The bell above the door rang as a nervous and disturbed looking Hispanic man entered the office.
Enid looked up from her computer where she had been pretending to look busy and flashed him a warm smile. "Hello! Welcome to Wednesday Addams Preternatural Investigations!" She said cheerfully. "How can I help you sir?"
He nodded and approached the desk somewhat uncertain. "You're the private investigators, right?"
She nodded with her best customer service face. The man looked nervous and worried. "We refer to it as Preternatural Investigators, but we do similar sort of things, yes; but if you're looking for your dog or suspect your wife is cheating on you I'd recommend trying Scarlet Shield down the road. We do more…..unusual investigations," Enid explained.
He nodded. "I…my daughter needs help," he said softly. "Something has happened to her, something unholy and not normal."
"Oh dear. Like what?" Enid asked.
"She….she's possessed," he explained, leaning in and speaking softly. "With a demon of some sort. We tried to get her help from our priest, but the demon just laughed at him. We're desperate to get her help before it's too late.... and this thing.... whatever it is; kills her," he says, his voice choked with emotion.
Enid's eyes widened with surprise. "Oh dear! That's awful! Well don't you worry! You came to the right place! Wednesday will be able to help you for sure! I'll just get you a client intake form for you to fill out. Don't worry, it's just a standard form with some basic information about the case and the nature of the possession," Enid assured him as she stood, turned around and started rummaging through some filing draws. She frowned as there were none in the draw for possessions. She turned back around to face the man and smiled. "Excuse me one minute!" she said with a forced smile, feeling awkward that he had caught her unprepared. "I have to go get some more from out the back. Please help yourself to a drink," she said, gesturing to a water cooler on the other side of the room.
The office was spotless and very professional looking decked out with decor that looked like it was from a 1940s apartment, aside from the modern technology. It was classy and sophisticated without being opulent.
He nodded as Enid smiled again.
"I'll be right back!" she said as she turned and went into the back office, just down the hall from the briefing room and communal kitchen.
She opened the door to see Agnes sitting at the desk painting her nails a dark, cherry red. "Agnes! What're you doing here?" Enid asked in irritation. "And get your feet off the desk!"
Agnes rolled her eyes, but lowered her feet without looking up from her task. "I'm painting my nails," she observed.
"Yeah, but why here? You're not even working today so why are you lurking around the office?" Enid asked.
Agnes finished painting her current nail before she glanced up, her eyes appearing unnaturally large. "Because Wednesday is here, so why would I want to be anywhere else?" she asked. "Plus, I currently have nothing better to do," she added, holding a hand up and admiring her work. "If I squint just right it looks like my nails are covered in blood…..the blood of a fallen enemy," she said with a satisfied smile.
Enid sighed and smiled. "They do look amazing," she admitted. "But we live in New York City; why don't you go and explore?"
Agnes shrugged as she began work on her other hand. "See one skyscraper and you've seen them all."
"If you're going to hang out around here you could at least do something productive and help out a bit," Enid said, looking through filing cabinets. "I told you last week to restore the client intake forms. And now I've got a client looking to hire us and I'm out here looking for forms to give him," she said in exasperation. "I look so unprofessional, and it's on you." She smiled as she found what she was looking for, taking a handful of the possession forms.
Agnes looked up from her nail polishing. "Oops," she said sheepishly. "It slipped my mind," she admitted. "So who's this client? Is he looking for a delicious revenge of some sort? Needing someone to steal some confidential files or slap someone around?" she asked eagerly.
Enid sighed and rolled her eyes as she made her way to the door. "No, his daughter is possessed by a demon and he wants to hire Wednesday to do an exorcism," she said.
Agnes made a face. "Yikes! …..no thanks, count me out! Demonic possession? I like my targets a bit more punchable," she said, waving her polished hand at Enid like claws.
Enid raised an eyebrow. "Oh please! I have real ones!" she said holding up her own hand. With that she turned and left to attend to the client waiting in reception. "Okay, I'm back! Sorry about that I had to get a form from out back. We don't get many cases of possession," Enid said, covering for herself.
He nodded as she handed him the form attached to a clipboard and pen.
"Take your time to fill it out and if you have any questions please feel free to ask," she said, giving him a smile and enthusiastic thumbs up.
He smiled at her enthusiasm and sat down and filled out the form, muttering to himself every now and then as he read a question out loud.
Enid turned to the intercom and pressed the button. "Wednesday, there's a man here on an urgent matter of demonic possession. He says his daughter is possessed and efforts by their local priest to exorcise it failed. Should I send him up?"
The silence on the other end lasted for three seconds before Wednesday's voice, precise and flat said simply. "proceed."
Having finished filling out the form he returned it to the desk as Enid took it gently and smiled.
"Thanks!" She said. "Wednesday will see you now," she pointed to a doorway in the upper right hand corner of the room. "Just take those stairs up to her office and she'll conduct a post operative interview with you and take things from there. And I assure you sir your daughter is in great hands! Wednesday is among the very best at what she does!" Enid assured him. Then added. "Just don't maintain eye contact with her for too long; she'll interpret that as a challenge."
"Oh, okay. Thanks, I guess," he said as he made his way to the doorway and began ascending the stairs. The staircase was like something from
A gothic manor, lined with prints of some of history's most infamous works of art. Goya's gruesome visage of Cronos devouring his own children and The Scream, a classic portrayal of terror that captured the moment of a psychotic break, being among them. He reached the top and pushed open the door as he stepped into the office beyond.
The office appeared to be a combination library, study and museum as along the side wall book cases towered. Their lower rungs filled with volumes that looked both ancient and esoteric. A series of cabinets made a wall on the other side of the room that was filled with artefacts, relics and things he'd rather he hadn't seen and didn't want to think about. Something in one of them that looked like a snake's tank, but certainly was not a snake or any other animal he recognised moved as he took an involuntary step away from it. A heavy royal purple curtain separated the office from the rest of the room, which he guessed was a sizeable studio apartment.
He processed all of this in a couple of seconds before he saw her. She sat behind a huge, polished, dark oak desk its expansive surface almost completely clear apart from a quill, ink blot and paper she was writing on. A typewriter sat on one side of her and an old rotary phone on the other.
The huge Gothic chair was like a throne with a crest at its top that resembled the leering visage of a bat with its wings extended.
The young woman wasn't large to begin with, but the desk and the imposing chair she sat in made her look positively diminutive. A careful psychological ploy she deployed to make herself look harmless, while simultaneously conveying an aura of power and menace. Her dark eyes studied him intently, as if she could peer right down into the depths of his very soul and see his deepest, darkest secrets.
"Uh, you must be Wednesday," he said, forcing a smile.
"Correct," she replied. "I am in awe of your powers of deduction." There was no mockery in her tone, just dry, emotionless sarcasm. "Your daughter is possessed by a demon?" she asked, picking up the quill. "I have questions and will be required to inspect the contagion to ascertain the nature and and temperament of the entity and your daughter's condition," Wednesday said. Her tone a demand, not a request.
He shivered suddenly realising how cold the room was. "It's cold in here."
"I find sub-optimal atmospheric conditions keep one's senses sharp and alert. The sense of mild discomfort from the cold is a motivator for continued activity," Wednesday replied. "It also has other psychological advantages."
He nodded. "I guess."
"Start with your name, Mister...."
"Pedro Morales."
"Mister Morales; your daughter's possession did not come out of nowhere. Start at the beginning, prior to you noticing something was wrong where had she been? Anywhere unusual or different than normal?"
He nodded. "We were down in Mexico visiting family for Dia de muertos. We go there every year," he explained.
"The day of the dead festival," Wednesday stated flatly. "Interesting. While you were there did you do anything different or go anywhere you haven't in the past? Did anything happen that is outside the normal routine or common experiences?"
He frowned. "Sorry, but I've already answered these questions when I filled out your forms. You can just read them," he protested.
Wednesday didn't react. "The repetition of questioning is a psychological interrogation technique that encourages deeper thought than initial responses. It will encourage you to think more about the subject and hence recall information you had previously omitted," she explained. "Now, if you're done critiquing my methods answer the question."
"Fair enough then," he replied; then shook his head. "We ate dinner at a new restaurant my mother wanted to show us, but apart from that, no. Oh wait. It might be nothing, but at the cemetery my daughter, Lupe ran off for a bit. Some display caught her attention and she wandered off to see it, it took us some time to find her," he says, remembering the incident. "My wife was starting to panic."
Wednesday took notes with the quill, her hand making fast, precise movements.
"We also watched the parade like we do every year and attended the fair," he said as he began to ramble and question everything they did.
Wednesday ignored most of it forthe irrelevance it was, but when he started asking questions as to whether the possession could be linked to this or that mundane occurrence she raised a hand to interrupt him.
"Please refrain from hypothesising, I have neither the time or nor the patience to discuss the possibility of everything you did in Mexico being linked to Lupe's demonic possession, just stick to the facts," she interjected. "Did you notice any strange behaviour or possible symptoms while in Mexico? When did you first realise something was wrong?"
"No, Mexico was fine. She didn't start acting strange until we got home," he replied. "We were having dinner the night after and she suddenly made some very rude comments about my wife and I's ....intimate relations and how she was conceived. She spoke negatively of our relations bringing her into the world. In very colourful and inappropriate language," he explained. "Things a six year old girl would never say. We were shocked and she was in a lot of trouble, but about half an hour afterwards she became very upset; like she had no idea what was happening and why she was suddenly in a lot of trouble."
Wednesday gave a curt nod and wrote some more as she spoke. "Uncharacteristic and extreme language or behaviour, followed by a state of confusion and apparent amnesia are common symptoms of early demonic possession," Wednesday explained. "Did she fall ill around this time?"
He nodded. "She developed a fever that night and has had a bad case of the flu ever since. We haven't been able to get much closer to her....the demon won't let us," he said, wringing his hands together with worry.
Wednesday nodded and resumed taking her notes. "How long were you in Mexico. I require specific dates, what days you flew in and out. Her symptoms, did they evolve slowly or rapidly? Provide examples of the extent such as her behaviour and language used."
He told her as she took notes and didn't look up. Once she was done she placed the quill down and steepled her fingers in front of her on the desk.
"Please you have to help us!" he begged. "We're good Christian people and even our priest, even he couldn't help her!" he cried, almost panicking at the thought that nothing could be done.
"That doesn't mean she is beyond saving. The method being employed may just be ineffective for this particular type of demon. Demons come in many different varieties with just as many varied sub-types of demon among them. They all have their own characteristics, strengths and weaknesses. We just have to discover what sort of demon this is so I can pinpoint its weaknesses and exorcise it," Wednesday said, as close to reassurance as she got.
He took a deep breath and nodded.
"There is of course the matter of payment," Wednesday continued. "Exorcisms can be difficult to predict the cost of due to the volatile nature of the entities."
"Whatever it takes we'll pay you!" he insisted.
"Demon exorcisms can cost anywhere from $1,000 to $10,000 depending upon various factors," she informed him. "The type of demon, length of the possession, the demon's will and strength, the commonality of the entity, the materials needed to exorcise it, the infected's condition and the risks involved. From what you've told me I estimate your demon to be of an almost mid level power."
"So $5,000!?" he cried.
She nodded.
"That's outrageous!"
Wednesday frowned. "Your daughter's life for $5,000? I'd say you got quite the bargain," she said coldly.
"Of course, our daughter is worth everything to us! It's just that's a lot of money and we're far from wealthy," he protested. "You're taking advantage of us!"
Her eyes blazed with contained fury. "You're getting my expertise, time and energy to conduct a difficult and dangerous procedure that puts me directly in harms way," she said, her tone cold as ice. "However if you think my services are too expensive then you're free to seek assistance elsewhere; although I suggest you find it quickly. Your daughter has been infected with the demon for five days. Time is of the essence and she requires intervention very soon or there will be nothing left of her," she warned.
He nodded sadly. "I know, I know! It's just it is a lot of money. If I had it I would gladly hand it over. I can pay you, but I won't be able to pay up front," he says, looking at her hopefully, praying it'll suffice.
She nodded. "We do offer payment plans for those of limited financial resources," she confirmed. "Although we require a direct deposit of 10%."
"What about the interest rate?" he asked, desperately trying to talk business without getting distracted by thoughts of his daughter as he shuffled uneasily on the spot. "Those can often be punishing, I'd rather get a bank loan."
"You don't have time for a bank loan," Wednesday chided him. "Our payment plans are interest free and can be negotiated to fit with your income," she explained.
"Oh!" he said, brightening. "That's very nice of you!"
Her eyes narrowed. "Fair!" she corrected him. "It has nothing to do with...nice," she spat the word out. "Nice is an emotional sentiment that is vague and subjective. Fairness; that can be judged, measured and quantified by the application of logical processes," she replied. "Now back to the topic of your daughter's possession. I have enough information to give me a rough idea of the demon's general profile, but I must inspect the contagion to properly determine what I am dealing with and how to combat it." She stood and walked out from behind the desk. "I'll fetch my coat," she said, walking to a coat rack against the wall near the doorway and removing a black cotton trench coat from the wall as she shrugged into it.
"Right now?" he asked.
"There's no time like the present; and as I said, your daughter is running out of it," she said, looking up at him with her dark, penetrating gaze. "Consider it what your laymen would call a free quotation."
Her short stature and the trademark braids made her look very young, but he dismissed it and nodded. "Okay, let's go."
His wife greeted them at the door as Pedro introduced Wednesday. "Thank you so much for coming!" the woman said, clearly distraught. "We're at our wits end and don't know what else to do!"
Wednesday nodded and got straight to business. "Her room?"
"It's the second door on the right," Pedro replied.
Wednesday turned to his wife, fixing her with her dark gaze. "How has the demon been behaving today? Has it been loud, violent and disruptive or more quiet and subdued?"
"It was very loud this morning, screaming and swearing and saying all sorts of horrible things. But it has been quiet for most of the day," his wife reported. "Sometimes.....sometimes it pretends to be Lupe and calls out to us; then when we go to her and hug her, it laughs at us and mocks us. It's so cruel," she wailed, wiping away fresh tears.
Wednesday was unmoved. "This correlates with text book cases of demonic possession. A malevolent glee in torturing and playing mind games with the family of its host is a cruel, unimaginative, but effective psychological gambit," she said. "Many demons feed off negative energy, so they encourage it to ensure it infests the home of their victims."
She wandered down the hallway to Lupe's room. "Remain out here, whatever happens do not enter the room. I will conduct a survey of the environment and the demon's traits to determine what sort of demon we are dealing with. I will return once my analysis is complete." With that she opened the door to the room, went inside and closed it behind her.
The room was unnaturally cold. Wednesday saw her breath turn into mist before her eyes. She turned her attention to the bed and saw the form of Lupe buried within the blankets.
"Mommy?" an unnaturally high pitched sing song voice called out. "Help me mommy!" the girl pleaded with a chorus of whimpers that broke off into a grating malevolent laugh like scraping sandpaper. The girl suddenly shot up in bed, her face a hideous twisted and deformed visage of the child that had large, all white eyes and a grin that looked too large for her mouth. Her skin was blotched with green and brown sores and her hair had began falling out as the demon cackled with glee. "You're not mommy!" it said with a hiss. "Interloper!" It snarled. "This family is mine! I feed off their grief; you!...are an unwelcome presence!" It snarled, then with surprising speed hurled the girl's form across the bed and raced right at Wednesday, hands raking like claws to attack.
Wednesday casually pulled the amulet she wore around her neck from the innards of her dress and it recoiled at the sight with a hiss of shock and anger as its face displayed an expression of fear that was almost instantly replaced with one of fury. It hissed and snarled at her again, shrinking away from the amulet's glow.
"Behold, the amulet of Bastet! Egyptian goddess of protection and one of the most powerful protective wards," Wednesday said, displaying the amulet she wore around her neck. "You cannot harm me so cease your childish attempts at intimidation and heed my words. Leave this place and these people alone. If you value your continued existence you will forget all about the little girl and return to whatever realm it is you came from. Or you'll face something far more terrifying than whatever hackneyed demon prince it is you call master......me!" she said, her eyes narrowing dangerously.
"Ah ah ha ha! Oh, but I'm having so much fun!" the demon cackled. "Foolish girl. You think a few trinkets are enough to frighten me?" the demon in Lupe's body sneered. "I am an agent of chaos, madness and disorder! Your puny pieces of jewellery are useless. Hee hee hee...If you insist on meddling I think I'll wear your head....as a hat!" it cackled, rubbing its hands together mischievously.
"You are here terrorising a small family by possessing the body of their six year old child...and you appear to be struggling with that menial task. What a pathetic agenda for a creature so lacking in ambition, while obviously suffering from delusions of grandeur," she retorted. "You're little more than a pest." Wednesday's dark eyes burned into the demon's as they engaged in a stand off, exchanging words as Lupe's parents waited anxiously outside.
Finally after what had seemed like an eternity the bedroom door opened and Wednesday emerged.
The Morales's leapt to their feet as she entered the room. "What happened?" his wife cried.
"Do you know what sort of demon it is? Can you help us?" Pedro demanded, desperate to know.
Wednesday nodded. "I will return this evening.......and then this inter-dimensional nuisance will bother you no more."
The bell rang as the door opened and Enid looked up with a smile. "Hello! Welcome to…..oh, it's you," she said as Wednesday walked in. "How did it go?"
"Sufficient," Wednesday replied. "I was able to ascertain the nature of the demon."
"Oh good! …so, er….is it bad?" Enid asked, nervous.
Wednesday headed into the back office as Enid followed in her wake. "The demon is a lower level chaos entity. A sort of mischief demon that feeds on creating chaos and disorder. The disorder in the family unit it has fostered has been providing it with low levels of sustenance."
"Ah!…..er, so what does that mean?" Enid asked with a frown.
Wednesday began jotting down notes in a note book as she sat at the desk. "It means the entity isn't a particularly strong or powerful one, as far as demons go. But the fact it has infested their daughter and has been in her body for almost a week means the exorcism will be more difficult than it should be for a demon of this level. The creature has anchored itself within her and will consume her completely within a day or two. It will not leave willingly and cannot be coaxed out. I will have to force it out…..violently."
"Uh oh!" Enid said with a yikes face.
"Indeed," Wednesday said looking up from the notes she was taking. "I will require your assistance with the preparation. Go to the pet store and purchase a rat and suitable storage container. And make sure it's something ugly. We don't want a repeat of the dumbo rat incident, do we?"
Enid shook her head vigorously. "Poor little guy. He was so cute!" She paused. "What's the rat for?"
Wednesday finished taking notes and laid her hands on the desk. "The most effective way of dealing with such an entity is a corporeal energy transference. I am going to evict the demon from Lupe and transfer it into the rat, giving it a new home that is low risk and easy to dispose of. Then I will dispose of it…..permanently," she explained without any emotion.
"By killing the rat?" Enid asked. "Won't that just free it and make it look for another host?"
Wednesday nodded. "Killing the rat," she confirmed. "Not only will I force it out of Lupe, but I will trap it within the rat with a binding spell to make sure. It's energy will be bound to the life force of the rat and hence if the rat dies, it will find itself trapped within a dead host and its own power will dissipate. Its ethereal core will splinter and shatter as its energy is displaced and fractured. It is as close to the concept of death as a demon can get. Separated and fractured energy shattered like a broken glass," she explained, running her gaze over the notes. "I need this list to prepare for the ritual. It involves the aforementioned steps, a ring of protection for myself and a tonic of restoration for Lupe. Is Agnes still around?"
Agnes appeared in one of the seats by the desk with a cheeky grin. "Right here boss!"
Wednesday rolled her eyes. "Don't do that!" she wrote down a brief list, tore it from the notebook and handed the list to Agnes. "Go to Archibald's Alchemy and procure this list of items. They are necessary for the tonic."
"Aaaaww, how come Agnes gets to go shopping for alchemy stuff and I'm stuck buying a rat?" Enid says with a pout.
"Because Agnes' antisocial personality ensures she will be fast and efficient in collecting the necessary items and will not get distracted by gossiping with the store's staff," Wednesday replied. "Now move quickly, we are running out of time and Lupe's life hangs in the balance. The ritual must be conducted tonight to extract the demon."
Wednesday returned to her study to continue preparing, but not before heading into her bedroom to retrieve Mortimer from her bed. She sat the black teddy bear against her typewriter as she began preparing for the ritual, checking various spell books for the correct one as the bear watched in silence. She was getting frustrated with her lack of progress when she froze and glared at the bear. "What did you say?" she asked, giving the bear a chance to correct himself. The black teddy bear stared in silence.
Wednesday narrowed her eyes at it in challenge, a dangerous glint in them. "Do not sass me Mortimer, I have neither the time nor the patience for your tom foolery," she hissed. "Your whimsical observations as to my lack of progress are testing my already thin patience.......and your own troubles. Do not compound them!" she said, shaking a finger at the bear who stared blankly. She looked back to the book in front of her as she continued. "The idea of a therapy bear is ridiculous. Your reassignment as a confidant and cognitive tool to verbalise my inner monologue and thoughts to better analyse and assess them is a far more practical and appropriate use of your presence. And while I usually appreciate your sardonic sense of humour this is neither the time nor the place," Wednesday said, flipping through the pages. "You're supposed to be a confidant, not an antagonist," she added, then paused and glared sideways at the teddy. "Bear....in mind, my kitchen sink possesses a food disposal unit. One I am yet to test the efficiency of in mulching stuffed animals." She said softly, returning to the book and flipping a page as a look of satisfaction came over her face. "I have found what I am looking for."
Wednesday copied down the steps for the ritual in her tiny, precise, handwriting. "The spell for the energy transference from Lupe to the rat. It will enable me to guarantee the girl's safety while successfully trapping the demon and sealing it within the rat's corporeal form with nowhere to escape," she explained to Mortimer. "It is the most effective and efficient method to safely extract the contagion and store it safely for later disposal," she paused and was silent for a few moments before she gave a curt nod. "Your apology is accepted."
By the time Enid and Agnes had returned Wednesday was ready and waiting. She had the transference and binding spells, had gathered everything necessary to conduct them and had the correct protective circle to draw for herself in Lupe's room. Along with the Bastet amulet she would be well protected against anything the demon might try.
She nodded in approval upon entering the back office and seeing everything laid out and ready, the rat squeaking away in a wooden box. She then handed Enid another list. "Here is a list of everything I have taken from the store room to conduct the necessary spells, ensure they are restocked and properly catalogued," she instructed.
Enid smiled. "So now I can go shopping? Yay!" she cried, vibrating with glee as she bounced on the spot.
"Yes, quite," Wednesday replied. "Archibald's Alchemy will have some of the necessary items, but not all. For the rest seek out The Magic Box. They're typically overpriced, but are the nearest reliable seller of legitimate occult and magical items. Be quick about it, if you feel any urge to gossip, chat or dally remember little Lupe and that time is of the essence," Wednesday warned.
Enid nodded and flashed her a thumbs up. "No chatting, gossiping and certainly no dallying!" she said with a smile, before turning and bouncing out of the office on her errand with a sense of purpose.
Agnes watched Enid saunter out of the room with her typical wide eyed gaze, her head tilted to one side. She gave a humph of amusement. "She'll dally....at least a little," she said, then turned her gaze to Wednesday. "She can't help it."
Wednesday looked sideways at her, her expression impassive. "Perhaps, but meanwhile I must commit the spells to memory to ensure I am adequately prepared for the exorcism."
Enid returned ninety five minutes later, only five minutes more than Wednesday had anticipated, a negligible and acceptable delay; likely caused by unforeseen circumstances such as difficulty hailing a cab, a longer line in store or stopping for an iced mocha on her way home. Whatever the case, there was no dawdling or idle chatter. "It appears your assessment was incorrect," Wednesday said, handing the bag of items to Agnes. "Make yourself useful and restore our supplies...correctly," she ordered.
Agnes frowned, but nodded with a sigh as she took the bag and vanished from the room with it.
Wednesday turned to Enid. "Now we must make the final preparations for the exorcism. We will run through some practise drills, then we will head to the Morales home for the exorcism proper," she instructed.
"What? We?" Enid asked nervously.
"Correct. I require an extra set of hands to help with the spells and handling of items. I cannot do it alone. The Morales are too unreliable and emotionally involved to be effective and Agnes is ill suited for such endeavours, so that leaves you," Wednesday insisted.
Enid let out a long, low whimper. "Oh, aahhh....I'm really not good at this sort of thing Wednesday," she protested.
Wednesday narrowed her eyes at her. "You will be. Now we can get to work," Wednesday said as she immediately set to preparing for the exorcism. Sealing symbols were drawn on all six sides of the rat's box as Wednesday performed the necessary rite to ensure the demon couldn't escape the box once it was sealed within the rat's body. She organised everything into its appropriate place for the exorcism bunching the right items together and ensuring everything was ready as Enid looked on.
After about an hour she nodded, satisfied with the preparations. "Everything is ready, prepared and within its rightful place. I've a copy of each spell with the necessary ingredients should I stumble with the recitation of the incantation." She handed several of them to Enid to keep on her person, Including a green, gross looking tonic in a vial. "The vial of revitalisation. It will help Lupe to recover quicker from her ordeal," she explained, handing Enid a zip-lock bag full of stuff. "And this is for the binding spell keep it in your left hand coat pocket."
Enid took it and did as Wednesday said.
"I have the required items for the circle of protection that will shield us from the demon and the implements for the energy transference spell. Let us proceed to the Morales home."
Almost an hour later Wednesday and Enid entered the Morales apartment being warmly welcomed by the couple as they immediately set to work. "We will go in and commence performing the exorcism. No matter what you hear coming from Lupe's bedroom under no circumstances are you to enter or interrupt the process," Wednesday said sternly. "Do I make myself abundantly clear?"
The couple confirmed they understood and she nodded in satisfaction. "Very well; Enid follow me," she said, turning and leading the way.
Enid followed her somewhat nervous, not knowing what to expect from the room that a demon had made its nest.
Wednesday opened the door and walked right in, Enid close behind with somewhat more trepidation.
Wednesday removed a stick of blue chalk from her pocket and drew a large circle on the carpet before the bed as the lump that was the little girl hidden within the blankets began to stir. "Tee hee hee," a malevolent giggle sounded from the bed. "What is this? Visitors? At this hour?" the demon hissed.
Wednesday ignored it and withdrew a shaker of salt from her coat that she then poured almost perfectly in line with the chalk circle.
"The circle of protection consists of polysafron chalk and regular, but effective salt, used for purification against evil spirits," Wednesday explained to Enid. "Stand within it at all times and do not step out or break the circle," she instructed. Before she had even finished speaking the chalk reacted with the salt and began to flow blue like bio-luminescent blue algae.
"Oh cool! That's so pretty!" Enid gushed. "I feel like we're protected by fairy magic!"
Wednesday didn't respond as she positioned herself within the circle handing the amulet of Bastet to Enid who put it on without complaint and withdrew another from within her top. An amulet of Faravahar, an ancient Persian and Zoroastrian protection deity. Not as powerful as Bastet, but it would suffice.
Enid placed the box containing the rat at their feet as Wednesday withdrew some incense from her coat, secured it to the box and lit it as it began to burn slowly, filling the room with an aroma akin to roasting walnuts.
"Remember whatever it says is an idle threat. Ignore it and focus on the task at hand, it will try to deceive and distract us, do not let it. The only power it has is what we give it," Wednesday said to Enid as she made herself ready.
Enid nodded. "Right! Ignore the loud mouthed demon, got it! ….What kind of demon picks on a little girl anyway? Stupid bully!"
The demon inhabiting Lupe jolted upright. "What are you doing?" It snarled in anger.
"Getting rid of you, you trans-dimensional parasite," Wednesday replied. She lit a stick of something that glowed green and began waving it around as she began the incantation to transfer the demon from Lupe to the rat at their feet.
"Parasite!" The demon snarled in rage, the six year old's features twisting into an evil snarl of venomous hatred that looked unsettling on a face of such innocence. "I am an agent of chaos and disorder!" it roared.
Wednesday ignored it. "Parus, vercronium sersi afuntorum, amisacordium se….." she began as mystical energies began to build in the room.
The demon protested in rage, making threats and obscene gestures as Wednesday continued. The demon inhabiting Lupe leapt to its feet on the bed and came marching towards them, the look on its face changing from rage to concern as it could feel the shift in the air and a strange sensation prickling its flesh. It growled and snarled at them as it made threats. "I'll kill you both slowly...painfully.... make you watch as I devour your flesh!"
The demon leapt at them, throwing itself against the protective circle in a desperate attempt to get at Wednesday. It collided with an invisible barrier then sent it hurtling back onto the bed as the creature howled in pain, a high pitched sound like nails on a chalk board.
Wednesday didn't flinch, but repeated the incantation with determination, beads of sweat forming on her brow as it furrowed in concentration.
Enid took an involuntary step backwards as the demon hurled itself at them, the back of her shoe scattering the layer of salt and smudging the chalk as the glowing blue light faded and died. "Uh oh!" Enid cried as the barrier died and the demon sat up again with a feral grin.
Without any delay it leapt to it's feet and hurled itself at Wednesday once more as without missing a beat in the invocation she pivoted and kicked the charging demon in the face. Her foot collided with the girl's jaw with a force that sent the demon sprawling across the floor.
It rolled with the blow and clambered up onto its hands and knees as it growled with hate and charged at Wednesday again, hands clawing at her in a frenzy.
Wednesday was preparing to hit it again when Enid crash tackled the possessed Lupe to the floor. "Hurry Wednesday! Finish the spell!" Enid insisted. "I'll try to keep it busy!"
Wednesday nodded. "Arook vecatamium aluctorium," she continued, before repeating the whole of the lengthy invocation over again for about the 6th time.
Enid meanwhile wrestled on the ground with the demon, determined to keep it away from Wednesday and interrupting the invocation. If it made Wednesday mess up they'd be back at square one. "Geez, she's damn strong!" Enid said between grit teeth as the demon tried to throw her off it.
The creature managed to shimmy aside and get itself on an equal footing with Enid who refused to let go, clinging to the demon girl's arms with an iron grip.
"Come on Wednesday! What's taking so long!"
"We're conducting an energy transference spell, not making a coffee!" Wednesday snapped, before continuing.
The demon managed to get an arm lose as she swung and slapped the kneeling Enid across the face before kicking her in the stomach, as Enid was winded and tears leapt into her eyes.
It broke free and lunged after Wednesday again as Wednesday took a step back to ready herself. The demon's advance was abruptly halted as Enid grabbed her from behind.
"Oh no you don't!" Enid cried as the two of them struggled and pulled against the other. The demon desperate to get at Wednesday, Enid determined to keep it away from her.
Then with a malevolent smirk Wednesday narrowed her eyes at the demon and stated…."Evictus!"
In a heartbeat Lupe went slack against Enid and the sudden lack of resistance made her fall onto the floor, Lupe collapsing on top of her.
The rat inside the box began screeching loudly and clawing at the box in a frenzy.
"Quickly! The items for the binding spell," Wednesday cried, stepping forwards and reaching out to Enid who dug into her pocket in a rush and pulled the zip-lock out, handing it to Wednesday who snatched it, yanked the items out and began the final part of the exorcism. "Voomis, astorum , hectatres seratium ecsatres…." Wednesday began, quickly reciting the binding spell to seal the demon within the rat's body, throwing a small purple object that exploded like a tiny grenade with a flash of purple dust that turned to gold and then vanished.
The rat stopped squeaking, but kept running around inside the box clawing at the sides as it frantically tried to escape.
Enid, stood, breathing heavily. "Did it work?"
Wednesday turned to her, her own breathing heavier than normal, her fringe dishevelled and matted to her forehead with sweat. "The energy transference spell was a success; Lupe has been exorcised," she confirmed with a nod.
The small girl moaned on the floor as Wednesday motioned for Enid to help her as they picked her up and put her back into bed as gently as they could.
Wednesday fussed with her fringe before picking up the box containing the rat. "Our business here is complete, now to dispose of the demon."
Enid nodded and smiled in relief. "That was so scary! But also kinda fun and exciting!" she said, the grin growing as she headed for the door.
Wednesday grabbed her by the forearm to stop her. "Don't tell them I kicked their daughter in the face."
Enid giggled. "Yeah, I think we should omit that bit."
They left Lupe's room and her parents looked up as they exited, both of them leaping to their feet and asking what happened and if the exorcism was successful.
Wednesday gave a curt nod. "The exorcism was a complete success. Lupe should wake up very soon and she'll be sick and very hungry. To help hasten her recovery give her this," she said, taking the vial of green juice from Enid and handing it to Lupe's mother. "Upon review of your financial situation and the proceedings of the exorcism I have adjusted your bill to a more affordable $3,000," Wednesday told them.
"Thank you so much! You've saved our daughter's life! How we can ever repay you!" Lupe's father gushed.
"Paying your bill would be a good start," Wednesday said without emotion.
Enid let out a burst of nervous laughter. "Oh that's our Wednesday, she's such a joker! As long as you stick to the terms of your payment plan everything will be okey dokey," she assured them. "Now as for Lupe... she's going to be feeling pretty sick, confused, a bit sad and low every for a while so I recommend spoiling her a bit with….." Enid said, rambling away as to how they should care for their daughter.
Lupe's parents hung on her every word until her mother turned to address Wednesday. She had mysteriously disappeared, vanishing into the night without a sight or sound like a wraith.
"Hey! Where'd she go?" Lupe's dad demanded in surprise.
Enid looked around and sighed as she offered up a shrug. "Welcome to my world!"