Turtledove
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Hans
Fictional Character
"The Garden Gnome Freedom Front" by Laura Frankos
Fantasy set in OTL
Type of Appearance: Direct
Species: Garden gnome
Nationality: France (born in Czechoslovakia)
Date of Birth: 20th century

Vaclav "Vatsy" was a garden gnome who "lived" in Saint-Clément, Normandy with a kindly old woman named Madame d'Aulnoy. Unlike most other Saint-Clément gnomes, who were of German manufacture, Vaclav was made in Prague by shoddy Czech workmanship. He was not as intelligent as other gnomes, and had great difficulty learning to speak French. Fortunately, his neighbor Gretchen had learned Czech from her late husband Jiri, so they could talk together.

On 26 September 1996, Vaclav and Gretchen were two of seven gnomes "liberated" by the Garden Gnome Freedom Front. It was the night of the full moon, when garden gnomes awaken. Because the gnomes awakened in a Druid circle, they were able to remain sentient indefinitely.

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