Chapter Text
She had glared at her mamá, who had been looking back as if she hadn’t just sentenced her to hell. “you’re telling me,” she had begun slowly, trying to keep calm. They had a lot of fire in the house that was lit and she hadn’t fancied sleeping outside if she burnt the house down, “that you’re sending me to Nevermore year round from now on but Wednesday isn’t?” she had clarified, and her mother had nodded, as if she had just asked what the weather was like, not that she was being abandoned. She had kept to herself last year; she hadn’t wanted to get into any mysteries, and Wednesday had respected that. She hadn’t shared that opinion —quite clearly —but she had respected her decision.
Tatiana had gotten up and walked out of the room silently.
That was six weeks ago, and she hadn’t spoken to any of her family members. Not Pugsley, who had been glancing at her glaringly empty plate, not Wednesday who had glanced at her three times in the last week, and not her parents who had taken to talking to her as if she wasn’t ignoring them. She continued to do so. It wasn’t going to end any time soon. Now, in her room, she murmured a spell to make her clothes black and white and where a pastel pink cardigan was was now a white one, and where her dress had been white before now it was black. She had had pastel pink knee-high fuzzy socks—a gift from Wednedays friend, Enid—and they were also now white. The only thing that hadn’t changed was her Mary Janes. They were still black.
In the car, her parents began talking to her and she pointedly turned to the window, putting earphones in. When they had come back from Nevermore, Wednesday had left the phone Xavier had brought her on Tatiana’s dresser with a printed note that said if Tatiana didn’t want to make use of it, then Wednesday would boil it.
Tatiana had set it up slowly, sitting on the floor, cross-legged, whilst ignoring her mamá telling her tea was ready. She had ignored Wednesday's cutting comment that it would be more of a shock if Tatiana did eat. She scrolled through the application store, downloading something for music and then exited it. She opened the one with a speech bubble in, and typed out a text.
Tatiana Addams:
Hello, this is Wednesday’s younger twin, Tatiana. I wanted to let you know that she has given me the phone. If you would like it returning when we return to Nevermore then that is more than understandable. Please let me know so that I can plan accordingly.
Xavier hadn’t responded for a while, so she scrolled through the app that held what seemed to be endless music. She wondered how many genres it held, and had nearly worked up the courage to begin to see when Xavier had responded.
Xavier Thorpe:
Hi, it’s totally fine, don’t worry. You can keep it if you want it; I don’t need it as I have one. If you don’t want it, then that’s cool too. You can give it to me when we return like you said.
Thus had begun their regular texting. She had finally accepted his help with the application store, and when she picked up the call, he immediately began with “first off, it’s called the app store, not application store, but it’s totally cool if you say that. It’s whatever you’re comfortable with.” She hummed, twirling a strand of hair around her finger.
“I had seen that. I merely wondered if it was a shortened name. I will call it the app store from now on,” she decided, and heard a soft laugh that sounded warm. It was a rare thing in the manor. That wasn’t to say there wasn’t love, but her family had always shown it through sparring or verbal insults. She didn’t. she never had. She had always been the softer one. The one that cried when an animal got hurt, or her papá shot a fox when hunting. She had been the white sheep of her family. “Do I have to pay for the apps?” The word sounded foreign on her tongue, and she bit down ever so slightly to not laugh at how it sounded.
“depending on which ones you get, sometimes. But a lot of them are free in the beginning, and it’s optional if you buy anything.” she nodded, before realising that he couldn’t see that.
“That makes sense, I suppose. I downloaded one called Spotify, and it says it plays endless music.” he let out the same laugh as before. It was nice. But he was Wednesday’s person, not hers. It wouldn’t do her well to get used to it.
“Yeah, it does. "You get advertisements if you don’t pay for premium, but hold on,” there was a shuffle, and she heard paper being rearranged before his voice returned, “I had an image of an account, and I’m pretty sure that that’s yours.” she tilted her head slightly, her raven coloured hair spilling over her shoulder.
Another difference.
She didn’t wear her hair like Wednesday’s.
“I made it seeing as I assumed it was important, and after searching I couldn’t find it. I’ve sent you the details,” she looked at the text, and, sticking her tongue out slightly in concentration, she put in the necessary details. She was in, she thought smugly.
“The details were correct. I am now on the premium one. It also says my name, although I did not put that in,” that was worrying, she thought, although she didn’t say that aloud. A chuckle broke her inner musings.
“That was me. That was kind of what I said; it said it was a premium account, so I searched it up, and nothing came up, so I made it myself, and put in the name I saw in the account,” there was a pause that felt tentative, fragile even, “is that,” he seemed to brace himself for something, “okay?” she blinked. Why wouldn’t it be? She wouldn’t have known how to do this.
“Of course it is, why would it not be? I would not have known how to do this at all,” she explained to him, and she heard him breathe out as if he had been holding his breath. She wondered what he was worried about.
“Sorry if that sounded weird, I got so used to Wednesday being curt and abrasive and not liking my images, even if I can’t help them. I figured you may not like them either,” she sighed almost silently, because of course it was that. Of course Wednesday didn’t consider anyone else still.
“I am not Wednesday,” she murmured, softly, because in the manor you never knew who or what was listening, “I won’t begrudge or judge you for something you didn’t ask for,” she finished, and heard him inhale shakily.
She wondered how badly her sister had treated him.
She wondered if she wanted to know and if she would look at her the same afterwards.
She decided not to ask just yet.
Now sat in the car, she opened the texts and opened the only conversation she had. Xavier.
Tatiana Addams:
My parents have decided to make me stay year round, do you know if it possible for a map to be found as I do not know where the year round single dorms are?
Her parents had given up on talking to her, and so she put the song on that she had been listening to on a loop. Wednesday would hate it, but she liked the honesty behind the lyrics. Had tried not to look too deeply as to why. She hadn’t told her parents how her year was at Nevermore, and had instead let Wednesday take the lead spotlight.
It had been easier than admitting she had been broken in a way that she didn’t think she could come back from.
She wondered if she had told them whether it would have changed their minds.
Probably not, she thought, resigned.
A quiet ding came through her earphones, and she glanced down.
Xavier Thorpe:
No need for a map, Tana. I have a year-round dorm now too. I can show you where they are. Are you all right?
What did she say to that? Often, when someone asked you that question it was a surface level reply of ‘yes I’m good’ they expected, not really wanting to hear anything different. But she knew that Xavier was different. They had had many late night conversations, him explaining the images that came to him and her explaining how her magic worked, and they rarely ever had shallow conversations. She knew why he was asking, in a sense. But she didn’t as well. She decided she would ask.
Tatiana Addams:
Not particularly. It feels as if I have been abandoned, all because I am not like them or Wednesday. I have tried so hard, but it feels like I am constantly pushing a boulder up a hill, and it keeps rolling down.
She’d never been this forthcoming to others, but it felt different, easier almost, with Xavier. Like he saw the parts of her that she hid from people and for some reason still orbited around her and didn’t leave. A reply. Shorter wait time, and she could imagine him frowning before his fingers flew across the screen, responding as if it were his only task.
Xavier Thorpe:
That sounds unfortunately similar. After the whole Tyler event, and my father having to bail me out of jail, he said that he hoped I got a hold of my powers by the time I left, because from here on out I was on my own. That I was making the Thorpe name a laughing stock, and he couldn’t have that.
She frowned. Every time he said something about his father, she disliked the man more and more.
Tatiana Addams:
Your father is fast becoming one of the most unpleasant people I have heard of, and I have had the unfortunate experience of hearing about the sheriff.
An instant reply.
Xavier Thorpe:
lol. You did NOT just say that 💀
She pressed her lips together, trying not to laugh. She had figured that he’d reply like that. Another text, before she could even reply.
Xavier Thorpe:
How long did they enrol you in for? My dad did the bare minimum of eight years, so at least we know each other when our friends leave.
Eight years, she thought, trying to keep her face devoid of emotion. Her parents had sentenced her to Nevermore for at least eight years. Year round.
Tatiana Addams:
I don’t know. They didn’t tell me. Can you leave Nevermore during that time?
She hoped he understood. She didn’t think he would. She thought her heart couldn’t break anymore. But apparently her parents had got an ice pick and chose to chisel a piece she didn’t know was still there off. Her phone lay silent for ten minutes, which, when they were conversing, was a new record. The most had been two minutes, and that had been when he had had to make an excuse to go to the toilet so he could reply to her. Ding! Her phone lit up, and she opened it instantly.
Xavier Thorpe:
You can go to Jericho if you have a permission slip. Usually parents sign them before letting or making us stay year round.
So he was being purposefully dense. God she envied the fact boys could do that and not get called dumb. If she did that then her social standing—what little she had anyway—would plummet instantly.
Tatiana Addams:
Xavier.
She couldn’t type anything else, or she would start crying. She knew her limits. She’d be staying away from people for the next couple of days. She thought the manor had a lot of open flames, but Nevermore made it look dull compared to their building. If she lost control it would be catastrophic. She couldn’t —wouldn’t —do that to people.
She looked down as she saw the typing bubble appear, aware that the only thing that stopped her parents from seeing her hands shake was the glamour she had put on that morning.
Xavier Thorpe:
No. You can’t usually go back to your family once they’ve signed the form to say you’re staying year round. Nevermore becomes where you reside.
Oh, she thought numbly, that was that then. Her parents didn’t want her. And neither did her siblings seeing as they didn’t fight it. She turned the music up, glad she had charmed the earphones to not let others hear her music if it got loud, to the point she knew that once she took the earphones out, she’d probably have a ringing in her ears. It was worth it.
Tatiana Addams:
Thankyou for explaining; I will be arriving shortly.
She knew he knew her by now to know she wasn’t being rude. she was glad for that. She closed her eyes and pretended to be asleep. Almost instantly, she heard her brother haltingly ask if this was necessary. Her mamá immediately said yes, and that that would be the last of it. He didn’t continue. You didn’t argue with her mamá —no, she corrected herself, bitterly, her mother, mamá was reserved for the woman who used to stroke her hair when she was ill, not someone who shipped her off to a polished boarding school —and once she said something, it may as well have been the law. That had been how it was her entire life. She didn’t see it changing just because she wasn’t going to be there anymore.
Pulling up, she wasted no time undoing her seatbelt and reaching for the door to unlock it. Her mother put her hand over hers and she snatched her hand back. Her mother looked at her hurt, as if she hadn't broken something fundamental within Tatiana with this decision, slowly retracting her hand, as if giving her time to adjust her reaction. She didn’t. when her hand was far enough away, Tatiana opened the door roughly and climbed out, using her magic to float her suitcases and bags. Seventeen years held a lot of memories. She guessed she should have realised that meant the manor was no longer home —if it ever were.
She noticed him before he noticed her. He had his hair in a half-pulled-back man bun, and it surprisingly suited him. He was tall and gangly, and he had his hands in his pockets, talking to a boy with a beanie on his head. Xavier had told her about him. This was Ajax, his best friend. The one he had got high with countless times, just to get a break from the images he got. She hadn’t judged. If she had that, she’d have done the same. Hell, even with just being a witch she—
“Tati!” her brother’s voice shouted out, wobbly in a way that suggested he was either crying or very near to doing so, and she paused, people looking at her, and she closed her eyes, willing herself to keep it together, and therefore missing the look of recognition that crossed over Xavier’s face. Please, she pleaded with whatever deity listened, please let me not cry in front of everyone on the schoolyard. She opened her eyes, and continued walking to Xavier. He met her halfway and grabbed two of her suitcases, making her smile faintly. She ignored the shock on his friend's face.
“Let’s go before I cry in front of every single person in this yard,” she whispered, not daring herself to speak too loudly, and he nodded. They walked over to Ajax and did a weird sequence with their hands, and Xavier gave him a look. She had a feeling he’d be explaining her story to Ajax tonight. She couldn’t find it within herself to care. He put the handles of both suitcases in one of his hands and put the other on the small of her back, and once again she was reminded of how glad she was for the glamour. He wordlessly steered them left, another left and then a right. She showed him the paper with the number 333 on it and he smiled faintly.
“you’re in luck,” she raised an eyebrow; she didn’t feel like she was. She just had to leave her baby brother. And she wasn’t going to see him unless he went to Nevermore, and if he didn’t she’d have to wait nearly a decade to see him again. He was going to hate her and then — “I’m literally 332,” he continued, as if he hadn’t seen her start to spiral in her head and she processed his words before laughing softly.
“Fate really likes pairing me with you it seems,” she murmured, and he gave her a smile that made her heart skip a beat painfully in her chest.
“I can’t say I’m too mad. Ajax is number 334, though, if you need a change in the person you hang around with,” he said, amusement flashing through his eyes. She laughed once more,
“I’m more than fine with who fate has paired me with at the moment,” she said, teasing him softly. He smirked slightly, before putting the suitcases on the floor, and then undoing the door. She walked in and took it in, raising an eyebrow slightly.
“It looks nice,” because it did. The floor was dark oak, and it was decorated in a way that no matter how you put your things next to the pre-placed items, it wouldn’t look out of place. She would have said the term studio apartment suited it better than a dorm, seeing as it had a kitchen and a living room, on top of, as she walked into the room just before the bedroom, a bathroom with a claw-foot bath. The only difference was that studio apartments were usually small.
This was huge.
She was secretly glad. For all the manor was cold—at least to her, anyway—it was spacious. She didn’t know what she would have done if the place she was staying in for the better part of a decade was small. “Eight years,” she murmured, and Xavier looked at her, not saying anything, letting her gather her thoughts, “and that’s if they did the bare minimum years.” She sat on the bathroom floor, her back against the wall, and he joined her, letting her press herself to his side, and resting her head on his shoulder. She probably shouldn’t. she did it anyway. His arm came around her shoulders and rested there, and for a moment, it felt less alone.
“at least we have each other,” he said at last, quietly. She hummed, agreeing. That was true. She knew that Enid would go home at the end of the year, and so would her friends that she had made. But she and Xavier—and Ajax too, she thought, correcting herself silently—would be staying within the same four walls. It was almost enough to make you claustrophobic, despite how spacious the dorm was.
“Did you ask Enid for her number,” she settled on, and he laughed softly, clearly understanding, and nodded, and she smiled faintly as she felt the action.
She typed the number in and sighed, “she’s going to be someone who types quickly, isnt she,” she asked him, not really needing an answer, but the snort that he let out said everything.
Tatiana Addams:
Hello, Enid. This is Tatiana. Xavier gave me your number as I now have a phone.
She didn’t say anything else and could feel the amusement from the boy next to her, but he blessedly said nothing.
Enid Sinclair:
OMG, HI!!!
She blinked once but before she could begin to reply, a barrage of messages came through, one after the other.
Enid Sinclair:
Xavier told me that you now have a phone!! This is so cool, omg! I can’t believe an Addams has a phone!! We can text now whenever we want, and I can send you memes and everything!!
Enid Sinclair:
This is gonna be so much fun!! your sister just entered our dorm btw, and she looks as if she’s ready to murder someone so I’m putting my phone away so it isnt me.
She wordlessly handed the phone to Xavier who took one look at the texts and laughed, his head tilting back and hitting the wall slightly. She laughed softly at the action. “Yeah, Enid is what we call a rapid texter. We usually wait like five minutes before replying because she sends them off one after the other.” She laughed once more, understanding running through her.
“Are any of your other friends a rapid texter,” something flashed across his face then. As if he and Enid weren’t friends but he didn’t want to say that. Or maybe he didn’t have any other friends, except Ajax.
“Yoko is, which surprised everyone but myself and Bianca. Bianca rarely texts, and if she wants to say more than one thing, then she just sends a paragraph so it can all be contained within one text,” she nodded into his shoulder,
“I like her already,” she murmured, and he chuckled, resting his the side of his head against her hair.
Tatiana Addams:
Apologies for how Wednesday looks; that would be because of me, I believe, even if she doesn’t say as such. My parents have decided on making me stay year-round and not her, so we are currently at odds within the family. Pugsley may write to Wednesday a lot to begin with, but don’t mind him; he’s really very nice.
“You don’t have to explain yourself, or your sisters’ actions you know,” he murmured as he watched her type, and she hesitated before continuing to do so,
“I know,” she didn’t, but thankfully he didn’t call her out on that, “But if Wednesday is going to be worse than she usually is, I want to let Enid know with time to prepare, so that she knows why,” she settled on, and it was quiet for a few moments.
“I’m glad I met you, Tatiana. It’s nice to know that Addams’ aren’t just like Wednesday,” she laughed softly, feeling something warm bloom within her chest at the acknowledgement, and how it wasn’t an insult for once.
“Well, I’m glad I can give the Addams’ family a good name,” she teased him, and he chuckled quietly.
Xavier left, and she smiled faintly as Enid asked if she could give Tatiana’s numbers to Yoko and Bianca, something Tatiana said yes to, glad she didn’t have to meet anyone just yet, and set about unpacking.
Bianca Barclay:
Hi, Enid gave me your #. Sorry that you have to stay year-round; so do Yoko and I. Although I havent told anyone as such yet, so if you could maybe not do so that would be appreciated. I just talked to Xavier, who has said emphatically that you are not Wednesday, and from Enid’s texts, I can see that, so don’t worry I will tell Yoko that too. I hope we can be good friends.
She smiled faintly. She had heard snippets of what Wednesday had told her mother about how she and Bianca didn’t like each other, so it meant a lot that she was giving Tatiana the chance and actually not believing she was like Wednesday too.
Tatiana Addams:
I can assure you that no one will find out about that information, at least not from me. I understand more than most needing time to come to terms with it, if it is because of that. And even if it isn’t, then it is your information to share. I only have this phone due to Xavier gifting Wednesday it but she had said that if I did not use it she ws going to throw it into her cauldron, and I deemed that a waste of someone’s sincerity and kindness, so I began using it. It would be nice to be friends with you, as from what I have heard you are a strong person, and I admire that.
Bianca Barclay:
Damn, for a girl who didn’t have a phone prior to six weeks ago, you type fast. It is indeed that, my grandmother’s health has declined, and as such she thinks it would be best if I stay at Nevermore. Sirens live a long time, but when they eventually become old, they retreat back to the water, which I believe is what she is doing. She has been around for nearly five hundred years, after all. It doesn’t surprise me that Wednesday wouldn’t want the phone, but it is nice to see an Addams able to see the gesture for what it was. Thank you for the compliment, Addams. I believe we are going to be good friends.
Tatiana Addams:
I’m sorry about your grandmother; that must be painful to know and bear. If you would like to talk at any time, my dormitory is always open,, as I don’t sleep well and, as such, have a lot of free time. My powers came through because Pugsley was being bullied, and as such I went to Nevermore last year, but only as a witch. My parents were okay with that, and even let me take the family grimoire. However, due to the fact that I am Wednesday’s twin and a witch, when everything went down last year, I also came close to death and awakened a banshee lineage that no one but my grandmama knew about; and as such, my parents have deemed it better if I stay here—permanently. I can understand it taking some time to get used to, as you can imagine. I have hot chocolate and coffee if you would like some.
She had just finished unpacking the things she had wanted to keep in the living room when a knock on her door made her look up. Two girls with Enid stood there, Wednesday in the shadows, and she sighed internally at the last part. She gave Enid a smile anyway.
“Enid,” she greeted the wolf warmly, and the girl squealed, making Tatiana wince, and before she could process it, she was being enveloped in a tight hug. She blinked, looking at the girl she knew to be Bianca in sheer disbelief. The girl shrugged as if to say, ‘What can you do?’ and she had to laugh softly, wrapping an arm around Enid, and squeezing slightly. Enid pulled away and looked around, the excitement almost palpable, and she smiled faintly.
“Okay, this is so cool,” she raised an eyebrow. She wondered if Enid knew that having this meant her family no longer felt safe around her and decided then and there that she wouldn’t ruin it for the wolf. She hummed, noncommittently, “Like. You are basically an adult, living in Nevermore on your own! You can play music as loud as you want, stay awake as long as you want,” Enid continued to ramble, and she chuckled under her breath, turning slightly, raising an eyebrow at her twin. Wednesday just stared at her.
Enid was continuing to ramble, and she noted the way that Bianca and the other girl—she assumed it was Yoko, although she wasn’t certain—subtly, made sure Enid got into a different room without alerting the girl. She’d have to thank them later. She didn’t say anything, and neither did Wednesday. What could she say? I’m sorry I made you so uncomfortable that you had to make sure I stayed within your line of sight at all times? I’m sorry that I became something we didn’t know was in our family bloodline? She didn’t choose to be a Banshee, and if anything, Wednesday should have known that. She had liked being a witch. She had liked collecting materials for Beltane with Wren Cane and Amalia Drach. They had become close friends. And in the middle of the night, sometimes more.
Until she had essentially given them a heart attack, waking them up with an earsplitting scream, causing them to run to the headmistress, terrified for her. She had spent her last few days in Nevermore last term in the infirmary, unsure as to what the hell she was, until her Grandmama had rung Weems and explained. She had become part Banshee due to nearly dying, and it not being her time. Weems had looked at her as if she was dead and was planning her funeral. She wished that it were the case. Wren and Amalia had returned after Weems had told them what had happened and had carefully explained that witches were meant to keep the balance, not disrupt it. That they cared for her. That they were glad she was okay. But that they couldn’t be her friends anymore.
Wednesday turned and left. She wondered if they would ever be close again. She let out a shaky breath. “Well, that was awfully tense,” she turned to where Bianca was, standing with Yoko and Enid, the latter looking heartbroken for her without even knowing what was going down. She shrugged, even as she felt as if she were drowning, like taking each breath was painful.
“I’m an anomaly. Weds doesn’t like anomalies, and as such, she doesn’t like me.” she saw the look on Enid’s face, like the wolf was ready to march over to Wednesday and defend Tatiana, and gave her a small smile—a fake one, but it was a smile nevertheless—and shook her head, “It doesn’t mean she doesn’t love me in her own way. She just can’t accept what I am. And that’s unfortunately going to be the case for a while,” forever, she said in her mind, “please don’t try to defend me to her. It will make it so much worse.” Enid hesitated before sighing and nodding. She gave the girl a grateful look. She really couldn’t handle any more confrontation.
“Okay, but I’m here if you need me,” it would break you if I told you about it, she thought, a little bitterness creeping in, but nodded nonetheless. “alright, I’m gonna go see if Wednesday is okay, then. But do you want to sit with us at dinner?” She hesitated before shaking her head. She couldn’t have them finding out this soon.
“No, it’s okay. I think I’m just going to concentrate on unpacking and eat later,” Enid deflated slightly but nodded before leaving.
“I’m assuming that that was better than the holidays?” she looked at Bianca before laughing—and she tried not to notice how it came out strained—before nodding,
“couldn’t have me away from her sight without becoming noticeably uncomfortable, her and my parents. My brother just wanted to know all the cool stuff, but,” she trailed off, shrugging, “there’s not really anything cool about being someone who can see death, and scream so loud she rips a hole into time if she screamed loud enough,” Bianca nodded, as if she understood.
“My dad was a normie, so was my mom,” the girl spoke up, and unironically confirmed it was Yoko. “When I got turned into a vampire, it was literally because I kept talking about my family as the vampire fed on me, and they felt bad so turned me before fleeing. My family couldn’t accept that Vampires were real, and sent me here. Then, during the holidays, when they realised I wasn’t going back to being normal, sent me back here—year round.” she winced.
“That sounds far worse than mine,” the girl shrugged, and she wondered why it didn’t seem to bother her.
”Maybe, but my father was rarely ever home anyway, due to being a politician, so I think he was just looking for an excuse to get rid of me which suited me fine seeing as we never saw eye to eye,” she thought of her ma-mother and father and hummed,
“I’ve always been the, pun intended, white sheep of the family. My sister liked murder and mysteries, and seeing if she can come up with ways to torture someone, and the rest of my family find that fun too. My brother made traps that are deadly, and my father spars as if it is something that regular people do. My mother concocts poisons and sees how deadly they are for fun. I was never like them. I liked reading and going out on walks, and making friends with the people in the town, but I could never do that because they knew I was an Addams,” she admitted, and the girls nodded, before Bianca shrugged,
“mine’s nowhere near as bad as either of yours. My grandmother raised me after my mother decided she didn’t like being on land when my father left her pregnant and alone, and I never knew her nor did I want to. I had my grandmother, and she more than made up for the loss of a mother role in my life. The only reason I am here now is because of what I’ve admitted to the two of you,” Tatiana nodded, and it was silent before Yoko pulled out a large bottle; the contents were unclear to her. Whatever is was Bianca liked if the look in her eyes was any indication.
“Well then. Seeing as we’ve all trauma-dumped enough for the rest of the year,” she paused, held the bottle higher and only then did it click what it was for Tatiana, who slowly grinned, and began floating three glasses out of the China cupboards, “who wants to get drunk and piss Weems off?” the vampire questioned, and Tatiana and Bianca laughed.