SECRETS | Fate: The Winx Saga ~ Alternate Season 2

Chapter 35

After two long hours of walking in the woods, Saul and Farah approached the barrier created by Rosalind. The afternoon was already well underway and, despite the risks, the fairy was keen to learn more about the barrier that was holding all the students at Alfea captive to their tyrannical headmistress. Farah stepped towards the invisible shield before raising her hand.

"Wait!" her husband suddenly shouted, holding her hand back in concern "What if this is a trap to get rid of you?"

She turned back to him and shook her head, bothered.

"We don't have a choice, Saul, we promised Ben we'd help him, and Sky may be in danger," she replied, absolutely distressed. "Who knows what that crazy woman is capable of doing to our son? Perhaps she's already put a spell on him..."

She had finished her sentence by bursting into tears, helpless. Sky was her everything, her only child, her reason for living. Even though Saul had raised him, he couldn't understand the blood bond between them.

"I'm asking you to trust me," she whispered, calming herself.

Touched by her pain at not knowing how their son was doing or if he was being treated well, he hugged his wife tenderly and placed a kiss on her forehead. In fact, he was much more affected than he could express.

"I trust you, sweetheart, it's been too long since we were separated from Sky, Ben and the students. After what happened to the Queen, we definitely need to know what's going on there."

Afraid to risk falling into a trap set by her enemy, she hugged her husband a little tighter before pulling herself together. She focused on her powers, trying to be as discreet as possible. She had to prevent Rosalind from spotting her presence on the barrier, or the whole plan would fall apart. If only she could weaken the barrier, they could get in and help Ben in his fight with the students...and most importantly get to their beloved son. After making sure her presence was imperceptible, she finally placed her hands on the barrier to feel its full energy and, startled by the nature of the spell, withdrew them almost immediately.

"Saul, this isn't just any spell!" she cried, backing away in panic.

Her husband abruptly took her by the shoulders, alarmed.

"What? What do you mean by that?" he questioned sharply.

His wife stared straight into his eyes and the gleam he saw in hers was unmistakable.

"That barrier was built with Rosalind's life energy, they are both bound, what I just felt was more than just magic, that barrier is alive," she explained quickly. "And if the barrier sensed my presence..."

The Specialist looked up at the clouds, appalled. He understood.

"Rosalind could have sensed it too," he finished tersely.

Farah took a deep breath to avoid sinking into paranoia.

"There's a chance she didn't notice my presence because of my protection spell...if not, she'll be here any minute."

Saul sighed loudly, he felt trapped and helpless in this more than perilous situation and most of all, he feared above all that Rosalind would show up and kill the woman he loved.

"Well, what can we do but go back to hiding in the forest?" he asked somewhat randomly.

His fairy growled in annoyance.

"There's no way we're going to go and hide and leave Sky in the claws of a murderer," she protested, arms folded. "I have an idea: if the barrier is connected to Rosalind, it may weaken if she's sick. I figure if I can weaken the barrier or create a breach with my powers and life energy, it would be possible to weaken Rosalind and make the situation easier for Ben, if not for us to get into the school. Since Rosalind hasn't killed us yet, I don't suppose she felt my presence on the barrier."

Her husband smiled, very proud of her reasoning. Her sharp mind had always impressed him and every day he was happy and proud to have married such a smart woman.

***

Alone in the greenhouse, Ben was pacing. Pressed by the urgency of the situation, he was thinking of a quick way to get rid of Rosalind, whose influence was only growing. More and more students had fallen under her control and a solution had to be found before it was too late.
The botany teacher stopped walking, noticing a ghostly hand resting on his. She was back.

"Luna...you're here..." he murmured in disbelief.

She let go of his hand and stood in front of him.

"I found Rosalind's weak point, it's the barrier she's created," she admitted excitedly. "Since it's made up of her life energy, they're bound, and if you attack that barrier, chances are Rosalind will be weakened and you'll be able to trap her more easily...I've been watching Farah, she's trying to weaken the barrier with Saul."

Almost immediately, Ben leapt with joy, hugging her, infinitely relieved and grateful.

"Thank you, my love!" he exclaimed, overwhelmed with emotion. "We can finally make things move forward!"

She gazed at him, smiling with all her love, comforting. Her light was shining brighter than ever.

"Rosalind will soon be a bad memory, Ben, I promise you, you'll make it."

As if to support him, she placed her lips on his, sealing them in a long passionate kiss. Two students passing by the greenhouse glanced in it before exchanging a puzzled look after seeing their teacher kissing the void. They must have thought he had gone mad. They passed by the doorway, wondering what hallucination he was seeing to kiss it in such a ridiculous way.