A/N: An AU in which Faragonda has trouble using her powers and Griffin comes to the rescue.

"There's no use," Faragonda said as she plopped herself down on the grass after her latest failed attempt to summon her magic and complete the task of blasting the boulders at the clearing to pieces. "I will never get it."

"Of course you will," Griffin put a hand on her shoulder, her touch so impossibly gentle considering the enormous destructive power of her magic. Faragonda could still remember the tremendous wave of magic that had swept over her when she'd first met Griffin who'd stepped in to protect her from three other witches that were bullying her. She'd never felt such raw power before, not even from her own mother who was a fearsome witch infamous in countless realms. How she wished she'd inherited an ounce of that talent but her own powers were laughable at best and nonexistent at worst. She would've ended up badly injured if not for Griffin's interference. "You just need more practice." Griffin was so patient with her, as if she was special when it couldn't be further from the truth. She never showed the temper Faragonda knew was lurking under the surface. She'd felt Griffin's outrage feeding her powers and making her glow with a green magical aura that had scared off the other witches before she'd even unleashed her magic. But those strong negative feelings were nowhere to be seen in their interactions which only made Faragonda feel worse.

"More practice?" She chuckled bitterly. They'd been practicing for almost half a year now with Griffin guiding her calmly and with care only for her to fail again and again. "I'm just wasting your time." She'd been thrilled when Griffin had agreed to help her. She'd been left in awe of her power and, later, of her comprehension of magic and she'd thought that maybe she'd finally learn. But it was rapidly becoming apparent that that would never happen.

Griffin studied her for a moment and it was the first time she was left unnerved by her gaze. If she agreed with her, there'd be no more reason for them to meet and… she'd lose her best friend. Her only friend. Every other witch inevitably started taunting her for her lack of powers. But even the fact that she'd be the family disappointment that was not talked about at social gatherings didn't hurt as much as the thought of not seeing Griffin anymore.

"Okay," Griffin said, making her freeze. "One more try and I won't press anymore. If you can't, you can't and we both accept that," she was talking as if Faragonda's success was somehow her responsibility and impacted her directly, making failure her problem. But she'd already done more than anyone else ever had. She'd not only refused to give up on Faragonda, but she'd also encouraged her to keep trying. She'd been just about ready to admit defeat before Griffin had shown up but her lessons had kept her going for six more months despite the constant disappointment for both of them. Even if Griffin never showed any feelings of the sort to her. "But you have to promise me to give your everything, okay?" Griffin put both her hands on her shoulders and looked her in the eyes, her expression serious.

Faragonda didn't want to fail her even more so she nodded, summoning all of her determination to see this last attempt through. More for Griffin rather than for herself.

Griffin smiled at her in a way that managed to give her strength and faith even when she knew she would fail and let go of her shoulders to offer her a hand.

Faragonda took it and found herself on her feet when Griffin pulled her up with so much force that she almost stumbled forward, leaving them close to each other, the space between them full of tension. She couldn't tell if it was anticipation or something unspoken on Griffin's end, but she knew what it was with her.

Griffin didn't let go of her just yet. "I know you can do it," she said, her voice quiet but not because she didn't believe in what she said. She was a force of nature and she didn't need to be loud to be heard. The quiet words contained much more confidence than anyone's shouts could, much more confidence than Faragonda had. Yet, they didn't make her afraid of not delivering and only helped her focus on the task at hand instead. Griffin was the only one who had that effect on her. Everyone else made her feel worthless. Including herself.

Griffin finally released her grip on her and made her way to the center of the clearing, reaching for her magic if the significant shift in the atmosphere was any indication. And the slight green glow surrounding her form. She was using a lot of power.

"What do I have to do?" Faragonda asked because she needed instructions. Not that they had ever helped her achieve anything but without any she didn't stand a chance.

Griffin didn't answer, focused on what she was doing. Her magic wrapped around the boulders around, making them glow as well, and forced them out of the ground before lifting them in the air. They kept raising higher and higher, driven by the spell Griffin was murmuring and channeling her magic into until they were so high Faragonda could barely see how they drifted closer together above Griffin's head.

She turned her attention to Griffin, wondering what was going on in her mind. There was no way her weak magic could reach them there. Her blasts had barely made it to the stone surface when they'd been on the ground just a few feet away from her.

Griffin's eyes opened and the magical aura disappeared as she put an end to her spell. But that meant-

Faragonda looked up to see the heavy boulders plummeting down towards Griffin. They would crush her and she didn't seem to have any intention of moving, her eyes trained on Faragonda. She had to save her.

That remained the only thought in her head, her whole focus and energy going into it and before she knew it, Griffin was tightly clasped in her arms and they were at the other end of the clearing, the boulders smashing into the ground behind them.

Faragonda waited for the commotion to stop, clutching Griffin hard in her embrace with her eyes closed as she tried to shake off the terror of the experience. "Never again," she hissed, her voice shaking, when everything calmed down around them and her heart was pounding a little slower, the feeling of it in her throat subsiding enough to let her use her voice more. "Do you hear me, never again," she growled louder, pulling away to scowl at Griffin which would, hopefully, get her point across.

The expression she was met with was one of total fascination, though, and it took her a moment to process what could've evoked that response. But when she looked down, she found herself dressed in a sparkling dark blue skirt and top. It was a fairy outfit and it finally dawned on her that she'd just flown them out of harm's way. Wings. She had wings. She had transformed and was a fairy.

Griffin reached to touch the shimmering things that were sprouting from her back and she felt the ghost of her touch in the nerves on her back. Apparently the wings were connected to them. "Well, that explains the lack of results," Griffin said, her voice quiet again but this time it was full of respect. "Stained glass only reveals its beauty in the light." The witch was in awe – something Faragonda had never seen from her and it helped loosen the grip that the fear had on her throat.

If she'd been the family disappointment before, now she didn't have to worry about that because they would just outright cut off all contact with her. No fairy was welcome anywhere near them, much less allowed into the family. Her outfit was much brighter than her future.

Griffin seemed to sense her thoughts, for she summoned her magic again but before Faragonda could start worrying, a mirror appeared in front of her and the reflection of her wings captured her attention.

They were indeed the blue of stained glass and weren't shimmering which left them clear and transparent, see-through just like glass. "They're beautiful," she whispered as she touched her hand to the cold surface of the mirror in an illogical attempt to touch them.

"And you're beautiful, too," Griffin's reflection smiled at her. "A beautiful fairy. Just as I thought." Her hand was on Faragonda's shoulder again and if anything, the soothing effect of her touch had multiplied now that their friendship was silently confirmed.

Faragonda would ask how she'd come to the conclusion but she was too preoccupied with her overflowing emotions that were all over the place and the only thing that grounded her was the security of the knowledge that Griffin was still her best friend regardless of the fact that she was a fairy. She wasn't angry at the revelation as Faragonda was sure her family would be. And that was all that mattered right now even if the future was more than scary. So she covered Griffin's hand with hers, relieved to feel the warmth of her skin and her support because she was sure that that was all she had left besides her newly found winx.