Chapter Text
Enid stumbled upon a group of battered werewolves, remnants of a brutal encounter but still clinging to life— their attacker was notably absent.
The crimson stains on their garments blended seamlessly, but the unmistakable scent of werewolf blood hung in the air. "It's Wednesday, undoubtedly," Enid remarked, wrinkling her nose as she surveyed their wounds, regretting not having witnessed the ordeal firsthand.
'Still alive...'
Her gaze locked with that of her half-brother. Despite his seemingly unscathed appearance, his hand clutched his throat, blood seeping from his lips, betraying the gravity of his injuries. His tear-filled eyes pleaded for aid, but Enid remained unmoved. "Barely," she muttered under her breath.
"It's your fault," a voice growled behind her, but Enid paid little heed to whose voice it was. She had never bothered to learn their names.
"Some wounds won't heal properly if you waste time," Enid muttered, rolling her eyes.
'This one will have to walk on all fours even outside the full moon.' she mused, holding back a chuckle.
Despite her warning, the werewolf ignored her and advanced towards Enid.
"You and that Addams freak!" The werewolf snarled, grabbing Enid's shoulder to turn her around.
Enid swiftly turned at the sound of his words, her eyes piercing the source of the utterance. She observed as his eyes widened with fury, his nostrils flaring, and his face reddening to a degree where Enid half expected it might explode if she didn't rip it off first.
She awaited what would come first: his head exploding or her claws reaching it, but neither came, much to her disappointment.
As his voice faltered in the silence of the impending outburst, she responded, "So..." Enid paused, trailing off.
"Will you inform them that a girl smaller," she emphasized, knowing how prideful werewolves are.
'cuter,' she thought.
"and seemingly more powerless than you overpowered you?" she added.
'it wouldn't hurt if she's not here to hear this, right?'
"What will the elders say?" Enid smirked mockingly, placing her hand atop his wrist, which still lingered on her shoulder. "What will Cairo say?" she whispered.
'What do they see in her to the point of worship?' A question Enid had for years.
His expression faltered, a sight that would typically have satisfied Enid, as she knew how they were too frightened to disappoint the young pack leader.
'Or perhaps they fear her?' Enid pondered, unable to discern which was the case.
"She will say nothing," the werewolf sneered smugly, attempting to wrest his wrist from Enid's grip. "By now, your girlfriend's likely being torn to shreds by her."
His face drained of color as a nasty snap echoed through the air. His eyes darted to his wrist, now hanging limply, and his hand connected to it rendered useless. His knees buckled under the weight of agony, but Enid showed no sign of releasing her grip.
His closed eyes managed to open from the pain, and he stared at Enid. "Where are they?" she spoke coldly, but the werewolf only screamed in agony, drowning out Enid's words.
Suddenly, her other hand clamped over his mouth, silencing his cries, and slowly, she pulled him up until their eyes met, his feet dangling just inches from the ground. "I'll crush your hand until it's neatly pressed for every noise from your mouth that's not a direction to where they are, or shall I break your legs in advance?"
"Now, tell." Her voice lowered, sending shivers down the Werewolf's spine, as he realized she meant every word.
He whimpered in pain and fear against her palm, but that wasn't the answer she sought. Enid tightened her grip on his broken wrist, causing tears to overflow from his eyes, and she sensed he might pass out. Loosening her grip slightly, she demanded, "Answer."
Frantically, he nodded in response.
Wednesday exhaled deeply, her gaze unwavering from the werewolf who appeared as battered and weary as she was. Cairo's knuckles were marked from the struggle against the silver chains, mirroring the claw marks scattered across Wednesday's body.
"This is bound to end, Wednesday," Cairo spoke with a scowl as she wiped the blood trickling from the slash on her neck made by Wednesday's silver dagger. If she had been a second late, Wednesday could've hit her jugular.
'A pity,' Wednesday thought. But she was determined to wipe the smirk off the werewolf's face.
Cairo began nonchalantly, her eyes fixed on Wednesday Addams, the object of her long-standing disdain. "Wednesday Addams, finally, the face behind the name I've despised for years," she remarked. "We could have met earlier, but your Siren friend proved uncooperative. I had to resort to alternative methods to bring you here," she explained, earning a raised brow from Wednesday and a subtle nod toward Bianca Barclay, although she wouldn't admit it openly; the latter's pride was already problematic as it is.
"Unfortunately, I can't reciprocate the sentiment," Wednesday retorted with a faint smirk tugging at her lips. "Enid never once mentioned you, not even in passing."
"And yet, here you are, going to great lengths to win back someone who hasn't so much as whispered your name in their sleep," Wednesday continued, taunting Cairo with a sly grin. "I may not be as well-versed in matters of romance as my parents, but could it be that you were rejected by her?" Tipping her head to the side, she feigned innocence as her smirk widened, watching Cairo's poised facade falter.
Cairo's darkened eyes lingered on the blood staining her fingers. "I was initially taken aback when Enid began displaying reckless behavior at the onset of her term last year. After all, I had taught her to avoid bloodshed within the school grounds to evade suspicion, only to discover that the culprit was none other than you," she scoffed, her expression twisted with animosity. "Of course, it had to be you driving her into misery once again."
"You haven't contented yourself with ruining her life in the past; now you've returned for a second act?!" Cairo exclaimed, her voice piercing through the forest. "You might have had the option to forget the whole ordeal, but Enid didn't; she came to me. Half alive, barely human. A rotting shell."
Wednesday gritted her teeth, her fingers tensing around her dagger as she leveled it at Cairo with menace. "You know nothing," she retorted, refusing to let the fatigue slow her down. She had already expended much of her energy, having fought the Sinclair pack before this encounter. Now, even without the moon's influence, facing the next Alpha was a challenge she needed to end quickly, even if it meant sacrificing a limb.
"But I know more than you," Cairo countered with smug confidence. "You let Thorpe go alive, and now he's gone into hiding, sending men to hunt Enid. You can't even deal with that annoying rat who invaded this school."
"Foolish mercy can come back to bite you, Addams," he retorted with a derisive snarl. "Once you start, you must ensure they never rise again."
With disdain for Cairo's jibes, Wednesday surged forward once more. Cairo deftly deflected the attack with her forearm, the clash of metal against flesh stinging. Yet, in a seamless maneuver, Wednesday relinquished her grip on the dagger only to snatch it with her free hand and thrust it into Cairo's side.
Despite the searing agony of the dagger piercing her side, Cairo grunted. Instead of succumbing to pain, she seized the wrist wielding the weapon, thwarting Wednesday's attempt to retract it. Ignoring the searing sensation from the silver chain, Cairo tightened her grip on Wednesday's wrist, refusing to relent. With her other hand, she reached for Wednesday's neck.
"Let's see who breaks first," Cairo chuckled weakly, increasing her hold on the young Addams' neck.
In response to the challenge, Wednesday smirked and twisted the knife lodged in the werewolf's abdomen.
Neither was willing to release their grip, their minds consumed by the immediacy of the moment, oblivious to the potential consequences or the specter of a war that could erupt if either of them met their end. As they teetered on the brink of unconsciousness, consumed by agony, a body was hurled past them. In that instant, both relinquished their hold, Cairo swiftly extracting the dagger and discarding it on the ground while Wednesday gasped for air, drawing deep breaths to steady herself.
Cairo swiftly regained her composure, her adrenaline surging and masking the pain. Her attention immediately honed in on the spot from which the body had been flung. Meanwhile, Wednesday observed the limp form on the ground, recognizing the attire of the werewolf pack but noting that this individual wasn't part of the group she had encountered earlier. Her focus shifted abruptly when Cairo spoke—
"Enid!" Cairo exclaimed, her smile widening. "If you had arrived a bit later, you might have been dragging one of our corpses by now," she quipped, brushing aside the severely injured pack member.
"What have you done?" Enid growled, striding toward them, furious.