CHAPTER EIGHT

"Tootie!", Principal Waxelplax called out as Tootie ran into the entrance to the cave complex, "Don't go in! Its too dangerous!"

She tried to run after her, but just as she reached the entrance, another rumble and a cloud of dust streaming out of the entrance stopped her in her tracks. One of the guides ran up to Waxelplax and pilled her back.

"Another cave-in!" Waxelplax blurted out, "We've got to do something!"

"Its no use", the guide said, "we have to wait for the Dimmsdale Paramedics and Rescue Teams to arrive".

Waxelplax nodded sadly. She didn't like it, but it would be foolhardy to anyone to try and enter before professional help arrived. She only hoped that both Timmy and Tootie were okay.

Tootie was in fact all right. The rock fall that had stopped Waxelplax had fallen behind Tootie as she ran further into the complex. She paused and looked behind to see the way out blocked.

"Darn", Tootie grumbled. Still, she was here for a reason, which meant that the exit problem would have to wait.

"Timmy!" Tootie called out, "Where are you?" Her flashlight beam was diffuse by the dust in the air. Tootie pulled out a handkerchief and covered her face from the dust. She continued to walk further down the cave, toward the site of the first cave-in.

Timmy was still feeling a little groggy from the impact of the rock on his helmet. However, he was alert enough to realize that his communicator wristwatch that Wanda had given him was no longer on his wrist. The problem was that it was pitch black, and given that he was deep inside a cave, there would be no way for his eyes to adapt to the darkness.

"Where is it?" he mumbled to himself as he crawled around on all fours. He had come up to the area of the cave-in and had felt the pile of rubble go up to the cave ceiling. As he knew that he was near the back of the cave before the cave-in started, he was stuck.

"Wanda, Cosmo", he said to himself, "this is one time I really need you!" He resumed crawling around trying to find the communicator.

Up in Fairy World, Wanda had indeed felt 'Timmy in Trouble' vibes, and tried to call Timmy up on the communicator. There was no reply (because the communicator's switch was in the 'off' position and Timmy could not see it in order to turn it on).

Wanda's instinct was to immediately poof back to Dimmsdale, but just then, Big Daddy called out, "Wanda, get this boob of a husband away from me!"

"Come on, Big Daddy", Cosmo replied as Wanda floated into Big Daddy's bedroom, "I'm only giving you a sponge bath!"

Wanda's concerns with Timmy were forgotten was she saw Cosmo floating over Big Daddy with a bucket of boiling water and a pad of steel wool. No wonder her father was looking panicky…

While Wanda was trying to persuade Cosmo to try something a little less abrasive to tend to Big Daddy with, Tootie came up to the pile of rubble that separated her from Timmy.

"Timmy!" she shouted, "can you hear me?"

Timmy was taking a rest from the effort of trying to find the communicator when he heard Tootie's voice coming through the rockslide faintly.

"Tootie!" Timmy called out, "is that you?"

"Timmy!" Tootie joyfully replied, thankful to her his voice, "Are you all right?"

"Its pitch-black over here and my helmet flashlight is smashed", Timmy answered, "so I'm in the dark. I can't see anything to start clearing a way out".

"I've got a light, Timmy. I'll try and get some of this stuff moved", Tootie said.

"Don't you think you'd better wait and let the rescuers do it?" Timmy asked, "after all, there could be more cave-ins".

"The entrance got blocked from one after I came in to find you, Timmy", Tootie replied, "So help is going to be delayed. I'm going to start!"

With that, Tootie began pulling at the pile of rock and debris. The effort of removing rock was not a problem for Tootie, given her Steroid-Ade enhanced strength, but there was a potential problem. Timmy called out as she worked.

"Tootie!" Timmy called out, "you'd better slow it down some. Moving too fast might trigger another rockslide. The dust is increasing in here already!" He coughed to accentuate the problem.

"I'm not going to give up, Timmy!" Tootie replied, "If I go too slow, there could well be another slide anyway".

Timmy thought about that. Tootie had a point. The longer one stayed here, the greater the risk of further cave-ins. Still, the increased amount of dust was pretty hard on his throat and he had no water to drink. He pulled out a handkerchief from his pocket and covered his mouth.

Outside the cave complex, the Dimmsdale Paramedics and Rescue teams had arrived. Four other people arrived with them. The Turners and the Flannigans had been phoned by Principal Waxelplax and informed of the problem. After arriving at the same time as the rescue teams, the four of them went straight up to Waxelplax.

"Any word from Timmy or Tootie?" Mr. Turner asked first.

"Nothing yet, but hopefully the rescue teams will be able to clear the entrance so that they can get in and find them", Waxelplax replied.

"Tootie ran straight in to find Timmy, right?" Mr. Flannigan asked.

"We couldn't stop her from entering, and a second cave-in at the entrance stopped us from following", Waxelplax explained.

"I hope that they are going to be all right!" Mrs. Flannigan sobbed as she hugged Mrs. Turner. Both of their husbands nodded at that comment.

In the cave, Tootie was really doing a great job of hurling away rocks and other cave debris. Tootie wondered why she was finding it so easy. As she worked, she was talking to Timmy.

"Can you hear me any better?" Tootie asked after a couple of minutes.

"Yes, you're coming in louder", Timmy replied, "but I still can't see your light!"

"I'll be there as quickly as I can, Timmy", Tootie promised as she continued her excavating.

"Thank you, Tootie", Timmy said sincerely. He had been thinking about the fact that Tootie had not hesitated to come in and find him when the rockslide had occurred. Notwithstanding the fact that he was thankful that she was a physically stronger person thanks to the Steroid-Ade spell, it was undeniable that Tootie was risking her safety for him! He only hoped that the effects of the Steroid-Ade would not wear off too soon…

Just then, a sizeable rock rolled down from his side of the rockslide. A beam of light stabbed through.

"Tootie!" Timmy called out, "I see your light!" He noticed something else thanks to the light. On the cave floor mostly covered by rock and pebbles was the communicator watch. He quickly grabbed it, and then started scaling the pile of rubble.

"Timmy!" Tootie said as she saw him climb up. She held out her hand, which he grasped. She pulled him effortlessly up and over into her arms.

Funny, Timmy thought, this time her hug wasn't so creepy. Just then, another rumble started. Some loose rocks started to fall.

"We'd better get out of here!" Timmy shouted. Tootie nodded.

Climbing down the other side of the rubble, Timmy and Tootie started running back toward the entrance. They looked behind to see another massive pile of rocks fall on the area of the previous landslide. They didn't leave it a moment too soon, he thought.

Just then, Tootie said, "That's funny, I feel a little weak!" She started staggering some.

The Steroid-Ade must be wearing off, Timmy thought.

Tootie took off her helmet to wipe her brow. Timmy started to say, "you'd better put that back on, Tootie", when some more rock fell from the roof of the cave. One piece of rock hit Tootie on the side of her head. She collapsed in a heap.

"Tootie!" Timmy shouted as bent down to check on her.

Tootie seemed to be breathing okay, but she was plainly unconscious. Her glasses had been knocked off her head and had smashed on hitting the ground. Timmy looked closely at Tootie's inert figure.

She looked so fragile in her dusty and disheveled state. Her hair bands had undone and made her hair flow down instead of being in those unattractive pigtails. Even covered in dust – and in the current predicament, she made for quite a different – and not unpleasant sight.

However, he did not have much time to enjoy the view. Another rumbling sound and more rocks falling meant that he had to get out of here! Picking up Tootie, he ran back toward the entrance while trying to shield Tootie from more falling rocks.

"Darn!" Timmy snarled, "The blocked entrance. I forgot!"

Putting Tootie gently down on the ground, Timmy tried to see if he could move some of the boulders in the way, muttering that he could have used Tootie's strength about now. That jogged his memory about the communicator. He pushed the 'on' switch on the communicator watch.

"Wanda!" Timmy called out into the watch; "I need you and Cosmo here now! I'm in big trouble!"

Wanda had just persuaded Cosmo to do some housekeeping instead of nursing Big Daddy when she heard Timmy's plaintive voice coming over the communicator.

"Where are you, Sweetie?" Wanda replied worriedly. She recognized the sound of urgency in Timmy's voice.

"Wanda!" Timmy answered, "I'm so glad to hear your voice. Tootie and I are trapped in Dimmsdale Cave. She's unconscious and there are rockslides all around us. We're trapped!"

"Cosmo!" Wanda called, "Timmy's in trouble! Dimmsdale Cave now!" she screamed.

Big Daddy had overheard to conversation and muttered, "Thank goodness, that idiot Son-in-Law can leave me alone!" Not only that, but Big Daddy suddenly started to feel stronger…

With a POOF, Wanda and Cosmo materialized just above Timmy. He had been stooped over Tootie, trying to protect her from the falling rocks.

"Cosmo, Wanda!" I wish that this pile of rocks blocking the entrance was cleared!"

"No problem, Timmy!" Cosmo said, "I'll just use my super-strength to bust a way through!"

With that, Cosmo hurled himself toward the pile of rocks, but instead of breaking them, he bounced off instead.

"Ow!" Cosmo muttered, "I don't feel strong any more!"

"Then lets use our wands, Cosmo", Wanda suggested, raising hers.

Cosmo did likewise. With a ZAP, the combined beams of magic emanating from their wands smashed the pile of rocks.

On the other side of the rockslide, the Dimmsdale paramedics were starting to remove the rubble from their side, when a huge cloud of dust rose up. Coughing, they emerged from the cave.

"What's going on?" Mr. Turner asked.

"The rockslide is becoming unstable", one of the rescue team members gasped. Just then, another cloud of dust emerged from the entrance.

"Look!" one of the paramedics screamed, pointing toward the cloud.

Supporting each other, a very disheveled and dusty Timmy Turner and Tootie Flannigan emerged from the cave. Cosmo and Wanda poofed themselves into a watch and backpack that Timmy wore.

"We're out!" Tootie said to Timmy. Even with her vision blurred by not having glasses, the outside light made that statement an obvious one.

"We made it!" Timmy replied. He had quickly wished that Tootie regained consciousness after Wanda and Cosmo zapped the pile of rubble. She woke up just after Timmy's fairies disguised themselves.

"Timmy!" Mrs. Turner shouted as she ran up to her son.

"Tootie!" Mrs. Flannigan shouted as she ran up just behind Mrs. Turner.

As both mothers hugged their respective child, paramedics put blankets over them and handed them each a drink.

Timmy looked at Tootie as she quickly drank down the offered beverage. Tootie looked back at Timmy in time to see a smile and a wink. Tootie blushed. Timmy thought she looked all the cuter for it. It was amazing what a rockslide could do for perspectives, Timmy thought as they were escorted over to a paramedic ambulance.

For his part, Crocker was keeping a low profile while looking after his class. While Timmy's classmates applauded as they watched him and Tootie walk out of the cave, Trixie looked analytically at Timmy, then at Tootie.

That little squirt of an empty bus seat risked her life to save that other empty bus seat, she realized. And it looked like Timmy had returned the favor with Tootie too. She had never that thought that either of them would show such courage. Maybe Timmy wasn't so bad after all, she thought.

As the ambulance was heading back to Dimmsdale, Timmy faced Tootie in the back. Both were having their cuts and bruises seen to. Tootie's big bruise at the side of her head was getting special attention by one of the medics. Another medic had given a spare pair of glasses to her so that she could see – this pair had a much nicer frame than the ones she usually wore – and it made Timmy stare at her as a result.

"Oh Tootie", Timmy said quietly, "It's ironic that a cave-in could make you look pettier. I wish you - and everyone else for that matter - would take the time for you to look prettier from now on. Pigtails, bottle glasses, and catholic clothing don't do you justice at all".

On his wrist, Wanda (the watch) was looking at Cosmo (the backpack).

"You did her him say 'I wish', didn't you?" Wanda asked Cosmo.

"I certainly did, though I wish he would have added another Steroid-Ade wish to it", Cosmo said as he and Wanda raised their wands. POOF!