Chapter Text
It is a beautiful cold, grey and dreary winter day. “At least the weather is cooperating.” Wednesday thinks. After a few long weeks of searching for Enid with Uncle Fester’s help, Wednesday had found her and was able to get her back into human form. However, the fear of transforming and getting stuck in wolf form again still loomed.
So Wednesday decided to head back up north to look for Isadora Capri and get her help and insights on the alpha situation, with Enid, Uncle Fester and Thing in tow.
They are now in a small town (much like Jericho) on the border of Vermont and Canada. “It looks straight out of a Hallmark movie!” Enid had proclaimed as they had entered the downtown area. Wednesday had no idea what that meant but clearly it delighted her friend.
They are sitting in a booth at a diner grabbing breakfast while they try to figure out where Isadora Capri could be in the village. Agnes had been able to gain access to CCTV footage and was monitoring Capri’s car which had not left the town in over a week.
As Fester and Enid make a plan of the hotels and inns in the area to check out, Wednesday is taking a look around the diner to get her bearings. It’s your typical small town American diner with cracked vinyl booths lining the sides, with walls of glass surrounding them. A few rusted metal chairs and tables are scattered in between, and a long wooden countertop with cake and pie stands among other pastries holds the register. Waitresses in pale blue uniforms walk around with pens and mini notepads in hand as they take orders.
Past Uncle Fester’s head, across the far end of the diner Wednesday spots a mop of dark sandy colored curls. The same ones that have haunted her dreams every night since she last saw them in person; after an uncharacteristic moment of mercy. But of course they aren’t the same she thinks, just a reminder of him.
She can’t help but take a good look at the head in question. The man, whoever he is, has his back to them and faces the opposite corner of the diner. She can’t help but think that not only does he have the same hair, he has the same taste in clothing. The mystery man wears a flannel shirt, and a brown jacket hangs over the booth by his right shoulder.
While eating his breakfast with coffee, he flips through a stack of papers with small circles and x’s on it, with lines connecting from x to circle. Wednesday has no idea what he could be looking at.
The waitress stops by to talk to him and Wednesday zones everything else out to hear.
“The pies are a hit again today Don. I might need to stop by later for more if they sell out before the dinner rush.”
She clears his table and he stands up. His head turns slightly as he reaches to grab his coat and lightning runs down Wednesday’s spine. His right cheek is lightly scarred. Scars she would recognize anywhere, the ones that plagued her nightmares.
There is no doubt at all, Tyler Galpin just walked out of the front door of the diner.
Wednesday jumps up from the booth she’s been occupying, grabs her bag and without a word makes to run after him, leaving a confused Fester and Enid behind.
Wednesday catches a glimpse of him a few blocks away as he enters a large building. She sprints after him but upon entering the building she’s loses sight of him.
Taking a look around she realizes she’s inside of an ice hockey rink. As she scans the groups of people on and off the ice Enid runs in through the doors catching up to her.
In her haste to run after Tyler, Wednesday had forgotten her coat, and the frigid air in the ice rink was now creeping over her. Luckily Enid carried the large oversized black jacket and handed it to Wednesday before she tore into her insufferable roomie.
“What the hell Wednesday! Why did you just run off like that?” She says as she’s breathing heavily from running after her.
“Go back to the diner to Uncle Fester, Enid.” Wednesday demands as she puts her coat over her thick black sweater, which is paired with thick black jeans and her usual chunky boots.
“What happened? Did you see Ms. Capri?.”
“No.” She replied sternly.
“Then what?” Enid asked, annoyed now.
With a huff, Wednesday said, “I saw someone else I need to talk to.”
“Who else could you know out here in the middle of nowhere?” Enid started to question, just as a group of kids and their coach came onto the ice.
Enid’s eyes widened with shock as she whispered, “Tyler? What’s he doing here?”
“That’s what I intend to find out.” Wednesday said with her stern face.
“Wait, is he the coach?” She’s shocked.
That’s when Wednesday takes a good look at him. He is no longer in the jeans and flannel he was in a few minutes ago. He now wears a hockey jersey and pants, with knee pads, and thick white socks that come up to his calves. A helmet hangs on the crook of one arm as he’s talking to the group of children.
He turns as another group of children make their way onto the ice and she reads the back of his jersey, “Nuit” is written in big block letters on his back. Wednesday thinks back to what the waitress called him in the diner, “Don”
She can’t help but chuckle, it’s so uncharacteristic that it catches Enid by surprise.
“What’s funny?” She looks at Wednesday with concern
“He’s using the alias ‘Don Nuit,’ a shortened version of his father’s name Donovan, and the French for his mother’s maiden name Night. He must be passing as French-Canadian down here from Montreal which is only an hour or so north.”
Enid is blinking rapidly. “I can’t believe that we randomly stumbled upon Tyler Galpin, and he’s coaching kids hockey. I didn’t even know he played. Did you?”
Wednesday’s face sours, she purses her lips as she says, “No. We never talked about him playing hockey. I realize now that we never talked about any of his interests, just my investigation into the monster in the woods. Which turned out to be him, as you’re aware.”
She hears Enid sigh deeply to her right as they both continue to watch Tyler.
“Yeah Wednesday, I know that you can’t be bothered to care about other people’s hobbies because they are ‘beneath you’” Enid says with air quotes.
They continue to stand there and watch as he commands the children’s rapt attention. He is stern but not mean as he disciplines one of them who almost knocked over a young girl practicing figure skating. He makes them laugh, and they cheer loudly for him as he shows them how to make goals. Wednesday is usually not one for sports, especially team sports, but she must admit, the violent nature of hockey is beautiful and she can’t help but think how powerful he looks making goal after goal.
After a while Enid says, “You’re not going to come check out the hotels and inns with me and Fester, are you? You’re gonna stay here and wait for him to finish so you can talk to him right?”
Wednesday’s eyes never leave the ice as she responds, “Yes. Go tell Uncle Fester and Thing what I have discovered, but tell them I do not want them to interfere. I need to talk to him alone.”
“I know you won’t change your mind, but are you sure that’s a good idea? That it’s safe?” Enid questions.
“He is teaching a violent contact sport to a bunch of loud and irritating children who cannot follow the simplest of instructions. And he looks…happy, he is calm and focused. There is no glimpse of the hyde at all. I will be fine.”
“Okay Wednesday. Just be careful.”
“I will. We will meet back at the hotel we plan to stay at tonight.”
Enid nods as she makes her way out the way she came.
Wednesday stays and watches through the whole practice, at one point one of the moms asks Wednesday if she knows the coach since she hasn’t taken her eyes off of him the whole time.
“He reminds me of someone I used to know.”
After some time the groups of children disperse and Tyler follows them off the ice on the opposite side. She starts to make her way to where the locker rooms are but she is stopped by a security guard informing her that only members are allowed back there.
Irritated, she stomps her way back out the front but decides to go check out the back door just in case. As she reaches the back of the building she sees the brown jacket heading into a small storefront.
Wednesday stands outside a small shop with a sign reading ‘Maman’s Pies’ she walks in to the smell of sweet macerated fruit, and buttery crust. She takes a look around but doesn’t see him. Except this is the shop he walked into.
“What can I get you sweetie?” The woman behind the counter asks her. “We have fresh rhubarb pie for the season if you’re interested.”
Before Wednesday retorts with a snide comment, she notices a very nice espresso machine in the corner.
“I’d like a quad over ice please.”
The woman looks over at the machine, “The owners just installed that a little while ago, I have no idea how to use that thing. Give me a second let me see if someone in the kitchen can help you out. I’ve seen our baker tinker with it before.”
She disappears into the back and a moment later Tyler walks out. A white apron hangs over his black shirt with specks of flour and fruit all over it.
His eyes grow wide but he composes himself quickly.
“She asked for some fancy drink, think you can make it for her?” The woman asks as she walks back to the counter.
Without taking his eyes off of Wednesday, he says “Yeah I can make her drink.”
He walks over to the machine and gets to work on her quad. While the espresso drips from the machine he gets a to-go cup and scoops ice into it. Once the machine is done pouring four shots of espresso he adds the steaming dark brown liquid to the cup with ice and puts it down in front of the petite figure in front of him.
He then goes over to the iPad on the counter and punches in something. Turning back to the older woman he says, “I put the code in for the quad, you can get her payment when she’s ready.”
Without glancing back he starts moving towards the back door. As he pushes open the door he hears a low, “We need to talk.”
He freezes, doesn’t turn back, but doesn’t move forward. That voice. He thought he would never hear that voice ever again outside of his dreams.
The woman at the counter looks back and forth between them and asks, “Don, do you know our visitor here?”
He sighs and turns as he says, “Just someone I know from back home, you mind giving me a second out here?”
She doesn’t answer but disappears into the kitchen.
Wednesday has the urge to say, “Is that all I am? Someone from Jericho?” But she decides against it. It would be too emotional.
Tyler motions for her to sit with him at a table in the corner. Far from the kitchen and the other patrons in the shop. He takes his apron off and sits down across from her.
Wednesday loosens the black and white scarf she is wearing and she notices his eyes go straight to the brown and yellow skin on her neck, remnants of his grip on her that fateful night, and he winces.
“What are you doing here Wednesday? How did you find me?”
“This is happenstance, I’m not here for you Tyler. I’m here looking for a former Nevermore teacher, I need her assistance with something.” Her response is devoid of emotion.
“The thought of you hasn’t crossed my mind all this time.” She lies.
“Ouch. Wish I could say the same." He seems genuinely hurt but regains his composure quickly.
“What are you doing here Tyler? Or is it Don now?” She asks with a glare.
He laughs without humor, “Yeah well, ‘Tyler Galpin’ is one of America's most wanted, I can’t just be walking around here with that name, now can I?. As small of a town as it is, the people aren’t stupid.”
“Again, the question remains, what are you doing here?”
“What do you think I’m doing here Wednesday? I can’t go back home to Jericho, not after everything that happened there. After everything that happened to me since meeting you.”
“From the moment I met you my life started crumbling apart. Everything bad that’s ever happened to me is because of you.” Anger flashes over his face.
She is stunned by his comment. But before she can counter, he continues, “But I can’t make myself blame you for it, because none of it was really your fault was it?.” His anger dissipates quickly, sadness takes over his features.
“Laurel unlocked my hyde to kill you.” He punctuates the last word.
“My mom and my uncle died twice because they decided to cross your family.”
“My dad…my dad was already a drunk mess before you ever came into town, but when he thought your dad was a murderer, the guilt of knowing that he walked free broke him.”
He can tell she is riled up and about to go off on him so before she can, he raises his arms up, palms forward in surrender and says, “I don’t want to fight with you Wednesday, I never wanted to fight with you. So I'm done with all that.”
“You’re not here for me? Cool. Forget you ever saw me and go about your life, and leave me here to scrounge up whatever little of a life that I can for the little time I have left”
“I don’t hate you or blame you for any of it anymore.” He looks lost in his thoughts. But continues, “Look I know I deserve anything and everything you want to say or do to me, and I’ll give you the chance before you leave town I promise. But not here, not now, okay?”
She glares at him but nods. As eager as she is to get an explanation from him, this is too public of a place for it.
“Besides, I’m guessing you’re here looking for Capri, right?”
Wednesday’s eyes widen, as she asks, “How do you that’s who I am looking for? How do you even know who she is?”
“How did you think I got out of Jericho after my mom died… again? I couldn’t exactly take my old car now could I?” He smiles a little at her glare at him.
“Capri found me without a master again and an orphan for real now. She offered to help me by introducing me to a Hyde pack who master each other. I figured I’d give it a try since I had nothing left to lose.”
“The Hyde pack is here in this small town?” She asked incredulously.
“No, but it’s nearby. We quickly realized that the combination of drugs and chemicals Laurel used on me literally altered my brain chemistry. It wasn’t just about submission, it was about making me angrier, more violent. So I wouldn’t let such things like guilt get to me and risk offing myself before she could execute her plan.”
The anger was back on his face as he thought about his first master. “Not that I could have done anything to myself anyway, she was smart enough to make sure to command me not to.”
“That’s why I told you that I liked it, when we were at the police station. I didn’t, I hated myself for it, still do. But the injections made me think that I did.”
Wednesday categorized what he said away for another time. Right now she needed to find Isadora Capri and help Enid. She couldn’t get lost in Tyler again right now. But she couldn’t help but ask, “Then why are you here in town, and not with the others?”
“Capri knows a witch in town who specializes in these kinds of things. She’s been helping me with potions that suppress the rage and need for violence. It will take a long time to undo what Laurel did, possibly never, but it’s working so far. At first I didn’t like the idea of being drugged again, but this isn’t the same. And at least it’s with my consent this time.”
This perked her interest. Wednesday hadn’t considered this route before. If she had, she could have had Morticia working on a similar solution.
“Okay then, take me to Capri.”
“I’m in the middle of work Wednesday, I can’t just leave.”
“Tyler.” She says sternly,
“I can’t be bought, remember? Besides, my timer’s about to go off and I need to switch the pies out.” He says as he glances at the clock.
“Where are you staying in town? And tell me you’re not here alone.”
“So what if I am here alone? I know how to drive, I am capable of making my own way anywhere. And it’s none of your concern.” She says coolly.
He takes a moment to look at her, gives her a once over, like he’s committing the image to his memory.
“Trust me, I don’t want to be worried about you, or wondering what you’ve been up to since…since that night. But you were right about one thing at Willowhill. You’ve taken over permanent residence up here.” He taps a finger on his head.
“So where are you staying?”
She gives him the name of the inn Uncle Fester and Thing commandeered room keys from, but asks when his shift is over. “I’ll meet you back here.”
He tells her that he will be done in a few hours, but has to drop off pies at the diner before he’s free for the day.
As Wednesday gets up to leave, Tyler asks, “Since when do you know how to drive?”
“Uncle Fester taught me when I was 12.”
“In that case, why was I driving you around all of last year?”
Without turning back to look at him she simply says, “Because you had access to a vehicle.” Then she walked out the door.
She walked out confidently but was anything but as she stopped to catch her breath after rounding the corner.
Memories flashed through her mind. The smell of coffee and pastries, Tyler in another apron. They came on so fast like her visions, she is breathing heavy now but can’t catch her breath. She has no idea what is happening to her, and attempts to straighten herself up to walk but her legs are wobbly, she grips the brick of the building but her breathing remains labored.
After a few minutes her breathing evens out. She straightens and rounds her shoulders before making her way back to her cohorts.
Later that evening Wednesday and co. meet up with Tyler at the pie shop so that he can take them to Isadora Capri.
Tyler offers to drive them all in the car, with Wednesday in the passenger seat, Fester and Enid in the back, and Thing hanging out on the centre console.
Wednesday nonchalantly asks, “So where are you staying in town? You’re working at the bakery and coaching hockey, it seems like you have settled in nicely.”
Before he can answer, Fester interjects with his giggles, “Now, now Wednesday, I respect your curiosity and independence that you seem to get from me, but…” He now looked pointedly between the two, “No Morticia and Gomez antics on my watch.” More giggles and Enid couldn’t help but join in as she realized what he was referring to.
Wednesday glared, “There will be none of that I assure you.”
Tyler is smart enough to act like he has no idea what they’re talking about, and keeps quiet as he pulls into the driveway of a small colonial style house.
After he parks the car, they all file out and make their way up the steps of the house. Isadora Capri opens the door and lets them in.
“Hi Tyler.” Then she looks at her former students, “Enid, Wednesday, it’s so good to see you both again.” She says with a small smile. “And umm who do we have here?”
Wednesday introduces her to Uncle Fester and Thing who is perched on his shoulder.
“I’m gonna head out.” Tyler announces to no one in particular, but attempts to connect with Wednesday’s eyes and continues, “Wednesday, let me know when you want to finish our talk before you leave town.”
As he turns to walk back out the door, a young woman with auburn hair appears next to Ms. Capri. She looks about a few years older than Enid and Wednesday.
“This is Elizabeth, she’s a very knowledgeable witch who can help us.” Capri introduces her to the group.
“Oh hey Ty! I didn’t know you were going to stop by today.” Elizabeth says, catching Tyler before he opens the front door.
“Hey Liz, I’m not staying. I gotta get back, just dropping them off.” Tyler explains to her with a smile.
“Oh, that’s too bad.” She sounds disappointed. “But we’re still on for Sunday right?” She asks, perking up.
“Yeah, after my game. I can come pick you up.”
“No need, I’ll be at the game, so we can just head out together after.”
“Yeah, sounds good.” Tyler nods in agreement. While the two were having their exchange, Wednesday was stiffer than usual, Fester looked entertained, and Enid looked concerned; her eyes going back and forth from her roomie, the hyde and the witch.
Tyler clears his throat, “Anyways, see ya.” He means to say this to the group, but Elizabeth is the only one who responds, “Bye Ty! See you on Sunday.”
As Tyler walks out of the door, Enid squeaks, “I left something in the car, I’ll be right back.”
She runs down the stairs after Tyler. “Hey! Wait up!” She yells after him.
Enid catches up to him and lays into him. “I know you have a death wish, walking around without a master and all, but do you want to die tonight?!”
“What are you talking about?” He asks, confusion taking over his face.
“What am I talking about? I’m talking about you flirting with random girls in front of Wednesday!” Her voice goes up several octaves as her arm points towards the door. “In front of her uncle, your uncle, and Me!”
Realization dawns on him and he lets out a little laugh. “That’s not what that was.” He says, simply.
“Well that’s what it looked like.” She hisses.
He shrugs, “What’s it to you anyway?” Annoyance tinges his tone.
“Oh I could give a rat’s ass about your dating life, but when it affects my bestie, it affects me.” She growls back at him.
He smiles, but shakes his head in disbelief. “Your bestie could care less about me. She told me herself that she hasn’t thought of me since the last time she saw me. She came here to look for Capri, for you. She’s not here for me, she just got lucky, or unlucky if you ask her, I’m sure.”
Enid rolls her eyes while she shakes her head. “You really are an idiot if you believe any of what you just said.” But before she can continue, she hears Wednesday call out from the porch, “Enid, what is taking so long?”
“Nothing, I’m coming.” She glances back at Tyler but heads back to the house without another word.
Tyler makes his way home, while the others discuss ideas and options to keep Enid from shifting and getting stuck in wolf form again.