A GREAT EVIL | Fate: The Winx Saga ~ Alternate Season 2

Bonus 2 - Answers For Beatrix

General POV:

Beatrix got out and headed for the car park. Riven had kindly accepted to lend her his car to go to her aunts' house, but she was surprised to see him sitting on the hood, waiting for her.

"Riven, what are you doing sitting on the car? she asked him, laughing, a bit embarrassed.

"I'm coming with you," he asserted, getting up and walking towards her. "I'd like to meet your family too."

"I don't think that's a good idea," she replied defensively.

"Bea, I care about you, and it's not drugs that makes me like that," he admitted, touching her cheek.

"I know, but it's a journey I have to make alone."

The witch perceived all the feelings that her friend felt towards her, and she was not indifferent to them. She concluded by giving him a soft kiss on the cheek, before getting into the car and driving the sixty kilometres that separated Alfea from the village.

The girl managed to find her way around easily as her aunts had sent her the map and visuals to guide her.

Within an hour, she arrived in a small, steep village of mostly old thatched cottages. The witches and wizards did not seem to be rolling in money.

She parked on the slope that led to her aunts' house before walking the last few metres.

As soon as she knocked, the door opened and Shanice invited her in, delighted to see her niece. Susy, on the other hand, offered her some hot tea.

Beatrix shyly stepped forward, unsure of where to start. The house smelled of incense and mould, being very damp, and all sorts of knick-knacks were strewn about the furniture, covered in dust, as if time had stood still.

The walls were decorated with frames, representing pictures of people who were unknown to her. Only a yellowed piece of newspaper showed acquaintances: Miss Dowling and her fellow soldiers.

"Don't pay any attention to the mess in here," Susy advised calmly. "It's been there so long that we don't even notice it anymore."

The teenager smiled, on the contrary, this "mess" was making her nostalgic, as it seemed to link her aunts to a happy life that had passed far too quickly because of Rosalind.

Suddenly, as she scanned the living room, her eyes fell on a picture of an auburn-haired lady carrying a baby.

"It's you in Maïré's arms, your mom," Shanice murmured with emotion. "You look very much like her."

Her mom... Beatrix had never been able to say that word in her life because she had no mother figure. Not even a grandma. The only woman she had ever trusted had manipulated her mercilessly to achieve her ends. All her life, the girl had gritted her teeth. What doesn't kill you makes you stronger. Her adoptive father had repeated this sentence to her every time she was shedding a tear. Andreas had prevented her from relieving all that pain, but now, surrounded by her aunts, she was finally feeling ready to shed the weight of those burdens.

Out of the blue, she burst into tears in Shanice's arms. At that moment, a powerful bond was activated between them, the missing bond of blood.

"Bea, what's wrong with you?" she inquired as she hugged her. "Is it the photo that makes you so upset?"

"I wish I had a normal life, surrounded by my family and not by strangers who took advantage of my naivety to manipulate me," she sobbed. "They stole my childhood, they lied to me, and I have nothing left. Andreas has been jailed."

"I know, honey, but we'll always be there for you, and your friends too," her aunt comforted her.

"Maybe this is a chance to clear up the past that's haunting you and move on," Susy added, offering her a strawberry cupcake.

The teenager took it and tasted a good piece, which she found delicious.

"Yes, maybe it's time."

She sat down on the red cloth sofa, which was also covered in dust. All her aunts' inner turmoil was reflecting in the shabby shape of their home.

"Do you mind if you tell me about the family?" she questioned, ready to receive answers.

The two ladies sat down beside her after fetching an envelope filled with old photos.

"Your mom was a very powerful witch, many envied her powers, but few knew how much she had worked to get there," Shanice told her, showing her some pictures of Maïré as a young girl as well as some family photos. "These are our parents, they passed away a few years ago, they did not live in Aster Dell."

"And my dad?"

"His name was Louis, and he met your mom at the annual village festival when they were about twenty-five," Susy answered. "You were born a few years later."

"He had an air fairy in his family, which is why you easily mastered that kind of power," Shanice explained sympathetically.

Beatrix suddenly looked confused and wondered what would have happened if she had not had this fairy in her family. She might never have been able to master air and electricity, and she might not have been able to get into Alfea to free Rosalind, which Bloom had done for her.

"Do I have any siblings?" she interrogated.

"No, your parents didn't have time to have any more children, and we're your only family," Shanice replied, shaking her head in sorrow.

The young witch smiled knowingly.

"It's okay, I'm glad to have my family back," she assured.

A few months earlier she had thought she had a similar fate to Bloom, and probably came from the same family, but that was just a coincidence. In addition to her adoptive parents, the fairy had a mom, a twin sister, a grandma, and although she had lost her dad, she now had a loving stepfather, as well as Sky.

Beatrix, on the other hand, only had two aunts, both of whom she loved dearly and, deep down, she would always envy the others.