Winter's Tale (2014)

[bunniefuu]

BEVERLY: What if, once upon a time,

there were no stars in the sky at all?

What if the stars are

not what we think?

What if the light from afar doesn't

come from the rays of distant suns...

but from our wings as

we turn into angels?

(CHATTERING)

Destiny calls to each of us.

And there is a world behind the

world where we are all connected.

All part of a great

and moving plan.

Magic is everywhere around us.

You just have to look.

Look.

Look closely.

For even time and distance are

not what they appear to be.

(CHATTERING)

(BABY CRYING)

MAN: Next.

Sir, you're next.

(BABY CONTINUES CRYING)

(MAN SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY OVER PA)

OFFICER: I'm sorry.

You'll have to go back.

What?

No. No. Why? We...

It's pulmonary.

(BABY CRYING)

Ah... What about the baby?

Is there place for him?

If we have to go

back, we leave him.

I'm sorry.

No. You do not understand.

BEVERLY: We are all connected.

Each baby born carries


a miracle inside.

(CRYING)

A unique purpose.

And that miracle is promised to

one person and one person alone.

We are voyagers, set on a

course towards destiny...

lo find the one person our


miracle is meant for.

But be warned:

As we seek out the light...

darkness gathers.

(THUNDER RUMBLING)

And the eternal contest between Good and

Evil is not fought with great armies...

but one fife at a time

(MEN SHOUTING INDISTINCTLY)

MAN 1: Stop right there!


Get back here, Pete!

(GRUNTING)

(YELLS)

- MAN 2: Get back here!

- Unh!

Pete, them was just orders!

(GRUNTS)

No. Not like that.

We have him now.

Let's do it slowly...

with the knives.

MAN 3: Get him!

Horse. Horse.

Horse.

Go, go, go!

Go on.

Whoa. Whoa, whoa! Whoa.

Horse! Come on! Other away!

Other way!

(MEN SHOUTING INDISTINCTLY)

Horse!

What are you?

(HORSE WHINNIES)

He's got the g*dd*mn horse.

(PLAYING ROUSING CLASSICAL MUSIC ON PIANO)

Good afternoon.

The butler told me I


should leave my coat on.

Mm.

We have fever in the house.

Is it your wife that needs

spectacles, Mr. Penn?

Dead.

I'm sorry.

It's eight years ago.

Still, you never stop missing them.

It's for my daughter.

(PIANO MUSIC CONTINUES IN DISTANCE)

She'll be finished soon.

It is nice, isn't it? Brahms.

(FOOTSTEPS)

Beverly...

this man has come to make


you some new glasses.

(CHUCKLES)

Don't worry, it's not contagious.

No, no.

My sister...

she had it.

Oh, I'm sorry.

Better this way...

or this way?

How old was she?

Your sister?

Twenty...

when she died.

You never think you're as old


as you're ever going to get.

No.

I suppose not.

This way...

or this?

First.

The fever, it can make

things wonderful.

Even now...

I can see winter as it turns

around the room on the light...

darting from white lances...

to rays...

to silver crosses...

to the optical glass...

to the flames, to the

reflective windows.

And illuminating each of us.

The sicker I become...

the more clearly I can see that

everything is connected by light.

Do you have glasses for that?

Hey, Cecil.

Jesus, Mary and Joseph.

Yeah, he's something, isn't he?

And, boy, can he jump.

I want a saddle, oats...

and I want a nice blanket

for him. Cashmere.

He's the best duff you

ever stole, Pete.

Oh, he ain't duff, Cecil.

He's me new partner.

Aren't you, horse?

- You can't keep hiding out up in the attic.

- Why?

Word went out, Pearly's tripled the reward.

He's got his guys looking everywhere.

Ugly son of a b*tch. He

found me this morning.

Horse saved my life.

I think I'll get out of town till

summer, you know? Me and horse.

Steal enough to get us by. Just let

this whole thing blow over, you know?

I don't see Pearly much

as the blowing-over kind.

Yeah.

- That's because you worry too much, Cecil.

- Heh.

Just board him for me, will you?

Thanks.

Pete!

You forgot your...

Change.

I was wondering when

you'd get here.

MAN OVER PA:

May I have your attention please.

Train number 43...

is now boarding on Track Number 4.

(CHATTERING)

(KNOCK ON DOOR)

PEARLY: Enter!

The fire at St. Paddy's

is set for Sunday Mass.

That's not what matters to me.

- We got the word out to

- everyone: 500 for his head.

- And the horse?

- The same. Seems like a lot for a horse.

Well, that's because

it's not a horse.

- It's a dog.

- You just said it was a...

As far as we can tell,

he hasn't left the city.

Woola boys are watching all the bridges.

New York's not that big. We'll find him.

- You better.

- I know, boss.

People are scared and

unhappy all over the city.

Miracles are down by half.

More if you count Brooklyn.

What's so special about Peter?

You used to like him. Never

met me a better thief.

- Why all of a sudden, we gotta k*ll him?

- Romeo, Romeo.

Do you spend time...

wondering about the world?

The workings of things.

- No, sir.

- Right. Well...

better not to start now.

Do you think I, uh, steal

gold and gems for wealth?

No.

What makes these most precious...

it's the way they accept the light.

Peter Lake is human.

But that horse...

That horse might leave a trail.

And Yahtzee!

(CHUCKLES)

Grand Central Station.

Let's go and k*ll him.

And while we're at it, let's

try and grab that horse.

You just said it was a dog.

Go and get the boys.

(MEN SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY)

Hi.

Hey.

Everybody's all packed to

go up to the lake tomorrow.

I'll come up the next

day, sweetheart.

Daddy just has to

get my tent ready.

So you can stay cold?

So I can stay cold.

You can't die, Bev.

Sweet girl...

it's not up to me.

WILLA: Tell me again.

BEVERLY: There's this great dance...

and we all have our part.

And when we're done here...

if it's after one life,

or a thousand...

we rise up into the sky

and we become stars.

Tell me their names again.

(SIGHS)

BEVERLY: Castor...

Pollux...

Capella...

It's a great night's

work, my friend.

We head south to Florida.

Or Maryland, maybe.

That sounds like the kind

of place you might like.

(GRUNTS)

All right, let's go.

(WHINNYING)

Horse.

Horse.

Come on.

Horse, it's gonna be light soon.

We need to get out of town.

Pearly's got a hundred

eyes looking after us.

Come on.

Come on.

Hor...

You're just getting greedy now.

Fine.

But this is our last score.

Don't know who's a bigger fool:

A horse who won't listen to his master,

or a master who listens to his horse.

(PANTING)

(WATER RUNNING)

God, make me cold.

Hello, you beauty.

James...

James the Lesser, Bartholomew...

(FLOORBOARD CREAKS)

(ROUSING CLASSICAL MUSIC PLAYING ON PIANO)

(FLOORBOARD SQUEAKS THEN MUSIC STOPS)

Squeaks.

What?

(FLOORBOARD SQUEAKING)

It squeaks.

Age.

You have a g*n.

Right.

What are you doing here?

I was just robbing

the place, you know.

Or that was the idea, anyway.

Is that still your intention?

Uh...

(g*n CLICKS)

No.

No, it isn't.

Well, then...

I suppose the polite thing to do

would be to offer you a cup of tea.

Wow.

(COUGHS)

You did understand

the part about me...

coming here to steal

from you, yeah?

It's my father, technically.

I broke in.

Where?

He takes epic measures

to bar entry.

Well, actually, you left the door to

the roof wedged open. So I just...

- Did I?

- Yeah.

I must stop doing that.

Yeah.

I mean, you should be scared.

Well, I'm not.

No, I can see that.

The tea is lovely.

It's called Lapsang Souchong.

It's black and from China.

It's too hot for me to drink...

but the smell always

reminds me of London.

I've never been to London.

I didn't think so. No. Heh.

I was born there.

What's wrong with you, if

you don't mind me asking?

Consumption.

I'm 21 and I've never

been kissed on the mouth.

Sorry, that came out wrong.

I don't know anyone, you see.

I can't go out. I can't dance.

I sleep in a tent on the roof to keep

my body temperature within reason.

I have maybe...

according to one doctor who came up

from Baltimore, a year and a half.

In Boston, they said six months.

But that was eight months ago...

so really, I'm already

two months dead.

I'm Peter Lake.

And where are you from, Peter Lake?

A boat.

(LAUGHS)

- A boat?

- Yeah.

I never knew my parents. Boat

washed up ashore in Brooklyn.

So I was told.

And you steal things.

I do steal things. Yeah,

from time to time.

It wasn't always that way, though.

I always wanted to be a mechanic.

You know, I always had a knack...

for fixing things, getting

to the insides of things.

Like safes.

Well, that's how it

ended up, anyways.

Lately, I've been having a bit of

a disagreement with an old boss.

I should imagine disputes in your

line of work are hard to settle.

Challenging, yeah.

What's the best thing

you've ever stolen?

I'm beginning to think I

haven't stolen it yet.

Aren't you the charmer.

(CHUCKLES)

It's been lovely.

Lovely to meet you, Peter Lake.

Listen, I have to leave New York.

A few months at most.

Let that disagreement blow over.

But maybe when I get back,

I was wondering if...

I'm going to the country myself.

And by the time you get back...

I'll already be dead.

Please don't steal

anything on your way out.

Horse.

What have you gotten

me into, horse?

(CHATTERING AND LAUGHING)

(CHATTERING AND LAUGHING STOPS)

Table! That one.

Mr. Soames, sir. How many

are you going to have?

Just keep them coming.

I'll tell you what

they're trying to do.

What they're trying to do is to

fill the whole sky with stars.

They got little spots all picked out up

there for each and every virtuous soul.

Ain't no room in the heavens for the

likes of us, though, boys. Heh.

No room for Pearly Soames.

No room at all.

I wonder how they choose

the color of their wings.

I've always wanted wings.

I'd like a pair of wings

myself, you know?

Anything more, sir?

Oh, yes, please.

I would like to have a South

African spotted eagle owl...

uh, if you could butterfly

it, thank you...

and pan-fry it, uh, with some

potatoes would be lovely.

A little bit of parsley on top. Take

off the beak and the feet, please.

I'm sorry, sir. Don't got no owl.

Find her.

You find her, and

you're gonna find him.

- Find who?

- The girl.

- What girl?

- The red-haired girl.

Which red-haired girl?

That one. You see, Romeo?

That red-haired girl.

The one who is his destiny.

That all of it, miss?

All of it? Heh.

No, not even close.

What?

I just remembered the day we pulled you out

of the drink in that silly little boat.

I need some friendly

advice. I met a girl.

- Oh, I see.

- We've nothing in common.

Hmm.

- She's dying.

- Well, aren't we all?

Well, not just dying.

She's consumptive.

- Ah.

- Near death.

We've only just met.

- I feel like I've known her a thousand years.

- Hmm.

Pearly's on top of me. If I don't get out

of town, I'm as good as k*lling myself.

Peter, is there a question here?

What should I do?

When I think of her...

I've never felt this way before.

Why now?

Peter, our people have 10 songs.

The songs tell us that inside

of each of us is a miracle.

And that miracle is meant for one

person, and one person alone.

And when we're close, the

universe reaches down...

and helps us fulfill our destiny.

And the universe helps us?

How, exactly?

Well, the universe sends

us spirit guides.

Sometimes they speak to us

through small children.

They often appear as animals.

One is Athansor. He's

the Dog of the East.

He sometimes appears

as a white horse.

Perhaps this girl is the person

that your miracle is for.

But if so, know this:

- Chaos has agents too.

- What are you talking about?

God and the devil?

Angels and demons?

Those are some of the

newer names, yes.

All I know...

is that I'm pulled to her...

like air when I'm under the water.

So, what are you standing

here talking to me for?

Driver?

I'm afraid he's become indisposed.

Suddenly come into a small fortune

by his standards, I imagine.

Pearly Soames.

And you might be?

Beverly Penn.

Beverly Penn.

Well...

Peter does like to reach above

his station, doesn't he?

And you've got a touch of the

fever, haven't you, button?

Already only half here.

Interesting.

You know Peter?

Peter Lake?

Know him? Oh, yes.

We're associates, you might say.

Well...

past tense, anyway.

The boy had such potential.

Could he steal.

Like art, like physics.

I raised him as my own.

I had him pegged to inherit

the keys to the kingdom.

But little Peter...

he started to having ideas.

There's how to steal a diamond

brooch without spilling blood.

Here's how to take a ring

and leave the finger.

But, you see, Beverly Penn...

in my line...

it's the ripples that

give the work meaning.

Ideas...

they can do more good than harm.

And that would be the opposite

of the plan, you see.

It's doing harm that

is the very point.

I might not go upstate

until tomorrow.

- Hmm.

- No bother at all.

- I'd be very happy to pay you.

- Beautiful.

Sick.

- Too young to die.

- I'm not afraid of you.

I'll bet that you're who

his miracle is for.

My father has a strict policy

when it comes to kidnappers.

He has to save you. If you

can't be saved by him...

job's done.

Mission accomplished.

I love blood on the

snow, Beverly Penn.

Especially virginal blood.

Unspoiled.

Unmolested.

Beverly!

No!

- Hold on.

- Peter Lake.

- Go fast!

- Yes, clearly.

We can't outrun them forever.

PETER: I know! We have

to get above the city.

BEVERLY: Go north along the river.

- Peter! That's way too far down!

- Hold on!

- Hold on?

- Hold on!

Peter. Peter, wait!

How is that even possible?

I don't know. This horse.

We can't follow them up there.

- Why not?

- PEARLY: The rules.

A little dispute a couple hundred

years ago. Shortsighted.

Well, we almost had him.

Almost is not good enough, Romeo.

Do you want the job or not, Dingy?

(THUD)

(HORSE WHINNIES)

I need to see the Judge.

Are you all right?

All the excitement...

and your condition.

I'm perfect.

Good.

Head upriver.

(PEOPLE LAUGHING AND

SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY)

Beverly!

Thank you.

- Okay?

- Yeah.

Hello, little one.

(BEVERLY LAUGHS)

Mm.

I've only known the city.

It's called the Lake

of the Coheeries.

I've been coming here since

I was a little girl.

My father says nothing happens

here that isn't supposed to.

Hello.

Hi. I'm Willa.

Willa. How are you, Willa?

Are you Beverly's boyfriend?

(LAUGHS)

Let's go inside.

I'm sure Father will have something

to say about the matter.

Do you take wine with your meals?

Sometimes.

That's good.

We'll have wine tonight.

Okay.

- Would claret be all right with you?

- Anything.

But, uh, don't you pronounce it...

"claret"?

No. Claret.

You pronounce the T.

Just as in fillet.

Fillet?

I always thought it was "fillet."

No, it's fillet.

Just as in wallet. You don't say

"wallet," do you? You say wallet.

I see.

- You know what?

- Sir?

You look like a crook.

Who are you? What do you do?

What is your relationship to Beverly?

Are you aware of her special condition?

What are your motivations,

intentions and desires?

Tell the absolute truth.

Don't elaborate.

Stop if a neighbor, child or

servant comes in. And be brief.

Be brief? These are

complicated questions.

If you were one of my journalists,

you'd be finished by now.

God created the world

in six days. Ape him.

- Heh. I'll try.

- It's unnecessary.

- All right.

- Unnecessary.

My name is Peter Lake.

You're right, I'm a thief,

and I'm a damn good one.

I love Beverly.

Our relationship goes by no name.

I have no intentions.

I desire her, and I

am moved by love.

Do you understand?

How do I know that you're not

moved by vanity or curiosity?

How do I know you're not here

for the money in this family?

I was an orphan. Orphans

don't have vanity.

I'm not sure why, but one

needs parents to be vain.

And the money?

I wouldn't take a penny

from you, for a start.

I would accept no favors, not even

a kind word said on my behalf.

And of her condition?

I've never loved much before.

So death...

hasn't been something

to be avoided.

But now when I think

of losing her...

Is it possible to love someone so

completely they simply can't die?

No.

But I'm a thief...

as you so keenly observed.

Can't I steal just one life?

Well, we'll see about you.

Does that mean I might try

some of that claret now?

Let's both, shall we?

One more thing:

She sleeps in her tent on the roof.

And you do not.

PETER: Some locals found me while

they were digging up clams.

I spent a few years on the bounce

from orphanage to orphanage.

Just got on better on

the streets, I suppose.

BEVERLY: What did you do?

To live, I mean.

PETER: I danced and sang

in the streets for coins.

Picked pockets. I lived

with two girls for a while.

- Two?

- Two.

Aren't you the playboy.

Ah, it wasn't like that.

Mostly.

I was young. And then

Pearly scooped me up.

He said I had talent.

I take it it wasn't

for your singing.

It's not working, is it?

You're not getting any cooler.

No.

Here, let me try something.

Come here.

Actually, this isn't helping.

Can you hear your heart?

When the fever comes, it's about

the only thing I can hear.

When you crack your first safe, your heart

beats so loud you can't hear the tumblers.

You have to learn to quieten it, slow it

down, so you can work between the beats.

The trick to it is lists.

Meaningless words...

you say, as you exhale

to slow down the breath.

Inhale quietly...

exhale and say the words

until the breath is gone.

- Got it?

- I think so.

Do you need a list? Animals

are good. Colors. Saints.

Castor.

Pollux.

Capella.

Ursa Major.

Ursa Minor.

Polaris.

Peter...

- Heh.

- It's working.

Go on.

Pleiades.

Perseus.

Cassiopeia.

Hello.

Those are mine.

The paper too.

Yeah, I figured as much.

I couldn't sleep.

I like to draw by the moon.

See, I'm not very good and

the light helps hide it.

WILLA: Is it Beverly?

I don't know anyone

else with red hair.

Do you love her?

With all my heart.

Do you swear?

I swear.

Okay.

Come with me.

It's a princess bed.

I made the neighbor

boys make it for her.

They listen to me.

Daddy told me a story about

a princess who died...

and a kiss that made

her not dead anymore.

If you kiss her here...

she won't die.

I know it.

Okay?

Say okay.

Okay.

Okay.

You can put me to bed now.

PEARLY: Pearly Soames.

I have an appointment.

JUDGE: Hello, Pearly.

Ah. Hello, Your Honor. Sir.

JUDGE: Oh, of course.

PEARLY: Eh...

I'm here to request special dispensation

regarding the boundaries of jurisdiction.

JUDGE: Proceed.

I'd like permission to travel

north of the city, Your Honor.

Wow, that is quite a request, Pearly,

considering what happened last time.

Well, you know, it was

a misunderstanding.

Yeah.

Well, demon, let's

get this over with.

Pearly Soames, Warden of Manhattan

and the Five Boroughs...

on what grounds do you

make this request?

I've come to believe that a human is

on the verge of using his miracle...

which would be a formidable

advancement for the other side.

- Evidence?

- Presence of guardian angels, Your Honor.

Both the White Dog of the

East and Cecil Mature.

- What else?

- Well, I've had a vision.

A red-haired girl I've drawn in a

fugue with the blood of a virgin.

Pearly, that could be anyone.

Okay, Lu, I mean, he's already been seen

with a girl matching that exact description.

(JUDGE CLEARS THROAT)

Uh...

She's dying.

And he loves her?

Purely, entirely, and

with all his heart.

So you believe it is his

miracle to save her.

I do, sir. Yes, Your Honor. I do.

A man's destiny is often

not what it seems.

I understand that, sir, I do.

I do. I understand that.

But I... Heh. I, uh...

I have a feeling about

this one, you know?

You trained him.

Picked him up off the street.

The son you never had.

Embarrassing, no?

sh*t happens.

Your Honor...

I just need the

permission to go north.

Denied.

This one is too personal.

Your prohibition from the

northern territories is upheld.

Lucifer!

I need to stop this one, now!

Now?

You have no idea what "now" is.

Now, I was flying.

Now, I breathed fire and

I ate them as they fled.

Now, I whipped my tail

and the winds trembled.

Now, I am hidden in this pale

shade of flesh and bone.

Now, I am witness to

man's eternal salvation.

Now, I am witness to his demise.

Do not speak to me of time, demon.

Its simplest ebbs and turns elude

your meager understanding.

Find another way! Now!

(CHUCKLES)

Let me take you dancing.

How about New Year's Eve?

Can you? Dance, I mean.

I have done. A bit.

Some.

Well, I know them all.

From books, anyway.

It seems wonderful.

So it's sorted, then.

I can't, Peter.

Is it me? Because I'm not a gentleman

with a driver and the right clothes?

You know it's not that.

What, then?

Well, my father says that

dancing will k*ll me.

PETER: Ah.

Fathers are overprotective.

Coat stays on.

We're all to go next door for

an afternoon peppermint.

What is it? What's wrong?

(LOUD BANGING FROM BELOW)

WOMAN: It's been happening all afternoon.

Has something to do

with the furnace.

Your father's been down there

for an hour with the mechanic.

He sent the rest of the staff to the

Gamelys' and asked that you join them.

Now, Willa, please.

Go on next door, Bev. I'll, uh, see

if I can help them out downstairs.

Miss. The little one.

Miss.

ISAAC: She's jammed up.

Let me take a look.

We're in the red already.

You should go next door.

What about you? This sounds like

it's about to blow sky-high.

Go down with the ship, as it were.

Yeah, it's a house, not a ship.

My wife made this place.

She picked every

stitch of furniture.

Every pillow, every

sconce and window frame.

Wouldn't do to leave it.

(BANGING AND RUMBLING CONTINUES)

Listen, you should go now.

Winston, go, go.

Now, you.

The steam can't come.

- Are you mad?

- Wait.

I have a sympathy for

complex systems.

How things go together

and come apart.

Like locks.

ISAAC: Aah!

Just need to feel

for the connection.

That pipe's too hot,

avoid it, avoid it.

(ISAAC GRUNTS)

This one's blocked. Means

the problem's before it.

(PETER GRUNTS)

It's stuck.

(RUMBLING)

- Uh-oh.

- Uh-oh?

- Oops.

- Oops?

(BOTH GRUNTING)

(PETER SIGHS)

(CHUCKLES)

Am I light or heavy?

Heh. Light as a feather.

Good night, Peter Lake.

Good night, little Willa.

My father says you

saved all our lives.

He's overstating things. It was

just him and the furnace man's.

And yours.

Yeah, mine too, I suppose.

Thursday is New Year's Eve.

I'd like to go dancing.

MAN: You take great risk

coming to me for this.

PEARLY: You owe me, angel.

And this is me calling

in my marker.

You know I cannot

directly intervene.

Relax, flyboy.

It just makes the heart

beat a little faster.

Someone would have to be real excited

to experience any deleterious effects.

You know the rules.

Debts must be paid.

And then ours is settled.

Then we're square. Yes, indeed.

You're a good man yourself.

Well done.

I've been wondering.

With all these trying to go up...

and you come down.

Was it worth it, becoming human?

Or was it an impulse buy?

You must miss the wings, right?

Oh, come on. You must.

(CLASSICAL MUSIC PLAYING)

BEVERLY: You look good in that suit.

(BEVERLY LAUGHS)

You...

are impossibly beautiful.

So are you.

Stop it.

Or I'll melt all the

snow I'm standing on.

Give me a chance and you'll

melt all the snow in the world.

Come on.

My mother always said that it was bigger

on the inside than it was on the outside.

(CLASSICAL MUSIC CONTINUES)

- Shall we?

- Yes.

(MUSIC STOPS)

(ALL CLAPPING)

(CLASSICAL MUSIC PLAYING)

You're late.

I'm sorry.

If you don't make love to

me now, no one ever will.

Well, that's exactly

what I'll do, then.

(CHUCKLES)

(BOTH LAUGH)

Places.

What, love?

Places we've been.

What do you mean?

Beverly?

Beverly?

Beverly?

Beverly.

Bev...

No, no, no.

No. Beverly.

Baby.

This isn't right.

This isn't right.

(GRUNTS)

(PETER PANTING)

Beverly. Beverly. Beverly!

Don't leave me.

Please don't go.

(SOBBING)

I'm sorry.

DINGY: They spotted him. Otter did.

Peter Lake, I mean. He's back.

Where?

He was at a graveyard in

Queens burying some girl...

then went back to Grand

Central for his horse.

Do they still have him?

Well, that's just the thing.

They can't lose him.

- They're just walking.

- Just walking?

Let's go for a little

walk ourselves.

With little Peter Lake.

PETER: Shh.

(HORSE WHINNIES)

It's all right, horse.

I know they're coming for us.

A fight will do us good.

PEARLY: You failed.

You couldn't save her. Your

beloved red-haired girl.

Ha, ha. Was she gonna

be somebody important?

The president? The pope?

The great-grandmother of

the first man on Mars?

Or was it something simpler?

That she was capable of great love?

The kind of love that makes

the world all warm and light.

And gives the others hope.

The kind of love that

tilts the scales.

Well, it doesn't matter.

She's dead.

Cold. Dead.

And already in the ground.

Quit me?

You don't quit me, boy.

I've been blackening souls...

and crushing miracles for

longer than I can remember.

Do you ever ask yourself why the

universe goes to all this trouble...

to help you fulfill your destiny

and then throws me in your path?

Maybe it's because God is just as

bloodthirsty as the rest of us.

Maybe he doesn't like eternal

benevolence and light.

Maybe he just likes a good fight.

I have no idea what you're talking about.

But I'll tell you one thing:

It's a shame your daddy didn't do a better

job on your neck with that soda bottle.

Is that right, little Peter Lake?

Well, let's see what

we're gonna do with you.

(MEN SHOUTING INDISTINCTLY)

MAN 1: Come on. Move! Move it!

MAN 2: Stop right there!

(WHINNIES)

(ALL YELLING)

- MAN 3: Come on, Pete!

- How are you, lads?

(GRUNTS)

(NEIGHS)

- Skin that white dog alive.

- No!

(NEIGHING)

PEARLY: Bring in the net!

(HORSE GRUNTING AND NEIGHING)

- MAN 4: Get him!

- I want you to go.

Horse, go!

PEARLY: Hold, boys.

Horse!

(WHINNIES)

Horse.

Go.

Go.

(NEIGHING)

PEARLY: Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.

Well, well, well.

(GRUNTING)

MAN: Hey, pal.

You looking for someone

in particular?

I...

I don't know.

I can't remember.

I can't remember anything.

BEVERLY: When true love is lost...

life can bleed of all meaning.

We are left blank.

But the possibility

of destiny remains.

What we are meant for

may yet be discovered.

And once in a very long while...

that journey to find our destiny

may defeat even time itself.

Who are you?

Pete, here's your change.

(GRUNTS)

I smashed into you.

You did. Are you all right?

Am I light or heavy?

Light as a feather.

I'm Abby. What's your name?

I don't know.

Everybody knows their name.

Not me.

ABBY: You're silly.

Look. There's a star.

Even the stars have names.

- What?

- The stars.

I just can't remember them.

Castor.

Abby.

Nice to meet you.

Sorry.

That son of a b*tch.

He can't still be alive.

(CHATTERING)

- Romeo, find this man.

- Cesar.

Romeo was my grandfather.

Cesar...

drop everything else.

Find this man.

Boss, this is like a

hundred years old.

Do I, uh, strike you as a

man who wouldn't know that?

No, sir. I didn't...

I'm sorry, sir. I didn't...

Remember I told you how I

k*lled your grandfather?

Sorry, sir.

Find that man.

Find him.

We may have k*lled

the wrong redhead.

Isaac Penn, please.

The woman out front

said he was back here.

This is the Isaac

Penn Reading Room.

Yeah, I mean, I'd like to

speak with him if I could.

Be a neat trick.

Penn's been dead 90 years.

Heh. There's a theater on Hudson Street

called the Theater of the Coheeries.

Could you, uh, tell me if you have

any information on it, please?

Isaac Penn donated it.

Nope. I see it here...

but the information on it hasn't

been cataloged from the microfiche.

Okay, might I see them, please?

These micro fish.

Sure. Two forms of ID, fill this

out, two-week approval period...

and you can search to

your heart's delight.

Can I just...? I mean...

I'm sorry, I can't help you.

There's so many

regulations these days.

- Hi, I'm Virginia Gamely.

- Hi, Peter Lake.

- Hi.

- Hi.

Do I know you from somewhere?

I don't think so, no. No.

Although I can't be sure.

I've had no memory...

- for as long as I can remember.

- Oh.

Maybe there was once a blow on the

head, although I can't find a scar.

And the whole world has seemed like a deep

fog that's just now beginning to lift.

Although not fast

enough for my liking.

I've become convinced...

that if I could just learn

what this Coheeries is...

it may help jog my memory.

But now they're telling me I

have to wait two weeks...

and I have to have two forms of ID that I

don't have just to even get back there.

But I have a growing suspicion that I may

be able to get what I need faster...

as soon as everybody

goes home for the night.

If only I knew what a

micro fish looked like.

You know, places like this have

all sorts of security systems.

Well, somehow I find

myself undaunted.

Well, you're in luck. I work here,

so I don't need any approvals.

Isn't that right, Jack?

Reporters come and go as

they please, Ms. Gamely.

- There you go.

- I appreciate the help.

I wasn't having any luck anyway.

What were you looking for?

A cure for cancer, I suppose.

VIRGINIA: So...

this should go...

here.

And...

Aw.

Wait a sec.

Let me see.

Thought you didn't even

know what microfiche were.

I just got a knack with machines.

Try it now.

Well, that's not a theater.

Damn. Guess it's mislabeled.

Coheeries isn't a theater.

It's a town.

Oh...

That's old man Penn.

She played Brahms.

Beverly.

Her name was...

Her name was Beverly.

That's...

It can't be.

Your father?

What's happening here?

She's dead.

She's long gone.

They're all dead a hundred years.

Not all of them.

- RECEPTIONIST: Yes?

- VIRGINIA: Hi. Um...

My name is Virginia Gamely.

Uh, I work here.

- Yes?

- I write the food column.

- Yes?

- Is she in?

Do you have an appointment

I'm not aware of?

Thank you, Mr. Ambassador. I'm glad

we could come to an understanding.

I think I'll have a

milkshake for lunch, Marge.

Do you think Dr. Levi

would k*ll me?

Chocolate with whipped cream.

Ms. Penn?

Willa.

Little Willa.

(PETER & WILLA LAUGH)

WILLA: Peter Lake.

It's right up there.

Where did you find him?

I think he found me.

How is this really possible?

Well, in a life this

long, you do see things.

Things that don't always add up

to the world we think we know.

Hmm.

I've always held on to that table.

Nothing special, can't say why.

He loved my sister terribly.

She was like a bright light.

VIRGINIA: How did she die?

Consumption.

The night she died...

The night she died...

I searched the sky for her.

And I found her there in

Orion's Belt, I think.

She used to say that when we

finished our work on Earth...

we would fly up and become stars.

What work?

She was 21.

How could she have

possibly been finished?

Why am I still alive?

Well, I look at you, Peter,

unchanged after all these years.

Maybe there's something you

are still meant to do.

What?

(WILLA CHUCKLES)

I have no idea.

May I make you some tea?

Please.

PETER: Thank you for

bringing me back here.

I have a feeling we won't see

each other again, will we?

It's poor manners to talk

back to your elders.

Technically, I think

I'm older than you.

(LAUGHS)

No, I have a feeling we won't.

Goodbye, Peter Lake.

Goodbye, little Willa.

WILLA: I'm looking forward to

your next recipe, young lady.

I rather like pecans.

I have to pick up my

daughter at 3:30.

So, um...

I live down on 12th Street.

I've got a chicken...

if you like chicken.

I would like that, but, um...

- Well, I have a few things I need to...

- Okay.

- Okay.

- Hey.

- Take care.

- Thank you.

Tell the boss that we found him.

PEARLY: How is he still alive? What

are we talking about here, Lu?

- We're talking about what we are always

- talking about: Stars in the sky.

Miracles.

- I stopped him from saving her.

- Pearly.

Not his miracle.

Hers.

What?

You were so fixated

on stopping him...

you missed her entirely.

She made him love her so

much that he could not die.

He was her miracle.

I want to k*ll him, and I

want him to stay dead.

I want him turned into snow and

scattered to the four winds.

Mm.

Older rules would apply. You

would be fighting as a mortal.

That's rather extreme,

don't you think?

I'll tell you something that

should chill your blood.

No matter how far we tip

the scales our way...

no matter how many of

them we turn dark...

nothing seems to break

their capacity for hope.

They pass it back and forth like

the flu at a preschool fair.

We're losing, Lucifer.

One bright star at a

time, we're losing.

You will have to say

the words, Pearly.

Right.

I, Pearly Soames...

Demon Enforcer of the

Five Boroughs...

Black Knight of the

Armies of the Fallen...

and faithful and willing servant

to Lucifer, your good self...

hereby request

that the loser of the fight...

between the human, Peter

Lake, and myself...

die the one true death.

Reconsider.

No.

Last chance, Pearly.

Granted.

Pearly.

Watch out for the starlight.

What are you talking about, Lu?

Be careful. I would

hate to lose you.

Why?

You get used to people.

Did you try the

Brussels sprouts yet?

I'm not really that hungry, Mom.

Just try to eat

something, baby, okay?

Okay.

Here you go.

- Mama?

- Yes, baby?

Where do you think

we go when we die?

Come here.

(BUZZING)

VIRGINIA OVER INTERCOM: Hello?

You said 12th Street, and you're

the only Gamelys on 12th Street.

And I do like chicken.

(DOOR BUZZES)

- You floated here? In a boat?

- That's what I was told.

VIRGINIA:

We have chocolate, strawberry...

and pistachio.

Pistachio. Pistachio?

- She hates vanilla.

- I hate vanilla.

Mama.

VIRGINIA: Lay her down.

Hey, baby. All right.

Relax. Relax, relax. Mama's here.

It's all right. It's all right,

darling. Mama's here.

She gets seizures.

She'll sleep now.

Abby has red hair.

We have to go. Now.

No. There's nowhere to go.

The girl in the pictures...

the girl I've been drawing...

it was her all along.

She has cancer, Peter.

Her doctors say she's dying.

I think I know how to save her.

They said only a miracle.

Me.

That's why I stayed alive.

For her.

I'm her miracle.

This is crazy.

(FOOTSTEPS FROM ABOVE)

I can save her. I know I can.

(INTERCOM BUZZES)

We have to go.

There are men coming who mean to harm me.

I think they mean to harm Abby too.

Trust me, please.

There's a horse on the roof.

There is.

(WHINNIES)

Hello, my old friend.

It's been a very long time.

(BANGING ON DOOR)

Here. Give her to me.

Come on.

- You know where to go, horse.

- What?

PETER: Shh. Let him do the math.

(VIRGINIA SCREAMING)

Okay.

- How is she?

- VIRGINIA: Still sleeping.

Hey.

Coheeries.

It looks forgotten.

Come on, this way.

What about those, uh...?

Whoever they were. Christ.

I don't think they can

follow us up here.

You don't think. That's reassuring.

No, I'm fairly sure.

Rules change.

Little Peter wants to save someone.

But I want to fight.

Good to see you, Peter.

In fairness, I can't say the

same thing about you, Pearly.

(PEARLY CHUCKLES)

Well, it seems I got

my redheads mixed up.

Honest mistake.

I'll fix it.

There's 20 of us.

And there's just the one of you.

There'll be no miracles tonight.

And her destiny is

getting skewered.

Horse.

I suppose you know

what to do, horse.

Always a coward, that White Dog!

Boys.

Why do you do it, Pearly?

Do you even know?

I know my destiny.

And it's high time you met yours.

Off the ice!

(MEN YELLING)

(ICE CRACKING)

(MEN SHOUTING)

Right, then.

(BOTH GRUNTING)

(PEARLY CHUCKLES)

(PETER GRUNTS)

(PEARLY GASPING)

Abby?

Abby.

Oh, Jesus. No.

(SOBBING)

(PANTING)

A bed of wishes made 100 years ago by

a little girl who's now an old woman.

A bed made to save a girl with flaming

red hair from dying too young.

A place made for a miracle.

Now, I'm just a mechanic, but

what are we if not machines?

Machines that need a little

help from the universe to run.

Abby.

Is this why we love at all?

To save?

You were always the

one, weren't you?

Please, you were always the

one I was meant to save.

Come back.

Please come back.

No.

(SOBBING)

(VIRGINIA CRYING)

Mama?

(GASPS)

Why is everybody crying?

Did I get sick and pass out again?

Yes, Abby.

But you're better now.

(LAUGHS)

BEVERLY: Why would so many things

conspire to save one little girl's life?

But what if it wasn't just Abby?

What if she is no more or

less special than any of us?

What if we are all unique...

and the universe loves

us all equally?

So much so that it bends over

backwards across the centuries...

for each and every one of us.

And sometimes, we are just

lucky enough to see it.

(HORSE WHINNIES)

No life is more

important than another.

And nothing has been

without purpose.

Nothing.

What if we are all part of a great

pattern that we may someday understand?

And one day, when we have done what

we alone are capable of doing...

we get to rise up and reunite with

those we have loved the most...

forever embraced.

What if we get to become stars?