The Nightmare Before Christmas Page #8

In her swoon, she fumbles blindly among the other jars.

SALLY:

(choking)

Sweet Pea... Where's that

Sweet Pea... Too bitter...

Too bitter...

Her hand finally locates the jar labelled, "Sweet Pea."

The Evil Scientist calls from another room:

EVIL SCIENTIST (O.S.)

Sally?

Still choking, hardly able even to squeak out an answer, Sally

struggles to open the Sweet Pea jar.

EVIL SCIENTIST (O.S.)

Where's my soup?

Sally finally gets the jar open. As fast as she can, she empties

it into the soup and hovers above the pot. In a moment, the

Sweet Pea takes effect and Sally's strength begins to return.

SALLY:

(gasps)

Coming...

EVIL SCIENTIST (O.S.)

Good. I'm hungry.

Still a bit shaky, Sally reaches for one more jar. The label on

this one reads, "Worm's Wart."

SALLY:

(hoarsely)

A handful of Worm's Wart just

for distraction. It'll throw

him off the trail for sure...

She drops in some Worm's Wart, stirs the soup, then ladles out a

bowlful.

CUT TO:

INT. EVIL SCIENTIST'S LABORATORY. DAY.

The Evil Scientist is at his lab table, peering into a microscope

and thinking -- which, for him, involves lifting off the top of

his skull and tickling and scrambling the brains inside.

Sally carries in a tray holding his bowl of soup.

SALLY:

Lunch.

The scientist impatiently gestures her over. He replaces the top

of his skull...

EVIL SCIENTIST:

Excellent. Over here. Over

here. Set it down.

She gingerly sets the tray in front of him.

The scientist inhales a deep sniff of the steam curling off the

soup.

EVIL SCIENTIST:

Ah... What's that?... Worm's

Wart!

He glances suspiciously at Sally.

EVIL SCIENTIST:

What trail are you trying to

throw me off now?

SALLY:

(stammers; feigns

innocence)

Nothing. W-w-what are you

talking about?

The scientist pushes the bowl of soup toward Sally.

EVIL SCIENTIST:

Taste it.

SALLY:

But why? It's your lunch.

There isn't much there in the

first place.

EVIL SCIENTIST:

Taste it.

SALLY:

No.

EVIL SCIENTIST:

Why not?

SALLY:

I'm not hungry.

(acts all hurt)

What's wrong? I spent all

morning on that soup. I

thought you liked Worm's Wart.

EVIL SCIENTIST:

There's nothing more suspicious

than Worm's Wart -- it

distracts one from every other

taste and smell.

He dips a spoon into the soup then holds it up to Sally.

EVIL SCIENTIST:

Until you taste it, I won't eat

a bite.

Sally crumples.

SALLY:

But I have to go out.

Something's happening out

there.

EVIL SCIENTIST:

Whatever it is, it's none of

your concern.

He waves the spoon at her.

EVIL SCIENTIST:

Eat.

She keeps her lips closed tight.

EVIL SCIENTIST:

(lapses into self-pity

mode)

Then we'll both starve... An

old man like me, who hardly has

strength as it is -- me,

without whom... me, your own

father...

SALLY:

Can't you make other creations?

EVIL SCIENTIST:

I could. Of course I could.

But no one would be like you...

(pours it on again)

I'll never understand how you

can be so cold-hearted, how you

can treat me this way,

discarding me like--

It works. He wears Sally down:

SALLY:

(interrupts)

All right... All right...

I'll eat it.

She closes her eyes and sips the soup off the spoon.

CUT TO:

EXT. TOWN SQUARE. DUSK.

The Mayor lies sprawled on top of his hearse, staring up at the

sky for ideas. He's exhausted, as are the assembled citizens of

Halloweenland, exhausted from exhausting their alternatives when

it comes to seeking Jack.

The Mayor lifts his heavy head and feebly asks:

MAYOR:

Did anybody think to dredge the

lake?

A recumbent corpse sits up and nods:

CORPSE:

This morning.

The corpse flops down again.

The mayor lets his head fall back.

IN THE DISTANCE,

there's a BARK (O.S.)

WITCH #1

Hear that?

WITCH #2

What?

Now a DEEP RUMBLING (O.S.) can just be heard -- punctuated by

another sharp BARK (O.S.)

WITCH #3

Ssh!

They listen. More RUMBLING. DEFINITE BARKS NOW.

VAMPIRE:

(excited)

Zero?!

The sounds get louder, closer...

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