A/N: School and work have finally started to NOT be my friends, and limit my time to spend on more important things, like writing. Oh, and also writer's block. He's being a little punk right now =[
I will try my best though, to get the story updated every couple of days!!
And as always, thank you so much to my loyal readers and reviewers; you guys make my literary world go round! Please please please continue to read and REVIEW!! =D
Disclaimer: Nope, I do not own WOWP. Frowny face.
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Alex was dreading school that Monday. Her bruises still stood out against her tan skin, and even applying three layers of foundation wasn't enough to completely cover them. She sighed at her reflection in the mirror that morning, touching her face gingerly. Then she thought of the looks people would give her, the whispers behind her back. She could already feel the tears coming before she decided to get rid of the marks another way.
Pulling her wand from her boot, she waved it and commanded:
I have no time for lame excuses
Get rid of these unsightly bruises
She turned back toward the mirror just in time to see the bruises fading away, leaving just Alex's tanned skin behind. Grinning to herself, she skipped out of the bathroom and ran right into Justin.
"Oof! Alex, watch it!" Justin whined. He looked down at his sister who was spitting hair out of her mouth and smoothing her shirt. When he saw that there was no trace of those awful marks, his face sobered. "So, you decided to use the spell?"
Alex had gone to Justin the night before for help. She thought maybe she could handle everyone's reactions to her face the next morning, but just in case she couldn't, she needed a spell that wouldn't backfire. Justin had whipped up the little rhyme with the reassurance that nothing would go wrong; like for example, her whole head disappearing when Alex tried her version of the spell.
Alex simply nodded at her brother and told him in a small voice, "I just don't want to be peoples' reason to whisper." Justin grimaced and pulled Alex in for a quick hug. They broke apart after a second and Alex sniffled a little. Justin nodded and beckoned her downstairs for breakfast. "Come on, we're going to be late."
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Even though she knew it was a sort of mask, Alex felt more confident at school, knowing that her face looked normal. Not hideous, she thought. Harper approached her bubbly as ever; totally unaware of what had happened to Alex. And she wanted to keep it that way.
"Alex! What do you think of my outfit?" Harper grinned at her best friend and took a step back so she could get the full effect. Alex managed to smother her fit of giggles as she examined Harper's wardrobe choice: Harper had made a dress that resembled a slice of pumpkin pie. The hem was wave-like and a light beige, made to resemble the crust. The rest of the dress was a burnt orange color. And on top of her head was a ridiculous hat that looked like a towel you wrap around your hair after a shower. Alex could only guess that was the whipped cream on top.
"It's great, Harper" Alex fibbed as the bell rang overhead. She dragged her feet as always to get to class, but was otherwise relieved seeing things were running as they usually did. Alex was a little disappointed that she wasn't allowed to wear her grandmother's necklace; she wanted to show it off. But even she couldn't deny that it would sound exactly like her to forget she was wearing it, and then using magic. And she just didn't want to give her dad and brother the satisfaction of being right. Not to mention she didn't really feel like being responsible for the restoration of one of the most powerful wizards in history. But that was whatever.
At lunchtime, Alex was a little nervous of running into Dean. Actually, she had been nervous of that all day, but luckily they hadn't bumped into each other. She certainly wasn't about to seek him out, and she was glad he was doing the same. Alex entered the lunchroom with Harper, happily chattering away about some new clothing line she was fashioning for birds. Together they found an empty table and sat down. Alex was nodding in all the right places, not really listening. Her eyes were darting anxiously from left to right. She caught sight of Justin who looked like he was doing the exact same thing.
Knowing her older brother was there, she popped open her can of soda and relaxed, actually getting into the conversation. Harper talked Alex's ear off for most of the lunch, until she abruptly changed the subject. "Hey, did you see Dean at all this weekend?"
Alex already had an answer prepared, but still gave a little jerk at his name. "For a little while at a party on Friday. We um… broke up." She looked away from Harper's big eyes. Harper gasped, "Why?!"
Alex just shrugged in response and said nonchalantly, "It just wasn't going anywhere."
Harper regained her composure and leaned in to whisper, "Well you must have left before it happened then… I heard that at that party, Dean got punched in the nose! It's completely broken, that's why he's not here today. Everybody's talking about it."
She pulled away and Alex started laughing. Harper eyed her in bewilderment but giggled a little bit herself. Just as their laughter died down the bell signaling the end of lunch rang. Alex finished out the rest of her classes that day in an upbeat mood. She still didn't pay attention, of course; but she was much more pleasant with her teachers. That's something, she thought. Alex; the victim and the object of ridicule that Dean had made her, was triumphant in this at least. Dean was the one who would be pointed at and laughed at. He was already target for the school's gossip. Sure, she had cheated a little to get rid of her problem, but she didn't regret it for a second.
At the end of the day, Alex skipped to her locker to put away her books. She, unlike the good students, laughed at the idea of lugging home her heavy textbooks just so she could do homework. She slammed the locker, eager to go home. Down the hallway, Justin was striding towards her with a smug look on his face. She heaved her bag over her shoulder and walked to meet him.
"What's up with you?" she asked when they stopped a foot away from each other.
"I broke Dean's nose! He didn't show up for school today," he whispered excitedly. He looked so proud of himself, Alex couldn't help but snicker.
"Yeah, way to go! I didn't know you had it in you," Alex lightly punched his shoulder, forcing him back a step. She turned to leave and called over her shoulder, "Come on! Let's get Max and go home, I want a sandwich."
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The next day at school, Alex saw Dean for a split second before he whipped out of sight down the hallway. Wow, Justin must have really got to him. When she told her brother this, he looked smugger than ever and said something about "Striking fear into the enemy's heart… blah blah blah". Alex rolled her eyes, turned on her heel and left him in the middle of a sentence.
Though she never caught a glimpse of Dean, she did get a picture text of him. Someone had snapped his photo right as he walked into school and proceeded to forward it to everyone they knew. It reached Alex's phone halfway through first period. She immediately deleted it from her phone, not wanting any reminder of Dean; but the message had made her entire day better.
I'm way to happy to be at school, she thought, smiling to herself.
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Weeks went by and eventually all talk of Dean and his broken nose faded away. Dean had never mentioned to anyone the real reason his nose was now permanently disfigured. He claimed that someone had jumped him on his way home from the party. Things at home were as usual. She was occasionally messing up spells to discount clothes at the mall or to cheat on a test. She even started noticing a new guy who came into the sub shop a few times a week. Justin had noticed all of Alex's noticing and immediately had a talk with her. She reassured him that not every guy was like Dean and that she would be careful. He crossed his arms and frowned, saying, "Well I'm going to keep my eye on him anyways." He meant it.
Alex finally exploded on her brother one day, as he purposely interrupted the exchange of phone numbers and quite possibly a hug between her and her new guy. She didn't speak to Justin for the rest of the day, but as soon as he went to her room that night and she saw his tortured face, she forgave him. She understood that he was only looking out for her. And though annoying as he may be, she was her brother and she loved him. She even told him so before shoving him out the door.
It wasn't until almost two months later that the Russos got the good news and bad news. Jerry had called his children into the lair after they got home from school one day. He looked excited and nervous and terrified all at the same time.
"Okay so we have some great news, and some not-so-great news about the necklace," Jerry said impatiently. Alex stiffened and sat up a little straighter. Though everything said or taught in the lair usually went in one ear and out the other, she was actually fascinated by the whole story of the necklace.
"Bad news: Vittore's supporters are closing in on us, they're getting more information every day. People are talking," Jerry ran a hand through his slightly thinning hair.
"What people?" Justin interjected, eyes filling with fear. He looked from Alex to Max, who both looked equally anxious.
"Old, burnt-out wizards who knew that Grandpa changed our name and other things concerning the necklace. They've been…persuaded by Vittore's people, I'm sure. And they started to spill secrets," Jerry explained.
"Like milk!" Max exclaimed. Everyone turned to stare at him and he asked, "So what does that mean?"
Jerry answered, "Well, you shouldn't worry about it just yet. We have a very good informant who will tell me if they find out where we are. And if that happens, we'll have to leave. Change our names, get out of the state."
"No way!" Alex argued angrily, "I have Harper here, and- and what about school?"
It was her turn to be stared at. After a couple seconds she rolled her eyes and scoffed, "Okay, fine, not school. But Dad, our whole lives are here. How can we just drop everything and leave?" she failed to mention that her new boy (Joel, she had found out his name was) and her were hitting it off rather well.
Jerry sighed and replied, "I know, Alex. But we won't have a choice. Look, I don't like it either. I mean your mom and I have our own business! But it's not our call. We have to do everything we can to protect the necklace. Okay?" He looked at his children in turn, waiting for their consent.
Max nodded, a goofy grin plastered on his face. Jerry wasn't sure if his youngest son had fully grasped what had to happen in the situation. Alex just waved her hand, faking indifference. Justin nodded curtly. He, unlike his sister, actually cared about school. And everything he worked so hard for would go out the window if they were found out. But he knew what it meant, to lose the necklace. He had looked up books in the Wiz-Tech library on Vittore, further elucidating on his reign of terror; some were more detailed than Justin would have liked. So he would once again be strong for his family, if the time came.
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Like their father had told them, there really wasn't anything to worry about for the next few days. Alex, Justin, and Max were a little more apprehensive when they were out in public, but for the most part they just kept up with their normal routines.
Then that day happened.
Alex had gone out on her first date with Joel, which had gone very well. She promised Justin though, that she would meet him at their favorite frozen yogurt shop afterwards and tell him everything. Well, maybe not everything, she thought, replaying Joel's kiss he had placed on her cheekbone before they said their goodbyes. She had somehow managed to talk Justin into paying for her frozen yogurt, which weighed almost a pound.
It was dusk when they set out for home, walking side by side down Waverly Place, not teasing each other as usual. Instead, they chattered happily about nothing important. It was pleasant for a change. But, as they approached the sub station, Justin immediately knew something was wrong. The station was pitch black, even though they didn't close for another half hour. He gripped Alex's arm and walked up slowly to the entrance.
As quietly as he could, Justin pushed the door open and peered inside. He couldn't faintly distinct the outlines of tables and chairs. It was much too quiet. Alex followed Justin inside, scanning the room anxiously. "Justin, what is it?" she whispered.
He held up a hand and listened hard. All he could hear was his own heart beating and his ragged breath drawing in and out. He could feel the tension in the air and didn't take a step further. Alex's heart was pumping crazily, not fully understanding what was going on. But she too felt the strain in the atmosphere, fear slowly taking over her body.
All of a sudden, Justin's phone rang shrilly from his pocket, causing them both to jump and yelp in surprise. Justin clenched his jaw and fumbled with his phone.
"Hello?" he answered, a little annoyed. "Yeah, we're downstairs… Dad what's hap-?"
He looked at Alex and shrugged, allowing his father to speak for a second. "Okay, we're on our way up," he hung up the phone and turned to Alex. "We've gotta run, come on."
Alex was right behind her brother as they leaped up the stairs, taking them two at a time. Justin almost burst through the door and looked around. His father was pacing frantically and his mother was all over the place, packing things up.
Jerry looked up and rushed over to his children. "Okay, go to your rooms and pack as many clothes as you can fit into one suitcase. We have to leave now."
Alex shrunk back, scared by her father's hurried and frightened tone. "Dad, what's going on?" she asked shakily.
"They found out where we are. Our informant just told us they're coming soon to collect the necklace. So no standing around, hurry, go pack!"
Justin and Alex once again ran up the spiral stairs. They found suitcases in front of their doors and hurried to throw their things in them. Alex saw Max sprinting around his room, also packing. She caught a glimpse of his suitcase, which was mainly filled with clothes; but also contained a frying pan, a pair of flippers, and his lava lamp. Even when imminent peril was upon them, Alex managed to let out a giggle.
She was maybe seven minutes into packing when Jerry came running into her room.
"Are you finished?" he asked impatiently. Alex looked around her room one more time and decided she had everything she would need. She nodded quickly and Jerry grabbed her bag. She followed him out to the hallway where her parents', Max's, and Justin's luggage were all waiting. There was also a slightly larger suitcase sitting next to them.
"What's that one?" Alex asked curiously. Jerry answered, "That's just some magic stuff I think we'll need."
Theresa emerged from her bedroom, carrying some shoes. "Jerry, honey, can't we just fit one more pair?" Jerry sighed and the Russo children all chuckled.
*CRASH*
All eyes turned to the stairwell as they heard their front door slam open. Alex unconsciously recoiled when she heard a gruff voice yell, "Spread out and search the whole house! It's here somewhere…."
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A/N: My first cliffhanger, hooray! A total cliche one, but it still counts!! Again, pretty please with three cherries on top, review!! I thrive on encouragement :D
