fandomtownies | Magic Box

Entry tags:

Magic Box | Tuesday

Wanda had vaguely been warned by Scott that the store might need some TLC at least in terms of accounting. So she went in expecting a little bit of a paperwork disaster. What she did not expect, however, was a delivery of 10 boxes filled with just...rubber chickens.

What did rubber chickens have to do with magic, Scott?

[Open]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"Yeah, I've been fine," Annie lied. She was trying to be fine, anyway. It felt pretty cruel to tell Wanda that she'd literally put Annie in therapy (though, that also wasn't fair to pin entirely on Wanda. There was something of a pattern leading up to all of that, even before.) And she also needed to tell Wanda -- everything, but that was going to take a delicate touch. (The reason she felt compelled to tell her at all was because this whole situation was delicate, really.) "Just got back from settling some stuff in Diego's universe, actually."

Where Diego's sister had reset the entire universe for her daughter. Big year for that whole vibe, apparently.

"Oh." From what Wanda could remember, that usually meant an apocalypse. "You didn't end up in the 60's again, did you?"

A very faint smile crossed Annie's features. "No, but we were in 2019," she replied. "Not long enough back to be all that novel. But there was a whole thing with paradoxes and time travel. Not as fun as getting to turn into paint for a hot second, maybe...."

Was that a joke? It was sort of like a joke. A joke's cousin, maybe.

"So just a normal visit back home," Wanda said dryly. "I'm glad you're okay. Diego too."

"Thanks." And that kind of segued right into the thing she needed to tell Wanda -- or she could just not, because it was still so early, but Annie also knew she wasn't going to be able to hide things for very long, and --

"There's something else," she said, visibly a little nerved up. She was probably going to need to go home and nap after this, since she could also feel the beginnings of a headache blooming at the base of her skull. "And you need to hear it from me before, like, radio gets it out there."

"Okay," Wanda said, immediately looking concerned. Even if she didn't really have the right to be concerned about Annie anymore. "Go ahead."

Annie glanced towards the windows and doors, fidgeting with her wedding ring for a moment just to have something to do with her hands. (She had, at least, uncrossed her arms from around herself.)

And she didn't like thinking like this, but she could tell there was enough electricity nearby to buy her some time if she needed to. Not that she expected Wanda to attack her or anything, but like -- she just didn't know what to expect.

"I'm pregnant," she said quietly, meeting Wanda's gaze. "Twins."

She was just trying to be sensitive, but Wanda needed to know that so she could process it on her own time, before Annie was lumbering around town or pushing a double stroller that might have belonged to Wanda in another universe.

If this had been six months ago, something like this probably would have sent Wanda into a spiral. She probably would have holed up in her apartment and studied the Darkhold even more to get what she wanted.

But now, after spending a lot of time thinking on it alone, and the horrified faces of Billy and Tommy looking at her never far away in her memory, she found she wasn't upset or jealous at all. A little wistful, maybe, but she accepted that life was never going to happen for her.

"That's great, Annie," Wanda said with a small smile. "Having twins--and being a twin is a special thing. I'm really happy for you."

And that small smile, matched with Wanda's sincerity, was better than any small-talky olive branch Annie could muster up. It felt like the first step to actually healing this rift, rather than just patching it over with avoidance or pleasantries.

Maybe this would be okay. Maybe, actually, they would be okay.

"Thank you," she said again, her smile a little wider this time. "We're pretty excited. I just -- I'm probably going to start showing soonish. Seemed like it would be a bad surprise."

Just for Wanda. Barring a couple of people who were being told ahead of time, most of Diego and Annie's friends and acquaintances did, indeed, get to be surprised. But most of their friends and acquaintances -- Wanda sort of defied categorization at this point -- hadn't lost their twin brother, or their twin sons.

Again -- Annie was hurt, and a very little afraid, and regretful. But she was still looking out for Wanda's feelings and wellbeing.

"I appreciate that, truly." The fact that Annie cared enough to break this gently to Wanda, even if Wanda hadn't needed the tiptoeing, meant a lot. "I hope everything goes smoothly. Well, as smoothly as it can."

She knew from experience that even after a short 24 hour pregnancy the labor part really sucked.

Barring any unexpected sitcom disasters, Annie hopefully had about seven months before she had to worry about that part. (But like, threats of bedrest and you're going to be very big had already been put out there, so she was also really not anticipating how much this was gonna suck even before the labor part.)

"So far, so good," Annie told her, flashing a real smile that turned just a skosh awkward. "I should probably...leave you to your chickens."

Not the amazing exit line she'd envisioned when she'd come in here, no, but oh well.

That drew a laugh out of Wanda. It was ridiculous to have this meeting around a bunch of rubber chickens but that was sort of why she had missed it here?

"I'll see you around, Annie." With her permission, of course.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Magic Box | Tuesday

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

nfb

Re: nfb

Re: nfb

Re: nfb

Re: nfb

Re: nfb