There was something about her that captivated him. He could never work it out, she was the most complex puzzle he had ever tried to uncover. Originally it irked it, frustrated him beyond measure. He had a tactical mind, one that could work out strategies with ease, one that could uncover hidden motivation with limited difficulty. He always thought that he would be beaten by a complicated and intricate plan from an enemy, one that pushed him to his limits and made him run down every possible path before being left in the twisted confusion. Instead it was a slip of a girl, with the voice that put a songbird to shame that left him reeling.
He had no idea when he got feelings for her. He knew it wasn't in their first year, his mind was solely focused on a girl who in his mind eclipsed all others and left him as a puddle of lovesick mush. He was so focused on helping his friends that he barely noticed her, their friendship blossoming in the most unexpected way. It was after the army of decay had happened, the school year still having another few months before ending. Her and Riven were on such shaky ground that they were the human version of the steppingstones in the Black mud swamp. He remembered bumping into her in town with his friends who weren't in their squad, seeing her stumming her guitar on bench, trying desperately to erect the strong façade she usually steeled herself with. He sent them away and ended up sending the day with her, wandering around Magix and punctuating their happy day with all sorts of sweet treats. After that day they were closer than before, exchanging messages over summer and developing a sibling style bond that brought a fond grin to his face. When they had metamorphosed from sibling love to romantic love, he had no idea, all he knew that it happened, and it was beyond his control.
Perhaps it was in their second year, the Winx girls first year. She was always there in the background, offering friendly snarky comments that never failed to bring a grin to anyone in the vicinity. They often spent time just the two of them, her rambunctious personality bringing out his playfulness in a beautiful symphony. He was there for her during the Day of the Rose, giving her his strength as she grieved the way only a young women could grieve her mother. She grieved for all they could have been, and it made his heart ache for her. she was so… Musa that it seemed like the cruellest twist of fate the women who cared for everyone lost the women who cared about her the most. He was there for her when she nervously traversed her growing feelings for Riven, and she helped him in more ways than he could even communicate. The other girls didn't understand their friendship, but they didn't need to, he was happy as long as he had his best friend, his sister and partner in crime by his side.
She never failed to make him laugh, her laugher coming from her soul and the most genuine and unique of all the Winx. It was infused with so much genuine emotion that you could almost feel her feelings yourself, leaving her raw you feeling privileged she shared her mind with you. She always had a conspiratorial gleam to her eyes, like she wanted to tell you a secret but made you work for it, only to relent easily and bring you into her crazy mind. She was so authentic, totally comfortable in her individuality. She wore her quirky pigtails with pride and rejected anyone's unfavourable comments with a twinkle in her eye and sarcasm glazing her words. She was so herself that anyone who knew her knew her as well as she did, something that was refreshing after the political pantomime he grew up with. Everything she said was embossed with her personality, whereas each word in the royal shackles he lived in was dripping with hidden meaning and each glance sending a message that juxtaposed their previous utterances. She was like the scent of the earth after being pounded with walls of rain; totally unignorable no matter how much you tried.
Perhaps it had been in the girls second year. He remembers watched the musical girl slowly break down the walls of the Androsian princess and It made him proud. It made him laugh whenever the boys doubted her ability, saying Flora or Bloom would be the one the bring out Aisha's true self/. They didn't understand that Musa had something about her that made you open up, the infectious smile and cheekiness making you want to be her friend. The girls bond strengthened to a point they were like twins. Musa provided the music while Aisha provided the show. The three of them would sometimes hang out, after all, he was one of the few guys the prickly princess liked so he took advantage of the fact, creating memories that would linger with him even as his soul passed on.
He remembers the concert that was held in Red Fountain honour. The screaming crowd whose voices created an indistinguishable scream of happiness, the lights that highlighted the experiences in his mind, and the energy that was generally electrifying. He remembered hearing from Riven that Musa had been practicing for weeks, painstakingly going over each note until it was perfect with such finesse and dedication that it made her lecturers grumble that she should pay that kind of attention in class. He remembered the strange feeling gurling in his stomach upon seeing the slight upcurve of his mouth as he spoke about her, the pride that coated his words as he mentioned the stir she was almost comical, considering he had been with her during most of her practices, however he kept quiet and pushed the emotions aside as he let Riven have his moment. However, that luxury was taken from him upon seeing her on stage.
She was magnificent. It was hard to tell where the stage and her separated as different entities as she commanded it like a pro. Her meticulous work paid off as he didn't miss a note, the slight raspy quality to her voice bringing shivers down his spine. She was sensational, her enchanting song washing over the crowd leaving them awestruck. It wasn't hard to see where the legends of the sirens of melody originated from, if every Melodeon could sing like that it left little room for argument. However, her voice so ethereal, so unique and so utterly…Musa, it seemed an insult to reduce it to simply the Melodeon norm. The show was furthered when she single handily took down Stormy, the witch encased in solidified sound as she showed her command over her music. It took his breath away the way she stood up for herself and was probably the first-time people saw her for who she was. She wasn't a side kick, she was the hero, and it made his chest warm as he saw her basking in her well-deserved glory. Sure the moment was tarnished by the fact that Riven was the one to get the crowd riled and help empower her, but the fact he was belting out the song with the force of the true warrior to help her by creating the song of her battle, washed away any sort of ill feelings associated with that night.
Perhaps it was in their third year. He could recall the bile in his throat and the way that the sound seemed to disappear when he found out that she was in that inferno. The sound disappeared to return to their mistress, leaving his word ringing with the lack of noise. He remembered the total cataclysmic fear that flowed through his body as he tried desperately to make out her svelte figure in the dangerous flames, only to turn up empty. He remembers holding Riven back, feeling a traitor to himself as all he wanted was to charge in there with him. He knew it was wrong, he wasn't acting like the brother figure she saw him as. He knew that his feelings had morphed into something of a different breed, changing from brotherly affection to something more primal. Something so forbidden that it made guilt fight for dominance in his heart. After all he already had a girl, one of her best friends even and knew how horrified she'd be if she knew that she was the one that he thought about in the cover if night. The one that caused molten warmth in his abdomen as he let himself indulge fantasies of what if in the privacy of his own room.
He remembers feeling so relieved when she exited that he doesn't know if there is a word to describe the emotion in the Magix language. He remembers wanting to run to her, to envelopes her in his arms and frantically kiss every inch of her body to check she wasn't hurt. He remembers how liquefied his legs felt as he battled with them to keep him up, as he knew that if she was taken from him then he would never hear sound the same way again.
Once he was sure she was okay his heart stopped. If he thought that her base outfit was revealing, then this one… well let's just say it played a feature role in his fantasies for a long time. The way her impossibly long legs were exposed. The strip of fabric accentuating her breasts and the long column of her neck taunted him. Her long hair, still in bunches, struck a chord in himself, reminiscent of the first time he saw her when she got it spelled. Seductive thoughts played with him mind, taunting him and whispering to the part of him that he couldn't control, the part that was purely primal and masculine. The part that came up with images so delicious that they still made him groan to this day. She was changed from the quirky beauty that was unashamedly her, to a gorgeous women that he knew would unknowingly play muse to many men through the course of her life.
Gradually people started to look at him with suspicion. They noticed his lingering looks and the way he made a beeline to her, even ignoring his own girl sometimes to be her support. It made for problems in both her relationships, Riven's jealous congealing into ugly blow ups that drove her to the comfort of her music. His own girl was snappy with him, a coldness in her eye that she crafted to mask the hurt. He loved her, he truly did, she was his Sunshine, however there was something about his Songbird that captivated him and held him prisoner to his own emotions.
Gradually he learnt to bury them, to be the perfect person everyone painted him as. He was loyal, fulfilling the role of loyal squire and boyfriend to knight and husband with seamless perfection. He still acted as her best friend, her brotherly figure that would protect her from the world's worst. He even masked the stabbing in his heart he felt with each step he took with her down the aisle, standing in for her deceased father as one if the three most important men in her life. As he stood aside, he looked at the two people who had the most tumultuous relationship and couldn't stop placing himself in Riven's shoes. He created a world where they had met first, where they went through the highs and lows of life as a team, a single unit. He was there at every concert she held, as enamoured as he was the first time he saw her preform. He was there as her children were born when she was 28 and 30 respectively, her Little Aria Matlin closely followed with her only son, Coda Ho-Boe. Sometimes when he looked at his god children their hair and eyes changed to match his, flawlessly mixed with her features. He knew that it would never happen, however he indulged himself on occasion because after all, what person doesn't think of what if?
These thoughts didn't die with her death. She was young, only 35 as she followed in her mother's footsteps and fell from the world of the living to the world of the dead onstage. It haunted him, with her death music sounded distorted, the beats out of time with the previous perfect melody. His wife could tell he was grieving, the grief different than that of a brother. She had long ago accepted that she was not the only women who he loved, however knew that he loved her completely, and that was good enough for her. He was there for the children, helping Aria and Coda cope with the death of their beloved mum. Riven changed from the strong man he was to a broken man, listening to her music on replay. It broke his heart, the crack widening whenever he saw Aisha and Tecna break down, the displays lessoning over the years.
Gradually everyone moved on. Riven met a new women that he slowly began a relationship with his broken heart healing from the loss of his great love but never letting her go. Aria turning into a powerful witch with the power over linguistics and Coda a wizard with power over emotions. He knew she would be so proud of her children and remembered holding Aria as she cried, terrified she had disappointed her deceased mother by not being a fairy. Brandon assured her that wasn't the case, and in a inexplicable event the song Musa used to sing to Aria when she was a child began to play, deafening her fears and allowing her to follow her mothers leas by being her most authentic self. Coda was much the same, and looked up to him, something that made his heart swell.
He loved his own children, his beautiful daughters Amberly, the fairy of colours and Helaine the fairy of weather being the apples of his eye. His sons Samson and Felix grew up to emulate him and it warmed his heart that even if his hair were greying there were heroes that would be able to take his place. He carried on his life, helping his wife rule and steer her kingdom into glory. She was a force to be reckoned with and he loved her deeply, the love only rivalled by the love he held for his Songbird.
Eventually he felt himself fall through the fabric of life and death, the last people he saw was his family. He felt Stella press a kiss to his lips as he was gently led out of his body and out of the corporal realm. He was young when he died, only 54 and he knew it left a caustic hole in his family's heart. He felt guilty, leaving them behind and knew that Coda and Aria would be devastated as well. he let a few tears seep down his cheeks as a pair of slim arms wrapped around his 21-year-old torso.
"Hey Songbird" he whispered, his voice rippling with emotion.
She didn't reply only hug him tighter, trying to hold the shards of his heart together. She gently hummed a melody, trying the calm him until he eventually turned around to face her. she was stunning, the same she was when she was 16 years old and the same she was when she was 35. No matter her age she was gorgeous and despite dying at 35, she looked 21, his matched pair.
"Thank you, for loving my Aria and Coda as if they were you own" her sweet raspy voice uttered, a loving smile on her face.
"It was easy, they were part of you after all" he replied, sending her the same lopsided smile that drove her wild as a teenager.
She reached her hand down to his, gave it a squeeze and the two walked away from the image of an beautifully aged Stella and her and Brandon's children into a shinning white light that brought them to their new afterlife.
Brandon doesn't know how long they spent talking, confessing everything that was locked in their hearts. Both knew this did not diminish the love they had for their respective partners; however, both knew their love was as real as the love they showed for their partners in their life. She introduced him to her mother and reintroduced him to her father, held her while she cried again like when they were younger, this time in happiness. He spent countless hours walking around with her laughing like they used to. They spent countless hours holding each other, exchanging sweet nothings in each other's ears, reminiscing of their life, and assuring each other that it was okay to have two great loves. She never failed to make him feel it was okay, that he never betrayed her or Stella by loving them both. He assured her it was okay she left her children early, assured her that he told them all about her and they heard her song. They didn't talk about everything, preferring some secrets to be kept. They both knew their loves for their life, Riven and Stella would have a massive place in each other their hearts, however they were given a second chance they would not waste. They were each other's afterlife soulmates, the ones that would stick with each other forever. They laughed, cried an experienced an eternity together, and even through they had that much time, Brandon never figured out what it was about her that captivated him, that made his mind reel and his heart sing.
He could never pinpoint the moment his love changed from brotherly to romantic, the change show and imprecise. He never bothered to question it either, instead he let himself be lost in the melody, knowing she would always steer him right, after all, she was his songbird, and he was all hers.
I hope you all enjoyed this one shot. I noticed there is not many Brandon x Musa stories and wanted to try exploring that, while still paying homage to their other loves. I could see them working well together and I hope I did this uncommon pairing justice.
Stay safe everyone,
Everlast