He's Not a Man Anymore, 9/9
Title: He's Not a Man Anymore (a.k.a., The Lycanthropy Case), epilogue
Fandom: Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?
Rating: T/PG-13
Word Count: 2,146
Main Characters: Fictional Rockapella (Sean, Scott, Elliott, Barry)
Summary: The aftermath.
Will be posted to 10_hurt_comfort.
Epilogue
Elliott yawned, running a hand through his damp curls as he stepped out of the bathroom. It had been an agonizingly long day and night, and after a quick shower, he was more than ready to climb into bed for an uninterrupted sleep. And he would be able to rest easy. He was not a werewolf, and tonight they had proved it without a doubt. Tomorrow, everything would start to return to normal.
He hoped. But surely now that the full story would be known, the other agents would not look down on him. . . . On the other hand, maybe that was what Dr. Hoffman had meant about it not being over yet. Maybe Elliott would not be welcomed back as thoroughly as he wished. People could be like that, even at ACME.
A knock at the door startled him. Crossing the room, he opened the door and found a sobered Jessica standing just outside. She looked at him, pulling that stubborn barrette out of her hair.
"Can I come in?" she asked.
Elliott blinked, but held the door open wider. ". . . I heard you've been telling everyone at ACME about what I did," he said.
The pre-teen stepped inside, giving him a briefly puzzled look as she wrestled with her hair. "I don't know why I did that," she said. "I was upset. But . . . I know it wasn't fair to you. I feel just awful."
He watched her carefully, seeing her snap the clip into place. Then, unsatisfied, she pulled it out again.
". . . Is it true, what you said?" he asked. "That I was your 'favorite'?"
She bit her lip, looking down. "Yeah," she said. "Yeah, that's true. . . ." At last looking pleased, she adjusted the clip into place. Her hands dropped to her sides as she looked to Elliott.
"I'm sorry I hurt you," he said.
"It wasn't your fault. . . ." About to cry out in frustration, she gritted her teeth and pulled the barrette out of her hair once more.
Elliott stopped her, taking the clip from her hand. "It's no good," he said, his voice changing.
She stared at him, not comprehending. ". . . What?"
"What you're doing." He looked at the barrette. "You can't control me, Jessica. I'm not going to snap and attack you."
She took a step back. "I don't know what you're talking about," she protested. "Elliott, you're not feeling well. You should lay down. I'll come back tomorrow. . . ."
"It won't work tomorrow, either." Elliott fixed her with a steady look. "It wasn't an accident when you messed with your hair in the morning, right before I attacked Scott. You knew I'd been given a post-hypnotic suggestion to act like a wolf if I saw someone fixing her hair. You wanted me to attack Scott. Just like now you want me to attack you, so you can scream and try to make it look like I really am crazy."
"You are crazy!" Jessica snapped. "I wouldn't do that, Elliott! I wouldn't have any reason to!"
"Reginald Hoffman is your father. That's the reason right there. I was checking into his records tonight when I saw that he had a daughter about your age. A daughter named Jessica."
Jessica froze at these words, staring at Elliott with wide eyes.
He continued, "He told you to do this. That's what he meant by 'It's not over yet.' He knew you were still here, waiting. And he was hoping that since he didn't revoke the post-hypnotic suggestion, I'd still be susceptible."
She shook her head, her shoulders beginning to tremble. "I . . . I didn't want to do it!" she choked out as she sank to her knees. "I didn't . . ."
Elliott watched her, his shoulders slumping. This time, he had not wanted to be right.
"But you did it anyway," he said at last.
She continued to sob. "He made me . . . ! You don't know what it was like, Elliott. . . . He made me!"
"No, I don't know what it was like," he said. "I'll admit that. But he wasn't here to make you do it tonight, Jessica. You did it all on your own."
"You really were my favorite," she cried. "I hated hurting you! I knew it wasn't right. . . ."
". . . Then why did you do it?" he asked, his voice quiet. "Your dad's in jail. And you knew that."
". . . He was counting on me," she said lamely.
Elliott shook his head. "He isn't worth it," he said.
"He's my dad." She looked up at him in sorrow.
"Then he should've acted like it," Elliott said. "If he really loved you, he wouldn't have made you get involved in his criminal schemes."
Jessica looked down again, out of things to say.
"Elliott?"
Sean, Scott, and Barry had hurried to the doorway, concerned and confused at the scene. Elliott looked up at them, his smile sad.
"I'm okay, guys," he said. "It's over. This time, it really is over."
****
Breakfast the next morning was what Elliott had hoped it would be. He was stopped by the other agents many times as they expressed their relief that he was doing better and that the criminals were caught. Some declared their astonishment and disgust over Reginald Hoffman's involvement and how he had forced his daughter to help him.
Rockapella could hardly believe it either.
"To think that the creep was right here, running his operation right under our noses!" Scott fumed as they sat at a table in the far corner of the cafeteria.
"And he was already crooked when he transferred here from Frisco," Sean frowned as he pounded on the ketsup bottle. "When things started getting too hot there, he came to New York to start over before he could be discovered."
Barry nodded. "His daughter joined ACME using her deceased mother's maiden name. He didn't want anyone to know they were connected."
Elliott sighed, looking down at his plate. "That must've been an awful life," he said. He had thought he would feel angry with her, the same as he did with V.I.L.E.'s young members, but instead he mostly felt pity. He hoped that she would be able to turn her life around now that she and her father would no longer be together.
"I thought you'd be more upset with her, El," Sean said, "like you are with V.I.L.E. She infiltrated ACME and all."
"Yeah. . . ." Elliott looked back up. "But people like Patty and Sarah, they chose their own paths. Their immediate families didn't want them to join V.I.L.E., but they did anyway. Jessica . . . well, it sounds like her father was controlling her all along." He sighed. "Though it does bug me that she tried to do what he wanted even when he was in jail and couldn't force her. I guess she wanted his approval or something."
"Probably." Sean finally got out enough ketsup to suit him and he set the bottle aside. "Definitely not someone I'd want to please."
"But speaking of pleasing . . ." Scott looked to Sean. "Mr. Gordon really seemed happy with Jeff when we left them last night. I'm surprised myself; I thought he wanted to bring Vivalene down himself, more than anything."
Sean shrugged. "He put it aside," he said. "That's a big part of being a good detective---doing what you need to do, not what you want to do. You guys needed to catch Vivalene and Dr. Hoffman." He nodded to Scott and Elliott. "And Jeff . . . well, Barry and I really did need some help. So he abandoned what he wanted, for us."
"But if Jeff hadn't been there . . ." Elliott shuddered. "Then what? Maybe Scott and I shouldn't have gone."
"Did you just hear what I said, El?" Sean gave him a firm look. "You did the right thing. I promise."
Scott still looked worried. "But if you guys hadn't had any help with the wolf . . ."
"We would have figured something out," Barry said.
"We always do!" Sean grinned.
Elliott managed a smile. Sean was convincing. And he was right---they surely would have come up with some solution.
"I told Jeff he's welcome in ACME any time he wants to join," Sean said.
"Did he accept?" Elliott blinked.
"He was excited by the prospect, but he thinks he should stay with his uncle for now," Sean said. "He says he's still got more to learn from him."
Elliott was surprised again. Jeff was much different than he had originally thought, though Elliott had been allowed a brief glimpse into the kid's true personality.
"I bet he'll join eventually, though," Sean said.
"That'll be interesting," Scott commented. He did have a much better opinion of Jeff now that he knew the P.I. had stayed behind to help two of Scott's best friends.
"I guess your double scrammed," Sean said to Scott.
"Unfortunately," Scott sighed. "But he'll be back. I don't know how or when. . . . I just know he will be."
"I think we all know it," Sean nodded.
"And it looks like Vic the Slick wasn't involved after all," he added.
"For once, he probably was just a bystander," Scott agreed. "I doubt he knew that his con artist friend was part of a much bigger plot."
"Probably not," Sean agreed. "Oh, and hey El, the results of your blood test came in."
Elliott looked to him in surprise. "What did it say?" he asked.
"There was something in your system, alright," Sean said, a bit of anger slipping into his voice. "A drug that made you really tired and sick."
Elliott clenched a fist on the table. "If we could just connect it with Vivalene. . . ." Not that they did not have plenty by now to convict her.
"Oh, we can," Sean smirked. "Some ACME agents poking around her apartment found some traces of it on the floor under the table. Apparently she didn't realize any of it fell down there."
"Lucky for us," Elliott said.
"No kidding." Sean glanced at the clock. "Hey, Greg will be here soon," he announced. "Let's finish here and go meet him."
The others agreed. It had touched them that Greg had stayed up late last night, despite the heavy caseload, and had driven out to Sleepy Hollow himself to make sure they were all alright. He was still not completely clear on everything that had happened, and Rockapella had promised to fill him in after they had all gotten some sleep.
The rest of the meal proceeded in a pleasant manner. But when Sean was standing up with his empty tray several moments later, something rolled out of his pocket and clattered to the floor. He stiffened, while the other three looked at the object in perplexity.
"Oops," was all Sean would offer. He set the tray down again, reaching for the infamous Latin ring. "I forgot I didn't take this back last night."
Elliott slapped his forehead. "Well, we'd better drop it off now," he said. "They'll be missing it."
Sean nodded, squinting at the writing inside. "Can you believe how crazy and superstitious people are?" he said. "As if saying this would really turn you into a wolf. In lupus corporae . . ."
Immediately the others jumped up, clapping their hands over Sean's mouth. Maybe it was a superstition, but there was no sense in taking chances! One misadventure with a werewolf was all they could handle.
Sean pulled back. "Okay, I won't read it!" he said.
"And I hope you're not still considering watching Curse of the Werewolf Part 11 tonight," Barry deadpanned.
Sean shrugged. "Well, if there's nothing else on . . ."
"Let's watch Dracula Leaves Again," Scott said. "Anything but werewolves!"
"No kidding!" Elliott chimed in. He blinked, suddenly remembering something else. "Hey, I still haven't returned that wolf costume to the prop department. . . ."
"And you know what?" Sean realized. "We never did figure out what that figure was on the security tape Greg showed us." He smirked. "Maybe it really was Agnes Acme."
Elliott snickered. Well, anything was possible, he supposed. And better to have it be a spirit they could trust than something else.
"Just imagine the rumors that'll get strung around if we say Agnes Acme is haunting the prop department," Sean said with a mischievous grin.
"But then ACME Mysticnet would try to find her with their equipment," Barry said with a straight face. "I don't think she'd like that."
Sean mulled over the matter. "You're right," he said. "Okay, we won't say it's her. But we could say we saw something."
Elliott shook his head in amusement. After such a stressful experience, it was a relief to be able to joke about something again. He had entertained all manner of ideas about himself---that he really was a werewolf, that he was crazy, that he would be thought crazy and locked away somewhere . . . but it had all been proven false.
He was himself---the baritone for Rockapella and an ACME Musicnet detective.
And he was very lucky to have such a wonderful group of friends.
I've really had a great time writing this. I think it's my favorite multi-chapter fic I've done with the guys so far. And I'm thrilled to finally write the final twist, which I've had in mind since chapter one. Thanks to everyone who's been following this!
Fandom: Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?
Rating: T/PG-13
Word Count: 2,146
Main Characters: Fictional Rockapella (Sean, Scott, Elliott, Barry)
Summary: The aftermath.
Will be posted to 10_hurt_comfort.
Epilogue
Elliott yawned, running a hand through his damp curls as he stepped out of the bathroom. It had been an agonizingly long day and night, and after a quick shower, he was more than ready to climb into bed for an uninterrupted sleep. And he would be able to rest easy. He was not a werewolf, and tonight they had proved it without a doubt. Tomorrow, everything would start to return to normal.
He hoped. But surely now that the full story would be known, the other agents would not look down on him. . . . On the other hand, maybe that was what Dr. Hoffman had meant about it not being over yet. Maybe Elliott would not be welcomed back as thoroughly as he wished. People could be like that, even at ACME.
A knock at the door startled him. Crossing the room, he opened the door and found a sobered Jessica standing just outside. She looked at him, pulling that stubborn barrette out of her hair.
"Can I come in?" she asked.
Elliott blinked, but held the door open wider. ". . . I heard you've been telling everyone at ACME about what I did," he said.
The pre-teen stepped inside, giving him a briefly puzzled look as she wrestled with her hair. "I don't know why I did that," she said. "I was upset. But . . . I know it wasn't fair to you. I feel just awful."
He watched her carefully, seeing her snap the clip into place. Then, unsatisfied, she pulled it out again.
". . . Is it true, what you said?" he asked. "That I was your 'favorite'?"
She bit her lip, looking down. "Yeah," she said. "Yeah, that's true. . . ." At last looking pleased, she adjusted the clip into place. Her hands dropped to her sides as she looked to Elliott.
"I'm sorry I hurt you," he said.
"It wasn't your fault. . . ." About to cry out in frustration, she gritted her teeth and pulled the barrette out of her hair once more.
Elliott stopped her, taking the clip from her hand. "It's no good," he said, his voice changing.
She stared at him, not comprehending. ". . . What?"
"What you're doing." He looked at the barrette. "You can't control me, Jessica. I'm not going to snap and attack you."
She took a step back. "I don't know what you're talking about," she protested. "Elliott, you're not feeling well. You should lay down. I'll come back tomorrow. . . ."
"It won't work tomorrow, either." Elliott fixed her with a steady look. "It wasn't an accident when you messed with your hair in the morning, right before I attacked Scott. You knew I'd been given a post-hypnotic suggestion to act like a wolf if I saw someone fixing her hair. You wanted me to attack Scott. Just like now you want me to attack you, so you can scream and try to make it look like I really am crazy."
"You are crazy!" Jessica snapped. "I wouldn't do that, Elliott! I wouldn't have any reason to!"
"Reginald Hoffman is your father. That's the reason right there. I was checking into his records tonight when I saw that he had a daughter about your age. A daughter named Jessica."
Jessica froze at these words, staring at Elliott with wide eyes.
He continued, "He told you to do this. That's what he meant by 'It's not over yet.' He knew you were still here, waiting. And he was hoping that since he didn't revoke the post-hypnotic suggestion, I'd still be susceptible."
She shook her head, her shoulders beginning to tremble. "I . . . I didn't want to do it!" she choked out as she sank to her knees. "I didn't . . ."
Elliott watched her, his shoulders slumping. This time, he had not wanted to be right.
"But you did it anyway," he said at last.
She continued to sob. "He made me . . . ! You don't know what it was like, Elliott. . . . He made me!"
"No, I don't know what it was like," he said. "I'll admit that. But he wasn't here to make you do it tonight, Jessica. You did it all on your own."
"You really were my favorite," she cried. "I hated hurting you! I knew it wasn't right. . . ."
". . . Then why did you do it?" he asked, his voice quiet. "Your dad's in jail. And you knew that."
". . . He was counting on me," she said lamely.
Elliott shook his head. "He isn't worth it," he said.
"He's my dad." She looked up at him in sorrow.
"Then he should've acted like it," Elliott said. "If he really loved you, he wouldn't have made you get involved in his criminal schemes."
Jessica looked down again, out of things to say.
"Elliott?"
Sean, Scott, and Barry had hurried to the doorway, concerned and confused at the scene. Elliott looked up at them, his smile sad.
"I'm okay, guys," he said. "It's over. This time, it really is over."
****
Breakfast the next morning was what Elliott had hoped it would be. He was stopped by the other agents many times as they expressed their relief that he was doing better and that the criminals were caught. Some declared their astonishment and disgust over Reginald Hoffman's involvement and how he had forced his daughter to help him.
Rockapella could hardly believe it either.
"To think that the creep was right here, running his operation right under our noses!" Scott fumed as they sat at a table in the far corner of the cafeteria.
"And he was already crooked when he transferred here from Frisco," Sean frowned as he pounded on the ketsup bottle. "When things started getting too hot there, he came to New York to start over before he could be discovered."
Barry nodded. "His daughter joined ACME using her deceased mother's maiden name. He didn't want anyone to know they were connected."
Elliott sighed, looking down at his plate. "That must've been an awful life," he said. He had thought he would feel angry with her, the same as he did with V.I.L.E.'s young members, but instead he mostly felt pity. He hoped that she would be able to turn her life around now that she and her father would no longer be together.
"I thought you'd be more upset with her, El," Sean said, "like you are with V.I.L.E. She infiltrated ACME and all."
"Yeah. . . ." Elliott looked back up. "But people like Patty and Sarah, they chose their own paths. Their immediate families didn't want them to join V.I.L.E., but they did anyway. Jessica . . . well, it sounds like her father was controlling her all along." He sighed. "Though it does bug me that she tried to do what he wanted even when he was in jail and couldn't force her. I guess she wanted his approval or something."
"Probably." Sean finally got out enough ketsup to suit him and he set the bottle aside. "Definitely not someone I'd want to please."
"But speaking of pleasing . . ." Scott looked to Sean. "Mr. Gordon really seemed happy with Jeff when we left them last night. I'm surprised myself; I thought he wanted to bring Vivalene down himself, more than anything."
Sean shrugged. "He put it aside," he said. "That's a big part of being a good detective---doing what you need to do, not what you want to do. You guys needed to catch Vivalene and Dr. Hoffman." He nodded to Scott and Elliott. "And Jeff . . . well, Barry and I really did need some help. So he abandoned what he wanted, for us."
"But if Jeff hadn't been there . . ." Elliott shuddered. "Then what? Maybe Scott and I shouldn't have gone."
"Did you just hear what I said, El?" Sean gave him a firm look. "You did the right thing. I promise."
Scott still looked worried. "But if you guys hadn't had any help with the wolf . . ."
"We would have figured something out," Barry said.
"We always do!" Sean grinned.
Elliott managed a smile. Sean was convincing. And he was right---they surely would have come up with some solution.
"I told Jeff he's welcome in ACME any time he wants to join," Sean said.
"Did he accept?" Elliott blinked.
"He was excited by the prospect, but he thinks he should stay with his uncle for now," Sean said. "He says he's still got more to learn from him."
Elliott was surprised again. Jeff was much different than he had originally thought, though Elliott had been allowed a brief glimpse into the kid's true personality.
"I bet he'll join eventually, though," Sean said.
"That'll be interesting," Scott commented. He did have a much better opinion of Jeff now that he knew the P.I. had stayed behind to help two of Scott's best friends.
"I guess your double scrammed," Sean said to Scott.
"Unfortunately," Scott sighed. "But he'll be back. I don't know how or when. . . . I just know he will be."
"I think we all know it," Sean nodded.
"And it looks like Vic the Slick wasn't involved after all," he added.
"For once, he probably was just a bystander," Scott agreed. "I doubt he knew that his con artist friend was part of a much bigger plot."
"Probably not," Sean agreed. "Oh, and hey El, the results of your blood test came in."
Elliott looked to him in surprise. "What did it say?" he asked.
"There was something in your system, alright," Sean said, a bit of anger slipping into his voice. "A drug that made you really tired and sick."
Elliott clenched a fist on the table. "If we could just connect it with Vivalene. . . ." Not that they did not have plenty by now to convict her.
"Oh, we can," Sean smirked. "Some ACME agents poking around her apartment found some traces of it on the floor under the table. Apparently she didn't realize any of it fell down there."
"Lucky for us," Elliott said.
"No kidding." Sean glanced at the clock. "Hey, Greg will be here soon," he announced. "Let's finish here and go meet him."
The others agreed. It had touched them that Greg had stayed up late last night, despite the heavy caseload, and had driven out to Sleepy Hollow himself to make sure they were all alright. He was still not completely clear on everything that had happened, and Rockapella had promised to fill him in after they had all gotten some sleep.
The rest of the meal proceeded in a pleasant manner. But when Sean was standing up with his empty tray several moments later, something rolled out of his pocket and clattered to the floor. He stiffened, while the other three looked at the object in perplexity.
"Oops," was all Sean would offer. He set the tray down again, reaching for the infamous Latin ring. "I forgot I didn't take this back last night."
Elliott slapped his forehead. "Well, we'd better drop it off now," he said. "They'll be missing it."
Sean nodded, squinting at the writing inside. "Can you believe how crazy and superstitious people are?" he said. "As if saying this would really turn you into a wolf. In lupus corporae . . ."
Immediately the others jumped up, clapping their hands over Sean's mouth. Maybe it was a superstition, but there was no sense in taking chances! One misadventure with a werewolf was all they could handle.
Sean pulled back. "Okay, I won't read it!" he said.
"And I hope you're not still considering watching Curse of the Werewolf Part 11 tonight," Barry deadpanned.
Sean shrugged. "Well, if there's nothing else on . . ."
"Let's watch Dracula Leaves Again," Scott said. "Anything but werewolves!"
"No kidding!" Elliott chimed in. He blinked, suddenly remembering something else. "Hey, I still haven't returned that wolf costume to the prop department. . . ."
"And you know what?" Sean realized. "We never did figure out what that figure was on the security tape Greg showed us." He smirked. "Maybe it really was Agnes Acme."
Elliott snickered. Well, anything was possible, he supposed. And better to have it be a spirit they could trust than something else.
"Just imagine the rumors that'll get strung around if we say Agnes Acme is haunting the prop department," Sean said with a mischievous grin.
"But then ACME Mysticnet would try to find her with their equipment," Barry said with a straight face. "I don't think she'd like that."
Sean mulled over the matter. "You're right," he said. "Okay, we won't say it's her. But we could say we saw something."
Elliott shook his head in amusement. After such a stressful experience, it was a relief to be able to joke about something again. He had entertained all manner of ideas about himself---that he really was a werewolf, that he was crazy, that he would be thought crazy and locked away somewhere . . . but it had all been proven false.
He was himself---the baritone for Rockapella and an ACME Musicnet detective.
And he was very lucky to have such a wonderful group of friends.
I've really had a great time writing this. I think it's my favorite multi-chapter fic I've done with the guys so far. And I'm thrilled to finally write the final twist, which I've had in mind since chapter one. Thanks to everyone who's been following this!