Okay, so ignoring the awkward silences of three girls who had kind of nothing in common but being screwed over by a boy and a half, the dinner was going pretty okay. The food was amazing, as delicious than anything Bloom had ever eaten in fancy restaurants on Earth. But the conversation was . . . Bloom got the impression that Diaspro didn't have a lot of experience talking to non-royals, or even royals not from her own planet.

Still, Bloom was willing to give her props – she hadn't gotten a great gauge on her personality when they'd first met, or from the phone call she'd gotten to organize their little group get-together, but she hadn't gotten the impression that Diaspro was a bad person. Self-absorbed and spoiled, maybe, but not fundamentally awful. Which is more than some people could boast (hi, Mitzi). But still. The silence was awkward to the point of unbearable. Taking a big swig of the wine in front of her – the legal drinking age in Magix was sixteen, and Bloom was LOVING IT – and drawing an arched eyebrow from the blonde royal Bloom didn't share a dorm with, Bloom's opening conversation gambit was:

"So are royals in Eraklyon homeschooled or something? Why don't you go to Alfea?"

Internally, she winced. Tact had never been Bloom's greatest virtue. Still, Diaspro answered the question.

"Well, Bloom," did Diaspro always speak so regally? None of the other princesses at Alfea spoke with affectations like that. "While Alfea is a school for magic, and therefore is broader in subjects and offered career paths, I have been, essentially, 'homeschooled', for your chosen diction. Most realms have their own private schools for both civilian and noble people, and I attend Eraklyon's Faeria Academy of Magical and Political Studies,where I study the history, culture and politics of Eraklyon, as I am the heiress to Isis, one of the province lands of Eraklyon; and . . well. Until this last month, I was expected to be queen one day. A thorough understanding of Eraklyon's politics is a necessity for me."

Stella nodded. "That tracks. For me, I went to a private school in Solaria before I came to Alfea, and when I'm at school, I get updated on the situation back home to keep up. Although the political situation is different for our planets, isn't it?"

Bloom frowned. She didn't pretend to know a lot about the realm's and their political situations, but this dinner had just stopped at a rabbit hole she wasn't sure she wanted to go down without more understanding. "They aren't? I mean, Earth has numerous political systems, but what are the differences between realms?"

"Well, Solaria is divided into two general sects of our society – Lunaria and Solari. Lunaria tend to be people that draw magic from our Moon, and Solari drew power from the two suns that orbit Solaria. The royal roles are the Sun role, held by the heir of Solaria because it's the more powerful, both politically and magically, and the Moon role, held by whoever the heir marries until either death or abdication from whoever is the Moon. Until the heir themselves marry, they are heir of the Sun and Moon. Lunaria and Solari are both ethnicities and countries, but Lunaria is, well . . Lunaria and Solari haven't always existed peacefully. We're a homogenous society now, but we've had civil wars in the past. Eraklyon's got a slightly different situation." and here Diaspro took over from Stella.

"Eraklyon on the other hand, while ruled over by one royal family, is divided into provinces, mostly continents of land, as we are a planet of them, whereas Solaria has a larger main landmass. The largest, Era, is the ruling domain of the King and Queen and their family. My own, Isis, is not a large province, but we have natural resources for building and excellent farmland that grows food better and almost quicker than our rival provinces, so we have a lot of political clout, as we control a lot of distribution for our resources. As such, my family and the royals have been allies for a lot of Eraklyon's history. Had my marriage to Sky gone through, ours would have been the fifteen such political marriages in our two family dynasties. We've got more civil strife between provinces, because there's always people unhappy with whichever province has more political clout that particular year."

"Wow." Bloom was impressed that these two could rattle off that much information about their home planets completely off hand. Sure, she could do the same thing to explain America's political system, but somehow, this felt more complex. "So you guys have been raised to rule, then, huh?"

"Yes," was the blunt, unison answer.

"You guys never wanted to do anything else with your lives? I mean, my parents have only ever told me I should do something that makes me happy, and that was all the pressure I ever got about careers."

Stella was blithe with her response, "oh, well I'm not gonna be queen until my father dies, because the rule is hereditary until death, or if there's an agreed consensus that the current ruler is incompetent for whatever reason. So I may not come into my throne until I'm in my fifties or sixties. I'm planning on going into fashion design, working in that field, maybe run a charity or two, serve a public office as a spokesperson or something. What about you, Diaspro? What do you wanna do with your life?"

For the first time, Diaspro didn't seem to know how to answer a question posed to her. "W-well," she stammered out, "that's rather a question I've been trying to figure out. My childhood was quite strict, you see – I mean, if you're nobility in Eraklyon, a strict childhood is simply the norm. There's a reason a number of my noble peers act out once they attend schooling that isn't in their own family's estates. My betrothal to Sky was made when I was three, and my upbringing has been structured around my becoming queen. My studies, my hobbies, everything I learned was based around what would be appropriate for a queen to know, and how I would lead Erakylon's court with those cultured talents. And – and now that's not a future I'm going to have. Sky broke off our betrothal. He wants to have a queen he's 'in love with' one day," Diaspro sounded both sneering at the apparent quote and like she was going to cry, "so my entire childhood was a waste of time. Being Lady of Isis is similar enough to being queen, in terms of needed knowledge and political skill, but . . I won't be Lady of Isis until my mother leaves the position or dies. So I'm in the same position as you, Stella. I need to fill the years between now and then. But with what? I don't know."

Diaspro was tearing up, and Stella took her hand. Bloom moved around their table and gave Diaspro a quick hug, quietly saying, "Hey, hey. It's okay. It's all gonna be fine, okay, it's gonna be fine."

"How?" Diaspro was crying now. "How is this going to be fine? I have no real ambitions, I have no real passions, no hobbies, I have no friends that would understand what I'm going through, my mother is angry with me like this is all my fault somehow, like I've done something wrong, when all I've ever done is what she wanted –" Diaspro was hiccupping through her tears, breathing hard, and started waving her hands to try and stop her tears. Stella gave her a handkerchief from her purse, helping Diaspro dab her eyes with it.

Diaspro laughed wetly. "I just. I don't know what to do. All I can think about is – is how come Sky isn't feeling like this? He's at his school, learning heroics and bravery and chivalry, yet I have not received so much as a text message saying 'sorry' from him." Wait, what the fuck? Bloom had gotten numerous messages from Sky in the week since The Blow Up, apologizing and begging forgiveness. How had he not sent something to the actual victim of the situation? Diaspro went on, "I just – how am I supposed to move on from this situation? I'm nearly at my majority, when everyone expects me to somehow begin an actual career as an adult, and step out into politics and the public eye – more than I already am – and salvage this mess, and live on with my life and work with Sky in the future because we have to and. I don't even want to. I want to sleep and cry and not deal with any of this."

Stella was nodding in understanding. "I get it. I do. It's feeling like you just wanna scream and break something like – you broke my heart, but I still have to see you every day? I still have to deal with you, and you're gonna pretend like we're Situation Normal? I have to be nice to you, after everything?"

Diaspro frowned at Stella, confusion writ on her face. "How do you-"

Stella interrupted with an answer for the unfinished question, speaking quickly. "My parent's marriage was arraigned, like yours was. It wasn't great, because Mum's from Lunarian nobility, and nobody really likes Lunaria people because they tried to rebel a few centuries back, and Mum was supposed to be a representation that Lunaria was better than that now, but people won't let that go because they're stupid; so Mum and Dad's marriage got really strained after I was born, and . . . well, let's just say Dad was never known for fidelity to his girlfriends before his marriage, and he didn't get better after the fact, even though Mum actually loved him a lot. So now there are two castles and a lot of lawyers trying to figure out a divorce situation, because Mum doesn't want to quit her position as Moon in our royalty because it means so much to Lunaria, so things are tense a lot. I was pretty relieved to move into Alfea dorms."

Stella's mouth was twisted into a bitter line. "And then I met the guy I now know as Brandon, and I'm just thinking, wow, here's a guy who might get it, because his parents were arraigned, and he's cute and into me and he's honest and –" Stella turned her head away to check out the main door, before swinging back, her loose hair fluttering over her shoulder, "let's just say I thought a lot of things that haven't panned out. And I learned a lesson about assuming the best. I should've known better."

Oh, shit, shit, had they seriously been thinking this for the last week? Fuck, shit, thought Bloom. Now SHE had to be emotionally-competent. Something had definitely gone wrong in this conversation.

"Okay, okay, listen up royal ladies -" that got Stella and Diaspro's attention from where they'd been giving each other sympathetic looks, "this whole mess? Not Our Fault. It is not our faults for believing that people are not going to screw us over. People should be allowed to believe that they aren't being lied to every time someone opens their goddamn mouth.

Diaspro - you have been raised to marry Sky one day. Since before you would've thought to argue it. YOU did not do anything wrong. You've been raised to do this one thing, and Sky is the one who fucked you over without even bothering to help you clean up the mess afterward. If your mother thinks that you did something wrong, when all you did was what she wanted, then that's her problem.

Stella - when a cute boy introduces himself to you, you should be allowed, by law of the universe, to assume he's telling you the truth. You had no reason to believe Brandon and Sky were lying. Neither did I. The impetus of their actions is on them, and them alone.

And Diaspro, to the question of 'what are you gonna do with your life now' the answer is anything you want. You do not need to be the perfect princess-lady until you have to actually take the role itself. You wanna take up skydiving as a hobby? Do it. Wanna write erotic romance books and publish them under a fake name? I will buy the first copy on the shelf. Wanna bum around your home in your sleep clothes for a week? Do that too. Do it all. Your betrothal was a dead weight that has regulated your entire life. It's gone now. You can do whatever you want. We can do whatever we want.

Boys are fucking worthless. WE are worth something. And their bullshit – it ain't worth shit."

The two princesses were boggling at her. "Yes, the wine has gone straight to my head. Doesn't mean I'm not right."

Diaspro was shaking her head, something like disbelief and weary relief and the aftermath of tears on her face, "No . . . no Bloom. You're right. Your diction is entirely incorrect and I wouldn't let you speak to any dignitary like that in any way, ever," Bloom considered taking offence, but Diaspro clearly meant it as a joke. Kinda. She was smiling? "but you make good points."

She - grinned. It was a little shy, like she wasn't sure why she was smiling at all. "I've just been thinking of everything I'm not going to be now, I haven't even thought of everything I can do!" Diaspro had a sip of her drink, Stella and Bloom eyeing her, waiting for more.

"I've always wanted to learn how to bake. I was always told that it wasn't something a queen would need to know, and that being flawless on the harp would be more important in my future. Now - now there's no reason for them to keep me from learning."

Bloom grinned and said "See, this is the shit I don't get - what's so bad about you wanting to learn how to make food? It's a useful skill, and you should definitely be learning how."

"Yeah," Diaspro said quietly, a hopeful smile on her face. "I'd like that."

How does this story end? Well, there's a lot that could be said, but the main is this: Diaspro left the restaurant that night with two new friends whom she spent the rest of her life loving more than any royal prince she could have been betrothed to.

Notes: so this fic has actually taken me forever. I'd actually written parts of it shortly after 'hits, not my misses', and then it languished in my word docs for two years and had to be frantically salvaged when I accidentally destroyed my last laptop.

So, I tend to headcanon the Winxverse as the realms all generally being ruled over by one royal family, or maybe two, with noble families running provinces or states given by the royal family, the way noble families used to run sections of countries back when royal was actually an important political ruling power IRL. So, for the purposes of my canon, Diaspro is a Lady, and heir to her family's province. Her betrothal to Sky was a political alliance, and I personally headcanon Diaspro as being about 18 months older than Sky.

Also, the drinking age in Magix is 16, because I said so.

A good 70-80% of this worldbuilding has been brought to you by the amazing headcanon/canon rewrite by , because her stuff is AMAZING and you definitely check out her 'winx' tag.

In this AU, Stella and Brandon get back together, Bloom refuses to let Sky be anything more than friends, meets some other cute guy and dates him, and Diaspro jumps head-first into improving Isis both as a political entity and society, becoming a force to be reckoned with and beloved by her people (Sky actually gets scared when he sees her coming towards him at political meetings, because she's Aggressively Passionate about improving things) in between being a co-owner of a bakery/pastry shop with a lovely woman she met in a cake-baking class whom she eventually ends up marrying, because Diaspro's bi because I said so. Also Diaspro becomes pretty close with the other Winx girls and Bloom's family (when she gets them back).

I actually have so many ideas on where to take this now. Maybe I should continue. Maaayybeee.