Author's Note: I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed. (Glomps)

This story is a great deal more light-hearted than The Other Saga and there won't be any controversial stuff in here. Just me writing FOP perhaps the way it was meant to be, with no angst in sight.

By the way, notice the chapter titles? If you don't, it should become more apparent in the next few chapters. (Grins) It's a shame my favorite song can't be a title.

Chapter Two: Tomorrow Never Knows

Crocker walks like a dog with his tail between his legs and the children watch him, cheering loudly. Timmy and his friends have made it a point to start up a song eerily like "Ding Dong, the Witch is Dead". Needless to say, even with the various injuries, this has made their year.

Now, they commence with the cheers again, "Two, four, six, eight! Who's the teacher we all hate? Crocker, boo, Crocker!"

Crocker groans. The popular kids have even changed the music to "Nowhere Man" and everyone has stormed the tables. There is no longer any supervision whatsoever and they're using it to their advantage. A crash shakes the school since someone has knocked over a table.

Amazingly, Principal Waxelplax hears none of this. She's concentrating on one thing only, how to fire a teacher with tenure. Crocker had accrued tenure, which meant he had taught there for more than three years and could not be fired without just cause. She could not fire him herself, either, the superintendent had to observe his teaching and find enough fault there.

They stop in front of her office, where some miscreant, probably Francis, has scrawled an unreadable slander. She sighs and they step inside, where the sound from the cafè dies away. The office is immaculate, as Principal Waxelplax is obsessed with cleanliness.

Crocker has realized, in the absence of sound, these moments seem more final, more concrete. He desperately needs something to lighten the mood, anything will do. Even if it's something stupid, he won't be fired today. Maybe something about....

"Fairy godparents!" Crocker shouts and Waxelplax winces. Of all the absurd things for him to be raving about, it has to be his absolute favorite, fairies. He's only making this worse on himself.

"Zip it, Crocker," she snaps and motions for him to take a seat. She removes some papers from her desk drawer and poises her finger above the black telephone, beside the white desktop computer, on her wooden desk. For the moment, she's willing to give Crocker a second chance, but that chance is teetering on the edge of existence. One comment about fairies and he's out.

"I'm willing to give you another chance," she informs him, her fingers drumming on the desk. "I know you can do better than this and-"

"What if I take you out a date?" Crocker blurts out; not even realizing what he's said until it's out. "If it goes well, you won't fire me?"

"And, if it doesn't?" Her voice rises.

"Then..."

"Then you're out, Crocker. Back in the asylum where you belong and I hire someone else, someone who's not fairy obsessed. Do we have a deal?"

Crocker, who's rather desperate in both areas, since no one really wants to date an insane freak, quickly agrees. "I'll pick you up at eight?"

What am I thinking? Am I thinking? This is insane! Crocker's going to talk about fairies for the whole date and probably get us arrested for stalking a kid.

Aloud, she says, "One word about fairies and you can consider the date over! Got it?"

Crocker hangs his head. What else is there to talk about, besides fairies? There's a world outside of godparents? What a revelation!

"Er, yes. See you then."

"When? You never set up the date and you don't know where I live!" How could he forget something so important?

"Don't you know how to set up a date?"

"Not really, no. Every time I tried to, the girls ran screaming."

Who would blame them?

She sighs and gives him her address and phone number, in case there's an emergency and he has to confirm something. Under no circumstances can he cancel the date. Only she has that power, since this confirms his future employment.

That set, Crocker leaves her office, not looking forward to Friday night.

TBC