Chapter 50; Poker Face

—Wanda's Pov—

"Can you please stop laughing…?" She pleaded, her face buried in her hands, utterly mortified. Piper was clutching her stomach and laughing uncontrollably. She had administered her the cure for her confetti state, laughing to the point of tears the entire time.

Unfortunately, Piper's laughter proved to be infectious, and it spread across the entire room—The Tooth Fairy, seated nearby and enjoying some cake, couldn't help but giggle a little, failing to hold it in. The betrayed glares she shot at her only elicited half-hearted apologies, as Tannfe tried desperately to stifle her amusement.

"I'm sorry Wanda, really—it's just—I never saw a fairy get so angry that they burst into confetti before!"

"I'm going to pick on Nova forever with this one! Haha, just be lucky that it was super easy for me to whip up a cure for—exploding—! Hehe, aw man, hey Nova, you got so annoying that you made your daughter-in-law go boom! Oh man, it's going to be so much fun teasing him with this. I can't wait—! It's gonna be hilarious!" Piper's dissolved into more peels of laughter—the only saving grace was that it at least seemed that she was laughing more at Nova than at her.

Groaning, she begrudgingly realized that she was lucky that Piper was able to get her back to normal so quickly. The Confetti state could be cured by a wish from one's godchild—but Timmy wasn't with her right now, and besides, she would really rather have him not learn that she had literally exploded from anger.

Without a godchild's wish to restore them, getting back to normal after bursting into confetti involved enduring an uncomfortable two day long treatment at Dr. Rip Studwell's. Thankfully, Piper had quickly concocted a powder that restored her form within just a few shakes, although the pungent smell made her question its ingredients.

"I still can't believe you actually exploded!" exclaimed Dazzel, a Fey she had met at the Tea party. "But none of us blame you, considering—!"

This was the worst part of it all; several Fey had sensed her explosion and had been drawn to the ill-named "relaxation room" to investigate what had happened; and Piper, who had been administering her treatment, had much amusement in regaling them about what was going on.

Ninety-nine percent had erupted into the same hysterical laughter like Piper, or they sported smirks or polite grins. Bliss and Melika, whom she had encountered at the tea party, were among the few who didn't seem amused by the situation; Melika appeared exasperated, while Bliss had regarded her with pure pity.

Spotting cake and cheerful party decorations, a small, thoughtless group had chosen to linger. Fortunately, the majority who had come to investigate displayed enough courtesy to depart after extending a few words of encouragement—albeit through left over peels of laughter.

Seven Fey, which included Piper and Gizmo, two Kinders, and of course the Tooth Fairy, had remained to be company to her misery and embarrassment.

Some Fey were familiar faces from the tea party, while others she had not met previously. She settled herself down in a chair in the corner of the room furthest from everyone else and hugged a pillow tightly to her chest; feeling like the target of a cruel joke.

"Aww, like, don't feel bad! I know we're laughing, but we're not like making fun of you or anything. It's just, like…a super comical situation, is all!" Gizmo called over to her, offering a seemingly friendly but condescending smile. "Like, look at it from our eyes—Nova, the guy so super obsessed with being reunited with his family, like—makes his daughter-in-law explode—like, literally—in a single day!"

A single day…..

The moment she realized that it really had only been a single 24 hour day in reality since she came to Fey world had been what had done her in. She could not remember if she burst after seeing the party decorations celebrating the 'first 24 hours' or if it was Nova saying so in the video—but regardless of which it was….

She had failed to respond to Timmy's message; even if her responses were mostly magically doctored, at least he had gotten something to set his mind at ease—-was he worrying about her right now? Or…had he been fed some convenient lie and was cheerfully eating cake without any concern for her at all?

Which one of these did she want to be true?

She did not know what was worst, her humiliation at what had happened, or the shame she felt about the likelihood that Timmy was fretting over her wellbeing right now….and the selfish worry that—he was being kept so entertained by Nova, that he wasn't anxious about her at all….

"—I'd, like, totally smack him with a wrench if he ever, like, nabbed my cute little Kinder, Bolt from me!" Gizmo was still rambling. "But, yeah, don't take it like too personally. Nova—he's the type that means well, but can get so, like—-annoying insistent about things—like, he does always have like, really good intentions, and it's infuriating how 80% of the time he's on the mark. While he is super helpful, other times it's like, maaaan, mind your own beeswax, you know?"

"Yeah, seriously—he's always yapping at me about how I treat my Michael." A fey named Glimmer, with the same teenage aesthetic as Gizmo, rolled her large dark blue-grey eyes; silvery blue hair tied up in a scrunchie and wearing shiny metallic clothing that looked as if she were a pop idol ready to perform. "Michael is perfectly happy with having me as a Fey-Mommy."

"Oh, please Glimmer—it's more like Michael is the parent when it comes to the two of you." A fey with light reddish hair and tanned skin lectured. She was wearing clothing and hair accessories with a rose motif and was beautifully dressed and coiffed with her makeup sublime. She carried herself with the air of a superior fashionista. "Nova is right to give you a lecturing—if you don't get you act together, the Ring may decide to re-adopt Michael to a Fey who'll be more nurturing, poor thing feels more like your fashion accessory."

"Oh, like how you're so nurturing to Eleanor? She's just your pretty little thing to dress up in cutesy outfits! You might as well be the same as her human mother!"

"I am not!"

"In the words of Nova, 'you're making her re-live her trauma."

"Oh, phooey! Nova makes mountains out of molehills! He is the one with the trauma; so scared to death of reliving what happened to those two poor godkids of his, that he over worries about things and sees infernos where there is only a wisp of smoke. Elle likes the pretty dresses, and she loved performing and being in the spotlight; there was no trauma to her in getting all dolled up and competing in those pageants; what she hated was—!"

"Hey, watch it!" Aelar, another Fey she had met at the tea party, shot a furious look at the two women and then down at one of the little boys she had met earlier at the playground, hands already preemptively covering his ears. "Edmund does not need to hear such things about his friend's past. "

She eyed the little boy, whose hands were replaced by crow wings. He had been sitting on Aelar's knee, being fed cake by him, since he lacked the hands to pick up a fork or plate himself. The poor boy had kept flashing her pleading glances, begging for her silence about the secret meeting he and his friends had with Timmy and her before the tea party.

"Ugh, like Rosehip, please—!" Gizmo screwed up her face, her laughter finally stopping. "Elle's past is not something to bring up at all, especially not over cake!"

"What about Elle's past is so bad?" The Kinder who resembled a living doll, one of the ones who had played with Timmy during the trip to the glade, asked, curiously, looking to the Fey child, Ariafern for an answer, as they sat on the couch, next to Aelar and Edmund. The Fey child sat primly upright with a dower expression that did not match her pretty, young face.

"Nothing for you to worry about, Lilybeth. Rosehip, may I ask where Eleanor is?"

"Apparently, Theo isn't feeling all that well, and she insisted on visiting with him." Rosehip shrugged and giggled. "It's so cute when Kinders crush on each other; the childlike puppy love that will never blossom, is like a cute, dainty little rosebud, sweet and pure."

"If he's still sick in the morning, I'll pay a house visit if those two idiots won't bring him by to see me." Piper finally stopped laughing, crossing her arms with a sigh.

"What made him sick?" Aelar's voice held a hint of caution, looking a little paranoid down at Edmund.

"Kinder can get sick if they eat too little or too much of their Fey fruit—Theo has gotten sick that way in the past; if it's something contagious, I'll let you know." Piper fiddled with her hair, looking away from Aelar as she spoke.

"Like, Kinder need to regularly ingest the Fey fruit they had first tasted, like, the same one that made them Kinder, or else they get sick, of course, if they eat too much of it, they also get sick—not anything, like too serious though." Gizmo explained to Tannfe and her, but she frankly had no interest in this bit of information.

It would never be of use to her because she would never allow Timmy to become a Kinder.

The Fey chitchatted amongst each other, and even the Tooth Fairy joined in the conversations as Glimmer, Dazzle, and Rosehip peppered her with questions about Fairy world, and what the fashion was like and the latest fairy-celebrity trends.

Fatigue washed over her as she sank into the soft cushions, aware that the two hours would soon be over. But something inside her resisted comfort. A lingering feeling of unreadiness to return to Timmy had built up within her, while at the same time, a sense of foolishness and inadequacy enveloped her.

"Lilybeth, play with Eddie—I'm going to talk to Mrs. Godmother." Ariafern announced, her concerned gaze met hers. Unlike the others, Ariafern had not so much as smiled even once over her predicament.

"Okay!" Lilybeth cheerfully continued to eat cake, whilst Edmund scowled, cheeks turning red.

"Aww! Don't call me Eddie! I've told you that a million-gazillion times by now!" He stuck out his tongue, prompting a scolding from Aelar. Lilybeth laughed at him and playfully poked his chubby belly.

"Eddie, Eddie, belly so round, Always eating, tummy's a mound Wings like a crow, stealing shiny stuff, Eddie, Eddie, is a pile of feather fluff!" She sang loudly; normally she might have fun this cute, but right now, she only thought it as irritating.

"I said don't call me Eddie!" Edmund's face flushed even redder, his bottom lip trembling. "Daddy Aelar, Lilybeth's picking on me again!"

Aelar just had a hint of a smile on his lips as he watched the playful scene unfold. He hadn't said a word to her when he had arrived, unlike the others who had inquired about her well-being before succumbing to fits of laughter; but she did not get the sense of any ill feelings from him; he could just be the quiet type.

"Eww! Ewwwwww! Noooo! No, I don't!" Lilybeth cried out in despair, shaking her head frantically, her blond curls bouncing rapidly.

"Now, you two, stop that—" Piper tried to scold, but then snickered. "…Wanda looks like she might explode again."

A round of chuckles went around. Her face was so hot, she felt as if she had just used a face-mask made of lava.

"…Their laughing more at Nova, then they are you." Ariafern confessed in a quiet whisper, squeezing her arm as she sat on the arm of the chair she was on.

'Pull yourself together, Ms. Godmother!'

She blinked, confused, as Ariafern's voice entered her head telepathically, whilst outwardly the girl was speaking with inane things about not taking the teasing personally, and it was just the way Nova was and a bunch of other empty platitudes.

'I know you've had a rough time, but you need to get your head back into the game, or else you're never going to outsmart Nova.' Aria's telepathic voice was as urgent as her outward voice was cheerful.

'What makes you think I—-?"

'You don't want to make Timmy a Kinder, right? So to stop that, your going to need to out play Nova, and the family-card is a very good one to play against him, and, frankly, it's the only one you have—and if you waste it now, then I'm sorry, but your godson is as good as claimed.'

She tensed up; had she already been seen through in her attempts to string Nova along but, Ariafern for some reason appeared to be on her side or was this just another Fey trick?

'Why are you….?' She questioned uneasily, trying to make it seem to the other Fey that she was listening to what Ariafern was saying aloud, rather than what she was saying in her mind.

'…' Ariafern twisted her silver black curls around her finger in response, her crystal blue eyes shifting around. '….I like the Timmy stories Nova reads to us. There won't be anymore fun stories if he becomes a Kinder…it would be a very….boring ending to those stories.'

'I see…..'

'What you need to do is play Nova's game, but don't be too obvious. He knows from Stella's letters that your not the docile or weak willed type so if your too submissive and agreeable, he will quickly see through your deceit. However, if you act too nonchalant, he will conclude that you don't really care all that much about Timmy and think your unfit. Finally, if your too combative, aggressive and disagreeable, resisting all of his advice then he'll decide that it is no use trying to reason with you as you are now, and will just go ahead and claim Timmy with the hopes that once you become a Fey that your attitude will mellow out.'

Those certainly did seem like the types of conclusions that he would draw….

'So…give his advice a fair shot, but don't just follow it submissively; agree to work with him, while making your own ideas, suggestions and thoughts known—Nova will respect you much more and therefore listen to what you have to say if you do so.' The Fey child advised with confidence.

Everything Ariafern said sounded true and reasonable; but because she was a Fey she could not help but worry that there was some hidden trap to her words; though this advice had already been her plan….lead Nova on, keeping a cordial relationship until it was time to cut ties and flee….

Sadly, Nova was making it very hard to remain on friendly terms with him.

'Why….is he like this?' She questioned and Ariafern picked up a pillow, hugging it, and while outwardly she spoke of how Nova was a fun and loving uncle figure to all the Kinders, she spoke sadly into her mind.

'…Uncle Nova is really a kind, sweet man most of the time, but he carries a lot of pain because of what had happened to Jullian and Julia…'

Not that she did not sympathized, but, it was no excuse! 'I was made to leave god children before they were ready too, and I know it can really hurt, but—-'

'No. It wasn't...it wasn't just because he had to leave them; that's not what made him like this.' Ariafern turned her face to the wall, unable to keep her expression as cheerful as her outward voice. "Jullian, and then his daughter Julia—they died.'

An icy chill ran through her. 'Wait….they…died….?'

'Honestly, I don't really know the complete story; Nova is very sensitive about the topic, so no one talks about it; but from what I heard, Jullian aged out of godparents but still needed them, and because he was left in a toxic environment, he grew up full of 'adult poison', as Nova calls it. Years later Nova and his wife got assigned to his daughter Julia and….well, they were A-class godparents, so….you know what that means, right?"

A-class godparents, reserved for children in the most critical situations….

'All I really know is that Julia got her god parents taken away for breaking a rule; and sometime soon after that…there was a fire….'

"That's... that's horrible!" She shuddered at the thought; the mere idea was unimaginable! To even think about being in such a situation was enough to numb her senses; what if Timmy grew up to be in a tough spot, and his child needed help—and she failed to provide it, only to have them both perish in a tragic accident shortly after she left them? If fairies could perish from grief, she would be reduced to mere dust in an instant!

Of course, fairies did not die of sadness, so she'd be forced to live for thousands of years, always haunted by the thought-what if I had done better?

'Nova is burdened with guilt, convinced that if he had been more knowledgeable or capable, he could have averted the disaster. That thought torments him, pushing him to extremes in his efforts to ensure such a tragedy never repeats. His actions aren't driven by malice but by a deep-seated fear. He doesn't mean to belittle your abilities; it's his own shortcomings and his fixation on rectifying them that spur his actions.' Ariafern might have looked like a preteen child, but she spoke with the maturity and awareness of a full grown adult.

'The children he took... and the level of influence he is trying to exert over Timmy...It's all rooted in his inability to overcome the guilt from their deaths, isn't it?' She hugged herself tightly, overwhelmed by a mix of pity and revulsion.

In trying to make amends for losing two children, Nova had disrupted the lives of over two hundred others in his quest to 'rescue' them. He convinced himself that he was successful in 'averting' potential tragedies by stealing them away their human lives, yet he failed to see that in doing so, he had also... prevented miracles.

'….He's not doing this to be mean to you Ms. Godmother, not that it excuses his behavior, but….he's acting out of fear. He studied for thousands of years on how to help children with trauma just to prevent another Jullian—who was unable to move past the abuse he suffered as a child after his godparents left, and Julia, whose mental state had deteriorated beyond repair because of the bullying she received for being so poor.'

'….And in Timmy he sees both of them….Jullian's toxic environment, and Julia's bullying….' She clenched her fists, feeling her eyes burn, but it was not really anger or sadness she felt; she wasn't actually sure what she was feeling, but it felt terrible.

'I…I see.' She nodded. 'Thank you, Ariafern….may I ask….why….? I mean, why are you looking out for me?'

If this wasn't some trick, perhaps it was just an attempt to play on her heartstrings, but—Jorgen and Nova had argued about Jullian and Julia earlier, so it was possible that this was no fabrication and Ariafern truly was being genuine.

'….Why?' Ariafern hesitated for a few long moments, swinging her legs back and forth before finally deciding to answer. ' I've always been…intrigued by godparents; raising a human child, sometimes for years, helping them grow, and then just... letting them go….watching from a distance if they turn into a butterfly or a moth…'

'…..'

'Of course, when I told my parents this—they punished me horribly; scared I was thinking about splitting myself and becoming a Fairy.' Ariafern spoke with more passion than ever before and she couldn't help but wonder if maybe the little Fey child was actually considering such a choice. If so, she had to set one thing straight.

'We leave our godchild with the hope and wish that all of them become butterflies.'

'I see….' Ariafern looked over at Lilybeth, who was still teasing Edmund. '…Kinders can't grow to become either moths or butterflies…'

'And that's why I cannot let Timmy be made into a Kinder; thank you again, Ariafern, for getting me back to my senses.'

The child was right; in her emotional state she had almost forgotten—-she was playing a game of mental poker with Nova and she had only one good card. She couldn't afford to loose her poker face, she had to keep bluffing if she wanted to be able to leave this place with Timmy at the end of his treatment.

She needed to keep her act convincing, subtly leading Nova on without arousing his suspicions. Her demeanor had to remain cordial and open, casually dropping deceptive clues that she was considering the Kinder option. By pretending to give that detestable schedule a fair chance and heeding his counsel, she'd make him think she had been lured into his net. Then, when he inevitably attempted to deceive her at the conclusion of Timmy's treatment, he would find himself outsmarted instead.

She was angry, frustrated, humiliated, and frazzled right now, but she had to reclaim control over her emotions, otherwise her bluff would be called and met with a royal flush.

— Nova POV—

'He exhibits such extraordinary sensitivity, a stark contrast to the boy about whom Stella had written so many stories. It's astonishing to think that a single missed communication from Wanda could affect him so deeply.' He thought sadly, as he helped Timmy with his morning grooming.

The child did not rest easily or well last night. Since Wanda's failure to respond to their video call during the 24 hr. celebration, Timmy had allowed anxiety to eat holes in his mental health and, of course, this had affected his physical wellbeing. Oh yes, the boy had done his best to persevere, and yet, to use the Timmy's own comparison—he was like Hawkeye at the mercy of Thanos; his anxiety a cruel, impossible to resist siren's call.

Only seeing Wanda well and happy would put his mind at ease. He wanted to wait until he was sure that she could respond—at least enough for the censorship magic to at least have something to work with—because if she failed to respond a second time, the affect it could have on Timmy's wellbeing could be devastating. Timmy's physical health was precarious; his heart literally could not endure the strain of such emotions anymore….

He lifted Timmy from the bath, dried him off and set out clothes for him to wear; today's outfit a pink knit sweater with dark pink stars, and grey jeans, white sneakers and replacing the boy's usual baseball hat with a wool tam.

He was always on Rosehip's case about her tendency to treat Eleanor like a fashion doll, because he feared the affect it could have on her mental health to be constantly reminded of those beauty pageants her mother would parade her around in and her obsessively rigid beauty laws; not even allowing the child a single slice of cake at her own birthday party least it made her 'fat.'

However, playing dress-up with a child was not an inherently bad thing; Dressing up was playful by nature, and play was a key way to access emotional healing. When people experienced trauma, rejection and emotional hardships, they often lost a sense of continuity in their identify and Timmy had showed many indications of longing to return to his innocent, carefree 10 year old self, while realizing it would be impossible for him to do so even though he knew he could not continue in his current burned-out state.

He had him experiment everyday with new types of clothes and styles in order to offer him a gentle, non-verbal way to explore new identities and begin rebuilding his self-perception. Each new outfit, a small opportunity to try out a different version of himself, helping him process that identity could be fluid and flexible—not something rigid or lost forever….and that his ten year old self, and his current self where all him and any future self would be him as well.

…..Poor Eleanor, on the other-hand, had lost her identity to the clothes and he really wish that he could have Rosehip take his advice; he was sure the girl was only as ill-behaved as she was, because she was subconsciously lashing out.

…..He truly hoped Wanda would be more receptive to his help. If not….he would need to go ahead and take matters into his own hand; he would not let Timmy end up like Jullian—his character eroded by poison, or poor tragic, fragile Julia….who had broken unable to endure the pain and hopelessness of her life.

"Timmy, do you want to read through the pamphlet Poof sent again?" He suggested as he finished combing the boy's hair and tying it back. The pamphlet for the big fairy festival coming up on the weekend was well-read by now; Timmy and he had read through it multiple times and it never ceased to be a pleasant distraction from the boys worries.

"—I hope I'll be well enough to go….Poof will be so sad if we miss it…." The boy murmured as he carried him down to the Pavilion for breakfast, the three baby Appapuffs hopping up onto them for a ride, snuggling against Timmy who couldn't help but smile at their show of affection.

"Your doing remarkably well." He reassured. "In three treatments, you've already reached the second phase; some kids take two weeks' worth of treatment to have the magical pathway form."

"….Has it really only been three…?" The child looked taken aback.

"I know…" He put an arm around the boy consolingly. "They're so painful, it probably feels like there have been more, but indeed; you received one treatment upon your arrival Saturday evening, another Sunday morning, one following the tea party, and you are awaiting the final treatment for Sunday."

"….." Timmy hugged himself, looking queasy. "….How many will I need?"

"I don't know, little one." He told him sadly, patting his shoulder.

"….Wanda is having such a hard time because of me…." Timmy lowered his head, shuffling his feet.

"Don't feel that way." He sat down at the Pavilion and poofed up a breakfast of three-cheese scrambled eggs, whole wheat toast drizzled with olive oil and spread with avocado, Greek yogurt with honey and berries, with some warm milk and cinnamon.

It was a breakfast designed to be gentle on the stomach, comforting, and packed with nutrients to help boost his energy. "Wanda loves you and she wants you to be healthy; she doesn't mind a little Linking or disruption to her routine to ensure your well-being. She would be having a far harder time if you hadn't been able to be brought back from that awful accident…."

His eyes misted over as he reflected on the tragedy that could have been averted if only Cosmo had been more vigilant. That fool, so engrossed in practicing for the trivial TBT tournament, failed to recognize the imminent danger Timmy was in until it was too late!

"Grandpa…." Timmy tugged on his arm, seeing the emotion in his eyes.

"The mere thought of what could have been lost that night, and the possibility that we might never have shared this time together, sends a real chill through me. If I feel such pain at the mere idea of 'what if', then I canconfidently state that Wanda would undoubtedly prefer her current situation over what she would have experienced if you hadn't been able to return. To be frank, I hold the belief that she would not have been able to endure that level of pain. When considering both situations, any anxiety she experiences being present here is negligible compared to what she would be feeling otherwise."

The agony Wanda would have endured had she returned to find a lifeless body that morning was unimaginable….

…Everything would have shattered.

Cosmo and Wanda's marriage—how could she ever forgive him for such a catastrophe? Poof's family, the foundation of his parents' union in ruins, his god brother lost due to his father's folly...Timmy's entire being—irreparably lost….and Wanda's heart broken beyond all repair.

Currently, each of these things bore only minor cracks; ones that could be mended—some more easily than others, yet all were repairable—and he was determined to ensure these cracks did not widen or deepen into irreparable fissures. He would not allow any of these things to break. For the sake of his son and daughter-in-law, for Poof, and for Timmy, he would safeguard his family from breaking, no matter the cost; even if it meant being temporarily despised by some—or even all—of them.

"Do you like your breakfast? I made the eggs with mozzarella, cheddar and brie." He made some small talk, and discreetly contacted Piper through telepathy.

'Piper, Is Wanda in a good enough state yet to converse? Timmy probably will not feel at ease until he's heard from her.'

'—Well, she's pulled herself back together at least, and she is having a pretty decent conversation with Ariafern…I think she should be fine to speak with the kid.'

'Ariafern? Why is she there?'

'Well, a whole bunch of people showed up when they sensed her explosion, and some of them stuck around to eat cake.'

'Uh no….which ones?' He had invited over Gizmo in order to keep Tannfe preoccupied, but subjecting Wanda to a room full of Fey while her nerves were so frazzled? 'Oh, please do tell me that Bubbles is not there.'

'Ah, don't worry 'bout that—I freaked Bubbles out enough earlier that she had scurried off well before Wanda went boom. Nah, we have Dazzle, Rosehip, Glimmer and Aelar.'

He was thankful that Bubbles at least was not there, alas, Glimmer and Rosehip did not make for a very good impression of their community…but that group did sound like the ones who would be senseless enough to stick around when they obviously weren't wanted. Aelar he'd make an excuse for as Edmund would likely have pleaded for the sweets, and, frankly Aelar was a creative fellow but not incredible quick on the uptake.

It did surprise him to hear that Ariafern had stuck around; she was a mature, reasonable young girl. She must have, he concluded, wanted to speak to Wanda about something….but whatever could it be?

He hoped she had not picked up Lilybeth's bad habit of 'talking too much.'

He glanced at Timmy, knowing that hearing from Wanda soon was essential for the boy's spirits to lift. This was their final day together in the time-dilated room, and he was determined to make it enjoyable for the child...and for that, the worry eating away at his mind needed to be addressed and soothed.

"Do you want to send a message to Wanda now?"

"Hm-mm!" Timmy nodded, eagerly, and he conjured the camera; hoping that Wanda's message came through and could put the boy's heart and mind at ease….the routine he outlined, the special diet, the fashion-therapy, the growing friendship with the Companions, and all his other efforts relied on Wanda's love to act as the foundation for Timmy's recovery.

"Wanda, are you feeling better? I don't know what happened during my last message, but I hope your alright? I…I guess you're going through a lot, huh? It must be so hard going through all this….thank you, I'm sorry—-it's my fault you have to put up with Linking, being parted from Poof and Cosmo for so long, and having to perform all these stressful treatments! You're not….mad, right? I—I'm sorry…if I hadn't run so close to those stairs, none of this would be happening….I should have thought before I acted and not mouth off to Vicky, and—" The boy began to ramble, wringing his hands as his body shook; naturally he had reassured him, but it seemed that a part of the boy had remained thinking this entire time that Wanda's lack of response was because a part of her had become upset with him and now, at the time of communication, those feelings had bubbled to the surface, and began to overflow.

His human parents had first began to walk out on him because he had pleaded not to be made to eat more than he could stomach at meal time—and his friends had also left him for various petty reasons, naturally this had lead the child to believe that love, even the strongest, was something easily lost if you displeased the other person. That he honestly believed that getting angry at someone was the same thing as hating a person.

He gave Timmy a comforting squeeze, which made the boy realize he was rambling and stop in mid-sentence, his face growing red as he realized that his anxiety had taken control of his tongue.

"Dear Wanda, I sincerely hope you are on the mend. I apologize for not arranging a more considerate self-care arrangement for you. Timmy has been quite upset, and despite my reassurances, he remains so. It's clear to me that this dear child adores you with all his heart. A thousand words from me could never match the comfort of a single word from you—if you would be so kind as to offer it."

He cut the video and whilst they waited for Wanda's response, Timmy leaned into him, his head down, whilst the three little Appapuffs bounced around, desperate to cheer him up. "Your great too, grandpa; you help me a lot and you said and did a lot of nice things, and….'

He playfully wiggled the boy's nose, preventing another anxiety-induced ramble. "We've become so close that I feel as if we've known each other for years; and I know I can help you in many ways, but what you have with Wanda is something so special that it can never be replicated."

…..Which was why he truly hoped Wanda would forget all the moral preaching of Fairy World, its sanctimonious rights and wrongs, and just do the right thing—-free Timmy from the human world that was so intent on destroying him.

— Wanda's POV—

...You're not….mad, right? I—I'm sorry…

'Oh….' She put a hand to her mouth in dismay, ignoring the chimes of awww's behind her, as if these Fey were just watching some televised drama rather than a real little boy. She pressed her other hand against the TV screen, staring at Timmy's pale, pensive face as he anxiously awaited her response.

That she had even considered that Timmy hadn't been concerned over her lack of response, made her feel ashamed.

'Timmy loves me too much to ever be swayed to leave me…'

That thought had repeated in her head so many times, cruelly mocking her over the ways her counterpart had twisted her feelings; and the shame she felt over how the thought was vaguely comforting—-Timmy loved her, so, so much….

But Timmy was also a boy who did not believe he was worth loving back, and was always asking for her reasons as to why she loved him, and of course…..if she so much as took a harsh tone of voice with him, she would need to reassure him that she loved him still….so, how could she have believed for a moment that he'd be unaffected by her lack of response?

That she had even worried that he might not be concerned for her, made her feel sickened with herself, seeing how upset he was now—she wished he had just been nonchalantly eating cake and goofing off, put at ease with whatever lie he had been told to explain her lack of response!

To see him looking so worried, and being afraid that she hadn't responded out of-out of anger towards him, and blaming himself for his accident-!

She had to set this right! She just couldn't let Timmy remain feeling this way for a second longer!

"You two, come over here for a moment! Oh, and bring some cake, a slice for me too." She called to Dazzle and Rosehip, the two most flashy Fey there—aside from Piper whose colorful and daring candy themed clothing would always be the most eye-drawing in any room. The two women exchanged questioning looks, but did as told, and taking a deep breath, she put an arm around Dazzle and accepted the cake from Rosehip and then spoke into the recording camera, putting on her very best poker face; a smile.

"Hiii sweetie! Ooh, I'm so sorry! I did not mean to worry you so much and miss our communication. You won't believe what happened—it's actually kind of…begrudgingly funny. When I learned that we've only been in Fey world for 24 hours—that everything that happened had taken only a single day—I kinda—confettied myself, hahaha…."

"Oh yeah, she went POP!" Piper joined in, realizing what she was trying to do. "It was actually pretty darn funny."

"Yes, a whole lot of people came to check on how Wanda was doing, and Piper fixed her up very fast." The Tooth Fairy added, looking as if she was having a hard time understanding her massive change in attitude.

"And this bunch stayed to have fun razing me over it." She forced herself to laugh more, squeezing Dazzle's shoulder a little harder then before, making the Fey woman squirm a bit as she faked her own grin and wink for the camera.

"Oh yeah, I was totally Razzle instead of Dazzle."

"Well, we've all been just sitting here, eating cake and having a pretty good laugh about it, so don't you fret a second longer!"

"The cake is yummy!" Lilybeth exclaimed from the couch, where Ariafern had rejoined her. The Kinder likely wasn't aiming to lend authenticity to the video but was simply being sincere, which inadvertently helped nonetheless. Edmund, preoccupied with chewing, couldn't comment but managed to smile, his face smeared with chocolate.

"Aw, to think you were worrying yourself so hard this entire time—my poor sweetie." She tried to put all her love and reassurance into her smile and eyes, hoping that Timmy could feel it, as well as how sorry she was for having made him worry so much. "Well you stop fretting that little head of yours and enjoy your time with your Grandpa Nova; I'm sure he must have lots of fun things planned for your last Grandfather/son day, and tomorrow morning, I'll be right there back with you—though from my viewpoint, it'll be only a few minutes—wow, gosh, thinking about it; you must've been put into even more of a twirl than I was after learning it was only 24 hours! It's a good thing you're not a fairy or you would have popped just like I did!" She signed off on her message with a laugh, which she dropped the moment the record button went off.

'Ow, my shoulder…." Dazzle whined, shrugging away from her whilst Gizmo gave her a thumbs up.

"Like, wow, good acting skills!"

"Preparing to steal another Zappy away from Blonda?" The Tooth Fairy laughed a little. She released a breath, feeling exhausted by the effort she had just made.

"After that performance, I feel like I could win every Zappy at the next Fairywood awards show." She confessed, but knew she'd have to do even better than that if she wanted to fool Nova into believing she'd really consider making Timmy into a Kinder….

"Well….aside from the Zappy for the 'most put together', that is," Glimmer teasingly added, and despite herself, she laughed—a short, unintentional snicker, but a laugh nonetheless.

"Fair enough." She confessed, messing with her hair. "I mean—I did just explode after all…"

As the Fey chuckled, she watched Timmy receive her message; and was happy to see that the only censorship applied was to her calling Dazzle and Rosehip over to stage a festive scene with her, and a little smoothing over of their expressions—but all her words had remained exactly the same.

Nova looked a mixture of stunned and relieved, before flashing a grateful smile at the camera whilst Timmy's expression was an animated one of relief, surprise and amusement.

"Oh my gosh! You mean you exploded, the same way as if you had magical build up? I'm glad you're back to normal now—-but—-whoa!" Timmy began to laugh, tearing up in relief as he was finally freed from his worries. "Yeah, my head felt all frizzly when I was told it was only 24 hours too—If I was a fairy, I'd probably have had an atomic-bomb level explosion like—" Timmy whistled imitating the noise of a falling bomb and then threw his arms wide open. "BOOM!"

The three fuzzy little creatures hoping around Timmy, playfully pretended to fly away from his faked explosion, hopping up onto his head and shoulders.

"Wanda, my dear, I am relieved to see your in such good humor about it; sometimes it's important to just laugh at life and ourselves—sometimes emotional outbursts can be…cleansing…."

Timmy put a hand over his mouth and nudged Nova. "When you told me she had a burst of emotions….I did not think you meant that literally!"

"I feel compelled to admit that I have a strong appreciation for puns." Nova gave the camera a somewhat self-satisfied smile and a wink.

"I think I might back away now—just in case your explode again…." Rosehip put her hands in front of her face to serve as a shield and then jokingly began to back away from her, with Dazzle doing the same.

This same kind of teasing had humiliated and angered her so much earlier—-but somehow seeing Timmy smiling and giggling over it, making silly jokes made the situation really seem like it truly was something funny….a memory to look back upon and laugh at…

Though next time she exploded—she'd make sure to do it right in Nova's smug face.