The sky was overcast and grey, dreary as ever. Sheets of rain poured down on the kingdom of Magix. In the forest just beyond Alphea, a blonde fairy loomed over her dying Fiancé. The tears falling from the sky mixed with the tears leaking from her eyes, creating a blurred line between the two. Princess Stella of Solaria held Brandon in her arms, and brushed a wet lock of brown hair from his forehead. She hadn't seen the Trix, but they saw Brandon. From the moment they got their hands on him, they used him to toy with her and bend her to their will.
She didn't think Icy would really try to pierce his heart, but she was wrong.
Now, with her Fiancé dying in her arms, she criticized herself for being so careless.
"Brandon," she said, trying to keep a steady tone in her voice, "Hold on. You'll be alright, you'll see." She tried to smile for him, but failed.
"Stella," he said weakly. She put a finger to his lips.
"Save your strength." She raised her hand and caressed his cheek with such tenderness that it almost seemed impossible. He leaned into her touch, his consciousness slipping away by the second. She pressed a cloth to his chest, trying desperately to stop the bleeding. Her hands were covered in orange, but she didn't notice as she tried to keep him alive. Throughout this point Brandon kept his focus solely on Stella's face. His ray of sunshine- he'd consider himself blessed if her face was the last thing he saw. He survived by sheer force of willpower. Slowly, though, his willpower was weakening. All to soon, he feared he'd fade into oblivion.
Sky came up from behind Brandon's head, kneeling over him, and put a hand on his squire's shoulder. Together, he and Stella shared a look. The desperate look in Stella's eyes made Sky cringe inside. She had always looked so strong and in control. To see her so shaken and beaten was something that made his stomach roil.
Behind Stella, the rest of the Winx stood with their respective mates and pixies, watching the depressing scene. The pixies had gathered beside Stella, Amore keeping close to her fairy. Flora buried her face in Helia's neck. Musa gripped Riven's shoulders from his front, looking over her shoulder at the tragic couple. Tecna had one hand laid on Timmy's shoulder as she felt the sorrow overcome her. Bloom, who had been standing with her friends, moved and squatted behind Sky, putting two hands on his shoulders. Stella squeezed his hand, attempting to be reassuring.
"Just hold on, Brandon. Everything's going to be alright. You'll see. You're going to be just fine." Unwillingly, she shifted her eyes from him to Bloom.
"Can you heal him, Bloom?" She asked, desperately. Bloom looked into the eyes of her depressed best friend. This was it. She was the last line of defense. They were all counting on her. She had to rise to the occasion- she couldn't afford to be a shrinking violet. Confidently, she went to the side opposite Stella and transformed. She placed her hands on Brandon's chest.
"Stella," Brandon choked out. The sadness in his eyes indicated his time was up. "I love you..." Just before Bloom's hands touched him, his hand went limp in hers and his eyes shut as he breathed out for the last time. Stella shook uncontrollably and began to sob.
"Brandon! Brandon, look at me! Please look at me, please!" She shrieked, taking his face in her hands. Bloom took a deep breath as she let her magic flow through her. All of her healing energy went through her into healing Brandon and making him alive. The glow surrounded her body and radiated light and hope. Stella squeezed his hand.
"Please," she whispered, "Please don't take him. I love him." Amore flew over to Stella, sitting on her shoulder and crying. Unconsciously, Stella nuzzled her, sniffling. Brandon's body began to glow, and everyone held their breath. When the glow went away, the wound went away, and Stella watched his chest begin it rise and fall with tears of joy. His eyes remained closed, however.
"Why hasn't he woken up?" Stella asked, scared.
"It's from blood loss." Helia piped up. "He'll wake up after they get him back to normal."
Stella stood up and transformed, and with a wave of her scepter, teleported them all to the nearest hospital.
While some of the fairies chose to go home, knowing that Brandon and Stella were now safe, many of the specialists stayed. Timmy was the only one who went to take the fairies home to Alphea and report back to headmaster Saladin. Stella stayed behind, along with Bloom and Sky. The room was quiet, other than the sounds of breathing. Stella never let go of Brandon's hand. Sky and Bloom exchanged concerned glances.
Bloom had fashioned herself into a sort of mediator. She could feel the waves of worry and stress radiating off of both Stella and Sky. Stella was worse by far. She swung the emotional pendulum between bleak fear and slight hope. It was a torrent of emotion that threatened to eat her alive. Bloom sat next to Sky and had her arm around him, but never took her eyes off of her friend.
Stella replayed the days events in her head, ruminating over the same terrible scene. Darcy's psychokinesis had knocked Brandon's sword from his hand. Before he could reach it, Stormy sucked him into a tornado. When he was spat out, dazed and unable to defend himself, Icy towered over him and put the Icicle in his heart. The way he screamed would be a sound burned into her memory until the day she died. With that, all cohesive thought had stopped, and she'd gone into autopilot. She blasted the Trix away and flown down to Brandon's side, transforming back to herself. She tore off part of the bottom of her dress with her bare hands and used it to try and slow down the bleeding. The rain had turned the dirt into mud, making her filthy as she stayed beside him. She hadn't noticed the blood on her hands. Her legs were covered in mud, her hands in blood, as she tried desperately to hang on to her sanity for him.
Now, sitting in the cushioned hospital chair, she was filthy and sopping wet. She didn't notice how cold she was, and she hadn't noticed when a nurse sympathetically draped a blanket over her shoulders. Her eyes stayed locked on Brandon's face. As Bloom studied Stella, she saw a hollow person. Her bubbly personality was gone, her natural optimism stripped away. What scared her the most, though, was the complete lifelessness in her friend's eyes. Although the doctor had assured them that Brandon would wake, Bloom worried that this dark cloud hanging over Stella would remain. The hours droned on and ticked by, with Bloom and Sky falling asleep in their chairs. In the room, Stella was the only one awake.
A nurse came in to check on Brandon's condition, and smiled when she saw the young fairy.
"Miss?" Said the nurse, putting a hand on her shoulder. Stella shifted her head to the side a bit to show she was listening. "You can go home if you'd like. I'll call you right away if there's any change in his condition. You should get some rest." She said, gently. Lightly, Stella shook her head.
"No thank you, ma'am. I want to be here when he wakes up." The nurse smiled a bit.
"Very well, then." And walked out.
Brandon walked the fine line between consciousness and unconsciousness. It was a nearly invisible line, so thin to walk that more often than not he swayed from one side to the other. In unconsciousness there was nothing but an inky black void. In consciousness, there was soft noises. A beeping that was constant and annoying, the patter of rain on the roof, and a snoring that he picked out to belong to Sky. Sky was there- that was comforting. His best friend was still standing by him after all that. There was a pressure, he noticed, and tried to figure out what it was.
It was on his hand.
Stella.
She was there, she was still there after all that. Suddenly, there was a light in his darkness. His ray of Sunshine was speaking to him.
"Brandon," Stella began, voice shaking. "I don't know if you can hear me, but I love you. I love you more than anything in the world. Please come back to me, my Hero." Brandon pushed against the darkness that bound him. It weighed a ton, almost taking him down, but he kept pushing. Finally, he won.
Brandon opened his eyes. The first thing he set eyes on was Stella's worried gaze. He squeezed her hand as happy tears streamed down her face.
"You're awake!" She cried, happily.
"Of course I am- I couldn't let you get married without me." He joked.
"Can I get you anything?" She asked, concerned, pressing a button to fetch the nurse.
"Water would be nice." Instantly, it appeared at his side. The nurse and Stella helped prop him up, and she held the cup with a straw up for him.
"How do you feel?" She asked, curiously.
"Headache. Nothing bad." He replied.
"I'm so glad you're alright." She said, hugging him. "I thought I'd never see you again."
"That will never happen." He swore. They looked into each other's eyes, and shared a passionate kiss.
"I love you, Brandon."
"I love you too, Stella."