Chapter Text
Sora was not 'avoiding' Vega, per se.
Yes, she would nonchalantly duck out of sight whenever she saw the other girl in town; especially when she was out with her normie- normal friends. And yes, she did make an effort to not be seen with her in a public space unless absolutely necessary— like when they were looking for Eloise —but that didn’t mean she was avoiding her!
...
Okay- she was, but could you blame her?!
If she was seen repeatedly interacting with a Nevermore student, people would ask why. And if people asked why, then they would eventually ask how, and there was no way of explaining it without going into the whole 'I can see ghosts' thing, getting labeled a freak and tossed in with the rest of the outcasts!
Was it kinda shitty of her? Yeah!
Did Vega deserve better? Probably?!
Was Sora actually going to do anything about it?
...
...She should. She doesn't know how, but Sora was raised well enough to know that this isn't how you treat a friend. And as weird as Addams could get— even by outcast standards —Sora did think of her as a friend.
That didn't make the idea of coming out and saying it any less scary.
"You okay, sweetie?" her mom asked, knocking her out of her thoughts.
"Hm- oh! Yeah, I'm fine," Sora replied, turning away from the window and towards where her mom sat in the driver's seat, "Just...thinking."
"I could tell," Mom chuckled warmly, throwing a quick glance in her direction, "You've been staring into space and sighing pretty much the whole time we've been out."
Sora winced; she hadn't thought she'd been that obvious. Now she felt bad about bringing the mood down on top of everything else.
Yeah, it was 'just a grocery run', but between school and her mom's work at the hospital, Sora felt like it had been a while since the two of them had simply hung out with each other. She loved her mom and missed her.
She had to do better.
"Sorry. Just thinking about an essay I have for school," Sora smiled reassuringly; hating the lie even as it left her mouth.
"Ugh, homework," Mom sighed, sticking out her tongue in melodramatic disgust as Sora knew she would. "I swear they give you kids more homework than they used to!"
"Mind telling my teachers that?" Sora joked, her smile a bit more genuine now.
"Happily! Just give me a time and place and I will be there!"
They both giggled as her mom took the final turn that would bring them back to their street. As they approached their house, the Toriyama girls were surprised to find one of their neighbors— Mrs. Christie —standing in their front yard by the gate that led to the back.
"Oh good, you're home," the old woman greeted them warmly as they got out of their car, lifting one hand off of her cane for a wave.
Mrs. Christie had been their neighbor since long before Sora was born; her mom swore that she had been old even when she had been a little girl, living in the house with Sora's grandparents. She had pale, papery skin, wore the thickest glasses Sora had ever seen, flower-embroidered everything, and needed an old wooden cane to keep her perpetual hunch from completely sending her facedown on the ground, though she moved easily enough on her own.
"Hi Mrs. Christie," Sora called as she opened the back door on her side and began gathering grocery bags.
"Everything alright?" asked Mom.
"For me, yes," Mrs. Christie chuckled, "But I think you have an unwanted visitor in your backyard, Yukiko."
"Oh? What kind of visitor?" Mom asked casually, straightening up with her own bags in hand.
"Looks like a bear, I think," the old woman stated casually.
"Is that so?" Mom chuckled indulgently. As the glasses suggested, Mrs. Christie didn't have the best eyesight in Jericho. If it turned out to be a fat raccoon or a wayward house cat in their yard, it would hardly be the first case of mistaken identity.
Sora chuckled, remembering the last few times she had thought she'd seen a bear, only for it to turn out to be-
The girl stood up so fast she banged her head against the car's ceiling.
"Sora, are you okay?!" her mom asked worriedly.
"F-Fine, Mom! Did you say a bear, Mrs. Christie?" Sora said, waving off her mother's concern as quickly as she could.
"Yes indeedy," Mrs. Christie chuckled, "A big ol' black one! Watched it pop right over your fence while I was out watering my flowers just now. Just, 'pop'!"
Addams! Sora internally growled even as she kept a smile on her face, Of all the times to drop by in wolf form-
"I'll just go and check real quick," the girl stated, placing the groceries she'd already grabbed onto the roof of the car.
"I'm sure it's just a cat, Sora," her mom said quietly, mindful of how close Mrs. Christie was.
"Still, better safe than sorry, right?" Sora assured her as she walked past the front of the car and over to the side gate. She nodded to Mrs. Christie as she passed by.
"Thanks for the heads up, Mrs. Christie!"
"Oh, any time dear! You know I like keeping a keen eye on the neighborhood. Nothing gets past me!"
"Uh huh," Sore nodded, pushing the gate open and quickly closing it behind her, lest either woman got the idea of following her.
She walked as fast as she dared along the side of her house, internally practicing exactly what she was going to say to Addams as soon as she saw her.
Of all the harebrained, irresponsible, and inconsiderate- What are you even doing in this part of Jericho in the first place, as a wolf, at noon on a Sunday?!
She rounded the corner of the house briskly; ready to verbally— but quietly —tear Vega Addams a new one. It took her no time at all to spot the intruder, moving about in the far corner of her rather bare backyard.
It took even less time to clock said intruder as most definitely not a werewolf.
It was a bear.
A real, actual, Winnie the Pooh, Smokey the Bear, Bear in the Big Blue House, bear of a bear!
Ursus americanus, Sora thought as she stared at the animal currently nosing around her backyard, Black bear. Fully grown male, judging by the size. And it's...
...
The girl backed up slowly, waiting until the corner of the house was between her and her 'guest' before she turned around and calmly walked back to the front. Opening and the closing the gate once again, Sora looked at her mother, who had gotten caught up in a conversation with Mrs. Christie about proper flower care.
"Find the bear, Sora?" her mom asked jokingly.
"Uh huh. It's on my swing-set," Sora stated numbly with a slow nod.
"Oh? Is it the neighborhood cat again?" Yukiko whispered.
"Yukiko, you know I can hear you, right?"
Her mom blanched. "Uh-"
Sora shook her head. "Nope. Mrs. Christie is right; there's a bear in our backyard. And it's currently trying to sit on my swing."
A loud 'k-ching', like snapping metal, echoed from over the roof of the house, followed shortly by a low burp of a discontented grunt. Sora watched her mom's eyes get wide as it dawned on her that there was an actual bear in their backyard.
"Shit," Yukiko breathed.
"Not sure why you're surprised," Mrs. Christie said, cocking her head, "I told you that already."
Sora returned to the front yard— after putting away the groceries and closing the curtains to the sliding back door, in hopes of not catching the bear's attention —to find her mom pacing the small spit of grass they had, phone held up to her ear.
"-Yes yes, I heard you, Lucas," Yukiko groaned while Mrs. Christie stood by watching her sedately, "-But that doesn't help me with the literal bear in my backyard!"
"..."
"Could you try to come any sooner?" her mom asked, sighing when the response was clearly a negative. "...Alright. We'll keep an eye on it and let you know if anything changes. See you later. Thanks." She hung up, dragging her free hand down her face.
"I take it we'll be entertaining our guest for a while?" Sora asked, making her mom huffed a short laugh.
"'Fraid so. Luc- Sheriff Walker, said that the officers in charge of animal control are all out on sick-leave today."
"Wha- All of them?!" Sora blanched.
"Mhm. Something about a birthday party at some buffet joint out of town?" her mom shrugged, "Walker says they all got a bad case of food poisoning."
"Ha! More likely half of them are just hungover," chuckled Mrs. Christie.
"Either way, the Sheriff says they're shorthanded and it may be a while before they can send anyone out."
Her mom tried to sound casual about the whole thing, but to Sora she just looked worried. Bear attacks— real ones, at least —weren't exactly common in Jericho, but they weren't unheard of either. And having one so close to the house in the middle of the day? That did little to decrease the odds of something going wrong.
"Hurry up, Kacy!"
"Billy, slow down!"
And to make matters worse- Sora thought as she watched two of her younger neighbors zip by on scooters -There are tons of little kids and even littler pets in this development that a bear would have zero problem dealing with if it felt like it.
She bit her lip and tried to think; how to get the bear leave before anyone, including it, got hurt?
"Sora," her mom said in that warning tone of voice that all parents are required to learn, "I know that face. I don't want you going anywhere near that animal, alright? You're on your way to being the next Dr. Oakley, but you're not there yet."
Dr. Oakley...! Sora straightened up as she got an idea. She pulled out her phone and started texting. It's a long shot, but...
[hey addams]
[r u doing anything rn?]
She didn't have to wait long for a reply.
[nope]
[why?]
[you wanna hang?]
"Who are you texting?" her mom asked, eyebrow quirked quizzically.
"Just...someone I know who might be able to help," Sora answered distractedly.
[kinda]
[ever dealt with bears?]
Vega jogged up the sidewalk after what felt like only five minutes after Sora told her where she was and her problem. She was dressed in casual clothes today instead of her school uniform; dark pants, a neon pink tank and a black fuzzy looking jacket over that.
"Sora!" she called, waving her arm and grinning madly as soon as she spotted the three of them standing outside of the house.
"Hey Addams," Sora returned, smiling despite herself.
"Addams?" Mrs. Christie hummed aloud thoughtfully.
"Where's the bear?" the werewolf asked, looking around as if expecting to spot it in the street.
"In the back-"
"Hold up!" her mom interrupted, "Sora, mind explaining who this is and why she's looking for the bear?"
Sora sighed. "Mom, this is...Vega Addams. She's...got experience with wild animals."
"I'm a werewolf," Addams happily explained, flicking her claws out for good measure. Sora thought she saw a flicker of trepidation in the girl's eyes, but it vanished as soon as it appeared.
"Oh!" Yukiko blinked, looking surprised for a moment before her usual smile reappeared, "Well, it's nice to meet you, Vega. Though I'm not sure if I'm okay with letting you get near a bear, werewolf or not."
"It's fine," Vega assured her as she sauntered towards the side gate, "My mom and I had to deal with a polar bear once; I'm sure a little bitty black bear will be no problem!"
Sora watched her extend all of her claws as she marched down the side of the house. She and her mother followed closely behind the wolf on a mission
"N-Now wait a minute-"
"Don't hurt him!" Sora said, rushing forward to pull Vega back by one shoulder. The wolf looked back over the same shoulder at her curiously.
"Why not?"
"Because he's just a dumb bear doing dumb bear things! And if at all possible, I don't want him or you to get hurt!" Sora argued, "Just, scare him away? Okay? Please?"
Vega looked at her for a long moment as she thought it over, before she shrugged and retracted her claws.
"Alright fine; no bear fighting for me."
"Thank you," Sora sighed.
"So long as he doesn't swipe at me first," Addams grinned before continuing her march.
"Wha- Damn it, Addams!"
"Sora, language!" her mom chided, reminding Sora that she was right behind her.
"Sorry, Mom," Sora apologized before running to catch up with Vega. She rounded the corner of the house just in time to witness everything.
The bear was still messing around on the now crumpled remains of her swing-set— the sight of which twisted Sora's heart; she'd loved that swing, damn it —as Vega approached it- him, boldly. He finally noticed the girl when she stopped about ten feet away from him, letting out a little grunt of surprise when he did.
Sora heard as much as saw Vega twist her neck until it cracked, unable to see her face from where she stood but just knowing the werewolf had her big toothy grin on. The black haired girl flexed both of her wrists until they also cracked, her claws extending one by one until all ten of them were out on display, no less deadly looking in spite of the fact that they were painted black with pink stripes on them today.
Now, Sora knew that she was taller than the girl when she was actually girl-shaped. Even when Addams wore her thick soled shoes.
But standing there, watching her stare down a bear that looked like it easily weighed three hundred pounds, the reluctant medium could have sworn that Vega got bigger. She didn't though, not physically; Sora could tell because she could still see clear over the wolf's head. Something about her grew, though. It was like her presence— her very spirit —became more than idea. Became something real, something solid.Sora felt like if she closed her eyes she would think that Vega had fully transformed and was now towering over everyone on her hind-legs.
"She's a main character," she heard her mom whisper behind her; but Sora only had eyes for Vega.
Between one moment and the next, the Toriyama girls watched as it seemed like every fiber of muscle in her body tensed up. They heard Vega take a deep breath-
And roared.
Sora didn't think wolves could roar. She knew they could howl and growl and bark and whine, but this? This was none of these.
It was deep; far deeper than it ought to be coming from such a small girl. There was a weight to it, one that made Sora think that if it was aimed at her directly, she would have immediately turned tail and ran.
Hell, she wanted to do that anyway!
And the bear had the exact same idea.
He had already been on edge as Vega had stepped up to him and bared her claws, but at the sound she made the bear jolted so badly he fell off the slide he had been trying to climb on.
Faster than anyone, save maybe Addams, could blink, the bear was up on his feet and making a beeline— or rather, a bear line —for the back fence; sprinting like the devil itself was after him.
He tried to clear the fence, but— unfortunately —didn't quite make it.
As they all watched, the bear jumped as high as he could; hooking his front paws over the top of the fence in order to hoist himself up. However, he had been going so fast that as the rest of his body made contact with the fence, there was a loud series of splintering ' crrracccksss ' , and a whole section of the old wooden fence went down with him.
The bear, for his part, shrugged off the damage as being 'not his problem', and instead focused all of his energy on getting as far away as fast as he could.He was out of sight and hidden amongst the trees before the dust even had time to settle.
Vega relaxed her stance with a sigh, her claws retracting once more as she turned to face them.
"Uh... Whoops?" she said, sheepishly scratching at her left eyebrow, "Sorry about your fence. Not exactly what I meant to do."
Sora and her mom stared at the small girl for a few moments before Yukiko busted out laughing.
"Ha ha! Well; that's one way to get rid of a bear!" she grinned, arms akimbo as she shook her head.
"I can fix it!" Vega suggested earnestly, "...Probably..."
"Don't worry about it," Yukiko assured her, "It's an old fence, and as far as I'm concerned it's a small price to pay for no one getting hurt."
"O-Oh," Vega stammered, her cheeks darkening slightly, "Well uh, you're welcome then!"
"My my, that was a loud roar," Mrs. Christie chuckled as she finally reached them. "Was that the bear?"
"Nah, just Vega's big mouth," Sora joked. Vega responded by grinning even wider, showing off her teeth.
"Don't be jealous; we can't all have fangs!"
Sora stuck her tongue out at her as her mom stepped closer to the wolf-girl.
"Since you're already here, how would you like to join us for lunch? As a thank you?" Yukiko suggested warmly, "We just picked up the fixings for burgers!"
"Burgers?!" Vega exclaimed so gleefully Sora thought her eyes were literally sparkling. In a second those eyes turned to her, asking a silent question.
'Can I stay?'
Without even thinking about it, Sora nodded yes. She second guessed herself for a moment; is this a good idea? To properly introduce my mom to my outcast friend?
Then she saw how much Vega was downright beaming as she told her mom she'd 'happily accept the invitation' and 'thank you very much for inviting me' and then mom commented on how she polite she was and before Sora knew they were making their way inside the house. She couldn't very well kick her out now; and to be honest, she didn't really want to.
"Sora, dear," Mrs. Christie said, startling Sora halfway into a heart attack as she had forgotten she was there.
"Is your friend, by any chance, related to a Wednesday Addams?" the old woman asked politely.
"Uhhh, I'm not sure," Sora said, trying to recall if Vega had ever mentioned her mother's name. "She has two moms, and I know one of them is named 'Enid', but I'm not sure about the other one."
"Enid?" Mrs. Christie repeated, "Enid Sinclair?"
"I don't know what her maiden name was."
"Is she a blonde werewolf?"
"Yeah, actually," Sora blinked, surprised, "How did you know?"
"Ha! I knew it!" she chuckled, stamping her cane once like a victory bell , "That's Enid alright! Which means the other mother must be Wednesday. I thought they'd seemed lavender when I last saw them."
Lavender? Sora thought, brow furrowed in confusion, What does that mean? But, more importantly-
"You knew Vega's moms?" the girl asked.
"Oh sure," Mrs. Christie nodded, waving away the admittance like it was nothing. "I met those two about halfway through their time at Nevermore. Thick as thieves and twice as dangerous, they were! They helped me out with a little 'infestation' problem I had. Lovely pair of girls." she chuckled, before she turned a little retrospective looking.
"...At least when Enid was there to keep Wednesday in line."
"What? What do you mea-"
"Well, I best be heading home!" the old woman declared, slowly turning herself around, "Can't quite remember if I left the kettle on or not. Good night, Sora!"
"Wha- But it's only- Um. Good night, Mrs. Christie," Sora called back; in spite of the fact that it was only about one o' clock in the afternoon.
As she watched the old woman steadily make her way down the side of her home, Sora thought about how easily Mrs. Christie had admitted to knowing outcasts. Had even spoken positively about them.
That, more than anything else, surprised Sora.
She knew what her mom's opinion of outcasts was; she'd said more than once that she thought the discrimination and prejudices against them were unfair and outdated. If she ever did tell her mom about...about the ghosts, Sora was pretty confident she would be fine with it. Probably.
From other people, though... Growing up, she'd caught snippets of what the adults in town thought about the outcasts and the school just out of town, and it had rarely been good. It also seemed to be worse the older the person in question was. So to hear Mrs. Christie talked about two outcasts like they were any other kids she used to know? It was surprising, unexpected-
And...gave Sora just a little bit of hope.
Just a little.
"Hey Sora?" Vega's voice called. Sora turned her head to see the wolf sticking hers out the back door.
"You coming in?"
"Uh- Yeah! Just, saying good bye to Mrs. Christie," Sora explained.
"'Kay!" Vega replied, shooting her a grinning before ducking back inside and closing the door.
Deciding she'd done enough worrying for one day, Sora shook off her thoughts and jogged up the porch steps, heading in for lunch.
"-we met?" Sora caught Vega say as she slid the back door open, "Oh, we ran into each other at the butcher shop!"
Shit! Sora cursed as she ran inside, mind already spinning as she tried to think of what parts of the story would have to be cut out in order to keep her 'ghost issues' a secret.
Now she regretted Vega Addams for lunch.