The Handmaid's Tale Page #9

Season #1 - Episode #1

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OFGLEN (CONT’D)

(low)

Walk.

Offred obeys, following Ofglen from the Common.

EXT. GILEAD STREETS - DAY

Handmaids leave the Salvaging. They split into pairs and

head in different directions.

Ofglen leads Offred by her arm. The sidewalks are emptier

now -- most of the Handmaids have peeled off in other

directions.

Ofglen walks with her head down. Speaks in low, secret

whispers as they walk.

OFGLEN:

(whispers)

I’m so sorry about your friend.

Moira?

Offred nods. She is still shaken from everything that’s

happened, but she recognizes that Ofglen is breaking rules

here. This is dangerous talk.

OFGLEN (CONT’D)

(whispers)

You knew her from the Red Center?

Offred nods, and then...

OFFRED:

And before.

A beat...

OFGLEN:

Was there ever a before?

Ofglen gives Offred a thin smile. A moment of connection.

Trust, almost. But should she trust Ofglen?

Ofglen nods towards a storefront across the street. The sign

is just a pictograph -- Bees and a round loaf -- Bread and

Honey.

OFGLEN (CONT’D)

That used to be an ice cream place.

OFFRED:

I remember.

(CONTINUED)

"Pilot" 11/29/15 46.

CONTINUED:

OFGLEN:

They had this amazing salted

caramel.

(and then)

That stuff was better than sex.

Offred reacts to this blasphemy, surprised.

OFFRED:

I always thought...

(and then)

You were always such a true

believer.

OFGLEN:

So were you. So stinking pious.

(and then)

They do that really well. Make us

distrust each other.

A BLACK VAN PASSES, SLOWLY. The windows are tinted. On the

side is painted a simple but terrifying image.

AN EYE, with two angel wings. The secret police are on the

prowl.

Offred watches it go past. Terrified.

OFFRED:

Eyes.

OFGLEN:

Come on. Just keep walking.

They head off in silence. Offred looks back as the van

follows for a block, then peels off.

TIME CUT TO:

EXT. UPSCALE NEIGHBORHOOD - DAY

Offred and Ofglen walk towards home. It’s quiet, only a few

people on the streets.

They look down, speak in low voices.

OFGLEN:

How old is your daughter?

Offred reacts, surprised.

OFGLEN (CONT’D)

(off her look)

When you saw the girls outside the

church....

(CONTINUED)

"Pilot" 11/29/15 47.

CONTINUED:

Ofglen has been watching. Taking note.

OFFRED:

She would be six. Hannah.

This is the first time we have heard her name. Ofglen smiles.

OFGLEN:

Pretty name.

OFFRED:

She’s the only thing keeping me

from stepping in front of a car.

OFGLEN:

(I get it)

My wife and I had a son. Oliver.

He’s almost ten by now.

OFFRED:

Do you know where they are?

OFGLEN:

Montreal. She had family there,

they had Canadian passports.

(and then)

I didn’t. I got caught at the

airport.

OFFRED:

We were trying to cross in Maine.

With my husband. We split up.

(and then)

They killed him.

(and then)

His name was Luke.

Now he has a name. You can hear the guilt in her voice.

OFGLEN:

If you were together, they would’ve

done the same thing. They didn’t

want him, and they weren’t going to

let any of us get away. Not if you

had a red tag.

OFFRED:

I know.

(and then)

When I left him, I didn’t even look

back.

This clearly tortures Offred. Ofglen has nothing to say, no

solace to offer.

"Pilot" 11/29/15 48.

EXT. WATERFORD HOUSE - CONTINUOUS

They stop in front of the Waterford House.

OFGLEN:

This is your stop. As they used to

say.

(and then)

I’m Emily.

Offred hesitates -- after keeping herself secret for so long,

saying her own name feels wrong.

OFFRED:

June. I’m June.

JUNE. IT IS THE FIRST TIME THE AUDIENCE HAS HEARD HER NAME.

Has Offred found a friend? Someone she can trust?

OFGLEN:

Nice to meet you, June.

Ofglen leans close.

OFGLEN (CONT’D)

(very low)

Listen to me. They’re watching.

There’s an Eye in the house.

(and then)

Be careful.

Offred REACTS -- someone in the house is an Eye?

And how in the world could Ofglen know this? Is she helping

Offred, or is this some kind of trap?

Her mind races.

TWO GUARDIANS walk towards them. Ofglen steps back, bows her

head. The image of a docile Handmaid.

OFGLEN (CONT’D)

(to Offred)

Blessed be the fruit.

Ofglen walks away, leaving Offred stunned. She turns and

looks up at the WATERFORD HOUSE.

A beautiful tableaux -- this woman in red, in front of this

stately, dangerous house.

IN VOICE-OVER, we hear OFFRED.

(CONTINUED)

"Pilot" 11/29/15 49.

CONTINUED:

OFFRED (V.O.)

(calm)

A chair. A table. A lamp.

INT. WATERFORD HOUSE - BEDROOM - DAY

Offred sits in her red cloak, looking out of the window.

It is the image from the start of the episode.

That otherworldly tableaux. A woman draped in red, in this

dollhouse-perfect bedroom.

JUNE (V.O.)

I sit and watch the curtains move

in the breeze.

(and then)

Nothing can change. Someone is

watching. It all has to look the

same.

(and then)

Because I intend to survive. I

intend to survive for her.

(and then)

Her name is Hannah. My husband was

Luke.

(and then)

My name is June.

(and then)

Some things can’t be wiped away.

Some things can’t be forbidden.

OFFRED looks out the window. Still. Seemingly docile. But

there is a new defiance in her eyes.

END PILOT:

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