Disclaimer: no one mentioned belongs to me, I guarantee it.
Author's note: here it is, the final chapter of my bizarro little saga. I was originally going to break it up into two, for more dramatic effect, but then one of them would have been really short, so instead you get a new crisis and then a complete resolution, all in one really long chapter. Thanks for the support during this, it was a lot of fun to do. :)
*Karasuma*Firestorm*
~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~
"What the hell..?" Gordo said, and found himself a mere half inch away from Miranda Sanchez's lips.
Immediately Miranda's eyes flew open, and the first thing he saw was rage. No one messed with Miranda, and if you acted like you were going to kiss her, and then didn't follow through, you better have a damned good excuse.
Comprehension dawned in her eyes as she realized that Matt had a *very* good excuse. Because this meant that Gordo was actually...Gordo.
One door down, a scream erupted, male, shortly followed by a piercing female scream.
Miranda and Gordo shared a look, then darted down the hallway into Lizzie's room. Matt McGuire was touching his body frantically, lifting his arm in a wave and then staring at it in awe as his actions were reflected in the mirror. "I'm me!" he shouted triumphantly.
"Okay, I get him..." Miranda said. "Why did *you* scream?" she asked of Lizzie.
Lizzie looked slightly embarrassed. "Well, he scared me..." she said. "Wait. You're..." she looked at Matt, confused, then looked back and forth rapidly between Matt and Gordo. "You guys switched back."
Gordo reached up to scratch his head, and found his familiar curly hair. Grinning widely, he ran his hands through his mop of hair, relishing the feel. Before this whole ordeal, he'd been debating getting a haircut, but now he wouldn't dream of it. "Yep," he said with a considerable amount of pride seeping into his voice. "We switched back."
Miranda grabbed Matt. "I guess I'll be collecting on that sooner than I thought," she said, leaning over and kissing him.
Gordo and Lizzie gaped. "Mi-*randa*!" Lizzie said, her jaw dropping.
Miranda laughed. "Would you rather I kissed him?" she asked, jerking her thumb at Gordo.
Lizzie blushed. "No."
"Lizzie?" Gordo asked. "Were you, ah...were you serious about giving us a try?"
He hadn't thought Lizzie could blush any more deeply without bursting a blood vessel or something, but she pulled it off. "I was."
This time, Gordo went red too. He'd wanted to hear something like that for so long, and now it looked like his wish was coming true finally. "What say we get back to the party?" he said, smiling at each of them in turn.
"Best idea I've heard all day," Miranda said, and she linked her arm through Matt's in a gesture that was intentionally over the top, but got her point across.
As they started down the stairs, Gordo turned to Lizzie and held out his hand. She looked at it for a second, then met his eyes, then with a small smile, accepted his hand. He pulled her to his feet, and then, neither of them letting go but both scared out of their minds, followed Matt and Miranda downstairs.
Things were looking up, Gordo thought as the four of them stepped back onto the back porch. He was himself again, and there was the possibility that he and Lizzie might become something more...
Then an unfortunately familiar blond girl stopped in front of them, looking furious. "Matt McGuire, you're in *love* with me?"
~~~~~
"Say what?" Matt and Miranda chorused, and Miranda dropped her arm from around Matt's, looking decidedly embarrassed as several people stopped their partying to look over.
Melina, however, had marched over to Gordo and was glaring at him with fire in her eyes. "I can't *believe* you," she said fiercely.
Gordo reluctantly dropped Lizzie's hand and held up his own hands gently, trying to diffuse the situation as painlessly as possible. "Melina, it's Gordo. We, ah, we switched back," he finished quietly, glancing around and hoping no one had heard him.
"Oh," she said dully, then her eyes flared again. "*Oh*!" She stalked over to Matt and jabbed him in the chest with her finger. "I can't *believe* you!"
"Melina, what are you talking about?" Matt said, genuinely confused. He shot a look at Gordo, but Gordo only shrugged. Matt had dug himself into this one on his own, Gordo had had nothing to do with whatever it was.
"I'm talking about what Adam Barton told me!" she said, poking him again for good measure.
"You listen to anything Adam Barton has to say?" Matt said.
"Well, I thought she ought to know this juicy little morsel," Adam said, stepping out of the crowd with a smug look. He clasped his hands together and looked to the sky plaintively. "'I shouldn't like her,'" he said in a mocking tone of angst. "'She's my best friend.'"
"When did I ever say *that*," Matt said.
"Yesterday at lunch," Adam said with a smug look. "You've gotta keep your guard up, McGuire, because I'm always watching you. Just itching for you to slip. And boy, did you ever slip," he said gleefully.
Matt glared at Gordo. "This is *your* doing."
Gordo realized he was guilty as charged. "I'm sorry, I was talking to Lanny, and..."
"Listen, Bar-tone," Matt said, putting a French spin on his adversary's name, "you heard wrong, okey-dokey? Because I'm not in love with Melina. I already *have* a girlfriend," he added, gripping Miranda's hand possessively.
A murmur passed through the part of the crowd that had become the audience, and all eyes were on Miranda now. She looked slightly uncomfortable, but at the same time, kinda pleased.
Adam peered at Miranda suspiciously. "You don't go to this school. How do I know you're not his sister or something?"
"Uh, hello?" Lizzie said. "I'm not exactly proud of it, but *I'm* the goober's sister."
"I go to Hillridge Junior High," Miranda said.
"You're *older*?" Adam said, and his expression changed from suspicion to awe. With an admiring grin, he clapped Matt on the shoulder. "Way to go, man!"
"Thanks," Matt said with a genial smile and matching tone, then he switched quickly to his no-nonsense tone, one he no doubt adapted from his mom. "Now get out."
Adam's eyes widened, and he scurried.
Matt glanced at Melina. "I'm sorry. It's nothing personal."
She looked from Matt to Miranda, then briefly to Gordo, then back to Matt, and then shrugged. "No biggie."
Matt stared at her retreating back, then gave up, turned to Miranda, and asked if she wanted to dance. She did.
Watching them dance, crisis averted, Gordo became aware of his hand being squeezed, and realized that Lizzie had grabbed it again. He fought back a smile, and looked to her. "So you said all that, huh," she said. "The stuff that kid was saying Matt said."
"Yeah," he said, and wished he could be more eloquent.
Lizzie looked like she wanted to say something, then thought better of it, shaking her head slightly, and smiling at him. "Wanna dance?"
Gordo couldn't think of anything he'd rather do, and nodded.
As the mix CD of Miranda's favorite songs played on, and half the population of Hillridge Junior High milled about the McGuire backyard, eating and chatting, Miranda and Matt and Lizzie and Gordo danced into the evening, on the brink of something weird and new.
Author's note: here it is, the final chapter of my bizarro little saga. I was originally going to break it up into two, for more dramatic effect, but then one of them would have been really short, so instead you get a new crisis and then a complete resolution, all in one really long chapter. Thanks for the support during this, it was a lot of fun to do. :)
*Karasuma*Firestorm*
~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~
"What the hell..?" Gordo said, and found himself a mere half inch away from Miranda Sanchez's lips.
Immediately Miranda's eyes flew open, and the first thing he saw was rage. No one messed with Miranda, and if you acted like you were going to kiss her, and then didn't follow through, you better have a damned good excuse.
Comprehension dawned in her eyes as she realized that Matt had a *very* good excuse. Because this meant that Gordo was actually...Gordo.
One door down, a scream erupted, male, shortly followed by a piercing female scream.
Miranda and Gordo shared a look, then darted down the hallway into Lizzie's room. Matt McGuire was touching his body frantically, lifting his arm in a wave and then staring at it in awe as his actions were reflected in the mirror. "I'm me!" he shouted triumphantly.
"Okay, I get him..." Miranda said. "Why did *you* scream?" she asked of Lizzie.
Lizzie looked slightly embarrassed. "Well, he scared me..." she said. "Wait. You're..." she looked at Matt, confused, then looked back and forth rapidly between Matt and Gordo. "You guys switched back."
Gordo reached up to scratch his head, and found his familiar curly hair. Grinning widely, he ran his hands through his mop of hair, relishing the feel. Before this whole ordeal, he'd been debating getting a haircut, but now he wouldn't dream of it. "Yep," he said with a considerable amount of pride seeping into his voice. "We switched back."
Miranda grabbed Matt. "I guess I'll be collecting on that sooner than I thought," she said, leaning over and kissing him.
Gordo and Lizzie gaped. "Mi-*randa*!" Lizzie said, her jaw dropping.
Miranda laughed. "Would you rather I kissed him?" she asked, jerking her thumb at Gordo.
Lizzie blushed. "No."
"Lizzie?" Gordo asked. "Were you, ah...were you serious about giving us a try?"
He hadn't thought Lizzie could blush any more deeply without bursting a blood vessel or something, but she pulled it off. "I was."
This time, Gordo went red too. He'd wanted to hear something like that for so long, and now it looked like his wish was coming true finally. "What say we get back to the party?" he said, smiling at each of them in turn.
"Best idea I've heard all day," Miranda said, and she linked her arm through Matt's in a gesture that was intentionally over the top, but got her point across.
As they started down the stairs, Gordo turned to Lizzie and held out his hand. She looked at it for a second, then met his eyes, then with a small smile, accepted his hand. He pulled her to his feet, and then, neither of them letting go but both scared out of their minds, followed Matt and Miranda downstairs.
Things were looking up, Gordo thought as the four of them stepped back onto the back porch. He was himself again, and there was the possibility that he and Lizzie might become something more...
Then an unfortunately familiar blond girl stopped in front of them, looking furious. "Matt McGuire, you're in *love* with me?"
~~~~~
"Say what?" Matt and Miranda chorused, and Miranda dropped her arm from around Matt's, looking decidedly embarrassed as several people stopped their partying to look over.
Melina, however, had marched over to Gordo and was glaring at him with fire in her eyes. "I can't *believe* you," she said fiercely.
Gordo reluctantly dropped Lizzie's hand and held up his own hands gently, trying to diffuse the situation as painlessly as possible. "Melina, it's Gordo. We, ah, we switched back," he finished quietly, glancing around and hoping no one had heard him.
"Oh," she said dully, then her eyes flared again. "*Oh*!" She stalked over to Matt and jabbed him in the chest with her finger. "I can't *believe* you!"
"Melina, what are you talking about?" Matt said, genuinely confused. He shot a look at Gordo, but Gordo only shrugged. Matt had dug himself into this one on his own, Gordo had had nothing to do with whatever it was.
"I'm talking about what Adam Barton told me!" she said, poking him again for good measure.
"You listen to anything Adam Barton has to say?" Matt said.
"Well, I thought she ought to know this juicy little morsel," Adam said, stepping out of the crowd with a smug look. He clasped his hands together and looked to the sky plaintively. "'I shouldn't like her,'" he said in a mocking tone of angst. "'She's my best friend.'"
"When did I ever say *that*," Matt said.
"Yesterday at lunch," Adam said with a smug look. "You've gotta keep your guard up, McGuire, because I'm always watching you. Just itching for you to slip. And boy, did you ever slip," he said gleefully.
Matt glared at Gordo. "This is *your* doing."
Gordo realized he was guilty as charged. "I'm sorry, I was talking to Lanny, and..."
"Listen, Bar-tone," Matt said, putting a French spin on his adversary's name, "you heard wrong, okey-dokey? Because I'm not in love with Melina. I already *have* a girlfriend," he added, gripping Miranda's hand possessively.
A murmur passed through the part of the crowd that had become the audience, and all eyes were on Miranda now. She looked slightly uncomfortable, but at the same time, kinda pleased.
Adam peered at Miranda suspiciously. "You don't go to this school. How do I know you're not his sister or something?"
"Uh, hello?" Lizzie said. "I'm not exactly proud of it, but *I'm* the goober's sister."
"I go to Hillridge Junior High," Miranda said.
"You're *older*?" Adam said, and his expression changed from suspicion to awe. With an admiring grin, he clapped Matt on the shoulder. "Way to go, man!"
"Thanks," Matt said with a genial smile and matching tone, then he switched quickly to his no-nonsense tone, one he no doubt adapted from his mom. "Now get out."
Adam's eyes widened, and he scurried.
Matt glanced at Melina. "I'm sorry. It's nothing personal."
She looked from Matt to Miranda, then briefly to Gordo, then back to Matt, and then shrugged. "No biggie."
Matt stared at her retreating back, then gave up, turned to Miranda, and asked if she wanted to dance. She did.
Watching them dance, crisis averted, Gordo became aware of his hand being squeezed, and realized that Lizzie had grabbed it again. He fought back a smile, and looked to her. "So you said all that, huh," she said. "The stuff that kid was saying Matt said."
"Yeah," he said, and wished he could be more eloquent.
Lizzie looked like she wanted to say something, then thought better of it, shaking her head slightly, and smiling at him. "Wanna dance?"
Gordo couldn't think of anything he'd rather do, and nodded.
As the mix CD of Miranda's favorite songs played on, and half the population of Hillridge Junior High milled about the McGuire backyard, eating and chatting, Miranda and Matt and Lizzie and Gordo danced into the evening, on the brink of something weird and new.
