Based on the stories of JM Barrie, the Disney 1953 film and the 2003 film with Jeremy Stumpter and Jason Issacs.
All rights go to their rightful owners, Disney, Hasbro and Warner Bros.
All children grow up… expect ONE.
All of this has happened before and it will all happen again. But this time, it happened in London, in a corner house on the quietest street in Bloomsbury. This was home to the Darlings.
One night in the nursery, the youngest child and only daughter, Rapunzel, told a story to her older preteen brothers, Agnarr and Norville aka Shaggy.
"Cinderella flew through the air... far from all things ugly and ordinary. When she landed at the ball, she found herself... most impertinently surrounded by pirates."
The boys gasped in shock as she described each pirate.
"There was Gaston. So strong that his mother sold him for a bottle of muskrat. Tong, every inch of him armed."
Then Rapunzel took a clothes hanger and held it as a weapon.
"And the worse of them all, Dastardly!" she continued. "With eyes grey as a dark cloud though they seem blue as forget-me-nots, save when he clawed your belly with an iron hook he has instead of a right hand at which time... his eyes turn red."
Their dog Scooby whimpered with a loud "rikes!"
Agnarr then took a wooden toy sword and imitated Dastardly.
"Dastardly then said 'Girlie, we come for ye glass slippers!'"
"Who be you to order me about and call me girlie?" Rapunzel answered.
The two then proceeded in a pretend sword fight as Shaggy watched with anticipation. However, they failed to notice that someone was listening.
Rapunzel then held her toy sword against a small, wooden soldier, shocking Agnarr.
"No, not Napoleon" he gasped.
The young toddler giggled as she knocked the toy soldier down.
"Dastardly came at her."
With a loud battle cry, Agnarr charged and jammed his sword into a book shelf, knocking books off.
"Like what happened then?" Shaggy asked anxiously.
"Brave Cinderella settled the matter once and for all..." Rapunzel said. "...with her revolver."
"A revolver?"
While the children were distracted, Scooby sensed an intruder and barked nervously at the window.
A shadow flew away from the window and watched from the roof as the three children searched.
And thus on this very night on which the extraordinary adventures of these children may be said to have begun was the night Scooby Doo barked at the window.
But there was nothing there, not a bird or a leaf. So the children forgot about it, for what troubles a grown-up will never trouble a child.
There never was a happier, simpler family like the Darlings.
Frederic Darling was a practical banker who knew the cost of everything, even a hug.
Arianna Darling was the loveliest lady in all of Bloomsbury with a sweet, mocking mouth that had one kiss on it that Rapunzel could never get. Though there it was, perfectly conspicuous on the right-hand corner.
And of course, Scooby Doo was the finest 'nurse' on all four paws.
The next two nights, Mr. and Mrs. Darling were preparing themselves for a party they had to attend.
"Frederic, please do hurry" called Mrs. Darling. "We mustn't be late, you know."
"Arianna, unless I find my cufflinks, we don't go to the party" Mr. Darling replied. "And if we don't go to the party, I will not show my face in the bank again."
Upstairs in the nursery, Agnarr and Shaggy were playing their usual game of Flynn Pan vs Captain Dastardly.
"My turn to play Captain Dastardly, Shaggy" said Agnarr.
Then, they pulled out their 'swords' and they started to fight.
"Curse you, Pan!" shouted Agnarr in a deep voice.
"Take that!" shouted Shaggy, swinging his sword though afraid of cutting hit. "Dastardly, give up!"
"Never! I'll teach ya to cut off me hand!"
Rapunzel was passing by when she saw Agnarr holding a clothes hanger in his left hand.
"Agnarr, it wasn't the left hand" she giggled. "It was the right."
Her brother realized his mistake and switched his weapons into different hands.
"Oh, yeah, thank you, Rapzunel" he said before they continued to play.
"Like take that" shouted Shaggy.
"Insolent youth! I shall slash you to ribbons!" growled Agnarr.
He swung his sword so hard that accidentally hit Shaggy in the face.
"Ouch! Zoinks!" frowned Shaggy. "Like, careful, Agnarr, that was almost my face."
"I'm sorry, Shaggy. I forgot you were a scaredy-cat."
The game soon resumed.
"Ha! You'll never leave the ship alive, boy!" said Agnarr in his Dastardly voice.
Rapunzel then noticed something at the window.
It was black and thin as paper. It was a shadow!
Whoever came here must have got himself stuck at the window last night Rapunzel thought to herself.
Quickly, she placed the shadow into the drawer and went back to getting herself ready for bed.
"I'll silt your gizzard!" shouted Agnarr. "Aha! I've got you."
Agnarr playfully grabbed Shaggy, who swung his sword.
The sword gently hit Agnarr in the stomach. He groaned as if he were in pain and fell to the ground.
"Please less noise, boys" said Mr. Darling, upon entering the room, accidentally knocking over a tower of blocks.
Scooby yelped and started cleaning up while Mr. Darling looked through all the drawers, still looking for his cufflinks.
"Oh, hello, Father" smiled Agnarr.
"You creepy old codfish!" Shaggy shouted.
Hearing this, Mr. Darling gasped.
"Now, Norville, see here..."
"No, I didn't mean you, Father" answered Shaggy. "Like I'm Flynn Pan and Agnarr is Captain Dastardly."
"Yes, yes, of course. Have you seen my cufflinks?"
"Cufflinks?"
"Yes, the gold ones."
Agnarr and Shaggy helped search, but at that moment, Mr. Darling found something.
"Oh, my!" he cried. "My shirt front!"
Hearing this, Shaggy panicked as Mr. Darling went to look in the mirror.
"Zoinks, no, Father, no!" he shouted.
Scooby pawed at Mr. Darling to stop him, but it was too late, Mr. Darling saw that his shirt front was used as a treasure map.
"No..." he gasped. "Aah!"
Soon, Mrs. Darling entered the room.
"Fredric, what happened?" she asked.
Shaggy was about to speak when Agnarr interfered.
"It was us, Mother" he said. "But it's only chalk, really. It was from the story. And Rapunzel said..."
Mr. Darling's eyes widened when he heard his daughter's name mentioned.
"Rapunzel? Stories?" he asked. "I might have known."
He then ran to the doorway, calling to his daughter.
"Rapunzel, come in here. RA-PUN-ZEL!"
"Yes, Papa?" Rapunzel answered before she noticed his shirt. "Why, Papa! What have you done to your shirt?"
Mr. Darling groaned, annoyed and embarrassed of what's happening to him.
"Oh, Fredric, it comes off" Mrs. Darling said, cleaning the shirt front.
"That's no excuse, Arianna" George replied.
Then, he turned to Rapunzel as she and the boys started cleaning the room with Scooby's help.
"Rapunzel, haven't I warned you? Stuffing your own brothers' heads with those silly, childish stories. You're too young to even tell stories.."
"They aren't silly!" protested Rapunzel.
"I say they are. Captain Rastardly! Flynn Pirate."
"Flynn Pan, Papa."
"Pan! Pirate! Poppycock! Absolute poppycock!"
It was only when Mrs. Darling briefly broke the argument.
"Oh, Fredric" she cooed. "Please not so loud, the neighbors will hear."
Mr. Darling sighed and then calmed down, trying hard not to lose his temper.
"I'm sorry, Arianna, but the boys are growing up" he said to his wife. "And it's high time they had a room of their own. And for Scooby to become a dog."
"Papa!" gasped Rapunzel.
"Daughter, I truly am sorry, but this is your last night in the nursery. It's time for you to grow up."
Agnarr and Shaggy sadly watched as Mr. Darling then dragged Scooby by the collar, dragging him out of the nursery and ripping the nurse cap off.
Rapunzel sniffled, hurt by her father's harsh words.
to be continued…
