To all you who have bothered to see if I'm still alive, this humble university student (yes, I'm an old lady) thanks you! I promise to work hard to give you a good quality story to make up for the huge periods of time between updates. Also, just a note - I've pretty much given up trying to watch Winx Club Season 7. I don't have time, and honestly, I'm afraid watching it will really turn me away from the series, not unlike the last arcs of Naruto did. If anyone has seen season 7 and would like to give me something to work with, I'd appreciate it, but otherwise I'm basing this world off of seasons 1-6 with a whole lot of headcanons.
To guest reviewer StoryNinja47 - I will do my best to continue! I'm glad you liked this enough to take the time to review my story :) As for pairings, I've got a couple of ideas bouncing around in my head. Don't expect all the Winx Club's kids to pair off with each other, and don't expect all relationships to be straight! I feel like the Winx's kids would feel kinda awkward with each other, actually, because of their parents. Good thing I've got a lot of OCs prepped for this! But here are some possibilities:
Chrono x Lily, Ryan x Lily, Oritel x Jas, Oritel x Miri, Zach x anyone he thinks is good-looking, Zach x Mel, Lin x Lucy, Lita x Miri (yes, girl x girl), ...
It's all a bit confusing, but then, in real life, stuff isn't always clear-cut. The first person you have a crush on isn't always destined to be the one. I mean, it worked out for the Winx Club, but they're special.
Other notes - I reformatted the character recap section. I know I'm dumping a ton of OCs on you, but that's a side effect of doing next generation stuff. Also, I bumped the rating up due to my evil future plans.
Character Recap
Fairies
Year 3
Miriam- elder child of Bloom and Sky, age 18, from Eraklyon, Fairy of Natural Fire, Charmix level, powerful but snobbish
Lucinda (Lucy)- only child of Stella and Brandon, age 18, from Solaria, Fairy of Luck, Charmix level, elegant and reserved
Year 2
Julie (Juliette) - age 17, from Magix, Fairy of Gems, first transformation 'Winx' level, witty yet a deep thinker
Lita - age 17, from Eraklyon, Fairy of Sports, first transformation 'Winx' level, tomboyish and sarcastic
Mel (Spirit name- Qu Diao)- only child of Musa and Riven, age 17, from the Harmonic Nebula, Fairy of Sound, first transformation 'Winx' level, independent and sassy
Year 1
Lily- elder child of Flora and Helia, age 16, from Lymphea, Fairy of Traditional Art, first transformation 'Winx' level, elder twin of Jasmine, quiet and creative
Jasmine- younger child of Flora and Helia, age 16, from Lymphea, Fairy of Digital Art, first transformation 'Winx' level, younger twin of Lily, fiery and adventurous
Miranda (Miri) - a first-year fairy, age 16, from Solaria, Fairy of Mirrors, first transformation 'Winx' level, chatty and cheerful
Witches
Year 2
Vita- the daughter of one of the descendants of the Ancestral Witches, age 17, from an unknown place, Witch of the Mind, quiet and shy
Year 1
Nixy- the daughter of one of the descendants of the Ancestral Witches, age 16, from an unknown place, Witch of Natural Disasters, master of deception
Specialists/non-magic males
Year 3
Lin- suitemate with Ophir, Ryan, and Zach, age 18, from the Harmonic Nebula, Red Fountain battle strategist and stealth expert, quiet and clever
Year 2
Zach- suitemate with Ophir, Ryan, and Lin, age 17, from Magix, Red Fountain speed/stamina/agility specialist, curious and talkative
Year 1
Ophir- only child of Aisha and Nabu, age 17, from Andros, Red Fountain wizard specializing in alchemy and runes, intellectual and mature
Oritel- younger child of Bloom and Sky, age 16, from Eraklyon, Red Fountain dragon-riding prodigy, easy-going and idealistic
Ryan- only child of Tecna and Timmy, age 16, from Zenith, Red Fountain genius mathematician and thinker, geeky with a heart of gold
Wizards
Chrono- son of "just your typical Downlanders," age 18, from the Downland region of Magix, Red Fountain wizard with an as of yet unknown specialty, carefree and chatty
In the Previous Chapter
The first day has come and gone, and the excitement of a new school as wound down to normalcy for all first-year students at the big three schools. Some new bonds have been formed, while others have been weakened, but all of this occurs without knowledge of the newest threat to the Magic Dimensions.
Cloud Tower School for Witches
Nixy decided that she would keep play the part of good but forgettable student for the time of being. She kept to herself, but made sure to spare her dear cousin Hadey a glance whenever she passed her. It had been seven years since she had last had the pleasure of antagonizing the quiet girl. She had hoped to remedy that by approaching her on the night of the Welcoming Ball, but Vita had always had something of an innate moral compass more suited to a fairy than to a traditional witch. Oh, well. She could find other comrades.
As she kept a low profile, she observed the different witches. According to her mother, Cloud Tower used to be a place where only the baddest of the bad survived. Then, Headmistress Griffin started to go soft, and the weak were allowed to squeak by. It appeared that even those days had passed, though. Now Mirta, the famous witch who had proved that witches could use their negative, destructive powers for good just like fairies and their positive, constructive powers could, was the headmistress, and she had created a new curriculum for the new generation of witches. These witches were trained for the good of Magic Dimensions, to take on the jobs that fairies could not, the ones surrounded by ancient evil and powerful negative energy that would not allow a fairy to transform even for a second. It was disgusting. So far, out of all the witches that Nixy had observed, only a few seemed to have the potential to become worthy allies, and the Ancestral Witches had a power that demanded a team of three. Had Hadey agreed to work with her, only one more teammate would be needed, but now she had to go to the trouble of finding two.
Nixy's first option was a second-year witch named Sina. She was a from Eraklyon and had the power of Runes. Sina did not seem to have a strong negative personality, but if she stuck her, she could absorb enough of Nixy's plentiful dark influence to develop one. Nixy saw potential in her because of the fierce loyalty that Eraklyon's culture had ingrained in her.
Another option was the first-year witch Glim. She was the Witch of Beasts from Lymphea, and as the counterpart of the legendary Roxy, the first official magical ambassador to Earth. Unlike Sina, she had the personality of a traditional witch - she was silent, bitter, and scheming. Her sociability was lacking, as she preferred the company of the birds that made their way up to Cloud Tower to the company of other witches. However, Nixy was sure that this could be overcome if Glim accepted the power of the Ancestral Witches.
Her final option was a third-year witch named Ella. She was from Magix, the Downland region, if she was not mistaken, and was the Witch of Nature. The counterpart of the famous Flora of the Winx Club was antisocial and pessimistic, and spent most of her time either away from Cloud Tower or in its library. She might be another tough nut to crack, but Nixy hoped that her experience and wide power range would make up for the energy she might spend trying to convince her to work with her.
"Just watch these witches have little moral compasses hammered into their heads by that weakling Mirta," she muttered to herself as she rolled over on her bed, waiting for her roommate, the sniveling little first-year Witch of Rain, to return. She touched the Vesperian Crystal that she had stolen from her mother as a boost to get herself out of the Legendarium dimension. It had lost its power in her mother's hand after the Ancestral Witches had grown sick of seeing her and her sisters fail, but in Nixy's hand it radiated power once more. Its connection to the Ancestral Witches had helped her find the ones who would become her sponsors, the spirits of the Ancestral Witches themselves. The Winx Club may have dispersed their evil power once upon a time, but as long as time still flowed, the balance between good and evil would still persist. The Ancestral Witches could not be destroyed, as they were the source of all evil, and until the end of time, evil itself would never truly be destroyed.
"For every light, there is a shadow, and the stronger the light, the darker the shadow," Nixy mused aloud. "There is truth to the Androsian philosophy of balance. Ebb and flow, give and take. The harder one fights the reality of the existence of negative power, the stronger it will fight back. I wonder why no one understands that. We have been in a cycle of light for far too long. Now it is time for dark to rise again."
The Vesperian Crystal glowed in her hand. She could sense the Ancestral Witches calling her, "Nixy, Nixy, Nixy." The simple fact that they knew her name filled her with pride. The incarnations of the negative half of the primal powers called her by name. She would not fail them. She knew that every loser had that thought, that they would be different than their predecessors, but Nixy swore that she would make that thought reality. She just needed to find the perfect partners, two witches who would be willing to submit their wills to the most ancient negative power in the universe. Then everything would fall into place, but unlike other ambitious failures, she would not let pride or greed get in her way. Nixy would not become a queen, she would become a channel, a vessel, a prophet, a priestess for the three great Ancestral Witches. She would usher in a new age of darkness, one long awaited, for the balance of the universe.
A weak rap on the dormitory door made Nixy stow away both her thoughts and the Vesperian Crystal. "Rani?" she asked.
"It's me," the pathetic excuse for a witch said. "I forgot my keys in the room. Will you let me in?"
Nixy plastered on her facade of pathetic, well-meaning new-age witch and sat up. "Of course," she said sweetly. She soothed her disgust by thinking of the day when she could cast aside her mask and bow with the masses to the awe-inspiring power of the Ancestral Witches.
Alfea School for Fairies
Life was going wonderfully. The ball had been wonderful, and her roommates were good (to her, at least). She loved her professors, she loved her powers, and she loved learning. She could see that the situation was similar for her sister, though she loved her powers a little more than the professors and learning. Lily had relayed all this to her parents in her weekly update email. Now she sat, thinking about her mother's request - "Tell me about your new friends!"
Honestly, Lily was not certain she had any friends. She had known all of her roommates for most of her life, but they were acquaintances, not friends. Mel spent most of her time out of the suite with her own classmates, Lucy studied often with a girl from Zenith, and everyone knew that Miriam was friends with lots of important people. Lily did know Miri, but the chipper girl was much closer to Jasmine than to her. And as for the sons of her mother's friends, well, Lily had never been very comfortable around boys, not even the quiet ones like Ryan. Thinking of boys...
Lily's eyes fell on the number scrawled at the top corner of her sketch of Cloud Tower. Chrono and his cousin Vita had both seemed like very nice people, but she was not sure that she could count them as friends, as she had only met them once. But there's only one way to remedy that, a little voice said in the back of her head. They're both older than me, Lily countered herself. I'm sure they both have their own friends already. And now I'm arguing with myself. That was an obvious sign that she needed to clear her head. Dressing in comfortable autumn clothes, Lily gently poked her sister.
"Jas? I'm going out to the city park to sketch, okay?" she said.
"Mmph," came the coherent reply. Lily left Jasmine a note on her nightstand, packed her bag, and headed for the school gates.
Silver flashed in her peripheral vision. "Hey, Lily?" It was Miri. "Do you know where Jas is?"
"She's still sleeping," Lily said.
"Would she mind if I wake her up?" Miri asked. "She'll sleep the weekend away, and there are some great things going on in the events district in the city!"
"She's not a morning person, but if you're tactful, I'm sure you'll be alright," Lily said.
"Thanks! You're the best!" Miri chirped as she practically skipped away.
Lily smiled to herself as she wondered how her sleepy sister would fare against the natural morning-person-ness of her Solarian friend. She was almost a little jealous of the fact that someone wanted to spend the day with Jasmine, just having fun. It almost made her wish that she was more extroverted and charismatic. But then she would not be herself, she supposed as she stepped onto the shuttle to the city, and to go against her inborn nature was not something Lily wanted to do. If it was her nature to be a quiet artist, appreciated for her beautiful works, then that was how it was.
Warm September light filtered through the just-changing leaves as Lily sat on the park bench. Her colored pencils danced across the no-longer-blank page in her book, capturing the moment. This was her element, Lily thought as her eyes flicked from scene to paper and back again. This was where she was meant to be. This was her peaceful place.
"For someone so at peace, your mind is quiet melancholy," a soft but familiar voice said.
Lily looked up and realized that the witch Vita was standing behind her. "Hello," Lily said, a bit startled.
"I'm sorry," Vita said quickly. "I'm intruding."
"No, it's alright," Lily said. "You can watch."
"I meant on your mind," Vita said. "Sometimes I can't control it. I try to contain it, but I still hear things that are meant to be internal and private."
"There's no harm done," Lily insisted. "You can sit, if you'd like. It's probably more comfortable." After a moment of thought, Vita accepted, and she moved around to sit beside Lily. As she did, Lily noticed how the late-morning sun illuminated Vita's fair skin, making it stand out against her black hair, and caught in her deep brown eyes, making them appear almost like dark rubies. Vita was beautiful, and the artist inside Lily made her want to catch and preserve it. "Can-" she began hesitantly, "can you sit like that? Looking down a bit so that your hair frames your face, but still so that the sun is on you?"
"Are you going to draw me?" Vita asked.
"If that's alright," Lily said timidly, feeling her cheeks getting warm.
"It is," Vita said.
Lily lost all sense of her surroundings as she laid down the basic proportions of Vita's face with her lightest pencil. There was only her and the beauty that she was trying to emulate on paper. She added some soft shadows as quickly as possible to capture the light at it was in that moment before the sun made its way to noon position and changed everything. Time disappeared as she worked, layering colors carefully, making careful marks to show delicate lashes and soft skin. Not even the beeping of Vita's phone bothered her, and strangely, it did not bother Vita either, as the older girl ignored it.
The moment Lily felt that her skills could do no more to improve her work, she looked up to meet Vita's eyes. "It's beautiful," Vita said, not looking at the image. Lily was confused. "I could feel it, that energy you were giving off just now. So focused and precise, yet so gentle and warming. It's unlike anything I've ever felt before." She paused. "Can I see it?" Lily turned her sketchbook around for her. "You truly possess a great talent," Vita said.
"Thank you for letting me do this," Lily said. She scanned her work with a critical eye, looking for flaws in technique and representation. Overall, it seemed, this was one of her better pieces of work.
"Would you mind if I took a picture of it?" Vita asked.
"Go ahead," Lily said.
Vita snapped a photo of the drawing before seeing her messages. "Cro's been trying to reach me for the last half hour? Oh, dear. I'd better go."
"Thank you again," Lily said as Vita stood.
"It was nothing," Vita said with a small nod. "Hopefully our paths will cross again."
Lily watched Vita's retreating back with an odd sense of calm. Yes, she thought, I could be friends with someone like her. I might have a chance with someone like her.
Lunchtime was fast approaching, and Lily wanted to eat somewhere quickly and quietly before the general population decided that they were hungry as well. Putting her art supplies away, she walked through the park toward the outskirts of the shopping district. On her way, she passed a familiar red-head, Oritel, as he ran somewhere. He shouted a friendly hello before rushing on his way. Lily was surprised that anyone else her age (aside from the Solarians) was awake, but paid it no mind, for to say all non-Solarians were not morning people would be a gross generalization.
She found a small sandwich shop with outdoor seating and decided to give it a try. Sitting down, Lily briefly perused the menu before giving her order to the server. She was about halfway through her meal, when she heard someone call, "Lily?"
She turned. It was Ryan. "Hello," she said politely, bobbing her head slightly in his direction.
"You're out and about all alone?" he asked a bit awkwardly.
"Yes," she answered.
"Cool," he said. Then he started to turn a bit pink. "Um, uh, doyoumindifIjoinyou?"
There's no harm in it, I suppose, Lily thought. "If you'd like," she said.
"Oh?" He seemed surprised that she agreed. "Uh, thanks!" He sat. When the server returned, he took a menu and ordered.
When Lily finished her meal, she politely waited for him. When he was ready, she prepared to pay, but he stopped her. "I, uh, feel like I should pay," he said.
Lily looked at him. "Why?" she asked.
"I feel like it's the right thing to do," he said.
"Why?" she asked.
"Well, um, because we're friends, and you're a lady," he said uncertainly.
"That's very sweet of you to offer, but there's no need," Lily said as she counted out her credits and calculated a tip.
"Split check?" the server asked.
"Yes, please," Lily said.
"Uh, I don't think it's necessary," Ryan said at the same time.
"Nonsense," Lily said. "Here, ma'am, this is for the food and this is a tip. Have a beautiful day."
"Thank you, miss," the server said.
"Um, I guess this is for mine, then," Ryan said, handing the server his credits.
"Have a nice day," the server said as they left.
"Where are you heading?" Ryan asked Lily as they walked to the shuttle station.
"Back to Alfea," Lily answered. "And you?"
"Back to Red Fountain, I guess," Ryan said. "Uh, what were you doing out in the city today?"
"I was sketching," Lily answered. "And you?"
"I was just buying a few gadgets," Ryan answered. "I'm trying to upgrade some of my things as a side project."
"That's very interesting," Lily said. "What are you trying to do?"
"Oh, just increase battery life and processing power, nothing too crazy," Ryan said. "Say, do you mind if I look at some of your sketches?"
Lily hesitated. She usually kept her sketches private to herself, but Ryan was the son of a friend of her parents, and she was trying to make friends... "Sure," she said, handing him her sketchbook. She tried not to be too awkward while he flipped through them.
"Wow, these are really good," he whispered excitedly. "How long do these take you?"
"It depends, really," Lily said.
"How about this last one?" Ryan asked, gesturing to the drawing of Vita.
"Oh, that one took about half an hour, I think," Lily said.
"Did you draw this from your imagination?" he asked.
Lily shook her head. "No, I had a model," she said. "She found me in the park, and, well, I just had to."
"This is beautiful," Ryan said. "You could make a career out of this!"
"That is my goal," Lily said. "I am the Fairy of Traditional Art, so I ought to make something of it."
"That's a cool idea," Ryan said.
The shuttle came to a stop outside Alfea's gates. "It was nice seeing you," Lily said. "I hope you have a nice day."
"Th- thanks!" Ryan said, turning pink again. "I, uh, hope you do too!"
Magix City Park
As soon as he saw his cousin, the first thing that came out of Chrono's mouth was, "Is everything alright?"
"I'm fine, Cro," Vita said.
"Are you sure?" he asked, sitting up on the park bench. "It's not like you to leave your phone buzzing."
"I was modelling," Vita said as she sat.
Chrono blinked. "Huh?" he asked.
"I saw Lily some ways over there," Vita said, glancing vaguely in the direction from which she had come. "She's really quite talented."
"Getting attached already?" Chrono asked teasingly.
"It's not like that," Vita said quickly.
"Don't worry, Cuz, I'm completely in support of most things that you do, and that's one of them," Chrono said, grinning. "I mean, she's definitely a cute little thing."
"It makes me cringe to think what Nixy might do to a delicate little thing like her," Vita said.
"So you want to make her your project as well?" Chrono asked.
"It depends on what you mean by that," Vita said.
"A little physical training, a little history, a bit of this and that," Chrono said, waving his hand lazily.
"What for?" Vita asked.
"To see if she can," he said easily. Vita looked at him. "What?"
"You don't want her to fight, do you?" she asked.
"What? Of course not!" Chrono exclaimed. "Why would you ever think that? Someone like her should never be a soldier."
"I'm just making sure," Vita said. "You can be...ambitious."
"Aw, come on, I settled for a time amulet that collects only a hundredth of my own daily energy output and turns back up to an hour instead of one that collects continuously from the environment and turns back up to twenty-four hours," he mock-whined.
"That's only because you and Tracy would've blown yourselves up if you'd made anything more," Vita said.
"Nah, you know Tracy and I have our fair share of common sense," Chrono insisted.
"Of course you do," Vita said.
"But, yeah, don't worry," Chrono said, staring up at the sky. "I'd never take someone so innocent and expect them to fight. I guess this is how Ella feels about Rick. I want her to be able to defend herself from the world."
"I understand," Vita said.
"Speaking of Ella, have you talked to her since you all got back?" Chrono asked.
"No," Vita said. "She's been busy studying ahead of time and applying for jobs so that she can keep Rick out of the streets."
"Gosh, I told her my parents would be more than willing to look after the guy, and maybe even teach him a thing or two," Chrono said, shaking his head. "She's so stubborn!"
"It's what's helped her survive," Vita said quietly.
"I guess," Chrono said. "I'll talk to Dad myself."
"You mean you haven't?" Vita asked, surprised.
"Come on, y' live un'er the same roof as me," Chrono said. "Y' know Dad'd never shut up about it."
"The accent," Vita said.
"Aw, come on, you still don't like it?" Chrono asked teasingly. "It keeps the kids at school interested and wary. Give 'em a little something different, and it's off-putting."
"I know," Vita said.
"Sorry," Chrono said. "I know you told me he talked a little like that."
"It's okay," Vita said. "I live in Downland. I should be used to it by now."
Chrono patted her on the shoulder. "Don't worry about it."
They sat in silence for a few minutes. "It's quarter to one," Vita said, glancing at her phone. "This is late, even for her."
"Maybe she partied too hard last night," Chrono said. "I know she did on the night of the Welcome Ball. She stayed for what, forty-five minutes, before slipping out into the city?"
"That's being generous," Vita said.
"Nah, I jes knew Vita'd be late, so I fig'erd I could take m' time." Tracy sauntered up to them, grinning. Her hair was up in a loose but high side-ponytail, and she wore her favorite cropped leather jacket.
"We both know that my definition of late differs greatly from yours," Vita said, smiling slightly.
"It also might'a had somethin' t' do wi' me stoppin' t' chat wi' Ella," Tracy said lazily. "She's bin' 'voidin' ya easily since yer too nice, Vita, bu' there's no' much she can do 'gainst th' power o' me! Anyway, she says she'll meet us af'er she gives Ricky a quick call. Then we can do somethin' like get a late lunch 'r somethin'."
"Sounds good," Chrono said. "Wanna sit? Vita and I'll make room."
"Sure thin', thanks," Tracy said. The cousins scooted over, and she plopped down next to Vita. "So, wa's new wi' ya?"
"I've got a new project or two," Chrono said.
"We," said Vita.
"Oh, he's managed t' suck ya in too?" Tracy asked.
"See, the other night, when you snuck out to party in the city instead of enjoy the nice, free ball, Vita and I met this fairy," said Chrono. "Her name's Lily, and she's a damn sweet little thing. Then we met Nixy."
"Nixy? Y' mean tha' little first-year witch?" Tracy asked. "She dresses real cute an' is a right li'l angel?"
"Are we talking about the same person?" Chrono asked.
"Nixy's no' a real common name, now," Tracy said.
"Anyway, Nixy is our other cousin," Chrono said. "She's Stormy's daughter, you know. Witch of Natural Disasters. That's a scary thing to think, huh? Powerful enough to escape the Legendarium, and has a contract of sorts with the Ancestral Witches."
Tracy looked genuinely surprised. "Damn, never woulda suspected tha' by lookin' a' her," she said. "If tha's true, she's right good a' playin' image t' her favor."
"Yeah, well that's what we're up against," Chrono said. "How charismatic is she?"
"I'd give 'er a solid seven an' a half 'r eight," said Tracy. "Nothin' crazy, bu' sure as hell no pushover."
"She's very good at that sort of thing," Vita said quietly.
"Damn, an' she had me, a seasoned Downlander, fooled," Tracy said.
"Don't sell yourself short, now," Chrono said. "You've barely had time to get to know the girl. First-years have only been here a few days, after all. I bet your senses would be tingling if you spent enough time with her."
"I guess, I guess," Tracy said. "Anyway, y' were talkin' 'bout some fairy too?"
"We met Lily first," said Vita. "She's an artist. It's her power, so it's to be expected, I suppose, but she really is quite talented."
"The more I've been thinking about it, the more I wanna try a few things," said Chrono. "I wanna experiment with physical and weapon training most of all, since that's what fairies tend to do least of, but I also wanna try to teach her some wizard, and maybe even a few witch, techniques, just to see if a fairy can do it."
"Soun's in'trestin'," Tracy said. "Why?"
"Well, for the sake of science," Chrono said. "But also, I don't want to see someone like that crumble in the coming fight against Nixy."
"Y' really think it'll come t' a fight?" Tracy asked.
"If not total war," said Vita. "She has a deal with the Ancestral Witches. Destruction is bound to follow."
"Well, tha's no' good," Tracy said. "Downland'll put up a helluva fight, but...yeah. That'd be bad. A fight wi' th' Ancestral Witches'd be real bad."
"No kidding," Chrono said. "And it'll be very troublesome to expose her, especially since she's already constructed such a harmless image for herself."
"Yeah," Tracy murmured in agreement. "Dammit, Ella, does i' really take so long t' have a stupid in'erview an' collect yer boy?!"
"You'd be surprised," a dry voice said.
Chrono turned his head. "Another fight?" he asked, noticing Rick's red left cheek.
"Eh, th' guys were jes in a bad mood, tha's all," Rick said easily.
"They were looking for trouble, and this moron knows just how to find it," Ella said.
"I do m' best no' t' look helpless, I really do," Rick insisted.
"Don' get on th' guy's case too bad," Tracy said, grinning. "He can' help tha' he's a li'l cutie."
"I'm no' li'l," Rick complained. "I'm a good few inches taller tha' y'."
"An' I'm th' heigh' o' an average female, Freckles," Tracy said.
"Not complaining about being called cute?" Chrono teased.
"Th-tha' too!" Rick exclaimed. Chrono grinned as Vita reached up and pinched the older boy's cheek. "H-hey! Wa's tha' fer?!"
"You really are cute," Vita said, patting his head. Rick flushed but said nothing.
"Are we going to get food?" Ella asked.
"Yeah, yeah," Chrono said, standing. "Where do you guys wanna go?"
"Eh, anywhere's good," Tracy said. "I've still go' creds from tha' boun'y I turned in las' month, so I'm down fer treatin' y' as a start o' school gift."
"So a nice steakhouse then?" Chrono asked.
"Wha'?! Tha's excessive!" Tracy exclaimed.
"Just kidding," Chrono assured her. "I wouldn't do that to Ricky."
"I still don' know how y' don' ge' sick eatin' meat an' then seein' an innocent chicken 'r cow," Rick said.
"We're jes no' as in turn wi' nature as y' an' Ella are," Tracy said.
"We could go to Old Fritz's," Ella suggested.
"You wanna go all the way to the outskirts?" Chrono asked.
"I don't see why not," Ella said. "You and Vita said you had something important to tell us."
"Oh, yeah, yer gonna wanna hear this," Tracy said, nodding. "It's real crazy an' spells for a real excitin' time."
"And here I was, hoping for a peaceful senior year," Ella said with a sigh.
"Nope," said Chrono, his mood darkening. "That's not gonna happen."
Alfea School for Fairies
"Lucy? Lucy, are you here?" Miriam knocked on her suitemate's door. "Lucy, are you packing for our first Enchantix assignment?"
The door opened. Lucy was dressed to travel. "I'm ready. I have to go pick up Aisla, but otherwise I'm all set."
"Good, then I'll go grab Pearl," said Miriam. "I'll meet you at the gates."
"Very well," said Lucy as they entered the halls.
Miriam strode purposefully to her friend's suite. She and Pearl had clicked the moment they laid eyes on each other in their first year at Alfea. They had seen each other's regal bearing and had gravitated to each other. Much to Miriam's delight, Pearl had turned out to be the daughter of one of the Andros Court's highest-ranking members, Roy (his wife's name always slipped her mind, but that was likely because she was no one too important). Since Roy was one of the king and queen's most trusted bodyguards, Pearl most definitely had connections, which had furthered Miriam's interest in her. Thanks to a little guidance, Miriam had turned Pearl into a politically-savvy young woman who might wield some real influence for the betterment of her kingdom.
Miriam did not even have to knock. Pearl was waiting for her, packed and dressed for the mission. "You ready for this?" Pearl asked.
"I've never been more so," Miriam said.
"Do you think our teammates will hold us back?" Pearl asked. "I know Lucy can hold her own, but Aisla is...how do I say this kindly? Under-confident?"
"That's a good way to describe her," Miriam said, rolling her eyes. "At least Griselda had the foresight to put her with Lucy. Heaven knows that Aisla can't do anything without her."
"At least the mission will take us to Domino," Pearl said. "That's her home planet, yes?"
Miriam nodded. "I wonder if I could earn my Enchantix there since my mother was born there?"
"That would be interesting," Pearl said. "After all, it's unlikely that Aisla would have the guts to sacrifice herself for one of her planet's people. Chances are she'll be held back, like so many are."
"Most likely," Miriam said. "Ah, there they are."
"A Red Fountain escort, of course," Pearl muttered.
"You know it's standard procedure," Miriam said.
"Yes," Pearl huffed.
"You have to admit objectively, at least, that generally they're not unattractive," Miriam said.
"But their minds are all filled with idealistic values," Pearl said. "Save everyone, kill no one, sweep the ladies of their feet, etc., etc."
"You know that boys mature at a different rate than us," Miriam said. She squinted at the ship. "Ah, I know them. That's Karl's team."
"Are they decent?" Pearl asked, still frowning.
"If they're worth remembering, then they're decent," Miriam said. "They're third-years like us. I'm sure you've bumped into them during your time here. It's Karl, Jon, Matteo, Lin, and Otto."
Pearl sighed. "Yeah, I do know them. Thank goodness we got them."
They boarded the ship. "It's just the four of you?" Jon asked as he began to ready the ship's engine.
"Yes," Miriam said.
"Alright, closing the doors," said Jon. "Yo, guys, I need a co. Who's turn is it?"
"I'll do it," said Otto.
"Once you ladies are settled, would you mind running through a quick mission outline?" Karl asked.
"Of course," Miriam said, taking charge. "We are to be dropped off on Domino at the sight of a potential mudslide. Should a mudslide come to pass, it is our duty to slow or stop it. Should the mudslide prove to be too difficult to control, we are to aid in the continued evacuation of the area."
Karl nodded. "Understood. We, obviously, are to be your transport to and from Domino. We are also tasked with aiding the evacuation process, and will be there to back you up in any way we can."
"Excellent," said Miriam.
"Jon, what is our estimated time of arrival?" asked Karl.
"Make yourselves cozy 'cause it's gonna be a good two hours," Jon answered.
"Thank you. Now, Lin," Karl said, turning to the quiet boy, "let's discuss our approach..."
Miriam turned away, losing interest. What the boys did was none of her concern. "Okay, girls, what's our plan?"
"Aisla will use her power of sight to watch for a mudslide, and will alert us if there are any alarming developments," said Lucy. "Pearl, I feel that you should stay back near the community as our line of defense. You could use your power over bubbles to put up protective barriers if we get the signal that there's danger. Miriam, since you and I both have powers that can generate heat, we could take to the skies and work on hardening the mud."
Miriam blinked, but did not let her surprise at the fact that Lucy had formulated a plan already show. Instead, she nodded, like a good leader should do when she hears one of her teammates give a decent idea. "That's a good base, Lucy," she said. "Does anyone have any problems with that?"
"It was Aisla's idea," said Lucy.
"Oh?" That was surprising.
"My bubbles can be made strong, but not that strong," said Pearl. "I think I should set up barriers along the potential path of the mudslide to slow the approach to start so that there's more time to evacuate the inhabitants."
"May I take part in this conversation?" Miriam turned to Lin, the team's resident strategist, if she remembered correctly.
"Certainly," she said, approving the fact that he asked.
"Miss Pearl, how much energy does it take for you to maintain your bubbles?" asked Lin.
"Some," she said evasively.
"Does the strength of the bubbles depend on how much energy you put into them?" asked Lin.
"Generally," Pearl answered.
"Then might I suggest abiding by Miss Aisla's plan?" he asked. "Since your powers lend themself to defense, it might be better to you were fully rested and ready to cast a strong barrier around the communities rather than have you constantly expending energy ahead of time."
Miriam could not find fault in that argument. "I find that reasonable. Pearl?"
"I suppose that does make more sense," Pearl said. "I just feel like I'm not doing anything, you know?"
"In an ideal situation, we wouldn't have to do anything," said Lin. "The mudslide would not come to pass, and the community would not be disturbed."
"Don't feel bad," Lucy said. "Aisla would keep you company."
"Thanks," Pearl said, not entirely meaning it, but managing to make her voice sound reasonably sincere. Miriam nudged her with her foot, letting her know that she had caught the slip.
After that, they lapsed into small talk before some of them decided to nap. The flight was uneventful, and in two hours they arrived.
"Welcome, everyone, to the town of Fanmelma," Matteo said cheerfully.
"Our team was told to base our operations here on the outskirts of town," said Karl. "I don't know if you ladies want to get a read on the situation from a closer spot, but you're always welcome back here."
"Thank you," said Lucy.
"Girls, let's go scout out the area from the sky," said Miriam as she stepped out of the ship.
"Got it," said Pearl. She called out her transformation incantation, "Bubble pop!"
"Flash fire!" Miriam shouted.
"Strong sight," Aisla said.
Lucy thrust her hands out in front of her, forming a triangle with her thumbs and the first two fingers of each hand. In a flash of light, they transformed.
"We'll be back," Lucy said. "We'll call you there's trouble."
"Good luck!" Otto called as they flew up.
"Aisla, sight is your thing," Miriam said. "Get eyes on the mountain."
Aisla closed her eyes. "Far sight," she whispered. A pale lavender light appeared over her eyes. "It doesn't look too bad right now. Yes, it's muddy inside, but nothing terribly unusual."
"Somebody get me the weather forecast," Miriam ordered.
"On it," said Pearl as she whipped out her phone. "Ok, we're good for a day or two, but there's definitely rain on the way."
"How heavy?" asked Miriam.
"Unclear, but the current estimate is about five inches," read Pearl.
Lucy frowned. "How quick will the accumulation be?"
Aisla cocked her head. "Oh dear. It's going to be more than five inches, and it will be a cloudburst. High chances of flooding and mudslides."
"Pardon me?" Miriam asked, looking at her sharply.
"S-sorry, it's a sight thing," Aisla said, looking down.
"What's the accuracy on your reading?" asked Pearl, inspecting their teammate.
"T-typically pretty accurate," Aisla said, stuttering slightly.
Miriam frowned. She did not like uncertainty, especially not on important missions like this, which would set her reputation. "Should we go up now and start casting drying spells on the mud so it can absorb more water?" she asked.
"Only to a point," said Pearl. "If we completely dry out the mud, it become too hard and take too long to absorb the rain, which would cause flooding faster."
"Understood," said Lucy.
All it took was a few spells and they had done all they could. "Aisla, what are the odds of an evacuation being necessary?" Lucy asked.
Aisla cocked her head as she thought. "At least eighty-five percent."
Miriam nodded. "We should begin evacuation now, then. Give the people time to collect their belongings and get to safety and all."
"We should probably tell the boys, right?" Pearl asked.
"Of course. Let's go, ladies," Miriam said.
They landed at the ship's side and untransformed. Miriam stepped forward and rapped on the door. Matteo opened it. "Ah! Welcome back. What's the news?"
"According to Aisla, there's a minimum eighty-five percent chance of an evacuation-requiring situation," Miriam said. "We were thinking of evacuating now while there's still time."
"How accurate is this information?" Lin asked from inside.
"Very," Lucy said, something subtle in her voice daring the boy to challenge her. Miriam approved of this hidden side of her associate.
"Early evacuation would be a good idea, then," he said. "Karl, should we head to Fanmelma now?"
"Yes," their team leader said.
They rest of the afternoon spreading the call to evacuate throughout the town. The two groups ate together that night at a restaurant at a discounted price thanks to the thankfulness of the owner for the advanced notice of evacuation. Apparently, in the area, bad mudslides occurred about once a generation, and the family that ran the restaurant had lost both property and relatives over the years, even in the time before the Ancestral Witches' attack on the planet. In fact, the majority of the Fanmelma's residents spoke of their eternal gratefulness to the group when they were warned of the danger (a few newcomers to the town were a bit more difficult to convince to leave, but Miriam prided herself on her ability to convince most people of most things, and they were reasoned with).
"I'm glad things are going smoothly," Otto said as they ate. "The evacuation's been called and the people are practically out of danger. All that's left is to wait out the rain and mud, and we're home free."
Pearl sighed. "I guess that means nobody gets their Enchantix on this mission."
"What does getting an Enchantix entail?" asked Jon.
"Self-sacrifice for someone from your home," Miriam answered.
Matteo grinned. "You guys got assigned the wrong team for that sort of thing. We're basically a well-oiled machine, and we're lucky, too. If you want life-threatening situations, you should probably request a rookie team so more things can go wrong."
"We'll keep that in mind," Pearl said as she sipped her drink.
Jon snorted. "There's a team I know that's a year below us. Most of the boys are good kids, but their pilot is this cocky little troublemaker who tends to make bad calls and gets his team in all sorts of bad situations."
"Ah, them," Karl said, nodding. "Yeah, if you're looking for excitement, ask for Mark's team. If they need more specifics, tell them you need Sean."
"But until then, enjoy the peaceful mission," said Matteo as they prepared to pay for their food. "Karl, you said we'd move out to a safer spot once the town's empty, right?"
Karl nodded. "That's right, we'll fly the ship outside the predicted affected area and wait it out so that we can help the townspeople move back into what's left of their homes."
"I don't understand why the people don't just change locations," Otto said. "I mean, a major mudslide every generation? Isn't that a big enough hint to move?"
Miriam half-listened as Lin went into lecture mode and explained the benefits of mud with regards to fertile land for farming. She pulled out her purse to pay for her food, when she noticed that Aisla's eyes had gone blank. Lucy had noticed as well, as she watched her associate with a close eye. Karl noticed and leaned over to Miriam. "Is your teammate alright?" he asked.
"She's the Fairy of Sight," Lucy explained. "She's having a vision."
"Oh, so this is how she knew to evacuate?" Karl asked.
"Precisely," Miriam said.
"There will be an Enchantix earned on this mission," Aisla finally said, her eyes focusing once again.
Miriam felt a surge of excitement rush through her. She had resigned herself to a boring but completed first mission with no progress on their secondary objective, earning Enchantix, but now... "Who gets it?" she asked, forcing herself to repress excessive excitement.
"I don't know," Aisla answered. Miriam deflated, disappointed.
"Well, it could only be someone with Domino heritage, which means you or Miriam," Lucy reasoned. "It could very well be both of you."
"But I guess we do know one thing for certain," Matteo said. "This mission's gonna blow up in our faces somewhere along the line."
Once again, I apologize for taking so long to update. I really hope this chapter was at least somewhat worth the wait! If you're confused and have questions, have comments, or anything, leave me a review, and I'll PM you if you have an account or answer you at the beginning of next chapter (which probably won't be out for a while, so if you have a question you want answered now, a logged-in review is likely preferable). Until next time!
Preview of Coming Attractions
Chaos ensues and lives are risked as a simple mission on Domino turns sour! Only one of the two eligible fairies earns her Enchantix, leaving the other feeling bitter. Meanwhile, Nixy recruits witches to her cause, Prince Oritel of Eraklyon loves life as a commoner, and Jasmine and Mel join forces to combat the bane of their existence - the now-cranky, as well as spoiled, princess named Miriam.