Page 187 - Nuts to You - The Nutcracker Retold

So there was Franz – our life-sized Nutcracker – thunderstruck and dumbfounded to the point where all he could say to Clara’s worried questions was something thunderously dumb. For, of course, Clara wasn’t surprised – as she had never been in, nor even known, that the Land of Sweets existed. And the only surprise she had was that the innards of a clock could hold another Land, rather than the cogs and bolts and nuts she usually dealt with. So her surprise was more of an “Oh, isn’t this interesting?” rather than a “Merciful God in Heaven!” sort of shock.
And all that Franz could say, once he could say anything, was “Where are the flowers?” which made no sense to Clara, who could plainly see that the snow was hip-deep. And Clara thought Franz made even less sense when he ran off into the forest, calling, “Sweeties!”
Let’s hope she can catch him and get him to explain the whole story. For let’s remember that Clara came through the Clock to the Land of Sweets purely out of love, and with very little understanding and even less explanation. So, what she thought she might see was Godfather Drosselmeir and the rest of the Hamelin children. And she also feared she might see some Mice, but she wasn’t sure.
So, her expectations were different, and that’s not the same thing as change. But it’s close.
So, both Franz and Clara were in a bit of a muddle, even as Clara ran after Franz. For even though he had that hideous Nutcracker head, she thought of him as Franz, which just goes to show how different she was from Pirlipat! So, as she ran – or ploughed – her way through the snow, she realized that Franz had been bowled over by all the snow, and that this particular change was not for the better.
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