It was now the weekend after the Rave'N and it was Parents' Weekend at the moment
Teachers, students and parents had all assembled at the Quad
"Nevermore was created as a safe haven for our children to learn and to grow, no matter who or what they are." Principal Weems states doing her speech.
Damian knows she's just doing the speech to ease the worries of the parents and the students because of what happened to Eugene
The audience applauds to her
"I realize most of you have heard about the unfortunate incident involving one of our students." Principal Weems continues. "But I'm happy to report that Eugene is on the mend and is expected to make a full recovery." she informs to them. "So let's focus on the positive and make this Parents' Weekend our very best yet." she tells them.
The audience applauds again
"On the mend?" Wednesday asks sarcastically with her arms crossed. "Try in a coma." she corrects.
"Have you been to see him?" Enid asks her standing at her left.
This makes Wednesday look at him
"You're his friend." Enid tells her.
"I'm the reason he's in the hospital." Wednesday responds.
"Hey, that is not your fault, okay? It's the monster's fault, not yours." Damian tells her trying to comfort her.
"The monster hasn't attacked anyone in the past week." Enid informs her. "Maybe you finally scared it off." she adds hopefully.
"Or maybe it went into hiding to avoid this weekend." Wednesday theorizes.
"I would." Damian says with a chuckle.
Damian shudders a bit
"Hmm, it suddenly feels 3 times colder and darker than normal." Damian states and then looks at Wednesday. "I think you're parents have arrived and another family member as well." he guesses.
"I knew I should have worn my plague mask." Wednesday states looking at her parents and brother.
Damian follows her gaze and sees her parents and boy next to them probably her brother wearing dark clothing
"Would you look at my family?" Enid asks them rhetorically looking to the right.
Damian & Wednesday follow her gaze. They can hear & see them howling. They can see an older gentleman with a beard and and older woman with grey hair watching Enid's 4 older brothers on a table running around and howling
"Talk about toxic pack mentality." Enid adds. "I give my mom 30 seconds before her judge-y claws come out." she bets.
"I bet she'll do it before that." Damian says jokingly which gets him a punch in the shoulder from Enid.
"Well I know my parents are not gonna show up." Damian informs the 2 girls. "So seeing as I'm free this whole weekend and I've already met Enid's parents. How about I meet your parents, Wednesday?" he suggests.
"Yeah that's not gonna happen." Wednesday replies coldly.
"Oh come on, why not?" Damian asks her as he looks at her parents. "They look... interesting." he adds trying to be nice.
"Let's get this over with." Enid concludes with a big sigh.
Enid then walks to her parents as Wednesday approaches her parents
Damian follows after Wednesday
Feeling Damian follow her, Wednesday angrily turns around to face him
"What did I just say?" Wednesday angrily asks him rhetorically.
"There she is. Oh, how we missed those accusing eyes and youthful sneer." they hear a male voice calls out.
Damian & Wednesday look at the source of the voice and they can see her dad along with the rest of her family walking up to them
Wednesday's dad hugs her close and Damian can feel she's very uncomfortable with it. As he releases the hug, Damian observes the man and sees he's a stout man with a height probably just below average and most likely a Latino
Her father then notices Damian standing close to Wednesday
"Ah, you must be 1 of Wednesday's friends." the man guesses.
"Oh he has to be much more than just a friend, Gomez. I've never seen anyone so intensely watched by Wednesday." Wednesday's mother states. "Pleasure to meet you young man. My name's Morticia; Wednesday's mom." she introduces herself. "But you probably guessed that already?" she asks him.
Damian replies with a nod as he takes a good look at her. Damian can see that she's a tall, gorgeous woman with long black hair just like Wednesday and a very nice physique. Damian then looks at her brother. He sees that the boy is stout just like Wednesday's dad who's name is revealed to be Gomez, he's wearing a black & white striped short, black pants, black hair like the whole Addams' family and holding a meat stick
"How are you, my little rain cloud?" Morticia asks her daughter.
"I thought Thing was filling you in on my every move." Wednesday replies harshly.
This shocks their parents
"I uncovered your feeble subterfuge almost immediately." Wednesday clarifies.
"So, how's the little fella doing? Does he still have all his fingers?" Gomez asks her worriedly shaking his fingers to emphasize.
"Relax. I haven't snapped any of his digits." Wednesday reassures her parents. "Yet." she adds seriously.
Damian can see Gomez is relieved that Thing is okay
"So, who's your new friend?" Morticia asks interested.
"Hi, I'm Damian Nova." Damian says introducing himself. "Wednesday is roommates with a good friend of mine and through series of event, we became friends as well." he explains.
Suddenly Gomez gives him a hug
"It seems you got caught in her viper's gaze, so you must be a good egg. Because she wouldn't tolerate anything less." he informs Damian. "Welcome to the family." he adds.
This confuses Damian and infuriates Wednesday
"Are you like a zombie or spirit or something like that?" Wednesday's brother asks Damian, listing off the possibilities.
This confuses Damian further
"Ummm... sorta... like part of me is a spirit I guess." he answers. "Why do you ask though?" he asks him.
"It's just.. I never thought Wednesday would have a friend that is alive." Wednesday's brother explains.
This makes Damian chuckle and smirk
"Heh, no worries. I'm alive. Unless she decides to kill me later in someway." he replies. "But you wouldn't do that to your friend, right?" he asks looking at Wednesday.
Damian sees the rage in her eyes as she stands up to the tips of her toes to his left ear
"You're gonna be in so much trouble when this weekend is all over." Wednesday whispers menacingly.
"Ooo, feisty." Damian chuckles nervously.
"Well it seems, we're either gonna have to plan a wedding or a funeral soon, Cara Mia." Gomez informs his wife.
"So tell us everything." Morticia says to her daughter.
"Since you've abandoned me here, I've been hunted, haunted... and the target of an attempted murder." Wednesday tells her parents and brother.
"Ah, Nevermore. I love you so." Gomez says overjoyed with the bad things that happened to her daughter.
Damian sees the smallest of smiles appear on Wednesday's face
"Now, Damian if you would excuse us. We have to take Wednesday to Principal Weems' office." Morticia informs him.
"Oh right, of course." Damian responds. "I'll see you later, Wednesday." he says to her.
The Addams' family then walks off
Damian then leans against a pillar
"Enid. Oh, let me look at you." Enid's mom says enthusiastically walking down a step as Enid walks up to her.
"One-one-thousand, two-one-thousand..." Damian can hear Enid count quietly.
"Have you not been waxing?" Enid's mom asks her judgementally.
"Three seconds. That's a personal best." Enid answers annoyed.
"Called it." Damian chuckles.
Suddenly Enid's mom starts circling her while sniffing her
"Are you feeling well?" Enid's mom asks her worriedly. "You're looking a touch anemic." she informs her. "Have you been eating enough red meat?" she questions her grabbing her arms.
"It's good to see you too, Mom." Enid says to her trying all she can to stay happy. "And you, Dad." she adds softly looking her dad.
Enid's dad smiles happily at her
Damian then decides to go pay a visit to Eugene. He opens his glider, jumps off and flies towards Jericho General Hospital
Once there, Damian walked to Eugene's hospital room and tried to help the healing some more with his waterbending healing ability
*A few hours later*
Damian was now just staring at Eugene hoping he would at least wake up soon
Suddenly he felt a familiar dark presence
"Wednesday." Damian says. "It seems you finally had the guts to come visit him." he tells her with a smile.
Wednesday ignores him as walks into the room and puts a jar filled with honey on the hospital bedside table
"I harvested hive number three." she explains to the comatose boy.
"How did it go with your... interesting family?" Damian asks her.
"Well, I recently found out that my father was once accused of murdering a guy named Garret Gates." Wednesday reveals. "And he's unwilling to tell me the truth of it." she adds.
"Hmm. Your dad doesn't seem like to type to murder someone. At least not on purpose or without good reason." Damian says voicing his thoughts. "I bet you're gonna get to the bottom of it to find out the truth?" Damian asks her already knowing the answer.
"Obviously." Wednesday answers plainly.
They hear the continuous beeps of the heart monitor
"The bees miss you, Eugene." Wednesday says to him.
Eugene's labored breathing can be heard loud and clear
"We all do." Wednesday admits softly.
Suddenly the two heard tapping coming from behind the screen on the heart monitor and it was shown to be Thing
"Thanks for keeping an eye on him." Wednesday says gratefully to it.
In response, Thing flexes his fingers for a second as how a normal person would shrug his or her shoulders
"Any updates?" Wednesday questions it.
Thing shakes himself in response
"He didn't deserve this, I should be in that bed." Wednesday states looking down at Eugene.
"Hey, don't say that. You shouldn't think like that. Eugene wouldn't want you to think like that." Damian informs her.
Wednesday looks at Eugene again
"Why did you go without me?" she asks him even though he can't hear her.
Suddenly someone touched Wednesday's shoulder, causing her to gasp in fearfully as she turns around to look who touched her
This was the 1st time, Damian could feel the fear coming off of Wednesday
He then turns around as well and recognizes the 2 women as Eugene's moms
"Didn't mean to startle you dear." one of Eugene's moms says to her softly.
"You must be Wednesday." The other mom guesses. "Eugene's moms." she explains. " Sue and Janet." the woman now revealed to called Sue introduces pointing at herself before pointing at her wife.
"You were all he could talk about lately." Janet reveals to Wednesday. "He was so happy you joined the Hummers." she adds.
"Eugene hasn't had the easiest time fitting in at Nevermore." Sue explains.
"He was so excited that he had gotten another real friend." Janet adds.
"Well I brought him some honey." Wednesday tells them.
As she was about to leave, Sue stepped in front of her not done yet
Damian could feel a slight irritation coming from Wednesday from being stopped
"Eugene loves those dang bees like they're his kids." Sue explains to Wednesday. "His fuzzy-buzzy babies." she concludes. "He's gonna be okay, right?" she asks her wife worriedly walking closer to the bed looking at their son.
"I should go." Wednesday says to them before leaving.
"I'm sure he'll be okay. He's a fighter. And I tried to heal him some more earlier when I came here." Damian explains to Eugene's moms trying to reassure them.
As Damian goes to walk outta the hospital room, he sees Wednesday standing still in the doorframe. He can feel the worry and guilt in her heart. Damian wishes he could comfort her, but he doesn't wanna make her feel uncomfortable
Wednesday eventually walks outta the room and hospital. Damian follows after her, but keeps his distance
Damian sees her looking up at the slightly melted statue of Joseph Crackstone
They both notice Morticia Addams holding a rose and walking the graveyard next to the church
They start to follow her. They notice her looking down at a headstone. They see her ripping of the head of the rose off and throwing the flower stalk in front of the headstone. She then throws away the head of rose behind her as she walks off
Wednesday opens the gate walking into the graveyard to the headstone her mom was standing while Damian jumps up, standing on the roof of the church as he watches Wednesday from above
Wednesday gets to the headstone and sees it reads Garrett Gates. After staring at it for a long time, she too walks off presumably to Nevermore
Damian then leaps off the roof towards the headstone and cushions his descent with his airbending and looks at the headstone too
*sometime later*
Everyone had gathered in the Quad again for lunch
Everyone was sitting with their family while eating. Ajax let Damian & Xavier sit and eat at the table with his family
"Mmm. I am famished." Morticia admits as she puts some food on her plate. "You're not hungry, darling?" she asks her daughter curiously.
"My appetite eludes me, Mother. The same way the truth eludes you." Wednesday informs her coldly as she walks off.
"We need to tell her." Gomez says to his wife.
"She'll never believe us." Morticia tells her husband. "We must stay strong." she states. "And hope that something more morbid comes along to distract her. Or maybe that Damian boy will be able to distract her." she says hopefully as she and Gomez walk to a table to sit.
Damian sees Enid looking back at Ajax as they wave at each other before he goes to sit down and Enid looks back forward. Damian starts eating some food being very hungry
Damian suddenly feels Enid feeling down, he looks up to where she's sitting. He notices she's slumped back in her chair as she can be seen pushing her plate away. Damian guesses her mother said something to hear relating to the wolfing out or not
As he finishes eating, he hears the big doors to the Quad open. He turns to look at the door as he sees Sheriff Galpin, Deputy Santiago and 2 police officers
"Can I ask what this is about, Sheriff?" Principal Weems asks him politely.
He blatantly ignores her walking past her as he continues to walk towards a certain someone
"Gomez Addams." Sheriff Galpin calls out to him.
Gomez stands up, turns around and looks at the sheriff
"How can I help you, Sheriff?" he asks him calmly.
"You're under arrest for the murder of Garrett Gates." Sheriff Galpin informs him as he puts him in cuffs. "You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law." he explains to him.
"Dad?" Wednesday's brother calls out to him worriedly.
"You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford one, one will be appointed for you." Sheriff Galpin concludes as he takes him away.
Everyone present watches with confusion as to what just happened
Wednesday storms over to Damian as she grabs his left arm, pulling him outta his seat to a hallway to talk to him in private
"Whoa!" Damian exclaimed in surprise when Wednesday pulled him outta his seat to a hallway.
"I'm going to confront my father and I need you to come with me as my lie detector to confirm if he's speaking the truth once we leave." Wednesday explains to him.
"Sure, okay." Damian responds. "You could say please for once if you want someone to help you." he informs her.
"I could also just cut out your tongue." Wednesday tells him harshly.
"True. But I would like to keep my tongue." Damian counters chuckling nervously.
The duo then visit the Jericho prison
On their way there, Damian decides to say something to Wednesday
"You know Wednesday, remember when we were at the hospital earlier today and Janet touched your shoulder?" Damian asks her.
"Yeah. What about it?" she asks him in confusion.
"Well that was the 1st time I could feel the fear coming off of you and saw how genuinely scared you where when they did." Damian reveals.
This silences Wednesday as it makes her stop in her tracks for a moment
"I don't wanna talk about it." she says coldly.
"I promise I'm not gonna let anyone hurt you, Wednesday. You're safe with me." Damian tells her trying to reassure her.
"I don't need your protection and I said I don't wanna talk about it." Wednesday growls.
They continue their walk to the prison
Wednesday was now sitting in the chair in front of the plexiglass. Damian was standing at her right. He had taken off his Nevermore jacket and put on a light blue hoodie
A prison guard brings in Gomez while cuffed who can be seen wearing an orange prison outfit. The prison guard pushes him down on the chair making Gomez grunt as the prison guard unlocks the handcuffs before walking off
Thing crawled on the small table that's in front of the glass. Seeing it makes Gomez smile. Thing proceeds to climb up the glass and presses itself against it. Gomez put his hand against Thing through the other side of the glass momentarily. Thing then slides down against the pane
Gomez then looks at her daughter who's glaring and Damian who's looking at him impassively
"My little tormenta, how's your mother?" Gomez asks his daughter.
"Devastated. She hates you in orange." Wednesday answers which makes Gomez look at the orange prison outfit for a moment. "I caught her laying a rose on a grave earlier today. The headstone read "Garrett Gates." The very boy you've been arrested for murdering." Wednesday reveals to her father. "Care to explain?" she inquires.
"Garrett was infatuated with your mother. He mistook her kindness for interest. His infatuation turned into obsession, and he started stalking her." Gomez begins.
"Why didn't you call the police?" Wednesday inquires further.
"We tried. But his family were the oldest and richest in Jericho. No one believed us. Garrett's father, an outcast-hating bigot, was furious that your mother had accused his only son. It all came to a head the night of the Rave'N Dance. Your mother and I stepped out to catch our breath. And that's when I saw him. He had broken into the school. His twisted love for your mother had made him insane. His eyes bore into me, brimming with murderous intent. My life flashed before my eyes. Driven by jealousy and hate, Garrett was unstoppable. When I saw the sword, my survival instinct kicked in. It was a terrible accident." Gomez tells his daughter & Damian the story of what happened.
While Gomez was giving the story, Wednesday & Damian listened intently
« If I'm being objective, his confession sounds entirely plausible, delivered with the perfect degree of sincerity. Perhaps my father is exactly what he says. »
"Thank you for being so honest with me." Wednesday says to her father.
Gomez nods his head softly, grateful that his daughter believes her
« But then there's the matter of his tells. »
« The way he smooths his mustache. »
Gomez smooths his mustache with his right thumb & index finger
« The way he delivers a comforting wink. »
Gomez winks at his daughter with his right eye
« I've been playing Russian roulette with him since I was 12. I know them well. »
"I'm sorry I wasn't a better father." Gomez apologizes emotionally.
"Could we please do without the overt display of emotion?" Wednesday asks her father.
"I know they make you feel uncomfortable." Gomez says to her holding up his hands for a moment to silently apologize.
"How many fathers hand their daughter a fencing blade when she's five?" Wednesday questions him.
"Your saber strokes were an essay in perfection." Gomez answers.
"Or teach her how to swim with sharks?" Wednesday questions further.
"They found you as cold-blooded as I do." Gomez states pointing at her before pointing at himself.
"The right way to flay a rattlesnake?" Wednesdays asks him.
"They really do taste like chicken when prepared properly." Gomez admits.
"The point I'm trying to make is, you taught me how to be strong and independent. How to navigate myself in a world full of treachery and prejudice. You are the reason I understand how imperative it is that I never lose sight of myself." Wednesday explains to him. "So as far as fatherhood goes, I would say you've been more than adequate." she admits to him.
"Gracias, Wednesday." Gomez concludes.
Wednesday & Damian walk outside the prison as Wednesday looks at him
"Well?" she asks him hopefully.
"He was being truthful about everything he just said. Except for that last part when he said it was him who killed Garrett on accident. That last part he lied. Which means, he did not kill Garett. Someone else did." Damian reveals. "You should ask your mother about it. I bet she's willing to tell the truth now." he says to her.
"We need to relay this information to the sheriff first." Wednesday tells him firmly.
"Okay, let's go to the sheriff's department." Damian says to her.
They then start walking to the sheriff's department
While walking, a strong cold wind blows past the 2. Damian is unbothered by this since he can control his body heat with his air -and firebending. However he feels & sees Wednesday shivering tremendously. Seeing this, he takes off his hoodie and puts it on Wednesday
"Why did you put this on me?" Wednesday asks him angrily.
"Because you're cold and I mean that literally right now, not the cold attitude you almost always have." Damian informs her. "And I'm not gonna let you get sick if I could have done something to prevent it." he adds seriously.
Wednesday thinks it over, but in the end she puts her arms through the sleeves though she was not happy that it was such a bright color. The hoodie was like a dress for her seeing as she was 5 feet compared to Damian being 6 feet 3 inches. It made Wednesday look even smaller than she actual was. And to Damian, this made Wednesday even cuter and more adorable than she normally is
"I guess it's good that I'm not cold anymore. Seems you helped me in more than 1 way today already." Wednesday very reluctantly admits.
"I'm on a roll today." Damian says while chuckling. "Maybe I'll be able to help you in another way today?" he asks her jokingly.
"Don't flatter yourself and don't get your hopes up." Wednesday responds coldly.
After that, they resume their way to the sheriff's department. As they're walking, a smell comes up to Wednesday's nose. She silently sniffs the hoodie which smells like pineapple, blackcurrant, apple, and bergamot and it reminds her of Damian's cologne from when it was the night of the Rave'N. Wednesday couldn't help herself as she brings the hoodie closer to her to smell more of Damian's scent
"You know, you're lucky that you have parents who actually care about you unlike me who feel nothing but hatred and contempt for me." Damian suddenly says.
"Hey, you don't deserve parents like that. It's not your fault for them being inadequate in parenthood. They don't know how lucky they are to have you as their son." Wednesday explains to him firmly trying to cheer him up.
"I guess." Damian replies somberly. "Thanks though, Wednesday." he adds gratefully.
Once at the sheriff's department, Wednesday recollects herself. She & Damian walks into the building and are walking to Sheriff Galpin's department when the lady at the desk stop them.
"Umm, excuse me dears. Is there something I can help you with?" the lady asks.
"Yes, we're here to talk to Sheriff Galpin." Damian informs her.
"I'm sorry, but he's very busy at the moment." the lady at the desk explains to him.
Damian notices a nameplate on the desk saying 'Bernice', he then sees a photo of her with a cat that's wearing a collar with a tag and he sees on a tag the name 'Swifty'. Getting an idea, Damian grabs Wednesday's arm, drags her outside and makes them hide behind a car
"Wat are you doing?" Wednesday angrily asks him. "We need to talk to Sheriff Galpin." she says to him.
"I know that, but I got a plan. Watch." Damian tells her.
Damian takes out his phone and calls the sheriff's department. A few seconds later, Bernice picks up the phone
"Sheriff's department, Bernice speaking." Bernice introduces herself. "How can I help you?" she asks.
"Your tabby cat named Swifty is being held for ransom. If you want her back, go to your house right now and lay 200 dollars down at your front door or you'll never see her again." Damian says in a deep voice.
"Y-yes okay." Bernice stammers. "Just please don't hurt my cat. She's all I got." she pleads.
Damian then hangs up the phone
"Is that all?" Wednesday asks in confusion.
"In 5.... 4... 3... 2... 1..." Damian counts down in reply pointing to the door when he gets to '1'.
Right as he finished counting down, Bernice can be seen running out of the sheriff's department and presumably to her house
"You're welcome." Damian says smugly.
"Hmm, I'm impressed with your dark side." Wednesday admits.
"Thanks. It seems you're rubbing off on me." Damian quips.
Wednesday ignores that as she walks back inside and to Sheriff Galpin and Damian follows after her. As they get to the office specific for Sheriff Galpin, they can see he has their back to them not knowing they're behind him.
"We need to talk." Wednesday says to him grabbing his attention.
Sheriff Galpin turns around holding a coffee mug and what Damian thinks is a cookie stick
"How the hell did you get in?" Sheriff Galpin asks her dumbfounded seeing the 2 teens standing in his doorway. "Bernice? Bernice!" he yells out to her.
"Bernice may or may not have received a call that her tabby cat Swifty is being held for ransom." Wednesday explains to him as she & Damian walk into Galpin's office to the front of his desk. "My father did not kill Garrett Gates." she states.
Sheriff Galpin nods mockingly at this
"Well, I have his signed confession, and he identified the saber he used to do it." he counters to her. "Both of which I'm about to deliver to the District Attorney." he adds.
"Don't you find the timing convenient?" Wednesday asks him curiously. "The coroner kills himself out of remorse for a decades-old murder case the very weekend my father, your prime suspect, deigns to return to town." she explains to him.
"All I see is a guilty man who's finally going to pay for his crime." Sheriff Galpin responds starting to smile. "And cuffing him myself, oh, that was the icing on the cake." he adds smugly as he takes a sip of his coffee.
"Sheriff, how are you failing to see that someone is desperately trying to derail my investigation?" Wednesday asks him seriously. "I found the monster's cave, and I gave you the DNA evidence." she tells him. "Did you even bother to test it?" she asks him rhetorically.
"This may come as a shock, but the world doesn't revolve around you, Addams." Sheriff Galpin informs her angrily as he slams his mug down on the desk.
He sits down in his desk chair, opens a drawer and puts a file on his desk
"Here. DNA results. No match. Inconclusive." he reveals to her.
"So you truly believe this is all some coincidence?" Wednesday asks him in wonder. "Whoever hurt Eugene also murdered the coroner." she adds as the Sheriff stands back up.
"Unfortunately, someone sabotaged the security camera in the morgue, so we don't know what happened. They stuck bubblegum on the lens." the Sheriff informs her. "Black bubblegum." he reiterates.
Damian guesses it's Wednesday who did that and he guesses she probably did it the night before she was setting up pictures on a board in her & Enid's room
"Maybe I should run DNA on that?" the Sheriff asks Wednesday sarcastically.
"Someone is trying to throw me off my game. This is all a distraction." Wednesday replies defensively.
"No, this is about justice being served." the Sheriff states loudly. "Garrett Gates's family deserves closure, even if none of them are around to take comfort in it." he explains.
"What happened to them?" Damian asks intrigued.
"His mother hung herself in the backyard. His father drank himself to an early grave. Even his little sister didn't escape." the Sheriff lists off.
"Little sister?" Damian asks now even more intrigued.
"She was orphaned, sent overseas, ended up drowning. Every last one of them's gone." he informs him before looking back at Wednesday. "So your father doesn't just have Garrett's blood on his hands, he's got the whole damn family's." the Sheriff concludes as sits back down on his desk chair, leaning against it and glaring at Wednesday.
Damian & Wednesday go back to Nevermore after their talk with the Sheriff. Wednesday decides to be nice for once and to cheer up her brother. So she grabs her brother's fishing gear and she & Damian head to the pier at a small lake within the school grounds knowing her brother will be there. What Wednesday didn't realize was that she was still wearing Damian's hoodie
As they get to the pier, they see him sitting down at the end and Damian decides to go up to him first. He sits down next to him
"Hey buddy." Damian begins.
"Hi." Wednesday's brother responds despondently.
"You're Wednesday's brother." Damian says to him.
"And you're the guy that Wednesday hangs out with." Wednesday's brother says back.
"That I am." Damian replies. "But I've never properly introduced myself to you or your parents." he informs him. "The name's Damian Nova." he tells him introducing himself.
"Nice to meet you Damian." Wednesday's brother says to him. "I'm Pugsley Addams." he says introducing himself.
"Well Wednesday is glaring daggers in my head at the moment and is waiting eagerly to talk to you, so I'll shut up and let her sit down next to you." Damian reveals to him. "You can tell your parents my name when you see them again.
"Okay." Pugsley finishes.
Damian gets up walks down the pier past Wednesday, he bends an earth chair out of the ground, puts it down on the pier and sits down on it
"You forgot your fishing gear." Wednesday informs Pugsley as she puts down the satchel & 2 wooden poles at his left.
She then sits down next to him
"Stop trying to be nice. It doesn't suit you." Pugsley tells her.
"Father packed your favorite bait." Wednesday reveals.
Pugsley puts the satchel on his lap, pulls the flap back as looks inside. Seeing the contents inside puts a smile on his face. He reaches into the bag and pulls out the 'bait' which was a grenade
Damian is not surprised the Addams family see it as fishing bait
Wednesday continues to watch her brother as he puts the satchel aside
"What'll happen to him now?" Pugsley asks him.
"Well, he's confessed, so there won't be a trial. After he's sentenced, he'll be sent to a state penitentiary, where he'll lose his mind being separated from Mother." Wednesday explains impassively. "Did you know they haven't spent a single night apart since they tied the knot?" she asks him looking at him for a moment.
"I always thought I'd be the first one in the family behind bars." Pugsley admits sadly.
"Lurch and I had a bet going." Wednesday reveals.
This makes Pugsley look at her
"Come on. Let's see if the fish are biting." Wednesday tells him looking back at him.
Pugsley pulls the pin off and hurls the grenade into the water. It hits the water sinking to the bottom before it erupts as water shoots up & all around and some dead fish float to the surface
"That's quite a catch." Wednesday says impressed seeing the amount of dead fish.
"I'm gonna miss him, Wednesday." Pugsley admits to her somberly looking at her.
"It's not over yet. He's innocent." Wednesday informs him looking at him.
"Well, if anyone can figure out who really committed the crime... it's you." Pugsley tells her. "You have to find out the truth and free Dad." he says to her firmly.
"Well, until that happens, we both know Mother will be falling apart." Wednesday tells him. "Which means we have to be strong." she explains to him. "And by "we," I mean you." she clarifies.
Pugsley then looks forward again
"Now, give me one of those." Wednesday demands holding out her right hand looking forward as well.
Pugsley reaches into the satchel, pulls out another grenade and puts it in Wednesday's hand. She pulls the pin and tosses it into the lake. It hits the water sinking to the bottom, there's a silence for a few seconds before the grenade finally explodes causing water to shoots up & all around
"Where is Mother anyway?" Wednesday asks her brother curiously.
"She said she wanted to be alone. Somewhere where no one would find her." Pugsley answers.
Both Damian & Wednesday knew their was only 1 location that fits that description. The Nightshade library
Wednesday gets up and starts walking down the pier to where Damian is sitting as he gets up as well
"I'll let you go talk to your mom in private. If you need me, you know where to find me." Damian says to her.
Damian goes to check on Enid while Wednesday goes down to the Nightshade library to talk to her mom.
"Damian, my mom wants to send me to a summer camp for lycanthropy conversion." Enid explains while sobbing.
Damian tries to calm her down
"Enid, listen to me." he begins. "You need to stand up for yourself against your mom. You have to tell her that you don't wanna go. That if you're meant to wolf out, then you're gonna do it on your own timeline and not your mother's. And you'll just have to hope that one day, she'll finally accept you for who you are." he explains to her. "And if not, you still got me & Wednesday & Ajax and all your other friends." he concludes with a wink.
"Thanks Damian." Enid says gratefully giving him 1 more hug before going back to her family.
Damian then goes up to his dorm
"Hello, Mother." Wednesday suddenly says from the stairs catching her mother by surprise.
"Hello, Wednesday." Morticia responds with a small smile.
Wednesday starts walking down the stairs to her mother
"So you're a Nightshade. That didn't take long." Morticia tells her.
"Actually, I rejected them." Wednesday reveals.
"Why? Because I was a member?" Morticia asks her daughter thinking that's the reason.
"I'll never live up to your legacy here, so why try?" Wednesday admits and asks her mother rhetorically. "I win the Poe Cup, you claimed it four times. I join the fencing team, you captained it." she lists off. "Why would you send me somewhere I could only ever exist in your shadow?" she asks in wonder.
"It's not a competition, Wednesday." Morticia says to her daughter.
"Everything is a competition, Mother." Wednesday states firmly. "But mostly I rejected them because they're a trivial social club." she adds.
"We used to be so much more. Our mission was to protect outcasts from harm and bigotry. In fact, the group was started by an ancestor of your father's from Mexico. One of the first settlers in America." Morticia explains.
"Goody." Wednesday realizes.
This shocks Morticia as to how Wednesday knows that. Seeing this Wednesday clears it up
"I saw her painting at Pilgrim World." she clarifies.
"Oh. How ironic, since she was the one who killed Joseph Crackstone. The Nightshades were her secret, but deadly, answer to his oppression and as a revenge for what he did to her lover." Morticia explains. "I know why you've come here, Wednesday." she reveals. "So go on. Ask." she tells her bluntly.
"Father didn't kill Garrett Gates, did he?" Wednesday asks her.
"No." Morticia answers truthfully.
"By the time I made it up the stairs, I found your father fighting for his life. It was terrifying. I'll never forget the way he looked at me. He was even foaming at the mouth. It was like I was staring into the eyes of a rabid beast. It was only when I heard the scream that I realized what I'd done. Your father was so... calm and brave. Your father took the blame in order to protect me. I was so grateful when they cleared him of any wrongdoing. But I knew, someday this would come back to haunt us." Morticia tells her side of the story as near the end, a single tear falls down from her left eye down her cheek.
Wednesday had listened intently to her mother's side of the story as she starts to contemplate every detail of the story having now heard both her parents' side of the story
"You said Garrett was foaming at the mouth. His eyes didn't look human." Wednesday says to her mother.
"I've never seen someone so blinded by rage." Morticia admits to her daughter.
"Maybe it wasn't rage at all." Wednesday hypothesizes. "Foaming saliva, dilated pupils, mental confusion." she continues listing all the symptoms. "What are those all textbook symptoms of?" she asks her mother.
Morticia realizes what those are all textbook symptoms of and gasps in shock & disbelief
"But how can that be?" she asks in shock & disbelief.
Wednesday smirks darkly at this
"There's only one way to find out." she tells her mother.
*Sometime later*
Morticia & Wednesday were now back at the graveyard. They had set up some lights at the headstone. Wednesday was busy with digging up the grave of Garett Gates while Morticia was just watching her daughter. After a while of digging, Morticia suddenly sighs dreamily
"This reminds me of when you got your first grave-digging kit. You were so happy, you nearly smiled." Morticia tells her daughter.
Wednesday stops for a moment, looks back at her mother and smiles slightly
"Are you sure you don't want to join?" Wednesday asks her.
"Uh... mm... No, that's okay, darling. I don't want to spoil your fun." Morticia replies looking at her nails before looking at her daughter.
Wednesday scoffs at that as she grunts continuing to dig. Eventually a hollow thud can be heard. Wednesday bangs her shovel against it. She puts her shovel aside as she moves the remaining soil aside. When she did that, she saw a small golden plaque reading 'Garrett Gates' with the year '1972-1990' under it.
"Moment of truth." Wednesday states.
She opens the casket and inhales the scent of death man fondly with makes her grin happily. She looks down at the corpse of Garett Gates
"Hello, Garrett." Wednesday says to the skeleton. "I was right." she adds finding what she was looking for.
Suddenly Deputy Santiago walks up to the mother-daughter duo holding a flashlight
"Well, well, what do we have here?" she asks sarcastically.
Wednesday quickly goes back in the grave for some reason
"Guess there's gonna be an Addams family reunion in lockup tonight. You're both under arrest." Santiago tells them as Morticia & Wednesday hold up their arms in surrender.
Wednesday & Morticia were taken to the Jericho prison and put in a cell next to Gomez
"Get comfortable. You can post bail in the morning." Sheriff Galpin informs them as he walks away.
Unfortunately for Wednesday, the sound of Morticia and Gomez kissing passionately could be hear very clearly
"Not even the long arm of the law could keep us apart." Gomez tells his wife.
"At least we'll have one last night together." Morticia responds.
"I've seen jackals with more self-control than you two." Wednesday states annoyed. "Neither one of you are strong enough to serve hard time." she tells them. "And thanks to me, you won't have to." she adds.
Before she could continue, someone else spoke up
"I had hoped not to see you in this situation so soon." the male voice said jokingly.
Wednesday turns around to Damian who was let in to see her as he walks up to her standing in front of her
"I'm not surprised you went grave-digging to help your parents." Damian admits.
"Well I found--" Wednesday tries to say.
"Hold on, I'm not done." Damian interjects. "You should have been more careful." he tells her. "I could have literally opened the ground with my earthbending to save you I don't know how much time you spent on digging. And I could have made a small fire so we could see." he explains. "And if you didn't want my help, you shouldn't have gone by car to the graveyard seeing as they make too much noise and could've woken people up or alerted people which clearly happened. You should have turned off the headlights of the car instead you could've gotten a few lanterns." he explains further. "If you went grave digging, I expected that you would have at least done it better than this." he tells her.
"Wait, so you're not upset I desecrated a grave more so that I did it the wrong way?" Wednesday asks confused.
"Duh, obviously." Damian answers as if it's obvious which made Wednesday smirk. "Like you confirmed for me at the hospital earlier today, I knew you were gonna get to the bottom of it to find out the truth. Meaning you would do whatever you thought was necessary." he reminds her.
"Hmm. You're way more interesting than I thought." Wednesday admits.
"Well thank you." Damian responds with a chuckle doing a small bow. "So, what's your plan?" he asks curiously getting serious.
Wednesday puts a cloth in his open hand and Damian feels something is in the cloth. He opens it to see a severed decaying finger, this causes him to retch. He then looks at Wednesday
"Wednesday, why did you just put a dead man's severed finger in my hand?" Damian asks disgusted. "Which I can only assume is one of Garrett Gates'." he adds.
"Silence and let me explain." Wednesday tells him. "It's a souvenir from me & my mother's outing." she explains. "As you already guessed, I borrowed it from Garrett." she continues. "He died from nightshade poisoning." she reveals. "The remarkable preservation of soft tissue and blue tint confirms it." she states. "Which means Garrett was dying--" she begins.
"Before he was stabbed." Damian concludes realizing what it meant. "But why would Garett have nightshade? And what was he going to do with it?" Damian asks in wonder.
"I had a vision when I snapped his finger off" Wednesday replies.
"Gross and of course you did" Damian says to her.
"I said silence." she tells him coldly. "The night Garrett died, he had a vial of nightshade poison that broke in his pocket. He wasn't just trying to kill my father. He was going to use the nightshade poison to murder the entire school." she informs him & her parents. "This information should be enough to clear my father and mother and me of the charge of murdering him." she states.
Damian wraps the severed finger back in the cloth and puts it in his pocket
"I know just the guy to make sure you'll all get free." he says darkly.
*The next day*
Damian is standing in front of the Mayor, who's son Damian defeated at the Weathervane with ease and who had a hand in ruining the Rave'N at the end
"Thank you for seeing me at such short notice, Mr. Mayor." Damian says sarcastically.
"Yes, well, veiled threats have that effect." the Mayor replies seriously.
"Then let's just get to the point, shall we?" Damian asks rhetorically. "Garrett Gates wasn't killed by a stab wound." he begins.
He puts the cloth with the severed decaying finger on his desk as he opens making the Mayor see it. When the Mayor sees it, he clears his throat holding his hand in front of his mouth to try not to vomit and looks away from it
"That blue sheen is a telltale sign of nightshade poisoning." Damian informs the Mayor. "But you already knew that, didn't you?" he asks him rhetorically. "Because back when you were sheriff, you were in charge and covered it up." he theorizes. "Weren't you?" he questions.
The Mayor can be heard inhaling and exhaling deeply knowing he has been caught
"Ansel Gates hated outcasts and Nevermore. He claimed the land the school was built on was stolen from his family over 200 years ago. Garrett went there that night to spike the punch and kill all the kids at that dance. Ansel confessed the whole thing to me in a drunken stupor. It was his idea." the Mayor explains.
"So why did you instruct Dr. Anwar to falsify the autopsy report?" Damian interrogates. "You knew the truth about how he really died." he tells him.
"Listen, my job was to keep the peace. If there had been a trial, Jericho's and Nevermore's reputations would have been trashed." the Mayor informs him angrily.
"Trashed, you say?" Damian asks mockingly. "I think the only reputation you were worried about ruining, was your own." he guesses. "You just don't wanna admit the truth that there are people in this town who hate the students of Nevermore and other people like them. You denying that would just be as bad as Garett. I bet you wouldn't even have arrested any of the Gates' family for killing the outcasts." he tells him.
"I resent your implication." the Mayor responds offended.
"Oh, you resent it?" Damian asks sarcastically. "Well then you're definitely going to resent it when I tell all of Nevermore the truth including you covering up the truth of what really happened to Garrett Gates. And when I do, Jericho and Nevermore will never be the same. There'll never be another Outreach Day." Damian reveals.
The mayor sighs and ponders about his options
"What do you want?" the Mayor asks.
"I want all charges dropped against the Addams family. Gomez, Morticia and Wednesday will be released immediately with a full and unequivocal apology from the sheriff's department." Damian says setting the terms. "Do we have a deal?" he asks him seriously.
"And what if I say no?" the Mayor asks tauntingly.
This causes Damian to slam his hands on the desk
"Then you'll know what it feels like to choke yourself with your own hands." Damian informs him.
"If you think you're strong enough to make me choke myself with my own hands, you're sorely mistaken. and you'll be in jail just like those Addams'." the Mayor tells him.
"Oh I don't have to touch you to do that." Damian says to him menacingly.
A sick crunching and twisting can be heard as the Mayor's hands are moving upwards against his own free will
"What is happening? How are you doing this?" the Mayor asks in fear.
"My dad is a Waterbender & a Bloodbender. he taught me to bend that element and sub-skill. Once I learned bloodbending during the full moon. He taught me at any time of the day and then he taught me to do it with just my mind. So I can bend someone's blood without getting any fingerprints on someone to trace back to me at any time I want." Damian explains.
The Mayor's hands were now at his throat, starting to squeeze and starting to choke their owner. It was getting harder for him to breathe
"So I'll ask again." Damian tells him. "Do we have a deal?" he asks him seriously.
"Yes... yes... we have a deal." the Mayor says in between breaths.
Damian releases his hold on the Mayor as he falls forward on his desk taking deep breaths in and out
The family was released and outside in front of the Town Hall. Wednesday's parents thanked Damian for his help. He was hugged by Gomez and Morticia like he's their own. Morticia then goes to talk to her daughter
"When did your visions begin?" Morticia asks her daughter knowing her all to well.
"A few months ago." Wednesday reveals to her mother.
"Hmm." Morticia responds curtly.
"Before I left for Nevermore." Wednesday adds.
"I'm sorry you didn't feel you could tell me." Morticia apologizes. "I know we've had our difficulties lately. Navigating the treacherous shoals of our mother-daughter relationship. But I'm always here for you, Wednesday. Always." she tells her daughter.
Wednesday turns to face her mother
"Sometimes when I touch someone or something, I get these very violent glimpses from the past or future. I don't know how to control it." she says to her mom.
"Our psychic ability resides on the spectrum of who we are." Morticia begins. "Given my disposition, my visions tend to be positive. That makes me a Dove." she explains.
"And for someone like me? Who sees the world through a darker lens?" Wednesday asks in wonder.
"You're a Raven." Morticia says to her. "Your visions are more potent, more powerful. But without the proper training, they can lead to madness. If I could help you, I would, Wednesday. But we're not trained by the living. Somebody from our bloodline reaches out from beyond to help us when we're ready." she explains.
"Goody has." Wednesday informs her. "I've seen her before." she adds.
"Be careful, Wednesday. Goody was a witch of great strength, but her vengeance for what happened to her lover pushed her too far, and even she couldn't save herself." Morticia warns her daughter.
Wednesday takes those words to her dark black heart. Damian & the Addams family go back to Nevermore. Once there, Damian sees that Enid is still with her family. He walks closer to them to eavesdrop on the conversation
"So, it's decided. Six weeks at Camp Howl." Enid's mom begins. "You'll need to pick which activity--" she continues.
"No, I don't." Enid interjects. "Because I'm not going. Not this summer. Not ever. If I'm meant to wolf out, then I'm going to do it on my own timeline and not yours." she explains. "I just hope that one day, you'll finally accept me for who I am." she concludes.
Her mom was surprised with how Enid stood her ground, she gives a reluctant small smile before she walks off
Enid then notices Damian looking at her who's leaning against a pillar as he gives her a proud nod making her smile
Enid then turns around to face her dad who's a tall & lean man. Enid's dad hugs her daughter as Enid hugs him back with a big smile on her face
Enid then let's go, taking a step back and looks up at her dad
"I'm proud of you, kiddo." Enid's dad informs her with a smile and this makes Enid get a big smile on her face. "You do you." he tells her.
He kisses the top of her head before walking off as well
Enid nods contentedly as she hops away happily
Damian then goes to check on the Addams family goodbyes
He sees them at the front of the school with Pugsley hugging her older sister tightly
"Don't push it." Damian can hear Wednesday tell her brother.
Pugsley then lets her go and walks off to the car
"Well, at least we can't say Parents' Weekend wasn't a nail-biter." Gomez says to his daughter.
"I knew you didn't have what it takes to be a murderer." Wednesday tells her father.
"As much as that stings, gracias, my little death trap." Gomez admits and thanks her, grabbing the top her arms and kissing her left cheek.
Gomez walks off to the car as well
"As I leafed through the pages of this yearbook, I was reminded of all the wonderful times I had here." Morticia tells her daughter handing her the yearbook making Wednesday look at it. "But they were just that. Mine." she adds causing Wednesday to move her eyes upwards to her mom. "You have your own path to blaze. I don't want to be a stranger in your life, darling. If you need me for anything, anything at all, I'm only a crystal ball away." she explains.
"Thank you, Mother." Wednesday responds gratefully.
Morticia lets out a wry exhale. Wednesday then takes a step forward. Morticia proceeds to air kiss Wednesday's right & left cheek, she then brings her arms up putting her hands along the sides of Wednesday's head as she runs her hands down Wednesday's pigtails. Morticia then smiles for a final time before walking off to the car as Wednesday watches her.
Wednesday opens it, flipping though the pages and as she notices something on the pages, more pieces of the mystery get solved. She turns to walk to Principal Weems' office and sees Damian standing a few feet away
"Hey, Wednesday." he says to her. "How did it go with your... woah" he tries to ask when Wednesday suddenly grabbed him by his wrist and drags him along. "Wednesday! What's going on?!" he asks her in confusion.
"Rowan never left! It was Weems!" Wednesday reveals to him loudly.
This confuses Damian, but he follows her after yanking himself free from her grip while Wednesday is still storming to Weems' office. Once they get to her office, Wednesday just barges in pushing the doors open
"I knew it. I did witness Rowan getting murdered that night." Wednesday states firmly to Principal Weems walking up to her desk.
"Excuse me?" Principal Weems asks confused.
"When Rowan appeared the next morning, it was you." Wednesday replies. "When you participated in the talent show, not only did you impersonate Judy Garland, you became her." she explains.
Wednesday opens the yearbook to a specific page showing Morticia singing and Principal Weems with her first name being showed as Larissa though she's transformed to look like Judy Garland
"You're a shape-shifter." Wednesdays concludes.
"Of course." Damian begins finally realizing the truth. "When you walked into this very office impersonating him, the day after he was murdered, I sensed a different yet familiar aura coming from 'him'. But it was you I was sensing." he says to her. "Wasn't it?" he asks her seriously.
There's a long silence until Principal Weems just scoffs
"That's a fascinating theory." Principal Weems admits ignoring Damian's question.
"I'm curious to find out how Sheriff Galpin feels when I tell him." Wednesday says to her tauntingly.
"So hold on." Damian suddenly says. "You lied about Rowan's death to the entirety of Nevermore, to his parents and to basically the whole world!" he accuses Principal Weems. "They have the right to know." he adds.
This makes Principal Weems stand up from her chair leaning over the desk to the 2 teens
"You won't tell a soul , Miss Addams. And neither will you, Mister Nova." she informs them menacingly. "And it wouldn't matter much if you did. Rowan's father already knows what happened, and he fully supports my decision not to involve the authorities." she reveals to them.
"Why would he agree to that?" Wednesdays asks intrigued.
"Because Rowan was not in his right mind." Principal Weems begins standing up straight.
Damian notices how she's slightly taller than him
"His telekinetic abilities were driving him mad and he attempted to murder you twice. His tragic death allowed us to rectify the situation without casting the school or Rowan in an unflattering light." she explains further.
"This is unbelievable!" Damian shouts. "You're just as bad as Mayor Walker!" he tells her. "Burying bodies to cover up your own mistakes!" Damian states, deeply disappointed by the 2 adults.
"I did what I needed to do to shield this school from controversy and protect its students from harm." Principal Weems explains trying to justify herself.
"Tell that to Eugene." Wednesday responds to her sarcastically
"Yeah, how are you protecting him, huh?" Damian adds.
Suddenly students clamoring & yelling can be heard
Principal Weems walks to her balcony wanting to see what's going on as Wednesday & Damian follow quickly also well, wanting to see what's going on too
"What on earth?" Principal Weems asks in shock and confusion.
The 3 of them all watch at the disturbing sight
Flames are burning on 1 of Nevermore's lawns with the words "FIRE WILL RAIN" spelled out on the ground. This can only be a warning of possible horrors yet to come. Damian has a bad feeling about this
Well that was it for this episode/chapter.
Hope you all enjoyed it.
Have a good day/afternoon/evening/night.