The Psychological Warfare

**The Psychological Warfare**is the seventh episode of *The Savages* ' first season and the seventh episode overall. The episode premiered on August 17, 2016.

It will be written by REBƎLReloaded.

A showdown emerges between The Savages and Rose De Vil when Trae rebels against the rules, but his anger management issues concerns the clique. Nate makes a brash decision, while Zachary's anxiety takes a toll on him.

## Plot

Zachary struggles with bad anxiety: this is shown in the first scene where he wakes up to a thunderstorm. He goes to the bathroom and takes antidepressants that weren't his, but his parents' and he performs *Happy Little Pill,*to his thought that the pills would take the stresses away. That same night, Trae texts Zachary, concerned about him and his unusual behavior for the past few days. That night, Trae watched news coverage on his computer about the infamous video scandal, and searched for the video's uploader to find clues and possibilities of who leaked it.

The next morning, Rose De Vil holds a conference with Jennifer Gordon, the superintendent of the school district, who points out the reckless behavior and poor school environment under Rose's management. Although Rose tries to prove to her that the school is improving, Gordon threatens her, claiming that if the school does not improve, her job will be in jeopardy.

Meanwhile, in Mr. Baxter's classroom, Trae gets a failing grade on an essay and he becomes infuriated with it with the claim that he worked very hard on it. After making a public scene and disrespecting Mr. Baxter, he is forced to go to the principal's office. As a result, he has an outburst, throwing his table on the ground and walking out. Gina expresses her concern about his aggression to Alex who expresses the possibilities of Trae's school stress, conflicts with his mother and the constant strict rules from De Vil. Alex also reveals his theory to Gina that Joe is the real culprit behind the video scandal, and how Nate has changed his attitude once he became closer to Joe. Nate soon overhears this and feels betrayed by Alex's comments, giving the vague decision to confront him or isolate himself from them. He sings *Afraid*admitting his fear that he's being replaced in The Savages.

Trae, later on, shows the username and login information of TripleDz, the name behind the video leak, to The Savages. As they discuss the possibilities of who's responsible, Trae's rude demeanor concerns the rest of the group, who continue to pester him about what his problems are. Trae makes a huge rant about his hormones, stress, animosity towards Mr. Baxter, and issues with his mother. This response causes everyone to witness his rant, and he walks away from The Savages angrily.

Zachary stays home from school, meanwhile, that same day due to his anxiety and depression episodes. His mother enters the room in hopes of consoling him with food, but he loses his appetite. She becomes very concerned with his melancholy, but his true reasons behind it are overshadowed by lies when he only asks for advice from his mother about falling in love, intimating his feelings for Trae. She advises him not to fall for anyone too hard, and if they aren't aware of his feelings, Zachary should let them know.

The same day, two hours before school dismissal, Felix and The Moneybags approach Kalleb to invite him to his party. Although Kalleb carelessly declines, and questions why Felix would invite him, especially after considering him an outsider and unknown to the school community. Felix rudely responds by saying that he "gives to the needy."

After being threatened by Jennifer Gordon, Rose is forced to make new rules for the school, later advising Ms. Haynes, the school's secretary, to announce the rules on the loudspeaker. The polices solely state that all students are required to be investigated and interrogated for the video scandal conflict, and if a student refuses it will be an automatic suspension. These new rules infuriate Trae even more, who is convinced that something had to be done. He proposes a plan to The Savages about confronting Rose and letting her know that the policies aren't fair. Felix, afterwards, confronts The Savages for their efforts of going against the policies, believing that their voices won't be heard because De Vil won't care. Felix and Trae's rivalry gets intense when the two throw insults at each other, to the point where Felix makes a low blow about Trae's mother. The Savages force Trae to walk away from him, but Felix eggs him on, calling him a bastard child. Trae runs towards Felix, and brutally attacks him. As this fight occurs, Joe convinces Nate that he has the opportunity to quit The Savages to make them suffer more than they already are.

Trae is sent to Rose De Vil's office and he gets suspended for attacking Felix and for other behavioral reasons, but Trae calls Rose out for bias, believing that Felix's behavior is just as bad and unfair and he doesn't get a consequence. Meanwhile, The Red Hot Cheer Peppers comment on Trae's suspension and going to Felix's party after school. Trae is, later on, confronted by his mother for getting a suspension, so she grounds him and keeps him from spending time with The Savages, believing that is the main reason why his behavior and grades have been slacking, according to Mr. Baxter.

The next day, The Savages all reflect on Trae's suspension after he is limited from conversing with them during his time away from school. They further despise the fact that Felix is allowed to return back to school instead of Trae, after seeing him after the fact. Carl gathers the idea to do a vocal protest at and against the school, with picket signs. After The Savages agree to this suggestion, Nate immediately yells his resignation from the group, causing confusion. He confronts every single member of the group for trying too hard to be reckless and not giving him credit where it's due. He confronts Alex for not being worth anything to the group, Gina for not appreciating his help with her sense of fashion, and Sydney for putting him down and making him feel worthless. He claims that the group will struggle with out him, and he exits to approach Joe. Carl, aware of their closeness, goes to confront Nate on his own and accusing Joe of brainwashing Nate into believing certain things. When Nate refuses tot ake Carl's tough love, he, Alex and Sydney sing *Complicated.*

Zachary returns back to school the next day in very poor condition, hoping to reunite with Trae, but Gina, happy and relieved to see him, gives him the news of Trae's suspension from school. Zachary pretends that he's fine after Gina expresses concern about his whereabouts and his behavior, but in a voice-over, Zachary reveals his diagnosis with anxiety disorder and a flashback shows an episodic panic attack he suffered with in childhood. Meanwhile, The Savages lead a new protest in their different classrooms, yelling "FREE TRAE" and encouraging the rest of the students to join along. The protest is successful.

That same night at Felix's party, a majority of the cliques at the school attend and they discover that Felix is wearing sunglasses to cover up Trae's damage. During the party, The Red Hot Cheer Peppers attend, and Sena gets a text message from Mr. Baldwin, and Iesha hints at their affair to Angelika. Afterwards, Lily, Gina and Sydney attend the party, and Gina reveals the future of her relationship with Alex. Then, the girls meet Kalleb in person, but when he feels shut out by them, specifically Sydney, he performs *Here,*expressing how different he is from the others. The girls also discover Joe and Nate's arrival at the party, thus increasing the tension. That same night, Vik and Brian get into a physical altercation with each other, forcing Felix to kick everyone out.

After being grounded, Trae sneaks out of his room and the house to go to Zachary's house. While he arrives, he meets Zachary's mother, who warmly welcomes him. But, by the time Trae arrives, Zachary suffers another anxiety attack over him. Trae consoles him after finding him in need of help, and it soon leads to a kiss. Meanwhile, Trae gets caught redhanded after leaving Zachary's, and he and his mother get into a heated argument, where she reveals that she was going to get an abortion after his dad opted out of the relationship. Trae has another temper tantrum, and his mother notices his behavior because of his, now-revealed, diagnosis with Asperger's syndrome as a child. Zachary and Trae both perform *Disturbia/Radioactive.*

Free from suspension, Trae returns back to James A. Masters High School with a plot to take direct action against Rose and the school. He finally gathers The Savages with a new plan in effect, without Joe or Nate's assistance. They confront Rose in person by demanding that she changes the rules, but wwhen she denies their request, Trae is eager to go for blood. At the moment, they decide to riot and encourage the students to do the same, but as Rufus backs out, Zachary joins in as gratitude for Trae being there for him. The next morning, The Savages prepare for war, leading to a cliffhanger.

## Guest Cast

* Rosie Perez as Mrs. Felicia Ortiz
* Vin Diesel as Sean Romano
* Wendi McLendon-Covey as Mrs. Susan McFadden

Guest Stars* Chad James Buchanan as Mr. Shane Baldwin
* Elise Neal as Ms. Angela Jones
* Tyler James Williams as Matt Park
* Lyndsy Fonseca as Sena Demir
* Hayley Kiyoko as Claudia Wu
* Dave Franco as Viktor Nichols
* Travis Slotemaker as Brian Gustin
* Miles Teller as Glenn Pierce
* Addison Riecke as Alyssa Tanner
* Ryan Kelley as Kyler Chase
* Luke Bilyk as Rufus King
* Summer Boissiere as Iesha Bennett
* Cymphonique Miller as Brianna Townsend
* AJ Michalka as Angelika Summers
* with Patrick Warburton as Coach Jarrett Radnor
* and Michael Michele as Stacey Ventura
* Mary Jo Catlett as Mrs.Gloria Stansfield

## Trivia

* This episode is centered primarily around Trae and Zachary.
* This episode features Nate's first solo.
* With this episode, Zachary is the first character to sing a solo and a duet in the same episode.'
* This episode features Kalleb's first solo.