ROSE PETAL ESSAYS 1/2
BY
THE BLUE NEW GIRL
*****
Rating: PG-13
Feedback: Love it! This is my first Daria-fic
so I'd love to know what you think!
Blue_New_Girl@addictmail.com
Disclaimer: Don't own them. MTV and all other
respectful copyright owners do. I made no money off this.
******
Morgendorffer living room - Night.
Daria is sitting on the couch reading '1984' by Orson Wells,
Quinn is on the phone with Stacy, Jake is watching TV and
Helen is going through the mail.
Music: Wheatus - Teenage Dirtbag
Helen: Daria! You got a letter from Highland.
Daria: {not looking up from her reading} Throw it away.
nothing good has ever come out of Highland.
Helen: You shouldn't dismiss it so quickly, Daria. It might
be from one of your friends from Highland.
Daria: I had no friends in Highland.
Helen: What about those two boys you used to hang out with?
Daria: They were amusements. Not friends. Burn the letter.
It has no place in my world.
Jake: We have a fireplace?
Daria: Right next to the torture chamber.
Helen: Fine. I'm setting it on the coffee table for now.
Read it, Daria, you don't know what its about. It could
be good news.
Quinn: Dar-ria!! Stop it. I'm on the phone. No, Stacy, I
wasn't talking to you! I know you didn't steal the idea
from Sandi, *you* had it first.
Daria: Right after Sandi stole your brain through your nose
while you were sleeping.
Quinn: Ewww!
Quinn leaves.
OPENING CREDITS ROLL:
Daria In 'Rose Petal Essays'.
Mr. O'Neil's class - Day. Everyone is in their usual seats
while Mr. O'Neil is sitting on his desk with a Stephen King
book in hand.
Music: Opening bars of 'In The Springtime of His Voodoo' by
Tori Amos.
Mr. O'Neil: Today we are going to start on a new unit focusing
on the modern horror legends and their influence on pop culture!
Jane: Oh no. I don't like the sound of that.
Daria: 'Pop culture'?
Jane: No. Modern horror legends. This could get scary. Who knows
how he'll react while reading these.
Mr. O'Neil: And today we're starting off with our first book,
Daria: 'How to Overcome Nightmares Induced by Reading Horror Novels'
Mr. O'Neil: 'The Green Mile' by Stephen King!
Jodie: Excuse me, but, I don't think that's a horror.
Mr. O'Neil: No! Of course not! We're starting off with a serial
novel by a horror *legend*.
Daria: And when do we get to the legend part?
Jane: Yeah. We're already *living* the horror part.
The bell rings.
Mr O'Neil: I'll expect you to pick up your books by Friday,
class!
Daria's Locker - End of day. Daria is getting some books out
when Jane walks up to her.
Jane: So, what are you doing tonight?
Daria: Oh, the usual. Journey into the seedy underground of Lawndale,
listen to some bad music, usual.
Jane: Wanna watch Sick, Sad, World tonight and eat cold pizza?
Daria: And the catch would be?
Jane: Two actually. One; Tom comes. Two; your place.
Daria:[sighs] Fine by me. Everyone's away this weekend. [smirk]
They've all gone up to Maine to reenact life in 1646. Quinn's
even going. So I'm stuck with a big, empty, house.
Jane: [awestruck] How did you manage that?
Daria: It was a suggestion. Mom took it to heart and figured it
would be a good family bonding event. So, she gathers Quinn and
Dad up and off they go into the merry Maine wilderness.
Jane: Not you?
Daria: I *said* it was my suggestion.
Morgendorffer Kitchen - After school. Quinn is whining about
the trip while Helen and Jake frantically search for the
tickets.
Music: Aimee Mann - Wise Up
Quinn: But Mu-um! I have dates. I have a schedule to keep!
Helen: No way are you getting out of this, Quinn. You have
used all your valid excuses a million times and this time,
Quinn, they're void. You. Are. Going. Now.
Quinn: [fake crying] This isn't fair! How come Daria isn't
going?
Helen: She has shown maturity. You on the other hand, Quinn.
We got a $700 bill from Cashmans yesterday. Think of this as
your punishment. Now go pack!
Quinn runs up the stairs crying while Jake has discovered his
name-tag on his luggage.
Jake: Helen! Look! It's got that shiny paper I like.
Jane's Room - Same time. Daria is reading on her bed and Jane
is painting an abstract pencil.
Jane: Um. Daria?
Daria: Yes.
Jane: You really don't mind Tom being there do you?
Daria: [uneasy] No. Of course not. I just won't get in your way.
I value my oxygen, thank-you-very-much.
Jane: And your head.
Daria gets off the bed.
Daria: I must be off. I have some things to do before you two get
there. I have to sharpen my guillotine.
Jane: Okay. See you later, then.
Daria's House - 6 o'clock. Daria is sitting in an armchair,
thumbing through a book, while Jane and Tom somehow manage to take
up an *entire* couch.
Music: Sophie Zelmani - In Another World
Tom: So, when do we leave for the pizzeria?
Jane: Yeah, Daria, when?
Daria: [looking up] Now?
Tom and Jane: Sure.
Jane hits the coffee table while getting off the couch.
She sees the letter.
Jane: Hey, you've got mail!
Tom: Unopened mail. Are you planning on reading it, Daria?
It's postmarked 3 days ago.
Daria: [unfazed] I was hoping it would rot. Open it. I don't
care.
Jane tears open the top and looks at the pink letter inside.
Jane: [reading aloud] Dear Daria, I hope you still remember
me. How could you forget?
Tom: Oh. A one night stand, perhaps?
Daria glares.
Jane: [still reading] Well, anyway, this is Stephan C. Johns.
Your first and hopefully not last protégé.
Daria falls back in her chair in anguish. She covers her face.
Jane: [continuing] Do you remember that essay I wrote for you?
Fuzzy-dissolve sequence. Daria is sitting by a hospital bed,
wearing a black jacket and a dark blue T-shirt under. In the bed
is a teenager, age unknown, with black hair, a pale complexion,
and dark and deeply beautiful eyes. He is writing in a notebook
while Daria is reading.
Music: Opening of Mother by Tori Amos
Stephen: [letter vo] I'm sure you still have it. One of my many
memento-mori's I left behind with you. Daria, I'm afraid. I know
what is coming and I don't much like the look of it. I'm really
not who I used to be, everything is hazy and dull. There isn't
any life left in me that I didn't leave with you. But that is
beside my point. I meant, and still mean, every word of that
essay. Yes, I can be more poetic about it now, but it still
is true. As is this. A final letter of truth. I'm going to be
going away tomorrow I believe and I just wanted to tell you that
I love you. I know it is cheesy but it is very true. I guess
it's our chemistry. I still remember the first day I saw you.
You were walking down the street, you're black outfit soaked
to the bone, eyes as red as blood and a look of determination
in your eyes. Funny how Mrs. Linge chose you. Maybe she knew
something we didn't. In eighth grade, you walking into my
bedroom and teaching me things I never knew. Not only did you
give me a gift of writing but you gave me the gift of
friendship. Even if you didn't mean to. I'm writing you this
because by the time you have read this, I will be already gone.
I wanted to write you a funeral notice myself because I don't
like those cold, lawyer written ones. Surely you deserve better
than that. I'm almost laughing here, because, well, it feels
strange to be writing as if I'm already dead. Dead. I hate how
that word keeps ringing in my ears. For 6 years now I've been
dying. I'm sorry, Daria. I never meant for things to go down
like this. You were supposed to marry me and we would live in
a secluded cabin in Montana. I'll always love you, even if you
never feel the same. But that is okay because, I know that
somewhere deep inside of you there is affection for me. I'm
sorry for things to end like this.
Suddenly, the teen [Stephan] jerks up violently and Daria
rushes to his side as doctors rush in.
Daria's Living room- end of fuzzy thing.
Jane: [reading] Love Always, Stephan C. Johns. [drops the letter]
Daria, I never knew.
Daria: [her face is buried in the palms of her hands] No. You
didn't. I'm sorry you had to find out like this. And see me like
this.
Daria grabs the letter from the floor and runs up the stairs.
Daria's Room. Daria is staring at her ceiling, clutching the pink
notice and another sheet of paper.
Music: Goo Goo Dolls - Iris
Sophie's 16th Century Re-Creation Fair, Maine - Same time.
Helen and Quinn are churning butter, dressed in black and white
'formal' 16th century dresses and bonnets. Quinn is busy
applying lipstick while Helen is doing most of the churning.
Music: Rob Zombie - Living Dead Girl
Quinn: [applying peach lipstick] I can't believe you're
churning butter! It's so, so, slave-girlish!
Helen: [angered] Quinn! You are a worker! You churn the damn
butter!
Quinn: But Mu-um! It's not good for my hands. I might get
blisters.
Lady Anna: [Helen and Quinn's 'owner'] Witch! You're a witch!
[points a Quinn]
Quinn: Hardly! I'm not wearing black lipstick and listening to
that Voodoo crap.
Lady Anna: [shocked] Voodoo! So you are a witch! That proves it.
Helen: You're not going to put her on trail are you?
Lady Anna: Of course I am. She'll be burned at the stake if I have
it my way!
Helen: But this is a re-creation! You can't put my daughter on trail
for witchcraft!
Lady Anna: You signed a *contract*. We can do whatever we please.
Helen: That's against so many laws, Anna.
Lady Anna: We'll see what the townspeople have to say.
Jake walks up.
Jake: Hi kiddo!
Quinn: Not now! They're putting me on *trail* for being a *witch*!
Jake looks scared.
Jake: [timidly] She's a witch?
Jake runs off. Lady Anna apprehends Quinn and takes her away.
Quinn: Mom! She can't do this!
Helen just watches, unable to do anything.
Helen: It's okay, sweetie. We'll figure a way out of this.
Daria's Room - Night. Tom and Jane are banging on Daria's
door trying to get her to come out, but to no avail.
Music: Oasis - Wonderwall
Tom: (OS) Daria?
Daria: Do the words 'get the hell away from my door' mean
anything to you?
Tom: (OS) No. Daria, come out? For Jane?
Daria: How come I don't hear her?
Tom: (OS) She's not talking to me. She won't, I guess, until
you come out.
Daria: That's stupid reasoning.
Tom (OS) That *wasn't* reasoning! And what's stupid is you
locking yourself in your room and not *talking* about this!
Daria gets off the bed and opens up the door.
Daria: (no emotion) Tom. Jane is not talking to you because I
won't come out. Besides, I knew Stephan was going to die sometime,
I'm just sorry I wasn't there. I should have been though.
Tom: No one blames you for not being there. Come on, Daria, you
know that.
Daria: And you speak from experience?
Tom: No. I'm just saying that if he really *did* love you the
way he portrayed it in the letter, he was *fine* with the fact
you weren't there.
Daria: You *never* knew him, so don't you dare make assumptions.
Tom: That's not an assumption. It's the truth.
Daria: How come you're making no sense to me?
Tom: [sighs] Daria, of course I'm not making any sense to you
because you *aren't* really listening.
Daria: Yes I am.
Jane walks up the stairs.
Jane: Daria! Finally you've decided to come out.
Daria sighs then goes back into her room. We stay outside of
the room with Tom and Jane.
Tom: I guess we should go home now.
Daria: (OS) You can stay. There's a guest bedroom and one of you
can sleep on the couch if you want.
Jane: Only if you want us to.
Daria: [quiet] I do. I'm not sure if I'll stay in my room all this
night. You never know, [teary laugh], I just may need someone to
talk to at four in the morning.
Jane: Okay. We'll be here, Daria.
Time lapse of Jane and Tom on the couch. Jane calls Trent, Jane
falls asleep on Tom. Jane wakes up while Tom is watching some
late-night infomercial. Tom falls asleep. Jane falls asleep.
Daria's room - 2:56 AM. The room is barely lit by the single,
white, stick candle on her desk. However, we can see Daria sitting
in the middle of the room with essays all around her. She is
sitting cross-legged with her head in her hands, she hasn't changed
her clothes yet.
Music: DJ Shadow - Midnight in a Perfect World
Daria POV as she lifts her head and sees the mirage of Stephan
standing in a corner with an essay in his hands. He smiles a
killer smile.
Close up of Stephan's face so that all we can see is his face.
Slowly pull out to reveal him lying in his bed with an essay in
hand and Daria sitting on the bed in a black T-shirt and a pair
of jeans.
Stephan: I wrote that essay.
Daria: Finally. Care to read it to me?
Stephan: Why? You know I hate the sound of my voice.
Daria: [shyly] Yeah, but I like it.
Stephen: Oh. Okay then. Here goes...
Stephan: [reading VO] Many scientists say that love is merely
chemicals in our brains and bodies responding to someone else's
chemicals. They do not know why the chemistry between two
people is different from the chemistry of two other people.
Different chemicals in different people equal different reactions.
I see the whole 'chemicals' and 'chemistry' thing as life. You
get the point when it's over. Maybe that's how love is.
I'm not sure if Daria believes in true love, but I do. I know
how crazy I sound and many think; oh, poor dying boy, scrambling
for love in the last years of his life how sweet. That is not
how I see it, though. She may not feel the same way I do but I
believe someday she will. It might be too late for her to tell
me when she finally does realize it. But at least I will have
told her how I feel.
I want to be with her because she makes me laugh, she is funny,
even if she doesn't mean to be. She makes me feel like I'm a
human, not like the black hole that is empty and pointless that
I sometimes feel. She makes me feel like a real person shopping
in the supermarket for groceries on a Saturday evening.
I want to be with her because she likes my voice and my feet.
No one has ever liked such intricate details about me. She
also likes my dog, Carolina, even if the poor Sheltie only
has 3 legs.
One of the things I like doing with her, besides that
tutor/mentor thing we are required to do, is watch movies. I know
she prefers to read the books, but sometimes we like the movies
better. No one has ever really watched a movie with me. They've
sat down and stared at the screen for a few hours, but with Daria,
we get involved and make comments. Sometimes we'll just watch the
same movie just to make new comments. I think, even though she
denies it, she likes a certain actor in some of them. My friends
and my family would never watch his movies with me, but Daria will.
That's okay because I'm the one that forced her to watch 'Say
Anything...' 3 times one day. When we're married and old together,
we can sit back and watch the movies together and still laugh. Even
if we've seen them a million times.
I'm not naive to the fact that we'll probably never get to do all
the things we talk about, but I can still dream. What if she does
really love me now and what if I died tomorrow? I would never get
the chance to get her reaction. What if she died today and I never
found that voice to tell her? I could say it like it was a joke
and we'd shrug it off. A million possibilities exist out there
and even with this discouraging fact, we keep moving forward or
sitting still. Just talking it all in. When I'm with Daria it's like
those what ifs do not mean shit to us or anyone, so we can
live today to its full potential. Daria is smart, funny, and
beautiful in such a subtle and majestic way, it's hard to describe.
Maybe she can do a better job of it one day for me.
Fade to Daria's room.
Daria: [reading the last line aloud] Maybe she can do a better job
of it one day for me.
She wipes away a tear and falls backwards, staring at the ceiling.
A tiny knock comes at the door.
Music continues.
Jane: [OS] Daria?
Daria: [teary] Jane? What are you doing up?
Jane: [coming in the door] I heard you. No, you didn't wake me. But
I couldn't leave you in here.
Daria: Look at this stuff. All written by Stephan. He was talented.
Jane sits beside Daria.
Jane: Was he?
Daria nods.
Daria: He wasn't really a poetic person, but his words were. In some
abstract way.
Jane: Well, if you call Stephan's words 'poetic' he must have had a
big impact on you.
Daria quickly places her hand over her eyes and nods.
Daria: [through choked tears] Normally, I would want to be alone. Right?
[hangs her head] I don't really want to be alone right now.
Jane: [not used to seeing this side of her best friend, soft] It's okay,
Daria. Everyone's like that sometimes. I know losing Stephan has to be
hard on you, I know. But you have to remember, you yourself said that
it wasn't a surprise.
Daria: [visibly crying now] Yeah, I know. But I didn't expect it to
really come. Parts of me think he is still somehow there. It's these
essays, I know it.
Jane: And that's a problem?
Daria: No, the essays aren't. It's what he says in them. I feel guilty
for moving.
Jane: You left when he was still sick?
Daria: Yes. But he was doing fine.
Daria lies back on the floor. Jane goes back with her.
Daria: [turning to Jane] Can you do me a favor?
Jane: Anything.
Daria: Go with me to the funeral?
Jane: Sure. Anything. When is it?
Daria: Monday. But if we're going by car we should leave
Sunday.
Jane: Okay. You won't mind if Trent comes, you know, to drive us
maybe?
Daria: Well, okay. Tom can come too.
Jane: Okay. We leave Sunday then.
Daria: Jane?
Jane: [half asleep] I'm here.
Daria: Thanks.
Quinn's cell - Morning. Quinn is sitting in the corner on a bench,
crying. She is terribly sick of being in there, even if for only
a few hours. Lady Anna is standing outside the cell.
Music: The English Beat - Mirror In the Bathroom
Lady Anna: Don't worry, child. If you really are indeed a witch,
we'll do away with you. But if you are not, then the townspeople
will find you innocent.
Quinn: Don't you, like, get it? This is *supposed* to be a
recreation obeying today's laws. You can't burn me at the stake.
Lady Anna: [laughs] We won't do that, we don't do that.
Quinn: Oh. So what are you going to do?
Lady Anna: Hmm. I suppose I don't know, yet.
Quinn: Awwwww! [starts crying again]
************
CREDITS ROLL
Music: Tori Amos - Happy Phantom
And if I die today I'll be the happy phantom
And I'll go chasin' the nuns out in the yard
And I'll run naked through the streets without my mask on
And I will never need umbrellas in the rain
I'll wake up in strawberry fields every day
And the atrocities of school I can forgive
The happy phantom has no right to bitch
Oo who, the time is getting closer
Oo who, time to be a ghost
Oo who, every day we're getting closer
The sun is getting dim
Will we pay for who we been
So if I die today I'll be the happy phantom
And I'll go wearin' my naughties like a jewel
They'll be my ticket to the universal opera
There's Judy Garland taking Buddha by the hand
And then the seven little men get up to dance
They say Confucius does his crossword with a pen
I'm still the angel to a girl who hates to sin
Oo who, the time is getting closer
Oo who, time to be a ghost
Oo who, every day we're getting closer
The sun is getting dim
Will we pay for who we been
Or will I see you dear and wish I could come back
You found a girl that you could truly love again
Will you still call for me when she falls asleep
Or do we soon forget the things we cannot see
Oo who, the time is getting closer
Oo who, time to be a ghost
Oo who, every day we're getting closer
The sun is getting dim
Will we pay for who we been
******
End of
Chapter
One of
Two
******
*NOTES*
Whoa. Scary. I'm actually putting notes in here.
Let us see, well, I wrote the first half. I couldn't
fit all I wanted in just one story because I thought
it would give the feeling of being 'cramped'. There is
more to the story coming. More emotions I guess.
A car trip to Austin, Texas. The funeral. And a prose
adaptation in the works.
:) thanks for reading and feedback is always welcome.
blue_new_girl@addictmail.com
******
2000
Blue New Girl
Productions
******
BY
THE BLUE NEW GIRL
*****
Rating: PG-13
Feedback: Love it! This is my first Daria-fic
so I'd love to know what you think!
Blue_New_Girl@addictmail.com
Disclaimer: Don't own them. MTV and all other
respectful copyright owners do. I made no money off this.
******
Morgendorffer living room - Night.
Daria is sitting on the couch reading '1984' by Orson Wells,
Quinn is on the phone with Stacy, Jake is watching TV and
Helen is going through the mail.
Music: Wheatus - Teenage Dirtbag
Helen: Daria! You got a letter from Highland.
Daria: {not looking up from her reading} Throw it away.
nothing good has ever come out of Highland.
Helen: You shouldn't dismiss it so quickly, Daria. It might
be from one of your friends from Highland.
Daria: I had no friends in Highland.
Helen: What about those two boys you used to hang out with?
Daria: They were amusements. Not friends. Burn the letter.
It has no place in my world.
Jake: We have a fireplace?
Daria: Right next to the torture chamber.
Helen: Fine. I'm setting it on the coffee table for now.
Read it, Daria, you don't know what its about. It could
be good news.
Quinn: Dar-ria!! Stop it. I'm on the phone. No, Stacy, I
wasn't talking to you! I know you didn't steal the idea
from Sandi, *you* had it first.
Daria: Right after Sandi stole your brain through your nose
while you were sleeping.
Quinn: Ewww!
Quinn leaves.
OPENING CREDITS ROLL:
Daria In 'Rose Petal Essays'.
Mr. O'Neil's class - Day. Everyone is in their usual seats
while Mr. O'Neil is sitting on his desk with a Stephen King
book in hand.
Music: Opening bars of 'In The Springtime of His Voodoo' by
Tori Amos.
Mr. O'Neil: Today we are going to start on a new unit focusing
on the modern horror legends and their influence on pop culture!
Jane: Oh no. I don't like the sound of that.
Daria: 'Pop culture'?
Jane: No. Modern horror legends. This could get scary. Who knows
how he'll react while reading these.
Mr. O'Neil: And today we're starting off with our first book,
Daria: 'How to Overcome Nightmares Induced by Reading Horror Novels'
Mr. O'Neil: 'The Green Mile' by Stephen King!
Jodie: Excuse me, but, I don't think that's a horror.
Mr. O'Neil: No! Of course not! We're starting off with a serial
novel by a horror *legend*.
Daria: And when do we get to the legend part?
Jane: Yeah. We're already *living* the horror part.
The bell rings.
Mr O'Neil: I'll expect you to pick up your books by Friday,
class!
Daria's Locker - End of day. Daria is getting some books out
when Jane walks up to her.
Jane: So, what are you doing tonight?
Daria: Oh, the usual. Journey into the seedy underground of Lawndale,
listen to some bad music, usual.
Jane: Wanna watch Sick, Sad, World tonight and eat cold pizza?
Daria: And the catch would be?
Jane: Two actually. One; Tom comes. Two; your place.
Daria:[sighs] Fine by me. Everyone's away this weekend. [smirk]
They've all gone up to Maine to reenact life in 1646. Quinn's
even going. So I'm stuck with a big, empty, house.
Jane: [awestruck] How did you manage that?
Daria: It was a suggestion. Mom took it to heart and figured it
would be a good family bonding event. So, she gathers Quinn and
Dad up and off they go into the merry Maine wilderness.
Jane: Not you?
Daria: I *said* it was my suggestion.
Morgendorffer Kitchen - After school. Quinn is whining about
the trip while Helen and Jake frantically search for the
tickets.
Music: Aimee Mann - Wise Up
Quinn: But Mu-um! I have dates. I have a schedule to keep!
Helen: No way are you getting out of this, Quinn. You have
used all your valid excuses a million times and this time,
Quinn, they're void. You. Are. Going. Now.
Quinn: [fake crying] This isn't fair! How come Daria isn't
going?
Helen: She has shown maturity. You on the other hand, Quinn.
We got a $700 bill from Cashmans yesterday. Think of this as
your punishment. Now go pack!
Quinn runs up the stairs crying while Jake has discovered his
name-tag on his luggage.
Jake: Helen! Look! It's got that shiny paper I like.
Jane's Room - Same time. Daria is reading on her bed and Jane
is painting an abstract pencil.
Jane: Um. Daria?
Daria: Yes.
Jane: You really don't mind Tom being there do you?
Daria: [uneasy] No. Of course not. I just won't get in your way.
I value my oxygen, thank-you-very-much.
Jane: And your head.
Daria gets off the bed.
Daria: I must be off. I have some things to do before you two get
there. I have to sharpen my guillotine.
Jane: Okay. See you later, then.
Daria's House - 6 o'clock. Daria is sitting in an armchair,
thumbing through a book, while Jane and Tom somehow manage to take
up an *entire* couch.
Music: Sophie Zelmani - In Another World
Tom: So, when do we leave for the pizzeria?
Jane: Yeah, Daria, when?
Daria: [looking up] Now?
Tom and Jane: Sure.
Jane hits the coffee table while getting off the couch.
She sees the letter.
Jane: Hey, you've got mail!
Tom: Unopened mail. Are you planning on reading it, Daria?
It's postmarked 3 days ago.
Daria: [unfazed] I was hoping it would rot. Open it. I don't
care.
Jane tears open the top and looks at the pink letter inside.
Jane: [reading aloud] Dear Daria, I hope you still remember
me. How could you forget?
Tom: Oh. A one night stand, perhaps?
Daria glares.
Jane: [still reading] Well, anyway, this is Stephan C. Johns.
Your first and hopefully not last protégé.
Daria falls back in her chair in anguish. She covers her face.
Jane: [continuing] Do you remember that essay I wrote for you?
Fuzzy-dissolve sequence. Daria is sitting by a hospital bed,
wearing a black jacket and a dark blue T-shirt under. In the bed
is a teenager, age unknown, with black hair, a pale complexion,
and dark and deeply beautiful eyes. He is writing in a notebook
while Daria is reading.
Music: Opening of Mother by Tori Amos
Stephen: [letter vo] I'm sure you still have it. One of my many
memento-mori's I left behind with you. Daria, I'm afraid. I know
what is coming and I don't much like the look of it. I'm really
not who I used to be, everything is hazy and dull. There isn't
any life left in me that I didn't leave with you. But that is
beside my point. I meant, and still mean, every word of that
essay. Yes, I can be more poetic about it now, but it still
is true. As is this. A final letter of truth. I'm going to be
going away tomorrow I believe and I just wanted to tell you that
I love you. I know it is cheesy but it is very true. I guess
it's our chemistry. I still remember the first day I saw you.
You were walking down the street, you're black outfit soaked
to the bone, eyes as red as blood and a look of determination
in your eyes. Funny how Mrs. Linge chose you. Maybe she knew
something we didn't. In eighth grade, you walking into my
bedroom and teaching me things I never knew. Not only did you
give me a gift of writing but you gave me the gift of
friendship. Even if you didn't mean to. I'm writing you this
because by the time you have read this, I will be already gone.
I wanted to write you a funeral notice myself because I don't
like those cold, lawyer written ones. Surely you deserve better
than that. I'm almost laughing here, because, well, it feels
strange to be writing as if I'm already dead. Dead. I hate how
that word keeps ringing in my ears. For 6 years now I've been
dying. I'm sorry, Daria. I never meant for things to go down
like this. You were supposed to marry me and we would live in
a secluded cabin in Montana. I'll always love you, even if you
never feel the same. But that is okay because, I know that
somewhere deep inside of you there is affection for me. I'm
sorry for things to end like this.
Suddenly, the teen [Stephan] jerks up violently and Daria
rushes to his side as doctors rush in.
Daria's Living room- end of fuzzy thing.
Jane: [reading] Love Always, Stephan C. Johns. [drops the letter]
Daria, I never knew.
Daria: [her face is buried in the palms of her hands] No. You
didn't. I'm sorry you had to find out like this. And see me like
this.
Daria grabs the letter from the floor and runs up the stairs.
Daria's Room. Daria is staring at her ceiling, clutching the pink
notice and another sheet of paper.
Music: Goo Goo Dolls - Iris
Sophie's 16th Century Re-Creation Fair, Maine - Same time.
Helen and Quinn are churning butter, dressed in black and white
'formal' 16th century dresses and bonnets. Quinn is busy
applying lipstick while Helen is doing most of the churning.
Music: Rob Zombie - Living Dead Girl
Quinn: [applying peach lipstick] I can't believe you're
churning butter! It's so, so, slave-girlish!
Helen: [angered] Quinn! You are a worker! You churn the damn
butter!
Quinn: But Mu-um! It's not good for my hands. I might get
blisters.
Lady Anna: [Helen and Quinn's 'owner'] Witch! You're a witch!
[points a Quinn]
Quinn: Hardly! I'm not wearing black lipstick and listening to
that Voodoo crap.
Lady Anna: [shocked] Voodoo! So you are a witch! That proves it.
Helen: You're not going to put her on trail are you?
Lady Anna: Of course I am. She'll be burned at the stake if I have
it my way!
Helen: But this is a re-creation! You can't put my daughter on trail
for witchcraft!
Lady Anna: You signed a *contract*. We can do whatever we please.
Helen: That's against so many laws, Anna.
Lady Anna: We'll see what the townspeople have to say.
Jake walks up.
Jake: Hi kiddo!
Quinn: Not now! They're putting me on *trail* for being a *witch*!
Jake looks scared.
Jake: [timidly] She's a witch?
Jake runs off. Lady Anna apprehends Quinn and takes her away.
Quinn: Mom! She can't do this!
Helen just watches, unable to do anything.
Helen: It's okay, sweetie. We'll figure a way out of this.
Daria's Room - Night. Tom and Jane are banging on Daria's
door trying to get her to come out, but to no avail.
Music: Oasis - Wonderwall
Tom: (OS) Daria?
Daria: Do the words 'get the hell away from my door' mean
anything to you?
Tom: (OS) No. Daria, come out? For Jane?
Daria: How come I don't hear her?
Tom: (OS) She's not talking to me. She won't, I guess, until
you come out.
Daria: That's stupid reasoning.
Tom (OS) That *wasn't* reasoning! And what's stupid is you
locking yourself in your room and not *talking* about this!
Daria gets off the bed and opens up the door.
Daria: (no emotion) Tom. Jane is not talking to you because I
won't come out. Besides, I knew Stephan was going to die sometime,
I'm just sorry I wasn't there. I should have been though.
Tom: No one blames you for not being there. Come on, Daria, you
know that.
Daria: And you speak from experience?
Tom: No. I'm just saying that if he really *did* love you the
way he portrayed it in the letter, he was *fine* with the fact
you weren't there.
Daria: You *never* knew him, so don't you dare make assumptions.
Tom: That's not an assumption. It's the truth.
Daria: How come you're making no sense to me?
Tom: [sighs] Daria, of course I'm not making any sense to you
because you *aren't* really listening.
Daria: Yes I am.
Jane walks up the stairs.
Jane: Daria! Finally you've decided to come out.
Daria sighs then goes back into her room. We stay outside of
the room with Tom and Jane.
Tom: I guess we should go home now.
Daria: (OS) You can stay. There's a guest bedroom and one of you
can sleep on the couch if you want.
Jane: Only if you want us to.
Daria: [quiet] I do. I'm not sure if I'll stay in my room all this
night. You never know, [teary laugh], I just may need someone to
talk to at four in the morning.
Jane: Okay. We'll be here, Daria.
Time lapse of Jane and Tom on the couch. Jane calls Trent, Jane
falls asleep on Tom. Jane wakes up while Tom is watching some
late-night infomercial. Tom falls asleep. Jane falls asleep.
Daria's room - 2:56 AM. The room is barely lit by the single,
white, stick candle on her desk. However, we can see Daria sitting
in the middle of the room with essays all around her. She is
sitting cross-legged with her head in her hands, she hasn't changed
her clothes yet.
Music: DJ Shadow - Midnight in a Perfect World
Daria POV as she lifts her head and sees the mirage of Stephan
standing in a corner with an essay in his hands. He smiles a
killer smile.
Close up of Stephan's face so that all we can see is his face.
Slowly pull out to reveal him lying in his bed with an essay in
hand and Daria sitting on the bed in a black T-shirt and a pair
of jeans.
Stephan: I wrote that essay.
Daria: Finally. Care to read it to me?
Stephan: Why? You know I hate the sound of my voice.
Daria: [shyly] Yeah, but I like it.
Stephen: Oh. Okay then. Here goes...
Stephan: [reading VO] Many scientists say that love is merely
chemicals in our brains and bodies responding to someone else's
chemicals. They do not know why the chemistry between two
people is different from the chemistry of two other people.
Different chemicals in different people equal different reactions.
I see the whole 'chemicals' and 'chemistry' thing as life. You
get the point when it's over. Maybe that's how love is.
I'm not sure if Daria believes in true love, but I do. I know
how crazy I sound and many think; oh, poor dying boy, scrambling
for love in the last years of his life how sweet. That is not
how I see it, though. She may not feel the same way I do but I
believe someday she will. It might be too late for her to tell
me when she finally does realize it. But at least I will have
told her how I feel.
I want to be with her because she makes me laugh, she is funny,
even if she doesn't mean to be. She makes me feel like I'm a
human, not like the black hole that is empty and pointless that
I sometimes feel. She makes me feel like a real person shopping
in the supermarket for groceries on a Saturday evening.
I want to be with her because she likes my voice and my feet.
No one has ever liked such intricate details about me. She
also likes my dog, Carolina, even if the poor Sheltie only
has 3 legs.
One of the things I like doing with her, besides that
tutor/mentor thing we are required to do, is watch movies. I know
she prefers to read the books, but sometimes we like the movies
better. No one has ever really watched a movie with me. They've
sat down and stared at the screen for a few hours, but with Daria,
we get involved and make comments. Sometimes we'll just watch the
same movie just to make new comments. I think, even though she
denies it, she likes a certain actor in some of them. My friends
and my family would never watch his movies with me, but Daria will.
That's okay because I'm the one that forced her to watch 'Say
Anything...' 3 times one day. When we're married and old together,
we can sit back and watch the movies together and still laugh. Even
if we've seen them a million times.
I'm not naive to the fact that we'll probably never get to do all
the things we talk about, but I can still dream. What if she does
really love me now and what if I died tomorrow? I would never get
the chance to get her reaction. What if she died today and I never
found that voice to tell her? I could say it like it was a joke
and we'd shrug it off. A million possibilities exist out there
and even with this discouraging fact, we keep moving forward or
sitting still. Just talking it all in. When I'm with Daria it's like
those what ifs do not mean shit to us or anyone, so we can
live today to its full potential. Daria is smart, funny, and
beautiful in such a subtle and majestic way, it's hard to describe.
Maybe she can do a better job of it one day for me.
Fade to Daria's room.
Daria: [reading the last line aloud] Maybe she can do a better job
of it one day for me.
She wipes away a tear and falls backwards, staring at the ceiling.
A tiny knock comes at the door.
Music continues.
Jane: [OS] Daria?
Daria: [teary] Jane? What are you doing up?
Jane: [coming in the door] I heard you. No, you didn't wake me. But
I couldn't leave you in here.
Daria: Look at this stuff. All written by Stephan. He was talented.
Jane sits beside Daria.
Jane: Was he?
Daria nods.
Daria: He wasn't really a poetic person, but his words were. In some
abstract way.
Jane: Well, if you call Stephan's words 'poetic' he must have had a
big impact on you.
Daria quickly places her hand over her eyes and nods.
Daria: [through choked tears] Normally, I would want to be alone. Right?
[hangs her head] I don't really want to be alone right now.
Jane: [not used to seeing this side of her best friend, soft] It's okay,
Daria. Everyone's like that sometimes. I know losing Stephan has to be
hard on you, I know. But you have to remember, you yourself said that
it wasn't a surprise.
Daria: [visibly crying now] Yeah, I know. But I didn't expect it to
really come. Parts of me think he is still somehow there. It's these
essays, I know it.
Jane: And that's a problem?
Daria: No, the essays aren't. It's what he says in them. I feel guilty
for moving.
Jane: You left when he was still sick?
Daria: Yes. But he was doing fine.
Daria lies back on the floor. Jane goes back with her.
Daria: [turning to Jane] Can you do me a favor?
Jane: Anything.
Daria: Go with me to the funeral?
Jane: Sure. Anything. When is it?
Daria: Monday. But if we're going by car we should leave
Sunday.
Jane: Okay. You won't mind if Trent comes, you know, to drive us
maybe?
Daria: Well, okay. Tom can come too.
Jane: Okay. We leave Sunday then.
Daria: Jane?
Jane: [half asleep] I'm here.
Daria: Thanks.
Quinn's cell - Morning. Quinn is sitting in the corner on a bench,
crying. She is terribly sick of being in there, even if for only
a few hours. Lady Anna is standing outside the cell.
Music: The English Beat - Mirror In the Bathroom
Lady Anna: Don't worry, child. If you really are indeed a witch,
we'll do away with you. But if you are not, then the townspeople
will find you innocent.
Quinn: Don't you, like, get it? This is *supposed* to be a
recreation obeying today's laws. You can't burn me at the stake.
Lady Anna: [laughs] We won't do that, we don't do that.
Quinn: Oh. So what are you going to do?
Lady Anna: Hmm. I suppose I don't know, yet.
Quinn: Awwwww! [starts crying again]
************
CREDITS ROLL
Music: Tori Amos - Happy Phantom
And if I die today I'll be the happy phantom
And I'll go chasin' the nuns out in the yard
And I'll run naked through the streets without my mask on
And I will never need umbrellas in the rain
I'll wake up in strawberry fields every day
And the atrocities of school I can forgive
The happy phantom has no right to bitch
Oo who, the time is getting closer
Oo who, time to be a ghost
Oo who, every day we're getting closer
The sun is getting dim
Will we pay for who we been
So if I die today I'll be the happy phantom
And I'll go wearin' my naughties like a jewel
They'll be my ticket to the universal opera
There's Judy Garland taking Buddha by the hand
And then the seven little men get up to dance
They say Confucius does his crossword with a pen
I'm still the angel to a girl who hates to sin
Oo who, the time is getting closer
Oo who, time to be a ghost
Oo who, every day we're getting closer
The sun is getting dim
Will we pay for who we been
Or will I see you dear and wish I could come back
You found a girl that you could truly love again
Will you still call for me when she falls asleep
Or do we soon forget the things we cannot see
Oo who, the time is getting closer
Oo who, time to be a ghost
Oo who, every day we're getting closer
The sun is getting dim
Will we pay for who we been
******
End of
Chapter
One of
Two
******
*NOTES*
Whoa. Scary. I'm actually putting notes in here.
Let us see, well, I wrote the first half. I couldn't
fit all I wanted in just one story because I thought
it would give the feeling of being 'cramped'. There is
more to the story coming. More emotions I guess.
A car trip to Austin, Texas. The funeral. And a prose
adaptation in the works.
:) thanks for reading and feedback is always welcome.
blue_new_girl@addictmail.com
******
2000
Blue New Girl
Productions
******