Chapter 11

"It's five o'clock. Where are they?"Harper wondered aloud while she paced back and forth in the lair. After a whole day of worrying, she didn't think she'd be able to stand it if the Russos were more than a minute late.

From where he relaxed on the couch, Kelbo said, "Hey, it's inter-reality travel. Who knows what the time difference is? Five o'clock their time could be five in the morning...two weeks from now."

Harper shook her head. "No...I mean, they were able to give me a note, weren't they? That has to mean our timezones are the same."

While at first Harper had every intention of leaving the note, it occurred to her that she should make every effort she could to actually talk with whichever Russo would be at the portal to get her reply. Too scared to go back to the Russo's building alone, she'd waited until Kelbo could pop in. At first she'd been afraid that she'd have to leave a note anyway if she never heard back from Kelbo. Fortunately he'd received her message and appeared before her about ten minutes after she called from outside the Sub Station.

However, she was starting to regret that decision. Kelbo had plans in an hour and was eager to get going."Well, I sure hope so, because I've got money on a unicorn race and you have to be there to collect - "

"Harper, you there?" His face in one of the portal panels, Justin tried to see as far into the lair as he could. "Harper?"

More relieved than she'd ever been in her life, Harper ran to the blocked portal door. "Justin! I'm so glad you're okay! Is Alex with you?" Kelbo also got up from the couch so he could join in the conversation.

Surprised, Justin asked, "Uncle Kelbo? What are you doing here?"

"Harper called me in just in case the termites acted up again," Kelbo explained. "Hey, I'm curious. Which reality did you end up in?"

Justin sighed. "It's a long story. Look, um...hey, what's this?" he asked when he spotted the note taped to the plastic wall. Harper quickly explained her reasoning for it as he scanned the message.

His face lit up with happiness when he realized just what the spell meant. "Oh my gosh, this spell can get us home!" He then turned to someone Harper couldn't see. "Poppy, do you think you'll be able to cast it? We need a full wizard."

"Poppy? Who's..." Harper trailed off when an old man who looked like he could be Max's grandfather moved into view and looked at the note. "Okay then," she remarked, but decided to save her questions for when this whole ordeal had been resolved.

As he looked over the spell, Poppy nodded. "Yeah, definitely. Might take me a few minutes to learn it but that shouldn't be a problem."

"What? I've never even heard of that spell!" Jerry exclaimed, a little upset. "I feel so out of the loop." He stood partially behind his son, so Harper couldn't see him clearly.

"Well, I guess you don't need me. Let me know how everything turns out," Kelbo put in quickly, then flashed out.

Though he raised an eyebrow, Justin otherwise didn't comment on his uncle's uncaring behavior. "Anyway, we'll go back to the loft and tell everyone the good news. Hopefully we'll be home within the hour."

"Great! I'll be here!" Harper assured him. When the Russos and Poppy were no longer visible, Harper turned to go call the friend she'd told to be on standby in case she ended up needing a place to stay, and tell her thanks but the favor wouldn't be needed. However, she paused with fright when she realized that her only way back to this reality in the event of a termite attack, aka Kelbo, was no longer there. Too scared to move, Harper chose to make the best out of the situation. She grabbed a notebook off the desk and decided to sketch a dress design until the Russos got home.

Justin was on top of the world when he, his father and Poppy got back to the Hannigans' loft. "We're going home!" he announced while he triumphantly held up Harper's note with the spell on it. "Harper saved us! Well, it's Uncle Kelbo's spell, but she's the one who passed it on!"

Shocked, all of the Russos and Hannigans gathered around to see how the good news was possible. "There's a spell?" Alex asked in disbelief. "Dad said there wasn't."

"I'm out of the loop," Jerry snapped, apparently still sensitive about the issue.

With a sigh of impatience, Justin continued, "It's a new spell Uncle Kelbo uses. Once Poppy learns it, we can leave."

"Oh, thank goodness!" Theresa exclaimed as she hugged her husband. "We're really going home, I can't believe it!"

At first happy for the Russos, Terry frowned. "Shoot, I never got a chance to make you my Meatless Meatloaf. I'll go write down the recipe for you," she said as she went into the kitchen to do just that.

The next half hour was chaos as the Russos went to pack the clothes they'd acquired during their stay, and put away their makeshift beds. While Justin threw his spare outfit in a cheap duffel bag he'd zapped up, Jordan wandered in. "Hey. Mom sent me in to tell you that you don't have to put away the air mattress if you want, my dad will do it later," he offered.

But Justin snapped his fingers, and the mattress along with its sheets was neatly folded up. "It's okay, I've got it."

"Wow, you didn't even use a spell!" Jordan blurted.

Flattered, Justin shrugged. "It's what happens when you practice. I'm sure you'll be able to do it too in a few years."

"Huh, good to know," Jordan replied. He paused awkwardly, not sure whether he should leave. "Uh, I guess you don't need anything else?"

Justin nodded. "Yeah, pretty much." He threw the duffel bag over his shoulder, then looked around the room to make sure he hadn't left anything. As much as Justin wanted to just go downstairs and leave, he knew he couldn't without saying a proper good-bye. "So, I guess this is it," he said. He almost winced at the cliché.

"Yeah," Jordan agreed. He casually stuck out his hand. "Good to meet you. I guess you're not a total dork."

As he shook Jordan's hand, Justin had to laugh at the remark. "Same to you," he teased. Of course the two had their differences, but Justin hoped he'd taught his alternate self a few things about what it meant to be a good brother. He didn't expect that the Hannigan family dynamic would totally change, but even a small step towards a better sibling relationship would make this whole trip worth it.

The two put the sheets in the hall closet, then they headed towards the stairs, the duffel bag still over Justin's shoulder. "By the way, here's a piece of friendly advice," Jordan said. "If your mom makes my mom's 'meat' loaf, don't eat it."

"Don't worry, I'm sure my mom won't even make the recipe anyway," Justin assured him with a chuckle.

Even though she'd only known Julia for two days, Alex would definitely miss the young troublemaker. She loved having a partner in crime for once. While pranking and driving her brothers nuts was always fun, it could be a lonely hobby at times. "So, what are you going to do now?" Alex asked casually while she threw her other outfit into a cloth bag that Julia had given her. "Since this prank didn't work out. Need ideas for your next one? I've got lots of them."

From where she was sitting on the edge of her bed, Julia laughed. "No, that's never a problem for me. But...I don't know, I think I'm going to cool it with pranks. Just for now, of course."

"Ah, close-call nerves. I used to get those too," Alex assured her. "Don't worry, those go away with practice." When she first started pranking, she would often take a break whenever she almost got in serious trouble. After a while she just stopped caring and did what she wanted anyway. But she doubted Julia would be up to that level yet, nor would it be advice given by a good role model, so she left that information out. She is supposed to be me, Alex thought. She'll figure it out on her own eventually.

Julia grinned. "I'm sure it will. For now, though, I'll wait until Jordan isn't paying attention." She paused. "I still can't believe he covered for me."

"Yeah. Sometimes brothers can surprise you," Alex said. She smiled, thinking of all the times Justin had gotten her out of trouble. After getting an idea of how Jordan and Julia were, she was even more grateful that she had someone watching out for her. Even if he did get on her nerves like all the time.

When Alex threw her last belonging into the cloth bag, Julia frowned. "So, you're really leaving. And I'll never see you again."

"Oh, don't be so dramatic," Alex teased. "We're wizards, aren't we? We can just use that weird mall thing and see each other any time."

"I guess. But Dad said Jordan and I aren't allowed," Julia reminded her.

With a dismissive wave of her hand, Alex said, "He said you weren't allowed. My dad never said anything to me. His mistake." They both laughed as Alex looked around the room again to make sure she hadn't left anything behind. Satisfied, she turned back to Julia. "Well, it was awesome meeting you, kid. And trust me, I never say that."

"Same to you," Julia said. Then she ran to give Alex a hug.

Surprised, Alex returned it for a brief instant, then broke away. "So, uh, keep in touch, all right? I think you can download an inter-reality communication app on your wand."

"Really? I'm so doing that! What's your wand number?" Julia asked eagerly. The two exchanged contact information, including Wiz Web email just in case one of them found an inter-reality program for the Wizard Computer too.

Before they went downstairs, Julia said, "Wait, Alex...I just want to thank you. You know, for helping me and everything."

Alex hesitated for a moment, not used to the sensation. Really, when was the last time anyone ever thanked her? "Wow, uh...you're welcome. And thank you too, I guess. I've never been someone else's role model before."

After Julia replied with a grateful smile, the two reluctantly went downstairs, comforted knowing they would see each other again.

A/N: Still one more chapter to go, the epilogue. But since you made it this far, here's the link to the Amazing Hannigans script. Ignore the spaces of course, that's just so won't delete it.

megaupload . com/?d=C2IF6796