SECRETS | Fate: The Winx Saga ~ Alternate Season 2

Chapter 17

This morning Ben met Luna at the edge of the forest. Unlike usual, she had put on a more appropriate outfit: trousers, rubber boots and a raincoat. The botany teacher had not told Sky to avoid putting him in danger, even though he knew that the young guy wanted more than anything to find his mom.
They would have to get past the barrier that protected the school, and there they would be risking their lives greatly to save Farah's. The earth fairy walked slowly towards the lady before greeting her.

"Good morning Ben, how are you since last night?" she asked gently.

He stiffened and finally smiled, really surprised by this sweetness that was very astonishing.

"Well, I haven't slept much, until I know if Farah's okay, I won't be comfortable," he admitted with a tired sigh.

Since Rosalind had returned to Alfea, he had been having trouble sleeping, even with the use of calming herbs. He was afraid for the students, especially his children, but also for Saul and Farah. He had not dared to ask his new ally about his friend, and this was certainly not the time to do so.

"So let's not waste time, let's go now," she decided with a determined air. "Most importantly, we'll have to be careful once we get off the estate."

He nodded and followed her into the forest. For once, the weather was kind, and a beautiful autumn sun was with them.
As they passed through the protective barrier, Ben began to wonder about the queen. She had accepted to help him, but to what end? What if this was all a trap to neutralise him?

"Luna, you don't appreciate Farah, why are you helping me find her?" he questioned, grabbing her wrist.

She glanced at him with her azure eyes, as if hurt by his words.

"You don't think I'm going to deliberately leave someone somewhere to die, do you?" she retorted before breaking free of his grip. "I'm not made of stone, you know. What happened at Aster Dell, I didn't want it."

Nevertheless, she had wanted the person responsible for that massacre to become the headmistress of Alfea again, which Ben couldn't stand. She had been pressuring Farah for years about her teaching methods, and she had finally chosen to replace her. Without scruples.

"But you did want Rosalind..." he muttered, sarcastically. "You share the same dark and destructive pedagogy."

She gave him a dark look full of reproach and rage. She was hiding things from him, he was sure, but maybe he shouldn't have talked so much.

"Sometimes you don't always have a choice, like when I had to hire Andreas to replace Saul."

Suddenly, just as Ben was about to reply vigorously, a sharp crack caught their attention. They turned around but found nothing unusual.

"Let's keep our voices down," he suggested, whispering.

"Yes, I think we're being followed," she agreed with some anxiety.

All in a sudden she fell violently with a frightened cry and was dragged backwards.
The earth fairy turned around and found that a Burned One had caught her foot. The queen tried to blind him but the creature seemed impervious to her light.

"Luna!" screamed, rushing towards her and the horrible thing. "Calm down, I'll get you out of this!"

She turned her head towards him, still on the ground, scared.

"No, Ben, leave me here and go find Farah, she needs you!"

He clenched his fists: the fairy's voice was asking him to leave, but her eyes were imploring him to stay and help her. She had chosen to put her life in danger to help him find Farah, he had to save her. He was already carrying the guilt of Rose's death, he wasn't about to go through this a second time. Luna was a precious ally, his only ally for the moment.
He had to be quick, because the Burned One was already leaning over her, ready to harm her, and he couldn't just bury him, he risked burying her too.

"Luna, use your illusions to distract him!"

She listened to him and focused on making herself invisible and creating illusions of herself. When the monster realised she was standing in front of him, he loosened his grip, allowing her to break free and join Ben, who took the opportunity to sink him into the soil, until he was completely buried.
Gasping, still in shock and trembling, she appeared, and could not help but hug her friend.

"Oh thank you Ben, if it wasn't for you he would have killed me!" she exclaimed gratefully.

He gazed at her for a moment, and saw that her skin was marked by many scratches, especially on her hands and forearms. Her face was also scratched, and her cheek covered by a large haematoma caused by the fall. A little blood was dripping from her split lip.

"You're hurt, we should go back to my office and treat you and come back later," he asserted as he took her by the shoulders, very concerned, "You must feel terrible and I don't want you to collapse here."

She shook her head, touched, but she didn't want to go back to the castle now. They hadn't come all this way for nothing, they were almost to the graveyard.

"No way, I'm not feeling too bad, and this might be our only chance to find Farah," she refused flatly. "I can always be treated afterwards, but she might not."

He continued to stare at her for a moment, not sure if she was making the right decision. He wanted Farah back, but could hardly bear to see his new friend injured, fearing that the wounds would become infected or that she had suffered some more serious trauma. Yet time was running out, whether it was for the fairy's life or even theirs, because in fact they didn't know how far Rosalind was willing to go to ensure Farah never returned.

Professor Harvey nodded and they kept walking to the graveyard where Rosalind had planned to meet Farah.