"Students, today's lesson will be... right here, inside the Alfea Greenhouse..." Came the grumpy voice of Griselda.
Sophia's head snapped up as she heard this and a melancholy look crossed her face. "I wonder if Macy is with them right now...?"
"We will study the discipline of botany magics." Griselda continued as a textbook appeared before her and opened for the students to see. Sophia idly wondered why Flora was even attending such a class.
"Chapter 1 of our textbook explains that..." Griselda began as the aforementioned fairy of nature walked off with a carefree smile. "Each and every plant hides a magical essence."
"Psh. I could've told you that." Sophia muttered, turning away from the hologram to search her latest stack of books for something new to study.
"And by studying the properties of plants and the magical techniques described in this chapter, today we'll learn to unveil the magical essence of each plant."
"Geez, Griselda is a really boring teacher..." Sophia mumbled as she began flipping through a book with disinterest. She only looked up as she heard Aisha's voice.
"We can find it easy with our fairy magic." The princess of Andros said before applying a bit of her magic to the flowers in front of her and Flora. To her surprise, the flowers all blew razzberries at her in annoyance, and Sophia quirked a brow.
'Well, we definitely don't have flowers like that on Earth...' She thought.
"Aisha, not so fast." Griselda reprimanded, "Do you know why your magic didn't work?" Aisha shrugged in response.
"Come on girls!" Bloom said enthusiastically, "We'll figure out how to get the flowers to show us their essence!"
"Somehow, that sounds kind of rude to the flowers..." Sophia muttered as she watched Tecna kneel down and cradle a bloom with her hands.
"Come on. Let's see your essence." The techno-fairy said.
The Fairy of Starlight snorted. "Now that was definitely rude." She quirked an eyebrow in amusement as the plant slapped Tecna's palm with a vine.
"Ouch!" Tecna exclaimed.
"Agarista ridicus is extremely sensitive, Tecna." Flora explained as she knelt beside her friend. "I... think you tickled her."
"Look at my hands..." Stella said like a hypnotist, "You're getting sleepy..." She snapped her fingers and the flower she was facing closed up, "Now tell me your secrets..." The Fairy of the Shining Sun sputtered and coughed when the flower instead shot a stream of water into her face. She yelped as Tecna and Musa giggled.
"Winx! Listen up!" Griselda said sternly as Sophia face-planted on her reading desk, "Flowers and plants like to take things slow. They can't stand hasty manners."
"That's right, Professor Griselda." Flora agreed.
"To reveal the essence of nature... you must use your head." Griselda told them.
The Winx gasped as the Star Case suddenly appeared before them, as if responding to Griselda's words.
"The Star Case!" Tecna exclaimed.
"Maybe she wants to guide us to the fourth Prime Star." Flora remarked.
"In the great forest of Lynphea, your next challenge is ahead. But use your head, or the Star, forevermore, will lie in a flower bed."
The Winx gasped as the Star Case disappeared and Flora's face lit up. "Lynphea! My home world! I'll have a chance to hug my little sister, Miele! She's in her second year at Lynphea College!"
Sophia's expression turned distant at that. "Home..."
"We'll all be happy to see Miele." Bloom agreed. "Come on, let's go!"
"Where do you think you're going?" Griselda asked crossly.
"Uh... We'd like to ask for permission to be excused from class." Flora replied, "Please?"
Griselda sighed in exasperation. "Very well. But remember that saving the Magic Universe does not exempt you from studying."
"Next time, we'll be better prepared. I promise, Professor Griselda." Flora replied politely before leaving with Bloom and the others.
Sophia's usual sarcasm was nowhere to be heard, because she had spaced out completely, her mind drifting to the recent past.
"Thanks for coming to the community garden with me, Sophia."
"No problem, Macy. Believe it or not, there's something oddly relaxing about pulling weeds for me." Sophia replied as she carefully maneuvered a garden tool to uproot a weed in said garden. "I'm happy to help, even though I'm not much good at gardening like you. I mean, I can't believe you managed to raise a magical plant."
"That was just coincidence." Macy insisted.
"No it wasn't!" Sophia said with a smile, "You heard what Aunt Morgana said. Finding and raising the Lilo was your destiny! If I had found it, I probably would have completely failed. Besides, you were the one who sensed just how special it was. You defended it with your life. I wasn't surprised at all when you turned out to be a nature fairy." She yanked another weed out and tossed it into a pile.
"I can't believe that you're not a fairy." Macy replied, "I mean, your eyes are so... effervescent."
Sophia snorted in an attempt to avoid laughing. "Effervescent? Have you been reading a dictionary or something?"
"I asked Mrs. Morgana how she would describe them."
"Ah."
"My point is, they're so mysteriously beautiful that I thought for sure you'd be a fairy."
"Yeah, well, I'm not." Sophia replied with a wry smile as she continued working, "And what a person's eyes look like has nothing to do with it. My eyes might look special, but I'm completely ordinary."
"Don't say that!"
"Why not? It's true."
"No it's not!" Macy insisted, "You may not be a fairy, but you're still amazing Sophia! You figured out that Roxy was the last fairy on Earth way before the Wizards of the Black Circle or even the Winx did! You always figure things out way before everyone else! No one else can do the things you do. Don't you know that, Sophia?"
"Sophia..."
"Sophia!"
Sophia startled as Valtor's angry voice broke through her thoughts, causing her to end up falling backwards in her chair. She groaned and looked up at the clearly unamused sorcerer. "How long did you intend to sit there, daydreaming?!" Valtor demanded as Sophia used a backwards somersault to right herself and rubbed her head with a groan.
"Oh, right. The Prime Star. On Lynphea." Sophia replied with a sigh as she got to her feet and followed Valtor through a portal to his throne room, where the Trix were already waiting.
"The fourth Prime Star is hidden somewhere in the Great Forest of Lynphea." Valtor informed the Trix, "It must be mine. I presume you know what you have to do, Trix?"
"Go, wait for the Winx to get the Prime Star, then attack without mercy." Stormy said with a grin, and Sophia sweat-dropped.
"Stormy, since when have you been making all the decisions?" Icy asked irritably.
"Since I'm the only one who's brought a Prime Star to Valtor so far." Stormy replied, "I'm the best, so I decide."
At this, Valtor sighed in exasperation as Sophia groaned in annoyance.
"Wait a minute, sisters." Darcy interrupted, breaking up the squabble, "Remember what the Star Case said to the Winx?"
"'Use your head.'" Icy repeated thoughtfully.
"To get the Fourth Prime Star, we can't just charge in. We need a plan." Darcy affirmed.
At that, Valtor smirked and raised his hand to open a portal, causing the Trix to gasp in surprise. "Do as you wish." The sorcerer said, "Use your head or use a plan. Just don't return without that Star!"
Sophia gave a reluctant sigh as she stepped forward and accompanied the Trix through the portal.
"All right, Darcy, Sophia, what is the plan?" Icy asked when they had arrived on Lynphea.
"The first thing we have to do is figure out how to find the Prime Star. Any ideas?" Darcy asked Sophia. The blonde looked thoughtful in response.
"Going by its name, the Great Forest of Lynphea must be vast. The Star Case didn't give any information more specific than that." Sophia remarked, "My guess is that the Winx will have to follow the Star Compass to find the exact location, so the only thing we can do for now is follow them and play it by ear. I'll leave coming up with an actual plan to you, Darcy. Craftiness is not my forte."
"Fair enough." Icy agreed, "So first we have to find the Winx."
"I think their first stop will be Flora's house." Sophia said, "She mentioned meeting up with her little sister. Her house must not be far from the Great Forest. Otherwise, it would be too far out of their way."
"But she also mentioned that her sister attends Lynphea College." Darcy pointed out, "So they could be heading there."
"No, I don't think so." Sophia replied thoughtfully, "In an environment as wild as the Great Forest, it's rude to use magic unless nature first grants you permission. For that reason, the school must not be located too close to the forest. That means it would be too far out of the way for the Winx to visit."
"How do you know that?" Stormy asked.
"I learned about it while visiting the Nature Fairies of Earth in the Amazon Rainforest sometime after magic was brought back." Sophia replied, "My godmother and the queen regent of the Earth Fairies took me there to introduce me to Diana, the leader of the Nature Fairies. I didn't have powers at the time, so it wasn't an issue for me, but these things were still explained to me. The Amazon Rainforest is one of the most wild places on Earth."
"Why would they make a point to introduce you to somebody important like that?" Darcy inquired, and Sophia blinked in surprise.
"Didn't I tell you?" She asked, "I'm a countess in the Earth Fairy Royal Court. How I ended up with that position is kind of a long story... Anyway, the Amazon Rainforest is one of the few places on Earth where nature still reigns supreme, and it'll stay that way if the Earth Fairies have anything to say about it."
"Noted." Icy replied with disinterest. "So how do we find Flora's house?"
"Do I look like I have a built-in navigation system or something?" Sophia asked.
The Trix glanced at each other. "Well... do you?" Stormy asked.
Sophia blinked in surprise and then looked thoughtful, "It's possible... celestial navigation is one of the most ancient of navigation techniques, so it's not too far out there, but... I don't think here is really the best place for me to experiment when I don't know what I'm doing."
"Point taken." Icy replied.
"Any suggestions then?" Darcy asked.
Sophia's expression remained thoughtful as she mulled over thoughts of the past. "...Hey... when you guys came to Gardenia in search of the Lilo... how did you manage to find the right starting point? I realize that you might've been following the Winx, but even pinpointing them in Gardenia would be hard."
The Trix looked at each other with raised brows before Icy answered, "We used a certain item of ours to teleport to Gardenia. The portal opened near the Lilo's location at that moment in time, and then we saw the Winx nearby."
"I see..." Sophia replied thoughtfully. "Can you remember any landmarks or anything of interest?"
"Why would we pay attention to stuff like that?" Stormy asked.
"Now that you mention it..." Darcy interrupted, "When we first spotted the Winx, they were talking to Bloom's Earth mom."
"So you appeared near the flower shop... Yeah, Macy would've passed by there while being dragged around by Mitzi... They were in traffic on Mitzi's scooter, so you must've just missed them." Sophia muttered.
"Where are you going with this?" Icy asked.
"The item that you used... was it only capable of tracking down the Lilo?"
"No, it can be used to track and store any ancient power source." Darcy said.
"Then that's how we'll find the Winx!" Sophia declared. "If it can track ancient power sources, it should have no problem locking onto Bloom's Dragon Flame, right?"
"Sure, we've used it for that before." Icy replied.
"But, in that case, couldn't we just use them to find the Prime Star?" Stormy asked.
"The spheres that surround the Prime Stars would probably interfere." Darcy replied.
"Doesn't matter." Icy said, "Sophia's idea will work. Let's summon the vacuums."
Sophia stepped back and watched as Icy, Darcy, and Stormy concentrated and, after a bit of straining, summoned three jewel-like containers.
"These are the Lorelei Vacuums." Icy explained to Sophia, "They can track and store ancient power sources, but they usually have to be used together to be of any use."
"Usually?" Sophia asked in confusion.
"It is possible to use a single Vacuum to measure the energy of a particular power, but it's not as accurate with just one." Icy stated.
"Now that we've summoned them, they'll lead us right to the Winx!" Stormy exclaimed.
望むの星
"Hi Miele!" Flora called in excitement as she and the rest of the Winx approached her house on their Winx boards. Miele gasped and then giggled in excitement as she rushed toward Flora. Flora put her board away and then caught Miele in a hug with a laugh of her own.
"What a surprise, Flora!" Miele said as she hugged Flora back before waving at the Winx. "Hi there, girls!"
Sophia blinked in surprise, looking confused as she stared at the two sisters. 'Flora's sister… doesn't look anything like her…' She mused silently.
"Hi Miele!" The other five Winx said in unison.
"Mom and Dad should be back pretty soon!" Miele told Flora, "They'll be so thrilled to see you!"
At this, Flora frowned sadly, "Sorry, but we can't wait around, little sister. We're here for a mission in the Great Forest."
Miele's eyes lit up when she heard this. "Wow! I-I can't believe this! You're taking me with you?!"
"Er…" Flora averted her gaze awkwardly. Not sensing her sister's hesitation to answer, Miele put two fingers in her mouth and whistled. No sooner had she finished than a giant ladybug came flying over to the group. When the enormous beetle landed, Miele rushed over and jumped up, sitting atop its head and holding its antennae like reins.
"Um… Miele…" Flora said hesitantly, "Actually… this could be…. very dangerous, you know?"
"Oh come on!" Miele replied as she waved off Flora's concern. "There's nothing in the Great Forest but the Lilyings. Harmless little protectors of nature."
Her sister sighed with a hint of exasperation, "Miele, listen. I only came to say hi, not to take you with me."
"Oh…" Miele replied as she sighed sadly.
"I'm sorry, but it's for the best." Flora insisted as Bloom walked up beside her.
"The mission is dangerous because we'll probably run into the Trix, and—" The fire fairy's words were cut off by the sudden appearance of the Star Case, causing all of the Winx to gasp. The group of fairies watched the box and noticed the Compass shifting its position. "Look, the Compass moved! We have to go!" Bloom said decisively. Her friends responded by quickly summoning their Winx boards. Miele gasped in frustration, realizing that she was about to be left behind.
"I'm trying to protect you." Flora told her as she walked over to the younger girl, "It's the only reason I can't take you."
Miele watched them leave with the expression of a little girl being left out by her older sister. "Thanks, but I'm not a little girl anymore!" She said in frustration, "And I'm not gonna sit here and wait!"
Sensing what the girl was about to do, Sophia rushed out into the yard. "Excuse me!"
"Huh?" Miele paused just before she could remount her ladybug and looked over at Sophia. "Who are you?"
"What is Sophia doing?!" Icy asked in irritation.
Darcy was about to say something, but stopped when she heard Sophia's voice in her head.
'Darcy, you guys go on without me. I've pretty much done all I can on this one anyway. I'm going to distract Flora's sister so that she doesn't get caught up in things. The girl is out of her mind if she thinks she's ready for this.'
"Heh." Darcy said with interest before looking at her sisters, "Never mind, she's just keeping the little pest occupied. We don't need her to get the Star this time. Let's go."
"Sorry if I startled you." Sophia said, "My name is Sophia. I'm a fairy from Earth."
"From Earth?" Miele asked in confusion, "What are you doing here?"
"Well… that's the thing." Sophia said awkwardly. "I'm kind of… new to my powers and don't really know how to use them yet. And… since one of my abilities is teleportation..."
"Ohh…" Miele said, realizing the problem right away. "Have you… not enrolled in a college for fairies yet?"
"I haven't exactly had a chance to enroll…" Sophia admitted, "I mean, it's, well… the middle of the semester."
"Yeah, that's true." Miele agreed.
"So, ah, since I'm here on Lynphea, would you… mind taking me over to Lynphea College? I kind of need to figure out the basics before I can go home."
"Hm… okay!" Miele agreed, her mood brightening at the chance to help someone out. She reached out her hand to Sophia. "Hop on!"
Sophia accepted the other fairy's hand and hopped onto the ladybug with Miele's help. The redhead then spurred her insect friend forward and they flew off toward Lynphea College. Before long, they arrived at the school, where they found an older—but very fit—man walking near the Treants.
"Hi Professor Guru!" Miele said happily as she alighted from her ladybug after landing.
"Ahh… Hello Miele. What brings you here at this time of day?" The man asked as he looked down at the teenager.
"I'm helping someone out!" Miele replied cheerfully as Sophia joined them. "This is Sophia, she's a new fairy from Earth."
Guru stroked his beard thoughtfully, "Earth, you say…?" He seemed a bit surprised.
After briefly pondering the best way to greet him, Sophia settled for holding out her hand to offer a handshake.
"It is a pleasure to meet you, Professor Guru. I am Countess Sophia Williams of Tir Nan Og."
"The pleasure is all mine, young lady." Guru replied as he warmly shook Sophia's hand. "May I ask what brings you here today?"
At this, Sophia laughed awkwardly, "Well you see… I only recently became a fairy, and I don't really know much about my powers yet. Since I wound up here on Lynphea, I was hoping to find some assistance in at least understanding the basics."
"Oh? May I ask what kind of magic you have, child?"
"I'm the Fairy of Starlight, so… my powers are light-based."
"Cosmic magic?" Guru said in surprise, "If memory serves, that is not a type of magic commonly found amongst Earth Fairies…"
"You're right, it's not." Sophia agreed. "It's… difficult to explain, but… I was not born with even a trace of Sparx. I received my powers as… well… I guess you could say they were a gift… For that reason, they are not tied to Earth's energy."
"But yet you say you are a Countess of Tir Nan Og?"
"My position is one bestowed upon me by the former queen of the Earth Fairies when I was fourteen, and is unrelated to my new powers."
"Ah, I see."
望むの星
Perhaps because of all she had learned from Morgana, Sophia was able to adapt to her powers quite quickly. It wasn't long before she was fascinated by her own ability to diffuse light into different colors.
"Wow. Your powers seem pretty different from Stella's." Miele commented.
"Just because two people have the same power source doesn't mean they have exactly the same powers." Sophia said. "Human or fairy, every person is unique." She hummed to herself as she danced with rainbow ribbons of light following after her like she was a rhythmic gymnast. After a moment, she stopped twirling and looked up at the sky with a nostalgic expression. "That's right… everyone has their own talents and abilities. That's what allows each of us to make our mark." How many times had Morgana told her that? Assured her that she was enough the way she was? Why had it taken her so long to understand? She turned and smiled at Miele, "The same goes for you, Miele. You don't need to chase after your sister. Big or small, there's a difference only you can make." Sophia found the words of a childhood lullaby floating up in her heart, and before she knew it, the song was spilling from her lips as she continued to dance. "Fly! Open your eyes and spread your wings! This is your reality. Living in a magical and wonderful world. Dream! Everyone has a secret dream—and one day you'll wake up and see—you've become a beautiful and powerful fairy! It's not easy to be special. To believe in what they cannot see. Full of talent, you've got that something that—will take you far. One day you'll reach into the sky and touch the stars! Just believe in yourself and… all the magic within…" Miele smiled and began dancing with her new friend as Sophia continued her song, "Fly! Open your eyes and spread your wings! This is your reality. Living in a magical and wonderful world. Dream! Everyone has a secret dream—and one day, you'll wake up and see, you've become a beautiful and powerful fairy." Sophia stopped her dance in order to draw shapes above them with her powers. "Life's a journey. A roller coaster. Keep the faith and fight for what you want. Improve your powers. Learn to be stronger. You're not alone. One day, you'll reach out for my hand and I'll be there." Sophia joined hands with Miele and the two of them spun around in the air together. "Just believe in yourself and… all the magic within…!" The blonde fairy let out a glittering burst of magic and the surrounding area became more vibrant as she used the colors of the rainbow to make everything practically glow its natural color before she turned to Miele again and took her hands in her own. "This… is all about being friends. All for one and one for all! We believe in what we are, we never give up! Smile! You have the power to be free! Use a little fantasy… let your heart bloom like a flower, you will always win…" Sophia slowly rose further into the air, leading Miele to accompany her. "Will always dream… all you gotta do is fly…!" The fairy of Starlight created a path of rainbow hoops and led Miele through them. "Fly! Open your eyes and spread your wings! This is your reality. Living in a magical and wonderful world. Dream! Everyone has a secret dream—and one day you'll wake up and see—you've become a beautiful and powerful fairy!"
Sophia and Miele landed and Sophia allowed her magic to dissipate.
"That was fun!" Miele exclaimed, "What was that song?"
"It's something that my godmother used to sing to her daughter and I when we were little." Sophia replied as she brushed a strand of hair behind her ear.
"Well, I'd say that you've gotten the hang of using Cosmic Magic." Guru remarked as he approached the girls.
Sophia smiled a bit, her expression nostalgic. "You know, it's strange. I've always felt drawn to the stars, ever since I was little. Even though I didn't have magic until recently, I always felt like I was… connected to them."
Guru chuckled, "I'm not surprised. 'Magic lives in a girl with silver eyes like stars. She will be a beacon of hope."
Sophia's eyes widened in shock as she looked at the man. "How… How do you know that saying?"
"I imagine that all magical scholars my age know of it." Guru replied.
Sophia's face paled at that thought, but before she could reply, she suddenly heard Darcy's voice in her head. "Oh no…"
"What is it?" Miele asked.
"I'm really sorry, but I have to go, like, right now. I… I need to go protect Earth!" Sophia replied as she enveloped herself in light. "Thanks for all of the help, Professor Guru! And thank you too, Miele!"
"Wait!" Miele exclaimed, but it was too late. Sophia had already disappeared within the rainbow of her magic.
望むの星
Icy, Darcy, and Stormy were a tad surprised when Sophia suddenly appeared where they were waiting.
"There you are." Darcy remarked.
"How did you even find us?" Icy asked with a slight tilt of her head.
"Er… your magic kind of… stands out." Sophia replied. "Did you get the Prime Star?"
At this, Darcy smirked and held up the Star in question. "Like taking candy from a baby."
"Yeah, and Flora was the baby." Stormy chuckled.
"Please stop. You're making more nauseous than I already am." Sophia replied as she returned to her normal form.
"What did you mean that our magic stands out?" Icy asked.
"I mean that to find you, I just had to look where there was the largest concentration of dark magic within the area. Not that complicated." The blonde replied.
"No, it isn't…" Icy admitted, "Except that the ability to sense other people's magic is extremely rare. The only people I know of who can do that are Darcy and Bloom. Well, and probably Valtor."
"Don't read too much into it." The teen sighed, "I mean, come on, if I was too normal, I wouldn't be here in the first place."
"She has a point." Darcy agreed.
Icy sighed, "Fine. Let's go."
望むの星
Sophia returned to the library after they had delivered the Prime Star of Intelligence to Valtor, Guru's words nagging at the back of her mind. She didn't even glance at the desk with its stacks of books as she made her way over to the shelves to search for information on her own. She would never be able to concentrate until her questions were answered anyway. That was just the way she was.
"What did he mean? What's the connection?" She murmured in a daze as she walked alongside the shelf, glancing at the titles as she passed them. Would she even be able to find the answer she was looking for here?
"What are you doing?" A voice yanked Sophia from her thoughts, prompting her to look and see that Valtor standing a short distance away. "You're supposed to be reading the books on the desk to increase the information you have for solving riddles."
Sophia immediately looked at the floor. "I know, I just… I heard someone say something on Lynphea, and it surprised me because… well… I didn't think it was really known outside of magic users from Earth, so…"
"'Magic lives in a girl with silver eyes like stars.'" Valtor guessed, quoting the first half of the saying, "You're searching for information about yourself."
"…Yes… I didn't realize that… the existence of my predecessors and I was so well known beyond Earth." She admitted awkwardly while averting her gaze.
"That depends on how you look at things. I doubt that the Trix have ever heard of the Guardian of Earth's Magic. The Winx likely haven't either." Valtor remarked, "It's something that younger magic users wouldn't know about."
"…That's true…" Sophia said as she attempted to brush back her bangs. "The Winx have never mentioned it during any of our brief encounters, and the Trix haven't said anything this whole time. The new generation of Earth fairies know, but only because they are taught about it." Sophia looked at her hand. "My eyes are usually the first thing people notice about me. Back when magic was first brought back to Earth, everyone expected that I would awaken as a fairy. However…"
"The Guardian of Earth's Magic is always born without even a trace of Sparx." Valtor noted.
"Exactly." Sophia sighed. "I've always been interested in the stars, but I figured that was just my personality or whatever. That is until the Star Case came shooting through my window like a Frisbee possessed. I was taught that true coincidences are a rare thing and to always question the connection between seemingly unrelated matters."
"So now you're wanting to know what the connection is between you and the Wishing Star." The Wizard surmised.
"Yes." Sophia exhaled, "If you already know, you could save us a lot of time by just telling me yourself. The sooner I know the answer, the sooner I can go back to those books."
Valtor looked thoughtful for a moment before using his powers to pull a book from a distant shelf towards him as he began speaking, "Do you know how the Wizards of the Black Circle managed to gain enough power to begin the Great Fairy Hunt?"
"King Arthur of Camelot was betrayed and mortally wounded by his son, Mordred. In an attempt to save their king's life, those loyal to Arthur brought him to Tir Nan Og and asked the Queen of the Earth Fairies, Nimue, to heal him. However, Arthur's injuries were too severe. The Wizards of the Black Circle—primarily Ogron—took advantage of Arthur's subsequent death by saying that Nimue allowed the king to die. Nimue had also been the adoptive mother of Sir Lancelot, Arthur's former best friend who had betrayed him by committing adultery with Arthur's wife, Guinevere. This betrayal in and of itself was the root cause of the civil war which had led Mordred to slay his own father. This fact, combined with the death of King Arthur, made it all to easy for the Wizards of the Black Circle to convince the world that the Earth Fairies were evil. As a result, people stopped trusting the Earth Fairies, which resulted in their magic becoming weak against that of the Wizards." Sophia recited, as if recalling a lecture from a history class.
"I see you're quite well-versed in Earth's history." Valtor replied in amusement. "However, it seems you haven't learned of what happened one thousand years ago with regard to that."
"Earth time or… everywhere else?" Sophia asked. "Earth's time was out of sync with the rest of the Magic Dimension for a long time due to the lack of magic. I think our calendars are at least synced now, but it's not like we're going to suddenly regain all those lost years."
"Ah, yes…" Valtor acknowledged, "I suppose it would have been about… six or seven centuries ago by Earth's calendar."
"Seven centuries ago would put it at midway between the fall of Camelot and the return of Earth's magic…" Sophia mumbled thoughtfully.
Valtor raised a brow, but ultimately ignored her musings as he continued while looking at the book in his hands, "It was during the Wishing Star's journey through this dimension, the most recent one until now. It would seem that, after my failed attempt to capture it, the Wishing Star was approached by the queen of the Earth Fairies and the Major Earth Fairies of that time. The four of them asked for the Wishing Star's help in defeating the Wizards of the Black Circle, but it would seem that there were rules of some sort that prevented the Wishing Star from simply defeating the Wizards for them. So instead, it gave them power in the form of an ally. A human child born to the queen's friend, whose belief in fairies could not be destroyed and would provide a greater boost to Earth's energy than any other individual's. The sign of this child's power was her silver eyes, and she became known as the Guardian of Earth's Magic. I expect that you know the rest."
"Yes. Every hundred years, a new guardian would be born, her unique eye color apparent from birth." Sophia remarked, "So it's because of the Wishing Star that I was born with a power that—while helpful to the Earth Fairies—is totally useless for protecting myself?"
Valtor shrugged nonchalantly before closing the book, "I suspect the lack of magic was intended to prevent the Wizards of the Black Circle from seeing you as a threat."
"…I see…" Sophia remarked, biting back the comment she'd almost made about said protective measure backfiring. "I'll get back to reading those books."
Valtor chuckled softly, as if amused, "But you know, in all the years since then, you're the first guardian I've heard of to have such a keen mind in addition to her influence on Earth's magic."
"There are plenty of people like me. It's just a matter of making observations, noticing patterns, and connecting the dots. Just like finding constellations in the night sky. Things will connect if you just look."
I've had this chapter finished for a week or so now, but I had trouble coming up with a title.
One thing that struck me about Miele's appearance in the Green Heart of Lynphea (aside from her being inexplicably short and childlike after being a young teen in Seasons 6 and 7) was that she says "I'm not a little girl anymore!" ...And then promptly does exactly what a little girl would do. And honestly, Flora has good reason to worry. In Season 3, she almost died, and I seem to recall her being in imminent danger in Season 6 as well. She's kind of a magnet for trouble. Not to mention that Flora should know by now that leaving her behind is pointless because she always follows anyway.
So I'm decided to have Sophia intervene. Strictly speaking, Darcy still pretended to be Miele, but Sophia figured that since she couldn't stop the witch from using Flora's concern for her sister against her, she could at least distract Miele and keep her out of harm's way. Fortunately, the Trix have yet to realize that since the incident on Solaria, Sophia has been finding excuses to avoid being part of the action.