Fire and Ice - Riven | Fate: The Winx Saga

Chapter Nine: Attacked

"Where is she?" I questioned as I stormed into Miss Dowling's office. Sky was right behind me and we stopped in front of Miss Dowling, Mr Silva and Mr Harvey. "What happened?"
"Eira, you need to calm down." Farah told me.
"Calm down?"
"What exactly did you tell her, Sky?" Silva asked the boy.
"I just said that Kenna was attacked out in the woods." Sky admitted. "Look, she knew something was wrong when I was talking to her. I had to say something."
"It's alright, Sky. You can go." Farah said.
"No, I want him to stay." I told the woman. I then took a deep breath. "Is she okay?"
"Eira." She frowned. I felt my throat close up. I didn't want it to be true. "She was attacked in the woods." Silva explained. "Her friends got her back inside the barrier but... Eira... Kenna's dead."

***

"Are you sure you're okay?" Sky asked me as we entered the specialist hall.
"I'm not okay." I said. "There's no point lying about it."
"I can walk you back to your suite if you want."
"No. No, it's okay. I don't really feel like being bombarded with questions when I walk in." We then stopped when we reached Sky's room. The one he shared with Riven.
"You can stay here for a bit if you like." He told me.
"What about Silva?"
"He won't mind." I gave the boy a weak smile and he opened the door.

Riven was sitting on his bed but he wasn't alone. A girl, the air fairy I had been in a lesson with the day before, was sitting on the floor. "Hello." Sky said, caught off guard. I then sat down on his bed as Sky began to sort his bag out. The girl then smiled as she pulled the vape in her hand, away from her mouth.
"Oh, shit sorry." She said before offering it to us.
"No, thank you." Sky said. "Daytime? Not smart, Riv. If Silva catches her up here-"
"Beatrix." The girl interrupted. "Not her. Beatrix."
"And Silva's not here. I kinda snooped to make sure."
"That we know." I whispered.
"Yeah, we were just with him in Miss Dowling's office." Sky said.
"Something about meeting up with the military detachment from Solaria." Riven then told us. Me and Sky looked at each other and furrowed our eyebrows. "Ask your girlfriend."
"You're dating the princess?" Beatrix asked, smiling. "Shit! Is it weird having sex with someone who looks just like you, or is that kind of the point."

I would've laughed at a comment like that but I wasn't in the right headspace. "If the Solarians are coming..." Sky began.
"Then the rumours must be true." Riven finished. "They've captured a burned one."
"They are true." I said. "I've seen it."
"You have?" Riven questioned.
"The night Bloom lost Stella's ring. The burned one took it." I explained.
"The Solarian prison is no joke." Riven then said. "I guess they're gonna transfer it."
"Why won't they just kill it?" I asked.
"If they haven't killed it yet, I don't think they will, Eira."
"Wait, Eira?" Beatrix questioned. I could've sworn the smile on her face grew. "As in Eira Dowling? The goddaughter of Headmistress Dowling?"
"Yeah." I said.
"Interesting."
"What are you doing in here anyway?" Sky asked them both. "Weren't you going to train today?"
"Silva's gone." Riven said.
"So?"
"You see..." Riven then began as he leaned down and started kissing Beatrix's neck. "The upshot is... we've got nowhere to be."
"Speak for yourself. I'm gonna head to the library."

Beatrix then stood up and left without another word. "I don't have the time to tell you all the reasons why that is a bad idea." Sky told the other boy.
"Yeah, yeah." Riven sighed. "What are you doing in here?" He then asked me. I looked up at Sky and frowned. He then nodded and turned to Riven.
"Kenna's dead."
"Shit." Riven frowned. "How? When?"
"She was killed in the forest last night." I said. "I'm betting it has something to do with what's out there. I'm gonna go." I then stood up. "I'll call Stella, okay?" I told Sky before heading towards the door.
"Since when was she friends with Stella?" I heard Riven ask as I shut the door behind me.

***

"You took long enough." I said as I approached Stella, Bloom and Aisha outside. Stella just scoffed as we kept walking.
"So what's the plan, army barbie?" Aisha asked.
"Bloom, I'm curious. Did you ask Aisha to come?" Stella questioned. "I don't think you did. What about you, Eira?" I shook my head. "So if you two didn't ask Aisha to come, and I didn't ask Aisha to come, it's official. No one asked Aisha to come."

We continued to walk until we reached the barrier, where we stood and waiting. It was beginning to get dark now and I was growing more anxious. "You two don't need to be here." Stella told me and Aisha.
"This is idiotic. You need us." Aisha said.
"Exactly." I added.
"And what exactly is your plan, anyway? What are you gonna do, Stella? Dazzle it with light while Bloom struggles to light a fire?"
"I'm right here." Bloom said.
"I fixed her." Stella stated.
"Negative emotions are unreliable. They have limits. Your method won't her in the long run."
"Neither of you are helping right now." I sighed.
"Can we please just do this?" Bloom then asked us.

"Oh good, everyone's calm and collected." Musa said as she and Terra approached us.
"Finally!" Stella exclaimed.
"Sorry. I needed help with the Zanbaq. We're all good now though."
"Great." I forced a smile. "Then let's get this over and done with." The girls nodded and one at a time, we each stepped through the barrier.
"Do we know where the barn is?" Stella asked.
"Um, yes. North." Terra grinned. "There's this... there's this little stump that looks like an old-"
"Show. Don't tell."
"Now, can somebody please point me in the right direction?" I asked.
"North is that way." Terra said as she pointed. I nodded and we began walking into the forest.