Disney's Tinker Bell in Storybrooke
A Disney Fairies / Once Upon A Time Crossover
Season 1, Episode 10, Chapter 4
STORYBROOKE, MAINE
Ever since Vidia recovered her one memory of Valerie and felt the embrace of family, Claire had spent more time with her. Quality time, she called it. Whether it was shopping, teaching Vidia how to do chores, use the vacuum cleaner or helping her learn to use the computer Claire felt as though she was given a second chance to relive Valerie's childhood. To bond with her daughter in a way she never could the first time. Today, it was time for Vidia to learn how to drive.
"Did you read that manual I gave you?" Claire asked.
"Yes, twice," Vidia answered. "Though I'm not sure what half of it meant."
"Today, it will all make sense," Claire answered. They were sitting in the minivan, Claire in the driver's seat and Vidia in the front passenger. Claire showed Vidia all of the primary controls. The accelerator pedal, the brake, gear shift, left and right turn signals and more. She explained what each did and how it should be used.
"When you're driving, make sure to look into your rear view mirrors every few seconds so you know who is behind you and to your sides," Claire said. "When driving it is important to keep your head on a swivel."
"A swivel?"
"You must always be aware of your surroundings."
"That I can do."
Claire chose today for the first lesson because Monday the Christmas Break would end and everyone's normal routine would resume. She took Vidia on a drive, pointing out and describing all of the intersection lights and street signs they came across and the rules of the road. "Always look both ways even if you have the green light. You never know when someone ignores the rules or just doesn't see the changing light."
"Okay."
"It's called defensive driving, sweetheart," Claire said. "It's so you don't get hurt by someone else's carelessness. I lost you once, I can't bear to lose you again."
Vidia paused as she processed that for a moment. Vidia was still trying to recover the memories of all the fairies in Storybrooke. She had "lost" them once and needed to "find" them and soon.
"I'll be careful," she said.
When the drive was over, Claire pulled over and offered to let Vidia a chance behind the wheel. She chose a part of town with very little traffic for her first time driving. Before the lesson had begun Vidia said that she knew something about driving. She used to watch Dr. Griffiths operate his horseless carriage. She did admit that the minivan was far more complex than his century old driving machine.
"His didn't have cruise control or air conditioning," she said. "Or automatic transmission." Then she mentioned something about operating a racer in the Pixie Hollow Games. "Once we became aware of the horseless carriage, the tinkers devised racers for us to use in the games."
"And how did you do," Claire asked, resigning herself to the fact that Valerie would forever keep tossing out absurd nuggets like this.
"The fast flyers won twice," Vidia said.
"I'm proud of you, dear," Claire said, not knowing exactly what the heck Valerie was talking about.
Vidia quietly went through her checklist including seatbelts, mirrors, making seat adjustments and looking both ways. She kept her hands at ten and two on the steering wheel and then pressed the brake pedal and put the van into gear. Vidia nudged the minivan up to speed.
Claire began to smile. Although Vidia was taking it cautious she seemed to be grasping the skill quite nicely. When a car shot in front of them Claire yelled for Vidia to stop. Vidia responded by hitting the gas pedal rather than the brake.
"STOP! STOP! The other pedal!"
Vidia remembered which one and mashed down the brake pedal bringing the van to a screeching halt. Vidia looked down and saw that Claire's arm and hand was across her chest.
"Hey!"
"Sorry, force of habit, dear. When you were growing up I always did that whenever I had to stop suddenly," Claire said. "Mothers do that to keep their children safe. Okay, let's try that again."
Once again Vidia moved the car forward with the gas pedal. She maintained her hands on the steering wheel and kept glancing into her mirrors every few seconds. Vidia slowed down a bit at every intersection and looked left and right for oncoming traffic and making a note to be ready in case another idiot saw fit to shoot out in front of her.
For a full hour Vidia drove the minivan around, her confidence growing with each passing minute. Claire regularly quizzed her about street signs and rules of the road when it was appropriate. "Who proceeds first at a four way stop? When do you stop at a yield sign? What is the speed limit for residential streets?"
At first it unnerved Vidia to have to answer so many questions while trying to concentrate on driving. Claire reminded her, though, that driving was one, long quiz each time she drove. "You have to be mindful of these things or you'll get a ticket or have an accident."
When the lesson was complete, Claire allowed Vidia to drive home down the main street. She asked her to pull in to the gas station and then showed her to pump her own fuel. When the two arrived home both Vidia and Claire were genuinely excited at the younger woman's accomplishment. Claire gave her girl a big hug and congratulated her on doing so well today. "You were wonderful, sweetheart," she said to Valerie. "Now, we need to keep practicing. Driving has to become second nature, sort of like walking."
"Right. And that can only happen with practice."
"Exactly."
~O~
A now familiar vehicle was parked in the driveway. "Oh, I see Penny is here," Claire observed.
Tina and Penny decided to spend the weekend together. Tina and her family were together for most of the two week Christmas break. Tina and her new best friend exchanged gifts and spend New Year's Eve together at Town Hall, but otherwise were never able to meet up for very long. With school starting again on Monday the two girls decided a couple of days together all to themselves would be fun.
"So what have you two girls been up to today?" Claire asked.
"Oh, you know…," Tina began.
"…the usual. Surfing the net…," Penny continued.
"…looking on YouTube…," Tina added.
"…for stuff about Vidia," Penny finished.
They were doing it again. Finishing each other sentences. Claire kept looking back and forth like watching a table tennis match. It happened so fast that she thought she might get a crick in her neck.
"Huh? Me?" Vidia asked. "How could you find anything about me?"
"The internet," Tina said.
"You can find just about anything there," Penny added.
Vidia had been told about the internet. She still could not wrap her brain around the concept. Actually, she was still trying to understand the computer. And the iPod. Even her Kindle eReader baffled her to no end. How can you fit all those books in this little thing? she kept muttering.
Claire sat down next to the two girls who were at the dining room table. Penny's laptop was in front of them. "What did you find?" Claire asked.
"Oh, there are some short videos," Penny announced.
"Yeah, and they are so much fun," Tina finished.
"We found one where she gives Tinker Bell a hard time about a garden gnome," Penny started again.
"Yeah, and Vidia winds up with a mouse knocking her out of the air," Tina finished.
"The mouse's name is Cheese, by the way," Penny added.
"The mouse's name is Cheese?" Claire asked. "Oh right, just like in the first movie."
"Exactly," the two girls said together.
"Jinx!" Tina yelled first. "You owe me a soda."
"How could you know about that?" Vidia asked, looking pained at recalling that unpleasant memory.
"Oh yeah, and there was another one where Vidia is having a nightmare," Tina started.
"Uh huh. She's acting all nice and helpful to everyone."
"Then she wakes up with a fright."
"Because she just can't stand being nice to anyone."
Both girls started giggling. Tina then whispered to Penny, "Kind of like when Valerie had her period. She was so nice and helpful to everyone."
"What? Really? Why didn't you call me?"
"Not funny!" Vidia yelled. "Mom, make them stop. Did I just say that?"
Claire didn't say anything. Vidia turned and noticed that Claire was trying to stifle a laugh.
"Oh great!" Vidia grumbled.
"It's just what sisters do, sweetie," Claire finally said. "They irritate each other. It's called sibling rivalry. It happens all the time."
"Tink and Peri never did that," Vidia said. "They always got along."
"That's not normal," Tina said. "You always played tricks on me."
"Yes, dear," Claire said to Vidia. "Once, when Tina was still very little you put a sign out front trying to sell your little sister."
"You tried to sell your own sister?" Penny said, shocked.
"I don't remember that," Vidia said. "Wait, that wasn't even me."
"That's okay," Tina said. "I can always put you up for sale on eBay."
"Now that's enough, Tina," Claire scolded. "It was funny then because Valerie was very young and jealous that I was giving you so much attention. It's not funny now that you are both grown."
"I was just kidding," Tina replied.
"Yeah, Craigslist is so much better," Penny replied. Tina cracked up laughing.
"Okay, okay. Have your little fun at my expense," Vidia grumbled. "I'm going to my room."
"Wait, we have an even better video of you," Tina announced.
"It's only in animatic form," Penny said, "but it's hilarious."
"Animatic?" Claire asked.
"Yeah, meaning it's just a bunch of sketches with scratch voice work so the animators can get a sense of what is going to happen before it's fully rendered," Tina explained.
"The movie it's attached to is the fifth Tinker Bell film in the series. That film is still early in production, but I do know it has something to do with pirates," Penny continued.
"You've got to see this, Mom. Every time Penny and I watch it we just can't stop laughing."
"Okay, dear."
Vidia, who was curious, also stepped up to watch this video of her and the pirates. Vidia had a sneaking suspicion it was the incident when Zarina stole the blue pixie dust and became the captain of a pirate ship. Penny started the playback. What Vidia saw was a series of simple sketches and voices showing Vidia and Tinker Bell at a beach. Tink finds pirate treasure, but Vidia doesn't care and is irritated that Tink won't leave her alone to tan. Just then, a pirate chest washes ashore, gobbles her up and is carried back out to sea by the current.
Inside the chest, Vidia is subjected to one near death experience after another. She is thrown about inside, chomped on by a human skull, then caught inside a pocket watch, is nearly skewered by sewing pins, splatted against the wall of the chest by water shooting through the keyhole and is then nearly squished by an empty bottle of rum. The chest then deposits her back on the beach in a heap.
"Come on, Vidia, a little pirate treasure isn't going to hurt," Tinker Bell exclaims.
"You don't know that, Tink!" Vidia shouts back, right before being gobbled up by the treasure chest a second time. "DAAAH!" Chomp!
As the short ends, Tina and Penny are in fits of hysterics. Vidia is both confused that anyone would know about that event, and furious that Tina and Penny are having such a good time at her expense. "That's not funny!"
"Yes it was," Tina said, still laughing. "Play it again, Penny."
"No! It's not funny when you've lived through it like I have," Vidia protested a second time. Then she noticed that Claire was shaking. She had turned her head, but it was obvious she was laughing just as much as the two girls. Vidia, angry that everyone had turned against her, stormed up the stairs.
"Oh, honey, we're just having a little fun," Claire said, trying to soothe Vidia's bruised ego.
The girl just slammed the door shut and resolved to spend the day there, brooding. Vidia always missed being a fairy, but now she missed the freedom of flight. As a fast flyer she could go aloft and get away from her misery. Being cooped up in this house, with no means of flying, or driving, she felt trapped. Vidia started punching the pillow on her bed. Then she buried her face into it and started screaming at the top of her lungs.
Downstairs, Tina leaned over and whispered to Penny, "We need to make it up to her later."
"How?"
"Well, she likes to go fast, so something that involves speed."
"I have just the thing," Penny replied, "but I'll need your help."
"What are we going to do?"
Penny began describing her plan. It was simple, but utterly devious.
"Ooh, I love it," Tina said, practically salivating. "Let's get started. I'll get some paper so we can begin with the designs."
So what are Tina and Penny up to? Find out in the next chapter.