Stella groans as she tries to make her way through the assigned reading for Metamorphosis - its not particularly interesting, really. The introduction and first chapter, why can't they just get straight into the spellwork? The interesting stuff they're taking the class to learn to do? As it is, she can hardly focus on the chapter for more than five minutes without desperately needing a distraction of some kind.

"Stella, what's out in the forest?"

Bloom, Stella's just decided, is a wonderful woman no matter how scary she can be.

Eagerly putting the book down, Stella looks over at the red-head at the other side of the couch - only to find she's got an even bigger book in one hand, though she's looking out the window facing the forest. After a minute, she says "A bunch of animals, Cloud Tower is out that way to. Though, most go through Magix City if they're heading to another school for whatever reason. And Professor Palladium gathers Potions ingredients from there. Why?"

Instead of answering, Bloom asks "Anything else?"

Techna walks in right that moment, and curiously asks "Anything else what?"

Stella off-handedly says "Bloom wants to know what's in the forest."

Techna then rattles off a detailed list of the various plants and animals in the forest separating the two pseudo-rival schools. Bloom's face stays politely interested…right up until Techna adds "Oh, and there's Lake Roccaluce somewhere deep in the forest. Nobody knows exactly where though."

Bloom's interest perks up instantly, asking "Come again?"

Stella shrugs, saying "Its this semi-mythical lake hidden somewhere in the forest. I wouldn't be surprised if most people thought it didn't exist, even if its said to be haunted by the last Princess of Domino."

Given the detail that Stella's got her eyes closed at the moment, she misses Bloom's head snap around towards her at once - Techna doesn't, but brushes it off as 'there's a spirit haunting a lake?!' Techna says "That most likely adds to the mystery. Domino was destroyed when we were all very young, and rumor has it the Crown Princess' spirit resides in the lake. Nobody's entirely sure, anymore, as the curse that she was supposedly afflicted with stripped her of her body. And there aren't any known curses that can do that."

Bloom gets a confused look on her face, asking "So…?"

Stella shrugs, saying "So, nobody's sure anymore if even the lake is real or not, since her spirit supposedly ended up there after the attack on Domino. It was one sighting over a decade ago, and ever since nobody's been able to find the lake."

After a minute, Bloom says "Sounds like she cast a spell to hide the place."

Stella and Techna trade glances, and Techna slowly says "That…sounds possible, likely even. If she didn't want to be found…she could've hidden the lake with her magic easily, given who she was. Somehow, everyone ends up at a school, usually the school they came from, when they go inside the forest."

Bloom frowns, then says "I'm gonna go for a walk, ladies. Be back by dinner." She's out the door before either can say anything.

Stella gives Techna a strange look, and asks "What's that about?"

Techna shrugs, and says "Ask Bloom for that answer, Stella. Because I haven't got a clue."

Stella shrugs, and gets back to her - awful, torturous - reading, if Bloom wanted them to know she'd have told them. Its not like Stella tells them everything about herself either, being under the secrecy program and all. Same with Sky back at Red Fountain, she seriously doubts he's told his roommates he's the Prince of Eraklyon, engaged to Princess Diaspro, etc.

Heck, she had to swear the rest of the Winx to silence after telling them she was the Princess of Solaria - it couldn't get out, any potential attacks on her to get to her father or the throne itself would almost certainly happen if it did. Even with Bloom Potter living in the room next-door, the girl is very terrifying when she wants to be.

Maybe I should partner up with her in Defense, then. Surviving being her partner would definitely make people think twice about attacking me if my identity is discovered.

Bloom finds a map of the forest in the library, and quickly uses the Gemino Charm to make a copy to use - she's not going into another forest near a school she's attending without a bloody map. Really, after the Forbidden Forest with an Acromantula Nest, who knows what's in a forest in Magix.

After that's finished, she heads out into the forest, having finished her homework for the day and wanting to find what's drawing her towards the forest. In all likelihood, its Daphne - still, its distracting. Its like something's tugging at her constantly, trying to get her attention and lead her out into the forest - no matter the time. During meals, during class - one time Bloom woke up from a dream of walking through that forest to find she was halfway down the hall!

She's never sleepwalked before, a rather alarming new development - its either Daphne or those Trix ladies, who were using three crystal bottles called the Vacuums to search for…well, they probably didn't actually know what it was the things were heading for. Her, the three bottles were heading straight for her - anyone can summon them if you know how, which means if word had gotten out that they kept flying straight into her chest she'd likely get chased by hundreds of the things endlessly in attempts to steal the Dragon Flame from her.

Still, in the event I ever come face-to-face with the Shadow Phoenix, I'll have something ready for him.

She doesn't want to jinx it, but the pessimistic side of her says she'll most definitely meet this 'Darkar' at some point in the next three years.

Almost as soon as she steps into the forest, Bloom knows Daphne did something - there's a spell on the entire forest, if Bloom had to take a wild guess. It feels similar to a Confundus, as well as the spells that were on the Maze in Fourth Year - it makes you get completely and utterly lost in the forest, yet there's another spell in the mix that Bloom can just sense. One that seems to almost guide her into turning back around and heading back for Alfea.

Bloom shakes her head to try and clear it of the magic attempting to cloud her thoughts, and grins to herself - seems she and her sister are more alike than she thought. Well, Daphne, game on.

Six tries later, she's staring yet again at Alfea - whatever spell it is Daphne used is strong. It keeps turning her around no matter what she tries. The map…is quasi-useless at the moment, but Bloom's not throwing it away. Maybe she can use it after she figures out how to get around the spells Daphne put on the entire bloody forest. Despite the current lack of any progress in finding Lake Roccaluce, Bloom grins to herself - she's always loved a challenge, and this is looking like it'll keep her occupied since the hardest class she currently has is Magiphysics. Only because she didn't take Arithmancy, but read Hermione's notes on the subject instead and bought her own books to read during the summers.

When she checks the time at the first available clock…its been three hours. "Well, bloody hell. Least there's still time before dinner."

When she gets back to her dorm, the first thing Bloom sees is Flora watering her plants. And talking to them, but to each their own. Bloom spends her time learning advanced magics and making 'impossible' projects, Flora tends and talks to her large collection of plants - she's turned her side of the room into a greenhouse, being the Fairy of Nature. The sight of the girl gives Bloom an idea, one she can't believe she didn't think of before - she was in the forest, in nature, and her roommate is the Fairy of Nature. Merlin, she's occasionally blind. "Hey, Flora? Quick question."

Flora looks up, asking "What is it, Bloom?"

"You wouldn't happen to know how to navigate a forest that twists you around and spits you back out at the school, would you?"

Dinner finds Flora discussing the intricacies of Nature Magic with Bloom, much to the other three's confusion - and then Bloom pulls Techna into the discussion with a question of mapping out a forest through nature magic, rather than walking through it and drawing it out. The general idea would be that the spell connects to all the plants in the forest, down to the last blade of grass, and maps out the layout of the forest that way.

Unfortunately, Bloom isn't even sure if it'll work - in theory, it will. Magic is, at its very root - no pun intended - about intent. Everyone's different, though, and all of them would need to understand exactly what they're doing, be on the same part of the same letter of the same word - forget being on the same page. Everyone's different, everyone's magic is different…and something like this, according to Techna, is at least halfway through third year in Convergence.

Which scraps that idea, for the time being. Rather thoroughly, at that - Bloom is not waiting around for three years to find Daphne, much less get rid of the curse the Ancestral Witches put on her! She's the damn Fairy of the bloody Dragon Flame, survived five years of Voldemort, Dumbledore's manipulations, her time with the Dursleys, and nearly dying from being sick for the first time in her entire life, she's not letting a spell on some bloody trees get between her and her SISTER!

She'll burn the damn forest down if it comes to it! She and Flora can regrow it afterwards!

Daphne looks in the direction of Alfea, from down in the cave with the Sirenix Stone - Bloom's trying to find her, which is what Daphne wanted…but she forgot about the spell she cast over a decade ago. There's only one way to be let through, to find Lake Roccaluce - you need to go on the Sirenix Quest, knowledge which Daphne made Faragonda promise to hide forever ever since the power was cursed by the Witches.

Even the Dragon Flame won't let you pass it so easily, simply charging headfirst into the forest and running in a straight line won't work. You'll get turned around and end up heading straight back for Alfea. The spell confuses the senses, making it almost impossible to find Lake Roccaluce - and the more you want to find the lake, the more the spell works on you.

Palladium, for instance, is relatively safe from its effects - he only goes into the forest for ingredients, which the spell subtly leads him to.

If someone wants to explore the forest, it leaves them well enough alone - not leading them anywhere specific, but making sure they can't find Lake Roccaluce.

And then there's the people that want to find the Lake, either for the Sirenix Stone or for Daphne herself. Not only the last Princess of Domino, but the last known Holder of the Dragon Flame - widely regarded as some kind of blessing by more of the Magical Dimension, but Daphne, Marion, and countless Holders before them knew it for what it truly is. A curse, of sorts - not in effect, but in responsibility.

Just like being a princess, power and responsibility come hand in hand…and draw would-be attackers to them like flies to honey - the Dragon Flame, even more so. Domino's royals had to be trained from a young age to defend themselves simply because they face more danger than anyone else around every corner - those like the Ancestral Witches, and even Darkar himself.

So she put the spell up over the entire forest, hiding Lake Roccaluce and herself, never knowing her baby sister was still out there somewhere. That she'd return one day…and have to get through the impenetrable spell Daphne cast while drawing on the power of the Sirenix Stone with Omnia's help.

Omnia, one of Daphne's visitors - along with the Selkies, who remembered her and came to visit and help her with her grief - hums in thought as Daphne explains what happened earlier. Then chuckles and drily says "I should've known, just from the number of times the spell was triggered, that it was one of your bloodline, Daphne. You Fyres tend to be rather stubborn."

Daphne nods, running a hand through her incorporeal hair, and asks "What are we supposed to do now? Bloom can sense me, Omnia, and she's not going to just give up on finding me."

Omnia shrugs, and says "We made the spell impossible to negate, so there's two ways."

"Two?!" TWO?! Daphne only knows of one!

"She could start the Sirenix Quest-"

Daphne immediately snaps "Absolutely not!"

Omnia grins, remembering Daphne's own"Or she could utilize that Fyre stubbornness, along with Marion's magical skill and intellect, and find a way around it. You did something similar when you came up with the spell in the first place."

Daphne groans, and mutters "This is going to be a crash-landing…"

AN: Hey, everyone! Hope you like the chapter - it occurred to me that people in Magix couldn't have known where Daphne was, else she'd have people like the Trix at the Lake nonstop for one reason or another. Either for the Dragon Flame, or for info on Bloom. And, seriously, so many things happened at the Lake that I find it really hard to believe the Sirenix Stone wasn't discovered in...Season 3, at the latest. Valtor and Faragonda fought there, Valtor used the water to flood cloudtower, the fight at the lake that ended with the Trix getting taken back to Lightrock...seriously, how did they not figure it out before season 5? Valtor, at the very least - honestly, he strikes me as similar to what Tom Riddle could've been like had he not gone insane from Horcruxes - had to have at least heard about Sirenix, since Daphne got the power.

Now, Bloom's gotta figure out a way to make it through a forest that messes with your senses to turn you around until you head back the way you came. This is gonna be fun, I can assure you.

Enjoy! More chapters coming soon! Please review!