Alethea is a kind-hearted girl carrying the weight of the Magic Dimension on her shoulders. Read as she tries to find her place in a world full of chaos, while she herself is anything but. Adjusting to a life filled with danger when all she wants is...
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The image up here is not my work but the creator's so full credit to them.
⑅ ♥̩̥̩♥̩̩̥͙♥̩͙ˊˎ
Alethea's POV:
After defeating Darkar, the rest of our sophomore year sped by faster than a spell gone wrong, leaving me barely time to catch my breath. Summer holiday arrived sooner than I could have hoped. Bloom decided to drag me to Earth for the summer. She was worried about me, which was sweet, but I didn't think she'd go so far as to sign me up for therapy with a stranger. Apparently, that's the Earth equivalent of an intervention—with fewer sparkles and more couches.
Because talking to someone about my feelings was the magic cure for everything.
"And that's what happened," I said, shrugging as casually as possible while nervously tapping my fingers on my thighs. I was rocking a soft pink dress with straps, a dark blue cardigan, thigh-high socks, and some heeled ankle boots.
The old woman across from me stared, mouth agape, as if I had just recounted the time I fought a giant octopus in the middle of the Atlantic. I chuckled awkwardly, the sound ringing in the silence. Oops. I'd forgotten that I was talking to someone from Earth who likely had no clue about magic. She must think I'm completely bonkers.
"Did you... did you say you fought an octopus?" she asked, blinking rapidly.
"No, no!" I backtracked, flailing my hands a bit too dramatically. "I meant metaphorically! It was more like... a metaphorical octopus of emotional trauma!"
Before she could write down anything that could get me committed, I stood up, straightening my dress as if it would somehow give me the confidence I desperately needed. "I think it's best that I go," I declared.
"Wait!" she called, her pen hovering over the paper. "You can't leave without—"
"I can't take any more of this!" I replied, throwing my hands up in exasperation. "No more talk about feelings, and definitely no octopus metaphors. I'm just going to go and deal with my emotions the old-fashioned way—like a true Fairy: with a good book and some ice cream."
With that, I made my escape.
***
"I can't believe you made me go through that," I complained to Bloom as we sat on the Magix Express. We were on our way back to Alfea, where Stella needed help packing, of all things. I mean, who goes from the blissful freedom of Earth to the stress of moving boxes back to Alfea right when summer vacation had just kicked off? Apparently, we did.
"Seriously, Bloom. I'd rather battle a troll than sit through another session with that therapist. At least when I was fighting Darkar, I didn't have to talk about my feelings—just my survival skills."
Bloom shot me an amused look, one eyebrow raised. "Oh, come on. It's not that bad! Think of it as... character development!"
I rolled my eyes dramatically. "Yeah, because nothing screams 'character growth' like sharing my deepest, darkest fears with a total stranger. It's either that or help Stella pack. I think I picked the less torturous option."
