Darev: This is another contribution to the Winx Writers Anonymous Forum. This is also my very first songfic ever.
Disclaimer: I do not, to my sorrow, own Winx, nor do I profit from this ordeal other than the joy of writing.
I Wanna Go Back (And Do it All Over)
A story of reminiscing
Ten years. Time passed you by in the blink of an eye. It seemed to him that just yesterday he was an incoming student to the School for Heroics and Bravery. Back then he was young, idealistic, with bright-eyes that heralded the promise of a great future.
He imagined his eyes had since lost that sparkle. Running his hands through his darkening blonde hair made him wonder just how much he had changed since then. When the letter came inviting him to attend his ten-year anniversary, he seriously considered not going. Oh it had nothing to do with problems at home. The kingdom was rich and prosperous. It was so well off in fact, that the king was contemplating whether or not they should move toward democracy, seeing as how the realm practically ran itself without his interference.
No. It was personal reasons that prevented him from jumping at the chance to revisit the fields of his youth. Back then he had been a prince. In the four years of his attendance he went from prince to king, from boy to man, and from novice to fully-trained specialist. He never liked the title of hero. There were everyday heroes that never wore a cape or carried a sword. The young monarch had learned that lesson as he progressed toward middle age.
For him, the memories were still there. They were as fresh as the wet grass on a cool, summer rain. He could feel them, their silent presence standing over his shoulder, reading the invitation letter along with him. A part of him wanted to go--he'd be lying to himself if he said he didn't--to see his friends...well, those who decided to attend. They had been his brothers. Through them he became a better person and for that there was no treasure in his entire kingdom to equal their friendship. The king had not seen them in years, not since they had a private gathering with their other halves...their girlfriends.
Bloom.
"Is everything all right, your highness?" The chauffer asked in the front seat.
King Sky had been so lost in his private thoughts that the chauffer had to ask his question a second time before he was acknowledged. "I am...fine, Bartholomew." He said nothing more. Sky had spent a sleepless night after reading the letter. Images of various shapes, most notably ones with fiery red hair and stunning blue eyes, paraded behind his eyelids, forcing him to stay awake for any semblance of peace. The king had been tired the next day. The following night had been no better. It seemed the ghosts of his past would not let him rest until he agreed to attend the ceremony. Finally he gave in, and sent his RSVP on the third day.
He considered discovering whether or not his friends would be attending, but decided against it. Much as he missed them, all of them, they had become strangers in the time they had separated. Even his closest friend and brother, Brandon, had left to defend another kingdom, one where his heart lay. He loved and envied his brother at arms, for he had found his happy ending.
Ten years after graduating and Sky had yet to find love. He thought he found it ages ago, but it was not so. Perhaps it just wasn't meant to be, but that didn't make it any less painful. He could still recall the smell of her hair. The touch of her skin on his would have sent him into planes of ecstasy beyond any hormonal rage. He had missed hearing her voice, that wonderful voice that lifted any spirits, his most of all. She was kind. She was beautiful. She was his. Was his.
But not anymore. Not since that night.
Having left the Magix spaceport, the limousine had entered the pastures outside the city. Sky had almost forgotten how peaceful Magix is, when it wasn't being attacked by an army of decaying monsters, evil witches, or mad wizards. Strange how such a tranquil world could be the site of so many battles. He had done his senior dissertation on that fact, scoring at near the top of his class for his in-depth study into the importance of warfare in the development of Magix. Sky had since been a part of many a battle, mostly political, and all pointless compared to the ones he had participated in his youth. He missed the days when fighting for a cause was more important than making others happy. More than once he found himself eager to trade the life of a privileged and respected king for that of a soldier-at-arms. Life was simpler that way. It was truer.
Traveling through the countryside gave the king plenty of time to think about more than his past. What would the ceremony be like, he asked himself? He imagined he would see many familiar faces, but would there be the ones he cared about most? He knew Professor Saladin had retired three years after he graduated. When word of his passing arrived at his doorstep, King Sky was busy delegating an important treaty that would vastly improve the life and security of his people. Sadly, he could not attend the funeral.
Codatorta had since become the headmaster of Red Fountain. He smiled thinking of the burly man who was approaching his golden years with each semester, putting the fear of the gods into each student.
Faragonda was still teaching at Alfea but Griselda had left to become headmistress at her own school, so he read off The Royal Inquiry one morning. Faragonda. A more regal woman he had yet to meet in any of the royal courts he'd visited. Alfea remained in good hands.
Professor Griffin had left Cloud Tower to open up her own bed and breakfast in her home realm. Last he heard, the place was doing well and Griffin had finally settled down. Word is she was very happy.
As for his friends, any information was difficult to come by. Of course Brandon had moved in with Stella, but as for the others he could not say. Riven and Musa were an odd couple to begin with. Whether they had come closer together since graduating was anyone's guess. Flora and Helia seemed the perfect couple, but being the guardian fairy of her home realm left little time for canoodling. Tecna and Timmy too seemed the perfect pair and after graduation they had simply disappeared off the grid, so to speak.
Poor Aisha was a different story. After what happened to Nabu during their battle against the Fairy Hunters, she was never the same girl again. When last he spoke to her during a galactic conference that included many realms, that fire he so admired about the princess, now queen, of Andros was severely diminished. She remained strong after her loss and devoted her every waking moment to protecting her people. After the Baltor incident, Aisha had beefed up security and had signed numerous defense contracts with more industrialized worlds. Now secure, Andros was a burgeoning, if somewhat second-rate, power.
He was never close to Roxy to begin with, but he was sure she was busy helping Earth integrate itself into the magical universe. It would be a difficult transition, but if anyone could do it, it would be Roxy.
Sky had no idea what happened to the pixies. He imagined they were still lollygagging about in their secret village, protecting their piece of the Codex, and remaining cut off from the rest of the world. As for those bonded to the Winx Club, Sky could only pray their companionship did not get in the way of his friends' intimacy. If he could not be a father, then he at least prayed to one day be an uncle to many, many nieces and nephews.
All these thoughts about the people he so cared about and the one person he could not think about was the one person he'd had given up everything for: crown, country, duty. If she had but asked. Her eyes when she last spoke to him...how could something so beautiful be so hurtful?
King Sky couldn't bring himself to remember. It was too hard. Remembering her was too painful. It was all too painful, which is why he didn't want to come in the first place. Returning to Red Fountain would remind him of all he had lost. He could never go back to those days, much as he wanted to. He missed the simplicity of it all. He missed the adventures, the battles against hopeless odds, of lying exhausted on the battlefield but being triumphant nonetheless.
He missed the private jokes. He missed the endless training. He missed the camaraderie. He missed friendship and love.
He missed her.
"Why did you come back, Sky?"
"My lord?" Bartholomew asked from the front. "Did you say something?" He was an elderly gentleman with white hair he kept combed to the side. While wrinkled, his face displayed an energy that Sky found lacking in himself whenever he looked in the mirror. An expert chauffer, Sky had hired him about two years ago and hasn't regretted it since. In addition to being punctual and hard-working, the man possessed a wisdom about him that Sky once heard from the lips of the late headmaster Saladin.
"Just thinking aloud," he answered flatly. Sky did not even realize he had spoken until his chauffer did. Looking outside his window, the partition rolled down so that he may have the wind in his hair, which had grown past his shoulders and tied into a tail to project a more kingly facade, the king noticed with growing reluctance how familiar the landscape was becoming. He knew these grounds. They were almost there.
"You seem troubled, lord. Is there anything I can do?"
Knowing Bartholomew meant well, Sky did not bite back at him for interrupting his thoughts. On the contrary, he'd loved nothing more than to be distracted right now. Rubbing the bridge of his nose, which had become more defined if one could believe it, King Sky shook his head. "It's just...déjà vu. Coming back here is bringing up a lot of memories."
"Judging by your demeanor, I'd wager that not all of them are good," he stated rather than asked. For a man in the presence of one of the galaxy's most powerful rulers, the chauffer was surprisingly perceptive.
Sky respected that with an answer. "You'd be right."
"Sire, if I may be so bold..."
Sky sat straight back. "Go on."
"Returning can be difficult. It isn't easy to come back to the beginning, but take it from someone who has seen many years caress this tired, old face that these such returns are important. Without them, we cannot truly appreciate what we have become. You, my king, have accomplished a great deal in your young life. You should be proud in your accomplishments and take pride in them."
"It is not what I have, Bartholomew, but what I do not have frightens me."
"Ah." The wise, old driver said. "In a way, coming here is putting you face to face with your failure."
"In a sense, yes." Normally most people would not speak so openly to Sky, but Bartholomew was not most people, which is why Sky cherished his services. "I've made a lot of mistakes in my time. But none haunt me more than..." he paused, realizing that was one thing he did not wish to speak about openly. "It was a long time ago."
"Yet it affects you still, my lord. The most terrifying dragon is the one that got away." Looking at him through the rearview mirror, Bartholomew's eyes widened slightly. "Only, I take it, it was not a dragon that escaped you."
Sky's eyes beamed at him from the backseat. "Please, just drive, Bartholomew. I do not want to talk about this." And he turned away, looking outside the window as if the wind could somehow carry him away from here.
"Of course, sire."
There was a long silence. Each second brought them closer and closer to Red Fountain.
This was a bad idea. He should order Bartholomew to turn back. They could be back in the spaceport and on the return flight to Eraklyon long before they realized he wasn't coming. Sky should do that. He wanted to. But he couldn't. He didn't. Something was calling him back to Red Fountain. Much as he hated to admit it, he had to return for, what? Closure? For a sense of putting it all behind him? Why couldn't the past just let him be? Had he not earned some measure of peace? What did he hope to gain by returning?
There was nothing here but pain and memories. Lots and lots of memories.
Memories of a better time.
Amazing at how after all these years, Sky wasn't used to being teleported onto the campus. After the original Red Fountain was destroyed during the Great Witch Invasion of '04, the rebuilt campus was reconstructed into a flying fortress a hundred meters above the ground. In order for guests to reach the new campus, they had to call in for teleportation. Sky hated the sensation of having one's molecules taken apart and rearranged bit by miniscule bit in the transporter room. Whatever happened to just flying in?
Once the wooziness subsided, King Sky stepped off the platform and thanked the specialist at the station. He was a junior with thin shoulders, blue-gray hair, and striking indigo-colored eyes. He nodded briefly at Sky before returning to his station. That's when his head shot back up, his eyes going wide, and Sky inwardly groaned.
"Y-You're Prince Sky!" The student blurted out.
"It's king, actually. But yes I am."
The boy seemed ready to leap over his station and greet the man personally. Sky was just glad the discipline had not waned since he left. For all his eagerness, the student stayed where he was. "By the gods! You're a legend."
"Not really." Sky didn't like the way this was heading.
"You fought the evil Trix Coven and defeated them." His voice rose. "You saved the universe from the Army of Decay, the Dark Phoenix of Shadowhuant, Lord Baltor's assault on Magix, and hunted down the Fairy Hunters beside the legendary Winx Club!" How the boy's eyes sparkled. "I can't believe you're here. All of you."
At that, Sky grew serious. "What do you mean? Who else is here?"
"Everyone, sir. Your whole team. They've all returned for the ceremony." The junior looked confused. "I thought you knew."
This made things more difficult. "No. But thank you anyway cadet..."
"Pharos, sir! You're part of the reason I joined Red Fountain in the first place."
"What was the other part?"
This made the specialist look away bashfully. "Well uh, there's the Alfea School for Fairies nearby."
Sky covered his face. This can't be happening.
"My girlfriend's a fairy. She's cool. And pretty. Lot of guys here are dating fairies. Word of your adventures with the Winx Club,"
Sky stopped him there. Thank you, Cadet Pharos. I'll be leaving now." Sky took his leave of the room.
"Enjoy the party, sir!" His voice followed Sky to the exit.
Sky was still considering leaving but did not want to deal that idolizing student again. Remembering where he was, the king seriously considered jumping.
Forty-three minutes. That is how long King Sky had been here. Forty-three minutes and he had yet to go inside. Instead he lingered in the quad, sitting on a bench with his legs crossed and wondering why he hadn't jumped yet.
The junior's reaction inside the transporter room proved he was easily recognizable and Sky wasn't sure he liked that. He had grown six inches since' he'd last put on a Red Fountain uniform. He had a wider chest, stronger arms and legs, and his voice had become deeper. It was like a second puberty. Living in royalty meant one had to constantly redefine themselves toward the masses and that meant growing. His genes had taken the notion to heart and Sky was a completely different person. Save for his trademark golden mane, blue eyes and white skin, he was not the same man who left this academy.
As a principle, he chose to keep his face clean-shaven though was in a constant state of struggle with the stubble that formed there now and then. Brandon once told him he should cut his hair so as to avoid having it get caught in machinery, or worse, having an enemy snag it in the middle of a battle. Since he allowed it to grown even further, Sky wondered if perhaps he should have cut his hair. Maybe that way he'd be less recognizable.
The afternoon was growing dark and already he could make out the stars he used to count on his first days as a freshman. The music carried through the air and Sky recognized some old hits from when he was a student. He thought he saw some familiar faces in the distance but did not call to them. These guys came accompanied by beautiful women, and as much as he longed to greet his former classmates, Sky could not bring himself to do so.
"Have fun, guys. Wish I could join you."
But what about his teammates? Riven. Brandon. Timmy. Helia. They were all there probably wondering when Sky was about to show up. He feared he would have to disappoint them. Torn between seeing his friends and leaving, Sky could just sit there and sulk.
When a full hour had passed, King Sky started wishing he'd taken up smoking. Least then he'd be doing something constructive and if he got lung cancer, well they had a cure for that.
He stopped sitting and slumped over, his chins resting atop clasped fists. This was ridiculous. What happened between him and Bloom happened long ago. He should not let that ruin his chance at strengthening old ties with the people he cared about. So what if each of them married their old sweethearts? So what if each of them found the happiness that he missed out on? So what if he couldn't be happy for any of them?
Sky, you are a pathetic little man.
"True that." As Brandon used to say.
"Lighten up, Sky," Timmy would say.
"Wuss," Riven would chuckle.
"Tis better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all."
"Hey, Helia," Sky said to the wind. "Bite me."
A new song started up, followed by a cheer from the crowd inside. "Sulking alone while everyone else is living it up. I've become Riven."
"You wish," he could hear his friend say. "I'm one of a kind."
"Of what kind?" Brandon would joke. By that point Riven would have the brunette in a headlock and be grinding his knuckles into his head. Sky would be trying to break them up while Timmy would laugh. Helia would look up from his book, shake his head, and return to reading. That's the way it was. That's the way it would be if they were all here.
Thing is, they were. All except Sky.
A chorus of laughter broke out somewhere to the side. Sky spotted four freshmen, raw and untrained, laughing at an unheard joke. They were so young. So inexperienced. Sky looked at those boys and he saw something. Call it a vision or a memory playing back in his head, but suddenly those three freshmen took on familiar faces from long ago.
I...was listening to the radio.
I heard a song...reminded me of long ago.
And he saw it....four young men, freshmen, meeting each other for the first time. He recalled the time on the bus ride over how he and Brandon agreed to switch names. It had been Sky's idea. He wanted to see how being a normal guy was like just so he wouldn't be treated any differently from his classmates. Brandon wanted to be a prince because he believed the monarchs get all the best girls.
They met Riven on their first day here. They got into a brawl with a burly senior named Tartarus and were amazed by Riven's fighting ability. He was a real loner then, totally against working as a team. But through their trials he learned to work with them, trust them, even call them his friends.
Timmy had been a late arrival, but his brilliant strategy had turned a bad mission gone worse into something salvageable. Thanks to Timmy, a bunch of first years were saved and he became a part of their team. It was then on that they became brothers.
Back then I thought that things were never gonna change.
Together they had passed their midterm assignment, which meant surviving in a hostile environment. They'd stumbled into the territory of a pack of angry frost giants, narrowly escaping with their lives. It wasn't pretty, but their teamwork saw them through. Sky recalled the return flight when they, battered, exhausted, and wounded, laughed on as they looked back at their close call.
It used to be that I never had to feel the pain.
Their freshmen year had been one of endless trials and tireless training, both on and off campus. Brandon started down a dangerous path when he started to court a certain blonde-haired princess of Solaria. Timmy competed with a rival student in creating a new kind of Red Fountain craft. Riven came to terms that he was no longer alone, battling an old foe from his past. Sky learned what it took to be a leader. He also learned how to be just one of the guys. Together they survived dating debacles, abusive seniors, deadly monsters, a rivalry with another school, the infatuation of a deadly quartet of Cloud Tower students, a mad wizard, a troll uprising, a dragon rage, a daring rescue at sea, and crash landing on a deserted realm cut off from the outside world.
Those were some of the best days of his life.
I know that things will never be the same.
I wanna go back and do it all over,
but I can't go back, I know.
I wanna go back cause I'm feeling so much older,
but I can't go back, I know.
A girl's squeal caught his attention and Sky turned to see a young woman throw herself into the arms of a man who just proposed to her. She had light brown hair that fell down to her back. It was thick and beautiful, and Sky could see how happy the man had made her.
Years ago, Brandon got a call from Princess Stella asking him if he and his friends could come help her with an ogre problem on a place called Earth. That was the day he first saw her.
I recall...hanging out on Friday night.
The night Alfea hosted the back to school ball was one that would stay with him forever. It was the night he and Bloom first danced. She wore a stunning white dress that showed off her lovely curves. She was stunning. The prettiest girl in all Alfea.
The first slow dance...hoping that I'd get it right.
That year was followed by a lot close calls, secrets revealed, and the very real chance that everything he cherished would be destroyed. The Day of the Rose when Riven turned against his friends. Bloom discovering he lied to her by pretending to be Brandon at the Day of the Royals festival. The Trix unleashing the Army of Decay and destroying Red Fountain. The mission to Cloud Tower to free the witches. He remembered how he and Bloom went their separate ways in the forest; him to Magix, her to find her destiny. Sky never felt so alone in his life.
Back then I thought I'd never ever stand alone.
It used to be that a lonely heart was never strong.
But they reunited, defeated the witches, and saved the universe. When all was won, Sky kissed Bloom for the first time.
Their first kiss.
I know that things will never be the same. (ohhh)
I wanna go back (go back) and do it all over,
but I can't go back, I know.
I wanna go back (go back) cause I'm feeling so much older,
but I can't go back, I know.
From that moment on nothing could stop them. He and Bloom fell in love. They joined Aisha when she returned to Shadowhaunt to free the pixies. He remembered how jealous he was thinking Professor Avalon was making a move on Bloom. The witches had attacked Red Fountain for their piece of the Codex, and Sky nearly perished at the hands of Icy's spell when it was Blooms' love that brought him back from the brink of death. He then asked if she would be his girlfriend.
Bloom helped him rescue Diaspro when she'd been kidnapped by the Wrong Righters. Darcy had tried to seduce Riven again despite the previous year's debacle. The battle in the Resort Realm. Bloom going over to the dark side. Sky and his friends laying siege to Shadowhaunt and the final battle with Lord Darkar. It was then when all seemed hopeless and Bloom appeared lost to him forever, that Sky admitted his love for her.
I know that things will never be the same.
I wanna go back (go back) and do it all over,
but I can't go back, I know.
I wanna go back (go back) cause I'm feeling so much older,
but I can't go back, I know.
A saxophone solo brought him back to the present.
You can't go back.
Baltor. His dark magic allowed Princess Chimera and her mother to take over the kingdom of Solaria and turn Stella into a monster. Together, he and his team helped liberate Cloud Tower when it fell to the dark wizard, earning them numerous accolades from the Magix Council. It's because of Baltor that Diaspro managed to spell Sky using a magic potion, turning him against the girl he loved and all his friends. Kingdom and kingdom fell and it was all because of the wizard. Yet despite it all, his friends never gave up on him. Through their actions, Sky was freed and he was there to aid Magix during the natural disasters unleashed by Baltor's spell.
Can't go back.
In the battle against Mandragora, Sky had become king. He left Bloom momentarily, forced to go through a series of trials that were kept secret from the rest of the world. He was only allowed to bring his closest comrades with him. Without their help, Sky would be dead. All their training and skill was put to the ultimate test...and they did it. Sky was alive today because of his friends. Timmy and Helia, Brandon and Riven, they were his arms and legs, but Bloom was his heart and when he returned, he helped her free her parents and destroy the darkness. At the ball to commemorate Domino's return to prominence, he asked for her hand in marriage. She accepted. It was the happiest moment of his life.
I know that things will never be the same.
I wanna go back (go back) and do it all over,
but I can't go back, I know.
I wanna go back (go back) cause I'm feeling so much older,
but I can't go back, I know.
I know that things will never be the same.
I wanna go back (go back) and do it all over,
but I can't go back, I know.
I wanna go back (go back) cause I'm feeling so much older,
but I can't go back, I know.
Following their trials on Earth and the search for the last fairy, Bloom and Sky seemed destined to be together. What happened that night they returned to Magix would haunt Sky for the rest of his days. When did it all go wrong? What would he change? Why couldn't he just...
Go back.
"And do it all over," Sky said. "But I can't go back."
He shut his eyes. "I can't change the past. As painful as it was, I can only look toward the future. Even if I don't have everything I want, I can't run from it."
"Returning can be difficult. It isn't easy to come back to the beginning, but take it from someone who has seen many years caress this tired, old face that these such returns are important. Without them, we cannot truly appreciate what we have become."
Bartholomew's words rang like the clearing of summer bells in his mind.
"I have become much. But what good is celebrating yourself if you can't do it with the ones you love?" He opened up his eyes. So that was his epiphany. As much as what happened between him and Bloom may have hurt, he could not dwell on it forever. He had to move on even if he could not go back.
And he did not go back, but forward, right into the auditorium.
Darev: And so the story ends. I considered going further, but there are times when you sit back and re-read the story and come to the conclusion that it is fine as is. Not every fiction needs to have a happy or sad ending, but one that leaves the reader thinking of the possibilities. As for what happened to Bloom and Sky...they broke up. It's that simple. You come up with your own conclusions as to what happened and why. I leave that to you, the reader.
I Wanna go Back is a song by Eddie Money, an 80's music icon. The music video depicts him returning to his high school reunion (with no happy ending, just lost of memories). Like the video, I tried to depict a sense of longing for the old days, when things were simpler and life seemed to make sense. It is a song of sadness and regret, but also of happy times and wonderful experiences. Eddie's song is beautiful because it is universal. You can apply its meaning to anything and still get the same feeling of what it used to be when you were young and had your whole life ahead of you. I hope that when the time comes for you to look back, you remember it was all your experiences, both good and bad, that made you who you are. If you're young remember, bad things will happen, but they will only make you stronger and wiser. Do not feel like you've failed somehow because life's a test that no one's being graded on. Consider each good time a recess.
Hope you enjoyed it.