You to You

***You to You*** is the ninth episode of Season 2 of the STARZ Original Series *Counterpart*.

The episode is directed by Swedish-French film director Charlotte Brändström (*Outlander, Madam Secretary, The Witcher*).

*You to You* is written by *Counterpart* story editor Gianna Sobol and is her fourth writing credit on the show.

## Synopsis

Management makes a historic decision. D1 Emily sends a warning. Peter Quayle, Clare and Naya Temple investigate the final Indigo cell. D2 Howard reaches out to an old contact.

## Full Recap

In Dimension One, Indigo agents receive a shot. They sit in a compound surrounded by the virus crates (See *No Strings Attached*). The crates are no longer active meaning they’re no longer refrigerated.

Ethel, shortly after getting her first kiss, is told she won’t be getting the shot because she won’t be joining her Indigo compatriots. She’s told, “there’s something more important I need for you to do.”

In the same compound in Dimension Two, Mira and Yanek exit one of the homes heading for their meeting with Management. Yanek wonders what will happen if Management refuses to meet. Mira says they will. He marvels at her confidence and she relates a story of when she was seven and her school forced girls to wear skirts and forbade them from wearing pants. Mira got them to change the rule and never wore a skirt again. She says this shows people can be flexible when they need to be.

### Fresh Out of Friends

In D2, Emily is handcuffed in Ian Shaw’s car. She says she needs to meet with Management immediately. Ian says she’ll meet with Management if Management wants to meet. At the Office of Interchange, Emily and D1 Howard are separated into different rooms, much to Emily’s dismay.

In D1, D2 Howard meets with Baldwin at her place. She offers him cold cereal and oat milk. She says dairy bloats. She says she didn’t want to kill Howard’s agents (See *Point of Departure*). She says killing in the past didn’t stick with her, but this time was different. Howard says he tries not to think about it after he kills someone.

He passes her the Nordufer 85 address. He says it’s a construction company that develops technology in third world countries. He says Indigo may have a plant on the inside and he needs her help to get in because he no longer has any friends in D1 suggesting that she killed many of them.

Baldwin says she doesn’t want to kill anymore. Howard says Indigo will make it nearly impossible to have a life in D1 unless she helps. He says she can’t just surround herself with a life that doesn't not hers (as evidenced by all the Nadia Fierro paraphernalia Baldwin has collected in her home). He says they can’t change who they are. They kill people.

### Naya’s Family Unit

In Naya Temple’s apartment in D1, Clare explains how Indigo works. Each cell is compartmentalized so no individual operative has access to the full plan. Claude Lambert was her point of contact for new orders. She blames Lambert’s death on “another cell” saying that the ambassador got caught and they had to take care of it.

Naya presses Clare for more information about the cell and threatens to lock up Clare and Peter if Clare doesn’t cooperate. She also threatens baby Spencer saying that the child would likely be experimented on if her parents are locked up.

Clare relents and explains that the cell is made up of people she was with at the Indigo school. She explains about the refrigerated boxes the operatives were moving that she believes contains The Flu. Clare believes they plan to release The Flu in Dimension One.

Naya presses for more including the name of Clare’s “friend” inside the cell. She says it’s “Spencer Schmidt” which takes Peter by surprise as he’s holding baby Spencer in his arms.

Naya wants Clare to meet with Spencer and to wear a wire to find out Indigo’s plan to release The Flu. Peter balks at the suggestion but Naya is firm. She says both their lives are over unless they cooperate. Her threat is interrupted (and weakened) when Naya’s son Sam (Riley McPherson) comes into the living room demanding his mommy.

As Naya tucks her son back into bed, her partner Elan (Paterson Joseph) explains that Sam has special needs. He does this with a story comparing having a special needs child with getting on a plane with a certain destination in mind and then landing in a totally different place than where you planned to go.

**EDITOR’S NOTE: Elan is explaining the poem *Welcome to Holland* (PDF) by Emily Perl Kingsley. It’s a take on parenting expectations and is widely distributed.**
Elan says, before Sam, he and Naya were selfish. Now they’re better or, at least, they’re trying to be better people. This seems to resonate with both Peter and Clare as it somewhat mirrors their situation.

Naya and the Quayles head out. Naya says they have a busy day ahead.

### Interface

In D2, Ian Shaw meets with Management. He chastises them for sending Agent Yorke, blaming the aggression of Yorke’s team for the deaths at Echo (See *In From The Cold*). Management says, through their camera device, that they’re grateful for Ian brining Emily into the OI.

Management then explains that an agent from D1 reached out and insists on meeting with Emily Burton. Ian balks at this pointing out that Emily is a prisoner. Management asks that Ian bring her to the Interface department. Ian demands an explanation. They refuse and then remind him that his real name is Wesley Peirce and that he doesn’t actually belong in D2.

Emily says she doesn’t under what’s happening as she’s led by Ian into Interface.  He explains that they keep the last door locked except for “off-book activities” and “exchange of goods”. Emily wants to know who she’s meeting, but Ian doesn’t know.

The door at the end opens and Emily enters to find there is no glass between the dimensions as we’ve seen in other interface rooms. This room has a large steel door. It slides open to reveal D1 Emily seated on the other side.

**EDITOR’S NOTE: There have been many questions and much speculation as to how the Interface rooms work and where they’re located within the OI. Justin Marks tells Counterpart Wiki that the Interface rooms are right above The Crossing. The actual Crossing intersects the basement, first floor, and several feet into the ground below the basement. The Interface Rooms are on the first floor. The final room, when the door is open, could also act as a crossing point.**
While D1 Emily seems quite at ease, D2 stands at the back of the room with arms folded. D1 explains that she recently learned that D2 Howard was using her for information. D2 agrees that sounds like her Howard.

D1 Emily explains that Mira is planning to meet with both D1 and D2 Management. She warns that it’s a trap. She says Mira is putting into action the final part of her plan, but she doesn’t know exactly what that entails.

D2 Emily wants to know why her other has been chasing Indigo for so long. D1 Emily admits that it was her report on The Flu that created Indigo. As has been explained, Emily figured out long ago that the epidemic was manmade in D1 and somehow exported to D2 where it killed millions. D1 Emily prepared a report on it for Management. They told her to fuck off and then promoted her so she’d remained silent about it. Then she found out that her report was the basis for a terrorist organization that radicalized an entire generation. She had to act.

D1 Emily moves her chair across the dimensional line to sit closer to her other. D2 Emily is surprised their wrinkles are the same because her life was so hard.

D1 Emily reaches out to touch her and D2 Emily becomes angry. She questions her counterpart about all the times D1 Emily crossed over and pretended to be her other, including interacting with Anna. D1 Emily feigns memory loss but then admits she remembers exactly.

D1 Emily says she initially just watched Anna playing soccer. D2 demands why she didn’t just try to have a child of her own. D1 Emily at first claims she tried but couldn’t get pregnant. Then, under intense questioning admits she didn’t want a child because she liked her life the way it was.

D1 claims she wanted to fill the “gaping hole in Anna’s life” where her mother should have been. D2 warns her not to go there.

D1 Emily admits she never could have raised a child like her counterpart did because she would have “gone under”. She says Anna is a credit to D2 Emily.

D1 Emily reaches out to her other and after a moment’s hesitation, her other takes her hand. D2 Emily breaks contact and returns to the far side of her interface room.

D1 Emily explains that they’re evacuating the OI on her side. She warns her other to keep Mira away from Management at all costs. D1 Emily says the return of her Howard was a condition of the meeting. But she asks her counterpart “may I have my husband back?” or “do you think I’ve already lost him?”. D2 Emily says D1 has not lost him and “I won’t stand in your way.”

### Love Betrays Us All

In Dimension One, Clare, Peter, baby Spencer and Naya Temple sit in a car while Clare calls Spencer. She tells Spencer that she needs to talk to him about a new development but can’t explain over the phone. He tells her to come to the office and promises to text the address. He tells her to use the name Valerie Klein to get access to his office.

Peter takes baby Spencer to Clare’s mother leaving Clare and Naya in the car. Naya brings up the fact that Clare named her baby after her Indigo friend. Naya says Peter loves Clare. Clare doubts this but Naya says she saw that Peter was willing to die when he was caught in order to protect Clare.

Clare says she’s wise to Naya’s attempts at manipulation because she did the same thing to Peter. Whenever Clare was afraid Peter was on to her, she would pull at his heartstrings to gauge his reaction to see if she could still trust him. Naya asks point blank if she can trust Clare. Clare doesn’t answer.

Peter returns and says they’ll need to pick up baby Spencer before dinner or come up with another excuse for Clare’s parents.

Spencer texts Clare his address, it’s Nordufer 85, the same address Howard showed Baldwin earlier.

In Dimension Two, Ian Shaw informs Howard that he’s going home and asks Howard to tell the other Howard that he’s an asshole. Howard asks what will happen to D2 Emily. Ian says she always lands on her feet.  He also apologizes for what happened to Howard at Echo saying it wasn’t personal. Ian then reveals that he knew D1 Howard wasn’t his counterpart in the interrogation room when D1 vociferously defended Emily.  Ian says D2 Howard would never have done that. He was that was love and love betrays us all.

D2 Management orders the evacuation of the Office of Interchange and that Mira not be allowed on the 4th floor. Ian Shaw is tasked with handling Mira while Emily is removed from her post due to Management’s distrust.

As the building is evacuated, Emily leads Howard to The Crossing at Customs. Howard hesitates and cracks jokes. Emily says this is why they say you shouldn’t see your other’s life because when you do it’s really hard to let go.

Howard says he’s not sure he wants to go home. He doesn’t know if it’s because he doesn’t want to face what’s waiting for him at home or if he just wants to stay. Emily urges him to be kind to D1 Emily “if you can”. He says he will and then kisses D2 Emily.

Howard reaches the midpoint of The Crossing. He can see D1 Emily waiting. He turns back and sees D2 Emily still watching. He looks at her until she walks away. Howard then crosses home. D1 Emily hugs him and kisses his neck. It’s an awkward moment for them both with Howard’s face showing a range of emotions.

### Wake Pilgrim

Mira and Yanek arrive at the rendezvous spot along the Spree River just down from Schiffbauerdamm with a view of the Marie Elisabeth Lüders Haus. Yanek says he used to bring Mira to the spot when she was a child and Mira wouldn’t want to play with other kids. She just wanted to be alone. A nearby father scolds his child to wear a jacket to avoid catching cold. Mira says someone should tell the father that’s not how you catch a cold.

Ian and his men surround the two fugitives. Mira recognizes Ian and seems genuinely pleased to see him.

The evacuation at the D2 Office of Interchange continues. Emily makes her way outside with her fellow employees.

Ian returns to the OI with Mira and Yanek. The pair are separated with Yanek heading upstairs to speak to Management and Mira heading to a cell. She points out that this wasn’t the arrangement and Ian says Management doesn’t negotiate with terrorists.

The entire OI is now empty save for Ian and his guys, Mira, and Yanek. Members of D1 Management cross over to D2 and bring their communication cases with them.

Yanek is led to the Management elevator and told to go upstairs. There he finds all four members of D1 Management waiting on one side and the three living members of D2 Management on the other. He says they look old.

In D1, Peter, Naya, and Clare arrive at Spencer’s office at Nordufer 85. The business is called Wake-Pilgrim. Clare says she’s never heard of it.

***EDITOR’S NOTE: While there is a Nordufer 85 in Berlin, the actual location for Spencer’s office is along Neue Jüdenstraße. The building Clare enters is Altes Stadthaus (Berlin’s old city hall). Partially destroyed in WWII, it was used extensively by East Berlin’s communist government during the Cold War and underwent extensive renovations once Germany reunified. The building is a well-known Berlin landmark currently used by several federal and local government offices.***
Clare tests the microphone she’s wearing. Her voice echoes in the car. Naya instructs Clare to get Spencer to talk and then get out. Peter urges Clare to be careful. She warns him that he may hear things between her and Spencer that won’t be easy. He says he knows and asks if Clare loves Spencer. Clare says “I love you”.

Clare enters the building as Peter waits in the car. The Wake-Pilgrim Group sign advertises several offices inside including Headquarters, Energy Forum, Mergers Acquisitions, Contractors, Bio Technology, and Marketing.

### Reunion

At the D2 OI, Yanek asks D2 Volker why he is confined to a wheelchair. It was an accident on the Autobahn. Yanek asks Juma about his counterpart. D2 Martin is quick to point out that Yanek’s daughter killed D2 Juma. Yanek laments “what a mess” Mira’s made.

D1 Ilse says they have choice, they can suffer more attacks from the planted Indigo sleepers or accept Mira’s deal. Yanek says Mira wants them to accept what should have happened long ago, that they failed and should shut down The Crossing.

D1 Martin says they can’t allow one terrorist to dictate the future. Yanek points out that Mira isn’t bluffing and they should give her what she wants, but D2 Ilse says Mira wants them dead and they can’t give in ever.

Yanek says they need to face the fact they failed and this is the cost they must pay.

In the cage downstairs, Mira starts working on Ian. She says she’s been looking forward to meeting Ian Shaw and that they have a great deal in common. He says she knows nothing about him. She agrees she knows little about human behavior. She says it’s a fallacy of Management to think that everyone can be controlled simply because they’ve been studied. She says they’re not subject, they’re human and as such are governors of their own destiny. Ian tells her to “kindly shut the fuck up”.

At Wake-Pilgrim in D1 (interior lobby of Altes Stadthaus) Clare presents herself to the building’s security as Valerie Klein. She is led to an elevator. She’s met on another floor by an assistant who offers her espresso. She refuses. He leads her to Spencer’s office. Pictures of bridges and an oil well are visible on one wall. Clare asks what he does for work and Spencer says it’s better they not talk about it.  She notices a picture of Spencer and his parents (See Outside In). He says they shouldn’t be together because things are all underway. She says that’s what she needs to talk about.

Back at the D2 OI, D1 Martin claims they’re all still friends. Yanek wonders, if that’s true, why do they only ever communicate using the cases and never see each other.  Yanek mocks their belief in their “better angels” and that The Crossing would be the mankind’s greatest endeavor. Martin says it still is, but Yanek is vehement that it’s corrupted beyond repair.

D2 Volker points out that Yanek’s been away and doesn’t know how much they’ve given their respective worlds through the trading of information, environmental progress and scientific advancements. He can’t believe Yanek want’s them to give all that up. Yanek says it was never “yours”.

D1 Martin says it offers access to the greatest minds of two worlds. Yanek counters that it cost the blood of hundreds of millions. He says they won’t admit it even now when they’re altogether that D1 Management are responsible for The Flu. He then chastises D2 Management for doing nothing to retaliate. Ilse says they’ve all made peace with the errors of their past collectively. Yanek says they’ve made compromises.

D2 Martin asks what would have been gained by them pointing fingers? He says if the truth got out, it would mean war. Yanek says they are already at war. He says it’s biology and human nature to survive and to destroy the other.

D1 Juma speaks up for the first time and says it’s only in Yanek’s nature to destroy. D2 Ilse says if there’s a war then Yanek started it when he killed his other (See *Twin Cities*).

### It’s Getting Late

In the cage downstairs at D2 OI, Mira looks at her watch and says it’s late. She tells Ian that it’s almost time for her to leave. She says Ian’s going to let her out.

Mira says she knew Management wouldn’t let her in the same room with them. She was counting on them not trusting Emily Burton anymore and then leaving Management’s favorite agent, Ian Shaw, in charge of guarding Mira. She’s planned for this scenario to facilitate her escape.

Ian’s phone begins to ring. He answers it and a man places Nomi on the other end of the line. Nomi is tied up in a van with a masked man. She doesn’t know what’s going on and says as much to Ian. The man says he’ll spare her life if Mira is released and hangs up.

Mira says she can’t imagine what it would be like to lose Nomi twice.

***EDITOR’S NOTE: The D1 version of Nomi was Ian’s wife and was killed due to Ian telling her about the work he did at the Office of Interchange (See Shadow Puppets and No Strings Attached). Ian did cross paths with this D2 version of Nomi but never went beyond a passing acquaintance at the local coffee shop.***
In D1 at Wake-Pilgrim, Clare warns Spencer that Emily Silk is remembering a lot of things but she’s not entirely sure how much. Clare points out that she doesn’t know the plan either.  She asks what was in the crates she helped unload (See No Strings Attached). He doesn’t answer but she guesses it’s a virus, Mira’s way of “leveling the playing field”. Spencer says what matters is that they’re still ahead of the D1 agents.

She raises doubt and says it could be a trap. Spencer says it’s too late to turn back. Clare says she could help if he would tell her how the virus is going to be released. Spencer becomes suspicious and finds the microphone on Clare. He rips it out. Down in the car, Peter freaks and jumps out.

Spencer grabs Clare. She claims she knows he’s changed because she saw it in Spencer’s eyes when he was talking about Mira. He says he’s never turned his back on “the dream” and throws her down onto the couch. Clare gets to her feet and says the dream was about peace but what they’re planning isn’t peace. Spencer says it’s all for the greater good and questions why Clare lost sight of that.

Clare strokes Spencer’s arm and tries to get to him emotionally claiming she still remembers them the way they were and that he was her first love. He falls in and says they still can be. Clare changes tact saying she’s a mother and won’t do this to her child. She moves to leave the office but Spencer grabs her by the throat. At that moment someone knocks and enters the office. Clare takes the opportunity to run.

Spencer chases her and enlists members of the building’s security team to chase Clare as well. She makes it outside and, still running from Spencer, calls Peter. She tells him “they’re after me.” She spots the subway at Klosterstraße. Peter says that’s the U2. She says she’ll head north to Alexanderplatz and they should pick her up in five minutes.

Baldwin watches as Clare runs down the stairs to the train pursued by Spencer.

***EDITOR’S NOTE: Klosterstraße Station is directly behind Altes Stadthaus in Berlin and Alexanderplatz is indeed one station up on the U2 or Red Line. But, again, none of this is anywhere near the Nordufer 85 address given for Wake-Pilgrim on the show.***
One of Spencer’s men catches Clare as she’s running through the station. Spencer catches up to them. She warns him to stay away. Spencer says no one is going to hurt her. Spencer’s man is shot in the head. He falls and reveals Baldwin is standing behind him. She takes aim at Spencer but Clare steps in front of gun.

D2 Howard steps out from behind a pillar and says they’ll take both Spencer and Clare.

Back at the OI, Yanek is still begging his former friends to close the doors between worlds. D2 Ilse says their system is imperfect, but they see constant improvement.

Yanek compares the OI to communist East Germany. He says they built a wall to keep the west out but all it did was keep East Germans prisoners in their own homeland. He says it took too many years for the communist party to admit their experiment had failed. He says Management has made the same mistake.

Mira walks in, pulls her handgun and shoots each member of Management. She tells Yanek he’s free to go. She then takes two of the communication cases, one from each world.

Yanek realizes this was always Mira’s plan, not peace but vengeance. She tells him to go through The Crossing. Customs will be empty due to the evacuation. Mira explains that he’s going home. Apparently, Mira’s counterpart still lives in their old apartment with her children. Yanek breaks down in tears.

Mira goes straight to Interface. The door between worlds in the last room is still open. She places one case on the other side of the dimensional divide. She turns them both on and says “Upstairs has an urgent message”.