The next words escaped Enid's mouth without a volume filter.
"YOU HAVE A DAUGHTER?!" the lycanthrope exclaimed, practically planting herself in front of Pup. The Addams backed up a step, startled at the werewolf's outburst. Enid didn't look furious, but surprised and as if in euphoric shock.
"What?! No! I don't have a daughter," Pup replied, unable to help but feel perplexed, "Is this about Wednesday Junior?"
"Well, it's just that... Wednesday Jr...," said Theo, "The postponed term Junior is usually associated with the offspring of an individual with whom they share the name."
"Oh, hells, I understand the confusion," Pup said, turning back to Enid, "But that's not the case. Wednesday Junior is my little sister."
"That raises another whole bunch of questions," muttered Dora.
Wednesday for her part merely raised her eyebrows and whispered a quiet "Oh, no..."
"Sister?" asked Enid, tilting her head slightly.
Pup nodded, "Father and mother had a late pregnancy, by surprise, five years ago. A set of twins, boy and girl, so much like Pugsley and me that they thought it would be appropriate and funny to repeat the names."
"...Uh-huh...," Enid replied, trying to take in what she had just heard.
"They've bred again," Wednesday said, holding back a shudder.
"Wednesday, don't talk about your parents as if they were rabbits," Enid admonished.
"Technically, they are my parents," Pup added.
"You're right, mia lupa,” said Wednesday, “They are worse than rabbits, the Oryctolagus Cuniculus do not deserve such an unfair comparison."
"You didn't react this way when you heard about Woe's brother."
"That was a single sibling in a single universe. But now there are more, two universes with more progeny. That's two universes too many."
Enid merely shook her head in amusement at her girlfriend's eternal dislike of her parents' ever intense romance, something she would never cease to find hilarious given the fact that consciously or unconsciously Wednesday was just like them in many ways even if she never wanted to admit it. Just a little more discreet in public displays of affection, but that's all.
Turning her attention back to Pup, Enid offered a conciliatory smile, "Sorry for the reaction, Pup. It's just...well, the idea that you could be a mother is a bit of a shock. Part of me is still coming to terms with Friday being one."
"It's nothing," said Pup, "You said it's only been three months for you two, didn't you? The brain has to assimilate that I'm no longer the six year old girl you found in that alley in Jericho."
"And who asked me if I was kidnapping her," Enid laughed.
"Do you have any idea how excited I was?" asked Pup, "My first kidnapping as a victim! Well, in the end it wasn't, but it wasn't so bad either."
The conversation took a more relaxed turn as they continued on their way to Pup's apartment. It was, apparently, October, and the days were already getting noticeably shorter. The sky had begun to take on orange hues by the time they reached their destination.
§§§
His name was Marcus Buckman and he loved to run through Central Park. His role in this story will prove, unfortunately, tragically brief.
Marcus knew the risks, especially after dark. The park was a decaying mess and a hotbed of homeless people, drug addicts and muggers. But late afternoon was the only time of day when he had free time to take a run through the park. He especially enjoyed getting off the beaten path and running through the trees. It reminded him of his childhood near the Oregon woods.
Marcus was fearless, even as the sky began to darken heralding night. He was a big man and in good shape. If he encountered a mugger he was fairly confident that a good surprise left hook and running away would be enough to elude serious trouble, even if the other individual was carrying a gun.
So Marcus Buckman ran through the trees letting the crisp autumn air and the sound of dry leaf litter under his feet envelop him. He was running carefree but not oblivious, all his senses alert, calculating that if he kept his present pace he could be out of the park in a few minutes and approaching...
Marcus Buckman came to a sudden halt.
He stopped short, instinctively. Out of the corner of his eye he had seen something in the trees, like a shadow moving, and whatever that something was had awakened an atavistic mechanism in his subconscious that caused him to stop and freeze like prey at the slightest sign of a lurking predator.
Marcus took a breath, forcing his body to relax. The way his muscles had tensed was painful and he could hear his own heart hammering in his chest.
He felt frustrated, unable to rationally explain where that sudden fear had come from all at once. Just because he saw a bit of movement in the periphery a few trees back? Catching his breath again, Marcus turned and took a couple of steps forward, trying to see if there was something. But there was nothing, just the lengthening shadows of the trees in the sunset. There was nothing moving there, nothing...
That was the moment he noticed the silence. Central Park was full of pigeons and other types of birds, including ravens and hawks. Many insects too. There was always some animal noise in the background, but all Marcus Buckman could make out was the murmur of the city that seemed distressingly distant, the sound of his own breathing and the crunching of leaves beneath his feet.
He felt a shiver and the hair on the back of his neck stand up, something inside him screaming at him to turn around.
Even if he had heeded his instinct immediately it was too late. Marcus Buckman didn't see it coming. He only felt something hitting his back with monstrous strength and a cold sensation on his neck followed by an unexpected, sticky warmth. In his last seconds of conscious thought, he realized it was his own blood gushing from his severed throat.
After that he felt and saw nothing else. He could not feel his flesh being torn and chewed nor his entrails being splattered on the earthy ground.
It had not been a death due to personal causes. It had not even been an act of depravity or malice, though the creature responsible was capable of such acts. But at the end of the day, the Shadow Hyde that had hidden in the shadows among the trees of Central Park had just to eat, and that lonely runner had been a fortuitous prey. It was necessary to replenish its strength and count on its capabilities to the máximum. The creature had been following the trail of its target for several days, but the city was a nightmare of scents that kept the Addams almost camouflaged.
But it was only a matter of time, it would soon hunt her down, like so many others imprisoned by itself and its brethren.
Despite this, a small note of unease had planted itself in this Shadow Hyde's psyche, a thought it tossed around as it finished its infamous dinner. After days and days it had finally been able to isolate the scent of the Wednesday Addams from this dimension.
So...why now did it smell like there was more than one?
§§§
"Welcome to my humble abode!" announced Pup after opening the door, "The decor and architecture leave much to be desired, with hardly any personality traits, but the place is imbued with a practical pragmatism that I found pleasing."
The apartment was simple. The front door led into a relatively spacious living room with the walls covered in sober gray wallpaper, a pair of sofas in front of a small television, a couple of bookshelves filled with books and magazines, and a small dining table in the center with three chairs. In the left corner was a small kitchen next to one of the windows equipped with pantries, sink and an old oven. On the other side could be seen a trio of doors.
"That one over there is a small storage closet," Pup explained, "The other two are the bedrooms, and each has its own bathroom, which means that in the mornings we don't have to conduct first blood duels to determine who gets first use of the shower."
"How unfortunate," Wednesday observed, "They're an invigorating way to start the morning."
"Hum, we shared a bathroom at Nevermore and never dueled," said Enid.
"That's because in our first weeks together there I was up long before you, mon soleil, and later there was no need to duel," Wednesday replied, "But I'm sure that, despite what my overconfident past self thought, you would have defeated me in one of those encounters like the magnificent creature you are, leaving me at your mercy to meet any and all of your demands."
Enid rested her index finger on Wednesday's lips, who had been moving closer and closer to the she-wolf as she spoke. The werewolf let out a short laugh, "Back then my demands would have been to be able to take a shower in peace. But I'm sure we can improvise some dueling on future mornings together. With... more interesting results."
Dora pressed her palm to her forehead holding back a growl, "And then she criticizes our grandparents, that is..."
Theo merely patted his sister gently on the back, knowing that with her lupine senses she was the one who had to pick up the pheromones that were undoubtedly escaping in large quantities from the couple.
Continuing the visit to the apartment, there really wasn't much else to show of the place except Pup's room.
Unlike the main living area, the room did denote its owner's personality. A plain writing desk with a typewriter, papers and writing materials sat next to a glass terrarium near the window that led to a fire escape. A bookshelf filled with thick volumes sat next to the door to the bathroom. The curtains were black and the gray of the wall seemed darker than in the living room. The wall was decorated with pictures no doubt relocated from the Addams Mansion and stuffed animal heads, the most striking being that of a moose with a crooked antler.
"Father and Mother let you bring Pierre?" asked Wednesday.
"He was looking forward to seeing what other households were like after his brief stay with the Petersons," Pup replied, "Unfortunately there was no way to bring his hind quarters so I think he'll want to come home soon. Maybe for the All Hallows' Eve festivities."
Pup reached into her pocket and extracted Claudia Augusta and promptly put the scorpion back in her terrarium and tossed her a couple of crickets.
"And now you stay here, miss," Pup said, "One day I'll find out how you manage to open the window."
"Am I the only one worried about a scorpion being able to manipulate locks and open windows?" asked Enid. The others just looked at her, Dora and Theo shrugging. Enid sighed, "The only one then...I guess that counts as normal for the family."
"Every Addams is talented on multiple fronts, regardless of species or capacity for sapience," Pup said, with cordial seriousness. Wednesday nodded in agreement.
"Or age," Enid recalled with a smile, "I still remember your judo throw."
After leaving Claudia Augusta settled and safe in her terrarium and devouring some unfortunate crickets, the group made themselves comfortable on the sofas in the living room. Between Enid and the twins they proceeded to recount the situation in more detail to Pup, with occasional remarks from Wednesday to offer extra insight or some of the deductions she had worked out along with Grandmama.
"So someone, presumably very powerful, is using those Shadow Hydes to capture variants of Wednesday Addams throughout the multiverse and their reasons are unknown," Pup recapped, thoughtfully, "It's a real conundrum... Could it be for revenge, like last time?"
"It easily could," Wednesday replied, "But when it comes to deducing motivations we can only make guesses."
"If it is revenge, whoever is responsible wants the Wednesdays alive... at least at the time of the abduction," Theo explained, "The Shadow Hyde was perfectly capable of killing, but it took mother without hurting her and the one who attacked us at Nevermore tried the same thing with Wednesday."
"You don't think they were the same anymore?" asked Enid.
It was Dora who answered, with a gesture of denial, "It smelled slightly different. A tiny difference, but..."
Pup stood up, "I'm going to use the crystal ball to call home," he said, "I don't think my little sister is in any danger. If those beings go after variants of Wednesday Addams I'll be the main target no matter how much my sister shares my name, but it's better to be safe than to sever the gangrenous leg later."
A rattling of keys in the front door of the apartment cut the conversation short.
The door opened and a young woman in her early twenties with pale skin, bright eyes and long curly brown hair entered the apartment, dropping a backpack full of books by her feet and removing a short brown jacket. She was tall and slender and the smile and greeting that had begun to form on her mouth froze as she became aware of the visitors' presence.
"Uh...hello?" she greeted shyly, "I didn't know we had visitors."
"Hey, roomie," said Pup, "Uh... you're back early, I wasn't expecting you until around eight."
"Oh, Professor Cronenberg cancelled his class for the next few days. Trouble with a fly in the lab or something that apparently is more important than finishing grading our papers. And if we were going to have visitors you could have let me know and I would have brought extra food."
"I'm sorry, it's... It's been an unexpected situation, it's a family emergency. This here is my cousin, Wednesday."
Pup's newly arrived roommate raised an incredulous eyebrow, "Really, Weds? You're telling me you not only have a little sister named after you but a cousin as well? And I see the pigtails thing must be family tradition..."
"We use Roman naming conventions, with many shared names among family," said Wednesday, "We differentiate from each other by making use of a cognomen. Hers is Pup."
"Okay... Pup. Heh."
Enid stood up, deciding to interject to lighten the atmosphere.
"We're so sorry to have dropped in out of the blue, but something serious family-related has really come up and we needed to talk with P... Wednesday," Enid said, "I'm Enid Sinclair, and this is Theo and Dora Addams."
"Cousins too?"
"It's...a little more complicated," said Dora.
"Well, it's nice to meet you. I'm sorry if I've been a little curt, it's just... Well, I don't have good experiences with unforeseen situations."
She was sincere, and cordial. Wednesday could see that. But from the moment she had crossed the threshold of the door there was something about the young woman that had put all of the Addams' instincts on high alert. That apprehension was heightened when Pup's roommate finally returned Enid's greeting with a firm handshake and a pleasant smile.
Wednesday knew that smile. She had seen that smile before, on another face. Directed at her
And finally a sense of vertigo began to wash over her as the girl spoke again.
"My name is Taylor," she said, "Taylor Galpin."
NOTES:
Oh, look, the evil cliffhangers are back! 😈
Also, as far as I can remember, Pugsley Jr and Wednesday Jr were not twins in the 1977 TV Movie, so consider that I have taken artistic license for this version.
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