Griselda has no mercy.
At exactly four in the morning, Griselda chimes her Bell of Torture, yelling for us to wake up.
"Your day is just beginning, ladies! It's time to get started!"
Musa drags her pillow from her room into the foyer where Griselda stands. "It's not even dawn…" she groans, burying her face into the pillow. "Can't we have five more minutes?"
"Nope!" Griselda grins. "This school is bigger than you think, and if we even waste a little bit of time, you won't be finished, and I would hope for you all to be finished in at least twenty-four hours. Wake yourselves up. If you can, find the others and bring them here."
I nearly fall back asleep trying to grab both Flora and Techna into the foyer. Musa falls asleep standing up, but one ring of Griselda's bell, and she snaps right awake, mumbling a few inaudible words under her breath.
I'm too tired to do a headcount, but Griselda seems to be more on it than us right now, since we're all half-asleep. "Where's Princess Stella? She's the star of this group, hm?" Sarcasm. Pure sarcasm. And Flora's already gone to try to retrieve her, and I drag myself into her room where Stella is lying on the ground surrounded by stuffed animals and has covered her face with the hood of her pink onesie. Cute, not gonna lie.
"I'm not leeeeaving," she moans, burying her head into the body of her bear plush.
"Come on, Stella," Flora pleads. "Griselda needs us right now. She's not going to wait, and if we don't get moving, we might get an even worse punishment."
"But she's merciless!" Stella cries. "Even if I come out there, she's gonna penalize us anyway!"
"Stella." Flora gives Stella a stern look, causing her to groan, raising her arm up as a gesture for Flora and I to help her up. Once we do so, we walk back into the foyer and step over Musa, who has decided to sleep on the floor. I wish that were me.
"Good, now we're all here." Griselda clasps her hands together and gently nudges Musa awake with her foot. "Because of your disobedience, you are now going to clean the entire school—and I mean entire—beginning with the front entrance. I'm just here to wake you up and lead you there." From our dismayed (and sleepy) faces, she smiles. "Don't worry; this'll be fun." She pauses. "For me." She begins chortling at her own joke.
"Come on, Griselda!" Stella cries. "Can't you let us sleep for a couple more minutes? Or at least get dressed?"
Griselda thinks for a moment. "Alright, fine. Only because I don't want to hear you complaining the entire time. You have fifteen minutes to get dressed, eat, or…" She eyes Musa. "Sleep. But that's it."
I smile. "Aww, Griselda, I knew you had a heart under there!"
Griselda, beginning to leave the room, smiles fakely and closes the door behind us, beginning a timer.
We move out to begin changing and getting ready. After I'm done, I head into the bathroom where Flora is brushing Stella's hair, while the client complains.
"Four AM, out of all times! I would've been okay with six or even five, but noo! Four, when the sun's not even up! Doesn't she know I rise and sleep with the sun?"
"The professors had a valid point, though, Stella." Flora places down the hairbrush, moisturizing Stella's hair a bit more. "We should've at least notified them we were going to Cloud Tower. We nearly died, and we broke rules. I would much rather this happen than get expelled. Don't you think, Bloom?"
I didn't even realize she knew I was behind her. I nod, however, assuming she could still see me. "If I got expelled, I would think my life would be over. My school back home is like a dumpster fire compared to this place."
"Eh." Stella pulls her purse to her chest. "I've been expelled before, I can be expelled again."
"What are schools like back on your planet?" Flora asks, watching Stella walk out of the room in the corner of her eye.
I think for a moment. "Not as exciting. It's twelve times smaller, and magic is completely nonexistent. We have classes like math and science and English, you know—stuff I'm never gonna use in the real world. Nothing is extravagant there. There, everyone is completely normal, with normal families and normal lives. Here, everyone's either a noble or connected to royalty in some way. I look out of place compared to everyone else here."
Flora stands up, moving a potted plant on Stella's vanity over a bit. "You're not out of place, sweetie. It just takes getting used to. And once you get used to it, it tends to lose its magic. I guarantee you, by the end of the year, you'll be completely a part of the Magic Dimension."
I smile a little. But I can't imagine this place losing its magic. There's so much for me to learn here. This place is completely new to me, and I think I slightly like my ignorance.
"Now, come on." Flora takes my hand. "We only have two minutes left before Griselda yells at us."
I nod, walking with her out of the dorm room and down the many, many stairs to the front entrance.
I'm able to grab a granola bar from Stella, who snagged them from the school cafeteria. It's not much breakfast, but knowing Griselda, she's probably not gonna let us eat until we finish, so I better enjoy the snack while I can.
Once we all arrive at the front entrance, we're greeted with the sight of Griselda staring at the stopwatch with a whole bunch of cleaning supplies behind her. Just as Musa steps off the final step, the stopwatch beeps, and she smiles devilishly at all of us. "Ah. Good to see you're all on time. I didn't know what I'd do if you all appeared late after I graciously gave you more time, hm?" She puts her stopwatch away. "Now, there's no time to waste. I have a field trip to get to, so I'll make this short. How many of you are royals or have servants in some way, shape, or form?"
All the girls around me raise their hands. I feel so awkward being the only one who hasn't experienced it. Mom and I have joked that we should hire a maid, but it's never become a reality.
Griselda hums in response. "And tell me, have you ever seen them clean your room? A corridor? A bathroom?"
"I have! It doesn't seem very fun," says Stella. "Especially the bathroom part. Even for us royals, the bathrooms are hideous."
"Miss Peters." I jump when Griselda calls my name. "You're the only one who didn't raise her hand. As an Earthling, do they not have servants and the like?"
"I mean, they do," I explain, "but only rich people can have them. My family's not rich, so we have to do everything."
"And tell me, what is that like?"
I think for a moment. "It's not...horrible. I mean, cleaning my room is boring and grating, and the finished product is usually good. My mom's the one who cleans the most in the house, and sometimes, I have to thank her. My room, my dad's closet, and the bathrooms are the worst spots."
"Bathrooms are the enemy," Musa audibly whispers.
"Alright, well, as Miss Peters has said, cleaning can be boring and uneventful, and depending on what you are cleaning, can be disgusting. And yes, you will be cleaning bathrooms as well. They're getting filthy, and it's only been several weeks."
Stella and Musa groan.
"Because your powers have been revoked, you're going to have to live life as a magicless servant for a day." She points over to the brooms, mops, buckets of water, and different soaps. "Imagine you were someone like Miss Peters, not a noble nor royal and had to do everything herself. After this, you'll be appreciative of the ser—" She stops, seeing Techna's ladybug gadget fly around the cleaning supplies. "What is that?" She notices quickly that it's not a real insect.
"My scanner," Techna answers. "It helps me to track and scan mysteries. And also to tell me what unfamiliar objects are." It continues to fly around the supplies until Griselda traps the bug in her hand. "Oh, did I not mention?"
Techna blinks.
"No gadgets allowed, either."
Techna's entire face just crumbles. "What do you mean 'no gadgets'?"
"Precisely what I said. It might speed up the process, and I want your punishment to be nice and slow, to make it remind you of what could happen if you break the rules like that again." Griselda smiles.
"Honestly, I am not much of a beggar." Techna begins her sentence more to herself than Griselda. "Gadgets are not a form of magic; they are a form of machinery, and they are very much a part of me, and without them, I shall feel completely cut off from who I am, and—"
Wow. Every sentence feels like she's gonna have an actual meltdown. But Griselda's not having it. "Miss Zenith. I know where you're from. I know about the importance of machinery and advanced technology all across the Seven Binaries that the other realms don't have. But that doesn't stop me from taking them away. You're just gonna have to get used to living like the regular commonfolk."
Techna gives up, looking down defeatedly. I pat her on the shoulder, trying to look on the bright side. "Hey, if it makes you feel any better, you're just like the rest of us now. We're all in this together."
I can hear the High School Musical song play in my head as I say it. Techna gives me an attempt at a small smile, but it seems more like a grimace.
Griselda lets go of the bug, letting it go back to Techna. "Anyway," she continues. "Fortunately for you, the other students won't be around to disrupt your work. We're going to be taking a schoolwide field trip to Magix."
"No way! Out of all days, you choose this one to take a field trip?" Musa cries.
"Correct. Such a shame you won't be going. You would've been. If you hadn't broken a rule for the nth time this semester."
We're quiet at that. She's right.
Griselda looks at her watch. "Oh, my. Look at the time." She clasps her hands together. "This is where I leave you." She turns her head towards Flora. "Miss Linphea, if something happens while we're gone, it's your responsibility to contact one of the staff members. There's an emergency contact button in each classroom, so there will be no reason you can't call us." Flora nods in understanding, mumbling a "yes, ma'am" quietly.
We stand around for a couple seconds until Griselda raises her eyebrow. "Well, what are you just standing around for? Get to work!" And with that, she disappears in a cloud of sparkles.
Cleaning is not fun. Especially when you're cleaning whole rooms.
It's hard to get every nook and cranny, trying to figure out what's part of the room and what's not supposed to be there. It's easy for me, though, since I'm familiar with cleaning and this kind of thing. For the other girls—including Flora—it's not so simple. It's evident they're not familiar with cleaning at all. Stella doesn't know how to use a broom. Flora spills too much cleaning water. I have to pick Musa up to help her clean a spot on the higher wall (she's quite short. It's actually kinda cute, but not good for reaching high places). Techna disappears on the other side of the room, doing something weird with the broom.
What feels like thirty minutes is actually twelve, and we've moved to cleaning the upper steps. Stella's made her own mask and gloves to clean more uncleanly spots ("Oh, you can do that, but you can't scrub one f*cking floor?" Musa asks). Flora's assisting us when we mess up since she's seemed to have gotten used to it already. Musa has overturned the bucket to use as a stool, but has nearly fallen and cracked her back twice. Flora urges her not to do that, but Musa is Musa and Musa does whatever the f*ck Musa wants to.
Techna…
Well.
While we're cleaning, there's quite a loud crashing sound of glass and other large artifacts, so loud it made Musa's ears hurt. When we turn our heads, Techna has a bucket on her head, holding the broom like a weapon. "Huh. I understand what the helmet is for."
"Tech… What are you doing?" I ask, trying not to start laughing. There's glass and sh*t all over there ground around her, meaning we're gonna have to clean something else (and that stuff looks important, too!), but this is actually kinda funny.
"Cleaning. Is that not what I am supposed to be doing…?"
"Techna, why is the bucket on your head?" Stella asks, taking it off her head.
"Is that not what it is for?"
Musa's the first to start laughing. Flora hits her on the shoulder, giving her a disapproving look, and stepping towards Techna. "So that's what you meant by unfamiliar objects. You don't have brooms and things where you're from?"
Techna shakes her head. "Is that...a popular item in other realms?"
"It's even popular on Earth," I add.
Techna looks down at the ground, looking a bit embarrassed. "My apologies. 'Twas not my intention to appear incompetent."
"You're not incompetent," Flora comforts calmly. "You just didn't know about these types of things. It's not your fault. I can teach you. It's not too hard once you get used to it. Here: I can teach you." She takes the broom weapon from Techna's hands, switching it back from a sword to a cleaning device. She catches us staring, and she waves a shooing hand. "Come on, keep working. Griselda wants us to be done before tomorrow. If we stand around here, we'll never get done."
We clean more. Fortunately, we get done with the good majority of the front room, and Stella actually didn't do a horrible job on the staircase and railings. I suggest we split up and clean the smaller rooms.
It really makes me appreciate my mom. My room is nearly impossible to clean sometimes, and Dad's not good at cleaning, either (seriously. His closet is disturbing. Seriously, some of the things I've found there date back to the early eighties!), so it's Mom's job to clean things. "You know, sometimes I feel like a fifties housewife dealing with you two," she used to say. "When the mother of the house had to cook and clean like a janitor. But I'm not complaining too much, because if I made you two clean or cook anything, you'd just kill someone trying." And she's not wrong. But I'm trying at least.
After what's actually two hours, I find myself cleaning in the auditorium, where Musa and Stella have found themselves as well, but they're arguing when I enter.
"Come on, why do I have to clean that area? You have two hands, which are—might I add—gloved. It'll be better if you cleaned that area," Musa yells. She's always the one yelling in these situations.
"But that area is terrifying! The back of bleachers are the dirtiest area in any school," says Stella. Can confirm. "I've cleaned three classrooms, including bathrooms. I'm at my limit, Musa. I think it'd be better if you cleaned it. You like to get dirty and stuff, right? with your tomboyish attitude?"
"Just because I don't want to dress myself in a frilly gown and put on heeled torture devices doesn't mean I like cleaning areas that are probably teeming with mold and spiders. I've had my share of spiders for one year."
"So have I, so one of us is gonna have to suffer."
"Coin toss." Musa takes out a coin. I was about to volunteer to do it for them, but I wanna see how this coin toss goes. "Heads, I do it, tails, you do it. Got it?"
"Uh huh. And I'm gonna watch carefully. Hate coin toss cheaters."
The coin goes into the air, spins a bit, then lands unceremoniously on the floor, showing a clear tails sign.
"Sorry, Stella," Musa apologies, obviously not sorry. "Looks like you're on back bleacher duty."
Stella's face crumbles. "Wha—Hey! That's not fair! You cheated!" She crosses her arms and pouts.
Musa takes up her coin. "Nope. Don't blame me; blame Fate." She hands Stella a scrub bucket and sponge. "Better get to cleaning, bud."
"Before you two kill each other, don't worry; I'll clean it." I take my stuff and head back there. The two of them are surprised to see me, but Musa just shrugs, and Stella smiles happily at me.
And they're right. The back bleachers are disgusting, but not overly disgusting. Just with a lot of trash and a weird smell. Here at the Magic Dimension, they have something called Smell-away, which, if sprayed on anything, makes it smell like roses. Or Flora. So it was handy cleaning over there.
As we're cleaning, Musa begins to make a beat with the bucket unconsciously, mumbling lyrics which are still audible. "Black and white, 'cause baby I'm your match, and you're my dynamite. We go together just like day and night, if only I could change your mind. We'd have fun, but I say high, and you say goodbye and walk across the borderline."
Have I mentioned how beautiful Musa's voice is. It's so light, and she hits all her notes beautifully, both high and low. And she's gained popularity among the other students. After the concert in the welcoming dance, she was sought about by a lot of people wanting to write songs for her and wanting to make a band. Musa's not very good around people, though, and she turned them down for a number of reasons. First: she prefers to do things alone, and second: she already writes and performs all her own original songs. Me? I tried writing a couple songs when I was younger, but they were so dumb, and the lyrics were clunky.
"What are you singing over there?" Stella asks, lowering her mask to sound clearer.
"Oh, just a random song I wrote. I just came up with it. I'm planning on that being my chorus." She taps the bucket again, getting into the beat.
"How do you do that? You just sang an entire chorus from just cleaning?" I ask wide-eyed.
"Yeah. Most singers would sit in front of some depressing river or look at an object for a really long time for inspiration. Not me. It just comes to me. My mom used to be able to do the same thing." She begins to reminisce. "When I was little, I used to ask my mom to sing before I went to bed, and she would just start. It wasn't some well-known lullaby or a popular song. It would just pop in her head, and it would always sound good." She stops briefly, then goes back to cleaning, leaving an awkward silence.
Stella seems to sense the awkwardness, but knows why, and is tactful enough to not elaborate on it. "You know, this room kinda reminds me of a ballroom." She stands up, placing her hands on her hips. "See? the patterns on the wall, the bright colors, the vibes. Makes me wanna hire a bishop who'll 'use the power of the Great Dragon to bless over Solaria' and crown me queen."
"I wanna see what that would look like." I rest on my knees. "When will you be crowned?"
"In four years. Daddy'll step down from the throne, and I'll be named Queen Stella of Solaria. It'll look something like this." She turns her head towards Musa. "Musa, be my bishop."
Musa doesn't object and grabs the empty bucket. "I've seen mainstream crownings before," she says to me. "In Harmonica, it's quite different. It's very seldom and boring and bleh. I would much rather have one of these." She clears her throats and deepens her voice. "Princess Stella Sunny Purnama Mahina of Solaria, do you comply with the rules and rights of royals in the realm of Solaria, established 4000 BDP, to love and uphold your citizens, to restore or maintain power, and to—" Musa drops the deep voice "—basically be a f*cking human being?"
"I do," Stella replies royally.
Musa looks down at the bucket, about to place it on Stella's head when a mischievous look crosses her face. I raise an eyebrow in confusion, but she just brings a finger to her lips to keep me quiet. She creeps towards the container of water, filling up the bucket, and now I know exactly what she's gonna do. "Well, then, by the power vested in me, Archbishop Musa Uta Matlin Wa-Nin of the Harmonious Empire, I pronounce you…" She begins to pour the water onto Stella's head, catching the victim off-guard. "Princess of Solaria." She places her hand on her hip and smirks at Stella's surprise.
"What the hell!" Stella cries, running her hands through her soaked hair and looking down at her now-wet clothes. Her makeup was beginning to run, too. On one hand, I feel bad for Stella. On the other hand, hahahahahaha. "This makeup isn't waterproof! Musa! F*ck you!"
"Hey, I think it's payback for arguing with me about who got to do the back bleachers." As Musa speaks, I get the genius idea to join in on this fun. I grab my bucket, dip it into some water, then stealthily sneak up behind her and do the same thing, satisfyingly watching her get just as soaked as Stella. Musa wasn't wearing any makeup, so it wasn't too much of a grievance, and she even wasn't too bothered by it. "Oi! Bloom!" she cries laughing. "Thought you were on my side!"
"I am! But it has to go both ways, Musa, dear," I tease. Musa grabs her bucket from the floor, getting more water, and I take off. It really feels like we're a whole bunch of elementary school kids, chasing each other for dumb reasons. But I don't hate it. You see, I'm still a child at heart, despite turning sixteen in December. I haven't gotten to do something this fun in quite some time. Growing up sucks.
At this rate, we're gonna have to refill it, but it's not really crossing our minds. Stella isn't joining in on the fun, shivering, and walking away carefully, trying not to get caught in the crossfire as Musa is going around trying to get me wet, too.
In the end, I've hurt my backbone twice (because running surrounded by water isn't the smartest idea), am soaking wet, and exhausted. So is Musa and Stella. Stella, unfortunately, was not able to escape the crossfire, so she's now twice as wet, and we got to feel her wrath as she made us all look like we just swam a mile in the sea. We're lying there on the auditorium floor, trying to find the strength to keep going, when a quiet, "Oh, goodness," causes us all to turn our heads.
Techna and Flora are standing there at the entrance, staring at the wet mess that is the auditorium. "Hi, guys," I greet tiredly.
"What in the world happened here?" Flora asks, stepping forward into a puddle.
"Were you attacked by a vicious water monster?" Techna asks, genuinely worried.
"No, but we were nearly murdered by Stella over there." Musa has a dopey smile on her face, rolling onto her stomach.
"Only because you ruined my makeup," Stella retorts.
"Oh, it's fine," Musa replies. "You only had ten minutes anyway."
"Speaking of time!" Flora cuts in, sounding exasperated. "If you would've cleaned this place normally, we would be finished so much earlier! Can I not leave you unsupervised?"
We look a bit sheepish now. Oops. "Sorry, Flora," I apologize, feeling quite guilty. It feels like when Mom's reprimanding me, but she's not mad; just disappointed, which, I feel, is worse.
Flora holds the bridge of her nose, quietly telling Techna to grab the mops. Said girl seems a bit confused, but leaves anyway, leaving us with a disapproving mom Flora.
"What are we gonna do, now? This place is nearly the biggest room in the school. It'll take us quite some time to repair the damage." Right as Flora finishes the last sentence, Techna comes back with the brooms, holding them upside down, but fixing it with a sheepish half-smile (she's been attempting smiling for quite some time now. It seems like she's completely unfamiliar with doing so, and she can only manage to do half-smiles like these).
"Well, you guys are here now," says Musa. "You guys can help."
"And so—" Flora thrusts the mop into her hands "—can you."
We start cleaning again, this time in nearly complete silence. It's not like we're trying to be awkward. It just feels like we shouldn't cross Flora, especially since she knows how to make us feel bad about messing up.
About forty minutes into recleaning the auditorium, Stella's phone begins to buzz, and she puts down her mop and lowers her mask. She smiles at the screen. "It's Sky; he wants to facetime."
"That's nice and all, but we have a school to clean," Flora explains. "You're going to have to call him back, Stella."
An imaginary lightbulb lights up above my head. "Actually… You should answer it."
"You look as if you have concocted an idea," Techna says, eyeing my face.
"I have." I cross my arms. "The school is huge, right?"
Stella's phone continues to vibrate, and she quickly texts back. The other girls nod slowly, wanting me to elaborate.
"Welll, Griselda said we couldn't use any magic. She never said we couldn't use any help. I dunno what the Specialists could be doing at this moment; it's the weekend." It sounds good. And I haven't seen Brandon in person for quite some time. School's been kicking my *ss. But we talk a lot virtually since the welcoming dance. He's even awesome once you get to know him.
Apparently, his family has been protecting the royal family of Eraklyon for millennia. It was no different for Brandon, having to protect Prince Sky. They have become friends since they're together the entire time. The only reason Brandon attends Red Fountain is because Sky got into the school, but it doesn't bother him too much. But he doesn't like talking a lot about his childhood; in fact, he seems extremely interested in mine, since I'm an Earth girl. He had forgotten a place without magic even existed, so when I showed up (and when they got called to Earth when I first met Stella after the troll incident), it was so new and cool to him. He also says sharing a group with Sky, Timmy, and Riven is fun… In their own ways.
Sky's a person who likes flirting with any woman he sees, but is very devoted towards Stella. He likes getting up early in the morning to train (so Brandon has to go with him) and likes getting into adventures. He's constantly getting himself in danger, and it's a bit stressful for Brandon, but slightly amusing.
Timmy is an extremely chatty person (according to both Brandon and Techna) once you get to know him. If he considers you a stranger, he'll shut himself off and get scatterbrained if you approach him. He's their team technician, inventing, repairing with all things technology in the math and science fields. He's also the mediator of the group, so whenever things get a bit heated (it's a room full of hormonal teenage boys; of course it's gonna get a bit wild), he comes in to fix things to the best of his abilities.
And Riven… Well, Riven's Riven. He's moody as hell, yelling at everything and anyone, but Sky says depending on how much he yells, it's a sign telling you his mood. So he's naturally rude and angry. Cool. Sky and Brandon say they don't actually know why he's like that despite having known him for years. He's reckless and not very level-headed, along with being a loner, so he's a bit of a basketcase. And Musa has taken a liking to him (just won't fully admit it).
Anyway.
"Oh, no, we are not getting anyone else roped into this," Flora scolds. "We're already in trouble. We could be suspended next. Or worse!"
"Actually, Bloom's right…" says Stella. "Griselda never said we couldn't get some help. How are we supposed to clean the entire school with only…" She begins counting in her head. "Ten hands?"
"Yeah! Aaand we could have a party afterwards. Like a hangout!" I add. "Musa, you've been working on some new songs, right? You could sing some for us!"
"Oh, hell yeah!" Musa drops everything and runs off in the direction of our apartment to grab her notebook.
"But what happens if Griselda meant we were not permitted to have the Specialists over as well?" Techna asks.
"Then, we're f*cked. But it will have been worth it!" Stella explains. Flora frowns.
"Come on, Flora!" I plead. "Please? If Griselda really wanted us to clean this school by morning tomorrow, she would allow us to get some extra help! We're not using magic or gadgets, are we?"
Flora hesitates before shaking her head.
"See! And if Griselda does have a problem with it, we'll bring it up with the headmistress. It'll be fine."
Flora doesn't respond. Just watches as Musa comes running with her sparkly notebook. Stella begins texting Sky. Musa opens her book next to me, showing me her lyrics. "Okay, so I'm thinking this one is my favorite I've been working on, but I like the name of this one: Spotlight. It's inspired by Stella, but don't tell her that. It'll make her head bigger than it already is, and I don't mean it in the metaphorical sense—"
We're cleaning the bathrooms when we hear the ship pull up. Stella nearly kills us all going to the front of the school. After popping my shoulder back in place, we all head outside. It's gotten cooler, and I really wish I had decided to wear a jacket over my short sleeves. Dammit.
"HEY, STELLA!" Sky practically yells from the ship.
"HI, SKY!" she shrieks back. The ship lowers onto the ground.
"Was that really necessary?" Techna wonders. "You could have waited until he was on the ground." But before Stella can respond, a small, but happy, "Hey, Techna!" cuts her off, leaving her frozen in place, then unfreezing to present a small wave to Timmy.
Brandon happily walks out next, winking. I can feel my face heat up just a bit, and my eyes travel towards the ground.
Riven comes swaggering out last, grumbling something about, "getting it over with". I can see Musa tense in the corner of my eye.
Stella walks up first, pecking Sky on the cheek. "Good, you're all here."
"Prince Sky over here said that you had an emergency. I don't see anything that counts as an emergency." Riven crosses his arm, obviously getting annoyed despite having just got there. Musa averts her gaze, but her eyes flick back towards him, an expression of contemplation, as if she's wondering if she should be allowed to be interested in a guy like Riven. And really, I don't like him too much. He's what my mother would call a "diva dude". "Never date a diva dude," she usually says. "I dated one once, and I didn't like it much."
"It is an emergency!" Stella cries. "Calm down, Riven; I know being a Specialist and all is about being all manly, but really—pull the sword out of your *ss, alright?"
Brandon, Sky, and Musa try to unsuccessfully smother their laughter. Riven gives them a dirty look.
"But anyway, we'll explain in a moment. Let's go inside, shall we? It's much better looking than the outside." Stella grabs Sky's hand and leads him inside first, leaving us all to lead the boys inside on our own.
Timmy seems excited about going into the school, not questioning a thing about what we're asking them to help us out with. "I've never gone inside Alfea Castle before! The exterior looks absolutely amazing; it must've taken thousands of years to get what it looks like now. I may not be a fairy, but I find fairy colleges extremely interesting. Each of them has their own strengths and weaknesses when it comes to the students, the staff, the history, and the style of teaching—the curriculum, I mean. It'll be like I'm stepping onto a piece of extremely important magical history, and—" And he continues rambling on and on. Riven rolls his eyes, mumbling something about, "and there he goes", making me realize, he really does mumble a lot.
Brandon runs forward to stand next to me. "When Stella said they had an emergency, it wasn't really an emergency, was it?"
I shake my head. "Depends on your definition of emergency." Timmy's still talking. "But no, not really. We just need help cleaning the school."
Brandon raises an eyebrow. We step into the entrance, heading up the stairs. Sky and Stella are already gone. "Cleaning the school? I thought you—" His face changes to one of realization. "What did Stella do?"
I laugh at that. Brandon was the one who introduced Stella to Sky. Apparently, Eraklyon and Solaria are on really good terms realm-wise, and it wasn't a weird thing for the princess of Solaria to spend time with the prince and squire of Eraklyon. According to Stella, when she saw Sky, it was like love at first sight. I believe her. I'm not gonna lie, Sky is attractive, but I'm more of a Brandon person, thanks. "More like what all of us did. We sneaked onto Cloud Tower without permission…."
Brandon's eyes widen. "And you're still alive?"
I nod. "But just barely. Lemme tell you, I'm never gonna go back there on my own volition."
"Wow." Brandon smiles at me. "Damn, that's badass."
"Badass shouldn't be used to describe a fairy, and you know that, Brandon," Riven cuts in, joining us. He looks at me. "He's just saying that to be nice. Brandon's just nice to everyone."
"Nobody asked you, Riven," says Brandon, rolling his eyes. "I thought you were the main one talking about how rude it is to eavesdrop?"
"Yeah, when you're doing it. And besides, I need something to do." He addresses me again. "Your friend over there is creeping me out." He sideyes Musa, who blinks at him, expression glaring. "Is this normal fairy behavior? for one to just stare at someone for long periods of time?"
"How can I not stare at you?" Musa barks, face slightly pink. "Your haircut sucks, plant head. Get a f*cking haircut." She speedwalks past us, ignoring Flora's remark of, "Musa, language!"
"Feisty…" Riven mutters, more to himself than any of us. He shrugs, walking past us at the same speed as Musa.
"Maybe we should've just left Riven back at Red Fountain…" Brandon wonders. "Though, he seems to be in a better mood than normal, so…."
"That's him in a good mood?" I chuckle.
We find Stella in the cafeteria, telling Sky how to scrub a floor. He's on his hands and knees with a small sponge. Flora comes walking over to her, giving her a questioning look at him.
"Oh, calm down, Flora." Stella waves a dismissive hand. "I'm not forcing him to do the work for me. I'm just showing him the ropes. Do you know how many royals actually do work? Not many, I must say."
"That's not what I'm wondering—though, I'm glad you're not making him do all your work," says Flora. "I'm wondering because you're instructing him wrong. You're not supposed to dump water on the floor and clean it; you're supposed to take the mop or sponge and soak it in the water. That way, you'll lose less water."
I've taught her well.
"I figured." Sky sits up, his legs tucked underneath him. "Fortunately, my parents didn't want me to be stupid, so they taught me how to clean in case of emergency." He smiles a nearly blinding smile, making Stella near swoon, while Flora and I shield our eyes.
"Can you turn that light off?" Riven grumbles, in reference to Sky's teeth. Sky shrugs and goes back to work. "So this was the emergency? You princesses don't know how to clean?"
"We do now," Stella explains, not looking at him. "But this school is huge. We'll never finish in time. And Bloom had the great idea to invite you guys here to help." She hands him a broom.
Riven glares at me briefly, then stalks off. Musa watches him leave, walking over to Brandon. "Why's he always in a mood?"
Brandon shrugs. "It's just Riven being Riven. He's been like that for as long as we can remember."
"Which isn't that long?" I ask, though it sounds more like a statement than a question.
"Actually, no. Riven used to spend time with us back on Eraklyon. But he kinda grew distant from us when we were around twelve, and we didn't see him again until entrance exams, and he had really changed. Though, he was always kinda gruff towards us. It just went from a five to a ten when we saw him again."
Huh. Everyone's hanging out at Eraklyon. "Did something happen to him?"
"Not that we know of. But here's one thing I know: he's always kinda been on his own. He has no family, you see. He thinks they abandoned him, but Riven's makes self-deprecating comments all the time, so… There's a chance he could've died. We don't know what he was doing before he showed up. He just became part of our crew—Stella, Sky, and I—and just disappeared before we turned thirteen."
Musa hums in understanding, looking back towards Riven. She bounces a bit as she goes over towards him. Brandon and I exchange glances.
Techna and Timmy are standing close towards us, and I can hear a good bit of what they're saying.
"You are surprisingly well taught in the clean field," Techna expresses, watching Timmy clean a table, an expression of unconscious curiosity on her face.
"Well, yeah. Grandpa used to make me clean all the time. But I know a lot of people who hate to clean. I can be a little bad at it, too. You should see my desk; cluttered as hell!"
"You use the primitive instruments as well?"
"Of course! I sometimes forget you're from the Capital, and how it differs from...everywhere else. We're not so technologically advanced."
The Capital… Sounds like something out of the Hunger Games.
"Oh, but I have been learning how to use them quite effectively. The so-called bucket is not to be used as a helmet."
"Of course it wouldn't be. I don't think it works too well. I think it's obvious what it's for. I don't know how anyone would mess that up."
Techna blinks at him, then looks down, looking a bit embarrassed. Timmy's face contorts to one of apology and surprise. "Oh! Oops! Uh, I didn't mean to offend you! I just didn't know! I'm so sorry!"
"I-it is perfectly fine. You tend to dissolve into a puddle of apologeticness extremely easily. I am not all too offended. 'Twas a lapse of my intelligence."
"You're never that offended by things. But I always mess up with you. I have to apologize, or else it's gonna eat me up on the inside and slowly kill me! And I don't want to hurt your feelings."
Techna stares at him blankly. "But you have not hurt my feelings."
"But I could have!"
"But you have not."
"But I could have!"
"But you have not."
And this continues for a bit, and I can't help but laugh at the two of them.
We all spread out to clean places, and I notice a few things about each of the boys.
Brandon is bad at cleaning compared to Sky. There are multiple times where I had to keep him from hitting someone in the face with the broom and missing the dustpan. He's trying, though. He'll get it...at some point.
Sky's good at cleaning, really. He knows how to use all the appliances, how much detergent he needs, how to dust off delicate areas… Really. More royals should teach their kids how to clean up. It's refreshing not having to tell him that you're not supposed to sort the dust (Techna) or spill the water everywhere (Stella). And he can even flirt while he's doing it.
Riven cleans, just not very well. It's not like he hasn't done it before, because he knows what to do; he just doesn't do it very effectively. Flora and I have tried to tell him to correct his mistakes, but he just barks at us, telling us that he doesn't need "fairies telling him what to do". Musa, who's also there, ignores that, and continues to tell him how he's messing up in an annoyed manner. He seems to listen to her more than the rest of us.
Timmy's good at cleaning, too, though he can get distracted at times. He has the habit of touching things that don't need to be touched, tripping over his own two feet, and causing general, accidental mayhem. But he has good intentions. Techna certainly thinks so, though she can be just as clumsy as he is. (They nearly kill us all when Timmy accidentally spills a bucket completely filled with water, and it travels all across the floor. My tailbone hurts like hell, now.)
Despite all this, we get a lot done in the span of three hours. We're able to reclean the auditorium, finish the rest of the classrooms—including the broken Potions Lab—and even get done with the bathrooms ("Come on, aren't you fairies? That area is disgusting!" Riven cries, throwing down his towel).
I'm completely surprised when we're done, and it's only five o'clock. According to Flora (who asked Griselda) the other students wouldn't be back until nine or ten o'clock. So we have the school to ourselves.
We decide to head into our apartment and hang out there. We even put on some music to dance around to if we wanted. It's fun. We spend time in the foyer the entire time, mostly because Flora wouldn't let us go anywhere else.
"We are hormonal teenagers," she whispers to us. "Bad things can happen if we're not careful."
"Oh, come on, Flora, give us a break." Stella waves a dismissive hand. "I know all of them quite well. They're not gonna hurt us."
"Really?" Musa looks like a mental light bulb just went off in her head.
"Of course! I'm an extrovert, darling. I have to talk to people!"
Musa looks from left to right, taking Stella's arm. "Can I talk to you for a minute?"
"Huh? Oh, sure—" But she's cut off when Musa yanks her into her room. Flora and I exchange glances. Techna has placed herself farther away from everyone else, looking on her phone.
"Are you okay?" I ask, noticing her strange behavior.
Techna looks up at me, turns her head towards the source of the music, looks past me to look at the boys and Flora, then goes back to her phone. "I am fine."
"Are you sure? You're acting like someone's gonna bite you if you step out into the spotlight." I'm joking, obviously, but Techna doesn't get jokes, so she looks at me blankly. "It would be rude if they did decide to bite me. Now, I do not want to venture out there even more."
"No, no! I don't mean they are going to bite you. I just mean you act like they might."
"When will they bite me?"
"No, I don't mean—" I cut myself off. I'm slowly getting used to Techna's literal mindset and general confusion. Slowly. "You just seem uncomfortable."
"I shall be fine here. There is no need to worry." And with that, she moves into a corner and continues scrolling on her phone.
The guys seem to be enjoying themselves.
Brandon, Sky, and Riven are arguing about which would be worse: fighting a chicken-sized ogre or an ogre-sized chicken (and Timmy adds that he's had to deal with both once, which makes them all erupt in laughter). Brandon looks at me a couple times, smiling warmly, and it makes my heart swell. He's just so sweet at times. Flora is making small snacks for us all since we hadn't eaten since this morning. Stella reappears with a blushing Musa, and Stella can't wait to drag me into a place the boys won't be able to hear.
"Musa has a crush on Riven," she explains.
I blink. "Of course she does. I thought it was obvious."
"Of course it's obvious, but she finally admitted it. And to me, of all people! Jinkies, I really thought she hated me."
"I wouldn't say hated—" But Stella's still going.
"She wanted me to tell her everything she needed to know about Riven's personality; like the things he likes, the things he doesn't like, how to approach him, yadda yadda yadda. And I was able to help her. My knowledge of absolutely everybody helps out a lot."
"You're absolutely sure what you told her was correct, right?" I try to clarify. "Don't take offense to this, but, Stella, you can sometimes mess things up horribly. And Musa isn't a person who takes things well."
Musa has joined in on the conversation, subtly placing herself next to Riven.
"Oh, don't worry, Bloom. You're too considerate. Everything I say is usually always right. And especially about Riven. I've known him since I was like eight or nine. And even if I didn't, I'm a bit of an… Erm, what's the name of that person who goes around making people fall in love all the time?"
"Cupid—or Eros," I answer.
"Eros, right. I'm a bit of an Eros myself. I can help everybody. Boys who like girls, girls who like boys, girls who like girls, boys who like boys, unspecified gender who likes another unspecified gender… You know. I help everyone. Operation Rusa is a-go."
"Rusa?"
"Musa and Riven. Rusa. I like the sound of it. It's a combination of their names."
I nod in understanding. I've had Andy and I's names combined. Blandy. I didn't like it much.
"It'll be a success soon. I know it will. Because I'm good with relationship advice. All preferences, all people." Stella smiles. She then begins to look behind me. I turn to look, too. "And after Rusa is a success, we're going to start with Tecmithy." Techna and Timmy are at the kitchen counter, talking to each other, Timmy watching Techna repair his phone. He looks at her with amazement in his eyes, and I can tell why Stella would ship it.
"Oh, Timothy Highslayer. Such a sweet boy, just so awkward. He's shy as all hell at first, but then he gets excited if you talk about something he's into. But according to Techna, dear girl, they met when he had slammed right into her *ss." Stella begins laughing.
I choke on nothing. "Wait, what?"
"Yep. And Timmy nearly exploded trying to apologize. And then he had spilled his drink on her top, and he nearly touched her boobs. The best part was, Techna wasn't even offended by that. She was just confused, and I was the one who had to explain why he was so flustered. But then, he realized that she was absolutely obsessed with technology, and they became great friends. But no ordinary best friends act so awkward around each other. Though, Techna has an excuse; she's a bit of a basket case at times."
She can be, I have to agree.
"And speaking of lovers and crushes, Bloom." She nudges my shoulder. "Why are you hanging around me?"
"Erm, because you brought me over here?"
"Rhetorical question, Bloom," Stella replies. "The boys are hanging over there. And you know which boy I'm referring to." She winks at Brandon, who, feeling our eyes on him, looks over at us, looking a bit confused.
"Come on, Stella, don't be creepy." I smile at her. "He's hanging around his guy friends right now; I don't want to intrude."
"Oh, come on, now! Brandon's been looking at you this entire time! He's been giving you hints, and you're not taking them. Go over there! Do you want to argue with me, Eros incarnate?"
I sigh. "Alright…" I move into the foyer, seeing the seat next to Brandon open. He scoots over to let me sit down, and I can clearly hear what the conversation was about.
"But that dragon was ridiculously huge!" Sky cries gesticulating. "It was like...ten feet tall, and do you remember those claws?"
"It looked like every other dragon, Sky, you're just a p*ssy." Riven laughs a bit.
"Not how I remember it! My family has dragons, and none of them looked like that!"
"What are we talking about?" I whisper to Brandon.
"Basically," Brandon explains, "there was this one time Riven, Sky, Stella and I were doing something we weren't supposed to be doing and came across a dragon."
"I think it was a hydra!" Sky shrieks.
"Sweetie, love you and all," Stella cuts in, sitting on one of the farther couches, "but that was no hydra. Hydras have more than one head."
Sky crosses his arms and pouts. "Well, it was super tall and looked like it had more than one head!"
"Stella had tried to ward it off with a spell, and all it did was make it angrier." Brandon begins chuckling at that.
"I had to do something! Sky was about to sh*t himself—"
"Stella, language."
"Sorry. Crap himself, and no matter how tall Brandon was at nine, he couldn't do any real damage. And I don't even know what Riven was doing."
"I ran to get help!" Riven explains.
"Really? I don't think any of us could tell by your yelling, 'Oh, my gods, we're going to die! Somebody help us! Somebody help me!"
Musa snorts, not even trying to conceal her laughter. "So much for being all strong and mighty."
"Well, you would act like that, too, if you saw a big*ss—"
"Language!"
"Ass," Riven hisses, "dragon at the age of nine."
"I used to have this baby lizard creature when I was younger," Musa explains. "I used to play music for it, and it would give me its honest opinion by their dance. If it was a good song, it would twirl around. If it was bad, it would just sit there. I miss that lizard sometimes. He's grown into this water snake thing, now."
"Don't you have a rabbit or something, Bloom?" Brandon asks.
I nod. "Yeah, Kiko. You know, the strangest thing about him is that he was able to get through the magical barrier. It's supposed to keep all magic creatures out. Though, then again, not even a year ago, I didn't think magic even existed, so I'm not too surprised."
The conversation continues. I've still been kinda out of it since the Cloud Tower mission. I got zero answers, but I know if we could've stayed, I could've found something. But it's like everyone who knows something is either gone or just doesn't want to tell me. And it's kinda hard to find things on Princess Daphne, of whom I think was the woman I saw in my vision. I haven't seen her in a bit, and I kinda makes me believe there really wasn't anything actually there; just me hallucinating. But the fact that I can describe her vividly makes me sure I wasn't just going crazy. And it's hard to find too much on her specifically. I've read things on the slaughter of the entire royal court of Domino fifteen-years-ago, where she supposedly died, but nothing on her specifically. Nothing that could tie her to me.
"Hey, Bloom." I turn my head, getting snapped out of my thoughts. Brandon's looking at me concerned. "Are you okay?"
"Um…" I contemplate asking. "C-could I talk to you in private?"
Brandon nods. We head over towards the back. In the corner of my eye, Techna and Timmy are talking quietly by the balcony. "So what's up?" he asks. He's always eager to talk to me; it's just so sweet. He's a really nice guy. I may not have known him for too long, but he has this trustworthy air about him, and I have to act on that.
"Do you know anything about...Princess Daphne? Of Domino?"
Brandon taps his chin in thought. "Princess Daphne… I don't know too much about her. All I do know is she was the last to be killed in the attack on Domino fifteen years ago. It's what led to the downfall of the kingdom. Domino's now a cold, desolate area that no one can go to. It's even more creepy than the Omega Dimension, but at least people can actually go there."
"You don't know anything about her actual life? Did she have any connection to Earth o-or something? Anything?"
"Bloom, what's wrong?" he asks. "Why are you so interested in her?"
"It's because of my vision and something the headmistress said!" I blurt, frustration building.
"What vision?"
"Nevermind that. I asked Faragonda how I got these powers, and she asked me about her. She described her to me, and that same day, I was visited by this woman who looked exactly at what Faragonda had said. I haven't gotten the chance to ask her about it yet, so I've been trying to get my own research, but I can't find anything about her that might tie her to me."
Brandon thinks hard. "I'm pretty bad at these things—Timmy's better at deciphering these things than I am. Have you been visited by her again?"
"Well, no, but her name seems to pop up a lot, and I really believe she's connected to me. Why else would she appear in my mind and have Faragonda mention her?"
"I get the latter part. Faragonda's the wisest fairy in the Magic Dimension right now, even more than Saladin. If she mentions her to you, that means she has to know something. If she appears in your mind again, she might be Connected to you."
"I know she's connected to me, Brandon."
"No. I mean Connected. With a capital C. Timmy can give you the full explanation of what that is exactly, but the gist of it is when a person's magical Soul is connected to another person—whether it's romantic love, familial love, or just a spiritual bond."
"How does it work?" I ask, getting intrigued. I'm actually getting somewhere. I might finally get some answers.
"I'll ask Timmy. He's the one who does the most research on these things." He moves towards the balcony, but he seems confused by the behavior of Techna and Timmy, who are standing quite close to the edge, looking over at the side of the castle. Techna has these weird goggles on, and Timmy stands a bit on his tip-toes, trying to see outwards. "Erm, what are you guys doing?"
"Hush." Timmy uses a sweeping motion to hush us up. "Techna's at work."
"What is she doing?" I ask, eyeing Techna. Her head moves slowly in the same direction, tinkering with the weird goggles on her face.
"She sensed this weird presence coming from over there," Timmy whispers, pointing outwards. "At first, it seemed just a random malfunction—"
"Not a malfunction," Techna cuts in, still searching. "My sensors are nearly flawless."
"Oops, sorry." Timmy raises his voice above a whisper, but not completely at normal level. "At first, it seemed like it was just somebody passing by the school, but then the being got more prominent, and now Techna thinks that there's an unwanted visitor on the grounds."
"I do not think so; I know so." Techna takes off the goggles. "There is something strange coming from the east wing, almost near here. I cannot tell exactly what it is, but I know it is not the same species as the rest of us."
Just as she says that, somebody's TV comes dropping hurdling onto the ground from somewhere with a loud crash, causing the others in the foyer to come see what was going on.
"What the hell was that?" Musa asks.
"I think somebody's TV just committed suicide!" Stella exclaims.
"It must have something to do with the unknown heat source." Techna moves past the rest of us, running out of the room at quite a fast speed, in an unknown direction.
"Wha— Hey!" I run after her, but not without noticing Brandon and Timmy running behind me.
I don't know where the hell she's going. It's hard to catch up with her, and I nearly lose her trying. It really does keep showing me how large this school is. If it wasn't for special technologies and whatnot, I probably would've never found my way out of here.
I end up outside, and I look around for where Techna went. Timmy and Brandon stand next to me, looking in the same direction.
"Where did she…?" Timmy wonders, but is stopped when Techna's head pops from one of the corridors leading out here. She gestures for us to come here, and we walk over towards her. Now I kinda know what she was looking for.
The entire corridor (the one we had cleaned, g*dd*mn it) had been destroyed. Something had smashed its way through, making large dents and littering the ground in rubble and broken glass. There were strange strands of blue hair, but it seemed more like fur than hair.
"What in the world happened here?" Brandon asks, taking out a flashlight to look around in the darkness.
The others come running by as well, Stella complaining about us running off, but she stops when she sees what happened. "I thought we were the only people left! Isn't everyone else at the concert?"
"Obviously not," Musa replies. "These things don't just happen."
"Well, whoever did this seemed pretty angry," Sky adds. "Hey, Flora, can you use your magic to tell exactly what did this?"
"I might…" Flora closes her eyes, everything going silent. There seemed to be a light glow emitting from her, telling us she was at work. I really like Flora's power. Really, I do. She can communicate with any plant bodies, but not all nature. She can't do things with animals. But I still think it's cool.
She finishes her spell, looking over at us. "The plants around here say that they don't know exactly what it was, giving me the impression that it's not human—"
"'Tis not," Techna cuts in.
"—but the plants say it was large and dangerous. It seemed to have a mission."
"How reliable are those plants?" Riven asks incredulously. "Can't believe we're listening to a tree hugger. They're plants. Plants don't do anything."
Musa opens her mouth to tell him off, but Flora holds up her hand to keep her silent. "Riven, plants are more important than you think. Each one is individual—there are no two plants that are the same. My power allows me to listen to them. If you don't believe me that's fine, but I wouldn't expect you to understand since you're not a fairy and rely more on your brawns than your brains."
Riven glares at her.
"Hey, Stella, can you give us some light?" I ask. Stella smiles and walks into the middle, lighting up the entire room with her body. She's so bright, I have to shield my eyes.
"Stella is literally the light of my life," Sky remarks chuckling.
"Aw, thank you, dear." The compliment just makes her brighter.
"Hey! Stella! Can you turn that down some? I want to keep my eyesight!"
"Oops, sorry." Stella tones it down some, giving us enough to look around. The far door has been completely torn off its hinges, as if whatever it is was in a hell of a hurry.
"Is the creature still here, Tec?" Timmy asks.
Techna nods. "It has moved closer towards the west wing."
"Then, we'll go get it." Sky smiles again in a chivalrous way, and it makes black spots appear in my vision. Jesus Christ. "You ladies can sit back. Us Specialists are here to help."
"Oh, so we can't help?" Musa asks, stepping forward. "You like leaving us so you can do your little prince charming rescue, huh?" She might be a couple inches shorter than Sky, but she's intimidating as hell once you get her riled.
"Whoa, whoa, before we get angry…" I stand in-between the two, feeling like the mediator. "Us ladies can go look on our own. It won't be like the troll incident."
"Damn troll," Sky coughs.
Musa huffs, and Riven stares at her for a moment, giving her a look akin to the one she had been giving him for quite some time. Stella doesn't miss it, either, and she nudges me to pay attention.
"Alright." Brandon looks back at the rest of us. "We'll go through this area." He points towards the area behind the broken door.
"Alright, and we can go look near the dorm area."
It's all in agreement, and we split into our separate ways.
"But—like—Harmonica is one of the prettiest places ever. The grass is always green, it's covered in nature, there's exotic animals there… It was ranked number two on Magical Magazine's 'Ranking Realms By Their Scenery'. It's the best in the Capital, where it's more bustling but still beautiful. You should see the palace, Bloom. You would obviously love it."
We had been walking through the school for a bit, looking out for any strange creature. Techna continues to search for it mentally, but it's a bit difficult to narrow the whereabouts since the creature keeps moving. Until then, we've been talking about what the creature could be, and then somehow got to the topics of realms.
"The Capital sounds really important," I point out. "Do all realms have Capitals?"
"Nope," Stella explains. "Only the more foreign realms do, and the empires. Flora and I live in kingdoms. The area around the palace are capitals, but not with the capital C. The difference between more mainstream capitals and foreign Capitals are the people who live there and their style. Take Harmonica for example: it's Capital is called Melody, and all the people who live there are rich and successful or connected to Emperor Ho-Boe in some way."
"Ho-Boe's my dad," Musa explains. "He's cool and all, but he has his quirks."
"It's kinda the same with Techna's realm. Zenith. That place is very known for its technology, scientific discoveries, and creative means of medicine. According to some gossip columns, the doctors there cut off people's limbs and replace them with cyborg parts."
I gape. Like in one of those sci-fi movies?
"She is not all too correct, Bloom," Techna corrects. "The doctors there only do that sort of thing if 'tis requested or absolutely necessary. But Zenith is not all what 'tis made out to be. Especially to—" But she's completely cut off when she slams straight into something, causing her to fall onto her butt. At first, it seemed like a wall, but then….
"I believe we have found what we are looking for."
Standing there, tall as hell, hunched over, covered in blue fur, drool escaping its agape mouth, large, dangerous horns on its head, wearing unflattering red pants, feet curved with hooves like a goat, and beady black eyes is what seems like a minotaur. It turns around, staring at us for a moment, seemingly to not know what to do, and I think about running, but before we make any decisions, the minotaur lets out a mighty roar, curling its hands into fists and growls at us, eyes intent on murder.
"That's nice and all, but I don't think we should stick around…" I reply, trying not to freak out. "Run."
And we bolt just as the minotaur begins to charge at us. I never thought in my life that I would ever see a minotaur. I didn't think they existed even in this universe! And how did it get out? I don't think any of the teachers just have a pet minotaur lying around (though I wouldn't put it past Wizgiz; he is a bit weird), because if they did, wouldn't they keep it locked up or warn us? And a minotaur? Really?
The minotaur is quick on its feet. It's not that slow, so we can't afford to slow down. It's so much harder to outrun it since our powers are suspended, meaning we can't speed ourselves up or fly. We end up splitting up: Flora and Stella into an upper wing; Musa, Techna, and I down a lower floor. Unfortunately, the minotaur decided to go our route, but Flora and Stella should be safe.
I'm slowly getting tired, and my running has slowed down. The minotaur takes his chance to try to get me by charging at me with its horns, but I slip out of the way before he can do any damage. He slams right into the wall, getting his horns stuck, but he's cornered by Techna, who seems to be figuring out how to get herself out of the situation before the minotaur can get itself out, but it's too late by then. It pulls itself out, prepared to impale her with its horns, but Techna is just as intelligent. A strange flash appears from her arm, and she pulls it back to punch the minotaur far away enough from her to make her escape. There's another flash, and Techna's running over to me.
"How did you do that?" I ask breathlessly. "I thought we didn't have magic."
"'Tis not magic," Techna replies quickly.
"Then, how—"
"Where is Musa?"
I turn my head. The minotaur had recovered from Techna's attack, but now had its eye on Musa, who isn't paying attention. "Musa!" I yell, trying to grab her attention. She turns, hearing me, but I'm not fast enough. The minotaur charges, slamming right into her, throwing her all the way into the hallway. Fortunately, it didn't use its horns, but I know that would be painful nonetheless.
The minotaur turns its attention towards Techna and I again, but before it can do any more damage, a boomerang comes flying right towards it, smacking it right on its neck. It roars in pain and anger, turning its head. We do the same.
The Specialists have shown up again, with Flora and Stella following behind them. Flora has a protective arm around Musa, whose side of face is an angry red. She looks a bit disgruntled, but otherwise okay. She glances at Riven as they walk towards us.
"So this is what's ruining the party?" Riven asks, smirking. "Now this is going to be entertaining." He takes out his curved sword, running towards it, slashing at its stomach, evidently trying to subdue it. His attacks are only successful at making it angrier. The minotaur takes its strong arms, swiping at him, but its attacks are just as useless as Riven's, as Riven is much smaller than the minotaur is, meaning he's able to avoid its plays by jumping completely out of the way.
"It's not going to work if only one of us fights it," Brandon explains, taking out his own sword. "We're going to have to co—"
"Here you go about your whole friendship and harmony bullsh*t. Listen, here, Brandon. That thing doesn't seem so tough; the only reason the fairies couldn't fight it is because they don't have their little fairy powers right now. I don't need powers to fight. You should stay back and take care of that prince of yours; his parents won't be too happy if they find out their precious prince got pummeled to death. Leave it to me."
"This definitely reminds me of the troll incident," Sky mutters.
Riven swings forward to get another attack in, and the others join in as well to fight it. Riven's too busy complaining about the others trying to help him to notice the fist coming straight towards his face. He can't avoid it and goes flying straight out of the window into an unknown area. I feel slightly bad, but not all too bad.
The remaining Specialists attack it with everything they got. Brandon slashes from all sides with his sword; Sky goes straight for the legs with his spear; Timmy attacks the minotaur's face with his blaster, but it's definitely not enough. The minotaur overpowers them quickly, throwing them all the ground and inflicting pain in retaliation for the fighting they put upon it.
Techna's head snaps up, looking around.
"What is it?" Flora asks.
"There are more beings present. They are not too far away at all, and they are most definitely human."
"How many are there?" Stella questions.
"Three, to be exact."
That sparks a realization. I turn my head towards Flora. "You don't think…"
"If they did, it wouldn't be out of their league," Stella chimes in, referring to the Trix. "They probably got mad because I got my ring back, and now they're here to kill us."
"They've been trying to kill us, Stella," Musa retorts. "More you than us, though."
"How far away are they?" I ask Techna.
"They would have to be somewhere out there…" She points towards the left area, through the window Riven was launched through. Did the witches find him?
Our attention is turned back towards the minotaur vs. Specialists battle, and it's pretty clear who is winning. The boys are sprawled on the ground, doubled over in pain. Brandon attempts to keep fighting, but the minotaur is just pushing them back as if it's nothing now. If we don't do something soon, the boys are gonna get themselves killed.
Think, Bloom, think. I'm pretty good at thinking on my feet. We're all powerless right now, so there's barely anything we can do. There's nothing here that I can use to effectively do anything. What can I—
The idea hits me like a truck. "Girls, I have an idea. But the only way it's gonna work is if you guys distract it for a bit."
"Distract it?" Stella asks incredulously.
"Bloom, what are you planning?" Flora asks.
"You'll see. Just give me a minute. Just keep it in this same area and away from the boys. I dunno how much they can take. I'll be back."
"You're not planning on dipping on us, are you?" Musa questions, glaring at me.
"I'm not," I explain, harsher than intended. "Just trust me." Before another question is asked, I run out of the hallway, down the stairs, down another long flight of stairs, into a double hallway, and finally make my way into the kitchens. They're as spotless as they were when we finished cleaning it. I'm out of breath as I take some pots and pans, sticking some underneath my armpits, filling my arms with them. I'm about to leave when I notice a bottle of detergent in the sink, and another idea pops into my brain. I take it, dropping into the pot, then running back out of the kitchens, into the double hallway, up the long flight of stairs, up the stairs, and back into the kitchens. The girls are all over the walls, trying to avoid getting hit. They're ducking, covering, rolling, anything to distract it. I quietly stand over by the exit, catching the eye of Musa, who gives me a questioning look. I bring a finger to my lips, telling her to keep quiet, and I pop open the bottle of detergent, spilling it onto the ground, travelling down the stairs, and stopping when there's no more soap. I place a vase right in the middle, careful to place the flowers inside another place (because Flora would kill me if the plants got hurt), hoping my plan would be a success.
I remove all the pops I have on my body and begin clanging them obnoxiously, trying to get the minotaur to notice. It alerts everyone, and I look straight at the beast. "Come on! Why get all of them when you could just get me?"
"Bloom…" Flora warns.
The minotaur roars, charging towards me. Right as it's about to impale me with its horns, I swerve out of the way, causing it to begin slipping on the soap I placed. I push it down the stairs, watching it go crashing on downwards into the hallway, hitting its head on the vase and coming to a harsh stop in the middle. It stopped moving.
My heart begins to calm down. I don't think the minotaur is dead, just incapacitated. The other girls come towards me, looking at the unconscious body of the minotaur. Stella thumps me on the back. "Smart move, girl!"
Suddenly, there's movement in the hair of the minotaur. At first, I think it's a second wave or something the minotaur's gonna use to fight us with, but instead, a small, gray duck comes waddling out of there, very dizzy and confused, falling flat on its face. Flora kneels down to pick it up, stroking its small head. "The Trix are definitely here."
"How would you know that?" I ask.
"Remember the welcoming dance," she explains, "when the Trix cursed the presents the Specialists were going to give us? Their plan was to distract us so they could take Stella's ring, so in retaliation, Musa and I fooled them into taking the wrong box. In the box they took, a small, baby duckling had been born and didn't have a mother. Whichever witch opened the box, the duckling must consider her its mother. Poor thing." She strokes its head.
I walk over towards the boys, who are slowly recovering. "You good?" I ask, helping Brandon up.
I can practically see the cartoon birds flying around his head. He shakes his head, trying to get his vision back together. "Yeah, I'm fine for the most part." He turns his head towards the other boys. "Are you guys okay?"
"My spleen is tingling, but I think I'll be fine." Sky picks himself up. "Is Riven okay?"
"Riven is fine." Riven comes crawling through the broken window, bruised and scratched, holding his left arm. "Today's just not my lucky day, is it?"
"Everyday doesn't seem like a lucky day for you, Riven." Sky laughs lightly.
"What are we gonna do about that?" Stella asks, pointing at the minotaur and covering her nose. "It smells atrocious."
"We're going to have to leave it there. I'll tell Griselda about the incident," Flora explains. "But for now, we're going to have to move on."
"The Trix are still here, right?" I ask Techna.
She nods. "Affirmative. But they're moving around at quite a fast rate, and I can barely sense their signatures."
I think for a moment. "We should head into Faragonda's office."
I get blank stares. "What?" asks Musa.
"Don't look at me like that. Faragonda's office is the largest place of magic I can think of. We can hide in there, and there's guaranteed something we can use against the Trix."
"Uh uh, we're going to hide?" Riven hisses. "What is with you fairies and cowardice?"
"I wouldn't say it's cowardice, Riven," Timmy says. "None of us are in any good shape to fight the witches. It might be the smartest thing to do."
Riven scoffs and rolls his eyes, but it doesn't bother any of us. "Let's go," I command, walking over the minotaur and heading out.
Faragonda's office is still as beautiful as it was when I first went there and when we get reprimanded, even at night!
The gold patterns, the over-excited colors… And not to mention there's such a strong energy force here.
"Ew, it reeks of fairy," Riven complains.
"If you complain about fairies one more time, I'm going to wrap my hands around your neck and strangle you," Musa warns. Flora gives her a disapproving look.
"This is a total upgrade from Saladin's office," Sky explains. "It's just so lifeless, and creepy Helia doesn't make it better."
"I wouldn't call Helia creepy," Timmy cuts in. "Just… Very Helia-like."
"Very Helia-like?" Brandon asks snorting.
"I dunno how you would describe him! I don't think there's a word that means strange, a bit unsettling, and weird at the same time."
"Who's Helia?" I ask.
"He's Saladin's great-grandson," Sky explains. "He's a year younger than us, but hangs out on campus. He doesn't talk much; only when addressed. He's pretty emo."
"Everybody hush," Musa hisses, her ear to the wall. "The Trix are talking."
I would like to point out that each of the girls have a certain ability that they've had since birth and can't be taken away from them, even if their magic is suspended. Stella glows when she's happy; Flora can communicate with plants; Musa has really good hearing; and Techna can sense people growing near. If you were wondering.
"What are they saying?" I ask.
"They're talking about…" Musa purses her lips. "Okay, so Stormy's complaining that they could just go get Stella's ring and go, but Icy's saying that the power they're looking for is multiple times stronger. Darcy's debunking this, but Icy sounds like she's going to murder her."
"Typical Icy," Stella says. "She's the youngest of the Trix month-wise, but calls the shots. I think it's because the others are scared of her."
"Not surprising," I reply. "Her magic hurts."
"They're coming this way," Musa continues. "It seems like they're using a tracker or something. Stormy's commenting on how the power is conveniently located in Faragonda's office, and Icy recommends they search the entire place if she's hiding more secret powers or whatever. Darcy wants to be inconspicuous, though."
"Darcy's the more level-headed of the group," says Stella. "She may be evil, but she has standards."
"And now, they're almost here!" Musa cries. "Hide!"
We nearly don't hide in time. The Trix comes floating in, three strange magical objects floating in front of them. The objects are glowing quite brightly, and Icy looks around the place. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's trash it."
"I don't think so," a new voice says, coming from right behind them. From my place behind the desk, I can see the familiar figure of Headmistress Faragonda staring at them, her hands on her hips. "I dunno who gave you permission to be in here, ladies."
She turns the lights on. Icy turns her head towards Darcy, an angry expression on her face. "I thought you said this place was empty except for a few fairies!"
"They must've come back," Darcy explains. I turn my head to look out the window. Yep. There are a bunch of students, looking tired, coming back into the school.
"It doesn't matter if it were empty or not," Faragonda scolds. "No one is allowed in my office without my permission, especially Cloud Tower witches. And that also goes for a few boys from Red Fountain and some of my girls."
How did she…? We all come popping out of our hiding places. If looks could kill, we'd all be dead right now. Icy has an expression of pure anger. In the corner of my eye, I can see Flora letting go of the small duckling, watching it waddle over towards Icy. She growls, hitting it with a powerful ice spell, trapping it in ice.
The Trix get thoroughly chewed out by Griselda for sneaking onto the grounds and causing chaos throughout the school. They're sent back to Cloud Tower, and things seem fine. ...for the most part.
The boys leave a few minutes after the Trix do. Fortunately for them, they were applauded for helping us and making sure the school was okay, so they got a positive review from her to Headmaster Saladin.
And now, Griselda and Faragonda are talking to us now.
"I am sorry this had to happen," Faragonda explains solemnly. "I shouldn't be surprised if some Cloud Tower witches are doing this. I applaud you for your bravery, girls."
We stay quiet.
She clears her throat, trying to get Griselda's attention. Griselda's face scrunches, and she exhales exasperatedly. "And I saw your cleaning of the school. It was...adequate. But I never said you could ask help from the boys—"
"Griselda." Faragonda gives her a warning look.
Griselda sighs again. "You...did well. Regardless of help. And for that, we award you your powers unsuspended." She walks forward, the room going silent. It's the same spell she used to take our powers away, except different. The air becomes stronger and stronger… Until it stops, and something inside me doesn't feel so empty anymore.
Stella makes a small light in her palm. "It's back!" A glow resonates from her. "Oh, how I've missed you!"
Faragonda smiles warmly. "Now, go on. Go get some sleep. You have another week of classes to do."
"I was gonna sleep no matter what she said!" Musa cheers.
They all file out of the office. I'm the last to exit, but before I go, I contemplate asking Faragonda about Daphne… But I don't, because I think I need a break.
If she appears again, I'll know something isn't right.
"Griselda?" Faragonda sips her tea lightly, addressing her partner. Griselda had always been there for her. She considered her her closest companion and had been alongside her for… Ha! Faragonda couldn't even remember how long they had been acquainted, let alone how exactly. But she remembered Griselda being a student. The small, yet angry student, who would stop at nothing to achieve greatness and become a full-fledged fairy. And Faragonda had supported her fully, watching her grow into a strong and wonderful fairy. The headmistress didn't know what she'd do without her.
"Yes, Faragonda?" Griselda asks, stopping her cleaning of the desk.
"Do you think…the young ladies who were in my office were...who we think they are?"
Griselda thinks for a moment. "It could be the case, but we don't know for sure. And besides, even if they are the descendants, they most likely won't do anything. The others that have come before them haven't caused any trouble. In fact, I spoke with Madame Oravill the other day, and she says that the witch bloodline of their family is slowly fading out."
"Yes, but Madame Oravill isn't directly related to any of them. She's a third cousin, I think. They're bound to have some changes to their bloodline. But when those girls were here, they had this strange negative vibe from them. The same type that came from the Ancestral Witches all those years ago."
Griselda seems to quiver at that. She looks away. "Let's not think about that right now, ma'am. We have too much to do. We have to prepare for exams soon, you know."
Faragonda nods absentmindedly. She looks outwards. "Miss Peters has become increasingly interested in Princess Daphne."
"Princess Daphne?" Griselda asks. "Why her?"
Faragonda hesitates. "I gave her an idea in her head when I asked her about the princess. Miss Peters had wanted to know where her powers came from, and… The suspicion I had when she first arrived seemed to power itself up. She says she's only heard of her, giving me a sense that she might not be related to her, but… Who knows?"
"You worry too much, ma'am," Griselda says. "Let's get back to work, shall we?"
Faragonda nods. "Alright, Griselda." But things were not alright. There were too many things that were starting to piece together, and none of them were good things.
If Miss Peters and Daphne are… Faragonda can't think of it too much. But if her suspicions are correct, and those witches are who she thinks they are…
It could spell disaster for the entire Magic Dimension.