Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Colorless. Thats how most people spent their childhood. Years of black and white and various shades of gray. One touch from their soulmate and their world would explode in color. Of course, Wednesday Addams was different.

Wednesday Addams has always seen color. She's always seen vivid reds and vibrant blues. Neons were particularly disturbing. The rainbow of colors she could see was nauseating. She'd never admit it, but she was jealous of her classmates for only seeing muted grays and white. That's not to say she hated every color. She enjoyed the gloomy blue of the sky before a storm and the purple that bloomed on the skin around a nasty bruise. If she had to pick a favorite color, it'd be the red of blood as it seeped out of an open wound. But she'd trade that all to see just one particular color. For Wednesday Addams could not see the color black.

It was a fact that tormented her her entire life. She'd never seen the color of her braided hair or her wardrobe. She couldn't enjoy the color of her mother's favorite flowers or even the ravens that hung around the family cemetery. She cursed her soulmate for making her endure this misery. They were withholding the only color of importance from her and she would make them pay. She never had any plans to accept the person the universe decided was her perfect match. Truthfully, if she wasn't missing such a crucial color, she wouldn't want to meet them at all.

Wednesday spent her childhood dreaming of new ways to torture her soulmate. She could remove their fingernails one by one. Slowly. Basking in their pain as they begged her to stop. She could trap them in a hole filled with snakes. Watching as they endured bite after bite. Maybe she'll tie them to a chair and torture them with her favorite knife. A slice for every day she's been alive seems fair. Or perhaps she'll just behead them with her rusty guillotine. She'll have no use for them after their first touch. Maybe removing them from this world entirely is the way to go.  

She spends years torturing Pugsley in preparation for the day she meets her soulmate. The torture is amusing but it's never truly satisfying. She imagines how it feels when its finally her soulmate looking at her with eyes filled with pain. She imagines it will be euphoric.

By the time Wednesday is enrolled in Nevermore, she's perfected her torture technique. Her mother seems to think she'll find her soulmate at Nevermore. Wednesday hopes so. Finally, she can end this once and for all. Her hatred for her soulmate was only renewed after seeing that monstrosity of a room she was forced to share. Enid couldn't even see color. "When I can finally see it, I want to be drowning in color!" Enid had exclaimed. Stupid. There was nothing special about color. Enid was the lucky one. A colorless world sounded disturbingly perfect.

Of all the places Wednesday imagined meeting her soulmate, she never imagined it would be in a coffee shop. Weathervane. An unremarkable coffee shop in an insignificant normie town.

When Wednesday entered the coffee shop, the barista was hidden in a cloud of steam. Of course, the espresso machine was broken. Hopefully the barista wasn't completely incompetent, and it would be fixed soon. Wednesday felt a slight tug in her chest pulling her towards the barista but chose to ignore it. She just needed her quad and then she was out of here. Nothing else mattered. When the smoke cleared, and the barista finally saw her, she felt a slight satisfaction as he jumped back in shock.

"Holy Crap! Do you make it a habit of scaring the hell out of people?"

"It's more of a hobby." She deadpanned. He was conventionally attractive with his soft curls and pretty hazel eyes. Not the Wednesday noticed. Of course not. Wednesday wasn't interested in that kind of thing, even if the sensation in her chest grew stronger the longer she talked to him.

"You go to Nevermore. Didn't realize they changed up the uniform." Briefly she wondered how he knew that. He must have already met his soulmate, otherwise he'd never have noticed her uniform was uniquely black instead of blue.

"I need a quad over ice. It's an emergency." When he continued to stare, she felt the need to elaborate. "It's four shots of espresso."

Yeah, I know what a quad is, but, spoiler alert, the espresso machine's having a seizure, so all we have is drip."

Wednesday tried to ignore the fluttering in her stomach at the sight of his slight smile, angry at herself for her lack of control over her emotions today. "But drip is for people who hate themselves and know their lives have no real purpose or meaning." Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed an embarrassed man put down his cup and leave. Good. At least he knew his life was meaningless. "What's wrong with your machine?"

"It's a temperamental beast with a mind of its own, and it doesn't help that the instructions are in Italian."

The barista was obviously frustrated, and it was clear the machine wasn't going to be fixed without her help. Walking around the counter, Wednesday snatched the manual from his hands, scanning over the pages quickly. A valve issue was a simple fix. "I need a tri-wing screwdriver and a four-millimeter Allen wrench."

"Wait, you read Italian?"

"Of course. It's the native tongue of Machiavelli." She paused before continuing. "Here's the deal. I'm going to fix your coffee machine, then you're going to make me a coffee and call a taxi."

"No taxis in Jericho. Try Uber. " He handed her the requested tools, his fingers brushing hers slightly. A mild shock traveling from her fingertips up her arm. It was pleasant. If she wasn't so focused on fixing this machine and getting away from Nevermore, she'd figure out how to feel it again.

"I don't have a phone. I refuse to be a slave to technology."

"Whoa. Black." She heard him reply, voice filled with wonder. When she turned to look at him, his arm was outstretched, dropping back down just before touching one of her braids. She was about to comment when she realized why he was so amazed. Her hair was black and she could see it. The tug in her chest. The brushing of their fingers. The shock up her arm. Soulmate.

Oh no. No no no. She thought. How could this be her soulmate? Cute. Sweet. Nice. Normal. All qualities that she would never have used to describe her future soulmate. How could the universe possibly think this was her perfect match?

"You've always seen colors." It was a statement, not a question but he answered anyway.

"Yeah. As long as I can remember. My parents always assumed I'd just met my soulmate when I was too young to understand. Took me a while to notice I was missing black though." He tilted his head, a smile gracing his face as he talked. 

Wednesday gave a small nod of her head, studying the boy before her. This is her soulmate. The boy she'd promised to torture upon meeting him. Only she didn't feel the inclination to torture him now. Or well she did. Tortue was fun and she wanted to discover his pain threshold. But she no longer felt the desire for revenge. 

"Are you going to say anything?" He asked, a note of apprehension in his voice.

"I'm thinking."

"About?" He probed.

"Torture."

"Okay." His eyes widened, eyebrows raising, but his face showed no fear. Instead, he seemed intrigued.

Interesting, Wednesday thought. Maybe there was more to this boy than she originally thought. Maybe there was a dark side buried under this innocent act. She could try to get to know him. Figure out what kind of darkness he was hiding. But that would require she stay at Nevermore. Did she really want to give up this chance to escape for a boy she'd just met?

"I'm Tyler by the way."

"Wednesday" She responded, still mulling over her dilemma. Behind her, she heard to cafe door open, two pairs of footsteps sounding across the tiled floor. Turn her head, she saw it was Principal Weems and the sheriff who had entered the shop.

"Come on, Miss Addams. Time to go." Principle Weems called out to her.

She saw the sheriff open his mouth, but he was cut off as Tyler spoke, handing her a quad in a to go cup.

"You'll be back?" He asked, a hopeful look in his eyes. She knew what he was really asking. Did she still intend to leave?

She gave a sharp nod. "I will. The universe may have deemed you worthy, but I have yet to make that determination." She answered.

He smiled at her response and offered a quick goodbye. To her horror, Wednesday felt a slight upward twitch of her lips as she gave him a final nod. Her emotions were failing her today and she would need to get control of them before she saw him again. Silently she followed Principal Weems out of the cafe, mentally adjusting her plans. She'd stay at Nevermore a little bit longer to get to know Tyler. She'd discover his secrets and hidden darkness. She could always leave later. Engineering another escape wouldn't be too difficult.

Sitting in the passenger seat, Wednesday turned her head away from Principal Weems and fingered the hem of her dress. Black. She could finally see it. Its darkness contrasted perfectly against her paler skin. It was eerily beautiful. Her thoughts drifted back to Tyler. The awe and amazement when he saw her black braid for the first time. He'd seemed just as enamored with the color as she was. Maybe it wasn't him that withheld the color from her, but her from him. Maybe she needed to withhold the color from him so he could fully appreciate it,  appreciate her. His soulmate. The girl that lived in a colorful world and chose to paint herself in black. 

Chapter Text

Tyler Galpin is four years old when he first learns he's different.

His father has just gotten home from work, conversing with his babysitter while Tyler plays with his toys in the living room. He's sorting his trucks into piles when his father enters the room and stares at him. He has a strange look on his face as he watches Tyler places two green trucks together followed by three red trucks. He spends the next couple of minutes questioning him.  "What are you doing? How do you know those are the same color? What do you mean you can see they're different colors?" Tyler doesn’t really understand why his father was is confused. Can’t he see they are the same color? 

The next day, his dad takes him to a doctor, who sends him to a specialist. They run tests on him and observe him as he plays with his toys in a room with a glass window. They ask him to sort his toys by color and to identify flash cards with matching colors. He doesn't understand why everyone is acting so strange, but he does what they want anyway. He watches through the glass window as the doctor talks to his father, who doesn't happy with whatever the doctor tells him. When the doctor finally comes back into the room with his dad, they tell Tyler that he's able to see colors. Which duh, Tyler already knew that. 

Tyler forgets all about the strange doctor visit when his dad tells him they're going to visit his mom. He doesn't get to see her too often. His dad says she's sick and he only gets to see her on her good days. Tyler thinks she must have a lot of bad days. Dad only takes him to visit a couple times a month. He used to ask his dad when mom would get to come home, but his dad never answered. He eventually learned to stop asking. 

When they arrive, Tyler's father hands him a couple toys and tells him to go play while he talks to his mother. They go in the hallway to talk. Tyler gives it a couple minutes before inching closer to the door, peeking around the frame until his parents are in his sight. He can't hear what they're saying, but his father seems agitated, throwing his hands up and shaking his head. His mother tries to calm him with a brush of his arm and words that Tyler is too far away to hear. When they turn to make their way back to his mother's room, he runs back to his toys, hoping he hasn't been caught spying.

"Tyler" his mother calls as she sits on her bed "Come sit with me. Your father and I need to talk to you about something." He runs to his mother, cuddling up into her side. He enjoys the warmth of her arms and the sweet smell of her shampoo. He missed her and he hopes it won't be weeks before he gets to see her again.

"Your father tells me you saw a doctor today. They asked you a lot of questions about colors, didn’t they?” Tyler nods and his mom continues. “Did you know I can’t see colors except for white and black?”

 At this Tyler shakes his head no. 

“When a baby is born, they’re only able to see white and black and some shades of gray. Most people aren’t able to see colors like you do until they’re at least eighteen. You see Tyler, people don’t gain the ability to see colors until they touch their soulmate for the first time.” 

“But I can see colors.” Tyler says softly, looking up at his mother with confused eyes. 

“I know, baby.” His mother replies, placing a quick kiss to his forehead. “Do you remember how long you’ve been able to see colors?” 

Tyler shakes his head again. He’s been able to see colors for as long as he can remember. 

“That’s ok. You could have met your soulmate and were too young to realize it. Maybe on the playground or possible that camping trip your father took you on last fall.”

“What is a soulmate?” Tyler asks. His mom keeps using that word, but he doesn’t know what it means. 

“Everyone has a soulmate. It’s the one person in the world the Universe decides is perfect for you.” 

“Is daddy your soulmate?” Tyler asks, looking at mother then his father. His father slowly shakes his head no, but it’s his mom that elaborates further. 

“Unfortunately, no. Daddy met his soulmate when he was a teenager. He knew her for about a year before she passed away in an accident. I met you dad a short time later. We fell in love and I decided to not look for my soulmate. So daddy sees colors like you, but mommy doesn’t.”

Tyler nods. His mom looks sad. He wonders if she wishes she could see colors too. 

They spend a couple more hours with his mom before they have to head home. His mom gives him a hug and a kiss and tells him she loves him. He thinks about soulmates on the ride home. He’s glad he met his already. He can’t image a world without all the pretty colors. 

- X -

Tyler is five years old when he first learns he's an outcast among his peers.

It’s the first day of kindergarten and Tyler is excited to start school. He’s bouncing in his seat as his father drives, growing more excited the closer they get to the building. When they arrive, he nearly bolts out the door before the car even stops. His father walks him to his class, stopping to talk to the teacher while Tyler runs to join the other children.

The day begins great. He quickly makes friends with the children he shares a table with. A boy named Lucas and a girl named Sara. They sit together at lunch and then next to each other in the reading circle.

It’s when his teacher mentions colors when thinks turn bad. His teacher tells the class that there are colors all around them even though they can’t see them. Tyler interrupts and tells her that he can see them. She doesn’t believe him so he begins pointing to objects and identifying them by color. 

The room is silent, making it easy for Tyler to hear Lucas whisper “Freak.” It’s only made worse when Sara laughs. The rest of the class seems to agree by the looks on their faces. Tyler looks down and doesn’t talk for the rest of the day.

He doesn’t make friends again that day or the next. He doesn’t make any friends that year or even the ones that follow. For the most part, none of his classmates are outright mean to him, but they avoid talking or being seen with him. He’s just too different and no one wants to risk being seen with him, lest they become an outcast too. 

As they grow older and begin to learn about soulmates, he sees some of his classmates give him looks of pity, particularly his female classmates. They think he’s lost his chance of ever being with his soulmate by meeting her when he was too young to understand. Maybe they’re right. Tyler doesn’t really know if he’ll ever meet his soulmate again. 

He thinks about his soulmate sometimes. He wonders if she has any friends or if people find her strange too. He wonders if she appreciates all the colors even if others think it’s strange. He wonders if they’ll ever meet again. On some of his bad days, he wonders if he even has a soulmate. Maybe he really is just a freak after all.  

- X -

Tyler is ten years old when he first learns he can't see every color.

He was never the smartest kid in class, but he maintains a B average, which is enough to satisfy his parents. He despises math but enjoys his literature and science courses. Art, however, is by far his favorite class. Although the rest of his classmates can't see it, the art room is bathed in an array of colors. He loves staring at all the supplies stashed around the room. There are shelves full of paint and drawers of markers and crayons. Typically, the teachers keep to simple projects that don't require the students to differentiate colors. There had been several lessons on sculpting, Tyler was particularly pleased with the vase he'd gifted his mom last Mother's Day, along with some wood projects and even jewelry making. But today they are doing something they've never done before. Painting.

The teacher calls it paint by numbers. The picture they are painting has been divided into different sections and each section has been assigned a number. Each color has also been given a number. All they have to do is match up the numbers. The teacher says it’s to help them learn how the different shades of grey correlate with particular colors. Except for Tyler of course. He can easily complete this assignment without numbers. 

Or so he thought. He’s only completed the first couple of numbers when he realizes three and four look the same. Gray and black. They look exactly the same to him. 

He calls the teacher to him and asks her if there is a difference between the two. She explains they’re similar, but gray is lighter than black and that black usually stands out among other colors. 

He can’t see black. Why can’t he see one of the few colors everyone is supposed to be able to see since birth? Can his soulmate see black or is he the only one born defective?

He considers sharing this revaluation with his parents but quickly decides against it. His father already hates that he’s different. He doesn’t miss the way his father studies him when he thinks Tyler’s not looking. Like he’s trying to catalogue every abnormal detail about his son. 

No, if he tells his parents they’ll just send him back to that specialist. And they won’t get any real answers anyway. They’ve speculated that he met his soulmate young, but they don’t know that definitively. No one actually knows why Tyler’s different. No need to let them know he’s even more of a freak then they already do. 

It’s not important, Tyler tells himself. Black is black. A basic, boring color that everyone can see. His inability to see black won’t have any major impact on his life anyway. 

- X -

Tyler is sixteen years old the first time he hates not being able to see black.

No one will tell him what really happened. Not his father and not the doctors. They say there was an accident. His mother was injured, and they couldn't save her. He asks to see her, but his father refuses. There is no viewing. Only a funeral. 

The funeral is small. His mother has been institutionalized for so long that she lost contact with most of the people she knew before Tyler was born. He stands beside his father in matching black suits, or so he's been told. It's not like he can see the color himself. Through the service, Tyler's eyes are filled with tears, leaving tracks on his cheeks as they slip from his eyes and land on his collar. Beside him, his father remains impassive. No tears or expression whatsoever on his face. The only time he shows any emotion is when his eyes drift to Tyler. It's fleeting but Tyler can see a look of terror and uncertainty when his father's eyes land on him. As if Tyler is something to fear. 

And Tyler hates it all. He hates not knowing how his mother died. He hates that his father doesn't even seem to care. Most of all, he hates that everything is so damn colorful. The sun is out, shining bright, illuminating all the colors in the cemetery. He sees the bright green on the grass and the pretty pinks and yellows of the flowers his father ordered. He can see the red bird sitting in its nest in the tree branches above him. One of the mourners across from him is wearing blue shoes and another has a purple handbag. It all just feels so wrong. He can see all the brightness and none of the darkness. It feels more like a celebration, not a funeral. And there is nothing to celebrate about losing the one parent that actually seemed to care about him. 

After the funeral ends, his father leaves quickly but Tyler stays. Crouched on the ground, back leaning against a headstone, he watches as his mother’s coffin is lowered into the ground. He watches as dirt is piled on top until the hole is completely filled. He stays after the workers leave, giving him a nod as they go. He doesn’t leave until long after it’s grown dark, the cold wind whipping against his exposed skin. But he doesn’t feel the cold. All he feels is anger, a rage bubbling up inside since the moment he learned of his mother’s death. 

The rage doesn’t disappear. It only continues to grow. It churns inside him as the weeks pass. His father doesn’t seem to notice. He’s barely even home and when he is, he refuses to look at Tyler. His father’s actions only add to the fury. Of course, he can only contain his rage for so long before it burst.

Unlucky for Xavier Thorpe, that happens on Outreach Day. Tyler has never had an issue with Nevermore students. He knows what it feels like to be an outcast. His own classmates have always considered him a freak. He doesn’t set out to ruin Xavier’s mural, but the site of the mural tips him over the edge. 

It's in black and white. Of course, it is. Xavier can’t see colors. Tyler can tell it is probably beautiful. The two colors melding together to depict the town, Nevermore students and Jericho residents intermingled peaceful. But to Tyler it just looks dull. In that moment, Tyler hates that he can't see what everyone else can. Hates that black is being withheld from him. And he’s tired of fighting, so he gives in to the rage. 

He marches across the street to the hardware store and buys a pack of paintbrushes and buckets of paint. Bright red, and blue, and green. He convinces the manager the paint is for his father and they let him purchase it even though he’s not yet eighteen. Being the sheriff's son in a small town has some advantages.

Back in front of the mural, Tyler opens the buckets and gets to work. He begins slathering paint on every inch of the mural he can reach. He’s only just begun when Lucas and his two goons stumble upon him. They take one look at him before grabbing the extra paint brushes and joining in. Apparently, their hatred of Nevermore outweighs their distaste for him. 

Just as he’s stepping back to admire his finished handiwork, he hears sirens. Predictably, Lucas and his friends take off but Tyler just leans against the way, tossing the paintbrush back and forth between his hands, a satisfied smirk on his face. 

It’s his father that finds him like that only a couple minutes later. He sees disappointment and anger and a little bit of fear play out across his father’s face before his father shoves him in the backseat of his car. He lectures him all the way to the station, but Tyler doesn’t care. The smirk never leaves his face. 

The judge sentences him to counseling and six months' probation. As a stipulation to his probation, he’s required to apologize to the Nevermore student whose mural he ruined. So he writes a letter of apology to Xavier Thorpe. He writes that he deeply regrets his actions that day. That he wishes he could take it all back. He apologizes for taking out his anger on Xavier’s mural and hopes that one day Xavier can forgive him. It sounds convincing. It’s all a lie. 

Truthfully, he’s not sorry at all. He doesn’t want forgiveness because he doesn’t regret his actions. He’d given into the anger and for the first time he’d finally felt free. It was a glorious feeling and Tyler would do anything to feel it again.

- X -

Tyler is just freshly seventeen when he first learns the truth.

The first time Marylin Thornhill comes into Weathervane is like any other day. She places her order, makes polite conversation while he prepares her coffee and thanks him before she leaves. She keeps coming daily, which really isn’t unusual. He wouldn’t have a job if people didn’t have a coffee addiction. She always makes a point to brush her fingers against the back of his hand when he hands her her finished coffee. That is a little unusual but he doesn’t think too much of it. Maybe she’s just a tactile person. 

She’d been coming to the coffee shop for a little over a week when she confesses she knew his mother. She promises him she has information about his mother’s past and her death. It isn’t a conversation to have in the coffee shop and she asks him to meet her at her car after his shift. He agrees quickly. His mother’s death has haunted him for over a year now. Maybe if he learns the truth, he’ll finally be free again. 

The truth doesn’t set him free. Or it does, but not in the way he thought. It sets the Hyde free, but Tyler ends up trapped in a body he no longer fully controls. 

The same day he learns the truth, he goes digging for more information. His mother was a Hyde. He is a Hyde. He doesn’t fully know what that means. He tears through the basement but finds nothing but spider webs, old toys, and broken furniture. His search in the attic goes much the same way. He’s about to give up when he finds two small old boxes, buried in the furthest corner behind an old dresser. They’re covered in dust and it’s clear they haven’t been touched in quite some time.

Inside he finds old photographs of his mother, textbooks, and journals. He looks through the photos first. They’re all of his mother in her teenage years. She looks happy and healthy, much more so than he ever remembers her being. In some, she’s dressed in a Nevermore uniform. He guesses he shouldn’t be shocked she attended Nevermore. She was a Hyde. He wonders who her friends are in many of her photos. Where are they now? Do they know what happened to her after Tyler was born? Did they ever visit her? 

Setting the photos aside, after carefully selecting a few to hide in his room away from his father’s eyes, he starts flipping through the textbooks. The books seem interesting, filled with topics he’s never even thought about, but they’re not what he’s looking for right now. 

All that’s left are the journals. There’s four in total and part of him doesn’t want to read them. Losing his mother broke him. Reading her words, her thoughts and memories, would surely bring him pain. But he has to push through. He needs to know what being a Hyde entails and these journals are his last hope of gaining that information. His mother was gone and his father definitely wasn’t going to answer any of his questions. 

Knowing his father will be home soon, Tyler gathers the journals and selected photos, hiding them in his room where he can read them when his father isn't around. He spends the next few days reading through his mother’s entries and what he learns is unsettling. 

He finds a picture of a Hyde, tucked between the pages of the first journal. It’s a monstrous creature with bulging eyes and large claws. He feels his stomach roll the longer he stares. Thats the monster that killed his mother. Thats the monster he’s going to become. 

His mother’s description about Hydes doesn’t make him feel any better.

“Hydes are feared even among the outcast community. Inherently, they’re not evil on their own, but centuries of abuse by unkind masters has made the community fear their strength and power. Their unwavering loyalty to a master makes them savage. Without a master, the Hyde fights to take control, often driving the individual to madness. When a Hyde takes control, they become a uncontrollable vicious monster.”

Tyler feels tears in his eyes and fights back the urge to vomit. This is what must have happened to his mother. Is he destined to the same fate? 

Tyler is glad when the rest of the journal is filled with mundane teenage drama, though he does enjoy reading about his mother’s teenage adventures. The next two journal contain no pertinent information about Hydes and Tyler is quick to skip over any information about his parents progressing relationship. He really doesn’t need to know that information. 

it isn’t until the last half of the fourth journal that his mother mentions Hydes again. 

“Soulmates are supposed to be a source of excitement and hope, but among Hydes they generally bring disappointment. A Hyde’s soulmate is their true master, but not many people want to be responsible for a monster. When a Hyde’s soulmate rejects their bond, and nearly all do, the Hyde lashes out, becoming vicious and uncontrollable. 

In the case that a Hyde has a master before meeting their soulmate, the previous bond will break and transfer to the soulmate. If the soulmate decides to reject the bond, the Hyde is left with an uncontrollable rage and no master.

Fearing rejection, most Hydes choose not to seek out their soulmate. They are left with two terrible choices: find a master and become a slave to their desires or forgo a master and slowly slip into madness.”

He thinks of his mother and the impossible choice she had to make. To give up all control or try to live a life as best she could until madness overtook her. He’d always wondered why his mother never had a desire to meet her soulmate. Why she would give up the chance to see the world in color? Now he knew. 

It leaves him with more questions about his own soulmate. He’d believed for years they must have met when they were toddlers, but if they had why couldn’t he see black? If they didn’t meet, why could he see colors? If they met and were too young to understand, did that count as a rejection? Now that the Hyde has been unlocked, would he become an uncontrollable monster if he had been rejected? Could the bond be accepted if they met again later? Was he just born a freak with no soulmate? Did the universe take pity on him and allow him to see most colors because he wasn’t worthy of having a soulmate?

It was all too overwhelming. So when he finds himself scared and shackled in a cave two days later, Tyler gives in. He lets the Hyde out and relinquishes control the Marylin Thornhill. It’s not like his soulmate will want to be his master anyway. 

- X -

Tyler is seventeen, just a couple months later, when he first meets the girl that will change his life.

Tyler is having a bad day. He'd gotten into a fight with his father this morning. One that included a lot of screaming and yelling, ending only when his father walked out the door. He'd been late to school, missing half of a math test that he'd forgotten to study for the previous night. To top it all off, the stupid espresso machine breaks unexpectedly near the end of his shift and he hasn't any idea how to fix it. Letting out a quiet groan of frustration, Tyler looks up as the steam begins to clear and sees a girl standing across the counter, large eyes staring straight at him. 

"Holy Crap! Do you make it a habit of scaring the hell out of people?" His reaction is half because she startled him, but also because she's devoid of color. The girl before him is nearly all gray. He can see her pale skin, dark brown eyes, and a light dusting of pink across her cheeks, but she otherwise appears dull and gray. He doesn’t think it's a look that suits her. Briefly he wonders what she would look like if he could see her in black. It'd be much more fitting than the gray, he thinks.

"It's more of a hobby." She deadpanned. 

"You go to Nevermore. Didn't realize they changed up the uniform." He really hopes not. He doesn't need the coffee shop filled with students dressed in the one color he can't see.

"I need a quad over ice. It's an emergency." His eyes move between the coffee machine and the girl in front of him. 

"It's four shots of espresso." She elaborates.

Yeah, I know what a quad is, but, spoiler alert, the espresso machine's having a seizure, so all we have is drip." He tries to keep the frustration out of his voice but he’s not sure he succeeds. It’s not her fault he’s had a shit day. 

"But drip is for people who hate themselves and know their lives have no real purpose or meaning." He wants to laugh when he sees a customer put down their cup and leave. He likes this girl, he realizes. Belatedly he realizes he’s not the only one who likes her. The Hyde, who doesn’t like anyone, likes her too. They both feel drawn to this girl they’ve just barely met.  

"What's wrong with your machine?"

"It's a temperamental beast with a mind of its own, and it doesn't help that the instructions are in Italian." If he didn’t need this job, he’d just smash the thing and be done with it. 

To his surprise, the girl marches around the counter and snatches the manual from his hands. He feels a fluttering in his stomach as she stands so close to him. Close enough that if he just moves slightly his arm would brush hers. Instead, he focuses on her eyes, watching as they quickly scan across the pages. Wait. Can she actually read that?

"I need a tri-wing screwdriver and a four-millimeter Allen wrench." Yeah ok. That’s defiantly more than he was able to decipher from the instructions. 

"Wait, you read Italian?" He asks and she give him a look. One that tells him he shouldn’t ask stupid questions. 

"Of course. It's the native tongue of Machiavelli." She pauses before continuing. "Here's the deal. I'm going to fix your coffee machine, then you're going to make me a coffee and call a taxi." Weirdly, he feels a sense of panic at the thought of her leaving. He feels the Hyde calling out. Telling him not to let her leave.

"No taxis in Jericho. Try Uber. " He hands her the requested tools, his fingers brushing hers slightly. A mild shock travels from his fingertips up his arm. He feels the Hyde again. He’s nearer to the surface than he’s ever been without a direct order from Thornhill. And the Hyde has one thought. One word he’s been chanting since the brush of their fingers. Mine. Mine. Mine. 

"I don't have a phone. I refuse to be a slave to technology."

Her words barely register. He's too busy looking at her. "Whoa. Black." He hears himself whisper, voice filled with awe. He was so wrong. So very wrong all his life. Black isn't a boring basic color. No, it may be the most important color he'll ever see. Before she had appeared dull, lifeless even. Now, he could see her, truly see her. The black of her hair and clothes contrast wonderfully against her pale skin. She easily stands out in a room full of color. She's gorgeous and Tyler doesn't understand how the Universe could think he'll ever be a worthy soulmate. 

He feels the Hyde trying to claw his way to the surface, still chanting mine, mine, mine. He wants to meet her. To claim her and to be claimed in return. With a start, Tyler realizes his bond with Thornhill is broken. He no longer has to follow her every order. His soulmate is his new master. She doesn't know she now controls a monster, at least until she decides to reject him. His spiraling thoughts are interrupted when she speaks again. 

"You've always seen colors." He drops the hand that he hadn't even realized was reaching toward her. He had almost touched her braid and he wonder what it would feel like. 

"Yeah. As long as I can remember. My parents always assumed I'd just met my soulmate when I was too young to understand. Took me a while to notice I was missing black though." He tilts his head, a smile gracing his face as he talks. Her eyes are wide, panicked. She nods her head and just stares. He can feel the Hyde growing anxious the longer the silence continues. He busies himself by making her drink order, but when she still continues to silently stare when he's finished, Tyler begins to worry too. She wouldn't reject him right now, would she? She'll at least give him a chance, right?

"Are you going to say anything?" He finally asks, a note of apprehension in his voice.

"I'm thinking."

"About?" He probes.

"Torture."

"Okay." His eyes widen. That's not what he was expecting, but the Hyde likes that answer. "I'm Tyler by the way."

"Wednesday" She responds.

Now it's Tylers turn to panic. His soulmate is the girl Thornhill told him to watch, to get close to. The one she needs for her revenge plan to succeed. With the bond broken, he doesn't have to follow her orders anymore, but that doesn't mean 's Wednesday's safe from harm. He can feel the Hyde's fury at the thought of someone harming what he perceives as his. Tyler knows he needs to tell her everything: what he is, what he's done, what Thornhill plans to do to her. She needs to know she's in danger and he'll do anything to protect her. Even if it means risking her rejecting their bond.

He opens his mouth to confess, but the cafe door opens and in walks his father, closely followed by Nevermore's principal. Inwardly Tyler groans. His father timing is terrible. 

"Come on, Miss Addams. Time to go." Her principal calls to her. 

He sees his father open his mouth to comment, but Tyler quickly cuts him off, handing Wednesday her quad in a to go cup. His phone number and work schedule hastily scribbled on one side. He’s not sure what his father planned to say, but he’s sure it's nothing that will help him convince Wednesday to give him a chance. 

"You'll be back?" He asks. He knows he must look pathetic. His voice a little too hopeful and his eyes pleading for her to say yes. He’s just found her. He needs to make sure she stays safe and unharmed. He doesn’t even know if she’ll want to be his soulmate once she learns the truth about him, but he has to try. Try to convince her that he can be more than a monster, that he can be a good soulmate too. He’ll accept whatever she’s willing to give. 

She gives a sharp nod. "I will. The universe may have deemed you worthy, but I have yet to make that determination." She answers. Her words sound harsh, but Tyler doesn't miss the way her lips twitch upwards in an almost smile. 

He watches as she follows behind her principal, promising himself he'll tell her everything the next time they meet. Sighing, he turns to face his father, raising an eyebrow at his father’s stare. 

”You stay away from that girl, Tyler. Her father is a murderer.” His father exclaims. 

So am I, Tyler thinks but doesn’t dare say that allowed. 

”What? No!” He answers back.

“I’m serious, Tyler. That family is trouble, and you can’t afford any more trouble. Not after what you did last year.” His voice is calm, but he can detect the anger in his father’s eyes. 

“She’s my soulmate.” Tyler says, a slight smirk on his face and a challenge in his eyes. Even his father isn't brave enough to forbid him from seeing his soulmate, especially if he knows the importance of a soulmate to a Hyde. He doesn’t really know how much his father knows about Hydes, but he’s sure his mother must have confided in him. At the very least, he’d had access to his mother’s journals far longer than Tyler did.

“Excuse me? How could you possibly know that?” He removes his hat, searching Tyler’s face, as if he’s trying to find any indication that his son is lying to him. 

“Black. Never been able to see it. Not until I touched Wednesday today.” He watches as a myriad of emotion flash across his father's face. Shock. Fear. Resignation. And maybe even hope?

“Why didn’t you ever tell me?” His father asks and Tyler just shrugs. They both know why. They don't talk about the things that make Tyler abnormal. His father sighs and turns to leave. "Just be careful, son. Get to know her, but don't rush anything. I can't lose you too." It's the closest his father has ever come to admitting he knows about Tyler and his mother's shared genetics. He leaves before Tyler can respond. He doesn't even know how he would have responded if given the chance. 

Tyler grabs a rag and begins wiping down the empty tables, thoughts full of Wednesday Addams. His whole life he'd wondered what his soulmate would be like. He never imagined she would choose to surround herself in the one color neither of them could see. But it suits her. He wonders if that's why he was unable to see black. Gaining the ability to see your soulmate and the world in color was supposed to be a gift, but Tyler didn't need a rainbow of colors to appreciate his soulmate. He only needed one.

Tyler already knows he'll do anything for Wednesday. He'll kill for her. He'll die for her. He'll leave her alone if thats what she wants, but he hopes she doesn't ask that of him. Since learning about the Hyde, he didn't think his soulmate could ever want him, but Wednesday Addams is different. He's never met anyone like her. He thinks, he hopes, she'll be able to look at him and not just see a monster. 

Tyler Galpin is seventeen years old the first time he begins to believe he might be worthy of his soulmate. 

Chapter Text

Wednesday never bought into the concept of soulmates. Growing up, she thought it was ridiculous to think she needed anyone. But after meeting Tyler, her soulmate, she's amazed how much she actually wants to explore this. To learn more about him. To discover why the Universe decided this charming, seemingly innocent normie was her equal.

And it scares her, how much she wants. She doesn't do friends. She doesn't do romance. She definitely doesn't do feelings. But after only one meeting, Tyler is making her question everything and she doesn't know what to do about it.

She needs a distraction. Something to take her mind off Tyler and whatever part he may play in her future. She tries writing, but the words won't come. After the fifth crumpled page, she gives up and decides to try the cello instead. It doesn't take her long to decide which piece to play. After today, it only seems fitting to play "Paint It, Black". It's one of her favorites. The lyrics "No more colors anymore, I want them to turn black" always felt like they were written for her. They perfectly mirrored how she'd felt, surrounded by colors, but longing for the one she couldn't see. 

With Thing's help, she manages to get her cello case out onto the balcony. She runs her hand along the body, admiring it. It was a gift from her father, when she'd first expressed interest in learning the instrument. He'd special ordered it to be made in all black. She's always found it beautiful, but now that she can truly see it, it is magnificent. 

Thing sets up the sheet music and she begins to play, music carrying to the campus below her. She doesn't need the sheet music. She knows this piece by heart, but she likes it in front of her anyway. Playing usually relaxes her, or as much as she allows herself to relax, but like her writing, it does nothing for her today. She's too agitated, thoughts swirling too fast to be tamed. She finishes the song feeling no better than when she started.

“No. I don’t really feel better.” She answers Thing when they ask. 

She hears the window open, and Enid steps out onto their shared balcony. She chooses to ignore Enid's quip about her "oversized violin" but answers her questions about Thing. She takes some pleasure in Enid's discomfort as Thing passes her on their way back inside. If Wednesday does choose to stay at Nevermore, Enid will just have to get used to Thing's presence. 

“Why aren’t you wolfing out?” Wednesday ask. Now that she has finished her piece, she can hear the baying of the other wolves on campus.

“Because I can’t." Enid responds, pastel claws elongating. "That’s all I got.” She goes on about visiting a Lycanologist and her mother referring to her as a late bloomer. Wednesday is only half listening, busy carefully placing her cello and bow back in its case.

"What happens then?” She asks, her curiosity getting the better of her. She's never read about a wolf that couldn't transform. 

"I become a lone Wolf.”

"Sounds perfect.” And it used to, but now she's not so sure. She's always craved the solitary lifestyle, never imaging spending her life with anyone. She would never become her parents, but after today, when she thinks of her future, she thinks maybe she wouldn't mind spending it with someone else. 

"Are you kidding me? I’d be kicked out of my pack….” Wednesday knows she should be paying more attention to her roommate, but her thoughts keep traveling back to her own dilemma.

"I’m failing to see the problem here.” It's a lie. Enid's too outgoing, too social a person. She'd never survive on her own. 

"You really suck at this." Enid cries, pausing before adding "Cheering people up.” Enid sobs and Wednesday freezes. 

"Why are you crying?” She doesn't know how to handle this situation. Other's emotions have never concerned her and no one has ever wanted her to console them.

"Because I’m upset. Haven’t you ever cried or are you above that too?” Enid sobs again and Wednesday pauses. She stays silent for a long moment, before deciding to share the story of Nero's murder with her roommate. She can share this one secret with Enid, that she's not completely emotionless. If she ever repeats it, it'll just give Wednesday an excuse to test out her new dagger.   

Despite Enid's normally bubbly and colorful personality, Wednesday finds her almost tolerable. There are worse people she could have been roomed with. She almost smiles imagining the amount of blood the staff would have had to clean up if they tried to room her with Bianca Barclay. She wouldn't call Enid a friend because she doesn't want a friend. But Enid is knowledgeable in areas Wednesday lacks. She could be useful in the future. Perhaps even a valuable resource as she navigates this thing with Tyler.

Wednesday stares at the coffee cup that’s been sitting in her desk drawer for the past two days. No matter how hard she tries to ignore them, thoughts of Tyler keep infiltrating her mind. She’s not avoiding him, she tells herself. She just doesn’t know how to handle the things she feels when she’s around him. Making a decision, Wednesday snatches the cup and makes her way to Enid’s side of the room. 

“Enid” She calls. When Enid turns to face her, Wednesday thrusts the to go cup in her hands. 

“What’s this?” She asks confused, turning the cups until she sees Tyler’s messy scribbles. “Oh my god! Wednesday! Did you meet a boy?”

Wednesday can hear the excitement in her roommate's voice before the smile even crosses her face. She scowls. This was a mistake, she thinks as she snatches the cup back.

“No.” She replies, before relenting. “Maybe.”

Enid squeals. “You have to tell me everything! When did you meet him? Is he a barista at Weathervane? What’s his name? Are you going to see him again?” 

Wednesday sighs. Enid has more experience with boys and general social interactions. She thought Enid might be able to give her some advice, but now she’s not sure it’s worth all of Enid’s incessant questions. 

“Two days ago. Yes. Tyler. Yes.” She doesn’t bother to offer any additional information. 

“Tyler? Galpin? The sheriff’s son?” Enid asks, a note of shock and apprehension in her voice. 

“I believe so.” Tyler hadn’t provided his last name, but he’d seemed familiar with the sheriff during their interaction. It was fair to deduce he was the sheriff's son.

Enid let’s out a loud breath. “Oh. Xavier is not going to like that.” At Wednesday’s raised eyebrow, she adds. “He and Tyler…” She falters for a moment before continuing. “They have history.”

“Elaborate.”

"Nope.” Enid says, shaking her. “Not my place. You’ll have to ask one of them.”

Wednesday nods. She can respect that. She makes a mental note to ask Tyler the next time she sees him. She doesn’t much care how Xavier feels. He continues to try to insert himself in her life even after she’s made it clear she doesn’t want him as a friend, or anything more. 

She holds the to go cup up to Enid again. “He gave me his phone number.” When Enid only nods she adds “I don’t have a phone.”

“Oh! Do you want me to teach you how to use my laptop?” Enid is practically vibrating. Her excitement is nauseating. 

“Yes.” She debates with herself internally before asking “What do I say to him?”

She hates the look Enid gives her. She offers a soft smile and her eyes hold a mix of pity and sadness. Wednesday is aware she doesnt always understand others feelings and her social skills are almost nonexistent compared to her peers. But she chose to be this way and she doesn’t need nor want anyone’s pity.

“Ask him to hang out somewhere in town? Or there’s the Harvest Festival this weekend! That could be a fun date.” Enid squeals and Wednesday is suddenly glad that she didn’t share with Enid that Tyler is her soulmate. This conversation is already torturous enough without Enid knowing that tiny detail. 

“It’s not a date, Enid.” Her roommate gives her a disbelieving look but wisely chooses to keep her mouth shut. Instead she grabs her laptop, opens up her video calling app and types in Tyler’s number from the coffee cup. She shows Wednesday how to change the settings, how to adjust the volume and what button to push to start the call. 

“I’ll give you some privacy.” Enid says when she’s finished, gathering up a couple magazines and heading towards the door. She’s smiling and Wednesday feels the sudden urge to threaten her roommate. It feels like Enid has become too comfortable around her and doesn’t properly fear her anyone. 

“Enid…” Wednesday calls out, only to be interrupted.

"I know. I know." Enid says, holding her hands up in a placating gesture. "If I say so much as a word to anyone, you'll find some creative way to maim me." Enid glances at a small hole only a few inches above her headboard. It was a result of the knife Wednesday had thrown the last time Enid earned her wrath. Maybe there was still some fear there.

Wednesday only nods, watching as Enid leaves before turning back to the laptop and pressing call. 

The call rings twice before it’s picked up, the screen remaining black. 

“Hello?” 

She hears the question in his voice and responds with a short. “It’s Wednesday.”

"Oh! Wednesday! Hi. Hang on one minute.” He sounds surprised, excited and Wednesday knows he’s smiling before his face fills the screen. 

“Hi. Didn’t think you’d actually call.” 

“You gave me your number.” Wednesday deadpans back. If he didn’t think she’d use it, why’d he give her his number in the first place?

"Yeah, but then I remembered you didn’t have a phone. Not that I’m not happy. I just assumed you'd stop by the Weathervane if you wanted to see me again.” 

Oh, Wednesday thinks. That was the most logical assumption. She wouldn’t have had to tell Enid about Tyler if she’d visited him at work either. But after her escape from Kinbott, Wednesday didn’t think Weems would be so keen to give her a town pass so soon. Of course, she could sneak out and walk to town, but she wouldn’t put it past Weems to have the whole staff, and maybe some of the student body, watching her to make sure she stayed where she was supposed to be. 

She must have been silent for too long because she hears Tyler ask “Wednesday? Did you call for a reason or just to talk?”

“There’s the Harvest Festival this weekend. Attendance is mandatory.” She doesn’t offer anything else. She knows she should ask if he wants to meet her there, but she can’t seem to get the words to pass through her lips. 

She watches as he nods, staring at him silently until he realizes what she’s implying. 

“Oh? Did you want me to meet you there?” He asks, voice so hopeful it should sicken her. It doesn’t. 

“I’ll be there at six.” 

“Can’t wait!” He replies, smiling wide. Wednesday ends the call and slams the laptop closed before he can say anything else. His smile unnerves her. It makes her heart race. Worst of all, it makes her want to smile in response. 

Wednesday makes her way back to her own desk and carefully places the coffee cup back in her drawer. She situates herself behind her typewriter, hoping her novel will take her mind off Tyler. His sparkling eyes and carefree smile have no place in Viper’s world. 

Tyler is still riding the high of his phone call with Wednesday when his phone rings again. The contact name “MT” flashing across the screen. His good mood dissipates immediately. He watches as it rings before going to voicemail. He hopes that will be the end of it, but he knows Thornhill won’t give up so easily. 

He hasn’t seen or heard from her since before he met Wednesday. He should have known she’d be calling soon. Probably to give him orders to murder someone else in order to further her plan. 

The second call goes to voicemail while he’s trying to decide what to do. Almost immediately, his phone starts to ring again. Sighing, Tyler answers the call, knowing she’ll be angry he ignored her previous calls. 

“Tyler” she nearly growls. “When I call, you answer.”

“Yes, ma’am. I’m sorry.” Tyler responds, trying to sound apologetic. She doesn’t know she’s no longer his master, but he doesn’t inform her of that. He can play the part of obedient monster. Maybe she’ll confess more about her plan and what role Wednesday plays in it.

"I hear you met Wednesday Addams. Tell me about it.” Her voice is heated, no doubt because he’d kept that information from her.

“She came in for a coffee. The machine was broken and she fixed it. She wasn’t there long. Your boss came and collected her shortly after the machine was fixed.” He replied, not wanting to give Thornhill too many details. 

“Did you befriend her?” Thornhill asked, her annoyance clear. 

“Wednesday Addams doesn’t strike me as the type of person who wants friends.” He knows he’s being bold, talking to her like this, but he can’t help it. Listening to her talk about Wednesday, knowing she's a pawn in her plan, enrages both him and the Hyde. 

“Try harder.” She snaps. “She’ll be at the Harvest Festival this weekend. Get close to her. Make her trust you. That is an order from your master, Tyler!” 

She hangs up and Tyler lets out a loud breath of annoyance. He wants to be done with Thornhill, but he can’t. Not yet. Not until he knows Wednesday is safe. And she won’t be safe until he knows why she is so important to Thornhill. He’ll pretend to be her puppet as long as he has to to gain that knowledge. 

He was ordered to watch her and to keep her safe. And he will keep her safe, no matter the cost. Not because Thornhill ordered it, but because he feels an intense desire to protect her. He can feel the Hyde snarl at the thought of anyone attempting to harm his soulmate. 

He’ll talk to Wednesday at the Harvest Festival, he promises himself. He’ll tell her everything. About the Hyde. About Thornhill. About her new role as his master. He hopes she’ll be understanding, accepting of his true self. Maybe they can make a plan together to expose Thornhill.

And if she’s not accepting? Tyler knows it will devastate him, but he’ll respect her decision. He’ll watch over her from afar until he knows she’s safe. He doesn’t know what he’ll do after. The Hyde won’t take the rejection well, but he can’t think about that now. For now, his focus is solely on Wednesday. 

Chapter Text

Wednesday watches as Tyler argues with his father, the man occasionally gesturing to where Wednesday and Enid are waiting. She hears Enid call out a goodbye and Wednesday waits a moment longer before wandering off herself. Tyler can find her when he’s finished with his dad. 

She wanders in the game section, watching as a man fails to win a prize at a dart game. She steps forward when they leave, grabbing the darts and hitting every target with ease. It’s impossibly easy and Wednesday longs for something more challenging. 

“Jeeze. Get any better at this and you’ll be taking home a whole pack.” 

Wednesday sighs as she hears the voice next to her. Xavier Thorpe is a thorn in her side. One she hasn’t been able to extract, no matter how hard she tries. 

“Pandas don’t travel in packs. They prefer their solitude.” Her eyes stay focused on the game in front of her. He doesn’t warrant her full attention or gaze. 

“Alright. Subtle hint taken.” If only that were true. Instead of leaving, Xavier makes himself more comfortable. It’s as if he believes if he continues to force his unwanted presence on her, she’ll eventually cave. For some reason she can not fathom, he seems to like her, despite her harsh demeanor and unkind words. 

“You should know I’m waiting for someone.” She finally turns to face him, leveling him with a glare. 

“Oh yeah? Whose the lucky guy? Or girl?” There’s a hint of jealousy in his voice and Wednesday revels in it. She wonders what else she can do to make him jealous and if it’ll be enough to force him to end his pursuit of her. 

“What does it matter to you?” Her voice is expressionless and she watches as he clenches his jaw in frustration. 

“Didn’t mean to interrupt.” Tyler says, looking between the two of them. There’s a look of his face Wednesday can’t quite decipher. 

“You’re not.” Xavier looks at Tyler in disgust and Wednesday in disbelief before leaving. She may have to invite Tyler around more often if it means Xavier will make himself scarce. 

“He doesn’t like you.” Wednesday states, as they begin to walk aimlessly through the booths. From the corner of her eye she sees Principal Weems following them, keeping her attention closely on Wednesday. It seems she’ll be chaperoned tonight. Remembering her conversation with Enid the other day she adds “Enid says you have history.” 

Wednesday observes as he flinches slightly and let’s out a deep sigh. “Should have known that wouldn’t stay secret long.” At Wednesday’s quirked eyebrow he adds “I may have ruined his mural last year.” He says it a little sheepishly, like he’s waiting for her judgement. 

“Ok.” For Xavier to be holding such a grudge, she thought it would be over something  interesting. She’d been hoping for a little violence, maybe some spilled blood. All that anger over some paint? 

“Ok? He asks, tone disbelieving. 

“Did you really think I’d judge you?” She scoffs. He shrugs guiltily. She studies him for a long minute before deciding to share one of her past crimes. “I’ve been expelled from eight schools. At the last, the water polo team liked to terrorize my brother. So I dumped live piranhas into their pool during practice.” 

She says it without remorse or regret. She’s not sorry for her actions, but she’s unsure how he’ll react. He was worried about admitting to ruining a painting while she’d purposely inflicted pain and lasting damage. 

To her surprise, he’s smiling. Not the kind, warm smile she’s quickly grown accustomed to seeing on his face. This smile is darker. A little sinister even. She realizes he finds enjoyment in her revenge on her brother’s behalf. Theres a darkness there, one that’s closer to the surface than she originally thought. She wonders what she needs to do to bring it all the way to the surface. Torture perhaps? She did always promise to torture her soulmate upon meeting them. Maybe Tyler would even enjoy it. 

“I knew there was a reason I liked you.” Wednesday freezes at his words. She knows he feels something for her. It’s been obvious since he discovered they were soulmates. But hearing him admit it to her is different. She doesn’t know what he expects from her. She doesn’t even know what she wants from him. 

Tyler seems to realize that she doesn’t know how to respond so he just gives her a small smile. She’s almost grateful he doesn’t expect her to acknowledge his feeling until he reaches into his jacket and says "I brought you something." 

"I don't like when people buy me gifts." Wednesday replies, tone disapproving. Does Tyler think this is a date? It isn't. No matter how much Enid tried to convince her it was. She is merely curious about her soulmate. He’s a mystery she plans to solve then she’ll be back to planning her escape from Nevermore. 

"Well, I didn't buy it. I actually stole it, if that helps." He answers with a teasing smile.

"It does." She chooses to ignore his smile. It's wide and slightly crooked and has absolutely no correlation to the sensation occurring in her stomach.

"I stole it from my father. I think it's why he doesn't like you family very much." He hands it to her, looking apologetic for his father's behavior.

“Your father’s opinion is of no importance to me.” She replies as she scans through the file. Her father a murder suspect? Surely not. It doesn’t sound like her father, but she tucks the file in her bag, planning to investigate it further. 

When she looks up, Tyler is watching her so she observes him back. Unlike Wednesday, Tyler is an open book with his emotions. They’re displayed openly across his face for anyone to read. He’s nervous and excited, but it’s the hints of admiration and adoration that unnerve her. 

“I’m not use to people engaging with me. Most see me coming and cross the street.” She says because she’s use to people looking at her in fear and distrust. Nothing like how Tyler is looking at her now. 

”You’re not scary. You’re just kinda…kooky.” He sounds amused, and Wednesday wonders if she should be offended. She enjoys causing fear in strangers. 

”I prefer spooky.” She thinks for a moment before continuing “Most people find me strange.”

”There’s no exquisite beauty without some strangeness in the proportion.” He quotes with a shrug.

“You know Poe.” She says, ignoring that he essentially just called her beautiful. And if her heart begins to race, it's only a coincidence.

 “Growing up without friends gave me a lot of time for solitary activities.” Wednesday nods. She’s always preferred the solitary lifestyle, but she has a feeling that unlike her, it wasn’t Tyler’s choice. She feels an unexpected rage for everyone that has ever excluded him. 

"Is there any food here that is not overly sweet or drowned in grease?" Wednesday asks. She needs a change in topic. She's not equipped to deal with the things Tyler is making her feel. She needs time and distance from Tyler before she can analyze her feelings. The thought alone makes Wednesday shudder. 

Tyler thinks for a second before pointing to a stall around the corner. "I think there is a place over there that serves kabobs." He reaches for her, and for a moment Wednesday thinks he might grab her hand, before he turns and gestures for her to follow him. Wednesday orders and pays quickly, not wanting to give Tyler a chance to offer to pay for her. This isn't a date. She can't give him any reason to think otherwise. He excuses himself to go order his own food, promising to meet her back at the tables shortly.

She spots Weems sitting a few tables over, not even pretending like she isn't following them. She doesnt know why Weems even bothers. She's already proven she can evade the headmistress if she chooses. Her thoughts are interrupted by Tyler plopping down two plates and an obnoxiously yellow drink before taking the seat across from her. She eyes his food warily. It looks revolting.

"What is that?" She asks. Though she tries, she knows she fails to conceal the disgust in her tone and likely her face as well.

"Loaded fried pickle nachos and funnel cake tacos. Want to try?" He picks up an extra fork and offers it to her.

She scowls at him and he response with a laugh. People have always laughed at her, but not like this. It’s usually mean and mocking, harsh whispers about the weird Addam’s girl. But Tyler. He’s not laughing at her because she’s different. He actually likes that she’s different. His laugh is loud and playful, chest vibrating. He’s not laughing because he’s disgusted by her. He’s laughing because he finds her disgust of his food choices amusing. 

He takes a bite of one of the monstrosities, making an exaggerated groan of pleasure as he chews. "Don't judge it until you try it. It's delicious. Just one bite?" 

He offers her the fork again and she answers only with a clipped "No." She’s no longer thinking about the food. She’s focused on that sound. More importantly her body’s response to that sound. She feels warm, heat traveling from her face down her body. Her heart is racing and there’s a slight tremor to her hands as she attempts to pick up her own food. Briefly, she wonders how she would respond to his screams. 

“Fine, but at least try the drink. I ordered it for you.” He nudges it towards her and Wednesday gives it a questioning look, still trying to get her body under control. “Just a sip. I promise you’ll like it.”

Wednesday relents, taking a small sip, prepared to tell Tyler it’s too sweet for her tastes. And it is. The pineapple banana combination isn’t something she’d ever order, but the sensation? Oh it’s pleasantly disturbing and she takes another sip. When the liquid hits her tongue, she feels the tingling popping sensation again, like little explosions in her mouth. 

“What is this?” She asks, hoping he doesn’t notice as her lips involuntarily twitch upwards slightly. 

“Pop Rocks smoothie. You can add some more if you like.” He answers, handing her a small foil packet. There’s pride in his voice. As if knowing something a simple as a drink Wednesday would like is something to be proud of. And normally Wednesday would squash that. She doesn’t like people thinking they know her preferences. But with Tyler, she thinks it might be okay if he knows a couple of her secrets. 

They eat the rest of their food mostly in silence, Tyler offering small smiles when he catches her eyes. She doesn’t return the gesture, but he doesn’t seem to mind. He’s still a puzzle to her. One she desperately wants to solve, but she doesn’t have all the pieces. He’s hiding some important pieces, obscuring the image just enough to keep her interested. 

“There’s a booth near the back I want to show you then I was hoping we could go somewhere quiet to talk. There's something I need to tell you.” His tone is soft, yet anxious. She offers him only a nod and follows him as he maneuvers through the crowd. She searches for Principal Weems and is surprised to find her gone. Apparently, she has decided Wednesday is not a flight risk tonight. It's a foolish mistake and under any other circumstance, Wednesday would take full advantage of her idiocy. 

"It's not a very popular booth, but enough teenagers dare each other to try the candies that they come back every year." Tyler says as they approach the small booth, a sign reading "Casper's Oddities" along the front. When she's close enough to see the items on the table, she understands what he means. She browses through the items, picking up a small blue packet.

"My uncle Fester sometimes bring me these when he returns from his travels." Wednesday says, opening the pack and popping a couple of salt and vinegar crickets into her mouth. Noticing his grimace, she can't help but tease him. "Want a bite?"

"No, I'm good." He replies with a shake of his head.

"Don't judge it until you try it. It's delicious." She mocks, throwing his words from earlier back at him. 

He laughs loudly, but still refuses. "I'll take your word for it. I don't even like salt and vinegar chips." 

She hums in response, searching through the snacks for something he might enjoy. "These might satisfy your sweet tooth." She holds up a bag of cotton candy mealworms and Tyler shudders. She skips over the beetle and grasshopper trail mixes, sure that he'll refuse both. She grabs a foil wrapped chocolate covered cicada and a cherry flavored scorpion sucker. He violently shakes his head no to the cicada but agrees to the lollipop. She selects a couple more snacks for herself and heads to the register to pay. Before shes able to grab the cash from her pocket, Tyler is already paying, grabbing the bag and beckoning her towards the woods where its quieter.

"I can pay for myself." She hisses, leveling him with her fiercest glare.

"I know. I just wanted to." He seems unperturbed by her anger, his smile still amused. "How about you pay next time?"

"Presumptuous of you to assume there will be a next time." 

Tylers smile dims slightly before returning. "You can't get rid of me that easily, Wednesday Addams. Besides, I think you're actually enjoying yourself tonight." 

He's smirking at her now, a knowing glint in his eyes. He's right. She's enjoyed spending time with him tonight, but she won't ever admit that to him. Shes about to respond, when somebody roughly slams into her left side, triggering a vision. She feels her body start to fall before Tyler's arms engulf her small frame, cradling her to his chest. It's the last thing she's conscious of before a series of images flood her mind. 

An old book. A raven. The school quad on fire. Nightshade society. Rowan dying, screaming in pain, face dripping with blood.  

“Wednesday! Wednesday!” Tyler yells as he reaches to catch her before she falls to the ground. She’s stiff in his arms, eyes wide and unmoving. He’s trying to hold back his panic, but he can feel Hyde growing restless with worry. Something is wrong with Wednesday and neither know what to do about it. 

Suddenly Wednesday snaps upward, seemingly back to her normal self. She looks spooked as she catches the eye of the kid who ran into her. Her head swivels between him and Tyler before she decides to run after him as he makes a break for the woods. Tyler stands motionless, brain trying to process what just happened. When he finally comes to, Wednesday is long gone. 

“Shit” He mutters to himself as run towards to forest. He’s still not sure what just happened, but whatever it was spooked Wednesday. He might not know much but he’s positive Wednesday Addams does not spook easily. 

He follows to faint sound of voices and when he finds Wednesday he is horror struck by the image in front of him. Wednesday is at least ten feet in the air, held against a tree by seemingly nothing. Her eyes are wide, chest heaving as she gasps for air. The boy is there too, on the ground, arm outstretched, speaking angrily, but Tyler doesn’t bother to listen.  

Hyde is enraged. He’s snarling “Kill. Kill. Protect. Kill”. And Tyler makes a decision. One he never thought he’d make on his own accord. He calls Hyde forward and relinquishes control. There’s nothing he can do to save Wednesday, but Hyde can. 

The transformation is quick, clothes shredding as he grows in size. Every time Thornhill had ordered him to transform, his consciousness was forced back, no longer able to see or remember. When he’d wake later, naked and covered in blood, it wasn’t hard to guess what he’d done. 

But now? His consciousness is still present, even though he isn’t the one controlling his body. He can hear Hydes thoughts and he knows this boy won’t make it through the night. Hyde wants to murder him, slowly and painfully. Wants to watch as he withers in agony, begging for a mercy that will never come. And Tyler finds he agrees with him. He dared harm what is his, theirs. Death is too good for him. 

With a roar, Hyde advances upon the boy, Wednesday catching sight of him right before he attacks. He knocks him down, back to the ground and watches as his eyes widen in terror. With a roar of fury, Hyde’s claws slash across the boy’s chest. He screams in pain and Tyler finds his cries exhilarating. Hyde continues his assault, alternating claws until long after the boy’s heart stops beating. His chest is mangled and bloody, bones broken and organs shredded. Tyler finds that he and the Hyde are unsatisfied. This death was too quick. They needed more time to punish the boy for daring to take Wednesday from them. 

There’s a small noise from behind him, and Hyde whips his head towards Wednesday, quickly scanning her body for any signs of injury. She’s sitting on the ground, back against the tree and eyes wide, but appears unharmed. He advances toward hers, needing to get a closer look, to see that she is safe. When he’s close enough, Hyde reaches out, running a claw gently across her cheek. He has no intention of hurting her, but she flinches back causing his claw to pierce her skin, leaving a shallow cut along her cheekbone.

Hyde rears back and roars in protest. There’s blood dripping down her face and her eyes are impossibly wider. She’s afraid of him. Their master afraid of the monster she’s supposed to control. Hyde loathes it and Tyler hopes they never has to see that look again. With one last look, Hyde turns and runs away. 

He doesn’t go far. Far enough that he’s hidden from view, but close enough that he can still see Wednesday. With all his willpower, Tyler pushes his consciousness forward until he has control and transforms back into himself.

Using the trees as cover, he watches as Wednesday leaves and returns a short time later with his father and her principal in tow. Wednesday leads them to the body, his father examined it quickly before making a call on his phone. 

When he's positive Wednesday is safe and isn’t likely to be the victim of another attack, Tyler makes his way further into the forest, wanting to be long gone before Jericho officers swarm the area. He has some clothes stashed in a hiding spot nearby. If he’s quick, he should be able to change and get cleaned up before his father thinks to come look for him. 

Tyler sighs as he thinks back on the night. Things had been going well. Wednesday had still been stoic and guarded with her feelings, but she’d also offered him little pieces of herself. He’d almost made her smile a couple times and he’s fairly certain she even blushed at one point. 

Then, of course, everything went to shit. Wednesday had almost died, and he’d savagely murdered her attacker, her classmate, in front of her. She’d met the monster without knowing he and Tyler were one and the same. When he gets another chance to tell her the truth, she’ll now know exactly who and what he is. He can only hope that Wednesday Addams is as dark and macabre as she seems. That she can see a homicidal monster and still want him and Hyde both. 

Chapter Text

Tyler barely has enough time to shower and stash his clothes before he hears his father yelling for him as he stomps through the front door. He'd been covered in so much blood it had quickly seeped through the clothing he'd hidden in the woods. He'll need to discard them as soon as his father leaves again.

"Tyler!" His father calls again, growing impatient the longer Tyler lingers in his room. He quickly makes his way downstairs, trying to keep all emotion off his face.

"Where have you been? There was another attack. Your girl was somehow involved in it, but you were nowhere to be found." There's anger in his father's voice, but also a hint of suspicion. He's eyeing Tyler, scanning his body from head to toe, looking for any clues about Tyler's actives during his absence. 

"I lost her in the crowd. I searched for her but couldn't find her, so I decided to come home." Lying to his father comes easy to him. "Is she okay?" She'd seemed fine when he left her, but he couldn't help but worry.

"She fainted. They took her to her school infirmary. " His father sighs then adds "I told you that girl was trouble. New to town and already in the middle of a murder investigation, just like her father."

"Wait? You don't think she's a suspect, do you?" Tyler asks, appalled. He'd wanted to protect her, not cause her more trouble. Maybe he should have discarded the body, hidden it where his father would never find it.

"No. She's too small to have caused that extensive damage." His father replies, under his breath he mutters "At least not on her own".

Tyler tries not to let his reaction show on his face. His father has just confirmed his own suspicions. He knows. He knows his son is a Hyde. Tyler told him Wednesday is his soulmate. His mother must have informed his father about a Hyde's soulmate, or he found the journals before Tyler.  Either way, he knows as his soulmate Wednesday is his master and can command anything of him. And now he thinks Wednesday has ordered him to kill that boy tonight. He wonders if his father has connected this attack to the others before her arrival and how he'll justify her involvement in those. He'll need to think of some way to clear Wednesday of his father's suspicions. He can't let her get involved in his own mess. 

"Just stay here, Tyler. Go to bed. I'll be out late." His father says. He sounds tired. He wonders how much of that is physical exhaustion and how much stems from knowing his son is a monster.

He watches his father leave, waiting to make sure he doesn't come back before running upstairs. He grabs the bag of bloody clothes he hid under his bed and heads outside to the firepit. Dousing the clothes with lighter fluid, Tyler sits back and watches as they catch fire, destroying any evidence linking him to Rowan. 

His father never makes it back home that night, but Tyler hadn’t really expected him to. With his clothing incinerated, Tyler checks the bathroom for any blood he may have missed before heading to bed.

In the darkness of his bedroom, he thinks back on the evening. He’d been surprised when Wednesday had called and invited him out. From their first meeting, he’d learned Wednesday wasn’t a very open and outgoing person. He’d assumed he would be the one to pursue her. He knows she doesn’t think of their evening as a date. He doesn’t think she's ready to acknowledge any emotions towards him yet. But that’s ok. He’s willing to be patient, to give her all the time she needs. If she’s still willing to give him a chance. 

He’d been so close. A couple more minutes and they would have been away from the festival crowd, in a secluded spot where he could confess his truth. He’s not sure how she would have responded, but at least she would know. The weight of this secret is haunting him, causing an ache in his chest every time he talks to her. He’s feels like he’s deceiving her, only offering her part of himself. She’s his soulmate. She deserves to know him fully.

Not for the first time, he wishes he had the means to contact Wednesday. To just hear her voice. A reassurance that she's fine and hasn't been taken from him before he's even had a chance to call her his. 

Wednesday wakes, arms crossed over her chest, to the sun streaming in through the windows of the infirmary. She squints, sun blinding her as it bounces off the white bedsheets. She tries to remember how she got here. She remembers Tyler, her vision, getting attacked by Rowan and saved by a monster. She remembers bringing Weems and the sheriff to Rowan's body. Everything after that is hazy. Mortified, she realized she must have fainted. Passed out from the stress and trauma of the evening.

Rowan was afraid she was going to destroy to school. Wednesday knows she is capable of many terrible things and it isn't a secret that she doesn't want to be at Nevermore. But she wouldnt purposely destroy the school. She respected the concept for Nevermore. It was a home for outcasts that had nowhere else to go. Somewhere they were safe to express themselves as they were. Just because Wednesday wants out doesn't mean she doesn't understand the importance of Nevermore to her community.

She might have even felt some pity for Rowan if he hadn't tried to kill her. He'd believed his mother's prophecy so strongly that his only solution was to murder her. Twice he'd tried and twice he'd failed. Begrudgingly, she owes her continued existence to Xavier Thrope and a homicidal monster. Xavier's intentions she could understand. He has feeling for her. He wants to get close to her. Wants her to eventually want him back. It'll never happen, no matter how many times he saves her from death. The monster, though, was both confusing and intriguing. 

It had been vicious and ruthless in its attack on Rowan. She had seen the malice in his eyes as it advanced on Rowan. She'd observed the way its sharp teeth transformed into a feral smile with Rowan's agonizing screams. It wanted Rowan dead, as if he had personally wronged it. Then the monster had turned to her. She'd thought it was her turn to die, but she wasn't afraid. If her demise was at the hand of this savage and ferocious creature, then it was a respectful way to die. Except as it moved closer, one claw reaching out to touch her face, there was a new emotion in its eyes, one that caused her to rear back in shock and confusion. She knew that look. It was the look her mother gave her every time she stated she didn't need a soulmate. It was the look Enid gave their classmates whenever Wednesday threated them. It was the look Tyler gave her just before her vison hit and he was forced to catch her. Concern.

This murderous creature was concerned for her. It was unexpected, but not entirely unwelcome. He saved her from dying a pitiful death. Death by strangulation. How embarrassing. She wanted to know more, but it had run off quickly after approaching her. She'll need to do more research. Find out what kind of monster it is and how she'll be able to find it again in the future. 

"Ms. Addams. It's good to see you awake. How are you feeling?" The school nurse asks, appearing in her doorway. 

"I'm fine." She's ready to get out of here and she hopes the nurse will release her now. 

"In that case, Sheriff Galpin is waiting for you in Principal Weem's office. He has some questions for you about last night." Wednesday nods, and the nurse leaves. She undoes her messy braids, then braids them again quickly. She wishes she had a change of clothes, but last night's clothes will have to do. She grabs her bag and makes her way to Weem's office, noticing the red scorpion lolly tucked into a side pocket. She'll have to remember to give it to Tyler when she sees him again. 

When she arrives, the room is silent, both the sheriff and Weems watching the entrance for her to arrive. Weems offers a smile, but her smile is tense. Sheriff Galpin looks tired. His boots are caked in mud and Wednesday wouldn't' be surprised if he never made it home last night.

"Ms. Addams, Sherrif Galpin would like to ask you some questions about the attack last night." Principal Weems has a look in her eye as she addresses her. An almost threat for her to cooperate fully.

"What were you doing out in the woods with Mr. Laslow, Ms. Addams?" The sheriffs voice is gruff and he stares at Wednesday, waiting for an answer.

"I heard a noise and I went to investigate. That's when I stumbled upon the monster attacking Rowan." She has no intention of alerting the sheriff or Principal Weems about her visions or Rowan's attack on her.

"Then what happened?" He questions.

"I ran into Principal Weems and she called you for help." 

"And just to be clear, this monster wasn't a bear or some other wild animal?"

"I've hibernated with grizzlies. I know the difference." She doesn't appreciate the sheriff's asinine questions. 

"And where was Tyler? I thought you were at the festival with him."

"We got separated." It seemed like an odd question to ask, Wednesday thinks. Does he think his own son is involved somehow? Or does he just expect Wednesday to lead his son into danger?

"Did you have any disagreements with Mr. Laslow? Any reason to dislike one another?" Her eyes narrow at his insinuation, but Weems speak before she can answer.

"Sheriff Galpin! I find that question offensive!" Weems yells, standing from her seat and glaring down at the sheriff.

"I'm sorry. I forgot you only teach the good outcasts here!" He answers back in anger. "Ms. Addams is the only witness in a murder investigation. I have to cover all bases."

"I didn't know Rowan well enough to dislike him." Its close enough to the truth. Until last night, she never thought much about him. It was Rowan that had the issue with her. "For the record, if I commit a murder, I'll be smart enough not to let myself become a suspect."

"Ms. Addams!" Weems cries, falling back in her chair with a hand over her forehead.

The sheriff only shakes his head and continues his questioning. "I don't suppose you got a good look at this monster thing?" 

Wednesday considers lying, telling them it was too dark for her to see clearly. Ultimately, she decides to tell the truth. The creature wasn't like any she'd ever seen or heard of before and maybe Weems would be able to identify it from her description. "It was large, towering in height. Big bulging eyes. Sharp pointed claws. Ferocious in its attack." Weems doesn't react, but Sheriff Galpin does. His back stiffens and the pen he's been using to jot down her answers freezes. He knows something, Wednesday realizes. Despite his question about wild animals, he knows there is an actual monster out in the forest. She wonders if he's seen it or if he's just imagining the monster she just described. 

"I'll need you to come to the station today to give a formal written statement." He says, regaining himself after a few seconds. 

"Wednesday has therapy today. I'll bring her by the station afterwards." Principal Weems answers for her. "Go get changed, Ms. Addams. We'll be leaving in an hour."

Wednesday nods and turns to leave, giving the sheriff a final look. He knows about the monster, she was sure of it. It's suspicious. A normie cop shouldnt know more about a monster than she does. It's a mystery she plans to solve. Maybe she can ask Tyler to help discover what his father knows. 

Tyler thinks about skipping his morning session with Dr. Kinbott. After last night, the last thing he wants to do is spend an hour talking about his feelings. He'd made the mistake of mentioning his soulmate at his last session and Dr. Kinbott had spent the whole time trying to get him to talk about her more. He didn't dare tell her Wednesday's name. He has no doubt Wednesday would murder him for talking about her to his therapist. As much as he wants to, skipping isn't really an option. Kinbott would call his father and he's sure the judge wouldn't take too kindly to him missing a mandtory session either.

With a sigh, Tyler begins the short walk to her office. As he's about to reach for the door, it swings open and he's surprised to see Wednesday on the other side. He quickly looks over her body, scanning for any injuries he missed last night. The small cut from Hyde's claw is already beginning to heal. He's relieved to see its shallow and should be gone in only a couple days. "Wait, you see Dr. Kinbott too?" He asks.

"You should know I'm legally required to be here." She acknowledges him with a nod but doesn't stop to talk. She slowly makes her way across the street and Tyler follows.  

"Me too. Court ordered." 

"Look at us. A couple teenage tearaways." She quips.

Tyler chuckles and meets her eyes when she turns to face him. "Hey, when you ran off last night at the Harvest Festival, I was worried. I'm glad you're alright." Her face pinches slightly at his words and she stares at him for a long moment before responding.

"Your father accused me of murder." Her voice is expressionless, but her eyes widen, flitting across his face. She's searching for something, he realizes. He only wished he knew what she was hoping to find.

"Of course he did." Tyler groans. "Don't worry. He already told me you aren't a suspect."

"I was never worried."

Tyler is about to respond when his phone chimes, alerting him that his session is about to start. "Time to get in touch with my inner rebel." He sighs, holding up his phone. He turns to leave, but only makes it a couple steps before he hears Wednesday calling his name. He turns and finds her holding the candy she picked for him last night.

"You forgot this. I expect you to eat it. Even the scorpion." Her tone leaves no room for argument. 

He grimaces at the thought but agrees. It's small, but he catches the way the corners of her lips turn upward at his discomfort. "See you soon?" He asks. She nods and leaves without another word. Unwrapping the sucker, he pops it into his mouth. He's going to be late to therapy, but he can't find it in himself to care.

Wednesday is second guessing her decision to stay at Nevermore. If not for the mysteries the school and Jericho have provided, she'd be devising her next escape plan right now. She doesn't like leaving things unfinished, unresolved. She can't leave until she learns more about this prophecy involving her. The paper she'd snagged from Rowan's body, before running for help, showed her in the quad, surrounded by fire. It makes no sense, but Wednesday is confident she'll be able to uncover its meaning. Then there's the monster. A creature she's never seen before. It was powerful, merciless, and yet it hadn't harmed her. She'd even go as far as to say it protected her. Killed Rowan as a means to save her. She wishes for a moment she had more artistic skills. If she was capable of sketching the monster, she could send a raven to her Uncle Fester. Surely, he'd be able to identify the creature. Instead, she'll have to scour the library for any information about last night's encounter.

Then there's Tyler. She still doesn't know what to think about him. She wants to hate him. She always promised herself that she would never have anything to do with her soulmate. She'd planned to meet them, torture them, and then leave them. Dead or alive, it never really mattered to her. But she doesn't want that with Tyler. She sometimes wants to torture him, but out of intrigue, not as a punishment. He shouldn't interest her. He's everything she's not. He's kind and sweet. His hazel eyes are bright and his smile warm when he gazes at her. He's open with his emotions, uncaring that his feelings are on display for the world to see. Uncaring that those feelings can be used as weapon against him. She could easily break him if she so chose. But she won't. There's something inside her, a burning, that only magnifies when he's near. When she'd had her vision, his arms cradling her body, his touch was scorching.  She's loathe to admit it, but she craves his touch. Wants to feel the fiery sensation on her body again and again. It perturbs her. She hates the touch of others. Doesn't understand why people are so dependent on hugs and physical contact. It's unsettling how Tyler makes her want things she's always despised. Of all the mysteries surrounding her, Tyler may just be the greatest of them all.

So she won't leave. Not now when there's so much she needs to uncover. But Weems isn't making that decision easy for her. Upon returning to the school, she'd presented Wednesday with a list of extracurricular activities. Classes were suspended for the week to give the students time to grieve Rowan's death, but extracurriculars were still permitted as a way for students to grieve as a group if needed. She'd been informed she needed to join one of the available clubs. The principal claimed it was mandatory, that Nevermore wanted well rounded students. Wednesday thinks Weems just wants to keep an eye on her, wants to try to integrate her into a social group as a hope she'll stay out of trouble. 

Looking at the list, Wednesday quickly rules out choir. If she's being forced to socialize, it won't be with Bianca Barclay and her friends. She thinks archery club and beekeeping are probably her best options. Or she does until she sees who's waiting for her with a bow. She wonders what spirit or witch she angered to curse her with Thorpe's continued presence. 

"You actually showed up. Ever shot a bow and arrow before?" 

"Only on live targets." She answers, giving him an unimpressed look. As if there's any weapon she hasn't been trained to wield. 

He stares at her, trying to determine if she's joking before deciding to give her a lesson. "Square stance. Load the arrow like this, yellow side out. Three fingers. Pull back and let it fly. Any questions?"

Its comical. Xavier thinking he's more skilled at a bow than her. She'd seen his practice shots as she approached. He missed the center target every time. Still, he might have knowledge that could be of some use to her. "When's the last time you saw your roommate, Rowan?"

"The Harvest Festival. Rowan's always been a little off, but the last couple of weeks he's been a little erratic. Telekinesis can really mess with your head. It started to freak me out." He pauses before asking, "What really happened last night? He actually attacked you?" 

Wednesday just stares at him. She has no intention sharing the details of last night's attack with him. Sensing he isn't going to get a response, Xavier asks her a new question. 

"What's the deal with you and Tyler?"

It throws her off for a second, not expecting Tyler to be brought into the conversation. Xavier must notice because he taunts, "I'm sorry. Are you the only one that gets to ask non-archery questions?"

"That's on a need to know basis." She deadpans. Whatever is going on with her and Tyler is of no concern to Xavier. 

"Right." He says with exasperation, shaking his head. "Word of advice. Steer clear. Tyler and his friends are jerks." 

Wednesday grabs an apple, throwing it in the air before notching an arrow. She lets the arrow go, watching as it pierces that apple and lands on the bullseye. 

"Your advice in unneeded. I'm fully capable of determining who is worthy of my time." She leaves without a backwards glance. It's a shame. If not for Xavier, she might have actually enjoyed joining the archery club. 

The beekeeping club, The Hummers as its apparently called, is her last option. It's located in the woods, a short walk from the main campus. That could be a benefit to her. An easy escape into the forest to search for the monster. 

"Are you interested in the ancient art of beekeeping?" An eager voice asks from behind her. She turns to find a shorter boy, probably a grade below her. "Eugene. Eugene Ottinger. Founder and president of the Nevermore Hummers." 

"Wednesday. Wednesday Addams. Am I late or is it only you?" She introduces herself, noticing the lack of other students. 

"The hive life isn't for everyone. Most kids are afraid of venomous insects." He looks a little sad as he answers, but recovers quickly, smiling as he asks, "Are you willing to feel the sting?".

Wednesday feels her lips twitch slightly. Eugene reminds her a little of Pugsley, soft and weak. She feels an irrational urge to protect him. She listens as Eugene explains the hives and what is expected on a daily basis. He gives her a spare beekeeping suit and Wednesday grimaces as she stares down at the white cloth and helmet. She makes a note to put in a request for a black suit. The color might increase her risk of being attacked, but Wednesday's not afraid of a little sting. 

Tyler pauses, inhaling a large breath before exhaling slowly. "You can do this", he tells himself. All he has to do is pretend. With a final exhale, he nods and pushes open the door to the old Gates Manor.

"Tyler. Honey. Come here." Thornhill calls beckoning him forward.

Her voice is sweet, too sweet and Tyler fights the urge to cringe. He moves towards her, stopping only when she reaches out and caresses his cheek. Her touch feels wrong, repulsive, and Tyler wants nothing more than to swipe it away. He wants to introduce her to the monster she thought herself worthy of controlling.

"Tyler. I heard about the attack last night." She starts, hand traveling up his cheek until it reaches his hair. Suddenly she grabs a fistfull of his hair, yanking his head back as her voice turns cold. "Explain to me why you're attacking students without my permission? I don't need your father snooping around at my school."

"You told me to protect Wednesday. He was attacking her. He would have killed her." He tries to make his voice apologetic. Wants her to think that he feels guilty for upsetting his "master." She must believe him because she doesn't call him out on it.

"Fine. At least our plan seems to be working. I saw you at the Harvest Festival. Wednesday seemed to be enjoying your company. Keep at it. I need you to keep her close. Gain her trust."

"Yes ma'am." He replies. He hadn't noticed her at festival and he doesn't like knowing that she had been watching them. He'll have to be more careful from now on. If he's going to have any chance at finding out Wednesday's role in Thornhill's plan, he can't let her discover Wednesday is his true master.

She starts to leave but stops with one hand on the door, back facing him. "Tyler, next time you kill, don't waste a body. You should have harvested a part and brought it to me." She turns to meet his gaze, smiling before commanding, "Bring me a heart by next Sunday. That's an order."  

Well fuck, Tyler thinks. What the hell is he supposed to do now? 

Chapter Text

Enid Sinclair had been excited to attend Nevermore Academy ever since her twin brothers returned home after their first semester. They'd spent hours regaling her with tales of their adventures and misdeeds. When she was finally old enough, Enid's bags had been packed a full week before she was due to arrive, overflowing with clothes and stuffed animals. She couldn't wait to meet other outcasts her age, someone other than her pack, and she daydreamed about having a roommate. They would be best friends, partaking in late night gossip sessions and spa days. Like the sister she always wished she had.

She'd been disappointed when she arrived and learned there was an uneven number of female students assigned to Ophelia Hall. She tried to make the best of the situation, decorating her room in colors she hoped to see one day soon. But the empty bed and desk on the other side haunted her, making her feel the loneliness more keenly. Werewolves weren't meant to be alone. The first year passed and Enid returned to Nevermore for her sophmore year with the hope of a roommate. But that bed remained unused. She resigned herself to another lonely semester, spending much of her free time in Yoko's room.

Until Principal Weems called her to her office halfway through the semester.

A rare case, Weems said, but Enid didn't care. She was finally getting a roommate! She couldn't wait. Even Weem's parting warning couldn't quell her excitement.

"I must warn you, Ms. Sinclair. The Addams are known for their oddness, even among outcasts. Just be prepared."

The first thing Enid did upon learning about Wednesday Addams was search for her social media. But there was nothing there. App after app. Site after site. All came up empty. No social media presence at all. Strange.

Then the rumors started. Someone claimed to be a friend of a friend of the family. They claimed Wednesday was peculiar with a morbid fascination with the deadly and dangerous. They said the Addams girl was deranged, a serial killer in the making. Another said she’d already killed someone. It was only her family’s money that kept her from being convicted. Enid didn’t know what to believe, but she shared all the rumors on her blog. Best to let her classmates form their own opinions about her future roommate.

Enid also searched through old yearbooks in the library, coming across a picture Morticia Frump and Gomez Addams under a section about soulmates. Morticia was beautiful and she could see the love Gomez held for her in his eyes.

She felt a pang of jealousy looking Wednesday’s parents. They were lucky to meet so young, experiencing all the joys and horrors of high school together. She longed for her soulmate. If she was being honest, she hoped her soulmate was one person in particular. But interspecies soulmate bonds were rare. It’s why she’d never touched Ajax with her naked hand. She couldn’t bear the disappointment when if world didn’t suddenly blossom with color. 

Despite the rumors and minuscule information she’d been able to gather, Enid’d still been wholly unprepared for Wednesday Addams.

She arrived dressed in platform Doc Martins, a vintage dress, and two immaculate braids. All in black. She’d taken one look at Enid’s side of the room and scrunched her nose in displeasure. A quick comment later from her new roommate’s mother and Enid learned Wednesday could see colors. 

How exciting, she’d thought. Her roommate knew her soulmate. She couldn’t wait to question her about them - how they met, where they were now, how it felt when they first met. It’d be great content for her blog!

She’d later learned, after a handful of cynical comments about her colorful room, that Wednesday didn’t know her soulmate. She’d been born seeing every color except black. It was odd but fitting that Wednesday couldn’t see the one color she desired. 

Wednesday’d had no interest in the tour Enid was tasked with giving. Her responses all full of snark and disdain. She hadn't even tried to dispel the murder rumors - instead she’d reveled in her classmates' fear of her murderous tendencies. Anyone else might have found her behavior off putting, but Enid just shrugged it off. She’d wait to judge Wednesday until she got a chance to know her. 

The week that followed was rough. Wednesday was inhospitable and combative. Often throwing out threats, and on a few occasions a literal dagger, at any students that incurred her wrath. She’d divided their room with an ugly black line and destroyed the window that Enid had painstakingly spent hours decorating. She invaded Enid’s once peaceful room with an irritating click-clack of a typewriter and hours of cello practice. It was infuriating! 

Wednesday Addams was truly a pocket-size ball of rage and woe. 

Despite it all, Enid still wanted to be her friend. She blames it on the werewolf pack mentality. 

When Enid pictures a potential love interest for Wednesday Addams, she thinks maybe a vampire. Or possibly a necromancer. Someone capable of danger and darkness. What she does not think of is Tyler Galpin. 

Enid had spent the last ten minutes picking at a muffin and observing Tyler Galpin from her corner booth in The Weathervane. She watched as he interacted with a mother with two toddlers, pulling faces and waving as they waited for their order. She watched as he escorted an elderly woman to a table, delivering her food when it was ready. With his floppy hair, charming smile, and kind eyes, he looks positively innocent. She can't understand why Wednesday is drawn to this boy. Nothing about him should appeal to her dark nature. 

When Wednesday had first shown her that coffee cup, she'd been shocked. Since her arrival at Nevermore, Wednesday hadn't shown interest in anyone. Many of their classmates tried to befriend her the first few days, but Wednesday shot everyone down, more often than not with the threat of violence. Poor Xavier still couldn’t take a hint.  If they weren't roommates, Enid is sure Wednesday would never have given her a chance. So for Wednesday to not only accept a boy's number but want to call them had thrown Enid off kilter. She'd seemed a little anxious and Enid couldn't help smiling at the thought. Wednesday Addams thrown off by feelings for a boy. 

She had her reservations when she learned that boy was Tyler Galpin. Everyone at Nevermore knew who he was and what he'd done. Outcasts were a close knit group. When someone wronged one of them, word spread quickly. Enid personally never interacted with him besides the occasional quick coffee order, but it seems that is going to change. If he's going to date her roommate, she needs to get to know him. Her and Wednesday? They’re a package deal. 

She watches him a little longer. She feels a bit like a stalker, but she tells herself it’s for a good cause. She thinks Wednesday would be happy, well not happy, but content to know her personality is starting to rub off on Enid. When Tyler calls out to his coworker that he’s taking a break, situating himself at a booth with a coffee, Enid makes a move to approach him. 

"Hi! I'm Enid!" She says as she bounces up to his table. He quirks an eyebrow at her so she clarifies "Wednesday's roommate."

"Oh. Hi. I'm Tyler." He smiles, motioning for her to take a seat in the booth across from him. Enid notices this smile seems much more genuine than the one he'd offered other customers. "How is Wednesday?"

"Wednesday is...well Wednesday. It's hard to get a reading on her." Tyler nods like he understands what she means. "I think she's growing anxious. Her town passes have all been denied. The schoolboard is being cautious after the Harvest Festival. I'm only allowed in town today to get last minute supplies for the Poe Cup."

"Poe Cup?" 

"Nevermore's annual competition between dorm halls. Part canoe race, part foot race. No rules." Enid gushes excitedly.

"I'm assuming Wednesday's not participating?" Tyler asks with a laugh.

"Nope." Enid answers, popping the "P" loudly. "But she's concerned our canoe isn’t adequately equipped with weapons. She's left schematics on my desk. Some of them were quite.... intense." She shivers thinking about some of the more violent designs Wednesday had drawn.

Tyler laughs and Enid notices the warmth in his eyes, the happy smile that stretches across his face. Whatever reservations she may have seem unwarranted. He genuinely seems to care for her. And if this all ends up being a farce? Enid feels sorry for him. A vengeful Wednesday Addams isn't someone she ever wants to meet. 

"Can I ask you a question? About something that happened at the Harvest Festival?" Tyler asks, waiting for Enid to nod before continuing. "Before she disappeared into the woods, something happened. She froze and her head was thrown back. Her eyes were open, but unseeing. What happened?"

Enid sighs. Wednesday refused to tell her anything that happened that night. The news that Wednesday had witnessed the attack has spread across campus quickly, but Enid knew there was more to the story that Wednesday was keeping quiet. She feels sorry that Tyler had to witness Wednesday's vision, knowing how scary it is to see Wednesday unresponsive.

"It was a vision."

"She has visons?" Tyler asks incredulously.

"You're dating an outcast." Enid laughs. "Gonna have to get use to the weird that comes with it."

"We're...we're not dating." Tyler stutters, but there's a glint of hope in his eyes. 

"Maybe not yet, but dude" Enid says giving him a shrewd look "She used technology for you. She didn't stab you for giving her your number and she willingly spent time with you at the festival. Wednesday may not be the best at interpreting her emotions, but give her time and you've got a pretty good shot."

Tyler laughs self-deprecatingly. "Honestly, if we weren't soulmates, I don't think she'd have even looked twice at me."

"Wait! You're soulmates?" Enid shrieks, drawing the attention of the other customers in the cafe. 

"She didn't tell you." Tyler says, eyes widening in realization.

"No, but it makes so much sense now." Enid thinks over her roommate's behavior the last two weeks. Her willingness to use Enid's laptop, engaging with Tyler and voluntarily going on a date. Enid did not believe that was anything but a date, no matter what Wednesday insisted. Of course, Wednesday would be interested in her soulmate, even if only to satisfy her curiosity. 

"She's going to kill me for tell you, isn't she?" Tyler asks. His eyes are still wide, but the smile has returned to his face.

"I think she'll give you a pass. She makes a lot of threats, but she rarely acts on them." Enid teases, before her face becomes serious. "Not that she isn't capable of enacting them. She has at least three knives on her person at all times."

"Noted. Don't underestimate Wednesday Addams or her weapons."

"Speaking of threats..." Enid holds up her hands, elongating her claws, "I know Wednesday can take care of herself, and she'll probably kill me for this, but if you hurt her, I'll rip you to shreds."

"The last thing I want to do is hurt her." Tyler's face turns serious, smile disappearing as his eye meet hers. 

She studies his face, searching his eyes for any insincerity or deceit, but finds none. She smiles at him and he answers with one of his own. Tyler will be good for Wednesday, she thinks. He's her opposite in so many ways, but Enid thinks he complements her well. Her roommate needs someone like Tyler, someone that can break through her rough exterior. Someone to teach her that she doesn't always have to be alone. That letting others close, caring for someone and being cared for in return isn't a weakness. 

Her phone chimes, notification flashing, indicating her order from the hardware store is ready. "I have to go, but I'll see you around. I'll tell Wednesday you said hi."

He gestures for her to wait before rushing behind the counter. He returns only a minute later with a to go cup in his hand.

"For Wednesday" He says with a shrug.

Enid nods, turning to leave before an idea hits her. "Let me see your phone." Tyler unlocks and hands her his phone without question. She quickly types in her phone number, sending a text to herself from his phone. "If you ever need to contact Wednesday, give me a call."

When Enid finally makes it back to Nevermore, Wednesday's coffee is half melted, but she accepts it anyway. She watches as Wednesday reads the note on the side, lips twitching slightly. Tyler has drawn a small creature, a scorpion maybe, and written 0/10. Would not recommend. It hadn't meant anything to Enid, but she doesn't question it. When it comes to Wednesday Addams, sometimes it's best not to know.

"So," she says conspiratorially, "When were you planning on telling me Tyler is your soulmate?" Wednesday's head snaps up, body spinning to face her. Her eyes are wide and Enid can't help but smile at the hint of fear she finds there. 

Later that evening, Tyler receives a text from Enid with an invite to watch the Poe Cup the following morning. He's surprised to learn that Wednesday volunteered to participate, but he'll never turn down an opportunity to see her. Enid texts him the event start time, telling him she's cleared his visit with the principal and to park in the student parking lot upon arrival.

When he arrives at Nevermore in the morning, Tyler is met by Principal Weems, and to his annoyance, Marylin Thornhill. It has been a very long week of only seeing Wednesday through The Weathervane window as she attended her therapy sessions. In his excitement to finally see her again, he'd almost forgotten that Thornhill would be at Nevermore. His deadline is tomorrow, and he still hasn't figured out how he's going to get her a heart without killing someone. Tyler prays to any god that may be listening that he can escape this conversation without being left alone with her. 

"Mr. Galpin. How exciting to have you join us today." Principal Weems greets him when he approaches. "You are in for a treat. The Poe Cup is one of our most thrilling events of the year. I'm sure Ms. Addams will be delighted to have you cheering her on. I have some last minute details to attend to, but Ms. Thornhill has graciously volunteered to guide you down to the lake." 

Tyler's stomach drops, but he gives Principal Weems a charming smile and thanks her for allowing him to attend. He stands in silence, Thornhill watching until Weems is out of sight before rounding on him. 

"Tyler" She hisses "Where is my heart?"

"I'll get it tonight." He's not looking at her as he responds, but she grabs him by his chin, violently turning his head until his eyes are on hers.

"You better. Or we might need to take a little trip back to our cave." Her warning sends a shiver down his spine.

"No." He can't go back there. He won't go back there. "You'll have it tomorrow. I swear." 

"Good. Now let's go find your little girlfriend. I thought Wednesday would be more a challenge, but I guess all it takes is a cute boy's attention and she turns into a pathetic lovesick teenager, just like the rest of her classmates."

Tyler takes a deep breath, trying to control the rage inside him as she insults Wednesday. The Hyde is furious. He wants to be released, wants to punish Thornhill for her disrespectful words. Tyler is thankful the lake is only a short walk away and Thornhill stays silent the rest of the walk. She gives him a parting glance but leaves without comment. He's never been to Nevermore before, only getting glimpses of the school as he drove by. It's beautiful. He wonders if his life would be different if he had been allowed to attend. Probably not. Hydes are hated, even among outcasts. He's sure he would have been just as ostracized here as he is at his own school.

The grounds are starting to fill with students and Tyler can hear their quiet whispers as they stare at him. They give him a wide berth, but it's what he expected. He knows he angered more than just Xavier when he ruined the mural. He doesn't really mind being left alone. It gives him time to think about his dilemma. He needs to collect a heart tonight, but he isn't keen on senseless murder. Maybe he could break into the morgue, see if they have a fresh body? How fresh does the heart need to be? The thought of cutting open a dead body and removing the heart makes Tyler squeamish, but it's better than the alternative. He wonders if he has enough control over his Hyde to transform and let him remove the heart. Can Hyde do it without completely destroying the body?

His thoughts are interrupted by a piercing squeal. Even with the distance, he knows that voice belongs to Enid. He scans the crowd, finally locating Enid, then freezes.

Oh, he is going to kill Enid Sinclair.

No need for a trip to the morgue. He's going to rip out Enid's little heart and present it to Thornhill with pleasure. Wednesday is in a catsuit. A goddamn catsuit. He's attracted to Wednesday in her everyday outfits, but this is a look he needed time to prepare for. A warning would have been helpful. He's confident Enid knew exactly what she was doing. A thought that is only proven true when she catches his gaze and gives him a smug grin. He shoots her back a glare, but she only laughs, using her finger to point out his location to Wednesday. 

He watches as Wednesday make her way to him, students quick to scramble out of her way as she approaches. He feels a bolt of jealousy as he notices others appreciate her appearance. One in particular, a boy with a face full of creepy paint, makes his blood boil. He knows his jealousy is irrational. Wednesday hasn't shown any interest in Xavier Thorpe, but he can't help it. A part of him feels like Xavier is the smarter choice for Wednesday. Hes not good enough, will never be good enough for her. She deserves more than a Hyde and all his baggage.

"Nice outfit." He teases when she's only a few feet away from him, shaking his head to try to dispel his negative thoughts. 

She scowls. "Why are you here?" 

"Enid invited me."

She turns her head to find her friend who gives a wide smile and waggles her fingers in an exaggerated wave. "Of course, she did." He hears Wednesday mutter before turning back to face him. "You told her we were soulmates."

Her eyes are boring into his and he gulps. "I'm sorry. I assumed she knew."

“I had to endure an hour of her incessant questions and squealing. It was torturous.” 

“I’m sorry. I won’t tell anyone else. Well…except my dad already knows?” It comes out more of a question than a statement. 

She cocks her head slightly at that admission, contemplating something he said then nods. Enid’s voice carries across the field, yelling for Wednesday to come join the team back at their canoe. 

“I have to go.” She turns to leave, but Tyler stops her. 

"Hey, wait!" He calls, reaching out, capturing her hand. "Good luck."

She stares down at their joined hands but makes no move to extract her hand from his. "I don't need luck. Just carefully planned strategy. And weaponry." She slowly removes her hand, dragging her fingers across his palm to his fingertips. Without another word, she turns and leaves, joining her teammates near their boat. 

He can't help the small smile that makes its way across his face. He had reached out to her on instinct, forgetting about her aversion to touch. That she hadn't threated to remove his fingers in some violently creative way is surprising. Maybe he has more of a chance with Wednesday than he thought.

He finds a spot near the lake that provides him a clear view of the race, while also allows him some distance from the students that are still giving him suspicious looks. Just before the race is about to begin, he hears someone plop down beside him. Looking over, he finds a younger boy with curly hair and glasses. 

"Hi! I'm Eugene!" He says holding his hand out for Tyler to shake. "You a friend of Wednesday's?"

"Yes." Tyler replies. He's not going to make the mistake of mentioning they're soulmates again.

The boy nods, then uses his index finger to point to the canoe next to Wednesday. "That's Bianca. I think she's threatened by Wednesday."

Tyler watches as Bianca makes some comment to Wednesday before rearing back at whatever response she makes. The race starts shortly after and holy shit! he thinks as axes extend from the canoe next to Wednesday's, swinging at the space where the girls' heads were only moments ago. He feels the Hyde stir at the potential threat to Wednesday, but stamps him back down. Wednesday is fine and doesn't need their help. He guesses Enid wasn't joking when she said there are no rules in the Poe Cup. He wonders if any students have ever died in the competition. Is that just considered an acceptable risk for participation by the school and the students? Hell, they're not even allowed to play dodgeball at his school because it's dangerous, but Nevermore allows, and possibly even encourages, axes and sabotage in their yearly completion. It's a wild thought. 

He feels a sense of satisfaction when the same canoe that attacked Wednesday begins to rock, eventually crashing into a buoy and breaking in two. One team down. The remaining three teams make it to the island. Wednesday's team arrives second and he loses sight of her when she runs off in search of the flag. He makes small talk with Eugene, who is surprisingly full of interesting information about all his classmates. He also learns Eugene is the president of the beekeeping club with Wednesday being the only other member. 

All the while, he keeps an eye on the island. He begins to become concerned when Xavier makes it back, followed by Bianca, but there's still no sign of Wednesday. He's relieved when Wednesday appears and her team hurries to catch up to the others that have already left. He finds a twisted amusement in watching Xavier's canoe sink, leaving him stranded in the middle of the lake. But then Wednsday's boat suddenly begins to rock violently, the girls frantically trying to keep it from tipping. He tightly balls his hands into fists, fingernails digging into the palm of his hand. He can feel the Hyde getting restless. Wednesday isn't in any real danger, but still his instinct calls on him to protect her. Thankfully, they gain control of their canoe quickly, spearing the June Bug before docking.

He finds himself clapping and cheering, Eugene doing the same, as Wesnesday and Enid deliver their flag across the finish line. Despite Wednesday's reluctance to socialize, he can tell she enjoyed herself. Maybe it was just the thrill of competition, but Tyler thinks she’s slowly learning to enjoy the company of others. Even if it’s only himself, Enid, and prossibly Eugene. 

She changes out of her catsuit quickly and Tyler tries to hold in a laugh at the sour look she sports during the awards ceremony. Enid runs off squealing loudly with their trophy, but Wednesday disappears down a dark hallway off the side of the quad. He weaves his way through the crowd, finding her hiding in the dark underneath a statute.

”Hey. What are you doing down there?”

”People keep smiling at me. It’s unnatural.” He chuckles at her discomfort and she shoots him a glare.

"I met Eugene. He seems nice. I think he roped me into helping winterize the hive." He says with a sheepish grin, rubbing at the back of his head. 

"Don't let his appearance fool you. He's a tyrant." Wednesday responds, voice hard, but there is a fondness in her eyes. He wonders if she knows how much emotion she expresses through her eyes. He thinks not.

"Do you want to take a walk?" He asks. Wednesday studies him for a moments before nodding. They exit through a door on the other side of the hallway, avoiding the crowded quad. He thinks she's met her quota for social interaction for today. They walk in silence, making it to the edge of the forest before Tyler stops and turns to her.

"I need to tell you something, but first I'd like to try something. If you hate it just tell me to stop, or punch me, whichever you prefer." He sees her lips twitch at his suggestion of violence but her micro smile quickly disappears as he holds out his arms. He moves slowly, so painfully slow, giving her time to back away. She clenches her jaw, eyes focused on his outstretched arms, but doesn’t move. Keeping his eyes on hers, he moves his arms to encircle her, but arches them out far enough so he still isn’t touching her. She gives an almost indiscernible nod, and he finally relaxes, engulfing her in his arms.

He holds her stiff body loosely against his. He can feel her heart beating wildly against his chest and he tries not to move too much so as not to spook her even more. They stand frozen like that for a full minute, Wednesday’s wide eyes darting across his face before she leans forward and rests her head on his chest. 

He pulls her tighter against him, feeling her stiffen again before relaxing. She's so small, but she fits perfectly in his arms. It feels like what he's been missing his whole life. It feels like home. He wants to continue to hold her. To keep her pressed up against him, but he can't avoid his confession any longer. She deserves the truth and if she hates him after this, at least he got to know how she feels in his arms. Feeling brave, he brushes his lips against the top of her head.

He barely avoids being headbutted when she abruptly throws her head back. 

Damn visions, he thinks. They really need to work on their timing. 

He continues to hold her, keeping her upright until her eyes become focused once more. Tyler feels dread pool in his stomach as Wednesday carefully detangles herself from his arms. She steps back slowly, wide eyes never leaving his. He detects a hint of hurt in them before they turn hard. 

“I have to go.” Her voice is cold. She continues moving further away, never breaking eye contact. It isn’t until she decides she’s a safe distance from him before she turns. Then she bolts. 

Tyler watches her until she’s too far away for him to see. He slumps to the ground, leaning against the nearest tree. Running a hand through his hair, he tugs hard, letting out an agonizing scream. 

He knows what Wednesday just saw. Her vision showed her the truth he’d failed time and again to tell her. She knows he’s a monster, covered in death and blood. She’d gotten a small glimpse of who he truly was and she’d run. 

Inside, the Hyde is raging, overwhelmed with anger and despair. Angry at Tyler for ruining their chance while grieving being abandoned by his true master. Hyde is chanting over and over. Need. Need. Fight. Fight.

He’s right, Tyler thinks as he stands, rubbing at his eyes to remove the tears that have gathered there. He can’t give up. Not now. Not until Wednesday tells him to leave. He’ll fight for this, accept any form of relationship Wednesday is willing to provide. Her hatred might break his heart, but he can accept it, as long as she doesn’t leave him. 

Making his way back towards the school, he finds Enid still celebrating their win in the quad. She eyes him suspiciously when he asks if she’s seen Wednesday but gives him directions to their room, stating that's most likely where she’s hiding. 

Tyler thanks her, ascending the steps two at a time until he’s finally outside Wednesday’s door. He takes a deep breath, fist poised to knock when the door is violently flung open. 

Tyler barely has time to move, dagger grazing his cheek before embedding itself in the wall behind him.

Chapter Text

Wednesday feels herself freeze at the sight of Tyler’s outstretched arms. He moves forward slowly, giving her the opportunity to back away. He’s eyeing her like she’s a startled doe. One step too loud, too fast and she’ll bolt.

She hates that he’s not wrong. 

If it was anyone else, she’d have already sidestepped their attempt at a hug. She’d have backed away, made a snide remark, or introduced them to one of the knives she keeps hidden on her body. 

But this is Tyler and her body has an annoying habit of betraying her where he’s concerned. She clenches her jaw and catches his eyes, but stays unmoving as he creeps forward. Eyes still holding his, he encircles her with his arms, his long arms carefully not touching her. 

She makes slightest nod of her head, and he takes it as the permission it is to drop his arms, letting them rest along her shoulders. The hug is uncomfortable in its unfamiliarity but she doesn’t feel the revulsion she’s accustomed to by others touch. She wills herself to relax. She doesn’t embrace him, not ready to take that step just yet. The steady quick rhythm of his heart is comforting though, and she finds herself resting her head against his chest. Tyler takes that as an invitation to pull her even closer, bodies flush against each other now. She feels herself stiffen subconsciously, heart beginning to beat frantically. 

“Stop it” she scolds herself “You will not go into cardiac arrest over a hug.”

Surrounded by his familiar scent of coffee and pine, she relaxes against his chest once again. She feels warm. She feels safe. She thinks she might not hate an occasional hug from Tyler in the future. Maybe she can eventually learn to hug him back. She feels something brush against her hair, barely having time register it's his lips, before she’s sucked into her second vision of the day. 

She's back in the woods at the Harvest Festival. She’s standing closer to the monster than she was that night, giving her a better view of it's attack on Rowan. There’s a hunger in its eyes, a ruthless desire to kill his victim. Rowan is dead in minutes, but the monster doesn’t stop it’s assault until the boy’s chest is a mangled shredded mess. 

Wednesday watches as the monster turns to face where she was slump against a tree. She knows that look in its eyes. She’s seen it aimed at her before. Not on the face of a bug eyed monster, but in the eyes of a kind, charming barista.

The scene changes and she finds herself besides the monster again, hiding behind a bush. The monster’s limbs are rippling, shortening in length. Wednesday realizes it’s shifting. In a matter of seconds, the monster is gone and Tyler is standing in its places, drenched in blood. 

The scene shifts again, and Wednesday is in an old abandoned home. They’re not alone. This time they're joined by a woman. It only takes her seconds to discern the woman is her dorm mom, Ms. Thornhill. She’s speaking with Tyler, one of her hands caressing his cheek.  Wednesday steps forward to better hear the conversation and the words make her blood run cold.

“I saw you at the Harvest Festival. Wednesday seemed to be enjoying your company. Keep at it. I need you to keep her close. Gain her trust."

Wednesday is thrust back into reality, back into Tyler’s arms, and she pushes against him, removing herself from his embrace. She steps back, eyes focused on his face. She reminds herself to school her face, to not let him see the hurt he caused.  

“I have to go.” Her voice is cold and hard.

She needs to get away. Eyes still on his, she takes a step back. Slowly at first, then faster larger steps. Her head feels dizzy, heart ramming against her rib cage violently. Her breathe is ragged and uneven. When she can’t take looking at his face any longer, she turns and runs. 

He’d used her. He’d manipulated her. He’d betrayed her. She lets out a cold, humorless laugh. She thought betrayal would taste different. Maybe like dirt, a little sweet but also bitter, the granules grinding against her teeth every time she chewed. But she was wrong. Betrayal tastes like metal. Like iron. Like copper. It tastes like blood. Tyler tore a hole in her, imaginary blood flooding her mouth and she's chocking o it.

Her soulmate is a murderous psychotic monster. The universe knows her type. She could have accepted a monster. Too bad he’s also a liar.

She slows her steps as she gets closer to the school. She avoids the crowded quad, instead taking the long route to the stairwell. Tyler may have hurt her, but she won’t allow her classmates to see her in this state. She won't allow them to perceive her as weak. Hurtling up the stairs, Wednesday slams the door and begins to pace. Back and forth, crossing the line that separates her side from Enid’s. She can’t believe she’d been such a fool. Tyler is nothing more than a treacherous liar. His lie is a poison and she doesn’t have the anecdote to stop the ache it’s left in her chest. 

Not for the first time, she wishes she never came to Nevermore. Before she’d want to escape her parents’, her mother’s, shadow. Now, she just wants to have never met him. Her soulmate. Her perfect match. The only person that could ever cause her this pain. She'd give up her ability to see black if only she could go back in time and never step foot in the Weathervane. 

She never wanted him. Never wanted love or a relationship. Never wanted to give someone power over her. But Tyler has weaseled his way in. Disarmed her with a smile and his laugh. She’d handed him that power and he’d used it to crush her. 

None of it had been real. His smiles. His gestures. The blushing and longing looks. It was all a rouse, part of a game he was planning with Thornhill. Wednesday doesn’t know how Thornhill is involved or why they chose to target her. She knows she’ll make them pay. They’ll feel tenfold the pain they’ve caused her to experience. 

She hears footsteps coming up the stairwell. She knows the sound of his steps and the gate of his walk. She feels anger bubble up within her. Grabbing the dagger she keeps conceals on her waist, she yanks open the door and flings the weapon at him. He avoids the dagger, mostly, receiving just a small cut on his cheek. She ignores the fact that it mirrors the cut he’d given her at the harvest festival. As the monster she still hasn’t identified. Anger increasing, she reaches down and unsheathes a knife from her right boot. 

“Woah! Hey!” Tyler cries, holding both hands up above his head. “Please just let me explain.”

She doesn’t want to hear what he has to say. She wants him to feel pain. She throws the knife in her hand, feeling a swell of satisfaction at Tyler’s howl. 

“Fuck! Wednesday! Please!” He’s hopping up and down on one leg, the other pulled up to his chest, her knife embedded in his thigh. He’ll live. She hadn’t hit anything vital. Wednesday thinks he should consider himself lucky. 

It’s his eyes that make her cave. They’re brimming with sorrow and anguish. It tugs at a part of her that still cares for him. Removing the knife from her left boot, she uses it to gesture him into her room. As he walks by, Wednesday reaches down and pull her knife from his thigh, delighting in his yelp of pain and surprise. 

She puts distance between them, positioning him near the window while she remains by the door. His leg is bleeding, leaving a trail of blood behind him. She blindly reaches out, grabbing the first piece of cloth she finds and tosses it to him. She’d gladly let him bleed out but she doesn’t think Enid would appreciate the blood stains on their floor. 

“What are you?” She asks when he’s stifled the blood flow. 

“A Hyde.” His voice is low, eyes focused on the floor.

The name sounds vaguely familiar, but she’s not sure where she knows it from. 

“Is it genetic?” She asks and Tyler supplies her with a nod. “Your father?” She questions further. 

“No.” Tyler laughs bitterly. “My mother. She went to school here.”

Wednesday remains silent, glaring at him until he takes the hint to continue. 

"Wednesday, I'm so sorry I didn't tell you. Hydes, well, we're not well liked, even among outcasts. I didn't want you to see me as a monster." His voice is despondent. Wednesday might have even believed him if she hadn't heard Thornhill's words about her. "I was going to tell you. I swear! I planned to at the Harvest Festival and then today before your vision interrupted us." He gives her a sad, desperate look. "Please Wednesday. You have to believe me."

His lies only amplify her rage and she contemplates hurling her knives at him again. 

He drops to his knees, eyes glassy. "Wednesday, you're my soulmate." 

"Why should I care?" Her voice is scathing and Tyler flinches.

"Because I care about you! I want to be with you, Wednesday!" He yells, tears pooling in his eyes. He closes his eyes, exhales then meets her gaze again. "But even if you hate me, soulmates are important to Hydes. You're my master."

“I am not your master!” Wednesday growls at him. It’s more emotion than she’s usually comfortable showing, but Tyler’s betrayal has made it nearly impossible for her to contain her emotions. She knows what she saw. Tyler was happy to comply with Thornhill's orders. She pointedly ignores the surge of jealousy she feels at the thought of Tyler wanting to please Thornhill. 

“Don’t say that!” Tyler cries, panicked. “Say anything else, but not that. Please. At least not until I’ve explained everything.”

He’s pleading, eyes wide with despair. Usually Wednesday would take pleasure in someone on their knees, begging as their body trembled in fear. But her stupid traitorous heart is aching. She wants to hear his explanation. She’d given Tyler a chance. She’d let him in, revealed parts of herself she kept hidden from everyone else. In turn, he’d played her. Used her. He broke her in ways she didn’t even think she could break.

She’d been right in her beliefs growing up. Soulmates were useless. She should have just tortured him and left. Saved herself from feeling this pain.

"Thornhill is your master. I saw it." Wednesday retorted bitterly. 

Tyler's eyes widened and he begins to shake his head violently. "No. No. No. She was, Wednesday, but not anymore. A soulmate is a Hyde's true master. You broke the bond with her the day we met." His voice is begging her to believe him, but his words still don't explain her vision. 

"You went to see her after the Harvest Festival. She was praising you for trying to befriend me." She spits the words out in disgust. She tears her eyes away from Tyler, focusing on the knives in her hands. She runs her finger down the blade, dragging it through the almost dried blood. Tyler's blood.

"She doesn't know! She doesn't know you're my soulmate or that she's not my master anymore. She has some plan Wednesday and you're a part of it. I was trying to figure out why. I was trying to protect you. I don't want you to get hurt!" He's still on his knees, but his body is no angled toward her, imploring her to believe him.

“Why should I believe you?”

“Give me a command. The Hyde won’t let me disobey a direct order.” Tyler's desperate for her to believe him. Needs her to believe that he would never harm her. He watches as she thinks, her fingers continuing to travel the length of a blade, tips stained by his blood. 

“Can you control your transformations or do you have to be ordered to shift?” She asks, head slightly cocked as she studies him. 

”At first, I didn’t even remember shifting. I’d just wake up covered in blood. The night of the Harvest Festival was the first time I consciously shifted. It took a lot of mental focus but I was able to control the transformations.” 

“You killed Rowan. Why?” For the first time, the anger is gone from her voice. Replaced by curiosity.

"He was going to kill you.” It's the simple truth. He killed to protect her and he'll never regret letting the Hyde loose that night. 

“So you killed him.”

"Yes.” He studies her, looking for any hint of emotion, but her face remains unmoving. “I’m sorry I scared you that night.”

Wednesday recoils back, mouth forming into a sneer. “I was never afraid of the monster.” She spits the words out with a glare, offended by his accusation. 

“But you…”

”I thought you were going to kill me. I was prepared for it, but then you look at me with such concern.” She uttered the last word with distaste. “Don’t ever presume to know how I feel.”

Tyler doesn’t respond, lost in his own thoughts. If Wednesday was telling the truth, she’d never been afraid of him. He’d fretted over her reaction for so long for no reason. He should have told her the truth that first day. They would have avoided this whole mess. Tyler is thankful when Wednesday interrupts his spiraling thoughts. 

"Enid can extend her claws while still in human form. Can you do the same?" 

"I don't know. I've never tried it." It honestly never crossed his mind to attempt a partial transformation. 

"Try now." 

It's not quite an order, but Tyler feels the Hyde's desire to please his master anyway. He clenches his jaw, grinding his teeth together as his fingers begin to lengthen. He fights down a scream as his finger bones break and reform into the Hyde's claw, nails now sharp and pointed. Wednesday doesn't approach him, but she leans forward, inspecting his newly shifted hand.

"If I ordered you to claw yourself, you'd do it?" She asks, but Tyler can see the challenge in her eyes. She still doesn't fully believe that she's his master. He nods and she straightens up, looking him in the eye. "Do it."

He reaches up, digs his nails into the meat of his shoulder and slashes downward, leaving a long gash from his shoulder to mid chest. The wound is mostly shallow, but it stings, blood already starting to soak through his shirt. With a blood stained shirt and pants, Tyler vaguely wonders how he's going to get out of the school without raising suspicion. 

"If I'm your master, you have to obey my every command? Even if it's something you don't want to do?" She questions, eyes traveling between his cut and his claws.

Tyler nods apprehensively. He doesn't know where she's going with this, but he knows he's not going to like whatever she says next. 

"You said you don't want to hurt me." She meets his gaze, holding eye contact. Steeling herself, she delivers her next command. "Attack me."

He feels cold, body shivering at her demand. He plants his feel on the floor and grabs ahold of the wall behind him with his one good hand. He’s panting, fighting his body’s desire to rush forward and slash the girl in front of him. The Hyde isn’t happy, warring with himself, Wednesday's order going against his instinct to always protect her from harm. He doesn’t want to hurt Wednesday but he can’t defy an order.

"NO!” Tyler wails in despair. “Please Wednesday. Don’t ask me to do this.” 

“I wasn’t asking. Attack me!” She commands, voice hard. 

It’s a battle Tyler can’t win. The Hyde is stronger and despite his resistance, Tyler feels his feet moving forward. He closes his eyes and waits for it to be over. He doesn’t want to see this. Doesn’t want to see his claw pierce her flesh. Doesn’t want to see her blood dripping to the floor. He only hopes the Hyde’s protectiveness of Wednesday keeps him from harming her too badly.

”Stop!” Wednesday demands loudly when his clawed arm is only inches from her chest. “Go back to the wall.” 

Tyler follows her command, relieved that he didn’t have to hurt her. She orders him to transform back to normal and he complies happily. He slumps against the wall, eyes drooping. Between the wounds on his leg and chest, the transformation and fighting against Wednesday's command, he’s exhausted. 

“What if I don’t want to be your master?” 

Tyler’s eyes snap open, hands trembling as her words sink it. 

“Please” he begs. “Hate me if you need to, but please don’t leave. Please don’t reject the bond.” 

It would be hell living a life with Wednesday hating him, but it was better than the alternative. He’d gladly be her puppet, let her pull his strings at will. At least he wouldn't lose himself to the Hyde. And maybe one day, Wednesday could forgive him. Maybe she’d eventually show some affection for him.

“Why?”

“A rejection from a true master will send a Hyde into a rage. He’ll gain control and I’ll cease to exist. He'll become volatile and no one will be able to stop him. Please Wednesday, I don’t want to lose myself. And I don’t want to lose you either.” He whispers the last part, more to himself then her, but he’s certain she heard it.

Instead of responding, Wednesday stands, tucking the knives away into her boots. She paces, occasionally turning her head to look at him. Tyler closes his eyes, giving her time to sort through her thoughts. 

“This isn’t fair.” Her voice calls out to him.   

He hums in response to her comment. When he opens his eyes, she’s sitting on the floor in front of him, watching him with guarded eyes. 

“It’s not fair I’m responsible for your life. I become your master and you're bound to me. Or I reject you and the monster takes over, leaving me responsible for any carnage you cause.”

“It’s not fair” he agrees. “But it’s not fair for me either.”

“Explain.”

“Since the moment I was born, my life hasn’t been my own. I was born to be controlled. By Thornhill, by you, by the Hyde if he breaks free. Any control you think i possess is an illusion.” He shrugs like it doesn’t matter. Like this isn’t the most important conversation of his life. But the choice isn’t his to make. Wednesday will make her decision and he’ll have to accept whatever she chooses.

She stands swiftly, she looks him up and down before pointing to her bed.

“Rest. I’m going for a walk.”

His heart aches at the thoughts of her leaving. It’s not a rejection, he tells himself. She’s not kicking him out. She’ll be back. He kicks off his boots and shrugs off his jacket, letting it fall to the floor before climbing onto her bed. 

Her usually quiet footsteps resound through the room and he turns to find her advancing towards him. He braces himself for another knife, but she ignores him in favor of his jacket. He watches as she riffles through the pockets, hand emerging with his car keys. Without a word, she heads towards the door. He’s too tired to question her. He’s asleep before the door even clicks shut. 

“Enid.” Wednesday calls out when she makes it to the quad. She’s sitting at a table with their teammates, half eaten pizza boxes scattered between them.

"What’s up, roomie?” She asks as she skips over, landing with a small bounce in front of Wednesday, Thing resting comfortably on her shoulder.

“I need you to stay in Yoko’s room tonight. Thing too.”

“You and Tyler need some alone time?” Enid teases, eyebrows wiggling up and down. 

“Yes.” Wednesday doesn’t know what Enid is doing with her face and chooses to ignore it. She only ever understands half of what her roommate says and does. “It should be safe for you to come back in the morning.”

Enid seems shocked by her answer, but she doesn’t have time to ask why. Turning she makes her way towards the student parking lot. 

“Have fun tonight.” She hears Enid yell from behind her. She doesn’t need to turn to know Enid has an infuriating smile on her face. 

Wednesday Addams is adept in many things. Driving is not one of them. She’s never been behind the wheel of a car. Never felt the need or desire to obtain her license. But she’s seen many of her classmates drive. If they can do it, it must not be that hard.

She adjusts the seat and mirrors and twists the key in the ignition. Tyler’s car groans as it starts and makes an unnatural screech as she starts driving. She contributes the noise to the age of Tyler’s car, not her driving ability. She never goes above 15mph and it takes longer than she would have liked to find a decent spot to hide his car in the woods. 

Once she’s confident Tyler’s car is adequately hidden, she leans against a tree and closes her eyes. She's overstimulated, hurt and angry and she just needs a couple minutes to herself. 

She thinks about the first vision she had that day, when she'd touched Crackstone's crypt. She'd been thrust into a world of black and white. For a moment, she'd been jealous. This is the world her classmates had grown up viewing, the one she'd been denied. But there was also a girl standing in front of her, eerily identical to her except for her white blond hair. 

"You are the key."  She said, a large book tucked under one arm. "You must learn to trust him to save each other. He is more than he seems."

That was all the girl provided before she returned to reality. Wednesday curses her visons for being so vague and unhelpful. She is the key to what? Save each other? After her other vision, she assumes the "He" refers to Tyler because he is definitely more than he first appeared to be. The part about trusting him though might be a problem now.

This is why she doesn't do emotions, she thinks to herself. She needs to take her feelings out of the equation and allow logic to dictate her decisions. Logically, she can understand Tyler's actions and can acknowledge that her visions did interrupt his confession on more than one occasion. It's Thornhill that should be receiving all her ire. She swears she'll make that vile woman pay for whatever she plans to do to her, but mostly, for everything she's already done to Tyler.

Tyler is hers. No matter how angry she is at him, he still belongs to her. He's her soulmate. Thornhill tried to take him, to claim him for herself. It sends red hot anger down Wednesday's body. Thornhill tortured him, drugged him, and commanded him to do her bidding. She had no right! Only Wednesday bears the right to treat Tyler in such a manner. The thought of Thornhill referring to herself as Tyler's master makes Wednesday nauseous. She wants to spend the entire evening plotting every painful way she can dispose of Thornhill without getting caught. 

There's a possessiveness over Tyler that she only now realizes she harbors. She knows what her decision will be. Tyler's betrayal still stings, but he belongs to her. She's grown accustomed to his presence, and she doesn't want to give him up. She'll be his master, but she's going to handle this relationship in her own way. 

When Tyler wakes it’s to Wednesday sitting crisscross at the foot of her bed. She hasn’t noticed him awake yet, so Tyler takes a minute to observe her. Her knives are back, one in each of her hands. Anxiously he wonders if she made the decision to kill him and dispose of his body where no one can find him.

She tosses one knife in air, eyes following the blade as it twirls before catching it by the handle. She repeats the gesture, this time tossing both knives simultaneously. When she catches the knives again, her eyes meet his in a cold calculated glare. She lunges forward, straddling him with a leg thrown over each hip and brings the knives up to his throat. He hisses at the blades dig in, small beads of blood dripping down his neck, but makes no objections. Wednesday stares at him silently and Tyler meets her gaze, trying to decipher the emotion in her eyes. 

“Tyler” she finally seethes, digging the blades into his neck a little deeper. “If you betray me again, I will destroy you. You will suffer a slow agonizing death. I’ll dismembered you and scatter your body across the state. Your father will be finding pieces of you for years.”

Her voice is hard, full of malice and promise, but all Tyler can feel is relief. Her words imply that she’ll still be around for him to betray her. Not that he ever would. He never wants keep a secret from her again. He nods as best as he can in his current position and Wednesday sits back slightly, removing the knives from his throat. Ignoring his blood coating the blades, she tucks a knife into each boot. 

“So you’ll stay?” Tyler questions, voice quiet. He needs reassurance. Needs to actually hear her say it. 

She looks down and Tyler notices the moment she realizes the compromising position she put them in. Cheeks twinging pink, she rolls off him to the side, carefully leaving space between them. 

“I’ll accept that I’m your master.” She pauses “I’ll help you with control when you need it, but I believe in body autonomy. You are responsible for your own actions.”

He can feel the Hyde purring at Wednesday’s acceptance. And Tyler feels elation himself. Knowing that he is the only one controlling his actions? Well it’s more than he ever expected since learning he was a Hyde. Still there’s one question he needs to ask and he’s certain he’s not going to like the answer.

”What about us?”

She glowers at him and scoots a little further away. Tyler feels his heart drop and resigns himself to this one sided relationship. He thought they were maybe slowly moving towards being something more. Towards something resembling an actual relationship. But that was before her vision showed her the truth before he could. He fully understands why she would want to distance herself from him now. He’d told himself he’d accept whatever she was willing to give and he meant it. Having Wednesday in his life in any capacity is better than a life without her.

The silence lingers between them and Tyler doesn’t expect an answer. With her head turned away from him, he barely hears her whisper when she finally does respond. 

“I don’t know.” 

There’s a vulnerability in her voice he’s never heard before. It pains him that he’s the one that put it there. He hurt her, albeit unintentionally, and she has every right not to trust him right now. He’ll do whatever he can to regain her trust. He tells himself that wasn’t a rejection. Not completely. There’s still a chance he can fix this. 

Wednesday turns to face again, no signs of her rare moment of weakness visible on her face. 

“What do we do about Thornhill?”

”Wednesday!” Tyler gasps, sitting up straighter in her bed, heart pounding. “I owe her a heart by tomorrow evening!” 

Wednesday responds by doing something Tyler has never seen her do before. She smiles. A wide, full, sadistic smile.

She looks breathtaking. 

“If she wants a heart” Wednesday hisses, a devilish look in her eyes “we’ll give her a heart.”  

Chapter Text

Wednesday wants to storm down to Thornhill’s room, slam open her door and confront the woman. She wants Tyler to hold her down while she cuts open her chest. Wants to see the terror in her eyes as she cracks open her rib cage and rips out her still beating heart. Wednesday wants to be there when Thornhill realizes her fatal mistake was trying to lay claim on what belongs to her. 

She wants all of that. For herself and for Tyler. But those desires are fueled by her rage and resentment, and if she’s being honest with herself, a little bit of jealousy. She can’t allow her actions to be dictated by emotion. She needs to look at the situation logically. They don’t know Thornhill’s plan or how she’s involved. They don’t know if Thornhill has any other accomplices, willing, or like Tyler, unwilling. And Wednesday doesn’t believe in coincidences. The prophecy about her destroying the school must be linked to Thornhill. Until she and Tyler are able to unearth all the details, Thornhill will regrettably remain alive. 

That gives her time to craft her own plan. To draft up ideas on how she and Tyler can extract their revenge. She wants to torture Thornhill slowly, maximizing her pain. She wants to hear her screams of terror for hours, have for begging for death. And they won’t give it to her. Not until she’s reduced to nothing. Not until the pain overtakes her senses and numbs her body. Only then will they release her from this mortal coil.

For now, she needs to fill Tyler in on the details he’s missing. Tyler’s confession may have solved two of her mysteries, the identity of the monster and Tyler’s darkness, but one mystery remains. So she tells Tyler about the prophecy and why Rowan decided she needed to die. Then she shares her plan to retrieve a heart. It requires sneaking out after dark, some trespassing and a little death. It’s not her finest plan, but it’ll work.

"I need to go down to dinner to keep up appearances. Keep out of sight and don’t answer the door.” 

Tyler nods in response, pulling out his phone to keep himself busy. When she arrives in the cafeteria, she grabs a quick meal, stashing an extra premade sandwich, apple and coke in her bag for Tyler. He’ll need to refuel from the blood loss. She doesn’t need him passing out in the middle of their mission.

She scans the room and find Enid at a table with Ajax, Divina, Slyvia, and unfortunately Xavier. Her roommate gives her smile and an exaggerated wave as she makes her way over. Sitting next to Enid, she begins to eat, planning to stay only the appropriate amount of time so as not to raise suspicions. They try to draw her into conversation a couple times, but Wednesday only offers one word responses. When Enid stands to leave, Wednesday follows. 

“Have fun tonight!” Enid whispers. She gives Wednesday a smile and a wink before skipping away. Her roommate’s been acting weird today. She’ll have to remember to check on her tomorrow to make sure her behavior isn't linked to a curse or poison. 

She’s only a flight away from her room when she hears her name being called from behind. Instantly her blood begins to boil. That sickening sweet voice bringing her rage back to the surface. 

“Wednesday! Congratulations on your win today. We missed you at the celebration.”

Thornhill is smiling at her. For the first time, Wednesday studies Thornhill's face closely. Her smile is forced and there's no warmth in her eyes. There's a fierceness in them, an anger, that she keeps concealed behind those large glasses. Wednesday clenches her jaw, thankful she has control over her motions. She wants to withdraw her knife and slice that fake smile off her face.

"I went for a walk." She retorts curtly. 

"With you friend? It was nice of him to come today.” 

“Yes.” She grits out, keeping her answers short to contain her fury. Thornhill is fishing for details about Tyler and Wednesday refuses to give any to her. 

“I didn’t see him leave. I wanted to ask him a question about a special at the Weathervane.”

"The sheriff called. He was needed back home.” Wednesday lies, eager to leave the conversation.

"Oh, well that’s too bad. It’s good to see you finally making friends though. Goodnight, Wednesday.” 

Wedneday turns and hurries up the last set of stairs. She needs to see Tyler now. Needs to make sure he’s safe and away from that wretched woman. She flings the door open with more strength than she intended, panic building in her chest when she finds her side of the room empty. 

“Wednesday?” 

Tylers voice floats over to her, dissipating the panic and relaxing her shoulders that she hadn’t even realized were tense. He’s on the floor, leaning against Enid’s bed, flipping through one of her fashion magazines. She gives him a questioning look and he only shrugs, picking himself up and making his way back to Wednesday’s bed.

She digs the stolen food out of her bag and tosses it to him. He thanks her and begins eating, devouring half a sandwich in three bites. Wednesday leaves him to his food, making her way to her closet to change into an outfit more suited for the night’s actives. Tyler’s finished eating by the time she returns. Making her way towards her bed, she crouches down, reaching under it to drag out a large black chest. She snaps the lid open, revealing a small collection of her personal weapons.

“You keep an arsenal under your bed?” Tyler asks with a breathy laugh.

“You don’t?” She asks, raising her head to face him, one eyebrow slightly raised. He only shakes his head, another small laugh escaping his mouth. “These are only the ones I could bring to school without raising suspicion. My real collection is back home.”

”Yeah? Maybe you could show it to me one day?”

His tone is hopeful. Hopeful that they’d have a future where she would want to bring him to her family home. A future where they were more than just Master and Hyde. She doesn’t know whether she wants to squash or encourage that hope. Instead, she selects one of the weapons from the chest and hands it to him. It has a clubbed handle with a spiked ball attached by a chain. 

“This is a Morning Star Flail. Effective, but difficult to master. If you miss your target, you leave yourself open to attack.”

Tyler runs his hand over the weapon, gently fingering the spiked ball. “But you’ve master it?” He asks with a knowing grin. 

“Of course.” She scoffs. She takes the flail from him, returning it to the chest before identifying some of the other weapons for him. “Medieval mace, throwing stars, sickle, a pair of katars.” 

“Where did you get all these?” He’s leaning closer now, breath on her face. 

“Some are stolen. Some from the black market.” She shrugs. “My Uncle Fester likes to bring me souvenirs from his travels.” 

Tyler just nods, examining one of the throwing stars. Finally locating her drop point hunting knife, Wednesday grabs it and places it in her bag, alone with her surgical kit. They’ll need both for their plan later tonight. 

Standing, she surveys Tyler, taking in his ripped and bloody shirt and bloodstained jeans. The darkness of night should help hide his bloody jeans, but his shirt could raise questions if they happen to run into anyone. Returning to her closet, Wednesday grabs her oversized black zip of hoodie. It might be a little tight but it’ll have to do. 

“Here.” She says holding it out to him. 

“Thanks.” Tyler smiles, shrugging it on. Wednesday pointedly ignores the way it clings to his shoulders, the tight fabric showcasing the muscles in his arms.

“Lights out is in an hour. We’ll leave when everyone’s retired for the night.”

They spend the next hour in silence. Wednesday’s thoughts turn toward the events of the day. She doesn’t know what she’s going to do about Tyler. He hurt her and she’s not ready to forgive him transgressions, but she understands his intentions were never nefarious. She’s angry, but he’s hers. She’s too possessive of him to even think about sending him away. She doesn’t know what the future will hold for them or what relationship, if any, they’ll have beyond their master-Hyde bond. She’ll worry about that after Thornhill is removed from the picture. 

When it’s time fo leave, she motions for Tyler to follow her. He’d spent the hour on his phone, stealing glances at her when he thought she wasn’t looking. She only knows because she was discretely watching him the whole time. If he’s going to be her investigative partner, they’re going to need to work on his espionage skills. 

“Stay close to me.” She orders, fastening her satchel over her head and shoulder, and walking out the door. Tyler follows closely, not close enough to touch but close enough to feel his body heat on her back. They make it down the staircase and through the first hallway before Tyler grabs her from behind, pulling her into a narrow alcove. 

She whips around and he quickly covers her mouth with one of his hands, the other going to his own mouth, pointer finger resting against his lips. Slowly he removes his hands, letting them fall to his sides. 

“Someone’s coming.” He mouths. 

She strains her ears but doesn’t hear anything. She wants to question how he knows but gets distracted by his proximity. The alcove is small, not meant for two people. They’re pressed up against each other, her hands resting on his chest, his down at his side, fingertips brushing against her thighs. She can feel his breath ghosting across her cheek. From this close she can see a tiny white scar on the underside of his chin. She has an irrational urge to brush away the stray curl that has flopped down towards his eyes. His eyes that are currently gazing at her with longing and desire. She can feel his heart pulsating under her palms. She only hopes he can’t hear her heart beating erratically in her own chest.

Footsteps echo down the hall, shortly followed by the sound of Coach Vlad muttering to himself. He passes their hiding spot without a glance in their direction. Wednesday counts to thirty before grabbing Tyler’s hand and tugging him back into hall. They quickly make it out of the school without running into anyone else. Tyler starts to head towards the parking lot, but Wednesday tugs on his arm and shakes her head, guiding him towards the woods instead. They walk silently for almost ten minutes before she sees the clearing where she stashed his car. It’s only when she looks at him standing beside her she realizes she’s still holding his hand. She drops it suddenly, instantly missing the feeling of his skin against hers. 

“Wednesday? Did you drive my car?” He asks incredilously. “Do you even have a license? 

Wednesday chooses to answer that with silence. 

“Did you scratch my door?” 

“No.” She lies. Yes, she may have scraped against a couple branches, but she won’t admit that to him. “Those were already there.” 

Tyler quirks an eyebrow, but she ignores it. She lets herself into the passenger seat, shutting the door behind her. 

Tyler laughs to himself as he watches Wednesday through the car window. He doesn’t actually care about the scratches. His car is old and he’s caused enough cosmetic damage himself that a few more scratches are barely noticeable. He opens his door, attempting to sit without adjusting the seat. He groans as his knees bang hard against the steering wheel. He thinks he sees a ghost of a smile on Wednesday’s face, but it’s gone when he turns to face her. 

He types their destination into the gps, about a thirty minute drive. Wednesday doesn’t speak as they begin their journey but he notices her tapping her fingertips against her leg slightly. 

“Did you want to listen to some music?” 

“How’d you know Coach Vlad was there?” She asks in lieu of a response.

"I could hear him.” She shoots him a pointed glare so he continues. “Hyde has advanced hearing. It seems to have carried over to me.”

”You speak of the Hyde as if he’s a separate entity. Is he?” He can see the curiosity in her eyes, interest piqued at the prospect of learning more about her monster.

”Yes. No. I don’t know.” He groans, running a hand through his hair. “In the beginning, I couldn’t feel him or remember my transformations. The more I transform, the more we seem to merge. Or maybe it was meeting you. Killing Rowan was the first time I was consciously present as the monster.” He shrugs. He doesn’t really know. He’s still trying to figure everything out himself. 

“Is he always present?”

”No. He’s dormant most of the time. Strong emotions usually awaken him.”

”Like anger.”

”Yes. Or fear.” Tyler nods his head, debating whether he should say the next part, but decides he’s trying to honest with her. “Or when you’re around. He likes you. Feels a desire to protect you.” 

“I can protect myself.” She levels him with a glare, offended.

”I know. You’re the last person I’d ever see as defenseless.” He offers her a small smile. “But I still want to protect you, any way I can.”

Her gaze shifts to her hands, twisting them together, seemingly uncomfortable with his confession. He doesn’t know how Wednesday feels about him now. Hell, he didn’t even know how she really felt about him before she learned about the Hyde. He still wants her. He’s always going to want her. He hopes she’ll eventually want a romantic relationship with him, but he’s not sure how realistic that desire is anymore.

”Do you have any other aspects of the Hyde.” Her voice cuts through his thoughts. 

“My appetite’s increases. Dad keeps complaining about the amount of groceries he has to buy. And I heal quicker.” He can already feel the itchy scabs forming over the gash in his leg. It will probably be gone by the morning. 

“Damn it, Wednesday!” Tyler yelps, struggling to keep the wheel straight as Wednesday leans over and digs a finger in his leg, reopening the wound. She feels around for a couple seconds until she’s satisfied, leaning back into her seat without a word. She stares at him with a vacant look until Tyler can’t take the silence any longer.

“These were my favorite jeans.”

“Don’t expect an apology.” She huffs looking thoroughly unimpressed with his comment.

”Wouldn’t dream of one.” He never expected an apology. She wasn’t remorseful for injuring him. He’d hurt her so she’d done the same to him. He knows Wednesday well enough to know that if she wanted to seriously injure him, or even kill him, she could have done so with ease.

The gps alerts them that they’ve almost reached they’re destinations. Wednesday instructs him to pull off to the side of the road so they can walk the rest of the way. She easily ducks through a hole in the wooden gate at the entrance of the farm, a large red sign declaring trespassers will be shot on sight nailed haphazardly to it. Tyler has more trouble fitting his lanky form through the hole, finally stumbling through to find Wednesday waiting, arms crossed over her chest.

“Stick to the shadows and don’t touch the fence.”

She turns and begins advancing towards the barn near the back of the property. Tyler follows, crouching slightly. He can hear the buzzing of the fence, heeding Wednesday’s advice so he doesn’t get electrocuted. As they near the barn, Tyler can hear the faint squealing of pigs. He feels his stomach turn, knowing what they’re about to do. 

“Do you want to do it?” She asks, turning to him and holding out her hunting knife. 

He looks down at the knife, then back up to her eyes. “I don’t think I can.” He replies sheepishly. 

“It’s just a pig, Tyler.” She glares, unimpressed. “I know you eat meat. I’ve seen you eat bacon before.”

“That’s different! I don’t have to kill the pig myself!” He defends himself. 

“But you’ve killed before.”

”Yeah. As the Hyde. Not as, you know, me.” He doesn’t think he can do it. He keeps imagining himself cornering a pig and it turning is big innocent eyes toward him. He doesn’t think he can watch as the life drains from those eyes. 

“Fine.” She huffs. “I’ll do it. You can be the lookout.” Her tone is annoyed, but he detects a hint of excitement in her eyes. 

He watches as she reaches the barn, opening the large doors just enough to slip her petite frame through. He flinches as the sound of loud squeals pierce the night. He looks around, searching for any movement, certain that someone is going to come investigate the cause of the sound. He’s thankful when no one does. 

Wednesday slips back through the doors and hurries to his side, glass jar secured in her grasp. She’s clear of blood, sans one small drop on her cheek. Reaching out, he brushes his thumb across her cheek to remove the blood. She stills under his touch, eyes going wide. He withdraws his hand, wiping his thumb on his ruined jeans before taking the jar from her hands. 

“You’re sure this is gonna work?” He asks, inspecting the bloody heart. It looks human he supposes, but he’s not exactly an expert in anatomy. 

“Of course.” She scoffs. “Pig hearts are similar to humans in size, function, and anatomy. Medical schools even use them as a teaching tool. Thornhill will never know the difference.”

He nods, willing to trust her word. “Thank you.”

She ignores his gratitude, instead turning to make her way back toward the entrance.

“We should get going before we’re caught. I’d rather not have to explain to your father why you died by a shotgun wound on a pig farm.” 

When they make it back to Nevermore, Tyler parks outside the gates and kills his lights. As Wednesday exits the car, reaching to grab her bag from the back seat, he sees her pause. Twisting around, he finds her gaze focused on his mother’s journals he’d placed there earlier that morning. 

“My mom's journals. Do you want to take them with you?”

He feels a slight twinge at the thought of them being away from him, but he trusts Wednesday to care for them. He watches as she thinks it over, weight shift slightly from foot to foot before she shakes her head. 

“You keep them. Well read through them together next time.” She closes the door with a loud click and makes her way toward the school. Tyler watches until she disappears from view. 

He’s tired, the long day finally catching up to him, but he knows he has one more stop before he heads home. Parking outside the Gate’s mansion, Tyler slips into the basement and deposits the jarred heart onto a shelf. He shoots off a quick text to Thornhill, grateful she wasnt here tonight. 

Luck seems to be on his side. His father isn’t home when he arrives and Tyler is able to slip up to his room without facing an interrogation about breaking curfew. He barely remembers to remove his bloody jeans and hide them under his bed to dispose of later. He falls asleep easy, his usual nightmares replaced by braids, brown eyes, and a ghost of a smile.

Chapter Text

The Weathervane is unusually busy for a Tuesday afternoon. With only two baristas on schedule, Tyler regulates Cassie to the register while he works on completing drink orders. He’s so focused on his task, he’s half finished making the quad over ice before he realizes the implication of the order. He turns, gaze scanning the booth Wednesday claimed as her own. His soulmate has her arms crossed, eyes focused on the seat opposite her. Her jaw is tense, and her lips are slightly turned downward. There’s hostility coming off on her in waves causing the patrons of the previously crowded booths around her to vacate and preventing new customers from filling them.

He gulps, hoping he’s not the source of her wrath. He’s mildly concerned what she’ll do if he is. Last time she'd thrown knives at him, and he'd like to avoid a reoccurrence if possible. While he’d healed easily enough, he doesn’t think The Weathervane customers would react well to a round two. The last thing he needs is someone calling 911 and his father arriving to find Wednesday holding a knife to his throat. 

He hasn’t seen her since he dropped her off at the gates of Nevermore a couple days ago. He'd thought about texting Enid a couple times but rejected the idea. He doesn’t think Wednesday would be too happy if she knew he was texting Enid to check up on her. He racks his brain, trying to think of anything he’d done in the past couple days that could have angered her. He comes up empty. 

He finishes making her drink, places it on the pick up counter and calls out her name. He doesn’t linger, instead turning back to the three remaining drink orders. The crowd has thinned now, probably partly due to Wednesday’s attitude disrupting the cafe’s previously peaceful environment. If he finishes these drinks, he can take a break and figure out what’s going on. Ten minutes later, his own drink in hand, Tyler approached her booth and slips in the seat across from her. Her eyes lift to his face, but she doesn’t speak. 

“Are you okay?” He asks, making a vague gesture at her. “You seem…more murderous than usual.”

“Thank you.” Her lips twitch slightly before forming a hard line again. Her eyes narrow and she grimaces before saying, “Everyone thinks we’re dating.” 

She spits the words with such venom, he changes his mind. He’d rather she stabbed him again. It would hurt less. “Is that really so bad?” He hears himself ask.

"Yes.”

Oh, that hurts. More than he thought possible. She’s repulsed by the very thought of them being together. His heart is in her hands and with every second that passes, she squeezes it just a little bit tighter. 

“Enid.” She growls and Tyler is bewildered as to how her roommate is suddenly a part of this conversation. “She implied it in her blog. My harebrained classmates keep whispering and smiling at me. They want to know why I’m dating a normie. They’re inane questions are tiresome.”

The pressure around his heart starts to lessen at the realization that’s she’s repulsed by the attention and not the idea of dating him. He takes a sip of his latte in an attempt to further call himself. “Why does Enid think we’re dating?”

"She thinks we’re having intercourse.”

Tyler sputters, choking on the latte he’d had the misfortune of drinking. “What?” 

“Sex, Tyler. She thinks we’re having sex.” Her face shows clear disappointment at having to explain a simple definition to him. 

“Yeah. Yeah, I got that.” He says as he reaches for a napkin. “Why does she think that?”

”I asked her to stay with Yoko so we could be alone. To sneak out to the farm. She inferred I was asking because we wanted to engage in carnal activities.” 

He understands how Enid came to that conclusion but he doesn’t dare say that to Wednesday. Instead he focuses on Enid, mildly worried about her well-being. “Is Enid still alive?”

”Yes. I have not yet decided on an appropriate punishment.” 

Wednesday speaks in her usual apathetic tone, but Tyler can her her unspoken words, her hesitation to physically harm her closest friend. “Have you considered psychological torture?”

Wednesday tilts her head to the side, eyes widening slightly. “Go on.”

“What does Enid love?”

“Ajax.” Wednesday answers quickly.

“Okay. How about something of the non-human variety?” They have enough going on without adding ‘covering up the murder of Enid’s crush’ to their list. 

Wednesday thinks for a minute before replying, “She’s addicted to technology. And she’s obsessed with those horrific stuffed unicorns.” 

Wednesday shivers when she mentions Enid’s stuffed animal collection and Tyler barely suppresses his laughter. He’ll always be amused at the things she finds terrifying. Propping his elbows on the table he leans forward, Wednesday mirroring him until their heads are inches are only inches apart. 

“That’s not a terrible plan.” Wednesday responds when he finishes sharing his ideas.

He preens at her compliment, and he feels the Hyde purring at her approval. Behind him, he can hear Cassie calling his name from the register and he sighs knowing his break is up. “Are you sticking around for a while? My shift ends in an hour.”

"Yes. My town pass has been reinstated. Principal Weems believes our friendship is enough of a connection to keep me at Nevermore.”

Reaching into his pocket, he fishes out his car keys and places them onto the table. “My mom’s journals are in the backseat, if you wanted to get a head start reading them.” As he turns and walks to the register, he releases the smile he’d been holding in, allowing it to creep up his face. Despite his past transgressions, she’d referred to him as a friend. It’s a step in the right direction. 

Wednesday flips through the journal in front of her, careful not to rip or crease any of the pages. Her anger has dissipated greatly since taking to Tyler. While not ideas she would have thought of, with a few tweaks, his plan is a fitting retaliation for Enid’s violation. As she skims through the first of Francoise’s journals, she tries to only focus on the parts pertaining to the Hyde. She’s not sure how much else Tyler is comfortable with her reading. She plans to respect his privacy where his mother’s personal life is concerned.

Shes on the fourth journal, confirming what Tyler told her about Hydes and soulmates when she hears the sheriff’s voice as he enters the cafe. Quickly she stashed the journal in her bag and pretends to be engrossed in one of her textbooks instead.

“Addams.” He greets, annoyance in his voice as he stops at the edge of her booth.

“Sheriff.” She answers without looking up from her book.

She hears as he slides into the booth across from her, removing his head and placing it on the table. “I can’t stop this, can I?” His tone is wary and resigned with a hint of fear.

She finally looks up and meets his gaze, holding it silently until he adverts his eyes. “Do you think yourself smarter than the universe?”  

“I think people likes to romanticize soulmates. They share the success stories but hide the tragic ones. Sometimes soulmates only bring each other pain.”

“Are you worried I’m going to hurt Tyler?”

“You’re an Addams. It’s what you do.”

Her eyes narrow as another thought occurs to her. “Or are you worried that Tyler will hurt me?” He doesn’t answer but guilt pools in his eyes and she surmises her suspicions are correct. 

“I’m not the type of girl you wanted tied to your son by the universe. I’m not a good person. My morals are skewed from what society deems appropriate. I’m abrasive and stubborn and I’ll always put myself first.” Donovan’s frown deepens the longer she speaks. “But I’ll never harm Tyler unnecessarily. And he won’t hurt me. He can control himself.” 

She waits for him to register the double meaning on her words. When he does, he exhales loudly, braces his elbows on the table and leans forward slightly. 

“So there will be no more bear attacks?”

“No.” It’s not exactly the truth. Depending on the extent of damage they cause during Thornhill’s demise, it may be the cover story the need to use. She doesn’t find that detail pertinent to share with Tyler’s father at this time though.

They slip into silence and Wednesday’s eyes drift towards the counter where Tyler is staring that them. He looks distressed, shoulders tense and eyes shift between his father and herself. He mouths something she can not distinguish. She tries to give him a quick reassuring look, but it must have been unsuccessful because his frown only deepens. 

“I’m trusting you, Addams.” Her eyes shift back to the sheriff as he speaks. He stands, placing his hat back on his head. “Don’t make me regret it.” He makes his way to the exit, leaving without ordering the coffee that originally brought him there. 

Wednesday is preoccupied with the photos of Tyler’s mother, one in particular drawing her attention, when Tyler’s shift ends ten minutes later. Instead of taking the seat his father recently vacated, he slips into the booth beside her, arm brushing against hers. Predictably the first thing he asks is about his father. 

“What um…what were you and my dad talking about?”

Instead of answering, she holds up one of the photos. “Do you know who this is?”

He takes the photo from her with a small frown. “My mom, but I don’t know the girl with her. Flipping it over, he reads the short description on the back. “Morticia Frump. Sophomore year.”

“My mother.” 

His eyes widen in surprise. “Oh. Wow. Wait.” He reaches across the table and grabs one of his mother’s journals. It’s one that Wednesday dismissed after quickly skimming it and finding no mention of Hydes. He’s flipping through the pages quickly in search of something. “I think I remember…Yeah right here.” He angles the journal towards her, pointing at a small entry. 

Morticia invited me to join The Nightshades today. She’s coming to collect me tonight after curfew for initiation.

“I don’t know what The Nightshades are though.”

“Nevermore’s secret society.” She replies distractedly. She’s focused on the small flower Tyler’s mother has drawn next to her entry. She’s seen that before. She searches his brain, trying to remember where she’s seen it before when it hits her. Her vision of Rowan’s death. 

Quickly searching her bag, she finds the sheet of paper she’d taken from Rowan that night. She analyzes the page, tilting it this way and that, until she spots the symbol in the corner. Stupid, she berates herself, you should have made this connection sooner.

“We need to search the Nightshade’s library.” She tells Tyler, who has been watching her silently. 

“Do you know where it is?” He questions. 

“No.” She retorts, dread filling her as she realizes what she has to do. “But my mother does.”

Tyler asks to be there for when she calls, even though he won’t be available to stop by Nevermore until the following evening. Wednesday begrudgingly agrees after making him promise to stay silent and out of frame. She’s unwilling to face the inquisition from her parents that will undoubtedly follow if they get even a hint there’s a boy in he life in any capacity. 

Tyler has just finished tying his apron for his afternoon shift the next day when the bell above the door jingles, followed by loud angry steps stomping towards the counter. 

“Did you help her do this?” He hears before a cellphone is thrust into his face. He steps back, taking the phone into his hands and squinting at the screen. He can’t stop the chuckle that escapes his lips and it’s met with an indignant squawk from Enid. 

“It’s not funny, Tyler!” She snarls, hands on her hips and eyes livid. 

He has to disagree. The first picture shows Enid asleep in her bed, the bodies of several dismembered plush unicorns surrounding her. Under that picture is a small written obituary for Luna, Sapphire, and Clarabella. Accompanying the obituary is a picture of the unicorn heads impaled on a spikes, as if they are traitors on display in medieval London. 

“That’s my blog! She posted it on my blog!” Her voice is shrill, carrying over the cafe, causing nosey customers to try and eavesdrop on their conversation. He motions for his coworker to take over the register then places a hand on Enid’s arm to guide her towards the storage room. When the door closes behind them, she whips around to face him. 

“Are you trying to tell me you didn’t help her work my computer?”

“No. I had nothing to do with that.” He defends, but Enid just give him a disbelieving glare. 

“Then how’d she figure out how to post on my blog?”

“Wednesday’s resourceful.” He shrugs. “She probably learned out of spite.”

“So you had nothing to do with any of this?” Her eyes are scanning his face and he knows he’s not getting out of this room without admitting the truth. 

“Well…I may have given her the idea to destroy a couple unicorns. And cut your phone charger.” Enid growls beside him. “But the decapitations, obituary, and posting on your blog? That was all Wednesday.”

“Thanks for that. She let me use my phone all day without saying anything. I didn’t know it was broken until I went to charge it. Sylvia let me use her charger earlier, but I have to wait a whole week for a new one to arrive.” Enid complains with a scowl. 

“You had to know she wouldn’t be happy you included her in your blog, right?” He questions. 

Enid sighs, some of the anger seeming to evaporate. “I didn’t think she’d get that mad. Everyone saw the two of you at the Poe Cup. Most of them were already speculating if you were dating anyway.”

“But we’re not. We’re just friends.”

Enid studies him again and Tyler tries not to flinch under her intense gaze. “But you want to be more than friends, right?”

Tyler sighs, running hand through his hair before answer. “It doesn’t matter what I want.”

Enid offers him a smile full of pity. “I think she likes you too, for what it’s worth. She’s just not ready to admit it to herself.”

This isn’t a conversation he wants to have with Enid. Because Enid doesn’t know the whole truth. She doesn’t know that he already screwed up by keeping secrets and betraying Wednesday’s trust. “I’ll make you a deal. If you keep Wednesday and I out of your blog, I’ll let you borrow my spare charger until yours arrives.”

“Fine, but only if you don’t help Wednesday scheme against me again. She’s scary enough without your input.”

“Deal. At least your punishment was just destruction of property. When I made her mad, she threw her knives at me.” He laughs, opening the door and ushering Enid back towards the counter. 

“Oh, she does that all the time.” Enid replies, flippantly. “I think it’s just a scare tactic. She’s never hit me.”

Tyler chuckles darkly and Enid turns to face him, eyes wide. “Wait. She actually stabbed you?”

At his nod, Enid begins searching his body, looking for signs of injury. “It’s okay. I’m fine.” He says brushing off her worry.

“Oh my god! That’s why there was blood on the floor the morning after the Poe Cup! I was too afraid to ask Wednesday about it when I came back that morning.”

He rubs the back of his head and offers her a sheepish grin. “Sorry about that. I probably should have cleaned that up before I left.” 

Enid shakes her head and gives him an disbelieving look, but let’s the subject drop. He informs her he’ll be dropping by Nevermore that evening and promises to bring his extra charger. With a coffee in hand, she leaves the cafe much calmer than she entered. 

Scrubbing a hand through his hair again, he wonders how this has become his life. A month ago he couldn’t get a girl his age to even acknowledge him. Now he’s the apparent mediator between his soulmate and her self proclaimed best friend. 

“You’re late.” Wednesday hisses as Tyler exits his car, parking it in the same clearing they’d hidden it previously. 

“By only two minutes.” He defends, smiling brightly. 

Wednesday huffs and turns on her heel expecting him to follow her. They’ve almost made it out of the woods when she hears footsteps. Swiftly she pushes Tyler against the nearest tree, pressing herself against him in an attempt to make themselves invisible. His arms fall against her waist in his surprise and Wednesday finds herself drawn to them, admiring his muscle. She wonders if he retains the Hyde’s strength in human form. When she looks up, Tyler is watching her, a small smirk on his face. 

The sound of footsteps long gone, Wednesday forcibly pushes herself away. “You need to focus on your walking. Your steps are too loud.” She scolds in an attempt to cover up her embarrassment at entertaining such vain thoughts. 

When they reach the edge of the forest, Wednesday scans the area and upon finding no one nearby, instructs Tyler to follow her to the door closest to the stairwell. Inside the halls are empty, most students already retiring to their room for the night. 

Inside her dorm room, Wednesday watches as Tyler heads to her side of the room, pausing slightly as he passes the decapitated unicorn heads she’d place on a shelf. Enid had wanted to discard them, but Wednesday decided to keep them. Displaying them as a reminder that any offense committed against her will have consequences. 

“Have you and Enid made up?”

“She has agreed to keep my name out of her blog if I don’t destroy any more of her possessions.”

“That’s good.” Tyler response with a little smile. “How are we going to call your parents without a phone?”

Wednesday moves towards her desk, gesturing for Tyler to follow her. She instructs Tyler where to stand before opening up the case to reveal the crystal ball. 

“No talking.” She reminds him before tapping the ball twice, her parents faces appearing after only five seconds. 

“My little rain cloud! How I’ve missed you.” Her father’s voice fills the room. She shifts her eyes to Tyler quickly, scowling at the amusement in his eyes at her father's term of endearment. 

“Father. Mother, I have a question for you.” 

“Darling, of course. Ask me anything.” Her mother replies, offering a smile that only agitates Wednesday further. 

“Where..” Wednesday begins but is interrupted as her dorm door opens and Enid bounces in. 

“Hi bestie! Hi Tyler!” As she moves closer, she spots the crystal ball and freezes. “Oh. Hi Mrs. Addams, Mr. Addams.” She drags her eyes up to Wednesday, mouthing a quick sorry before scampering off to her bed. 

“Wednesday? Is there someone else there with you?” Wednesday ignores her mother, focusing on Tyler. His eyes are wide, leg jiggling nervously as he softly asks her what he should do. “It would be rude not to introduce us.”

She scowls at her mother’s scolding but grabs Tyler’s arm and yanks him closer to her. He situates himself behind her chair, hunching over and resting his head slightly on her shoulder to get a better view of her parents. She stiffens but decides not to shove him away. 

“Hello Mr. and Mrs. Addams. I’m Tyler Galpin.” He greets with a disgustingly charming smile. 

“Galpin? Francoise‘s son? I hadn’t heard that they allowed Hydes back at Nevermore. How delightful.”

“They haven’t, Mother. Tyler is a friend from Jericho.” She realizes her mistake too late. Her mother hones in on the word ‘friend’ and Wednesday know she’ll be questioned about it later. 

“That’s disappointing. Your mother and I have been advocating to overturn that unjust ruling for years. It’s such an awful prejudice.”

“That’s enough.” Wednesday interrupts before her parents can start probing about her and Tyler’s relationship. “I didn’t call to discuss Tyler or Nevermore policies. I need to know how to access the Nightshades’ library.”

“Have they not approached you yet, my little scorpion? As a legacy you are entitled to an invitation.” Her father seems distraught that she hasn't been given the opportunity to join his secret society. 

“I have no desire to follow in yours or Mother’s footsteps. I just need one of their books.”

“My little devil, I can’t divulge the location, but I can offer you a clue.”

Wednesday rolls her eyes at her mother’s antics but waits for her to continue.

“Poe guards the secret to the entrance."

“Is that all?” Wednesday growls in frustrated. Behind her she feels Tyler’s brush his hand along her back in an attempt to calm her down and she shoots him a glare.

“It’s enough. You’re a bright girl, Wednesday. You'll figure it out” Her mother reassures.

Wednesday scowls at her mother but knows her mother won't offer any further assistance. She and Tyler will have to work the riddle out on their own. "I need some books from the family library. Send anything pertaining to rituals requiring human body parts. It's urgent." She ends the call without waiting for a response. Turning to face Tyler, she intends to scold him for trying to abate her frustration when she catches sight of Enid. Cold washes over her as she realizes she'd forgotten Enid was in the room and privy to the entire call. 

She meets Tyler’s eyes and as one they turn to face her roommate. Enid’s eyes are darting frantically between Wednesday and Tyler, finally settling on the latter. Her face holds a mix of fear and confusion, and her nails are elongating and retracting repeatedly, as if she’s not completely in control of them. 

“What the hell is going on?”

Chapter Text

“What the hell is going on?” Enid screeches, eyes narrowing on Tyler. “You’re an Outcast? What’s a Hyde? Why are you hiding it from everyone?” Her eyes are crazed, voice becoming more hysterical with every question asked. “And you!” Enid whirls on Wednesday, pointing an accusing finger at her. “You knew this whole time and didn’t say anything?”

Tyler turns to Wednesday, hoping to follow her lead, but for once the raven haired girl seems unsure of the situation. It’s going to be up to him to navigate through Enid’s questions.

“Enid.” He speaks low and slowly in an attempt to calm her. “My mother went to school here. She was a Hyde, maybe the last to attend Nevermore before they were banned. She passed the mutation on to me.”

Enid moves back until she can sit on the edge of her bed, but never takes her eyes off Tyler. “But what is a Hyde and why are they banned from Nevermore?”

Tyler shrugs. “I honestly don’t know. My knowledge on Hydes is limited to my mother’s journals and she never wrote about it.”

“Why did you hide that you were an outcast? I thought we were becoming friends.” The hurt is evident in her voice and Tyler fights back the guilt that tries to consume him.

“Hydes have a complicated relationship with the outcast community. I hid it from Wednesday at first too, so please don’t be mad at her. She only recently learned the truth.” He offers her a weak smile. “Besides it was nice talking to you without judgement or revulsion. I didn't want that to change. Hydes are…”

He pauses, trying to think how best to describe a Hyde. He doesn’t think describing himself as a murderous monster born to follow his masters every whim will be very reassuring. 

“You could show her.” Wednesday speaks for the first time, drawing both his and Enid’s attention. She gestures towards him and Tyler realizes she means for him to transform right there. 

“Wednesday! I am not transforming in the middle of your dorm room.”

“Why not? It’s the easiest way to show her.” Her face remains stoic but Tyler can read her well enough to know she’s annoyed by his refusal.

“Why? For one, I’m tired of shredding my clothes each time I turn. I’m running out of clothes, and I can’t exactly afford to go shopping.” He meets Wednesday’s eyes, lips quirking up slightly before he continues. “And I don’t exactly think it’s appropriate for me to strip naked in front of you and your roommate.”

Behind him he can hear Enid grumble “Oh god. Please don’t.” but his attention is focused on Wednesday. More specifically the blush working its way up her neck to her cheeks. Knowing his words had such an effect on her causes pride and elation to burn in his chest. Wednesday refuses to look at him, embarrassed by her reaction, he assumes. Instead, she addresses Enid, head tilted downward to obscure her face.

“A Hyde is a shapeshifter, like you. Unlike werewolves they’re not restricted to a lunar cycle. They can shift at will.”  

“Your father said there’s a prejudice against them. Why?” Enid asks, eyeing Tyler cautiously.  

“Hydes have a master, someone they must obey inexplicably. Throughout history they’ve been exploited by individuals too weak to carry out their own nefarious tasks. They abused their position of power, but it was the Hydes that are judged and feared.” Wednesday spits the words out in disgust and Tyler can’t help but feel surprised. He knows she accepts the Hyde, is probably even intrigued by the monster. Still, he hadn’t expected her to defend him so fiercely. Not so soon after he’d betrayed her trust. 

Enid turns to face him, studying him silently. He presumes she’s imagining him shifting, possibly trying to picture the creature he becomes. Tyler is confident whatever image she’s conjuring is nowhere close to the grotesque monster that resides inside him. 

“So, you have a master. Have they ever ordered you to hurt someone.” Her eyes are hard, but he can detect apprehension in her voice. He wishes he could lie. Tell her he's never harmed anyone, but his lies have a way of coming back to haunt him. 

"Yes.”

He watches as she gulps before asking her next question. “To kill?”

“Yes.” He can guess her next question and answers before she can even ask it. “Four times, though only one was of my own volition.”  

Enid gasps, eyes contorting in terror as she jumps from the bed, grabs Wednesday by the wrist and attempts to drag her towards the door. 

“Enough Enid.” Wednesday huffs, yanking her arm out of her roommate’s grasp. “Tyler’s not dangerous.”

Enid squawks in disbelief and Tyler has to agree with her. He might have some control over the Hyde, but he’ll always consider himself dangerous. It’s only Wednesday’s presence and influence that keeps him from eventually going on a murder spree.

“He’s killed four people, Wednesday! How is he not dangerous? He’s a mass murderer!” She yells frantically. “We…we have to tell Weems. And the sheriff.” Her eyes widening even further when she remembers he’s the sheriff’s son. 

“Serial killer.” Wednesday replies, unfazed by Enid’s rant. 

“What?” Enid’s tone changing from panicked to confused. 

“A mass murderer kills multiple people at one time. A serial killer kills three or more people at separate events.” Wednesday sounds bored as she spouts out the definitions and Tyler hears a small chuckle pass through his lips. 

Enid shoots him a heated glare, but quickly diverts her attention back to Wednesday. “Out of everything I said, that’s what you chose to focus on?”

“If you’re going to label Tyler, you should at least use the correct one.” 

“You’re unbelievable.” Enid cries, throwing her hands up in exasperation.

Wednesday rolls her eyes. “Telling Weems would be pointless. There’s no evidence Tyler ever committed a crime. Besides, the sheriff already knows.” 

Wait. What?, Tyler thinks. He was pretty positive his father knew he was a Hyde and suspected he was responsible for the bear attacks, but Wednesday spoke with certainty. “That’s what you and my dad were talking about at the Weathervane?” He asks. 

“Yes.” She answers shortly before returning her attention back to Enid. “Tyler is a victim. His master was a heinous woman who used Tyler for her own means. You shouldn’t judge him for actions outside his control.” Her voice is hard, daring Enid to disagree. 

Of course, Enid is one of the few people willing to go up against her. “He said he killed four people.” Her gaze falls on Tyler, eyes laced with determination and fear. “You admitted you killed once by choice.”

“And I’d do it again.” He hisses. Its probably the wrong thing to admit, given the circumstances, but the imagine of Wednesday choking, gasping for air from an invisible force is still fresh in his mind. His desire to protect her stronger than his own survival instincts. 

“He killed Rowan.” Wednesday interrupts before Enid can speak. “I’d be dead, if not for him.”

Tyler waits as Enid’s eyes filter between him and Wednesday. Eventually her shoulders sag, head falling into her hands. Only his heightened hearing allows him to hear her muffled “This is too much.”

Wednesday watches as Enid processes the information she’s been given. She doesn’t really understand why this is such a big issue for her. They’ve given her the facts and it’s clear Tyler isn’t a danger to either of them. But Tyler isn’t acting like Enid’s response is unexpected so maybe he’d predicted this reaction from her. 

Wednesday curses herself for being unusually inattentive to her surrounds. She knew Enid was in the room, having interrupted the call and alerted her parents to Tyler’s presence, but she’d allowed herself to become distracted. Her annoyance at her parent’s probing and the unspoken questions about Tyler that’d she’d undoubtedly face next call had allowed her to forget about her roommate. At least Enid hadn’t mentioned Tyler was her soulmate. She plans on keeping that from then as long as possible. She has no desire to hear her parents crow about their own love story and how Wednesday’s following in their footsteps by finding her soulmate at Nevermore.

She'd been surprised how protective she felt over Tyler when Enid started to panic, when she'd started to judge him for complying with the orders he couldn't defy. It was an unusual feeling, one that previously only extended to her brother. Tyler is strong, stronger than almost anyone she's ever met and he's capable of protecting himself. Yet she couldn't help defending him with vigor, compelled to make Enid understand that he was not a danger to either of them. 

“How can you be sure your master won’t order you to kill again? They could order you to kill me or Wednesday and you couldn’t disobey.” Enid’s voice interrupts her thoughts. 

Wednesday studies her. She seems less angry and hysterical now. It appears she’s accepted their explanation but is still cautious of the situation, wary eyes focused on Tyler. Beside her, said boy turns to face her, silently asking how she wants to handle this, how much of the Hyde-soulmate bond she wants to divulge.

“Because I’m his master now and I'd never order him to kill for me. I wouldn’t deprive myself of that pleasure.”

Enid stares at her, lips pursed, before finally shaking her head. “What happened to the old master?”

She can hear the concern in Enid’s voice and it make her blood boil. Thornhill doesn’t deserve concern. She deserves a slow painful death. One filled with blood and cuts, broken bones, missing appendages and stab wounds. She deserves to be tied to a chair or strung up by chains. Left to rot, cold and uncomfortable, body crying out from pain and hunger. When they can torture her no more, when her body becomes too weak to respond to the pain, only then can she die. Wednesday wants to be the one to deal the killing blow, she dreams of it, but it only fair she offers the opportunity to Tyler. He’s the one she tortured and used. It should be him that ends her life.

“Nothing yet, but she’ll get what she deserves.” Wednesday spits maliciously. 

Enid gulps before nodding. “Okay.”

“Okay?” Tyler asks, staring at Enid in disbelief. 

“This..this is still a lot and I'm gonna be processing it for days. I'm still not okay with the murders." She replies, a shiver running down her spine. "But I trust Wednesday and you seem like a good guy, Tyler. I like you.” She returns the weak smile he’d given her earlier. "I don’t want to know what you two have planned for your old master though. Plausible deniability and all.” 

“Thanks Enid.” He smiles and this time it’s wider, more full and slightly crooked. It’s blinding, more so than Enid’s colorful decorations. She should hate it as much as Enid’s bright bedspread or her disgustingly sappy pop music. Instead, that smile cause her body to heat up, her face to flush, and her belly to tingle unnaturally. She wants to chase that smile, discover how to permanently affix it to his face. 

“Oh my god! Wednesday!” Enid yelps, turning to face her again. “Why were you asking about rituals? Please tell me you're not planning on performing a ritual in our dorm. Thing is the only dismembered body part allowed in this room.” Enid’s nose scrunches in disgust and Wednesday finds the look almost comical. 

“Thing?” Tyler asks, looking between the roommate’s in confusion. 

“Wednesday!” Enid scolds. “You haven’t introduced them yet?” 

Wednesday rolls her eyes, but moves to her bed, moving a pillow to reveal Thing sleeping underneath. “Thing. Wake up.” He startles, standing at attention almost immediately. Behind her, she can hear Tyler gasp and turns to face him. 

“Is he..is he your pet?” Beside him Enid winces and from the bed, Things sends Tyler an offensive gesture. 

“He’s part of Wednesday’s family.” Enid tells Tyler. Wednesday sends her a glare but doesn’t object to her statement.

“I have no plans to perform a ritual involving dismembered body parts in our dorm.” Wednesday clarifies. At her words, Thing scrambles up her arm, signing frantically. She ignores the panicked hand. If he’d been paying attention to her the last few days, he’d already know what she was talking about. 

“Then why…” Enid starts before Wednesday interrupts her with a shake of her head. 

“Plausible deniability.” She trusts Enid, but she wants to keep her ignorant about Thornhill. At least for now. It’s too much of a risk to involve Enid in their investigation. When the time comes, she promises herself she’ll tell her roommate everything.

“Fine.” Enid scowled before addressing Tyler. “Please keep her out of trouble.”

“I’ll do my best.” Tyler laughs and Wednesday huffs in annoyance. She’s glad Enid accepts Tyler, but the two of them becoming friends spells trouble. For her. They’ll use their charming smiles and puppy eyes to try and manipulate her. She needs to get this conversation back on track before they realize the power they possess over her.

“What do either of you know about Poe?” 

Tyler takes out his phone and types a little before answering. “He’s buried in Baltimore. If you were planning on exhuming his body for clues, that’s going to be a problem.” He tilts his phone for Wednesday to see a picture of Poe’s grave with an elaborate memorial built on top. As enticing as the thought is, she doesn't think gravedigging will be necessary. 

"The secret isn't buried with him. It'll be somewhere closer to the school." Wednesday knows her mother. If the secret was buried with Poe, her mother would never have provided her with the clue, too afraid that it would give Wednesday another incentive to flee Nevermore and never return.

"Oh!" Enid shouts. "The statue. The one off the quad."

That's it, Wednesday thinks to herself. She should have remembered the statue sooner. She'd taken refuge under it until Tyle found her after the Poe cup. "That's where we'll find the clue that leads us to the Nightshades."

“And the Nightshades are?” Enid questions. 

“Nevermore’s secret society. They have a library hidden somewhere on campus. We need to find it.” Tyler supplies helpfully. Wednesday can only shake her head fondly at Tyler acting like he’s the expert on a club he didn’t even know existed yesterday. 

"Are you up for another midnight adventure?" She asks Tyler. 

"You lead and I'll follow." He responds, making a sweeping gesture with his hands. She studies him, the quirk of his lips, the intensity of his eyes. He isn't just answering her question. He'll follower her anywhere. All she had to do is ask. 

They leave at the stroke of midnight, Enid deciding to stay behind, but requesting to be informed with the details in the morning. The halls are empty making it easy for them to reach their destination quickly. Wednesday withdraws two flashlights from her small bag, passing one to Tyler before clicking hers on to inspect the statue. Poe's signature raven is perched on one arm. In the other hand is an open book. Using Tyler as support, she climbs onto the statue. She shines her flashlight in search of clues, taking in his sanctimonious smirk, traveling down his body until her eyes fall onto the book. There engraved on the pages is a riddle. Not just a single riddle, but a series of riddles. Each line is its own separate riddle, coming together to form the final answer to the main riddle at the top: The answer will give a sharp cracking sound. Poe always had a penchant for riddles, and this might be his cleverest one yet. 

She reaches into her bag, locating a pen, but no paper. "Do you have any paper on you?" She asks Tyler. He pats down his jacket then digs his hands into his jeans. He finds an old receipt, crumpled into a ball. He unravels it, straightening it out the best he can before handing it to her. It'll have to do. "Hold this flashlight for me." She instructs, waiting for him to step closer before diving into the riddles.

She flies through them, answering them quickly. The riddles aren't hard, but she can see where they can trip someone up. Staring down at the answers, she studies them trying to piece together how they answer the final riddle. Her eyes fall on the first letters, reading each letter vertically. Snap twice. Smiling, she jumps down, Tyler's hands coming to her shoulders to steady her. She shakes them off, raising both hands and snaps twice. The raven's wings flap and then the statue is moving backwards, revealing an entrance with a descending staircase. 

"Ready to explore a creepy old staircase?" Tyler asks with a smile. 

Smile still on her face, Wednesday pushes forward, the sound of Tyler's footsteps right behind her. Photos of old Nightshade members line the stairwell. She's unsurprised to see one of her parents, her mother's judgmental stare following her as she descends the staircase. Even hundreds of miles away, she can't escape her mother's disappointment. When her feet hit the bottom step, she makes her way to the bookshelves lining the opposite wall. 

Such a waste, Wednesday thinks to herself as her eyes scan over the bookshelves. Such an impressive collection of books, a wealth of knowledge, all going untouched. Dust covers each shelf making it easy to spot the one disturbed spot on the shelf at her eye level. She grabs the book from the shelf, flipping through it quickly until she finds the page she’s looking for. It’s not what she was expecting to find. Of all the adversaries she imaged herself fighting, a pilgrim was not one of them. 

“Someone’s coming.” Tyler whispers urgently, grabbing the book from her hand and ripping out the page she’d been studying. The last thing she sees is Tyler shoving the folded page into his pocket before a bag is thrust over her head. 

Beside her, she can feel Tyler’s struggling as he tries to fight off their attackers. She reaches towards him, silently commanding him to stop resisting. As he stills, she idly wonders if it was just a reaction to her touch or if it was a response to her unspoken command. They’ll need to experiment later to determine how her commands work. 

Her hand is ripped from Tyler, wrists forced together in a bruising grip as someone else ties them together. Her restraints are tight enough to cut off circulation and she’s enjoying the slight burn the rope causes as it rubs against her skin. Unfortunately, her attackers lack the knowledge to execute a proper knot. If she chooses, she can release herself and Tyler in less than thirty seconds. 

For now though, she’ll wait. 

“Who dares breach our inner sanctum?” A loud voice rings out, echoing lightly, as the bag is ripped from her head. 

“You can take the mask off, Bianca.” The voice is distorted but by the tone, it’s clear it belongs to Bianca Barclay. She feels bitterly disappointed. She’d hoped their kidnappers would be more intriguing. “Wait. I prefer you with it on.”

She can feel the vibrations, a soft rumble, against her back as Tyler laughs at her quip. She fights to keep her face blank. She won’t allow this group of high school clowns to see her smile at Tyler’s reactions. She begins tugging on the ropes, freeing herself quickly before working on Tyler’s ropes. When his hands are free, she clasps one of his hands in hers, signally him to stay put. 

“How’d you get down here?” Xavier asks, standing to her left, a glare aimed at Tyler. Wednesday rolls her eyes at his predictability. 

“It wasn’t hard to figure out.” Wednesday replies flatly. When it becomes clear no further response is coming, Bianca huffs in annoyance. 

“The Nightshades are an elite social club. Emphasis on elite.” 

“We have roof parties, camp outs, the occasional midnight skinny dip.” Yoko supplies proudly. 

“And Yoko’s an amateur mixologist.” Divina boasts, smiling at her friend. 

“She makes a killer mojito. It can get pretty wild.” Ajax adds. 

“Wow. Do you guys even have a bedtime?” She snarks. Oh, how her father would weep if he saw just how far his precious club has fallen. “Last I heard the Nightshades had been disbanded.”

“Yeah, the group kind of lost its charter thirty years ago after some normie kid died.”

Wednesday files that information away for another time. The death of a normie at Nevermore would have a significant impact on the relationship between the school and Jericho. It shouldn’t be too hard to dig up more information on the incident. 

“But we have a lot of wealthy alumni.” Yoko is quick to add. “So, Weems looks the other way as long as nobody makes any waves.”

“Question is, what are we going to do with them?” Bianca asks drawing the attention back to her and Tyler. “Only members are allowed in the library.”

“I say we invite her to pledge. She is a legacy.” Of course, Xavier would think she’d be interested in joining. It shows how little he actually knows about her. 

“We talk about not making waves? She’s a tsunami.” Bianca scoffs and Wednesday rolls her eyes again.

How are any of them under the impression that she wants to join the Nightshades? Maybe if they were the Nightshades of old, actually fighting for Outcast acceptance and equality, she might have just the slightest inclination to join. But this group cares more for party than injustice. If they knew what Tyler was, what he was forced to do, they’d be calling for his execution instead of fighting the discrimination against Hydes. 

“Let me save you the trouble. I’m not interested in joining.”

“You’re seriously turning us down?” Yoko asks in disbelief. 

“Can you believe it?” Tyler laughs again at her comment and she swats his arm discreetly. 

“Untie her.” Bianca orders. 

“I freed myself five minutes ago.” She stands, raising both her hands. Tyler follows her lead, removing the bag from his head and moving to stand beside her. 

“What about him?” Xavier asks surly.

Wednesday resists the urge to roll her eyes a third time. Xavier’s hatred of Tyler is predictable and boring. His crush on her is equally as vexing. Even without Tyler in the picture, she’d never give Xavier a second of her attention. He has nothing to offer her and his personality leaves much to be desired. 

“He’s with me.” Wednesday replies, wrapping her hand around his wrist. “Or you can keep him. I’m sure the sheriff would love to arrest you all when I inform him you’ve kidnapped his son.” 

She doesn’t wait for a response and the Nightshades offered no resistance as she stomps towards the stairs, dragging Tyler along with her. He laughs quietly behind her and Wednesday is glad he can’t see the twitch of her lips at the sound. 

She keeps hold of his wrist until they reach the tree line. Silently, they make the trek to his car, speaking only once they're safely in the car, heat turned up. Tyler flips on the overhead light and hands her the folded sheet of paper he’d ripped out of the book back in the Nightshade’s library. 

Unfolding it, she aligns it with the page she’d taken from Rowan, taking in the full view of his mother’s vision. The school quad is ablaze in fire and she's facing off with a pilgrim. It makes no sense and Wednesday is beginning to question the credibility of Rowan’s mother. 

“Can I see that?” Tyler ask, reaching over to the examine the page he’d stolen tonight. “That looks like Joseph Crackstone.” 

“You know him?” She asks eagerly. If Tyler can identify her adversary, it’ll shave hours off their investigation.

“Well yeah. He’s like a foundering father of Jericho. We learn about him every year in History.” He replies frowning, nose scrunched in confusion. “But he’s been dead since the 1600s.” 

Interesting. She’ll need to dive further into Jericho’s history to find the connection between Crackstone and herself, she thinks. There’s nothing else she can learn tonight though, so she instead asks the question she meant to ask yesterday before becoming distracted. 

“Has Thornhill contacted you again?”

“No.” He says with a shake of his head. “I texted her after dropping the heart off at the Gates mansion. She hasn’t asked for any new parts yet.”

“Good.” She replies. She files away the information about the Gates mansion for later. It can’t be a coincidence Thornhill’s using the house of the boy her father supposedly killed. “Let me know as soon as she does. We’ll come up with a new plan.” Tyler nods and Wednesday moves to exit the car.

“Goodnight Wednesday.” He calls and she ducks her head back into the vehicle to see him smile. It’s wide and adoring, full of affection for her. It's a bit unsettling. People don't give her looks like that, save her own father. But her father's always been overly affectionate and passionate, handing out smiles to anything and anyone that causes him the slightest joy. She'd never had much of a reaction to her father's smiles. Tyler's smile though, that was just for her, and she didn't know how to respond to it. It causes a warmth to flood her body, a feeling of fondness for Tyler to bubble within her. These foreign emotions are unnerving. She told herself she'd never become romantically entangled with anyone. She's not so sure that true anymore. She can lie to Enid. She can lie to Tyler, but she can't lie to herself anymore. She's developed feelings for her soulmate.

In lieu of a response, Wednesday nods her head and slams the door shut. She makes the quiet walk back to Nevermore, trying to ignore the accelerated beating of her traitorous heart. 

Chapter Text

Tyler anxiously watches the double doors of the Weathervane, impatiently waiting to see who steps through them. He’s hoping it’ll be Wednesday, though he’d be happy with either Enid or Eugene as well. Honestly, he could tolerate spending the next couple hours with almost any of the Nevermore students. Either God is punishing him for the events of last Outreach Day or He has a sick sense of humor. Xavier Thorpe is the one student he didn’t want to see today. Despite what Xavier may think, he doesn’t hate the boy. Besides a few minor bouts of jealousy where Wednesday was involved, he’s mostly indifferent to Xavier. He just doesn’t want to deal with Xavier’s attitude for four straight hours. 

“Put this on.” He says suppressing a groan as he throws him a spare apron. “Come on, I’ll show you the ropes.” He can hear Xavier grumbling under his breath and resigns himself to a long couple hours. 

He spends the next half hour showing Xavier where the supplies are located, how to work each machine and demonstrates how to make a few of their commonly ordered drinks. It’s relatively simple. It’s the same training he gives all the new hires. Unlike his previous trainees, Xavier is a horrible barista. 

He’s the messiest barista Tyler has ever seen. There’s milks and coffee spilled all over the counters and floor, whip cream sprayed all over his apron, and chocolate syrup dripping down the side of a stack of to go cups. He continuously mixes up orders, leaving Tyler twice the work when he has to remake drinks. The last straw comes when Xavier almost breaks the espresso machine that Tyler still doesn’t know how to fix without Wednesday’s help. He regulates him to wiping down tables and collecting trash. Surely he can’t mess that up. 

“I’m headed to the supply room. Ring the bell if there’s a customer.”

He closes the door and leans his head against it, the coolness relieving some of the pain of his headache. He’s exhausted and he still has four hours left on his shift. At least the last hour will be free of Xavier. He gives himself a couple minutes to just breathe before he heads back out. He can’t leave Xavier alone for too long or something’s bound to end up broken. He’s about to round the corner when he hears Xavier’s voice, though it's lacking the resentment and anger he’d reserved for Tyler all morning. At least he can be friendly to the customers. He just hopes Xavier hasn’t attempted to make their drink order yet.

“I thought you were supposed to be at Pilgrim World.”  

"I deserted while my sanity was still intact.” The unexpected sound of Wednesday’s voice causes a smile to tug at his lips. He’d been hoping to see her today. 

"Oh yeah? Want a coffee? It one of the many perks of this wonderful assignment.” And there’s the sarcasm again. 

“I’m actually here for Tyler.” His smile grows wider at her admission. She only ever comes to the Weathervane during his shifts, so he knows she seeks him out. Still, it’s nice to hear her admit to out loud, especially to Xavier. 

“I told you he was bad news.” The anger is back in Xavier’s voice. From inside him, Tyler can hear the Hyde growl in displeasure. He wasn’t aware the other boy was actively trying to warn Wednesday away from him. 

“I remember. But who I speak to is my business.” The Hyde quiets down at Wednesday's words and Tyler is amused by the hostility in her voice. Tyler begins to move at the sound of the bell, taking a sick satisfaction in her obvious dismissal of the other boy. 

“You rang?” He arrives far too quickly for Wednesday to not know he’d been eavesdropping. She gives him a sharp look but doesn’t comment on it. Xavier’s eyes flicker between the two of them before scoffing and walking away. He pays him no mind, his attention solely focused on the girl in front of him. 

“I need your help.” She says, pulling out a paper map of Jericho. He nods, unable to deny her anything. “You know the original pilgrim meeting house, the one from the 1600s? Do you know if it’s still around?”

“What’s left is out in Cobham Woods, but it’s pretty much a ruin.”

“Show me.”

He hesitates, not sure if he wants to show her. He’s not stupid. This has something to do with Crackstone and Thornhill’s plan. With a resigned sigh, he points to the location on the map. If he doesn’t answer her, she’ll find some other way of getting the information she wants. “There, but it’s kind of sketchy. Squatters and meth heads use that place as a crash pad. My dad has to clear it out every couple weeks.”

“Thank you for the help.” She folds the map and begins stuffing it in her bag. She makes to leave, and Tyler reaches out, stopping her with a hand around her arm. Her eyes drift down to his hand before moving back to his face. 

“Wednesday, let me go with you. I can take you this afternoon. My shift ends at 2.”

She shakes her head. “Principal Weems would hang, draw and quarter me if I miss the big statue dedication. And as enticing as that sounds I prefer to keep a low profile.”

”Wednesday. Please wait for me.” He begs. She begins to shake her head again and he resigns himself to watching her walk away, unable to do anything to stop her. She surprises him when she brushes her fingers against the hand still around her arm, letting out a quiet “okay”. 

“Thank you.” He breathes in relief. He’s well aware she can take care of herself, but he can’t help but want to me there if she runs into any trouble. She opens her mouth to speak when the bell above the door jingles and the sharp voice of Principal Weems fills the café. 

“Ms. Addams. I believe you are suppose to be at Pilgrim World.”

They turn together to face the woman and Tyler stiffens at the sight of the redhead next to her. Beside him, Wednesday takes a step closer, placing herself in front of him as if to form a barrier between him and Thornhill. 

“It was decided my talents were better served elsewhere. Tyler was just about to teach me how to make a latte.” She drags him behind the counter, squeezing his hand tighter than necessary. 

“They kicked you out, didn’t they?” He whispers in her ear and she released his hand to elbow him in response. 

“That’s perfect. I’m in need of my daily mocha latte.” Thornhill says sunnily, but her eyes are narrowed, roaming between himself and Wednesday.

He takes a step back, moving away from Wednesday. He tries to act normal, smiling as he rings her up to alleviate any suspicions, all while cringing internally. The Hyde doesn't like her this close, doesn't like her proximity to Wednesday. His mantra of "kill, maim, protect" ringing over and over inside his head. It takes all of Tyler's concentration to drown out the words.

He attempts to stop the tremble in his hand as he accepts the cash for her drink. Her palm brushes against his and he feels as a folded slip of paper is pushed into his hand. She waits until he meets her gaze, her eyes piercing in a silent command to follow her order. He plays along, nodding his head before pocketing the paper to read with Wednesday once they’re alone. 

With Wednesday’s help, they work quickly to complete Thornhill’s drink. She spares him one final glance before departing and Tyler’s shoulders sag in relief when she’s finally gone.  He hates when she’s around. He feels gross and unsettled, the constant fear that she’ll somehow regain control of him always sitting in the back of his mind. 

“Are you okay?” Wednesday asks, a hint of concern lacing her usually apathetic voice. 

“No. Not really.” He answers honestly, a harsh bitter laugh escaping his throat. 

An unreadable look crosses her face and she fidgets slightly, one arm raising before lowering back to her side. Finally she nods to herself like she’s settled some internal debate, steps forward and places her arms around his waist. She tilts her head upwards, wide unblinking eyes meeting his. He smiles down at her, arms encircling her shoulders and pulls her tighter against his chest, head dropping down to rest against hers. The hug doesn’t last long, but it’s enough to settle his nerves and ground him. He’s here with Wednesday. Thornhill no longer has any control over him and never will ever again. 

“Thank you.” He says earnestly. He knows how much she’s adverse to physical touch and he’s grateful she was willing to initiate physical contact to comfort him. 

Instead of responding to his gratitude, she grabs a to go to cup from the stack and hands it to him. “Teach me to make something else.”

He complies, working through the majority of the menu before she has to leave. Xavier sends them a scathing look a few drinks in and skips out on his shift at least half hour early. Tyler lets him go without a fuss, selfishly taking the opportunity to spend time along with Wednesday. She scrunches her nose up at most of the drinks, but he convinces her to try a sip of some of the less sweet orders. Still when she leaves to head to lunch before the statue dedication ceremony, it’s with her usually quad over ice in hand. 

Alone in the Weathervane, he pulls the slip of paper out of his pocket. It’s brief. Only a handful of words. There’s no way an animal is going to be able to deceive Thornhill this time.

Three toes. Two days.

Wednesday scans the crowd. She finds Enid in the front row, talking animatedly with Yoko and Divina. She seems more perky than usual. Whatever happened to excite her, Wednesday’s sure she’ll hear about it later. Her gaze falls to where the Jericho students are sitting, but Tyler isn’t among them. 

When she left the Weathervane, Tyler promised he’d make it to the ceremony in time to see her play. It shouldn’t make her nervous. She knows her skills on the cello are unmatched by anyone in town. Even if Weems is forcing her to play a ludicrous song she’s never practiced, she’ll play it expertly. But Tyler has a way of making her feel emotions she’s never felt before. The nerves linger, no matter how hard she tries to force them away. 

She listens as Mayor Walker and Principal Weems paint Joseph Crackstone as a noble righteous man who wanted peace and unity among the communities. She might not know much about Crackstone, but if the prophecy is anything to go by, she’s sure he was probably a bigoted man with a hatred for Outcasts. He shouldn’t be immortalized in bronze, forcing a Outcasts to walk by him every time they come to town. She’ll need to formulate a plan to rid them of that statue at a later time. 

For now, she holds her bow, waiting for her cue to begin playing. She takes one last peak at the crowd, this time finding Tyler seated next to his father. As she begins playing, he catches her eye and waves, wide smile gracing his face. She gives herself a moment to just look at him. She takes in his expressive hazel eyes, floppy hair, and ever-present smile. He looks innocent, sweet. But she knows there’s a darkness that lies within. She’s seen his monstrous form, watched him kill. She’s witnessed his power and strength, watched him maul his victim maliciously. She sees all of him. And her heart has decided he’s the one it wants to keep. 

She tried to ignore the feelings he stirred up in her. Tried to push them down. Told herself they were only temporary. Just an infatuation for the most interesting boy she’d ever met. Then she’d seen him again today and she knew that was all a lie. With one look, he makes her heart race, her body flush. He holds a piece of her soul and now it seems he’s claimed her heart too. 

She’d attempted to leave earlier after he’d provided her the location of the meeting house. She needed space to deal with her emotions. She never expected to be romantically interested in anyone, least of all the soulmate she grew up hating. But the wild look on his face, the panic in his eyes as he begged her to stay made her pause. The was no urgency to investigate the meeting house right away. It could wait until the evening. Tyler might as well accompany her. He’s involved in this just as much as she is. 

She's glad she stayed when Thornhill arrived. She’d felt him stiffen and she immediately placed herself in front of him, an inherent instinct to protect him. She’d dragged him away as quickly as she could, partly to put distance between him and Thornhill, but mostly to quiet the loud possessive voice that screamed ‘mine mine mine’ every time Thornhill looked at him. She’d had to hold back a growl when Tyler interacted with her at the register. When Thornhill’s hand grazed his, she’d had the urge to withdraw the dagger from her boot and end her right there, witnesses be damned. 

When she was finally gone, it was clear Tyler was distressed. Slumped shoulders, a slight tremor, and eyes that were looking at her, but not entirely focused. After a quick debate, she’d decided the best way to comfort him was physical contact. She can’t remember ever imitating a hug, had no idea if she’d do it properly, but he relaxed into her quickly. His gratitude was unexpected, and she hadn't known how to react. She didn’t comfort him because she expected anything from him. She’d done it simply because she wanted to, because she hated the thought of Thornhill causing him more pain for even a second longer. 

She pulls herself from her thoughts as she plays the final notes of the infuriating song. She waits impatiently as Weems and the mayor make their final remarks then she’s free to go. She packs up her cello, determined to return it back to Nevermore herself. She already hates that someone else touched it, removing it from her room and transporting it to Jericho for the ceremony. 

“Hey.” She hears Tyler’s voice from beside her. “You were amazing.”

“Thank you.” She replies, taking a step closer and lowering her voice before asking “Are you free tonight to search the meeting house?”

“Yeah. Um..” He pauses and Wednesday notices he seems nervous, right leg bouncing while his left hand inches toward his pant’s pocket. He pulls a small slip of paper out of his pocket and hands it to her. “Thornhill passed this to me today at the Weathervane.”

She reads it quickly, scowling at the words. “Why didn’t you tell me earlier?” She growls. 

“I don’t know. I guess I just didn’t want to think about her after she was gone. I didn’t even read it until after you left.” 

She exhales loudly, taking in Tyler’s guilty expression. She knows her anger is misplaced. It’s not really Tyler she’s angry at, though she doesn’t really appreciate him withholding information from her again. 

“It’s fine. Pick me up at the gates at 8. Cut your lights. We’ll search the meeting house tonight and I’ll come up with a plan for this.” She replies, handing him back the slip of paper. 

They quickly exchange goodbyes and Wednesday makes her way towards the shuttle. As she passes the seating area, she spies a discarded copy of Jericho’s daily newspaper. Softly setting down her cello, she grabs the paper, flipping through it quickly until she finds the correct section. Scanning the page, she smiles slightly when she finds what she’s looking for.

If Tyler’s up for it, they can search the meeting house and take care of Tyler’s problem all in the same night. She’ll even get to use some of her tools that have been collecting dust for far too long. It could be an eventful evening. She’ll never admit it to him, but these nighttime escapades with Tyler are becoming her favor part of attending Nevermore. 

Chapter Text

When Wednesday arrives back at her dorm, she finds Thing resting atop a small parcel on her bed. She take her time removing her cello from its case and setting it in its rightful place by the window. Thing scampers off the package as she nears her bed, waiting patiently as she tears the box open. Inside are four books, hopefully at least one will be helpful in uncovering Thornhill’s plot. 

“Alert me if you find anything useful.” She instructs Thing as she slides a book over to him. 

Crossing her legs so they are tucked comfortably underneath her, she grabs one of the remaining books and begins to read. She skims through the first few pages until a small passage catches her attention. 

Rituals can be particularly finicky. Instructions must be followed precisely. One wrong ingredient or a mispronunciation of an incantation will result in a failed ritual or an unintended outcome.  

She marks the page with a small slip of paper to it will easy to find again later then continues reading. She’s about a third of the way through the book when Thing snaps loudly next to her to gain her attention. He pushes the book toward her, crawling onto the page to point to the section he wants her to read. 

Rituals involving body parts, also referred to as blood rituals, are rare and have a low success rate. Blood rituals generally require an extensive list of hard to obtain ingredients and must be performed under a celestial event in order to channel the magic. Blood line curses, resurrection, and killing curses are the most commonly performed blood rituals. 

Wednesday reads the passage a second time, thinking about the drawing of Rowan’s mother’s vision. “She’s trying to resurrect Crackstone.” She tells Thing, disgust coating her voice. Thing never gets the chance to reply. Her dorm room door is thrown open when a loud bang and Wednesday reaches down to unsheathe the dagger from its holster on her thigh in preparation for an attack. 

“Wednesday!” Enid shrieks so loudly Wednesday is sure Tyler can hear it all the way back in Jericho. Disappointed, she returns the dagger back to its holster. For a second, she’d been excited at the prospect of a fight. “OMG! Wednesday!” Enid shrieks again, this time throwing herself at her roommate, knocking Wednesday on her back, Enid landing on top of her. She seems entirely unperturbed as Wednesday shoves against her, trying to extract herself from Enid’s embrace. 

“Unhand me, Enid.” She growls as she continues her attempts to escape.

Enid huffs out a frustrated laugh but complies, rolling over so she’s laying on her back beside Wednesday. “It’s him! It’s him!”

Wednesday turns her head so she’s facing Enid instead of the ceiling, noting the dopey smile on her face. “It’s who?”

“Ajax! He’s my soulmate!” She squeals, doing a little clap with her hands, smiling growing impossibly wider. “We were brushing the squirrels in Uriah’s Heap when our hands touched and then suddenly...colors!”

She squeals again and Wednesday winces. The shrill tone and the proximity of Enid’s face to her ears causes them to ring. “You’ve known Ajax for a while now. How didn’t you know he was your soulmate?” She asks, brow wrinkled slightly in confusion. 

“Yeah, but we’ve never made skin contact.” She answers with a shrug. “You know interspecies soulmates are rare and it’s even more rare for werewolves. We’re pack creatures. We’re usually bonded to each other.”

Wednesday nods in acknowledgement. "Tell him if he breaks your heart, I’ll nail gun his.”

“Look at us. Threatening each other’s soulmates.” Enid beams at Wednesday’s words. 

“When did you threaten Tyler?” Wednesday quarries. Neither Enid or Tyler has mentioned that to her before. 

“The day he told me he was your soulmate.” She pauses, eyes widening. “That was before I knew he was a Hyde. I bet he wasn’t even scared of me.” She looks disappointment, much to Wednesday’s amusement. 

“I think you underestimate how terrifying you can be, Enid.” Wednesday placates her.

Enid smiles, sitting up to survey her side of the room. “Oh, Wednesday. It’s…”

“Repulsive? An assault on my eyeballs every morning?” Wednesday supplies. 

“Beautiful.” Enid corrects with a roll of her eyes. “Some of us grew up in a monochrome world and actually appreciate colors.”

“And some of us weren’t granted that luxury.” 

Tyler is waiting for her, leaned against his car with his arms folded across his chest, when she arrives at the gates at 7:50. He pushes himself upright when he sees her advance, smiling at her gently. 

"You're early." She says in way of greeting. 

"Well yeah. Didn't want to get scolded for being late again." He laughs, curls bouncing. 

"Let's go. We have a lot to accomplish tonight." She says, indicating for Tyler to pop the truck so she can deposit the two shovels in her hand. Tyler eyes the shovels questioningly but complies with her requests. Once free of the shovels, she slides into the car and Tyler is quick to follow. 

While Wednesday seems comfortable riding in silence, he doesn't share the same sentiment. He's never been a fan of silence. It gives his mind too much time to wander, to overthink and drive himself crazy. They've only just turned onto the road that will lead them back into town when he opens his mouth to speak. "So are you going to tell me why you were kicked out of Pilgrim World?"

Wednesday studies him silently, tilting her head slightly. "I was caught breaking into the old meeting house. Eugene is a terrible lookout." She finally responds.

"Did you get Eugene in trouble too?" He asks with a laugh, thinking about the overenthusiastic boy. He needs to remember to find time to visit Eugene, help him with his bees like he promised at the Poe Cup.

"I saved him from those bullies from town. They tried putting him in the stocks. I put one of them in it instead. The least he could do was stand guard." She answers with a scowl.

Tyler sighs. Lucas, Carter and Jonah spent most of his childhood bullying him, shoving him into lockers and taunting him for being different. Eugene is exactly the type of person they would target and he's glad Wednesday was there to intervene. He'll need to keep an eye on them though. They won't take kindly to being bested by girl, and an outcast no less. They'll want to retaliate at some point.

"Maybe I should thank Eugene. You getting kicked out of Pilgrim world meant I got to spend a couple hours with you this morning. And you were a vast improvement to my assigned help." He teases.

Wednesday glares, but her lips betray her when they quirk up slightly. He mentally fist pumps at her reaction. He's aware how little Wednesday allows herself to express her emotions, but she's given him one of those tiny smiles in nearly all of their interactions lately. That combined with her protective behavior and the hug she initiated early gives him hope. It's a dangerous thing, to hope for a future with her. It sets himself up for pain, to be completely ruined, but his heart is set on winning her over. She'll either love him, or he'll spend his existence proving to her he's worthy of her love. 

"Enid found her soulmate. Ajax. He was one of the nightshades in the library." Wednesday says out of the blue, interrupting his thoughts.

"Oh. That's great. Do you like him?"

"I don't know him well enough to form an opinion." She replies monotonously before adding, "but I told Enid I'd nail gun his heart if he broke hers."

“Well I'm here if you need help hiding his body.” Tyler offers, chuckling at her version of a shovel talk. 

She turns her body to face him fully, meeting his gaze when he looks away from the road and says, “Tyler, you’re the last person I’d ask to help dispose of a body.”

“What? Why?” He feels like he should be offended. 

“Because you’re an amateur. You’ve killed four people and left each one to be discovered almost immediately.” She looks disappointed, a small frown creasing her lips.

And yeah, okay that's fair, he thinks, but in his defense, he wasn’t exactly trying to hide the bodies. “So, tell me. How would you dispose of Ajax’s body in this hypothetical scenario?” 

“First, I’d need the correct supplies. A full body jumpsuit, gloves, boots, and a hairnet. Eliminate any risk of leaving behind DNA. Then I’d need to procure a stolen car.” She doesn't even take a second to think before she answers. He should probably find that a little concerning, but all he feels is fondness.

“Why a stolen car?” He asks, eyes flicking over to her face before focusing back on the road. 

“If any evidence is left behind, it can’t be traced back to me. And if I can return the vehicle before it’s reported as stolen, the police will consider the vehicle’s owner a suspect, further complicating their case.” 

“Okay. What’s next?” He’s far too amused then he should be with this conversation, but Wednesday’s mind is fascinating to him.

“Investigations usually have a two hour radius from the crime scene. I’ll need to drive at least two hours, though preferably at least three before finding a secluded location to dig a twelve foot hole.” 

“Not six?”

“No, twelve.” She reiterates. “Cover the body, placing an animal carcass halfway. If the police search the area with cadaver dogs, they’ll likely believe the dogs picked up the scent of the decomposing animal and continue their search elsewhere.”

Its impressive and only a little bit terrifying. “And have you ever had to enact this plan?” He asks as he parks the car and turns off the ignition. 

Wednesday smiles at him ominously, holding his gaze for a couple seconds before exiting the car without answering. He chuckles softly with a shake of his head, joining her at the back of the car so they can walk the rest of the way to the meeting house together. 

Like he’d told her earlier, the old meeting house is in shambles. It’s barely standing. What’s left of the walls are leaning dangerously, planks broken or missing entirely. The dirt floor is covered in leaves, trash, and questionable drug paraphernalia. Honestly, he’s surprised the town hasn’t torn it down. It’s a hazard, but of course Wednesday pushes forward, disregarding any concern for her safety. 

“There’s nothing here.” She spins to face him, face contorted in frustration. 

“What were you hoping to find?” 

“A connection between Crackstone and Thornhill. Or the ancestor that’s been haunting my visions. Her name is Goody and a replica of her grimoire was at Pilgrim World.” 

"Can you force a vision?" He asks curiously. He doesn't know too much about her visions, except for the violent response they seem to have on her body. He'd love to learn more about them.

She shakes her head. “My visions seem to happen spontaneously. Though they seem to trigger in your presence more often than not.” She mutters the last sentence to herself, though his Hyde hearing picks it up easily.

"Have you tried?" He asks and is met with a glare. Eyes never leaving his, she stomps over to the nearest wall and slams her hand against it. 

“No." She grabs a pole. "No." The fireplace is next. "Nothing.” Reaching down, she grabs an old fast food bag. "Ah, I bet this will give us some real insight." She shakes slightly, widening her eyes and throwing her head back. Tyler represses the laugh that wants to escape, enjoying the playful and dramatic antics that she rarely shares with anyone. “My visions are about as predictable as shark attacks.” 

She walks by him, heading for the door and Tyler follows. As she pulls on the door, her body goes rigid, spinning as she follows the momentum of the door. He surges forward, catching her only moments before her hand loses its grip on the door handle and she starts falling to the ground. Tyler can honestly say he’s not a fan of Wednesday’s visions. He feels a surge of fear every time one hits. They leave her defenseless for the duration of her vision and he hates to think what could happen if someone found her in this vulnerable state. 

It would be a lie though, to say that he hates the visions completely. She’s had them enough in his presence they he can recognize the signals. It’s second nature to reach for her when her body goes stiff, eyes widening but unseeing. It’s the only time he gets to hold her, the only time he, and the Hyde, feel truly at peace. He settles on the ground, pulling her close to his chest, one hand running down her bangs until he cradles her cheek, thumb brushing softly against her cheekbone. He focuses his hearing, listening for any sign of an intruder, content to hold her in his arms until she wakes. 

Wednesday stumbles, holding tightly to the door handle as she tries to maintain her balance. Righting herself, she lets go of the door and surveys the scene in front of her. She's in the past. In front of her is a mob of settlers with torches and pitchforks congregated in a circle yelling out insults "Devil's spawn. Beast. Witch." The crowd parts slightly and she see Joseph Crackstone entering the circle, forcing her ancestor to kneel in front of him. 

"Goody Addams. You have been judged before God and found guilty. You are a witch, a sorceress. Lucifer’s mistress herself. For your sins, you will burn this night and suffer the flames of eternal hellfire." 

"I am innocent. It is you, Joseph Crackstone that should be tried. We were here before you, living in harmony with nature and the native folk. But you have stolen the land. You have slaughtered the innocent. You have robbed us of our peaceful spirit. You are the true monster. All of you!"

She watches as Goody lunches forward, revealing a concealed knife and slices Crackstone's cheek. Wednesday smiles, appreciating Goody's response. Maybe she and her ancestor share more than just their appearances.  Crackstone slaps the girl in retaliation, dragging her to the meeting house and tossing her inside. Wednesday slips inside after her. All around her are outcasts, chained and shackled to the floor, whimpering in fear.

"You are abominations in the Devil’s grip! I will not stop until I have expunged this New World of every outcast. Godless creatures." Crackstone yells from the door before they are shut and locked.  

She locates Goody talking to an older woman just as smoke begins to filter into the meeting house. The woman, her mother, is telling Goody to leave, to save herself. She tells her to avenger them as she is their only hope. As Goody makes her escape, Wednesday follows, but loses her outside in the clouds of smoke. She twirls, coughing from the smoke she has inhaled. The smoke begins to clear and suddenly Goody is there, running straight at her. 

"He won’t stop until he’s killed us all! You must prevent his return. At all costs!" 

She awakes with a gasp, safely cradled in Tyler’s, increasingly familiar, arms. It’s her longest vision to date, though she’d consider it more a memory, a message from Goody herself, then a vision.

“Welcome back.” Tyler’s smiles down at her and Wednesday subconsciously turn her head into his chest, inhaling his scent before realizes what she’s just done. She shoves against him until she’s out of his grasp and stands, placing a respectable distance between them. 

“Crackstone killed them here. Set the meeting now on fire with all the Outcast chained to the floor.” Wednesday tells Tyler, horror creeping into her voice. “Thornhill is planning to resurrect him so he can kill the rest of us. Thing and I found information about resurrection spells in the books my parents sent this evening.” 

“But why? Did your parents' books say why Thornhill needs you for the spell?”

“I don’t know. Maybe she’s just another Outcast hating normie." She answers with a shrug.  "Resurrection spells are very specific. She might need me as an ingredient or a necessary element for the magic to take hold. We can't know without a copy of the spell." Tyler doesn't seem at all relived with her answer, but she doesn't have time to deal with his emotions tonight. "We should go. There's nothing else here and we still need to go gravedigging tonight."

She begins to make her way back to Tyler's car. She can hear him sputtering from the spot she left him, breathing out a startled "what?' before his foot steps draw closer, his long legs closing the distance easily. 

The car ride to the graveyard is silent, both of them thinking about the information they learned from her vision. She can tell Tyler is worried about her last statement, concerned about her safety and her involvement in the spell. Wednesday thinks its unnecessary. She can take care of herself and its highly unlikely that Thornhill will best her. Especially when she doesn't even know her greatest weapon has turned against her. Tyler is hers now and without him, Thornhill is only a sad woman with a vendetta against Outcasts. 

She instructs Tyler to park in an alleyway near the cemetery so there's less of a risk of the sheriff stumbling upon his car during patrol. Equipped with a shovel each, they make the short walk to the graveyard. They pass by the newly unveiled statue of Joseph Crackstone and Wednesday stops, a scowl marring her face. Jericho and Nevermore may be willing to rewrite history, but she knows the truth. 

"He's a bigot and a murderer. He doesn't deserve to be immortalized and revered." Wednesday growls, swinging at the statue with her shovel, but only causing a minor dent in his arm. 

"Come on. We'll deal with him later." Tyler tells her softly, wrapping a hand around her wrist and pulling her along. She allows him to guide her, the plot they need easy to identify by the fresh dirt. Jacob Holloway. A forty three year old car crash victim buried his afternoon. 

"Have you ever dug a grave before?" She asks though she already knows the answer.

"Of course. Don't you know all the girls invite me to go gravedigging on the first date?" He teases with a sly smile.

She feels her cheeks heat at the word date, but at the same time a pang of jealousy burns in her gut. It's irrational. He's obviously joking and even if he isn't, it shouldn't matter if he's dated other girls. They're soulmates, but they're not dating. Still, she can't stop the rage she feels, and she grips her favorite shovel a little tighter, thrusting it into the ground with more force than strictly necessary. She falls into a rhythm - dig, scoop, toss. The process is relaxing, allowing her to forget the foreign emotions Tyler invokes, and focus on one of her favorite pastimes. It's been far too long since she's gone gravedigging. 

When they've almost reached the coffin, she pauses in her digging to observe Tyler. He's doing a decent job, though he's not as skilled as she. He's sloppy. There's dirt smudged on both cheeks and a quarter of each shovelful falls off before he can toss it aside. He looks up, smiling in amusement, when he catches her watching him. Wednesday quickly ducks her head, though she's forced to admit that she finds him attractive like this - in a cemetery at night, covered in dirt and committing a crime with her. If she were to ever have a romantic partner, Tyler checks off all the boxes she would require.

At the loud clang of the shovel against wood, Wednesday scrambles out of the hole they've created. With a nod of her head, she indicates for Tyler to open the coffin. He does so, bracing himself against the edge of the hole to give him space to open the lid. Inside is the body of a middle aged man, a large purple bruise that the coroner's makeup can no longer hide covers one eye and continue until it reaches his hairline. 

"What do we do now?" Tyler asks, as if he isn't the one Thornhill slipped a message to in The Weathervane.

"Collect the toes." She grits out.

"Oh. Yeah." Instead of doing just that, he looks around, eyes finally settling on her again. "Did you bring something to cut through bone?" He asks sheepishly.

"Tyler." She huffs in exasperation. "Use your claws."

He blushes, scarlet painting his cheeks and traveling down the back of his neck where it disappears under his shirt. His attention is focused on his left hand and Wednesday watches in wonder as the bones crack and sharp claws emerge. She wants to study him, spend hours in the woods with him learning everything she can about Hydes. She wants to test his speed and his strength, determine how much control Tyler has over the Hyde and how her commands affect him. Does he have to follow them precisely or is there room for interpretation? What happens if she commands something impossible? Does he attempt the command anyway, knowing he'll fail? Most importantly she wants to learn his weaknesses and devise a plan to overcome them so nobody can ever use them against him.

The sound of claws slicing through flesh and bone draws her attention back to Tyler. His nose is scrunched, mouth drawn in a scowl as he stares at the digits in his hand. She unscrews the jar she'd stolen from a science lab at Nevermore and holds it out for Tyler to drop the toes inside. She finds it humorous how squeamish he is about corpse desecration when he violently mutilated several people before killing them. At least this man isn't alive to feel the pain. 

While she tucks the jar into bag, Tyler closes the casket and heaves himself out of the hole. They make quick work filling it back in, erasing all evidence of their crime. They’re forced to duck behind a bush to avoid being seen when a car drives by the graveyard, but manage to make it back to Tyler’s car unseen. Once in the car, Wednesday hides the jar in the center console as Tyler begins to drive her back to Nevermore. Or that’s where he thought he was taking her until he drives by the main road that leads toward Nevermore and continues further into town. 

“Where are we going?” She asks with a quirk of her eyebrow. 

“I need to make a quick stop at home. We have one more thing to do tonight.” He answers with a devilish smile, eyes shining mischievously. 

Despite her hatred of surprises, she can’t help but be intrigued. They arrive at Tyler’s house a short time later, Tyler leaving the car running in the driveway before disappearing with the promise to be back quickly. She busies herself by studying his house. It’s a modest two story, nothing special. She finds herself wondering what Tyler’s room looks like. Is it messy or neat? How is it decorated? Is it covered in the colors he could see growing up or the grey hues she became accustomed to in her childhood. Would she ever have the chance to see it for herself?

She hears the trunk open, Tyler depositing whatever he’d grabbed from the garage inside before climbing into the driver’s seat with another impish smile. He backs out of the driveway and heads back into town without a word to her. As they drive pass the house, Wednesday takes note of his address, filing it away in case she needs to stop by in the future. 

As he drives, Tyler hums quietly, bouncing slightly in what she can only deem excitement. She feels annoyance at being kept in the dark, but also to her horror, she finds his playful mood disgustingly charming. If her past self could see her right now, she’d be appalled. When Tyler parks and exits the vehicle, she’s surprised to find they’re in the same alley they’d left only a short time ago. She closes her door softly, joining Tyler as he opens the trunk. 

“How do you feel about committing arson?” Tyler asks conspiratorially, lifting up two jugs of gasoline and giving them a little shake. 

A rare smile stretches across her face, carving out the dimples so few people ever get to see. She assumed she would always be the one asking Tyler to commit felonies with her, but he continues to surprise her. She grabs one of the containers of gasoline and they make their way toward to statue, carefully avoiding any streetlights. Once they reach the statue, Tyler shoots her a smile and gestures for her to go first. Uncorking the container, she inhales the scent of gasoline and lets out an approving hum. Tilting the jug towards the statue, she splashes Crackstone, coating every surface she can reach. When her jug is empty, Tyler uses the base of the fountain for added height and pours half of his container over the statue's head. As he steps down from the fountain, he gestures for her to follow him, leaving a trail of gasoline as they go. 

"Do you want to light it or should I?" He asks, pulling a box of matches for his jacket pocket. Wednesday grabs the box, sparking one of the matches. She gives Tyler another small smile before she drops the match. Together they watch as the ground catches fire, quickly following the trail of gasoline until the statue is aflame. Tyler grabs her hand, pulling her closer until they can see Crackstone slowly starting to melt. 

Wednesday takes a step back, gaze slipping from the statue to rest on Tyler. Splotches of dirt coat his face and arms and a maniacal smile is spread across his face. He's the perfect mix of the boy next door that he presents to the world and the Hyde that lies just beneath the surface. For the first time in her life, Wednesday wishes she owned a phone. She wants to capture the image of Tyler in front of her, carry it with her so she never forgets how perfect he looks in this moment. 

“Hey.” He calls out to her, smile softening until it matches the fondness in his eyes. He tugs on her hand still encased in his and pulls her a little bit closer. “What are you thinking about?”

She gives herself a couple seconds more to stare, imprinting Tyler’s image into her brain, before she shakes her head. “We should go. Someone will have seen the smoke and called it in by now.”

The ride back to Nevermore is a quiet one and Wednesday uses the time to replay the events of the evening. Trespassing, grave digging, corpse desecration, and arson. It was the perfect night. She couldn’t have planned it better if she tried. With a jolt, she realizes it could have been the perfect date, if only she allowed herself to confess her feelings. 

It’s only her sheer stubbornness that prevents her from admitting her feelings to anyone but herself. She’s too stubborn to allow herself to become another lovesick teenager. Too stubborn to admit the Universe was correct in assigning her Tyler. Mostly, she’s too stubborn to admit she’s anything like her own mother, falling fast and hard for her soulmate. Her mother once told her she has a tendency to get in her own way. It pains her to agree with her mother, but in this instance, Morticia is correct.

When Tyler pulls up to the gates, Wednesday unbuckles her seatbelt, face turned away, unsure if she’s able to prevent the complicated emotions from showing on her face. She about to pull on the door handle when Tyler’s voice stalls her. 

“There’s been a lot of talk about the Rave’N at the Weathervane the last couple days. It sounds like it could be fun. Do you want to go?” 

She groans internally. Why is everyone so obsessed with this insufferable dance? She spends enough time with her peers in class. She refuses to subject herself to them voluntarily. She has no desire to be packed in a hot room with her sweaty classmates, listening to painfully unbearable music and eating mediocre finger foods. 

“I’d rather stick needles in my eyes.” She spits in disgust, eyes meeting his just briefly before turning away again. She misses the way his shoulders drop, his smile falling away. She doesn’t hear the pained breath that escapes his mouth or see the tight clenching of his jaw. She doesn’t realize that in one sentence, she's shattered him. "Goodnight Tyler."

I'd rather stick needles in my eyes. I'd rather stick needles in my eyes. I'd rather stick needles in my eyes.

The words are on repeat in his head, getting louder and louder with each utterance. She couldn't even look at him as she spit those words out in venomous disgust. His chest is heaving, sobs threating to overtake him. Unshed tears are pooling in his eyes making it impossible for him to see the road ahead and he has to pull over mere minutes from Nevermore.

Seven words. It only took seven words for Wednesday Addams to completely crush his heart.

Chapter Text

A wounded noise escapes Tyler's throat and he bites down hard on his knuckles, the taste of copper flooding his mouth as blood drips down his fingers. She doesn’t want him. She’d rather inflict torture on herself than be with him. And yeah, he know this is Wednesday and she enjoys pain, but her message was clear. She doesn’t want him. She’ll never want him. He should stop making a fool of himself by hoping for something more. With shaky breaths, Tyler pulls his hand away to inspect the damage. The bite marks are angry and red, but it’ll heal. Quickly and without scarring, unlike his broken heart.

The Hyde isn’t handling Wednesday’s cruel words any better than he is. An inhuman wail of anguish is reverberating in his head and he’s starting to lose control. The Hyde wants out, want to work through the pain with violence and Tyler knows he won't be able to hold him back much longer. When his skin starts to ripple, bones splintering as they break and reform, he scrambles out of the car, hastily removing his clothes and barely reaching the woods before completely transforming.

Much like Tyler, the Hyde’s breathing is heavy and unsteady. For a minute he does nothing but stand and breathe deeply, then his head swivels back towards Nevermore, towards Wednesday, and he lets out a loud roar full of pain, anger and agony. He lashes out with his claws, leaving five long deep scratches on the nearest tree, then begins to run. Tyler is conscious enough in his Hyde form to steer them away from Nevermore and Jericho, leading them deeper into the forest. The Hyde continues to wail as he runs, downing several small trees in his path and Tyler allows himself to slip further back in his mind. To a place where he doesn’t have to think or feel, an empty abyss of his mind that welcomes him with numbness for at least a couple hours.

When he wakes, it's still dark, probably a couple hours before sunrise. He'd hidden himself away from the pain, allowing the Hyde to take over and he's not sure how far he'd run in Tyler's absence. He'd prefer to make the long trek back to his car, and his clothes, before the sun rises. With a deep sigh, he plants both hands on the ground, about to push himself into a standing position when he catches sight on his arms. They're littered with several small scratches, but they're also caked in dried blood, much more blood than could have possibly come from his injuries.

He stands swiftly, heartrate accelerating, breath coming out in short, uneven pants as he starts to panic. How could he be so stupid? He never should have handed the reigns over to the Hyde. Did he kill someone? What does he do now? He surveys his surroundings, heart dropping when he sees a dark figure on the ground about ten feet away. With slow shaky steps, he makes his way towards the figure, clenching his shaking hands into fists to stop the tremors. He keeps his eyes trained one the trees in front of him, refusing to look at the ground as long as possible. When he finally reaches the figure, he exhaled a long puff of air and turns his gaze downward.

Relief floods his body when the figure at feet turns out not to be a corpse, but the mutilated carcass of a deer. He lets his gaze travel the area, finding what remains of a couple rabbits and possibly a raccoon. He’s suddenly gratefully this wooded area has no hiking trails and isn’t a popular camping location.

The walk back to his car takes nearly an hour. He scrubs at his arms as he walks in an attempt to flake off the dried blood. He tries not to think of Wednesday, tries not to think of the perfect evening that was ruined far too easily. He really thought they were making progress. Maybe she didn't love him, but he thought she was possibly open to the idea of dating him. She'd snuggled into his arms after her vision. She'd looked at him affectionally in the graveyard. And he'd caught the look on her face while Crackstone's statue burned in front of them. Her face had lost its usual harness. Instead, she wore a gentle smile and her eyes looked at him in awed amazement, like he was something precious. Something important and worthy of her affections. It's all he wanted, for her to want him. He'd obviously horribly misjudged the situation, the sharp stabbing pain his chest serving as a constant reminder that he girl he loved would never love him back.

His father's car is parked in the driveway when he arrives home. His shift likely having ended hours ago, around the same time he'd allowed the Hyde out as a release. He silently prays his dad hasn't noticed his absence, but he knows that's highly unlikely. He's miserable enough as it is. The last thing he needs is to get into a screaming match with his father. He unlocks the backdoor, stepping over the creaky floorboard in front of the door and shuts it gently. A light flips on behind him and he sighs, taking a moment to compose himself before turning around. When he finally pivots to face his father, he locates him at the dinner table still dressed in his uniform.

"Where have you been?" His father demands.

Tyler groans. He doesn't have the energy to deal with his dad right now. All he wants is to shower and sleep. "I was in the woods." He answers simply.

The sound of the chair scraping against the floor fills the kitchen as his father shoves himself up, boots clunking against the floor as he advances. His steps falter the moment he gets a clear view of him, mouth narrowing into a grimace and eyes widening as they take in the blood Tyler failed to completely remove.

"What were you doing in the woods?" The words come out quieter than he knows his father intended, but his advanced hearing allows him to pick them up anyway. The hint of fear lacing his words also doesn't go unnoticed.

"Letting off some steam." He sneers, nostrils flaring as he sends him a glare. He's being immature, goading his father into a reaction, but it feels good to direct his pain and anger at someone else.

"Tyler," His father growls. "If I go out into those woods, am I going to stumble upon another crime scene?"

It's the closest his father has ever come to acknowledging the Hyde, to admitting he's been willingly and knowingly covering up his son's murders. He feels himself deflate. Fighting with his father lacks the same appeal it held only moments ago. "No. It was only a deer and some rabbits." He admits softly. "I'm tired. Can we please not do this right now?"

HIs dad studies him, looking like he has more to say, but he finally nods, gesturing with a tilt of his head for Tyler to move past him. He almost makes it to the stairs when his father calls out to him again.

"Do you know anything about a fire tonight?"

"No." He lies easily, not bothering to turn to face his father before continuing his journey up the stairs.

In the bathroom, he strips off his shirt and tosses it to the floor before hunching over the sink, gripping the edges tightly. His eyes begin to sting, his breathing becoming erratic. He slams a hand over his mouth to muffle the sound as a sob begins to form in his throat. He hates himself for feeling like this. For allowing himself to be so utterly destroyed by a girl. But Wednesday isn't just any girl, she's the girl. She's the one person in the universe that was made for him, who carries a piece of his soul within her. How messed up must he be if even she doesn't want him?

Downstairs, he can hear the door slam, no doubt his father going to investigate to make sure he hadn't murdered someone. With his dad gone, he removes his hand from his mouth, allowing his sobs to fill the room. He straightens his body, eyes landing on the mirror in front of him. His face is blotchy, eyes red and tear tracks litter his cheeks. For the first time, he notices a nasty gash above one eyebrow. He leans closer to inspect it, reopening the wound accidentally when he runs his finger across it. Blood begins to drip from the cut, splashing down on his cheek and trickling into his mouth. He pushes his finger down harder, digging deeper into the wound. He relishes in the feel of the physical pain, a momentary relief from the pain in his heart. When he finally pulls his finger away, he wipes the blood on the leg of his pants and surveys the damage. The gash is twice the size it originally was, and fresh blood covers the left side of his face. He wipes a hand harshly over his eyes and he begins to laugh.

He laughs and laughs. With his dad gone, he no longer has any reason to be quiet. He lets his laughs grow louder, more hysterical, until they delve into loud hitching sobs. His throat is scratchy, his chest aching from the force of his sobs. When his eyes meet his reflection in the mirror again, he feels red hot rage. Before he’s conscious of the decision, his fist smashes into the glass, shard embedding in his hand as the mirror splinters.

Tyler inspects his hand, the pain grounding him a little. He prods at the damaged skin before running it under the faucet. Rummaging through the cabinet drawers, he locates a pair of tweezers and removes each tiny shard of glass with less care than he should, enjoying every little sting of pain. Removing his remaining clothing, he hops in the shower, turning the water temperature as high as it goes. He stands under the spray letting it burn his skin, not moving until long after the water turns cold. He climbs into bed and falls into a restless sleep, dreams filled with pale skin, black braids and a voice echoing those crushing words.

Tyler groans as he pulls up to the Gates Manor the next afternoon and spies Thornhill's car parked in the driveway. How much worse could this day get? He enters the house through the side door, stomping loudly down the stairs to the basement to announce his arrival. She doesn't turn to greet him when he reaches the bottom of the stairs so he places the jar with the toes on the shelf then waits quietly for her to address him.

"Such a good boy." She croons when she finally turns to face him. Tyler attempts to appear pleased by her praise, thankful her attention is focused more on the jar he'd brought instead of his face. "We almost have everything we need." She adds when she sets the toes back down.

She takes a step closer, grabbing his shoulders with both hands, squeezing gently before allowing her hands to travel down his arms until they land at his wrists. "And how are things going with Wednesday? You two seemed quite close at The Weathervane."

He can feel her breath on his face as she talks and he barely resists the urge to flinch away and yank his arms from her grasp. "She trusts me." He answers simply, looking down to meet her eyes, attempting to look as innocent and submissive as possible.

"Good. Keep it that way." She warns, squeezing his wrists in an almost bruising grip. "When the time is right, I'll kill her myself and use her filthy tainted blood to rid the world of their scum."

He feels his body stiffen at her words and has to remind himself not to react. He fights down the Hyde who is already too close to the surface today, thanks to his heightened emotional state. Thornhill just spilled the information they were missing, and he can't allow his emotions (or Hyde) to get in the way. He can't let Thornhill know she no longer controls him or that he and Wednesday are working to foil her plan. Wednesday is going to be fine, he tells himself. He'll make sure of it, even if it costs him his life.

"Oh and Tyler?" She asks sweetly, too sweetly. She smiles and Tyler forces himself to respond in kind, before her eyes narrow, smile shifting into a snarl. "Do you want to explain to me how you obtained a heart without leaving behind a body?” Her nails dig into his skin, droplets of blood forming around her fingertips and he hisses in pain.

"My father was getting suspicious. I found someone a couple towns away. Buried the body in the woods. If it’s not found soon, it probably won’t be discovered until the spring.” He lies, using the cover story he and Wednesday concocted in case Thornhill questioned him.

Thornhill studies him with her narrowed eyes, but seems to believe him. She lets go of his wrists to caress his cheek, smearing it with his blood. “You be a good boy.”

Tyler watches her leave, slumping to the ground and leaning his head against the wall. He stays like that in the dark, damp basement, surrounded by the body parts he harvested, and allows himself to be wallow in his misery. His phone alarm startles him some time later, alerting him that his shift starts in thirty minutes. He picks himself up from the ground, using the sink to clean his face before heading to his car. At least his mundane job should provide a distraction from his thoughts.

The Weathervane is crowded when Tyler arrives, and he hurries behind the counter to help with drink orders. He keeps himself busy, taking orders and cleaning the equipment whenever there is a lull in service. He's able to keep himself distracted, ignoring the ache in his heart, until he's instructed to take a break two hours into his shift. Alone in the stock room, all he can think about is Wednesday. It's rare, but platonic soulmates aren't unheard of. He tells himself that he'll give himself this day to grieve, then he'll accept that he and Wednesday will be nothing more than friends. He'll stop waiting for more. He can't live with this constant heartache. He can learn to be happy that she's allowed him into her life at all.

When he comes back from his break, Tyler finds Enid in Wednesday's normal booth. Sitting across from her is a boy wearing a beanie, her soulmate he presumes, and he can't help the stab of jealousy that pierces his heart. He should be happy for her, at least one of them is getting the soulmate relationship they want, but all he can see when he looks at them is the future he wants with Wednesday. A future she never wants to have with him. Enid waves enthusiastically when she spots him and he fakes a smile back, but he must fail spectacularly. She furrows her eyebrows and says something to her soulmate before standing from the table and making her way to him.

"What's wrong?" She asks, eyes scanning his body, growing more concerned when she notices the gash above his eye and his injured hand. She reaches out, grabbing his hand gently to inspect the bruising and scabs that are already starting to form. "Does this have something to do with Wednesday."

"It's nothing." He lies, attempting once again to offer her a smile.

"Tyler. What did she do?" Enid asks again.

He sighs, knowing there is no escaping this conversation. He indicates for Enid to wait at the pickup counter then goes to tell his coworker he needs a minute. He can't take another break, but the cafe is slow enough that he should be able to talk with Enid for a few minutes without interruption.

"I asked her to the dance." He admits when he's standing in front of Enid again. There's no point trying to hide it. She'll drag it out of him one way or the other.

"Oh, Tyler." She says softly, reaching out and gently squeezing his hand. "She said no?"

"No." He huffs out with a harsh laugh that startles even himself.

"But you said..." She looks bewildered, confused why he’s upset if Wednesday hadn’t denied his invitation.

“She said she’d rather stick needles in her eyes.” He says it flatly, without any emotion. Wednesday would be proud of him, he thinks.

“Oh no!” She gasps, covering her mouth with her hand. “Tyler you know she didn’t mean that! She likes you! I know she does. She just…”

He interrupts her before she can say anything else because hoping that Wednesday might return his feelings has only ever caused him pain. "It's fine. Really. I shouldn't have expected anything less." The bell above the door jingles and Tyler uses it as an excuse to make his escape. "I have to get back to work. I'll talk to you later."

He hurries to the register, for once grateful for the small rush that hits the cafe. He busies himself in his work, pushing away all thoughts of Wednesday until the cafe dies down. When he looks back at Enid’s table, she and her soulmate are gone. He has the horrible sinking feeling that his and Enid’s conversation isn’t going to stay between them. She’s going to confront Wednesday and she’ll know just how pathetically he reacted to her rejection.

“Wednesday Friday Addams!” Enid screeches as she slams open their door.

The pitch of her roommate’s voice causes Wednesday’s ears to ring and she whirls around to face her. “How do you know my middle name?”

Thing scurries from Enid’s shoulder to hide in her bag. Wednesday reminds herself to rebuke him later for divulging her secrets. She studies Enid’s appearance, noting the half crazed look in her eyes and the angry scowl on her face. She has one hand resting on her hip, the other holding a to go coffee cup. Her eyes linger on the Weathervane logo, half expecting a quad to appear, a gift from Tyler that he’s sent her in the past.

“No quad today. He’s still angry at you.” Enid follows her gaze, correctly guessing her thoughts.

“Why is he angry with me?” Wednesday asks, furrowing her brow. He’d seemed fine last night when he dropped her off and she hasn’t spoken to him since.

“Why is he angry at…?” Enid repeated in disbelief. “Wednesday! He asked you to the dance and you rejected him!”

“He never asked me. You must be mistaken.” Wednesday denies, confused by the accusation. She and Tyler only spoke about the dance once. She’d remember if he asked to be her date.

“He said he asked and you replied you’d rather stick needles in your eyes.” Enid glares, a wave of hostility flowing from her towards Wednesday. “If you didn’t want to go with him, there were nicer ways to reject him. He’s really hurt, Wednesday.”

Wednesday stares down at her hands, an unfamiliar feeling of guilt building in her stomach. She remembers that conversation. He asked if she wanted to go to the dance. She hadn’t realized he was asking if she wanted to go with him. She feels the bed dip beside her and looks up to meet Enid’s gaze. Her eyes are softer now, some of the anger fading away.

“I didn’t know he was asking me to the dance. I wasn’t trying to hurt him.” She whispers. A little emotion slips into her voice and Enid’s eyes widen in acknowledgement when she hears it.

“You need to communicate that to him.” Enid’s says gently, offering a small smile and a quick tap on her wrist in comfort. “You can fix it. He wants to go with you. He’ll still say yes if you ask.”

"Enid, I still don’t want to go to the Rave’N. I have no desire to particulate in school activities.”

"You didn’t want to do the Poe Cup either and you had fun with that.” Enid reminds her. “You don’t have to dance. I won’t even bother you for pictures. We can just hang out at one of the tables. If you really hate it, I’ll help you and Tyler sneak out so you can do something else.”

”I’ll think about it.” Wednesday finally replies after a moment of silence. Enid is still staring at her, rocking back and forth slightly like she wants to say something, but isn’t sure if she should. “Just say it, Enid.”

“It’s okay if you have feelings for him. I know you think emotions make you weak, but you’re wrong. I’ve seen the two of you together, Wednesday. You make each other stronger. Don’t push him away because he makes you feel. Embrace it, Wednesday. Or you might lose him and I think you don’t want that.” She holds Wednesday’s gaze for a few seconds before moving to her side of the room and slipping on a pair of headphones, leaving Wednesday alone with her thoughts.

She’s unsure how long she sits thinking, but when she becomes aware of her surroundings again, Enid has fallen asleep with a magazine in her hands and the sky is darkening outside their window. She feels the sudden desire to fix this miscommunication with Tyler immediately. Checking the time, if she moves quickly, she should be able to reach The Weathervane right before closing.

When she walks through the door, bell jingling above her head, she finds Tyler sitting at her booth. He’s staring at the table, hands wrapped around a cup of coffee. He makes no move to lift his head as he greets her.

“We’re about to close. All I can offer you is a plain cup of coffee and a couple stale muffins.”

She walks towards him, sliding into the seat across from him. “Hi Tyler.”

He whips his head up, startled. She can’t help but think back to the first day they met. He’d had to same reaction then as he does now. “What are you doing here? Isn’t it almost curfew?” His tone is half worried, half angry.

"I snuck out.” She shrugs. “I need to talk to you.”

“Not tonight, Wednesday. It’s been a long day and I’m tired. I just want to finish up and go home.” He sighs, defeated.

She almost relents. She’d prefer not to ever have this conversation. But Tyler is hurt and in pain. Pain that she caused. For the first time in maybe ever, she takes no pleasure in being the source of someone’s pain. Only regret and shame. "I talked to Enid."

"Wednesday…” Tyler warns, but she barrels through his interruption.

“She said I hurt you.”

”Yeah?” He asks, emitting a bark of laughter, bitter and cold.

“I didn’t reject you.”

He laughs again and Wednesday decides she hates that sound. It doesn’t suit him. She misses his warm, playful laugh. The one that makes her stomach flutter and sends a shiver down her spine. She wants that laugh back.

“I’m pretty sure you did. Telling someone you’d rather stick needles in your eyes than go to a dance with them is a clear rejection. Not much room for interpretation.” He’s avoiding looking at her now, fingers fidgeting with the cardboard sleeve around his cup. A single tear falls from eyes, trailing down his cheek. Discreetly, he attempts to wipe it away with his shoulder.

Making a decision, she reaches out and places her hand on one of his, stilling his fingers. He slowly looks up to face her, a question in his eyes. “I didn’t reject you because I didn’t know what you were asking. I thought you were asking if I wanted to go to the dance. Not if I wanted to go with you.”

“Oh.” He whispers, sitting up a little straighter.

“In the future, I need to you ask me things more clearly. Be blunt or I might misunderstand the question. And if I hurt you, you need to tell me. I’m not good at interpreting emotions.”

“Ok. I can do that.” He nods, a smile finally forming on his face. It’s bright and full, exposing the laugh lines near his eyes. She’s never been a fan of the sun, too hot and harsh on her pale skin, but if this what sunshine feels like, she’d gladly bask in it every day. “If I asked you to the dance now, would you say yes?”

She hesitates and the happiness starts to dim in his eyes. Wednesday is quick to rectify that, not ready to lose the happiness she hadn’t realized she was missing. “I don’t know if I’m going to the dance. I told Enid I would think about it.” She makes sure to meet his gaze before she speaks again. “If I go, I’d like you to be my date.”

His smile gets impossibly wider and he moves to stand, pulling her with him with the hand she still has wrapped around his. “I’d like to hug you.” He states. Then as if remember her earlier comment, he asks “Can I hug you?”

She nods, stepping forward into his open arms. His arms slip around her back, pulling her close. She inhales deeply, taking in his scent of coffee and pine as she rests her head against his chest. One of his hands travels upward to toy with a braid, while the other moves up and down her back. She gives herself another few seconds to enjoy his embrace, before gently untangling herself.

“I have a confession to make.” She tells him, tugging at the hem of her sleeve.

His eyes drop to the floor, hands nervously tapping against his thigh. When his gaze finally lift to meet hers, there's trepidation in his eyes. She hates it, hates that he's afraid of her. She's hurt him enough times, albeit unintentionally, that he's conditioned to expect her to cause him more pain.

“I think…” She pauses, gathering the courage to admit she is capable of emotions outside of anger and rage. “I think I can love you, if I allow myself to feel.”

Tyler stares, unmoving as her words wash over him. Wednesday watches as emotions flicker across his face, eyes brimming with cautious hope. He steps forward, gently grabbing her hands. When she doesn’t pull away, he wraps his hands more firmly around her own.

“Is that something you want? To allow yourself to feel?” His voice is low and breathy, hands trembling slightly against hers. His eyes are a bit wild, still filled with hope, but mixed with fear.

She could break him. It’d be easy. She could crush his spirit, his livelihood, his everything with one simple word. But it would be a lie. Her body carved a small hole in her heart for Tyler the day they met. With every interaction, it had grown bigger, deeper, until Tyler filled every ventricle, every atrium of her previously cold, black heart.

She knows what she wants to say, what she needs to say, but the words allude her. As the silence drags on, Tyler’s grip on her loosens and he moves to take a step back. Words failing her, she does the only thing she can do. She rushes forward, hands landing against his chest as she stands on her tiptoes to press her lips against his.

The kiss is soft, gentle, her lips only lingering against his for a few seconds before pulling away. She looks at Tyler with wide unblinking eyes, taking in his slightly parted lips and longing eyes. In almost disbelief, he reaches for her, cradling her face in his hands. He rubs his thumb along her cheeks before moving them to her neck and pulling her back to him. When his lips meet hers again, she hums in pleasure, pushing herself closer, melting into his embrace. This is where she belongs and she can’t deny it any longer. This time it’s Tyler that pulls away first and Wednesday finds herself embarrassingly chasing after him, allowing herself one more taste of his lips before stepping back.

“Hi.” He smiles down at her giddily, and she offers him one of her rare true smiles in return.

“I can’t promise I’ll be any good at this. I’m stubborn and selfish. I’ll always put myself first and I will hurt you again, intentional or not.” She announces. If they’re going to do this, if they’re going to date, he needs to understand what that entails.

“Wednesday.” He says, lacing his fingers with hers and giving her palm a little squeeze. “I know who you are and I’d never ask you to change. I’m just asking if you have room in your heart for me?”

She nods. “I carved out a spot for you the day we met.” She admits softly.

“Yeah?” He ask, tugging on their joined hands until she falls back against his chest. Instead of an answer, she tilts up head upward, meeting him halfway as he leans down to kiss her once again.

Chapter Text

“So, bestie, you disappeared last night.” Enid says, eyeing her knowingly as they head to the quad for breakfast.

“Yes. I went to talk to Tyler.” She answers flatly, hoping that will be enough to satisfy her roommate.

“And…” Enid prompts.

Wednesday sighs. She should have known Enid wasn’t going to let this go. “We cleared up our misunderstandings.”

“So, you told him how you feel?” Enid asks, nearly vibrating with excitement.

“Yes.” The squeal Enid emits echoes across the halls and Wednesday knows her ears will be wringing for the next couple of hours. She really should invest in a decent pair of earplugs if she’s going to consent to being friends with Enid.

“Wait. Are you dating?” Enid turns to face her, throwing her hand out to stop Wednesday from walking while she waits for her answer.

“We did not discuss terms.” Wednesday answers, stepping around Enid’s arm and beginning to walk again. Enid visibly deflates and for some reason Wednesday is compelled to add, “I kissed him.”

Enid squeals again, somehow louder this time and Wednesday contemplates slicing off her own ears. It would be less painful.

“O.M.GEEE!” Enid gushes, drawing out the last letter. “Tell me everything. Wait. Did you ask him to the dance?”

Wednesday is about to respond that she never agreed to attend the Rave’N when Bianca appears from a side hallway, interrupting them.

“Addams is attending the Rave’N? With a date?” She asks in disbelief, eyes moving between Enid and Wednesday. “Who would agree to go with you?”

“If I asked Xavier, I’m sure he’d say yes.” Wednesday responds, allowing the words to fly from her mouth before she can think them through. She hears her roommate call her name warningly and when she turns back to Enid, she finds Xavier standing behind her. She groans internally. Why is everyone eavesdropping on her conversation today?

“I’d love to go to the dance with you, Wednesday.” Xavier interjects, smiling brightly.

“I already have a date.” She glares at him, pushing through Bianca to continue to the quad for breakfast. It looks like she’ll be attending the Rave’N after all.

Enid catches up shortly, falling in step with her easily and offering an apologetic smile. “Yoko, Divina, and I are going dress shopping after class tomorrow. You can come with us!” Enid invites her excitedly. It sounds like pure torture, Wednesday thinks.

“I have dresses.”

“Wednesday, I’ve seen your closet. You are not wearing any of those to the Rave’N.” Enid says, nose scrunched in disgust and Wednesday wonders if she should feel insulted.

She has severely underestimated Enid’s skill for torture. In any other situation, she’d be proud that her personality is rubbing off on the usually vibrant girl, but not today. Not when she’s the one experiencing this horrendous torture.

Hawte Kewture must have been dreamt up in one of the deepest pits of hell.

There’s color everywhere – even more blinding than Enid’s half of their room. Pastels and neons and even one particularly offensive sparkly rainbow dress adorn the mannequins throughout the boutique. A disgustingly sweet perfume permeates the shop causing Wednesday’s head to begin pounding nearly the second they entered the shop.

Enid seems to be immune to these offenses. She’s dancing around the store, smiling and laughing as she adds an inordinate number of dresses to the rack outside of the dressing room. Some are puffy, some are furry, and nearly all are pink. Now that she can see colors, Enid refuses to wear the suggested white and homed in on pink, declaring it her favorite color.

“Oh! This one is so pretty!” Enid exclaims, pulling a black dress from the rack and nearly shoving it into Wednesday’s arms.

“No.” Wednesday hisses, allowing the abhorrent garment to fall to the ground. Some of the glitter has transferred to her arms, and she rubs at them fiercely, trying and failing to remove the sparkles. This hellscape isn’t going to have anything that meets her standards and there’s no point wasting her time here any longer. “I’m going to The Weathervane.” She announces.

Enid pouts but lets her leave. “Say hi to Tyler for me! And remember to actually ask him to the dance.” She yells just as Wednesday reaches the door.

She nods without turning back and makes the short walk to the café, feeling strangely excited at the thought of seeing Tyler again for the first time since she kissed him.

The Weathervane has been slow, like most Monday afternoons, and Tyler leans against the counter, head rested on his crossed arms. Without lifting his head, his eyes drifting towards Wednesday’s booth like they have been doing all shift, mind replaying how she’d kissed him there only two nights ago.

He still can’t believe that night happened. Sometimes he thinks it was all an elaborate dream. He still cannot wrap his head around the thought that upon learning he’d misinterpreted her words and been distraught over her supposed rejection, Wednesday had sought him out immediately to correct it. He hates to admit it, but he expected the worse when Wednesday walked through that door. He’d prepared himself for her to thrust another verbal dagger through his already damaged and bleeding heart.

The bell above the door rings and Tyler lifts his head, surprised to see his raven haired soulmate in town on a non-therapy day. She’s sparkling, he realizes, sun glinting off the uncharacteristic glitter on her shirt. She looks like a dark angel, though he never dares call her that out loud.

“Hey.” He greets, lips automatically forming into a smile. “What are you doing in Jericho on a Monday?”

“Enduring the most unbearable torture.” She answers monotonously. Her eyes flick towards the expresso machine and Tyler begins preparing her quad before she can ask. “Do you own a suit?”

His smile grows wider at the implication of her words. “Are you asking me to the Rave’N?” He asks wryly.

“Yes.” She answers, taking a deep breath before asking, “Will you go the Rave’N with me? As…as my date?”

The unsuspected nerves and her use of the word ‘date’ makes his heart stutter. He puts down her finished quad, using his hand to lean across the counter to cup her cheek as he answers. “Of course I will.”

She leans into his hand, rewarding him with an actual smile. He sweeps his thumb across her cheek, wiping away a spec of glitter that landed there. The bell above the door jingles and he pulls away, the Hyde roaring in his head at the interruption. He pushes Wednesday quad toward her, turning to greet the customer, only to find Enid smiling at them.

“You two are so cute!” Enid squeals, bouncing slightly.

“I am not cute, Enid.” Wednesday scowls.

“We have to go. Thing found your dress, but they’re closing in ten minutes.” Enid says, ignoring Wednesday's displeasure. Thing scurries from Enid’s bag to her shoulder, signing his agreement. “Come on!” Enid reiterates when Wednesday doesn’t move, gesturing towards the door.

“The last dress you found me had glitter.”

That explains the glitter, he thinks to himself as Wednesday places her quad on the counter, looking unimpressed with her roommate and Thing.

Enid snags her drink and begins walking to the door, calling over her shoulder as she goes. “If you want your coffee back, you better come look. Thing’s determined to get you this dress either way.”

“I guess you better go. I’ll see you Friday.” He tells her, a little disappointed her visit was cut short.

She nods, smiling just slightly before following after her roommate.

Tyler stares at the two suits in front of him debating which one to wear. The black will match whatever dress Thing found for Wednesday best, but the last time he wore that suit was to his mother’s funeral. He doesn’t really want to be reminded of that day all night. Not on what is going to be his and Wednesday’s first official date.

The white suit matches the theme and will help him blend in with the Nevermore students. As unlikely as it is, he’s hoping he can escape Thornhill’s radar. He just wants one night where he can pretend to be a normal teenager. Just an ordinary boy taking the girl he likes to a school dance.

He grabs the white suit, carefully removing it from the hanger so it doesn’t wrinkle. He takes his time as he dresses, looking at himself in the mirror when he’s done. He runs a hand through his hair, trying his best to tame his curls. He can feel his nerves building, the Hyde uncharacteristically anxious about being introduced to the Nevermore students as Wednesday’s date.

He wonders if he’ll be the only ‘normie’ there or if any of the other students have developed friendships with students from Jericho. He doubts it. There aren’t very many of his classmates that have any love for Nevermore. He grabs his keys and makes his way downstair, reminding himself it doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks. Wednesday invited him. She wants him there. She’s the only thing that matters.

Wednesday stares at herself in the mirror, accessing her hair. Her traditional braids are hanging on either side of her face, but it just doesn’t feel right. Spotting the bobby pins Enid keeps near the sink, Wednesday steals a few and pins her braids to the top of her head in a crown. She applies a thin layer of lipstick, a shade darker than her usual red, and mascara. She’s being ridiculous, she tells herself. She doesn’t care what others think about her appearance. Not usually, but there’s a tiny part of her that wants to look appealing to Tyler. It’s unsettling and she’s not sure she likes this feeling.

When she finally exits the bathroom, Enid is gone, finishing last minute preparations as part of the dance committee. Thing is resting on her pillow, flipping through one of Enid’s magazines. He stops when she enters, appraising her before giving her an enthusiastic thumbs up. She ignores him and slips on her boots, conscious to choose one with a higher heel to make up for her and Tyler’s height difference. She takes a look at the clock, noting Tyler should have already arrived. Taking a deep breath, she exits her room and makes her way to the stairs.  

She smooths down the skirt of her dress as she descends the stairs, feeling uncomfortably anxious for reasons she cannot ascertain. It’s just a stupid dance. One she didn’t even want to attend in the first place. When she’s halfway down the stairs, she spots Tyler before he sees her. He’s dressed in white, and though Wednesday can’t help imagining what he would look like dressed all in black, she admires the fit of his suit. As if hearing her footsteps, he turns to face her, offering a wide smile that alleviates some of her nerves.

“Wow. You look…” He pauses, as if searching for the correct word.

“Unrecognizable. Ridiculous? A classic example of female objectification for the male gaze?” Wednesday spouts, letting the words blurt from her mouth to try to cover up her remaining nerves. She notices Tyler looks amused, almost smiling as she rants.

“Amazing. I mean it, Wednesday. You look beautiful.”

Heat burns her cheeks at the earnestness in his tone and she turns her head to the trophy case Tyler was looking at before she arrived. She feels when Tyler moves behind her, arm reaching out over her shoulder to point to a picture of the fencing team.

“My mom’s in that one.”

She inspects the picture closer, skipping over her own mother until she spots Tyler’s mom at the end. It’s easy to recognize her from the pictures Tyler shared with her from his mother’s journal. She can see the resemblance between them. Along with her Hyde genes, he also shares her eyes and her mouth. She’d never stopped to inspect the trophy case before, uninterested in being reminded of her mother’s never ending accomplishments.

“I wish I could have met her.” She admits softly.

“Me too. I think she would have liked you.” Tyler places his hand on the small of her back and she tilts her head back to see him smiling softly at her. “You ready?” He asks.

She’d rather stay here, alone with him, but nods anyway and lets him guide her toward the dance.

Wednesday stops in the entrance way, nose scrunched in disdain as she takes in the dance. Repressing a laughing, and with his hand still placed on her lower back, he guides her into the room, leading her to where he can see Enid waiting with her date, practically bouncing on the balls of her feet.

“Tyler!” She greets, throwing her arms around him in a hug. “I told you she liked you.” She whispers in his ear and Tyler can only roll his eyes at her smug expression when he pulls away. “Oh, this is Ajax, my soulmate. Ajax, meet Tyler.”

Ajax gives him a small nod and a close lipped smile and Tyler returns it with a nod of his own. If Wednesday and Enid continue to be friends, he knows he’ll have to get to know Ajax better. He seems like a decent enough guy. Hopefully when his outcast status is revealed it won’t cause any strife within the group.

Enid draws Wednesday into a conversation and Tyler drowns them out, surveying the room. It’s much more elaborate than the few Jericho High dances he’d briefly attended, and he appreciates the effort the dance committee must have put into the preparations. He spots Eugene across the room and gives the boy a small wave, eyes continuing to sweep until he sees a familiar redhead conversing with the DJ.

Hatred and anger flood his senses the longer he stares at the woman. She shouldn’t be here. You should kill her. Protect what is yours. The Hyde roars his head and Tyler feels him take a step toward Thornhill, finding the Hyde’s demands perfectly reasonable. A hand on his chest stops him. His eyes travel up the tiny arm to Wednesday’s face, her questioning eyes focused on him, breaking him from whatever spell the Hyde put him under. He shakes his head to let her know he’s fine, but her eyes move behind him, hardening when she realizes who he was looking at.

“Come on.” She growls, gripping his wrist tightly and tugging him behind her.

Wednesday drags him through the crowd to an empty space on the dance floor, near the center where Thornhill will have a hard time spotting them. He tells himself to forget about her. She’s not important. She’s already taken so much from him. He won’t allow her to take tonight with Wednesday too.

Though she’s dragged him to the dance floor, Wednesday hasn’t begun dancing yet so Tyler waits, content to follow her lead. Her head is tilted to the side slightly, a scowl on her face as she listens to the music from the speakers. Tyler can feel his nerves rising the longer he waits. It’s stupid, he tells himself. It’s just a dance. Wednesday has already admitted she has feelings for him. She’s kissed him. There’s no reason to be anxious.

A new song begins to play, one that Wednesday seems to recognize, and she begins to move. It’s completely unlike anything he’s ever seen before. It starts out simple, a small shimmy of her upper torso and he tries to match her tempo. Before long, she’s twisting around, flailing her arms and he gives up, just stops and stares with what must be a ridiculous grin on his face.

Her eyes are locked on him, and he realizes that in this crowded room, she’s dancing for him and only him. It’s unbelievable, he thinks. Not only did some higher power deem him worthy of her, but Wednesday chose to be with him, and continues to choose him despite all the reasons he’s given for her to leave. He’s a monster. He’s lied. There’s literal blood on his hands. Wednesday is aware of his faults - has seen the monster and been intrigued instead of repulsed and she’s never once seemed concerned about the murders. He’d mutilated her classmate right in front of her and it didn’t scare her away from him. He’s so impossibly in love with this girl. He knows he’ll do everything he can to protect her against Thornhill. A word without Wednesday isn’t one he’s interested in living in.

He loses sight of her for a second before there’s a tap on his shoulder and he turns to find Wednesday behind him. The intensity of her stare causes his heart to pound harshly in his chest and all he can think about is kissing her again. She moves away from him, continuing to dance in a way that he can only describe as uniquely Wednesday, sappy smile tugging at his lips. He reminds himself to move, attempting but failing to match her steps. He can’t bring himself to care. He’d been concerned about his dancing, may have even practiced a little alone in his room. But now with Wednesday dancing in front of him, it doesn’t even matter what he looks like. How could anyone even notice what he looks like when Wednesday is dancing so exquisitely for anyone to see.

When the song ends, a slow song replaces it and for the first time since entering the dance floor, Wednesday looks unsure of herself. He grabs her hands and gently pulls her to him, placing her arms around his neck and positioning his around her waist. He begins to sway, Wednesday coping his movements.

“I didn’t know you could dance. That was amazing.” He whispers.

“My father likes to dance. Sometimes I allow him to teach me.” She answers, laying her head against his chest.

He tightens his hold on her, enjoying the feeling of having her in his arms again. He hopes she’ll allow him to meet her family one day soon. Despite some of the comments she’s made about her parents, he knows her family is important to her. From the brief interaction he had with them on the crystal ball, they seem to accept that he’s a Hyde. He just hopes they’re as accepting of it when they learn he’s also their daughter’s soulmate.

When the music turns to a pop song that Wednesday refuses to dance to, they exit the dance floor, stopping to grab a couple drinks. He spots Enid and Ajax at a table with Eugene and guides Wednesday toward them. He notices with a smile, that despite Wednesday’s reservations, she seems to be enjoying herself. He likes to think that at least a small part of that is due to his presence.

While Tyler talks with Eugene about potentially selling his honey at The Weathervane, Wednesday excuses herself to the bathroom. Enid offers to go with her, but Wednesday waves her off. She needs a moment alone to decompress from the crowded room. She’s on her way back to them, just passing by the drink station when a voice stops her.

“What do you see in him?” Wednesday hears from behind and when she turns around, she finds Xavier glaring, eyes fixated behind her where she knows Tyler is conversing with Enid and Eugene.

“Why is that any of your concern?” She asks flatly. She’s surprisingly been enjoying herself tonight and she really doesn’t want to spend any of her time tonight with Xavier. However, if she walks away, she has the feeling he’ll just follow her. Best to get this conversation over with now, and quickly.

“Do you know what he did to me?”

“I do.” She answers, lips twitching as Xavier takes a step back, eyes widening. He obviously hadn’t expected Tyler to share that information with her.

“And you don’t care.” He snorts. “You two deserve each other.” He shakes his head and begins to walk away before stopping, whipping his head back to face her. “That’s it, isn’t it? He’s your soulmate.”

Xavier takes her silence as confirmation and lets out a loud bitter laugh. He mutters “unbelievable” under his breath before walking away, finally leaving her alone again.

“Is everything okay?” She hears Tyler whisper in her ear at the same time she feels his chest press up against her back. She nods, leaning back into him further. She’s not sure how she feels about Xavier knowing their secret. Maybe it’ll finally make him leave her alone, but she also fears he’ll spread the information around, and it’ll get back to Thornhill. She has to assume Thornhill did her research about Hydes and must know the importance of their soulmate.

“Good. It’s almost eleven and I want one more dance.”

Tyler’s hands find her waist and he spins her to face him. He smiles at her, dropping a kiss on her forehead that causes her stomach to flutter. She allows him to take her hand, holding it lightly as he leads her to the middle of the dance floor.

It’s another pop song, one she’d rather not dance to, but since it’s the last song of the night, she’ll give Tyler this concession. She dances much more tamely than earlier though Tyler still smiles giddily at her. He’s spent the whole night smiling and happy and though she always thought she’d hate being surrounded by such positive emotions, she can’t get enough of his smiles. It makes her feel warm and loved and she will do anything to keep that smile on his face.

Tyler grabs her hand, spinning her suddenly. When she faces him again, her own little smile at the corner of her lips, she watches as a drop of dark red liquid lands on Tyler’s shoulder. A moment later, it’s raining blood and she tips her head back to allow it to splatter on her face.

She drags a finger across her cheek, collecting the blood on her finger and sucks the tip into her mouth, disappointed to discover the red substance is only paint. She scowls, about to make a comment when her eyes land on Tyler for the first time since the paint began falling heavily from the ceiling. There’s paint in his hair, streaks running down his face, and splattered across his chest. He’s beautiful. She pretends for a moment that instead of paint, it’s warm fresh blood and is hit with a sudden flash of desire.

Her feet move on their own accord, stopping only when the toes of her shoes bump against his. Placing her hands on his chest for balance, she reaches up until she can gently press her lips against his. The taste of paint floods her mouth from where it clung to his lips and she’s about to deepen the kiss when she feels the start of a vision take hold. Quickly she steps back, Tyler’s arm moving to circle her waist when she stumbles. The last thing she sees is Tyler’s tired smile as he pulls her to his chest.

The room is dark, lit only by a string of fairy lights and candles. She can’t make out where she is, only that it’s cold, and damp and smells a little bit like mildew. There’s a sound from behind her, a pained whimper, and she whips around, taking a few steps closer to the sound before freezing from the scene in front of her.

The future version of herself is sprawled on the ground, blood flowing down her neck from an injury she cannot see, with Tyler’s laying across her lap. She thinks she sees what could possibly be someone else lying on the ground to the right of the couple, but she cannot manage to take her eyes off them to investigate.  Her gaze travels down Tyler’s body until her eyes land on his stomach, where the Wednesday in her vision is desperately applying pressure around a knife sticking out of his gut. She hears her own loud exhale, panic coursing through her as the spot of blood on his shirt only grows bigger, seeping out and staining the ground beneath him crimson. Vision Wednesday shouts something at him frantically, but she can't hear the words. Tyler laughs painfully, but she's unable to  make out anything he says before he begins to cough, blood spilling from his mouth and dribbling down his chin.

She can recognize that sheer terror on the girl’s face, surely, it’s mirrored on her own. Tyler grabs the girls' hands, bringing them up to rest above his heart. Her hands tremble when Tyler shudders and his eyes close. She doesn’t need to be able to hear to know what words the Wednesday in front of her is shouting. She can already hear them in her own head. “Come back! You can’t die! I won’t let you die!”

Her own breath is coming out in short, frantic pants as she watches as the girl’s eyes glisten, large tears escaping her eyes as she cradles Tyler closer to her chest. She begins to sway, eventually losing consciousness, slumping over Tyler’s body. For the first time, Wednesday gets a glimpse of the wound she’s been hiding. Blood mats her hair, oozing out of a large crack in the back of her skull. Blood coats her shirt, from her neck all the way down to her waist. It’s too much blood. Wednesday wonders if she’ll ever regain consciousness. Maybe she’ll be joining Tyler shortly in the land of the dead. Is this how she is destined to die? Alone, clinging to the dead body of her soulmate?

Chapter Text

Tyler pulls Wednesday to his chest as the Nevermore students continue to slide on the paint as they scramble to exit the room. She whimpers softly and he runs a hand across her hair in a feeble attempt to comfort her. The dance floor is deserted now. The only other occupants in the room are faculty members huddled in a corner whispering frantically to one another. He realizes suddenly that he should leave before they notice him still standing there – before Thornhill realizes he attended the Rave’N with Wednesday.

He bends slightly and hooks an arm under Wednesday’s knees to lift her bridal style in his arms. She whimpers again as he exits a side door into the cool night air and he shushes her gently, rocking her slightly in his arms. He wonders what she’s seeing. Questions what could possibly be so horrible to cause his usually stoic soulmate to cry out in pain. He tries to ignore the dread in the pit of his stomach that tells him the vision is linked to them – to him. It was triggered by their kiss. He can only assume she’s seeing a scene in their future.

He reaches his car and gently leans Wednesday against the hood so he can retrieve his keys from his pocket. He unlocks the doors with the keyfob then opens the door to the backseat. Carefully he lowers them both onto the seat, situating himself so his back is leaning against the door, legs stretched out on the seat with Wednesday laying on top of him, head resting against his chest.

Wednesday whimpers again, a loud keening noise that chills him to the bone. “Shh.” He whispers, rubbing his hand up and down her back. “I’m here. Everything’s okay.”

He’s trying not to panic. Trying to remind himself that she should be waking from her vision soon. But this vision is unlike any he’s seen her experience before. She’s never been physically affected by a vision. Never made a sound and now she’s whimpering. His mind is starting to run wild, concocting one terrible scenario after another.

Wednesday wakes with a loud gasp, sitting up so suddenly she almost scrapes her head against the roof of the car. Her chest is heaving, loud puffs of air escaping her throat and her eyes are wide, frantically darting around while she takes in her surroundings. Her eyes finally land on his face, and he just barely hears her whimper before she throws herself violently against him, arms encircling his chest in a bruising grip. With her body pushed against him, he can feel the trembles that wrack her body. He brings one arm around her waist, squeezing tightly, while the other begins to rub her back rhythmically. She doesn’t speak. Doesn’t loosen her grip on his chest and Tyler just shushes her gently, hoping he’s helping to soothe her fears.

When Wednesday’s tremors disappear and her breathing evens out, he looks down to see she’s fallen asleep. He rubs a hand across her exposed cheek, slightly rough from the dried red paint they’re still both covered in, traveling up her face to her hair. Feeling around gently, he locates the pins in her hair and pulls them out carefully, releasing her braids. He drops the hairpins to the floor, feeling around until he finds an old shirt. Bunching it up, he pushes it behind his head as a makeshift pillow. He knows he’s going to be sore in the morning from this position, but he has no desire to move. He can deal with a sore body if it means Wednesday gets the rest she needs.

She was terrified, he thinks. The haunted look on her face is something that he’ll never be able to forget. He might not be the smartest guy, but he’s been around for enough of Wednesday’s visions that he can read between the lines. Something happened to him in that vision, something so horrific that she was nearly in tears and could only find comfort by holding him. He has a pretty good idea what it could be, though he hopes he’s wrong. He just got her, he’s not ready to leave yet. He rubs a hand harshly against the corner of his eye, removing the tears that are starting to pool there. Pulling Wednesday closer, he drops a kiss to her head, wondering how much longer he has to spend with the girl in his arms.

Wednesday squints her eyes against the warm sun rays in an attempt to block out the bright morning light. She toys with one of the buttons of Tyler’s shirt, not yet ready to wake up for the day. Not ready to face Tyler or tell him the details of their tragic fate.

She’s embarrassed by her actions last night – throwing herself at Tyler, trembling as she laid against him. She couldn’t speak, mind too consumed with the image of him dead in front of her. She hadn’t been able to force herself away from him. The sound of his beating heart was a constant reminder that he was still alive, still with her. With his arms tightly around her and the rhythm of his heart against her ear, she’d allowed herself to succumb to sleep.

Now with the sun shining brightly on them, she allows herself to really observe him. He’s still asleep, short puffs of air hitting her face as she leans over his. Paint still covers his face and hair and though she knows it’s not blood, her mind flashes back to her vision, and she begins to panic. Her hand travels down his torso, tugging forcibly on his shirt to remove it from his now ruined pants. She slips her hand under his shirt, placing it on his lower belly where the knife was embedded. She’s met only with flat, smooth skin and she exhales in relief.

“Hey.” She hears Tyler say, voice still rough from sleep.

Wednesday yanks her hand away, heat rising to her cheeks at being caught with her hand under his shirt. Lifting her gaze to his, she finds him observing her through hooded eyes. She realizes she’s still hovering over him and pulls back, sitting up so she’s nearly straddling his waist. Tyler shifts his position until he’s sitting up comfortably then tugs her hips until she’s fully in his lap.

“What did you see in your vision?” He asks softly. She shakes her head, not yet ready to speak the words out loud. “I died, didn’t I?”

Her head snaps to his, eyes widening at his words. He shouldn’t know that. Didn’t want him to know that. The words hang in the air between them, and it feels too real now, like a prophecy they’re both waiting to come to pass.

“I’m sorry.” He tells her gently, reaching up to cup her cheek. “I’m sorry you had to see that. I’m sorry you’ll have to experience it again.”

Anger surges through her and she knocks his hand away and uses both palms to shove him roughly in the chest. “Don’t say that!” She hisses vehemently. “You are not going to die. I won’t let you die.”

He smiles at her gently, dislodging her hands from his chest and entwining his fingers with her. “Have you ever been able to change an outcome of a vision?”

She glares, not at all enthused by his apparent acceptance of his death. “Why are you so willing to die?” She growls. “Why don’t you want to even try to change it? Are you that ready to leave?”

Are you that ready to leave me, she thinks but doesn’t verbalize. The pain cuts through her rage, her heart throbbing in an agony she never experienced before.

“I don’t want to die, Wednesday.” He says softly, turning her hands over to place a kiss on her palm. “I don’t want to leave you. I’ve dreamed of a future with you. Marriage and kids. Being your accomplice in every crime you deem necessary to commit.”

She watches as a tear escapes his eyes, stained pink as it travels down the red pain on his cheek. He wipes it away quickly, making more of a mess as he smears the paint. “I want a life with you, Wednesday. I want to date and fight and make up, just to do it all over again.” He shrugs gently. “I don’t want to die, but I will if my death means you get to live.”

She feels tears forming in her own eyes and rubs her fist aggressively against them, refusing to let them fall. When she removes her hands, she studies the wetness on her fingers, determination growing within her. “No.” She whispers.

“No?” He echoes, a slight furrow of his brow in confusion.

“No.” She repeats, louder and more forcefully. “You aren’t going to die. You are not going to become a martyr. You will not die for me. I don’t want it and I won’t allow it.”

She’s breathing heavily by the time she’s done speaking, eyes glaring into his so he understands how serious she is. She doesn’t know for certain if that knife was intended for her, but she has a gut feeling it was meant to kill her and Tyler jumped in the way, allowing it to pierce him instead in an attempt to save her. She does not want him dying for her, doesn’t want to live in a world where she knows he died because of her. It’s the worse torture she can think of.

“I can’t promise that, Wednesday.” He holds her gaze, and she can feel the truthfulness in his voice. “If the choice is between you and me, I’m always going to choose you.”

She’s still enraged with his stubborn instance on saving her, but she’s also flooded with guilt. He thinks he died saving her, but she’s not entirely sure either of them made it out of that vision alive.

“Wednesday?” He asks and he must have picked up on her change in emotion because he’s looking at her now with fearful concern. “What else happened in your vision? You weren’t injured, right?”

She lets silence be her only answer and Tyler adjusts his position so he’s sitting up straight, hands finding her hips and holding them almost bruisingly tight. His eyes are a mix of anger, and fear, and something she can’t identify. She wonders how close the Hyde is to the surface right now. If Tyler is struggling to stay in control after learning about her questionable fate.

“Did you die?” He asks, voice cracking over the last word.

She can’t answer that question in any way that is going to reassure him. The truthful answer is she doesn’t know. She was injured, badly, and there was a lot of blood, but the vision ended before she discovered her own outcome. Maybe she regained consciousness. Maybe she didn’t.

“Wednesday.” His voice is rough now and her name is followed by what almost sounds like a growl. His eyes are beginning to bulge larger, and she can hear the sound of bones cracking. His grip on her hips tightens and she can feel the sharp edge of a claw where it pierced through her dress and is pushing against her skin.  

“Tyler. If the Hyde needs to come out, we need to move to the woods before you transform.” She says, keeping her voice even.

“No.” He closes his eyes, inhaling deeply. Wednesday watches as he sits like that for a minute until the sound of bones cracking disappears and his eyes open again. He releases her waist, taking hold of her wrist instead. “Did you die too?”

“Maybe.” She answers, watching as he flinches before he tugs her against his chest. “Tell me what happened in the vision.” He whispers against her hair, voice filled with sorrow.

So she does. She tells him everything. The knife sticking out of his stomach and the blood pooling on the ground around them. How she tried to stop the blood, but it was no use. About the crack in the back of her skull and the blood she lost before passing out. He holds her tighter as she talks, arms shaking slightly. When she’s told him everything, they sit in silence, her head resting on his chest.

“We won’t let that happen.” Tyler says determinedly, breaking the silence. “We know what’s going to happen. We can change it.”

Wednesday hopes that’s true. Wants it to be true. She told herself the same thing one a short while later, but she can’t shake the feeling that the future is already written. They’re going to end up in that same situation and she’s going to be helpless to save Tyler again.

She tries to push her feelings away, something that is much more difficult than it should be, and think logically. Since arriving at Nevermore, her visions have all led back to Thornhill and her plan to resurrect Joseph Crackstone. It’s not a big leap to assume that the person that killed Tyler, and possibly killed her too, is Thornhill. And isn’t that a bitter pill to swallow.

Tyler told her what he learned about Thornhill’s plan on the drive back to Nevermore on the night she kissed him. He’s been insistent that they do something, that they stop her before she could enact her plan, but Wednesday brushed him off. She hadn’t been worried. After learning about the blood ritual from her parents’ books, she assumed her role in the plan wouldn’t be pleasant. And the thought of Thornhill possessing the ability to harm her had been comical.

Now she realizes she’d been too confident. Thornhill either lures them into a trap or finds a way to capture them. Maybe she has help or maybe she’s smarter than either of them realized. It doesn’t really matter. Tyler is the one that pays the ultimate price for her ignorance. She has to at least try to change her vision, no matter how much she fears the outcome is inevitable.

The sound of Tyler’s phone ringing draws her from her thoughts, and she pulls away slightly to see his phone in his hand, his father’s id on the screen. He allows it to ring until it goes to voicemail, and she grimaces when she sees several missed calls and multiple text messages from his father.

“You have to go.” She says evenly.

“No.” He shakes his head, but Wednesday interrupts him.

“We’re not going to be able to do anything today. Not dressed like this and especially not if your father comes looking for you.”

Tyler agrees reluctantly and sends off a quick text message to Enid. She arrives shortly later with wet towels and a change of clothes. They use the wet towels to clean themselves the best they can, Wednesday using her towel to wipe away a spot of paint Tyler missed on his forehead. While she changes out of her dress in the backseat of Tyler’s car, she can hear Tyler and Enid whispering outside, but is unable to make out their words. When she exits the car, Enid smiles and moves to the other side of the car to give them some privacy.

“Are you sure you’re okay? I can stay.” Tyler offers. She shakes her head. As much as she doesn’t want Tyler to leave her sight, her heart aching at the thought of being separated from him, he needs to go deal with his father and she desperately needs a shower.

“I’m fine.” She reassures him, offering a small smile. “We’ll make a plan for Thornhill next time we see each other.” She promises.

Tyler still looks unsure, but he nods. She places a small kiss on his cheek, letting her hand trail across his chest before she turns away to join Enid. The walk back to their dorm is silent, though she can see Enid is brimming with questions. She thankful that for once, her roommate has chosen to remain silent.

Chapter Text

Wednesday is frustrated to learn her free time is limited for the next week. Collectively their teachers seem to have decided to pile their students with homework, projects and quizzes. Between studying and completing her assignments, it leaves her very little time to think of a plan to handle Thornhill. It also leaves no time to sneak off to see Tyler.

 At the end of classes on Monday, her last period teacher announces Parent’s Weekend is in only a couple day and reminds the students to finish their assignments by Saturday so they can spend the weekend visiting their families. Wednesday growls under her breath. She’d been preoccupied and completely forgotten about the dreaded weekend. She hadn’t intended to even still be at Nevermore and had thrown away the calendar of events she’d been given when she first arrived. Managing her parents and brother while trying to deal with Thornhill and hiding her soulmate is one too many things than she is prepared to handle. If her parents learn about Tyler, she’ll never hear the end of it. They’ll be disgustingly happy and pepper her with questions. She doubts they’ll even want to leave on Sunday. They’ll probably stick around Jericho, getting to know Tyler and try to welcome him into the family.

To make matters worse, on Wednesday morning she is called into Principal Weems’ office and is forced to participate in a video call with a sickly looking Dr. Kinbott. Kinbott explains she has to cancel their afternoon session because she has come down with a cold, but is rescheduling their session for Saturday afternoon and would like her family to attend with her.

“That sounds unethical.” Wednesday objects. Their sessions are supposed to be private. Her family shouldn’t be allowed at a session unless she agrees to it.

“Wednesday, I’ll remind you that your sessions are court ordered. If you fail to attend, I’ll have no choice but to inform the judge.” Kinbott responds with an annoyingly fake smile on her face.

Wednesday glowers at the screen but remains silent. Normally she wouldn’t care about being in violation of her court ordered therapy, but she needs to stay out of trouble. At least until she and Tyler deal with Thornhill. Kinbott might have the power to make her attend a session with her parents, but she can’t force her to talk.

Unfortunately, the canceled session means she has no reason to go into Jericho and thus ruins her plans to visit Tyler. She considers sneaking away, but she’s noticed Weems and the other teachers have returned to keeping close tabs on her and decides against it. With Parent’s Weekend quickly approaching, she suspects Principal Weems is suspicious she’ll attempt a final escape before her parents arrive. If circumstances were different, that’s probably exactly what she would do.

She settles for asking Enid to send a text to Tyler explaining she won’t be in town today and promising to sneak off sometime this weekend so they can talk. Enid complies but gives Wednesday the same look she’s been directing at her for the last couple of days. The look that tells Wednesday she’s just barely restraining herself from asking what happened between them after the Rave’N that spooked them both. Wednesday hurries away to the bathroom before Enid’s resolve cracks. It’s not that she’s purposely keeping Enid out of the loop. She’s just too unsettled to repeat her vison again.

She wakes with a gasp, sweat drenching her clothing and bangs stuck to her forehead. Her heart is pounding so loud she can hear it in her ears. Wednesday closes her eyes, focusing on the ticking of the clock on the wall as she tries to even out her breathing and wills her hands to stop shaking.

For almost sixteen years, she’s welcomed her daily nightmares. She enjoys the exhilaration of being chased through the woods by a serial killer or slashed to death by a monster. The danger, blood, and pain were always exciting, and she often used them as inspiration for her writing. But this week she learned she could hate her nightmares and despise them with every fiber of her being.

Every night, her vison replays in her sleep. Only in her nightmares, she’s holding Tyler in her arms, instead of watching Tyler from afar. She can see the pain in his eyes, feel him trembling as he holds on to life, his blood warm and wet against her skin. She feels her own tears prickling at her eyes as he goes limp in her arms. She tries to scream, but no sound ever comes out. But when she wakes her throat is raw and painful.

She’s grown used to waking up in a frenzied state, trying to keep quiet and calm herself quickly so as not to wake Enid. She knows Enid has noticed her switch to morning showers instead of her usual shower before bed, but she has yet to mention it. Part of her thinks Enid hasn’t asked her about the night of the Rave’N or her new morning routine because she’s afraid of what she might learn if she does.

Returning to sleep after the nightmares has proven impossible, her body full of adrenaline and mind relentlessly replaying the images. At first, she’d tried to use the extra time to her advantage by attempting to write, but she couldn’t focus. Anything she wrote was inadequate and ended up in the trash. Instead, she’s taken to researching celestial events, mapping out when each one is due to take place next. Technically, Thornhill could use any of them for her ritual, but Wednesday believes she’s narrowed it down to the blood moon. It’s the most powerful event and would offer Thornhill with the most likely chance of success. With that information, it gives Wednesday a definitive deadline for her and Tyler to make plans to remove Thornhill.

Wednesday refuses to meet her parents at their car, instead opting to wait in the quad with Enid. Her roommate seems just as hesitant to see her own family. Enid finally ventures toward her parents and brothers with a hesitant sigh just as Wednesday hears her mother’s voice from across the quad. Puglsey reaches her first and wraps his arms around her in a tight hug. Wednesday allows him two seconds before she pushes him off. She may have actually missed her brother, but she refuses to admit that out loud.

“Oh, how we missed those accusing eyes and youthful sneer.” Her father says joyously as he too hugs her. She scowls as he pulls away. The next person that tries to hug her is going to get a knife to their gut.

“How are you, my little rain cloud?” Her mother asks.

Instead of answering, Wednesday turns on her heel, knowing her family will follow. She leads them to Principal Weems office as instructed and enters without knocking. Weems schools her face into a friendly smile, but Wednesday can see the annoyance lurking beneath. It’s almost enough to make her smile.

Pugsley waits outside in the hallway and her parents take both seats in front of Weems’ desk, leaving her to stand between them. Her mother finds a yearbook on Weems’ desk and grabs it, flipping through the pages as she reminisces about her own days at Nevermore. She banters with the principal, her father chipping in occasionally. It’s dreadfully boring and Wednesday doesn’t plan to allow the conversation to continue any further.

“We are not here to reminisce about your own days at Nevermore.” She interjects into the conversation, giving each adult a glare.

“Right.” Weems says, turning her attention back to Wednesday. “We are here to discuss Wednesday’s therapy. Dr. Kinbott and I have spoken, and we believe it will be beneficial for you all to attend her session this afternoon. Wednesday has already agreed.”

“I did not.” She objects. “Dr. Kinbott threatened to report me if I didn’t comply.”

Principal Weems’ eyes go hard, and she fixes another fake smile on her face before turning back to her parents. Though her mother also objects, her parents eventually agree to attend her session. She slips out of the office without her parents noticing and hides away in the library until its time to leave for Jericho.

When Wednesday exits the car in front of Dr. Kinbott’s office, her eyes instantly drift towards The Weathervane. She knows Tyler is there and she longs to go see him. It’s been a week since she’s seen him. A week of almost no communication besides a few texts he’d sent to Enid’s phone. A week where she’s watched him die every night in her dreams. Her father exits the car behind her, and she shuffles out of his way, promising herself that she’ll sneak off tomorrow to go visit Tyler.

True to her word, Wednesday doesn’t speak a word during her therapy session. She considered bringing her father’s police file with her and accusing her parents of lying to her, but decided against it. She didn’t want to give Kinbott the idea that she needed help resolving her familial problems. She’ll spring it on her parents later when the time suits her.

Most of the session is spent with Pugsley talking, first about how he misses his sister then about his own problems. Her father interrupts occasionally, but her mother never speaks. The session is not turning out how Weems and Dr. Kinbott expected, and Wednesday is enjoying it immensely. She’s been watching Kinbott’s face. She’s struggling to maintain her happy facade. Her smile is tense at the edges and falters the longer her brother and father talk. Honestly, it’s the most fun she’s had in a therapy session.

The next morning, Enid wakes earlier than normal, already dressed when Wednesday returns from her shower. Her nightmare the previous evening was more intense than the rest of the week and the bags under her eyes have grown even more pronounced than usual. She has to see Tyler today. She can’t go another day only seeing him in her nightmares.

“Tyler texted.” She Enid says softly from her bed. “He says good luck today and its his day off, so he’ll be home almost all day.”

Wednesday nods her thanks, already trying to determine when she’ll be able to slip away without being noticed. They sit in silence for a while until Enid sighs loudly and informs her that they had better head to brunch before their parents come searching for them. The make their trek to the quad silently, Enid offering a small smile as the split to head towards their own families.

Wednesday does her best to ignore her parents and their disgusting display of affection as she grabs food from the buffet. She takes her seat next to Pugsley, only half listening as he talks. Her parents join them at the table and only a couple minutes pass before the doors leading to the quad are thrown open with a loud bang.

Wednesday watches as Tyler’s father and his deputies enter the quad. They’re intercepted after only a couple feet by Principal Weems, who asks them a question that Wednesday is too far away to hear. Instead of answering, the sheriff steps around the principal, heading straight for her family’s table, every eye in the quad following his movement.

“Gomez Addams.” The sheriff calls out, loud enough for everyone to hear.

“How can I help you, Sheriff?” Her father asks, rising from his seat and turning to face Tyler’s father.

“You’re under arrest for the murder of Garrett Gates.” He answers gruffly, removing a pair of handcuffs from his belt and turning her father so his back is facing him.         

She watches as the sheriff grabs her father’s arm, affixing the cuff around one wrist before doing the same to the other. With a hand on his shoulder, he begins to lean her father away.

“Don’t start with me, Addams.” He says gruffly, pausing in his reading of the Miranda Rights, when she opens her mouth to protest. “I can’t allow your father to get away with murder just because you are my son’s soulmate.”

If she wasn’t so irate, maybe she’d feel some satisfaction watching the sheriff stumble and nearly fall with her father abruptly stops walking.

“My little viper found her soulmate?” Her father asks, turning his torso to face her with a wide smile resting on his face. The quad is silent, and she can feel every eye focused on her.

“That’s wonderful news, darling.”

She hears her mother’s proud exclamation from behind her, but her furious eyes are focused on Tyler’s father. He gulps and takes a step back, realizing he divulged information she hadn’t shared with her parents. Tugging her father’s arm, he pulls him further in front of him to act as a shield. She growls under her breath, cursing the quad for being full of witnesses and turns to leave without making eye contact with anyone.

Tyler is going to be an orphan. She doesn’t think he’ll mind terribly.

Her mother finds her in her dorm not long after, stepping through the door without bothering to knock. Thing is on her shoulder, and he waves at her timidly, likely trying to gage her mood.

“Why didn’t you tell us that boy was your soulmate when you called?” Her mother asks, walking further into the room. She settles into the chair at Wednesday’s desk, rubbing nonexistent dirt of the crystal ball. “A hyde in the family? How exciting.”

Wednesday rolls her eyes. Her father was just arrested and of course, her mother still can’t help but question her about Tyler. “It did not pertain to you.” She answers, holding up her father’s police file. “Father has been arrested. Now is not the time to ask questions about Tyler.”

Her mother’s smile drops and her shoulders sag slightly as she nods. She eyes the file in Wednesday’s hand suspiciously. Wednesday moves from her spot by the window, walking to her mother and depositing the file in her hand.

“You and father lied to me. Who was Garrett Gates? Why is father accused of murdering him? Tell me everything.” She demands.

Morticia hesitates but eventually nods. “Garrett Gates had an infatuation with me. That infatuation turned to obsession and stalking.” Morticia begins, taking a step toward her daughter. “The Gates were the oldest and richest family in Jericho and Garrett’s father was an outcast hating bigot.”

 Wednesday can’t help but see the similarities between the Gates family and Crackstone. She remembers suddenly that Tyler shared Thornhill was using the Gates Manor to house her body parts and reminds herself to look into any connection between Thornhill and the Gates family. Her using the abandoned home of a bigoted family can’t be a coincidence.

Her mother takes another step toward her, reaching her arm out to place her hand on her daughter’s shoulder. Wednesday is about to shake it off when she feels a vision beginning to take hold. She feels her body falling backwards, getting lost in the vision just seconds before she hits the floor.

She’s in a car where an older man is yelling at who she assumes to be Garrett Gates. The man hands Garrett a vial filled with blue liquid, which he slips in his shirt pocket. The scene shifts to Nevermore, where it’s dark and rainy. Her father is on the ground fighting with Garrett. Garrett takes a hit from her father, the impact causing the vial in his pocket to break.

Her mother is to the side of the fight, shouting though it does nothing to stop the two boys. Garrett throws her father off of him and when he stands, he turns to face her mother. His eyes are rabid, brimming with murderous intent and he is foaming at the mouth.

As he advances toward her parents, her mother picks up a discard sword from the fight and thrust it into Garrett’s stomach.She pulls the sword out and Garrett falls from the second story landing to his death.

Wednesday wakes, using her arms to sit up from her position on the floor and glares at her mother. “Father didn’t kill Garrett Gates. You did.”

“Your father took the blame in order to protect me.” Her mother admits, a tear slipping from her eye. “I was so grateful when they cleared him of any wrongdoing. But I knew, someday this would come back to haunt us.”

“Garrett was foaming at the mouth. His eyes didn’t look human.” Wednesday says thinking about the vial of blue liquid. Morticia eyes her daughter cautiously but nods in agreement. “Foaming saliva, dilated pupils, mental confusion. What are those all textbook symptoms of?”

“Nightshade poisoning.” Morticia gasps. “How can that be?”

Wednesday can’t image Garrett Gates being buried anywhere other than Jericho. All they’d need to do to exonerate her father is a little grave digging. “There’s only one way to find out.” Wednesday responds, lips stretching into a smile.

Tyler huffs angerly as he stomps down the street. He’d been walking into town to grab an early lunch when he’d received a text from Enid alerting him that Wednesday’s father had just been arrested. He’d changed course instantly, arriving at the station just as his father was escorting Wednesday’s father into the station.

“Dad!” He shouts, but his father ignores him, pushing through the station until he reaches the holding cells. He uncuffs Wednesday’s father then shuts the door to the nearest cell before turning to face his son.

“Tyler, we’re not doing this.” His dad warns him, grabbing his shoulder and pulling him away from the cells. He turns back to glance at Wednesday’s father and is surprised to find Gomez smiling, offering a little wave by wiggling his fingers.

“Like I told Wednesday, I can’t allow a murderer to walk free. It doesn’t matter if he’s your soulmate’s father.” His dad says once they’re in his office with the door shut.

“You can’t seriously think he did it!” He objects. Wednesday said she didn’t think her father was capable of murder and he trusts her judgement.

“There was an anonymous tip that led to some evidence. I’m just doing my job, son.”

“Well, you’re wrong.” He growls. “And I’m going to prove it.” He storms to the door, yanking it open and ignoring his father as he yells ‘stay away from that school’.

Back outside, Tyler takes a moment to calm his breathing and begins walking back towards his house to get his car. He’s going to find Wednesday. He hasn’t listened to his father in the past and he doesn’t plan to start now. He picks up his pace, walking by the church and Crackstone’s ruined statue when he catches a glimpse of black hair in the cemetery. Hurriedly, he walks toward the cemetery gates, smiling to himself when he sees her signature braids.

“Wednesday!” Tyler yells and Wednesday turns, stopping to wait for him as he jogs into the cemetery. He just takes notice of the two shovels in her hand when he hears another voice address him.

“Tyler, we just learned the good news.”

Tyler turns in the direction of the voice and finds Wednesday’s mother smiling at him. He’d been so focused on Wednesday that he hadn’t even noticed her mother accompanying her. His nose scrunches up in confusion, one eyebrow quirking up in question when he replays her words in his mind. He’s aware the Addams are odd, but he didn’t think they’d classify Gomez’s pending murder trial as good news. He turns his head back towards Wednesday, silently asking her for an explanation.

Wednesday rolls her eyes, sending her mother another glare before softening her expression as she answers. “Your father told them we’re soulmates.”

“Oh.” He breathes out, turning to give her mother a sheepish smile. Despite her earlier words, he feels nerves swirling in his stomach, afraid her family will reject him or think he’s not good enough for their daughter.

Her mother steps forward, arms wrapping him in a hug, and he relaxes, nerves disappearing. From his vantage point, he watches as Wednesday rolls her eyes again, mouthing something to herself that he could probably hear if he strained his ears a little harder. “We’ve never had a hyde in the family. Our friends will be so jealous.” She boasts, squeezing him tighter, but releasing him.

He feels himself smiling. Family. She already considers him family. It’s more than he could have wished for.

“Mother.” Wednesday’s voice interrupts his thoughts as they both turn to face her. She holds up one shovel expectantly.

Morticia sobers, nodding her head slightly before speaking, “Right. Let’s go dig up Garrett Gates.”

Tyler raises one eyebrow, but shrugs his shoulder, walking to Wednesday and taking one shovel from her hands. He’s sure they have a good reason for digging up Gates and if not, he doesn’t really care. After a week of separation, he’ll take any chance to spend time with Wednesday.

 “There’s still time for you to escape.” Wednesday whispers cutting her eyes toward her mother, just before they arrive at Gates’ tombstone.

“I’m good right here.” He whispers back, bumping her shoulder. Her expression softens slightly, and he sends her a gentle smile. “Your mother seems nice.”

“Nice isn’t the word I’d use.” She argues, eye hardening again. He chooses not to respond, not thinking it wise to interject his opinion in their mother-daughter relationship.

With only two shovels, he’s more than happy to help Wednesday dig the grave, while her mother sits on another tombstone nearby. From the corner of his eyes, he can see her watching them, scrutinizing their interactions. More than once, he catches her smiling at them when Wednesday says something that makes him laugh or when his actions cause Wednesday’s lips to twitch just slightly. It’s a nice feeling, someone approving of him for a change.

“Do you need me to…?” He asks, gesturing towards his fingers when Wednesday peels open the casket, and they are met with the decomposed remains of Garrett Gates. She closes her eyes, inhaling the scent of decay and death, and he can’t help but smile at her fondly.

Wednesday shakes her head no, dagger appearing from seemingly nowhere and slices off a finger. She wraps it in a cloth she pulls from her pocket and places it in her bag that lays on the ground near the headstone.

They make quick work filling in the grave, but the fresh dirt will be a dead giveaway that Garrett Gates’ grave was disturbed. They file out of the cemetery, Wednesday’s mother walking a step ahead of them. They’re just about to head in the direction of the Mayor’s office when he hears his father’s voice calling his name.

“Tyler.” He closes his eyes and inhales deeply before turning to face his father. Why does his father always show up at the worst times?

“Hi dad.” He greets, putting a faux innocent look on his face. He watches as his father’s eyes scan over him, taking in his dirt covered clothes, sweat coating his skin and hair. He quickly tucks his shovel behind his back, but his father follows the movement, frown deepening. His eyes flick to Wednesday, likely registering her matching appearance. Unlike him, Wednesday doesn’t try to hide her shovel. She meets his father’s eyes, a slight challenge in her expression as she waits for him to speak again. He sighs, turning his gaze back to his son. “What did you two do now?”

“We were gathering evidence to exonerate my father.” Wednesday answer before he can think of an excuse.

“In the cemetery?” The sheriff asks tiredly, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“Where else would we go to dig up a grave?”

Tyler sees the veins in his father’s temple begin to throb and he cuts in before his father decides to arrest them all. “Dad, just come with us to Mayor Walker’s office. I promise it’ll all make sense when you hear the whole story.” He pleads with his dad.

His father’s eyes flicker between the three of them but he finally reluctantly agrees, making a gesture for them to continue walking.

In Mayor Walker’s office, he lets Wednesday and her mother do all the talking. He stands in the back of the room with his father, smiling at Wednesday while his father huffs in annoyance next to him.

“Garrett Gates wasn’t killed by a stab wound.” Wednesday says, placing the severed finger on the mayor’s desk.

“That blue sheen is a telltale sign of nightshade poisoning.” Morticia adds.

“But you already knew that. Back when you were sheriff, you were in charge of the case and covered it up.” Wednesday accuses.

Tyler feels his smile growing wider, proud of Wednesday for uncovering the truth. His father elbows him in the side, muttering for him to knock it off, but he ignores him, leaving the smile on his face.

The mayor takes moment to inhale then exhales slowly before speaking. “Ansel Gates hated Outcasts and Nevermore. He claimed the land the school was built on was stolen from his family two hundred years ago. Garrett went there that night to spike the punch and kill all the kids at that dance. Ansel confessed the whole thing to me in a drunken stupor. It was his idea.”

“Why did you instruct Dr. Anwar to falsify the autopsy report? You know the truth how he really died.” Wednesday asks.

“Listen, my job was to keep the peace. If there had been a trial, Jericho’s and Nevermore’s reputations would have been trashed.” The mayor defends himself, voice raising.

The conversation carries on for a while longer, but Tyler tunes it out, knowing Wednesday’s father will be cleared of the murder. He focuses his attention on Wednesday. He’s missed her and though he’s happy to finally see her again, he hasn’t gotten a moment alone with her. Hasn’t been able to talk to her without someone nearby that could overhear. It’s been a long difficult week. The Hyde has been restless, and Tyler has exerted most of his energy keeping him contained. He’s barely slept, images of her broken body and lifeless eyes invading his dreams. Once this is over, he plans to sneak her away, take a moment for themselves and, hopefully, she’ll allow him to hold her in his arms.

The sound of the mayor’s chair scraping against the floor breaks him from his thoughts, and he looks around the room to find the adults heading towards the door, Wednesday still standing in the middle of the room watching him with her head tilted slightly. He makes his way to her, and they silently follow the adults as they walk to the station to release her father.

He decides to wait outside, sitting in the shade while Wednesday and her mother follow his father inside. They emerge with her father about half an hour later and he stands from his spot, but doesn’t move towards them. He’d like to go and introduce himself properly, but he can tell from Wednesday’s body language that she’s ready to leave. If he approaches, it’ll only hold her up longer. He can meet her father later. They’ll have plenty of time for that in the future.

When the Addams’ hearse departs and his father has gone inside the station, Tyler walks toward Wednesday and scans their surroundings. When he finds no one watching them, he interlocks their fingers and pulls Wednesday to one of his old hiding spots in the nearby park. He drops her hand and hesitantly pulls her into a loose hug, relaxing when she wraps her arms around him and squeezes tightly.

“I missed you.” He confesses, kissing her hair then dropping his head to rest on hers. She doesn’t respond, but by the way she squeezes him tighter he knows she missed him too.

“You need to skip school tomorrow.” Wednesday tells him, pulling back slightly to look in his eyes.

“Ok.” He agrees immediately before realizes he should probably ask for context. “Why?”

“You and I are going to break into the Gates Manor.” She tells Tyler. “Thornhill has a connection to the Gates family, and I intend to find out what it is.”

Chapter Text

Wednesday squirms as she pulls herself from her slumber, squinting her eyes from the bright rays of the sun. She’s too warm and comfortable to be in her bed at Nevermore and she tries to remember where she last was before falling asleep.

“Wednesday?” A voice asks from above her head.

She can feel the vibration of the words against her chest and when she opens her eyes, she finds Tyler peering down at her. She immediately takes notice of her position. She’s laying between his legs, chest half pressed against his while he leans against the tree trunk. She doesn’t remember falling asleep, but she most certainly doesn’t remember moving between Tyler’s legs.

“Sorry, I had to move you.” He apologizes sheepishly. “You fell asleep against my side and my leg fell asleep. I needed to stretch it out.”

“You could have woken me.” Wednesday replies sitting up, slightly embarrassed she’d fallen asleep and used Tyler as a pillow. Her lack of sleep from her recurring nightmares must have caught up with her. It’s the first restful sleep she’s had in a week. Being near Tyler, his scent of pine and coffee surrounding her and acting as a reminder that he was here, he was safe. It was enough to keep the nightmares away.

“You looked tired.” Tyler replies with a shrug. “And I liked holding you.”

She doesn’t comment on the slight shade of red dusting his cheeks. Instead, she turns so back leans against his chest and pulls his arms around her. Under the tree, they’re hidden from view from the rest of Jericho and after a week of anxious separation, she content to sit in Tyler’s arms and watch the sun begin to set.

“I should probably get you back to Nevermore. Your parents will want to say goodbye before they leave.” Tyler whispers.

She hums in response but remains sitting for a while longer. She’d rather stay here with him, but she knows he’s right. It’s been a couple hours since her father was released from jail. Her parents are probably already waiting for her to arrive back at Nevermore, and most likely hoping she’ll bring Tyler along with her. Pushing off the ground to a standing position, she offers her hand to Tyler to help him up. They make the short trek back to Tyler’s house to retrieve his car and spend the drive to Nevermore in comfortable silence.

When they arrive, Tyler puts the car in park, but he doesn’t turn off the engine. “I should probably head back home. Dad’s gonna be looking for me soon.” He says with a frown.

She nods and moves to exit the car when his hand lands on her wrist.

“I’m meet you tomorrow at nine.” Tyler promises with a smile, squeezing her wrist gently. “Tell your parent’s it was nice to meet them.”

She nods again and exits the car, remaining in the parking lot until his car disappears from view. Her parents are going to be disappointed he isn’t accompanying her, but it brings a slight smile to her face. It means she can keep Tyler for herself for a little bit longer. She knows her parents. They’ve already decided Tyler is an Addams and they’re going to perform some embarrassing display as they welcome him into the family. At least now, they can’t do it with the whole school as an audience.

“My little storm cloud, where is your paramour?” Her father asks dejectedly as she approaches, searching behind her as if Tyler can hide behind her small frame.

She rolls her eyes, but a hint of a smile momentary graces her face. Part of her that she doesn’t often acknowledge, the part that houses her strongest emotions, is proud of her parents for accepting Tyler so easily. For making him feel wanted. Wednesday knows his life hasn’t always been easy, fate seemingly enjoys throwing obstacles his way. It’s her job now to help him over those hurdles and she intends to smash each one until they’re just broken bits and pieces. Tyler deserves to be happy, and she’ll do everything in her power to ensure his happiness.

That’s a promise she’s making to herself and to Tyler. She plans to keep that promise, but that doesn’t mean she needs to let her parents know how deeply her feelings for Tyler already run.

“Tyler has a curfew to maintain. You can challenge him to a duel next time you see him, Father.” Wednesday replies monotonously with a roll of her eyes.

Her father’s eyes brighten as he turns towards her mother. “Oh, we must invite him to accompany Wednesday over winter break.”

As much as she doesn’t relish sharing Tyler with her family, or the constant pestering her mother will make about their soulmate bond, she must admit she likes the idea of Tyler joining her over the holidays. She’s grown accustomed to his presence and the thought of him being in a different state than her suddenly sounds torturous.

Her mother agrees and her parents already start making plans as they wait for Lurch to arrive with the car. She begrudgingly allows her father and brother to give her a brief hug goodbye. Her mother hangs back until her father and brother are seated in the hearse.

“I’m proud of you, Wednesday.” Her mother says quietly, patting her cheek gently and offering a small smile. “You and Tyler already have a magnificent bond.”

The next morning, Tyler follows his usual routine, but instead of heading to Jericho High he parks the car off the side of the road in front of the Gates Mansion. He offered to pick Wednesday up from Nevermore, but she’d declined, stating she didn’t want to risk someone seeing his car at Nevermore. He’s early so he exits the car, hopping up to sit on the hood as he wait for Wednesday to arrive.

A short while later, he hears a rustling and Wednesday appears through the tree line.

“It took some convincing, but Enid has agreed to cover for me.” Wednesday announces when she’s standing next to his car. Her face contorts into a grimace when she speaks again. “We will be going on a double date with her and Ajax next week.”

Tyler laughs. It’s not like he minds. He doesn’t really know Ajax well yet, but he likes Enid. And it’s not like going on a date with Wednesday will ever be a hardship. “Just let me know when.”

Wednesday gives him a once over then inclines her head towards the Gates Mansion. He hops down from his car and together they make their way to the front of the house. He digs the key Thornhill gave him out of his pocket and holds it up for Wednesday to see.

“I’ve only ever been in the basement. Never really had a need to explore the rest of the house.” He admits as he unlocks the door and indicates the direction of the basement stairs.

Wednesday silently descends the stares and Tyler follows. When he reaches the basement, he finds her holding one of the jars in her hands, tilting it as she inspects the body part inside.

“Thornhill hasn’t requested any more body parts?” She asks, turning her head to face him.

He shakes his head no, but as he inspects the shelf, he feels like a couple extra jars have been added to her collection. He shakes it off, telling himself he’s mistaken. She would have used him to gather any extra parts. It’s definitely not something she would have done herself.

“The next blood moon is in almost two weeks. She might already have everything she needs.” She sets the jar down on the shelf then moves to stand next to him. “You told me she used a cave in the woods when she unlocked the Hyde. How would you feel about us luring her out there?”

Tyler cringes, the Hyde letting out a low whine in his head. He doesn’t like to think about that cave. He never intended to step foot back inside, but it’s secluded and far enough in the woods that no one ever heard his screams. They could take their time torturing Thornhill there and it’s unlikely anyone would happen upon it.

“We can find somewhere else.” Wednesday offers when Tyler remains silent for too long. Her tone is gentle, and her eyes are kind as they flicker across his face.

“No.” Tyler decides. While the thought of using the cave still causes his gut to twist, he can push through if it means seeing Thornhill shackled to the same wall where she tortured him, experiencing even greater pain than she inflicted upon him. “We can use the cave.”

Wednesday’s eyes search his face, and she must decide he’s telling the truth because she nods and pushes past him to return to the main floor of the mansion. They search the ground floor, but there’s not much of interest. Cobwebs and dust cover the fixtures and the remaining possessions in the home. Wednesday stops in front of a portrait of the Gates family, tilting her head as her eyes scan over it.

“What happened to the rest of the Gates family?”

Tyler racks his brain, trying to remember what he’s heard about the Gates growing up. “Ansel, I believe drank himself to death. The mother hung herself and his sister drowned overseas, I think.”

“Did they have any relatives?” Wednesday inquiries.

Tyler shakes his head no, knowing where her thoughts are headed. “Thornhill isn’t a relative of the Gate’s family. The Gates family name died when Laurel Gates drowned.”

Wednesday hums, throwing a disgusted sneer at the portrait before entering the next room. It appears to be a library, cobwebs and dust covering the shelves and books. Wednesday walks the room, pausing by the shelves near the furthest wall. She must find something interesting because she steps closer, reaching out to touch one of the posts. He hears gears clicking and whirling as one of the shelves moves, revealing a hidden room. The first thing he sees is an old portrait of Joseph Crackstone and the words ‘blood will rain when I rise” on either side of it. Underneath his picture, is an alter with candles, dried wax hardened down the sides.

“She has a spooky altar dedicated to Joseph Crackstone. Lovely.” He says sarcastically.

Wednesday hums, taking a step closer to examine it better. “But it still doesn’t tell us her connection to the Gates family.”

“Maybe we’ll find a clue upstairs?” Tyler offers, but he doesn’t really believe it. Thornhill is many things, but she’s also clever. He can’t see her leaving any incriminating evidence out in the open.

The rooms upstairs prove to be much of the same – undisturbed and untouched for some time, full of spiderwebs and dust. Except one. One room has been cleaned with new bedding and fresh flowers in vases around the room. Clearly Thornhill has been using this room.

“Look!” Wednesday points at a music box on the vanity with ‘LG’ engraved on the front. “Laurel Gates. Do you think she could have known her?”

“Possibly.” Tyler says, quickly trying to do the math in his head. “They would have been about the same age.”

He watches as Wednesday mentally files that away, her mind likely trying to work up scenarios where that information proves helpful. They don’t find any other clues in the bedroom and after a quick sweep on the remaining room upstairs, they head back down the staircase.

“Tyler.” Wednesday calls as they’re walking by the library and when he turns back around, he sees her staring at the Gates family photo again. “Did they ever find Laurel Gates’ body?”

“I don’t think so.” He furrows his eyebrows as he moves to stand next to her.

“Imagine her with red hair and glasses. Who does she look like?” Wednesday asks, pointing at the little girl in the portrait.

Tyler takes a step closer, focusing his attention on Laurel Gates. She seems vaguely familiar, but when he looks into her eyes, a chill runs down his spine. He knows those eyes. Those eyes have laughed at him while he was tortured, have taunted him in his nightmares.

“She faked her death.” He whispers, turning wide eyes toward Wednesday. “Thornhill is Laurel Gates.”

Wednesday nods. “She’s Crackstone’s descendant. Between Goody and my father, it explains why she hates my family and why she wants to raise him.”

They complete one final walkthrough of the mansion, but Tyler thinks they’ve gathered all the information they need. They know Thornhill’s true identity and they know her motivation for raising Crackstone. Wednesday has worked out which celestial event will provide Thornhill with the most power to perform her ritual. Now all they need to do is kill her before the blood moon. After torturing her a little first, of course.

“We should plan to lure Thornhill out to the woods on Saturday.” Wednesday says when they’re only a couple minutes away from Nevermore. “That gives me a couple days to prep the cave and decide on what torture methods I want to use on her.

The Hyde purrs at the thought of being rid of Thornhill for good and Tyler can’t help but feel giddy. Just a couple more days and she’ll be gone from their lives forever. No more hiding and looking over his shoulder to make sure Thornhill doesn’t suspect anything. It’ll just be him and Wednesday, and the Hyde he supposes. The way it’s supposed to be.

“Now that that’s settled, there’s something I wanted to ask you.” He admits, smiling at her nervously.

She picks up on his change in emotion and cocks her head to the side. “What?” She asks warily.

“Enid texted last night. Thing told her it’s your birthday on Thursday.”

Wednesday’s eyes darken and a scowl forms on her face. He pretends not to hear her mumbling threats about Thing, but reminds himself to text Enid to warn Thing after he’s dropped Wednesday off.

“Enid and Thing wanted to throw you a surprise party. I talked them out of it.” He shrugs, not withholding a chuckle when she starts to mutter threats faster. “Don’t you like a day that’s all about you?”

“Everyday is all about me. This one just comes with cake and a bad song.”

“So, if I asked you out to a non-birthday, song free date, would that be something you’d be interested in?”

His eyes leave the road to briefly flicker towards her, and her face is still scrunched up in disgust and annoyance. He’s pretty sure she’s going to refuse. He’d like to spend her birthday with her, but he’s not going to force it.

“Fine.” She finally grumbles, surprising him. “But no cake. And no singing.”

He can work with that.

The morning of her birthday, Wednesday wakes to Enid sitting crisscross on her bed across the dorm room, vibrating with excitement as she smiles at Wednesday.

“Happy Birthday, Bestie!” She shrieks, bouncing across the room and sitting on the foot of Wednesday’s bed.

Wednesday pushes herself up to a sitting position and Enid drops a present in her lap. Wednesday glares at the present wrapped in black paper with an offending bright pink bow. Thing may be losing a digit for telling Enid about her birthday. She never made a big deal out of her birthday and now neither Enid nor Tyler will allow her to treat the day like any other like she originally planned.

“I know. I know.” Enid says with a laugh, reaching over and snagging the bow. “I wrapped it in back paper, but I had to interject some color. Open it.”

Enid gestures at the present with her hand and Wednesday carefully removes the paper. Inside is a black hand knitted…thing. Wednesday honestly isn’t actually sure what it is.

“Well, do you like it?” Enid asks eagerly.

“What is it exactly?”

“It’s a snood, silly! I made it in your signature colors.” Enid exclaims, jumping up from Wednesday’s bed and grabbing something pink from her own. “And you want to know what the best part is? I made one for myself. We can wear them together to class.” She smiles wide, flashing her pointed teeth and Wednesday cringes internally.

“Oh, Enid, this is far too unique to wear to something like class. I suggest we wait for a more special occasion, like a funeral.” Wednesday says in an attempt to spare Enid’s feelings. Despite her initial reluctance to interact with Enid, Wednesday has found she actually cares for her roommate. She’s taken it upon herself to think through her words before she speaks so she doesn’t accidentally offend her roommate.

“Oh.” Enid’s face drops anyway, but it doesn’t last long before her smile returns. “I have one more thing to give you.” Enid yells over her shoulder as she bounces over to her desk. She shoves aside some papers, skipping back to Wednesday with a black picture frame in her hand.

Wednesday takes the frame from Enid’s hands, expecting to find a photo of the two of them that she must have snapped when Wednesday was unaware. Instead, she finds a picture of herself and Tyler from the Rave’N. They’re on the dance floor and Tyler is holding her hand up in the air as he spins her. Gently, she runs her finger down Tyler’s face in the picture. He’s wearing an open mouth smile, his eyes filled with happiness and affection. It’s not a new look. He’s seen him wear it many times in her presence and yet, it still makes her heart flutter.

It's her own face that startles her. Blank. Angry. Emotionless. All words she’d use to describe her appearance on any given day. But in this picture, she isn’t any of those things. Her face looks open, her eyes soft and light. She wasn’t aware her face could look like that. Soft. Happy. In love. It’s a bit unnerving to know she made this expression without even realizing it. She wonders if this is what she looks like every time she’s with Tyler. If this is the way he always sees her.

“I texted Tyler a couple other pictures, but I thought you might like to have this one.” Enid admits with a smile then returns to her side of the room to prepare her schoolbag for the day.

“Thank you, Enid.” She says softly, slipping out of bed and placing the picture frame on her desk next to her typewriter. She refuses to acknowledge the way her heart flips when she looks at Tyler’s smile or how the hours until she sees him tonight suddenly seem too long. It’s just a picture. It shouldn’t have this affect on her.

Thing draws her attention by loudly dragging her parent’s present across the floor. She opens the taxidermy kit, taking a moment to ponder if Tyler has ever had the opportunity to taxidermy an animal. She thinks he might enjoy it. She’ll have to invite him to join her when she’s ready to use the kit.

She hurriedly dresses for the day, opening her bag and allowing Thing to climb inside before she and Enid leave for their morning classes. Despite it being no different than any other day, her lessons that morning seem to drag on. She finds herself watching the clock, minutes seeming to tick by impossibly slow. She’s relieved when their lunch hour finally arrives for the sole reason that it means the school day is half over.

When Wednesday walks into the cafeteria to grab lunch, she spots Enid at their usual table and promptly walks back out. Surrounding Enid are her ‘friends’ and in the center of the table is a plate of cupcakes decorated with black frosting. Accepting Enid’s gifts and celebrating with Tyler tonight is the only acknowledgement of her birthday she is willing to make. She refuses to listen to Enid and the others poorly sing happy birthday to her. Besides, she’s avoided answering any questions about Tyler since his father blurted out their soulmate status to the whole school and she knows they’ll take this opportunity to pester her with questions.

She makes her way to her dorm and eats a small snack for the stash Thing has hidden in her drawer. He has a habit of pilfering food even though he cannot consume it. She thinks it’s the thrill he gets from stealing. Wednesday cannot fault him for that.

There’s a knock on her door fifteen minutes before she’s supposed to meet Tyler outside and she opens it to find the boy in question standing at her door.

“Hey. I know we decided we’d meet downstairs, but I didn’t want you to have to carry your present with you into the woods.” He smiles, holding up a black box with a white bow.

‘More presents,’ Wednesday thinks as she takes the box from his hands. She’s going to need to find a way to convince Enid and Tyler that presents are unnecessary. She shuffles to the side to allow Tyler to enter, then removes the lid of the box and lifts the tissue paper on top. Underneath is a set of two daggers with intricate details on the black hilts. Wednesday picks one up gingerly, removing the scabbard. She runs her finger down the blade then back up again, stopping to trace over the ‘WA’ engraved in the middle of the blade.

“They’re beautiful.” She whispers, lifting her eyes to Tyler’s face. “Thank you.”

His smile stretches wider, crinkling his eyes at the corners. “I was afraid they weren’t going to arrive in time. Thing didn’t give me much of a warning about your birthday approaching.”

Behind her, she can hear Thing tapping rapidly against her desk, but she doesn’t bother to turn around to see his response. Leaning down, she unsheathes the dagger holstered to her thigh and replaces it with one of the new daggers. She walks to her desk and places the box next to Thing, bending down slightly so her face is close to him. ‘No spying’ She whisper hisses and he cowers away. Still, she knows there’s still a fifty percent chance he’ll ignore that command.

“You ready to go?” Tyler asks when she walks back to him.

“Where exactly are we going?” She queries.

“Crackstone’s crypt.” Tyler answers with a straight face, but she can see the humor shining in his eyes. Tyler planned her non-birthday date, a date between two Outcasts, at the final resting place of an Outcast hating bigot. The same man whose descendant they are planning on killing. Her lips twitch up into a small smile. She knew there was a reason the Universe paired them together.

Wednesday leads Tyler through the school, taking a side door towards the woods. It’s not technically past curfew yet, but she’ll have to sneak back in later. She’d rather not alert any of the faculty that she’s no longer within the school walls. Exiting through the main doors also runs a greater risk of running into Thornhill. She plans to keep her as far away from Tyler as possible until they lure her into their trap.

They walk quietly through the woods, her shoulder bumping into his side, and their hands brushing occasionally. Though she packed a flashlight, she doesn’t need to use it. The full moon peeking through the trees offers them another light to see the path ahead of them.

“Are you going to tell me what we’re going to do on this date?” She asks when the crypt comes into view, a single crow resting on the roof.

“Nope.” Tyler answers with a laugh. “But I do need you to close your eyes.”

“Are you serious?” She asks, slightly annoyed, but closes them anyway.

“Just trust me. It’ll be worth it.” He promises and she feels him slip his hand in hers.

She only agrees to this because it’s Tyler and she does trust him. He’s the only person she’d trust enough to lower her defenses and walk blindly into an unknown situation. It’s a little unsettling how much trust she has in Tyler when she’s only known him for such a short time, but she supposes that’s part of the soulmate bond.

“Watch your step.” Tyler warns her, helping her carefully over the steps of the crypt. He lets go of her hand and she hears the creaking of the crypt doors before his palm is pressed back against hers. “Okay. Right this way.”

She takes a couple steps, stumbling slightly. Tyler chuckles and Wednesday digs her nails into the skin between his thumb and forefinger. Not deep enough to draw blood, but enough to warn him that she doesn’t appreciate his laughter.

“Wait here.”

 His hand disappears from hers, replaced with the cool air of the crypt. She hears the door close loudly and she waits but doesn’t feel his presence beside her again. She opens her eyes, impatient, and calls out to him. “Tyler?”

She turns, but before her eyes can land on him, something shoves her from the side and she stumbles, hitting her head against the crypt wall. She lets out a groan, blinking her eyes rapidly in an attempt to stop the room from spinning. Before she can get her bearings, someone grabs her head tightly in their hands and slams her head forcefully into the wall. A sharp crack rings out and pain shoots through her skull as she lets out a cry of pain. Black spots cloud her vision, but through them she catches a brief glimpse of Tyler sprawled out on the crypt floor, eyes wide in fear before her eyes flutter shut and she slips into unconsciousness.

Chapter Text

Tyler smiles as he guides Wednesday into the crypt. He knows if he could see himself, his smile would be wide and goofy, but he can’t bring himself to care. He’s vibrating with excitement, anxious to see how Wednesday reacts to the date he’s set up for the both of them. He chuckles lightly as she stumbles, and she retaliates by digging her fingernails into the tender skin between his thumb and forefinger.

“Wait here.” He instructs, letting go of her hand to shut the crypt doors behind them.

He’s about to turn back toward Wednesday when he feels a sharp prick in the back of his neck. He gasps as his neck grows warm, eyes widening in alarm when his muscles begin to spasm. His vison begins to blur and his balance becomes unstable until crashes to the floor. Wednesday calls out his name and it’s followed by the sound of a scuffle, ending when a sharp crack echoes through the crypt. He tries to stand, panic setting in when his legs don’t move.

“Oh, Tyler.” He hears Thornhill giggle, and an icy shiver runs down his spine. He tries to turn his body towards her voice, but once again his limbs feel numb and heavy, refusing to cooperate with his command. His head is pounding, like a herd of buffalo have decided to tap dance on his cranium, and his vision is steadily becoming blurrier. His eyelids remain unmoving when he tries to blink so he strains his eyes instead. His vision clears slightly when he focuses, though the edges remain blurred. “Did you really think you could outsmart me?”

 He hears footsteps against the concrete coming closer to him and suddenly she is in front of him, crouched down so her face looms only inches from his, so close he can feel her breath on cheek. Her eyes scan over his rigid body, settling back on his face with a smug smile. He growls in his head, searches his mind for the Hyde, but for the first time in nearly a year, he cannot feel his presence. He tries to transform anyway, willing his bones to break and mend themselves into his monstrous form. Nothing happens and he feels the fear and helplessness settle in his gut. Without the Hyde, he can’t protect himself. He can’t protect Wednesday. Her vision is coming to pass and there’s nothing he can do to prevent it.

“I wouldn’t strain too hard, honey. I injected you with Gelsemine. Grew and extracted the poison myself in my greenhouse.” She tells him proudly, running one of her hands down his cheek. She pats his cheek gently twice before cupping it in the palm of her hand. His skin crawls at her touch and he wants more than anything to flinch away from her. “That dose was enough to kill a normal human, but it should keep you paralyzed long enough for me to kill your girlfriend. I couldn’t risk you letting the Hyde out to play, could I?”

Fury and hatred for his old master swell beneath his sternum, promises of a violent and bloody death for even thinking of harming his soulmate running through his mind. He can’t see Wednesday from his position, and he prays Thornhill hasn’t injected her with the same poison. He’s not sure if any of the emotions show on his face, but Thornhill smiles at him again, more malicious this time, and loops her hands under his arms. She drags him across the crypt floor, propping him up against the wall.

From his new vantage point, he gets his first glance of Wednesday and his heart drops in his chest. She’s unconscious, slumped over herself on the ground. Tyler stares worryingly at the small pool of blood, dripping down her neck from the angry gash on the back of her head. He wills his body to move, his need to make sure Wednesday is still alive almost unbearable, but the paralytic keeps him frozen in place. Thornhill moves out of his line of vision, but he can hear her footsteps as she moves away from him. She appears next to Wednesday’s prone body, bringing her hand down to the wound on her head.

“Don’t worry. She’s not dead yet.” Thornhill tells him, inspecting the blood on her fingers before wiping it on her pants. “But I may have thrown her against the wall harder than I intended. Even if I didn’t intend to kill her, she’ll probably die anyway from the head trauma and blood loss.”

Her tone is almost gleeful as she talks about Wednesday’s death, and it awakens something in him. He hears a quiet roar in the back of his head, no more than a whisper. Barely there, but there just the same. The Hyde is back, pulled from his exile and outraged that Thornhill would take pleasure at even the thought of Wednesday’ demise.

 Tyler feels a glimmer of hope stir inside him. He focuses on the spot in his brain that houses the Hyde and wills him with all his strength. If he can just get the Hyde strong enough, maybe they still have a chance to escape their fates. He hears the Hyde roar again, slightly louder this time, and his hope grow dangerously stronger. Tyler lowers the mental defenses he’s constructed in his brain, giving the Hyde free range to take over when his strength returns. ‘Save her!’ he orders in his mind and receives a quiet hum of agreement in return.

“She has to die, but I haven’t decided what to do with you.” Thornhill interrupts his thoughts, and he focuses most of his attention back on her, while still staying alert to the Hyde. He seems to be growing stronger by the minute. “I thought about killing you for your betrayal. You were mine first.”

She glares at him, and Tyler mentally recoils at being called hers. He never belonged to her. She’d manipulated him, trapped him in an unwanted bond and forced him to kill. He was never hers, could never be hers. He always belonged to Wednesday, even before he met her.

“But I think a far greater punishment is letting you live without her.” Dread settles in his bones and he snarls in his mind, surprised when he feels the slightest twitch of his lip. He startles again when the Hyde roars, shatteringly loud in his mind, momentarily drowning out the constant thrumming in his brain. Only a little bit longer and he thinks the Hyde will be strong enough.

He strains his eyes, his blurry vision growing stronger as Thornhill leans down and unceremoniously shoves Wednesday’s body against the wall. She pulls a rope from her pocket and uses it to quickly tie Wednesday’s hands together behind her back. Straightening up, she makes her way back towards him, crouching down until she’s eye level. “That would be agony, wouldn’t it? To meet your soulmate and only have her for such a short time? To know you’re responsible for her death?”

Fear shoots down his spine. He’d prepared himself for the possibility of his death. Wednesday was so strong, so fearless, seemingly invincible. The thought of her dying while he survives never really crossed his mind. It’s his worst nightmare, losing Wednesday at all, but especially so soon. It won’t happen, he tells himself. He won’t let it happen. He focuses his attention on the Hyde, willing himself to transform, but besides a roar in his mind, nothing happens.

“Maybe I’ll keep you after she’s dead. There’s limited information about Hydes. You could be my little experiment. We could see what long term effects the poison has on your body, and we could learn if there’s any consequences to a Hyde outliving his soulmate.” She smiles as she stands, turning her back on him and walking out of his line of sight. “Now be a good boy and sit still. Momma needs to prepare for the ritual.” She laughs at her own poor joke, and he cringes internally at her words. She thinks he’s helpless, doesn’t realize his strength is returning, even if it slower than he would like.

He tests his strength, focusing on his finger and letting out an internal whoop of victory when he’s able to tap his finger against the floor. His limbs still feel numb and heavy, but it’s more control than he had minutes ago. Thornhill must have underestimated the Hyde’s strength and ability to work through her poison. He’s going to enjoy tearing her apart - for everything she’s done to him, but mostly for daring to injure his soulmate.

Tyler continues to test his strength as Thornhill prepares for her ritual outside his line of sight. By the time he hears a groan coming from Wednesday, he’s regained the ability to lift both hands from the ground and turn his neck from side to side. With a little more effort, he can lift his foot from the ground, but doesn’t have the strength to hold it for longer than three seconds.

When he hears Wednesday, he focuses his attention back on her and when he attempts to blink, his eyelids actually follow his commands. He blinks rapidly, trying to clear his vision, but to his dismay, Wednesday remains blurry. None the less, he focuses on her blurry figure, taking notice of the red still dripping down her neck. They need to get out of here soon. If Thornhill was correct about her assessment of Wednesday’s injuries, she’s going to need medical attention soon.

“Wednesday, I was hoping you’d wake up soon. We’re just about ready.” Thornhill says using her disgustingly sweet voice as she appears before Wednesday.

“What’d you do to Tyler? Where is he?” Wednesday growls.

“Oh, Tyler’s still here. He’s just a little incapacitated at the moment.”

Through the blurriness, Tyler watches as Wednesday whips her head around to find him and he winces internally. Though he knows she’ll never show it on her face, turning her head like that must be painful. Her eyes linger on him when she finds where he’s propped against the wall, no doubt inspecting him for injuries as best as she can.

“I’ve got to tell you, whatever plan you two had might have worked. You had me fooled for a while.” Thornhill speaks again and Wednesday turns her attention back to her. “But as my father always said, if you want to outsmart an outcast, you got to out-think them.”

“How’d you know?” Wednesday seethes and she doesn’t have to clarify for him or Thornhill to know what she’s asking.

“Tyler was getting a little too close, a little too involved. But my first real suspicion came at the Rave’N when I overheard an interesting conversation between you and Mr. Thorpe.”

Tyler drowns out the rest of Thornhill’s words. It’s not really important right now how Thornhill learned they were soulmates. She’s distracted with Wednesday and it’s the best chance he’s going to get to sneak up on her. Gritting his teeth, he uses all his strength, fighting through the pain until he’s standing on both feet. He wobbles as he takes his first step, flailing his arms to keep himself balanced so he doesn’t tip over. Clenching his jaw, he takes another more steadier step. Not taking his eyes off Thornhill, he focuses his mind on the Hyde. His strength hasn’t returned enough to fully shift, but he feels as his hand begins to transform, claws emerging in place of his fingers. It’ll have to do.

He creeps closer quietly, thankful that Thornhill has decided to ignore him in lieu of taunting Wednesday. His steps are slow, each requiring his mental focus. Tyler prays there’s nothing on the ground in his path. He won’t be able to see it with his impaired vision and the noise he’d make stumbling would surely alert Thornhill to his presence. Though it’s hard to tell through the blurry haze, he doesn’t think Wednesday has noticed him either. That’s probably a good thing. He doesn’t want her to accidentally give him away.

“It won’t work.” He hears Wednesday say defiantly, tuning back into their conversation now that he has gotten the hang of walking with his injured body. “Blood rituals require very specific ingredients. They don’t allow for substitutions.”

“What?” Thornhill hisses and Tyler watches as she inches closer to Wednesday.

“Maybe you should learn the anatomy of human organs. That’s a pig’s heart.” Wednesday replies smugly and Tyler can imagine the look in her eyes as she stares down Thornhill.

“You little brat.” Thornhill hisses. She takes a deep breath before continuing in a calm voice. “I guess I’ll just have to use yours. Should I cut it out of you before or after I kill you?” She pauses, dramatically, voice taunting when she continues. “Or I could carve out Tyler’s and make you watch. In his state, he wouldn’t even put up a fight.”

Tyler hears Wednesday growl and Thornhill’s laughter echoes across the crypt. “No. A Hyde is too powerful a weapon to waste like that. Your heart will do just fine.”

He’s close now and through his hazy vision, he catches the small tilt of Wednesday’s head that lets him know Wednesday has finally noticed him. Thankfully Thornhill is none the wiser, foolishly believing her poison was enough to keep down a Hyde whose soulmate was being threatened. He takes another step, stabbing pain shooting up his leg. He grits his teeth through the pain, preparing to take another step when Thornhill leans down towards Wednesday. When she straightens back up, a sharp pointed object is held in her hand. His heart leaps in his throat, even with his blurry vision, he can recognize she’s holding a knife. Time’s up. He needs to act now.

Tyler doesn’t think about the pain each step causes him or the heaviness of his limbs. He doesn’t think at all. One second, he’s struggling to walk, each step requiring an embarrassing amount of concentration and the next, he’s flying through the air, throwing his body in front of Wednesday to act as a barrier between her and Thornhill’s raised knife. As he falls, he raises his clawed hand in Thornhill’s direction, aiming for where he believes her face to be.

His vision is too blurry to see her, but he feels his claws pierce the sensitive skin of her neck. She screams out in agony and before she can move away, he thrusts his claws upward with as much force as he can muster. He feels his claws break through her jawbone, but he doesn’t stop there. Drawing on his strength one last time, Tyler punches upward until his claws cut through the cartilage of her nose, slice through the soft tissue of her brain, then finally crack open the top of her skull until the tips tangle in her hair.

Her screams cut off instantly, replaced with a chocking gasp before she goes silent. Tyler yanks his hand down, clumps of hair and blood covering his claws. They make a disgusting squelching noise as he removes them from her neck and without his arm there to steady her, her body slumps to the ground. He listens for her heart. It thumps once. Twice. A third time then silence.

A vengeful and victorious smile crawls up his face. She’s gone. Dead. She’ll never be able to harm him or Wednesday again. Strength fading, he slumps down against Wednesday, claws retreating back to fingers.

“Tyler.” Wednesday gasps.

Her voice is panicked and frantic, not at all how he’d image she’d sound after they finally defeated Thornhill. He swivels his head to face her, annoyed that only inches from her face, her features still remain blurred. Moments later, pain shoots through his body, a sharp burning ache originating from his stomach.

With a groan, he lifts his head, eyes drifting downward until he discovers a knife sticking out of his stomach on his right side. Thornhill’s knife or more accurately, Wednesday’s dagger. The one he’d spent a whole week’s salary on just the rush order and expedited shipping so it would arrive in time for her birthday. The dagger he’d nervously presented to Wednesday less than an hour ago.

He never even felt it slice into his skin. Wednesday’s hands are pressed down around the knife and he lets out a strangled whine as the pressure causes the pain to skyrocket through his body. Nausea is starting to travel up the back of his throat and large black spots have joined his already blurry vision. He places his hand on top of hers, finding them covered in warm, slick blood. He wraps his other hand around the handle of the dagger with the intention to remove it before Wednesday stops him.

“Don’t!” Wednesday cries, knocking his hand away before returning pressure to his wound. “If you remove the knife, you’ll bleed out.”

He wants to tell her it doesn’t matter. He can already feel the blood pooling underneath him, flowing out too fast from his wound and staining her hands. He’s not going to make it out of here alive. He knows that. He’s known it from the second he heard Thornhill’s voice. If he’s being honest with himself, he’s known since the night of the Rave’N. He’s accepted his death, will be content to go as long as Wednesday lives.

“You can’t die!” She tells him, voice trembling slightly as she applies more pressure to his wound, ignoring his whimper of pain. He can picture the determination in her eyes as she speaks forcefully. “I command you not to die.”

He barks out a laugh, immediately grimacing when the movement pulls at his stab wound. Wednesday has been so careful not to command him since finding out she’s his master and the first time she does, it’s an order he can’t follow.

“I don’t think it works like that.” He whispers, ignoring the taste of copper that has invaded his mouth and the blood that dribbles out of the corner of his lips.

“If you die, I’ll bring you back just so I can kill you myself.” She threatens. “And if that doesn’t work, I’ll make sure my ancestors make your existence unbearable until I arrive in the spirit realm and can torture you myself.”

He tries to smile because he doesn’t doubt her words, but he isn’t quite able to manage it. His head is spinning, the pain in his abdomen is starting to grow numb, and he feels himself growing colder. He doesn’t have much longer. He strains his ears, focusing on Wednesday’s heartbeat. It’s slower than average, but steady and much stronger than his own. He thinks she’s going to be okay.

He curses Thornhill and her poison for whatever it has done to his vision. If these are his last few moments on earth, he wishes he could spend them looking at Wednesday. He does his best to focus on her fuzzy form, conjuring up an image of her from his memory. Her signature black braids, the slight twitch of her lips when he amuses her, and her captivating brown eyes that are more expressive than she realizes. He imagines those eyes filled with sadness now and that’s not what he wants for her. He wants her to live and be happy, and to remember how much he loved her.

Using the last of his strength, he wraps his hand around her wrist and tugs it to his chest, above his heart. “I love you.” He whispers, words coming out garbled and painfully slow as he pushes them out around the blood gathered in his throat. He hears Wednesday’s shaky intake of air and a droplet of water lands on his cheek before he succumbs to the darkness, and everything fades to black.

Chapter Text

Wednesday groans at the throbbing pain in the back of her head as she opens her eyes, blinking repeatedly to clear the blurriness from her vision. Nausea climbs up her throat as her stomach twists and turns painfully. Her memory is hazy, memories floating just out of reach as she tries to remember what happened before she fell unconscious. Blood drips steadily from the back of her head, landing in a warm pool on her neck, staining her shirt. Wednesday tries to reach her hand up to probe her wound, but finds her wrists restricted behind her back.

“Wednesday, I was hoping you’d wake up soon. We’re just about ready.”

She hears Thornhill’s grating voice through the persistent ringing in her ears only seconds before the woman appears in front of her. The combination of her words and her face causes Wednesday’s memories to suddenly return. With sickening clarity, images from her vision invade her mind and she knows they failed to prevent it from occurring. A shiver runs down her spine, her fear nearly overwhelming her when she remembers her last image of Tyler: sprawled out on the crypt floor nearly unconscious, his face etched in fear.

“What’d you do to Tyler? Where is he?” She demands as she tugs against the ropes tied around her wrists. They’re tight, but not tight enough to keep her from escaping. In only a couple seconds, she’s freed herself from Thornhill’s amateur knots, but keeps her hands behind her back. She wants Thornhill to think she’s still restrained until she can formulate a plan to get her and Tyler out of this situation. Hopefully long before Tyler is fatally stabbed.

“Oh, Tyler’s still here. He’s just a little incapacitated at the moment.”

Wednesday can’t stop herself from whipping her head around in search of him. The movement causes the pain in her head to spike, temporarily blinding her, but she doesn’t allow the emotion to show on her face. She refuses to give Thornhill that satisfaction.

When her eyes land on Tyler, she scans over his body, examining him for any injuries. She can’t find any outward injuries. There’s no blood or open wounds, though his stillness and blank expression worries her. Tyler would never sit by and allow her to be harmed. Thornhill must have overpowered him and the hyde, paralyzed them somehow. She needs to know what she used on him and how to fix that. In order to do that, she needs to get Thornhill talking.

“I’ve got to tell you, whatever plan you two had might have worked. You had me fooled for a while.” Thornhill speaks again and Wednesday turns her attention back to her, moving her head much slower this time to not aggravate the wound on the back of her head. “But as my father always said, if you want to outsmart an outcast, you got to out-think them.”

“How’d you know?” Wednesday seethes.

“Tyler was getting a little too close, a little too involved. But my first real suspicion came at the Rave’N when I overheard an interesting conversation between you and Mr. Thorpe.”

Thornhill smiles at Wednesday when her eyes widen as she remembers Xavier approaching her at the dance, demanding answers for her choice in dates. She growls, cursing Xavier Thorpe’s existence. His obsession with her, his inability to comprehend that there would never be anything between them was always going to cause her trouble. She just didn’t think it would lead to this kind of trouble.

As angry as she is at Xavier for his part, Wednesday’s even angrier at herself. She should have known better than to flaunt her relationship with Tyler in front of Thornhill. She should never have invited him to the dance. It was a foolish mistake to bring Tyler to Nevermore where they knew Thornhill would be watching. She was selfish. She had no desire to attend the Rave’N without Tyler, and she’d wanted to make him happy after the misunderstanding she’d caused by accidentally rejecting his invitation.

“But I got my confirmation on Parent’s Weekend when the sheriff came to arrest your father after my anonymous tip. Tyler’s father announcing your soulmate status to the entire quad and your reaction was all I needed to know Tyler was no longer mine.” Thornhill taunts, voice dropping into her sickly sweet tone.

Wednesday freezes, heart stuttering in her chest at her own ignorance. She’d been so focused on proving her father’s innocence, of uncovering the mystery surrounding Thornhill that she hadn’t stopped to think about the full implications of the sheriff’s announcement. She’d been avoiding questions about Tyler from her friends and never gave it a second thought that if all of Nevermore was talking about her soulmate, then Thornhill would know too.

Wednesday thought they’d won, thought she and Tyler finally had a plan to remove Thornhill from their lives. But she’d been wrong. Thornhill knew they were plotting against her. She knew Tyler was no longer under her control and she’d enacted her plan while Wednesday and Tyler relished in her incoming downfall. They’d been foolish.

“What’d you do to him? Why isn’t he moving?” Wednesday demands again. There’s no point dwelling on how Thornhill learned Tyler was her soulmate. It won’t help them escape the situation they’re in now. She wants to turn her head to check on Tyler again, but she grows disoriented when she starts to move her head. The room spins in front of her eyes, and she has to blink rapidly until it stills again.

Thornhill laughs, her smile stretching over her face in glee. Wednesday snarls, thinking of a thousand ways she could remove that smile, each more bloody than the last.

“Hydes are a powerful weapon, but they’re temperamental. Did you think I wouldn’t have a contingency plan if he turned against me?” Thornhill crouches in front of her, removing a small vial from her pocket and shaking it in front of Wednesday’s face. “Gelsemine. I started growing the flowers before I even approached him.”

Wednesday’s heart drops into her stomach. Gelsemine. A nasty poison derived from the Yellow Jasmine flower. Incredibly fatal with no antidote. Early symptoms include muscle spasms, vision impairment, blindness and paralysis. There’s a treatment, but it needs to be administered within an hour of the poisoning. Wednesday’s not sure how long she was unconscious, but she knows Tyler doesn’t have much longer. She can only hope the Hyde is fighting against the poison, that his advanced healing is providing them with more time.

“It’s untested, of course.” Thornhill continues, standing from her crouch to loom over Wednesday again. “There’s not enough research on Hydes to know how poisons affect them. I gave him a large enough dose that it has at least paralyzed him for now. If he survives, think of the knowledge we could gain by testing more poisons on him. We could actually learn the limits of a Hyde’s healing.”

“He’s not an experiment. He’s a person.” She growls, spitting the words out through clenched teeth.

“Oh, honey.” Thornhill says patronizingly. “No one but you thinks that. He’s a monster. Your own society has turned against him. No one will care about my experimentations. They don’t see him as human.”

Wednesday growls again at the careless way Thornhill talks about Tyler. As if his only purpose is to be a weapon she can wield and manipulate then throw away when he’s no longer useful. As if he’s insignificant and no one cares about him or will notice he’s missing. But she’s wrong. She cares, Enid cares, and even his father loves him, no matter how terrible he is at showing it. He’s the one person on this planet Wednesday will do anything for, the one person she’d protect, even above her own wellbeing. She’d kill for him without a second thought, and her hand is itching to reach for the dagger holstered at her thigh and thrust it through Thornhill’s heart.

It's her anger that causes her to rashly spit out her next works, “It won’t work. Blood rituals require very specific ingredients. They don’t allow for substitutions.”

“What?” Thornhill hisses, eyes narrowing as the smile is wiped off her face. She takes a step closer, kicking at Wednesday foot with her boot.

“Maybe you should learn the anatomy of human organs. That’s a pig’s heart.” Wednesday replies smugly, even as her head begins to feel woozy from the blood loss. She can feel her blood sliding down her lower back, the top half of her shirt already soaked through with blood and sticking to her skin.

“You little brat!” Thornhill snarls. She closes her eyes, sucking in a deep breath. When she opens them again, something devious lurks behind her eyes. “I guess I’ll just have to use yours. Should I cut it out of you before or after I kill you?” Her smile turns sinister, voice taunting when she speaks again. “Or I could carve out Tyler’s and make you watch. In his state, he won’t even put up a fight.”

Wednesday growl. She can accept her own death, even at the hands of this vile woman. But she won’t allow her to put one hand on Tyler ever again.

“No. A Hyde is too powerful a weapon to waste like that. Your heart will do just fine.” Thornhill laughs.

Wednesday is about to make a snarky comment when movement behind Thornhill catches her attention. She tilts her head slightly towards the movement, ignoring the twitch of pain in her skull and the black spots that blot her vision. She’s surprised to find Tyler up on his feet, moving slowly towards her. Wednesday drowns out Thornhill’s words as she focuses on Tyler. His face is screw up in concentration, eyebrows drawn together, and jaw clenched tightly as he moves slowly, deeply focused on each step. She notices his eyes are unfocused and a little wild, and she wonders if his vision is obscured, possibly by the same black spots plaguing her.

Behind Tyler, Wednesday catches sight of string lights twinkling, swaying lightly from the breeze coming in from the slightly cracked crypt doors. Quickly she flicks her eyes around the crypt, observing her surroundings. In the center is Crackstone’s tomb, surround by the body parts Thornhill needs for her ritual, but as her eyes continue to roam, she finds things that seem out of place. More string lights, some still hanging, others scattered across the floor with broken bulbs, as if they were hastily ripped down and dropped carelessly. A folded blanket, a picnic basket flipped on its size, popcorn spilling out onto the floor. Oh, she thinks, heart twisting in her chest. Tyler must have spent hours planning and preparing for this date. An ache settles deep in her bones as she mourns losing this experience. She thinks she would have enjoyed this date immensely.

With her attention diverted to Tyler, Wednesday is too slow to react when Thornhill bends down and snatches her dagger from the holster. A vicious rage boils in her gut at Thornhill wielding her blade, the birthday gift Tyler specifically selected and customized for her. Thornhill points it at her threateningly with crazed eyes and a malicious smile.  

Wednesday knows there is a very real chance she will die right here. She isn’t giving up, she intends to fight, but she’s at a severe disadvantage. She’s weaponless and her injury has weakened her more than she would like to admit. It’s becoming harder to prevent the room from spinning, the pain in her head is tapping steadily against her skull, and the black spots in her vision are growing larger, becoming nearly impossible to blink them out of existence.

No matter how ghastly she feels, she keeps her face blank and her eyes defiant. If she is going to die, she will not do it in fear. She draws herself up until she’s sitting at her full height and keeps her eyes on her dagger as Thornhill raises it then begins to bring it down towards her chest. Time seems to slow as she waits for it to pierce her skin, but the dagger never reaches her. Instead, a heavy weight lands across her lap, jostling her and knocking her to the side. She lets out a cry of pain as her head makes contact with the crypt wall, blinding pain erupting at the back of her skull.

She takes a deep breath, blowing it out of her mouth slowly as she pushes herself up to a sitting position again. A scream rings out through the crypt, echoing lightly, and when Wednesday turns, she’s unprepared for the shocking sight that greets her. Tyler is half laying across her lap, half kneeling, one clawed hand piercing through Thornhill’s neck, below her chin. Blood flows from her neck, coating Tyler’s wrist and staining his sleeves. Thornhill is wailing in agony, still partially bent from her attack, and Wednesday watches with rapt fascination as Tyler thrust his claws up higher. She hears the sound of bones snapping and flesh tearing and Thornhill howls. It brings a smile to Wednesday’s face, stretched so wide across her face that her jaw aches.

Tyler isn’t finished. He punches his arm up higher. It’s followed by the sound of more bones breaking then a sickening squishing noise before she sees the tips of his claws emerge from the top of her head. It’s the most beautiful sight Wednesday’s ever seen and it’s going to be forever ingrained in her mind.

Thornhill’s screams cut off with a final chocked cry as Tyler rips the claws from her head, letting her slump to the ground. His claws are covered in blood and hair, bits of bone and brain matter sticking to the ends of his claws. Tyler tilts his head as he stares at Thornhill’s body before he finally slumps down onto her lap. Wednesday moves quickly to catch him, arms circling around his chest. She freezes when her hands land on something warm and damp.

“Tyler.” She gasps, staring at her dagger sticking out of the upper right side of his stomach. Blood is pooling around the knife, a large stain already forming on his flannel shirt. Trying to ignore the panic churning inside, she pushes her hands down on the wound around the knife in an attempt to stop the bleeding. Tyler whines at the applied pressure, his hands travel down until one lands on top of her hand, the other grasping the handle of the dagger. When she realizes he intends to remove it, she frantically knocks his hands away.

“Don’t!” She cries, the hysteria in her tone making her voice almost unrecognizable to her own ears. “If you remove the knife, you’ll bleed out.”

She pushes down harder on his wound as flashes of her vison assault her mind again. She’s been here before. She’s seen how this plays out. Tyler is going to die and there’s nothing she can do to stop it. What was the point of her vision if the outcome couldn’t be undone. Why haunt her with images of Tyler dying every night in her nightmares until she had to experience his death in her waking hours. She’d rather have been blissfully innocent.

Despite the pressure, the blood flow hasn’t slowed. Gravity is pulling it down his stomach to stain her pants and the crypt floor beneath her, congealing in a sticky red puddle. With tears pooling at the corners of her eyes, Wednesday glances back up to Tyler’s face. His mouth is set in a grimace and though his eyes are on her, they’re unfocused, almost as if he can’t fully see her. He knows he’s going to die, Wednesday thinks and it makes her heart ache as a whimper escapes her throat.

“You can’t die!” She pleads, voice trembling. An idea forms in her mind and she has to try it. She’ll try anything to save him. “I command you not to die.” She demands.

Tyler laughs, the sound loud and jarring, before grimacing. “I don’t think it works like that.” He whispers. Blood trickles out of the corner of his mouth and when his lips part, Wednesday can see more blood coating his teeth and pooling in the back of his mouth.

“If you die, I’ll bring you back just so I can kill you myself.” She threatens, her fear manifesting as anger the closer she gets to losing him. “And if that doesn’t work, I’ll make sure my ancestors make your existence unbearable until I arrive in the spirit realm and can torture you myself.”

Tyler’s lips twitch, not quite forming a smile. He remains silent for a couple seconds and Wednesday’s anger fades as her terror returns, and tears threaten to fall from her eyes. His hand wraps around her wrist, tugging it to his chest.

“I love you.” He whispers, more blood spilling from his lips and trickling down his chin as his eyes close.

Wednesday chokes on a sob, tears finally spilling over and leaving tear tracks down her cheeks. “Tyler?” Wednesday croaks and when she gets no response, she shakes him slightly. “Tyler!” She wails, sobs racking her body, chest trembling as her tears continue to fall. She prays to everything demonic and holy to save him. She doesn’t care what it costs her. She’ll pay any price if it means Tyler lives.

Wednesday sniffles as she cradles Tyler to her chest, running a hand through his curls. Growing up, she never believed in true love. It was a fairy tale, a children’s story told to kids to deceive them into believing the world was a kinder, better place – a world where you met your soulmate and nothing bad could ever happen to them. It was a trick, one even her own parents had fallen victim to. By believing you were in love, you started acting like it, even if the emotion didn’t truly exist. It was a weakness, and Wednesday vowed at a young age she would never fall prey to love.

Then Tyler swept into her life and turned everything she knew upside down. He’d broken the vow she made to herself, shattered it into a million tiny shards, never to be reassembled again. He's been unexpected, popping up in her life at a time when she'd just wanted to escape - from her family, from Nevermore, and any expectations others had of her. She had wanted to hate him, the boy who tortured her with colors. Wanted to take the one color he offered and leave him behind, never to be seen or thought about again. But she couldn't. Tyler was a magnet and she iron. He'd effortlessly pulled her into his magnetic field, attracting her to him no matter how hard she wanted to resist. She's been drawn to him the second they'd touched, that electric current traveling up her arm and shocking awake emotions she didn't even know she possessed.

All her life, she’d kept her emotions buried, never letting anyone too close. She kept her heart buried behind walls, locked up protectively in her rib cage. Then Tyler came along and dismantled those walls. He cracked open her rib cage and slithered in, burrowing deep into her heart. She’d been powerless against him, falling in love with him despite her best efforts to keep him from her heart.

Her life would have been simpler if she'd been able to hate him. She could have escaped Nevermore, left him behind, and finally been able to start life on her own. A life with no expectations but her own. No more living in her mother's shadow, being compared to Morticia by everyone she met. She could have hidden out in a normie town, spent her days writing, working tirelessly to get Viper's story published. She'd have worked on her career until she was such a success that no felt the need to mention her mother’s accomplishments ever again. Until it was Morticia living in Wednesday's shadow.

It would have been simpler, she thinks, but simple isn't a word she'd ever use to describe herself. She wants mystery. She wants power and the ability to insight fear in others. She doesn't want a simple, boring life. She wants an interesting life, one that challenges her every day. Tyler offered her all of that. She can't bring herself to regret meeting him, for abandoning all attempts to escape Nevermore. She'd stayed for him, for the chance to get to know him, and it has proven to be the best and worst decision she's ever made.

Love is a death sentence. No one makes it out alive and unscathed. You either die or are left behind. Left miserably alone to deal with the grief of having your love violently ripped from you. Wednesday had never understood why people subjected themselves to such torture - the torture she’s currently experiencing as she hugs Tyler to her chest She supposes she should be grateful her torture will be short lived. She’s likely to be joining Tyler in death soon.

Maybe their loves story isn’t a fairytale, she thinks. Instead, its more like one of Shakespeare’s sonnets. Romeo and Juliet comes to mind. A crypt, poison, and two lovers dead, bodies tangled together. Only Tyler died from a dagger to the stomach, not the poison coursing through his veins. And there’s no need for her to impale herself with her dagger, the blood loss from her wound will take her soon. The nausea swirling in her stomach has intensified, her dizziness is growing harder to ignore. She can feel the fatigue setting in like Death calling out to her, offering her a permanent reprieve from her physical and emotional pain.

She takes one last look at Tyler, eyes flicking over his face as she burns every feature into her brain. She images him with a smile, the one he reserves only for her – warm and radiant, full of love, and with the ability to disarm her, no matter her mood. She traces a finger over his lips, vision blurring not from her wound, but from the tears in her eyes. She takes a shuddering breath as her tears land on Tyler’s cheeks.

"I love you." Wednesday whispers, resting her head on Tyler’s chest as her eyes droop and finally shut.

A declaration uttered too late.

Chapter Text

Enid laughs, popping the end of a twizzler in her mouth and bites down, as she listens to Yoko recount an embarrassing story about Divina. The brunette smacks her girlfriend’s arm, glaring playfully before falling into her side. Enid’s smile drops as her eyes drift to the window, the sight of the full moon taunting her, an unwelcome reminder that she is a failure of a werewolf.

The moon doesn’t call to her. There’s no pull to release the wolf that supposedly lies beneath her skin. Sometimes she wonders if there’s something wrong with her – that maybe she isn’t really a werewolf at all. Maybe she’s a freak. An abomination with mutated genes that allow her access to her claws but will never permit her to become a full-fledged wolf. With a sigh, Enid turns away from the window and is greeted by Yoko’s pitying smile. I can’t have been hard for Yoko to figure out where her thoughts drifted.

“I’m fine.” Enid whispers, plastering on a fake smile. Yoko nods, but they both know she’s lying.

Enid tunes back into the conversation, listening to Divina as she makes fun of her brother. She falls into Yoko’s other side, sandwiching the vampire between herself and Divina. Enid lays her head on Yoko’s shoulder, Yoko’s hand coming up briefly to squeeze her arm, and allows herself to be distracted by the weekly gossip. Huddled together on Yoko’s bed, she nearly jumps when a knock sounds on Yoko’s door.

The knock is loud and insistent, growing louder and more frantic when they don’t immediately open the door. The girls exchange startled looks before Yoko extracts herself and hurries toward the door. The door is only open a fraction of the way before something scuttles through, furiously headed toward the bed and Enid only realizes it’s Thing when he begins to climb up her leg. She can barely keep up as Thing begins to frantically sign, her mind taking a couple seconds to fully comprehend what he is trying to tell her.

“Wednesday and Tyler were attacked? Unconscious?” She asks horrified as she leaps from the bed, Thing quick to attach himself to her sleeve so he doesn’t fly off. Her heart is already pounding loudly in her chest and she’s halfway across the room before she calls back to Yoko and Divina. “Call the police and an ambulance. Send them to Crackstone’s crypt.”

She doesn’t wait for their response. She’s out the door, running through the hall and down the stairs. Thing scurries up her arm to attach himself to her shoulder, gripping tightly as she pushes herself to run faster. She ignores the angry shouts of outrage as she bumps into someone on the stairs, sending them to the ground, their belongings flying into the air before they land and roll down the steps.

“Sorry!” She calls over her shoulder without looking to see who she ran into or checking to see if they are hurt. They’ll be fine. If she injured them, she can apologize later. Right now, all she can focus on is getting to Wednesday and Tyler.

She’s running through the Quad, shoving away a stray piece of hair that has fallen into her eye, when she hears Ajax’s voice calling out to her. She falters for a second, slowing down a fraction before she pick up speed again and sprints past him. If Wednesday and Tyler are as injured as Thing implied, she doesn’t have even a minute to spare to fill Ajax in. He’ll understand when she explains later. And though she knows she made the correct decision, she’s still flooded with guilt as she hears him continuing to call after her, voice heavy with concern, until she disappears through the tree line.

She’s only been running through the forest for a couple of minutes when she has to stop. She’s panting, chest heaving, as she uses a tree for support while she tries to catch her breath. Her legs ache, lungs constricting painfully in her chest.

I’m not going to make it, she thinks as panic floods through her. Why did she think she would be able to run all the way to Crackstone’s crypt? And even if she could run all the way there, it’s going to take too long. From Thing’s distress, she knows Wednesday and Tyler have to be in serious trouble. Are their wounds fatal? Are they bleeding out on the crypt floor? Are they already dead?

It’s the last thought that has her pushing off the tree, sprinting towards the crypt again. Maybe it’s not logical, but she has to try to get there. She has to try to save them. She ignores the sharp ache in her tendons, pushing herself to run faster, mentally forcing herself to keep running.

As she runs, she notices she’s starting to feel funny, like something is rippling and shifting under her skin. She pushes the thought away, focused only on reaching the crypt. As she rounds a tree, coming across the trail that will lead her to her destination, a bone in her leg snaps and she tumbles to the ground, sending Thing flying through the air. She screams as her bones continue to snap and pop, hands reaching up to grab her head as she feels something beginning to protrude from the side. Her palms land on furry pointed ears just as Thing appears in front of her.

“It’s happening!” She cries with a tremble in her voice as she pokes at the snout forming of her face with her claws. “Thing, I’m wolfing out!”

The bones in her wrist pop as fur starts to cover her skin and her fingers elongate. Her legs grow longer, raising her higher in the air, and she lets out a loud howl as her body completes the shift. She lands on the ground on all fours with a loud thud, and lets out a growl, remaining still only long enough for Thing to scamper up her leg and latch onto the scruff of her neck before taking off.

Her paws hit the ground, nails digging into the cold earth, leaving dirt under her claws. She gallops through the trees, the ache in her legs no longer present, basking in the feel of the air whipping through her fur. She hears the scuttling of wildlife, the fast pumping of their hearts as they scramble to hide as she nears. Her wolf instincts are screaming at her to hunt, to kill, to eat. It’s only the pure fear of losing her friends that stops her from allowing the wolf to take over and keeps her on her path.

As she nears the crypt, a metallic scent invades her nostrils and she lets out a loud howl, increasing her strides. The crypt doors are cracked opened and she barrels through, doors slamming loudly as she skids to a halt. The smell of metal is stronger inside, assaulting her sensitive nose and she lets out a whimper, scrunching her nose at the putrid scent. She whips her head around, freezing when she finally spots Wednesday and Tyler.

The wolf whines, a loud heartbreaking noise that echoes through the crypt. Without consciously thinking it, she begins to shift back to her human body, breath hitching in her throat at the sight in front of her. There’s blood, too much blood, pooling under where Wednesday and Tyler’s bodies are tangled together.

Bodies, she thinks with a shiver, running toward them as dread flows like ice water through her veins. No, not bodies, she corrects herself mentally. Bodies would indicate they’re dead and she’s not ready to accept that. She’ll never be ready to accept that.

“Wednesday! Tyler!” Enid yells, dropping to her knees, too distressed to realize she’s landed in a puddle of their combined blood.

Wednesday is draped over Tyler’s chest, blood covering her neck, the back of her shirt and her pants soaked through with blood. She fights down the urge to vomit at the large open crack on the back of Wednesday’s skull, blood still flowing from the wound.

Should she put pressure on the wound? Should she leave it be? Would she make it worse if she pushed too hard? Could she hurt Wednesday’s brain? She lets out a yell of frustration. She doesn’t know what to do!

The growing pressure of panic rises in her chest, crushing her lungs as she tries to think what she should do. Reaching out, she grabs Wednesday’s wrist, pushing two fingers down to try to feel for a pulse. It takes her a minute, her fingers shaking so fast against Wednesday’s skin that she has to force herself to inhale deeply to calm her nerves. She lets out a large sigh of relief when she finally feels a pulse. It’s weak, but it’s there. That’s all that matters.

From the corner of her eye, Enid sees movement from behind her and she jerks back, claws extending from her fingertips. She whirls around, but it’s only Thing, crawling across the floor dragging a black and white checkered blanket behind him. He climbs up her arm, tugging the fabric around her shoulders. It’s only then that she realizes she’s naked, too horrified by what she discovered when she entered the crypt to remember she shredded her clothes when she shifted in the woods.

“Thanks, Thing.” Enid mutters, looking behind her to where a picnic basket is laying on its side, food spilling out on the floor. This must have been the blanket Tyler packed for their picnic. Her heart aches at the evidence of their ruined date. Tyler worked so hard planning a date for Wednesday’s birthday, his excitement evident through their shared text messages.

“She’s alive.” Enid whispers to Thing, wrapping the blanket tighter around her shoulders.

Thing dashes around her, climbing onto Wednesday and applies pressure to the wound on her head. Taking a deep breath, Enid grabs Tyler’s wrist, fear slithering down her spine when she can’t find a pulse. Exhaling shakily, she tries again, willing her fingers to stop shaking, but she still can’t locate his pulse. A sob rips from her throat, lips quivering as tears spill from her eyes. She pushes her fingers down harder against his skin, nails leaving red crescent where they dig in, and finally she feels something.

She’s not sure she can call it a pulse. It’s barely there, pulses coming much too far apart to reassure her. If he doesn’t get help soon, she knows he isn’t going to make it. If he wasn’t a Hyde, Enid’s sure he’d already be dead.

“What happened to you, Tyler?” She whispers aloud, not expecting an answer, but a tapping sounds from beside her. She turns her head toward Thing, watching as he begins to sign.

“Poison. Gelsemine. Thornhill.” She repeats out loud. Thing points behind her, near Tyler’s feet and it’s only then that she registers another body in the crypt. She raises up on her knees to get a better look, easily recognizing the trademark red hair of their botany professor and dorm mother. There’s no need to check her for a pulse. She scrunches up her nose at the bloody mess of her neck and the brain matter scattered through her hair.

As her eyes travel back up Tyler’s body, she gasps noticing for the first time, the knife sticking out of Tyler’s stomach. The way Wednesday’s upper body draped over Tyler has previously hidden it from her view. Enid presses down against the wound, horrified when more warm blood gushes from the wound, soaking her hands.

“Tyler.” The words come out in a strangled sob. She feels so helpless. There’s nothing she can do, but wait and hope that help arrives soon, that they arrive before Tyler’s heart completely stops pumping.

“You can’t die.” She tells Tyler, tears falling freely down her face. “If you die, Wednesday will be unbearable. She’ll burn the whole world down in her rampage. Do you want that on your conscious?” She sniffles, saying a prayer to whomever is listening, and waits for help to arrive.

Enid’s not sure how much time has passed when she hears hurried footsteps approaching the crypt door. She snaps her head up to face the crypt entrance, raising one bloodied clawed hand in a defensive gesture from her position hunched over Tyler. When the sheriff steps through the doors, she lets her body relax, returning her hand back to Tyler’s stomach.

“They need help. Please.” She cries, voice trembling around the words.

The sheriff freezes, his eyes going wide as they land on the bloodied unconscious body of his son beneath her. He snaps himself out of it, grabbing his walkie talkie from his shoulder and begins talking into it in an eerily flat tone as he rushes toward them. He pulls Tyler from her, cradling him to his body.

“Hey, Tyler, wake up.” His voice is broken, cracking on the words and Enid turns away, trying to give them as much privacy as possible without moving away. “Ty. Come on bud, I need you to wake up. I can’t go through this again. I’m not losing you too.”

More tears prickle at the corners of Enid’s eyes and she sniffles, trying to hold them back. She squeezes Wednesday’s hand between both of hers, closing her eyes and praying the ambulance wasn’t too far behind the sheriff. Only minutes later, a handful of police offers and medical professionals arrive, rushing toward them and Enid allows herself to feel the only the faintest hint of hope.

She’s pushed to the side as EMTS descend on Tyler and Wednesday, rapidly firing words at each other that Enid doesn’t understand. She watches as the sheriff struggles with the nearest EMT, still cradling Tyler to his chest before finally allowing them access. He looms over them as the work, his face haunted and his uniform shirt now stained a dark red from Tyler’s blood. The EMTs working on Wednesday are prodding at her open wound and examining her body for any other wounds.

“Excuse me?” A voice sounds to her left and Enid turns to find a young police officer holding a bundle of clothing out to her.

Enid takes it silently, accepting his offer to hold the blanket up around her so she has privacy to get dressed. She shrugs on the matching grey hoodie and sweatpants, Jericho PD printed across the front of the shirt. She hopes he isn’t going to want them back. She can already feel the blood on her legs soaking through the fabric and there are visible smudges of blood on the sleeves from her hands. The shirt and pants are both too big for her and she’s forced to rolls the waistband and the sleeves to make them wearable. She holds the pouch of the hoodie open, allowing Thing to hide inside before alerting the officer that she is presentable.

“I’m going to have to ask you to come with me.” The officer tells her and Enid eyes drift back toward her friends, EMTS still speaking quietly as they work.

Enid doesn’t want to leave. She needs to know that Tyler and Wednesday are going to be okay, but she can tell he isn’t going to give her a choice. She’ll go outside, but she’s not leaving the scene until she’s certain they’re both going to live.

“Wait!” She yells, when they’ve almost reached the door, remembering something important that could help save Tyler. “He was poisoned. She gave him Gelsamine.” She points at Thornhill to insure he knows who she’s referring to.

“Wait here.” The officer instructs her before rushing off to the EMTS working on Tyler, whispering to one of them before making his way back to her. With a hand on her back, he escorts her outside, walking her toward one of the police cruisers.

Enid squints her eyes against the bright flashing lights, refusing the water bottle the officer holds out to her. He begins to question her about what happened, and Enid answers the best she can, omitting that Thing was the one who alerted her in the first place. Though Jericho has grown accustomed to the oddities of Nevermore, she doesn’t think now is the time to introduce him to an animated appendage. He jots down her answers in a notebook and instructs her she’s free to go before he’s called away by another officer.

With no intention of leaving, Enid settles down on the ground, back against a tree between the ambulances. From her position, she has a clear view of the crypt doors. Thing crawls from her pocket, settling into her lap. She sets a hand on top of him, ignoring how they’re both shaking as they wait for any sign of Wednesday and Tyler.

The EMTS working on Tyler emerge first, carrying him on a stretcher, his father walking briskly behind them. Tyler’s shirt has been cut open and his skin is pale as they load him into the ambulance. The second pair of EMTs appear not long after, loading Wednesday into the remaining ambulance, shutting the doors behind them. Tyler has his father, and even if she is unconscious, Enid can’t handle the thought of Wednesday riding to the hospital alone. Softly, she opens the door just enough to slip through, closing them behind her and hunching down on the floor, unnoticed, as they take off, sirens blaring.

She can hear the EMTs talking as they work on Wednesday, throwing out words like hemorrhages, hematomas, bradycardia, and hydrocephalus. She doesn’t understand what they’re saying, but she doesn’t have to understand to know its nothing good. Coils of dread twist in her stomach, and she lays a hand on top of Thing in her lap.

“She’s going to be okay.” She whispers, unsure if she’s trying to reassure Thing or convince herself. “Wednesday’s too stubborn to die like this.”

One of the EMTS whips his head in her direction at the sound of her voice, giving her a reproachful look. Before he can scold her for sneaking into the ambulance, Wednesday begins to convulse, drawing his attention back to the gurney.

“She’s seizing!” The other EMT yells, turning Wednesday on her side and holding her body still so she doesn’t aggravate the laceration on her head any further. The other grabs a gas mask, holding it to Wednesday’s mouth.

A yelp leaves Enid’s mouth, tears falling from her eyes as she watches in terror. She cradles Thing tight to her chest as her body shakes in fear. Wednesday isn’t going to die! She tells herself, repeating it over and over in hopes she’ll be able to convince herself it’s the truth.

When they arrive at the hospital, Wednesday is rushed through the ER and though Enid attempts to slip through the doors with the EMTS, her path is blocked and she is sent to the waiting room. She takes a look around the small space and finds a young couple seated together near the window, an elderly man at the coffee station and near the back, pacing, is Sheriff Galpin. His eyes meet hers, holding them briefly before he turns and begins his pacing again.

Enid settles herself in a chair in the corner, drawing her knees up to her chest and interlocking her hands around her shins. Thing crawls out of her pocket perching himself on her shoulder as she lowers her head to her knees. She squeezes her eyes shut, tears falling down her cheeks as she tries, and fails, not to cry. The memory of Wednesday seizing flashes through her mind and Enid has to bite down harshly on her lip to stop the loud wail that wants to escape her throat. The image plays in her mind over and over, each time seemingly more detailed than the last.

It's too much and Enid gives in, letting herself cry loudly, her body trembling from the force of her sobs. She lets out a yell of frustration, of panic, of helplessness, not bothering to lift her head from her knees to see how much attention she’s drawn. Her friends are behind those gray metal doors, laying on an operation table with only a medical team standing between them and death.

She feels anger course through her, and she lifts her head, using the sleeve of her borrowed hoodie to wipe away the snot. This is Wednesday’s fault. This is Tyler’s fault. She might not know exactly what happened in that crypt, but she firmly believes there was a way to prevent it from ever occurring. If they just hadn’t been so secretive about Tyler’s old master, it didn’t much for Enid to figure out who it was after seeing Thornhill’s mangled body. If Wednesday wasn’t so stubborn, if they would have shared their plans with her, if they would have asked anyone for help maybe they wouldn’t be here now. Maybe she wouldn’t be staring at a wall, wondering if on the other side, her friends were already dead.

She tilts her head to the side, head still resting on her knee, to glance at Tyler’s father. He’s stopped his pacing, now sitting in a chair with his head in his hands. No one has bothered to bring him a change of clothes so he’s still in his uniform, dark red splotches staining his shirt and pants. Enid want to know how Tyler’s doing, if he regained consciousness in the ambulance, if the EMTS seemed optimistic about his chances. Yet, she can’t bring herself to leave her chair and walk towards his father. Not after she listened to his agonizing voice begging for Tyler to wake up when his heart was barely pumping. She doesn’t think she can bare it if he admits Tyler’s condition had worsened on the ride over.

“Excuse me? Miss?”

Enid takes a moment to compose herself, wiping away the tears from her eyes and their trails on her cheeks before turning to face the voice. It belongs to a white haired nurse in purple scrubs. In her hands, she holds an unopened package of baby wipes and a small white towel.

“I thought you might like to clean up.” She places the items in the chair next to Enid, offering a kind smile then walks away before Enid has a chance to speak.

She stares at the chair next to her for a couple minutes before standing with a sigh and makes her way to the bathroom. She ignores the startled look she gets for a man waiting to check in at the front desk, though she wonders how badly she must look. Pushing open the bathroom door, she heads straight for the sinks, realizing she can’t fault the man for being alarmed.

There are patches of blood along her forehead and a streak running from her nose through one eyebrow. Both cheeks are dark red, with lighter red lines where her tear tracks have washed away some of the blood. Even some of her hair is stained red. She rolls up her sleeves, flakes of dried blood falling from her arm and the inside of her sleeve. Now that she’s thinking about it, she can feel the dried blood on her legs itching and irritating at her skin.

Grabbing a wet wipe, she starts on her face first, scrubbing hard at her cheeks and forehead. She tries to ignore the voice in her head questioning whether its Wednesday’ blood, or Tyler’s or maybe a combination of both. She doesn’t want to know. She doesn’t want to think about how the blood on her body came from her friends’ potentially fatal injuries.

With a growl, she tosses the wipes in the trash, wetting the towel and stalks into a stall to clean her legs. As she predicted earlier, the insides of the sweats are already stained red that no amount of washing is going to be able to remove. Hanging them over the door, she quickly washes her legs, the white towel almost instantly turning pink. When she’s as clean as she can be without a shower, she redresses and heads out of the bathroom. As she rounds the corner to the main desk, she hears the sharp voice of Principal Weems and tries to duck back around the corner but she has already been seen.

“Ms. Sinclair.” She calls as she approaches. “It’s time to get you back to Nevermore.”

“No!” She crosses her arms and plants her feet firmly on the floor. She refuses to leave until she’s been given an update. Even then, she doesn’t think she can leave until she’s seen both Wednesday and Tyler, alive, with her own eyes.

“Ms. Addams is in surgery. There is nothing you can do for her here. Her family is on their way and I’m sure they will be more than willing to provide you with an update when it becomes available.” Weems responds, trying to usher her towards the door.

“No.” Enid protests again, stepping around the taller woman and heading back to her seat. Weems follows, continuing to talk to Enid’s back.

“I know you are concerned about your friend, but I cannot leave you here unsupervised. Unfortunately, I am needed back at Nevermore.”

Enid turns her head, meeting the woman’s eyes, but refuses to budge. If Weems wants to take her back to Nevermore, she’s going to have do it by force.

“I can watch her.”

The voice of the sheriff interrupts their staring contest and together the two women swivel their heads to face him. Someone must have finally brought him a change of clothes while she was cleaning herself up because he’s now dressed in a pair of jeans and a black sweatshirt, hands tucked into his front pockets. Weems scrutinizes him before sighing, turning back to address Enid.

“Very well. I will leave you with the sheriff. Classes for tomorrow have been cancelled. If you do not plan on returning to Nevermore by tomorrow afternoon, I expect a phone call to check in.”

Enid eagerly agrees, watching as the principal leaves. She nods her thanks to Tyler’s dad, who tips his head slightly in acknowledgement before he begins his pacing again. Enid settles herself back in her seat, resting her head on the arm of the chair, preparing herself for an undoubtedly long wait and prays when an update comes, it’ll only be good news.

It’s only after hours of pacing the nearly empty waiting room, of sitting in uncomfortably hard plastic chairs, and countless bitter hospital coffees that did nothing but make her stomach churn that the secure doors leading to the OR open. A doctor in blue scrubs steps through and she and the sheriff dart towards him, Thing gripping tightly to the inside of her hood so he doesn’t fall out. The doctor looks tired, a tiny frown creasing the corners of his mouth as his eyes flick between the two of them. Enid’s heart rate accelerates, and she stuffs her hands into the pouch of her hoodie to the hide their trembling as the doctor opens his mouth and begins to speak.

Chapter Text

Lightning flashes in the sky above her head, momentary providing light in the darkness. Wednesday cranes her neck trying to see through the fog, attempting to remember where she is and how she got here when a figure materializes in front of her. Goody walks toward her, stopping only when she is a foot in front of Wednesday and Wednesday nearly groans in annoyance.

“You have succeeded in stopping Joseph Crackstone’s resurrection, though it was much bloodier than I foresaw.”

“If your messages had been clear instead of cryptic, maybe the only blood spilled would have been of Crackstone’s descendant.” Wednesday huffs, memories of the crypt slowly starting to filter into her brain. Tyler’s bloody body flashes before her eyes and a wave of coldness settles over her, seeping into her bones. “Where’s Tyler? Is he alive?”

“You are the raven in my bloodline. The path of a raven is a solitary one. You end up alone, unable to trust others, only seeing the darkness in them.”

Wednesday drowns out Goody’s words after she admits Wednesday is destined for a solidary life. Nothing else she says matters. Alone. It’s what Wednesday once though she wanted, desired for most of her life. Tyler was unexpected, a plot twist she could never have foreseen, but one she's come to crave. Alone now means Tyler’s dead and she’ll spend her life grieving the absence of the boy she fell in love with in the short amount of time she was permitted to know him. Her heart shatters in her chest, knees threatening to buckle at the weight of despair that floods her body.

“But you have been awarded a soulmate whose darkness reflects your own, whose light brings out the light you keep buried deep. Fight for him. Keep him with you or your life will not be a happy one.”

Goody’s words cut though her grief and Wednesday whips her head up to stare at her ancestor. Fight for him? That has to mean… “Is Tyler alive?” She demands, not allowing herself to hope it’s true.

“A raven doesn’t often accept their soulmate, but when they do, they develop a deep bond that cannot be so easily broken.”

Goody’s words are as cryptic as ever and Wednesday is tired of deciphering her messages. “Is. He. Alive?” Wednesday demands, punctuating her words with a snarl.

“You tested the limits of your bond. Even I do not know his fate.”

Wednesday lets out a loud yell of frustration. Her rage, fear and despair becoming too much and requiring a release. Why is Goody here if she cannot tell her the one truth she desperately seeks?

“My blood runs through your veins. I could have saved you that night.” Goody continues without acknowledging Wednesday’s outburst. “But I could not have saved your soulmate. I could not guarantee he would live. Would you have wanted to be saved, knowing he might die?”

Pain shoots through Wednesday’s chest, stabbing into her heart. She doesn’t need to think about her answer. She knows she wouldn’t have accepted Goody’s help. Not when she was soaked in Tyler’s blood, his heart slowing beneath her fingers as his breathing stopped. She wouldn’t have allowed Goody to save her if it meant living in a world without Tyler. Maybe it didn’t even matter. She’s alive without Goody’s interference and Tyler may still be dead.

Goody doesn’t wait for her to verbalize her response, already knowing her answer. “I can guide you. Teach you to master your visions so they do not take such a toll of your body. But for now, we are out of time.”

Wednesday doesn’t have time to ask what she means before Goody and the fog surrounds them fades, leaving her in darkness with only an incessant beeping. As the beeping gets louder, Wednesday becomes aware of a pressure pushing down on her throat, not from the outside, but from within. She begins to panic, attempting to use her hands to dislodge the pressure only to find them heavy and sluggish.

“Wednesday? OH MY GOD, WEDNESDAY!” She hears through the darkness, the panicked frantic voice undoubtedly belonging to her roommate. “Wait. Wednesday, stop!”

Hands appear on her arms, pushing them back down, erasing the few inches she had managed to lift them. Her feels dizzy, her thoughts spinning as she continues to try to take short, fast breathes around the pressure.

“Wednesday, stop.” Enid pleads and Wednesday hears a loud long beep, noticeably different from the continued short beeps. “You’re in the hospital on a ventilator. I already called for the nurse. She should be here soon.”

Enid’s hands push her hands away from her throat again and with great difficulty, Wednesday pries her eyes open. She squints against the bright lights, blinking away the blurriness until Enid’s face comes into focus. She’s leaning over Wednesday in her hospital bed, unshed tears in her eyes as her lip quivers.

“I can’t believe you’re finally awake.” Enid’s words come out wet and disbelieving before she launches herself forward and wraps her arms around Wednesday’s sluggish body. Enid pulls back, moving away from the bed when hurried footsteps reach her room and a young, tired nurse bustles inside. She gives Enid a disapproving look, but hurries to Wednesday and carefully extracts the tube from her throat.

“Don’t try to talk. Small sips.” The nurse instructs, holding a paper cup of water up to Wednesday’s lip. She takes a small drink, the water cool and welcoming against her sore, irritated throat. “The doctor should be in shortly. Try not to move too much until she arrives.”

The nurse jots down some notes in her file, giving Enid another look before she leaves, shutting the door behind her.

“I’m not supposed to be here.” Enid explains, when Wednesday raises an eyebrow in question. “ICU rules. Family only. I think they finally got tired of kicking me out.”

Wednesday would be proud of Enid’s deviousness, if she wasn’t so confused about what was going on. “What happened?” Wednesday croaks, taking an embarrassingly long time to utter the short sentence, the words scraping painfully against her throat.

“No talking!” Enid yelps, jumping up and holding the cup up to Wednesday’s mouth, much to her relief. “You don’t remember what happened?” She asks when Wednesday has finished drinking.

Wednesday tries to think, but the fog is too thick for her to access her memories. She shakes her head no, regretting the movement when pain spikes from the back of her skull.

“Oh.” Enid seems startled and a little uncertain. She opens her mouth to speak, but the door opens, and a woman Wednesday assumes is her doctor enters.

“Ms. Sinclair, I see you’ve managed to evade security again.” She says when her eyes fall on Enid, though her voice sounds almost amused. Enid shrinks back guiltily, but makes no move to leave the room, instead resuming her seat in the chair off to the corner of the bed.

“Ms. Addams, I’m glad you’re finally awake. You’ve given your family and friends quite a scare.” She pushes a couple buttons on the machine Wednesday is hooked up to, humming quietly at whatever information it supplied. She rolls a stool over to Wednesday’s bedside, taking a seat before addressing Wednesday again. “I know your throat is sore, but I need you to answer a couple of questions. What is your name? The month? Or just the year?”

Wednesday answers each question slowly, her doctor smiling at each correct answer.

“That’s good. Now, do you remember anything from before you woke up?”

Wednesday racks her brain, but like before, the fog around her memories is too thick to breach. She mutters her response, the doctor’s smile dimming briefly.

“That’s okay. Sometimes memories take a little while to return.” She reassures. “You’ve experienced quite an ordeal. You were admitted with a fractured skull. The trauma to the back of your head resulted in bleeding and swelling on your brain. We made the decision to induce a medical coma to allow your brain to receive another oxygen to heal properly. You’ve been asleep for almost three weeks.”

Wednesday’s head spins as she grapples with the information, eyes drifting toward Enid, who confirms the words with a nod. Three weeks. She’s been asleep for three weeks. She doesn’t want to believe it, but it explains the pain in her skull and her sluggish body. If only she could remember what happened the earned her a trip to the hospital in the first place.

“I’ll be back later to check on your progress. A nurse should be by in a couple of hours to change the bandages on your head. If you need anything, I’m sure Ms. Sinclair can show you have to contact your nurse. Try not to talk too much and remember to only take small sips until the soreness is gone from your throat.” The doctor stands, offering her one last small smile before she exits the room.

“Enid.” Wednesday says, the words slightly less painful than when she first woke up. “What happened?”

Enid inhales deeply through her nose, blowing the air out through her mouth. Her eyes are wet again, smalls tears trickling down her cheek as she begins to speak. “You and Tyler. When I found you in the crypt, I thought you were both dead.”

Enid’s voice hitches, but Wednesday barely hears it. With Enid’s words, memories begin to flood her brain, growing more painful with each scene that flashes through her mind. She remembers Tyler leading her through the woods to a date in Crackstone’s crypt. She remembers a blinding pain in her head before blacking out. She remembers waking up to Thornhill leaning over her, taunting her until Tyler killed her with his claws. Her body runs cold, heart aching when the next scene flashes across her brain. She watches as blood gushes from Tyler’s abdomen, can still feel the warm liquid soaking through her own clothing.

“Tyler. Where’s Tyler?” Wednesday doesn’t even try to hide the panic in her voice, her brain barely even registering the burn in her throat. She forces herself into a sitting position, breathing heavily from the exertion of moving her tired body. Her eyes are wide, staring at Enid as she approaches the bed, desperately waiting for an answer.

“Tyler is…” Enid pauses, fingers fidgeting with the edge of Wednesday’s blanket as she bites her lip.

“He’s dead.” Wednesday says emotionlessly, carefully turning her head, wincing when pain shoots through her skull. She doesn’t need Enid to see the tears forming in her eyes. Her stomach twists painfully, like something heavy is pressing down on her organs, nearly causing her to double over in pain. An anguish like no other lays beneath her sternum, wrapping around her heart and clenching painfully. She struggles to breathe, choking on the air trapped in her throat. She feels like she’s being ripped open and something inside her is trying to tear itself from her body. Her soul, she realizes. It’s reaching out for Tyler, searching for its other half that’s no longer among them.

“What? NO! No, Wednesday!” Enid yells frantically. She places her hand gently on Wednesday’s shoulder, a silent request for her to listen. “Tyler’s alive. He’s fine – well not fine, neither of you are fine, and don’t think we aren’t going to talk about this when you’re well enough for me to yell at you!” Enid huffs with a glare.

Wednesday barely hears anything after Enid confesses Tyler’s alive. A glimmer of hope she dares not believe burns painfully in her chest. Tyler can’t be alive. She saw the knife in his abdomen, saw all the blood he lost pooling beneath them on the crypt floor. She remembers his final words and the sound of his haggard breathing before he took his last breath. Goody’s words from her vision return to her and she remembers her ancestor’s words about fighting for Tyler and keeping him with her always. She allows herself the tiniest sliver of hope as she turns her head back to Enid with pleading eyes.

“He’s alive?” Wednesday asks, uncaring how desperate her voice sounds or that Enid can see the tears still traveling down her cheeks.

Enid smiles sadly and nods her head. “I forced him to let Ajax take him home so he could shower and eat something. He hasn’t left your bedside since they released him. I texted Ajax and I’m sure they’re already on their way back.” Enid reassures her, patting Wednesday’s hand before her face turns serious once again. “But he did die, Wednesday. Twice.”

Wednesday’s heart plummets at Enid’s words and she has to remind herself that Tyler’s alive. He died, but he’s okay now. She didn’t lose him. He came back to her.

“Once in the ambulance and once in surgery. Wednesday, if it wasn’t for the hyde, he wouldn’t be here.” Wednesday sniffles, using her arm to wipe away her tears then nods for Enid to continue.

“The knife pierced his liver and they had to remove most of it. He needed a blood transfusion, and he was hooked up to so many machines.” Enid swipes a hand over her own eyes then crosses her arms tightly over her chest, hugging herself, before continuing. “The poison…There were complications with the poison.”

Enid’s voice is small and fearful, eyes full of trepidation. Dread creeps up Wednesday’s spine and she struggles to keep her voice even when she speaks. “What complications?”

“He…His..” Enid stutters, struggling to get the words out. Wednesday nearly growls in frustration. She needs to know, the uncertainty weighing down on her chest. She has an uncomfortable feeling that Tyler is alive, but something is still wrong.

“He what? Enid, tell me!” Wednesday demands, voice rising, scratching painfully against her dry throat.

“The poison. It was too late and they…” Enid starts but is interrupted by a loud commotion in the hall.

The sound of loud voices, people yelling and hurried footsteps reaches her ears before her hospital room door is thrown open with a loud bang as it crashes against the wall. In the doorway stands Tyler looking slightly crazed. His nostrils are flaring as his chest heaves heavily, eyes wide and wild under a pair of wireframed glasses. Or one eye is, the other appearing dull and unresponsive.

“Wednesday.” He breathes, staring at her in disbelief. He stands frozen in the doorway for a second before ambling toward her, one hand held over his side where she last saw her dagger protruding from him. When Tyler reaches her side, he runs a hand on her cheek, rubbing his thumb over her jaw. “You’re awake.”

His voice trembles and she briefly sees the tears in his eyes before he leans forward and buries his face in her chest, clutching onto her tightly. Sluggishly. she winds her hands around his body and pulls him tight against her, breathing in his scent and finally allowing herself to relax for the first time since her memories resurfaced. When he begins trembling against her and she feels wetness on her hospital gown, Wednesday realizes he’s crying. She pulls him tighter against her, removing one hand from his waist to run it through his curls and drops a kiss to the top of his head.

She waits, holding back her own tears, until eventually he lifts his head and offers her a small smile. When he pulls away to drag a chair towards her bed, Wednesday make a quick scan of the room and realizes its empty, her door pulled shut. Through the window she can see Enid talking animatedly with a nurse, Ajax at her side.

Making a last second decision, Wednesday stops Tyler when he goes to sit down in the chair, grabbing his wrist and pulling him back toward her bed. She forces her tired body to move, gently scooting over to make a space for Tyler, tugging on his hand until he climbs into bed with her. Tyler winds his hands around her body and Wednesday lays her head on his chest, listening as his heart beats steadily under her ear. The bed is too small to fit them both comfortably, but Wednesday doesn’t care. She needs him next to her, a solid presence at her side to remind her that he’s here and they both survived.

“Fuck, Wednesday. I didn’t think you were going to wake up.” Tyler whispers, his voice so full of devastation it pulls at her heartstrings. Tilting her head up, she places a kiss against his lips, letting her lips linger for a minute before pulling away.

“I’m here. I’m awake.” She whispers and Tyler exhales shakily, nodding his head. Her eyes focus on his new unexplained glasses, and she can’t help but run her fingers along the frames, gently running a thumb over the lens of his unresponsive eye. She flicks her eyes over to his good eye, wordlessly requesting an explanation.

“Enid didn’t warn you, did she?” Tyler asks quietly, hating the uncertain tone of his voice. He knows Wednesday’s feelings for him have nothing to do with his physical appearance, but he can’t help feeling insecure about his eye now. He’s still trying to come to terms with it, that he’s become physically and permanently altered. He won’t blame Wednesday if it takes some time for her to accept it too.

“The poison Thornhill used, it was in my system too long. Dad said they tried to pump my stomach in the ambulance, but I crashed and they were more concerned with restarting my heart than the poison.” He exhales loudly, squeezing Wednesday’s hand when she makes a small sound of distress. “One of the side effects of Gelsamine is blindless.”

He smiles at her sadly as she runs her thumbs under his eyes. “Just the one eye?” She asks.

“My right eye is too damaged to repair, but the left is slowly healing. Your mother theorizes the hyde is slowly healing it now that my body isn’t in peril. She says I shouldn’t need the glasses anymore by the end of the year.” He smiles self-deprecatingly at her before joking. “Hope you don’t mind dating a partially blind guy.”

Wednesday doesn’t smile. She just looks at him sadly. “Do you really think I’d care about that?”

“No. Not really.” Tyler answers because he knew she wouldn’t care, but his insecurity about his new disability doesn't listen to logic. He squeezes her waist tighter, nuzzling his face into her hand on his cheek. “I’m just still trying to accept it.”

Wednesday nods and Tyler almost misses her flinch. He assumes the movement irritated her still healing head wound and he drops a kiss to her forehead in comfort.

“I don’t care that you’re blind in one eye.”

It would be easy to take her blunt harsh words the wrong way. Only a couple weeks ago, he would have taken her statement as her not caring about him. Now, Tyler knows her well enough to understand what she’s really saying – that his vision impairment doesn’t affect how she feels about him. She pulls back from him slowly, putting enough space between their bodies to drag her hand down his chest. When she reaches the hem of his t-shirt, she lifts the fabric, eyes drawn to the large red line on his right side.

“Hyde healing.” He tells her. “It’s already weeks ahead of schedule. Still sore though.”

Wednesday runs her hands along the wound, pressing harder than what’s necessarily comfortable, but Tyler doesn’t stop her. After she’s satisfied with her inspection, she lifts her head to meet his gaze, her own eyes brimming with anger.

“She could have punctured your lungs. Don’t ever do that again.” She hisses.

Tyler gulps at her sudden anger, but he knows he can’t promise he won’t intercede if her life is in danger again. “I can’t promise that.”

She growls and Tyler thinks if she wasn’t injured, if her weapons hadn’t been confiscated when she was admitted to the hospital, she may have used her dagger on him. “I don’t need you to protect me, Tyler.”

“I know, but I wasn’t just protecting you.” He smiles at her sadly, holding her gaze with his one eye. “I was protecting myself too. I don’t want to live in this world without you. I wouldn’t survive it.”

Wednesday’s eyes flash in understanding and her scowl disappears, but her tone still holds anger when she speaks next. “You’ve killed for me. You’ve died for me. Now live for me. Live with me.”

Her words cause a sudden pang in his heart. He’d once vowed to himself that he would kill for her, he'd die for her. He’d never considered that he should make the promise to live with her, that his death would cause her just as much pain as hers would him.

“Ok.” He agrees. “I can do that.”

Wednesday scrutinizes him, eyes sweeping over his face as if she’s trying to determine if he’s sincere in his promise. Tyler gives her time, wondering how she sees him now.  How different does he look to her with only one working eye? Does she find his glasses strange? He sends her a smile, opening his mouth to ask when her next words make him freeze.

“I love you.” It’s barely above a whisper, her face blank, but her eyes hold a fond determination.

Tyler is incapable of moving, continuing to look at her with his mouth agape. She loves him. It makes a warmth blossom in his chest, his skin vibrating with joy. He knew she had feelings for him, had admitted that she could love him, but he hadn’t expected her to admit she'd fallen in love with him. At least not yet.

“You love me?” He hears himself asking and Wednesday’s mouth draws into a scowl.

“Yes.” She huffs, eyebrows knitting together in annoyance. “I told you once before. You were too busy dying to hear it.”

Her words startle a laugh out of Tyler and Wednesday’s scowl deepens. “I’m sorry.” He chuckles. “I promise next time you confess your love, I’ll be certain to hear it. Even if I’m doing something as inconvenient as dying.”

“You better.”

Tyler laughs again, smiling down at the girl he loves, the girl that loves him. A part of him is still in disbelief that she’s here, awake and alive. “I love you too.” He says leaning down to place a kiss on her forehead. Laying his head back against her pillow, he carefully pulls her back to his chest.

“Tell me what’s happened while I’ve been asleep.”

Tyler complies, rubbing his hand up and down the length of her back as he speaks. He tells her about the chaos at Nevermore since their night in the crypt, how the parents of the student body are in an uproar that a teacher tried to murder a student and her boyfriend in order to resurrect an Outcast hating bigot. He informs her Nevermore cancelled classes for the rest of the semester, sending the students home for an early winter break. Enid, he confesses, refused to leave and after a long, loud argument with Principal Weems, she and Ajax were only permitted to stay in Jericho because her parents offered to assume responsibility of them until Wednesday woke up.

Next, he shares he was questioned by the police once he’d awoken from surgery. He’d told them the truth about Thornhill attacking them when they entered the crypt for their date, injecting him with a poison after slamming Wednesday’s head into the wall to render her unconscious. He admits he lied and said he couldn’t remember anything after the poison, advising her to do the same when she’s inevitably questioned. With the help of his dad, they were able to convince Jericho PD Thornhill was killed by a wild animal that must have been scared off by the sound of Enid approaching the crypt. After finding the body parts of the dead hikers and the Yellow Jasmine Thornhill used to make the Gelsamine in her greenhouse, they concluded Tyler’s statement to be true, though they still remained puzzled how Thornhill killed her victims with such brutality. He suspects that will remain a mystery to them.

Tyler starts to tell how he became a nuisance to the hospital staff, sneaking out of his own ICU room to visit her when he realizes she’s fallen asleep. A jolt of fear shoots down his spine as he watches her lie still, chest barely rising and falling. It’s almost the same image he’d seen for the past couple of weeks, sans the tube down her throat. For a split second, he thinks he’s imagined it all, that Wednesday never woke up and, in his grief, he’d hallucinated it all.

When Wednesday’s fingers twitch and she moans softly as she nuzzles her face into his chest, Tyler releases the tension in his shoulders, his heart rate slowly returning to normal. With a final kiss to her head, Tyler allows himself to fall asleep with Wednesday in his arms.

Sometime later, Tyler wakes with the feeling that he’s being watched. Carefully, he extracts himself from Wednesday, sitting up to find Wednesday’s mother watching them from a chair against the wall, an old black leatherbound book across her lap.

“Hi.” Tyler smiles at her sheepishly. He’s gotten to know Wednesday’s parents a little over the last couple of weeks. They’d advocated for him with the hospital staff, arguing that as Wednesday’s soulmate he had the same rights as family in regard to visiting her. Both Gomez and Morticia have been overly welcoming and excited to get to know him, though he couldn’t help but still be a little nervous around them. “I can leave if you want some time alone with her.” He offers.

“Stay.” Morticia says, waving him off. “It’s not me Wednesday will want to see when she wakes again.”

Tyler feels heat on his cheeks at Morticia’s knowing smiling, but settles down next to Wednesday, making himself comfortable again. While he would have left if Wednesday’s parents wanted privacy, he’s grateful she hadn’t asked him to leave. After everything they went through, after they’d both had their own brush with death, Tyler never wants to leave Wednesday’s side again. Their bodies are a little damaged and broken, and Wednesday will take time to heal completely, but they survived. Miraculously, they’re both still here. He can feel deep down in his soul that they can tackle whatever the Universe throws at them next. As long as they remain together.

Four Months Later

“Are you ready?” Tyler asks as he hands Wednesday one of the two sledgehammers they stole from a construction site.

A wicked grin spreads across Wednesday’s face as she accepts it. Tyler leans back against the crypt wall and watches with his one good eye as she moves to stand over Crackstone’s remains. With both hands wrapped firmly around the handle, she raises the hammer over her head and slams it down on his skull.  She lets out a huff of satisfaction as she brings down the sledgehammer again, bones smashing and flying into the air.

“Are you going to join me?” She asks, turning to face him, white bone dust coating her clothes and small shards of bone lodged in her braids.

He smiles, shoving off the wall to join her. Together they make quick work of destroying Crackstone’s remains, pulverizing his bones until he’s nothing more than white dust. Never again will they have to worry again about Crackstone rising and destroying Nevermore or hunting down Outcasts. Better safe than sorry, he figures.

His gaze drift towards the front of the crypt, smile falling when his eye lands on the large blood stain on the crypt floor. The spot where he almost died. More importantly, the spot where he almost lost Wednesday forever. At times, he can still feel the ache in thin white scar on his abdomen, though it’s nothing compared to the nightmares he has where Wednesday never wakes up.

A hand lands on his shoulder, and he turns his head to find Wednesday looking at him with a gentle smile, no doubt understanding where his thoughts have gone. She drops her sledgehammer, a loud clattering bang echoing through the crypt as it hits the floor.

“Are you ready to go?” She asks, holding her hand out to him.

“Yeah.” He nods, letting his own sledgehammer fall to the floor as he laces his fingers with hers. He doesn’t know what the future holds, likely more chaos, blood, and murder, but he knows he’ll enjoy the ride as long as Wednesday is at his side.