Category: Winx Club

Rating: T

Couples: none

Warnings: Major AU

Chapter: 4

Copyright: © characters and places by Iginio; © Plot and OC by me

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His feet had barely touched down when the earth started to quake and fire formed behind him. His shield nearly shattered as the flames came against it full force.

The fire became a form all knew as well as they knew Darkar. A thundering roar assaulted the ears of all present as the Dragon charged the Phoenix.

The dark-red of his armor shone in the fire of his brother. Darkar was furious: all his hate was unleashed now he came face to face with his brother. Fire met Shadow in a raging battle and they would have battled on had someone not interfered.

A magical explosion between the two tore their attention away from each other.

She leaned heavily on her cane. Anger and sadness fought for dominance in her face. "Enough of this." Darkar seemed to flinch at her voice, as if the disappointment in it hurt him. "Both of you."

The Dragon's golden eyes narrowed.

"This was something long in the coming, Faragonda." Darkar said. "You know this."

"No matter how much I hate it, I have to agree with him." The Dragon's voice was much deeper, rumbling in the still evening air.

"It seems you still hate it when I think for the both of us." Darkar sneered. "I see that did not change."

"I did not change at all!" The flames flared up higher. "You were the one who changed."

"Courtesy of whom?" The sky turned red at Darkar's fury. "I changed because of you!"

"At least they are not destroying the planet anymore." Faragonda muttered as she watched the two argue.

"You knew Adunal was Darkar all along?" Bloom asked incrediously.

"Yes." The Headmistress answered. "The men I called sons died long ago."

"Do not lie to me!" She looked up at the sharp bark. Darkar sounded as if he was on the verge of tears. "Do not lie to me!"

"I never lied to anyone." Came the stubborn answer.

"You did! You knew the prize of our powers as well as I do!" There was no anger left in the being of Darkness, only profound sadness. "You knew that for everything you created, I had to kill, brother!"

Dragon-faces are useless when you want to determine emotions, but there was shock visible on his face now. "I…"

"Don't." Darkar cut him off. "Keep your lies, brother, I heard enough of those. I know you care nothing about me. But I beg you, as your brother, do not lie to these people: they do not deserve that. Look them in the eyes, brother, and tell them you knew not what would happen to Domino when you choose it as your final restingplace."

Complete silence.

"I knew it." Darkar felt no victory at the realization. "You made me out to be the evil one, but it was you who brought evil to these worlds. And you know it."

"I was a proud fool." The Dragon whispered.

"About time you realized that." Darkar turned to leave.

"Was it too late?" In an explosion of fire the Dragon changed: a man in full armor, his face hidden behind a helmet, approached Darkar. Fire danced across the silver armor, forming a cape behind him. "Is there no hope for us, brother? Have I destroyed it completely?"

Darkar wanted to say yes, to make his sibling pay for everything he had suffered. But he was not cruel in the beginning, indeed he had been the gentle one of the twins. "Do you remember our youth?"

"You were always content to simply sit somewhere and let life run its' course around you." The eyes of the man in dark-red armor turned to those in the man in silver. "Drove me crazy."

Something of a fond smile appeared on Darkar's face. "As you did to mother. At one point she contemplated chaining you down."

"Father laughed his ass off."

"Not only he." Darkar's voice was soft. "I hated myself for it, but I could never stop loving my brother, my antithesis. You are late, brother, but never too late."

A dark-red claw reached out. A silver gauntlet came to rest in it. They had been twins once, identical save their powers, but fate had driven them apart. As they had surged through the river of time, nothing remained that could remind them of this, safe memories: their own and those of their parents.

Now, as Darkness reached for Light, there was more to remind them. Their bodies became lean, shedding the armor they had worn for ages, replacing it with white robes with black belts. Hair cascaded down, longer than that of the fairies and soft blue. The only differences were their wings: Darkar's were covered in golden feathers, like those of any other phoenix and while those of the Dragon were golden too, they were leathery, like that of a bat.

"Brother…" Both breathed at the same time, hugging eachother.