Princess | Riven (Fate: Winx Saga)

Act One: Chapter 1

First chapter, let's go!

Her alarm wasn't the thing that woke her up that morning, nor was it the next door neighbour's baby screaming in his bed. It wasn't the birds chirping on the rooftops, and it wasn't even her brother, who was usually the first to wake up.
No, Morrigan Chambers woke up that day because of the nerves.
They made her stomach twist and sent tantalising waves of nausea through her body, as if they knew just how much she hated them and wanted to drag out their torture.

The nerves had woken her up at the ungodly time of 5:30 in the morning - half an hour before her alarm was set to go off. Morrigan wouldn't usually have it set so early, heavens no, but today wasn't like any other day.
It was the reason her nerves were so hectic.
It was her first day at Alfea College for Fairies and Specialists.

Morrigan's older brother, Rowan, was going into his third year and was 'as cool as a cucumber' - his words, not hers - about going back.
But that was clearly the opposite to her.
Mor had tossed and turned in her bed that morning, trying to force herself back to sleep and will her nerves to settle, but to no avail.

Rowan had walked into her room, banging two pans together with no care for the neighbours, but had stopped almost immediately when he realised she was actually awake (realised meaning Mor sent vines shooting up his legs to his arms and kept him in place with a flick of her wrist).

It was no secret Mor was exceptionally powerful for her age, even though she never really spoke about it. She easily surpassed anyone her age, and possessed more control than anyone even her brother's age.
Or at least, that's what everyone else saw.

Resting her head on the car's chilled window, Mor sighed as she gazed out at the scenery whizzing by in a blur of countryside colours. All the wonderful hues of greens and blues and browns that were non-existent in the city. Even though her family lived on the outskirts of Solaria's capital, Mor had always loved it when they escaped to the countryside. Maybe it was because she was an Earth fairy, or maybe it was because it was just what she preferred, but she'd always felt like the country was like a breath of fresh air.

It reminded her of a divine fingerprint, curving and changing, no two parts the same. In all the world, the countryside view was unique, such was the way of the organic world. The dip and sway of the land, the patterns and species of flora, the ever changing sky and wind. Every day was a new snapshot in time, for even in the magic-filled Otherworld, it would never be exactly the same two days in a row. Little by little the seasons would bring changes, shifts in the natural balance. The country always had a way of reminding Mor that she wasn't different from nature, but a part of it - that it lived and breathed inside of her, pulsing in her veins and sprouting from her fingertips.

"How are you feeling, pip?" Her father, Cornelius, asked, glancing back at her through the rear-view mirror, shaking her from her thoughts.

Mor smiled at the familiar nickname. In all truths, she couldn't remember where it came from, but her father had always called her pip. Her brother, however, would always take the mick and call her pipsqueak instead.

"Like I'm gonna throw up." She laughed nervously, straightening up in the car seat.

Rowan, who was sitting in the passenger's seat, swivelled round and pointed away from him, "If you do, please do it that way."

Cornelius harrumphed, slapping her brother round the back of the head before swiftly returning his hands to the steering wheel, "Not funny, Row."

"It wasn't supposed to be." Rowan grinned, shrugging as he faced the front once more.

Her father shot him an unimpressed look, "Come on, Row, it's your sister's first day. She's bound to be nervous!"

"I know that," Rowan huffed, "All I'm saying is that I'd prefer not to have puke all down my neck."