I don't own Winx Club or the story cover.

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Book I - Chapter III: Death By Sugarrush

Updated 13/11/22

"I don't mean to pry –" I bit back my smile as Stella sauntered into my bedroom, not bothering to knock and entering like she owned the place. I would have to get used to that. "– but I overheard you and your father arguing before I joined and I just…"

I knew where this was going. I had had a similar conversation with a handful of Bloom's friends after they discovered I was on medication. "Yeah, I am on medication," I told her before she could ask, shooting her a warm smile. "Three types."

Stella played with the ring of her finger – the one I guessed turned into her sceptre – as she sat down on the bed beside my suitcase. "What for?"

I shrugged, pausing with packing. "I don't know if they have something similar in your realm, but here mental health can be a real problem. I am currently on something for my anxiety, for my depression, and for my psychoses. The latter was what my dad was talking about. I also take that one to help me sleep."

"Magic can cure a lot of things, but the mind remains a mystery." Stella's smile was absent for once. "Depression is something universal, Bloom. You don't need to worry about being the only one." I pretended to shrug it off, but inwardly I was happy to hear that. Back at Gardena high Bloom had been the only one diagnosed with mental health problems, and I knew people talked about it behind my back. "That was not why I am asking…" She hesitated. "Do you remember I asked you about odd incident? Things you couldn't explain, and that they are usual for magical creatures?"

"Yeah…" I nodded, frowning. Where this was going? "But I am sorry, I can't remember any of those incidents. Maybe Mike and Vanessa can shed some light, but…"

Stella raised a hand, shaking her head. "That is what I am trying to hint at. I don't know how things are here on Earth, but on Solaria most medication influences someone's magic and not in a good way. Your aura is so powerful…" She hesitated for a moment. "You should have noticed you had magic before stepping in to safe me. That you haven't…" Her voice drifted off.

I sat down beside her, chewing on my lip as I repeated her words in my head. "Are you saying that my medication is possibly blocking my magic?"

"I am saying that it is odd that someone with your aura hasn't noticed before that she has powers," corrected Stella, her brows furrowed in worry. "But I am not a healer. It is possible your medication is to blame. It could be something else. It could even be both." I let that sink in for a moment. "Here." Stella suddenly turned to me, her smile back and her eyes sparkling eagerly. "Anyone with magic can do this. Palms open." I did as she said. "Now close your eyes and focus on them." I obeyed, closing my eyes. "Try to feel the air moving past your skin, how it slips through your fingers." I focussed, but barely felt anything. "Now imagine you can capture that wind in the palm of your hand." My brows furrowed as I tried to do what she said, but nothing happened. I barely even felt the wind. "Hmm…"

My eyes instantly opened and I found Stella frowning. "Nothing is happening." She nodded, twirling her ring around her finger again. Doubt gnawed at my mind. Bloom was supposed to be really powerful. Maybe our body swapping had messed it up rather than the medication. Why would Earth medication block magic? They didn't even believe it existed. "Are you sure I have a powerful aura?"

"Absolutely."

"Can you explain to me what a powerful aura looks like?"

I suppressed the urge to tug at my own hair in desperation. I wanted to figure this out, understand why I hadn't noticed before that I had powers. In the cartoon Bloom's own self-doubt had been what had suppressed her powers. That wasn't what was happening with me, right? Right?

Stella's eyebrows shot up. "You can't see my power aura?"

"Now I feel really stupid…" I sighed miserably. I didn't like feeling stupid. I always aimed to be the smartest in the room. "What even is a power aura?"

"Hmm… How to explain this right…" Stella drummed absently on her knee. "It is a sort of light you radiate. The more powerful you are, the clearer the light. With fairies that light is- well, light. But take witches for examples, or wizards who indulge in negative energy. Their light is darker. Witches are a little more difficult to pinpoint as well because they learn more spells over the years. Usually the older witches have a much larger light than younger ones. It is when that aura is really dark that you have to be careful because that is a sign they use dark magic."

I grimaced. "And you see those auras all the time?"

"Oh, dear Arcadia, no! That would be quite tiresome," chuckled Stella. "It is something you can summon. I was taught to summon it automatically when I meet a new person. Others summon it for a moment when they enter somewhere new, just to take a quick look around and feel the area."

"You mean spot potential threats?" I guessed and Stella shrugged with a laugh. I remembered the auras I had seen while off my medication. The different colours around people that seemed to mingle and create one colour haze. It sounded a lot like what Bloom had been able to do for like one episode. "What about emotions?" Stella arched an eyebrow at me. "Can you see what other people feel just by watching their auras?"

A shadow crossed over her face. "That is incredibly rare," she told me, her voice somewhat guarded. "You would be able to see into someone's mind and if you can see into their mind, you can control it. As far as I know, only those high on dark magic have that ability and even then, it is limited. Like I said earlier, the mind is still a mystery and to gain even a small amount control over it…" She drifted off and I eagerly waited for her to finish. She never did, instead pulled another smile onto her face. "Did you make all these yourself?" She pointed to one of the drawings on the wall. "They are really good!"

I pouted a little at the abrupt change of subject. "Clearly this is a topic she would rather not discuss. Write it down and once you are at Alfea you can investigate to your heart's contempt."

I nodded in answer to her question. "I got a scholarship offer from the University of California, but I turned it down."

"I have no idea what that means," giggled Stella. "But it sounds like a pretty big thing."

"Here on Earth it is. A scholarship is basically a school willing to pay for your education if you come study for them. Most scholarships are based on someone's talent for sports. In this case it was because of my talent for drawing." And that reminded me of something. Another thing they had never mentioned in the cartoon but I had started to wonder about after writing things down. "Stella, do I have to pay for my education at Alfea?"

She waved a hand at me. "Oh, don't you worry about that."

That was answer enough and I crossed my arms warningly. "Stella."

"Fine!" She threw her hands in the air with a pout. "Usually you apply for Alfea about a year before you want to start. If you don't pay straight up for it, you have to come down to Magix for an interview. To see if you meet their admission requirements. You have to explain why you want to become a fairy and why Alfea is THE place for you, and all of that. Daddy says it is just to see how powerful someone is and if you are powerful enough, they will accept you." She crossed her legs with an elegance I found rather astonishing. "If you are accepted, you can either pay straight up for an entire year or agree to do it in semesters. Some girls start the year only to realise it is not really their thing, and then they drop back out. They usually pay every semester because they are just trying to figure out what suits them best. Others start and then take a break before enrolling later again. It is all an option."

I arched a sceptic eyebrow. "And how exactly will I get into Alfea if I didn't go through any of that?"

Stella shot me her trademark smile. "First of all, when they see your aura, they will be begging you to become their student." I rolled my eyes at how dramatic she was saying that. "And second, everything is already paid for."

"How?" I asked doubtfully. "I didn't even know I would be going to Alfea until an hour ago."

"Simple." She snapped her fingers and a letter appeared in her hand. "Because you will be taking the place of the princess of Callisto." She winked at me. "I think of everything, you see."

"Except that I am not the princess of Callisto," I pointed out drily. "And I would be the last person in the universe who could pass as a princess."

Stella waved her hand dismissively at me. "Nonsense. The royal family of Callisto keep to themselves and prefer the company of other royal families. Nobody outside the royal families even knows what she looks like. Varanda – Callisto's youngest princess – and I basically grew up together. Ever since I announced I would be attending Alfea, she wanted too as well. A bit of a follower, you see. It is extremely annoying and rather pathetic if you ask me. Anyway, she applied for it herself, but at the last moment her parents managed to change her mind on the matter. They weren't too happy with one of their children going to a "peasant" school. She asked me to give this to Alfea's headmistress. But alas." Stella shrugged. "I mysteriously lost it while I was on my way and if it just so happens that a different girl enters Alfea with me and claims to be Varanda of Callisto…"

"Absolutely not." I shook my head violently. "Stella, I am not lying to get into Alfea."

Stella grinned, shrugging innocently. "It is just a little white lie, Bloom. And like I already said a million times, when they see your aura they won't care who you are."

"Then let me explain it to the headmistress," I tried. "If what you say is true, then I can take Varanda's place without having to pretend to be her." I shook my head again. "I am not lying about my identity, Stella."

"I just can't." I grimaced at the thought along. "I am only just getting used to responding and being called Bloom. If I have to teach myself to learn to respond to Varanda of Callisto as well… I would probably have a meltdown just by trying to keep up with the all lies."

Stella wasn't convinced. "I am not sure that is wise, Bloom. It is not the headmistress you need to worry about. It is the head of discipline: Griselda. She is a mean old hag who follows the rules to the letter. If you admit you are not on the list, that you haven't applied, she won't care for the reason and just turn you away."

"Then let me worry about that." I grasped Stella's hand, forcing her to meet my eyes. I shot her my secret weapon and instantly saw the result. "Please, Stella."

She stared at me, blinking once and then twice, before gazing away. "Alright… But I don't like it."

"I noticed." I couldn't bite back the smile, tilting my head slightly to observe her. "Why are you so determined to have me attend Alfea with you?"

Stella shrugged, twiddling with her ring again, and avoided my eyes. "I owe you, remember?"

"Hmm-hmm." I gently nudged her with my shoulder. "The fact that you aren't looking at me while saying that means there is something else. But I won't force you to tell me. Just know that I am really grateful." I chewed on my lip, hesitating for a moment – would this be too cheesy? – before adding: "You are a really good friend, Stella."

Her head snapped up, her eyes almost popping out and her lips parting. "Wh-what…?"

I chuckled at the flabbergasted look on her face. "You are a really good friend," I repeated with a laugh. "I am glad you crash landed here on Earth."

A genuine smile tugged on her lips and I noticed her eyes were clouding over again. "I am too…" In that moment Kiko interrupted our chat by jumping beside us on the bed. "Oh, he is absolutely adorable!" Kiko's tail shot up at her excited voice and he eagerly padded over to her, purring loudly when she started to pet him. "Please tell me you are taking him with you!"

"Where I go, Kiko goes," I assured her, watching with a fond smile as Stella gushed over my kitten. Then I remembered a little detail: Bloom was the only one at Alfea who had had a pet. "Wait, am I even allowed to bring him? Are pets allowed at Alfea?"

Stella gave a half shrug. "There are no rules that forbid it. Not like Cloudtower."

A shiver ran down my spine at the name of the school of witches, the one the Trix would be attending. "Cloudtower?" I swallowed at the squeak in my voice and gave myself a mental kick. "Pull yourself together, Sybil." "Is that another magical school?"

"Hmm-hmm." Stella barely paid attention to me, tickling Kiko on his stomach which he was shamelessly showing her. "Cloudtower is the school for witches."

"And you mentioned Beta Academy," I urged on, desperate to get more information. The more I knew, the better prepared I was. "What is that?" She shot me a somewhat annoyed look that I was interrupting her quality time with my cat and I rolled my eyes in response. "Since he is coming with me, you will have all the time in the world to pet him whenever you like. I still have questions. Tons of them."

Stella pouted slightly, but answered nonetheless. "There are six magical schools in Magix. Alfea is the school for fairies, then there is Cloudtower, the school for witches. Closest to those two is Red Fountain, a school for warriors. The other three are a little further away. Beta Academy is a school for wannabees. They teach positive and elemental magic as well as negative magic. I heard they even teach some dark magic. They don't care whether you are a fairy or a witch, as long as you have magic and are ambitious. With them it is all about power, which is why it doesn't have the finest of reputations." She shook her head in dismay. "The last two schools are for paladins and wizards. There is the Malacoy Paladion Academy, and then there is the Gamera University for wizards."

I frowned. "What is the difference between a paladin and a wizard? Surely they both possess magic?"

"True." Stella shrugged. "Honestly, it is all a little unclear. The true difference – or the one I had to learn – is that paladins use magic for defence while wizards use it for offense." My frown deepened and she giggled. "Yeah, I don't really get it either. Some people claim that paladins are more like fairies and have wings while wizards are more like witches, but I know plenty of paladins and most can't fly."

I rubbed my forehead. "Damn, my head feels like it is about to explode. Speaking about an information overload."

Stella pursed her lips, her eyes taking me in critically. "You look awful," she told me bluntly. "Is your skin always this red? It doesn't suite you at all."

I couldn't help but laugh. "Stella, you are the princess of the sun. Surely you know what a sunburn is."

She tilted an eyebrow. "A what?"

"A sunburn," I repeated, the smile fading. "You honestly don't know what a sunburn is?" Stella shook her head, blinking confused at me. "Well, a sunburn is something you get when you go outside in the sun without any protection and you end up getting burned."

"Why would the sun do that?" wondered Stella with a deep frown and some indignation. "The sun gives light and life. Those who love it shouldn't be hurt by it."

"I guess it is an Earth thing." I scratched myself on the back of my head, feeling rather dumb again. "Anyway, my skin and the sun don't exactly like one another. It is because I am a redhead. My skin is really pale and doesn't tan. If I don't wear any protection or stay out in it for too long, I end up with this." I mentioned towards my red skin. "I try to avoid sunlight as much as possible, but after our fight in the clearing I fainted right in the middle of it." I yelped as Stella jabbed a finger onto my red skin. "Hey! That hurts!"

Stella grimaced. "Sorry. I didn't think… I really am sorry. I was just curious what it feels like." She smiled shily. "It feels like normal skin."

"That is because it is," I explained with a huff. "The only differences are the colour and the temperature. Think of it as your skin being on fire. And a severe sunburn can be harmful as well. I once had a fever because of how bad I was burned." I mentioned towards my skin. "Right now it is just really painful."

"Hmm…" Stella tapped a finger against her lips. "Can I try something?"

I eyed her wearily, not liking the look on her face. "Like what?"

Apparently, she took that as a yes because the next moment light was shooting from her fingers as she called out: "Recens."

A curtain of solid ice fell over me and attached itself to my skin. The suddenness ripped a startled scream out of my throat. "What the hell was that?!" I wrapped my arms around myself, my teeth chattering. "Are you trying to freeze me to death?!"

Stella laughed merrily. "No, silly. Look!" She pointed to my skin. I followed her finger and my jaw dropped. "I cured you."

The burning redness – the one that tended to hurt just by looking at it – was gone and instead my usual paleness was back. I gently touched my skin, biting back a wince as I found it still tender. But not as painful as before.

"Wow, you really are pale," chuckled Stella. "I don't believe we have people that pale on Solaria."

The cold continued to last and I carefully rubbed my hands over my arms, clenching my jaws on top one another to stop my teeth from chattering. "Redheads are probably a rarity in your realm."

Stella tapped her finger absently on her chin. "I can't remember meeting a redhead before. You are probably the first." Her smile brightened. "You know what the funniest thing is? When my mother went to Alfea her best friend was also a redhead." I just shot her a tense smile in answer.

"Are you girls alright?" Vanessa appeared in the door opening. "We heard a scream."

"That was me," I managed to bring out through clattering teeth. "Stella helped me to get rid of the sunburn." I turned to the girl in question. "When is this cold passing?"

"Uh…" Stella grinned sheepishly. "Soon?"

"You don't know?" My eyes widened as that hit home, my anger instantly flaring. "Are you telling me you used a spell on me you came up with on the spot?!"

Stella shrugged innocently. "It worked, didn't it?"

"I'm freezing!" I snapped, baring my teeth at her.

"There, there." Vanessa quickly approached us. "Why don't you take a shower, Bloom? That ought to warm you up. And afterwards we can decide on what we will eat."

"Eat…" An idea popped into my head. "If we eat out, then Knut and his ghouls can't track us to the house and when they attack, they won't destroy it."

"Brilliant!" I grinned at Vanessa. "Thanks, mom." Vanessa blinked confused but I turned to Stella. "Have you ever been on Earth before?"

Stella shook her head. "Earth is off-limits," she explained. "Since there is no magic on it and the people don't believe in it, no-one is supposed to visit it. To avoid hostility."

"Hmm. Another thing I better write down later." I quickly made a mental note to do so. "Then you should definitely taste some of the finest food Earth has to offer. Does pizza exist in your realm?"

Stella frowned, but her eyes sparkled eagerly. "What is pizza?"

"I think I know what we will be eating today." Vanessa chuckled as my smile brightened.

"Earth is a really funny realm." Stella was bouncing beside me while Mike and Vanessa followed in our shadow. We had just finished eating at our local pizzeria and were currently on our way to introduce Stella to the wonderful thing called ice-cream. "But somehow also incredibly peaceful."

"What makes you say that, dear?" wondered Vanessa from behind us. She had been asking Stella all sorts of questions throughout dinner, eager to learn more of the realms far away from ours. Stella had tried to indulge her with as much information as possible, though she usually settled on telling us the latest gossip.

"Well, take that for example." Stella pointed to the moon which was now hanging high in the sky above us. "You only have one."

"You say that as if one is rare." I let out a surprised chuckle. "Are you telling us you have more?"

"We have three," explained Stella cheerfully. "Three moons and three suns."

Mike and I exchanged a look. Vanessa eagerly asked on. "How does that work?"

Stella shrugged. "I am not sure. I was never that into astrology. But they belong to our realm and circle around us. The other realms circle around them again, which is how most of them get their light." She laughed. "You could say Solaria is the centre of the Magic Dimension." She then pointed to the moon. "How does yours works?"

"The moon belongs to our planet," I explained. "It circles around us but doesn't actually give any light. It simply reflects the light from the sun. Our sun is quite some distance away and our planet along with every other planet in our solar system circle around it. But we are the only one with life on it."

Stella's eyebrows shot up. "Really?"

I nodded. "Our sun is incredibly hot. It is basically one entire boiling soup. The planets closest to it bear the full force of its heat. They are like volcanoes. Uh… Do you know what a volcano is? Do they have that in the Magic Dimension?" Stella nodded. "Well, at least I won't have to explain that then. The planets further from the sun get less light and are therefore a lot colder. Earth just happens to be exactly in the right spot for life to be possible."

"Oh!" Stella bounced on her feet again. "This is all so exciting!" She turned to Mike and Vanessa with a bright smile. "Can I visit again? I rather like your realm. I especially love the food."

Mike seemed to contemplate that but Vanessa as the loving woman she was instantly smiled. "You are welcome anytime, dear."

Stella abruptly wrapped an arm around mine and grinned. "You must visit Solaria. It is only fair I return the favour and show you our customs and favourite cuisines. You will love it."

Stella's happiness proved to be rather infectious and I couldn't contain my own grin, a giddy feeling twisting inside me. "I would like that."

She turned back to Mike and Vanessa. "You are welcome as well, of course. I am sure I can convince my father to make an exception for you. After how you helped and welcomed me, he can't do anything but accept and show you some proper Solarian hospitality in return."

While Vanessa was only more than eager to take her up on that offer, Mike seemed to have his doubts. I laughed at the face he pulled when Vanessa wholeheartedly accepted the invitation, which earned me a glare.

Stella hummed contently as we walked arm-in-arm through the streets. "You know, I do not even miss the buzz of magic."

"There is always magic in the air in your realm?" My eyebrows practically flew up. "Doesn't that get tiring?"

"Tiring, no. Annoying, yes," stated Stella matter-of-factly. "Everything works on magic where I come from. The lights, the cars, even the serving and cleaning of tables. As a magical creature, it is easy to pick up on it. It is like a constant hum in the background that you just can't tune out." She smiled as we passed under a street light. "Things are much more peaceful here." Her eyes widened as someone on a bike shot past us and she shamelessly pointed. "What is that?"

I chuckled at her childish curiosity. "It's called a bicycle."

Stella's eyes nearly popped out now. "How do you move it? Or keep it up right?"

"Balance mostly," I shrugged. "And you move it by pushing on the pedals."

"So no magic?" Stella concluded. I nodded. "And nothing like- like that oil stuff your cars need to move?" I nodded again, but she frowned. "I don't think I understand…"

This time Mike did the explaining, though judging by the growing confusion on Stella's face his lecture on wheels, frames, pedals, chains and cranks, was going in one ear and the straight out of the other. But when he finished, she nodded and brought out a "Oh, I see…"

"You didn't get any of that, did you?" I whispered to her as we walked on.

Stella smiled sheepishly. "Was it that obvious?"

"Don't worry," I assured her. "Mike isn't that observant and it doesn't really matter if you understood it." Stella shot me a grateful look. "Besides, I get the feeling I will have to ask you in the future plenty of times to explain things and then end up not understanding them."

Stella nodded, her eyes sparkling as she gazed back up at the sky. "While I still think it would be best to pretend you are Varanda of Callisto to get into Alfea, I do hope that headmistress Faragonda will help you to settle into the Magic Dimension after learning you grew up somewhere without magic." She tilted her head slightly to the side. "How is that even possible?"

"How Earth doesn't have any magic?" I clarified, not fully understanding her question. "I don't know. I thought if anyone would know it is you."

"Not that." Stella shook her head. "You have magic, but your parents don't." She shot Mike and Vanessa an apologetic smile. "Sorry, but you have no aura whatsoever…"

"That is quite alright, Stella," assured Vanessa her with a motherly smile. "No harm done. It is the truth after all."

Stella turned back to me. "How is that possible? Magic is passed on from parents to their children."

"My parents are my parents in every essence of the word –" I shot Mike and Vanessa a loving smile, my stomach twisting uncomfortably as I spoke the words and a little voice in my mind calling me a liar. "– except the biological part."

"We adopted Bloom when she was a baby," clarified Vanessa. "Mike rescued her from a fire but no one came forward to claim her, therefore she was put up for adoption and we jumped to the chance."

"Oh, that is so sweet!" gushed Stella. "Adoption is a rare thing in my realm, but it is considered one of the noblest things to do!" She practically hugged my arm. "You are so lucky, Bloom."

I smiled tensely, my stomach tightening even more. "Yeah… I am…"

Stella abruptly gasped and froze. "Do you know what that means?" I exchanged a glance with Mike and Vanessa, who seemed just as confused by Stella's sudden mood swings.

"I probably should have limited her sugar intake. Maybe getting her ice-cream is not the best idea…"

"It means you most likely come from somewhere in the Magic Dimension." Stella grinned brightly at me, bouncing on her feet again. "You are a real mystery! How exciting is that?!"

"Maybe we should introduce her to ice-cream the next time she visits," suggested Mike, like he had read my mind. I nodded in agreement.

"A stroll should do her good," chuckled Vanessa. "Burn off some of those sugars."

"Stella." The girl fell silent in the middle of her crazy theories on who I could possibly be, unaware of the conversation we had just had. "Would you like to see a little bit more of our town?" I hadn't needed to ask. Naturally she was all for that.

The next handful of hours we showed Stella as much of Gardena as we could, including Vanessa's flower shop and Mike's work. We had to drag her away when she caught sight of all the clothing stores. She was practically drooling in front of them, and then entertained us with the latest fashion trends in Magix for what seemed hours.

We were nearly home when a familiar feeling swept over me. The static electricity I had encountered in the park was back, humming softly but not close enough that I could pinpoint it. At the same time the hair on the back of my neck stood straight up. Danger was lurking nearby.

I halted, forcing Stella to an abrupt stop since she was still clinging to my arm. "Do you feel that?"

For the first time since leaving the house her smile vanished. The lines in her forehead crinkled as she focussed, her lips quirking down. "Yeah… Dark magic."

"What?" squeaked Mike, his eyes darting around. "Where?"

Stella ignored him, exchanging a worried glance with me. The threat of danger seemed to have kicked her off her sugar high. "They are keeping their distance to prevent us from spotting them. Clever bastards."

My stomach turned unpleasantly. "An ambush." Stella nodded. "If it is that giant again –"

"Ogre."

"– then we will be seriously outnumbered." I swallowed. "And I doubt I will be much help."

She winked at me. "Don't sell yourself short, Bloom. You did save my life, remember? And we were seriously outnumbered then as well." She turned to Mike and Vanessa. "It is probably for the best you two go on and head home. If we are dealing with the same attackers, then they will come after me and leave you alone."

"And leave you two to fend for yourselves?" Mike shook his head firmly, despite the fact he was shaking on his legs. "I don't think so."

"Dad." I grasped his hand urgently. "She is right. There is not much you and mom can do."

"Bloom." Vanessa grasped my shoulders. "We are not leaving you."

I scowled at them. In the cartoon they made it out safely but I had already changed a handful of things and the reality proved to be a little more dangerous. I couldn't assure their safety if they stuck around.

"You don't understand," I tried to reason with them, balling my hands into fists. Why couldn't they just listen? "You won't be able to defend yourself and these creatures have already proven they are not above killing to get what they want. They will not hesitate to attack you as well."

"And that is exactly why we can't leave you," pointed Mike out. "How could we possibly safe ourselves and leave you in such peril?"

"Your concern is touching," I snapped. Vanessa gasped. "But what good will it do if it costs you your life?"

Mike crossed his arms, narrowing his eyes. "I don't like your tone, young lady." I huffed angrily. "We are staying and that is final."

My nails dug painfully into my hands as I tried to suppress my anger, the anger which originated from worry. I was not allowing Mike and Vanessa to get hurt by or even catch sight of Knut and his terrifying ghouls. I was a fairy now, wasn't I? And fairies served to protect. What good would it be to go to Alfea if I couldn't even protect the two people in this weird universe that meant most to me?

"It is not final!" I argued hotly. "I am not a child anymore, Mi- dad!" His name burned on my lips but I managed to swallow it just in time. A strong wind whipped past us, tugging at my hair. "The time where you always had to protect me is over! You can't do it! Not anymore and certainly not in this case!" Mike and Vanessa both visibly flinched back. "Go home!" Were that growls I heard? "Please!"

"Too late." Stella flew up to us, the amount of gold she was wearing reflecting in the moonlight and nearly blinding me. When had she transformed? I hadn't even noticed. How could I not have noticed? "Run!"

I turned around and saw the ghouls emerging from the shadows and making a beeline for us. Two more figures emerged as well. Knut was one of them. The other I guessed was a troll.

"Ugh, speaking about ugly!"

The troll looked absolutely nothing like the cartoon. Instead he resembled an old man: bald and completely wrinkled with a large belly. Flaps of skin hung over one another like layers. Something was oozing and dripping down them and there were even things sticking out. I did not even want to think about what they could possibly be.

It was stark naked and unlike the ghouls, it most definitely had the bits I would have preferred to see covered. It was also even bigger than Knut and a lot meaner looking. Worse was the fact that it was drooling and staring hungrily at us.

No, not at us. At me!

Its beady eyes were sunken deep in its skull and surrounded by thick skin – it was amazing it could even see – but nonetheless they were focussed on me. It licked its lips, showing some ugly teeth that put Gollem's to shame, and I instinctively gagged. Something told me I should stay as far away from that thing as possible.

"Bloom!" I tore my gaze away from the ugly creature, finding Stella hovering a few feet away. Mike and Vanessa had clearly listened to her command and were running down the street. Away from our attackers. Away from me. "Run!"

"What good will that do?" whispered that nasty little voice. I really ought to give it a name. "Those ghouls are almost upon you. Look how fast they are. They will catch you in no time. So what are you going to do about it? Or are you too weak to do anything?"

Something about that last sentence made something snap inside me. Maybe it was because my mother had used to call me weak, maybe because it was the one thing I never wanted to feel again. I growled angrily, baring my teeth, as the air crackled around me like lightning and my fingers burned. "I am not WEAK!"

"BLOOM!" screamed Stella in pure panic from behind me.

The ghouls jumped at me. I should have been scared. Terrified. Their green lights shimmered hungrily and their claws were reaching for me.

But I wasn't. Instead, I was calm. Angry, yes, but calm. I had never felt anything like it.

A rush of power and feeling utterly invincible surged through me like a drug and I grinned, loving every ounce of it. I pushed my hands forward and a solid wall of fiery red appeared between me and the ghouls. The disgusting creatures squealed and twisted as they came in contact with it, before exploding into clouds of dust.

My grin widened as I saw their pain and witnessed their destruction. I had never felt more powerful and I wanted it to last. I pushed my hands forward again. I wanted more. More squirming, more destruction, more fear…

Like a beating heart the shield expanded, shooting forward before sinking back around me and then shooting back forward. With each push a ripple of what looked like a ring of fire also shot away from the field and forced the ghouls not within my reach to fall back or else be burned by it.

"That's it," gloated the nasty voice. "That's it. Watch them squirm, watch them burn. Turn them all to ash."

My stomach dropped, the words hitting home. "What?" I gasped at how evil and sadistic my inner thoughts had turned, and how much they were like my mother's. "No! What am I thinking…?"

It was like someone pierced a bubble and I was sent into a free fall. The air was knocked out of me as the shield I had controlled moments earlier exploded inward and I forced me back. At the same time a tiredness that had my knees buckling and black spots dance in front of my eyes, hit me like a train. I fell to my knees, the air refusing to return to my lungs and the world going quiet around me. As if I had gone deaf to everything but my own heartbeat.

"What the hell just happened?"

Before I could figure that out something literally slammed into me. For a moment I was weightless, flying through the air as free as a bird. As quickly as it started, it ended. This time I crashed into something and plummeted into the ground.

"Why does nothing hurt? Why am I so numb?" I struggled to get back up. "Come on, body. Help me out here." I tried harder and the black spots grew. My senses were assaulted by the taste of acid and metal, and I gagged, spitting it out. Useless, it only returned with a vengeance.

I was still in the middle of getting rid of the taste when something grabbed my ankle and I was yanked back. My head slammed into something hard but I felt no pain, only a weird type of pressure.

The black spots limited my vision, my senses were still numb, and I heard nothing but silence. Maybe that was why the smell hit me as hard as it did, my nose being the only thing left working.

"Oh, God! What is that awful stench?! It is like a mixture of rotting flesh, vomit and dead bodies."

I retched, struggling to get away from that disgusting smell that burned in my nostrils and made my eyes water. I could even taste it on my tongue!

I was yanked up by my ankle, my head slammed into something again. The pressure worsened and I could feel something trickle down my ear. But why wasn't I feeling any pain?

The world danced before my eyes, swaying from side to side. Or was I the one swaying?

I had to blink a few times to clear my vision and found myself right in front of…

I screamed and slapped my hands in front of my eyes. "Oh, gross! Excited troll! I could have gone without that image, thank you very much!"

What happened next went by so fast that my hazed mind couldn't keep up. One moment I was hanging upside down in front of – yuck! – and the next moment I was staring up at the Gardena night sky and into the face of a rather cute guy.

He had short blonde hair that framed strong cheekbones, and gorgeous blue eyes – one of my favourite shades – that stared worriedly down at me. I noticed his lips were moving and my eyes flickered to them. They were full and tempting. "I wonder if he is a good kisser…"

Movement in the corner of my eye caught my attention, drawing it away from the cute guy's lips. Another face, this one familiar.

"Stella…"

I was in her arms before I could blink, being squashed against her chest as she practically wrapped herself completely around me. I could feel her shoulders shake, her whole body, but no sound came to me. There wasn't even that annoying beep I had gotten after visiting that concert with Andy.

No, the world was completely and utterly silent. My throat tightened painfully. Surely it would pass, wouldn't it? In a moment everything would come back and I could hear what was happening. Right? Right?

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