Friday Addams || Xavier Thorpe

4

Wednesday and I entered our shared dorm room together. We quickly unpacked out belongings and decided who would have which bed. In the end, my twin intimidated me into letting her have the bed by the window. She was still angered by some of my comments from earlier. "You will not attempt to prevent me from leaving. And I certainly don't need you to come with for protection, I can handle myself," she said as she began taking down half of the colour stickers from the window.

"Come on Wednesday, this might be a good school for us. With great opportunities. And I would go with you because you're my twin, not because I think I can protect you. I feel like you would be the one protecting me." I didn't mention the fact that Enid would be upset about the window stickers because I figured the werewolf would voice the opinion when she came back.

"Unlike you, Friday, I have no intention on staying here to please our parents."

"That's not what I meant-" I was interrupted by said werewolf as she entered the room. She immediately saw what my sister had done, just as she finished removing the stickers. I laid back on my bed to avoid the upcoming confrontation.

"What the hell did you do to my room?"

"Dividing our room equally." Wednesday kicked the window stickers to the half designated as Enid's. "It looks like a rainbow vomited on your side." As the blonde was about to speak again, my sister piped back up, "Silence would be appreciated. This is my writing time." I had been on the opposite end of her frustration with noise during her writing time and it was not pleasant. My twin sat down at our desk and placed her hands on the typewriter, beginning to feel out the keys.

"Your writing time?"

"I devote an hour a day to my novel. Perhaps if you did the same, your vlog might be coherent. I've read serial killer diaries with better punctuation." She turned her head slightly to face Enid.

"I write in my voice. It's my truth. It's what my followers love." The girl was noticeably hurt and did her best to defend her blog.

I put a hand on Wednesday's shoulder softly. "Please, stop." She shrugged my hand off and stood, facing the werewolf.

"Your followers are clearly imbeciles. They respond to your stories with insipid little pictures."

"Uh, you mean, emojis? It's how people express their feelings. I realize that's a foreign concept to you." The two began to step closer to each other after each sentence.

"When I look at you, the following emojis come to mind." My twin stepped close enough to Enid that they were barely inches apart. "Rope, shovel, hole." She began walking back to her typewriter as she spoke again. "By the way, there are two D's in Addams. If you're going to gossip about us, at least spell our name correctly." She placed her hands on the smooth typewriter keys once more. I calmed, believing this to be the end of their insult battle. However, Enid began playing a pop song and dancing around to the beat of it. I knew Wednesday hated that style of music, especially during her writing time, and was worried she would start something again.

My twin briskly walked to Enid's side of the room, narrowing the gap between their bodies. I followed closely behind to keep any violence away. "Turn that off. This is your final warning."

I was about to step in when the werewolf's nails became longer and more sharp. Morphing into the claws her species was known for. "Rawr! Don't mess with me. This kitty's got claws, and I'm not afraid to use them." I chuckled at the thought of the peppy girl giving a threat to my sister.

The door creaked open, allowing a woman with red hair to step in. She had a large smile on her face similar to the one Principal Weems bore. "Good evening, girls. Oh, sorry about the mud. I wanted to make sure that Wednesday and Friday were settling in." She looked around, reading the situation. I had pushed myself between my sister and our roommate after she caused a distraction when opening the door. Enid retracted her claws and put her hands behind the back and Wednesday kept her usual emotionless facial expression. "Ah. Is this a bad time? I'm Ms. Thornhill, your dorm mom. Apologies, I wasn't here to greet you when you arrived. I trust Enid has given you the old Nevermore welcome."

"She has been smothering me with hospitality. I hope to return the favour. In her sleep."

I softly elbowed my twin. "Enid has given us a warm welcome."

"Well, here's a little welcome gift from my conservatory." The woman held out two flowers that I hadn't realized she brought in. One was a yellow gladiolous, symbolizing generosity, loyalty, and honour. The other was a black dahlia. "I try to match the right flower to each of my girls. When I read the personal statements in your applications, I immediately thought of these."

"Thank you," I responded with a smile on my face. Accepting the flower gratefully.

"The black dahlia," my sister muttered as she took the darker flower from the woman.

"Oh, you know it?"

"Of course. It's named after my favourite unsolved murder. Thank you."

"Okey-dokey. Before I leave, I want to go over a few house rules. Lights off at 10:00, no loud music, and no boys, ever," Ms. Thornhill listed.

"What's the story about going to the local town?" Wednesday asked. I assumed it was for her to put her escape plan into motion. She did need somewhere to escape to, anyway.

"It's a brisk 25-minute walk, or there's a shuttle on the weekends. The locals are a tad bit wary about Nevermore, so please don't go making any waves, or perpetuating any outcast stereotypes. That means keep your claws to yourself, and no smothering people in their sleep. Are we clear?" She glanced around and I nodded to confirm that I understood her rules. My twin remained silent, which was one way she showed agreement. Ms. Thornhill opened the door and chuckled on her way out. "Great talk."