Kai-Lan's Sleepover/script

 Kai-Lan’s Sleepover 

Season 1, Episode 3

Prologue

(Opening shot: fade in to the sun shining in a clear blue sky. The view is short-lived, however, as gray clouds slowly maneuver into view to partially block the light. Tilt down to ground level; in the meadow, the area is littered with fallen branches, which are being picked up and carried away. Many birds are flying about. Tilt down to follow Gusty in her high-speed flight above the area. She rockets by a tree. Farther along, Crystal daintily picks up a broken bough upward and re-attaches it at the point where it came loose. She eyes it with great concentration.)


 * Crystal: Hmmm...hah!

(Cut to the bough, whose leaves instantly style themselves into a pair of rearing-filly topiaries. Back to her.)


 * Crystal: Perfect!

(Gusty swoops past at full speed, barely missing her nose.)


 * Gusty: Yeah!

(Crystal aims a disbelieving gaze after Gusty, who leaves behind nothing but her laughter.)


 * Crystal: Gusty! (Groan.) That pegasus girl needs to be taught some manners! (Gusty flies down to stare at her point-blank.)
 * Gusty: Wazzup! (Crystal takes a step back, startled.)
 * Crystal: Oh, dear! Gusty!
 * Gusty: What are you doing, prettifying that branch? Puh-lease, Crystal. It’s nature! It’s supposed to be messy.
 * Crystal: Well, you are very messy yourself. I mean, look around you! You’re making an absolute mess of the meadow!

(Cut to a close-up of the many leaves in the grass and zoom out/tilt up to frame the two on the next line.)


 * Gusty: Yeah, well, the storm’s gonna make an even bigger mess anyway.
 * Crystal: I simply cannot imagine—

(Cut to the gloomy gray expanse.)


 * Crystal: (from o.s.) —why Mother Nature would schedule a dreadful downpour this evening and ruin what could have been a glorious sunny day. (Back to the pair.)
 * Gusty: (sighing) Aw, buck up and deal with it, will you? (flipping upside down) It’s not like we asked for a storm or anything.

(The rain begins; pan to Crystal.)


 * Crystal: Oh, no! My wonderfully styled hair shall be ruined!
 * Gusty: Then find someplace to take shelter.

(The prissy two-tailed cat cries out and tries to duck every raindrop that comes her way.)


 * Crystal: (between yelps) It’s coming down too fast!...Help me!

(Gusty looks to each side for shelter; cut to her perspective.)


 * Gusty: Uh… (Stop on a picnic table.) ...there! Hunker down to your heart’s content while I hang out down here.

(Back to Crystal, who runs across the grassy area and skids to a stop by the table, which has a sizable puddle underneath. Tilt down to frame this in close-up during the next line.)


 * Crystal: Oh, no, no, no, NO! (Longer shot; Gusty has joined her.)
 * Gusty: Crystal, what’s the problem?
 * Crystal: I’d prefer not to get my boots dirty.
 * Gusty: (grunting disgustedly) Seriously?! It’s just mud, Crystal! There’s just no pleasing you, is there?
 * Crystal: Well, and how does muddying my boots serve any useful purpose?
 * Gusty: Who cares! You wouldn’t know useful if it came up and slapped you in the face!
 * Crystal: (laughing) That doesn’t even make any sense. (Pan from one to the other in turn.)
 * Gusty: Does so.
 * Crystal: Does not.
 * Gusty: Does so!
 * Crystal: Does not. (Zoom out to frame both, head to head.)
 * Gusty: Does so!
 * Crystal: Does not.
 * Gusty: Does so!
 * Crystal: Does not.
 * Gusty: Does so, infinitely! Hah!
 * Crystal: Does not, infinitely plus one.
 * Gusty: Does so, infinitely plus two!
 * Crystal: Does not, infinitely plus...one hundred!

(Demure chuckle, followed by the two robot girls looking daggers at each other for a long, tense moment.)


 * Crystal: What do you say we go our separate ways before one of us says something she will regret?
 * Gusty: And something tells me you’re gonna be the first to say something you’ll regret!
 * Crystal: On the contrary, I believe it shall most certainly be you who says something you will regret first.
 * Gusty: Uh-uh! I bet it’s gonna be you!
 * Crystal: Well, I think it’s going to be you.
 * Gusty: Nope! You are!
 * Crystal: No, you are!
 * Gusty: No, you!
 * Crystal: You!
 * Gusty: That’s it! I’m not saying a thing!
 * Crystal: Nor am I!
 * Gusty: Then go!
 * Crystal: After you!

(They slowly back up and o.s. in opposite directions, neither taking her eyes off the other the whole time. A sudden crack of lightning, and they are back where they started with a cry of fear, hugging each other tightly and shaking.)


 * Crystal: Perhaps we should stick together for now and find some shelter.
 * Gusty: Uh-huh. And maybe we should… (Long shot, zooming out through the intensifying storm.) ...and fast!

(Fade to black.)

OPENING THEME

Act One

(Opening shot: fade in to a stretch of thunderheads amid the downpour, then zoom out to frame the picnic table in a long shot. Gusty has taken shelter beneath it; cut to a close-up.)


 * Gusty: Nice and dry under here… (eyeing muddy boots) ...sorta. (Pan to Crystal, by the table.)
 * Crystal: Ugh! Unacceptable!
 * Kai-Lan, Lulu, Mei Mei: (from o.s.) Gusty! Crystal! (Crystal looks toward the sound; Gusty soon emerges.) Ni-hao!

(They look toward Kai-Lan’s home, with the three girls standing at the open door and all the lights on.)


 * Crystal, Gusty: Ni-hao!
 * Kai-Lan: Come inside, girls, quick!

(The two sodden robotic girls sprint across the open stretch of land. Crystal and Gusty follow the younger girls inside.)


 * Crystal: (sighing happily) We are most grateful for your invitation.

(She looks worriedly over her shoulder as Gusty steps in, muddy boots and all.)


 * Gusty: Yeah! Thanks for letting us crash here.

(Crystal stops her and points down, the camera zooming in on the spattered boots.)


 * Crystal: (from o.s.) Oh dear… (Back to the pair; she walks in.) ...do be a polite houseguest and go wash up, please, won’t you?
 * Gusty: (snarling to herself) If I gotta spend one more second with Lil’ Miss Prissy Cat today, I can’t be held responsible for what I’m gonna do!

(She steps out on the end of this line.)


 * Lulu: That’s quite a storm.
 * Kai-Lan: I agree. I hope you and Gusty don’t have any trouble getting home.
 * Crystal: It may indeed be a problem.
 * Kai-Lan: Well, you two are welcome to stay. Me, Lulu, and Mei Mei are having a little get-together.
 * Lulu: And we don’t mind having more guests.
 * Mei Mei: Oh! We should sleep over!
 * Kai-Lan: Super idea, Mei Mei! We’ll have a slumber party!
 * Mei Mei: I’ve always wanted one of those.

(The suggestion catches Crystal speechless for a second before she finally comes up with a response.)


 * Crystal: Oh!...goodness, uh, I do believe I have another engagement scheduled for this evening that completely slipped my mind until just now. (Fake chuckle.) Oh, silly me, I simply cannot stay here all night… (under her breath) ...with Gusty.
 * Kai-Lan: I already have some ideas on what to do. (pulls out a sheet of paper) First, we can do makeovers. Then, we can tell scary stories! Then, we can make smores. Then, we can play truth or dare. Then, we can have a pillow fight. After all of that, we go to sleep!
 * Lulu: This is going to be amazing!
 * Mei Mei: I agree.
 * Kai-Lan, Lulu, Mei Mei: Slumber party!
 * Crystal: Yes, uh...great.

(She manages the best polite laugh she can. Quick pan to the window, through which Gusty can be seen wrestling with a garden hose; she eventually gets the water going only to have it spray her in the face and sends her falling to the ground. Pan back to Crystal, who directs a pained look toward the ceiling, then dissolve to a close-up of Gusty’s sparkling-clean boots crossing the room. However, she is now tracking water across the floor instead of mud. Tilt up to frame the rest of her as she stops and runs a satisfied eye over them. When she looks ahead, though, she pulls in a sharp gasp, her eyes going wide and her tail briefly standing up of its own accord.)


 * Gusty: What the heck?

(Cut to Kai-Lan, Lulu, and Mei Mei; the three have beauty treatment smeared on their faces. Crystal’s ungloved hand reaches into view and slathers some more on Mei-Mei’s face. Pan to her, also with a faceful of the stuff, and zoom out to frame the four. They are relaxing on pillows, and Gusty stands facing them in the foreground. During the next line, the camera shifts to frame a kitchen area behind the five.)


 * Gusty: Okay, let me get this straight; I can’t have mud on my boots, but it’s okay when you have mud on your faces?
 * Lulu: Gusty, it’s a mud mask.
 * Crystal: Yes. It’s to refresh and rejuvenate your complexion. (Pan to Kai-Lan and Mei Mei.)
 * Mei Mei: We’re giving each other makeovers! (She and Kai-Lan giggle; the latter pulls out a sheet of paper with writing on it.)
 * Kai-Lan: It’s the first thing on my list. (Gusty takes the paper.)
 * Gusty: (reading) Slumber 101?

(She looks with a sudden grimace, then recovers her composure.)


 * Gusty: Oh, hey! Would you look at the time? I gotta fly back home quick, I’m super late for...for, uh...good night!

(She flies o.s, but yelps and beats a hasty retreat when a fresh bolt of lightning cracks the sky. Saucer-eyed fear gives way to a shaky smile after a moment.)


 * Gusty: Or...I can stay here.
 * Kai-Lan, Lulu, Mei Mei: (clapping) Slumber party!

(Giggles from the trio; the pegasus girl’s unease is interrupted when a handful of mud mask is thrown onto her face and Crystal rubs it in.)


 * Gusty: Augh!

(Now she gets a cucumber slice slapped onto each eye.)


 * Gusty: What’s the cucumber for?!
 * Crystal: (sighing wearily) To reduce the puffiness around one’s eye, of course.
 * Gusty: That’s dumb! (She pulls them into her mouth with her tongue and gulps them down.) They’re better when you eat them.

(Crystal just aims a vexed stare her way as the sound of more chomping drifts back to her. The giggling of Kai-Lan, Lulu, and Mei Mei comes from the opposite direction; cut to the younger girls seated at a table. Kai-Lan reads from the list.)


 * Kai-Lan: Isn’t this exciting?
 * Lulu: We should do everything on the list.
 * Kai-Lan: Good idea, Lulu. That will make the slumber party super fun!
 * Mei Mei: I agree!
 * Crystal: (pointedly) Did you hear that, Gusty? (The pegasus girl is trying to scrape her face clean.) You certainly would not want to do anything that would upset those sweet little girls, would you? (Pan to Gusty.)
 * Gusty: No way! And you wouldn’t dare to do that, right? (To Crystal.)
 * Crystal: So do we have an agreement?
 * Gusty: You bet we do.

(She spits on one hand and offers it to shake.)


 * Crystal: (horrified) Oh, that’s disgusting! You know, there’s messy, and there’s just plain rude!
 * Gusty: You know, there’s fussy, and there’s just plain getting on my nerves!
 * Crystal: Fortunately, I can get along with anyone, no matter how difficult she may be.
 * Gusty: Oh, yeah? Well, everyone gets along better with me than you do!
 * Crystal: Well, at least I have manners!
 * Gusty: You’re a spoiled brat who gets a sick thrill out of bossing people around!
 * Crystal: And you’re a rude little girl with no manners and picks fights with almost anyone she sees! (The younger girls get in between them.)
 * Kai-Lan, Lulu, Mei Mei: This is gonna be the best sleepover ever! Yay!
 * Crystal, Gusty: (deadpan) Yay.

(Zoom in as they give each other dirty looks from the corners of their eyes, then snap to black.)

Act Two

(Opening shot: fade in to a long shot of Kai-Lan’s home, with the camera tilted a few degrees off horizontal as if the wind has knocked it askew. It is now evening, and the storm has not let up one bit. Zoom in slowly, then dissolve to a close-up of Crystal in the kitchen. She has removed the mud mask from her face and put her hair up in curlers. She has her gloves back on.)


 * Crystal: Soooo...how are you getting along over there, Gusty?

(Zoom out; Kai-Lan, Lulu, Mei Mei, and Gusty, in front of her, are also cleaned up. Kai-Lan and Gusty are using their curlers. The pegasus girl has them on her tail as well as her hair.)


 * Gusty: (wearily) Just fine.
 * Lulu: Aw, Gusty, I really like your hair.
 * Mei Mei: Me too. It’s so colorful.
 * Gusty: (wearily) Yeah, whatever.
 * Kai-Lan: Okay, now that’s done!

(She pulls out her list and a pencil.)


 * Kai-Lan: (marking on paper) Makeovers, check.

(All the curlers disappear in a flash, leaving the two guests to trade a thin smile.)


 * Kai-Lan: Okay! Next on the list is telling scary stories!

(Lulu and Mei Mei both gasped and exchanged surprised looks.)


 * Lulu: Oooh. Who should go first?
 * Gusty: Obviously, me! Why, I think this story will be so scary, you won’t be able to sleep for months! Or even years! You ready?
 * Kai-Lan: Let’s hear it.
 * Lulu: Yeah!
 * Mei Mei: Ooh, do tell.
 * Gusty: Cool! (hushed tone) I’d like to tell you the most terrifying tale of all! It is so scary, you’ll be having nightmares for months! Here’s the tale of the Prissy Ghost. She is the meanest, brattiest, girliest, and most selfish spoiled brat ever! She drives everybody to the brink of insanity with her unnecessary neatness!

(She aims a few of these words at Crystal, then waves her hands about while making ghostly moaning sounds for effect. The next line is directed straight at her opposite number.)


 * Gusty: How’s that for a spooky tale? You probably never heard of it, but I’m sure you’ll never forget it. (Pan to Crystal.)
 * Crystal: Never heard of it. But I have a much better one.
 * Kai-Lan: I’m ready.
 * Lulu: Tell the story.
 * Mei Mei: We’re listening.
 * Crystal: (ominously) It’s the horrifying story of the Messy Inconsiderate Pegasus Ghost. She irritates everyone within a hundred miles!

(Aimed at Gusty, of course, and now she adds her own sound effects.)


 * Gusty: That’s lame, and that’s not even a real story! You made that up!
 * Crystal: It is a ghost story. They’re all made up!

(A lightning strike takes out all the lights, leaving the screen black and eliciting a triple gasp of fright. A moment later, a light snaps on from just below the bottom edge of the screen, illuminating the five faces sitting around it.)


 * Kai-Lan: I’ve got one.
 * Lulu: Ooh, let’s hear it!
 * Mei Mei: Is it really scary?
 * Kai-Lan: Very scary. (Zoom in slowly.) This story is called… (hushed) …”The Legend Of Red Eyes.”

(Cut to the window; more lightning tears through the night.)


 * Kai-Lan: (from o.s.) It was a dark and stormy night…

(Long shot of the five girls. The light is coming from a baseball-sized lantern set in the center of the floor.)


 * Kai-Lan: ...just like this one. And five girls were having a slumber party...just like this one.

(Her house’s exterior is seen, followed by a dissolve to a visibly unnerved Crystal—evidently Kai-Lan’s story has gone to work on her. Cut to Gusty, Lulu, and Mei Mei on the next line; they are doing no better.)


 * Kai-Lan: (from o.s.) And just when the last little girl thought she was safe… (Shift to frame all five; zoom in slowly.) ...there, standing right behind her, just inches away, was… (Zoom out quickly.) ...RED EYES!

(A lightning strike, and she has reared up before Lulu and Mei Mei with a blanket covering her head. Both younger girls and the robotic ones scream in terror and clutch at each other, falling quiet only when Kai-Lan peeks out with a “gotcha” smile. She tosses the cover away and gallops over to a stand where her slumber party list sits, along with a pencil; the lights come back on.)


 * Kai-Lan: What about you, Lulu and Mei Mei? Got any scary stories to tell?
 * Lulu: I...I’m too scared to tell any ghost stories.
 * Mei Mei: M-Me too. W-We’ll pass, Kai-Lan, i-if it’s okay.
 * Kai-Lan: Sure. (marks paper) Ghost story, check.

(Now that that’s done, the other four draw apart from each other; Lulu and Mei Mei with relieved smiles, Crystal and Gusty with suspicious glances. Kai-Lan pops up between them, still completely unaware of any enmity.)


 * Kai-Lan: Don’t worry, guys. Red Eyes won’t really get you. Now, who wants s’mores?
 * Lulu, Mei Mei: (raising hand) Ooh, me!

(Dissolve to Gusty at the fireplace, toasting three marshmallows at once. Zoom out and pan across the area during the next line.)


 * Crystal: (from o.s.) Then you place one marshmallow on the top of the chocolate—

(On the end of this, the camera reaches Crystal at a table, addressing the young polar bear. Plates of graham crackers and chocolate squares are laid out. Crystal, Kai-Lan, and Lulu have a nearly-completed s’more on a saucer before them, missing only its top cracker; she is holding both that piece and all the parts for a second.)


 * Crystal: —and be sure it’s centered, that’s critical, and then carefully put another perfectly square graham cracker on the top.

(On the second half of this, cut to a close-up of the saucer; she takes the second cracker down and squishes it gently into place.)


 * Crystal: (from o.s.) And...done!

(Zoom out to frame all five at the table. Gusty is less than enthused at her meticulous explanation.)


 * Crystal: Ta-da! (Soft laugh.)
 * Mei Mei: That is very thorough, Crystal.
 * Lulu: Yeah.
 * Kai-Lan: Super!
 * Gusty: They’re kids, Crystal. What do they care about perfection?
 * Crystal: Then what’s your way, hm?
 * Gusty: You just eat ‘em!

(She does so, scarfing the whole thing in one cheek-bulging mouthful and chewing noisily with her mouth open. Pan from her to Crystal, who reacts to this display of bad table manners and the loud burp that follows it with a disgusted groan.)


 * Crystal: You could at least say, “Excuse me.”
 * Gusty: I was just about it, but you interrupted me. ‘Cuse me.

(The elegant two-tailed cat girl is not exactly thrilled by this.)


 * Kai-Lan: (from o.s.) S’mores… (Quick pan to her, marking off in her list.) ...check. Now the next item of fun we have to do is...truth or dare!
 * Lulu: That sounds like fun! Who should go first?
 * Crystal: I’d be glad to. I dare Gusty to do something carefully and neatly for a change.
 * Gusty: Oh, yeah? Well, I dare Crystal to lighten up and stop obsessing over every little meaningless detail, for a change.
 * Crystal: I think the truth of the matter is that a certain pegasus girl could stand to play to pay a little more attention to detail. (Zoom out on this; Kai-Lan, Lulu, and Mei Mei watch with mild shock.)
 * Mei Mei: (hushed, to Kai-Lan) I don’t think they’re getting along.
 * Gusty: And I think the truth is, a certain nekomata oughta knock it off with her ridiculous fussing so the rest of us can get things done!

(Cut from them to Kai-Lan, Lulu, and Mei Mei and back during the previous line. The young human girl then turns back to her guide.)


 * Kai-Lan: Crystal! Gusty! You two should calm down.
 * Lulu: Yeah. This is a slumber party. We shouldn’t be fighting.
 * Gusty: (to Crystal) I dare you to step outside and let the rain ruin your precious, tidy hair again!

(The owner of said hair shudders in fright.)


 * Kai-Lan: You have to, Crystal. It’s the rule.
 * Gusty: HA!
 * Crystal: Fine!

(She slumps out, Gusty grinning wickedly after her. From o.s come the sounds of the door opening, rain pouring down, and Crystal yelping in barely contained panic. Gusty puts a hand to her mouth to stifle a guffaw. When the door closes again, there stands one very soggy nekomata, her hair having lost all semblance of its usual elegant curl. Gusty stifles a laugh and then gives it full voice, falling over in the process. Crystal squishes back into the room, but clams up and has to start backing away before her steady advance.)


 * Crystal: Okay. I dare Gusty to wear a glittery, fancy outfit!

(Now Gusty is the one to react badly, sucking in a sharp gasp. She throws Crystal a dirty look and hovers off; a quick rustle of clothing, and she returns to the room. Her light pink outfit is that of a typical fairy-tale princess, complete with earrings and necklace, magenta ribbons on her ungloved hands, a tall pointed hat, and a full-length gown. Her hair has been curled and flowers put into it. Needless to say, she is not the slightest bit pleased at having to do this.)


 * Gusty: Happy?
 * Crystal: (pulling out her phone) Not yet. (takes picture) Now I’m satisfied. (Chuckle; cut to the younger girls.)
 * Lulu: Uh, girls? Don’t we get a turn?
 * Gusty: (from o.s.) I dare you to enter the next monster truck show when it comes to town! (Cut to frame all five; she has addressed Crystal.)
 * Crystal: I dare you not to enter the next monster truck show that comes to town!
 * Gusty: I dare you to go through an entire week without wearing anything fancy or girly!
 * Crystal: And I dare you to go two weeks wearing clothes that aren’t purple or blue!
 * Kai-Lan: Guys?
 * Gusty: I dare you to go three weeks acting less of a prissy princess!
 * Crystal: And I dare you to go an entire month acting less of a boyish brute!
 * Mei Mei: Guys?
 * Gusty: Oh, yeah? Well, I dare you to not comb your hair for a day!
 * Crystal: And I dare you to comb your just once!
 * Kai-Lan: Okay, then. I think we should check off truth or dare and move on.
 * Lulu: Uh-huh. So, what’s next on the list?

(Kai-Lan eyes the paper.)


 * Kai-Lan: Oh. Pillow fight. That’s next.
 * Mei Mei: (surprised) Um...we don’t actually fight, do we? (Cut to Crystal, now properly dried and styled.)
 * Crystal: No, and I am not at all interested in participating in something so crude.

(She promptly catches a flying pillow with her face and spits out a few loose feathers, changing her attitude in a heartbeat.)


 * Crystal: Ooh! (Zoom in to an extreme close-up.) It. Is. On!

(One quick nip and head snap send the pillow flying across the room into Gusty’s face. Shaking the feathers away, the latter kicks three from the pile in front of her, having changed out of the dress-up outfit and into her usual one, and has her hair back the way she likes it. A triple bullseye; now the nekomata girl kicks the pillows back across the room, missing with each one. The camera shifts back to Gusty, who has cinched several in a lasso and is twirling them overhead. She whips them loose—a salvo of three—but Crystal brings them to a hovering rest on either side of her. She hurls them back across the room. Now pillows go flying in both directions as Mei Mei stands up into view with a look of sudden understanding.)


 * Mei Mei: Oh! There’s no actual fighting.
 * Kai-Lan: Come on!
 * Lulu: Let’s join them!

(Kai-Lan and Lulu step out. The two that slam into the side of Mei Mei’s head tell her that she should have been more careful about getting into the crossfire. Their combined impact drops her to the floor and knocks her silly.)


 * Mei Mei: (very woozy) Uh, I think we should take it down a notch. (Gusty throws and dodges.)
 * Gusty: I will if she will!
 * Crystal: (dodging) She started it!

(Now a sizable pile of pillows has collected in the center of the floor, burying the little polar bear. After the last few land on it, Kai-Lan and Lulu hoist their friend up, who spits out feathers once she comes out.)


 * Lulu: Uh...maybe we should just call it a night and get some sleep.
 * Kai-Lan: (sadly) Yeah.

(Dissolve to her bedroom, the lights out. Two beds have been set up, one on each side of her own. Lulu and Mei take the one on the right, Crystal and Gusty take the other on the left; they are lying back to back in it. Both have their boots off and are . Zoom in as Kai-Lan, in her blue dinosaur onesie, stirs in her sleep, then cut to an overhead view of Crystal. She and Gusty keep their voices down through the following.)


 * Crystal: Keep your muddy tail on your side of the bed! (Pan to Gusty.)
 * Gusty: My tail isn’t that muddy! (Back to Crystal.)
 * Crystal: Well, there might still be a little on it.
 * Gusty: It isn’t! (showing her tail) See?
 * Crystal: Ewww!

(She grips the blanket and yanks all of it to her side.)


 * Gusty: And you said I’m the inconsiderate one! Now look at you!

(She yanks the blanket off Crystal, who glares over her shoulder and then gets off the bed.)


 * Crystal: Ugh! I have to make the bed again so the blanket will be right! (butting Gusty off) Get up!
 * Gusty: (now o.s.) No!

(Crystal tucks the blanket’s corners neatly over the mattress and smooths out all the folds, leaving a perfectly made bed that does not placate Gusty in the slightest. The latter angles her head down to get her teeth on the edge, but Crystal waves her back.)


 * Crystal: Ah-ah-ah! You’ll ruin it. You have to do it like this.

(From a haunch-sitting position on her pillow, she eases her hindquarters under the blanket without turning it down, and eventually winds up lying on her side.)


 * Crystal: Ahhhh…
 * Gusty: Okay, that’s lame too. (jumping o.s., full volume) GERONIMO!!!

(She lands on the bed with enough force to throw both Crystal and the pillow out of view; the suddenly vacant half of the blanket settles over her.)


 * Crystal: (from o.s., full volume) Hey! (Thud.)
 * Gusty: Aw, yeah… (Crystal gets up.)
 * Crystal: You did that on purpose!
 * Gusty: So?
 * Crystal: SO, get up so I can fix it again!
 * Gusty: Can’t hear you. I’m asleep.

(She gives a few loud fake snores as Crystal fumes quietly for a moment, after which the irate nekomata girl whips the blanket off the bed.)


 * Gusty: I ain’t budging, sis.
 * Crystal: (through gritted teeth) You will if you want any blanket!

(It is swiftly yanked away by Gusty, leading to a tug-of war.)


 * Gusty: Give it back!
 * Crystal: I will not!
 * Gusty: Yes, you will!
 * Crystal: Won’t!
 * Gusty: Will!
 * Crystal: Won’t!
 * Gusty: Will!
 * Crystal: Won’t!
 * Gusty: Will!
 * Crystal: Won’t!
 * Gusty: Will! (Kai-Lan sits up in bed.)
 * Kai-Lan: STOP!!

(Back to the two combatants, who slacken their pull on the blanket as an irate Lulu and Mei Mei march on over to them.)


 * Kai-Lan: (from o.s.) All I wanted was the five of us together for a fun slumber party!
 * Lulu: And your petty arguing is ruining it!
 * Mei Mei: And I’m pretty sure that’s not on Kai-Lan’s list! (Gusty drops her end.)
 * Gusty: I’ve been trying my hardest to get along! (Crystal drops hers.)
 * Crystal: No, it is I who have been trying my best.
 * Gusty: No, it was me!
 * Crystal: No, it was I!
 * Gusty: No, me!
 * Crystal: No, I!
 * Gusty: Me!
 * Crystal: I!

(Now they try to bulldoze each other away, but Lulu and Mei Mei get in between them.)


 * Lulu: ENOUGH!!
 * Mei Mei: (sadly) Yeah. You know what? (walking away) That’s it. I’m sleeping somewhere else.
 * Kai-Lan: (from o.s.) Gusty and Crystal! (Cut to her.) I hope you’re happy, both of you! This was Mei Mei’s first slumber party! The makeover, the s’mores, truth or dare, the pillow fight—I mean, is there anything we can do that doesn’t involve you two fighting?! (Lulu comes over.)
 * Lulu: Yeah. In fact, if you two can’t get along, then...what’s the point in having a slumber party?
 * Kai-Lan: (sighing) Is there anything else that could possibly go wrong?

(Lightning strike; cut to outside. A nearby tree has been hit, weakening the trunk so that its upper section begins to lean precariously toward Kai-Lan’s house. Inside, Kai-Lan and Lulu notice the blue polar bear huddled in the corner, looking very sad.)


 * Kai-Lan: Poor Mei Mei.

(Fade to black.)

Act Three

(Opening shot: fade in to the exterior of Kai-Lan’s house, framed a couple of degrees off-kilter as at the start of Act Two. The lightning strike is shown again; inside, all five girls are out of bed and have turned on the lights. Hurrying to the window, they look out and gasp in unison, seeing the tree’s upper section start to topple over.)


 * Gusty: (to Crystal) You see? That’s why we needed to take down all those loose branches— (Cut to a chastened Crystal; she continues o.s.) —not spiffy them up!
 * Crystal: But I— (Zoom out to frame Gusty.)
 * Gusty: Out of my way! (flying to window) No time to waste!

(She pushes it open.)


 * Crystal: (from o.s.) Wait! Stop! (crossing toward Gusty) Don’t!
 * Gusty: Crystal, shut up!

(With that, she flies out and grabs the loose section at its top, then pushes it slightly back.)


 * Gusty: (peeking through window) And that, my friends, is what we call “getting it done”.

(She hovers over and gives the tree one good kick; Crystal cries out in panic, then the younger girls—and the entire leafy expanse of the snapped-off piece tumbles squarely through the window. The foliage is expansive enough to nearly knock the dresser over, and Gusty winds up hanging over the window while still holding the tree by its top. Crystal’s cries are heard from o.s. as the camera pans from the wind-blown mess to her at the dresser, which has now toppled over.)


 * Crystal: I tried to tell you it would come crashing down in here! (Gusty peeks in again.)
 * Gusty: Well, you shoulda tried harder!

(Her eyes pop upon seeing that Crystal is trying to help Lulu remove the dresser away from the leaves; at the other end of the fallen timber, Kai-Lan pokes her head up dizzily and shakes it clear. Cut to Gusty and zoom out to frame Gusty as she speaks.)


 * Gusty: Sorry about that.
 * Kai-Lan: It’s…well…it’s not okay! There’s a giant tree branch in the middle of my bedroom!

(Crystal begins tidying up the dresser.)


 * Gusty: What the heck are you doing? (Close-up of Crystal as she finishes.)
 * Crystal: Cleaning up this mess somebody made! Who was that again? Oh, right, that’s you!

(Gusty grimaces for a moment, pulls her head and arms into the leaves, and puts it up behind Kai-Lan.)


 * Gusty: There’s a tree branch in the room, and you’re more worried about a mess!

(The pegasus girl uses her body strength to push one section, then kicks at it and punches before diving back in. A moment later she looks out across the room.)


 * Gusty: Dang it, Crystal! (Pan to Crystal during this, putting her o.s.) Stop sweating the small stuff and help me get rid of this thing! (Back to her; Crystal continues cleaning.) I said, hustle over here and help me!

(Again no response for a few seconds, during which Gusty strains against the trunk’s weight and/or her own attitude. When she speaks next, her voice has lost some of its angry edge.)


 * Gusty: Look. I hate to say this, but...I’m sorry, all right?
 * Crystal: What was that?
 * Gusty: I said, I’m sorry! I should’ve listened to you when you noticed where this branch would end up. Your annoying attention to detail would’ve saved us from this whole mess. But right now, you need to stop being so dang fussy picking up all those little things and help me move the one big thing in here that actually matters! (No immediate response.) Please!

(That word gets Crystal’s attention, but she eyes her hands with a couple of worried little grunts.)


 * Crystal: But I’ll get all icky!
 * Gusty: Are you kidding me?! (catching herself) What the…you…yeah! Of course, you will! Every once in a while, we all have to get a little dirty! But you need to buck up and deal with it, on account of I just can’t fix this mess I made myself. I also hate to say this, but I need your help.

(Taking a long moment to think, Crystal tosses her head to get the book off it and moans with uncertainty—before a determined smile comes over her face.)


 * Crystal: Let’s do this!

(She wades in. Both heads pop up behind the younger girls and discuss strategy, their voices inaudible.)


 * Lulu: (to Kai-Lan) What do you think they’re talking about?
 * Kai-Lan: I don’t know, but it looks like they’re getting along.

(They have paid no heed to them and ducked under again. Now Crystal is back at the dresser; as the wind plays havoc with her hair, she concentrates deeply and unleashes a scintillating burst of ice from her palms. In two swift flashes, the leafy limbs become topiaries similar to the ones she made in the prologue, but with a wider assortment of shapes. They float before her in the wind and settle gently into the suddenly cleared floor space.)

(At the window, one stub of the trunk still hangs on the sill. Gusty—having her boots back on—is set to give it a kick, but a stern look from Crystal changes her mind. Both sisters are now filthy with twigs and tree sap. Instead of using brute force, Gusty catches a small side branch in her hands and gently heaves the wood over the side. Crystal smiles approvingly as her sister pulls the window shut, then gets a full look at the splatters that have ruined her own impeccable grooming.)


 * Crystal: (shuddering) Oh…I look awful.

(Close-up of Gusty, who thinks hard for a moment before getting a brainstorm. She flies o.s., followed by the sound of squishing, then backs up into view.)


 * Gusty: Better?

(A cut to Crystal reveals that Gusty has put cucumber slices on her eyes. She smiles and laughs softly.)


 * Crystal: Thanks.

(She reaches forward blindly, trying to touch Gusty’s cheek. The latter leans forward to put herself in the right place, and the two share a standing hug—nuzzling each other’s cheek while draping an arm around the neck.)

(Cut to Kai-Lan and Lulu, smiling at each other. The polar bear joins them seconds later.)


 * Lulu: (to Kai-Lan) They’re getting along again!
 * Kai-Lan: That’s good. I don’t like seeing my friends fight. (to Mei Mei) Are you okay, Mei Mei?
 * Mei Mei: Better, now that Gusty and Crystal aren’t fighting anymore. (notices the topiaries) Ooh, those are pretty.

(Dissolve to the five girls sitting at the table and laughing and zoom in slightly. Kai-Lan and Crystal have their curlers in, and Crystal has taken the cucumbers off her eyes; she and Gusty are properly cleaned up. Gusty has her boots off.)


 * Gusty: Is it bigger than a barn?
 * Kai-Lan: (giggling) Nope.
 * Lulu: Is it smaller than a balloon?
 * Kai-Lan: (giggling again) No.
 * Crystal: Is it as small as a kitten?
 * Kai-Lan: (shaking head) Nope.
 * Mei Mei: Can you find it in a tree?
 * Kai-Lan: (shaking head again) Nope. Only three of your twenty questions left.
 * Gusty: (sighing) Man, we’re never gonna guess what you’re thinking of! It could be anything!
 * Crystal: Are we getting warmer?
 * Kai-Lan: Why? Is it too cold in here for you? I can turn up the heat.
 * Gusty: She means, are we getting any closer with our guesses? (Cut to Kai-Lan on the end of this.)
 * Kai-Lan: Oh!…No. And that technically counted as a question, so only two more left. (Both think very hard.)
 * Gusty: Is it… (rapid fire) …a baboon the size of a skyscraper with a head of purple polka-dotted hair that shoots stars coming out of his eyes…
 * Crystal: (likewise) ...who flies through the air all over the world to hide magic sparkly eggs…
 * Lulu: ...and lives on a house in the clouds…
 * Mei Mei: ...and loves to bake?
 * Kai-Lan: That’s it!
 * All four: It is?
 * Kai-Lan: Uh, no. (Giggle.)

(Cut to the four bad guessers, still smiling, as she puts a hand into view to point upward.)


 * Kai-Lan: (from o.s.) It’s that.

(They follow her gesture, which is the bedroom window. The view through the glass shows that the rain has stopped.)


 * Kai-Lan: But it was just so nice to see you two finally getting along, I wanted you to be able to win together. (Crystal and Gusty laugh.) See? We could’ve been having fun like this all along.
 * Lulu: Definitely.
 * Mei Mei: I agree.
 * Gusty: Well, it’s hard when you have a sister that is so persnickety.
 * Crystal: I will say, it would be difficult if you happen to have a sister that is rather sloppy.

(They trade sidelong, riled-up glances for a moment, then smile again.)


 * Gusty: Sorry for being such a pain in the neck.
 * Crystal: Oh, no, I’m sure I was much worse.
 * Gusty: Oh, really? I’m the one who’s sorry.
 * Crystal: Oh, I’m much more sorry than you are.
 * Gusty: (sighing) Are not.
 * Crystal: Are too.
 * Gusty: Are not.
 * Crystal: Are too.
 * Gusty: (smiling) Are not.
 * Crystal: (smiling) Are too.

(Both laugh, and the younger girls pop up between them; the curlers are gone from Kai-Lan’s hair.)


 * Mei Mei: I’m liking this slumber party.
 * Lulu: Oh, I agree. It was very fun.
 * Kai-Lan: It’s more than that, actually. It’s super fun!
 * Crystal, Gusty: (high-fiving) Yeah! (Laugh again; Kai-Lan marks her page.)
 * Kai-Lan: Having fun, check! (Another round of laughter as she sets it down.)

(Dissolve to a stretch of floor stacked with books and pillows placed behind these. The area is otherwise back in order, and some of the topiaries have been placed near the bookshelves.)


 * Crystal: (from o.s.) Now take two steps to your left.

(Gusty moves into view during this line, her motions hampered by the cucumber slices on her eyes.)


 * Crystal: (from o.s.) Uh, no, my left. (Gusty tries to correct herself.)
 * Gusty: Well, which is it? (She stumbles into the books.) Whoa!

(When she stands up from the collapse, she has lost the slices but gained a pillow on her head.)


 * Crystal: (smiling, as Crystal walks to her, curlers out) That mess is your fault, not mine. (Both laugh.)
 * Gusty: All right, I’m sorry.

(She has taken out her curlers now. Pan to Kai-Lan at the doorway; Yeye enters and they both embrace.)


 * Kai-Lan: Welcome back, Yeye!
 * Yeye: So, Kai-Lan, how was the slumber party?
 * Kai-Lan: Oh, it was great. (Frown.) Gusty and Crystal were fighting a lot.
 * Yeye: They were?
 * Kai-Lan: Yeah. They have so many different opinions about everything, and that’s why they were arguing a lot. (Smile.) But now, everything is okay.
 * Yeye: That’s good to hear, Kai-Lan.
 * Kai-Lan: Yeye, is it possible for two people who are so different to become friends?
 * Yeye: It is. By learning to embrace each other’s differences, you just might be surprised to discover a way to be friends.
 * Kai-Lan: Oh. That makes sense! (Yeye walks off.)

(Now she addresses herself across the room.)


 * Kai-Lan: So… (Cut to the four, Gusty no longer wearing the pillow; she continues o.s.) ...who’s up for another sleepover tomorrow night?

(They trade calculating smiles and promptly send a pair of pillows into her grinning face.)


 * Lulu: Hm. How about a week from today?
 * Mei Mei: Or maybe next Saturday?

(Cut to the home’s exterior and tilt up toward the cloudy sky, leaving only the bedroom in view.)


 * Kai-Lan: (from inside) Oh! I know! How about two weeks from Saturday? (Laughter.) A month from now?
 * Lulu, Mei Mei: (from inside) Let’s do it!

(The clouds part at long last to let the sun shine through in a clear morning sky, accompanied by birdsong and more laughter. Fade to black.)

End of episode.