Hey, Mr. Johnson. Are you still open?
You're the kid that tried to crack open the machine with a screwdriver.
Yeah, I'm Xander. I didn't know if you'd remember me.
I got "Gum" from the MORPHO.
And you took my photo, but then you never put it on your wall.
Sweet sword, Mr. Johnson.
Yeah.
I bought it off Giorgio,
thinking I could maybe use it to saw people in half, but...
Right. You had your big magic show tonight.
Sorry. I wanted to come, but I was working.
Well, you didn't miss much. Most of my tricks didn't work.
I'm starting to think I might not be a magician after all.
Maybe this will cheer you up.
The antenna was busted when I found it,
but I figured out how to fix it.
You know what I used?
Gum.
You thought this would cheer me up?
Well, I thought you might want it, to go with the other one.
- The other what? - The other machine.
- What makes you think this goes with that? - Look inside.
What are you thinking about?
Are you thinking about how your mother betrayed you
and tried to turn the whole town against you?
- Yeah. - Yeah.
Yeah, that's what I thought you might be thinking about.
- What are you thinking about? - I'm thinking about that too, yeah.
And just feeling utterly enraged on your behalf.
See, I think after this, I'm gonna have to cut your mother off.
Not have her around for dinner or talk to her at all anymore, maybe.
You'd do that for me?
It would be a great sacrifice but I'd be willing to try.
I've also been thinking about this minor revelation that I had tonight.
When Mr. Johnson had me up on stage
and was making me remember what it felt like to be skiing at Whistler,
it was like something shifted inside me.
So? What does that mean?
You wanna go back to Whistler?
No. I don't know what it means.
What did it mean to you when you got "Royalty"?
You wanna ask me now?
I am. I'm asking you now,
which I know is very late, but I do wanna know.
I think I just felt like I had some value or something.
You didn't feel like you had any value?
No. No, I did.
Something shifted in me too,
and I felt like maybe it was okay to wanna be...
seen.
It's-- That's pathetic, but--
No. No, that's not pathetic.
It's not. Hey, you wanna talk pathetic? Let's talk about Giorgio, huh?
Swanning around in his big wig like a porno John Travolta,
stuffing God-knows-what down his underpants.
Wait. Giorgio wears a wig?
Yes! I've been dying to tell you
but so much other stuff has been happening.
Just FYI, I still sleep next door. You guys literally couldn't be any louder.
Sorry, sweetie. We'll shut up.
Yeah, we were just talking revelations, honey.
Is your revelation that it's 2:00 a.m.?
No. No, I was just saying to your mom
that maybe everything is not quite as it seems.
Yeah, that's deep.
You know what? Yeah, I changed my mind. I'm actually glad you woke me up for this.
No. Listen, listen. What I'm saying is,
what if "Teacher/Whistler" doesn't really mean "Teacher/Whistler"?
Just like "Royalty" doesn't literally mean "Royalty."
Maybe "Potter" doesn't literally mean "Potter."
I didn't get "Potter." I got "Liar," which I'm assuming had to do with the fact
that I was cheating on Kolton with his twin brother before he died
and lying to him about it and lying to everyone about it,
and I've been seeing Jacob and lying to everyone about that ever since.
But if you have a different interpretation of what "Liar" could mean,
I would love to hear it.
I would have to have a think about that.
Oh, my God.
Trina, I'm so sorry.
Why are you sorry?
Because--
I'm sorry that you felt like you couldn't come and talk to us about this.
I just feel like, "Oh, fuck. We really dropped the ball on this."
It's okay. I'm, like, fine.
You know, I don't know if now is the right time,
but I've always thought that Jacob was a better fit for you, as it happens.
I'd say that now's not the right time to say that.
I would agree.
"This is a new day in Deerfield," Mayor Izzy proclaimed
while fixing my gaze with a roguish smile.
I took another sip of my ashwagandha tea as I waited for her to continue.
"Apparently," she sputtered, "the silent majority of MORPHO Mistrusters
has called for a return to normalcy..."
Nobody is calling for that.
"...which is why she feels she has no other choice
but to continue on as mayor
and proceed with preparations for this year's Deerfest.
Natalie Pearl, Deerfield Digest."
- Yeah, but... - Thank you.
...I would rather eat Giorgio's wig than attend this year's Deerfest.
And you can print that as my response.
Okay, I don't know if you're joking, but if Giorgio has a wig,
I will print that because that's a huge story.
And secondly, yes, you will go to Deerfest. We always go.
I can't go anywhere without people looking at me
like I'm some kind of fraud or scam artist,
and I refuse to let Izzy rub that in my face.
Well, you know she's going to, right?
Most people still believe in the machine, and they know
you had nothing to do with it.
Excuse me. Cass?
I heard that you're giving people money back for their sweatshirts.
Yes, Sheila. Anything that is MORPHO-related
that people wanna give back, they--
Are you taking that off right now?
- Do you have something on under there? - No.
So, what is the play here?
Also, I don't think that's one of your sweatshirts.
The letters are all wrong, and they're peeling.
Yeah, and I don't even think you got "Rockstar," Sheila.
You were painting rocks way before the machine arrived.
Okay, Sheila, let my friends enjoy their dinner.
- Sheila! What the-- - Bye, Sheila.
Can I take the opportunity, with all of you here,
just to say sorry again
about trying to win Cass's heart and break up your famiglia?
- Yeah, you can. - We've talked about it.
- Wait a minute. What happened? - I was in a really weird place.
Yeah, you were on a gondola trying to fuck my mom.
But I think I'm finally almost ready to open my heart up to new adventures.
That's not as conclusive as I'd like it to be.
I've been getting a lot of guidance from someone
that I would love for you to meet, actually.
Cary. Cary, get over here.
Buona sera, everyone.
- Grandpa! - Hello, Dad.
That's right, D.
- I almost forgot Cary's also your dad. - Did you?
Ever since we collabed on that video for Cass's fundraiser,
I've been having Care Bear over here model some of my merch
with his insanely jacked body.
Giorgio, come on. I'm not insanely jacked.
I just move a little weight around, that's all.
Nah, you've been moving me with your wisdom of life, Mr. C.
That's not his name.
I guess you could say that Big C has become a bit of a male model for me
in my life in more ways than one.
Male model? Dad, that's kind of like you and "Whistler."
See? Like, they mean different things.
Okay. So, what pearls of wisdom have you shared with our Giorgio, Dad?
Well, nothing I haven't tried to instill in our Dust.
Face your fear. Don't dwell in the "what-ifs."
You know, "What if people laugh at me for trying to be a male model at my age?"
"What if I lose my accounting firm?"
Or, "What if my wife meets another man in Europe and never comes back?"
"What if the whole town hates me?"
Yeah. You gotta face your fear.
Otherwise, you'll never know what's on the other side of it.
Good morning, Deerfield Hooves.
This is Axel the "Meteorologist" with your daily weather report.
I know some of you might not pay attention to this,
depending on how you feel about the whole MORPHO controversy.
But for those of you who do,
there's a cold front coming in from the northwest.
High pressure mixing with warm winds from the east means a storm's coming.
A serious storm,
which could really put a damper on the opening of Deerfest tonight,
so make sure you pack your umbrellas. Make--
What are you doing?
Jacob and I are dating.
We've been dating for a really long time, even before Kolton died and ever since.
I mean, we did break up for a bit, and now we're back together.
But the point is that we're dating, and we don't wanna keep it a secret.
What the hell is going on in here? You just can't jump on the PA!
I know, and I'm sorry, but I'm trying to do something really brave.
I'm facing my fear.
Okay. Well, get on with it, then.
This is Trina, by the way. Trina Hubbard.
I probably should've said that before, and it's okay if you all hate me now.
Although, I'd really be much happier if you didn't hate Jacob
because he's a very good boy.
And the only person we really owe an apology to is Kolton,
but he's not here,
which means he can't hate us
and hate us less over time and then forgive us, hopefully,
which really fucking sucks,
because I don't want to be a "Liar" forever.
Also, there is a meeting of the junior jazz band after school
in Room 206.
According to this piece of paper, they are performing at Deerfest tonight
in the arts-and-crafts tent, so check 'em out.
Yeah, some hero, man.
I never said I was a hero.
You should've said something. You knew that I liked you.
And you made me feel like there was something wrong with me.
Yeah, because this is about you, Savannah.
I can't believe Trina would do this.
She's such a skanky little bitch.
Hey, maybe you're the skanky little bia--
I shouldn't have said that. I'm sorry.
That was a mistake, and that's okay. We are allowed to make mistakes.
Trina and Jacob just made a mistake, and they are owning that mistake, so...
She's owning it.
Sorry?
Thanks for the heads-up.
It would have been really awesome to have talked about this earlier.
We did talk about it.
We agreed that it sucked not being together.
First you told me not to say anything. Then you went and told my dad first.
Then you told your parents. Now you've told the entire school.
And it's just-- It's always on your terms, and I have no part in it at all.
That's not true.
He was my brother, you know.
- I know that. - I'm sorry. You told Jacob's dad first?
I didn't mean to.
It just kind of came out
that night that you and Mom were at the cruise thing having your threesome.
Hold on. We weren't-- No, it wasn't a threesome.
No-- We were on a normal, romantic, marital getaway
until some bodily mishaps
and some emotional surprises got in the way.
I told you it would spice up your marriage.
- You use the coupon? - Course I used the coupon.
But I don't think any of that is appropriate in front of the students.
Well, your daughter started this.
Yeah. I'm really surprised that you told Beau before me.
And, Jacob, it feels like we had bonded, you know?
- Could've mentioned it then when we were-- - Smoking weed?
When we were talking about relationships at the store that time,
which I now realize was me giving you advice
about how to get with my own daughter.
You were smoking weed with a student?
People make mistakes.
It's called being human.
We need to make mistakes, especially when we're young.
I'm not just saying this. This isn't a lecture.
If there was one thing that I could say to you as your dad,
and to all of you as your "Teacher," it would be this:
don't be afraid to make mistakes.
Look at all the fully-grown people out there who have suddenly,
because of a machine,
decided that they don't like what they do for a living,
or they don't like their garage or their partner or themselves.
You know what? I wish I had made more mistakes.
Wish I'd taken bigger swings.
I don't know what the MORPHO means,
but I do know that it has made a lot of people realize
that they want change and that they can still change.
And once you see the potential of that, there's no going back.
Well, I know I don't wanna go back.
I mean, I wouldn't get much trade-in value on my Harley,
especially after the accident.
And I don't wanna think I wasn't meant to be with Farid.
But I have a neighbor
who's been practicing the bow and arrow for a month,
and she shot an arrow clean through her husband's shoulder.
She all right.
But now she doesn't know if it means her potential isn't really "Archer,"
or if she's just in her head about it.
That's it.
That's it! Yes, sir!
Oh, my God.
- That's so clear now. - Is everything okay in here?
Yeah, he's just having another revelation.
I've been trying to think of the word for it, and that's it.
The thing that's written on the card, your "life potential."
That's not the job you're meant to have,
or the destiny, or your goals, or whatever.
It's not the end of the road. It's a turn. It's an arrow.
It's a thing you need to be told about yourself
to point you in the right direction.
Sweetheart, you needed to be told that you could be a "Liar"
in order to tell the truth.
And Jacob, who is filled with this constant anxiety
because he thinks he can't live up to the reputation of his "Hero" brother,
is then given a card that says he, too, can be a "Hero,"
and he has to confront that.
And Axel, you got "Meteorologist" in order to...
I don't know. Maybe it was just to help you believe in yourself,
which is exactly what your mom said
on the first night that we ever talked about this.
Or maybe you're gonna be really good at predicting storms. I don't know.
But what I do know is that we have been asking the wrong questions.
We've been asking where the MORPHO came from,
and what's inside it, and how does it work.
But what we should have been asking is, "What's inside of us? How do we work?
And why, of all places in this big world,
did the MORPHO machine come to fucking Deerfield?"
That's what I wanna know.
I'm proud of you.
I have not even started this lesson. Do you mind?
- Okay. You got that. - I'm sorry.
For a guy who knows jack shit about basketball
and is a mediocre boxer at best,
it sounds like Dusty's not a terrible teacher.
He made some interesting points.
Did he actually say the thing about people changing their garages?
Because that feels like it was directed at me specifically.
It definitely was.
Well, I don't care.
I like this saloon.
I like it too.
- Really? - Yeah.
For a while, I thought nothing would ever make you happy again.
Also, I like how you can close the door
and kind of imagine that you're somewhere else.
We can go somewhere else if you want. Have you thought of that?
What, like running away?
If we do it together, I think it's called moving.
I know that's kinda the opposite of Dusty's thing
about owning your mistakes,
but I also know things can really stick to you in a small town.
I threw up once on a ninth-grade field trip to the botanical gardens,
and people have called me "Barfy Beau" for 20 years.
I've never heard anyone call you that.
It's pretty much all I'm known for.
And now they'll probably call me "sad cowboy" or some shit.
And they'll call you "the twin brother of the dead basketball star
who cheated with his girlfriend," or I don't know.
They'll come up with something catchier and more hurtful, probably.
Okay, fine.
Let's do it. Let's--
Let's run away. Let's light out for the territories.
- Yeah? - Yeah, absolutely.
Okay, you got it.
I'll start packing.
What do we need? The throat roaster, obviously.
Obviously, yeah.
And the chainsaw.
In what scenario would we need to take the chainsaw?
In what scenario would we not take the chainsaw?
Yeah, good point. Yeah.
You know,
I didn't realize that Trina told me before she told anyone else.
That's pretty cool.
I mean, not cool, but ballsy.
That girl's got a real pair of nuts on her, doesn't she?
Yeah. She does.
I don't know why you're doing this. Is this, like,
a "thank you for being an absent, shitty mother" present?
No, it's just a little thing.
There's, like, zero chance
that this won't make me feel worse about myself.
Open it.
Look at that. It's a pretty vase. It's so beautiful.
- Did you make this? - Yeah.
And it's actually more of a chalice.
Kind of like what a queen would drink out of.
All right. That's cool. And yeah, I was right.
It's also 99% sure to fall apart at any second, so...
Cool. Same.
- When did you make this? - I don't know.
Kinda just whenever I have the time to take my mind off of things.
Trina, sweetie, I know that I have not been paying attention
to everything that you've been going through lately.
I was at the magic show and at Giorgio's before with Grizzy,
and I saw what she did to you.
Your mom is way more fucked up than my mom.
Don't worry. I'll get it!
I mean, I'm upstairs, and you two are right there.
But no, makes more sense for me to get it.
Geez Louise.
- Eat chainsaw, asshole! - For God's sake.
Yeah, I'm here to murder you,
because your daughter hooked up with both my sons!
Okay. Jesus. Okay, chill. Chill.
I'm really sorry. I told him I was coming here.
And he said he had a "killer joke idea," which I guess is what that was.
- Did you see that, Jacob? His face. - Yeah, I saw his face, Dad.
Is it okay if I...
Yeah, please come in.
- I'm sorry. - No, it's fine.
- I'm sorry I called you an asshole. - Yeah, I know, it was really funny.
Hey.
Hey. What's up?
Hi, Mrs. Hubbard.
Hi, Jacob.
Cool.
I was wondering if you wanted to go with me to Deerfest tonight?
Like, on a date. Like, yeah-- Like a first date.
You know that Cass and I's first date, we went to Deerfest.
- Dusty... - Yeah.
We can talk about it a different time. Go on.
Well, I was just thinking, now that everyone knows everything,
- we could-- - I'm sorry I didn't talk to you first.
It's okay.
I'm glad you had the courage to go and do that.
And now maybe we can, like, try to get to know each other
and see if we actually like each other.
Again, maybe not the time, but I've always thought that you two--
- Dad. - Dusty.
So, do you wanna go to Deerfest?
Can my parents come?
- Trina with the jokes. - No, I'm not joking.
It's like-- We used to go together all the time,
and, I don't know, I just kinda want something normal right now.
Going to a deer-themed festival on your first date with your parents?
I know you don't wanna go.
Grizzy will be there, and it's, like, a whole thing--
Oh, no. I'll go. I don't care if she's there.
And people are definitely gonna give you looks
because of the fake card thing.
- Well, I think we're gonna get more looks. - Fair.
- So... - We're gonna get a lot of looks.
I am okay with that, seriously, if that's what you wanna do.
All right, Beau.
Baby girl wants to go to Deerfest, so wanna go to Deerfest?
Does this answer your question?
Deerfest!
- That's not funny! - Yeah!
- Not in the house! - Sorry.
- Not in the house, Beau! - Sorry!
Excuse me.
Sorry to interrupt your socializing,
but maybe you've noticed we're about to open Deerfest,
and I'm just curious about when you plan to finish the hay maze?
It is finished.
Is it?
Then why can I see right over the hay bales?
It needs to be twice as high as this.
It's for kids.
And you assume a child won't appreciate a challenge.
- Excuse me, Mayor Fontaine? - Can't you see I'm busy?
- You know there's a storm coming? - I know there's a storm forecasted.
Why do you think we have ponchos?
I suppose you'd be happier if everybody just stayed home.
Well, I think I would.
If there's lightning, the hay bales will go up like a torch.
What qualifications do you have to make this assessment?
Well, I did get a card that said "Sole Survivor" from the MORPHO machine.
It's my first time being out the house in a month.
So I'm still a bit nervous about things I could survive.
Honey, please.
You don't know the first thing about survival.
What was that? Sounded like thunder.
It was probably just one of the rides.
Trina, if you get scared, you know that you can hold Daddy's hand.
- Or we can link arms... - God.
- ...like The Wizard of Oz. - Yes! Yes.
Okay, I already regret inviting you.
Hey, Father Reuben! Deerfest is that way!
I told Father Reuben about my whole arrow theory.
He was very impressed.
Seems the teacher has become the "Teacher."
Yeah, I've been thinking about that a lot actually.
It's pretty good, right?
Yeah.
What?
- Nothing. - What?
No, I--
I guess I'm just wondering if--
if this is all about a turn in the road like you said,
then what if we don't turn together?
How do you mean?
What if our arrows don't point in the same direction?
I don't know.
Hello?
Hana.
What you doing?
Just trying to fix this hole in the roof before the big storm comes.
So, you've been listening to Axel's weather reports, huh?
I don't know who Axel is, but I've been listening to the news.
What do you normally do when it rains?
I have an elaborate system called a bucket.
But I don't think it's gonna cut it for this one,
and I don't wanna wake up in six feet of water, so...
Wait, what do you mean "wake up"?
Yeah, this is my room.
I'm sorry. I--
I didn't realize you slept here.
It looks more like the room of a small child who died 80 years ago.
Thanks. That's the aesthetic I was going for.
- Where's all your things? - I like to travel light.
Actually got rid of a bunch of stuff right when I got here.
Why did you come here?
What do you mean?
What led you to this town, of all places?
I could ask you the same thing.
I came because there was an opening at the high school for a chaplain.
- Same. But I guess you got it. - Hana, I'm serious. I wanna know.
Why did you come here now?
What are you doing here, Father?
I don't wanna be a priest anymore.
Well, this could be a problem.
Abracadabra.
Mr. Johnson?
Mr. Johnson!
Oh, shoot.