Wanda was sitting on the edge of the bed combing her hair while her husband was already laying half-asleep on the other side. The pink-haired fairy took in her surroundings with a small smile. It really was a peaceful night. There was no sound other than Cosmo's soft breathing beside her, and she knew that their godson was already asleep and cared for. She placed her comb down on the desk beside her bed and shifted herself underneath the blanket.
All of the sudden, her wand started glowing and beeping loud enough to cause both Cosmo and Wanda to bolt upright. Mama Cosma's voice was already echoing throughout the room when Wanda grabbed the wand.
"Hello?" Wanda deadpanned.
"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO MY SON?!" her mother-in-law screeched.
"What the hell are you-"
"Oh, you know what I'm talking about, Missy! You've turned my little Cosmo against me!"
"Well, you're not Wanda's favorite person, but she hasn't done anything like that, Mama," Cosmo said as he peeked behind Wanda's shoulder. "She knows I love you, and she respects that."
"Well, I can't think of any other reason as to why you wouldn't call me on my birthday!" Mama Cosma said, sounding genuinely distraught.
Wanda paused.
Cosmo had always been forgetful. Wanda was used to it, and she knew Cosmo was trying his best, so she saw no reason to give him a hard time about it. She knew better than to ask him to remember any sort of dates, so she always wrote important dates in a planner. He even forgot his own birthday half the time. However, there were two dates that Cosmo had never forgotten in the nearly ten-thousand years they'd known each other:
His mother's birthday, and his and Wanda's wedding anniversary.
He always called his mother, even if he'd spent the entire day with her. As soon as he left, he would call her and wish her a happy birthday again. As much as she disliked her mother-in-law, Wanda had to admit that she found Cosmo's enthusiasm for his mother's birthday endearing.
Wanda's first thought was that perhaps Mama Cosma had the wrong date, so she quickly checked the day's date in her planner. Sure enough, it was Mama Cosma's birthday. Wanda even had it written down. In fact, she remembered reminding Cosmo about it earlier that day.
Well, Cosmo was a forgetful person, Wanda told herself, but the awful weight in her stomach did not dissipate.
Meanwhile, Cosmo had gotten his mother to calm down, and he eventually hung up the wand. He set it down slowly, like he was deep in thought.
"Cosmo?" Wanda inquired.
He turned toward her in response. Wanda noted the dazed look on his face. "I've...never forgotten her birthday before."
"Right...maybe you're just getting old?" Wanda joked, hoping to distract him.
He grinned. "Ha, just remember that you're a few months older than me!"
Wanda just shook her head. "Go to sleep, old man."
"Right back atcha."
Later the following day, Wanda decided to run a little experiment. She found her husband in the backyard playing some strange game with Timmy. Both of them slipped and faceplanted into a mud puddle. Then, they sat back up, made eye contact for a few seconds, and then started laughing hysterically. Wanda worried that Cosmo had just ruined a perfectly good tie, but then she noticed that he wasn't wearing one and breathed a sigh of relief. Then, she poofed her two boys clean.
"Hi, Wanda!"
"Thanks, Baby!"
"What're you two playing?"
"It's called Timmy Ball! Wanna join?"
"Thanks, but Timmy, you're supposed to meet Chester and A.J. in five minutes, remember?"
"Oh my gosh, I gotta goooooooo! Thanksseeyalaterloveyouguysbyeeeeeeee!"
"Hey, Cosmo? Can I ask you something?" Wanda asked after Timmy dashed out of the yard.
"Yeeeeeeeees, Dear?" he answered. Wanda felt a pang of guilt. He was in such a bright and cheery mood, and what she was about to do would probably spoil it.
"When is our anniversary?"
"Yay, an easy one! Well, it's...it's...," he trailed off. That dazed look came over his face again, and it quickly morphed into fear.
"H-Hey, it's alright. I'm not mad at you. It's okay," Wanda tried to reassure him as she pulled him into a hug.
"I'm scared, Wanda. I know I'm not very smart, but I think something really bad is happening to me."
"Shhh, don't jump to conclusions just yet. You just forgot a couple of dates. You've always had a bad memory. It's okay."
"Yeah, two dates that I've never forgotten in my entire life. And, well, there have been...other things lately, too."
Wanda tilted her head inquisitively.
"Well, sometimes I can't remember how to do certain things. Like, things you showed me how to do already."
"That's not necessarily new, Sweetie."
"I know, but...but..." he was clearly struggling to find the words he needed.
"Can you give me an example?" Wanda asked gently.
"My tie!" he shouted. "You showed me how to tie my tie back when we were teenagers. You also said I looked handsome, so I never ever forgot how to put it on! Except for here lately..." he trailed off.
Oh. So that's why he wasn't wearing it. Wanda should've known that Cosmo would not have cared about ruining a tie, but her heart still warmed at Cosmo's given reason for wearing the tie in the first place. Even so, she was really starting to get worried. As ditzy as Cosmo was, Wanda could tell that this wasn't normal for him. She knew him too well to think that it was. 10,000 years with someone will do that to you.
"Wanda?"
"Hm?"
"You're scared, too, aren't you, Lollipop?" he asked, his eyes wide and sympathetic.
"I..." Wanda averted her gaze. She didn't want to project her own fear onto Cosmo. He had enough to deal with.
"Hey." Cosmo gently took Wanda's hands into his own and kissed her on the cheek. "I'll be fine as long as I have you."
That made Wanda blush.
"Wow, you're even more pink than usual!" Cosmo teased.
Wanda snorted. "Oh, whatever. But we should really get you to the doctor, don't you think?"
"Er, I'd rather not. That guy creeps me out."
"Cosmo."
"Ugh, fine. For you."
A few months later, Timmy was alone in his room. He hadn't seen as much of his godparents lately. He mulled over this issue as he pulled out his math homework.
"Cosmo!" Timmy greeted him eagerly. "What's up?"
"Ah...Hm?" was Cosmo's only reply. He had a strange look on his face. It was almost...vacant? The usual light in his eyes was gone.
"Cosmo? You okay?"
Suddenly, Wanda poofed into the room as well.
"Cosmo!" she said through clenched teeth. She looked scared and close to tears, and she wasn't hiding it well. "Cosmo, please snap out of it," she asked more gently.
"What's happening?" Cosmo asked.
"Yeah, what's happening?" Timmy repeated. He was scared now, too.
Wanda took a moment to evaluate the situation. They all seemed to be bouncing their fear off of each other and magnifying it. She knew that she had to calm down, so she took a deep breath and thought about what she would do next. Then, she wrapped her arms around her husband while murmuring reassurances to him. He slowly came back to his senses. Upon doing so, he looked up at his wife, and then to Timmy.
"A-Are you okay?" Timmy stuttered. "I just want you to be okay!" he was crying.
Both fairies rushed to embrace their godchild and refused to let him go until he'd calmed down.
"Please tell me what's going on, guys. Something's been weird for months now. And that just now? That was really weird. And scary."
Cosmo looked at Wanda and gave her a small, sad smile, as if to say, "You explain it. You understand it better than me."
She understood the cue. "Well Sport, Cosmo and I went to the doctor a few months ago after we realized he was having a lot of memory issues. Well, more than normal, anyway."
"Hey!" Cosmo feigned offense.
"You know it's true," Wanda jabbed.
Cosmo crossed his arms and tried to put on a faux angry face, but it ended with him and Wanda laughing at each other. Timmy smiled too because he was relieved to see them acting like themselves again.
"But anyway," she continued abruptly, "Apparently, this is a pretty serious disease that Cosmo was born with. At a certain point in a fairy's life, it can abruptly get worse. That's what is happening to Cosmo right now."
"Okay...Well, what's it called?" Timmy asked.
"It's called Head Bonk," Wanda said with a very serious tone.
"...Are you kidding me?" Timmy was trying to keep a straight face.
"There's nothing funny about this, Timmy," Cosmo spoke up.
"I'm sorry, it just sounds silly! I guess I'm just not used to the way fairies name things."
"Well, what does it sound like to you?" Cosmo asked.
"Like, uh, when you hit someone on the head with a wrapping paper tube."
"That's oddly specific, Sport," Wanda said.
Cosmo proceeded to poof a wrapping paper tube into existence, and then he immediately bopped Timmy's head with it.
"Head Bonk!" the fairy exclaimed.
"Yeah, like that!" Timmy said while giggling.
Within a few seconds, all three of them had tubes and were committing Head Bonk to each other.
"You know, Sweetie, that was pretty smart, what you did earlier. I think you made Timmy feel better about our situation," Wanda said to her husband that evening.
"What happened earlier?"
"You did something nice," she said as she undid his tie for him. He seemed satisfied with her answer.
"Oh," he said, and then abruptly took Wanda's face in his hands. He stared intently at her for a few moments.
"Um, whatcha doing, Hon?"
"I'm trying to memorize your face so that I don't forget you."
"Honey..."
"I can't even remember your name right now. I can't let myself forget you. I just can't!"
"My name is Wanda, and I promise I will never let you forget me."
"Wanda, I love you. And because I love you, I'll do the scary thing we talked about earlier."
"Cosmo, you already agreed to the procedure a week ago."
"Oh. Um. When is it?"
"It's next week, Dear."
"Okay. You'll have to tell me that again."
"I know, and that's perfectly fine with me. Now, let's go to bed."
"Okay," he said, finally letting go of her face.
He turned around abruptly and walked into the bathroom. Then, he stared at his reflection in the mirror for a second. Wanda recognized the expression forming on his face. Cosmo was having another episode like earlier, where he forgot where he was or what he was doing. These episodes were rather frightening for him because from his perspective, it was like waking up in a place that was completely unfamiliar and not the one in which he had gone to sleep. Usually, Wanda was able to pull him out of them by making physical contact with him and explaining where he was. She wasn't sure what he would do if he saw her reflection in the mirror or if he'd even recognize her at first. It often took him a moment, but she would never tell him that, especially after what he'd said to her a few moments ago.
Wanda decided that the best course of action was to get him to come away from the mirror.
"Cosmo," she said. "Come here."
He turned around slowly and looked at her.
"What's happening?" he asked. He was visibly shaking. He said that every time he had one of these episodes. Damn, Wanda really hated seeing him like this. He looked like he felt so alone.
"We're getting ready for bed. Come here."
"I don't even know your name," he said, "but I know you."
He took a few steps forward. She met him halfway, kissed him on the cheek, and hugged him. He exhaled, and Wanda sensed the shift in him. He was back. But he remained still, basking in her warmth and in the moment they were sharing.
"Alright...Wanda. I'm beat," he said after a solid minute.
"Bedtime it is!" she said.
The two of them made it to their bedroom without any further mishaps and climbed into bed. After a few minutes, Wanda opened her eyes to see Cosmo's green ones staring back at her. He shifted himself closer to her and angled his head toward her. She understood this cue; he wanted her to run her hand through his hair, and she gladly obliged. He practically melted the instant she touched him and was asleep after a couple minutes. Wanda was glad he fell asleep so easily. She'd been worried that he would be too anxious to sleep. Then again, he'd probably already forgotten when the procedure was. Wanda herself was glad that it was approaching. Cosmo was getting worse. He was having up to two or three of his dissociative episodes per day now. A few months ago, he had one or two per week. Wanda rolled over, now facing away from her husband, who pulled her closer to him in his sleep.
It was a week later, the morning of the procedure. Wanda decided to get up early and explain to Timmy what was going to happen.
"Okay. So you'll be back later and Cosmo will be, like, normal?" asked Timmy, a bit apprehensively.
"Not exactly. He'll be back to the way he was before it started to get so bad. He's still going to be a bumbling fool. At least, that's what the doctor said."
"Oh, good!" Timmy sounded somewhat relieved. Wanda raised an eyebrow at him.
"Well, I just didn't want him to change is all. I want him to get better, but I want Cosmo to still be Cosmo, y'know?"
"Aw, that's sweet, Sport. I don't want Cosmo to change, either."
"Did someone say my name?" Cosmo said, appearing as if on cue.
"Hey, Sweetie. Are you ready to go?" Wanda asked.
"Go where?"
"To the doctor's to fix your brain!" said Timmy.
"We're going to see Dr. Rip Studwell? Man, that guy's creepy as fuck."
"Cosmo! Don't swear in front of our godkid!" Wanda exclaimed.
"Well, since something's wrong with my brain, do I get a pass?" he asked innocently.
Wanda sighed and poofed herself and Cosmo to the doctor's office in FairyWorld. Cosmo immediately started floating closer to her.
"You alright, Sweetie?" Wanda asked sympathetically.
"Er, yeah, it's just that I don't know exactly what the doctor is going to do, y'know? Is he gonna cut my head open? Stick needles in me? Shove pills down my throat? The possibilities are endless and I'm scared and you are too."
"Sweetie, I promise I will be with you the whole time."
"I don't think you can come with me if he does surgery on me, though."
"Then I'll hold your hand until the anesthesiologist knocks you out."
Cosmo smiled at his wife. "You ignored the last part."
"Huh?"
"You are scared."
"Yes, Cosmo. I'm scared, too," she admitted.
"That's alright. That sorta makes me feel better because we're going through this together!" he offered.
"Cosma. Cosmo Cosma?" said the receptionist.
"Guess that's our cue," Wanda said. The pair went into an exam room.
"Cosmo, Wanda! Long time, no see," Dr. Studwell greeted. "So it looks like today we're here for..." he trailed off and looked at his clipboard, "Head Bonk!"
"That's right," Wanda said.
"Head Bonk? That's kind of a silly name, " Cosmo said.
"Timmy said the same thing!" Wanda added. "So, what is the treatment?"
"The treatment is called 'Boop'," the doctor replied.
Cosmo and Wanda glanced at each other nervously. "Can I be with him for it?"
"Sure! It's a non-invasive procedure. We won't even have to leave this room."
Wanda breathed a sigh of relief.
"Wanda, what does 'non-invasive' mean? Is that good or bad?" Cosmo whispered anxiously.
"It's very good, Sweetie. It means there won't be any surgery or needles."
"Oh, great! But can you still hold my hand?"
"Of course, I promised."
"Thanks, Lollipop," he quickly kissed her on the cheek.
The doctor cleared his throat. "If you two are done, let's get on with the Boop, shall we?"
"Okay!" the pair said in unison.
The doctor got a special wand out of a cabinet and walked toward Cosmo. Wanda held his hand firmly. Then, the doctor closed his eyes and held the wand out in front of him as if he were concentrating very hard. The wand lit up, its ethereal light filling the space and practically blinding everyone in the room. The doctor slowly brought the wand toward Cosmo's nose.
Finally, he said, "Boop!" and tapped Cosmo's nose with the wand. The light disappeared as quickly as it come. Cosmo was literally seeing stars.
"Alright, Wanda. Ask him a basic question."
"Oh, okay...Cosmo, when's our wedding anniversary?"
"April 12!" Cosmo piped.
"You're back to normal, Honey!"
"Yay!" he leaned over and whispered in her ear, "Let's hurry up and get out of here. I want to show Timmy that I'm okay."
"No problem," she responded, and they went on their way.
Cosmo poofed them into the castle. For a moment, Wanda felt a pang of fear. Cosmo knew that they wouldn't find Timmy in here.
"Cosmo..." she said.
"Relax Honey, I just wanted to kiss you for real first. Dr. Studwell made it weird."
"Oh, well in that case-" she stopped abruptly when Cosmo put one arm around her waist and pulled her closer to him and used his other hand to gently lift her face toward himself. The kiss they shared could only be described as being full of love.
When he finally pulled away from her, he asked, "So, what were you saying?"
"I-I have no idea."
He chuckled at her. "You're looking awful pink again!"
"You're an ass."
"But I'm your ass."
"That you are," she sighed. "I love you," she added softly.
"I love you, too."