#feldspar lore

[spiteweaver]

previous | next

(Note: this story takes place in May of 2020!)

--

The sharp rapping startled Branwen out of a comfortable doze. His library was cast now in heavy shadow, save for what little of it the light from the dying hearth could reach. There was no color along the horizon, and the night beyond his window was deep. He feared, for a moment, that he had awoken at the breaking of a second time loop, but relaxed at the sound of Calcifer milling about in the kitchen. The smell of tea roused him further. Sighing, he set the book he’d been reading aside and got shakily to his feet.

Another series of quick, almost frantic knocks sounded at the door. His ears flicked forward and then back. It hadn’t been a dream; someone, very real and very persistent, was standing on his front stoop. He couldn’t imagine who it could be at such a late hour and turned to the window once again to confirm that the capital was not in flames. As before, all was quiet and dark.

“I’ll get it!” Calcifer called.

“No,” Branwen replied as his mate hurried out into the foyer, “stay behind me.”

Calcifer raised a brow. “I’m a foot taller than you, Bran.”

“You’re also wearing a frilly pink apron,” Branwen pointed out, and before Calcifer could protest further, strode forward with only a split second’s hesitation.

On the stoop stood a dam, her figure obscured by an ashen grey cloak, and in her hands was a gently glowing glob. Even without the meager light it provided, however, Branwen would have known her. He did not need to see the silhouette of her face, her warm, dark skin, or the wisps of smoky hair poking out from beneath her hood. Her scent was enough to evoke vivid imagery in his mind of roaring flames—and the cinders they left behind. They danced before his eyes, a translucent mockery of a pain he had never quite managed to rid himself of, before flickering and dying against the bitter chill of a late spring evening.

The next thing Calcifer knew, his mate was throwing himself at their guest. He reacted swiftly, getting his arms around Branwen’s waist and hoisting the enraged Spiral up in a bear hug meant to disable him. Instead, it only incensed him further, and he shed his scaleless guise, slipping between Calcifer’s fingers like sand.

“You,” Branwen fumed, “you monster!”

“Calcifer,” the dam said, stepping back to avoid one of Brawnen’s blind swipes, “had I known you had taken a mate, I would have brought wedding gifts.”

“We aren’t—” Calcifer gripped Branwen by his tail and pulled back with a grunt— “married yet, Oya!”

All at once, Branwen’s squirming ceased. He turned in his mate’s grasp, but rather than anger, there was a misery so deep and so poignant in his eyes that Calcifer dropped him then and there. Branwen’s scales gave way to soft flesh again, and in the tiniest, most pitiful voice imaginable, he asked, “You know her, Calcifer?”

“I—I—” Calcifer’s mouth was suddenly bone dry. “Well, yes. I helped her construct a suitable home for her, ah—Ogun is a bit hard to explain, but I helped her make his hearth.”

Oya, meanwhile, was examining Branwen with renewed interest. She recognized him, though she wished she hadn’t. “You’re that hatchling,” she murmured thoughtfully, “from the Emberwood.”

The Emberwood—Calcifer knew it well. Colloquially known as the Scorched Forest, it stood on the border between the Ashfall Waste and the Shifting Expanse, not far from Emberglow Hearth. Very few clans called it home, as it provided little in the way of shelter or smithing. In fact, most of its residents were magic-workers, who found its isolated locale inviting.

Magic-workers…

…like Branwen.

“Whatever happened,” Calcifer said, “I don’t know anything about it, Branwen.”

“How could you not?” Branwen asked. He seemed to curl in on himself then, growing smaller with every word. “If you know her, you must know what she did.”

Calcifer reached for him, but he pulled away. “Branwen, I swear—”

“Listen to your mate,” Oya said. “Do you think I speak of my wretched work to every dragon who crosses my path? I come to him now not because we were intimately acquainted, but because, as he said, it was he who built Ogun’s hearth.”

“You came to my home,” Branwen began, his fists trembling at his sides, “the home of the drake whose clan you slaughtered, to commission my mate?!”

Oya glanced down at Branwen’s quivering hands. “Yes.”

“Go,” Branwen spat, “before I kill you.”

“I will not,” Oya replied. She did not flinch when Branwen rounded on her again. “Allow me to rephrase: I cannot.”

Before Branwen could make good on his threat, Calcifer stepped forward. “Can he survive in our hearth for a while?” he asked. “I’ll need to gather the proper supplies and dig out my old blueprints.”

“How long?”

“A week at most.”

Oya looked to the glowing glob in her hands, as if for confirmation. It pulsed once, twice, and she nodded. “A week,” she said, “no more.”

“Did you miss the part where I said she slaughtered my clan?!” Branwen asked, his rage so potent that it forced his voice up by several octaves. Typically, Calcifer would have found this amusing. Tonight, he was sweating like a pig. “I know you aren’t stupid, Calcifer! Quite the contrary, you’re meant to be the emotionally intelligent one in this relationship!”

“I’m not doing it for her, Bran,” Calcifer replied. “I’m doing it for Ogun.”

“The glob?!”

“He’s not a—” Calcifer pinched the bridge of his nose. He loved Branwen, but he was still learning how to communicate with him. “Oya,” he muttered in a tone that suggested he was struggling not to rip fistfuls of his hair out, “you can explain it better than I can.”

“Ogun is a homunculus,” Oya said with a shrug.

Branwen cast his mate an exasperated look. “You could have just told me! I know what a homunculus is!”

“I don’t!” Calcifer replied. “Whatever they are, they aren’t exactly commonplace! I’ve certainly never met one, and that’s not how Oya explained him to me!”

“I suppose I went into more detail,” Oya conceded, “seeing as I was entrusting the building of his hearth to you. All your mate needs to know is that I created him as a tool to use in my work. Yes, I see you glaring at him.” The dam’s molten gold gaze snapped up to meet Branwen’s. Neither was willing to back down. “He had no free will then. In the matter of your clan’s destruction, he is blameless.”

“He’s the figure I saw in the fire,” Branwen growled lowly. “He’s the one who enacted your will!”

“Because he could not refuse me,” Oya said again, “which I regret deeply. Over time, free will grew within him. That is why we are here. He—” She faltered, and Branwen cursed himself for feeling a pang of sympathy— “he begged me not to use him again. He knew that the Grand Circle would order us to quash Por’s rebellion. The thought of it made him sick. Perhaps it made me sick as well.”

There was more Branwen wanted to say, but for once, he bit his tongue. “I want your word that neither of you will harm myself, Calcifer, or any of our clanmates.”

“You have it.”

“If you put a single toe out of line, Dreamweaver will hear about it.”

“Of course.”

“You know Dreamweaver, don’t you? You’ve heard of them?”

“I have, and I do not wish to cross them.”

Seemingly satisfied, Branwen turned back toward the open door and motioned for the pair to follow him. “You can stay in the guest bedroom,” he said, “until you’ve secured your own housing.”

—

“So what’s all this about a clan?”

Branwen answered Calcifer’s query with a drawn-out sigh. After ensuring that both Oya and Ogun were comfortable, he had slipped away into his study for the express purpose of avoiding this very conversation. It was complicated, and he was tired. Unfortunately, Calcifer had come with a bribe. Smiling softly, the Imperial crossed to where he sat hunched over his desk and offered him a mug of piping hot tea. It had been made just the way he liked it, sweetened with sugar and honey.

Begrudgingly, he accepted the bribe.

“I thought I made myself quite clear,” he mumbled, blowing the steam from his mug and taking a quick sip. “Oya slaughtered my birth clan, every last drake, dam, and rook. Knowing that she was working for the Grand Circle puts things into perspective. We were a rebellious lot, and the Grand Circle doesn’t like rebels.”

“You told me that no one had ever loved you,” Calcifer said as he took up residence in the only other chair in the room that wasn’t piled high with books, “and that you had never loved anyone else.”

“That’s what makes it…complicated.”

Calcifer reached out to squeeze his knee. “Take it one word at a time.”

“I…” The words stuck in Branwen’s throat. It was an admittance he had promised never to utter. “I may have loved my parents, despite their many failings. When Oya came, I was still young, only a hatchling, but I was old enough to know that I was unwanted. My mother and father were rebels. They didn’t have time to raise a well-behaved hatchling, let alone one of my choleric disposition. I was a picky eater. I demanded constant attention. I was often ill. They shunted me between caretakers, whoever’s schedule was the least hectic on a given day. I was the only hatchling in our clan.”

“How did you escape?” Calcifer asked. “Someone must have loved you enough to bring you to safety.”

Branwen shook his head. “It was Oya who spared me. I remember wailing over my parents’ bodies. A shadow fell across me. I thought—” He sucked in a sharp breath— “I wanted her to kill me, but she didn’t. She told me to leave the Ashfall Waste and never return, and I obeyed.”

“I’m—I’m so sorry, Branwen.”

“Don’t be.” Branwen drained his cup in a single gulp, hoping that the heat of the tea would settle his stomach. “I can never forgive Oya for what she did, but my life there would have been a miserable one.”

“If it’s any consolation,” Calcifer said, “I’m sure your parents didn’t hate you. It sounds like you were born at an inopportune time, and they were unable to adequately care for you as such. That doesn’t mean they didn’t love you, though.”

Try as he might to suppress them, tears sprang unbidden into Branwen’s eyes. They fell into his empty cup in fat, silver drops, and Calcifer, seeing them, spread his arms in a welcoming gesture. The pair embraced. Branwen sniffled pitifully into his mate’s chest, and Calcifer ran his fingers through the witch’s wild ginger curls.

“You know I’ll never let anyone hurt you,” Calcifer whispered, “don’t you?”

Branwen nodded.

“We’re doing the right thing.”

Another nod.

“Once Ogun’s hearth is built, you’ll never have to speak to her again.” Calcifer’s grip tightened, his fingers clutching the back of Branwen’s shirt like a lifeline. “If she ever comes near you, I’ll…”

“You’ll what?” Branwen asked with a snort. “Kill her? I’ll believe it when I see it.”

“I’d do it,” Calcifer replied, “if it was for you.”

Heat rushed into Branwen’s cheeks. He forced his face deeper into Calcifer’s chest to hide it, but Calcifer knew by the twitching of his tail tip that he was flustered. So, before his mate could tease him, he blurted out, “We should get married!”

“Wh…?” Calcifer pushed him back to hold him at arm’s length. This, of course, exposed Branwen’s beet red face, which only flustered him further. “What did you say?” Calcifer managed to wheeze. “I think I misheard you.”

“We should get married!” Branwen repeated. “This Flameforger’s, we should do it!”

For a moment, he was certain Calcifer would reject him. They had been together for two cycles and readily called one another mates, but weddings were official business. In the eyes of their Patron, marriage would bind them eternally. It was a lot to ask, perhaps too much. In fact, Calcifer deserved better. Branwen was hot-tempered, and socially inept, and pessimistic to a fault. That settled it. He would pass it off as a joke, and they would go back to their comfortable, uncomplicated mateship.

Then Calcifer broke into a tearful smile, and all of Branwen’s doubts shriveled and died.

“Yes,” he said, “let’s do it!”

[buttfrovski]

We need more Feldspar x Barbarian fr

oh don't worry

i have so many drawings planned out. one for tonight if i finish in time. i'm kinda following a linear timeline with my drawings, slow burn style.

i have a little story for it cut out with lore and stuff.

[knight-of-hallownest]

Something I've noticed about Outer Wilds:

The farther you get from the sun, the less glass there is on the Helmet. Now, there are 5 members of OWV, and not counting Esker as they don't have a helmet, that leaves four.

First, Chert:

Closest to the sun, on ember twin. Chert's helmet is a large dome of glass. Not much more to say.

Next, Riebeck:

Third from the sun (we skipped Esker on Timber Hearth), on Brittle Hollow. Mostly a glass dome, but now with some little greeblies on it.

Next, Gabbro:

Fourth from the sun, on Giants Deep. Gabbro's helmet is mostly metal, but the face is still almost entirely glass, and it's pretty big too.

Finally, Feldspar:

Fifth and farthest, in Dark Bramble. Like Gabbro, Feldspar's helmet is mostly metal, with only a glass eyepiece, but this one is much smaller and only over their eyes.

Finally finally, you:

You have roughly half of your helmet glass not the full helmet with just some tech bits on it, but still not just the eyepiece. Thus placing you between Brittle Hollow and Giants Deep. what's there? Nothing. What does this knowledge mean for the lore? Absolutely nothing. This is just a neat thing I noticed.

[tangledbea]

I remember way back, when the back half of S2 was airing and everyone was speculating over whether Adria or Cassandra would be the traitor. I genuinely thought it would be Adira because Cass seemed too obvious, with the door and nightmare sequence in rapunzeltopia, and the dark prince Eugene prophecy twist with him turning against her really threw me for a loop. But nope, it was Cassandra all along. But it does bring to mind the question, what was the point of the bit at the end of Rapunzel and the Great Tree where possessed!Hector tells everyone that if they follow Adira to the Dark Kingdom they’ll meet their doom? From a meta perspective it was probably meant to be a red herring, but why would possessed!Hector say that? I heard somewhere that possessed!Hector was supposed to be possessed by Zhan Tiri, and that Zhan Tiri!Hector was trying to mislead the group, but I always thought that possessed!Hector was supposed to be possessed by the tree itself, not Zhan Tiri.

Likely actual answer: Yeah, probably a red herring. Alternatively, they wanted to have him say something that sounded cool and foreboding, but didn't have a specific reason for him to have said it. I've mentioned before that they didn't really know what to do with Adira (and the rest of the Brotherhood, for that matter). It's entirely possible that, at the point that the episode was written, they were kicking around the idea of her not being trustworthy in the end. (This is entirely speculation, by the way. I don't know that they were ever kicking around that idea at all.)

But also, Hector already had issue with the way Adira did things. He thought she was chasing a myth by looking for the Sundrop, and that the letter of King Edmund's order was to keep people out of the Dark Kingdom, not to go looking for a solution. He was convinced, all on his own, that following Adira back to the Dark Kingdom was folly, because even if Edmund himself didn't kill them, them Moonstone would. It wasn't the tree or even Zhan Tiri warning them through Hector, it was Hector himself.

As for who exactly was possessing Hector, going with the lore provided in the episode, the tree was once sentient and good, but Zhan Tiri corrupted it and made it her stronghold. She was invincible, so long as she was inside it, because the tree would attack anyone who came near. Demanitus' spear -- the one that Hector pulled from the tree's heart -- put a stop to the corrupted magic.

Now, as Hector takes the spear, he says, "Forgive me for releasing the evil that sleeps within [the tree]." Nowhere does it textually say that Hector was possessed by Zhan Tiri herself, however the Great Tree can be thought of as an unwilling disciple of Zhan Tiri (like Rapunzel, Lance, Feldspar, Ulf and Friedeborg were in "Painter's Block"), and spread Zhan Tiri's corrupting influence from itself to Hector. So while it was not Zhan Tiri directly, it was her will.

[spongyspingy-rising]

Feldspar and Komatiite, new breeding pair I'm hoping to do lore for! they only nest on full moons (barghest lineage lore) so i'm hoping I can retain interest for them... worst case I needed some fodder breeders anyway.

I just need to dress them now... THEEE hardest part!!!!

[genuinegirl]

The Outer Wilds planets ranked, by someone who hasn't completed the game yet

(so yeah disclaimer I don't know everything yet but I think I have enough knowledge to rank them. Only minor spoilers ahead, as I don't know the major ones myself haha)

1. Timber Hearth

Pros: happy cozy atmosphere. My favorite music in the game. Bunch of fun tutorial-esque things to mess with. And some fun places like the quantam grove and stuff

Cons: a little bit boring not gonna lie. If you're just wandering around, there's a lot of blank space.

2. Ember Twin and Ash Twin (ranking them together for simplicity

Pros: so much fun lore! And no outright threats that will, like, eat you or something. No matter where you are in the loop, there's something new due to the sand moving around.

Cons: okay so the sand is a little scary lmao. I've almost gotten crushed a few times. And if you're on Ash Twin, it's easy to get sucked away haha

3. Giants Deep

Pros: pretty fun to explore, especially if you're in your ship. Gabbro is my favorite musician (?) They're very chill. Also the Tower of Quantam Knowledge on this planet was super helpful haha

Cons: it is pesky and annoying to be flung into space not gonna lie. And the heavy gravity makes it annoying to traverse once you get on an island.

4. Brittle Hollow

Pros: this planet is very pretty with the crystal-like formations. Lots of good lore here too. Lots to explore!

Cons: it's super stressful to try and find stuff before it gets sucked away lmao. And sure, you can get back pretty easily with the station, but it's still such a hassle! Also the tractor beams (?? No clue what to call them) are iffy and one time they just dropped me (no it wasn't one where you have to choose a path it was straight and I apperantly was looking around too much and whoop there I go). Also Hollow Lantern is so annoying too like chill out man

5. Dark Bramble

Pros: Feldspar can play that harmonica crazy good. Uhhhh I guess the lore of how the bramble killed the planet that was there before is interesting

Cons: ITS SCARY!!!!!!! Even if you know how to navigate to find Feldspar, it's still freaky and foggy and hard to see! The music is creepy too. Literally hate this place because the stinking fish are so evil. Even if the bramble momentarily protects me, they're still there, always... waiting...

And there's my inconclusive list! I'm not sure how close I am to completing the game, but I've explored each planet (maybe excluding Dark Bramble) a decent amount. These might be subject to change. (I also haven't managed to stay on the Interloper for very long (how I was supposed to know you need to down thrust just to stay on it??), although I guess since thats not a planet it doesn't count :)

[moonlight1237]

LABRADORITE

Calcium sodium feldspar.

Chemical Composition

Na(AlSi3O8)Ca(Al2Si2O8)

Believed in lore the northern lights were trapped in it.

-Helpful for overworkers

-Helpful for regaining energy during intuitive and spiritual work

-Aids in energy shields

-Transformation

-Cancerian/libra/Pisces

-6-6.5 Mohs

-Courage/confidence

-Grounding

-Clairvoyance/imagination

-Planet: Uranus

-Elemant: Water/ wind

-Promotes psychic abilities as a whole

-Self discovery/awareness

-Protective stone

-Sleep and dreamwork

-Anxiety relief/relaxation

-Astral projecting

-Good for wards

Labradorite Care

Cold water/soapy water.

No hot water, harsh chemicals or rough cloth. Avoid direct impacts.

Soft clothes to dry and clean.

[iceskatingmobsters]

so. ffxiv classes for Outer Wilds characters? I am interested

you ever accidentally leave something in your drafts for like a week? anyways, it appears you have activated my trap card--

this is a VERY incomplete list because I'm in between classes for a lot of them. everyone gets a dps and support class so party composition can be shuffled around (because thinking abt party dynamics is half the fun). this is gonna be disjointed as hell bear with me and under a read more because it got LOOOONG. spoilers below ye have been warned

Feldspar: your honor this is a dragoon and I refuse to take any other answer. as for a support class, they're definitely a tank and I can preeeeetty much see them going any tank that isn't paladin but I lean dark knight personally -- the invuln in particular sells it for me, more than warrior's even, because you refuse to die and THEN heal yourself back to full. very self sufficient but still needs help from the party. still can very much see them as a warrior (who needs a healer when you have bloodwhetting) or gunbreaker (superbolide is an objectively funny ability and my brain can't let go of the image of feldspar panic-bolide-ing)

Slate: the easy answer is machinist and gunbreaker and I'm going with that. with all the stupid stuff that machinist gets in its later levels ESPECIALLY like you get a flamethrower and multiple attack automatons it's practically tailor-made for slate "my autopilot throws you into the sun but it's functioning so I'm using it" outerwilds. gunbreaker I'm less sure about for lore reasons but I do know that should Slate go gunbreaker they superbolide maliciously (gossan refuses to heal if slate is tanking). can also see them going black mage or warrior as well

Gossan: I had a hard time pinning them down to be honest!! I've mostly settled on sage/ninja. NIN is flashy but not as much as dragoon is, plus it's more precise than DRG's "jump in the middle of the pack with a trail of fire and pray." also, trick attack/mug I rest my case. could also see them swinging monk because iirc monk has more overall party buffs (possibly red mage but my brain insists they're melee). as for sage this was more of a process of elimination -- I wanted them to be a barrier healer but I didn't think scholar fit them. sage's multitasking "do damage to heal" also Fits in my head for whatever reason

Hornfels: astrologian/red mage. they keep the observatory of COURSE they're an astro! the entire job quest is about awakening your abilities through observation of the stars! I also like the idea of them being a pure healer vs gossan's barrier healing but this is just to service the "slate healchecks the party with superbolide" joke. red mage because it's got so much party utility and Hornfels Is A Mage (black mage Hornfels would be very funny though considering black mage/thaumaturgy lore I'm not sure they'd go that route. summoner maybe, but again, considering lore eehhhhh unsure if Hornfels would like to square up with bahamut any time soon. most hinged member of owv)

Esker: my s.o who loves esker dearly is 100% convinced Esker is a blue mage which is very good considering it's a limited class but in the context of "everyone is actually in eorzea" I myself think they'd go for summoner and a tank (I'm leaning warrior). despite the summoner class quests once you actually do square up with various monsters and primals it gets pretty relaxed from there, and that fits prettty well -- esker did a lot of scary work getting the moon base up and running, and now they're kinda vibing, even if it does mean that the others esp. the newer owv members forget the work they put in (hey remember when summoner had a five-minute/sixty skill opener???). tank, specifically warrior because... ok forgive me but you know the end of bloodborne when gehrman gets up from the chair? That's Esker

Gabbro: they're a bard. quintessential full stop bard. like bard barely has a real rotation you just hit your procs as they light up and the later class quests are "one of your two job tutors and the one that is ACTUALLY A BARD fucks off to do smth stupid and unrelated and comes back with something useful and poignant, somehow" hi hello COME ON. I'm putting their support class as tank but I feel like they pretty much go bard exclusively. if they do tank I initially thought paladin but maybe they get DRK rights after being stuck in a time loop idk. that's probably enough angst to awaken an Esteem if gabbro decides to unpack that (they won't)

Riebeck: scholar scholar scholar it's perfect considering how archaeology-focused the SCH quest line is. Riebeck also deserves a cute lil fairy friend please give this fish eos they deserve a break!! as for THEIR dps class they have to be ranged, no way in hell Riebeck is getting within five ft of Thing That Wants To Kill Us. they're probably either bard or red mage (RDM being the relative Sanest magic dps option though good luck convincing them to Actually Do their melee combo). they'd be a shoe in for MNK since its questline is also about restoring a lost offensive art but, again, not brave enough for that ;; (though that would be a beautiful lil self conatined character arc, going from bard to red mage to monk as they get more confident and braver)

Chert: 100% astro they wear a scarf embroidered with the stars. this also furthers my "hornfels as chert's mentor" agenda (that I really wish I saw more of YES I have wips about it). also it's got lovely angst potential considering astrologians are supposed to divine the future from the stars : ^) I'm pretty sold on chert going monk for its themes of discipline, and because despite its scrappy beginnings, it's also a pretty precise class. could also see them as samurai considering how seriously that class takes itself (at least in its first four or five questlines, I've only got it to 59 yet oops). chert absolutely gets Melee Rights tho

Hatchling: omniclass they get to do whatever they want LOL no, actually, in all seriousness I have them as a PLD -> DRK and reaper. the reaper choice is based on the newest dungeon where you get some lore about a former I think garlean settlement that gave rise to reapers for defence purposes (they were farmers that basically made deals with demons to protect their home from demons iirc) and the nomai could absolutely fuckin stand in for that, so it makes a sort of poetic sense that the hatchling would pick that up after them. PLD to DRK for the same reasons as Gabbro but the hatchling sure does unpack all that

As for the other villagers, I only have four that I have solid ideas for right now. Gneiss is a bard/white mage, Hal is a scholar (there is a part of me that wants to make them a black mage as well since black mage invents new spells all the goddamn time and definitely not because I'm a blm/sch,) Rutile is a paladin, and Porphy is a white mage/dancer (did you know that NIN is really high on the dance partner priority list?? :3c) it'd make more sense for the villagers to be disciples of the land/hand exclusively -- gneiss as a carpenter, porphy as a botanist, spinel as a fisher (lol), hal as probably an alchemist -- but this is already a crack crossover and I'm making the rules so everyone gets a disciple of war/magic even if they wouldn't need one

for party compositions and dynamics I will be brief bc this is so long already but light party one would be feldspar and gossan as DPS, hornfels as healer, and slate as tank OR feldspar as tank, slate and hornfels as DPS, and gossan as healer. light party 2 used to be Esker as tank, gabbro and chert as DPS, and riebeck as healer/esker and riebeck as DPS, gabbro as tank, and chert as healer (though the second config happens rarely). full party would be prooobably esker and slate on tank, riebeck and hornfels healing, and the rest on DPS. once the hatchling is trained they take esker's place -- esker is enjoying their quasi-retirement from adventuring for the most part but misses it sometimes and will step in to fill as necessary.

...oh god I have so many dark knights what happened--

[omegawizardposting]

Anyway, I'm kind of stuck.

I want to start writing for a new Flight Rising clan, but in a universe completely separate from my main clan, whose lore I, uh. Um. Well. It's on hiatus, let's just say that.

One problem I faced with Feldspar's lore is that I was really just throwing whatever I thought was fun and cool at the wall, so there wasn't a lot of structured worldbuilding. Now I find myself wanting to fix that with this new clan.

So I thought I'd start with naming conventions. Each Flight tends to favor names that are somehow related to their element. For example, a child born in Wind might be named Zephyr or Gale.

You can only have so many Zephyrs and Gales, though, so then I thought, "Maybe we can draw upon real world cultures and languages for names with meanings that represent their Flight." Using Wind as an example again, the child might be named Abel ("breath") or Nephele ("cloud").

But...

Does being named Abel make the dragon Hebrew? Does being named Nephele make the dragon Greek? Where do these names come from?

Okay, what if each Flight represents a certain part of the world? Wind could cover Asia, Light Flight has a kind of European aesthetic I guess, maybe Water could be the island nations? But all of these places are made up of tons of different counties with unique cultures and languages! Is it insensitive to lump them all together? Probably!

Do I just make each Flight a melting pot? That would kind of make sense, since different breeds live in Flights other than the ones they originated in, and dragons can move wherever and whenever they want.

BUT THE GODS ARE CONSTANTLY AT WAR AND DRAGONS ARE MEANT TO BE WEIRDLY PATRIOTIC, SO WOULDN'T THEY WANT TO PRESERVE THEIR CULTURE?

AUGH.

[poshyali]

Check out this listing I just added to my Poshmark closet: Lepidolite Necklaces (Can be Purchased Separately).

[spiteweaver]

Not written lore, but here's a little worldbuilding for y'all.

One eon is equal to one month in our time, but in Sornieth time, it's closer to a year: 310 days on average, 300 days for April, June, September, and November, and 280 days (290 during a leap cycle) in February. I got this by multiplying the base number of gathering turns, 10, by the days in each month, as the gathering text seems to imply that 1 gathering turn = 1 day.

Twelve eons is a cycle. Ten cycles is a decade. Etc.

That aside, dragons grow pretty fast, but the growth rate of an indvidual depends on three factors: genetics, breed, and exposure to magic.

Genetics are simple. Every bloodline is unique, and some grow faster or slower than others as such. Natural variation.

As for breeds, larger breeds tend to grow slower and have smaller clutches, while smaller breeds grow quicker and have larger clutches. These aren't hard rules; two small dragons may have only a single egg in a clutch, while two large dragons could have five.

Finally, exposure to magic, probably the most important factor. The more magic a dragon is exposed to, the faster they grow. Dragons are, after all, deeply magical beings. It's thought that all young dragons passively soak in magical energy that will be beneficial to their growth. This is usually magic aligning with their birth Flight. An Arcanite in the Starfall Isles could theoretically grow faster than his twin who lives abroad.

That's how Junior ended up behind his peers. He wasn't even fully fledged when Fragment and Sliver recalled The Radiant from exaltation, because he spent much of his time, his formative months especially, in the Sunbeam Ruins. He was exposed to magic, yes, but not that of the Isles. Had he lived in the Isles full-time, an eon would have been more than enough time for him to have grown into an adult, but as it was, he was closer to his late teens.

(Being God-Touched may also have something to do with growth rates, but God-Touched are rare enough that it's difficult to say.)

Honestly, despite being born around an eon apart, Junior and Zo are a lot closer in age than one might think--at least physically and mentally. Zo likely grew faster than Junior due to being born in the Isles and constantly surrounded by other Arcanites. Meanwhile, Junior is the poster child for late blooners.

This opens up a lot of opportunities for interesting lore, I think. The twin example I used earlier is a fun one. Imagine being born at the exact same time from the exact same clutch of eggs, but your brother reaches adulthood before you thanks to your mother divorcing your father and taking you to live out-of-Flight. Imagine the sheer rage, especially if you were the first to hatch. I would be livid.

[lunanheartache]

stuck with many wips. words not coming great right now but will find them eventually <3 but... wips

1. shilowhere horny fic. its cute. i know all the beats. but words. pacing 😔

2. crossy gets a job at the clinic. i also know all the beats but words. describing fallow. a struggle

3. crossy whore lore fic part 2. i have the beginning but then words and pacing. needs the most reworking

4. at some point ill start another jgar. i want to do older jgar... thinking of a stardew au with feldspar

[roll-22]

Any/all of 5 6 18 19 44 55 62 63 for Cap'n Feldspar? Lov them...

I’m gonna do all, naturally. Thanks for asking!

For context: Feldspar is a warforged artificer/wizard with a canary familiar called Cadmium.

5. How does your character express they’re comfortable? I think Feldspar, being a big ol robit, is usually pretty aware of how much room ze takes up in a space and tries to make room for other people where possible by making hirself smaller. So when ze is comfortable, ze relaxes that guard a bit. Having Cadmium around keeps hir calm and ze will play with Cadmium with their downtime.

6 . How does your character express that they’re uncomfortable? In a social situation, ze would probably either say it out loud - not having much of a filter - or try to leave the situation. If its physical, ze would just endure it. Takes a lot to make a robit uncomfortable, and ze worked in a mine so pretty much anything is livable.

18 . How does your character act when they want to seem inviting? I feel like Feldspar is definitely an 'acts of service' kind of person. Ze will offer some way to ease their targets life/situation, eg. healing, magic (not that ze knows it's magic), tools, etc. So when ze is trying to be welcoming, ze would lean heavy on that more than the social aspect. But ze does try to be friendly!

19 . How does your character act when they want to seem threatening? Ze is a big robit what shoots lightning from hir body. Ze probably makes hirself very big and shoots lightning. Ze doesn't like being threatening though.

44 . How do they hold onto people? Ze loves Cadmium more than anything else on Rezian. As is fitting for an artificer, ze loves to the point of invention; new wings if Cadmium ends up being unable to fly after last session; new tools for friends; a sling to carry smaller party members, etc. It comes back to acts of service; giving a gift, especially something ze has made hirself, is their way of showing affection and fostering a bond. I'm looking into stuff I can make for the party and ways that ze can help the party members with hir class abilities and spells.

55 . How has your character’s mental health been recently? Since joining the party; better, which is odd given the stress they've all been under. Having a group to join up with and a mission is much easier for hir than the wandering ze had been doing before.

62 .Who does your character think is the most put together in the party? Rymein apparently has a house and a job and friends and that's very impressive to Feldspar. Ferdi also seems like he has a pretty stable life but they only just met so we'll see. Hank and Karis seem cool but they're both like Feldspar in that they seem happy to tag along and don't seem to have as many roots.

63. Which party member would they pull a prank on? Who would they plan a prank with? :) To answer the first: whoever it seems like it wouldn't go too badly with, if the opportunity arose. Certainly nothing harmful! To answer the second: I would love to see the kind of prank that two robits would come up with. Feldspar being a bad influence again >:)

[reliquiaenfr]

everyone in the canyon had long since thought the strange upheaval over with. no dragons had woken with hides a subtle shift one shade or two away from where it started. no one had spent a week wondering if they were going crazy as their scales changed infinitesimally, confused and thinking it was just the sun playing tricks. and most obviously, no one had woken up blue one morning and green the next.

but feldspar stretched large and long one early spring morning, tongue lolling between his teeth as he yawned and ignored bryn’s fond (but early rising) eye roll, and felt a crackling sensation behind his jaw. he prodded it with one gentle claw absently, it itched a little, but he’d been anticipating the start of his moult for a few weeks now. shedding old scales was always uncomfortable but being so shiny for a month after was worth the almost unbearable desire to scratch his haunches against the cliff walls.

only this time, when he fiddled and pried the loose scale away to inspect, it was the dusty orange of his hide on one side, and a brighter pink underneath, shimmering like mother of pearl in the mid-morning light.

bryn, of course, stuck her nose up into his face to get a look.

“you’re shiny,” she told him happily. “and pink.”

“i’m orange, bryn.”

she jabbed one finger into the soft newly-exposed scale behind his jaw. “not here you’re not.”

over the next few days as scales fell away and he rubbed absently at the itching where they were coming loose, his orange scales would flake off - orange, but only on one side - until he had a blotchy colouration: pink, shimmering scales poking through the fading orange.

“this is like, the most painfully slow chrysalis i’ve ever seen,” said bereave when she caught sight of him one afternoon hanging out at the assembly. a half dozen little scales all stuck together were in the process of peeling off his nose like healing sunburn.

it took a little longer to become obvious, too, but the membrane of his wings was changing in tandem. as the top layer of dead skin flaked away he ended up with a mottle of brown and green.

in the end it was bereave who got to laugh.

“you’re a lovely butterfly, feldspar!” she crowed at him. “a regular garden nymph.”

he offered her the best glare he could manage but there was something about being a newly-moulted soft-scaled guardian in greens and pinks, a giant glowering flower, that really ruined the impact.

“and oh,” chevron added, “your mother will be so disappointed.”

“why?”

“you’re not dirt anymore,” he explained before doubling over with more laughter.

he shuffled his still itchy wings against his side. “maybe i’m not a bug, i’m a geode. dirt on the outside and crystal on the inside.”

“whatever you need to tell yourself, big guy,” chevron managed.

when tahvi saw him (having missed all of this; off adventuring) she had much the same reaction. a gasp. eyes wide. “you’re a butterfly.” some sister.

luckily, riverstone is not the sort to disown a child for magic out of their control. (if she was, well, then the reliquary is hardly the right clan for that.)

“oh my boy,” she whispered when he stopped by, wary, worried now that river wouldn’t look at him the same. “beneath the topsoil the earth holds wonders. and look at you!"

“mum?”

“you always had a much brighter heart than hide,” she said to him, patting his (much larger) nose. “it seems earthshaker has finally seen fit to show on the outside the way you look inside.”

(and if river were any other dragon that might’ve sounded a tad ominous.)

he smiled at her. “thanks, mum.”

a butterfly or a geode. doesn’t matter to him.

[the-snowstep]

snowstep/coigreach day 4

It feels as though I’d just gotten the pox smell out of the den, when Desert Rose and Spice, two of the hunters, came in reeking of influenza. It was rare, but not impossible.

I got the two of them settled in quickly, then checked my stores of pre-prepared medicines. Luckily, every herbalist of the modern Snowstep prepared for anything, and medicines seemed to keep almost indefinitely. If an illness had a cure, the Snowstep would make it their business to stockpile it.

I snarfled around the back corners of the den, where I found… two doses of influenza cure. And - right, it was made of herbs not native nearby. Someone would have to journey to get more. Carefully, I split the herb solution in half and placed each half in front of the sick wolves.

I heard paw steps behind me and turned around in time to greet Wintley, who’d come to check on the hunters. I reassured her I knew what they had, and I had the cure for it, and remembered to ask her to send someone to look for the components soon. I’d have gone myself, but… I’m needed here.

Shortly after Wintley left, I decided to get some water for Desert Rose and Spice, but stopped when I realized I could hear Wintley yelling from inside my den still.

“...It’s cold season.” She was snarling. “We lost half our wolves to sickness. Some to ambush.” Her voice shook with grief. “And the rest vanished. From thirty, to three. If we don’t eat, there’s no pack!” She was barking angrily by the end.

I waited.

She came back in the den, her pawsteps much heavier, as though she’d rather be clawing fur than dirt.

“That wasn’t what I meant when I asked you to spend more time with our hunters,” I said, after taking time to think of my words carefully.

“Y-you heard the talk with Ruby?” she asked. At least she didn’t sound angry anymore.

“Yes.”

“Then you know I’m right!” she burst out. "He was saying-"

“I know a wolf without a pack can get by. And I know a pack needs to function as One if it wants to survive and thrive.” I tipped my head thoughtfully. “Yes, food is a problem for us. Especially now. But everyone is eating. Midnight is growing bigger and stronger. Blink is growing up nicely. And Rosela is just about an adult now.”

It was working. Wintley was calming down, seeming comforted by my words.

“We - us wolves - will survive. Make sure the Snowstep does, too.”

[rachelbethhines]

Tangled Salt Marathon - The Lost Treasure of Herz Der Sonne

So now we get to what is, in my opinion, the best episode in season three. However, it’s still season three, so that’s damning with faint praise. 

Summary: Rapunzel tasks the kingdom with refurbishing the throne room. While breaking down a wall, they find a map to the Lost Treasure of Herz Der Sonne and Rapunzel decides to set up a race to the location. The teams, which consist of twos, are only allowed to look at the map briefly before the start of the race. However, Rapunzel's partner, Feldspar, brings a copy of the map with him and he warns her that the treasure is cursed. 

Why Are You Just Getting to This Now? 

It’s literally been months since you defeated the Saporians. Edmund had to have time to travel all this way to Corona and you’ve rebuilt an entire village since then. We’re talking at bare minimum three months or more. 

Who just leaves a gapping hole inside their home for three months? Where did you conduct the government’s important business during that time? Is there any other structural damage to the castle or the town outside from previous battles that you’ve just left unattended? I understand that rebuilding Old Corona is important but those villagers have been evacuated and living elsewhere for a year and a half now since Queen for a Day. It wasn’t a priority, but this is. 

Also this episode has to come after The Return of the King and Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf because Red, Angry, and Hamuel exist. It can’t just be slotted in somewhere else in order for it to make more sense. The writers genuinely planned for Rapunzel to be this disorganized and didn’t think to give a logical reason as to why. 

Also Why Are You Conscripting Regular Citizens Instead of Hiring Professional Contractors?

Unlike Old Corona, which is a full on community that would require multiple building projects going on simultaneously and therefore could use volunteers, this is a single government building. It’s Rapunzel’s job as leader to make sure that that building is kept maintained and up to code. It’s her responsibility not the regular average citizen’s who has their own jobs to do and zero experience with construction.  

Rapunzel is literally forcing these people to be slave labor for her under the pretense of ‘community’. She’s taking their time away from their own busy lives, forcing them to work a dangerous job, and not compensating them for that time, effort, and risk. And no, they’re not just volunteers at this point; because as acting queen, no one can safely say no to her nor can they just leave even when they’re clearly annoyed and fed up at having to do the work.  

Lastly they’re untrained. They lack the skills and tools to this job. You need an architect, you need a safety inspector, you need actual carpenters and masonries ... maybe even an interior decorator... The point is you need trained professionals and part of being an administrator is using government funding to hire these people in order to make sure the work gets done safely and efficiently and create jobs and keep money circulating through the economy.       

Rapunzel may not mean any harm. She might just be oblivious and untrained herself. But this is terrible leadership and the show never points that out. It never has her learn how to be a better a ruler so by the end of the series you don't feel she’s earned that title of Queen and you fear for the kingdom’s continued existence.   

So Why Is This Here?

Why would there be a Saporian map to a king of Corona’s tomb hidden in the wall? What’s the story behind this? 

Yes we know his wife was Saporian, but that doesn’t explain anything. Why would she need a map on the wall to her own husband’s resting place; assuming he didn’t out live her himself. Why would said map be carved into the wall of Corona’s castle and not written on a scroll? Why is it in Saporian when they don't speak that language in Corona? 

Like I could come up with explanations and create this whole backstory for Herz Der Sonne and the first Saporian/Coronian War, but at this point I’d just be doing the work of the writers for them. They’re the ones who introduced this lore and had it inform plot points and character motivation; and then failed to explain any of it to the audience and adequately have it all connect back together in a way that makes sense. 

The Moment When You Realize This Whole Episode Exists Because Zachary Levi Enjoys Doing an Ed Wynn Impersonation 

Ok time to explain some behind the scenes Info.

This is Ed Wynn. 

As you can tell from the gif above, he’s famous for voicing the Mad Hatter in Disney’s Alice in Wonderland. He’s also done a whole bunch of other stuff and was well known even before working with Disney, but the Mad Hatter is his most well remembered role today. 

Many actors, particularly voice actors, like to do impressions of him because he has such a distinctive voice. Including Eugene’s VA, Zachery Levi.  

Now I don’t know if the character of Feldspar was created specifically because the creators were inspired by Zachery Levi’s impression, or if they had this character already planned out and just casted him in the role since he could do it and it’d save them money. Either scenario is plausible and not unheard of in animation. But the long and short of it is, as a shoemaker, Feldspar is intended to be a parody of the Mad Hatter. That is why the character exists. 

Now as I said, this isn’t unusual for animated tv shows. Quite often you get main cast members to voice secondary and/or one off characters because it’s convenient, efficient, and doable when working with audio recordings. Also quite often voice actors will do impressions of other famous people to flesh out these background characters. It’s also not out of left field for these secondary characters to get an episode of focus if they’ve been around for awhile and keep popping up in the story. 

What is unusual, however, is to focus on said character in the final season when there are a bunch of other more important characters with unresolved arcs that need the screen time more. It’s an incredibly odd decision to highlight Feldspar here when we still got Varian readjusting back into society, Red and Angry settling into their new home, and Edmund running around off screen. And while some of these character feature in the episode, they’re just there for the jokes not for any development. 

What’s a “Sap Pond” and How Does That Even Work?

Ok its a fantasy world, I get it. But the franchise does try to have a distinction between the magical and the mundane. Or at least pretends to try and have a distinction. There’s to my knowledge no such thing as a ‘sap pond’, and if such a thing does exist I doubt it’s an actual deep pit full of tree sap as shown here. 

If you want characters to still be surprised by out of the ordinary occurrences and have the supernatural world be separate from the regular world; then you need to have the mundane world grounded in our known reality. Nature needs to function as real world nature would. If something exists in your world that doesn't in ours, then you need to either explain it or have the characters responded appropriately to it. 

But You’re a Prince Now?

Look, I’ll buy that season one Eugene didn’t have unlimited access to the royal treasury as he and Rapunzel were still new to their roles and their relationship. But it’s been over two years since the movie ended. 

Since then Eugene and Rapunzel have lived together, shared finances together, and currently are co-acting rulers of the kingdom. He’s also a bonified prince in of itself on top of being practically married to princess/queen. 

Yeah I said it. Part of what makes season three so frustrating is that Rapunzel and Eugene are functionally married at this point, they just haven’t gone through the ceremony yet, and there’s no stated reason for why they keep dragging things out.  

This is why we get out of place jokes like this that no longer reflect who Eugene is now as a person and feel like they belong back in season one or the even the movie itself. 

I can understand if he wanted to join in the competition because it’s fun, but he’s not poor. Neither he nor Rapunzel needs the treasure. I’m not sure even Lance needs it because as Eugene’s best friend/adopted brother he’s piratically nobility at this point as well. 

Royalty and the rich are not and never will be underdogs show. Stop trying to make them such. 

So Why Feldspar Again? 

This is such a half assed plot point. 

Remember Rapunzel literally pulled out a book earlier to translate the map.  Xavier not only knows the legends about the Saporians, but also keeps a book of magic lying around, and the Saporians are the only human people who have functioning magic in the show as part of their culture.    Varian spent a year living and working with the Saporian leader, and knows how to decipher ancient scrolls written in dead languages.  And said Saporians, are being currently held in the dungeons of the castle.  

But you’re telling me that only a random cobbler can read the warning clearly written on the map? 

They give some bullshit reason as to why Feldspar knows Sapoprian but it doesn’t matter. It’s a forced and contrived excuse to get the character involved in a plot he has no business being in. The story fails to justify the use him over the other more prominent characters who have closer ties to this particular subplot. 

And We’re Suppose to Believe That Herz Der Sonne Was a Good Guy?

Why would a benevolent king who supposedly brought peace to a warring land have a doomsday curse involving zombies? Why would said king be enshrined a tomb that’s not native to his culture? What even is the treasure and why be buried with it? 

There’s clearly more going on here regarding Corona’s past and the treatment of the Saporians as a people in their own right, but the show never does anything with it. Why introduce these complexities and world building if you’re not going to tell a story with them? Why have the Saporian subplot at all in a series already over stuffed with villains if you aren’t going to have them challenge your protagonist and have her grow into a more mature person? 

I’m not dunking on the series for being ambitious nor for having flavor text to help flesh out the world, but it so aggravating that there’s no follow through on the show’s set ups and narrative promises. If you’re not going to give the needed focus to something then just don’t put it in. Cause once it’s aired you’re committed to it and the audience is going to hold you to account. 

I haven’t seen plot mismanagement this bad since the 80s; back when cartoons had to battle network syndication, episode commissions instead of contracted seasons, and could be canceled at any time without prior notice. Now there’s still plenty of bad practices going on in the industry, especially as the move to streaming messes with things, but Tangled does not have the same excuses as say Johnny Quest, Dungeons and Dragons, or even Gargoyles did. 

How Do You Even Know That Would Work, Rapunzel?

No seriously, how does Rapunzel know that putting the treasure chest back on the pedestal will stop the cruse? That hasn’t been established yet by any known source of information. Heck no one knew what the curse actually entailed until it was activated. Except for Xavier who oh so conveniently didn’t say anything until the last moment. If anyone should have the knowledge to on how to end the curse it’s him. But nope we gotta make the Rapunzel the infallible hero who is always right for no logical reason.  

I don’t know how to explain this to you show, but perfect is boring. No one wants a flawless protagonist who can do it all 24/7 without any help whatsoever. And it becomes down right annoying to watch a hero who is clearly flawed still put upon a narrative pedestal as if they weren’t. 

So Why is Varian Suddenly Useless In This Fight?

This entire climax is about showcasing the ‘power of teamwork’ by having the characters use their various skills sets and work together to defeat the enemy. 

Except for Varian. 

He’s treated at best as a spectator to the unfolding events and at worst as a damsel in distress. 

Varian. You know the guy who is the series most competent and threating antagonist. Who brought an entire kingdom to it’s knees, twice. The only other character besides Rapunzel herself who could and does hold his own against other major antagonists, including super powered ones.  

If this was just a one off incident, I’d just shrug it away as him being a glass cannon; insanely overpowered when well prepared but easily out of his depth when not. But that’s not what’s happening here. 

Season three constantly nerfs Varian’s abilities, same as they did back in The Alchemist Returns, and there’s three reasons for this. 

The first is to try and stop him from overshadowing Rapunzel and Cassandra. The writers don’t want to give him any more story focus for fear of him being more popular the the two girls. Which is a ridiculous and petty reason to write a character OOC but there you go. 

The second is the on going issue of making Rapunzel needlessly the center of any and all solutions to every problem regardless of her level of involvement in the initial conflict. Yes, it’s her show, but she’s still not the whole world. Other people exist outside of her and it’s not fair to anybody when the writers ignore that simple fact.   

Last is the writers sacrificing established character for a joke. And as already pointed out, even in this very review, Varian’s not the only character to fall victim to this. It’s just bad writing. Yeah the joke might be funny in the moment but you run the risk of jarring you’re audience’s immersion. In a series like Tangled where you’re constantly asking the audience to suspend their disbelief, humor needs to be firmly rooted in the characters natural behaviors and must evolve to match any character development.   

Why not just have Varian throw a chimball or two, run out cause he wasn’t planning on fighting anybody that day, and then have the other characters rescue him? It’s not that hard to work in a joke while still being respectful of the characters.  

So What Does Anybody Learn From This Episode?

Yeah the other characters learn some vague lesson on teamwork and getting along or something, but they’re not the focus of the episode. What do Rapunzel and Feldspar learn? 

Unlike some people I don’t mind Feldspar’s existence. When’s he’s kept as a background character he works. In fact he’s one of the few townspeople who do work as intended, because he’s representative of the everyday citizen who’s often on the outside looking in on these fantastical events and therefore gives insight into what’s going on and the populous’ opinions on things without being a major player in anything. 

That's fine, needed even, and I don’t mind him getting a single focus episode to gain a greater insight into how this world works or even flesh out his character more, but that’s not what we got. Feldspar doesn’t grow as a character because of this episode. I, as the viewer watching, learn nothing about him nor his life that I didn’t already know. This resolution with him resolves nothing cause it’s a ending for a conflict that was never established beforehand.  

In fact what even was the main conflict of the story? Rapunzel being annoyed by Feldspar? Ok and..? Did she need to learn not to be annoyed by him? Was that a thing that needed to be addressed? Hasn’t Rapunzel already put up with annoying people before now? Was was this deficiency of character actually solved by this one interaction? Has she learned to be more appreciative, attentive, or open minded of others? 

If you tell me it’s Rapunzel’s show then I expect Rapunzel to actually learn shit! 

I expect the external conflicts to tie back into her interpersonal conflicts. If the external conflict does not do that than there better well be a another character who gets that focus instead without her hogging the limelight. 

This Dynamic Adds Nothing

They set up this friendship with Varian and Xavier and it doesn't go anywhere. It never comes back into play and we never see them interacting on screen together again. It also undermines a future plot point that’s coming up later. 

More over it doesn’t further either of their characters. 

Xavier is still an extraneous exposition fairy. Turning his flat characterization into a one note joke does not erase that fact. Giving him a kid to tell stories to doesn’t explain his place in the narrative or give him purpose to the story. We still don’t know why he has these connections to magic nor how he knows all the this lore, and he doesn’t push the plot forward. 

Meanwhile Varian maybe lonely but that doesn’t mean he needs yet another mentor figure in his life. We already have his father, who we barely see him interact with since coming back, and all his other ‘friends’ are way older then him already as well. Rapunzel’s the closest in age to him and she is constantly condescending to, well everybody, as she pretends to be more mature than she actually is. There’s no one in the story who Varian is on equal footing with, and no Angry and Red don't count as they’re far younger than him. 

I don’t know what this series has against teenagers but it showcases some very unhealthy depictions of them; ether by constantly infantilizing them, traumatizing them while subjecting them to parentification, or just flat out ignoring their existence all together. 

Teenagers exist and they need to be treated as teenagers. I don’t know how to put it more simply than that. Teens aren’t children. Teens aren’t adults. They’re teens. And when writing for them you need to understand that difference and acknowledge that they have a completely different phycological development and placement within society to anybody else. That’s why the category of adolescence exists separately from childhood and adulthood in the first place.   

So to tie things back to the first point. The concept of Xavier and Varian having a friendship is not a problem. But as with so many things on this show, it’s the surrounding context and lack of follow through where the issues arises. 

Varian needs a friend his age, who is his equal, more so than a mentor; if indeed Xavier is even intended to serve that function as he doesn’t do any real mentoring. This should have been an opportunity to bring Faith in and establish her better. In fact it’s reasons like this why she should have been a bigger character all along but we’ll get more into that as we get to her only ‘focus’ episode. 

Conclusion 

It’s fun seeing all the various character interactions and unique team ups. Also the humor does work. The jokes do land even if they do bulldoze through established canon. Plus seeing Rapunzel actually annoyed by shit going on around her is always entertaining as it humanizes her. If watched in isolation from the rest of season three, this is an enjoyable episode. But that’s it’s core problem. I shouldn’t have to find filler to keep me going in the last leg of the show. 

This was pretty short comparatively speaking with the rest of the ones I have to write for S3, but longer ones are going to come out more slowly just due to real life and time. As always though you’re support is helpful in keeping going, and if you feel like you can donate to my Ko-fi and leave a tip there. 

https://ko-fi.com/rachelbethhines