The Queen of Shadows - World of Winx rewrite S.1

Chapter 24: Make Sure to Remember Me

Musa gulped as she saw the darkness surrounding them. Stella was nowhere to be seen. Had she failed to save Bloom? Had Bloom used Stella as a sacrifice? A distortion sound filled the deadly quiet air. Musa could see a small purple flame emerging from the dark. Suddenly, a growl from a dragon echoed through the air, forcing Musa to cover her ears as the distortion sound worsened. The ringing of small bells only added to the cacophony. The queen was too stubborn to give up. They had been fighting her for what felt like forever.

From the darkness, two yellow glowing eyes stared at her. The feeling of wind blows hit her skin, sending a shiver down her spine. This dragon was not a normal one... it must be Bloom's. There was something in this dragon's magical essence that reminded her of Bloom's 'good' dragon. The dragon started to speak in a foreign language, a mixture of growls.

"Soon the Dark One will arise, and no one can stop us," a demonic laughter echoed. Musa stood frozen, watching the black dragon rise into the air, ready to breathe fire. She closed her eyes, channeling all her energy into creating a strong shield to deflect the fire and the dragon's growls. When the purple flames came lurching at her, she felt a steaming sensation against her skin. Slowly, she opened her eyes, seeing a morphix wave blocking the dragon's breath.

"I've got this covered, Musa! Just help the others," Aisha's voice reached her ears. Before she had any time to react, Aisha popped in front of her, wearing armor made out of pink morphix. She also tightly gripped a pink trident made out of morphix.

Musa trusted her best friend and turned around. She watched as Flora and Roxy fought against shadow creatures. Tecna was nowhere to be seen. The whispers of the shadow creatures intensified, and Musa tried to fight off the memories popping up in her head—memories of being surrounded by them, trying to tear through her mind. The only thing she had seen was darkness and no life, without any sound...

"Musa, look out!" a voice called out. Musa blinked and turned around. A barrier of glitching numbers appeared in front of her. Tecna landed beside her, fighting against a red beam. Musa reacted fast, slamming her fist down into the ground, and a large sound wave knocked the queen back. As she was about to use the small bell in her hand, Tecna blocked the sound wave, creating a de-noise spell that picked up all the distortion sounds in the air.

Musa could finally breathe out and relax from all the noises. She gave a thumbs up to Tecna before turning around and helping the girls fight incoming shadow creatures, while Tecna kept a close eye on the queen.

***

Stella was tossed around in the air with brutal force. She had never felt so sore and tired after fighting evil. All her shields were useless; Bloom's fire broke them instantly upon contact. Red, slightly burned skin adorned her hands. She felt something cold running down her forehead, her lungs burned with stinging pain from the smoke in the thin air.

"P-Please, Bloom..." Stella coughed, gasping for air as she was slammed onto the ground. Black dots appeared in her vision, her head spinning. "J-Just come back to us..."

Tears streamed down her face as she pleaded with her best friend to fight the dark magic. But Bloom showed no mercy, only picking her up from the ground to slam her down again. This hadn't even happened the last time she was under the dark spell. This new version of Dark Bloom was more ruthless. Or perhaps Bloom hadn't had the time to reveal this side last time...

"D-Do you remember the day we came to rescue you from Darkar's cavern?" Stella pushed herself up from the ground, holding her arm in pain, meeting Bloom's cold yellow eyes. Her jaw twitched at the mention. "D-Do you remember how we still loved you, no matter what? That we would fight for you... our best friend?"

"If you still cared... why did you not come to help me when I was ambushed by the watchmaker's tower?" Bloom growled. "W-Why did you just let the queen take me so easily?!"

"I just told you!" Stella exclaimed, her voice rising. "I told you I'm sorry we didn't reach the tower in time! But we tried."

Bloom created a new flame in her palm.

"I'm sorry that I didn't react to help you when I noticed the dark magic corrupting you! I guess I was scared at the thought of her returning... All the memories we've all wanted to forget..." Stella continued, between sobs. She blinked away tears to maintain her gaze with Bloom.

"Y-You knew?" Bloom blinked, her face softening momentarily. She broke eye contact and looked at the ground.

"I didn't know for sure that the queen had somehow infected you with some kind of dark magic virus... but I noticed something in your gaze back at Fashion Week. But... then your mood changed, and I thought it was just stress... not the dark magic taking over your mind," Stella replied.

Bloom didn't respond, keeping her gaze fixed on the ground.

Stella took a few steps closer towards Bloom, only to be met with a warning gaze instructing her to keep away. She halted and took a deep breath. She knew she had to break through the spell somehow, just like Sky had done. If he had succeeded back then, then she could do it too.

"B-Bloom... I..." she paused for a moment, hissing at the pain creeping up her arms. The heat radiating from Bloom's body made her already burned skin sting even more. "I promise... none of us asked for this to happen again. I will try my best to help you, like Sky did..."

"So that you can leave me too in the end?!" Bloom snapped, flames creeping up her body, her eyes burning with fury. Stella recoiled at the sudden change in mood. Bloom's face hardened, looking ready to sacrifice the sun and moon fairy. Stella gulped.

"...w-why would I leave you?" she asked hesitantly.

Bloom growled in response with her demonic voice. "Because he did! He left me... first blaming duty to his kingdom... but then I realized it had a deeper meaning."

Stella recalled the memory from the day she had been with Sky and Bloom at a café, a day off from her duties. She remembered how Sky had left, excusing himself abruptly. Before Bloom had the chance to say anything, Stella had also received an emergency meeting with her father. Since then... she had never brought up the question of what Bloom's relationship with Sky looked like now.

"B-Bloom... I promise I won't leave you. I'm sorry you had to experience all that with Sky..."

"... if I awaken the Dark One, I can rebuild the world and erase the past... and all the events that have hurt me..." Bloom sniffed, a tear streaming away from her cheek. "I'm tired, Stella. I can't take anymore."

This broke Stella's heart, hearing her best friend so heartbroken over everything. If she had known, she would have helped her more, tried even harder to protect her from all evil and harm. She had to try to get Bloom back...

"But then let me help you... let me help you. As the fairy of the sun and moon, crown princess of Solaria, but most importantly, as your best friend... I want to help you, whatever it takes," Stella put on a small smile, wiping away her tears. Bloom's voice became muffled as she spoke. Stella tried to read her best friend's mouth movements, but her head started spinning too much, her vision turning blurry. The next moment, she felt heat engulf her body, protesting in pain, and everything turned black.

***

The queen managed to break free once again... her augmented powers were becoming more than just an annoyance. Tecna found herself growing increasingly irritated.

Meanwhile, Aisha, engaged in battle with the black dragon, suddenly began to glow with a golden-yellow light. The brilliance was blinding, forcing everyone to shield their eyes. Tecna swiftly conducted an analysis and detected a potent healing magic emanating from the dragon. In an instant, the shadows vanished, and the shadow creatures were repelled. The barren ground sprouted with new life as small plants emerged.

Ignoring Aisha, the dragon swiftly turned its attention to the queen, who stared at it wide-eyed. She attempted to conjure a shield of shadows, but the dragon's breath shattered it into fragments. Then, it unleashed scorching golden flames upon the queen, who screamed in agony as her form dissolved into nothingness.

Surveying the area, Tecna observed a golden light piercing through the darkness, illuminating the surroundings as if a blazing sun had descended from the sky, replacing all darkness with its radiance. Two familiar figures gradually materialized, followed by two others in Dreamix transformations—one in yellow and the other in blue. Their faces displayed a mix of relief and sadness, tears streaming down their cheeks.

"Wow... I haven't seen the Princess cry this much in a while..." Musa murmured from beside her.

"Bloom, Stella!" Flora exclaimed, rushing to join their embrace, nearly toppling them over. Soon, the rest of the Winx and Roxy joined in the warm hug.

"You're back, Bloom!" Aisha smiled, embracing the fire fairy. Bloom nodded with a relieved sigh, wearing a tired expression. She smiled towards them, visibly drained of energy.

Together, they approached the tree where the talents had been imprisoned. Flora appealed to the tree's help to release them, carefully lowering them with her vines. Musa played a soothing melody to calm their nerves. Tecna meticulously counted each talent, ensuring that none were left behind. Stella utilized her light to illuminate the area, dispelling the lingering darkness.

As the last talent was freed, Musa immediately threw herself into conversation with Annabelle. Tecna couldn't recall the tune they hummed, but she could see the relaxation and joy on their faces as they reunited. Aisha conversed with Yui, Stella engaged Sophie in discussions about fashion and fabrics, and Flora comforted the freed talents.

Meanwhile, Roxy sat beside Bloom on the ground, offering her support as the weary fairy rested her head on her shoulder.

"I must admit... that was quite a powerful dragon you had within you," a familiar voice remarked. Tecna watched as Jim leaned against a tree, conversing with Bloom, who explained her role as the fairy of the dragon flame. Jim appeared impressed, listening intently as Bloom delved into the intricacies of the magical universe and its history.

After a while, Stella approached the group and interjected.

"Okay... that's quite enough of a history lesson for the history nerd," Stella chuckled, settling beside Bloom in the empty space. Bloom rolled her eyes but still smiled, while Jim muttered something under his breath before leaving, walking up towards Tecna.

"Um... so, thanks, I guess, for helping to save the World of Dreams," he said.

"No problem. We don't usually give up so easily until we've found a way to win in the end," Tecna replied.

"Yeah... I've figured that out. It's good to know I'm not alone in trying to stop the Queen of Shadows," Jim continued.

"But tell me... why did you begin kidnapping talents if you were against the queen?" Tecna asked, trying to piece together the puzzle. It felt strange to her that Jim suddenly changed his mind.

"As I told your friend over there... I did it to protect Annabelle... and also to maintain my cover," he explained.

"I guess that's a logical strategy," Tecna shrugged.

Tecna turned around upon hearing Flora call her name. Flora explained they had to return to Gardenia quickly because Ace was waiting. Tecna wouldn't be surprised if he had already fired them, but she assumed it was worth a shot. She wasn't in the mood to hear Stella complain about missing an opportunity to be on TV.

"What in the holy light... why hasn't anyone told me that the finale of Wow is today?!" Stella exclaimed, jumping to her feet and being the first to run through the portal.

***

Bloom approached Alessia, who was seated and drawing something in her sketchpad. She greeted her warmly as she joined her on the bench, glancing at the drawing of a fairy with a glittery red dress, a rose adorning a bun in her blonde hair, and orange-red wings resembling crystals. This reminded Bloom slightly of Diaspro, stirring up memories that made her shiver. However, she pushed them away, took a deep breath, and hoped Alessia would react positively.

"Alessia?" she began.

Alessia looked up from her drawing pad, tilting her head.

"You mentioned that you liked fairies, right?"

Alessia raised her brow, scratching her head in confusion, then nodded. "Uh... yeah?"

"What if I told you that you could actually meet a real one?"

"W-What are you...?" In a flash of light, Bloom transformed in front of Alessia, who dropped her pen in astonishment. Bloom swiftly used her magic to catch it midair, gently placing it back on Alessia's drawing pad. "Y-You're a fairy?"

Bloom gave her a warm smile before ascending into the air.

"Yes. And I wanted to give you a surprise," Bloom said, conjuring a flame in her hand. At first, she thought she saw a purple flame appear in her palm, causing her to freeze momentarily. But when Alessia observed the flame dancing in her palm and remarked, "Cool, fire power," Bloom realized it was just a normal orange flame. She let out a quiet, relieved sigh and landed beside Alessia, who still regarded her with amazement.

Bloom explained her magic and what it was like being a fairy. She recounted how she had met Stella one day and followed her into a magical realm that she instantly fell in love with. She also shared tales of her adventures and battles over the years.

"Wow... that explains why your friends could do magic... though, I didn't think you were fairies. I thought you just had, like, elements from those movies you see in cinemas," Alessia said.

"Yeah... we don't usually reveal ourselves to humans. Most would freak out seeing a real fairy in real life. Plus, we had a mission to complete, and humans knowing we were fairies could have complicated everything," Bloom chuckled nervously. "But remember, keep this a secret just between us... artist and fairy-lover, between artist and fairy."

Alessia promised and gave Bloom a warm hug.

"Do you want to try flying?"

"But what if someone sees us?"

"Don't worry. We'll do it somewhere where no one can see us. And it's only for a short time."

Bloom led Alessia backstage to the now-empty area. The air was chilly behind the stage, signaling that it had gotten late and people were making their way home from the finale. The only sounds audible were from the after-party for all the talents, likely Musa blasting music from the speakers.

Bloom stood before Alessia and instructed her to close her eyes and take a deep breath. She snapped her fingers, and dragon wings appeared on her back—a blend of orange flames and dragon skin. Alessia opened her eyes, watching the wings with a big smile.

"Okay, try to focus on which direction you want to fly," Bloom explained. She transformed and rose from the ground. Alessia held out her hands, wearing a focused expression. Slowly, the wings on her back fluttered, and she wobbled as she attempted to fly up. Bloom extended a supporting hand, helping Alessia steady herself. "There you go. Now try to maintain your balance."

"This is so cool!" Alessia squealed, starting to get the hang of controlling the wings.

Bloom soared higher into the air with Alessia following closely. She executed a graceful spin, conjuring a ring of fire shaped like a heart. Alessia flew through it slowly, her smile never fading with excitement. Bloom demonstrated various flying techniques and how to adjust pace. They spent more than twenty minutes in the air.

Afterward, Alessia appeared exhausted. Bloom de-transformed and removed the wings from Alessia's back. They embraced once Alessia had caught her breath after the exhilarating exercise. In Bloom's ear, she heard Alessia whisper, "This was one of the best things that happened to me." That sentence reminded Bloom of her first day at Alfea and how grateful she had been to find Stella, who showed her the wonders of the new world.

Later, as they walked back to the building, they encountered Ace, who wore a broad, happy smile.

"Oh, Bloom!" he exclaimed.

"Hey, Ace..." Bloom smiled awkwardly, feeling uneasy that her former boss was suddenly so cheerful. The last time they had spoken, he hadn't been in such high spirits.

"I've realized it was a mistake to have fired you... I'm..." His jaw twitched, as if he were struggling to say something he wasn't entirely comfortable with. "...sorry. I'm sorry. You and your friends have boosted the viewership by four hundred percent, and everyone loves it."

"It's okay, Ace," Bloom replied simply. "I'm glad the show did well this season."

"And that's why I want all of you to work on the next season," Ace continued, producing a new contract.

Bloom bit her lip. She knew the other girls would likely return to their planets and wouldn't stay on Earth any longer, leaving no time for another season of the show. Besides, they had no more reason to stay— the queen was gone, and the talent thief was no longer a threat. Jim had promised to call if he needed help in the World of Dreams. Anticipating Stella's disappointment at not being more in the spotlight, Bloom declined the offer. She could see the disappointment behind Ace's smile, his eye twitching slightly.

"O-Okay..." he finally murmured. "Thanks anyway for this season, and I wish you all the best in the future. But if you girls change your minds, I'd be happy to have you back on the show."

"Of course, Ace," Bloom smiled.

She left Ace and glanced around the room, where all the talents were mingling. Stella, Sophie, and Nadine were engaged in conversation, discussing their latest designs and Sophie's upcoming fashion collections, surrounded by journalists and cameras. Bloom smiled at the sight of Stella enjoying the moment, her genuine smile outshining ten thousand stars in the night sky. Stella looked around and locked eyes with Bloom. As they made eye contact, Bloom felt her cheeks warm slightly, and she quickly looked away, focusing instead on her friends enjoying their time with the talents.

Tecna was discussing technology with Naoki and Silke, having developed a smartwatch unlike anything seen on Earth in the short time they had. Bloom assumed it was inspired by the futuristic technology in Magix. Flora and Roxy were conversing with Maria, who had inspired Vincenzo to cook more environmentally friendly dishes. Many people seemed to be enjoying his creations displayed on a nearby table.

Musa stood on stage with Annabelle, whose wonderful voice blended a pop song with a ballad. Madelyn played her guitar as Musa accompanied on the piano. Bloom felt almost tearful hearing these three amazing artists sing and play together. They had likely written the song themselves.

Meanwhile, Aisha played rugby with Yui and Leeland, sharing laughter and happy faces. Aisha tossed the rugby ball with too much force, nearly hitting Vincenzo's dishes. Bloom sprang into action, wanting to catch it before it caused a scene. Just as she was about to grab it, a yellow glow surrounded the ball, causing it to float in the air before falling to the ground. Turning around, Bloom saw bright golden eyes looking at her.

"Hey, I was about to grab that," Bloom pouted, crossing her arms. "And haven't you forgotten our rule number three?"

Stella smirked. "Oh, can't we just ditch that boring rule?"

Rolling her eyes, Bloom picked up the rugby ball and tossed it right above Stella's head, mussing her perfect hair. Stella gasped, taking out one of her mirrors from her pocket. Bloom chuckled at her friend's reaction. Then she felt her pen and tablet leave her back pocket and float into Stella's hand.

"Hey! That's my pen and tablet!" Bloom exclaimed.

"Then you'll have to come and get them," Stella teased, starting to walk away with a playful smile.

Bloom could hear Alessia laughing in the background and murmuring, "That's cute." She started running after Stella, who had picked up her pace over the dance floor. Stella's interruption of Aisha and the others' game caused a commotion. Leeland almost tripped as Stella raced past him. Just before Aisha could tackle Yui, she unintentionally knocked Bloom to the ground. Yui scored another point, spinning the ball on her finger as if it were an easy win.

"Bloom, I was just about to tackle her," Aisha groaned, her competitive spirit evident.

"Sorry, I was trying to get my tablet and pen back from Stella," Bloom explained, helping Aisha up from the ground.

"Don't worry, I'll just make sure to wake her up with a nice cold shower tonight," Aisha said with deliberate cheerfulness, earning a glare from Stella.

"Hey, Stella, have you seen? Someone's wearing a swamp green dress over there," Bloom said, pointing to the ground. Stella scanned the area with worried eyes, trying to identify the culprit. Seizing the opportunity, Bloom dashed toward her best friend and retrieved her belongings, along with one of Stella's many mirrors. She began running away, chuckling as she heard Stella call after her.

"Hey, that's my mirror!" Stella exclaimed, chasing after her.

"Sorry, can't hear you. If you want them back, you'll have to catch me," Bloom teased.

Panting behind her, Stella attempted to run in her long yellow dress and high heels, her footsteps clicking on the wooden floor.

"The Princess of Solaria commands you to stop!" Stella called out.

"Sorry, Princess, but don't forget I'm a princess too now. We're equals, remember?" Bloom called back, hearing Stella muttering lowly as she complained about Bloom's advantage of wearing shoes instead of heels, despite knowing Stella had been accustomed to wearing high heels her whole life.

For the remainder of the night, Stella conversed more with Sophie and Nadine, while Bloom accompanied Alessia, drawing together.

When everyone had left, Stella searched for Bloom, but she was nowhere to be found. The Winx girls had retired to sleep inside the Winx Mobile. Stella wandered around, feeling the chill of the night air and the wind tousling her already messy hair after running around so much.

After a while of searching, Stella spotted Bloom's red hair from a distance. On a small hill, she could see Bloom's hair blowing in the breeze as she gazed up at the moonlight. Stella approached slowly and found Bloom sitting, looking at a drawing of their group.

"Hey," Stella said softly. Bloom glanced over her shoulder and offered a small smile. Stella conjured a small pillow and sat beside Bloom, placing her hand on top of Bloom's resting hand. "How are you doing?"

"I'm okay... I'm still a bit exhausted and, well... shaken up after everything I've put you all through," Bloom sighed.

Putting away her tablet, she leaned closer. Stella embraced her best friend, resting her head on Bloom's shoulder, radiating warmth for them both.

"It's okay, Bloom... it was the dark magic the queen put inside your heart," Stella comforted, stroking Bloom's arm.

"I'm just scared that the darkness will return..."

"It won't. The queen is gone for good, so she won't harm you anymore. And if the darkness does return, I'll do everything in my power to outshine it with all my light and protect you," Stella said confidently, squeezing Bloom's hand as she felt Bloom lean closer into her touch. Her heart ached seeing her best friend so sad and shaken up. She wished she could take all her pain away. This was never something she had wished for her best friend to experience when she introduced her to the magical world.

"In a few days, I'm going back to Solaria... do you want to come with me?" Stella asked.

Bloom pulled away and shook her head.

"No, thanks, Stella. I think I'm going to stay here in Gardenia for a while and be with my parents," Bloom said, now gazing up at the moon.

Stella still hadn't gotten an answer from Bloom about why she had left Gardenia, but she bit her lip, realizing her best friend might not want to talk about it right now. Perhaps another day would be a better time.

"Okay... just so you know, you'll always be welcome to visit me whenever you want," Stella offered.

"Thanks, Stel." Bloom turned to look into Stella's eyes and smiled.


----

Authors note:

Yay! Only four chapters left to go. I've decided to divide the ending epilogue into four parts.

But... I have a lot of assignments in school right now, so I won't be able to focus on writing everything at the moment. After I wrap up this season rewrite, I'll have to take a break and maybe work on some other projects in the meantime. Make sure to follow me on Twitter @BottenAdam (AdamB) for more info! You can also subscribe to this fanfic series to never miss an update!

And one day, I'll try to do a rewrite of the original cartoon series seasons 1-6, but that will be a future project. One thing at a time, lol. I still have my other time-travel-themed Winx Club fanfic, "A Journey Through the Past." (On Ao3) 

If you enjoyed this fanfic, be sure to leave a comment and a kudos!

See you in the next chapter!