Chapter Text
Wednesday made her summer schedule so her writing hours were ending at a time when Enid would already be surely sleeping. During the school year the werewolf had a habit of demanding attention the second the time slot would theoretically allow her which was disruptive on occasions when inspiration struck and made the writer want to extend the hour. So Wednesday planned to avoid the problem altogether.
It worked fine, Thing would read, respond back to Enid and notify Wednesday of more crucial information from the blonde’s text messages and if the lycan girl was really desperate she’d just call during the day, before the writing hours.
The plan failed one week in. Wednesday’s cellular device plays a nauseating pop song that wolfgirl forced as her calling sign the second the clock signals 3 am. Wednesday groans but can’t restrain herself from answering and cutting out the dreaded music short.
“Why aren’t you asleep, mutt.” Wednesday can’t stop the irritation from bleeding into her tone. Enid could’ve called earlier that day but she didn’t. She didn’t even send messages as usual. It’s not Wednesday’s fault that the girl didn’t get attention so why does her plan have to be foiled this way?
“I missed your voice so much.” Enid simply says while sighing.
Wednesday’s irritation just dies, murdered by perplexity.
This doesn’t sound right. Oftentimes their conversations are heavily skewed to the benefit of Enid, as she’d simply rambles about whatever she wanted to talk about and only simply asking occasionally for a signal from Wednesday that she’s listening. Neither is Wednesday’s voice enjoyable to listen to. She’s been informed enough times to know that it is a universal sentiment.
“Wens, don’t be like that, don’t torture me by shutting up when I just told you I want the opposite,” werewolf sounds petulant.
Wednesday swallows.
“I was waiting for the punchline.”
“What? I’m not joking! Please talk. Anything. Pretty please. How’s your novel doing?”
“You can’t sleep because you want to hear about my novel. When you couldn’t even finish reading an excerpt from it because you cried too much.”
“First of all, you banned me from reading cause I cried too much, not the opposite. and secundo- sure, yeah, not knowing the newest gross clue idea that your pretty head came up with is keeping me up at night. Please grace me with the ew details right now.”
“You- that’s a bad lie, you get sick when I get into details.”
“Aw shucks, you got me, I just wanted to hear your impassioned tone. How awful of meee.”
“Go to sleep.”
“Nuh huh. Only if you’d read me a goodnight story, gorgeous.”
“You’re being ridiculous.”
“No, you!”
“Enid.”
“Wednesday, Wends, Wens, Wenny, Winny, lil gothy, black birdie, grumpy wumpy-”
“You’re baiting me into fighting you.”
“Yep, it’s either that or a spooky infodump, dealer's choice, babyyy. Whatcha gonna choose gimme gimme gimme.” The last three words are slightly singed, and Enid continues the tune for a few seconds, humming it.
“Explain why you couldn’t call earlier.”
“Mom made me entertain some random guys she invited all day, which totes sucked, and then after dinner my mood got even worse so I laid in my bed, depressed, bored, wanting to do nothing until I realized that I’ll cheer up if I hear your voice, so, have mercy on me evil princess. Save me with your devilish voice.”
“I’m starting to think raising my ire is the punchline, what with all the names you’re calling me.”
‘Wens nooo, that’s not why- I’ll stop, I really do wanna hear you okay? And not just for any special tone of your voice, emotionless is A-okay, I’m not lying, listening to your low gravelly voice makes my wolf ears happy. Like a deep bass note hugging my brain. It’ll make me feel better and I’ll sleep then.”
“I- if I do talk about my writing you'd still get sick and get nightmares.”
"I won't now!"
"That's the biggest falsehood you've ever said in your life."
“Oh goddess, then just say the grossest parts in Spanish silly. Oh, that’s even better, then I could imagine you telling me nice things instead. Yiss, ramble about whatever in Spanish fully actually, that’d be nice.” Enid’s voice becomes wistful at the end.
“Enid-”
“Wait, no, that makes it seem as if I don’t care about your book, which I totes do, let’s roll back, you tell me the newest plot development and any nasty shit is gonna be in Spanish so I’ll just imagine the grossest thing I can without fainting, great, you can start now.”
The goth sighs.
“You won’t give it up will you?”
“Do you really hate cheering me up that much?” Enid’s voice becomes small suddenly. Wednesday hates it.
“No, I do not mean-”
“Please Wens, please,” the tone is breathy. Something of a different hatred blooms inside Wednesday.
“Fine, just stop asking. I will talk,” she rushes out.
“Thank you Wenny.”
Wednesday quickly starts with a description of a random detail she’s proud of to prevent Enid from expressing more gratitude. She talks and talks until her voice gets rough from such unusual overexertion. Each word forced out of her throat, as if it is fighting to stay behind her lips. And yet she still talks until the sound of Enid’s sleepy growls fills the room.
Wednesday finds that she can’t fall asleep that night. She doesn't dare to. If she did maybe she would've gotten confirmation that her chronic dreams of crushing loneliness in a painfully cold and empty room with only mocking typewriter in it get chased away by even just a hint of Enid's bright, warm presence.
She only ends the call when she hears Enid wake up.
On another silent day Wednesday attempts to message Enid first. Thing is being infuriatingly smug about it.
“I am preventing her from staying up and bothering me again. Stop with that strange thumb-pointer pose.”
She goes back to slowly writing and erasing what she wants to communicate again. She keeps making mistakes. The touch keyboard is way too small nor is typing with only thumbs comfortable.
[You don’t have to write a full paragraph in one message.]
Wednesday groans and throws the device at the hand. He catches and puts it down.
[Why not call instead?]
The goth wonders if she should get a knife and stab him for his foolishness. “No.”
If Enid is too busy to be glued to her phone why would she pick up a phone call. And if she’s busy and picks up thinking it’s an emergency what is Wednesday supposed to say? Lie? About what exactly?
Maybe she should really stab Thing to create an emergency.
[You could send a recording of your voice instead.]
“What?”
[Like a dictaphone, you hold down on a pictogram of a microphone, dictate and when you release your finger it sends itself. Although it is a few minutes max.]
Wednesday flexes her jaw and considers this idea. Enid did specify that what she wants is to hear her voice. Ludicrously.
“Fine.”
Wednesday summarizes a rundown of what she plans to write that day. After several attempts to use the voice recording function she gives up and gets Thing to hold down on the pictogram as she talks.
“Send with a message that if she solely wants to hear my voice that badly she can ‘loop’ it as she always does with her nonsensical music.”
Thing salutes so she moves on with her day.
In the middle of the writing hour he patters for her attention. She tries ignoring him.
Enid's calling song plays so she lunges out of her chair. She’s not sure if to decline or pick up, but when she realizes that it’s not a phone call and simply Thing playing the song she is certain that she wants to murder him.
He manages to escape her only for a handful of minutes. After catching him she cages him in a drawer and goes back to writing. But she can't focus.
She stares at the phone.
Maybe Enid’s response was important.
But she didn’t call.
Why wouldn’t she?
Maybe this time she was busy doing something she enjoyed so sending the recording was a useless endeavor. And Wednesday made a fool of herself. She grits her teeth.
She opens the drawer. “Talk.”
[She sent a recording back.]
Wednesday swallows thickly. She cages Thing again. She picks up the phone tensely and sits on her bed, away from the desk and noisy appendage.
The recording is a mere few seconds. She furrows her eyebrows at that. When she plays it the first time it's too quiet for her to understand. She fumbles with controls on the volume and puts it on maximal settings.
She plays it again.
“Thank you Winny~.” Enid’s voice drawls, low and teasing. Filling the room with a breathy sound and Wednesday’s chest with… something. She has to contain a shiver.
She plays it the third time. The words sit heavy in her ears, clawing at them with intensity of sensation. That something inside feels rolling fire and makes her heart beat painfully fast.
And it makes her chuck the phone out of the window.
Pugsley buys her a new phone with a tactile keyboard and Thing makes it so it contains the same contact information and data of past conversations. Not that she lost a lot of them. She only ever used the previous to contact Enid and Eugene.
She hangs Pugsley by his toes only for a few hours for his jokes on the topic.
It’s easier to text now. Although she still needs Thing to decipher the meaning of the insipid little pictures.
What is hard is the realization that Enid keeps being busy because her mother is pushing for her to find a mate now that she’s single.
Enid doesn’t say it directly. She doesn’t like to talk about the boys she’s forced to interact with. She just sounds tired when she avoids the topic on free days and just alludes that her mother keeps bothering her about new pack stuff she was never let in earlier. Things that she doesn’t want anymore.
Wednesday isn’t sure why the last part makes her certain that she means finding a mate by that but she knows that the prospect of being wrong in that regard makes her unpleasantly sick. So she has to be right. She has to.
Enid sounds the happiest in her increasingly elaborate ‘thank you’ recordings. Adding absurd compliments. Revolting pet names. Or just the way she'd say her full name.
Wednesday finds new things to destroy to survive them. She feels something of a hatred towards the headphones at this point. At least she isn't like that during the usual phone calls.
On another silent Enid day in a row Wednesday feels unable to write. Again. It is probably the weather. Wednesday never likes the heat. Even if it is chilly at night time already she has to be just exhausted from the day. Even if the temperature in the manor never rises above a certain level regardless of global warming.
She silently stares at the typewriter regardless. Abandoning the schedule would make it harder to go back to it when the block recedes.
The phone plays the awful tune and she gets up to pick it up instantly.
“Enid.” Wednesday tries to mention that it’s her writing hour. In an accusatory manner even. It doesn’t go past her lips however.
“Hey Winny,” Enid says, sighing.
“Greetings Enid,” Wednesday says cautiously.
“ Hey.”
“What is it?” the goth doesn’t have the patience to start whatever game Enid is trying to play this time.
“I just really want you here.” Enid says quietly.
Wednesday closes her eyes. Enid says that she wants something. The raven is aware how much she wants to act to the contrary of the demand. Like she does with all demands.
But Enid always gets what she wants in the end. The struggle isn’t worth it. The seer just stays silent.
“I just feel so- I know that going to Cali would prob feel worse than death for you but it’s just… I get so sick of looking at them yaknow. Of listening. Playing nice. I’m getting worse at dealing with it. It’s never even official. Just swarms of werewolf guys that I’m supposed to socialize with just cause they’re from an ally pack, woohoo. The pretenses and the dance around the topic is just so hard when all I can think of is- I miss talking to you. Looking at you. It would be easier with you here.”
“How would it be easier?”
“Cause it’s you Winny. Like even your voice notes help so much but that's when I get a break and when I'm in front of them I just- I want them gone. To stop trying. Without me saying anything. And with you here it might-"
"You want me to intimidate them?"
"I- yeah, I want you here in all of your scary spooky glory. In person, next to me, staring menacingly. Threatening murder in a cold voice. For me . I would love that.”
“I will start with threats of torture actually.”
“Hm?”
“Torture first and if they won’t understand I will escalate from that.”
“You will?”
“Yes. I can be in California in 4 hours. In San Francisco in 8. I need to wait for Grandmama to wake up to arrange my travel.”
“Mhm.”
“Enid?”
“I’m sleepy and you’re being nice. Cozy.”
“Sleep then and when you’ll wake up I’ll be there.”
“ Sweet . Thanks babycakes.”
“Pleasant dreams Enid.”
“Don’t hang up please.”
“I won’t.”
Exchanging pleasantries with Cousin Wake delayed Wednesday’s departure from Los Angeles witch circle. It’s still better than arriving much later by train or without weapons by plane.
Wednesday is irritated by the delay nonetheless. She simmers in anger as Lurch drives.
She wonders if going through a portal classifies as voluntarily hanging up the call by association. She stretches her fingers.
“Thing, notify Enid that we’ll be late.”
[What?]
“Send her a text message that we had an hour of delay.”
[No, that’s what she responded with.]
Wednesday stares blankly and takes the phone. Enid wasn’t supposed to wake up yet.
Enid Sinclair: WHAT?!?!?!
Wednesday blinks.
“What does it mean, Thing?”
[Didn't have coffee yet?]
It’s either that, anger at delay or she didn’t mean to actually invite. Stray offbeat of heart stings before Wednesday calms it down.
“Lurch, drive faster so we’ll have time to get a hotel room.”
Having somewhere to stash silver weapons is just practical.
[Or you could ask for clarification.]
Wednesday hides the phone as Thing flies through the car when Lurch accelerates.
She didn’t plan on closing her eyes for long enough for her mind to empty out of anything but a feeling of drowning in a cold fog.
Wednesday stands in front of a large yellow farmhouse and stares with squinting eyes at Enid’s eyebags. It’s easier to try to figure who to kill for sleep depriving Enid than to look at the shock in her eyes. Her skin seems to be too thin not only under her eye sockets however. Her oversized pajama shirt hides most of the body but her collarbones are visible more than usual. It could be morning dehydration. Or it could be something else. Someone else. Esther as always at the top of the hit list, with Murray just behind for enabling his mate in everything, then both brothers and prospective mates to blame.
Enid takes a deep breath and recovers from the shock. Then wordlessly goes back behind the doors without closing them.
Wednesday chokes out any thought of Enid possibly shutting the door in her face.
Enid comes back with an umbrella in her hands. And opens it over Wednesday. It’s easier to think under a shade.
There’s still something strange in Enid’s eyes.
“I’m assuming you forgot you invited me then?”
“I just- yeah, I’m just-”
She stops talking to touch the lapel of Wednesday’s shirt. Her eyebrows furrow, the one with the slit more than the other. Then a smile more blinding than the californian sun pops up on her face.
“I’m really glad you’re here, Wens.”
“That was the aim, yes.”
A girlish giggle stabs her for her effort. Wednesday looks away from the sight of Enid biting her lip.
The werewolf grabs her arm. “Well, where are your bags then?”
“Most of them are in the hotel.”
“What?”
“Bringing silver on werewolf land is a slight I do not plan to commit until forced to. I thought of hunting the failed suitors outside of them when possible.”
Quick smile shows on the blonde’s face before an uncertain pout overpowers it. “But you’re still sleeping here right?”
“Assuming your parents aren’t against it.”
“Oh no, dad already knows you might be coming. If it’s not gonna be alright with mom I’m ready to fight her on it.”
“Restrain yourself until I’ll equip the blades in that case.”
Enid snorts. “Fight her verbally, Wens.” And she drags them both inside. “How did you get here so fast with weapons anyway?”
“Cousin Wake from Los Angeles has a teleportation circle.”
“Wake what? Wake Me Up Inside?” Enid teases.
“Today it seemed more like Before You Go Go.”
Enid lets out a laugh before doing a double take on Wednesday’s serious face.
“No, you’re shitting me.”
Wednesday shrugs. “It changes with their mood. Last time I visited it was indeed ‘Wake Me Up Inside, Tell Me There’s A Reason’.”
“Goddess, I love your family.”
“I cannot say the same for yours.”
“Yeah I know.” Enid sighs.
“Is there gonna be a target for threats today?”
“Well, there might be. But with you here we can delay it.”
“How?”
“How much are you against watching the Barbie movie?”
“Watching what?”
Enid disappears with a smile into her wardrobe. “Well mom bought the tickets with a pointed comment that I will have to take someone for it with me. I was thinking of begging my brother to go with me so that whatever guy she meant couldn’t go but you can go with me instead! But if you think a pink commercial extravaganza is too scary we can go watch Oppenheimer instead.”
“As in a movie about a man that displaced and exploited hispano people of Los Alamos to build a war crime of a weapon?”
“Yeeeaaah, so pink fun capitalism it is! Hey, does this headband sting your skin? I’m totes sure it’s from a vegan brand.” Enid comes back in a fully pink outfit and holds up another pink cloth. Simplicity of one solid color makes looking at her easier for the goth.
The offered material doesn’t hurt Wednesday to touch.
“Could you wear it around your neck?” Enid cheerfully asks.
After a morning of shopping for sweets for Enid and reflective sunglasses for Wednesday, the goth realizes during the movie that Enid attempted to make the seer’s outfit similar to a black one that the ‘Ken’ character wears at some point. Since then the only thing that she really pays attention to are Enid’s reactions.
Her eyes simply need breaks from the constant vibrant colors.
But by looking at laughing Enid, Wednesday realizes she will kill anyone else for the sin of noticing the happy little scrunch of the nose that the blond makes.
“So? What did ya think about the movie?” Enid asks when they leave the cinema and Wednesday takes off the sunglasses.
“The smallpox analogy was repugnant and unneeded and the final triumph of real womanhood being going to a gynecologist undercuts previous joke about lack of genitals as well as the discussion that lead up to it. Both could be easily changed in the script but in current state it leaves me lost on the supposed lesson. That’s the low bar expectations foiled as the lack of outcast dolls outside of sirens was to be expected.”
“Yeah, those parts were totes cringe.” Enid agrees as she sways back and forth on her soles and plays with the ends of Wednesday’s handkerchief. She’s staring at her own hands fidgeting with the material.
Wednesday realizes Enid might have not wanted to hear only criticism about a movie she was excited about. She swallows.
“I did appreciate that to become quote unquote real Barbara didn’t have to provide any proof of her consciousness or humanity. Many stories about becoming human end up claiming that androids for example are separate from humans because of lack of emotions, or social awareness or humor or love and-” Wednesday loses the thread of her own thoughts when Enid looks up into her eyes smiling. Enid is so close and Wednesday can feel the movement of the material on her neck.
“And Barbie still became human after rejecting romance with a guy? Yeah I liked that too, it was cool. Although it makes me wonder if that part of her was influenced by Gloria’s seeming disinterest in her husband. Goddess, I can’t imagine being married to a latina for, how old was Sasha, twelve or something right, so for over a decade and still being on the first level of Duolingo. Like, really? Your daughter is fluent and you still can’t hold a conversation? That’s so stupid. She should dump that man. She was so much happier around Barbie. I feel like Sasha is gonna notice that and then try to recruit Barbie’s help for the mission ‘let's get mom a girlfriend’ or something. Oh, also, it’s so funny that she starts out hating Barbie and then ends up with her as her semi step-mom possibly.”
The pressure on the neck as Enid stills her hands and something in wolfgir’s face as she rambles signals to Wednesday that what she's saying means something beyond the discussion of the movie but Wednesday’s brain has trouble doing its job with her throat so close to the claws.
After a few beats of silence Enid speaks again.``Anyway!” She clears her throat and takes the bandana off Wednesday while stepping away. “You don’t need that anymore. Thank you for going with me. I enjoyed hearing your thoughts about it but you can stop thinking about it now if ya wanna.”
Wednesday blinks. She can breathe again.
“I- of course.”
“I’ll probably still go a few more times to watch the dance scenes cause wow, those were totes fun, I might make guys in the dance club recreate them with me.”
Wednesday nods.
Enid’s cellular device makes a noise. Wolfgirl groans. “Mom is probably yelling that it’s dinner time. And that I need to be there for the new boytoy.” Her sad pout hurts Wednesday.
“I can get my silver knives on our way back.”
Enid smiles at that. “Well, he didn’t do anything yet, right, so no hunting yet.”
“I do not need a reason.”
“I’ll feel better without any silver for now.”
“Como quieras.”
Enid tilts her head at that.
“What does this mean exactly?”
“‘As you wish’, but literally como is how, and quieras is conjugated querer, to want”
“Hmm, is it connected to ‘te quiero’?”
Wednesday spins around and walks to the car. “I’m not teaching you Spanish anymore.”
“What? Why?!”
“I do not need a reason.”
“But Wens-"
"But what, Enid?"
"I- nothing."
Wednesday stares grimmly from a distance as Enid plasters on a fake smile and greets a family with a generic looking werewolf son. The boy nervously avoids her gaze.
Wednesday regrets not getting knives after all when the family moves away and in their place is Esther grabbing Enid's face, sounding angry. But before Wednesday does anything Enid swats away the hand and marches off, back to the seer.
"Dinner is on the patio outside, come, you're a guest too, let me entertain you." Enid smirks.
As her gaze lingers on the blonde's face Wednesday wonders if she should say something positive about Enid’s scars to balance out whatever her mother said.
Enid raises her eyebrows and tilts her head at the lack of response. Then her eyes narrow as she tugs her hair behind her left ear, exposing the scars more.
Wednesday swallows.
Enid smirks again for some reason and reaches for a band from her wrist to tie her hair back.
Wednesday looks away and marches off outside as Enid faintly giggles behind her.
Apparently dinner is a long affair at Sinclair's when guest are involved and no real meal arrives for a long time so Enid just keeps cups of tea for Wednesday coming as Wednesday stares daggers at the werewolf boy. Brandon? Bob? His name is irrelevant and fortunately he easily gives up any attempt to approach Enid.
After shooting another murderous stare, Wednesday shifts her attention to the werewolf girl eating honey straight from the jar as they sit at their own picnic table. A wolfgirl that usually gets much more antsy around dinner time.
"Enid."
At the serious tone Enid freezes with the spoon still in her mouth. Then she releases it with a loud pop. "Yep?"
"Have you had any meat today?"
"Uhhh, I'm not hungry if that's what you're asking, I'm just stress eating this."
"That is not what I'm asking."
"Still not hungry. Are you hungry? We can get you something better than snacks early. There should be a jerky home somewhere and I got some kimchi from the Asian market. Although I think the main food should be soon."
"I'm not eating before you do."
"Well I'm already eating honey so checkmate."
"Enid."
"Wednesday."
"Did you even have breakfast before I showed up?"
"Well, did you?"
"Yes, Cousin Wake made me eat with them."
"Ohh, what do you think their name is right now? Wake Me Up Before September Ends?"
"Enid."
"Wennyyyy."
"Sinclair."
"Oof, not the surname, well I should go and get your food as family duty." Enid gets up.
"Enid, no." Wednesday tries to follow her.
"Addams, sit." Enid pushes on her shoulders to stay seated and then sprints off.
Wednesday just deadpans at the plate of food she's presented with.
"Chop chop my dear guest. I cannot dare to eat before you're finished."
Wednesday stays silent and unmoving. Enid didn't get anything for herself.
Enid stabs a piece of meat with a fork and lifts it up. "Say aaah."
"You're being ridiculous."
"Nuh huh. Now open your mouth."
Before Wednesday gets to respond, a plate with a beef steak gets put in front of Enid's seat.
By the bumbling idiot that was supposed to stay away. "You forgot to take it so your mom asked me to bring it to you. Is it really your favorite?"
Enid puts a hand on Wednesday's shoulder to stop her from revealing that it's not. And that he's an imbecile for assuming. Or trusting anything that Esther Sinclair is saying.
"Yeah, thanks so much, please don't let me stop you from finishing your own food, this was enough help."
The boy nervously glances between the blonde and the brunette that's tightly clutching the dinner knife. "you're welcome, I'm gonna go."
Enid releases a deep breath and then grimaces at the food.
"Enid, eat."
"I told you I'm not hungry."
"Neither am I and you're forcing me."
"Well you have alexithymia so like your interoception sucks and when have I ever forgotten about food outside of hyperfocus? Never. And I'm not hyperfocused right now, so. Checkmate, you're eating."
Wednesday chews on one piece of meat. Then 3 more.
"Your turn."
"Grr, fine, but you're feeding me." And Enid opens her mouth expectantly.
"Why?"
"Cause I wanna, aaah."
"That's ridiculous."
"No, it's not, you're just being rude."
"I've been plenty nice today already."
"Great, so if I cancel out some of that niceness I'll get more again. Let me talk to Brad."
Wednesday grabs on her hand to stop her from moving.
"Fine." She hisses out.
Enid beams at her. She raises her eyebrows expectantly. Wednesday grits her teeth and cuts up the steak. Then brings the fork up and looks away. Enid hums as she chews and Wednesday wishes the ground would just swallow her.
Enid uses stabs to signal when she's done with each piece. They're not as frequent as Wednesday would expect of her.
When she looks at Enid the girl seems more focused on staring back than eating.
But midway through the meal Enid just grabs Wednesday’s wrist to control the fork to feed Wednesday. Her embarrassment has burned out its fuel so she relents to eating more food.
Enid’s satisfied purr has nothing to do with her silent agreement.
Wednesday didn’t notice when exactly Enid got so close as to make their thighs touch. It only became apparent when she put her chin on Wednesday's shoulder.
“ Gracias churri.”
Wednesday suddenly misses the garish furniture that she’s been destroying the whole summer.
“ That- that term is mostly used in Spain.”
Enid hums directly into her ear. “Well, that’s what happens when you’re not the one that’s teaching me. Why don’t you tell me a Mexican one I could use instead, hm?”
Wednesday thickly swallows and violently sorts through her memory for anything close to platonic.
“You could use chula?”
“Nah, that’s not what I’m going for. Give me something more like hermosa why don't ya.”
Wednesday desperately needs Enid to stop calling her these things.
“You would be called güera.”
“Ooh, why?”
“Because you’re blonde. And light skinned.”
Enid moves her head so that her furrowed brows and slight pout is visible to Wednesday.
“Güerita?” Wednesday adjusts weakly.
The brows relax as the blonde sighs and puts her head back on the shoulder. “Tell me something nice in Spanish.”
Well that’s easier than listening to Enid.
“Sonríes más brillante que el sol.”
“¿Y eso significa?”
Wednesday wants to bash her own head on the table. But that would disrupt the pose that Enid chose for herself.
“You smile brighter than the sun.” She translates weakly.
Enid makes a happy squeak and hugs Wednesday's arm. “You really think so?”
“End of Spanish for today.”
“Awww, okay. Wanna go watch the sundown with me?”
No, Wednesday wants to murder something far away from Enid. Maybe Blake. Oh yes, she wants to kidnap Braxton and take sweet time to cope with whatever poison makes her heart act abnormally around the peppy wolf.
Enid tilts her head and smiles.
“As you wish.”
The supernova of a smile erupts as Enid drags them towards the small lake that’s on the Sinclair premises. “If there weren’t other guests around we could go swimming but instead we gotta settle for you comparing me to the sun some more.”
Wednesday thinks at that moment that if she doesn’t get to harm someone soon she might die herself.
When she untangles from another half cuddle that Enid put them in after sitting on the sand with ‘getting drinks’ excuse, Bentley bites the bait.
Enid stares at coming back Wednesday with ‘puppy eyes’ over the boy's shoulder.
Wednesday slaps him at the scent glands and he hisses sharply at the pain.
“Beckham.”
“It’s Brad actually-”
“Barrett, let’s get something clear. If you keep talking to her, I'll make sure that every time you bite into meat it will taste of wolfsbane. So every time you’ll chew on it, you’ll get to reflect that it is because of your lack of control of your most base instincts that you’re in agony forever, feeling as if the same thing that you require for sustenance is slowly killing you, since you felt like your thirst is worth ignoring Enid’s signals that she’s uninterested. Is that simple enough of a concept or should I simplify?”
“She didn’t-”
“Very well, I prefer blades over witchcraft anyway, so what I can do with silver is-” Wednesday starts out another threat to lower his defenses and midway she steps heavily on claw beds in his hand.
He yelps as his claws forcefully shoot out.
“- irrelevant if you will value your life and understand quickly”
“Fuck, fine, whatever, goddess, I get it.”
His curses and complaints as he gets up to get away are completely ignored by Enid as she smiles dreamily at Wednesday. “Violent is a great look on you.” She says while tugging Wednesday down to sit again. “Does my champion want a cheek kiss for the brave rescue?”
Enid gets the blank stare and a blink as refusal, nevertheless Wednesday accepts that she’s dying today. Drowned in pinks and oranges of the setting sun. Enid’s signature colors.
She tries to cling to life a bit longer by tuning out the exact meaning of wolfgirl’s excited words. They can’t hurt her if she can’t understand them. It’s enough that she can feel her fingers draw circles on her arm. Enid suddenly got more daring with touch after eating properly, after refusing to at first, it is better to remember to just feed her with correct snacks throughout the day. Or maybe not since feeding made everything worse. How would covertly making sure she's fed work?
Or the answer is killing Esther for perhaps causing Enid’s lack of appetite.
That’s always the best option. Thinking about violently murdering her relaxes the seer as she stares at the weirdly familiar lake.
At some point Enid's hand ends up on Wednesday's knee. She can't figure out if she's glad or not that her shorts are so long. But any thought of maybe pushing the hand off dematerialises when it squeezes or when Enid readjusts her fingers. The singing feeling is so distracting.
Some time later in the evening, when other guests have gone already, after nodding to another phrase that sounded like a question Enid drags them up, by their joined hands. She's waving them widely as they walk. Since when has she been clutching on Enid’s hand? Enid being more daring is one thing, why is Wednesday even permitting this amount of touch in the first place and, on top of that, reciprocating?
Wednesday experimentally let goes of the hand. Enid drops it immediately while also stopping in her tracks to look at Wednesday’s reaction to clutching at her sleeve instead.
Her eyes are the warmest blue. They make it so hard for her to attempt to free herself from the subtle hold. That idea feels so ridiculous all of a sudden. Enid wants to keep her close. What would even be the argument to deny her? Painful sensations inside? Wednesday likes pain. Quite a lot actually. Why would she be scared of this new brand of it? She's not a coward. She should be welcoming them instead.
Enid has led them back to her room. After closing the door behind them the wolfgirl is pulling on the sleeve while walking backwards deeper into the room.
"Can we kiss?"
What?
"Que?"
The giggle isn't helping. Enid pulls her closer. Wednesday almost trips but the wolf stabilizes her with a hand on the shoulder.It's even harder to think now.
"I'm asking for a kiss. On the mouth. Here and now. Pretty please." There's a smile on her face as she says it slowly, low and deliberately. Wednesday can see flashes of her sharp incisors and her red tongue. Enid’s lips are-
They're close. Wednesday didn’t move away. And she doesn't want to.
"You want to kiss me," Wednesday says breathlessly.
"Yes Wens. Like a lot. Do you?" Her lips are not close enough.
"Yes." There's nothing she ever wanted more.
" Good."
Enid's lips prove extensively on what she meant by 'a lot'. The touch is searing and overwhelming. The pain finally makes sense. It is terrifying because it feels so unbelievably good. Wednesday wants more of it.
She wants Enid.
She grabs her by the back of the neck to get more. Enid practically purrs and opens her mouth wider as she cradles Wednesday’s face. Her tongue feels hot and-
It tastes of ginseng, saffron and- anise.
Ingredients of love potions and a werewolf drug.
Wednesday pushes off Enid.
"Wens, what's wrong?"
Everything. Everything everything everything!
Wednesday wants to scream. Why does a heartbreak have to feel so literal!
"Hey, hey, hey, Wenny, was it too much, too little? Hey, what is it? Can you hear me?"
Enid sounds so worried. Too much.
Wednesday nods. She realizes they're both on the ground.
"Okay, so what's wrong?" Enid is hovering without touching.
"Why do you taste of anise?" Wednesday hears her own voice break.
"Oh, so the kiss was good and I just should’ve brushed my teeth, okay I can do that. No more kissing straight after eating."
Wednesday shakes her by the shoulders.
"Enid, focus. Anise."
Enid tilts her head and furrows her brows.
"Oh. That's weird. I didn't have Duncan's cookies except for that one time. But you liked the kiss right?"
She puts her own hands on Wednesday's hands and starts caressing them. She pouts when Wednesday wrenches hers away.
Increased need for touch, a one track mind. Just more and more proof to saw away pieces of Wednesday’s heart with.
"Enid-"
"Wens, please tell me." The damn pout. And the hurt in her eyes. And that wretched tone-
This will be only worse if she won't be careful and make her cry.
"Yes, I enjoyed it." Wednesday admits defeatedly.
Enid's face lights up.
"Great! Can we kiss daily?"
"Enid, listen to me, you had anise alongside aphrodisiacs, that’s how a love potion for a werewolf taste."
Enid purses her lips at that.
"Well, that's silly, I don't need a love potion to love you. So there's no love potion. Now, since you liked it, can we date and kiss on the regular? It could be just once a day but I just can't imagine going a day without one after having it already. I mean I can but it makes me wanna die. So it would be nice not to die. Ohh, your problem with the taste was the love potion idea, so since that's not true we can go back to kissing right now."
"Enid, you didn't- you didn't start dating Ajax after kissing him once."
"Well obvi, cause he's not you. I've been in love with you for awhile babycakes."
"The magic is overriding your memories."
"No, it's not, you're being silly."
Enid’s earnest, so often affectionate eyes were making Wednesday desperately want to believe her.
"Since when then?"
"Hmm, since you called emojis 'insipid little pictures'."
Wednesday wants to wrench out her own heart to scream at it for its foolishness.
"That is exactly what I am saying, it cannot be, you were at the height of your obsession with Ajax then." Wednesday hears herself whine.
"Well if I said I fell in love at first sight you wouldn't believe me." Enid has the gall to say it with an eye roll.
"Of course I wouldn't! And you had a crush on Ajax!"
It's so far from possible it is bitterly painful. So sick and nauseating. Wednesday considers biting on her own tongue to get a better taste in the mouth at least.
"Oh shush, he was just a distraction and a hyperfixation I got bored easily of. It's not like you realized that you're into me quickly either."
"What?" Wednesday asks dazedly.
"I know you Wenny, you've been a gay panicking mess for awhile now but that lightbulb only lit up when I asked to kiss you. It was pretty obvious."
Enid knows. Wednesday feels a jolt of panic. That's not- Magically motivated persistence doesn't really offer a heightened empathic awareness. Definitely not a retroactive one. Or could it just pull from Enid's natural empathy- Trying to figure out if Enid knew of her affection and just kept silent out of pity makes Wednesday feel a start of a headache. But the fact is that Enid's emotional awareness far exceeds Wednesday’s anyway.
"That does not mean-"
"Well I realized when I wolfed out and you hugged me. But the falling in love part had to be before cause believe me threat of friends or family dying as wolfing out trigger has been tried on me already. It had to be around the time you couldn't look me into my eyes and lie that it isn't for me that you joined the Poe Cup. You can be so shy sometimes. It's sooo cute."
Just another heart maulingly implausible suggestion.
"You did not leave him then."
"Yeah, duh, I wanted to avoid this matchmaking bullcrap during winter break. Now, back to kissing, you like it, I like it, we can date."
Wednesday is tired. She wants to agree so much. Even if it means accepting that Enid somehow just stewed in feelings for months without acting on them, not even at a threat of dealing with forced matchmaking. She needs to choke out that hope.
"I- tell me gossip."
If Enid can focus on anyone else she can choose what's real. Maybe she just got too excited and is being playful after suddenly getting back energy. Maybe Wednesday just got paranoid and imagined the taste.
"What? You don't like gossip."
"Just recall something about someone that doesn't have anything to do with me, right now."
"That's so random. You're here with me. I wanna think about you."
"Yes, random, just focus on random facts about someone, your family, friends, anyone but me." Wednesday directs her patiently.
"Ohhh, Yoks tried to suggest something funny, like asking you to fake date me to discourage furs from courting me, as if I could ever do that when I want the real thing. Isn't that so silly. On that note, kissing, real kissing, cause I'm in real love with you, how many times can we do that?"
Enid can only come up with things connected to Wednesday. Wednesday can feel the hope losing its breath.
"Barclay, anything new about the so-called Queen Bee?"
"You spend too much time with her."
It's dead. Wednesday closes her eyes in mourning. So it is irrefutably a love potion. It had to be the steak. Since it's directed at Wednesday it had to be either triggered by being in her sight or- by who offered the consumption.
"I'm going to kill Brad." Wednesday says while standing up.
She's gonna torture out of him the recipe for the potion to enginner back a cure and then make it so his body is gonna be unrecognisable after she's done with him. She will take however long it's gonna take to find a way to make a werewolf's skin take fire and burn. Slow gradual, piece by piece burn while he's alive to feel it.
"Aw, were you jelly? I would never look at anyone else, okay? Well, not literally, sorry, I will never want anyone how I want you babycakes. I have no idea what he even told me at the lake cause I fully zoned out when you left." Enid pulls on her hand.
Wednesday momentarily panics.
"Of course you did." She remarks while delicately pulling her hand free. She just has to get out and go hunting. Like getting out of a snare to resume the hunt. Don't listen.
"Wenny, you still sound mad. Did he upset you that much? I'm sorry."
Enid’s sad tone fully cuts through the fury. Her eyes look like broken ice. Looking was a mistake. Wednesday takes a deep breath to reset her voice. It's gonna hurt too much if the ice taws into tears.
"You didn't- it's not your fault."
"You keep blinking, are you tired? Did you even sleep last night?"
No, no, no, not more somber tones.
"That's irrelevant."
"Oh no no no, it is so relevant. You need sleep."
"I need to hunt him down."
Enid scrambles to shield the door.
"Nuh uh, not sleep deprived."
"Enid."
"I won't sleep without you here. And believe me I'll know if you'll leave. I'm not resorting to the voice notes just cause of murder you can easily postpone dumbass."
Wednesday knows that by postponing Enid means never doing it because the werewolf will keep trying to find more postponing excuses for them to stay together instead. As usual. Just until she herself will get too busy to spend time with Wednesday, which right now she won't do willingly.
And she's fast enough to catch the raven if she'll try to run to the window. Wednesday gives up.
"At least your personality is intact."
"Why wouldnt it?"
"Mind altering magic tends to do that. A shame. This would've been easier if it made you complacent."
Instead it feels like a cruel joke to how close yet so far to real it is.
"Rude! And, like so stupid. You're a stupid meanie right now. How dare you. Of course me loving you doesn’t change anything about me, cause it was never actually new. I have loved you since forever and the sky is blue, like such big revelations oh wow."
"We just watched it change colors, Enid."
"Nitpicking stupid meanie. A sleepy nitpicking stupid meanie! We're going mimir, maybe then you'll be stupidlesser. Ah wait, that's spanish slang, sorry. We're hitting the zees, that's what we're doing.
"Stupidlesser is not a word."
"I will only discuss dialectics with someone smarter than stupid."
"Wrong field of study. That's philosophy."
"And you're in the wrong state of being, by which I mean awake. Chop chop, get ready for sleep."
"I'll kiss you after killing Brad."
Enid gasps. "A blackmailing sleepy nitpicking stupid meanie?! You've done it now, we're doing mani pedis tomorrow and you can't say no. Wait, where's Thing?"
Wednesday furrows her brows. Thing is what cuts through the werewolf's daze?
"At the hotel with Lurch, most probably sulking that you haven't asked for him earlier since I told him I'll get him only when you'll ask for him."
"Naur, he would agree to help to keep you here."
Ah, that explains it.
"Enid, I want to remind you that I won't sleep in the same bed as you."
"More mean, as if I care for cuddles more than your wellbeing." Enid says poutingly.
"Nor will there be a goodnight kiss."
"Aw, come on!"
Wednesday was certain she wouldn't manage to fall asleep until a whine woke her up from a nightmare about Enid's lips. About mint and anise interrupting the drowning in water surrounded by fog and empty misery.
Enid's sleepy whine close to her ear. Because Enid is curled up on the ground, close next to where Wednesday lays on it, but without touching yet. The mess of her blanket between her and the bed pointing to her getting close subconsciously. She can't be comfortable like this.
Painstruck face emits another puppyish whine. Wednesday won't stomach another. She cautiously caresses Enid's face. The girl instantaneously relaxes and sighs instead of whining. Then her face contorts again when Wednesday takes away her hand.
Maybe hell exists after all.
"Enid, wake up."
Just a groan in response.
Wednesday squeezes her shoulder. "Enid, you need to get up."
"Hm?"
"If you go back to your bed you can hold my hand."
"Hand?"
"Yes. My hand in yours."
"Hand."
Enid groggily gets up and falls back into her bed. Then waves reach for Wednesday. "Haaand," she mumbles.
"Here."
Wednesday thought that she might be able to simply lay closer to Enid's bed, with just a hand hanging a bit in the air, but Enid fully uses her palm as a pillow for her cheek.
Wednesday sits back on her heels and stares at the sleepy wolf. She can feel puffs of air hitting the heel of her hand. Enid's nose nuzzling into the base of her thumb. The press of her fingers on the wrist.
The distance between her skin and Enid's lips is-
Instead of risking another nightmare Wednesday decides to just keep her mind blank and get some rest from that.