Of Winx and Witches
"Why do you think they called us here?" Linda Faragonda leaned over to ask her friend. Nervous she began combing her silver hair again.
Minerva Griffin looked over at her, gold eyes shining with unused energy. "Who knows? The older witches said this happens all the time."
"What?" Linda stops her grooming. "When did you talk to them?"
"When you were hiding in our dorm room, freaking out. I got bored and went looking around," she replied so casually, like it wasn't a big deal at all. "They had a really cool theory about how Cloud Tower changes all the time. You would've loved it."
She looked around, staring at all the witches that had gathered. Even if they were all her age, Linda couldn't help but feel small.
Linda shouldn't have felt intimidated. She was a Faragonda, newest in the line of the most respected witch family after the Ancestrals. They'd founded Cloud Tower, only giving it up after a vicious war was lost. In a way, she was coming home.
So why did she feel so edgy?
"Young witches!" A tall, stern woman stood before them all. In a matter of seconds, all the students were silent. "Welcome to Cloud Tower, and congratulations on making the journey. I understand travel has become difficult as of late."
A quiet murmur rippled through the masses. Word of a new witch coven was spreading around, and most people didn't want anything to do with witches. Linda's mother always said it was because they were scared, but Linda saw nothing but hate in their eyes. Shops would close their business to them, landlords would evict witch tenents. People would shun witches until they had no choice but to join the coven, the very thing they wanted to prevent. What a terrible system they had.
"Hush!" She yelled. "I am your Headmistress, Ms. Mantragoranda. Cloud Tower was my school many years ago, and I have lorded over it ever since. I hope your experience here is every bit as useful to you as mine was." The headmistress paused, looking over the girls who sat before her. For a moment, her expression softened.
"You have come to this hall beaten down. Too many have shown you hatred, or shut you out of their life. You have been treated badly for who you are, for something you could never change. Every day, people avert their gaze from yours, deny you entrance to certain areas, treat you like less. They see you as a criminal, even if you'd never broke a law in your life. You serve the sentences of others in your kind, and no matter what you say or do will change how non-witches feel.
"But I'm here to tell you, it doesn't have to be this way. There will always be ignorance in the world, just as there will always be witches. But that doesn't mean you have to be a target. You may face abuse, but you do not have to take it. You're here to achieve greatness in your own right, to gain the ability to fight back. No matter how many times witches are knocked down, we always come back, stronger than ever.
"You are witches. And instead of suppressing it, you are proud of it. You're here because you embrace it. Here, you will learn the magic that is natural to you. Through that knowledge, you will gain power. If you dedicate yourself, it will be power beyond your wildest dreams. I promise you: with power, there's more to life than hurt." She looked about the freshman. " Now, who wants to get started?"
Cheers erupted, echoing across the stands. The dark walls seemed to vibrate, as if they too were shouting support.
Linda clapped politely, brushing back a strand of her hair. She glanced over to her friend, who was going wild with everyone else.
It didn't matter that she was from a lower family, Minerva was always more of a witch than she was. She'd be great here.
After the speech, Ms. Mantragoranda began discussing the rules. Linda was surprised to hear they didn't condone typical coven behavior, considering how many claimed the school supported it. They had restrictions to when one could use magic, and how far a witch was allowed to go in tormenting fairies. Linda didn't think it would be an issue for her, since she had no plans of tormenting others.
"And now, for the part you actually care about. How many here have been able to access their powers?"
Out of the hundreds of witches seated, only about ten hands went up. Nervous whispers were heard from every direction.
But their headmistress didn't seem focused on them. She was watching the people who'd raised their hands. "Oh? Well, how about you come up and demonstrate?" she gestured to the center of the room. "The floor is yours."
Reluctantly, the ten came up to the area. The lecture hall was silent, and everyone was watching.
It was a bust. Three of the witches made some sort of waves come out, but they disappeared once leaving the girls' bodies. One managed to conjure a shield, which was immediately put to the test. It cracked after one hit. Six of the boasters demonstrated nothing, which was used to their embarrasment.
"Never bluff unless you can back it up. Witches are many things, but they are not weak. Follow Bittersmoke, now!"
"What did we do wrong?" Minerva muttered. At first they'd thought she only meant the ten who volunteered, but then everyone started getting up, and-
"Witches aren't weak, idiot. How can you be strong if you can't even access your powers?" A witch commented from behind. "That's pathetic."
Minerva birstled, eyes narrowing behind her glasses. "You know what else is pathetic? When you-"
Linda grabbed Minerva's arm, pulling her to the front of the crowd. The witch's taunts could still be heard, but they were too far away to do anything.
Minerva pulled away, glaring at her friend. "What'd you do that for?"
"What's the point of getting into a fight now?" Linda asked, confused.
"Now she really thinks I'm weak! What, did you think I'd lose?"
"No!" Linda paused. "I-I don't know why I did it."
Minerva just stared, then shook her head. She didn't speak for the rest of the walk, leaving Linda to her thoughts.
It was true. Linda really had no idea why she'd stopped the fight. It wasn't that Minerva wouldn't win. She probably would have.
Was it the teachers? Sure, most schools opposed fighting among students, but Cloud Tower wasn't exactly a normal school. They allowed witches to go after fairies for no apparent reason. Would it really be a rule?
Ah well.She supposed it didn't matter. Minerva would get over it.
"In here, witches!" A hunched old man directed the traffic into a dark, spacious room. Unbidden, candles immediately flickered to life, illuminating what almost looked like a fighting ring. The harsh light gave the area an uninviting sort of look, not too different from an execution chamber.
Their headmistress was waiting inside, arms crossed and eyes furious. Next to here stood a group of tall, cruel-looking witches. "Welcome ladies. This is the room we will use to measure your increasing strength. It is also where one goes when they wish to officially duel with somebody. Today, it will be used to unlock your powers. Here to assist me are from this year's graduating class. These girls received the highest marks last year, and are the best team currently in operation at this school."
She nodded to the girl in the center, who had black streaks in her long hair. Only one gold eye could be seen, with the other covered by the cascading locks. She watched the freshman with utter contempt. "We're here to do exactly what was done to us. In the ring, you will enter one by one and be expected to fight each of us at once. You will face attack until one of two things happen: you release your magical power, or you pass out. For the love of the Ancestors, don't be the one who gets knocked out. The world is not kind to weaklings." The senior witch laughed. "Any questions?"
Meekly, a green-haired girl in the back raised her hand. "Will we have to face all of you at once?"
"I already said you fight us, didn't I?" She snapped, flexing her gloved fingers. "What else?"
There were whispers, but no one else was brave enough to say anything. To this, one of the others smirked. "Well then, who's first?"
Before she'd stopped speaking, Minerva's hand was already up. Linda started protesting. "No! What're you thinking?"
"I'm not weak!" She hissed. "Get out of my way."
"But-"
Minerva barged past her friend, walking right us to the older girls. "I'm going first."
The coven leader smiled, though the ones behind her were snickering. Ms. Mandragoranda watched quietly, face avid with interest. "Very well, freshman. Get in the ring. Now."
Biting her lip, Minerva shuffled into the arena. She was trying not to look scared, but her friend noticed how tense her muscles were, how she never took her eyes off the senior witches.
Quietly, the four levitated into the ring, leader closing the gate behind them. They maneuvered and switched around until Minerva was surrounded. They did not touch the ground.
"Ready?" One of them asked.
Whatever Minerva was going to say, no one was able to hear it. Because at that very moment, a loud screeching noise filled the room. Large marroon rings were blasting out of the witch behind Minerva, throwing her off balance.
Before the attack was even over, another added shadowy coils to the mix, wrapping around the girl until she was being tied down and choked. Then the whipping began.
This isn't a fight, Linda thought. It was a torture session.
She watched in agony as her friend, who Linda had known since she was five, was blasted with every force imaginable, welts, cuts, and blisters were all starting to appear, and Minerva looked severely disoriented.
"No! Nooooo!" She was screaming, trying to pull herself free. The others were cowering back in horror, but Linda couldn't look away. She turned to their teachers.
They were watching intently, making no move to stop the abuse.
The screeching noise restarted, and it almost seemed the world was starting to spin. Minerva was still struggling. She didn't look very conscious.
Suddenly, a green light began to envelop her, a sickly hue to compliment Minerva's tortured state. She opened her eyes, looking almost relieved as the green began to shoot out, hitting the witches with a force to shield themselves against. The coils snapped in the light's presence, and it began to pulse faster as Minerva rose from her place on the ground. Though the witches were safe behind their shields, they were no longer ablento attack Minerva.
Serenely, she stood, opened the gate, and sauntered out to greet the other freshman. They erupted into applause.
Minerva took her place beside Linda, giving her a smug look even as she stumbled into a position against the wall. She looked just as battered on the outside, but inside she shone with an endless vault of energy.
As the room quieted, the headmistress began to speak. "Congratulations, Miss Griffin. Not only did you release your powers, but you controlled them enough to fight back. Very impressive."
The pink-haired girl shrugged, though from pride or exhaustion once couldn't tell.
"That should show her," Minerva breathed, sending a glare in the direction of the girl she'd argued with. Then she looked back at Linda. "Still think I can't win a fight?"
Wanting to object, Linda shook her head softly.
"Who's next?" The leading senior called. Despite Minerva's exhausted state, none of the witches had broken a sweat over the first freshman.
What followed was a gruesome montage of fellow classmates either passing out without using magic or, more commonly, passing out after using magic. Very few of the freshman left the ring awake, as Minerva had.
By the time it was almost over, Linda was thoroughly horrified at the things she'd seen. She didn't care if it was un-witchlike, she pitied everyone who walked in the ring. The seniors who were 'testing' them seemed to take a twisted glee out of it, expressions manic every time a new victim walked in the ring.
Suddenly, she was the last one. Aside from the teachers, very few spectators were still around to watch what was going on.
"Come, Miss Faragonda." Ms. Mandragoranda said. "Everyone else has already gone."
Linda wanted to flee. She wanted to get out of this crazy school, and tell the others every single thing she'd witnessed. But Minerva shoved her on, and before she knew it, she'd walked right into the trap. She heard a clang as the gate closed behind her.
The seniors above her leered. Linda thought she would've felt fear. But instead, all she could find was hatred.
She hated these witches, how they tortured all these helpless girls. They all knew they wouldn't have been able to defend themselves, yet they went after them ruthlessly. Was that what a witch did, preyed on the weak and deserving?
If that was true, she dearly wished not to be one. Linda didn't care to be associated with them.
"Ready?"
Again, she wasn't able to respond before the air was knocked out of her. Linda tumbled into a heap on the arena floor, gasping for precious air.
Again and again, Linda felt the sharp sting of dark magic touch her body, cutting deeper and deeper with every stroke. But she refused to be helpless, refused to give this bullies another victim to target.
Hours seemed to past, but Linda was looking desperately inside her, trying to find that pocket of magic to be her escape. She focused on her anger, her pain, the hopelessness of winning. Witch power was triggered by negative emotions, they'd said.
She felt nothing but the beating, raging on outside her numb senses.
It wasn't that she couldn't find it, it was that there was genuinely nothing there. She didn't have any magic.
Freaking out, Linda began searching everywhere for a trace of magic, anything that could save her life. Even as she searched, she could feel her consciousness slipping away.
A ball of white light enveloped her, accompanied by golds and blues and-
Suddenly, the attack stopped. An indescribable feeling flowed from her heart outwards, filling her weary body with warmth and energy, she felt unreasonably happy for the circumstances, and a strange fluttering seemed to be happening behind her line of vision.
Slowly the light cleared. The witches had stopped their attack, staring at Linda in complete shock. The professors were livid, and Minerva had the look of someone who'd just been horribly betrayed.
Linda felt all of her elation fade away at that look, replaced with a gnawing worry growing in her gut. "What's wrong?"
But even as she asked, Linda began turning around. She couldn't believe what she saw.
Linda had spouted wings. Fluttering, flickering fairy wings.
A/Ns: Hey everyone! This may be a little different than my usual stuff, but I'll be back on top of it this Friday.
So this was for the Seasonal Competition, as created by Firehawk242 on WCFC. The prompt was to take a character and write about the first time they gained their Winx. As you can see, I chose Faragonda, even if I ended up doing both her and Griffin. Wonder if I get bonus points for that.
Honestly, I can't actually see this happening at Cloud Tower, but I'm gonna use the excuse that this happened years before the series started, and rules were different then. Even so, this was fun to write, and I hope my representation of young!Faragonda is actually plausible. It's hard to tell.
The other participant in this competiton was Art Writer III. If I remember correctly, she wrote about Flora. Be sure to check her story out when you finishing reviewing this one.
I guess that's it. Please review, thanks to Firehawk for a great competition, and I'll see you on the far side!