After a lot of heated discussion and arguments from all parties involved, the police ended up bringing Mama Cosma into custody. Wanda was still storming mad, slamming the door behind her as she went back inside. Chelsea ended up taking Mrs. Fairywinkle home as well, since she was too drunk to stand, let alone poof herself places. All that stood left in the moonlight was a weeping Cosmo and his father, who wrapped his arms around him.
"Come on now. Let it out. There there.", Papa Cosmo whispered, rubbing Cosmo's back, "I'm so sorry."
"S-S-She..why…she..", he couldn't even say more than a few words until he took a deep breathe, "W-why does she have to ruin everything? I've done nothing to her!"
"I-I don't know sweetheart. Just breathe for me. Come on now.", he instructed Cosmo to take some deep breathes before pulling him back into another hug, "It'll be alright. I promise."
"H-How do you know? S-She's never liked Wanda, so she'll never like the baby!"
"N-now now. Maybe she'll come around. You never know. Everything just takes time.."
"NO! You know what?", Cosmo snapped suddenly, breaking from his father's grasp, "I've just about had enough! I get it! I'm a bad son and I should be sorry for inconveniencing her! I get it!"
"Sweetheart please.."
"No dad! I'm done with people trying to convince me my mama's a good person, and just needs extra time to process things. No! If she hated Wanda and the baby so bad, then why did she even bother coming? Why waste your time on the family you couldn't give two damns about?"
Papa Cosmo was at a lost for words. It seemed like whenever he would try to deescalate a situation, he would either get yelled at or overlooked. Nothing he could say ever seemed to help, and sometimes it would make everything worse. He just sighed and said nothing, allowing his son to keep crying on her shoulder.
After a while, Cosmo didn't have much left to say to anyone, wanting nothing more than to go to bed and try to forget the day even happened. But as he almost walked inside the house, his father stopped him once more.
"Uh..honey, maybe it's not safe for you to go back inside.", Papa Cosmo said, "I think you should stay with me tonight. Give your wife some space and time to cool down."
Cosmo was hesitant for a second, but ended up agreeing, just wanting to get to a bed, any bed. Papa Cosmo poofed the two into Cosmo's pinkish colored, childhood home, where several, half empty, whiskey bottles rested in the corner of the kitchen, with rivers of the whiskey all over the kitchen floor. Papa Cosmo smiled in embarrassment, patting Cosmo on the shoulders.
"Uhm..you go get some sleep, sweetheart. I'm gonna clean this up real fast."
Cosmo did what he was told and made his way into the room he grew up in as a kid. It wasn't much; just a green bed, with a purple nightstand, lamp, and some stuffed animals sitting in the corner. Cosmo sighed as he looked at the toys and how much he used to cling on to them if either Mama Cosma was screaming drunk, or if Papa Cosmo left to get her some liquor.
As he lied down on his bed, which ended up being a bit old and crooked and his feet spilled over the foot, he struggled to understand either one of his parents. He thought about all the times his mother screamed and hit his father, calling him a worthless idiot and a bad father, as if she had room to talk. Occasionally, if she had a really bad day at work, she would come home with a whiskey bottle already in her hand, drink it, and then smash her husband's head with it. Man, it's a good thing Fairies (or most of them) were fast healers.
As angry as he was with his mother, he also was starting to get a bit irritated with his father as well. Yes, ultimately, he meant well and wanted a family to raise and take care of, but he also struggling to stand up to Mama Cosma. When he came back from being a fly, he never tried to leave her again, instead responding to her yelling by submissive little squeaks or nods in agreement. Man, he wasn't sure if either one of them deserved to see much of the baby, but he'd be damned if he told his father that while he allowed them to stay.
"N-no..yes yes. I understand.", Papa Cosmo's voice squeaked, barely loud enough to grab Cosmo's attention, "Yes, I'll bring it tomorrow. N-Nora I-Honey, please calm down. You'll be put in isolation. I..ok dear. I'll see what I can do."
Damn. When he said honey and dear like that, that normally meant he was talking to his mother. But isn't she supposed to be in jail? Oh wait, that's right. They do get a phone call, don't they? Ugh, if only it could have waiting until the morning. Despite all his bad thoughts racing through his mind, Cosmo felt his eyes draw heavier and heavier; his emotional exhaustion eventually taking over his anxiety, drifting him off to sleep.
"Cosmo? Are you awake? I've made breakfast", Papa Cosmo asked, knocking on his son's door. Cosmo rubbed his eyes, waking up to a somewhat gray light coming from outside, unusual for the normally sunny Fairy World. He lifted himself up, holding his baby bump by the sides so he didn't hurt it, and made his way downstairs, slumping in the seat across from his father. While the eggs and toast on his plate looked somewhat delicious, Cosmo didn't have much on an appetite, poking and taking tiny bites.
"Honey are you ok? Do you not like the food?", Papa Cosmo asked, looking at his son with concern.
"No, it's fine. I'm just not hungry."
"Well, you don't have to finish all of it, but I would like you to eat some more for the baby.", his father said gently. "Are you still upset about what happened last night?"
"Yeah. Why would I be?", Cosmo mumbled, finally taking a few bites.
"I'm sorry dear. I wish I knew how to help."
"Yeah I'm sure you do."
"I'm sorry?"
"N-nothing dad. Just forget it.", Cosmo sighed, rubbing his temples. His headache from last night seemed to be getting worse as well. "I-I think I just need some rest, and for everyone to leave me alone."
"Of course. B-but before you do, I wanted to ask if you wanted to come with me to see your mom?"
"Uhm..I don't know. I'm still really really made at her, but I wanna know why she did what she did.", Cosmo said nervously, squirming in his seat. "I don't know. When are you leaving?"
"In about an hour or so."
"A-and how long are you gonna stay there."
"Well, I think visiting hours are only 30 minutes per inmate, so we wouldn't be there long, dear.", Papa Cosmo said, "She'll be in Fairy Jail until her bail is posted, and by then, I'll be able to bail her out."
"Wait? Is that why you were on the phone last night?"
"Yes Cosmo. She called me and told me to take the money she saved to bail her out."
Cosmo felt the anger rush into his body once more. This was part of the problem he had with his mother. It seemed like every time she hurt Cosmo or his family, every time she cursed Wanda out or hit her husband, she barely receives any consequences. Cosmo snorted in disgust as he finished the glass of water in front of him. Everything she said about their father needed to take responsibility and how the kids need to grow up apparently don't apply to her. Somehow it seemed like she thought the world should bend over backwards just to keep her happy.
"Actually dad, I'll come with you but I need a nap first. I didn't sleep too well last night.", Cosmo said, with gritted teeth, slamming his fork on the rest of his eggs. "I've got something I'd like to say to her before she's processed."
Fairy World Jail was unlike many other prisons in the universe. Because the jail mostly functions using magic, there is really only a handful of guards to keep in charge of the inmates; both convicted or awaiting trial. While the castle looked pink and pretty on the outside, much like you would expect in a fairy tale book, the hallways were cold and nasty, a couple of the pipes leaking as if it were a dungeon.
After getting searched, Cosmo and his father were lead inside the visiting room by a female guard. Papa Cosmo twitched uncomfortably as some of the inmates, mostly women, began to cat call him, along side some howls and whistles that made him uncomfortable.
"Hey sweetheart, how you doin'?"
"What's a pretty little guy like you doin' in a place like this?"
"Hey beautiful. I'm likin' what I see. Wait, where you goin? Don't you hear me talking to you?"
Cosmo rolled his eyes as they arrived to the main visiting area, where they were instructed to take a seat on a cold, metal table. The two male fairies were silent, barely even making any eye contact with each other before Mama Cosma arrived with a guard. Her normally curly hair was messier than normal, a few strands falling on her face, but not enough to cover the bruises Wanda left. She also wore a black and white striped uniform and a mean scowl on her face.
"Well Cosmo, I'm surprised you've shown. Are you here to tell me what a horrible mother I am?"
"Mama don't start!", Cosmo snapped before sighing heavily, "No. I came here because dad wanted to see you."
"Oh did you?", she now glared at her husband, who shrunk in his seat, "Did you do what I asked last night?"
"Y-y-yes dear. The money's still where you left it. I-I'll turn it in as soon as your bond is posed."
"Good.", Mama Cosma nodded before turning back to Cosmo, frowning, "But that doesn't necessarily explain why you're here. Just because your father is here doesn't mean you have to be."
"Well…there's something else I wanted to talk to you about, and I've been wanting to ask you this for a long time.", Cosmo took a deep breathe, ignoring his father's concerned glance and his mother's almost angered look, "W-why are you so mad at us?"
"What are you talking about?", Mama Cosma asked, tapping her foot impatiently.
"No matter what I do, no matter what dad or Chelsea, or even Schnozmo does, you always have to complain. A-and now that I'm married, have my own job, a-and now having your first grandchild, i-it's like you want me miserable! I thought you wanted a successful child, and I'm doing well on my own. Not to mention, Chelsea started her own band and loves what she does?"
"Pssh..if your sister was a successful as you claim, then she probably wouldn't need to apply for food stamps at her sleazy boyfriend's place.", she sneered, "And you know how I feel about that skank of a wife of yours. Yet, you went out of your way to marry her anyways. Last time I check, disobeying your mother doesn't qualify you for success."
"And that's another thing, Mama!", Cosmo yelled, "What's your deal with Wanda anyways? What is so bad about her than you can't even at least pretend to tolerate her?"
"W-well I just want to make sure she doesn't hurt you, Cosmo."
"Oh that's some bullshit.", Cosmo snarled, making his father squeak in discomfort, "If you were so concerned with making sure I didn't get hurt, then you wouldn't hurt me in the process."
"Whatever. I was just looking out for you.", Mama Cosma said, rolling her eyes.
"You call beating and hurting my wife looking out for me? You gotta be kidding me, Mama", Cosmo said, almost laughing as Mama Cosma's face scrunched up, "That doesn't answer my question though. What do you have against my wife?"
"That's none of your concern, Cosmo. I just don't trust her with you."
"What do you mean? Wanda's done nothing for you to not trust her. Is it really even Wanda, or do you not trust me?"
"Cosmo, you got some goddamn nerve talking to me like that!", Mama Cosma shouted suddenly, one of the few guards looking cautiously at her from behind, "After all I've done for you, you have the nerve to not only to ask about my personal life, but you also act as if I owe you an explanation to everything I do?"
"That isn't at all what I said, Mama! I just want to know why you hate Wanda so much! She makes me happy and she's the mother of your first grandchild. I don't understand why you've been complaining since you found out about my pregnancy. I-I thought you'd be happy for me for once in your life."
"I am your mother, Cosmo. I don't owe you a goddamn thing.", she snapped, "But if you're so desperate to know, Wanda reminds me of someone I knew before I met your father."
"Ok, but how is that Wanda's fault though? How is that my fault?"
"I didn't say it was anyone's fault. Stop shoving words in my mouth, you brat!", Mama Cosma shouted, feeling a guard come up to her, "Look, I just don't trust anyone with pink swirly hair since I met that person. The details are none of your business. Now, don't you think you should be going? Wouldn't want to worry her, would you since you obviously value that bitch more than your own mother."
"You know what, Mama?", Cosmo jerked up suddenly, "Maybe I will. If you somehow get out of jail before the baby is born, you can forget about showing your face. I don't want you anywhere near my family anymore!"
"You can't say that to me! I'm your mother!"
"And I don't care anymore! Despite what you think, I deserve to have a good life.", Cosmo stood up and faced towards the door, "Come on dad, let's get out of here."
Papa Cosmo nodded his head softly as he turned to leave the table, giving his wife one last, sorrowful look. As the guards searched the men and led them back to the outside world, Cosmo smirked, a weight slowly falling off his shoulders. While her answer still didn't make much sense to Cosmo, at least her jealousy made her look like a fool. But he was also starting to feel a bit hot..and tired…and his stomach was cramping, a lot.
The sky was clearing up as the men exited the prison, Papa Cosmo getting ready to poof them back to their place. But just as he was about to do so, Cosmo collapsed on the floor, water trickling down his pants, heavily breathing.
"D-DAD! HELP!", Cosmo panted, his father kneeling down at his side, "C-call Wanda! Call an ambulance! Please!"
Papa Cosmo scrambled through his black pants pocket and pulled out his phone, calling for an ambulance before trying to reach Cosmo's house number. He paced around nervously as Cosmo panted and cried, unable to even get up. The phone ringed about 4 or 5 times before Wanda's raspy voice finally picked up.
"Hello?"
"Wanda? It's Linnie. I think you need to meet us at the Fairy Hospital, right now!"
