Welcome to chapter 1! Thanks for reading this far. As always, I follow the 4Kids version of Winx Club and character and place names reflect this.

Enjoy :)


"Happy birthday, dear Musa…..happy birthday….to me."

Another year, another birthday spent alone in this hell hole, Musa thought as she slowly unwrapped her rock candy from its silver wrapper. She had been saving the small lolly for weeks now, since her handmaid had snuck it to her after breakfast one day. Yes, today was Musa's eighteenth birthday and all she had to celebrate for it was an old rock candy.

A small candy was not much significance to some, but to Musa it was something more precious than gold. The fact that her handmaiden smuggled it to her made it all more special.

For years Musa was kept prisoner in her own castle, her title and thrown striped from her. Day in day out she lived under the watchful eyes of guards, her every move accounted for and reported to the king. Sure, she was permitted to roam the top floor of the palace, which held her bedroom, the ballroom, throne room, and 'play room' were held but she was forbidden access to the lower levels of the palace, including the prisons where her father has been held captive for the last ten years.

The King allowed her to live so that he could manipulate her people. He imprisoned her – a fate worse than death in her eyes.

An urgent knock sounded on her bedroom door. Musa whipped her head towards the sound and immediately stood up. Not knowing who was on the other side, the young woman shoved the candy into her dress pocket and quickly smoothed out her dress. A second later the door opened to reveal a purple haired woman, about Musa's age, rush into the room and close the door behind her.

Musa breathed a sigh of relief.

"Tecna, don't scare me like that," Musa replied.

Tecna ignored her friend, corrected her dress from running down the hall, and dragged Musa into the en-suite bathroom. Tecna closed the door, turned the faucet on and finally looked back at her friend.

"I'm sorry, Princess," Tecna replied formally.

"Tecna," Musa whispered back. "You cannot call me that anymore."

"They may have stolen your throne and crown, but you will always be Princess Musa to me, Your Highness."

Tecna had been one of Musa's loyal friends since before the siege. Her father worked in the palace as an engineer for the realm, particularly for the armed forces. Fat lot of good he did when the siege arrived – half of his inventions were unfinished when the Valkarian's invaded. Tecna still blames herself for her father's lack of preparation. Of course, no one could have predicted the ill-provoked attack, but people grieve differently.

"Tecna," Musa whispered again, praying no one could hear them. "I did not force myself to beg to that tyrant to spare your life just to watch you throw it away by defying him."

"Oh yes, being a handmaid instead of an inventor is what I have always dreamed of, Musa," Tecna replied sarcastically. "The Valkarians are so generous. I would rather die than pretend to ignore your blood line, Princess Musa."

Musa would have rolled her eyes at Tecna's obvious defiance however hearing her long-time friend speak to Musa formally – and with the running faucet on – meant that she had something important to say.

"Why do you put the faucet on?" Musa sked.

"I do not want your guards to overhear this," Tecna continued in a whisper, "the guards heard singing!"

Musa's heart thumped louder in her chest. Singing? She didn't sing! Not even once. Fear wrapped itself around Musa's stomach, tightening and tightening like a hungry python till she couldn't breathe. She immediately had the urge to run but her brain could not work her legs. She hadn't done anything. She had been so careful, but wait…her birthday! She wasn't singing at all, she just said it, but then again Musa didn't have to do anything to earn the wrath of the Valkarians.

Tecna noticed Musa's pale face and continued.

"Musa…..the guards heard your…birthday tune and they have sent word to the king."

Musa felt like she would vomit. Tecna noticed and immediately hitched up the long navy dress Musa was wearing and brought her to the sink. Musa held the basin either side and took slow deep breathes.

Music of any kind was forbidden in Melody since the siege. Anyone caught playing an instrument, singing, or even humming, was severely punished by the king. Musa, as the blood heir to Melody was punished alongside her people. All crimes caused Musa to be punished; breaking curfew, pledging allegiance to Musa and King Ho-Boe, stealing food, harbouring crystals, and many more. It didn't matter to King Kataar, to him, any crime was seen as defiance and Musa was to be held responsible.

The last time Musa was punished, the king had discovered a small group of rebels hiding in one of the old caves on the outskirts of Melody. Musa had no knowledge of rebels organising a coot on the king. But the king begged to differ, so Musa was dragged out to the city's main square and forced to kneel in front of the king. In front of her people, Musa was slapped across the face, kicked and whacked by batons by the king's personal guard.

Her people were forced to watch helplessly as their princess was beaten in public. They were warned that if any more rebels were discovered, Musa would pay the price. Musa was then dragged back to the palace and healed by a healing fairy and the rebels were sentenced to rot in jail, or so the king says.

The healer was another captive held by King Kataar whose sole purpose was to keep the new royals healthy and heal Musa's wounds. Although she had never had physical scars or evidence of foul play on her body, the physical memories were always fresh in her mind.

Musa hated those days, and most of the time she hated the rebels as it felt like they were the ones hurting her by incurring the King's wrath. Nowadays most of the rebels have been caught or have fled. They are only whispers of gossip now when the courtiers run out of other people to talk about. When she was younger, Musa secretly begged for the rebels to come and rescue her and her father, take her away from the hell hole that was once her home.

She tried escaping a few times, every time led to being thrown alone in the dungeon for days without food and water. She never once was allowed to see her father down there either. She had no idea why her realm was invaded, why the king chose her realm, and why music was forbidden.

What made matters worse was that her magic disappeared a year after the siege. It was like the entire realm was drained of its magic. But how was that possible? Despite Musa's magic lesson as a child, her mother died before she could learn the magic of her realm. Now, Musa just had to watch her realm slowly die in front of her eyes. Anyone that knew how to rejuvenate the magic had either died or fled. It's best to just live and stay alive by playing King Kataar's games. Staying alive helped her find out what is happening to her realm.

Finally, Musa managed to get her breathing stable after a few more seconds and slowly stood up to face her friend. Tecna released Musa's dress and looked at her dear friend.

"I'm so sorry," Tecna said with tears in her eyes.

"It….it was worth it…." Musa stuttered.

"Happy birthday…" Tecna replied sadly.

Pounding sounded on the front door to Musa's bedroom again. Tecna quickly looked at Musa, who nodded, and Tecna ran out of the en-suite and opened the bedroom door.

"Good day, gentlemen," Tecna greeted with a fake smile.

Musa leant against the en-suite door to listen in on the conversation.

"Where is Lady Musa?" A guard demanded.

Since the day her father was thrown into the dungeons, King Kataar saw Musa as nothing more than a puppet to use against her people, a prize to keep after conquering her realm. To everyone in the 'royal court' she was known as Lady Musa.

"Why do you want to know?" Tecna replied with a hint of attitude.

"Watch it, peasant," the second guard answered. "You were permitted to live by the king but he never said anything about punishing you for defiance."

"We will ask one more time, where is Lady Musa?" the first guard repeated.

"If you are looking for her…..ladyship….." Tecna cringed, "she is freshening up in the bathroom."

"Tell her to hurry up!"

Musa calmed herself, turned the faucet off and stared in the mirror. Her makeup was still flawless, and her long navy hair was still up in a perfect high pony tail. She pulled the see-through sleeves down on her arms till they were back at her wrists, then smoothed out the full skirt of her navy dress and walked out of the bathroom.

When she walked into the bedroom, she saw her two personal guards standing in the middle of the room. An annoyed Tecna was sending death glares their way behind their backs. If looks could kill, Musa thought.

"Good day, sirs," Musa greeted with her softest and most polite voice as she sunk low on the ground in a curtsey. "To what do I owe this unexpected pleasure?"

"We heard singing in here earlier," the first guard exclaimed. "You know that music of any kind is forbidden in this realm."

Musa, having perfected the art over the years, feigned ignorance. For a decade, Musa had been threatened, beaten, locked away, and harassed by Valkarians whenever she defied them, failed to answer by her new nickname and title, or dared interfere with fellow Melodians. For the last few years, feigning ignorance, playing the game, and being invisible was her only survival tools.

"Singing?" Musa gasped with her eyes widened. "Of course, I know it's forbidden, sirs. I would never go against His Highness. I can assure you that no music of any kind came from this room."

The two guards looked unconvinced at Musa's story.

"Lady Musa, you are to come with us," the second guard ordered. "The King wishes to see you for your insubordination."

"Oh!" Musa exclaimed like she just had a light bulb. "Do you know what it might be? It must have been when Tecna was teaching me the oath of Valkaris. I…I have s-seen the light that is Valkaris and have been studying the oath and war cry."

The two guards raised their eyebrows at Musa. They have been watching over the woman for the last decade and knew that she was once stubborn and hard to crack. Over the last few years she had been weakening and couldn't remember much of her Melodian life, but they were still cautious.

"If that is the truth, then you wouldn't mind reciting it in front of the King and the whole court, would you?" the first guard smirked.

Tecna's eyes shot open and she started gesturing widely behind the guards.

Musa had backed herself into a corner and there was no way out. Either way she was going to get caught. She would be punished for singing, she would be punished for lying, and she would be punished for failing the war cry. Either way she was screwed, and she had no choice but to comply.

"O-of course not, sirs," Musa stuttered. "I-I w-would be honoured."


As Musa and the two guards made their way down various corridors and hallways, she couldn't help but notice the crystals on their uniforms.

Each guard wore the exact pink crystal every Melodian once wore on their person. As a child Musa assumed it was a fashion statement that would eventually die out but obviously it never did. Each member of the royal guard of Valkaris now wore a piece of pink crystal on the lapel of their military uniforms – each one stolen from a Melodian. Music was not the only thing banned in Melody.

Every Melodian was prohibited from wearing or possessing the pink crystals, despite them being sacred in Musa's culture. Musa's mother and father never really explained their purpose to her before. They once said that the crystals work in harmony with music and that they were the heart and soul of the realm. It was very cryptic at the time – Musa's parents loved telling her riddles as a kid. She assumed that she would learn about crystals and the origins of their power when she began royal lessons at age ten. Obviously, that never happened.

As she stared at each crystal on their lapels, Musa felt a small thrum of electricity on her finger tips and felt drawn to the them somehow. Oh how she wished she could rip it off them and make them pay for wearing them like prizes. It was sacrilege for them to be wearing them, the intruders and invaders of her realm. Her people are suffering and punished for keeping what is rightfully theirs and these monsters wear them like art. As princess, Musa was forbidden from having any crystals in her possession as well. For whatever reason, the king was hellbent on keeping her as far from them and music as possible. If only her mother was here to teach her.

After a few more minutes for walking, the trio arrived at a large set of oak doors with real gold swirls and handles; the throne room. The place where her father and his best men had the last stand with King Kataar and his men. The same place where her father watched his friends die trying to protect this kingdom. The same place King Kataar ripped the crown off Musa's father's head. The last place Musa saw him. Another guard stood in front, guarding the doors. With a nod to each other, the guard opened the two doors and allowed the trio walk in.

The throne room was just as Musa had left it several months earlier. She had been in there for another public humiliation, that time in front of the courtiers and the King when an innocent servant in the palace was caught whistling a tune while washing the sheets. The king slapped Musa a few times and had the servant canned before she was thrown in the dungeons. The King doesn't really need a reason anymore to humiliate Musa and show his so-called strength. Musa had to remain strong and do what he said. She was not worth saving when she was literally powerless but if she stayed alive and did as she was told then someone else worth saving would remain alive.

All the courtiers stood around the throne room, each one wearing a piece of the pink crystal somewhere on them; as earrings, on rings, in their hair, on their lapels. It was sickening to Musa. All these courtiers were wearing the finest jewellery and fabrics Melody could offer and they claimed them as their own. The Valkarians were nothing more than parasites; invading a host with better resources, claiming them as their own, draining all resources, then moving on. In the magical dimension, Valkarians were the most feared warriors and were known to use intimidation to earn 'respect'. They had their own home once, a few decades ago, but when King Kataar's father took the throne, that all soon changed, according to legend that is. Like the Valkarians would tell Musa anything anyway.

A dais adorned with lush golden fabric and red edging was situated at the back of the room. A large floor to ceiling stained glass window stood behind the stairs, now covered with a giant fabric tarp of the Valkaris seal – a large circle with two large eagle-like wings inside with the tips pointing downwards to form a diamond. On the golden throne on top of the stairs sat the one and only King Kataar. Right next to him stood Darcy, the dark witch that delivered Queen Milta's end. In Musa's opinion, she was the one who single handily won the war. Her dark magic over powered Musa's guards, her mother, and herself. Musa shivered at the memory of the pain she experienced that dreadful day. It wasn't like anything she had read or experienced before. Musa didn't remember much from that day, but she remembered Darcy and King Kataar's faces the moment they stood before her and her mother.

The King, dressed in his black and gold uniform with Musa's father's crown on his head, leant forward in his chair, staring cold brown eyes at her. He eyed her for a few seconds, slowly up and down, like staring at a piece of gum underneath your shoe. Musa immediately kept her eyes to the floor, limiting the risk of angering the King. She was not in the mood for angering him today. Appeasing him is what keeps her and her father alive.

"There you are, Siren," King Kataar said.

To anyone else, the greeting would have sounded like a friendly nickname, but Musa fought the urge to physically flinch. Musa knew from experience that the king didn't like her, not one bit. He hated her, hated her family, hated the blood in her veins. Every Valkarian, especially the king, called Musa 'The Siren' because of her people. Valkarians gossip that the music and songs of Melody were to lure unsuspecting people to their realm and steal their energy, that is why Melody's resources were so plentiful.

Of course, Musa knows that is all a lie. She didn't have any proof to the contrary as she was never taught nor remembered, but even if she did no one would believe her.

"You requested my presence, Your Highness," Musa replied as she dropped to a deep curtsy like she did earlier.

Musa kept low to the ground until instructed by the king. As a princess by blood, Musa was accustomed to curtseys and proper etiquette, but the king was sometimes known to keep Musa in the position for hours on end, something her bones ache to just thinking about it.

"Your guards inform me that they heard singing coming from your quarters. Is this true?" King Kataar said grimly, waving his hand in annoyance for Musa to stand.

Apparently, the king was feeling generous today.

"Singing?" Musa replied feigning ignorance again. She had to tread very carefully. "I would not dare, Your Highness. I know that singing and music of any kind is forbidden in your realm."

Musa wanted to vomit at her own words.

"Then are you calling my men liars, Siren?"

Musa had to take a quick pause to prevent herself from breaking and launching into a wild argument with the king. Even after all these years of agreeing to his terms and playing by his rules, she could never ignore the names he calls her.

"Of course not, Your Highness," Musa replied in shock. "As I informed the guards previously, I was practicing the Valkarian war cry. I…I am e-ed-educating myself…Sire."

"I see…." the king said, leaning back in his chair with a smirk. "So, you are trying to rid of your lesser self. Becoming a more agreeable member of society."

Musa subtly clenched her hands into fists, sneaking them in between the folds of fabric in her dress skirt. She clenched her fists so tight, she felt a prick of blood in one hand. Don't retaliate. Don't retaliate.

"Doing things like this, Siren, is what keeps your father safe," King Kataar suddenly exclaimed. "I showed mercy that day and I have been patient with you every single day. It looks like perhaps you are finally becoming tolerable."

"I….I know you have…..m-my b-best interests at heart…Your Highness," Musa stuttered.

God, she wished she could die right there. The king was right, King Ho-Boe was spared by the Valkarians during the siege but to be used as bait against Musa. If Musa followed the rules, did everything she was told, became a puppet to control her people, then her father would be spared. He was the one who deserves to be saved. Musa was doing everything the King said to save her father and give Melody some future. If she stepped one foot out of line and pushed the king on a bad day, then the guards would kill her father. That was the price she paid; stay invisible, stay alive, keep him alive.


So what did you think? Let me know in the reviews xx

Till next time

~AngelAlexandra~