The Keeping Room Page #2

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women take the walkway to the BACK DOOR of the Farmhouse.

Augusta opens the door and they head in.

INT. FARMHOUSE / BACK HALL - CONTINUOUS

Lit only by the OIL LAMPS, the women cautiously make

their way through the dark house.

The only room they use now is the bedroom; the rest of

the house has become a stranger to them. It’s nearly

empty now, anyway. They’ve sold or traded most everything

that was in it.

As they walk, Mad continues to HUM. It warms their

journey towards sleep.

INT. FARMHOUSE / STAIRCASE - CONTINUOUS

They climb the stairs.

Augusta joins Mad, she knows the SONG well. It gets them

where they need to go.

INT. FARMHOUSE / HALLWAY - NIGHT

From the far end of the hall, the women move towards us.

Still they HUM.

INT. FARMHOUSE / BEDROOM - CONTINUOUS

They’ve reached their destination.

They all share this one room.

There is a LARGER BED in the middle of the room, and then

a SMALLER BED has been pulled in that lies perpendicular

on the wall at the foot of the other.

Mad, the last to enter, closes the door. They’ve

fashioned a SLAT OF WOOD that goes across the door and

hooks into two BRACES OF WOOD on either side.

(CONTINUED)

8.

The carpentry is crude, but it works. It gives them a

sense of peace. Of safety.

Mad puts the slat in place. And once she’s done it,

Louise checks to make sure the slat is secure.

Then Louise walks over to Augusta and turns her back to

her. Augusta begins to unbutton Louise’s dress.

Mad walks over to her bed and starts to unbutton her own

dress. Her buttons are in the FRONT.

Once Louise’s buttons are done, Augusta turns her back to

her sister, and Louise unbuttons her.

Mad looks on at the quiet ritual between the sisters.

Then she steps out of her own dress and gets into bed.

Once Louise has unbuttoned Augusta’s last button, Louise

gets into bed. Augusta places her RIFLE by the side of

the bed she shares with Louise. She puts out her lamp and

crawls in next to her sister.

LOUISE:

I’m cold.

Augusta wraps her arms around her, keeping her close.

Mad blows out her lamp and looks on in the moonlight from

her bed as the two sisters fall asleep.

EXT. ROAD - NIGHT

An empty road.

The SOUND of a HORSE, moving fast.

Then, HORSE and RIDER are seen in the distance. They

approach at a steady pace.

Perhaps we get glimpses:

-- The rider’s BOOTS

-- Dark leather GLOVED HANDS holding REINS

-- The uniform of the UNION ARMY

He rides fast and true; he knows where he’s going.

RIDER and HORSE fill the frame as the pounding of HOOFS

becomes overwhelming...

9.

EXT. FARMHOUSE - DAWN

A fat, orange SUN creeps over the house and fields.

Insects BUZZ about in shafts of early morning light.

EXT. GOAT FIELD - SAME

HATTY, the lone GOAT, chews some grass.

EXT. WOODS - SAME

Augusta searches for prey as the sun finishes rising.

She hears a NOISE. Stops. Looks...

NOTHING.

She continues on.

INT. FARMHOUSE / BEDROOM - SAME

Louise lies asleep. The only one left in the room.

She stirs, WAKES. Looks over at the OPEN WINDOW as the

CURTAIN rolls over the breeze.

EXT. FIELD - SAME

Mad harvests some TURNIPS. The yield is unimpressive.

EXT. WOODS - LATER

Augusta stops by a CREEK.

She crouches down. Splashes some water on her face. Cups

some in her hand, drinks it.

Takes in the moment of rest. And then she’s off again.

EXT. ANOTHER FIELD - LATER

Louise has wandered out to the grass, still in her

nightgown, feet bare.

10.

EXT. LARGE TREE - LATER

A HEADSTONE juts out from a moss covered mound of dirt.

Louise kneels down and drops the wildflowers in front of

the cross. She sits, cross-legged, elbow on knee, face in

hand, just looking at the dirt.

EXT. WOODS - LATER

Augusta stands completely still, gun up. She closes her

eyes, hoping she’ll see where the animals are in her

mind. But she can’t.

No matter how hard she tries, she can’t make the animals

come back.

She opens her eyes and then -A

GLIMPSE of movement not too far off.

EXT. FARMHOUSE - LATER

WIDE on the farmhouse and BARN. The land is STILL.

EXT. BARN - SAME

Mad BRUSHES the old horse, FERN, who is tied to a FENCE

POST. She pets her nose and then wipes sweat from her own

brow.

Not too far off, Louise dreams on a MAKE-SHIFT SWING that

hangs lazily from an OLD OAK.

Mad cranes her neck and calls out --

MAD:

What you doin’ over there?

LOUISE:

Nothin.’

MAD:

You should come n’ help me brush this

girl.

LOUISE:

I’m tired --

(CONTINUED)

11.

MAD:

Funny thing considerin’ you ain’t done uh

stitch uh work all day.

And SUDDENLY --

BANG!

A GUNSHOT rings out in the distance.

It catches Louise off guard --

She GRABS tight to the rope. Steadies herself.

A CRY OF JOY:

Rips out from beyond the trees.

Mad runs over to where she can see the trees. Louise

jumps from the swing and joins her. They look towards the

woods, breathless, searching -

AND THEN -Augusta

EXPLODES through the crest of trees, her face

bursting into a GRIN.

Mad runs to her, Louise following behind -

Augusta HOLLERS and WHOOPS --

They reach each other and Augusta holds up

A DEAD RABBIT.

Mad and Louise join in the CHORUS and together they run

straight to the Keeping Room.

INT. KEEPING ROOM - DUSK

Mad’s beautiful, dark HAND as she DIGS a KNIFE into the

FLESH of the rabbit. She is deliberate: she knows how

this is done.

There is an inherent violence to the act itself, pulling

the skin off an animal.

And then:

-- The SKIN is cut away.

-- Mad wipes sweat from her face and eyes, leaving a

SMEAR of BLOOD behind.

(CONTINUED)

12.

-- Augusta WATCHES.

-- Louise WATCHES too.

-- The SKINNED RABBIT hits the BUTCHER’S BLOCK.

-- Augusta hands Mad a CLEAVER.

-- Mad LOWERS the cleaver into the animal, and she HACKS

the rabbit to pieces.

-- Mad drops the PIECES onto a SKILLET.

The women wait. The rabbit boils.

They are hungry.

INT. KEEPING ROOM - NIGHT

A PEWTER TRAY:

With pieces of BOILED RABBIT smack in the middle.

The women take a moment and stare at the beauty of the

creature. It’s proud body in pieces, warm and brown.

Augusta leans in and SMELLS it.

Then Mad.

Then Louise.

This smell will line their hearts for months.

Louise goes to grab a piece, but Augusta stops her.

Louise looks up at her and -Augusta’s

eyes are CLOSED.

Louise and Mad exchange a look. Then Mad closes her eyes.

And then Louise does, too.

After a moment --

AUGUSTA:

Alright.

A smile creeps over Louise’s face. She looks at her

sister, real proud.

A shy smile comes over Mad. She looks at Augusta out of

the corner of her eye, and Augusta smiles back.

(CONTINUED)

13.

And then -

THEY EAT.

They devour the rabbit like ANIMALS, tearing at it’s

muscles, it’s meat, using their hands and mouths, but

they experience the emotions of the moment like WOMEN,

pulling in the textures and flavors and smells to their

hearts and minds. Inexplicably ravaging and savoring at

the same time.

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