The next morning could not have come soon enough. Each and every day she had been waiting anxiously for the arrival of the mail. Every time her father would bring the mail in, she would grab it from him and shift through it, sighing in defeat when she saw what she wanted was not there.
But today, as she grabbed it from her father yet again, she squealed in delight as she saw two letters addressed to her. Not bothering to give an explanation to her confused family, she placed the mail on the kitchen counter before running upstairs holding her own. After a few minutes of silence, they heard a loud "YES!"
She was squealing so damn loud it would have woken up the whole neighborhood had it been night. They heard the stomping of feet, and even more squealing, and it didn't take long for the family to realize she was jumping up and down. Justin, who was curious, walked upstairs and entered Alex's room without asking. He couldn't suppress a laugh as he witnessed his baby sister dancing around the room like an idiot. The second she saw him, she ran over to him and wrapped him in a hug, shocking him to his core.
"Okay, who are you and what have you done with my sister?"
Alex just waved a letter in front of his face until he took it. Unfolding the paper, he gasped, "You signed Ava up to go to school?"
"Uh-huh! And look, right there! It's official!" She yanked it back from him and started jumping while clapping her hands excitedly, a bright smile on her face. He had never seen his sister this happy... ever.
"How did you even get the money to pay for that?"
She smacked him lightly across the arm with the letter, "Ava's Mom did it! We worked out a deal." She explained, "Avvie's always wanted to go to school, and now she can! Isn't this amazing, Justin?"
"What is going on here?" Theresa asked, appearing at her daughter's door. Alex ran over to her and wrapped her mother in a hug, "Oh, Mama, it's so amazing! It's so exciting! It's so..." She tapped her chin, trying to think of another word.
"Stupid?"
"What? How could you say that, Justin! It is not stupid to make Ava's life-long dream come true!"
Before any more questions could be asked, Alex gave the letter to Theresa, who couldn't help but smile herself, "You're right, this is amazing! How did you pull this off? You didn't use any magic, did you?"
"No. I just worked out a deal with her Mom. She pays for her to go to school, I do everything else."
"Which means...?"
"Pickup and drop-off, buying her supplies, going to those dumb parent-teacher conferences, that kind of stuff."
"That's a lot to handle... are you sure you can take care of that all on your own, mija?"
"Well, it was my plan to put her school in the first place, so there's really no backing out now." Then Alex paused, "Do you guys mind keeping this a secret? I'm planning to tell her this weekend!"
"No problem." Jerry agreed, "But if you need anything-- even a few extra dollars, you tell us, okay?"
"Wow, Dad's offering money?" Justin scoffed, "Did you charm them, Alex?"
"Thanks, but money shouldn't be too much of an issue." She assured, waving her father off.
"Wait, hold on... what's this other letter for?" Justin asked, opening it without any sort of consent. The brunette leaned over his shoulder, the two of them gaping at what was inside.
The letter fell from her hands and Alex sunk down onto the floor, "Shit." She cursed, "Shit, shit, shit!
"Alex..."
"That fucking bitch... I'm gonna kill her! She can't do this to me!"
"What? Did she pull out the money or something?" Jerry asked, "Honey... what's wrong?"
"That bitch gave me custody of Ava." Alex gulped, "I'm her legal guardian now."
"What?"
"I don't know what to do!" She burst out into tears, "I'm freaking out, Daddy, I'm scared." Then, there was a bright flash of white light and Ava was sitting in her lap.
"Godmother!" She greeted with a smile, "I wished to be where you were!" She announced, "I missed you."
"I missed you too, Blueberry." She smiled through the tears in her eyes, "I think you and I need to have a little talk." She pulled the child closer and looked up at her family, "Alone." They nodded and left the room instantly, leaving the two girls behind.
"Am I in trouble?"
"No, no baby girl." Alex reassured, "Gosh, how do I explain this? Um, y'know your Mommy? Colleen?"
"Yeah?"
"Well, Mommy Colleen says that she... she doesn't really-" She cleared her throat and shook her head, "She said she wants me to be your new Mommy." She bit her lip, "She sent me everything that would make you officially my... my daughter."
"You're gonna be my Mommy?" Her eyes lit up in disbelief, "Like... Like, I'd live with you? I wouldn't have to wish for you anymore? You'd give me hugs and make me food and we could spend lots and lots of time together?"
Alex nodded.
"Since you're my Mommy, can I call you Mommy?"
"I mean, if you want." The brunette shrugged, "No one's stopping you, kid."
"Mommy." The girl said, testing the waters. She looked up and locked eyes with her now-appointed Mother, "Mommy." She said again, "Mommy!"
"Avvie?"
"Yeah, Mommy?"
"It's gonna take a while for me to get used to this." The fairy godmother admitted, "So, just be patient with me, okay? Especially the whole "Mommy" thing. No, Avvie- you can keep calling me that, it's just, it's really new."
"Oh." Ava bit her lower lip, "Mommy! I have an idea!" She beamed, "I'll call you Mommy a lot so that things don't feel as weird! Is that okay, Mommy?"
"Yeah." Alex smiled at the child, "Yeah, that works. Now, why don't we head downstairs? Mama is making dinner."
"Really, Mommy, you are?"
"No." Alex shook her head, "Mommy's Mama."
"Oh!" Her eyes opened, "Do I have to call her Grandma now, Mommy?"
"You can call her whatever you like." She then lifted the child up to where she was standing on her feet. The wizardess got up herself and gestured for the girl to follow her. When they entered the loft, all eyes were on them.
"Guys?" Alex called out, a hand on the girl's shoulder, "Avvie and I have something to tell you."
