb! Barb!" Varian called out trying to get the older woman's attention. She didn't hear him. He fished out a spare chimball out of his coat and threw it at her, knocking the trash can lid that road upon out from underneath. 

"Hahahaha" Sue laughed. "Next time you ought to get a better dance partner." 

"Why did you do that!" Barb shouted at him. "I had her on the ropes!" 

"Sure ya did, Sugar." Sue taunted. "And I'm the Possum Queen of the Ozarks." 

"Barb, you need to stop!" Varian explained. "Look at what you're doing! I know you want to help, but we aren't prepared for this. Let me just call my fri-" 

"Nonsense. I got this! She ain't any tougher than a slippery talent agent." And with that Barb called the garbage can lid to her once more and flew after Sue, who was already skating away. 

Varian silently prayed to the heavens and whatever being controlled them, if such a being existed, to just take him out now. 

That's when he noticed Stu and Juniper cuddling on a bench nearby. 

"Don't you ever feel like you just want to skate away and never come back?" Stu asked her. 

"Uh huh," Juniper nodded as she rested her head on his shoulder. "And never have to listen to someone nagging at you ever again." 

"Uh, guys!" Varian waved at them trying to get their attention. "Yoo-hoo, Hello!?" They didn't notice.

"Hey, we should run away together!" Stu cheered. 

Juniper laughed, "and go where?" 

"I don't know… I hear Oregon is nice." 

"Oooh, and own a quiet little ranch with a pond." Juniper enthused. 

"Yeah, with duckies!" Stu said. 

"Uh, that's great you two, but what about stopping your parents first!" Varian butted in. He was still ignored. 

"Oh, but Nana would never allow it." Stu suddenly said with a pout. 

"Who cares what your Nana will allow." Juniper insisted. "Who cares what Mama says either! We're both 19. We're legal adults now, literally that's what the judge said when they sent us to jail. We can do what we want. It's our lives, not theirs!" 

"You're right! I'm going to go right up to Nana and tell her that we wanna live our own lives! Th-that is... if you'll come with me and hold my hand while I do it?" 

"Of course honey lips, and I'll tell Mama that I don't wanna be a superhero, or villain, or even a dancer. I just want to be your girl." 

They shared a kiss and Varian sarcastically slow clapped for them. That finally gained their attention. 

"I'm very happy for both of you, but in case you haven't noticed, both your Nana and your Mama aren't here anymore." 

Both Stu and Juniper took a moment to look around, finally noticing the destruction around them. 

"Where did they go?" Stu asked bewildered. 

"They took off down that way, still fighting one another." Varian pointed out. 

"We better go after them before they hurt one another." Juniper said, grabbing Stu's arm for comfort. 

"Yeah, they won't be able to attend any future wedding if they're dead." Stu innocently, and matter of factly, commented. With that he scooped Juniper into his arms again, who in turn sighed contently and nuzzled her head onto his broad chest. "Hop on my back little dude and I'll give you a lift." 

"Oh, I don't know…" Varian declined. 

"Hop on," Juniper encouraged. "It'll be faster." 

Warily and with more than just a little embarrassment Varian crawled into Stu's back. 

"You good back there?" Stu asked. 

"Yeah… I guess…" 

"Great, here we go. Hold on tight." 

Stu wasn't kidding as they took off like a shot and the world blurred around Varian as they went faster than even Gogo on a motorcycle.

                                                ------------------------

"There they are, I see them!" Fred shouted, "And it looks like… they're fighting each other?" 

"They must have had a falling out." Hiro commented. "That's good for us though. We can surprise them both while they distract each other." 

"Yeah, if we can catch up to them," Wasabi said over the intercom. "There they go again." 

"They are heading towards Bakers Street." Baymax helpfully pointed out. 

Big Hero Six followed the given directions and made chase after the supervillains.

                                                ------------------------

Sue sped up the side of a skyscraper at top velocity, trying to shake her pursuer. But Barb still flew after her. The annoying woman was even more relentless than those typical do-gooders that Sue usually fought. 

She came to a stop on the roof. 

"Give it up, and turn yourself in, villain." Barb announced as she joined her on the roof. 

"You're one to talk." Sue snapped. "Didn't you just get out of the slammer yourself?" 

"Yes! And my daughter and I have turned over a new leaf. It's called self improvement, ya old hag!" Barb shot another lightning bolt at her, which Sue dogged easily. 

"Honey, you ain't no spring chicken yourself." Sue commented. She gauged the distance to make a jump to the next rooftop when another voice called out. 

"Mama stop!" 

Both women turned to see Stu skate onto the rooftop as well, carrying Juniper and Varian with him. 

"You too Nana. This has got to end." Stu said as he gently set Juniper down and Varian fell off his back with a groan. 

"Oooh I never want to do that again." He said as he gagged. 

"Stu, what's gotten into you boy?" Sue asked. 

Stu gave a questioning look at Juniper, who gently laid a comforting hand on his chest. 

"Go on, you can do this. Tell her Sugar bear." 

Stu took a deep breath… "Juniper and I are in love." 

"What!?" Barb shouted. 

"Awe, ain't that sweet." Sue cooed. "His first girlfriend. Now, if you're all done being sappy we still got a lot of banks to rob." 

"No, Nana." 

"No? Whatta mean, 'no' !?" 

Stu straightened himself up and looked his grandmother in the eye. "I don't want to be a supervillain any more." 

"You gotta be kidding me. What garbage has she been filling your head with, son?" 

"Juniper!" Barb interjected. "Of all the silly, childish, nonsensical things you've ever done this has got to take the cake! I refuse for you to date this… this great ape of a correctional facility drop out!" 

"No Mama." Juniper said as she hugged Stu. "I love him. He's the only one who understands me, and he actually listens to me!" 

" I  listen to you." Barb insisted. 

"No you don't." Juniper shot back. "I said I wanted to be normal. Nothing has been 'normal' since you made me compete in that dumb beauty pageant when I was three. I just wanted to be a regular kid for once, and you broke your promise again seeking glory." 

"I.. I was just thinking of your future baby." Barb defended. 

"By turning me into a  felon !?"

"See what you're getting into Stu?" Sue butted in. "You don't want to be wrapped up in all that family drama. Let's get going. We can count the loot at the hideout." 

Stu held firm. "No, Nana. Stealing is wrong, and we're returning the loot." 

"Well now you just sound like your mother." Sue sneered. "And just how do you plan on making a living?" 

Stu looked to Juniper for encouragement and then pulled the letter he had been carrying around in his pocket. "I got an acceptance letter to San Fransokyo Art Institute. I wanna become an illustrator for children's books." 

"He's really good at drawing." Juniper insisted. 

"Oh for the love of Pete." Sue snapped. "There ain't no money to be had in being an artist!" 

"She's right." Barb sighed, agreeing with her rival. "There's just no respect for hard working,  talented, and not to mention beautiful individuals in this world " 

"This ain't about you Mama." Juniper snapped and Barb looked as if the wind had been knocked right out of her. She only stood there gaping like a fish that had just been caught. 

Just then Big Hero Six surrounded the quarreling group.

"Alright, hands up...'' Hiro ordered and then paused when spotted his adopted brother standing with the villains. " Varian ?"

Tadashi flipped back the mask of the lizard suit he was wearing. "What are you doing here?" he accused. "And why are you dressed like a pirate?"

Varian stiffened. "W-well why are you dressed like a chameleon?" He sputtered.

Tadashi went beat red, and shoved the helmet back down over his head.

"Sorry, if we made dinner even more awkward at your house." Juniper whispered to Varian sympathetically.

Varian brushed her off her concern. "Eh, don't worry about it."

"Varian, what are you up to this time?" Hiro asked.

"I'm trying to stop a disaster from happening." Varian said, offended. "And you're welcome by the way."

"For what!?" Wasabi said. "Joy riding with supervillains?"

" Supervillains !?" Barb screeched. "Well how do you like that!? That's gratitude for ya, Juniper. After all we did to help them?"

"That's right, mama." Juniper agreed.

"Uh... you helped us?" Gogo asked.

"Of course, we stopped the bad guys for you." Barb insisted.

"Bad guys?" Stu whined. "Are we bad guys?" he asked Juniper.

"Well, you did steal from a bunch of people, babydoll." Juniper meekly pointed out to him.

"Oh, yeah, right."

'Argh, I've had enough of this fiddle faddle." Sue rolled her eyes. "Contact me when you come to your senses, Sweetie Pie. I'll break you out of jail. Love you." And with that Sue started to stake away. The rest of the group moved in to get the jump on her, but were too slow.

Unfortunately, just as Sue was about to jump to the other rooftop, her broken skate sputtered, sparked and died; killing her momentum. She found herself suddenly falling.

"Nana!" Stu called out.

Just then Tadashi tripped on the tail of his super suit once more and out shot a sticky 'tongue' that wrapped around Sue's ankle, catching her.

"Wo-woah!" Tadashi yelled as he felt himself being dragged along the ground towards the ledge.

Fred rushed towards him and grabbed him from falling. Though they both struggled with Sue's weight.

"What the heck is this thing?" Tadashi grunted at Fred.

"It's a tongue. I use it to swing around in the suit." Fred explained.

"And you didn't think to tell me about this earlier?" Tadashi complained, as he gripped the tongue, to help keep from falling further. Fred could only give him a sheepish grin.

That's when Stu came behind them and lifted them both off the ground easily, pulling all three of them back to safety.

Everyone else also pitched in to help Sue back over the ledge without getting hurt.

She sat back down on the rooftop with a huff. "Okay... that could have gone better. Don't think just cause you saved my life I'm going to go all soft, now; get all sappy and start blubberin' like a loon."

"Are you okay Miss Sue?" Juniper sweetly asked her.

Sue blinked at her in surprise. "Oh, so it's 'Miss Sue' now? Next you'll be calling me Nana too, I guess?"

Juniper gasped, "I  can ? Oh, thank you Nana." and she wrapped the supervillian into a tight hug.

"Wait... I didn't mean..... awe, shucks."

"I'm glad you're safe too, Nana," Stu said before giving them both a huge hug. 

"Oooh, I can't stay mad at y'all. Let me in on this group hug!" Barb called out as she raced forward. 

All three ignored Sue's annoyed glare. 

"So now what?" Varian asked. 

"We call the police." Hiro said. 

Barb broke away from the group. "Oh we don't have to go back to jail do we?  We were only trying to help." 

"I...  don't know…" Hiro said. 

"It seems kind of hypocritical to leave them hanging just for doing what we do." Wasabi pointed out. 

"Well… I guess we can… we can leave them out of our report…" Hiro said. "But next time... let us know whenever you're wanting to 'help out'."

"What about us?" Stu said. "I can't go to jail! I'll miss orientation!" 

"Maybe if you return all the stuff you stole, and told the police that you're really, really sorry, and that you won't ever do it again, they'll let you off on good behavior?" Juniper suggested. 

Sue rolled her eyes, "Oh, give me a break." 

"That might not get you off the hook completely, but it would be a start." Hiro said. 

Sue snorted, "Fine… let's get this over with." And she held out her hands as if she expected to be handcuffed then and there. 

Not knowing what else to do, Honey Lemon placed sticky gel seals on her hands, as if to oblige her. 

"Great! Now that's settled... can I go home and get out of this blasted suit!?" Tadashi asked as he stretched his back.

                                                ------------------------

"You know," HIro told Tadashi as he plugged Baymax into his charging case. "You did actually save the day back there. If you wanted to join the team... we could probably slot you in. We'll call ourselves Big Hero Seven instead."

He walked over to join his brother at his desk, where he sat hunched over his notebook.

Tadashi snorted back his laughter. "Yeeeaaahh, I think I've had enough superhero antic to last me for awhile. Besides I got a lot of school work to catch up on. Why not ask Varian instead?"

'We have, and he keeps insisting that he's not a superhero"

"Gee, I wonder why?" Tadashi sarcastically quipped. "After doing it for a day, superheroing a lot less fun than it looks."

"Awe, that's just because you haven't practiced enough." Hiro dismissed. "What is you're always telling me, 'If you want to get better at something you gotta keep trying''"

He took up a mocking posture and deepened his voice, doing a bad impersonation of his big brother.

Tadashi snickered. "Yeah, you got me there." He gave Hiro a soft smile. "I'm really proud of you; of what you're doing, how you've been helping everyone. It's... not what I had in mind when I said you should find new hobby... but you're helping a lot of people and I realize that now."

HIro flushed with pride. It was all he had ever wanted to hear for over a year, and now that he had heard it he didn't know how to respond. "You're such a sap... but thanks.. th-that means a lot to me... Hey, if it's just the super suit you had problems with, I can design you a new one. It can have whatever powers you want.. Super strength? Control of the weather, perhaps? You wanna fly?"

"Oh no... no.." Tadashhi laughed. "I'm good with keeping my two feet on the ground, thanks. Besides, you got school in the morning. You haven't time to build any more super armor. Good night."

Hiro rolled his eyes. "Night." He said and curled up in his bed to sleep. He didn't notice his brother filing away plans for his own super armor inside his notebook before going to bed himself.

                                                ------------------------

"And that's how I found my snuggly bunny." Stu said as he and Juniper held hands as they sat next to each other inside the conference room of the gym.

"And that's how I found my apple dumpling." Juniper sighed and  the two of them rubbed noses at each other while making kissy noises.

'Awe, how adorable." Globby said as he stood behind the podium; ignoring Trina making a gagging face next to him. "True love really does conquer all. Thank you for sharing that inspiring story with us, you two. Now let us all welcome our second newest member to the reform school, Supersonic Sue."

Sue slouched in the folding chair, arms crossed in irritation, and grumbled. "I'm only here for my grandson... and cause the police said it was part of the parole."

"Well... It's admirable that you're willing to change  for your child's well being. " Globby said, put off by the woman's obvious displeasure.

"Ehhh, whatever..." Sue rolled her eyes. "Just keep me away from blasted superheroes."

"Well.. heehee... then.. umm.. Let's move on to old business. Does anyone want to share their good deeds for the week? ... Varian?"

He turned to Varian, who was laying face first on the floor. All that was heard from the teen was a muffled moaning noise.

"Uh... you seem to be having an off day.. are you good?"

Varian responded by giving him a thumbs up from where he continued to lay.

"Okay then, well come back to ya, any else?"

"Yes! Oooh me! Me!" Barb raised her hand and jumped up and down.

"Okay Barb, what is your good deed?"

"I took up superheroing, and I've realized now that it's not for me, but how many other poor lost souls have been beaten down by the system and think they can't be better? So I'm writing an inspiring tell all book about my experiences! I call it: 'The Fall and Rise of a Superstar! If I can do it, so can you!' Copies start at $59.99 a piece." 

Varian let out another muffled groan from where he lay as soon as she was finished. 

#varian #tadashi hamada #Hiro Hamada #tangled #big hero 6 #big hero six #tangled the series #rapunzel's tangled adventure #bh6 #big hero 6 the series #high voltage #supersonic sue #supersonic stu

[readbyred]

Winter change of heart| Varian x fem!reader

Warnings: none, just unedited

Word count: 565

Pairing: Varian x fem!reader

Type: fluff

Varian didn't have an easy life after he got thrown out of the castle instead of receiving help which pretty quickly started a myriad of rumors. It only got worse when he was released from jail.

People whispered, stared at him, changed the side of the street as not to pass him and some even spit at him. I think it's safe to say it was not easy for him.

And as Christmas approached and people seemed to get in the festive mood of holidays no one really warmed up to him so far.

He avoided going out as much as he could, lately, he just sat all day (and sometimes night) working on projects but he always eventually had to go out.

Right now was one of these times. It had snowed pretty badly and for rather obvious reasons this did not make him more comfortable being out.

He walked through the streets of the capital with his head hung low and a shopping list tucked into his pocket.

A few streets ahead stood (Y/n) with a fresh batch of moon cookies. Yule was approaching and she felt exordinarly festive that day so she decided to sell some of her goods out in the street. She felt festive but not festive enough to just give away her sweets for free.

So when she saw Varian coming over to sit by the fountain she already thought of that sweet cash she was gonna make off of him. But to her surprise, the shorter boy had passed her and sat alone looking all gloomy and sad.

That was when (Y/n) recognized him. 'Well, no surprise he's down' she thought 'given the chance this whole town would get him back into his cell in a second'

But she never really hated him herself. Don't get me wrong she wasn't all that pure and good that she believed anyone could and should be forgiven but she didn't exactly like the king herself and blamed him for letting the rocks destroy the village.

That's where she got most of her ingredients from so you can imagine how royally pissed she was to find out old Fred preferred to ignore the subject instead of taking action.

Seeing as the streets became less busy and fewer people approached her anyways she sat by the teen without a word. He looked over at her surprised as she presented him the batch of her moon cookies waiting for him to take one.

His head perked up as he gratefully reached out for one moon-shaped snack.

"It's on the house" she stated before asking "why are you sulking here all alone?"

"I uh" the teen answered "it's a long story. I'm just not in the mood to go all the way to the village. You know, snow and all?"

She didn't press the issue and let him take as many sweets as he desired, forgetting to count her lost money.

Soon they were chatting as if they knew each other for ages. Finally, as the lamps were lit on the streets the teenage girl got up with bow empty pate in her hands.

"I got to go, see you 'round dork" and giving him one last smirk she walked off prompting a warm fuzzy feeling to spread around Varian's body as he watched her figure disappear into the streets of Corona.

#varian #varian x reader #varian imagine #tts #tangled the series #rapunzels tangled adventure

[cupcakegirlpower]

I haven't posted in ages so I thought I'd post a "Why Fredric Was the True Villain in S1 of TTS" and "Why Rapunzel Is Innocent". Aka, "Why I Love to Hate Fredric 2.0" This a rewrite of a Character Analysis I did on Wattpad.

Fredric Analysis 2.0

I am going to explain who the true villain of Tangled the Series Season 1.  No, it's not about Varian, we know what he did was obviously not good, but I don't see him as the main villain.  So who am I talking about then?  I'm going to talk about the person's decisions that caused the entire issue that led to Varian's downfall.

When I first watched the series I put the blame on Rapunzel; but as I rewatched it, the true villain was suddenly waving in my face in plain sight.  He was hidden before because I hadn't priced everything together and had forgotten minor details.  New things appeared before me that I had missed.

I am convinced that the true villain is none other than King Fredric.

I didn't hate Fredric at first.  In fact, I actually only saw him as an overprotective father.  A typical Disney father.  In the beginning of the series, I understood why he was like what he was and I realized that he just needed to learn to let Rapunzel breathe.  However, once he locked Rapunzel in the tower with iron bars on her window, I was done giving him excuses.

Rapunzel is an adult that has been trapped her entire life.  Now that she was free from the tower and her abusive kidnapper, she was being held back by a stranger.  She didn't actually know Fredric, but here he was keeping her in a castle.  Rapunzel basically traded her tower for a bigger cage.

Fredric had good intentions to protect his family, specifically, Rapunzel.  But there are times when you can take it too far when protecting the ones you love.  One way is by literally locking them away.  Another is when you harm innocent people for the sake of keeping them away from your family.  And there are more ways to cross the line (pun intended), but I want to discuss these two in particular.  Two boundaries that Fredric overstepped big time.

Fredric, by the end of season 1, has eventually made it to the point where he's no longer protecting Rapunzel.  Rather, he's no longer doing what's best for her, but doing what's best for himself without realizing it.  And he has very good reasons to want to protect Rapunzel, but he's recreating the very thing that kept his daughter from him.  Fredric basically imprisoned Rapunzel, which is absolutely awful; but the worst thing Fredric does is what he does to the people surrounding Rapunzel.  That is what we're going to talk about.

1. He took the sundrop flower after being warned what it would do to the kingdom.

Because of this, he decided to risk the lives of his kingdom for the sake of his wife and daughter.  Although he had good intentions to save two people, he also threw out the fact that he was willingly hurting good and innocent people for the sake of two.  Now if the majority kingdom had been in agreement with this decision, then it would be fine, but this was a hush, hush ordeal.

This act, I can forgive, though.  I really do understand how hard it is to choose between your loved ones and everyone else.  Putting myself in his shoes, I would have tried a different way, but he was honestly desperate.  However, it doesn't exclude the fact that he was hurting innocent people for the protection of Rapunzel.

2. Fredric killed people and was a tyrant king.

Although these people were criminals, they were given way too harsh of punishment, such as death.  Lady Caine's father is merely an example.  No doubt that there were others from how the people talk in the series. He was a petty thief, probably stealing for the sake of keeping his daughter alive.  Jail time was fine, but his death was uncalled for.  Fredric was a hypocrite to do this if this was true.

3. Fredric blames Varian, a mere child (his currently dead friend's son) for a crime he did not commit.

The series doesn't actually say this specifically, but the facts lead to it.  Fredric uses the rumor to give him the excuse to send the undercover guards to keep Varian and Rapunzel apart.  He did this because he read Rapunzel's diary, therefore learning that Varian had knowledge about the black rocks.  Thus, Varian was seen as a threat to Rapunzel's safety, even though he was not a threat at this time.

I originally thought the rumors were spread by Nigel, but when I thought about it, it doesn't make sense.  Fredric was the one that sent the guards after Varian, which means Fredric probably got the rumor from Nigel, but it wasn't exactly Nigel's fault.  Nigel gave the king his side of the story, and no doubt Fredric had Rapunzel's side of the story.  Fredric knew Varian was innocent.

It was important for Fredric to keep Varian away from Rapunzel, because the prodigy knew too much.  He had information on the black rocks, and black rocks meant danger for Rapunzel.  This is where my next point comes in.

4. Fredric lied to Rapunzel and manipulated her so that she wouldn't think about going to see Varian.

Fredric obviously had to keep Varian away from Rapunzel, but he also had to keep her away from Varian.  Originally, I was super angry at Rapunzel for not going to Varian directly after the storm, but I realized she didn't have the chance or choice.

Fredric told her that Varian's situation was taken care of.  He then tasked her with "Important Royal Duties".  Things that weren't actually important.  In fact, Nigel was even super confused and asked Fredric why he was making such a big deal about the Griffin.  Of course, Fredric gave an answer, his true reason was to make Rapunzel think that the fate of Corona depended on her to make Griffin agree to their terms.  He was also very forceful about the painting. He did this to keep Rapunzel from going after Varian, so I can't exactly blame her since Fredric made it sound like both these events were important for the entire kingdom's greater good even though they actually weren't that important.

Fredric made it very clear that he had no regard for helping Varian or even his own friend.  He was willing to lie and manipulate his own beloved daughter to keep her from doing so as well.

5. He sends Cassandra away.

Since he read Rapunzel's diary, he learned that Cass was the reason she learned about the black rocks.  So he sends her off to a covenant (which doesn't end up playing out).  This, much like what he did with Varian but not as extreme. The plan was to keep her away from Rapunzel, due to the black rocks.  Of course, this was under the agreement of the Captain of the guard.  However, in doing this, Cassandra's whole career that she wanted was ruined.  If this had played out, her dreams would have been utterly crushed as she was forced to live the life of a nun.  The life of a nun is something you should choose not be forced into, because once you commit yourself, there is basically no getting out.  Which is basically just unofficially locking Cassandra up.

Cassandra was a threat to Rapunzel's safety in Fredric's eyes.  She could sneak his daughter in and out without his knowledge, and he probably assumed that Cassandra influenced Rapunzel to want to go out.  He probably thought that separating them would solve Rapunzel's wish to explore beyond the walls of Corona.  The latter is more of a speculation, but I think that it's fine to assume that this was going through his head.

Season 3 was wise to erase his memories.  This gave us a new start with Fredric's character, and I like him much better in that season.  He was fun and even a little relatable in the Queen of Hearts episode.

#tts #tangled the series #rta #rapunzel's tangled adventure #king Fredric #varian #Rapunzel

[rachelbethhines]

Tangled Salt Marathon - Rapunzel’s Return Part 2

Continuing on from part 1 - 

https://rachelbethhines.tumblr.com/post/635068926214258688/tangled-salt-marathon-rapunzels-return-part-1

Summary: When Rapunzel tries to defeat the Saporians by herself she gets captured; but once Varian realizes that the Separatists plan on using one of his potions' destructive properties to destroy Corona, he and Rapunzel work together to stop it.

Let’s Talk About What a Let Down the Sapiorans Are

Throughout seasons one and two the Sapiorans were built up to be this intriguing race of people with a complex past and real problems that are sadly relatable to this day. They had a history, goal, motives, and special abilities like magic.  

Yet all we got was a really bad hipster parody. 

Heck, the crew can’t even keep it’s stereotypes right because they mostly slide into hippy territory instead. Hipsters, Yuppies, and Hippies are three distinctive counter culture movements for three different generations with completely different social concerns and fads. 

Basically Chris tried to “stick it to the kids” again and just wound up insulting his parents' generation instead because he’s that oblivious of other human beings.

And that’s not even taking into account that previously the Sapiorans were living on the run as nomads in caravans not dissimilar to common Romani stereotypes, so the show is once again making negative racial connotations due to thoughtlessness.

Why Do You Have a Secret Underground Room Hidden Behind Your Workshop Xavier?

Like that not a thing normal people happen to have lying around there workspace. We still are given zero explanation for why Xavier has all this plot convenient knowledge and rare unordinary plot useful stuff. 

Given his previous connection to Saporia and Zhan Tiri wouldn’t it not have made more sense to reveal that he is an actual plot important character in season three rather than keep him as just the exposition fairy? 

So Was This Before or After the Saporian Take Over? Cause Either Answer Makes This a Dumb Plan.

Why would the guards, especially Cap, just give up? Did they even bother fighting and then lost to Varian’s weapons or were they told to stand down by a brainwashed Frederic? If they knew something was wrong then why not stay and help? What makes them think they even could find Rapunzel given how no one knew where she was heading and her letters were infrequent? What difference would they think finding Rapunzel would do? 

Basically, just like with the “former cellmate” line, we needed to actually set up and establish this conflict rather than relying solely on exposition dumps. Because what we get here doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. It goes against established character and leaves a lot of unanswered plot holes. 

More Promotion of Authoritarianism From the Show

Remember that these are the same people who formed a lynch mob to hunt down a fourteen year old all because the king told them to. The same king who had been lying to them for years and placed their lives and homes in danger for months. The same king who persecuted the poor and orphans for years. Him suddenly sending townsfolk to the mines isn’t anything new, so what are these people’s breaking points? Anyone else would have revolted by now.  

But noooo, they need Rapunzel to do it for them. Cause Rapunzel is royalty and they can’t do anything without royal permission because they’re sheep. Sheep that’s been subjugated for years and conditioned to be afraid of their “beloved ruler”. 

I understand from a meta point of view why you would want your main character to take charge but...

Like this isn’t inspiring.

It’s disturbing. 

Why are we promoting blind loyalty to a person who’s not earned it just because they were born special? In a freakin’ kids show no less! 

Oh and still no one bothers to call out King Frederic’s abuses here, FYI. 

Take Note That Quirineon is Activated By Heat

This will be important later on in the review. 

He’s Already Built Grenades For You. Wouldn’t Those Be Better Because They’re Easier to Control?

He’s already built explosive chemicals for you. You just used them in part one of the episode. And it came in an easy to use form rather than an unstable, and untested, mess that could literally blow up in your faces since no one, not even Varian himself, knows how to control it yet. 

You Don’t Hammer Out a Cast Iron Pan

It’s literally in the word. To make a cast iron pan you pour the metal into a casted mold. You don't hammer it out like you would with a sword or something. And you can’t even go with the “rule of cool” here cause Rapunzel surrounded by molten metal and fire would have been far more impressive looking.  

Yes I’m being picky cause I’m stalling. I don’t care. This is just yet another instance of the crew not paying attention to details like they should. 

Behold The Final Time Eugene Will Ever Call Out Rapunzel’s BS

This is the last time Eugene will hold an honest discussion with Rapunzel like an equal to her. By the end of this episode he will have transitioned into full on doormat mode. 

Also burying negative feelings and not addressing issues is who Rapunzel is. She’s been pulling this shit since day one. It’s what causes 90% of the conflicts in the show. Have you not noticed Eugene?  

So This Episode Has Contradictory “Lessons” 

The episode presents this idea that Rapunzel needs to open up to others and trust again after Cassandra’s betrayal. The problem is that the episode doesn’t follow through on that. It makes a knee-jerk decision to go with a “responsibility” lesson that wasn’t built up to instead at the last minute. 

More on this later.    

Varian Doesn’t Actually Interact With the Saporians at Any Point.

The only person Varian interacts with is Andrew. We have no concept of how he fits in with the rest of the group and what his dynamics are with them. What do they think of Varian? What does Varian think of them? The consequence to this is to further divorce Varian from narrative, even though this is supposed to be his redemption episode. 

As I said in the last part, you can easily write Varian out of this episode and nothing really changes plot wise. That’s bad writing. 

Also I was robbed of Khary Payton and Jeremy Jordan exchanging lines. I was this close to having audio material for my BH6 crossover, dang it! 

Behold The One Time the Black Lady Gets a Line!

I think her name is Juniper? 

You can tell it’s her because of the shadow on the wall.

Anyways they casted this part and only bothered to give the character a single line? What a waste! 

But this just goes back to the series' poor representation. The only WOC in the show are presented as “shifty” and untrustworthy, even when they are ultimately “good guys”. The majority of them are straight up villains tho, and even as antagonists they’re not afforded any real screen time. 

And the only other outright black women on the show is the inventor lady who was given zero respect and the ghost of a barbarian. 

Once again, I don’t think the crew are intentionally racist. I think they’re just sloppy. They wanted to be more inclusive but they failed to actually give voice to minorities behind the scenes and so failed in representing them well. This is a problem with the industry as a whole, not just this one show, and must be talked about as such if we wish to change things for the better. 

None of this “Stuff” Holds Any Real Meaning

We get several callbacks to season one through Cassandra’s personal things that she left behind, but none of this stuff holds any real personal meaning. It’s just there. They wind up triggering these big emotional reactions from both Rapunzel and Cassandra but the audience is just left confused because what they’re crying over are things that have little significance to these characters. Even this line from season one is just dripping with sarcasm and not some pleasant past memory that either Cass or Raps holds dear to their hearts. 

Way To Go, Dumbass

It’s not that she went alone, or that she broke down when it finally hit her that Cass left, that I’m making fun off. The episode already addresses those two points. 

No, what ticks me off is that Rapunzel has taken down killer robots, ghosts, and monsters before now with her magical hair but a handful of regular dudes can just bring her down? I don’t care how much alchemy they got. Depowering your main character for no stated reason just for narrative convenience is poor writing. 

Because If He Didn’t He Would Have DIED, Rapunzel!!!

He literally would have freakin died had he not done something! He was left inside a jail cell to rot away! Before that he was threatened with hangman’s noose! Before that violence from an angry crowd! Before that he was left alone to starve and/or die from exposure! There was no way out for him except to fight! 

And here you are inside the very prison that you kept him in and you still don't have the fucking self awareness to put two and two together! 

This Right Here the Assassination of Rapunzel’s Character and the Killing Blow to the Series

Yeah, and what about after the storm? Hun, bitch!?

We’ve spent two damn seasons watching Rapunzel stepping on people and making excuses for herself and the one time when she should realize her actions are wrong and finally own up to her behavior and she still does not fucking change.

This is supposed to be a coming of age story! That means the main character is supposed to grow and learn shit! But when it matters most, Rapunzel only digs in her heels and refuses to change! 

Why should I care about this character anymore if she’s just going to keep on being selfish no matter what? Why should I bother watching the show if it fails to deliver on its premise? How is this in any way shape or form an appropriate message for children!? 

If you’re watching the series for the first time, then it’ll take awhile to register just how awful this scene is and how it really is the beginning of the end, because they did have time to turn things around after this. But they didn’t, and here we are. 

This Isn’t a Real Apology

It’s not a real apology if all you do is make excuses for yourself. Rapunzel doesn’t address what she actually did wrong here and it has nothing to do with her stupid promise. 

She neglected and enabled the abuse of a child for a year and three months, and she’s not even sorry for it! 

You Were Never a “Friend” Rapunzel

Friends, actually do shit together. They enjoy each other’s company. They care when the other is hurt or in trouble. 

Rapunzel only came to see Varian when she needed him for something. Even now, after this confrontation, that’s all she’ll ever do. She does not actually care about Varian, because the creators will not let her care. 

And Here Comes the Death of Varian’s Characterization

In order to make this stupid, forced, “redemption” work the writers had to do a complete 180 with Varian’s character and his motivations. Instead of freeing his father, seeking revenge, or just, you know, surviving, he now suddenly cares about “being friends” and “being accepted by people”, only he has no reason to want any of that! 

Rapunzel is a shit friend. Heck all the mains are crap friends to him. They ruined his life and the townspeople tried to kill him. Why would he want anything to do with any of these a-holes!? 

Varian doesn’t get assassinated in the same sense as Rapunzel and Cassandra do. He doesn’t suddenly become a hateable dumb douchebag or anything, but he nevertheless has his character retroactively sabotaged by the writing.  

Uh, Were You Not There When Your Dad Rounded Up a Lynch Mob Against Him, Raps?

I believe you were. Also Varian literally told you to your face that he had to go into hiding cause the townspeople were willing to attack him just because those rumors that you failed to stop and pretended not to know anything about. 

Just because the characters shout something repeatedly does not make it true. The audience isn’t dumb. They can remember what happened only two seasons ago. 

Where Was the Inciting Incident For This Change of Heart?

Why should he even want their forgiveness? Why has he given up on freeing his father? Why is he having second doubts about overthrowing the kingdom that persecuted him? 

If you’re going to drastically change a character’s motivations, goals, and moral alignment then you need to present an in story reason for that change. We don’t get that. There’s no inciting incident on screen for us to see the shift in his character development. 

The audience is left to only infer, and that’s poor writing. The audience shouldn’t have to do the work of the writers for them.  Characters’ motivations and goals  should not be guess work. 

The only thing we can glean from this is that he had a change of heart while in prison and that’s a horrifying thing for the show to suggest. That’s basically justifying Frederic’s abuse. It also recontextualizes Varian’s arc into one of submission to his abusers and not one of learning to do the right thing simply because it’s right. 

Once Again, Were You Not There For Season One Rapunzel?

They had a year and three damn months of chances. These people actively tried to do him harm just for simply seeking help. He has no reason to trust them nor you. 

Why Are We Shoulding All of the Blame Onto the Abused Child?

Yes, he did do all of those things, technically, but they’re being presented here without context.

The Queen enabled his abuser who was threatening his life and destroyed his home. He kidnapped her as a last restore when all other methods to get out of his desperate situation failed. 

The princess he threatened neglected him for three months and repeatedly refused to help him, even throwing him out into a deadly snow storm. Despite him being her responsibility, thereby making her neglect a flat out abuse of power.  

He would have died a slow and painful death in prison had he not helped to overthrow the kingdom that persecuted him. 

I’m not going to pretend that what Varian did was right or that he shouldn’t feel sorry for what he did, but this is a highly skewed version of events that are being recounted here just to create bias in the viewers. It’s manipulative writing intended to gaslight the audience. 

Also, why does he even want a second chance!?   

Doesn’t This Undermine The Saporian’s Goals?

The Saporians wanted to reclaim their ancestral homeland so that they would no longer be a displaced people. How does blowing up that homeland help them? 

Season three just throws all logic out the window. There’s barely a single villain who doesn’t undermine their own goals at some point with their stupid actions. 

So Why Varian and Andrew Not Some Other Team Up?

Out of all of the various recurring baddies in the show Varian and Andrew have the least in common. I’m not saying that they couldn’t work together, but doing so required more set up than this. Because as is, this is a very contrived teamup. 

They have diametrically opposed goals and moral alignments. Varian doesn’t bring anything to the table that the Saporaions couldn’t have supplied themselves. Meanwhile the Saporians have failed to offer Varian anything that he could want. 

At best it’s a marriage of convenience for them to both break out of prison together, but even that is contrived because we don't know why neither of them were sent away on the prison barge with the rest of the season one villians.  

Better combinations would have been 

Varian & Lady Caine

Andrew & Lady Caine 

Varian & Cass

Andrew & Cass 

Varian & Zhan Tiri

Andrew & Zhan Tiri

Varian & Hector

The Baron & Varian

Andrew & Staylan 

King Trevor & Varian 

Like there were tons of options here that the writers just ignored, even though any of them would have made more sense than the one they went with.  

The Andrew and Varian Dynamic Can Be Seen as an Allegory for Grooming; Unfortunately the Writers Didn’t Consider That Implication.

Yeah... That’s pretty much what Andrew has done here. He’s groomed this desperate and lonely teen to become a child soldier for him. And one only can only pray that’s all he tried to groom him to do since they were trapped inside a confined and enclosed space together for several months. 

Listen, I don’t mind children’s shows touching upon darker subjects. Often fantasy is a good way for people to process complex themes and uncomfortable real world situations through the safety of fiction. It can even be helpful for those who have had the misfortune to experience certain traumas. 

I’m not complaining that TTS is too dark. 

I’m complaining about it being shit. 

All of the crap Varian goes through is just thrown in there for shock value. It’s not here to commentate on the real world nor provide a complex story. The situations are brought only to then be outright ignored. This isn’t thoughtful nor deep. It’s not meaningful nor heartfelt. It’s just hollow drama done in bad taste. 

You’re Not In a Position to Judge Rapunzel 

You got captured first because you decided to throw yourself a pity party. 

Would He Though?

I’m pretty sure Quirin is very well aware of how shitty Frederic is. If anything I would think he’d be pissed that his son, that he tried so hard to protect, was mistreated in such a hordenous way. 

This isn’t some satisfying ending to Varian’s arc. It’s a heartbreaking revelation that he’s been beaten down by his abusers.  

Varian’s Arc Isn’t Actually About Validation, and Rapunzel Giving It Here Doesn’t Really Change Anything 

I spoke about this before on its own, but Tangled the Series places far too much stock in validation. Yes, it’s an aspect of his character arc, but it’s not the end all and be all of his motivation. It’s not the force that drives him to do what he does. 

His primary goal is survival, both for himself and for his father. His secondary goal is gaining his father’s approval, but that’s not because he’s seeking generic praise, it’s because his father is emotionally distant. The “validation” is a mask for the real issues which are to fix his relationship with his dad and avoid the guilt of having possibly killed him in an accident. 

Rapunzel has fuck all to do with that. 

He doesn’t need to hear approval from her. He needs her to get her shit together and help him! 

Rapunzel’s and Varian’s Situations Are Nothing Alike and Rapunzel Doesn’t Know Jackshit

Rapunzel you were dumped by your bestie because you’re a shitty friend. 

Varian was neglected and abused by those who were supposed to take care of him. 

Unless you’re drawing parallels to how Frederic and Gothel treated you, and even then neither of them denied you basic fucking needs! 

This should be an “Oh Shit! I’ve become just like Mother Gothel” moment for Rapunzel, not an “Oh yay! Someone to share in my personal misery” moment. 

Man, Rapunzel suuuuuucks! 

Also This Still Isn’t An Actual Apology

Once again, Rapunzel is not admitting what she did wrong here. She’s not actually acknowledging Varian’s pain, nor what she needs to do to make admins with him. 

What she’s doing is making things all about herself again. She’s talking about her feelings. About what she is facing. Rapunzel is an incredibly selfish and egotistical person and the show is trying to present this as a positive thing by rewarding her for such behavior. 

Varian’s Redemption Should Have Nothing to Do with “Friendship”

Varian has no reason to want to become friends again with the woman who ruined his life and abused him. 

But more than that, redemption shouldn’t be dependent upon Rapunzel’s friendship, nor even her ‘forgiveness”. Varian should be able to do the right thing just because it’s the right thing, Rapunzel be damned. 

This cheepens not only his character development but also Rapunzel’s development as well. Rapunzel is not allowed to grow as a person and accept that not everyone wants to be her friend, and that people may have valid reasons to hate her even, and that doesn’t make them evil. 

It also rushes through Varian’s arc undermining what the audience had to get through to get to this point.  

OK, Let’s Talk About The Goatee

I wouldn’t have minded the beard had it just not looked like a fucking barcode. There’s production art where it looks fine. But just wiping it away ties back to what I was talking about in part one. It’s denying Varian the chance to grow up. This is supposed to be his coming of age story as well but the crew won't let him do that because “rule of funny” apparently overrides what the characters actually need in order to develop.  

Once again, the show isn’t a sitcom. You can have comedic moments but the comedy doesn’t need to outright undermine the drama. 

Once Again, Shouldn’t Eugene Be the First Person to Jump to Varian’s Defence?

You mean the orphan on the streets who stole stuff and fought to survive when the adults failed to take care of him? Is that what you’re talking about Eugene? Cause if I remember correctly that was you not just three years ago. 

You Mean Rapunzel Needs Him To Make Her Feel Better About Herself

Spoiler alert, but Varian doesn’t actually do anything after this point in the episode. His entire “redemption” is just about making Rapunzel feel better about herself after Cass has rejected her. He’s literally become the rebound. 

How Come Varian Suddenly Became Shorter Just for This Shot?

I know the meta reason is to reflect that scene back in Queen for a Day when Rapunzel promised him that she'd help him before everything went tits up. Where he was also drawn shorter in that episode to make him seem more verunable, but here he’s just suddenly shorter for only two shots and then suddenly back to his usual height. 

Crap like this is why I insist that Varian didn’t actually get any taller in season three. The show just has always been inconsistent with his height and most of the “evidence” for his growth are cherry picked instances where the show drew him smaller than usual for reasons, like here.   

So Where Did They Get That Much of the Explosives and How Did They Get Them So Fast?

Only Varian knows how to manufacture that stuff. Why would he make that much of it if he was still in the experimental phase with it? He’s even surprised that they have so much, so where did they get it? If they made it then, how did they make it so fast? 

So This Plan Goes Nowhere

Spoiler alert: Varian doesn’t actually get to do any of that. In fact he’s kind of pointless for the rest of the episode. 

Why Would the King and Queen Care About a City That They Can’t Remember?

Like this revenge doesn’t make sense. It’s just a contrived way to get Eugene and Lance out of the way.

If the Quirineon Explodes From Being Exposed to Heat Then What Good Does Just Dropping It Do?

Yeah, remember? The stuff explodes when heated. Simply dropping it shouldn’t do anything other than make a mess on the ground maybe. 

All That Build Up and Varian Still Doesn’t Get to Do Anything Useful

Up till this point, Varian was shown to be the most competent threat in the show. Yet here they have him be a screw up twice in a row just for comedy antics and to glorify Rapunzel again. 

If you got to nerf other characters just to make your main look good then you’ve failed to establish your main character as being capable in their own right. 

Remember That This Boy Was Trapped in a Jail Cell With This Guy for a Year!

No, I’ll never be over this.

Andrew is the most directly violent and scummy out of all of the villians in the show. 

If he’s willing to do this now, if he was willing to do this to his ex-girlfriend, then what the heck was he willing to do when he and Varian were trapped alone together? 

So Andrew Just Willingly Sacrifices His Own People Here....Even Though His Goal Was to Give His People a New Home....

People need to use this gif more often when concerning this show and the villains’ ass-backwards plans.

And yes they survive because of Varian alchemy. But that was on accident. Andrew had no way of knowing that would happen. He’s willing to destroy his own people just to blow up his ancestral homeland and for what!? What does he gain from this action?  

The Mind Wipe Kills Frederic’s and Arianna’s Characters; Littraly

Frederic and Arianna are effectively dead at this point. Anything that made them, well them, has been wiped away. Their personalities, hopes, dreams, their on going stories and development, just gone. And we never get them back, even when their memories supposedly return. 

Varian’s Not Even Allowed to Get the Idea On How to Save Corona...In His Own Redemption Episode No Less

This is his episode! We’ve spent two years building up to this point and you can’t even let him help? He’s denied the chance to make up for his own mistakes! Just so Rapunzel can play hero and be a very shallow representation of what a bunch of men think a “strong” woman should be! 

It’s fucking insulting. That’s what it is. 

Making a female character the center of the universe to the point where other people are just props for her is not empowering! 

No It’s Not!!

Uh you wouldn’t even be here had you just fucking helped Varian to being with you dumb bitch! This is very much you and your father’s mess! 

Even now, while pretending to be responsible, Rapunzel can’t actually be responsible and own up to what she did! 

She’s fucking 20 and the 16 year old shows more maturity than her! 

Also Your Hair Can Protect Two People at Once Rapunzel; Remember?

There’s no excuse for leaving Varian out of the action. We’ve been shown multiple times now that Rapunzel’s magic hair can protect her and other people at the same time. 

Having Rapunzel Save the Day By Herself Undermines Everything the Episode Was Trying to Establish

What happened to needing to “trust again” and letting other people help you? Having Rapunzel save the day alone just tosses out the lesson that the show was trying to build up to. 

The show tries to frame this as Rapunzel learning “responsibility” but that also does not work. For one it was never established that she needed to learn that within the episode itself and secondly, she doesn’t actually do anything different from what she usually does. 

Being an action hero isn’t the same thing as being responsible. Being responsible is being considerate of others, doing the borning shit or mundane crap that you hate, and being mature enough to recognize your own failings and admitting when you were wrong. 

So in the end Rapunzel is neither responsible nor more open to others. 

And There’s the Death of Eugene’s Character

Lance, who has maybe exchanged all of three sentences with Raps, is more distrught than the guy that supposedly wants to marry her. This isn’t heartwarming, nor it is growth. It’s just lobotomizing a character right in front of our eyes. 

In this very episode he was worried about Raps going to face the Saporians by herself and was, guess what, fucking right to do so. But he doesn’t give two shits if she gets blown up!? 

Ooookaaaay.....

This is the completion of turning Eugene into a doormat. From now own he shan’t be allowed to have any thoughts or feelings of his own that disagrees with Rapunzel. 

The Eugene we knew is now dead. 

But Of Course the Show Rewards Everyone for Behaving In the Dumbest Way Possible Anyways

Don’t expect any of these grossly out of character moments and oxygen deprived logic to be addressed nor fixed within the show. The series will keep on shoving unearned endings into our facing while insisting that this is positive development. 

How Did Y’all Get Here Before Varian?

Yes, he was left on a roof, but he can climb and y’all were outside of the city. 

Yeah... A Year and Half Fucking Later!

Ok, a year and three months, but that’s still not any better. Worse, all this implies is that Rapunzel would not have ever concerned herself with trying to free Quirin had Varian not broken out of prison. She would have literally left them both for dead and we’re supposed to find her suddenly doing the bare fucking minimum heartwarming and inspiring?

Where Was the Inciting Incident to Use the Decay Incantation for This? 

How did Rapunzel come up with this plan? When did she come up with it? 

When the hurt incantation was first found no one mentioned how it could be used to save Quirin. No one even gave Quirin a thought. Since then the incarnation hasn’t been brought back up, ever. This is a pretty big leap in logic for Rapunzel to suddenly think of this. 

All it highlights how Varian was originally meant to be there to translate the scrolls and incantations in order to establish all this but of course it got cut so now it just comes the fuck out of nowhere. 

Not Letting Varian Have Anything to Do With Saving His Father Is Even Worse Than Not Letting Him Save the Day

This has been his motivation since the beginning. It’s been the driving plot for a season, and now that the time has finally come what does get to do? 

Hold a dang bucket. 

Part of coming up with satisfying endings is following through on what you’ve established. The audience needs closure. Simply freeing Quirin isn’t enough, we need the carthartis of Varian specifically fulfilling his goal. 

I don’t know how to break this to you Chris, but this isn’t Rapunzel’s story. Not this segment of it anyways. It’s Varian’s and it just so happens to connect to Rapunzel’s. She shouldn’t have been center stage for this. 

The Series Blows It’s Load Too Early with the Incantations

This is the last time we’ll hear any of the incantations sung on screen, cause someone in budgeting didn’t know what was important to throw the money at and what was not. 

It’s not bad here, but if we could only hear one incantation only once this season it needed to be in the finale with the final heal incantation. 

Varian Was Right All Along

Also, all this does is justify Varian’s actions in season one. Rapunzel was indeed the only one who could free his dad according to this. For a series that desperately wants to shove all of the blame onto an abused child’s shoulders they sure go out their way to prove him right. 

So How Is the Hurt Incantation Suppose to Work?

There were so many fan theories after this scene because Varian and Quirin don’t respond to the hurt incantation the same way previous characters had. 

No one is gasping for breath, Varian can touch Raps without burning his hands, and Rapunzel can control the direction of her power. ect. 

Turns out there was nothing there, the writers just didn’t know what the fuck they were doing and made the hurt incantation very inconsistent just like all of the magic in this show. 

BULLSHIT!!!

You literally turn into a villain because she gave up on you!!!!

She also didn’t give two shits about you throughout the entirety of season two. 

Why are we just pretending like season one didn’t exist!? 

Why!?

The Note!!!

No It Fucking Didn’t!

Does That Look Like “I’m Proud of You Son” To You?

Chris went on to confirm that, yes, the note did hold more information that then got cut. Pretty much confirming all that we suspected. That Varian was cut from season two and his story hastily shoved back into season three at the last minute. 

Below is the link to the tumblr post he made.

https://cnotes.tumblr.com/post/190534585146/apparently-one-of-the-writers-said-a-while-back

What’s worse is that his defense is such bullshit. The below exchange pretty much sums it all up.

This Doesn’t Actually Resolve Anything and Is Therefore Unsatisfying to Watch

Part of the reason why this conclusion doesn’t work is because it doesn’t actually address any of the problems that they have in their relationship. Quirin never owns up to what he did wrong. There’s no discussion of what Varian was up to while he was entrapped, no conversation about what secrets Quirin hid from his son, and zero admission of wrongdoing on either side.   

Also Varian has done nothing significant to earn those particular words. Saying I love makes sense, but in context saying “I’m proud of you” does not. It doesn’t even work on a meta level cause the episode prevented Varioan from accomplishing anything. 

It’s empty. 

There Could Have Been More Screen Time to Fix This If Not for Season Two Mucking About

https://discord.com/channels/427940661589704715/569296212218347522/777635115978457098

Above is the link to the original storyboards. It doesn’t fix everything but there’s a lot more satisfying emotional beats including adding Ruddiger back in who is suspiciously absent for the entire episode for no stated reason. 

This version was cut due to time. Which, like with the Crossing the Line song, didn’t need to be had they been more effective with their usage of time in season two. 

They also could have had a better conclusion to Varian’s arc in general had he not been cut from season two altogether. 

So What Does Freeing Quirin Add to the Series?

I’m serious. What does freeing Quirin at this point and time do for the story?

It doesn’t add any character development, Quirin just wanders around aimlessly in the background until the finale and even then his part in that is a pointless dead end. Varian doesn’t gain his emotional closure, just empty, hollow “praise”. Nor is he allowed to accomplish any of his established goals. No new lore or history is exposed. No mystery uncovered. 

There’s no reason why this couldn’t have been done later in the season. Provide more tension and keep up the consequences of the characters actions. Give the mains something to do and work on until Cass and Zhan Tiri show up again.  

The only reason why this is here is to wrap Varian’s story up as soon as possible so he won’t “steal Cassandra’s spotlight”. That’s it. He’s rewarded for conforming to Rapunzel’s will and all the fans should shut up and be grateful, at least according to Chris.

I Like This Song But It Wasn’t Needed

It doesn’t add anything to the story. It’s just a generic celebration song. Which would be fine if it wasn’t for the fact that we have a limited number of songs, even less than in previous seasons, and the story isn’t over yet. This is the wrong place to put a victory song at. 

Especially when we could have had a song that furthered Varian’s redemption instead.  Yeah, that was cut too. 

So Is Varian the New “Lance” This Season?

He’s right there! This is his dang focus episode! 

Why hire Broadway singers and not let them sing!? Why waste talent and money like that? 

Also These Lyrics!

Did Glenn Slater just not read the scripts before writing the songs? That’s all season three ever does! Give the mains what they want without earning it. Even in this very episode!

So Is This Rapunzel’s 20th Birthday or Not?

Ok I have gotten into many a heated debate about how long season three is supposed to be. And that’s because what the crew says doesn’t match what the series shows us. 

By all accounts this should be Rapunzel’s birthday. According to season two she’s been gone for one year, and there’s the lanterns that they fly specifically on her birthday. 

But no one verbally says it’s her birthday and I’ve heard conflicting accounts from different members of the crew. Some stating that it is her 20th birthday and some disagreeing that it is. 

Well I’ll take what evidence that the show actually presents to its audience on screen over what the cast and crew says after the fact any day of the week, so I’ll be gathering up this evidence and proving by the end that season three is two years not one. 

But the fact that I must comb through series to prove this, the fact that we can even have this debate, and the fact that the crew have to state basic info after the series is over is just proof of the bad writing. 

Fun Fact: Cupcakes Weren’t Invented Until the 20th Century

Yeah, that’s the fault of the OG film, and yeah it doesn’t really mean much, but still it’s one more thing to add to the pile of stuff that doesn’t fit. 

Plus I’m just a hardcore nerd for historical cooking and I like to share my knowledge.  

Yeah But How Can He Trust All of You Again?

You’re the ones who let him down first; repeatedly. And you only started to make things up to him once he became useful to you. What assurance does he have that you won’t mistreat him again next time he’s in trouble or is no longer of any use to y’all? 

Yes, Let NOT Show What the Main Character Is Actually Going Through

Yup, this is “Rapunzel’s show” but we’re not going to let Rapunzel have any focus on her feelings or give any insight into her thought process about what is the main conflict of the series now.

Conclusion

Ducktales was robbed! 

I can’t believe this shit won an Emmy for “best writing.” It utterly fails on every possible level. It fails to be a continuation of the ongoing story and it fails to be a stand alone episode. Even the very structure of the story is fundamentally flawed. The only reason why it’s not the worst episode of the entire series because the finale and the penultimate episodes exist. 

Anyways...I finally made it through. It literally took my entire weekend but I’m finally caught up. Next week I’ll be going back to the usual one episode a week schedule. 

#Varian #tangled #anti-rapunzel #rapunzel's tangled adventure #tangled the series #Eugene #andrew

[newsies-of-corona]

Okay I’ve been on one heck of an analysis high so let’s get into it!

Team Awesome Analysis

Part 1: Season 1 Relationship

In season 1, Varian and Eugene’s relationship isn’t much. In “What the Hair,” obviously the two just met, but Varian spends the episode idolizing Eugene for being “Flynn Rider” and trying to impress him, and Eugene tries to get Rapunzel’s secret out of Varian, and later tries to get him to turn off his dangerous hot water machines.

When they first meet, Eugene is flattered that Varian says “Flynn Rider is his hero,” but then immediately feels very awkward around him because Varian doesn’t listen when Eugene explains that he only adopted the name from the book, and the stories aren’t actually about him. It also doesn’t help matters that Varian keeps calling him “Flynn,” even though Eugene has told him multiple times that it isn’t his name anymore.

Right off the bat, you get the vibe that Eugene doesn’t trust this kid and is frankly frustrated with him. Varian is unintentionally putting everyone in danger through his hot water machines, and he won’t listen to Eugene when he tells him that it isn’t safe. To make matters worse, Eugene has also seen a glimpse of the destruction that Varian’s machines and experiments can cause because of the lazer sword, the explosives, and the tremors caused by the hot water machines. Seeing his girlfriend actually inside of one of Varian’s contraptions is probably adding to his anxiety, and he wants to get everyone as far away from this dangerous kid as possible. Eugene still cares about Varian however, but it’s only in a “he’s a kid who needs protection” kind of way.

When Varian shows up for the expo in “Great Expotations,” Eugene definitely isn’t too happy to see him (“...since your last invention almost killed us! So glad you’re here. With what looks like another invention.”). The explosion at Varian’s lab could have killed both Rapunzel and Eugene, if it wasn’t for Raps’ hair, and it was probably very traumatizing for Eugene as well. When Varian’s invention for the expo goes off the rails, (even though it isn’t his fault) Eugene is probably on even higher alert in regards to Varian.

Jumping all the way to “The Quest For Varian,” when Rapunzel talks about her dream, Eugene is very quick to say “stay here where you’re safe.” And when Rapunzel gets a note from Varian asking for her help, Eugene is very suspicious. (“It’s always something with that guy.”) He has no right to be suspicious, even though he may have heard the rumors from Nigel, because he heard from Rapunzel that Varian only wanted her help during the storm. Eugene also has no idea about Varian’s turn to villainy. Even when Eugene sees Varian’s father trapped in the amber, he’s still very critical.

In “The Alchemist Returns” when Eugene finds out that Varian is with Rapunzel, he’s just quick to think that “Rapunzel could be in trouble,” and he doesn’t seem surprised at Varian’s turn either since he already didn’t trust him.

Another thing to note is that whenever Eugene talks about or mentions Varian, it’s usually to criticize him even when he’s on the right side.

Part 2: Season 3 Relationship

In season 3, when we see Varian come back as a full fledged villain, Eugene is obviously defensive when Rapunzel says that they have to work with him. (“After everything hairstripe here has done you are going to trust him?”).

But after that, something changes. Eugene seems to be way more trusting of Varian after his redemption, when in reality it seems more natural for him to be even more suspicious because of what happened before.

In “Be Very Afraid,” for example, Eugene doesn’t warn Rapunzel about how dangerous it would be if she went into the tunnels with Varian, but instead he seems completely chill with them going and isn’t suspicious of him at all.

In “Cassandra’s Revenge,” Eugene seems pretty comfortable around Varian, even enough to even touch his alchemy that Eugene probably would have stayed far away from back in season 1. Varian actually has to tell Eugene to be careful (oh the irony). Later on, when Varian is trapped in the rock cage, Eugene basically risks his life to help Varian by walking over to the cage that’s suspended in mid air. Varian also looks to Eugene as a source of comfort when the cage gets pulled in, and Eugene obliges, being very protective over him now.

In “Race to the Spire,” Eugene and Varian are acting more like friends, pranking each other and laughing with each other.

In “Flynnposter,” when Eugene is talking over him, Varian doesn’t hesitate to sass him, because he considers him as a friend instead of his “idol” who he needs to impress.

In “Once A Handmaiden” Eugene trusts Varian enough to ask/let him make a dangerous weapon because he knows Varian will be careful with it. They’re shown to be acting more like best friends, and they even have a handshake! Even when Varian is using the bazooka somewhat haphazardly, Eugene doesn’t get frustrated with him, he smiles and thinks it’s funny. He even teams up with Varian during the fight against Cassandra which shows that he trusts him enough to protect Corona.

In “Plus est en Vous,” we really get to see how far Eugene and Varian’s relationship has come when Eugene jokes about Varian’s villainy and Varian laughs along with him. This topic is very sensitive to Varian, but he’s chill enough with Eugene to joke with him about it which shows massive growth. When Eugene is concerned about Varian’s father being in the brotherhood, he warns Varian about him possibly being under the mind control. Though Varian is angry at first, he respects Eugene enough to listen to what he said and takes “precautions.” Eugene is so proud of Varian and we can see that he really values their friendship when he tries to cheer him up after Quirin gets knocked out.

Instead of criticizing him, Eugene compliments and encourages Varian throughout season 3, and really seems to connect with him now. These two really became an inseparable “team awesome.”

Part 3: What changed?

So how did Varian and Eugene become so close? Well the simplest solution would be to say that “Rapunzel trusts Varian now and Eugene trusts Rapunzel,” but technically Rapunzel trusted Varian in season 1, and we all know Eugene certainly did not. Another reason could be that Varian is older and more responsible, but I think the biggest reason that Eugene is suddenly so trusting of Varian is because he can relate to what Varian has been through.

As a kid, Eugene was already in a life of crime and thievery and it lasted all the way up into his adult life. He probably got thrown in jail multiple times too. When he met Rapunzel, he was still a theif until she gave him a second chance. Rapunzel didn’t necessarily change him, but it was Eugene’s time with her that made him truly “see the light” (pun intended.) When Eugene brings Rapunzel back to the kingdom, he doesn’t get accepted right away. Cassandra still doesn’t trust him (in season 1) and he’s still regarded as a theif in many areas, but he’s able to show them all, in time, that he’s a changed man and that he will do anything to protect his friends, Rapunzel, and all of Corona.

In Varian’s situation, he’s done a lot more than just petty thievery, but Rapunzel is willing to give him a second chance as well. Again, she didn’t change him, but she made Varian see what was the right thing to do even if it was hard. Eugene had every right to reject Varian and blame him for all of the horrible things he had done, like everyone else in Corona. But when he sees that the kid really does want to change and that Rapunzel wants to help Varian just like she helped Eugene, he gives him the benefit of the doubt.

Eugene knows first hand what Varian is going through, over the course of season 3, and how hard it is to come back from a life of crime. The least that he can do is give Varian one more friend that he can trust on his path to redemption, and encourage and help Varian to step back into the light. Because of all of this encouragement and trust from Rapunzel and Eugene, Varian is able to rise up and do amazing things to help Corona.

Eugene and Varian have a lot more in common now, both being redeemed, and they can also relate to being decended from members of the Brotherhood of the Dark Kingdom. (I bet they had a nice long talk about that 😂😂)

So in short: Varian and Eugene’s relationship has come so, so far and I’m so glad that they both trust each other now and that they became such amazing and close friends. “Alright Team Awesome!!”

Woah that was a lot!!! I’m so mad at myself for deleting it before, but the beauty of rewriting it was being able to make a more thorough analysis and find more things that I missed before! I really hope y’all enjoyed it!!

#team awesome #varian analysis #eugene analysis #tts analysis #tangled the series #eugene tts #eugene fitzherbert #varian tts #varian #bazooka boy #lissa analyzes varian....again #lissa says stuff

[akizumy]

Guilt

Sooo- I hadn’t planned to write anything for Halloween, but then I got this idea and I couldn’t get it out of my head. I know I’m a day late (typical me), but since it is done I might as well post it, right ? This One Shot is part of the Varitas AU (basically an evil Varian ahah), and I fear I got inspired by the rp blogs : @royal-engineer-of-corona and @v-a-r-i-t-a-s TW !! Amber, knife, death (there is no graphic description except a mention of blood)- if there is anything else that you think I should tag, don’t hesitate to yell at me in the comments. Takes place between Be very Afraid and Cassandra's revenge !

If most people had to describe Varian, they would use the word 'dangerous' because of what the kid could do, and what he had already done. Although the alchemist had saved Corona and been forgiven by the royal family, everyone still saw him as the criminal who kidnapped their queen, who attacked the kingdom with automatons and a mutant raccoon. Everyone still saw him as the threat he used to be and could still be, even Varian himself : if the alchemist couldn't forgive himself, why would others act any differently ? But Eugene saw things differently. Unlike the rest of the Coronans, the former thief spend most of his days with the young alchemist ever since the latter got out of jail; he had of course been wary of him at first, the memory of Varian attacking Rapunzel and the kingdom still painfully fresh in his memory like in everyone else's. But day after day, he had soon come to accept that the kid was very different from this idea that everyone had of him. Everything about him, whether it was his actions or his words, illustrated his regrets about his past actions; and Eugene could see how hard the kid was trying to make amends. That was why the word he associated with Varian was not 'dangerous', but 'guilt'. It was both an observation of the alchemist's behavior, his doubts and culpability, and also a protection against others' judgment. Varian had regrets. Varian had changed. Varian was no longer dangerous. He wanted nothing more than for everyone, the kid included, to see that and to be able to move on; for people to realize all the good Varian could make, and for Varian to see that as well- that it wasn't too late for him to be who he wanted to be. That he could still be happy. Such a shame that he had to be proved wrong. It had all happened really fast : the automatons, attacking the island one morning. They were numerous, and more just kept coming in an endless flow; even though they had no idea what was happening or why, Rapunzel had focused on going and protecting the Coronans first, getting answers after that. That was the plan. Pretty easy, hard to mess up- or, it should have been. Because now as the cold, metal hand of the automaton was firmly holding Eugene prisoner, the latter having no choice but to face the woman he loved encased in amber and surrounded by two other automatons, the former thief was left wondering how could things have possibly gone this wrong. "Well, it looks like Corona no longer has her beloved leader- if she could even be called that in the first place." And of course, how could he possibly forget the one whose satisfied tone was awakening in Eugene a deep hatred, one like he had never felt before. Varian was standing in front of the statue, looking absolutely triumphant, and how could he not be after taking over Corona and defeating their princess, their Sundrop ? The broken wall of the throne room, the latter being only a remnant of what it used to be, only added to his glorious victory, offering an heartbreaking view on the completely destroyed kingdom. His eyes were shining with an eerie joy, and a wide grin appeared on his lips as he admired the consequences of his actions; encased in amber, Rapunzel's painful and horrified expression was a terrible contrast with the alchemist's ominous one. "Don't worry, Eugene," the alchemist said after some time, finally looking away from the amber to the former thief, trapped in an other kind of prison, "She's not dead. She doesn't deserve such a fate." The alchemist confidently walked up to him, leaning against the metal hand. "No, she deserves a sentence far worse than that." The alchemist's voice was dangerously low as he stared at Eugene, watching his every reaction. The former thief didn't look away in return, instead glaring at the kid who had taken so much from him and went as far as to laugh about it too. He just- Eugene simply couldn't believe what he was hearing and seeing. Varian- Varian had made amends. He had apologized, and they'd forgiven him. He had been working ever since to help Corona, to fix his mistakes and stop Cassandra. Varian had changed- he had. Hadn't he ? But then, why would he go back on that ? Why did he all of a sudden attack Corona with these- these automatons, destroying the island, trapping Rapunzel in that same amber that destroyed his life once before ? Why would he do that to his friends, to Team Awesome ? Was it all just a wicked scheme to fool them ? Eugene stared at the kid in front of him. He was exactly like Varian- same outfit, same black hair with this odd blue stripe, same blue eyes. No, not the same. Varian's eyes weren't merciless, mocking and cold, so cold. Varian's eyes were warm, friendly and guilty. "Who..." Eugene hissed, glaring all the more. "Who are you ? What have you done to Varian ?" Varian wouldn't do something like that, Eugene was sure of it. The other half of Team Awesome, the kid who liked ham sandwiches and often forgot to take care of himself when working was not the same as the one who encased Rapunzel in amber. The alchemist who fought his fears in order to save Corona, that kid would never do something like that. Still, he didn't expect... him, to simply smirk, that same threatening smirk he thought -he hoped- he'd never see again on this face. "You know, I never thought you were right when you said that people don't give you enough credit. You are clever, aren't you ?" "What does that mean ?" He was just done talking when the door of the throne room opened with noise. Eugene tried to look behind him to see the source of the noise, in vain : the robot's grip was keeping him from making any movement. However, he had a really good view of Varian raising his head in surprise, before cautiously taking a few steps back, furious eyes staring at... whoever just came in, Eugene guessed. Said person walked closer, as Eugene could tell from the footsteps sounds, before stopping right beside him; turning his head to the side, Eugene saw... Varian. It took his mind a minute to process the information. "Wait wait wait," Eugene narrowed his eyes, "Am I seeing 2 Varians ? Is that- is that some sort of evil twin story, or...?" Varian number 2 didn't react, but Varian number 1's smirk only widened. "I guess you could say that." He did a mocking bow in front of the other two, "I am Varitas, 'the mean one'- because someone has to take the blame, and who's better to replace Varian at it than Varian himself ? You Coronians aren't really creative, you know : get yourself someone else to blame, or even better, an actual justice system." It took all of Eugene's might not to give in and harshly tell him that he was absolutely guilty for what he had done to everyone; he barely restrained himself from doing so, realization hitting him hard. That was what that Varitas guy wanted. He had been provoking him since the beginning, trying to push him to his limits; and although Eugene wasn't really one to give in to anger, what could that kind of behavior do to someone who would, someone whose guilt would make them an easy prey ? For example, someone who definitely would be the target of his own double... Oh no. "I'm so-sorry..." Varian whispered, his voice cracking. His glassy eyes were filled with tears that streamed down his cheeks, highlighting how unusually pale he was, or how dark and big the bags under his eyes were in contrast. "It's all my fault..." "Kid-no. This is not your fault, none of it is." Eugene insisted. Varian clearly seemed exhausted, on the verge of breaking down, and with all of that accumulated guilt ready to burst free, he was basically an emotional time bomb. A really, really unstable emotional time bomb that could possibly become a problem if nothing was done to calm him down before. When did that start ? Why hadn’t he noticed before, why hadn’t he done anything to protect Varian ? Varian didn’t react, clearly not believing him; it broke Eugene’s heart to see him in such a state. Of course, that's the moment Varitas chose to speak up. "You're right, Eugene : it's not his fault nor is it mine, but it is actually yours, it has always been. I know how talented you are all in the field of lies and deceit and breaking promises, but you have to be incredibly good to make him believe that you actually care about him and are his friends without him ever questioning it. Again." Varian shivered, looking down at the ground, and Eugene could only imagine the thoughts going through his head; anger and guilt and feeling of betrayal and self-loathing, all of them feeding a dangerous hatred that was definitely what Varitas was planning to use. Oh, how much Eugene hated that Varitas kid. He hated him for taking Rapunzel away, for torturing Varian; he hated how powerless he felt. "If you know us as well as you say you do, then you should also know these are not lies." Eugene growled, but Varian once again didn’t react. Varitas only rolled his eyes, fully aware that he was in control of the situation. "Oh, you are good- but thank you for proving my point." He then turned to Varian, and Eugene tensed up. Whatever he had planned, Eugene feared the kid wasn't in a good enough state to fight against. "I'm sorry I started without you," Varitas smiled, something almost warm, outstretching his hand towards Varian, "but you can still join me and serve justice, like we wanted to." Unlike his kind words, his tone was very clear : obey, or face the consequences. Varian stared at Varitas' hand for a moment, before his glassy eyes moved to the hole in the wall and the destruction beyond, then to the amber and finally, to Eugene. Eugene's heart ached as he met Varian's eyes. The raging storm of the kid's emotions was frightening, and Varian seemed completely lost. Eugene wanted to reassure him, to tell him that these were all lies, that none of it was true, that they did care about him- but he also wasn’t stupid. “Please, kid... Don’t...” Was all Eugene said, because he saw in these eyes that Varian... Varian would not believe him, or anything else he’d say. That Varitas's poisoned words, playing with Varian's deepest fears and guilt, had already had their effect on the kid. Where was he when Varian needed him ? Why was he stuck, unable to help when the kid needed him the most ? Varitas was right- just like before, he couldn't give Varian the help he so desperately needed. Varian stared at him for a while longer, before looking back at Varitas. Extending his hand, he took the other's in his own. Then, harshly pulling Varitas forward, he threw in the latter's face a green ball that exploded in a flash of blinding light. Varitas immediately shoved Varian away, rubbing his eyes with his hands; his hiss of pain morphed into a low chuckle. "Alright, looks like you've made your choice..." Eugene felt his heart drop as the two other automatons -the ones not currently holding Eugene- walked toward the alchemist, responding to Varitas's order. He knew his friend hardly stood a chance; above all, he knew Varian was fighting a losing battle, because he himself didn’t even know what he was fighting for, or if he wanted to. It was clear as day that Varian was fighting back like a wounded animal, with the energy of despair, and that this would end very badly. Eugene tried once again to free himself, even if he knew there was no way he could get out. Varian acted quickly, trapping the first automaton's feet in goo, effectively stopping him. Varitas threw at him a green ball that Varian barely managed to avoid; not fast enough to recover, the alchemist couldn't dodge a hit from the second automaton that made him fall to the ground. Not wasting any time, Varian sent a pink ball on the second automaton, trapping him the same way; he however didn't see the third ennemy attacking him from behind. "Watch out !!" Eugene stopped struggling a moment to yell in alarm. Varian startled and turned around just in time to catch Varitas's wrists, keeping him from using his knife- because yes, he had a knife, a real one. "Why are you fighting for them ?!" Varitas shouted, furious. "They are responsible for Dad being encased, for all of our woes- you should want to serve justice ! You used to want that, so why would you believe their lies again ?!" Varian didn't answer, simply staring at the knife held right between the two of them. "It was the price to pay to become their friend again, wasn't it ? Ha- you're pathetic. They will betray you just like they already did, and the worst of all is that they'll be right : you'll have no one to blame but yourself, for being stupid enough to trust them again." Varitas's eyes were filled with disgust, sadness. No answer. Varian's grip loosened a bit, his face reflecting some hesitation. “Varian, no- don’t listen to him ! He’s trying to get in your head !!” The alchemist no longer seemed to be able to hear him, his attention entirely focused on Varitas. Eugene’s voice was only a quiet noise, drowned out by Varitas’s own voice and Varian’s thoughts. "I hope you're happy. I hope you'll believe their lies that make you think that this is what's best for you, this is what you have always wanted. You won : enjoy your golden cage, Varian." "Kid !!" Eugene shouted, alarmed, and that finally snapped Varian out of it. Kicking his opponent, the alchemist made Varitas fall backwards; the latter harshly hit the ground, his grip loosening on the knife. Eugene watched with horror as the alchemist quickly took the knife from Varitas and held it at the other's throat. "Don’t do that Varian ! You are angry- we all are kid, but killing him isn't the solution !" "He's right," Varitas added, "You can go ahead and kill me, but that won't change anything. You know that I'm right, and getting rid of me won't change the truth." Varian gritted his teeth, his grip getting just the tiniest bit firmer on the knife, and Varitas let a vicious smile appear on his lips. "You and me, we're just good for destruction, hurting others, taking the blame. I know it, they know it : that's why they let you down, and will let you down again. There's no denying it anymore, Varian. If you don't kill me, I will just keep destroying everything, and you'll be to blame for not stopping me when you had the chance : but if you do stop me, that you dare kill me if you’re even able to, then you will become the villain, the murderer, the mean one, because neither of us are part of the people whose faults are all forgiven. No matter what you choose, you will lose, just like I kept telling you." Varian stared at Varitas as he was talking, unable to stop listening to him. He knew he shouldn't listen or even consider his words, but something in them struck a chord within him, reaching doubts he tried to muffle, thoughts he tried to get rid of and amplifying them to the point that he could no longer ignore them or bury them again; and even though he thought he could hear Eugene's voice, he couldn't actually hear his words. Varitas smirked, knowing that despite the appearances, he had the upper hand. Reaching in his pocket, he got out a purple ball. "It's over, Varian." The alchemist's eyes widened in realization as the ball hit the ground, exploding and covering the whole room in a cloud of purple smoke. Eugene felt his blood froze in his veins as he heard fighting noises, the sound of metal clashing against skin and a cry of pain, then a body hitting the ground; and after that, nothing. In the heavy silence that followed, the cloud slowly escaped the room through the hole in the wall, joining its peers in the sky. Eugene then saw with horror a body lying on the ground in a puddle of blood. Standing next to him, its double was panting, holding without trembling the knife stained with blood. At that single moment, a terrible truth dawned on Eugene who felt his heart come to a stop. Even if it was impossible to distinguish the twins, one thing remained certain : one of them was now dead, killed by the other. And therefore, it didn't matter which one came out a winner in this battle, because the result was the same either way. Varitas had won, and their Varian was gone.

#varian #eugene fitzherbert #varitas #tts #tangled the series #tw :blood #tw : death #happy halloween i guess #some Team Awesome ? #maybe ? #my writing

[disneymiraculousefandomsblog]

Hey guys!! This story takes place after the fall of ZhanTiri so it’s a year Since raps defeated her so here originally Varian will be 17 since in season 3 he was 16 Since we never did see them celebrate his birthday so I decided to creat my own. Be aware there is a lot of angsty in this I wanted to make it mostly happy but I had to add angsty lol 😂 oh And I got the camera bit from @ultraglittercat credit goes to them. anyway I hope you all enjoy!

Varian’s Birthday

It Had been a year since the fall of Zahn Tiri it has taken Corona a year to rebuild everything that was damaged but Varian was a big help he had created inventions that helped them rebuild faster. Varian got up and got himself ready as he always did but today was a very special day it was his birthday he was turning 17 he was practically an adult well almost anyways. Ruddiger climes up Varian’s shoulders and taps him with his paw and cuddles around his neck giving Varian a little chitter as his way of saying happy birthday.

“Thanks buddy” Varian said to Ruddiger giving him a pat on the head. “This is the first year since Zahn Tiri been defeated....” Varian paused for awhile before he spoke again. “And the first time I can spend my birthday with my dad after being without him for a whole year” Varian said with a sad tone. Varian remembered how he spent his birthdays when his father was encased. He remembered how he worked so hard day and night to find a solution to save his father he didn’t care to eat or drink he was so angry at

Rapunzel and all of Corona for not coming to help him. The day of his birthday he spent it alone in his cold dark home with his father being encased and all he remembered was crying trying to hug his dad telling him he was sorry. The second year he was already caught and tossed in jail by the king he spent his birthday in a dark cold empty cell by himself just looking at the little window from his cell thinking that he never get his dad free and he spend the rest of his life alone with no one but himself.

Varian shook those memories away, “No, that’s was in the past today will be different... I have friends now and my dad is back thanks to Rapunzel, even if I don’t have a party I am glad to be able to spend it with my dad” Varian reassures himself. “Come on Ruddiger let’s go see dad” Varian said to his pet raccoon.

Back at the castle Rapunzel was very exited because this would be the first time she planned a surprise party for Varian since he never really had one since everything happened with Zahn Tiri. “Hey sunshine” Eugene said to Rapunzel.

“Hey Eugene” Raps answered back giving him a kiss.

“How is the party planning going?” Eugene asked.

“It’s going great Varian doesn’t suspect a thing” Raps said with excitement.

“It’s really just going to be us, Varian’s dad and his close friends,but I know Varian would like it.” Raps said with a smile

“yeah, Varian deserves it, he’s been through so much these past 2 years” Eugene said

“Yeah...” Before Raps could finish her sentence her mind went back to the time of the storm when Varian pleaded with her to help him save his dad and that ever since that day Varian was never the same she couldn’t but feel guilty about what had happened, maybe if she went with him and helped him none of that would have happened to him what if?. Rapunzel shook those thoughts out of her mind she knows that her and Varian are still trying to coupe with what happened between them but she knew they would get back on trusting each other again she hoped this party would help mend what happened to them.

Eugene saw Rapunzel and he could tell what was going through her head “Hey Sunshine, it will be ok.. you know Varian forgave you and you guys are friends again” Eugene said trying to reassure her.

“I know but if I had just a least gone to check on him after maybe the wouldn’t have gone through what he went through” Rapunzel answered with a hurt tone. Eugene pulled Rapunzel into a hug and held her till she felt better.

Quirin was in on the surprise party Rapunzel has asked him to spend most of the day with Varian and distract him till the party was set and ready to go. Varian headed downstairs to see his dad, “mmm, what’s that smell?” Varian asked sniffing the air.

“Morning son, Happy Birthday!” Quirin said. “Made you some pancakes and hot coco a special breakfast for a special son” Quirin said putting down the plate and hot coco on the table. Varian smiled this day was already going great he was thankful to have his dad back and he wanted to spend as much time with him.

“Thanks dad, this looks delicious” Varian said taking a sip of his hot coco. Ruddiger pawed at varian “Here you go bud!” Varian said giving a piece of his breakfast to his pet.

Ruddiger smiled and ate the piece. Varian and his dad sat there eating their breakfast, Varian didn’t want to ask his dad if he had planned anything for his birthday he didn’t want his dad to think that he needed to plan a party or anything. Quirin saw his son and he knew it was hard for him to adapt to this new situation he has been gone for 2 years and he couldn’t imagine what Varian went through during all that time alone. Quirin got up and went to where Varian was, “son, I know these past 2 years have been hard with you being on your own so long and I can’t imagine what you had to go through and I know it’s going to take awhile for us to get back to normal but I want you to know that I am very proud of you and I love you” Quirin said pulling his son into a hug.

Varian tried his best to not cry but he couldn’t stop the tears from falling, Varian returned with a tighter hug, “I missed you dad.. and I love you too” Varian said with tears streaming down his eyes. Quirin smiled and held his son until Varian was better.

Quirin pulled Varian away to where he could see his face, “how about we go to the village market and see if we can get you some new alchemy stuff you like?” Quirin told his son with a smile wiping away the tears from his sons eyes.

Varian smiled “I’d like that” Varian answered with a smile.

Varian and his dad went to the village and spent the entire day with each other they bought Varian some new alchemy they went to go eat ice cream and he read Varian some of his favorite Flynn Rider books they talked about Varian’s inventions and his ideas and Varian used his new invention he called a camera and took pictures with his dad they just spent the day together doing whatever Varian wanted to do. Quirin was just waiting for the signal Rapunzel was going to give him so let him know to take Varian to the castle for the party.

Rapunzel felt better now that she told Eugene everything that was bothering her. She started directing the Maids and cooks to start setting up the chairs and tables the baker was making Varian’s favorite cake it was chocolate and all his favorite desserts the cook was cooking Varian’s favorite food that his dad recommended. Rapunzel smiled, “this is gong to be a great party” Rapunzel said. Once everything was set up she ran to go get her present for Varian and wrapped it up with a pretty bow.

“Oh Eugene can you go to Quirin and tell him that he can bring Varian now” Rapunzel said to Eugene.

“Sure sunshine I’ll be back soon” Eugene said giving her a kiss.

Varian was sitting on a bench with his dad, “Dad this day was amazing I couldn’t have asked for a better birthday” Varian said to his dad with a smile.

Quirin smiled, “it’s not over yet” Quirin hinted to Varian.

“What do you mean?” Varian asked.

Quirin looked to the side and saw Eugene running to them.

“Hey bud! Happy Birthday!” Eugene said messing up Varian’s Hair.

“Hey Eugene! Thanks I didn’t think you remembered” Varian said with a half smile.

“How could I forget without you there would be no TEAM AWESOME!!” Eugene said with a smile.

“hehe Thanks Eugene” Varian said with a laugh.

“Oh I came because Rapunzel has a surprise for you and she told me to come and get you” Eugene stated.

“Really?” Varian asked.

“Come on son, Let’s go” Quirin said.

“Oh..ok” Varian answered.

They made their way to the castle, Rapunzel told everyone to hide and turn off the lights.

“Hey Eugene why is it so dark? Where is Rapunzel?” Varian asked Eugene.

Everyone jumped out and shouted “HAPPY BIRTHDAY VARIAN!!”. Varian got startled and was just in shock he didn’t know how to react.

“We wanted to make you a party since you never really had one since well... since everything happened” Rapunzel said rubbing her arm.

Varian just looked at Rapunzel and ran to give her a hug, Rapunzel wasn’t expecting a hug but she smiled and retuned the hug. “Thank you Rapunzel” Varian whispered in her ear. Rapunzel smiled and hugged him tighter.

Varian pulled away from the hug, “wow this is amazing!!” Varian said looking around the whole castle hall was decorated with his favorite colors and they even found some Alchemy themed decorations, he went to look at the table and there was so much food he hadn’t seen this much before and there was a table full of presents.

Varian wasn’t expecting anything this year he was just happy to be spending it with his dad. “So what to think? Do you like it?” Rapunzel asked him.

“Yes I love it thank you princess, but you didn’t have to do all this I was ok just spending it with my dad” Varian said with a gentle tone.

“Well I did this to show you how much you mean to us and that we really do care and love you very much Varian, I know I did things that hurt you and you probably haven’t really forgiven me for all that happened but i am really sorry Varian for everything” Rapunzel said trying not to cry on the last part she said.

Varian looked at Rapunzel he saw that she hated herself for what happened to him, Varian smiled, “Rapunzel, I already forgave you, I know I hurt you too and I’m ashamed for what I did, you gave me a second chance when nobody trusted me you believed in me anyway and for that princess I thank you” Varian said with a smile.

Rapunzel looked at Varian and pulled him in another hug.

Varian I forgave you the moment you betrayed the Sephorians and helped us save Corona and I know you had your reasons of why you did what you did I’m just glad we made up and we’re friends again Right?” Rapunzel asked Varian.

“Yes, Friends till the end” Varian said hugging her tighter.

“Alright, who’s ready to party!” Eugene shouted.

Catalina was the first one to shout “I am!”.

Varian pulled away for the hug and gave Rapunzel a smile, Rapunzel returned the smile and Varian made his way to greet his guests. Catalina, Kiara, Lance, Maximus they were all there his closest friends but to Varian they were more like family. They started the party by playing games,they ate dinner, Eugene and Lance did some birthday pranks on Varian and Varian swore he get back at them. They finally brought out the cake Varian was I awe the cake was huge to Varian anyway it was 5 layers tall and it was chocolate his Favorite.

“Wow this is a lot of cake” Varian stated.

“Don’t worry Catalina and I can finish it” Kiara said to Varian with a big smile.

“Hehe I highly doubt you two girls could finish all this scientifically it’s impossible” Varian told the girls with an assured tone.

“Oh yeah, just watch” Catalina said.

“Ok,Ok that’s enough you guys” Rapunzel said interfering .

“We’re just playing around” Kiara said with a pout.

Varian smiled he cut the cake and gave a piece to the girls, “here if you want more I’ll give you another piece, but I doubt you can eat more” Varian said with a smile. Varian served everyone a piece of cake and now it was present time. Lance was the one giving the presents to Varian.

Varian opened Kiara’s present first she gave him a new satchel, Catalina gave him a new outfit, Lance have him a picture of himself with his signature, Eugene, gave him a Flynn Rider outfit and a Flynn Ryder book. Varian laughed.

“Hehe Thanks Eugene” Varian said with a smile.

Rapunzel handed her present to Varian, “Here Varian this is a gift I made for you, I hope you like it?” Rapunzel said with a nervous tone. Varian ripped the wrapping off and opened the present.

“Wow Rapunzel this is amazing!” Varian said holding up the gift so everyone could see, it was a portrait she painted of The whole gang and Him together going on adventures.

“Thanks Princess I will treasure it” Varian said giving Rapunzel a hug. Rapunzel smiled and returned the hug.

Once the party was over everyone went their separate ways to go home, They all gave Varian a hug and waved goodbye. Varian returned the hugs and waved goodbye to them Varian turned to Rapunzel.

“Thank you Princess this was the best birthday I was surprised i thought you guys forgot hehe, but thank you princess this meant a lot to my dad and me” Varian said turning to his dad. Quirin gave a bow of gratitude to Rapunzel.

“Thank you your highness i really do appreciate what you did for my son today” Quirin said to Rapunzel with a smile.

Rapunzel blushed “oh it was nothing we love Varian he is more than a friend he’s family” Rapunzel said pulling Varian into a hug “ I love you Varian” Rapunzel said while hugging him. Varian smiled

“Thanks Princess, I love you too” Varian told Rapunzel hugging her tighter. Varian and his dad waved at Rapunzel and Eugene saying bye and they went back home.

They arrived back at Varian’s house, “did you have fun today son?” Quirin asked. Varian smiled

“yes I did I am lucky to have Family and Friends, but I’m especially lucky to have you back dad” Varian said giving his dad a hug.

Quirin smiled “I’m lucky to have a talented, brilliant, Smart son like you, I’m very proud of you Varian” Quirin told Varian returning a tighter hug.

Varian said Goodnight to his dad and went to his room. “This was a great birthday Ruddiger I can’t imagine it being better than today I’m glad I have friends and family I can count on” Varian told Ruddiger giving him a pat on the head. “Who knows what next year would bring but I’ll be ready” Varian said with an assured tone.

The End

I hope you guys enjoyed reading this I had a whole plan on how I was going to write it but my brain came up with this so I hope you guys enjoyed it sorry it was so long feedback is appreciated it helps me to keep going💕 let me know what you think?? P.S. I think I gave Varian to many hugs in this story lol 😂

#tangled the series #rapunzels tangled adventure #varian #tts fandom #tts varian #rta varian #q tangled the series #varian the alchemist #tangled varian #repunzel #varian tangled the series #evil varian #variantology #varian and the 7 kingdoms #varian and the seven kingdoms #varian angst #varian and quirin #tts fic #tts fanfic #my story #tts eugene #tts lance #tts catalina #tts kiera #disney fic #varian fan fic #varians birthday

[sbartdump]

Varian being angry that Cassandra wasn't jailed for her crimes.

 

Thank you for the prompt! ❤❤❤ You know me well, my friend. I go crazy when I comes to writing salt 🧂I'm working on writing through different genres tho, mainly 'cause "salt" doesn't cut it

Ao3

The kingdom courtyard was lit with a warm light. Not a single normally dark crook was left untouched. Lanterns hung under the sky. Laughter and music filled the night.

A farewell party was being thrown, the guest of honor? Cassandra, the ex-handmaiden, ex-guard, and ex-traitor. (how the title of traitor could be removed so casually was a mystery to Varian)

The Royal Engineer stood at the gates of the party, feeling sick to his stomach. Upon arriving, he gave Cassandra a small parting gift, a pleasant goodbye, and then proceeded to leave. Ruddiger was trotting by his heels.  

With his mind clouded with troubling thoughts, he sat down under a large tree, just a stroll away from all the buzz of the party. His chest felt thick and achingly uncomfortable, so he decided on calming himself before returning to his chambers. 

“I wouldn’t be able to enjoy the party,” he told his raccoon friend. “I'm so- so angry at Cassandra. I just can’t stand to see her like this.”

“Yeah, I’m sad to see her leave too.”

“Rapunzel!” he chuckled nervously, “I didn’t hear you coming.” The boy was scared for a moment, thinking maybe she overheard his feelings about her best friend, but that thought faded quickly at her warm smile. In this time, he noticed his companion scampering off to meet his Royal guard, horse friend. 

“It’s strange, don’t you think? I’m so happy she’s finding her own destiny, but it’s sad to see her go.”

In the long second that passed, Varian struggled to chide himself into agreeing with her.

“Ah, well ‘happy’ is a bit of a stretch.” He winced at his own words. 

It was only ment to be a flick at first, a dart in an attempt to vaguely catch her expression, but the shocked and cold look in the princess’s eyes, made him freeze. Dang it Varian! Why would you say that?

Throat suddenly tense, he forced out his next words. “Don’t get me wrong! Cassandra deserves a happy future.”

“Varian…” her tone, biting. A subtle warning, but he didn’t understand its origin, so boy kept going.

“Well...by how the story was told, the part that I heard anyway, Cass was only sorry after she lost," Varian quipped very matter-of-factly. 

He waited, wanting her to tell him there was more to it, but Rapunzel stayed silent.

“And I get it. I get that when I lost, I went down on a bitter note, I was angry. I-I hated you and I had to be stopped. But when Cass lost,” his voice strained, “well, you hugged it out-”

Here, Rapunzel was quick to reply. “Of course,” Her eyes watched him carefully, her tongue sharp. “Varian, Cass is my best friend. If you’re saying-” 

“Welll what about ME?" he cut in. "Sorry, but I was alone, and my only consultant was a raccoon. Everyone else turned their backs on me! On top of that, you were supposed to be my friend!”

“Varian," her tone was scolding and urgent. Like a hasty attempt to clean up a mess. "you know I couldn’t help you! Corona was in a state of crisis! I wasn't able to just leave.”

“That’s not- That is not what I’m talking about, Rapunzel. I was on my own. I did a lot of bad things, but I was alone, and you looked at me like I was some sort of monster, Rapunzel. I had Ruddiger, but even then, there was no one who believed I was still in there. No one came to pull me back to sanity.”

“I-” he wasn’t done.

“You had an undying faith for Cassandra. I’ve seen it. You always believed she’d come back.”

“Cass is my best friend, of course I never gave up on her.”

Varian felt his eyebrow twitch at her words. “How is that- How is that fair!? You’re telling me, if my dad got caught in the amber a little later in the year, if we shared more ‘bonding’ moments, I wouldn’t have ended up in prison?”

“Varian!” she looked bewildered, betrayed by this very conversation. “I had NO control over what happened. My dad was the king. And you- I know my dad can be harsh...but that’s just how-”

“Yeah and you left me with him. You can’t possibly believe there was nothing you could do.”

“I didn’t ask to be a princess, Varian. I was locked in a tower for 18 years of my life. Back then, I was new and unprepared. I’m human, I’m sorry I make mistakes.”

His response was slow, and quiet. “Yeah? Well, I was fourteen and I'm sorry I made mistakes.”

Her once chearful demeaned from aproaching him was gone. Now, her face was red and set in a frustrated scowl. The teen's eyes widened, thinking back on everything he said. The words too far crossed his mind. Unclenching his teeth, he gripped his knees in an uneased manner.

“Look, Rapunzel, I know things have changed since my arrest. You are different from your dad, and I trust your decisions. I do. But I can’t forget how I fought. How hard I had to fight to pull myself away from that dark, awful place I was in. How I had to do it alone. Cass, she attacked us, kidnapped me, and almost killed you and Eugene. I can’t be the judge of whose crimes were worse, but all I know is she did nothing to win back your favor. In fact! She never lost it! And- It’s not fair. Cass is more personal to you, I cannot in any way change that. It just- It hurts. It’s not fair.”

The princess ran a hand down her face, tired and wanting to get away. “I’m sorry you went through what you did and that you feel this way, but like you said, ‘things have changed.’ You can’t take your anger out on Cass for what you did in the past. And I can’t make that go away,” she paused, regret on her face. “but I’m glad we had this talk.”

 

Is she sorry? Guess, that’s up for debate.

Requests are still open as of now ❤❤

#varian tts #varian #tangled the series #rapunzel #varian fanfic #was the end disappointing? good. now you know how varian feels #im going to have salt tag because its become a regular thing #salt #rapunzel tts #rapunzel is kinda a jerk in this one #ask ayz #my work

[tangledbea]

The Saporians kinda remind me of the Equalists from Legend of Korra, based on how the narrative treated them: an organization that started out with complexity, but was turned into a shallow Big Bad—by doing some horrible thing that was not previously part of the plan for no reason —near the end of its arc. An analysis I read once sums this issue in media up really well: it’s better to start a story out with a simple idea, and gradually develop it more. Otherwise, by starting complex, usually a story will devolve into a flat and sloppy ending as the story needs to be finished.

I might be wrong about the Saporians being complex, as my memories of the show are rusty lol. But I’d like to know what you think, and if there are any other times in TTS that you think fit the idea of a ‘complex idea ending in overly an simple way.’

Holy cow, I've been sitting on this ask since last August. ;o; I'm sorry it took me so long to get around to answering it!

I only watched Korra once, back when it was new, so I don't remember much about how the Equalists operated, other than that they didn't want there to be any benders, or something. I completely agree, that the subplot with the Saporians started out complex and then got turned into "generic Big Bad". Lady Caine got the same treatment. Hell, TBEA implied that she was going to be the overarching recurring villain of the series, and instead she got two returns, both of which landed with her being rearrested.

However, I feel that this is less a case of "a sloppy ending as the story needs to be finished" and more that neither the Saporians nor Lady Caine were ever meant to be the main villain (once the plot was cemented, I can't speak for pre-production). They were the at-home villains Rapunzel had to deal with who weren't completely incompetent while she also had to deal with the bigger issue of Zhan Tiri and Cassandra.

But I felt that both of these groups held some amazing political intrigue, and I think they both would have worked well for a series more geared toward an older audience (who wouldn't be bored with the politics) with a less bombastic plot. When Caine and later the Saporians were introduced as a concept, I thought the series was going to end up being about an attempt to overthrow the crown (which, let's be real, would be difficult to argue with). I thought the two groups were going to team up with Varian in jail, and while we were 2/3 right, leaving Lady Caine out of the mix is almost criminal. She had amazing leadership skills and a cut throat way of handling her enemies that would have made the Saporians nigh unstoppable. (Until internal conflict of who actually got to claim the kingdom down that it was conquered took hold.) I even thought the Saporians would have something to do with Zhan Tiri's release, which would have been far more satisfying, imo.

Anyway, sorry again for the super-late reply.

#Tangled #Tangled the Series #Lady Caine #Separatists of Saporia #TTS #Answered

[whitecatindisguise]

Blood in My Veins

I decided to do a thing. This story was inspired by this post. Sooo.... let’s see how it goes.

P.S. @honeyxmonkey, I told you I will do it if you tell me no lmao

------

At first Varian didn’t suspect the thing. So what, his jail-mate seemed to be more awake during the night than day? It didn’t even disturb him how he always scooted away from the daylight pouring through the small window. After spending months in the darkened cell he, too, started to show symptoms of photophobia.

It was after their escape and taking over the kingdom he started to notice it wasn’t just Andrew. All of the Saporians tended to stay away from the daylight. They ordered to cover the windows with dark curtains, basking the interior of the castle in darkness. They never came out during the day, unless it was cloudy or raining. Varian couldn’t fathom, why all of them shared such peculiar dislike to sunlight.

Then, it started to get weirder. Whenever he worked in his lab, which was situated so low there was no windows inside, pushing him to use candles to even see anything, one of the Saporians was there. It wouldn’t bother him that much, if not how they always trailed after him, keeping too close for his own comfort. One time, he was quite sure he caught Clementine sniffing him.

But it wasn’t until few months after their escape that he finally learned, what was wrong with Saporians.

He just finished work for today, deciding to rest a little. His eyes were closing on their own and he could barely keep himself steady, as he walked towards his bedroom. Andrew trailed behind him like a shadow. It still sent the chill down the alchemist’s spine, no matter how much time has passed.

He finally managed to drag himself to his room and pushed the door forwards, making way towards his bed. The door behind him closed with a loud clank and he turned, surprised to see Andrew turning the key in the lock.

“What are you doing?” He asked confused.

The Saporian turned to him and the look he gave the boy was nothing like he’d ever seen. Andrew’s eyes bore into his small frame, assessing him, almost EATING him. It was disturbing, to say the least.

“I have no idea, what you’re doing in this lab of yours kid...” Andrew said, stepping closer, a sinister smile on his lips. “... but whatever it is, the smell of your blood is just breathtaking.”

“What?” Varian blinked and stepped back, tripping over the leg of the bed. He lost his balance and fell backwards, landing on the plush blankets.

Before he could react, Andrew closed the distance and was looming over the terrified boy. He licked his lips in delight and leaned closer, sniffing on  Varian’s neck.

“Yes... I’ve never smelled something like this before.” He murmured, hands gently but firmly pinning the alchemist to his bed. “I don’t think I’ll be able to held myself any longer.”

“What do you-?” Varian’s question was cut as Andrew lunged forward and he felt something sting his neck.

He let out a startled gasp. He tried to push the man away, to escape the grasp, but he couldn’t. He felt weaker by the second, his vision fogging. Finally, the pressure on his neck disappeared, followed by unpinning him from his bed.

Andrew pulled away and licked his lips again, a drop of red trailing down his chin.

“Ah, I knew you were special, kid.” He grinned and Varian could swear his teeth were sharper than they should be. The man reached out his hand and gently cupped the alchemist’s cheek. “Sleep now. We’ve got so much time before us.”

Varian tried to argue, tried to get the man explain himself. But his clouded mind refused to cooperate. His vision blackened and he passed out, two bite-marks visible on his pale neck.

~~~~~~

After that night, it became a somewhat usual occurrence. To Varian’s dismay, it wasn’t only Andrew. All of the Saporians shared the same trait and he started to find himself pinned and bitten in the neck more times than he would like. It came to the point he was constantly on edge, watching over his shoulder, trying to spot red eyes in the darkness of the hallway.

No matter how much he wanted to find another, scientific explanation for their behaviour, he was painfully aware of who exactly were they. Vampires. The creatures he only read in fairy tales, never believed to truly exist. If it wasn’t for the constant pain in his neck, his growing paleness and developing anaemia, he wouldn’t believe it either.

Somewhere along the time, he started to wear a coat with high collar, to hide the sickening sight every time he looked into the mirror. It helped a bit, but the marks were still visible, so he purchased a bandana, which successfully managed to cover his neck.

It was only for show, he knew. So that he could pretend everything was alright. Pretend his allies weren’t bloodthirsty creatures preying on him. Pretend he wasn’t getting more and more tired as the days went by...

~~~~~~

When Rapunzel came back, at first he was furious. It was the first emotion he felt, seeing the woman who destroyed his life, made him a criminal.

After the Princess and her friends were pushed away from the castle, Andrew didn’t even bother to wait until Varian was back in his room. He sunk his teeth right there, earning a moan of pain from the boy. The man murmured something about how anger made his blood even more enthralling. It was hard to pay attention, as his vision swum once again, his limbs losing strength.

He awoke in his room, neck hurting from the bite. He curled on himself, weeping silently over his fate. 

Then, the Princess came back, sneaked inside right under their noses. Apparently, she was found crying in Cass’ room, holding her dress to her chest. If it wasn’t for that, Varian wasn’t sure she would be found and caught.

But there she was, stuck behind the bars as he once was. The irony of the situation was laughable, to say the least. He bantered to her how she made his life miserable, how he’s going to fix it up himself, because he couldn’t count on her. And then, everything went south.

The Saporians revealed they were planning to use the unstable Quirineon to blow up Corona. Varian was furious. Not only they used him a their personal food source, the thought of which sent a chill up his spine, but they even refused to listen to one request he had, that no one got hurt!

In a spur of a moment he tried to trap them, throwing a bomb in their direction. But, of course, nothing ever goes like he wants it too. The bomb turned out to be a bathbomb, useful when you want to take a quick bath, but useless to use AGAINST someone.

Andrew laughed, his eyes glinted red, and Varian shivered, backing away.

“Bad move, kid.” The man stepped closer, licking his lips. The alchemist could see the teeth sharpening.

“Don’t you dare hurt him!” Rapunzel cried from behind him. If Varian wasn’t frozen in fear, he would have laughed. So NOW she’s concerned about his well-being, huh?

“Oh, don’t worry, princess.” Andrew was now so close, the boy could smell the cologne he used. The man leaned forward and sniffed, letting out a pleased sigh. “We would never hurt our favourite snack, would we?”

Before the princess managed to process what he said, Andrew pulled away the bandana from Varian’s neck and sunk his teeth. The alchemist cried out, as the man was more forceful than usual. His teeth sunk deeper, he was sucking blood with more strength.

Varian’s knees buckled, his eyelids started to close. Andrew pulled away and watched the boy fall to the floor, wiping the blood from his mouth.

“Consider it a punishment for your disobedience, kid.” He said, kneeling next to the alchemist, the hazy blue eyes staring at him through the fog. “You are mine now.”

Varian’s eyes closed, world turning black. He didn’t hear Rapunzel crying out his name, begging the Saporians to let him go. He didn’t feel Kai pick him up, sling over his shoulder and take him away. He didn’t hear the cling of metal, as he was chained to the floor in the airship.

~~~~~~

“-an... -rian...” His hazy mind picked out, but he was too out-of-it to understand what was being said.

He felt so weak. His neck hurt, and so did the rest of his body. He just wanted to sleep.

“-rian...! Varian!” This time the words sounded clearer. Someone was calling him, voice concerned. “Varian, please. Open your eyes.”

Easier said than done, he thought, feeling as if his eyelids were made from stone. After several attempts he finally managed to pry them open, even if only slightly. His vision was blurred, but he spotted something distinctively familiar and purple just in front of himself.

“Eugene, he’s not waking up!” Someone called, voice trembling as if they were crying. Eugene... he knew that name... And purple meant...

“Rapu.....nzel...?” He managed to breathe out, voice hoarse and barely audible. The purple moved and something yellow and very bright appeared before his eyes.

“Oh my god! Varian!” It was truly her. She leaned down and he was pulled into a bear hug. “I thought we lost you! When they all started to...” She trailed off, not letting him go yet. “You were so pale, we could barely feel your pulse!”

“You gave us quite a scare, Goggles.” He heard a male voice. Eugene.

“Wha...? Where...?” Varian’s mind was still hazy, barely registering what Rapunzel was talking about. What has happened? Why was he so weak? Why did his neck hurt so much?

“The Saporians almost killed you, kid.” Eugene spoke up. Varian moved his head to the dark-blue blur which seemed to be the man. “They were all sucking up your blood like maniacs. Crazy, if you ask me.”

Varian tensed at the explanation. Usually it was only one of them that... drunk. And they gave him time to rest and his body to refill the lost blood. If they all tried drinking so shortly after the situation in jail...

He trembled and subconsciously reached out to grab Rapunzel’s dress. He almost died. He almost died. He almost-

“Varian, calm down.” Rapunzel called out. He didn’t even notice when he started hyperventilating. “Deep breaths. You are safe now. They are not going to hurt you anymore.”

He gripped her dress tighter, burrowing his face in her chest. Tears stained the purple material, dumping it. His whole frame shook, as he cried and hiccoughed, Rapunzel gently stroking his back.

You are safe. You are alright. You are not alone.

She spoke quietly, whispering into his ear as he trembled and weeped. And, this time, Varian believed her.

#tts #varian #vampire!saporians #varian needs a hug #oneshot #alternate universe #kitty mom writes

[thecurseoflife]

CHAPTER 17 - My King, my Queen.

For the whole three weeks their plan took to be fully made, Camalia didn't see any of the Saporian's faces. Not even a glimpse of what they might look like.

So she had to fall back on her imagination.

She imagined Andrew as repulsive and disgusting as possible, with hideous features. Which would perfectly match his personnality, that she definitely didn't like.

Clementine was, in her head, kind of an old woman, but not that old. A bit cranky, with that constant frown, always bent over. She thought about some kind of a shawl over her shoulder, and a belt where she put all of her her magic thingies.

Maisie was very classy, with an uptight ouftit, maybe going a bit over the top with a cape, but nothing more. He would have a sword, or even just a dagger hanging on his side. She thought about a moustache that curls in the hand, that he was used to bully with his fingers whenever he was stressed or deep in thought.

Kai would be that big, cuddly man, looking like a teddy bear. Maybe with a very soft beard, very clean and nicely styled. The girl couldn't even imagine him with a weapon, but she had to remind herself that they were technically criminals. An axe would work with the features she had, but it looked so weird in his hands. She finally handed up with a stick. Stick is good.

Juniper would be with long hair, a large, bright grin, and maybe some freckles on her cheeks. It would underline her nice and goofy personality. She would be thin and constantly bruised, with funky hair bouncing everywhere. A long and nice sword would be the perfect weapon for her, and she was sure the saporian would wield it with grace and precision.

When she shared her thoughts to Varian, he simply snorted at Andrew's description and shrugged off the rest. To be fair, he hadn't really put names on the faces he saw, so he was just a little bit less lost. However, he was mildly happy to see how well she was getting along with the crew.

In one hand, it would ease communication a lot, and make her a part of the team, but on the other hand, he felt like she was more accepted than him... And also, they were supposed to be allies, not making buddy-buddy with the criminals. Their sad origin story didn't really move him that much. He didn't really cared, but he was glad it convinced Camalia, whatever her reasons were.

During the making of the Plan, they were confronted to the biggest problem : Captain. He was smart, strong, very smart, and an excellent leader. To overthrow the royalties, they had to go through him. A lot of solutions were offered, but all of them were destroyed by Camalia's inside knowledge of the man. They were hitting a dead end when the castle was suddenly full of running guards and panicked maids. Camalia got up from the place near the well she was sitting at, watching with surprise all of those people running around, in and out of the prison. She spotted Stan and Pete running around and gestured them to come closer. They hesitated, the girl now in prison was a criminal, then decided that between a very confusing order and the girl they've seen grow over the years, they chose the girl.

-What's going on ? Asked Camalia

A split second of doubt before Pete answered.

-Cap' is gone.

Disbelief painted itself across the girl's face, while behind her, Varian had a smile. Even though he didn't really want to convey his feelings to the guards.

-What ? What do you mean "gone" ? Is he ok ?

-Oh, yeah, don't mind Pete. Captain was fine the last time we saw him. He just... ran away.

-Captain ran away ?

-Yes. To find Cassandra.

He used to talk about Cassandra. During those little times they shared, before the curse became too strong. She was his beloved daughter, his treasure. He loved her with all his heart, and what was incredulity faded into understanding.

As Pete and Stan went back to their crazy run, she let go of the bars and went back to the well, sitting close to Varian, who couldn't hide his excitement.

-Did you hear that, guys ?

Once again, Andrew's disgustingly sweet voice rose.

-Yes, we did. It's great news. Now that Cap's gone, this plan will go easily.

After that, they learned by listening some guards that Stan and Pete had been designated to be captains while waiting for the actual Captain. There was supposed to be only one, but... well... Stan and Pete.

At first, Camalia was thrilled for her friends. Then she darken, remembering that they would be on opposite sides. Well, at least, they won't be harmed that bad... right ? Just... erasing their memories, and that's it ! It's okay. As the weeks passed by, Camalia's mindset changed, and she wasn't sure she liked it. She found more and more reasons... no, excuses to do what she was doing. They won't hurt anyone, it's better this way... She lied, and lied. Over, and over. But what else was she supposed to do ? She understood too well the Saporian's feeling and situation, and she couldn't leave Varian. Even if she wanted to, that is. After all, they were stuck in the same cell. She blocked out the little voice screaming she was wrong. She had to do this. She needed to do this.

It was the middle of the night, but everyone in jail was wide awake. Varian was silently watching the moon, waiting for it to disappear behind the tower. Camalia was stretching, breathing deeply, guitar in hand. Under them, the Saporian's were tensed, ready to jump out.

They had one shot at this And they weren't going to mess it up.

Minutes passed by and everything was quiet. Slowly, the shadows took over the light that disappeared in the window, only leaving the gentle flicker of the torchs in the corridor. Varian turned to Camalia and nodded.

She breathed in and played. The door, and part of the wall, exploded. Under them, and at the same time, the Saporians had unlocked their door and were now going up the stairs as fast as they could. A scream was heard above them, and a lot of steps eagerly running toward them. With a simple note, Camalia locked the door, and after a brief hesitation, placed several rocks in front of it. They needed to go through that door, but for now, it would prevent the others from getting to them. She turned back to the stairs just in time to see the last Saporian appearing.

I can't describe to you what the young music mage felt, upon seeing Juniper and Kai for the very first time. However, I can tell you that she froze, and nearly dropped her guitar. I can tell you that she walked over slowly, like in a dream, unable to detach her eyes from Juniper's beautiful, gorgeous dark skin. She couldn't hear the pressing voices nor could she feel the hands trying to get her to focus. Juniper didn't move, kind of confused, but feeling like the girl needed whatever was going on. I can tell you that Camalia approached her hand, brushed Juniper's arm and pulled away, like she had been burned. She hesitated, then touched it again. Juniper raised her arm, and Camalia could see her palm. She was shocked, and honestly shaken. She raised her arm next to the woman's. She was lighter, but... They were...

-You- You're like me.

Her voice was strangled and shaking, and her eyes were still glued to both of their arms next to eachothers. Juniper looked at Camalia. She looked at her upset face, at the tears building up and she understood. She looked at Camalia, she really looked at her, looked at her soul, at her story, like it was a book. Juniper was a tough woman, and always took pride in that. She didn't show weakness, she was strong, she never softened her words over what she was really thinking. So no, they weren't the same, not at all. But right now, that's now what the kid meant.

Without hesitation, she pulled Camalia in for a hug, and whispered in her ears.

-Yes, we are.

It took every bone in Camalia's body to not start crying her 15 years built up feelings right then and there. But they had to get moving, so she just hugged back and then took some deep breath to calm down and regain some kind of composure. Most of the people in the room, except Kai and Juniper, had no idea what just happened. All they knew is that they were wasting time.

Camalia grabbed her guitar and walked over the blocked door. They could hear guards banging on it, trying to get past the huge pile of rock the mage built. She stood as close of it as she could, then ended up backing up a bit.

-I am Camalia, a music mage, and I'm about to blow up this door. Unless you want to blow up with it, you better back up !

They heard the guards hurrily scatter behind the door, and within a beat, the door exploded. The Saporians and their allies rushed into the opening, knocking out any guards in their way. They ran up the stairs, to arrive in a corridor filled with guards, led by Stan and Pete. Their faces paled when they saw Camalia with the criminals, and once again, doubt ached in the music mage's heart.

They quickly composed themselves and ordered the attack. Without a second thought, the Saporians launched into battle. Varian, Camalia and Clementine stayed put, Camalia and Varian protecting the mage. The Saporians forged a path through the guards, and once they were on the other side of the corridor, they formed a circle around Andrew that placed a rune on the wood. In the Coronans' point of view, the criminals were cornered, separated and easy to take down. They were completely took off guard when the bigger group suddenly broke defenses and layed as flat as they could on the wall.

Across the corridor, Varian and Camalia did the same while Clementine pulled out another rune that she slapped on her staff before slamming it on the ground. The two runes seemed to connect and suddenly everything between those two paper were in a giant storm, making the guards fly away, and eventually knocked them down. When a dozen minutes later it calmed down, everything was quiet and the Coronans were out.

The Saporian team took the runes and continued their progress toward the throne room.

It took them some time and a few tricks, but they finally entered the room, where for some reason the royalties hadn't been taken to safety. Once the giant door closed behind them, Camalia definitely locked it and all the other smaller exits.

While the music mage was making sure it was all closed, pushing the doors one by one, the group approached the king and queen.

-You do not belong here, criminals.

Andrew let out a soft laugh.

-We've belonged here for quite a while, Frederick ! Rooting in your jail. I've grown attached to this place. But... I would like to see a little more than just, bars and walls, you know ?

He paused dramatically, acting as if he was thinking, then snapped his fingers and pointed at the royals.

-I know ! What about the entire kingdom ?

Camalia got back to the group, confirming they were trapped. Juniper gave her a thumbs up, making the girl smile proudly. Then again, doubt was there. This was wrong. She was doing the wrong thing. She was a Coronan after all, not... not a Saporian ?

-You won't get away with this, Saporians.

Varian stepped forward, and the queen had a movement backward. Shock, fear and a dot of anger passed on her face. Far from disliking it, the alchemist smiled.

-Well, they aren't alone, are they ? You see, I've been thinking of a way to start over, since I screwed up so bad you couldn't even give me the help you promised.

-We never-

-FREDERICK DID !

Varian was screaming, his face red, rage boiling in him. He gave an accusatory stare to the king.

-He DID. He promised to Rapunzel before she leave, and then he didn't do anything. He forgot about me as soon as I disappeared from his sight.

Camalia's head shot up at his words. Her breathing increased and she felt her stomach drop. They couldn't do that, Varian was just saying that because he was upset. They were the king and queen ! They had to take care of their citizens, all of them ! It's true no one ever came to help him but... they probably had a reasonable answer to that. But they stayed silent.

Unaware of the girl's state, the Saporians were all staring at their victims. Clementine slowly took the wand of oblivium out of her bag. She walked forward, letting the boy slips behind her with the rest of the team. She pointed the wand to the royals. Out of despair, Queen Ariana spoke.

-We don't know any of you ! What happened centuries ago is not our fault ! Please, stop this madness.

Andrew was about to clarify how they didn't do much to restore what their ancestors had done, and that if they did stop this madness, then what ? They were just going to be put back to jail. No thanks. He opened his mouth, exasperation and hate growing in his chest when someone stepped forward and whispered. In the silence, everyone heard.

-You... don't know any of us ?

He turned to see Camalia, and the expression he saw kept his mouth shut. She was holding her guitare close to her chest, her two hands clunched on the handle. She wasn't going to play, that's for sure. She stepped out of the group, not really seeing anyone, similar to her earlier state of bewilderment when she saw Maisie and Kai, but... It was sadder. Darker. Worst.

-That's a lie. You... you know Varian ! And you know Andrew, and... And you know me.

-No. You're just another saporian.

Camalia stumbled a bit backward, as if the words had punched her. She didn't stop smiling. She had just changed, it's been 10 years !

-Of course you do ! It was a long time ago but I was the 4 years old girl you had to put in jail ! You gave me an apple. You had to put a child behind bars, you... you can't forget that.

Her voice was shaking at the end of the sentence. No light of understanding in their eyes. It was cold, sick, madening. Their stares weren't the stares of a good king and queen. It was the stare of people corrupted by power, unable to differenciate their needs with the kingdom's. It was the look of those who take and close their eyes on the consequencies. It was the look of people that thought she was different, she was smaller, she was less. It was the look of people that thought she didn't matter. That look that make you want to puke and beat them up at the same time.

The kind of look that makes you explode.

Camalia grabbed the wand, snatching it from Clementine's hand, and pointed it at them.

-I've spent 10 years of my life in inimaginable pain, living, no... surviving under your feet. And you don't even care.

There was such disgust in her voice, as much as there was arrogance in the royals' eyes.

She cast the spell,  a few pink sparkles escaped, and the whole room turned white.

When the brightness disappeared, and everyone opened their eyes, it was to the sight of the king and queen, laying inconscious beside their thrones. Smiles creeped up the Saporians face, and the rattling of the wand hitting the ground stopped it mid-course. They turned to Camalia. The girl was horrified, her hands on her mouth, looking at the bodies as if she murdered them.

She turned her back on them and dashed to the big entrance, that she bursted open and ran through. They all turned to Varian, expecting him to run after her but he was busy checking on the bodies. Juniper frowned, not liking at all how the boy was treating his friend. She went after Camalia instead of him.

Andrew watched the whole scene with a smirk.

-Well well well, the little music mage won't be that much of a burden after all...

Camalia ran out. She ran through the corridors, meeting nothing but unconscious corpses. She tripped, fell, got back up and ran. She didn't know where she was going, tears flodding on her face, leaving a trail on the carpet behind her.

She ran, went down a staircase then another. Her mind was fuzzy, her legs were moving by themselves. Suddenly she was back in jail. Back in her cell. Her very own cell. The cell that felt like it was safe.

The cell that felt like home.

She crumbled on the ground, gasping and sobbing loudly. Her voice was echoing on the wall, doing nothing but making her feel like she was more alone than ever.

Then steps echoed back, as a response for her cry. The music mage turned, expecting Varian, but it was Juniper. She crawled back on the wall, not wanting to talk to her.

She felt the Saporian sit beside her, still in silence. It was quiet. An ideal silence that was only broke by the girl's sniffles. Camalia kept expecting that the woman would start talking, but she didn't. She just... sat there, looking at the ceiling, as calm as she could be. So the music mage spoke.

-I...I didn't mean to...

Her voice was trembling and full of cracks. She flinched at the sound she made, but continued.

-That's not... that's not what I wanted.

Juniper sighed and patted the Coronan's shoulder.

-Sometime, in life, we do things we'd rather not do. It just happens. And then you have to live with it.

-But I don't want to live with it !

Frustration exploded as she spoke.

-I don't want to live with the fact that I... I hurt people ! I don't want to hurt people, I hate it ! And I just did, because, what...? They couldn't remember me ! That's stupid !

Another silence. Camalia was panting, a new stream of tears running down her face.

-Well. Will the fact that you didn't want to change the fact that you did ?

-No ?

-Then what do you want to do ? Juniper shrugged. You don't really have a choice. What is done is done. Your future choices, however, are up to you.

The woman touched gently Camalia's forehead.

-Don't let your past, no matter how recent it is, define who you are, princess.

Juniper got back up, her eyes drifting to a place unknown to Camalia. She whispered, seemingly more to herself than for the girl.

-Trust me, the best you can do is move on as soon as you can.

She turned back to the music mage, still on the ground, taken aback by what just happened. The Saporian reached out for her, smiling as if nothing happened.

-Come on, princess ! We have to go help the others clean the castle. 'M sure the kid is done with the royalties by now.

The Coronan stood back up as well, and together, hand in hand, they left the prison.

FIRST / Previous / Next

WHAT’S THAT ?

#tangled #tts #tangled the series #rapunzel's tangled adventure #rta #varian #varian the alchemist #saporians #the separatists of saporia #camalia #au #alternate universe #oc #ocs #stories #fanfiction #tcol #the curse of life #wattpad

[ultraglittercat]

Drabble 106

Archery

The Kingdom of Corona had much to celebrate recently, even with Cassandra still loose and in possession of the Moonstone. The King and Queen had gotten their memories back, little by little, and were more in love than ever. Rapunzel was ecstatic and thought this was a good time for her parents to forge even more bonds with the local citizens. Frederic was to demonstrate to Catalina and Kiera how to prepare eggs for a hearty breakfast with Rapunzel as his helper. And Arianna was to spend the day with Varian. This made Varian nervous as it was his fault Arianna had lost her memory in the first place. Not to mention the time he had kidnapped her!

But Rapunzel thought he should forget about his mistakes and concentrate on building a good relationship with the Royal Family. She assured him that they had forgiven him already, just as she had. And maybe Varian could believe that, if he hadn’t seen for himself how Frederic had glared at him before leaving the castle. Arianna was smiling though, but then again she had always been the more approachable of the two rulers.

“Your Highness.” Varian bowed, and gestured for Ruddiger to do the same.

“Varian, you’re a friend of Rapunzel, you don’t have to be so formal towards me. You may call me Arianna.” she said warmly.

“Oh well um, th-thank you Arianna. Rapunzel said you have some ideas on what we should do?” Varian stammered.

Arianna grinned. “Horseback archery!” she suggested immediately. “My husband doesn’t know how to ride very well, can you?”

Varian nodded, grateful he could at least do part of her request. “Oh yeah. I live on a farm, I’ve been riding donkeys since I was four.” Varian replied. “But I haven’t ever practiced archery.” He did know something of the history behind it, as archery had been practiced even in ancient times, and in the books Flynn Rider was something of an expert archer in addition to a capable swordsman. When Varian was younger he’d even made bodkin point arrows for a bow he’d constructed, but Quirin had forbade him from actually testing it out. Today might give him a chance to try something he’d always wanted.

“I can teach you a few things.” Arianna offered. “I think you’ll learn best by watching me. Come on, we’ll mount the horses!” She was clearly excited, and Varian realized just where Rapunzel had gotten her enthusiastic spirit form.

Varian followed Arianna to the stables where she quickly mounted Max, leaving Fidella for Varian. He felt a little hesitant, riding what should be Cassandra’s horse, but Fidella was a good and patient mount, and Varian was a good rider, instinctively petting her and guiding her with a gentle hand.

“You were right about being a good rider.” Arianna complimented after a bit. Varian’s posture on the horse was good, he’d practiced for years. Still it made him blush to be complimented by the Queen.

Arianna led them to an open field with several ‘bulls-eye’ targets. “This is the Royal Shooting Range. I come here often, it helps me to focus.” she nocked an arrow carefully. “See the arrow fletching? It’s got two feathers of the same color, and the odd-colored feather is the index feather. When used with a compound bow like mine, the index feather faces up and down. This allows me to nock the arrow in such a way that it has as little friction as possible when it’s loose.” Arianna explained. She loosed the arrow, striking a perfect bulls-eye. “Now you try.” she said.

Varian picked up the bow, doing his best to copy her example. His stance wasn’t perfect, but it was a good attempt.

“Point your elbow down more. It should have a slight bend.” Arianna instructed. Varian obeyed, and it did feel more natural that way. He loosed his arrow, but it fell wide of the mark.

“That’s a sin.” Arianna told him.

Varian’s face fell. “I’ve committed too many of those in my lifetime.” he mumbled.

“I only meant it as an archery term. You’re not a bad boy.” Arianna tried to sound comforting.

“Yes I am, your H- I mean Arianna. I broke out of jail, I wiped your memories, I kidnapped you. I don’t know how you can be so calm around me.” Varian said sadly.

“Varian, listen to me. I know you’ve done bad things, but more importantly, I know why. You missed your father so much you were willing to do anything to try and get him back. That’s not unlike the feelings my husband had when I was sick and pregnant with Rapunzel. He used the Sundrop Flower even though it was forbidden magic. Many people would view what he did as wrong, but he thought it was worth it to save my life.” Arianna explained.

“He was right. He’s right about everything.” Varian replied. “I know he made those Wanted posters of me, back when I attacked the capital, and again when Eugene and Lance and I stole some peppers.”

“Actually, a local painter made those portraits. ...It was Frederic’s idea to give you devil horns.” she admitted.

“See? He knows I’m bad.” Varian moaned.

“No, he thinks you’re bad. There’s a difference.” Arianna corrected. “And in time, I’m sure he’ll change his mind, just as I did. I want to thank you Varian, for trying to help us get our memories back. And for making that strawberry taffy, it’s delicious.”

“R-really? I do try to find a use even for my failed inventions.” Varian relaxed somewhat. Next to him, Ruddiger chittered.

“I like that. You’re creative and thoughtful, just like my daughter. Rapunzel forgives you, and so do I. Someday, Frederic will too.” Arianna remained positive.

“You really do believe that.” Varian was touched.

“I believe it just as I believe this next arrow will hit. Watch.” she took back the bow and quickly fired another arrow. As she expected, it hit center of the bulls-eye.

“Wow, you’re really good.” Varian was impressed.

“I’ve just had a lot of practice.” Arianna said humbly. “I think it’s time we headed back, though. See how my husband did with his cooking assignment.” she turned Max around.

“Okay. Do… do you think we could come back sometime? I’d like to get in some target practice and… and maybe I could even touch up the field a little bit. Bulls-eyes are nice, but maybe I need a stronger motivation to hit the targets. I could paint the targets to look like someone we know, Trevor maybe, or some other enemy.” Varian couldn’t quite name Cassandra as an enemy just yet, but Arianna knew what he meant.

“Painted targets is a good idea. I’ll tell Rapunzel and I’m sure she’ll lend you some blue paint.” Arianna said. Varian nodded and they led their horses back to the stables, eager to meet with family and friends.

The End

I got a request to write a Varian and the Queen story and it was a lot of fun! I really like Arianna. (I am not keen on Frederic though. Sorry!)

#tangled the series #tts #tts varian #tangled varian #varian #tts ruddiger #tangled ruddiger #ruddiger #tts arianna #tangled arianna #arianna #tts frederick #tangled frederick #frederick #tts rapunzel #tangled rapunzel #rapunzel #archery #target practice #fanfiction #fanfic #my fiction

[rachelbethhines]

Tangled Salt Marathon - The Eye of Pincosta

So this is an episode that really didn’t need to exist, and I say that as a Styalan defender. The writers took a perfect opportunity have the characters actually learn and grown and bypass it all for a contrived performative fake out redemption. 

Summary:  The group arrive in the town of Pincosta, but Eugene is immediately thrown in jail for having previously stolen the town's largest diamond, the Eye of Pincosta. The sheriff declares Eugene to work in the deadly copper mines and soon the rest of the group are thrown in jail. Rapunzel negotiates with the sheriff, offering to find and retrieve the Eye of Pincosta in exchange for Eugene and the group's release. The sheriff agrees, but on the condition that Rapunzel returns in two days. Rapunzel confronts Eugene about the theft and reluctantly, Eugene reveals he previously worked together with Stalyan, forcing Rapunzel to seek out Stalyan and persuades her to help.

So Why Didn’t Eugene Just Stay Behind With the Caravan?

Like it doesn’t take all six of you to buy and carry food back to the caravan; which they don’t take into the town anyways. Especially when you have two horses you can use. So why bring Eugene along when you know he could be arrested? 

Pointing Out the Flaw In Your Writing Doesn’t Make It Any Less of a Flaw

No seriously, why didn’t he stay with the caravan? You need someone to watch over your stuff anyways if your going to leave it behind and Eugene is the perfect candidate for that. And even if you did need everyone to stick together, which you don’t, then bring the camper with you and let Eugene ride inside of it unseen. It’s not like the towns roads are too small for it or anything and it’ll save you from having to carry your stuff. 

If you have to turn your characters into sudden idiots for no discernible reason to make your plot happen then you haven’t a good plot. Start over and come up with something else. Like maybe have Eugene not realize that he is wanted here because it was so long ago or have the guards randomly check their caravan where he’s hiding out because Styalan’s back into town, or something. Anything so long as it doesn’t make the mains stupid. 

You’re Literally The Princess of Powerful Kingdom; Use That! 

Ok, from what background info we get here, Pincosta isn’t even a fully fledged kingdom. It’s a hamlet, which is smaller than even a village. We get no indication what ‘land’ it belongs to, but it shares a kingdom with the larger town of Zulberg, which is one of the running gags in the first half of the episode. 

What all this means is that Rapunzel is still the most powerful person in the room. She’s the heir apparent to the throne of a prosperous kingdom that has ties with a large trading network with bunch of other power kingdoms. Locking up her boyfriend and the future prince consort of said kingdom can be perceived as an act of war. 

The series is trying to lead into Rapunzel becoming queen, but that means she needs to take advantage of her position and perform queenly like tasks. Like negotiating international incidents like this one, and simply complying to the city’s laws as if she was some random traveler doesn’t cut it. 

Oh, So Now You Care!

Rapunzel, where the fuck do you think that prison barge was heading to just two episodes back? The same prison barge that your friend Attila was being threatened with. The same prison barge that victims of Corona’s corrupt justice system, like say Varian, are threatened with on top of the inhumane conditions of those dungeon cells that you locked your two best friends in back in season one. 

Do not tell me Rapunzel is some kind and caring person if she only gives a damn about unjust treatment when it only affects her or someone she already cares about.     

This Is Stealing Agency Away From Eugene 

Rapunzel is not the one responsible for Eugene’s mistakes. She can help to some degree, like using her political power to pull some strings, but she doesn’t need to be the one to make reparations for his actions; that’s on him. 

Or rather it should be on him. This should be his episode. The one where he grows as a person as he makes up for past deeds. Because redemption isn’t just about never doing bad things again, it’s also about making amends for what you did wrong. 

That’s where this series fails and why the whole ‘It’s Rapunzel’s Story’ mantra is hollow. For starters it’s not just Rapunzel’s story. The series isn’t structured to be that way because it’s based off of a movie with two protagonists. It’s Eugene’s story as well. It’s also Cassandra’s and Varian’s story because as the main antagonists they further the conflict. 

But it also fails because Rapunzel is just thrown into other people’s stories instead of being given her own. Rapunzel never learns anything from this adventure. Stalyan does, and Stalyan is never seen again after this episode. Having Rapunzel teach other random people lessons is counterintuitive to what the series wants to be. If it’s meant to be a coming of age story where Rapunzel learns about the real world, then she can’t be automatically in the right every episode.   

Well Ain’t That Convenient  

So Stalyan is needed to find this diamond that she and Eugene stole in order to free Eugene. Yet it’s never stated how Rapunzel finds Stalyan, especially so quickly. Last we saw her she had just left Varados and that was months ago. She could have been anywhere by this time. 

So why is she near the same town where she’d still be wanted for arrest at? Where’s a her dad, who was dying from poison when we last saw him? What has she been up to? How did Rapunzel even know she was here? 

Like you need to establish crap like this, otherwise it’s just a major plot hole. 

So Why Stalyan? 

This episode could have gone to just about anybody. Eugene, Lance, Lady Caine, fucking Shorty... Like I’d even take Hookfoot over this. He’s at least there for more than two episodes. 

So why Stalyan? Why does she get a focus episode when we’ll never see her again? How come she’s ‘redeemed’ but not any of the other criminals on the prison barge? Like the series wants to act as if Rapunzel is this really forgiving person who believes in second chances but only four villains out of twenty get redemptions. 4 out of 20! What makes Stalyan so special that she gets to be one of those few select four and not say Lady Caine, Dwayne, or Andrew and the Saporians? 

This Should Have Been a Lance and Rapunzel Team Up Instead

Keep in mind when I say this episode could have focused on anybody, I do mean it. You get creative enough this initial setup could have featured any two characters you wanted interacting. Lance and Eugene, Eugene and Rapunzel, Eugene and Stalyan, Eugene and Cassandra, Lance and Cassandra or maybe even Caine and Rapunzel, and reveal how Eugene knew Caine back in the pilot episode. Like there’s a lot of possibilities here. 

For my money though, this should have been a Lance and Rapunzel episode. Because we don’t get any Lance and Rapunzel episodes. We don't even get any Lance episodes after his introduction. All his development, what little there is, is shoved into the b-plot of other characters’ focus episodes. He also barely interacts with the series main character despite being her boyfriend’s BFF and living with her on the road for year. That’s ridiculous. 

All you needed to do was make Lance Eugene’s partner and have Lance make up for his past deeds to try and free his friends. Boom! 

Why Didn’t You Bring Anything With You Raps?

We see at the end that the caravan was parked outside of town this whole time. She still has the key to get out any money that she needed, the pick of two horses that can’t fit inside of a cell anyways, and oh yeah probably a canteen to use.

Furthermore, she’s a fucking princess!!! She’s has credit and clout and can just get whatever she damn near wants just by asking; because she’s not your average person on the street like us. 

I’m not going to feel sorry for the main protagonist when the main protagonist is an idiot who does these things to herself and makes life harder for everyone needlessly.  

Rapunzel Has a Stunted Grasp of Ethics 

Stalyan’s not wrong here. Unless you have an alternative, like your own horse or money to buy horses, that you decided to leave behind as well for some undefined reason, then yeah, you needed horses. Your friends lives are at stake woman! 

I touched on this back in my TAR review, but the show leans heavily into authoritarian beliefs because it provides childish lessons for adult situations.  

‘Stealing is always wrong no matter what’ is the thought process of a child. It does not take into account how systems of governments can stack the deck against certain groups of people, nor how sometimes emergencies come up and you got to deal them in the moment and make amends later. 

And you know what, I’m not taking ‘it’s a show for kids’ as an excuse here. Children shows very much can introduce comlex themes and grey morals and plenty already have. If you make classism a major theme of your story then you need to actually address it, and that starts by having your main character acknowledge it. 

This could have been the perfect opportunity for Rapunzel to grow. Up till now she’s always had her physical needs provided for her. Since her escape from the tower she’s also been thoroughly spoiled. Have her come down off her high horse and see how the other half lives. See first hand what Eugene and the pub thugs had to do to survive before they met her.      

Have her things actually be confiscated. Have her princess title mean nothing cause no one knows her or believes her. Have Corona not recognized in this part of the world. You want to be the underdog then make her an actual underdog and have her learn from it.  

Because Rapunzel having the moral outlook of child makes sense given her backstory, but she can’t stay that way. We all have to grow up sometime, we all have to learn the harsher truths of this world, and this is suppose to be a coming of age story. 

So How Does Stalyan Know Where the Eye Is But Not Eugene?

If Eugene is the one who lost it, then how come he didn’t know where it was at? Why couldn’t he just have told Rapunzel all of this and left Staylan out of the picture? Also how do you know if Goodberry even still has it if it’s been years ago? How do you know where Goodberry is? It’s awfully convenient that he never moved in all that time and that he’s so close to the town of Pincosta. 

Once again, plot holes. 

Stalyan is a Poor Man’s Sadira

So for those of you who aren’t 90s kids like myself, Sadira is a villian from the Aladdin tv series. She’s basically Stalyan but done better. 

Things they have in common 

their goals are to marry the main hero, who are ex-thieves

both are jealous of the main heroines who are princesses 

both are thieves themselves and have lived their whole lives as such 

both believe they belong with the hero because they come from a common background 

both resort to dubious means to win the heart of the hero

both try to get rid of the heroines but never resort to killing them out right 

both are redeemed and eventually befriends the princesses 

You know what the difference between the two of them is? 

Sadira is actions are actually worse than Staylan’s but she’s given enough screen time and focus to come across as sympathetic to the audience. 

I’m serious. Stalyan is an ex who was left at the altar by her douchey boyfriend, but their relationship was so toxic that she can’t understand that she’s actually better off without him nor accept that he left her for someone else. So she tries manipulating him into coming back to her, while her dad does some messed up blackmail and poisoning that she didn’t agree to but went along with anyways. 

Meanwhile Sadria is a straight up stalker. She doesn’t even meet Aladdin until after the events of the first film, and he makes it clear to her from the get go that he’s in a committed relationship with someone else and isn’t interested in her. But Sadria tries episode after episode to ‘win’ him resorting to mindwipes, kidnapping, and even alternating reality. 

But we actually see things from Sadria’s perspective. It’s made clear that she has no one and nothing. Aladdin is the first person to show her kindness and so she latches onto him. Sure it’s unhealthy and the series calls it out as such, but by the time she has acknowledged this and befriends Jasmine the audience now understands her and feels sympathy for her.   

We get no such focus for Stalyan. Not even in her redemption episode. We still don't know why she wants to be with Eugene after he’s treated her so badly. We still don't have any clue what their relationship was like before the breakup, or even when the breakup happened. (I still think it was during the events of the movie and that he left her for Rapunzel, but it’s left open) It’s hard to relate to or feel sorry for Stakyan when we know nothing about her and haven’t seen this ‘good side’ Rapunzel keeps talking about for ourselves. 

Even though theoretically she should be very sympathetic because of the way Eugene treated her, and because her actions thus far are relatively tame compared to most of the villains in the show. 

Just Because Other Places in the World Are As Bad as Corona, Doesn’t Mean That Frederic Is Excused For His Behavior 

This show thinks it’s a okay to introduce horrible crap so long as it’s done in a comedic way and not focused on, but this isn’t The Office. You can’t use a corrupt legal system and authoritarians abusing their power as the crux of your main conflict in season one and then expect us to just laugh off jokes like this one. Or the one about tailor getting locked up for ripping Frederic’s robe. Or find young Lance trapped in a cell with Shorty being fed gruel as funny. 

Like, even if you do laugh at these jokes at first in the moment, once you stop to think about them, it just shows how awful Frederic and Rapunzel are, how awful the system is, and that change needs to happen. But it can’t happen if Rapunzel and the show doesn’t acknowledge that such things are wrong. That they are more than jokes. 

The serious story that the writers want to tell is undermined by the comedy, and the comedic moments are undermined by the existence of the more serious drama.   

So is this a sitcom or a drama? It can’t be both, not when dealing with such high stakes. 

Sitcoms work because they’re low stakes. Few characters are affected and most situations aren’t life and death. Even in dark comedies where death is often the joke, it’s because death is seen as unimportant, something to be casted aside, and it’s funny because it’s disrespectful. But the moment you call to attention just how messed up everything really is, and how awful death can be, then it’s suddenly no longer funny. Especially if it’s innocents who are getting hurt. Dark comedies also work because it’s often computuance for characters who are awful people. 

That’s not what TTS is, so it’s attempts at being like It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia or Rick and Morty just doesn’t work and comes across as tone deaf. 

Also why are the dang horses in the cell with the humans? They’re horses! 

So What Exactly Is Stalyan’s Plan Here?

No seriously, what is her thought processes here? The audience isn’t mind readers. We need know why the characters do the things they do. 

Why is Stalyan still hung up on Eugene? Why does Stalyan think he’ll take her back if she shows up to free him without Rapunzel? What is she going to say when he asks about Raps and why would he even believe her to begin with? 

What does ‘A thief belongs with a thief’ even mean!!? We have no context for this cause we have no context for their relationship! 

This episode could have provided us with some context, some cule of why Stalyan and Eugene were together for so long, why they broke up, why she still wants to be with him, why she thinks he’ll return to her even now, but nope! We gotta have a stupid parody wrestling match.  

Oh joy. 

This Is a Guilt Trip, Not a Redemption 

Rapunzel is full of shit. 

If she honestly believed that there was ‘good in everybody’ then why did she send Caine off on the prison barge without even trying to relate to her? Why didn’t she try to befriend Weasel instead of fighting him off? Why is Varian currently sitting in a jail cell right now!!!  

Here’s why Stalyan was ‘redeemed’ and not the others. 

Rapunzel needed something from her. 

Rapunzel guilt trips, manipulates, and coerces Stalyan into helping her. She doesn’t actually give a damn about whether or not Stalyan ‘does the right thing’ so long as she gets what she wants; Eugene’s freedom and his heart.

Sure Stalyan probably should turn away from her life of crime. She should let go of her obsession with Eugene. She should return the eye that she stole and start making up for her past. But you know what? 

None of those things have anything to do with Rapunzel! 

Stalyan needs to come to those decisions herself in order for this to be a proper redemption. If Rapunzel is involved in any of that then it can’t be with the condition that she’s gaining something from it. It’s not true compassion if you have an ulterior motive for what you do.   

This Confession Might Actually Have Meant Something If We Had Any Actual Context! 

This doesn’t tell me anything. 

Why would Stalyan only see ‘a thief’? She loved him enough to want to marry him and has known him for years. Sure she may have accepted that he was a thief, encouraged it even, but there’s got to be other reasons why she dated him. Other reasons for why she wanted him back. 

Also why does this come back to Rapunzel specifically? Is she the reason why he left Staylan at the altar? And even so, why is that a reason to give Eugene a free pass? Is it just because she’s the protag and now they’re friends suddenly? 

In fact if you are friends now, then Rapunzel deserves to know the truth of who she plans on marrying and come to the decision if he’s worth it. If he really has changed, not just in terms of being an ex-thief but also in how he handles relationships. 

We the audience deserve to know too. 

Redemption Shouldn’t be Tied to Friendship With Rapunzel 

Eugene becoming inspired to be a better person because he fell in love with someone is one thing. Rapunzel only forgiving people because they’ll befriend her is entirely another. Especially when two of the main villains become villains after they stop being friends with her. 

It sends out a really gross message of favoritism and not letting go of toxic relationships, while also placing Rapunzel too high upon a pedestal.   

Rapunzel Can’t Forgive Stalyan In Eugene’s Place 

I’d be pretty upset if my current spouse just said that my abusive ex ‘was not that bad’.

Like, fuck both of you. 

And yes, I did defend Stalyan in Beyond the Corona Walls, and I did say that we didn’t have enough context to claim she was abusive when they were in a relationship. After the breakup tho? Yeah, yeah she was abusive then. You don't have to be in a relationship in order to bully someone; you just have to have power over them. 

Stalyan hurt Eugene, not Rapunzel. That’s why any redemption with her needed to be with him. They both needed to make amends, forgive each other, and move on. 

This isn’t Rapunzel’s show. 

If the creator wanted it to be her show then he shouldn’t have introduced conflicts that don’t actually involve her, nor characters with higher stakes then her. 

This Doesn’t Feel Earned, and So the Audience Feels Cheated 

And so Stalyan rides off into the sunset rich to live happily ever after presumably as a thief still, and no one gave a shit.  

No one was asking for this. No one cared about Stalyan. Worse the writer failed to make us care. Ergo this whole episode feels like a waste and it is. 

Conclusion 

Much like the rest of season two this is pure filler, and not even good fun filler; like with the mermaid episode or the pirate episode. Worse it’s very existence actually diminishes Rapunzel as a character rather than build her up. So it fails in its sole purpose as a story. 

#tangled #anti-tangled #anti-rapunzel #stalyan #tangled the series #rapunzel's tangled adventure

[authenticcadence18]

CADENCE the tangled WIP 👀👀👀👀

HEYYYY MEL!!!!! The Tangled wip!!! oooooh boy buckle up. 

(ok idk if you’ve watched any/all of Tangled the Series so I’m gonna try to give you the spoiler-free version while alluding to some stuff that happens in the show)

(and also @youruinedmylifebynotbeingreal and I came up with these ideas together!! i don’t quite remember who came up with what so I’m just tagging her here! (yo @youruinedmylifebynotbeingreal, how you doin?)) 

ok soooo!!! there’s this book series called "Twisted Tales” that puts a spin on different Disney movies (like one of them has the premise “What if Jafar got the lamp in Aladdin?”). This au would be like a Tangled one!! Basically, there is no broken mirror in the tower so Eugene has no way to cut Rapunzel’s hair. She heals him, despite his protests, and before she is dragged away by Gothel, she somehow tells him she is in fact the lost princess (and that she loves him). By the time Eugene manages to escape (because of COURSE he eventually escapes), she and Gothel are long gone. Eugene realizes he can’t find her alone, so he rushes back to the kingdom and insists he knows what happened to the princess and that they can do whatever they want to him, so long as they find her and bring her back. The captain of the guard is suspicious, but he also knows he can’t overlook any possibility of the princess being found, so he locks Eugene away and leads out a search party with the rest of the guard. BUT. The captain’s daughter Cassandra is interested in finding the princess herself and proving her worth to her father so she can become a member of the guard. She dislikes Eugene, but the prospect of helping rescue the princess is too alluring to ignore, so she breaks Eugene out of jail and the two of them go off in search of Rapunzel!! And also, I’m pretty sure Varian comes along too so he can make his dad proud! He brings alchemy stuff to help on the journey. Throughout the story, the three of them form an uneasy friendship, but they emerge super close! Like a trio of siblings :D. Rapunzel, meanwhile, is stowed away in tunnels Gothel used to frequent prior to finding the tower, and while there she make some surprising revelations about Gothel’s past. She also realizes she might have the power to end all this by cutting her own hair, but she’s terrified to because she had to use it to save Eugene once, what if she cuts it and goes free but he dies again?? She can’t take that risk, and a large part of the story involves her getting over that fear. And then of course Rapunzel is eventually reunited with Eugene and meets the rest of the group (and makes a realization or two when she meets them), and I’m not sure what happens after that, lol.  

oof this is long and rambly but yeah! that’s the basic gist of it! I know if they ever actually write a Tangled Twisted Tale it probably won’t have Tangled the Series characters in it so this is a fun way to think about what it could be like!!!! Thanks for the ask! 

Ask about my wips!!!

#ask game #wips #cadence rambles #tangled #tangled the series #youruinedmylifebynotbeingreal #macaronsforchat #omg i have an ask!!