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It was time, death had come for Wednesday Addams.
She thought lesser of it since it took the blasted entity 96 years to finally show up.
At the very least watching her body decay was interesting, and she thanked her deceased parents that her mind remained sharp. That in of itself presented it’s own torture however. As her body went through it’s final checks before shutting down permanently she was left hyper aware, lying in her bed, reviewing her life.
It got old quick.
“Just like you,” said a voice filled with sad amusement.
Life of course couldn’t grant her a quiet death, it had to leash Enid to her. Too bright, too loud, too loyal, too wonderful Enid. Sat by Wednesday’s bedside peering down through half moon glasses. As old as Wednesday was, as beautiful as she had always been.
“Your brain must be finally going, you are a Werewolf, Enid. Not a mind reader.”
“I know how your mind works, all you ever think about is how old you are. ‘Oooooooooh I’m Wednesday Addams and I lived a full life to an old age and survived the robot apocalypse! Woe is me’,” Enid laughed, ending with a cough.
Full life? Perhaps in some regards, but there had been regrets. One that was sitting next to her. Her entire life she had harboured deeper feelings for her friend, but had never once spoken up. There was never a sign Enid had felt the same. So she kept those thoughts buried. Happy, she tried to tell herself, to have Enid by her side as a companion for life.
Dying with that secret left a sour taste in her mouth.
“If you know how my mind works then you’ll know-”
“-to feed your body to Cleopatra, yeah yeah,” Enid finished.
Wednesday hummed, acknowledging the acceptance of her last request.
Her heart was starting to slow, even beyond its usual glacier pace.
It was time.
Even age could not fully rob Enid of her wolf senses. Looking saddened she reached across to take Wednesday’s hand in her own.
“Dying before me? Bit unfair isn’t it, since you promised to always be there for me.” Tears began to pool in Enid’s eyes.
Wednesday used the last of her strength to squeeze Enid’s hand, her last bit of comfort. “Don’t worry Wolf, it won’t be long until you join me and the rest of the family in hell.”
Enid laughed, her tears following the lines of wrinkles on her face.
They stared at each for a moment, taking one last look at each other.
If this is the end, what hold do secrets have anymore? Wednesday thought.
“Enid.”
“Yes, Wednesday?”
It was getting harder to talk.
“I’ve...I’ve always loved you. Since the day I rescued from the forest, I’ve loved you.”
Enid looked stunned, and impossibly happy, a smile on her face despite it all. What a glorious final sight.
“I love you too.”
Disbelief, and life, flowed through her body in an instant.
👵🏻❤️👵🏽🪦🪦🪦🪦🪦❤️👵🏻❤️👵🏽🪦🪦🪦🪦🪦❤️👵🏻❤️👵🏽🪦🪦🪦🪦🪦❤️👵🏻❤️👵🏽🪦🪦🪦🪦🪦❤️👵🏻❤️👵🏽🪦🪦🪦🪦🪦
Wednesday went from one foot in the grave to sitting up in a heartbeat.
“What?!” Wednesday seethed, her voice having regained some strength. “All this time, all these decades? And you loved me? Enid Sinclair you idiotic, halfwitted-”
“HEY!” Enid shouted, though the smile on her voice remained. “You didn’t say anything either! I’ve gone my entire life thinking you saw me as, your sister or something.”
Wednesday’s face scrunched in disgust. It triggered another wheezing laugh from Enid, and Wednesday followed. Nearly 80 years of being by each others sides, and neither of them had the courage to speak up. It was comically tragic. Wednesday’s favourite kind.
Still, their was an error here to correct. One Wednesday would see to herself.
Pulling back the covers of her bed Wednesday climbed out slowly, using Enid as a brace.
“Wednesday?” Enid questioned, looking confused but helping the other woman to stand.
Wednesday didn’t respond, instead muttering under her breath as she lead them both to her Grandmama’s old potions room. Most of the room was a battlefield of various fungus and other unknown things that had escaped the confines of the ingredient cabinet. Grandmama was still there too, skeleton reclined on her favourite rocking chair. Bones nearly encased in black mold.
“Hi Granny,” Enid said, waving to the collection of bones.
Wednesday ripped the skull off, and tossed it into a nearby cauldron, along with a half dozen other ingredients and an old crystal ball. The water inside was stagnant, but did its job as the assortment of components dissolved, the water bubbled unnaturally. Enid shuffled next to Wednesday, peering into the cauldron.
“What exactly are we doing?”
Wednesday tugged at her hair, ripping out some silver strands and tossed them into the frothing soup of magic. She held out a hand for Enid, who sighed and ripped out some of her gray hairs. Once thrown in the water stilled, turning a dark purple. Wednesday nodded, happy, and picked up an unmarked bag from a nearby shelf.
“Sending a message,” she said, dumping the entire load of thermite into the simmering liquid.
The fluid vaporised, filling the room with purple smoke. After a few moments it cleared, leaving a hanging cloud of smoke above the cauldron. The centre of the cloud parted, and revealed their room at Nevermore, as it had been nearly 80 years ago. In that room sat a young Wednesday Addams, along with still blonde Enid.
Neither seemed to be aware they were being watched as Wednesday typed away and Enid danced around the room like a gazelle with a sugar high.
“Our old room!” Enid cooed, happy to see the place of her fondest memories. Before it had been mysteriously firebombed. Wednesday scanned her previous lodgings with something close to nostalgia. She had missed this place. It had been a shame to set it on fire so no one else could ever claim it.
There was a loud scrapping of a hair, and as one the older women turned to see the younger version of Wednesday staring right back at them.
👵🏻❤️👵🏽🪦🪦🪦🪦🪦❤️👵🏻❤️👵🏽🪦🪦🪦🪦🪦❤️👵🏻❤️👵🏽🪦🪦🪦🪦🪦❤️👵🏻❤️👵🏽🪦🪦🪦🪦🪦❤️👵🏻❤️👵🏽🪦🪦🪦🪦🪦
“Identify yourselves, now,” Wednesday said, staring at the elderly imposters. The more hag like one simply glared back, while the one that looked surprisingly good for someone so close to death just smiled and waved. She didn’t wave back.
Enid, coming to stand beside her, waved back.
Wednesday was almost tempted to throw her off the balcony.
“Enid, do not greet intruders. Particularly the wrinkled ones,” Wednesday said, annoyed. By her side Enid huffed.
“Oh relax Wends, look at them. It’s just a couple of adorable old people, creepily staring at us through a magic window.”
“Yes listen to her, good to see one of you has a braincell,” the colder of the two geriatrics said, still glaring at Wednesday. Wednesday glared right back, feeling a chill run up her spine. There was something about that look that was familiar.
“Wednesday, be nice! The poor girl is just surprised to see us,” The much kinder of the pair said.
Had she just called her-?
“Holy shit! It’s us! Old people us!” Enid said excitedly. “We look, like, so good for 150.”
Older Enid wish she had something to throw at her younger self then.
“We aren’t 150 you little shit, we’re only a few years shy of 100,” she muttered.
“Oof.”
“Oof? What the hell does that mean? If I could I’d reach through this veil and choke-”
“Enid, please, we don’t have much time. As magnificent as it is to see you threaten to harm your past self, we don’t have much time. I am still dying after-all.”
Young Enid gasped, while Wednesday raised an eyebrow. The older version of her nodded, and then addressed the two.
“For over 80 years I went without saying what needed to be said. And now I am here, dying, without telling Enid how I truly felt. I thought she could never feel the same as I could, but I was wrong. We both missed the chance for so much new means of torment and dark joy. Do not rob yourself of that chance, Wednesday, be brave enough to say what I could not.”
Crying, the older Enid took her Wednesday’s face in her hands and brought her in for a kiss.
A very long kiss.
A kiss that was quickly escalating to a full blown make out session. Complete with false teeth coming lose.
The younger Wednesday turned a slight shade of green, while Enid openly retched. Thankfully for them both, the vision disappeared, and they were left alone.
Awkwardly alone, their feelings put out into the open.
It was Enid who spoke up first.
“So, like, that could have been an alternative future version of us, but not actually us right?” She said, the fear of intimacy and ruining her friendship keeping her from talking.
Wednesday, glad for the out as heat rose up her neck. “Yes, possibly. So whatever they said, might not hold true for us.”
“Right? So we should think, maybe, think on it?” Enid nodded, happy with the plan. “We just need some time, and then we can say how we feel.”
80 Years Later
Laying in her bed, death approaching, Enid contemplated her last words and then spoke. “So I think maybe I actually did love you all along.”
Wednesday sighed, and got up to go make the potion.