American Horror Story s13e09 Episode Script

[EERIE MUSIC PLAYING]
[FIRE CRACKLING]
[WHEEZING]
[FOOTSTEPS APPROACHING]
Hey.
Hey. Hey.
- [WHEEZING]
- Hey, wake up, wake up.
I want you to meet me
in the living room, okay?
And if you think I'm gonna push you in
that goddamn wheelchair to get there,
then think again.
Wake up.
[WHEEZING]
[SIRENS WAILING IN DISTANCE]
[FOOTSTEPS APPROACHING]
[SIGHING] Oh, for God's sake.
And yes, I use that phrase on purpose.
Enough of this shit.
Listen up, Beelzebub.
I have something to say.
I get the old man shit
when we have to pretend,
but I have seen the real you
underneath that ossified
supernatural husk,
and that's who I want now.
It's easier on the eyes.
So do it.
Do it!
[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYING]
[BONES CRACKING]
Anything for you, Constance.
I have a feeling, based
on your pearl-clutching,
that you have something you wanna get
off of your heaving, considerable bosom.
Damn straight.
Have a seat. I have the floor now.
- Get me a drink, would you?
- Oh, really?
[LAUGHS]
Let me give you a turn of phrase that
you deeply and inherently understand.
You can go straight to hell
because I am not doing
any more of your bidding
until we get a few
things clarified, okay?
So sit down.
[MYSTERIOUS MUSIC PLAYING]
It has occurred to me
that I have fallen into a
precarious familiar pattern.
All my life, I have been under
the thumb of rich men, powerful men,
even though I have
always been more cunning
and have known more about
the world and what makes it spin
than any one of those men.
[CHUCKLES] Including,
I hate to say it, you.
So in spite of all my serving,
and bowing, and scraping,
you have never once said to me,
"Constance"
[SCOFFS]
"what is it that you want?
What is it that you need?"
Hit me.
[CONSTANCE SCOFFS]
Okay.
Number one, no nukes.
I think I speak for all women
when I say we have had enough
of the goddamn wars and
violence brought about by your kind.
Why blow up a kingdom that
you fought so hard to rule?
Number two, after 250 fucking years
I want a woman in the White House.
Done.
Okay.
So there's one other thing. Um
I want you to find
employment for my children.
[STAMMERS]
Something to keep them
busy and feel necessary.
Interesting.
There's Addy. I mean, she is so bright.
And do you know that she used to collect
colorful stamps from around the world?
[CHUCKLES]
Why not
Why not let her run
the postal service? Huh?
Then there's Tate.
[SOFTLY] Tate. Tate.
[INHALES DEEPLY] Uh
I mean, he is a hard
one. He's mercurial.
I'll take care of him.
[GASPS] What about Fox News?
You could put him in charge of Fox News.
[CHUCKLING] I mean,
that's perfect, he'll fit right in.
Okay, so then that's it.
Now you can go get me a
taste of that brown booze.
We can have a couple of
cigarettes, toast, and call it a night.
No prude like an old whore.
Now, that is no way to talk to a lady,
especially one who is so loyal.
So just
to be clear,
fuck you.
[CHUCKLING] Aw.
How dare you tell me what to
do when I know who it is you are
underneath all that chiffon
spunk and Final Net hair spray.
You're lucky I got a soft spot
for you or I'd turn you to a cinder.
- I'd cut your throat first.
- Hmm.
Now that your lecture is complete,
I have something to say to you. Sit.
Well, ask me nicely
and buy me a present.
[TENSE MUSIC PLAYING]
Wow. [CHUCKLES]
Well, what do you want
for that, a gold star?
You consider yourself a grand lady
looking down from your virtuous
throne upon all the poor unfortunates
as someone who is morally superior.
Isn't that right, Constance?
- I'm a survivor.
- Hmm.
And I have struggled. I always have.
There's always been an angel
and a devil on my shoulder.
That devil being me,
whispering in your ear.
I can smell your perfume even now.
It's so [SNIFFS] intoxicating.
I'm a good person. I am.
I am a good person to the marrow.
Right. And it was
never your fault, was it?
I was pushed to extremes
by men I chose badly,
by my poverty, circumstances.
Crushed dreams by a lifetime of
of disappointments.
I know you've
convinced yourself of that.
And I know you think to
yourself every hour of every day,
"Why am I here with the devil himself?"
Yes, I do.
So tell me. Why am I here?
Why? Why the fuck did you choose me?
I always knew this moment would come,
when you'd ask that
question, and I prepared.
The devil's in the details, after all.
So this is just the tip
of what you've done
with your one precious and wild life.
Constance Langdon, God bless ya,
in your lifetime you have, one,
shot and killed your maid Moira
and buried her in the backyard.
Worm food, that's all she was good for.
Two, repeatedly used derogatory
terms to describe homosexuals.
How unwoke and
naughty of you, Constance.
Bullshit. I have always tipped
my hairdresser, and I love the gays.
Three, lied about your husband's death,
telling your children
that he abandoned them,
when, in actuality, you killed
him and fed his body to the dogs.
They were hungry.
Four, neglected your son Tate,
whose adolescent turmoil led
him to become a mass murderer.
Five, directed a schmuck named Larry
to smother your severely
disabled son Beauregard.
[BREATHING HEAVILY]
It was a mercy killing.
Six, locked Addy in a mirrored room
- [CRYING] No.
- nicknamed by you the "bad girl closet,"
a terrifying cruelty made
only worse by her disability.
Seven, stole the baby of
a recently-expired Vivien
just so that you can have
the child all to yourself,
named Michael Langdon.
Someone I was
[RUMBLING] invested in!
He shit the bed, but still.
Eight, condoned the killing of the
new housemaid by baby Michael.
Oh, this cavalcade of
horrors. Should I go on?
- [RUMBLING] I can.
- Stop! Okay?
Just stop.
[PARCHMENT ROLLING]
You see, Constance
[SOBS]
in actuality, you were born bad.
[CRYING] Why did I do those things?
Mmm. Don't worry, toots.
The devil made you do it.
[RUMBLING] Isn't that right?
[DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
- Give me that, you son of a bitch.
- [CHUCKLES]
[FIRE WHOOSHES]
[DISEMBODIED VOICES SCREAMING]
[FIRE CRACKLING]
[CLOCK TICKING]
[YOUNG MR. NAS,
REVERBERATING] Constance.
It's me, the little
devil on your shoulder.
Just leave me alone.
I have. For three hours.
Turn around. I have a surprise for you.
[CLOCK CHIMING]
[SIGHS]
[TANGO MUSIC PLAYING]
- [YOUNG MR. NAS] Look down.
- [GASPS]
- What-what the hell?
- Exactly.
It's a party dress for a party girl.
You were lots of things in your
yesteryear, but you were this too.
This was the more
vulnerable, hidden girl.
The girl I fell in love with long ago.
[CHUCKLES]
Oh, you are a sweet-talking
devil. [GIGGLES]
I feel, instinctively, that
you feel caged, trapped.
[MUSIC BECOMES DISTORTED]
- Who are those ghouls behind you?
- My demon band.
Talented, but condemned
to hell and to me
for so many indiscretions it
would make your mind spin.
[GIGGLES]
I thought you could use some uplift,
so I stopped the eagle
from picking out their livers
upon a burning hot rock for
all eternity, and here they are.
I know you like to cut a rug.
I do.
[CHUCKLES]
And, yeah, I I
I do feel like a butterfly trapped
in a spiderweb in this house.
Sometimes I fear I've I've
made the wrong decisions.
Don't. You made the right choice.
[MUSIC RETURNS TO NORMAL]
May I have this dance?
[MUSIC CONTINUES]
[CONSTANCE GASPS, CHUCKLES]
So
let me ask you.
Ask anything.
I mean, if you're going
to rule this whole joint,
you're gonna need somebody
by your side, aren't you?
Say what you mean. You can with me.
Well, you know, before, when I
was standing in front of the fire,
I was thinking,
apparently, I was born bad.
So I was thinking why
not just take it all the way?
- Hmm.
- Why don't you let me
rule by your side, hmm?
I mean, I'm deserving.
I'm worthy.
You mean be my mistress
of the damned for all time?
Well, I mean [CHUCKLES]
Mistress? Wife?
I've been both with no qualms.
And besides, with me, you
know you're going to have a
devil of a good time.
[YOUNG MR. NAS] Oh, Constance.
You are a worthy choice,
but there's a reason I
could never get with you,
in the biblical sense.
[CLICKS TONGUE] Oh. [SCOFFS]
- What a shame.
- Sorry?
- Well, I mean, age is just a number.
- Oh, I agree.
It's not age that's keeping us apart.
And I always think an
older broad is sexy as hell.
That's not the reason why we
can't make the beast with two backs.
The obstacle we have
to override is far darker,
far more depraved than age.
You see, Constance
[RUMBLING] I'm your father.
[MUSIC STOPS]
[CLOCK CHIMING]
- [TATTOO ARTIST] How fresh?
- He doesn't remember when he got it.
Goddamn it, man.
My pet peeve, somebody getting chewed up
when they're too drunk to know better.
- [BEN] I wasn't drunk.
- Sure, guy.
Let's see the damage.
[ROCK MUSIC PLAYING FAINTLY ON SPEAKERS]
Holy shit.
What? W-What does it look like?
- Um
- What does this thing do?
- [SIZZLING]
- Blondie, what the hell are you doing?
Yo, that thing's, like,
a thousand degrees.
- Ashley.
- Put it down.
- You didn't answer my question.
- It's a cautery pen.
It's like a branding
iron, but cleaner lines.
Could something like
that have done this?
Possible, but it's not the
kind of pain you forget.
Also, check out the
ridges on these lines.
Zero blowback, no hint of
pink around the margins.
If I didn't know better,
I'd say this was done by
[BEN GASPS]
[UNSETTLING MUSIC PLAYING]
[BEN SCREAMS]
[PANTING]
[DOOR LOCKS]
[MUSIC CONTINUES]
- [INHALER CLICKS]
- [INHALES DEEPLY]
[PANTS, INHALES]
[EXHALES DEEPLY]
[CHANTING INDISTINCTLY]
[SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY]
[WATER SPLASHES]
[ELECTRONIC VOICE]
repeat the question, Ben?
Could you please
repeat the question, Ben?
Could you please
repeat the question, Ben?
[GASPS]
[ELECTRONIC VOICE] Could
you please repeat the question, Ben?
Could you please
repeat the question, Ben?
Could you please
repeat the question, Ben?
What?
I didn't ask a question.
I have the answer you're looking for.
Could you please
repeat the question, Ben?
[HUFFS] Not interested.
The most common associations
for the number 616 are as follows:
616 is the area code for
Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Also, some early manuscripts
of the Book of Revelation cite 616
as the mark of the beast.
Would you like to learn more about
numbers in the Book of Revelation?
Yes.
Yes, I would.
Most people know the
number of the beast as 666.
Fewer know that older manuscripts
of the Book of Revelation cite 616.
This original sequence comes from
a coded passage that [DISTORTS]
[DISTORTED] Pass-Pass
16 Begins with Begins with
[DISTORTED NOISES]
Here is wisdom.
When boy becomes man, there is wisdom.
Ow! [PANTING]
[DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
[GASPS]
[SHOUTING] What is happening to me?
Can I ask you to rephrase
your last question?
[KNOCKING ON DOOR]
I want to make sure I understand you.
[DOOR UNLOCKS]
[BREATHING HEAVILY]
Ben?
Oh, my God, what-what's going on?
Remember when I told you
about my childhood, my parents?
All the people coming
and going, the neighbors
- Yeah, pretty hard to forget.
- Mm-hmm.
Well, things are coming
back to me, Ashley.
Things that I I I couldn't put
my finger on before, you understand?
I had [BREATHING HEAVILY]
My whole childhood was just these
flashes of memory, but until today
- What are you talking about?
- [PANTS]
I don't know how to say this.
I think I saw them kill
somebody, Ashley. I saw them.
I was there.
I was just a little boy. [SOBS]
I think I was raised by, like
like, Satanists or
something, you understand?
Like, Satanists. [PANTING]
I can't I can't breathe.
I think I need my inhaler.
Ben, you're having a panic
attack, okay? Let's sit down.
It's okay. Just breathe in.
- [PANTING]
- It's okay. Here
[SHUSHING] Just breathe.
I'm here.
[BEN BREATHING DEEPLY]
Just
[SCOFFS] I just don't understand.
Why are all my memories
jumbled up like this?
It's trauma, baby.
Your mind is playing tricks on you.
I think you grew up
with a lot of neglect,
maybe around some,
like, serious alcoholics.
That's it. Okay? That's it.
It's just your shadow, Ben.
And your mind
takes all this trauma and just
just dresses it up in symbols.
[ECHOING] Symbols
Symbols Symbols
[MYSTERIOUS MUSIC PLAYING]
[SATANISTS CHANTING
IN LANTIN] Satanas
[BEN CHUCKLES SOFTLY]
That's it. Okay?
- [ECHOING CONTINUES]
- [CHANTING CONTINUES]
[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYING]
[SATANISTS] Satanas destructo.
- [ECHOING CONTINUES]
- [CHANTING CONTINUES]
[DRAMATIC MUSIC PLAYING]
- What is it? You can talk to me.
- It's nothing. Stop.
Just give me a minute.
[SATANISTS CHANTING IN
LATIN] Satanas destructo. Satanas
- What-what is it? You can talk to me.
- No. It's nothing.
I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
[CHUCKLES] I just
I'm just coming to my senses.
Thank you.
I'm gonna I haven't
really been sleeping,
so I'll probably just need to
take a nap for my next shift.
Your shift? Don't you have the day off?
Yeah, I'd just like to
go check on my patient.
It's Routine just
really helps me, always.
Ben, call me later? I'm here for you.
- [CHUCKLING] It's all right.
- Okay
Stop, it's okay.
[DOOR LOCKS]
[ELEVATOR DINGS]
[EERIE MUSIC PLAYING]
[HISSING]
[SIGHS] Still stuck on 96.
A few years shy of glory.
But we're gonna nudge him past it.
What are you doing
here on your night off?
I'm in the middle of my tests, and
you know how I get about my tests.
Mr. Nas has been fragile lately.
I thought we could go over his charts.
So we're all in alignment about
the pain-management plan.
Little Doogie Howser, aren't you?
[CHUCKLES] Do you
Do you mind if I take a
How about you let the professionals
handle the blood work, like moi?
Right.
How long have his albumin
levels been like that?
That's nothing concerning you, chicken.
[BEN CHUCKLES]
Never mind. Forget I asked.
The office sent over
brand-new pain meds.
I'll make sure that he
sleeps like a baby tonight.
Okay. See you.
[SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYING]
Savant, what can you
tell me about Taylor Nas?
Are you referring to a Taylor Nas,
the Manhattan industrialist
and philanthropist?
That name, what does it mean?
How about Taylor Dorium? D-O-R-I-U
That name feels constructed,
which makes me think you built it.
- Is this a puzzle, Ben?
- Yes, it is.
Oh. That's an excellent challenge.
I would like to solve it.
In this case, "Taylor Dorium
Nas" could be an anagram.
Can I show you?
[MYSTERIOUS MUSIC PLAYING]
If you rearrange these
letters, one answer could be
[ELECTRONIC TRILLING]
[BREATHING HEAVILY]
[CHAIR SCRAPES]
Ugh!
Pathetic. Jesus. [SIGHS LOUDLY]
[DOO-WOP SONG PLAYING ON SPEAKERS]
[MUTTERING] Yeah.
Jesus Christ, I'm in the
middle of a round here.
It's just me.
I'm really glad I found you. [CHUCKLES]
[MUTTERS, SCOFFS] Well, well, well
It's Bimbo Barbie. What
the hell are you doing here?
I think he's on to us. He knows.
[TENSE MUSIC PLAYING]
[DOORKNOB CREAKS]
[DOOR CREAKING OPEN]
[DOOR CLOSES]
[BEN MUTTERS]
Drink, old man.
[WHISPERS] Sleep.
[MR. NAS BREATHING HEAVILY]
- [GROANS]
- [BEN BREATHING HEAVILY]
You need to sleep.
[GURGLES]
[GRUNTING, SPLUTTERING]
[SPLUTTERS]
Drink it.
[BREATHING HEAVILY]
[UNSETTLING MUSIC PLAYING]
Oh, God.
[BREATHING HEAVILY]
[YOUNG MR. NAS] Go on. Do it.
And to think, you almost had the nerve.
That killer instinct.
Needs work, but it's in there.
You.
Yours truly.
I gather you've put
together who I am by now.
Not that I made it all
that challenging for you.
Oh, and you're probably asking,
"What does it all have to do with me?"
You want the truth about yourself?
Then follow me, Benny Brown Eyes
[RUMBLING] if you
know what's good for you.
[MYSTERIOUS MUSIC PLAYING]