Chapter 3

"It's her," Lilith whispered to Icy. The nightclub's lights were dim, and they stood far enough away from the dance floor that they could talk despite the music. Icy followed Lilith's gaze and looked in the direction of a blonde girl who was flirting with two guys and letting out a shrill laugh. To Icy, the blonde girl seemed shallow and stupid at first glance, but there seemed to be a glow emanating from her if you looked closely. Icy turned back to her friend. Lilith's red eyes sparked dangerously. They had the expression of a beast that had just found its victim.

"Are you sure?"

Lilith grinned spitefully, pushed a strand of her wavy blonde hair behind her ears and turned to Icy so that she could see that the shimmering green vacuum crystal was pulsating in Lilith's open hand. "Absolutely," she said, "this fairy carries the power of the Dragon Flame within her." Once again Icy's blue eyes wandered to the blonde girl and a mean smile played on her lips. If she was the one who had the dragon's power within her, then she was doomed.

It seemed to Icy as if it had only been yesterday when she had first seen her target, her victim, the fairy of the sun and the moon, within whom she suspected the Dragon Flame, here in the Mystery. – The Mystery was a standout establishment. Icy had often been here with Lilith and later with Darcy in recent years. Today, however, Icy did not follow her then leader to one of her favorite clubs to shadow the Guardian of the Dragon Flame. So much had changed since then. Lilith had died trying to acquire the Dragon Flame. Now Icy was more or less on her own. Her sisters expected her to take the reins and in turn take possession of the Dragon Flame. But today she wasn't in the Mystery because of the Dragon Flame.

Today she wanted to forget this exhausting topic. And nothing makes you forget a painful topic better than flirting. Even if she actually wanted to get the person she was after out of her head. But who knew exactly how long she would be able to enjoy an inconsequential evening like this one promised to be. Once she had the Dragon Flame, everything would change. For the better in the long run, but everything would change. And evenings like this would never happen again. So Icy pushed aside all thoughts of Stella of Solaria, the Dragon Flame, and even her Sky taboo, and glided elegantly like a cat into the Mystery, aware of the fact that she was attracting everyone's attention.

The lights were a dim purple and the music was just loud enough to hold a conversation. With a quick glance into the corner where she was hearing Sky's voice, she made sure that he had seen her too and strolled over to the bar with her sisters in tow.

Just like Darcy, Icy was more the type to have a classy drink and left beer and the like to what she called the underclass. She was just about to place her typical order when Stormy beat her to it.

"A tequila sunrise," she ordered from the barman and batted her eyelashes.

Icy raised an eyebrow the second time this evening and commented dismissively: "It couldn't be any harder, could it?"

"If we're already here", Stormy leaned with her back against the bar counter, "besides, the evening is still young." She let her gaze slide across the room and stopped at a group of guys who returned her gaze benevolently.

Darcy intervened, slightly upset: "Tell me, Stormy, are you joking? Who are you trying to impress with that? Us, yourself or those guys back there?"

"Well, first of all, dear sister, I'm of age and can do whatever I want, and second, I'm really glad that I'm not as boring as you. I'm looking forward to seeing what you order. Knowing you, you're definitely scared of losing control. A little fun couldn't hurt, especially not you. But…" her look became pitiful, "…that's just not you."

Darcy exploded. She was so tired of Stormy always acting like she thinks she's grown up. Ignoring the fact that she, Darcy, was the older one. In fact, Stormy behaved like a little child and still had the audacity to look down on her. So she rejected the idea of simply ordering a white wine like she always did and instead ordered a Cosmopolitan from the bartender, who was now looking between her and Stormy with amusement.

Icy found her sisters' drama just embarrassing. But it was typical for them. As always, Darcy was the voice of reason and Stormy the one who could never get enough. Icy knew that and she wished her sisters would stop this ridiculous fight. "Now do you want to make it a competition to see who drinks the harder stuff?"

"For that, Darcy would have to order something harder first."

Darcy started to say a curt answer and Icy just rolled her eyes.

"Of course, what you order isn't up for debate, is it?" Icy smiled as she heard the familiar voice on her neck and turned to Sky.

"Oh no? Well, then tell me what you think. Let's see if it's the correct one."

Sky Icy ordered a frozen margarita. Icy smiled. Of course he knew exactly her likes.

"So we're not keeping our distance today."

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Icy grinned and sipped her frozen margarita. The last time they had seen each other was shortly after the incident with Lilith. At the time, Icy had been so upset and questioning herself and everything she was. Especially her secret relationship with Sky, which would have never had a future. Lilith's death had been like a slap in the face, like a bucket of ice-cold water dumped on her, a chilling awakening. Nothing had been the same as before and the seriousness of the situation had suddenly revealed itself to her. What they did to get the Dragon Flame hadn't been childish shenanigans anymore. It had been a power play, literally playing with fire. And they had burned themselves. Suddenly everything was different. So, as confused as she was, she had drawn a dividing line between her and Sky before the semester break, which was now two months ago. Today she was neither upset nor confused. Today she didn't feel like listening to her inner voice of reason either.

"Icy, about - " Sky began hesitantly.

Icy placed her finger on his lips before he could continue. "Stop. Today I don't want to hear any objections or contingencies."

Sky smiled and pulled her in. "Well then, let's enjoy the show."

Icy was just about to ask which show he was talking about when the bickering of her two sisters reached her ears again.

"I beg you," she said annoyed, "let's go somewhere else where I don't have to put up with these two bickerers."

Her wish was his command and so they retreated to one of the dark corners of the Mystery while Darcy and Stormy continued to bicker happily.

Icy didn't see the need to intervene at this point. She knew that Stormy was certainly no innocent child anymore. She had always been rebellious and Icy wasn't surprised that Stormy had gained some experiences in the last year, when she and Darcy hadn't been there to watch over her and her actions. But Icy also knew that Stormy wasn't stupid. Or at least not too stupid. She was careless, and, eventually, it would be Stormy who had to deal with the consequences.. In Stormy's case Icy wasn't overly protective. She would let her make her own experiences, to some degree. Even if that resulted in Stormy puking her guts out at the end of the night. If that happened, Icy would be there to hold her sister's hair out of her face. Darcy on the other hand was always so careful that Icy had no reason to worry about her in that matter. So Icy decided to go with Sky and enjoy the moment.

Darcy almost wanted to just leave Stormy at the bar and go back to Cloud Tower alone. Icy had retreated into a dim corner with her prince and was doing God knows what with him. Stormy, on the other hand, continued to tease her about her "stuffiness." Darcy didn't need that, and she knew, that, she could just leave. But something about that evening made her want to fight back. Stormy always got her way without taking anyone into account. Darcy was tired of it. It was time to stand up to her little sister and if a strong cocktail was the start of that, then so be it. She accepted the Cosmopolitan from the bartender and turned to her little sister: "So, are you happy now? I can do otherwise."

Unimpressed, Stormy shrugged, "Why should I be happy? I know you're not serious. It's not your thing and it never will be, you're trying to prove something to yourself because you know full well that I'm right."

"You think you know me so well." Darcy sipped her Cosmopolitan and grimaced slightly.

"Indeed, I do."

"Stormy, you're really getting on my nerves."

"I can tell and it's getting funnier every second." Stormy grinned and ran her finger along the rim of her glass. Admittedly, Stormy enjoyed annoying her sister. It had always been easy to anger Darcy and Stormy was loving it. Icy's spirit was as solid as ice, but Darcy, the ultimate control freak, was so easy to lure out of her reserve.

Darcy's eyes sparkled. "Who do you think you are?"

"The much more interesting question is, who do you think you are?" Stormy was now grinning as broadly as the Cheshire Cat itself.

"That's -" Darcy's voice became higher than usual and she was about to retaliate but was interrupted by a young man who joined them. "Oh my, you are chirping like," he looked at the crimson cosmopolitan, "like an angry robin."

"Who dares to call my big sister a robin without my consent?" Stormy lifted her chin and looked at the specialist who had joined them. His hair somehow reminded her of a red onion, but she bit back the comment and introduced herself instead. "I'm Stormy, that one's sister," she nodded to Darcy. "But you seem to know Darcy?"

"Not very good so far, but that can change."

Darcy blushed and Stormy raised an eyebrow. She didn't know whether she should grill the guy or whether she was happy that someone was finally interested in her prudish sister.

The specialist correctly interpreted Stormy's critical look and quickly introduced himself. "I'm Riven. Sky is on the same team as me, so we've been running into each other every now and then ever since Icy and Sky me."

"Riven!" Stormy burst out enthusiastically, "Oh, I've heard so much about you."

"Only good things, I hope."

"Oh, that would be boring."

Stormy knew Riven slightly. Icy had talked about him when she came home for the long summer vacation. And she hadn't left out the fact that Darcy seemed to be interested in him. And that was exactly what made this guy interesting to Stormy. A guy who turned her sister's otherwise controlled head? He was part of the same Red Fountain team that Sky was on. Almost every time Icy and Sky had crossed paths over the last year, Icy had said, Sky's team had also been there and so had Riven. Early on she had noticed the shy looks Darcy had given the magenta-haired specialist whenever he was looking elsewhere. And she had also seen the looks Riven had given Darcy when she wasn't looking. It was almost like a bad movie in which the two protagonists always missed talking to each other and only found each other at the end of the movie. That's what Icy had said and Stormy thought that the end of the movie was almost upon them now and decided to play Cupid. What wouldn't you do for your beloved sister?

"How do you know about Riven?" Darcy had apparently found her voice again. Still a little higher than usual.

Stormy smiled mischievously at her sister: "Icy told me a lot of things."

"She did what –" Darcy started.

"Oh, Icy told me a LOT." Ohh, ow Darcy was blushing again. Stormy always enjoyed embarrassing her sister. She just made such a cute face. She didn't quite know that side of her sister yet and it was terrifyingly interesting!

"Well," Riven leaned against the counter next to Darcy, "at least you two couldn't be ignored. Here for a long time already?"

"Just arrived. I also like it when I stand out and people are watching me." Stormy glanced back at the corner with the extremely attractive guys. They were still watching her.

"Well, I'd rather observe myself than be observed," Darcy chimed in, although she still seemed a little uncomfortable. But Stormy thought she had to deal with her shyness alone.

"You don't attract attention by being loud, Darcy." Riven didn't take his eyes off Stormy's sister anymore and she found the two of them almost cute.

"I think you two don't need me anymore. Bye-Bye."

"Hey, Stormy wait-"

"That's right,. Catch ya later." Riven waved to Stormy, who winked and then strolled over to the guys who hadn't let her out of their sight the whole time.

Darcy sighed awkwardly and placed her Cosmopolitan back on the counter. "Actually, I don't even like that stuff."

"I wouldn't have thought you were like that either."

Darcy smiled knowingly and looked down. "Like my sister?"

Riven chuckled: "You don't seem to be cut from the same cloth."

"Well, well," Darcy gave him a side eye, "but that doesn't seem to bother you."

Riven almost sank into her amber eyes. "Not in the slightest."

Riven had noticed Darcy before they had even talked to each other for the first time. It had been about a year now. He had just been new to Red Fountain and all three magical schools had started the new semester together, as had been tradition until this year. In the large square in front of Alfea Castle, specialists, fairies and witches had mixed and listened to the speech by the three headmasters Saladin, Griffin and Faragonda. Even though there had been a large number of students, Darcy still caught his eye. He wasn't sure what exactly it was about her that struck him so much. Maybe it was her long hair, which was certainly her trademark. There was something dark about her, something siren, that fascinated him. And strangely enough, something sad. He hadn't forgotten her since then. Of all the girls walking around Alfea's campus back then, she was the one he remembered. Since then he had looked for her at every school meeting but had never had a chance to talk to her without being disturbed. Over time he had at least learned her name: Darcy. However, it had been difficult to get to her. These other two girls had always been near her. The tall one with the long, light hair was her older sister Icy, as it later turned out. Brandon seemed to have something going on with her, although he really couldn't understand what could attract a witch like Icy to a squire. The other witch, the green one, who had always been near Darcy, was called Lilith. Strangely enough, she wasn't there today. But he had just found out that Darcy had another sister, Stormy. The three really weren't all that similar. Icy was cold and calculating and Stormy seemed short-tempered and overly flirtatious for his liking.

Darcy, however, was different. She was calm and attentive, her golden eyes seemed to miss nothing. It was too sweet how she stood next to him awkwardly and chose her words so carefully.

Darcy took a deep breath. Okay, don't lose your nerve now, Darcy. You've always wanted to talk to him, this is your chance! She took another sip of the Cosmopolitan. Maybe Stormy was right, and she just needed to lighten up. She looked up at him again and cursed inwardly as her pulse began to race again at the sight of his violet eyes.

She sighed. "You know, Riven, I'm not very good at small talk."

"Me neither."

"And now?"

"Let's just talk about deeper things."

"For example?"

"For example," Riven said, taking the glass of red Cosmopolitan from her hand, "why you drink this stuff even though you don't like it. Whenever I saw you here or in any other club, you never drank anything like that." He watched the red liquid critically.

"Someone's been watching me closely." Darcy didn't know whether she liked that or not.

"Does that surprise you?" Riven twirled the glass in his hand.

Darcy smiled. She didn't know if it was because the conversation was flowing so briskly or because the alcohol was starting to take effect. In any case, her pulse had calmed down and so she smiled. "Actually, people-watching is my specialty."

"Huh? How's that?"

With a quick movement of her index finger, she created a purple ring and let it spin. "My powers originate in the darkness of the human psyche."

"Sounds interesting."

"Doesn't it scare you?"

"Should it?"

"Well," Darcy made the ring disappear and leaned a little closer to Riven and whispered, "I could easily get into your head and reveal your deepest secrets."

"You don't have to get into my head."

"Why, because you'll tell me the secrets anyway?"

"No, because you've already gotten into my head."

Damn, her pulse came back and warned her of an impending heart attack. Trying not to let it show, she continued: "I still want to know one of your darkest secrets."

Riven had to laugh. "All right. Let me think. Ah, I have something, just don't tell anyone."

"My lips are sealed."

"When I was little, I had a stuffed dinosaur that I couldn't sleep without."

Darcy snorted. She wouldn't have expected a muscular guy like him to say that. "That's sweet."

"Don't laugh," a blush now covered Riven's cheeks, "now it's your turn."

Darcy caught herself. "Fine, if it's any consolation to you, I was terrified of the dark as a child."

"The Witch of Darkness was afraid of the dark?"

"Irony of fate, huh?"

Riven looked at her and grinned. "To be honest, I think it's really cute too."

"Careful, Riven," Darcy whispered, lowering her eyelids, "or someone else will think you think I'm cute."

"If someone said that" he leaned forward so far that his forehead almost touched hers, "I wouldn't argue with them."

"Oh, no?"

"No."

"Interesting." Darcy took another sip of her Cosmopolitan. She slowly got used to the stuff, but she still didn't like it.

Riven watched her and then turned to the bartender who was drying glasses not far from them. "A white wine for this lady, please."

Darcy smiled at Riven challengingly. "Do you want to ingratiate yourself with me?"

"I don't need to, do I?" Riven asked confidently, handing her the glass the bartender had just given him.

"No," said Darcy, sipping the white wine, "indeed not. Thanks anyway." So he knew that this was her usual drink. This boy seemed to really have watched her closely. The more she thought about it, the more she liked that fact. It kind of flattered her. She never had a knack for boys. But things could change.

"In return, you tell me another deep secret that is on your mind." Riven suggested.

She paused for a moment and thought. "You definitely won't think I'm cute anymore if I tell you."

"Wanna bet?"

"All right," she looked him straight in the eyes. If he were to lie, she would notice immediately. "I am very interested in the depths of dark magic."

"It's getting interesting now.". That definitely wasn't a lie. Riven's eyes were fixated on Darcy's. So she continued and elaborated on her secret passion.

Icy couldn't remember the last time she was so attached to Sky's lips. Probably when she was 15. But she didn't care that they looked like two teenagers making out in a far corner of the school yard. She enjoyed the moment. Until the moment the cell phone in her skirt pocket started vibrating. Reluctantly, she pulled away from Sky, who still had an arm around her waist, and looked at the screen. Knut. She rolled her eyes and gently pushed Sky's arm aside.

"Sorry, I have to answer that." She took a few steps away from Sky and answered the call. "I hope that you have a good reason to call me, Knut. Beware if it's nothing important" Her voice was dangerously calm.

Knut pressed around, but it seemed to be about Stella from Solaria. Icy sighed internally. Today, of all days. "All right," she grumbled, "we'll come straight away. See you in 10 minutes."

She turned back to Sky with a sweet smile. "I'm afraid I have to go," she whispered in his ear.

"What?" asked Sky, mock disappointed. "Have you had enough of me already?"

"Oh, you know I have 10 princes on each hand," she teased.

"As long as I remain number 1, that's all right with me."

"Hmm, I'll have to think about that. So, see you. Don't miss me too much."

"I will try or die trying."

Icy grinned goodbye at him. "So I'll see you at your funeral then."

Her smile disappeared once her back was turned to Sky. Why right now? She cursed Knut, she cursed Stella from Solaria, she cursed the stupid Dragon Flame. But it couldn't be helped, so she walked past the dance floor, looking for her sisters. Darcy was still sitting at the bar, but by now Riven had apparently joined her. Good, that was a great thing to tease her about later. Stormy had now made her way to the guys on the other side of the club who had been staring at the storm witch for some time. The bar was closer so Icy went for Darcy first.

"Sorry, darling," she said to Riven with a fake smile, "unfortunately, I have to kidnap my sister from you." She took Darcy's arm.

"I don't think I can do without her so easily." Riven didn't even look at Icy. Apparently, he really only had eyes for her sister.

"Oh yes, you can," she said gruffly, pulling the perplexed Darcy with her. "There are plenty of other girls here."

"No one like her."

"That goes without saying." Icy's gaze turned cold and she quickened her pace.

"Hey, what's this," Darcy complained. "I couldn't even say goodbye properly."

"The guy was way too pushy for my taste anyway. You'll find someone better next time." Someone who isn't so clingy, Icy thought.

"I'm sure you're the best judge of that," Darcy replied venomously, obviously referring to Sky.

"Oh yes, I am," Icy hissed, barely able to suppress the fact that she's the older one. The one with the experience and therefore the one to judge.

Stormy came along more willingly. Icy and Darcy walked over to their sister, who was the center in a group of guys. Icy made short work of it. "Stormy, departure," she announced. With a sucking sound, Stormy pulled away from one guy's lips and waved at them. "Sorry, guys. See you."

With one hand, Stormy wiped her smudged lipstick from her chin and with the other she pulled her skirt back down as she rushed toward her sisters.

"But you don't mind that," Darcy whispered to Icy, offended.

"No," she confirmed. After all, it wasn't anything serious. Stormy had always been boy-crazy so Icy wasn't surprised that Stormy was going all out now that she was older. After all, Icy and Darcy had been separated from Stormy for almost an entire year. During that one year, they hadn't been there to guide her and prevent her from some things. And it looked like Stormy certainly had done some things. And to Icy, that was okay. If Stormy wanted this so badly, then why not let her? She would make her experiences and if something would happen, Icy would be there to catch her. To Icy it seemed that Stormy was indeed acting a bit wantonly, but to her it seemed harmless. And she couldn't stop her anyways, so why force it? If something more serious were to happen, Icy (and Darcy) would be there to intervene. After all witches had all kind of potions that could prevent certain things. And Icy knew that Stormy knew very well that she could count on her sisters. After all it was only the three of them and they would stick together no matter what. It had always been only them. Always. And it would stay that way. Stormy would certainly not let any person get between her and her sisters, so wouldn't Icy, even though her feelings for Sky didn't seem to vanish. Darcy however, was such a sensitive and romantic girl who was most likely to fall for someone who might be a danger for their trinity. This was why Icy was so rough to Riven. That boy seemed like someone who could steal her sister away from her and Icy would never let this happen. Stormy's flirts weren't dangerous but there was something about this Riven that Icy didn't like. And she would never risk losing her sister to some guy. So she decided to have an eye on that relationship and would, if necessary, intervene. Maybe she was a bad example, she admitted that. At the moment she really didn't have herself under control when it came to Sky, but Icy was still sure that she had always made it clear to her sisters that the three of them belonged together. And just the three of them. There was no one left to intervene. Lilith wasn't… and neither was Sky. They were on their own. Since time immemorial, there had only been the three of them. And it would stay that way in the future.

The moon shone brightly and cast long shadows behind the three of them as they walked away from the Mystery.

Admittedly, Icy was in an extremely bad mood. The evening could have been so casual. She had never dreamed that Knut would actually be useful. Especially not tonight! But it was what it was. Knut had sent her the coordinates of their meeting place on her cell phone. It was at the end of an alley not too far away.

Darcy wrinkled her nose. "He couldn't have chosen a shadier place to meet, could he?" Her anger at her hasty departure seemed to be gradually dissipating.

"As an ogre, he probably just feels comfortable in this smell." Stormy held her nose.

The clacking of her high heels echoed off the walls of the narrow alley and Icy had to squint in the darkness to be able to see at least a little.

"There he is," said Darcy, whose vision was as excellent as a cat's in the darkness. "Over there at the end of the alley."

"Very good," Icy snapped her fingers and assumed her witch form. Her sisters did the same. Meanwhile, Icy was able to spot the large ogre between two dumpsters. It really was a fitting place for him. They passed a few wet boxes that were rustling suspiciously.

"I hope you had a good reason for calling us here, Knut. I'll tell you straight away, my patience is hanging by a thread today."

Intimidated, Knut pushed around and barely managed to get a correct sentence out. "So...um...I saw the blonde girl with her scepter not far from here."

"Was she alone?" Darcy wanted to know, making no effort to hide her annoyance.

"Um… no, her friends were there too:"

Darcy grimaced and Icy didn't seem amused that the fairy wasn't alone. Attacking multiple fairies made little sense. It would have been better to leave the fairy alone. On the other hand, you never knew when you would next see the fairy outside of Alfea.

"We have to get this scepter," Icy stated. She rested her face in her palm, a sign that she was considering something.

Darcy usually let Icy, or formerly Lilith, do the thinking. Of course, she could have just as easily contributed something clever to the matter, but both Icy and Lilith were used to giving orders, and Darcy knew that Icy was reluctant to accept suggestions. There was always the danger that she would take it as criticism. And God forbid the person who criticized Icy. So Darcy waited for her older sister to come forward with a plan that she, Darcy, would competently carry out. She was just about to take a closer look at the alley when the hairs on the back of her neck stood up and she got goosebumps. She closed her eyes and connected with the darkness. Without a doubt, someone was sneaking up on them.

"Sisters," she whispered quietly, "we are being watched."

Icy looked up and Stormy also looked like she was about to react. Before her impetuous sister could do anything, Darcy turned to her sisters with a confident smile. "May I take care of it?" Without waiting for an answer, she pressed both her palms together, concentrated, and created a clone of herself.

"And now all I have to do is disappear. And she," Darcy pointed to the clone, "will stay here."

Like a shadow, Darcy loomed through the darkness and in an instant spotted the girl watching her. She silently positioned herself behind the girl.

"Step aside, fat ass, I can't see anything," the girl muttered. She was hiding behind a garbage can and was trying to look past Knut to Darcy's sisters. Darcy smiled. The girl's red hair was messy and the knees of her jeans were soaking with the dirty water from the puddle in which the girl was kneeling. Without hesitating any longer, she attacked the girl from behind with her dark energy. They were only light beams, just enough to throw the girl at her sisters' feet. Startled, the girl screamed and held her head as she tried to get up.

"That's her!" shouted Knut excitedly, "the friend of the scepter fairy!"

The girl looked up at Icy in shock. When their eyes crossed, a nasty smile played on Icy's lips: "So, did you like our little joke?" She snapped her fingers and the Darcy clone dissolved.

The girl looked around in shock and Darcy couldn't suppress a small, malicious laugh as she walked around the kneeling girl on the ground and stood next to Icy again. "Surprise."

The girl's eyes were still wide with shock, giving her a very stupid expression. But then she seemed to gather all her courage and held out her open hand to the Trix. "Don't come any closer, I'm a fairy!" A few golden stars trickled out of her hand but didn't reach the sisters. Stormy laughed, Icy looked at the girl dismissively. "Ha, you call that magic? I'll show magic." With these words she raised her hand and in a matter of seconds a blizzard built up and threw the girl back to the ground. "Now, that's magic!"

Darcy shot another attack at the girl then Stormy shot forward and created a whirlwind. "And that's magic!" The storm tossed the girl through the air until she was able to hold on to a gutter.

The girl was upsetting Icy beyond measure. First of all, she wasn't Stella from Solaria, so they were here for absolutely nothing. Second, that stupid girl had dared to sneak up on her and her sisters and third, she was just a weak fairy with no great powers. She was wasting her time. Nothing else. Icy bit her bottom lip, hard to keep herself from completely losing her temper. A dead body was the last thing they needed in their first week of school, but it wasn't going to let the little bitch get away unscathed. After all, she had ruined what might have been her last casual evening with Sky. She aimed her ice beam back at the girl, who was desperately clinging to the gutter but unable to pull herself up. "Get down here, I'm not done yet!"

The ice beam whirled the fairy back down. The red-haired girl hastily tried to get up and run away when another flash of ice hit her and completely froze the stupid fairy. "And now the final touch." A shimmering blue-ish block of ice formed around the fairy, completely enclosing her.

"What a pity you had to meet us, sweet little fairy." Her fingernails scraped along the ice. It was good that the little troublemaker was now stuck in the ice. She had earned her lesson. Most probably no one would find her until tomorrow morning. It served her right.

"Leave her alone!" A high-pitched voice suddenly boomed from the other end of the alley. "Take us on instead!"

Four fairies approached them, including Stella from Solaria. And just like that, Icy's good mood after freezing the girl was gone again. If Stella hadn't been among the fairies, she would have simply retreated with her sisters. But now she wanted to see what the Princess of Solaria could do with her power. A small test, nothing more. And so she just gave the fairies a haughty look and then turned to Knut. "They're yours, have fun."

Knut seemed to want to prove to the witches that he wasn't useless and ran towards the girls, shouting clamorously. They all jumped aside and transformed into their silly fairy forms.

To be honest, Icy wasn't surprised that the fairies almost dismantled Knut. But it still pissed her off. Eventually it affected her reputation. Icy was seething inside and the only thing that could cheer her up now was to beat those stupid fairies so badly that they would have to crawl back to Alfea.

"All right, you asked for it," she spat at them, throwing razor-sharp icicles at the fairies. One of the fairies conjured a protective shield and the icicles shattered against it. Before Icy could think of another attack, Stormy literally stormed towards the fairies and threw a bolt of lightning directly at the purple fairy's protective shield. It shattered and the fairies were thrown to the ground.

Very good. In this state it would be easy to freeze all of them. Afterwards they could casually grab Stella's scepter and then the evening would ultimately have been of some use. So Icy closed her eyes and focused her powers on the fairies - each one was to be frozen, and that required concentration.

Further away, she heard Stella shout "Solaria!" and saw her throw her ring into the air, which immediately transformed into the scepter. All the better, then they didn't have to chop off her finger, but could easily take the scepter with them. At the same time, Icy threw her energy at the fairies. An icy fog rolled in and briefly obscured their view. When it left, the sisters were met with an unpleasant sight. The entire alley was covered in ice, but there was no trace of the fairies. Even the frozen fairy had disappeared.

"Damn, where did they go?" Stormy slid on the ice to the end of the alley to peek around the corner. "They're gone!"

"Of course, they're gone," Icy hissed angrily. "The princess must have beamed herself and her stupid fairy friends away at the last second."

"I could puke!" Stormy clenched her hands into fists and Icy also looked as if she would burst with anger at any moment. They had been so close. So close. But the evening seemed to remain a bad evening. At least for Icy.

Darcy however was in high spirits. She had very little interest in the fairies at the moment. She was now one step closer to Riven than she had been just a few months ago. Yes, she had been nervous, yes, she had dropped her mask a little too much. But in the end she had herself somewhat under control again and she was glad that she had charmed Riven with her own charm and not with her magic, which would certainly have been easier. She found it difficult to be herself around other people. It was safer to wear a mask and manipulate people into where she wanted them. That was easy. Your specialty. But strangely enough, in Riven's case, she didn't want that. She wanted him to get where she wanted him to go on his own. And as I said, she was a big step closer to this goal. Her eyes narrowed and she smiled. It was a start and a good one.