CHAPTER NINE
As Timmy and Tootie were sleeping overnight at Dimmsdale Hospital (the doctors decided to play it safe and keep them overnight for observation), Cosmo and Wanda – who were disguised as a flower and flower pot on a table beside Timmy's bed – looked tenderly at the sight of their godchild and Tootie sleeping together in the ward.
"It's a shame that I'm not so strong anymore", Cosmo commented. He really liked being a super-tough bodyguard.
"I wouldn't worry about that, Cosmo", Wanda replied, "you're still my husband and I love you regardless of how strong or wimpy you are".
And Big Daddy would probably be happy about the latter, Wanda thought to herself.
Actually, up in Fairy World, Big Daddy was back to his old self. Realizing that the unintended effects from the spelled Steroid-ade had indeed worn off, he resolved to do two things: first, not to drink any more of the stuff – he would stick to cappuccinos, and second, to reciprocate his son-in-law's recent affections.
"Calzone", Big Daddy called out from his office.
"Yeah, Boss?" Calzone answered as he floated in at his boss' call.
"Remind me to pick up some really coarse steel wool pads and a bucket of boiling oil the next time my idiot son-in-law visits", Big Daddy said, "I owe him a personal sponge bath".
Nodding – though with a broad grin on his face – Calzone left Big Daddy alone to his tasks. He and his brother Uncle Ponzi didn't care for Cosmo's bodyguard routine either.
"Oh, Wanda", Big Daddy said to the portrait of his daughter on the wall, "sometimes I wonder about your taste in that green-haired freak. At least you didn't girlie up the place this time while that moron made my life hell. At least Mama Cosma's a great gal…"
Leaving his office, he floated down the hall to his bedroom, passing an office filled with his 'night shift', currently being involved in 'persuading' a potential client to hire Big Daddy's trash removal services… The normal routine of his 'legitimate business'…
Poofing into his pajamas, he climbed into bed, though making sure that Mr. Neigh-Neigh II was close by for him to hug tightly to while asleep.
Another person realizing that things were returning to normal was Binky. He was sitting in Jorgen's chair watching a late night rerun of 'All My Biceps'.
"Hey, I've already seen this episode. I want to watch the news", Jorgen complained from his position as a footrest for Binky. His voice was slightly muffled from the fewer teeth in his mouth.
"Silence, Wimpy!" Binky snarled, "or I'll squash your head like an ant under my heel!"
After a cliffhanger scene went to commercial, Binky tried to punch Jorgen in the jaw in order to knock out another tooth, but this time, his fist felt like he punched a brick wall instead.
"Ow!" Binky shouted, "What gives?"
"Hey!" Jorgen exclaimed immediately after, "I'm feeling stronger all of a sudden!"
"Uh, oh!" Binky blurted out, realizing that things were reverting. He tried to make a quick getaway, but Jorgen grabbed him by his feet.
"I wonder if I really have regained all my strength?" Jorgen asked rhetorically before punching Binky hard in the face – knocking out several of his teeth as a result.
Still holding a dazed Binky, Jorgen walked over to where his wand staff was located and picked it up. Zapping his own jaw back to normal – including replacing his own missing teeth (a privilege he inherited when he married the Tooth Fairy), Jorgen held Binky up close to his face.
"Now, WHO is going to squash WHOSE head like an ant under WHOSE heel?" Jorgen asked menacingly.
"Oh crud", Binky muttered, things were indeed back to normal, and that meant that not-so-pleasant times were in store for him…
Back down in Dimmsdale, most of the city was asleep after a long day. Chet Ubetcha had finished the late night news by announcing the arrest of Mr. Crocker for starting the cave-ins at Dimmsdale Cave. Vicky had been watching the news on her bedroom TV.
"Pity the twerp and Twerpette came out of it okay", Vicky muttered as she turned off the TV.
She still wondered about Tootie being so strong all of a sudden – not to mention her parents. It could have been a bad batch of Steroid-Ade she reasoned. She resolved to dump her batch, and to have 'a few words' with Francis when she next got the chance. Also, she had to see about finding another laser. Without it, she would not be able to wield control over her parents…
The following morning dawned clear and bright.
"Good Morning, Timmy!" Tootie said. Timmy blinked, and then opened his eyes.
It was daylight, and the curtains in the Children's ward were opened to let in the bright morning light. However, the light was not what got Timmy's immediate attention.
"Do you like it?" Tootie asked with a slight giggle at Timmy's rapturous look.
Timmy just nodded, not speaking. Tootie looked totally different. Even more so than the aftermath of the rescue. Tootie's hair was expertly brushed down, flowing over her shoulders. Her raven-colored hair shimmered in the morning light. A scrunchie of the type that Trixie normally wore held her hair back.
Even more than the hair, Trixie was wearing glasses with a great-looking frame. Make-up applied in a very subdued – yet evocative – manner accentuated the new look. Tootie was still wearing the nightclothes that Mrs. Flannigan had brought over last night, but that didn't disguise the fact that Tootie looked positively beautiful!
"Tootie? How…?" Timmy stammered, enraptured by the new-look Tootie.
"Well, for some strange reason, I woke up early this morning wanting to make my hair look pretty", Tootie explained, "and I went out of the ward to see if I could find a hairbrush. I walked by accident into a private room and saw Britney Britney laying there".
"Britney Britney?" Timmy asked, not sure that he heard correctly.
"Yes, the pop diva", Tootie confirmed, "She's here in hospital for cosmetic surgery", she finished with a gesture to the area that Britney wanted 'tending to'.
Timmy smirked at that, but he still wanted to hear more.
"So then what happened?" he asked.
"Well, Britney Britney asked me what I was looking for, and when I said I wanted to look pretty for someone, she got up out of bed, sat me down in front of a mirror, and then started working on my face and hair. Pretty good job on the makeup, huh? You can't even see the bruises and scratches".
Timmy enthusiastically nodded.
"I'm glad you like it", Tootie said, pleased to see the effect it had on Timmy, "Its so nice not to have Icky Vicky telling me not to do this. Those clothes, glasses, and pigtails I had to wear were really nasty!"
"What about the glasses…. And the braces?" Timmy asked next, noticing that her teeth were now white and brace-free.
"Britney Britney made a phone call to her personal optometrist and orthodontist, and they took care of me. It really is amazing that she would do this", Tootie explained, "so when I asked her why she went to all this trouble for a stranger, she simply replied that she had an urge all of a sudden to make me look pretty".
Cosmo and Wanda looked at each other and smiled. The wish that Timmy made to Tootie to try and make her look pretty was fairly broad, which made for a lot of leeway. The end result was that people would be helping her look pretty from here on out.
"I'm glad the orthodontist was able to remove the braces okay", Timmy noted.
"I never needed to wear any", Tootie replied, "It was just another of Icky Vicky's ways to make me look horrible. Like forcing me to wear nasty frames with my glasses".
Timmy noticed that Tootie's eyes were starting to well up with tears at the memories of Vicky's vindictiveness. He reached out and grabbed her hand.
"You're holding my hand!" Tootie breathed, "you haven't done that since my last birthday party!"
"I'm sorry I didn't do it more often, Tootie", Timmy said soothingly.
"Aw, that's so sweet", Tootie replied; "now I have to smooch you for the complement".
"Hey, how's everybody?" Mr. Turner called out as he, his wife, and Mr. and Mrs. Flannigan walked into the room.
"Oh darn", Tootie teased before turning and running into her mother's outstretched arms.
"Tootie!" Mrs. Flannigan exclaimed after they broke their hug, "You've had a makeover! Don't you look positively pretty!"
While Tootie was busy talking about Britney Britney's personal makeover, Mr. and Mrs. Turner went over to Timmy's bed.
"Hey, Short-Stuff", Mr. Turner greeted, "How's hospital treating you?"
"Better. Way better than I thought yesterday", Timmy replied honestly, glancing over at the beautiful young girl who had risked her life to save his.
"The doctor said that you can both be discharged shortly as there are no lingering effects from the cave-in", Mrs. Turner announced.
"That's great!" Timmy announced. Cosmo and Wanda – still in their flower and flowerpot disguises – smiled in agreement.
"Hey, nice flower and flower pot Timmy!" Mr. Turner commented, "Even they are happy at the news!"
While awaiting the final word for discharge, both sets of parents sat and talked to their children. Timmy told about Tootie helping him out from the initial landslide while Tootie explained that Timmy had tended to him after she had been stunned from a falling rock. For obvious reasons, Timmy didn't mention either Cosmo or Wanda. It was fortuitous that Tootie was unconscious when Timmy made the wish to clear the rockslide from the entrance to the cave.
"We're glad that that rockslide at the entrance crumbled of its own accord", Mr. Flannigan commented after Timmy had mentioned tending to Tootie.
Timmy nodded without speaking, though he did manage to wink discretely at Wanda and Cosmo.
There were actually supposed to be two other visitors that morning to see Timmy, but for some reason they were held up… literally!
"Payback is sweet!" Francis leered as he inflicted maxi-wedgies on A.J. and Chester.
Both of them were walking to the hospital with a gift when they came across Francis. Thinking that he was still weak and wimpy, they tried to give him another wedgie, but to their horror, Francis had regained his bullying composure, and the strength he had to go with it.
Now, using the elastic from the pulled-out underpants, he was now busy using A.J. and Chester as personal yo-yo's…
