Verboten
Chapter 4
Wednesday, June 3, 2009; Posted: Saturday, June 6, 2009
Disclaimer: I do not own the Winx Club.
Fore Note: Yeah, I have to agree with what Riven did last chapter was too advanced from what we usually know him as. I think though, that he is capable of that level of conversation considering he should have theoretically graduated from Red Fountain. We have the consider that people who follow extended schooling into any form of college or university in the real world, that they do have a modicum of intellect. Be it in the fields of Arts & Science/Letters (i.e. history, political science, anthropology, literature, etc.), Pure Sciences or the Fine Arts. Take Helia for example who studied the fine arts but pursued to complete his education in Red Fountain, a militaristic college/university.
We can also take this in the view of multiple intelligences like Howard Gardener who "suggests that each individual manifests varying levels of different intelligences, and thus each person has a unique "cognitive profile." Cognitive profile and intelligence in this case meaning the ability to learn. Riven might have a very strong linguistic and intrapersonal intelligence but he may have an extremely poor interpersonal intelligence.
She blinked once. She blinked twice.
She looked at him wondrously. It was awkward moment and she blew out a breath of air as if the wind had been knocked out of her. His face was so serious and so…sincere—that she really wanted to laugh. Chances were that she really needed the coffee but God, he just said that out of nowhere. Like seriousness of the entire conversation had gone out the window with that one question.
Riven watched her have her little laughing fit. She was bent down with her hands on her knees and Artù looking up at her expectantly.
"Yeah, yeah, sure. I could use a coffee. Haaa…I'm sorry. It was just you were so random…"
Riven shrugged off her reaction and reasoned that: 1) she probably had low energy and 2) she was a girl, thus he reasoned all women in general were strange; some more than others.
"Anything you want specifically?" he continued. "Did you even have breakfast yet?" he asked seriously.
She straightened up, this time, with a smile on her face and he quirked an eyebrow at her in response. "Um, no, I didn't really eat yet…" she said guiltily.
"I'll buy you a sandwich or something then and you can eat on the way."
"Wait, wait, wait!—what?!" He was not going to pay for her, was he?
"Don't worry about it," he said, "I need the coffee anyways."
"But that's not right! I should pay for my—"
"And me being nice isn't normal. You need breakfast and I need a coffee; common goal. Just stay out here with Artù. I don't think they'll let you in with him. You can pay me the difference later." He pointed at a no-pets sign on the glass of the café.
Roxy felt like there was no arguing with him, seeing as his plan was the simplest. She bit her lower lip slowly. "Fine, get me hot chocolate or mocha if you can…please."
-
They were on the pier now and walking towards one of the wharfs with the lighthouse. Seagulls flew overhead and Roxy admired their freedom to fly whenever they wanted. She wanted to fly now but that would have to wait. Riven had finished his coffee earlier in essentially four gulps but Roxy was barely through her hot chocolate. Her sandwich was safely tucked in her shoulder bag for later consumption.
It was still early morning and there was light mist over the harbor.
"What is the magical dimension like?"
"First of all, there is not just one magical dimension. There are many. We all just happen to go to school in the same place, that's all. Magix is not that very different from here, but a little more advanced and a little more magical. Walking on Earth is like traveling back in time for me but then; there are some dimensions or realms that replicate the cultures here. Like Melody, that's Musa planet, looks like Chinatown on a larger scale except their culture is based off sound," he explained.
"And the others?"
"What do you mean?"
"Like Sky or Layla's?"
"Sky is a theological monarchy. They believe in the whole prophecy dictate our lives religious crap. Layla's place, Andros aka Tides, is eighty percent water so most of her population is underwater. Before, her planet had less water because the polar ice caps of the planet were still intact until global warming became an issue."
Roxy carefully compartmentalized the information he had given her. Brandon and Sky's planet was Eraklyon, Stella was Solaria, Bloom was once Earth but now Sparks, Musa was Melody, Tecna was Zenith, Layla and Nabu was Andros, Flora was Linphea…she mainly had the planets of only the girls, she realized.
"And what about you?"
Riven did not answer for a long moment. "I'd rather not say."
"Wa-why?!"
"It's not something especially proud of. Just leave it at that."
"Oh…" Roxy did not want to pressure him or make him uncomfortable so she moved on the next topic. "And Timmy?"
"Magix."
"That's it?"
"Yeah?"
"Helia?"
"He never said but I assume he comes from the same place as his grandfather."
"His grandfather?"
"His grandfather Saladin is the headmaster of Red Fountain, our school."
Roxy tried to understand the concept of multiple universes. Basically, planets were bigger versions of countries or nations though a lot more numerous than expected. Not everyone came from the same type of 'culture' or even the same level of technology? It seemed like that. But what about individual countries on each planet? She highly doubted that only one government ran an entire planet. It just would be impossible to administer. She reasoned that there probably smaller estates or countries on the planets and that there was one representative monarchy.
They turned down a corner that brought them onto the wharf with the lighthouse at the end. Roxy could vaguely see the shapes of people towards the end. There was maybe three or four people there; they were tall and straight bodies. The boys. She looked for the girls and saw them nowhere in sight.
Riven started a brisk walk towards the guys and Roxy followed with Artu. Unexpectedly, in mid-step Artu froze sniffing the air and with one paw hanging in the air. His tail started to wag slowly and then faster and then he set off at a run until he reached the end of his leash.
"Artu, what is wrong with you?!" Roxy reprimanded. She kept a tight rein on his leash and tried to pull him back a little.
Artu seemed determined to go in that direction and tugged on his leash vehemently to emphasize his point but Roxy did not relent, worried that he would do something strange or fall off the wharf. Instead, she took cautious steps forward and tried to keep a good grip on his leash.
As they approached the base of the lighthouse, the boys' forms became sharper and sharper and she found Sky and Nabu sitting on a concrete block and Timmy and Brandon were standing nearby. At Sky's feet laid a whiter short-haired retriever. The new dog, unleashed, stood up and looked up towards Sky, tail wagging.
"Is that what you want boy?! Huh-huh?!" Roxy teased Artu. He pulled hard on his leash and made a whiny sound despite the tightness of collar. "Uh, good morning," she said to the guys, "Where are the girls?" she asked, noting the lack of girls.
Artu pulled hard again, tail wagging excitedly. The other dog did not make any move towards to Artu and patiently and loyally stared at Sky.
"And, um, is that your dog?"
"Yes, this is Lady," Sky answered. "As for the girls, they're coming now." He pointed to something behind her. She supposed that they were not far behind.
"Mind if I let him go?"
"Sure," Sky said casually and pointed his attention to Lady, "Be nice."
Roxy cautiously let go of the leash and it went flying out of her hand immediately. Artu went for Lady who started to give chase. They ran around the base of the lighthouse several times.
"Morning Roxy," Bloom said as the girls came to join their little get-together. She yawned and took her place beside Sky. She noted Lady with a smile.
"Morning," Roxy said back.
Everyone exchanged their good mornings while Roxy felt out of place as she had no boyfriend. Stella had her back to Brandon who rolled his eyes and tried to explain the Mitzi-situation (and failed). It seemed that Flora did not have one either as she could not find Helia.
"Where's Helia?!" Flora panicked.
Everyone realized the lack of the artist and looked around making sure that no one else was missing.
"You don't think he fell, do you?" Stella stared at the edge of the pier afraid.
Sky looked up from his seat on the slab. "He's at the top."
"Wha-WHAT?!" Bloom asked incredulously and almost screamed. She looked up as well with her mouth hanging open. "Omigod…OMIGOD! He's at the top of the lighthouse?! How did he get there?!"
Stella gasped, "Someone, do something!"
-
Helia looked over the waist-high railing of the lighthouse and waved to the others below. He stood on a metal grating that encircled the lighthouse and there was the occasional bird nest and a couple coos.
The climb to the top had been certainly hard at first because there were no ladders or any footholds for the first two and a half meters. He ran and jumped several times before he caught the first rung of the ladder. Then, with the skill and endurance of ten years worth of acrobatics and gymnastics, he pulled himself until foot caught the rung and the rest was history. It was certainly worth it for the view.
Something in his back pocket start to ring and he realized it was his phone. He fished it out of his pocket.
"Hello? Oh, hi, Flora!—wait, wait, wait! Stop screaming into the phone, Stella! The view is amazing from here, did you know that? Fine, I'm coming down." With that, Helia jumped over the railing.
There was a girly shriek and dogs barking below.
-
"We are going to set up a contingency plan," Sky said as he led the group of thirteen and two dogs down to the warehouses. It was still early in the morning but the docks were quiet.
No one questioned what the new king had said. He stopped in front of one particular warehouse with rusting doors and opened it. He motioned for them to go in quickly. They did and he closed the door quickly, trapping them in darkness.
Stella yelped when she saw the last of darkness overtake the light.
The sound of a generator starting startled everyone and the lights began to slowly brighten the room starting with an ugly gray-yellow. In the center of the room were a large stack of heavy-looking iron bolted boxes each bearing the escutcheon of the Eraklyon royal family and specific set of numbers and letters signifying a code. They were all piled to form a four-box high rectangular prism of sorts.
"What's going on?" Bloom asked aloud, hoping that someone other than Sky or Brandon would explain. She recognized the Eraklyon heraldic symbol on the spot and she had an idea about their imperialistic politics.
Roxy did not say anything as she did not understand what the symbols on the boxes meant. They just looked like any bunch boxes that could be found in any warehouse, albeit they looked steel-enforced, important and were piled in peculiar way.
"As I said," Sky came from some dark corner of the room to stand in front of the crates, "We are going to set up a contingency plan. Everyone, this is the real deal. We aren't transporting sedated criminals or playing animal control for terrorized cities. People's lives—the lives of Earth are in danger if we don't do anything. Roxy, listen to me carefully because this is for you," his voice was deep and commanding; extremely serious as if someone's life was at stake, "If something goes wrong, you will come to this warehouse," he enunciated every word harshly. "Do you understand?"
Roxy nodded feebly, realizing that this was not the Sky she knew from work; the cheerful smile or encouraging word of advice or his sheer dumb-blondness in general. None of those fitted the persona of a man on a throne. He was thoroughly somber about the whole affair and she knew that the 'the lives of Earth are in danger' meant primarily her.
A new level of realization hit her: her life was endangered. How did she not see this before? Someone wanted her dead.
The Black Circle would not mourn the lost and she was not sure if any of the boys or the Winx would either. Not the whole magical universe and surely not anyone of Earth aside from her father and Artu.
Latter Note: Slightly random but the next chapter is much more important. I know that Roxy's thoughts are really late and badly developed but I don't want to spend too long on them or base an entire chapter on them because that would just be depressing. Right now, she's only discovering that many dangers that come with being a fairy and therefore she does not know what to expect or how to act because she has no previous experience. Technically, she's being exposed to many unknown dangers and objects such as the 'strange but normal-looking crates with the Eraklon escutcheons.' She has no idea what they are or the significance of the boxes and therefore, does not know how to act. To her, they probably look like regular boxes found in warehouses.
ArtuxLady? Can you imagine the genetic implications of that?