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Chapter Text

☘︎ *⚜*☘︎

The scariest monsters are the ones that lurk within our own souls.
~ Edgar Allan Poe

☘︎ *⚜*☘︎

I remember my mother's fear. It was the first thing I knew as a child.

I knew it before the sound of the river and the sound of the willow. I knew her fear before I knew myself...

The night was thick with fog and the sound of howling beasts. Clouds hung overhead, dark and ominous as the first tears of the night slipped through the edges, falling to the cold autumn ground below. Each broken shape sounded like a breath of relief as it landed amongst the fallen leaves of decaying trees. The drops began to fall harder and harder, until a torrential rainstorm flooded the forest, sweeping away the fallen leaves of red and orange into a nearby river. Though the river was normally calm, a comforting presence to the creatures of the forest, as the rain fell and broke the surface, the river began to surge, mimicking the rapids of a wide and powerful river.

And yet, even as the citizens of the village who lived on the edge of the forest battened down their hatches for another long night, a young woman shrouded in a cloak as black as night made her way through the village square, pulling her hood further over her forehead. She had lingered too long. Her trip to the village had been in vain. But it was only when the sky was dark and the clouds blotted the light that she would dare to enter the village. Especially when the bundle in her arms was ever so precious to her.

The woman tightened her hold on the bundle in her arms, holding it tight enough that it wouldn't fall from her grasp, but loose enough that she didn't wake it, and pressed it to her chest as she swept the edge of her cloak around it to keep it dry. She had entered the village slowly, taking great care to remain in the shadows, but now, she rushed through the village, her eyes and ears trained for any sudden movement, any burst of light, or any unexpected sound. Her feet made no sound as the soles landed on the cobblestone path beneath, but still she feared the beasts who lived in houses of wood and stone.

The forest greeted the woman with dark and twisted branches that snapped at her feet as she pushed them out of her way, leaving the path as soon as she entered the trees. Her feet found a hold in the cold autumn soil, and she pulled herself along, moving with an almost unnatural grace across the roots and under the lowest branches, trying to focus on her footfalls as she listened for any sound of aggravated villagers. When a twig snapped, the woman froze, turning back the way she had come, her silver eyes shimmering as she peered through the trees.

There was a fire on the edge of the trees. A fire that moved and danced, far too high amongst the branches to be natural. Then came the raised voices. Voices that called her 'witch' and 'sorceress'.

Pausing for only a moment more, the woman lowered her gaze from the mob and swept a hand across the bundle in her arms. She pulled away the fabric to reveal a small child, asleep in her arms and wholly unaware of the danger they were in. When the baby cooed in her sleep and nuzzled closer to her mother's warmth, the woman had no idea that as the baby's cheek met the skin of her chest, that her most treasured possession could feel her fear, or that it would plague her for the rest of her life.

How do you tell your mother that you knew her fear before you could speak?

How do you tell her that you have nightmares of the night when she had taken you into the village, unaware that it would be the last time she ever saw you?

Shouting echoed through the forest and the woman whirled around, eyes widening when she saw the familiar glow of torches dancing on the bark of the trees around her. She quickly covered the baby once again and plunged into the dark shadows of the forest, cheeks flushing with exhaustion, her feet starting to burn from the twigs and rocks scattered across her path.

The villagers would have a difficult time following her through the thicket. Even as one of the wood, she was struggling to keep her footing as she leapt from one root to the next, moving like the very creatures that she had been called a witch for loving. The foxes that darted from one root to the next, their ever watchful amber eyes peering out of the dark. The bats that emerged from the cave to the north when the night fell, their screams piercing the dark. The spiders that seemed to flock to the woman like bees to their queen. Or the spider that had curled around her calf when she had made a visit to the village only a few months past? Yet, the villagers didn't stop. They pressed the woman further and further, forcing her to keep moving until she reached a familiar grove of hawthorn trees. There, she allowed herself a chance to breathe.

Just beyond the hawthorn trees was her sanctuary. A place of refuge where creatures of the old blood could hide themselves from those who could not understand. The shadow beyond the trees was her goal, and she surged across the grove, her thighs burning as tears began to burn her eyes.

"Aisling!"

There was a familiar sound on the other side of the trees, and the sight of a blue fire. The blue fire was the sanctuary. The Haven, as it was called by those of the old blood. Even through the shadows and the rain, the woman could see the cloaked outline of her dearest friend, and the only one not of her kin who understood her.

"There! Through the trees!"

The woman cursed in a language that only furthered the shouts of the villagers.

"Witch!"

"Sorceress!"

Two of the better comments the villagers had made about her. The others stung just as little as the others, but the lack of sting did nothing to curb the murderous wishes of the villagers. The villagers who were now too close for comfort. She turned quickly and fled, tearing through the remaining trees, and just as the villagers caught a glimpse of her, she and the woman who had called her dove through the veil.

On the other side of the shimmering veil – the veil disappeared as soon as the two women had passed through, leaving the villagers both terrified and confused at how the woman had managed to escape – Aisling and her companion found themselves standing in a large cavern, illuminated by hanging vines with glowing blossoms and the odd fire scattered around the cavern.

"Are you all right," Emmy asked, turning to Aisling. She reached out for the woman, holding her gently as she led the woman and her child to the small cave where they lived. Emmy could not stay long. Each second she spent in the Haven was a risk to her life. Only those of the old blood could survive in the Haven, and Emmy was not old blood.

As the fire grew, it illuminated the small home that she had built for herself. The familiar walls lined with stone and ivy, a few bits and bobs that she had collected over the past three decades, and a bed that she would now share with the young baby.

As her gaze fell on the baby, the little bundle started to wriggle and squirm, two little hands popping out of the fabric as the baby cried for her mother.

"Shh," the woman said, pulling the cloak from her shoulders and draping it over a woven chair. "Shh. You're all right. Mama's here." She scooped the baby up and sat down on her bed, leaning her back against the stone behind her. "Mama's here." She unwrapped the baby and pressed a kiss to her forehead. "And Mama will stay right here."

She started rocking back and forth, smiling down at the little child as she started to sing. "Hush now, mo stóirín, close your eyes and sleep. Waltzing the lake, swaying the trees. Stars are shining bright, the wind is on the rise. Whispering words of long-lost lullabies. Oh, won't you come with me?" She pressed a kiss to the baby's forehead, whispering softly in the language of her kin. The language that her daughter would one day know as her own. The native tongue learned not through speaking but by being. The language taught to their kin through the petals of flowers and the sound of the wind as it rustled the trees.

She sighed and leaned her head back against the stone as she thought of the land she had come from. A land different from this one. A land where she and her daughter would have been free. "Castles in the hills, cradles in the trees, don't cry, I'll see you by and by. Oh, won't you come with me? Where the moon is made of gold, and in the morning sun, we'll be dancing. Oh, won't you come with me? Where the forest meets the sky, and as the clouds roll by, we'll sing the song of the sidhe."

She leaned down and pressed her lips to her daughter's forehead. "I love you, my little one."

How could you talk to your mother when she was dead?

☘︎ *⚜*☘︎ - FIFTEEN YEARS LATER - ☘︎ *⚜*☘︎

A young girl gazed up at the large gate before her. Tall, iron, and connected to two large stone walls that seemed to stretch on forever in either direction. She glanced over at the cobblestone road that led through the gate. Children her age were all being driven up to the school in vehicles, some outrageously lavish cars that would have looked conspicuous in a grand city full of wealthy families, others in beat-up pickup trucks that seemed right at home in the little town just down the lane from where she stood now. She had not come in a truck, or a car, or even on a bike. She had come on foot, with no one to tell her goodbye, or to tell her 'I love you. See you when the semester is finished'.

She pushed these thoughts aside. This wasn't her first year at Nevermore Academy. Most students came once they turned fifteen, or just before they entered the ninth grade in any of their normie schools, but there were a few that were slightly younger, whose powers were too powerful and frightening to the normies who lived around them. This was her second year, for she was the sort of creature who was feared even by the other "monsters" who attended Nevermore.

Shrugging her bag further up her shoulder, she clutched the pendant hanging from around her neck, finding a sadistic comfort in the burn of the pendant against her palm, and stepped out of the trees on the edge of the property, revealing herself to the families in the cars as she approached the road. Between a small break in the vehicles, she slipped through the gate, crossing into the middle of the road before returning to the grassy edges on the other side of the gate.

As her feet met the grass she let out a sigh of relief. She always hated the gate. She glanced over her shoulder at the two ravens towering over the name of her school. Nevermore Academy. She still wondered how Emmy had found out about this school. There were others closer to home, but she still insisted on sending her to this one. She had many questions, but none that she ever felt like asking the witch.

'How did she even convince the council that it was safe for me to return?' She had a never-ending list of questions for her guardian.

Turning away from the gate, she continued alongside the road, ignoring the looks she got from her peers and their families as they watched the lone girl making her way up the road towards the school. It was only the first day and already she knew that she would be branded as a strange girl. No matter where she went, or what charms she used, she was always branded as the strange one. The one who stood too still. The one who was so beautiful that it almost seemed eerie, with ears that seemed too stretched, eyes that changed with the weather and wind, and the teeth that seemed just a bit too sharp. The one who never seemed to speak. The one who... She stopped herself from thinking of any more possibilities. She wasn't ashamed of who she was, or where she had come from. She held her head high. But that didn't mean she didn't hear the whispers and rumours.

'An outcast even among the outcasts.'

She soon made it to the school and stopped just in front of the low wall that bordered the stone edges of the courtyard. Cars were coming and going, dropping off their children before turning around and disappearing into the fog that was slowly creeping across the campus. She smiled at the familiar sight of the rolling chill and reached out her hand towards it as if calling it to her side. As the fog curled around her fingers, she felt a shudder of delight. Beautiful fog.

There was usually fog in the forest back home. Fog or rain. One of the two. When it was sunny out, she would disappear into the Hawthorn grove, where those like her sought the lingering damp touch of the forest, preserved by their magic. On days when the fog was thick or the rain was attempting to penetrate the rocky core of the earth, she would venture out into the forest and enjoy the weather that the world had brought to her.

She climbed over the wall, not wanting to disrupt the flow of traffic once again. She slid down the wall with ease onto the other side and smiled as she recognised a few of the faces who were lingering outside the doors to her school. There was Principal Weems, the incredibly tall blonde shapeshifter who she had been introduced to her first year at the school.

Then there were her three siren friends, Bianca, Divina, and Kent, all of whom waved to her when they saw her coming. She called them friends loosely. They knew who she was and what she was, but she still held them at a distance for fear of what might happen if her charm broke or if her power surged beyond her control. Such were the consequences of being her.

"Y/N," Divina called, waving to her a little more aggressively than the others.

Y/N waved back and crossed the courtyard towards her friends, her ivy sandals clicking on the cobbles, each footstep controlled. She didn't run. She never ran at Nevermore. She never ran anywhere unless she was running with the foxes and squirrels that lived in the Hawthorn grove with her. The only creatures immune to her magic. But as she reached her friends, she smiled at them. She could do that much.

Kent immediately wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her in for a tight squeeze.

"We missed you over the summer, bug."

Bug. His affectionate nickname for her that he had given her the year before after realising how many insects had infested her room during her time at Nevermore. Butterflies, moths, bees, spiders... Any bug that was able to find a way in found its way in.

Unlike many of the students in the academy, Y/N had been given a room all to herself on the top floor, in one of the towers. The only other one she knew of who had a room similar to hers was Enid Sinclair, a werewolf who had yet to "wolf out" as the werewolves said.

She had spoken with Enid a few times, but that was usually during class when Bianca wasn't around pushing Enid's buttons. Y/N had no major problem with the werewolf, but she was a little too... colourful for Y/N's taste. A little too bright, a little too loud, and just... too much, especially for a girl who had grown up surrounded by the muted tones of a forest drenched in rain and fog. The only colours Y/N ever used were green and brown, and the blue uniform that she was forced into every day from nine to three thirty. Her least favourite part of the day.

"How were your summers," Y/N asked her friends, moving away from Kent a little. It wasn't that she disliked him, or was uncomfortable with his arm around her, but she always worried. Always worried that her powers would get out of control and he would start to spiral. Just like her father had.

"Boring," Bianca sighed. "Just like every other summer."

"Same," Divina muttered. "But we took a trip to visit some cousins up north, so that was fun."

Kent scoffed. "Speak for yourself. Opal spent so much time chasing me around I pulled a muscle in my tail!" He gently pulled Y/N back, noticing her hesitation, and gave her a small smile. He wasn't scared of her, or the possibility of her powers growing too powerful for her to control. Y/N returned the smile and allowed his arm to rest on her shoulders.

Divina stuck out her tongue, teasing her brother. "Oh, you poor little guppy."

Bianca rolled her eyes and turned back to Y/N. "Are you living alone again this year?"

She nodded. "Still technically part of your hall though."

"Good. I expect you to help us win the Poe Cup again this year." At these words, she glanced over to where Enid Sinclair was hopping out of her car. Her mother was lingering by her daughter, giving her a pitying smile, while her father stood a little farther back, his hands tucked into his pockets. Y/N had hardly ever heard him speak, but he seemed a little more at ease with the fact that Enid had yet to become a fully-fledged werewolf.

"Do you already have it planned," Y/N asked as their little group made their way towards the doors.

Kent bid goodbye to the girls before heading off in the direction of one of the boys' dormitories. The girls were all part of the same hall, so they headed up the same staircase that would lead them to the back of the school where their dorm was located.

Bianca scoffed good-naturedly. "Of course. I've been planning since the last one." She linked her arm through Y/N's, who in turn linked her arm through Divina's. "Now, I expect you to be my co-pilot, and I've already told Kent -"

Y/N drowned out the rest of Bianca's Poe Cup speech. It wasn't for another few weeks. There was no point in stressing out about it until they started working on their boat. Which wouldn't happen until the end of the month.

Once the girls got to the main floor of their dorm, Y/N split off and headed to a small door at the end of the corridor, which she pulled open to reveal a tall winding staircase, already frozen over with frost from the night and the lack of insulation. But that had never bothered her. Not when she had magic to keep her nice and warm. She shut the door behind her to keep the rest of her hall-mates from freezing and headed up to her room in the tower.

The room in the tower had been one of Weem's conditions for allowing Y/N to attend Nevermore with the rest of the outcast students. That and the pendant already resting around her neck, pressing against her skin with a dull burning sensation that she had grown accustomed to the year before. It was a little uncomfortable after not having worn it for two and a half months, but she could already feel her body getting ready for another long four months of wearing the pendant before she was able to take it off.

Y/N pushed open the door to her room and let out a sigh of relief. Everything was just as she had left it the year before. She hadn't brought much with her. Only what she was able to fit into a duffle bag. Emmy would send a few things later if she got the chance, but Y/N wasn't counting on it.

Emmy hardly ever dared to go anywhere near a normie town, let alone in it to try and send Y/N any mail. It would be four months before she could see Emmy again, but such were the tribulations that came with having a witch for a godmother, even one as gentle as a hedge witch. Witches were still outcast after all, and though Y/N had the Haven, Emmy had no such protection.

Half of the room was what anyone would expect from a dorm room. A simple bed pressed up against a large spider-web window, with a wooden desk around a small corner that sat beneath a window. A wardrobe for her to put her things, and a few lamps and other things that she might need. She had asked Weems and had left her laptop, phone, and a few other modern things at the school over the summer in a box that now sat on her desk, waiting for her use. She hadn't wanted to bring them home, where the magic of the Haven would have shattered them. And she wouldn't have used them even if she had brought them.

The other half of the room, however, looked more like a greenhouse than a dorm room. Plants had grown through gaps in the wooden planks, a few potted ones had been scattered out among the floor, and a trio of small tree-like plants stood in one of the corners. The room had been dilapidated before Y/N had arrived. Ivy had already been creeping in, morning glories festered on the wall, and weeds had sprouted from nearly everywhere, turning the room into more of a forest than a dorm. But that had been perfect for an outcast like Y/N, and she had fallen in love with the room instantly. So Weems had given it to her and had allowed her to do whatever she pleased to make the dorm her own. Half the time she slept amongst the plants rather than sleeping on the bed that had been provided for her.

As she was unpacking, there came a knock at the door and Y/N pulled it open, smiling when she saw Divina on the other side.

"What are you doing here," she asked, pulling the door open to let Divina in.

Divina shrugged and flopped down onto Y/N's bed. "I just wanted to come and visit. Bianca's all worked up about the Poe Cup."

"It's not for another few weeks. Why is she so worked up about it now?"

Divina pushed her torso up to lean on her arms. "Have you met Bianca Barclay?"

Y/N rolled her eyes. "Fair enough." She pulled some of her clothes out of her duffle bag and hung them up in the closet. "You'll be on the team right?"

Divina nodded. "Of course."

"And Bianca's plan for Kent?"

"Same as last year. Use him to sink the other boats."

Y/N smirked over her shoulder at Divina as she shut the doors to her wardrobe and kicked her duffle bag under her bed. "You know, you're lucky there aren't any rules or we would be in serious trouble."

Divina waved Y/N's concerns off. "We'll win again and then we'll have peace from Bianca."

"So long as Kent plays his part." Y/N frowned and turned to Divina. "Don't you think we should have a backup plan in case anything happens?"

Divina shrugged. "I'm sure Bianca will think of something to make sure that we win."

"I don't doubt that."

☘︎ *⚜*☘︎

A few weeks had passed and Y/N was certainly feeling the strain of a sudden dump of school work that she hadn't at all missed during the summer. She had liked the long days where she could run barefoot through the forest without worrying about her pendant breaking and her powers accidentally luring in some unsuspecting victim. Now, she was forced to feel the strain of the impure iron against her clavicle, reminding her every waking second that she was an outcast. And the school work didn't help but pound in that message, especially when they studied outcast history. Divina and Kent always tried to make her feel better during this class, as they were subjected to a similar power, but it didn't help when the professors droned on about Y/N's special kind of outcasts and their history.

'They are cursed. We are cursed.'

Fencing was the one escape Y/N had from all the mundane and irritating classes that filled the rest of her days. Besides the botany class that Thornhill taught, fencing was one of the only activities Y/N enjoyed. Mostly because she always got to spar with Bianca, and they never held back on each other. They often fought without their masks on, though they kept the tips in place to keep from wounding each other. Y/N was nothing like a vampire, but both she and Bianca knew that any blood spilt was a risk.

Today's fencing practice, however, was a bit of a drag. Y/N had been paired up with Xavier, who was still somewhat hung up on the fact that he and Bianca had just broken up. He was hardly paying attention to the matches as they passed, so Y/N eventually gave up and focused on Bianca's match with Rowan beside them.

It was no surprise when Bianca won, knocking Rowan back as he stumbled from the shock of her sudden strike. He fell back and ripped off his mask, turning to the coach who had been overseeing the match.

"Coach, Coach, she tripped me."

Y/N rolled her eyes. Rowan and Y/N had never gotten along. Mostly because she was friends with Bianca and the other sirens, and Rowan was not. Once upon a time, he had been okay with them, but after the end of the last semester, Rowan had been noticeably cold towards them, and a few of the other students around campus, though Bianca had yet to tell her why. She also found Rowan's tendency to whine like a child insufferable. He was one of the few whom Y/N considered cursing, and as she thought about it now, her hand settled on where her pendant lay beneath her uniform, weighing the risks.

'What a prize it would be to see him be driven mad...'

She shook away the thoughts and lowered her hand. Cursing Rowan was a step too far, as much as she wished it wasn't.

Bianca removed her mask.

"It was a clean strike, Rowan."

"Maybe if you whined less and practised more, you wouldn't suck." Bianca turned to the coach. "Coach, can I please go back to practising with Y/N? She's the only one around here strong enough to give me some real competition."

Y/N smirked and sent a teasing smile at Bianca, who sent one right back as she asked, "You wanna spar, Y/N?"

"I'll spar with you."

Y/N whirled around. She hadn't noticed anyone standing behind her, and her heart almost leapt out of her chest when she realised it was a boy who had challenged Bianca to a fencing match.

The special case. The mid-semester transfer that Bianca had told her about. He had been given special permission to stay in Ophelia Hall in a room next to Enid's because it was his mother's old dorm.

Y/N had only seen him in passing when Enid had been giving him a tour of the school, and hadn't found him remarkable enough to waste more than a second watching him. Now that she could get a better look at him, Y/N realised he was stunning. A little dark and brooding, with cold and sharp edges that reminded her of the iron dagger she had found embedded in the trunk of one of the Hawthorn trees before the start of term, but handsome nonetheless.

"Oh," Bianca sighed, sizing the boy up. "You must be the psychopath they let in."

"And you must be the self-appointed Queen Bee. Interesting thing about bees. Pull out their stingers, they drop dead."

Y/N rolled her eyes. It was only the first day and already the two were at each other's throats. Y/N hoped Bianca's ego wouldn't get the best of her like it usually did. She noticed how Bianca's face fell a fraction at the boy's jab.

"Rowan doesn't need you to come to his defence," Bianca said. "He's not helpless, he's lazy."

"And a crybaby," Y/N muttered, glaring at Rowan as he scrambled to his feet.

"Are we doing this or not?"

Bianca tilted her head to the side and backed up to her side of the mat, allowing the boy to take his place on the other side. Y/N noticed that his fencing uniform was entirely black, a stark difference from the standard white uniform that the rest of the team wore.

"En garde."

The first point ended up going to the boy.

"Point to Wednesday." So that was the boy's name.

Y/N knew that Bianca wouldn't be happy about her lost point. The only one Bianca was willing to lose to was her. Anyone else she saw as competition. Someone who needed to be knocked down a peg or two. They started fighting again and in a matter of seconds, Bianca had stolen the second point.

"The score is even."

Bianca smirked and pulled off her mask. "That first point was clearly beginner's luck." She and Wednesday circled each other. "Let's finish this."

"For the final point, I would like to invoke a military challenge," Wednesday said. "No masks, no tips. Winner draws first blood."

Y/N glanced over at Bianca. There was no way she was going to back down from a challenge like this. Her pride was too high, and she wouldn't dare look weak in front of the entire fencing team. Though Y/N doubted that Bianca would have backed down if it was a private match either.

Bianca took a few steps closer to Wednesday.

"It's your decision, Bianca."

Bianca only took a moment longer to consider it. "Let's see if you bleed in black and white." She tossed her helmet to Y/N, who caught it with ease and tucked it under her arm.

A moment later, the fight started. The two were engaged in a dramatic sword fight, complete with kicks, flips, and every other sort of attention-grabbing stunt they could pull until the entire team had gathered around them to watch. But in the end, Bianca ended up drawing first blood, and Wednesday raised his hand to his brow, where a clean line had been drawn with the tip of Bianca's rapier.

Y/N inhaled sharply at the sight of the blood, resisting the urge to steal some and spread it across her lips. Though she was not a vampire who craved blood, nor was she willing to kill to get blood, blood was addicting. Especially from a fresh wound. And mortal blood...

"Your face finally got that splash of colour it so desperately needed," Bianca smirked. She chuckled and lowered her rapier before giving Wednesday a mocking bow and heading over to Y/N to retrieve her helmet.

Y/N adorned her helmet as Bianca took hers, and as the other pairs returned to their fights, Bianca and Y/N started their own, bouncing back and forth on the mat as they held each other at a constant stalemate. Bianca would advance, and Y/N would retreat before swiping a wide arc with her blade and forcing Bianca back a few steps. This continued until the practice was dismissed, and they left to change into their uniforms in the locker room.

"He was good," Bianca said, buttoning up her blouse.

"But you still beat him," Y/N said. She tucked her pendant beneath her blouse and tried to hide the wince as she felt the weight of the iron pressing against her skin. She would have to file the edges down later and talk to Weems about possibly getting a new charm. This one was getting old, and the magic was starting to fade. Most magic had a longer life, but constantly battling against a creature's magic as powerful as Y/N's had worn the charm thin.

"He got a point."

"And you got two," Y/N said. "You're not going to win every single time Bianca."

"I know, I know. But I still like to."

Y/N rolled her eyes and grabbed her duffle bag. "Are you heading back to the dorm?"

Bianca nodded. "You're going for a walk I assume."

Y/N shrugged. "It's raining. You know me."

Bianca smiled. "I sure do. See you later, Y/N."

Y/N waved to Bianca and headed out of the locker room, heading out to the courtyard. Normally, she would have continued walking for a little bit until she was deep enough in the woods that she could remove her charm, but today, she stayed close to the school. There had been more and more reports of attacks in the woods as of late, and she wasn't sure if her magic would work on a bear or not.

So, she made herself comfortable on one of the benches, before dropping her water-proof bag beside her and leaning back against the wall of the school, allowing the rain to trickle down the curves of her cheeks. It was comforting to feel the kiss of the rain on her skin once again. It felt as though it had been ages.

She must have sat out there for an hour before finally feeling ready to return to the stone confines of the school. Oh, how she hated being trapped by walls of stone and iron.

☘︎ *⚜*☘︎

The day after, Y/N decided to head down to Jericho for some time to herself. Not that she didn't have that whenever she was at school, but she needed something warm to drink, and new sights to see. There were only so many times she could visit the greenhouses before she got tired of the plants and their whining about how Thornhill didn't give them what they wanted. But what did she know? She was a normie. She couldn't understand the words the plants spoke. As far as she knew, Y/N was the only one in the school who was able to do that.

So, with a book in hand, and an umbrella in the other in case of sudden rain, Y/N left the school campus and made her way down to the village, and to the Weathervane. It was one of her favourite places to visit in the town. That, and the graveyard not too far from city hall where she could have some time to think quietly. Even down in Jericho, where most of the normies were wary of Nevermore students - and they had learned her face well enough to know she attended the school - she could hardly find a moment of respite. The graveyard offered her a place where people were forced to be quiet, not only because of the haunting atmosphere but out of respect for their dead who had been buried in that land.

The Weathervane blended perfectly with the rest of the brick buildings in Jericho. Built on a corner, the Weathervane was the only cafe in Jericho. Or at least, the only one that Y/N had found. She was sure that there was another hole-in-the-wall cafe elsewhere in the town, maybe on one of the less travelled streets up by the residential area, but this was the one Nevermore students frequented.

She pulled her scarf a little further up her neck as she crossed the street towards the building. The bell over the door chimed as she stepped in, and she let out a sigh of relief as she felt the warm aroma of coffee and tea embrace her. The door swung shut behind her, trapping the cold air outside, and Y/N walked further into the building. One of her normie friends, Tyler, was working at the counter.

'If you can call anyone a friend...'

"Hey, Tyler," Y/N said, nodding to the boy as she approached.

He glanced up from the latte he had been making and smiled through the shaggy brown curls that had fallen over his eyes. He quickly finished the latte, called for someone named Jane to come and get it, and met Y/N at the register.

"Hey, Y/N," Tyler said, smiling awkwardly. "The usual?"

She nodded. "Of course." She peered over at the display case. "And one of the scones."

Tyler nodded and punched in her order. She handed him the money and went to sit down in her usual booth just beside the counter. She set her book down on the table and opened it to where her f/c bookmark was holding her place, one hand propping up her chin while the other held the pages open. Tyler brought over her order a few minutes later, and she gave him a thankful smile before turning back to her book.

She had about an hour or so to kill before she had to head back up to the school, and about ten minutes into her much-needed break from Bianca and the other outcasts at Nevermore, the espresso machine started hissing. Y/N glanced over with a raised eyebrow, wondering what was wrong with the machine. But as soon as she glanced over, the machine exploded and Y/N jumped, nearly spilling her coffee. She quickly put her bookmark back and got to her feet.

"Tyler," she asked, batting away the steam. "You okay?"

"Yeah."

Y/N walked over to the espresso machine and watched as Tyler pulled off the grate on the top to try and get to the mechanism inside.

"What's wrong with it?"

"No idea," he confessed. "Don't suppose you know how to read Italian, do you?"

Y/N shrugged. "Sorry." Had it been the language of the Emerald Isles or the immortal language of her kin, she would have been able to help him. But seeing as how it was neither, Y/N was about as much help as a squirrel.

Tyler sighed and glanced down at the instructions again, trying to make sense of what was written. Y/N headed back to her table and started reading again. She would be no help to Tyler, and with her luck, she would just end up making the situation worse. She drowned out the fizzing and hissing of the machine, allowing her ears to fill with a sort of hum, like the sound of a bee buzzing by in the distance. A trick she often used to drown out the world when she would rather focus on her book.

Unfortunately, that trick didn't work to block out the shifting of scenery in front of her. A shadow crossed her vision and she glanced up from her book. The new boy was sitting across from her, staring at her as if waiting for something. What he was waiting for, she wasn't quite sure. She shut her book and leaned back in her seat, taking a sip of her drink as she did so.

"Wednesday Addams, right," she asked, trying to break the tension that was so thick it could have been decapitated. With a guillotine.

"Correct. And you are Y/N."

Y/N frowned. "You know my name?"

"Enid told me." Wednesday sat up a little straighter. "So. What sort of outcast are you?"

"Excuse me?" Were these usually the sort of questions he led conversations with? No pleasantries or beating around the bush first? As she watched him, she guessed that he wasn't the sort of person who would enjoy small talk. He struck her as more of a blunt, straight-as-an-arrow sort of guy. Y/N appreciated the bluntness, but she didn't often advertise what she was. And she certainly wasn't willing to tell the new boy her darkest secret.

"I don't think you need to know what I am." She turned back to the book in her hands, hoping that the boy would take her reading as a sign that she didn't want to speak to anyone, let alone him.

"I've ruled out that you're a siren, even though you seem to hang out with them almost exclusively. I've also decided that you're not a gorgon, werewolf, vampire, witch, or any of the other usual outcasts. So what are you?"

Y/N sighed. "Something you've never seen before." Upon realising that she had finished her drink, she slid out from the table and went to put her cup back on the counter. Tyler was there to take it from her.

"I see you met Wednesday," he muttered as he took the cup, glancing over her shoulder to where the boy sat, watching them like a vulture.

Y/N's eyebrows flicked up her forehead as a near-silent sigh slipped between her lips. "He's trying to figure out what sort of outcast I am."

Tyler grinned playfully at her. "Does anyone know?"

"A few people."

"A few?"

"Four. Technically five if you count my guardian."

"I'm guessing I'm not one of those four." Tyler walked over to the display case of pastries and pulled out a pastry, which he then dropped into one of the small paper bags tucked between the register and the espresso machine, and handed it to her. "On the house."

"You're gonna get in trouble if you keep doing this," Y/N said, pulling out the pastry and taking a bite.

Tyler shrugged. "It's worth it."

"Oi!"

Someone was standing at the register and Tyler sighed. "Gotta get back to work."

Y/N nodded and turned back to her table, meeting Wednesday's eyes almost instantly. Why was he staring at her? Was it odd for her to talk with a normie kid, even if Xavier had told her time and time again that he didn't like seeing the two of them hanging out? She scoffed internally at the thought. As if she would let Xavier tell her who she could and couldn't hang out with. The boy thought he was allowed to dictate everything in Y/N's life.

She slid back into her seat in front of Wednesday and set the pastry down on top of the bag. "If you're just going to stare, why are you here?"

"It's easier to try and piece you together if I'm sitting right in front of you. The seats would obstruct my view from anywhere else."

"Am I allowed to read?"

Wednesday didn't answer, so Y/N took that as a yes and reopened her book, allowing the hum to fill her ears once again.

She flipped through one page after the next, smiling as she lost herself in the pages and the ink written across the fibres. She felt as though she could feel the tree behind the pages and its voice in the words as she drew her hand across the page. As if the ink was its sap and blood. She knew it wasn't, but after living in a forest, she had learned that every tree had a voice, whether people were willing to listen or not.

Hawthorns were the dreamy ones, who sang to the night sky and who imagined what it would be like to dance together in the light of a full moon. Yews were reclusive and brooded more than they spoke about anything else. When they did speak, they often told her important woodland information, like where to find the best witch hazel or where the mandrakes were hiding.

Then there were the oaks and willows, who were both the happy sort, who would tell her about every little creature that had danced through their branches as she sat with them, falling asleep against their bark. Emmy had asked her which ones were her favourite. And in all honesty, she wasn't quite sure. Some days she preferred the gentle touch of the willows, but others, she rested in the branches of the yews, listening to their every word.

Buckled black shoes entered her peripheral and Y/N glanced over to see a trio of boys standing beside their table, eyes flickering from her to Wednesday. She rolled her eyes and shut her book. The world was not being kind to her today. Tyler was, but it seemed as though the rest of the world was determined to distract her from her reading.

"Good afternoon, boys," she said, gathering up her things and sliding out from her side of the table.

"Where you goin', freak?"

"Back to school," she snapped, her irritation already getting the better of her. "I'm in no mood to deal with you three." She wondered how much satisfaction she would find if she were to take off her necklace and allow them to fall prey to her powers. She decided that it wouldn't be enough satisfaction to risk the wrath of Jericho and Nevermore so she left her necklace and pushed through the group, heading for the door. The world had stolen all of her patience today.

"See you, Tyler," she called as she bumped the door of the cafe open with her hip. "See you later."

Tyler waved to her over the counter as she left.

☘︎ *⚜*☘︎

That night, as Y/N stood outside her tower, watching the full moon as it rose over the tops of the trees, she heard the sound of a cello playing and frowned. No one had played the cello in all the time she had been here. Yes, there had been a few students who had played the violin, or the guitar, and there had even been one who had brought an entire drum kit with him, but she had never heard a cello being played in the halls of Nevermore. She smiled at the sound and leaned down to rest her arms on the stone railing, her eyes fluttering shut as she allowed herself to bask in the sound of the instrument.

But all too soon the music came to an end and Y/N let out a tired sigh. She drew herself back into her room and shut the spider web window behind her before pulling off her pendant and allowing herself to breathe.

Every day from three to nine, she wore the pendant around her neck to keep her powers from reaching beyond the borders of her room. Like her pendant, the edges of her room had been sprinkled with iron shavings, and the doorstep had an iron beam nailed into place. She was surrounded by a border of iron, and though it wasn't enough to harm or kill her, she could feel the way the iron started to sear her as she stepped over the iron beam every day. As she slept every night, with her bed hovering close to the edge of the room, she could feel the iron wailing to her as it tried to burn away her powers. This place was as much a prison for her as it was a refuge.

She sat down on her bed and stared at the charm as it lay in her hands. It had been shaped to look like a butterfly, with a series of runes carved into the butterfly's body. A part of the spell that dulled her powers. The spell had been heightened by the use of iron. She got to her feet and approached the floor-length mirror on the opposite side of the room. She pulled down the collar of her shirt and sighed as she rubbed her fingers over the familiar burn pattern that sat where the pendant had rested. A rune was burned into her skin. It wouldn't fade. Two months every year wasn't enough time for the area to fully heal, scar, and fade. It wouldn't leave until she had graduated, and that day couldn't come soon enough.

A soft yip drew Y/N's attention, and she smiled at the familiar sound, lifting her gaze to the overgrown moss log that lay on the ruined side of her room. Rising from her bed, she crossed the room and knelt beside the open end of the log, lowering her gaze to peer through the opening.

"I wondered how long it would take for you to show yourself."

The words had hardly left her lips before she was bowled over, a searing pain striking her in the neck. She yelped at the pain, pressing her hands against the fluffy form that had attacked her. She pushed the creature off her, throwing it into the soft moss as she clutched the wound at her neck.

"Do you always have to bite me, you blasted thing?" Y/N rose to her feet and went to the bathroom to inspect the wound. It was significantly deeper than the last bites Y/N had endured, as if the creature was upset with her for staying away for the summer vacation.

"Are you really so pissed off that you felt the need to nearly take a bite out of my neck," Y/N snapped, glaring at the tiny shadow as it sat in the door of the bathroom, its wide eyes unblinking as it watched her.

Y/N glared at the dark-furred fox as it sat in the door, using her other hand to summon a cluster of yarrow.

The fox had found her a few months before the end of the last semester, and it hadn't left. It had no name – Y/N didn't name the creatures who clung to her like parasites – but it stayed. She offered it no food, no companionship, and yet, the blasted thing stayed with her. And though Y/N preferred the company of animals and other creatures to the company of the bipedal beasts that she was forced to endure for hours on end each day, the fox was nearly as annoying as the bipedal beasts were. It bit her, it bothered her, and seemed to have no shame as it pranced around her room, doing whatever it pleased.

'I told Emmy not to get a cat for a reason, and now I have to deal with this wretched thing.'

"One of these days, I'm going to poison you," Y/N muttered. She grabbed a bit of gauze and wrapped it around her neck, making sure to pin the paste of yarrow – she had chewed the flowers into a paste while glaring at the fox – to the wound. "I'll feed you azaleas and feed your rotten corpse to the rats."

The fox didn't seem at all bothered by her threats as it hopped into the bathtub, curling up on one sloped end, and draping its tail across its nose.

There was a knock on the door and Y/N's eyes widened. She quickly adorned the pendant again before walking over to the door and pulling it open. She breathed a sigh of relief when she realised it was just Divina.

"What are you doing here," Y/N asked. This time, she didn't step aside to let Divina in.

The siren shrugged. "Just wanted to make sure you got in all right. We didn't see you for the afternoon and Bianca was getting worried."

"She could have called," Y/N muttered. "We have phones for a reason.

"Yeah, but we all had choir practice, and then she wanted to get some extra studying done." Divina pursed her lips. "I got kicked out."

"So, clearly she wasn't too worried."

Divina chuckled. "We all know you can handle yourself, Y/N." But her expression faltered at the sight of the bandages around Y/N's neck. "What happened?!" She grabbed Y/N's shoulder and gently cupped Y/N's chin, turning her head from one side to the other, trying to see any sign of blood.

"Nothing, Divina," Y/N sighed, batting away the siren's hand. "The parasite's back." She jerked her thumb over her shoulder to where the fox sat. It was now sitting on the end of Y/N's bed, looking incredibly pleased that it had managed to inflict such a wound.

Divina pouted. "Oh, be nice, Y/N. It's not a parasite." She stepsided Y/N and entered the room, extending her hand to the fox.

Y/N glared at the canine as it sniffed Divina's hand, licking it gently and completely fooling the siren into believing that it was harmless. Y/N sneered at the fox and sent it a gesture that would have made Emmy smack her hand. The fox seemed unbothered and flopped down onto Y/N's bed, curling up into a little ball as it pretended to be asleep.

"Are you sure you don't need to see the nurse for that," Divina asked, rejoining Y/N at the door.

Y/N sighed. "I'm fine. It'll be scabbed over by tomorrow."

Divina didn't seem inclined to believe Y/N, but she nodded nonetheless. Then she reached out and squeezed Y/N's hand. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"

Y/N nodded and squeezed Divina's hand in return.

As soon as the siren left, Y/N rounded on the fox. "You're a parasite and you know it."

All she got was a foxy smirk in return.

☘︎ *⚜*☘︎

The Harvest Festival was one of Y/N's least favourite mandatory events of the year. A night when she, and the rest of the Nevermore student body, were forcibly escorted down to Jericho to celebrate the night with carnival rides, games, every sort of food imaginable, and forced social interaction. It was a night that Y/N usually spent with an arm looped through Divina's, and her other through Kent's, but tonight, Bianca had pulled them off to go on some of the rides, and Y/N had opted to stay behind.

Carnivals were never really her thing, and certainly not the rides. Especially not with a new bite on the other side of her neck that throbbed every time she turned her head. Roller Coasters and other thrill rides were not the sort of experience she was looking for at the moment.

So as Bianca, Divina, and Kent gave themselves whiplash and drove themselves batty on the rides, Y/N wandered through the fairgrounds, wondering if there was anything that she could keep herself entertained with until the Nevermore students could return to the school. She pulled a timepiece from her jacket and sighed. Two hours and forty-five minutes left. At least. But that all depended on how Weems was feeling towards the end of the night. The last time they had gone to the Harvest Festival, Weems had stayed for an extra two hours.

She was so bored she contemplated sneaking into the forest to find the parasite that she knew had followed her down. The stupid thing refused to leave her alone once it found her. It was as clingy as a leech.

'If I were to name it anything, I would name it leech.'

"Y/N."

Y/N grimaced but forced a smile when she heard an all-too-familiar voice behind her and turned to face the boy. "Xavier Thorpe," she said, inclining her head a little as the boy approached.

As always, his hands were tucked into his pockets, but his pained expression seemed a little less pained at the present moment. "How have you been?" She cursed internally. Was she so bored that she was willing to entertain Xavier Thorpe? Had she sunk so low to speak with the dreary boy?

Thorpe shrugged. "Okay, I guess."

"Thinking about the breakup?" It wasn't her business to pry, but she couldn't help herself. Bianca hadn't told her anything about the breakup, and Y/N loved gossip. Especially when she had nothing better to do. And Thorpe had irritated her enough recently that she couldn't help but bring up what was likely a bitter memory.

Thorpe shrugged again and Y/N fought back an eye-roll. He needed to stop shrugging. She hated it when he did that. She hated it when anyone did it, but it was especially annoying with the aloof Xavier Thorpe did it. "Amongst other things."

"As always," she said half-mockingly, "the mind of an artist is forever tortured."

Thorpe rolled his eyes. "C'mon. I'll get you a panda plushie if you shut up." He didn't give her much of an opportunity to answer and led her over to one of the carnival games where Wednesday Addams was already throwing darts at the board, popping each balloon in quick succession.

"Jeez, you get any better at this, you'll be taking home a whole pack." He paid the vendor and picked up a handful of darts.

Wednesday noticed Y/N standing behind Thorpe and eyed her for a moment. He knew that she was aware of his staring, yet she didn't even spare him a glance as she watched Thorpe aim for the balloons. He was still curious about what sort of outcast she was, but not curious enough that he would contemplate derailing his plans of escape to try and piece it together.

"Pandas don't travel in packs," Wednesday said, picking up his last dart. "They prefer solitude."

"All right," Thorpe muttered, throwing another dart. "Subtle hint taken." He threw the rest of the darts, one after the other, and the vendor handed him a panda, which he then handed to Y/N, who took it with a smile that Wednesday could tell was false.

"You should know I'm waiting for someone."

"Oh yeah, who's the lucky girl... or guy?"

"What does it matter to you?"

Tyler appeared from the crowd and waved to Y/N as he made his way over to the booth. Y/N nodded to Tyler in return, her smile fading a bit, but much more honest than the false smile she had offered Thorpe. As he approached the game, he noticed the tension between Wednesday and Thorpe and slowed his steps. "Didn't mean to interrupt," he muttered.

Thorpe scoffed. "You're not." He stalked off without another word, pushing through Tyler and Wednesday as he headed off in the direction of the Ferris Wheel.

Y/N rolled her eyes. She could tell that it was time for her to go as well and nodded once more to Tyler and Wednesday before turning to leave.

Before she could, however, a cold hand wrapped around her wrist and pulled her back. She glanced behind her and frowned when she realised Wednesday was holding her wrist.

"What?"

"I'm leaving."

Y/N nodded. "Perfect. What does that have to do with me?"

Wednesday stared at her for a moment before pulling her closer. "You're coming with me."

Y/N scoffed and pulled her wrist out of his vice-like grip. "Highly doubtful." She rubbed her wrist as she took a step back. "Piece of advice, Addams. If you want a girl to come along with you, asking is a better tactic than dragging her along like a rag doll." She headed off in the opposite direction in search of her friends. She had endured enough of Wednesday Addams for one night. She had endured enough of people for one night.

She wandered through the carnival grounds, biting her lip as she looked for something to do. It had only been half an hour or so since the carnival had started and already she was bored out of her mind. She needed something to do. Anything. But nothing seemed to pop up.

She could join Enid and Yoko for some frozen yoghurt, she could try and find Thorpe and call him out for being rude to Tyler and Wednesday – no way, she wasn't that desperate for something to do – she could go try to find Divina, Bianca, and Kent – though they were probably so far lost in the rides now that she wouldn't find them until they all returned to Nevermore – or if she was truly desperate she could go look for Thornhill to try and educate her about the proper way to care for the plants in the greenhouse. The venus flytraps were growing tired of worms again and again. She contemplated the last option for a moment but decided she wasn't that desperate. Maybe she would just go look for the scales. She had to be able to find at least one of them, right? The carnival wasn't that big.

She turned to head in the direction of the rides, but before she could, she heard the familiar sound of the trees in the woods calling to her. They whispered her name, drawing her attention as their ethereal calls floated to her ears on the wind. She frowned and turned to the woods. Why were they calling to her?

"Y/N. Come."

Y/N bit her lip. Weems wouldn't be happy if she left the grounds, but she hadn't been in the woods for what felt like forever. And they were calling her. She glanced at the fairgrounds around her. Weems was nowhere to be seen. Or Thornhill or any of the other teachers for that matter.

"Y/N..."

Letting out a frustrated groan, Y/N abandoned the panda plushie on the side of the bridge and crossed the bridge that would take her to the woods. As she neared the other side of the woods, she realised she could hear someone talking. Urgently. She stopped dead in her tracks and shut her eyes, allowing her senses to be overwhelmed by the messages of the trees.

"Deep in the woods."

"He needs your help."

"Go to him."

"Y/N."

"Beware the monster."

"This way."

Y/N opened her eyes and smiled when she saw a faint trail of magic stretching out in front of her, and the familiar orange eyes of the parasite standing on the edge of the forest. The pendant had been enchanted to withhold the dark powers she held, but the powers that connected her to the forest still ran free. She started walking again, slowly at first, before picking up speed as the forest urged her to move faster. As she entered the trees, the parasite joined her, bounding alongside as they ran through the foliage, the panda plushie long forgotten on the edge of the fairgrounds.

Her feet were silent as she darted over the leaf litter, moving with the grace of a deer as she allowed her powers to guide her. It felt as though she were running in the forest around her home with her mother again. For a moment, Y/N didn't mind the presence of the parasite as it darted in front of her, guiding each step as it bounded from one root to the next, as much at home in the forest as Y/N was.

But the happiness faded away when Y/N arrived where the forest had been guiding her. Rowan was standing in the middle of a clearing, his hand in front of him as he used his powers to pin Wednesday to a large tree. Y/N stared up at Wednesday with a horrified expression, meeting his eyes as he glanced over at her.

"Rowan! Let him go!" She took a step towards Rowan, ducking when his hand shot out towards her. She could feel his telekinesis surging over her head as he tried to grab her. But his power didn't have the chance to reach her.

Rowan screamed as the parasite pounced on him, surprisingly powerful for such a small creature, piercing his shoulder with its canines and forcing the boy to the forest floor. As soon as Rowan was on the ground, Wednesday dropped from the tree and Y/N rushed over to him, helping him into a sitting position. "Are you all right?"

'It sounds like you care.'

'As if I would care about someone like Wednesday Addams.'

Wednesday nodded, unable to form words. As he stared at Y/N.

Y/N suddenly let out a scream as she felt the forest around her cry out in agony. She whirled around and her eyes widened in horror as she watched the claws of a horrid beast shredding Rowan's chest. Y/N could do nothing but watch in horror as Rowan wailed in pain, her arms instinctively cradling the parasite as it leapt into her arms, its teeth bared in the direction of the monster.

Y/N crumpled to the forest floor as she listened to the pain of the forest. Many people didn't know, but when a life was taken in the forest, human, creature, or plant, the forest felt it. And as an extension of the forest, she felt the forest's pain too. She could almost feel the monster's claws tearing through her flesh, and she cried out at the pain.

But then the pain stopped and Y/N glanced up. The monster stared at her and Wednesday before snarling and running off.

"Y/N..." Wednesday's voice sounded like he was trying to call her from beneath a ghost-infested lake.

Mary, mary, quite the contrary
How does your garden grow?

Even when the parasite bit her on the wrist, drawing blood to the surface of her flesh with ease, Y/N hardly felt it. Her only reaction was to tighten her hold on the little creature, her muscles flexing as she tried to keep herself awake.

Will silver bells, and cockle shells
And pretty maids all in a row?

It was only a second later that the darkness claimed her.

☘︎ *⚜*☘︎