Disclaimer: Not mine…and I finally finished…I think I'm going to concentrate on other stories now…
Chapter Four: Forever and Ever
Wanda had scarcely returned for a second before darting off again, her skin disturbingly pale. For the split second he saw her, her wings fluttered madly and her face was flush. Transporting both Timmy and Tootie exerted more magic than she was used to expending, even with Cosmo, and she wanted nothing more than to collapse. If either of them needed her, they could call. Otherwise, she would faint at the waterfront.
"Be good." Wanda warned, her words lingering as Timmy and Tootie turned to each other and scowled.
Folding her arms across her chest, Tootie cast a contemptuous look at Timmy and her surroundings. Her purple eyes scrutinized the room and sought an easily accessible escape. There was only one and chances were, her temper would rise and she'd be shaking too badly to exit through it.
Timmy's azure eyes followed her gaze and he glowered. While he appreciated Wanda's attempt to reconcile them, he personally thought it futile. Tootie was a bitch, plain and simple. The apple never fell far from the tree and all that. Anyone related to Vicky was bound to have a cruel streak.
"Another mess you've gotten me into, Turner," Tootie growled, glaring. The first had landed them a week's worth detentions, but at least there were no authority figures to punish them here, none she could see. Still, she was alone in a strange, magical place with her crush, whom she'd desperately pretended not to like. The disadvantages outweighed the advantages here.
"Me? Maybe if you hadn't shot off your mouth, we wouldn't be in this mess!" Timmy snapped, jumping to his feet and pointing a finger at her accusingly. You jezebel. You heathen...
"Me? I shoot off my mouth? Well, maybe if you weren't more useful to humanity dead than alive, I wouldn't find your living face so repugnant, I'd snap! Tell me, Turner, how many mirrors have you broken today by looking in them?" She sneered.
"And how many condoms have you broken today? Oh, wait, you don't need them for oral." His eyes narrowed in disdain. Whatever Wanda was smoking, he'd need some too because he honestly couldn't see her point. Tootie didn't care for him, she hated him. Personally, that was just fine with him. He preferred to hate the whole family.
"Used up your jar of lubricant yet?" She retorted, eyes ablaze. If he could insinuate she was a whore, then she had every right to retaliate. Why on earth had Wanda found it so important to bring her here, anyway? There was no way in hell she'd be able to stop her mouth in time to focus and tell him what she really thought. He infuriated her, especially because she'd put on all that make up and hired all those followers to make him jealous. Of course, being his usual dim self, that hadn't worked at all. He was never going to notice her, other than a bug on his windshield.
"I can't believe Wanda thinks you like me!" He exploded. "I mean, I'd rather fuck a dead whore and you'd rather screw all your followers than even think of touching me in an affectionate way."
The color drained from Tootie's face and she clutched her charm bracelet, equipped with a miniature Crimson Chin head. That explained why the fairy had brought her here. She wanted her to finally admit what she'd tried to prove to both of them she'd given up on. Well, if she thought that, she had another thing coming.
"Oh, really? I'd say Chester's a dead whore, but he's not dead. Still, I bet you both bray at the moon on a full moon when you mate. You're both animals, you know that?"
"At least even if I did have sex on a full moon, it wouldn't be like you, trying to figure in when you can give what guy a blowjob at what time. So many guys, so little time." Both fists curled and she hissed, trying to restrain her overwhelming urge to punch that smug, bastardly face. Of course, if she'd simply stopped insulting him, he might not find it necessary to outdo her, but right now, the part of her brain controlling logic had joined her fists. All she could think of was pounding the crap out of him. Then maybe he'd shut up.
"The only reason you'd want me is to add me to your repertoire. Another notch on your bra."
"By your reasoning, I'm such a slut that my bra's full of holes. I guess that'd make it too torn to wear, wouldn't it?" She smirked. A surge of adrenaline ran through her. Her mouth and her brain were officially disconnected again.
"I'd let you check, but you know, you might get girl cooties. I'm contagious, aren't I? I get the cruelness from my sister and whatever else from everyone else. I'm a walking trap.
"And that's why you'd rather check out Trixie Tang for the umpteenth time. Because although she's a shallow, vain, poor bitch, she'd never lie to your face. Oh, wait, she has. But you'd never give me a second look because I'm just like Vicky. Isn't that right?"
Timmy's brain, naturally, had never been attached too strongly to his mouth. If she could blurt things out, so could he. (Since when had blurting things out become a conscious decision?) At any rate, he plunged onward, ignoring any hurt feelings. Sensitivity was, much like thinking, never a strong suit for young, brash Timmy Turner.
"You are just like Vicky. It wouldn't surprise me at all if you two were in cahoots, planning to make my life more miserable. It probably spices up your boring life."
"Like screwing Chester," She snapped, but her voice had lost its edge. Getting him and her together had been a bad idea, but would Wanda listen? Of course not. She thought she could turn her godson's head. Tootie knew better. Timmy would sooner die or do any number of those things he'd threatened than change his mind on her. This was pointless.
"I'm not gay...but what does that matter to you? You'll never get me anyway." He jeered and this time, her fist uncurled. She wasn't going to punch him, no, because however tempting that was, one never started out that way. Instead, Tootie slapped him hard across the face, leaving a pink imprint. He was surprised to see her eyes were shining with tears. He stared, taken aback. Why on earth would she be crying? He was just telling the truth. Unless Wanda had been right about her still liking him...
Through gritted teeth, she snapped, "Why are you such a dick, Timmy Turner? Even when I accidentally told you I loved you, you acted like I was supposed to have matured past that. You think I can just let go of love, like it's a plaything. Heaven help us if you fall in love, because you'll probably get bored of her and find another toy. Wanda wasted her time bringing me here. You don't care about anyone but yourself."
Glowering, she pivoted on her heel and stormed out, but something held her back. Timmy's hand was tight on her upper shoulder and when she struggled to extract it, he only strengthened his grip. Within a few moments, it was painful. What, he wanted to hurt her both emotionally and physically now? That only cemented her opinion of him.
"I do care about people. I care about Wanda-"
"She's a fairy. She's not a person," Tootie corrected, dripping contempt. "There's a difference."
"Are you going to let me get this out or are you going to act like you hate me?" He retorted, squeezing her arm yet harder. She cried out.
"Now," Timmy continued, ignoring Tootie, kicking him in the shin and fixing him a nasty look, "can I continue?"
Fairly convinced she wouldn't leave now, he released his grip on her arm and she rubbed it, working the feeling back. Why had today involved them hurting each other in various ways? And apparently, he'd never learned a gentleman never hurts a lady (although, come to think of it, Cosmo couldn't have been much of a gentleman). Still, while he had her stuck here, she ought to listen until she figured a way out.
"I noticed you. I couldn't help but notice you, surrounded by every single guy in the freaking' school. Even if I tried to get near you, someone always shoved me away. You were always nasty anyway, so I figured you'd given up on me. I'm not an idiot-"
"I beg to differ," Tootie muttered, continuing to rub her sore arm. She really hoped that slap hurt like hell, because her arm ached.
"Besides, you're related to Vicky, so why should I try to pursue you anyway?"
"Oh, please. That's the oldest excuse in the book. It's complete b.s. If I were anything like Vicky, I'd have you on your back and stand on it while you did push-ups. I'd be screaming in your ear what chores I want you to do. I love you, Timmy, I don't hate you. Only someone that hates you would be like her.
"But if you're going to give up on me so easily, then maybe it's me that's too good for you." Holding her head high, she tried to saunter out, but his arms wrapped around her waist. Her knees buckled and badly, she wanted to fall back into him. Goddamn it...why did she have to be in love with him after all that? What was wrong with her?
Experimentally, wondering if he'd lost any semblance of sanity, he spun her around and kissed her lightly on the lips. The impulse had struck him and he'd acted on it. Later, he'd realize there was a small pink fairy, eyes narrowed and weary of the arguing, floating outside the window with her wand poised. However, he didn't know that just yet. All he knew was that when he kissed Tootie, his heart skipped a few dozen beats and joy surged through him. Nothing else mattered.
Sometimes, Juandissimo found her terribly amusing, like how she'd thrown herself whole heartedly into helping her former godson, yet refrained from helping herself. To thine own self be true, as Hamlet had once said, yet he doubted she ascribed to that particular phrase. If she had, she would have found some way to move on and live again. Maybe he was asking too much of her, but she emanated such a cheery glow, all he desired was to be near her again. For thousands of years, he'd trailed after her, not because he'd failed to understand how hopeless it was, but because he didn't care. Wanda exuded everything he desired and then some.
He almost wished it hadn't happened, though, because seeing Wanda miserable, now turning away from the window and the happiness of the two humans inside, was more than he could bear. She hung her head dejectedly, not noticing him for, unlike usual, he remained incognito, gazing at her from afar as a flower. Her beautiful pink eyes clung to loneliness and despair like an infant to their mother. Shedding her misery would be like one shedding a security blanket; she knew it was needed, but she hesitated to do so. For now, she was too immured in her past hurts and pains to dig herself out.
When creatures were alone, as anyone could tell you, their innermost thoughts and desires were center stage. She'd revealed herself to Timmy, but it wasn't quite the same thing. However, discovering the truth for herself and being told it were two different matters; she struggled now to ascertain whether he'd given her anything useful. The concept Cosmo had been responsible for what had transpired, that she was the victim, was difficult at best to swallow. Blaming herself had its advantages, least of which was the idea she could change things. It distressed her indeed to know she couldn't.
Pivoting in mid-air, she reached for a flower, perhaps to casually tear the petals off in reflection, when she halted. Pink eyes narrowed in outrage and she yanked him up by the roots, quite painfully, he might add. While he hadn't witnessed her crying fits or any other bouts of emotion, she probably thought he impeded on her solitude. Still, the only way to truly study her was to observe her from afar, which although was the truth, hardly made a very sturdy argument.
"Good afternoon, mi amor," Juan purred, stretching for his wand only to find, much to his chagrin, it lay among the actual flowers, magically produced (what would take root in clouds?). Ah, well, he'd play it cool anyway. He might not have his wand, but he possessed his charm and good looks, albeit obscured slightly by the fact he was a flower and not a fairy.
"How long have you been staring at me?" Wanda snapped, pointing her wand at him. He winced, mentally protesting- she had a wand, he had not. Therefore, she had the advantage while he remained in a form easily trampled underfoot.
"Why will you not blame Cosmo for his transgressions?" Juandissimo retorted, answering her question with another. Besides, it'd take her mind off the fact he'd technically been spying on her and Timmy. Dreadful though it was, sometimes, she could be easily distracted. It was a thing she and Cosmo sadly had in common.
He was surprised to discover her fidget and accidentally drop him, permitting him to sweep the cobblestones and graciously regain his wand. With one flick of the wrist, he restored himself to his former glory and gave her a curious look, wondering how she'd manage to weasel her way out of this one. More than likely, he'd find himself at the receiving end of the same line she'd given Timmy, but he sympathized much less with Cosmo than her godson. Cosmo meant nothing to him, less than nothing, in fact, and his life mattered only as long as it ended remarkably soon. Timmy hadn't pressed the issue, but he would. Why should she carry a burden that was not hers? Why should she bear the grief her ex had caused? The whole notion infuriated him.
"Because," she offered feebly, "I could have done something-"
"What would you have done, Wandita? Would you have imbued him with more brains? Would you have transformed into a vixen, beguiling him with your charms? If he did not see fit to admire you as you are, what chance did you have?
"You did not cheat on yourself. Cosmo committed adultery; he thought nothing of you and only of himself. While I cannot understand his reasoning (nor do I ever wish to), I must urge you, mi amor, to stop blaming yourself. You are the victim, si? Victims are usually (not always) blameless."
His words reached silence- Wanda clutched her wand to her chest; her mouth fell agape and she blinked a few times, finding nothing to reply with. In fact, her mind was curiously blank. She'd forgotten what it was like to contend with someone that had the possibility of not only knowing how she thought, but knowing it so well he could outwit her. It was rather disconcerting, to tell the truth.
"But-but," she stammered, discovering unhappily the excuses fleeing her. "I could have done something…"
"What would you have done? Would you have jumped him, shook him until his brains splattered onto the floor, and then screamed some sense into him? In case you have not noticed, mi amor, he is a moron. Nothing could have drilled anything into his head, nothing. So stop blaming yourself because you will not be happy with the results."
She retreated, startled to discover absolute truth in his words. Instead of the comfort one might suppose she'd take from finally realizing the truth, it felt as though the air had suddenly sucked her up into a vacuum. She felt faint, and not just from transporting two humans. Blaming herself had, in her mind, helped her cope with the grief. Now she had nothing to claim as a defensive mechanism. The color drained from her face rapidly as she continued to retreat.
Juan frowned, puzzled. Blindly, he reached out for her, but she vanished in thin air. The only way she would accept the truth was hearing it from the horse's mouth. It was time, for the first time in months, to visit her ex husband.
The wind had long whispered his name, like a phantom designed solely to twist a wedge into her heart. Before Juandissimo and Timmy had cornered her, the absolute last thing she wanted to do was talk with Cosmo again. Seeing him tore her heart straight out of her chest. That was why she'd fled before- seeing him made her feel, to put it quite bluntly, like shit.
She arrived now just as her father left, pointing his wand at Cosmo threateningly. The green haired fairy whimpered, curling into a ball. It didn't take a genius to figure out Big Daddy had delivered an ultimatum, doubtlessly telling him the date and time he'd die. If she weren't so damn mixed up, enraged with Cosmo and the whole situation, she might have cared. As it were, she merely cast her father a cool glance before floating near him, head buried near his knees and pressed against Timmy's bedposts. A thousand nasty remarks shot through her mind and she desperately attempted to prevent them from escaping (she wasn't nasty), but, of course, one did anyway. It was futile to fight herself.
Glowering at first at him and then at the fishbowl, what little color remaining in her face drained swiftly. He still slept in their castle. He, he might be screwing her counterpart in that bed. He didn't give a damn at all! Fury surged through her and she barely restrained the nearly overwhelming urge to punch his face in.
"Some things never change," She snapped, causing Cosmo's head to lift up in surprise.
"Someone was screwed over here months ago and look, she even has my name. Don't you have any shame, Cosmo?" Though her tone was cold as ice, her body trembled badly. She regretted her rash decision to flee Juandissimo- his defense might have been useful. There was no one here to back her up.
"Wanda!" Cosmo cried joyfully, springing up and embracing her. In the past, she might have hugged him back, perhaps kissed him deeply, but now, disgust filled her. He was sucking up.
"You can keep Big Daddy from killing me!" He cheered, mindless of the glowing, hot wand pressed against his chest and driving them apart. Cosmo squealed, gazing down at his chest, where a large star shaped brand had appeared. In her mind, she saw it consume him, engulf his body and end her pain. Revenge might not be the best thing, but thoughts of it kept her sane right now.
Wordless (but whimpering again), he ran his fingers over the wound she'd given him and floated before her. Slowly, wheels began to click in that dim little head of his. Wanda wasn't there to protect him; if anything, it was the opposite. And two plus two started to add up. She wasn't here to protect him because he'd harmed her.
"Do you know why my father wants you dead? Do you know why I went into exile? Do you have any brain cells in that head or is it just dead air!" Wanda thundered, hair turning to flames. Cosmo cowered, terrified. Wanda angry was not a scene for the faint hearted. Jorgen had been known to fear her when she went into fits of rage.
Struggling to contain her fury, the windows shattered, shards landing all over him. He screamed and, instead of feeling pity, which perhaps she should have felt, she snickered. Something inside her felt lighter. The burden was loosening somewhat. He was in pain...and that satisfied her.
Slightly calmer, she said, watching him coolly, "Hurts, doesn't it? I suppose you wouldn't know anything about pain, though. If you did, you might have tried to rethink your actions and spared me.
"Once upon a fairy tale, I loved you. Deeply and truly, I loved you. I would have done anything for you and I thought you felt the same. I thought you would have laid your life on the line for me...because I would have killed for you. I-" Tears consumed her vision and she swallowed hard, destroying Timmy's V-Cube inadvertently thanks to another emotional magical outburst.
Shutting her eyes and forcing the tears to abate, albeit temporarily, she whispered, "I don't even want to know why you cheated on me, Cosmo. I mean, I'd love to know why you stopped loving me, but I want to bury the past and you. I want to forget the fairy that turned me into this twisted creature and try to move on, if that's possible. (And, at this point, I'm not sure it is...).
"I just want to know the answer to one question and then whatever happens to you, I don't care. Timmy can call me if he needs me and that's about as far as I'll be involved with you. Otherwise, I want...I want to be free from you."
Voice strangely soft, she murmured, "You understand, don't you?":
Terrified, confused, and at all once transfixed, Cosmo managed a weak nod. He had nothing intelligent to add and, even if he did try to defend himself, she might see through the facade. There was nothing useful he could say and, for once in his life, he kept blissfully silent. It was the only thing Wanda needed to plunge onward.
"Is this my fault, Cosmo? Did I-did I lead you astray? Did I make you cheat because I wasn't pretty enough? Because I wasn't everything you wanted? Because you fell out of love with me? Was that why you fell out of love with me, because you wanted something I couldn't offer?"
Swallowing the lump in her throat, rubbing her eyes furiously, she whispered, "Why did you stop loving me, Cosmo?"
"It's not your fault..." Cosmo whispered and, before he could hope to continue, she vanished into thin air. His words were the last thing she needed. While she hoped for the answers to her questions, she wasn't nearly brave enough to discover them for herself. For now, there were creatures above who cared about her; maybe with their help, she could safely bury the past and place it safely where it belonged, six feet under.
When Timmy told her weeks later Cosmo had vanished and never returned, he seemed strangely detached. She said nothing, assuming Big Daddy had extracted his revenge. Like she'd thought before, she personally cared little anymore for what happened to him. What was done was done...and now, it was over with.
Juandissimo hadn't tried to push her, much to her surprise. He oddly understood her silences, her unwillingness to spend vast amounts of time in public or even with others. He merely shook his head and departed, hoping tomorrow would bring a better day. She hoped so too, but, slowly, she found her outlook improving slightly.
Tootie and Timmy were officially a couple, thanks to her magic and teen hormones. She smiled bitterly, remembering her own young love and how that turned out. All she could offer him was advice, sprinkled heavily with sorrow. Usually, after seeing them together, she found an excuse to leave. Both understood and didn't push her. One fairy could take only so much...
They sat together on the roof of her apartment and gazed up at the stars, brilliant without the human pollution. Juandissimo sat apart from her, offering him a weak smile. She was trying, she really was. It would take time, though, lots of it. That was all right...he could wait until the end of the world for her.
Gingerly, he placed a stray curl behind her ear and smiled, admiring her. While she no longer donned her robes nor her yellow shirt (instead, she wore an entirely black ensemble), he still saw the inner light he'd always been attracted to. She hadn't extinguished it, merely placing it in hiding for the rain to stop and the rainbow to cover the sky with its beauty.
Swallowing hard, she shifted slightly to peer curiously at him. "I wanted to thank you for all that you've done. You went above and beyond...and I appreciate it..."
Turning her head again, she was stunned to find his hands on either side of her face as he forced her to make eye contact with him. His hands were pleasantly soft, to boot. She smiled weakly again.
"I did it because I love you. And I will wait for you until we crumble to dust..."
Nodding weakly, she, shaking, kissed him lightly on the lips. "Thank you, Juandissimo..."
Hugging her tightly, resting his cheek against hers, he murmured, "There is no need to thank the messenger..."
Nor was there any more need for words. What were words but a distraction? They only hurt you...and Wanda had had enough. With more confidence than before, she leaned in to kiss him and they shared the stars together...finally free...