Chapter Text
Wednesday enjoyed the two weeks she spent with her friends and Xavier. During the day, all four of them hit the city together or stayed at the hotel playing games and watching movies. Ajax introduced Wednesday to video games, who unsurprisingly won every single game she played against him. When they weren’t spending time together as a group, they paired off and spent one-on-one time with their respective partners.
Wednesday either read her book or used Xavier’s laptop to work on her novel while Xavier drew in his sketchbook. Occasionally, Wednesday posed for him. The moments spent together alone doing their own hobbies was what Wednesday enjoyed the most. She missed the companionable silence between artist and muse and appreciated that he understood when to leave her alone and when to give her attention.
She also liked kissing him. She was beginning to understand why her parents couldn’t stop; however, she wasn’t nearly as desperate or lacked self-control. They experimented, taking pleasure in experiencing all the new joys of a hormonal teenage romance together. Wednesday was particularly fond of biting and leaving her mark on Xavier. She left a necklace of bite marks along his neck and on his chest that Xavier proudly displayed in private and in public. Sometimes she bit him too hard and drew blood, but he didn’t care. Xavier didn’t mind pain and Wednesday didn’t mind inflicting it.
Xavier loved to undo Wednesday’s braids and brush it every night, only to make a mess of her perfect hair by grabbing a fistful and pulling until she saw stars. Together they matched each other’s energy like ying and yang.
Xavier was proving to be a well-suited partner for Wednesday in every way possible.
***
It was Xavier and Ajax’s last night in New York before they had to fly back to Scottsdale, Arizona. As the night went on and the time for the boys to leave crawled closer, a heaviness sat in the pit of their stomachs, no one wanting to say goodbye just yet.
“It’s so freaking cold out here,” Enid whined, hugging her pink winter coat closer to her body. “Why couldn’t we have just taken a cab?”
“Because the hotel is only ten blocks away and it’s a beautiful night,” Wednesday said.
The four friends walked along the sidewalk in the cold winter night after having dinner at an Indian restaurant. Wednesday insisted they walk to the hotel instead of wasting money on a cab despite the temperature being below freezing. Xavier had a gut feeling there was more to Wednesday’s reasoning than she was letting on but chose to stay quiet. He knew from personal experience that once Wednesday made up her mind, it was impossible to change it.
They turned the corner and walked a couple paces before Wednesday stopped in her tracks in front of an alleyway, her ears perked up like a dog’s.
“Did you hear that?” she asked.
“Hear what?” Ajax asked back.
She shushed him and listened again. Nothing. The alleyway was empty save for a stray cat digging through the dumpster outside of a Chinese restaurant. Above the Chinese restaurant was a cluster of apartments – all without their lights on.
“I think you’re losing it, Wens,” Xavier said. “I didn’t hear anything.”
Enid’s head rose in the direction of the noise, hearing it too.
“Okay, this is getting creepy,” Ajax said. “It’s like when your dog sees something that’s not there but it’s like totally a ghost or some shit that you can't see.” The sound of glass breaking in one of the apartments above chilled Ajax’s blood and sent goosebumps up his arms. “What was that?” he squeaked.
“Dude, it’s nothing. It came from one of the apartments,” Xavier said. “Someone probably dropped their glass vase or something.”
Wednesday looked at Xavier with that mischievous glint in her eye that could only mean trouble. “Do you have your sketchbook with you?” she asked.
“Jesus Christ, Wednesday,” Xavier said. He tugged his hair nervously for the first time in about seven months. “I already know what you’re going to say, and no, we are not checking it out.”
“I saw it in a vision,” she said. “There’s a burglary in process in that apartment building right now. I want to go investigate.”
“That’s why you were so adamant about walking,” Xavier said, putting the pieces together.
Enid glared at Wednesday as viciously as she possibly could wearing a fuzzy pink hat with a giant ball on top and glittery eyeshadow. “Wednesday Friday Addams, I am so mad at you, I could punch you,” she said. “You dragged us out here in the cold so you could do some crime fighting and potentially get us killed?! Again?!”
“Seriously, Wens,” Ajax said. “They probably have a gun. There’s no way you’re going up there. Let’s just call the cops and let them handle this.”
Wednesday engaged in a staring contest with Xavier, her jaw clenched and her eyes firm. He stood his ground and stared back defiantly. After thirty seconds, he sighed heavily and took out his pocket-sized sketchbook. “What do you need?” he asked.
“Dude, no!” Ajax said.
Enid made a whipping sound and cracked an invisible whip. Xavier rolled his eyes.
“I need something that can peer into the window so I can get eyes on the perpetrator,” Wednesday said, ignoring Enid and Ajax. “Preferably a bird.”
Xavier flipped through the pages until he found what he was looking for. He hovered his hand over the page, willing the raven to life. The raven peeled itself off the page and flapped its wings, testing it out, before flying up to the open apartment window and disappearing inside.
Ajax watched amazed as if it were his first time all over again. “I will never get used to how cool that is,” he said. “Like how do you do that?”
“Xavier’s mother was a witch,” Wednesday said. “Her blood flows in his veins just as his father’s does.”
“Dude, you didn’t tell me you knew witchcraft!” Ajax said.
Xavier shushed him and focused his mind on the raven. The raven discreetly perched on top of a bookshelf inside of the apartment, watching as a man and woman worked quickly through the apartment searching for valuables and stuffing them into their bag.
“It’s definitely a robbery,” Xavier said, his eyes glassy and focused. “The woman headed into the bedroom and the man is still in the living room.”
Wednesday walked towards the fire escape. “I’m going up there,” she said as she started to climb the side of the building.
“I’ll go with you,” Xavier said. He picked her up, boosting her on to his shoulders so she could latch on to the fire escape and pull herself up. Then he took several steps back and did a running jump, grabbing on to the bottom bar and pulling himself up with Wednesday's help.
“What?!” Enid half-whispered, half-screeched. “You can’t go up there!”
Wednesday looked down at Enid and Ajax. Her stern stare was enough to quiet their protests. “Stay here in case they make their way down before we can apprehend them,” she ordered.
“We were so close to getting through the last two weeks without trying to fight crime and save the day,” Ajax muttered.
Enid sighed. It was the price they all paid for having Wednesday in their lives.
***
Wednesday waited for Xavier to nod the all clear before stealthily climbing in through the window and hiding behind the couch. The man had moved from the living room into the bathroom. She listened to the male and female robbers arguing amongst themselves about the authenticity of the gold jewelry they had found.
Do you even have a plan? Xavier asked telepathically.
Subdue and arrest the bad guy. Wednesday said, as if that weren't obvious.
Xavier rolled his eyes so far back in his head he went momentarily blind for a hot second.
I’ll take the woman in the bedroom. You take the other one. Do it quickly and quietly.
This is such a bad idea.
You didn’t have to come with.
I told you: wherever you go, I go. Lead the way, Addams.
Wednesday stood up and pressed her back against the wall. She moved with the elegance of a cat and the fierceness of an apex predator. Xavier was simultaneously entertained and terrified.
The bedroom door was parted slightly, allowing Wednesday to peer into the room without being seen. The woman’s back was turned. The plush carpeting muffled the sound of the door as Wednesday pushed it open lightly. Using her sneaking technique Uncle Fester taught her when she was four, she snuck up behind the woman with a taser in her hand.
The woman continued riffling through the closet looking for valuables without noticing Wednesday until the taser crackled behind her. The woman didn’t have time to register what was going on as Wednesday stuck the taser in the woman’s back, zapping her and jolting all the nerves in her body. She let out a partially formed yelp and dropped the expensive coat in her hands. She fell, stunned, in a heap on the floor.
Without missing a beat, Wednesday took a pair of handcuffs out of her backpack and cuffed the woman. Not even two seconds later, Xavier called out to Wednesday from the bathroom.
“He’s getting away!” Xavier yelled.
Wednesday groaned. “Amateur,” she said under her breath, and hauled the woman to her feet by her right arm. She held on to the woman firmly and pushed her into the living room. “What happened?” she demanded.
Xavier’s fists were tugging at his hair. “He heard you and that lady and got spooked. He went down the fire escape before I could catch him.”
Wednesday pinched the bridge of her nose, feeling a headache forming. “Let’s hope Tweedledee and Tweedledum can stop him from getting away,” Wednesday said.
***
Ajax and Enid stood at the bottom of the fire escape waiting with bated breath. Enid tapped her foot impatiently with her arms crossed while Ajax pretended cool and collected, not at all panicking on the inside.
“If they don’t come down in one minute, I’m going up there and dragging them out,” Enid said.
“Not a good idea, babe,” Ajax said. “That just increases the likelihood of them getting caught and then all of you might get shot. Let’s just call the police.”
“And have Wednesday and Xavier get arrested for basically trespassing and being accessories? No way.”
Ajax racked his brain for another alternative when they heard creaking and the sound of feet climbing down the metal fire escape. Xavier’s head appeared out the window as he yelled down, “Guys! He’s coming!”
“Oh shit!” Ajax yelled. “What do we do?!”
The man climbed down with reckless abandon and threw himself off the last step. He swore as his ankle rolled and his head hit the cement ground as he landed on his back. He rolled to his feet, ignoring the pain in his body, and ran past a frozen Ajax, intending to run across the street and get lost in the hustle and bustle of New York’s nightlife.
“Hi-YAH!” Enid screamed as she punched the guy in the face. The guy stumbled backwards, clutching his face with both hands, and swearing like a sailor. Enid kicked him in the balls, bringing him to the ground in the fetal position with his hands tucked between his legs.
“Holy shit!” Ajax yelled.
“Oh my God, what a rush!” Enid yelled, shaking her little fists excitedly. “Let’s do it again!”
“Nice work, Enid,” Wednesday called to them. Her and Xavier stood on the narrow 6 foot landing of the fire escape with the woman in custody. “You may notify the authorities now.”
Ajax nervously looked between Wednesday and the guy on the ground still clutching the family jewels. “Wait, how are we going to stop this guy from running away? Should I stone him?”
“No, it will take too long for him to thaw out,” Wednesday said. She let go of the woman’s arm, trusting Xavier to hold her in place, and dug through her backpack. She brought out a second pair of handcuffs and tossed them down to Ajax.
“So you have a few pairs of handcuffs on hand at all times?” Xavier asked, smirking. “I’ll remember that for later.”
Wednesday rolled her eyes, her headache in full swing by now, shaking her head. Give him an inch and he’ll take a mile.
***
The cops came and properly arrested the burglary couple and returned the stolen items to the rightful owner. After separating and giving individual statements, the friends were let go to carry on with their night with a light warning to keep the crime fighting to the professionals.
“What you kids did was reckless and dangerous,” the police officer said. “If you want to get involved with crime fighting, maybe you should pursue a career in law enforcement and do it the right way.”
Xavier assured the officer it wouldn’t happen again and steered Wednesday away before she could make a snarky comment that would make the situation worse.
“Wednesday, you know maybe you should become a cop,” Ajax said when they entered the hotel lobby. “You love playing detective and putting the bad guy away.”
“I do enjoy the feeling of vindication and looking the perpetrator in the eye while I personally deliver justice,” Wednesday said. “However, I am not the do-gooder type and prefer to work alone.”
“Maybe you should try being a private dick,” Xavier said. Enid and Ajax giggled at the word “dick”. “You could pick and choose which cases interest you, work at your own pace, and still feel the competitive high without having to join the police force.”
Wednesday bit the inside of her lip, considering. It wasn’t a terrible idea, but it required more research before making a commitment. For now, she said, “I will look into it. Thank you for your piercing insight.”
Xavier smiled, feeling like he had just been given a gold star for a job well done.
***
Wednesday sat on Xavier’s bed with her hair free from her braids while he changed out of his jeans and into a pair of sweatpants in the bathroom. She started to feel the same anxiousness she had felt on Xavier’s first day back. After all the time they’d spent together and the progress they’d made as a couple, she didn’t want him to leave.
Xavier switched the bathroom light off as he came back into the bedroom with his clothes in his hands. He dropped the clothes on the bed next to Wednesday, taking painstaking care while folding his clothes up and packing them away in his suitcase.
She shifted her body minutely, not expecting him to notice the slight change in her posture. Unfortunately for her, he did. He always did.
“Everything alright, Wens?” he asked.
“You’ll think I’m being emotional,” she said.
Xavier made a sour face. “You? Emotional? Never. But if something’s bothering you, I want to know. You know, to make me feel better.”
He took a seat next to her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. She crossed her arms, wishing her boyfriend wasn’t so attentive and didn’t make her feel so vulnerable. “If you must know, I am anxious about letting you return to your cross-country trip. After tonight’s debacle, how can I trust you and Ajax can take care of yourselves?”
“I see,” Xavier said, playing along. “You’d feel better if I stayed here so you can protect me."
“Yes, since you are incapable of doing so yourself,” Wednesday said, grateful Xavier could read between the lines. “Also, you must consider Enid. She’s going to be terribly upset when you leave. She might even go on a fiery rampage and decapitate her stuffed animals.”
Xavier did his best not to laugh. He thought this dance around talking about her feelings was adorable. “Do you think Enid would be happy if I stayed?” he asked.
“Possibly.”
“Or do you think Enid will appreciate the time away from me so she can focus on school and live her life independently before trying to take our relationship to the next level?”
Wednesday adjusted herself to look at him. “What is the next level, Xavier?”
He shrugged casually while his eyes held a determination Wednesday was unsure of. “Living together? We could get our own apartment near your school.”
“I am unsure if that is such a good idea.”
He shrugged again. “It’s only December. We have until May to figure it out,” he said.
“That’s another thing,” Wednesday said. “Enid is afraid that once you leave, you might not come back.”
“What? Why would she think that?” Xavier asked, his body stiff and on high alert. He quickly ran through the past two weeks in his mind, trying to find any reason he might have given her to doubt whether or not he would make good on his promise to come back.
“A relationship with…Enid is not for the faint of heart, Xavier,” Wednesday said. “Up until now, the relationship has been strictly over the phone, and while the past two weeks have gone well, who’s to say the relationship will not sour within the next five months? Enid doesn’t have the best track record in relationships, and now with everything that has transpired, a breakup may cause irrevocable damage to Enid.”
“Look,” he said, taking her hands in his. He rubbed his thumbs soothingly across her knuckles. “Like I’ve said before, the #1 way to ruin the relationship is by not trying. I know you’re not perfect and I knew what I was getting into way before we started this relationship. You’re not like other girls, and this relationship is by far different than anything I’ve ever experienced before. You’re difficult, talking about your feelings feels like walking through a mine field, and you require a different kind of attention than other “normal” girls. If I wasn’t willing to stick it out with you through thick and thin, I wouldn’t be here. We’ve been through hell together – literally – and I’ve waited forever to be with you. There’s no way in hell I’m not coming back. You’d have to toss me into the Grand Canyon or drown me in one of the Great Lakes to keep me away.”
He squeezed Wednesday’s hands, and she squeezed back, grateful for the grounding feeling that came with it. “If you do not come back, those possibilities may become your reality,” she said.
Xavier huffed a laugh through his nose and pulled Wednesday onto his lap, running his fingers through her hair. Just like kissing her, he would never tire of playing with her silky jet-black hair. “I’ll even help you kill me because I obviously wouldn’t be in the right mind if I ever chose not to come back,” he said.
Wednesday smiled with her eyes as she nuzzled her head against his chest. “Promise?”
“Cross my heart and hope to die.”