Pilot

Four estranged friends are brought back together after each begins to receive frightening letters from a person they suspect is a long-missing associate.

## **FLASHBACK**

### **THAT NIGHT**

In Rosewood, Pennsylvania on September 1, 2009, four friends get together in a homely barn, drinking and having fun. At one point, a noise outside the barn scares them. The four girls slowly make their way to the barn door, and a blonde girl gives them a fright, screaming. The blonde is after revealed to be Alison DeLaurentis, the clique's leader. The five then either sit or lie down and return to playful activities, falling asleep shortly after. During nightfall, Alison disappears, and Spencer Hastings tries to look for her in the night. Aria Montgomery then wakes up and finds Spencer arriving back to the barn, where Spencer tells her and the others that she did not find Alison anywhere, and that she thinks she heard a scream.

The girls hearings something outsideAli Coming in after scaring themAlison ensuring the girls their secrets will keep them close before passing the bottleSpencer telling the girls she thinks she heard a scream after they wake up
## **FLASHFOWARD ONE YEAR LATER**

The Montgomery's return to Rosewood after spending a year in Iceland, and Aria finds herself unable to adapt again to the town's mediocrity. Ella and Byron, Aria's parents, are happy together again after a crisis they had in the past, while Mike, Aria's younger brother, quickly settles himself in the lacrosse team. In an attempt to refresh her mind, she goes to a pub to drink and meets a guy there who also likes literature. They feel connected and make out in the pub's bathroom.

Alison still missing a year laterAria adjusting moving back to RosewoodMeeting Fitz at Hollis Bar

At the local mall, Hanna and her friend Mona are shopping. Hanna bumps into Spencer and takes the opportunity to catch up with her.

Hanna distracting sales associate to shopliftHanna talking to Spencer about the summer, Melissa, Alison. "She's gone buts she's everywhere"Hanna helping Spencer pick out a shirt for family dinner
She then shoplifts a pair of expensive sunglasses, while her pal Mona shoplifts a scarf. Just then, a security guard follows Hanna out of the store, but to hand her her bag, which she forgot inside. Hanna smiles mock innocently, and her and Mona leave, scared, but relieved.

Hanna getting away scott free after shoplifting

Byron drops Aria off for her first day back at school, and while the two are alone in the car, he tells Aria that he loves her mother and made one mistake that shall not be repeated.

Aria & Byron arguing over his secret mistake

## FLASHBACK 2

### BYRONS SECRECT PT 1

Just then, Aria has a flashback to the summer when her and Alison had meanly ditched then-nerd Mona only to find her father, Byron, kissing another woman inside his car.

Ali: "Is that your dad's car?"Byron with mistress
Once back at high school, Emily is the first to fill her friend Aria in on what she missed while away, including the fact that the other three girls, her former friends, Hanna, Spencer and Emily have all disbanded since Alison's death.

Emily & Aria catching up about the girls
In the meantime, the formerly chubby, gawky Hanna has become the new queen bee, alongside formerly nerdy sidekick Mona, who has had a glam makeover of her own.

Hanna brushing them off on the sly
On the first day of class, she discovers he's her new English teacher, Ezra Fitz. Aria receives a threatening message from someone who identifies as 'A', and who apparently knows about hers and her father's secrets.

"Holy Crap""Just ask your Dad"Aria & Ezra hooking up at Hollis
## SUB-PLOTS

### EMILY PT 1

Meanwhile, Emily discusses Aria's return home with her own mother, Pam, who is clearly judgmental and controlling as a mother, as she makes a comment about the pink streak Aria used to sport in her hair and no less, the fact that her mother used to let her "walk around like that."

Emily debating her mom over Aria's lifestyleEmily is then sent by her mother to bring a gift basket to the St. Germain's, the new family that moved into the neighborhood and into Alison DiLaurentis's home. While there, Emily meets the St. Germain's daughter, a spunky girl named Maya, and helps her move boxes into her new home.

Maya St. Germain introducing herself to EmilyBoth girls say they have boyfriends, Maya is even persuasive enough to get Emily to try smoking weed for the first time.

"Yeah but he lives in San Fran""Sooo I'm corrupting you?"
### SPENCER PT 1

At the same time, all-star student Spencer must contend with her sister's new fiancée, Wren. Melissa compliments her sister on her renovations of the barn that she has been working on for the past couple of months and then informs Spencer that she is moving into the barn that Spencer had planned to move into, as promised by their parents. Wren is sensitive and concerned, whereas Melissa is smirking and glib. They move in as planned, anyway.

Spencer confronting Melissa about her barnMelissa protesting Spencer will have to wait to move into the barnInsinuating her and Wren need their own spaceLater, Spencer spots Wren smoking and sarcastically calls him out for knowing better as a medical student. She also correctly guesses that Melissa is oblivious to her fiancées smoking habit. The two behave flirtatiously towards one another, with Wren going as far as to massage a bikini clad Spencer's back the next day when she displays signs of muscle aches. The two immediately disengage when Melissa enters the room, though. Spencer flirts back too, pronouncing Wren the first boyfriend of Melissa's that she's ever liked... (Well, almost...)

Spencer confronting Wren about smokingWren Calling Spencer a smartassSpencer telling Wren she actually likes him
### ARIA

At school, Aria meets Ezra alone in his classroom to discuss the status of their relationship. Ezra feels Aria led him on and is unprepared to engage in an illicit relationship with a student, while Aria tries to persuade him that he feels something too.

"You told me you were studying at Hollis""No I told you I was majoring in-" Aria and Ezra talking about the dynamics of their new situation"I think you're great Aria...but I'm your teacher"At the Montgomery's home, Ella and Byron are making progress on unpacking. They discuss their adjustment back to Rosewood, and Byron reveals how nervous he is to lose the closeness he had with his wife in Iceland, where the two were forced to bond for lack of having other friends there. He doesn't completely reveal what he is afraid will threaten his relationship with his wife in Rosewood. Oblivious to the nuance, Ella agrees that the adjustment is hard, considering that they once again live near the DiLaurentis house, and driving past it evokes bad memories. They declare their commitment to one another, and the two embrace over a glass of wine.

Ella and Bryon talking about the trip and being back in RosewoodBryon ensuring Ella they are ok

### EMILY PT 2

Maya and Emily go for a walk, and Emily shares her thoughts about Alison and her disappearance. It is hard for Emily to see the tributes people left for Alison being loaded from the curb in front of Maya's house into a dumpster. The next day in the school's gym locker room after swim practice, Emily finds a note from "A" letting her know that she is aware of her previous day's kiss. Spencer closes her locker nearby, where she has just changed into her field hockey uniform, and sees Emily staring into space. She asks if everything is okay, but Emily denies that anything is wrong.

Emily telling Maya more about AlisonThe first kissA's letter to Emily
## FLASHBACK 3

### SPENCER & IAN PT 1

Later that night, while Spencer watches Melissa and Wren kiss from her bedroom window, she receives an anonymous email from "A" letting Spencer know that she/he is on to Spencer's jealous feelings, and this wouldn't be the first time.

A's email to SpencerSpencer flashes back to the summer when Melissa was dating then-boyfriend Ian Thomas. She had been standing with Alison and Hanna in her kitchen, when Ian and Melissa had walked in. Suddenly, Alison announced that Spencer had something to reveal, but Spencer denied it, annoyed and angry by her so-called friend's blunt betrayal. Spencer had counters Ali's vague threat with a threat to expose Ali's involvement in "The Jenna Thing."

Ian offering to help with Spencer's serveThe girls greeting IanMelissa walkin in as Alison insist that Spencer telsl her what happendAlison ensuring Spencer telling Melissa is the right thing "If you won't I will"Spencer threatening Ali about The Jenna Thing
### SPENCER PT 2

Back in real time, Spencer looks timidly out the window, with the paranoid feeling of being stalked. She then catches sight of a wavy-blonde haired girl through the window in the former DiLaurentis home across the street and gasps "Alison."

Spencer swearing she saw Ali in her old room
### HANNA

That night, the police show up at Hanna Marin's doorstep, busting her for shoplifting the expensive sunglasses from the local mall. They caught her using the security tapes. At the precinct, she almost munches on candy corn to calm her nerves until "A" sends a mocking text, alluding to her overweight days. At this point, all four girls have been messaged by "A." The man on the case, Detective Wilden, has his sights more set on her newly single mother, Ashley. Hanna is waiting in the station when Ashley prompts Hanna to get up and leave. Outside the station, dozens of cop cars are seen rushing somewhere with their sirens on.

Wilden showing up arrest HannaHanna at the Police stationA's message to Hanna about prisonIn the car, Ashley scolds Hanna for her mistake, reminding her daughter that Rosewood is unforgiving of damaged reputations. She gleans from Hanna that she did it to get her father's attention, not because she couldn't obtain the merchandise on her own. Ashley lets Hanna know that she will take care of the situation and tells Hanna to admit nothing.

Ashley telling Hanna the dangers of her actions
## PLOT TWIST

### ALISON'S BODY

Suddenly, the camera follows the police cars to Maya's house, where ambulances are flanking the street, and it seems the whole town has come out to watch what's going on. Emily walks past and catching sight of the scene runs toward Maya's front steps, terrified that something happened to Maya.

But Maya comes to greet her, seemingly fine. She lets Emily know that Alison has been found, and Emily is excited until Maya tells her that it is her body that has been found.

A stretcher with a body bag atop it is then wheeled past where they are standing. The Pretty Little Liars find one another amidst the crowd and stand together to discuss the craziness.

### HANNA PT 2

Back at home, Hanna sits on the couch eating ice cream, eyes glued to the television set, as the news report of Alison's resurfacing unfolds. Apparently, her body was found under the gazebo in the backyard, which had been under construction the summer before when Alison had gone missing. Suddenly, Ashley loudly enters the house... with Darren. The two kiss passionately. She then climbs the stairs with him, leading him to her bedroom, turning to exchange eye glances with Hanna, who watches guiltily frozen on the couch.

Hanna watching news broadcast about AlisonAshley hooking up with Wilden