Eddie stayed where he was for a long moment, eyes fixed on the window.
The movement outside had stopped.
Or maybe it had never been there to begin with.
"…You still seeing it?" he asked quietly.
A pause.
Then-
"No."
Eddie exhaled through his nose. "Yeah. Same."
That didn't make him feel better.
If anything, it made it worse.
Slowly, carefully, he pushed himself further upright. His muscles trembled with the effort, but he forced himself to stay steady. Sitting still wasn't going to help. Not now. Not when something- or someone- might be watching.
"Alright," he muttered. "Let's not be sitting ducks."
He swung one leg off the bed.
Bad idea.
The moment his foot touched the floor, the world tilted hard. His vision blurred, and his body gave out beneath him. He caught himself on the edge of the bed with a sharp grunt, breath hitching.
"Okay- yeah- still fragile," he hissed.
"Idiot," Venom muttered faintly.
Eddie let out a weak chuckle. "Good to hear you've still got your charm."
He stayed there for a moment, crouched awkwardly, waiting for the dizziness to pass. When it did, he tried again- slower this time. One foot. Then the other. He leaned heavily against the wooden frame, testing his balance.
Better.
Not good. But better.
"Progress," he said.
No reply this time. Just a faint presence in the back of his mind.
Eddie took a cautious step forward.
The wooden floor creaked under his weight. The sound felt too loud in the quiet house, echoing in a way that made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up.
He paused.
Listened.
Nothing.
Just wind brushing against the walls, whispering through cracks and corners.
Still… something felt off.
Eddie moved toward the door, each step slow and deliberate. The closer he got, the more aware he became of the silence.
Not natural silence.
The kind that felt… held.
Like the world outside was waiting.
He reached for the handle.
Stopped.
"…You feel that?" he whispered.
A beat.
Then-
"Yes."
That was all Venom said.
But it was enough.
Eddie's grip tightened slightly. "Yeah. Thought so."
He hesitated, then pulled the door open.
The hallway beyond was dimly lit, the air thick with the scent of herbs and something older-something earthy and sharp. The same symbols he'd noticed in the room stretched along the walls here too, carved deep into the wood, some faintly glowing.
"Okay," Eddie murmured. "Definitely not normal house décor."
He stepped out into the hallway.
Nothing jumped out at him. No sudden attack. No lurking figure.
But the feeling didn't go away.
If anything, it deepened.
Eddie glanced toward the front of the house. The door Isabella had used was still shut. No signs of disturbance.
"So if not inside…" he muttered.
His eyes shifted toward the window at the end of the hall.
"…then outside."
Venom stirred again, slightly stronger this time.
"Hungry."
Eddie frowned. "That's not new."
"Not… food."
That made him pause.
"…What do you mean, not food?"
No answer.
Just a faint pulse- like instinct. Like something buried deep within Venom was reacting to something nearby.
Eddie didn't like that.
Not one bit.
"Yeah," he said quietly. "That's usually when things get ugly."
He moved toward the window, slower now, more cautious. Every instinct he had- human and otherwise- was telling him to be careful.
He reached the window and leaned slightly to the side, keeping most of his body out of view.
Careful.
Measured.
He looked out.
At first, he saw nothing.
Beyond the street, a park could be seen, where trees swayed gently in the wind. A dirt path led away from the house, cutting between two buildings and out toward the road. Shadows from the buildings stretched long across the fading light.
Then-
Movement.
There.
Between the trees.
Eddie's eyes narrowed.
A figure.
Tall. Thin. Too still.
Watching.
The moment Eddie focused on it-
It moved.
Fast.
Not running. Not quite.
More like… gliding.
And then it was gone.
Eddie jerked back from the window, heart pounding.
"Okay," he whispered. "Yeah. That was real."
"Danger," Venom said, more clearly now.
Eddie nodded slowly. "Yeah. I got that part."
He stayed still, listening again.
Nothing came crashing through the trees. No immediate attack.
But the air felt heavier now. Charged. Tense.
Like something had taken notice.
"…I think whatever that was- it saw me," Eddie said.
Venom didn't respond.
It didn't need to.
Eddie pushed himself away from the wall and moved back toward his room- crawling, to be exact- still a little faster now despite his weakness.
"Alright. New plan," he muttered. "We stay inside. We wait for the witch. And we don't do anything stupid."
A pause.
"…Define stupid," Venom said.
Eddie snorted softly. "Pretty much everything we usually do."
He made it back to the bed and sat down heavily, breathing a little harder now. That brief burst of movement had taken more out of him than he wanted to admit.
"Damn," he muttered. "We are really not in top form."
Venom shifted faintly.
"Fix."
Eddie frowned. "Fix what?"
A pause.
Then-
"Need… more."
Eddie leaned back slightly, thinking.
"More what?" he asked. "Food? Energy? Something else?"
Silence.
Then-
"…don't know."
That wasn't helpful.
But it was honest.
Eddie rubbed his face, exhaling slowly. "Great. We're dealing with mystery magic, creepy stalkers in the woods, and you don't even know what you need."
A faint flicker of irritation passed through Venom.
"Not helpful."
Eddie smirked faintly. "Yeah, well, neither is that."
He fell quiet after that.
Time passed.
Minutes, maybe longer.
The light outside dimmed further, shadows stretching deeper into the room. The wind picked up again, rattling something loose on the outside wall.
Eddie's eyes drifted toward the door.
Still closed.
Still no sign of Isabella.
"…She said she'd be right back," he murmured.
"Liar?" Venom suggested.
Eddie shook his head slightly. "No. Didn't feel like it."
That was the strange part.
For all of this- magic, weirdness, unknowns- Isabella hadn't felt like a threat or a liar.
Confusing? Yes.
Suspicious? Probably.
But not dangerous.
At least… not to him.
"…Then where is she?" Eddie asked.
As if in answer-
A sound.
Just outside house.
Eddie's head snapped toward the hallway.
Footsteps.
Soft.
Slow.
Not Isabella.
Too heavy.
Too deliberate.
Venom reacted instantly.
"Not her."
Eddie didn't move.
Didn't speak.
The footsteps drew closer to the house.
One step.
Then another.
The dried leaves outside cracked under the weight of the steps.
Eddie's eyes locked onto the door.
His body tensed, every muscle coiling despite the weakness.
"Okay," he whispered under his breath. "This is happening."
The footsteps stopped.
Right outside the front door.
Silence.
Thick.
Oppressive.
Eddie held his breath.
The handle twitched.
Once.
Then-
Slowly-
"Alohomora".
He heard the words, couldn't' understand but definitely not good news, and he was spot on.
He heard the front door turning. Whoever-or whatever- was outside, is now inside the house.
Eddie's fingers curled slightly, instinctively ready to fight- even though he knew he was in no condition to win.
"Easy," he murmured. "We don't know what it is yet."
"Enemy," Venom growled softly.
"Maybe," Eddie replied. "Not confirmed."
They heard movement throughout the house- rustling, objects shifting. Whoever it was, it was definitely searching for something.
"Found it yet? The damn hag should be returning anytime. Dark Lord should have allowed us to kill her… filthy mudblood," came another voice from outside- much to the horror of both of them, this one had came completely unnoticed.
"Nothing. I saw something moving inside before. Must be in the other room. She probably placed it there," replied a voice from inside the house.
"I'll check it."
"Homenum Revelio," muttered the second voice.
This time, both Eddie and Venom heard the words clearly, and felt something go over them, a breeze or something similar. Although not cold, it raised their alertness of both of them to the max as neither understood what it meant or what had happened, their instincts told them it was definitely bad news.
"Well, well… what do we have here? The old hag had some company. You should probably have some answers for us," uttered the second voice- a rough male tone.
Footsteps started coming toward the room.
And then-
The door creaked open.