Mrs. Widdershins is the wife of Captain Widdershins and mother to Fiona and Fernald.
Biography
Life
Not much is known about her, but she was a member of VFD. Esmé Squalor claims that they were close friends at school, though the validity of this statement is in question.
She was the mother of Fernald and, much later, Fiona, who was born when her brother was a teenager. When Fiona was still young, Mrs. Widdershins re-married to Captain Widdershins, as her children's father "moved away." She was one of the original crew members of the Queequeg.
The only memory Fiona mentions of her mother is that she used to get upset if her daughter didn't clean her room.
At some point, she owned a ruby ring.[1]
Death
It is unknown how Mrs. Widdershins was killed, though she seems to have died before or during Fernald's defection, as Fernald was never considered a part of the "crew of two." Captain Widdershins claims that she was killed in a manatee accident, though Fiona disbelieves this; Lemony Snicket confirms that this is indeed a false explanation.[1]
Speculation
There are two major fan theories explaining the "death" of Mrs. Widdershins:
- Miranda Caliban Theory
- Mrs. Widdershins is Miranda Caliban, and she retreated to the island, leaving Widdershins to claim she was dead. This would make Fernald and Fiona siblings or half-siblings of Friday Caliban, depending on the identity of Thursday; many theorists believe that Thursday may be Widdershins himself, as Widdershins's first name and Thursday's surname are not revealed.
- Both Miranda and Widdershins use the excuse of a "manatee accident" to explain the disappearance of their partner.
- Fernald, Fiona and Friday have alliterative names, presenting a pattern. Another fact supporting this theory is that most siblings in the series come in groups of three, and even on the rare occasions that only two siblings are known of, the existence of a third sibling is usually hinted at (such as the White-Faced Women). The only known siblings in groups of two (aside from Fiona and Fernald) are from All the Wrong Questions: Pip and Squeak Bellerophon, Kellar and Lizzie Haines, Zada and Zora, and Tatiana and Treacle Cozy.
- Evidence against this theory could be that Kit Snicket believes Friday's father and Miranda's husband, Thursday, is alive and well, and mentions dining with him the day before meeting the Baudelaires. The day before meeting the Baudelaires, Captain Widdershins was with them on his submarine, and by the time Kit was discussing Thursday, Kit believed the Captain to be either deceased or in mortal peril due to the crash of the Queequeg and arrival of the Great Unknown.
- Anwhistle Fire Theory[2]
- Mrs. Widdershins was a mycologist (explaining the presence of mycology books aboard the Queequeg though Widdershins disliked Fiona's interest) and worked with Gregor Anwhistle at Anwhistle Aquatics to research the Medusoid Mycelium.
- Widdershins and Fernald used her connection to get into the research center and set it on fire. However, Mrs. Widdershins perished in the fire. Upset at the death of his mother and the morally ambiguous situation, Fernald ran, causing Widdershins and Jacques Snicket to blame him for the fire, and causing Fernald to join the Fire-Starting side.
- Unwilling to admit his culpability, Widdershins told Fiona her mother's death was an accident and that her brother just "disappeared."
Family
| Captain Widdershins | Mrs. Widdershins † | Unknown | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Fernald | Fiona | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Trivia
- "The submarine Q and its crew of two" originally referred to her and her husband.
Appearances
- The Grim Grotto (mentioned)