A/N: You're probably wondering why I didn't post this yesterday. I had problems reaching word count yesterday because of seeing my father in the nursing home. *sigh* So it took me two days to write this chapter.

Il Maestro was a fallacy. Oh, it existed, but Lorenzo had no intention of taking Vicky there. For one thing, Cosmo and Wanda had hidden the no-credit limit card Fairy World had given them. He supposed it almost served him right, since he'd been manipulating them since he'd taken command over Timmy's body. Still, the fact they'd undermined him pissed him off.

However, he had to concede that what he had in mind couldn't be performed in public. It had to be done perfectly, harnessing her energy and humiliating her, in private.

The only problem was that Tootie was still in Vicky's house. Lorenzo really wished he had another body, giving Timmy back his, but if he did, then he wouldn't be able to directly control Cosmo and Wanda. As long as The Other was an aspect of Timmy Turner, they were honor-bound to obey him. Once Lorenzo had his own body, however, they didn't have to grant his wishes. It was a loophole that Lorenzo abhorred, but one he had to respect, nonetheless. For every closed loophole was a faerie godchild who had royally fucked up. It was amusing to think about, if only it didn't apply to him.

He needed to distract Tootie and Cosmo and Wanda had no magic to grant wishes thanks to Lorenzo's lack of foresight. However, he remembered that Tootie loved faeries and had always been obsessed with them, even before briefly receiving Cosmo and Wanda. He could send her on a wild goose chase while he tended to her sister. Or a wild faerie hunt.

He needed Vicky's energy because it was so hostile and malicious. She loathed Timmy so much, which he could use. Plus, he needed to punish her for what she'd done to Timmy time and time again. That Lorenzo benefited was merely a side effect.

He waved Cosmo's stolen wand and created a scavenger hunt for Tootie that ought to lead her far from Vicky's house for the night. Considering what Vicky usually subjected her to, Lorenzo didn't envision Tootie wanting to linger anyway. Its atmosphere had to be oppressive and downright depressing. She'd probably jump at any opportunity to abandon ship.

What he hadn't anticipated, however, was Wanda leaving the house as Tootie sped off. Lorenzo hid himself behind a shrub; he didn't want to be seen here, although Wanda already knew about the date. If she had seen him holding Cosmo's wand, she might have gotten an inkling that Lorenzo was up to no good with magic. And...being around her was unsettling. Timmy wanted to talk to her, too, which didn't help. Timmy kept thinking that he owed his godparents an apology when he owed them nothing.

Once Wanda had passed, he rang the doorbell. Vicky was dolled up, which made him stifle a yawn. She could put on all the makeup she wanted, don the prettiest dress she could find, and he'd never find her attractive.

He waved his wand and she collapsed, unconscious, on the front stoop. He scooped her up, shuddering at having to touch her, and then brought her back into the house. None of the neighbors were watching, but then again, none of them wanted to interfere in Vicky's business. Even if Vicky had needed help, they wouldn't have lifted a finger. Vicky's bad luck was their good luck-no one wanted to receive her attention, ill or fair. Lorenzo couldn't blame them. Icky Vicky had that moniker for a reason.

He brought her up to her torture chamber by flicking the switch in her bedroom. He bound and gagged her before launching himself into her mind room. A mind room, to the uninitiated, was a special room that all beings possessed but was usually only accessible through magic. It contained a being's memories, their thoughts, and their true selves. It was their most vulnerable part of their mind and therefore, the best place to do the worst damage.

In her mind room, Vicky was flicking through the channels on a flat screen TV hanging on the wall. Her mind room resembled her bedroom, except without the torture implements. Instead, it had the aforementioned TV, a bookcase full of books with memories imprinted on the pages, and, in the center, a fireplace containing her life's energy.

If Lorenzo wanted to be lazy, he could simply siphon off the energy from her fireplace and be done with it. But, no. He wanted her to suffer. He wanted her to remember him hurting her, too. Siphoning off her energy while she was oblivious to him wasn't sufficient.

Lorenzo picked up a book at random and rifled through it. It contained Vicky's worst fears and Lorenzo stifled a yawn at the first fear. Every woman feared being raped, so he supposed he could make her think he'd done that. How mundane. Losing her money-now they were getting warmer. He needed something truly vicious that would cinch his place and her pain.

Ah, now that was interesting.

Vicky feared people liking Tootie better than her. That was why she made Tootie so miserable; no one would like her, only pity her, if they saw her. Moreover, they'd been too frightened to challenge Vicky to protect Tootie. The only exception to that rule had two whole books entitled "hatred". Timothy Tiberius Turner.

Vicky loathed Timmy not just because he was smarter than her and constantly outwitting her, but because he undermined her at every turn. He wouldn't capitulate to her reign of terror and he protected people she sought to attack. He cared about his friends and didn't want to see them suffer the way he did.

Yawn. Lorenzo already knew that.

Doing magic within a mind room was a tricky endeavor. For one thing, too much magic could kill someone. ("This kills the man.") For another, if he casually lit some of these books on fire, he might destroy her long-term memories. Or her limbic system. One of the two. Lorenzo had perused the theories, but he hadn't spent much time on them. His attention span hadn't allowed it.

It was ironic that sometimes, he and Timmy shared the same limited attention span. Lorenzo needed to focus now, though. Unfortunately, he doubted Cosmo's wand would help. Cosmo had a worse attention span than anyone Lorenzo knew.

A wave of his wand made Vicky think the date had taken a sudden, horrifying turn. As for Lorenzo himself, he was still flicking through Vicky's books to find inspiration. Timmy knew some of Vicky's fears, but not enough for Lorenzo's purposes.

His eyes widened as he read another paragraph of a different book.

When Vicky was born, though she didn't remember it, faeries had taken an interest in her. It seemed she was distantly related to a disgraced faerie. That didn't matter, but the faeries had turned their back on Vicky once they'd learned about her personality. Vicky had always harbored a subconscious loathing for magical creatures as a result, one she shared in common with Crocker. Lorenzo raised his eyebrows. Now, that was interesting.

And exploitable.

In Vicky's faint memories, the ones she couldn't touch because they were encoded differently than her later ones, Lorenzo implanted a strong aversion to Cosmo and Wanda. They didn't match the faeries who had taken an interest in Vicky to begin with, but they would suffice. Plus, Cosmo and Wanda were associated with the hated Timmy Turner, which gave him more ammunition.

He drew deeply from her magical fire hearth and sighed, feeling the magic tingle in his skin. From here, he could stop and leave things. All he'd done was implant a suggestion in her mind, though. He hadn't done anything really enjoyable.

He smirked. How much damage could an anti-faerie do if an anti-faerie could do damage? Lorenzo's smirk blossomed into a wicked grin. He thought it was just about time to go and see.

"You do realize he's sending you on a wild goose chase, yes?" Calente said as Tootie stopped in front of their old elementary school. She stood near the Crocker Cave's old entrance and scowled, looking down at the map and then back up at her godparent. A map had appeared with specific faerie "spottings" and she'd followed it out of idle curiosity, not because she expected to find anything.

She knew someone was getting her out of the way and her money was on Lorenzo. Wanda was probably right-he was intimidated by anyone who wanted to help Timmy and couldn't be bought or frightened off. Cosmo was a coward, which meant Lorenzo didn't see him as a threat, but Wanda and Tootie weren't. That, to Lorenzo, had to be a distinct problem.

"I know," she said. She didn't intend to stay here and run into Crocker, either. The last thing she wanted was a narrow escape with her faerie. Unlike Timmy, Crocker didn't know she had faeries and she intended to keep it that way. Crocker was oblivious to almost everyone else in town who had faeries, because Crocker was alternatively a genius or an idiot depending on the day of the week. But he was so fixated on Timmy, no one else existed.

"So?" Cal prompted, raising his eyebrows at her. He was disguised as a squirrel and, unlike Cosmo and Wanda, he suited the part. Pink and green squirrels were hardly natural.

"So I guess we should see why Lorenzo didn't want me hanging around my house," she said and scowled. "But if I have to rescue Vicky, I'm not. Vicky's done enough shit to me that whatever she gets, she deserves."

Cal raised his eyebrows higher. "Are you so sure about that? Whatever she gets?"

"Yes, why?" Tootie said, uncomfortable with the judgmental look he was giving her. "Shouldn't I be?"

"Some things, not even Vicky deserves," Cal warned and Tootie scoffed.

"I doubt that," she said and rolled her eyes. "You haven't known Vicky as long as I have. Believe me, after the crap she's put me through, I'm willing to be no-holds barred on torture for her."

"You may regret saying that," Cal warned.

"Maybe, but I'm not counting on it," Tootie scoffed.

She knew she was being petty. Moreover, she was pretty sure there might be a few fates she didn't wish to visit upon Vicky, although she'd be hard pressed to find any right now. Maybe she needed to exhibit more compassion for Vicky, but that wasn't happening. No one had compassion for Vicky, much less Vicky's sister, who had to live with her 24/7 and had lost her parents because of her. Sure, they were Vicky's parents too, but that was beside the point.

"Perhaps we ought to check on her?" Cal said and Tootie gave him a look like he was out of his mind.

"No," she said. "And again, no. She's a grown woman. She can take care of herself, as she's proven time and time again. Besides which, why should I show her any compassion? She could've killed Timmy numerous times, never mind me."

"I see."

She scowled. "Stop making me out to be the bad guy. It's not my fault! Besides, whatever this Other has in mind for Vicky, it's probably not that bad."

"Do you really believe that?" Cal asked, arching his eyebrows and Tootie's shoulders sank.

"No," she admitted. "But it's nice to think that. But I'm not going back there, not now. Give it a few hours and then I'll slink back to the house and see if Vicky's still alive."

"Okay."

He didn't look happy and he wore a similar disapproved look to Wanda's, which made her feel guiltier. She liked Wanda and might've had a crush on her from afar, but it paled in comparison to her crush on Timmy. No, not a crush. She was in love with him, regardless of what he thought.

To appease Cal, she'd return to check on Vicky in a couple of hours. She still thought he was being ridiculous.

Lorenzo wasn't finished, however. He wanted to add a personal touch, which would be impossible once he left her mind room. Therefore, for a second, he closed his eyes and waved his wand. He knew he could kill her if he made the spell too powerful and part of him didn't care. Admittedly, it was a large part of him. The only reason he was keeping her alive was because she might prove useful in the future, if only for her vitriol toward faeries. Speaking of which, it was time to cement that hatred.

He shared a memory Tootie could've shared with Wanda, if Wanda had become aware of Tootie's behavior earlier and if things had fallen out differently with Fairy World. It didn't really matter, the particulars. Vicky wasn't about to question the veracity of the memory, not while trapped within her mind.

He could kill her by doing this. No one in their right mind would use magic inside someone's mind room. Then again, he wasn't in his right mind. He smiled cruelly.

"And away we go..." he said, grinning wickedly. "Allons-y."

Tootie was not having a good day. Then again, she could count on one hand and have fingers left over how many good days she'd had in her life. It was pathetic, but it was something she'd grown accustomed to over the years. She was constantly miserable and her only solace was Timmy...and now his faerie godparents, of whom she couldn't speak. She had to keep his secret, for both their sakes.

She'd known about Cosmo and Wanda almost since Timmy had gotten them. For one thing, Timmy didn't trouble keeping his voice down when he was speaking to them. For another, she watched him closely and had followed him home on numerous occasions. He did live down the street from her, so it wasn't like she needed to deviate from her path much.

And as time passed, she developed an appreciation for Cosmo and Wanda, both who they were and how they helped her beloved. Cosmo was the funny one, the one who never took things seriously even when he really ought to. And Wanda was the voice of reason among raving lunatics, which Timmy and Cosmo occasionally were. Tootie sighed, watching Timmy from her window. She wished she had faerie godparents. They could make everything so much easier. She couldn't remember having Cosmo and Wanda for a day and if she had, she might have felt differently. But she didn't. And she was determined to keep Timmy's secret for him.

"Hi, Cosmo. Hi, Wanda," Tootie said in an undertone, wondering what would happen. She'd never spoken their names aloud before. Would they come to her summons? Or would they ignore her because she wasn't their godson? She knew in faerie folklore, faeries were bound by their true names. If you knew them, you could command them. Cosmo and Wanda didn't have outlandish names, although she supposed they were unusual compared to most human names. But they weren't, like, Rumpelstiltskin.

"Hi, Tootie!" Cosmo said brightly and Tootie turned, beaming, to look at him. (Inwardly, Lorenzo rolled his eyes and groaned). Cosmo beamed back.

"We're not supposed to be here," Wanda hissed at Cosmo and grabbed him by the arm. "But if she doesn't know whose faeries we are, we won't have to go away forever."

"You belong to Timmy."

The two faeries froze, gobsmacked. Blood drained from their faces and they swayed in midair.

"I'm not going to tell anyone!" Tootie promised and meant it quite fervently. "I swear on my life, I'd never tell anyone whose faeries you are."

"Considering what we know about your sister and Crocker, that's a little hard to swallow, hon," Wanda said, looking increasingly uneasy. She hugged herself and Cosmo latched onto her.

"I promise, I promise!" Tootie said. "I don't want you to go away forever-I know how much you mean to Timmy. Plus, you're one of the few things keeping him sane."

"Sanity is in the eye of the beholder," Cosmo said soberly and then added, "Whee!" And proceeded to spin around in a circle. Tootie rolled her eyes, but was secretly glad Cosmo appeared to be on her side.

"I don't know how Fairy World hasn't done anything yet, if you know," Wanda said heavily, collapsing onto Tootie's bed. It seemed as if the weight of Tootie's knowledge threatened to crush the little faerie. ("And good riddance," Lorenzo muttered, unheard by Vicky or anyone within the scene).

"I don't know either," she replied. "I don't want wishes from you. I don't want to blackmail you. I'm not like that. I just want you to make Timmy happy, since I can't."

"Oh, hon, you're only ten," Wanda said sympathetically. "Give it a couple of years. He's just a stupid ten year old boy."

"And next year, he'll be a stupid eleven year old boy!" Cosmo added and Tootie, despite herself, laughed. They had a way of making her feel good and welcome, even though they weren't her faeries. She had to admit, even if only to herself, that she would have loved to have them as hers. She was jealous of Timmy.

"Right," Tootie said. "You probably noticed I haven't been around as much."

"No," Cosmo said and Wanda rolled her eyes.

"You're not the most observant, dear," Wanda said and pecked Cosmo on the cheek. "I did, yes."

"Vicky threatened Timmy with bodily harm if I got too close to him again," Tootie said dully. "So I can't go near him. But you guys can. You can make Vicky miserable for both of us."

"If that's what Timmy wants," Wanda said and then groaned. "Oh, who am I kidding? He probably hates her almost as much as you do."

"No one hates her more than I do," Tootie agreed. "She's such a bitch."

"Language," Wanda warned and then grimaced.

"She is, though," Tootie said.

"She's Icky Vicky," Cosmo agreed and Tootie wondered whether they ever cursed. Probably not, not if they were around children all the time. She wasn't so sure Timmy hadn't started to curse. She'd missed so much thanks to Vicky. Just thinking about it made her chest ache and she wanted to cry. She was so sick of crying-she did it all the time. no wonder Timmy didn't like her.

Of course, she could never compete with his precious Trixie Tang. Loathing filled her and she pushed it aside. Cosmo and Wanda could do nothing about Trixie, not while Timmy adored her and Tootie loathed her. Tootie wasn't their godchild, after all.

"If you guys could make her life more difficult, how would you do it?" Tootie asked and looked around, wondering how long it would take for Timmy to realize his faeries were missing and call them back.

"Well, we could give her a snake head again," Cosmo said, looking uncertain at Wanda. Wanda shook her head in response.

"We have to do what Timmy asks. We don't do anything by ourselves unless our godson's in danger," Wanda said.

"Like when Crocker was threatening him?" Cosmo said and Wanda's expression darkened.

"Exactly like that," she said.

"But you could do it if he asked, right?" Tootie pressed and the two nodded, albeit reluctantly.

"Well, yes. We have to, according to Da Rules," Wanda said, looking pained. "We shouldn't even be having this conversation with you."

"I know, I know," Tootie said. "You guys can go, if you want."

"Bye!" Cosmo said, poofing away, though Wanda lingered a moment longer.

"Be good and I promise, Vicky will get what she deserves sooner or later. Everyone does," Wanda murmured and hugged Tootie tightly. Tootie hugged her back desperately.

"Take good care of Timmy," Tootie said. "I love him."

"I know you do," Wanda said, though she didn't look like she quite believed Tootie. Tootie guessed that because of her age, a lot of people said that without meaning it. Timmy thought he was in love with Trixie, after all. But Tootie really meant it. She adored Timmy Turner. She would marry him, if he didn't file a permanent restraining order against her when they were older. Her shoulders sank at the thought.

"Do you think Timmy will ever like me back?" she asked and Wanda drew away, frowning.

"I can't tell you that for certain, sweetie," Wanda said. "All I can do is tell you to wait and see."

Tootie nodded. She'd been afraid of that, but she'd known to expect it, nonetheless.

"Thanks anyway," Tootie said and hugged Wanda one last time before the pink faerie departed too. Once she was gone, Tootie hugged herself and admired the faerie dust that littered her floor. She rubbed it between her fingers and sighed.

"Take good care of him, okay?" Tootie said to thin air. "I love him too much to see him hurt, especially by Vicky."

Lorenzo stepped back, admiring his work. Vicky was snarling, still unaware of his presence, but thinking she'd been raped and had her memories altered. The latter she only suspected, though. She fully believed Tootie had been colluding with Cosmo and Wanda against her. That would be useful for the future.

"Well, well," Lorenzo said, waving his wand and transporting himself back outside of Vicky's mind room. "Any parting words before I dump you on Cosmo and Wanda? No?"

"I'll kill her," Vicky snarled, barely conscious. "I'll kill them all-Timmy, Tootie, and those stupid fucking faeries."

Lorenzo grinned widely. "Excellent."

He waved his wand and dumped Vicky on Cosmo and Wanda's couch.

The two faeries were in for a rude awakening.

A battered looking Vicky appeared on their couch and Cosmo and Wanda jumped, startled. She woke up and Cosmo and Wanda didn't have time to hide, though they couldn't have even if they'd wanted to. For one thing, they had no magic. For another, there was nowhere to hide in the living room, nowhere that wouldn't be easily sussed out.

"Who the hell are..." Vicky trailed off and then her eyes opened wide. "It's you. You fucking interfering assholes!"

She sprang to her feet. "You're the reason I was raped! You're the reason Timmy always got the last word! I'll kill you!"

Wanda gulped, backing up into Cosmo. She wasn't stupid. She didn't have much of a defense without magic. Moreover, she knew she'd have to protect Cosmo too, because he was too much of a coward to fight this battle with Wanda before him.

Of all the times to be without magic...

Wanda cursed under her breath.

"Well?" Vicky snapped. "Don't you have anything to say to me?"

"Oh, I have a lot I'd love to say to you, now that we're face to face," Wanda snapped. "For one thing, I'm not fat. For another, how dare you treat Timmy like you do. For a third, you're bitter and you're going to die alone and unhappy like you've made everyone else. For a fourth, Tootie deserves better than you."

"Tootie!" Vicky exploded. "That little bitch has been colluding with you two behind my back! Her and Timmy Turner!"

"…what?" Wanda said, startled. "We never colluded with Tootie."

"Yeah, we can't," Cosmo said from behind his wife. "We only work for Timmy."

"Bullshit," Vicky snapped. She tried to walk and fell back over onto the couch. "I fucking hate you both. And I'll get you as soon as I can leave this house."

"Or what, hon?" Wanda said testily. "Do you really think Timmy's going to let you attack us once we have our magic back?"

"You have no powers?" Vicky said and then howled with laughter. "That's rich! You're both pathetic wash-ups, then. That'll make it easier to hurt you."

"Don't think we'll just take your abuse sitting down," Wanda warned. Her eyes narrowed. "Just because we're without magic doesn't mean we're without resources."

That wasn't true, but she didn't expect Vicky to call her bluff.

"Oh, really?" Vicky said.

"We've lived thousands of years more than you," Wanda said and her eyes flashed warning. "Don't think you can pull one over on us."

"Oh, I don't think," Vicky said scornfully. "I know. You two are going down."

((I hope Timmy comes back soon,)) Wanda said privately to Cosmo.

((Me too,)) Cosmo said and frowned. ((What do you think Lorenzo did to her?))

((If that poster was anything to go by, it was psychological, not physical. But that's enough. And that fits her brand to a tee.))

She scowled at Vicky. She'd be damned if she was going to let that eighteen year old ruin her life like she'd tried to do to Timmy and Tootie so many times.

This was war.