Gravity Winx
By adventuremaker21
Chapter 7: Mission at Cloud Tower
Author's note: This is my first brand new chapter since who knows when and how long it came out. Plus, Expect new lore, new character development, and one heck of an action sequence!
Two days later, after classes ended, Bloom was talking with Flora, Stella, Mabel, and Layla about what to do next. It's been a few days since the Trix stole Stella's ring and it was no secret she was super antsy about it.
"Ugh... this sucks," Stella said as she kept seeing her hand, hoping it would magically come back to her.
"I know it sucks now, but we will get it back," Layla said to Stella. "Have faith, my bestie."
"I'm trying, Layla," Stella said as she moped.
"Then try harder, silly," Mabel said as she gave her a hug. Stella then hugged back because she kind of needed it. At that moment, Dipper, Tecna, and Musa returned back from the library, carrying a book.
"Hey, We're back!" Musa announced.
"And we found some interesting things about the ring," Dipper added as Stella perked up.
"Like how to get it back?" Stella asked him.
"No, not exactly," Dipper sadly answered. "But we did find out why they wanted it in the first place." As he said that, Dipper handed Bloom the book as she opened it to the bookmarked page.
"The Staff of Solaria. Part of the ancestral right of a princess of Solaria," Bloom read out loud. "Wow, you weren't kidding, Stella. This ring really does belong to you."
"Well, yeah. I only said this like a million times," Stella said as she thought about something. "But it doesn't explain why the Trix wants it for themselves."
"Perhaps they have low self-esteem and wish to be just as awesome as we are?" Mabel interjected. "That or the portal powers it gives off."
"It's most likely the portal powers," Dipper said to his sister.
"But wait, there's more about the ring," Bloom said as she started reading again as the rest of the club huddled around her. "According to legend, the Staff of Solaria was forged long before recorded time by sculpting a magic stone into a staff by the Dragon's Flame, similar to that of the Trident of Andros, and the Whip of Lymphina."
"Wait, that's my whip!" Flora pointed out in the book.
"And my Trident," Layla pointed out as well. "It's like our artifacts are connected.
"And who's to say history can't be fun?" Dipper said with a smile as playfully nudged him.
"You, ya dork," Mabel said as she giggled.
"But this part here is something i don't understand," Bloom got back on track. "What's the Dragon's Flame?"
"Uh, only the creative power used by the Great Dragon that gave this universe life," Stella reminded Bloom as Musa elbowed her stomach.
"Be nice, Stella. Bloom and the twins are from Earth, remember?" Musa said to her. "They don't know about the Great Dragon or his teachings."
"The great dragon?" Bloom and the twins asked at the same time.
"In short, The Great Dragon is God, with a capital G," Musa briefly touched upon the deity.
"As in, a great creator? A force of supreme good?" Dipper listed off.
"Among other things," Musa answered him.
"OH, IDEA!" Mabel said. "What if the witches stole the ring hoping to get some of that dragon fire stuff?" The rest of the Winx Club just looked at her like she was crazy.
"Mabel, you're a genius," Flora said as she hugged her.
"Well, I do have my moments," Mabel said in a smug tone.
"But why exactly are they after the dragon's flame?" Dipper asked the group. "And how did they rope Pacifica into the Trix coven by getting her to help them?"
"One thing at a time, Dipper," Bloom said as she bookmarked the page and closed the book. "One thing at a time."
A short while later, the Winx are all down leaving the cafeteria, talking about the meal they just had, and walking back up to their dorm.
"There is something I still have to wonder," Flora piped up. "If the dragon did in fact exist at one point, why did he suddenly become a myth?"
"I think the Dragon more or less represents a balance inside us all," Bloom tried to explain. "Like everyone has their own fire to burn and how they burn defines their own destiny."
"Bold words, coming from a fire fairy," Stella teased Bloom. "But you could be right. Then again, I don't like learning history."
"At least you admitted it," Musa said to Stella.
"Some people are just better at other tasks, like her with shapeshifting, fashion, and Shopping," Mabel said, defending her.
"See, she gets it," Stella said while high-fiving Mabel for the comment. "And this weekend, we're all going shopping to see if we can help spice up some wardrobes. Starting with Mr. Stinky here."
"I can hear you!" Dipper grunted as the rest of them laughed. "And for your information, I've been getting a lot better. I now shower once a week."
"Still better than once a month," Mabel joked as Flora, Stella, and even Musa laughed.
"Traitor," Dipper said as he pouted, annoyed Musa would laugh like this.
"Aw come on, Dip," Musa said, reassuring him. "You know it's true."
"Come on, girls, give Dipper a break," Bloom said as she pulled him into a hug. "At least he's trying."
"And all any of us can do with uncertintanty is try," Tecna added on.
"Alright, alright," Mabel said as they calmed down. "Yeah, he has been getting better."
"Also helps that he does it for a certain redhead at Red Fountain, even though she's nose blind," Layla added.
"Oh come on, guys," Dipper said as he got even more embarrassed. While it was fun to tease him, Bloom still has way more questions in her mind.
"There's just too much I don't know about the dragon," Bloom wondered as she turned to face the others. "I'm gonna head down to the library and see if I can find more info."
"And I'm coming with you," Dipper said as his face got red from embarrassment as the both of them walked away.
"Don't smell up the library too much," Musa tessed him as Dipper grunted as they were out of earshot.
As both he and Bloom were in the hallway, Bloom noticed he was getting a little frustrated. "Hey, Dipper, it's not so bad to be teased by friends," Bloom said to him, trying to make him feel better
"I sometimes don't know the difference between a simple joke and genuine hate," Dipper said as he turned away from her. "It's something I've kind of struggled with for a while. That and hyperfixations that cause people to be in danger because of it. For example, I had to pick between winning Wendy earlier in the summer or making Mabel happy by winning her a pet. I picked the pet."
Bloom pats his back and reassures him. "You're a good person, Dipper," Bloom says to him. "Sure, your hygiene may need some work, but I've seen you put others before your own many MANY times since the semester began. You're smart, you're pretty brave, you're super helpful, and above all, you help others without asking for much in return."
"Plus, it's a new world filled with new secrets," Dipper said to Bloom. "What's not to like about it?"
"There you go, Dipper," Bloom said, seeing he's happy again. "And speaking of secrets, I'd like to know more about the Great Dragon or its flame. I don't know why, but I'm super interested."
"Looks like somebody's got the mystery itch," Dipper said as he gently nudged her as they both laughed. At that moment, Faragonda walks into view and notices their words.
"Excuse me, but did I hear you two were finding out what the Great Dragon is?" Faragodna asked of them.
"Headmistress Faragodna?!" Both Dipper and Bloom said at the same time.
"What, eh.. brings you by?" Dipper said as he tried to act cool.
"Yeah, we were just on our way to find out more about the dragon," Bloom answered her.
"Well, ask no further because I can help you two out," Faragonda said as she invited the two of them into her office, which so happens to be close to where they are now. As they arrived, Dipper and Bloom sat down at the chairs and Faragonda to her desk. "You two want to know about the Dragon, is that correct?"
"Yes, please," Bloom answered. "I and the other humans from here, Wendy from Red Fountain, and Pacifica from Cloud Tower keep hearing that thrown around and we're afraid to ask what it was in the fear of us being labeled as heretics."
"It's not heresy, Bloom," Faragonda said as she calmed her down. She then cleared her throat and began her story. "In the beginning, there was nothing. And, out of the deep darkness, a dazzling light appeared, it was the Great Dragon."
"Kind of like the big bang?" Dipper asked her.
"Exactly like the big bang, except the people on Earth do not know the entire story," Faragonda answered him and resumed the story. "With his fiery breath, he created a multitude of different worlds and spread life, light, and heat across the universe, including his 200 children that can help maintain the cosmic balance of concepts, invisible to the naked eye except if that were to be bonded to specific artifacts."
"Oh, You must be talking about the Miraculouses and the Kwamis," Dipper piped up. "Mabel and I know seven of these things back on earth. Five are used by heroes and two are used by villains, but we don't like the villains that use them."
"Wait, you mean Ladybug and the others in Paris?" Bloom asked him. "How do you know so much about that?"
"Because Mabel and I are actually friends with the 5 heroes," Dipper said excitingly. "And we even know their identities."
"Well, I know the bee one is public knowledge, but you know the other four?" Bloom asked. "That's a little hard to believe, Dipper."
"I'll prove it," Dipper said as he cleared his throat. "The kwamis that are with the heroes are Tikki, Plagg, Wayzz, Pollen, and Trixx. While the villains have Nooroo and Dussu."
"He's right, Bloom," Faragonda said as she was impressed with his knowledge. "He just named the kwamis of Creation, Destruction, Protection, Subjugation, Illusion, Transmission, and Emotion." Bloom was just so shocked she could not even speak. Faragonda then takes this opportunity to finish her story. "Eventually, the Dragon became exhausted and chose to lie down and rest. In his deep slumber, he then accumulated a ton of minerals and formed a planet around himself. The Great Dragon became a planet called Domino."
"Domino?" Bloom asked the headmistress. "Isint that the planet where dark forces attacked and basically turned the planet into an unforgiving frozen wasteland?"
"Exactly, Bloom," Faragonda said as she showed some emotion. "Domino fell due to the forces of 5 vile beings. Three powerful ancestral witches named Belladonna, Liliss, and Tharma. A dark entity named Darkar the Shadow Phoenix, and an evil wizard named Valtor."
"How do you know so much about this, besides from an educational standpoint?" Dipper asked Faragonda.
"Because, Dipper, I was there when my home fell," Faragonda said. "I'm one of the last remaining Dominoans alive, just like my grandson Helia." As she said that, Bloom got up and hugged Faragonda gently.
"It's ok, Faragonda," Bloom said as she was hugging her. Dipper saw this so he too joined in on the hug. "We're sorry for opening up old wounds."
"It's quite alright," Faragonda said, accepting their apology. As she did, she then saw the time on her clock on the wall. "Unfortunately, I need to pause the story for another day. It's getting awfully late and you two have classes tomorrow."
"Alright," Bloom said as she let go. "Let us know if there's anything we can do to help."
"Thank you," Faragonda said as she waved them both off as they both left the office. As they did and out of earshot. "Thank you, my grandchildren."
Over at the Trix's dorm room at Cloud Tower, all 4 Icy, Darcy, Stormy, and Pacifica were all trying to draw out power from Stella's ring using a chant they learned but failed to do so as they got launched. Icy to a wall, Darcy to a counter, Stormy to the floor, and Pacifica was caught because Stormy created a cloud for her to have a safe landing.
"Uuuuugggghhhh," Icy said as she collected herself, feeling a wave of fury coming over her. "THIS IS BULLSHIT! WE HAVE THE RING, SO WHY CAN'T WE TAKE IT'S POWER?!"
"Maybe there's a safety measure in it?" Stormy suggests. "It would explain why we can't draw the Dragon's Flame from the ring."
"Wait, Dragon's Flame?" Pacifica asked as she brought her scarf down. "I thought we only needed the ring so we could cause chaos anywhere we want, like throwing my parents in jail. Why are we after a fire, exactly?" Icy heard this and immediately froze up. The whole reason why Pacifica is even here is because she wasn't safe with her parents and she was picked up by her and the others. Pacifica thought she could use the ring to right some wrongs and serve some much-needed justice like her awful parents casting her out. Stormy and Darcy also got this vibe from her and they feel for her sympathy. but unfortunately, a pair of invisible hands for the older three has to steer them away and towards what the hands want, not what they want.
"Because," Darcy started as she went to Pacifica and made sure she was ok. "The Dragon's Flame has the power to do whatever you can imagine with it."
"You mean like become a god?" Pacifica asked.
"Exactly!" Stormy said as she got up. "Won't that be tons of fun?"
"It's why we need the Dragon's flame, so all our dreams can come true," Icy said as she walked back to the ring. "But apparently, this dragon-damned thing doesn't have it."
"To be fair, I don't think the flame can even fit inside that tiny little ring," Darcy pointed out.
"Maybe it could be used as a tracker for the flame itself?" Pacifica asked.
"You might have an idea, sister," Darcy said as she thought about it.
"Until we figure it all out, this thing's useless!" Icy said as she roared, causing the other 3 to be scared at her behavior, especially Pacifica. "We might as well start out search from the top." As she said that, she was then hugged by Pacifica.
"I know it's frustrating, but stressing out won't do us good," Pacifica said. "So why don't we break curfew tonight and just hang out in town?"
"Ooh, Trix night out. I LOVE IT!" Stormy said as she was all in for it.
"Sounds like fun," Darcy said as she stretched her back. "I could use some fresh air after all that."
"Alright, let's do it, sisters," Icy said as she grabbed her things. As they were all ready to leave, Pacifica remembered one thing.
"Pepe, guard the ring while we're gone," Pacifica said to Pepe as he saluted at her. Icy saw this and smiled.
"So the duckling isn't useless after all," Icy said with a hint of pride.
"Nobody in this world is useless, Icy," Pacifica told her as they all left. The other Trix can't help but feel for Pacifica because she's not useless. She tries her best to make her sisters proud, even if she doesn't know what's fully going on.
Back at the Winx's dorm, Bloom and Dipper told the rest of the Winx Club a plan so stupid, so risky, and so dangerous, that it stunned the rest of them.
They were going to break into Cloud Tower and steal back Stella's ring.
"You want to what now?" Layla asked of them.
"That's right, Layla. We're going to break into Cloud Tower and steal back Stella's ring," Dipper repeated himself to her.
"Breaking and entering, vandalism, theft, disorderly conduct," Mabel listed off as she chuckled. "I'm down! Because nobody steals bestie's ring and gets away with it."
"That's what I like to hear," Stella said as she pulled Mabel into a side hug and chuckled.
"I'm in," Musa said, joining in. "This is exactly the kind of fun I've been looking for since coming here."
"What about the rest of you?" Bloom said to the rest of her friends.
"It sounds pretty risky," Flora said as she thought about it.
"I have to agree with Flora," Layla chimed in. "We're heading straight into the sea lion's den. Plus, what if we get caught by the Trix, or worse: Headwitchstress Griffin?"
"That's why we're not going to overpower them," Dipper said. "We're going to outsmart them."
"And just like that, you have hooked me," Tecna said, agreeing to it. "Darcy's going to be a threat in smarts, though. While Icy is laser-focused on the ring, Stormy is a wild card, and Pacifica is..."
"Figuring herself out," Mabel finished for Tecna as Dipper agreed with his sister.
"Well, if everyone else is doing it, then I'll support you," Layla said as she joined.
"Same here," Flora said as she agreed as well. "But what do we do if we get caught?"
"Since this is my plan, I'll take the fall so the rest of you can stay here," Dipper said without a second wasted. As he said that, Musa grabbed him by the shoulders and shook him.
"You are NOT pulling that sacrifice crap on us, Dipper. Do you hear me?" Musa basically roared at him.
"Yeah," Bloom said as she agreed with Musa. "The eight of us are the Winx Club. Not seven, not six, not five, but the eight of us. And if we do this, we do this together!"
"I know something that will give him a massive confidence boost," Tecna said as she went into her backpack and pulled out his watch.
"Hey, my watch is fixed," Dipper said as he put it back on his left wrist.
"Plus with a bit extra," Tecna said as she pressed a button on his watch, it then changed into a sizable gauntlet over his left hand that was surprisingly light.
"WHAT THE HELL?!" Dipper exclaimed as he saw the gauntlet. "Is this... a gauntlet?"
"Sure is," Tecna said as she smiled at Dipper. "I wanted to do something nice for you since you've been nothing but nice to me since the day we first met."
"This is AWESOME!" Dipper said as he checked it out. "Hey Mabel, is it just me or does this remind me of Garnet's gauntlets from back on Earth."
"It does, actually," Mabel said as she inspected it.
"Doesn't that confidence boost help out?" Layla said, making sure he's ok.
"Yeah, it does!" Dipper exclaimed as he reverted his gauntlet back to normal. "Thank you, Tecna," Dipper told her as he was brought into a hug.
"Anytime, Dipping Sauce," Tecna said, making sure he felt appreciated.
"With that out of the way, we sneak into Cloud Tower tonight and take back what's Stellas," Bloom said as the rest of the Club agreed with their leader.
Way later in the evening, all 8 of the Winx Club were trudging down an underground tunnel. Stella was leading them on while providing light for the rest of the club to see, while the rest of them were following Bloom and Musa's map.
"Ugh, what is this place?" Mabel said as she felt a sense of unease wash over her.
"Oh, these?" Stella said as she guides them. "This here is a tunnel system that connects the three schools together for easy access for the staff to deliver notes or for students who just wanna pull pranks."
"I can see why none of these tunnels have been used in a while," Flora said as she looked around her and saw cobwebs.
"Think of it this way, Flora," Dipper said, trying to cheer her up. "We're walking through Magix history here. Every crack is a new door to a new answer for questions nobody asks."
"Or even care to ask," Musa said. "It's just tunnels."
"You are close..." An unrecognizable voice said.
"Huh," Dipper asked. "Did anyone say anything?"
"I said 'It's just tunnels', Dipper," Musa said, getting annoyed.
"No, I heard it too," Mabel defended Dipper.
"Yeah, someone said 'you are close', but in an ominous tone,"' Bloom said as she looked to the other Winx.
"I didn't hear anything, and I have very advanced hearing," Musa said while the other 4 princesses were confused.
"Maybe we just need to sleep?" Layla suggested.
"I don't need to sleep, I need my ring back!" Stella yelled out as they reached a door at the end of the tunnel. "Argh great. It's locked!"
"Allow me," Dipper said as he walked up to the door, pulled out a key from his knapsack, and inserted it in as it unlocked the door.
"What the fuck was that?" Musa asked him.
"Oh, this? This is a little thing I like to call 'the president's key'," Dipper said as he showed it off.
"I thought it could open any lock in America?" Mabel asked.
"It can, but I enchanted it yesterday so it can open any lock I want, as long as it has a keyhole," Dipper said as he put it back in his bag. "It was gifted to me by Quintin Tremby, the 8th and a half president of the United States of America."
"There's no 8th and a half president," Bloom interjected.
"We'll tell you the story later, Bloom," Mabel said as they all went up the stairs and into Cloud Tower.
"Whoo, let's do this!" Musa basically shouted as she was shushed by Flora.
"Keep it down, Musa," Flora said as she held her mouth shut. "We're sneaking." As they walked inside the school, all 8 of the fairies had a sense of unease itching on their backs.
"Ugh, this school feels awful," Stella commented.
"She's right," Dipper said. "It's like a massive weight got handed down to us."
"Well, it is a witch school, Dipper. Fairies being here is like walking in the snow," Musa said to him.
"Just be glad nobody knows we're here," Tecna said, and the other seven nodded in agreement.
Up in Cloud Tower's office department, Griffin sat inside her office, looking at the Winx through a crystal ball. She was both impressed and annoyed by this.
"Fairies? At my school?" Griffin said as she looked closer. "And they used the underground tunnel entrance? I thought I had that place locked up." as she said that, Griffin saw that the Winx Club started walking off in the school. Griffin then got an idea. "Whatever you want to do, I'll let you. But be warned, you won't leave my school so easily. I won't let any fairy who steps inside Cloud Tower leave unpunished... Even if two of you happen to be my grandchildren."
While the Winx Club is sneaking down the hallway, they all come to the conclusion that they are lost.
"Ugh, the dorms should be in this direction," Stella said as she pointed in one direction.
"I saw a sign saying dorms are this way!" Musa told Stella as she pointed in the opposite direction. The rest of the Winx Club was visibly annoyed with Stella and Musa's argument as they hit a mental dead end.
"This is getting us nowhere," Layla said, looking at the two argumentative girls.
"Every second these two argue, the likelihood of our capture becomes higher," Tecna calculated with her cybernetic mind. As the two of them argued, a yellow and orange ghost wearing an elegant dress, a gorgeous hairstyle to match, and a mask over her eyes, appeared as Bloom gasped, Dipper jumped back, and Mabel screamed.
"I know where to go," the ghost lady said towards Bloom
"GYAH!" Mabel lets out, seeing the ghost. The rest of the winx sees their three Earthling friends react to something, but they don't know what.
"Sweetie, are you ok?" Flora said as she comforted Mabel.
"A beautiful ghost just appeared!" Mabel said, pointing to the ghost, but Flora saw nothing.
"Are you sure there's something there?" Musa asked. "Or are you on Smile Dip again?"
"I can see her, too," Dipper said, defending his sister.
"Wait, you two can see me as well? I hoped only Bloom could see me," The ghost said, just as confused as everyone else. As the ghost was wondering, Musa brought the other 4 fairies together that couldn't see the ghost.
"Yeah, those three snapped," Musa said.
"But why now of all times?" Layla asked. "We have a job to do."
"Why do you want only me?" Bloom asked. "And how can they see you as well?"
"That, I do not know, Bloom," The ghost said. "That will wait for another time. Right now, your friend in the shorts is right, you have a job to do. The room you are looking for is on the top floor of the dorm wing in room 4-24."
"4-24? That's Wendy's birthday," Dipper said as he mentally noted the room number. "Thank you for the massive hint."
"You're very welcome, young fairy," The ghost said as she disappeared.
"That was weird," Mabel said with a smile.
"But at least we got our location, so maybe she wasn't all bad," Dipper said, confident as he adjusted his bag. "Let's go to dorm 4-24."
"Wait, you guys were talking to a wall," Stella interjected. "How can we trust this information?"
"The only way we can, Stella," Bloom said as she and the twins started walking in the direction Stella wanted to go in.
"See?" Stella told Musa. "Told you I was right."
"But it is how they say 'a broken clock is right twice a day'," Tecna said as Musa snickered very loudly as Stella brushed it off.
Griffin was watching that whole experience on her crystal ball but with one difference. Griffin too saw the ghost.
"Could that have been...?" Griffin asked as she shook her head and slapped her cheeks. "No, that's impossible. She's dead. She couldn't have shown up, least of all guided them. I need to keep a closer eye on this."
The Winx Club was all walking in the dorm rooms, Dipper checking the doors for the right one, and the other 7 were keeping an eye out for any overseers. "4-22... 4-23... AHA, HERE IT IS!" Dipper said as he found the right room. Ladies, may I present to you, the Trix's dorm room. Room 4-24." The rest of the club looked at it with worry.
"Let's just hope this is the right one," Layla said as she looked at it.
"The sooner I get my ring back, the better," Stella said as Dipper unlocked the door as the 8 of them snuck inside the dorm. Besides a few fast food boxes and bags in the kitchen, and the place was more gothic than they expected. "Ugh, this place is UGLY!"
"Where do we even begin?" Flora asked the group.
"How about the 4 doors with letters on them?" Dipper said as he pointed to the 4 lettered doors. One has an 'I' made out of ice, one has an 'S' made out of lightning, one has a 'D' made out of darkness, and the last one has a 'P' made out of metal. "If I had to guess, these must be their bedrooms."
"This must be where my ring is!" Stella said as she built up excitement. "Dipper, unlock the doors." As she said that, Dipper took a step back and grabbed his knapsack a bit tightly. "Dipper?"
"I don't want to unlock bedroom doors, especially if they're older girls' rooms," Dipper said as he became embarrassed. "What if the Trix burst in right as I opened one up? I'd be labeled a pervert and expelled from Alfea immediately."
"Dipper, you're not a pervert," Tecna said as she sat him down and sat next to him. "You are the farthest thing from."
"It also means you have standards and a moral," Stella said, smiling at him.
"Which also means I can do this," Musa said as she took his key and unlocked the first door, which was Icy's room. "So you don't have to."
"Thanks, Musa," Dipper said. "You're a true friend."
"Don't mention it, buddy," Musa said as she smiled at him. Bloom and Layla then went into Icy's room, ready to search.
"Remember, this is Icy's room," Bloom told Layla. "She might have set up some traps." Layla nodded as they both went to work. Musa then unlocked Darcy's room next, where Stella went in to check.
"Well, she does have some cute outfits, I won't lie," Stella said as she complimented her wardrobe.
"Ring first, then you can roast," Musa told Stella as she unlocked Stormy's room, which she and Flora checked.
"Oh my dragon, she's so chaotic," Musa said as Flora agreed.
"She can at least clean up, like Dipper with his side of his room," Flora said with a smile.
"Ok, that was uncalled for," Dipper said with narrowed eyes.
Last but not least, Musa gave Mabel the key and unlocked Pacifica's room as she alone went in.
"Sorry, Pazzy," Mabel said as she felt uneasy entering her friend's room. "I hope you can forgive me."
Dipper went to guard the front door to ensure the Trix wouldn't return prematurely, and Tecna joined him in doing so.
"Wouldn't it be better if you helped snooped with the rest? Make sure Stella doesn't steal anything besides her ring?" Dipper asked Tecna.
"Four eyes keeping watch is better than two, even if one of mine is an artificial optic," Tecna said, ensuring he's not alone. As they kept an eye on the doorway, the search for the ring continued. Mabell was gently going through Pacifica's stuff and making sure it was not a mess, but Musa and Flora did not care as they trashed Stormy's room.
"That ring could be anywhere," Musa suggested. Flora can't help but agree with this.
"I can't help but agree," Flora said as she picked up a ragdoll with needles in it. "Well, this certainly isint concerning."
"I wonder who that's supposed to be," Musa asked Flora.
"We best not leave it to chance," Flora said as she put it down gently.
Over in Darcy's room, Stella was rummaging through Darcy's clothes and jewelry for her ring.
"While the witches are off shopping or having a good night, we're all stuck here in their space they call a dorm looking for what's mine," Stella said as she tossed everything into piles. "I swear to the dragon they better have taken it with them and flaunted it in town."
As Stella did that, both Bloom and Layla kept rummaging through Icy's room.
"I hope we find it soon," Layla said as she put what she went through back to the way it was. "They could be back at any moment."
"Even if they do come back, we have our faithful fairies keeping an eye on things," Bloom said, referring to Tecna and Dipper, who were keeping an eye on the hallway.
"All good, Bloomington," Tecna said to Bloom and the others.
As she said that, Mabel struck gold as she found Stella's ring. "HEY GUYS, I FOUND IT!" Mabel yelled out as Stella practically teleported into Pacifica's room, and exited with the news.
"WHERE?!" Stella boomed as Mabel presented Stella with her ring. "MY RING!"
"Oh yeah, a duckling in Pacifica's room had the ring while it slept," Mabel explained. Stella took the ring and slipped it back onto her hand.
"Oh baby, I'll never let anything happen to you again," Stella said while she cradled her hands and kissed her ring happily. The rest of the Winx Club saw this and had strange looks at her. "What? You'd be like this if you were split from your favorite things."
"Yeah, like Dipper and the journals he had over the summer," Mabel teased at Dipper.
"Or Mabel with her leaf blower," Dipper teased right back. "When she was learning how to kiss gnomes."
"Wait, gnomes?" Bloom asked.
"That was ONE TIME, DIPPER," Mabel grumped at Dipper, causing the others to share a laugh.
Griffin looked at this through her crystal ball and heard about it all. "Wait, they were taking back a thing that Icy, Darcy, Stormy, and Pacifica stole?" Griffin asked herself. "I wonder why they didn't just tell me about this." As she said that, she shook her head and got focused. "No matter! I did say that getting in would be easy, but getting out would be hard!" Griffin's hands started glowing as she pondered the orb once more. "Once you step out of the Trix's dorm, fairies, prepare to be tested by Cloud Tower itself!"
With their heist complete, the Winx Club started walking back into the hallway, confident in what they had accomplished.
"I can't believe that worked," Flora said out loud.
"And with zero consequences," Stella said, adding on. "My ring is back, and we broke into a witch's dorm room."
"And nobody can stop us now!" Musa said with confidence. As she said that, the floor beneath them started liquefying and becoming quicksand.
"Hey, is anyone else feeling sluggish?" Layla said as she started feeling its effects. As she said that, the rest of the club looked down and saw that they were all sinking into the floor.
"QUICKSAND!" Bloom said as the rest of them started freaking out.
"OK, THIS IS NEW!" Dipper said as he was freaking out more. "MABEL!"
"ON IT, BRO-BRO!" Mabel said as she got her grappling hook out. As she did, the Ghoist Lady appeared once more.
"Do not be afraid, Mabel," The ghost lady said to her.
"WHAT ELSE CAN WE FEEL BUT AFRAID?!" Bloom yelled out as the 5 princesses looked at the earthling trio weirdly.
"They lost it again," Layla said, worried for them.
"I don't think their 'ghost friend' can save us this time," Tecna said with a realistic expectation.
"OH THIS MIGHT BE THE END!" Stella yelled out, now with it coming to her waist.
"This here is but a test from Griffin. She wishes to see if you would all pass as fairies breaking into her school," The Ghost Lady said as she pointed downward at the makeshift quicksand. "This all leads to the library below, so don't panic, just head down there and I will show you the way out."
"The library?" Mabel asked.
"Wait, what's this about a library?" Flora asked.
"The ghost lady said this is a test by the headwitchstress," Dipper pointed out. "We can head down there and sneak out afterward."
"Ugh, the library!" Stella complained as they all got swallowed up.
"Oh come on, Daphne, don't spoil the surprise," Griffin said, watching all of this unfold from her office and through her crystal ball. "But maybe I can use this to my advantage, especially since they're gonna arrive at the biography section."
As they all arrived at the library, they all got up and brushed themselves off. Not knowing what surprises were in store here, the eight fairies transformed into their fairy forms and prepared for the worst.
"Ugh, of all places, why the library?" Stella said as she got her Staff out and pointed it outward in a defensive stance. "Between this or the quicksand, I'd take the quicksand."
"Look at it this way, Stella," Dipper said as he got his gauntlets out. "Everyone knows that Knowledge is power."
"No, magic is power, silly," Stella tried correcting him.
"I always thought friendship was magic," Bloom said, referring to a show she liked, but Mabel shuttered and looked away. As she did, she saw that one of the books on the shelf shared her name. Mabel thought this was weird as she headed to it.
"Huh, what's this?" Mabel said as she picked the book off the shelf. "Why is there a book titled 'Mabel Dana Pines'? How does a book know my full name?"
"Wait, what?" Bloom said as she and the rest of the club headed to her.
"Do you think this might be another Gideon situation?" Dipper asked Mabel as she cringed at the thought.
"That would be awful!" Mabel said as she saw other books next to hers. "Wait, Bloom Peters? Stella Straffi? There's books based on all of us."
"All of us?" Dipper said as he saw his book with an error written on it. He then quickly grabbed it and started writing on it.
"Wait, I've heard of this," Layla said as she remembered. "These are books that tell our entire lives. Past, present, and future. Forever written and forever altering and can't be changed by any outside force."
"No one must ever know..." Dipper said as he scribbled a name off his cover and wrote in 'Dipper' instead. Mabel saw this and knowing the context, let him.
"Know what?" Musa said as she tried taking a peak. Dipper jerked it away from her sight, further instigating her curiosity. Mabel then pulled Musa away from him.
"He doesn't like anyone outside his family knowing his real name," Mabel told Musa. "Heck, not even Wendy knows his real name."
"Ooohhhhh," Musa said, realizing why he did it. "Like Layla's preferred nickname." As Dipper was fixing the mistake, Bloom couldn't help but look into the earlier parts of the book.
"Let's see if these things can foretell our lives," Bloom said as she read an incident from her childhood to herself.
"You know it's better to let your future happen," Flora told Bloom.
"I'm not looking at my future, Flora. I was looking into my childhood and see if this is legit," Bloom explained to Flora. As she said that, she saw that in the book, Bloom read that she once absorbed fire as a kid from the stove but never told anyone about it, as they thought she was a freak. Bloom gasped at this and closed the book. Layla was right; the book does tell of our lives."
"Well, I don't think the book would mind if I took a peek at my future," Dipper, now curious, tried to open the book, but the book suddenly growled at him and bit his gauntlet, but he felt no pain. "WHAT THE HELL?!" As he said, many of the books started floating and all growled at them like animals.
"And this is why I don't like the library," Stella told her friends as they groaned at her attitude.
Griffin was snickering in her office as she made all the books act this way. "You were right about one thing, Mason. Knowledge IS power."
The Winx Club were careful with fighting the books that were charging at them and trying to bite them. They were also careful not to damage the books as they were technically trespassing at the witch school. This then resulted in the Winx Club going on the defensive.
"We need a way out!" Layla said to Dipper.
"Why are you asking me?" Dipper asked. "I'm not the leader. Bloom is."
"And As a leader, I want us to scout out and find a way out," Bloom said, taking charge. "Mabel, Musa, you two are fast flyers. I want you two to find us an exit. The rest of us will cover."
"You got it, boss fairy," Musa said as Mabel nodded at Musa as they both flew off in a red and yellow blur. The other 6 stay behind to fend themselves and the two fast fairies.
"Let's hope they can find one soon," Flora said as she wielded her whip into a makeshift shield while pushing back books with her magic. As they tried to push back, Mabel flew back to them.
"We found a way out!" Mabel told them as the rest of the winx followed her lead.
"Way to go Mabel!" Stella said, ruffling her hair. "How did you and Musa do it?"
"We just kept flying until we found a door," Mabel said as she pointed to a door with Musa next to it.
"Single file, ladies," Musa said, jokingly at them. They then all escaped the clutches of the haunted library as they were exhausted.
"Man, that was tough," Mabel said as she was panting.
"Easy for you to say, Mabel," Dipper said as he wiped the sweat from his brow. "You weren't punching hardcovers back there."
"At least your new gauntlets helped out," Tecna said, proud of her invention and the person using them. "Perfect field test, even if this was not what we had in mind."
"Yeah, these things are great," Dipper said, retracting the gauntlets to his watch. "Thanks, Tec."
Bloom sees this and grows jealous of all of them. Stella got her staff back, Layla had her trident, Flora had her whip, Tecna had her drills, Musa had her knives, Mabel had her grappling hook, and Dipper had a pair of gauntlets. Bloom had nothing besides her magic and her leadership skills. But if she were to get a cool weapon, she would prefer to have a sword. It's simple like the specialists, but it's what she wants. While the training with Layla is great, she would like to have something more. She wants a sword. As she was lost in thought, they all heard a ton of tiny rumblings.
"What's that sound?" Musa picked up as the rest soon listened in.
"Hey yeah, I hear it too," Layla said as they all looked around to see where the sound was coming from. As they were doing so, Stella felt a little something land on her shoulder and she slowly looked to see what it was. As she did, she screamed so loud, it made the other 7 cover their ears.
"OW!" Tecna said as she messed with her robot ear. "That was way too loud."
"Hey, sound and music is my domain, light girl," Musa said to Stella as she was shivering as she was in a blizzard.
"SSSSSPPPPPIIIIIIDDDDDEEEEERRRRRRR!" Stella yelled out as more and more spiders started dropping from the ceiling and frightening the Winx Club as they all screamed from the sudden influx of spiders.
Griffin was laughing her ass off back in her office as she was seeing the 8 Winx fairies being attacked by spiders. "Well, if all else fails, you send in the spiders!" Griffin chuckled to herself as she then continued to view Winx's frightened escapades.
Stella was batting away the spiders as much as she could with her staff as Layla, Musa, Tecna, Dipper, and Mabel were squishing the spiders that were trying to get them. Bloom was frightened by this and was too scared to do anything about it. "I HATE SPIDERS!" Bloom roared out loud.
"You too?" Flora said as she hugged Bloom for dear life. Bloom then did the same to Flora.
"They're so disgusting and hairy and just overall awful!" Bloom said as she tried shooing them away. "GO! I DON'T WANT SPIDERS!"
"I think this might be the point, Bloom and Flroa," Tecna said as she smashed her drill into a giant spider. "We are technically introducing in Cloud Tower. It is to be expected to be pelted with such horrific creatures!"
"But it's nothing the Winx Club can't handle," Mabel said as she stepped on another spider and squished it. "Take that, you legged loser!"
"You're so brave, sweetie!" Flora said to Mabel and she was right, Flora could not do anything due to her fear of spiders.
"Ugh, there's too many of them," Musa said as she kept carving them up as Dipper suddenly had an idea.
"Flora, if you can, I need you and Stella to grow us a few of your carnivorous plants. They should be able to help even the odds while we escape!" Dipper told Flora and Stella.
"That's not a bad idea," Stella said, thinking about it. "What do you say, Flora? Wanna face those fears head-on?"
Flora thought about it and Stella did have a point. She won't get anywhere in life if she lets a fear of spiders stand in the way of her life and her closest friends. Flora was also helping Mabel get over her fear of heights, so it would make sense to join her in getting over her fears as well.
"Sore, let's do it," Flora said as she prepared her plant magic. "Layla, I might need you to help water the plants."
"Sure thing," Layla said as she then turned to Musa. "Cover for me, ok?"
"Always," Musa said with a smile under her mask as Layla flew over to the other two fairies as they did their magic all at once. As they were doing it, the 4 fending off the spiders were starting to get a little overwhelmed.
"Uh guys," Tecna said as spiders were crawling up her arms and past her drills. "There's too many!"
"We're working on it," Flora snapped at Tecna as the plant was starting to grow as fast it could, but the Spiders just came after it. As all hope was starting to be lost, the Ghost Lady came in and saw what was going on.
"Nobody hurts the Winx Club and gets away with it, especially not you, Grandmother!" The Ghost Lady said as she touched the top of the plant as it glowed her orange color. For a split second, the other five Winx fairies could see the ghost with their own eyes before disappearing as the plant suddenly grew to full size, towering over even Tecna as its leaves and stems were grabbing the spiders and eating them all up.
"Like Mabel with her gummies," Musa said, comparing the plant's appetite to Mabel's when it came to sweets.
"You said it," Mabel agreed with her. They then also saw that all the spiders were focused more on the plant than the fairies and the Ghost Lady nodded at them.
"GO! Now is your chance to escape," The Ghost Lady said as she flew between the Winx and the spiders and plant.
"But what about you, Ghost Lady?" Mabel said as the Ghost Lady smiled down on Mabel.
"We'll see each other again, Mabel," The Ghost Lady said, assuring Mabel. "And that goes the same for you too, Dipper and Bloom."
"You promise?" Bloom asked her as the Ghost Lady held her hand gently. And for some reason, Bloom can feel her hand.
"I fairy promise," The Ghost Lady said as the Winx Club sped off and escaped the battle as fast as they could.
"Fairy promise?" Bloom said as she asked herself, but Stella flew beside her.
"Oh, that means that it's a promise between two fairies that can never be broken, no matter what," Stella replied to Bloom. Dipper and Mabel looked at each other as they finally understood what Faragonda meant on their first day with Alfea.
"Then that means you and the twins will get your answer sooner than later," Stella said as Bloom smiled at that. Just then, they finally arrived back at the stairway down to the tunnels.
"Mission accomplished," Musa said as they all escaped into the tunnel.
Back upstairs at the Trix's dorm, the Trix were wondering about the sudden mess. They just got back not even a minute ago, and they were angry that their stuff was all tossed aside.
"WE WERE ROBBED, SISTERS!" Stormy yelled out as she was digging through her things to see what was stolen.
"Ugh, and all my clothes are thrown into piles," Darcy said as she was getting her clothes back in order.
"It doesn't look like anything was taken from us," Icy said as she reorganized her belongings in her room as Pacifica came to them.
"The ring we stole is gone thanks to the Winx Club, and Pepe is in another sleep spell," Pacifica said as she was waking up Pepe. "It's not your fault."
"The Winx Club stole back the Staff of Solaria?! That we stole from them first?" Stormy said with venom in her voice.
"At least it was they who did it instead of snitching on our professors," Darcy said as she scoffed.
"Wait, how do you know it's the Winx Club who stole the ring back?" Icy said as Pacifica handed them a pink and yellow note with sparkles and stickers on it.
"Because Mabel left behind a note," Pacifica said as she informed them. Icy saw this and started reading from it.
"Dear Pazzy,
Sorry we broke into your dorm to steal back Stella's ring, but to be fair, you did steal it from her first. I just want you to know that it's all we took from your place.
Much love,
Mabel Dana Pines of the Winx Club.
P.S., Wendy, Dipper, and I are all worried about the recent friends you've made and we just wanna talk it over. If not to Wendy or Dipper, then what about me? Will you trust me, even after all this? Call me."
"I got to give her some respect for admitting she and her fairies broke in, but leaving the note behind was a little foolish," Darcy said, knowing what happened.
"And it looks like Mabel, her brother, and Woodsy the Woodswoman really care about you, even after all this," Stormy said as Pacifica took the note back.
"I need time to think about this," Pacifica said as she reflected. "I wanna tell her what's going on, but I... I don't know what to do." As she said that, Icy kneeled down and hugged her.
"Just tell them that you want to feel safe with a real family, especially since your own parents threw you out for being gay," Icy told her. "And you'll get a chance to this weekend."
"This weekend?" Pacifica asked Icy.
"You think we're gonna let a bunch of fairies break into our dorm and get away with it?" Darcy said as she smirked.
"I thought we didn't need the ring anymore?" Pacifica asked as Stormy went down and pulled Pacifica into a side hug.
"It's about that witchy pride, sister!" Stormy said, trying to hype her up.
"And don't worry sister, we won't hurt the Winc Club that much," Icy said as she chuckled a bit, devising up a plan already.
Back at Alfea, the Winx Club was sneaking their way back to their dorm room, talking about the adventure they had just gone through together as a club.
"I would give anything to see Icy's dumb frozen face when she finds out that we stole my ring back," Stella said, flaunting her ring. "And it's all thanks to Dipper's plan."
"If it weren't for his plan to get the ring back, who knows what those witches would do," Tecna wondered.
"And if it weren't for his idea of the plants eating the spiders, we all wouldn't have escaped," Flora added.
"He was tonight's MVF for sure!" Musa congratulated him. "Most valuable fairy."
"Thanks, guys," Dipper said, enjoying being praised. "But do keep the praises coming."
"And the best part is that nothing went wrong," Bloom said as a hallway light went on and there stood Griselda in her night clothes, and she was not happy.
"You could not be more wrong, Miss Peters," Griselda said as she stormed up to the Winx Club. "You lot pulled a prank at Cloud Tower?! ARE YOU KIDDING ME!"
"Griselda, we can explain-," Stella tried explaining as she was silenced by Griselda.
"I hope whatever it was you did over there was worth it because you eight all lost magic privileges!" Griselda said as she cast a spell on the 8 of them suddenly, they felt like something was blocked off.
"Did you just take our powers away?" Bloom asked, horrified at what happened.
"You can't completely strip powers away from a fairy or else they won't survive for long," Griselda said, informing Bloom as well as the rest of the Winx Club. "But I can restrict when and how much you use magic outside of the appropriate class periods. Think of this as more of a blindfold."
"You can't do this," Musa whined. "We have an actual good reason why we did it."
"I DON'T WANT TO HEAR ANOTHER WORD ABOUT IT!" Griselda practically yelled at them. "I'll lift the spell when you've proven to me that you eight can be responsible for your powers again, but not a moment before. Is that clear?"
The Winx club sighed in defeat, not wanting to fight her anymore tonight. "Yes, Miss Griselda."
"Good, now it's off to bed with all of you," Griselda said as she walked away and the lights dimmed down again. Stella was given sharp looks of anger by the rest of the club as it was all her fault they didn't have powers at the moment.
"What? I thought I could talk things over," Stella said as she tried defending herself. "And hey, at least we're all still students here, right? ...Right?"
Back at Griffin's office at Cloud Tower, she was talking to Griffin over her crystal ball about what happened.
"So the fairies that broke into my school are going to be without powers for a while? Well, that's still a lighter punishment if the opposite were to happen here," Griffin said as she was speaking to Griselda.
"They should be thankful for that," Griselda agreed. "And I'll even let them know that they won't be going to the free concert in Magix City this weekend as well. They'll be scrubbing down the entire main hall of Alfea without powers."
"Oh, that sounds rich," Griffin chuckled at the thought. "I'll let you know more if it comes up." She then hangs up the call as she turns away from the ball. "That's odd. I've never contacted Alfea about this at all." As she thought about that, a small, 4-inch being flew to her desk and landed on it. She looked complementary to Griffin's witchy style.
"Is everything alright, Griffin?" The small being said, wanting to make sure that Griffin was ok.
"Something does not add up, Discorda," Griffin pondered. "If it was not me who called Alfea and snitched about the heist, then who did?" As Griffin and Discorda, thought about it, the doors of her office slowly opened, and walks in an older man wearing a long wizard robe and frameless glasses. He was currently hunched over and had a stern look on his face.
"It was I who told Alfea of this incursion, headwitchstress," the older man said as he bowed before her.
"It was you, Bittersmoke?" Griffin was shocked to hear such a thing.
"I had to," Bittersmoke said as he stood up. "If other fairies or the specialists at Red Fountain knew of this break-in, it would lessen the pride of Cloud Tower which we worked so hard to maintain. Those fairies had to be taught a lesson."
Griffin sighed as deep down she knew Bittersmoke was right. A break-in like this would hurt her school's reputation even further, especially with the blind notion that 'all witches are bad, all fairies are good, and all specialists are heroes' nonsense that's been spread around the Magix alliance. And even though there are positive witches that use their negative magic for good, like herself, Lucy, Mirta, Pacifica, or the recent rumors of an Earth girl named Janna, they were still not enough to change the public's mindset.
"I can't really argue with that, Bittersmoke, but I let them do what they wanted here because I wanted to test these fairies out," Griffin said as she used her magic on her crystal ball to showcase the Winx Club's recent fights.
"Why do you have faith in these fairies?" Bittersmoke asked his boss.
"Because, Bittersmoke," Griffin said as she looked more into the ball. "The more I think of it, the more I see the Winx Club inheriting the will of the Company of Light."