Chapter Twenty: "Bitter Sweet Reunion & Unfolding Trouble"
Flying through space had never once gotten old to Bloom as it's still managed to capture her breath everytime. It was peaceful, quiet, dark and ominous. The stars had burned brightly in the dark void. It was quite the opposite to the tension that filled the ship between Oritel and Bloom who stilled seemed to be on each other's grips.
Andros.
One of the beautiful, magical planets of the Magic Dimension. All of the oceans of the Magic Dimension were connected to the endless seas of Andros. Bloom had remembered when she had visited Andros back in her time, but it hadn't been tainted with Valtor's dark magic.
The pristine blue waters were filthy. The color of the waters were of sickness of dark yellowish-brown. The oceans of Andros were completely polluted—it was stagnant from dark magic.
The mermaids of Andros had been turned into horrifying monsters (due to being been under Valtor's Mark). The sky was rather almost a dull yellowish-brown, matching the same vibe as the oceans, with dark clouds swirling in the sky. Negative energy had befallen the entire kingdom.
The spacecraft had made a smooth landing.
Andros was stunning in such a peaceful state. There was no tuff of clouds in sight. The waters were crystal clear, a richly color of deep blue as it glittered under the golden sun. The waves crashed against the hard stones, gently.
The weather was slightly warmer compared to Domino, but still, it was pretty chilly.
Bloom enjoyed the gentle salty breeze that brushed against her exposed skin, improving her mood entirely. Her red hair catching the calm winds. Something about Andros had calmed her emotions down, as she eyed the beaches. Though far off the distance, Bloom had spotted a couple of mermaids sitting on the rocks as others were happily splashing each other with water, and others were hunting fishes for their lunches.
Bloom wasn't sure if she was entirely annoyed by Oritel for asking of Lewis to stay by Bloom's side at all times. Lewis was a great squire who almost reminded her or Brandon's loyalty to Sky. The redhead princess hadn't had anything against him of course and Lewis was such a gentleman.
Bloom knew that it was one of Oritel's tactics of trying to keep her safe.
Oritel had personally warned Bloom that if something had happened or a dark wizard or witch had threatened her life, he would be resorting to guards to protect her from all kind of threats.
Oritel had given her his true promise.
But it hadn't meant it was any less annoying.
Oritel, Alec, Marion, Bloom, and Lewis had all met up with Crown Prince Teredor at the front gates of the palace. Teredor's royal attire had consisted of plum, dark blue, white and the threads itself were of cold. His boots were a dark blue that reached to his knees. His long blue hair was neatly combed into a tightened braid.
Niobe was at her fiancé's side, looking as splendid as Teredor in her rich dark blue sleeved dress. Her curly brown hair was pulled up in an elegant bun with pale beads embedded. She had a bright smile on her face as the girl had greeted Marion with a hug, ever so delighted in seeing her friend and Bloom.
Boom admired the castle's decor—something about it felt utterly whimsical—compared to the time she'd first visited the planet during the time when Valtor had caused absolute chaos and terror among the kingdom. Bright lights had spilled from every opening, causing the marbled-floors to shimmer in full radiance. The sounds of heavy footsteps and clicking heels had echoed.
The Left Wing side of the castle was one of the quietest side Teredor had informed Bloom. The girl could easily tell, since Bloom could feel the peaceful energy that had surrounded them all. Bloom and the rest of the group had found themselves in a magnificent room.
Apparently, Luna, Radius, Samara, and Erendor were already here, though the girl had noticed that each of them had concerning looks. Bloom furrowed her brows in confusion. She knew that there was something going on, but couldn't exactly place her finger on it.
There was a large open circular pool directly in the center of the room. Bloom had spotted two merpeople. A man and a woman. The woman looked somewhat familiar, but the man was unrecognizable from afar.
"Bloom, I'd like you to meet my older brother Neptune," Teredor introduced with a proud smile.
It had took her a complete second to realize that Neptune had looked like his older son, Prince Nereus, with his bright lavender hair. She hadn't met the older version of him, only his wife queen Legia, which was why Bloom hadn't recognized him on the spot.
"It's so nice to finally meet you, your highness," the redhead princess had a gentle, warm smile, while giving a courtesy of a bow.
Neptune retuned the smile. "And it's also a pleasure to meet you, Bloom. I've heard a great deal about you from my younger brother and I would like to express my gratitude for healing Teredor's injuries."
Bloom felt the blood rush to her cheeks—blushing.
"To be fair, it was your brother who saved my life back in Obsidian. He's a very kind man."
"Ah, yes, you took notice of that. You see, my brother takes after our mother's gentleness," Neptune remarked.
Bloom had smiled warmly. The girl had felt a heavy hand being placed on her shoulder only to see Teredor. He had a gentle smile on his face. "Normally, I'd be the one to give you the grand tour of the capital city, but Niobe's pretty excited to do that herself. She'd be disappointed if she hadn't had her way to show you around."
Bloom raised a quizzical eyebrow. "Oh. I thought—"
Teredor had sensed the girl's worry upon seeing the reflection in her blue eyes.
"Don't worry about that Bloom. Just leave it to us, guys, to handle it alright. Oritel told me everything—though I'm sorry to hear what Valtor had done to you and Marion. But I do believe that there's another way to break the demon curse over Valtor."
Bloom was too stunned to speak.
Though she could easily see the hopeful glint in Teredor's olive-green eyes.
Apparently Oritel had already informed his friends about Valtor's cruel bargain with her and Marion. It was pretty obvious since Oritel hadn't wanted any of his friends to provoke or to outrightly attack Valtor otherwise they would unintentionally hurt her and Marion.
"Come on Bloom. We don't have all day long. It'll be fun, I promise!" Niobe had approached Bloom's side, entangling her arm with the redhead's arm, as she gave her fiancé a flirtatious wink.
Bloom supposed it wasn't a bad idea to chill around with the girls even though she had more pressing matters to do. Like finding a solution to Valtor's curse in a different way compared to her original idea, in which Oritel had personally responded to it negatively. Something was off and for some reason Bloom could sense it. The feeling in the air was much more tensed than she'd imagined.
Bloom had caught her father's stern expression.
It seemed to her, Oritel hadn't wanted her around for whatever they were going to discuss or the fact that he was still infuriated with her poor choices she'd made. He was being utterly melodramatic.
"So where are we going?" Bloom asked curiously.
"Oh you'll see!" Niobe grinned.
Stella's brows had rose up in confusion. The fairy of the sun and moon had seemed to be utterly overwhelmed by what she had seen with her own hazel-brown eyes. It couldn't be.
It can't—
The Solarian Princess wasn't entirely sure of what was going on. That girl simply couldn't be her best-friend. The picture was taken almost thirty-five years ago. No. This had to be a mistake. That red-haired girl had reassembled Bloom so much in many ways (maybe it was someone else?).
Stella's thoughts had completely shattered upon hearing Prince Sky's firm voice.
"So Bloom's stuck in the past?" Sky had seemed to be particular angry, not that Stella could blame him as the prince was deeply upset by the revelation. "That demon, if I'd ever see him again, I'm gonna—"
"Sky, I can understand how you're feeling about this. . ." Nabu had tried to calm his overreacted friend down. Sky had seemed be furious. Fire was burning in his deep blue eyes. "But calm down, we don't know anything, nor do we have the facts about what's really going on. This is just a speculation—"
"This isn't just a speculation Nabu. That is Bloom." Sky couldn't help but to interrupt, as he stared at the picture, carefully observing the details.
Nabu rolled his eyes at Sky's harsh tone, knowing that Bloom's so called "disappearance" had affected him greatly. Breaking him to pieces on the inside.
Brandon had placed his heavy hand on Sky's shoulder—looking at him directly in the eyes. "Nabu's right. We—I mean, you can't go around snapping off just like that without knowing what the bigger picture is, Sky."
The Crown Prince of Eracklyon had seemed to consider his best-friend's words and gave a nod and apologized for his rude outburst.
"So do you think Valtor caused this mess when Bloom tired to defeat him in their final showdown?" Stella piped up in a soft, but sharp voice.
A part of Nabu had felt like this wasn't the dark wizard's doing. No. It wouldn't make any sense. Why would Valtor give Bloom a chance to meet her biological parents when they're in their young adulthood years? But wouldn't that . . . change certain things from ever happening. It didn't seem right. There was something else going—something much bigger being involved with Bloom's so called "disappearance."
"No. I don't think so Stella. Valtor wouldn't make such a disastrous mess like this. He might be a dark wizard, but he does things quickly and effectively. He makes sure that he leaves no trail behind." Nabu spoke grimly and continued, eyeing the group.
The young wizard had personally undertook several studies under his instructor who had taught him much about the displays of magic, laws, and who would oversee it all.
To grasp at such powers or to manipulate space and time would involve the Elder Council. Their headquarters were located beyond the realm of Magix, within the Golden Kingdom. Only a few selected individuals could be able to come into contact with them and that's only if they had proved to be worthy allies.
"I personally believe that there is something or someone with much higher power who is involved with this especially since it's time-travel."
The Andorsian Princess hadn't wanted to assume the very worse or who might be personally involved. Aisha had closed her eyes, pinching the bridge of her nose. Goosebumps formed all over her skin as if a cold breeze had swept over her.
"Are you sure Nabu that it's not Valtor's doing?"
Nabu had chosen his words carefully. "I'm most certain. This has to be some kind of intervention of beings who reside outside of space and time and they are the ones who are pulling the strings this time from behind the shadows."
The Elder Councils. It had to be them. They're the only ones who exists out of space and time. They're the ones who overlook the balance of the Magical Dimension. Stella had gone pale—her hazel eyes widened in bewilderment.
"But you can't mean—they can't possibly do this right? I mean, aren't they responsible of keeping the balance of the Magical Universe in order? Like someone not messing around with the fabric of space and time, right?"
Stella glanced at her boyfriend. Brandon's expression had easily morphed into a scowl, not liking the sound of it. She had gracefully tightened her grip on his hand.
Sky narrowed his eyes. "But why? What would they possibly gain from all this?"
Nabu's expression had darkened. He wasn't too sure what their motives were, but he had an inkling of an idea of what it could be. It was most likely a dangerous scheme indeed.
"The only way to know for complete certainty is to go back in time and find Bloom. Maybe we'll find our answers there."
Stella's eyebrows had shot upwards in alarm.
"Time-travel? But I don't know, I mean we didn't learn anything about the subject. But isn't that difficult to do?"
Nabu's purple eyes had twinkled. The Andorsian wizard was amused by Stella's reaction. "It isn't difficult Stella, but it's something that requires complete precision and concentration."
Bloom had never been to the Capital City of Andros, Lagunea, which wasn't far from the palace—a good twenty minutes distance. Apparently, Lewis and Alec had accompanied the girls to the city. The redhead girl was in awe over how stunning the capital was.
There was a sense of magic being touched on the city. It was by far different from Solaria and Domino since it was located near the vast ocean. Several mermaids were chilling on the large rocks, singing to their joy, as the people were enjoying such a views. The air was chilly despite the humidity that seemed to be lingering all around had made one's skin all sticky.
The people were positively cheerful about their ongoing day, children were causally roaming around and playing with one another along side the mermaids on the beach. Laughter echoed in the air.
With all what was going on, Bloom had nearly forgotten the fact that they were in the midst of the brewing war. She supposed that this was a good thing that people were living their lives as normally as possible.
Bloom knew that this was merely a distraction—to keep her mind off the other plans her father and grandfather had for her. Or why she couldn't be able to go back to her original timeline and to see her friends again. Faragonda, Saladin, Griffin and the all faculty members had all been poisoned by dark magic—being under Valtor's Mark, much to Bloom's annoyance.
She had to free them soon.
And now, Valtor had personally interlinked hers and her mother's essence with his own life force until they manage to break the demon curse over him. Piles of problems were easily stacking over her shoulders and fast. It wasn't looking pretty.
"If you return back Bloom, now, the timeline and everything will fall into pure chaos and destruction and the magical dimension will forever be unbalanced." Daphne's warning voice had echoed into her mind.
"Nabu?" Bloom furrowed her brows, as she whispered under her breath in utter shock. That man, no that wizard, had awfully appeared to be like her close friend. He had the same sharp jawline, same facial hair, eyebrow shape, long braided hair, and the vividly purple eyes.
It had to be a trick of the lights. Nabu wasn't here. It wasn't possible. She had blinked her eyes a couple of times, stunned by the mere glimpse of someone who looked nearly identical as Nabu.
It almost like. . .
Follow him.
Bloom's every intuition had told her to go after the unknown man. This was hardly a coincidence. The man was standing in front of her. He was wearing one of the fanciest red-cloaks with a hood on, concealing his face from the view. It was the very same cloak that Nabu wore when he was first stalking Princess Aisha.
The redhead princess had tuned out the girls' gossip about the Crown Prince who hail from planet Callisto, and found her hand slipping out of Marion's own hand. "Bloom? Where are you trying to go?"
Bloom froze for a second—baffled—he was gone within a blink of an eye. A man who bore striking similarities to Nabu had disappeared into thin air. "I just thought—"
Marion looked at her daughter worriedly and whispered. "Is Valtor here?"
Bloom shook her head. "He isn't. I just thought I saw someone who looked familiar to me, but I don't think that's possible."
Marion studied her daughter's expression carefully, still doubting her words.
Bloom scoffed. "Mum!"
"Bloom. I'm being serious." Marion said sternly.
"And so am I!"
Alec had lifted an eyebrow, giving out a heavy sigh, fully knowing that both girls had often clashed with each other which would eventually lead to a heated argument. The blond-haired wizard had slipped in between the girls—each of them were to his side.
"Is everything alright girls?" Alec said in a calmer tone.
"Everything is fine uncle. It's just that mum's being a bit paranoid."
"About what?" he asked curiously.
Alec had easily sensed the tension rising from his little sister and young niece. Marion had shot her daughter a piercing glare. He had let out a dramatic sigh. Women. He could never fully understand them. The blond-haired wizard had glanced at Niobe with a helpless expression. "Maybe we all need a cup of coffee. Is there any café nearby Niobe?"
The fairy of waves had given him a nod. "It's close by, at end of the street. The view is amazing."
"We definitely need a cup of coffee to relieve our stress." Luna's dark blue eyes lit up in delight.
The girls had decided to sit out on the patio at Siren's Cafe.
The café was completely packed with people. The waiters and waitresses there were zooming back and forth as they took the orders. People had chattered endlessly. Classical music was playing. The sweet smell of freshly baked pastries had filled the place.
This was one of Niobe's favorite cafés in the city as she and Teredor had come very often on their spare time for a nice brunch or sometimes during the late afternoon if Teredor had a busy schedule. The waitress had served the girls the cups of coffee—though Samara had order herbal tea—and a couple of pastries that were warmed up.
Bloom couldn't help but stare at her own cup of coffee, completely immersed in her own thoughts. She still couldn't believe that her own father wouldn't allow her to use her fairy dust to break the curse over Valtor. She was certain that there was no other method.
The moon fairy took a sip from her rich caramel-flavored latté.
Flicker of utmost worry filled Luna's dark blue eyes.
"I must admit things on Solaria aren't all that well. It's raining endlessly and . . ." Luna trailed off in details about the fairies that had fallen to the dark wizard's mark, but many had been taken into custody in order to prevent them from hurting others and to break the dark mark.
Bloom knew from Stella that the realm of Solaria had never had any forms of brutal winter or even a single cloud in sight, which had meant one thing, the darkness was slowly seeping its way to every realm undetected. That had certainly explained Luna's choice of clothing that consisted of a thick jacket paired with a skirt and tights.
"Which brings me to my point, mum. I need to break the curse over Valtor and fast. And that spell is the only way," Bloom said determinedly.
Marion's emerald eyes had zeroed in on her daughter. "You will do no such thing."
Bloom had let out a huff in frustration as the girl had crossed her arms over her chest. "At this rate, Valtor would be glad to use this opportunity to his full advantage, while knowingly we're doing nothing about it."
"We are doing something about it and your father is already looking into it."
"And that spell you used Bloom is extremely dangerous," Alec had reprimanded his niece.
The blond-haired wizard wasn't appearing to be agreeing with her idea anymore than Oritel and Marion. In fact, he still couldn't believe that Bloom had done something so idiotic and reckless.
"What kind of spell did you use, Bloom?" Niobe asked curiously.
The redhead princess had completely stiffened, as cold shivers ran down the back of her spine. That spell itself was dangerous. Flashes of horror had crossed her friends' faces as she had informed them on her plan. The moment Bloom had used the spell, she felt her entire essence rip violently from her physical body. The words had easily slipped from Bloom's mouth.
Bloom felt as if she was being closely watched by someone—feeling a strong presence looming over her—as the girl was making her way back to the patio after using the bathroom. Unexpectedly out of nowhere, Bloom felt a heavy hand grab at her wrists, causing the girl's eyes to flutter wide open in fear. The redhead princess had wanted to scream, but was instantly hushed by the man's hand covering her mouth.
"Bloom, it's okay. I'm not going to hurt you," the unidentified man whispered in a gentle voice.
Bloom's brow knitted together—baffled—upon recognizing his voice.
Sky? That can't be—
The girl lifted her head upwards to only see strands of long blond-hair being exposed from his hood and those piercing deep blue eyes that glittered.
"How?" she muttered only for him to hear.
"We'll explain everything," Sky whispered to her.
"You mean the others are here?" Bloom asked excitedly. Sparks of delight had filled her sapphire eyes, truly overjoyed by the news. Her friends were here!
"Nabu's the one who got us here." Sky had grabbed her hand softly, giving a tight squeeze as the young prince had led her to a nearby corner where the others had awaited on the opposite side of the room.
"I knew it! It was Nabu and I thought the lights were playing tricks on my eyes." Bloom finally said, feeling utterly relieved that she wasn't seeing people that weren't there—that she wasn't delusional. She despised feeling like a complete idiot for following some random stranger around, as if she were a stalker of some sort.
Tears of joy had welled up in Bloom's eyes upon the sight of the four cloaked figured each of them in their own signature color which consisted of: bright orange, emerald-green, crimson, and finally dark purple. Stella, Brandon, Nabu, and Aisha.
The orange cloak had flung itself on Bloom, tears spilling down her rounded cheeks. Bloom had collapsed in the arms of Stella, tears also dripping from her eyes, overjoyed. The redhead felt Stella's arms had tightened on her, as if the girl were in mere disbelief or not wanting Bloom to dissolve into thin air.
"I thought you were dead Bloom," Stella muttered under her breath. The girl had took off her hood-revealing her delighted face and big hazel eyes that were lit in happiness.
"What?" Bloom stared at the group in utter disbelief—for a moment she was horrified. "You thought I was dead?"
The redhead girl had sensed a mixture of emotions rising from her friends. Grief had hit them hard in particular Stella and Sky and it had showed on their faces. Bloom pressed her lips together.
"But why would you think that?"
"Because your physical body disappeared once you defeated Valtor," Nabu spoke grimly.
Bloom's eyes had widened in horror for realizing how terrified and heartbroken her friends were the moment her physical body vanished into thin air—assuming that Valtor had destroyed her as well.
Bloom swallowed hardly as guilt had swelled in her chest over her friends.
"I'm so sorry. I didn't—"
"Don't sweat it Bloom." Sky had given her a loving kiss on the head. "Thank the Great Dragon that you're actually alive."
"Now I'm gonna kill you for throwing me into a state of depression Bloom!" Stella exclaimed, tightening her hold on her best-friend as tears continued to spill from her eyes. "And I'm not going to allow you to do anything dangerous, do you understand me Bloom!"
"Stella! Give her a break!" Brandon had tried to intervene, though he had given the redhead princess a sympathetic smile. He had placed his hands on Stella's shoulders—easing the blond-haired princess. "It's so good to see alive Bloom."
Stella felt her cheeks flush brightly as she had freed Bloom from her grasp. "Sorry Bloom! It's just that you really scared me you know. After you supposedly died, all of us kinda broke apart."
Bloom's delighted smile had faded. "What? What do you mean by that?"
Aisha's teal blue eyes were filled with sorrowness. "We thought it was the right thing to do at the time Bloom. You have to understand us. You were considered to be dead. We'd all fallen apart."
Bloom felt as if her heart couldn't be able to handle such heavy words from either Aisha or Stella. Her gaze had fallen on the ground, remembering that they all tried to do something so similar when Tecna had supposedly sacrificed her life in trying to close the Omega Portal. The girls had discussed getting their revenge back on Valtor and from there that they would disband the Winx Club in a proper way.
"You'd been gone for about six months, Bloom. It was the only rational thing to do—to disband the Winx Club."
"I completely understand," Bloom finally whispered those words and lifted her head. "I can't blame any of you."
"But on the brighter note, you turned out to be alive thanks the Great Dragon!" Stella chirped happily. "Anyways since we're here, it's time to bring you back home where you belong!"
Bloom's bright blue eyes had fluttered opened, startled.
Suddenly her sister's words had crossed her mind. It was too dangerous for her to go back now otherwise chaos would ensure and there was another problem too: her and her mother's life essence were tied to that of Valtor's essence. Bloom wasn't entirely sure how that would affect her if she tired to go back to her original timeline. She was certain it would do even more damage.
"I think we're going to have a minor problem, Stel." Bloom frowned deeply.
Sky easily recognizing the expression that Bloom wore on her face and the man instantly knew that there was more to the story than what she was letting on. Crown Prince Sky had a bad feeling lingering at the back of his mind.
Sky swallowed hardly.
"What kind of minor problem are we talking about Bloom?"
Stella didn't like the sound of that or the seriousness in Bloom's tone.
"This can't be any good."
Bloom gave a nod.
"While we're at that Bloom, you should know something important. I do believe that you being here isn't merely an accident nor is it Valtor's work. It just doesn't seem like his doing."
It had threw Bloom off guard—completely puzzled. "What are you trying to say Nabu?"
"The Elder Council." Nabu simplified much to his own distaste. "I didn't want to believe it either Bloom. I have do have an inkling of an idea that the Elder Council may be involved with this. Think about it Bloom. You being here isn't a coincidence, and time-traveling to the past in any way is illegal. I have a feeling that they're letting this slide by."
Nabu gazed at Bloom—worry flickering in his purple eyes.
"So you think this is completely planned?" Bloom had meant it more as a statement than a question. The more the girl thought of Nabu's explanation, the more it had made sense to her. Something wasn't right.
"Most likely. But why, is what we don't know?" Aisha grimaced.
"Bloom? Where are you?" Alec's worried voice called out to his young niece.
Sky's blond eyebrows shot upwards in confusion, glancing at Bloom for an explanation.
"I'll explain everything Sky, but for now I need to go back or they'll worry," Bloom sighed heavily. If Bloom only had the time to fill them in on everything that happened, it would be so much easier for them to understand what was going on. It seemed like she was needed at all times by someone else. She gazed at Sky with a soft expression. "Just trust me alright."
Sky had wanted to protest, but—
Bloom's stomach had dropped entirely, as cold chills ran down her spine, not expecting his presence. The redhead's face had lost all coloring at the sight of her uncle.
"Shall I ask what are you planning to do with my niece?" the blond-haired wizard deadpanned, as the blond-haired wizard had eyed the mysterious group who were dressed in cloaks. For all what he knew, they could be kidnappers or villains who worked for the dark forces.
"Niece?" Sky croaked out nervously, though feeling the heat rushing to his cheeks—flustering. "But Bloom isn't your niece. Impossible."
"Bloom is Marion's daughter and Marion is my little sister. I don't think it can get any clearer than that." Alec stated in annoyance—though sarcasm had dripped into his tone. His bright emerald eyes flickering back and forth between the small group, trying to understand what was going on. He didn't trust those cloaked strangers.
The blond-haired princess was the one to speak up out of the group, though Bloom detected a hint of uneasiness in Stella's tone. "We're not planning to do anything but—"
"They're my friends, uncle!" Bloom interjected, not wanting him to get the wrong impression.
"Friends?" Alec furrowed his blond brows, glancing at his niece then back again at the group. But this time, he had carefully noted their appearance in which had resembled. . . his eyes had blinked several times as if he were in disbelief. "Wait are you telling me that. . . how?"
"I'm not sure, but they certainly do have an explanation," Bloom said softly, even she too was astounded by arrival. The girl hadn't expected this at all.
Nabu was the one to step up to Alec with a sharp expression. "Sir, I do believe that this isn't a coincidence that Bloom's here."
Alec was taken aback by Nabu's words—staggered. He blinked his eyes. He had wondered if this had any correlation to the prophecy that had revolved around Bloom. Oritel had discussed the details with him, but the Crown Prince had wanted to keep both Marion and Bloom out of it. Oritel had wanted to protect them from all sorts of danger. And from the looks of things. . .
Alec's expression had darkened. "Just as we feared."
Bloom glared at her uncle. "You know something that I don't uncle. Let me guess, dad told you but not me. You guys are keeping me in the dark and I don't like it one bit!"
"Bloom," Alec had reprimanded Bloom for her accusing tone. "Oritel doesn't want you to be in anymore danger than you're already in."
Bloom posed a single eyebrow. "If you hadn't noticed, I'm not exactly a child here. Whatever this is, you fully know that I'm involved in it whether you and dad like it or not. There's something off about this whole thing. First Daphne and now my friends are here. . . whatever is going on can't be hidden from me any longer."
"Daphne talked to you, Bloom?" Aisha blurted out in shock.
Bloom offered the Andorsian Princess a half-hearted smile. "She was in my dream."
"Since we're here, what should we do now?" Stella asked curiously.
"Its pretty obvious Stella. We're gonna help Bloom unravel this entire mystery," Sky said with sparks of determination burning in his deep blue eyes. The blond-haired specialist had tightened his hold on his Bloom's hand feeling utterly relieved that she was indeed alive and that this wasn't merely a dream.
"Um. . . there's just this one teeny, tiny problem Sky," Stella said rather dramatically.
Bloom had easily caught on Stella's implication. A mischievous smile graced her lips.
"Oh I don't think you have to worry about that Stel."
Brandon wasn't exactly fond of Bloom's teasing smirk. He could easily feel the sweat forming at the back of neck in utmost nervousness. Sky, Aisha, and Stella for their part were groaning on the inside—not fully agreeing to Bloom's idea at all.
"You're taking pleasure in this aren't you?" Sky groaned painfully.
"What makes you say that Sky?" Bloom giggled playfully.
The redhead princess had wanted to see how the others reaction would be like since they had teased Oritel and Marion to no end in particular Erendor and Radius. It was time for those two duo to have a taste of their own medicine. For once, Bloom had wanted to entertain herself.
"What took you so long, Bloom?" Marion asked, her emerald eyes flickered with worry over her dear daughter.
Alec had aided Bloom's side—placing his hand on his niece's shoulder. "I do believe we're going to run into another problem."
Luna wrinkled her nose—not appearing thrilled with Alec's words. The blond-haired fairy had no longer wanted to hear of any more depressing news. This was suppose to be an outing—to have a little breaking from the world and its problems. "Another problem? Ugh. It's always one problem after another. I mean, can't we get a little break here."
Niobe, as distressed as Luna was, remained calm. Her brows furrowing in confusion. "What kind of problem are we talking about Alec?"
"Let me guess, it's Valtor isn't it?" Samara said sharply, her dark green eyes narrowed at the blond-haired wizard.
"Well, not this time Samara." Alec had exchanged a glance with his young niece. "Bloom would you care to explain to them the situation."
Bloom's face had instantly heat up upon seeing all the eyes being planted right on her, hoping to hear her explanation. Nervousness had washed over her. This certainly wasn't going to be easy to explain and her friends weren't making it any easier on her either. The redhead princess had manage to gather the courage to spill the entire situation to the girls, even though Bloom had manage to avert their gazes. . .
Luna's dark blue eyes had fluttered wide open in pure astonishment—no words could spill from her mouth besides the silence that had surrounded her. It was as if the girl was stuck in a trance.
Niobe felt as if someone had put her in a hypnotic state. Her face had lost all coloring, although her teal blue eyes was torn between fear and curiousness. "What. . . are you sure, Bloom?"
Samara's complete silence had caused Bloom to worry. There was something about Samara that had rubbed Bloom the wrong the way. Perhaps it was her intimidation?
"Why would they do something so reckless?"
Bloom swallowed hardly. She couldn't blame Samara. Her friends had gone back in time to find her and to bring her back home to where she truly belonged. Bloom wasn't sure how Samara would feel about that. For Sky endangering his life for Bloom. . . yeah that definitely would go swimmingly with Samara and Erendor.
"Where are they?" Luna finally spoke in a faint voice after being silent for almost an eternity, as the fairy had scanned the entire area, but there was no signs of them given from Bloom's descriptions.
Alec rolled his emerald eyes and hollered out. "You know, there's literally no point of any of you to hide especially with those colorful cloaks of yours! Just come out already! You hiding there isn't going to change the fact that you're here!"
The girls (minus Bloom) had glanced in the direction in which the colorful cloaks had emerged—though Marion's smile had vanished from her face upon spotting that blue-cloaked individual walking towards them.
The redhead fairy had hardly mistaken that blue-cloak individual, as it been carefully following her and her daughter around for awhile. Marion had brushed it off, assuming that it was nothing of the sorts and she'd been jumping to the wrong conclusions. Bloom couldn't help, but chuckle lightly at the expense of her friends' embarrassments as they had removed the hood.
Samara, Luna, and Niobe had stared at their own child in absolute disbelief—all coloring had drained from their faces as they had nervously waved at their own mothers.
Stella had shot Bloom an absolute death glare and mumbled the words of revenge. Aisha had seemed to be rather quiet about the whole ordeal and she was feeling completely embarrassed. Sky had seemed to be positively flushing out of awkwardness, meanwhile Nabu and Brandon, well, they couldn't help but chuckle at the sight of their friends' reactions.
The uncomfortable silence that was lingering in the air had shattered.
"What's going on, here?" Lewis asked upon walking on the scene appearing completely baffled. He had noticed that Bloom was giggling quietly. Marion was amused, meanwhile Luna, Niobe, and Samara were all stuck in some kind of trance. Alec was sipping from his cup, ignoring the entire ordeal.
Lewis had finally noticed a group that were dressed in cloaks—completely embarrassed about a particular thing. "Had something happened?"
Bloom had grinned and gestured towards the unfamiliar people dressed in cloaks. "The only thing that happened here, Lewis, is my friends who decided to pay me a visit."
Author's Note
Omg! About time! Although isn't the original version - which was lost during the drafts - but I think this wrapped up nicely though. Hahahahaha. I'd figured this would be the best way to end the chapter. Next chapter would be all the explosive emotions and stuff, which I'm gonna say: is going to be fun to write! Let's say Stella has the potential to kill Bloom XD
bex55: Thank you! Hahahahahaha. I'm not gonna lie but Oritel and Bloom fighting is fun to write at times and they are so alike in many different ways. Stella is definitely happy to see her best-friend again after assuming that she was dead - which had been heartbreaking for Stella to handle. But now Stella wants sweet revenge and we'll see that in the next chapter! XD
PerssassyPercabeth28: Omg! Thank you for your words! Yeah I definitely wasn't going to write that either - thought it would feel like weird to add it in the middle of the story, but in a way it was necessary - and you'd given me a good idea too! And it's gonna be fun for them to get to know where Bloom was staying the whole time! XD
Bellchocolate: Your too kind! I truly appreciate your words! This is gonna be fun when Luna finds out how much Stella is alike to her and the fact that Stella is Bloom's best-friend just like Marion is gonna be impressive! Omg! Erendor and Oritel's reaction that their own children are dating each other LOL. Marion and Samara are gonna keep Erendor and Oritel in line. XD
I hope you had enjoyed this chapter!
Like always please leave your reviews and comments down below! I really do appreciate it and love to hear your thoughts about it!
Until Next Time!
