Chapter Text
“Wednesday, I don't think this is a good idea.” Enid kept her eyes closed, not wanting to look down.
Enid felt her hands sweating as never before. Her throat was dry, her eyes closed, and she gripped the handrail as if her life depended on it. Deep down, she knew it was true.
She whispered, "Whose idea was this anyway?" Hell! But she had agreed!
“I still can't believe you're trusting someone who was diagnosed as a sociopath at eight months old,” Pugsley commented, laughing. He loved all of his sister's experiments. He stared at Enid, mouth agape, amazed by what was about to happen.
“Werewolves are triggered by strong emotions. It's perfectly plausible to put Enid under stress.” Wednesday replied, looking at the lever in a maniacal way.
Damn the day she trusted Wednesday to activate her lupine genes. If she even had any!
How shameful it would be if news arrived that the naive and foolish Enid Sinclair died needlessly, thinking she was a werewolf after the age of 18. How innocent.
"Wens, should I remind you that until proven otherwise, I am human?" Enid half-opened her eyes and looked down once more, whimpering softly.
She was situated directly beneath a trapdoor 20 meters above the ground. The wind whipped against her back. The sound of the hill was ghostly. Would she fall and transform before the beast could save her life? She hadn't quite understood that part of the plan.
How had she reached this point?
It all began with Wednesday Addams' brilliant and horrific plan. She titled the experiment "Arcadia," alluding to the Greek King Lycaon, who tried to deceive Zeus by offering him human flesh. Enraged, the God of gods transformed him into a wolf. Mythology was the starting point for the entire construction of the werewolf origin.
They had two days to make Enid's transformation happen. If it didn’t, all would be lost.
The first day of attempts, after Enid accepted Wednesday's proposal, consisted of small (and deadly) challenges. According to Wednesday, Enid's wolf would only emerge if she were in great danger. Then the creature's instincts would manifest in Enid, as it was the only way to save her.
Enid and her wolf were one and the same being. If one died, the other would die too. But unlike a fragile human, a wolf was capable of taking care of itself.
Hypothesis #1: The moment she was in imminent danger or under strong emotion, the wolf would take over the human being, saving itself and its receptacle.
It wasn't a playful or romantic vision, but it was the truth. For werewolves, it was normal for the human side not to control the beast. It was the opposite. The wolf controlled the human.
"But why did my wolf never take care of me?" Enid commented, upset, after Wednesday had given several explanations about the primordial condition of a werewolf. "My brothers abused me as a child, and my mother hit my arm very hard several times. There was a time I almost drowned at the beach. Following that logic, my wolf would try to save me."
Enid was beginning to realize that if this were true, even her wolf had abandoned her. Which, however simple it may seem, was the saddest thing she had ever thought about her condition.
"It's not as simple as it seems." Wednesday was leaning against the wall on the opposite side of her room. It was the first time Enid had entered the place.
Wednesday's room was exactly as she had imagined. Simple, sophisticated, and minimalist. The long black curtains let only a few slivers of light through, and there were candles everywhere. Beside the bed, the desk held only the typewriter in the middle, with no paper or scribbles beside it.
The potions and magic books were arranged by publication date on the large bookshelf next to where Wednesday was at that moment. The rug where Enid sat was black and comfortable. She could even lie down on it and sleep if Wednesday allowed. The bed was a Victorian-era four-poster bed, complete with black curtains.
"I believe that until now, your wolf hasn't been unleashed due to strong childhood repression." Wednesday looked at Enid with undeniable truth. She didn't feel that the raven was pitying her; it was just an observation that her childhood had taken many things from her. Confidence, strength, and belonging. "How many times did your mother allow you to believe you could be like them?"
Enid lowered her head and sighed.
"Never."
Wednesday noticed how much the subject affected Enid, so she went over to where she was and sat down in front of her. “You are not unworthy, Enid,” Wednesday said as if it were a compliment. “I don’t know what devious reasons your mother used to make you believe you weren’t enough, but it’s a lie.”
Wednesday was giving her something she hadn’t felt in a long time. Trust.
On the Addams side, Enid felt she could do anything. Even become a werewolf.
"I'm here to help you," Wednesday said as a reassurance. "I'm sure your wolf is there. But she's having trouble getting out. You need to help her."
That was the light conversation, because Wednesday's methods were wicked and merciless. Enid felt like the song from Mulan, "I'll make a man out of you," so she self-titled the Arcadia experiment "Take the wolf out of a man," or girl. Whatever!
And then, the tests began.
Test #1
"Wednesday! Stop." Enid's eyes were closed; they were two nights away from the full moon.
"Listen to your body. You need to pay attention to your reactions, so when they become stronger, you release them," Wednesday commented from across the field, again positioning her bow and arrow at eye level.
Enid closed her eyes again and began praying to all the gods of the universe; the first one to save her would have her loyalty. It was while she was asking Britney Spears to save her that she heard the sound of the arrow, high above her head, finally catching the apple situated above her.
The sound of the apple being completely cut in half made her wonder if that would be the sound when the arrow hit her head. The apple's juice dripped down her cheeks, and Enid felt her body going limp.
She fainted in the middle of the field.
As soon as she woke up in the guest room bed, she was startled to find Wednesday already staring intently at her. It strongly reminded her of the obsessive spirit of a cat trying to wake you up in the middle of the night to ask for food.
"When I told you to listen to your reactions, I meant those of a wolf, not a human!" Wednesday huffed and handed her her food, annoyed.
Enid ate in silence, savoring the food, while Wednesday remained silent, looking at her in an indecipherable way.
“You almost killed me!” She exclaimed almost in a murmur, wanting to defend herself. She was offended.
“I never make mistakes. Spare me your suspicions.” Wednesday stood up and started to leave the room, after taking the empty tray from Enid's lap.
“Let's stop with Project Arcadia, shall we?” She asked, thinking that Wednesday would finally stop this insanity.
“Tests require tireless repetition. The answer is no.” Wednesday left the room, indignant, but returned minutes later. Now without the tray. “I forgot to wish you a terrifying night.” And she left again.
Enid murmured a goodnight, putting her hand over her eyes. If that didn't release her wolf, she would either be dead or in a spin-off of Stephen King's "Misery."
Test #2
Enid looked at Pugsley suspiciously, but saw in her eyes the same madness as Wednesday.
“Bro, didn’t you say your powers are electric?” Enid looked at Wednesday, who was trying in vain to hide her restrained smile. And that clearly wasn’t a good sign.
She never thought that those charming dimples (she’d only seen them once) would be the harbinger of her premature death. “Here lies Enid Sinclair, foolish enough to agree to participate in Wednesday Addams’ plan. Weak enough not to activate her wolf.”
“My sister asked me for help.” Pugsley also suppressed a devastating smile, but he didn’t bother to hide it much. “Give me your hand.”
Enid looked at Wednesday, whimpering, but she had already put on her stoic face again. She showed no reaction whatsoever. Swallowing hard, Enid nodded and gave her hand to Pugsley.
As soon as she touched it, she felt an electric current and stood up from her chair quickly, looking as if she were being betrayed by the Addams.
“How could you?” Enid was indignant. And she looked at Wednesday angrily.
"Try a few more times. Electricity is great for triggering adverse reactions. There are reports of werewolves transforming after lightning strikes," Wednesday encouraged her, still with a maniacal look on her face. "Just as Mary Shelley describes in Frankenstein, electricity may be the particle that gives life."
Enid closed her eyes and surrendered, giving her hand to Pugsley again. She wished she didn't trust Wednesday as much as she did.
"Okay..."
On the 20th attempt to make the wolf come out using Pugsley's powers, Enid felt it was torture.
"Enough. This is useless. I could die of a heart attack before this damn wolf comes out." Enid stood up and angrily left the Addams' basement, leaving her siblings alone.
"You're going to end up killing her," Pugsley commented amusedly, and Wednesday shrugged.
"No, I'm sure it will work." Wednesday wouldn't accept Enid's death. If it were her fault, she wouldn't hesitate to revive her. Whether by magic or like Victor Frankenstein.
Test #13
Enid couldn't take it anymore. She had already been electrocuted, threatened with death, cornered, et cetera. Nothing had worked. And now, she was near a lake. Looking at her own frightened reflection. It was the afternoon of the day before the full moon.
Enid heard a noise in the woods and tried to hide, but knew it would be in vain. So, with her clothes on, she threw herself into the lake and tried to stay submerged for a while.
She couldn't even distinguish anymore between the Arcadia experiment and a real danger. She thought the current test was simply to run through the forest like a wolf.
The problem was when her hearing picked up something strange in the water. When she looked to the side, she saw fish. They weren't normal fish, they were piranhas. She tried to get out of the lake as quickly as possible, but her foot was caught in some algae. In desperation, she began to struggle.
Wednesday had just left the forest, suspicious. The current test was lighter because she knew Enid was starting to get stressed. So she simply suggested that she run through the forest to connect with her ancestry. But she couldn't find it anywhere.
As soon as she found her favorite lake on the property, it contained some of her pet piranhas. She realized something was wrong when she saw movement inside the lake. She couldn't see clearly, but it looked like something was struggling.
"Enid?" The alarm was immediate, and she jumped into the water, afraid that her piranhas might harm Enid.
Enid was trying everything to get out of the water, but she couldn't. Her desperation intensified when she saw the piranhas. At that moment, she noticed that her breath was much larger than before because she was sure she had been submerged for two minutes.
But she was no longer able to remain calm when she saw another body quickly entering the water and freeing its feet from the algae that were trapping it.
Enid quickly saw the black blur pulling her out of the water. As soon as she got out, she started spitting water and coughing violently. She looked at Wednesday, who was also trying to gasp for air. She was only surprised to see how scared the girl seemed to be.
"That's enough, Wednesday. That was the worst feeling so far, I didn't think it would literally kill me until then!" Enid screamed, losing the breath she had just regained. "I trusted you!"
The accusation was harsh for Wednesday, who curled up and just listened, but she had to defend herself.
"I was looking for you, but at no point did I want you to jump into the lake!" Wednesday commented, equally angry, but she didn't want to admit that her irritation stemmed more from the fear that Enid was actually close to dying.
"But that's the thing, Wednesday!" Enid was too angry to think straight. "I don't know anymore what's an innocent test and what's attempted murder. I was startled by a noise, and the only thing I thought was to jump into the water."
Enid felt her hand tingling again, as if something wanted to tear her skin and come out of her hand. She took more steps towards Addams, still very upset.
“I'm not an Addams Family member; I'm not immune to pain, poisoning, electric shocks, or knives. Nothing. I think I could finally accept that I'm part of the 99.9% and give up on this damn werewolf story.” Enid raised her hands, as if to attack. And as soon as the human got very close to her, with a menacing look, something happened.
Sharp claws sprang from her hand.
Enid, startled at almost having hurt Wednesday, took two steps back and stared at her hands. Wednesday wasn't afraid of the threat; Enid had barely gotten close to her or touched her in a threatening way. She now looked at her friend's hands with fascination etched on her face.
“Magnificent.” Wednesday took a few steps forward, trying to touch Enid, but Enid took a few more steps back, distancing herself.
“Don't come near, I... I'm a monster. I can... hurt you, don't come closer!” Enid whimpered again and squeezed her eyes shut. “I can't pull it back. What am I? A fucking Wolverine?”
“Enid, listen to me.” Wednesday, this time, tried to approach Enid more cautiously and finally reached her hands. It wouldn't be a problem if Enid hurt her; she always liked sharp things, after all.
As soon as she touched the pointed nails, she felt a kind of pride in Enid. She smiled in a restrained way and made sure not to hide her satisfaction, to show Enid that everything was alright.
“That was the sign we were looking for... There's something about you. Something supernatural.” Wednesday played with Enid's claws, as if they were her own private collection of knives.
Enid calmed down and even began to find Wednesday's touch comforting, but she couldn't forget that she was angry.
“That's enough, I don't want this anymore. I'm going back home.” Wednesday felt the absence of Enid's hand, along with the girl's hurried footsteps.
It was almost over. Enid had to try... at least one more time.
As soon as Wednesday returned home, soaking wet and determined to get Enid to do more tests, she found Morticia in the living room, with a disapproving look on her face.
"Wednesday." Even though Wednesday disliked displays of affection, she knew she was in trouble for not hearing her mother call her affectionately, as she always did.
"Mother..." she greeted briefly, wanting to avoid the reprimand.
"Even though you know that your father and I were greatly enjoying the means of torturing Enid for a reasonable reason, I believe you've gone too far this time." Morticia had a hard, reproachful look, but it did nothing to Wednesday; it only made her more defensive.
"It won't be long, Mother. I can see that tomorrow Enid will have unleashed the beast." Wednesday was certain of it.
"I know. I saw the same thing you saw nine years ago. A harmless wolf." This was the first time she had received the information that her mother also believed Enid was a werewolf because of her vision. But unlike the dove's vision, the raven could sense chaos. “Enid arrived upset, hiding her hand, and didn't even have dinner with us. Yesterday, she went to bed after fainting. Even though all this is to keep Enid close, I believe it's traumatizing her. And that's not right.”
Wednesday began to feel something she had never felt before. Guilt.
She didn't feel guilty about anything because she never considered herself wrong in a single aspect of her life. If something happened, it was always someone else's fault. And she only dressed herself in indignation. Nothing was her responsibility to take on.
“I'll talk to her.”
Wednesday went upstairs, without even taking off her wet clothes, knocked on the door, hoping Enid would answer. But accepting it if she didn't want to talk to her.
Deep down, she wanted Enid not to give up trying.
Giving up was never an option. Wednesday demanded a lot from everything she did. She refused to accept that she had a creative block while writing her book. She couldn’t bear losing the fencing duel to Bianca. She’d blamed it on being sleep-deprived the night before. She could never accept a crime without a solution.
Wednesday Friday Addams never considered failure an option. She always tried to push herself to the limit, never thinking about whether anyone would be upset with her for it. So she never thought about the consequences.
But she knew she wanted Enid in her life. And she was demanding that Enid also shouldn’t give up on becoming a werewolf. She demanded and insisted that Enid not give up.
If she gave up, if she found the journey exhausting, she would tire of her and leave her. Because that was the world they were in, where humans and outcasts don't coexist.
But she had to accept that if Enid didn't want to, she couldn't demand more. Because that would mean losing Enid in a worse way. Not because they were different, but because she had hurt the only person who ever cared enough to feel guilty for her actions.
Because, to her, it mattered if Enid was nauseous because she thought the ice cream was made of unicorn, or if she was having a panic attack. Or trapped in a lake of piranhas, even if it wasn't her intention to put her there.
Enid mattered, and Wednesday could no longer deny that to herself.
As soon as Wednesday heard the door open, her heart sank with pain. Enid's eyes were red with pain. Pain that she had caused, solely.
"What do you want?" Enid didn't speak in her usual light and sunny way; she was upset.
"I want to apologize." Wednesday lowered her head, repentant, and Enid felt weak realizing it. "I never meant to cause you pain. I know my methods are... intense. But none of them so far were intended to endanger your life. I knew the limits." She sighed and lost her composure; she was about to admit something she had never, ever done. Admit a mistake. “But apparently, I was wrong and ended up getting carried away by the end goal, and wasn't upset about what I was doing to you. I regret what I did. Please forgive me.”
Wednesday didn't want to sound so honest, but her regret was transparent.
“I know you want to help me, Wens.” Enid used the nickname and pulled her hands from behind her back to show her claws, still without a solution. “ I'm increasingly convinced that this might be real, but I can't stand feeling pain or discomfort anymore. I know I was the one who accepted this, but... It was too much.”
Wednesday still had her head down, upset about what she did to her friend.
“The Addams are intense.” Wednesday tried to justify herself, but saw that she was making excuses again. “I'm not going to use my family as an excuse for my behavior anymore.”
“Good.” Enid smiled this time, liking to see that Wednesday was trying to remedy her mistakes and apologize.
“I also came to say that we're going to shut down the Arcadia experiment. I'll mark it as a ‘failure’ in the report, and we'll never discuss it again.”
For a moment, Wednesday gave up trying to get the werewolf out of her. It seemed wrong to Enid. Wednesday, giving up didn't seem right. But that was also proof that she was struggling to admit her flawed methods.
"No." Before she could reason that Wednesday was right to give up, Enid denied it. "I want to try one more time. But it will be the last."
Enid saw Wednesday look up, filled with hope and satisfaction. The Addams girl hadn't expected that Enid, after suffering so much, was still unwilling to give up.
Perhaps they were both hopelessly "stubborn".
And this leads to the present moment, Experiment Arcadia, Test #14. With Enid regretting having accepted that insanity. Wednesday only had one more chance, and it would be radical.
20 meters high. A trapdoor. One last attempt.
And without any more time to breathe, Wednesday opened the trapdoor, and Enid fell from that height. Wednesday analyzed the scene; she had an idea of the free-fall time. She had a stopwatch to measure it. After a second, when she saw that Enid hadn't released the beast or had any reaction to the adrenaline rush, Wednesday yelled to her brother.
"Now!" Pugsley was quick and activated the device that opened an air cushion on the floor almost instantly. Enid's body fell there, fast and uncontrollably, but she seemed fine.
The brothers rushed to the spot to check if Enid was alright. The human raised her hand, giving a thumbs-up to show she was okay. Wednesday breathed a sigh of relief and let all the air out of her lungs.
It had definitely failed, but the important thing was that Enid was alright.
"Experiment Arcadia terminated."
*
Wednesday could sense, as night fell, that Enid was upset. The experiment had failed. And they weren't the same anymore, outcasts.
Enid, however mixed her symptoms might be, wouldn't be enough to prove she was an outcast. Without her complete transformation, it was preferable that she still enjoy her human rights.
After that night, it would be very difficult to prove any connection to the Outcast world. The records wouldn't allow it, and also because the transformation hadn't occurred.
There were four days left before Enid returned to Los Angeles, leaving that bizarre and enchanting world behind. Letting Wednesday follow her natural course. Perhaps no one would take her seriously, but she would be a lawyer who would take care of the Outcasts, because that's what she was sure she wanted to do. But she would enjoy the four days and be happy while it lasted.
For Wednesday, seeing Enid like this made her sad. She knew that was her biggest dream. She had fueled her expectations, given her hope, blinded by her insane ideas. And now they were there, both bitter about their own considerations.
"I think we should at least observe the moon, I need to say goodbye to it," Enid commented depreciatily, but there was a grain of truth in it.
The moon had been her close friend since she was a child. She had long begged for it to welcome her, to give her some hope that her life wouldn't be the same forever.
Wednesday simply nodded, and they began walking through the field again. The smell of the grass and the night breeze were very inviting. Enid was grateful that she was beginning to accept and make peace with her destiny.
Wednesday remained silent, respecting Enid's moment of inner acceptance. It was something she wanted Enid to see: that she was special, with or without the beast inside her.
Still in silence, they sat by the same lake where they had argued the day before and gazed at the moon. Full and bright.
"It's beautiful," Enid said, beginning to get emotional, even though she didn't want to show it; her tears also held frustration.
"Yes, it is," Wednesday looked at Enid, her eyes shining as she watched the moon, and agreed.
It was then that Wednesday had what the ancient Greeks called an "eureka moment." Perhaps she could help. Not with death threats, but she as herself.
"Enid," Wednesday began, more serious than ever. It could work. "If you'll allow me, I need to do one more experiment."
Enid laughed and shook her head.
"No, Wednesday, it's okay, I'm fine." Enid didn't want to try anymore. She was starting to feel better in her own skin. She felt that her body wasn't reacting to the moon as it should have been, either.
"Just... allow me, but as soon as I realize it's going to fail, I'll stop. I promise." Enid didn't understand when she saw Wednesday approaching her.
Getting very, very close.
Hypothesis #2: Every time Enid had a reaction closer to that of a werewolf, it was mainly during an encounter with Wednesday. The first time was when she met her in person, knowing that she was her friend. The second was when they argued. The third was also when they argued at the lake. Perhaps it wasn't the near-death experience that would unleash the beast, but something Wednesday could cause.
A very different kind of adrenaline rush from near-death, but one that would equally make the heart race. Through the mouth.
As Wednesday approached Enid, their shoulders touching, she again felt all the emotions she couldn't control. The feeling that her nails would tear her skin. The various sounds the woods produced, even the wolves howling on a distant hill. The sound of a heart that wasn't hers, beating faster and, no less importantly, her own.
"Your th-theory?" Enid decided to speak, still very nervous. Now feeling Wednesday's breath touching her lips.
"My second hypothesis suggests that perhaps I'm the one who awakens your wolf." That left Enid so numb that she couldn't react, not even laugh, incredulous.
She allowed Wednesday to lightly touch her lips to hers. But when Enid closed her eyes to return the touch, the euphoria was almost excruciating. She felt parts of her body begin to break, one by one. The cracking sounds were loud, and her last sane look was Wednesday's wide eyes, as if surprised that it was actually true.
She was transforming.
Wednesday watched the creature form before her eyes, Enid's torn clothes on the ground. The cry of pain turned into a loud howl. She backed away, but kept her eyes fixed on the transformation.
It was the same as in her vision. The gray fur with blue and pink streaks, similar to the other's blonde hair. The large fangs and elongated snout. The monstrous size, much larger than a wolf.
But she didn't have much time to analyze the figure, because her pessimistic raven vision was also correct. The moment the creature saw her, it knew she was the one who had tried to kill its receptacle for the past two days in a row. The beast was angry and even resentful.
‘I trusted you.’ She could sense the creature saying this to her.
The wolf's murderous eyes were directly locked onto hers. She had to run as fast as possible.
When the predator meets the prey.