Nevermore: Ophelia Hall

She can't believe she just did that. She asked Y/N L/N out to the Rave'N dance. The more she walked back to the campus, the more she realizes just what kind of thing she's done. She's exactly sure what kind of thing she set in motion, but she knows it's there, and she's worried that it may have complicated things in a much-unwelcomed manner. Unfortunately, however, she'll have to stick to the plan, and that means....... well, you know.

"Oh, my God!" Enid squeals as soon as she hears about it from the devil herself. She jumps up and down in front of her, barely able to contain her excitement which has somehow gotten stronger upon hearing the name game plan. "Wednesday Addams is going to the Rave'N! With Y/N freaking L/N, the winner of this year's Poe Cup, no less! My whole world is tilted!" She exclaims like she's been given a message from a Christan Angel. "You know what you need now?"

"A bullet to the head?" Wednesday coldly guesses.

"A dress!"

"I already have one." Wednesday points out, not seeing the point in getting another one. Enid takes a few seconds before noting that she's talking about her original one and makes another one of those 'ew' faces.

"Not the one you showed up here in." Enid quickly shoots down that idea, wondering where Wednesday even got it when the terms disco dancing and spiked punch come to mine. "That thing was a fashion emergency not even lightning could resuscitate." She remarks, causing Wednesday to glance down. Ouch, a small jab from Enid, the world really has tilted. "Thing, back me up here." She requests, and the hand gives an encouraging thumbs up. "You need something that screams, 'First date. Stand back bitches, I have arrived!" She tells her with arms stretched wide, before giving Wednesday a wide grin.

"And I know just the place!"

_____________________________________________

Jericho:

"What kind of dystopian hell-scape is this?" Wednesday questions out loud as she stares at the store in front of her and Enid. It's incredibly pink, filled with so many things that fits a unicorn aesthetic that it makes her want to throw up. She's once again been blinded by the horrific view of color. 

"Our first roomie shopping spree." Enid answers with that excitement that hasn't died down since they've made their way into here. Know, Wednesday has found a real reason to be nervous. "The dance comittee's 'suggesting' all white to match the theme, but that's not gonna fly with us."

"Well, I have more pressing business than to worry about a stupid dress for a dance I don't even want to attend." Wednesday states as she turns to Enid who blinks at her seemingly sudden change of mind.

"But I thought we were bonding." Enid says with a slightly hurt expression.

"I feel I'll only slow you down. You're a gazelle, I'm a wounded fawn." Wednesday states, pointing out the dynamic between them. She's probably always being judged for even standing next to her. "Cut me loose and go run with the pack." She encourages as she nods towards a Yoko, Divina, and female gorgon walking into the shop. 

Enid looks happy to see them, but is still hesitant on just letting her friend be ditched like that, even if she's granting permission. "Are you sure?" She asks her, and Wednesday nods, prompting her to eventually give in and hop into the.... whatever that devil's playground is.  

Wednesday then turns around and heads in the opposite direction, knowing that it was for the best.

She then marches down the sidewalk, but Thing taps on her shoulder, wondering why she was so quick to take off when she blatantly has a date on her hands that she made it seem like she has to go to. "I'm going to see Galpin." She reminds him with a sharp tone. "I'm not stop-" 

She pauses a bit when she notices an odd-looking dress standing in front of the display window in Uriah's Heap. She feels herself drawn to the antique aesthetic with its massive splotch of black colors, not a single bright shade on its fabric. Despite her claims, she can't help but admire it from the other side of the glass.

Just then, the door to Uriah's opens with hits bells jingling, and Wednesday glances to see Valerie Kinbott stepping out. The woman instantly sees her there. "Hi, Wednesday." She greets the girl with a polite smile on her face, before glancing to see what's got her attention. "That dress'll certainly turn some heads."

"Are you collecting more exotic trinkets for your office?" Wednesday asks her with a weird look, having a slight judge when it comes to her choice of session displays. 

"Those are souvenirs from my travels. It's how I step outside of my comfort zone." Valerie calmly corrects her with a proud face, somehow finding a way to bring back those two words that Wednesday gets irked when she hears them. "Speaking of which, are you going to the Rave'N this weekend?" 

Wednesday's eye bows twitch, wishing that she would stop hearing about that darn event. The last thing she wants is to be even a bit connected to someone who calls themself, MC Blood Suckaz. "I'm not required to answer your questions out in the wild, am I?" She questions the woman who just shrugs in response.

"I look forward to talking all about it at our next session."

With that, Wednesday turns around and walks away, using the therapist's presence as an excuse to continue to her business she finds to be more important than dresses and dances. 

She's never going to fit in anyway, why should she even try?

___________________________________________

Nevermore: Principal's Office

Y/N needs to solve this sooner rather than later, since the Rave'N will be on everyone's mind by the time it arrives, including his. He feels like he's figured out the appropriate time that Weems finally leaves her office for more than two seconds, which he'll use to go through her stuff and see if there's anyone here, staff or student, that would be the suspected shapeshifter he's looking for.

"I can't believe I've been talked into being an accomplice for this." Xavier mutters as he walks with Y/N down the hallways, having managed to be brought along with the promise that he'll be allowed to help his roommate with preparations for the weakened. "You know, this is what Weems kind of meant about 'not making waves'." 

"Relax, psy-guy, I know what I'm doing." Y/N assures him with a much calmer voice, having already snuck into one person's place previously this semester. Xavier probably doesn't know about that, since he used him as a distraction to do his thing. He then holds his hand for them to stand, and they watch casually as a window cleaning steps out and heads towards his break. "Alright, make sure to text when you see him walking back."

"Yes sir, mister breaking and entering." Xavier replies sarcastically, prompting Y/N to give him a smirk before using the window the cleaner stepped out of to hop onto his suspended platform. He steps across until he comes across the window that leads to Weems's office.

After making sure no one is inside, he uses a small knife to create a little open and shut square he uses to climb inside, a little technique from his survivalist uncle. (Don't ask, I'm doing what I want) And looks around to see the lights off, meaning that he judged his timing perfectly, at least for now. 

He looks around until he quickly deduces the obvious first place to look, the desk itself. He goes through the draws, most of which feature a much of nothingness, board stuff that he might keep in case of insomnia, and a paper that shows the student body of thirty years ago, back ween Weems herself would've been attending. Why does she have this here? He senses a past that is eating her up, even today.

He flips through every page, until he sees some clear evidence that one of them was ripped from the book itself. Y/N squints as he feels the ripped page that's left, not really seeing much evidence. This is important, but he can't just steal something that is evidently personal to his head teacher. So, he just quickly goes through the pages again, and realizes what's missing. Gomez Addams is on this list, but Morticia Addams isn't.

Interesting.....

He patrols a little bit more, and notices some recent ash added to the bin, something was put into the fireplace and burned. Could it be Morticia Addams' student page? Is there something about Weems that despises her so much? Is it the family itself? That can't be true, because Gomez is still on here. He scans the room for any possible clues of what this could indicate, but its overly perfect to be incriminating, Weems sure has a good idea at keeping secrets.

He looks for and goes through the student book that surrounds this term, wondering if this is the one he may be after. However, he strangely doesn't come across any shapeshifters. He heard that this year hasn't been the most delegate to their kind, but is it that bad that not one has attended Nevermore? Or is one species being lied about? 

Deciding to go back, he re-checks the thirty-year gap student book. He goes through every single one of them again until he finally comes across Weems's page, which he wonders how he missed, and finally spots it. Shapeshift, right there in perfect ink or marker, or however this was written. Larissia Weems is a shapeshifter.

And possibly, she pretended to be Rowan Laslow to cover up his murder.

He pulls out his phone and takes a picture.

*BUZZ!*

Hearing that quiet but audible sound, Y/N quickly pulls up his messages. 

Xavier: Weems and Thornhill!

Y/N mentally swears as he speed-jogs over to the desk where he puts everything back where he found it, while also secretly swearing about the woman being back so soon. Why can't things just go according to plan, just once? 

Once he feels like he's in the clear, he quickly jogs towards the window doggy-door he made and slips through it, thankfully, without anyone stepping in to see him in a weird position. However, by the time his feet hit the platform again, the door opens with a loud creak, spooking Y/N in a way that he ends up tripping when he runs to touch the wood connected to the neighboring window. Now, he's dangling there, while holding on for dear life.

"I'm unsure, Mrs. Thornhill, he means well, but he often has a bit of a temper when confronted with students who slide in little remarks here and there behind our backs." Weems's voice emits through the window, the two of them not seemingly noticing anything wrong with the office, and not able to see the pair of hands gripping the wood next to the platform yet.

"I promise it will be alright, Principal Weems, and it will be good for him too." Thornhill's voice responds, seemingly confident in whatever she's trying to pitch to her. Meanwhile, Y/N grunts as he tries to lift himself onto the wood, which takes almost everything out of him to bring his body upward. He manages to get his chest on it, but still has his feet kicking at open air. 

Thankfully, he sees Xavier stepping through the window, and Y/N quickly holds up a hand which the guy takes. As he's being lifted up, his right foot accidentally kicks the platform, causing the two women to pause for a second and glance at where it come from. But thankfully, they don't see anything, even when they step in front of the glass to look both ways.

After they stumble back into the hallway, Xavier lightly punches Y/N's shoulder. "Ow!"

"Geez, that was a close one, are you crazy?" Xavier questions his roommate with a look that is considering sending him to a psychic hospital for treatment. "I told you this was a bad idea. What do you think Weems was gonna do if she caught you?"

"Forget about that, check this out." Y/N brushes his panicked concerns off and shows him the picture he took with his phone. Although it's kind of hard to read pages from a screen, he knows that Xavier can see what's written on it. "Our beloved principal is a shapeshifter, one experienced enough to become Rowan Laslow without breaking a sweat. She was in theater, don't you remember?"

"But why would she do that?" Xavier asks out loud as he stares at it, more just baffled by the revelation than excited with a bit of anger like Y/N is. "There's already an established animal killing people, why bother covering it up?"

"Because she wants people to think it's a bear." Y/N answers that question with a knowing expression. "Wednesday mentioned how she was.... so sure of that, despite what the Sheriff said."

Right as Xavier opens his mouth to respond, the door to the principal's office opens, and Thornhill steps out, abruptly stopping when she sees the two of them standing in the hallway. "L/N! Thorpe! You surprised me." She mentions with a breathless chuckle, hand on her chest. "I thought you would be out in Jericho with the rest of your friends."

"Oh, I'm not, but Xavier's wanting to tease me about my date before he goes." Y/N is quick to respond with a straight smile, while Xavier just nervously keeps his mouth shut, not experienced in this half-being caught thing to know what to say. 

"Well, I think there's another way you can do that without stepping too far out of your comfort zone." Thornhill quips with a hopeful smile, glancing at Xavier who takes the moment to leave before he does or says anything that could incriminate himself. Once he's gone, Y/N turns to the teacher. "We still need volunteers for the committee, and I know you don't..... get along with the other student body here very well...."

"It's not as bad as it used to be." Y/N mentions with a shrug, though his eyes show a slight gratefulness at her considering his position. "I've gotten some more respect from the guys at the dorm after the whole Poe Cup thing."

"Yes, but we both know that mob mentality doesn't change its mind overnight." Thornhill mentions with a knowing look, causing Y/N to crack his straight expression a bit. "Too criminal for the Normies, bad example with the Outcasts...... am I wrong?" She queries, to which the boy eventually shakes his head.

"No."

"So, you should come around, I promise it will just be hanging snowflakes on the ceiling, the only danger will be the ladder possibly falling underneath you." Thornhill invites him with a slightly humorous smile, to which Y/N chuckles a bit. 

"I'll think about it."

"Thank you." Thornhill smiles in excited gratitude before walking away, leaving Y/N to slowly take off his mixed, revealing some mixed emotions inside. So that's what they were talking about in the office....

And he was thinking of him, huh?

______________________________________ 

Jericho: Sheriff's Station

Wednesday marches into the building without a care about the perplexed looks the deputies give her as she strides through like a girl about to meet the president of the United States. Despite his.... prejudiced point of view, the Addams knows that she's going to need some help from the law enforcement itself if she's going to beat this surgical homicidal monster. She can tell that Galpin wasn't expecting her, but she just uncaringly tosses the drawing onto the desk, knowing he has the camera's photos.

"We both know that there is a monster out there." Wednesday states with a knowing tone of voice as Sheriff slowly takes the drawing with a cautious expression. "If we're going to stop it, I think it's time we both put our differences aside and began to work together." She states, to which the Galpin sarcastically hums.

"And this is your stake for me to deal you in?" Sheriff Galpin questions him with a look wondering why she's really here. He takes his copy of the photo that the squatter's camera took, and admittedly notices a strong resemblance to the sketch in spite of some clear differences, like the wrong hand being raised to gnaw at the point of view. But it's still not enough for him. "I'm sorry, you gotta do better than that. You got some nice detail, though."

"I didn't draw it." Wednesday reveals as she takes the sketch back, causing the man to blink curiously at her. Now what she's suggesting is a little clearer to him. She's trying to offer him evidence that could belong to an Outcast killer.

"Well, I need to know who did."

"Unless we're exchanging intel, I'm not at liberty to say." Wednesday states with a blank expression, causing the Sheriff to roll his eyes at her.

"Why would I share information about an ongoing investigation with a high-school kid?" Sheriff Galpin interrogates her, pointing out the obvious dynamic the two have that would make any kind of interaction, like the one they're having right now, questionable at best.

"Because I go to Nevermore and you don't." Wednesday points out with a 'matter of fact' voice. Galpin licks his teeth as he feels irked by her smart-like talk. "Don't you want some eyes and ears behind those ivy-colored walls?"

"Listen, Velma. Why don't you and the Scooby Gang stick to your homework and leave the investigating to the professionals?" Galpin sarcastically dismisses the girl before getting his desk phone rings. Wednesday takes that as his cue to stop talking and goes to leave while the Sheriff groans upon hearing that it's a mayor wanting an update on the new homicide case. "Hey, Addams! Let me see that sketch again." He calls out to her, bringing her back. Wednesday hands him the drawing and he once again does a double-take on the similarities between his and his photo. "The person who drew this, that your suspect?" He queries, to which the girl nods. "You bring me some concrete evidence, maybe we'll talk."

He then dismisses her with a finger, allowing her to leave the station while he's forced to answer his superior's beloved car.

"Yes, Mayor. Everything's going splendidly...."

As she steps out of the building, she looks both ways before crossing the street, and turning the corner towards the path of Nevermore. However, behind that corner is Tyler Galpin who she almost bumps into with her stern marching. "Don't want to ask what trouble you're in now." The boy quips as the two awkwardly stare at each other, the circumstances of where they are at makes it look like she was brought after another cafe brawl. 

"Nothing I can't handle." Wednesday replies with confidence, even if she's been met with a filler side quest. "Your father is in particularly frustrating form today. Avoid." She advises, to which he empathetically hums.

"Yeah, welcome to my world." Tyler bitterly remarks, knowing just how frustrated the guy can be, like when he keeps poking into his therapy sessions with Valerie. "You guys have the Rave'N coming up this weekend, right? It was all the buzz at the Weathervane today."

Oh, for the love of everything deathly..... "I must be the only one not obsessed with this stupid dance." Wednesday mutters with a tired sigh, the only time it wasn't mentioned was during the conversation with the Sheriff, and that only lasted a couple minutes. 

"So you're... not going?" Tyler queries with a slightly disappointed reaction, even though he probably expected her not to show up to such a social event. However, Wednesday glances down, knowing that 'yes' would be an unnecessary lie.

"Actually, I was forced to ask someone as an act of self-preservation." Wednesday tells him, and Tyler blinks rapidly at the blunt honesty. That is certainly not the answer he was looking for, in retrospect.

"Sure, that happens.... I guess." Tyler comments with a weird, envious reaction. "So, who is it?" He then queries. Wednesday squints at the odd question, wondering why he's so concerned, but he answers anyway.

"Y/N." 

Tyler's nice guy expression slightly cracks at the name being mentioned. Whatever the two went through together, it is showing in his eyes for Wednesday. "Got it." He simply says, putting his hands in his pockets as he bitterly walks past her. "Hope you two have fun."

"I'm not sure why you're becoming upset." Wednesday notes as she turns around to face him, causing the guy to sigh as he does the same. 

"Yeah, that's kind of the problem." Tyler replies in a somewhat angry manner as his smile now turns into one of venom rather than nervousness. "I mean, call me crazy, Wednesday, but you keep giving me these signals that you want more than just my help only to turn around and go ask the Woods Creep to a dance that happens only once a year."

"What everyone thinks Y/N has done in the past is none of my business, or yours." Wednesday is quick to shoot down Tyler's remark, causing him to roll his eyes with a sigh. "And it's not my fault that I can't interpret your emotional Morse code."

"Then let me spell it out..... I thought we liked each other, but then you pull something like this, and I have no idea where I stand." Tyler tells Wednesday with a serious voice, causing Wednesday to glance down sheepishly. "And that thing that you say people only 'think' he did? I mean, did he even tell you about-?"

"About how a kid with more money than him was able to convince a girl to tell a story that wasn't true? Something that the lawyers were able to prove wasn't true?" Wednesday quickly finishes his sentence, shutting the boy up. "Yes, he did, so if you're going to use a morally past action, make sure it's something he actually committed."

"Wednesday?" Tyler calls out to her, but Wednesday has already turned around and marched away, leaving him heart-broken and confused. "Damn it..."

As they walk away, Thing slowly crawls up her shoulder, making her abruptly stop. "Not.... one.... word." She warns him with a terrifying edge.

The hand slowly creeps back into the bag.

_________________________________________

Nevermore: Gym

Fitting in. I'm not sure I've ever fully grasped the concept. It's this unspoken choreography everyone seems to know, but no one bothered to teach me the steps. Maybe it's just easier for people who don't have a monster lurking under their skin, waiting for the music to hit the wrong note. And then there's this whole thing with the Rave'N. Everyone's buzzing about it like it's the social event of the year, and I'm supposed to just... blend in? Smile, laugh, pretend I'm a normal teenager with normal problems? Sounds simple enough, until you remember that the last time I ever felt like dancing ended with the incident. 

"You sure Weems is going to be able to keep this dance thing going?" Y/N queries Xaver out-loud as he hands another snowflake onto the many strings, the entire ceiling is going to be filled with them to help sell the winter aesthetic it's got going on. "I mean, Normie or not, people are dying around us."

"You tell me, you found out what she's been doing behind our backs, haven't you?" Xavier points out with a look, to which Y/N shrugs in response before climbing back down the ladder. "Seriously, though, shouldn't we be talking about the thing around us? You still got that thing with Wednesday."

"You don't think I haven't tried?" Y/N remarks with a sigh as he hops back down to the floor. "It's kind of hard to talk with Wednesday when she doesn't have a phone for you to text, or when she goes around wherever she pleases." He points out, letting out a tired exhale. "I tried asking Enid at Jericho, but the two apparently split, there's no way I'm going to find her in the expected places."

"Hey, that's a blessing in disguise man. This is the only place right now where you won't be confronted by your worst mistakes." Ajax chimes in as he does his own thing, looking like he's possibly attempted to get even higher than his half-human body can handle. Y/N and Xavier share a tense look. "Just simple guys hanging out with each other and helping school life."

"Okay, first off, she didn't automatically dump me, Ajax. So don't start celebrating your relatability just yet." Y/N points out with a look, causing the guy to drop his head with a sigh. "Second of all, at least I'm actively trying to look for her, and not hiding away in the devil's lettuce."

"Whatever.... I'm not hiding anywhere." Ajax claims with a scoff as he stumbles over, causing the two guys to share a skeptical look.

"Yeah, right...."

"Hey, you don't have to fret too much, Y/N." Another guy chimes in, prompting the boy and Xavier to glace at Kent as he walks over to him with a tense-looking smirk on his face. "If you want, you go start looking for her some more. I'm sure we can handle the rest of the 'volunteering' without you around." 

"Thanks, but I'm good." Y/N answers with a fixed smile, letting the Siren know that he's not going to get rid of him that easily. "I actually hanging up icicles and snowflakes." He quips as if he actually means that.

"Worth a try." Kent comments with a shrug before walking past, purposefully bumping into Y/N's shoulder as he goes to do something else. Xavier scoffs at the interaction, shaking his head.

"I don't think he forgives you for the whole Poe Cup event earlier."

"He'll get over it." Y/N replies without really meaning it as he fixes up his uniform, not taking any of the passive-aggressive jabs the guy sends his way with a heavy heart. "Like he did in the fencing locker room."

"Oh, yeah, what a scene that was..." Xavier comments with a small hum, prompting the two to share a chuckle together. "Seriously though, you probably shouldn't worry about it too much. Wednesday's just doing whatever it is she does."

"Which is go investigate stuff on her own because people like me get in the way." Y/N finishes his sentence in a somewhat bitter manner, letting out a sigh after it comes out that way. He doesn't want to feel like that. "I don't think she was even being serious about the Rave'N, man. She looked.... she looked like a deer caught in headlights."

"I think you're giving yourself less credit than you definitely should be." Xavier notes with a concerned look for him, to which Y/N just scoffs in response to that. "Hey, I know this may sound surprising, but you deserve to be with a girl that might actually care about you. It's called being a teenager, and you should have that chance."

Y/N glances down, not wanting to admit it, but the idea has always been a dream for him. And hearing it comes out of Xavier's mouth does make him feel a little bit better, that it could actually happen. "I appreciate that."

"Alright then.... I'm gonna go fetch suits from Jericho, and we'll decide how each one looks, and I won't have to think about the fact that I might actually end up asking Bianca out to the dance." Xavier suggests with a slightly humorous tone, prompting Y/N to nod with a smirk. As he goes to leave, he feels his neck again, which hisses at again. "And can you bring me some more wet rags? I completely soaked my last one." 

"No problem." Y/N promises with a nod, and Xavier pats his shoulder gratefully before walking away. "And make sure the suits are black and/or white! Wednesday doesn't like color." 

"Noticing details like that? This is the way, my friend!" Xavier teasingly shouts out before leaving, and Y/N lets out a whole-hearted laugh as he's left to do the snowflakes on his own.

Sorrow and bleak looking guy, his ass.

__________________________________________

Nevermore: Beehive

Wednesday has finally found a place to move her murder board. Eugene is being kind, a weakness but acceptable for the current situation, and allowing her to post it here in the shed which is admittedly a smaller room for it. That aside, adding Xavier's two sketches do the occasion help add some much-needed detail as there could be yet another connection to the killings that she could find just by comparing all of them at once.

"Enid wouldn't let me keep this in her dorm." Wednesday explains to Eugene.

"No worries. Mi colmena es su colemena." Eugene assures her, promising that he isn't phased or bothered by the graphic pictures in his shed in comparison to Enid's reaction to them. He can handle a few decapitated parts, no problem. "I assume this is the creature that's been rampaging in the woods?" He assumes correctly as he points towards the sketch, causing Wednesday to blink at him.

"You've heard about it before?"

"Rumors." Eugene responds with a shrug. He was hiking during that night of the squatter's murder and came across the active crime scene by accident. "Mr. Fitts banned me from bug-hunting until further notice. Claimed a bear was on the loose, which I knew was a lie, didn't match their hibernation schedule." He explains, a very good point. It goes to show not only the town's ignorance, but the law's desperate attempts to cover the brutality of the killings from the public eye. "Speaking of monsters with sharp claws...." He presses his fingers against his glasses before reaching over and grabbing a jar of honey. "Could you give this to your roomie? Put in a good word for me? I hear she's still sans date for the Rave'N."

"Eugene...." Wednesday gives him a look, wondering if the boy will ever take the hint. She's heard it from the were-horse's mouth that the girl likes Ajax, and it's not going to change that way overnight.

"I know the chances of her asking me are next to zero, but..... I don't care." Eugene states with a shake of his head, still having that painfully rock-solid optimism that Wednesday's still trying to discover the source of. "I'll keep putting myself out there until Enid finally.... sees me?"

"And if she never does?"

"She will. I'm playing the long game." Eugene states with almost toxic certainty. "My moms say people will appreciate me when I'm older. I know they're probably just trying to make me feel better, but-"

"Listen, people like me and you, we're different." Wednesday interrupts Eugene, deciding to give him one serious-talk, freak-to-freak. "We're original thinkers, intrepid outliers in this vast cesspool adolescence. We don't need these inane rites of passage to validate who we are."

"So..... you're not going to the Rave'N either?" Eugene asks her curiously, causing the girl to glance down as she realizes she has to tell him the truth as well.

"Actually, I am." Wednesday confesses, causing Eugene to glance down with a mixed expression. "With Y/N."

"Y/N L/N? The guy that everyone's always mean to?" Eugeen brings up, his eyes lighting up by a little bit, before he then raises a brow at her reaction. "Why do you make it sound like it's such a bad thing."

"It's not like I like Y/N. I just have ulterior motives."

"Why not? He seems like such a nice guy, just with a small temper." Eugene questions her with a perplexed brow. Wednesday wonders why he's so interested about it. "You know, this one time, a few of those Sirens were holding me down and force me to watch as they burned the hives, until Y/N came, like, out of nowhere and scared them off. I don't know he did it, but it was awesome!" He shares with the girl who glances down at the ground. "Although...I think that's what started the whole Woods-Creep thing. I still feel kind of bad about it...."

"No good deed goes unpunished." 

"Exactly, I think he's misunderstood, just like us." Eugene theorizes to Wednesday, who still looks overly conflicted about the idea of being involved with him. There's something about it that makes her.... nervous, inside. "You should give him more credit."

"That's not important, right now, Eugene." Wednesday states coldly with a face that thankfully shuts up the discussion. However, in her heart, part of her asks herself if the kid is right, and she's following a goose. "Sketches are the closet thing I have to a lead right now to try and stop this thing."

Eugene eyes her as if suspecting something before deciding to finally drop it. He turns back to the murder board and glances at the mentioned sketches, squinting when his brain suddenly gets a sense of familiarity. "That circle...." He brings up, pointing at the weird looking painting. "I think I know where that is."

That instantly gets Wednesday's eyes to go wide.

"Show me."

_____________________________________________

Wilderness: Cave

They follow it all the way to a little cave just outside Nevermore grounds, in the middle of nowhere. Comparing the sketch with the cave, Wednesday mentally notes that the lines surrounding the entrance hole do indeed look exactly what Xavier had written. Is this where the monster usually goes to turn? Or where it goes after turning so nobody can see them naked and stained with blood? Likely, a mix of both.

"It's definitely a match." Wednesday confirms, glancing at the boy curiously. "What were you doing out here?"

"Collecting specimens. This place is ground zero for horny gypsy moths." Eugene explains like a bug expert, possibly having seen some things around here while he's been hunting. He eyes the cave with a now uneasy feeling in his gut, having thought nothing of it until now, just thought it was a standard, creepy cave. "You think it's in there?"

"Only one way to find out." Wednesday responds with a bob of her head before she marches towards it, Eugene following hesitantly behind. The inside is dark, looking like it's leading down to the mysterious pits of Hell itself or something. It's really hard to tell from up here. 

"Not a huge fan of enclosed spaces." Eugene shares with her with a nervous shake of his head. "I'm claustrophobic." He explains. That's fine, Wednesday is used to going through all of this stuff on her own, anyway. At least this time, she knows they won't be caught red-handed by something, unless even the Hyde is gifted that kind of timing as well.

"If you hear me screaming bloody murder, there's a good chance I'm just enjoying myself." Wednesday lets her know before stepping down the rough terrain. Eugene glances side-ways before finding that waiting around is even more anxiety-thriving and decides to head down there anyway despite himself.

Using a flashlight from her bag, Wednesday travels down the narrow tunnel with Eugene a few feet behind her until it leads them into an open sphere-sized space. "This is definitely its lair." Wednesday notes as she takes all of the bones into account. There's also a lot of dry blood stains on the wall, hinting that physical torture has taken place in here. 

"Are those.... human?" Eugene wonders with a cringed look, prompting Wednesday to pick one of them up, only to see a deer skull instead.

"No, I think it's got a taste for venison."

Eugene ambles around the cave until he sees a row of long scratch marks on the stone edges. In the center of it, is a pair of chains made for two hands. "Check this out." He brings Wednesday over, who stands up and sees the interesting scene for herself. The only reason these things would be here is for physical torture or the art of pain-filled pleasure. She looks around it and spots a sharp tooth implanted in a crack.

Except, it's not actually a tooth... it's a claw, that looks almost the exact same size as the monster's when it slashes and rips people open. "Yahtzee." She silently exclaims as she carefully pulls it out, feeling the bone matter to confirm that it's real.

"What is that?" Eugene asks curiously, to which Wednesday smiles victoriously as she answers.

"Concrete proof."

_________________________________________

Nevermore: Art Studio

However, to make sure the proof matches with the killer, she's going have to get something else that will make it all but certain. Two pieces are better than one, that sort of thing. She tells Thing to stand back and that she won't be long. She's familiar with artist offices and where they hide their secret stuff, this will be a breeze compared to her previous acts of trespassing. 

She steps inside and turns on the lightbulb, looking around to find something that can match against the claw's DNA. She eventually notices a strange bucket placed near one of the empty canvases, one that doesn't seem to have just water inside. However, she can't just put he hands all over it, so she uses a paint brush to open it up and pull out a soaked rag that's been used, as evident by the blood it's covered with.

Bingo.

She places it carefully into her plastic back without getting a single one of her own fingerprints on it, and closes it nicely. Right after she does though, the door to the studio opens up, and Wednesday jerks her head around to see Y/N L/N stepping inside. "Hey, Xavier, I got your-" He announces himself, eventually freezing when he sees the girl inside. "Wednesday? " He squints at her as he steps closer. "I've looked even at the bee shed for you. This where you were?"

"Following a new lead for the sheriff." Wednesday answers as she turns to face him, not showing fear one bit in spite of being caught for what must be the fifthteeth time. "Have you known that all of these paintings of the monsters were here?" She queries as she glances at them, to which Y/N blinks at her. "Have you told him what the monster looks like? Or does he have personal experience with it like you?"

"What are you even saying?" Y/N questions her, bewildered, until he glances between the opened bucket and her, and puts two and two together. "W-Wait, you think Xavier did all of this? That he's the one going Jeffrey Dahmer on everyone?"

"I have every reason to believe it." Wednesday tells Y/N with the utmost certainty, using her eyes to gesture around all of the paintings that have the monster's face on them in one shape or form. "And this only strengthens my theory." 

"Theory? This?" Y/N points to the canvas in front of them, staring at her as if she's lost her mind. "Xavier's a psychic, Wednesday. Psychics get visions, whether it's from dreams or a touch." He reminds her, tapping on her chest as if it's satire which Wednesday allows without flinching. "This doesn't prove anything."

"So the blood on Xavier's rags are only about of a new art technique he's using?" Wednesday questions him with a skeptical brow, causing Y/N to drop his head with a sigh. "And the scratches around his neck? We both know those aren't from fencing."

"Stop." Y/N quickly interjects as he takes a deep breath. The last thing he was expecting or wanting to be feeling after seeing her again would be anger. "Wednesday, please, don't do this..... we just got to the point where we had some kind of.... respect and trust towards one another. Don't betray it over a hunch like this." 

"It's not just a hunch." Wednesday retorts as she decides to bring up something that she suspects will sway Y/N over to her side of thinking. The sketch that illustrated the cave. "Xavier knew where the monster's lair is, dreams like that can only be vivid."

Y/N blinks rapidly as he takes the photo. "You were in here?" He asks as he looks back up at her, his confusion then turning to betrayal as he processes all of this at once. "That Rave'N thing..... it was all bullshit, wasn't it?" He realizes, and Wednesday glances down, not saying anything yet speaking immense volumes. "Why would you lie about that?! You know me."

"Why did you lie about where Xavier got the scratches?" 

"Because Xavier was in freaking shock. I couldn't just spill a moment where we both almost died to the entire gossiping world!" Y/N answers with a slightly tempered reaction, though it does show that he probably should've told her about it sooner to prevent something like this from happening. "You were gonna use me as an excuse to shadow him?" He correctly assumes, his pain showing in his eyes. "Why would you try and use me like that?"

Wednesday glances down, screaming guilty, before realizing that the jig is up and tells him the full on truth. "I'm only trying to uncover the truth." She tells Y/N as if that makes it all okay. The guy rapidly blinks at her as if asking if she's being serious. "It's simply a tactical decision."

"A tactical-?!" Y/N almost shouts before immediately cutting himself off, rubbing his face with his hands as he lets out a loud exhale. He can't believe he's hearing this from Wednesday herself. Even with her being her, he feels like he just got stabbed in the heart. "I told you the one thing I haven't told anybody else, and you still insult me for it!" He snaps at her, his voice sharp-edged, like a kitchen knife cutting through ribs. "You interrogate my dormmate behind my back, you lie to me, you use me...... why?" He asks with a pleading voice that begs to know the truth. However, Addams can't find any words to use. Meanwhile, the boy sits down on a random chair, his next sentence he speaks in a low, defeated voice. "What did I ever do to you?"

Wednesday glances down, the silent screaming into the air like a high-pitched demon with a megaphone.  For the first time, she has no clever retort, no calculated response. All she has is her conscious which feels like it's being judged by the most powerful of beings. "Forget it...." Y/N waves her off, seeing that she has nothing to say. "Just... get out."

Wednesday's eyes turn back up to meet his pathetic looking face. "Y/N-"

"Go!" Y/N insists with a heavy glare, pointing towards the door. Realizing that she's already poked the bear too hard, Wednesday marches past him and exits the building, leaving the man to his thoughts where he realizes that his few thoughts of friendship were for nothing.

It's just like the same as before.

He can't trust anyone.

Meanwhile, Wednesday steps out of the woods, standing silent as she waits for Thing to enter her bag. He tries signing something to her, but she doesn't listen, she's currently being deafened by an emotion she never thought she would be feeling in her entire life.

Guilt.

___________________________________

(A/N) New chapter is here!

I know there's not a lot of scenes that Wednesday and Y/N are sharing with each other, and I'm sorry if anyone's bothered by that. For the next half of the episode, I think there will be a little bit more that they share with each other, even if they're now at a point where they're once again keeping each other at arm's length. 

Next begins the Rave'N, so get ready for that. A lot of drama about to pour in when those chapters drop, whether it's from teenage school life or deadly monster stuff. 

Plz vote and comment, any kind counts as feedback, and I'll see you all in the next one!