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For the mysterious woman in Delicate, see Ivy Ehrenreich.

Ivy Mayfair-Richards is a woman struggling to keep the serenity of her family. She is a character in American Horror Story portrayed by Alison Pill. Ivy is married to Ally, and the two women have a son named Oz.

Background[]

Little is known about Ivy's past, other than she met Ally after 9/11 and helped her overcome the resulting depression and triggered phobias. They opened a restaurant where Ivy would be the chef, and Ally as the restauranteur welcoming the customers. At some point, they married and had a child, Oz. However, Ally gave birth to the child due to Ivy was suffering from endometriosis. Ally took care of Oz more and made Ivy feel like she was being treated like a stranger, and that made her enraged and jealous.[1]

During one of the protests against Donald Trump's supporters, Ivy had a violent clash with a Trump supporter named Gary Longstreet. Meanwhile, Ivy befriended another supporter of Hillary, Winter Anderson. Ivy and Winter shared similar ideas on feminism and politics, and the two decided to enact their revenge on Gary who harassed them. Followed him at the supermarket where he worked, the two knocked Gary out and tied him with duct tape in the basement. However, Winter's brother Kai discovered their motives and rescued Gary by leading him to saw off his hand, making him capable to walk. With a broken arm, Gary arrived to vote for Trump with the help from Kai, much to Ivy's shock.[2]

After voting for the election, Ivy started to hate Ally even more after knowing she voted for Jill Stein instead of Hillary Clinton, since Ally had problems trusting Hillary. She was also confused that Gary escaped and sawed off his hand. Just then, Kai appeared in front of Ivy and brought her into the secret chamber of his. He asked Ivy about her greatest fear, to which the latter expressed her resentment and jealousy against her wife because she could not give birth or love towards her son. Those events led to persuade Ivy in joining Kai's cult.

Personality and Appearance[]

A young wife and mother struggling to make ends meet, Ivy is a woman who tries to be strong for those she loves, facing several difficulties when Ally's phobias begin to fracture their family's stability, she is an independent woman and will do anything to get Oz all to herself. She has short blonde hair and brown eyes.

Story[]

Ivy supported Ally during her emotional breakdown caused by Trump's victory at the 2016 presidential election. At the same time, she reassured Ozzie that no harm would come to their family. Afterwards, Ivy tried to calm one of Ally's panic attacks triggered by the vision of a clown on one of Ozzie's comic books. Ivy found herself reassuring her wife once again when she was attacked by a gang of assailants with clown masks, although a police officer had confirmed that such aggression had not been recorded by surveillance videos. The following day, Ivy expressed her opinion about Ally's recent behavior while the two discussed the lower incomes of their restaurant, The Butchery on Main.

Reconciled, the two walk out of the restaurant where a guy threw coffee on them just as they were discussing again, this time because of Ally's inability to vote for Hillary Clinton, despite her hate for Trump. She voted for Jill Stein instead.

A few days later, Ivy and Ally talked about potential babysitters, hiring Winter Anderson as the best candidate for the job after a pleasant conversation in which Winter won their approval.

Ivy and Ally went out for a romantic evening, and Ivy cooked for both of them at the Butcher on Main. Ally had another of her violent hallucinations, and Ivy could barely calm her before starting arguing with her wife. The two went home, only to find out that their neighbors, Thom and Marylin Chang, were killed and the police were investigating. Concerned about the safety of their child, the two discussed again.[3]

When Ally was apparently attacked by a clown in their home, Ivy, armed with a kitchen knife, searched the rooms but found no one. A sudden romantic idyll between the two wives was interrupted by Oz's cries, scared by a nightmare about clowns. Afterwards, returning from work, Ivy and Ally discovered that Winter had left Oz with the new neighbors, Meadow and Harrison Wilton. Alarmed, the women rushed to the other side of the road, only to discover that Harrison was showing his beehives to the boy. Ivy tried to calm her wife while trying to be a good neighbor, though she was quite uncomfortable due to the neighbors' odd behavior and the fact that the Changs had recently died in that house.

After the suspicious death of Roger, one of the employees of The Butchery On Main, Ivy organized an informal meeting between Dr. Vincent and Ally at their house, worried about Ally's paranoia. When questioned by Detective Samuels about the murder of the employee, Ivy defended the police's primary suspect, Pedro Morales, another kitchen worker of their restaurant. Trying to raise the incomes of the restaurant following the murder investigation, Ivy was working when there was a general blackout in the city and she did not care much about Ally's phone call, on the brink of yet another nervous breakdown.[4] She sent Pedros over to give her some things to help her wife like candles, which he brought to her.

Ivy struggled to comfort and protect her wife after Pedro's shooting and the resulting media chaos caused by it. Unable to avoid the protestors outside the Butchery On Main, the most obvious solution was for Ally to avoid the restaurant for a while. The rising criminal wave in the city and the arrival - and premature departure - of an unexpected guinea pig as a pet for Oz were not ideal, especially when Ivy was full-absorbed in mitigating Ally's growing paranoia about poison gas spread in the neighborhood. Afterwards, Ivy lost her temper when she discovered a potential affair between her wife and the nanny through a video released as a virus on Oz's laptop. Deciding to leave the house with her son, the Mayfair-Richards found themselves involved in the accusation of the disappearance, and possible murder of their neighbor, Meadow.[5]

Days later, Ivy walks into the meeting of Kai's cult wondering what she missed, confirming that she is part of the cult now. Ivy drives with Winter, and they discuss how the plan is working out. They planned the video incident of Winter's tryst with Ally, but it has upset Ivy in how it unfolded. Kai choreographs the assault on Bob, and they carry out the invasion plan, chanting Satanic verse in Latin. The gang kills Bob's submissive man, who is suspended from hooks. This proves too much for Ivy, who vomits in the toilet, comforted by Winter. The remaining clowns drag the bound and gagged Bob to the attic, and they take turns stabbing him on camera. Later Ally calls Ivy, who doesn't want to deal with her. Meadow bangs on the door and then the window, telling Ally that everyone, including Ivy, is involved with the cult before she is caught and dragged away. Kai declares that they are going to take care of R.J., the weak link, who is bound and gagged in the back. Ivy asks Kai to stop, but he insists that she be the one to kill R.J., handing her a nail gun, giving her a choice of how merciful to be. R.J. begs through his gag, but Ivy reluctantly drives a nail into his head. After that the rest of the gang kills him.[6]

At a political rally, Meadow started shooting people, Ivy hides and becomes quite shocked and terrified as the people who where shot fall next to her. Later when police arrived, Ivy saw that Ally is holding the gun from which is shot. Ally is taken to a madhouse where she spends some time, during which Ivy never visited her or brought Oz.

At The Butchery, Ivy and Winter discuss Ally's disappearance. Ivy is worried, but Det. Samuels won't return her calls. Winter says that since he's part of the no-women-allowed inner sanctum in Kai's basement. Ivy invites in a knocking Beverly and the woman, whom Beverly identifies as Bebe Babbitt. Beverly asked all the women to assemble. They are all unnerved that "the patriarchy" has taken over the movement's leadership and that they are being marginalized. Bebe discloses that Valerie Solanas was her lover, and tells her story about Solanas' SCUM Manifesto. Back at the restaurant, Harrison and Ivy plan a victory party for Kai. She questions whether Harrison's treatment of Kai as a king isn't a bit much, which he scoffs at. They move further in, and the women surround him. Beverly incapacitates him, and he awakes in the meat locker to find Ivy with an engaged chainsaw. They pump him for answers about Meadow and Ally. He says everything is Kai's idea, even "Men Lead, Women Bleed". Ivy lowers the chainsaw and severs his arm. Beverly reports on Harrison's "scum-covered" dismembered corpse, and associates it with retaliation for Meadow's assassination attempt, although is obvious that he's killed by Ivy, Beverly and Winter.[7]

At the restaurant, Ivy and Winter serve several of the followers, who scorn the food for being healthy and make harassing and belittling comments about the women. Beverly, who is also working in the kitchen, says that their plan to topple the patriarchy died when Kai developed an army and tells Winter that she's going to attack Kai. Later, in the inner sanctum, a clown-masked Kai bids "bring the betrayers" to him as the cultists chant "my ruler". A hooded Beverly and Rudy are led in. Kai kills Rudy and instructs to take Beverly to the isolation chamber. He addresses the assembled and welcomes the newest member as Ally unmasks herself (to Ivy's horror) as the new Satanist clown.[8]

Ally asks Ivy for answers on why she joined the cult. Ivy responds that she felt out of control, and wanted someone else to make decisions for her. She also admits that at the time she felt like she hated Ally. Ivy has come to see the truth of Kai's rule, but stopped her exit when Ally joined. Ally says that she had no choice: she had to join to extract her family. Winter arrives with Oz, who reluctantly hugs Ally. The women await Kai in the inner sanctum, but Beverly arrives and attacks Winter. Kai calls for an end to the infighting. He retrieves a pot of liquid, serving each woman a ladleful of Kool-Aid (as Beverly explains who Jim Jones is). He explains they are to kill their mortal bodies and return immortal for the Senatorial run. All the followers, including the men, take a cup. When Kai points to each, they are to drink. The women drink when bidden, as do all the men in turn (including Kai). It was a test of loyalty, and there is no toxin in the drink.

Ivy and Ally pack (without looking like they're packing). Ivy asks about Winter, angering Ally. They will pick up Oz from school in an hour and will not look back. Oz is missing from the school, picked up early by an escorted Winter. Kai entertains Oz with games in the inner sanctum. The women arrive just before Oz is to drink the Kool-Aid. Oz says he wants to stay with "daddy". Kai insists that he is likely the donor who sired him. Ally wishes to leave anyway, and Ivy says it is ok for Oz to stay the night. Ally tells Oz to behave himself, and they leave before a major scene can ensue. Outside the house, Ivy insists they just saved the lives of all three of them, as even in Kai's care Oz has a chance to live (otherwise Kai would have killed them all).

Ivy has the donor information, and it does not contradict that it could be Kai. Ally assures her that Ivy was right, and she has a plan. Ivy says that the only play is murder. Ally agrees and serves pasta and a special wine saved for an occasion. Tonight they start over, Ivy says. Ivy begins eating and notes that Ally is not. Ally serves herself, describing her time in the psych ward, alone without visits from Ivy or Oz. Ally continues, saying that she chose revenge against Ivy to fill the void left from her healed fears. Ivy scoffs that Ally's not cured, though this is the woman she's always wanted that it's a phase before returning to cowardly ways, and that she's not afraid of her. As Ivy stands, she realizes she's been poisoned. Ally put arsenic in the food and wine, and intends to bypass Ivy to get Oz back. Ivy dies wretching and screaming on the floor. Later, Kai and Ally bear Ivy to the Anderson family "crypt", leaving her on the floor.[9]

After Kai's cult is destroyed by FBI, thanks to Ally, she succeeds in persuading almost everyone else that Kai killed Ivy. In her advertising campaign for Senator in 2018, Ally can be seen placing flowers on Ivy's grave.[10]

Notes[]

  • This character marks the first appearance of Alison Pill in American Horror Story.
  • She is a Hillary Clinton supporter.
  • She is a confirmed member of Kai's cult.
  • According to her gravestone, Ivy's birthday is April 14, 1984.
  • Ally and Ivy's home is famously the same house used in John Carpenter's 1978 film "Halloween", as the home Laurie Strode was babysitting at. The house is actually located in Pasadena, California.
  • It was revealed in Mid-Western Assassin that Ivy suffers from endometriosis, a condition in which tissues that normally grow inside the uterus grow outside.
    • Her medical condition is the reason why she hates her wife due to Ally being able to do what Ivy always wanted: carry and give birth to their son.

Quotes[]

  • To Oz: "Oz, you don't have to worry. 'Cause nothing is gonna happen to us."
  • To Ally: "Are you insane?"
  • To Winter: "I hate this country. What it's become. I hate my fucking wife for letting it happen. The only thing I love right now is my son, and I will do whatever it takes to make the world a better place for him, even if it means burning it all down."
  • Harrison
    Now you want to talk about protecting our wives?!
    Ivy
    I just drove my wife crazy. I didn't get her killed!
  • Ivy
    Oz will never forgive you.
    Ally
    No, it's you he won't forgive, for abandoning him.


Gallery[]

References[]

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