Disclaimer: I don't own Winx Club.
Author's note: A plotbunny kept haunting me and so it became the longest oneshot I've ever written.
The Wizgiz-quote in summary and the story is from episode 2x02 in case someone was wondering.
Enjoy :)
Her tea was cold.
Marion sighed inaudibly and stared the wavering surface of the drink she had hoped to warm her up. Nothing seemed to be warm these days. Domino would turn into a huge cube of ice if the temperature kept going lower in the same pace.
The advisors had come to a conclusion that using the Dragon's power for protection of Domino had taken energy from the planet itself. They didn't soft-petal the bad news: the energy of the Dragon was fading slowly, and it would be too exhausted to help in a battle if neither protection nor temperature was lowered. Marion was worried how this would affect her little baby princess, who slept in the room next to her. She comforted herself with the fact that getting more clothes was better than lesser protection.
"Marion?" The Queen's head shot up when her name echoed in the large, empty room. Her eyes met Faragonda's concerned ones. "Are you listening?"
Marion hung her head a bit in shame. How rude she was acting. It was such a rare moment. Neither her nor Faragonda had work to do or kids to take care of— her younger daughter had just fallen asleep. They had time to just drink tea and talk about nothing serious. And she didn't even pay attention.
"Forgive me." Marion put the cup back on the table when she found her hand shaking.
"Look, I understand if you want to be alone or something." Faragonda placed her warm hand on Marion's. "You know, so you could think in peace."
"Good heavens, please no." Marion shook her head. "A little chatter relieves the stress in a best possible way. I just drifted off, that's all. I guess it's the cold that bothers me..."
"You think it's that cold?" Faragonda raised her eyebrows. "A bit cool only, in my opinion."
"Easy for you to say. You seem to be the warmest thing around here."
"You think?" Faragonda glanced at her hand and pulled it back. "I'm so not sharing." Both of the women laughed.
Marion smiled. "So, what were you talking about again?"
"Just recalling school times. You went to Alfea too, am I right?"
Marion nodded. "Say, is Wizgiz still teaching Metamorphosimbiosis?"
"Yes, among other things. He's a funny old guy." Faragonda grinned. "He's never letting his true age show. I think that's kind of inspiring. Even though something came with age..." She chuckled. "I bet you too noticed that he tends to repeat himself."
Marion let out a small laugh. "Yes, that sure happened often."
"Like for example when someone questioned the powers of Light and Dark." Faragonda straightened her posture, imitating the professor. "'In a theory, there is a third and even greater energy, which manifests itself in special situations'. Every single time."
Marion stared her with her lips slightly agape. "He said that?"
"His exact words," Faragonda assured. "Always when someone asked about the third energy he went silent and changed the subject. Many said that he was just gabbling, but it was quite interesting."
"How come?"
"Well, when you think about it, it's obvious that the Dragon is the Light and the Shadow Phoenix is the Dark," Faragonda explained. "But why couldn't there be a third power? Like, something in between." She made hand gestures just in case, since Marion was looking dazed.
"I... I haven't thought of that before," Marion mumbled. But it was damn sure she would study this thing all she could. If there was such a thing as a third power, it was more than needed.
"My Queen, are you sure you don't want me to stay?" Lord Bartelby asked as he watched the Queen stroll around the royal library with dozens of books.
"Oh, I'll be just fine," Marion called to him from the other side of the room. She quickly tickled her youngest daughter, who rested in crib and climbed up the ladders, narrowing her eyes to read the book backs. "This one sounds promising." She pulled a large and heavy book, unable to get a hold on it. Luckily, Bartelby was there to catch it before it fell to the ground.
He sighed. "Carefully, Your Highness. Where's the sudden enthusiasm to reading coming from, if I may ask?"
"I'm just doing a bit of a research." Marion jumped down. "Now, shoo, if you please, I'd like to be left alone. And could you please tell the nanny to come in an hour or two?"
Bartelby looked around hesitantly, not sure if he should leave the library alone with the Queen. He let out a sigh and left without a word.
Marion spent her evening and night reading through the large books with little writings on them. The nanny had come to get her daughter to sleep as the Queen had still continued her search. Her eyes had started to ache after few hours, but she was a determined woman, she wouldn't leave until she got what she wanted.
She leant back on her chair, rubbing her eyes. Her body was stiff from sitting in the same position and craved for food and sleep. She was barely able to think straight.
"'Third and even greater energy', he said..." she muttered and yawned, turning yet another page.
This continued for one more hour until she slammed her hands on the table. She cursed under her breath and picked a book from the ground. Maybe she was looking for the wrong things. What did Faragonda say again? 'Dragon is the Light, Phoenix is the Dark.'
She flipped pages until she noticed an ancient illustration of the Great Dragon in its full glory. Next was the Shadow Phoenix, more terrifying in its original, even more inhumane form. And then...
"Water Stars?" Marion said aloud. The illustration on the page was much simpler than the others. A small note explained that the Water Stars switched shapes every time they were handed to a new owner. Now the stars were plain white.
"Water Stars are neither good nor evil..." Marion narrowed her eyes. "Locked away... Dangerous in wrong hands... Show up only in extreme need." At the moment she was a mess, mixture of frustration and weariness, and such a thing angered her. Wasn't the agony of the home planet of the Great Dragon itself a special enough situation? If the power was so great, why didn't it help them when they needed it the most?
She threw the book away and buried her face in her hands. She peeked from between her fingers, hollowly staring the piles of books scattered around on the table. That made something snap in her head. She wasn't ready to give up. She would find the Water Stars. She would convince their owner they were needed. She would travel thousands of miles even by foot, but she wasn't going to give up.
She picked up the book and after a quick read-through knew where she'd go as the first thing in the morning: The Red Tower.
Even though getting a babysitter was hard just before lunchtime, Marion managed to get away. She had insisted the sitter to keep quiet about her whereabouts; what a panic would break loose if the court knew the Queen was beyond the borders of Magix all by herself.
Reaching the Tower was an easy task. Portals had always been Marion's speciality and her older daughter had too inherited the skill.
Entering the Tower was a different case, but she eventually got in. The Dragon's power was enough to make her noble enough for entering. It also turned out that Wizgiz had been helpful not only with his preaching about the third power, but also with Metamorphosimbiosis-classes; changing forms came to use when the Queen had to go through the Tower's small door.
When she landed on the soft clouds, she was confident enough to change back. In front of her was the Golden Kingdom, its glory equal to Domino. Yet the Queen was sure she had never seen anything so impressive. She barely even noticed when a cloud swallowed her, somehow moving her to the Kingdom.
An elf-like creature walked up to her and bowed. He reminded her awfully of Wizgiz, giving her hard time trying not to snicker. The tiny elf led her past huge golden pillars, to the center of all of them, where a fountain rippled peacefully and beautifully like a lullaby.
The elf cleared his throat formally and stood with his back straight. "Queen Marion of Domino wishes to meet you."
"It's been quite a while since we last time had visitors, hasn't it?" Voice in harmony with the rippling came from the fountain. The water shot up, forming a woman at least a head taller than Marion. The water dripped off, revealing a lady, who was different shades of blue from head to toes and glistened like morning dew in early sunlight. "My name is Arcadia," she spoke softly. "I am the first fairy that has ever fluttered their wings in the Magic Dimension."
"Wow," Marion blurted. So much for having some dignity.
Arcadia smiled. "Why are you here, Queen Marion?"
"The Water Stars," Marion stated bluntly. She didn't have too much time, so why not get straight to the point. "As you might know, my kingdom, the whole planet, whole Magic Dimension, is shadowed by fear of war and total destruction. The Ancestral Witches are taking over planets aided by the Shadow Phoenix, and it seems like no force can stop them."
Arcadia's smile faded and she looked Marion in a way that made her feel ashamed. "So, you're asking the Water Stars for help? You're asking the neutral power to take a side?"
"I... Not exactly, but—"
"Do you really know the power you're craving for?" Arcadia demanded. "Do you know what would happen if you even touch the Water Stars? I can sense the power of the Dragon from you. Even its presence here worries me. The powers are opposites. Not like Light and Dark. Water Stars oppose the Phoenix too."
Marion fell silent for a moment. She gathered her courage and tried to ask, "But then, couldn't—?"
"No." Arcadia sighed. "Let me show you something." She crossed her arms in front of her face, and then swiftly brought them on her sides. She disappeared from the view like a popped bubble.
"Wait!" Marion was already grabbing her dress hem, ready to sprint wherever she thought the fairy would have gone. Before she could take even a one step, something rose from the ground around her. The next thing she knew, she was surrounded by high walls of crystal.
"Where am I?" the Queen wondered aloud.
"The Crystal Labyrinth," Arcadia's voice spoke from above. "The Labyrinth that can give you answers, but also hard decisions to make."
Marion listened carefully as she made her way through the winding labyrinth. "Decisions?"
"Yes." A wall lit up next to the Queen. "What you will see here, is what would happen if the Water Stars came to your aid. If you still decide you want them, step through this wall."
Marion watched curiously as the wall started to show some kind of picture. Her eyes widened. She saw a battle field, wrecked, burnt, bloodied. Nothing or no one moved. All seemed to be over, everything seemed to be dead.
"And the Phoenix?" Marion asked as calmly as she could manage.
"Gone."
Marion took a sharp breath and relaxed her shoulders. "Then we will fight. Domino will fight to the very end, even if it requires sacrifices."
"Sacrifices like your own life?"
The Queen bit her lip and put her hand against the wall. "Yes."
"And your youngest daughter's too?"
That stopped Marion dead on her tracks. She pulled her hand away from the wall, as if it could suck her inside any minute. "What did you say?"
"I told you this earlier: the Dragon and the Water Stars are opposites. They'll neutralize each other. As we know, your daughter carries the power too." Arcadia's tone had a hint of sadness and compassion in it. "The moment you activate the Water Stars, they'll find their opposites; they'll neutralize them and vice versa. While the Phoenix will be gone, so will be the Dragon and everyone, who holds its power. Do you still want the Water Stars to help?"
Marion gazed down and shook her head.
"But do not fear, Queen Marion." She could have sworn she heard the smile in Arcadia's voice. The smile must have been warm and kind. "You won't be leaving empty-handed."
The Labyrinth spun around the Queen, its walls changing places dozens of times before settling down. Now before her were two gleaming walls with pictures. The exact same on each of them.
"What is this supposed to mean?" Marion couldn't control her voice anymore and now her words were shaky. Both of the pictures showed a planet covered in ice and snow. Her planet, Domino.
"It's the inevitable. Destiny of Domino has been written down almost completely. Now you only decide how the end will come."
"Isn't it just the same?" Marion didn't even blink as she watched the two pictures change in accord, showing a closer look of the frozen planet. "What ever I'll choose, it will be the terrible end."
"Not quite." Arcadia's words made the Queen's gaze shoot up, trying to see her and any possible hint of hoax. "What you see on the left side is what happens if you keep strengthening the protection spells. Dragon's energy will fade and the planet will be frozen before the war can even starts."
"And my daughters will be dead?" Marion whispered.
Arcadia was silent for a moment. "Yes." The picture on the right gleamed briefly. "What you see here is what happens if you start using the energy on the planet itself again. Your protection will be lower, the war will start."
"And we'll lose? And my daughters will still die?" Marion demanded.
"Another will live. And she will be your spark of hope." Not only that Arcadia's voice already echoed in the Labyrinth, but now also her words were repeated in Marion's mind. "She will be saved when the glorious kingdom falls. And she will be the hope of it being restored once again."
Marion took a deep breath. "Who is she? When will it happen?" Heavens, she'd make sure to have her daughters under every possible protection when the time would come.
She couldn't see, but she knew that Arcadia shook her head. "I'm afraid I've told you too much already. You can't oppose faith, remember that. No matter what you do, once you've made the choice, it can't be changed."
Marion balled her fists and lowered her gaze for a moment. "As I said earlier..." She raised her chin with her usual royal dignity. "The people of Domino will fight to the very end. Even if it requires sacrifices." She fought back tears. "And I... Want to believe in that we have hope."
Arcadia appeared in front of her, wearing a delicate and soft smile. "Then go, Queen Marion. Fight till the end."
Encouraged by those words, Marion stepped through the right wall, every bit of her sure she made the right choice.
She pretended she didn't know. She watched her older daughter hold the younger and pretended she didn't know that either would die. In daytime, she'd be sure to embrace her daughters tighter than ever, wishing to never let go. And only at night she allowed herself to cry, alone, until no more hot tears could well in her eyes.
She pretended they had a chance. Along with her husband, she delivered cheering speeches to the common, to the soldiers, to their friends. And most importantly, to the royal advisors, who had their doubts of lowering the protection, all though they appreciated that the warm was brought back.
She pretended to be happy, when she was anything but that. She was slowly accepting her own death. But the one of either of her daughters... That she'd never accept. Not even in her frozen grave.
The guilt was eating her from the inside, leaving only an empty shell that tried to be the Queen, which Domino deserved. But she wasn't. Anything but that. When everything in Domino was full of life, she was already dead inside. When the crowds cheered, she wanted to burst into tears. And then, what terrified her the most: on the warmest days, a chilly breeze found its way to her and she felt cold.