7x04
Script created with Final Draft by Final Draft, Inc.
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TEASER
FADE IN:
1 EXT. COUPLAND HIGH - MORNING 1
A typical, middle class high school, with students milling
around on the steps leading up to the grand entrance as they
await the bell for first class of the day, while other kids
sit around on the lawns outside the entrance.
A large sedan pulls into frame, stopping just opposite the
entrance. Inside sits CHERYL, all blonde hair and makeup,
with her mother, CAROL.
2 INT. CAROL'S CAR - CONTINUOUS 2
CAROL
Now, are you sure you've got
everything you need, sweetheart?
Cheryl rolls her eyes - they've had this conversation before,
the last time probably being about five minutes ago.
CHERYL
Yes, mom, I'm fine. See?
She holds up her fashionably tiny bag, crammed to bursting
with the books she needs for the day.
CHERYL (cont'd)
All present and accounted for.
CAROL
(beat)
Cheryl, I'm not trying to-
CHERYL
Mom, it's alright. You don't have
to put on your guilty face again.
Carol looks across as Cheryl, who sighs.
CHERYL (cont'd)
That face!
CAROL
I just worry about you, that's all.
It's my job.
CHERYL
No, your job is at the hospital,
which is where you need to be
instead of sitting here asking me
if I'm okay for the eighteenth time
this morning.
CAROL
It's just that with everything that
happened after-
CHERYL
(sharp)
Mom. We are not getting into this
now.
CAROL
What you went through was a
traumatic experience, Cheryl!
You've been away almost six months,
and you've still barely said a word
to anybody about how-
CHERYL
(snaps)
About how I feel? Are you going to
sit me in front of Dr. Anway again
and ask me to explain how I've been
feeling since watching my two best
friends get killed in a hit-and
run?
Carol lowers her head, and Cheryl HUFFS. This isn't a topic
that's going to get any easier any time soon.
CAROL
Just promise me you'll try and have
a good day.
CHERYL
Yeah, 'cause those are in such good
supply at the moment.
CAROL
Cheryl!
CHERYL
Fine! Fine. Whatever. I'll have a
good day. See you tonight.
She leans across, pecks Carol on the cheek and then clambers
out of the car. Carol watches her daughter head towards the
entrance with a heavy expression, and we cut to:
3 INT. CHERYL'S LOCKER - NEXT 3
Looking out from inside the locker as Cheryl opens it,
stuffing her books inside.
She pauses, staring into space, trying to psyche herself up
for the day when her friends CASEY and TRISH step into frame
behind her.
4 INT. COUPLAND HIGH - CORRIDOR - CONTINUOUS 4
Cheryl turns to address the duo - Casey's a jock complete
with letterman jacket, and Trish is his cheerleader
girlfriend.
TRISH
Hey, stranger! Didn't think we'd
see you again this term.
Cheryl grins as the trio start to head down towards class.
CHERYL
I couldn't spend another day at
home. Mom was driving me crazy
doing her big overprotective mother
thing.
CASEY
Hey, you can't blame her for that.
TRISH
(nudges him)
Ignore him. He thinks ABC family
movies are where all of life's
great lessons are learned.
CHERYL
I don't blame her, it's just...
(sighs)
It's hard for me to get on with
sorting my own head out when I have
to keep worrying about hers at the
same time, you know? She just folds
up at any hint that I'm not okay,
and even though I'm a long, long
way from that, I can't-
CASEY
(interrupts)
Hey, what's going on?
Casey's looking towards the far end of the corridor. The
girls follow his gaze and see some kind of commotion outside
the doors to the canteen.
The trio hurry over - a small cluster of students have
gathered outside, but as Cheryl and the others approach
there's a sudden burst of GUNFIRE from inside the canteen!
The crowd SCREAM and scatter, several people instinctively
diving to the ground.
CASEY (cont'd)
Girls, get down!
Casey drags them both to the floor as bullets PUNCH through
the glass windows looking into the canteen!
CHERYL
Oh, my God!
It's mayhem - people run for cover, there are more SCREAMS
and someone hits the FIRE ALARM.
Casey gets to his feet and starts to drag the girls away, but
as Cheryl is pulled to her feet she gets a look into the
canteen at last.
There are about fifty students cowering under the tables
inside, and one student holding a SHOTGUN, standing on a
table in the centre of the room.
He seems to be yelling something, but Cheryl can't make out
what he's saying.
He turns round so she can get a look at his face - and Cheryl
GASPS at what she sees!
The gun-toting student's eyes are GLOWING a fierce GREEN, and
as his shirt hangs open she can see that he's carved a huge
PENTAGRAM into his chest!
He yells something again, aims the gun towards the windows
and FIRES, and as the window EXPLODES out towards us, we:
BLACK OUT:
END OF TEASER
ACT ONE
FADE IN:
5 INT. HYPERION - FOYER - MORNING 5
Sunlight now streams across the hotel lobby - but this
doesn't seem to be helping whoever's on the other side of the
main doors.
They RATTLE frantically in the frame, and we hear muffled
curses for a few beats before the electronic lock BLEEPS and
flashes a green light, and SPIKE stumbles inside, a smoking
blanket over his head and one slightly charred hand clutching
a white keycard.
SPIKE
Bloody cards and locks and
barriers... trying to keep me out
of my own damn house!
He looks up - the rest of the team are arranged around the
foyer, staring oddly at him.
A beat.
Spike shrugs off the blanket and tries to act casual,
reaching into his jacket for a smoke.
SPIKE (cont'd)
What?
ANGEL, WES, ILLYRIA, SONIA and new arrival KIRSTEN are
gathered near the reception desk, watching a morning newscast
on a small portable TV as Spike heads over.
SPIKE (cont'd)
Don't tell me - trying to pick up
some decorating tips for this place
on the home improvement channel?
WES
There's been a shooting at a nearby
school.
SONIA
Some high school kid went berserk
and started walking around with a
shotgun.
ANGEL
Eight confirmed dead so far, about
a dozen wounded. The police have
him holed up inside the school.
There's a series of loud GUNSHOTS on the TV, which make Sonia
jump, followed by SCREAMS.
WES
Not any more...
Sonia turns away from the TV, looking a little nauseous as
Kirsten bites her lip.
KIRSTEN
I'd say something about the power
of live television here, but...
She trails off as Wes steps forward and flips off the TV.
SPIKE
Well, certainly a tragedy, mate.
Thanks for deciding we all needed
to see that to lighten up our day.
ANGEL
Wes, I'm not getting why you wanted
us to see this. I mean, isn't this
just another school shooting?
Wes passes Angel a handful of black and white photographs.
WES
These are surveillance camera
images taken from inside the school
at the time of the attack.
SONIA
I managed to hack into the school's
intranet and lift them. School
security's become a lot tighter
since Columbine.
KIRSTEN
Yeah, and a lot of good it did
them.
Angel leafs through the photos.
ANGEL
I still don't see...
He pauses - one image shows the shooter, complete with
obviously glowing eyes and markings on his chest.
ANGEL (cont'd)
Oh.
WES
I have reason to believe there were
outside influences involved in this
incident, and that it's been
brewing for several weeks.
I asked Spike to head out last
night and see what he could find.
ANGEL
(surprised)
You asked Spike?
SPIKE
Don't sound so shocked!
ANGEL
Well, it's just... you know, I
don't normally put 'Spike' and
'intelligence' in the same
sentence.
WES
I sent him to a demon bar to follow
up a lead.
SPIKE
Putting 'information' and 'beer' in
the same sentence does the trick
for me.
ANGEL
(rolls eyes)
Alright, fine. What did you find?
SPIKE
That the student who just went all
lone gunman wasn't your typical
hair trigger school shooter.
ANGEL
Meaning?
WES
Meaning, this was no random
incident.
ANGEL
I'm still not following.
SPIKE
The word I got was that our shooter
suddenly started showing up round a
few known demon haunts, looking to
get his hands on some weapons
through non-black market channels.
But he was a straight 'A' student.
WES
No history of violence, exemplary
school record, comfortable, middle
class family and home.
I'd been keeping tabs on him, ready
to move as soon as I had something
concrete, but a week or so ago he
dropped off our radar... until
today.
ANGEL
And where was I while all this was
going on?
There's a beat of silence - and Angel realises he was most
probably locked in his trance upstairs. He nods once, and Wes
continues.
WES
Spike, I think you should see what
you can find out now. You can get
to the school quite easily through
the tunnels, so go and have a look
round.
SPIKE
Magic word?
WES
Beer money.
SPIKE
(grins)
Righto.
(to Sonia)
You coming?
Sonia blinks, taken by surprise, but then smiles and nods.
SONIA
Yup!
SPIKE
Come on then, squirt, time to go
put our Sherlock hats on.
Spike heads off towards the sewer tunnel entrance with Sonia
following behind.
WES
Illyria, we'll be heading over to
the UTF headquarters later, so
don't wander off.
She nods and steps off screen as Angel steps closer to Wes.
ANGEL
This feels kind of familiar.
WES
How so?
ANGEL
You giving the orders.
WES
You haven't exactly been corpus
menti of late, Angel, one of us had
to step in and take charge.
ANGEL
Hey, I'm not complaining, don't
worry. Glad somebody kept things
running while I was out of it.
WES
(reads between the lines)
But you'd like to be back in charge
again.
ANGEL
Well... it is my name on the
business cards.
Wes nods and grins, turning and heading back towards his
office.
WES
I'm going over to the UTF to run
some more tests on Illyria.
ANGEL
Tests?
WES
They have access to some high
quality medical and scientific
equipment, the sort of thing we
lost when we left Wolfram & Hart.
It's proving a big help to me in
continuing my research into
Illyria's powers.
ANGEL
Oh, right. Good. Because, you know,
research is... good.
Wes stares at him for a beat, then steps into his office,
leaving Angel alone with Kirsten. He turns to her, looking a
little awkward as he steps over.
ANGEL (cont'd)
Uh, I've been meaning to talk to
you about, you know... the other
day.
KIRSTEN
Yeah, I figured you might.
ANGEL
(struggling)
And, well... you know, it was bad,
obviously, and I'm... well, I'm
sorry, so...
She holds up her hand, a smile creeping across her face.
KIRSTEN
It's okay, you can stop.
ANGEL
I can?
KIRSTEN
I get it, you're sorry. You've
started this apology to me about
four times now.
ANGEL
(grins)
Good.
KIRSTEN
What happened was my own fault, I
should've told you about the
possible side effects of the spell
I used sooner. I just wasn't sure
which of the eight billion possible
things could happen, so I figured I
should just wait and see which ones
hit you and deal with them as they
came. Although, flashbacks and
murderous rages weren't the ones I
was expecting...
ANGEL
Point is, we're all okay. No harm
done.
Kirsten unconsciously rubs her neck, and Angel looks guilty
once again. Kirsten spots his expression and quickly moves
her hand away.
KIRSTEN
It's not important now. What
matters now is that you're back in
the game, and we can get back on
track with the plan.
ANGEL
The plan?
KIRSTEN
Making Wolfram and Hart pay for
what they did to me. To us.
ANGEL
(nods)
Couldn't have said it better
myself.
Angel grins and Kirsten manages a hopeful smile back.
6 INT. HYPERION - WESLEY'S ROOM - NEXT 6
Illyria sits on the edge of the bed, watching Wes as he moves
up and down the room, collecting books, folders and other
items and stuffing them into a large leather bag.
ILLYRIA
What do you hope to find?
WES
With the tests, you mean? I'm not
sure. I lost all the notes I did
have when we severed our ties with
Wolfram and Hart, so I'm on the
back foot somewhat.
ILLYRIA
Will you be forced to limit my
powers once more?
WES
Hopefully not. Your powers were a
great asset to us last time around,
and they haven't returned to a
dangerous level as of yet so we may
be in luck. Either way, there are a
lot of things about your... unique
physiology that I still need to
study.
ILLYRIA
I am happy to assist you, if it
enables us to work together more
closely.
Wes hesitates, but Illyria misses it.
WES
I'm almost done in here, could you
wait in the lobby for me?
ILLYRIA
As you wish.
She stands and pads out of the room.
Once she's gone, he carefully reaches underneath the chest of
drawers and opens a small, hidden compartment, taking out a
set of crinkled, yellowing SCROLLS.
He unfurls one of them and studies it for a beat, until:
ANGEL (O.S.)
Wes?
Wes JUMPS and turns to see Angel looking over his shoulder.
Wes takes a beat and casually rolls the scrolls back up.
WES
Angel, you startled me.
ANGEL
Sorry. They always say you jump
more when you're caught doing
something you shouldn't be.
WES
(deadpan)
I wouldn't know.
ANGEL
Course not.
(beat; serious)
So you won't mind telling me what's
in those scrolls.
Wes glances down at them, trying to bluff his way out of the
question.
WES
They're nothing really, just some
research I've been doing into an
old ritual, nothing very-
ANGEL
See, that's where you've lost me.
If they're not that important, why
go to the effort of hiding them?
Wes stares back at Angel for a beat, before conceding that
there's no way out of this one. He quickly steps over to the
door and closes it, before stepping back before Angel.
WES
Angel, what I'm about to tell you
may seem a little... unusual, but
I'd ask you to have faith in me.
ANGEL
Now, see, whenever people ask me to
do that, I know it's something bad.
What's going on, Wes?
WES
(beat)
I'm trying to bring Fred back.
Angel reacts, and Wes scoops up one of the scrolls and
unfurls it, pointing to a passage inscribed on it.
ANGEL
Is that even possible? I thought we
ran out of options when this first
happened?
WES
It's the longest of long shots,
I'll admit, but it's the best
opportunity I've found.
(beat)
Not to mention only.
ANGEL
Go on.
WES
I've been assembling the artefacts
I need for the ritual for some time
now, and I'm collaborating with
David over at the UTF base to get
the required data I need from
Illyria.
Wes hands Angel the scroll, and he takes a moment to study it
carefully.
ANGEL
So she doesn't know about this?
WES
It's not exactly the sort of thing
I can tell her.
ANGEL
Guess not.
(looks up)
So what about you and her?
WES
I don't follow.
ANGEL
Come on, Wesley, don't back out on
me now while we're all being so
honest. Spike and Sonia have told
me what's been going on round here.
Wes looks down, suddenly seeming pretty guilty himself.
ANGEL (cont'd)
How long has... 'it' been going on?
WES
Since before Buffy made her brief
appearance.
ANGEL
(surprised)
Really?
Wes heads for his bed, taking a seat.
WES
It's not exactly something I
planned on happening, but...
He looks up - Angel's expression tells us he's no closer to
understanding this. Wes SIGHS.
WES (cont'd)
She's been spending a lot more time
as Fred.
ANGEL
When?
WES
When nobody else is around,
typically.
ANGEL
Oh, you mean when you two are...
Wes looks up, and Angel decides not to finish that sentence.
He COUGHS and quickly changes the subject.
ANGEL (cont'd)
So, what, you think there's still
some part of Fred in there you can
bring out?
WES
I'm sure of it. I think Illyria
convinced us all that Fred's soul
was gone to put us off looking, and
for a while I believed it, but
now... now I'm not so sure.
ANGEL
So what'll happen to Illyria if you
manage to bring Fred back?
Wes looks up - and Angel realises what's left unsaid.
ANGEL (cont'd)
It'll kill her, won't it?
WES
I'm honestly not sure. Perhaps,
perhaps Fred's soul will reaffirm
control of her body but stay in its
current form, and perhaps...
ANGEL
Perhaps you'll get Fred back just
the way you lost her.
Wes nods slowly, and Angel paces over to the window, his arms
folded and a thoughtful look in his eyes.
WES
I don't want just a part of her
living in a dead god's body if
there's a chance I can have her
back.
(beat)
All of her.
ANGEL
I understand what you're saying,
Wes, but are you sure about this?
Is there a chance we could lose
Fred and Illyria?
WES
(beat)
There's a small chance, yes.
ANGEL
(shakes head)
Then you can't do it.
Wes stands and steps in front of Angel again.
WES
Angel, I don't think you fully
appreciate what I'm saying here. We
may have a chance to bring Fred
back. Fred! Don't you want that?
ANGEL
You know I do. You know I'd give
anything to have her back the way
she was. But if there's a risk we
could lose both of them, I can't
let you take that chance.
Wes turns away from him, frustrated.
ANGEL (cont'd)
We're moving into the final stages
now, Wes.
Wolfram and Hart's endgame, the
apocalypse, everything. We can't
afford to lose a soldier like
Illyria at a time like this.
WES
Then when? There's always going to
be some threat to the world, Angel,
some ancient evil that must be
stopped, some new dark force hell
bent on turning the Earth into its
own chaotic playground. When will
you let me try to bring her back?
Angel stares back at him for a long beat, then hands the
scroll back to him.
ANGEL
I can't answer that. I'm sorry.
Wes lowers his head, and Angel walks past him, opening the
door and turning back to Wes.
ANGEL (cont'd)
Don't make me have to stop you.
With that, he leaves, and Wes looks suitably downcast. Then,
he looks at the scroll in his hands. Wes' expression hardens -
he's not going to let a verbal warning like that put him off
getting what he wants.
He kneels down and tucks the scrolls into the bag, then zips
it up and marches out of the room.
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Script created with Final Draft by Final Draft, Inc.