Opening/Mary's Last Gifts to her Children

*(We open on a beautiful winter evening in London, England. And the streets are busy now because of one thing and one thing only; Christmas is coming, and it is Christmas Eve)*

The Nutcracker and the Four Realms Parodies Studios present....

*(Out on the streets, carolers are singing some Christmas songs out of their hearts)*

Carolers: **Deck the halls with boughs of holly**

**Fa la la la la la la la la**

'**Tis the season to be jolly**

**Fa la la la la la la la la**

**Don we now our gay apparel**

**Fa la la la la la la la la**

**Troll the ancient yuletide carol**

**Fa la la la la la la la la**

*(In a Victorian mansion in a nice neighborhood, the maids and butlers are busy working on polishing the Christmas decorations. Nearby them is a teenage pony-like girl with pure white skin, dark blue eyes, royal purple hair which is combed in wavy curls most of the time, a Mid-Atlantic-accent, and wearing a pale blue short-sleeved shirt, two gold bracelets, a lilac skirt with blue and violet accents and three cyan diamonds on it, a blue triple-diamond barrette, a violet designer belt and lilac boots with cyan diamonds on them. She is Rarity Darling. Anyway, as they did so, they were singing)*

Butler 1: **Deck the halls with boughs of holly**

*(Then he sprinkled more holly onto the dining room table)*

Butler 1: Always got to have more holly.

*(A maid walks by)*

Maid 1: '**Tis the season to be....**

*(She suddenly noticed all the holly on the table that she stopped singing)*

Maid 1: (To herself) Oh, dear. That's too much holly. *(To Rarity)* Go get your siblings please.

Rarity: Sure.

*(Then she walked away to find her siblings with another maid. The second maid is a female elderly anthro duck with white feathers, an orange beak, legs, and webbed feet, short, gray hair tied in a bun, light blue eyes, and wearing a pair of small glasses, a purple long-sleeved dress with a frilly, lavender collar, a white apron, white ankle-length bloomers with frilly white ankle rims, lavender stockings, and purple shoes. She is Mrs. Beakley. Nearby, another maid has finished dusting the garland on the doorway)*

Maid 3: **Don we now our gay apparel....**

*(Then she stopped singing upon noticing another butler holding a mistletoe above himself and her, giving her a handsome flirty look)*

Maid 3: (Giggling a bit) No, no, no, no, no more mistletoe.

*(But she and the butler kissed anyway. Rarity and Mrs. Beakley continued their way, looking for Rarity's siblings)*

Rarity: **Dee, dee, dee, dee, dee, dee, dee, dee**

The Nutcracker and the Four Realms (Bubbles8218 Version)

*(Outside at the attic window, a cute little male mouse ran across the gutter and then climbed into a small hole leading to the inside of the attic. Once inside, the mouse began exploring the area curiously and happily until he came upon a piece of bread laying on the floor in the middle of the room, unaware that some figures are watching him secretly. The first figure is a 14 year old girl with short reddish-brown, curly, shoulder-length hair with a blue ribbon on top, blue eyes, and wearing a white short-sleeved shirt with poofy sleeves, a blue gingham overall dress, blue socks, and red shoes. She is Dorothy Gale, or in this story, Dorothy Darling. The second figure is a 10 year old girl with short blonde elbow-length hair, blue eyes, and wearing a black hairband with a ribbon on top, a blue short-sleeved dress with poofy sleeves, a white bodily sleeveless apron over her dress, white frilly, knee-length pantalettes, white stockings, and black Mary Jane shoes. She is Alice Liddell, or in this story, Alice Darling, Dorothy's little sister. The third figure is a 12 year old girl with short strawberry blonde hair tied in a braided ponytail by a blue hair ribbon, blue eyes, and wearing a sky blue tanktop, a dark blue jean skirt, white leg socks, and blue shoes. She is Wendy Moira Angela Darling, Dorothy's other little sister and Alice's older sister. The fourth figure is a 10 year old boy with short brown hair, brown eyes, and wearing black rimmed glasses, a black and tan long-sleeved varsity jacket over a white tanktop, light blue jean pants, white socks, and brown and white converse shoes, and sometimes wore a black top hat with a light blue band and carried a black umbrella. He is John Darling, Dorothy and Wendy's little brother and Alice's twin brother. The fifth figure is a 4 year old boy with short light strawberry blonde hair, blue eyes, and wearing a blue sailor cap with a black brim and tassel, a blue short-sleeved shirt with a white collar flap and a loose red necktie, navy blue shorts, white socks, and black Mary Jane shoes, and sometimes carried a brown teddy bear. He is Michael Darling, Dorothy, Alice, Wendy, and John's little brother. And the last figure is an 8 year old boy with short blonde hair, green eyes, and wearing a red short-sleeved V-neck shirt, dark red shorts, white socks, and brown hiking boots, and sometimes carried a brown backpack. He is Cody Darling, Dorothy, Alice, Wendy, and John's little brother and Michael's older brother. Anyway, they are in the attic, preparing something fun for the mouse while hidden)*

Dorothy: (Shushes everyone) Guys. Now, be very still. This is how we'll do it.

*(Dorothy then lights a match she pulled out and lit a candle held in a small hot air balloon)*

Dorothy: With science and mechanics....

*(She blows the flame out on the match)*

Dorothy: And a bit of luck. First, we've got energy. The heat from the candle will make the balloon rise.

*(Then on cue as she finished her explanation, the balloon slowly floated into the air by the energy of the candle's flame's heat. Then the balloon gently struck a nearby ball track's trigger, making it spin towards a nearby ball laying at the start of the track. Then as the ball was gently struck by the trigger, Alice continued for Dorothy, which she lets her)*

Alice: With the momentum from the ball.... That hits the monkey....

*(Then the ball gently hits a nearby toy circus acrobat monkey, making it pivot to a nearby bellow blower)*

Wendy: And pivots onto the bellows.

*(Then the bellow blower blew a gust of wind onto a nearby sail of a toy longboat laying on top of an arching wooden board)*

Cody: (Starting to get it happily) Which blows the longboat.

John and Michael: Exactly.

*(Then the toy longboat struck some books at the end of the board and the books fell onto a nearby stick that is used on a spinning wheel, knocking it onto a nearby pillow, pulling the string and making the wheel on the spinning wheel spin slowly)*

Wendy: Giving us Newton's third law of physics....

*(Then the spinning wheel's slow spinning made a small toy unicycle rider glide slowly across a string)*

Alice: That says every action has an equal....

Dorothy: And opposite...?

Cody: (Now happily getting it) Reaction!

*(Then the toy unicycle rider gently hits a cricket bat nearby, making it fall onto a footrest cushion nearby, activating a trigger laying on there, dropping a basket over the mouse, trapping him in there like a cage)*

Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy: (Happily laughing a bit) Yes!

John, Michael, and Cody: (Happily) Yes!

*(Then they came out of hiding, approached the mouse, and kneeled down to him. In the basket, the mouse looked at the siblings, not with fear, but with curiosity)*

Michael: Do mice bite?

Cody: Out of curiosity?

Alice: I suppose so, if you're horrid to them.

John: Further studies *do* say that it *is* true on mice biting people if they're horrid to them.

*(Then the trapdoor the basket and mouse stood on opened, knocking the basket aside and freeing the mouse, making it run off. Then emerging into the attic is Mrs. Beakley)*

Mrs. Beakley: Oh, there you are. Up and down I've been looking for you rascals. Worn out, I am.

Cody: We were catching a mouse.

Michael: The same mouse that likes to hang out in our attic.

Mrs. Beakley: (Remembering with interest) The same mouse that Michael and Rarity fed their cookies to?

*(The kids nodded)*

Alice: And the same mouse that Father said "Yes" on letting us catch to have as a pet.

*(Then Mrs. Beakley chuckled a bit)*

Mrs. Beakley: (Chuckles a bit, jokingly) Well, if you catch one, I'm not cooking it.

John: (Playing along) Too many bones?

Mrs. Beakley: (Winks at them) Too many bones.

*(Then the mouse ran up to them happily and Michael picks him up gently by letting the mouse climb onto his hand)*

Mrs. Beakley: That little guy seems to have grown attached to you.

*(The mouse lets out a cute happy squeak. Then they changed the subject)*

Mrs. Beakley: Now, come on, be quick. We have a lot to do before this evening, please.

*(They then leave the attic and headed downstairs where Rarity awaited them. And with her now are two dogs, a male and female, and a female cat. The male dog is a male Cairn Terrier with brown fur, black eyes, and a black nose. He is Toto, Dorothy's pet dog. The female dog is a female Saint Bernard with brown fur, a beige muzzle, a tan neck, neck ruff, paws, and tip on her tail, a black nose, blue eyes, and wearing a reddish brown collar with a silver hooped license and a white nursemaid hat tied by a turquoise blue ribbon. She is Nana, the Darling Family's pet dog maid. And the female cat is a female kitten with red fur, dark red triangular ears with pink interiors, sea green eyes, a flesh tone colored face, a white muzzle, cream colored paws and chest fur, a black nose, pink paw pads, two pairs of black whiskers, and wearing a pink ribbon around her neck. She is Dinah, Alice's pet cat)*

Rarity: There you all are. Where were you?

*(She then noticed the mouse in Michael's hand)*

Rarity: Is that the friendly mouse you and I fed the cookies to, and that Father said we can keep if you caught it later?

Michael: Yep!

Rarity: Lovely!

*(Then she let the mouse climb onto her hand)*

Rarity: My guess; You were in the attic he hangs out in, and caught him somehow.

John: We certainly did.

*(Then Dorothy lets Rarity hand the mouse to her and, with Alice and Wendy, presented him to Toto, Nana, and Dinah)*

Dorothy: Toto....

Alice: Dinah....

Wendy: Nana....

Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy: Meet your new pet friend.

*(Toto, Dinah, and Nana had a little staring contest with the mouse, and surprisingly, they got calmly happy and Toto gave the mouse a friendly lick, much to everyone's happiness)*

Alice: It's wonderful that you immediately like each other.

*(The mouse then climbed onto Dorothy's left shoulder)*

Cody: What're we gonna name him?

*(After pondering a bit, Dorothy perked up)*

Dorothy: We shall name him.... Cookie.

*(The mouse, now called Cookie, Toto, Dinah, and Nana smiled in agreement. Dorothy then looked at the others)*

Dorothy: I decided that name because Michael and Rarity won him over with some cookies.

Wendy: Not a bad name.

Mrs. Beakley: I'll say.

Rarity: Anywho, how did you catch Cookie, per chance?

Michael: It was easy.

Cody: We set up a piece of bread, then used some toys, along with momentums and matches....

Rarity: (Surprised) Matches? In the attic?

John: It was Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy's idea.

Rarity: But you are aware that Father forbids us from using matches unattended in the attic.

Kids: Sorry....

*(Rarity then got curious)*

Rarity: Well.... Did you blow it out after using the match?

Dorothy: Yes.

Rarity: Good. At least that's the smart thing to do with matches in an attic.

*(Then, after looking at her watch, Mrs. Beakley realized and changed the subject)*

Mrs. Beakley: Oh, goodness! Your father is expecting you all in the family room.

*(Realizing, the kids immediately hurried down to the family room while Mrs. Beakley returned to her work. Once there, they arrived to see a man standing right next to a beautiful Christmas tree, somewhat perfectly decorated. The man is a portly 37 year old man with short black hair, a black mustache, brown eyes, and wearing a white long-sleeved collar-flapped, button-up dress shirt, gold cuff links, a light gray sleeveless waistcoat, a white bow tie, black pants, and black and white shoes. He is George Darling, the children's father. Upon seeing them come in, George greeted them)*

George: Ah, there you all are.

*(He noticed Cookie on Dorothy's shoulder)*

George: Ah, you caught that mouse in the attic?

John: We certainly did.

Rarity: And rest assured, it was easy.

Wendy: It was me, Alice, and Dorothy's idea even.

*(George took a closer look at Cookie and then asked away)*

George: What did you name him?

Children: Cookie.

*(George looks at Cookie again, who then nods with a happy squeak)*

George: Well, not a bad name,

*(The children then noticed the Christmas tree)*

Dorothy: Anyway, is that tree why you called us here?

*(George, upon hearing Dorothy, then points at the Christmas tree)*

George: What do you think?

*(The children looked closely at the somewhat unfinished Christmas tree and calmly got a bit sad, but giving a little smile as Mrs. Beakley came in with a feather duster and began dusting the chandelier)*

Rarity: It's.... Wonderful, Father.

*(Hearing her tone, George looked at the Christmas tree again and got a little sheepish)*

George: With a few adjustments, perhaps.

Mrs. Beakley: (Agreeing) No shame in that.

Michael: (A little sadly) That's not how Mother did it.

*(Hearing him, Mrs. Beakley and the family got calmly sad)*

Cody: Indeed.

Mrs. Beakley: Mary sure knew how to make the decorations beautiful.

*(A brief sad silence descends, that even Cookie, Toto, Dinah, and Nana noticed in calm silent concern. For it turned out the children's mother, Mary Darling, had already passed away a week ago from cancer, and they are now currently in the process of overcoming their grief over what they had lost. Anyway, after that brief silence, George perked up a bit along with Mrs. Beakley, who resumed dusting away)*

George: Well, children. I have some early Christmas presents for you.

Children: (Calmly interested) Really?

Rarity: On Christmas Eve? Tonight?

George: Yes. They're from your mother. She asked me on her deathbed to give them to you on Christmas Eve.

*(The children gave a calm sad smile, glad to know that Mary had thought of bestowing them their Christmas gifts before her passing. Then George picked up some Christmas present boxes and began handing them out to each child)*

George: This one's for you, Cody.

*(Cody accepted his gift from George)*

Cody: (To George) Thanks, Father. *(Looks up in gratitude)* And thank you, too, Mother.

*(George then hands another gift for John)*

George: John.

John: Thank you to both Mother and you.

*(As George hands Michael his gift, Cody opened his and got happy to see it's....)*

Cody: (Happily) Wow! Tin soldiers! Just like I wanted!

*(As John and Michael opened their gifts, George then hands Rarity her gift)*

Rarity: Thank you.

*(John and Michael got happy at their gifts, revealed to be....)*

John: (Happily) Jiminy, a football!**\***

Michael: (Happily) Yay, a traveler backpack!

*(Then finally, George hands the last gift to Dorothy while Rarity opened her gift)*

George: And the last one, is for you, Alice, and Wendy.

*(Accepting the gift, Dorothy opened her, Alice, and Wendy's gift. At the same time, Rarity got happily amazed by her gift)*

Rarity: (Gasps happily) Mother's favorite evening dress!

*(George nods at Rarity, feeling a little sentimental)*

George: Yes, it was.

*(Then Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy, upon opening their gift, realized their gift is a beautiful golden egg-shaped box with a stand connected to it)*

Cody: What is that?

Dorothy: A golden egg-shaped box.

Alice and Wendy: Yes....

*(Even Toto, Dinah, Nana, and Cookie were interested)*

Rarity: If it's a box, are there any jewelry in there?

Wendy: Don't know yet.

*(Dorothy tried to open the egg box gently, but couldn't. She tried again, but a little harder this time. Then she, Alice, and Wendy noticed a keyhole on it)*

Alice: Looks like it's locked.

Dorothy: Yes, it is.

George: Are you sure it opens?

Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy: Yes.

Dorothy: In fact, there's a keyhole right here.

*(Then she gently rummaged through her gift box to find a key to it, but to her, Alice, and Wendy's confusion, there's no key)*

Alice: Odd.

Wendy: There's no key.

Dorothy: Why would Mother give us this box without a key?

*(John and Michael went up to the girls and looked closely)*

John: How very peculiar....

Michael: An egg-shaped box with no key....

Cody: Maybe it's just a silly egg-shaped box just for decoration.

*(Feeling calmly hurt, Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy sighed sadly)*

Alice: It's not just a silly egg-shaped box.

Wendy: We know, for certain, this opens.

*(Cody got apologetic gently)*

Cody: Sorry.

*(Accepting Cody's apology with a nod, Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy got up)*

Dorothy: Excuse us....

*(They leave the room with their gift, with Toto, Dinah, Nana, and Cookie going with them)*

George: Girls?

*(In the nursery, Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy looked in the gift box closely, hoping to find a key, while Toto, Dinah, Nana, and Cookie are seated nearby, but to the three girls' disappointment, there isn't a key. Then Alice noticed something in the box's corner)*

Alice: What's that?

*(Noticing it along with Wendy, Dorothy then pulled out the object, revealed to be an envelope, and written on the front are their names that reads "Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy." Curious, Dorothy opened the envelope and and discovered a letter in there. Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy then read it together)*

Dorothy: (Reading) To my dearest Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy.

Alice: (Reading) This gift I bestow upon you is a really special one that will show you need when I'm gone.

Wendy: (Reading) And to find it, you must find the key to it on your own.

Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy: (Reading) For everything you need is inside. Love, Mother.

*(They got curious)*

Alice: "Everything you need is inside...."

*(Then they heard George come in)*

George: Girls? Is everything alright?

Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy: Afraid not.

*(Then the three noticed the shape of the keyhole on the egg-shaped box and recognized it)*

Dorothy: It's a pin tumbler lock.

Alice: It's impossible to open it without its matching key when it's locked.

Wendy: That's right.

George: I see....

*(He shrugs)*

George: Well, why don't you get ready for the party, and then you can work it out tomorrow.

*(Then feeling sad upon hearing him say that, Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy sighed sadly. Noticing that, George got sympathetic)*

George: Girls, I miss your mother, too, especially when she got the cancer that took her. But Christmas comes, whether it's good times or not. We must do our best to enjoy it.

*(But that didn't make Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy better)*

Dorothy: Sorry, it's just....

Alice: It's hard.

Wendy: None of us feel like enjoying it right now.

George: (Sits beside them in comfort) Well, that may be the case, but it's important to maintain traditions as a family. It's what's expected of us.

Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy: (Sadly) I know.

*(They hug each other calmly, reassuring each other. Then they heard Rarity)*

Rarity: I'm sorry to interrupt, but....

*(Ending their hug, Dorothy, Alice, Wendy, and George looked at the nursery's entrance and saw Rarity standing there, wearing Mary's old evening dress, meaning that Rarity is now wearing a pink sleeveless dress with a pale pink frilly neck rim, a pale pink sash around her waist, and pale pink frills at the end off her dress, a light blue stone necklace on a black string, and pink shoes)*

Rarity: What do you think?

*(George and her three sisters smiled calmly, but with a hint of sadness)*

George: You look just like your mother in that dress.

*(Rarity returned a soft sad smile. Then they calmly snapped out of it and George got up to leave)*

George: Could you please get ready for the party?

Dorothy, Alice, Wendy, and Rarity: Yes.

*(Then George left. As Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy are getting ready with Toto, Dinah, Nana, and Cookie sitting nearby, watching, while Rarity helped them, they and Rarity were talking)*

Rarity: Still couldn't find the box's key?

Dorothy: No.

*(She sighs sadly)*

Dorothy: I wish Mother was here.

Alice, Wendy, and Rarity: Yes....

*(Then Alice showed Rarity the letter Mary left them, and Rarity read it)*

Rarity: That's a very sweet cryptic note Mother left you.

Wendy: Mm-hm. But something tells us we might find the key somewhere else.

Dorothy and Alice: That's right.

Rarity: Well, I'm certain you'll work it out. You're extremely clever girls, just like her.

Dorothy: My sisters and I don't feel very clever lately.

Rarity: Well, maybe you might eventually realize you still have your cleverness.

Wendy: I guess so, Rarity.

*(Rarity then perked up in realization and then explained away)*

Rarity: Oh, by the way, my boyfriend, Thunderlane, along with our friends, are meeting us at the party tonight. Isn't that wonderful?

Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy: (Nods) Yes.

Alice: And I guess we shall try to be positive, no matter how tragic Mother's death was.

Rarity: Atta girls.

*(Then Dorothy asked away as she placed her egg-shaped box she was still holding on the vanity dresser she's sitting at)*

Dorothy: Rarity, do you think we, still have our cleverness?

Rarity: Yes. I still believe you do.

Alice: We're not sure yet.

Wendy: It's just that, well, the egg-shaped box....

Rarity: It'll be fine, my dear sisters.

*(Then Rarity, Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy sang together as Rarity continued to help Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy get ready)*

Rarity: **Well, our mother's gone, it's true**

**No family could be perfect**

**Especially with the loss....**

**Well, maybe let that pass**

**In all you say or do**

**You couldn't make it plainer**

**You three are our mother's daughters**

**Therefore, you are class**

Dorothy: **So we should just accept**

**We just simply move on without her**

Rarity: **That is what she wanted**

**And you can take my word**

**You are clever and unique**

***Crème de la crème***

**No matter what you do**

**We're on your side**

**And if my point of view**

**Is somewhat misty-eyed**

**There's nothing clearer in our lives**

**Than what our family and I wish and feel for you**

**And that's a lot**

**No matter what**

Alice: **No matter what happens now**

**You make us happy**

Wendy: **We love the funny way**

**You stand out from the crowd**

Rarity: **It's my intention**

**My fashion shows the world out there some days**

**Just what we've got**

Dorothy, Alice, Wendy, and Rarity: **No matter what**

Rarity: **Now some may say all families just exaggerate**

Dorothy: **That every relative's great**

Rarity: **We are**

*(They giggle a bit)*

Wendy: **And every child tends to say their parents' tops**

Rarity: **They pull out all the stops**

**To praise them**

Dorothy, Alice, Wendy, and Rarity: **And quite rightly**

Rarity: **No matter what the pain**

**We've come this far**

**I pray that you remain**

**Exactly as you are**

**This really is a case of sister knowing best**

Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy: **And loved ones, too**

Rarity: **You're always clever**

Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy: **We might never change**

Dorothy, Alice, Wendy, and Rarity: **Our family of us is all we've got**

**No matter what**

*(The song over, they continued getting ready)*

Alice: Maybe you're right, Rarity.

Dorothy and Wendy: Yes.

*(Dorothy then reached onto the vanity dresser for her blue hairbow when she noticed something on her egg-shaped box)*

Dorothy: What's this?

*(She picks her egg-shaped box up and took a closer look. Even Alice, Wendy, and Rarity looked with her. And sure enough, on the egg-shaped box, there's an engraved W on there)*

Dorothy: It's a W.

*(Then the four immediately perked up in realization and happiness)*

Alice: It's Mr. Wizard's insignia!

Wendy: He is a really great inventor, as well as our godfather since taking our mother in when she was an orphaned child.

Dorothy: And maybe....

Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy: *He* might know where the key is!

Rarity: (Agreeing) Indeed. We should tell Father your idea regarding your gift and consulting Mr. Wizard about it.

Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy: (Nods in agreement) Yes.

*(Then they resumed getting ready even more)*

***Coming up: Upon arrival at the Wizard's mansion for the Christmas party and meeting up with Rarity's group, the children and their pets then, under George's permission, consult the Wizard himself about Dorothy, Alice, and Wendy's mystery egg-shaped box and where its key is.***

**\*The football John receives for Christmas is actually a British name for a soccer ball, since soccer is called football in the United Kingdom and Europe**