A/N: I wasn't planning on continuing this story but upon requests, I've decided to give it a shot, lol. To those who already read chapter 1, these next chapters are leading up to those events. R&R.
Chapter 2
Previously…
"Professor, I have to say, I'm not sure these sessions are working. Or maybe I'm not trying hard enough-"
"Now hold on a second, Bloom. What made you arrive at that conclusion?" The professor asked, perturbed by her claim.
"Because I lost control again. When I'm told to do one thing, the dragon flame takes on a life of its own, and I end up doing the exact opposite…" her voice broke as she fought back against the tears. She wanted to fit in with the rest of her family, she really did. They were all so strong. Her very own mother, despite no longer holding the dragon flame, still had an incredible amount of power. Daphne and Emmett did too. Avalon put his strong hands over her shoulders and the stiffness seemed to fade within the instant.
It all started over summer vacation. Layla had befriended the pixies of pixie village, and so she was the first and only person to realize that a few of them had gone missing. And she alone had entered Darkar's caves to save them. It was almost too much for her to stand on her own. Fortunately, that was where Avalon had come in. He helped her rescue the remaining pixies and make it out of the caves safely. And for that, Layla was eternally grateful.
Except that now, they had a lot on their hands. Pixie village was no longer safe, and with the Pixies staying at Alfea, and still no clue as to why Darkar wanted them, they were all in danger. Bloom couldn't imagine anyone being stronger or more dangerous than Valtor, but apparently there was. And that was lord Darkar.
To make matters worse, strange things were happening ever since their faceless enemy had stepped into their lives. For one, it didn't matter how hard or long she trained, Bloom could feel her powers decreasing notably with the passing of the days and weeks. It was frustrating to say the least. She wanted to be in top shape and it seemed that the more she tried, the more tired and weak she was. Layla, on the other hand, had constant nightmares in which she envisioned the caves once again, and the featureless dark lord. Faragonda feared for Layla's life the most, after all, she was the one to invade Darkar's cave in the first place. For a noble cause, sure, but still highly dangerous.
"We can't stop now, Bloom. Not when we've come this far. I know it may not look that way now" he said, kneeling before her, and lifting her chin ever so gently.
"But we'll get there" he said softly. Bloom managed to let out a watery chuckle.
"I want my father to be proud"
"Ah" he said in realization, "Yes, King Oritel continues to be the leader of the Company of Light. I'm sure he'd appreciate your efforts greatly Bloom. It's all the more reason to continue".
There was a knock on the door, and the professor stood up rapidly,
"Take a moment to relax, Bloom. I'll be right back" he told her. She nodded and folded her hands over her lap.
It was almost a fact that Daphne would inherit the throne of Domino, whereas Bloom would inherit her father's place in the Company. It was a scary thought, but during the few times her father trained her, he never hesitated to share his experiences with her, all the missions they'd been on, and all the danger. It was almost as if he were preparing her psychologically for anything she may come across.
But he always made sure she enjoyed it. Far from being the firm, straightforward King he was with everyone else, Oritel tried to be compliant around her. Well, as compliant as a man of his position could manage. He could be drowning in work sometimes, but he always split his time to spend some of it with Daphne and herself. Which was why she couldn't disappoint him. Or her mother.
So far, no one knew about her deal with Avalon. Well, no one except for Flora. She'd thought of telling her friends at one point, but things had started moving along fast. They were all still worried about Layla, all the girls had their own thing going on. Not to mention that things weren't going so well with Sky. And when she was finally ready to bring it up, the professor himself had figured that it would be best if they kept it private, and at the time, it'd seemed like a pretty cool idea.
Except that now Bloom wasn't so sure. She had strange dreams almost every night, sporadic headaches during the day, mood swings, and a list of symptoms she simply couldn't explain. The only thing stopping her from saying anything was her faith in the professor, who assured her time and time again that it was all a part of the process. Suddenly, he walked back into the room.
"All right, shall we continue?"
"Is everything okay?" she asked, watching Avalon's reaction carefully. He seemed uneasy for some reason. He cleared his throat, and readjusted his blue silk tie.
"Of course, Professor Wizgiz needs my help with a project he's working on later this afternoon. Now, let's not get distracted. I need you to close your eyes, and clear your mind of any thoughts"
Easier said than done.
"What do you think you're doing?! I thought I told you never to show your face at my office" he said, taking her roughly by the arm and dragging her away from the door. Darcy pulled her arm out of his grasp, shrewdly.
"What is up with you today? Let me guess, I'm interrupting something important?" she asked, grinning. Avalon scowled.
"Don't you always?" Darcy rolled her eyes in response.
"Quit wasting my time and tell me why you're here"
"The dark lord wants to know what's taking so long. You said you were a professional at this" she said, tracing her fingernail down his strong chest. Avalon gripped her wrist firmly, holding it in place.
"I never said it would be easy. This is the dragon flame we're talking about, the very essence of light. And you're asking me to take absolute control within the course of a few days? I wish not to offend lord Darkar, but this is far too much ignorance on his part", he told her. Darcy laughed and flipped her hair back.
"So how is this little project of yours coming along? I need something good to take back", she replied. Avalon leaned back and peered into the room, making sure they weren't being heard.
"Bloom is obeying without complaint. She trusts me blindly and the effects of my hypnosis are beginning to show. It's only a matter of time"
"Don't mess this up, Avalon. We need to use her before anyone notices she's on our side. Otherwise she'll lose all access to the things that matter to us"
"Don't tell me how to do my job!" he replied, unable to contain his annoyance any longer.
"I'm just watching out for Darkar's best interests!"
"Darkar's interests? Or yours?" he asked, smirking darkly. Darcy rolled her eyes, before opening a portal and turning her back to him.
"You realize that Avalon isn't my truly my name, I hope?"
Darcy ignored him completely and stepped through the portal, irritably.
Avalon shook his head. Just like their ancestresses, the three young sisters also accepted to work for the lord of the shadows. Actually, Darkar had wisely chosen each of them, in an association where all of the involved were benefitted in some way. No one knew what the other would receive in exchange for their service, and nobody asked. That was how things worked.
But he knew a bit about history. And history tended to repeat itself. The three ancient witches had been servants of lord Darkar in exchange for immortality. So Darkar sent them out to seek the dragon flame for him, as part of the deal. Only that they failed, and Darkar couldn't have cared less. He hadn't even bothered to free them from their prison when everything ended in catastrophe.
Avalon composed himself and entered the room again. He smiled when Bloom's innocent blue eyes looked up at him. She couldn't be more oblivious if she tried, but he came to like that about her. She wasn't afraid, she didn't recoil at his touch or pull away when he came close. Truth be told, she'd become more than just his job, she was his amusement. He'd even gotten her to agree to keep this a secret. The last thing he wanted was to have the King and Queen of Domino at his door, demanding answers. After all, Griffin was on their side. She knew about dark magic and if she knew of this, it wouldn't take long before the old witch figured it all out.
-x-x-x-x-x-
They were currently hanging out in Daphne's room, considering how much bigger it was. Not to mention how organized she was, the complete opposite of Bloom, unfortunately. The music played on her stereo, while they laid on the carpet.
It'd been a while since she started living here, and despite missing her adoptive parents, both families considered that it was best for the time being. She needed to know her family and Mike and Vanessa were very understanding people. Marion even made sure to set up inter-dimensional video calls every so and so. Things were awkward at first, but by this time, her mothers had reached a place where they were comfortable around each other. In fact, Vanessa was probably the only person who conversed and teased Oritel freely, setting aside his title of King. And Oritel didn't seem to mind it.
"Griselda's course is easily the worst" Bloom said, yawning. Daphne giggled.
"I'm pretty sure I felt the same when I took it" she replied, calmly.
"Stella thinks we should call in sick and blame it on food poisoning" Bloom told her in a sleepy voice. She barely registered her sister sitting up, and crossing her legs beneath her.
"You're not actually considering it, are you?" she sounded alarmed. Bloom suppressed the urge to laugh. So innocent. She made an effort to sit and stay awake for her sister's sake. Just sitting around and talking to each other about their day, as idle as it sounded, had become one of their favorite things to do. One of many things, anyway.
"Not at all", she replied smiling. Daphne shook her head, grinning. She didn't always approve of the trouble she and her friends got into…kind of like a few weeks back when they'd been caught by Griselda and Faragonda outside of a club, on Earth. They'd been pretty worn from all their classes and needed a break, and at some point, cutting class and taking a field trip to Earth had seemed like a good idea. Bloom missed Vanessa like crazy and the girls were curious about what the non-magical dimension was like. Unfortunately, they hadn't told Daphne about their plans, and when all six girls disappeared from campus, it was only a matter of time before she, Griselda and Faragonda went crazy trying to find them.
But being the considerate older sister that she was, Daphne had eventually promised not to say a word to the King and Queen as long as it didn't happen again. And Bloom always made sure to keep her promises.
Bloom yawned again, much to her chagrin. Daphne tilted her head to the side, her expression softening,
"You're really out of it today, huh?"
"Sorry" she said, embarrassed. Daphne nudged her teasingly.
"How about I go make some popcorn while you pick a movie" she offered. A wide smile spread across her face,
"I think I have the perfect one" Bloom said, standing up. She jogged down the hall and into her bedroom, pulling a small suitcase out from underneath her bed. She practically had everything unpacked and set up, except for a few small things like cds, and photos. Bloom took out one of her favorite movies (from earth) and headed out.
But just as she was walking out, another dizzy spell hit like a tidal wave. Hard. Bloom held onto the door, closed her eyes for a brief moment and took deep breaths. Here we go again…
"Your majesty..? Are-are you alright?" she heard a voice come nearer.
"Imelda..?" she shook her head, fervently. Her heartbeat finally slowing down again.
"Should I alert the Queen, Princess?"
"No, no, that's not necessary. I'm fine" she waved her off. The servant back away hesitantly, not fully trusting her order. Not that Bloom was used to giving orders, and definitely not with authority, like her parents did. As soon as the plump woman was out of sight, Bloom reached for the cellphone on her nightstand and dialed.
"Hey sweetie, what's up?" she heard Flora's voice on the other end.
"Flo, it's happening again. The maid was here but I'm sure she won't say anything", Bloom told her honestly. She and her parents were still getting to know each other, the last thing she wanted to give them was trouble.
"Did you talk to Avalon..?" Flora said, lowering her voice.
"I did. But he says it's normal"
"Is it? Why don't you ask Queen Marion? She had the dragon flame before you, I'm sure she could-"
"No!" she whispered furiously, and then slapped her hand against her mouth to keep quiet.
"My parents have no idea, Daphne either and I don't exactly plan on telling them"
"I won't tell you what to do, Bloom, but just…be careful, okay?" Bloom smiled reassuringly,
"I trust professor Avalon. Actually, I think I'm the problem? I mean haven't been practicing like I should. It's really my fault"
"Don't get me wrong, I trust him too, it's just, you know. I guess I'm just paranoid…after everything we've been through" her voice trailed off. Bloom knew exactly where she was headed and couldn't blame her for thinking that way.
"You're right. But I'm sure this is temporary, I just need to be strong enough to fight Darkar if the time comes" she said. And more than that, she wanted to be there for her friends, for Layla. It was the least they deserved from her. Flora sighed.
"Faragonda's really worried about lord Darkar. I've never seen him before, but if Layla's this scared, shouldn't we be, too?"
"Layla was on her own. But this time around we'll be together. If lord Darkar, for whatever reason, decides to come for the pixies, we'll be ready. Though I still don't understand why" Bloom frowned, "What would someone so obscure want with such innocent creatures?"
"Not the pixies, Bloom. Remember what Layla said? He must be after something else and trapping the pixies was only a means to find it"
"Think Ms. Faragonda knows what it is?", Bloom asked. Flora bit her bottom lip, looking pensive.
"If she does, she'd better tell us soon. How else are we supposed to know what we're protecting?"
