- Pantaloon: Why, you, you crooked tail coward!
- Mouseking: Crooked tail?
- Nutcracker: You despicable rodent!
- Uncle Drosselmeier: But there's something I must do first for my nephew.
- Clara: Nephew? I didn't know you had a nephew. How old is he?
- Fritz: Will we meet him?
- Clara: Is he really your nephew or does he just call you uncle like we do?
- Uncle Drosselmeier: No, No! The spell will be broken if he slays the mouse king.
- Clara: And wins the hand of a fair young maiden.
- Uncle Drosselmeier: Precisely.
- Clara: [yawns and looks at her kitten] Oh Pavlova, why are all fairy stories the same?
- Mouseking: If you think your nephew, Hans, is ugly now wait till I turn him into a pile of splinters.
- Mousequeen: [laughs] Watch this. Not one of them will break this spell.
- King: [as yet another man has failed to crack the nut] Next!
- Mouseking: Spells, spells, spells. Who cares about spells? Now this. This is tough.
- Mousequeen: Tough?
- Mousequeen: [laughs]
- Nutcracker: [holding open a door and bowing] Allow me, Clara.
- Clara: Oh, Nutcracker. Stop bowing. We're friends, aren't we?
- Nutcracker: Always.
- Nutcracker: Clara. Clara, are you alright?
- Clara: Yes, I'm fine. But I'm so small.
- Trudy: One gets used to it, my dear.
- Fritz: Clara! Clara, guess what! Pavlova caught a mouse! A real big one! Papa found it by the toy castle!
- Clara: This is all like a dream come true. The Land of the Dolls is so beautiful and everyone's so kind. I've known some of you all my life. And to think we could all be together forever.
- Nutcracker: Then you'll stay. Clara, what is it?
- Clara: Oh, I want to. I want to stay with you, I do. But.
- Nutcracker: But? But what?
- Clara: Oh, I don't know, I'm so confused. It's just, well, the Land of the Dolls is where you all belong. But I want to grow up. There's a million things I want to do. People to meet, worlds to explore. I've always wanted to dance in the ballet. Nutcracker, I do love you, but I can't stay in the Land of the Dolls forever.
- Nutcracker: The last thing I remember is Princess Pirlipat and.
- Marie: We're having a crisis and you're talking about some Princess? You are the Prince of the Dolls, aren't you?
- Nutcracker: No, I'm just a.
- [catches sight of himself in Marie's mirror and gasps]
- Trudy: Please, Nutcracker. There's no one else.
- Nutcracker: But I've never fought a.
- Trudy: Please!