Disclaimer: Fairly Odd Parents is in no way mine, but Dwalin, Cerridik, Lorriana, Dominik, Feldan, and all the other stuff that is obviously original, are my brainchildren.

FOP

Dominik fingered the silver chain hanging about his neck, freeing it from the button it continuously became caught on. After very little debate it was decided he would carry their charge; Vendoise were too carefree to hold this much responsibility, and Fe'verts, well, they were too sexually motivated to be trusted. So it fell to him to watch over this Innocent – she was far too precious and important to entrust with just anyone. Looking down, he saw the girl trapped within the crystal staring out straight ahead, arms wrapped around her knees and a blank expression on her face.

He felt a moment a sympathy – which he attributed to his human father. He knew what it was like to be taken from your home without warning. She was not the first he had helped spirit away in the night, nor was she likely to be the last, yet something about her resonated within him; how she didn't weep or throw herself into hysterics as the others did. She just sat there, watching the path before them rise to meet their feet, and waited.

"Dwalin." Cerridik said suddenly, and Dominik turned to look at his companion. Lorriana stopped as well, gazing over her shoulder casually while reining in her inner light. The Fe'vert met his friend's orbs with his own beady eyes, and the Wolf chuckled darkly.

"It would be foolish to think he would sit back while we steal away his human." The young girl in the prison looked up at them as if she could hear what they were speaking on, and who knows, maybe she could. He wondered if she heard the reason in his dark voice, and if she dared herself to hope as so many before her had.

"He will follow us, that is to be sure. In his own Goblin way I believe he loves her." Lorriana smirked, throwing her golden hair over a silver shoulder.

"I could love her." Cerridik grinned cheekily, eying the prism greedily. Her keeper growled and the lusty Fe'vert held up his hands in mock defeat.

"She is Feldan's, don't forget that Cerridik." With that said, the dark man began moving down that path again, out of sight within the shadows and his green companion laughed.

"I guess he put me in my place again." The green man smirked flirtatiously at the relatively young Vendoise, who simply rolled her eyes and followed her other comrade through the thicket. Cerridik lingered a moment longer, placing a hand on the branch of a white birch tree and closing his small dark eyes. Nearly microscopic spores dispersed from his skin, bouncing about in all directions on a phantom breeze, disappearing within the foliage. After a moment of stillness, Cerrdik's smirk changed into something more feral.

"Come on Dwalin, I have high expectations for you, too."

And finally, the Fe'vert vanished after his companions.

~O~

Timmy sat at his desk, face buried deeply in a physics book. Poof was at his feet in a bouncer, giggling cutely as his Godbrother bounced him distractedly with his right foot. Cosmo had asked Wanda to dinner in Fairy World, and Timmy had volunteered to watch over the baby Fairie. It was bound to be a slow night anyway, so what harm could there be?

Wanda gave him a wary glance but nodded anyway, it had been a long time since Cosmo had taken her out. And as selfish as it sounded, she desperately wanted to feel like a teenager in the throes of love again. So she let her impatient husband take her hand in excitement, and Timmy barely caught the image of the green haired Fairie steal a kiss from his wife's lips before the pair was gone with a poof.

That had been a few hours ago, and Timmy was no longer foolish enough to believe the dopey story of how Fairies make babies – if their actions were anything to go one, Cosmo and Wanda were probably trying to make many more. Or improve their marriage.

Either way it ended up with the same thing.

Timmy almost choked on his soda as he was suddenly attacked viciously by the picture of his Godparents doing things more suited to horny teenagers. Shaking his head to try and rid himself of the thought, he vaguely remembered the same feeling when he learned, or rather overheard, that his parents still had sex.

"Oh God am I going to need therapy." He muttered to his momentarily forgotten textbook, and continued his rocking of Poof, who was giggling in that cute way all babies possess. The routine had been performed for only a few minutes before a strange clawing sort of sound could be heard from outside. Like an animal crawling up the side of the house, it was a faint scuffling, scratching. Timmy sent a look over his shoulder to his window, amazed that Poof too, took on this serious sort of quiet. Together they watched and waited at the sounds grew louder and louder, closer and closer. The young Turner could almost envision his imaginary heckles rise in anticipation.

There was something at the window now, fleshy appendages scraping against the glass desperately. And wailing, there was a wailing that sounded so familiar to Timmy, but he just couldn't place it.

"Goblin! Goblin! Poof poof!" the baby Fairie cried giddily, and Timmy suddenly felt like an idiot. Even with the lack of outside light, how could he not recognize that greenish brown skin, abnormally long nose, and sock hat?

"Dwalin? What the hell man?" he called while rolling his chair to the window so he could open it. Just barely hoisted up and the Goblin was tearing himself into the room, panting and wailing and trying to calm himself down by dragging his face on the carpet.

"Tootie-Comrade! Tootie-Comrade! Tootie-Comrade!" he cried over and over again, making Timmy nervous – what if his parents woke up?

"Dwalin! Calm down! What's wrong with Tootie?" saying her name made him feel at least twenty shades of guilt and fear. After the whole Saving the Goblin Race episode, he had told her flat out that they could only be friends outside of school where no one would really see them, save for maybe their mutual friends like AJ and Chester, Elmer and Sanjay. But certainly not where Trixie and the popular kids could witness. And those kisses he gave her were really nothing more than an expression of happiness that a friend hadn't died. She accepted his feelings with an oddly reserved smile, and told him of course she was just his friend, expecting nothing else – an admission that filled him with relief.

But now with the sudden possibility that something had happened to her, a hot stone of anxiety dropped into his stomach, making him nauseous.

"It's Tootie-Comrade, Dwalin always knew it was. Lorriana-Vendoise take Tootie-Comrade, steal her in the night. Dwalin not like Timmy-Man-Brat but Dwalin needs his help if Dwalin is to get Tootie-Comrade back." Slowly lifting himself off the carpeting, the small Goblin before him reminded Timmy much of the night Tootie sacrificed herself.

Tootie.

Looking over to Poof, Timmy was surprised to see the young Fairie bouncing up and down excitedly. He could tell he and his brother were on the verge of another adventure, one without mom and dad, and he was more than ready. He remembered the last one that involved the creature in front of them, and that cute girl who liked his brother. He could remember the look in her eyes, right after she kissed him but before she turned to walk down the embankment.

He wanted his brother to know the same love his parents' shared – even if it was only just now being rekindled.

"Wait, Tootie was taken? What is going on?" Really wishing Cosmo and Wanda were back home, Timmy tried controlling his growing panic while rising from his chair. Dwalin, meanwhile, slowly moved back to the window. It had been a mistake to come to this Man-Brat with the expectation of help, and now he had wasted precious time. Time he could have used tracking down Lorriana-Vendoise and her companions. What had he been thinking?

"Dwalin! Wait!" turning slowly with one long leg out the window, the small Goblin watched with vague interest as Timmy made a split-second decision and pulled Poof from his bouncer after jotting something down on a piece of paper from the desk. The deliciously decadent, sweet smell of lead shavings filled his nostrils, but Dwalin felt no desire to eat. It anything he felt sick.

"We're coming with you." The human affirmed, and Dwalin barely thought about it before nodding and disappearing out the window, Man-Brat and Fairie on his heels.

Gone to save Tootie. Catch up if you can.

Timmy and Poof

~O~

The comfortable twilight between daylight and starlight rested all around the two creatures, giving the false sense of security they knew better than to believe. Not daring to make a fire, they simply sat close to one another beneath the brush, waiting for the sounds of travelers to pass them, afraid that this time would be the last free night.

"Nyssia -" one of them whispered quietly, only to be nearly violently hushed by the other. The peace around them was broken as they watched Dominik, Lorriana and Cerridik emerge from one of the paths. The young women held their breaths as they gripped hands, flesh melting to conjoin them at the wrist. Terror gripped them as they watched the Wolf stop and sniff the air cautious and curiously.

Nyssia could feel her heartbeat quicken at the sight of him, only part of it was from fear. Images, memories of her running through the forest, without her sister but not alone flooded her eyes; the rush of being chased by a creature so powerful and yet contained by a master he hated filled her veins. When he caught her, she knew what awaited her, want he wanted, and she was more than willing to give it to him. After all, he already had her heart.

Brought from her thoughts, the pair watched as the band of hunters continued on, though Dominik was the last to leave, reluctantly to say the least. The sisters waited for a few baited moments, before Nyssia rose from her hiding place, much to the concern of her sister.

"Let's go Orlana."

"What if they find us?" he younger sister looked up with big eyes, and Nyssia flashed a heartbrokenly comforting smile. She saw the crystal hanging about Dominik's neck, could see the young captive inside whose bright purple eyes caught and held her gaze. She knew the watch had finally begun the shift away from their escape.

"They're not looking anyway. Come, we'll travel faster together." Holding out her hand, Nyssia waited patiently for her fearful sister to place her trust in her elder. And once she did, Orlana was hoisted to her feet and let her flesh meld swiftly into her sister's, the two becoming one before making the move in the opposite direction the Watch went.

I'm sorry about Dominik. Orlana tried to comfort, but Nyssia was far too strong for that.

It's alright. And with that, the two disappeared in the same manner they had arrived at the small clearing in the woods, much the same way they had traveled their whole lives.

Closer than anything.

~O~

Stopping only for a short meal, the Watch sat by the crows cage at the crossroads and began unpacking the bread and meat. Lorriana scoffed at the meager offering, used to drinking sunlight flavored dew straight from the petals of roses; this food was an insult to even the most modest of the Vendoise. Fe'verts don't eat food, but rather absorb the life force from the young women they seduce and love, taking not all but enough to satisfy; Cerridik simply leaned against the pole of the prison and rolled himself a giant from his stash of Dwarf Moss.

So in reality, it was only Dominik who would be eating. He was, however, too consumed by his thoughts on the presence of something he felt back in the thicket of the forests, that he simply tore off small pieces of the bread and didn't bother touching the pork.

"You should let her out." A voice above them rasped, and the grouped to look at the prisoner within the cage, startled but not surprised. Greeting them was the sight of a man, dirty and abused, one leg to his chest and another jammed painfully through the bars at an odd angle. He had a collar around his neck, and they could see the insignia of Feldan engraved on the leather, along with symbols forbidding change.

"Let who out, Shape Shifter?" Cerridik asked, a puff of blue and purple smoke escaping his lips with the words. The man in the cage smirked while nodding to prism around Dominik's neck.

"That human you have in the crystal. I know that magic well enough – traps but doesn't sustain. If you want to get her to Feldan alive, you better let her out to feed." He laughed hoarsely, then coughed from overusing his unused vocal cords. Dominik eyed him skeptically, before removing the chain and setting it close to the fire. Within a few moments, the sides of the crystal opened and Tootie steadily grew, until she was back to her normal side. Disoriented, she just barely had time to stand before Lorriana slipped a thin golden band around her wrist. Not bothering to ask what it was or even make a move to run, Tootie looked at Dominik with subdued curiosity.

"Who was she?" her voice sounded alien to her, but that didn't stop her from asking. Dominik only growled, knowing full well who she was speaking of, and not liking this girl, this human, inquiring on things that were not her affair.

"No concern of yours." He barked while shoving a chunk of bread into her hands and watching with a snarl as she shrank again, once more trapped within the small crystal. Quickly Dominik snatched up the chain and placed her over his neck while the man in the cage laughed.

"Get up." His snarl moved to his companions, who had never seen him this bent out of shape while on a job. The Shape Shifter only laughed harder as the Wolf furiously threw the food into the pack and kicked dirt onto the fire. As Cerridik and Lorriana led the way, Dominik began to move before the raspy voice stopped him.

"Dominik." The oddly serious tone of it made him stop to listen, inquisitive as to what sort of wisdom the crows cage prisoner could hold.

"You know how Feldan works, you maybe more than anyone. So be careful what you long for, Dominik, for you may very well get it."

Dominik left the crossroads without word nor sound, but he feared he would be eternally haunted by the warning of the Shape Shifter.

FOP