Here we go, the end of the origin fic. I hope it doesn't disappoint and gives everyone an idea of how this relationship canso easily slip from 'godparent/godchild' to 'parent/child'. I didn't want to come out and say that Tabby was 'like the daughter they never had', mostly because she's only had them for a little over a week at this point. But I think it would be pretty easy for Tabby to kind of adopt C&W as her surrogate parents, since she barely sees her own.
Anyway, enough jabbering. On to the end!
Disclaimer: FOPnot mine. Tabbymine.
Chapter 6
Wanda watched as Cosmo plopped himself into the little chair opposite Tabby, and teasingly grabbed the other half of her toasted cheese sandwich. After a moment of stunned silence, the little girl reached across the table and snatched it back. Grinning like a Cheshire Cat, Cosmo reached forward and plucked it from her hands again, bringing it slowly to his mouth as though he would swallow it whole. Tabby cried out angrily and threw the crackers for her tomato soup at him. They bounced off his hair, but he clutched his head, cried out in agony and fell dramatically to the floor, where he lay 'dead', complete with tongue hanging out.
Tabby immediately jumped to her feet and ran to where her godfather lay, being careful not to step on his tongue. She leaned close, poking his cheek tenderly as if testing him, then grabbed her sandwich and ran back to her seat.
"HEY!" the corpse called out as he sat upright. "That's no way to treat the dead!" Tabby paused mid-chew to stick her tongue out at him.
"MY sandwich," she said around her mouthful. "You can have this." She picked up her celery stalk and tossed it to him, making him grimace.
"Eww," he uttered, wrinkling his nose. "What is it?"
Tabby shrugged. "Dunno," she said as she finished her sandwich. "But it's icky."
Cosmo lowered himself so that his eyes were level with the table and regarded the stalk with a shrewd gaze. "Hey, Tabby! Come here, quick!" Tabby gave him a questioning look but moved next to him. He gently pulled her down so she was sitting like him, looking at the celery.
"Maybe it's an alien!" he said in a hushed voice. "Maybe if we're not careful it will crawl up our noses!" Tabby's eyes grew wide.
"Really?" she whispered, inching closer to him. "I don't want it up my nose!"
"Uh oh!" Cosmo cried, grabbing onto Tabby. "I think I saw it move!" His left hand, containing his wand, was under the table, gently coaxing the celery above to tremble. Tabby quickly covered her nose.
"Make it go away!" she cried, squeezing next to her godfather, who held her tightly. Wanda laughed quietly and shook her head in amazement. She had never seen Cosmo like this before.
"You have to make a wish, Tabby!" Cosmo cried as his wand made the celery jump. "Say 'I wish' and then what you want it to do! Hurry Tabby! I think it's gonna charge!" Tabby screamed and covered her face.
"I WISH THE ICKY GREEN THING WAS GONE!" she cried as she scrambled into Cosmo's lap. With a smile, the green haired fairy pulled his wand out from underneath the table and held it over the celery. The star flashed, and the little vegetable vanished.
Wanda stared in disbelief. Cosmo had just taught Tabby how to wish. And it was brilliantly done.
"WHEW!" he sighed, dramatically wiping his forehead. "That was a close one! Good job, Tabby! You saved us! Hooray!" He hugged her tight as she separated her fingers to peek at the tabletop.
"It's gone!" she laughed, throwing her hands above her head. "Yay!" She craned her head around and smiled widely when she saw Wanda floating over to them. "Wanda! Did you see? There was a alien on the table, an' I saved us!" Her godmother smiled and nodded.
"You bet I saw," she said, sitting next to them. "Good job!" She said it to Tabby but looked at Cosmo, who blushed and smiled shyly. Looking back at her goddaughter, she said, "But now it's time to finish eating, okay? You want to be big and strong for that next alien attack, don't you?" Tabby nodded enthusiastically and hurried back to her chair to finish her meal.
Cosmo and Wanda hid once again when Tabby's nanny came to clear the dishes, but once she had gone, they reappeared, much to Tabby's delight. Maybe they really WERE going to stay with her, after all.
Tabby had never laughed and smiled so much in her young life. None of her nannies ever stayed in her room this long, and even when they did, they never showed her the amount of attention that Cosmo and Wanda did. Somehow, she knew that these little people—with their pink and green hair and little wings jutting out of their backs—were different. But it was a GOOD kind of different, because they cared. They listened. They hugged her and talked to her and played with her, and never grew tired of her.
They loved her.
And she loved them right back.
At bedtime, Tabby impatiently waited for the nanny to leave after getting her ready for bed. The distracted young lady hurriedly bathed and dressed Tabby, before plopping her into bed and leaving in a rush. Her favorite reality show was starting soon, and she didn't want to miss the beginning.
Once the door closed behind her, Cosmo and Wanda poofed next to Tabby's bed.
"Wow," Cosmo breathed. "That was fast!" Wanda scowled.
"No, that was RUSHED. That's not the proper way to put a child to bed!"
Cosmo looked confused. "But Wanda," he said, pointing to Tabby with his wand. "She IS in bed. And she's got her pajama's on, too. Looks right to me!"
"Hush!" she said as she quickly flew to Tabby's bedside. "Would you like a bedtime story, sweetie?" Tabby smiled, surprised.
"I can have a story?" she asked in a high voice. Wanda nodded, smiling.
"Of course, sweetie. Any one you want."
With an excited squeal, Tabby kicked the covers off and ran to her bookshelf, wanting to find the perfect story to have them read. She ran her fingers over the spines of the books, and occasionally pulled one from the shelf to examine the cover. She knew each book by the pictures, and wanted to find her favorite.
"This!" she cried as she found the one she was looking for. Holding it high above her head, she hurried back to her bed, pushing a very startled Cosmo in before her, and pulling Wanda in after. She handed the book to Wanda, and pulled the covers back up, snuggling them all beneath them.
"This one," she said, poking the cover with her finger. "Read this, please." Wanda smiled and kissed the top of the girl's head.
"Okay, sweetie," she said, making herself comfortable. "We'll read Cinderella." Tabby clapped her hands happily and snuggled next to Wanda, who pulled her close. The pink haired fairy wrapped her arm around the little girl, holding the book so Tabby could see all the familiar pictures when Wanda read the words that went with them.
"Once upon a time," Wanda began, but was interrupted when Tabby suddenly cried "OH!" and sat up. She took the book from the pink haired fairy and quickly flipped through the pages, searching for one particular picture.
"Look!" the girl cried, pointing to a drawing of Cinderella's fairy godmother, who had wings and a wand, just like the two little people in her bed. Wanda smiled and nodded.
"That's right," she said, gently taking the book back. "That's Cinderella's fairy godmother. She used her magic to help Cinderella." Cosmo scoffed.
"Yeah, right," he said sarcastically, rolling his eyes. "She made a dress and turned a pumpkin into a car, big deal. And everything went back to normal at midnight! What kind of magic is that?" Wanda frowned at him.
"Oh Cosmo, it was written by a human a long time ago," she said, annoyed at his interruption. "What do humans really know about fairies?"
"Fairies?" Tabby asked, slightly confused. "You're fairies?" Cosmo and Wanda exchanged a glance. They had introduced themselves when they had first appeared to Tabby, but considering how stubborn she had been, it was not surprising that she hadn't remembered.
"Yes, sweetie," Wanda said with a smile. "We're your fairy godparents. I'm your fairy godmother, like in the book, and Cosmo is your fairy godfather. We're here to grant you wishes and make you happy."
"Wishes?" the little girl repeated, looking puzzled. Suddenly her face cleared and she looked at Cosmo. "Like at supper? I made a wish about the icky green thing, and it was gone." Cosmo smiled, nodding.
"Yep, just like that," he said. "Whenever you want something, just say 'I wish' and then whatever you want. We use our wands," he showed her his wand, "to make it come true."
"Anything?" she asked hopefully.
"Almost," Wanda said, making Tabby turn. "There are a few things we can't do, but there are a lot of things we CAN!"
"Oh," Tabby said quietly. All this was a little confusing to her. Wanda sensed her confusion and pulled her close for a gentle hug.
"It's okay, sweetie," she said softly. "I know it's a lot to understand. We'll take it slow, okay? Just remember that we're here with you for as long as you need us. We're here to make you happy."
"And don't tell anyone about us," Cosmo reminded her. "Or else we'll have to go away." Tabby considered this for a moment before shaking her head.
"I won't tell anyone," she said, looking back and forth between her godparents. "I promise I won't. You'll stay with me then, right?" Wanda smiled, placing a kiss on her forehead.
"You bet we will," she promised. "We'll be right here."
"Unless we're over there," Cosmo added, pointing across the room. "Or over there. Or up there. Or—" Wanda's wand glowed as a zipper appeared across Cosmo's mouth.
"Now, shall we continue with our story?" she asked Tabby, who smiled and nodded before snuggling next to her once more. "Okay. Once upon a time . . ."
The story continued uninterrupted thanks to Cosmo's zippered mouth, and halfway through, Wanda gently nudged him.
"Hmmm?" he asked, using his wand to remove the zipper. "What's up?"
"Shh!" Wanda whispered and nodded her head in Tabby's direction. The little girl was still curled up in Wanda's arm, sound asleep, quietly sucking her thumb.
"Help me get her into bed," Wanda whispered. "She's got me pinned." Cosmo nodded and poofed himself out from under the covers, so as not to disturb Tabby as she slept. He reappeared in front of the two, and gently maneuvered the sleeping child out from under his wife's arm. Once free, Wanda poofed herself out of bed, then she and Cosmo gently tucked Tabby in, each placing a gentle kiss on her cheek.
"Good night, Tabby," Cosmo whispered as Wanda dimmed the lights. "We'll have even more fun tomorrow!"
"Sleep well, sweetie," Wanda told her softly, gently stroking her brown hair. "Have good dreams."
Cosmo followed his wife as she floated over to the bookshelf to return the storybook. She sighed as she slipped the hardback in place, and Cosmo offered her a questioning glance.
"Something wrong?"
She shook her head, looking confused. "No, not wrong exactly, but . . ." She looked back at the sleeping child. "This assignment is so different. She's just so young! Why would Jorgen allow a 4 year old to have godparents? She barely understands what fairies are, let alone making wishes! I just don't understand."
"Maybe Jorgen's punishing us," Cosmo said with a shrug. "We do kind of screw up a lot. Maybe this is his way of keeping us from granting big, alter-the-history-of-the-world type wishes." It was Wanda's turn to shrug.
"I don't know. Maybe. He did say that she would end up pretty miserable if we didn't help her. But I'm still not sure why he decided that she needed godparents NOW as opposed to a few years down the road. Doesn't he know that story from Godparent History class?"
Cosmo offered his wife a slight shrug. He hadn't really thought about how strange the assignment was, he just did as he was told. Tabby's age had really meant nothing much to him, but the way she acted in the beginning was a major source of annoyance. But now things seem to be going as they should, with the godchild happy to have fairies and having fun interacting with them. THIS is what Cosmo really loved about being a godparent.
Wanda quietly watched Tabby sleep for a few moments as she continued to contemplate the assignment, wondering just what Jorgen had up his sleeve. The big guy didn't usually take such an interest in godchild assignments, or the godchildren at all for that matter, so what was so special about this case? Was Jorgen actually slipping and becoming more sensitive to the children's lives? And when he found out that Tabby was refusing to respond, why didn't he assign different godparents to her, ones that had more experience dealing with emotionally withdrawn children? He seemed pretty darn insistent that this assignment was not a mistake, and pretty much refused to even consider reassigning Cosmo and Wanda. Why?
Another moment of silence passed between the two fairies before Wanda turned to her husband with a smile. There would be plenty of time to contemplate the reasons behind this assignment. The important thing was that their godchild was actually responding now, and it was all thanks to Cosmo.
"Have I told you lately how proud I am of you?" Wanda asked softly, and Cosmo blushed.
"No, not lately," he said quietly, a small smile on his lips. Her smile widened as she draped her arms across his shoulders, pulling him close.
"Well, I am," she told him, kissing him softly. "You healed Tabby when she hurt herself AND taught her how to wish, all in the same day!" She kissed him again. "I've never seen you so . . . so . . ."
"Competent?" he offered as he wrapped his arms around her waist, and she blushed.
"Confident," she finished, and it was his turn to blush. "You seem so sure of yourself with her. It's amazing." He shrugged.
"She makes me comfortable," he said simply. Wanda offered him a questioning look.
"But I thought you didn't like her?" she asked quietly. "I mean, I can understand why you kept your distance, she was acting really anti-social, after all." Cosmo blushed.
"I was kind of mad when she was ignoring us, and . . . well, I kind of didn't like her," he said, and gave his wife a look that was half shame, half embarrassment. "I didn't like the way she was making you worry. She just seemed like this mean kid who didn't care about anything, you know?" Wanda nodded. "But when she hurt herself, it was different. All of a sudden there was this little girl who was hurt and needed help. I was scared, but I knew I was the only one who could help her." Wanda raised an eyebrow.
"You never thought about going to Fairy World to get me?" she asked slyly. A smile crept its way across Cosmo's lips as his blush returned.
"I thought about it," he confessed, a slight laugh in his voice. "But she was crying so hard, that I thought it would have been better if I did something myself." A look of worry clouded his features momentarily. "Was that the right thing to do?" Wanda smiled, pulling him close for a tight hug.
"That was the PERFECT thing to do, sweetie," she whispered into his ear. "She's talking and laughing and interacting with us now, and it's all because of what you did today. Oh honey, I am so very proud of you!" The green haired fairy smiled, and the blush that had faded suddenly returned with a vengeance.
"Wow," he whispered. "I need to make you proud of me more often!" Wanda laughed softly.
"You big goof," she giggled, resting her head on his shoulder. "I'm glad you feel comfortable around her now. It usually takes you a while to get close to godchildren." Cosmo was quiet for a moment, and when he spoke next, his voice was soft and gentle, almost as though he were talking to himself.
"I feel like I can talk to her without feeling like she thinks I'm stupid. I feel smarter around her. I feel like she thinks I know what I'm doing. I feel like I'm actually teaching her when I talk." Wanda smiled.
"Cosmo, she's 4," she said quietly.
"Exactly," he said with a slight laugh. "I've got another year until she realizes I'm an idiot!" Wanda laughed softly as she pulled back from the embrace.
"Yeah, well, you're MY idiot," she said, punctuating the claim with a tender kiss. "And I'm glad I married you."
"I'm glad you married me, too!" he said as they floated toward the large dollhouse they had taken as their secret home. "I rented the tux and everything! I would have looked pretty dumb standing at the alter all by myself!" They laughed again, before disappearing into the dollhouse.
That day marked a turning point for Tabby, because it was the first time she had ever felt truly cared for. She didn't fully understand what fairies were, or why Cosmo and Wanda had to hide when anyone came to her room, but the knowledge that they would come back once she was alone again reassured her. She learned that sometimes people had to go away, but they would come back again if they truly cared about her.
They played with her, laughed with her, kissed her boo-boos and read to her every night. It would be a while until she truly got the hang of the whole 'wish' thing, but that was okay. Cosmo and Wanda were having fun playing with her and teaching her just the same.
None of them could have imagined what the future had in store for them, but they were ready, willing, and able to face it, heads held high, and hands clasped together tightly.
The end! I hope this came out okay and everyone enjoyed it. I'm disappointed in myself for how long it took to do and for losing interest in it, but I guess that's the nature of writing--or any creative activity for that matter. If one's heart is not in it, it becomes a difficult chore. But, at any rate, this is over, and now I can move on to other fics involving Tabby! I have a few in the works and will probably start posting some chapters within the next few weeks if all goes well.
Once again, thanks so much for reading:)
