In the spring or summer months, or even in the fall and winter if the weather was suitable, the quad was a favorite area for Nevermore students for meal times.
And breakfast was no exception.
Before his eyes rested eggs, bacon and a green puree of indeterminate origin, for no school cafeteria in the country could do without having some food of a strange and puzzling nature, even by the standards of the outcasts. At least that was Ajax's opinion as he cautiously probed the greenish paste with a spoon.
Encouraging himself to try a bite and deciding that the substance looked edible, Ajax Petropolus proceeded to continue his breakfast in relative solitude.
Oh, he wasn't alone in the quad. Despite the fact that the place was quite a bit calmer than it would be under normal circumstances, there were a handful of other students who had opted to remain in their dorms for the break.
Of course, strictly speaking, that wasn't the case with Ajax. His grades had not been as good as they should have been and his parents had given him an ultimatum on a financial level, controlling his expenses. No parties, no trips with friends. He could visit the family home or stay at Nevermore, but whichever option he chose, he would have to apply himself to his studies.
He opted for Nevermore, not out of petty resentment, but out of sheer pragmatism. If he really wanted to use that week's vacation to catch up on academic coursework, a house full of relatives visiting for the holidays was not the place for him. He would visit for the weekend, that was it.
The young gorgon was deep in thought and trying to ignore what the lumps in the green mash might be when he saw them enter the quad and almost choked.
Enid and Wednesday were not a strange sight on the quad. Breakfasts, lunch, rest periods... they tended to be a regular presence, especially the colorful lycanthrope. For dinner times it was more common for the two to spend them in their dorm.
Enid was his best friend. Which might seem odd to those who knew they were a former couple. But then again, Ajax had never had a problem with being odd, and he valued the she-wolf's friendship too much to let it be spoiled by a failed tryst of just a couple of months ended by mutual choice.
Wednesday on the other hand... Well, Ajax would have no problem calling her a friend if it weren't for the fact that he was pretty sure the Addams would fill him with razor blades if he dared to do so. So they were more like cordial acquaintances. At least Wednesday was always cordial with him, in her reserved way occasionally peppered with vitriolic sarcasm.
Which was good. If she really didn't like you, the Addams' responses were usually to ignore you, insult you in a direct way that left no room for doubt, or proceed to plot your murder until Enid realized it and restrained her before things could escalate.
So in a way, things were good between the three of them.
And it was because that kind of trust existed that Ajax had no qualms about returning a greeting when Enid spotted him with her eyes and began to advance towards the table he was at, followed by Wednesday and the three reasons why he almost choked.
"Enid, your girlfriend has learned to do the mitosis, she's multiplying..."
Yes! Take that, biology notes! He had used a term the right way.
Enid snorted as she set down her breakfast tray and sat opposite him at the table.
"Well, at least it's no worse than Yoko's suggestion of a breeding phase."
"Petropolus," greeted Wednesday sitting down next to Enid.
Behind her, the other three newly arrived girls proceeded to sit at the table and Ajax couldn't help but watch them.
The youngest sat on the other side of Enid, dressed in pink despite her unnerving resemblance to Wednesday, and greeted him with an effusive wave and a broad smile that the gorgon couldn't help but return.
Another sat at the head of the table, looking the oldest of the three and watching him with an expression that reminded him of Wednesday when the latter arrived in her first year at Nevermore. The girl was scary, and there was something oddly familiar about her features beyond the Addams resemblance.
Finally, the third sat down right next to him. The first thing Ajax noticed was that she was extremely pale. If it weren't for the blackness of her hair and dark eyes he would have thought the girl was an albino. The girl completely ignored her tray of food, fixing her gaze on Ajax with a strange intensity accompanied by an unnerving smile.
"I have been informed that you are not human," she said.
"Needler!" scolded Enid, "That's very rude."
"Ajax, to facilitate your limited abilities to be able to comprehend the present situation, allow me to introduce you to my cousins, Woe, Needler and Friday," intervened Wednesday pointing to the respective girls.
"Uh, Nice to meet you... and it's okay," said Ajax, "We gorgons are technically a human subspecies of the cryptid category that..."
"Your hair are ophidians?", asked Needler.
"Er... yes."
"Fascinating, could I...?"
"You're not going to ask his permission to dissect him in the event of his death," Wednesday interrupted in a calm tone without looking away from her plate of food.
What, thought Ajax, alarmed.
"But it's the polite thing to do," Needler protested, "The rude thing would be to do it without his permission."
"Personally, I'm more in favor of vivisection," added Woe.
"What about taxidermy?" asked Friday, "For the little snakes in his head at least."
"My God," mused Ajax, "They're three of you."
He didn't see the brief exchange of glances between Wednesday and Enid after making that remark. The Addams merely responded by keeping her voice serene.
"Like I said, my cousins. They are Addamses."
Needler for her part continued with her list of questions.
"If you turn someone into stone... is it permanent?"
"No, the process varies from a few minutes to several h..."
"If the petrified person is broken into pieces... Do these remain stone past that time or do they revert leaving a pile of meaty bits?"
"Honestly, I'm not sure, nor do I want to know," replied Ajax at the macabre and surreal twist of questions from the girl sitting next to him.
"Needler, just... just eat your breakfast, please," sighed Enid.
The situation gradually regained an air of normalcy. With a sigh of disappointment, Needler restrained her craving for knowledge, though she continued to ask questions about the gorgons but much less graphic and in a much quieter and calmer voice, occasionally accompanied by an also curious Friday. Woe remained silent the rest of the time, although she seemed to be having a silent conversation with Thing based on subtle finger movements.
Overcoming the initial uneasiness (and some panic) Ajax began to answer questions with more enthusiasm. Enid watched the scene with a half smile as she finished her own breakfast. Leaning over to Wednesday, she whispered into Wednesday's ear, "I need to talk to you alone for a moment."
Repressing the delicious shiver that always ran down her spine when her beloved whispered in her ear no matter what the reason, Wednesday nodded and stood up immediately, followed by Enid.
"Girls, Wednesday and I need to talk about something. Do you mind staying here for a while with Ajax and Thing?" asked Enid, before turning to the gorgon "You don't mind do you? I'll just be a moment."
"Relax, I'll survive," Ajax said.
"Are you sure?" said Woe, casting a sidelong glance at him. Ajax gulped.
"Uh... as long as Thing has no qualms about lending me a hand. Pun not intended."
The dismembered limb jumped up on the table and tapped effusively, trying to encourage the young man.
"We won't be far away. Don't cause Ajax any trouble, girls. And feel free to explore around," the she-wolf said with a wink.
Enid took Wednesday by the arm. They both walked away from the area with tables on the quad ignoring the stares of the other students present who had been busier attending to the scene than their own affairs. After finding an inconspicuous corner near one of the corridors leading to the dormitories, Enid turned to Wednesday with an enthusiastic smile.
"I have a plan!"
"You have a plan?" asked Wednesday, incredulously.
"Hey, don't take that tone... you know I plan things. Sometimes."
"Your capacity for planning, strategy and subterfuge in competitive and social arenas is unparalleled, mia lupa," replied Wednesday, "But something tells me it's not that kind of plan you're referring to."
"Well... Do you remember commenting on the possibility that the book thief was not a Nevermore student?"
"Obviously."
"I was thinking of going back down to the Nightshades library and sniffing around a bit," Enid said, touching her nose, "Literally. I'm sure I recognize all the scents of whoever goes down there usually, but if I find a strange but recent smell that doesn't match anyone I know or anyone who's now at the Academy..."
"It could only be the thief, though it's still a very vague trail."
"Not so much," replied Enid, "Jericho. I was thinking of going into town with the excuse of buying food and changes of clothes for the girls. I can take advantage of it to take a walk, especially around public areas, or near the motel... And if I find the same trail I can follow it to the person behind it."
"That's... a solid approach, Enid," said Wednesday, "Well, I guess this afternoon we'll go to..."
"No, no, I'll go by myself. You stay here."
A shadow overshadowed Wednesday's features for a few moments. When she spoke the tone of her voice sounded unusually hurried, anxious, "It's too risky. We don't know the thief's capabilities. I can't let you face them alone, I'm not going to..."
A finger rested on the Addams' lips, hushing her.
"Wednesday," Enid said piercing her blue eyes into the Addams' dark ones, "I adore you, I adore how much you care, and I adore the rare occasions when you show it unceremoniously. But sometimes that makes you forget that I'm not a helpless puppy anymore and you get too overprotective."
Wednesday took Enid's hand, gently pulling her finger away from her lips and lowering her gaze.
"I don't mean to, I know you've learned to embrace the glorious, beastly creature of the night that you are, but a part of me can never help but worry," the Addams replied returning Enid's gaze again. Wednesday raised her right hand and gently stroked the werewolf's left cheek, going over the outline of the scars that marked her delicate face, "I have always appreciated the beauty of your battle marks, and I have always stood for what they symbolize to me. But I have also sworn that I would not let the world brand you again.”
"And I have sworn that I will tear the throat out of anyone who dares try to harm you, remember?", Enid replied resting her hand on Wednesday's, "I can do this. You know I can. And we can't take the girls with us. We can't leave them alone either. They'll be safe here, with you. And I'll go out hunting."
"Spoken like a true wolf," whispered Wednesday, bringing her face close to Enid's.
"I finally found a reason to be one," Enid replied.
"Il mio bellissimo sole."
"Ma lune noire."
They kissed, as they had done countless times before. And as on all those occasions, the intensity of the fire in their chests was the same or greater than the first time. All the senses of one focused on the other, and vice versa, oblivious to the outside and to all notion of time.
When their lips parted, reddened and tender, they leaned their foreheads against each other as they caught their breath, staring into each other's eyes again and letting contented smiles adorn their faces.
"I'm afraid we're not going to be able to find many such moments for us alone in the coming days," Wednesday said, "And while I'm somewhat more comfortable now with public displays of affection, I don't want to risk us degenerating into a facsimile of my parents in front of my counterparts."
"Perish the thought," laughed Enid, "Although if their Gomez and Morticia are anything like yours they're probably used to it."
"Best not to risk it," grumbled Wednesday causing another giggle to escape Enid, "Let's get back to the quad. Hopefully Woe hasn't filleted Petropolus yet."
The two walked back to Nevermore's central square. The instant they entered the quad again, Enid tensed.
At the table where they had eaten breakfast there was only Ajax, talking with Needler while trying to conceal his nervousness at the young girl's once again disturbing biological questions. Thing watched them from the table with a relaxed disposition.
There was not the slightest trace of Woe and Friday.
"Thing! Ajax!" exclaimed Enid running to the table, "Where are Friday and Woe?"
"Uh... they went for a walk around," replied the gorgon.
"Friday expressed interest in visiting some beehives mentioned by Thing," Needler said, "Woe didn't express anything verbally, but headed south of the quad."
Arriving at the table, Wednesday turned to Thing.
"You didn't think to stop them?"
The dismembered hand began to tap and gesture, addressing both Wednesday and Enid.
"The Academy is safe. And you told them they were free to explore around."
"Around the quad, Thing!"
"And you specified that to them?"
"Oh... oh no," Enid muttered holding a hand to her head. Wednesday merely narrowed her eyes looking menacingly at the dismembered hand and a gorgon that looked like he wished to be swallowed by the earth.
NOTES
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