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Howls. Dirt. Rust.
Lupin cages aren't one of the most comfortable places to be. It's wide and yet, all kinds of noises echo in the dark quiet location.
For the Addams sitting with a perfect posture in front of one of the cells, it doesn't seem like much of a huge deal. The brunette is holding one book in her left hand, her other flipping the pages after her eyes skimmed through the words printed. Thing is holding a flashlight on her shoulder, his loyalty pledge without a single complaint as he assists.
Looking at her, one would assume Wednesday had simply gone deaf from all of the external noises. Except, that wasn't entirely the case.
Enid, who had been the sole reason for her presence in the area where the raven was not supposed to be, knew better than what was portrayed.
She had heard Wednesday grumble at least thrice in the past hour, lingering in the pages longer than she used to from repetitively scanning the words with intent to better process them, reading obstructed by her ear being overly stimulated since all of the metal bars as thick as a wrist are being banged, chewed, and rattled.
Enid had kept herself quiet, choosing to listen and observe every movement of her roommate who had not spoken a word after threatening other werewolves that if they had snitched her presence with Thing, they would be beheaded and their head would be made as a display.
Everyone knows it wasn't an empty threat.
What Enid did not know was that Wednesday listened to her ramblings for weeks before the full moon.
Enid assumed that her words entered from one ear and slipped out from the other. She had expressed terror because of the horrible gossip of complaints about the place appearing inhumane. Perhaps, it was because the maintenance is not as well kept as the school does with the inside of other establishments, also the fact that werewolves that stayed in the cages were way too active, releasing their energy by trying to chew, pressure, or basically just use force to everything. Most likely to release a bit of the adrenaline.
It was a place ruined intentionally every full moon and constant renovation assumingly became futile for the faculty. It was not only that, Enid had also whined her hatred on the idea that she would be awake the whole time and wouldn't be released until the assigned personnel unlocked them.
It had only been an hour and Wednesday was evidently restless from the stimuli unusual for her. Enid was nothing but worried.
Clearly, the intent of Wednesday staying with her throughout the night until dawn was to lessen or help the fusses the blonde has. They didn't settle on that deal, there was never a deal that existed in the first place.
Wednesday walked her until they reached the barricade and was stopped by the school personnel who didn't have the idea Wednesday would be breaking in later on. So yes, Wednesday appeared less than an hour without prior notice, declared her monotonous threat to every wolf with them, and sat in front of Enid after plopping her bag.
Enid slid out her paw as far as she could and nudged Wednesday carefully to get her attention.
"If you are concerned about my level of comfortability, it is less than what I usually have."
Enid whines. Ears bending back with a frown she could master in her wolf form.
"A delight if I must clarify," Wednesday added.
Still, Enid huffs. Frustrated.
She cannot tell Wednesday what she wants while being understood.
"I will not abandon you here. If that's what you want I do not care." Enid squints her vision in doubt. "I am not here for you. It is for Thing. Thing persisted for me to stay."
Thing persisted for me to stay my ass, Enid mocked internally. As if she would do that for Thing when she had to be bribed to apologize when the limb and her fought.
"Believe it or not it doesn't matter. If you think this is suffering, it would be selfish of you not to share."
They glared at each other for a moment.
If only Enid could roll her eyes, she would have done so from the start.
Enid opted to stay close to where Wednesday sat for another hour, standing only to stretch her limbs, sniffing around the cage and sneezing back and forth until she irritated her snout.
It was a Saturday and tomorrow they would both surely sleep until noon or past noon even. That wouldn't be questionable.
"You are the only wolf that has been whining instead of howling, Sinclair."
Enid was bored, incredibly bored. She slid her paw on the spaces and tapped Wednesday on the other side.
"You must keep up with the strong image you have stamped on your first transformation and quit wanting to be pampered."
Wednesday did not bother to look behind Enid as she opened up the backpack she brought.
"I prepared something to keep you busy. Your predictability is rather high." Curiously, the she-wolf watches as the raven's phone gets pulled out, the black case sticking out and making it easy to identify. "I have asked Yoko about the videos that you usually watch and I might click on something that you might not want so if I do, simply shake your head, if you do like it I will lean it on the bar then make yourself comfortable to watch. The screen might be too small for you but I cannot bring your whole laptop."
Wednesday showed her downloaded videos on her YouTube app offline. Enid backed away slightly as Wednesday inserted her hand inside the cage, leaning the phone to the bar, and started to play one of the reality shows of a K-pop group. "Is it… to your liking?" Wednesday, hand hovered over the phone, waiting for the wolf's reaction.
Wednesday did that? For her?
Enid barks and hops inside her cage, rotating around it with her tail wiggling at a quick pace. She licked Wednesday's hand earning her a groan.
Enid laid down on her paws, head resting on the front two as she watched the small screen. "Come here," She quickly obliged to where Wednesday wanted her. The hand she inserted inside petted Enid's head as she put the book on her lap. "You can holler or whatever when the video ends. I have enough downloaded films to last your forbearance in this insufferable enclosure."
If that wasn't the sweetest thoughtful endeavor disguised in a veneer of normalcy, Enid doesn't know what.
"Do not give me those eyes. You look hideous." Wednesday turns away, her fingers still combing the fur.
See? The absolute sweetest.
Enid had drifted off somewhere in the middle of watching the third video. She wakes up groggily with louder noises coming from the other werewolves and from the glow entering the slim openings of the barricaded area. The sky was still dark blue in most parts, orange hues scarcely dispersed.
"Wake up, furs! Wake up! Make sure for those stopping by the lake to dry yourselves before entering the dorm! We wouldn't want muddy tiles and an angry principal!" The cages were opened starting from the ones nearest to the gates. Each row assigned a school staff. Enid inspected her surroundings, Wednesday was nowhere in sight along with her phone. Neither is Thing.
"Again, if your paws have made a muddy mark on the hallways, we would be doing a half-day seminar for post-full moon rules and I know none of you wants that boring lecture!" Shouted the head staff.
Enid grumbled at the thought of repeating that. She had slept in the first seminar and was required to take it again, she wouldn't dream of having attended it thrice.
When it was Enid's lock turn, the one opening hers gave a subtle smile. "Your roommate is outside." Enid happily wagged her tail, excited to meet the raven, her snout already pressed to the opening that once it was opened she leaped her way out and happily exited.
Wednesday stands alone outside, eyeing the dozens of werewolves running to scatter the woods. Her eyebrows relaxed at the sight of Enid running her way happily.
"You are released earlier than anticipated. If you would like to run around the woods, I will wait." Enid wiggles her head, bowing down as she noses Wednesday's shoulder affectionately. The raven looks weary. Enid was able to take a nap and she wasn't aware if Wednesday was able to have the same.
"I have brought you spare clothes in the bag. Do you wish to transform back before walking to the dorm?"
Enid looks around the area, tilting her head to look for a place where she could possibly change.
"When everyone has left you may change inside I will be waiting here."
They both waited until everyone was out, Wednesday explaining to the staff what made Enid go inside again and they all agreed to wait before locking the place. It did not take Enid long to shift and put on the clothes. She thanked on Wednesday's behalf for the delay they'd caused, the personnel forcing on a smile with Wednesday's glare boring into them.
"Breakfast?"
"I don't think the canteens are open at this hour, Willa." Enid studies the night sky, the majority of it still hanging and winning over the upcoming sun. "Are you hungry? Do you want me to fetch you breakfast? I'm pretty sure there are early cafes around."
"I offered for you. Do not bother and rest."
"You're not doing this thinking you owe me, right?" Enid suspectedly inquired.
"I do not."
"Promise?"
"I am not indebted to you. Saving me was a decision you made yourself."
Enid walked closer to the raven, sharing her warmth as they trudged their way to Ophelia hall. "Yes, that was mine."
"That also does not equate to me saying that I am not grateful."
Enid chuckled before saying "Okay", finding it adorable how Wednesday tried to explain herself.
"I am not making up an excuse. I am doing it for myself."
"Right."
"I do not think that sleep will catch up to me when you are unattended in the lupin cages."
"You know it's safe there, don't you?"
"And so do prison cells."
"Prison cells?"
"It is safe from harm but still, a recognizable percentage of prisoners lose their mind."
"Lupin cages are far better to be compared to a penitentiary." Enid exasperatedly states.
"It has bars. Locked up lunatic werewolves banging and howling tirelessly for hours."
"We are not insane inside."
Wednesday eyed her differently. "You have not seen other werewolves when you were locked on your own."
"They're really going crazy?"
Wednesday's face became sinister reminiscing. "I had fun watching one testing his lycanthrope skill by hurting himself and watching the wound heal."
"What the?" Enid grimaces. "What kind of sicko would intentionally hurt themselves?"
"You underestimate how pain could inflict pleasure."
Gross. But of course, Wednesday would say that.
Wednesday opened the dorm room door and let it close by itself as they entered. Enid falls flat down to her chair, not wanting to go to her bed without bathing first.
"It's not as bad as I imagined but I still don't want to go back next full moon."
"It's better if you get used to it." Wednesday walks to her side, the tapeless midline of their room crossed a lot more frequently than how it first was. "I can take you out of the woods for the night but it is impossible to kill all of the mouths that will talk without being questioned."
"I don't even want you to elaborate on that."
"I will try to push improvements that may be done."
"It might be expensive for the school. Especially the ruined infrastructures last time we faced Crackstone are still being fixed."
"Well, if that is the only issue then that would be an easier problem to solve."
"You don't mean to fund that, do you?" Enid swivels her chair, finding Wednesday's eyes set on the gashes on Enid's left face, uncovered from all the blemish she had dabbled day after day to lessen the mark it had left.
They were in the safety of their room, Enid found it useless to make the scars appear less obvious. They were free, protruding, and slightly lifted to form small mountains on her flat surfaced skin.
It was months since she had gotten it.
Enid had survived the break with raining questions from family members, survived questioning glances from strangers, survived double looks from other students. And she swore to herself that there wouldn't be a regret in living her whole life with those undeniable questioning glances she was getting and would be getting further. It was for Wednesday, that reason was enough.
Enid looks at the brunette intently. Figuring out the expression molding into the features having such less display of emotion.
"What is it?" Enid softly inquired.
"You've faced what you had been spouting for weeks." Wednesday's hand moved to tuck a stray strand of her hair into the back of her ears. "You did well tonight, Sinclair."
Enid's breath shuddered at the praise. The hand traveled down to the hem of her sweatshirt. There was a little tug, inviting. It was all the sign that Enid needed to slowly insert her arms into the space between the brunette's torso and limbs as she stood, her chin laying into the shoulder that she cried on for nights and breathed on good days. Circling and feeling their chests press together close. Oh, she's so doomed.
"We should take a quick shower before bed."
"Are you implying I smell of earth? I sat on that abomination of a ground and leaned on to the rusty railings. It must have been those."
"We're so disgusting right now. I bet they didn't mop there for god knows how long." Enid laughed at her own words. And then as a fool, she tightens her hug and breathes in as much as she can of the raven as if she had not uttered a stinky reminder. In her defense, Wednesday still had her own scent and it was prominent and strong with Enid's nose centimeters away from the neck.
"Three more minutes."
"Too long." Wednesday clings to her comfortably. Enid smiles.
"Is this another masochistic tendency of yours to put yourself on what you consider suffering?"
"Perhaps."
"Will you stay with me again in the next full moon?"
"I'd think about it."