Living with the Addams II

Luke followed Wednesday. They went down the stairs and then entered a dimly lit hallway with only a few faint candles. They turned several times, as if navigating some kind of maze, until they finally emerged into a larger room.

The room was illuminated by numerous candles resting on various old, time-worn furniture. In the center stood a long table covered with a dusty red tablecloth. Above the table, hanging from the ceiling, was a chandelier resembling the one in the entry hall.

In one corner stood a large bear statue, measuring over three meters, much taller than usual. On the adjacent wall hung a large painting that immediately caught the attention of anyone entering, as it faced directly forward.

The painting depicted a strange, large, almost grotesque humanoid figure holding a smaller, headless being. The larger figure was devouring the smaller one with its mouth, tearing off its skin.

Luke recognized the painting. It was famous: Cronus, or Saturn, devouring his son, representing mythology.

"We've been expecting you! Come on, take a seat!" exclaimed Gomez, who was sitting in the chair at the head of the table.

At the table sat Morticia to Gomez's left, Pugsley to his right, and beside him, a short, hunched elderly woman.

Her hair, a disheveled gray mess, fell in strands over her wrinkled face. However, despite her old age, her eyes held a mischievous and malevolent spark as she fixed them on Luke, eager to see the boy who had brought her beloved granddaughter, Wednesday.

Without saying a word, Wednesday walked over and sat down beside her grandmother.

Luke walked in, glancing at the elderly woman who was also staring at him, and sat down next to Natasha, who was at the other end, away from the strange family.

The chair creaked under his weight, and then the room returned to an eerie silence. Each place setting was ready with plates, glasses, and silverware. At the center of the table was a large pot that bubbled and gave off steam.

Luke frowned slightly, feeling the persistent gaze of Wednesday's grandmother on him. He couldn't deny that her stare made him uncomfortable.

"So... you're the famous Poe boy," said the old woman, breaking the silence. Her voice was raspy but filled with curiosity.

"I've heard quite a few rumors about you. You've made a name for yourself, despite your fallen family," she added, looking at him with more intensity.

"Oh, I forgot to introduce you to my mother, Luke. This is Eudora Addams," said Gomez, introducing the elderly woman.

'Gomez's mother...' thought Luke. He had only seen two Addams movies, along with the Netflix series. In those movies, there had been an elderly woman, but she was Morticia's mother, not Gomez's.

"Nice to meet you," Luke said curtly, glancing at Eudora for a moment before looking back down at his empty plate.

With people he's just met, he tends to be quiet and somewhat reserved, even if they are his girlfriend's family. Gomez had been different; Luke saw in him a rare honesty and transparency.

"Oh, we have a shy boy here. I didn't expect that, given your history," Eudora said with a raspy laugh.

'I'm not shy,' thought Luke. He simply didn't want to engage in a conversation filled with leading, manipulative questions. He could already tell that the old woman was the type to ask difficult, double-edged questions, aiming to make you uncomfortable and uncover secrets through seemingly simple or trivial questions.

"So, Luke," Eudora continued, undeterred by Luke's silence, as if she could sense his reluctance to talk with her.

"I wonder, what is your goal in being with my granddaughter?" she asked in a sweet tone, different from before, though it was clear there was venom in the question—a veiled reference to the war between the Poes and the Spellmans that had been going on for hundreds of years.

Luke had expected that, at some point, one of the Addamses would bring up his feud with the Spellmans. It would be odd if they showed no concern at all, given that it meant potentially going to war with another powerful psychic family just for having him among them.

Wednesday looked at her grandmother for the first time, her eyes emitting an icy aura. She didn't want anyone planting strange ideas in Luke's head. She knew he had left Enid worried for her safety, after Enid's mother blamed him for an incident that almost got her killed.

She didn't want Luke to do the same thing now because of her grandmother, though Eudora wasn't doing what Enid's mother had. She was merely questioning him and testing him, so to speak.

Luke didn't show anger or hurt at her comment. He no longer expected support from others regarding his family feud. With Enid's family, he'd had a glimmer of hope, but after what happened with Esther, he let go of that hope.

Facing an ancient and powerful family as just two people brings immense pressure, and having the support of a family of outcasts would be a great relief.

As for leaving Wednesday worried about her safety, he wouldn't do that either. He wouldn't repeat the same mistake he'd made in the past with Enid.

Wednesday had already told him explicitly that she wasn't afraid to face the Spellmans and would help him in his fight. Their fight. She, as an individual—not her family—and that was all Luke wanted and needed.

Wednesday, who was about to speak up to tell her grandmother to stop meddling in her affairs, saw a faint smile forming on Luke's face and had a bad feeling.

Luke looked at Eudora, his face calm but with that playful glint in his eyes that only Wednesday and Natasha could identify. He wasn't going to answer the old woman's tricky question with a deep, annoying discussion about his goals and intentions.

"My goal in being with your granddaughter," Luke repeated, feigning a dramatic air. Slowly, he turned to Wednesday, taking her cold hand in his. "Is to win the true love of this beautiful, icy maiden," he added grandly, looking at Wednesday with passionate eyes.

'His acting has improved,' thought Natasha, recalling when Luke had performed in front of an interviewer, telling his school story of being "bullied."

Eudora was surprised by Luke's sudden change. From short, dry answers and staring at his plate like someone shy, he'd shifted to such a performance in front of everyone. What was going on in this boy's head?

Gomez, Morticia, and Pugsley were also taken aback by Luke's sudden transformation. In the short time they had known him, he had never shown such an extroverted side.

"Cara mia!" Luke exclaimed, copying Gomez's passionate tone, while he exaggeratedly kissed Wednesday's pale, cold hand.

"I want to marry you, start a family, and live together for all eternity!" he added in a tone that was both sarcastic and somehow sincere.

Wednesday grabbed a knife with her free hand and raised it calmly. "Luke," she said in her characteristically monotone voice, "I warned you I'd kill you if you ever did something this ridiculous—even if it's just a stupid act."

With that, she threw the knife at him with pinpoint precision.

Luke, without losing his smile, quickly tilted his head to dodge the knife, letting it pass just inches from his face and embed itself in the wall behind him.

'And I said they'd have to torture me in the worst possible way for me to consider doing something like this… and here I am,' Luke thought, realizing this was the only way he'd come up with to escape the conversation with the old woman.

"You can kill me with love," Luke said. Wednesday pulled her hand away from Luke's gentle grip and rose from her chair.

A whirl of darkness began to form in her hand, taking the shape of a dark, menacing scythe. Luke took several steps back, his smile fading from his face.

'Crap… she's serious,' he thought. Today, he'd exhausted all of Wednesday's patience, and this was the result, though he'd still prefer this to dining on who knows what horrid food and chatting with Eudora.

Seeing Wednesday advancing with a cold expression and a dangerously sharp weapon in her hands, Luke had no choice but to start running.

He ran down narrow, dark hallways, careful not to stumble over the uneven floor and steps that appeared out of nowhere, while dodging sharp bursts of darkness that Wednesday hurled at him from behind.

The girl didn't seem to mind damaging the property, leaving blade marks on the walls.

He turned a corner and saw Wednesday's pale face shrouded in darkness. He had a second to duck, narrowly avoiding the scythe as it swung overhead, clipping a few strands of his hair.

'Shadow travel…' thought Luke with a grimace. With a telekinetic wave, he pushed himself backward and resumed his escape down another hallway. He tried to open several doors, but they were all locked, and he didn't want to break the locks in someone else's house.

Finally, he found a door slightly ajar. He slipped in quickly, closing it behind him with a soft click. He found himself in a dark room with a small window letting in barely any light. However, the sense of security was short-lived.

In the deadly silence of the room, he heard Wednesday's footsteps approaching, followed by her whisper reaching him, "Where are you, Luke?"

'Why are all the girls I know so violent?' Luke thought, frowning. Enid had her own way—she openly showed jealousy, and when she was mad, it was frightening. Natasha was the same, displaying a chilling brutality. Veronica also had her traits; despite being called the Princess of Umbrio, she had a strong personality.

As for Wednesday, she was by far the scariest when truly angry, which was hard to provoke. This was the first time he'd seen her genuinely angry with him. Usually, she tolerated his jokes and mocking comments, even playing along in her own way.

Just as he was about to hide in a dusty closet, the door suddenly swung open with great force. Wednesday entered at a steady pace, holding her scythe in her left hand, her gaze fixed firmly on Luke.

"Why don't you defend yourself?" Wednesday asked, pausing to look at Luke, who was just about to use Shambles to escape.

Luke halted the movement of his hand, about to launch Shambles, and fell silent, thinking. He knew he could fight on equal footing with Wednesday and was confident he could win, just as Wednesday believed she could beat him.

"I'll never raise my hand against you. Only in training," Luke answered after a few seconds.

'Always so protective of the people he cares about…' thought Wednesday, as the dark scythe dissipated from her hand.

She had noticed this aspect of Luke's personality. He was very protective of those he cared about, and those people were few. She'd seen it with Enid, and even with that girl named Gia. She remembered how he defended her from bullies. The same was true with Natasha and his only two friends: Xavier and Ajax.

During the Blood Moon, she noticed he seemed relieved, in a way, to see that the two of them weren't there.

Wednesday walked slowly toward Luke. He no longer seemed cautious, sensing that she no longer intended to attack him.

She stood on tiptoe and kissed him. This kiss was much longer than the one that morning.

"Don't ever do that again in front of my family. Don't kiss me in front of my brother either," Wednesday said after pulling her lips away from Luke's.

"I won't," Luke replied, nodding. He knew Wednesday didn't like it and didn't want to make her uncomfortable on purpose. He'd only done it for a bit of revenge on Pugsley, and just moments ago to avoid Eudora's questions.

"Let's go back. I'll deal with my Grandmama. I won't let her interfere and ask you uncomfortable questions," said Wednesday, taking Luke's hand and starting to walk back toward the dining room.

"Fine, thanks..." Luke said, a bit surprised by Wednesday's sudden concern and how quickly she'd forgiven him for earlier.

"By the way, you might think that kissing in front of your brother is like a kind of torture for him. I saw his expression when we kissed—he was dying inside with rage," Luke said, walking down the dark hallway hand in hand with Wednesday.

Wednesday paused for a moment. "Oh, interesting. I'd never thought about that. It might work… a pain much worse than the physical," she said as she continued walking. By the time they reached the dining room, they were no longer holding hands, and each returned to their seat.

Lunch had already started. Luke noticed Natasha's expression of disgust and understood why. In her bowl was a kind of dark, thick soup with pieces of wilted vegetables. He could swear he saw an eye floating in it, though who knows from what animal.

The meal continued without any tense or awkward conversation. The elder woman refrained from asking delicate questions, focusing only on Wednesday's school year. The two got along well, sharing a mutual appreciation for the macabre and morbid.

That night, Luke, Natasha, and Wednesday gathered in Luke's room to discuss their plans for reaching Ohio.

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