(no subject)
Fandom: Fairly Oddparents
Canon or AU: AU
Fic: ???
A/N: Man, this needs a title. I'm still obsessed with the idea of this universe. I also really want to do something with A New Wish, of which I have two episodes left.
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Blonda panicked when she brought Big Daddy and the others to combat Asmodeus and Ozymandias. If she had been thinking straight, she might have reconsidered. An overpowered evil fairy who could defeat the Council and Jorgen von Strangle was not to be trifled with. However, Big Daddy was the strongest fairy Blonda knew. She hadn’t realized that he’d also make a valuable pawn to ensure Wanda’s obedience.
Worse yet, it’d been a temporary reprieve when Cosmo escaped with Wanda. As soon as they had vanished, Asmodeus rounded on the remaining fairies and grinned wickedly.
“You’ll suffice for now,” he sneered at Blonda. “We’ll see how much she wants to stay with Cosmo when she realizes you’re her substitute.”
Blonda blanched. Asmodeus and Ozymandias had foregone molesting her in favor of hurting Wanda. They had almost killed her. Blonda’s hands shook, and she pressed a hand to her mouth to suppress a whimper. She was the more successful fairy. That was a double-edged sword.
“You’re not touching a hair on her head, either,” Big Daddy snapped, floating defensively before Blonda. Asmodeus scoffed, gesturing with his index finger with his right hand and then pointing Wanda’s stolen wand with his left. Big Daddy and his crew crashed to the floor, frozen like statues. Only their eyes and chests moved. Big Daddy’s look promised vengeance and lots of it, but Blonda couldn’t take his fury seriously when she realized how easily Asmodeus had overcome his potential attackers. She couldn’t conceal her fear anymore.
“When you’re done with this one,” Asmodeus said as Ozymandias grabbed Blonda by her hair, “and once Wanda has returned, kill her. Wanda has to realize there are consequences for losing my heirs. She’s been careless; I’ve allowed her too much freedom.”
“I don’t think that’s it,” Blonda gasped. She’d seen the defeated look in her sister’s eyes. It terrified her; Wanda was always the stronger of them. Wanda looked like she wanted to capitulate to despair. Simply giving in seemed easier for Wanda than to continue on. Asmodeus had broken Wanda’s spirit.
And he was about to kill Blonda. Maybe Blonda ought to be far more concerned with her fate than what befell Wanda. Yes, there were fates worse than death, but Blonda would rather be alive to discover them.
Then again, she could have just asked Wanda.
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Asmodeus knew exactly where Wanda was. It wasn’t like Fairy World had troubled to increase its security. Then again, it couldn’t have since there had been such little time since Asmodeus had overthrown its rulers. Asmodeus scoffed. It’d been like child’s play.
Maybe too easy. They hadn’t put up much of a fight. Jorgen, in particular, had been laughably easy. Why would a male fairy who prided himself on his muscles and strength raise almost no defense against Asmodeus’s minions? At first, Asmodeus had assumed that the Seelie Court had finally realized the Unseelie Court’s supremacy, but that smacked of hubris. Asmodeus growled; they might have played him for a fool. He should have left Ozy to guard them instead of a nameless minion. Dark Spirit, the one who had been palling around with Lorenzo.
He’d concern himself with that problem later. For now, his libido and ego demanded he recapture Wanda and finish punishing her for losing their offspring. His offspring. As soon as Asmodeus encountered her son with Cosmo, he’d kill him and throw his body in her face. That was what she’d get for disobeying Asmodeus and thinking she could escape with her life.
She was his property and should act accordingly.
Since Asmodeus figured that Timmy and Poof were with their godparents/parents, catching two birds with one net should be easy. Therefore, Asmodeus invited Lorenzo along. Lorenzo could distract Timmy, Cosmo, and Poof while Asmodeus took back his concubine. Asmodeus wasn’t sure about Lorenzo’s ability to distract Poof; he might have inherited his mother’s intelligence. However, Cosmo and Timmy seemed to share a brain cell. Distracting them should be relatively straightforward.
He arrived at Fairy World’s hospital and instantly returned to Anti-Fairy World. He’d barely had a chance to see the building before the magic propelled him elsewhere. Asmodeus’s jaw dropped. The magical ward had been the most powerful he’d encountered in Fairy World thus far. It was both ancient and highly potent. Someone didn’t want him near Wanda or her family, and they weren’t shy about it.
Asmodeus gritted his teeth. He had the unsettling sensation that someone was watching him, yet when he turned around, no one was there. Then again, this was Anti-Fairy World. They could have turned invisible to avoid his notice. Though some anti-fairies had hastened to his banners, others had been more reluctant.
For example, he couldn’t get Anti-Cosmo or Anti-Wanda anywhere near his lair. Asmodeus suspected Anti-Wanda had told her husband as much of the abuse as she knew, which had automatically rendered Anti-Cosmo and Anti-Wanda his enemies. That was to be expected.
“It’s keyed to my magic, I assume,” Asmodeus snarled, rounding on Lorenzo. “Use your wand and bring us back to the hospital.”
He left no room for arguments. Minions who didn’t immediately obey orders didn’t live long enough to regret it a second time. Lorenzo nodded; he’d seen Asmodeus abusing Wanda and knew what the Unseelie King was capable of. Lorenzo brought them back to Fairy World’s hospital with another wand squeeze.
They started to bounce back, but Lorenzo stabilized them. Asmodeus grinned, feeling briefly fond of the pedophile anti-fairy. The older fairy gestured for Lorenzo to follow him inside the hospital; even as they walked through the doors, Asmodeus felt those invisible eyes upon him. He hoped whoever it was wasn’t foolish enough to think they could keep him from his prize.
The atmosphere was tense as Lorenzo conjured a hospital directory. Wanda didn’t appear on the map. Asmodeus growled, yanking the wand back from him. Lorenzo stayed his hand before Asmodeus could order the directory to produce her.
“Your magic propelled us toward Anti-Fairy World,” Lorenzo reminded him. “We might need to be a little more cautious.”
He pulled a face. “I like it about as much as you do. I want to put that bitch in her place, and I especially want to hurt Timmy and Wanda at once.”
Asmodeus grimaced. The little shit was right. Also, the chances were good that they’d placed Wanda somewhere off the directory to prevent anyone from stumbling upon her. Unfortunately for this nameless person, Asmodeus could sense Wanda well enough to pinpoint her if he focused on it. He just couldn’t poof to her location without alerting someone.
Grabbing a pen off the lobby counter (no one was waiting to greet them, not that Asmodeus had expected it), Asmodeus modified the directory to indicate where he thought Wanda was. Lorenzo nodded, raised the wand, and brought them to the lab. They appeared before the doors, which didn’t respond to pushing or a wand blast.
Asmodeus growled, baring his teeth. Wanda was so close that he could feel her terror and heart fluttering. He did not like being thwarted, especially when he was so close.
“Show the bitch what Ozy is doing to Blonda,” Asmodeus snarled at Lorenzo. “Maybe she’ll change her tune when she realizes the danger she’s put her family in.”
Lorenzo snorted, raising his wand and projecting the image into the lab.
Asmodeus smiled cruelly. “Now, we sit and wait. It shouldn’t be long.”
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Cosmo blanched when he saw what Ozymandias was doing to Blonda. Timmy, who had fallen asleep with Poof in his arms, jerked awake at Blonda’s hysterical sobs. Poof, too, awoke, and Cosmo tried to banish the image but couldn’t. Poof’s lower lip quivered, and Timmy hugged his younger brother tighter.
Wanda was still unconscious and trembling despite the large, thick blanket Cosmo had placed upon her. The chill went deeper than the physical; Wanda was spiritually frozen, too. Fuck. He hoped she didn’t hear Blonda’s screams. He conjured earplugs for Wanda, and her eyes snapped open.
“You’re awake!” Cosmo said, trying to pretend this was normal and that he couldn’t hear Blonda’s tortured cries. Wanda reached for his wand, and Cosmo started to hand it over before thinking better of it. It might’ve been the first time in a while that he reconsidered his decisions.
Wanda yanked the wand out of his hand, and Timmy, Cosmo, and Poof jumped on her. They reappeared before the lab’s doors; Wanda was pale and gasping. She hadn’t recovered from her previous ordeal, and it was taking its toll on her.
“Oh, look, the gang’s all here,” Asmodeus said. Lorenzo leered down at Timmy, and Cosmo growled, baring his teeth and trying to protect everyone simultaneously. Asmodeus wanted Poof dead, and Lorenzo and Asmodeus wanted to molest Timmy and Wanda. Cosmo swallowed bile as he recalled the condition in which he’d found Wanda earlier tonight.
Cold sweat trickled down her forehead, and she whimpered, grabbing Cosmo’s arm. She was shaking so badly that her teeth chattered, and Cosmo whimpered sympathetically. With the Bond open between them, he could feel her mind overrun with fear. There was no room for anything logical, just sheer unadulterated terror.
Abraxas appeared behind them, and Cosmo heaved a relieved sigh that at least it wasn’t one against two. The odds were a little more even now, especially since Lorenzo wasn’t much of a threat magically. Still, Asmodeus would be a threat on his own, and it didn’t help that Timmy and Wanda were deadweight.
There was Poof, though Cosmo feared Asmodeus might focus on him and Wanda.
“And the traitor,” Asmodeus said, eyes flashing with hatred and malice. “Fleeing to the Seelie Court so many thousands of years ago.”
Wanda’s skin was cold and clammy against Cosmo’s, and she moaned.
((I can’t go back…I can’t…)) she whispered in Cosmo’s mind.
“Hand over Wanda, and I promise I’ll make Poof’s death relatively painless,” Asmodeus said, flashing his teeth in a feral grin. Timmy and Poof straightened, growling, and Poof held his wand out like one might brandish a gun. Cosmo wondered how much Poof knew about what Wanda was going through and how much he’d guessed. He couldn’t be pleased that Asmodeus had hurt Wanda so badly for so long.
“Not a chance!” Timmy snapped as though he could defend himself.
“I wasn’t talking to you, future boy toy,” Asmodeus sneered. He waved Lorenzo’s wand, and Cosmo saw through a small floating flatscreen TV that Big Daddy and his goons were statues on the floor. They watched as Ozymandias tortured Blonda. Cosmo blanched, especially when Ozymandias conjured an iron dagger and slightly slid it along Blonda’s neck. Wanda’s breathing grew shallower.
“You’re not touching any of them,” Cosmo snapped, brandishing his wand.
“And no one’s hurting my big brother or mom,” Poof snapped. “Not again. Not ever.”
Asmodeus laughed cruelly. “As soon as Ozymandias is done with your aunt, boy, and your mother has finally accepted her place, I’ll kill her twin. Blonda is just a stand-in, after all.”
Wanda felt on the verge of a panic attack. Cosmo wasn’t sure whether she was aware of her surroundings or if she’d slipped into a flashback. He was terrified for her and his family.
“No substitute for the real thing,” Asmodeus added, advancing on them. Poof blasted him back, and Asmodeus’s smile dipped. The Unseelie King began muttering to himself, presumably starting a spell, and Poof, Cosmo, and Abraxas shot spells at him. Asmodeus spun, using his cape to fend off the spells along with Lorenzo’s wand. Cosmo’s heart was in his throat; Wanda moaned, and she clung to Cosmo’s arm like a lifeline.
She swallowed hard, and he knew she was trying to get a grip on herself. Cosmo handed her a wand, too, a spare one that he’d been keeping for emergencies. She squeezed it tightly, and her gaze sharpened. She was still trembling, however, and her fear had reached astronomical levels.
“Oh, put the wand down,” Asmodeus scoffed. “You and I know you’re meant to be conquered, ravished, and defiled. Whatever pretensions you had otherwise are just that.”
Wanda’s grip on Cosmo’s arm was unwavering, to the point where she was cutting off blood circulation. However, Cosmo was afraid to draw attention to it and further alarm her. Her apprehension already flooded his mind.
“I told you, bitch,” Asmodeus said, rounding on Wanda. “If you give up without a fight, things will go better for you.”
He pointed his wand at the TV floating above them. Blonda was now bound and gagged to the bed while Ozymandias and several cronies Cosmo didn’t recognize circled her. They were whipping her, and the leather looked coated in something sparkling. Then he glanced at Wanda and saw what little color she’d had fled.
“Her blood is on your hands,” Asmodeus said serenely. “And now your blood is on hers. Fitting, isn’t it?”
The next few seconds happened almost too fast for Cosmo to parse.
Wanda released him, her wand blazed with heat, and she blasted Asmodeus in the face. Asmodeus’s cape must’ve been impervious to attack because he batted the spell away. That didn’t stop her. Instead, she shapeshifted into a lioness and threw herself on top of him. Her claws raked his frame, and her self-control and sanity snapped. Cosmo’s jaw dropped. She was going to kill Asmodeus if she could get away with it.
“I wish you’d--” Timmy started when his voice became muffled. Cosmo and Poof, preoccupied with Wanda, had failed to notice Lorenzo grabbing Timmy. Despite Asmodeus’s predicament, the Unseelie King laughed, squeezing his wand with Lorenzo. The four disappeared, and Cosmo spun, wondering why Abraxas hadn’t stepped in to help. Then he realized Abraxas wasn’t floating.
Instead, the older fairy was lying facedown on the floor. Cosmo used his wand to turn him over, and for a few seconds, he feared that Abraxas was dead. Then the man heaved a great breath, straightened up, and groaned, massaging his temples. Blood was on his face, and Cosmo and Poof noticed it briefly before holding their wands up to pursue Timmy and Wanda.
“Wait, no! It’s bound to be a trap!” Abraxas protested, far too late to stop them.
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Lorenzo had immobilized Timmy while Asmodeus forced Wanda back into her fairy form and pocketed her wand. Wanda was still snarling and scratching, albeit with less effect. She’d gone crazy, desperate to avoid captivity, and Asmodeus cleared his throat. Wanda froze for a second and followed his gaze. Blonda was spread-eagled on the bed now with multiple broken bones, a head wound, and a man pistoning into her so hard that she could only manage soft moans. Magic was the sole thing keeping Blonda conscious.
“She wouldn’t be in our cross-hairs if you hadn’t left,” Asmodeus said cruelly. “Beg us to stop, and maybe we’ll let Blonda go. If you let this continue, on the other hand…I know Lorenzo wanted to watch you being brutalized as he raped your godson.”
Wanda’s eyes and hair blazed with hatred.
“You’ll have to kill me before you touch a hair on Timmy’s head,” she snapped.
“I don’t see that happening, somehow,” Asmodeus scoffed, squeezing his wand. He flung Blonda off the bed and into the wall and then bound Wanda in her place. Timmy lurched forward, desperate to keep Wanda from suffering another horrific episode, when Lorenzo placed Timmy in the same straits. It was a king-sized bed, easily large enough for them to work on their victims side by side.
Wanda snarled, still fighting like a demon against her restraints. Her breathing was shallow, and panic narrowed her pupils. The terror radiated off her, and Asmodeus soaked it in. Timmy, meanwhile, was torn between concern for himself and for Wanda, who was clearly losing her mind.
His arms were bound behind his back, and his legs were spread for easy access. Timmy shook uncontrollably, glancing from Wanda to Asmodeus to Lorenzo and back. His lower lip quivered.
“Wanda…” he whispered. “It’s gonna be okay. Cosmo’s going to show up--”
Wanda’s laugh was slightly hysterical. “You’re assuming that Asmodeus will make the same mistake twice. He won’t, hon.”
Asmodeus sneered as he and Lorenzo disrobed. Both were fully erect, and Wanda strained further, slicing her wrists open. Asmodeus scoffed and straddled her before punching her hard enough in the stomach that she couldn’t breathe. Doubled over, she stared at him with angry tears in her eyes.
“That’s for losing my heir, bitch,” he snapped. He shoved a gag in her mouth and then paralyzed her. “Now you get to deal with the consequences.”
Asmodeus smiled cruelly. “Lorenzo, the brat is all yours.”
Wanda screamed behind the gag, trying to fight off the paralysis, and Asmodeus relished her terror and loathing. He knew she was begging him not to hurt Timmy, but it was far too late for that. Lorenzo had planned this for a long time, and Asmodeus wasn’t about to deprive him of something that would break Timmy’s spirit and Wanda’s. Discovering Wanda still had a little fight left in her was surprising, but that would soon be remedied. Knowing she could not protect herself or her family should drain what little remained.
Tears slid down Timmy’s cheeks, and he strained to reach Wanda.
“Mom…” he murmured, prompting Asmodeus and Lorenzo to raise their eyebrows. That was an exciting turn of events. Asmodeus grinned. This should hurt all the more now, then. Lorenzo had finished prepping himself and Timmy and then slammed his hips into Timmy’s so hard that Timmy screamed in agony.
Wanda continued to struggle, and a familiar green glow surrounded her. She was channeling Cosmo’s magic in addition to her own. The rope strands threatened to snap; she needed a distraction.
Asmodeus responded by flinging her legs up and then penetrating her hard and fast. She was dry, so he added magical lube to avoid hurting himself as he violated her. Wanda shuddered, her fight arrested as the full implications dawned on her. Timmy screamed, likewise struggling to no avail, and Asmodeus punched Wanda in the head hard enough to give her a concussion. That should deter her from fighting her restraints or calling out to Cosmo.
Oh, fuck. This night was going to be fun. He watched the hope fade in Wanda’s eyes as self-loathing replaced it. Laughing, Asmodeus continued his assault. While he raped her, he also beat her, giving her black eyes and bruises and adding brass knuckles to break bones and tear her skin. Beating her while raping her was exciting, and if Lorenzo weren’t so damn interested in Timmy, he would’ve invited the anti-fairy to join in on humiliating Wanda.
Lorenzo was helping, though, because he’d used his wand to force Wanda to stare at Timmy and know she couldn’t help him. Wanda could barely breathe from the onslaught, and Asmodeus snapped his fingers only for Ozymandias to compel her to suck him off after removing the gag. The geas was gone, but no matter. He could reinstate it. Meanwhile, terror would suffice as a motivator.
“And, to think, you could have avoided all of this,” Asmodeus said. He shook his head ruefully. “If you hadn’t been so determined to stay with your family. Fuck, you’re so tight. I love it.”
Wanda wanted to spit in his face, but she was otherwise occupied. Meanwhile, Timmy’s screams and Lorenzo’s satisfied groans and grunts added to the symphony of abuse. Wanda’s gaze went glassy, and Lorenzo leaned over to slap her.
“This is your fault,” Lorenzo said. “Fuck, your godson is a good lay. I think I could do this all night.”
He grinned cruelly. “What do you think, Asmodeus? Shall we?”
Asmodeus groaned, plunging himself as far as possible inside of her and filling her with his seed. Wanda flinched as he pulled out and then dripped his semen on her stomach. He could tell she was on the verge of freaking out, and he wanted to exacerbate it.
Asmodeus had no interest in children, especially human children, but he might have to make an exception to terrorize Wanda further.
As Lorenzo satisfied himself by rutting Timmy, Asmodeus yanked on Timmy’s genitalia until the boy screamed and Wanda shuddered.
“You. Bitch. This is all on you,” Asmodeus said, yanking Timmy again. Timmy howled, and Asmodeus and Lorenzo laughed.
Lorenzo pulled out and sprayed his semen on Timmy’s stomach, hair, and face. The eleven-year-old boy sputtered, shaking, and Wanda strained to reach him, only for Ozy to slam his balls in her face. Tears unbidden slid down her cheeks.
“Don’t worry, slut,” Asmodeus reassured Wanda. “The night is still young. And we have miles to go before we sleep.”
Wanda averted her gaze, but Asmodeus had seen enough. Self-loathing competed with despair. Asmodeus laughed cruelly. Tonight was going to be most enjoyable.
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Cosmo and Poof arrived in Dimmsdale but not near the hotel. Any attempt to poof closer to it was rebuffed. Cosmo could feel Wanda’s emotions and experience what she was going through. He knew Timmy was also hurt and had difficulty keeping that knowledge from Poof. Poof would go apoplectic if he knew his mother and godbrother were being hurt simultaneously and near each other to amplify Wanda’s misery. Hell, Cosmo was about there now. He kept poofing as close as possible; he’d walk or fly the remaining distance if he had to, but he wouldn’t leave his family in peril.
He was so angry that he was shaking with it. He was also sick as he felt Asmodeus attacking Wanda while Cosmo couldn’t stop it or protect her. If he focused, he could see what was happening with Timmy, but it was best not to. Otherwise, he’d be so angry that he’d keep poofing to the hotel helplessly.
Once they reached the town’s outskirts, flying as birds was the only way to proceed. The closer they came to the hotel, the worse Cosmo felt. He had to stop several times to vomit. Poof looked concerned.
“Are Mom and Timmy okay?” he asked, and Cosmo shook his head. He didn’t trust himself to speak without throwing up again.
They finally reached the hotel and flew up to the penthouse window. Amazingly, though magic prevented them from directly transporting themselves there, nothing prohibited them from traveling the old-fashioned way. It took a minute for Cosmo’s brain to properly process what he saw. The fragments were there but refused to realign into a coherent picture.
Poof, who had always been quicker on the uptake, snarled and burst through the windows. Cosmo followed quickly, though he was briefly more afraid for Poof putting himself in harm’s way than cognizant of the situation.
Wanda and Timmy were alone temporarily. Using the blood-stained sheet, Wanda had attempted to cover Timmy; the comforter cloaked her. Timmy huddled against his godmother and sobbed hysterically while Wanda tried to console him despite her abject misery. Cosmo might’ve been mistaken, but he thought Wanda was apologizing repeatedly to Timmy as though this were somehow her doing.
Poof shook his rattle so hard that it sounded like maracas. Wanda and Timmy healed and turned to face Cosmo and Poof. Poof threw himself at Timmy, and Cosmo went to do the same to Wanda, but an odd, lost look in her eyes stopped him. She wasn’t crying, but Cosmo didn’t think this was much better.
“Mom?” Poof asked, turning to look at Wanda. Wanda shook her head, seized Cosmo’s wand, and squeezed it.
“What are you-“
He didn’t get a chance to finish before he, Poof, and Timmy returned to Fairy World. Poof, outraged, shook his rattle, but it drooped. Somehow, Wanda had banned them from returning.
“We need to go back for her!” Poof cried, shaking his rattle again. Nothing happened. He glared at the rattle. “I can’t even poof to Earth!”
”Mom-I mean, Wanda,” Timmy flushed, swallowing hard. “She told me she didn’t want me to suffer that again. This must’ve been what she meant.”
He dissolved into sobs, and Cosmo and Poof hugged him. Wanda’s feelings were less intense in Fairy World, but they’d plunged further into darkness. Cosmo wished she hadn’t taken his wand. He distrusted her intentions with it.
“Why can’t we go back to Earth?” Poof snapped, asking no one in particular.
Asmodeus’s disembodied voice echoed in Cosmo and Wanda’s house.
”I knew she’d sacrifice herself for you,” Asmodeus said gleefully. “She thought her best chance was to protect her godson and family. What a stupid bitch.”
Cosmo, Timmy, and Poof growled. Cosmo’s stomach somersaulted.
“Don’t worry,” Asmodeus said smugly. “The night is still young. I have many more tortures planned for your beloved slut. Ta-ta for now.”
Poof lunged at where the voice derived from but encountered nothing. His lower lip quivered, and he bit it. Cosmo couldn’t tell whether Poof was more enraged or morose. As for himself, Cosmo threw up bile. He’d seen the state Wanda had been in when they’d arrived. Any more time like that, and Wanda wouldn’t stay sane much longer.
He tried valiantly not to sob hysterically but lost the battle quickly. He wanted to be angry like Poof was, but Wanda’s despondency beat at him. If Asmodeus hadn’t returned to her, then she would have tried to kill herself. Cosmo couldn’t bear either thought.
“We have to get to her!” Poof snapped. “I’m not giving up!”
Cosmo wished Wanda hadn’t already done so.
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Once Asmodeus left for the night, Wanda curled into a ball and stared at the ceiling. She should have known her rescue was too good to be true and that there would be repercussions for it. She couldn’t get Timmy’s screams out of her mind, and that, more than her own abuse, tormented her. She’d failed her godson; she was an awful godmother, like Asmodeus had told her. Everything on her body hurt, but nothing hurt more than her heart.
If Asmodeus hadn’t retrieved and taken the wand with him, she would’ve considered something drastic. It wouldn’t fix what had happened, but it might protect Timmy from further abuse. Lorenzo wouldn’t have access to him if Asmodeus couldn’t use Timmy to hurt her. Without her in the picture, Asmodeus had no reason to attack Poof or Cosmo because they would be meaningless unless he sought vengeance.
((Wanda!))
She jumped, yelping when it aggravated her injuries. Her mouth went dry, and her jaw dropped.
((Cosmo?)) she exclaimed. She thought when she’d banished her family from the hotel that it had prohibited telepathy, too. Her stomach roiled. Cosmo had felt her emotions, too, then. She hadn’t meant for that to happen. Yet when she tried to erect a mental barrier between the two, she couldn’t manage it. She wasn’t sure whether she was too drained or desperate to hear from him.
((Baby, I’m sorry! I’m so sorry!)) Cosmo wailed.
((Is Timmy okay?)) she asked sharply and then winced at her stupid question. ((I mean, of course he’s not okay. How is he?))
((He’s upset with you. So are Poof and I.)) Cosmo said. ((You sent us away!))
((It was for your own good, pudding,)) she said. ((You’ll be safer in Fairy World and away from the Unseelie Court.))
((You’re not!)) Cosmo snapped. ((You’re in worse danger than ever! Baby, let us come for you. Please. You need us, and we need you.))
Wanda scoffed. ((You don’t need me.))
The lie rang false through their link, and she hissed. Tears slipped down her cheeks, and she reached for the wand she no longer possessed. She couldn’t reverse the banishment without it and craved Cosmo more than ever. Cosmo and her family at her side. She wasn’t bound to the hotel anymore; the only thing keeping her here was her own fear.
((I need you! We need you!)) Cosmo cried.
She tried to stand and fell off the bed in a heap. Her thoughts raced, desperate for a loophole in the banishing charm she’d erected.
Cosmo, Poof, and Blonda couldn’t reach her. Big Daddy was in stasis. There had to be someone else she could count on.
Then she realized who she might have to rely on and groaned, facepalming.
((You’re not going to like this, but I may have a way out,)) she warned.
((A way out of what? A way to return here?)) he asked, and his excitement made her feel worse for what was to come.
((I prohibited you and Poof from getting here,)) she said. ((Big Daddy and Blonda are compromised, along with Jorgen and the Council. But…Juandissimo isn’t. Tootie might not have the magical know-how or power to break through the banishment charm, but Juandissimo would. I…I know you don’t want to ask him for a favor…))
She faltered, wondering whether Cosmo’s pride would cause him to reject the solution outright.
((I’ll do it!)) he said without hesitation. Wanda’s heart leaped, and she hated herself for it. She belonged here. After all, she’d let Timmy fall in harm’s way. She’d failed her godson.
((You didn’t fail anyone!)) Cosmo retorted. ((We’ll get you! I promise! I love you! Don’t forget it!))
((I love you too,)) she whispered. ((Oh, Cosmo, I’m so sorry.))
((We’ll be right there!)) he said. He sent her affection, though it was diluted with space. ((I love you, I love you, I love you!))
Wanda burst into sobs. ((I love you, too, sugar. I’m sorry I sent you away.))
Cosmo didn’t respond, but he might’ve gotten distracted. She sighed, wondering whether returning to the bed was worth the effort. In the end, she decided against it. She was too weak to move and too wretched to consider it at length.
Instead, she lay on the floor and stared at the ceiling. She wanted Cosmo with her so badly that she hated herself for it.
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Cosmo arrived as Juandissimo was in the middle of entertaining guests at a bar. He knew he probably shouldn’t have dragged Timmy and Poof along, but he was desperate, too. Wanda’s despondency beat at him relentlessly, and it was impossible to think about anything but her. Juandissimo’s eyes narrowed; he’d been crooning an old love song from the 1940s, and Cosmo’s interruption was unwelcome.
Cosmo didn’t care about that either. Instead, he grabbed Juandissimo by the shirt and hauled him to the house. Juandissimo growled, purple eyes narrowing.
“What is the meaning of this?” he demanded.
“Wanda’s in trouble; she created a ward to keep me and Poof from getting to her, Big Daddy and Blonda got captured, Jorgen and the Council were defeated, and---” Cosmo didn’t get a chance to finish before Juandissimo grabbed his lips to silence him. Cosmo whimpered. Every second they wasted was another one Wanda spent in agony. Delays were unacceptable.
“Wanda is with Asmodeus?” Juandissimo asked Timmy and Poof. They nodded. Poof floated protectively in front of Timmy, who looked like he’d been run over by a semi. Cosmo drifted lower to hug Timmy, who latched onto him with big blue eyes. Timmy’s lower lip quivered, and he pressed his face against Cosmo’s chest. His body was wracked with sobs.
“What has happened?” Juandissimo demanded.
Cosmo swallowed hard, trying to figure out how to describe it while pushing away Wanda’s misery. He knew she was sobbing in a ball on the floor, and it was almost impossible to focus on anything else. The yearning to return was overwhelming. He couldn’t leave her in that state.
“She…” Cosmo swallowed hard. “You have to help. You have to go to the hotel--we can’t. She blocked our magic.”
“What. Has. Happened?” Juandissimo growled.
“Never mind what happened!” Timmy snapped. “It’s what will happen if we don’t get back to her!”
Tears welled in his eyes, and Poof hugged Timmy while sparing a glare at Juandissimo for stalling.
“Mom’s in danger,” Poof said, glowering at Juandissimo. “If you love her as much as you claim you do, you’ll help us. But if you love her as much as she thinks you do, then you’ll go back to that stupid club and ignore us.
“Because she told me you only love yourself.”
Juandissimo puffed out his chest like a vain peacock and growled. He glared at the trio, raised his wand, and transported them to Dimmsdale. As before, they needed to fly the rest of the way before they reached the penthouse window. The glass remained shattered, and they pushed through the remnants to enter the suite.
Wanda was in bad shape. Asmodeus must have visited her after she’d banished them; her eyes were black and blue, she was covered in bruises and lacerations, to say nothing of whip marks, and she was bleeding profusely in multiple areas. It looked like one of the Unseelie fairies had yanked out chunks of her hair, and claw marks raked her back. She shuddered uncontrollably, and Cosmo raced to check her pulse. She lifted her head at their approach.
“Hi,” she said weakly.
Juandissimo snarled, shoving Cosmo aside. “He let this happen to you.”
“I forced him away,” Wanda said faintly. “It’s not his fault, ‘dissimo.”
Cosmo wanted to be angry at the nickname but was far too concerned about Wanda. Her skin was cold and clammy, and he grabbed her hand to intertwine their fingers. Wanda’s breathing was also labored, and Cosmo wasn’t sure if the marks on her came from regular weapons or iron implements. Her gaze glazed over.
Juandissimo immediately healed her, but her gaze didn’t focus again. Instead, she whimpered even after he restored her clothes. Cosmo scooped her up into his arms, and she glanced at him. She rested her head on his shoulder; gods, she was so cold.
“Hey,” Cosmo said gently. He smoothed back her bangs. “I love you.”
“I love you, too,” she whispered, shutting her eyes. “Thank you. All of you.”
He wasn’t surprised when she went limp, though he was worried.
“Shit!” Timmy yelped, and Cosmo turned to see where his godson was looking. Asmodeus, Ozymandias, Lorenzo, and other Unseelie fairies stood in the doorway. Cosmo’s heart leaped into his throat.
“Leaving so soon?” Asmodeus sneered. “The party’s just getting started, like I said.”
He leered at Wanda, and Cosmo clutched her tighter. Juandissimo moved protectively before Cosmo and Wanda with his wand out.
“Though I must say, Juandissimo is a surprise,” Asmodeus said. He snorted. “I didn’t think the prat cared enough about anyone else to stick his neck out, especially for that slut.”
“Do not call her that!” Juandissimo snarled. “She is my Wandita, and she is perfect!”
Asmodeus barked a laugh. “She hasn’t been punished nearly enough for what she’s done. But don’t worry, Wandita. You’ll get what’s coming to you.”
Wanda moaned, and Cosmo kissed her cheek. His heart ached thinking about how badly she had wanted to hurt herself earlier. He wished he could press her into himself so they could become one and Wanda would be safe from Asmodeus and his Court.
Asmodeus laughed at Cosmo’s expression.
“You think you love her,” Asmodeus scoffed. “You’re too stupid to see the only thing she’s good for.”
“No!” Cosmo burst out. “She’s not! Leave her alone! Leave my family alone! I know I love her.”
Wanda’s lips twitched in a weak smile, and she reached for Cosmo’s wand. Cosmo handed it over without a second thought and ignored Asmodeus’s taunting.
“Oh, and what did you intend to do?” Asmodeus sneered. “You can’t defeat me.”
Wanda drew a deep, bracing breath and straightened in Cosmo’s arms. Cosmo felt her leeching some of his magic, which was fine as long as she knew what she was doing. Besides, he sensed she was out of tune with her magic.
That might've been fine if it had just been the green aura. However, when dark magic entered the fray, he started to worry. She hadn’t used dark magic in a long time, so long that he’d almost forgotten she could. Asmodeus’s abuse must’ve rendered it more accessible.
A tight band wrapped around Cosmo’s chest, and he glanced from Wanda to Asmodeus and back. The other goons weren’t smiling anymore; all but Lorenzo looked confused. Lorenzo continued leering at Wanda and Timmy.
“Wanda, what are you doing?” Cosmo said, his voice shaking.
“Don’t worry. I won’t kill him,” she promised. Cosmo shuddered. He didn’t like where she was going with this.
“Wandita, I do not think whatever you are doing is wise,” Juandissimo began.
“Shut up,” she snapped. The dark magic entwined with her wand and shot out at Asmodeus. Ozymandias moved to intercept it, and the spell boomeranged around to strike Asmodeus in the back of the head. A tense silence followed. Asmodeus crashed to the floor, and the Unseelie fairies immediately brandished stolen wands or started chanting spells.
“Get up,” Wanda commanded Asmodeus, who rose to his feet. Everyone froze.
“Bang your head into the wall five times,” she ordered, and Asmodeus rushed to do her bidding. She smiled cruelly. “Don’t like being under a compulsion, do you, Asmodeus?”
Cosmo’s heart sank. “Wanda, please, I don’t know what you’re doing, but you need to stop.”
She ignored him and smiled when Asmodeus was bleeding.
“Good boy,” she said, smiling at the other Unseelie fairies. “I wouldn’t do anything unwise if I were you. Because there are going to be some changes around here.
“Aren’t there, Asmodeus?” she jeered.
Asmodeus shuddered. “Yes, my queen.”
Cosmo was terrified. He wanted to shake some sense into her but was too afraid to confront her. Instead, he glanced at Timmy, Poof, and Juandissimo. None of them budged. Wanda could be a force to be reckoned with.
Maybe they should just be grateful they were on her good side. Cosmo didn’t know what would happen with her controlling the Unseelie King, especially since he’d made his move on Fairy World, but he doubted anything positive would come of it.
She straightened in his arms but didn’t move away. Instead, her hands shaking, she lifted his hand to her lips to kiss.
((I love you, hon,)) she murmured in his mind. ((And I am going to make them pay.))
He didn’t doubt it but worried about how much might be left after she was through.
-------------------------------
As she’d expected, the Unseelie Court was paralyzed with her controlling Asmodeus like a puppet. Malice and vindictiveness flooded her body. Using Cosmo’s wand to heal herself and leech power from Asmodeus, she strolled over to him. Unlike Asmodeus’s compulsions, which responded to intent and verbal commands, hers reacted to thoughts. Therefore, when she thought he should fall to his knees, he did. His eyes blazed defiance, and she snorted. How good of him to be put on the spot instead of her.
“Wanda…” Cosmo said, and she waved him off. Instead, she pointed her wand tip beneath Asmodeus’s chin.
”I should make you suffer for what you did,” she said. “Make you suffer the way you tormented me.”
She kicked him in the throat and sent him toppling over.
“Death is too good for you,” she spat. She kicked him again, hard, in the trachea, and Asmodeus gasped, choking for breath. His minions, including Ozymandias, watched her warily. While she controlled their leader, they didn’t dare rush her. He was her hostage. For once, she had all the power.
“Too bad I can’t make you miscarry, too,” she said malevolently. Cosmo poofed in front of her, and she pushed him aside. She couldn’t think beyond wanting to hurt Asmodeus as badly as physically possible.
“Where are my sister and father?” Wanda demanded. She curbstomped Asmodeus’s groin with steel boots, and Asmodeus groaned, cupping himself. Wanda sneered.
“Wanda, that’s enough,” Timmy said. He’d gone pale, and he approached her cautiously. She wavered. Hurting Asmodeus was one thing. Harming her godson, on the other hand, was different. She didn’t want to risk Timmy being thrown to the wolves again.
Her heart ached, and she glimpsed Lorenzo. Her resolve stiffened again, mainly because the little shit thought he could nab Timmy again without anyone noticing.
“I don’t know how you’ve survived this long without being killed,” Wanda snapped. “But you’re going to pay, too, for what you did to my godson.”
”Big Daddy’s still a statue,” Asmodeus gasped. “I left Blonda with the other generals.”
The blood drained from Wanda’s face.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Cosmo asked. Wanda’s hands shook, and she stowed her wand before she dropped it. Bile burned the back of her throat, and tears pricked her eyes.
“You gave her to the generals?” Wanda spat. “I bet you didn’t loan them a wand to heal her afterward.”
Asmodeus held his ground, probably more due to the geas than because he wanted to be anywhere near Big Daddy’s enraged daughter. She had the power of life and death over him, and everyone knew it.
“He didn’t say ‘give,’” Timmy protested.
”That’s what he meant, hon,” Wanda said icily. “He ‘donated’ Blonda to them so they could sexually and physically abuse her.”
She shuddered, and Cosmo grabbed her arm. She let him, though she had to resist the strong urge to let him wrap her in his arms. The next question had to be asked, though she dreaded the answer.
“Is she still alive?” Wanda spat, trying to project fury instead of a bone-deep weariness and horror. She felt Poof, Cosmo, Timmy, and Juandissimo staring at her and ignored them.
”I don’t know,” Asmodeus admitted. “She was never as high a priority as you.”
Wanda rounded on Ozymandias and the other flying monkeys.
“One of you will find out, or I swear, I will mutilate your master slowly and painfully. It will take hours,” she spat.
Timmy grabbed her other arm and squeezed. “You’re safe now. You should come back to Fairy World.”
”I’m not safe,” she snapped, though she didn’t pull away from either Cosmo or Timmy. She wanted them beside her, no matter how weak it might make her seem. Inside, she was crumbling. Only glamor concealed how badly her knees were shaking.
Ozymandias used his stolen wand and summoned Blonda. Wanda’s breath caught painfully in her throat, and the glamor couldn’t hide it any longer. She whimpered, falling to her knees with Cosmo and Timmy beside her. If Blonda was still alive, it was almost impossible to tell. Wanda couldn’t see her chest rising and falling, and her color was poor. She reached out to her mentally and came up short.
Blonda had been mutilated almost beyond recognition. Wanda bit the inside of her cheek to keep the sobs at bay, which also failed. She burst into tears and waved her wand to check if Blonda had a pulse. It might still be possible to resuscitate if she didn’t, but it also depended on how far gone Blonda was and for how long. Wanda had no idea how long Blonda had been legally dead.
Unlike humans, brain activity could be restored despite oxygen starvation. That wasn’t the issue. The problem was that it looked like Blonda had bled out after almost all of the bones in her body had been broken and possibly shattered. Wanda could barely breathe for sobs.
”I told you,” Asmodeus said coolly. “I told you I’d kill her once you returned. I never break my promises, slut.”
Cosmo wrapped his arms around Wanda’s stomach and pressed her against his chest. She wanted to wreak havoc on Asmodeus and the Unseelie Court for this, but her need for vengeance was subsumed by her misery and knowledge that Blonda had only suffered because of her. They had targeted her because they wanted Wanda and had “settled” for her twin.
Cosmo might’ve been saying something, but she didn’t hear him. There was a dull roaring in her ears.
“I should do the same to you,” Wanda said, struggling to her feet. Her legs wouldn’t support her weight, and she collapsed into Cosmo’s arms again. One of the generals sneered at her weakness, and Ozymandias cuffed him upside the head. She didn’t like the way Ozy was staring at her, like he was imagining all the depraved things he intended to do to her later. He licked his lips and projected an image at her of her with a dog collar and leash that he yanked on to choke her while he raped her from behind. Wanda shuddered, wondering if Cosmo had seen it, too. With the Bond, hiding darker thoughts and projections wasn’t always possible. Cosmo’s grip tightened, which answered her question.
He kissed her neck, and she tried to calm down. A small part of her wanted to leave and let Cosmo and her family comfort her. They could talk her down from the proverbial bridge.
A more significant part of her wanted to kill Ozy after torturing him. She shook with rage and misery.
“You don’t have the balls,” Asmodeus sneered.
“Wanna bet?” Wanda countered. Cosmo pressed his lips against her neck and rubbed her back. Damn him, he was calming her down. She didn’t want to be peaceful. She wanted to rage and retaliate. Timmy squeezed her hand tighter, and the longing to be with her family and away from this godforsaken hotel nearly consumed her along with grief.
((We should go,)) Cosmo murmured in her mind. Considering how reckless she could be in her fury, it was brave of him. Compared to her mental anguish, he was relatively sedate. Her lower lip quivered, and she bit it hard enough to taste blood.
((Cosmo…)) she whispered in his mind. She couldn’t leave this unanswered, but she also wanted nothing more than to be free of The Lotus Hotel. He held her so tightly that it squeezed the air out of her lungs. In response, she placed her hand atop his arm but didn’t push him away.
((Oh, gods, Cosmo…)) she breathed.
“What’s the matter, bitch?” Ozy taunted. “Can’t stand that her blood is on your hands? We warned you, whore.”
”Don’t call my mother that!” Poof snarled, blasting Ozy, who tried to dance away from the blast as Asmodeus had before. Instead, like Wanda’s previous spell, it wrapped around and flung him into the wall repeatedly until the second in command collapsed, boneless, to the floor.
Wanda was grateful, but her throat constricted, preventing her from doing anything more than nodding in acknowledgment to Poof.
Poof latched onto her head, and she dissolved into helpless weeping. Cosmo, Timmy, and Poof held onto her. Her family. Cosmo rubbed her back where her wings usually were, and she had no hope of pulling it together. She lifted her head to look at him, and their lips met.
((I love you, hon,)) she whispered in Cosmo’s mind.
Cosmo’s lips twitched. ((I love you, too, baby, but you’re scaring me.))
She squeezed her wand to calm down and glared at her opponents. Asmodeus smirked, and she glared.
“Go to hell,” she snapped.
“Can’t,” he said, still smirking. “You think The Lotus Hotel is Hell.”
He was right, damn him.
“You have me under your control, and you’ve done almost nothing,” Asmodeus said. “Like I said, you don’t have the balls.”
”Don’t!” Cosmo and Timmy yelped when Wanda lunged forward and blasted Asmodeus in the stomach. The Unseelie King, unable to dodge because her compulsions were upon him, fell to his hands and knees as he coughed up blood. Dark, sparkling blood like hers. And Blonda’s.
Wanda waved her wand and brought her father back. Looking uncertain, the other generals glanced between Wanda and Asmodeus to determine where the power lay.
She shook her head, and they lingered briefly before scattering. Wanda tasted tears and growled, frustrated with herself. At least another spell restored her father with no harm done. The same could not be said for Blonda, though she’d sent her to the hospital in the vain hope that they could help her.
”Feels like your insides are being shredded, doesn’t it?” Wanda sneered. She brandished her wand and swung it again, making claws appear and rake his back as hard as he had last night to her. She followed it up with a punch in the head with brass knuckles that broke the skin and caused heavy bleeding.
“Wanda, where’s Blonda?” Big Daddy asked gravely. Wanda shook her head.
Big Daddy glanced at Timmy, Cosmo, and Poof.
”What’s going on?” Big Daddy demanded of them since Wanda wasn’t about to answer.
“We don’t know,” Cosmo blurted.
”Aunt Blonda might be dead…” Poof said, wincing. “Mom put a geas on Asmodeus, and since she learned about Blonda, she’s been…”
He trailed off, gesturing toward Wanda.
”I wonder if Cosmo is the only person keeping her from completely flying off the handle,” Big Daddy mused to himself. “That’d be a first.”
”Wanda, let a professional handle this,” Big Daddy said. Wanda shook her head vehemently.
”I’ll make him beg for death,” she spat. “Just like I did. He won’t be able to die; I won’t let him like he did to me. I’ll only grant him the mercy of death when I’m good and ready.”
”Shit,” Timmy breathed. “Wanda, please.”
”Is it worth it?” Cosmo murmured. She could barely feel his arms around her. A hot, angry ball of festering hatred in her chest demanded a response.
”Yes,” Wanda hissed. “It is.”
”Wanda-“ Timmy tried, but he never finished.
”Wanda Fairywinkle-Cosma! Stand down!” Jorgen boomed, which was enough shock that the rage fled her swiftly. She was too shocked to maintain it, and Cosmo and Timmy kept her on her feet. Cosmo’s hands rested atop hers, and he intertwined the hand Timmy wasn’t already holding.
A family. They were a family. They loved her, and they wanted to save her from herself. If she knew what was good for her, she should let them.
Unfortunately, she no longer knew anything about that. Her perceptions and emotions had been warped by the Unseelie Court.
”I defeated you!” Asmodeus snapped.
“You only thought you did,” Jorgen scoffed. “Did you really think I would go down without taking the universe with me?”
”Uh, well, no…” Asmodeus admitted.
“He’s mine,” Wanda growled. “He attacked me again last night.”
Jorgen winced. Apparently, he hadn’t known. “I understand that you are upset, but…”
She realized abruptly that Juandissimo had fled. Perhaps he’d not wanted to risk her rage. More than likely, though, he’d fetched Jorgen. How else would the giant fairy know to come here?
”’ Upset’ doesn’t begin to cover it,” Wanda scoffed. “He raped and tortured Blonda, then made me watch as his minion hurt…hurt…Timmy…”
She could barely breathe as the darkness enclosed upon her. Timmy. She’d failed him so badly, yet he was holding onto her.
”I’m not mad at you,” Timmy murmured.
”I love you, too, sport,” she whispered. Her boys grabbed her like she might vanish on them otherwise.
“We are working at freeing the other Council members,” Jorgen admitted gloomily. ”I was the first to escape.”
Wanda glared at Asmodeus. “You may be the Unseelie King, but are you the only one? Or are there other Courts I should know about?”
”Wanda, what are you-“ Timmy started, and she shook her head to silence him.
”Are there?” Wanda demanded when Asmodeus didn’t respond immediately.
”Yes,” Asmodeus admitted reluctantly. “There is a reason Anti-Fairy World joined us so readily. We’ve been working from within their realm, too.”
He snorted humorlessly. “Just not with Anti-Cosmo and Anti-Wanda. For some reason, they detest me.”
Wanda snorted back. “I can’t imagine why.”
She shuddered, and Cosmo wrapped one of her curls around his index finger. She wanted to melt against him, and it took extreme willpower not to capitulate immediately.
“Take me to them,” she ordered. Asmodeus faltered, and Jorgen nodded, glowering. Asmodeus put the coordinates in her mind, as they were now mentally linked thanks to his meddling and hers, and she followed them. At least he couldn’t lie to her anymore.
It was also taking all of her willpower not to collapse and sob hysterically in Cosmo’s arms. She had to see this through.
Cosmo kissed her when they arrived, and she slowly kissed him back. He cradled her head, and she rested her hand on his chest. Beneath her hand, his heart pounded, and it took Timmy clearing his throat for her to refocus.
“Welcome, Wanda,” Anti-Cosmo said and then growled. His green eyes flashed with hatred as he beheld Asmodeus. “And interlopers.
”I assume you’re here to root out the other Unseelie fairies,” he asked, and Wanda nodded. Anti-Wanda glared at Asmodeus, too, which oddly only prompted Cosmo to cling to Wanda tighter.
“Be my guest,” Anti-Cosmo said, his expression darkening further. “Give them the respect they deserve. All of it.”
He snarled, “Don’t stop until you get every last drop.”