Chapter Text
He hadn’t considered that part of being a hero required cleaning the dragons. A factor that he failed to account for and was now paying the smelly price.
Timmy ducked as the dragon’s tail whipped in his direction. He flattened to the floor. It swiped over his head and hit Rivin in the chest, throwing him back into the haybales of the stables.
“Watch it!” Sky called from the other end of the dragon. He yanked the harness down again. From the ground, Timmy could see his feet skid across the floor as the dragon fought back.
They were two weeks into the term at Red Fountain. Timmy had never felt so exhausted. Both physically and mentally. The physical part was expected. The extensive conditioning the professors put the freshman through was tough. As for his other classes, he was acing them.
No, he was mentally exhausted for an entirely different reason.
Rivin climbed out of the hay coughing, having the wind knocked out of him. He glared. Timmy was beginning to think that was Rivin’s natural face since he did it so often.
“Come on Timmy! You could’ve warned me to hit the deck!” he called over the roar of the dragon.
Timmy scrambled to his feet. “Sorry, Rivin! Are you okay?”
Rivin grumbled. Timmy took that as a positive answer. He went to brush the front of his uniform, then cursed to himself. Hitting the floor of the dragon stables meant he was now covered in dragon droppings. It would take at least three washes to get out.
It was very temperamental for this type of dragon. Timmy had done research on the species Red Fountain housed. They were typically very docile and good for training students on the basics of dragon riding.
The dragon had white skin and a grey-scaled belly. It flapped its wings. Large talons scraped across the ground. Timmy and Rivin leaped into the air this time to avoid the tail as it swung back in the direction it came.
“Hey, Brandon! Put the collar on him already!” Rivin called, rushing around and grabbing the harness reins with Sky, who was still trying to keep the dragon from bucking.
“Actually, Rivin, this is a female!” Timmy corrected. “Her claws are larger for defensive reasons!”
“Oh shut up! We don’t need any more fun facts today!”
On top of the dragon, between her wings, Timmy could see Brandon’s blonde hair flying around as he held on tight. He’d already been thrown twice.
“Maybe that’s why she’s so angry?” Timmy had gotten over Rivin’s putdowns after the first week. “She can sense how tense we all are!”
“Huh, maybe it’s because we’re fighting a pissed-off dragon!” Rivin replied.
Even struggling to hold the dragon, Sky cracked a smile. “Really Riv? You want to give her the old ‘it’s not me, it’s you’ speech?”
Rivin told Sky exactly where to shove the implied speech.
Timmy sighed. “Not helping, guys!”
“Brandon!” Sky hollered. “You good?”
“Define good for me, would you?” came Brandon’s strained reply. “Hold her head steady!”
“Easier said than done-AHHHH!” Rivin and Sky were lifted off their feet as the dragon picked up her head. They swung around like dolls. On the ground, Timmy ran in a zig-zag, avoiding getting crushed.
It had been like this from day one. Sky, Rivin, Brandon, and Timmy were assigned to a squad together. Their class had about thirty squads at the start of the term. Just a few weeks in and it had been whittled down to twenty-seven. About a dozen students had been dismissed. Timmy was determined not to be one of the next.
He winced as the dragon thrashed, nearly slamming Rivin and Sky into the stable wall.
Timmy exhaled again, feeling heavy. His team…wasn’t a team. They all fought and argued and put each other down at every point. Especially Rivin and Sky. It was a problem Timmy could not reason as to why it was happening.
Their assignment was to restrain, wash, and feed one dragon in the stables. They were given one hour. By the time on Timmy’s watch, they’d been here exactly two hours and twelve minutes. The restraining collar that would immobilize the dragon had yet to be attached and activated. All the other teams had long since finished and were let go to have dinner. But Timmy, Brandon, Sky, and Rivin were still wrestling their dragon.
They were hungry, tired, irritated with one another, and covered in dragon crap.
“BRANDON!” Rivin screamed. “DO SOMETHING, DAMNIT!”
“WORKING ON IT!”
“WORK FASTER! THIS THING IS TRYING TO KILL US!”
Despite his complaints, both Rivin and Sky held tight. The dragon had lifted her head high, taking the two dangling heroes-to-be with her.
Timmy swallowed, panting from avoiding the dragon’s feet. He needed a solution. Fast.
“Brandon! Toss me the collar!” he called. “I have an idea!”
He did. Timmy caught it. The collar was made of a chain-link material, made to bend with the dragon’s neck and not choke it or break off. Timmy unclipped the clasp and dashed to the front end of the dragon.
He took out a grappling line, attaching one end of it to the collar. He did some quick calculations in his head – including how long he could go without dinner – and began to spin the line in a circle. Like a lasso, he sent the end of the line with the collar up once he had enough speed. As he predicted, the collar’s weight made the line wrap around the dragon’s neck. Encircling it until the heavy end clasped the dragon’s skin. Like shrink-wrap, the collar enclosed itself. It lit up blue a moment later.
The dragon stilled. Her head slumped down. Rivin and Sky jumped out of the way. Brandon climbed off the dragon’s back, clearly done with dragon riding for the day.
Timmy let out a long breath. Finally, the dragon was knocked out. “Uh, that was horrible, guys.”
“Obviously,” Rivin snapped. “We could have been done in half the time if you all had listened to me!”
“Don’t even start, Rivin!” Sky said, pointing angrily. “If we had followed your plan to pin the dragon, we’d be here all night!”
“No, we’d be at dinner right now!”
Sky made a fist. “Man, you really need to get over yourself! You’re not in charge!”
That did it. Rivin took another step forward. Rage boiling. “And you’re not in your palace right now, Prince Sky. So how about-“
“Knock it off!” Brandon called, standing by the water hose. He threw the brushes at Rivin and the soap at Sky. “If we hurry, we could snag some leftovers from the kitchen.”
Sky and Rivin glared at each other one last time. Brandon uncoiled the hose and dragged it over to Timmy.
“Nice throw.” He smiled.
“Thanks.” Timmy shook his head. “I should’ve thought of that earlier.”
Brandon was silent for a moment, watching Rivin and Sky move the dragon’s limbs around so they could begin to wash it.
“Good news is at least the dragon is docile.” Brandon hoisted the water hose over his shoulder, the nozzle about as large as his head. “Bad news; this hose only has one setting.”
Timmy raised his eyebrows, confused.
“Man, you reek of dragon crap.” As he said it, the stench registered in Timmy’s nose. He gagged.
Brandon held out a hand. “You might want to give me your glasses.”
With reluctance, Timmy handed over his glasses, rendering him basically sightless. Brandon was a blue and white blur.
He held out a hand. “Okay, warn me when you’re going to-“
WHOOSH
His back slammed against the wall of the stable. A deluge of water plastered him against the cold stone. Water went up his nose. It only lasted a second, then the water shut off.
“Oh, that was so worth this whole disaster!” Rivin laughed from somewhere.
Timmy wiped the water off his face. A hand found his shoulder and handed him back his glasses. Brandon and Sky came into focus.
“You alright?” Brandon asked cautiously.
Rivin was still cackling in one corner of the stable. Timmy spit out some hay that had gotten into his mouth.
“Yeah, I’ll be fine,” he said, throwing up his arms in a shrug. “Let’s just…clean the dragon.
“Again, this time with feeling.”
Her hands tingled from the last burst of magic. Stella turned them, palms up.
“That was so amazing!” she exclaimed, bouncing on her toes.
“It was. You’re getting better, dearest.” A hand came to rest on her shoulder. Stella looked up into the eyes of her grandmother. She was smiling. “But a princess does not have outbursts.”
Stella stopped bouncing, huffing to herself.
“Nor do they pout.”
She fixed her face too. “Well, then how am I supposed to react to doing something awesome?” She pointed. The target several meters away had a scorch mark. Her attack landed on the right side of it.
Her grandmother straightened up, looking to where Stella had obliterated the stone. “If you do something awesome, as you put it,” she began, holding up her hand to another target, “you simply hold your head high and dazzle them with something even greater.”
Three bursts of energy shot out of her hand. They slammed dead center. The target exploded.
Stella was enamored. Her grandmother had to be the coolest grandmother in the whole magical dimension.
“Always leave them wanting more, make them think that was just the beginning.” With another wave of her hand the target reset. “Now, dazzle me.”
Stella grinned. Holding up her hands and concentrating.
They’d been practicing in the royal gardens for almost an hour. Stella had finished her lessons and her schoolwork for the day. Now, her real training began. The queen mother took it upon herself to teach Stella. For about a year now, they would go to a secluded part of the gardens and practice fairy magic.
But the thing was…Stella already was learning magic in school. A boring class called “Intro to Winx” was a requirement for all fairies attending primary school. Now eight years old, Stella was among the older students. Most of which were children of the Solarian court. The class was more lecture than practical. Not everyone had the same power level, so using their magic wasn’t allowed.
This was why Stella and the former ruling queen of Solaria, Celeste, were spending the afternoon under the sun, learning to shoot down floating targets.
Stella felt the warmth of power within her. Bright. Shining. Taking a breath, she envisioned the same attack her grandmother had done before. The magic flowed to her arms, shooting out of her hands. Three bursts. Golden comets cascaded across the grass. The target was reduced to dust.
Remembering her previous advice, Stella smirked and flipped her hair over her shoulder. “Easy.”
Celeste nodded. “Hm, you learn fast when put to a challenge.” A wave of a hand produced two more targets. “Let me see what you’ve really got!”
Stella beamed, readying another set of attacks.
“This class is not like your charms or transfiguration classes,” the professor said with sincerity. She was a younger visiting professor. From what realm, Stella had already forgotten. “This class is about learning how to attack and defend yourself.”
“Um, Ms. Woolbright?”
A hand rose up amidst the students sitting in the auditorium. Stella was seated near the back filing her nails. Her eyes flicked up.
“Yes, Ms. Opal?”
The girl’s voice was slow and airy. Stella wanted to yawn just listening to it. “I come from a realm where fighting and violence are forbidden. I’m here studying to be a fairy godmother. Can I switch classes?”
The professor crossed her arms, a knowing look on her face. “I understand your concern, Opal. However, Alfea is committed to giving all students a well-rounded education. All fairies must know how to attack and defend. It is a critical skill in learning how to master your powers.”
“But I’m not planning on ever fighting someone,” Opal argued.
“Have you considered you might come into conflict with other opposing forces? Say, monsters or beasts uncontrollable?”
“But I don’t want to hurt a creature!”
Woolbright put her hands on her hips. “Yes, but some creatures have no problem hurting you.” Opal fell silent. Ms. Woolbright’s point finally sank in.
Stella rolled her eyes. “Seriously? What kind of fairy doesn’t like to kick monster butt?” she muttered, mainly to herself, and went back to filing her nails.
A new silence fell across the class. Stella glanced up to see everyone staring at her. Woolbright looked peeved.
“Care to share your thoughts with the class, Princess Stella?” she asked.
Internally, Stella told herself to never sit in the back seats of the auditorium again. Voices carried.
“Well, if you insist,” she said, making a flourishing gesture with her nail file. “I just find it funny how any fairy wouldn’t want to fight. I mean, it’s one of the most fun ways to use magic.”
Woolbright quirked an eyebrow. “Hm, so magical combat is…fun?”
Stella blinked. “Yeah, duh.”
The professor said nothing for a moment. Stella tapped her nail file against her leg. Then Woolbright waved her hands. Discs appeared in the air hovering a small distance away.
Woolbright went to stand in front of the targets, raising her hand and shooting one of them down with a burst of magic. The class gasped as it hit, splitting the target in two. A moment passed and the pieces rejoined, forming the target again.
“This class will cover the basics of attacks and defense for all fairies. But everyone’s magic is different. Today, I want to get a baseline for where you are all at with your powers. From there I can better curate a training plan for the rest of the semester. Each of you will transform and take a chance at shooting the targets. Once your turn is done you are free to go. We will go Alphabetically. Ms. Aspen, you’re first.”
A girl with jet-black hair rose from her seat, walking on unsteady feet to the front of the classroom. She transformed, her green outfit sparkling in the dim classroom lighting. Her hands were visibly shaking as she held them up. Magic gathered in her hands. It twisted and thrummed. Stella felt the sing of energy from her seat. A ball of light shot forward. It was chaotic. Magic flailed around it, hitting the floor, and desks, even lashing back at the fairy who produced it.
By the time the magic got to the end of the room, it had dissipated into nothing but light. The target didn’t even shake.
Stella felt bad. “Aw, all bark, no bite.”
Aspen apologized thoroughly. Professor Woolbright reassured her she had done fine. How she could lie so easily to the student, Stella could only imagine.
The next girl was similar but without the theatrical wildness. Her magic wasn’t powerful enough to knock over a soda bottle, let alone the floating target. The fairy after that hadn’t even learned how to transform yet.
So it went. One by one the girls took their turn to shoot down the discs. Dana, her roommate, was able to at least make the target shake. Her frustrated shout at her own lack of ability caused Stella to smirk. She lost interest after that, pulling out her phone and leaning back in her seat. She checked up on the latest news on Solaria. Nothing of importance. A few of her friends from home had messaged her. She gave them all vague and polite answers about how roomy and luxurious her dorm room was.
“Princess Stella? Hello?”
Woolbright had her hands on her hips, eyes narrowed. Stella laughed nervously.
“If you have finished your business on your phone, then would you please find the time to come down and complete the assessment?”
“Hey look! The perfect pretty princess is petrified!” someone sneakily said, making the few girls around her laugh.
Stella narrowed her eyes, anger flaring. “I’m so not scared!” She stood, waltzing down to the front of the room. The girls that remained whispered to one another. Stella chose to ignore them. She took her place in front of the targets and closed her eyes. Her Winx flowed through her body, warming her to the tips of her fingers and toes. Her wings extended and lifted her off the ground. Stella felt the familiar power now accessible to her. The constant energy that was always settled beneath the surface. The power of the sun and moon.
She took one more breath and opened her eyes. Not even a second had passed.
“Alright, Princess Stella. Whenever yo-“
The sun blast erupted from her outstretched hand. Stella didn’t need to look at the far-right target to know that she had smashed it. Her other hand rose up, with it an identical blast that made the far-left target burst open. Swiftly, she brought her hands together and aimed at the center, sending a stream of light dead center. The disc cracked apart.
She fluttered her wings, spinning around gracefully to face the professor with a smirk.
Woolbright stared forward, a little stunned.
“Sorry, do you miss it? Want me to do it again?” she asked.
Woolbright steeled her expression and snapped her fingers. “Go on then.”
Two more targets appeared. One blue, another red. This time they were moving. Stella turned to face them. Hearing whispers behind her. Fluttering her wings, she flew a few feet off the ground.
Stella had no issues with the blue one, taking it out easily with the same attack as before. But the red target decided not to be a good little magic disc and stay within her firing range. It flew upwards, arcing in the air above her head.
“Hm!” She clenched her fists and flew up, eyes determined.
On the floor in front of her, the red target lay not just in two pieces, but in tiny shards.
Stella touched the ground, de-transforming. “I got it!”
Woolbright waved her hand, and the light blue shield Stella didn’t know was there evaporated around the floor. The professor stood on the steps of the auditorium. Several of the students cowering behind the chairs and desks behind her.
Woolbright walked slowly out to where Stella was standing. “Yes, you did. And everything else in the room.” She gestured around. The desk, or what was left of it, dripped hot plastic onto the floor of the lecture hall. Smoke floated to her nose, making Stella gag. There were several scorch marks on the floor and walls.
“Oh, oops.” She muttered to herself.
The professor didn’t speak for a moment, examining Stella with unyielding eyes.
Stella had chased the target for a solid few minutes, firing off as many attacks as she could. In the midst of her doing so, she got a little carried away.
“You must be tired, Princess Stella, that was a lot of Winx.” Woolbright said. “Thank you for completing the assignment. Go back to your dorm and rest.”
Stella nodded, heading back up the steps and out of the lecture hall. Woolbright began repairing the room.
As she passed the few students that were left she caught their not-so-subtle whispers.
“I guess that’s what happens when you give a dumb blonde princess powerful magic.”
“Yeah,” the girls giggled. “I’ve heard that too much sun isn’t good for you!”
Stella held her composure past the doorway, down the hallways, and into her dorm room. Thankfully, Dana wasn’t there.
Her eyes were a little wet. Going over to her mirror she cleaned her face, sniffling.
“Dazzle them,” she told herself. Her reflection forced a smile, but it faded quickly. “Make them think that was just the beginning.”
Why did she feel so bad? The rest of the girls in the class couldn’t even hit the target! And they were making fun of Stella for obliterating it? This was a school for powerful fairies. Didn’t all fairies learn to fight?
Well, not all fairies were princesses. And not all of them had powerful grandmothers to teach them. Stella hadn’t thought about that.
Her body ached from the strain, but Stella shoved the feeling aside.
She grabbed her phone and purse and left her room, catching the bus to downtown Magix. It was time she and her royal credit card got acquainted with the shops and boutiques of the city.