Author's Note: Regardless of the initial flaming this received, I liked the way it turned out. It doesn't have an ending so much as the hint of continuity and for this one, I didn't want it to be final.
Because Sophie, Lorenzo, and now Elisa will all return in one form or another. For the last time in this fic, Fairly Oddparents belongs to Butch Hartman.
Chapter Seven: Time
"You can still change your mind, you know. There's still time," The Tooth Fairy called over her shoulder; out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a rare occurrence- an inner conflict. He'd unjustly punished others before and ended up ruining their lives more than helping Fairy World. Jorgen wasn't a terrible creature, but he tended to value his opinions above others' welfare.
He said nothing, not indicating he'd heard her. Nonetheless, he took everyone she spoke into account. His fingers lingered over the spell requiring Elisa to forget her best friend and any subsequent history the two shared. His mouth formed the French, but when it came to intoning it, he halted. She cocked her head curiously, but dared not interrupt. Instead, she drifted to the veranda and watched fairies float idly by. They smiled upon spotting her (a few smacked into the adjacent Romanesque columns). While normally she basked in their adoration, now that she'd decided to directly contradict Jorgen if he didn't retract at least one of his spells, her stomach clenched and she couldn't muster the tiniest of smiles. Regardless of whether she'd married him, his wrath was terrible and she'd surely invoke it. She hoped he arrived at the right decision before she had to take action. Otherwise the Earth might not be the only realm in jeopardy.
Overhead in Dimmsdale, the sky bled black and blue, like appearing after an altercation. No moon shone overhead, or any of the customary stars. Elisa peered at it curiously, unable to shake the terrific chill that had mysteriously seized her bones. Unidentifiable magic crackled beyond her grasp and Veronica sensed it too. The two girls had halted in the middle of the main street, where other humans and animals in tune to the supernatural peered about themselves. The more scientific minded scoffed at their compatriots, but regardless of whether they accepted it or not, powerful forces were at work.
"Come on, let's end this pity date," Veronica growled, temper getting the better of her. She tugged her along unwillingly and dug her heels into the dirt. Veronica pivoted, eyes narrowed to slits. She opened her mouth to admonish her when Elisa abruptly spurted past wordlessly and headed towards Sophie's house. Muttering darkly, Veronica followed, winching at the pain from speeding in five inch heels.
Sophie stored the last of her belongings into a rucksack and prepared herself, lump forming in her throat, to bid her parents adieu for the last time. After Jorgen's jurisdiction, they wouldn't remember conceiving a daughter in the first place. Tears burned the insides of her eyes, but she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of crying. Not when she'd be wasting her last few moments with them. Nonetheless, she permitted herself a five minute sob fest, capitulating to her grief.
A tear soaked her favorite book and she gasped, fanning it quickly. Alas, the tome was ruined, forever marred. She hastily shoved it with the rest and perceived rather than viewed another presence entering her house. Hands quaking, she steeled herself and strode out the door. Whoever it was, she was ready, come what may. But the creature at the bottom of the stairs surprised her.
"Une amie autrefois, mais jamis encore
(A friend once, but never again
"Oubliez votre histoire et quoi vous savez
(Forget your history and what you know)
"Oubliez votre amitiè et votre amour amical
(Forget your friendship and your friendly love)
"Les fèe appartent moi.
(The fairies belong to me)
"Dispairt, humain.
(Vanish, human)."
Jorgen awaited the customary fairy dust swirling about him after its completion, but none occurred. Growling, he spun to snap at the nearest creature, who ought to be his wife. He found an empty mansion. Furious, he seized his wand (he'd done magic without it for centuries and mainly kept it to demonstrate his power). Meddling creature! He'd show her what it meant to rebel against him.
She would bear the brunt of his fury; he loved her, but no one made him look the fool. Concentrating (since transporting without a wand required dark magic he rarely used unless absolutely necessary), he transported himself to Dimmsdale. Clearly, he'd have to take matters into his own humungous hands.
Cosmo knew they had to prepare themselves to leave. He knew he ought to wave his wand and store everything until the next godchild came along. Of course, he also knew procrastinating solved nothing. Regardless, he watched Wanda stack their belongings into a magically enlarged suitcase and glanced away quickly. Lightly she brushed his mind with telepathy, but he blocked access to his feelings beyond the superficial melancholy.
He hated leaving his godchildren, whether it was Fairy World mandated or the rare instance where the child reached eighteen. He hated being the common goldfish, ordinary cat, or loveable but indistinguishable mongrel. Years spent experiencing the joys and sorrows of childhood and adolescence only remembered by them, never by their godchildren. So much wasted time. Sometimes it felt like they struggled against the hourglass in vain.
"What's the point of godparenting," he'd often ask on an occasion like this, "if they forget everything?"
Wanda usually had an answer, stating they lingered subconsciously or the morals imparted were more important than they themselves. Today she had nothing to say. That within itself was almost as bad as their sentence. The creature he ran to for the mysteries of the universe came up with a blank slate, like Elisa's memories would be soon enough.
Roping a necklace over her head in a flash, the Tooth Fairy grabbed Sophie by the hand and led her out the open front door. In the living room, her parents looked up, but a simple enchantment solved that problem. They soon found their newspaper and book too intriguing to notice their daughter was being fairy-napped. Oblivious, five minutes later, they'd look up and wonder what on earth fascinated them about knitting materials and digging graves. For now, the spell lasted long enough to establish its desired result.
Sophie blinked, too stunned to defend herself. Once the two reached the street, where a figure like the Tooth Fairy ought to commandeer attention, the children played, ignorant. Cars zoomed by without pausing momentarily and she shivered. A theory she'd read in one of Charles de Lint's books, about the world existing on consensual reality. No one expected to see a fairy standing in the middle of a human street, thus, no one did except her. Either that or she'd done an excellent job camouflaging herself. Currently, Sophie wasn't at liberty to investigate this anomaly at length.
"What-what's going on?" she managed to stammer, terrified that not only couldn't they see her companion, but she too was going to fade away. The fairy girl who got swept up into the wrong court's activities and was never heard from again.
"You'll find out in due time," the Tooth Fairy stated austerely and she longed to protest "there is no time- Jorgen will have me soon". But when she opened her mouth to object, it shut upon the explosion of magic that blossomed out of her wand.
"Sophie!" Elisa screamed, flinging herself forward into the 'poof' carrying her best friend to Fairy World. Veronica, unaccustomed to magical occurrences, grabbed Elisa firmly about the middle because, from her perspective, Elisa was three inches away from falling into the nearest open sewer. She fought her madly, but other than causing them both to slam into the pavement, nothing happened.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" Veronica snapped, fortunately landing atop Elisa and other than the rude shock, receiving no scrapes. Elisa wasn't so lucky- her cheeks bled freely, but she paid them no mind.
"They just took her from me…stole her away like they owned her soul…" Elisa whispered, flabbergasted. Badly shaken, she pushed her tender palms off the asphalt and started towards her house. Veronica, abandoning her shoes and running barefoot, barely caught her. She glared heatedly, but Elisa ignored her.
A blinding flash from Fairy World's "memory modification" crew assaulted them and Elisa collapsed, slipping into unconsciousness just as a feathery light kiss brushed her cheek. Pink, gold, wings…
"You deceived me," Jorgen roared, popping beside his wife. Sophie, head spinning, sat astride a marble chair and rubbed her throbbing temples. A fairy popped into the room, took one look at Jorgen, and promptly vanished. She envied him.
"Do you want another Crocker?" the Tooth Fairy countered, folding her arms across her chest. Bewildered and befuddled, a stray thought drifted across Sophie's mind as they were wont when she had absolutely no control over a situation. I bet Elisa would think she's hot. Heh, heh.
"You will not interfere!" he thundered and dust cascaded off the ceiling. Cringing, she shook it out of her long, mousy brown hair and noted any nearby fairies promptly disappearing on the spot. Once again, a talent she wished she had. Why had he taken her here, anyway? She was the magic equivalent of a paper clip in the face of an army hoard. Sure, she had powers, but nothing substantial. Nothing to incite a quibble or require removal.
"I already have," she retorted, pointing to Sophie's necklace. "You may be the ruler of Fairy World, but I'm ordering you to stand down. Now."
"Something big is going down at Jorgen's place," Cosmo said aloud and, through telepathy, added, ((You kissed her. Why?))
"Hopefully, Big Daddy isn't involved," Wanda replied, shuddering at the thought. She seldom saw her father and she preferred to keep it that way. The last time they'd met, he'd tried to kill Cosmo and, when that failed, tried to persuade her to divorce him. If only he paid as much attention to her life as he did to Blonda's. Then perhaps she'd stop running to her 'big sister' (by two minutes) for advice.
((She won't remember it. It was my parting gift…)) she trailed off. The last thing I could offer of any use.
Cosmo nodded and sent, ((Should we see what's going on?))
((Couldn't hurt, I guess.)) she said, but her thoughts and emotions weren't as confident as she'd liked. All she kept thinking of was Elisa, the lights, and her hollow memories.
"I can understand removing Cosmo and Wanda because of her attachments to her, but her best friend? Are you heartless? You teach the new fairy cadets that relationships are insignificant," she hissed, glaring.
"We are here to help humans, not destroy them!"
"She has other friends!" Jorgen countered, reddening. Swinging his wand threateningly, he set to prove himself right when Sophie, voice tinny and barely audible, interrupted. The color rushed to her face at such a bold move.
"No, she doesn't. Please…please don't do this to her. I promise I won't tell her about Cosmo and Wanda. I won't reveal you guys. Just let me stay with her," Sophie pleaded, wondering where all those words had come from. Certainly not her. Once finished, she clapped her hands over her mouth and suppressed a gasp. Jorgen had gone entirely silent and she felt his eyes burning holes into her with a mere gaze. Why had her mouth ran ahead of her mind?
"And what effect do you think you have on me, puny fey girl?" he snapped and she cowered, wrapping her arms around her knees. A faint whimper emanated accompanied by her hugging herself tighter.
"Don't do it," she whispered, no more able to stop herself than a train can prevent a head-on collision a fraction of a section before it hits.
"Don't take away Cosmo and Wanda, or, in the very least, me. She…she may just be a human child to you, but she's my best friend. She deserves a happier childhood than arguments and struggling with her sexual identity, not to mention the holes in her history. She deserves fairy godparents…" she murmured.
"Or me."
Jorgen raised an eyebrow, but he couldn't reply quickly enough. Poofing in Da Rules, the Tooth Fairy jauntily pointed to an obscure rule dictating he couldn't completely rewrite someone's past. He waved his wand to erase it, but a hand held him back. Eyes blazing, hair aflame, floated Wanda. Cosmo, a safe distance away, waved cheerily at the Tooth Fairy and then hid next to Sophie.
"Stop bullying children. It isn't bad enough you rule Fairy World with an iron fist- now you have to ruin innocent people's lives too?" she snapped.
"Let one instance, just one, slip through the cracks of Da Rules and your remaining morality."
The Tooth Fairy's glare could melt steel. Glancing into the clouds, Jorgen replied, "Return to Earth."
In a flash of fairy dust (Sophie would never get used to this), Cosmo, Wanda, and Sophie landed on Elisa's lawn.
"That's the last time I go out with you or anyone like you," Veronica muttered, tromping off. Flipping her off, she hailed a taxi and was gone before Elisa turned. However, since her eyes were focused on another thing entirely, she hardly missed her.
"Hello, sport," Wanda murmured uncertainly, but Elisa didn't see her. Instead, she hugged Sophie, filthy from landing in a mud puddle, and squealed happily. She had no idea why, but she had the faintest inkling she was about to lose her forever. Sophie grinned back, hugging her and further sullying her blouse.
A card floated on the wind and Wanda caught it deftly. It read: "You have a new assignment: Sophie. Keep an eye on Elisa. Sincerely yours, the Tooth Fairy."
"Fine, you win," Jorgen grumbled. "It will never happen again."
Smirking, she pecked him on the cheek and disappeared to collect another tooth. Checks and balances worked in Fairy World better than on Earth, or so it seemed.
Unaware Sophie's new pets were Cosmo and Wanda incognito, she continued life relatively the same as she had before she met her godparents. Elisa and Sophie grew older and Sophie learned magic on the side thanks to Wanda. Occasionally, Wanda would pop in to check on Elisa and, though she could do no more than appear in her dreams, she liked to think she helped.
Veronica avoided telling Trixie her feelings precisely because she feared her playing with her heart. She needn't have worried- Trixie had no intention of doing so.
And what about Elisa? Every once in a while, she saw magical sparks outside her window, but thought nothing of it. She never remembered quite what she'd lost, but the words "I wish" held a mystical power. It never helped to utter them, though, except for the phrase "I wish I had a girlfriend".
Maybe wishful thinking was all you needed.