Chapter Eight: How I Hate to Get Up in the Morning
Vicky felt like she'd been slammed into a wall, dragged from underneath a burning truck, and then shot. Her head was pounding, and she thought that maybe that was the reason why her eyes were playing tricks on her. Maybe her sense of touch as well, who knew what havoc her mind could wreak in this state.
There was no way she was covered in her own blood (only on her thighs) and absolutely no way she was nearly naked on Timmy Turner's couch. She didn't know what kind of twisted joke this was, or who had done it, but they were going to pay. Big time. As soon as she found out….
"Have a good night?" A pink haired woman, wearing a yellow t-shirt,with the oddest hairdo, inquired. There was a great deal of sarcasm in her voice, but her eyes showed pity.
"What's going on here? Did you put me here? Is this your idea of a joke? I'll kill you! I'll-"Vicky reached out to strangle her, but she pushed her arms aside.
"I think you need to remember what happened last night," the woman said softly.
"You also deserve some explanations. Cosmo?"
The acrid smell of burning bacon and cheese filled their nostrils, and Vicky gagged. Whoever Cosmo was, he couldn't cook very well.
"I'm making breakfast. See?" Cosmo yelled, and removed the skillet from the stove, but dropped it.
"Owie!"
He rushed to the pink haired woman, his hands blistering.
"Wanda," he moaned, "make it better."
Vicky pulled a face. Who was this guy? Did he really expect her to treat him like a baby? If it were her, she'd bat him over the head.
Wanda stared at his hands. She didn't know what to do. Normally, she'd just use magic, but she couldn't use magic now. What did humans do when they burned themselves?
Vicky snickered and Wanda shot her a dirty look.
"I don't think you're in a position to laugh at anyone. Now, tell me what to do."
"Just let it blister. Like I care," Vicky shot back.
"It hurts, it hurts, it hurts!" Cosmo started crying.
These people. How can they have no idea how to treat a burn? Suckers. No way am I going to help them… Vicky thought, but her thoughts dropped off when she heard The Other humming above her, in the newly fixed ceiling. Everything came rushing back to her, what little of her alcohol damaged memory she had.
Her cheeks flushed.
I don't know who they are, but I'm in a far worse condition. They could just throw me out on the street like this, and my reputation would be shot, everything would be shot. I guess I better help them, at least for the time being, until I get out of this hell-hole.
Feeling awful for doing something kind, Vicky muttered, "Run cold water over it and then put some ice on it. He'll be fine."
Wanda, stunned for a moment, stared until Cosmo's howling brought her back to the now.
She has nothing left, does she? I feel sorry for her. I guess whatever anger she had at the world died last night. She lost whatever made her alive, Wanda thought, her arms wrapped around Cosmo as she helped him run cold water over his hand.
Alone again, Vicky had time to take in the true measure of the situation. Her mouth tasted like vomit, but she didn't remember throwing up. She badly wanted to take a shower.
Ashamed and abashed, Vicky asked quietly, directing her words at Wanda, who seemed more assertive than Cosmo, "Did I throw up?"
Wanda, a crying Cosmo in tow, walked back in.
"Yes. We were instructed to take care of you. It's our punishment for being so close to Timmy."
"What do you mean, 'being so close to Timmy'? Where is the twerp?" Vicky reddened. "Is he here?"
Cosmo and Wanda shared a sidelong glance Vicky couldn't decipher. Words she never could have caught passed between them. They were discussing how much was enough.
((She should at least know that Timmy's not coming back for a while.)) Wanda transmitted.
((But what about...?)) Cosmo responded.
That was a problem. Without their powers, would Jorgen be able to take them away from Timmy and give him different godparents if they let someone in on it? Vicky wasn't the most trustworthy of people, but could last night have taught her the value of keeping her mouth shut? Would they be removed as soon as the week was up?"
As if by divine intervention, Cosmo recalled an ill-used, old page of Da Rules. It stated that in cases of extreme emergency, when fairy godparents are without powers, they ciykd tell a human that is not their godchild about their true position. This same rule also ensured that the third party would not sell them out, since, once activated, it required someone who could break the seal to allow them that ability. If they ever even tried, they'd become deaf, mute, and their hands and feet would fall off. Fairy World was kind of strict about certain things.
He shared what he recalled with Wanda, who was frankly astonished that he remembered something she didn't. However, he was right, she conceded, and turned to face Vicky again. She'd tell the girl, but after she had the chance to freshen herself up. It wasn't right to throw a bombshell at her the way she was, regardless of her past cruelty.
"Go take a shower and then come back. There are towels in there and we'll find you something to wear. You need a little time to recover before we start explaining, anyway." Wanda sighed.
Vicky didn't need to be told twice. She started to walk upstairs, when Wanda stopped her.
"Don't go up there. The Other, er, Lorenzo's there."
She didn't need to clarify. No one wanted to face him, and none had more reason to avoid him than Vicky. There had to be another bath around here.
"Behind the kitchen, to the right. It's fine." Wanda motioned with her arm, and Vicky quickly complied.
Whoever they were, they knew her through Timmy, but were still nice to her. Go figure.
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Vicky returned to find Cosmo and Wanda sitting at the kitchen table, Cosmo clutching an enormous ice pack. There was some breakfast on the table, scrambled eggs and bacon, likely Wanda's doing. A jug of orange juice was there, as well as a glass of water and a couple of Advil.
"I wasn't sure you were hungry, but those," she indicated the pills, "should reduce your hangover. The water is in case you're thirsty or you need something to wash those down with. You probably shouldn't have any juice, because it's acidic."
"Why are you guys being so nice? If I know you, I've blackmailed you at some time. If you know me through Timmy, then you know that I'm a bitch, so what gives?"Vicky nodded and slid into a seat opposite her, eyes downcast.
They had been nice to her. When she stepped out of the shower, someone had gone through the trouble of retrieving her own clothes and a white pill. The pill, as one might guess, was the morning after pill, so that she wouldn't get pregnant, which was very thoughtful.
"We need you," Wanda said, cutting right to the chase.
Cosmo, who was busy scarfing down Cheese Nips, didn't add. His hand was better, their magic was slowly returning to them, because The Other had surplus energy. In a few hours, the burns wouldn't be there at all.
"Let me explain. We are Timmy's fairy godparents, but, at the moment, we're powerless. We know you because we were assigned to Timmy to help him fend off the misery you caused him. You don't know us, since, before The Other came along, we weren't allowed to reveal ourselves to anyone but Timmy. We have a set of rules, and, if we are revealed, Timmy loses us forever."
Vicky said nothing to such an extraordinary statement. Wanda knew she was listening, however, but that she was a little shell shocked at the moment. This was good, since Wanda had neither the time nor the energy to deal with a fully engaged Vicky.
Without magic, Cosmo and Wanda were exhausted. Magic gave them energy (sleep helped too), but it was mostly magic that made them chipper and ready to deal with whatever life threw them. Likewise, Vicky was hung-over and in a daze, making her nearly as alert as they were.
"Timmy's parents were murdered by a sinister force we call The Other. He was caused by a wish gone array that manifested itself as anti-fairy, our evil counterpart. His ultimate plan is to completely destroy Timmy (he has already crippled his emotional state, preventing Timmy from fighting back) and take over completely.
"Anyone whom Timmy has strong feelings for, such as hatred, you, or love, us, is big on his list. We were chosen because of our closeness to Timmy and our magic (mostly the second). Since you had no magic to drain, The Other took your energy by alternate means…
"There is a counter spell which will forcibly exorcise him from Timmy's body when uttered at the same moment as his spell. We won't be able to accomplish this for more than a few days, since The Other has our powers until the week is up. Even so, we lack the complete control the spell requires, we need someone else." Wanda said, and took a gulp of orange juice, since her throat was parched.
"You." Cosmo said, taking his eyes off his Cheese Nips to gaze at Vicky. There was no trace of humor in his face.
"Yes. We need your help to do this, since the spell requires both family and an enemy. It would be in your best interest, since you can't leave the house," Wanda finished.
"What?" Vicky choked "What do you mean, I can't leave the house? Why not?"
"The Other placed a charm on the door, prohibiting your exit. He means for you to stay until his preparations are complete. He plans to use our energy on the spell, and to-" Wanda faltered, taking her eyes off Vicky and swiveling around to meet Cosmo's gaze. She gained strength from him, and continued, "to take you by force again. The resulting energy would be enough to kill Timmy and more than likely, destroy civilization as we know it.
"So, you have a choice. It's not a good one, and it'll probably go against every fiber in your body, but-"
"I'll do it," Vicky murmured, "if it'll get me out of here."
She made the choice none too soon, as The Other dashed down the steps, holding a briefcase and singing loudly, rather off-key. There was an enormous grin on his face and he hadn't even bothered to change his outfit, since Vicky's blood remained. He crossed the threshold and walked into the kitchen, grabbed Wanda's plate.
"Good morning all. I hope last night was as good for you as it was for me." He grinned at Vicky, who luckily had nothing left in her system to throw up.
"It's the funniest thing. I awoke this morning, glanced out my window, and there was a small child sleeping on the doorstep. She had pigtails and a plaid skirt, and her arms were wrapped around a plastic Crimson Chin doll." He opened the case and threw its content on the table.
"I trust she belongs to you!"
Tootie knocked over the orange juice (spilling on Wanda), and awoke to find Vicky, Cosmo, Wanda, and The Other staring down at her.
