Chapter Text
"That's a lovely dress, Wednesday." You try to sustain an eye roll at your mother's continuous attempts to bond with your cousin. The moment the Addams family picked the two of you up from the airport in their 1950 Cadillac Hearse, Ophelia Frump had not held back any attempts at sweet-talking her sister's family. Pugsley had presumably called shotgun while across from you sat an irritated Wednesday squeezed between her parents on those red velvet seats.
"I would hardly use the term 'lovely' to describe these garments," Wednesday responds in a deadpan voice. She truly hadn't changed since you last saw her. It had been, what—almost six years? The funeral of a family friend had been a drab affair, the exact way that Wednesday preferred to enjoy them; up until Pugsley had let loose a nest of toads causing all sorts of mayhem amongst the adults while the kids snuck off to play hide-and-seek. She wore the same braids as she did now. You, on the other hand, had experienced many changes since then. With your mother having you pack your bags consistently as you moved around the world, it was difficult to maintain one sole identity or look. What did it matter? You were never around the same group of people for more than a few months at a time.
"Romanian silk." Aunt Morticia smiles at her sister. "I try to ensure she wears the best quality black, isn't that right my sweet child?"
Wednesday coolly turns her head towards the front of the car where their long-time butler sits at the wheel, "Lurch, please remind my parents that I'm no longer speaking to them."
This piques your interest. It could be hard to tell when your cousin was upset with others, but evidently, there was tension today. You wonder if it's obvious to them that you're currently experiencing the same with your mother. Everyone knew that Ophelia Frump was always jealous of her sister's psychic abilities and tried to compensate with her forced bright demeanor. When Morticia wore blacks and reds, Ophelia opted for yellows and pinks. Morticia had ruled at Nevermore Academy in gloomy Jericho, while Ophelia attended the Ecole d'Humanité in bright green Switzerland. Despite a long line of witches in your family, your mother had never experienced her first vision and so she held you to the same expectation. However, you had begun to have precognitive visions and dreams in the last year, and despite thinking that she would fail to notice—what with her being so busy with work—she somehow had an intuitive feeling and confronted you, and that was that.
"The two of you will love Nevermore." Uncle Gomez lovingly turns to his wife, "Won't they, Tish?"
"Of course. It's the perfect school for them."
"Why, because it was the perfect school for you?" Wednesday snaps back. "I have no interest in following in your footsteps. Becoming Captain of the fencing team, Queen of the Dark Prom, President of the Séance Society."
Your eyes move between the two of them like a tennis match. Morticia's smile tightens, "I merely meant that finally, you will be among peers who understand you. Maybe you'll even make some friends. You already know one other student—your cousin."
Uncle Gomez jumps in, "Nevermore is like no other boarding school. It's a magical place. It's where I met your mother and we fell in love."
You feel your mother tense up next to you. Well, this was awkward. From all the lore you had heard, Uncle Gomez had been quite the stud back in the day. All the girls had their eyes on him, and your mother was no exception when she came to visit every summer. Of course, he only ever had eyes for his Morticia. It feels like you could take a pocket knife and cut the tension in the car with it. To your relief, Wednesday makes another quip. "You guys are making me nauseous. Not in a good way."
"Darling, we aren't the ones who got you expelled."
From the corner of your eye, you can tell your mother gives you a quick glance. Neither family appears to want to discuss the reasons behind you and Wednesday ending up at Nevermore and you're all the better for it. Deep down, you're certain that your mother has a lot to say. You hadn't even been living in the South Caucasus for a month before you publicly humiliated her in her esteemed ambassador position and guaranteed a lifelong ban in three countries, a record for you. You weren't concerned, you had already seen Nevermore in your visions and knew that it was only a matter of time before mother would give in and let you attend, so here you were.
The remainder of the ride continues in silence—a bliss for both you and Wednesday. In the distance, you see the gates to the school and your heart skips a beat. This could finally be your chance to stay somewhere for longer than a few months and figure out who you really are. Nevermore Academy now stood before you in all its gloomy and gothic glory. For you, this was freedom. After Lurch parks the car, the adults step out, discussing how to go about taking down the trunks from the roof of the car. You linger in the car for a moment, and Wednesday stares right back at you.
"Piranha attempted homicide in a pool?"
"Dismantling the political infrastructure of Abkhazia?" You swear her lips almost tug up into an impressed grin.
"Touché."
"Hello, all." At the entrance of the school, a tall woman clad in all-white welcomes your family. You can only presume she is Principal Weems, whom your mother already gave you an extensive background on. Not only was she a former student, but she was also your Aunt Morticia's roommate. She directs the Addams to her office no doubt to discuss Wednesday's integration into the school given her... violent tendencies. Whereas for you, she hands you your class schedule and a map and tells you where you can find Juliet Hall. "We have an opening in one of the dorms there. Your roommate is a lovely girl, in fact, one of our top students. You'll be in good hands."
The goodbyes with your mother are a blur as you're eager to drag your trunk up to your room, but she insists on helping you. The last thing Ophelia Frump says to you before disappearing down the stairs is: "You finally got what you wanted."
There's no time to reflect on the maternal separation you're experiencing for the first time, there were places and people to explore, beginning with your new dorm. The room you enter is pristine with a soft rustic aesthetic. Evidently, your roommate must be a minimalist as her side of the room is in perfect order, not one item out of place or in excess. You read through the schedule Principal Weems handed you before tossing it onto your desk:
01 - Outcast History & Culture
02 - Supernatural Studies
03 - Gothic Literature
04 - Psychology of Macabre
LUNCH
05 - Trigonometry
06 - Outcast Anatomy
07 - Normie/Outcast Relations
08 - Phytotoxicology
In no time, your trunk is unpacked and your items are organized in the same fashion as your roommate. You had come to learn that the fastest way to gain someone's favor is to show them a reflection of themselves in the most discreet ways. As if on cue, the door opens and a gorgeous girl with piercing blue-green eyes stands before you in a perfectly ironed Nevermore uniform. She eyes you up and down before shifting her eyes toward your side of the room. It seems like you pass her initial judgment and she gives you a smile, "You must be my new roomie. I'm Bianca."
later that day
It hadn't been your intention to run into Wednesday, however, her eccentric roommate was the one that had quite literally run into you as you made your way to the counselor's office. "I'm so sorry! I didn't see you there. You must be the other new student, I'm Enid!"
You glance at Wednesday, trying to stifle a laugh. Your cousin couldn't have gotten a roommate more opposite on the spectrum of personalities than this girl. Enid stares at you with a confused look until it slowly dawns on her and her head turns sharply to look at Wednesday and then back at you.
"You didn't tell me you had a sister!"
"Cousin." The two of you say simultaneously.
"Wow, that's so exciting! There are a ton of sibling and cousin pairs here at Nevermore. Divina and Kent are twins, and then there's..."
The girl continues to blab on and on, oblivious to the look exchanged between you and Wednesday. You raise your eyebrows as if to say, Maybe you could use a little pep in your life. She responds with an irritated exhale. Enid pauses during her monologue and takes a deep breath which makes you wonder how much lung power the girl has, "Anyways, I was just showing Wednesday around the school. Do you want to join us?"
"Oh, I would love to, Enid." You grin, the counselor could wait. You pretend not to see the death glare that Wednesday shoots at you for egging on her roommate. The two of you slow down as you follow the outgoing blonde girl toward the wide doors leading to the courtyard. You whisper at Wednesday, "Sorry for crashing your roommate bonding, dear cousin."
"It was a perfectly tolerable interruption, the girl was asking too many questions about my past."
"We should probably get used to that."
The three of you make your way outside to a quaint little courtyard and Enid curiously spreads her arms as if they were wings, "Welcome to the quad!"
"It's a pentagon," Wednesday observes.
You tilt your head, "I would argue it's a pentagram."
Enid looks at the two of you and shakes her head, "The whole goth girl thing might have worked at your normie schools, but here things are different. Let me give you guys a wiki on the Nevermore social scene."
"I'm not interested in participating in tribal adolescent clichés," Wednesday says, despite her eyes darting to explore the students lingering around the quad.
You shrug nonchalantly, "I'm open to participating in tribal adolescent clichés."
"Perfect! There are many flavors of outcasts here, but the four main cliques are fangs, furs, stoners, and scales. Those are the fangs, AKA vampires. Some of them have literally been here for decades." You turn to look at a table of students with a stylish flair, all adorned in sunglasses. Other students appear to walk past their table nervously, they clearly command respect at this school. You sense that behind their sunglasses, you and your cousin have already drawn their attention being the only students not in uniform.
"That bunch of knuckleheads are furs, AKA werewolves, like me! Full moons get pretty loud around here. That's when furs wolf out, I suggest you pick up noise-canceling headphones." While you're not a fan of high-pitched howling, these are definitely the kids that will throw the best parties. One of the guys with a mane of curls glances at you as you walk by and winks. Flirty too.
"I'm assuming scales are sirens." Wednesday stares at the fountain where you're not surprised to see your new roomie sitting with her posse. She had informed you at your initial introduction that she was a siren, although you could have put two and two together once you noticed the scales on her wrists.
"You catch on quick!" Enid smiles, "And that girl, Bianca Barclay, is the closest thing Nevermore has to royalty."
"She's also my new roommate."
Enid's head snaps to look at you so fast that you worry it'll turn the full 360 degrees, her eyes wide. "You're Bianca's new roomie?"
"Be careful what you share around Enid," Wednesday says without a hint of teasing in her voice.
"Sorry, but my vlog is, like, the number one source for Nevermore gossip. I have to report to the people!" You raise an eyebrow at her, but don't say anything.
"Anyways, Bianca's crown's been slipping lately. She used to date our resident tortured artist, Xavier Thorpe. But they broke up at the beginning of the semester. Reason unknown."
Your eyes are drawn to a boy focused on painting a mural across the quad, his long brown hair tied back. He rests his paintbrush on a nearby table and turns to grab more paint. In the process, he looks up right at the three of you. You feel the familiar sensation of pins and needles on the back of your neck and you experience a quick vision of a dark art studio. Just as fast as it comes, it's gone. The one thing you'll credit your mother for is how fast she found a master psychic to guide you through the science of the visions, allowing you to stop shaking physically when you had them so it was difficult for others to know when you had one.
"Fascinating..." You and Wednesday mutter, however, she takes on a more sarcastic tone than you do.
"Yo, Enid! You're not gonna believe the dirt I heard about your new roommate." An overeager guy with a beanie walks up to you and Enid. "She eats human flesh! Chowed down on that kid she murdered. You better watch your back."
Enid takes an awkward step back and you chuckle. Wednesday stands there expressionless as the guy's face goes pale. Without hesitation, she states, "Quite the contrary. I actually fillet the bodies of my victims, then feed them to my menagerie of pets.
"Ajax, this is my new roommate, Wednesday," Enid says through clenched teeth. She gestures towards you, "And her cousin."
He stares at the two of you, but Enid shoves him out of the way and gives him a cautious expression. Once he's stumbled off she turns back to you two and says, "Ignore him. Gorgons spend way too much time getting stoned. He's cute but clueless."
"I'm returning to our shared room to continue writing my novel," Wednesday says suddenly in her flat tone and spins around, walking back through the doors.
"Wait—" Enid struggles to respond. She looks to you for a guide but you only shrug.
"I'll see you around, Enid." You head off towards the direction of the west wing where the counselor offices should be according to your map of the school, but you must have made a wrong turn at some point because instead, you find yourself at a peculiar greenhouse. Before you can turn away, you hear some muddy steps from behind you.
"Hello! You must be one of our new students. I'm Mrs. Thornhill."
"Uh, hello."
"I'm actually the dorm mom for Ophelia Hall, I'll be visiting Wednesday later to introduce myself to her, but it's so lovely to meet her cousin." She reaches down and grabs a white rose from a pile of flowers in a basket near her feet. "Here's a little welcome gift from my conservatory. I usually match a flower just to my dorm girls, but I know how tough it can be to start a new school mid-term so you're welcome to have one as well."
"Thank you." You accept it courteously, but find her demeanor to be a bit forced like she was trying too hard to be liked. "I think I'm in your eighth-period Phytotoxicology class."
"That's wonderful! I can't wait to have you in class on Monday."
You nod and before you walk off, you decide to ask her a question you've been itching to know the answer to. "So, are we able to visit the town?"
"Sure! Typically students will take the shuttle on weekends. It's considered a privilege and students in good standing are welcome to come and go as they please. But I would ensure that you remember you're representing Nevermore every time you step foot in town. Let's just say the locals can be a bit... wary."
"I'll keep that in mind."
evening
After dinner, you go to your room to read. Bianca has yet to return and you admittedly enjoy the temporary solitude. You still needed to come up with a strategy on who you wanted to associate yourself with at this school. Should you ride your roommate's coattails and befriend her popular posse? Or find a way to assimilate with the vampires. Maybe the version of you at Nevermore should be the party girl that hangs with the wolves. The different options swirl in your head and you decide to take a walk to clear your thoughts. As you reach the corner of the hall, you hear two students speaking in loud whispers. As you step closer to eavesdrop, your ears perk up at the sound of Bianca's voice.
"Can you believe her?" Her voice almost sounds venomous.
"I don't see what the big deal is." A boy's voice exhales. You don't recognize it, but you look at the reflection on the glass of a large painting hung up on the wall and are able to make out the two figures. What was the name Enid gave you... Xavier Thorpe.
"The deal is that she came this close to humiliating me in front of everyone. She hasn't even been on campus for twenty-four hours and thinks that she can challenge me like that?"
You grin, Wednesday was already making big moves. The utter self-confidence that your cousin could uphold was honestly impressive at times. Your focus soon returns to their conversation, "Honestly Bianca, maybe if you hadn't done Rowan dirty like that she wouldn't have felt like she needed to stick up for him."
"Are you seriously defending her right now?"
"Listen, I talked to her afterward, she's cool. I actually met her at my godmother's funeral years ago and she practically saved my life... it's a long story."
"Didn't realize you two were friends," Bianca spits out. You sense that you'll be discovered soon if you don't move, so you hurriedly return to your dorm and act like there's nothing off when Bianca storms in. Neither of you speaks to the other and you certainly make no reference to the conversation you just overheard.
As you try to fall asleep that night, you play what Xavier said in your head over and over again. She practically saved my life. There was something so familiar in that story. You close your eyes and take a deep breath, letting the memories flood you. The toads that Pugsley released. Your mother's screams in fear. The scrambling of the adults. The children laughing as they played hide-and-seek. Back then you were non-verbal, but you saw a chubby boy around your age sneak into the casket. You could hear his cries as the top shut down on him. You ran to find help, the first person you found being Wednesday who had chosen her hiding spot to be an unfilled grave. What you could appreciate about your cousin was her ability to understand non-verbal communication easily and she followed you to the casket already en route to the crematorium. She was the one who pressed the kill button and she was the one who received the praise. You could tell she hated the attention and barely batted an eyelash at Xavier who was crying to his mother and later came to thank her. It was such a small encounter where your lives had briefly crossed, who would have thought you'd end up at the same school?
In your dreams, you're in the same dark art studio from your vision. You see a puddle of blood on the ground and panic floods your body until you notice it's from a paintbrush wet with red paint that has been dripping onto the floor. You can sense that someone—or something—stands behind you, the hairs on the back of your neck stand up and you can't bring yourself to turn around.
the next day
Not only was your first day at Nevermore a Friday the thirteenth, but your second day was also a Saturday and you wouldn't need to worry about your classes until that Monday. Bianca's mood had changed drastically the next morning and she was like a new person. "I'm going into town with my girls to shop, you're welcome to join. They normally don't let new students go so soon, but I can pull some strings."
Naturally, you agree to go, but you're still trying to understand what Bianca's game is. Every one of her social moves would have to be inherently strategic, how else would she have been able to rise to where she was now? Despite being a siren, her charm speak had limitations. Inviting you to hang out with her friends must mean you're a pawn in something bigger and you had a hunch it had to do with your cousin being Wednesday Addams. The shopping was alright, not to your taste but it was intriguing to learn more about the social dynamics between the queen bee and each of her followers.
Divina was her right-hand girl, never straying too far. Her hair was always slicked back as though she had just gone for a swim, which you suppose makes sense for a siren. Her twin Kent wasn't there that morning, but he was typically in Bianca's posse doing whatever she told him to do. Yoko had too much of an independent streak to follow Bianca like a lost puppy, but their friendship ran deep. The vampiress had a cold exterior but from a few brief conversations, you could tell the two of you would get along.
You did have a limit though, and you found that offering to pick up coffee for the girls from the nearby café while they continued to look at the items in the boutique was a solid compromise. You're so lost in your thoughts that you almost run into someone in front of the coffee shop.
"Wednesday?"
She stares at you for a moment and then walks inside without a word. You catch up to her, "How did the school let you come into town?"
"I could ask you the same thing, but I take it has to do with your roommate."
"That would be a fair analysis."
"I think I'll take Enid's rainbow disarray of a room over Bianca's pretentiousness."
While you didn't completely disagree with how Wednesday had Bianca pinned, you had a feeling that there was a deeper layer to the siren that she wasn't prone to showing others. "You still haven't answered my initial question."
"At this precise moment, Principal Weems is sitting pathetically in her car outside the psychologist's office with the belief that I'm happily talking to Dr. Kinbott about my repressed emotions. Instead, I'm here in search of my morning coffee and a way out of this town."
"I thought you would last at least a week, Wednesday."
"Don't tempt me. It's already been decided. I found out my parents sent Thing to watch my every move, you could easily be a plant, too." She starts to make her way to the counter and you follow her, amused as you imagine a world where Morticia and Gomez Addams came to you with a plan to spy on Wednesday's every move. Ridiculous. They'd sooner send her Uncle Fester. You hardly notice the espresso machine has gone haywire until you're standing right up against it. A stunned barista suddenly notices the two of you at the counter behind the smoke from the machine.
"Holy crap! Do you make a habit of scaring the hell out of people?"
"It's more of a hobby." Wednesday retorts.
He stares at her confused before glancing at you behind her. His expression changes slightly when his eyes meet yours and he shyly looks back at her, hiding behind his messy brown hair. "You go to Nevermore. Didn't realize they changed the uniform."
"I need a quad over ice. It's an emergency." He raises his eyebrows at her. She sighs impatiently, "It's four shots of espresso."
"Yeah, I... I know what a quad is. But spoiler alert, the espresso machine's having a seizure."
You take a step forward, "What's wrong with your machine?"
His eyes remain down, looking at the machine, "It's a temperamental beast with a mind of its own, and it doesn't help that the instructions are in Italian."
Wednesday turns to look at you. You sigh knowing that she remembers you had traveled to Italy several times because of your mother's job. You walk behind the counter and grab the manual from his hands, your fingers accidentally grazing against his sending an electric jolt down your spine. He begins to stammer, but you cut him off. "I just need a tri-wing screwdriver and a four-millimeter Allen wrench."
"Wait, you speak Italian?"
"Summers in the Italian alps will do that to you."
"Not to mention, it's the native tongue of Machiavelli," Wednesday adds. "Here's the deal. She's going to fix your coffee machine then you're going to make my coffee and call a taxi."
"Uh, no taxis in Jericho." He shakes his head. You can sense Wednesday growing more and more impatient. "Where are you going anyway?"
"That's on a need-to-know basis. What about trains?" Her questions make him pause each time. You're feeling quite entertained as you fix the machine in the background.
"Nearest station is Burlington. It's half an hour away..." The guy's voice trails off as he realizes the smoking has fully subsided and the machine is back in order. "Wow, I never met a Nevermore kid who got their hands dirty. I'm Tyler, by the way—"
"Wednesday." She cuts him off and nods at you. "My cousin."
He eyes you curiously, "Are you leaving, too?"
You shake your head, "No, I'm planning on staying here a little longer but I'd like to make sure she makes it out alright."
"Tell you what, to show my appreciation I'll drive you to Burlington."
"Perfect, put that quad in a to-go cup."
"I don't get off for another hour... so either wait or find someone else to drive you." He leans on the counter. You give her a warning glance and are pleasantly surprised when she heeds it. The two of you head over to a booth and sit down.
"So what's this I hear about Bianca almost being humiliated in front of everyone yesterday?"
"I would disagree with your use of the word 'almost.' Enid's vlog, I presume."
You shake your head and point to your ears to indicate you overheard a conversation. She gives a slight nod, "I was curious to see what the fencing team was up to at their practice. I may have a competitive streak that I let get the best of me when I got into a duel match with Bianca."
"Hm." You wonder if you should ask her about her conversation with Xavier.
"What's your second question?" She stares at you. Well, there's no going back now.
"Do you remember Xavier Thorpe at that funeral from years ago?"
"Hardly."
"I... I've been having visions and I think he has something to do with it."
Wednesday tilts her head in interest. "He pushed me out of the way during someone's attempt to murder me via gargoyle and took me to the infirmary afterward. I now consider us even from the coffin incident. What visions are you having?"
You don't even process the situations she gets herself into at this point. It almost makes sense that Wednesday would have already made an enemy at Nevermore. You answer her question, "An art studio, but I'm not alone and there's an ominous feeling in the pit of my stomach. Enid mentioned he's a troubled artist and every time I walk by the quad he's working on a mural."
"The pentagon. So you've been watching him."
"No—well, yes. But in a less creepy way than how you're phrasing it..."
Before you can press her for more information, a trio of high school boys dressed as pilgrims enter the café. They head directly to the booth that you and your cousin sit at. "What's some Nevermore freaks doing out in the wild? This is our booth."
What was this, a bad eighties movie? Wednesday beats you to a quip, "Why are you dressed like religious fanatics?"
"We're pilgrims."
"Potato, po-tah-to."
The one who you presume to be the alpha, or at least wants to seem like he is, in the group pushes a flyer towards her, "We work at Pilgrim World."
"It takes a special kind of stupid to devote an entire theme park to zealots responsible for mass genocide."
"My dad owns Pilgrim World. Who you calling stupid?"
Wednesday glances at you and then turns back to them. You grin knowing what's to come. "If the buckled shoe fits."
"Guys back off." Tyler walks up to the group, he must have noticed them at your booth.
"Stay out of this, Galpin." One of the others sneers. So Tyler knew these guys, probably from his normie school.
Wednesday stands and you follow her lead only to slip past them, Tyler's head turning as you walk out. You know she's perfectly capable of handling those boys on her own, besides, according to your calculations, Principal Weems should be making her way around the town square now in search of Wednesday and you didn't need to get in trouble so soon after arriving to Nevermore, where's the fun in that? When you make your way back to Bianca and the girls, you express your distaste at how the espresso machine wasn't working and you couldn't get their lattes.
that night
You decided that late-night walks around the school before your curfew was your current favorite thing to do at Nevermore. Everyone was usually in their dorms or the library or quite frankly anywhere else but the foggy grounds. There was something about breathing the fresh air knowing your mother couldn't show up to drag you to a new city or country that was quite comforting. As you walk through the quad, you see Xavier working on the same mural and your curiosity gets the best of you, so you approach him.
"It's a raven, not a crow, isn't it?"
He doesn't jump at your voice, only puts down the paintbrush and turns around, leaning against the part of the wall not covered in paint. He looks you up and down curiously. "A raven. Edgar Allen Poe was a student here. And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor..."
"Shall be lifted—Nevermore."
He raises an eyebrow, "So you are familiar with Poe."
"Of course, but I needed an excuse to come talk to you."
Xavier's face reddens and he clears his throat. "You're Bianca's new roommate, she told me about you."
"Positive things, I hope."
He nods, "You're also..."
"Wednesday Addams' cousin."
"How is she doing? There was an, uh, incident yesterday."
"I know, she told me about it. She's doing fine, but I don't know how much longer she'll be at Nevermore for."
His eyes widen and he's quick to ask, "What do you mean?"
Something about his reaction bothers you but you can't really explain why. You quickly push the feelings away, "She has a tendency to run away from schools, but so far it seems like she's been unlucky getting past Weems."
The two of you are distracted by a cello playing far off in the distance, the sounds echoing between the walls of the school. You can't help to grin as you begin to recognize the notes. Rolling Stones...not bad. Wednesday must have taken your advice to learn more contemporary pieces after having the entire family watch her perform the entirety of Mozart's Requiem. He steps out from behind the pillars, "That's her, isn't it?"
"She can play Vivaldi in her sleep."
Xavier listens for a little longer and then turns towards you, "The Harvest Festival is tomorrow, you should come with Bianca and our friends. And... invite Wednesday too."
There's a sour taste in your mouth when you tell him you will and you march off toward your dorm. On the way up the stairs, you almost run into Kent.
"Sorry, it's been a long day."
He grins, "So how are you liking Nevermore so far?"
"It's better than where I was before this. Still learning where things are and meeting everyone."
"Yeah, it's a small school but a lot of cliques to go through." He leans close to you, "You don't want Bianca to find out that you're talking to Xavier alone like that. Just helping you out."
You look into the sea green of his eyes and see if there's any threat in them, but it seems like he genuinely wants to warn you. Kent had been nice to you so far and despite his obvious loyalty to Bianca, you had sensed that her friends weren't big shippers of Bianca and Xavier. Every time she brought him up they tried to change the topic and the energy shifted.
You give him a quick nod and head off to your dorm where Bianca is sound asleep. Doing your best to keep quiet, you continue to think about what Kent said. It's not like you were pursuing Xavier, you just wanted more information about the visions and he was a psychic too... right? You couldn't deny that Xavier's interest in Wednesday was bothering you on some level and there may be something to be said about that. You had intended to talk to him about the visions, but instead, the only topic he was interested in was your cousin. There's no way what you were feeling was jealousy, Wednesday had never evoked that emotion from you. You decide that it's a side effect of the visions, perhaps you were putting too much meaning into them. The only thing it was doing was creating an unhealthy attachment. As your mind wanders bringing you closer to sleep, you almost let out a gasp at the vision that hits you.
Wednesday is being attacked in the woods, but you can't make out who or what is attacking her. Her eyes are wide with fear. Suddenly you're in an odd library with an assortment of books from the floor to the ceiling. Your heart skips a beat as you now see Xavier's face, clear as day, come out from the shadows. He holds a finger to his lips.
the harvest festival
The first half of your Sunday was uneventful. You couldn't seem to push away the dream from the previous night from your mind. Visions could be unreliable as a lot of symbolism is interpreted literally by psychics and can result in impulsive actions that only make things worse.
As you walk the fairgrounds of the Harvest Festival you try not to remember the disappointment on Xavier's face earlier when you said Wednesday had already agreed to go to the festival with someone else. Tyler, the peculiar barista who had offered to get her to the train station. It looks like your dear cousin was one step closer to getting out of Jericho. Surely he was there to drive her out. You see him in the distance talking to a man in a uniform and recall that Enid had mentioned he was the son of the sheriff—now that was a normie you needed to be careful around. Once he helped Wednesday get out of town you may need to avoid him. You continue to walk towards the ferris wheel that Bianca and her friends were waiting in line for before you excused yourself to the bathroom when you suddenly hear someone shout your name in the distance. You turn in confusion only to see Tyler jog up to you. "Wednesday said you'd be here."
"Attendance is mandatory for Nevermore students."
"Right." He looks at you with a blank stare.
Out of the corner of your eye, you see Wednesday walking over to one of the carnival games. "You're here to drive her out of town?"
"Well, partially." You look at him and he stutters, "I do like eating fair food and checking out the rides..." As he speaks, you scan the grounds and see Principal Weems watching Wednesday intently as she plays a dart game, but you're more interested in Xavier walking up to the booth that Wednesday is at and chatting her up. You begin to feel irritated and look back at Tyler, already feeling the incoming impulse.
"I actually think she wanted to talk to you right now to make her exit plan. It sounded urgent." Tyler takes the cue with a disappointed look and heads toward the booth. In the distance, you hear him apologize for interrupting their conversation. It doesn't take long for Xavier to excuse himself and push his way past Tyler, hardly noticing that you're standing there and bumping into you. You gasp as a strong vision shoots through your head causing you to grip Xavier's arm.
You walk through the woods but sense that you're not alone. There's a rustling sound nearby and you snap your head to see who's there. Xavier stumbles out of the bushes looking confused. He looks at his surroundings and then straight at you. "Am... am I in your vision right now?"
You blink at him. "Right now we're—"
"At the Harvest Festival."
"How are you in my head?" You frown.
"I don't know you tell me."
You tilt your head. "I'm not usually lucid in my visions, this feels more like... a dream."
He looks away and clenches his jaw, you can tell there's something he's not telling you. Before either of you can speak, you hear a growling noise coming in the distance. Xavier gives you a panicked look and says, "It's here."
"What—"
A large and dark figure leaps towards you and as you let out a scream...
You're back at the fairgrounds, holding on to Xavier as if your life depends on it. His hands have clung on to your waist. The two of you stare at each other in a moment of shock, processing the dream and vision hybrid before you're aware of the awkward situation you're in and you step back first. "We should go find Bianca."
He clears his throat nervously and nods in agreement. As you head towards the ferris wheel, Xavier is the first to break the silence. "I've been having dreams with that creature for weeks now, I don't know what it is and I usually can't wake up, almost like a sleep paralysis." He turns to look at you, "But you pulled us out of there so fast."
"Like I said, I usually don't have any control when the visions or dreams hit me, that's the first time I've been able to walk and talk in one." You meet his eyes, "I've been meaning to talk to you actually. Ever since I came to Nevermore I've been getting these odd visions that I can't decipher and I think they have something to do with you."
Before he can respond, Bianca is making her way towards the two of you, the crowd of people moving like a parted sea, her eyes giving off a fiery expression. "Good, you two are back from your walk. The fireworks are starting soon."
You can feel Xavier tense up next to you and your eyes quickly shift to the necklace resting on her chest that's meant to reduce the effect of her siren abilities. Big mistake. She shoots you a death glare and then spins around on her heels, returning to her friends. You couldn't afford to make Bianca Barclay your enemy, you would need to keep your distance from Xavier as it was evident she still wasn't over him.
As if sensing your wariness, he lowers his voice and says, "Meet me by the greenhouse during lunch tomorrow, I need to show you something."
You don't respond. This was a difficult situation as you wanted to understand the visions better, but didn't want your dorm situation to be a living nightmare if you pissed off the queen of Nevermore. You would need to be discreet and that was going to be difficult especially when Bianca's followers could easily report back to her. The group gets on the ferris wheel just in time to get the best view of the fireworks. You glance at Xavier and see him frown at the ground while everyone else's eyes are up at the sky. Following his eyeline, you see Tyler and Wednesday running through the crowd.
later that night
You make your way up to Ophelia Hall to see if Wednesday's mission succeeded, but instead, you're surprised to see her sitting at her desk. Thing is resting on the bed and jumps up excitedly at your presence. You grin, "Long time no see."
Wednesday moves a stack of books on her desk and stands to turn to look at you. "I've given it a lot of thought and I've decided you're a worthy confidant."
"Does that mean I get to find out why you didn't leave with Tyler?"
Wednesday gives the question some thought and then nods. "To summarize a series of events—I've been having odd visions since I arrived at Nevermore and tonight I had one after touching Rowan Laslow on my way out of the Harvest Festival with Tyler. I followed Rowan into the woods where he attacked me with his telekinesis, but this creature came out of the woods and killed him. For some reason, it didn't attack me. After experiencing two attempted homicides and now this—" She hands you what looks like a police file and you try to contain your surprise when you see a criminal record for your Uncle Gomez dating back to when he was a student at Nevermore. Homicide. She continues, "I've decided to remain here until further notice and find out what killed Rowan. Tyler said there's been several murders in the woods for the past few weeks and I intend to learn who, or what, is causing them."
You walk over and sit on the trunk by her bed trying to process everything "I didn't know your visions had already started, but I figured it wouldn't be long. My visions seem to tie in with Xavier, but tonight we were both in some sort of dream and vision hybrid. There was a creature in the woods that tried to attack us. And the other night I had a vision of you being attacked in the woods." You look away in shame. "I should have stayed with you tonight knowing I had that vision of you being hurt."
"No need to express remorse, it was a fun excursion with the exception of Rowan losing his life. I can take care of myself."
The name is familiar but you still can't pinpoint who it is. Wednesday reads your expression, "Xavier's roommate. A psychic with telekinetic abilities."
The next order of action. "Did you tell anyone what happened?"
She nods cautiously. "The first person I spoke to was actually your roommate. I told her what happened and she told me to come back to the school and she would handle the matter. Despite our rivalry, it did appear as though her intent was to aid." You recall Bianca storming off after finishing the ferris wheel ride. Wednesday continues, "I presume the police will be here tomorrow to talk about his cause of death. Perhaps they'll let me visit the morgue."
"Doubtful." You hand her back the police file. "Why would Tyler give this to you?"
"He believes his father has a vendetta against the Addams family because of this incident. I would have thought my mother would be the one out of the two to commit murder."
"Normally I would agree, but I think she wouldn't get caught like this."
"Accurate evaluation." She puts the file back on her desk where you can see a drawing smashed under the stack of books, but you decide not to press her further tonight. Wednesday turns to look back at you, "While I prefer to work alone, I'm open to collaborating when you have information of service to my investigation. However, we do need to keep this confidential."
You know Wednesday hates being touched so you cross your heart and she does the same. Suddenly the crystal ball on her desk begins to waver and you take that as your cue to go. You hear Uncle Gomez's voice, "Hello my little black cloud!"
"So tell us, darling, how was your first week?" Aunt Morticia purrs.
"As much as it pains me to admit, you were right, mother. I think I'm going to love it here."
You smile, a part of you was relieved that Wednesday was staying at Nevermore after all but you knew that you needed to be more careful from here on out. That meant following her when she was getting herself into these dangerous situations, on top of keeping your distance from Xavier. This proves to be right when you return to your dorm and Bianca is sitting at her vanity desk, staring at you from the reflection of the mirror.
"I'm not sure what you think you'll gain from a close friendship with Xavier, but I promise you it's not what you expect." So she was going to confront you directly. "I have eyes all over campus."
You needed to pick your words carefully and dance through the situation as smoothly as possible. "You're right." Bianca almost seems taken aback by your confession. "I've been keeping an eye on him, but not for the reasons that you think. Whatever issues you have with my cousin isn't my business, that's between the two of you. But it seems like he's taken an interest in her and I promised her parents I would look out for her. I think you and I both want the same thing, actually, and that's for Xavier to keep his distance from Wednesday."
She stares at you intently and you wonder if sirens can hear heartbeats because yours is pounding hard. After a moment, it seems like she's believed you and her face relaxes as she shifts her tone of voice. "Thank you for telling me. I agree, we do want the same thing. Because of that, I expect you to let me know from here on out if you see or know about any more interactions between the two of them." A wave of pleasure falls over your body and you give her a dumb grin as you nod and then get ready for bed, in the back of your head you know that she wasn't wearing her necklace but for some reason, it's difficult to get your mind to focus on it.
As you lay in bed, looking at the white rose on your desk already beginning to lose its petals your excitement was growing. Tomorrow was your first day of classes at Nevermore Academy. Wednesday was right, you were both going to love it here.