The Gothic Phoenix

Tish and Mez

The irritated Phantom and his new friend weren’t the only ones awake that night. Morticia Addams was at her balcony, painting a shadowy landscape. Her brush created wraiths of fog traversing between the dark trees, lit up by moonlight. Morticia squinted at the lovely, half-finished scene. It was missing something.

“Cara Mia.” Gomez uttered, pushing away the curtain that flowed in the breeze, and he stepped out onto the balcony. “How are you my darling?”

“It’s not right Gomez.” She started, taking a step back into his arms. “I don’t know what it is, but something is wrong with it.”

“I think it’s turning out beautifully my dear!”

“Yes, well, that’s not the problem. It looks nice, but it’s not quite what I was going for.”

“Don’t the best works of art come about by surprise? Like us Cara, I met you by surprise, and I wouldn’t have planned it any other way.”

“Hm yes, but, that surprise produced love and companionship. This painting, it feels so….lonely.”

“Maybe that’s because you’re out here working on it all by yourself, instead being inside with me.” Gomez teased.

“Oh really.” Her eyes rolled. “Well I’m not going inside until this is finished.”

“Well if Cousins Urma and Ulysses has taught me anything, it’s that two heads are better than one. Maybe I can help you.” Gomez suggested, stepping to the side and taking a closer look at the half-blank canvas. Morticia laughed.

“When was the last time you painted my dear?”

“Third grade, but it can’t be too hard, if was an activity for third graders.” He picked up a brush, and dipped into the yellow painted, and made a crescent. Well, if you took three steps back, turned your head to the side, and then squinted, it looked like a crescent.

“Okay so it’s not as easy as I remember.”

“Haha, no it’s lovely Gomez, just lovely. And the painting already looks more lively, keep going.” So Gomez did. This time he picked up a large brush and dipped it into the purple paint, and smeared it all around the moon. Next he painted two smudgy owls flying in the violet sky together. Lastly, he dipped a brush into the pink paint and dotted Morticia’s nose with it.

“Agh! You ghastly man!” Morticia expressed playfully, before grabbing the brush with yellow on it and swiping it against Gomez’s cheek. They laughed, then admired their work. The bottom of the painting was stunning, and the top well, it made the whole thing not feel so lonely anymore. Gomez made another detail, he wrote ‘Tish’ at the bottom, and his wife then added ‘Mez’ at the top.

“Magnificent!” Gomez exclaimed. “Shall we head inside now my dear?” Morticia nodded with a smile, and Gomez took her by the arm to escort her.

Morticia’s head became fuzzy.

Then her vision became foggy.

Then her body felt faint.

And she collapsed on the floor.

“Morticia!” Gomez gasped, dropping to the ground, taking her hand. She was barely breathing. “Tish.” He uttered, shocked and afraid, but she wouldn’t move.

[Greetings! If you enjoyed that chapter you might enjoy this song: Blank Space a cover by Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox]