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Who: Audrey and Once-ler
What: The traditional response to calling a person a "disgusting monster" is to present the Cupcakes of Forgiveness.
Where: wherever they live idk
When: Wednesday morning

[Audrey wakes up on a park bench Wednesday morning with a vague recollection of what had just happened and a perfectly crystallized memory of telling off Mr. B-- no, it's Mr. Once-ler now, isn't it? That... is going to require some words. And possible bribery so she can go back into the house. Sleeping on a wooden bench isn't nearly as fun as it sounds.

One quick trip to the bakery later, and Audrey is walking back to her house, a box of cupcakes in hand.]

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And they aren't? [he peeks up again, curious but wary.] What about Thneedville? You said it was bad before, b-but...I didn't know it was that terrible.

[he never noticed it before, but the real Audrey is such a far cry from the fake one he spent the weekend avoiding. he doesn't know what he's done to deserve such kindness, especially after the awful things he said to her. even if he didn't mean any of it, he finds it weird that she's entirely too forgiving and it's frustrating. he slams his fist on the windowsill and immediately cringes after.]

Yes, it is! You don't even know the half of it! Take your town for example - you wanna know why it's the way it is? Why there aren't any trees?

[he takes a deep breath. come on, he already came this far. what else has he got to lose?]

...It's because of me.

It's not! I mean, it's not a really nice place to live, but it's not that... it's not whatever they made me think it was. It was never that bad.

[she's quiet for a little while after he says that. maybe a little part of her had hoped that had been a lie, too.]

... It can't be all your fault. You're just one person.

[that lends him pause. he stares down at her, trying to gauge her expression; whether or not she's lying to him. it doesn't seem like she is. she doesn't look like the lying type, unless he's not seeing a completely different side to her.]

You're being sold something you could get for free. In my book, that's pretty darn bad. Unscrupulous, even. Take it from me, I can spot shady business practices in the dark a mile away. With sunglasses on.

[standing like this is getting tiring, so he leans fully against the windowsill now, resting his arms and eventually his head on it.]

Sometimes all it takes is one person. It's even worse when you add a good idea into the mix. Add them together and it's doubly dangerous.

At least O'Hare never messed with our heads. Not like this crazy place. [she gestures to the town around them.]

... Okay, so let's say it is all your fault-- so what? Are you just going to sit around and feel sorry for yourself forever? That can't be healthy.

The point is, he wouldn't even be around if it wasn't for me. I'm the one who cut down all the trees. That makes me directly responsible for everything bad that's happened to your town since then.

[a pause.]

My town.

[and to think, he had such high hopes for Thneedville. it was going to be the best of its kind, the only of its kind, and now look at it: it's been taken over by some megalomaniac of a snake oil salesman. what a way to go.]

Define healthy. This is actually really logical if you think about it. Up here, I can't hurt anybody.

Well, my definition of "healthy" is "not locking myself up in my room because I don't want to face my problems," but I may just be crazy like that.

[siiiiigh] Could you at least come let me in? Please? I need to take a shower.

I'll say. That's not what it's under in the dictionary.

[he considers this for a while before sighing. sure, why not? he straightens up again.]

Fine, whatever. Hold on.

[he walks away from the window, disappearing back into the room.]

Yeah, well, maybe dictionaries-- [oh he already left.

awkward.

just gonna wait out here, then.]

[she'll be waiting for a while. come on, did you really think it would be that easy? this is the Once-ler we're talking about.

it takes him several minutes and a trip into the basement to find what he's looking for. the rope is a leftover from the pre-prom escapades with Haruko. the bucket was under the sink, right next to the most disgusting sponge Once-ler has ever laid eyes on. seriously, he's STILL wiping his hands on his pants even now as he ties the rope around the bucket's handle in a tight knot. when that's done, in goes one of his house keys.

gosh, was he smooth.

he takes the bucket and the coil of rope over to the window and peeks out.]

'kay, it's coming down.

[and he slowly begins to lower it down.]

[she gives him a Look.

a "are you serious is this actually happening oh god you are aren't you" kind of Look.

but, whatever, she can roll with this. it's not the weirdest thing she's seen all week. she takes the key when it finally gets close enough to her.] Thanks.

[and now she's off to unlock the front door exciting adventures in mayfield]

[he cups his hands around his mouth and leans out the window.]

Watch out for the doormat!

[slowly

turns

around]

... Why?

Because! [that sure is an answer, huh.]

Walk around it.

[... well, okay. that creates more questions than it does answers. so, when she actually gets to the front door and unlocks it, she just very gingerly steps over the doormat. best not to risk anything.

when she gets inside, she walks up the stairs. where was the once-ler's bedroom again?]

[trust him, it's for the best and will in no way come back to bite him in the butt later.

his and Rapunzel's room is the first one on the left and, like an idiot, he hasn't locked it. Audrey's footsteps may as well be a big warning alarm. when Once-ler hears them, he scrambles to the door and starts fiddling with the lock. gee, what a good opportunity for his fingers to turn to dough, IMAGINE THAT.]

N-No one's in here!

[. . .seriously?]

[fortunately audrey is too nice to just barge her way in there and stands in front of the door]

C'mon, open up! You're being really weird about this.

[... but, not nice enough to not say that]

I am not! [he opens the door just a tiny sliver to say that, eyes narrowed with indignant anger.] You know what happens when you lock a bad person away? You put them in a position where they can't do anything terrible to anyone. You take away their means to hurt others. It's a perfectly logical process.

[his eyes droop downwards, like holding her gaze for too long is hurting him somehow.]

It's the same with me.

The only one you're hurting is yourself! [she puts her fingers on the door frame, thinking he won't slam it shut if they're there. hopefully.] It's not as bad as you think.

[that's a dirty trick. he's done a lot of horrid things but he's not about to add "finger smashing" to the list.]

...Not as bad as I think. Right, okay. When I say that everyone and everything is gone, that's just me exaggerating and in no way alluding to the fact that I'm the reason why everything's gone to heck and back.

[he opens the door a little wider so she can see his totally deadpan face.]

This is just me being being melodramatic.

There's one left.

[yes, that is appropriately cryptic.]

[he's just about to shoot back with an of course there is, but catches himself just in time to look at her with a curious mix of disbelief, apprehension and distrust. seems like he's not the only one who's been holding back here.]

...How do you know that? [he takes another step back, letting go of the doorknob. in hindsight, maaaaybe not the best course of action if this is Audrey's way of revealing that she's a crazed stalker or something.]

Right now, in the middle of Thneedville, the last truffula tree is growing. It's not really big, but it's there and it's a start.

[she pushes open the door a bit.] So, you can come out of your room. Or at least turn the lights on.

[being too busy engrossed in that mental image, he just lets her. his hands are at his side, fingers quivering and curling as he imagines the seed sprouting. the very same one he attempted to plant himself not even a week after the company went under. of course, he knows how well that worked, which is why the distrustful look intensifies when Audrey opens the door.]

That's not true. [he shakes his head, slowly.] You can't do anything with that seed. Believe me, I tried.

[- although his irritation does not extend as far as him calling it worthless. that would feel like betrayal, somehow.]

We buried it in the ground and poured water on it, and a little while later it started to sprout. That's definitely something.

[part of her wants to grab his hand, to reassure him, but it's already taken her long enough just to get inside. she doesn't want to spook him. instead, she clasps her hands in front of her.]

I wouldn't lie about something like this. It's too important.

I'd say it's more than just something. [he exhales and raises a hand to rub at his temples.] Look, maybe you don't get how messed up everything really is. I don't know if you've ever been outside the town, but the valley? It's sick. That's the best way I can put it. Nothing can grow in the ground; it's too stony. And the air's so toxic. And when it rains, it's like...

[he cringes.]

It just...it feels really weird on your skin. It itches when it dries; that can't be good.

Point is, nothing can grow out there, so what makes Thneedville any different? [he crosses his arms.] And how did you even get your hands on it anyhow?

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