Disclaimer: So, I met Iginio Straffi, and after a long discussion and lots of pleading, he gave me the rights to Winx Club. Then, I woke up.
Since I'm posting both these chapters at the same time, I don't have much to say here, except that this chapter is the longest one I have to date. [/cheers] And it's also the most depressing one I have. Some things are revisited, but I'm trying to exploit all parts of friendships and family relationships that haven't really been clear. Also, now that I've gotten this chapter written, there should be a little MxR trickling its way into this, but it's nothing major for a few more chapters.
I have one warning about this chapter, and it's about the beginning, starting after the first break of the story. (Basically, it's not the part after this line break, but the part after the next one.) It's nowhere near as "pushing the rating" as it had originally been in my head, but you guys will probably be like, "Uhhh, this kind of sucks." It's supposed to suck. There will literally be no passion in it whatsoever, so it came across like that. [/shrugs] But it's SkyxDiaspro, so I hope you guys don't care too much. [/laughs] I'm just trying to show her character's personality a little bit more.
Anywho~ I don't think I have anything else to say, so I hope you guys enjoy! And without further ado, let the story continue~
Chapter xi: Something Wicked This Way Comes
Diaspro Marquis was angry about something. Again. It had become somewhat commonplace with her in the last few weeks, and Sky was getting just a little sick of it. Especially since the way she chose to take her anger out on him was rather unconventional and was pushing the boundaries he'd set up.
It had started off like a normal evening for them—or what used to constitute as a normal evening—and he'd actually been enjoying himself. They had been in the entertainment room in his house, watching some film she'd chosen, and she had been curled up against him with her head resting on his shoulder. He'd had an arm around her, and his head was resting on top of hers. Those couple of hours were among the most pleasant ones they'd had in months, and it had wrongly made him hope that perhaps things were going back to normal. But he should have known better than to think it would last.
Right after the film had ended, she'd been rather affectionate and playful—basically being the girl he'd met and fallen for in his Freshman year. She had moved onto his lap and was playing with his hair, murmuring something teasingly about how it needed to be trimmed, when there was a knock on the door. (1) Sky looked over as the door slowly opened, and Savannah peered around it. She frowned as she glanced at Diaspro. "Sorry," the strawberry-blonde girl murmured. "I didn't know she was here."
The eight-year-old disappeared behind the door again, and when she started to close the door, Sky was startled. "Savannah!" he called out to stop her, and she cautiously peeked around the door again. "You don't have to go. What did you need?"
The young girl looked slightly fearful, and it was worrying him. "I was just... I'm having problems with my math homework, but... it can... it can wait," she stammered.
Sky frowned. What was wrong with her? "There's no reason I can't help you now. It won't take that long. Diaspro won't mind." He looked at the cream blonde, who looked like she wanted to protest. He gave her a brief, irritated look before he asked, "You don't mind, right, Diaspro?"
Diaspro rolled her eyes with a quiet scoff before she stood and crossed her arms. "I'll wait in your room," she told him, and without even waiting to see if he had objections, she stalked out of the room, moving past Savannah without a word.
Sky's irritation with her sparked, and he had to grit his teeth to keep from saying anything to her about the way she was acting. He stood and walked over to Savannah, who looked extremely worried that she'd done something wrong. He managed to smile at her and promptly scooped her up into his arms to carry her. "Come on, princess. Let's see what I can do to help."
It only took about ten minutes to help explain the process of one of the problems, and then it was simple for Savannah to do the rest. So within a total of fifteen minutes, Sky was walking into his room to face Diaspro. And that was when their pleasant evening quickly went downhill.
After he closed the door to his room behind him, Sky turned and came face to face with Diaspro. She narrowed her eyes at him before complaining, "It took you long enough."
Sky sighed and resisted the urge to roll his eyes at her. "It only took me fifteen minutes, Diaspro. And I'm sure you used it to text Mitzi or Chimera, so I don't see why it matters if I help my little sister with her homework." He grunted in pain when he was suddenly shoved back into his door.
"Look," the cream blonde hissed, her amber eyes flashing in anger. "I hardly ever get to see you anymore. You're always flitting around with that annoying group of nobodies, and this is the first time in two weeks that we've spent any prolonged time together alone. So excuse me if I'm a little angry that you couldn't wait until after I left to help Savannah with her homework. I feel like I never get your attention anymore, and I'm sick of it!"
Sky gritted his teeth and clenched his hands into fists so he didn't react instinctively and accidently harm her. "Those 'nobodies' you're referring to are my friends, Diaspro. And I'm not the only one who's causing the problems with us spending time together. I have one night a week that we can't spend together. You're the one who's almost constantly spending time with Chimera or Mitzi. I don't see why you're allowed to have friends you hang out with, but I can't spend one night with my own friends."
Diaspro's eyes glittered angrily before she pulled him down into a rough kiss. He made a noise of protest, but she was relentless. Her arms tightened around his neck as he tried to pull back, and she continued to kiss him bruisingly as she nipped at his lower lip. He sighed through his nose and obliged her in the hopes that she'd calm down, parting his lips at her unspoken request as she sucked on his lower lip, but her roughness only increased in intensity as she forced her tongue between his lips. He betrayed himself with a light moan at the taste of her, and fortunately she lightened the force with which she was attacking his mouth.
Her fingers sank into his hair, and her nails scratched lightly at his scalp. He released another moan, and his hands came up of their own volition to tilt her head back. He managed to take a little control of the kiss, trying to steer it into a more heated one than an angry one, but she tugged sharply on his hair in a reprimand and purposely bit down on his tongue once to show she was still in charge. She pulled her head back slightly, breathing harshly as she glared at him.
"Diaspro, this is ridiculous," he panted hoarsely. "Why can't we just—"
She cut him off by biting his lower lip and ordering, "Hush."
He winced and tentatively touched his tongue to his lower lip, grimacing at the bitter taste of blood. "Do you really have to be so rough?" he mumbled, and she leaned forward and lightly licked along his lip.
"It's not that bad," she admonished, brushing her lips along his jaw. "Stop complaining; you were still enjoying it." She nuzzled his neck, nipping at the sensitive flesh below his ear. Sky stiffened slightly as she grazed her teeth over the stretch of skin there before nibbling and sucking at it. An unwarranted moan passed his lips, and he felt her smirk against his neck as she finally loosened her death grip on him and allowed one of her hands to trail down his chest and lightly squeeze at his hipbone. He sucked in a harsh breath, his hands tugging lightly on her hair in order to remind her she was starting to go too far. He felt her chuckle against his neck as she trailed her lips back up to his, and her hand trailed along his stomach.
"Diaspro..." he muttered warningly against her lips, narrowing his eyes at her. She shifted into him, one of her legs going between his as her amber eyes flashed defiantly up at him. Her hand drifted lower, brushing against him through his jeans, and he hissed, his head slamming back into his door, before he reached down and gripped her wrist tightly. "No, Diaspro. We've talked about this before," he gritted out. She quirked a brow at him challengingly, lightly moving her leg against him, and he snapped, "I said 'no,' Diaspro!" He removed the arm around his neck and held both her wrists in one hand and placed his other hand on her waist to push her away.
The cream blonde pouted as she acquiesced, crossing her arms over her chest. "I don't see what the big deal is," she muttered angrily. "It's not like we'd have to go all the way."
Sky's eyes flashed in anger as he mimicked her stance, crossing his arms. "Because you don't want to do it for the right reasons," he retorted. She actually looked startled as he continued, "You're trying to prove something every time you start to take things in that direction. If I weren't under the constant impression that you would try to use it to control me, then maybe I wouldn't put a stop to it so quickly every time."
Diaspro's eyes widened in shock and anger. "What did you just say?" she hissed.
"You heard me, Diaspro," he replied evenly. "You only try to push the issue when you're angry with me, and I think you'd try to use it against me later on."
Her hand twitched, but she didn't slap him. She was too smart to do that, even when angry. "I'm going home," she announced primly, pushing past him and opening his door. And with an angry look shot back over her shoulder, she left. (2)
The day before they were supposed to leave for Orlando was a Friday. All the cast was excited, especially the group of ten who practically spent all their time together. They had planned to stay at Stella's house that evening since it was the only one with enough space that was closest to their school. However, for one of them, things weren't going to go entirely as planned.
Sky was somewhat late heading to lunch when a blue-haired girl stepped directly in front of him, bringing him to a halt. He blinked before he frowned slightly as he recognized her. "Chimera? Did something happen? I know I'm late for lunch, but—"
"This conversation has nothing to do with how late you are for lunch. It's actually helpful since I don't know when I'll get this opportunity again," the blue-haired teen answered, and Sky almost stepped away from her. "Look, I wouldn't normally be telling you this, but I think you're kinda cool, and you're cute, for a blonde guy. Plus, Diaspro's been a bitch to me ever since Mitzi showed up, so I figure turnabout is fair play."
Sky was getting slightly concerned. "Chimera, just spit it out."
"Your girlfriend's cheating on you. The guy's apparently a coworker of her father's, so he's probably in his thirties, and he's honestly not that good-looking. Anyway, I know you won't believe me just because I'm saying it, but they're meeting tonight at her house. I just wanted you to know. You can choose to ignore me and go on like a happy, little couple, but I swear it's happening. I'll even have a name for you by this afternoon if all goes as planned. Don't worry about finding me. I'll find you." And with that long spiel thrown out, Chimera disappeared just as quickly as she had appeared.
Sky stood there, stunned and more than a little confused about what had gone on. The girl who had been (and likely still was) Diaspro's closest friend had just ratted on her about cheating on him. He honestly couldn't wrap his mind around it because he couldn't see why Diaspro would cheat on him, but he also couldn't understand why Chimera would lie to him about it. She was going through a lot of trouble so he could catch them in the act, so he didn't think it was a good way to get back at Diaspro, even if she was lying about the man. The only amusement Chimera could get out of a farce would be his embarrassment, which would honestly be pointless.
He knew the shock had worn off when he suddenly felt sick to his stomach. There was no way he was going to lunch today. Someone would notice his odd behavior, and he'd feel compelled to tell them about what Chimera had said. Instead of dealing with that fiasco, he turned around and headed back to his classroom. It wouldn't be odd if he sat in the hallway. Besides, at times like this, it was more quiet in the halls than in other places, and he had just been given a lot to think about.
"Is Sky not here today?" Nicolas inquired as he came back from throwing away his trash.
Bloom frowned before replying, "Yeah, he was here this morning."
Brandon nodded. "She's right. He helped me obliterate the other team in dodge ball."
"I wonder where is, then," Nicolas murmured.
Flora turned around to look in the direction of Diaspro's table. "Is he sitting with Diaspro?"
Musa shook her head. "Nope. I looked for him there when I went back to get a drink."
"Ah, well. He should be fine. He's almost seventeen, right?" Bloom queried. "Besides, he has to be in the school somewhere. Have you tried sending him a text, Nic?" The redhead looked at the dirty blonde boy expectantly as she drank her fruit drink.
"Uh... no, that didn't really cross my mind. Besides, I'm not that worried," Nicolas muttered, his face flushing slightly.
There was a chorus of laughter at their table that died shortly at the arrival of a cream blonde.
"What do you want?" Musa asked flatly.
Diaspro crossed her arms, sneering, "Maybe you can be useful, for once. Where's your cousin?"
Musa snorted. "Even if I did know, I wouldn't tell you."
"You really are useless," Diaspro muttered as she walked away.
"Ugh, I hate her!" Stella exclaimed.
"There's a reason we let you get away with calling her 'Bitch Barbie,' Stell," Bloom replied with a grin.
Brandon was scowling. "I don't know why she's looking for him. We haven't really seen Sky these past couple of weeks because of her."
Musa grinned slyly. "Well, they are going to be separated for a week, and a certain redhead may be spending plenty of time with him over said week. She's probably wanting to sink her claws into him one more time before we leave."
"Gross! Musa, we could have lived without the image of Sky and Diaspro going at each other, thank you very much," Bloom muttered with a grimace.
Musa and Brandon snorted at the same time as Nicolas replied, "Not the best phrase to use. We all know for sure that Sky's still a virgin. He's all about waiting until after marriage, so—"
Bloom held a hand up to top the flow of Nicolas's words. "Nic, you are seriously starting to sound gay for Sky. Just stop while you can. To be safe, you should avoid him as a topic of discussion for the rest of the day." Her tone sounded like she was teasing, but it was hard to be sure.
Nicolas's face turned red as he grumbled, "I was only explaining his prudishness."
"All right, so on a different note—is Riven not here today?" Musa questioned in order to change the subject.
Bloom nodded. "He's here, but he's skipping lunch to help Coach Codatorta with something. I was lucky enough to get that much information, so don't ask 'why' or anything."
"Since when does he get along with Codatorta?" Stella asked.
The redhead blinked and shrugged. "I kind of assumed it was some sort of punishment. Like detention or something. That's the only reason I could see Riven being willing to help Codatorta with anything. And probably the only reason Codatorta would ask Riven for help."
"How on earth did Riven get on Codatorta's bad side? He seems like the one Codatorta would typically like," Brandon stated with a little confusion.
Bloom was suddenly very focused on her fruit drink. "Riven... hasn't exactly led the most normal life. Would you guys believe me if I said he actually used to act kind of like Nicolas?"
There were several dumbfounded looks sent her way by three of her friends. Flora and Stella were the only two who had known him then, and they both had somewhat nostalgic smiles on their faces. Those were the days when they could tease him and actually get a response, and they were also the days when he would tell them the most wild pieces of (untrue) information to see if they would believe it. And though all three of them missed that, they also knew they wouldn't be able to see Riven acting that way again. Every now and then he seemed to slip into that old persona, but it was never for very long and nothing specifically triggered it. Besides, they enjoyed the "sarcastic asshole Riven" and his reactions way too much to really even mind the personality change.
"Well? Are you seriously not going to explain?" Musa asked, bringing the redhead blinking out of her thoughts.
"Sorry, I was just thinking. But there's really not much that I can explain. His Freshman year he mixed with the wrong sort of crowd. And for two years, I didn't really have my brother. That was... a really bad time for my parents and me. We honestly had no idea what to do or how to approach him. He would skip school and get into fights over the most pointless things. He started letting his temper get out of control... The one time I ever spoke to him about it was when he seemed to be in an oddly good mood, so I made a comment about it—and I didn't like the answer I received." Bloom paused, and when she spoke again, her voice was softer. "I told him what I thought, and his demeanor changed almost immediately. We ended up arguing, and then he did something that made me frightened of my brother for the first time in my life. He swung at me. Halfway through the motion, he caught himself and ended up punching the wall. He didn't even say anything before he turned around and stalked off. I didn't argue with him for an entire year—hell, I barely even spoke to him at all.
"And then he came home one night and came to my room. He looked like shit, and I'm almost positive he had been drinking. I had been sitting at my desk when he came in, and my instant response was to stand up in case he was volatile. But all he did was grab me and whisper, 'I'm sorry,' over and over again. Over the past eight months, he's become what you see now, and he's actually doing a lot better. Hell, he's become friends with you guys, which is about as far from the mess as he could be." The redhead smiled. "So thank you guys for being so adamant about him being a part of our group. It means a lot more to me than you could ever know."
After a short moment, Brandon murmured, "I get the distinct feeling this is something you probably weren't supposed to tell us."
Bloom smiled slightly and gave a one-shouldered shrug. "I'm being extremely vague about it all, honestly. it wouldn't be a good reaction were he to find out, but it also wouldn't be too bad since there's so much I haven't told you. Or anyone, really. But I'd like to think I can trust you three with that information."
The three teens didn't know how to respond to that since no words could convey the sincerity with which they were glad she felt like she could trust them with something so private. Fortunately, that was when the bell rang to signal their lunch period was over, so the six students stood before separating into groups and heading to their respective classes.
By the end of rehearsal, the blonde teen felt sick to his stomach. Since the auditorium was empty, he was seated on the edge of the stage, his legs dangling off the side. He needed to waste time until he could head to Diaspro's house to see if what her friend had said was true. Chimera had come up to him right before rehearsal and had given him a name: Baltor Di Naccio. (3) Unfortunately, it was a name he knew since he'd actually met the man, but he'd never really liked him to begin with. There was just something about him that had seemed off, and he definitely didn't care for the man now.
"Sky?"
The blonde boy blinked out of his thoughts and looked over his shoulder at the redhead who had spoken. She was standing there with a frown of concern as she studied him. "Yeah?" he ventured to ask once he thought he could speak in a normal tone.
"Are you... feeling all right? You've been acting odd ever since rehearsal started," Bloom murmured.
Sky had always been a horrible liar, but he lied anyway. "Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just kind of out of it because I missed lunch." He almost wanted to slam his head into a wall. '...wow. That was a more lame excuse than usual, idiot.'
Bloom seemed to be thinking the same thing because she looked skeptical, but (as he had guessed she would) she let it slide. "That makes sense," she replied with a weak smile, which only made him feel worse than he already did. He watched as she walked over to him and sat down beside him. Her hurt expression shifted slightly into a more genuine smile as she stated, "You were a very popular conversation at lunch today. Nicolas just couldn't seem to operate without you around. He kept worrying about you and asking questions until I said something about texting you. Then he somehow ended up 'defending your honor' or something, so I stopped him from that line of discussion by saying he sounded like he had the hots for you."
The blonde boy honestly didn't know how, but he managed to genuinely laugh at that piece of information. This girl was just absolutely awesome. "So he was doing his teenage girl act? If you think he's bad with me, you should see how he is when Brandon isn't here. It's ridiculous."
Bloom looked like she was trying to imagine it. "If he gets worse, I'd be afraid to see it. Though I can imagine everyone would probably be at least somewhat concerned if Brandon happened to miss school. I can't think of a day that he hasn't been here in the entire school year." She paused before grinning at him. "Whereas you have missed two full weeks."
Sky frowned. "When?"
The redhead laughed, her turquoise eyes shining. "Oh, come on. How could you forget? You were out for two whole weeks back in October. I remember it clearly because Brandon was acting like a lost puppy in phys. ed."
The blonde teen thought back to October, his brows furrowing slightly. When he finally remembered why he'd been out, he felt his face flush. "Oh, jeez," he muttered.
Bloom quirked a brow with a teasing smile. "Don't tell me you skipped school because of a family vacation to England or something."
Sky shot a glare at her. "I don't skip."
She laughed and nudged him with her shoulder. "I wasn't being serious. I know you wouldn't do that, Sky." After a short silence, she prompted, "So?"
Sky blinked at her. "'So,' what?"
Bloom sighed in exaggerated exasperation. "Why were you out?"
Sky looked away from her as he muttered, "I had the chicken pox."
He heard the amusement in her voice clearly as she asked, "You had the chicken pox?"
He felt the blood rush to his face as he glanced over at her, mumbling, "Yes."
Bloom bit down on her lower lip to hide her grin—and to keep from bursting into a fit of giggles. "That's... different."
"Oh, shut up," Sky retorted in embarrassment. "I've received enough comments from others to last for eternity."
"It's not different in a bad way. Actually, I think it's kind of cute. Maybe even endearing," she replied, smiling warmly at him.
Sky swore his heart skipped a beat as he looked down at her. How on earth had he ever overlooked this girl? All she had to do was look at him with her glowing, turquoise eyes, and he turned inside-out. It was ridiculous. He'd never felt that way about anyone, and most certainly not about Diaspro (who was his girlfriend, so he should have felt this way at some point).
"Oi, lovebirds! Hurry it up, will ya?" The voice that disturbed them was Brandon's, and both teens jumped at the suddenness of his voice echoing loudly in the auditorium.
Bloom laughed sarcastically. "Haha. Very funny, Brandon. You guys chose to send me to get him," she snapped as she turned to look at him.
Brandon held his hands up defensively. "Hey, I'm just the messenger. Stella's the one who got impatient and sent me to interrupt."
"Yeah, yeah," the redhead muttered as she moved to stand up. "Blame your girlfriend, Brandon. Real nice."
Sky stood as well before he stated, "Well, I hate to break it to you guys, but you waited on me for no reason. I have to do something before I head over to Stella's, so I'll see you guys later."
Bloom and Brandon both frowned as they looked at him, but Brandon spoke first. "All right, then. I'll text you the directions. Come on, Bloom."
The redhead darted a concerned glance at Sky, but she didn't say anything as she followed after Brandon, leaving Sky alone in the auditorium.
With a sigh, the blonde glanced down at his phone to check the time, and a sense of dread filled him. He'd gotten a slight break by talking to Bloom, but now his problem took the front row seats again. Steeling himself, he headed toward the auditorium doors. He may as well go ahead and face the inevitable.
Roughly an hour and a half later, Sky and Diaspro were sitting in her living room as Baltor Di Naccio walked out the door. Frankly, Sky didn't care if the man came back later. He'd actually seemed surprised to see Sky so angry, which made the blonde teen wonder if the man hadn't known Diaspro wasn't single.
Of course, it didn't matter anymore. She was about to be.
There was a thick, tense silence between them as each one waited for the other one to speak. Diaspro made the mistake of speaking entreatingly. "Sky, don't—"
The blonde boy held up a hand, and she (wisely) stopped talking. He gritted his teeth together to keep from exploding at her, and after a long moment, he managed to look at her. "How long has this been going on, Diaspro?" he asked quietly, his tone livid.
She winced before retorting heatedly, "How is this any different than what you've been doing with that red-haired nobody?"
Sky's eyes flashed in anger. "Do not bring Bloom into this. That situation is completely different, and you know it. Now answer my question: how long?"
"I'm bringing her into this, Sky, because it's really not that different! I know you've kissed her at least once, and that was in front of me! I can only imagine what you two have done when no one's around! And if you think I haven't seen the two of you flirting—" Diaspro was yelling by now, and he could hear the anxiety in her voice. She was conveniently trying to bypass his question, and he wasn't going to have it.
"Diaspro, I walked in on the two of you right after you'd had sex! A kiss for a play and some harmless flirting are nothing compared to that!" he snapped back, only yelling so he could cut off what she was going to say. Taking a deep breath, he continued more quietly, "Now, I'm not going to ask you again. How. Long?"
Diaspro paled as she looked down at the floor. "It started in December," she finally admitted softly.
Anger and hurt crashed into him, and he honestly felt stupid. She'd been cheating on him for months, and he hadn't known. "Wow," he muttered, laughing bitterly. "Since December. Well, that's just... that's just fan-fucking-tastic," he bit out harshly.
Diaspro flinched, but she kept quiet. Silence reigned for quite a while, until the cream blonde asked softly, "Sky?" She waited to see if he would respond, and when he didn't, she spoke a little louder. "Sky, I'm sorry. I—I don't know how it happened."
Sky's eyes immediately snapped to hers, and he gave another bitter laugh. "Diaspro, if it had been once, I might believe that. But it's obviously not some one-time thing we're talking about. This is multiple times over multiple months. I'm not... I can barely stand to look at you right now. I don't know if I can stand to touch you again."
"I understand," she murmured. "You need some time to think."
The blonde boy shook his head. "No, I'm done with thinking, Diaspro."
The cream blonde's eyes widened, and she stared at him incredulously for a moment. "Sky, what are you saying?"
He looked her straight in the eye. "I'm breaking up with you."
When the redhead glanced out the window of the living room for the umpteenth time in an hour, Stella sighed exasperatedly. "Bloom, stop looking out at every pair of headlights that passes by!"
The redhead jumped slightly at the shrill tone and looked at her blonde friend with an apologetic smile. "Sorry, Stell, I'm just... worried."
"It's not even that late, Bloom. Maybe he went to pick up Savannah," Stella suggested.
Bloom frowned and shook her head. "No, Jephrey's dropping her off."
"Plans change, Bloom," Stella retorted.
"Not when Jephrey called to tell us he was leaving five minutes ago," Musa snapped, jumping to Bloom's defense. "And leave her alone; she has a right to be worried."
Stella looked shocked, and Brandon didn't help matters by adding, "She's right. Don't be mad at Bloom, Stell. Something's been bugging him ever since at least lunch."
"He didn't say where he was going or indicate what time he'd be back?" Timmy inquired.
Bloom looked at Brandon for confirmation as she replied, "I don't remember him saying anything aside from, 'I have to do something before I head over to Stella's,' and that's about as vague as anyone can get."
"He did say, 'so I'll see you guys later,' but that's not helpful, either," Brandon admitted.
Musa frowned. "Something's wrong. Sky never goes somewhere without at least saying where he's going, and he's one of those people that'll send texts when he gets there and when he leaves."
"And calls when he'll be late," Brandon added helpfully.
Flora cleared her throat meaningfully. "No offense, guys, but I don't think you're helping."
Brandon glanced at Bloom and smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, Red. I wasn't thinking before I spoke."
Musa reached over and touched the redhead's shoulder. "We're not saying something happened to him, but wherever he went, he doesn't want anyone to know, which means he wants to keep whatever it is to himself—at least for now. He's safe, and he'll be okay."
Bloom managed a weak smile and a nod, but she still looked pretty upset. It was silent for a long moment before she spoke, "I was wondering if I could ask all of you a favor."
There were several surprised faces looking back at her.
"All of us?" Tecna queried.
"Yeah. None of you have to do it, but it would be really helpful and appreciated if you would," the redhead explained.
When it seemed like she was waiting on an answer, Riven prompted, "We're listening."
"Things are getting really awkward between Sky and me, and I honestly don't know how much more of this I can take," the redhead confided. "So... I was hoping you guys would help me by keeping us from being alone together."
Flora was the first to recover. "Oh, sweetie, I'm so sorry. I hate that it's worked out this way, but if you really want the help, then you can count on me."
"I'll help, too," Helia added.
"So will we, Bloom," Timmy pitched in for him and Tecna.
Stella smiled sadly. "Anything for one of my best friends."
Brandon sighed softly. "Sky's not gonna like it if he finds out, but count me in," the brunette answered with a grin.
Musa smiled. "You know you can count on me, B!"
That managed to get a slight laugh out of the redhead, and she smiled at the raven-haired girl. "Thanks, Muse."
"Well, Riven, aren't you going to say anything?" Stella asked with a quirked brow.
The burgundy-haired boy replied, "My sister is asking for me to keep a boy away from her. I assumed it would be a given that I would do that."
A chorus of laughter followed that statement, and as all her friends started teasing her brother, Bloom turned to look out the window. She normally wouldn't be so worried, but the blonde boy had looked so lost earlier, and it had torn her to pieces that something (or someone) had been capable of doing that to him. And she was honestly worried that whatever it was would be bothering him for a while.
A pair of azure eyes shifted from the group of friends to the redhead, and with a frown, Musa silently vowed that she would do everything in her power to keep the two of them from being alone. She'd spoken to Sky about the situation once before, and in her eyes, he'd made his decision.
And it was the wrong one.
"You know, you don't have to stay up and wait for him," Musa muttered irritably as she plopped down on the couch beside the redhead a couple hours later. "We do have to get up early."
Bloom blinked as she looked at the raven-haired girl. "I know. But that's not the only reason I'm still up. I actually wanted to talk to you alone."
Musa looked wary. "About what?"
"Do you like my brother?" Bloom asked bluntly, deciding it'd be easier to be straightforward.
Musa looked startled before she laughed. "You don't waste time."
"Not at eleven o'clock at night when I have to get up at five am. And especially not when your cousin could show up at any minute and ruin our conversation," the redhead replied.
"I guess that makes sense," Musa agreed. "But you need to be a little more specific in what you're asking."
Bloom heaved a sigh. "I'm almost positive that recently you've been flirting openly with my brother. I want to know if you have feelings for him."
"You're going to think I'm crazy, and possibly stupid, but yeah. I do," Musa answered after a moment of pure silence.
Bloom's brows furrowed. "Why would I think either of those things?"
Musa laughed wryly. "Because I'm fairly certain he doesn't feel the same."
"Well, I know for a fact that he does, but I also know he won't do a thing about it until you explicitly say you like him. And even then, he's not going to make it easy for you to continue things with him," Bloom answered.
Musa blinked in surprise. "Wait—how do you 'know for a fact' that Riven likes me?"
Bloom smiled wryly. "One—he's my brother, so I just know these things. And two—I asked him so I could get his permission to talk to you. I've learned the hard way that, with Riv, it is not easier to ask for forgiveness later."
Musa grinned and nodded. "I could see him being that way."
"Anyway, he gave his permission, obviously, and I've already told you the very shortened and very summarized version of things. But there's a lot that I'm not going to tell you since I think he should be the one to do it." Bloom paused, biting down on her lower lip. "Of course, there is one more question I need to ask. Are you okay with me telling you about him?"
The raven-haired girl took a moment to actually think it over. Everything in her was practically screaming, "Yes! Please tell me!" But there was a small part of her that wanted to hear it all from Riven, not his sister. It would mean a lot more to her if she heard it from the turnip-headed male. "I really want to know about it, but part of me wants to hear about it all from him." She made a face before looking at Bloom with a frown. "Does that make any sense?"
The redhead smiled slightly, nodding. In its own way, it made a lot of sense. She imagined she probably would have felt the same way if the tables were turned. "Honestly, there's a lot more to the story than I even know, and I'm willing to respect your decision if you really don't want me to tell you. I'm just worried that, by the time you do find out, it'll be too late. Riven is... really insecure about things and you're the top items on the list all rolled into one."
Musa's frown deepened. "What do you mean?"
Bloom sighed, trying to figure out how to explain without giving away any details. "Well, for starters, you're female. And don't ask me to elaborate on it unless you're giving me permission to tell you about his past," she warned when she saw Musa open her mouth. The raven-haired girl promptly closed it. "You're also from a very well-off family, and money has always been a sore spot for him." She paused before backtracking slightly. "And on top of being female, you're pretty; he really likes your voice—again, don't ask; and you're very strong-willed and independent."
"Bloom, I'm not changing who I am for your brother. I draw the line at being fake," Musa retorted acidly.
The redhead laughed. "Riven wouldn't like you if you weren't all those things. He calls it his curse to be attracted to everything that even remotely throws him off-balance."
Musa worried her lower lip between her teeth. "Did all of that come from that two-year stitch he went through?"
Bloom nodded solemnly. "Basically, yeah."
It was silent for a few minutes before the raven-haired girl capitulated. "All right, I'm going to need help, then, aren't I?" she sighed heavily. "So tell me about it. As 'big picture' as you can," she added, using air quotes.
The redhead looked startled. "Are you sure?"
"No, I'm not. So start talking before I change my mind again," Musa replied. Bloom looked hesitant, so the pig-tailed girl made an impatient gesture. "Come on, anything will get me hooked. Please don't make me change my mind again. The rational part of me knows I need to know something."
"Darcy Vidali. (4) I don't know how he met her, but I do know she caused the abrupt change of peers and encouraged the bad attitude. I told you about the one night he scared me—he'd finally gotten the nerve to ask her out or something, and she'd responded favorably. I'd met her once before that day, and I had disliked her the moment she touched my brother possessively. She's two years older than he is, so I knew things were fishy." The redhead closed her eyes and shook her head. "I was so angry when Riven finally opened up to me about all the shit she did. She used him until she found a new little pet. I honestly couldn't believe half the stuff he told me." She opened her eyes, and Musa wasn't surprised by the tears that shone in them. "I just... I can't comprehend it. What kind of a person plays mind games with someone like that? She screwed with his mind so easily, and I know she enjoyed doing it. I just don't see how or why you could enjoy that..." She swallowed back a sob. "She practically destroyed my brother, and she didn't even care, Muse..."
Impulsively, Musa reached out and hugged the redhead just as the girl started shaking with silent sobs. Musa felt tears running down her own face as her heart broke for both the brother and the sister. "I don't know why those sorts of people are in the world, Bloom," she replied quietly. "And I'm so sorry that he went through that. But he made it, and he's doing really well, despite all that, right? He fought to become what he is now, and even though he feels the need to be on guard, he still managed to become friends with all sorts of people. I mean, he's friends with my cousin." That received a weak laugh, and Musa squeezed the girl slightly before pulling away from her. "And for some reason, I like assholes who only want to show affection towards their little sisters and use too much hair gel."
Bloom choked out a laugh and wiped ineffectively at the tears on her face.
That was when a certain blonde decided to finally show up. He stopped short at the sight of his cousin and her friend in tears. "Are you two okay?" he asked concernedly.
Both girls jumped as he spoke, and one face lit up while the other darkened. Unfortunately, the one with the dark expression spoke first. "Where the hell have you been!? Do you have any idea what time it is!?" Musa snapped. "All of us have been worried sick because you apparently couldn't find a spare moment of time to let anyone know you were all right!"
Sky winced visibly, and as Musa took a breath to continue, Bloom reached out and put a hand on her arm. "Musa, don't," she admonished quietly. The raven-haired girl's mouth snapped shut, but her expression didn't change. Bloom shifted her gaze to Sky, and she patted the couch. "Sky, come sit."
The blonde boy hesitated, but he did Bloom's bidding and sat stiffly next to her.
"So," the redhead sighed with a slight smile. "Where have you been?"
Sky sighed and pushed a hand through his blonde locks. "For the past couple of hours, I've been at the park."
Bloom frowned at that response, but she nodded. "All right, I'll accept that. Is there any particular reason you didn't text anyone?"
He sighed softly as he looked away from her. "I just didn't want to talk to anyone yet." Her next question surprised him enough to make him look back at her.
"Are you okay?" When he looked at her confusedly, the redhead added, "You looked lost during rehearsal this afternoon. I've been worried about it. Well, actually, a lot of us have. That's kind of why Musa's mad."
Sky frowned and looked away in slight embarrassment. "I'm sorry. It wasn't my intention to worry any of you. I just had a lot on my mind, and still do, really."
The redhead hesitated before asking, "Do you want to talk about it?"
The blonde shook his head. "Not really. I'm sick of thinking about it, honestly."
Bloom's wince did not go entirely unnoticed. "All right, then," the redhead replied quietly with somewhat forced cheer. "I can understand that." She pushed herself up from the couch and smiled slightly at the two cousins. "Well, I'm tired, so I'm gonna head to bed. Good night, Muse. Night, Sky." She started walking away before she even finished speaking.
"Good night, Bloom," Sky returned, though he seemed slightly crestfallen. Musa thought it served him right.
"Night, B!" the raven-haired girl called out. She waited about sixty seconds before she turned on Sky. "Are you just that stupid?" she hissed.
The blonde frowned. "What are you—"
"Bloom, you idiot! I'm talking about Bloom! You know, the redhead who's quite possibly in love with you?" she snapped. "She's been worried sick about you all evening, and then she's totally patient with you about it and acts all considerate when none of the rest of us would, and all you do is give her short answers that only make her more worried! Do you even realize how much she hurts when you're upset?"
"Musa, what do you want me to do? You get pissed off if I act like everything's fine, but when I don't pretend, you get angry with me, too. You've recently been irritated about me even talking to Bloom, but you're practically saying I should tell her what's wrong so that she can try to help. I can't do both."
Azure eyes glinted angrily. "Be her friend! I don't care if you talk to her, Sky, but you can't flirt with her, and you sure as hell can't look at her like you want to kiss her. Not unless you plan on doing something about it. And I don't mean months from now—I mean within, at most, two weeks. I've told you before that she's not someone you can toy with, and every day I think that more and more."
Sky gritted his teeth, his hands clenching into fists. "I'm not toying with her, Musa! I actually like her. But it seems like all of you forget that I also liked Diaspro, and I didn't want to be the guy who breaks up with his current girlfriend because a new girl came along. That's not a good enough reason for me."
Musa crossed her arms and snorted. "Yeah, because leading two girls on is so much better. That won't come back to bit you in the ass," she retorted sarcastically.
The blonde closed his eyes tightly and released a harsh noise through his teeth. "Musa, I really am tired of having this conversation with you, and I seriously don't want to talk about it after the day I've had."
"Oh, of course, Your Highness," the raven-haired girl snapped. "Excuse me for worrying about my new best friend before I thought about how this discussion would just be so stressful after the day you've had." She stood with a scoff and started to head out of the living room. "I'm going to bed."
The blonde released a groan of frustration before chucking the nearest object (a pillow) across the room. He hadn't expected anyone to be up when he arrived, so it had been a shock to run into Bloom and Musa. And though he'd honestly wanted to tell them both what was bothering him, he couldn't bring himself to do it. And then Musa had viciously attacked him when Bloom left, and he had instinctively defended himself, which had ended up with him really not being able to tell his cousin that he'd already broken up with Diaspro. And if he were totally honest with himself, he'd like for Bloom to be the first one he told since she would likely be sympathetic first and happy later—which was what he really needed. The others would just be pissed and irrational about it.
"Jeez, this is just ridiculous," he muttered aloud to himself, rubbing his hands over his face.
"Um, Sky?" The soft, hesitant voice had his head whipping around to look at the girl shifting awkwardly at the entrance to the living room. "I... kind of assumed you and Musa would argue when I left, so when I heard her go into the guest room she's staying in with Tecna, I figured I'd show you to the room you'll be staying in with your sister."
In all the fuss, Sky had completely forgotten Savannah was staying the night, too. "Damn it. I can't do anything right today," he hissed, burying his face in his hands. He was somewhat thankful that Bloom stayed silent as he tried to calm down. After a couple of minutes, he released a sigh and stood from the couch. "If you could show me to my room, that would really be awesome, Bloom."
The redhead managed a sleepy smile and a nod before she turned around and guided him through the house like an expert. When she stopped at one of the doors on the second floor, she quietly turned the knob to reveal a bedroom with a queen-sized bed and a small form on it. "Here you go. Brandon's room is right next to this one, and he's bunking with Timmy. Mine and Flora's is two doors back that way, and there's a bathroom right across the hall," the redhead detailed. "So unless you can think of anyone else you may need to bother, I'll see you in a few hours."
When she turned to walk back to her room, he stopped her by briefly touching her shoulder. "Thank you, Bloom. And... I'm sorry I worried you earlier. You and Musa were right; I could have sent someone a text, and it was thoughtless of me not to." He paused and cleared his throat. "And I would like to talk to you about what was bugging me, but I don't think I can handle that tonight. Can I get a rain check?" he queried with a sheepish smile as his face flushed.
The way her turquoise eyes glowed up at him caused his heart to start hammering wildly in his chest. "So long as you let me know when, I think something can be arranged," she teased quietly, her face splitting into a grin. "Good night, Blondie," she bade as she walked away. (5)
Sky was almost positive he was grinning like an idiot as he walked into the guest room and closed the door. It wasn't until he was pulling the covers back that he realized he'd left his suitcase in his car, which meant he'd be sleeping in his clothes from earlier that day, but he was too tired to care.
Savannah stirred slightly as he slipped into the bed beside her, and she peered at him sleepily. "Sky? What time is it?"
"It's really late. Just go back to sleep, sweetie," he murmured, brushing her hair back from her face.
The younger girl curled up closer to him. "I wanted to wait up for you, but Bloom said she would."
Sky smiled sadly. "She did wait up for me."
Savannah's eyes slipped closed, even as she fought to stay awake. "I knew she would. She stayed with me until I fell asleep."
Sky's heart clenched painfully at that. "She's very sweet, isn't she?"
"Mhmm. I wanna be like that when I grow up," the strawberry-blonde mumbled nearly incoherently.
The blonde boy chuckled. "I'm sure you will be."
"Sky?" It was obvious she was half asleep.
"Hm?"
"Are you gonna marry her someday?"
He laughed and placed a kiss on the top of her head. "I don't know, Savannah. Let's see about getting her to agree to being my girlfriend first."
Savannah nodded. "Okay." And then after a pause, she added, "I would be happy if you did marry her because she makes you happy. Really happy, not the way Diaspro does."
The blonde chuckled again, brushing his fingers through her hair. "Like I said; we'll see. Go back to sleep now, sweetie."
They were both almost entirely asleep a couple minutes later when Savannah mumbled, "I love you."
Sky roused himself enough to hug her tightly and smile. "I love you, too."
(1) I know this does not coincide with what you guys are used to seeing, but I couldn't see any reason for Sky to stay with Diaspro for two years over something shallow about how she treated him, and so I came up with this. I could honestly see her playing out whatever sort of girl she had to when they were alone in order to make him stay with her—make it seem like he's the only one that gets to see the "real" her. The reason she's suddenly being affectionate with him again is because she's worried, and she's been advised by one of her "friends" that she needs to do something.
(2) So, that scene. You might notice that it's rather flat compared to the other scenes involving couples. Mainly because I meant for it to be that way. What Diaspro's doing there is a turn-off for Sky; he doesn't enjoy being manhandled since he wouldn't do that to someone else. And Diaspro's kind of unattached from the whole thing; she really is only doing it for the reason Sky thinks she is. I'm not too fond of that scene, honestly. It took me forever to write, and I think it's shit. But whatever. I left it in there because I wanted to show that what Brandon said in the beginning of chapter two is correct: she just wants to claim he's hers. :/
(3) Two things I want to state here. One—I am not a Nickelodeon era Winx Club fan, nor did I have the option of watching the RAI version. So his name is Baltor, not Valtor. Do not say I've given him the wrong name because the voices I have in my head while writing this are from the 4kids version, and I personally like Baltor more than Valtor. Two—I used the last name of the Italian voice actor for Baltor's last name. In case you were curious~
(4) So~ Vidali is the last name of the voice actress for Stormy in the Italian version (I think). Just in case you were curious. None of the other names seemed to fit the three sisters, and I wasn't going to call them Trix since I want it to be a family name—they're not anywhere near as rich as Sky, but they're still upper class.
(5) In case you're curious, she only calls him "Blondie" when she's feeling comfortable enough to tease him without it being something that could ruin the moment. So her calling him that means that things are okay between them, basically; at least, in regards to things that he was doing purposely.
I had issues with the ending of this chapter. I had no idea where to stop it, and I didn't really want to leave it off with all this crap going on without any sort of real stopping point. So then I just kept writing after Musa ditched Sky in the living room, and the result is what you see above. Hopefully it's good, and not bad, but feel free to tell me if you hate it. I didn't make a note of it, but Musa and Sky have problems with being open with each other, which is why they argue about Bloom. Not to mention, to Musa, Sky's kind of doing what Darcy did, and it just makes her mad that he doesn't seem to want to take action. But he's a spoiled, rich kid; unfortunately, he's just used to everything falling into place for him. He has to learn that it doesn't work that way, which is what Musa's trying to convey. He's just not comprehending just yet.
Anyway, it's nearly 1:30 am, and I'm having to work for my mom until she can actually hire a person for the job position they open at her work. So, I need to get some shut eye.
I hope you guys enjoyed these chapters! I will go ahead and say that it may be a couple weeks before I can update again since I need to talk with Sarah about the next chapter, but it could be done within the next week. We'll see, yes? C: Anyway~ I'd really love it if you guys reviewed, but it's not really necessary for me to continue to update. (I think it's rude when authors say they won't update unless they get "x" amounts of reviews.)
Until next time! ;D
THE DYNAMIC DUO IS SIGNING OUT~!