#Did he visit Ulla after all that?? Even know where she is? Or what happened? Like obviously he knows what happened cause it changed history

[glitter50000]

How do you think Ulla’s father came to the surface to walk on legs in the first place??

[varianat7k]

Part 2

Varian walked into the kingdom with a spring in his step and a racoon on his shoulders. His mother’s journal was heavy in his pack, but he was too excited to care.

Varian had thought he’d learned their families deepest secrets when he learned about the dark kingdom and met his aunt and uncle. Then, he’d blasted a hole in the floor. Of all the things he’d expected to find, a coded journal was not one of them.

His father nearly falling to his knees when he saw it was also, not expected.

“This, I thought they were all gone. I thought Donella took them all.”

“Dad?”

“This, this is one of your mother’s scientific journals.”

To say Varian was excited, would be an understatement. His mom. His MOM! Hearing anything about the woman from Quirin was like pulling teeth. He knew she’d been an Alchemist. He’d seen her portrait. He had overheard that she was wild, kind, energetic, brilliant, and optimistic. He’d heard other things from the villagers too, but he ignored those. People said he was crazy, and reckless, and dangerous too. They just didn’t understand science like he did. Like his mom did.

Varian also knew that she and her partner had packed up their research and left when he was only a year old.

Varian also knew neither had come back.

After a few sleepless nights and twenty odd cups of hot chocolate, he cracked the code. It had taken several decoders and every few pages the cipher would change, but the key word needed to understand the whole first chapter, was his name. His mom was incredible.

Then, he’d found that the chapter had been written to him.

My dear son,

If you’re reading this, something happened and I never made it home. Know that leaving you and your father to go on this journey is the hardest thing I’ve ever done. Best case, I’ll be back in a few months and I can burn this book, but I’m sure you know that the best outcome, isn’t always the realistic outcome.

I’m trying to find the lost library. It exists in a kind of limbo, only appearing when all seven artifacts from all seven kingdoms are collected and taken to the mystical land under Creed Library. What’s so special about a magical library, you ask? It’s a magical library! The knowledge contained on one page in one book, is said to be more valuable and powerful than all the books in all the world combined!

And now, why I left. I’ve never been very, settled, anywhere. Before I met your father, Donella and I traveled kingdoms like there were no borders. We learned without limits. It was incredible. But then, like it always seems to, the impossible happened.

I met a kind, handsome man, who I wanted to settle down with. I wanted a home and a family with him, and he wanted one with me. We built a house together. Quirin added a lab area as a surprise for me, and I sold some of my chemicals to buy him the best cart on the line. It wasn’t long before you were on your way. I was happy to stay with you and Quirin for the rest of my life.

Then, Donella came to visit with a map. Sacred ground, defended by magic, each one of seven keys to a library with unlimited knowledge. I was hesitant, at first, even though I was also intrigued. Then, Quirin told me where he was from. How an entire kingdom was destroyed because of ignorance. He told me about a lost son and a father gone mad with greif. I know I can’t protect you from every evil in the world, but I think, I really truly believe, that with the wisdom contained in the Lost Library, I can protect you from more of it. I love you so much my little prince. Please, please forgive me, for not coming home.

You're Mother, Ulla

Two days and a literal ton of research later, Varian left. He left letters for his friends and family, and set out to find out what happened to his mother. He needed to know. If she really was gone, because he knew that the best case wasn’t always the realistic one, then at least he could finish what she started.

He stepped into the first kingdom his mom had gone to, Qion. He had been walking only a few minutes when an explosion shook the ground.

[glacecakes]

Alchemy Lullaby (12/?)

Of all the changes that came with living in the castle, becoming a father was not one he anticipated. When Eugene encounters a small child suffering like he did, he gives them the opportunity to grow up the way he never did… helping them both heal. (AU where Varian is 4 and gets adopted by Eugene)

Rapunzel, Eugene, Cassandra, and Quirin travel to Old Corona. There, they learn about the past, in more than one way. In which Quest for Varian is actually a quest about Varian.

Read the rest on AO3

hi! Uh. I took the week off cuz my cat died but now we're back on track. Quest for Varian rewrite time! This thing was a monster to hammer out, I kept rewriting scenes and dialogue and blah blah blah but IM HAPPY WITH IT!! A MAJOR thanks to @space-butterflies and @finnoky for helping me with this!

PLEASE if you enjoy this fic leave a comment and like!! It gives me the strength to keep going. And to not focus on my schoolwork haha im a grade below average rip

Maximus’ footsteps trotted one after another, a steady beat in time with Rapunzel’s anxious heart. Cassandra sat by her side, unflinching as ever, but the storm in her eyes said more than enough. So did the bouncing of Eugene’s leg. It was clear as day: they were all terrified. 

“Old Corona is just over this hill,” Quirin muttered, slightly uncomfortable. 

He’d hoped that his words would soothe his companions but it only seemed to irk them more. Rapunzel let out a sharp inhale, biting her lip. A war raged within her mind. She didn’t want Quirin to know the truth; a part of her wanted nothing more than to protect the small child she’d come to see as her own. But it wasn’t fair. He’d been so confused when the princess showed up with grim company. 

She locked eyes with Eugene. He nodded, resolute yet anxious.

Gripping her dress, Rapunzel spoke up. “Quirin, I really appreciate you letting us come with… you should know that, the rocks, they’ve been… reacting. To me. And to a few other people.”

Quirin kept his face impassive but inwardly, he was letting out a massive sigh of relief. So it wasn’t just Varian, no, it was a few people! Thank goodness! He’d been hesitant to bring it up, to confirm that Varian had power over the rocks, but her words made it seem more like the rocks respond to strong emotions in general. And Varian was an emotional child, swinging from sweet to sour to sad. Of course the rocks would react to a child’s emotions, then. Thank goodness!

Never mind the fact that they never worked like that before.His previous theory was definitely wrong, there was no way Varian could have the moonstone! Even if he looked a lot like Ulla, with his big blue eyes and button nose, and he had her curiosity and penchant for mischief… 

The princess’s eyes wandered, trying to find words. “I thought you should know that… stop the cart!” She cried. Max jolted to a stop, nearly sending Cassandra crashing into Eugene. Clear as day, across the path, a single spike protruded from the earth. The party stepped out of the wagon to approach. 

“My dad told me all of the black rocks had been removed…” Rapunzel frowned. She went to brush a hand against it, but decided at the last second not to. There was no use in causing an explosion. All eyes turned to the knight, the apparent expert on the rocks. 

Quirin fidgeted uncomfortably. “We may have… missed one?” Truth be told, this rock wasn’t there last time he visited. And that was last week! How had the situation changed so much in such a short time? 

“Um…” Cassandra said, pointing to the village ahead. “Try one hundred.” 

Old Corona was covered in rocks from head to toe. Nearly everywhere you looked, a rock took up some of your vision. Each house had at least one spike cutting clean through it, and the whole village seemed duller, sucked of life. Bleak as winter, a shadow loomed over everything and blanketed it in eternal night.

“Do you think your father lied?” Cassandra asked. Quirin sucked in a harsh breath.

“No!” Rapunzel stressed. Her voice wavered, clearly unsure. “I trust my father, but he probably doesn’t know how bad it’s gotten.” She took one step forward, then another. Dead grass crunched underfoot. “Come on,” she mumbled.

With each new rock Eugene’s anxiety only grew. All angles were dangerous, each reflected beam of sunlight was dimmed by the obsidian rocks it bounced off of. He could feel his sanity slip like sand, each rock corresponding to a grain in an hourglass. On instinct, he reached out. Rapunzel was his rock, and she was his. They’d get through this together, figure it out side by side. But just in case, he caged her braid inbetween them. Hopefully that would prevent any disasters. 

“It’s the same story,” Quirin said sadly, brushing a hand across the rocks. His tattoo burned so hot he feared his glove would melt. “At first it’s just a few rocks… they’re a nuisance, but manageable. But then they keep growing, and growing, until the town is a maze,” he sighed. 

“And then the King comes and cleans it all up, right…?” Cassandra dared to ask, speaking aloud what Rapunzel feared. 

“...They’ve never been in Corona until now,” he managed. It would be his greatest challenge, sitting in the middle of two royals fighting. One, a King determined to keep his people from panic. Another, a princess who wanted answers. 

He wasn’t sure if either person would be satisfied by today’s end.

“They didn’t show up in Corona until… I did.” Rapunzel muttered. “There’s no question now, these rocks… they hold a secret, and, and somehow- we’re connected to it...” Her eyes shook as she was lost in memory. The use of we was noticed by everyone; each member of the party glanced around to see if they’d made the connection, but no one spoke. 

“And maybe we’re… even responsible for it.” 

Eugene’s normally smiling and charming face filled with solemn grit. His voice deepened as he spoke. “What do we do now?”

“If I may,” Quirin cleared his throat and stepped forward. “I have an… old friend who researched the rocks a while ago. I entrusted her with a graphtyc that may have some answers.”

Princess and boyfriend locked eyes. That could only be one person...

“I’m sorry Eugene, I know you don’t want to be here. But we need to find that graphtyc, so that’s what we’re gonna do.” Rapunzel said.

At first the ex-thief was silent, and his face impassive. But slowly, it broke into the faintest of smiles as he grasped her hand. Their foreheads touched together briefly, and Rapunzel melted into his warmth. Their fight from the other night was still fresh in her mind, seeing as it was the only real fight they’ve ever had. Neither of them had been particularly wrong, but they both knew it was time to put personal discomfort aside. 

For Varian.

For their son. 

Quirin and Cassandra stood to the side. When a figure rushed by, they both turned, catching nothing but the wind left in its wake. 

-

The walk to the house was quiet and tense. Each wrong step caused Rapunzel’s hair to light up like a beacon, and everyone would flinch in preparation of an explosion. Thankfully, nothing happened, and they eventually reached the manor. Out of all the houses, this one was in the worst shape. Every window had a cluster of spikes protruding from indoors. A piece of roof cracked and fell to their feet. One thing was clear: the house was on its last legs, wheezing for breath. 

Eugene’s feet felt stuck to the ground, unable to take another step further. Behind this door was, supposedly, Varian’s mother. She and Gothel tied for his least favorite people in the world, but he couldn’t help but also feel grateful. Oh how he wished Varian had a loving mother, but because he didn’t, it allowed them to meet, it allowed for Eugene to grow and love. 

Quirin knocked steadily. He took one deep breath, then another.  

The door crept open. Its hinges screamed and rang through the air. 

And there she was.

The best and worst thing of their lives.

“Ulla,” Quirin breathed, eyes softening. Her hair was askew, like it had been thrown up. Wild eyes scanned him up and down, before relaxing ever so slightly. 

“Were you followed?” She hissed. That earned a nervous glance between party members. Cassandra glanced back; now that she thought about it, she hadn’t even seen any villagers…

“It’s just us,” Quirin replied. “Listen, we need the graphtyc, you said you’d translate it, remember?”

“Oh I remember,” she drawled. Unimpressed eyes scanned the group. Distantly she recognized the princess, her hair was unmistakable, but then, her eyes widened. “You-!” 

Eugene’s eyes flashed. If it wasn’t for the fact that they needed her help, he’d punch her square in the face. “Yea, not thrilled to see you either, can you help us or not?”

The mood shifted instantly from uneasy to flat out hostile. Teal eyes glared through him as she searched for a fifth person who wasn’t there. And probably would never be there again. 

How unfortunate. After he left it’d been so calm… for a while, anyway. Their time apart gave her space to think up some new theories and tests, too bad they’ll never be utilized. Finally, she stepped aside to let everyone in. 

A shadow loomed over the wood.

Ulla turned her nose up as they entered her lab. It was cluttered with notes collecting dust and farm tools. “I will help Quirin, but not the rest of you.”

“Yeah, you’ve helped us enough.” Eugene’s words were biting, barely contained fury clear as day. It was only Rapunzel’s hand on his chest that kept him from springing forward and tearing her to pieces. 

Out of them, Quirin seemed to be the only one happy to see her. “Thank you, Ulla.”

She gave him the faintest of smiles, before her face turned impassive again. “I’ll take Quirin to get the graphtyc. Don’t touch anything… please.” The last word was tacked on solely because Rapunzel was there. The two elders vanished up rickety stairs. 

“So… this is Varian’s old home?” Cassandra’s eyes flicked to and fro. Dust laid claim to every surface. “Seems… about what I expected.”

To her left, Eugene hummed in agreement as he trailed a finger across the table. His eyes trailed over a few of her notes. Most of them were mundane, farm reports or apple science. “You know someone should sit this lady down and have a frank discussion about the importance of having an organized, clutter-free workspace.” Well, a frank discussion about a lot of things. But that’s a good place to start. A nice, simple conversation not about Varian that wouldn’t end in a screaming match and/or murder. 

But murder was still on the table. 

Especially when Rapunzel, curious, foolish Rapunzel, couldn’t help herself. In the far corner, covered in dust, sat what looked like an invention covered by a tarp. Hesitantly, with bare feet tapping against stone, the dust irritating her nose and the smell of it thick in the air, she unveiled the invention. 

A chair, with shackles. 

Tiny, child-sized shackles. 

She let out an agonized cry and stumbled back into Eugene’s arms. It was like a hole had been punched in her chest. So this is what Varian meant when he said no more…

“We shouldn’t have come here. We should’ve stayed in the castle where we were a happy family.” She whispered, clutching tight to Eugene’s vest. 

“Come on, Raps, you don’t mean that,” Cassandra soothed. She sent Eugene a helpless glance. Regardless of how the chair was used, the implications were agonizing. 

As much as Eugene wanted the satisfaction that he was right, that she was agreeing with him, he knew deep down that it wasn’t true. 

“Sunshine,” he mumbled. “I know what I said before about forgetting all this, and never speaking to… her, but this,” his eyes drifted to the window, from which a massive rock extended. “Is way, way worse than I or anyone else imagined, and one thing has become clear.” He brushes a strand of hair from her face. “People are in danger. A lot of danger. Not just from the rocks. And the Rapunzel I know was never one to run and hide from a fight.”

No sooner had those words been spoken, the door burst open. 

-

“Is there a reason you wanted to speak to just me?” Quirin asked as soon as they walked up the stairs. “It’s rude to leave her highness alone.”

Ulla scoffed. “She’s not alone, she's with the thief.” Her words were sharp as the rocks she studied. 

Thief? Well sure, he used to be, but most people looked past that by now. He’d seen firsthand how Eugene went from a castle annoyance to maids crowding him with gossip and parenting advice. 

“You mean how he was Flynn Rider? I can assure you, he’s a very nice young man-”

“A nice young man who is harboring a disappointment!” 

The silence rang like a funeral bell. Quirin’s face dropped to neutral. God did Ulla hate when he did that; he was impossible to read. Finally, he spoke. “So it’s true. He’s yours, isn’t he? He’s… he’s the moonstone.” It was finality, the sealing of a child’s coffin. It also earned him a frustrated eye roll.

Ulla turned to her bookshelf. Let’s see… which book is it again…? “He’s not the moonstone, he’s the moondrop. Crucial difference.”

“That being…?”

“You can’t manipulate or control it the way you can the moonstone.” Quirin couldn’t help but flinch at her word choice. “The translated incantations will only work if he says them. Which renders him useless to me.”

More like useless to her plans, Quirin thought dryly. “So you abandoned him.” 

“He’s an experiment gone wrong. Nothing to do but scrap it and start over.” She smirked at how the man paled at those words. Finally, her fingers brushed across the book. She opened it to reveal a shining scroll case. It felt bittersweet to see so many hours of work be handed over to Quirin, but what can you do? They spent a whole year together, collecting the pieces of the scroll for translation, trying to solve the mystery and destroy the moonstone. Only fair that he gets to see their hard work completed. 

Quirin’s hand brushed against the graphtyc… but then froze. Wait. That didn’t make any sense. “Ulla... he can control the rocks…” 

“What?” It was like a bullet had gone off, Ulla’s ears were ringing that loud. That… that little brat! How long could he control his magic? Did he send these recent rocks to her… to mock her? Did he just enjoy causing her misery!? 

She schooled her face back to impassive, though the cogs in her brain were already off to the races. New theories, new experiments, if she only had a little more time with him…!

Teal eyes batted up at Quirin, who stood awkwardly under her intense gaze. 

She opened her mouth.

-

From the splintered doorway, a large man stepped forward. His face was hidden behind a masked helmet, a black cloak trailing his red coat. He held out a gloved hand. “Hand over the graphtyc.”

Eugene growled, stepping in front of Rapunzel and shielding her. “Who is that?” 

“Doesn’t matter, I got him!” Cassandra cried. She charged at the man, skidding under his legs up and around him. She grabbed his staff and pinned it against his neck. The man huffed, grunting against her weight, before throwing himself forward and sending Cassandra flying. She landed on the table with a thud, sending notes and chemicals every which way. One chemical turned to goo the moment it hit the floor, trapping papers underneath.

Aha!

Rapunzel grabbed a spare of it, and with all her might threw it at the attacker. In a flash of pink smoke the man’s legs were trapped in place. 

“Go go go!” Eugene cried, grabbing Cassandra off the floor.

“What about Quirin!?”

“No time! He’ll just have to catch up!” 

The door to the house flew open with a bang, nearly shattering as they ran past. Each rock lit up a vibrant blue the same color as Varian’s hairstripe whenever Rapunzel ran past. 

“I don’t know how long we’ll have before that guy breaks out, but-” Rapunzel’s voice was cut off, gasping as a masked man stood on the other side of the rocks. How…? 

“Clearly not long!” Eugene cries, and they turn, only to come face to face with the same mask. “How fast is this guy?” Finally, they break out of the rocks, outside the village. With huffing breaths, the party came face to face with several identically dressed men; the masks crowd them, filling their very bones with dread. “Oh, that explains it.” 

“Hand over the graphtyc,” the chant is repeated over and over, each man taking a turn to say it. Never mind the fact that they didn’t even have the damn thing because Ulla wanted to speak to Quirin about god knows what.

Not a moment later than the thought had come and gone, Quirin manifested from behind the Princess. His large, hulking form easily towered over the men, and it took only a few punches for each masked man to topple. 

A neigh bounced around the clearing, its sound ricocheting off rocks, and Max galloped in carrying a frying pan in his mouth. Combined, the two defeated the small battalion in under a minute, before the young adults even had to lift a finger. 

“Sorry,” Quirin whispered to one of the guards before knocking him to the ground. 

“Max! Quirin! Oh you couldn’t have come a second sooner!” Rapunzel gasped as she and the others ran over. It was a tight fit to get them all on Max, but he was a big horse, and Rapunzel could sit on Eugene’s lap if needed. 

“Do you have it?” The princess’s eyes lit up when Quirin produced a small trinket. “These guys want whatever that is pretty badly,” it was an odd game of telephone as Quirin handed it down Max and to Rapunzel. “And something tells me we won’t make it back to the castle.” 

Quirin opened his mouth to argue, but Eugene cut him off. “She’s right! We need somewhere to hide and come up with a plan.”

“No, I don’t think we really need to-”

“I know just the place!” Rapunzel spurred Max faster as Quirin sighed in defeat. 

-

It wasn’t a far ride, just a trip down a cliff and then some, but soon enough they were at a small alcove covered in vines. 

“Man, this is terrible.” Eugene muttered to himself.

“I know,” Cassandra sighed. “Those men are following us.”

“No, I was talking about my vest. But yeah, that’s bad too. Rapunzel, are you sure this place is safe?”

She snorted. Safe? Hidden? This place was the most hidden spot in all of Corona for 18 years. “I’m surprised you don’t recognize this place!” With a flourish, the vines peeled back, and she faltered. “Actually… I’m not sure I recognize it either.” 

Her tower. The place she once called home. Now surrounded by spikes.

Night falls, and with it comes a moment of reprieve. Eugene gladly gave Max a tour of the tower; well, as much of a tour as he could. “And this is where I died!” He said, proudly pointing to a spot of blood on the floor.

With a jolt, Rapunzel recalled an incident from the other day. Eugene had told Varian a watered down story of how they met, and where Rapunzel’s hair came from. The toddler had been so upset to hear that Rapunzel had been locked away for so long… was his anguish subconsciously causing rocks to appear in places he’d never been? 

The other three humans sat together, fidgeting with the graphtyc. “It sounds like there’s something inside…?” Rapunzel held it up to Cassandra’s ear. They both glanced over to Quirin, who opened it with a crack. Inside sat an unassuming piece of paper. Or rather, it was unassuming until he pulled it out.

The scroll was torn in half, with only two columns visible; one had a sun dripping down onto a flower, the other, a moon onto rocks. Strange characters covered the columns, with fresh pencil markings scribbling all around them. 

But before Quirin could explain, Eugene cried out from where he stood at the window. “Guys… we have a problem. Or rather, many problems. Masked problems.”

“You’ve gotta be kidding!” Rapunzel gasped. “How on earth did they find us!?” A fire lit in her eyes, the likes of which her father had tried to smother earlier in the week. “These guys just ticked off the wrong princess. I came here for answers, for a solution, and by god we are going to get it!” 

Quirin rubbed his shoulder, trying to hide his flinch at the word solution. “What will you do, your highness?” 

She didn’t respond at first. Instead, she stalked forward, letting her braid fall loose. “I’m letting down my hair.” The intensity of her voice took them all off guard; Eugene hadn’t heard her that angry in a long time, not even during their fight. 

It was the righteous anger of a protective mother. 

Her hair brushed against a spike, causing it to glow brighter and brighter, even more than the stars in the sky, then the moon, and even the sun. A shockwave sent the masked men flying away, their backs hitting cliff walls. Quirin had to grip onto the tower windowsill in order to stay upright; Cassandra and Eugene weren’t as lucky and were thrown backwards. 

Then, as fast as it started, it stopped. All was quiet, all was still.

Elsewhere, a small child fell to the ground as a blinding headache racked his skull. He shrieked, startling his babysitters.

A new rock sprouted. Then another. Black obsidian punctured the tower. Before they could even try to escape the rocks grew up through the stairwell leading outside. 

“Up there!” Cassandra cried, pointing to the skylight. “That’s the only way out!” 

With one massive throw, Rapunzel formed a rope for everyone to climb, onto the roof and into the night.

“I don’t understand… I thought you said this was dealt with?” Rapunzel bemoaned to Quirin. He winced. On the one hand, he never said anything, her father did. On the other hand…

“It wasn’t like this when I visited last. There were a few rocks, but-”

“Hang on, you lied to us? You were lying this whole time!?” Cassandra butt in, eyebrow raised. She wasn’t nearly as matronly as Rapunzel, if she had it her way Varian would’ve been shipped off to an orphanage, but she was still fond of the little tyke, and she sure as hell didn’t want him blamed for this mess. 

“Well, yes, but-”

“And what happens when the village is overrun? You never finished that story from earlier!” Eugene added. “Is this it? It chases everyone out?” 

“Can we maybe discuss this on land!?” The man cried. There were more important things, like not getting impaled as the tower roof collapsed! 

Blue glow now shone in tandem with the yellow of Rapunzel’s hair. She frowned, weighing her options. “Guys, there’s only one way down. I think I have a way out, but it’s a little crazy, so you’re just gonna have to trust me!” 

Eugene flinched, grabbing her hand anxiously. He had no idea if he could trust her, even though he loved her dearly. He needed to live, now more than ever! He needed to keep his son safe! If these men were after them just for the graphtyc, imagine if they found out about Varian! 

The tower buckled, sending them all into a heap. Never mind, not the time to debate! “Uh sure, let’s go for it. I’m up for anything at this point.”

With that, in tandem, they all lept off the tower as a glowing sphere that rivalled the sun engulfed them, a sea of gold soft as a pillow yet strong as a diamond.

The ground was soft at their feet. 

“Are we all seeing this? Is that new!?” Cassandra laughed, ecstatic that they survived. But Rapunzel paid her no heed. She could only watch as her first home crumbled and shattered before her eyes. Dust flew in every direction. A deep, wicked part of her wanted to run home and yell at Varian, blame him for her loss. But she couldn’t. He was a child, and she’d be no better than Ulla. 

Besides, he and Eugene were her home now. 

That didn’t stop her from shedding a tear, though. 

Eugene placed a hand on her shoulder. “Are you ok?” She shook her head, and wrapped him up in an embrace. “I will be.”

“Uh guys?” Cassandra said. “Look.”

From the wreckage, the masked men slowly shook themselves out. Only, they were not masked anymore. One man’s helmet laid shattered beyond use as he slowly lifted his head up. 

Cassandra’s eyes widened. “Pete?” she gasped. A quick glance around showed that all of them, slowly standing up, were members of the guard. 

“Princess, forgive us…” Pete said. “We had orders to recover the scroll before you.”

Her eyes narrowed into slits. “From who?” 

The man hesitated. Then slowly, a shaking finger pointed behind her… to Quirin. 

-

“Quirin,” Ulla said. “You know we weren’t able to recover half of the incantations. The one to control the rocks is still lost.”

“Because Adira still won’t tell me where it is, yes,” He grumbled. She had never been a fan of his methods, and now he could see why. 

“But we can still control them, stop them… as a family.” His eyes shot up to Ulla’s smile. She seemed nearly peaceful, if he didn’t know her true nature. 

“A family…?”

Her laugh was that of a funeral gong. “Be reasonable Quirin. Who do you think Varian’s father is?”

[365days365movies]

February 18, 2021: The Danish Girl (Part 2)

We’re back, and hey, Tom Hopper?

While I have you, quick question...where’s the Butthole Cut of Cats? Asking for the GF, she was curious. Oh, here she is now!

Adorable. Anyway, yeah, back to The Danish Girl! Recap Part 1 is right here!

Recap (2/2)

Lily is clearly struggling, and Gerda knows it. So, while in Paris, she tracks down an old friend of Lili’s: Hans Axgil (Matthias Schoenaerts), currently an art dealer, and formerly the guy that Lili kissed when they were kids! I’m sure that that won’t make things awkward!

The next day, Gerda tells Lili that she’s planning on bringing in Hans as an art dealer. She also says that Hand remembers her with “great fondness.” I’M SURE THAT COMMENT WON’T BE RECIEVED IN A VERY SPECIFIC WAY GERDA WHAT THE FU-

Anyway, after Lili doesn’t show up to lunch, they go back to the Paris apartment to find her, and do indeed find Lili. Not Einar, LILI. Which, yeah, not exactly what either Hans or Gerda was expecting. Pretty sure Gerda wasn’t expecting Lili to be so flirty with Hans, DAMN! Seems like Lili’s got quite the unrequited crush on Hans.

However, that goes awry as the topic of conversation moves to marriage, and Lili demonstrates her very strong opinions on the subject. Then, obviously realizing that she’s talking about this IN FRONT OF HER WIFE, she breaks down from guilt, and leaves the room crying.

Hans, CLEARLY realizing that Lili is Einar, not Einar’s cousin (yeah, they tried that lie, it did NOT work), leaves, but offers his help with this situation. Gerda and Lili go to bed, and Lili asks to borrow a nightdress. When Gerda says that Lili’s never spent the night, Lili says the following:

It doesn’t matter what I wear. ‘Cause when I dream...they’re Lili’s dreams.

And I should acknowledge here: I’m a cissexual man, and I OBVIOUSLY have absolutely no knowledge of the transgender experience on a personal level, so I can’t comment on whether or not this is genuine. But, uh...goddamn, to a complete outsider, it feels genuine. Not trying to assume any one experience is the same as another one, but this certainly feels real to me. Hope that’s not in any way offensive; like I said, complete outsider here. An ally, yeah, but still an outsider.

Anyway, it would seem that Lili’s here to say, and Gerda grows more comfortable with that fact. Lili eventually poses for Gerda once again, and the new paintings make a splash on the Paris art scene. Which Hans has also noticed, and he invites Gerda to dinner, in a romantic fashion. She says that she’s “still married to Einar,” and refuses. And yet, Einar isn’t there, is he? With that realization, Gerda leaves, hurt.

Lili’s been at home making dinner, but Gerda is clearly too upset to even slightly interact with Lili, asking her to “get Einar.” But Lili refuses, as if to say that Einar doesn’t exist anymore. And, to be fair, it looks like she’s right about that. Gerda leaves, heartbroken, and goes right to...Hans, GODDAMNIT!

Yeah, she runs off right after they kiss, but this still isn’t OK, obviously. She realizes that, and returns home, where Lili has again assumed the Einar identity, but doesn’t believe that she can maintain that charade much longer. They two acknowledge that they can’t keep up their relationship like this, and both resolve to try and find a solution.

Ulla comes to visit, and suggests a doctor at a women’s institute. Meanwhile, Lili goes to the library to research others like her. However, on the way home, she’s accosted by two men in the park and beaten up. Injured, she heads to Hans’ place, and he patches her up. Hans also tries to understand this transition, and Lili explains that she’s felt this way since their childhood together. In any case, Hans agrees to help.

Lili sees several doctors, all of whom are, uh...yeah, bad. But, to be fair, it’s the 1930s, so there isn’t much to be expected at this point. At one point, a doctor diagnoses her as schizophrenic, and leaves to get a straitjacket, but she escapes through a window beforehand. JESUS.

That night, Gerda and Lili decide to try one more doctor, the one that Ulla’s suggested. That doctor is Dr. Kurt Warnerkros (Sebastian Koch), and he’s the only one who seems open to helping Lili, and suggests gender reassignment surgery. And as he talks about the details of the surgery, as well as the MYRIAD of complications involved. And Lili immediately accepts.

However, this means the end of their relationship, and both of them are aware of this. As Lili goes on the train, dressed as Einar, she bids Hans and Gerda a tearful goodbye, as well as Einar Wegener.

At the clinic, Lili, officially identifying as Lili Elbe, goes through multiple procedures to become her true self. Back home, Hans tries to convince Gerda to visit Lili at the clinic, but it’s understandably hard for her to do so. When she inevitably does, Lili is fresh out of surgery, and is NOT OK, even a little, holy SHIT.

But soon, Lili recovers, and Gerda is there to help her all along the way. However, at this point, their relationship has turned into a friendship, rather than a marriage. Now working at a department store as a perfume saleswoman, Lili’s begun to reinvent herself.

Not only does this include a social life with the fellow saleswomen, but also a potential relationship with Henrik, whom, it appears, knew that Lili was in fact a man, and now seems to fully accept that Lili is a woman. Also turns out, for the record, that Henrik’s gay, so the two end up becoming friends!

Gerda’s not as happy with these changes, however, and is struggling to adjust, despite Lili’s urgings for her to do so. And as this change in Lili’s life cements itself, she decides to go for broke and go for the second operation. Gerda once again goes to support the operation, and to support Lili.

However, as Gerda leaves her for the night, Lili begins sobbing deeply. Now, is this because of her lost relationship with Gerda, or for another reason? Or perhaps she’s understandably scared for this second operation. In any case, the operation is happening. To support both Gerda and Lili, Hans soon arrives, and Hans and Gerda embrace. And then, the next day, Lili goes into surgery.

But during the surgery, she’s lost a lot of blood. And while Hans and Gerda are there to comfort her...she looks EXTREMELY not good. However, she’s briefly awake enough to say that she is “entirely herself.” Lili asks Gerda to talk her outside, to the garden, and she obliges.

And as Lili’s giving a very nice soliloquy about a dream she had the previous night, I feel the need to point something out. This film is pretty famous for having historical inaccuracies, and I’ll go into those in the Review. However, there is one thing that the film got right.

Lili doesn’t survive the surgery. In real life, she actually had a third surgery, but she did die as a result of complications. Which, yeah, is crushingly sad.

We end as Gerda and Hans are returning home, and on the trip there, Gerda sees five trees, the same ones that were in a painting of Einar’s (Lili wasn’t a painter). A scarf that Lili gave to Gerda flies away in the wind off the coast. And Gerda smiles.

And that was The Danish Girl. Well! That was interesting, interesting indeed. See you in the Review!

[polymathart]

Moon!Varian Alternate Story

Varian goes with Rapunzel and Co. to the Dark Kingdom.

All throughout the journey, Varian remains bitter towards all of them. But slowly he begins to warm up to them again. But he refuses to admit it.

In Vardaros, Varian has an extremely brief “date” with Vex. It is in Vardaros that Varian actually gets his bad boy outfit. He also stumbles on some hints that his mother might have once been in the city...

He bumps into Hugo for an extremely brief second among the crowd.

Throughout “Keeper of the Spire,” Varian is in the background trying to steal books and documents. Cass is always the one to catch him and make him return it.

During “Happiness Is...” Varian envisions his dad. He among all of them is the most livid and bothered when the Idol is taken away. While everyone else agrees to what happiness really is, Varian broods in the background, still feeling robbed.

When Eugene is “stabbed” during “Max and Eugene in Peril on the High Seas,” even Varian is shocked. This is the first indication that Varian is beginning to care about everyone.

Adira mentions that Quirin was part of the Brotherhood. This new information occupies Varian’s focus for most of the episode.

Cassandra still sings “Waiting in the Wings,” but this time the only person who overhears her other than Hector... is Varian. Varian talks to Cass and insinuates that she should help turn on Rapunzel, but Cass refuses and storms off.

When Rapunzel faints in the Great Tree, even Varian is worried for her but immediately rejects his compassion for her and anyone else, saying that they deserved whatever could’ve happened to them there and he wouldn’t have been heartbroken one bit.

Varian reluctantly agrees to help Rapunzel and Eugene during “You’re Kidding Me!” In fact, for a brief second he offhand mentions that he doesn’t think that they would make bad parents at all.

Varian meets Zhan Tiri who pretends to be Demanitus. She claims she can free Quirin and reunite Varian with Ulla. She also guides Varian in translating the scroll.

Cass is still Gothel’s daughter but she doesn’t turn on them. Instead she is angry but upfront about it with Rapunzel and it takes a while for her to reconcile.

Varian finds out about Cass’ background and the two bond over their struggles and their negative feelings towards Rapunzel. Varian secretly angry that Cass reconciles with Rapunzel, as if she, too, betrayed Varian and was siding with Rapunzel.

Varian goes AWOL. The gang returns to Corona where the Saporians have still taken over. They have raided Varian’s lab and combined his alchemy with their magic to create their bombs.

Rapunzel frees Quirin when Corona is liberated. She tells him about Varian. She also confronts her father for being part of the reason Varian turned dark. Cassandra at the same time decides she needs some time alone after all this fighting. She and Rapunzel are still civil, but it is clear to Rapunzel that something is changing in their relationship.

“Beginnings” still happens with Rapunzel wondering if she and Cassandra’s friendship was reaching its end. She realizes that if the two of them made it work in the past, there’s still a chance they can be friends again when all this is over. She is also reminded by Eugene that she will figure out how to reunite with Cass, and perhaps even Varian...

Varian finds the wreck of the caravan. Instead of Cass destroying her portrait with Rapunzel, Varian finds Cassandrium among the wreck, revealing Cass kept it the whole time rather than throw it away. Confused and enraged by both his feelings for her and her “betrayal,” he shatters the necklace.

During “Be Very Afraid,” Cassandra returns and accompanies Rapunzel to the Demanitus Device. They visit Quirin who gives them Varian’s amber potion. Cass sees Varian’s blue ribbon and invention from “Great Expotations” and admits that she, too, hopes Varian will reform. At the Demanitus Device, Cass and Raps bond over the very first time the two of them were there. Rapunzel briefly senses Varian on the other side of the rocks. Cass also sees her fears of being cast aside as second-fiddle to Rapunzel when she is Queen. Varian witnessed this through the rocks.

“Islands Apart” does not happen. Instead it focuses on Rapunzel again making Frederick see the wrong he did to his family and to his kingdom. Cass has a conversation with Cap about his plans to retire so that Cass can finally be Captain. However, Cassandra reveals that she is questioning if Captain of the Guard was still her real dream.

“Race to the Spire” is still mostly unchanged. Varian takes the Brotherhood Mind Trap. Rapunzel meets Zhan Tiri. Varian activates the Mind Trap, unaware that Quirin is out of the amber and thus also affected by the Mind Trap.

“Cassandra’s Revenge” is now “Varian’s Revenge.” Cass is the first to confront Varian. First Varian tries to use Cass’ fears that he witnessed thru the red rocks to sway her to join him. “Nothing Left to Lose” happens with roles reversed. Cass is taken prisoner by Varian. Eugene stays beside Cass while she’s trapped. They bond especially over their feelings about their parents and also that they care about each other despite all their rivalry. Varian is blown off the Tower. Cass, Raps, and Eugene all look for him but he is nowhere to be seen.

Outside Corona, Varian finds Quirin free. At first Varian wants to find a way to free Quirin from the Mind Trap’s power, but when Quirin begs Varian to surrender the Moonstone, Varian once again feels betrayed. He also believes his whole quest to try to free his father has been in vain as well as hijacked by Rapunzel. He briefly wrestles with Quirin for the Mind Trap. Varian has no other choice but to activate it and order Quirin’s allegiance. Varian is mortified at his own actions but nevertheless forces Quirin, Adira, and Hector to follow him before anyone warns Rapunzel of his arrival.

“Once a Handmaiden...” is now “Once an Alchemist...” Varian realizes who “Demanitus” really is. She claims that Ulla is still alive and can only be brought back by her. Varian has two options: continue helping Zhan Tiri so that he can find Ulla, or make amends with Rapunzel and stop Zhan Tiri. Varian has a breakdown and decides to make amends with Rapunzel. But when he sees everyone up in arms, he breaks. He summons the Brotherhood and takes over.

During the Eclipse, Varian wanders the halls while spitefully destroying anything remotely related to the Royals, Eugene, Cass, etc. He stumbles into Rapunzel’s room and sees the villain portrait she made of him, believing that that’s how everyone had and always will see him.

Zhan Tiri takes over while briefly comparing Varian’s downfall to Ulla’s. Rapunzel and Varian finally talk to each other. Rapunzel shares the wisdom she also shared with Cassandra: Plus Est En Vous. She explains that even though he has done so much harm, she still believes in Varian to change and do the right thing, and that he is capable of being far more than just a villain. The rest mostly plays out the same. This time both Cass and Eugene are the ones who perish on the Castle Steps. Rapunzel brings them back. Rapunzel, Eugene, Cass, Angry, Catalina, and Lance hug. And Rapunzel yanks Varian into the hug.

In the end, Eugene is Captain. Varian is ready to begin his quest to find Ulla. Cassandra knows what it’s like to not have someone there to call her mother, let alone a good mother. So joins him both for the adventure and to help him find his mother. And their very first stop is Vardaros to pick up a certain Hugo who might be able to help, too...

[disneymiraculousefandomsblog]

Hey guys! This story takes place before Varian and the seven kingdoms, Varian already found his mothers journal but before he goes an old friend stops by for a visit, I really wanted to write a story with Varian and my original character Selena again:) So here it is I hope you enjoy it. Thanks to @dangara2610 for the help and amazing ideas!💕 and to @animagicsalina she originally wrote the note from Ulla from her V7K comic so credit goes to her for that 😊

A Friendly Visit

Varian was exited, he hoped that this visit would make up for what happed to Selena and her family the last time they came, being accused of stealing and almost getting tossed in jail for something they didn’t do. Varian was going to try his best to make Selena feel welcome and hoped that nothing bad would happen this time. Varian was starting to sweep when he saw Ruddiger clawing at the wall.

“Hey bud!, what you have their?” Varian asked

Ruddiger kept pawning, Varian knelt down to see what Ruddiger was seeing and he saw a small hole in the wall.

“Hmm, I’ve never seen this hole before.” Varian said confused.

Varian looked closer at the hole and inspected it, he saw something inside it looked like a book, but he couldn’t tell for sure till he took it out. Varian put his hand inside to grab whatever was in their he managed to reach it and pulled it out.

“It’s a journal, and there’s a note inside” Varian said grabbing the note and stared to read it.

“Dear Quirin, Donella and I are on the brink of discovering how to pass through the trials, but we need more time, I know you want me home with you and Varian, as do I...But this is a once in a lifetime opportunity! I promise I’ll return home soon. I know you know how much this means for us, we could change the world! With love Ulla.”

Varian was surprised he didn’t know what to think, his dad never did talk about his mom much, he never knew why every time Varian brought it up his dad would avoid it by changing the subject.

“This was moms journal Ruddiger, but why would dad hide this from me?, Why didn’t he tell me about this?” Varian kept asking himself questions.

“Ruddiger, I want to talk to my dad about this, but I’m gonna have to wait till later, since Selena is coming and I want her to have a good time... so I’ll talk to my dad after her visit” Varian told his buddy.

Varian grabbed the journal and put it in his sack. Varian finished cleaning his lab and went to go meet Selena in the market. Selena was so exited, she didn’t really have friends so having Varian as her best friend even though they lived far away she was thankful to have someone she could relate to. Selena finally arrived to Corona, she got into the carriage and the driver took her to the market to meet Varian.

Varian saw the carriage arriving, Ruddiger scurried up to Varian’s shoulders. The carriage came to a stop, the driver got down and opened the door. Selena came out.

“Hey Varian! It’s so good to see you again” Selena said giving him a hug.

Varian still wasn’t used to surprise hugs, but he went along with it.

“Hey Selena! It’s great to see you too” Varian said returning the hug.

Selena pulled away from the hug, “My parents stayed with Queen Ariana and King Fred, they wanted to stay with me here , but they had to attend important bussiness, so they let me come on my own” Selena said to Varian with a smile.

“That’s great Selena!” Varian said with a smile.

“So did you want me to show you around the rest of Corona?, I know you didn’t see everything the last time due to....well you know” Varian said sheepishly.

“Yes I remember, It’s Ok I liked the adventure we had together, we made a great team” Selena said giving Varian a shoulder punch.

“Hehe yeah we did” Varian said rubbing his arm.

Varian started giving Selena that tour of the market, He showed her all the vendors, they passed the show shop where Feldspar was fixing shoes, They passed the dress shop.

Selena looked at the dresses that were on display, Corona fashion was different that the fashion back home but she loved it. Then they passed Monty sweet shop, this was Varian’s favorite place. Monty has a variety of candies especially chocolate candies. Selena remembered Varian loved Chocolate.

“Hey Varian, did you like the box of chocolates I gave you?” Selena asked.

“Yes they were delicious I ate them all by the second day hehe” Varian said with a chuckle.

Selena smiled, They kept walking around the market, Varian and Selena kept talking about how much has changed since the last time they saw each other, Varian told her about all the new inventions he made, and all the adventures he had with Eugene now that they work together to protect Corona.

“Enough about me, So what’s new over at your kingdom?” Varian asked Selena.

“Well not much, our kingdom is not as exiting as Corona, we don’t get much criminal activity, but the real reason i came to visit Corona is that my Family want to open a bakery here since we are trade partners now, we were thinking of opening a Mexican bakery and having someone from here run it we would teach them how to bake and use our recipes. We thought it would help strengthen our alliance” Selena told Varian sheepishly.

Varian thought for a moment, “Selena that sounds great, your desserts are amazing!, I’m sure Corona would love to taste your desserts, I mean the only sweet shops we have is Montys and Attilas bake shop their both great but they don’t sell your Mexican desserts” Varian said with a smile.

“Thanks Varian, and you have yet to taste our champurrado , atole and our coffee , but we really don’t know where to put our bakery hough?” Selena said shyly.

“Well I can help you with that, there’s a building not far from here that you could buy I’m sure Rapunzel would gladly give it to you guys” Varian assured her.

“And There are plenty of people on Corona that would love to have a job so it shouldn’t be hard to find someone that knows how to bake” Varian stated.

“Thank you Varian, I really appreciate you helping us” Selena said with a smile.

“Hehe it’s no problem, I’m glad I could help,” Varian answered rubbing his hand behind his head.

“Let’s go see Rapunzel, so that she can help you with your plan” Varian told Selena.

“Ok” Selena said with a smile.

As they made their way to the castle Selena could couldn’t help but feel butterflies in her stomach every time she was around Varian, and every time he would smile at her she could feel herself blushing.

She never felt like this with any boy she hung out with, only Varian, she knew she had a crush on him even if she tried to deny it she couldn’t. But she didn’t know if Varian felt the same way about her, what if he didn’t it would be so awkward, or what If she did confess that she liked him he would reject her and they would loose their friendship.

Selena shook her head getting rid of those thoughts. She decided that the only way to know if he liked her was to ask him certain questions a boy would ask a girl to see if she liked that boy.

And that concludes Chapter 1, i tough this would be a good cliff hanger. I know your wondering where is the angst, but this fic will be just a nice fic, there will be some conflict though between Selena because of her crush for Varian. Now I don’t ship Varian with anyone, Selena is just going through the same phase that Varian went through with Cassandra.

Anyway I hope you enjoy it? Please let me know what you thought of it?😊 I was going to do a one shot but I had more ideas and it ran longer than expected so I’m going to do it in chapters😊 feedback is greatly appreciated, you guys are the ones that keep me going thanks for the support 💕

[ratherhavetheblues]

INGMAR BERGMAN’S THE VIRGIN SPRING“Big, wonderful dreams!”

© 2018 by James Clark

     Now, as we open a third can of worms installed by the inimitable, Ingmar Bergman, we need to open our eyes to the seriously bizarre communication these films consist of. Unlike the catch-as-catch-can opportunities to turn a buck by fulsome cinematic and mainstream cultural techniques, Bergman puts to himself and his clients two simultaneous and contradictory presentations. Why did he work like that? He didn’t want to starve. And, moreover, he was obliged to maintain—with reservations—that the mainstream has much to recommend.

   The works, in question now, introduce with silent-film-optics-brilliance, figures variously galvanized by the resources of the history of Christian assurance. Though the most overt aspects of the narratives very convincingly appear to sustain the integrity of loyalty to a Christian power, there coincides an ambush exploding the entire enterprise and mooting the uncanny ways of fearlessness.

   The era when Bergman displayed such an impressive changeup pitch was perhaps less experimental and volatile than our own. But his assumption that he was on to a crucial singularity resonates—to those with advanced reflective skills—in our own millennium. The films, Through a Glass Darkly and The Seventh Seal, subtly found much amiss in insisting that strong but fabricated personalities could put one on easy street. In our film today, The Virgin Spring (1960), only a last minute convulsion cements that whimsy. But, all the better from our point of view, the drama concerns a very flesh-and-blood problematic, namely, distemper.

   A devout farming couple (in medieval Sweden) sends off their adolescent daughter to a distant church in order to fulfil a clerical edict that a virgin deliver candles for the observances. She is intercepted by three goatherds who rape and kill her. The murderers, having heard from the naïve and smug girl how opulent her family farm is, pay a visit and—something the goats might have red-flagged—attempt to sell the victim’s expensive and now bloodied clothes. Her father beats and stabs to death the naïve trouble-makers. This triggers for the God-fearing parents a spate of fence-mending. The whole retinue of the rough-hewn estate is led to the girl’s corpse by an eye-witness. At that site, the contrite and grief-stricken killer looks upward and repeatedly addresses his Lord. “I don’t understand you!” Then he adds, “Yet I still ask for forgiveness… I don’t know any other way to live… I will, with these hands, build a church here.” The distraught parents embrace their child for the last time; and then they and their underlings submit to the mass hallucination (a couple of no-names from the staff bemused in accurately seeing nothing—as per the skeptics in the other two films cited) of a spring coming into force where the girl’s head had lain. (Hallucination being prominent in those two aforementioned films.) A young semi-adherent to paganism, who had been charged to see that the trip be a safe and happy one, imagines being refreshed by the “waters” and now becomes as devout as the others on hand.

   I hope you can appreciate that this angle on the eventuation leaves a lot of questions. A close look at the film’s first moments can introduce a level of sensibility from which to comprehend what really happens here. We’re confronted with a ragged, swarthy and beautiful young woman, crouching over a fire pit, with arms extended. Very definitely, it is the coursing of the fire per se, and not the kindling of the cooking apparatus, which absorbs her. She exhales with vigor and with a sense of urgency, her cheeks puffed-out grotesquely. “Odin, come!” is her non-breakfasty wake-up call. She pushes a long wooden pole upward to allow the smoke to escape from a trap-door beyond the ceiling. As she looks upward to the billows she is filmed close-up from the floor, and the large features of her face bring to mind an early cave-dweller, more primitive animal than rational ruler. Moreover, her peculiar dance is unmistakably an expression of solitary anger. “Come to my aid!” she cries out. At this window of opportunity, she is fearless, a condition we know to be at the heart of  Bergman’s constructs.

   The screenplay is credited to one, Ulla Isaksson, whom the auteur commissioned to deal with a Norse ballad involving child murder, which caught Bergman’s eye at the time of his production, The Seventh Seal (1957), with its desperate traffic of medieval piety. Isaksson’s inhabiting the idiom of faith and her concern to set in relief the 14th century triumph of Christianity over the forces of the pagan God, Odin, would, in fact, be merely useful dilettante spadework for Bergman’s finalization of a drama concerning fearlessness and its slide to distemper (hardly a matter confined to the distant past).

   The sensuality of that firebrand, named, Ingeri, gives way to the principals of the farm, namely, Tore, and his wife, Mareta, who start their morning being stalk-still, in prayer. Tore recites, “Heavenly Father, Son and Holy Ghost, with all your hosts of angels, guard us this day and always from the devil’s snares…” Mareta adds, “Lord, let not temptation, shame, nor danger befall thy servants this day.” In strong and ironic contrast to Ingeri’s commitment to conflagration, Mareta drips warm, runny candle wax on her hand. “It’s Friday,” she explains, “the day of our Lord’s agony…” Then she crosses herself, “So help me God.”

   Instead of just distributing that stark contrast, there is a cut to an elderly lady, Frida, who presents us with a blanket filled with new-born chicks, delicate, beautiful and full of life. Holding one in her hand, she says, “You poor thing. Live out your wretched little life, the way God allows all of us to live.” Here, then, a synthesis tumbles our way—the “wretched little life” hovering toward the possibility of disinterestedness, with aspects of wild Ingeri and the calculators, in the mix. But life is not a sure-fire recipe, as Frida soon shows us why. Ingeri’s dance in the kitchen is interrupted by the seeming old dear, her colleague in cuisine, asking her in a harsh voice, “Where were you all night? If you don’t care where you sleep, you could at least come back for the milking… Instead, I had to run around on these poor legs…” Where did the “wretched little life” go?

   We’re on track, at this introduction, to deal with, not religious wars, nor with bromides about improving the Dark Ages with prayer books; but instead with an addiction for eclipsing others and leaving them seen to be inferior. After her celestial entrance, Ingeri, about six months pregnant, flashes her enhanced profile in a bid to drive Frida to feel that all her chaste priorities have become obsolete, have come to naught. Just before that, her surliness elicits from the old semi-dear, “What’s wrong?” A far cry from her silent gambit, Ingeri very commonly, even old and obsolete, explains, “Nothing more than the usual—bastards beget bastards…” Not that Frida improves the tone with her spiteful, “Serves you right, the way you behave—spitting and snarling like a wild cat. You should thank God on your bare knees for his mercy. To come to a farm like this and stay in this house like a child of the family. But you are, and always will be, a savage child.”

   The objective of personal power, bringing down upon many a blast of horror, derives from that patrimony of advantage, of seizing the upper hand. The proprietors, over and above their systematic prayers, have seen fit to be the only ones to provide the regional church with candles for the observances of the Virgin Mary. In accordance with a tradition that a virgin must carry the candles to church, the onus falls upon their adolescent daughter, Karin, to double-down the piety in that way. Whereas the parents are fastidious in consummating their secular and religious challenges, Karin has chosen to exploit the vantage point she was born to and thereby occupy a medium where she always appears paramount. True to form, she had been the focal point of the party the night before, the party also dear to Ingeri; and whereas the servant had showed up, the princess had slept in, leading Mareta to think of the only other virgin, namely, Frida, to carry the goods that day. Tore’s edict, “Go put some life in that loafer,” takes Frida off the hook, and Karin ending her winning streak.

   The Virgin Spring may be bountiful in evoking the mysterious and perilous tumble of sensual energy. But it also shines in its dramatic dialogue (Bergman being a connoisseur of theatrical rhetoric, to the point where speech and its imagery joins that tumble). Therefore, we’ll track with some detail the distemper within the first family, whereby Karin seeks wedding garb for running an errand of piety. She is roused by her mother only by way of racking up lavish indulgences in apparel and cuisine. “I’ll wear my yellow dress,” she proclaims. And when Mareta reasons, “My child, it’s a week day,” the child threatens, “Then I won’t go.” Mareta fortuitously perseveres to an upshot of how superior the girl and her parents not only believe themselves to be but tolerate in themselves such cheapness. “You’re behaving like a little child… [but] I can’t be hard to you.”/ “Mother, I’ll ride to church with such dignity, and Blackie will raise his hooves gently, like a pilgrims’ procession. I’ll look neither right nor left, but straight ahead.” Mareta changes the subject, but not the nonsense. “This is not an ordinary dress. Fifteen maidens sewed this! “ She attempts to return to some ascetic territory, not enjoying the cross-purposes. “You’ll give the devil such joy. Angels will punish you with boils and toothaches…” She goes on to refer to her disturbing dreams and Karin counters with, “I wish I had dreams, too… Big, wonderful dreams! But I never do…” Tore comes by, and pleased by the glamor and glory, he exclaims, “I’ll ride into the mountains with this naughty girl and I’ll say, ‘I won’t have such a daughter… I’ll imprison her in the mountains for seven years until she’s been tamed!’”

   The taming of Ingeri—chosen by Karin to accompany and thereby accentuate her own fabulousness on the road and to have the audacious one’s brain picked on the subject of intercourse—proceeds by her own volition, first of all (in being tasked to provide a meal for the princess) as to placing a toad within one of  o the buns. Such childish distemper not becoming her fluency with the realm of fire. Abandoning, for the moment, the most revealing interplay of the girls in the first phase of the trip, there is the shining and appallingly brief (semi-) fearlessness of Tore. After killing the goatherds (who had displayed a [semi-] retardation of predatory appetite) and rushing to Karin’s semi-nude corpse, he dispenses with meek piousness and samples some fearlessness at the borders of power as he has come to understand it. He stands close to the stream which Karin had seen before being devoured by fish-like feeders (one of which playing a Jew’s harp—a factor recalling the Nazi touch by Martin, in Through a Glass Darkly; but here the bite is far more controversial, possibly at the basis of the often-remarked down-play by Bergman toward this film); and he leverages Ingeri’s account—he very likely being the father of the child—of that   viciousness and guile to a point of serious rebellion. After looking to skies that have become efficacious, no longer supernatural, he smashes his face with his fist, kneels down and then falls over, face down. Presently, he looks up in extreme divided confusion and calls out—already, in this move, sliding away from a medium of efficacy—“You saw it, God, you saw it! The death of an innocent child and my vengeance. You allowed it to happen [here a fascinating disclosure of boldness clinging to a safety net, replete with his shaking his fist]. I don’t understand you [a close-up seen from behind]. I don’t understand you [the rippling waters actually going nowhere]. Yet I still ask for forgiveness. I know no other way to make peace with myself. I don’t know any other way to live…I promise you, God, here by the dead body of my only child… I promise that as a penance for my sin I shall build you a church. On this spot I shall build it… out of mortar and stone… with these hands…” The melodramatic stance, with legs far apart, and arms up to the sky, reminds us of Ingeri at her best, bestriding the cauldron and dispensing with verbiage.

   Searchlit singularity comes to a bemusing crescendo in one of Tore’s marginal retainers, namely, “the Professor,” with a vaguely clerical baldpate head. He comes into his own in scrutinizing the little brother of those killers intent on doing even more damage, but being too dull to make the most of the occasion. That the kid-minding kid (initially ordered by his adult brothers to keep an eye on the body, but soon tagging along) has been shocked to the point of not being able to keep any food down presents no mystery to the master of inferences—he having already figured out that the dark night bringing no princess means she has been murdered by those operating along the route of the church and now partaking of Tore’s hospitality. (On the other hand, Tore tells Mareta, “If Karin doesn’t come tonight, she’ll surely return tomorrow… I know you’re worried about Karin. But she’s stayed in the village overnight without permission before.”)

   A preamble to that seer (a country cousin to the Joseph of The Seventh Seal) involves Frida—she of the presence of affection and the language of affliction—denouncing our sharp but not sharp enough navigator. He carelessly teases her, “A woman like you no doubt needs a confessional close at hand.” And she pushes back, “Says the man who had to flee the country to save his hide… I know all about you, Professor…” He shoots back, “A bird on the wing finds something, while those who sit still only find death. I’ve seen both women and churches…” (Frida brightens up at the prospect of learning more about religious edifices. “What were the churches like?” And he brags, “Tall as the sky. And big… Not of wood, but of mortar and stone.”)

   But when the chips are down, the Professor shows that his reputation as a spoiler to sedate invalids derives from his having taken a deep measure of “a bird on the wing.” The sick and terrified boy is put to bed by Frida, and when she departs he takes over with his bass baritone baseline, to implicitly officiate the  boy’s funeral. “You see how the smoke trembles up the roof hole? As if whispering and afraid [both fear and freedom conjoined]. Yet it’s only going out into the open air, where it has the whole sky to tumble about in. But it doesn’t know that. So it cowers and trembles under the sooty ridge of the roof. People are the same way. They worry and tremble like leaves in a storm because of what they know and what they don’t know. You shall cross a narrow plank, so narrow you can’t find your footing. Below you roars a great river. It’s black and wants to swallow you up. But you pass over it unharmed. Before you lies a chasm, so deep you can’t see the bottom [‘Hell is other people,’ has also been used]. Hands grope for you. At last you stand before a mountain of terror.” (Here the bird on the wing conflates to an interfering manipulation.) “It spews fire like a furnace and a vast abyss opens at its feet. A thousand colors blaze there. Copper and iron, blue vitriol and yellow sulphur. Flames dazzle and flash and lash at the rocks. And all about, men leap and writhe, small as ants, for this is the furnace that swallows up [the boy looks away in fear.] But at the very moment you think you’re doomed, a hand shall grab you and an arm circle around you and you shall be taken far away where evil no longer has power over you…”

   What appears to be gross self-contradiction in that funeral sermon pertains to a duality with which the film is passionately absorbed. The short-lived fire of Ingeri and the rather long-winded but engaging metaphors of the Professor constitute an uncanny poetic life-blood, haunting, to those who have striven to reach heights. In addition to that, however, a curtain of inertia—demonstrated by Ingeri’s loss of grip and the Professor’s withering to clichés—intrinsically busies itself to foster preoccupation with others in survival action. We should take care, at this point, to more closely discover how Bergman evokes, with a horrific shambles, the bracing dilemma and delight of a groundswell often overt but rarely sustained.

  One of the most felicitous cinematic portrayals of the endless struggle to harmonize between the two moments of creativity occurs in the course of Tore’s steeling himself to kill his daughter’s devourers. Seemingly needing to fire up his flesh by whipping himself with branches from a supple young tree (recalling the flagellants in The Seventh Seal, seen by notables to be deranged), he proceeds to break the trunk near the base. But in carrying out his effort to break the trunk, Tore becomes caught up in pushing to and fro the plant’s elasticity, a vivid metaphoric rendition of the work of balancing, countering overarching advantage, like the kills he is intent on. (That Ingeri, slinking back to the farm, goes on to accompany and assist his questionable motivation—preparing scalding vessels for him to shower nude—becomes an indicator of the “savage child” having capitulated entirely to the rapacity of advantage, getting things done without due attention to the possibility of that other, poetic accomplishment.)

   The early moments of the ride to the church never reached by Karin present many rich features of those essential polarities being not and never effectively reached. Karin, the self-styled star, rides on a snow-white mare and sits in archaic, chivalric side-saddle, cosseted by the ancient airs and dances of a routed, effete and dull constituency. She sits barely touching her mount, as if messaging to the countryside that a hierarchy has come to pass. Ingeri, upon a dark, splotchy runt, rides using her legs but only faintly derives the gifts of the earthiness which the opportunity affords. Karin in the lead, they skirt a sparkling lake in the sun. The camera of Sven Nykvist draws back to reveal the vast hilly forests and skies and cosmos beckoning the girls toward a memorable treasure of travel. Karin gets as far as a pleasant song with that recorder and timbrel motif which accompanied the credits. “The little bird, he soars so high/ It is such work , such work to fly/ And over high mountains to spring./ The streams flow so merrily/ All under the verdant trees/ In springtime’s breeze…” (Here the billowy white clouds with wild flowers below accentuate the endowments of nature, seldom heeded.) Prior to this stage, there was the Professor accompanying the girls as they passed beyond the farm’s gate. He, too, was induced to song, the kinetic subject of which inclined to flattery and a premonition (of death amidst verdant trees twisting in an ambiguous breeze) ravaging lovely fruit. “So lovely an apple orchard I know/ A maid with virtues so dear./ Her hair like spun-gold does flow/ Her eyes like the heavens so dear./ The streams flow so merrily/ And under verdant trees/ In springtime’s breeze.”

   Contrasting with the early field of fruition, Ingeri, in the sequel, gets her face slapped by Karin for teasing her about seducing at that party a young farmer in the hinterland (perhaps another of her paramours), brought into view as they encountered him in his pasture. (This descent into cheapness parallels the Karin in Through a Glass Darkly, being unable to regain poise after participating in an ill-conceived birthday skit.) Karin quickly apologizes; but the once fearless (implying disinterestedness) loner clings to petty advantage. “Don’t ask me for forgiveness!” From there, the dark horse, taking up a rather distant rear, doesn’t have a ghost of a chance. A raucous raven in close-up keys the next closure of Ingeri’s heart. Having come upon the pathway’s attendant to a bad crossing of the stream, Ingeri walks her mount and the beauty of that modest beast speaks volumes. Here, with her integrity in shreds, she cries out to Karin, “Let’s turn back!” When Karin refuses, the unstable outsider blurts out, “I’ll take the candles!” (melodramatic rolling the dice being a symptom of shallow desperation). Karin, being the stable one for the time being, finding some backbone in light of another’s cowardice, offers a glimpse of how volatile, how kinetically challenging, one’s emotional resources can prove to be. Ingeri does not, her gypsy looks notwithstanding, possess any capacity to foresee the future. Instead, her skittishness stems from a factor of her own failure to bring equilibrium to the firestorm of her sensibility. “The forest is so dark! I can’t go on!” Too much prose, advantage. Not enough poetry, disinterestedness. Karin, occupying a rare picture of daring and, thereby, caring, tells her, “Don’t cry so hard. You could hurt the child.” Then she shows some more of the aristocratic stream we all inherit, but have to live up to. “I’m not frightened. I’m going to church. May she [addressing the rough-hewn official] rest in your cottage a while until I come back?” Karin offers a portion of her large lunch hamper. “Look, here! This is enough for both of you.” Overwhelmed by an abyss no longer sparkling, Ingeri clings to Karin’s horse, terrified. “Did you think I was going to slap you again?” the one with the upper hand asks. When Karin is on that way she’ll need all the confidence and maturity she’s ever had, the bridge man asks, “Are you in labor?” Shaking her head, she replies, “Worse than that!” (And could Bergman, apparently fond of American genre films, have seen and been struck by the noir, Kiss Me Deadly [1955] and listened closely to its theme song, “Rather Have the Blues” [than what I’ve got]?) After the spooky old guy does some mumbo jumbo with bones and tries to embrace her as a pagan kin—a status she now regards as sterile and just another failure in her battle to engage “Something Big”—Ingeri, trembling, cries, “You have taken human blood!” She races away, the terror in her eyes and on her mouth showing that she’ll never be the player she seemed qualified to be, in those first seconds of the saga (the leaven of sensual lucidity gone forever). Before she ran away, the self-styled seer, presuming to be able to bring her around, declared, “But you’re afraid. You mustn’t be. I will give you strength!” During her flight to distance the seer, the conifers along the way have become a tomb rather than a take-off. The blur of her race through the thick woods affords no dynamic step forward, and in this she becomes a kin of that Wendy of Wendy and Lucy, in the box-car, with the trees flashing by and deadness prevailing.

   Ingeri settles for commonness at the site of Karin’s corpse—a Karin murdered by way of her letting slip away that once-in-a-lifetime balance (seeing) she commanded at the bridge (a bridge to endless enmity, advantage). Ingeri had run fast enough to witness, from a hiding place, the rape and kill and desecration. The inert rock she held, and failed to use, would be her kin for life and for leveraging an after-life as an angel. That she had run afoul of shallow fantasy calculation coincides with the shallow carnal calculation of her own modus operandi which might have lasted longer in the secular fold, but with no real traction. During the squabble at the outset of the deadly ride, Karin tells Ingeri (who had lorded over Karin in experiencing the pain of carrying a child), “Then I’ll be married and mistress of my house with honor.”