Hey you guys, the first two chapters of this story were written by RefreshinglyOriginal, and I will continue it from. I want to thank RefreshinglyOriginal for your wonderful work, and for trusting me with this :) I'll try and do you proud. Much love to you all 3

-.-

Summary: Bloom should know by now not to make jokes when in a situation that holds the potential to be dangerous. Experience has told her that it will always end up with her being hurt. But even though she knew this, she still made the joke that took their minds off the potentially dangerous situation. Things went south pretty quickly after that.

-.-

Walking along the somewhat damaged hallways, Bloom surveyed the long cracks running along the walls. Gently tracing the patterns with her fingers, Bloom thought about how they looked remarkably like Stormy's lightning.

"Maybe that's what happened," She spoke to herself quietly, "I didn't see her for a while during the fight."

"Bloom?" Turning, the red headed fairy looked at her Headmistress, "Who are you talking to dear?"

Even though she was smiling, Faragonda was a touch concerned about the young woman's health. She'd seen it happen before, seen people who had no business in fighting lose grip on their sanity after being forced to fight to stay alive, but she had believed Bloom to be strong enough. Perhaps she was wrong.

"Just talking aloud Headmistress," Bloom smiled, "I was thinking that the damage done to this section of the school looks like Stormy's doing."

Frowning, Faragonda turned to the wall, following the main crack down the hall, "It looks like any other crack in the rest of the school. How can you tell it's from Stormy?"

Smiling, Bloom reached out and took hold of the older woman's arm, gently pulling her back, "Look at it as a whole. There's no impact point."

Doing as told the half fairy looked at the crack lining the hallway. It took a couple of seconds for to see what Bloom was talking about, but when she did, she couldn't believe that she'd missed it. "This isn't good." She sighed, taking off her glasses and cleaning them.

"Nope."

Looking at the cheerful red head beside her, Faragonda arched her brow in question, "You find this amusing?"

Bloom shook her head, still smiling, "Not in the least, in fact I'm actually kind of terrified right now." Turning to face her properly, she continued, "But we need to focus, there's a magical bolt of lightning running through the school, we need to find it."

Slipping her glasses back on, the older woman nodded, "You're right we do, and quickly before anyone's hurt."

Nodding once, Bloom turned, eyeing the crack that disappeared down the hallway, no doubt following the wall around the corner, "Right then," She said, snagging the older woman's hand, "Let's go."

-.-

The two followed the cracks all the way to the old wing of private rooms. To Bloom, it looked like they hadn't been used in years, a thought that was quickly confirmed by the woman walking beside her.

"I haven't set foot in this part of the school since I was a student."

Raising her brow, Bloom turned to her, smiling, "Oh?"

Smiling down at her, Faragonda carefully opened the door that the crack ended at, "Some of the Professors then had families that stayed within the school." Shrugging slightly, she stepped inside, looking around for the magical lightning, "I used to look after the children on occasion."

Following, Bloom chuckled, "You babysat your Professors kids?"

"Until I taught one how to produce a flame," She admitted, walking around the room, "She set fire to the curtains." Trailing off, Faragonda stood in front of the end of the crack, frowning. "That doesn't make sense." She whispered, looking worriedly around the rest of the room.

"What doesn't?"

"It stopped."

Bloom frowned, "It's energy, it doesn't just 'stop'."

"That's what worries me dear." Faragonda sighed, walking back over to Bloom, "I don't know what to do to be honest Bloom; I have very little experience with lightning based magic."

Smiling, Bloom patted the older woman's arm, "Good thing you're with me then."

Chuckling softly, Faragonda shook her head, "While I find your optimism great Bloom, I don't see how you could do anything."

"Do anything perhaps, but I know it can't hurt me, so…"

"How do you know it won't hurt you?" Faragonda frowned.

"Stormy's hit me with it before," She responded casually, walking to the centre of the room, "Oh don't worry," She continued, catching the horrified expression on the older woman's face, "Being a fire fairy saves me, I pretty much just absorb the energy that makes up the lightning."

Above them, the light flickered.

"Did you know that before you let yourself get electrocuted?" Cried Faragonda, horrified at the thought of Bloom willingly getting hit with lightning.

"Nope." Bloom cheered, her smile wide, "Made for a good surprise though."

Faragonda stared at the girl, mouth hanging agape.

"What?" Bloom asked, tilting her head slightly.

Faragonda shook her head, "Bloom, I mean this in the politest way possible," She started, "But I think you're mad."

Laughing, Bloom nodded, "I'd have to be to do this."

At first Faragonda was confused, but when Bloom struck out at the light above her, she felt as though her whole world stopped. She watched in slow motion as the light shattered, showering Bloom in shards of glass. Reaching out, she called for Bloom to move, but all the red head did was smile at her as the bright blue bolt of lightning jumped from the fixture to the young woman's outstretched hand. Not once did Bloom flinch or stop smiling as the lightning entered her body. She just took it; it was disturbing to say the least. The entire thing only took a few seconds, but to Faragonda it felt like an eternity. When it finally finished, they were plunged into darkness.

Taking a deep shuddering breath, Faragonda whispered, "Bloom?"

For a few moments there was no response, and the older woman started to worry. Just as she was about to call out again, a few feet in front of her a flame burst to life, lighting up Blooms grinning face.

"Hello Headmistress."

Jumping back with a gasp, Faragonda pressed a hand to her chest, "Bloom!"

Lowering her hand, Bloom laughed even as she apologized, "I'm sorry Headmistress, I couldn't resist."

Puffing out her cheeks in an attempt to hold in her annoyance, the more experienced woman growled, "Next time resist."

While the tone was surprising for the usually calm and kind woman, Bloom only responded by grinning and turning away, holding her hand out to light more of the room, "So now what?" She asked, looking around the room curiously.

Heart still racing, Faragonda walked over to the table and leant back on in, holding onto the edge loosely, "I don't know."

Humming softly, Bloom slowly turned in a circle, "There's always celebratory sex."

Surprised by the casually uttered statement, the Headmistress found herself staring at her student with her mouth hanging open and eyes wide.

Looking over her shoulder, Bloom smiled at the stunned expression, "Breathe."

She did as instructed and took a deep calming breath, gently pushing herself from the table, "Bloom," She swallowed around the lump in her throat, "I-I'm your Headmistress, i-it'd be inappropriate."

Chuckling, Bloom walked back to her, gently reaching out with her flameless hand, resting it on her forearm, "It was a joke Headmistress," She said gently, still smiling, "I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable."

Faragonda searched Blooms expression, nodding with a small smile of her own, "Quite alright dear," She said softly, leaning back against the table once more, "I should have known you were joking."

To Bloom, it sounded liked the older fairy was disappointed. "It could be worse," She suggested, perching herself on the table top, "I could have said it to Griselda." She smirked, swinging her leg out to lightly bump the older womans hip, "Imagine how that would go down."

Faragonda snorted, "Oh I don't think Ediltrude would be all that pleased."

Seconds after speaking, Faragonda realised what she'd said and spun around, trapping Bloom in her place by resting her hands on either side of her. "Bloom-" She started, only to be cut off by a grinning red head.

"Griselda and Ediltrude? Nice!"

"Bloom please," Faragonda pleaded, taking hold of the young womans hands tightly, "They cannot know that you know. You can't say a word to anyone! Not even the girls."

Nodding, Bloom crossed her heart, "Secrets safe with me, promise."

Sighing, Faragodna dropped her head in relief, "Thank you Bloom." She whispered gratefully, looking up at her student.

Before Bloom could speak, a loud creaking filled the room, startling the two. Looking up, Bloom automatically reached out and pushed Faragonda down, yelling, "Get down!" Following behind, Bloom covered both hers and Faragondas head as the ceiling fell down on top of them.

While realistically the event didn't take more than a couple of seconds, to the two women it felt like it would never end. The constant onslaught of pain from the large chunks of debris repeatedly hitting their defenceless bodies quickly rendered them unconsciousness.

-.-

Bloom woke to find herself face down on a soft surface. Confused, as the last thing she remembered was throwing herself to the ground, she pushed herself up to see where she was. She gasped. She wasn't surprised to be in the hospital wing, no that was to be expected considering, but she was surprised by the fact that Headmistress Faragonda was beside her in the slightly larger than usual bed. Pushing herself up and on to her knees, she looked down at the sleeping headmistress, noting the almost invisible frown wrinkling her brow. Acting without thought, she reached out and lightly smoothed out the crease.

"Miss Bloom."

Snatching her hand back, Bloom turned to the source of the voice, "Ms Griselda."

The brunette walked further into the room, "It's good to see you awake Miss Bloom," She stopped beside the bed, "How are you feeling?"

"Fine considering I had part of the ceiling collapse on me," She shrugged slightly, turning to look back at the sleeping woman, "How's Ms Faragonda?"

Adjusting her glasses, Griselda pursed her lips, "Ms Faragonda has sustained a broken wrist and hip."

"What?" Bloom whispered, looking at the deputy with wide eyes.

Holding her hand up to prevent her from continuing, Griselda shook her head, "When we found you, you were mostly covering the Headmistress, protecting her from the worst of it, but her right hip and left wrist were unprotected from holding your head down."

Slowly Bloom turned back to Faragonda, staring at her with unabashed awe, "Is she in pain?" She asked, turning back to Griselda.

"No," Griselda shook her head, "That's the other thing we need to talk about Bloom," Sighing, she looked down at the mattress, "It took us some time to find you as none of us knew you had left," She paused, unsure of how to continue, "In the time it took for us to find you, both your magic and Ms Faragondas reached out and tried to heal your wounds. In doing so, your magic has effectively bonded you."

"Bonded?" Bloom frowned, "You mean like the Pixies?"

"Not exactly," She said softly, "To put it plainly Bloom, you and Ms Faragonda are married."

"Huh," The red head turned around, staring blankly at her…wife, "She's not going to like this."

-.-

Later that day, Bloom was laying on her stomach, flipping through a magazine she'd found in the drawer of the night stand beside the bed. She'd given up reading it almost an hour ago, but had continued turning the pages as she thought about everything Griselda had told her. While Ms Faragonda received a broken wrist and hip, Bloom had taken the worst of it. Her back was a mess of wounds of various depths; the only reason she wasn't curled up in pain was because of the bond. Griselda had explained it to her, but beyond the fact that magic was involved, most of it went over her head. She was hoping that Faragonda would be able to explain it to her when she woke up.

Speaking of…

"If you're trying to steal the blanket again, please don't. It took longer than I'd care to admit to get it to cover me." Bloom said, idly flipping yet another page.

The movement beside her stopped.

"Thank you," Chucking the magazine aside, she turned to the barely conscious woman, "Hello sleeping beauty," She smiled, "How are you feeling?"

"Better than I expected to be honest," Faragonda said softly, "What about you dear?"

Bloom snorted, "Better than you, that's for sure," Sighing, she pushed herself up, ignoring the fact that the blanket slipped from her, "There's a few things you should know."

"Like why you're in bed with me?" Faragonda asked, pushing herself up.

Eyes widening, Bloom reached out, placing both hands on her shoulders and gently pushing her back down, "You can't move!" She rushed out, "Your wrist is broken and so is your hip!"

Faragonda froaned, "Bloom, I feel fine."

"Fine you may feel, but trust me, they are broken." She said sternly, doing a rather good impersonation of Griselda, "So you're to lay down and don't move." She ordered, gently placing the womans bandaged wrist on her stomach.

Seeing that the red head meant business, Faragonda settle back down, "Very well, but please explain what happened."

Nodding, Bloom settled in, crossing her legs to sit more comfortably, "To start with, we've been asleep for two days-"

"Two days!"

"-Because our injuries were so bad and our bodies needed time to heal. As I already told you, your right hip is broken as is your left wrist, which was from protecting my head, so thank you for that." She smiled slightly, unconsciously pulling on her fingers nervously, "According to Ms Griselda, I took the brunt of it and my back is pretty torn up and bruised, I might also have a couple cracked ribs." Looking at the expectant woman, she sighed, "I'm not sure about this, it kind of went over my head, but it seems…that while we were unconscious, our magic tried to heal us and kind of bonded us, which is why we're not feeling any pain right now."

Bloom fell silent, waiting for the older womans reaction to the news. After the way she'd reacted to the joke, she knew it wasn't going to be calm, and she wasn't disappointed.

"What?" She asked, her voice echoing in the empty wing, "Bonded?" She tried to sit once more, but Bloom pushed her back down, "That's impossible!"

"Stop moving!" Bloom barked, startling her, "Just because you can't feel it doesn't mean it isn't broken, and moving will just make it worse!" Waiting a few moments, Bloom watched to see if she'd try again. When she was satisfied that she wasn't, she sat back, holding onto her warm hand loosely, "Please, just don't move." She sighed.

"I'm so sorry Bloom," Faragonda whispered, looking up at her with watery eyes, "I-I don't understand how a bond could have formed."

Shaking her head, Bloom offered a small smile, "Ms Griselda said that it's because of our magic physically reaching out to heal us and that when it sensed that we cared for each other, it reacted and formed the bond." Head drooping, she continued in a barely audible tone, "I'm sorry for putting you in this situation Ms Faragonda, if I hadn't of distracted us from the situation, we wouldn't be here and you wouldn't be tied to me."

Opening her mouth to argue the red heads words, Faragonda found herself at a loss for words. While it wasn't ideal that she was now bonded to one of her students, she couldn't deny that she was glad that it was Bloom. Of all the students, the earth raised fairy was the most open about everything, something that in her role of Hedmistress, most girls were hesitant to be. Under different circumstances, the bonding wouldn't have bothered her. But unfortunately, they weren't different and she needed to deal with this reality.

Reaching out, she gently turned Bloom to face her, "Bloom, it's not your fault." She spoke gently but firmly, "Nothing that happened is your fault, I can promise you that."

"Ms Faragonda is correct Bloom, none of what happened is your fault." At the sound of the stern Deputy's voice, Bloom tensed and then groaned, hanging her head for what was about to come. "And I thought I told you to rest."

Grumbling, Bloom uncrossed her legs and sat up on her knees so she could lie back down, only to freeze when a small hand touched her shoulder.

"But as you're up, let me check your back and ribs."

Sighing, Bloom sat back, resting on her knees as Ms Griselda quickly undid the buttons of the backwards shirt. When she felt the cool air on her back she sat up straighter, only to flinch away when she felt the even cooler fingers press against her skin.

"Stop moving."

"Your hands are cold," Bloom griped, wriggling away from probing fingers.

"You're a fire fairy Bloom," Griselda said, "Everyone's going to feel colder then you."

Frowning, Bloom twisted around, looking at the woman behind her, "Are you sure?"

Rolling her eyes, Griselda gently turned her back around before answering, "Quite sure."

"What if they don't?"

Behind her, Griselda glanced at the Headmistress who lay silent, watching the interaction, "There could be many reasons why someone wouldn't feel cold to you," She said, bending to look closer at one of the deeper cuts, "They could be sick and have a high temperature, the environment could be affecting them, in some cases close relatives will have a similar temperature, though not always as the core of the power comes from the more dominant blood line." Standing up straight, the blue dressed woman adjusted her glasses, "Arms up."

Doing as instructed, Bloom stared ahead of her, steadfastly avoiding looking at the woman lying beside her, "Is there any other possibilities?" She asked, silently pleading that there was.

Reaching under the shirt, Griselda gently pressed down on the bruises lining her ribs, "The person may be your intended," She said, frowning, "Though that is rare." She added, pulling her hands back, "Congratulations Bloom, you've broken your ribs." She sighed, "We're going to have to bandage them and your back so you can lie on it."

Silently Bloom nodded as the Deputy went to collect the bandages, her mind still going over all the information.

Beside her Faragonda reached out, lightly touching the back of her hand, "Bloom, are you okay dear?"

"I'm fine," Bloom answered, though even to her own ears her voice sounded flat, "But you need to stop using your left hand," She said, changing the subject as she carefully placed the bandaged wrist back on her stomach, "You should take my broken ribs as a warning Headmistress, they were only cracked to start with."

"Okay Bloom," Griselda spoke, halting the conversation, "I'm going to put a gauze on your back first, so if you'd be so kind as to not move."

Looking at the Headmistress, Bloom rolled her eyes good naturedly before sitting back, resting her curled hands on her thighs, staring a head of her, "No promises."

-.-

Later that day, as Bloom laid beside her napping Headmistress, she thought over everything that had happened to her in the last four days. She'd managed to survive yet another battle against the Trix, almost got crushed by the ceiling and ended up married to her Headmistress, who lay besides her snoring.

"Considering I didn't think I'd make it to graduation, I did well." She muttered to herself, reaching out to pull the woman back when she tried to roll onto her side.

"What's wrong dear?" Faragonda asked, rolling her head to face the young woman, blinking slowly.

"You were trying to roll onto your side again." Bloom said, lacing her fingers together over her stomach.

"Again?" Faragonda asked, "How many times-"

"Three."

Sighing, Faragonda copied Bloom, resting her hands on her stomach, "How long did Griselda say we're going to be in here for?"

"Two days."

"I'm going to go mad." The older woman said without thinking.

Snorting, Bloom turned her head and smiled at the other woman, "Just don't start going around absorbing electricity okay."

Laughing, Faragonda reached down, gently holding the young womans hand, "You don't have to worry about that dear, I'll leave that to you."

"Probably a good idea," The red head chuckled, relaxing back.

For a while, the pair was silent, simply staring up at the ceiling lost in their own thoughts. For a while, Bloom thought the woman beside her had gone back to sleep, but that thought was pushed aside when she spoke just moments later.

"Tell me Bloom, how do you feel about the bonding?"

"I'm not sure to be honest," Bloom said after a couple of beats, "After my first year here, I was sure I wouldn't make it to see graduation, so I'd never really put any thought into what else could happen, least of all getting married."

Faragonda looked at Bloom, frowning, "You didn't think you'd graduate?"

"No," Bloom shook her head, "After the first attacks from the Trix, I thought for sure I'd be dead by the end of the year." Bloom turned to face her, "You're surprised by that?"

"A little, yes." The Headmistress admitted softly.

Smiling slightly, Bloom flexed her hand, letting the older fairy slip her fingers in between hers, "Back to your question, how do you feel about it?"

Breathing deeply, the older woman thought for a second before smiling, "I don't know," She turned to look at the girl, "Just give me some time to figure everything out."

Smile widening, Bloom nodded, "I can do that."

-.-

Two days passed slowly for the two women, but late morning on the second day they were freed from the hospital wing, on the promise that they'd rest and not head straight to work. At that, Griselda had stared at the Headmistress until she verbally promised not to do any work. Thanks to the bonding having blocked the pain from their injuries, they'd been able to use a quick working potion to heal their broken bones. While Bloom was fully healed, Faragonda was not. Her hip was still not one hundred percent, but she refused to stay in the wing any longer. Having changed into their fresh clothes earlier, they left as soon as Griselda disappeared. Using the sleek metal cane she'd been given, Faragonda walked out of the wing, holding the door open for Bloom, leaning heavily on the stick.

"Thank you," Bloom smiled, pausing to wait for her to close the door.

Smiling, Faragonda switched the cane back into her right hand and walked beside Bloom, mentally berating herself for not being able to walk at her usual pace. They both walked in silence, making several turns before either of them spoke again.

"How many people know about the bonding do you think?"

Looking down, Faragonda tried to stop herself from shrugging, "I would assume the staff have been informed, perhaps your friends, other than that, I wouldn't know." Just then, the two women walked past two younger students, both of who stopped and stared before quickly rushing around the corner further up the hall, "Then again," Faragonda sighed, "I'm sorry for all of this Bloom."

Bloom groaned, much louder then she would usually have if she hadn't had just spent two days in the same bed as the woman beside her, "It's not your fault!" She spoke, her voice surprising the other woman into freezing, "Look," She said, her voice dropping back to her gentler tone, "I'll be honest with you, being bonded to you, it doesn't bother me because I know I can trust you. You're kind, intelligent, caring and very protective; I couldn't pick a better match if I tried."

Pulling back slightly, Faragonda opened her mouth to say something, but all that came out was a whispered, "Bloom."

Reaching out, the fire fairy clasped the hand that held the cane, "What does bother me is that it bothers you," She whispered.

"You're a student Bloom," The words tumbled from her lips before she could stop them, and now that they'd started, they wouldn't stop, "I gave up the idea of marriage years ago Bloom, and now, I find myself bonded to someone who's barely considered an adult on her own planet, and not to mention who is under my care and tutelage." Closing her eyes, she took several deep breaths until she felt calm enough to continue, "Bloom, you are everything I could wish for in a partner, but you're just so young. I don't want to end up ruining your life."

Smiling somewhat, Bloom gave the hand she held a squeeze, "I can't do anything about being young, but I can do something about the student thing."

"You can't drop out!" Faragonda gasped, her eyes wide.

Chuckling, Bloom shook her head, "I graduate in a few months," She looked back up, frowning slightly, "Provided I don't die before then." Shaking her head once more, she continued, "So, how about we just go about our business like before until then?"

Swallowing, the Headmistress nodded, forcing a small smile, "I can do that."

Bloom smiled brightly, "Okay."

-.-

Later that afternoon, Bloom was called to Faragondas office.

Knocking on the door, she waited patiently to be called in. When the order came, she quickly stepped inside, ignoring the group of girls further down the hall, whispering behind their hands as they stared at her.

"Hi." She greeted, looking from her…wife to Griselda, who sat in front of the desk.

"Bloom, good of you to join us so quickly," Griselda stood, "Come, there's been a bit of a trouble."

Frowning, Bloom made her way over to the other free chair, "What kind of trouble?" She asked, looking between the two women, "Are the students saying things about Ms Faragonda?" She spoke quietly, watching Griselda with narrowed eyes, "Because I will set them on fire if they are."

Both teachers sat back in surprise at the venom in her voice. There was no denying that they were a little startled at the violent reaction. Faragonda though felt a warmth rush over her. No one had ever jumped to her defence so quickly before. She smiled at that. Perhaps something good could come of this.

"No Bloom," Griselda said, "No one's saying anything about Ms Faragonda."

Bloom nodded sharply, sitting back, "Good."

Smiling ever so slightly, the brunette continued, "The reason you're here Bloom…" She paused, searching for the right words to explain the situation, "Since you're bonded, by law you're now an adult," She glanced at the Headmistress, "As such, you're no longer able to stay in the dorms with the other girls."

Blinking, Bloom nodded slowly as it sunk in, "Where would I be staying?" She asked, looking between the two women.

For the first time since Bloom had joined them, Faragonda spoke up, "You'd have to stay with me."

-.-

Not long later, Bloom and Faragonda sat by themselves in the office.

"How do you feel about this development?" Bloom asked gently, not wanting to push her any further then she had before.

Licking her lips, Faragonda took a deep breath, "Not good," She sighed, pushing herself up from her seat, "I'll show you my-our room."

Nodding, Bloom followed along, noting the older woman leaning more heavily on her cane. They walked through a partially hidden door and into a semi-large bedroom. On the far side of the room was a large window seat, jutting out from the wall, while a large bed dominated most of the space. Besides the bed, the only other furniture that was in the room was a wardrobe and two night stands. It wasn't what Bloom had expected.

The Headmistress stopped just far enough into the room to allow Bloom to stand next to her, "Through there," She said, pointing to the door beside her wardrobe, "Is the bathroom. I don't have a kitchen like most of the other staff as I prefer to eat in the hall with the students," Looking away, she continued, speaking in a barely audible mutter, "I sleep on the left side in case of emergencies, so you'll have the right."

Having watched the woman the entire time, Bloom noticed the change in the woman the moment she started talking about the sleeping arrangements. Reaching out, she gently touched the older womans arm, drawing her attention to her, "You're not comfortable with that."

"No, I'm not," Ms Faragonda said, "It's one thing to share a bed while it helped us medically, but now…" She shook her head, "I don't know how to explain it dear, but while you're a student, I couldn't in good conscious share a bed with you even though we are bonded."

Smiling, Bloom nodded, "I understand, I do," She looked around the room once more, "So while I'm still a student, I'll just sleep…" She shrugged, "Not with you."

Faragonda shook her head, even as she smiled, "There isn't a spare room Bloom, and I won't let you sleep on the floor until you graduate."

"Okay," The red head said, trying to figure out a solution to their problem. Finally, her eyes settled on the open storage space above the window seat, "What's up there?" She asked, pointing.

Frowning, Faragonda looked up there, "Nothing," She turned around, looking at the smiling woman, "Why?"

Smile widening, Bloom asked, "Think I'll fit?"

-.-

Two hours later Bloom walked back into the office, carrying the last box of her gear from her old dorm, "Well, that's the last of it."

Looking up from her paperwork, Faragonda eyed the medium sized box, "What's in this one?" She asked, smiling slightly. While she wasn't comfortable with her new living arrangements, she admittedly was having fun with hearing the stories behind some of the things Bloom was moving to her-their room.

"Oh," Bloom sang, blushing slightly, "Just the most important things I own," Just then, a small fury head popped out of the box, sniffing the air, "And Kiko." She laughed, shooting the older woman a smile, "Actually-" However, before she could say any more, Kiko jumped from the box and hopped towards the open door, "Kiko no!" All but dropping the box on Faragonda's desk, Bloom took off after her spirited companion, scooping him up just at the door, "We need to ask first Kiko," She said softly, gently scratching between his ears.

Walking back to the desk, she stopped when she saw Faragonda standing, holding the frame she'd tucked in against the side of the box. "Uhh…"

Looking from the photo she held to the young woman a few feet away, she smiled, "I'd forgotten this was taken," She said softly, turning back to the picture of her and Bloom from her first year at Alfea, "It's a good photo," Faragonda continued, putting it back in the box, "Now, what did you want to ask me dear?"

"Ahh…" Bloom uttered, not sure how to ask about Kiko staying with them, "C-Can Kiko stay with u-us?" She finally asked, holding the small creature closer to her chest as her nerves took over.

Seeing the unusual display of nerves, Faragonda carefully made her way over to the red head as her cane lay on the other side of her desk. Each step sent a flair of searing hot pain up her body, but she ignored it as she reached out, carefully tilting the young fairy's head up to look her in the eye, "Bloom, I would never make you leave Kiko behind," She spoke gently, soothingly, "Besides," She smiled, glancing down at the small creature, "It wouldn't be the first time he's stayed with me."

Bloom's eyes widened as the older woman gently scratched under Kiko's chin, "He's stayed with you…before?"

"Oh yes, whenever you're away in fact," Faragonda smiled, understanding the surprise for the fire fairy, "He's a sweetheart."

Looking down at her long-time companion, Bloom narrowed her eyes, "He'd better have been." While looking at the bashful animal, she noticed the absence of the steel cane, "Where's your cane? Actually, why are you up? You should be resting!" She admonished, glaring up at the taller woman. "That was our deal; you only work if you're doing so while resting your hip!"

Faragonda knew, had it been anyone else who spoke to her in such a way, she'd have dished out a stern warning and sent them on their way, but with Bloom, she found herself unwilling to treat her like everyone else. Offering a polite smile, she waved her hand, her cane appearing in it moments later. With a raised brow, she silently asked if that was better.

"Good, but you still need to rest; otherwise your hip won't heal properly," Bloom said, her voice taking on a gentler tone.

Sighing, Faragonda conceded, "Very well, but only if you let me help," She said, thinking of all the gear Bloom had brought in in the last two hours.

Shrugging, Bloom walked around the Headmistress, gently placing Kiko in the box before picking it up. As she passed her again, she smiled, "Alright."

Narrowing her eyes in suspicion, Faragonda followed behind her, leaning heavily on her cane. She couldn't believe that Bloom would agree to let her help, not after she'd spent the past couple hours refusing. What was she up to? Entering the room, the Headmistress was confused; she'd expected to find the boxes Bloom had collected to be lying around the room, or stacked up against a wall waiting to be unpacked. She didn't however see even one.

Seeing the not so stealthy look around, Bloom laughed, "I'm almost finished with setting up my man cave."

"No wonder you agreed so easily." Faragonda deadpanned, sitting down at the foot of her bed, "What does it look like in there?" She asked, eyeing the seemingly small space, "It doesn't look like a comfortable place."

"Oh it wasn't," Bloom agreed, carefully levitating the box up and into the space, "But after living with Stella for so long, I've learned a few things about making space."

Something in the way Bloom spoke set off alarm bells in her head, "Should I ask for a more in depth explanation?"

Turning around, Bloom smirked, "Probably not."

-.-

That night, long after Bloom had climbed up into what she called her 'man cave' to go to sleep, Faragonda limped into her room, only having just finished the paperwork she'd missed from her stay in the hospital wing. Without much thought, she changed from her blouse and skirt into her night gown, only remembering that she wasn't alone when Bloom's sleep filled voice came from behind her.

"You only getting in now?"

Barely breathing, the Headmistress nodded slowly, her hands resting by her side, "Yes."

"Finish your paperwork?"

"Yes."

"Good," Even though Faragonda couldn't see her, she could hear that she was turning over, "You seen Kiko? He jumped down a while ago."

Turning around, the Headmistress looked to her bed where she knew Kiko would be. And there he was, curled up on her pillow, much like he had been the first time she found him in there. "He's down here, sleeping. It looks like I'll be sharing the bed after all."

"Is that okay? I can come and get him if it's not."

Faragonda shook her head, stopping only when she realized Bloom probably couldn't see her, "It's fine dear. It's not the first, nor will it be that last time I'm sure."

"Thank you."

Swallowing, she took a deep breath to prepare herself for the next bit of conversation, "Bloom-"

"I saw nothing if that's what you're worried about. I heard the wardrobe open and turned away, I figured you'd forgotten that I was here, so…" Her voice trailed off, leaving the Headmistress to think she'd fallen back to sleep.

"I…Thank you." She whispered, moving towards her bed to get some much needed sleep.

"No prob."

Smiling, the Headmistress braced her cane against the nightstand so she could pick up Kiko and gently place him on the other pillow. Giving a light scratch to his head, she pulled back the blanket and sat down. She hesitated in actually lifting her legs onto the mattress, knowing that it'd be painful, but when her hip started protesting sitting so stiffly, she gripped the blanket in one hand and the nightstand in the other and swung her legs up, moaning as her right side once against felt as though it was on fire. So distracted by the pain, Faragonda failed to see Bloom sit up and sit at the edge of her man cave.

"What's wrong?"

Gasping, Faragonda looked up to Bloom, her jaw clenched tightly.

"Would you like some help?"

Shaking her head, the older woman tried to smile at the obvious concerned fairy, "I'll manage," Even as she spoke, she carefully laid down, sighing when she no longer felt most of her weight rest on her hip. She reached down for the blanket, but before her hand could find it, Bloom waved her own and the blanket flew up to cover her, "Thank you dear." She smiled, settling down.

Smiling back, Bloom flicked her head, "There's a hot water bottle under your pillow; it should help with the pain." Smiling again, she wriggled back into her cave, disappearing into the dark, "Good night."

Frowning slightly, Faragonda reached under her pillow, finding the item easily. Pulling it out, she smiled to herself as she placed it against her hip, closing her eyes as the heat seeped into her tense muscle. Yes, she had no doubt now that something good was going to come from this.