"So anyone who wants to join the tournament, your guardians are already notified and we only need their sign for you to compete, and no weapons, only oneself should be used." Larissa said standing over the stone guards the stairs had, as everyone was gathered under her.
"You're going to join?" Dante asked to Wednesday who only huffed with humor at the idea of her competing.
"The only barbaric tradition I wish to continue are executions and ritual sacrifices, anything else should be kept away in the past." She responded before opening a map next to me.
"We're still on that property?" Dante asked watching Wednesday pointing at a point in the map.
"I didn't find any legal data about it in Enid's laptop, only that it belonged to the Gates family and now it was bought by some Theresa L.glau, but she's as invisible as Jack the ripper." Wednesday said closing the map, after finding out the attempt of killing everyone in Nevermore by the Gates family, she figured maybe that earlier attempt may have relation with the upcoming one.
"Let's see what we can find for you to touch." Dante said as they both started going out of the building, their path leading towards Nevermore entrance.
The passed through the rocky building, the silence between them was not one of either comfort or discomfort, it felt filled while both teenagers heads were filled with thoughts, each one thinking their fate. The girl only thought about the picture with her and Crackstone, and the boy thought about his heart, what is going to happen with it? Or what's the purpose of all those body parts?
They kept walking in the woods, following no track as Dante didn't want any, after he came to Jericho he left his truck in the middle of the woods, in case he needed a runaway vehicle, now they were going to use it as their transportation.
"Hoe long until we're finally there?" Wednesday asked, even her patience was running low after 20 minutes of constant walking without questioning Dante's memory.
"Just some more mi-" Just as Dante was about to finish he looked up at the tree branches, his eyes looking around everywhere in alert.
"Something wrong?" Wednesday asked as she already had her hand in her hidden knife inside her sleeve.
"We're being followed, I can hear it..." Dante said as he put his back against Wednesday's, both looking through the trees with wary eyes for any attacker.
"Monster?"
"I'd be less worried if that was the case..." Dante responded as the woods quieted down, the air which made the branches move all together stopped out of nowhere, and the anticipation went from a 50 to a thousand before a black figure felt in between them, pushing them to the ground.
The dark figure stood between them, a trench coat that stopped any eyes from looking at their appearance and a dark hat pulled down protection the wearer identity.
Wednesday was the first one to swiftly stand up with an acrobatic kick to the side of the attacker, kick which was easily dodged by the attacker, whose response was to grab the girl by the leg and throw her into the air.
Dante then stood up, running towards the attacker, Dante got a left hook ready and the attacker ate the feint, leaving open space for Dante to slip right at his side, and with incredible speed caught Wednesday mid air.
"Well how does it feel being thrown around?" Dante asked with a smile as Wednesday quickly got on her feet.
"You made it look worse." Wednesday replied cynically.
"Let me try." Dante said before he rushed in front of the figure, his right hand lowered in a fist as he got in a stance, and as swiftly as he moved he tried giving the mysterious attacker an uppercut, which was barely dodged, only slightly touching the end of the hat.
The attacker put a hand on the side of Dante, and it shoot blue lightnings all over him, but to surprise of the attacker Dante only seemed to quiver due to the electricity messing up his nerves, pain ignored once again.
Dante raised his left hand, side which wasn't being affected by the sparks, as he showed his sharp smile he put his hand on the shoulder of the attacker, and the lighting being shot on his side went straight again to the attacker like if water just found a crack where to go.
In a breath the attacker was put down into the ground by his own lighting, his hat long gone meters away due to the electrical shock.
Dante stood over the now revealed man, he had a pale skin same color as flour and a bald head that looked like someone ripped their skin along with their hair and then skin grew back, with a devius smile adorned his factions.
Dante pulled a golden needle and pointed it at the bald man, it was thin enough to not be seen in most angles, but somehow the man sensed it, the danger it carried was worse than any handgun could.
Wednesday arrived next to Dante, and as soon as she looked at the man, she smiled.
"Uncle Fester!" Wednesday said with a happy smile on her face as the newly identified man named Fester stood up, a smile still on his ugly face.
"Hi my little protege." Fester said raising both hands in the air.
"Is this a victim? I must say I find amazing how you lured such strong one!" Fester said watching Dante with a smile.
"Victim?"
"He's a friend, a true real no lies between us kind of friend." Wednesday replied looking at Dante, her cold persona trying to regain some control as she, at least for the day named girl, her obvious burst of emotion after seeing her uncle.
"Well so far all your relatives have been unique one of the other, there's no "we" in family after all." Dante said offering a handshake to the madman in front of him.
"I'm Dante."
And the madman didn't let the handshake go to waste as he immediately went for it and squeezed it tight, a spark of electricity ignored by the teenager before letting go of his hand.
"Sorry, too much shock therapy makes one go numb." Dante said with a sarcastic tone, he stopped caring about being hurt by people, he even let Wednesday pull tests on him, which honestly was impressive even to him, but seeing Wednesday so peaceful and keeping close distance to him made his heart shut any pstd and just focus on her focused eyes, no matter if he had his arm opened and dissected part by part.
But being hurt repeatedly, without a reason and maybe just for the fun, made him already feel annoyance for the man in front of him.
"Ha! I could never! The shocks before a good session of fun games are what gets me going!" Uncles Fester replied.
"So, if you're not here to kill him, what are you two teenagers sneaking out to hm? Didn't know you'd also get that side of your mother huh Wednesday." Fester said, even as he joked with the last part, his tone also said how maybe the situation of Morticia's days in Nevermore was not a joke.
"We're out to urban exploration." Wednesday said.
That only made Fester look around comically, his eyes giving a full 360° before going back to the pair of teenagers.
"Well I don't see any, maybe your friend Dante here fried more of my brain with that electrification."
"We have a vehicle around here, which we'll use to get there first." Wednesday said before staring again at Dante.
"Aren't we?" She said in a menacingly low tone.
"Yes yes don't worry..." Dante said pointing deeper into the woods, his memory still lingering of where to go.
...
...
...
...
...
"Well, I didn't thought it'd be the time I find myself in the passenger seat... unless it was to choke the driver from behind." Fester said behind me as I kept one eye on the road and the other to Wednesday.
"So, care to explain to your old uncle Fester what are we looking for exactly?" He asked sliding in the backseat to be behind Wednesday.
She only pulled a drawing of the monster from her backpack, one she took weeks earlier from Xavier's art studio.
"Ah, you should've told me you're looking for a Hyde, that would make the track down easier." Fester said, which made Wednesday turn around to see him.
"Hyde you say?" Wednesday said putting down the drawing, her interest falling on Fester.
"Oh yes! Hideous monsters with an even more hideous thirst for blood, I only met one, She had everything! Beauty, brains and a fascination for necrophilia." Fester said getting lost on his memories.
"Tell us about the monster part, was she triggered by something? Perhaps a way to know when will the next attack happen?" This time Dante asked, his tone lowering into a serious one as he grabbed the steering wheel with both hands.
"I have no idea, it was all from 0 to 10 in seconds, and in seconds she killed a dozen people." Fester replied.
"You told me you've been in the Nightshade library before, did you find anything related?" Wednesday asked Dante, whose love for information drove him to read almost the entire place already.
"Apart from poems your father left for your mother, I didn't find a single hint of the word Hyde." Dante responded.
"Can I get first, what is a Hyde exactly?" He asked, raising his fingers on the wheel with a kind of gesture that only reeked curiosity.
"I said all I know already." Fester said raising both hands.
"Likewise, I only know stories." Little land-mine responded.
Dante finally stopped the car, and that made both Uncle Fester and Wednesday raise their eyes to see the gates of a big old mansion, mansion which only looked abandoned, the rotten wood on the outside and the uncut grass only were proof of that as Dante got off the car.
Followed by Wednesday and Fester, both teenagers got side to side almost like an instinct, leaving Fester behind who only smiled at the sight.
'She can deny it all she wants, she sure is like her mother.' He thought watching how Dante jokingly opened the door for Wednesday, who only stared at him in disbelief before entering.
Dante looked over his shoulders to Fester who didn't seem interested in rummaging the old mansion.
"Can you look out if anyone comes, and maybe hide the truck too?" Dante asked, and without needing a response he entered the place closing the door behind him.
"Wednesday?" Dante asked looking around the old place, his hand going to the switch on the wall, the light tried turning on for a moment before giving up, the time that has passed since it last was turned on surely was older than him.
"Kitchen." He heard from the right side and only followed the voice of the girl, noticing what she was looking.
"The place is clean..." Dante said watching the clean sink and kitchen counter, every fork,knife and utensils neatly put in their respective place.
"Someone's been living here, and nothing stirs up my visions." Wednesday said passing her hand over the sink.
"Let's go upstairs." Dante said, and the girl didn't lose anytime before passing next to him and to the stairscase.
Both went up, checking first what seemed like the parents room, old photos of the family together, specially a broken picture of the couple on their weeding, everyone looking oddly similar to the other.
"Nothing?" Dante asked passing Wednesday the picture, which she grabbed for 5 seconds before putting it aside on a table.
"Yes. Nothing." She responded as they went to another room, this one surely was the son's one, sports poster on the walls, an old video games console connected to a box TV and figures of policemen and firefighters.
Dante sat down on the old bed, the size only for one person, he stared at Wednesday opening the closet and brushing her hand over the old clothes, touching most items she may find useful and even the bed.
The silent that enveloped them wasn't one of discomfort neither one of hustle as they didn't feel any rush to look everything quickly, this time they could take their time and look under the same rock twice, but it isn't like Wednesday hates uncomfortable silence, it actually may be her favorite type of silence.
"You're joining?" Wednesday said out of nowhere while grabbing an office figurine off a shelf.
"Join what?" Dante asked, finally raising his head up to look at Wednesday, who was actually pretty close, looking down at the boy.
They kept their eyes locked for seconds before both looked to anywhere but the other, their faces plain canvas that didn't show what they were thinking exactly.
"The tournament, if you join I'd like to offer you something." Wednesday said with a hand inside her pocket.
"Yeah, what is it?"
"Will you join?" Wednesday asked, her hand not leaving her pocket until the decision was made.
"Yeah I'm joining, now show me!" Dante said somehow eager of what the girl could have inside her pocket.
She pulled a black card, one of those cards that are made to have the information of someone, he took the the card and read the name Hester Frump, with a number under the text and email address.
"What is this?" Dante asked raising the card between his fingers.
"My father is trying to make me join the tournament to live "The old Addams glory days", and I on the other side do not wish to, and after refusing they asked if at least I could reach to someone capable of winning, will you represent the Addams on my behalf?" Wednesday asked, the first time she genuinely asked a favor to someone, no blackmail, no promises, and no debt to pay, the first time she swung to a friend and asked a favor.
"Are you sure I can?" Dante asked, his question already saying yes to her as he only was worried about not being able to actually represent them.
"Don't fish compliments Dante, you already know you're the most capable inside the whole institution including most teachers." Wednesday said staring intently into Dante's eyes.
Dante stood up to be in front of Wednesday, his eyes keeping up the stare conquest once again, not daring to look away this time.
"I was asking if they'll let me, but since you don't look worried at all I suppose don't have a reason to be." Dante responded as he looked at Wednesday expression, she didn't look disturbed at all by actually asking him something, behavior he found strange, he knew how narcissistic Wednesday gets with people, how much self-reliant she is and how she hates asking for help.
'When did we grow so close? We've known eachother for a month a some weeks...' He thought, but he couldn't drown much on his thoughts before they both hear the a knock twice on the window.
Both looked over to see Fester waving at them to open the window, and after Wednesday did, he finally spoke.
"Someone's coming." He said before jumping down the tree branch he was hanging, surely breaking his back before he stood up and ran into the wilderness.
Before Wednesday even muttered a word, she was grabbed by the hips and Dante jumped down with her, his bones which wouldn't have withstand that months earlier now only felt a bit of pressure before he started running.