Izzy's POV
"So this emo goth girl is your roommate?" I asked, flopping dramatically onto Enid's bed. My boots hung off the edge, just shy of her fluffy pink rug. I glanced toward the gloomier half of the room. "It's like someone turned a Hot Topic into a crime scene."
"Yeah," Enid said, plopping down beside me. "She's like... really not smiley."
"So basically the opposite of you?" I grinned and rested my head in her lap.
"Exactly," she giggled, already running her fingers through my hair like she always did when I came over. Calming. Familiar.
The door creaked open.
In walked a girl with two black braids, a face carved from stone, and an aura of general homicide. She crossed the room without a word and turned off the music Enid had been playing, the click of the speaker louder in the sudden silence.
"Is this noise necessary, Enid?" she asked flatly. "Also, I'd prefer not to hear you and your girlfriend when I'm writing."
Enid gasped. "She's not my-"
"A typewriter?" I whispered, raising an eyebrow at the antique on her desk.
Enid gave a small nod and mouthed, I know.
Okay, if you stripped away the murdery vibes... she was actually kind of-no. Not going there. Still. Her whole look was lethal and pretty in that "you might not survive the night but you'd enjoy the view" kind of way.
"What time is it, E?" I asked, sitting up.
"Four. Why?"
I slipped on my shoes. "Shopping. I'll see you later?"
"Of course," she said, hugging me quickly.
As I pulled the door shut behind me, I heard the Addams girl speak again. "Why aren't you going with her?"
"I'm meeting Ajax!" Enid squealed, probably bouncing.
Truthfully, I didn't need to shop. I just knew if I stayed, Enid would blow off Ajax and whine about it for a week. She deserved that moment.
I headed back to my dorm but found Bianca lying on my bed.
"Thought you were out with my brother," I said, eyebrow raised.
She scoffed. "Nope. He's too busy obsessing over the new girl."
"Wednesday?" I asked, suddenly more alert than I cared to be.
"Mhm." She grabbed her coat and breezed out, leaving me standing there, pulse ticking.
I didn't like that. I didn't want Xavier to like her. I didn't want anyone to like her.
Except maybe me.
⸻
Wednesday's POV
The artist girl was back. I didn't know why. I hadn't invited her. In fact, I was fairly sure I told her to leave last time.
"I know Enid's not here," she said, stepping into the room like it belonged to her. "I'm here to get to know you."
"I'm not interested in being known."
She wandered toward my desk, clearly unconcerned. "Can I read it?"
I didn't answer. She picked up a few pages anyway. My latest chapter, mid-autopsy.
Her expression shifted as she read - curiosity, surprise, then something softer.
"This is really good," she said, gently placing the pages back. "Sharp. Like a scalpel."
I turned to look at her for the first time. "What's your deal?"
"No deal. I'm Izzy. I'm a lesbian and I don't really know what my power is yet."
"Wouldn't you have the same as your brother?"
"Yeah but I have another power. That's bigger I just can't use it yet." She plopped onto Enid's bed, lying on her back and staring at the ceiling like she lived here.
I hated that I didn't hate it.
She talked more. I said less. At some point, I told her to go. She said she'd wait for Enid. I let her stay.
She fell asleep.
I kept typing until the words blurred. When I finally turned to look, her phone had slipped from her fingers. I took it gently and set it on the nightstand. Then, after a moment of hesitation, I pulled a pink blanket from Enid's drawer and laid it over her.
The room was still. Too still.
I turned off the lights and retreated into my own bed.
⸻
Izzy's POV - Morning
The sun was too bright. I blinked awake with a fuzzy pink blanket wrapped around me and vague memories of typewriter keys tapping me to sleep.
I looked over.
Wednesday was already typing, unmoved by dawn or decency.
"Did you...?" I began, lifting the blanket.
"Enid's," she said, still focused. "You fell asleep. I considered letting you drool on her pillow unprotected, but I was feeling generous."
"How thoughtful of you." I smiled, folding it neatly.
"You talk in your sleep."
I froze. "I do not."
"You do. Something about me being 'weirdly cute.'"
I wanted to die. Right there. Spontaneous combustion would've been merciful.
"That's slander. I want a lawyer."
She didn't look up, but her fingers paused ever so slightly. "You'd make a terrible liar in court."
That flicker of amusement on her face - it was small, but it was there.
Before I could recover, Enid burst in. "Good morning! Oh, hey Izzy, did you sleep here?"
"Yeah. You ditched me, remember?"
"Sorry! Ajax surprised me with boba."
"Gross," Wednesday muttered.
"You're just bitter because boba is cute and joyful," Enid replied, already tugging me out of bed. "You wanna hang out before class?"
"Sure," I said, glancing back at Wednesday. She didn't say anything. But her hands hesitated over the keys for half a second.
That pause?
It made me smile.
⸻
Later That Day - Outside
I sat beside Xavier under a twisted willow, sketching in my notebook while he droned on about Wednesday's mystique.
"She's different," he said, dreamy. "There's something about her. She sees the world in black and blood."
"Wow. Romantic."
He frowned. "What's your deal with her anyway?"
"Nothing."
Everything.
"She's just not your type."
"She's not yours either."
He narrowed his eyes. "Jealous?"
I didn't answer. Just flipped the page in my sketchbook.
Later that night, I opened it again alone and found a raven I hadn't remembered drawing.
Its wings extended across the page, feathers in motion.
I looked up, frowning.
A raven sat silently on my windowsill, watching me with eerie stillness - just like the one I'd sketched.
I blinked, heart thudding.
What the hell?
⸻
The Next Day - Night Trials Posters Everywhere
"Ugh," I muttered, sipping my coffee. "Why does every school event here sound like it could end with a death certificate?"
"It might!" Enid chirped. "But it's fun! Magical obstacle courses, trust-building, mild trauma..."
I was about to respond when Xavier appeared.
"I signed us up," he said.
"Signed us up?"
"As partners. Sibling power, baby. You and me. We'll crush it."
I forced a smile. "Actually, I already asked someone else."
He blinked. "Who?"
"Wednesday."
Did I?
No.
Was I going to?
Hell yes.
⸻
Wednesday's POV
"I didn't agree to be your partner," I said as soon as she barged in.
"You didn't say no either," she said, holding up the registration sheet. "Come on, Addams. You're dark, brilliant, and terrifying. I'd feel safer with you than with anyone else."
"You're not supposed to feel safe around me."
"And yet here I am."
I watched her. She was excited and nervous and reckless all at once. Like lightning in a bottle.
"I'll consider it."
"That's not a no."
"Don't push your luck."
⸻
The Trials - Forest Zone
Headmistress Weems stood center-stage in the glowing woods.
"Welcome to the Night Trials. Work together. Trust no one. Don't get hexed."
"Zone 3," an official called. "Wednesday Addams and Isabel Thorpe."
I turned to her. "Don't slow me down."
"Wouldn't dream of it," she smirked.
⸻
Trial One - Mirror Maze
Fog. Twisting halls. Dozens of mirrors.
They reflected different versions of us - scared, alone, wounded.
"I hate this," she whispered beside me. "It's like a therapy session with sharp edges."
"They show your fears," I said quietly.
"What do yours show?"
I didn't answer.
One mirror reflected her - reaching for me.
And me?
I let her.
⸻
After the Maze
Xavier spotted us. "You actually partnered with her?"
"Problem?" I asked.
"Nope," Izzy said, already stepping between us. "We're doing great."
As he walked away, I glanced at her.
"He's jealous," I said.
"Yeah, well... he had his chance."
I was quiet. Then: "So do you."
She looked up sharply. "Do I what?"
"Have a chance."
I walked off before I could see her reaction.
But when she followed - a step behind me, heart thundering - I didn't miss the smile on her face.
And neither did the raven, still waiting for her by the windowsill.