Note: Thanks for the request!
Wildfire377 on Ao3
Request:
Raising my best friend.
A spell Alex uses to help Harper be happy again, after Alex sees what he family is like, accidentally turns her into a baby or little girl, and Little Harper sees Alex as her mother.
Category: Mild angst, family, humor.
Mason offering t help with Harper.
The week the Finkles had come to visit had started off fun, but quickly turned sour. Alex felt so ashamed that she hadn't even realized the suffering her best friend had to go through with her family this whole time. She always thought Harper had total freedom to do whatever she wanted, but that was far from the truth..
She had discovered the poorly kept secret that Harper often glossed over: her parents had essentially abandoned her to live by herself when she no longer fit into their picture perfect show act. She was too old, was not cute enough, was too much or too little, and they only came back because they decided they needed her to help the act again. Alex had tried stepping into the role, which helped her figure it all out. The Finkles may have seemed like free spirits, happy and sparkly, but really that was just all part of the show.
It struck her that the only childhood experiences Harper had ever gotten were the ones Alex had brought her to when they became friends in elementary school. That was the turning point in Harper's life where she was suddenly always with Alex, and Alex hadn't ever thought to ask questions about it all. Harper was so flamboyant that it never crossed her mind she might be unhappy. She was sure there must be something she can do about it all.
She frowned as she studied the spell book sitting open on her lap, the soft moonlight coming in through her window giving her enough light that she wasn't going to wake Harper. The poor girl was curled up next to her as Alex decided they needed a sleepover to get past the awful week that Harper had just endured because of the Finkles. It was now the third day of the continuous sleepover, and Harper was still feeling down. Oh, she put up a smiling front, but Alex now knew there was a lot of acting going on, she was watching for the fakeness in the smile when it didn't reach her eyes and the twitch of her fingers as she tried to keep herself together.
She bit her thumbnail as she glanced over at her sleeping friend before turning her eyes back to the spell she had found. Mulling it over she made her decision. This spell claimed it would make the person find happiness, and that is what Harper genuinely needed. She hesitated as she approached her vanity, where she had stowed her wand earlier in the evening, glancing out the window to the full moon. Would this really help Harper or would it backfire like her ideas usually seemed to?
As Alex took in the sight of the full moon her thoughts turned to her boyfriend Mason and she smiled softly. He was with his family this week on a trip. Thankfully it was spring break, so he wouldn't have to try and explain away his family trip.. Tonight they'd be running wild with the moon so full. If it weren't for that, she knew he might have snuck up to the balcony for a late night visit. Her smile vanished and she turned and studied the wand in her fingertips. She was so happy with Mason, and dare she admit her crazy family too? What kind of happiness would Harper find with this spell? It said she would find it, so did that mean she would find someone the way Alex found Mason? Either way, it said she would find happiness somehow. Resolved, Alex returned to her book to reread the spell.
"When all is said and done, happiness is second to none. Now, let's not be sappy, let Harper find what she needs to be happy!" The spell lit up the room momentarily, and Alex let out a breath before settling back into her side of the bed, hoping that this would work the way she was intending it to. For once, one of her hairbrained schemes wasn't centered around herself.
It was early when daylight began to slowly filter its way into Alex's room through the chiffon curtains. She turned over with a hum and blearily blinked, rubbing her eyes. Normally she hated getting up early, but since Harper was staying in her room to sleepover, they were naturally getting up earlier since Harper was an early riser.
A tiny tired groan drew her attention, and she blinked in surprise, rubbing her eyes as she sat up. Instead of Harper next to her there was a small child that resembled kindergarten Harper. "Oh no." she breathed out, her spell had backfired somehow. Scrambling, she picked up the spellbook again and read the spell to herself. She did it right, but what had happened to Harper? She was about to turn and go panic to her family, but she paused, making sure the bookmark was in the right spot and set the book on the edge of the bed so she could grab it on the way out before she approached Harper's side of the bed. Tentatively she reached out and gently brushed Harpers choppy bangs out of her eyes and offered a smile to the little Harper. "Goodmorning Harper." She found herself cooing at her best friend when she blearily blinked up at her.
The child Harper stared in confusion. The beautiful lady was unfamiliar to her, and so was the fuzzy pink bedroom she was in. As she continued to stare, the woman's smile seemed to falter slightly, and her eyebrows bunched slightly in a worried way. Sleepily Harper wondered what happened last night to wake up with a stranger. Had someone called CPS? Or had they finally dropped her off and left for Romania like they wanted? Her parents always said that naughty children were taken away, and as far back as she could remember they'd been hinting at how troublesome she was. Had they finally come to take her away? Was she really that bad of a girl? Her little hands gripped the purple comforter tightly and she watched the woman sit down, a small frown tugging at her lips while she softly touched Harper's forehead. "No fever." she murmured. "Are you feeling OK Harper?" she asked gently, and her stomach answered in response with a loud growl and she shrank smaller even though the woman smiled warmly. "Hungry? Let's go get some breakfast." she offered her hand and Harper hurried to put her own hand in hers, lest she make her mad by refusing.
On their way to the door, Alex made sure to grab the spellbook and tucked it safely under her arm, pulling Harper along towards the stairs. The smell of bacon and eggs made Harper's mouth water and she wondered who it was for and if they had any extra. Cold cereal was all she could make herself.
"Um, dad?" she said softly as she walked down the spiral staircase, "I need some help." she admitted. He turned from his place at the table, surprised that Alex was openly saying she needed help instead of acting like she had everything under control. Theresa looked over as she sat down some breakfast at the table for them both parents gasped to see Alex leading a smaller Harper down the staircase.
"Where did- what did- Alex!" Her dad exclaimed, looking for an explanation.
"It's Harper." she said softly again, "Here's the spellbook, I bookmarked the page." She shifted the book from under her arm so she could hand it over to her dad.
When he took the book she ushered the tiny girl to the table, sitting her down in her usual spot that had been reserved for Harper since childhood. The book sat open in his hands while he and Theresa stared at Alex and Harper. "Do you want some eggs? She asked in a gentle tone, "Bacon?" The little harper looked at her nervously, but slowly nodded, looking as if she wasn't sure she really could have it. Wide-eyed she watched Alex dish some food onto a plate for her and shakily accepted the fork offered. Alex reached over and snatched up a piece of bacon for herself, taking a bite she chewed on the crunchy food, tussling Harper's hair before turning back to her dad.
Leaning close she murmured to him, "I was trying to find a way to help Harper find happiness, and when I woke up this morning, Harper was a child. I even double checked the spell, I did everything right but I don't understand what's happening."
Finally he looked down at the book, reading the spell to himself and trying to connect this behavior with the Alex they all knew. A mug crashed to the ground which caused Harper to flinch and drop her fork with a small clatter onto her plate. When she looked, Harper was staring down at her hands silently waiting and Alex shot Justin a look, "What was that for?" she tsked at him before turning around to try to calm Harper. "Hey, It's okay." she soothed, "It was just a mug Justin accidentally dropped." she brushed her bangs back again, "Ok?" she smiled, but scrunched her nose when the hair fell right back into Harper's face. "Hmm, I'll be right back." she assured the little girl before she turned and rushed back up the stairs to grab some things from her vanity.
"That- that is Alex right?" Justin stammered, "And she's taking care of a child right? I'm not dreaming?" Theresa leveled him with a look and pointed down to the mess he had to clean up. She bustled past him and grabbed the milk from the fridge, "Yes, it is." she paused, "I think." she sighed, but smiled when she brought the jug to the table and poured a small glass for Harper. "Here Honey." she set it next to the plate within reach and gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze like she used to when they were just kids.
Alex slipped back into the room right as Theresa sat down. Immediately she returned to Harper's side and tapped her chin, "Can you lift your head for me kiddo?" she smiled and shook the hairbrush in her fingertips, "Let's do something so your hair doesn't get stuck in your breakfast, huh?" Harper straightened her head, but still didn't look, refusing to make eye contact. She bit back a sigh, but stepped behind the chair and gingerly began to brush out Harper's thick, pin straight hair.
Theresa couldn't help but stare now as Alex deftly did Harper's hair- twisting into a cute style with butterfly clips and twin ponytails, a ponytail between her teeth as she worked with intent. For the first time, probably ever, she could see a hint of herself in her only daughter. The picture in front of her brought her back to doing this very thing for both girls before school when they were young. Her eyes stung and she held back proud tears, who knew Alex could be- dare she even think the word- motherly? She watched them fondly, smiling at the pair.
"There we go." Alex hummed happily, proud of her quick work. "Want to see?" she leaned over and asked, but was met with a slight shake of her head, Harper's eyes still down, as if she was waiting for the other shoe to drop after Justin broke the mug. "Ok." she decided not to push it, wondering if this was what Harper was like at home when they were little. She never seemed like it to Alex, but maybe she was just really good at putting up a front in public, even as a Kindergartener.
Alex slipped into her chair next to Harper and looked up at her silent family, "What?" she asked with a mouthful of bacon. Theresa blinked, the 'spell' broken, there was her messy daughter. "Don't chew with food in your mouth." she admonished with a sigh, but Alex's eyes had turned towards Justin who was scrutinizing the little Harper. Could that be why she was she was shrunk so small right now? She wasn't sure but she returned his look with a protective glare. "Justin- I think you have a mess to clean up." she said icily, pointing to the floor by him. The look she fixed him with reminded him that this little mortal Harper didn't know magic, and Jerry gave the same deliberate look between him and the shattered mug.
"Do you want a little more?" The way she spoke to Harper was vastly different than the way she had just spoken to Justin and Harper noticed. With a shy nod she began to eat some more small bites and was rewarded with a kind smile when she glanced up.
Seeing the little redhead finally starting to work on her breakfast she turned back to her dad. "So? Any ideas? She can't stay this way- we need to turn her back." she spoke softly, but Harper caught a few words. 'Can't stay' and 'back' rung in her ears and she couldn't help but immediately assume it meant this nice lady didn't want her here either.
She froze before her head shot up, and she looked at the lady who just did her hair so nicely. She felt like she was shaking as she looked at the people at the table in horror. Whens he woke up she had determined that her parents thought she was too naughty and finally sent her away, but what would happen if they didn't want her either? What exactly happened to bad little girls who nobody wanted? Her lip wobbled and she tried to blink back tears as her breathing sped up. Not knowing where she could even go, she abruptly pushed herself back, away from the concerned brown eyes that had turned back to her. Her chair thudden and she flinched, knowing they wouldn't be happy with her for knocking over their furniture she turned and sped towards the only place she knew so far in this place - the fuzzy pink room. With quick pattering steps she ran, throwing herself under the bed when she finally arrived, hiding from the call of "Harper!" and footsteps that followed her.
"Harper?" it followed her into the room and she heard the springs creak when she sat on the bed above her. "I'm not going to force you to come out and talk to me." She promised, "I don't know what spooked you so much, but I'll wait right here until you're ready to talk to me." She heard the woman settle in to wait on the bed, and debated what she should do. She resolved to stay under there awhile, and as the time ticked by she started to feel less scared and more nervous for how mad she had made the people. Quietly she crawled back out and peeked at the bed, only to find the woman was intently focussed on a drawing she was working on. Curiosity always got the better of her, and Harper snuck onto the bed and leaned over to see. To her surprise it was a picture of her! She had pigtails and butterfly hair clips. It was so pretty Harper couldn't help but stare.
"Do you like it?" she voice startled her and she looked up nervously, only to see a smile once more. "You can have it if you want." without waiting, she promptly folded and tore the page out of the notebook along the perforations, and slid it into Harper's lap
"So," she spoke again, "I've been thinking, maybe you thought we were going to send you away or something?" she phrased it like a question, "And I want you to know that I would never dream of it. You're stuck with me." she promised, offering a pinky to Harper, "If you'll have me, of course." Harper blinked back tears again, but this time it was from relief, hoping the words were real, and letting the girl twine their pinkies together to make it a promise.
"How about we go back downstairs?" she urged, "I realized you probably don't know anyone's name yet, so we should introduce everyone." The smile was encouraging, and Harper found herself following the woman again, holding her hand as she tiptoed back down the stairs. When they got back to the main level, she promptly hid behind her, peeking out warily.
"So, Harper," she looked down at her and then gestured to the people in order. "These are my parents, Jerry and Theresa and my brothers Justin and Max." The curly haired Max smiled at her goofily, "Hiya Harper!" he cocked his head,"Hey, I know a Harper! That's so cool! We should introduce big Harper to little Harper!" he seemed enthusiastic, and little Harper couldn't help but like him, especially when he seemed so much happier than the other boy.
He was met with sighs, and Justin smacked him upside the head. "He made a gesture and muttered something to Max who looked at him like he didn't make any sense. "Yeah, because that makes so much sense." he laughed, "Can you believe this guy?" he rolled his eyes and plopped down on the couch.
The rest of the week continued in the same manner, Alex treated Harper carefully but she continued to stay silent, nodding for yes and no answers or hesitantly pointing when she had to make a choice. She snuggled into bed with Alex, listening to a short story each night. It all felt like some kind of dream to the Kindergarten Harper. This wasn't anything like her parents had told her it would be. It was warm and safe and she liked it here.
Sunday morning, they were sitting down for breakfast when the door opened suddenly and Harper stared wide-eyed as a man walked in uninvited. She looked around to see what they would do to the intruder. To her surprise, Alex immediately leapt to her feet and rushed forward. "Mason!" she squealed, throwing her arms around his shoulders. With ease he winded his arms around her back and swung her in a circle. "Alex." he cooed, setting her feet back on the ground. "I missed you Brown Eyes." the way he smiled made Harper feel safe, even if it was directed only at Alex. Cupping her face he kissed her repeatedly, and she giggled, "I missed you too." Giving one last kiss he whispered, "I love you." and Harper decided right then that she liked him too. Quietly she snuck up next to them, holding on to Alex's leg, which made her startle in surprise and Mason blinked down at her in confusion. "Who's this little Lady?" he glanced between Alex and Harper before crouching down, "Hi." he smiled toothily, "I'm Mason." he offered his hand, "What's your name?" She studied him intensely and he glanced back up to his girlfriend who mouthed, "Harper." with an embarrassed look on her face, a telltale sign that she had messed something up.
"You love my Mommy?" she narrowed her eyes at him, "Does that make you my Daddy?". It was the first time anyone had heard her speak all week and Alex stared down at her with her jaw dropped. Blinking rapidly she found herself melting, "awwweeee." she cooed and Mason felt his own heart swell at the insinuation. "Yes." he decided after a moment, "Yes it does." his smile returned and he tapped her nose on the last word, "Easily scooping her into his arms as he stood up. "Well, what's on the agenda for today Love?" he asked Alex, feeling oddly at ease with the strange situation.
"Well, we were going to go to the park after breakfast and we've called Professor Crumbs to come visit us this evening to help us figure out, um, that mishap." she answered, choosing her words wisely and reaching up to brush Harper's bangs out of her eyes before doing the same to him.
"I want to play on the swings." Harper whispered, "Can I mommy?" she repeated the word tentatively, testing to see if it really was ok to call her that. Alex beamed at her, "Of course Honey, but you have to finish your breakfast first." she nodded and Harper wiggled, ready to finish quickly. Instead of setting her down, Mason carried her back over to the table and set her back in her chair before stealing Alex's. She rolled her eyes when he pulled her onto his lap since there wasn't an extra open chair. "We can share, right, Love." he teased her.
Alex absent-mindedly ran her fingers through his hair with one hand and reached out to grab some bacon with the other. She offered it to him with a teasing smile, and he smiled sweetly at her before letting her feed him.
It didn't take long for breakfast to finish, and Alex pulled her wand out of her boot. After a couple days of hiding it, Alex decided it really shouldn't matter since big Harper knew and for the foreseeable future was going to be stuck as a child. It would only make things easier if she knew.
"Clean it up, wash it, scrub it down, oh no." With a quick chant and wave of her wand, the breakfast mess was cleaned in a flash. Although Theresa rolled her eyes at her daughter's use of magic for the chore, she still felt proud to see her making sure the mess was clean before their trip to the park. It was more than she might have done in the past. It would seem her daughter was really starting to grow up, having to take care of her best friend. Harper watched in amazement while the dishes floated and scrubbed and settled back in their places.
"Park now?" she hopped up with a toothy grin that was mirrored by Mason. "Right you are pup." He reached over and tickled her side, making her giggle. "Daddy!" she squealed and his grin seemed to widen. Standing up he tickled her some more before swinging her up into his arms again. "Let's go!"
Harper already seemed much more enthusiastic and outgoing, running and playing with the other kids at the park easily. It made Alex smile and she leaned into Mason, who had an arm around her shoulders as they watched her from their spot on the bench, waiting for her to need them. "I love you." she whispered to him and he kissed her temple, whispering right back, "I love you too Brown Eyes."
"I cast a spell." she admitted, "It was supposed to help Harper with finding happiness, but somehow it turned her into a kid." She bit her lip, it was hard admitting her mistake twice, but easier since it was to Mason.
His nose twitched in thought. "Her home life was pretty rough, wasn't it? Maybe she was searching for the happiness of a family? That could explain why she's little again."
"You think so?" she played with his fingers.
"I mean, she did call you mommy." he reminded her, to which Alex responded, "And she called you daddy." turning her head they made eye contact.
"Any child of yours is a child of mine." he assured her. "Even if it is your friend who you accidentally turned into a child." he teased, and she smacked his arm with a fake pout. He leaned in, "I really do mean that though." he whispered into her ear. "I'll do anything to make my mate happy." he kissed her cheek again and Alex blushed at his words. "Your mate?" she asked, her heart beating wildly.
"Yeah." He nuzzled her cheek."My mate." he repeated, "And until she's herself again, that's our pup. Ours."
With an elated smile she repeated him, "Ours." She quite liked the sound of it.
"Harper!" she called out, glancing at Mason's wristwatch that was on the hand she was playing with. "Time to eat!" With a squeal, Harper went down the slide one last time before running full speed over to them. "Yay! Lunch time!" she cheered and Alex chuckled. " The pseudo family walked on the grass and Mason plopped down, on the ground, laying back with his hands behind his head. Glancing around, Alex checked for watching eyes. When she saw it was clear she pulled her wand. "Satisfy my empty belly, make me a picnic lunch complete with peanut butter and jelly!" A red and white checkered picnic blanket appeared beneath Mason with a wicker basket sitting nicely next to him.
"Woah!" Harper exclaimed, plopping down next to it and peeking inside to find the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches like Alex had said. The trio munched and relaxed on the blanket for awhile, Harper actually fell asleep curled up between her pseudo parents.
When it was time to go, he once again scooped her up into his arms as Alex reversed her spell, effectively cleaning up the picnic mess. Lazily they walked, taking the long route back to the apartment. Harper was still napping so they dropped her off in Alex's bedroom, where the pair decided they too deserved a nap and they sandwiched the sleeping Harper between them.
A couple hours later, Alex snuck downstairs to help get some supper ready. Theresa had raised an eyebrow, but willingly worked alongside her daughter to prepare the pasta she had asked to make earlier. She was quite surprised that she could sit back through most of the work, sipping a glass of wine while Alex worked diligently to make sure she didn't burn anything. It was quick and easy, so once it was set on the table she quickly hopped back up the stairs and peeked her head into her room to see Mason and Harper both snoring softly. "Mason, Honey." he stirred at her voice, "Yes dear?" she smiled at his sleepy voice. "Get the pup up. It's time for dinner and you both need to wash your hands."
If he wasn't awake before, he sure was now, and beamed at Alex, pleased she had also called Harper their pup. As though it was practiced, he woke up Harper and they met the rest of the Russo clan downstairs with clean hands. Two extra chairs had been magicked up earlier to match the rest so they would have space for him and their guest to sit.
In the middle of eating, Professor Crumbs suddenly flashed into the apartment with more smoke than was customary, causing the family to cough and wave their hands to dispel the smoke. "Professor!" Justin greeting, fighting back another cough, "Good to see you!"
"Justin." the Professor smiled and nodded at him. "So, I looked into the spell you sent me." he said as he took a seat at the table, immediately dishing up some spaghetti to the empty plate. With a side eye he examined Harper before dropping a bombshell on them, looking right into Alex's eyes as he spoke
"And I'm sorry to say all of the sources I've found say that the effects of this spell are permanent."