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Chapter Text

It was raining when the Addams Family hearse made its way towards the school. Fitting as the Addams Family bring doom and gloom wherever they go. The short break away from school was nothing short of uneventful for Wednesday. Only the usual waterboarding and electrocution of her brother Pugsley. He was grateful to have her back but is now solemn as their time together slowly comes to an end. Her parents share the same sentiment as their youngest but are excited to be bringing their daughter back for her second semester at Nevermore. Morticia’s visions had shown Wednesday doing great things at Nevermore.

Wednesday did text Xavier occasionally. Her first text to him was letting him know the phone worked. Xavier was elated to have actually received a text from Wednesday Addams although he knew better than to push his luck. He decided to send her pictures of his artwork and ask for her feedback. While she didn’t enjoy the tedium of texting and found it difficult to get the hang of it at first, she did enjoy his work. He sent her dark drawings of black roses, a night sky during a thunderstorm, and ravens, which seemed to be his favorite. Wednesday still did not want to become a slave to technology, but she had to admit it was convenient.

Daily she would receive a text from Enid. Thing had given Enid her number, something Wednesday severely punished him for. Enid would text Wednesday whatever random inane thing popped into her mind, letting her know every excruciating detail. Although this grated on Wednesday’s nerves, she did enjoy Enid’s company. She returned the favor by texting Enid her dark observations of her day, much to Enid’s corresponding chagrin.

However, there was one texting partner that was lacking in Wednesday’s newfound social circle. Her stalker who she had affectionately named The Unsub – short for unknown subject. The texts from the unsub had subsided after she left Nevermore much to Wednesday’s disappointment. A girl’s very first stalker was always the most exciting.

Slowly the Addams Family hearse made its way up the winding road to the entrance of Nevermore. The castle-like building stood out against the contrast of the grey clouds creating an ominous sense of mystery. No one knew what may still be lurking in the shadows. Just before the hearse pulled around the final bend in the road, Wednesday received a text. It was the eyeball emoji sent to her by the unsub. Intriguing, Wednesday thought to herself.

Xavier was the first person to greet Wednesday as the hearse pulled up. Leaning on his luggage, he presented her with a small wave and a smile. Wednesday does not reciprocate the wave or smile. Instead, she remained stoic and unreadable as she climbed out of the hearse. “Xavier. Have you been waiting for me?”

Stepping away from his luggage his smile grew. “Hi to you too, Wednesday. I was just dropped off and saw you coming up the road. I thought I would say hi before going up to my room.”

“I see. Well, you said hi now you must go.” Wednesday was trying to rush Xavier away before her parents had a chance to get out of the hearse.

“Wow, I see you really missed me. And I thought we were making leaps and bounds towards becoming real friends,” he said while rolling his eyes. By now Xavier is used to her nonchalant behavior. It hardly phased him anymore.

Just as she feared, Morticia and Gomez stepped out of the hearse. Both of them had an embarrassing enthusiasm as they moved to greet Xavier. “Hello! You must be one of Wednesday’s new friends. I am Morticia and this is my husband Gomez. How do you do?” Morticia gracefully stuck her hand out towards Xavier. He glanced down at her long slender fingers with razor sharp nails adorned with black nail polish. He smiled as he took her hand.

“Hello, Morticia, Gomez. I’m Xavier, Wednesday’s best friend.” Wednesday rolled her eyes at the bold introduction. She knew Xavier would enjoy tormenting her with his sarcasm. Normally she enjoyed being tormented, but usually the torment included knives and chains.

“Oh! You’re the one Wednesday falsely accused of being the Hyde and helped to imprison you,” Gomez said. “Those prison cells in Jericho were quite roomy, no?” Morticia smiled and lightly patted her husband’s chest.

Xavier’s smile fell, but he did not take offense. Wednesday was just as weird as her parents, but in a different way. “Yeah surprisingly. If I wasn’t chained by my neck, I would have made it homey. Stayed a while.” He decided it was best to go along with the Addams’ kooky sense of humor.

Morticia and Gomez looked at each other and laughed. Wednesday’s frown deepened. She hated small talk. “I like this one,” Gomez said while turning to his daughter. “Do your best to keep this one alive, my little fly trap.” Immediately she began to feel embarrassment. She knew Xavier wouldn’t allow her to forget her father’s sickly sweet pet name for her.

“Xavier, isn’t it time you made your way to your room?” Wednesday raised her eyebrow towards him, signaling to him that if he didn’t leave, he would have a very long torturous semester.

Getting the hint, Xavier started grabbing his things. “I should be getting along. It was nice meeting you.” He nodded towards Morticia and Gomez. “I’ll see you later, my little fly trap.” Wednesday seethed at the unwanted nickname. Later she would rain down hell fire upon him in revenge.

Wednesday turned towards her parents. “Let’s get this over with.”

Gomez reached for his daughter and gave her a goodbye hug. Her arms stayed glued to her sides, but her body softened. She would miss her mother and father while she was gone. Although she found them insufferable, they were still great parents. “Gomez, Lurch, would you mind giving Wednesday and I some privacy?” The two men nodded and headed back into the hearse. Wednesday and Morticia were left standing alone. “I think you will have another fun semester. Your father and I will call you next week. We are miserable without you already. Take care, darling.” Morticia blew two air kisses towards her daughter then stepped into her seat and waved before closing the door behind her.

“Goodbye mother.” Wednesday took a step back from the hearse as it started to pull away.

Before the hearse was fully out of sight, Wednesday’s phone pinged. Another text from the unsub. This time she received photos of herself with Xavier and her family. It was time for Wednesday to roll up her sleeves and begin her investigation. But first, she had to face the most horrifying evil of all. She trembled as she began her trek up to Ophelia Hall.

***

“Eeek!!!” Enid shrieked as Wednesday opened the door to their shared room. Enid quickly ran across the room and threw her arms around Wednesday before she could protest.

“Enid.” Wednesday warned sternly. Her eyes narrowed in displeasure at the contact. Reluctantly Enid pulled away but remained excited to see her best friend.

“I’ve been waiting for you all day! I can’t wait to catch up!”

“Enid,” Wednesday repeated. “You have incessantly texted me all throughout the unexpected break. What is there to catch up on?”

“Ajax broke up with me last night.” Enid burst into tears and hugged herself, looking highly distressed.

Wednesday raised an eyebrow. “I’ll get my nail gun.”

“No!” Enid held out her hands to stop Wednesday. “I don’t think that will be necessary. He said he doesn’t see our relationship going anywhere and thinks we need some time apart. But I don’t understand what he means by our relationship isn’t going anywhere. We were doing fine last week and now all of a sudden, he needs time away from me. My heart is totally broken!” Enid walked to her bed and plopped down hard, her head dramatically falling into her hands.

Doing her best to comfort her best friend, Wednesday decided on the gentle approach. “Relationships are an annoying distraction. Anyone foolish enough to indulge in such an activity deserves all the pain and misery brought on by what you refer to as ‘heartbreak’.”

Enid sniffled and wiped her tears. “Thanks. I…I think.” Enid has learned this is Wednesday trying to be nice. “Where’s Thing? Did he come with you?”

As if on cue, Wednesday’s bag began to shake. Thing opened the bag from the inside and climbed out. He made his way over to Enid and gave her their special handshake. “Oh my God, Thing! I’ve missed you so much. I can’t wait to resume our nightly routine.” Every night Thing and Enid used to moisturize and practice cuticle care while sharing the latest gossip. Thing has grown soft, much to Wednesday’s disdain.

Suddenly Wednesday’s phone pinged with a new text. Xavier’s name flashed across the screen. Can you meet me at my art studio in 30 minutes? I have a new drawing I want to show you. Wednesday’s eyebrows raised in intrigue.

Is this new drawing dark and disturbing? She texted back.

Instantly Xavier replied. Wouldn’t bother you if it wasn’t. Internally Wednesday smiled to herself. She loves dark and disturbing.

“Is that Xavier?” Enid asked, her own eyebrows raised in a similar look of intrigue. Quickly Wednesday fixed her face into her usual deep frown. “I know you guys have been texting during the break. Thing may have spilled the tea.” Thing at least had the decency to act ashamed. He knew gossiping about Wednesday was off limits and punishable by death.

“He sent me pictures of his drawings, and I would merely respond with my harsh criticism. It is the least I can do to repay him for last semester’s indiscretions.”

“Sure. He did buy you the phone so flirting with him would be the least you can do.”

“I am not flirting.” Enid’s teasing put her on thin ice.

“I’ll believe that when you don’t ‘Wednesday smile’ at your phone every time he texts you. Thing may have spilled that too.”

“What else has Thing told you? Myself and my knife collection would love to know.” Wednesday’s face twisted into an evil look of vile contempt. The thirst for revenge dripped off of every word. Thing pinched Enid. Enough teasing before she gets him killed.

“Okay, enough about Xavier. I’m sorry I brought it up. Have you seen Eugene yet?” Enid quickly changed the subject, hoping bringing up Eugene would be enough to soften Wednesday.

“Tomorrow afternoon is the first hive meeting. I shall see him then.”

“Well, when you do, can you let him know about the bonfire on Friday?” Enid was visibly vibrating with excitement. “We figured after the disaster of last semester we would all get together to welcome in a better year!”

“Hm, end the semester with fire, start the semester with fire. Ironic choice.”

“Don’t be such a party pooper. You’re going, right?”

“Can I start the fire?”

Enid’s eyes widened. She knew anything with fire would be up Wednesday Addams’ alley, but perhaps allowing the psychopath to start said fire wasn’t a good idea. “Only if you promise not to burn the school down.”

Wednesday rolled her eyes. “Now look who is the party pooper.”

“You know, I missed your chaotic personality. My days without you were super boring.” Enid turned away momentarily to start unpacking. “So. Have you started on the sequel to your novel?”

Wednesday began to unpack as well. First, she removed a crowbar, cyanide, and a shrunken head from her suitcase. “Yes. Unfortunately, the development has been quite tedious as of lately. I cannot seem to get past the first few hundred pages.”

“So you have writer’s block?”

“In laments terms, yes. Perhaps it is due to the distraction of being home. Pugsley has been quite insufferable. He has been bullied mercilessly at school in my absence. He barely reacts to electroshock therapy. I must be losing my touch.”

“Maybe he should transfer here!” Enid delightedly suggested. “He can be around other outcasts. In comparison to how spooky you are, he should fit right in.” Thing tapped out his agreeance.

“Nonsense. He must grow a backbone and take care of himself.” Wednesday checked the time on her wristwatch. It was just about time to meet Xavier in his art studio. “I must get going. I will be back late tonight. Don’t wait up.”

“Have fun with Xavier!” Both Enid and Thing waved at her. Wednesday scowled but continued walking. She really must be losing her touch if Enid and Thing find this kind of behavior acceptable.

***

Wednesday quietly let herself into Xavier’s art studio. He had his music loudly playing with his back turned towards the door. He was deep in concertation on a new painting. His studio didn’t change much since the last time she had been inside. New portraits of a raven had replaced the Hyde. Wednesday stood there silently watching Xavier. She wondered how long it would take for him to notice her presence. The thought of startling him brought her a small tinge of joy.

Eventually a new song started playing. Xavier turned towards his radio to skip the song when he finally noticed Wednesday. Just as planned, Wednesday had startled him. “Jesus Christ, can’t you knock?”

“What fun would that be?”

“You know, I didn’t think you’d show up.” Xavier smiled. “You never texted me back that you were coming.”

“I was preoccupied with Enid.” Wednesday took a seat on the stool next to Xavier’s workstation. “Now, show me your new drawing.”

“That’s gotta suck for you being stuck with Enid right now. Ajax told me about their breakup.” Xavier set down his paintbrush and wiped his hands on his paint rag. He crossed his arms on the worktable and leaned towards Wednesday, completely ignoring her demand to see his new drawing.

“Are you hearing impaired? I said show me your new drawing. Or do you not have one interesting enough to show me?” Wednesday raised an eyebrow. “Was this all a ploy to get me to speak with you?”

“Not everything has to be so businesslike. We can still talk and look at my stuff. That’s what friends do.”

Xavier and Enid are two of the only people who do not let Wednesday push them around. While this annoys Wednesday immensely, she can’t help but feel respect. Many are afraid of her; those two are not. Sighing, Wednesday hesitantly agreed to a friendly conversation. “It is horribly inconvenient that Enid is a slave to her feelings, but I must admit I missed our in-person interactions.”

Xavier smiled again. Wednesday seems to be in good spirits tonight. “Did you miss me?”

“I will leave.”

“Fair enough.” Xavier stood up and walked to the table across from them. He picked up a crumpled-up piece of paper, smoothed it out, and handed it to Wednesday. Their fingers briefly touched during the exchange. Wednesday barely acknowledged it as she turned her attention to the paper. Meanwhile Xavier felt a spark of electricity run up his arm, straight to his heart, and down his spine. Ignoring his feelings, he sat down next to her. “Sorry it’s so messy. I kind of just shoved it in my pocket and came here.” On the paper was a raven bleeding profusely with its wings clipped.

“Is this from a vision?” Wednesday asked while studying the paper.

Xavier nodded. “I saw it last night. Wasn’t much to it to be honest.”

“You seem to have a penchant for ravens,” Wednesday said as she glanced up from the drawing. “What is the significance of ravens to you?”

Xavier shrugged. “I don’t know. I’ve always drawn them. I stopped briefly when I started having visions of the Hyde. Recently within the past few weeks though I’ve been seeing ravens again.” Wednesday went to hand the paper back to Xavier when suddenly her head violently shot backwards. In her vision she saw flashes. First she saw herself in the woods. A dark figure was behind the trees taking photos of her. Then she saw this figure again in the Nightshades library. Her vision brought her to an image of Nevermore burning to the ground. Then her head snapped back to normal. Blinking away the haze of her vision, her eyes adjusted to reality.

“Wednesday, are you okay? What did you see?” Xavier was holding Wednesday upright to prevent her from falling backwards on the stool.

Ignoring his question, Wednesday asked, “Who else has my phone number?”

“Um.” Completely taken aback, Xavier had no clue how to respond. “I guess whoever you gave it to?”

“Not what I meant,” Wednesday snapped. She was growing impatient. “You gave me the phone so who did you give my number to?”

“No one.” Although he had nothing to hide, he didn’t like the accusing tone. He thought they had gotten past throwing baseless accusations at each other. “The purpose of me gifting the phone to you was so that you and I could talk. I didn’t pass out your number and announce that Wednesday Addams was joining the 21^st century.”

Wednesday may have believed him, but how did the unsub get her number? “I seem to have a stalker otherwise known as the unsub – the unknown subject." She pulled out her text messages and handed the phone to Xavier. His face scrunched up in confusion as he took the phone from her.

After scrolling through for a minute, Xavier handed the phone back. “Well, I’m not your stalker if that’s what you’re thinking. I would have no way to take any of these photos. But you know, it’s very on brand of you to have a stalker.” He may have been making a joke, but he was worried. Combined with his vision and now Wednesday’s stalker, things could not be heading in the right direction.

“I know it’s not you, Xavier.” He breathed a sigh of relief. “But I need your help in locating who this unsub may be. Can I trust you?”

Xavier looked at her for a moment. Her cold eyes bore into his as she waited for his answer. “Of course you can, Wednesday. You can always trust me.”

The two sat there in silence for a moment, staring at each other. She searched his face for any indication that he may know more than was he was letting on. She found none. “Tomorrow you will show me where you bought the phone. That is where I will begin my investigation into the unsub.”

Xavier didn’t respond right away. Instead, he sat quietly contemplating his next response. Hesitantly, “What was your vision about?”

“That’s on a need-to-know basis.” Pause. “Do not tell anyone about the unsub or you will suffer my wrath. Understood?”

“Crystal clear.”

***

“Wednesday!” Enid called. The following afternoon Wednesday had been on her way to her Hive meeting with Eugene. She stopped and turned to see Enid running towards her. “Wednesday, did you hear?”

“Hear about what?”

“Tyler.” Enid panted. She finally caught up to Wednesday and let herself catch her breath. Wednesday’s eyes widened before narrowing. “Tyler escaped. He morphed into the Hyde and they weren’t able to hold him. Do you think he’s on his way?”

“If he knows what’s good for him, he will stay away.” Wednesday was displeased. She had had enough of her past coming to haunt her. “Do you know when he escaped?”

“No.” Enid shook her head. “No one does. I just heard it from Yoko who heard it from Divina who heard it from Kent who read about it in the Jericho news.”

Wednesday rolled her eyes. “I see I will have to go directly to the source to gather accurate information.”

“Wednesday, I don’t think you should be alone right now. If psycho Tyler is loose, you’re in extreme danger. You're like a total target.”

“I do not need a chaperone.” Wednesday’s scowl deepened. “I pity whoever darkens my doorstep.” Wednesday turned and continued walking towards her destination, leaving Enid behind. Her phone pinged but she did not bother to open it. Unsub or no unsub, she has more important questions that need answering.

***

“Eugene!” Wednesday called. The bee shed’s door opened to reveal a smiling Eugene. He was pleased to be back with his bees and his only friend. “I apologize Eugene, but our hive meeting must wait. Tyler broke out of prison.”

His smile quickly dissipated. “Shit. What are you going to do?”

“I am going to pay Sheriff Galpin a visit.”

“Can I come with? Hummers stick together.”

Wednesday thought for a moment. Last time she involved Eugene, he was seriously injured and spent weeks in a coma. On the other hand, his campy can-do attitude may be useful. “Yes, but you must take the bee suit off first.”

Eugene looked down at himself. “Good call. Wait right here. Bee right back.” He opened the shed door and quickly disappeared inside. Wednesday pulled out her phone. Two unread messages, one from Xavier and one from the unsub. She opened the unsub’s message first.

Are you scared yet? The message read. A photo of her during her vision the previous night was attached to the message. These texts were starting to infuriate her. She didn’t like that the unsub felt like they had a leg up on her.

Next, she opened Xavier’s message. I guess you heard about Tyler. Enid told me you’re going to the source. I’m coming with you. The last thing Wednesday needed was an audience while she questioned Sheriff Galpin. She really didn’t want Eugene with her but had decided he would be useful in distracting the Sheriff’s secretary. No, she responded. Immediately he texted her back, It wasn’t a request.

Perhaps she had two stalkers. One with evil intent and the other determined to annoy her to death. She couldn’t tell which was more frightening. As Eugene was coming back out wearing his school uniform, Xavier walked up. “Hey Xavier. Come to join the hive?” Eugene smiled brightly with his hands on his hips.

Xavier had a grave look on his face. “Sorry Eugene. I’m not here to join. Can I talk to Wednesday alone please? Just for a few minutes.” Eugene looked between Wednesday and Xavier with a confused expression before once again walking back into the shed for the third time.

Xavier turned to face Wednesday. “Look, Enid texted me panicking with all the details about Tyler escaping. She’s afraid he’s going to come looking for you, and I think she’s right. Until he’s back behind bars, I’m not leaving you alone.”

“I can handle myself.” Despite their height difference, Wednesday was easily able to assert her dominance over Xavier. “I do not need your protection. Your presence will only hinder my investigation.”

“Yeah, maybe. Or maybe I’ll save your life. Who knows? All I know is that it’s dangerous for you to be alone. We already know you’re being tracked. We don’t know if it’s Tyler or someone else. You need to be careful. So let me help.”

“And how exactly will you help against a Hyde? Is your plan to draw a couple of spiders and bring them to life?” Wednesday taunted.

Xavier rolled his eyes. “You’re not the only one who gets visions.”

Wednesday crossed her arms over her chest. She had grown bored of this conversation. “Regardless of if I disagree, you still will not do as I say and leave me alone, correct?”

Xavier smiled. He knew he could reason with her. “Exactly. So either you suck it up and willingly let me help or I’ll be your worst nightmare. Your choice, Addams.” He crossed his arms to mimic her. She hated when he got cocky.

“If you insist on riding my coattails like a lost puppy, you must pledge you undying loyalty to me.”

“Scouts honor.” Xavier saluted and smiled. Wednesday felt nauseous at the sight of his over eager smile and his dimples.  

“Eugene!” Wednesday called over her shoulder. “We have a new member of the Hive.”

***

“Sheriff Galpin,” Wednesday authoritatively said as she walked into his office. He was sitting hunched over his desk, coffee cup in one hand and a stack of papers in the other. He looked tired and raggedy.

“Addams, I’ve been expecting you,” he replied while setting down both the coffee cup and the papers. He stood up and shoved his hands into his front pockets. “Let’s get this over with.”

“When did Tyler escape?”

“Listen, you helped us last time, but we will not be pairing up again. You have nothing to worry about when it comes to your safety. I have it handled.” The Sheriff dismissed her and began to sit back down.

Wednesday took out her pocketknife and slammed it directly into Sheriff Galpin’s desk. Xavier, who was standing at the door stared at her with his eyes wide in shock. The Sheriff did not appear phased. He knew he was in for a ride as soon as Wednesday caught wind of his son escaping prison. “I am not asking to pair up. I asked when did. he. escape. I will give you one more chance before I lose my patience, Sheriff.”

“One, you do not give me orders. Two, I will give you one more chance to leave my office before I call in my biggest cops to drag you and your friend out. Is that understood?”

Wednesday leaned over the desk to glare directly into the Sheriff’s eyes. The Sheriff showed little reaction on the outside although felt unsettled by her fierce stare. “I suddenly started to receive cryptic text messages and photos of myself around Nevermore shortly after your son escapes his cell. This is my business, and I will get the answers I require. Let’s try a new question. Maybe you can answer this: do you have the balls to take your own son down when he comes back to Nevermore to finish what he started?”

“Wednesday,” Xavier warned while putting his hand on her shoulder. She refused to be moved.

The Sheriff stood up again but without the same level of intensity as before. He was tired. “You’re out of line.”

“I’d say I’m in line. It’s a fair question to ask when my life as well as others are in jeopardy. Do you want that much blood on your hands?” A minute went by before Wednesday took a step back, but she remained hot-blooded.

Sheriff Galpin sighed. He hated Wednesday Addams, but he knew she was right. Possibly this could be the reason why he hated her so much. “Fine. He escaped last night at around midnight. He morphed into the Hyde and killed all the guards. I have no idea where he went or where he’s going.” The Sheriff put his hands on his hips and looked at the floor. “I talked to him a few times after his arrest. It felt like he and I were finally beginning to act like father and son, despite a plexiglass wall between us. He seemed to be fighting against his darker side without Laurel controlling him.”

“Where is Laurel?”

“Where she belongs. In a maximum-security prison.”

“Have you alerted the prison staff that your son is loose and may come looking to break out his master?”

The Sheriff scrubbed his face with his hand. “Yes, Addams. This isn’t my first rodeo.”

“What are you doing to find Tyler?” Wednesday doubted Sheriff Galpin even had a plan. His small-town police force would be easy for Tyler to evade.

“We are doing our best. I’ve got every cop out there looking for him. Even the surrounding jurisdictions have joined the search.” The Sheriff took a deep breath. He had honestly believed his son could turn over a new leaf and become his innocent son again. “When we do find him, I will personally lock him back up.”

Wednesday grabbed the knife and pulled it out of the Sheriff’s desk. She turned around and started walking towards the door where Xavier had gone back to standing. At the last moment she stopped and turned to face the Sheriff one more time. Her voice grew softer as the anger left her body. “I mean this in the most respectful way. Maybe it’s time to hang up your badge, Sheriff.” The Sheriff breathed loudly out of his nose and turned to look away. As much as he hated Wednesday Addams, she was always right.

Wednesday and Xavier walked out of Sheriff Gaplin’s office and walked towards Eugene. He was talking to the Sheriff’s secretary about the bee’s hibernation cycle. The secretary looked like she was about to fall asleep. When he saw Wednesday and Xavier, he said his goodbyes to the relieved secretary and followed them outside.

“How’d it go? Hey, is that a knife if your hand?” Eugene asked, desperate to know what he missed out on.

Wednesday stopped and cornered Xavier against the building. She still clutched the knife in her right hand. “If you wish to continue this investigation with me, do not ever attempt to stand in my way or I will not hesitate to cut all of your precious fingers off one by one.”

Eugene stood next to them in confusion. “Uh guys? What’s going on? What happened?”

Xavier did not look scared. Instead, he became angry and matched Wednesday’s energy. “You stuck a knife in the Sheriff’s desk and then kicked him while he’s down. Someone had to bring you down a notch or you would have ended up in jail.”

“Dude, you did what?” Eugene felt left out. He had missed all the fun.

“My interrogating methods brought results. I didn’t say anything that was untrue.” Wednesday did not back down. Xavier needed to either be all on board or not at all. She wouldn’t tolerate any less.

“Look, you’re right. You did get some results, but I still don’t agree with your methods. We will have to agree to disagree.” Xavier brushed his loose hanging hair out of his face. “I guess I shouldn’t have expected any less from you. You are bat shit crazy.”

Taking the compliment, Wednesday backed off and put the knife away. “This is your first pass, Xavier. I will not make another exception.”

“Gee thanks.” Together they started walking back in the direction of Nevermore. Eugene was still confused but did not think now was the time to ask. “So, you think Sheriff Gaplin is telling the truth?”

“He seemed a little too pitiful to be deceptive. I don’t think he knows where Tyler is. Neither do I think Tyler is my unsub.”

“Woah, wait.” Eugene stopped walking. “What’s an unsub? Is someone going to fill me in?”

Wednesday and Xavier kept walking. “Come, Eugene. I’ll explain on the way.” Sighing Eugene hurried to catch up. Being friends with Wednesday was exhausting.

***

Wednesday was back in her room later that night working on the sequel to her novel. She had attempted to write the latest chapter at least three times. Each time ended up being crumpled and tossed to the side. Thing and Enid laid on her bed painting each other’s nails. The two were as thick as thieves. Wednesday elected not to share the events of her interrogation with the Sheriff. At least not yet. She had too much on her mind and did not feel like sharing.

Another page was ripped out of the typewriter and thrown across the room. Wednesday groaned in anger and threw her hands up. Thing and Enid barely acknowledged her. Just like Eugene at the police station, they both agreed it was better not to get in Wednesday’s way.

As she was about to begin typing again, her phone pinged. I’m sorry about today. Still friends? – Xavier

I don’t need your apology. - Wednesday

So is that a yes? – Xavier

I will block your number if you keep texting me. – Wednesday

Understood. Sweet dreams, my little fly trap. Xavier included a black heart emoji in his text.

He is insufferable, Wednesday thought to herself. His insecurities regarding their friendship were beginning to seriously grate on her nerves in ways that made her want to pull out her own hair.

“Ooo, is Wednesday Addams smiling?” Enid teased. Thing and Enid had agreed Wednesday does in fact smile in her own way. Her mouth never moves, but her eyes always light up in a barely noticeable way. The two have dubbed this the Wednesday Addams smile, completely unique to only her.

Immediately whatever trace of a smile left her face. She was stuck in a murderous mood all day. Suddenly her phone lit up with a new text. It was her unsub. She opened the text and saw photos of herself with Enid, Eugene and Xavier, Sheriff Galpin, and of herself in her room moments ago while she was texting Xavier. Her unsub must still be nearby. Instantly she jumped up and rushed out the door. “Wednesday? Where are you going?” Enid called after her. When Wednesday didn’t respond, she immediately opened her phone and began to dial Xavier’s number. Wednesday had no time to explain. She must locate her unsub while they were still in the vicinity. She would not let them get away so easily.

Chapter Text

Wednesday’s heart was pounding as she ran after her unsub. She had seen a retreating figure running towards the woods. Stopping to assess her surroundings and catch her breath, she twirled in a circle looking up and down far and wide, trying to find any sign of where her unsub could be hiding. She saw nothing. She heard nothing.

Suddenly she heard twigs breaking under footsteps with a loud crack behind her. Swirling around, Wednesday saw Xavier walking up behind her. “Xavier. What are you doing here?”

“Wednesday.” Xavier stuck his hands out like he was calming a scared animal. He started taking a few slow steps towards her. Wednesday’s attention turned to her pocket as her phone vibrated. A text from her stalker. All her stalker sent was a photo of her and Xavier in the woods from a bird’s eye view and a laughing emoji.

“He’s still here,” she said, whipping her head up to look at the treetops.

Xavier held his hand out towards her. “Let me see your phone.” She handed her phone over, still open to the text, with no argument. He looked through the recent texts and then lifted his head towards the direction he assumed the unsub was hiding. “Wednesday, look.” He pointed towards a tree on their left.

Wednesday walked over to the tree and looked up. There was no one behind or in the tree, but it would definitely make sense for her unsub to have been hiding there when they took the picture. She placed her hand on the tree trunk to support herself as she scanned the tree when her head flew back into its familiar position during her visions.

In her vision she saw herself and Enid trapped in a brick room. She couldn’t make out where they were or how they had gotten trapped. All she could hear was Enid screaming and panicking.

She came back to earth with Xavier standing close beside her, protecting her from any potential sneak attacks in case her stalker was still hiding in the shadows. “Alright, you have to start telling me what kind of visions you’re having.”

Wednesday started making her way towards the shed. “Not here.” Xavier, understanding where she was headed, ran in front of her so he could unlock the door. Once inside, Xavier locked the door behind them and started covering up all the windows while Wednesday took a seat. Once finished, he sat down in front of her. Wednesday really looked at Xavier for the first time since he joined her in the woods. “Where are your shoes?”

Xavier looked down at his bare feet. He hadn’t noticed before, but his feet were cold and wet from the light rain early in the evening. “Enid called me right when I was getting ready for bed. I didn’t have time to grab a coat or put on shoes.” They sat in silence for a moment. Xavier was the first one to break the silence. “Tell me everything.”

Wednesday stared at him for a moment. Last year she suspected him of murder. Now she is telling him all of her secrets. “My first vision was a series of flashes. One of them has already come true. I was standing in the woods while the unsub took photos of me. Then I saw him in the Nightshades library. I couldn’t see what he was doing in there. Finally, I saw Nevermore burning to the ground.”

“And your most recent vision?”

“Enid and I were trapped in a brick room. Again, I couldn’t see much. My visions lately are not offering much insight into what’s to come.”

“We should warn the others. They can help keep watch and prepare for whatever is coming.”

“Warn them of what?” she snapped. “We have nothing to go off of. We don’t have any clues, no evidence.”

Xavier sat there for a moment lost in thought. His brain was working in overdrive trying to think of their next best move. Suddenly he thought of something. He sprang up and started searching through a stack of drawings. He never liked to throw any of them away because he never knew when he might need to refer back to them. Finding the one he wanted, he pulled it out and thrusted it in Wednesday’s hands. “Is this the brick room you saw in your vision?”

Wednesday stared down at the drawing in her hand. Xavier had drawn a 4x4 brick room similar to that of a nuclear bomb shelter. The bricks stacked on top of bricks looked identical to what she saw in her vision. “When did you draw this?”

“About two weeks ago,” he said, taking back the drawing. He looked down at his drawing with his eyebrows furrowed together. “I didn’t know what it meant at first. It was a real head scratcher.”

“Have you ever seen this room before?”

“No.” Xavier sighed defeatedly. Both of them sat in silence for a moment. They were getting somewhere but still kept hitting a brick wall. “I think this is more than we can handle alone. Like our visions combined are starting to give us more of an idea of where to go, but we keep getting stuck. Seriously Wednesday, we need to include the Nightshades right now. Maybe they’ll be able to help.”

Wednesday did not want to include others in her investigation. She was used to working alone. But Xavier was right. She needed to start accepting help if she wanted to make headway in this case. “We shall hold a meeting in the Nightshades library. During this time, we must keep a diligent watch for any unwanted guests.”

“Great. I’ll let Bianca know.”

***

“Enid.” Enid looked up and smiled at Wednesday, but the smile didn’t reach her eyes. “Why have you been texting and calling Xavier so much?” Enid’s smile dropped and her shoulders slumped. Thing who was sitting on Enid’s bed closed the magazine he was flipping through. Enid and Thing have been spending an awful lot of time together ever since being reunited. This was unusual as Thing used to be Wednesday’s right-hand man. Wednesday made a mental note to confront him regarding his loyalty.

Enid sighed and said, “Don’t get mad at me, okay?” Wednesday nodded. “I’m depressed because of my breakup with Ajax. I know I’m supposed to be your best friend and run after you when you need me, but like I don’t have the energy. I can barely get out of bed without feeling a heaviness in my heart. I can’t even wolf out! So I’ve been taking the easy way out and making Xavier watch out for you for me. It’s so selfish, I know.”

“Is that why Thing has been spending so much time with you?” Wednesday folded her arms and glared at Thing. Thing used half sign language, half morse code to respond. “Well, I can’t say I am angry with you for putting your interests above mine. I would have done the same.”

“I’m sorry,” Enid said. She stood up and moved to meet Wednesday in the center of the room. “I’m being a bad friend, and I’m really sorry. I know you think feelings are a weakness, and you’re right. I shouldn’t let a boy get to me like this.”

Wednesday felt bad for Enid. She knew piercing Ajax’s heart with a nail gun wouldn’t make Enid feel better, so she did the next best thing. “Enid, would you like to paint my nails?”

Enid’s eyes grew wide in shock, and she began to smile. A real smile this time. “Wednesday Addams wants me to paint her nails? Are you dying?”

Wednesday rolled her eyes. “If it will make you feel better, then yes. I will only allow black though.”

Enid screeched in excitement and threw her arms around her best friend. Wednesday’s arms stayed glued to her sides, but she did not back away. “You’re such a big softie, you know that?”

Wednesday followed Enid to her side of the room and took a seat at Enid’s desk. “Do not make me change my mind.” Thing gave Wednesday a thumbs up in approval. Wednesday filled in the two about the unsub, her visions, and her partnership with Xavier while Enid happily got to work.

***

The next day Wednesday and the Nightshades met up at the pre-determined destination. Enid was allowed to join the Nightshades after her heroic efforts in defeating Tyler. Xavier had gotten Bianca up to speed, who had briefed the rest of the Nightshades.

The slight tension in the room was caused by Ajax and Enid’s close proximity. Neither of them would make eye contact and stood on opposite sides of the room. Both of them counting down the minutes until they could leave. Wednesday glared at Ajax once before turning her attention to the rest of the Nightshades. Thing sat on top of her shoulder making her look like a gothic pirate.

“Does anyone have any idea where this room may be located or even the significance?” Wednesday asked. The room was silent as everyone thought about it for a moment.

Bianca was the first to speak. “I think it may be located somewhere in Nevermore. Like a secret panic room.”

“Perhaps.” Wednesday looked around the room for further insight.

“You know,” Ajax began. “Completely unrelated, but Xavier’s new roommate is kind of sus. I don’t really know how to explain it, but dude’s got weird vibes.”

Wednesday looked towards Xavier with an accusing expression. “Hey, I haven’t been around much to get to know the guy. I really only see him at night before bed and when I wake up in the morning.” Xavier raised his hands in defense.

“We must keep our eyes on him. What is your roommate's name?” Wednesday demanded.

“Oliver,” Xavier answered. Oliver, Wednesday thought, are you my newest foe?

“I have ordered surveillance equipment. It is scheduled to arrive tomorrow.” Wednesday looked at Thing on her shoulder. “You will install one camera at the entrance, the second pointed towards the stairs, and the third camera right there.” She pointed at the top left corner of the room. “Enid will assist me in downloading the necessary application on my cellular device to watch the cameras. When someone comes in or out of this room, I will be notified.”

“What do you need from us?” Bianca asked.

“Your constant suspicion. No one is to be trusted. Not even ourselves.” Everyone anxiously looked around at each other. Ajax and Enid accidentally made eye contact.  Enid quickly looked away, but Ajax’s eyes lingered a little longer before looking down. “It is time the Nightshades went back to their intended purpose of protecting Nevermore.” Wednesday pointedly looked at Bianca.

Bianca snorted. “Well until you got here, there was no reason to protect Nevermore. It seems like you brought all of the doom and gloom.”

“Yes,” Wednesday said as she started up the stairs, dismissing the group. Enid started to follow. “It’s kind of my thing.” Enid’s lingo was starting to rub off on Wednesday.

***

Wednesday made her way over to Xavier’s room. She wanted to meet his new roommate Oliver in person to get a feel for him. Thing sat in her backpack. He had a talk earlier in the day with Wednesday and agreed to participate more. Wednesday would not allow anymore insubordination.

As she made her way down the hallway leading to Xavier’s room, she watched Bianca exit from his door. As Bianca started to walk past Wednesday, they made eye contact and nodded towards each other. Wednesday felt suspicion grow inside of her. Seconds later Wednesday knocked on Xavier’s door. The door immediately opened. Xavier thought Bianca may have come back having forgotten something, so he was surprised to see Wednesday glowering up at him. “Hey, Wednesday. Come in. What’s up?”

“I see your room is very popular tonight,” Wednesday said as she walked in. She looked around, surveying his room. Not much had changed other than the new belongings of his roommate on the other side of the room. “Why was Bianca here?”

“Probably for the same reason you’re here. She wanted to talk. Isn’t that why you’re here?” Xavier walked over to his bed and sat down. Wednesday remained standing in the middle of the room.

“I wanted to meet your new roommate. Is he here?”

“No.” Xavier shook his head. “Ajax is right. He is kind of strange. He’s literally only here to sleep. I still haven’t said more than just hi goodbye to the guy. I don’t even know where he goes during the day.”

Wednesday looked towards Oliver’s side of the room. Thing remained inside of Wednesday’s backpack. He could feel tension building inside the room at the mention of Bianca and decided it was better to stay hidden. Wednesday began to search through Oliver’s things as she nonchalantly interrogated Xavier. “Are you and Bianca seeing each other?”

“What?” Xavier’s face twisted in confusion. “Why are you asking me that?”

“You know I don’t like when you answer a question with a question.” Wednesday picked up Oliver’s bedspread and scanned underneath his bed. Remembering Rowan’s secret compartment under his bed last year, Wednesday dropped to her knees and crawled underneath. Nothing was kept in the secret compartment. She stood up and scowled with her arms crossed. Oliver’s side of the room was surprisingly empty. She couldn’t find any personal belongings. Just a toothbrush and some clothes. How disappointing. Finally, Wednesday turned towards Xavier. She stared at him, making him feel uncomfortable under her gaze. “You cannot allow yourself to get distracted by the opposite sex. You must focus on our case.”

Xavier rolled his eyes. “You’re mad at me because you think Bianca and I are back together? Because I might be distracted? Do you hear yourself?”

“I said what I said. If you are going to help me with this investigation, I need your total and complete focus. Do I have that from you? Yes or no?”

“I think you’re jealous.” Xavier smirked and stood up, walked over to his desk, and leaned on it when his arms and legs crossed. “You don’t want me to give another girl more attention than I give you.”

Now it was Wednesday’s turn to roll her eyes. “I will not apologize for expecting your absolute commitment to this case. If you cannot do that, you are no longer on the case.”

“Well, I’m not back together with Bianca so you can relax.” Xavier pushed back his hair from his face with his hand. “But so what? So what if I were interested in someone? You don’t control what I do.”

“This is not about relationships and attraction to the opposite sex. You said I can trust you. Can I trust you to focus and not get lost in your emotions?”

Xavier sighed. Wednesday was demanding and difficult. At times it was hard being her friend, but he was dedicated to making their friendship work. “Yes. You can always trust me, Wednesday. I’m not going anywhere. But I need you to trust me. I haven’t done anything to make you distrust me. In fact, I’ve always had your back. No matter what.”

Wednesday remained silent. She stood there and thought about all the times Xavier had been there for her. He saved her from death, he had warned her early on about Tyler, he came to her rescue with his bow and arrow during the battle with Joseph Crackstone, and he had forgiven her after she accused him of murder. If anything, she had given him more reason to distrust her. Suddenly a new question came to mind. “Why do you try so hard to be my friend?”

Xavier looked down and smiled to himself, pushing himself off his desk. He took a step towards Wednesday. “I don’t fully understand it myself sometimes. On the one hand, it’s because I like you. Not just like as a girl, but I really like you. You’re different from everyone else. You’re interesting and cool and badass.” Xavier chuckled and scratched his chin. Wednesday raised her eyebrow at him. “Not many girls know kung fu or how to sword fight. I mean, you took an arrow for me. Automatically that entitles you to my friendship. But. . .” Xavier’s voice trailed off. His eyes became distant as if he were searching for the right words written above her head. “I also feel like I’m compelled to be around you. It’s almost like a compulsion. Like something is pulling me towards you no matter how hard I try to pull away. And I’ve tried. I try really hard when you piss me off or disregard my feelings. I’ll think, you know what, this is it. I’m done. And then I’m pulled right back to you. I don’t get it.”

Wednesday looked down and folded her hands neatly in front of her. “Perhaps you should try harder.”

“Pssh. No. Never.” He shook his head. “Believe it or not, I like being your friend. I just wish you tried a little bit harder at the friend part. I wish you’d trust me like I trust you.”

“Xavier,” Wednesday sighed. “You know I am an emotionless black hole. To expect more from me is foolish.”

He took a step closer. Now they were nose to nose, toe to toe. He looked down at her. “I know that, and I’m not trying to change you, Wednesday. I’m not asking for you to start smiling and being overly affectionate like Enid. I’m just asking for you to stop thinking the worst of me. We always take a step forward, and two steps back. You finally let me be apart of your investigation, and now you’re back to interrogating me. This time for something as stupid as potentially liking another girl.”

“Friendships are a distraction and can be exploited.”

“So you’re afraid I’ll distract you with my good looks?” Xavier smirked. He knew that’s not what Wednesday meant but could not resist the urge to tease her. Her scowl deepened as she glared up at him. “Then why are you friends with Enid and Eugene? They aren’t a distraction? They can’t be exploited?”

“Maybe you have a point.” Wednesday’s intensity started to let up. “Friendship is new to me. I don’t quite know how to navigate them if I am being truthful.”

“That’s okay, Wednesday.” Xavier’s tone softened. He appreciated that she was being honest with him. He took a step back from her and smiled. “I’m a pretty patient guy. I know we’ll probably never be close, but I’m okay with baby steps.” He paused, then a thought came to mind. “Are you going to the bonfire on Friday? You want to go with me? I’m not asking you to be my date. Just as friends.”

“I was interested until Enid told me I can’t start the fire.”

Xavier laughed. He enjoyed her dry deadpan humor, even if she was being dead serious. “You know, that doesn’t exactly answer my question. Will you go with me?” He repeated.

Wednesday thought about it. Perhaps she should put in an effort to be friends with Xavier. He has had her back multiple times and deserves at least baby steps. “I will go with you. As friends.”

His smile grew. He felt as if he finally got through to her. “Great. And hey, there’s nothing going on with me and Bianca. She actually came here just to ask for advice about that normie guy Lucas. She’s crushing hard on him.”

Wednesday turned to let herself out. “I didn’t ask.”

“Yeah, well thought you should know. I’m not interested in any girls right now.”

“Goodnight, Xavier,” Wednesday said as she shut the door behind her. Xavier was left standing alone in his room, smiling to himself. He still liked her, but he could handle being just friends for now. She was worth waiting for.

Thing popped out from the backpack. Wednesday glared at him before he was able to say anything about the conversation she had just had with Xavier. “Wait here for Oliver to come back. Don’t let him out of your sight.” Thing hopped down and quietly snuck back into Xavier’s room. After Wednesday had gotten back to her room, she received a new text. It was a bonfire gif sent from the unsub. They had been listening to her and Xavier’s conversation.

***

The next day was the first official day of classes since everyone was back. Principal Larissa Weems was replaced by the fencing teacher, Mr. Hynes. Wednesday had wondered why they would have promoted someone so under qualified but did not dwell on it. She figured any redeeming qualities – if any – would be discovered soon enough next time she was disciplined in the same office that used to be commanded by Principal Weems.

Xavier and Wednesday maintained their seating arrangement from last year. The carnivorous plants lesson was completely changed to Greek mythology because of the difficulty finding an educator with the same level of knowledge as Miss Thornhill on such short notice. This new teacher’s name was Mrs. Andrea White. She was a frail older woman with white hair and spectacles. Wednesday was determined to do her research on this woman and would remain suspicious until proven otherwise. For now, she sat in her chair silently staring ahead. Xavier sat in his seat bent over his notebook. He was focusing on a new drawing. They hadn’t spoken much since their conversation last night.

The room was filled with voices as everyone got settled into the classroom. Mrs. White was about to begin her lecture when a new student walked through the door. Xavier glanced up when he heard the door open. His pencil abruptly stopped, and he nudged Wednesday with his elbow. He didn’t need to draw Wednesday’s attention to the new student. Her eyes were already focused on him. Finally, she will meet Oliver.

Wednesday barely heard Mrs. White as she made her standard introduction of the new student. Oliver smiled awkwardly as he stood at the front of the class. His coke bottle glasses made his eyes look massive on his small round face. He stood about three inches taller than Xavier, but you would never know due to his consistent slouch. He was rail thin and looked easy to snap in half. Wednesday compared him to a fly, and she couldn’t wait to bring out her electric flyswatter.

Oliver quickly took his seat at the front of the class. There was only one spot available, and this was next to Kent. Kent glanced at his friends in the classroom. As instructed by Wednesday, he remained suspicious and did his part to watch Oliver without drawing attention.

Wednesday watched Oliver the entire period. Not once did he do anything out of the ordinary. He listened and took notes as Mrs. White carried on with her lecture. If anything, he looked entirely out of place from the other teenagers who were sitting around him. Some were texting, some were falling asleep.

As the lecture came to an end, everyone gathered their things and left the room. Wednesday walked over to Oliver’s desk and stood between him and the door. At last, she had him trapped. “Hello, Oliver. I’ve been dying to meet you.” She noticed he smelled like peppermint and vanilla buttercream. She knew the smell but couldn’t quite place where she knew it from.

Oliver smiled up at Wednesday with poise and grace. It was odd. It was almost like he expected Wednesday to corner him after class. “Hello Wednesday. It is good to finally meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you.”

“Really.” Wednesday’s face was unreadable. Xavier hovered in the doorway, watching them. “I can’t imagine you heard much seeing as how you seem to be an enigma to the school.”

Oliver continued to smile at Wednesday, seemingly unaware of her intense scrutiny. “I don’t think I understand what you mean.” Wednesday’s eyes flared. He’s playing dumb, she thought. “If you don’t mind, I must get to my next class. I will be seeing you later, Wednesday.” Oliver stood up, slung his backpack around his shoulder, and walked past both Wednesday and Xavier. Wednesday and Xavier’s eyes met for a second before they nodded. They both agreed; Oliver is suspicious.

***

Hey – Xavier

Do you have any new information for me? – Wednesday

Yeah. I found my receipt for your phone. At the top, it has the sales associate’s name who helped me set it up. Her name is Abby. – Xavier

We need to go to the store you made the purchase at. Now. – Wednesday

***

Xavier had taken Wednesday to the AT&T store in Jericho where he made the purchase but was met with disappointment. Abby no longer worked for AT&T. In fact, she quit shortly after she had helped Xavier. Despite Wednesday’s intimidation tactics, she was unable to extract Abby’s last name from the manager. All they knew was Abby would have access to Wednesday’s phone number and might be connected to the unsub. But what could a random AT&T associate have to do with Wednesday and Nevermore?

***

The walk back to Nevermore was silent. Both Wednesday and Xavier ran through hundreds of scenarios in their minds. They finally had their first clue, but it still made no sense. As they neared the school, Xavier was the first to speak. “I’m sorry.”

Wednesday’s trail of thought was derailed, much to her irritation. She glanced up at him through her peripheral. “For what?”

“If I didn’t buy you the phone, you wouldn’t have a stalker.” A heavy pit grew in Xavier’s stomach as his chest tightened with guilt.

“It was inevitable.” Wednesday’s eyes remained forward. She didn’t have time for Xavier’s insecurities. “Regardless of if you are at fault, the unsub would have found one way or another to make their presence known. You held the match, and the unsub lit it.”

“It doesn’t mean I enjoy enabling someone’s plot to harm my friends.” Xavier’s jaw locked in anger. Knowing he was at fault in hand delivering Wednesday on a silver platter made him more determined to find the unsub. He promised himself that when they figured out who it was, he was going to put them down in ways Wednesday would have approved of. Payback is a bitch.

They continued walking in silence until they reached Ophelia Hall. Xavier said goodbye while Wednesday continued walking up the stairs. Upon walking through the door, Enid bounced in front of her. “I need your advice. How do I act like I don’t care when I really really really really do care?” Enid’s eyes were bloodshot and her cheeks puffy with dried tear streaks.

“Is this about Ajax?” Wednesday asked while pushing past her best friend. She walked over to her side of the room and picked up her medieval mace. She walked back to Enid and handed the mace to her. “If something bothered me as much as your breakup has, I would eliminate the enemy.”

Enid stared at the mace in her hand. “He doesn’t even look like he cares or like he misses me. He just makes me so mad.” Her claws shot out of her fingers as she clenched the mace tighter in her fist. As quickly as her anger appeared, it evaporated. “But I don’t think I could hurt him.” Her grip on the mace loosened and it fell to the floor with a heavy clunk. Her shoulders slumped and she began to cry.

“Enid, look at me,” Wednesday commanded. Enid looked at her through her tears. “If you do not wish to inflict physical harm against him, then you must destroy him verbally.”

Enid shook her head. “Wednesday, I don’t want to hurt him. I just want to know why and if it hurts him as much as it hurts me. I never cared about a boy this much before.”

“I see.” Wednesday thought for a moment. “Have you tried talking to him?” Enid shook her head. “Then I say you should go to him and demand answers. Don’t leave until you get the closure you desire.”

“Isn’t that intrusive?”

“Who cares? You cannot allow yourself to go on hurting like this. If you cannot move forward without closure, then go get it. But if you don’t get the closure you want, you must accept it and move on.”

Enid stood silently and thought about what Wednesday said. She wished she were more like Wednesday. She was strong and didn’t let things get to her. Meanwhile Enid felt weak and pathetic for letting a boy get so far under her skin. “You’re right. I should talk to him. But when?”

Wednesday raised an eyebrow. “Why not now?”

“I can’t be in his room this late! What about his roommate?”

“WWWD?” Wednesday walked to her typewriter and sat down. She began to work as Enid slowly started to smile, remembering the acronym she used last year at the Poe Cup. What Would Wednesday Do. Wednesday wouldn’t sit around crying. Wednesday would sneak into Ajax’s room and demand answers.

Enid grabbed her jacket and raced out the door. “Thank you!” she called behind her shoulder. The door closed with a slam. Wednesday was grateful for a moment of silence. She sat at her typewriter for a few minutes, but no words came out. After she had had enough staring, she grabbed her cello and went out onto her balcony. She supposed she was more in the mood for music anyway. Xavier, who was alone in his room, could hear Wednesday begin to play. He smiled to himself. He had missed the sound of her playing. Xavier wasn’t the only one listening. Somewhere in the shadows, the unsub began taking photos.

***

Enid quickly texted Ajax before she could talk herself out of it. Wednesday was right. She needed to be strong and get her closure. Enid paced anxiously back and forth behind the greenhouse. She hoped Ajax would show up even though he didn’t text her back. Checking the time on her phone, she promised herself to give him five more minutes. After that she would go back to her room.

Four minutes passed before Ajax rounded the corner. Enid abruptly stopped pacing and the two stared at each other. Ajax nervously rubbed his nose. “Sorry I’m late. I had to sneak past the dorm master.”

“We need to talk.” Enid put her hands behind her back. Ajax nodded. All the courage she felt suddenly left her body. She kept asking herself WWWD and she knew Wednesday would face Ajax head on. She took a deep breath and said, “You broke up with me over text and now you’re walking around like you don’t care. I don’t understand how you can go from telling me you love me to just forgetting about me. About us.”

Ajax looked down and took a deep breath. He didn’t say anything for a while. The anxiety in Enid’s stomach started to burst into her heart and lungs, but she stood strong. She wasn’t going to cry in front of him. Then he looked back at her. “I do care, and I do love you. Look, I just feel like we were in a rut. During the break we didn’t get to see each other so it was all over text. There’s only so much of a relationship you can have long distance. When I said we needed some time apart, I meant I wanted space to think about if it was us or maybe just me.”

“That’s stupid,” Enid said. She now took her hands out from behind her back and crossed them over her chest. “If you felt that way, you should have communicated with me.”

“I was afraid you would get mad at me.”

“So this is better?” She yelled. Her claws clicked out from her fingertips. “I’ve been depressed since you broke up with me. All I do is cry in my room alone wondering why the hell you couldn’t have at least broken up with me to my face. You know how much that hurts? To feel like you aren’t even worth an in person break up?”

Ajax refused to make eye contact. “I never wanted to hurt you, Enid,” he mumbled.

Enid rolled her eyes. “Well, you did. If you had just been up front with me about how you were feeling, we could have worked it out. Maybe I was feeling the same way? A texting relationship sucks, and I couldn’t wait to come back to Nevermore to see you. Unlike you, I knew that the feeling would pass as soon as we saw each other.”

Ajax stood quietly while Enid caught her breath. He had expected her to be angry with him, and he deserved it. “I’m sorry.”

His apology made Enid slightly less angry. At least he was sorry for what he did. “Now that you’ve had your space, what do you think?”

Ajax finally looked at her with sadness in his eyes. “I miss you. I’ve been depressed too. Not eating, sleeping. None of that.”

“Good,” Enid said smugly. Wednesday was right; sometimes other people’s misery felt good.

Ajax took a step closer. Enid’s heart began to race. “You’re right. About everything. I should have talked to you about how I was feeling, and I should have waited for us to come back before making such a rash decision. Especially not over text. That was stupid. I should have called you at least. I’m an idiot. It was dumb and impulsive. You deserve better. I’m sorry.”

Enid’s posture softened. She took a step towards him. “I accept your apology.”

Ajax smiled. They had only been dating for four months, but Enid meant everything to him. Seeing her hurting and acting unlike herself knowing it was him who caused it absolutely destroyed him. Truth be told, he had regretted his decision as soon as he sent the breakup text, but it had been too late to change his mind, so he stupidly doubled down. It was his biggest regret. “Will you take me back, Enid?”

She pursed her lips and thought about what Wednesday would do. She decided she couldn’t let Ajax off the hook too easily. “Maybe. But first you have to prove to me that you actually mean everything you said. An apology is just the first step.”

Ajax’s brow furrowed together in confusion. “That’s fair, but how do I prove it to you?”

“That’s something you need to figure out.” Enid turned around and left Ajax alone standing behind the greenhouse. With her back turned she smiled and rejoiced internally. She was proud of herself for staying strong and not allowing Ajax to get away with breaking her heart. She knew she would take him back probably by the end of the week, but she wanted to see him sweat it out for a bit. When she got back to her shared room with Wednesday, she received a text from Ajax. I really am sorry and will do whatever it takes to prove that to you. Goodnight. He had sent her two pink heart emojis. Wednesday looked over at Enid from her bed with a raised eyebrow. “Everything is going to be fine.” Enid said with a smile.

***

The day of the bonfire had arrived, and all the students were bubbling with excitement. It was all anyone could talk about. Wednesday found all of the excitement nauseating.

Thing had returned from trailing Oliver. He had nothing interesting to report back. Oliver went to class and for the most part stayed to himself. Thing found that Oliver spent most of his time in the library reading to himself. He seemed to only interact with Principal Hynes and for the most part did his best not to make any waves. Thing had concluded that Oliver was just a shy new kid with no friends. This didn’t entirely rule him out in Wednesday’s eyes, but she decided to shift her focus to uncovering who Abby was.

Wednesday and Thing broke into the AT&T store to attempt to find Abby’s employee file. Unfortunately, her file was erased from the manager’s computer and the paper file had been shredded. Highly unusual as she had just quit her job four months ago and the required retention timeframe is three years.

Along with investigating Abby, Wednesday was keeping tabs on Sheriff Galpin and Tyler. Tyler hadn't attempted to break out Laurel or come out of hiding yet. Sheriff Galpin’s daily routine hadn’t changed either. He still seemed to have no clue where his son might be.

The unsub had remained silent since the last text after she agreed to go to the bonfire with Xavier. She was growing frustrated at the lack of progress. It was one dead end after another, and she still hadn’t been able to locate the secret panic room from her vision. Wednesday did not like this feeling of failure.

Then it happened.

Enid and Wednesday were in their room together getting ready for the bonfire. Enid was finishing up her makeup while Wednesday was collecting her matches and gasoline when Enid’s phone vibrated. Excitedly she picked it up expecting a text from Ajax. Instead, it was a picture of Xavier and Wednesday in his art studio sent from an unknown number. They were staring at each other as they sat closely together. “Um, Wednesday. Can you explain what the hell this is?” She stuck her phone out in her friend’s direction.

Wednesday walked over and took the phone in her hands. Her eyes darkened; her lips pulled into a tight scowl. Somehow her stalker had found Enid’s number. “Do you have your phone number posted on any social media sites for the public to view?”

Enid shook her head immediately, but then a thought crept into her mind. “Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit!” Wednesday raised her brow towards Enid. “Facebook. I have my number under my contact info. It’s set to public.” Enid face palmed herself.

“Enid,” Wednesday seethed. “I don’t think I have to remind you how dangerous that is to post your number publicly. Especially when there is an unsub prowling the halls of Nevermore.”

“I know, I know. I’m sorry. I haven’t thought about that in years.” Enid looked at the picture again and unbelievably began to smile. Wednesday looked at her in confusion. “You wanna tell me why you and Xavier are staring deeply into each other’s eyes like this?”

Wednesday rolled her eyes and walked back to her side of the room. “Before you start, there is nothing between Xavier and I.”

“Really?” Enid followed her to the other side of the room. “This photo looks a little too spicy for there to be nothing there. You can tell me if there is. I’m your bestie. I won’t tell.” Wednesday turned to glare at her bestie.  

“Whatever,” Enid said, giving up. “Whenever you want to admit that you have insane chemistry with our resident tortured artist, you know where to find me.” Wednesday contemplated pushing her best friend into the fire tonight if she didn’t stop the teasing accusations. To calm herself, she instead focused on the unsub. Now that the unsub was involving Enid, she realized she had to find the secret panic room from her vision and fast.

***

Unfortunately, Wednesday wasn’t allowed to start the fire, which only added to her sour mood. Xavier noticed her attitude and did his best to cheer her up. He found a large stick on his way to the spot and handed it to her. She took it and tossed it directly into the fire. Her eyes glowed as the flames engulfed the stick. Xavier stared down at her and smiled. He must have stared for too long because Enid noticed. She annoyingly winked at Wednesday but kept her mouth shut.

Wednesday was growing tired of the festivities around her. Her peers crudely danced to obnoxious pop music around the fire. She couldn’t stand this kind of mindless entertainment meant for horny teenagers. Everyone was having a great time except for Wednesday. Xavier nudged Wednesday’s side with his elbow and pointed to a quieter spot where some of their friends were sitting. This area she could tolerate more.

They headed over and sat down on two lawn chairs next to Bianca, Divina, Yoko, and Kent. Enid and Ajax were off by themselves in the other direction. “Before you start,” Bianca said, holding up a finger, knowing exactly where Wednesday’s train of thought was heading. “The Nightshades are off the clock. Tonight is meant for us to have fun. We can talk about your investigation on Monday.”

“Unfortunately, we do not have the luxury to take the weekend off.” Wednesday glared at Bianca. The small group of friends all became uncomfortable due to the two girls’ animosity. “The unsub has begun sending Enid text messages. They obtained her number off of the Facebook app. I suggest all of you set your accounts to private immediately if you haven’t already.”

Divina, Yoko, and Kent looked at each other nervously. Bianca remained unphased. “What did the unsub send to Enid?”

Xavier looked to Wednesday. He was surprised she didn’t tell him about this new information first. “They sent her a picture of Xavier and I in his art shed.” Xavier and Bianca had matching expressions; both of their eyes grew to the size of giant saucers and their mouths hung open. The others started laughing. “We were not in a compromised position if that is what your face is insinuating. This photo was taken while I was explaining the messages I had been receiving from the unsub.” Bianca looked at Xavier for confirmation, and his cheeks began to turn a bright shade of pink at the thought of being in a compromising position with Wednesday.

“Hopefully I don’t receive any kind of those texts,” Kent joked. “I can do without seeing any kind of ‘compromising positions’ you two have going on.” Divina and Yoko laughed while Bianca still remained skeptical. She may not have any lingering romantic feelings for Xavier but considering how close him and Wednesday were getting she found it hard to believe the photo was harmless.

“Xavier and I are just partners in this case. Nothing more.” Wednesday didn’t mean any harm in her statement; however, Xavier became offended by the mention of just being her partner. He thought they were past their businesslike relationship and were actually friends.

Xavier roughly stood up from his seat and walked off. Wednesday stared at his retreating figure. “Are you going to go after him?” Bianca asked.

“I don’t know why he’s upset.” Wednesday genuinely didn’t understand. There was nothing romantic between them so there was no reason for his departure.

Bianca scoffed at her. “Girl, you can’t be this clueless.” Wednesday turned her full attention to Bianca. She smirked at Wednesday’s naivety as she continued. “Look, Xavier is trying really hard to just be friends with you, but he’s still hopelessly in love with you. God knows why. I understand that you don’t reciprocate those feelings because you feel like you are above love and relationships, but that doesn’t mean you have to stomp all over his feelings. You just called him out in front of all of us here and then reduced your friendship with him to just being your partner. You need to go to him and apologize.”

Wednesday didn’t respond. She sat there for a few more seconds while the group looked at her expectantly. Finally, she got off her seat and walked in the direction Xavier went. “God, those two are so complicated,” Bianca groaned and rolled her eyes before changing the subject.

***

“Xavier!” Wednesday called as she got closer. She picked up her pace to catch up while he increased his speed.

“Go away, Wednesday.” He wasn’t in the mood to talk. He just wanted to get to his studio and blow off some steam.

“Xavier, I’m sorry,” she said. This made him stop, but he did not turn around. He waited for her to catch up before continuing to walk. They walked side by side the rest of the way to the studio. Reluctantly he held the door open for her and let her inside against his better judgement.

Once inside he turned to face her. Per usual, her face remained emotionless and stoic. Let’s get this over with he thought. “Alright, you said it. Now finish your apology.” He crossed his arms over his chest and looked expectantly towards her, waiting.

Wednesday’s eyebrows furrowed together. Apologizing was never something she was good at. “What am I supposed to finish? I said I’m sorry.”

Xavier rolled his eyes. “That was a good start, but I want to hear why. I need to know why you’re apologizing.”

Wednesday groaned. He was going to make her grovel. “I am sorry I embarrassed you in front of everyone and made you feel like we are not friends. It was not my intention.”

He stood there looking at her for a moment. Her apology did nothing to settle his anger. “How many times do we have to have this conversation? Wasn’t it like two days ago when I told you I wanted you to try harder at being friends? I see I’m just wasting my breath because you’re not listening.”

Wednesday raised her eyebrows. “It was a miscalculation on my part. I heard you, Xavier. I wasn’t aware that we had to announce our friendship to our peers.”

Xavier’s irritation grew. “You don’t have to go around telling everyone we’re friends, but I don’t ever want to be referred to as just your partner like we’re in some kind of lame cop show.”

Wednesday took a step closer and looked up at her friend. “As I said, I am sorry, and I understand my misstep. I will try harder to consider my words before I speak in the future.”

After a moment of consideration, a small smile grew on Xavier’s lips. “Okay. Thank you. I appreciate it. I know how hard it is for you to admit when you’re wrong.” Xavier couldn’t help but notice how close they were standing. He still found it disappointing how everyone but Wednesday could see their chemistry. “You know, the night’s still semi young. Have you eaten today?” Truthfully Wednesday hadn’t eaten much since arriving back at Nevermore. Her mind was too preoccupied with solving the case. She shook her head. Xavier’s smile grew. He had a plan.

***

After arriving by Uber, Xavier stood outside of McDonald’s with Wednesday by his side. He smiled as he looked down at her disgusted face. “Hey, I know it’s not your first choice let alone your hundredth choice, but it’s all that’s open this late at night. Come on, I’ll buy.” He walked towards the door and held it open for her. Wednesday remained still as she stared daggers at the glowing yellow arches. Her stomach betrayed her as it loudly growled. Xavier noticed and started laughing. She turned her glare towards him but walked through the door with him.

Wednesday sat in a booth in the back of the restaurant while Xavier ordered their food. Ten minutes later Xavier came walking over with a tray. He set a happy meal down in front of her with a shit eating grin plastered on his face as he took his seat. Her scowl deepened. “Come on, you kind of think it’s funny,” he teased. It was funny, in an ironic way.

She slowly opened the happy meal box and began inspecting the processed food. He had gotten her a four-piece chicken nugget happy meal with French fries, apple slices, and apple juice. She pulled out the toy and held it up with an annoyed expression. It was a black mini hot wheels car. Xavier laughed and dusted the fry salt off of his fingers. “If you don’t want it, I’ll take it. I used to collect those when I was little.”

She rolled the car towards him and picked up one French fry. She stared at it in distaste, hoping she could set fire to it with her eyes. “Just try it,” Xavier urged. “You’re going to starve to death soon if you don’t eat.”

“One could only hope,” she said. Slowly she brought the fry up to her mouth and closed her eyes. She took the tiniest bite and chewed thoughtfully before swallowing with a pained expression on her face. When she opened her eyes, Xavier was leaning over the table expectantly waiting for her reaction. “It’s not. . . entirely repulsive.” Her stomach growled loudly. She ate the rest of her first French fry and picked up another one.

“Yeah, it usually tastes better when you’re starving and have nothing else to eat,” Xavier said around the French fry in his mouth. “Or when you’re hungover. Then it is –" he pinched his fingers together and pressed them to his lips, releasing them while making a kissing sound, “chef’s kiss.”

Wednesday had decided it was better than nothing and silently continued eating. Next, she hesitantly tried a chicken nugget. Her eyes grew wide in surprise. “Do you like it?” Xavier asked. Wednesday enthusiastically nodded her head and picked up another nugget. Xavier laughed at her. “I bought a twenty piece just in case you wanted more. We can split it. I grabbed a bunch of random sauces because I didn’t know what you liked.” They continued their meal in silence, both focusing on satisfying their hunger.

When they had finished their meal, Xavier was the first one to speak. “My favorite kind of podcast to listen to is true crime.” Wednesday looked at him intrigued. He continued, “I like learning about what makes people tick. Definitely not in the same way you look at it, but I’m curious to learn why people do the heinous things they do, you know?”

Wednesday’s lips slightly twitched. Xavier’s gesture didn’t go unnoticed. He was trying to engage her in a conversation she could enjoy partaking in. “Do you have a favorite heinous act?”

He thought about it for a minute. “I’d say cannibalism. That’s the one thing I have never understood. Like how do you get to that point where you just look at someone and decide to take a bite?”

“I can think of a few reasons.”

“Of course, you can.” He laughed. “Who is your favorite serial killer? I know you have to have a favorite.”

“Giulia Tofana,” she said without hesitation. Xavier raised his eyebrow in question. “History says she claimed over 600 lives during the 1600s without ever having an active part in their death. She created a poison disguised as a beauty care item and sold it to downtrodden women who would use it to poison their abusive husbands.”

“That’s pretty bad ass.”

“Do you have a favorite serial killer?”

Xavier scratched his head as he thought about it. Wednesday started to think maybe he was feigning interest when he finally responded. “Charles Manson.”

“Hm, a delusional psychopath who was too afraid to get his hands dirty, relying solely on manipulation of the weak minded. Interesting choice.”

“See, that’s exactly what interests me about him.” Xavier put his arms on the table and leaned forward. Wednesday could smell his cologne, cedarwood and pine. “When you watch interviews of him, it’s almost impossible to understand how he could hold that much control over people. He’s not charming, he talks in circles, he sounds off his rocker. I don’t get the appeal.”

Xavier and Wednesday spent the next two hours discussing dark topics such as murder, cannibalism, and organ harvesting. Much to her surprise, Xavier was very knowledgeable and able to keep up. It was true her interests were much darker, but she had never been able to hold this type of conversation with anyone outside of her family. When she became too dark, Xavier would simply smile at her without judgement. Wednesday could feel her cold heart begin to thaw. 

“What’s your favorite holiday, and why is it Halloween?” Xavier asked, smiling so wide his cheeks hurt.

Wednesday smiled for the first time around Xavier. She felt like someone finally understood her in her own weird spooky way. His stomach did flips at the sight of her smile. He felt like the luckiest guy in the world for being trusted enough with a genuine Wednesday smile. “What’s not to like? Every day is Halloween if you enjoy it enough.”

“Out of all the holidays, Halloween is definitely my favorite too. Not really a fan of Christmas. The whole holly jolly season is kind of corny. Do you like horror movies or are they too boring for you?”

“I enjoy John Carpenter’s Halloween.”

“Really? But Michael Myers never kills Laurie Strode. Kind of sloppy, don’t you think?”

“Yes, I do agree, but if it were not a Hollywood production, Laurie Strode would have suffered greatly and there would be no sequels.”

Xavier was having such a good time that he barely noticed his phone vibrating in his pocket. Wednesday’s phone also started vibrating. They both sighed in annoyance and reached for their devices. Xavier had two missed calls from Ajax and an unread text from Bianca. Both were worried something happened to him after he stalked off earlier. Enid had called Wednesday several times since she did not return home. They both looked at each other in disappointment. “We should head back,” Xavier said. Wednesday nodded in agreement.

They cleaned up their table and quickly reassured everyone they were safe and on their way back to Nevermore. As they waited for their Uber, they continued sharing their common interests. Wednesday was delighted at how much they had in common. Xavier could feel himself falling harder for her. Neither wanted the night to end.

Just as he had done multiple times before, Xavier walked Wednesday back to Ophelia Hall, but this time felt different. Wednesday enjoyed it this time. They paused outside of her door. Neither quite knew what to say. “Surprisingly I did not hate every second.” She shocked herself with how much she meant it. Xavier smiled down at her for what seemed like the five hundredth time that night.

“I’m glad you were able to tolerate spending time with me.”

“Thank you for the dinner and morbid conversation.”

“Anytime. We should do it again. Just take a break from everything and go get some food. Next time I'll take you somewhere nicer.” Her lips slightly curved upwards before dropping back down.

“Xavier.” Wednesday felt an unknown emotion burning inside of her. “I must warn you I have no interest in dating.”

His smile fell from his face. He knew to expect this from her. “It doesn’t have to be a date. I had a great time getting to know you. It’s funny. We’ve known each other for a while now, but I’m just now starting to get to know the real you.” He shoved his hands in his pockets.

“I must say I am shocked by the macabre interests we share.”

“I feel like we really get each other.”

For a moment they were both silent. Xavier didn’t want to leave, and Wednesday didn’t want to him to go. Slowly, he took a step closer. He wanted nothing more than to end the night by kissing her, but he knew she would never reciprocate his affections. But the way she looked back at him he couldn’t help himself. The words came out like word vomit. “Wednesday, I think I’m falling in love with you.”

Her eyes grew impossibly wide. She didn’t know what else to do so she panicked and ran inside her room, slamming the door behind her. Xavier let out a defeated sigh and started making his way towards his room. He felt stupid and wanted to be sucked into a black hole.

Wednesday still had her back pressed against the door when she heard him leave. Enid sat up and stared at her in a mix of confusion and concern. “Wednesday, what’s wrong?” Enid groggily stretched her back.

“Nothing.” Wednesday lied. She walked towards her bed and laid down on her back, arms laying lifelessly at her sides.

Thing, who had been listening through the door, told Enid everything that happened. “Oh. My. God.” Enid was in shock. She couldn’t believe she missed it! “Xavier said he’s falling in love with you, and you slammed the door in his face? Are you kidding?”

“Enid, I am tired. Please let me go to sleep.”

“Fine, but you will be interrogated profusely tomorrow. I want all the details. Even if I have to torture you.”

“I’d expect nothing less.” No matter how hard she tried to shut her eyes and sleep, her mind would not shut off. She replayed their conversations at McDonald’s over and over again, and repeated Xavier’s words in her head. I think I’m falling in love with you. Every time she heard his voice telling her he was falling for her, butterflies fluttered in her stomach and the edges of her lips threatened to lift in a smile. Impossible. Wednesday was meant for a lifetime of loneliness. She was not meant to fall in love with a boy. She was not meant to be happy. So why does she feel so bothered? Loneliness was supposed to feel comforting.

Across the campus, the resident tortured artist lay awake in his bed replaying the same events over and over. Neither of them slept that night.

Chapter Text

Wednesday rose from her bed as the sun started to shine directly into their room. The rainbow window cling on the glass on Enid’s side of the room reflected brightly colored light on to the floor. Normally the bright colors made Wednesday nauseous, but that morning was different. She had too much on her mind to care. Enid and Thing remained sleeping as she took her Cello out onto the balcony. The soft melody coming from her cello was melancholy reflecting the current emotions she felt.

She played alone in the early spring morning until she heard Enid stirring. Quickly she packed up her instrument and headed back inside. She had barely finished braiding her hair in her signature look when Enid abruptly sat up in bed. “Alright missy. I have waited long enough. Tell me every single last detail. I want to feel like I was there. If I feel like you’re holding back or leaving anything out, I’ll cut you,” Enid threatened.

Wednesday glanced at her roommate. “While your threats may amuse me, there is not much to tell.”

“Really?” Enid stood up and put her hands on her hips in disbelief. “Don’t play coy with me, Wednesday Addams. If you have nothing to say, then why were you out with Xavier all night? You guys had us all worried after you disappeared at the bonfire. We thought you were attacked by Tyler or your stalker. You owe me after scaring me like that.”

Wednesday sighed and rolled her eyes. She didn’t like how good Enid was getting at provoking answers from Wednesday. “Fine. Only if you promise to never speak of this again. You cannot tell anyone. Not Ajax, not your blog, not even your diary. If anything I say leaves this room, I will slit Mr. Butterbear’s throat and rip out his entrails. Understood?” Mr. Butterbear was Enid’s favorite stuffed pink unicorn that she has had since childhood.

Enid gulped, knowing Wednesday meant business, and nodded her head. “Pinky promise.” She held out her pinky finger and hooked it with Wednesday’s.

Both girls sat down and faced each other. Thing sat up from the pink dog bed Enid had bought him, giving his full attention. “Xavier was upset with me at the bonfire, so I ran after him to apologize. He asked me if I was hungry and took me to McDonald’s. We ate, talked about serial killers and harvesting organs on the black market, and came back here. That is it. Satisfied?”

“No. You’re withholding information. I can tell.”

Wednesday glared at Enid. This is the part she did not want to discuss. “I enjoyed the time we spent together. Xavier and I have a lot in common. He can be quite dark.” Her eyes softened and became distant as she thought back to the previous night.

Enid’s eyes widened with excitement. “Oh my God. You’re in love with Xavier!”

“How did you arrive at that conclusion?”

Enid rolled her eyes. “You know Wednesday, for a genius, you’re really dumb when it comes to boys. You almost smiled when you said you enjoyed spending time with him. If you didn’t like him, there’s no way you would have allowed him to feed you fast food or even spend all night out with him talking about nonrelated stalker things. I mean, serial killers and organ harvesting? How romantic! You’re totally beyond a crush now. You’re in love.” At the mention of love, Enid swooned in a dreamy way. She was so excited for her friend. Internally she began developing their couple name. “I was always team Xavier to be honest.”

“Enid, I cannot be in love with Xavier.”

“Why not?” Enid began to pout. She loved her best friend to death, but Wednesday could be such a killjoy.

Wednesday sighed. She would rather be incinerated than admit her feelings for Xavier to Enid. “I am not meant for love or happiness. My ancestor Goody Addams told me that as a Raven I am destined to live a lonely life.”

Enid snorted. “Please. You know Goody couldn’t have been that lonely if she continued the bloodline, right?”

“You can procreate without love or happiness. It is part of our animalistic nature.”

“Whatever.” Enid rolled her eyes. “Just because your ancestor from 400 years ago told you that you’re destined to be lonely doesn’t mean you have to be lonely. Destiny is meant to be rewritten. Besides, since when do you ever let other people tell you how to live your life?”

Wednesday admired Enid’s optimistic disposition but knew it could never happen to her. “Regardless of my destiny, I am not the girlfriend type. I am selfish, cruel, and will always put my needs and interests first. I will stomp all over his heart whether it is my intent or not. I allowed my judgment to be clouded by my feelings for a boy before, and I will not make that mistake again.”

Enid sighed. She stood up and put an arm around Wednesday’s shoulders. Wednesday froze but did not protest. "I can’t speak for Xavier, but something tells me he doesn’t care that you’re selfish or mean. I think out of everyone at Nevermore, you’ve been the meanest to him and he still loves you. Plus like, you guys are working together to solve your new mystery. You make a great team.” Wednesday’s face was set into a deep scowl. She wanted to sprint out of the room and away from Enid’s prying. “If you don’t want to be with him, that’s up to you. But I really think you should talk to him. He deserves to know how you’re feeling. Nothing is worse than feeling less than just because the person you love is ghosting you, trust me.”

Wednesday felt overwhelmed by the feelings inside her and began to shut down. Giving up, Enid stood up and walked back to her side of the room. Silence covered the entire room like a thick wool blanket. It was only disturbed when Enid shrieked and dropped her phone. Wednesday’s head snapped in her direction and raised an eyebrow. Enid stood unmoving with her eyes bugging out of her head. Her hands moved to cover her mouth as her jaw dropped. Thing had picked up Enid’s phone and dropped it as well. In seconds Wednesday was up and moving towards Enid. She bent down and picked up the phone to see what could possibly have scared her friends.

On Enid’s phone was a picture of Wednesday smiling intimately at Xavier the night before. This photo was sent by the unsub in a group chat to the entire student body of Nevermore. Wednesday’s face matched Enid’s as she dropped the phone and backed up against the wall. Her heart began to anxiously beat in her chest. It felt like her stomach was going to fall out and her chest would explode. Her throat tightened as she felt a cold sweat break out on her forehead. The air felt stale and heavy like the room was filled with thick smoke. She could faintly hear Enid’s voice call to her as she ran out of the door. She didn’t know where she was heading. All she knew was that she was feeling vulnerable and did not want the concerned eyes of Enid hovering over her.

She kept running until her body could no longer move and her lungs burned. Panic quickly turned to anger as she screamed in the middle of the woods. The birds in the surrounding area flew high above the treetops in the opposite direction of Wednesday. She stood there gasping for breath in the middle of nowhere. She wished the unsub would come out of hiding and attack her now that she was completely vulnerable. Nothing would stop Wednesday from pulling out the unsub’s throat and intestines and using it as a jump rope. But she knew that wouldn’t happen. The unsub would have no interest in attacking her in the middle of the woods. Humiliating her by getting under her skin and watching her squirm was much more satisfying to watch. She would have done the same had the roles been reversed. She may have even admired the unsub had she not been so furious.

She clenched and unclenched her fists as she began stomping back to Ophelia Hall. Wednesday was determined to make the unsub pay for catching her with her guard down. She needed to get back to her room and focus. No more distractions.

***

Around the same time Wednesday began playing her cello, Xavier had decided to go to his studio to draw. He had an all consuming itch in the back of his head that he couldn’t get rid of. This always happened whenever he had a vision that stuck with him. The itch was unrelenting until he brought pencil to paper.

Alone in his shed he painted Wednesday. He started with the right side of her face when he suddenly got the urge to paint a raven. It wasn’t until the painting was complete that he noticed he had painted the raven on Wednesday’s left side of her face. Wednesday and the raven were one in the same. He hovered his palm in front of the painting, compelling it to move. Wednesday and the raven’s eyes blinked together simultaneously. The raven cawed as Wednesday stared deep into Xavier’s eyes. Her lips lifted slightly in a smirk before both her and the raven became still again.

It was then that Xavier began to understand. The raven he’s been drawing for a year now was Wednesday. It’s always been Wednesday. Which means the raven with the clipped wings was Wednesday. His visions were trying to warn him of her death.

Xavier sat back on his stool and stared at the painting. Wednesday must have known when he first showed her his drawing a week ago. Why didn’t she tell him, he wondered. But he already knew the answer. It’s because Wednesday liked to keep her secrets. She only shared when it was convenient for her. He felt like a pawn in her game. He wasn’t angry though, much to his surprise. He didn’t know if it was because of his exhaustion or if he could somewhat understand why she didn’t tell him. After some thought, he decided the latter. He couldn’t imagine he would feel any different from her if he knew someone had metaphorically drawn his death.

Yawning, Xavier stood up. He knew he should go back to his room and get ready for the day. On his way back, he considered texting Wednesday an apology. Ultimately, he decided to give her some space. If she ever wanted to talk to him again, he would apologize then in person.

Xavier opened the door to his room and was surprised to see Oliver standing in front of him. Oliver smiled at him, but it didn’t reach his eyes. Xavier mumbled good morning and gave him a questioning look as he walked to his dresser to grab new clothes. Oliver cleared his throat, making Xavier turn around. “Hi. I know we haven’t gotten a chance to really get to know each other, but I wanted to say it’s totally uncool of whoever sent that text.”

Xavier froze. He had left his phone on the charger when he went to his studio. “What text?” he asked as he reached for his phone. He opened the message from an unknown sender. It was the picture of him and Wednesday the night before. He gasped and dropped his phone like it was on fire. “Shit!” He quickly scooped up his phone and stared at the message again. The text was sent to over 400 people, including all of his friends.

“I’m sorry. I thought you saw it already.” Oliver pushed his glasses further up his nose. He sounded like he was guilty, but Xavier barely cared. His fingers began flying across the screen. He sent a quick text to Wednesday asking if she was okay. He let out a frustrated grunt and threw his clothes from the dresser to the side. Fuck texting. He had to see her. He ran out of the door leaving Oliver alone. Xavier pushed past emerging students as they walked down the hall to breakfast. A few cheers and jests followed him as he ran towards Ophelia Hall. He didn’t hear any of it; his only thought consisted of Wednesday.

He pounded on her door frantically until Enid opened the door. “Xavier? What are you – “

Xavier cut her off. “Where is she, Enid?” He looked around the room and found no sight of Wednesday.

“She’s not here.” Enid sounded timid. “She’s gone.” She didn’t want to say it, but she genuinely didn’t know if Wednesday would ever come back.

“Gone?” Xavier wheeled around to face Enid. Fat teardrops fell consistently from Enid’s eyes. “Where did she go? Where is she, Enid?” He gripped her arms and shook her a little. The panic inside him rose to astronomical heights. The hair all over his body was standing straight up and his heart pounded so hard it felt like it would give out.

“You’re scaring me.” Enid’s eyes closed as she could no longer face him. Thing came over and slapped at Xavier’s legs until he let go of Enid.

“I’m sorry.” Xavier took a step back and dragged his hands through his hair. “I’m sorry. That text. Wednesday. I just. Fuck!” He growled. His mouth failed to cooperate with his brain. He pushed his fists against his eyes and tried to gather his breath.

Enid understood how he was feeling. She touched his shoulder to calm him down. This only worked slightly. He dropped his fists and opened his eyes as tears started to form. Enid’s heart broke for him. “After she saw the text, she freaked out and bolted. I have no idea where she would have gone. I’ve never seen her like that before. Her whole face turned white like a corpse. Xavier, I’m scared.” Without thinking, she threw her arms around him in a hug and sobbed into his chest. Xavier didn’t move. Eventually Enid pulled back, sniffling. “I’m sorry. That was inappropriate.”

“It’s fine. I get it.” Xavier hugged her back. “I’m scared too.”

“I’m scared she might not come back.” Enid’s voice was barely audible through her tears. Thing tapped his reassurance to the two that Wednesday will come back. Enid bent down and picked him up. Thing used his index finger to comfortingly rub her fingers.

“Thing’s right. Wednesday wouldn’t stay away when there’s a mystery to solve. She'll come back." Xavier started to feel hopeful. “Can I wait here with you?”

Enid nodded and went back to her bed. She laid down and curled up in a ball, tears streaming down her face. Xavier took a seat on Wednesday’s bed. He rubbed his face with his hands and then looked around. He glanced at the black bottle of perfume on Wednesday’s bedside table. Black Vanilla Woods it read. He smirked to himself, how fitting.

Twenty minutes had passed when the door finally opened to reveal Wednesday’s small frame. Her hair was a mess, and her face was red and sweaty. Apart from being disheveled, she looked like her typical stoic self. Enid and Xavier stood and waited for Wednesday to say something. Anything.

Wednesday glared between the two. “I need the room.” Enid grabbed a few things, shoving them in her bag. Before leaving she hugged Wednesday tightly. Wednesday did not reciprocate. Enid pulled back and gave her a small smile before shutting the door quietly behind her. Wednesday glared at Thing and Xavier. “Thing, continue your search for the brick room.” Thing swiftly left the room. Xavier and Wednesday were left alone together. “You shouldn’t be here.”

Xavier stepped towards her. He wanted to reach out and hold her tightly, but instead kept his arms firmly pressed against his sides. “Are you okay? Enid and I were worried about you.” Wednesday remained silent as she made her way to her closet. She came back out with her suspect board. If Xavier refuses to leave, then I will ignore him.

“Are you going to talk to me or act like I don’t exist?” Xavier was losing his patience. Wednesday had scared the shit out of him and Enid, and is now acting like their feelings didn’t matter, which he knew Wednesday probably believed that to be true. “Look, let me start off by saying I’m sorry for what I said last night. I don’t know what came over me. Those words were meant to just stay in my head. It wasn’t supposed to come out.”

“I’m not upset by your words, Xavier.” Wednesday didn’t look up as she scribbled more notes on her board.

“Then why are you so upset?” Xavier practically yelled. Wednesday still did not give him any attention. “You scared the shit out of Enid and Thing. Neither of them has ever seen you panic before. Now you’re ignoring me? For what? Because you’re embarrassed that everyone saw us having a good time? Everyone already sees us together. It’s no secret that we’re friends, so who cares?”

“I do not care what other people think.”

“Then what is it? Please just tell me.” Xavier began to feel erratic. “I felt so close to you last night. I felt like we could be honest and tell each other anything.”

Wednesday set her pen down and faced him. Her face did not reveal anything, making Xavier feel like he was losing her. “If honesty is what you want, fine. I do not like feeling vulnerable, especially when that vulnerability is shared with people I did not consent to share with. I am enraged and disgusted with myself for allowing myself to get distracted from the task at hand. I do not like losing.”

Giving in to his desire to comfort her, Xavier reached for her. She glared at his hand as she took a step back. He expected that reaction, but he still felt stung as he dropped his arm. “I know how you feel. I’m upset too. Last night was supposed to just be between the two of us, not for the whole world. It’s my fault. If I didn’t suggest we go out, this never would have happened.”

“Xavier, I do not have time for your self-pity. I must focus on locating the unsub.” She turned and went back to her board, arms crossing against her chest.

He stood behind her thinking of what he should do or say. Gently he grabbed her by her shoulders and spun her around to look at him, his hands remained there as he stared into her eyes. She stared back at him with an unreadable look. “Wednesday, I feel like there’s more to it than just the unsub. Please just talk to me. Everything you say is confidential.”

“Is it?” Wednesday challenged. “The entire student body has photographic evidence of all the confidential information I have shared with you, Xavier.”

“I had nothing to do with that. It was my mistake for taking you out in a public setting knowing the situation, but I did not set you up if that’s what you’re thinking.” Wednesday remained silent. Xavier took a deep breath and swallowed hard. “I get you, remember? I understand you in ways no one else does. Whatever you have to say, I’ll understand. Please, Wednesday. Let me in.”

The night before Xavier had started to chip away at the wall Wednesday had built years ago to keep people out. Now staring into his pleading eyes, she had realized he had chipped away just enough to take a glimpse into her soul she had kept hidden. She took a heavy sigh and uncrossed her arms. “You do get me, which is why I must stay away from you. My feelings for you are a distraction and will only hinder my investigation.”

Xavier’s heart did a flip when she said she had feelings for him. “I won’t distract you. We can focus on the investigation and then circle back when it’s over. You can’t just push me away.”

Wednesday gently pushed Xavier’s hands off of her shoulders and moved away. His eyes stung with the tears he was holding back. “I would be a hypocrite if I didn’t take my own advice. I told Enid to demand closure from Ajax. Now you are demanding the same from me. I will allow you the honesty and vulnerability you deserve only once. So, listen closely because I will not do it again.” Xavier nodded. For the first time since he met her, Wednesday fidgeted nervously. “I am not good at exhibiting emotions, so please be patient as I struggle with this.”

“Of course. Take all the time you need. I’m not going anywhere.” Xavier held his breath as he waited for her to continue.

She struggled internally before taking a deep breath and continuing. “Last night you unleashed feelings deep inside me that I did not know I was capable of having. You made me feel seen by making me feel like I wasn’t alone. Curiously, it had never occurred to me I was lonely and that I craved your attention. When I am with you, I feel like the naïve little Wednesday Addams prior to the tragic passing of my beloved Nero.” Pause. “You challenge and match my energy. You do not allow me to get away with verbal abuse, and always expect better from me. You make me want to strive to do better, something I have never considered before. You are also my intellectual equal. Aside from Bianca, you are the only one at Nevermore who comes close to me.

“And for reasons I don’t quite understand, you have always been there for me even when I did not deserve it. Most people walk in the opposite direction when they see me. Instead, you ran towards me. I push you away, and you come right back. I see myself through a darker lens, but somehow you always see the best in me.” She paused and took another breath. Her heart clenched and began erratically beating when she looked back into Xavier’s soft green eyes. “Despite how I feel towards you, I know my feelings will never come to fruition. I am selfish and cruel. I could never give you what you want in a relationship. Because of this, I am meant to be alone. I am too difficult to love. But you’re easy to love. You deserve to be happy even if it’s not with me.”

Xavier smiled lightly and stepped towards her. This time she did not step back. His hand lifted tenderly to stroke her cheek with the back of his fingers. Surprising both of them, she leaned into his hand and nuzzled his fingers. “You may be all of those things, but that doesn’t mean you’re too difficult to love. I’ll be honest, it can be exhausting loving you. You say or do things that really cut deep, and it hurts. But you’re worth it because you always make it right sooner or later. You’re not the monster you think you are. You know, you make me feel the same way. I relate to you more than I ever have with anyone else. You make me feel less lonely. You get me.”

Wednesday’s cold heart melted. She allowed Xavier to wrap his arms around her into a hug. She laid her head on his chest and soaked up his scent. “You need to forget about me. It is my destiny to be alone.”

“Why? Because you’re a raven?”

Wednesday's head jerked back. Xavier was looking down at her with his eyebrows raised. “How did you…?”

He let go of her and took a step back so she wouldn’t hurt her neck looking up at him. “That drawing of the raven I showed you last week, you knew it was you, didn’t you?” Wednesday stared back at him. “After you slammed the door in my face last night I couldn’t sleep. I stayed up all night thinking about you, so I went to my studio to paint. My latest work was you and a raven. Your faces were one in the same. You’re the raven in all of my drawings.”

Wednesday suddenly wanted him to leave. She couldn’t stand feeling open and naked in front of him any longer. “Xavier – “

“Hang on, let me finish. I don’t blame you for not telling me. But this just makes me believe even more that we’re meant to be together. I’m a Raven too.”

Wednesday’s head started to spin with this new information. Nothing made sense anymore. “How did you find out?”

Xavier nervously scratched his chin. He was starting to feel like Wednesday, cold and naked lying on a dissection table. “My father noticed when I was around twelve. That’s when my visions started. The stronger they became, the more attention he paid to me. Funny how he never cared until I became more like him.” He rolled his eyes and pushed the hair out of his face. “Anyway, he explained everything to me and told me that because I see the world a little bit darker than everyone else, I was considered a Raven. That’s why my visions are never anything good like the answers to Monday’s math test. Again, it’s ironic because he’s the one who made me this way.”

“How do you know your drawings of the raven don’t represent yourself?”

“Because I don’t have visions of myself.”

Wednesday felt drawn towards Xavier. The feeling she had wasn’t unpleasant, but not exactly welcome either. Maybe this is what he meant when he said he felt compelled towards her. Looking in his eyes, she could tell he felt the same. “I don’t trust myself.” The words quickly fell out of her mouth before she realized what she was about to say.

“I trust you.” Giving into the pull, Xavier reached again for Wednesday. His arms wrapped around her waist as he pulled her closely. She didn’t object. “We can go as slow as you want. If you want to wait until after we catch the unsub, we can. I’ll wait. Even if I have to wait years. I’ll be here. I love you.” He looked down at her lips. Their faces began to slowly move closer to each other unconsciously.

“Only a fool would love me,” Wednesday whispered. Their lips were dangerously close. Their eyes fluttering closed.

“I’m a fool for you.” Xavier smiled against her lips, kissing her. She reached up to touch his hair as she began kissing him back. Electricity flowed through both of them as they gave in to their desire. It didn’t last long; Wednesday’s head violently yanked back, and her eyes flew open as her vision began. She saw Xavier. He was walking on the second floor of the Gates’ Mansion when suddenly the floor gave out and he fell, impaling himself with a broken floor joist.

Wednesday’s head snapped back to normal as her vision ended. Xavier stared at her with worry. “What happened? What did you see?”

“Get out,” Wednesday said while taking a step back. When Xavier didn’t move, she raised her voice. “Get out. Get out. Get out!” She began pushing him towards the door. Despite his protests, Wednesday managed to push him out of her room and slam the door, locking it behind her before he could get a chance to open it again.

“Wednesday!” he called and started pounding on the door. He didn’t care that people had started to poke their heads out of their rooms, staring curiously at him. “Wednesday, you can’t keep pushing me away.”

“I have to,” she whispered to herself. “If I want to keep you safe, I can’t let you be near me.” Slowly Wednesday walked to the window and slid down to the floor, pulling her knees up to her chest. For the first time since Thing was gravely injured a few months ago, Wednesday felt the unfamiliar feeling of tears prickling in her eyes. Isolation was something she used to enjoy. Not so much anymore.

***

Wednesday was becoming accustomed to feeling vulnerable in front Enid, much to her horror. After Enid came back to their room, Wednesday told her everything. As disgusting as feelings were to Wednesday, it felt good to know she could trust Enid. Enid said the best way to get over a heartbreak was to watch romcoms while stuffing their faces with ice cream. Wednesday passed on the romcoms but agreed to ice cream and McDonald’s chicken nuggets with buffalo and honey mustard sauce.

After stuffing their faces with junk food, the two girls laid on their backs in Enid’s bed with their fingers laced together listening to Taylor Swift. Wednesday had to admit that despite the less than favorable music and the unfamiliar physical contact, she did feel better. Enid had cried with her, listened to her, and refused to cast any judgement on her. Enid had silenced her phone and put all her focus on comforting Wednesday.

“Thank you,” Wednesday whispered.

“Anytime. It’s what best friends are for.” Enid’s heart was broken for Wednesday. This is not how she wanted their very first real girl’s night to go.

An unexpected knock on their door interrupted them. “Whoever it is, I’ll tell them to come back another time,” Enid whispered to Wednesday. She got up and slightly cracked the door open, positioning her body in a way to obstruct their uninvited guest’s view into her room. However, there was no one at the door. Enid opened the door a little more as her claws clicked out and peered both ways down the hallway. No one. Stupid time to pull a prank Enid thought. She closed the door and turned back to Wednesday. She was sitting up in Enid’s bed with Thing sitting beside her.

“Oh! Thing! Thank God. I thought it was someone pulling a prank on us.” Enid felt relief wash over her. Thing waved his fingers at her and began drumming out his words. Both Wednesday and Enid watched as he shared that he had found the brick room from Wednesday’s vision. He had found it in the general population’s library behind the bookshelf. He had stumbled upon this by accident when he pulled a book out while trying to get a better grip to climb to the next shelf.

“We will go after dinner. I must learn the significance of this room.” Wednesday stood up and began preparing her backpack for the night.

“Wait, what if it’s a trap?” Enid didn’t feel good about this. “I think maybe the reason why your stalker sent that photo was purposely to get under your skin and throw you off your game. Do you think now is the best time to go?”

Wednesday didn’t turn her back as she loaded her bag up with flashlights and grenades. “Of course, that was the intent. Whoever he is, he is trying to weaken me so I will trip up and make a mistake. That is why Thing and I must go tonight. My unsub will assume I’m in my room hanging my head in shame rather than investigating.”

Enid and Thing looked between them. Thing also agreed, now was not the time. “Okay, well I know there’s nothing I can say to stop you but let me go with you. You need someone to watch your back.”

“Enid.” Wednesday turned to face her friend. “I cannot allow you to come with me. I had a vision of us trapped in that room. I won’t let you suffer because of me.”

“Okay,” Enid huffed with her arms crossed. “Now I’m not asking. I’m telling you. I am coming with you.”

“Where did this newfound courage come from?” Wednesday was impressed.

Enid dropped her arms and smiled. “I learned from the best!”

***

“Hey, Xavier!” Ajax had been knocking on his friend’s door for what felt like hours. Xavier was turning away any and all visitors indefinitely. “Let me in, man. I got a text from Enid that I think you should see. It’s about Wednesday.”

Suddenly the door opened, and a hand reached out, pulling Ajax roughly into the room. “Lead with that next time,” Xavier grumbled as he slammed the door behind them. Ever since Wednesday told him to stay away from her earlier in the day, he had holed himself up in his room and turned off his phone. Thankfully Oliver had excused himself hours ago when he first came back to the room.

“Sorry, didn’t think my girlfriend’s name would be the password,” Ajax joked. His joke hung in the air and then fell flat.

“It wasn’t.” Xavier sat down at his desk and went back to furiously scribbling drawings of ravens in his sketchbook. A couple times, he pressed his pencil down so hard it tore a hole in the page. Every time he did this, he swore to himself and crumpled the page, haphazardly tossing it over his shoulder.

Ajax pulled up a chair and sat next to Xavier. “Dude, are you okay?” When Xavier looked up at him with a glare identical to Wednesday’s trademark, Ajax scooted his chair back a little. “Got it. Dumb question. I just don’t get why you’re so upset. It was just a picture of you and Wednesday hanging out. No big deal. We’ve all seen it before. No one cares, dude.”

Xavier pierced the page with his pencil again. “Fuck!” He ripped the page out and slammed his hands on his desk. His anger resembled that of a caged lion. “It wasn’t just the picture! Wednesday is pissed. She’s never shown vulnerability before and now the whole school has a front row seat to what was supposed to be a special moment between just the two of us. It’s an invasion of privacy! Not just that, but she basically told me she loves me, kissed me, and then kicked me out of her room. She told me to stay away and refused to give me a chance. To give us a chance! Just. Fuck man.” When Xavier’s fist connected with the desk, Ajax jumped in his chair. “She’s the most beautiful human being I’ve ever met. She’s smart, funny, and surprisingly very thoughtful. She makes me feel like I’m not alone, like she gets me, dude. Her weird deadpan unsettling stare oddly comforts me. It makes me feel like I don’t have to hide, and I can just be myself.” Panting, Xavier put his head into his hands. He had never felt such defeat before in his life.

Ajax didn’t know what to say so he let his friend catch his breath. After he was sure Xavier wouldn’t turn on him, he put a comforting hand on his back with a solid pat. “I didn’t know all of that. I’m sorry. That sucks, man.” When Xavier didn’t move, Ajax tried again. “Come on man, you know Wednesday. She’ll hurt your feelings one day and the next she’s back to being friends. Just give it time, bro.”

Xavier looked up with glossy eyes. “Nah man,” he sniffed. “It’s different this time. She looked scared, like something bad was going to happen if she didn’t push me away. She had a vision when she kissed me, but I have no fucking idea what it could have been about. All I know is that this time I’ve lost her. Like I really lost her.”

Ajax sat there awkwardly as Xavier cried. Nothing he could say or do could comfort Xavier, so Ajax chose to just sit and listen silently. When Xavier seemed to calm down, Ajax remembered what he really came there for. “Hey, that text. Enid said Thing found that room Wednesday was talking about.”

“Where is it?” Xavier asked while wiping his eyes with the back of his hands.

“Look,” Ajax said while holding up his phone. Enid had given him the rundown of Wednesday’s plans to investigate tonight. She had also warned him that she wasn’t sure it was such a good idea and to stand by in case they needed help.

Xavier looked at the time. Dinner was over fifteen minutes ago. The girls should have already started their investigation. Instantly he got up out of his seat and headed to the door. “Come on, bro. What did I say earlier? Lead with that next time!” Ajax hurriedly rushed to catch up, cursing himself for getting distracted.

***

“I have grown tired of how predictable these secret rooms are,” Wednesday said as she thought back to the secret room at the Gates’ mansion. “It is almost idiotic at this point.”

“I mean, it makes sense.” Enid was wearing a flashlight helmet and a pink jumpsuit as she followed Wednesday. Her lack of stealthy clothing had convinced Wednesday this would be the last time she ever included her in anything that required her to be incognito. Thing had stayed in the library as a lookout. “They probably built this room during the Cold War.”

Wednesday flashed her light in every corner, finding nothing of significance. “There’s nothing here! Why would my vision lead us down here if there is no evidence that anyone has been down here in years?” Wednesday began touching the walls, the floor, the ceiling, anything hoping she could have another vision with another clue.

“Wednesday!” Enid said, panic clear in her voice. Wednesday turned to see the bookshelf begin to close on itself, trapping the two inside.

“Thing!” Wednesday threw herself against the wall, pounding and screaming loudly. Enid joined her but it was no use. No one could hear them. On the other side of the bookcase, Thing was lying on the floor out cold after being thrown violently against the wall. Inside, Wednesday gave up and put her back to the wall. “It’s no use. The unsub got to Thing and now we’re trapped. You were right. This was all a trap, and I let us walk right into it.”

Enid looked at with her eyes wide in fear. “Now is not the time to blame yourself. We are trapped here with no way out, barely any light, and no cell signal. We’re going to die in here!” Suddenly Enid’s flashlight burnt out. This pushed her over the edge. Screaming hysterically, Enid began to weep heavily on the floor.

“Enid!” Wednesday reached in the direction of her friend. After some searching, she finally found Enid’s foot in the dark. “Enid, pull yourself together. We will get out of this somehow.”

“Thing is probably dead up there somewhere.” Enid ignored her. “We killed Thing.”

“We did not kill Thing. We will get out of this, goddammit. Just be quiet for a minute so I can think of a way out,” Wednesday snapped. She remembered the lighter she had packed and began searching for it. Finally, she pulled it from her bag and flicked the ignitor. Turning in the direction of Enid, she saw her friend curled in a ball against the wall crying hysterically. The sight of Enid panicking only furthered her determination to find a way out. There’s gotta be an emergency exit, she thought as she felt around.

“Wednesday! Enid!” a muffled voice called from the other side.

“Xavier?” Wednesday asked herself. The voice called their names again as they beat on the bookcase. It was Xavier. “Xavier!” Wednesday called back loudly beating on the wall in the same direction as him.

“Wednesday, I’m here. Thing is out cold, but he’s still alive. Tell me how to get you out.”

“Crimson book, top shelf on the right. Pull it down and the bookcase will open!” Wednesday called. She turned to Enid and helped her stand up, softer, “Xavier is here, Enid. He’s going to get us out of here. We’re going to be okay.” Enid nodded and pleaded with Xavier to hurry.

“Hey, there’s no crimson book here. Are you sure that’s it?” Panic filled Xavier’s voice as sweat dripped from his face. He took a step back, frantically looking for any other book that could possibly be the key.

Wednesday and Enid turned to look at each other. They both had been sure that was the book. Fear began to trickle down their backs as realization set in. Wednesday pounded on the wall where the book had been. “The unsub must have removed the book after he locked us in here. Just remove every book on the shelf and see if it triggers the door.”

Xavier didn’t feel good about the fear he heard in Wednesday’s voice. Furiously he began ripping every book off the shelf.  “Nothing’s happening!”

“We are so dead!” Enid cried.

“Enid!” Another voice shouted. “Enid, it’s me. We are going to get you out. It’s okay. I’m coming.” It was Ajax. He was there with Xavier helping him tear off every single book on the entire wall of the library.

An idea popped into Wednesday’s head. Tonight is a full moon. “Enid, you need to wolf out and kick the door open.”

“What?” Enid shrieked. “I can’t do that! I haven’t wolfed out since the night with Tyler, and the room is too small. There’s not enough room for the two of us in my wolf form.”

“Enid.” Wednesday grabbed her hand and squeezed. “I believe you can get us out, but you have to believe that you can too.”

Enid looked at their hands. This was the first time Wednesday had ever initiated contact. “Okay. I’ll try.” She took a deep breath and focused, blocking out all the surrounding noises. Seconds went by before Enid’s bones cracked grotesquely as she transformed quickly into her monstrous form.

“Xavier, Ajax, stand back!” Wednesday warned. Shortly after, Enid howled, sending a chill up both boys’ spines. Instantly they dropped the books in their hands and took cover. Wednesday pinned herself into the farthest corner of the room as Enid gave a solid kick. Dirt and dust fell from the door, but it did not budge. Again, she kicked harder. The door buckled but did not move. Wednesday began to think this was another failure on her part when Enid kicked one more time, sending the door flying.

Enid crawled out into the library and once more howled before beginning her transformation back to human form. Breathing heavily, she laid face down on the floor and passed out. Ajax ran from behind the librarian’s desk and fell on his knees in front of Enid. “Don’t worry, Enid. You’re okay. I’m taking you back to your room,” he whispered into her ear as he scooped her up bridal style.

Xavier ran past him as he made his way to Wednesday. He had just reached her when she pushed past him, making her way to Thing. The disembodied hand was laying on the librarian’s desk still out cold but breathing. “Thing, you poor appendage,” Wednesday said as she picked him up and cradled him in her hands. Guilt rushed over her as she realized Xavier was right when he had called her toxic months ago.

“Hey.” Xavier walked over and put his arms around her. Wednesday remained still. “It’s okay. It’s not your fault.” It was as if he read her mind. “We need to get out of here before someone sees us.” Wednesday only nodded as Xavier ushered her quickly out of the library in the direction of her room.

Enid was sleeping in her bed when Xavier and Wednesday walked in. “Do you know what you just did?” Ajax snapped when he saw Wednesday. His usual calm demeanor completely changed to fury. She silently stared at him, welcoming the verbal assault that was sure to come. “You put Enid’s life in danger and Thing is in a fucking coma. You knew you could have all been killed, and yet you still chose to go. Do you not think about anyone other than yourself?”

Xavier stepped between the two and held out a hand. “Hey, come on man. Lay off. We’ve all had a long day. Let’s just cool off.”

“No!” Ajax turned his anger towards Xavier. “Dude, why are you defending her? She has absolutely no regard for your wellbeing either and you’re still choosing to defend her. Let her take accountability for once.”

“I am taking accountability,” Wednesday injected. She walked over to her bed and laid Thing gently down. His fingers only slightly moved. “It was a trap, and I should have known better. I told Enid she should not have come with me.”

“It doesn’t matter if you let her go with or not!” Ajax exploded. He took two steps and got in her face. Xavier jumped in to protect Wednesday. She did not flinch. She wanted Ajax to berate her. “You’re a fucking psycho and you’re telling me you couldn’t keep Enid away? Do you even hear yourself?”

“Watch it,” Xavier warned. He tried to pull Ajax back but wasn’t able to stop him.

“No, I’m tired of the way she treats everyone. Like we’re all disposable. She’s all like ‘who cares if Enid dies? I can just get a new best friend to do my bidding.’ You don’t care about anyone but yourself. You’re toxic. All you do is hurt the people around you.” Ajax was spitting at this point. “You’re lucky Enid will be okay when she wakes up, but I can’t say the same about Thing. How the fuck do you even give a disembodied hand CPR?” He threw his arms up in the air in frustration.

“Wednesday, pack an overnight bag,” Xavier instructed. “You’re staying with me tonight.”

“Right, she’s clearly wrong, but keep defending her,” Ajax lashed out at his friend. The boys stood toe to toe with Xavier towering slightly over Ajax. “Dude, she doesn’t care about you. You’re such a simp. She literally broke your heart over a vision. A vision, mind you, that was wrong. How do we even know she has a stalker? What if she’s just doing this all for attention because she can’t just be normal? You’re so whipped for a girl who could literally give less of a fuck about you. Wake up and smell the coffee, bro.”

Xavier turned and started stuffing clothes into Wednesday’s backpack. “Come on, we’re leaving.” He grabbed Wednesday’s elbow and dragged her out of the room.

“Don’t worry, I’ll clean up the mess your girlfriend made,” Ajax called after them sarcastically. “I hope Enid’s screams haunt you, Wednesday!”

“You shouldn’t have done that,” Wednesday said as they heard Ajax slam the door. “Everything he said is true.”

Xavier sighed. “Yeah well, he didn’t need to yell at you like that.” His grip on her elbow loosened, but he didn’t let go.

“Where are we going? You have a roommate now, remember?”

“My studio. I have an air mattress in there for nights when I work late.”

She allowed him to lead her to the edge of the woods before she pulled her arm away and stopped walking. “Xavier, stop.” He finally turned around and looked at her. “Ajax is right, you need to stop defending me. I’m wrong in this situation.”

Xavier rubbed his face with his hands. “I know that. It was stupid to go there without a better plan, you have a bad habit of endangering people’s lives, and you do act like we’re all disposable. But you’re not toxic.” He turned around and kept walking towards the shed.

Reluctantly Wednesday followed. “What do you mean, I’m not toxic? Are those not all toxic traits?”

“They are, but someone who actually is toxic would never be able to admit when they’re wrong.” Xavier held the door open for her and let her walk in. He did his usual routine of locking the door and covering up all the windows. Wednesday stood off to the side as she watched him pull out the air mattress. When he finished blowing it up, he flopped down and patted the spot next to him. “Come here. It’s been a long day. Let’s just go to sleep.”

“I don’t think sharing a bed is a good idea.” Wednesday’s stomach flipped at the idea.

Xavier rolled his eyes and stood up. He walked over to Wednesday and took off her backpack. He was becoming bolder with physical contact much to Wednesday’s dismay. “You have two options. One, you can go back to your room and continue getting yelled at by Ajax, getting no sleep. Or two, you can stay here with me and we can ignore each other for the rest of the night. Your choice.”  

Although she believed she 100% deserved everything Ajax had to say to her, she found it impossible to stay away from Xavier. As much as she wanted to stay away, she craved him. She walked to the air mattress and sat down on the edge. Xavier shook his head, thinking what am I getting myself into, and sat down next to her. They were sitting so close their knees and shoulders touched. The only noise in the room was their synchronized breathing. The silence between them made Wednesday’s skin crawl, and not in the good way. “I’m sorry,” she whispered so quietly Xavier was sure he had imagined it.

“For Enid and Thing, or for me?” he asked.

“All of it.”

Silence.

Xavier’s humorless laugh both surprised and scared Wednesday. She stared at him with her eyebrows raised. She now could add driving Xavier crazy to her list of atrocities committed against him. “I really am whipped for you,” he finally said, leaning forward and putting his head in his hands. “You literally pushed me away eight hours ago and here I am again, back for more.”

“Xavier-“

“Look, I can’t handle much more of this today, so if we could refrain from going back and forth for one night, I would really appreciate that.”

“Xavier,” Wednesday said again forcefully. He removed one hand and looked up at her, his eyes willing for her to be gentle as he was being pushed closer to insanity. “When we kissed, I had a vision that you died in the Gates mansion. I pushed you away to protect you.”

“That’s the thing though.” Xavier stood up and began pacing in front of them, his hands running through his hair. “I don’t need you to protect me. Just like Enid, if I want to put my life in danger to be with you, then that’s my choice. Honestly, your visions have been so fragmented and unreliable lately so how do you even know that this will come true?”

“I don’t want to take that chance.” She stood up to level the playing field. “I care deeply about you and do not wish to put your life in danger.”

“You care deeply about me?” Xavier said in a disbelieving tone and stopped his pacing to face her. “Why is it so hard for you to say you love me? Just once, tell me you love me.”

“I can’t.”

“Can’t or won’t? You can’t just dangle your feelings in front of me, playing with mine, and then just rip it away. I’m only asking you to be vulnerable with me. No one else. Outside of this shed you can go back to being hard ass Wednesday Addams, but here you have to let me in. Please.” Resorting to begging, Xavier pushed his floppy hair out of his face and looked into Wednesday’s eyes, trying to find any kind of clue as to whether or not she did love him. The eye contact suddenly felt uncomfortable, and she looked down. “You know, it’s not the fact that you won’t say it that hurts. What hurts is that even though you’ll never love me, I will still keep coming back for more. I’ll continue to hold out hope that one day you’ll stop the bullshit cat and mouse game and just be happy with me. I’ll do all of that knowing that it’s just an impossible dream that will never happen.” Xavier quickly turned away so she wouldn’t see him cry.

Wednesday glanced at the painting of her and the raven behind Xavier. Her own eyes stared back at her making her feel naked and seen all at the same time. Xavier had seen right through her all along. She reached out and grabbed Xavier’s hand. Slowly he turned to face her with bloodshot eyes. Her final resolve broke, and the floodgates opened. “I love you.”

Chapter Text

She was afraid it was too late. Xavier didn’t say anything or show any sign that he had heard her until he slowly reached for her and pulled her closer. “Say it again,” he whispered.

Wednesday stared into his eyes and thought about how her new favorite color was green. “I love you,” she whispered back, the second time was much easier, more natural.

A small smile spread across his face as he leaned down and pressed his lips to hers. “I love you, too.” She welcomed the kiss by standing on her tip toes and wrapping her arms around his neck, fingers twirling in his hair. Xavier’s heart beat furiously in his chest, his head felt like he was running out of oxygen.

Xavier picked her up easily and brought her over to his worktable. He momentarily considered the air mattress but decided against it when he realized that would be implying he wanted to go farther than what he thought Wednesday would be willing to go. With a quick swipe at the table with his free hand, all pencils and papers scattered to the floor and he sat her down. He parted her legs slightly to stand between them. He broke away from her to look for any visual indication that she was uncomfortable and wanted to stop. Surprising both of them, Wednesday reassuringly smiled back at him. His heart stopped and picked up again at the sight of another genuine Wednesday smile. Hungrily he grabbed her face with both his hands and kissed her again. Although he was kissing the girl of his dreams, he still had to remind himself the girl of his dreams was also Wednesday Addams. One wrong move, and he would be without a testicle. The fear was exhilarating and turned him on.

Meanwhile, Wednesday felt the same hunger as Xavier. It was as if a monster inside of her had been unleashed due to his kiss. She couldn’t get enough of the intoxicating feeling of being in his arms. She wanted more. More touching, kissing, proximity, everything. Unfortunately, the voice in the back of her mind told her to get a grip, control yourself. She needed to come back down to earth.

Reluctantly she pulled away. Xavier’s eyes slowly fluttered open and stared into her deep brown eyes. She reached up and touched her own parted lips gently with her fingertips. The phantom feeling of his lips on hers remained. Xavier smiled lovingly at her and brushed her messy fringe from her face. His hand trailed down her face and stopped at her neck. She took a shaky breath and stared at him. Neither moved nor said anything for what felt like hours. Both were content in the intimate silence.

Eventually Xavier helped Wednesday down from the table. He held her hand as he walked her to the air mattress and pulled her down with him. He grabbed a blanket from the floor and draped it over them. Wednesday let him wrap his arms around her waist and bury his head in the crook of her neck. “This was the best night of my entire life,” he whispered into her skin.

Wednesday’s heart and stomach did backflips and somersaults. “This doesn’t change anything, unfortunately.” Sadness filled her words and left a sour taste in her mouth.

Xavier sighed and snuggled closer to her. “I know. Just let me have you tonight. Tomorrow we can go back to whatever it was we were before. Just let me have tonight.”

“Okay.” Wednesday gently brought his face up to hers and gave him one last kiss. They settled into a comfortable position and soon fell asleep.

***

Wednesday woke up the next morning with sunlight shining directly into her eyes through the cracks of the wooden wall’s exterior. Squinting in a grimace, she slowly sat up while taking in her surroundings. Memories of the night before flooded into her mind. Xavier lay peacefully next to her with his arm slung over his chest. She sat there watching him sleep before convincing herself it would be best to leave before he woke up. She knew distancing herself from him would crush him after admitting her feelings the night before, but she wanted to do what was best for him. And what was best for him was not her.

Slowly and quietly, she crept out of the bed and put on her discarded shoes, balancing with one hand on the stool nearby. She was about to bend down to pick up her backpack when she heard movement behind her. She turned to face Xavier who had just sat up from his sleeping position. They held a staring contest which neither one wanted to lose.

“Wednesday,” he whispered as he stood. Two long strides and he was face to face with the girl of his nightmares.

“Xavier.” She refused to look at him and allow herself to be bare in front of him. If she let her guard down again, she didn’t think she would be able to build it back up. “This will never happen again.”

He lifted his hand to stroke her cheek, but she turned her head away and took a step back. His hand fell like a ton of bricks to his side. “Can we still be friends?”

The sadness in his voice made her feel cold and heavy, like she was being buried alive under an avalanche. She felt overwhelmed by all of these new feelings she had experienced within the last 24 hours, unable to put a name and a face to these emotions. She gave one big internal push before her walls rebuilt themselves and her heart became steel once more. The last bit of love she had for him was completely pushed down and locked away neatly in a box in the back of her mind. Xavier watched helplessly as the last remaining pieces of the girl he so desperately loved vanished. He knew the answer before it passed her lips. “Our friendship cannot continue. I may ask you for your assistance in the investigation from time to time, but all friendly correspondence shall cease.”

Her words pierced his heart much like the arrow had pierced her shoulder. He had expected this to happen, but that did not diminish the pain he felt. He took a long breath and ran a hand through his hair. “I know you’re trying to protect me from the vision you had, but I can take care of myself. According to our visions, you and I are both going to die. So why not use this as an opportunity to put our visions together and prevent whatever is coming? Maybe our visions will come true because you’re choosing to split up. Maybe that’s exactly whoever this is wants.”

Her eyes stared blankly at him. “Unfortunately, Xavier, you have become my greatest weakness. I will not allow you or myself to be exploited. If I am meant to die, then so be it. But I will not let you die because of me. It’s just what needs to be done.” She turned and walked out of the shed, silently closing the door behind her. She left Xavier alone with the memory of the girl he never had.

***

Enid had been sitting on her bed in silence repainting her destroyed nails. Thing had woken up around 1am long enough to assure Enid he was okay before he fell back to sleep. She decided to let him sleep it off while she considered her relationship with Ajax. She had woken herself up shortly after Xavier had pulled Wednesday out of their room. After he cooled down and was sure Enid was fine, Ajax had filled her in on the aftermath of the previous night’s events. He felt guilty about the altercation and the cruel things he said to Enid’s best friend. Him and Enid went back and forth arguing before she had told him to leave.

She sighed heavily to herself when the door opened, revealing Wednesday. The two girls looked at each other in acknowledgement but did not say anything. Wednesday dropped her bag on her bed and looked at Thing. He was still sleeping in the doggie bed on Enid’s side of the room. Enid let her know he was okay, but still neither of them were ready to talk. Wednesday grabbed her toiletries and went to the bathroom to shower.

Fifteen minutes later Wednesday emerged with a towel wrapped around her head. Enid had just started on her toes. Not being able to handle the silence, Wednesday turned to face Enid. “I am sorry for putting you in danger. I knew the outcome would not be good. I should have forced you to stay here.”

Enid screwed the bottle of nail polish shut tightly and waddled on the heels of her feet towards Wednesday, being careful not to let her wet toes touch the floor. “Are you kidding? I’m not mad at you. I thought you were mad at me!”

Wednesday’s eyebrows furrowed together in confusion. “Why would I be mad at you? You did nothing wrong.”

“I thought you were mad because of what Ajax said.”

“He did nothing wrong either. What he said was truthful and out of anger for what I had done to you and Xavier.”

Enid shook her head. “He told me everything he said. While I do agree somewhat with what he said to you about Xavier, last night still wasn’t your fault. I chose to go with you. I could have stayed back here or been the lookout, but I chose to go in and look with you. I knew you were off your game and weren’t thinking clearly that’s why I wanted to be there to protect you. You’re like my sister and it would absolutely destroy me if something happened to you.”

Wednesday’s armor slightly cracked at Enid’s kind sentiment. “I would die and kill for you, Enid.”

Enid smiled and reached out to hug her best friend. “I told Ajax he needs to apologize to you before I would ever consider talking to him again. He had no right to yell at you.”

“I hope you’re not considering breaking up with him,” Wednesday said. Enid looked at her like she had grown two more heads. “Before I thought he was pathetic. On the contrary, he stood up to me and fiercely defended you. Color me impressed.” Wednesday walked to her side of the room and unwrapped her hair. She grabbed a brush and began working it through the tangles. “I approve of your relationship.”

“Somehow, I’m not surprised you made that observation. But I still want him to apologize to you, at least for my sake. Although it makes me really happy that you approve of him, I could never be with someone who didn’t get along with my bestie.” Enid plopped down on her bed in a significantly better mood. “Do you want to talk about you and Xavier or is that too much?”

Wednesday set the brush down on her nightstand and prepared to braid her hair in her usual pigtails. “I am afraid there is not much to talk about anymore. Xavier and I are acquaintances. There will never be Xavier and I.”

“Ajax told me he was crying last night before they came and got us. Xavier knew he was losing you, which judging by what you just said it seems to be true.” Wednesday didn’t respond. She kept her eyes trained on the wall in front of her as she finished the first braid. Enid continued, “I wish you would give yourself a chance to be happy. That picture of you two the other night, I’ve never seen you happier.”

“Happiness and I do not coexist. It may be the typical person’s main motivation in life to be happy; however, I am not the typical person. I am content with solitude.” Enid remained quiet. Wednesday finished off her last braid, grabbed her backpack, and started for the door. “Will you be joining me for breakfast?” Enid shook her head and Wednesday shut the door.

***

While enjoying her breakfast of black coffee and lackluster scrambled eggs with a newspaper in hand at an empty table, Wednesday felt a presence sit down in front of her. “You can skip the unnecessary apology and I will tell Enid it was especially heartfelt,” she said without looking up. Ajax shifted uncomfortably but did not move. Wednesday rolled her eyes and folded the newspaper, setting it aside. “Fine, go ahead.”

“Look, I said a lot of things out of anger last night. I was afraid for Enid and concerned for Xavier, and I just reacted poorly. I’m sorry.” Ajax studied Wednesday for a moment, fully expecting her to lash out at him or get up and ignore him. When she didn’t, he let out the breath he had been holding. “Enid isn’t making me apologize either. Yeah, she did tell me I should apologize, but I mean it. I really am sorry.”

“Touching, yet unnecessary. I found nothing wrong with what you said. You’re right, I should have forced Enid to stay behind. I am fully capable of evading her successfully, yet I still chose to put her in danger. I do act on impulse and put other’s lives in danger. It is a fault of mine.”

“Wednesday, I don’t think you’re a bad person.” Ajax gripped his backpack straps tightly. “Kooky? Yes. Scary? Definitely. But you’re not a bad person, and you’re not toxic. Enid kind of explained to me how much you really care about the people around you, and it opened my eyes a lot. I unfairly judged you.”

“As did I,” Wednesday said. “I thought you were weak, pathetic, and spineless. Last night you stood up to me to protect Enid. Do you know how much courage one has to have to spit in my face? I could have killed you right there. I’m impressed.”

Ajax blinked his eyes rapidly in shock and grinned. “Wow. I thought for sure you would have killed me after everything I said.”

“Don’t make a habit of it, but do not lose that courage. Staring evil in the eye is an enviable virtue.” Wednesday stuck the newspaper in her backpack and started to get up, but Ajax kept talking making her sit back down.

“Wednesday, I want us to be friends. Enid and Xavier are both important people in our lives, and it will only be easier if you and I can formulate some kind of friendship, whatever that may be for you since I know friendships aren’t really your thing.” Ajax fidgeted in his seat under her hard stare. He slid a piece of paper across the table. Wednesday reluctantly took it. “That’s my number. If you need help with anything like getting Enid off your back or a hand with the stalker situation, you can just text me. Which also, I didn’t mean what I said about you faking having a stalker. I just said that out of anger. Again, I’m sorry.”

Wednesday folded the paper and stuffed it in her bag. “Perhaps I will contact you next time I need Enid to hang back from the investigation.”

Ajax smiled and felt as if he and Wednesday could actually form a genuine friendship. As started to walk away, he suddenly remembered something. He rose to his feet and called out, “Wednesday! Wait. One more thing.” She paused and turned around giving him a frustrated glare. “Look, Xavier is like my brother. Please be careful with him, okay? Every time you shatter his heart, I’m the one who has to pick up the pieces. Just . . . don’t bulldoze him and let him down gently instead. He’s a good guy, and I hate seeing him in so much pain.”

Too late Wednesday thought and wordlessly walked back to Ophelia Hall.

***

Wednesday had convinced Enid to leave her alone for the day so she could concentrate. She sat at her typewriter piecing together the clues and potential suspects when she heard a knock on the door. She ignored it until she heard a second impatient knock against the hardwood. Her chair scraped the floor as she stood and walked across the room. Irately she yanked open the door, but no one was there. Instead of a human person, her own face looked back at her. It was one of Xavier’s portraits of her leaning up against the opposite wall. Her eyes widened as she snatched the canvas and dragged it inside the room. Without thinking she grabbed her phone and attempted to FaceTime Xavier for the first time.

After two rings he picked up. “You need help with the case already?” he asked with annoyance clear on both his face and in his voice. Ignoring his annoyance with her, she turned the camera to face the canvas on top of her bed. “Wait. Did you take that from my studio?”

“No. Someone left this at my door. Who else has access to your studio?”

She turned the camera back to face her. She could see he was in his room with his sweater’s hood on his head sitting on his bed in the dark. “No one. You and Ajax are the only people who know where it’s at, but only I have a key.”

“When did you leave the studio this morning?” she asked.

Xavier roughly rubbed his neck with his hand and looked at the ceiling as he thought back to that morning. “Probably like ten minutes after you left. I made sure to lock the door.”

“Meet me there in fifteen minutes,” she commanded. “I need to know what else was stolen.” Without waiting for a reply, she hung up the phone. Carefully she scooped up Thing’s sleeping figure and put him in her bag. Last time she left him alone in her room, he ended up with a knife in his palm.

Xavier considered staying in his room and ignoring Wednesday, but he knew he couldn’t do that. He would still take every opportunity to see her even if seeing her felt like a knife stabbing him in the heart. Besides, he was curious to find out who could have possibly broken into his studio. She was already standing outside waiting for him. Thankfully she didn’t berate him for making her wait. The padlock was clearly cut, and the door was held slightly open. Xavier pushed Wednesday behind him and walked in first with a protective arm outstretched. She rolled her eyes at his chivalry.

His two tables had been flipped and his work was scattered all around the room. “Jesus Christ,” he mumbled to himself as he stepped over sketchbooks, papers, paintbrushes, and paint pallets. “Why would someone do this?”

“Clearly, they were looking for something specific. What have you drawn recently that was from a vision?” she asked as she bent down and began searching through the scattered papers.

“My last vision was of you and the raven. I haven’t really been having any lately to be honest.” He tenderly picked up a sketchbook filled with his best work. Thank God this didn’t get destroyed he thought with gratitude.

After some searching, neither could find the portrait of Wednesday and the raven. Wednesday decided to give up her search when she felt her backpack shuffling on her shoulders. Bringing it around her body, she opened it up and let Thing scramble out onto the table Xavier had picked up. Slowly as if he were catching his breath, Thing began communicating the previous night’s events from his perspective. Xavier stopped his search and turned to listen to Thing. He explained that right after Wednesday and Enid walked behind the bookcase, an unknown force picked him up and threw him across the room. He didn’t see the perpetrator.

“Another telekinetic psychic?” Xavier asked while looking between Wednesday and Thing. “As far as I knew, only Rowan had telekinetic power.”

“What kind of outcast is your roommate?” Wednesday asked. Xavier shrugged with bewilderment. “Do you know where he is?”

Xavier thought about his answer for a second. “My guess would be the library, but we kind of destroyed that last night. I know his only friend seems to be Principal Hynes.”

Wednesday scooped up Thing as he was still too weak to walk and put him back in her backpack. “I think it’s time to pay our new principal a visit.”

***

Xavier followed Wednesday to the principal’s office like a lost puppy. The tension between the two was palpable but he was not about to let her go at this alone now that the unsub had fully involved him by trashing his studio. He wanted answers just as much as she did and was willing to put his hurt feelings aside to get them. Wednesday on the other hand had completely blocked out all feelings and focused on her determination to solve this mystery.

Wednesday didn’t bother to knock before bursting through the doors of the principal’s office. The office hadn’t changed since the last time she sat in the chair getting a verbal lashing from Principal Weems. She thought back fondly to her memories of last semester.

Principal Hynes and Oliver were seated at his desk with their heads bent over what appeared to be calculus homework. Upon hearing Wednesday’s grand entrance, Principal Hynes looked up and smiled warmly at her and Xavier who had chosen to hang back slightly. “Ah, Wednesday Addams. Good to see you again. You were on my list of people to speak with. Have a seat.” Principal Hynes closed the calculus book and handed it to Oliver. “Oliver, my good man, I’ll have to take a rain check on our studies.”

Oliver took the book in his hands and started to shuffle past, but Wednesday blocked him from exiting. “I wish to speak with both of you. Take a seat, Oliver.” Oliver looked at Principal Hynes quizzically, but Principal Hynes did not seem phased. He had remembered Wednesday’s demanding personality from last semester and had prepared himself prior to the start of the new semester. “How many psychics attend Nevermore besides myself, Xavier Thorpe, and Eugene Ottinger?”

“Miss Addams, what are you getting at?”

“Let’s cut to the chase,” Wednesday said as she advanced towards Principal Hynes’s desk. She planted her hands firmly on the desk and leaned down to eye level with the sitting principal. “You and I both know I am responsible for the destruction of the school library. My disembodied hand was thrown across the room by someone possessing telekinetic powers, and I would like to know who to appropriately turn my wrath towards.”

“Disembodied hand…?” Oliver questioned. Thing poked his fingers out of the backpack and waved at Oliver who suddenly lost all color in his meek face.

Principal Hynes sat back in his chair with his arms crossed. “Why were you in the library to begin with?”

“Why else would a student be in the library?” she shot back with venom in her words.

“Knowing you, it wasn’t to study. You’re investigating. But what?”

“The damage was caused by an unidentified subject – the unsub – who has been stalking me since the end of last term. I am investigating whom this perpetrator may be.” She turned to glare at Oliver making him squirm uncomfortably in his seat.

“It’s never just play ball with you, Addams.” Principal Hynes sighed and leaned forward on his desk with his head in his hands. He looked up and looked past Wednesday to Xavier. “Mr. Thorpe, could you please close the door?” Xavier shut the door and came to stand side by side with Wednesday. Principal Hynes looked between the three students, weighing his options. Weems had been a close friend of his who had on multiple occasions vented to him about how exhausting it was dealing with Wednesday Addams and her shenanigans. He knew this stress would come with the promotion, but that didn’t stop him from regretting all his choices that led him up to this moment. Nothing could have prepared him for going toe to toe with Wednesday.

“Look,” he finally said. “I’m going to be straight with you. I’ve heard enough stories from Larissa last year about how much of a bloodhound you can be when you’re on a new trail. I think it’s best if we’re honest with each other. Right, Oliver?”

Oliver nervously looked at everyone in the room. As Wednesday studied him, it finally hit her. Peppermint and vanilla buttercream. “You’re not really a student, are you?” Xavier’s face scrunched as he looked between Wednesday and Oliver. “I must say, disguising yourself as a student is clever, Principal Weems.”

Xavier’s eyes widened as he watched Oliver morph into the once dead statuesque Principal. “Not clever enough. How did you figure it out?” she asked.

“I have visited you often enough to know what your perfume smells like. I smelled it on you in class the day I first confronted you.” Wednesday felt incredibly satisfied with her detective work.

“Woah, wait.” Xavier threw his hands on top of his head. “We shared a room!”

Larissa rolled her eyes. “Yes, Mr. Thorpe. Your room was the only one with an opening. Believe me, it was just as unpleasant for me as it was you.”

“How did you survive the nightshade poisoning? I watched you die.” Wednesday’s eyebrows furrowed together as she crossed her arms.

“Your mother is an expert horticulturist. I learned from her the antidote to nightshade poisoning. After you had told me Miss Thornhill was Tyler’s master, I had deduced she would attempt to poison one of us with nightshade when we confronted her. I slipped the antidote in my pocket and injected it in myself when she poisoned me. My body still reacted, and my breathing slowed down enough to appear like I was dead. I awoke later on while the school was evacuating so I shapeshifted into a student. From there, I connected with Principal Hynes and concocted the idea to pose as a student for the upcoming semester to keep a watchful eye on the inside.”

“You knew something else was going to happen,” Xavier said.

“Correct. Things at Nevermore haven’t been ordinary for quite some time – even before the Hyde attacks. I have been conducting my own investigation for years, but still no leads as to what could be coming.”

“Why have you decided to tell us this now?” Wednesday asked.

“Because learning you have a stalker shakes things up. It points us in a new direction.” Larissa stood up, hovering over Wednesday’s short frame. “Whatever may be coming, you seem to be the key.”

“I had a vision of a raven getting its wings clipped,” Xavier interjected. All the occupants of the room turned to face him. “If Wednesday is the raven, then whoever is behind all of this is trying to take her out so they can gain the upper hand.”

Larissa turned back to face Wednesday. “I think it is time you and I teamed up and solved this together.”

***

Xavier walked Wednesday back to Ophelia Hall just like he did every day since starting back at Nevermore. She wished he would stop and leave her alone. She had too much on her mind to be bothered by the incessant butterflies in her stomach every time she was around him, but he seemed determined to make her miserable. “I think you should call your mom and talk to her about what’s going on. Maybe she has some kind of insight into what we’re dealing with,” Xavier suggested.

“What kind of insight might she possibly have?” Wednesday asked as her body tensed at the mention of her mother.

“Well like, she knew there was an antidote to nightshade poisoning. That’s something you never even considered. What if she knows why your visions are becoming murky and erratic? What if she knows how to fix it?”

“I cannot think of anything I would like to do less than asking my mother for help.” Wednesday’s words were biting and cruel with irritation at the mere suggestion.

Xavier snorted and bit his lower lip, an anxious habit he was beginning to pick up on. “Dude, can you just calm down? It was just a suggestion. I didn’t say go home crying to mommy because you can’t figure it out. I’m just saying that she can be an asset and it would be ignorant of you to ignore that because of your pride.”

“I do not need your help.” Wednesday turned to glare up at him. “In fact, I told you to leave me alone. If I find a use for you, I know where to find you.” She turned to walk up the stairs expecting him to walk away, but he was never one to give up easily. Xavier stepped in front of her and cut off her path, trapping her on the staircase.

“So we’re back to this? Bickering and arguing all the time? I know you want nothing to do with me, but why can’t you just take my advice?”

“Because it’s yours.” She knew it was a childish response, but at this point she was beyond frustrated and wanted nothing more than to be alone with her typewriter.

He laughed dryly, leaning on the railing. “God, you’re going to be the death of me. How can someone make me so happy and so angry all at the same time?”

“Save yourself the trouble and leave me alone.” She tried pushing past him, but he was easily able to overpower her. Albeit she didn’t try very hard.

“Look, we need to lay some ground rules for this new relationship we have. If you’re going to come to me for help, you can’t blow me off and treat me like an idiot. Either respect what I have to say or don’t involve me at all.”

She rolled her eyes. “Fair.”

“Good.” Xavier smiled. “Second, if you go snooping around somewhere that you’re not supposed to be, I want to be a part of it.”

“No way.” She shook her head. “That’s the whole point of you staying away from me.”

“So who is going to save you next time you’re in danger?”

“As I recall, Enid saved us last time. You and Ajax simply panicked and provided no support.”

Xavier flinched at her sharp words. “You know it’s really hard knowing that you’re going to practically throw yourself in harm’s way and you won’t let me protect you. Especially knowing how I feel about you.”

“I am perfectly capable of handling myself.” Done with the conversation, Wednesday forcefully pushed past Xavier and walked up the stairs.

He shook his head and called after her, “It’s not about being able to handle yourself. It’s about letting people care about you and make their own choices!”

***

Monday morning classes resumed as normal. Wednesday had managed to ignore Xavier’s cold shoulder along with all the intrusive eyes watching her closely. The entire student body lit up with frenzied rumors of her relationship with Xavier. The rumors were ridiculous and unrelenting. A vampire in the grade above said Wednesday was the reason Xavier broke up with Bianca, and a siren said Wednesday was using Xavier for his father’s money. Regardless, Wednesday paid no mind. She had bigger fish to fry.

Larissa Weems continued to disguise herself as the new student Oliver. Her and Wednesday had planned to work together, sleuthing out clues. Since Oliver was new and relatively forgettable, Larissa was able to sneak underground undetected. With Oliver officially crossed off her suspect list, Wednesday was at a standstill with no leads. Until a new piece of evidence slid underneath her bedroom door after lights out.

Wednesday sat up in her bed with her arms crossed over her chest like a living corpse. She turned in Enid’s direction and saw both her and Thing asleep in their respective beds. Her alarm clock’s red lettering read 12:03am. Tossing the covers aside, Wednesday’s feet gently touched the cold floor and walked to the door. On the floor was an envelope with her name written delicately in cursive. She opened the envelope and took out the letter. Ready to pick up where we left off? Gates Mansion on Wednesday (my favorite day of the week) at 10pm. I’ve missed you.

Disappointed with the lackluster intimidation tactic, Wednesday tucked the letter into her desk and closed it for a later examination. She stared out the window as only one person came to mind, Tyler.

***

Wednesday contemplated on telling Weems about the invitation she received, but decided it was too soon to reveal her true identity. Having Weems on her side was a secret weapon that could only be unveiled at the perfect time.

She thought about including Thing and Enid, but as of late both of them had been unfortunate in getting stuck in the crosshairs. She couldn’t tell Xavier because the Gates Mansion was supposedly where he would die. Ajax was off the table because he couldn’t be trusted not to tell Enid. She considered Bianca, but that was also tricky. Which left only one person.

“Eugene, read this,” she said while shoving the letter in his hands at their Tuesday afternoon Hummers meeting.

He pushed his glasses further up his nose as he read. His nose scrunched up in his familiar way of showing confusion and concern. “You’re not actually going to go, are you?”

“I see no reason not to,” she said dismissively. “I am eager to put him down once and for all, and it seems if I don’t, he will only find another way to get to me which could potentially cause more harm. Why not meet him tomorrow and end this?”

“Seems kind of like a trap though.” Eugene didn’t know what to make of this letter. Nothing about it made sense. He handed the letter back to her and she stuffed it back into her backpack.

Wednesday crossed her arms and scowled. “It absolutely is a trap. He clearly shares the same sentiment as I and wants to even the score. But with Laurel still in prison, he can’t transform into the Hyde without her. He’ll be powerless and no match for me.”

“I don’t know. How do you know for sure he can’t morph into the Hyde?”

“Nathanial Faulkner’s diary explained whoever controls the monster is the only one who can awaken the Hyde. If Laurel is behind bars, she can’t control Tyler.” Wednesday watched as Eugene tended to his bees. He made the perfect mama bee.

“I feel like there’s more questions than answers,” Eugene mused. “Do you think Tyler is your stalker?”

Wednesday was becoming unsure of this. At first, she didn’t believe Tyler and the unsub had any similarities, but now his sudden appearance had become quite skeptical. “I don’t think he is the unsub, per say. The timelines don’t add up. I received my first text after he had been transported to prison, and my first text back at Nevermore was sent before he escaped. I think he may be working with someone new.”

“What if that new person is able to unlock the Hyde?”

Wednesday hadn’t considered this possibility. This is why she enjoyed Eugene’s company. He asked good questions and provided a different perspective. “I suppose I’ll find out tomorrow night.”

“Wednesday, be careful,” Eugene warned. He set down his bee equipment and turned to her, taking the bee mask off of his head. “I don’t feel good about this. I’m worried that you’re going to make an impulsive decision and get yourself hurt. You haven’t been acting like yourself lately, but I can’t put my finger on it.”

“It seems the unsub’s goal is to psychologically torture me.” Wednesday had felt the unsub doing a spectacular job of pushing the right buttons. “I don’t like being on the receiving end of this kind of torture.”

Eugene thought carefully before giving her his two cents. “Why don’t you bring Enid? She kicked Tyler’s ass last time so worst-case scenario she can do it again if things go wrong.”

Wednesday pondered it for a minute, and decided it was an idea worth consulting with Enid. “I will take your advice into consideration and be sure to plan accordingly before meeting with Tyler. Thank you, Eugene, for always providing me with valuable insight. Sometimes I think you’re the only one I can talk to rationally about these kinds of things.” Eugene smiled and moved past her to grab something from the shelf behind her. He accidentally bumped into her shoulder as he pulled his arm back towards him, forcing her head to shoot back as her vision jumped out at her.

She saw Eugene under a desk in Miss Thornhill’s old classroom. He was breathing heavily as he glanced side to side looking for whoever he was hiding from. Suddenly a hand holding a syringe shot down into the back of his neck, injecting him with nightshade poisoning. Eugene screamed before his mouth foamed and his body became deathly still.

Wednesday’s head snapped back into place and her eyes blinked rapidly trying to adjust to reality. Eugene stood in front of her with fear on his face. Her wide eyes staring back at him did nothing to calm his fears. “Someone’s going to die soon, right?” he guessed.

Wednesday nodded and breathed heavily. It seems like all of my friends are destined to die, she thought. “Don’t go anywhere near Thornhill’s old classroom. If you have any classes in that room, drop it. Tell Principal Hynes I told you to. He’ll understand.”

“Wednesday, what did you see?” Eugene was afraid to ask, but the fear of not knowing outweighed all other fears.

“I have to go.” She started for the door and stopped. “Meet me back here tomorrow. Same time. I’ll have something for you then. Don’t forget.” Eugene nodded and Wednesday took off.

She pulled out her phone and called Weems. Weems picked up on the fourth ring. “Wednesday, I don’t have much time. What is it?” she whispered into the phone using her Oliver voice.

“Eugene is going to be poisoned with nightshade. I saw it in a vision just now. I don’t know why or by who. Can you make another antidote?”

Weems hissed through her teeth into the phone. “Yes, but it will take some time to gather the ingredients. When do you need it by?”

“Tomorrow,” Wednesday said. “Tell Hynes to remove Eugene from any classes he has in Thornhill’s old classroom. That’s where I saw him get poisoned. When you have the antidote, meet me in the Nightshade library at noon.” Wednesday hung up before Weems could respond. An unfamiliar feeling of anxiety coursed through her veins. Her worst fear was coming true right before her eyes. All of her friendships were being exploited by whatever evil was lurking in the shadows of Nevermore.

***

Wednesday sat impatiently at her desk as she waited for Morticia to pick up her crystal ball. She hated that Xavier had been right, but she would never admit that to him. Finally her mother answered. “Hello, darling. How is the new semester going?”

“Let’s skip the small talk.” Wednesday was in no mood. Her mother’s face darkened at her daughter’s tone. Wednesday easily picked up this change in her mother’s demeanor. “You know why I’m calling, don’t you?”

“Yes. I had a vision that you would ask me for advice.” Morticia folded her hands in front of her. “Go ahead, darling. Ask your questions.”

“Lately my visions have been murky and coming in flashes. How do I fix this?” Wednesday grabbed a pen and paper nearby, ready to take notes.

“What kind of emotions have you been feeling when the visions come to you?”

Wednesday’s eyebrows furrowed. “I don’t do emotions, mother.”

Morticia smiled patiently. “Wednesday, everyone has emotions whether you choose to indulge in them or not. I know feelings are difficult for you, but it is something you must come to terms with in order to better understand your visions.”

Wednesday exhaled and pursed her lips. “I don’t know. I have been experiencing new emotions I have never felt before.” She paused and nervously bit her lower lip. Realizing what she had just done, she let out a frustrated sound. “See like that! I had just partaken in a nervous habit. I don’t know what is happening to me.”

“You’re evolving,” Morticia said knowingly. “You have found your place at Nevermore among all the other outcasts like yourself. Tell me more about what new emotions you’ve been experiencing.”

Wednesday sat there for a moment reflecting on the past week. “I felt fear, anxiety, guilt, jealousy, and . . . affection along with my normal bouts of irritation and anger.”

Thankfully Morticia chose to ignore Wednesday’s confession of feeling affectionate. “Our visions are triggered by an extreme form of emotion that we feel in the moment. If in the moment you feel incredible sadness, you will have a vision.”

Wednesday thought back to when she found Pugsley hog tied in his locker. She had been furious when she had the vision revealing the water polo team as the perpetrators. Or at the Rave’N dance last year when she was tousled in the crowd. She felt amusement and joy watching the chaotic crowd run amuck in the blood rain. During her most recent vision, she had felt sisterly affection towards Eugene. All the dots started to connect in her mind. Every time she had a vision, she felt something. Annoyance, fury, affection, fear.

Morticia smiled as she watched Wednesday piece it all together. However, one piece didn’t quite fit. “That doesn’t explain why my visions have been fragmented recently. I used to see a whole picture play out clearly that would lead me in the right direction, but now I’m only seeing pieces. Why is that?”

“Have you been struggling against these emotions?” Wednesday nodded. “That is why. You need to come to terms and accept that you will feel things sometimes that aren’t always comfortable. It doesn’t have to be a negative experience. It can be anything you want it to be. Meditation can help clear your mind when you feel overwhelmed.”

“Does this mean I am losing my edge?” Wednesday asked. She was terrified of the answer.

Morticia’s laugh sounded soft and airy like a warm summer breeze. It did little to comfort Wednesday. “No, darling. It doesn’t mean you will lose your edge. It just means that you’re growing up and have to learn to cope better. You’ve always been in an environment where you had to fight to survive. Now you’re in a place surrounded by people who love you for who you are. It’s only natural that you’re starting to let down your guard and allowing yourself to feel again. You weren’t always so angry all the time. You used to be a sweet little girl before your first heartbreak.”

Wednesday remembered the “sweet little girl” she was before Nero’s murder. Her stomach churned at the memory. “You are anything but typical, but you are still a teenager. This is the time when your emotions are heighted and out of control. It’s only nature,” Morticia added. “I remember when I was your age. It was dreadful.”

“Dreadful doesn’t quite describe it.” Wednesday huffed and rolled her eyes. “What is the antidote to nightshade poisoning and how do I make a vial of it?” Morticia gave Wednesday step by step instructions and an ingredient list, which Wednesday wrote diligently down in her notes. She intended to make a batch of it seeing how it was a common weapon used amongst the villains of Nevermore.

“One more thing, mother.” Wednesday paused as she waited for her mother’s full attention. “I need your school yearbook and a list of all psychics with telekinetic power who attended Nevermore with you. My new enemy possesses telekinetic abilities, and I have a hunch it may be a Nevermore student, past or present.”

“I will send Zelda tonight.” Zelda was Morticia’s pet vulture that acted as the family’s carrier pigeon. Mother and daughter said their goodbyes, leaving Wednesday alone with her thoughts. She sat back and made a mental list of her current life’s grievances: a stalker, an escaped Hyde, friends doomed for death, and uncomfortable feelings. The amount of balls in the air gave Wednesday a headache. Being a teenager sucked.

Chapter Text

 Wednesday was woken up on Wednesday morning to Enid’s screams. On a normal day, waking to screams would indicate it would be a good day. But with their misfortune as of late it was hard to tell. Wednesday sat up straight in her bed and turned to the source of the scream. Enid was sitting up in her bed with her cellphone in hand. “I went viral! I posted a video last night and it’s already gotten 1 million views!” Wednesday rolled her eyes and looked at the clock on her nightstand. It was only a few minutes before her regularly scheduled wake up time. A distressed knock sounded on the their door.

“Perhaps waking the entire town of Jericho with your screams over a video is inappropriate.” Wednesday slung her legs over her bed and walked to the door. The cold floor felt refreshing against her bare feet. The girls’ dorm master Mrs. Ortega stood with a worried expression outside of their room. Mrs. Ortega had started the new semester determined not to lose a student – an incredible goal to have knowing Wednesday Addams was among the girls she had to keep watch over - and after hearing Enid’s screams she was more than ever convinced today would be the day she might fail. Enid’s explanation for her screaming did little to calm Mrs. Ortega’s nerves. With a warning to keep it down, her face remained pale as she turned and left the roommates to get ready for the day.

Enid chattered away happily about her new status as a “social media influencer” as they walked to breakfast. Wednesday had taken a considerable amount of Tylenol to get her through breakfast with Enid. Thankfully Enid’s viral video was the new talk of Nevermore, Wednesday and Xavier’s rumors of yesterday were long forgotten.

“Enid, can I have your focus for a moment, please?” Wednesday asked as they sat down at an empty table in the quad with their trays. Enid nodded and zipped her lips, signaling that she was done talking for the moment. “Tyler finally made contact with me.”

“What!” Enid shrieked. The few students trickling into the quad turned to stare at the two, forcing Wednesday to clap a hand firmly against Enid’s mouth to prevent any more attention drawing outbursts. When Wednesday was sure Enid had composed herself, she withdrew her hand with a warning glare. “Sorry. Go on.”

Wednesday glared at the last remaining staring eyes and turned her attention back to Enid. “He wants me to meet him at the Gates Mansion tonight at 10pm. I’m going.”

“What’s your plan?” Enid whispered.

“He’s too far away from Laurel so there’s no chance he’ll transform. I think he may have a connection with my stalker. I plan to torture the answers out of him.”

“Do you want me to come with for backup?”

“Do I want you to come? No,” Wednesday said. She sipped her black coffee and pointedly looked at Enid. “But do I need you? Yes. If for some reason he is able to transform into the Hyde, I will need a Plan B. You will hide in the shadows and wait for my signal. I do not want you involved unless it is absolutely necessary, understood?”

Enid caught Ajax’s eye as he walked towards them. “Oh completely. I don’t want anything to do with whatever torture you have planned. What will be the signal?”

Wednesday didn’t have a chance to answer before Ajax and Xavier had joined their table. “What are we whispering about?” Ajax asked in a whisper. Xavier looked questioningly between the two girls.

Enid glanced at Wednesday with wide eyes. “Nothing. Just girl talk. Tampons and periods and stuff.”

“Gross,” Ajax said under his breath. Suddenly he was no longer in the mood for his ketchup-soaked scrambled eggs.

Xavier wasn’t buying the excuse. “Wednesday would never talk about her period in public. Or with anyone for that matter. You guys were talking about the case.”

Wednesday cursed him for knowing her too well. She imagined stabbing him with her fork, but even that was too dramatic for her. “Tyler made contact.”

“Oh shit. What are you going to do?” Ajax asked.

“I’ll be going to see what he wants. Maybe try out my new rocket launcher if things get too rowdy.” Uncle Fester had gifted her the rocket launcher for Christmas. They had fond memories of playing target practice with Pugsley. Wednesday was hoping she would get the chance to try it on a much bigger, more expendable target.

Xavier stared at her, making Wednesday uncomfortable. She couldn’t tell what he was thinking for once and this unsettled her. Now she understood how everyone else felt to a small degree when they were under her gaze. “That’s your plan? You’re going to meet a monster alone and if he gets too frisky, you’re going to blow him to Mars?”

Wednesday glared at him. “I have a hunch that he is somehow connected to the unsub. I will go there and try to extract answers from him, and then blow him to Mars as you so shrewdly put it. Enid will be coming with me as Plan B, which I am hopeful we can just stick to Plan A for once.”

“Do you have a death wish? Serious question. Because you seem to enjoy putting yourself in dangerous situations with half assed plans.”

“I know my capabilities.”

Ajax looked towards Enid who was strangely smiling while watching Xavier and Wednesday go back and forth. Enid had decided on Waiver as their couple’s name and took great pleasure in watching the two flirt. Ajax wondered to himself what a normal friend group talked about at breakfast. He couldn’t take the bickering anymore and took it upon himself to get the discussion back on track. “Hey, I’ll come with you guys tonight. It might be helpful to have more than one person watching your back.”

Wednesday moved her harsh stare from Xavier to Ajax. She searched for any indication of fear and found none. “Perhaps you could be of some use. You may come. Meet us at the Gates Mansion tonight at 9:30pm promptly.” He could be useful caring for Enid if she were to wolf out and she couldn’t disagree with the fact that having another body flanking the perimeter would be beneficial.

Xavier’s jaw clenched at the mention of the Gates Mansion. He had his own vision last night of Wednesday. He had seen the outcome of tonight’s planned event and knew Wednesday needed a Plan C. He also knew that’s where Wednesday had seen him die so if he wanted to help, he would need to do so without Wednesday’s consent.

Xavier was about to say something when Bianca walked by. Wednesday shot out her arm and caught Bianca before she could walk past. Bianca looked down at her elbow where Wednesday had roughly gripped her like she was on fire. Wednesday paid no mind. “Bianca, Eugene needs the protection of the Nightshades. He is doomed to die at the hands of nightshade poisoning. Tell the others to keep their eyes open.” The two nodded at each other and Bianca walked off, acting as if the interaction never occurred. Wednesday faced her friends and sipped her coffee calmly.

“Eugene is going to die?” Enid cried, earning her hushes from the other three. “Sorry. Eugene is going to die?” she said again quietly.

Wednesday nodded. “I saw it in a vision yesterday. He was injected with nightshade poisoning in Miss Thornhill’s old classroom. My mother gave me the recipe for the antidote. Once I have made a big enough batch, I will be distributing a vial to each of you.”

Xavier smirked but didn’t say anything. Wednesday took notice and glared at him, don’t gloat her eyes said. Xavier looked away and scratched the back of his head, saying nothing. Wednesday checked the time on her wristwatch and determined this morning’s briefing was over. She stood up with her half-eaten tray and walked off without any parting words. “You two are so freaking cute!” Enid gushed. Xavier rolled his eyes and groaned, and Ajax shook his head at her in disapproval.

***

Wednesday approached the Edgar Allen Poe statue cautiously. She glanced around searching for any witnesses and then snapped twice. The statue groaned as it pulled to the side revealing the staircase. Wednesday walked alone into the comforting darkness.

Oliver was standing in the center of the room with his hands clasped behind his back. He smiled warmly at Wednesday as she descended down the final steps. “Eugene has been removed from Miss Thornhill’s classroom and transferred to a new class.” Wednesday nodded in approval. “Do you have any new leads?” Oliver asked as he handed Wednesday the vial of green liquid.

Wednesday held the vial up close to her face, intrigued that the liquid seemed to shine even in the dark. Smoothly she pulled her backpack off of one shoulder and stuffed the vial carefully inside. “Potentially. I think Tyler may be connected to the unsub, but I don’t think he is to blame for the intrusive text messages.”

“How are you going to go about tracking him down?”

“I have my ways.” Although the two had formed an alliance, Wednesday wasn’t quite ready to share all of her secrets. Weems was still Nevermore’s fierce protector and would no doubt put an end to any plan Wednesday may have if she knew it involved torture.

Oliver rolled his eyes and pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. Weems had really outdone herself with her Oliver disguise. No one would have ever suspected such a squeamish-looking boy to be someone as dignified and graceful as Larissa Weems.  “Based on our previous experience together, I know I will have better luck uncovering the JFK Assassination Files than getting a better answer out of you so I will not waste my breath.” 

“Wise decision. Do you have anything new for me?” Wednesday asked.

Oliver shook his head. “Nothing yet. I have been keeping tabs on the Sheriff, and other than excessive drinking he still throws up no red flags. Laurel is a model inmate. I should feel better about her being in her cage still, but it doesn’t sit well with me.”

“I share the same feeling. It’s odd Tyler hasn’t tried breaking her out yet.”

“We will divide and conquer. You will focus on identifying your stalker and locating Tyler, and I will keep track of Laurel. If you find Tyler, you need to tell me before you do anything.” Weems’s stern eyes flashed through Oliver’s mousy ones. “I mean it, Miss Addams. He’s dangerous.”

“Noted.” Wednesday turned and started up the stairs, ending their secret rendezvous.

***

Wednesday prepared herself in her room for her meeting with Tyler. She had instructed Thing to stay with Eugene for the time being after giving him the nightshade antidote. She felt the most protective towards him because out of all of her friends, he was the least capable of defending himself. Eugene was young and naïve despite his impressive loyalty and courage. Much like Pugsley.

A knock on her window pulled her out of her reverie. She opened the window and let Zelda inside. Zelda made a raspy noise as she handed Wednesday Morticia’s yearbook. “This took far longer than expected,” Wednesday admonished the poor bird. Zelda grunted and flew out the window back towards the Addams Mansion.

Wednesday opened the yearbook and began paging through. Morticia had labeled each page of importance with a sticky tab. Under each psychic Morticia had written in her delicate handwriting a brief summary. So far no one stood out. Wednesday had almost given up when she reached the final page. The name leaped off the page and slapped Wednesday across the face. Abigail Laslow. Psychic with telekinetic powers. Rowan had said his mother prophesied Wednesday’s arrival and ultimate destruction of the school prior to her death. But as Wednesday had come to learn, no one really dies at Nevermore.

She ripped the page out of the yearbook and stuffed it in her backpack with the rest of her supplies. She still had some time left before her meetup with Tyler, so she decided to do some sleuthing.

***

Xavier was dripping with sweat as he entered his dorm room. He decided to run for a little longer than normal tonight as a way of clearing his head. He felt on edge all day as he considered Wednesday’s fate at the Gates Mansion. He had little time to come up with a plan and was afraid whatever plan he did have wouldn’t be enough.

He flipped on the light and almost ran into Wednesday. He jumped with his back hitting the door. “Fuck Wednesday. How did you get in here?”

“Your window wasn’t locked. Maybe your carelessness is why your paintings were so easily stolen,” she said plainly.

Xavier rolled his eyes and walked past her towards his dresser, careful not to touch her. He started pulling out a change of clothes so he could rinse his body in a cold shower. “What do you want?”

“How did Rowan’s mother die?”

Her question came completely out of left field and made him drop everything in his hands. He spun around to face her. “Where is this coming from?”

Wednesday took a calculating step towards Rowan’s old bed. She ran a finger down the length of the neatly made bed. “Before Rowan was shredded to pieces by Tyler, he told me his mother had prophesied that I would destroy Nevermore. She said it was his destiny to stop me. I see the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”

Xavier crossed his arms in disbelief. “What are you getting at? She died his freshman year from breast cancer.”

“Did she?” Wednesday turned to face Xavier. “The unsub is a telekinetic psychic. What powers did Rowan possess?” She watched as the wheels began to turn in Xavier’s head. He exhaled a deep breath through his nose and nodded his head, lips pursed.

“How do you know for sure that she’s connected?”

Wednesday pulled the yearbook photo out of her backpack and handed it to him. Their fingers touched and lingered for longer than necessary. He looked at her in longing for a second before turning his attention to Morticia’s notes. “Abigail Laslow,” he read.

“Does she remind you of someone?” Wednesday knew her answer.

“Abby – the AT&T associate.” Xavier pinched the bridge of his nose. “Shit, that explains so much. That’s how the unsub knows their way around Nevermore and how they got your number.”

“What it doesn’t explain is why she isn’t dead.” This is the one thing Wednesday could not figure out. “Why would she fake her death and setup her son for failure by telling him he had to defeat me? It doesn’t make sense.”

“Maybe ask your boyfriend tonight when you see him.” Xavier couldn’t help the jealousy bubbling out of him.

Wednesday glared at him. “Why is this being made into something personal?”

“Because!” He threw his hands in the air in frustration. “Because I tell you I love you, and you run in the opposite direction. He literally almost killed you and you’re running towards him again.”

“Xavier,” Wednesday said. “Nothing about tonight’s rendezvous is personal. I have questions that need answers. If I don’t go, he will come here looking for me which will risk casualties.” Wednesday had never thought she would ever think a high body count was a bad thing, but there’s a first time for everything.

Xavier yanked his hair out of his bun and anxiously ran both hands through it. Wednesday waited impatiently as he worked through what he wanted to say. “Look, I don’t want you to go tonight. I had a vision last night of you at the Gates Mansion, and it didn’t end well. I worked through so many different scenarios in my head, and none of them had a good outcome. Please, for the love of God, don’t go.”

Wednesday was unphased. “I appreciate your concern, but this is something I have to do.” She decided she had enough of their back and forth and started to leave.

“No, you don’t!” Xavier gripped her shoulders and forced her to look at him. “Wednesday, if something happened to you, I don’t know what I would do. You know, I started all of this by getting you that stupid phone and now I’m seeing you dying in my dreams. I can’t stand by and do nothing.”

The dreaded feeling of her walls cracking began to form in the pit of her stomach. She hated the power Xavier held over her emotions. “Have you considered your vision is a product of my efforts to protect you?”

Of course Xavier had considered this. The guilt and despondency within him had practically debilitated him the entire day. “You were willing to sacrifice my life when you took an arrow for me. Let me return the favor.”

Wednesday admired his willingness to die for her. Lately she had been seeing a whole new side to him that she never would have seen coming from an elitist snob. “Xavier Thorpe, you are the most aggravating person I have ever had the misfortune of meeting.”

Xavier smiled and wrapped his arms around her in a close embrace. His chin rested on the top of her head as he mumbled, “I need you alive so I can continue being the thorn in your side.”

“You’re more like a festering wound that will never heal.” Wednesday’s voice was muffled as she buried her face in his chest. She satisfied her craving by soaking up the smell of his natural musky scent mixed with his sweat. It was deliciously repulsive.

“Good thing you like all things that fester,” Xavier joked. Wednesday had missed him. She missed their connection and wanted nothing more than to go back to their not-date at McDonald’s. It had only been five days, but it felt more like five years since they were last able to have a friendly conversation. She hated how much she had secretly craved him.

Xavier pulled back and lifted her chin lightly. “I know I’m just wasting my time trying to talk you out of something you’ve already committed to doing. I just figured I could try. Will you promise me something?” Wednesday expected him to say something sickly sweet like ‘promise to be careful’, but Xavier was full of surprises. “Kick him in the ribs for me if you get a chance. Let me know how his face looks when you do it.”

Wednesday swooned. Xavier was a man after her heart. “That’s a promise I intend to keep.” Something came over her at that moment. She didn’t know if it was because of the dire circumstances or the dark look in his eyes. Or maybe she just wanted to. She stood on her tip toes and placed a soft kiss on his lips. His hands shot up to her face and held her head hotdog style.

They kissed until her watch beeped, alerting her to new the hour. Reluctantly she pulled away and rested back on her flat feet. Xavier reached for her small hand and held it in his larger one. She stared up at him through her fringe, memorizing his face before she moved towards the window. She gave one last look at him over her shoulder and then disappeared into the cover of nightfall.

***

Enid and Wednesday made their way to the designated meeting spot in silence. Enid was beginning to have second thoughts while Wednesday persisted. She had hoped Xavier’s vision was wrong and that things would turn out in her favor, but at the very least she knew she would have a memorable death.

Ajax was already waiting for the girls. He had gotten there ten minutes earlier to scope out the area. Although he had been scared shitless ever since he volunteered, he pushed his fear aside and persevered. Enid instantly relaxed upon seeing him standing there, which in turn made him feel confident about his decision. He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her forehead. Wednesday thought about how Xavier’s arms felt around her just a half hour ago.

Stomping her feelings aside, she steeled herself and commanded her troops. The plan was for Ajax and Enid to wait on both sides of the mansion and watch for any potential danger. Wednesday would wait inside the mansion. The idea was to make him feel safe and unsuspecting of a werewolf hiding in the shadows or of the rocket launcher Wednesday was itching to use. She also strapped herself to the teeth with knives, a stun gun, and her Glock 19. Wednesday found guns to be impersonal. She much preferred the closeness of a knife, but you can never be too prepared.

It was understood that if it was time for Plan B, Wednesday would draw Tyler out of the house. “What’s our codeword?” Enid asked.

“The explosive sound of my rocket launcher might be a clear indicator,” Wednesday deadpanned.

“What about pineapple?” Ajax suggested. Enid eagerly nodded in agreement.

“Fine.” Wednesday rolled her eyes. “Yell out pineapple. Let’s get into position.”

Wednesday made her way inside to wait in the foyer while Enid and Ajax laid low outside. The once brilliant foyer was now falling apart after many years of decay. The floor was loose in several places, long strips of wallpaper hung loosely from the wall. The air was thick with the smell of must and mold. It reminded her of Grandma Addams’s house.

She tucked her rocket launcher discreetly into the front hall closet off to the left and stood in the center of the room. Behind her was a grand double staircase with a large vestibule connecting both sides of the house. She checked her watch, only 5 minutes till 10pm. Excellent.

The wooden floors creaked from above. The prospect of Tyler being early not only irritated her but also fanned the flames of fear. If Tyler was early, he may have seen her with her friends before they took their positions, which means the entire plan would be compromised. She felt the cool metal press against her skin as she tentatively placed her hand in her coat pocket. She began to count. When she got to three, she spun around and raised the gun to Xavier’s forehead.

“Woah! Hold up!” Xavier threw up a hand in defense. Wednesday glared at him before lowering the gun and returned it to her pocket. She noticed he was wearing a ridiculous winter hat with long flaps on the side. She made a note to berate him for his poor clothing choice later when she had more time.

“What are you doing here? I told you to stay away.” She gave him a shove towards the door, but Xavier was unmoved. He planted his feet firmly on the ground.

“You can’t push me away that easily. Look, we don’t have much time. I’ll be upstairs watching.” He pulled a baseball bat from behind his back. Aside from the clever idea of an aerial view, Wednesday was furious.

“You blatantly disobeyed my orders. I knew it was a terrible idea to involve you.” She turned her back to him and faced the front door. “Try not to get killed.”

“Same to you.” He bent down and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek and fled to his hiding spot upstairs. Fear and anger flamed inside of her. This wasn’t part of the plan. This wasn’t even Plan C. Her mind worked in overdrive to shake it off. If she was going to get all of them through this in one piece, she had to be at the top of her game. No more distractions.

She closed her eyes and focused on her breathing, clenching and unclenching her hands. When she felt like she was ready, she opened her eyes. Tyler was standing right in front of her with a look of amusement. “Hi Wednesday. Long time no see.”

She shot lasers at him through her eyes. “I would have preferred to have seen you through metal bars.”

“Look, I know you’re mad. Last time we saw each other we were kind of at odds. But relationships are hard.” Tyler was certainly the Jekyll to his Hyde. He was portraying the sweet innocent teenage boy. The one she never considered to be a murderous monster. “Let’s just kiss and make up, okay?”

“My boot would love to kiss your face. Does that count?”

“Wednesday.” He contorted his face into a look of genuine hurt. “Don’t be like that. I thought about you every day. I even brought you this.” From behind his back, he pulled out a bouquet of deadly nightshade.

“Cute. But I prefer black roses.” When she didn’t take the flowers, Tyler dropped them from his hand in disappointment. “Let’s skip the pleasantries. You wanted me here for a reason. What is it?”

Tyler’s sickly-sweet smile made Wednesday nauseous. “I missed you. I thought we had something. You’re the sociopathic goth girl with homicide on the mind, and I’m a serial killing monster. Clearly, we both have a type.”

Wednesday remained unamused. “I have questions. Will you be answering them the easy way or the hard way?”

“Depends on what you want to know.” He took a step closer. The significant height difference was supposed to be to his advantage, but Wednesday didn’t scare easily nor would she back down.

“You’ve been out for almost two weeks and still haven’t gone back for your master. Why?”

Tyler laughed. “Everyone needs a break sometimes.” His perfectly white teeth glittered in the moonlight shining through the window. Despite his pretty boy persona, Wednesday could see the evil lurking behind his eyes. He was like a lion circling his prey.

“What do you know about Abigail Laslow?”

Tyler’s smile faltered and turned into a deep frown; his eyebrows scrunched together in the middle. “I don’t know who that is.”

“You know something,” she pressed.

“I know that you’re losing.” There he is. The real Tyler. Wednesday’s hand circled the gun in her pocket. She was feeling trigger happy tonight.

Casually he reached to move her pigtails behind her shoulders. His lips curled into an ugly twisted smile reminiscent of a clown, baring his teeth. “Whoever Abigail Laslow is, she’s getting under your skin and making cold hard Wednesday Addams soft. You really have no clue what’s coming, do you? But you’re so close, Wednesday. So close. The answers are right under your nose, but you keep asking the wrong questions. Maybe stay away from boys and you’ll actually figure it out.” His eyes traveled up to the second floor where Xavier was hiding.

A cold wave of fear ran up her spine. Fuck you, Xavier she thought. “What questions should I be asking?”

Tyler brought his eyes back to hers. The whites of his eyes became a bloody pink and had taken on a wild unhinged dead stare. He brought his mouth to her ear and whispered, “Do you think of me when you kiss him?” He pulled back and took five steps back. The veins in his forehead and neck popped out, threatening to burst against his pale white skin. His clothing tore as his body grew and warped into the Hyde. His claws were impossibly sharp and lethal.

Wednesday ran to the closet where she hid her rocket launcher. As soon as her hands gripped the weapon, she sprinted up the stairs to get to the high ground. Tyler let out a thunderous growl, alerting both Enid and Ajax outside. Xavier bounded out from the bedroom he was hiding in but stopped as his vision came back to him. He watched as Wednesday ran up the staircase, taking each step two at a time. He knew she was going to attempt to shoot Tyler from between the conjoining staircases for a clear shot. In his vision, Tyler took a swipe and the stairs crumbled, killing her.

Xavier dropped his bat and ran to Wednesday. His body felt like he was trapped in quicksand as he raced against time. She was almost between the staircases. He knew as soon as Tyler turned around and raised his hand, it was over. He was running out of time.

Tyler’s arm raised and Wednesday took aim. Xavier was out of time. Fucking move! he commanded himself. In a last-ditch effort, he jumped with his arms extended, knocking her down the hallway as Tyler’s hand connected with the old staircase. Wednesday’s eyes grew impossibly wide, and her mouth slowly dropped open to scream. Xavier’s arms desperately flailed as he fell to certain death. Instantaneously time was moving again as the stair boards and floor joists fell to the first floor with Xavier’s body. Wednesday crawled to the hole Xavier had fallen through and hung her upper body down in a vain attempt to catch him. “Xavier!” she screamed. Her scream was barely audible over the cacophony of wood hitting against wood.

Enid and Ajax burst through the door in time to watch Xavier’s body hit the floor. He fell like a heavy sack of flour, slightly bouncing on impact. Ajax held Enid upright as she dropped to her knees and screamed. Tyler laughed manically at his work.

Wednesday stared down at Xavier’s lifeless body in shock. She couldn’t move or breathe. Despair sucker punched her in the gut and slapped her in the face for good measure. She lay there on her stomach with her arm outstretched towards him as tears filled her eyes. Her vision became blurry when the first tear dropped. In the distance she could hear Enid screaming. She could feel Tyler advancing towards her, but she couldn’t bring herself to care. The first person who had truly understood her and loved her for all of her darkness had just sacrificed himself for her.

***

They say your entire life flashes before your eyes when you're about to die. That wasn’t true for Wednesday. She didn’t see anything other than Xavier’s eyes as he hovered momentarily in the air before falling to his death. She was supposed to die, not him.

Which is why she thought her mind was playing a cruel trick on her when she saw the broken floorboards on his body move. Xavier was alive, and Tyler was coming for her.

Rapidly she flipped on her back and shot her rocket launcher at close range into Tyler’s face. He screamed and leapt back, grabbing at his face. She slid down the railing of the intact staircase to the first floor. “Ajax! Xavier’s alive! He’s moving,” she shouted and climbed over the rubble. 

Enid and Ajax followed her lead, each person digging through all the wood to get to their friend. Ajax helped Wednesday lift a heavy board off of Xavier’s legs, freeing him completely. “Enid, we don’t have time. I need you to wolf out.” Enid nodded and centered herself. Her bones cracked and twisted throughout her transformation. She let out an earth-shattering howl and ran towards Tyler. She took a massive leap and kicked him in the back, sending him flying leaving a giant gaping hole in the entryway.

Wednesday cradled Xavier’s head in her lap. She took off the stupid winter hat and discovered he had padded the inside of it. Xavier’s eyes slowly opened, and the stupid boy grinned up at her. “I told you visions can be rewritten,” he whispered.

“Dude are you okay? Is anything broken?” Ajax asked nervously. He kept looking back and forth between the fight with Enid and Tyler and his injured friend.

Xavier wiggled his toes. “I don’t think so.”

“Good because I would like the pleasure of breaking every bone in your body myself.” Wednesday’s words didn’t hold the amount of venom she had intended. She only felt relief and mild anger.

She helped Xavier sit up. “It would be my pleasure, Addams.” He felt like he had been hit by a ton of bricks, which wasn’t too far off. After Wednesday left his room, he came up with the idea to wear padding and extra layers of clothing. He knew he would lay down his life to save Wednesday, but that didn’t mean he was going to be stupid about it. He wore knee pads, elbow pads, an athletic cup, multiple pairs of socks and pants, four hoodies, and his favorite winter hat stuffed with the contents of his pillow. His intent was to soften the blow as much as possible. The next part of his plan was to pray to every God out there that he wouldn’t be impaled or suffer worse. He hurt like hell, but he would live to see another day.

“Can you walk?” Wednesday asked.

“I can try.” He attempted to stand but stumbled. Wednesday and Ajax caught him before he fell and helped him out of the wreckage.

“We need to get him out of here,” Ajax said. “I don’t think Enid can hold off Tyler much longer.” The sounds of the monster and Enid’s growls echoed hauntingly in the night. Tyler had managed to gain the upper hand and knocked Enid out cold against a tree. His eyes bugged out of his head like a looney toon as his large serpents like tongue hung out of his mouth. He was making his way back to Wednesday to finish what he started.

“Take Xavier and hide somewhere,” Wednesday commanded. She pulled a grenade from her backpack and ripped the pin out with her teeth before chucking it at Tyler. An explosion and plumes of smoke filled the air along with his screams of pain. “I got this.”

“I’m not leaving you.” Xavier tried to stand on his own but stumbled forward. Tyler quickly recuperated and continued his advance towards the three terrified friends.

“You’re in no shape to argue with me. Get the hell out of here before we’re all dead.” She took another grenade from her bag and threw it with precision. To her horror, Tyler ducked and dodged. Now he was within a monster’s arm’s length from the group.

“Close your eyes!” Ajax yelled and pushed Wednesday behind him. Xavier listened, but Wednesday did not. She watched as Ajax lifted his beanie, revealing the snakes laid on top of his head. They hissed and slithered as they came to life. Tyler’s arm slowly turned to stone and then the rest of his body followed suit until he was a grotesque statue. Wednesday was amazed. She had always wanted to see someone get stoned. “I don’t know how long it will hold. I’ve never stoned a monster before.”

“Let’s go.” Wednesday and Ajax stabled Xavier and helped him limp out of the mansion. They found Enid slowly regaining consciousness in front of the tree in her human form. Wednesday let go of Xavier and helped pull Enid to her feet. From behind them they heard the petrifying sound of stone cracking.

“Plan D,” Xavier said.

“What’s Plan D?” Enid was afraid of the answer.

“Run!” Xavier pushed off of Ajax and limped/ran ahead. Ajax grabbed Enid’s hand and propelled them into the woods. Wednesday stood at the gate waiting for Tyler to break through his stone prison. She retrieved her gun from her pocket and cocked it.

Xavier was the one who noticed Wednesday didn’t follow them. He turned back around and limped to her. “What are you doing? Let’s go!”

“For once just listen to me and leave, Xavier.” Her finger was begging to pull the trigger and put a bullet between Tyler’s eyes.

“All you’re going to do is piss him off.” Xavier grabbed Wednesday’s bicep and tried to pull her back. Due to his weakened state, his pull had no effect. “If a rocket launcher and a couple grenades didn’t slow him down, what is a bullet going to do?”

Wednesday wanted revenge. This was the second time Laurel Gates and Tyler had made her cry within a 12-month period. This was a crime punishable by death. She looked at Xavier and saw the pain in his eyes. He was pleading with her, Don’t let my sacrifice be for nothing. She lowered the gun and jammed it in her pocket. She grabbed his hand and ran with him through the woods. In the distance they could hear the monster scream.

***

They didn’t stop running until they reached Ophelia Hall. Wednesday had slipped two sleeping pills into Mrs. Ortega’s drink before they left. She was still sleeping when Ajax and Xavier slipped into the girls’ room. All four let out a sigh of relief and slumped to the floor in exhaustion.

“Do you have any pain medicine?” Xavier asked. Wednesday stood up and brought him a glass of water and a bottle of pills. In the morning she would make him her mother’s specialty cure-all tea. He would be back to normal in no time.

“I never want to go back to that place ever again,” Enid said as she peeled her blood-soaked sweater off of her body. Thankfully it wasn’t her blood. Aside from the bump on her head, Enid got away with minor scratches. Just as Eugene had predicted, Enid kicked his ass. If he didn’t play dirty, she would have won.

Xavier on the other hand looked like hell. He had scratches on his face from the splintered wood and bruises all over his body. “Dude, I’m going to go get you an ice pack. You look like shit.” Ajax pulled himself off the floor and was about to step out, but Wednesday stepped in front of him.

“You did good out there. Maybe you’re not entirely useless.” Wednesday gave him a tight-lipped smile. Ajax returned it with a half grin and left to grab the ice pack he kept in his room.

Wednesday was left to care for both of her friends. She felt a strange feeling of gratitude. Both people in the room have risked their lives for her and have done far more than expected from the average friendship. She would die for these people, and they would do the same. She felt warm. Her ice-cold heart was melting, and for once she didn’t mind.

Wednesday helped tuck Enid in bed and placed Mr. Butterbear by her side. Enid giggled at the gesture and turned to her side facing the wall to give her and Xavier privacy. Xavier managed to bring himself to Wednesday’s bed and got comfortable. Wednesday sat on the edge of the bed and folded her hands neatly in her lap.

“I’m never doing that again,” Xavier groaned. “I think getting run over by a bus would hurt less.”

“You proved me wrong,” Wednesday said. “Thank you.”

Xavier beamed up at her. “Maybe next time you’ll listen to me without a fight. But don’t worry, I won’t hold my breath.”

“I’m not used to people trying so hard to save me.” She picked up his hand and rubbed absent-minded circles into his skin. “You were beyond brave, but you were stupid. If I wasn’t so relieved that you’re alive, I would kill you.”

“If anyone were to kill me, I would want it to be you.” He stared down at their hands and felt the familiar feeling of butterflies. “I just wish I could have gotten the opportunity to kick that son of a bitch in the ribs like he did to me.”

“You will get that opportunity soon enough. I will make sure of it.”

They sat in content silence as they waited for Ajax to return. Both of them were grateful that the other had managed to stay alive. In fact, Wednesday was almost ready to say the L word when she noticed something peculiar in the corner of the room. She stood up and apprehensively walked to the far-left corner on Enid’s side above her pile of stuffed animals. “Shit,” she cursed under her breath.

“Wednesday? What’s wrong?” Xavier sat up and followed Wednesday’s line of sight. His muscles protested as he rose from the bed and limped over to Wednesday. He reached up and pulled down a tiny surveillance camera.

Chapter Text

My mother died when I was barely a year old. All I know of her is what I see in photos of her life before me. I try to imagine what she was like. What kind of music did she like? Did she decorate for Christmas before Thanksgiving? Was she a good cook?

My mother’s name was Francoise Sylvanne Galpin. We share the same last name, but that’s as far as it goes. She’s a stranger to me. Like a ghost.

While a senior at Nevermore Academy, Francoise met my father Donovan. He was about two years older than her and at the time he was just a beat cop running the same tedious patrol around Jericho. The divide between normies and outcasts wasn’t so defined until the night Gomez Addams supposedly killed Garrett Gates. That’s when the entire town turned on Nevermore and shunned them.

But my parents never let that stop them from falling in love. Francoise found out she was pregnant a month after graduation, so my dad decided to make an honest woman out of her. She was barely eighteen and he was twenty.

I know they were happy together. Everyone who knew my parents would tell me all the time growing up how special their bond was. They always mentioned how happy my dad was. I don’t know what that looks like. I’ve never seen the guy smile once. He barely even looks at me unless he’s angry or pushing me away.

He never talks about her. I didn’t even know what my mother looked like until I found pictures of her in the attic when I was seven. I had taken my favorite photo of her and kept it under my pillow. Every night I would take it out and tell her about my day. Her smile was so enchanting it was like she was smiling back at me.

Because my dad refused to provide any emotional support, I grew up with a lot of issues. I liked to bully other kids because it would make me feel better to share my misery with someone. If I saw another little boy with his parents, I would trip him or call him a momma’s boy.

It only got worse the older I got. Silly playground insults became cruel words and tripping turned to fighting. After my dad became the sheriff, it was easier to get out of trouble. I had him wrapped around my finger. He felt guilty for being a bad father and was too broke to buy my love so he would forgive a few parking tickets to get teachers to look the other way. Every time I got in trouble, he would try to discipline me, but we both knew it was a waste of time. He was never around to make sure I followed his orders.

Things came to a head when my friends and I beat the snot out of Xavier Thorpe. To be honest, I don’t really know why I targeted him. I guess it was because I was jealous; he looked at peace while he worked on his mural. His painting of the town was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen. It’s beauty only made it more satisfying when I destroyed it. The crunch of his ribs against my foot is a feeling I still savor to this day.

To his credit, he took it like a man. It was never a fair fight with four against one. He never stood a chance, but he didn’t cry like a baby, and he didn’t even try to report the incident. No one would have known if someone hadn’t seen it happen and report it to my dad. That was the final straw for my dad. He decided to let a judge throw the book at me. I was court ordered to attend therapy to “work through” my anger issues. Honestly, it worked. At least for a while.

Then one day I met Laurel. She had been the mother I never had until one day she became my worst nightmare. At first, I was scared. She would chain me up in a cave and leave me there for hours. I was confused, alone, afraid. Finally, I had had enough and fought back, giving into my carnal instincts as a Hyde. That was what she had been waiting for.

That day I was liberated from the humdrum life of Jericho. It had shocked and horrified me until I had my first taste of blood. Then I leaned into it. I savored the bitter metallic taste of innocent blood running down my throat.

But a little pig tailed girl and her gang of freaks brought an end to all of that.

We were so close. Victory was on my tongue, and it tasted so sweet. It was supposed to be the ultimate rebellion against my father. I wanted to destroy the town he so desperately wanted to protect. For most of my life, I had been riding side saddle to that stupid town that quickly turned their backs on him after it was revealed I was the monster lurking in the shadows all along.

My dad had spent more time with me than he ever had since I was imprisoned. He blamed himself. As he should. If he had paid attention to me and not left me to fend for myself, maybe I wouldn’t have turned out this way. Maybe if he had told me about my mother and explained what I am I wouldn’t have had to seek answers from someone else.

Naturally, I became the Jekyll to my Hyde during our visits to convince him I was reforming. I did a great job of fooling everyone. They all believed I was on the up and up. They never saw it coming.

I know Laurel has a grand scheme up her sleeve, but I want to let her sweat it out a bit longer in her cell. I figured since she enjoyed imprisoning and experimenting on me for months, she deserved a little taste of her own medicine.

So as I stand in the Nightshade’s library waving at the hidden camera installed by the thorn in my side, I reflect on all my life’s choices leading up to this. I made a lot of mistakes in my life, but the biggest mistake of all was letting Wednesday Addams live. Maybe I had cared about her at one point. We certainly have a lot more in common than she thought, but that doesn’t change the fact that she is due for her repayment.

I have been watching her and leaving little clues for her to find like Xavier Thorpe’s cute little painting. But someone else has been watching much longer than I have. I intend to find this person and congratulate them for their superior job of breaking her down. Then I’ll rip them to pieces. I want Wednesday all to myself.  After I kill Wednesday Addams, I’m going straight to daddy dearest.

While I was imprisoned, a little birdie let me in on a little secret. My parent’s marriage wasn’t always sunshine and rainbows. No, dad’s been keeping a secret from everyone for all these years.

My father killed my mother.

***

A week had gone by since Tyler’s appearance in the Nightshade’s library. Wednesday’s blood boiled when she got the notification on her phone. His presence in the library had been fleeting, just long enough to taunt her and then he disappeared into the darkness. Likewise, Abigail Laslow had suddenly gone radio silent.

Wednesday had found mini surveillance cameras with audio in her dorm room, Xavier’s room, and Xavier’s art studio. All three places had been safe zones for her.

Wednesday had spoken with Weems regarding Abigail Laslow. Unfortunately, Abigail was something of a loner during her time at Nevermore and had left no lasting impact on Weems. Another dead end.

Tyler’s words repeated on an endless cycle in her mind. You’re so close. . . The answers are right under your nose. . . You keep asking the wrong questions.

Her friends as well had felt the effect of the standstill. Enid had nightmares every night of her fight with Tyler. Each nightmare had the same ending. She was overpowered by Tyler and all of her friends were killed as a result. Every morning she would wake up with a fistful of mattress stuffing and fresh claw marks in her sheets.

Ajax replayed the sight of his best friend’s body hitting the floor. He had never felt as helpless in his entire life. Wednesday’s shrill screams had haunted him in his sleep every night. Her screams were the most jarring; her screams cut through his unconscious mind like a sharp samurai blade.

Xavier was constantly looking over his sore back. He could feel eyes on him at all times no matter where he was. After sacrificing himself for Wednesday, he felt like a target for Tyler and the unsub. Surely, they would come after him next to get to Wednesday now that it was clear she cared for him.

Wednesday spent most of her time in front of her mystery board focusing on the investigation. She had forged a doctor’s note excusing her from classes for the week, claiming she had COVID-19. This excuse could have bought her an extra week if she needed, which she hoped she wouldn’t need.

She couldn’t understand what Abigail Laslow had to do with all of this. According to Rowan, Abigail had seen Wednesday as the destroyer of Nevermore. But Wednesday had solved that mystery last semester. She wasn’t the destroyer; she was the protector against Joseph Crackstone. So why was Abigail back with a bigger axe to grind against Wednesday? Why wasn’t she in her grave after she supposedly passed away of breast cancer almost two years ago? Why did she fake her death? What does Tyler know that she doesn’t?

These are the questions that kept Wednesday up at night. She had never faced such a complicated mystery before that completely eluded her. No number of resources could give her the answers she wanted. She contemplated hanging up her detective’s hat in defeat and finding a new hobby.

On the seventh day, Enid decided enough was enough. After her last class of the day, she made her way up to her room with the intention of breaking Wednesday out of her rut. She steeled herself before dangerously stepping in the way of Wednesday’s view of the mystery board. If looks could kill, Enid would be dead as she stood. “You need to take a step back. You haven’t eaten, slept, or showered in the last week. You stink.” Enid pinched her nose as she caught a whiff of Wednesday’s stale body odor.

Having been broken from her trance, Wednesday took a moment to smell herself. Enid was right. She did smell. With a low grumble in her throat, Wednesday grabbed her shower bag and headed to the bathroom. The cold water hitting against her tired body rejuvenated her, giving her a fresh mental awareness.

Enid waited for her on Wednesday’s bed with a sandwich and a bag of chips. Wednesday mumbled her thanks as she devoured the food. “You’re not going to go back to investigating when you’re done eating. You need to sleep. The longer you stare at that thing, the less you’ll get done.”

“Perhaps you’re right.” Wednesday felt her eyes drooping and realized just how tired she was. After finishing half of the sandwich, she climbed into bed and became dead to the world.

***

When she woke up, the sun was starting to set, and Enid was no longer in the room. She looked at her phone to check for any new messages from Abigail and made the horrifying realization that she slept for almost 24 hours. Her body felt stiff and groggy as if rigor mortis had set in. She sat up and stretched, noticing that Enid had left her water and more food on her bedside. Grateful, she began eating the food to satisfy the empty hole in her stomach.

As she finished the last bite of her sandwich, Enid and Ajax walked through the door. Enid smiled, pleased to see that her friend was awake and eating again. “Hey there sleepy head! How are you feeling?”

“Refreshed.” Wednesday cleared her throat. “Thank you.”

Enid sat down on the edge of Wednesday’s bed while Ajax remained standing, smiling down at her. “Good. I was worried about you for a second. Now that you’re feeling better, there’s something we need to talk about.”

“Is it about the case?” Wednesday swung her legs over the side of her bed and started to make her way to the mystery board. Enid pulled her back and made her sit again.

“No. Nothing new happened while you were out,” Enid said. Wednesday looked at her in puzzlement. What else would there be to discuss? Wednesday thought. “Xavier’s birthday is in four days! We need to plan something nice for him.”

Wednesday rolled her eyes. “Enid, in case you haven’t noticed, there is a more pressing matter that requires my full attention right now.”

Enid folded her arms across her chest. “Xavier almost died trying to save your life. His birthday is just as important, if not more, than your investigation. If it wasn’t for him, you wouldn’t even have another birthday.”

Enid’s right Wednesday thought. “What do you propose we do for him?”

“He doesn’t like to celebrate his birthday,” Ajax said. “So, a birthday party is definitely out.”

“Why doesn’t he like to celebrate?” Enid asked.

Ajax nervously shuffled his feet and looked down. “It’s not really my place to tell you. Let’s just say it’s a day he would like to skip.”

Enid frowned and pursed her lips. “Well, we have to do something for him. What’s something that’s subtle but still says happy birthday?”

“The lighting in his studio is atrocious,” Wednesday said. During the day it was acceptable, but at night the awful yellow lighting gave her a headache. Unfortunately, that was when he spent the most time in his studio.

“Wednesday, that’s genius!” Enid squealed. “We can hang up Christmas lights around the ceiling in his studio so he can see better!”

“That’s actually a really good idea,” Ajax said. “Where are we going to get Christmas lights from though?” Christmas lights in April were obsolete.

“I can order it on Amazon. I have a Prime membership.” Enid was vibrating with excitement. She loved gift giving almost as much as receiving gifts.

“How are we going to hang up the lights without him knowing?” Ajax asked. “He practically lives there.”

“You’ll have to distract him,” Enid said dismissively. “Just ask him to play Call of Duty or something.”

Ajax smirked as he thought back to the last game they played together. Xavier practically threw a tantrum when Ajax won. “Yeah, okay. That works. Just let me know when and I’ll distract him for a couple hours.”

“Perfect.” Enid clapped her hands gleefully and grabbed her phone.

“Enid, can I borrow your phone?” Wednesday asked. Enid looked at her funny, but wordlessly handed it to her friend. Christmas lights was a good start, but Wednesday had a better idea.

***

Xavier’s birthday had finally arrived. The day before Wednesday and Enid had worked diligently in preparation while Ajax had beaten Xavier twice in their video game.

Wednesday waited anxiously in front of Xavier’s studio. She had requested to surprise him alone, much to Enid’s disappointment and eventual understanding.

Xavier walked with his headphones on, head held down, and his hands shoved deeply into his coat pockets. He had managed to get through the day with only Bianca wishing him a happy birthday. He hated his birthday and had every intention of hiding away in his studio until it was over. When he neared the studio, he barely acknowledged Wednesday. He said nothing as he unlocked the door and let her walk through first.

 His mouth dropped when he passed the threshold, eyes glittering in the new twinkling lights. The added lighting opened up his studio making it appear larger. Enid had ordered a blinking set of lights with five different settings for him to play with. His eyes traveled around the room and fell on a new set of canvases and paints laid neatly on his table. He looked up at Wednesday, opening and closing his mouth before saying, “Did you do this?”

Wednesday nervously looked away and nodded. “Enid and I put up the lights last night while Ajax distracted you. I don’t know how you tolerated such dim lighting. Also, the last time I was here I noticed you were running low on certain paint colors, and I thought a fresh set of canvases were in order. I also bought you this.” She pulled out a coloring book from behind her back and handed it to him, his mouth curling into a smile for the first time that day. “It’s a serial killer coloring book. I bought myself one too. I thought it would be an enjoyable activity for the two of us to do together.”

Xavier was speechless. “You’re unbelievable, you know that?”

Wednesday recoiled. “If you don’t like it, I will return it.”

“No,” Xavier said hurriedly, realizing his poor choice of words. “No, I love it. I mean, it’s totally unexpected. I didn’t even know you knew when my birthday was.”

“I know you would rather forget your birthday, but this is my way of showing my appreciation for you saving my life.” Wednesday sat on the stool nearest to her and folded her hands neatly in her lap, crossing her ankles together.

Xavier’s smile faltered. “Yeah, my birthday is not something I like to celebrate.” He nervously scratched his head and pulled up another stool for himself. “But this is hands down the best gift I’ve ever received. You really didn’t have to do all this.”

“I wanted to.” She stared at him for a moment. “As Enid put it, if it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have another birthday.”

“Anytime.” He meant it. He would do it again anytime she needed saving. “So, this coloring book. You bought it for us?” He smirked and raised his eyebrow in jest.

She scowled and changed the subject. “Are you going to tell me why you don’t enjoy your birthday?”

He looked away from her gaze with his jaw clenched. He was hoping she wouldn’t ask. “It’s not something I like to talk about.”

“I have bared myself metaphorically naked in front of you. It is your turn.”

Xavier snorted and looked to the ceiling with his tongue in his cheek. “I knew you would be curious. Do you want the short story or the long one?”

“I think you know the answer to your question.”

“Of course.” He exhaled loudly and took another deep breath. “Every year, I spend my birthday alone. Which isn’t much different from every other day of the year, but it’s especially lonely on my birthday. This year my father’s assistant got me a car.” His face scrunched in disgust as he thought about the vehicle sitting in the school parking lot.

“I don’t understand. Is a vehicle not something every teenage boy wants for his birthday?”

“It’s not about the car. It’s the fact that my father always forgets my birthday and he just leaves it up to his assistant to pick something out. The whole point of getting a car for your birthday is picking it out with your dad or going for the first drive together. He didn’t even text or call me. I just got an email from the assistant and a package with the keys. This is the day when your parents are supposed to be happy that they had you. But I know my dad regrets having me.”

“What about your mother?”

Xavier shook his head and bit his lip. “She passed away when I was four. My dad never wanted kids. His career had just started taking off when my mom told him she was pregnant and wanted to keep me. After she died, he completely disappeared. I’d see him around the house, but he was mostly gone on his tours. I was raised by nannies and assistants until I was old enough to take care of myself. Then I raised myself.

“I think he distanced himself from me because I look just like my mother. He might not have wanted me, but he loved my mom. I remember she was a lot of fun and really smart. I think keeping himself busy is his way of coping.” Xavier wet his chapped lips and looked at Wednesday. Her face was expressionless.

“Is that why you were sent to Nevermore?”

He shook his head. “No, it’s because I was getting into trouble at school. Well, more like trouble was finding me. See, being the son of a famous psychic isn’t that easy. Kids were either amazed and wanted to get to know me thinking I was like my dad or kids would bully me and call me names for having a ‘freak’ as a father. I got into a lot of fights defending myself. The older I was, the worse it got. You know, a disruptive kid with a chip on his shoulder doesn’t make good publicity, so he sent me here. Also, he wanted me to learn how to control my psychic abilities so I could one day get my shit together and join his show. ‘A real chip off the old block’ is what he said. But I have no intention of being his side show.” He paused and smiled humorously at Wednesday. “So yeah, that’s why I hate my birthday. Nothing too crazy.”

Wednesday tilted her head to the side. “Why not allow your friends to celebrate your birthday? Why remain miserable every year?”

“Even though I’m less lonely here than I was back at home, I still don’t have many friends I can trust. Ajax and Bianca are the only people I told this story to, and for the most part those two, you, Enid, and Thing are my only friends.”

“That doesn’t answer my question, Xavier.”

“Um.” Xavier tried to think of a better way to word his answer. “Okay, when I came here, I had zero expectations of things being different. I expected people to act about the same as everyone else at my public school. I was right for the most part. I got a lot of questions during my first week here. It wasn’t until I sat next to Ajax in class that I made a real friend. I was sitting there doodling in my sketchbook when he looked over and started asking questions about my drawings. I can’t remember what I drew, but I made it come to life and he just about lost his shit. He said it was the coolest thing he’s ever seen. From there we hit it off and became close.” He smiled at the memory.

“Since then, I’ve made a few acquaintanceships here and there, like with Kent but I wouldn’t call him a friend,” Xavier continued. “Bianca and I became close when we bonded over parents’ week. We were the only ones whose parents didn’t show up. For the most part, I think she gets me, but I don’t believe she never used her siren song on me. I think she wanted me to like her romantically so bad that she crossed her own line. We’re still cool, but I just don’t think I’ll fully trust her again.”

Wednesday considered all of this new information as they sat in silence. Xavier picked up the new paints and inspected them. All of a sudden, an idea came to Wednesday. “Show me your new car,” she said as she stood up.

“Sure, but I don’t have the keys on me.” Xavier was confused by her sudden interest in his new car.

“Then let’s stop by your room. You’re taking me to dinner.” Without waiting for a response, she turned and left the studio. She heard the stool scrape against the floor and assumed he was following her.

“Where do you want to go?” he asked from behind her.

“It’s your birthday, you pick,” she said over her shoulder. “I’m paying.”

After locking the door, he quickened his pace to catch up. “Sure, but you should probably stop at your room and get changed. I want to take you somewhere nice.”

Wednesday looked down at her school uniform and decided a change of clothes was a good suggestion. Without any promise to meet back up with him, she turned in the direction of Ophelia Hall.

“30 minutes!” He called after her and rushed to his room. Wednesday was full of birthday surprises today.

***

Enid and Ajax were making out on her bed when Wednesday burst through the door. “Wednesday!” Enid broke away from Ajax’s face and squealed. “How did it go? Did he like it?”

“Loved it,” Wednesday deadpanned. “He is taking me out to dinner.” She walked into her closet and pulled out a black dress with a white pointed collar.

“OMG! Where is he taking you?” Enid stood to attention and practically ran into Wednesday’s closet.

“He said somewhere nice but didn’t say exactly where”

“He’s probably taking you to that Italian restaurant just outside of Jericho,” Ajax said and made his way to Wednesday’s side of the room. “That’s his favorite place to eat.”

Enid’s eyes widened with her mouth hanging open, making her look like a goldfish. “Wednesday! You can’t wear that. Caterina’s Ristorante is super fancy. I’ve got just the outfit! Ajax, go into my closet and grab my black corduroy dress. Then grab my white turtleneck. Wednesday, I have to do your hair and makeup. You’re going to look so pretty!”

“Enid, it’s not a date. I do not have to dress up for the male gaze,” Wednesday protested.

Enid’s face darkened as she held up her claws. “Sit down and stop complaining. You are going to look hot goddammit even if it’s the last thing I do.” Wednesday was so impressed by Enid’s intimidation tactics that she sat down and obeyed.

“Don’t take too long,” Wednesday ordered. “Xavier said to meet him in 30 minutes.”

“He’s waited this long, he can wait a little bit longer,” Enid said cheerily as she pinned Wednesday’s pigtails up into a braided crown. “I won’t do anything too crazy. I just want to accentuate your natural beauty. Ajax, blush please.” Enid called out to Ajax to hand her various beauty tools and he gladly plucked them out and handed them to her. He was happy Wednesday was doing this for Xavier. He knew this meant a lot to Xavier.

Enid carefully applied eyeliner and mascara and then a hint of blush and contour to Wednesday’s cheekbones. She finished the look with a deep plum lip. “Done.” She stood back to admire her work.

“You look good, Addams,” Ajax complimented. “You look like the living dead.”

“Thank you,” Wednesday said while looking into Enid’s handheld mirror. She had to admit, Enid didn’t go overboard and actually did a good job.

“Now get dressed.” Enid shoved her clothes into Wednesday’s hands. “We’ll be outside. Let us know when you’re done.”

Ajax closed the door behind them to give Wednesday her privacy. She changed into a black pair of tights, a white turtleneck, and a black corduroy dress. The dress came down to her mid-thigh, a length she didn’t quite like but with the tights she could work with it. The dress was sleeveless with a deep V-neck and four buttons running down the front. The white turtleneck complimented it perfectly. It wasn’t quite her style, but she had to give credit to Enid again. She allowed herself to feel beautiful.

Wednesday opened the door and let Enid zip up the dress while she oohed and aahed at her. Ajax smiled warmly and complimented her again.

“Shoes! You need shoes!” Enid frantically dug through her piles of shoes and pulled out a pair of knee length black boots with a chunky heel. Wednesday put them on and grabbed her black leather jacket. “Wait!”

“What now, Enid? Have I not endured enough?” Wednesday groaned. It had been well past thirty minutes and she was sure Xavier had begun to assume she had changed her mind.

Enid ran to her desk and came back with a pair of plain black earrings. “I saw these online and thought of you. I was waiting for the perfect moment to give them to you.”

Wednesday took them and quickly put them on. “Thank you, Enid. I don’t hate the look you created.”

Enid squealed and threw her arms around her friend. “Now go get him, tiger! You look gorgeous! Don’t stay out too late!” Enid pushed Wednesday into the hallway and waved before slamming the door.

***

Xavier stood outside Ophelia Hall and watched as the sun set. He was beginning to wonder if Wednesday had changed her mind when she finally made her way down the stairs. His mouth fell open in shock for the second time that day. “You look. . .”

“Ridiculous? Out of place? A slave to the perpetual mating ritual a woman performs for a man?”

“Drop dead gorgeous,” he finished with a smirk. Wednesday was thankful for the color Enid added to her cheeks so Xavier wouldn’t notice the natural color rising to her face. She noticed how dapper Xavier looked in his own outfit. He wore a basic black button down shirt with black dress pants under his grey peacoat. His hair was tied back in a sleek bun. “I was afraid you weren’t coming.”

“Enid assaulted my face with Ajax’s help,” Wednesday explained.

“Well, remind me to say thanks to my two guardian angels.” Xavier internally pinched himself to make sure he wasn’t dreaming.

Wednesday walked ahead of him towards the school parking lot. “Let’s get this over with before I change my mind.”

Xavier held the door open to his brand-new black Mercedes Benz for her to slide in. He shut the door behind her and ran to his side, clicking his heels in excitement. “At least my dad’s assistant picked out a decent car. I like the all black interior,” he said as he started the engine. He carefully reversed the car and put it in drive, his long slender fingers wrapped naturally around the steering wheel.

“Thank God for small favors,” Wednesday sarcastically said. She stared out the window at the passing trees glowing in the twilight.

“So, what kind of music do you listen to?” he asked.

“Jazz and classical mostly.” She paused. “And yourself?”

“I listen to a little bit of everything. Mac Miller is my favorite artist. His style was constantly changing, and his lyrics were always hella relatable. Otherwise, I listen to bands like The Neighbourhood and Cigarettes After Sex.”

“Intriguing,” she plainly said. They sat in silence as Xavier drove them to the outskirts of Jericho.

“I hope you like Italian,” he said as he pulled up to the restaurant.

“I spent a summer in Italy studying the Catacombs of Rome with my Uncle Fester,” she replied while unbuckling her seatbelt and opening her door before Xavier had a chance to do it for her.

Xavier rushed to the front of the restaurant to open the door. She rolled his eyes at his chivalry but said nothing. He checked them in and requested a booth in a dark corner of the restaurant. They sat down, ordered drinks, and began perusing the menu.

Xavier looked over the top of his menu at Wednesday. “Everything is good here, but my favorite is the orzata con gamberetti.” He pronounced the menu item in perfect Italian. He must have been practicing, Wednesday thought.

The waiter came to take their orders, and Wednesday ordered Xavier the orzata con gamberetti and herself the linguini agli aromi e gamberetti. She too was eager to show off her Italian skills. Xavier beamed at her, highly impressed.

“Thank you, Wednesday. This is the best birthday I could have asked for.” Xavier felt as if he were on Cloud 9. Nothing could ever top this night in his eyes.

Wednesday’s frown softened slightly. “I am glad you are enjoying yourself. Thing wanted me to tell you happy birthday. He wished he could have told you in person, but he is still busy watching Eugene.”

“How is Eugene?”

“Worried, but he is fine for now.”

They continued sitting in comfortable silence. Wednesday had always appreciated that Xavier never felt the need to fill every moment with conversation. He was as content as her with his own thoughts. Xavier memorized every part of Wednesday’s face so he could paint her later tonight. He never wanted to forget how beautiful she looked in the dim restaurant’s light. After some time, he decided to ask her about her family.

“I don’t think you would be interested in my family stories,” she said as the waiter placed her food in front of her.

“Come on,” Xavier said while picking up his fork. “I told you all about my family. Tell me about Uncle Fester and the rest of your mysterious family members.”

Wednesday sighed and began telling him stories. She told him about Uncle Fester’s trip to the Bermuda Triangle that led to his mistaken identity, her father’s penchant for trains, the large greenhouse of carnivorous plants Morticia tended to, and her and her brother’s favorite game of waterboarding. She told him about the time she almost burned down her summer camp.

She was surprised by Xavier’s sincere interest. These were all just boring family stories to her, but to him they were entertaining. She had anticipated him telling her to stop, enough was enough, after her story about dropping her baby cousin Pubert off the balcony, but instead he told her to go on and showed her his smiling dimples.

When the waiter set the bill on the table, Xavier quickly pulled out his wallet and handed him his credit card. Wednesday glared at him with her hand still hovering over her wallet. “I said I was going to pay.”

“Well, my father’s paying tonight.” Xavier smugly grinned at her. “It’s the least he can do to make up for his absence.”

She put her wallet back in her jacket pocket with a huff. “I can accept that response, but next time I will be paying.”

“So, there will be a next time?” Xavier’s heart skipped a beat.

“This was not a date,” she said through gritted teeth.

Xavier rolled his eyes as he signed his receipt. “Yeah, yeah. You were just being nice because you felt bad for me.” Wednesday remained silent. They pulled themselves out of their booth and slipped on their coats. Xavier picked up their to go boxes and led them through the rows of tables out the door and to the car.

The way back to Nevermore was silent for the most part. Xavier had put on a jazz playlist for them to enjoy. As they neared the school, Xavier glanced over at Wednesday. “You know, you were my very first friend.”

She peeled her eyes from the window to stare at him. “You said Ajax was your first friend.”

He shrugged. “Yeah, at Nevermore. But you were my first in general. At the funeral when we were ten, you didn’t treat me differently. You treated me like you treat everyone else. Like I was just as annoying as everyone else.”

“You were an annoyance,” Wednesday said as she recalled the funeral.

Xavier smiled and gripped the wheel tightly with his left hand. “Pugsley and I wanted to include you in our game of hide and seek. I remember you just wanted to enjoy the funeral in peace so you told me to go hide and you would seek. I hid in my godmother’s casket for what felt like hours waiting for you to come find me. Well, you know what happens next. I’ve had a crush on you ever since.”

“You have a morbid taste in women.”

“I like that you’re not afraid to be yourself, and you don’t put up with everyone’s shit. You treat us all with the same amount of disdain.”

“That’s not true.” Wednesday looked at his right hand resting on his leg. “Some people are less disdainful than others.”

“Am I one of those people?” He glanced at her with an eyebrow raised.

He smoothly turned the car into the school parking lot and pulled into a spot. He parked, turned the car off, and fully looked at her. “I can tolerate your existence far more than most,” she said plainly.

Neither made a move to exit the car. Xavier unbuckled his seatbelt and positioned his body to face her. “Wednesday, thank you. Seriously. I was dreading today, but you really made it special. You pulled out all the stops for little old me.” He reached for her hand and brought it up to his lips, giving her hand a tender kiss.

Wednesday pulled her hand back and looked at it as if it were burning. She felt a hotness rise up inside her and color her cheeks. “You are becoming quite bold with your affection towards me.”

He nervously bit his lower lip. His dinner threatened to make a reappearance due to all the anxiety bubbling inside of him. “Honestly, I don’t know where I stand with you. You say you love me and kiss me; you pull away and tell me to leave you alone, and then you come right back and go on a date with me.”

“This was not a date,” she said while glaring up at him.

“Whatever you want to call it,” he rolled his eyes. “You’re giving me a lot of mixed signals and I don’t know what to do. Do I allow you to love me on your terms and deal with the pain after you pull away or do I tell you no next time you come back when it’s convenient for you?”

“Xavier, can we just be friends?” Wednesday hated when Xavier became emotional. It was overstimulating and hard for her to process.

“Friends don’t kiss each other.”

Wednesday started to regret spending Xavier’s birthday with him. She wanted out of the car and to be back in front of her suspect board where she felt safe. “Forget about me. I will never be able to satisfy your needs and wants.”

“How can I forget about you?” His voice boomed in the condensed car. Wednesday internally flinched at the anger in his words. “You’re so unbelievably unforgettable. I just spent all night telling you all about my childhood trauma and admitted that I’ve loved you since I was ten years old. I trusted you because I love you. You’re incredible and amazing and smart and beautiful. You’re my best friend.”

Wednesday turned away from him, fixing her gaze out the window. “I don’t know what you want from me.” Her soft voice was a stark contrast to his loud desperate one.

Xavier rubbed his hand over his forehead. “I want you to be honest with yourself. I know you love me. You said it yourself. You wouldn’t have tried so hard to make my birthday special if you didn’t. What is holding you back?” She didn’t respond. “Just tell me. There’s only so much I can do with what little you’ve given me to work with.”

She peeled her eyes from the window and back to his. He looked to be fighting back tears. “I don’t know.”

He sighed and nodded his head. “Okay, that’s a start. Is it because of your vision? I’m fine, Wednesday. I’m still here. I’m just as capable of taking care of myself as you are. Is that it?” She shook her head. “Is it because you don’t want to lose focus? I’ve already told you we can go as slow as you want. I won’t distract you. I want to solve this case just as much as you do.”

“No.” Her heart was pounding so loud it was becoming maddening. She just wanted to go back to her room, but her body sat like a bag of sand in her seat, unable to move.

Finally, it occurred to him. “You’re scared. You’ve never felt this before, and you’re scared to love me. It’s okay, I’m scared too. We can be scared together. I’ve never loved anyone the way I’ve loved you, Wednesday.”

She felt a sudden jolt of electricity run through her body and took advantage of the new energy. She reached for the door handle and pulled, climbed out of Xavier’s car, and ran to Ophelia Hall. The crisp spring air hit her exposed cheeks like a thousand pine needles. She was grateful Enid had picked out chunky heels because they allowed her to keep her stability as she ran away from her feelings. Xavier called after her, but she did not stop running until she reached her and Enid’s room.

She threw open the door and laid down on her bed fully clothed. Enid was fast asleep next to her. Wednesday felt her phone vibrating so she clicked the decline button and settled into her bed. She hated how well he saw through her. It was like she was an open book laid out in front of him, showing him all of her secrets. She hated how her life was becoming a poorly written Netflix drama. She wanted to go back to the time when everyone was too afraid to know her.

***

Sheriff Galpin sat alone in his kitchen with a beer in his hand. He had taken to the bottle after his son’s arrest. It was the only way he knew how to cope.

Since his son’s arrest, the town of Jericho had collectively turned on him. The thin line of civility between outcasts and normies had completely been erased after the realization that the town’s once respected sheriff had been the father of the very monster killing off its citizens. His own police force looked at him differently. Some with pity and others with resentment. He felt like an outcast every time he walked down the street. The sharp looks and whispers behind his back as the townspeople turned in the opposite direction cut right through him.

Not only was his reputation ruined, but what had been left of his family had been completely obliterated. He never recovered from the loss of his beloved wife, and now he must come to terms with the fact that his son is forever lost as well. He knew he wasn’t a good father towards Tyler. His inability to remove himself from his grief had forced his son down a dark path. Throughout the years he kept telling himself one day Tyler would grow out of it and see things from his perspective. He dreamed of the day when he could sit down with his son and have the heart-to-heart Tyler deserved.

He had attempted to numerous times during his visits with his son in prison. It was near impossible to connect with him through the thick plexiglass and the use of a telephone. He had tried, and that was what was important to him. The Sheriff was under the impression that what he was saying was getting through to Tyler. Maybe he was understanding why his father had such a hard time facing his son who was identical to the love of his life who was lost sixteen years ago.

The Sheriff brought the beer bottle to his lips and tipped his head back, swallowing the remainder of his liquid medicine. The burn of the liquid flowing down his throat was all he felt. He had been drinking for so long his body had gone numb. He sighed heavily as he stared at the wall in front of him. Suddenly a dark shadow cast against the wall from behind. He didn’t have to turn around. He knew who it had been.

“Hello, dad.”

Chapter Text

“Hello, Tyler.” Sheriff Galpin put down the empty bottle in his hand and moved to face his son. However, the man standing in front of him was no longer his son. He looked like Tyler, but the dark and threatening look in his eyes said otherwise. The Sheriff supposed that look had always been lurking under the surface.

“You didn’t come looking for me.” Tyler advanced closer to his father, stopping just short of stepping on his father’s toes.

“I didn’t think you wanted to be found.”

Tyler laughed darkly, baring his fang-like teeth. A cold sweat broke out on the Sheriff’s back. “Even as an escaped convict, I still can’t get your attention.” He pulled out the chair in front of the Sheriff and sat down on the chair backwards, resting his arms on the back of the chair. “Speaking of escaped convicts, I made a friend during my time in prison. Can you guess who he is?”

“Tyler –”

“Save it. I don’t want to hear whatever kind of excuse you have prepared. You’re just going to sit here and listen.” Tyler’s eyes bore into Sheriff Galpin’s. When his father didn’t respond, he continued. “As you know, being the sheriff in a small town makes it hard to keep secrets. And boy, do you have a big secret.” Tyler’s laugh no longer sounded human. Right before his eyes, Donovan Galpin watched as his son gave into his darkness. Likewise, he was no longer himself. He was just a broken father sitting helplessly as he lost the remaining pieces of his son.

Fat hot tears poured down Donovan’s face. Tyler smiled in satisfaction watching his father squirm. The whites of his eyes were bloodshot and hungry for revenge. “I love this new you, dad. You’re finally showing the real you. You’re a coward.” Tyler stood up roughly and pushed his chair to the side. His hands slammed down on the table as he leaned in and screamed in his father’s face. “You took her away from me! You destroyed our family. Why? Why did you kill her?”

Donovan’s body shook as the heavy sobs escaped him. Gasping for breath, he attempted to explain. “I never wanted to kill her. She was the love of my life. It was all because of the Hyde.”

“You killed her because she was a freak! She was a freak just like me.”

“No!” Donovan yelled back. “No. I loved her no matter what. I did it to save you!”

Tyler’s anger slightly faltered. “What?”

Donovan swiped his hand under his runny nose and took a deep breath. “After she gave birth to you, she went through postpartum depression. It was the worst case the doctors have ever seen. She would lay in bed all day and cry. She didn’t even want to hold you or look at you. I did my best to be there for my family, but I had to work to keep putting bread on the table and a roof over our heads. Then one day I came home from work and found her in the nursey. She finally held you for the first time since bringing you home. Immediately I knew something was wrong. When I got closer, I noticed she was covered in blood. There had been a few bear attacks reported earlier that day, but when I saw the blood, I knew it wasn’t a bear attack.”

Tyler shook his head and walked backwards into the wall. No, no this wasn’t part of the story he said to himself. This wasn’t the same story the inmate had told him. His dad had ruthlessly shot his mom in cold blood. He put his hands over his ears. He didn’t want to hear anymore.

His father continued, “The Hyde inside of her remained dormant until it found an opening. Her depression made her lose control. She may have been in her human form, but she was gone, son. She wasn’t your mother. The monster consumed her and took every shred of your mother with it. I tried to take you from her; I tried to keep you safe. The Hyde was going to kill you, Tyler. I did the only thing I could do. I shot her before she could fully transform into the Hyde. I killed your mother to save you.”

“No!” Tyler screamed, spit flying everywhere. His face was beat red as he sobbed heavily. “You didn’t have to kill her!”

“She would have killed you and hundreds of other people would have died,” Donovan reasoned. “Your mother was a selfless woman. She never would have wanted the destruction of Jericho to be in her hands, let alone your blood. She loved you and would have willingly given up her life for you.”

“You don’t know that! You killed her before she had the chance.”

“I know, Tyler.” Donovan’s eyes shifted far off into the past as he recalled his wife’s final moments. “I held her in my arms and watched her die. In her final moments of consciousness, she was your mother again. She smiled and said thank you. Those were her last words. She knew the Hyde would have killed you, and she was grateful that I saved both of you from the monster. It was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. I wish I could go back and do everything different, but I can’t. We all have to find a way to move forward.”

Confusion and anger fought inside of Tyler as he grappled with his father’s story. He had so many questions. The most important question of all being, “Why did you never tell me? You knew all this time that I was the Hyde and you never told me.”

Donovan looked down, ashamed. “I thought I had more time. I was going to tell you when I felt like you were mature enough to handle the truth. Hydes are known to be volatile and dangerous. I didn’t want that life for you. I was hoping to spare you the pain.”

 “Why was the Hyde dormant in her for so long? If you knew she could be dangerous, why would you have me?”

“I was her master, Tyler,” Donovan said quietly. “Together we did our best to keep the monster from surfacing. For a long time, we were successful. We thought we could bring you into the world and create a better life for you. Like I said, the monster waited for an opening and when she slipped into her depression, the monster saw the opportunity and took her from us.”

Tyler had heard enough. He couldn’t handle anymore truth coming from his father. The monster saw the opportunity and lunged at Donovan Galpin. The quiet night of Jericho was consumed by desperate screams and monstrous growls.

***

Wednesday woke the next morning to Enid leaning above her with a giant toothy grin. Wednesday sat up, dropping her arms from her chest to her sides. “Enid, we need to stop spending so much time together. Your behavior is becoming unsettling.”

Enid giggled and moved to sit at the foot of the bed. “Best friends pick up on each other’s mannerisms. It’s normal. Now, tell me how last night went!”

Wednesday rolled her eyes and pushed her loose hanging fringe from her face. “It was fine. Xavier wouldn’t shut up about how much fun he was having.” That’s all she was willing to offer. She would need her morning coffee before she would divulge into further details.

Enid clapped and bounced up and down on the bed. “OMG I’m so glad you guys had a fun time! You two really deserve to be happy.”

Guilt formed in the pit of Wednesday’s stomach knowing that she had ruined Xavier’s birthday by running away from him. Pulling the covers away from her, she got out of bed and started towards her closet. Thankfully Enid didn’t say anything about her still wearing the previous night’s outfit.

“I swear to God, your relationship with Xavier is the cutest. You guys are like made for each other!” Enid swooned. Wednesday wondered if Enid knew what happened and was using her sickly-sweet musings as a way of torture but had determined Enid was still ignorant of the truth.

“Enid, why don’t you go to breakfast without me,” Wednesday suggested in hopes that her roommate would leave her alone. “I have a lot of coursework to catch up on.”

Taking the bait, Enid left her alone to get ready for the day. She knew it was a matter of time before Enid found out the truth. Wednesday wanted every moment of peace she could have before Enid tore her a new one. After her hair was neatly braided, Wednesday pulled out her mystery board and began connecting dots.

***

Xavier’s back was turned when Enid threw herself at him and hugged him tightly. He put on his best fake smile before turning to pat her gently on the back. “Hey, Enid. What’s up?”

“How was your birthday? I want to hear all about it!” she squealed.

He wasn’t surprised that Wednesday hadn’t given Enid all of the night’s details. He didn’t much want to discuss it either. “It was great. Thank you so much for everything. You guys did a great job of making my birthday special.”

Enid pulled back from the hug and studied him carefully. He was smiling, but he didn’t look happy. The bags under his eyes were a clear indicator that he did not sleep. His nonexistent relationship with Wednesday was taking its toll on him. “What did she do?”

“Enid, it wasn’t –“

“Xavier, you look like crap.” She put her hands on her hips. “What’s it going to take for her to just be happy for once?”

He ran a hand through his hair and looked away. The familiar quad they were standing in suddenly felt claustrophobic. “It was my fault. Things were going great until I pushed too hard.”

“You shouldn’t have to push. She needs to accept that she loves you and move on. I love a good romance like the next guy, but she is running me ragged with this back and forth. I can’t imagine how you feel.”

“Yeah, it sucks. Not much I can do about it.”

Enid sighed and crossed her arms. “You know you can’t keep doing this, right? I know you love her, but it’s getting to the point where you need to start protecting yourself. I mean it, Xavier. You look like crap. Every time she gives you a crumb of attention and pulls it away, you just keep looking worse and worse.”

Sadly, he nodded his head. He knew. He knew he couldn’t keep this up much longer. He spent all night thinking about how he was about to let her, and his dreams go. “You’re right. If it’s going to happen, I need to let her go and let her figure it out for herself.”

“It might take a while.” Enid knew it might never happen, but she didn’t want to throw more salt in Xavier’s gaping wounds.

“I’ll just have to try to move on. I’ll never love anyone the way I love her, but I guess it’s time to try.” His green eyes appeared to glaze over as he stared above Enid’s head.

“Do you want me to try talking to her?”

He shook his head. Talking to Wednesday was about as effective as talking to a brick wall. Once she set her mind to something, it was nearly impossible to change her mind. Enid pursed her lips and nodded her understanding. She gave him a sympathetic pat on the shoulder before walking away, leaving him to consider what he was about to do.

Skipping his first class, his body operated on autopilot, taking him to Wednesday’s balcony. His mind was blank as his knuckles rapped on the ice-cold webbed glass. Seconds later Wednesday appeared, wordlessly opening the window to let him inside. She knew why he was there. She stood in front of him with her arms firmly at her sides. “Hello, Xavier.”

“Wednesday.” The way he breathed her name made the hair on her arms stand up in a pleasant way, but the sadness in his face made her stomach churn. “I need you to be brutally honest with me. Do I have a chance in hell of being with you?”

Her busy mind quieted and her lips refused to move. This was his answer.

He tilted his head down to scratch the back of his neck, his right foot kicked at an invisible rock. “Okay. Understood. I think it’s time I moved on.”

Her body momentarily forgot how to function. She inhaled deeply; the air stuck in her throat unable to go down to her lungs. She felt lost in a mental fog. “You said you would wait for as long as I needed.”

“That’s why I asked if there was any chance that we could be together. If there is, you need to tell me right now. If you say yes, I will continue to wait no matter how much it hurts.” His eyes begged for her to say yes. She almost did.

But once Wednesday Addams makes up her mind, it’s nearly impossible to change it.

For two agonizing minutes, Xavier waited. He counted each second in his head while Wednesday continued to stare at him in silence. Finally, he shook his head and headed for the window. “I can’t keep putting myself through this kind of pain without any light at the end of the tunnel. You’ve had months to think about whether or not you wanted to be with me. Now I need to move on for my own sanity. I love you, Wednesday, but I need to love myself enough to let you go.”

He gave her one more chance to stop him from leaving, to tell him that everything would all be worth it in the end. But she didn’t. She stayed completely still in her spot and made no move to say or do anything to stop him. Sighing, he climbed through the window and said his final goodbyes.

***

During her shared class with Xavier, she glared at Kent, forcing him to sit next to Xavier so she could sit next to Oliver. Xavier was grateful that they were finally on the same page. Before the class began, Oliver passed a note to Wednesday telling her to meet him at the Nightshade library after class. She nodded and turned her attention to Mrs. White.

“Today we are going to talk about the mythology of the raven,” Mrs. White said. Xavier and Wednesday simultaneously rolled their eyes from their respective corners of the room. “Not only are they the historical trademark of our most famous alumni Edgar Allen Poe, but they are also significant symbols in Greek mythology. Ravens were white until they presented bad news to the god Apollo. Enraged, Apollo cursed the bird, turning its feathers black. That is why ravens are a symbol of bad luck and death.”

Xavier’s grip tightened on his pencil as he angerly sketched out a raven. His rough movements made the table shake, causing Kent to pass a note asking if he was okay. Xavier looked at his new table mate with a wild sarcastic grin. “Okay,” Kent mouthed and went back to his own doodling.

Bianca, who was sitting behind Xavier, also noticed the tension. She glanced between him and Wednesday, shaking her head to herself and thanking God she wasn’t involved.

Ignoring the tension between her two students, Mrs. White continued her lecture. Wednesday had ruled out Mrs. White completely from her suspect list. She had decided the only crime Mrs. White was guilty of was being incredibly dull.

At the end of class, Wednesday made her way to the Nightshades library. Oliver hung back to ask a few questions to eliminate any suspicion towards the two. Xavier watched her hastily walk down the hallway. “What’s going on between you two?” Bianca asked from behind him.

“Nothing,” Xavier snapped and moved on to his next class. Bianca shook her head again and went on with her day.

***

“What do you have for me?” Wednesday asked as Oliver entered the library.

He pulled out his phone and showed her the news article that had been posted merely an hour ago. The headline was: Jericho’s Sheriff Donovan Galpin Brutally Slain by Monster. Wednesday’s eyes narrowed as she read through the article. The Sheriff’s body was discovered early this morning by one of his deputies after failing to show up to work. His body had been brutally torn apart by what appeared to be claws. It was no mystery that Tyler was behind this.

“Tyler has some serious daddy issues,” Oliver said, taking his phone back and placing it in his pocket.

“I knew he didn’t get along well with his father, but why would he kill him? Why not get his revenge on me and get the hell out of dodge?”

“Sheriff Galpin killed his wife, Tyler’s mother,” Oliver explained. “After she went on a rampage, she attempted to kill their son. The Sheriff shot his wife in the neck before she was able to fully transform back into the Hyde. Mayor Walker downplayed the murder and never released the name of the officer who shot Francoise. It was to maintain the charade that the murders were caused by a bear.”

“Now that his father is out of the way, that frees him up for his next target.”

“It also takes the attention off of Laurel. The police force will be scrambling to find a new sheriff. This gives Tyler the perfect opportunity to break out Laurel.”

“Let him,” Wednesday said. Oliver’s eyebrows scrunched together, and his head jerked back in disbelief. “I know Laurel has been plotting while she’s been behind bars. Tyler has shown he is perfectly capable of carrying out whatever plan she has concocted with or without her. It’s better to kill them with one stone rather than two.”

“Wednesday, I think we’re in over our heads here. We still don’t know the connection between Laurel, Tyler, and Abigail Laslow. We have no idea what it is they are planning. How can we prepare ourselves without any clues to guide us?”

“I have a hunch. Before Rowan died, he told me his mother saw the end of the world and I was the destroyer. She must have faked her death knowing her son wouldn’t succeed and decided to carry out her own plan to defeat me. After I defeated Joseph Crackstone, Abigail must have seen the second part of Laurel’s plan and assumed I was involved. She knows what’s coming, therefore; we need to draw her out and convince her I’m not trying to destroy Nevermore. I’m trying to save it.” This idea had come to Wednesday shortly before Xavier climbed in her window.

“How will we do that?” Oliver asked. He quickly glanced at his watch and saw they were running out of time.

“I haven’t figured that out yet. When I do, I will need your full support. With the Sheriff’s death, we are running out of time. We need to act fast and now.”

“You have my full support, Wednesday.” Oliver grabbed his backpack from the floor and slung it over his shoulder. “Call me as soon as you have a plan. I will continue my underground investigation.” Wednesday nodded as Oliver departed first. She planned to wait there for three minutes before leaving herself, except she noticed a book was missing. Not just any book, but a dark magic book. Instantly she knew whatever Laurel was planning, it was not going to be good.

***

Wednesday trotted up the stairs to the surface. She turned the corner to head to her room when she heard voices in the quad. She tried to walk discreetly past the students but as she drew closer and heard the conversation, she hesitated. Two vampires stood in front of Bianca who sat alone at a table.

“You’re really dating the Mayor’s son, the guy who bullied outcasts? You’re such a hypocrite,” one of them said.

“For real. How can you walk around campus acting like you’re better than everyone else and then do something so shady? What, is it because Xavier Thorpe didn’t want you back?” The two vampires laughed together, clearly pleased with themselves. Bianca ignored them, but the tension in her face made it clear that she was bothered.

Wednesday stepped from the shadows to join them. “You know what is hypocritical? Two outcasts ostracizing another outcast. Is there not anything more interesting in your pathetic lives than Bianca’s love life?”

The two vampires grumbled about something unintelligible and begrudgingly left. They knew better than to stick around once Wednesday Addams came to play. Once they were out of sight, Bianca breathed a sigh of relief. “Thanks. I try not to let it get to me, but. . . you know.”

“I know.” Wednesday knew exactly how it felt to have something so petty and trivial get under your skin. She was about to leave when Bianca pulled her down to sit with her. Wednesday rolled her eyes. She was tired of people attempting to engage with her.

“I saw the tension between you and Xavier today. Did you guys breakup?”

“We were never together to begin with,” Wednesday huffed. “Even if we were, I do not wish to sit here and gossip about my relationships.”

“Neither do I,” Bianca said. Her light blue siren eyes stared deeply into Wednesday’s. “I’m only asking because he’s my friend and I want to know why he was so upset this morning. He won’t tell me so I figured I'd ask you.”

Wednesday looked down at her hands clasped in her lap. “I cannot give him what he wants so he is moving on.”

Bianca’s eyes widened as she nodded in understanding. “Wow, I didn’t think he had it in him.” Neither did Wednesday.

“It is for the best. As you gracefully put it, I am the girl of his nightmares.”

“Wednesday,” Bianca put her hand on the table in front of the gloomy girl as a sign of sympathy. “I meant it when I said it last semester, but that doesn’t mean it’s true. You’re both so hot and cold for each other that is somehow works? I don’t know how to describe it. Just that you two go together in your own weird way.”

“Perhaps, but now we will be going our separate ways.” Wednesday stood from the table and smoothed out her skirt. “Now that you know why he is upset, I must be going. I have made a break in the case so I will need you ready to act soon.”

“Because of the Sheriff’s murder?” Bianca asked while standing.

“Yes. Tyler will release Laurel fairly soon and then will come back for Nevermore. I can’t divulge all the details as of yet, but I will be calling a meeting soon. Be on high alert until then.” Bianca nodded and the two girls walked off in the opposite direction of each other.

***

Ajax was lying on Enid’s bed flipping through one of her girly magazines when Wednesday walked through the door. She threw her backpack to the side and glared at her intruder. “What are you doing in here?”

He looked up from the magazine briefly before looking back down, flipping to the next page. “I stoned someone in gym class on accident, so the gym teacher told me to take a lap. Coincidentally that student is my roommate so I figured I would lay low for a bit. I was hoping Enid would be here.”

“It would seem she is the only student attending classes today.” Wednesday stomped to her mystery board, forcing her brain to focus on a new plan.

“How was your night with Xavier? He was pretty pissed off this morning,” Ajax asked nonchalantly without looking up. He did so intentionally because he knew the glare Wednesday directed at him would surely kill him.

“I may be the first human to simultaneously combust due to everyone’s obsessive interest in my love life.” Her fingers itched to grab her throwing stars and put an end to Ajax and his incoming questions but knew Enid would say friendship be damned and kill her for murdering her boyfriend. Perhaps death by werewolf mauling would be more peaceful than the incessant questions.

“Relax, I’m not going to dig into you like Enid will.” He shut the magazine and set it off to the side. “All I’m going to say is, I get it.”

“Pray tell?"

“Xavier is an emotional guy. I get it if he overstimulates you by throwing too much your way. It took me a while to get used to it, so I get it.”

Wednesday looked at him curiously. “How do you know I feel overstimulated?”

“Because we’re a lot alike.” Ajax sat up to properly look at Wednesday. “Gorgons are taught not to engage out of fear that we might stone someone. I don’t have a lot of friends or social skills because of it. So being friends with Xavier - someone who is completely run by emotion - is a lot to take in for someone like me or you who is not used to it. We shut down because we don’t know how to handle it. Doesn’t mean we don’t care. We just cope differently.”

Wednesday’s demeanor relaxed as she took in his words. Ajax was becoming an enigma to her. “How did you learn to handle being friends with him?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know. I used to have to take breaks once in a while to kind of settle my mind. The more I got used to him, the less breaks I had to take. It took me probably about three months to adjust.”

“Why did you make the adjustment when you could have gone back to being alone?”

“Because Xavier’s a cool dude. I like being around him so it’s worth it. Also, Enid’s teaching me to how to communicate better which makes it easier to express how I’m feeling when I’ve had enough. Both him and Enid get it and don’t get mad when I tell them I need some space.”

Wednesday sat on her bed to process everything Ajax said. He made a lot of sense. But could it really have been that easy? “Why did you choose Enid when she is so different from you?”

Ajax sighed and looked at the ceiling, pondering his answer for a second. “I love her because she’s different. She’s fearless and strong. And even though she’s a handful, she’s still worth every headache she gives me. I could have the worst day of my life, and she makes it better just by smiling. Like, she looks at me like I’m the only person in the world and it makes me feel unstoppable. She makes me feel like I'm home, you know? She gets me.”

Wednesday did know. Everything Ajax said reminded her of Xavier. Suddenly she felt sick. “I made a terrible mistake.”

“We all make them,” Ajax shrugged. “So what are you going to do about it?”

***

Wednesday ran to Xavier’s shed, completely disregarding the fact that she needed to focus on her investigation. She reasoned with herself saying she had at least a few days before Tyler and Laurel came looking for her, but Xavier couldn’t wait. She had to find him now.

The door to his shed wasn’t locked so she let herself in. “Xavier, I – " Her words fell flat as she saw Xavier’s face stuck to a redheaded girl she had only vaguely recognized. They were standing in the center of the studio with his arms around her waist and her fingers in his hair. Xavier peeled his face away from the redhead with fear in his eyes at the sight of Wednesday. The girl dropped her hands as pink color formed on her freckled cheeks.

“Wednesday, what are you doing here?” he asked as he stepped away from the girl.

Wednesday refused to look at him. She felt a mixture of embarrassment, anger, jealousy, and most of all sadness. She was too late. “I. . . wanted to tell you I made an important discovery in the homework assignment I’ve been working on. But I see you’re busy so I will see myself out.” Hurriedly she turned around and fast walked way from the studio. She felt the unfamiliar feeling of tears prickling in her eyes.

“Wednesday, wait!” he called from behind her. He used his long legs to catch up to her and grabbed her hand. Angrily she snatched her hand back and gave him her best glare through her tears. He looked as if she slapped him. He wished she had slapped him. It would have been less painful than watching her cry.

“You moved on fast,” she spat at him.

"I gave you so many chances to tell me it was possible for us, but you didn’t say yes.”

“For someone who is so ‘unforgettable’ you have certainly forgotten about me quite easily,” her words were biting despite the heavy sobs coming from her.

His own tears started to form. “I didn’t intend for this to happen. Katie and I started talking at lunch, and she wanted to see my art. She kissed me, okay? I didn’t plan for it to happen.”

She furiously wiped the tears from her eyes that had infiltrated her vision. “You seem to have enjoyed yourself.”

Xavier rolled his eyes and tugged at his hair. “What am I supposed to do, Wednesday? You don’t want to be with me, so I told you I’m moving on. This is part of moving on. I’m moving on because I can’t keep waiting for you when you’ve made it perfectly clear it’s not going to happen.”

“I made a mistake,” her voice cracked.

Xavier closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “It’s too late, Wednesday.” His eyes slowly opened. He fought against himself as every fiber of him wanted to scoop her up in his arms and comfort her. “I can’t keep doing this with you. I’m not a toy that you can pick up and play with until you get bored. It’s time we both moved on. I'm sorry.”

Before he could talk himself out of it, he left her and went back to Katie who was standing outside his studio watching the drama unfold. Xavier put an arm around her shoulders and brought her back inside, shutting the door behind him.

Wednesday stood there with her arms hugging tightly to her body, letting the sobs flow freely from her. When she had gained control of herself again, she took the long way back to Ophelia Hall.

Chapter Text

“What are you doing?” Bianca slammed her books down in front of Xavier, breaking his concentration from his math homework.

“Hi, Bianca. Nice to see you too,” Xavier said sarcastically. After everything that happened within the past week, he had finally found a moment of peace in the quad so he could catch up on the homework he had been neglecting. “Obviously I’m trying to pass this quarter, so if you could let me focus, that would be great.” He bowed his head down over his math book, hoping she would take the hint.

Bianca threw his sass right back with twice as much bite. “I’m not talking about the homework. What are you doing with Katie?”

Groaning, he threw down his pencil, completely giving up on ignoring her. “Why do you care?”

“One minute you’re following Wednesday around like a lost puppy, then you’re moping around campus like a zombie, and now you’re dating some random girl. What the hell is going on?”

His hand shot up to his head and pushed his hair back. “Katie isn’t some random girl. We’ve had classes together since I started at Nevermore.”

“But you never talked to her before. Why now?”

“I’m not having this conversation with you.” Xavier attempted to pack up his belongings. Bianca leaned forward and snatched his backpack from his hands. She prevented him from taking it back by clutching the backpack between her knees.

“Xavier, I’m worried about you. Please explain to me what’s going on.” Bianca and Xavier held a staring contest before he finally gave up.

“Fine,” he hissed. “Katie noticed I was upset about Wednesday rejecting me and we started talking. She asked about my art, so I brought her to my studio to check out some paintings. Next thing I know, she’s kissing me. It didn’t feel right at first because of my kind of breakup with Wednesday, but then I started to like it. So I kissed her back. She asked me out and I said yes. It’s as simple as that. Satisfied?”

Bianca shook her head. “Why are you in a relationship with a girl you barely know when you’re still in love with Wednesday?”

“Because she makes me happy, okay?” Xavier picked at the eraser on his pencil, refusing to make eye contact. “I’ve been miserable for months playing this stupid game with Wednesday. It’s nice to finally be with someone who isn’t so complicated. Literally all we do is talk. No monsters, no stalkers, no hurt feelings. We just talk about stuff we like and hang out.”

Fair, but still bullshit, Bianca thought. “Look, it’s fine to be with someone who makes you happy, but don’t you think this is a little too soon? You haven’t given yourself time to heal.”

“Best way to get over someone is to get under them, right?” Xavier humorlessly laughed. He knew Bianca was coming from a good place, but he also knew no amount of time away from Wednesday would ever make his wounds heal. Why even bother trying, he asked himself.

Bianca looked at him in disgust. Xavier was becoming a shell of the boy she used to know right before her eyes. “Does Katie know she’s just a rebound?” He didn’t respond. He was sure Katie had to have known after seeing him and Wednesday arguing at the shed, but he hadn’t had that talk with her yet. “Right, so you’re just going to do the same thing to Katie that Wednesday did to you. How is that fair, Xavier?”

He licked his chapped lips. “It’s not. You’re right about that. I’ll talk to her.”

“Good.” Bianca stared at him a little bit longer before giving him back his backpack and grabbing her own books to leave. “Get some sleep. You look like shit.”

***

Wednesday had come up with a plan. She texted Abigail Laslow asking her to meet up in the Nightshade Library at midnight. Abigail had responded with a clock and a moon emoji confirming the meeting. Weems was going to provide backup as Oliver while Wednesday planned to convince Abigail that Wednesday is not the enemy.

For once she had self-doubt.

After Xavier had completely shut the door on their relationship, Wednesday had felt disconnected from herself. It had only been a day since their confrontation, the dust had yet to settle. She found it hard to concentrate long enough to think of what she was going to say during her meeting with Abigail later that night.

***

“Well, Xavier and Katie are Facebook official now,” Enid said at dinner.

Wednesday stabbed at her plate causing a piece of ceramic to chip. “I don’t know what Facebook official means, but I can only assume that means they are an official couple.”

“Bingo,” Ajax said with a mouthful of food. Despite his best friend’s new romantic partner, Ajax had chosen to remain with Enid and Wednesday, leaving Xavier to mingle with Katie and her friends. Xavier happily indulged in a normal conversation with other teens his age.

“Can’t say I blame him. He gave you so many chances.” Enid shrugged.

“Whose side are you on?” Wednesday spat. Her original anger towards her meatloaf flared at her best friend.

Enid glared back. “I’m not on anyone’s side. You guys are putting me in an awkward position right now, you know that? I’m trying to support both of you, but you’re making it really hard.”

“How am I making it hard?”

Enid pushed her plate of food away from her. “Look, you’re my best friend and I will forever be your ride or die, but as your best friend, it’s my job to tell you when you’re being really stupid. You can’t be mad at Xavier for moving on when he gave you thousands of chances to be with him. You made your bed, now lie in it.”

“He pressured me to make a decision on the spot.”

“No, he didn’t! He asked you if you had even the slightest interest in pursuing a relationship with him in the near future. He didn’t ask you to marry him. You’ve been yanking the poor guy’s chain for months without any consideration for how he felt. Not only that, we’ve all had to witness this painful constant back and forth ‘will they won’t they’ thing between the two of you. We are all tired.” Enid hadn’t realized her claws had come out or that she was gripping the metal table so hard that it crunched under her strength.

Both girls were having a stare down with Ajax sitting uncomfortably in the middle. “I realized my mistake and went to him. He’s the one who pushed me away,” Wednesday seethed.

“Well what else was he supposed to do, Wednesday?” Enid shouted in the middle of the busy quad. Several students, including Xavier, turned to stare at their table. Both girls were too wrapped up in their argument to care about having an audience.

“Guys, calm down.” Ajax, the voice of reason.

Enid lowered her voice, but her hostile tone did not waver. “Was he supposed to just drop Katie and tell her to take a hike because you decided you wanted him again?”

Wednesday caught Xavier and Katie staring at her. She glared until Katie looked away, but Xavier’s eyes didn’t stray. He stared back with equal amounts of hurt and anger. It was like he was trying to say you made me do this. Katie grabbed his hand, snapping him out of it. He turned his attention to his new girlfriend and kissed her purposely knowing Wednesday was watching. Wednesday bent her fork in half as her body shook with rage. The fork clattered to the floor noisily after she threw it down and stomped off to her room to prepare for midnight.

Xavier broke away and looked at Wednesday’s empty seat. He had expected to feel smug satisfaction. Instead, he felt shame for what he had done. Katie stood up and pulled him with her, leading him away from the quad. Enid and Ajax looked at each other and shook their heads. “God, those two are testing me, and I didn’t study.” Enid rolled her eyes and attempted to finish her half-eaten meal.

***

“Can I ask you something?” Katie and Xavier were sitting in his car listening to a playlist of their favorite artist. The two had a lot in common, but not nearly in the same morbid way as he had with Wednesday.

“Of course,” Xavier said, feeling a bit nervous with anticipation of whatever it was she wanted to ask.

“Don’t get mad, okay? It’s just something I’ve always wondered, and I don’t mean for it to sound judgmental. I’m genuinely curious.” Katie mentally prepared herself for Xavier to shut her down or get angry with her.

Instead, he took a patient breath and drew his eyes to the ceiling. “I already know what you’re going to ask. It’s fine. I’m sure a lot of people wonder the same thing.”

“I’m sure there’s something about her that I don’t see. To me, she just seems mean and scary, but you’re anything but mean and scary.”

I like mean and scary he said to himself. Katie was truly anything but mean and scary. She reminded him of Enid. Enid would only hurt a fly if it meant saving her friends, but never recreationally. “Well,” he started with a deep breath. Talking about whatever he had with Wednesday was not a topic he wanted to discuss with his current girlfriend. “She’s nothing like everyone perceives her as. I mean, she is scary as hell and means every threat she makes, but deep down she’s a sweet person. She’s very choosy about who she shows her real self to. And if you’re lucky enough to see it, it would be wise to keep it to yourself or she might kill you.”

“I just can’t see her being sweet,” Katie shook her head in disbelief.

“That’s because you’re not watching close enough,” Xavier said. “It’s all in the eyes; you have to pay attention to her eyes.”

“You’re still in love with her, aren’t you?” Katie noticed the dreamy way Xavier’s eyes drifted off as he described Wednesday.

He paused before answering, feeling guilty. He didn’t want to hurt her. “I won’t lie to you; I am still in love with her. But it’s over now. There’s no chance her and I will ever reconcile. Besides, I like you. You’re easy to be with, and you make me happy. That’s what matters now.’

Katie smiled and took his hand in hers. “Well, I’m glad to hear I make you happy. You make me happy too.”

Xavier smiled at her, his first real effortless smile in what felt like ages.

***

“Do you think she went in here?” Eugene asked Thing. The two had grown close the last few weeks since Wednesday had ordered Thing to watch over Eugene. With no sign of any impending danger, the two had started to wonder if Wednesday’s vision was ever going to come true.

Eugene went looking for Wednesday after witnessing the events at dinner. He wanted to ask if everything was alright. Thing said she might be heading to her room. As Eugene started towards Ophelia Hall, they both saw a dark-haired girl that looked similar to Wednesday turn towards the classrooms. Eugene followed the girl with Thing on his shoulder. She led them to the Greek mythology classroom – Miss Thornhill’s old classroom.

Thing warned against entering and reminded Eugene of Wednesday’s vision. “Wednesday is in there. She wouldn’t let anything bad happen,” Eugene said, brushing off Thing’s warning. He opened the door and poked his head inside. “Wednesday? Are you alright?”

The lights were off, and it appeared that the room was empty. Eugene stepped inside and started looking around. He had seen Wednesday walk in here; she had to be there somewhere. Thing dropped from Eugene’s shoulder and searched Mrs. White’s desk. The desk was relatively clean, minus a few stacks of ungraded assignments. He opened one of the drawers and climbed in, leafing through all the miscellaneous papers. Underneath the papers he had discovered a false bottom in the drawer. Thing had just started to remove the false bottom when he and Eugene heard footsteps coming towards the classroom.

In a flash Thing climbed out of the drawer and urgently tapped the desk. Eugene picked up Thing and put him in his pocket before getting down on all fours to hide underneath a desk. The door opened and a pair of red boots stepped into the classroom. Eugene knew immediately who it was.

Laurel walked to Mrs. White’s desk and noticed the desk had been rifled through. She calculated each step as she walked up and down the aisles before stopping short of the desk Eugene was hiding under. Just like Wednesday’s vision, he looked left and right searching for the red boots. He tried to keep his breathing steady, praying Laurel wouldn’t find him. He squeezed his eyes shut in preparation for what was sure to come.

Then he heard footsteps walking in the opposite direction. His eyes flew open, again looking left and right searching for where the red boots could have gone. He didn’t notice the dark-haired girl materialize out of thin air. She crouched down next to him with a syringe in hand. The syringe forcefully pressed into his neck, injecting him with nightshade poisoning. The dark-haired girl stood up and exited the room, disappearing into the shadows.

Thing sprang to action and grabbed the emergency antidote that Wednesday had turned into a makeshift EpiPen out of Eugene’s backpack. Eugene screamed, foaming at the mouth and shuttering as if he were having a seizure. Thing stabbed Eugene in the thigh with the antidote. Eugene’s body went still, but his heart continued to pump as the antidote coursed through his veins, fighting off the deadly poison.

In a panic, Thing used Eugene’s cellphone to call Enid. When Enid picked up, Thing used morse code to communicate SOS. Instantly she knew it was about the vision Wednesday had of Eugene. Enid sent Ajax off to find Wednesday while Enid ran to Eugene.

When she laid eyes on Eugene, Enid rushed to get him immediate medical attention. She texted Ajax to meet them at the nurse’s office and then called Xavier.

***

Wednesday came barreling into the nurse’s office, pushing past the nurse and her group of friends. “Where’s Thing?” she demanded.

Thing was sitting on top of Eugene’s chest. He began erratically tapping out the events that had unfolded twenty minutes prior. “Slow down. I can’t understand you when you stutter,” Wednesday said. Thing slowed down a hair, but his urgency remained.

When he was done, Wednesday turned to face the group surrounding them. She cursed Xavier for bringing Katie for more reasons than the obvious. “Laurel Gates is here, and there is someone impersonating me.”

Everyone except Katie had matching expressions of terror. Katie silently looked towards Xavier for an explanation. “What are we going to do?” Ajax asked.

“Thing, stay here with Eugene.” Wednesday nodded towards him to which Thing waved a finger back in understanding. She turned her attention back to her friends and Katie. “We need to get to a secure location.”

Xavier pulled Katie to the side. “Hey, I have to go. I’ll explain later, okay?” She glanced between him and Wednesday before hesitantly nodding. He gave her a quick kiss and went back to join his friends. Ignoring her homicidal urges, Wednesday led them to the Nightshades library.

Oliver was already there waiting for them. “Woah, wait. He’s apart of this too?” Enid asked.

“Long story. Right now we need to focus.” Wednesday clasped her hands behind her back while she paced in front of them. All eyes were on her waiting for her instructions. “Tonight, Oliver and I will be meeting with Abigail Laslow. She seems to still think that I am the destroyer of Nevermore. Our goal is to convince her otherwise.”

“And if you can’t?” Xavier questioned.

“Then we will hold her captive, and I will finally put my torture skills to good use. She knows what Laurel is plotting, and we need to find out. A book of dark magic was stolen from the Nightshades library. I can only imagine what she has planned.”

“What are we going to do about Laurel walking around Nevermore poisoning people?” Enid shivered at the thought of being injected like poor Eugene.

Wednesday stopped pacing and faced her friends head on. “You all still have the antidote, correct?” They nodded their heads. “Keep it on you at all times. Thing said Laurel had injected Eugene because she noticed the false bottom in her old desk had been tampered with. We need to find out what she is hiding in that desk. While Oliver and I conduct our meeting at midnight, Ajax and Enid will sneak into the classroom and search through the desk. I can imagine Laurel will be watching me closely so it should give you an adequate amount of time to search.”

“What about me?” Xavier asked.

Wednesday looked him up and down before responding, “You can join Thing and watch over Eugene.”

Exasperated, Xavier said, “So I’m relegated to babysitting duty?”

“Perhaps you should stay in your room and dream us up a vision,” Wednesday snapped, stepping closer to stand in front of him.

Xavier towered over her, bending his neck slightly to look down at her. “I haven’t been sleeping lately.”

“What a shame. It seems all use for you has dried up.”

“I guess I’m only useful when I’m saving your life.”

“I don’t need you to save my life. I am perfectly capable of saving myself.”

“Yeah, that’s why you almost die every time Tyler transforms into the Hyde.”

“Guys!” Enid screamed.

“What!” Xavier and Wednesday shouted together. They looked at Enid who had to physically restrain the two to prevent them from either viciously killing each other or stripping each other’s clothes off. Either way, Enid didn’t have time for such foolishness.

Wednesday took a giant step back. “You can either watch over Eugene or help Ajax and Enid. I don’t really care. Do whatever you want.” Wednesday wheeled around and stomped up the stairs.

Xavier glared at her retreating form. Ajax and Enid shared another look between the two before remembering Oliver standing awkwardly off to the side. Enid held up jazz hands and smiled warmly towards Oliver. “Welcome to the group!”

***

Wednesday sat at her desk in front of her crystal ball waiting for her mother to answer. Morticia had barely come to view before Wednesday pounced. “Mother, I need your assistance. It appears black magic is intended to be used against Nevermore.”

One of Morticia’s many talents was witchcraft. She was a spells and hexes master taught directly by Grandmama Addams, the master of dark magic. Wednesday was only a novice witch, having only cast a few minor spells in her childhood. She never quite took to it; she had much preferred learning from her father and Uncle Fester. However, with the knowledge of black magic coming to Nevermore, she knew the only person who could stop it would be Morticia Addams. “Darling, I am already on my way.”

“How did you know I was going to ask for your assistance?” Wednesday had only decided to call upon her mother just minutes prior while standing in the Nightshades library.

Her mother smiled her delicate smile and said, “Mother’s intuition, darling. I could feel your distress.”

“When can I expect you?”

“Tomorrow morning. I left your father and Pugsley at home.”

Good. An Addams Family reunion was the last thing she needed. “Mother, one more thing. My visions have completely stopped. Why?”

“Remember what I told you, Wednesday. You need to be meditating to calm the storm within you,” Morticia gently reminded her.

“Thank you. I will see you in the morning.” Wednesday hung up the crystal ball before her mother could respond. She checked her watch and decided to meditate before midnight.

***

It was finally time to meet Abigail Laslow face to face. Wednesday hoped she would have a reason to use her torture kit. It had been so long since she had felt the sweet release that comes with torture.

It had been several minutes past before Abigail appeared from the shadows. Aside from the eyes, she looked nothing like her yearbook photo. As a Nevermore student, she appeared similar to Rowan in the way she carried herself. Nervous and unsure of herself. Now standing before them stood a woman of average height and average confidence. Her eyes were like black holes set against her snow-white skin. She looked between Oliver and Wednesday before settling in the center of the room.

“There seems to be some miscommunication regarding my intentions towards Nevermore,” Wednesday started. Abigail tilted her head to the side, listening intently. “I am not the destroyer; I am the protector.”

“And what are you protecting Nevermore from, exactly?” Abigail taunted.

“We are hoping you will tell us,” Oliver cut in. He stood closest to the door, prepared to block her exit if need be.

Abigail smiled like the cat who ate the canary. “How are you here to protect Nevermore when you still don’t know what’s coming?”

***

“This is so spooky!” Enid complained. Her, Ajax, and Xavier had all gone down to Miss Thornhill’s classroom to search Mrs. White’s desk. Enid held the flashlight while Xavier dug through the papers.

“You could have stayed back and let us look,” Ajax offered. He stood at the door watching for any incoming visitors. Both boys dressed in all black while Enid wore her matching pink sequin sweatpants and hoodie ensemble.

She shook her head so hard the light wobbled with her. Xavier glared at her. “No way. Wednesday needs me right now.”

“So pull it together and hold the light steady. I’m almost done.” Xavier pulled out the false bottom and found the book of dark magic. He flipped through the book and discovered a few pages were torn out.

“Shit! Someone’s coming. Hide!” Ajax whispered sharply. Xavier thrust the book into Enid’s backpack and pulled her down with him to hide under the desks.

***

“Until you began stalking me, I did not know there was still a threat to Nevermore. Last semester I protected the school from Joseph Crackstone. What more is still to come?” Wednesday could already sense this conversation was going nowhere. Her fingers longed for the taser buried in her pocket.

Abigail’s fists clenched and oscillated at her sides. “I saw you in my vision! You are not only the destroyer of Nevermore, but the destroyer of all outcasts. The world will end in fire, and it is all because of you!”

“Let’s say for conversational purposes I really am the destroyer of all outcasts. How exactly were you planning to stop me? All you’ve done is send aggravating text messages and follow my every move. Seems like I deserve a more worthy adversary,” Wednesday goaded hoping Abigail would take the bait.

Abigail’s forehead vein convulsed against her skin. “I’ve been following you around for quite some time. I knew my son would be unable to stop you. Shortly after I shared with him the prophecy, I saw his death. I knew I had misplaced my hope in Rowan. Fortunately, I beat the cancer that had infected my body while Rowan was away at school. His father made him believe I had succumbed to my illness so I could save Rowan and Nevermore. What I had not seen was the friendship you struck up with the boy who was clearly the Hyde all along. That’s when I made the discovery that your greatest weakness is boys, just like every other teenage girl your age. All it took to distract you from seeing me or finding out the truth was an attractive boy with nice hair. You clearly have a type.

“Joseph Crackstone was never the true evil of Nevermore. He was merely a snag in the road from the truth lurking in the shadows. I decided the only way to prevent you from learning the truth and realizing your destiny was to break you down from the inside. Using your affections towards Xavier to my advantage worked perfectly. Not only had I distracted you, but I also successfully stopped you from having visions.”

“Psychological torture? I respect that,” Wednesday said. “The only problem with your plan is that I am not going to destroy anyone; I have no reason to. In fact, I have reason to believe the true villains are Laurel Gates and Tyler Galpin. The book of dark magic was recently stolen after Tyler broke into the library. We are looking for the book and planning to put an end to their evil plot as we speak.”

***

“Come out, come out wherever you are,” Tyler called into the classroom. Just as Laurel had hours before, he paced the aisles of desks up and down until stopping just short of the desk Xavier and Enid hid under. “I know you’re in here; I can smell your fear.”

Enid clasped a hand over her mouth to keep herself quiet. Ajax who was crouched behind the door met eyes with Xavier, having a silent conversation from across the room.

Ajax nodded and then jumped from his spot. “Hey asshole!” he called out. Tyler, who had barely angled his body to bend down to Enid and Xavier’s level lifted his head in Ajax’s direction. He flashed a menacing smile and stood up straight. “Ready for round two?” Ajax took off running down the hallway as fast as his legs could carry. Tyler couldn’t resist a good chase. He abandoned Xavier and Enid, following closely after Ajax.

Enid was at her feet in an instant, running towards the door. Xavier caught her and forced her to face him. “We have to help Ajax!” She struggled against his grip, fighting to follow her boyfriend.

“I got it. Get that book to Wednesday. Now!” Xavier commanded.

Enid looked between him and the door. “How are you going to fight off Tyler?”

“What would Wednesday do?” Xavier let go of Enid and walked to the wooden coat rack standing undisturbed at the front door. Using his knee, he snapped the rack in half. He discarded the smaller piece and kept the sharper one. Enid nodded and ran to the Nightshades library. Xavier ran after Ajax praying to God his plan would work.

***

“Wednesday! Wednesday!” Enid screamed as she ran down the staircase. While Wednesday’s attention was withdrawn, Abigail pushed past Oliver and made her escape. In her haste, Enid didn’t register the strange woman running past her.

“Enid! You let Abigail get away!” Wednesday cursed.

“We don’t have time,” Enid panted. “We found the book, but Tyler is chasing after Xavier and Ajax right now. We have to go help them!”

“Wait, give me the book,” Wednesday demanded with her hand outstretched. Enid threw her backpack at Wednesday and made her dig for it. She handed it to Oliver. “Hide this. We can’t let Tyler or Laurel it.” Oliver nodded as the two girls ascended the stairs.

***

Ajax took a wrong turn and cornered himself. He stood with his back towards the wall panting heavily as Tyler rounded the corner. In his human form, he had barely broken a sweat. Tyler looked like an animal cornering his prey. “I’ve been waiting to get my lick back since you stoned me.” Ajax’s chest pounded as Tyler growled. His bones cracked and shifted under his tight skin. From behind Tyler, Ajax heard a familiar voice.

“This is for cracking my ribs you son of a bitch,” Xavier screamed, driving the sharp end of the coat rack into Tyler’s back. Tyler let out a guttural scream, turning to take a swipe at Xavier with his razor-sharp claws.

Xavier jumped out of the way, barely missing the tips of Tyler’s claws. He lunged forward and pulled out his weapon from Tyler’s back. Xavier held the coat rack vertically in front of him to defend himself from the next swipe of Tyler’s claws. The wooden rack shattered to pieces under Tyler’s strength. “Shit!” Xavier threw down the remaining pieces still clutched tightly in his hands and backed up. Tyler towered over him, growling and snapping.

Ajax crawled between Tyler’s legs to stand with Xavier. “Close your eyes!” He tore off his beanie, but this time Tyler had been prepared. He closed his eyes and swatted at the two, shredding the outer layer of their clothes, barely missing their skin, and knocking them to the floor. Ajax put his beanie back on and looked to Xavier for any ideas. Xavier’s mind raced as he tried to find a way out.

Suddenly another growl bellowed through the halls. Enid threw herself at Tyler, catching him off guard. They wrestled for dominance on the cold tile floor. Tyler overpowered Enid, standing over her with his back facing the boys, prepared to slit her throat with his claws. A single gunshot echoed through the halls. Tyler’s head snapped back in shock.

Startled, Xavier and Ajax looked around to find the source. Wednesday stepped to stand between the two, arms outstretched and prepared to shoot again. Tyler’s body hesitated in the air before sinking to the floor in his human form like a ton of bricks. Ajax took off his hoodie as Enid shifted to her human form. He handed it to her to put on.

Wednesday looked down at Xavier and offered her hand. He took it and rose to his feet. “Nice shot,” he complimented, dropping her hand.

“If you two are going to use yourselves as a distraction, you must start carrying more effective weapons.” Wednesday walked to Tyler’s unconscious form, hovering over the top of him.

“What are we going to do with him?” Enid asked, clutching her boyfriend’s hoodie tightly to her body.

“We need to lock him up somewhere,” Ajax suggested.

“No,” Wednesday said, turning away from him in disgust. “Laurel will find him no matter where we put him. Let him go, for now. What information did you find in the book?”

“A couple pages were missing. I’m guessing it was an entire spell they took,” Xavier said. “I was going to look through the table of contents for any idea what kind of spell it was, but I didn’t get the chance.”

“Where’s Oliver?” Enid asked.

Wednesday checked her phone. Oliver had texted, letting her know the book was secure. “He has securely hidden the book for now. My mother will be arriving tomorrow. She is an expert in the dark arts and will help us decipher which spell was taken.”

“How did it go with Abigail? Did she tell you what Laurel might be up to?” Xavier asked.

Wednesday shook her head. “No, she is still clinging to the belief that I am the center of all evil. We will get no help from her.”

***

Morticia arrived bright and early ready to work. Her motherly instincts and vision had brought her to Nevermore once more to help her daughter. Her visions were generally positive, matching her lovely disposition, but this vision had been absolutely horrendous. She had seen her daughter fighting in a world of fire. Instantly she knew she needed to be with Wednesday.

Oliver had arranged to have all members of Wednesday’s friend group excused from classes until further notice. Principal Hynes worked his magic to eliminate suspicion by forging their parents’ signatures, signing off on an early spring break.

Wednesday, her mother, the Nightshades, and Oliver all met in the Nightshades library. Wednesday quickly briefed everyone on their recent findings and last night’s altercation.

“Before we continue,” Bianca interrupted. Everyone’s attention turned to the siren. “How do we know we can trust Oliver? Wasn’t he just a suspect?”

Wednesday met Oliver’s gaze and gave him a simple nod. Before everyone’s eyes, Oliver morphed into the statuesque Principal Weems. Their eyes widened in surprise and relief that the beloved principal was still alive. “Forgive me for fooling you all. I used the Oliver personality to further the investigation undetected.” The group murmured amongst themselves, allowing the distraction to derail the conversation.

“Touching,” Wednesday deadpanned. “Now let’s focus. Weems, did you bring the book?” She nodded and handed the book to Morticia.

Morticia flipped through the book, looking for clues as to what spell Laurel could have taken. Finding nothing, she snapped the book shut. “Unfortunately, there is not much information to be found. This book has been heavily loved leaving most pages tattered and unreadable. The missing spell could be anything ranging from conjuring spirits to total darkness.”

“A vision would be helpful right about now,” Wednesday grumbled.

“For real,” Xavier agreed, mumbling under his breath.

Morticia took note of their subtle interaction. Her eyes squinted as she took Xavier’s face delicately in her hands. She studied his face for a moment, making him deeply uncomfortable. “You’re a Raven, aren’t you?”

He nodded his head. Morticia released him, reaching for her daughter. She positioned Wednesday side by side with Xavier and drank them in with her eyes. “A Raven represents resilience, foresight, and intelligence. The Raven is also credited with bringing light after a period of darkness. It is extremely rare for two Ravens to exist within the same lifetime. When they do meet, they will push and pull each other until they learn to coexist and become a bonded pair.”

“Ugh, don’t tell her that,” Enid groaned. “Now she’ll just use that as another excuse to stay away from him.”

Morticia paid no mind to Enid. Her stare had captured both Wednesday and Xavier in a trance as she spoke to their souls. “By pushing each other away, you are denying your natural abilities by blinding your third eye. I can see you two are like fire and water. You each possess something the other lacks. Xavier, you see Wednesday’s passion and fire that you wish to consume, whereas Wednesday, you wish to drink from Xavier his depth and soulful aura.”

“Please get to the point. Your spiritual jargon is repugnant,” Wednesday snapped.

“Wednesday, she’s clearly saying we have to work through our problems or else we can kiss our visions goodbye.” Xavier rolled his eyes at her impatience.

Wednesday positioned her body to stand in front of him, her arms folded across her chest. “We don’t have years, Xavier. We need to have a vision, and we need it now.”

“I know a way to speed along the process,” Morticia interjected. The two quarreling teens waited for her to continue. “We will need two swimming pools, cold water, and a lot of salt.”

***

Morticia instructed the group to build two sensory deprivation tanks in Crackstone’s crypt. She had chosen the location partially because it was big enough to house two kiddie pools filled with ice cold water and pounds of salt in an inconspicuous manner, and partially because she enjoyed the atmosphere. The purpose of using the sensory deprivation tank was to ease Xavier and Wednesday’s mental anxiety and muscle tension. Morticia explained she would give Xavier a sleeping potion and use his body as a conduit for Wednesday to join his vision. The two would then join forces to create a potent vision which would then be used to reveal Laurel’s grand plan.

It was almost a foolproof plan. The only problem was Xavier and Wednesday couldn’t get through one conversation without wanting to kill each other.

“Mrs. Addams, I’ve got a few questions,” Xavier said, handing her the ingredients for the potion she had requested.

“Morticia, please.”

“Right, sorry. Morticia, if Wednesday joins my dreams, does that mean she’ll have total access to my mind?”

Morticia fixed him with a pitiful stare as she worked diligently to finish the potion. “There is no telling how soon your mind will conjure a vision, so yes, she will have access to your subconscious.”

Xavier face palmed himself in despair. “Great. So I have no other option but to hand-deliver all of my thoughts to her on a silver platter?”

“Wednesday is not one I would grant access to my subconscious mind either. It takes a strong-minded person to allow someone such as Wednesday to withhold that type of power.”

Wednesday begrudgingly appeared at his side. “Don’t flatter yourself. I am sure I will find nothing of interest in your subconscious.”

Xavier rolled his eyes. “You know, I have never rolled my eyes so much in my entire life until I met you. One day they’re just going to roll out of my head!”

“I would love to see that.”

“Enough you two,” Morticia scolded. She herself felt like she needed a drink listening to their constant bickering. “If you are going to be successful, you two must stop pushing each other away and pull towards one another.” She handed the potion to Xavier. “You two will stay here alone and talk it out. Once you have found common ground, take the potion, and position yourselves in the deprivation tanks.”

“This is absurd,” Wednesday protested.

Morticia glared at Wednesday, forcing her to be quiet. “This exercise requires your full cooperation. This cannot be accomplished if you two kill each other in the process. Either work it out amongst yourselves or we will all suffer the consequences.” Wednesday and Xavier nodded at each other, agreeing to at least try. Morticia smiled. “Good. Now Wednesday, I will need your weapons.”

Xavier watched in horror as Wednesday removed a switchblade from her right boot, a gun from her pants’ waistband, a grenade from her coat pocket, and her throwing stars from her baggy jeans’ pockets. Morticia gave her a stern look while she wiggled her hand in expectation. Wednesday huffed and removed her taser from her left boot. Satisfied, Morticia smiled at Xavier. “Now her only weapons are her bare hands. I hope you have remarkable reflexes.” She turned and walked gracefully out of the crypt, joining Enid and Ajax who stood outside guarding the entrance.

“Alright, let’s get this torture over with,” Wednesday snapped.

“I don’t even know why you’re mad at me. You’re the one who ruined everything,” Xavier seethed. For the first time since he’s known Wednesday, he wanted nothing to do with her. He wanted to run from the crypt and let her figure it out on her own.

Wednesday and Xavier were standing on either side of the crypt. Physical distance did nothing to extinguish the anger and frustration between the two kind of ex-lovers. Ever since she found Xavier with Katie, she had pushed down her pain and instead enveloped herself in anger. It was the only emotion she ever felt comfortable with.

Her anger took over her mind and body, causing the sharp bitter words to leave her mouth with little to no thought. “You ambushed me, forcing me to decide. After some thought, I went to you, but you were busy sucking face with some harlot not even four hours later. I would say that justifies my anger towards you.”

“God, you’re such a hypocrite, you know that?” Xavier yelled in exasperation, throwing his hands up. “Remember when you came to visit me after you got me arrested? You told me you knew Tyler was the Hyde after he kissed you. You could have left that part out and just said you saw it in a vision, but you said it to hurt me. You knew I liked you. What you did was intentional. You literally have no right to be mad at me for kissing Katie after the bullshit you pulled.”

“That was different,” Wednesday argued. “You knew I had no interest in you at the time. I owed you nothing.”

“You owed me kindness! If the charges hadn’t gotten dropped, you would have basically ruined my life. The least you could have done was respect my feelings and omitted the part where Tyler of all people kissed you.”

Wednesday huffed and rolled her eyes, too angry to agree that he had a point. “Had you not acted so suspicious, I never would have accused you of being the Hyde.”

“Suspicious?!” he yelled at the top of his lungs, losing control of his anger. “How the fuck was I suspicious? You were the one breaking into my studio, rummaging through my things, and following me around. You were borderline stalking me, and I’m suspicious?”

“Why were you always there when the monster showed up?”

“Hello! Newsflash! My studio is in the center of the woods. I was either heading to my studio or leaving every time you were out chasing the monster.”

“How did you know I was at the Gates Mansion with Tyler?”

“That night I went to your room to talk to you about the painting I did of you. Obviously, you weren’t there so I asked Thing where you were. When he said you were at the Gates Mansion, I knew it couldn’t be good, so I went looking for you. Didn’t know being concerned for your safety made me a monster.”

Wednesday crossed her arms and leaned against the wall, refusing to look at Xavier. His chest was heaving as he attempted to catch his breath. Wednesday had a true talent for getting under his skin. “Look, I know you use anger to deal with your problems, but this time that isn’t going to work. It’s just going to make things worse and we’re never going to be able to focus on our visions. Can we just try to talk things out like rational adults?”

“Fine,” Wednesday said through clenched teeth. She pushed herself from the wall and met Xavier in the middle.

“If you didn’t want me to move on, why didn’t you just say so when I gave you the opportunity?” he asked softly.

She cringed at the softness in his voice. “I was momentarily paralyzed. I do not like being cornered.”

“Okay, so you had a panic attack?”

“I do not panic.”

Xavier smirked, tugging at his head as he did so. “Yeah, of course you don’t,” he said sarcastically. “Listen, we need to find a way to just be friends. No more animosity or hurt feelings. Just a normal friendship. Can we do that?”

Wednesday didn’t want to just be friends. She wanted to go back to their odd situation ship of bickering and occasional intimacy. “I see that despite acknowledging my mistake, you still do not wish to wait any longer.”

Xavier inhaled a deep breath and slowly let it out before looking back at her. Her posture remained stoic and unreadable. “I’m with Katie now. I’m not going to just toss her aside because you realized you screwed up. I like her; she makes me happy.”

“Were you not happy with me?”

“No, Wednesday. Not all the time. You would make me feel inferior and you stressed me out. I have gray hairs at seventeen because of you.” He noticed her body slightly deflated after hearing his words. “It wasn’t all bad. I still love you. I just can’t be with you. I think you need to work on yourself a bit more before you consider being with anyone.”

Wednesday was done with the conversation. Xavier knew this; he had watched her shut down hundreds of times before. He took the potion out of his pocket and pulled out the cork. “Bottoms up,” he said, tipping his head back and swallowing the potion. It felt harsh going down, leaving a bitter taste in his mouth. He wished for some water to rinse his mouth. He handed the bottle to Wednesday to finish it off. 

Morticia, who had been listening to their conversation, appeared from the entrance and watched as the two settled into the deprivation tanks.

Chapter Text

Wednesday’s body felt light as a feather as her mind freely floated high above her body. She distantly heard Morticia reciting the incantation, joining her and Xavier’s subconscious minds. When Morticia’s voice faded to nothing, Wednesday opened her eyes and found herself standing in Xavier’s art studio. The early morning light shone brightly through the windows, illuminating the confined space. Wednesday heard birds chirping and smelt the fresh crisp spring air. Everything appeared exactly how it had been the last time she was there.

The only thing missing was Xavier himself.

Beside her on the worktable laid her portrait. Her own eyes stared into her soul making her skin prick up in goosebumps. Not wanting to be watched, she closed the sketchbook and walked to the far-left corner. Displayed on the easel was another portrait of herself. She reached out to take the portrait down, but it disappeared under her hand. She tried again and fell forward down a rabbit hole. Down down down she fell for an eternity. The air whipped around her creating a thunderous whoosh as her body rushed farther. She shut her eyes and braced for the eventual impact.

She landed with a soft thud. When her eyes opened, she discovered herself in Xavier’s bed. She examined the sheets, taking note that the bed was perfectly made. “Clearly it hasn’t been slept in in quite some time,” Wednesday said aloud in the empty room. She sat up and looked around. The familiar smell of Xavier’s cologne brought her strange comfort. She felt at peace. Like she was home.

She walked to the door and opened it, stepping into the school parking lot. She saw Xavier and Katie sitting alone in his car. Their voices wafting to her sounded muffled over the music playing on his car radio. “She’s nothing like everyone perceives her as. I mean, she is scary as hell and means every threat she makes, but deep down she’s a sweet person. She’s very choosy about who she shows her real self to. And if you’re lucky enough to see it, it would be wise to keep it to yourself or she might kill you.” Xavier appeared to be off in his own world thinking about Wednesday.

She couldn’t hear Katie’s response. Instead, she felt Xavier’s breathy far away voice caress her cheek.  I like mean and scary.

“Hey there,” a cheery voice far off to the side said, coming to stand next to her. It was Xavier. Well, a more refreshed and happier looking Xavier. Wednesday lifted an eyebrow in question. “You know that little voice in your head? That’s me. I’m his conscious, kind of like Jiminy Cricket,” Dream Xavier explained.

Wednesday nodded and continued looking ahead, watching Xavier happily interact with Katie. They were bonding over something trivial no doubt. Wednesday felt like she could never compete.

“Don’t worry, the purpose of showing you this isn’t meant to torture you. He’s being stubborn right now because his feelings are hurt, and he wants to help you understand why.”

 Xavier and Katie disappeared. Dream Xavier and Wednesday were now back in Xavier’s shed with the real Xavier. They watched as he stared blankly at the fresh canvas Wednesday had bought him for his birthday. He made no move to wipe away the tears as they rolled in waves down his cheeks. “This was after he left your room. He came here to paint, but as you can see, he lost all inspiration.”

“I want to see him kissing her,” Wednesday said without looking at Dream Xavier. Her eyes were transfixed on real Xavier’s tears.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Dream Xavier protested. They were in a delicate balance between conscious and unconscious thought. Any anger she felt could disrupt the balance.

Wednesday turned to glare at Dream Xavier. “I want to see how it happened.”

Dream Xavier held up his hands and suddenly the scene switched. A more composed Xavier was showing Katie his abstract painting. All portraits of Wednesday had been hidden as he no longer wanted to look at them. Katie stared at the painting in amazement. He held his palm up to the canvas, willing the colors and abstract shapes to move and dance. Katie delightedly clapped her hands.

“Oh my God Xavier. This is so cool!”

“Thank you,” he said bashfully, a blush rising to his cheeks.

Noticing his blush, Katie smiled warmly. Wednesday felt the jealousy rise up, heating her body. She worked to control it as she watched Katie bat her eyelashes at Xavier. The stupid boy never had a chance against her girlish charm. “You know, I’ve always admired your work. You have a true gift.” Every girl knows if you stroke a teenage boy’s ego, you’ll soften him up enough to get what you want.

“It took years of practice to get this good. I can give you drawing lessons if you’d like.” He was taking her bait and he didn’t even know it.

Her smile widened, showing her perfectly straight white teeth. “I’d love that! It will give us a chance to get to know each other better.”

“Yeah, that would be great,” Xavier said halfheartedly. He noticed Katie looking at his lips. Without realizing it, his eyes traveled to her glossy ones. She leaned in and kissed him gently. He froze and didn’t react at first. She tried again, pressing her lips firmly to his. Her lips felt out of place on his.

Wednesday felt emptiness and could hear Xavier’s thoughts, Fuck it. Why not? Wednesday will never want me. She sucked in a breath as she watched Xavier kiss her back, placing his hands on her hips. Shortly after, Wednesday had barged into the shed just as she had in real time.

Time shifted. Xavier’s hands firmly grasped the table behind him as his body leaned forward with his legs crossed in front of him. His head fell back loosely, his eyes closed. Katie stood off to the side watching him closely, waiting patiently for him to speak.

“I’m so sorry about that,” he said, pulling his head forward to face her. “I should have locked the door.”

“No, no it’s fine,” Katie said, smiling reassuringly. “I understand. You guys just broke up this morning. I knew there was going to be some residual drama.”

Xavier did his usual show of pushing his hair back when he felt anxious. “Look, maybe you should go. I don’t want you to get hurt.”

“How would I get hurt?”

“I don’t know. I mean, there’s clearly some unresolved issues between me and Wednesday. I like you, but I don’t want you to get involved and end up getting hurt because of my past.”

“You like me?” She zeroed in on him and put her hands on his shoulders.

Do I like her? She is fun to talk to, she likes the same things as me, and she is pretty. Maybe I do like her, Xavier’s voice floated through Wednesday’s ears.

“Xavier, I’m not Wednesday. I promise I won’t hurt you,” Katie whispered as her face drew closer and closer to his. They kissed again as Xavier gave in. For a moment, the pain inside him had subsided.

Wednesday’s heart hurt as she closed her eyes tightly. She didn’t want to see anymore. After a brief pause, Dream Xavier tapped her shoulder. Reluctantly she opened her eyes. Now she was at McDonald’s standing over the table her and Xavier had sat at. They had been enthralled in a deep conversation about which organs were the most lucrative on the black market. Wednesday, obviously having more insight than Xavier, had been enchanted by whatever kind of knowledge he presented. She found it endearing and sweet. She offered him a half-smile.

I’m the luckiest guy alive Xavier’s words breezed through Wednesday. She felt the joy and happiness radiating off of him. It made her feel warm and safe.

The setting changed and now they were in front of the police station. She had just backed Xavier into a wall and admonished him for having interrupted her interrogation of Sheriff Galpin. She remembered the event quite well, not understanding why Dream Xavier was showing this to her. Then she felt Xavier’s blood heat up. The hairs on his arms stood up from the electricity running through him. He basked in the moment of being close to her, even if it included a knife. Wednesday felt her own exhilaration, realizing whatever Xavier felt in the moment, she was feeling now.

She was brought to the night at the Gates Mansion. She watched from Xavier’s perspective the moment he had saved her life. She gazed into her own concerned eyes after he woke up from being unconscious. She felt the selfless love radiating deep inside her. This moment had reminded him of the time she opened the casket after saving him from cremation. In both instances, she looked like an angel despite her darkness.

The last memory he showed her was the car ride back from Caterina’s Ristorante. Wednesday was staring out the window, oblivious to the sneak glances Xavier was stealing. His smile was impossibly wide as he admired how beautiful she looked in the dim lighting from the passing streetlights. I will spend the rest of my life with her if she lets me. She felt overwhelmed with love. Her chest felt tight, and she felt herself begin to cry. Wednesday had never cried tears of joy before. She never even knew it was possible to feel this much happiness. She felt intoxicated, never wanting the feeling to end.

Unfortunately, it did. Everything went black leaving just Dream Xavier and Wednesday standing in the abyss. “Why did Xavier want to show me these specific memories if he has given up on me?” Wednesday asked.

“My guess is that he wants to show you what true happiness looks like in hopes that you’ll choose happiness.”

“Your guess?” Wednesday’s eyebrows narrowed. “You live in his mind. How do you not know?”

Dream Xavier shrugged. “I’m just his conscious. I don’t make the decisions.” Something far off caught his interest. He smiled and pointed to the incoming clouds and lightning. “It looks like his vision is about to start.” Dream Xavier’s body turned into hundreds of butterflies and flew off leaving Wednesday alone.

***

She squinted her eyes in the darkness in an attempt to see through the clouds as it slowly moved towards her. Abruptly without warning her body shot forward into a hot pit of fire. She was standing in the center of Nevermore’s quad. Flames licked at the overturned tables. The stone pond in the center of the quad cracked as a single lightning bolt zapped the tree, slicing it clean in half. The fire burned so hot all the water inside the pond had evaporated. The flames grew higher and higher as the fire became out of control, consuming the school in its fiery path.

Wednesday coughed heavily in an attempt to dislodge an invisible foreign object from her throat. The heat was like nothing she had ever experienced before. She felt like she was being smothered to death. She clutched at the front of her shirt, bringing it over her nose trying to breathe. The unmistakable smell of sulfur filled her nostrils.

Her eyes wandered down, finding an enormous pentagram cutting through the quad. The five points of the star each had an individual flame dancing above it.

Wednesday heard far off whispering. She could faintly make out the old Latin incantations but was unable to understand the words. She followed the sound of the whispers finding a small woman with pigtails. Her hair was raven black.

“Wednesday!” Xavier screamed over the roaring fire. Her head snapped in the direction of his voice. Xavier stood at the opposite end of the quad with his arm outstretched towards her, reaching for her. His eyes darted between Wednesday and the woman. Two black shadows materialized from the ground and took hold of both of Xavier’s arms. He fought to free himself but was unable to escape from their deathly grip. To Wednesday’s horror, the shadows pulled Xavier down into a fire that could only be assumed to be hell. His screams were so loud they sounded like his lips were pressed to her ears.

An unseen force shoved her shoulder causing her to fall back. The sky above was engulfed in darkness. Full dark, no stars. Wednesday, who had always felt comfort in darkness, suddenly felt herself craving light. Her chest heaved as her head spun.

***

Knots. Lots of knots. Knots in the stomach. Shoulders. Back. Legs. Arms. Hands. Everywhere.

Her throat began to tighten. Her stomach flipped. Hands clenched. Fingers dug into her fleshy palms. Nails piercing skin. Jaw clenched and unclenched. Tears ran involuntarily down her face. Her breaths came out short and ragged. Electricity ran from the head to the toes. Her brain began to lose all control.

Her heart stopped, and everything was calm.

***

Wednesday woke up feeling groggy like she had woken up from a deep slumber. She stretched her body feeling cold water beneath her. Lazily she opened her eyes expecting to be back in Crackstone’s crypt. Instead, she found herself lying on a slab of darkness in a shallow pool of water.

She got to her feet and looked around. Xavier and Nevermore were nowhere to be found. She turned to look behind her, finding a woman on her knees in prayer dressed in a floor length white gown.

“Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil,” the woman whispered repeatedly. As Wednesday drew closer, the woman’s voice grew louder and louder until she was wailing. Wednesday clapped her hands over her ears to protect her ear drums from the piercing sound. The woman rotated towards Wednesday, revealing herself to be Abigail Laslow. “LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION BUT DELIVER US FROM EVIL LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION BUT DELIVER US FROM EVIL!” Abigail continued to scream as her eyes burst from the sockets and her skin melted from her face exposing her skull. Her flesh peeled grotesquely from the rest of her bones, collapsing into the darkness.

Static squealed in her ears along with whispers from an inhuman voice. Guttural screams joined in the cacophony only getting louder and louder LOUDER LOUDER causing her ears, eyes, and nose to bleed.

With her hands still clasped over her ears, Wednesday stepped back and fell down down down the rabbit hole. She made a failed attempt to reach for something to prevent her fall.

She landed harshly on her stomach, her head bouncing on impact. She winced and felt a bump on her head forming before being dragged by her feet deeper into the impossible darkness.

Laurel hovered above her, her head tilted to the side with a gentle smile. The imprint of Wednesday’s boot still clear on her face. “It’s the blood moon, Wednesday. Perfect time to cast a spell.” Just as swiftly as she appeared, Laurel dissipated into the darkness.

***

"Some say the world will end in fire,

Some say in ice.

From what I've tasted of desire

I hold with those who favor fire.

But if it had to perish twice,

I think I know enough of hate

To say that for destruction ice

Is also great

And would suffice."

Robert Frost

***

Wednesday’s body sunk to the bottom of the kiddie pool causing her instinctually to flail her arms and legs. She felt a pair of hands gripping her shoulders. Her head broke through the icy surface like a knife. She kept her eyes tightly closed as she coughed the water out of her lungs. Enid rushed to her side with a towel while Morticia soothed comforting words in her daughter’s ear.

Xavier had woken up seconds later in a similar fashion with Ajax tending to him. “I need a pen and paper,” Xavier said between coughs. Ajax handed it to him and Xavier drew everything he saw in his vision.

Morticia gasped when Xavier thrust his drawing into her hands. “It is exactly as I feared, a total darkness spell. This spell was forbidden by the Court of Shadows due to its potency.”

“What does a total darkness spell mean?” Enid asked, gripping Ajax’s hand so tightly her nails cut into his skin. He winced slightly but kept his focus on Morticia.

“The spell calls upon the underworld. A person may recite this spell with the intention of destroying an enemy; however, the underworld is bound by no earthly rules. Its demons many take whomever they see fit. This spell has been practiced only once. The witch had created the spell to smite an adversary. She could not control the spell, plunging the world into complete chaos. Legend says the spell was only broken by the blood of a pure of heart witch while reciting the spell backwards.”

“Laurel isn’t a witch; she’s a normie. How is she able to cast the spell?” Ajax asked.

“Spells are just pretty words. It is the intention behind them that counts,” Morticia warned.

“Wednesday, what else did you see?” Xavier looked past Ajax to Wednesday. She sat on the cold hard floor with the towel wrapped around her. Her shivers were not from the cold. The vision she had was horrifying even for her. This was her most potent vision by far.

“The end of the world.” Wednesday kept her head down. “We have until the blood moon tomorrow night.”

***

Wednesday and Xavier held back in Crackstone’s crypt to gather their bearings before joining the group outside. The shared vision had exhausted them both physically and mentally, Wednesday more so than Xavier. She shivered again despite her dry clothes. Xavier shrugged off his coat and draped it over her shoulders. He crouched down to eye level in front of her and forced her to look at him. “Hey, it’s okay. We know what to be ready for now. You’ve defeated Laurel before; you can do it again.”

“What all did you see?”

“I saw Nevermore burning to the ground and the pentagram. I heard voices whispering and smelled sulfur.  And the shadows. That scared me the most." He paused, swallowing hard. "I remember how hot the fire was. It felt like my skin was melting. When I felt like I couldn’t take the heat anymore, out of nowhere I felt cold and empty. Just like a total lack of any senses. I thought I died.”

“I think you did die,” she said gravely. “I saw the shadows take you and pull you down to hell.”

Xavier’s legs gave out and he sat down with his legs outstretched around Wednesday. “Of course. It’s always me that dies, right?”

For once Wednesday did not appreciate any dark humor. “I saw Abigail’s flesh melt from her skin as she recited the end of the Lord’s prayer. There was another woman.”

“The woman with the pigtails and hair as black as a raven,” he finished.

“She looked like me,” Wednesday said. “Perhaps this was the vision Abigail had.”

Xavier put a comforting hand on her knee. He felt relieved when she didn’t slap him or say anything cruel. “It’s not you that caused all of this. Thing said him and Eugene saw a girl who looked like you in Thornhill’s classroom. What if Laurel is working with a shapeshifter or is able to cast a spell to disguise herself?” Wednesday didn’t respond. She wanted him to leave her alone but enjoyed his warmth too much to push him away.

They sat deep in thought for a moment before Xavier spoke. “I know this isn’t important in the grand scheme of things, but what did you see before your vision started?”

Wednesday rose to her feet and started to walk away. Xavier leapt to his feet, cutting her off. She huffed knowing he wouldn’t let her leave without an answer. “Your subconscious showed me your memories,” she said hoping to appease his curiosity.

“What memories specifically?”

“Xavier, I am quite tired and would like to rest for an hour before we start planning to save the world. Let me through.” She felt too weak to force herself past him.

He didn’t budge. “No, you poked around in my mind. I deserve to know what you saw.”

Wednesday cursed him for being so stubborn. “I saw your kiss with Katie, along with various memories of you and I from your perspective. Satisfied?”

Xavier winced at the harshness in her words. “This is why I didn’t want you in my mind. You saw how I felt about you, and you still don’t appreciate it.”

“Who said I didn’t?” she asked. Xavier’s eyebrows furrowed together as he let her pass.

***

Wednesday sat in her room alone, reflecting on her vision. She still couldn’t shake the fear, or the overwhelming emotions Xavier had shown her. She considered reaching out to her mother when she heard a soft knock. Morticia floated into the room without waiting for an invitation. Ask and you shall receive.

“Mother’s intuition,” Morticia said with a wink. “Tell me what’s on your mind.”

Wednesday sighed dejectedly. “Aside from witnessing the end of the world, I am deeply troubled by what Xavier’s subconscious showed me.”

Morticia smiled knowingly. She had known all along the exercise would do more than just conjure a vision. “He bared his soul for you, didn’t he?”

“Yes.”

“I overheard your argument with him at the crypt. It’s clear you both love each other deeply,” Morticia said taking a seat next to Wednesday on her bed.

Wednesday stared at her hands in her lap. “I do not want to be in love. How can I make it stop?”

“Darling, you can’t force yourself to stop loving someone.” Morticia swept her daughter’s braids behind her shoulders and pushed her messy fringe from her face. “I know part of your many complex aversions to love is your fear of letting go of your independence. If you had to change yourself to be in love, it wouldn’t be love. From what Enid told me, Xavier seems to love you for all your flaws, and he admires your strength. Any man who can survive in the viper’s gaze is a man worth keeping.”

“I am sure Enid informed you that I was too late; he does not want me.”

Morticia gently took Wednesday’s hands and gave a loving squeeze. Her daughter finally met her gaze. “Everyone but you seems to think otherwise. Including me. I think he is waiting for more than an admission of your mistake.”

“His subconscious showed me happiness in hopes I would choose happiness.”

Morticia gave her an approving smile as Wednesday quoted Dream Xavier. Her daughter was finally learning. “Now, there is something crucial I would like to discuss with you. The darkness spell, Goody Addams was the witch who created it. Joseph Crackstone was not her only enemy she used dark magic against. In her later years, she became vengeful and power hungry. She intended to use the spell to eradicate all prejudice minds so the outcasts could live out their days in harmony. Many people died as a result of her madness. She pushed herself so far not even she could reverse the spell.”

“How was the spell able to be reversed?”

“My ancestor Hecate Frump was a part of Goody’s coven. After days of chaos, she realized the only weapon against darkness and evil is light and love. She spilled her blood and recited the spell backwards to reverse the effects. Remember what I taught you; spells are all about the intent behind the words.”

Wednesday considered Morticia’s tale. It sounded more like a fairytale than the nightmare she had witnessed, however; she remembered the craving she felt for light after being thrust into darkness and believed Morticia’s story to be true.

“Wednesday, you must be the one to reverse the spell.”

“Why me? I have limited experience with spells.”

Morticia patted Wednesday’s hand and stood to leave. “Darling, you are the purest of heart witch I have ever met. You love fiercely, loyal to the death, and you always do what is right. Now pack your things. Your spring break starts tonight.”

***

The group of Nightshades – past and present – organized in Crackstone’s crypt. It was an ironic turn of events. A bunch of outcasts plotting to take down an evil normie in the crypt of the evilest normie of all. Wednesday internally congratulated her mother for the choice of scenery; she couldn’t have picked a better hideout if she tried.

Wednesday wasn’t the only one who needed to make amends. Weems and Morticia sat side-by-side awkwardly. Their tension from high school was just as real as it always had been despite the dire circumstances. Cheating death and hiding under the guise of a teenage boy had given Weems a lot to think about. Watching the teenagers around her act so ignorantly had made her realize she was no better. She had allowed her hurt feelings towards the past carry on for over thirty years.

Deciding there was no better time than the present, Weems began her apology. “Morticia, I have a confession to make.”

“Oh?”

“I always secretly resented you during our time as roommates because I was jealous of you. You had it all: you were the captain of the fencing team, you led us to victory in the Poe Cup two years in a row, and everything came to you so effortlessly. I felt like I lived in your shadow. The final straw was when you went to the Rave’N with Gomez. I never told you, but I had a crush on him at the time.”

Morticia’s breathy laugh caught Weems off guard. She didn’t know what kind of reaction she expected from Morticia, but laughter was not it. “Larissa, I was jealous of you too. I spent years trying to emulate your poise and grace.”

Weems breathed a sigh of relief and smiled at her old friend. “I’m sorry I let my jealousy get in the way of our friendship. I hope we can be friends again.”

“We never stopped,” Morticia squeezed Weems’ hand.

***

“Principal Hynes has announced an early release for all students,” Wednesday said. She stood in the center of the group with everyone sitting around her in a circle. “Kent, Divina, and Yoko, you three are assigned to crowd control. Split up and hurry along any straggling students. Once the school is clear of all students and teachers, take the shuttle bus to Jericho and go home. You don’t need to stick around for the main event. Enid, you will track down Tyler before he has the chance to strike.”

“Wait a minute,” Enid cut her off. “I have never won a fight against Tyler by myself. He always fights dirty. What if I lose?”

“Is the hashtag What Would Wednesday Do that you created not currently trending?” Wednesday’s snippy remark caused snickers around the circle.

“I mean, yeah, fair point. But what if I’m still not able to defeat him? I'm not as vindictive as you."

Morticia glided to Wednesday’s side. “Grandmama Addams created a potion intended to permanently remove the Hyde from its host.”

“Mother,” Wednesday glared up at her statuesque mother with contempt. “If you knew Tyler was a Hyde, why did you not mention this?”

“You seemed to have had it all handed, darling.” Always the supportive mother, Morticia had withheld this information to allow her daughter to freely navigate her own mystery. She would never overstep or spoon feed Wednesday answers. Her role was to love and support her daughter from the sidelines, stepping in any time her daughter required help. She pulled a vial filled with purple liquid from her dress sleeve. “I made a batch just in case.”

“I would love to know the backstory behind the potion,” Xavier said in awe of the Addams Family. It seemed they all had an answer for everything.

“Grandmama Addams was a captivating woman in her youth with a multitude of love interests. During her twenties, a Hyde fell in love with her, but at the time she was dating mostly women and was not interested in him. As you know, Hydes are volatile and dangerous. He became angry and threatened her if she did not marry him. Well, Grandmama Addams took this as a challenge. She created a potion out of corpse flower, one aconitum napellus petal, a drop of blood, and a white peacock feather and turned it into lipstick. She invited him to a party and kissed him before rejecting him in front of a crowd of partygoers. Enraged, he attempted to transform oblivious to what Grandmama Addams had done. She was always a trickster at heart.”

“Fascinating,” Wednesday deadpanned. “Well, since you did not create a lipstick, how will we force him to ingest it?”

“I can easily transform it into a lipstick if you would like.”

“Excuse me for having my doubts, but I do not think he will cease the fight with Enid to apply a fresh coat of lipstick." Wednesday crossed her arms over her chest indignantly towards her mother.

“You could probably get him to kiss you again,” Xavier grumbled.

Wednesday’s scowl deepened. “Somehow Enid, you will have to force him to ingest the potion - sans lipstick. Ajax, you will assist her.” Ajax nodded, accepting his assignment.

“Wait, I’ll go with Enid,” Xavier volunteered.

“No. I need you and Bianca with me in the quad,” Wednesday argued.

Xavier stood up to properly face Wednesday. His features were hidden under the shadows of the poorly lit crypt making him appear dangerous. “Look, I’ve got a bone to pick with Tyler. If anyone is willing to play dirty and fuck him up, it’s me. Let me go with Enid.” Wednesday felt a shiver of excitement run up her spine. She liked this dangerous version of Xavier.

“Fine, Xavier and Enid will go together. Bianca and Ajax, you’re with me.”

Kent smacked Ajax’s chest to get his attention and whispered, “Dude, it’s like we’re the Avengers.”

“Hell yeah, man.” The two boys high fived each other.

“Pity none of you possess any of the necessary powers for combat,” Wednesday said. She looked down at her ragtag team of outcasts. She had three sirens who would be of no use in a fiery pit, a hardly capable vampire, a gorgon who could only stone a monster for a couple of seconds, a werewolf with a hard time winning a fight, and one irritating psychic who animated his drawings as a party trick to impress girls. They were doomed in her eyes.

“Hey, I have to go,” Xavier stepped between Enid and Bianca and walked to the exit. “I’ll be back!”

“Xavier. We are in the middle of plotting. Where are you going?” Wednesday trailed behind him.

He looked back at her but kept walking. “There’s something I have to do really quick. It won’t take long.”

Wednesday seethed. She knew he was leaving to see Katie, probably to make her leave tonight in an act of chivalry. His nobility disgusted her.

She watched him retreat into the dark woods before turning back to her troops. All eyes were on her waiting for her next orders. “Well, let’s rest for tomorrow. Hell is around the corner.”

Chapter Text

“And the Raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting

On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door;

And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon’s that is dreaming,

And the lamp-light o’er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor;

And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor

Shall be lifted – nevermore!”

Edgar Allan Poe

***

At daybreak, the teens prepared themselves for the day in silence, none of them wanting to speak about the events coming upon nightfall. Wednesday spent the morning meditating with Morticia while the others checked in on their loved ones.

In the afternoon, Wednesday took a walk in the woods for some fresh air while centering her mind. She was nervous about the night ahead. She had never dealt with advanced magic before, only levitating and simple spells and hexes. Taking on a spell so powerful even Goody Addams herself could not handle was not exactly comforting. She was never one for prayer, but today she prayed Plan A would go accordingly.

She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn’t notice Xavier ahead of her sitting on a sizeable log in the clearing. She contemplated walking in the opposite direction but at the last minute decided to join him. He didn’t hear her coming until she sat down beside him. He wore a black sweatshirt with the hood up, concealing his face. His long legs stretched out in front of him with one foot crossed over the other at the ankle. His casual demeanor was a stark contrast to her stiff posture.

“Hey,” Xavier said, hardly looking at her. 

“Hello.”

“How are you?”

“Surviving.” The mundane conversation was unlike them. Wednesday had always hated small talk, but she especially loathed it with Xavier. She missed his sarcasm and the way they used to bicker back and forth before everything between them changed. “Where did you go last night?”

Xavier licked his lips and stuffed his hands in the front pocket of his hoodie. “I went to my room to get something. On my way back I ran into Katie.”

“You didn’t tell her anything, did you?”

“Of course not,” he shook his head. “Besides, I don’t think I’ll be talking to her anymore. She was pretty upset with me.”

“How so?” Wednesday held her breath in anticipation of his answer.

He casually bent forward and picked up a stick from the ground, snapping it into pieces. “I broke up with her.”

Wednesday tried to contain her relief and excitement. “Do tell.”

He sighed and tossed the pieces in the woods. “I mean, she’s really cool and fun to be around, but I don’t think I’m as ready as I thought I was to be in a relationship. I hope she doesn’t take it personal and is able to forgive me at some point in the future.”

This answer puzzled Wednesday. She didn’t know how to respond until she heard her father’s voice in her head: It only takes 10 seconds of insane, blind courage to change your whole life. Her father had said this to her when she was six years old during her first-time swimming with sharks. She had been scared to take the plunge, but Gomez had encouraged her to hold her breath and take the risk, letting go of any inhibitions. These words stuck with her throughout her adolescence as she divulged deeper and deeper into the Addams Family madness.

Xavier heard her suck in a deep breath and exhale sharply. He wondered if she was about to start another tirade when finally, she spoke. “Xavier, do I have a chance in hell of being with you?”

He blinked his eyes rapidly in a stupor. He couldn’t believe his ears; he had to have been hearing things. “Wait, what?” When he looked at her, he saw that she was watching him expectantly. 

“Do I have a chance in hell of being with you in the foreseeable future?” she asked impatiently. She hated having to repeat herself.

“Wednesday, I don’t know.”

Her shoulders slumped in defeat. Xavier noticed this and took her hand, rubbing comforting circles on her skin with his thumb. “Look, I want to be with you. I missed you, and I missed our kooky relationship. But. . . I need to think about it. Before I say yes, I need to know without a shadow of a doubt that you won’t run away again. Can I give you my answer in let’s say. . . a week? You know, after we kick Tyler and Laurel’s ass.”

Wednesday supposed this was fair despite it not being the answer she wanted. “Yes.”

Xavier softly smiled and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer. Wednesday drank in his scent as she laid her head comfortably on his shoulder. “You know we’re going to win tonight, right?”

“My mother said I must be the one to reverse the spell.”

“If anyone can do it, I know it’s you,” he said. The confidence he had in her gave her the strength she needed. He always believed in her even when no one else did, including herself. They sat in comfortable silence until it was time to head back to the others. For the first time since meeting Wednesday, Xavier felt hopeful.

***

Yoko, Kent, and Divina made their way to the school after passing around tight hugs and tears. As night drew near, so did their fear. Xavier’s drawing of the fiery inferno of Nevermore had spooked everyone. They could only imagine how it felt to be inside the vision, especially if it had troubled Wednesday so deeply.

At first Kent was disappointed he wasn’t going to be a part of the action, but now as he made his way to the school, he was relieved. He just hoped his friends would all make it out alive.

Wednesday found Morticia standing at the edge of the woods gazing at Nevermore’s grassy knoll that once held jovial students. “I’m proud of you, Wednesday,” she said as she sensed her daughter creeping through the trees. “You are coming into your own, creating your own path.”

Wednesday stood next to her mother. “I feared you and father would no longer recognize me. I have grown soft and weak.”

“No, darling,” Morticia shook her head, her voice soothing. “You are stronger than you have ever been. There is strength to be found within weakness. Your father and I will always love you regardless of who you become.”

Wednesday remained silent. Her mother’s words meant more to her than she cared to admit. She had felt stronger. Like she could take on the underworld.

***

The sun was about to set meaning it was time to part. Enid smothered everyone with hugs as snot and tears ran down her face. “Everyone better make it back alive, or I’ll kill you myself!” Enid cried.

“Enid,” Wednesday’s voice came out hoarse as her best friend crushed her in a wolf hug. “You’re killing me right now.” Enid blushed, embarrassed, and released her iron grip.

“Tish, what’s all of that?” Enid asked pointing to the buckets at Morticia’s feet.

“Salt,” Morticia said with a smile.

Ajax’s eyebrows furrowed. “I thought we used it all for the sleep deprivation tanks.”

Morticia’s eyes met his, making him feel like he was under a trance. Her aura was intoxicating to men. “Salt repels demons, darling. I will outline the perimeter of the academy with salt and use my magic to prevent any demons from venturing into town.”

“We are wasting time. Let’s go,” Wednesday snapped. As everyone dispersed into their respective groups, Xavier grabbed Wednesday’s hand and pulled her to the side. She didn’t verbally protest, but her eyes said enough.

“Hey, kick ass tonight. You’ve got this,” he encouraged. He kissed her cheek and walked backwards to join Enid. “I’ll see you on the other side!”

Wednesday heard Ajax call her name and jogged to catch up. She shook off the giddy feelings Xavier made her feel and centered herself. She needed to focus if she was going to kick ass.

“I saw that,” Enid teased. Seeing Xavier and Wednesday back on good terms was a relief. The two of them were so stubborn she thought they would never make up.

Xavier shrugged with a smile. “I feel hopeful. Maybe Wednesday is growing up.”

“Next time you guys fight, maybe you two should try healthier coping mechanisms like journaling or crocheting.”

“Can you imagine Wednesday crocheting?” Xavier and Enid laughed together at the mental image of Wednesday doing something so mundane. He playfully walked in front of her and wiggled his eyebrows. “So. Morticia is Tish now?”

“Tish is my second mom. We’re going to have a girls night after all of this is over.” Unsurprisingly, both Addams women had a soft spot for the ray of sunshine that was Enid.

They walked a few more feet without saying anything. Enid was using her dog-like nose to sniff out Tyler's scent and had been lost in her thoughts when Xavier had started talking. “I’m sorry, what? I wasn’t paying attention," she said.

“I said, I have an idea. You ready for it?”

“Always.”

***

Upon reaching the school, the remaining group split up. Morticia got to work on her salt circle while Weems took off as Oliver in the opposite direction. Wednesday, Bianca, and Ajax trekked on. The sun had almost finished setting when they reached the quad. It wouldn’t be long before the blood moon would appear.

“Do you think it’s too late to ask Laurel not to destroy the world?” Ajax asked. His anxiety was at an astronomical height, only getting worse as they stood there in anticipation.

Bianca rolled her eyes. “Something tells me that wouldn't work.”

“What if I say pretty please?”

“I’m not opposed to watching you grovel,” Laurel said, appearing from the shadows. The three teenagers watched cautiously as Laurel came to stand in front of Wednesday. Laurel was almost unrecognizable. Her left eye hung lazily outward under a drooped eyelid and her face had tread mark scars from Wednesday’s boot. Her shoulder length red hair had been cut into a short pixie cut mimicking Mia Farrow in Rosemary’s Baby. Prison had not been kind to Laurel Gates.

Wednesday’s tone was dry as she said, “Laurel, you look distinguished.”

“Wednesday, still witty as ever I see.” In her hands Laurel held the missing pages from the spell book. Wednesday’s eyes zeroed in on the pages as the wheels turned in her head. Bianca had the same idea; we must get the spell away from her.

***

Enid had tracked Tyler’s scent to the main road leading to Jericho. The sun had fully set and consumed the entire woods in darkness. She waited alone impatiently for Tyler to arrive, praying Xavier’s plan would work.

Moments later Tyler appeared. Looking at him now, Enid couldn’t possibly see how she had ever pegged him as just a normal teenage boy. Tyler stood before her looking deranged and ready to kill. “You’re the annoying rainbow friend Wednesday had. Enid, right?” He tilted his head back and forth, sizing her up.

Her fists clenched and her eyes darkened. Just the reaction he wanted. “And you’re the weird kid with daddy issues who is about to get his ass kicked.”

“You sure about that?”

Tyler and Enid’s bones crunched and cracked as they transformed into Hyde and werewolf. Enid’s howl and Tyler’s growls intertwined hauntingly into the dark night below the blood moon.

***

“Do you know the kind of spell you hold in your hands?” Wednesday asked. She knew talk was cheap but had hoped she could distract Laurel enough to let her guard down, giving Bianca and Ajax an opportunity to take the spell.

“Oh, Wednesday,” Laurel sighed. “I know exactly what kind of spell this is. I just wish it was my idea.”

Wednesday and Bianca exchanged a look. “If not yours, then whose idea was it then?”

“You know, I don’t even know who it is either. It just fell into my lap in the form of a strange visitor. Whoever it is, deserves a big thank you. This plan really takes the cake.”

“Laurel, you do not know the history behind this spell,” Wednesday’s voice remained calm. “Goody Addams created the spell to eradicate people like Joseph Crackstone. Not even she could control the the power that came with the spell. If you cast this spell, you will end the world as we know it.”

“That’s a risk I’m willing to take.” Laurel grimly smiled and pinched Wednesday’s cheek. Wednesday glared and swatted her hand away. “Just look at me. I have nothing else left to lose.”

Having heard enough, Bianca took off her amulet. “You will give us the spell and go back to prison,” she commanded. Laurel stared back at her with wide eyes before erupting into laughter. Bianca’s siren song had no effect on her.

Laurel pointed to her ears, still laughing. “Wax ear plugs. You didn’t think I wasn’t going to come back to Nevermore unprepared, did you? I spent a year around you freaks, I know all of your weaknesses.”

Laurel felt Ajax move to the right of her. He was reaching for his beanie with the intent of stoning her so he could grab the spell. From her back pocket, Laurel pulled out a mirror and held it up to his face, stopping him in his tracks. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you. I know your every move.”

“Not every move,” Wednesday said as she pulled the knife from her boot. She raised her knife high above her head, plunging forward. Laurel grabbed her hand and disarmed her, holding Wednesday’s wrist in a death grip. The knife fell to the grass with a soft thud.

“You okay, Wednesday? This is almost too easy,” Laurel taunted. Wednesday’s face remained stoic as her heartbeat increased.

***

Enid snarled and nipped at Tyler’s neck, reaching for his jugular vein. She had him pinned on his back in the middle of the road. His eyes pin pricked with red danced wildly as he searched for a way out of her grasp. His fangs jostled unnervingly in his mouth, letting his serpent’s tongue venture out. He attempted to bite her face as she drew closer, making her defensively pull back, giving him just enough room to gain the upper hand. He shimmied his arm free and thrusted upwards at her jaw with his palm flat and fingers bent back.

Howling in pain, Enid lifted her weight off his upper body allowing Tyler to crawl out from under her. He lunged for her, tackling her to the ground. She moved slightly to the left as he took a swipe, cutting deeply into her shoulder.

***

Laurel was feeling pretty good about herself; she had the spell clutched tightly in one hand and Wednesday’s wrist in the other. She almost thought it was too easy but didn’t dwell on it for too long.

She maneuvered the pages of the spell to sit tightly between her left arm and torso while still holding Wednesday’s wrist. She bent to pick up the knife with her left hand. Wednesday winced in pain as Laurel dragged the blade diagonally through Wednesday’s outturned palm. Laurel flipped Wednesday’s hand over, giving it a good shake so every drop of Wednesday’s blood could pour onto the grass between them.

Laurel let go of Wednesday and began to read from the spell in clumsy Latin:

“Tenebras voco in purissima forma

(I call upon darkness in its purest form)

pestilentiae suae mundum depellere

(to rid the world of the pestilence)

fornicarri

(the immoral)

salvis

(the prejudice)

Nulli parcens animo male

(sparing no soul with ill intent)

Nullum lapidem intentatum relinguere

(leave no stone unturned)

Donec omne malum expulsus

(until all evil has been expelled)”

***

Enid couldn’t hold on much longer. Tyler was especially unhinged under the blood moon. His movements were unpredictable and dangerous. His bloodlust seemed exceptionally eager as he viciously tore through Enid’s skin with his claws.

She braced herself for the next blow when an earth-shattering growl came from behind them. Tyler hesitated with his claw hanging in the air. He turned his head towards the noise just in time to see an inked hand grab him by the neck, yanking him off of Enid. Her chest heaved, grateful to be relieved from the enormous pressure Tyler had placed on her chest.

Tyler’s feet dangled off the ground as he stared back at himself in shock. It was like looking in the mirror, except this version of himself was clearly an inked copy of himself. The hand tightened around his neck, cutting off his air supply. His eyes darted around frantically as he kicked and clawed against the iron grip around his neck.

His eyes landed on Xavier who was standing off to the side of his creation with both hands outstretched. A look of concentration stretched across his face as he exerted every muscle in his body. Xavier had always been able to control his abilities, except his Hyde creation. He knew he was taking a giant risk and potentially putting himself and Enid in danger by using the monster against Tyler, but it was a risk he knew he had to take.

Tyler kicked the monster, freeing himself and falling to his knees. He had seconds to catch his breath before the monster was on top of him again slashing at his chest. Tyler caught the monster’s hand as it came down to slash at him again. He brought both feet up and kicked the monster in the stomach, sending it flying into a tree. On impact, the monster exploded in a pile of inky dust.

Tyler got back on his feet and grabbed Xavier. He grunted and wiggled against Tyler’s grasp, but Xavier was unable to escape. Enid tackled Tyler from the side, forcing him to drop Xavier. From his pocket, Xavier pulled out another drawing. He held his palm over the paper, willing it to come to life.

Enid purposely allowed Tyler to pin her to the ground giving Xavier the opportunity to dive an inked silver dagger deep into Tyler’s back. Tyler’s head shot back and screamed in agony. Xavier quickly uncorked the potion and poured it into Tyler’s mouth. “Drink up, asshole,” Xavier mocked.

Most of the potion went straight down Tyler’s throat. He spat and sputtered but it was too late. He had ingested enough of the potion for it to be effective.

He kept fighting, growing weaker and weaker as the potion absorbed into his bloodstream. Enid ended the fight by roundhouse kicking him into a tree. The combination of the impact and the potion left Tyler unconscious. His body slowly morphed back into Tyler’s human form, his only form.

Xavier pulled out another sketch from his pocket, creating enough rope to bind Tyler’s hands and feet. Enid whined, remaining as a wolf. “Sorry I took so long,” Xavier said as he roughly hog tied Tyler. “I’ve never done something like that before.”

Enid whined again, seemingly asking what they should do with Tyler.

“We’ll have to take him with us. It will be fine, he won’t be fighting anyone anytime soon,” he said looking down at Tyler’s unconscious body. A sinister thought came to mind, causing his lips to turn up slightly. “While I have him here, it’s time I repaid the favor. Don’t look, Enid.” Tyler’s ribs made a satisfying crunch against Xavier’s boot.

***

Nothing happened. The spell wasn’t working. Laurel read through the spell over and over in disbelief. She had done everything right. Why wasn’t it working? Her confusion quickly turned to anger. She crumpled the spell in her fist as she stared daggers at Wednesday. “You! What did you do?”

Wednesday simply applied pressure to her palm to stop the bleeding, staring back at Laurel. “You need the blood of a real witch for the spell to work,” she said. Wednesday transformed into Larissa Weems right before Laurel’s eyes.

Laurel took several steps back, mouth opening and closing. “How… you… I killed you. How are you alive?” she asked. The real Wednesday appeared behind Laurel with a shovel.

“No one ever really dies at Nevermore. You should know that, Laurel,” Weems said with a sly smile.

Wednesday hit Laurel upside the head with a gratifying smack, knocking her out cold. Wednesday pried the spell from Laurel’s hands and joined her friends. Their plan was going accordingly for once.

“Alright, now that that’s been taken care of, let’s get her tied up and move on,” Wednesday ordered. Ajax and Bianca moved to tie up Laurel when suddenly they were thrown brutally back into the stone pillars. Wednesday had feared this would happen.

Stepping out of the dark came Abigail Laslow dragging Eugene with her. When creating her master plan, Eugene was not in any of the possible scenarios she had accounted for. He was supposed to have evacuated with the rest of the student body.

“Let Eugene go,” Wednesday commanded. “He has nothing to do with this.”

Abigail scoffed. “You should have thought of that before you came back to Nevermore and involved all your friends in your scheme. I’ll be taking that.” She used her telekinetic powers to take the spell from Wednesday’s hands. The papers tore in half as Wednesday fought against Abigail. With a swipe of her hand, Abigail sent Wednesday flying backwards.

“Abigail, you don’t understand. You only saw half of the prophecy. Wednesday is trying to prevent Laurel from casting the spell,” Weems reasoned.

“It is my destiny to prevent her from destroying Nevermore. I have to do this.” It was no use. Abigail was too far gone. She had become so blinded by her quest to save Nevermore that she refused to listen to anything anyone had to say about the prophecy she had been so sure of. Abigail used her powers to paralyze all four outcasts standing before her.

Thing jumped out of Eugene’s pocket and latched himself to Abigail. Her hold on the others wavered as she noticed the disembodied hand climbing up the length of her body. She screamed and let go completely, swatting at Thing in a poor attempt to get him off. He reached for her hair and pulled hard. She erupted into screams filled with fear and pain.

Eugene took advantage of the distraction and ran to Wednesday. She was still lying on the ground gathering her bearings. He helped her to her feet. “Wednesday, what’s going on?”

“Why are you still here? Divina was supposed to make sure you left school grounds.”

“Thing and I didn’t know what was going on, but knew it had to have something to do with you, so we hid. That lady found us. What’s going on?”

Wednesday didn’t have time to answer. She heard another scream and looked towards Abigail. She grabbed Thing’s index finger and threw him onto the pavement, stomping hard on him. His fingers twitched, but he did not get back up. Abigail’s head snapped in Wednesday’s direction with rage in her eyes.

Abigail howled with her hands outstretched. She pulled Ajax and Bianca to the outer edges of the quad. Next, she pulled Weems and Eugene to opposite ends before finally pulling Wednesday the furthest away from the group.

Wednesday’s feet felt cemented in place. She was completely unable to move. As she searched for a way out, she discovered Laurel was no longer lying where she had left her. Abigail had helped Laurel escape whether she intended to or not.

Abigail walked over to Wednesday. “I won’t let you hurt anyone else again.” She raised her hand and squeezed Wednesday’s windpipe, bringing her to her knees. Wednesday clawed at her throat out of instinct as she desperately tried to breathe. Her eyes watered and blurred around the edges. Her vision started turning black when suddenly the hold on her neck released.

Wednesday blinked through the blurry stars before fully opening her eyes. Abigail stood before her clutching her bleeding side while Laurel smirked with Wednesday’s dripping knife in hand. She seized Wednesday’s hand and slit her palm. Wednesday’s blood dripped onto the grass as Laurel recited the spell once more.

The earth rumbled and shook under their feet as the tectonic plates shifted. A low sizzling noise reverberated throughout the quad before a flame sparked, traveling throughout the quad like a dynamite fuse. The flame surrounded Ajax first before quickly moving on to Bianca. Wednesday quickly realized this was the pentagon in her vision, and all five of them were the dancing flames.

The flame surrounded both Weems and Eugene, making its way to Wednesday. Abigail’s powers still held Wednesday helplessly in place. She despondently willed her legs to move out of the way to prevent the pentagon from being completed.

Abigail stared wide eyed at the flames. Her vision was coming true, but it wasn’t Wednesday who cast the spell. “You were telling the truth,” Abigail said in disbelief. Wednesday was never the destroyer of worlds. She had been its savior. In her plight to save Nevermore, Abigail had inadvertently been the catalyst.

In a split-second Abigail released her grip on Wednesday and pushed her out of the way, taking Wednesday’s place. The circle was complete with Abigail’s sacrifice.

The earth split as the moon fell from the sky. Darkness rolled in like a heavy fog, consuming everything in its path. Just as Wednesday had seen in her vision, a single bolt of lightning shot from the sky into the quad, slicing the tree in half. The flames quickly engulfed the quad, licking the gothic architecture with its hellish tongue. From the hole in the ground rose shadowy figures entwined with the smell of sulfur.

Morticia heard the ghoulish screams before she saw their shadows. She dug her feet into the dirt and held strong. No one - living or dead - would penetrate her forcefield.

***

Enid sprinted towards the school in ginormous gallops with Xavier and Tyler riding on her back. Just as the moon fell, Enid felt a sharp pain in her chest. Seconds later her body shifted painfully back into her human form. Xavier quickly jumped off with Tyler before he could crush Enid with their combined weight.

“What happened?” Xavier pulled his backpack from his shoulders and handed it to Enid. She had packed a spare set of clothes to quickly change into after wolfing out.

“Look!” She pointed at the moonless sky. Enid’s powers came from the moon. Without the moon, she was rendered powerless.

“Shit!” Xavier shouted. Plan A had fallen through. Now was time to think of a Plan B. Once Enid was decent again, the two carried Tyler’s sleeping body the rest of the way to Nevermore.

***

From the open pit of fire in the ground came thunderous sounds of anguished screams. Thousands of faceless shadows floated to the surface in a black cloud. The faceless demons spoke in tongues as they wandered the vacant halls of Nevermore searching for souls to drag to hell.

Wednesday was drenched in sweat, coughing, and gagging in an attempt to breathe through the heavy smoke. It felt as if someone were sitting on top of her chest. She ran to Thing and scooped him up before his body could be plucked up from the concrete. She cradled him against her chest as his fingers twitched indicating that he was fine. She stuffed him safely into her pocket and looked out at the destruction around her.

Her friends and Abigail stood stiffly in the center of the flames surrounding them. Their eyes glowed in a bluish haze as their heads were thrown up towards the empty sky.

Laurel hugged herself tightly in terror, walking backwards away from the fiery pit of hell until the backs of her knees hit the stone pond. A black shadow materialized in front of her. She threw her head back, bellowing high above the hellish screams.

***

Running up the side of the hill, Xavier and Enid finally made it. Morticia glanced at them, warning them with her eyes to stay back. Enid’s blood ran cold at the sight of the evil contained within Morticia’s forcefield. Xavier dropped Tyler and jogged to Morticia.

“We need to get in there and help Wednesday!” he demanded.

Morticia shook her head, her arms held high in front of her. The blood in her arms had stopped circulating creating a static like feel of pins and needles in her hands. She wished Gomez were here to enjoy the sensation with her. “No one may pass through.”

“Please,” Xavier pleaded with her. “Plan A didn’t work. I need to get in there and help her.”

Morticia stared at him for a moment. He did not waver and stood tall, showing no fear for what lied ahead of him if he were to pass. “You have five seconds to run through. Any longer, and you will be crushed to death. Run fast and don't look back.”

Xavier turned to Enid, gripping her forearms tightly. “Enid, are you coming with?”

“No, I’ll stay here and help Tish. Go help Wednesday.” She pushed him forward and he stumbled.

He bounced on his feet as he shifted into a runner’s position, waiting for Morticia to give him the all clear.

“Now!” She called and he took off running. He ran faster than his body had ever allowed him as Morticia slightly lifted the forcefield allowing him to squeeze through. Morticia snapped the forcefield back in place, barely missing his heel.

The shadows moaned and shivered as he sprinted straight through them. As he neared the quad, he felt the oppressive heat rushing towards him. He peeled off his hoodie and pressed it to his nose. His vision, smell, and hearing were all overwhelmed by the hellscape laying in the dead center of Nevermore. He pushed forward, narrowly avoiding the shadows as they slowly chased after him.

***

Laurel fought hard against the shadows as they consumed her. “Nononono! You’re supposed to take her! Not me! Let me GOOOOOOOO!!!!!” The shadows enveloped her in their darkness and sank below the earth’s core. Her voice became mixed with the other anguished screams.

Wednesday’s eyes were the size of saucers as she watched Laurel vanish in the darkness. The shadows gathered around her, encircling her in their darkness. She closed her eyes and ran through the shadows. When she passed through, she felt a cold void ice her veins.

The tattered pages of the abandoned spell laid outside of the flames surrounding Abigail’s paralyzed body. The flames ineffectively licked at the edges of the paper. The magic protected the delicate paper from burning.

“Wednesday!” Xavier yelled over the monstrous flames. He tried to run closer to her but was met by a wall of shadows.

“Xavier, I need a distraction,” she called back while ducking and dodging the haunting shadows as they threw themselves at her.

Xavier had just the distraction she needed. Taking the last drawing from his pants’ pocket, he quickly willed it to life.

 An ink copy of Wednesday joined them, confusing the shadows and giving the real Wednesday an opening. Wednesday propelled herself forward. She snatched the spell from the ground and spun back around to find Xavier.

The shadows realized they had been duped when the ink Wednesday fell apart in their grasp. Xavier screamed for Wednesday to hurry up as he was being devoured by the darkness. Wednesday felt the cold tickle of the shadows submerging her in their dark void. Quickly she took a knife from her pocket and sliced her palm. She let her blood drip into the void as she recited the spell backwards.

Suddenly gusts of cyclone winds flew through Nevermore at approximately 250mph, extinguishing the flames. The air in Wednesday’s lungs were sucked out, knocking her to the ground. Xavier was released from the shadow’s grasp as the shadows were blown into the fiery pit.

Both Xavier and Wednesday grabbed their fallen friends creating a human chain and crawled to the stone pillars, clutching tightly against the harsh winds. Abigail lay still bleeding in the center of the quad. Wednesday tried to call out to her, but to no avail. The wind carried her voice away. Abigail smiled at Wednesday before being thrust into the pit of fire. The earth shook once more before shutting the door to hell. 

The wind stopped, and everything stood still as the moon and stars lit up the night sky once more.

***

When Wednesday opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was Enid staring down at her with a giant shit eating grin. Wednesday took a deep breath of stale air and sat up, her head throbbing.

“You did it!” Enid squealed and pulled her friend into a tight embrace.

Wednesday winced at the sharpness of Enid’s voice. “Enid, I have the worst headache. Please keep your voice down.”

Enid loosened her grip but didn’t let go. “Sorry. But you did it! You saved us all!”

Enid helped Wednesday to her feet. The hellfire had been extinguished, leaving behind a few lingering flames. Most of the metal picnic tables had melted into the ground. The air was clear of sulfur and much more manageable to breathe in. From the sky rain down soot that blanketed the smiling faces staring down at Wednesday.

Suddenly a wave of water broke through the campus and put out the lingering flames, preventing any more destruction to the school. Divina and Kent followed the water with their scaley hands flexing outwards towards the wave. “You guys didn’t think we were going to let you have all the fun, did you?” Kent’s booming voice rang out earning whoops of approval from the small crowd.

Ajax and Xavier joined Enid and Wednesday. “Nice job, Addams,” Ajax congratulated. He hesitated but then pulled Wednesday into a tight brotherly hug. At first, she considered killing him for daring to touch her, but she surprised herself by lifting a stiff hand and patting his back. He pulled away and sighed in relief. He knew he had a 50/50 chance of her retaliating but was pleased that she had given him a free pass. Maybe Wednesday really was growing up.

Wednesday took in their soot covered clothes and faces. She felt Thing move against her thigh in her front pocket. She pulled him out and inspected him. Despite the deep purple bruise on his dorsal, Thing was in good spirits.

“Thing!” Enid cried, stealing him from Wednesday. “Omg you’re okay. I can’t wait to tell you all about what we’ve been up to while you were with Eugene.” She walked off with Ajax and Thing to join the others.

Xavier took a step closer to Wednesday as he watched the others dance joyfully in the water Kent and Divina provided. “Another job well done, Addams.”

“Is that what you went to your room for?” she asked, her eyes transfixed on her mother who was smiling knowingly at her from across the quad.

“You’re not the only one with a few tricks up your sleeve.” He grinned thinking back to how he had outsmarted Tyler with his monster.

By now Tyler had woken up dazed and confused. Wednesday’s shadow cast over him as she towered above. “What did you do to me?” he spat.

“You see Tyler, the thing with witches is that we have a solution to every problem,” she said ominously. He squirmed against the confining ropes and cried out in pain. Wednesday smiled devilishly as she noticed the swelling in his torso. “I see Xavier finally got his revenge.”

***

They took the party outside as they could no longer handle the stale air that lingered in the quad. Everyone whooped and hollered as they celebrated another win against evil. Everyone except Bianca and Wednesday.

Wednesday found Bianca sitting off to the side in the grass. “Why aren’t you rejoicing with the rest of them?” she asked as she sat next to Bianca.

Bianca sighed heavily. “I’m just thinking.”

“Do I need to torture it out of you?”

“What’s with you and torture?” Bianca half-heartedly joked. She glanced at Wednesday and saw she was dead serious. “I’m just thinking about how much I’ll miss them, and this. As annoying as it is to have to constantly have your back against some dark evil, it’s still fun to be apart of it.”

“Are you leaving Nevermore?”

“During parents’ weekend, my mother showed up for the first time. She’s forcing me to go back home with her at the end of this semester to help her with Morning Song to boost recruitment numbers.”

“You are unable to refuse?”

Bianca shook her head in shame. “She’ll tell everyone I sirened my way into Nevermore.”

“Who cares?” Wednesday asked while standing. She held a hand out to Bianca and helped hoist her to her feet. “You may have had an unfair advantage to get you enrolled, but that far outweighs the fact that you just helped save Nevermore twice.” Wednesday was as unpredictable as ever. Bianca smiled at the same glimpse of the soft Wednesday Addams Enid and Xavier had spoken so fondly of.

Feeling unsettled by the sweet interaction, Wednesday quickly redirected Bianca’s attention. “You should have your fun now while you can because tomorrow, we begin plotting.” Wednesday had a few tricks still left up her sleeve. Bianca smirked before running to join her friends.

Morticia creeped up behind Wednesday. “I am so proud of you, Wednesday. I always knew you would do great things.”

“My tolerance for kind words is rapidly dwindling, mother.” Wednesday crossed her arms and faced her mother with a scowl.

Morticia’s smile fell from her face. “Wednesday, you and your friends must be careful. You have not seen the last of the shadows.”

“What do you mean?” At the mention of the shadows, Wednesday felt the ice in her veins return leaving her feeling empty.

“You and your friends have been touched by pure evil, and evil does not simply forget when you’ve escaped its clutches. When you open the gates of hell, you not only allow evil to pierce the thin veil between worlds, but you also allow the lost souls to travel to our world. Your journey is not over. It has only just begun.”

“Is there not something you can do?” Wednesday looked anxiously towards her friends with uncertainty. They laughed and played with each other without a care in the world. To them, it was all over.

“Protection spells can only go so far,” Morticia gently caressed her daughter’s cheek. “Don’t worry, darling. With you, anything is possible.”

***

Wednesday remained alone as she processed what her mother had told her. If she learned anything from her time at Nevermore, it was that your friends can be a weakness, but they can also be a strength.

She felt guilty for unintentionally marking her friends for death. Maybe it would have been better for her to suffer in solitude so the people she sincerely cared for could have a better life.

Ajax, Enid, and Xavier walked over, breaking her out of her musings. “Wednesday, why are you out here all by yourself?” Enid asked.

She stood from her spot and looked gravely between her friends. “I fear I have marked you all for death. Perhaps it would have been best for me to have never come to Nevermore after all.”

Enid and Xavier exchanged worried looks while Ajax’s smile widened. “Are you kidding? Ever since you got here, I’ve fought against a monster and an evil ex-teacher. I’ve almost died countless times, and I almost just had my soul sucked out of my body because of you. This is the most fun I’ve ever had!”

Wednesday wondered if Ajax would need psychiatric help after this last adventure.

“Ajax is right,” Xavier said. “If it weren’t for you, we would all be just a couple of normal teenagers bored out of our minds. You make life fun and exciting.”

“You do all realize you will be eternally damned because of me?” Wednesday was convinced she finally pushed everyone into madness.

Enid smiled and hugged Wednesday. When she let go, she said, “Wednesday, we’re family now. That’s what family does. We’ll kill for each other and die for each other. We’ll always be there for you no matter what. We love you.” Xavier and Ajax nodded warmly.

Wednesday’s heart tightened. Her ice-cold veins melted into loving warmth. Before she could stop herself, her mouth twitched into a slight smile.

“Aw! Wednesday’s smiling! Group hug!” Enid yelled in delight. She hugged Wednesday first with the two boys joining the embrace. To her horror, Wednesday felt like she was finally home.

Behind them the sun began to rise, illuminating the friends in an orange glow with the promise of a new day.

Chapter Text

The uninhabited halls of Nevermore echoed as a woman’s heels click-clacked down the corridors. The woman’s face gleamed in the pale moonlight as she stood before the Edgar Allan Poe statue concealing the Nightshades library.

Two sharp snaps fractured the silent night, demanding entrance. The raven’s wings flapped downwards and the statue wheeled back. Click-clack click-clack the woman walked forward.

The woman removed the black hood from her head revealing her raven black hair. “Lenore,” she whispered. The skull in the center of the nightshade flower quaked as it slid under the floor, revealing a hidden tunnel underneath the school. The woman proceeded forward.

She walked a distance before stopping. Deep underground she stood directly underneath the quad where the earth had parted the night prior. The crack in the earth had remained visible despite the door to hell being closed. Ghostly unintelligible whispers danced around her, welcoming her to the darkness.

The woman whispered an incantation while tenderly caressing the rock beneath her. She breathed life into the crack causing it to expand slightly. Heat rose from beyond as a red light peaked through the rock. From the slight gap, stolen souls levitated through, howling with grief filled moans. The woman got to her feet and watched the ground pulsate.

Everything was going according to plan.

“That is not dead which can eternal lie, and with strange aeons even death may die.” H. P. Lovecraft