When something itches my dear sir, the natural tendency is to scratch.
At William Park, a Wesen--William Stillman--digs its way out of the sod. He woges to human form and wipes the dirt from his face, and spots people in the park.
In the tunnels, Eve recovers consciousness and sees the symbols that she wrote on the wall while in her trance. Her hands are bloody from her work, and the lantern light flickers.
In bed, Nick sleeps and dreams of being shot from behind during the battle with Black Claw. He wakes up next to a sleeping Adalind and checks on Kelly. After getting himself a glass of water, Nick hears something and looks down into the shaft leading down to the tunnels. Adalind comes up behind him and Nick dismisses what he heard as nothing.
As a man walks through the park, he turns and sees William behind him. William collapses and mutters that he's hungry, and asks the man for something to eat. The man calls 911 and when he turns back, he discovers that William is gone. William in his natural form stabs the man through the throat, killing him.
Renard tucks Diana in and notices her dolls of a man and woman. He sets them on the dresser and then finds a makeshift piece of metal in the shape of a sword in the box. He goes to his room and realizes that Meisner is sitting there. Meisner admits that he's haunting him and points out that he was there when Diana was born. Renard sarcastically thanks him for being there, and Meisner reminds Renard that he betrayed him. He says that they have some real issues to work through, and Renard orders him to get out. Meisner questions if he's a ghost or a hallucination, and a disgusted Renard tells him to take the bedroom. Renard goes down and pours himself a drink, and sees the corpses of all the men that he killed.
The next day, William bathes in the lake and washes the dirt off of him, and then puts on the dead man's clothing.
Monroe and Rosalee go to the obgyn for an ultrasound, and she assures them the baby is healthy. Remembering what Diana said, Monroe and Rosalle both ask if there's more than one. Scanning further, the obgyn says that there's three heartbeats. Monroe assures Rosalee that they can do it.
Nick and Hank meet at a diner, and Nick insists that he was dead. He figures that he should carry the stick but he isn't, and tells Hank that it's in the tunnels. Hank suggests that Nick put it further out, but Nick wants to know its secrets and what is written on the cloth. His partner warns that what they're dealing with may not have an explanation, just as Wu calls and tells them that they have a case in William Park.
Adalind comes over to pick up Diana, who says that Renard was having bad dreams. He comes down and apologizes for oversleeping, and assures Adalind that they had a good time. Diana agrees, and Adalind leaves with her. There's no sign of the bodies that Renard saw, and he starts to ask Adalind if she's dealt with ghosts. However, he decides not bring it up, and mother and daughter leave.
Nick and Hank examine the naked body and Wu says that a jogger found the corpse. Whoever killed him took his wallet and cell phone, and left a pile of rags. Nick and Hank figure that it was Wesen. Meanwhile, Wu runs an ID on the vic's fingerprints and discovers that he's Jeremy Tauberg, arrested twice for minor crime. As he gets an address, they hear a woman screaming and run over. It's a mother whose son fell into a hole in the dirt. The detectives pull him out and discover that a desiccated corpse in the bottom of the hole.
When Bindra arrives, she figures that the corpse has been there for at least two years. Once she leaves, Nick and Hank realize that the clothing on the second corpse looks a lot like the rags. Nick points out that the whole seems too big for one body, and they figure that someone did some digging before the kid started playing. The detectives figure that the killer must have dug the hole, and notice that there's no signs of tool. There is scattered dirt leading away from the hole, and they figure that the killer took Talburg's clothing.
William is eating at a diner and ordering lots of rare steak. He admits that it's been a long time since he's eaten, and tells the waitress Erin that they last longer than he thought.
At the station, Renard is sitting in his office and remembers what he saw at his home. He finally calls a man named Steiger and says that he needs to see him that night. Steiger agrees and hangs up.
At their desks, Nick and Hank go over Jeremy's path. He always walked home through the park, and his physical stats from his file. Wu reports that they got a hit on Jeremy's credit card at a diner a mile from the park, and the detectives go to check it out. Erin describes William and how he talked like he ate a woman. Nick gets a call from Bindra and they go to the morgue. Bindra reports that the victim was a woman in her mid 30s, and there's more skin present than is typical because it was treated with an enzyme and hardened into a waxy shell. The enzyme is apparently digestive, and there's no trace of organ tissue inside the body... and no signs that someone used a knife to remove the organs. There are teethmarks on every bone in her body.
At the loft, Adalind is making lunch when Diana says that Renard said Meisner's name a lot of time the previous night. Adalind says that Meisner died, and Diana asks if Renard was one of the men who killed Meisner. The girl says that she remembers meeting Meisner in a helicopter with her and he was nice. She describes how Meisner threw the king out of the helicopter, and says that she wants to see Meisner again even though he's dead. Diana then casually says that Eve is in the wall and was drawing. Adalind goes down the shaft into the tunnels, while Diana draws the symbols from the cloth.
Adalind finds an unconscious Eve and wakes her up. She helps her up the ladder to the shaft and then goes up and helps Eve to the bed. Adalind goes to get a washcloth, and Diana walks away. When Adalind comes back, she discovers that her daughter has gone into the tunnels. Adalind goes after her and finds Diana staring at the symbols Eve drew on the wall, all glowing from Diana's magic.
Nick and Hank go through the books. Monroe and Rosalee come in and explain that Rosalee is having triplets. They find a reference to the Wesen, an Ataktos Fuse. It translates as "party animal" and was the inspiration for the Greek god Dionysus. It says that the Ataktos Fuse is immortal and resurrects above ground for 24 hours every seven years. The Wesen needs to find a source big enough to sustain it underground for seven years. Wu sends a facial composite of William, and Monroe recognizes the face recently but isn't sure where. Adalind calls Nick and tells him that she's been living in the tunnels, and is in bad shape. Nick says that he'll be there as soon as he can, hangs up, and tells the others what Adalind said.
At the Whiskey Bar, William sends a drink to a plus-sized woman, Mandy. The guy she's with, Donald Simpson, goes over and threatens William, and tells him to be gone by the time he comes back. William smiles and agrees, and then orders another drink. He then goes outside where Donald is smoking and offers him a drink.. and then kills him. William goes back to the bar and Mandy thanks him for the drink but suggests that he go. The Wesen asks if that's what she wants, and Mandy says that it's okay. William then orders drinks for everyone and says to get the party started, and leads Mandy out to the dance floor. As they dance, he suggests that they take a walk and Mandy agrees.
Eve eats and says that she carved the symbols in the tunnels. She tells Adalind that every time that she tried to leave, her body couldn't move. Adalind says that Diana knew that Eve was down there and shows her the symbols that her daughter has been drawing. While Eve examines the symbols, Adalind apologizes for what she did to her. Nick arrives and Eve says that she doesn't feel like she should be there. Adalind assures her that it's fine, and they tell Nick about the symbols in the tunnel. He and Eve go down to examine the symbols that she carved, and Eve figures that it's connect to what healed them. Hank calls to tell Nick that they've got another body.
William takes Mandy to the park and says that he's lived in Portland a long time ago. He talks about how a long time ago the park was owned by a young gentleman, and describes how there was five men to every women. William takes her hand and they continue walking.
Monroe tries adding different hair and glasses to the sketch, and says that it's the guy from Stillman Park. The face is the same one as the face on the park's statue of William Stillman, one of Portland's earliest settlers. They figure settler William Stillman is the killer.
Nick and Hank examine Donald's body and wonder why the murderer killed him. Witnesses in the bar report that Mandy left the bar with William and their description matches the sketch. Monroe and Rosalee reach Bick and tell him what they've discovered, and they figure that William took Mandy to the park because he's going to kill her.
Renard goes to Steiger's pawnshop and Steiger realizes that things have been going badly for him. He's well aware of the Hexenbiest duplication spell, and Renard says that he needs Steiger's help with something else. He describes Meisner's ghost and admits that he killed Meisner, and wants to know if the ghost is real or a hallucination. Renard gives Steiger his family ring, and Steiger asks how badly Renard wants the information while glancing at Renard's wedding ring. After a moment, Renard hands it over and Steiger lead him into the back. There's an antique wooden cabinet labeled "spirit vacuum" in the back, and Steiger wheels it out. He explains that it will pull out any spirits attached to Renard. Renard strips down and gets in.
In the park, William listens to the sound of the crickets and admires the stars. He asks Mandy if she feels it all, and says that it's life. William talks about how so many people don't appreciate life, and then asks to kiss Mandy. He hesitates and then says that he's happy to be alive, and they kiss. William says that they're going to be spending a lot of time together, and he woges and knocks her out.
Nick, Hank, and Wu arrive at the park and go to the spot where the body was buried. They find the Wesen digging a hole and attack it. They draw their guns... and Mandy woges into a hippomotus-like Wesen and bites his head off. She knows who Nick is, and Nick thanks her for her help. Mandy wonders what a girl has to do to find the right guy in Portland.
Steiger activates the vacuum and Renard screams in agony. A ghost is pulled out of his body and the equipment sparks, knocking Steiger unconscious. Meisner materializes and turns the vacuum up, and the glass front of the cabinet explodes.
The trio looks at the statue of William and Nick wonders how many bodies are buried in the park.
Renard wakes up and finds himself fully dressed and lying in Steiger's shop. The place is cleaned out and there's a "for lease" sign up. However, Renard's wedding ring is gone. He turns around and finds Meisner standing there. Meisner says that the mind is a terrible thing to lose.
Written by Gadfly on Feb 4, 2017