His Bonnie on the side

✮ introduction ✮ moodboards

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THE SMALL FLAMES LICKED AGAINST THE STONE WALL, for a short distracted moment her eyes studied the light of the candle. How the flame danced in a beautiful swirl of yellow and orange, moving to a melody that fell silent to her ears. The sight struck her as incredibly beautiful. How fascinating it was. Such a small, and yet so dangerous thing. Even when her hand reached out to touch it, her fingertips softly gracing its warm surface, the flame wasn’t bothered in its gentle movements.

It didn’t hurt. She knew it should - but it didn’t. Its warmth spreading from her fingers down to her palm.

Her neck sprained in the direction of a sudden noise, a terrible scraping noise of stone clashing against stone, breaking the peaceful silence. She stared at the dark corridor before her, her hand falling back to her side. 

With a deep pinch to her stomach the realisation of something hit her. Something was there. 

Something viscous and dark hid in the shadows, to cowardly to face her head on.

She carefully eyed the dark, waiting, when nothing else broke her attention her fingers found the cold metal of the candle holder. A loud metal clang followed, it made her even more wary. What if it heard her? The small flame served as her only source of light, clashing against the cavern-like walls, she studied the intricate stone carvings that littered the ground. It seemed out of place, like the walls had grown around some beautifully built medieval castle. A ruin, perhaps. 

She watched the dark with unease - waited for the dark to respond. 

There was not a moment to further dwell on entering the void. Looking back at where she detached the candle from the wall, the corridor had turned a deep black, depraved from its light and casted in shadows. No way back. Almost as if she had passed through some invisible barrier to another world, it was awfully dark, not even the flame could give her any semblance of warmth and safety.

Her naked feet patted against the cold dirty floor, she didn’t recognise her surroundings, she shouldn’t know the way. Pure instinct told her to turn right and then another right, then to the left. It was a pattern, a pattern she would neeed to remember if she ever wanted to find her way back out of this cave. Yet her mind felt too muddled, not being able to grasp on to a thought for too long.

It didn’t strike her as strange that she somehow stumbled into this unknown place. All that mattered was to walk the path without distraction.

The cold overwhelmed her all at once, the hair on her bare arms standing on end, but her steps remained steady and unchanging. Water dripped down the stone walls, falling to the ground like a ticking clock.

She was certain of one thing, she was somewhere deep underground. 

Eventually, the ground arched down into something she could recognise as stairs. Her legs halted before the first step, her right hand traveled down to bundle up the fabric of the shear nightgown she was wearing. The stairs were wet and slippery, there wasn’t anything to hold on to without letting go of either the candle or the white dress. To prevent her from plummeting into the abyss below, she would have to be overly cautious.

She moved down one step, two steps, and then four three seven. 

As she continued down the endless staircase, she strained her ears to hear the rush of water, not like the dripping from before, but the unmistakable sound of something alike a river. 

And there in the distance, down many more steps, shone a bright light. A giant arch of an opened pair of doors that would definitely offer her more light than the measly candle she still held on to. 

A certain step forward lead her into that blinding light. Here at the bottom, a thin layer of freezing water covered the stone floor, making soft splashing sounds as she walked forward. Her eyes took moments to adjust to the new brightness, bringing a cautious hand to her face to shield her from the light. 

Her bare feet plunged into the deep crevices filled with water. Strangely, and intrusively, it reminded her of when she was a child, when her mother forced her into her bright pink rain boots, and under her watchful gaze, jump into the huge puddles that covered their backyard. Now, in the ever growing light, the memory felt less nostalgic and more depressing.  

Saddened by the sudden memory, she crossed the doorway into the unknown. The tall archway could not have prepared her for the grand room that laid behind it. Studying her surroundings more closely, she wasn’t certain what exactly she was looking at. Her head moved to admire the high ceiling, almost as if she had stepped inside a cathedral, built hundreds of years ago with beautiful architecture, stone collumns and a dozen of statues carved in the image of creatures with wings. 

The round area held a pool of water, it was remarkable. It wasn’t just water, something swirled beneath it, like strings of pure light and energy that illuminated the space in an unnatural blue light. Like a moth to a flame, it lured her closer. Cautiously, she watched the room, expecting something to stop her before she could reach the pool. The room had several balconies that oversaw the body of water, as if it held common events that required a lot of onlookers. Even now, the grandness of the room made her feel uneasy.

Once again, her ears prickled at the noise of running water. Her gaze traveled to the three statues that lined the rim of the deep water. On her left, a woman, whose face was covered by a veil, held down by antlers that circled her head like a crown, knelt on the edge. Her hands were held out in front of her, water flowed between her fingers down to the pool below. 

To her right, similar to the first, knelt a veiled woman. The only difference between the two was the fact that she had crows carved of stone perched on both of her shoulders. Almost like a scarecrow, seeing after the crops of her maker, she watched the water, adding to it with open palms. 

In the middle, far more menacing, stood the depiction of another. She was not like the others. She stood between the two, tall and powerful, watching the room with hollow eyes. In her hand she held a scale that tipped down to one side, water dripping down from it to the pool beneath her. 

Under their watchful eyes she stepped closer, her gaze flickering between them and the water. Unsure, if they might call out to her - to stop her in her path, to make her leave and never again enter this place. She couldn’t let it deter her, she needed to get closer, needed to touch it. The blue light reflected across the room, making her skin glow and her eyes sparkle. It was truly mesmerising. The candle, long forgotten, clang against the wet stone in disinterest, she hardly registered the noise.

Her legs shook as she lowered herself down to the ground, kneeling before the water as one does before an alter. Joining the status before the water, completing the formation. The fabric of her dress clung to her knees, drenched by mud and water. Her eyes softened as she watched the ripples of water, the shining light continuing its swim across the round area. She deemed it as incredibly pure. If her hand were to touch it, would they swurl around her fingers to continue their unbroken dance?

A moment passed, her eyes hadn’t strained from the sight. She waited for a sign, for it to lure her impossibly closer, to descend in its depth and not resurface. Propping her right hand on the pool’s edge, her front leaning further down to reach its surface with her left, being careful not to fall in. Her fingertips only managed to softly grace it. It was warm, and suddenly she felt extremely cold. 

The room suddenly drooped in temperature. She was soaked to the bone, the water would surely warm her up…if only she could reach it. Perhaps she needed to get in the water to feel its warmth.

Warm and cradled by its love, to be held by its waves and power. The light spun around her fingers, it made a delighted fit of laughter bubble up inside her.

She had truly no idea how she managed to do it. No idea, how she couldn’t have heard anything besides her heavy breathing and the splashing of water. There must have been something. Something that should have warned her of the presence of another, but she was completely unaware until they made their first move.

The stranger took ahold of her hair, yanking her back. Her hands flew up at her assailant, trying her hardest to scratch her way back to safety. Only for there to be nothing - at least nothing physical. As if she was fighting against air itself. A pained yelp left her mouth, her fight was futile, it was too strong, the iron grip it had on her roots was excruciatingly painful.

Her gaze met those of the statues above, how amused they seemed at her suffering. How their stone mouths widened into cat-like grins. How their laughter echoed across the room and drilled their way into her ears. 

It was a matter of seconds before that thing readjusted its hold, and plunged her head underwater. The strangled scream that tore from her throat was muffled as her lungs filled with water. Her air was constricted, making her struggle even more panicked as she trashed around. 

Her limbs were useless, it was not relenting. This was not to simply scare her, or to even ward her from this place. She was certain, this thing, whatever it was, wanted her dead.

Every spell, every curse, remedy alike left her mind completely. The edges of her vision began to blacken, in a panic she realised she was moments before falling unconscious. This was it? That was all she got to do in life? She had achieved absolutely nothing. The end? Why did it have to be like this? So violently, without reason.

Perhaps just as she made peace with her violent reckoning, it pulled her back up. A mix of water and spit ran down her chin, her breathing remained strained, and it became increasingly more painful to pump air back into her lungs. Her heart was beating out of her chest. She wanted to cry out in fear but could only cough up more water. Why? Why her?

For a short second the world had gone silent, her fight hadn’t left her, even when her arms refused to move, she tried her hardest to loosen the grip on her. 

It was only when it threatened to plunge her once more that she could hear her surroundings. It was loud. Painstakingly so. Laughter, the harsh cries of crows, the whistle of the wind, and the wild splashing of water. 

Her rough voice began to stammer as she begged for any entity that was listening to make them stop. This time her assailant did let her go, only for her to be pushed forward and dropped into the pool completely. 

The water surrounded her once more, the fabric of her dress weighed her down. No matter how much she struggled to reach the surface, it didn’t let her go. She did feel its warmth now - too warm. It was boiling hot, like she was swimming in a hot pot of soup.

She trashed around in panic, wildly flinging her arms around in a futile attempt to break back to the surface. Her eyes tightly shut. It dragged her deeper, spinning her around to disorient her further. Her ears succumbed to the pressure, silencing her surroundings. Her attempts to grab at something solid were pointless, she could only feel it grab on to her right leg and pull her further to its deepest part.

When her eyes opened again, it couldn’t have been more than a few seconds since she had been submerged and tugged around like a useless doll. To her horror, the swirling light had disappeared, plunging her in complete darkness. Eventually, that hold on her did relent and in her oxygen deprived daze, she continued to softly float around the space - she felt weightless. 

Maybe it had been minutes. An hour? She wasn’t sure. Her blurry eyes turned to watch the dark, surely something must be there. That slimy thing that just touched her leg told her as much, yet she didn’t feel panicked. 

She felt strangely peaceful. 

Her stare moved above her, where a speck of light cut through the ripples of water. Was this that blinding light everyone spoke about? 

This was not how Wini imagined death to feel like. 

Her head throbbed violently. It didn’t feel as peaceful now. She was all the more aware that she couldn’t breathe. More water forced its way down her lungs, Wini convulsed, hoping to push it back out without much progress. 

Winifred’s arms started to flare around once more, she needed to get back up. She would not die this way. Refused to. 

Breaking through the surface, her heavy hair uncomfortably clung to her face, making her intakes of air even harder. Wini tried to cough up all the liquid in her lungs, which proved itself rather difficult when there was nothing she could hold on to. An unpleasant tingling in her limbs that dragged her under multiple times. 

One glance at her surroundings confused her further. She was no longer in that strange room - she was in the woods…in the middle of a lake.  

The witch pushed herself forward with unsteady arms. She dared not think about all the creatures that liked to lurk in the darkest depths of water. Wini struggled across the lake with the same amount of grace as an injured duck. 

Eventually, she did manage to reach the shore, supporting herself on the slimey rocks that surrounded the lake. Her pajamas clung to her like a second skin, coughing became increasingly more difficult, water that left a burning sensation in her throat dripped down her chin. 

Wini flopped herself on her back in a tired heap, she stared at the blinding light in the sky. The moon. A hoarse laugh left her, channeling all the exhaustion she felt into the night air. 

No end, no heaven, no god - just the moon.

Something wet joined her already wet face. Tears trickled down her cheeks in soft droplets of despair. Wini wasn’t exactly sure what she was supposed to be feeling. Shock, fear, terror, panic, dread? Her mind could not comprehend her surroundings, couldn‘t wrap around what had just happened. How did she get here? How did she end up somewhere deep underground to the middle of nowhere? That horrid room with the tall walls and those creepy status. 

Why? A question she couldn‘t answer - wouldn‘t want an answer to.

The girl turned on her side, wrapping her arms around herself in comfort. Her clothes were wet, it was the middle of the night, cold wind slapped against her form. Dread coild inside her stomach. 

She might have lain there pathetically curled in on herself forever, but the unmistakable sound of small padded feet reached her ears. In her moment of sullen carelessness, something warm sneaked up on her and nuzzled itself against her icy skin. Looking down at the bundle of white fur made immediate warmth spread inside her. 

“How did you find me, Lady?” Her raspy voice uttered. Brushing a hand over her little head, the cat purred in content. 

At least Wini wasn’t alone anymore. In her familiar’s presence she felt…lighter. Lady surely knew the way back home, if Wini didn’t freeze to death first. That was all she wanted to do now. Lay down on her bed, pull her blanket over her head until she felt better.

In the distance a crow cawed, and she flinched. The statues, the loud cries that drilled into her ears. Dirty black shoes entered her field of vision. When her gaze met that of her brother’s, her aching eyes again filled with tears. After that terrifying ordeal she wanted nothing more than to be comforted, to be held and protected. 

Harvey had a solemn look on his face and she knew she would find no comfort there, the emotions he portrayed were as usual undetectable. If she didn’t know her brother as well as she did, she would say he seemed unbothered. Nonetheless, her brother was a hard man to read, it was almost impossible to decipher the frown that graced his expression now. To untrained eyes perhaps, but she could see that calculating glint in his eyes that told her he was looking at this situation from all possible angles. 

Her heart lurched into her stomach. He was upset. Harvey balanced himself on his cane, staring down at her and throwing the dry clothes from beneath his arm haphazardly at her feet. He knelt down to meet her eyes.

“You should have told me.” 

· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·

Wini stared at the flames in front of her, how much it resembled that candle from her…dream or her vision - whatever it was. After their very silent trudge back home they had entered their home, and with an exaggerated flick of his hand, her brother had lit the fireplace. He had dragged a chair from the dining room table across the hardwood floor, emitting a horrible scraping noise that had made her cringe terribly. Quite dramatic in her opinion. He had forced her to sit down, her shaking hands reached forward in hopes the fire would share some of its warmth.

There was something inching itself forward at the back of her mind. An inkling of a distant memory she couldn’t recall. Something. Something…important. A stabbing pain added to her already aching head, intending to put the thought aside for now.

Currently, with a blanket tightly wrapped around her shoulders, she was acutely aware that her brother was watching her, but she refused to meet his enquiring gaze. Refused to move her attention away from the dancing flames. The occasional tick of a clock, the constant dripping of her wet hair, her pajamas that laid discarded in a wet pile in the corner of the room.

Wini had never considered herself a very religious person, especially in her line of work. How could she? Christianity strictly forbid it - witchcraft. To them witches were servants of the devil that needed to be rid of this world one way or another. In old christian fashion usually done by the means of a burning pyre. Witches weren’t religious by nature, or at least followers of the christian lord. The only thing they served was the balance. To persevere and prosper, to keep the balance at all costs.

But in that short moment - that very short moment. When the light illuminated the darkness around her, it warmed her skin and she believed. Believed there was something. Something that was looking out for her, that held her in its grace to protect her from all danger. 

And then there was nothing. She woke up, and instead of being face to face with its light it was nothing that met her at the end of that tunnel, it was a cruel reality. 

For days she had been feeling strange, she first assumed it was her lack of sleep, but those odd voices weren’t just mere figments of her imagination. They actively affected her reality, the flickering lights in the bathroom, the warning they gave her when Erica fell. She wasn’t crazy. Something ancient was communicating with her. Witches were far more aware of these sort of things. Spirits channeling through them to convey their grievances.

So why had they chosen her? What were their grievances?

Wini wrapped the scratchy blanket tighter around her shoulders. Lady had left them the moment they had come home to hide somewhere else, she probably sensed the suffocating atmosphere.

Her brother was the first to speak, pushing himself away from the doorframe to walk in her direction. “You know when you were little you would wander into the woods behind our house…and you’d make friends with all the frogs in the backyard.” Where exactly was he going with this? “You’d be missing for hours, mother was always worried but father seemed to be more…lenient in your indulgence.” 

It was rare to find Harvey speaking of the past. Not once had he mentioned their parents after their passing. A topic Harvey refused to partake in, it used to drive her mad. How he always tiptoed around the matter. Wini must have been nine or ten, just a girl on the brink of childhood, when they were taking from her - she hardly remembered them. But Harvey - he spent his entire teenage years with them. She found it hard to believe he had only been seventeen when they died. A seventeen year old taking care of a small girl that just lost her parents. 

Perhaps, she sometimes forgot he lost them too.

“You’ve always been more attuned with nature. It runs in your blood after all.” His foot nudged hers to make her look at him. “You’re not going to say anything?” 

“What do you want me to say?” She snapped in his direction. Quite frankly, Wini had no idea how she ended up in that lake. She remembered spending her Saturday in bed, researching the scaley creature that would ensure Isaac’s freedom. How she managed to end up in that cavern instead of being surrounded by her messy notes and books she had no idea. And him delighting in the past wasn’t going to make her remember.

If it was even real.

“Maybe what’s been going on with you? What you’ve been up to?” Harvey enquired, gripping the back of her chair to crouch down in front of her. “And don’t think I don’t know about the grimoires missing from my study.”

Winifred stared at the old red carpet at her feet, guilt written all over her face as well as unshed tears that lined her eyes. She felt like a little kid, being scolded for dropping something expensive in her father’s study. She was trapped in that little girl’s body, who stood before her father with a trembling lip.

When she didn’t say anything, or more like her mouth refused to open without breaking down in tears, Harvey pushed her further for answers. 

“You made me believe you were spending time with Lydia. Not breaking teeenage boys out… out of…jail.” His hand moved with his words, carelessly flicking it around at a loss for words. She did meet his eyes now. Wini tried her hardest to find the strength to ask him how. How he knew about Isaac? Did Derek tell him? She knew if she did, it would only make him upset, or he might outright refuse to answer - like he always did.

Lydia and her weren’t friends anymore, she kicked Wini out of her friend group months ago. She wanted to yell out at him, scream how pathetic she truly felt. She thought it was time - time she’d finally admit to herself that Lydia hadn’t been her friend for a long time. No matter how many times Wini told herself she’d come around, she won’t. Lydia had found friendship somewhere else and Wini was…alone. Sure, she had Isaac. For a few days. Now he had Derek…and Erica apparently. But to admit it out loud would mean it was real, so she remained silent. Pathetic.

“What happened? I thought we were fine,” he spoke softly. Her brother’s fingers gently wrapped around the hand that had been tightly clutching the blanket to her chest. 

Suddenly, he looked younger, exactly like that teenage boy that used to look out for her. “Now I find out you’ve been lying to me…and sneaking out?” Wini sighed. “This isn’t what we do.” She wanted to huff, betrayed and baffled by his words. Her brother was shameless, how dare he say that to her? So he sets the rules and she had to mindlessly follow?

“You’re the one that hasn’t been telling me things,” she stated firmly. Derek, what really happened to Lydia. The list of secrets he had been keeping had become endless, and she was certain she didn’t know half of it. “Why was Derek here the night of the Winter Formal?” She needed to know. Needed to know how exactly he was involved. How much he knew, how much he refused to tell her. She wouldn’t be able to trust him otherwise.

He exhaled heavily, letting go of her hand to stand up. “This is what this is about?” Harvey exclaimed. “No, actually I know what this is about…this is about Isaac. You’re looking for that thing that killed his father.” It was baffling how confident he was, how safe he felt in changing the subject. His hands lifted towards his face, covering it in pure exhaustion. “Do you deny it?” He turned back in her direction, his voice raising in volume, waiting for a response with a stern expression. “Winifred, do you?”

“Of course, I am. He’s my friend and he’s innocent.” How could he not see? This was important. She had the means to help him!

“No, he’s not. He’ll drag you down with him. Let Hale handle it,” he spouted dismissively. Why was everybody so insistent on pushing Isaac to the side? To Derek of all people.

“I wouldn’t let that jerk handle anything,” she stood from her chair, the blanket falling to the ground with a thud. Feeling the immediate change of cradled warmth to cold wet reality to face her brother. “Is there something you’re hiding?”

“You’re not getting involved in this, Winifred,” Harvey harshly told her. She stared at him with disbelief. Unbelievable. He moved her across the country, made her join some strange coven, invited Derek Hale into the safety of her home - but she couldn’t get involved?

“I’m already involved in this if you like it or not,” she stepped closer to him, watched him uneasily balance himself on his wooden cane. 

“I helped you find Lydia, but I think I have been too gentle in raising you,” he spoke coldly, channeling all the unspoken disappointed in his voice.

Gentle? He murdered someone right in front of her that night. How was that anything close to ‘parenting’? “What’s that supposed to mean?” Whatever right he thought he had to make her stay away from this, she will have to make it crystal clear to him that he didn’t have it.

What was he going to do? Give her a curfew? So she couldn’t go to all the parties she had been invited to anymore? 

“You’re not hanging out with him anymore, or with Scott…or any of his friends,” he ordered. Her eyebrow raised in shock. Was he banning werewolves for her? How was she supposed to stop ‘hanging out’ with them? Scott and her went to the same school, what was she supposed to do? Change all her classes, avoid lunch, be incredibly careful walking down the hallways in case Scott was heading to his next class? And Isaac…well Isaac was still a fugitive, she hadn’t seen him since his little visit. A detail she was sure not to mention in front Harvey in case his next brilliant plan was to brick up all her windows.

His supposed punishment was flawed in every way, entirely made from blinded rage. A pitiful excuse of trying to make her respect him.

“You can’t tell me what to do,” her teeth clenched in anger. She hoped he could sense it. Her resolve. She wasn’t a little girl anymore, she would not budge no matter what control he thought he had over her.

“Yes, I can,” he threatened with an edge to his voice, bending down closer to her. “I am your brother,” he poked her in the chest, making her stumble back. “Your guardian, the only family you have left, and I have decided.” He towered above her, staring her down in hopes she would back down. Apparently, she wasn’t the only one that would not break their resolve.

“Oh, and what have you decided?” She mocked, swallowing down the tremble in her voice. Winifred had a terrible feeling he would cross that line. That thin line that separated them from complete estrangement. They have been playing this game of push and tug for a long time. If he crossed it now, there might not be a way back. 

“I forbid it.” There it was.

“You forbid it?” Wini seethed. It was laughable at best, for him to think he had any leverage to speak to her this way. But she’d do it if he wanted. She’ll push. She’ll push him until he falls on to the other side of that line. 

“I forbid you from seeing him.” A laugh that was more an astonished choke of air left her lips. It felt like a slap in the face. After all these years of trying to belong, forging friendships that didn’t last, being seen as weird for what they are. And the one time she actually managed to make a friend, she wasn’t allowed to help him? 

Oh, yeah, she’ll push.

“You’re not my father, you can’t tell me what to do!” The hurt that crossed his face was immediate, and gone just as quick. His scowl turned sharp, and his eyes flicked away, refusing to meet her gaze again. In that moment she couldn’t feel the guilt slowly traveling up her throat, overshadowed by the emotions that have been boiling up over these past few days. 

“You’re tired. You should go to bed. We have an early morning.” Wini gaze was harsh, looking for any excuse to push back, but she knew it was futile. Harvey was at the point of well chosen silence, entirely shut off from the rest of the world. 

An annoyed shriek left her, rushing past him to run up the stairs to her room. For good measure she slammed her bedroom door closed with a loud bang. Throwing her wet form on to her bed, pushing her blankets back and throwing her head into her pillow.

A muffled scream tore from her lungs.

· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·

“For many centuries aconitum was assumed to have healing properties. Humans used it to treat illnesses, to help with fever and infections. Oblivious to the fact they were actually poisoning themselves.” His hand cut through the space around them as he explained. “It was later used as a strong poison but that only happened hundreds of years after it became centralized in traditional medicine. In the late Middle Ages, when witch trials became more popular in the central population, it received a new name. As it’s famously known now, Wolfsbane.”

One thing Wini could appreciate about her elder brother was that he was completely confident in the way he spoke. He could go off about the biggest nonsense and people would still nod and happily smile in agreement. Harvey was in his element. This was his thing - teaching. Her fellow coven members surrounded him in a circle, listening to him ramble on about witchy history, while he casually leant against an old tree stump.

The location the elders had chosen for his test was right outside the wooden structure, where they often held their meetings. Winifred felt the calmness of the trees as they swayed to the music of the cold wind, she could hear the singing of the birds that resided deep in the pines’ crowns. She always felt closer to her magic when she was outside - nature was the purest medium for a witch after all.

In her brother’s palm rested a vial of the purple petals, she remembered their disgustingly bitter taste. Very fitting.

Wini looked around the group, watched as they hung to his every word. She was certain it wasn’t their eagerness to learn. He always liked performing. Her great grandma Mabel used to say ‘that boy has a mouth full of honey’, usually when he managed to talk his way out of trouble.

An involuntary smile forced itself on to her face, almost making her forget this morning. Winifred was feeling rather irritated…and guilty. Mostly guitly. Not a word has been exchanged between them since. Silence followed them like a dark cloud, even when they made their way to the gathering, not a word was said. 

Winifred felt too hurt to apologise, and Harvey was as stubborn and prideful as they come. He would rather lose his other leg than admit he was wrong, choosing his grumbling over a simple “sorry”. 

Since their family had been cut down to two people, Wini couldn’t remember an instance in which they ever fought quite like this. Yes, they had quarrels and they bickered to no end, as siblings often do. This felt different. 

The truth was…Wini was afraid. What if they couldn’t fix this? What if they couldn’t come back from this? If Harvey was so insistent on her to never speak to either Scott and Isaac again, who did she have left? Lydia was out of the picture, and then came Isaac. Sweet, nervous Isaac. Winifred didn’t know how she managed through those god awful months were she had no one. And that was what Harvey wanted her to go back to? If she choose Isaac, she’d lose her brother. If she choose Harvey, she’d lose her only friend.

She couldn’t win, no matter what she did. 

Isaac and her were just starting to get to know each other, and it took one werewolf to ruin it all. She missed it. Going out on Fridays, trips to the mall, the cinema - god, Wini missed going to the movies. That sickeningly sweet smell of popcorn, sitting in the back row, talking in hushed whispers about everyone and everything. Even when Lydia called her a dork for liking all the mushy romance movies. She missed it.

But most importantly Wini missed having a friend. 

Although, Issac was a boy and the only real contact Wini has ever had with the opposite gender was her brother or Jackson, who hated his girlfriends with a passion, it was easy with him. He was easy to talk to, to be comfortable with - perhaps it was due to the fact that they were both incredibley awkward. She couldn’t help but think that those few days she had with him were taken for granted.

Harvey could not truly believe she would actually abide by his ridiculous demand, right? How was that fair? If only he spoke to her, told her about why, and everything would be less complicated. He kept secrets, lied to her, worked with Derek Hale behind her back. Maybe once her brother decided she was worth to know about everything, she’ll start listening, until that happened, she’ll hang around whoever she liked. 

The exhaustion of her little trip to the woods the night prior left her with an aching pain in her temple. Her eyes raked over her peers, they were the same age as her, witches and warlocks alike. Although, the Grimms have been members for the past seven years, they were still considered outsiders, Wini even more so. She rarely attended meetings or lessons, preferring the solitude of high school than interacting with crazed witches. The worst the students of Beacon Hills High could do was push her inside a locker - witches will set your hair on fire. 

She recognised some of them, Wini was fairly certain the girl with the unruly red hair beside her was named Matilda, and further down stood her elder brother Edmund. The witch remembered talking to the two once or twice when she was younger, nothing ever happened afterwards - no friendship, no other talks, nothing. Edmund was surrounded by two more boys, she didn’t know their names - or at least wasn’t able to recall. One was shorter with messy brown hair and a face full of freckles, while the taller of the three was blonde and leaning against a tree with an arrogant smirk. They looked familiar, she could distantly recall the smaller versions of the two with the same exact smirk.

They talked in hushed whispered, snickering underneath their breaths, ignoring her brother’s great speech. For a short moment, from across the circle, the eyes of the blonde settled on her, that smirk briefly turning in her direction - she could immediately tell. Trouble. Winifred averted her gaze to the crushed leafs at her feet, dismissing the uncomfortable sting in her stomach for now, the urge to make herself less noticeable becoming stronger. She really wanted to go home. 

These were her people. Yet she felt no sense of familiarity or belonging, only the threat of being on the receiving end of a curse remained.

She had promised her brother she’d listen to his lecture, to engage and smile politely, but she couldn’t wait for it to end. Since Harvey would take no part in helping Isaac, Wini needed to keep researching. Which was going rather…slow. She had no idea how to find this thing, she read through almost all the grimoires in Harvey’s study, even searching on various weird web forums that debated supernatural existence and their apparent proof. Dead end after dead end.

Deep inside her chest, she felt time slowly running out, and the terrible beating of her heart confirmed that unsettling feeling of something worse happening. What if that creature wasn’t done? What if it came back? What if it came for Isaac?

Harvey, Stiles, even Scott had no reason to want to help Isaac, and they made their opinions on the matter loud and clear. All she had to go off were Harvey’s books, which ranged from all sorts of ancient languages that she had no hope of translating. 

Perhaps she needed to look somewhere else, but where exactly was that? 

She felt that helplessness completely devouring her spirit and leaving a bitter taste in her mouth. Winifred had been so sure she could solve this mystery, and now stood before the first real obstacle she was already at her wits end. It wasn’t fair to Isaac. Not fair that she was spending her day out and about while he hid somewhere in Derek’s lair. 

Wini had to remind herself to breathe, or her already oxygen deprived brain would actually make her faint. The headache she went to sleep with remained with a throbbing pain at the back of her skull. Maybe she should seek out Derek. Isaac was part of his pack, Derek would surely want him declared innocent just as much as she did. 

Was she desperate enough to do that? To grovel at his feet and beg for his help? Could she be cordial with him knowing full well what he was capable of - what Isaac was capable of now?

The thought alone disgusted her. She doubted Derek turned Isaac because of his big heart, and merely wanting to help out a troubled teen. A man like him had his own reasons, which in truth terrified her. What good reasons could someone like Derek Hale possibly have? 

Here she was thinking about all the ways of finding that creature when she completely forgot about who’s care she left Isaac in. God, Derek was probably already teaching him all the ways to steal a car, or how to stare someone down with the intensity of cut ice. 

Her plan had too many variables, too much to lose, too much for one person.

Eventually, the sharp sounds of clapping snapped her out of the hole she found herself in. Next to her, Matilda enthusiastically applauded, Wini’s eyes first traveled to the girl, only then noticing that the group had collectively decided to give Harvey a standing ovation. She joined the circle with a little less enthusiasm, even if her opinion of her brother wasn’t particular high at the moment, this was still important to him - so she’d indulge him…for now. 

Harvey smiled, a toothy grin that cut across his entire face - Winifred had never seen him this happy.

· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·

Winifred grabbed another napkin, picking up the lemon cake slice and handing it to the older woman in front of her. She mustered up a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. Perhaps if she did faint she could use it as an excuse to finally leave. 

The woman snatched the slice out of her hand, almost scratching Wini’s delicate wrist. The old hag gave her a dirty look, leaving the witch flabbergasted as she limped away at a snail’s pace. What the hell? 

“Oh, don’t worry about Mrs. Sallow. Her favorite past time is scaring children,” the voice that suddenly appeared next to her spoke up. Wini’s eyes meet those of the blonde boy from earlier, he didn’t smirk anymore, instead a small smile graced his face now. He turned towards where Mrs. Sallow had disappeared to, surrounded by her likeminded old cronies no doubt.

“Yeah, I could…ehm…see that,” she carefully eyed the warlock in front of her. He was wearing beige trousers with a white dress shirt, exactly what you’d expect an old school rich kid to be wearing. He gave Mrs. Sallow a mocking smile, who only scowled in return. “What would you like?” The boy’s eyes snapped back towards her, and he stared at her without blinking for a second too long, perhaps only now noticing the table of all kinds of cakes and sweets in front of him.

“Right,” he muttered, thoughtfully eyeing the food. Wini couldn’t help but be immediately suspicious, not once had any of them approached her for…anything. “Listen, that’s not why I’m here.” And there it was. “I wanted to invite you to…” Her eyes raised up at him in question. “To a party…with the rest of us…next Friday.” Wini’s eyebrows shut up in surprise. “I know you’re not very fond of us…or the coven really…all the more reason to get to know each other.”

Winifred remained speechless for a moment until she managed to find her voice to answer him. “Oh, I don’t know…that’s not really my scene.” It wasn’t a lie per se, her last party ended rather poorly and she couldn’t help the sneaking suspicion that came with the invite. 

After a moment of a dumbstruck expression crossing his face, he quickly collected himself. “We don’t only party, you know. We also study together or just hang out,” he explained. “Look, don’t give me an answer, just think about it?” 

“Thanks…,” she uttered, slowly realising she had not even asked his name. 

“Arthur,” he reached over the table, offering his hand for her to take. It shouldn’t have struck her as strange, but being constantly surrounded by teenage boys, hearing how they spoke and joked - alias Jackson. An unfamiliar gesture but not an unwelcome one. 

The corners of her mouth lifted as she took his hand in hers. Luckily, it reminded her to offer her own name. “Wini.” With a ridiculously formal incline of his head, he took a step back to leave.

Watching his retreating form, his words did make her ponder, they studied? They performed witchcraft together. Witchcraft meant grimoires. Grimoires meant one step closer in finding out what creature killed Mr. Lahey.

“Arthur,” she called out to him, halting him in his place. “I would really appreciate it if you’d help me brush up on a few things, if I’m still invited to one of those study sessions that is?” 

“Yes, sure.” Wini smiled, the thought of some progression forward in her investigation filled her with giddiness. At last. “I’ll let you know when we’ll me-,” the sudden hand on his shoulder stopped Arthur in his tracks.

“Mr. Kingston,” Harvey announced nonchalantly. In her opinion, her brother must have sensed her joy, and came to ruin it. Maybe he overheard and already knew what she was planning. Her eyes scrutinised him, turning into slits. The cheering crowd had done him well. The last time she saw him he stood in a corner surrounded by a few elders of the coven, singing his praise no doubt. How he suddenly appeared next to the well frightened Arthur was beyond her.

“Professor, you scared me,” Arthur chuckled, his uneasiness around Harvey almost amused her, if only she wasn’t so upset still.

“Light as a feather.” Her brother smiled, the perfect picture of charm. “Arthur, would you let me talk to my sister in private.” The warlock gave her a wide-eyed look, relieved he was given an out before he was pulled into an endless conversation about sage and mugwort.

She watched his retreating figure, left alone with Harvey, the silence returned. She busied herself with pushing some crumbs off the table. Her eyes shifted from her brother to a dirty spot on the table cloth, until she couldn’t take his perfectly matriculate silence anymore. “Having fun?” She didn’t mean for it to come off as sarcastic as it did but alas. 

Her brother squinted at her, disregarding her comment to speak on what seems to have been bothering him all day. “I would appreciate it if you didn’t make friends with every stray you meet.” Her eyebrow did raise at that.

“Harvey, are you serious?” Her voice dropped low, embarrassed by the very idea of someone listening. “I can’t be friends with Isaac, I can’t be friends with Arthur. Who exactly do you want me to be friends with?” She couldn’t believe it, only a few sentences exchanged with her brother, and an entirely new headache was already forming behind her eyes.

“How about we keep it strictly human.” This was definitely not helping her temper with him today. When she was small girl, she always adored her big brother, followed him around everywhere…until she managed to get her own personality. Winifred didn’t remember him ever being this inconsiderate, or even cruel. 

“Human? Harvey, we’re not even human.” Did she really have to explain this to him? Her brother hummed, and it was the most infuriating sound ever. “I’m serving them cake, Harvey. How am I supposed to-” The sight of the sparkling necklace immediately caught her attention. 

Her brother was dangling her necklace in front of her face like a piece of cheese before a mouse. She hadn’t worn it in days, looking at the swinging pendant, all prior anger fled from her mind. “I repaired it for you,” Harvey muttered, and dropped the necklace in her awaiting palm, turned around and left. No ‘you’re welcome’, no time to sing his praise and revel in all the ‘thank yous’ she would give him. 

Smiling at her beloved necklace, inspecting it for any scratches or warped metal. Once she felt satisfied, Wini opened the tiny clasp and hung it around her neck, where it belonged. She saw Harvey’s gift as what it was - an apology.

· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·

Her tray smacked down on the table, sitting down with deflated shoulders to munch on one of her carrot sticks lost in thought. Wini’s eyes met the startled look of Scott, his wide eyes made her halt in her movements. Did she have something on her face? 

Oh, no. She completely misread their friendship, the last time she sat at his table was when Stiles invited her. 

Winifred grabbed her tray, one more move from Scott and she would run off at a moment’s notice. They held intense eye contact for too long, she didn’t dare to move and neither did he. He looked almost…strained, like something was giving him immense pain. And then her head turned to the side, finally noticing the figure hidden behind the werewolf. Oh.

Brunette, beautiful in a deadly way - Allison. Why was she lurking behind Scott? Her ex-boyfriend no less. Wini’s eyes traveled between the two. There was something she didn’t know, something that was deliberately hidden from her. She didn’t like it one bit. The shocked expression on Scott’s face, the deer caught in headlight stare on Allison’s. The dots were connecting, albeit slowly. Wini had no idea about the whole dating-thing, and then ‘breaking up while still being in love with each other’-thing, but them being so secretive told her one thing. 

They were still together. How scandalous.

She tried to stiff the smile that was slowly edging itself on to her face. Before a word could even leave her lips, the pretty brunette had already ran off. Oh. The corners of her mouth dropped immediately, turning back towards Scott, who watched his ‘ex’ leave with a sort of longing that one could only see in movies. She leant forward, nudging herself closer to Scott to whisper. “Did I do something wrong?”

His mouth opened, maybe to comfort her a bit, or tell her about the very pressing thing they were mumbling about, but his mouth shut in an instance. Her frown deepened, she caught Stiles in the corner of her eye rushing to his side, who came from…somewhere. How did everyone manage to sneak up on her? “Scott. Do you see that?”

Scott secretiveness, him yearning after Allison, yes, she has.

“What, it’s an empty table.” Winifred turned abruptly, searching for what they were apparently looking at. 

“Yeah, but whose empty table?” She looked back at the two, and waited for the pin to drop. The empty table was supposed to mean something to her? Whose table? Someone. She was supposed to be thinking of someone. Someone who owned the table apparently.

“Boyd,” Scott revealed with an expression of utter shock. A frown appeared on Wini’s face, watching them gather their things to leave. 

Who the hell is Boyd?

· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·

Soon after, the three of them were apparently skipping school to find Boyd, Derek’s next victim. As it turned out they were speaking of Vernon Boyd. Silent type, like her. Boyd was actually in her math class, and he was nice enough. 

They always were, Isaac, Erica, and now Boyd - Derek had a type. 

Winifred was trailing behind Scott and Stiles as they headed towards the exit. It was quite sweet how Scott worried about Boyd as she often did about Isaac these days. Perhaps now they could work together to find that creature, she almost squealed in delight at the thought - she wouldn’t have to do it on her own anymore.

“I’m gonna go to the ice rink and see if he’s there,” Scott explained. Ah, right, Boyd was in mortal danger. Wini was quite confused what the exact plan was, stop Boyd from going through with it? How were the three of them supposed to do that? 

She didn’t know a lot about Vernon Boyd, they weren’t friends - mostly because she didn’t have many friends. But Scott and Stiles seemed to know him at least, so her question did seem reasonable. “Why the ice rink?” 

“He works there,” he clarified, stopping his rant for a short moment to answer her. Wini’s mouth turned into the shape of an ‘O’, she could have come to that conclusion on her own. “And if he’s not at home, you call me, got it?” Scott continued to convey his brilliant plan, which wasn’t a plan at all. Talk with him. That was it. While he was undeterred by her question, the constant side eyeing Stiles was giving him made him finally snap. “What?”

“Maybe we should let him,” Scott and her shared a look. “Boyd, you know, man? You said Derek’s giving them a choice, right?” A reasonable thought. One she did already consider.  What if Boyd was like Isaac? Derek preyed on insecurities, fear and…abuse. How could they deter Boyd from choosing this? Boyd was nice, Erica was kind, Isaac was sweet. And even they were desperate enough to take the bite. 

So…what if Boyd was like Isaac?

“We can’t,” Scott plainly stated, pushing his friend forward to walk more hastily.

“You got to admit, Erica looks pretty good. You know the word ‘sensational’ comes to mind.” Wini almost tripped over her own feet.

Her eyes stared at the back of Stiles’ head. “She was ‘sensational’ before, you know.” The sudden urge to protect Erica hit her, if it was Erica’s honour or her own, Wini wasn’t sure. Regardless, Erica was sensational, more now than ever, the moment she walked into the cafeteria it was if all else ceased to exist. It was demeaning in a way, Erica was really good in English, she wrote essays that would put Shakespeare to shame, did Stiles know that?

“That’s not what I meant.” She doubted it. “She is more confident, you know. I dig that.” Wini frowned at his explanation.

Eww.

“You dig that?” Astonishment turned into disgust, to imagine what exactly Stiles ‘digs’ made her whole body shudder. Lydia and Erica, who would have thought. Pretty women, Stiles’ kryptonite. 

“How good do you think she’s gonna look with a wolfsbane bullet in her head?” Scott interrupted, ending their back and forth like a cut from a knife.

“Jesus,” Wini voiced her horror, even more appalled by his dark thoughts than Stiles’ dirty ones.

“Alright, all I’m saying is maybe this one isn’t totally your responsibility.” Her head turned to the side in consideration. No, it wasn’t Scott’s responsibility- it was Derek’s.

“They all are. And you know this thing’s gonna get out of control. That makes me responsible.” Not enough to help prove Isaac’s innocence apparently. Scott felt guilty - Winifred felt guilty too. But he lacked perspective, it wasn’t like he was friends with any of them. If what Stiles said was true, and Derek let them choose, none of them had the faintest idea what made them even consider becoming werewolves. Maybe Derek was an asshole, but Isaac was so hurt and afraid, he choose it, and Wini was sure Boyd and Erica weren’t much different. 

“Alright, I’m with you.” How sweet. “And I also got to say this newfound heroism is making me very attracted to you.” Oh, my god. There was definitely a reason she only hung around Lydia - boys were disgusting.

“Shut up.” The werewolf looked almost bashful, dare she say flustered?

“No, seriously. Do you want to just try making out for a sec? Just to see how it feels.” She was going to have to leave this conversation before she made herself sick. And of what use would she be then? Wini rushed past them, now more determined than ever. Find Boyd, talk to him, and if he still wanted to go through with this - oh, well.

“Where are you going?” Stiles called after her as she opened the heavy steel doors with both hands. She turned at his voice, surprisingly, she managed to smile through the severity of the situation. 

“To find Boyd!”

Oh, hello! Two months later…sorry about that! I‘m going to be very honest, I do not like this chapter. That‘s also why this chapter took so long, i felt so unmotivated to write and edit. And because of all the very nice comments I actually found the energy to finally finish it, so thank you <3

Hope you all had a merry Christmas (to those that celebrated) and happy holidays <3

I guess I‘ll be seeing you next year…get it? ٩(ˊᗜˋ )و

THE AIR FELT STRANGELY ELECTRIC, the students of Beacon Hills High were buzzing surrounding the new gossip. Isaac Lahey had been arrested for murder, and had escaped confinement soon after. The questions of ‘why’ and ‘how’ were left unanswered. For now, Isaac remained a fugitive until the police apprehended him. Considering he was learning from a master criminal, Derek Hale, that could take a while.

It was truly an uncanny feeling. When Wini had awoken from her two hours of sleep that morning, she had almost forgotten the night’s prior happenings. It wasn’t until she came downstairs, being met by her elder brother’s well rested face with a cup of coffee in hand, that she felt the strange humming. He had given her an all knowing smile, placing today’s newspaper on the table before slowly rising from his seat to get himself another cup.

She had throughly rubbed the sleep from her eyes, dragging her tired legs to the long wooden table, her stomach had grumbled at the thought of making herself breakfast. But the glimpse at Harvey’s discarded newspaper made her lose her appetite. The front page read in bold letters “MURDERER AT LARGE”, and her heart had plummeted to her stomach. Isaac.

Wini watched her classmates scatter around, it felt like no time had passed at all. A little to her left, Lydia and Allison were chatting at their lockers. Jackson, who walked past with a repulsive scowl in her direction. Scott and Stiles jokingly pushing each other around, before a longing look crossed the werewolf’s face that made him halt right in front of Allison. Those two were so oblivious it almost hurt to watch.

And Wini? She was leaning against her locker without anyone to talk to.

It felt surreal that they’d only known each other for barely a week. What was to become of them now? She was extremely uncertain of their future, Isaac was a fugitive. To clear his name could take years. Against her better judgment, her mind traveled back to yesterday. The flickering of the candles that depicted Isaac in a beautiful yellow light. How happy he seemed. How carefree he was without the threat of his father looming over his head.

And only for a second - nothing else mattered.

Happy. That was how she liked to remember him. Not as the scared boy that sat trembling in the police station. It was an indescribable feeling, one she had never experienced before, but one she welcomed nonetheless.

But the matter of fact was - she was back to being alone. Lydia hadn’t made an attempt to talk to her, neither had Allison. Why would they?

Was this just how it was supposed to be?

Who had Wini wronged so badly that she would have to spend her eternity alone?

In her sixteen years of life, she had never imagined high school to be this lonely. Or was just her?

It didn’t matter now. It couldn’t. She could not wallow in self pity while Isaac was running from the police. So what was the first step of solving the brutal murder of a man? Find the real culprit.

Easier said than done.

‘Incredibly strong and fast’ was what Derek had said. There weren’t a lot of things that could top a werewolf in this case. A vampire, perhaps? But vampires drain their victims of blood, not slash them into pieces. A vengeful spirit? A wild centaur? Someone would’ve definitely noticed a half-horse half-man running around.

For a lack of better words, Wini felt…stumped. After school she definitely had to hit the books, Harvey’s grimoires to be specific. This whole thing felt…intentional. Why would it attack Mr. Lahey but not Isaac? The news said he was murdered in his car, that his son had somehow ripped off the vehicle’s door and disfigured him. So why him but not Isaac? Could this truly be vengeful intent rather than a macabre coincidence?

How was she supposed to find a supernatural creature in books thousand years older than her with no idea what she was even looking for? She had no description or name for whatever did this.

The only person that could truly give her answers was Isaac. Who was in hiding with no way of contacting. Wini wanted to curse at this entire situation. She had a bad feeling that this was not the first time and certainly not the last time something like this would happen. Someone else was going to get hurt. She was sure of it.

Winifred couldn’t shake that feeling that’s been following her all week. First, Lydia going missing. Wini spitting up black dirt and Lady becoming sick. Isaac’s father getting torn apart by…something. And she wasn’t the only one, even Deaton with his mysterious loner nature could feel it, enough to mention it to them. Was this what the druid spoke about? Nature’s balance and all that?

Something was hiding in the dark. And it just made it’s first move.

A long sigh left her lips, her head hitting the hard metal of the locker behind her. Frustration coursed through her veins. But she needed to get through this day first. Wini turned towards the padlock, her nimble fingers picked at the worn letters of her combination. She made no secret for her dislike towards her next lesson. P.E. was definitely the worst subject to have after a night of prison break, and running on a maximum of two hours sleep.

As she exchanged her backpack for her gym bag, she heavily debated on convincing Coach Finstock that she was feeling too unwell to participate in today’s activity. But her conscience laid heavy on her shoulders. She couldn’t skip again, yesterday’s theatrics had given her so much anxiety, Wini was afraid she’ll lie herself into an early grave.

With one final huff, she pushed herself forward, and reluctantly made her way towards the girl’s changing room. Her strength had already left her for the day, not at all excited for whatever cruel joke of a lesson Coach had come up with.

· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·

Her fingers tightened the knot of her shoelaces, Wini had changed into her gym clothes in an agonizing slow pace. Her peers seemed to be in the same mood as her, many of her classmates tightening their ponytails and whispering their dismay to their friends.

On the opposite side of the small wooden benches sat Allison, mimicking Wini’s action in fastening her own laces. Their eyes met for a short second, an awkward smile etched its way on to the brunette’s face before her eyes quickly downcasted to continue to listen to whatever Lydia was going on about. It must seem quite strange that just yesterday, Issac, who the girl thought was her boyfriend might she add, was arrested and then escaped from custody.

The thought made her momentarily halt, did she know? She was an Argent after all, and Isaac was a werewolf now. But it seemed so silly, Allison that was dating Scott McCall? Would she have been going out with a werewolf if she really was a hunter? The answer was no…unless she found out and that was why they broke up? That seemed ridiculous, Wini had seen Allison hang around Scott and Stiles, when Lydia first went missing for example. But it was true that they seemed far more distant than they used to. This entire thing was just way too complicated for her taste.

The moment Coach Finstock walked through the door with a clipboard in hand she straightened her posture, instantly distracting her from her muddled thoughts. “Ladies, hopefully everybody is dressed because I’m coming in,” he announced. “Listen up. Anybody sees Isaac Lahey, you immediately tell the principal, get a teacher, or you call me.” Wini could practically feel the side eye Allison was giving her. She had to remind herself that he was safe, with the help of Derek and the added agility, Isaac would be safe. For now.

“Alright, now get in there!” For good measures, Coach blew his whistle that hung around his neck, emitting a terrible shrill noise that made her, alongside her classmates, wince.

Winifred felt immediately winded once she saw the rock wall hoisted on mats and boxes piled on top of each other. Turning towards Coach, she hoped this was some cruel joke of his, surely he didn‘t expect her to climb that, did he?

Seeing her male classmates already surrounding the area, ready to take on the challenge, Wini was throughly disappointed. She joined the group of onlookers, studying the giant wall for herself. There was no way Wini would get up there in a timely manner. Already imagining all the ways she could miserably fail at this task.

“Everybody, listen!” Her teacher exclaimed. “Get to the top, get a good grade. Understood?” The class had gone unusually quiet, when no one answered, the man continued. “Perfect! McCall, Argent, you go first. Let’s go!” She could only cringe once more as he blew into his torture instrument, successfully causing a high pitched ringing in her ears as he stood right next to her.

Allison and Scott made easy progress as they started their way up the tower of terror. The girl moved with a sort of grace Wini could only dream of. She did note that the two were taking their sweet time, whispering and smiling to each other. For the life of her she could not figure out the pair, for not being together anymore they sure enjoyed each other’s company. Were they together or not? Did Wini even want to know? This whole thing seemed way to complicated to her, once, or more like if, Wini got a boyfriend, a real one this time, she wouldn’t be doing this tiptoeing. Either be together or don’t be.

To her right, she noticed Coach Finstock impatiently looking at his watch. Maybe if they took too long to reach the top, Wini wouldn’t have to climb up there?

It was truly only a moment that she was distracted, in that short second Scott must have lost his footing and slipped. He came crashing down on the safety mat, emitting joyful laughter from the crowd, even Wini couldn’t hold back an amused smile at his stunned expression. Sneaking a glimpse up at Allison, who smugly glanced down at him, Wini soon realised this wasn’t because of Scott’s apparent slippery feet. This was sabotage.

Coach bent down to join Scott on the blue mat. “McCall, I don’t know why, but your pain gives me a special kind of joy. Right?” Yeah, this was going to be horrible. If that was Coach’s reaction, accompanied with the class’ shameful hollering, Wini felt the pressure even more.

“All right, next two. Stilinski, Erica, let’s go. The wall.” At least she wasn’t next, she could try and analyse the best way of getting up there without embarrassing herself. Out of the corner of her eye she could see the two walk to the front.

Wini was quite surprised at Erica’s choice of clothing, a thick hoodie with matching sweatpants, a very brave thing to wear to Coach’s class. She didn’t think much of it, let the girl wear what she wanted even if a heatstroke was inevitable. The nerves of the girl with the unruly blonde hair was basically written all over her face, a sentiment Wini could full heartedly share.

While the blonde took quite some time to get her footing, Stiles, to his credit, made quick work of reaching the top, already jumping down before Erica made it halfway up. Wini was surprisingly impressed by him, this didn’t seem to be his sort of thing, especially since he was a regular bench-sitter in lacrosse.

As time went on, it became increasingly clear that Erica wasn’t moving, not at all wanting to continue her climb up the wall. Once, Wini noticed the girl was shaking uncontrollably, worry immediately seized her.

Alongside her classmates, Wini took an attentive step forward, observing the scene in front of her in shock as Erica started to hyperventilate. The girl could only mutter a soft ‘help, please’ as she weakly clung to the colorful grips.

“Erica? Dizzy? Is it vertigo?” Coach probed loudly beside her.

“Vertigo’s a dysfunction of the vestibular system of the inner ear.” Wini couldn’t even appreciate Lydia’s rare show of knowledge, perhaps her breakup with Jackson had finally stopped her weak attempt at acting stupid? “She’s just freaking out.” It sure as hell didn’t seem like ‘just freaking out’.

“Erica,” her teacher called out to her again.

“I’m fine.” Whispers tore through the gymnasium, she wasn’t convincing anybody.

“Maybe someone should climb up and help her down?” Wini suggested, looking around to see if anyone agreed with her.

Stiles, who was still harnessed to the wall made a move to hoist himself back up towards her but halted once Erica shrieked out. “No! I’m fine.”

Apparently she was determined to insist she was alright, Erica wasn’t going to make it up or down with the way she was clutching the wall with shaking hands.

The people behind her kept pushing Wini forward, desperate to sneak a peek at Erica’s struggle. A bunch of noisy bloodhounds if you’d ask her. It was pathetic and mean to take some sick enjoyment out of her panic.

“Coach, maybe it’s not safe. You know she’s epileptic,” Allison revealed nonchalantly, and Wini’s eyes might have actually grown in size. For how long had Erica and her shared classes, and not once had she known she was epileptic? The blonde was like her in many ways, guarded her peace, sat alone at lunch and…well…didn’t have any friends.

“Why doesn’t anybody tell me this stuff? Erica, you’re fine. Just kick off from the wall. There’s a mat to catch you. Come on.”

Thankfully, Erica hesitantly pushed herself away from the wall, safely landing on the mat with shaking legs. “See, you’re fine. You’re on the ground. You’re alright. Let’s go. Shake it off. You’re fine.”

Concern etched its way on to Wini’s face, watching Erica storm off, she was clearly embarrassed. And the hall of laughing idiots were not helping. Some of the boys were pushing each other in laughter, she knew they were on the lacrosse team. Even Jackson couldn’t shut his mouth, snickering in great amusement, it made anger flare up inside her.

Wini didn’t voice her dismay.

“Alright, calm down everybody!” Coach takes a moment to study his clipboard before calling out to the group. “Grimm, Bennett! You’re next. Let’s go!”

Oh, man.

· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·

Wini tentatively buttoned up her blouse, stuffing her sweaty sports clothes into her discarded bag. After that mess of a P.E. lesson, in which she actually managed to reach the top, in a snail’s pace, yes, but she did it and she considered that a win in her books.

Next, she slowly but surely zipped up her boots, sitting down on the bench to make it easier on her. She was lost in her thoughts as she often was nowadays when she had no one to talk to. Even as she was climbing that godforsaken wall she was distracted. The truth was - she felt bad. Really bad.

Erica was basically being bullied for something as minuscule as having an incurable illness, and Wini didn’t speak up. She did that a lot these days. If only she had spoken up sooner, Isaac wouldn’t be a fugitive, he wouldn’t have been in pain any longer, they would have gone to the police, or maybe she could have had a stern talk with that father of his that involved his brain being scrambled until it was set right. If only she hadn’t been too afraid to lose him. If only she hadn’t been so selfish.

Regardless, it was too late…but with Erica…she couldn’t take back the mean laughter but she could still talk to her. Make her feel better at least. The witch took a second to scan the girl’s changing room for the blonde. Did she already leave? Had she truly been so lost in thought she hadn’t noticed? It couldn’t have been more than ten minutes since Coach told them to get out of his sight.

It was almost like this whisper that made her head immediately snap towards the direction she assumed it came from. Her eyes locked on to the closed gymnasium door in an instance, zeroing in on the metal, half expecting for someone to walk into the room to tell her what she was missing. It was like that time in the bathroom when she had felt that raging headache that almost made her collapse right then and there. Wini strained her ears, intently listening for the next calling of those strange voices.

When no such thing happened, she decided to investigate it herself, cautiously of course. Her feet carried her forward, her footsteps drilling into her ears as the world around her became impossibly silent. That rush of blood, that tingling at her fingertips, that unsettling feeling that made her heart beat uncontrollably.

Something edged her forward, pleading her to open the door and let them inside. The whispers came back as she reached for the door handle, as if they were pleased that she was following their instructions. No words were spoken, no words she understood, no words she could hold on to and try to understand.

Her fingers weren’t even able to wrap around the handle before the hand on her arm made her momentarily stop her movement. “Hey, you okay?” To say Wini was surprised to find Allison standing next to her would be an understatement. She sounded concerned, and in that very moment Wini couldn’t grasp why. She needed to open the door, needed to see what lay behind it.

“Yeah…yeah, it’s just…,” her voice drifted off, not entirely sure what she was going to say. It was just what? She was hearing voices that told her to do things, and now she needed to do just that?

That gnawing feeling hadn’t left her, and before she could really think about the insinuations of why creepy voices were whispering in her ear, she pressed down on the handle. The only thing she knew was that she needed to open that door.

It felt like that hand on the door handle hadn’t belong to her, almost like she was trapped inside her own body, while she watched it do whatever it pleased. Her hand shook, her muscles tightened and her stiff neck was preventing her to look away from the scene in front of her.

Wini had opened the door just in time to see Erica fall from that terribly high wall. Gratefully, she was caught by Scott, inhumanly so. Wini could vaguely recall seeing Allison run past her, followed by other classmates of hers. Even when they rushed past her to reach the shocking scene, she couldn’t move away from the doorway.

She wasn’t sure if it was fear or something else that held her in place. Across the room stood Stiles, fairly quickly did she notice him watching her. Perhaps it was confusion or pity that she detected in his expression. Her eyes didn’t stray on him for long, catching a glimpse of Erica through the crowd of people. Scott had put her on her side, she was shaking uncontrollably.

Winifred had eventually regained the use of her body, her tense muscles loosening from their strained position. Her legs carried her over to the circle of people, pushing her way through to see the person laying on the ground.

The boy tentatively cradled Erica’s head, to Wini’s relief she had stopped seizing, now the blonde lay unmoving. Wini could only stare at the scene with wide eyes. She had no way to help, no way of it not being perceived as completely crazy by other people.

At some point, someone had called an ambulance.

· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·

Wini stared at the old TV with barely contained boredom. The tape her teacher had put on was going on about the immunsystem, and the witch couldn’t be less interested. Her mind kept drifting back to that morning in gym class. Erica hurting herself, and the whispers warning her about it. Was that what happened? A warning? She wasn’t sure. Only one other time had they reached out to her, and last time it was to remove that skull-splitting headache. What were their intentions? What were they? And why couldn’t she resist them?

The smart thing to do now was to speak to her brother. His knowledge of anything supernatural, especially witchcraft was infinitely greater than hers. He was a man of the book after all, a scholar. While he did help her in finding Lydia, and as harsh as it sounded - Harvey was not to be trusted with this. The whispers, the thing that killed Mr. Lahey.

He was her brother - but she couldn’t. Wini wasn’t the only one keeping secrets. Not when he was in cahoots with Derek Hale. Not when he refused to tell her about it. Not when he was breaking the one rule that was set for them. Sure, in a way so was she. At least Wini had a good reason, to help Isaac. What could Harvey’s reason possibly be?

Fortunately, the bell rung, announcing the end of class. Wini, alongside her classmates, quickly stuffed her things into her bag, and left the room before her teacher decided to add extra homework that she had no desire to do over the weekend.

The day had drained her of all her energy, at least it was time for lunch now. She would head to the cafeteria after she’d put her bag inside her locker. In her mind she was already putting together a list of all the things she needed to get done.

Find out more about that creature, get the grimoires without raising suspicion, stay up all night trying to figure out what that thing was…and then what? She figures out what did this, and how exactly will she clear Isaac’s name? How will she convince the police a supernatural being killed Mr. Lahey and not the highly suspicious son, who had great reason to commit that crime?

As she put in the combination of her locker, an idea popped inside her head. Stiles. He was the son of the sheriff, if anyone could convince the Sheriff of Beacon Hills of Isaac’s innocence it was him. Winifred was no stranger to the fact that this town liked to cover up mysterious deaths with convenient animal attacks. So was this the solution? Mr. Lahey was brutally mauled by a bear? In the middle of the street, in a well lit alleyway? Were there even bears in California? Whatever.

What mattered was that Isaac needed an alibi.

Get an alibi, blame it on someone or something else. Easy. Yeah. She’ll have to think of a reasonable thing to say to the police. In that also laid the problem of Jackson, who had already spoken to said police, and revealed enough to lead to Isaac being arrested. So on top of everything, she needed to find a way to undermine Jackson. Great.

Speaking of Jackson, the sudden sound of his agitating voice filled her ears. “You ruin everything!” He had definitely attracted the attention of all the students passing through that hallway.

Wini’s expression turned into a grimace as she watched Jackson corner Lydia, pushing her into a wall as he continued to aggressively point in her face. For a short moment, she considered just walking away, getting between those two would surely result in her plummeting down to the ground. But Lydia seemed so scared as she pushed herself further back from her violent ex boyfriend that Wini decided to intervene before Jackson started swinging around with his fists.

“Jesus, Jackson, back off.” Apparently putting her hand on his shoulder disgusted him so much, he flinched back. Her eyebrows raised in surprise, what was wrong with him? Plenty of things, she was certain, but for him to jump like that? “Just calm down.”

“Don’t tell me to calm down. This is none of your business,” he spat. None of her business? He’s yelling and threatening her friend in a crowded hallway, and studying Lydia’s bewildered appearance told her the girl was on the verge of crying. Jesus. The audacity of this guy. “This is all her fault!” Something had evidently blown his very short fuse, and Lydia was at the forefront of his ire.

“Alright, walk it off, come on,” trying to shoo him in the other direction of his ex. Wini had truly no desire to figure out what exactly was bothering him to cause this kind of reaction. So much money, and no aspiration to talk to a professional. Truly a pity.

This was a tantrum. He could probably not take the fact that Lydia wasn’t his plaything anymore. She woudn’t possibly take him back after this, right?

He scoffed, and stepped closer into her space. She had to lean back slightly to ensure she wouldn’t be breathing in the same air. Wini had the sense that he had quickly shifted his anger towards her. Her mind traveled back to when he had smashed Isaac against a row of lockers. And in that moment, she didn’t care if anyone saw, if he tried something, she’ll be the one to throw him against some metal lockers.

“You know, don’t you?” He exhaled. What? Her eyebrow raised in question.

What was he on about now? Know about what? That he was a prick? That wasn’t a difficult thing to figure out at all.

“Know what?” She watched as his eye twitched unnervingly. He had to realise that she wasn’t being obtuse on purpose, right? The way his face turned a deep shade of red will almost certainly make him pop a blood vessel. Nonetheless, Wini genuinely took a moment to think about any grand secrets of his she found out about recently, and came up with absolutely nothing. Nothing other than the fact that he was an asshole, but she wouldn’t consider that a secret.

“Don’t play stupid, Grimm. You’re part of it, just like Scott, aren’t you?” That was what he was referring to? The supernatural? He did have this weird obsession with the aforementioned werewolf, and all that had happened at Winter Formal. It already took her an embarrassingly long time to figure it all out, and there were still things she didn’t know about. Jackson knew, and now was mad at Lydia for…what exactly? “So, what are you? Derek’s pimp?”

What? “What.” Did she need to call the psych ward? What the hell was wrong with him? What was he even trying to insinuate?

“Your gravedigger boyfriend gets to be one but I can’t because of that freak?” Huh? Was he actually saying that she was pimping out her boyfriend, supposedly, to Derek Hale? But in doing so, Jackson did reveal the origin of his unwarranted anger, he wanted to become a werewolf but couldn’t? So why was he fighting with Lydia? Did…she know? Did everyone know before Wini did? That couldn’t be possible, right? Not with her naked escapade through the woods, and Winifred was ninety-nine percent certain, Lydia was not a werewolf. Something different? Maybe, a very hard maybe.

“You’re insane.” Deny. Deny. Deny…

“Yeah? Whatever. I know what you are.” Oh, she seriously doubted that. Wini was surprised he was able to connect the dots in the first place. He stalked off, trying to act as nonchalantly as possible, almost like he hadn’t just abused his ex girlfriend in broad daylight. She could only huff at his retreating form. Thank god, he wasn’t able to become a werewolf, for whatever reason that may be. An even more overly aggressive Jackson? No, thank you.

Once, she finally did turn back around to face Lydia, maybe to comfort her or full heartedly advise her to find a better taste in boyfriends, she was gone. Winifred spun around the hall, in case she was able to spot her somewhere. Lydia had already left. Had she run off? Probably for the better, being in the presence of that douchebag would make anyone flee to get away from him.

It was time for lunch anyway, maybe that was where Lydia went?

· · ─ ·✶· ─ · ·

As it turned out, Lydia had indeed not gone to lunch. She must have gone somewhere else to hide instead. Looking around the cafeteria with a tray of food in hand, trying to catch a glimpse of the strawberry blonde avoiding her. No luck.

This was a nightmare. Not only was Lydia nowhere in sight but she forgot how miserably alone lunch felt when you had no friends to sit with anymore. Winifred had two options, she could spend her lunch sitting alone at a table or she could flee to her car, where no one would see her and eat there…her decision was embarrassingly easy to make.

Wini circled back to the counter on her left, planning to put away her tray before sneaking away, just as a voice called out to her. Stiles, who had suddenly appeared in front of her, was awkwardly staring at her. It frightened her enough to almost drop the sandwich that sat on her tray. The boy with the buzzcut opened his mouth multiple times, swirling the key in his hand nervously around his finger.

“Hello, Stiles. How can I help you?” Did she feel slightly irritated after that dumpster fire of a morning? Yes. Did Stiles’ presence help her in any way? No.

“I was just wondering if you’d like…to sit…with us?” His body spun around to point at a random table in the distance, where Scott McCall already sat digging into his food. Oh. Winifred was genuinely surprised that Stiles was asking her to sit with him and his friend. Wasn’t it only two days ago when she was trapped inside his car, and only being able to scream her way out of it?

Something inside her told her to hold on to that fear. To not forget how Stiles had treated her. To guard herself. But then she remembered yesterday, how he took the fall so she and Isaac could get away, and the offer just seemed too sweet to resist. It wouldn’t be that bad of an idea, right? She could ask them what they knew about that creature, and in doing so help Isaac. Perhaps convince him to talk to his dad?

So, she accepted, because she wanted to clear Isaac’s name of course, and not because she desperately did not want to sit alone at lunch for another day. “Oh, sure!” Wini agreed, hoping her voice didn’t seem too eager.

The witch followed closely behind Stiles, together they made their way through the maze of tables and other students moving around. As they neared Scott, the werewolf looked up. The confused stare the pair received was promptly ignored by Stiles, who sat down without another word.

“Got ‘em.” The keys he had been previously holding were dropped on the table for his friend to see. “Pick you up right after work tonight and we’ll meet at the rink, cool?” The buzzcut boy said.

“The rink?” Wini cut in. Immediately regretting her interruption when Scott looked rather irritated.

“We’re meeting up at the ice rink,” Stiles explained. “Would you…like to ehm…come too?” His suggestion made her halt her movement of picking up her turkey sandwich.

“Dude,” Scott hissed, not at all amused by his friend’s theatrics. Stiles’ sudden interest in inviting her to do things with him made her instantly feel suspicious. Was he just being nice, or did he have an alternative motive?

After a while of Wini’s eyes skipping between the two as they seemed to silently communicate in their weird twin language, she decided to ask further questions. “Who else is coming?”

“Well, me and Scott, obviously. And ehm Lydia and Allison.” So a date. They were having a date, and Stiles wanted her to come too? Talk about awkward. Yeah, let Wini join their fun activity with her ex best friend and her new best friend. Great idea.

“To be a third wheel? No, thank you.” It may have sounded a little too harsh, if the prolonged silence was anything to go by. Scott continued to stare pointedly at Stiles, perhaps to make him uninvite her. “Look,” Wini reluctantly started to say, getting back both of their attention. Better to bring it up now, rather than later. “That thing that attacked Isaac’s father, do you know what it was…or ehm what it looked like?”

“Shhh,” Stiles hushed her, his head raising up to peek at anyone listening to their conversation. Which seemed far more suspicious than her simply asking about it. “Why are you interested in that?” Well…

“I want to find out what it is. If I know what I’m looking for that’s one step closer to clearing Isaac’s name.” Surprisingly, it was the truth. Once they figure out that thing’s weakness they’ll…trap it, or contain it somehow. Ultimately depending on what that creature was.

“Yeah, how do you plan on doing that?” The boy asked sarcastically, and his tone almost made her want to pettily flick her fingers against his forehead.

“I was going to look through my brother’s grimoires and see what I-,” she started to explain before being interrupted by him.

“I don’t think we really got to the part where you explain how you’re involved in all this?” What was up with everyone suddenly interested in her involvement? Yet, she had to admit, Stiles had some sort of right to question her after last night.

“What do you mean? Isaac is my friend. I want to help him.” Deny. Deny. Deny…?

“No, this is the part where you tell us what you are. What you did last night wasn’t exactly…normal.” Okay.

And after a very long reluctant pause, she was actually considering telling them. Isaac already knew, kind of at least, and if she wanted Stiles to be her ally in helping the newly turned werewolf - she needed his trust.

Wini took a deep breath, slightly leaning closer to the duo in a false sense of privacy. “I’m a witch,” she whispered. It kind of felt nice to admit, to have people that knew and understood, to an extent at least.

While Scott almost spit out his juice, Stiles just seemed inherently confused. “Huh. So like wands, spellcasting, talking cats and stuff?” She scoffed at his question, until she realised he was being genuine.

“No, I don’t have a wand. Yes to spellcasting. And I do have a cat, but she doesn’t speak,” and after a second thought she added. “With words at least.”

“So you’re a witch,” Scott slowly began to repeat his thoughts after a while, to which she gave a shy nod of her own. “Your brother is a wizard, and he’s going to help you figure out what that thing is?” Something definitely went wrong along the way of his thought process, and it almost made her laugh out loud, but she didn’t want for those innocent puppy eyes to disappear.

“Warlock,” she corrected absentmindedly with a smug smile gracing her lips.

“What?”

“The male version of a witch is a warlock, you’re thinking of a mage.” The werewolf slowly blinked at her, the entourage of information seemed to greatly baffle him, an dumbfounded expression taking over his face.

“Oh…,” the werewolf whispered, his mouth turning into the soft shape of an ‘O’.

“Okay, guys! Whatever,” Stiles announced, shifting their attention back to himself. “So, I’ll pick you up after work? I paid fifty bucks for these keys,” he told Scott.

“Fifty bucks? Dude.” Unbelievable. They were already distracted enough to forgot what they were just talking about in the matter of seconds.

She watched their back and forth for a few stunned moments. “Will you help me out or not?” Wini loudly cut through their bickering.

“Seriously, don’t get involved. He’s Derek’s problem now,” Stiles stated. She was very aware of Derek’s involvement in all of this. That was exactly why they had to help Isaac before it was too late. There was no way she’d let her friend wallow in the presence of that overcompensating alpha of his for longer than necessary.

“But this is about helping Isaac,” Winifred reiterated. They were on the same sports team as him, shared classes with him, ate lunch with him. He was innocent. How could they knowingly let him remain a fugitive?

“Why are you so chummy with him anyway?” ‘Chummy’ wasn’t the word she would use to describe her relationship with the boy. She herself was aware that in helping Isaac, they would also be helping Derek, who wasn’t exactly a law upholding citizen - but more importantly, this was about Isaac. That was all that mattered.

“What do you mean? He’s my friend and he didn’t do this,” Wini uttered, something she deemed as very reasonable.

“Again Derek’s problem now-“ Before he could spout another ignorant comment, Scott interrupted him.

“It had this long tail, it was quick, and I guess it looked…kind of scaly?” He described, and Wini felt incredibly grateful she almost wanted to pull him into a tight hug.

“Dude-,” Stiles reprimanded him in annoyance.

“What? He’s innocent.” Wini felt genuinely touched by Scott’s good nature, he seemed alright in her books, even when he acted rather guarded towards her.

“Dude!” The boy next to her reached across the table to smack him across the head. She was sure the bickering would have gone on for quite a while, had it not been for Scott, who became clearly distracted by something at the entrance to the cafeteria.

Not something. Someone.

Erica, in an incredibly short black miniskirt and a leatherjacket wrapped around her shoulders, entered the cafeteria. Hot red lipstick adorned her lips, and she stalked into the room with uncomfortably high leopard heels on. The blonde basically caught the attention of all the students moving about the place. This was definitely…new.

Unsurprisingly, this had Derek written all over the place. Wini watched with barely contained disgust as her peers gaped at her, including Scott and Stiles. If she looked a little bit closer she could probably see the drool coming out of both their mouths. Jesus.

Erica strutted forward with a new found confidence, not at all the shy girl from that morning, taking an apple the same colour as her lipstick from a nearby table. Seductively biting into the red fruit, wiping the juice from her chin with a smirk.

“What the holy hell is that?” The loud slam of hands made their heads immediately snap towards the culprit. Oh, she found Lydia! She looked…upset, seething actually, and Wini couldn’t blame her. Erica’s sudden hotness had definitely turned every boy’s head in her near vicinity.

At least Isaac wasn’t here to see this.

This could mean numerous of things, Erica had received a ‘The Princess Diaries’ - makeover, and she had the intruding thought that Derek was probably around here somewhere, lurking in the dark as usual. Isaac and Erica. What was Derek planning? Why did he need them?

“It’s Erica,” Scott unhelpfully stated, both of the boys getting up from their seats to follow after the blonde, who had taken her stolen apple with her to model walk herself back outside the door.

The witch watched them do so, she momentarily thought about if she should head out with them, until she remembered the other person still at their table. Wini shifted in place to study Lydia’s appearance, sometimes it seemed truly impossible to read the girl, even now with anger written all over her face. After her encounter with Jackson, Lydia had run off, and Wini was uncertain on how to approach the topic. “Are you alright?”

Her strawberry blonde head turned slowly in her direction, her sharp eyes that seemed a little bit too red, narrowed ever so slightly. “Just peachy,” she spat. Her manicured fingers slamming once more on the table before she stormed away, the sudden loud sound making her slightly flinch away. She watched at her retreating from with wide eyes.

Wini picked at her food without much hunger, the appetite she felt before suddenly soured. She should have eaten inside her car. 

No Isaac in this chapter </3

You may have noticed my wild and random arrangement of putting commas, my heart tells me where they go…it had to work especially hard this chapter

Fun fact October 13th is Wini’s Birthday, and if my calculations are correct, she would have turned 30 this year. Damn. So Happy belated Birthday, Winifred Grimm!

Anyway…it’s the season of the witch… perfect for this fic. •⩊• No Isaac in this chapter </3

You may have noticed my wild and random arrangement of putting commas, my heart tells me where they go…it had to work especially hard this chapter

Fun fact October 13th is Wini’s Birthday, and if my calculations are correct, she would have turned 30 this year. Damn. So Happy belated Birthday, Winifred Grimm!

Anyway…it’s the season of the witch… perfect for this fic. •⩊•