Angel: One of my favorite episodes! And hopefully yours too after this! And...
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It's finally time for the Exposition of Sciences as Cass is tying up the sign, standing on a ladder with her owl nearby. "Don't see why the lady-in-waiting has to help set up for this thing," She grumbles underneath her breath.
The two guards pass by and she stares at them. She wants to be a part of it, but the whole lady-in-waiting stuff is keeping her from doing that...not that she hates being friends with the princesses. "Dumb science expo's for dorks, anyway, and I'm glad Harmi isn't around to hear me say that." Because of the princess' love for inventing, she had insisted on being in charge for the expo today, which her parents graciously allowed.
"Who's ready for the expo?" She turns to see Varian with something covered by a white sheet standing nearby. He waves to her and she groans, rolling her eyes. "Hey, Cassie! Hey, you wanna see my new invention? Rumor has it, it is a shoo-in for the first prize in the contest," He leans in to whisper. "I started the rumor," He winks at her.
"Oh. Hey, Varian. First off, it's Cass. Not Cassie. Secondly, I'm slammed, so-"
"Oh, yeah, I-I hear you. Hey, so did I tell you that my invention can create an entirely new element? I call it-"
Stan stands in front of the boy. "Cassandra. I thought you should know, the Captain is short on guards for the expo. This could be your big chance!"
She smiles, sliding down the ladder. "Come on, let's go!" She runs off with him, leaving Varian baffled. The rope slips and Owl tries to hold it up as best as he can. He hears the bird's troubles and runs up, tying the rope securely. He smiles up at Owl.
"Cassandra, looking good!" He turns around to see Rapunzel arriving, wearing goggles over her head that seem to zoom in on anything. "You should see some of the inventions on display!" Then she sees that it's not Cass, but the alchemist himself. "Oh. Hi Varian!"
He smiles bashfully, climbing down the ladder. "How's it been with your inventions since-"
"Since the first invention we saw from you almost killed us. So glad you're here. With what looks like another invention," Eugene interrupts her.
"Please, I wouldn't miss a chance to promote the merits of alchemy! And wait until you see my invention. I think, uh, everyone at the expo will be impressed. Mona's gonna be here, right?" He darts his eyes around, chuckling. "Not that I'm doing this for Mona! But, yes, she's gonna be there, right?"
Rapunzel looks up at Eugene. "I think I saw her around here somewhere. She is in charge of the expo, so she shouldn't be that hard to find," Eugene gestures to the crowd.
"Right, right! Completely forgot..." Varian rubs the back of his neck, blushing in embarrassment. Rapunzel glances away and sees someone, smiling.
"I think you should ask her yourself, Varian. We'll leave you alone," She pulls Eugene away, to the boy's confusion.
And the reason Rapunzel said that is because Harmony is running into the courtyard, holding rolls of paper bundled up in her hands. She waves to people greeting her as they're all examining a taste of what scientific marvels would be presented later on. Suddenly, she bumps into someone, dropping the bundles of papers.
"Mona!" Varian bends down to her. "Are you okay?"
"That's an understatement given today," She murmurs as she sits up. Varian ties up all the papers into one pile, all of it held with a big bow.
"Hey, I know you're busy today managing the expo," He takes her hand and helps her up. She dusts off her skirt, "But...can you be in the crowd to see my invention?"
"Oh," She turns to him with a big smile. "Of course I will! I'll be done by then anyway. Wouldn't wanna miss out on yours handling all this. Thank goodness I wasn't asked to be a judge..."
Varian gives a goofy smile and hands her the paper bouquet. "Here you go."
"Thanks Vari! I'll see you later!" She waves to him, running off past him. He couldn't help but smile a little at her. Good news: he now knows that Harmony is going to be in the crowd instead of doing anything during the expo. Bad news...
He now had to resort to someone else for help on his invention...and that someone was probably not going to be willing to help him...
Cass and Stan sneak into the room, where her father is talking to Pete. "No, no, no! We'll need men here! We'll put guards here, and..." He looks into the box, seeing that he's out of guard figurines. "Does this mean we're out of real guards too?"
Pete simply shrugs and he slams the box onto the table. "Blast it! This Exposition of Science is just spreading our ranks too thin."
Max fixes a figurine that had been knocked over. "We need more guards!"
Pete sees someone and clears his throat, looking across the table. He sees his daughter standing there silently. Max gives the Captain a smug brow. "I'll need the room." The three leave them alone. "So, you want your first guard assignment..." He takes off his helmet. "We talked about this, Cassandra. I just don't know that you're ready."
"Dad I've been training with the guards since I was 6. I know castle procedures and protocol better than anyone, so if there's any other reason why you feel I'm not ready besides me being your daughter, I'm all ears. If the king can let his youngest daughter finally spend time outside the castle, shouldn't you let me have something?"
He glances away with a small frown. It's true...Frederic has gotten a little more lenient on letting Harmony leave the castle, but Cassandra isn't a princess...and he did need more guards for this expo... "Very well. But-"
She scoffs, crossing her arms. "There's always a but."
"Your lady-in-waiting duties come first. Only after you finish those, including setting up for the expo, may you help," He hands her a scroll. "Are we clear?"
"Crystal," She smirks at him and once he leaves, she's met with a long list of things to do...she groans at this. At this rate, she'll never get that first guard assignment...she should've known that this would be too easy...
"Come on, come on, come on!" Rapunzel pulls Eugene over to the exhibits. Harmony is with them holding a clipboard. The two decided to help her check in on all the entries to make sure everything was okay...and also because Rapunzel wanted to see them.
Eugene merely eats popcorn in boredom as they watch a woman wheeling a bike. She pours pancake batter onto the spatula, which puts the pancake on the grill. "Whoa! That makes flipping flapjacks look like a piece of cake! Heh heh! Or should I say pancake?" She nudges her boyfriend.
"I wouldn't."
"You just had to do that joke," Harmony snickers at her, marking a checkmark.
"Ladies and gentlemen, forget everything you know about spring-loaded stilts!" An old man is walking around on stilts.
"Done!" Rapunzel pulls the two away.
"Great?"
Then they see a goat being milked by another elderly man with his machine that milks goats without having to do it manually. "Huh, impressive," Harmony murmurs and then she takes it back once she sees Shorty bathing in it.
"Mm, fresh from this goat's body and into my tummy."
The crowd gags, including the two princesses and the former thief. Harmony covers her mouth, walking away as Eugene follows after the two girls. They're greeted with pink smoke as a woman steps up. "Attention, science lovers! I am the one and only Fernanda Pizazzo! Thank you, thank you. You may ask yourselves what revolutionabilly, stupendimonous invention lives behind this veil?"
Harmony rolls her eyes at the woman. "Those aren't even words..."
When she had approved for this...Pizazzo to be entered, she didn't think that she'd be so...off-putting.
"You're about to find out when revered master scientist, and handsome morsel, Dr. Alcott St. Croix, arrives to name my entry into this contest first prize!"
The young princess doubts it, because she knows that Varian will win. Dr. Alcott St. Croix is one of her favorite scientists, and she was ecstatic when she got a letter back from him stating that he'd come to judge the expo. And Varian was too, he really respects the scientist.
"This is all so inspiring! I'm gonna go invent something right now!" Rapunzel runs off, squealing. Harmony stares after her, shaking her head in amusement. She should've known her sister would've wanted to participate...
"Should've seen that comin'!" Eugene seems to agree.
Cass is cleaning tables, adjusting the flowers. "There you are, Cass not Cassie!" She turns around and sees Varian leaning against a table. "We, uh, we didn't finish our conversation from earlier."
"I did," She remarks, going back to the table.
He just laughs at her. "Oh, you! Seriously, I'm getting ready for the expo, and I think a certain someone will be pretty impressed with my invention. Yet the only thing is when I present it to Master Dr. St. Croix, it's gonna take two people to operate it. Hey! Wanna be my assistant for my presentation?"
"Assistant? What? Why can't you just ask Harmi to help?" Cass asks in disinterest. She was the budding inventor after all, she thought the princess would be all over this.
"She's too busy with all the preparations for the expo, and I don't want to overwhelm her more than she already is, sooo..." Varian rubs the back of her neck, "I thought I'd ask you since you're good friends with her."
"Well, n-no. Look-" She gasps sharply as she had poured too much juice into the cup, staining some onto the once clean table. "No! I can't catch a break today!"
She runs off to get cleaning supplies. Varian walks over to the table, taking out a small salt shaker. He sprinkles it onto the stain and then carefully takes out the flowers. He holds them over the stain and from one drop of water, the stain is instantly gone. Cass comes back with a new rag, scrubbing where the stain was and not realizing what happened.
"Varian, thanks for stopping by, but I-whaaa? The stain, it's gone! But how?" She's absolutely shocked.
Varian smiles, his arms crossed confidently. "Oh simple. Grapes are acidic, by combining the alkalinity from the flowers barley grass with rock salt, I was able to stop the stain's cohesion. Alchemy!"
"So, you got a knack for this kinda thing," She rubs her chin. "Any chance you'd want to-"
"Help you?!" He exclaims before she could finish. "Yes," He then realizes he startled her, embarrassed. "I-I mean, yes, I'd-I'd love to. Hey! If-If I help you, you can help me and be my assistant! It'll only take a minute!"
He smiles hopefully at her, as she's the only one that wouldn't tell the princess he's doing it to impress her. Rapunzel is obvious; they're both sisters and no doubt she wouldn't be able to keep herself from telling her, and Eugene...can't really keep a secret.
"Um..." She thinks about it for a second. "Deal."
"Great! W-We could be 'co-ladies-in-waiting'." He waves his hands slowly in front of him, catching a pile of clothes with ease from Cass.
"Let's not put a label on it," She sweeps her hands, walking away.
Varian takes one step forward and bumps right into Harmony, who was holding a scroll and quill in her hands. The pile of dirty sheets and clothes falls around them and he looks up to see her holding her head. "I'm sorry! I didn't see you standing there!"
"I've honestly gotten used to it," She admits with a small giggle, gathering up all the clothes. He starts to help her by plucking sheets. "I'm just making sure everything is ready...I've never done something like this before."
"Why didn't you enter the expo?" He asks curiously. Given her sketches, she's one of the smartest people he knows. She could easily win the blue ribbon in a cinch.
"Well, I was too busy with getting everything ready that I didn't have time to create anything," She replies, handing Varian a neat stack of shirts. He takes it and she sees his concerned look at her answer. The girl scoffs, waving it off. "It's okay. There's always next year."
"Are you sure?" He asks as they both get onto their feet.
"Sure I'm sure, because I'm looking at the winner right here!" Harmony winks at him and he blushes at her encouragement.
"Thanks, Mona..."
"I have to go finalize the contestants; my sister decided to enter at last minute. Bye!" She runs past him and he gives a lovestruck sigh.
"Hey, lover boy, these chores aren't going to get done by themselves!"
Cass has trouble with getting food stains off utensils, only to look up and see Varian using a machine with brushes that move at a rapid pace. He holds them up between his fingers and they shine the lady-in-waiting smiling.
Then she has to mop the hallways in the castle, as they're filled with dirt. She had no idea how this all got in here...
Varian taps her shoulder and she turns to him. He holds out tiny blue balls, throwing them onto the floor. They stop at the center, emitting a cloud of blue sparkly smoke. Then he holds up a yellow ball, throwing it into the smoke. There's a green explosion, causing Cass to squeeze her eyes shut. When they open, the hallway is totally clean. Varian's sleeve suddenly catches fire, both of them noticing in alarm. "Ah!" Varian pats at the fire before it goes away.
Then when they're back outside, some of the flowers have wilted. Varian holds up the bouquet, placing another blue ball into it. They perk up instantly and Cass takes the flowers. She turns around and smiles, placing them back in the vase. She crosses her arms and smiles at Varian, getting a thumbs up in return.
"Okay, so for my first invention, I wanted to start off with something small and simple," Rapunzel starts off to her boyfriend and her sister.
"Uh, can he take his tiny little claws off my eyes now?" Eugene asks, Pascal covering his eyes, Daisy doing the same thing with Harmony. At least the feathers are soft...
"Oh, yeah! Pascal, Daisy."
They remove their limbs and the two see...a spool of thread in her hand. "I give you the Hey-Hey! When I was in the tower, I devised a way to play catch by myself using a ball and string. Now, I believe I've perfected that design. How does it work? Glad you asked. It's powered by potential and kinetic energy. Science! Hey-Hey! Hey-Hey!" She looks to them, waiting for a positive reaction.
The two glance at each other before Harmony whispers to him, "You say it, she knows you better."
"You're her sister!"
"But I wasn't the one who rescued her from a tower~," She sings lightly and he grunts.
"Huh...good point. Rapunzel, that's really amazing, but it's already been invented."
"Yeah, I can't allow an invention that's already been established. That'd be automatic disqualification by Dr. St. Croix. Sorry," Harmony cringes at her.
"Hmm. Okay..." She places it down, shrugging. "I guess I'll chalk that up to being locked in a tower for 18 years...good thing I have lots more amazing ideas where that came from!"
The two smile, Eugene crossing his arms. They're sure that one of them is bound to be something that's not invented already...
Eventually.
Varian is now cleaning the picture frames of all the royals in the hall. He smiles at the photo of Harmony between two portraits of her parents...too bad she's not smiling in it. Having no sister around at the time and being stuck in the castle had to be rough...
"Huh, look at that," He turns to see Cass approaching. "You make a pretty good co-lady-in-waiting after all."
"Oh really?" He chuckles a little. "Are you sure you wanna put a label on it?"
Cass climbs the ladder a bit, offering the water bucket. "Okay, so I could've been a little nicer earlier, especially since I know how much you want Harmi in the crowd today. It's just...today's kind of a big deal for me.."
She climbs down, Varian following shortly after. "Oh! You're talking about getting that guard assignment from your dad, aren't you?" He can tell how much she wants to.
"No matter how much I want it or how hard I work, his standards for me are higher than they are for anyone else..."
"Yeah. My dad's kinda hard to impress too...Dads, am I right?" He chuckles a bit, "I mean, look at Mona, her dad is the king!"
She smiles at him. "You really like her, don't you?"
He clears his throat, rubbing his arm. "Y-Yeah...who wouldn't? She's kind and sweet and smart..." He smiles lightly. "I just hope that I can impress her and get her to see me...you know, in t-that way."
The clock chimes, meaning it's noon. Cass groans, walking away a bit while holding her head. "Who am I kidding? None of it matters anyway. It's already noon and I still have to make up all the guest rooms," She leans against the wall, crossing her arms. She notices the guards walking by, frowning.
"Hey, I have an idea. I'll finish your chores for you so then you can do your guard duty and then maybe you can take a few minutes to be my assistant?"
"You sure you can get all of this done?" She eyes him, raising an eyebrow.
"Yeah, no problem. It's the kind of thing friends do, right?"
Her expression softens, "Right. Friends." She gives a small smile in response.
Rapunzel has the two stand in front of a covered table, removing the cloth to revealing three plates of vegetables. "Carrots, celery, cucumber. What do these have in common?"
"Uh, I don't eat them. No wait, don't tell me-" He's interrupted by a tomato in the face. He glares at Pascal, who gives a smugly raised brow. Harmony giggles at the two of them.
"Raps, where are you going with this?"
Eugene laughs at her, thinking that she'll get hit too, but she doesn't, causing him to frown deeply. "We chop them! But knives can be really dangerous. That's why I invented the Safety Slicer!" When she reveals it, Harmony's eyes widen.
The 'Safety Slicer' looks more like a tiny guillotine painted purple...
"Just load it up, and..." She pulls the string, which cuts off the carrot. "Slice! Voila!" Pascal holds up the end of the carrot like a decapitated head. Daisy chirps in alarm, hiding in Harmony's hair.
"Oh wow, umm..." Harmony looks away anxiously as Eugene holds his neck.
"That seems a little extreme, right? I mean, for produce? Besides, I think they have something like that already."
"Yep," Harmony nods in confirmation. "Just...not for cutting fruits and vegetables. You don't wanna know."
"Really? This too? How am I supposed to know everything that's ever been invented?" She frowns, sitting on the seat that's in front of her bed.
"I don't know, maybe something a little more practical?"
"Yeah," The princess nods in agreement with Eugene. "Something that can help society, but also in a way that's never been done before."
"Practical, helping society, and in a new way...okay, sure."
"Good luck," Her sister smiles at her, walking out the door and to her room. The princess hears a creak, looking up to see a moving cart moving past the doors...? "What?" She murmurs in confusion, following after the cart.
"Automatic laundry cart...?" Rapunzel is also confused when she sees it.
"Now that I have not seen," Eugene comments as she leaves.
Harmony quickens the pace until she's walking side by side with it.
"Vari?"
He yelps, turning to her and blushing in embarrassment. "M-Mona! What are...what are you doing here?"
"I live here," She giggles a bit before staring at the cart.
"Uh, Varian?" They turn to see Rapunzel.
"Hey princess!" Varian greets her.
"What are you doing?" She couldn't help but ask.
"Yeah, why are you pushing a laundry cart? Isn't that for the servants?" Harmony wonders curiously.
"I'm helping Cass with her work so she can pull guard duty."
"Doing her chores?" Harmony furrows her eyebrows, feeling a small dark feeling in her heart. "Why...why isn't she doing it herself? Aren't you supposed to be getting ready for the expo?" More importantly, why was her Varian doing chores for Cass, her lady-in-waiting? Wait...why is she feeling possessive all of a sudden? S-She couldn't be jealous of her friend because of Varian...right?
"Shouldn't you be setting up your exhibit?" Rapunzel questions, slightly concerned.
"I am! I'm lucky Mona put me second to last. And I'm just helping her. In exchange, she'll be my assistant. Plus, I just have that one room left right there...oh, and that room...oh, that-that one too...Also-Also that one."
"Assistant...? Oh, I get it," Harmony tries not to look disappointed as they follow after him, picking up stray clothes along the way. "It's because you like her...isn't it?"
Varian lets out a surprised cough at the absurd question, Rapunzel blinking at the alchemist as she hopes that's really not true. He might have liked Cass a little when she saved them in Old Corona, but he was since over that! Especially since Harmony was his actual age and more pretty...
"I-I don't know what you're talking about," He stammers, regretting it immediately. He had no idea how to tell her in a subtle way that he likes her and not Cass without having her wait until later...
"Um, Vari, Cass is 22, and you're 14. Don't you see where I'm getting at with this?" Harmony tugs at her hair, biting her lip.
"It's nothing personal!" He finally comes up with something, "It's just a deal between friends."
Harmony throws an abandoned shirt into the cart. "If you say so. I'll see you at the expo."
He sighs in relief as he watches her leave. That was a close one...he groans to himself. How could he let her believe that he likes Cass?! He saw the look upon her face, now she'll never stop thinking about it and he won't be able to confess his feelings!
"I'm such an idiot!"
"Varian...you don't really like Cass, do you?" He then realizes that her older sister is still there.
"Of course not! But I got everything under control!" The boy approaches two doors at the end of the hall. "Onto the next-"
"Varian, that is not a room, that's a-"
Varian stumbles down the stairs, Rapunzel cringing at each sound of pain. "Staircase..." She finishes, running over to check on him.
Cass is standing next to her father with a smile as they're at the front doors of the castle. She looks up at him, glad that she's finally doing this. Harmony is also nearby to Cass' right. A carriage arrives and the Captain opens the door for Alcott St. Croix.
"Master Dr. St. Croix, welcome," The Captain bows his head. "It is a pleasure to have you with us."
"I imagine it would be...I assume you are to be my personal security detail?"
"Um," He glances away towards Harmony, who bites her lip. She didn't expect him to be confident with that sentence. "Unfortunately no, but I have chosen my very best man for the job," He looks towards Stan.
"Master Dr. St. Croix," Harmony smiles as she curtsies to him. "All of Corona is glad that you could come."
"And you are?" He stares at her, wondering who she is.
"Umm...Princess Harmony, sir. I'm the one who sent you the letter to come here today for the expo?"
"Oh yes yes! Your majesty," The man bows to her. He walks off with Stan, the princess blinking after him. He's definitely...eccentric...
Varian shoves a large load of laundry down the laundry shoot, sighing wearily.
"Wiped out?"
He looks up to see Cass standing there in her guard uniform.
"Who, me? No, just fainted. I-I mean fin-I finished. Finished," He stammers at how he must've looked.
"Finished? Wow. Varian, I'm impressed."
"Oh, it was no big deal," He waves it off. "Now, um, if you'll excuse me, I have a contest to win, Assistant."
"Remember, you said it would only take a minute, I'm on duty!" She yells after him, and this is followed by a loud crash nearby. She runs off in the other direction as the princesses are standing over Stan, who's on the floor.
"I went to get Master St. Croix a drink and slipped on the floor! What kind of monster would leave a wet floor where people could slip on it?"
Rapunzel looks towards Cass, who just shrugs. "Uh, Stan, what happened?" The Captain asks and he tries to get up, unable to.
"Oh! My back!"
"We need someone to replace him as Master St. Croix's security detail. Pete, on the double!"
"On my way!" He rushes right over, only to slip and fall just like Pete did. "Ow, my back! Why is the floor so slippery?"
"Hey, Pete, are you oka-Whoa! My back!"
"Okay, we really should put a sign for that," Harmony whispers to her sister and her friend.
The Captain sighs slowly. With less and less men, he had no choice... "Cassandra, are you up for this?"
"Uh, Cassandra, don't you have somewhere to be during the judging?" Rapunzel wonders and she looks towards Varian, who just happens to be passing by. Varian would understand...
"I'll do it."
"What? Cass, how can you do that to Varian?" Harmony gestures to where the boy passed them. "This is practically his dream to even be involved! You're basically abandoning him..."
"Look, I know I might have jumped the gun, but I've been wanting to prove myself to my dad for years, Harmony. Varian will understand. Hey, since you're done now, you can be his assistant."
"I would if I didn't promise him that I'd be in the audience only. At least I'm actually keeping it." She walks off, leaving Cass with a small frown. She was right; of course she was, she's had years of giving advice to others as a princess.
"One of you will walk away with the greatest prize in all of sciences; my approval. As for the rest of you, may the universe show mercy on your wretched souls." Varian, who's in the crowd, gives a blank look for the theatrics. "Good luck."
He walks to his podium, Varian moving to behind the curtain. He stands in front of Cass. "You ready? Because a certain alchemist could use his assistant."
"Listen Varian...I'm really sorry, but things have changed. I can't help you anymore. I'm St. Croix's personal-"
"Hello? Security detail?" St. Croix calls out. "I have moved my person in this direction." He grunts for her to follow. Varian turns to her in realization.
"A personal security detail. Must be a big deal..." He rubs his arm. She frowns at him, but he smiles at her weakly. "Don't worry about me. I am sure I can find another assistant...in the next...five minutes," He leaves behind the curtain, with Cass feeling guilty. How could she not? She promised she'd help him impress the love of his life and then had to bail on him...
She sighs, walking up to St. Croix dejectedly. "Let the judgment begin." The princess arrives in the crowd.
The same man with the goat shows off his invention. "Can it milk a cow?"
"No sir."
"Next!" St. Croix furiously crosses out his name, the young princess raising a brow at him.
Big Nose is next as Rapunzel, Max, Pascal, and Eugene are staring up at the crown princess' final invention. "Okay, Pascal, we've had some missteps, sure, but I think this one is the winner!"
"You got it in the bag, Blondie!" Eugene compliments her, the two animals giving her encouragement.
"Show time!"
Big Nose flicks his switchblade around, showing different utensils. "Next!" He walks away sadly, Rapunzel waving to everyone and her sister as they cheer.
"Dangerously wet hallways. Cold wet clothes. Wet hair that takes forever, and I mean forever to dry? All of those things are yesterday's problems. Say hello to the Mega Dry!" She steps back as she gestures to a big fan once the curtains open, powered by Max. "Assistant?"
Eugene pours a bucket of water over him. "I'm all about the wet look."
Harmony rolls her eyes in amusement.
"The Mega Dry uses cutting-edge equine technology to release a powerful, focused stream of air. The result? What used to take hours to dry, now takes seconds." Eugene's hair is now completely dry, to the amazement of the crowd.
"Well hello." Then his hair gets all poofy, the audience laughing. Eugene looks up and yelps in horror, covering his hair with the bucket and running off. Harmony covers her mouth in shock, staring after him.
"Oops. I think I still had it calibrated for my hair."
Cass starts laughing, clearing her throat once she sees the look from St. Croix. "Next."
Next up is Varian, who peeks past the curtain. He sees St. Croix's stare before noticing the girl. Harmony waves to the alchemist up from up front with an encouraging smile. Slightly relieved at the sight of her, he takes a deep breath, stepping in front of the crowd.
"Behold! The power of alchemy!"
The curtain moves around and he smiles nervously. "Hey, where's the opening?" Shorty wobbles to the stage, the people laughing.
"Oh no...Vari, you didn't," Harmony murmurs, pinching her nose. Out of all the people in the village, he had to get Shorty?
"The power of ag...oh, that guy!" Varian facepalms at this. "Go, do the thing."
He clears his throat at the man, who remembers something. "Oh yeah!" The alchemist smiles lightly at the princess, who is slightly cringing while also trying to look happy for him.
"I give you, the Elemental Remogrifier!" Shorty reveals his machine, the crowd gasping as cheers and claps are heard. Even St. Croix looks amazed by it, Harmony bouncing up and down a bit as she claps. "Assistant?"
Shorty brings over a stool and a bag of sand, using the chair to pour in the sand. "Here we go..." Varian murmurs to himself as he slowly turns the wheel. Then he pulls the lever, the machine spinning with so much noise he has to shout over it. "The rotation causes friction, which heats the sand while the counter-centrifigual force promotes particle compression. The end result?" He stops the machine from spinning. "50 pounds of sand turns into...this."
He holds up a small blue crystal, to their shock.
"I call it...Harmonium," Varian declares, causing Harmony to gasp. He...named his new element after her? She looks at the tiny rock, finding it beautiful. Blue was her top favorite color...he remembered...The crowd claps as Varian smiles at the girl, who smiles back happily.
Suddenly Shorty falls over, hitting a goat. He kicks Big Nose, the blade flying out of his hand and going straight towards St. Croix. Cass narrowly catches it before it could touch his nose, the crowd in a deafening silence. Varian just stands there in horror, Harmony glancing between him and the doctor.
"Despite its lack of flair and panache..." He lowers Cass' hand, "I was almost inclined to give your device a mediocre assessment..."
"Flair? What does that have to do with-"
"However," St. Croix interrupts him, "Considering your assistant..." He gestures to the bearded man, who's snoring next to the goat. "Nearly lanced my nasal cavity, I've no choice but to disqualify you. Next."
Varian looks down and starts to walk offstage. The princess felt like she had to do something. She feels so bad and horrible for not being able to help him, even if he didn't ask her. She should've insisted to be his assistant...
Harmony joins Varian up on stage to console him. "Are you okay?" She whispers at his frown. "I'm sorry I couldn't help you with being your assistant-"
"Hey, hey," He places his hands on her shoulders, smiling weakly to hide his disappointment. "Don't apologize for something you couldn't control. You did a great job handling the expo. I couldn't ask for anyone better." He leans in and softly kisses her cheek. Harmony gasps, lightly touching her cheek with wide eyes. Did he just...kiss her?
Cass takes a deep breath, though she did bite her lip to keep her frown from escaping. Of course she feels some of the blame too. If she had abandoned the boy, he would've won and maybe even gotten Harmony to like him...she had to say something. "Sir, with all due respect, you can't disqualify him because of his assistant."
"You stick to guarding, I will stick to sciencing," He gives her a cold and smug grin. "Got it?"
Harmony clenches her fist as she sees the look on the man's face. She thought of him as someone to look up to, not someone so rude and arrogant.
Loud music suddenly is heard, all four people on stage turning around. They're met with magenta smoke, followed by a flashy explosion. The two cover their eyes, looking back to see Fernanda Pizazzo.
"Oh great," Harmony rolls her eyes at the sight of her.
"Everybody at this expo make some noise!" She yells out enthusiastically, the audience applauding. "This is the momentsational moment you've all been waiting for. But first," She pulls on the rope in her hand. It's actually attached to a cannon, which blasts off a confetti of blue and red candies. "I give you...chocolate!"
You have got to be kidding me.
The crowd cheers again and St. Croix catches one. "Now this is science!" He opens it up and eats it eagerly.
Fernanda walks over to the right side, near the teenagers as something behind her is covered with a sheet. "Jaws, prepare to drop. Larynxes, get ready to scream. And eyeballs, how about you take a good look around because once I unveil my marveltacular creation, the world will never look the same." She takes off the sheet to reveal it. "I give you the Fantasphere!"
The audience stares at a table with an orb in the middle, decorated with gems and two stones. She pulls the lever and the two stones move away, leaving the orb floating.
"Huh? How'd she do it? Oh my gosh! It's awesome!" She whispers to herself. The audience claps even louder.
She looks smug with a proud grin. "But what does it do?" Varian asks her.
"Uh, the real question kids is, what doesn't it do?" She says pleasantly. "Now here, have some chocolate and shut up," She states this less pleasantly, tossing them chocolates as she walks away from them. Harmony opens her mouth in shock.
"Excuse me, you can't just talk like that to-"
"Mona..." Varian murmurs before she could rant and she huffs. This woman was an absolute hack! She just wants some recognition because she's not even a real scientist! Something like that is an insult to all scientists, and yet St. Croix is just eating it up! She's definitely not allowing her to compete next year...
"Its luster is glorious!" St. Croix praises Fernanda, who gasps as she leans against her invention. "I see no need to continue this contest!" He hands her the blue ribbon, pinning it on her. She jumps up and down in glee, Varian leaving the stage dejectedly. He goes over to the fountain and sits there.
Harmony walks over and sits next to him. "You deserved that medal. I should've been your assistant..."
"It doesn't matter," He looks away from her. "The truth is, all I really wanted to do was impress you. I thought if I showed you what I was capable of, you, a princess, might see something in me...a poor boy from a mere village. Something...special. I was just being dumb."
Harmony places her hand on top of his, causing him to look into her eyes. "You weren't being dumb! Vari, your machine was amazing! And you did impress me! You're smart, creative, and sweet. But to be honest...you had me the moment you rescued me," She kisses his cheek in the same manner that he did to her.
He gasps, staring at her. She's smiling at him, and he couldn't help but smile back upon seeing her beautiful one.
"Thanks...for saying that."
Both of their hands are still touching and they stare at their interlocked hands. They look up and smile at each other, their hearts beating as they stare into each other's eyes. Varian rubs his thumbs against them. They're covered by gloves, but she still feels the warmth in his hands. This...felt like the same feeling her sister and Eugene had when they saw the lanterns together...and she accepts it.
Cass clears her throat, not wanting to interrupt the moment, but she had to. "Varian...I..."
"Huh," Harmony interrupts, looking over Varian's shoulder. "Guess the doctor liked your invention after all, Varian."
They both look in her direction to see that the man is indeed touching it, turning the wheel. "Master St. Croix! No, no! Don't!" Varian shouts as they rush over to him. "Y-You're building too much pressure!" He tries to turn the wheel back over his shoulder, but the doctor pushes him away.
"Back off, boy. I'm a scientist."
"Sir, you should listen to him. It's his invention, after all," Harmony gestures to Varian.
"Princess, or whoever you are, I certainly know a thing or two far better than you ever could." He grabs the lever.
"Don't!" The two shout, but he pulls it anyway. The invention roars to life, rotating faster than before. The four all step back as it spins faster and faster, eventually shooting off the stage like a cannon. It hits one of the towers before bouncing to the other side of the courtyard. Then it goes back towards the stage.
"Somebody do something!"
Cass pushes the two teenagers out of the way, the invention hitting St. Croix. "Double disqualified!" He shouts as he flies into the air. It hits Fernanda's...winning invention, replacing the orb and spinning faster.
"Thanks Cass," Harmony sighs in relief.
"Yeah, thank you, Cassie."
"Don't flatter yourselves, kids," She quickly tells him, which they don't take too harshly since they know she at least cares. "Now come on, we've got a job to do." The three scramble onto their feet, walking back towards the stage.
"Oh, this is bad," Varian says as the wind blows faster, their hair flying. The Elemental Remogrifier on top of the Fantasphere rotates faster than the speed of sound, thin bolts of green lightning shooting from it.
"How bad?" Cass asks as Shorty, Fernanda, Rapunzel, and Eugene are still on stage.
"Introducing counter-centipegation to the magnetism could result in...well, that." And by that, he means the vortex forming in the sky over the stage.
"Really?" The lady-in-waiting turns to Harmony as she just stares.
"Well, it's a first...but definitely possible!"
The combined inventions lift up from the stage as the vortex grows stronger. "Its angular momentum is rapidly approaching critical velocity. Once that happens, it'll suck up everything in sight. Us, the castle, everything!" Varian shouts as the people up on stage move away. A blanket gets sucked up, disappearing. The female contestant with the pancakes is still on her machine as she's lifted up into the air. She jumps off, a small explosion occurring as she lands on Shorty's back, running off.
"You're welcome..." He says in pain.
"Okay, so very bad," Cass replies as the three are back on stage. "How do we stop it?"
"There's only one way to stop it!" Varian declares in determination. "I gotta get close enough to pull the handbrake."
Before either of the girls could say anything, Harmony feels herself get lifted up towards the two machines, screaming in alarm.
"Mona!" Varian shouts, grabbing her hands and gripping onto them. Her skirt and hair are flying from the strong winds as she holds onto his hands as best as she could. "Hold on!"
"That's not gonna be easy!" She yells, looking over her shoulder. He gets lifted as well and he screams, something grabbing his ankle. The two look down to see Cass holding onto Varian's ankle.
"Where do you think you're going? You'll need your assistant," She grins at them and the two smile, grateful for her help. Varian looks past Harmony's shoulder to see the machines getting closer to the vortex.
"Mona! Can you reach the handbrake with your foot?"
She tries reaching her legs, but is too far away and she shakes her head regrettably. Rapunzel and Eugene look up at them in worry.
"She's not close enough. The vortex has gotten too strong," Varian tells Cass. "We need an equally powerful wind source to counteract it."
Rapunzel realizes what will do the trick. "The Mega-Dry! The Mega-Dry can generate that kind of wind speed and blow against the vortex!"
"Yes!" Eugene grins at her.
With help from some others, they pull the giant fan over to the stage. "He needs to create a counter-pull to the vortex's critical velocity!" Varian calls out to them.
"Max, he means you have to run backwards!" Rapunzel shouts and he turns around, running as fast as he can. They hold the fan upwards so that it touches the vortex. It sucks back the two inventions, Harmony trying to reach just a little further.
"It's working!" Varian exclaims as it gets closer and closer to Harmony. Finally, her foot is able to touch it.
"Hold on, guys!" She kicks the brake and the vortex immediately stops, the inventions falling back onto the stage. Cass catches Varian, who catches Harmony.
"Woohoo!" Rapunzel cheers as Max stops running, panting in exhaustion. "We did it!"
The Mega-Dry falls onto the ground and Eugene grabs his girlfriend's hand. "Blondie...hands down your best invention yet." He kisses her hand and she smiles.
"Pardon me, I believe I've been folded in half," Shorty muffles underneath the fan. The sun comes out again, shining brightly on the courtyard that is now in ruins...Harmony sighs in relief, walking over and giving Max an apple for what he did. He whinnies happily as he eats it, Rapunzel running up to her.
"Harmi!"
"Raps," She says happily, the two sisters hugging tightly.
"Are you okay?"
"I'm fine. Your invention really did the trick! I might have to start coming to you for inspiration."
Rapunzel stares at her in surprise that she said that, squealing and giving her sister a bear hug. She wheezes, but smiles at her older sister.
"And I would give you the first prize, but...I think someone else needs it," She looks towards the alchemist.
"I understand," Rapunzel smiles softly, putting her down and pushing her towards Varian gently.
Cass picks up the first prize ribbon, which is a little battered and torn, but still intact. The princess is walking over when two guards are escorting St. Croix to the infirmary in front of her. She glares furiously at him. How dare he not listen and cause this mess? Someone could've been sucked up into the vortex, and that would've been on her since this expo was her idea. And for what? Nothing, absolutely nothing.
Harmony clears her throat, walking up to the guards with her hands behind her back. The two come to a stop at hearing her and she stares down at her former idol coldly. "Dr. St. Croix...the next time you wanna consider visiting Corona...don't. I want him on the ban list by the end of the week. For endangering my people and unfairly treating contestants, you are never allowed to step foot here again."
She storms off, leaving the doctor shocked before he narrows his eyes. He then sees Cass. "You-!" He tries to yell at her for not saving him, stopping and grabbing his neck in pain. "Ahh. Neck...hurts..." The two guards carry him off.
"Master St. Croix, this still counts as a win, right? No take-backsies?" Fernanda calls out as she runs after him.
"And I want her on the list too!" Harmony calls out to them. Cass notices Varian as he holds the Harmonium in his hand. He then attaches it to a set of pretty blue and white beads to make it into a necklace. She glances towards the princess. Hopefully this one small step could get both of them to forgive her.
"Go talk to him," Cass whispers encouragingly, handing her the ribbon.
"Cass, I-!" She tries to leave shyly, but the female guard nudges her forward. Harmony sighs in defeat, approaching Varian as he looks towards Rapunzel's invention. She smiles nervously, holding up the blue ribbon.
"Here. I believe this was meant for you," She pins it on him, causing the boy to stare in surprise. Even if it was unofficial, he didn't care as long as it was Harmony who gave it to him.
"R-Really?"
"I'm the princess, and I set up this whole thing. I think it counts just fine," She winks at her friend, who smiles back.
"And, um, this was meant for you," He holds out the necklace to her. She takes the jewelry, beaming at him and putting it on.
"Thank you, Vari..."
"Varian?" Cass steps up to them slowly. "About my own ambition in front of our friendship...I'm sorry."
He just shrugs, "I-It's okay, Cassandra."
"Hey, call me Cassie," She grins and this makes him smile, glad that they have a stronger friendship and that Harmony understood that he did NOT have feelings for the female guard.
"Well, I guess I should start cleaning this mess up," He scratches the back of his head.
"I'll help you," Harmony takes his hand and he smiles at her, both of them walking off. Cass definitely owes Harmony an apology too...she was right, she shouldn't have done that to Varian. Maybe if she had, none of this would've ever happened...
"Cassandra." She turns around to see her dad approaching. "You helped prevent what could've been a disaster for all of us. Well done. And I have another assignment for you."
"You know what, Dad? I'm gonna set this aside for now," She takes off the helmet. "I think my friends need my help."
"...Well, as Captain of the Guard, turning down an assignment doesn't bode well...but as your dad, I'm proud of ya."
She smiles up at him and he leaves with her helmet. She looks towards the two teenagers, both of them smiling at each other and laughing. Cass just shakes her head, though she was happy that Varian got what he wanted. She had high hopes for the two, and he has a big shot now after what he did for the princess.
She walks up to the two, Harmony noticing her dad leaving. "Was that your guard helmet he left with?"
"Wow, you turned your dad down...for me?" Varian asks slowly.
"I'll find a way to make it up to him. Besides, it's not every day a friend gets an element named after her."
Harmony grins, looking at the necklace. "I actually got the idea after discovering a cluster of these strange black rocks by my village."
As he's saying this, Rapunzel walks over, stopping as she heard him.
"Black rocks?" The three girls ask in alarm, looking towards each other. This is something they need to see...
"It was amazing..." Varian explains as he shows them. "They just kinda...sprouted up a couple of weeks ago."
Harmony opens her mouth in horror. That's when she first met him... "I have never seen anything like it..."
Rapunzel's hair starts to glow, alarming Pascal, Cass, and Harmony. The black rocks glow light blue, all of them, shocking Varian. "Fascinating...the rocks are demonstrating an actual physical response..." He notices her hair. "To you..."
The three glance at each other. He's already seen her hair, so it was too late to deny... "Shh. Varian. I need you to promise to keep this between you and me, okay?" Pascal looks up at her as she looks to her friends. "And them."
"W-Why?" Varian asks in confusion, Harmony clutching at her left arm. Hopefully she can control it long enough for him not to make the connection...she can't have him find out. She just couldn't.
"...Because our dad," She gestures to herself and her sister, "Has forbidden us from talking about these rocks to anyone. We collectively are going to figure it out...but I need to know that I can trust you."
He smiles after a few seconds. "You can count on me."
She smiles at him gratefully, hoping that they can all solve this mystery.
Harmony's left hand starts to glow and a black rock emerges next to Varian. She lightly gasps, giving a look of horror. Varian stares at her, his mouth wide open as he looks between the clusters of rocks and then at her.
"You...created these black rocks?"
Her heart is pounding as she steps back, shaking. He saw her. He saw her do it...
She turns around and takes off into a run. "Mona! Mona, wait!" He calls out, Rapunzel placing a hand on his shoulder to stop him from running.
"Varian...give her time."
He stares after her in concern, frowning. She must've thought he would react badly...but...he would've never done that.
Because he has really strong feelings for her...