(Vitalion)

"Bloom! Can I come in?" Julian asked from the opposite side of the double doors.

"Um!" Said Bloom in a panicked voice.

Julian then heard papers ruffling frantically as Bloom stashed the poem she had just written into the desk.

"Whew, that was close," Bloom assumed, under her breath. "You can come in now."

He pushed the door open and cringed as he heard the squeal of protest from the ancient hinges.

"What was that all about Bloom?" He declared skeptically.

"Nothing!" Bloom said as if the syllables were non-existent.

"Didn't sound like nothing," he murmured, glancing around the room to see if he could find out what she had been doing. And spotted a quill and ink pot.

He walked over to it and noticed a piece of paper sticking out of the desk. He tugged it out of the drawer and stared at it as if it was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.

"…Stare into the abyss, and see the magic, there within the creases of the unreal...soar into the unknown, on wings that have never seen freedom..." He read from the paper and was about to continue when Bloom snatched it from his hand and stuck it in her jeans pocket.

"Wow, I didn't know such writing could exist. But is that how you really feel Bloom? It-it's so sad" Julian remarked silently.

"You shouldn't be reading writing before the author says it's ok, but yeah, what's it to ya?" Bloom replied, somewhat angry.

Julian smiled and took Bloom's hand in his, then started tugging her towards the door.

"Where are you taking me Prince?" Said Bloom teasingly.

"You'll see."

"I am not going anywhere." She replied stubbornly.

"Are too," said he, with that he swept her up into his arms.

Bloom gave him an evil look, but let herself relax into the comfort of his arms. Julian, in turn, grinned at her, the warmth of it reaching up into his eyes.

(Five minutes later)

"Would you put me down already! I am starting to get very annoyed here!" Bloom mumbled.

"Nope! Not until we get where I'm taking you and I know you won't try to escape, Miss Queen." Replied Julian.

"Oh, that's original. Using my own name calling tactics against me are you." Bloom snapped.

"I enjoy it when you get ticked. It's fun to see you tell off those snippety little maids once in a while." He said, pretending she didn't just insult him.

"Yeah, I got to admit that is kind of funny. But they really deserved it the last time."

"What did they do," Julian asked.

"Put a pink sock in with my favorite. WHITE! Angora sweater. Lets just say, it wasn't white when they brought it back to me." Bloom answered nastily and then silently hexed the maids.

"Girls… you're all obsessed with clothes." He alleged.

"Yeah, well, ya think I'm obsessed, go talk to my friend Stella of Solaria!" Bloom retorted.

"Whatever, you're still obsessed." He said back.

"I'll show you obsessed," Bloom incoherently muttered.

With that she snapped her finger, and began to blaze.

"Whoa," Julian yelped.

The second he said that, she disappeared in a spark of illumination.

Julian stumbled forward as her weight was lifted from his arms.

"Sheesh, for a second there I almost forgot she had magic at all!" He said to himself.

"Boo," Bloom whispered as she reappeared behind his shoulder. Then tapped him gently.

"Good God! You nearly scared the life right out of me Bloom," he snapped.

"Yeah, fun isn't it. Now come on, I'm not going to run away. Just lead the way." She returned.

Julian cracked up laughing and then said. "It's just over that hill, come on."

(Few minutes later)

"Wow," Bloom whispered as she saw a beautiful valley of blooming cherry trees slowly appear in front of her. "This is beautiful."

"I thought you'd like it. I figured it was time you took a break. You've been sad too long Bloom," said the Prince.

"Thanks," she said dreamily. The beauty of her surroundings seeping into her body, and slowly reaching her soul. Purifying it with each drop.

"This is the first time I've ever seen you truly happy." He said, considering how long she must have been alone.

"Yeah, I haven't been happy in a long time Julian. I needed this," Bloom's eyes wandered around her.

"This is the place I come when the whole royalty thing starts getting to me. Ya know, a little peace in a land of…" He let his sentence run off, as he looked for the right word.

"Stress?" She finished for him.

"Yeah…," he was suddenly cut off by a flash of light. "What the!"

"Well, that was certainly short lived" Bloom said, furious.

"You're telling me! What is that thing?" Julian yelled.

"I don't know, but whatever it is, I don't like it!" She yelled back over the howling sound. "It looks like some sort of portal, I'll have to transform and destroy whatever is coming through it!"

"Bloom no! What if it hurts you!"

"Julian, I have the Dragon Fire, it's not likely anything can hurt me unless they get extremely lucky. Trust me," Said the Queen.

Julian nodded his head in her direction as she transformed, and took flight, shooting like a bullet towards the light…

...As the light slowly engulfed her in its' rays Julian looked down and silently thought to himself: I hope she's ok.

By god! What is that thing!, Bloom squinted into the light and was granted with no insight as to what the thing was.

"Give me a break already! I can't see anything through this light, what is going on up there? Is this person having a strobe light circus or something?" As Bloom let out a long strain of incoherent curse words, a figure started to appear in the distance.

"It is a portal," She whispered and went on with more caution. Knowing full well, whatever it was inside that thing it could hurt her if it got the chance.

"What are you, you creature of the darkness? Show your face! Accept your fate and maybe I'll let you keep your dignity in death!" Bloom flew further into the radiance and stopped again to survey her surroundings.

Her threat going unanswered, Bloom went on. "All right! I've had enough of this! Stop playing these games. Or I'll start playing my own."

"I come in peace", the figure said, still masked by the luminosity.

"Peace my butt! You are a peril to this society, and I am obligated to protect it. So, I think it's my turn to make a move!" Bloom laced her fingers, in the beginning of a spell.

"Mayak ladvian zutra!" Her hands began glowing as she finished the spell. She unlaced her fingers and a ball of light brighter then the one surrounding her appeared in her palm.

"Now let's shed some darkness, if you will, on the situation!" The ball of red light that had now settled in Bloom's palm started spinning and growing larger as it drew the blinding light to it. The ball grew black as it made the day slowly appear again.

"Now, are you going to show your face? Or am I going to have to force you! I've got more then you think up my sleeve." Bloom smirked and flew closer to the remaining light surrounding the cloak clad figure.

She waited there, floating for a few seconds before flying like a buckshot into the portal. Her hair streamed behind her as she entered it and was blinded once again by light.

"Show yourself! You can't hide, no one can, no matter how hard they try," Bloom screamed. Her sapphire eyes darted frantically back and forth, trying to find the culprit.

Suddenly she spotted the figure five yards to her right.

She shot out two orange rays of magic, they grasped their target and started pulling it towards her.

The unknown person struggled, writhing frantically to get out of its'relentless grasp.

As Bloom felt the figure struggling, she moved forward with lightning agility and gripped the body with her own arms.

She let the masculine body dangle in her arms as if it were nothing but a piece of tissue and felt it stop struggling as if it had found serenity.

"What's this? No struggling? Aren't we the weird one!" Bloom finally emerged from the portal.

She pointed one finger at it and it disappeared in an angry outburst of magic.

She dropped the cloaked figure at her feet "Who are you? Trying to attack Vitalion when I'm here is rather foolish don't you think?"

With that she ripped the cloak off its' back and gasped as she saw who it was.

Her mouth sagged open as she saw the shoulder length blonde hair twinkle in the sun.

"SKY!"

(To be continued)

Thanks for reviewing each chapter Kira, I do take any and every suggestion seriously... Hope you enjoyed this one!

-Crystal Hauntress