Witch 1.02 "Enemy" (First Half)
Sorry it's a bit late, a few last minute problems which have now been solved :D! The episode has to be split into two as it's apparently too long for a regular post. Enjoy ;).
Episode 1.02 “Enemy"
Part Two of Three
Tara VO: Previously on Witch…
[Open to: Tara lying on an alley floor, she is dazed, confused, disoriented.]
Tara VO: What happened to me? Where am I?
The Messenger VO: You have been moved.
[Cut to: Tara and Ezra in an alleyway, they both look up.]
Tara VO: Hi.
[Cut to: the witches’ living room.]
Ezra: So this is everyone.
Pete: Howdy.
Tara: Hi, it’s nice to meet you.
[Cut to: A figure coming out of the darkness snatching a girl away. She screams. There is a sound of a brutal stabbing. Nothing. A body drops out of the darkness.]
Ezra VO: There was a girl, she was running from something.
Tara VO: Someone. And then we found her dead.
Kaspar VO: So we’re thinking witch hunt?
[Cut to: Drake and the witches standing in the alleyway.]
Tara: Who are you?
Rina: Why are you doing this?
Drake: Your kind need to be dealt with. You witches need to be killed - wiped out.
[Cut to: Autumn, Pete and Kaspar in the witches’ living room.]
Autumn: Tara.
Kaspar: What’s up with her?
Pete: I’m voting Nazi or KGB spy.
Autumn: Well we can’t exactly judge. We barely know her.
[Cut to: Tara and Ezra in the kitchen.]
Ezra: Thanks for your help, I could just be another helpless witch hunt victim.
Tara: I’m sure you’d have fought through, you seem like the strong type.
[There is a honk from outside.]
Ezra: Looks like you’re wanted.
[Cut to: the taxi driving down a road - day. The taxi reaches the outside of an average looking house. Tara gets out. She looks around perplexed.]
Tara: Where are we?
[The masked driver instantly punches her across the face violently. The man drags her limp body into the house, he takes off his mask - Drake.]
[Cut to: the witches in their living room.]
Kaspar: - Up.
[Kaspar looks down at the book to see the title “ ‘Malleus Maleficarum’ . The Hammer of the Witches - This demon can take human form and use this ability to aid itself in killing the witches.” There is a picture of it’s scabby green demon form and it’s human form - Tara.]
Autumn VO: Tara?
Kaspar VO: So we’re all seeing the same thing right?
[Cut to: Drake and the witch hunters in the abandoned house with the Shaman.]
Shaman: Disguise her, warp her form…
[Cut to: The bodies littering the abandoned house, men, women, children… Slowly pan up to see Tara, blood on her hands, holding a long, bloody knife.]
Ezra VO: Oh my god…
[Cut to: Tara running from the house through a kitchen into the back porch, she is suddenly struck by a lightning bolt. Ezra - eye’s black, murderous.]
Ezra: Got her.
START OF EPISODE
Teaser
[Open to: the back garden - daytime. Tara is thrown down the stairs onto the lawn by the electric blast. Ezra, Rina, Pete, Autumn and Kaspar rush forward. Still shocked Tara, scrambles back on her hands and knees, she moves backwards still scared, panicked, confused. They continue forward, they march forward. Tara tries weakly to stand up.]
Ezra: Pulsus tergum.
[We see Demon/Tara from the witches point of view suddenly slammed down back onto the grass by an invisible force. Ezra glares down at Tara, her eyes blazing, incensed with fury. Tara is the opposite - afraid.]
Tara: Ezra, it’s not what it looks like.
Ezra: [furious] The massacre could have fooled me.
Tara: Th-this is all a set up, I-I woke up there, dazed.
Ezra: Don’t try and pave over that. You can’t deny what you did.
Tara: Th-then I suddenly f-found myself there, I don’t know how, I-I don’t know why...
Ezra: [furious] You don’t know why? You don’t know why you murdered those innocent people? Spilled their blood like that, slaughtered them, massacred them like animals? How dare you!
Tara: [wary] Ezra, just th-think about this... we… we were…we were fr-friends just a few hours ago.
Ezra: Then I found out what you really are.
Tara: [growing tenser] Ezra you have to trust me, you h-have to know that this isn’t true, th-this isn’t right.
Ezra: I can’t believe I ever let myself trust something like you. You’re disgusting.
Tara: S-something?...
[Tara looks down, hurt as Ezra towers over her. Tara looks up to Ezra, truly terror struck.]
Ezra: How could you do this?
Tara: [in thought] I don’t understand, I don’t understand any of this...
Kaspar: You were holding a knife in a room of dead bodies.
[Tara tries to stand up again, Ezra pushes her down with another magical shove.]
Ezra: [determined] You’re not going anywhere.
Tara: I h-helped you. I d-don’t understand how is happening.
Ezra: You slipped up, you thought we wouldn’t discover what you are. You thought you could just slip into our lives, infect us, corrupt us. Destroy us, butcher us from the inside. But it didn’t work, we found you out and we’re going to stop you doing anymore damage.
Tara: What?... W-where did you get this from?
Kaspar: Why does it matter?
Tara: We were fighting together, I helped you. We helped each other.
Ezra: [screaming] To kill us. To kill more people. To make another move in your sick little game!
Tara: [hurt] Ezra...
Ezra: What you’ve done to us, betrayed us, ruined us, is... [trailing off] But killing these people, destroying them. They were innocent!
Tara: Ezra s-stop this.
Ezra: They were innocent and you killed them! They were innocent, they didn’t do anything to you!
[Tara looks down to the floor, aching, burning inside. She looks up painfully at Ezra. Kaspar brings out a knife from his pocket.]
Kaspar: [threatening] How do we kill this thing?
[Kaspar walks forward to Tara, the knife gleaming maliciously in his hand.]
Tara: What?! N-no.
[Tara manages to scramble up before Ezra has time to push her down. Kaspar lunges at Tara with the knife.]
Tara: Pupugi.
[Kaspar is shoved back by another invisible force.]
Tara: I’m sorry.
Ezra: Destroy!
Tara: Occurrus era.
[Ezra’s attempt at a spell is blocked. Tara runs past Autumn to the path on the side of the house, she rushes to the front of the house, the witches on her tail. She turns onto the road as a car abruptly stops in front of her. Tara turns in the road, shocked, a mini-van stops abruptly as Tara runs frantically across the road.]
[The witches are quickly approaching her, Tara stops for a second, panicking, contemplating whether to run or stay. There are a row of cars quickly gathering behind it, honking and shouts of road rage and frustration and annoyance. Tara breaths more heavily, panicking, panicking. She decides to quickly run onto the pavement and into a side alley in between two residential houses.]
[Cut to: the witches running after Tara into the side alley. They stop as the alley splits into two.]
Pete: Left or right...left or right...
Ezra: [commanding] Pete, we’ll go this way. [She points right.]
[Pete and Ezra turn right, Kaspar, Autumn and Rina left. We follow Pete and Ezra, they reach another street, it’s a commercial high street, busy, crowded with people. They dive through the thick crowd, people ducking out of their way, some stubborn people refusing to move forcing Pete and Ezra to duck around them. They eventually stop.]
Pete: [sighing] Ez...
Ezra: Pete, we’re not stopping.
Pete: We can’t do this with the population of China in our way, she’s probably got away by now. We should go back, do a locator spell. We’ll find her that way.
Ezra: No, we-
[Ezra contorts her expression battling with herself on what to do, she sighs in defeat, she nods reluctantly as the two turn back - Ezra scowling.]
[Cut to: Pete and Ezra walking back into the alley. They walk past a dumpster, as Pete and Ezra continue past, we move behind it to see human Tara, crouching behind it, breathing - heavy.]
[Cut to black.]
Thunder cracks…
Opening Credits
Theme song: “Wherever I Go” by The Album Leaf.
Starring -
Amber Benson - Tara Maclay
Anna Belknap - Ezra Storm
Carmine Giovinazzo - Kaspar Sharpe
Percy Daggs III - Pete Holloway
Samaire Armstrong - Rina Faraday
and Autumn Reeser as Autumn Sharpe
Guest Starring:
David Anders - Drake
Jennifer Garner - Ameya
Amanda Seyfried - Jade
Jonathan Bennett - Fynn
Lacey Chabert - Lora
Heather Dawn - Mandy
Bonnie Root - Police Woman
Kaycee Shank - Librarian
Neil Flynn - Mr. Boberly
David Tennant - Lester
Tina Fey - Linda
Created by: Yosso
Written by: Yosso
Produced by: Yosso
Edited by: Mabus101
Promo by: EndersWrath
Song(s) featured: “Something Pretty” by Patrick Park.
Original Airdate: (on BW) 18th November 2006
Re-release Airdate: (on BF and LJ) 6th October 2007
Disclaimer: “Witch” is a virtual fan made series, set in Joss Whedon’s Buffyverse. Property of Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy, Sandollar Television, Kuzui Entertainment, The WB, UPN and 20th Century Fox Television. No profit is made from this, the character of Tara was created by Joss Whedon. All other original characters were created by me (Yosso), so keep your hands off ‘em (except with permission).
Set during Season 7 of BtVS and Season 4 of AtS.
~+~
Act One
[Open to: a woman with a hooded blue coat walking down an empty residential street, nearing sunset. She continues to walk down looking around - pure innocence. She walks past a shadowed figure in a phone box, it turns round, it’s a green demon - Tara. In the woman’s eyes Tara is the green demon. The blue coated woman screams.]
Demon/Tara: [in a deep voice] Give me your coat.
[Demon/Tara walks forward threateningly.]
Woman: [terrified] Please don’t hurt me...
Demon/Tara: Jacket. Now.
[She rips off her huge blue jacket, throws it down in front of her and runs away in the other direction.]
Demon/Tara: [suddenly softer] I’m sorry...
[We abruptly flash to Tara in the demon’s place, a split second later flash back to the demon again. Demon/Tara picks up the jacket and wraps it around herself, the jacket completely covering her whole body and the hood keeping her head out of view. Quiet, alone and insignificant again. She walks off along the street. We abruptly flash to see Tara’s lonely face again, quickly flashing back to the demon.]
[Cut to: the witches’ house, Kaspar, Rina and Ezra sitting in a room together opposite each other, evening. They have a map between them as they sit, legs crossed next to each other.]
Kaspar: Find us the being we desire.
Ezra: Take us to the soul we require.
Rina: Guide us.
[They glance at the map. Nothing, it stays as it is.]
Kaspar: She’s blocked us.
Ezra: She knew we’d come looking.
Rina: We don’t know what she really was.
[Pete and Autumn come in.]
Pete: Anything?
[Kaspar shakes his head.]
Ezra: [forcefully] Keep trying.
Kaspar: With what?
Ezra: With anything, find something. We’re going to find that demon tonight.
Rina: Ez, we have no other ways to find her, no sources, no leads.
Ezra: [even harder] Then we’ll find some.
Pete: How?
Ezra: We’ll find a way.
Rina: Ezra, you can’t expect us to just conjure up a solution. None of us expect that.
Pete: Speak for yourself.
Ezra: Then what are we gonna do? Just give up? Let her betray more people? Ruin lives again?
Kaspar: Ez, you may need to calm down a little bit.
Ezra: Calm down? If I calm down how many other people out there could die? We can’t just sit here.
Autumn: What other spell could we try?
Ezra: [shouting] I don’t know!
[The witches all look alarmed by that sudden outburst. Beat.]
Ezra: [quietly] I don’t know...
Pete: So what are we gonna do now?
Kaspar: We can’t go on like this. We’re all tired, pissed off. We should get some rest.
Ezra: I don’t think I can sleep.
Rina: [smiling cheekily] You wanna bet on that?
Ezra: [ignoring Rina] So we give up?
Rina: No we don’t. We should just continue this in the morning, when the grouchiness has left the building.
Pete: Tomorrow. Right, but are we sure that nobody has any suggestions now, because I’d quite like to avoid a meeting with Miss Great-big-bloody-knife after the last introduction we got.
Autumn: Suggestions?
[Silence.]
Pete: Anybody?
Ezra: She must have been sent by the leader of those hunters, a way to kill us. We have to hunt her down.
Kaspar: She tricked us all.
Ezra: We should do something, one final sweep at least, before we hit the hay.
[Pause. Kaspar stands up.]
Kaspar: We’ll have to do this the old fashioned non-Sabrina way. Pete, we can take the east of the town, girls you can take the west. Try and get back here by eleven.
Pete: [sarcastically] Yes mother.
Kaspar: I have work tomorrow, I need sleep.
Rina: Wow, a forty year old in a twenty-three year old’s body. That’s a new one. It’s like Freaky Friday...only half.
[Cut to: a dark blue coated figure walking into a building, night. As she walks into it, pan slowly up: to the sign - Lesper Bay Public Library.]
[Cut to: Tara at a table in the library, a pile of dusty occult books besides her, she’s reading through one of them. She moves her cloak further to hide her face as a person walks by. She’s in the dark, secluded corner of the library, lonely, insecure.]
[Fade to: Tara still reading, she closes a book and walks to the counter, placing the books she was carrying on the counter. A female librarian sitting down opposite.]
Librarian: Library card?
[Tara places a card on the table, avoiding eye contact with the librarian, a shifty air around her. The librarian scans the books, placing them on the table again. She hands back the card, we see it’s owned by - Cheryl McLaine, there is picture, in it she is wearing the same blue coat.]
[Tara continues to look shifty, still avoiding her eye contact.]
Librarian: Excuse me, are you alright?
Tara: I-It’s nothing.
Librarian: Are you sure because I could-
[Demon/Tara automatically turns to look at her, but turns away quickly, hiding her face with her hand.]
Tara: No.
Librarian: What’s wrong with your face?
Tara: [more stern] N-nothing.
[The Librarian starts to peer at Tara.]
Tara: No. Don’t l-look at me.
[Cut to: Tara hurrying down a street. She trips up, spilling her books everywhere, back to her old, quieter, reserved innocence. She hastily picks up the books, hiding her face nervously as people walk past her.]
Voice: You need any help with those?
[Pan quickly to: Ezra behind her. Demon/Tara is hidden in the darkness of the cloak, we flash to see human Tara her eyes widening in sudden terror, then flash back to the demon face.]
Tara: [quietly] Uh n-no, th-thank you.
[Ezra smiles with Autumn and Rina by her side, the three of them walk off, leaving Tara there, she turns around staring at the three of them. We follow Ezra, Rina and Autumn walking down a street.]
Ezra: Did that seem familiar to you?
[Autumn shakes her head.]
Autumn: We should head back.
[Cut to: a dingy motel, we see the exterior - Bob’s Motel. Cut inside: - a fat, dirty moustached man with a white vest hands her a set of keys - the motel manager.]
Manager: [lazily] Room Thirty-Four, down the corridor, then... go somewhere else and you’ll find it.
[Tara is there, with her blue coat still on, she rolls her eyes and takes the keys.]
Tara: [quietly] Thank you...
[Cut to: Tara at entrance to her room, she pushes the door and it swings open easily with a squeal. She sighs, disappointed. She goes into a dirty room, stained wallpaper, flowery in a pathetic attempt to liven it up. Gum stuck in the carpet, flies buzzing over a dustbin. The TV still on, flicking, the reception bad and fuzzy as a martial arts film blazes on.]
[Tara closes the door, turning off the TV and walking to her tiny bed, she lies on it, taking her cloak off, relieved to be able to expose herself. She sighs and turns on the bed, seeing a map on the bedside table. She picks it up and sees Sunnydale, she lightly touches Revello Drive, stroking it softly, hopeful, longingly.]
[She slowly puts the map down and turns the bedside lamp off, pitch black.]
[Flash to: a bed, day, sunlight drifting slowly and beautifully in, we move up the bed in a diagonal direction, we see a pair of feet and another pair entwined with it, one person wearing jeans, one a lovely frilly skirt. It’s Tara and Willow on a bed, lying together. Tara in the same clothes she wore when she died.]
Willow: [giggling] Your feet are so soft.
Tara: Softer than velvet?
Willow: You never fail to please me.
Tara: Never?
Willow: Would I ever lie to you? You smell like summer, earth. You’re my world. My earth.
Tara: And you’re my Willow that grows above me. Nourishes me when your leaves fall off. That tree gives me purpose, life.
Willow: Though trees die. We fade. We fade away and we decay. We are finite, limited, fixed to one spot. We die, but you stay, you remain, constant. Forever.
Tara: Forever? Will I ever go? Leave everything behind? Will I die?
Willow: I don’t know. The earth is here, always.
Tara: Did we ever make a new tree?
Willow: Oh, we did. But it’s gone, far away. Don’t know if it’ll ever come back.
Tara: I remember. I’ll always remember.
Willow: It’s still growing. Someplace else, somewhere.
Tara: [worried] It’s going to be strong though right, it’s going to survive, live, long and healthy?
[Willow looks straight into the distance, as though now suddenly empty, dead.]
Tara: Willow?
[Willow’s head suddenly turns to her, wide eyed.]
Willow: [harsh, rough voice] No.
[Tara gasps suddenly. She looks out of the window, we see a mysterious sunset.]
Tara: It’s getting dark, the way things do.
Willow: [suddenly back to normal] You think we’ll ever get that light back again? It’s going so fast.
Tara: Don’t know. We should be able to cope in the dark, right?
Willow: What if...I can’t find you.
Tara: I’ll find you. I always will. We can get some candles.
Willow: You’ve come so far though, I don’t want to pull you back into the shadows.
Tara: I’ll be ok. It’s my Willow I’ll be worried about.
[They smile warmly and kiss. They slowly separate.]
Willow: I’ll never leave you.
[Tara suddenly winces in pain. She screams.]
Tara: [through the pain] We should find some candles.
Willow: Why?
Tara: [the pain slowly subsides] We need to keep the light. Keep out the dark, we don’t know what’s in there.
Willow: You don’t want to find out?
Tara: [worried, scared] It’s bad. It’s bad. Dark, all dark. It hurts, Willow.
Willow: We should look for some, maybe in the Amazon?
Tara: Maybe...
[Tara suddenly gets an idea, she rushes to a spot in Tara and Willow’s room. She suddenly slumps down onto her knees, she touches the spot, which is just like any other piece of carpet in the room. She scratches lightly at it. Then harder. And harder. She scratches away, digging, desperate, longing, wanting, trying to dig down into the carpet.]
Tara: [breathing heavily] Candles, where are the candles?
[She digs and she digs. Blood emerging on her hands, cuts, scars. Blood emerges from the floor.]
[Suddenly flash to: Tara’s dead body on the floor, her head in the place of the spot on the floor. She suddenly gasps.]
Tara: [breathing, scared] Willow? Where are the candles? Where’s my light...
[Abruptly pan round to: five shadowed figures, two males, three female. One female is in front of the other four. Each are holding two candles in each of their hands.]
Willow: Has the dark already got them?
Tara: I think it has.
Willow: Can we get them to the light again?
Tara: I don’t know. Did you find any candles?
Willow: I don’t think so, we’ve run out. They’ve taken all the candles. I don’t know why.
Tara: Then what do we do?
Willow: There’s nothing we can do.
Tara: Nothing? Are you sure they’re no more candles?
Willow: I’m sorry baby, I can’t help you.
Tara: What?
[There is a sudden gust of wind through the window, it gushes straight at the candles. The flames start to waver, nearly blowing out.]
Tara: No. No. No! You have to make it stop. Protect them!
Willow: They can’t. They can’t help you. I can’t help you. Nobody can.
[The candle flames finally blow out simultaneously. The female figure in front grips Tara tightly, she pulls - faceless.]
Tara: [desperately] Willow! Help me!
[Tara struggles to get back to Willow on the bed.]
[Flash to: screams, wild, horrific images, we see fire, blood splattering, dead wide eyed corpses, bloody knives, screaming, weeping people. Tara and Willow are kissing as all the carnage flashes in front of the screen.]
Voice: [harsh, mysterious] It cannot be.
[Abruptly cut to: Tara’s motel room, still night, moonlight now flows into the room. She suddenly sits up, sweating in fear, horror, confusion.]
[Cut to black.]
End of Act One
Act Two
[Open to: the witches’ house, morning. All five of them, asleep, are in the dining room, sitting on chairs, books sprawled around the table. We slowly pan around looking at the group. A digital alarm suddenly screams shrilly. Pete suddenly sits up, the others open their eyes wearily. They look around. They groan in unison.]
Kaspar: Where’s the bed?
Rina: We’re bedless.
Ezra: [rubs her eyes] We must’ve slept down here last night.
Pete: The Liandroth Chronicles are surprisingly comfortable.
Kaspar: [looking at the clock - 7:30] Work.
Rina: College.
Pete: Life.
Ezra: You have to go to work now? Can’t you just blow if off, we’re searching for a wild demon on the loose.
Kaspar: I have to be there today, all those manic depressives and the emotionally scarred, suicidal headcases... oh I’ve only just realised how much my job sucks.
Pete: And the tabloids just wouldn’t be the same without me - if there weren’t a hundred other people with my exact same job.
Rina: You want a summary of college? Lecture. Essay. That’s all there is to say.
Autumn: The demon, it probably won’t attack in the day, demons don’t do that - do they?
Ezra: [grumbles in defeat] Ok...
Pete: Typical day really, fight a psycho witch killing gang, find the girl that helped us is a vicious killing demon, then work. The joys of our lives.
Rina: Yay.
[Cut to: Autumn and Kaspar in a car, day. Kaspar is wearing a suit.]
Autumn: Back in high school all over again.
Kaspar: Ok, Autumn - huh?
Autumn: You driving me in a car to school with your banged up attempt at a convertible. You were the embarrassing big brother I wished I never had.
Kaspar: I can’t help but be mildly offended. You really can’t tell what class is, little sis.
Autumn: I said wished. Past tense.
Kaspar: [smiles to Autumn] Those were the days.
Autumn: Seriously though I’m having major withdrawal symptoms from lack of car. You know this is only until I get my car fixed, I won’t need my personal school bus for much longer.
[There is a bell sound.]
Autumn: Don’t laugh.
Kaspar: Can I let it out or will an internal one do?
[Autumn gets out of the car.]
Autumn: You’re....mean!
Kaspar: [mockingly] Have a good day honey!
[Autumn rolls her eyes.]
Autumn: Yeah thanks, pops.
[Kaspar gasps in jest.]
Kaspar: Meow!
Autumn: Be mute. That would be great.
Kaspar: [more serious] No really. Have a good day.
Autumn: [smiles] Love you.
Kaspar: Back atchya.
[They smile to one another for a brief second before Kaspar drives off, they slowly wave to each other. We see Autumn’s smile linger for a while, fading more and more as Kaspar drives further away. Her wave slows down too until her hand sits there by her face. Autumn sighs.]
[Cut to: Kaspar walking through a waiting room, people sitting on chairs, day. He stops at the door at the end of the waiting room.]
Kaspar: [turning around] Mr. Boberly?
[A slightly overweight man in his late 40’s stands up.]
Boberly: Yeah, me.
Kaspar: Come this way please.
[Kaspar holds the door open for Mr. Boberly who waddles in.]
[Cut to: a room, we see books on the bookcases all around the room. A desk and chair in one corner and a long sofa chair opposite, an armchair next to it, the sofa chair is a stereotypical psychiatrist patients chair.]
Kaspar: Dr. Sharpe. [Kaspar holds out his hand in greeting.]
Boberly: [roughly] I know who you are.
[Boberly slaps away Kaspar’s outstretched hand.]
Boberly: I don’t do handshakes.
Kaspar: [slightly irritated] Well I don’t do rude patients either-
Boberly: I’m Bob.
Kaspar: I don’t do jokes either.
Boberly: It’s Bob.
Kaspar: No, really.
Boberly: [forceful] My name is Bob.
Kaspar: Right...
Boberly: Yes that’s right.
Kaspar: Ok, let’s get started.
Boberly: Either I get a cure or there’s no pay check for you.
Kaspar: This was prepaid.
[Boberly grumbles. Kaspar sits down in the armchair, he sighs.]
Kaspar: Ok, what’s your problem?
[Cut to: Autumn on the pavement where Kaspar left her, she walks to the building behind her up the path to it, we zoom up as she walks we see the sign: “Lesper Bay Public Library” - again.]
[Cut to: inside the library. Autumn walks into a room that says : “STAFF ONLY”. She opens the door to see chatty librarians talking animatedly. Autumn stands there - awkward. She walks to one of the groups and stands there, an attempt at a smile wavers, a man from another group moves from his group to Autumn, in his mid-30’s, his name tag says: Lester.]
[Autumn lowers her head and tries to walk away but Lester’s hand grips her shoulder - she freezes.]
Lester: [smoothly, coldly] You’re always so quiet. So tender. What a pleasant surprise...
[Autumn doesn’t reply, she simply remains frozen.]
Lester: What? No terrified murmur? You look so good trembling, fearful.
[Autumn slowly turns to him, looking down.]
Autumn: [nervously] L-leave me alone.
[Lester walks closer to her, grinning.]
Lester: You can’t command me. You don’t have it in you, you never have. You’re the innocent one, hiding away in the corner, nobody notices you. Except me.
Autumn: [quiet] Go away.
Lester: You really think I’ll let that happen? Watching you cower, it’s the only thing that makes this god-awful job worthwhile. Watching you scream under me, shudder.
[Lester approaches her again, she backs away, he continues forward until they reach the wall. He slams his hand viciously against the wall, she jumps.]
Autumn: [breathing heavily, scared] I- I won’t let you. Not this time.
Lester: [sly, slick] Oh but you will. You always do little girl. You’re mine, forever and eternally, sweet aint it?
Autumn: Don’t, no more...
Lester: [maliciously] Let out that cute little cry as I push inside.
[Autumn lowers her head. Lester reaches and pushes her head up with a finger.]
Lester: You’re mine, I own you, and there’s nothing anyone in the room can do about this. Nobody notices, nobody sees, nobody cares. It’s just between you and me.
Autumn: Please, stop this.
Lester: [continuing to grin] Stop me.
[We hear the other workers continue to chat animatedly, taking no notice of Lester and Autumn. We slowly zoom to Autumn’s innocent, tear filled face - scared.]
[Cut to: a corridor, day. We hear multiple phone rings in the background echoing round, we see a pair of trousered legs walk down the corridor. We slowly pan up to see it’s Pete walking along. He walks into a large busy room full of people at small cubicles and desks, chatting on the ever ringing phones. People buzzing around frantically, very busy - a very Daily Planet style newsroom. As he walks in we see a sign at the top of the doorway “The Lesper Bay Bugle”. A middle aged woman walks up to him, stern looking.]
Woman: The Van Slough article done yet?
Pete: Typical Linda, not even a good morning, a hello, not a hi, no bonjours, no howdy’s just straight to-
Linda: Holloway, I don’t have time for your crap. We’re on a schedule here.
Pete: It’s nice to know what you think of my poetic exclamations.
Linda: Article, now.
[Pete hands over a few pieces of printed paper. Linda turns and walks away.]
Pete: [under his breath] Bitch.
Linda: What was that?
Pete: [in jest] Oh, was I speaking my mind again?
[Linda walks off, she’s had enough. Pete walks to his desk surrounded by mini-barriers, he hangs his jacket on a coat rack and sits down, turning his computer on.]
Voice: Maybe there was a misconception when they said that honest men always do good things.
Pete: [turns, the voice behind him was a woman’s.] That maybe just turned into a yes, Miss... Do I know you? Cos if I do I’m really sorry.
Woman: No apology needed. I don’t think you do. Lora. [she holds out her hand]
Pete: Clark Kent wannabe.
Lora: Well we all have aspirations.
Pete: More to the point I’m Pete Holloway.
Lora: Hi.
Pete: So you new here?
Lora: The new reporter.
Pete: So you’re the newbie. I’ve heard stories abut you.
Lora: Like what?
Pete: Let’s say one involves prostitution, three pigs and a shovel.
Lora: What?
Pete: You don’t wanna know.
Lora: You got that right.
Pete: So who’s your partner, the very lucky guy slash girl that gets to be your other half from nine to five?
Lora: A Pete Holloway, d’you have any idea who he is, I heard a story about a shovel being-
Pete: Enough with the jokes. There has to be a mistake.
[Lora springs out a piece of paper. Pete walks over to look at it.]
Lora: A mistake? I thought you were meant to be that very lucky guy…slash girl.
Pete: Well, I lied.
[Pete takes the paper from Lora and writes on it, changing a few things. Lora takes it back once he’s done and reads it.]
Lora: Cynthia Harvis?
Pete: She’s over there I’m sure you two will click instantly. Buh-bye now.
Lora: That wasn’t who I was assigned.
Pete: It is now.
Lora: You can’t do that.
Pete: Did you not see me do it? I could show you again.
Lora: [growing angry] No, firstly I’m not going to ruin my first day on the job by disobeying the boss and secondly I don’t appreciate being pushed around to somebody else. I’m staying. [Beat.] Bitch.
Pete: Well... I’m leaving.
Lora: You have to be my partner, you have no choice, the whole point of something we call rules.
Pete: Well you know what they say about rules.
Lora: Don’t tell me - they’re made to be broken?
Pete: No dumbass.
Lora: Then what?
Pete: They suck.
Lora: Who says.
Pete: Some guy.
Lora: Oh yeah, which guy?
Pete: [points to himself] Uh hello?
Lora: Nice try.
Pete: Buh-bye now. [attempts to leave]
Lora: I’m not leaving you.
Pete: Au revoir.
Lora: You’re not pushing me away.
Pete: Adios.
Lora: This isn’t right.
Pete: Ciao.
Lora: You won’t get your way.
Pete: See ya.
Lora: I-
Pete: What don’t you understand about ‘ciao’?
Lora: Is that...French?
Pete: Go. Away.
Lora: No.
Pete: You’re stubborn.
Lora: Well noticed.
Pete: I will get rid of you.
Lora: Keep on trying’ mister.
Pete: I will.
Lora: Looks like we’re stuck with each other then.
[Pete stops for a second, looking at her, rolling his eyes in blatant annoyance.]
Pete: [miserably] Yipee.
[Cut to: Autumn hurrying out of the library, her purple coat on, day. She walks down the street to the corner. Ezra is there.]
Ezra: Where’ve you been?
Autumn: Sorry Ez, just a little...held up.
Ezra: Oh good news. Got a picture of the demon, I’m betting it’ll make this hunt easier.
Autumn: From where?
Ezra: Found it on the internet. There was this other woman who looked just like her - Amber Benson I think?
Autumn: [pre-occupied] Huh?
Ezra: You’re not exactly Miss-hear-my-great-news today. C’mon, we’ve got time, class doesn’t start until half three. So into the Ezmobile we go.
[Ezra gestures to a bright green mini (a type of car) next to them parked on the road. There is a pause.]
Autumn: [obviously preoccupied] Yeah...
Ezra: It would be great if you forget that, so I can keep what’s left of my dignity.
[Cut to: Tara standing at the end of a long, huge lake, standing on the sandy bay, alone, day. The tide from the lake is low. She looks out to the sun, she takes a breath, reflective. She is completely alone, all we can hear are the gentle sounds of nature - animals, wind.]
[She slowly takes off her hood and looks at her hand again in confusion, hurt. It suddenly flashes to her demon skin, green scaly. She looks down the lake to the sun in the distance, we see a sign by the lake “The end of Lesper Bay”. She looks up to the sun shining down on the now glistening lake. She is focused. She knows what to do.]
[Cut to: a lecture theatre. A professor is lecturing to a class of students, afternoon.]
Professor: Remember chapter nine on Jack the Ripper.
[The students start to file out of the class. We see Ezra, Rina and Autumn among them.]
Autumn: Wow, he really does like his murders.
Ezra: Haven’t you heard about the professor? Complete crime buff, he could CSI quiz you to the next century.
Rina: I thought the class was European History, not the history of people hacking things to pieces with knives and other weapons of the unfriendly variety.
Ezra: He does tend to go on the dead side of things more, but other than that he’s ok.
Rina: Currently unconvinced.
Ezra: He’ll grow on you.
Rina: [smiles warmly] That seems to be a recurring theme with me.
[Ezra gets it, and smiles in return, they share a moment. There is a beeping sound, Autumn pulls out her mobile phone, she reads a text: “Love ya. Les.” She hastily puts it away, her head lowering.]
Ezra: Are you ok?
[Autumn looks up and grins fakely.]
Autumn: [falsely cheerful] Yeah, yeah...
[Song: “Something Pretty” by Patrick Park.]
Here I am, where I’ve been
I’ve walked a hundred miles in tobacco skin
And my clothes are worn and gritty
And I know ugliness
[Cut to: a bus entering a town, day. It passes a sign “Welcome to Sunnydale”.]
Now show me something pretty.
[Cut to: Tara walking down a pathway, grass on either side, it looks like she’s in a park but the headstones around show it’s a cemetery. She walks to a grave, we slowly move down to see the name “Tara Maclay”. Tara stares at it. Her expression is blank. Nothing. Empty. She lowers herself down to her knees, gently touching the gravestone.]
I was a dumb punk kid with nothing to lose
And too much weight for walking shoes
I could have died from being boring
As for loneliness
She greets me every morning
Tara: [hurting] Why…
At the most I’m a glare
I’m the hopeless son who’s hardly there
I’m the open sign that’s always busted
I’m the friend you need, but can’t be trusted
[She steps back and gazes back at the whole grave, the new grass growing over the coffin. New growing over old, as if the past memory was fading away. Tara continues to stare at it with eyes scarred with deadness, almost traumatised by the sight. Nothing clear. Nothing plain. We see several signs attached to a pole pointing different directions, Tara can see it on the cemetery path.]
At the most I’m a glare
I’m the hopeless son who’s hardly there
I’m the open sign that’s always busted
I’m the friend you need, but can’t be trusted…
[She walks towards it as if magnetically pulled to it. She looks at a sign pointing right - “Nearest road Revello Drive.” She instinctively moves towards there but sudden flashes of memory hits her. The screams, fire, blood, carnage from the dream again. They harshly slash away at her soul.]
[They pass, but leave a trail of pain in her. Sighing she reluctantly forces herself to turn, walking back down the pathway. She looks at the sign again - longing. Tearing herself away from her old life.]
[Fade to: the witch hunters’ house, evening. Drake walks into a room, we see it has pictures of people around the wall, some with red crosses over their faces, we see one named Gabriella Marsh at the bottom, a red cross over her face.]
[We see Ezra, Autumn, Kaspar and Rina’s face also there, though no red crosses on their faces. We move back to see it’s some sort of war room, a centre of operations - maps here and there, a selection of weapons in a corner of the room. Ameya, Fynn and Jade are also there at the table.]
Jade: So the spell is still working?
Drake: As active as ever. With any luck they’ll end up killing each other, stupid witches.
Ameya: If we knew this would work so well before why haven’t we thought of it until now?
Drake: Time. Time is a major factor, if you execute a plan and it’s wrongly timed, it could all go out of the window. I had to wait till there was someone new in their lives, someone they wouldn’t fully trust. This was a perfect opportunity, I just seized it. If I hadn’t done this they would only have gotten stronger.
Jade: You are so good.
Drake: Thank you.
Jade: I mean you are awesome, like...woah.
Drake: Thank you Ja-
Jade: And it’s not even like you had any help. You thought all of this up, with your head.
Ameya: Head? What a surprise.
Drake: Um… yes.
Fynn: How exactly is this spell working?
Drake: It works as an illusion, the witches think that the outcast is a demon.
Ameya: Is that it? That simple?
Drake: No, there is an added element of mistrust added to the spell, to make the witches act more distrustful than they normally would, more hateful, vengeful. I’m not taking any precautions, not any.
[He walks over and picks up another picture, he pins it next to the picture of the other witches.]
Drake: [with passion] This will destroy them from the inside out.
[The picture is of - Tara.]
[Cut to: an alleyway, night, back in Lesper Bay. Tara is walking down an alley again, night. It is empty, alone. Suddenly she turns a corner and bumps into a woman who steps back.]
Demon/Tara: Oh, I-I’m sorry.
[The woman steps back horrified at the sight in front of her.]
Woman: Oh my god!
[Tara realises that her hood fell off, she hastily puts it back on but the woman still screams frantically, terrified, panicked. Tara turns and runs into the opposite direction. She rushes down the street, she looks behind her to the woman as she runs. Suddenly she smacks into something, falling to the ground. We go into Tara’s eyes and slowly move up to see Ezra standing there, looming over Tara. The screams still shrill, piercing her ears.]
[Blackout.]
End of Act Two