A path to take


"Fairy ridge!" Blade summoned her sword as she saw a Whisper Wolf pounce her Professor from behind. Once she had calmed down a tiny bit from her professor's words. She had looked up and spotted the moonlight reflecting in its eyes. 'No, he's not watching his back, not again!' She already imagined him ripped to pieces in her mind.

Avalon was ready to catch Blade's sword arm. And hurl her over to disarm her. "Blade!" He called out as a warning of course he wouldn't let himself get stabbed by her as he heard a growling bark behind him. He summoned his frosted Jian to block.

Blade sidestepped Avalon, as she dashed forward and passed Avalon and blocked the pounce in his stead.

"No, don't!" Professor Avalon's voice was now one of concern. He tried to pull her back, but it was too late.

The Whisper Wolf chomped down on the sword. It cut into its gums and blood dripped down. The beast was double her size and didn't take kindly to its flesh wound and the fact that sword didn't break. In the blink of an eye with another frantic snarl, the beast hurled her behind itself as Blade was still hovering and too slow to set her feet down.

"Blade, it's a trap!" Professor Avalon quickly rammed his sword into the ground. A half-round ice dome covered her in an instant. He really had been so focused on helping her face her feelings that he had not noticed the huge pack approaching, which had been attracted by her screaming and shouting.

Blade rolled over several times when she hit the ground hard from being hurled. She flinched as the cold icy spell suddenly gave her cover. It was so cold in fact that her sweat and tears froze shortly before her body heat melted them again. All while another wolf ambushed her out of the dark.

Lucky for her, the wolf clashed against the ice wall that rose just in time. It bared its claws into the wall and howled angrily at the denied prey. The deep sound of more growling and fletching teeth rose from around the ruins and mountain cliffs.

"Get up!" The Professor order Blade and summoned his armour for more protection. He slashed at the wolf's nose, which had hurled Blade. It dropped Blade's sword, he caught it and flung it over to her in one smooth movement. "Don't let them bite you they-"

Blade jumped to her feet and snatched the sword out of the air, "Sleeping poison, I know!" Blade ground her teeth. The Whisper Wolfs were known to hide and snatch their prey when it was careless. The biggest problem with these creatures was the fangs which held the poison. One bite wasn't a problem for most magic users. But if the poison added up that was another story. These monsters could take down even a dragon as long as they were fighting in a group and by the sound of it, this group was huge.

Another wolf climbed a ruined wall and smashed full weight onto the ice wall. It tried to get a swipe in from above. Yet the edges were too thin to hold its weight. The ice broke apart and the wolf dropped down much to its surprise.

Avalon sent a massive ice sickle down the slope as he shot upwards into the air. He pinned down several wolfs. It took him only a second to get an accurate count with his aura reading. He could spot their auras clearly unlike their magic presence they tried to hide. 'Twenty-one…twenty-two… that's a big pack…' Worried he glanced at Blade who scrambled away from the one that had just crashed down in front of her feet. She cut its leg open as she moved out of the half-open dome. Just to be blocked off again and had to back up against the ice wall again, "Blade, retreat!" Avalon pointed towards the bridge she had barely jumped over. "Daylight flare!" he shot a daylight sphere high into the air which burst like fireworks. 'This isn't good… she is probably too exhausted to outrun them. And there are too many to fight.' He had to buy time until the reinforcement from Red Fountain would reach them.

Blade ducked under another claw swipe. She had been singled out as the weak link clearly and the wolfs wouldn't give her a chance to get air born. 'Shit…' She raised her sword as she was staring straight into another roaring mouth and stabbed into it as she made a quick step forward.

The wolf whimpered in pain and backed off. Just to have another jump over him and tackle Blade to the ground. It tried to bite Blade as it pinned down her sword with its huge claws.

Blade let go of her sword and drew out a phanto-dagger from her pants pocket and hammered it into the snout, "Piss off!" she glared at the beast and gave it a proper kick against the chin.

Professor Avalon sent of another sickle to freeze more to the ground and dashed down, "Involveo frigus!" He pierced through the shoulder plates of the wolf towering above Blade. The wolf froze inside out and was nothing but a statue. He infused magic into his sword and turned the blade and the wolf shattered to pieces. "Get up, I'll cover you!" He made another sword swipe and froze the ground around them. 'This will not hold them back forever…'

The wolfs weren't all that well accustomed to the ice floor. Some of the smaller ones skidded across the slippery surface as their claws were still out. The more experienced once simply shattered the ice with their wild magic. Whisper Wolfs were Fairy animals after all, just not the cuddly type.

Blade picked up her sword, 'Crap,' She glanced at her magic sword. It still was in one piece for now at least. She infused magic into her legs and catapulted herself upwards. Just to be tackled by another wolf back to the ground. 'Shit, now we're both pinned down on the ground. All because…' She was already second-guessing herself.

"FOCUS!" Avalon pulled Blade back up with one hand, blocked an attack from another wolf with his sword and froze its mouth. In spite of that, a third one leapt at him and bit into his shoulder and his magic wings dissolved. There were simply too many wolves. He could feel the sleeping poison getting injected. Quickly he burst into flames to force it to let go and jump back.

"Professor!" Blade loaded her dark sword with magic and flung her dagger at another wolf coming from the other flank and hit it in the chest, it howled in pain and fell to the ground. "Want a piece come and get it!" She was back in her fighter mode now. She sent off a sickle of her own to blast her opponent backwards and knocked it out cold. She looped around Avalon and rammed her sword through the wolf's chin coming from below.

Avalon turned his back to Blade's, "Back to back, don't leave my side! Wait for a break and go high. Help is coming," he told her as he slashed across the face of the next Whisper Wolf and froze it over with a good amount of magic. It had been one of the younger ones, which had been too sure of itself.

The wolfs were growling and snarling as they had surrounded them. At the bark of the biggest one several charged in. The wolfs had their ears laid back and were fletching their teeth as they snapped at them from beneath and above. The younger ones had found their grip again as well.

Blade dropped her Zombix form and jumped backwards past Avalon to evade getting seized and went for a slash against another one pouncing Avalon.

Professor Avalon followed suit and spiralled to be back to back again all while he used his sword tip on the ground and rose icicles from the ground up, like spears they aimed to the sky.

The attacking wolfs flared up magic to bite some through. Still, one was too slow and got pierced through its shoulder and got stuck.

Blade and Avalon were covering each other's backs. Their movements flowed into each other, like to stream merging into a river. Their defence was impenetrable for a minute there as they danced around each other covering all angles. "Don't overdo the sickles," Avalon tried to pace Blade. She always went all out, which was fine generally, but they were playing for time. And he knew they would not beat such a large group alone.

"But if I don't, they'll overrun us. I don't have area spells," Blade slashed away as another Wolf tried to bite her. And it backed off. She was starting to pent again. Her little nap was a great help now, but she wasn't running on full batteries here.

'We'll never going to get air born this way…' Professor Avalon still had hoped for a break but that was unlikely and with Blade tiring as well, he would need to defend them alone sooner or later. "Well, let's swap it up then. Stay close!"

The wolfs were growling as they circled them waiting for a break in their concentration. They had no intention of leaving. No, they were out for blood and waiting for their chance. And the next wave rushed in.

Blade felt her Professor amass huge amounts of magic at once.

Avalon timed it perfectly as the next round of wolfs charged in. In one second, he rammed his Jian down into the ground and in a three-sixty degree, the icicles rose from the ground. The next he held the sword in front of his face and chanted, "Tholus frigus!" A rune circle appeared and a dome of ice formed from the bottom up as he concentrated on the spell.

However, Blade noticed the fleeting shadows jumping through the air from behind some ruin walls further off. "Above!" Blade shouted in a panic. She turned to push Avalon away. She wasn't sure the dome would be finished in time. They were pouncing straight down at them both and Avalon couldn't move as he was creating the dome the rune circle would break.

The wolfs Avalon had frozen to the ground prior in the fight were free and used their distance to gain speed and simply jump over the icicles that kept all the other wolves at bay at the moment.

'Shit! They freed themselves already!?' Professor Avalon broke of the spell he would not be able to finish it in time. He noticed the panicked Blade, who reached out to save him and kicked her to the side instead. 'Sorry, dear,' He knew, she would never get out of the way in time if he let her save him. He blocked the first bite with his sword. The wolf bit down on it and he froze him solid with the sword still anchored in its mouth. He quickly let go of the sword. Evaded another one's bite with a jump and hit the next one with a flying kick to the head of the wolf, which crashed into the icicles, unmoving. He turned to get his sword free as the next one landed and snatched his leg. Pain shot through his leg as it gave in. He pierced the wolf's head with his sword, trying to get loose, but the jaw locked shut instead of releasing its hold.

Blade slid over the frozen ground and watched the Professor pull out the sword of the wolf's head and take another down before the rest used their chance to inject the sleeping poison. "NO!" Blade activated her Zombix again and scrambled to her feet. She had to help him. She would not see another person die right in front of her.

Avalon felt that the poison was finally taking over, besides him trying to counter it with his magic flow. "Run, save yourself!" He ordered Blade, who got ignored by the wolfs as he flared up light magic energy and blasted the three attacking Whisper Wolfs off him into the icicles. "Red Fountain will be here any minute now."

Blade darted towards him, his stance was all wobbly. He was barely standing and about to fall. Blade wouldn't have it. 'I'll never leave someone else behind, who's in my reach!' She grabbed him by the armour plating and pulled up hard.

The alpha had made his jump as without warning his prey flew straight past him, he snapped after Blade but she made a pirouette. And the alpha only scratched her leg as Blade pushed past. He barked pissed and howled to order the chase as he first had to find a way out.

"Professor?!" No answer. 'Shit they got him good…' She looked back, she could see dark shadows jumping off the mountain and vanishing into the forest in their direction. 'Damn it… they'll smell our blood from miles away…' Blade bit her lips. 'Focus, think, think, where do I go…?' She remembered the flare, "Red Fountain!" She searched the night sky for the flying fortress. 'There!' Blade adjusted their course she controlled her breathing, she had to. She was using magic to strengthen her wings; his extra weight was a problem and the armour was only making it worse. 'Damn, where is the backup he called? I can't keep us up in the air all the way to the school…focus, breathe…' Blade had to think of something fast, they were losing altitude. 'My Winx… I haven't used light magic for over an hour now…my mana should hold out longer… but how…' She looked down at her professor, who still was a wet sack of weight, but they were almost touching the tree crowns. And she was beginning to hear the wolves running through the undergrowth. "Oh, this better work…" Blade infused dark magic into her arms and flung Avalon upwards. She dropped out of her Zombix. She was free falling towards the tree tops as she spied a set of eyes staring at her the alpha had caught up with them and was getting ready to jump. 'Wait… wait…' She had to wait for the dark magic to leave her system so she wouldn't zap herself. Avalon was falling down as well now and his fall was speeding up rapidly. "FAIRY OF BLADES!" She shouted. She caught his arm again and got pulled down at first. The alpha wolf had missed them for that exact reason. Blade crashed into some tree tops with Avalon, before she could pull up. Now she managed to fly higher. 'I won't be able to do this again…' Blade slowed her breathing again. Her heart was pounding. It had been such a close call. She flew another minute or two when she saw an Owl racing toward her.

'Finally, …' Blade was so relieved. Her hands were sweaty and her Professor was getting heavier. The Owl flashed it lights stopped and turned around. Blade had spied Codatorta inside as well, shouting his commands as usual. The loading ramp opened and Blade landed, or rather crash landed. Worn-out Blade dropped out of her Winx and fell to her knees. "What… to-took you so… long?" She had made it; all the tension left her body and the exhaustion set in. Blade rolled over, she was gasping for air. As she enjoyed the cool metal beneath her.

Master Codatorta gave the orders to close the hangar as he pulled Avalon in further, "We got here as fast as possible." He stepped back to let a Wizard take care of Avalon. "I thought the parkour training would start Monday… I told him it's too dangerous at night in those parts." Codatorta shook his head. "You alright? Or just the scrape?" He gave her a quick glance and threw her an ointment tin to apply to her wound.

Blade caught it but her arm was still shaking and she rested it on her chest. "…" She couldn't get a word out her throat was so dry.

"Hey, fainting might be the norm in Alfea, but not at my school. That counts for all students, even honourable ones…" Codatorta pulled her up and sat her down at a seat and gave her a bottle of water and took the ointment from her again and applied it himself.

Blade drank the whole bottle in one go, "I…" She started but stopped as she heard her professor.

"Blade, where is she?" He sounded a bit freaked at first as he stood up and shook off the headache. He had been healed. The bite wounds weren't that threatening after all. The poison was the bigger problem as always with Whisper Wolfs. The specialists had come prepared and brought the right antidote with them. So, Avalon had woken rather quickly again.

"Up front," Codatorta answered him, "The angel flew you in first class, buddy." He couldn't help but smirk about this just a little bit and tease him with it.

"She what?" Avalon couldn't believe this. 'I told her to leave! What was she thinking being so reckless?! I covered so she could escape alive and well! What if she had gotten badly hurt again or worse got caught? She had so many injuries … if she…' A thousand thoughts of worry flooded his mind. So much could have possibly gone wrong. 'This wasn't just risky it was reckless!' He stepped up to them, "What were you thinking, Blade? When I say run, you run. What if you had run out of magic!? You would have fallen from the sky. You could have die -"

Wham! Blade had jumped off the chair and kicked him so hard against the shin that he tumbled backwards. "DIED? You would have been dog food! I don't fucking care about your stupid code of arms! I'll not watch you DIE IN FRONT OF MY EYES!" She was beside herself. "NEVER!"

Codatorta held an arm between them before she could punch him or something, "Aaah, don't punch the patient, that's bad bedside manners," Codatorta joked to relieve the tension between them. Then he turned her towards himself. "Good job Blade. You saved him. You BOTH made it. Be proud. I always had faith in you! I always knew you had it in you," He smiled kindly at her and ruffled her dreadlocks it had something really fatherly to it. It creeped out every single one of his men in the Owl, he was the ice-cold drill Master after all. Never had he given so many compliments in one sentence and meant it. Codatorta turned his head to Avalon, "Finally, I got someone who can save your sorry prodigy ass when you underestimate your enemies like a first-year. Shame on you." He stared at his friend intensely, this was not the time to scold her for disobeying an order. He had noticed Blade's frustration as well since she had been over to do sparing matches with the boys, which she had all lost. Her spirits were already six feet under. "Don't take it personally Blade, he's just bad at saying THANK YOU. He rarely is on the receiving end." He scolded his buddy. And moved her to the back area and left Avalon standing there in the rain, "Come, I got a job for you, you're good with the Lunasteel tech. I have that calibrator for the new cannons that is still a bit off… or at least the first years are bitching about it." He opened the floorboards and took her down under to keep her occupied and stop her from spiralling into another negative thought cycle.

It was around midnight by now. Blade and Avalon had been both checked up completely. And they had been given a guest room each since the protective dome in Alfea was already up. They had to stay the night or camp out in the woods. Professor Avalon would not risk it with the wolf pack out there. Professor Avalon was currently standing in the arc hallways deep in thought, gazing at the warm glow of Alfea's protective dome. He leaned against one of the arcs.

"Oy, you were hurt, go to bed and rest," Codatorta teased him. He had finished some more duties and organised the second shift response parties. Now he had time to check up on his buddy.

"I'm just fine, thank you," Avalon gave him a side look. He knew he was teasing him, but he was still rattled.

Codatorta leaned against the other arc beam, "Uhh, Lord Angel all gloomy? What nipped you in the butt? You should be rejoicing." He crossed his arms.

"She could have-" Avalon started.

"She didn't," Codatorta cut him off.

Avalon looked at his long-time friend, "If I had come a second later-"

"You didn't," Codatorta cut him off again.

"But-" Avalon straightened out his back and moved away from the arc.

Codatorta shook his head, "We don't deal in ifs and buts in our professions. Alive is alive and dead is dead. I don't need to explain that lesson to you, or do I?" He looked at him a little bit concerned. It was unlike his friend to be so indecisive or rattled.

"She's so reckless and she can't even see it," Avalon leaned back against the arc.

"Reckless?" Codatorta chuckled, "Don't you mean brave?"

Avalon grimaced disapprovingly, "She went out late in the dark to make a test run, a real one. Alone. That has nothing to do with bravery. It's stupidity."

"Oh, so now she's stupid as well?" Codatorta raised an eyebrow, "And I thought training is a smart thing to do when one wants to improve."

"Not in the dark, alone, without any supervision and most certainly not in the wrong way. You know the route you consulted on it. Doing it all at once is way beyond her limits. A hundred things could have gone wrong," Avalon exhaled annoyed.

"Hm… and yet only one went wrong. She got to the bridge and failed the jump and you saved her before she could even try to deal with it herself," Codatorta sounded a bit scolding.

"What are you getting at? Should I let her smash to the ground and be buried by rubble?" Avalon couldn't believe him.

"Ah, damn, so you truly have no faith in her capabilities, what a shame," Codatorta sighed.

Avalon got a bit defensive, "Of course I do, I also know her shortcomings very well."

"But Surviving, or finding a way out of a tough situation isn't one of them, Avalon," Codatorta held against it, "You had a million ways how you could have dealt with it. Yet you decided out of fear to swoop in and rescue her. And on top of it, you probably scolded her Alfean style."

"Oh, so I should have waited till she hit the ground and split her head open?" Avalon got actually a bit pissed.

Codatorta laughed so hard, "Buddy, I said to have faith and give her a chance, not drop her. You are quick. Are you truly telling me you couldn't have simply flown passed her and been ready in case she couldn't save herself?"

Avalon relaxed his tense shoulders, "…"

"Ah, don't pout, treating all your Princesses and Ladies like porcelain is hard-wired into your brain. You don't even allow them in battle class to hit each other with their own spells, because a scratch or bruise is sooo, un-lady like? What's up with that? I still don't get it. They're supposed to save their kingdoms not be pretty dolls, despite how the nobles keep acting. We need battle-hardened Fairies. They'll face reality once they leave Alfea anyways," Codatorta disagreed on that point with Faragonda for ages now.

"… ...she wants to leave…" Avalon simply dropped the news.

Codatorta frowned, "Leave? You mean Alfea? Tch. Don't be silly."

Avalon looked to Alfea, "I'm not kidding. She said it and meant it despite the fact that she was riled up. She thinks, she won't be able to compete with the others. She's giving up... We pushed her too hard."

"Incorrect," Codatorta laid a hand on his shoulder, "You haven't even started to push her to her limits. You don't even know her limits yourself. That's why you told her to run and hide like a little kid when push came to shove with the wolfs." He paused, "All Blade has encountered were horror scenarios, where she was sucker-punched and had to pick herself up or die. Of course, she feels incompetent. All she has experienced is the stronger your magic the less likely it is you die, while this holds some truth. It is not the full truth and it's your job as her teacher and make her see that. Here, come with me…" He left the arc and made his way to the arena stances. Avalon followed him a bit confused. The third years were doing some night drills at the moment. Codatorta leaned on the railing and gazed at his students for a while.

Avalon inspected the troops himself as well. He automatically analysed their movements, strength and weaknesses. There was nothing special, some were better than others. They surely did less mistakes than the first-years and their use of the elemental weapons was at least solid, nothing fancy though. After a few minutes Avalon asked, "So, what am I supposed to see?"

"Rank them for me, who's the overall best, strongest, most refined, fastest and tactical," Codatorta requested.

"You already know that…that's obvious," Avalon wasn't sure what his friend was getting at.

"Humour me," his buddy requested.

"Very well. Hmm, overall best is the one with the wind lance; strongest is fire hammer; most refined is the one with the shield… fastest is the light crossbow, most tactical is the one with the lightning daggers," Avalon stated quickly.

"I agree. Now tell me who of those is a commoner, noble and royal," Codatorta grinned.

"It's too dark, I can't see their faces, Coda. But you know that already," Avalon placed his hand on his hip.

"The only noble in that group is the one with the fire hammer. There is no royal under them, the rest are commoners," Codatorta smirked, "Wanna know who bitched around most like a sissy the first and a half year?"

"Let me guess… the commoners," Avalon rolled his eyes.

"Exactly. Commoners don't have to learn this stuff. They either love it or hate it. They either stick around or drop out, and they do so very quickly within the first year. Nobles and royals have to do this if they want to or not. Most of them have different duties once they leave here. So, there is always a shift in the rankings in the third-years. The nobles and royals spent more time getting adjusted to their family duties, while the commoners use all the time to train so they can enter the order of their liking or get the position they always dreamed of." Codatorta nodded towards the upper stances on the other side. All the way on the top was Blade, it was the same spot Saladin had talked with her several times during the boot camp. She was lying there staring at the stars. "If Royals are your nobles and princesses, then prodigies are your equivalent to my nobles and Blade, Blade is your first commoner pupil, so to speak. They all have to be trained differently. So, since you obviously suck at teaching her and read her wrong… you of all people…" he laughed amused. "I give you some free advice on the house. She's just scared. Scared of not being enough. It's the common reaction of all my commoner students. They see how much better every noble is at the start and get scared that they overestimated themselves. They are bottom last and that sucks." He paused, "So, what I do is, I challenge them every day; am harsh; make them work to the bone; let them sweat, scream and shout in frustration. And when they are about to give up. I personally open the door for them to leave. Yet I reassure them that they can do this if they put their soul into it. I tell them I believe in them and I'll be waiting for them in the evening for the next lesson. Then I walk away. They always walk straight out of the door and pack their stuff but never get on the craft to Magix city. They linger around the whole day around the school. They might change their mind several times…quite hilarious if you ask me, one guy moved in and out of his room like twenty-three times…" Codatorta chuckled and then refocused. "Every single one of those you prior identified as best came back to tell me that I was wrong. And every student I duelled, I didn't floor them, I let them vent, till they dropped to the floor. And oh wonder, oh wonder, next day they were back in every single class by their own choice and that's the key."

Avalon had listened carefully. He went over it in his mind, "And you think that will work with Blade?" He wasn't so sure about that.

"I told you what I do with my commoners, they are boys, specialists. She's a Fairy. You talked to her before today, maybe she needs something else. You spent more time with her. I'm just here for her if she needs to know how to hold her sword correctly. Getting her to the finish line is your job. You're smart figure it out. I won't do your job for you. HA! That be the day, me in Alfea," He hit him hard on the back.

Avalon braced for it, "The day when fairies are doing sit-ups all day instead of spell casting?" He joked around. "Yeah, great plan…"

"Who needs spells if you can handle a sword, ha!" Codatorta grinned wide, "Besides you can cast spells and got pummelled by a few Whisper Wolfes. I mean really? Do I need to enrol you in summer camp as well?" He crossed his arms challengingly.

"That were twenty-two wolves. And yes, alone, I simply could have decimated them from the sky. Blade was running straight at them like a headless chicken and got pinned down. I had to go and help her. Unless you rather wanted her in the infirmary again." Avalon growled back a bit annoyed.

"Ooooh, poor Avalon. And I thought you dig that saving the damsel in distress swooping down like an angel, hair blowing in the wind," He described sarcastically smirked even wider. "For you to fall after getting bitten…" Codatorta wouldn't let him off so easily.

"You try to keep her alive after being bitten four times," Avalon muttered half-loud.

"… two times, wait what? Four?" Codatorta chuckled.

"Yes, four. One short one to get the Lady back to her feet and the rest to save her life," Avalon countered victoriously.

"Four?! Since when? I refilled the antinodes myself, the healer used two," Coda wasn't buying it.

"Oh Coda, don't you have faith in me," Avalon laughed, "Of course, I countered some poison with my own magic. Killed some wolfs and gave my student a way out. You were taking your damn sweet time after all. Someone had to do the work." He smirked back and leaned against the railing.

"Ahhh, fucking prodigies," Codatorta growled in astonishment.

"All jokes aside, though," Avalon turned around to gaze at Blade still staring at the stars as he sighed. "I panicked just like her…stupid rookie mistake. She should never have had to deal with saving me, her teacher," he balled his fist. "I failed her…"

"It happens to the best of us, Avalon. Let it go. What's done is done. Remember, we are no gods even if most of our students might think we are unbeatable. A good teacher trains his students so they won't make the same mistakes as they did. So, focus on that and stop dwelling on past mistakes," Codatorta patted him on the shoulder. "Now, go up there and talk to her." He made himself ready to drop down into the arena, "Oh, and don't forget to thank her or I'll pummel you personally. She was scared shitless to lose you, and still, she saved your sorry ass besides your selfish order." He jumped over the railing into the arena grounds and yelled at some of his students screwing up their elemental attacks.

Avalon breathed out, 'And he's back to being a Drill Master… he is swapping faces so quickly and yet it's all him…" He activated his wings and flew to the bottom of the stances on the other side, dropped the wings and walked the rest towards her

Blade stared blankly into the stars. She couldn't sleep at all. So, she had snuck out to the stances to get some fresh air. Her thoughts were still racing. 'How can he expect me to just leave him behind, the nerve!? I know, I screwed up… I should never have… but…what was I thinking becoming a Fairy…'

"Blade," Avalon addressed her very gently. He was so close but she didn't even notice him. She was so deep in thought, and aura reading confirmed his guess that she was in a negative spiral yet again. 'How should I talk to her… I can't lecture her… She's an honest soul. She's not one to blab around too much. I'll need to create a space for her to be open with me, oh I know…' He crossed his arms on his back and simply bowed his upper body over her head, to come into her field of vision.

Startled, Blade fell of the seats, she had not expected him. Avalon had caught her arm yet again in reflex so she wouldn't bump her head.

"No reason to run, I am not here to reprimand you," the Professor smiled and pulled her to her feet. "Codatorta was right, I do owe you my gratitude." He placed one hand on his heart and bowed slightly as it was custom. He was a gentleman after all that would never change. "You have my deepest gratitude."

Blade wasn't quite sure how to respond. She could feel that he meant it. Truly he did. The etiquette was still a bit bewildering. Quickly she tried to remember the correct words, "Sure…my pleasure?" It was so awkward to her.

'Typical Blade, etiquette will just get in her way,' Professor Avalon chuckled once. "It's alright, be yourself. We're not on a dance ball or anything. Nobody will mind, neither will I. In fact, I came here to listen."

"Listen?" Blade got more confused by the second. "To what?" She wasn't sure what that was all about. Normally the Professor watched analysed and gave feedback. He did listen of course to what his students told him. But he had a different vibe to himself this time around.

"I made mistakes. And not just one. I like to learn from them, improve. So please, tell me in all honesty," Avalon sat down on a seat that way they were about the same height and crossed his legs. He had a really open inviting posture one similar to Philosophy classes, where he mostly just moderated the discussions.

"I…eh…" Blade thought she was in the wrong movie. "You alright?" She asked a bit creeped out. 'What is wrong with him?! Is he unsure of himself? Why isn't he scolding me? He was so pissed; his points weren't wrong. And I was so…'

Avalon took her seriously, "No, I am not alright." He started off. "I nearly lost you twice today and I nearly died myself trying to prevent that." He paused, "… I was scared for your life. - And besides my better judgment, I ran with fear and gave you a selfish order to follow. And I snapped at you for taking the obvious choice a fighter as you would choose. I went against your moral compass well-knowing that. I hurt your trust in me. You have a right to be angry with me."

Blade was baffled by this honest answer. He wasn't joking. He never had come off as scared to her. And yet it made so much sense, "You were scared, too?"

"Of course, I was. I am always scared when a student is in danger. I am a Professor so I act calm, but that doesn't mean I am immune to those feelings," Avalon explained. "I didn't mean to scare you, my apologies."

"No, it's-…" Blade slowed down. He was so honest. How could she possibly do him not the same favour now? "Well, then give me better orders next time. Or at least tell me the plan! – Please…" Blade was a bit grumpy at first but backed a bit off with her directness.

"More orders?" That sounded a bit weird in this context to him.

"Yes, precise orders. It's really hard to read your moves. Half the time I just have to go with the flow and hope that I don't screw up. I don't even know your full skillset. How was I supposed to know you could make an ice dome? I don't know your spells…" Blade searched for words, so Avalon waited for her to finish. "Instead of doing everything on your own. If I had known above was our one weak spot I could have easily used the rest of my magic to defend that one spot till you were done. The wolfs would never have gotten the drop on us and caught you!" Blade tensed up the images wouldn't leave her mind. "And what was up with kicking me to the ground!? That still hurt! What gives you the RIGHT to decide for what I risk my life or not? You just pushed me away just like JEWELS, JUST TO DIE ALONE!" She had become louder and louder without noticing. She turned away as she felt tears drip down her cheeks and whispered, "I am sick and tired of this bullshit ...Why am I so WEAK!?" Blade full-force kicked in the glass railing and it cracked and broke.

Professor Avalon slowly stood up and placed his hands on her shoulders. 'So, it all comes back to Jewels…' She was trembling. "I can't tell you what Jewels was thinking. I can tell you this, I am your Professor. It is not only my job but also my wish to see you safe. You are the next generation to protect the realms from evil. And if I had to give my life to save any of you, I wouldn't waste a second, not even after today."

Blade turned around and looked rather grim and she was pissed at him, at the world and above all at herself. "…"

"However, I am sure, Jewels didn't die alone. You were right by her side. Just like you didn't run today, you didn't run back then. You stayed right by her side till the very end. She didn't die alone. You did everything you could, Blade…you gave it your best." He tried again to reach her. 'She has to let this go...'

Blade first clawed into his wrists, she wanted to push them away because she didn't deem herself worthy of this compassion. However, she felt her heart longing for forgiveness. Even so, it felt wrong to accept it, how could she? Jewels was dead. Too tired to fight him on this any longer, she let go of his wrists. After all she didn't want to fight, not him, not herself, she simply wished for her pain to end. Self-tortured she uttered, "My best? ... She died… If that's my best then good night…. She should be standing here… She should be…I failed her. My best is worth shit…." Tears stood in her eyes. She didn't know what to do anymore. Nothing could stop that pain. She sank to her knees as he kept holding her by the shoulders and kneeled down with her.

Her aura was turning pitch black. It gave him shivers right down his spine. 'Blade…' He was anxious. 'I got to reach her, I just got to…' It was downright heartbreaking to see his student like this. Avalon gazed at Blade, who didn't know what to do with herself and shut off from the world. He squeezed her shoulders mildly to console her and to get her attention, "Giving your best, never guarantees your dream outcome, that's the truth no one can escape. Not even me. I did my best today and I failed. Yet you did your best and succeeded. You saved us both. Your best is invaluable, Blade. You are invaluable."

She couldn't even look into his eyes. She pressed her head into her arms, cowering on the floor. She heard the words. She wanted to believe. She wanted them to be true. She wanted this nightmare to end, but how could she possibly accept them as truth?

Avalon sat there with her. He said nothing, just silence and her crying. He waited until she raised her head just a tiny bit again. Alarmed by the darkening aura and no clever way to go about it, he simply said the words, "You got to forgive yourself Blade. Your friends, all of us, we have already forgiven you, if we even had to. No one blames you for her death. I can see it in the way they talk and their auras shine when you are with them. Sure, they would love to have Jewels back, but not if it means losing you. NO ONE wishes that you were dead in her stead. The only one left that has to forgive you, is you." Avalon raised her upper body up again. "Listen…" He was holding her upright, she was like a wet sack, she was done. "Listen to me." He repeated. He made sure she would listen to his every word. "Dropping out, will not eradicate this pain. You've got to let go before this will destroy you. You HAVE TO forgive yourself, Blade." He was struggling with what else to do. 'How could we all have been so blind?! How did we miss this …?'

'But how…' Blade couldn't stop crying. She really wanted to believe him. That she was worthy. That she did her best. That it sucked, but that it was okay. Okay to fail, to lose. She longed for it, but, "But how…?" She muttered.

Professor Avalon stared at Blade. School rules forbade close contact, he was her teacher. He didn't want her to get the wrong idea or swap one problem for another. Still, he couldn't just place her in an Owl for two hours and take her to Shanna right this moment. But she really needed a hug, some warmth. So, he swapped his position and sat down next to her as he gave her a friendly yet comforting hug from the side and rubbed her shoulders. "How? That's always the tricky part, isn't it?" He answered her quietly. "The best way, I found for myself so far is, that I state the lie I believe. I actively let go of them and instead say what I see as my new truth. Don't just wish for it, claim it for yourself. You have to actively speak your forgiveness to yourself. And I personally keep repeating it until my heart believes the message I am telling it. Because ifs and maybes don't help you. If you focus on that, you will always be stuck in the past... This is one of the techniques of the White Jade Order that we use to help people cleanse themselves of black magic."

Blade felt the warmth coming from her Professor. His kindness, his honesty. It just gave her the tiniest little bit of peace. Still, she didn't understand what he was telling her, "Sounds weird…that never will work…"

"You'll see. Let me help you with it," He thought a second about how to formulate the statement. Then he had it, he spoke out loud and slowly, "I hate myself for letting Jewels die alone. I believe that I am worthless. Yet these are lies, and therefore I let them go. For I know Jewels would want me to be happy. I declare I will live my life to my best. Seek comfort in my friends and family. I am not alone. It's okay to falter at times, to feel hurt, yet I am not bound by these feelings. I am invaluable and that will never ever change." He paused, "Your turn."

"I ha-…" She had to cry even more. It hurt so much to admit it in this way. It was uncomfortable.

Professor Avalon rubbed her back, "It's alright. There is no shame in this."

Blade gulped, "I… I hate…" She started anew. "Myself…" She whispered ever so slightly as the tears dripped down her nose. "…for letting Jewels die a- alone." She ground her teeth this was so hard. "I am worthless…" She was cutting off from all the crying. "These are lies, and therefore I- I- …" She got stuck.

Professor Avalon spoke it out loud with her together, "These are lies, and therefore I let them go…" He rubbed her back as she teared up even more. She was gasping for air as she continued on. Her voice trembled so much and cut out so often.

"…. I am invaluable…and- and that will never ever change…." She finished her first round.

Avalon could see her aura turning from the blackish nightmare slowly back into a dark blue, "Again..." He encouraged her.

"I hate myself for…" Blade started from the beginning even if she somewhat rebelled against it. Again, and again, Avalon had told her to repeat it on a loop. She had lost count so often he told her to repeat it. "…Jewels would want me to be happy…" Blade stopped, she remembered. When she had faced the curse. When she had taken hold of the sword. She had seen Jewels last moments. A happy Jewels, proud and strong, without a single regret, without fear. Blade had totally forgotten. That image, that smile of hers. It warmed her heart, a spark of joy. A smile flitted over her lips. "And so, I declare, I live my life to my best. I will not waste the time she has given me. I am her invaluable friend. She gave her life to protect me and that sucks. And I wish you were here… Watch me from the stars Jewels. Watch me, I'll show you, everyone. What it means to be a Fairy just like you." She breathed in deeply. It was like a weight had been lifted off her chest.

Finally, she had managed to let go. Avalon noticed the change immediately. Of course, she was still sad and hurt. But her aura wasn't that black emptiness anymore. It was a night blue with all kinds of greens and warm reds. She was still crying. However, it swapped from a cry of pain to a cry of relief. He breathed out relieved. At last, she had forgiven herself. Blade's body reaction was so strong in fact that she couldn't hold herself up sitting. Avalon helped her lay down. He took off his white tuxedo jacket and placed it on top of her, so she wouldn't freeze and gave her some space. Avalon smiled to himself. It was a big load off his mind to see her better now. He glanced down in the arena where everyone was packing up. 'We should get inside before she…too late…' Blade had fallen asleep she had been so exhausted. He sighed relieved and sat down a few steps above her to keep a watchful eye as he recapitulated the conversation and feedback. He also wrote Shanna a note. He knew that this would have to be tracked throughout the weeks even if he didn't relay the exact content of their talk as it was confidential. At some point, Codatorta wandered along the stances towards him and only waved as Avalon signed him to be extra quiet. Avalon and Codatorta stepped a bit further away from Blade not to wake her and to just chat and relax after such a long day.