His Hyde's Jekyll

Chapter 3. Meeting the Addams

Wednesday stood clutching her luggage as the Addams family hearse pulled up to Nevermore's gate. Her mother was the first to emerge, hips swaying in a revolting manner as she approached.

"Oh, my little rain cloud. How I've missed you," she cried, arms opened wide for an embrace that Wednesday would rather be disemboweled than accept.

Her father climbed out of the vehicle next, grinning widely. "Wednesday! How has my little viper been?"

"There have been several more attempts on my life since your last visit, one of which was temporarily successful," she told him flatly. "I've never been better."

"That's my girl," he said, beaming with pride.

"Mother, father, I have invited an acquaintance to join us on our trip. He should be arriving shortly."

"A boy?" her mother asked. The eagerness in her face made Wednesday instantly wary. "What's his name?"

"Tyler."

"Is he your boyfriend?" Pugsley piped up.

She shot him a dead-eyed stare. He would pay for that comment later in blood.

"Tyler Galpin?" her father said. "The Hyde boy?"

"The one and only."
Her parents were well-connected, so she had expected that they would have been informed already. That prevented her from having to make troublesome explanations.

"Oh darling, how exciting," her mother said. "To think-having a Hyde as your first boyfriend! I am so very proud of you."

"He's not my boyfriend. I am merely using him for personal gain."

Her parents exchanged knowing glances that immediately sent alarm bells ringing in her head.

"We understand, my little scorpion," her father said. "We promise to be on our best behavior so that we won't embarrass you."

She opened her mouth to say that was a statistical impossibility, but at that moment, the Sheriff's car pulled up beside them. Tyler climbed out of the front passenger seat, lugging his suitcase with him. A few words passed between him and his father that she couldn't make out, then Sheriff Galpin tipped his hat politely at them before driving away.

Tyler stood there awkwardly, looking uncertain. "Uh, hi, I'm Tyler."

"Yes, yes, we've heard all about you," her mother said, flashing a smile that was nearly bright enough to sear Wednesday's skin. "We're so glad to have you traveling with us. We Addams have a saying, you know-the more the morbider."

Wednesday barely refrained from rolling her eyes. Whichever one of their ancestors had come up with that particular maxim deserved to be beheaded. Not only was it inane, it was a grammatical abomination.

Tyler smiled nervously. "Thanks, Mrs. Addams. Did Wednesday, uh...tell you about me?"

"Of course," her father said, "we know everything." He put a strange emphasis on that last word.

"And you're sure about this? I mean, I can transform into a monster, and I've already killed a bunch of people. I've even tried to kill Wednesday."

Her mother seized her father's arm. "Isn't he adorable, my love? Boasting in front of his future mother-and father-in-law to impress us."
"Indeed, mi tormenta."

Tyler looked torn between embarrassment and utter confusion. His face-including his ears-turned a very interesting shade of red.

"Feel free to ignore everything they say," she told him. "It's the only way I've survived this long with my hearing intact. I've found that approximately 96% of what they say is senseless drivel anyway."

"Well then," her mother said, clapping her hands, "shall we-as they say-hit the road?"

Wednesday stared at her, face expressionless. "Do we have a choice?"

"That's the spirit, darling. It's time for a good old-fashioned Addams vacation."