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Second Chances	By : ZombieWithANoose Category: 1 through F > Drop Dead Fred Views: 3130 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: We don't own Drop Dead Fred and are not making any profit/money off of this.

Chapter List
- 11
- 12
Authors' Notes:
**A change has been made in the prologue. Instead of saying that Fred was in and out of orphanages since birth, it now reads:
In and out of orphanages and foster homes since he'd been six-years-old, he felt that no one really wanted him.
zombierose3: Thank you for the patience on the update and all the comments and love for the last chapter. :) It really meant a lot!
unleashthewords: Thanks to all the readers who have stuck with us, especially during the lulls between chapters. To those who have commented and given us your praise and feedback: Thank you! Your words mean so much to us! Hope you enjoy and can't wait to hear from you all.
**Disclaimers: We don't own Drop Dead Fred and aren't making a single profit from this story. We also don't own Monty Python (Spanish Inquisition), Mother Goose, Twenty Questions, Barbie/Ken/Skipper, The Flintstones (i.e. Pebbles and Bam Bam), or Tangled, specifically the song "Mother Knows Best" (our chapter title is from a lyric in the song) composed by Alan Menken, with lyrics by Glenn Slater.
Chapter Eleven
Listen to Your Mother
Fred plummeted to the backyard as a tiny, green ball. He bounced off the lawn and, like a pinball, ricocheted off the house, the shed, and the tree. Every hit discharged trails of magic and his momentum gained.
Banking off the roof, he shot into the tin bucket beside the roses and landed with a loud ping. "Ugh!" He growled, materializing full-size and covering his ears. Fred stood with one foot in the bucket and his eyes rolling around in their sockets like marbles. "That was a really bad shot!" he cried, shaking his head until his eyes reset themselves. "Piss that was loud!"
From inside the treehouse, Lizzie remained crouched, trying to be as still as possible. She listened to Fred's loud return, covering her mouth with her hands to keep from laughing out loud. It reminded her of all the games of hide and seek she had played with Fred. Usually she had lost because she hadn't been able to stay silent and Fred had just followed the sound of her giggles. This time she was determined to out wait him.
Below, the elusive dodgeball dropped and rolled over the grass toward Fred. "Pink bastard," he said, scowling, until the following silence made him realize he was alone.
Craning his neck, he scanned the yard. "Snotface?" His heart pounded. "Lizzie?" he called even louder.
Lizzie grinned. She wasn't about to give in that easily. Fred didn't like to lose, but it was more than overdue. Today would be her day and she didn't risk looking at his face in case it spoiled her victory.
Kicking the bucket off his foot, Fred bolted to the center of the yard. He spun in a frantic circle, looking everywhere. Each second he couldn't find her made it harder to breathe. She wasn't in the bushes, the tree, the shed, or on the roof, and his magic couldn't sense her inside the house. It was like she had just disappeared and Fred's fears overtook him.
"'Lizbeth, you answer me right now!" Fred clenched his fists and his chest heaved. He'd only left for a moment. Where was she? "If they took you away, I swear I'm coming for them."
Shaking, Fred backed up against the tree. "Please don't be gone..." He grabbed his head, his fingers curling into his hair before he shouted again. "Lizzie!" He choked. "God, I'm sorry," he whimpered. "Please come back to me..."
The despair in his voice made Lizzie's heart lurch. He was afraid. It shocked her so much she couldn't move. She couldn't have been more surprised if Fred had put on a dress and had a tea party with Enzo. She suddenly wished he would. Anything else was better than hearing the fear in his voice. This side of Fred tore at her and all she knew was that she had to get to him.
Too frantic to even call out, Lizzie scrambled to exit the treehouse. She started down the ladder, eyes locked on Fred, but her foot slipped. She fell. A flash of purple light surrounded her and pulled her to him. Her magic and the static it created in the air, made her tingle all over. After a moment, the magic settled and Lizzie found herself wrapping Fred in a tight hug.
"I'm here! I was just in the treehouse, trying to play hide and seek because you love hide and seek, and I'm not gone! I'm here." Her heart pounded a mile a minute as she tried to explain. Seeing him so panicked still shocked her; she never imagined he would think she had been taken.
Fred's arms went around Lizzie so fast he swore his magic had moved them. "Snotface!" he cried against her shoulder. His heart thundered as he latched on for dear life. Frantically, his hands roamed over her back, reminding himself that she was still here and safe, but he couldn't escape the gutted feeling his panic had left him. Everything he'd felt, every fear and heartache from yesterday consumed him like a flood.
"I thought they'd taken you away." His voice broke. "I thought... I thought I lost you again for good. Don't ever do that again." His tears landed against Lizzie's neck. He hadn't known he could ever feel so scared to lose anyone and that in turn made the fear worse.
Hugging him closer to her, Lizzie felt shame for doing this to him. Fred had been so afraid that she had been taken, he cried. Drop Dead Fred cried. The revelation shocked her more than the fake hospital had. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing her cheek to his as she clung to him.
"I won't. I'm so sorry, Fred! I was just playing a stupid game. I never thought you'd think I was gone for good. I- I- Please don't cry!" She sobbed as she held onto Fred with all her strength, not wanting him to feel this way anymore. His trembling body and his tears shook her to her core. She knew she meant a lot to him, he had done so much for her, but to react this strongly was something wholly unexpected. This was an emotion Fred never showed. It scared her and Damion's words echoed again in her mind. Lizzie wasn't sure what to believe.
Despite their bond, what Fred had never actually said to her face was 'I love you,' but she remembered the moment she had heard him say it when she was a child. It had changed her young life, making her feel valued as she never had before. She had pretended to be asleep, never letting him know so he would keep on saying it to her each night. Fred loved her and she loved him, despite the many years that had separated them. Their bond was strong and she would be damned if Damion tried to ruin things with his suggestion that Fred felt something more.
Fred's body wracked under the release of his sobs and he hated himself for it. Everything he kept so contained had reached the final breaking point, snapping like a twig at the thought of how much it would hurt if Lizzie did get taken away. It hit him just how close he'd gotten to losing her forever; how close he still could be to losing her for good... He wanted that feeling to leave, to rip it out and smash it into the ground so hard it never resurfaced. God, why won't it just piss off?
"You've any idea how... how- Ugh!" He buried his face against her neck, his fingers curling possessively against her back. "I, I watched the whole thing... I held you in the street, Snotface. I... I-" He shook, fighting to breathe and continued reminding himself she was here. "I waited at your bed; I abandoned Nat. I was there when, when-"
A sob cut him off. God! Why does it hurt so goddamn much? His hand slipped up and cradled the back of her head, fingers tangling into her hair. "I was there, Snotface. Right... there."
Lizzie's heart broke in two. She had never imagined what Fred had gone through. He had to see his best friend lying broken in the street and all the while he could do nothing. It must have been horrible. Lizzie remembered when Fred had been taken away from her when she was six and all the hurt, despair, and fear came flooding back. It had to feel like that, that everything you knew and loved was stripped away, gone forever and you were left with nothing.
More tears spilled down her cheeks. "I'm sorry. I didn't realize what you've gone through," Lizzie managed to say between sobs. "I never thought- I'm so sorry, Fred. I've been so focused on what I lost, I never thought about you." She squeezed him tightly. "I, I never thought to ask. You hide so much from me." As she rested in his arms, her gaze wandered over to the tree, but she hardly saw it. She was too focused on Fred's heart beating against her own.
"I know..." he croaked, stroking her hair. "It's just... before you no one ever, well, no one really ever cared to know, or stuck 'round long enough for me to... You're my best friend, Snotface. I was trying to keep you around, you were dealing with not being alive anymore, so you know, not exactly a conversation you have over tea and biscuits. I'll try better."
Lizzie listened to Fred's admission, beside herself with awe and compassion. He had dealt with so much, and somehow remained such a rock for her through all of this. A crazy, manic rock with bright, red hair, but a rock nonetheless.
Together, they lifted their heads, their eyes locking, and their faces wet from tears.
"But if you wanna feel bad for something," he added, "go right ahead for making me leak like a girl. I won't stop you." He sniffed. "You better swear not to tell anybody."
Lizzie managed a half-smile at Fred's joke. There he went, trying to be regular, old Drop Dead Fred and make her laugh.
Reaching up, she tenderly wiped away one of his tears with her thumb. "You are the best friend anyone could ever ask for. You've stood by me through everything. Thank you." She wiped away a second tear on his other cheek and wished more than anything she could take away his pain. "I would never breathe a word of this. This is our secret," she said, softly.
"Good." Fred's eyes closed each time she wiped his tears, her gentle touch weaving a peace inside his pain. Lizzie comforted him like nothing else and he clung to her like a drowning man clung to a buoy. "You've put me through hell... You only get to die once, Lizzie..."
A sob escaped her lips. "Oh god! I never meant to!" She squeezed him tighter, clutching the green fabric of his jacket. "I don't plan on dying again! We're Pebbles and Bam Bam. We have to stick together. I can't lose you again either." The idea of being separated from him permanently was unbearable and thanks to Damion's visit, she was afraid. Lizzie felt her tears build. "Swear that it won't happen," she said as the tears broke free. It was an impossible request, but she needed to hear it again. Even more than when he'd promised on the stairs last night.
Fred choked and pressed Lizzie to him as if he could smash them both together so they could never be separated again. Until her, he had only ever heard that desperate plea from children and he had never wanted to follow through so much as now.
Memories of watching the Flintstones together when she was small flooded him. Lizzie had loved pretending she was Pebbles, and of course he'd been Bam Bam, smashing everything in sight. A smile broke on his face at the memory of tying one of Polly's wooden spoons in Lizzie's hair so she better fit her part. It had taken her mother forty minutes to pull it out he'd knotted her locks so bad.
Nuzzling his face against Lizzie's shoulder, he said, "Promise. Just like I did last night. I'll be more stubborn than a cockroach, Snotface. You'll never get rid of me again." He knew better, though; he just couldn't say it. The thought of losing her loomed over their heads, and now he was all too aware of that fact. An echo of Lizzie's earlier accusations resurfaced in his mind. Damion had spoken to her, and Fred's blood ran cold.
"Lizzie?" he asked.
"Hmm?" Lizzie smiled as he made her the promise they both knew was a lie, but he had done it for her anyway. She continued to cling to Fred, crushed in his embrace and not minding at all. Everything that had happened to her seemed to have spilled out in an emotional monsoon. Even Fred was effected, and he had clearly kept things locked away where she hadn't seen them until now.
"What happened last night? After I left you alone?" he asked, quietly.
Lizzie froze, her comfort shattered. What should she say? This was dangerous territory now.
"I... went to bed. Well, I tried to go to sleep, but my mind just wouldn't shut off and it played everything that has happened over and over, and I don't want to think about that anymore," she said, her voice partially muffled by his jacket. Don't ask me.
Leaning back enough to look her in the eyes, Fred said, "No, I meant why- What did Damion do?" His heart pounded. He knew that evasive ramble. What doesn't she want to tell me?
"He didn't do anything," she said, averting her eyes. It was technically true, but she wasn't going to admit that. "You know all that magic made me angry. Angrier than I've ever been. I just said something to piss you off."
Fred frowned. "It worked," he said, looking her over. "But what did he say to you?" He stared her down. This was too important to just brush aside. If Damion was visiting her behind his back, he knew the bastard had ulterior motives. Ones that dug a pit inside Fred's gut.
"What does it matter? Clearly, he's insane!" She released her hold on Fred's jacket and stepped back, keeping her hands resting on his shoulders. "It's nothing. He won't ruin us."
"It's never nothing. I know that bastard," he said, eyes slanting. "He's up to somethin'. Has been from the moment I mentioned bringing you on." Fred dropped his hands to rest on Lizzie's waist, his mouth going dry. "If... if he said... what you said before..." He averted his eyes. "...it, it's not true. He's only trying to get in your head so it'll tear us apart. He knows I'm all you got, so please... don't believe a word he says. That buzzard wouldn't know friendship if it kicked him in his twig and berries."
Lizzie shrugged. He had hit the nail on the head, but denied again that he had any feelings for her. Behind her relief she was surprised to feel disappointment. True, he was Fred, but he was still a man, and to be rejected by a man wasn't helping her ego any. "Right," she said, looking at him, trying to hide her emotions. "You're Drop Dead Fred. You don't love anyone."
Fred's grin pulled his whole face into a look of impish delight. "Oh, so you have been listening to me all this time. Then we're gettin' somewhere," he said, his playful nature flowing into his tone. He booped her nose, but when he saw her less than amused expression, his serious side returned.
"Listen... promise me if he comes back you'll tell me? I honestly trust him less than Charles and your mother combined. And if I have to, I'm gonna keep watch over your bed like I did when you were small."
Lizzie listened to Fred's request. She really hoped Damion wouldn't come back, but she had a feeling he would, stalking her in her dreams. If only she could fight back.
Watching Fred's concerned face, she sighed. "I know he's a psycho and hates the both of us, and doesn't want me to succeed, but how do you keep someone like that away? Restraining orders and pepper spray aren't going to keep him out of my head," she said, feeling angry and helpless. "I appreciate your dedication, though." She flashed a brief smile. "You're full of surprises." Lizzie paused, wanting to share something, but unsure of how he might take it.
"I have something to confess. I hate seeing you get so torn apart. It hurts me to see you that way, but I'm so moved that you shared that part of you with me. You've always been there for me. I want to be there for you," she said, her voice soft. "I think that we should be able to do that for each other, despite this psycho trying to drive us apart."
A breath rushed from him after hearing Lizzie's confession and he smiled. Her continued care and drive to be close to him touched him, about as much as it confounded him. All Fred could do was nod as he felt like he stood naked before an audience. Vulnerability was not even in his vocabulary and he was like a cornered animal. No one had ever wanted to be there for him like that, never even bothered to pretend. Lizzie's admittance created a warm flutter inside him and Fred felt the urge to escape pull at him, but when he looked at Lizzie's face, so open and so caring he couldn't do it.
"I... I'd like that, Snotface... It'd be nice to know what that's like..." His heart ached, mourning something he never realized he'd wanted. It was almost agitating. Grief is such a knob, he thought.
Lizzie smiled. It should be strange that Fred agreed to this, but it felt so nice not hearing him brush her off with a loud and flagrant denial, that she would take it while she could. "Good. It's about time you exhibit something other than the desire to fart."
"Yeah, well every now and then I gotta stop to reload the chamber." He chuckled. "Plus, my secret's out. You know I was human once..." And you definitely reminded me. Having Lizzie console him felt nice, but strange. Almost like their friendship had been turned on its head by this one shift in dynamic. Panic slammed his heart and the need to distance himself from all things serious consumed him. "But all that magic mania! It really makes ya crazy and act like a girl. Ugh!" He rolled his eyes and Lizzie pulled back from his arms.
No longer pressed against his warm frame, she felt cold and lonely. It stung a little that he wanted to brush what had happened aside. It shouldn't have surprised her, given his attitude toward feelings, but she had hoped that he was finally past that.
Not wanting to look him in the eyes, Lizzie stared at the ground. She couldn't even think of anything to say back. He'd just deny he'd been opening up and she didn't have the strength to pretend right now. Her arms felt empty, so she wrapped them around herself.
However, Fred already knew he had stuck his foot in it again. He really never meant to hurt her. He just had the worst habit of saying the wrong things at just the right moment. Could you be more of a git?
Stepping closer, Fred loosely gripped her upper arms. "Hey, Snotface, baby steps. I can't be Drop Dead Fred and a blubbery mess. The universe might implode. I- I'm glad it was you to see me... ya know, open up." Fred made a face, as though he had just eaten something rotten. Rome wasn't built in a day.
His grip on her arms brought back the feeling of warmth she had been missing. She looked up at Fred, amazed he was explaining himself. He was really trying. It made her smile and his revulsion at opening up made her chuckle. He was still Drop Dead Fred, but he was also something more; he was real. He was someone who did have feelings; he just hid them very well.
"You're right. It would implode, and I really don't want to not exist, so I guess you should just be you, but... thanks, Fred." She didn't know what else to say, but it seemed enough for now.
Fred nodded awkwardly and released his hold on her arms. Rubbing his palms on his pants, his eyes looked at anything but Lizzie. He felt so strange and the feeling didn't really sit well with him. For a few horrible moments he wasn't sure who he was or how to act. What is this? You're Drop Dead Fred, ya wanker. Act like it!
With renewed determination he nodded his head, picked his nose, and wiped the offending finger on Lizzie's cheek. "There! Perfect!" He clapped his hands together and rubbed them back and forth. "Now, let's get crackin'!"
Lizzie wrinkled her nose at Fred's booger on her cheek. "Thanks," she muttered, using her sleeve to wipe her face. "Nothing like a little snot to end a cry session." It still seemed surreal what had just happened. She would almost think she dreamt it, but the telltale signs were there. It was hard to hide the fact they had been crying their eyes out.
Fred opening that secret place where he kept his feelings locked away still amazed her. Though it touched her deeply, a nagging feeling ate at her. She couldn't shut Damion's stupid voice out of her head.
"So are you saying that I can have your guarantee that there won't be any dipping in the future either? You know friends can end up-"
Lizzie frowned. If Fred was right, then Damion was only trying to mess with her, take her focus off what she needed to do, but why use Fred and his supposed feelings? If it was anyone else it would make sense, but Fred wasn't like anyone else. She thought over what had just happened. Had that just been a normal reaction to thinking you lost your best friend forever? There were only a few people Lizzie would get that upset over losing, and Fred was one of them. It just meant they were close, nothing more...
Fred furrowed his brow. "Are you deaf? I said it's time to blink."
Fred's ability to bounce back after that emotional display didn't surprise her. Lizzie wished she could be that way.
Pushing aside all the thoughts in her head, she looked at Fred, a smile on her face. "Well, I did blink to you... after I fell out of the treehouse."
"Wait, you fell outta the treehouse?" Raising an eyebrow, Fred glanced between her and the place in question. "And you blinked? Pfft! Snotface, falling outta a tree doesn't count as blinking. Nice try, though."
"What? Yes, I blinked!" Lizzie was offended he didn't believe her. "I fell out of the treehouse trying to get to you in a hurry! You try getting yourself out of a tiny house with your magic training wheels on! Did you hear me hit the ground? I may not know how I actually did it, but I did it!" Lizzie wasn't really mad, but it felt kind of good to be arguing with Fred again.
"Wait..." Fred thought back to the moment Lizzie had appeared in his arms when he'd called for her, and his eyes widened. "Bloody hell... You did do it!" He laughed, hopping from foot to foot with glee. "This is great!" he cried, snatching her hands and spinning them both around. He'd never felt so relieved. She was a natural at the hardest trick an imaginary friend had to learn. "You did it!"
Dropping her hands, Fred stepped away and beamed at Lizzie in amazement. "Most of us can't do it the first try!" He took her all in, his gaze darting all over her. "And you're all in one piece, too! That mostly never happens in the beginning!" Fred gushed, circling her in continued awe. She was all there. Everything was where it should be. "You're a natural, Snotface, even if you don't know how you did it. Maybe I won't have to put you in a gerbil ball after all." He stopped before her and grinned.
Lizzie smiled at Fred's enthusiasm, but she still felt anxious. "Fred, I don't know if I can do it again. I mean I did it without thinking! I can't remember anything except knowing that I needed to get to you," she said, fidgeting with her sweat pants. His high praise made her feel like a fraud. "Wait? You're still going to put me in a gerbil ball? Why?"
"Hey!"
Lizzie and Fred both jumped and spun in unison to find Natalie yawning and rubbing her eyes. "Why're you playing without me?" She pouted, her hair stuck up at all ends like a fluffy bush. "You didn't even wake me up."
Fred dramatically cocked his head to the side. "Because you snored so loudly that I was afraid of getting sucked right in, never to be heard from again!" he remarked. Natalie gasped and threw her hands over her mouth.
"I'm sure we'd all still hear you, Fred," said Lizzie. She smiled at the sleepy, little girl, wishing she could speak to her, but it wasn't possible. Instead, Lizzie decided to have some fun. She walked over to Fred and grabbed the end of his jacket and pulled it over his head.
"Hey! Hands off the material!" Fred shouted, spinning blindly around. Natalie laughed, wiping tears.
"Lizzie's so funny!"
"Don't encourage her," Fred said, flipping his jacket back in place. "She's already got it out for my jacket with her sticky fingers."
"Hey, Fred?" Natalie asked, hunching over in worry. "Can I see her again? I... had a bad dream she was gone again, and I just really wanna see her. Can I please? Pretty please?" Her eyes widened at him.
Lizzie looked from Natalie to Fred, surprised by the request. "I would love for her to see me if it would help her feel better, but can I do it? I don't really know what I'm doing."
Fred glanced at Lizzie and tensed, the incident in the kitchen flooding back to him. "Yeah..." And you shouldn't have been able to do that in the first place... he thought, turning back to Natalie.
"Fishface," he said, crouching down to eye level with her. "I'm sorry. It's just not possible. Remember I said you couldn't see her because she's not your imaginary friend?" He offered a hopeful smile. "But I promise she's right here. Been throwing things at my face all morning."
Natalie flushed as tears appeared in her eyes. "No! I wanna see her. You let me last night!" She crossed her arms and glared at Fred.
"That was an accident!" he cried, popping back up.
"Then do it again!"
Fred gaped and snuck a look at Lizzie, at a loss for what to say. He wanted to help, but he didn't understand what had happened. Why did this whole thing keep tumbling into a greater mess?
Turning back to Natalie, Fred scoffed, and thrust a finger at her face. "You're not the boss of me," he said. "I can't repeat what I don't know how to do! What am I supposed to do? Pull her outta a hat? I'm not a magician!"
"No, you're just mean!" said Natalie. Her lower lip quivered.
Fred staggered back like he'd been shot. "Hey!"
"I wanna see Lizzie!" she cried, her tears spilling.
Feeling helpless, Lizzie looked at Natalie, wishing she could talk to her and make her feel better. "I hate being invisible," she said, looking at Fred. "What do we do?" She wished that she knew how to use her powers. Maybe she could try.
Attempting to tap into her magic source, Lizzie focused on becoming visible to Natalie and prayed it worked. Her magic's purple light flickered around her. It tingled along her skin, the static feeling returning. She concentrated on Natalie, willing her to see her, but Lizzie started losing hope. Just when she thought it wasn't going to work, Natalie paused in her crying and stared right at her. Lizzie gasped.
"Hi, Nat!" She grinned.
"Lizzie!" Natalie covered her mouth in excitement, eyes like saucers, but before she could say anything else, Lizzie vanished. "Hey, don't go! Fred, bring her back!" She tugged at his sleeve and poked his arm.
"Bring who? What?" he asked, looking around in confusion. "I didn't bring anyone anywhere!"
Lizzie's triumphant grin faded and she bent over, hands on her knees to steady herself. "That was fun." She huffed and sunk to the grass, trying to catch her breath.
Spinning about, Fred flinched when he saw Lizzie. "Did you just...?" How is this possible? Twice? His heartbeat threatened to break his chest. "Nat..." he said, slowly turning back to the little girl. "You saw her again?"
Natalie nodded. "Just for a sec. She was kinda see through... Is she okay, Fred?"
Lizzie looked up, starting to speak, but fatigue won out. Breathless, she held up a finger and closed her eyes. After a moment she tried again. "I think I'm okay. I didn't think that'd be so tiring. How long will this last?"
Fred's attention snapped back to Lizzie, concern creasing his brow. "You're tired?" he asked, fear feeling like ice inside his veins. This wasn't right. Imaginary friends didn't get worn out, and the gods certainly wouldn't let Lizzie be seen by anyone until passing her tests. He knew that lot, so how the hell was Natalie able to see her twice? "She's fine, Fishface," he said, turning back to Natalie. "Why don't you go inside and get your breakfast and I'll be right in with Lizzie. Promise. 'Kay?"
Natalie nodded, but uncertainty lined her face. "Okay... I am hungry. I hope Lizzie's okay." Turning, she ran into the house.
With Natalie gone, Fred rushed to Lizzie and dropped to his knees beside her. "You really alright?" he asked, checking her over.
Lizzie's breathing had returned to normal, but she still felt like she had just run a marathon. She looked up at Fred. "Yeah, just had to get my breath back. Sorry, I didn't mean to worry you." She sat up straight. "I still can't believe it worked. I don't know who was more surprised, Natalie or me."
I'd go with me, he thought. "How'd you do it?" he asked, gulping. "I don't understand why you're so exhausted. IF's don't get tired, Lizzie..."
"I don't know. I just tried to concentrate on using my magic to appear to her. I honestly didn't think I could do it by myself." She shifted her weight and moved her legs out from under her so she sat with her backside on the grass. A little more comfortable, she looked at Fred in confusion. "What do you mean IF's don't get tired? You don't need to sleep, but things never wear you out at all?"
Fred shook his head. "Never. We've got endless amounts of energy. That's why we don't need to rest unless we want to..." He licked his lips, scooting closer to her. "Snotface, I can't do what you did... No imaginary friend can. We're all incapable. We're just not that strong. Who we attach to is who sees us and no one else." Fred looked up and around them. He didn't like this at all. "Somehow you've got more ability than you should have, Lizzie... and I don't like how it's tired you out."
Lizzie listened to the first part of Fred's answer. Now that she thought about it, it made sense. Fred had limitless amounts of energy; he never stopped, but the rest of what he said finally caught up to her.
'Snotface, I can't do what you did... No imaginary friend can.'
"What are you saying? Why would I be able to do something you can't, that no imaginary friend can? Am I broken?"
Lizzie's question tore at his heart. "Oh, no. No, you're not broken," he said, but the words almost felt more for himself. Fred took her hand and squeezed. "Maybe you're just extra special. I always said you were," he added, but his thoughts couldn't stay away from Damion. Was this some part of his plan to sabotage Lizzie's training? Was she even a full imaginary friend? Suddenly Fred felt very sick and he wanted to put Lizzie in a box before anything else happened.
I can't tell her anything, not until I know what's happening, he thought. I won't let those bastards take her away from me. His heart pounded and all his panic from earlier drowned him in its swell. I'll find a way to fix this. She's not gone yet. I still have time.
"Maybe... maybe you just shouldn't try that trick again. Just to be safe, Lizzie. Promise?" Fred held up his pinky and looked in her eyes. He promised himself right then he wasn't going to let her out of his sight from now on, even if she ordered him.
Lizzie didn't like Fred's vague explanation. Not giving her an actual answer was just as worrying as the look on his face. What did all of this mean? "Alright... I promise I won't do it again." She hooked her pinky with his, gave their joined hands a shake, and smiled. "After how much it took out of me I don't have a desire to repeat that any time soon. I'll stick to blinking, if I can learn to do it when I'm not falling out of trees." She gave a weak laugh, pulling her hand back. She wanted to ask if this was her least favorite god's doing, but she didn't think she would like the answer.
"We'll try it from the ground next time." Fred winked, but he wanted to change the subject before Lizzie asked him anything more. He needed more information. The last thing he wanted was to scare her before he knew what was going on. "Come on, we better get to Nat before she eats all her cereal with all my marshmallows. I'll make a mountain outta them. They'll be shooting outta my nose faster than snot."
Pulling them both up, Fred grinned, but kept his hold on Lizzie just to be sure she wouldn't fall. When she looked steady enough, he offered his arm for her to take.
"You make cereal sound so appealing," Lizzie said, wrinkling her nose. She hooked her arm through his. "Trying to keep me from getting to those marshmallows first? I bet I could shoot one further than you." She grinned. It was good to feel like it was her and Fred getting into trouble again, but worry over her magic still lingered. She thought of Enzo's note. Maybe he could offer some advice. The thought both scared and amused her.
Fred laughed. "Like I'm gonna give you the chance, Snotface. You're not overexerting yourself, or your nostrils until you've rested a bit more. Now, come on." Fred slowly led her toward the house, keeping watch on her legs for any signs of weakness.
Lizzie looked at Fred out of the corner of her eye. He led her toward the house as if she were an elderly lady. "Fred... what are you doing?"
"Walking," Fred said a bit too loudly, but his gaze snapped up to her face. Why was she asking him obvious questions? Was she really alright?
"Yes, I see that, but why are you leading me like a Boy Scout helping an old lady cross the street?"
Fred blinked. "What? Pretty sure I'd never qualify for a Boy Scout. Can't I be nice?"
Lizzie turned her head and stared at Fred. "You're being nice..." Her brow wrinkled as she processed this idea and she stopped walking. "Fred, I OD'd on magic, I'm not dead."
Fred released a loud and lengthy gasp. "Don't you use that word! Not the D word!"
She pursed her lips to hide her smile. This was something new and she decided to run with it. "What word? Dead?"
Fred clamped his hand over Lizzie's mouth and leaned in to look in her eyes. "Shhh! Stop it! What're ya trying to do?"
Lizzie rolled her eyes. Mother Hen Fred was a little on the hysterical side, so she licked his hand.
"Ah, yuck!" He recoiled, shaking his hand in disgust.
"I'm not doing anything," she said, now that her mouth was free. "You seem to have developed a phobia of the word 'dead'. You should have that checked out."
Fred wiped his hand along his pants, still making a face. "I do not! I'm not scared of anything! But I might die now from your cooties!" He stuck out his tongue. "Ugh! I know I'm a treat, but control yourself, please."
Lizzie grinned. Finally, he was back to normal. "If I have cooties I got them from you." She stuck her tongue out at him. "You're as much a treat as chicken pox. Just for that I'm going to eat all the marshmallows." She made a run for the back door.
Stunned, Fred watched her run away, wondering what had just happened. "Hey..." he said, but annoyance at being one-upped flared inside him, and his competitive streak took hold. "Don't you dare! Those are mine!" he shouted. "And I hope you get Cornflakes disease!" he added and blinked into the kitchen.
Natalie sat at the kitchen table, slurping up a bowl of cereal. Milk dripped onto her placemat beside a small pile of marshmallows that she had left for Fred.
Running into the kitchen, Lizzie skidded to a halt, finding Fred already inside, and picking his teeth. "That's cheating!" she cried, rushing to the table, and snatching a few marshmallows. "That's your fine for cheating!"
Fred nearly spit. "What?!" He reached out and tickled Lizzie's sides without mercy. He knew just the right spots, too. "Gotcha now, ya thief! Give it back!"
Natalie looked up and watched as Fred seemed to be arguing with the air. She watched in utter fascination, chewing open-mouthed.
Lizzie screamed and tried to get away. "Double cheater!" She laughed as he tickled her and then threw the marshmallows at his face. "There!"
Screaming, Fred let go and dove to the floor to scoop up his precious marshmallows.
"Fred, what're you doing?" asked Natalie.
"Lizzie's being a snotface! She accused me of cheating!"
"You do cheat," Natalie countered.
"Oi! Not you, too! What's with you girls?" he cried, hopping back up with the marshmallows cupped in his hands.
Lizzie stood by the counter, watching Fred and Natalie interact. "We don't like being cheated. Just admit you're a cheating cheater who cheats!"
Sticking his pinky in his ear, Fred turned his nose up, and said, "Did you hear something? Hmmm. Must've been the wind." Smirking, he threw his head back and ate the marshmallows from his hand. Natalie blinked at him in amazement.
"Where's my morning toll, Fishface?" Fred asked, blinking onto the table before she could answer. He crouched, snatching up a marshmallow and popping it into his mouth.
"Hey!" she cried.
Fred wrinkled his nose and snickered at her.
Lizzie glared at Fred. "That's rude! You know darn well I'm here!" She looked around for something to throw at his head. She spotted a loaf of bread, grabbed it, and threw it at him. "I'm invisible to Nat, not dead!" The loaf pegged him in the shoulder.
"Ah!" Fred rolled off the table and splayed out on the floor like a ragdoll. Oh, she's going to get it now...
Blinking behind Lizzie, Fred tapped her on the shoulder. "Hey! Quit using that word or I swear I'll stick my dirty sock that's been on my foot for over twenty years right in your gob!" Fred looked around. "And why does everyone keep throwing things at my head today?" Natalie choked on her orange juice.
Yelping, Lizzie jumped forward and ran to stand behind Natalie. Desperately, she patted her on the back, but realized her efforts were futile. "Look! You made her choke! Maybe you deserve to have things thrown at your head." She stuck out her tongue. "And you can't put your nasty sock in my mouth if I stuff it with marshmallows!" She scooped up the pile and shoved them all into her mouth.
"Wha- You- I-" Fred grabbed his head and watched in horror as his favorite morning treat was devoured by his own best friend. "That's it! I hope you die horribly!" Fred recoiled, a high-pitched squeal emitting from him as he slapped his hands over his mouth.
Natalie dropped her spoon on the table, which sounded like a gunshot in the silence. Milk dribbled from her chin. Lizzie's mouth fell open, several marshmallows spilling onto the floor, until finally she gained enough sense to spit out the rest.
"I already did, thank you very much!" She couldn't believe Fred had said that, however, she couldn't be mad when he looked so horrified over it.
"Oh my god... I, I didn't mean it," he stammered, reaching out for Lizzie, but he couldn't bring himself to touch her. Instead, he stumbled back, wrapping his arms around himself. The cold glare from Natalie caught his attention and Fred felt even worse. "I'm sorry!" he cried, voice hitching.
Lizzie felt terrible. They had just been playing, and now Fred looked like he had just ran over someone's dog. "I know, Fred. You would never mean that," she said, reaching out and taking his hand. "I suppose all is fair in love and marshmallows. I'm sorry, too."
Fred flinched. Love? What does that have to do with marshmallows? "Um, thanks..." He looked about, desperate to focus anywhere but at Lizzie. What had she meant by that? "I better get back to Nat," he said.
Lizzie had expected a quip or something Fred-like, but he blinked back to his crouched position on the table. She knew the little girl needed him too, but she couldn't help but feel envious. She was the odd man out.
Reaching into the cereal box, Fred pulled out more marshmallows, creating two piles for him and Natalie. "So, you ready to play?" he asked her. "Think ya can beat me today?"
"If you stopped cheating!" Natalie said, her tongue sticking through the gap of her missing teeth. "You always eat all my marshmallows before I can play... Is Lizzie alright?"
Lizzie smiled. "Tell her, I'm great and I'm going to build a marshmallow cannon."
"Maybe you just gotta be quicker then, Stupid," Fred said to Natalie, rolling his eyes. "And she's a snot, but she'll live. She's making a cannon. Hide the marshmallows." He winked over at Lizzie before looking again at Natalie. "Now can we play, please?" Fred moved the marshmallows around to set up their game and plucked a bouncy ball from his jacket pocket.
Natalie flicked his shoe. "I wanna go first this time. You went last."
"Oh, fine," Fred cried in exasperation, holding out the ball. "Who asked you to keep track?"
Snatching the ball, Natalie giggled. "I'm gonna beat you. Watch this!" She dropped the ball onto the marshmallows, but it bounced into her bowl, splashing the milk. "Oops." Natalie winced.
"Ha! You lost another one, Fishface!" Fred said, greedily taking another marshmallow for his pile. "Keep it up and I'll own all of 'em." He tossed an extra one into his mouth and ate it with a satisfied smile. "I'm so great at marshmallow jax it's really to a point no one should challenge me anymore." He patted Natalie on the head. "Especially after your great shame on Tuesday."
Plucking the ball from her bowl and setting it down, Natalie took a big spoonful of cereal. "Ish cuz oo cheetfed!" Milk dribbled down her chin, but she hurried to wipe it away.
"Sorry, what?" asked Fred, putting a hand to his ear.
"I said, it's because you cheat, Fred. You said there was a frog-eyed, purple poo monster in the fridge and there wasn't!"
"Well, I can't help it if you're blind, Fishface. There is a purple poo monster in there and if you don't believe in it, it gets bigger and bigger and then one day it tries to eat you when you're on the crapper, and then it's a whole mess. Trust me. Now, can I have another of the green ones?" he asked, pointing at the marshmallows. "I already ate all of mine."
Natalie eyed him distrustfully, but relented, giving him the smallest one out of her pile. "No more, Fred."
"No more? Ah, come on! Don't hold out on me. You can't cut me off!" He held out his hands, hoping for a few more.
Natalie shook her head, covering the pile and leaning over it. "Nuh uh. These are mine."
"A purple poo monster?" Lizzie asked, shaking her head. "When I was a kid it was a three-headed gopher with mange that gave math homework and spewed fire. You're such a dirty cheat."
Fred gave Lizzie a look from the corner of his eyes, but only responded to Natalie. "Oh fine," he said, sighing and rolling off the table. He sulked, stomping over to sit on the counter, his heels kicking at the cupboards in alternation. "So's your dad keeping you home from school today?" he asked.
"Yeah... he says it's 'cuz of Lizzie... He's pretty sad right now, and says it's okay if I am, too, but I'm not sad because I know she's right here." She frowned and dropped her spoon, tilting her head up at Fred. "Fred? I know you said I can't tell him about Lizzie, and I promised... but could I please? I saw him crying this morning... I don't want him to be sad. Please?"
Fred's mouth twitched, a possessive feeling overcoming him at the mention of Mickey crying over losing his Snotface. "Sorry, Nat, Lizzie's just our friend now, and he's not allowed in the club, so you can't say anything. It's important, Fishface."
Natalie nodded, looking down at her cereal bowl. "Okay, Fred."
Lizzie's heart ached. She felt terrible that Mickey couldn't know she wasn't really dead, but it was against the rules. Plus, she knew Mickey would probably think Natalie was just making it all up. "I wish he could know. I feel sick that he's mourning me when I'm right here."
Seeing Lizzie's concerns for Mickey didn't sit well with Fred. He knew Lizzie was a caring person, driven to console people when they were down, but he couldn't contain his petty jealousy over Mickey. "Yeah, well he can't know. Fartpants'll be fine. Eventually he'll knit himself a sweater, pierce his other ear, and maybe one day he'll find someone who'll make his sac drop so he'll quit bein' such a sobbing tit over everything." Fred shrugged, casually and Lizzie's jaw dropped.
Her gaze shot to Natalie who seemed too absorbed in eating her cereal. "What is wrong with you?" she hissed at Fred. "I know you like to pretend you're too good to have feelings, but you have a lot of balls to make rude comments over my friend crying over me when you just sprung a leak in the backyard over the same thing!" She knew Fred wasn't going to gush over what he felt, or be the most sympathetic, but to be so casually heartless did not sit well with her.
Fred gasped and clutched his chest. "Don't you dare bring that up! That's slander! You promised."
Lizzie glared. "Not so fun to have people point out your emotional displays, is it?" She waved her arms. "Oi! I have feelings, but I'm too constipated to admit it!" She knew her accent was terrible, but she didn't care. Fred had pushed the line. "I'm going to check on my friend. You can stay here with your feelings that you pretend not to have." She left the room.
Fred gaped in disbelief. Who did she think she was? "Oi! That's a terrible impression! I would never talk like that, you awful... awful parrot!" Fred paused, realizing he'd just spoken exactly like she'd mocked him over. Oh bollocks! "I... I'm Drop Dead Fred and I don't have any feelings! What do I gotta say to make that perfectly clear? Quit tryin' to turn me into a girl!"
Lizzie stopped in her tracks. He was unbelievable! He was really going to pretend nothing had happened. Spinning on her heels, she marched back to the kitchen, and stopped in the doorway.
Glaring at Fred, she felt tempted to send him another magic shot to his gut. "You are a piece of work. You don't want to let anyone know you can feel anything besides contempt, fine, but don't try to act like it with me," she said, her voice calm. "I remember what you said, Fred, and I know every word was true. You weren't the only one to see me lying in the street. Mickey was there, too and he can cry over me all he wants because he's my friend and at least he can admit he feels something over my- Over me being gone. So I'm going to see him, and maybe I can't comfort him, but I can be there for him like he was for me." She stared Fred in the eyes, wanting him to take in every bit of her next sentence. "Don't you dare mock him for showing that he cares." Turning, she walked away, leaving Fred to his silence.
For a while he didn't move, save for his fingers curling over the countertop. From the corner of his eyes he noticed Natalie staring at him, but he pretended not to see her. More than anything he wished to disappear. Lizzie's words had impaled him and guilt flooded him like a poison. He knew he was being an ass and that Lizzie deserved better, but he hadn't been able to stop himself. Because I'm Drop Dead Fred, he thought with a dismal smirk.
Groaning, he closed his eyes. Life was usually so simple for him, not dripping with such heavy situations and conflicts, and the last time he'd even regularly spoken to anyone in an adult manner he'd still been human. In fact, he hadn't had to deal with grief and loss like this since...
Fred blocked the memory before it resurfaced, and flung himself from the counter. He had to focus on Natalie, then figure out a way to make things up to Lizzie. He hadn't been doing a very good job with either of them today. "How's your breakfast, Fishface?" he asked, rubbing his hands together.
Natalie flicked a marshmallow from the table. "Fred?" she asked, staring at the soggy bowl of cereal. "What's a sac?"
Fred took a seat across from her, forcing a smile. "Something a man keeps his change in. Nothing you need to worry about," he said, his gaze flitting back to the doorway Lizzie had passed through. He didn't like the idea of her wandering off, even to the next room, not with Damion plotting against them. Whatever plans he had in store, though, Fred knew Damion would wait longer than a day to inflict them. He'd suck every drop of torment for his indulgence. Puddles of mud and coffins would seem like a party compared to what he would do, but right now Fred had to use this time to his advantage. Ignoring Natalie would only make Damion use it against him, which meant Fred had to trust that Lizzie would be alright for now.
Natalie poked a half-dissolved marshmallow with her spoon. "Okay, but I don't think my daddy has one of those." Fred's snort made her stare at him with bewilderment. "How come you don't like Daddy?" she asked, quietly.
"Because..." Fred stopped, realizing he didn't have a real answer. Fartpants had never bothered him as a kid. Sure he'd been a little annoying and cried more than his Snotface on a bad day, but the three of them had managed to have loads of fun together. He'd been a perfect addition, and scapegoat, to many of the games he'd played with Lizzie. He'd enjoyed seeing Lizzie happy with someone her own age. Those memories were part of the reason he'd chosen Fartpants as a means to get Lizzie's focus off of Charles. Fred couldn't deny he'd grown into a good man, but yet the very idea of him boiled the piss out of him and saying a kind word about him tasted like rancid socks.
"Because I'm your friend, not his, and Drop Dead Fred doesn't share," he said.
"You do so! You're Lizzie's friend, too."
Fred rolled his eyes. "Fine. I don't do great with sharing and I'm particular about my friends. Up to your standards yet?"
Natalie's expression soured. "Daddy's right. Boys are weird," she said, stirring her cereal. Fred reached over her bowl, flicking milk at her. "Hey!" she cried.
"Gotcha!" He laughed, watching Natalie wipe her face with her sleeve. "Oi, you're erasing your milk freckles. I can't have this. Come here. I'm gonna have to respackle you before anyone sees-"
Milk splashed his face and the sound of Natalie's laughter filled the room.
"Too late!" she cried between giggles. "I freckled you first, Fred."
He couldn't hide his grin. "Oh, you think that's gonna save you? There's one thing you didn't think of, Fishface, and that's how contagious milk freckles are!"
Reaching across the table, Fred grabbed Natalie's head, pulling her toward him. She squealed, laughing all the while as he nuzzled his wet face all over her hair.
"No! I don't want milk freckles in my hair!"
"Oh no! They're not freckles when they're in your hair! They're milk termites!" he shouted, rubbing his face even faster against Natalie's hair.
"Gross!" she cried, but her laughter persisted. Both of them knew she loved it when he played with her this way. Messes were some of her favorite things.
Letting go, Fred grinned. "Come here," he said, sitting back in his chair and patting his leg. "I think you're infested enough for now." Natalie eyed him with distrust.
"Why?" she asked, out of breath.
"You're just gonna have to trust me. Now come on. Before you curdle. I don't have all day."
"Nuh uh. You cheat!"
Fred smirked. "How 'bout a truce, then?"
"Promise?"
"Cross my heart," he said, motioning an "x" over his chest.
"Okay. Deal," Natalie said, taking a seat on his lap.
Fred smiled, brushing sticky strands of hair out of her eyes. "Look, you want the truth? Your dad can't see me, so it's not like making the effort would do any good. You know I can't be his friend, Fishface. We've been over this."
"I know, but I still think it's stupid that he can't see you." Natalie went quiet, staring at the floor.
"Me too, but I don't make the rules. Trust me, if I did there'd be a lot more fun." He bounced her on his leg, grinning as he watched her crack a smile.
"Hey, Fred?" she asked.
"What? Are we playing Twenty Questions today?"
Natalie looked him straight in the eyes. "You're really a grown up, aren't you?" she asked.
Concern filled Fred as he felt the uneasy shift inside her from this topic. "Where would you get a twisted idea like that? Have your dolls been spreading rumors again?"
"Because you look like one and you use to be human."
"Oh. Well..." Fred felt Natalie's anxiety cut through him like a rift. Part of his connection with children worked so well because they could see him like one of them. Thanks to revealing his secret, if Natalie could only think of him as an adult it would break their bond and he'd never get to help her in the ways she needed. Something Damion would certainly notice. He had to spin this in just the right way if he wanted to keep Natalie, and his magic already twisted with need to hold his connection with her.
"Yeah, but I obviously gave that up. Who wants to be a ruddy grown up forever? Not Drop Dead Fred! I get to be an imaginary friend, which means I get to be a lot like you."
"Really?"
Fred inched his face closer to hers. "Just how many boring grown ups do you know who play in the mud and fart at birds to scare 'em out of trees?"
Natalie giggled. "None."
"Then see, I'm not a grown up!" he said, wrinkling his nose at her as he smiled. "I'm just tall."
For a moment, Natalie thought this over, her nose scrunching. "Okay, I believe you," she chirped, sticking her tongue between the gap in her teeth. "But you did use to be one."
"Yeah, so? Are you gonna hold it against me?"
"No, but how old were you?"
"How old was I when?" he asked, amused.
"When you were a grown up, Dummy!"
"I was quite a few ages. You're gonna have to be more specific."
"Oh yeah? What if I just ask Lizzie instead?"
"Pfft! How you gonna ask Miss Invisible anything?"
"That's between me an' Lizzie," she said, crossing her arms. "You're really grumpy. I bet this means you were really old. Were you over sixty?"
Fred's eye twitched. "What?! Do I look sixty?"
"I don't know. I'm six. Are you what sixty looks like?"
"No! And I know what you're doing! You think you're clever and I'll just slip up and say how old I was!"
Natalie smiled and tilted her head. "So... does that mean you were married?"
"Ma- Married?! What?" He choked. "Excuse you! No!"
"Why not?"
"Because I didn't! What are you, the Short Inquisition?" he cried.
"Nope! But why weren't you married? I thought that's what grown ups did."
"That's not-"
"Were you born somewhere else?"
Fred flinched, beginning to feel whiplash from the onslaught of questions. "What? Why?"
"Because you talk funny. You sound like some people on TV."
"Maybe I just stood in line at the accent shop, hmm?"
"There's no such place!"
"Yeah huh!" Fred poked her shoulder.
"Nuh uh! You're being stubborn." She poked him back.
"That's your opinion. My mother always said it just meant I was a challenge." He rolled his eyes, but Natalie smiled, seeming pleased that he gave her some information.
"Hey, Fred. I have a secret to tell you," she whispered, bringing her mouth beside his ear. "She lied to you."
Pulling back, Fred's jaw dropped. "She did not!"
"Did you have any kids?"
"God, I hope not!" Fred's eyes widened until he noticed Natalie's bewildered expression. "I mean, no. Not that I know of." His voice lilted with doubt.
"What's that mean?"
"It means no, I didn't have any kids, and I'm cutting you off before you pass out from asking too many questions."
Natalie gasped. "That can happen?"
Fred looked her dead in the eyes. "I've seen it." Natalie clamped her hands over her mouth, making him smile.
"So, what do you wanna do today, Fishface? I've had enough of this serious talk. You and I need to go back to having a little fun," he said. "Hey, I know! Why don't we burrow into the Finch's backyard. Bury all the heads of their garden gnomes. Leave them all so their bums are starin' at 'em when they come out into the yard!"
Natalie beamed at Fred's enthusiasm. "Okay," she said, lowering her hands, "but can we play dolls first? Brittany really wants her leg back, especially since Skipper burned her pegleg."
Fred scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Oh, what's she really need it for? Ken took it because she deserved it after eating his pony. How else is he supposed to make his leg monster for revenge?"
"That's for me to know and you to find out." Natalie poked him in the chest.
"Oh yeah?" He lifted an eyebrow. "Fine, we'll play dolls, but I get to smash something. Promise?"
"Deal," Natalie said, grinning and holding out her pinky.
Fred couldn't stop his smile and took her pinky with his own, shaking on it. "Deal."
"Hey, Fred?"
"Oh, what? Another question already? You might pass out, Fishface."
Natalie pulled her hand back, worry lining her features. "It's the last one. I promise."
"What's wrong?"
"Why do you and Lizzie keep fighting?" she asked.
Fred blinked, her question stinging him with guilt and embarrassment. "It's... just how we play, Fishface. We're fine. I promise."
"I don't like it."
Fred didn't know how, but those few words from Natalie made him feel even worse. I really am a giant bastard, aren't I? "I'll... try to stop it, then. How's that?"
"I'd like that." She smiled, but Fred felt like he'd been filled with lead.
"Hey, I've gotta handle a wayward spook... Will you be alright for a bit?" he asked.
"Are you gonna make up with Lizzie?"
"Yeah," he said, smiling.
"Okay. I'm gonna go play with my dollies." Natalie hopped off his lap, took her bowl, and put it in the sink. "You guys gonna come play, too?"
"Yeah," he said, gently. "After I teach her some more stuff, you know, being new to the job and all," he said. "Tell your dolls I'll see them soon."
"You better not burn any more of their hair off," she said, voice quivering.
Fred chuckled. "I only promised to play dolls and smash something. We'll see how the mood strikes me." Winking, he vanished and rematerialized outside the room where he sensed Lizzie.
Standing with her back to the doorway, Lizzie watched Mickey. He sat on the edge of his bed, his focus on a picture he had taken only a few weeks ago. It was a snapshot of Lizzie sitting by herself on the grass, staring off in the distance. In that moment he'd caught her daydreaming, as she often did. He'd said she had looked so beautiful that he'd wanted to keep it. She smiled, remembering that day.
They had been at the park with Natalie and Mickey had brought his camera. The portraits he had intended on taking had become a fun and goofy photo session. Natalie had even taken some shots, ordering them to make faces for the camera. It had been one of the best days Lizzie had had in a long time and now her last happy memory.
They had been laughing when Lizzie had seen someone with a familiar head of red hair walking on the other side of the park. Frozen, she had watched the man who she knew in her heart wasn't Fred, but a small part of her hoped that it was him. Natalie's laugh had pulled her back and she noticed her talking to someone who wasn't there. Knowing it was Fred, but being unable to talk to him was torture for Lizzie- it was unfair.
If only she had known what would happen.
Now she had Fred, but had lost Mickey, leaving him unable to see his friend and wishing he could. Fate had a twisted sense of humor.
Be careful what you wish for, Lizzie.
"I miss you," Mickey whispered, sniffing back tears.
Guilt filled her and she pursed her lips, fighting tears. Why couldn't life be kind? She couldn't explain anything to him, help him, or even comfort him. She was a terrible friend. Walking over, she moved in front of him. "I miss you too, Mickey. I wish things hadn't ended up like this."
Leaning beside the opened door, Fred listened. His heart pounded so loud he worried Lizzie would hear. He could practically feel Mickey's grief and for the first time he allowed himself to feel sorrow for him. Fred knew he was being a selfish bastard over Lizzie, but he knew how unbearable it felt to lose her. He had come so close to being right there with him, broken over her death.
He forced himself to remain still, an undeniable part of himself needing to hear what his Snotface would say when she didn't know he was listening.
Lizzie kneeled in front of Mickey, looking up into his face. His gaze remained on the photo. "I'm so sorry, Mickey. I wish I could tell you so you could know that I'm okay." Her voice broke, his pain so tangible she felt it like it was her own. "I wish you didn't have to go through this. One day... I know one day you'll be able to look at that photo without feeling this way. It'll take some time, but you'll be alright. You have Nat. I know she'll be okay. She has Fred and me." Lizzie sobbed. "I'm so glad she knows. I couldn't stand for her to be hurt like this. She's such a good kid. She deserves to be happy. You both do."
Mickey broke into another sob, brushing his thumb over the image of Lizzie's face.
"Don't cry, Mickey," she said, reaching out and grabbing his wrist. He didn't react and her heart broke again. She bowed her head, tears spilling. "I wish you wouldn't cry. I'm right here."
Their crying mingled in the room and Lizzie let herself weep with the man who had been such a good friend to her. "Please don't cry. I'm going to be okay." She gave his wrist a squeeze and released her hold. She wiped at the tears on her cheeks. "Hey, you wanna hear something nuts? I'm gonna be an imaginary friend just like Drop Dead Fred. Remember all those crazy things Fred would do? I get to do that now. I'll get to help a kid someday. Maybe even a little boy like you used to be. I know that-"
She pursed her lips, looking down for a moment. Taking a deep breath, she looked back up at him. "I know that you wanted more. We had talked about it and I wasn't ready. You were so great. You never demanded an answer, never pressured me for more. You were what I needed. I'm sorry I wasn't what you needed." She sniffed.
At hearing that, Fred smiled, relief flooding him so strongly he could have floated away. He couldn't understand why, but it was the happiest news he'd heard since that twat Damion said Lizzie could become an imaginary friend. She hadn't wanted Mickey, but Fred's relief slowly died.
Wait a tick. Why am I gushing over this? I never gush. Why am I even thinking about gushing?!
"I wished I was what you needed," said Lizzie. "Maybe things would be different." She thought of Fred and how he had been so broken over her nearly dying. If she had chosen Mickey would she and Fred have been separated forever? She couldn't make them both happy. "I did want to stay with you and Natalie. I wanted a happy family, something I never had. I was... I was afraid. I couldn't let you in." Tears welled in her eyes, but she forced them back. She needed to say everything, even if Mickey couldn't hear her.
"I think I knew we were always better as friends. You're amazing, Mickey Bunce, and I know that someday soon someone will see that. They'll love you the way you deserve, the way that Nat deserves, and you'll have that happy family you've always dreamed about. One of us should. Go live the life we both wanted for us, okay?" She gave him a watery smile. "I'm going to live my new life. Fred's going to take good care of me, I promise. He always does." When he's not driving me up the wall.
In the hallway, tears shone in Fred's eyes. Lizzie had lost more than he'd realized. She hadn't just died and fallen into a new life with six egomaniac gods threatening her existence; she'd lost her future. She'd lost every dream she'd had for herself and the people she'd loved. He couldn't imagine what that might be like, not when he'd never had any of those things himself. Not since he was so small the memories blurred and felt out of reach.
Or he'd shoved them down so hard they seemed forgotten...
Wrapping his arms around himself, Fred smiled through his sorrow. She really does care for everyone, doesn't she? Good ol' Snotface, worrying about Fartpants. Trusting me to do right by her... Carrying on when she's lost it all... and left with me tearing it up even worse...
Pulling back from the doorway, Fred whispered, "I'll make it right, Lizzie. I promise."
Suddenly feeling guilty for eavesdropping, Fred blinked away to sit at the bottom of the stairs.
Standing, Mickey wiped his eyes and placed the photos on the dresser, leaving Lizzie's on top. He caught a glimpse of his face in the mirror and frowned. "Clean yourself up. Natalie needs you to be strong." He rested his hands on the edge of the dresser, bowing his head in silence. Taking a deep breath, he stood up straight, facing his reflection. "Be strong. Your daughter needs you," he said, turning for the bathroom. After several minutes he walked out, face clean, only his slightly red eyes betraying that he had been crying. Leaving the bedroom, he headed downstairs.
"Go get 'em, Mickey," Lizzie whispered. She felt proud of him, but it still hurt to think that he had to go through this alone. Losing your best friend was terrible. She thought of her own best friend downstairs. It seemed silly to fight, but he kept trying to pretend he was emotionless when she knew darn well he wasn't. Sometimes he made her so frustrated and angry. He had never shared anything about himself until recently; would he ever completely open up to her? She thought of her words to Mickey.
'I was afraid. I couldn't let you in.'
Perhaps Fred was scared, too.
Lizzie sighed and left the room. Time to face him, she told herself, slowly heading downstairs, lost in her thoughts of what to say to him. She made it halfway down before she realized he sat at the bottom step. Lizzie froze.
"Oh. Why aren't you with Nat?" she asked.
"Just thinking about some things... Fishface ran off to play dolls anyway, and I wasn't up for it yet. She never likes me to burn their hair off. It's so boring, unlike how you and me use to play."
Lizzie shook her head. "I can't understand why she wouldn't want to let you destroy her dolls." She took a seat on the step beside him. "You know, some little girls actually like their dolls and don't want them burned at the stake for being a witch."
"Well, you did." He grinned, wickedly. "That one was great! We set your mum's curtains on fire and she wanted my head so bad she was spitting. Really, she should've been honored we burned her in effigy." He snorted, laughed, and bumped his shoulder against Lizzie's. "I'll never forget that... Wasn't all my idea, you know. If you remember. So I don't see why it's so hard to believe someone else out there could be just as fun as you. Or a pyromaniac." Fred winked and Lizzie laughed at the memory.
"She wanted me to learn about history," Lizzie remarked. "It's just unfortunate for her you picked a book on the Salem Witch Trials from the library." She shook her head. "I don't know if she ever forgave me for setting her curtains on fire."
"Yeah, well I might've picked it on purpose. Inspired by the biggest witch of 'em all." Fred laughed. "She kept sending you to bed without supper. I felt like a little payback."
Lizzie stared, her mind on the memory. "My mother never understood me. She tried to put all her ideas of what a proper, little girl should be like in my head, but I couldn't be that." She sighed. "Even when I wanted to, when I tried so she would love me it never made her happy. Only angry." She looked over at Fred. "So, yes, I didn't mind burning those dolls she kept buying, or ruining those frilly dresses. I think sometimes I wanted to get back at her for never listening to me. Nat's different, but she's just as fun as me." Lizzie tried to give him a big grin, but she knew it fell short.
"No one's just like you," Fred said, carefully. He felt like there was more he wanted to say there, but the exact words escaped him. "And I understood you perfectly. Felt everything you went through, but... I didn't need a magical connection to figure you out. Just had to listen." He offered a smile and squeezed his hands together. "So... what is it you're really wanting to say right now, Lizzie?" His expression fell serious as he looked her in the eyes.
"I don't know," she said, looking away. Opening up felt so difficult. Letting people see inside only let them hurt her with it.
"Yes, you do," he said.
Lizzie blinked. Something about those words felt so familiar, but she couldn't place why. "It just hurts, Fred," she said, wiping at her eyes. "I can't be with the people I care about. Mickey, Natalie, Janie... they all have to live life without me in it. And my mother..." Lizzie's voice shook. "She should care the most and she doesn't! I just know she doesn't, but a small part of me still hopes she does. It's stupid."
"It's not stupid, Lizzie," he said, gently. "She is. Not you." Fred wanted to say more, to lie about Polly, but he just couldn't. He felt that would be the cruelest thing of all to do to Lizzie, but he would never tell her the words he'd heard from Polly at her deathbed. "I... can't imagine what you're going through... but I wanna help. Um..." Fred looked down at his hands. "I'm... sorry for being... constipated." He grimaced at the admittance, but he knew he had to force himself to open up for Lizzie. "I... do have feelings... sometimes... and, and I do care. A lot... About you."
Lizzie's brows rose in surprise and she turned her head to look at Fred. She couldn't believe he had allowed himself to say so much. "I... Thank you." She sniffed. "You know what she's like. It hurts to have the people who are supposed to love you treat you like they don't. I learned early on no one was going to... so I just decided I would let people in only so much." She looked in his eyes. "Like you. You know my reason..." she said, clearing her throat. "Why are you the way you are?"
"Oh, that's a loaded question," he said, chuckling, but it died when he looked back in her eyes. He knew he had to tell her. If they were really best friends he had to give her a lot more than he had been. Well, she said she wanted to be there for me, too... Fred felt his heart beat faster and he reached up, scratching the back of his head.
"I... lost two people very close to me when I was very small. After them, no one ever treated me right again... Ever..." His voice softened, but Lizzie heard its tremble.
She stilled, not even breathing loudly in case it made him stop.
"I was turned away a lot after them. I tried to change things, but I was helpless and angry... No one cared, or wanted me, and eventually, I guess I figured if I said how I really felt to anyone ever again that the universe would somehow swallow them up and never let me see them again... I learned to move on. From everything. To forget them like they forgot me." Fred paused, taking a deep breath.
Lizzie's eyes widened. A part of her had suspected he had had a rough childhood, but to hear it from him made it real and it broke her heart.
"Well, I guess that's a lie," he added. "I did think someone at least cared later on, and I let 'em in a little, but... I was really wrong. Really, really wrong." Pain flashed across his face and he pursed his lips, fighting it back.
Lizzie felt gutted. Fred knew what it was like to not have people love you and to hold them at arm's length. Yet, he had been worse off, because he learned the hard way how people could hurt you and the pain inside his eyes tore at her. He looked like he had ripped out his own soul in telling her and she reached out, placing her hand over his.
She wondered who else had hurt him so much. Anger fought within her and also, surprisingly, jealousy. Had a woman hurt Fred? Not wanting an answer to that, she focused on comforting him.
"I can't even tell you how sorry I am," she whispered. "What happened to you was... awful. Was it... Was it your parents you lost?"
"Yes," he said, nodding his head. Fred finally looked at her again. Lizzie's touch comforted him, but it still scared him to open up so much, especially to her. "I was six when I lost them."
"Oh god. That's... I'm so..." She let go of his hand, hooked her arm through his, and leaned against him, trying her best to comfort him without words. "I didn't know. I'm sorry can't even begin to cover something like that."
Closing his eyes, Fred laid his head atop hers. "It's alright, Snotface... If it hadn't been for that and everything else, I wouldn't have ended up an imaginary friend... and I wouldn't have ever known you." He squeezed her arm, reveling in her closeness. He could have the worst pain in the universe, but her touch would still soothe it. "But... now you know why I'm so constipated." He forced a laugh, but Lizzie was still too shocked to smile at Fred's attempt at humor.
She shook her head. "I know people say they don't mind terrible stuff happening if the outcome ends up being okay, but this is not okay," she said, her voice thick with emotion. "How can it be okay to not have your parents?" She sniffed. "I'm grateful you're here, but to know the path that brought you here hurts." She gave a bitter laugh. "We're two broken kids who had awful childhoods and found each other. What are the odds?" Her strange dream from this morning echoed in her mind.
'Because we are always supposed to be together and we'll get it right this time.'
Lizzie's heart thudded. That was just a dream, she thought. Nothing more. Wasn't it?
"I don't know, Snotface, but I'm sure the odds aren't as great as us speaking before I died."
Lizzie drew him closer. She had forgotten about that revelation. What were the odds? She had never put much stock in coincidences, but all these things happening to bring them together had to mean something, but what? Was the universe pushing them together for some reason?
Tilting his face against Lizzie's head, Fred took in the sweet scent of her hair. It reminded him of the spring, comforting him, and he wondered how he'd never noticed it before. "We're just lucky, I guess, and... I miss them. It's true, but... that was nearly fifty years ago for me, and I know I'm where I'm meant to be now." He paused, struggling to find words that were good enough, to show what it meant to him that he finally had a friend who cared about him. "Erm. Thanks, Lizzie. It means a lot."
She smiled, touched by his gratitude and awed by another example of how he could surprise her with his honesty and maturity. Both of those words being used to describe Fred made her grin wider. It should all seem surreal, but instead it felt nice, and that thought surprised Lizzie. Damion's grating voice ran through her head.
'The man's saved your life, cared for you, broken rules for you, put up with this atrocious room... Are you saying you've never yearned for more?'
The ringing of the telephone shook Lizzie out of her reverie and she tuned in to the sound of Mickey's voice.
"Hello? ...Yes, this is him... Janie? Oh! Of course, L-Lizzie's friend Janie. Um, what can I do for you?"
Lizzie gasped. "Janie!" She hurried for the living room phone, grabbing the receiver, and nearly slapping it to the side of her head. Fred materialized beside her and, heads together, they listened in on the conversation.
"I stole your number," said Janie. "I managed to snatch it after using my spare key to get into Lizzie's apartment before her mother got the place on lockdown. This whole thing is just... such a shock."
"I still don't want to believe it," answered Mickey, "and Polly's just-"
"The biggest bitch in the universe," Janie finished.
Lizzie smiled. It was so like Janie to speak her mind, especially about her mother. She wanted to say something, anything to Janie, but she knew it was useless and that made her miserable. It only reminded her that her old life was over.
"Yeah, that sums her up," said Mickey.
"Yeah. Too bad we're not burying her... So how you holding up?"
"Honestly? I'm just trying to get through today," he said, sighing. "Um, how about you? Are you doing okay?"
"I feel like I've lost a sister, and... well, there's still times I don't believe it." Janie's voice trembled, but she tried to cover it with a laugh.
Tears sprung in Lizzie's eyes. It tormented her that her friends were hurting so much and she couldn't console them. Janie had been her closest friend and the pain in her voice tore at her. Witnessing her unable to put her characteristic positive spin on this, hit Lizzie hard. Why did this have to happen?
Sniffing back tears, Lizzie's voice grew brittle. "You were a sister to me, too. I'm so sorry I never told you." She felt Fred's comforting hand press against her shoulder.
"I can imagine," whispered Mickey. "I'm so sorry... I can't- I can't believe she's gone..."
Janie's voice broke when she tried to speak and silence followed.
"Oh god..." Lizzie breathed, her hands shaking as they gripped the phone. "Janie, I'm so sorry."
"...I've got the details of the funeral if you're ready for them," Janie said. "Polly wasn't going to invite us, but I'm a bigger bitch than she is when I want to be. I'm not letting her cut us out. Lizzie was family to us, too."
Lizzie inhaled, her body shaking with grief. She couldn't hold back her tears any longer. "I miss you so much, Janie! I'm sorry I can't be there."
"I swear to god I cannot believe Lizzie came from that woman," said Mickey. "Thanks for standing up to her. I know how exhausting it can be." He sniffled. "Um, let me get a pen..." Mickey rummaged loudly through a kitchen drawer. "Okay," he said at last. "Ready."
"So, it's this Saturday," said Janie, clearing her throat.
"This Saturday? Two days? God that's so quick. Polly sure doesn't waste time, does she?"
"And waste time having an emotion instead of making a presentation? Are you kidding?" Janie cried.
Lizzie managed a teary laugh. "You know her so well."
"Yeah," said Mickey, "she'd probably televise it if they would let her. At least she's not suing anyone..."
"Oh, yes, so she could play the grieving mother and weep delicately into a handkerchief." Janie growled. "It's at Lakewood Cemetery. Ten o'clock."
"Got it. Thank you, Janie, thank you so much for doing this."
"It's what Lizzie would've wanted," said Janie. "I'll see you Saturday morning."
"Yeah, she'd want the people who actually love her there... Nat and I'll see you then. Bye, Janie."
The click of the telephone returning to the receiver rang in Lizzie's ears like the tolling of church bells.
She couldn't move and she squeezed the phone so hard she could no longer feel it in her grasp. All at once her body felt heavy and numb. The sound of the dial tone from the receiver still pressed against her ear drowned in the rush of blood through her ears. She could barely comprehend it all. Those dearest to her were hurting over her, missing her, and now they were going to her funeral. The word echoed in her head over and over. All she could see was people dressed in black and her mother standing before everyone, telling them how her daughter had been such a disappointment. Lizzie felt sick. The receiver dropped to the carpet with a muffled thud.
She was dead. As far as the world around her was concerned, Elizabeth Cronin was dead.
The room seemed to tilt and Lizzie sunk to her knees. She couldn't focus, felt cold, and the only coherent thought she had was, I'm dead.
"Snotface, it's gonna be alright." Fred fell to his knees before Lizzie, gripping her shoulders. How was it every time he thought he had patched her back together even just a bit something came along to smash her into even more pieces? His own heart broke again and at this point he was sure it was irreparable.
"We... We don't have to go, you know," he said. "I'm sure I can finagle it where Nat will be okay without me going. I'll just stay here with you, or we can go somewhere else. Anywhere you like; anywhere you've always wanted to see. Just name it." He couldn't stop himself from making promises, feeling that if he kept talking that it would keep Lizzie from hurting so deeply, that he could pull her out of her sorrows.
Aware of Fred, she tried to focus on his words, but it sounded like he was trying to speak to her over the rumbling of thunder. She felt him gripping her shoulders, but the sensation seemed off, even dulled. "Am I going crazy?" Her heart pounded. Her voice sounded far away to her. She felt like she was becoming invisible to everyone, even Fred, and panic rose within her, but she seized the emotion. It made her feel alive.
At last she noticed Fred before her and saw his concern. He had to be able to see her. Lizzie reached out, touching his face and slipping her fingers along his cheeks. She felt the coolness of his skin and sighed. He was real and he knew she was real. Everything seemed to jump forward in her mind as though all the events played out at once and it overwhelmed her again. "I'm not okay." She whimpered as she fell forward, clinging to him.
Catching her, Fred wrapped her tight in his arms and pressed his head atop hers. Though his grief and need to help her was strong, he'd never felt so helpless. He swore he could feel everything she did, despite his magical connection to her having been severed, and it was agony. His Snotface was broken, and he didn't think he could fix it this time.
Gently, he stroked her back, rocking her as he had when she was small. "I know, but I've got ya, Snotface. I'm right here," he whispered, "and you're not crazy."
Lizzie clung harder to him. He was her anchor and she desperately needed him to keep her from slipping into insanity. "It just hurts. I'm dead as far as Mickey and Janie are concerned, and hearing them-" She took a shuddering breath. "They're hurting too and it kills me." A small sob escaped from her lips and she buried her face against Fred's chest. "I don't want to be dead."
Fred squeezed her. "You're not dead. I'll... We'll find a way to let them know you're okay," he said. He knew it was against the rules, but his heart ached too much for her and his mouth ran ahead as always. "We can find a way without outright telling them. There's always loads of ways around rules."
Lizzie sniffled and looked up at his face. He always tried his best to help her and the thought assuaged her aching heart. "I know I have this... second chance and I'm not dead, but just knowing that Mickey and Janie think I am is awful." She sniffed again. "I wish I could tell them, but... won't, won't there be trouble?"
Fred's nose crinkled with his smile. "With me there's always trouble," he said, gently tapping his forehead to hers. "You know I love it."
Lizzie gave a small laugh. "I know and if it's anything like when I was little, I'll get all the blame." She made a face. "Thanks, Fred. I can't imagine my life without you." She hugged him tightly.
"Good because I swear I'm not letting you outta my sight again. You obviously can't go anywhere without me," he said, squeezing her back. "Now. I think we've had enough breaking down today. You've cried; some poor bastard in the backyard melted... How 'bout you come watch me play with Nat to learn some new tricks?" He grinned, wiping her tears away.
"Alright, alright. I'm sorry my life has turned into a soap opera that includes death and imaginary friends and insane amounts of tears," she said, laughing. "Let's go reenact the Spanish Inquisition for Natalie with her dolls." She got to her feet. "Come on, let's get rid of the nonbelievers." Lizzie turned and started walking toward the stairs.
Popping to his feet, Fred laughed. "Sounds just like old times already. Oh, how I missed this," he said, rubbing his hands together. He started after her, but a swirl of magic yanked him away.
In a flash, Fred reappeared inside the hallway closet. He'd know it anywhere; he and Natalie hid in it all the time.
"What the-"
"Hello, Fred Darling," said Enzo, decked out in a cotton candy-colored jacket, skirt, and pillbox hat. He smiled at him, looking like a very strange version of Jackie O. Completing his ensemble, were a brunette wig, styled in a bob, a pair of white gloves with matching heels, and a pink purse.
"What?" Fred's eyes went wide, trying to take it all in. What was going on? Enzo? He was in a closet with Enzo? He never came to the real world - none of them did. Fred felt more confused than on the day he'd died. "I'm not snogging you in here or anywhere else, so bugger off!" he shouted. Fred tried blinking away, but his magic fizzled.
Oh god. His heart leapt. I can't get to Snotface. He's bound my magic.
"What'd ya do to my magic?" he cried, pointing at Enzo. "Let me go. I'm no man's closet hostage."
"Oh, shush. Is that any way to speak to your future mother-in-law?" he asked, patting his coiffed hair. "I'm checking up on my baby. I have been beside myself trying to make sure you two don't get in trouble with the sourpuss upstairs. Do you any idea what a busy morning I've had distracting Damion from you two? You are making my job so difficult. I thought I'd have to beat you with a shovel. Now, you listen to what I have to say, young man."
Fred blanched. Mother-in-law? Baby? Young man? "Are you bleedin' high? No one's getting married and you don't have any children! And no, your dolls don't count!" He looked Enzo up and down. Maybe he'd finally cracked all the way? Fred worried Enzo was two steps away from sitting on a rock and waiting for it to hatch. Oh god. Please don't let Enzo be here to adopt me.
"Look, Mother Goose," Fred continued, "I don't know why you're helping us, but I'd like to get back to Lizzie and her training. So, can we forget whatever's going on here?" The thought of Lizzie alone made him apprehensive, and learning that Damion was trying to spy on them also confirmed one of his worst fears. Fred's mind flashed to Lizzie's admittance that Damion had visited her... Was this more of his game?
Enzo sighed dramatically, his eyes turned toward the ceiling. "Honestly, sometimes I wonder what my darling girl sees in you. Must be your humor." Enzo eyed Fred's hair and bright suit, and his nose wrinkled at the sight. "No accounting for taste. I'll have to be in charge of wardrobe for the nuptials." He laughed, a high pitched sound that could break glass. "There I go again, getting carried away. First thing's first..." Enzo gazed at Fred, eyes closed to slits. "You need to be very careful in the future. I cannot keep the Overlord of the O.O.W. busy every waking moment! You need to train my Elizabeth and you need to do it with all haste! I can't keep sending you notes everytime you start going off the rails!" Enzo huffed. "So impetuous."
Fred winced. Enzo was giving him a headache. He wasn't supposed to get headaches anymore, but he had one just the same. "Hold on a moment..." he said, pinching the bridge of his nose as he tried to think. This isn't right. I should be the one causing the headaches.
"So you've been keeping that boil from spying on us all morning? Why? What the hell does Damion want? You've never cared one whit about me since I became an IF and suddenly you're sending me love letters when I'm trying to train Lizzie? What's your interest in this? And- Wait, what nuptials?!" Fred flung his arms out so hard he smacked the wall. "Ow!"
Rubbing his temples, Enzo sighed. "This is going to take some time, I see." Taking a deep breath, he lowered his hands and clasped them in front of himself. "Where to begin... Freddy, darling boy, you have a very important job right now and it's not being an imaginary friend to that adorable, little blonde girl. You need to train Elizabeth and you need to do it well. I need all your focus for this. My interest is your interest. It's mutual interest." Enzo whispered the last part. "And of course, I care," he said in his normal tone, looking offended. "I mean, I care more about Elizabeth, but you rank a close second. She's such a fragile thing. She really brings out the nurturer in you. It's rather touching." Enzo dabbed his eyes.
Fred gaped at Enzo, feeling his face warm under the intensity of his horror. Enzo had seen him fall apart over Lizzie in the backyard. Fred suddenly wanted to spit in his pink hat. He'd barely handled letting Lizzie see his tears, and now he'd apparently had an audience? What else had Enzo seen? Did he know about Lizzie's unexplained trick and her exhaustion? Did Damion know? All of the Other Otherworld? He felt so mortified he couldn't speak, a first for him.
"Oh, but back to the matter at hand!" continued Enzo. "Damion is... Damion. Does he really need a reason to stomp around and smash your best china to bits?" Enzo's voice rose five octaves. "No! He's a bully and a monster and a tea party wrecker and a terrible dresser! So who cares what he wants or doesn't want! We need to beat him at his own game!"
Fred felt his mind doing laps just to keep up and his anxieties rose along with Enzo's voice. "Wait, so you're against Damion and want to help us?" He grabbed his head. "I swear I feel like I've taken a hit off something rank..." Why did Enzo care so much, especially for Lizzie? It was unlike any of the gods to get so involved, let alone side with him.
"And for your information, Lizzie does have all my focus," Fred added. "We just... It's the first day. There's gonna be kinks." He rubbed the back of his neck as if it would squash his fears. "So... are you saying I have your permission to put Lizzie over Natalie right now?"
Studying Fred in silence, Enzo tapped his gloved finger against his lips. "I don't know if I believe you. You seem to get distracted..." Giving Fred a shrewd look, he eyeballed the loud imaginary friend who had helped turn the Other Otherworld upside down. "But to answer your question, no. Unfortunately, the big, bad brute upstairs would notice if you began focusing all your attentions on Elizabeth and let Natalie fall to the wayside. I'm fabulous, but I'm not that fabulous." He brushed his hair off his face with a flamboyant flick of his wrist. "You need to reign yourself in for a change and try harder for my dear, sweet Elizabeth's sake."
"I am-"
"Tut! Tut! I'm not finished yet," Enzo said, waving a finger. "This is serious. We're on a timeline here, Freddykins, and in case you forgot, the man with the clock is a vindictive bastard. Which reminds me..." He straightened his jacket and stood tall.
"Fred, I appreciate that you are close to young Natalie, but you cannot be spilling all the details of Lizzie's situation. She is a child, and a girl! What do children and girls do? They talk! We can't help it! One wrong word and everyone is looking at the sweet, little poppet like she's grown two heads and then what comes next? Talking to doctors and nasty pills! This is supposed to be a covert operation and you're spilling your guts! If Damion finds out he'll use it against you, and Lizzie! Do you want her snatched away by that- by that fiend? I don't!" Enzo all but screamed the last portion of his speech and his hat tilted precariously on his head. Sniffing, he straightened it, looking down his nose at Fred.
"It- Alright, maybe I've had a bit of trouble with controlling my mania last night and today, but I haven't had this much stress in years! Even when I did, I was high. I'm doing my best here," said Fred, but inside he waged against the guilt Enzo's words inflicted. He knew he was right. He'd messed up and broken one of the major rules of the Other Otherworld, and if Damion had seen... "I won't let it happen again," he said, quietly, looking down.
Enzo sighed, rolling his eyes. "Must you look like I just kicked your puppy? It makes it difficult to stay mad at you." He relaxed his posture and offered a smile. "I'm very glad you're taking this seriously instead of giving me the usual rigmarole. The things you yell sometimes. Oh, but let's not get off topic. You need to keep a lid on things and make sure you stay on task. Something's going on and this isn't just about your little incident in the backyard. Now, I'm on your side, Sweetiekins, and I've come to warn you."
Fred's face contorted with disgust at being called 'Freddykins' and 'Sweetiekins' in one fell swoop. If he tries to pinch my cheek, he's getting bit. "Warn me about what?" he asked.
"Damion's still convinced that he is right, and yes, yes, I know you're just friends..." Enzo rolled his eyes and fanned his fingers dramatically. "But you've learned a new trick you're not suppose to be able to do, and my Lizzie's got one of her own."
"You know you'd come off a lot more believable if you didn't roll your eyes when you said that! Of course we're just friends. How clear do I have to put it? She doesn't make me weak in the knees. How's that? I don't see stars? I'm completely dormant downstairs!" Fred rolled his eyes now and scoffed, but his deflection was more to hide his concerns at the mention of Lizzie's unexplained ability. "Anyways, what're you going on about? I haven't got anything new. Hadn't had the time to come up with anything." Fred twisted a finger inside his ear.
"Oh, Fred Dearest..." He tsked. "What am I going to do with you?" He slapped Fred's hand. "Don't stick your fingers in your ears. That's disgusting. I should send you to finishing school." Enzo sighed. "Remember the shovel? You bestowed Lizzie with her powers, something IF's don't have the ability to do. Damion tricked you into a test."
Fred froze, feeling that Enzo had slapped more than his hand. "Oh god... I, I did, didn't I?" He paled. He'd done something only the gods could do. "I don't understand. How could I do that? I'm not a- I'm just an IF. Lizzie's just..."
Breathing hard, Fred fell back against the wall as the weight of the news sunk in. "We're both just IF's." He stared at Enzo, wanting answers, but also wanting to run. "Why did he give me that stupid shovel? What the fuck's Damion even testing me for? What's he think he's gonna find?" Panic and anger surged through him. He'd been so careful not to screw anything up over the past day and here he'd tripped at the beginning. Damion had tricked him and used Lizzie to do it. "Is, is that why Lizzie got so exhausted today? She's not still a bit human, is she? Did I... Did I screw it up? Did I break her?"
"I hate to be so cliché, but it's complicated," answered Enzo. "Your bond with Elizabeth is a threat to him. I've been trying to keep him away from you both because, frankly, I think he's an ass, and I much prefer you and Elizabeth to him." He smiled, warmly. "It doesn't matter what he thought he would find, the point is he did find something." He paused, giving Fred a look. Clearing his throat, he continued. "No, Lizzie isn't human anymore and having powers she's not supposed to have took a toll on her, my poor, sweet angel." He glared at Fred. "You better make sure you take care of her! She better not get sick or end up in the hospital!" Enzo cleared his throat again and smoothed down the front of his jacket. "But no, you didn't break her because if you had we wouldn't be talking. I would have used that shovel to beat you and bury your body."
"Hey!" Fred popped back up. "I've done more for her than anybody. Haven't you seen her mother? Or that prick she married? I'm the only one who ever did any right by her, and I've been running myself into the ground trying to keep everything else from breaking her more, thank you very much." He rolled his eyes, but Enzo's words caught up with him.
Our bond's a threat to Damion and he found something? Icy dread filled him and Fred realized he had to be a lot more careful than he'd originally thought. He still couldn't guess that god's game, but whatever it was couldn't be good. What advantage could he and Lizzie possibly have over him?
"I'm still a little unclear..." he said at last. "How's our friendship a threat to Damion? Why's he so bloody paranoid and thinking we're gonna shag each other rotten? And why are you so obsessed with Lizzie?" Fred shouted.
Enzo's eyes widened at his outburst, but he quickly grinned. "Yes, I've seen your devotion. The point is, so has the maniac upstairs. He's like a bloodhound after a scent and he's been a beast to distract. I don't know how many more times I can accidentally break or lose his monocle goggles." Enzo sighed, wearily.
"You are turning things even more upside down than they've already been and Damion doesn't like it when other people cause chaos. He has to be the one to do it. He has to pick the colors for the walls and he has to decide what holidays we can celebrate. I should be allowed to celebrate Coco Chanel's birthday! It's important!" Enzo sighed. "I can't even remember what I was saying now... That man is such a killjoy." He dabbed at his cheeks. "Oh yes..."
"Lizzie is special," Enzo said. "Not just because she's a darling girl who needs a mother, but because she can change things. She's already changed you. We need more girls in the Other Otherworld."
Fred's brow furrowed. Changed me? He looked down at his clothes, snorted, and then back at Enzo. "I don't know what you're talking about. I'm the same as I ever was, but you're right. She is special. I'll give you that." Fred slowly came to the realization that he wasn't going to make sense out of any of these revelations. At least not today. Damion might be up to his own tricks, but Enzo clearly had a game of his own.
"Alright," he said, "so other than making it abundantly clear that Snotface and I aren't shag partners, what else do we need to do? If I can just get her to pass her trials, she's safe, right?"
Pursing his lips, Enzo shook his head, his bobbed wig waving side to side. "No, I'm afraid it's not going to be so simple. Damion is going to do whatever he can to make sure she doesn't pass his stupid tests. You need every advantage and that's why I'm here."
Cupping his hands, magenta lights swirled above them, and Lizzie's old jack-in-the-box appeared in Enzo's hands. "Perhaps you can keep your extracurriculars in private so he can't see." He smiled, holding out the box. "Because you never can be too careful..."
Fred recoiled at the sight. He fucking hated that bloody thing and what it represented. "You get that thing away from me! There's no way I'm ever going back in there. It's a trick, isn't it?"
Rolling his eyes Enzo, shook his head. "Honestly, I think you've gotten more dramatic as time has gone by. Try to have some decorum, please." He let out a long sigh. "It's not a trick. This is going to help you. If you and Lizzie magic yourselves into the box no one can see you. You can train her, talk to her, and no one will be the wiser. Mr. I-Have-To-Win-At-All-Costs won't know what you're doing. Our magic does have rules and one of those rules states that our magic cannot penetrate boxes. There was a whole act established. It was very exciting. If you want all the details, ask Axel. He loves to go on about that bit of history."
"Yeah. He loves to go on about everything. Are you sure it's a real bit of history, though? He claimed he invented long johns once and tried to show me." Fred gave Enzo a look, but he felt himself relax. Though he remained cautious about him, Fred did feel a bit of trust growing toward the man. He hated to admit it, but he and Lizzie needed all the help they could get. Maybe Enzo wasn't so bad, but Fred still looked back at the jack-in-the-box with disdain.
"Alright, maybe I'll keep her training sessions to this thing and that way Damion can't get all excited if we trip or something." Taking the box, he scowled harder, turning it over a few times in his hands. So the thing that had separated them was going to help save them.
What a pile of shit, he thought.
"I'm still not exactly clear why you're helping us, but, uh, thanks. She would've already been smashed into oblivion if you hadn't stepped in, so uh, yeah. Thanks. For Snotface. She doesn't deserve this shit, you know? And she really will make an amazing imaginary friend once we're through this whole mess."
Enzo smiled, clapping his gloved hands together. "Oh, you're gonna make me cry," he said, fanning his eyes. "You can be such a dear boy when you want to be." Enzo reached out and patted Fred's cheek. "I believe in you both, so it's my great pleasure. Plus, sticking it to Damion is a bonus." Enzo giggled. "One last thing, Fred..." He leaned closer and whispered, "Dash the rules and follow your heart if you wanna go for it." Enzo winked, knowingly.
Spluttering, Fred's eyes bugged. "W-what?!" He couldn't mean... "I- What-" Fred couldn't finish his train of thought and it frustrated him to no end.
"Cronut got your tongue?" Enzo asked, unable to help himself. "I'm just letting you know you have my blessing to court my precious Elizabeth. You're both so very important. You're something the Other Otherworld needs. You've been an IF long enough to understand that. Our powers are all about will, who has the most, and whose is the strongest. Day one of Elizabeth's training and she's blinking out of trees and appearing to a child she's not assigned to? Think about it. That is very strong will right there and it happened because of your bond. This is something you don't see every day. I'm merely suggesting..." He shrugged, innocently. "There's a reason Damion wants you apart and it's not just the fear of you and Elizabeth becoming the new it couple."
Fred could only stare. Our bond's making our magic stronger and Enzo wants Lizzie and I to... date? He didn't know which idea sounded crazier. In fact, he worried he'd hit his head earlier when he'd fallen back against the wall.
Court Snotface? he thought. I've never heard of something so ridiculous! Oh god... His eyes widened. Is that what he bloody meant by becoming my mother-in-law?
Smashing himself against the wall to distance himself from Enzo and his insane aspirations, Fred chose his words carefully. "Erm... thanks, but Snotface and I are really just friends. I've known her since she was six. That'd be just a bit too weird for me. How big of a perv do you think I am? Plus, she doesn't- Wouldn't- We're just friends," he said, but he couldn't help noticing the doubt in his voice.
Bloody hell, he's messing with my head. I need to get outta here before I forget which way is up.
Enzo closed his eyes and shook his head. "Denial isn't pretty. You'll see soon enough that Mother knows best. You don't have to like it to know that I'm right." Enzo adjusted his little, pink hat. "I'm off, and remember, keep it in the box." He laughed with glee. Winking at Fred, he waved and flashed out of the closet in a swirl of magenta lights.
"He's utterly insane," said Fred, recoiling from the sparks of Enzo's magic and glancing down at the jack-in-the-box. Mud from the morning he'd been taken from Lizzie, still stained its walls.
"Denial!" He scoffed at it. "He doesn't know anything. I'm not in denial. He's just been sniffing the glue he bedazzles with too much." Fred shook his head. "Mother knows best... Puh-lease! You're wrong, and I'll wear a tutu the day I ever call you Mother!" He pointed at the ceiling and sighed. "The only thing that could make this day any worse would be if Namby Pamby showed up and sat on me. I've gotta get back to Lizzie."
Blinking the jack-in-box to a safe hiding place in the Bunce's attic, Fred vanished for Natalie's bedroom in a spark of green before anything else happened.
- 11
- 12
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