Here's a little Dark Bloom drabble that decided to come bother me tonight. Since it refused to let me go sleep in time not to be a zombie for work tomrrow, I decided to let it write itself out. It hasn't been beta'ed or even particularly carefully reread so there'll be a couple missing letters and such, courtesy of my laptop's broken keyboard. It likes being selective when I type.

Anyway, bunny's up for adoption as al my stories tend to be, since I'm guaranteed not to finish them. If I'm still in a Winx mood cme tomorrow night I might get around to writing a second chapter, no promises though!

Enjoy~

Bloom frowned a little as she looked at her friends. She was walking behind them, rather than in front for once, pretending she wasn't feeling well. Although, pretending wasn't exactly right... She was feeling unwell, but not because she'd caught the most recent bug on campus.

It was... weird, to see things going back to 'normal' almost immediately after the madness with Dakar was over with. Oh sure, they'd all acted concerned and whatnot for about two days, after which it was clear she wasn't about to sprout cat eyes again, and they'd all promptly stopped hounding her with questions.

While she appreciated the reprieve, the abruptness was strange to her. Then again, everything did seem alright now, even if it wasn't. She'd told them that she hadn't been aware during the time 'Dark Bloom' had taken over her life and actions under Dakar's spell, but that had been a lie to spare their feelings. She'd been fully aware, from the time she'd begun playing tricks and searching for the codex, to when she'd performed the chant to share the Ultimate Power with Dakar.

Though everyone thought things were okay, Bloom remained haunted by the memories and thoughts that plagued her. She was glad she'd been saved and had stopped Dakar's evil plan, but she'd been returned to a world that was but a shade of its former self. This was not through a fault of the world itself, but rather the way she perceived it now. Dakar's spell, though strong, would never have been able to reach her had she not had those inclinations in the first place.

The memory of dangling poor Timmy upside down still made her smile sometimes when she least expected it. Sometimes things would vanish, or a book Flora was looking for would mysteriously float behind her back, and she'd have to do all in her power not to laugh. Of course, if her other friends were nearby they'd ruin her fun all too quickly, but she simply shrugged and wondered aloud if Alfea wasn't hosting a prankster fairy of some sort. In a way, it was. Her.

Things like that continued to happen over the course of the month, bringing her to her place at the back of their group now as her friends walked ahead to the bus headed for Magix, planning on enjoying their free weekend. It was strange, seeing them talk and laugh like this from an outside perspective... She'd never noticed how closed off they were from the student population until she'd gradually begun pulling away from her friends. The other students would frequently stop to stare or whisper about them as they passed, which left her with an odd feeling in the pit of her stomach and made her clutch her book more tightly. She'd planned on reading on the road, but it was also convenient to hide behind.

The way the other students parted for them would have left an ashen taste in her mouth before, although she was aware that she'd never have noticed normally. Stella was used to such things, all but demanded it most of the time really, but when had the rest of them grown accustomed to such behaviour? They'd never felt like they were above the student population before, but they certainly acted like it.

Bloom covered a snort with a small cough.

Clearly the pure and light icons of the Winx Club were less light than they thought they were. She wasn't sure why that thought amused her, but it did. Stella was a bad influence. She was rude as well, for a princess. Stella wasn't the only royal in their group, but Aisha was by far the more docile one in comparison.

Shaking her head she stepped on the bus after the others, she hadn't even noticed them passing through the gates, so lost in thought was she. Bloom felt she had cause to be though. Her entire world had been turned upside down! So what if it had already been a month since Sky had proclaimed his love for her and saved her from Dakar's grasp? It's not like he was ever around for very long...

Even though she wished for his company to help stave off the darker turns of her thoughts, he was busy. Yet again this weekend, as they were going to be meeting up with the Specialists, Sky had business in Eraklyon to take care of. Sure, she knew he was a prince and next in line for the throne but surely he could at least make the effort not to sound like he was avoiding her?

She dug into her book almost grumpily on the way to Magix, only vaguely responding to Aisha and Musa's prodding. Stella was taking up front and centre conversation-wise anyway, so it wasn't really possible to talk about anything else, lest the princess would go into a snit about them ignoring her. Not that Bloom would pay such a tantrum any mind.

The trip took quite a while, but she was happy when she could bookmark her page, stuff it back into her backpack and exit the bus' stuffy atmosphere. The fresh air did wonders for the headache that had been slowly building. She hadn't felt this claustrophobic in a vehicle since that one school trip back on earth, where the popular clique had decided to take up the exact centre of the bus, and then proceeded to be as loud as possible for the entire duration of the two hour trip. She'd glared at them the whole way and was now somewhat horrified to realise she belonged to the magical version of such a clique. Her human half was decidedly displeased with the idea.

The trip itself was about as uneventful as a Winx trip could be, which is to say it was hectic and loud. The Specialists present certainly weren't very apt at reigning in their girlfriends. They'd spent about an hour each in a plants and a technology shop, then a following two in a music store and nearly three at the mall, courtesy of Stella. Aisha had merely longingly glanced at a sports store or two before sighing and leaving things be. Evening had been setting in anyway, and most stores would be closing in a few scant hours.

Deciding to settle down somewhere for dinner, they found themselves at a terrace adjoining a water fountain. And not just any fountain either, the very same she and her friends had meant to meet up at more than a year ago, when she'd first entered the realm of Magix and stumbled across the Trix. It felt like a lifetime ago.

She'd been working herself into the background the entire trip, so it was almost child's play to slip away as the girls made to head back to Alfea. Safe in the knowledge they wouldn't realise she was gone until at least half way through the bus ride back, she slipped into a nearby alley and grinned. She'd never been out on her own in Magix before, and she wanted to explore.

She knew the city pretty well though, despite its large size, as Stella had dragged them through every single mall Magix boasted at least once over the years. She'd also been advised which areas to avoid for fear of witches. Of course she'd have something to fear if she went there as she was, but a few small bits of magic would fix that little problem.

What Bloom was about to do she hadn't tried before, but she was confident she could pull it off. After all, if she could transform the pencils from her desk, why shouldn't she be able to transform herself? With a smirk she gathered her magic and let her arm dance from her waist, where her hair ended, to the top of her head, a fluid and graceful motion that had her hair changing from its usual fiery red to a dark burgundy. No one would see her from a distance and think 'Bloom' now.

Next she snapped her fingers and her usual crop top, the long pair of pants, and the short boots she'd decided to wear today turned a deep black. Focussing again the matte fabric of her trousers shifted and became leather, while the sleeves of her shirt lengthened to become something more flowing and elegant. Checking herself out in a nearby shop window she couldn't help but smirk. Damn, she looked good. She could absolutely pass for a witch, at that, which was what she'd been aiming for in the first place. Black looked so good on her that she was rather disappointed with the fact she wouldn't be able to dress like this around her friends. Maybe she could get away with a dark blue top?

Shaking the thought off she smirked and walked determinedly into one of the places she'd been explicitly warned against, the heart of the witches' territory in the city.

By magic she'd never felt so giddy before! Her smirk widened and a few witches scattered away from her. Bloom didn't even spare them a glance. This was what it was supposed to be like! Not part of some popular kids' clique everyone stayed away from just to be safe, but fearsome and seductive, a power to be reckoned with. Anyone with a good pair of eyes could see it as she walked through the fringes to the heart of the dark centre.

Her eyes eagerly swept over the storefronts, both surprised and not when she found much of it was like the lighter side of town, just in darker tones. Sure, there were some potions stores and shady corners but aside from that the place was quite normal. Such silly fairies, thinking all a witch could do was mistrust others and stab them in the back. Not all witches were like the Trix, although those three were prime examples of power and determination, something most other witches Bloom saw lacked. Especially the ones that jumped aside when she walked past, bringing a sneer to the usually genial fairy's face.

Spotting a clothing store, Bloom eagerly slipped inside to browse. She'd never seen so much clothing she liked before! Really, how her friends had never picked up on that despite her obviously limited wardrobe was beyond her. She may have gone on a little something of a spending spree, but it had been completely worth it! She knew she'd have experimented more with black back on earth had there actually been a gothic style shop anywhere near Gardenia. Not to mention the attire would have freaked her parents out, so she'd stuck to safe blue tnes instead. Indeed much of her new selection consisted of blues as well, but many were the kind of blue that looked black until the light hit it just right, revealing a myriad of blue shades.

There was also that one blue top that sparkled almost as much as her transformed outfit did, catching the dark lighting in a very pleasant way and giving her a seductive and dark appearance. Combined with her darker hair she looked absolutely stunning.

Bloom also indulged in some makeup to experiment with before deciding to call it a day. It had been a little over an hour and her friends would be in panic mode by now. With a reluctant sigh she headed out of the dark centre towards the bus stops, remembering just in time to turn her hair and clothing back before she caught any upstart fairy's attention or worse, one of her friends saw and recognised her! She'd been lucky as it was not to run into any of the Trix.

She caught a ride just as her phone started ringing, Stella's personal ringtone, Material Girl, playing loudly. Rolling her eyes she quickly picked up the phone to play the part of having gotten lost and then finding a small store to browse. She'd reportedly forgotten all about her cell phone and didn't bother mentioning it had taken the girls over an hour and a half to realise she was gone. They'd have made it back to their rooms by now for sure! Talk about being inattentive.

She shrank her charges and hid them away in her backpack as she waited to arrive back at Alfea. Madam Griselda was waiting for her at the gates, as by the time she'd made it back, curfew was in effect. By acting contrite and using the excuse of having missed her bus, Bloom quickly made it back to her dorm. Clearly the grouchy madam Griselda valued her sleep more than scolding yet another errant teenager tonight.

The moment she opened the door Bloom was ambushed by Stella, who was too busy fussing over her and apologising to let Bloom have a word in edgewise for a solid minute. When she was finally allowed to breathe Bloom was quick to soothe the girl's frayed nerves. Now was not the time she wanted to be under more intense scrutiny from them.

"Stella calm down please, it's not your fault. I'm the one who got distracted last minute instead of getting on the bus with you guys; I should've been paying more attention. I'll be more careful next time, I promise."

Clearly that did the trick, as the girls all calmed down and slowly tricked into their respective dorms for the night. It was nearing eleven 'o clock and they had homework to deal with tomorrow if they wanted to avoid trouble in classes come Monday.

Hope you guys enjoyed! It's been literal ages since I watched Winx Club though, so a few things might a be a little off and I wouldn't notice. I'm keeping the Wikia close though ;) Anyway, I'm off to catch some Z's, I'm gonna need them! I'd love to hear what you guys think so far by the way! Leave a review~