Chapter 2: The breath-taking staircase

Flora rushed over to her blue haired friend, thrusting a plastic glass of water into her hands. "Here, have a drink."

Musa sat slumped in the middle of Bloom and Tecna, unable to breathe. She could've kept on sprinting, but the enormous rush of fear she'd experienced when she'd seen the train transporting itself into the galactic traffic, had been too much for her. It would be too much for anyone, no matter how calm they were. Fear was a funny thing. On occasion it could be good, yet at other times it could turn around and backstab you like someone who you thought was your friend. In Musa's case, it had made her panic and lose her composure, which was usually controlled so well. She just didn't want to be left behind after all her effort with getting Stella onboard and running behind the train like a cheetah unwilling to give up.

After glancing at the clear liquid, Musa poured it down her throat before taking a few deep breaths.

"Do you know how fast my heart was beating?" Bloom said, resting her palm on her chest.

"At least she's here now," Layla stated. A small smile painted her face as she realised for the fifth time in that minute that everything was okay.

"If it wasn't for us, the three of you would be lying on the platform and your bodies would be covered with bruises."

It was true. If Tecna, Bloom, and Stella hadn't grabbed Layla and Flora, they would have fallen out the train. Even Musa, who was clinging onto Layla at that point in time, would be back where she'd started. The blue haired girl didn't speak. She couldn't. She was completely worn out to the point where she felt paralysed. 'You're alive. You're alive. You're alive! You are alive!' Musa repeated it slowly in her mind, gradually getting faster until she was practically screaming it to herself.

"Are you going to make me thank you a second time?" Layla giggled, relief relaxed her features. She'd been through enough for the day. But it wasn't over until they'd dealt with Aunt Ivy and had heard what she had to say.

"I'm just glad we're all unharmed." Flora received nods from the other girls.

"I think it's best if we just forget about it and go to bed. Everyone's exhausted."

"Yeah. But I'm more dead than exhausted. Running for your life sure takes it out of you!" Stella's jokey nature caused the girls to let out some chuckles. It almost felt weird, laughing over the tense event. Nonetheless it made them feel slightly better as they all made for the beds.

Musa yawned while climbing up the metal ladder and flopped onto the bunk bed, letting the weakness she felt drain away. The train the girls were on wasn't one passengers used to get to nearby places. It was for long journeys. The girls' journey in particular was going to last the whole night, so they obviously needed a place to sleep. Of course, that's why the train had cabins, each able to hold up to eight people. In the room the girls were in, there were four pairs of bunk beds at one side and the other side consisted of a long integrated seat and a table. The entire interior was teak, making the place look very cosy. There was also a large window at the far end, looking out at the blurred scenery of the galactic route the train was taking.

Musa flexed her shoulders as she tuned out the girls having a race to see who could change into their pyjamas the quickest. It involved a lot of screaming and giggling, not forgetting the grabbing of Bloom's bag in which all their clothes were. Once everyone was tucked in, pointless conversations about hot guys and their muscles crawled into the room. Musa usually joined in and had a joke with Layla, but today, she just didn't feel like it. Too tried from the hectic evening, Musa shut her eyes and sank into her dream world.

The morning awaited her, though her eyes were closed. It was a new day now, time to forget about everything that had happened previously. It wasn't much of a big deal. It wasn't as if she'd neared death. But still, the shock and fright she'd been through remained with her and was refusing to fade away. It had caused her mind to reel for most part of the night and had left with only a few hours of sleep.

"Okay, wake up sleepy head!" Stella shouted, even though Bloom told her to let Musa sleep. She stood by the side of Musa's bunk, looking over at her best friend.

"Stella!" Bloom groaned, face palming herself.

"Bloom darling, your point was valid an hour ago. Now she's only got half an hour to get ready."

Musa stretched, purposely whacking Stella in the middle of her face. She could've been asleep for another fifteen minutes. She wasn't stupid; she'd set her watch's alarm to wake her up exactly fifteen minutes before they had to get off. That was all the time she needed to get dressed. Plus, she didn't need any extra time to apply her make up since she hadn't taken it off.

"Good morning!" she sang as she jumped off the top bunk. She wore a smirk as she walked past Stella towards the table. The blonde narrowed her eyes and went to check her make-up, just to make sure Musa hadn't ruined it.

"Hey, sweetie. How are you feeling?" Flora asked as she sipped her tea.

Musa shrugged as she took a seat next to Tecna. "Normal."

"Normal's good." Tecna smiled, passing over a plate of toast.

Musa examined the golden brown bread in front of her. She didn't feel like eating. Besides, she hated cold food. Toast was alright, only when it was hot though. A warm breakfast was more to her taste. "Uh, what is this?" Musa lifted the toast and threw it a disgusted face.

"Um. It's called toast." Layla pointed out. She walked over to the table after packing her bag.

"I know what it's called," Musa shot back. "It just isn't hot."

Tecna laughed. "Too bad. You woke up a bit late to have it hot, Musa."

"They were even serving hot breakfasts but no one wanted one." Layla failed to hide her smirk upon seeing Musa's scrunched up eyebrows.

"Yeah, it's true," Bloom chimed in. She grabbed a bunch of grapes from the fruit bowl and ate them while tidying the room. She wanted to be nice to the train staff since they'd already bothered them so much, otherwise she wouldn't have touched a thing. She wasn't much of a neat freak.

"Someone could've told me!" Musa snapped.

"We didn't want to wake you."

"But Flora, you guys know how much I love hot breakfasts!"

"Oh, suck it up! This is all you've got. So eat it or leave it. No one cares."

The girls were staring at Stella, unable to take in that she'd said that. "Spoken like a true best friend," Layla stated as soon as the silence became awkward and suddenly the girls burst out laughing.

The train drew to a halt and the sound of feet walking speedily and running out the train commenced. The Winx scooped up the last of their things and headed towards the exit. "Home!" Flora exclaimed happily upon stepping out the train. She couldn't contain her joy at arriving on one of the moons of Marigold, known as Linfea, the place where she'd grown up.

It was a serene realm, a naturist's dream. Trees grew everywhere as did flowers, vines and mosses and almost every other plant species you could think of. The bright and pastel colours brought an uplifting feel to the whole realm. It was hard to find anyone upset or depressed here. The inhabitants were always smiling and would go through the worst with a positive attitude. Flora was exactly the same, so it was no wonder she was from there. The girls didn't realise when they'd left the train station, it was practically all covered with vines and flowers, blending into the surroundings perfectly.

The girls took the butterfly bus and were at their destination in a matter of minutes. Flora led them to a tall tree and the girls were skeptical when she told them that Aunt Ivy lived on top of it. At the bottom of the tree was a little door which blended in perfectly with the bark. Flora had to feel around to find the handle but soon pulled it open. Inside the broad trunk were hundreds of stairs which were carved out of the tree's wood itself. The stairs led to a large platform which was used as a balcony outside the front of the house. From it, all the other tree houses hidden among the leaves of the other trees could be seen. Some were wonky and others had a greater number of floors, but other than that, they were similar to each other. The houses sat on the branches of the trees and in every window they possessed, there was a vase of flowers sitting on the sill and that made it clear that the love for nature in the realm was immense, if it wasn't clear already.

"This is effort," Musa huffed as she followed the girls up the spiral staircase. She didn't understand why an old woman would want to climb all those stairs just to get to her house. It just didn't make sense. Another thing that didn't make sense to her was why anyone would want to live atop a tree rather than on the ground.

The tree in which Aunt Ivy's lived was very beautiful. In the spring time it would showcase baby pink blossoms. In the summer it was a luscious green, and in the autumn the many hues of red and brown would adorn its leaves. Linfea had no winter. It was a nature realm after all, and having winter would mean losing all that made up the realm. The girls finally arrived on the platform feeling like they were going to collapse. Stella was sweating and decided to sit on the floor. Musa and Bloom supported each other whilst panting. Layla was wheezing, even though she had a lot of stamina and had thought that she could easily take on the stairs. Tecna had shoved her head in the leaves of the tree and was trying to breathe in fresh oxygen they gave out since she had run out of it in her system. Flora on the other hand was fine. Either she was used to climbing all the stairs or was just too giddy to meet her aunt that she'd forgot about how worn out she was.

"Let's go!" she chirped as she tried to push Bloom and Musa to the door, not that they would budge.

"Let us at least get our breath back?"

"Bloom's right. What impression would us Winx girls make if we look like we've run a thousand miles when we only climbed up some steps?" Musa tried to reason with Flora.

"Some steps?" Layla raised her brows. "There were like twenty million! Every time I looked up thinking they were going to stop, I only saw more and more and more...until I felt dizzy!"

"Oh, come on. It wasn't that ba-"

"Flora, my dear! I knew you were here!" The door swung open, revealing Aunt Ivy.

Musa scoffed upon hearing her words. "Of course you did," she said under her breath.

Bloom nudged Musa as a warning. "Watch it," she hissed, trying not to laugh at Musa's sarcasm.

Musa just shrugged. "Whatever. I'm only here for the cake anyway." She put on a fake smile and went over to greet Aunt Ivy.

"And you are...?"

"Musa, " she replied. Surprised to find that Aunt Ivy didn't already know their names.

"What an unusual name." Aunt Ivy's words came across as an insult. Musa just stared at her, letting her expression reveal nothing. "It's very pretty though," she added quickly.

After all of the girls had greeted Aunt Ivy, they were led into her home. It was very bohemian. You didn't expect it to be like that from the outside since it looked very simple. Although, it wasn't really a surprise since she was a fortune teller.

Musa gaped at the interior as Aunt Ivy led everyone into her fortune telling area, which was enclosed by some large pieces of material hanging from the ceiling. They had the most unusual patterns. In the centre of the space was a round table and inevitably, on top of it sat a glossy crystal ball. Musa rolled her eyes at the sight. The whole atmosphere and decor reminded Musa of the tents that people claiming to be fortune tellers sat in at carnivals. They would charge a lot of money and then tell you rubbish which never actually happened. Musa had always felt that way ever since she was four when a fortune teller told her that she'd always have a happy family; but a few months later, her mother had died, leaving both her and her father broken. There was no happiness in her family life after that event.

"Make yourselves comfortable while I fetch the tea and cakes." Aunt Ivy clasped her hands together and walked off.

Flora's aunt was a rather short woman, though very noticeable, especially with her bright purple hair that ended at her shoulders. She always wore it in curls and held her ringlets in place by spraying on a lot of glitter spray on them every morning. Everything about her stank of it. She wore turquoise framed glasses which were pointed at the ends and formed some sort of spiral around two gems. Her clothes weren't any better. It was hard to say whether she was wearing a dress or a skirt and top. But whatever it was, the material was shiny and in weird shades of normal colours. You wouldn't have guessed that she was Flora's aunt, they looked nothing alike.

The girls, excluding Flora, fidgeted nervously as they sat on beanbags and stools. Musa though wasn't bothered at all. She'd just grab some cakes and then scoff them down, that was her plan.

It didn't take long until Aunt Ivy came back with two trays on either arm. Three of which had mountains of cake on them and the other had a kettle and some cups and saucers. She placed them on the table and gestured towards them. Musa was the first to attack. She kneeled up from her beanbag and grabbed the best looking cake. She selected a large cupcake that had a frightening amount of yellow butter icing on it, topped with sprinkles and chewy sweets in assorted colours.

Aunt Ivy tried to snatch the tray away before Musa took the cake but failed to do so. She crinkled her brows. "That one was for Flora," she barked.

"It's okay. Musa can have it. I don't really like butter icing nowadays." Flora smiled. Musa beamed back and took a bite, instantly falling in love with the vanilla flavour.

It was quite obvious that Aunt Ivy didn't like Musa too much. If it wasn't obvious enough, she got shot a glare from the woman. Then almost suddenly her demeanour changed. "Well, who wants to go first?" she asked enthusiastically.

Everyone exchanged glances, all reluctant to offer. "I will," Layla sighed. She pulled her stool to the table and sat in front of Aunt Ivy. The woman smiled at her before asking for her palm.

"Hang on a second." She quickly disappeared to fetch her tarot cards. They were going to do the real magic.

"She has no fashion sense whatsoever!" Stella complained after she'd licked her fingers clean of icing.

"Pipe down." Musa hissed, giving Stella a serious face.

Before anyone had a chance to say anything else, the sound of a lot of metal crashing onto the floor sounded from the back of the house where Aunt Ivy had gone. Flora gasped as everyone's eyes widened. After an eerie silence, the sound of someone cussing under their breath could be heard along with a lot of clattering and clacking. Musa gulped as Aunt Ivy's footsteps got closer to the area she was sat in. To say the least, Musa was a little disappointed that she didn't scream in agony or even just in fright.

"Aunt Ivy, are you alright?" Flora stood up looking concerned as the woman came into view.

"Yes, yes. I'm fine," he said, as if she wanted to dismiss the topic. It was a bit embarrassing for her seeing as she could see what was going to happen, yet hadn't seen that everything was going to fall on her.

"What happened?" Bloom asked, being sure to use a polite tone.

"Never mind that. Let's just say I should've got better shelves." Aunt Ivy smiled at Bloom, appearing to be the kindest lady in the world.

Musa pursed her lips. Why didn't Aunt Ivy like her? Musa hadn't exactly done anything wrong. Plus, it wasn't as if Aunt Ivy could look into the past to see what Musa had thought of her whole fortune telling business. She decided to ask, just in case.

"Um, you can't see the past, can you?"

"Why do you ask?" Aunt Ivy narrowed her eyes.

"Oh, no reason. I was just wondering."

"Well, then keep on wondering," the woman replied bitterly. Then suddenly she changed her tone to a cheerful one. "Well…Layla-right? Yes. Let's begin."


'You are reading xxxMusarock's story 'Destiny's Game'. Chapter two has now come to an end. Hope you enjoyed it!'

The plot is going to start evolving rapidly from the next chapter onwards. Then our favourite hero is going to appear! Can I have some hoots and cheers please? xD