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Alethea's POV:
"Your final exam will be the laser beam obstacle course."
The air hung heavy with anticipation, and the walls seemed to close in, as tension hung over each of us. My mind raced, each thought more chaotic than the last.
"Alethea, come forward please, you're up first."
Damn.
Anxiety gripped my thoughts like a relentless storm, and doubt crept in, whispering insecurities into my mind. ".. First, again?"
"Don't worry Alethea." Bloom patted my back to try and comfort me. "It will be over before you know it!"
Tecna gave me a thumbs up. "Confidence is key."
"You got this!" Musa encouraged while Stella was just distracted with her nails, not listening to the slightest.
That's Stella for you.
"You'll do great!" Flora, being the overly caring one, smiled sympathetically at me. "...I'm sure that next school year you won't have to go first."
What surprised me was how those words meant so much to me, how much my worries seemed to disappear because of them. In the midst of this nervous symphony, I closed my eyes, taking a moment to centre myself and when I opened my eyes, a newfound determination flickered within. This was an opportunity to show my strength, and how much I've actually improved this year.
Nervousness is a companion to the path of growth and with that final encouraging thought in mind, I let my magic surround me. I closed my eyes and felt myself rise up in the sky as my surroundings changed, the sound of water dripping was heard and with the movements of my hands the water rose and covered me like a blanket and the water burst, revealing my Fairy outfit. I wore a light blue dress almost close to white that had translucent sleeves with a Dragon crystal on the dress paired with translucent thigh-high socks that matched my sleeves and ankle-heeled boots that consisted of silver designs while my snow white hair remained loose. Sparkles surrounded me and soon my small light blue translucent wings formed on my back, finishing my transformation.
"I have one request" I spoke up, my tone soft. "Let's do it in reverse next year, please?"
"Maybe." Faragonda hummed, actually looking as if she might consider it. "But for now your goal is to get the floating rose to the pedestal, if you get hit three times, you're out, go!"
I nodded and fluttered my wings, my feet leaving the ground as Miss Faragonda's finger glowed a green light, lasers shot out of her finger that I successfully avoided. With a calm demeanour, I assessed my surroundings, knowing that improvisation was my greatest ally, covering my weaknesses.
"You got this Alethea!" The words of encouragement from my friends reached my ears and that made me all the more determined to pass this final exam.
I slipped through the lasers, my movements graceful, and finally I reached the rose. I concentrated on protecting the rose while avoiding all the obstacles until I neared the pedestal. Gasps were heard throughout the room, a shadow looming over me and I looked up, my heart hammering against my ribcage but I refused to falter.
"Alethea, watch out!"
I took a deep breath and raised my hand, the other holding the rose. My aura glowed, liquid tendrils twirling around me like dancers and with a flick of my wrist, I commanded the water to take shape, firing it and blasting through the stoned rock Miss Faragonda summoned, breaking it into pieces.
I actually controlled my magic. I smiled when noticing that my magic overpowered the stoned rock, without wasting any more time, I gently placed the rose on the pedestal, finishing my exam.
"Excellent performance, Alethea." Miss Faragonda praised, a proud smile present on her face. "You managed to avoid all obstacles, you will be rewarded with an A+" If it were even possible, my smile grew, pleased that I passed with such a good grade. "Now go take a seat, next up is Bloom."
A bright blue glow surrounded me, transforming back to my civilian form. I flashed Bloom a thumbs-up and went to take a seat next to my friends who congratulated me. Bloom looked really nervous and frowned, she seemed really distracted and I wondered what was up with her. After Miss Faragonde gave her the instructions, Bloom's exam started. She successfully avoided the lasers that were coming at her but her movements were slow, too slow and that worried me.
"That was close." I mumbled under my breath as Bloom barely dodged a laser.
"She's slow." Stella spoke up to my surprise, taken aback that she heard me and the serious look on her face but I managed to nod in agreement.
"That's one." Faragonda counted as Bloom got hit by a laser and I looked at her worriedly, she looked way too distracted. Bloom got hit by another laser. "Two." Bloom flew up and caught the rose, and dodged all the obstacles, flying toward the pedestal to place her rose down. She was about to place the rose down when a magical rock appeared above her head.
"Bloom watch out!" Me and the others cried out. Bloom screamed as the rock came flying to her at great speed, it was as if she was paralyzed with fear but before the rock could hit her, Miss Faragonda stopped the attack when noticing Bloom's distracted state.
Bloom screamed as she saw the rock flying toward her and yet I wondered; why wasn't she defending herself? Thankfully, she didn't get hurt because Miss Faragonda stopped the attack last minute when noticing Bloom her distracted state.
"Work harder Bloom and you will do better." Miss Faragonda frowned as Bloom looked disappointed. "Next up is Flora."
The exams soon ended, and I made a bee-line for Bloom and nudged her side to grab her attention. "Cheer up, Bloom! You're hanging out with Brandon today, right? Maybe that could take your mind off everything."
Bloom perked up at that.
"You're right!" Bloom beamed and wrapped an arm around me. "Thank you for this, Alethea."
My lips curled up in a soft smile. "Don't mention it."
***
In a dimly lit room that I shared with Stella, the only source of illumination was the soft glow of my phone. The room seemed to shrink, cocooned by the virtual world emanating from my handheld device. My heart fluttered like a delicate butterfly, uncertain whether it should take flight or stay in the safety of hesitation. In the end, I took a deep breath and summoned the courage to press send.
Alethea: Hey, how was your day?
Silas: Good, just busy with training. How about yours?
I was surprised when I got an answer back straight away, glad that I found the courage to text him. I felt drawn to him, despite knowing him for a few months. He intrigued me but the more I thought about it, the more scared I became, scared that it would turn into a crush and it would remain just that.
Alethea: It's been good! I had an exam today but I luckily passed!
Silas: I didn't expect any less.
I smiled.
Alethea: Any exciting plans this week?
Silas: If training counts as exciting.
Alethea: Then.. do you want to hang out somewhere this week? It's okay if you don't want to! I just thought it would be nice to catch up, it's been a while after all.
I stared at the typing bubble in anticipation, he was taking awfully long to reply and I started to get uncertain, the courage I had was long gone the longer he took but before I could dwell on it any longer, the sound of my phone buzzing reached my ears.
Silas: I'm up for it. What do you have in mind?
A smile tugged at the corner of my lips, releasing a breath that I hadn't realised I was holding. I started to type my response, the words flowing effortlessly now as I started growing more comfortable with texting him until I soon grew tired and my eyes fluttered close, falling asleep with a small smile on my face.
***
"Alethea!" A sudden shriek made me jolt up, pulling me from my comforting sleep. My eyelids fluttered open, finding myself in a limbo between reality and dreams.
"What is it?" I mumbled when the world finally materialized around me.
"Bloom never came back last night!" Stella explained in a rushed tone and the weight of concern soon settled in the quiet corners of my mind.
"Oh no!" Flora gasped as she went into our room, Musa and Tecna behind her, having heard what Stella said.
"We just talked to Brandon, she insisted on walking back from Cloud Tower, alone." Tecna expanded and that made me all the more worried for our missing friend, my mind drifting to scenarios unbidden, the 'what ifs' looming like ominous shadows.
"She could be lost." I pointed out that Bloom isn't that familiar with the Magic Dimension. "We have to find her." My bare feet met the cold ground and I was quick to freshen up and change before meeting up with my friends just outside the gates of Alfea. The air crisp and alive, welcomed me with open arms, a gentle breeze brushed through my locks of hair, the chirping of birds singing melodies in the background.
"How are we going to find her?" Stella asked, cutting through the tense silence as we all tried to think of a plan. All of us were worried, thinking about what could've happened and why Bloom didn't come back tonight.
"We're going to need everyone's magic to find her." Flora pointed out and we all nodded in agreement, our auras glowing at the seams
I closed my eyes and felt myself rise up in the sky as my surroundings changed, the sound of water dripping was heard and with the movements of my hands the water rose and covered me like a blanket and the water burst, revealing my Fairy outfit. I wore a light blue dress almost close to white, that had translucent sleeves with a Dragon crystal on the dress paired with translucent thigh-high socks that matched my sleeves and ankle-heeled boots that consisted of silver designs while my snow-white hair remained loose. Sparkles surrounded me and soon my small light blue translucent wings formed on my back, finishing my transformation.
"I'll start with this, Floral Navigator!" Flora chanted, a green-like compass formed on the ground, pointing to the east. "We need to go east."
"I might be able to sense her Winx." I crouched down and laid my hand on the sandy ground, sensing the strongest source of magic energy near us but what caught my attention was that there was more than one source, and three of them were all too familiar with how negative it was.
"I can't pinpoint her exact location but she's in the forest and she's not alone." I explained, my eyebrows furrowing in concern and by the look on my friend's faces, I wasn't the only one worried for our friend.
"I'll bounce some ultrasonic waves to probe the area." Musa closed her eyes in concentration while glowing a magenta colour. "I got a reading!"
"Air sync it over to me, I'll get her coordinates." Musa combined her magic with Tecna. "I found her."
Flora smiled at our accomplishments and I felt a sense of pride at our teamwork. "Great work everyone."
"Wait until you see this," Stella grinned and soon we flew up in the air. "I'll guide you to her exact location and light up the dark forest." I flew next to Stella and looked forward, determined to find Bloom. We flew further into the forest, suddenly shivering when the chilly air met my skin, narrowing my eyes when I realized this was magic.
It had to be Icy.
"Let's go! Bloom's in danger!" We all were worried and flew as fast as we could and stopped at a clearing to see Bloom frozen in ice to our horror. My eyes met Icy's cold blue ones, and I wondered why it always had to be them, why did they had to wreak havoc, was it by coincidence or were we really their target?
"Ice coffin, how predictable." Stella scowled and melted the ice around Bloom and some other girl that was alongside Bloom, I glanced at her in acknowledgement, wondering who this girl was but first, we needed to put an end to this, and for once I wasn't scared to face them because I absolutely despised them. "She needs to update her attack collection!"
"You annoying Fairy." Icy's glare turned to Stella, annoyed that she released them. "I'm so over with you!"
"You're over!" The girl who was alongside Bloom shouted.
"Please!" Stormy scoffed at that. "This isn't even a contest!"
The air turned tense, an ominous energy in the air, a sudden unease settling upon us as a distant rumble echoed and I glanced up as a shadow loomed, to see a tornado heading close for us and sucking us in before we could do anything. The harsh wind whipped my hair back and before I could cast a spell a coarse rope was wrapped around us, pulling us together as the tornado neared closer to us.
I struggled, trying to free myself but no use, I was trapped but that didn't stop me from tugging on the rope, desperation fueling my movements. Panic consumed me as I imagined the worst, but soon I calmed down when I realized I couldn't do anything, weird wasn't it? That I was seemingly accepting my predicament.
"Stop!" Bloom cried out for us and transformed into her Fairy form but before she could do anything, Icy manipulated her ice magic and froze Bloom her wings. We tried to break free but to no avail, Bloom laid hopelessly on the ground, making my heart sink.
"Illusion Delusion!" The stranger girl yelled out, summoning a big creature - an illusion - that roared at Darcy and Stormy.
"I'm losing them!" Stormy screamed as I felt the rope around us loosen, I winced when noticing the redness around my wrists when we finally got out of the ropes. "It broke my concentration."
"She tricked you again, will you pay attention." Icy rolled her eyes at Stormy. "As for you, Mirta. You're annoying me so much right now, your tricks, your attitude and your little shirt.. Pumpkin?" Icy suddenly smirked and the girl, now known as Mirta just stood there, paralyzed. It was clear that the girl was scared and I couldn't blame her. "If you like pumpkins that much wouldn't you like being one?"
My breath hitched at the scene before me, an eerie stillness clung to the air, my eyes widening in horror when Icy turned Mirta into an actual pumpkin.
...What?
I was angry.
With a whispered incantation, beads of water started forming on the tips of my fingers, feeling my magic course through my veins as my eyes almost glowed at the intensity of it and with a graceful gesture I aimed my magic at the Trix who looked terrified, and I was pleased to see that fear in their eyes, they deserved everything that was coming for them after what they just did, or everything they did.
"How dare you!" Bloom snapped, her voice cracking slightly as if not believing what just happened while the others, stood there, not knowing what to do and only being able to watch with horrified expressions. "You- You monsters!" As if balancing each other, watery blue mixed with a fiery red, two missing puzzle pieces finally pieced together as one and soon that strong power got released. I stared blankly at what was before me, and soon the world around me blurred as my eyes fluttered close and I just fell.
.
"There they are!" I heard a voice call out, bringing me back to a conscious state. I slowly opened my eyes, soon realizing I was back in my civilian form, I looked around, midst in my panic but seeing the Witches nowhere in sight brought a sense of relief. "What happened to you?"
Stella gasped upon noticing me and ran up to me without wasting time, helping me up immediately as I tried to process what just happened but all I got was a pounding headache in return.
Bloom let out a laugh, finding amusement in our predicament. "I guess we sent them to another dimension."
"We may have lost control.." I smiled sheepishly and unconsciously activated my healing magic, the injuries that covered us completely disappearing as if nothing happened.
"Thank you." Flora and the others flashed me a grateful smile before picking up the pumpkin - Mirta - and I could only watch with sad eyes, feeling bad for the girl I didn't get to know. "This spell is going to be hard to break, it's dark magic after all."
Musa shrugged. "I guess we should take her back to our crib."
"Or find a place to plant her." Stella joked and I flashed her a stern look along with everyone else,
"Stella!"