Chapter 17

'Maybe they just had to go to the bathroom.' Stella said.

'What are the odds that all of them had to go at the same time' Addy rolled her eyes

'I just think we're overreacting.' Stella replied.

'Stella's right. I'm sure there is a simple explanation. No need to panic.' Musa looked at Icy and Darcy who got increasingly more nervous.

It had been a few minutes since they noticed Medora, Stormy and Flora were missing.

'Yeah, maybe Medora just wanted to talk to Stormy. You know, from mother to daughter and they wanted to have that conversation in a less crowded place' Brandon said.

'Now we can panic.' Darcy sighed. A short glance at her sister told her that the ice witch had the same thought.

They knew their sister. She's hotheaded. If she was alone with Medora she would either say something stupid or do something stupid. Darcy wasn't sure which option she prefered.

'Don't be so dramatic.' Musa said. 'Why do witches always assume the worst?'

'…. unacceptable. I'm your mother…' A voice hollered through the room. Medora

Icy immediately shot a That's-why look at Musa.

'How naïve do you think we are?' A second voice screeched. Definitely Stormy.

'You want an answer to that after you set off a silent alarm?' Medora's voice got louder, which meant they were getting closer.

'Oh god, what did she do.' Icy mumbled under her breath and walked a little closer to the voices.

Everyone at the banquet turned around to see what the commotion was about.

'Don't you think our distrust is reasonable?' The third voice surprised them. That was Flora. Why was she there?

'I don't see how this conversation involves you, whoever you are.' Medora's tone sounded dismissive.

'Don't talk to her like that.'

'Or else..?' Medora basically provoked her, which was a stupid move. Stormy tended to understand things like that as an invitation.

'Alright, I know I'm going to regret asking, but what happened?' Icy looked at Stormy.

'As if you don't know.' Medora hissed

'It might surprise but I'm not omniscient.' Icy rolled her eyes.

'Then let me enlighten you.' Medora pointed at Stormy and Flora. 'These two tried to break into my room. Apparently they thought they could find evidence that I work for the ancestral witches. A thought you cleary put into their heads.' Medora stared at Icy. 'It wouldn't surprise me if you ordered your sister to look through my room.'

'You know what, I don't care what you think' Icy said.

She wasn't in the mood for any confrontation . Especially not infront of an audience. If Medora wanted to think that was her idea, so be it.

'And I'm definitely not going to stay here and listen to any accusations.' Icy added before she turned around to walk away from her stepmother.

'Hey! I'm not finished' Medora said.

Ignore her and keep walking. She won't let up if you stay here. Icy thought.

'What possessed you to try to break into her room!' Darcy hissed at Stormy and Flora

'It was my idea.' Stormy replied quietly.

'Of course it was your idea. What I am surprised about is that you..' The witch of darkness looked at Flora '..went along with it. I thought at least you had some common sense.'

'Darcy, drop it.' Icy said. 'Let's just go.'

'My daughters aren't going anywhere with you.'

For a second Icy thought she didn't properly understand Medora. But as she saw the shocked expressions of Darcy and Stormy she noticed she understood perfectly fine.

'You're deliberately turning them against me. Who knows what lies you have been feeding them.' Medora hissed. 'I don't want them anywhere near you.'

Icy was too stunned to speak, she didn't expect the evening to turn out like that.

'I don't want to.' Stormy whined.

'If you would've used your brain, we wouldn't be in that position.' Darcy rolled her eyes.

'Stop the bickering.' Icy said to Darcy ' I am pretty sure Medora would've made that decision even if they hadn't tried to break into her room.'

'What is taking you two so long?' A voice shouted from the front door.

Medora was determined to keep Icy away from her sisters, so she decided both Darcy and Stormy where going to stay with her for now. Both witches were currently packing their things.

'Her room is only on the other side of the school.' Bloom tried to sooth the situation.

'That doesn't change the fact that they will have to sleep with a maniac next door.' Stella scoffed.

'You think we're going to be able to sleep.' Darcy replied annoyed. 'At least now Stormy will get to see what's inside of her room.' The witch of darkness added sarcastically.

'No bickering in front of Medora' Icy looked at both of her sisters. 'Promise me.'

Both Darcy and Stormy exchanged a short glance before looking at Icy 'Alright.'

'I'm waiting!'

'We better go, I guess.' Darcy said after they heard Medora's voice again.

'Don't let Storm do anything stupid. ' Icy whispered to Darcy who nodded 'If anything happens that seems suspicious to you, you get the hell out of there, got it.'

'What am I ? An amateur?' Darcy scoffed.

'I'm not joking around.' Icy hissed 'Don't let her lull you in. I don't know what she's planning, but it can't be anything good.'

'If we would've left Alfea, like I wanted to , we wouldn't be in that position. ' Darcy replied nonchalantly before turning around and leaving the Winx suit with Stormy.

For a second Icy could see Medora, who just smiled at her and said 'I'll see you tomorrow.' before the door closed. After that the witch immediately went into her room. The winx left her alone for a while, which Icy was grateful for. Occasionally she could hear the fairies talking to Flora, asking her why she would try to break into Medora's room with Stormy.

After some time the bedroom door opened.

'I need to talk to you about something .' Bloom said to Icy.

'I'm not really in the mood to talk.' Icy replied.

Ignoring the witche's comment the fairy conjured up a small fire in the palm of her hand.

Icy raised an eyebrow.

'That's all I can do.' Bloom whispered 'It's like I don't have complete access to my magic anymore. And wherever this flame comes from, it's not part of the dragonflame.'

Icy didn't answer and to be honest she had no idea what she was supposed to say.

'I wanted to talk to my mother about it.' Bloom continued when Icy didn't answer. 'But she…I don't know…has been acting weird.'

'What do you know about her?'

Bloom asked confused 'Why?'

'Call it curiousity.' Icy retorded. 'I'm sure you have done a lot of research about your parents after you found out where you came from'

'My father and her got married pretty young, as far as I know. A year after that Daphne was born. And then almost twelve years later my mother got pregnant with me. ' Bloom started.

'What about her life before she married your father?'

'If you suddenly developed an interest in my mother's backstory I would like to know why.' Bloom crossed her arms.

'Addy said something about her that won't get out of my head.' Icy replied. 'It's alright if you don't want to answer, I could just go to the library and do my own research.'

'You won't find anything there' Bloom sighed 'The earliest record of her is from when she met my father for the first time. He was still crown prince at that time. She was about 14 years old.'

'That's all? Was there anything about her parents?' Icy asked.

'No.' Bloom frowned. 'Icy, what's going on? What did Addy say?'

'Don't worry about it.' The witch replied before changing the topic 'Try to keep practicing your magic. It's a good thing you can cast a flame.'

'But it's not the dragonflame.' Bloom said matter of factly

'Trust me when I tell you, I would like to be able to help you. But I genuinely don't know how.' Icy replied. 'And I can't think of anyone in Alfea who would know what to do.'

That made Bloom think. Maybe she needed to ask someone who was currently not in Alfea.

'….and this will be your room. I hope it's to your…liking.'

'Whatever.' Stormy rolled her eyes and dropped her bag next to the bed. Crossing her arms she turned around and looked at her mother. 'Anything else?'

'Yes, now that you mention it.' Medora replied 'I am still waiting for an apology. You had no right or reason to try to break into my room. Now that you have seen that I have nothing to hide in here, an apology would be appreciated.'

The storm witch wanted to tell her to go to hell, but one look at Darcy who stood behind their mother told her to bite her tongue. There was no need to start a fight right now.

'Sorry.' Stormy mumbled.

'What was that? I didn't quite understand you. You need to speak loud and clear.' Medora said.

'I am sorry. It won't happen again.' The youngest Trix begrudgingly replied. She made sure to stress every single word.

'That's what I thought. Apology accepted.' Medora said with a smug look on her face. 'It's been a long day. You should get ready for bed. Is there anything else you need?'

Stormy only shook her head.

'A verbal reply, please, Stephanie.' Medora sighed.

'I have everything I need.' The storm with gritted her teeth. 'Thank you very much and good night.' She added with a sarcastic undertone.

Medora only slightly shook her head in response. Obviously not pleased by her youngest daughter's behavior towards her, she turned around and walked out of the room.

'Don't cause any more trouble.' Darcy whispered. 'And no snooping around. I doubt she would appreciate that.' The witch of darkness continued. 'Not to mention what Icy would do if she found out about it.'

'Dakota!'

'You better go. Our 'dear mommy' is asking for you.' Stormy sneered. 'Don't worry I will behave.'

Darcy lingered in the doorway for a few seconds before leaving Stormy alone and closing the door. The brunette witch could only hope her younger sister would stay out of trouble.

Taking a deep breath, she walked to Medora.

'My room I guess?' Darcy said and pointed at the door her mother was standing in front off.

When Medora nodded the brunette witch walked past her and opened the door. Darcy noticed how her mother watched her every step. It took her a minute to break the silence.

'Your sister is lacking proper manners and she has a horrible temper.' Medora spoke up. 'I'm glad to see that at least one of my daughters is in control of her emotions.'

Darcy remained quiet.

'Nevertheless I sense your hostility towards me.' Medora continued 'Even though you have barley spoken to me. I can see it in your eyes. Or rather the way you have avoided looking at me.'

The brunette witch still kept quiet. But she turned around and looked at her mother.

'I understand that you don't know me. To you I am just a stranger. Your hesitation is only logical and I don't expect you to trust me right away. In fact I think your cautiousness is a good thing.' Medora walked up to Darcy. She expected her daughter to shy away and take a few steps back. But she didn't.

'What exactly are you aiming for?' Darcy said. 'Why are you here?'

'I want to get to know my daughters.' Medora answered. 'Is that so hard to believe? What exactly has Isabella told you about me?'

Darcy didn't reply.

'Of course, you don't have to answer. I know what she has told you.' Medora continued. 'That I work for the ancestral witches.'

'Do you?'

'Has it ever crossed your mind, that me working for the ancestral witches is one of the fake memory they planted in Isabella's head?' Medora instantly replied.

'Can you proof it?' Darcy scoffed.

'Can you proof it's not.' Medora retorted. 'May I suggest something? How about you form your own opinion. You're a smart girl, you don't need someone else to tell you what to do. How about we talk a bit.'

'Daphne? Daphne, are you there?'

Bloom was in an endless room. Alone.

She wasn't sure if she was doing it the right way. Normally it was her sister who came to her through her dreams. Bloom could only hope Daphne heard her.

'I need to talk to you. It's important.'

Silence.

'I'm not sure to what extent you know about the current events. So I'll give you a short summary.'

Nothing.

'We destroyed Obsidian, but we failed to kill the ancestral witches and accidentally set them free, which means they could be anywhere. The trix are in Alfea helping us find a way to destroy them. Don't ask why, it would take too long to explain that.'

Still no answer. So Bloom took a deep breath and continued

'I was the victim of a..well, technically I shouldn't tell anyone, but…I was the victim of a blood curse. Icy helped getting rid of it, but there was a catch. I don't have full access to my magic anymore. I mean I can feel magic flowing through my veins, but it's….'

'…. It's not the dragonflame.'

Bloom visibly flinched when a voice finished her sentence. She spun around and came face to face with her sister. Daphne had a soft smile on her face and immediately engulfed Bloom in a hug. The red haired fairy melted into the embrace.

'I'm so happy to see you.' Bloom mumbled.

'You know I'm always there for you, little sister.' Daphne held her a bit tighter. 'Now tell me, how can I help you.'

'The dragonflame. I think….I think it's gone.' Bloom stuttered. 'I can't feel it anymore. And I don't know what to do.'

Daphne cupped her face and made Bloom look at her.

'Listen carefully, the dragonflame is not something that just disappears. No one can extinguish it, not even Icy. ' The nymph said 'It may be out of reach at the moment, but it will come back to you when you need 're the keeper of it. The flame will find it's way back to you.'

'Are you aware of what's going on at the moment?' Bloom asked.

'You should know by now that I always have an eye on you. In fact I'm surprised it took you so long to seek my advice' Daphne answered. 'I tried to narrow down the hiding options of the ancestral witches. Without any luck.'

'Then you know as much as we do.' Bloom sighed defeated. 'Things are complicated at the moment.'

'Medora.' Daphne simply replied. 'You should keep your distance from her. She's not a friend.'

'How do you know that?' Bloom frowned. 'What do you know about her?'

'Enough to know you shouldn't trust her.' Daphne answered.

Something bothered Bloom about her sister's reply. She had the feeling that Daphne was keeping something from her.

'Can I ask you something?' Bloom asked. 'Did you know that Icy, Darcy and Stormy were noble?'

'Not at first.' The nymph said.

'But at some point you found out about it? When? How?' Bloom instantly questioned.

'I can't tell you.' Daphne reluctantly answered.

Bloom frowned. First her mother started acting weird and now her sister wasn't telling her the whole truth either. Something was off.

'Mother knew who Icy was, even though she has never met her before. How?' The red haired fairy wanted answers.

Her sister avoided looking at her.

'Daphne, we don't know what to do. We are completely out of ideas. With Medora being part of the assembly now, whatever they plan on doing is doomed to fail because she will inform the ancestral witches.' Bloom said 'I am not stupid. I know there is something you are hiding.'

Suddenly the scenery changed. The endless room they were in transformed into the what looked like the depth of lake roccaluce. They were in front of Daphne's cave.

'Why are we here?' Bloom looked after her sister who disappeared into the cave. The red haired fairy followed her.

After a few minutes her sister came back. She was holding a small chest.

'Mother doesn't know I have them.' Daphne handed her the chest.

Bloom walked over to it and opened the lid. Inside of it were books. Carefully reaching inside, the fairy took one of them out.

'Diaries? I didn't know mother wrote diaries.' Bloom read through a couple of pages before looking up at Daphne. 'I don't understand..'

'When I was a child, a few years before you were born, I found mother in the library with those books.' Daphne started to talk. 'She was furious when she saw me and told me to go away. I didn't understand why. I thought she was uncomfortable with me knowing she wrote diaries, so I left her alone. That night she told me to forget about what happened and that I shouldn't tell father about it. I had the feeling that the books meant something to her. I never spoke to her about it again, but I saw where she hid them.'

Daphne took a deep breath before continuing.

'Over the years I forgot the books existed. But then when the ancestral witches attacked Domino…..I just…After I sent you through that portal to earth, I knew I had to escape as well. But then I remembered the books and how mother reacted and all I could think about is getting those books. So I went back to grab them from the hiding place. I am certain mother thinks they were destroyed during the attack.'

'I still don't understand why she would make such a fuss about diaries.' Bloom said. 'Daphne?'

Looking at her sister she saw how the nymph started to fade out, as were their surroundings.

'Daphne?'

Suddenly Bloom found herself back in her bed in Alfea.