Chapter Text
If a year ago somebody had told Stella that she'd be crying in front of a traitor's grave without Sky at her side, she'd have been genuinely worried about their mental health.
And yet, Sky is nowhere to be seen, and stranger yet, she has no desire to have him by her side anymore. Sure, she feels for him, losing Bloom has taken a huge toll on him, but right now compassion and understanding is all she feels for him.
On top of it, Stella knows Beatrix would find the two of them in front of her grave to be pretty pathetic. The crying Stella is already doing truly is not helping her case.
She laughs. "Well, maybe you should come back to make fun of me, because even I know I look pretty pathetic right now" She tells the grave.
Only silence answers back.
"I'm sorry" she whispers, her voice breaking. "I am so sorry. Please, I..." her own sob cuts her off. She dries her tears with the back of her hand. "No, you know what? No. I am not sorry, the entire thing was your fault. I trusted you, despite what everyone else was saying, despite what you were saying, I trusted you and you broke my heart!" she is screaming now. "But at least you were alive, right? That was the entire point, Beatrix! You were supposed to survive!"
Her eyes turn white and her hands start glowing. "You were supposed to survive and I was supposed to be mad at you until you wormed your way back into my heart the way you always do! You were not supposed to die and I sure as hell wasn't supposed to mourn you! So please... Please just come back" her voice is breaking again, the anger disappearing as quickly as it came. "I know it doesn't make any sense but I can't wrap my mind around a world where you're just gone, I don't accept that so just come back, okay? I won't be mad, I promise. You still have me... And I need you, please I need you".
She lets herself kneel on Beatrix's grave. "I'm pretty sure Musa has been avoiding me, you know? I don't blame her, my brain is a mess right now and I can't even explain to them why I am so sad. They wouldn't understand". She laughs. "Isn't it funny? The one person I want to talk about it around a good glass of whiskey is the one person I can't".
Funny or not, she is still met with only silence.
So she stays there. Not really wanting to go, not having anywhere to go to.
That is when she hears it. It is so faint it could have been happening for a while without her noticing. There is something wrong with the grave she’s on. Focusing on it, she realizes that it feels wrong too. She can't explain it, it is like the atmosphere pressure is off. But what caught her attention is the scratching. Something is scratching some wood under her feet.
No, no, no, no. What if they didn't seal the coffin properly? What if a beast is trying to get inside?
No. There is no way Stella would let some giant bug eat away at Beatrix's body.
Nobody would even have dreamt to imagine Stella of Solaria on her knees digging through the dirt with her bare hands. Yet, this is exactly what she is doing.
Digging. Digging. She doesn't even know what type of animals would try to get inside a grave and eat a corpse. She doesn't care. A bunch a fairies died during the assault, whatever that thing is can have their bodies but she isn't letting it have hers.
It takes her surprisingly little time to reach the coffin. Her hands are bloody but she doesn't notice. She doesn't notice either that the scratching is different now, stronger. And it isn't just scratching anymore something is hitting a hard surface. It is only when she finally has eyes on the wood of the coffin that she understands. It is cracked and burnt from the inside, and somebody is... coughing. "Stella?"
No, that can't be. "Beatrix?" she calls out. The hitting starts again, even louder, fingers reaching through the cracks, fingers even bloodier than Stella's. "Beatrix!! I'm here, I'm here, I will get you out of here." She tries pulling the wood apart but only manages to cut the palm of her hand. "Shit" she curses. She looks around, desperate to find anything to help.
Stella looks through the crack of the coffin. "Don't worry, I will be right back, I promise"
"Stella? No, Stella please don't go! Stella!!" She hears Beatrix weakly calling out behind her.
She knows there has to be a shovel somewhere she can use as a lever.
There!
Stella grabs the shovel and rushes back to Beatrix's grave. "I'm here, I'm here. Stay calm, okay?" She uses the shovel to finish taking the dirt out. "Beatrix, whatever you do, do not put your hands or your head near the crack, okay? I don't want to hurt you" she yells. Stella gets slightly more panicky when nobody answers her. Why is Beatrix not answering? No, no, no, no... No. She needs to focus. She puts the tip of the shovel in the crack and puts her whole weight into it. And the lightning burnt wood shatters.
Stella falls on the ground, only focusing on catching the shovel before it hits Beatrix.
Beatrix.
Here she is. She looks awful, truly. But Stella doesn’t care, she is so happy it makes it the most beautiful sight she has ever laid her eyes on.
Beatrix looks to have trouble focusing on her. "Stella?" she asks weakly.
Stella cradles Beatrix against her. "Yes, I'm here, I'm here. You're safe, okay? You're going to be just fine"
Beatrix's breath rattles. She probably inhaled some dirt. That isn't good. The fact that Beatrix lets herself be cradled in this way is probably a dead giveaway of how badly in shape she is. Slowly, like it is taking an awful amount of energy, Beatrix lifts her hand to touch Stella's cheek and smiles. "You're here" she says before closing her eyes and passing out.