Chapter 3

My welcoming party was, to put it lightly, overly extravagant. Oritel and Miriam had to have been planning it for days (possibly weeks) in advance in order to pull it off. The enormous tapestries with about two dozen shades of red (because apparently Sparx couldn't be normal and just pick one or two of them) that hung from the towering columns surrounding the dance floor; the hundreds of attendees; the ungodly amount of food; the dumbly ironic ice sculpture of the Great Dragon. It would've been impossible to plan on such short notice. Then again, Stella's Princes Ball had been announced only two days before it was held, so I could be wrong. However, I was pretty certain royals didn't have that much free time on their hands.

Over the span of two hours, I'd been forced to mingle with royals. Oritel and Miriam had presented me to counts, countesses, dukes, duchesses, princes, princesses, kings, and queens alike. Every royal from all over the Magic Dimension had come to welcome me home. Slight annoyance would tinge in my chest each time I'd encounter a royal I'd previously met. Most of them had treated me like I was nothing but wasted oxygen when Sparx was still under a sheet of ice. Now that the most powerful planet in the Magic Dimension was revived, however, suddenly I was a respected princess. Funny.

Luckily, all of my friends had received invitations and eagerly came to my aid. Stella quickly jumped at the chance to play my ear piece as I was introduced to everyone, feeding me all of the latest gossip on each lord and lady. Layla thankfully stepped in, whispering actually helpful information to me, such as their names, place of origin, and their contributions to royal society. I never thought I'd ever relate to Miranda Priestly more than then.

Once we were finally able to pull ourselves away from the other royals, we quickly escaped to the other side of the ballroom where the rest of the girls were –the boys in tow. I noticed Timmy tense when he saw me. He whispered something to Tecna, and suddenly the both of them were walking off towards the other attendees from Zenith.

"I thought we agreed to no more parties?" Musa groaned as Stella, Layla, and I approached the rest of the group.

"In my defense, this wasn't my idea." I feebly replied, feeling exhausted myself.

"Oh, grow up, Musa!" Stella chided, plucking a crystal glass of champagne off of one of the nearby waiters' trays. "We are supposed to be socially active adults, so act like it!"

Flora sighed, leaning on Helia's shoulder for emotional support as Stella began tearing into the music fairy.

"One day they may stop fighting." Helia said, a poor attempt to comfort Flora.

"And today is not that day." Nabu negated, cheerfully.

"Speaking of today, we haven't been able to ask how this morning went!" Flora said, turning to me. Her green eyes eagerly shone with desperation to block out Stella and Musa's bickering.

"It was okay." I brushed off. "Nothing exciting."

"Come on! That's all we get?" Nabu questioned, unsatisfied. "You're a girl who grew up on Earth for most of her life and now you're living in a palace with your birth parents for the first time! And it was just okay? Nothing has happened at all?"

I shrugged, feeling my face burn from the attention. "I mean, I don't know what else to say."

"How about you start with where you got that dress?" Stella interrupted, ditching her argument with Musa. The music fairy seemed perturbed, but rolled her eyes and continued to drink.

"What about it?"

"Bloom, I know your wardrobe by heart, and I know that is definitely not in it." Stella assessed, circling me like a vulture. "It's couture! And it's definitely not yours."

The dress my handmaidens forced me into was surprisingly not as overbearing as I'd imagined it would be. However, it did leave me feeling much more exposed than I would've liked. It was an aqua color with a light layer of gold flecks splattered all over the fabric. The dress itself draped to the floor and was made from several layers of what I supposed was chiffon. Gold metalwork was constructed into a corset-like device around my waist, cinching the dress to form perfectly around my figure. It was also made into shoulder plates in the form of exquisite dragon heads that secured the dress at my shoulders and also allowed a translucent cape of the same aqua material to flow out behind me several feet. It was beautiful, but the neckline that down to the top of the corset made me extremely uncomfortable. I remembered the red dress Stella had originally picked out for her Princess Ball being low-cut, but this put it to shame.

"It's Daphne's." I stammered, more than uncomfortable with the subject. "It's Daphne's dress. That I got in Daphne's closet. In Daphne's bedroom. That is now my bedroom. And my closet. And my dress."

The group went silent, seeming to take on my discomfort as well.

"Well, that's certainly . . ." Layla trailed off. Her brow furrowed, desperately trying to find the right word. She hurriedly glanced over at Nabu, looking for support, but he just shook his head, not wanting to get involved.

"Disturbing." Musa finished for her, point blank.

"I'm not going to lie. That's kind of fucked." Riven added, taking a drink.

Flora immediately began chiding the duo, but I paid no attention to it. My thoughts had begun to travel back a few hours prior, recalling seeing myself in the dress for the first time. I was already uncomfortable enough with the plunging neckline and thin fabric; but knowing it was Daphne's dress made my stomach crawl up into my throat. There I was standing in my deceased sister's gown while my ladies maids showered me with compliments and jewelry. Everything about it just felt wrong.

"No, I think fucked sums it up." I said, disrupting Flora's mothering.

She gave me a disapproving look, but didn't correct me.

"On the bright side," Stella interjected. "At least your sis had fab fashion taste."

I knew she was hiding it, but I could tell Stella was distracted. Even while she was draped all over Brandon, her attention was elsewhere. She almost appeared impatient, sighing and muttering nearly inaudible comments (some along the lines of "punctual my ass").

Brandon seemed off his game, as well, however the reason for his behavior shift was obvious. Usually the smooth talking jock would be mingling with anyone and everyone, unafraid to speak his mind. Tonight, the brown-haired specialist was practically shaking in his boots. Across the ballroom, I saw the normally warm eyes of King Radius of Solaria glaring the sharpest of daggers into the back of Brandon's head. Unfathomable anger was rife in his stiff expression, ready to kill the boy for simply standing next to his daughter.

From what Stella had told me, Radius had yet to warm up to Brandon. Even after his graduation from Red Fountain and Sky granting him a knighthood, the King's opinion never changed. I was sympathetic towards Brandon. Everyone could see how hard he was trying to gain Radius's approval, but we all knew that nothing would truly be good enough.

"Hey, is everything okay?" I asked Stella as soon as Musa rambled on about something else she hated about the party.

Continuing to glance over the guests, Stella nodded. "Yep. Everything's fine. Fine and dandy." she replied, forcing a laugh through clenched teeth.

I frowned, my concern intensifying. "Stel, you can tell me. Is it your dad?"

That seemed to snap her out of it, but only for a brief moment. Her eyes widened, bewildered by my question. "What? No!" she denied with a scoff. "No, my father is the least of my worries right now."

"Easy for you to say!" Brandon told her under his breath.

The blonde rolled her eyes.

"Then what's up?" I inquired. "You've been acting really strange all night."

"Nothing! I'm fine!" she insisted, uttering a nervous giggle. Concentrating on her aura, I noticed a faint red glow surrounding her. She must've noticed me staring, suddenly plastering a wide grin on her face.

"Stel –"

"Oh, look, Schnookums!" she exclaimed, cutting me off and motioning to the other side of the room. "We have to go over there! I think I just saw Nova talking with Princess Narcissia!"

Before Brandon could process her words, she grabbed his arm and began dragging him across the ballroom. Barely a few seconds had passed and they were suddenly gone from sight. I remained standing there, befuddled. Looking over at the others for an explanation, all I received were shrugs and Musa muttering crazy.

"I think it's time we took our turn on the dance floor." Nabu suddenly interjected, reaching for Layla's hand. The two were gone before I could blink.

"Dancing sounds great!" Flora agreed. "Helia?"

"It'd be my honor to dance with you." he replied, smiling sweetly at her.

My gaze shifted to the only remaining couple standing with me as Flora and Helia strolled away. "Are you all going to ditch me, too?"

Musa downed the rest of her drink and nodded. "If you thought we weren't going to ditch, you clearly don't know us."

And with that, I was abandoned to my own defenses. I stayed in my own little corner of the ballroom, watching my friends enjoy themselves from afar.

All of the girls had been busy with their own lives after Sparx was restored. Layla was off on Tides with Nabu, helping her parents settle a rather nasty feud between her uncle and her snobbish, entitled cousin, both of which were merfolk, apparently (that struck a conversation). Musa had gone back to Melody and joined a group of other musically inclined fairies, like Galatea, who were trying to forge a spell that could potentially give people with hearing disabilities the power to hear again. Tecna and Timmy joined Musa, as well, trying to lend their tech minds to the cause. Flora and Helia had found a way to combine her aeromagictherapy lessons with his art to enlighten the younger generations on Linphea. Then, of course, there were Stella's endless preparations for her eventual ascension to the throne, along with trying to convince Radius to let her be with Brandon. I was genuinely surprised that all of them were able to take time out of their erratic schedules to come to the party. Thinking about it made the moment more bittersweet, knowing that the more time passed, the more unlikely we'd all be able to get together like this.

"Ahem."

Hearing the voice off to my right, I turned to face it. A tall blonde man stood a few feet away, watching me with soft blue eyes. The faintest hint of a beard shadowed his tanned face, perfectly displaying his impressive smile. I couldn't help but notice the golden crown perched on the top of his head. A stunning red gem decorated the front, matching the ruby waistcoat under his pristine white jacket.

"Princess," he greeted, dramatically bowing as low as he could.

I bit back my smile, returning the formality with a curtsey so over-done I nearly fell over. "Your Highness." I replied, straightening back up. "I'd heard the King of Eraklyon had been invited, but I wasn't sure if he would actually show."

"Of course I came." Sky said, walking over to stand beside me. "I wouldn't miss the grand welcoming party of the Princess of Sparx."

"I wouldn't stand too close to me. The press will have a field day if they see us together. I can already see the infidelity headlines."

He shrugged. "Let them talk. The press is the last thing on my mind."

I raised an eyebrow. "Even though your wife –who wants me dead– would see said headlines?"

Sky chuckled. "Despite popular belief, Diaspro does not want you dead."

I found his statement hard to believe. Everyone who knew the newly named Queen of Eraklyon knew that she wouldn't mind having my head on a silver platter. "So, where is Diaspro tonight? Is she hiding somewhere in the rafters waiting for the perfect time to strike?"

"No Diaspro tonight." he insisted, shaking his head. "She hasn't been feeling too well."

"Oh?" I waggled my eyebrows.

"Maybe oh," he replied, laughing at my implication.

"Brandon said you only arrived this morning?" Sky mentioned, curiously. "That must've been a culture shock for you."

I laughed, recalling my introduction to my handmaidens. "Yeah, it's certainly been a different experience. It's definitely not Earth girl life."

Sky chuckled. "Don't stress out about it too much. Once you get adjusted to palace life you'll do great."

I rolled my eyes. "Ugh. Your optimism is nauseating." I remarked, jokingly.

"How's life as King of Eraklyon been treating you?" I inquired after a few moments of silence.

"It's a big change." Sky admitted, twirling me. "Luckily I have Dad there for guidance. I never realized how many responsibilities he had until now. Being a king and being a prince are two very different jobs.

"So, how's your top-secret mission going?"

I furrowed my brow. "Mission?"

"You know," he said. "Breaking the curse on your secret new guy?"

My eyes widened. I'd nearly forgotten about our conversation on our trip to the Omega Dimension to save the others. I was still in awe of myself that I'd actually confided in Sky about my whatever-it-was with Baltor. No, I never told him who I was really talking about; however, releasing all of my pent up emotions and frustrations to Sky that day had felt great. I hadn't had to worry about any sort of judgment, which for me was a rarity. Unfortunately for me though, that moment of confidence had now come back to bite me in the ass.

"Oh, right, that mission." I said, fumbling with my words. "The curse is certified broken."

"Congratulations!" Sky shouted, appearing genuinely surprised. "Does that mean things between the two of you are alright, then?"

My stomach lurched. Swallowing hard, I forced myself to nod. "It's fine." I choked out, quietly.

His gaze softened. Taking a quick look around the ballroom, he suddenly pulled me off to the side, ducking behind one of the columns. "Bloom, I know about you and Baltor."

I paused. "Sky, what are you talking about?"

"Bloom, it's okay." he assured me, catching the fear in my eyes. "I've known for a while."

A groan tore from my throat, remembering how unimpressed Stella had been when I'd told her. "Were we that obvious?"

Sky laughed. "I think anyone with a pair of eyes could see Baltor was into you, Bloom. From what Riven always said, Baltor could never keep his eyes off you –especially in your Enchantix dress."

I ducked my head a bit, feeling my cheeks burn. "How long have you known about us?"

"Since Stella's Princess Ball."

"What?"

"It doesn't matter." he disregarded. "I'm glad. I'm glad you found someone." His pleasant smile then fell. "And I'm sorry that you had to be the one to kill him. I know that couldn't have been easy for you. When I saw you in the hospital, I should've told you that I knew, but I thought that might only make it worse for you. You shouldn't have had to deal with that all on your own."

I blinked hard, trying to fight back the tears threatening to fall. My throat constricted when I opened my mouth to speak. Instead, I simply nodded. Telling Sky about the situation with Baltor was something I debated. However, the fewer people knew about Baltor's survival the better.

"If you ever need to talk about it, you can always call me and I'll be there." he said. "It may take me a day or two with how awful my schedule is these days, but I will be there."

Still too scared to speak, I threw my arms around him in a tight hug. He quickly returned it, giving me a gentle squeeze. It wasn't until then that I realized it was the first real kind of physical contact we'd had since our break up. But this wasn't a romantic gesture. It was just friendly.

"Well, I think we've hidden away long enough to give the press a decent story." Sky joked, pulling back. "Besides, I should go check on Brandon and save him from Radius's glare."

I finally regained my voice, mustering up a laugh. "I don't think anyone can be saved from Radius's glare."

Stepping back out from behind the column, he acknowledged me with a polite bow. "It was good to see you again, Bloom."

Giving him a short curtsey, I smiled. "It's good to see you, too, Sky."

Shooting me a toothy grin, he rounded the column. I watched his golden head of hair vanish into the crowd, disappearing completely from my view. And suddenly, I was alone again.

"Why is it I always find you on the outskirts of parties?"

The voice that cut into my solitude made my eyes widen.

A million emotions hit me at once. My throat cinched shut, barely allowing me to breathe. Turning my head to the next pillar, the universe slowed down before me. And the moment I saw his grey eyes, my world imploded.

To say that I almost didn't recognize the man that stepped into view was an understatement. His usual Victorian garb had been shed. In their place were very expensive looking regal garments. It was odd to see him in anything other than his typical burgundy coat; however, despite the almost princely attire, he kept his signature color. If his goal had been attempting to blend in with the crowd, he'd done a rather poor job of it. Aside from his clothes, everything about him was exactly the same.

Each step he took as he approached me radiated the over-confidence he'd always had. Forcing my heart rate to slow down, I tried to stop my cheeks from flushing as he took my hand and gently kissed it. I didn't want Baltor to gain any satisfaction from seeing that his presence had unfortunately affected me. Although, the smirk plastered on his face told me I'd already lost that battle.

"How did you get in here?" I asked, yanking my hand out of his grasp. My voice trembled. I whipped my head around to see if anyone had noticed his arrival. To my disbelief, everyone acted as if Baltor walking into the Sparx palace was a common occurrence. The only logical solution my mind could conjure up was the idea that he must've cast several illusion spells on his self.

"You know, you should really speak with your parents about employing more alert guards." Baltor remarked. "They truly will just let anyone in here."

I frowned, feeling my Dragon Fire furiously bubble up inside my chest. "You need to leave."

He tsked disapprovingly. "That I simply cannot do. It would be terribly rude of me to leave these festivities before the night ended."

"It can't be rude to leave when you weren't invited!" I hissed.

Baltor smirked, deviously. Suddenly, a familiar looking card appeared in his ungloved hand. His smirk only widened as he held it up for me to see. "Oh, but I was invited."

There was no way in hell . . .

Ripping the card from his grasp, my eyes viciously scanned over the words. My eyes nearly popped out of their sockets as I read that he'd somehow been 'cordially invited' to my welcoming party.

Turning my attention back to the wizard, I shot him a dark glare. "Magicking up an invitation doesn't make you invited."

Baltor held a hand to his chest, feigning a hurt expression. "I'm offended, Princess! I would never go so low as to craft an invitation on the spot. I'm nothing but an honest man."

I couldn't help the harsh laugh that slipped out. "That's rich coming from you."

Baltor frowned, catching my maliciousness.

"So, if you claim that you didn't pull this out of thin air, who invited you?" I asked, more than eager to move on. "I'm fairly certain that if everyone knew you were alive, my parents would've marked you in the top spot on the Do Not Invite list."

His devilish smile instantly reappeared. "You should ask your Solarian friend. She was more than eager to acquire an invitation for me to attend tonight."

My eyebrows knitted together in total confusion. How could she have even found Baltor to begin with? Every time I'd ever tried to search for him, I'd reach a dead end. With my connection, I would've had the advantage. He had to be lying.

Although, that would've explained her odd behavior tonight.

I glared daggers over at Stella, ready to throw myself across the ballroom to kill her. Once the blonde noticed I was looking at her, she shot me a polite little wave and a thumbs-up before promptly returning to her conversation with Brandon.

"She's a rather adept persuader." Baltor added, grabbing my gaze once more. "Not to mention, aggressive."

"I don't care if Stella invited you just to piss me off." I told Baltor, firmly. Using a quick fire spell, I turned the invitation to ash in my hand and let it fall to the floor. My jaw was beginning to ache from how tight my teeth were clenched. "You need to leave."

"Bloom, I know you don't want to talk to me. But, despite your stubbornness, we need to talk–"

"You had your chance to talk!" I snapped. A chill crawled through my veins, feeling my hands begin to shake uncontrollably. Blackness sluggishly clawed its way into the edges of my vision, leaving the rest of the room nothing but a void of nothingness. "You had your chance to talk and be honest with me on Linphea, but no! You screwed that up by choosing to try and feed me some bullshit lies! And what? Now you just want to walk back into my life and act like you're here to be sincere? To act like everything on Linphea never happened? Like you didn't tear my heart into a thousand broken pieces? Screw you! And screw that!"

My cheeks burned furiously. The raw rage inside me constricted my chest, making me feel like I was about to burst. Tears painfully stung my eyes, realizing my outburst. A bud of guilt sprouted in my chest, catching a glint of regret in his eyes, but the darkness swirling in my head quickly drowned it out.

My vision began to correct itself, returning me to the lively ballroom. A whispering thought in my head reminded me that I shouldn't be causing such a scene. For a moment, I had genuinely forgotten that we were at the party.

A scene is exactly what you want, a taunting voice whispered in the darkest recesses of my brain. Let Oritel and Miriam take care of him. Let him face the punishment he deserves.

Feeling a tear begin to slip down my cheek, I quickly reached up to swipe it away. "Just go." I murmured.

So many conflicting emotions rose in my chest as I stormed away from him. Part of me was a firm believer of my actions. Regardless of how recklessly I had let myself be by allowing my darkness to briefly take over, I'd said my piece. After all this time, I'd finally told him how I felt. I wanted him to hurt as much as he'd hurt me. And even though that slight outburst didn't compare at all to what he'd done, I'd still managed to feel some satisfaction by rejecting him of the chance to speak.

Yet, the other half of me was already drowning in a river of regret. For so long, I'd secretly hoped he would return. Every day while we fought to save Sparx, my mind would dare to wonder and dream of him reappearing. My heart would race at any slight shadow in the corner of my eye, longing for a simple sign that he wasn't gone forever. Sleep didn't provide much of an escape from him either. The strong desire to have him back in my life haunted my dreams and even my nightmares.

My steps started to slow. I thought about turning around.

Plan of attack?

I'm not angry. I'm pissed.

I've been alone for a month trying to figure out how to convince myself that you actually were dead!

Please, just get out!

Numbness bled through my body. I knew it was her trying to creep her way back in. She was quick to take advantage of my addled state, more than ready to dreg up the memories I hated so much.

Baltor's presence suddenly overwhelmed me. His hand encircled my arm and he dragged me to the other side of the ballroom. We earned a few disgruntled looks as Baltor practically hauled me through the crowd, yet no one said a word to us when we passed.

Once we returned to the familiar edges of the ballroom, he pushed me hard up against the wall. I tore my gaze from side to side, waiting for someone to notice, but still no one paid us any mind. No one seemed to see us at all. Concluding that he had apparently thrown up some kind of invisibility spell on us, I only thrashed harder.

"I am aware that you don't want to talk to me!" he snapped furiously, struggling to keep me still. "However, I am also aware that if you keep this charade up you're going to have a very unwanted guest show up. Therefore, I suggest you calm down before she shows up!"

The Darkness inside me was enraged that he dared to acknowledge her. The dangerous thoughts that were then pulsed into my head felt like stabbing knives. Each one hurt worse and worse, gradually becoming more sinister. Only a few seconds had passed before the same black edges began to distort my vision.

I heard Baltor curse something under his breath, before quickly reaching into his pocket. When he withdrew it, he immediately slammed it back on my wrist. The small click I heard pierce through my ringing ears made me freeze.

"Did you just handcuff me?" I sputtered out, feeling the rage begin to peak.

"The thought did cross my mind." Baltor replied. "However, I think you'll enjoy this more."

Lowering his hand to my forearm, he revealed a black leather cuff that was not locked around my wrist. A clear gem was embedded in the fabric with two silver dragons circling it. It was pretty, but I still had no idea what it was for.

In the blink on an eye, magic surged through my body. The pain throbbing in my head vanished into nothing. All the traces of ferocity bubbling in my chest ebbed away. The Darkness that had lingered inside me for so long faded out of existence. And finally, the snarling voice echoing in my mind was shut off. For the first time in forever, I felt like the girl I had been before Shadow Haunt. I felt . . . normal.

Well, as normal as it could get for me.

I noticed the gem in the cuff had darkened, giving off a purplish glow. A tiny bud of hope sprouted in my chest. It wasn't possible.

"Unfortunately, it's only temporary." Baltor confirmed, slowly allowing his hands to come to a rest just below my shoulders. "It's far from perfected. You may still hear her every once in a while. However, it'll at least give you a few days to settle in without having to worry about her too much."

A gentle squeeze consumed my heart. "How did you –?"

"Don't worry yourself with the details right now." he interrupted. "We don't have much time before someone notices you're missing."

My curiosity was raging, but I complied, remembering the real reason why he'd dragged me away from my party. "I still don't want to talk to you." I said, gritting my teeth.

Bending his head down, he got dangerously close to me. "You don't have to talk. You only need to listen." he growled, inches away from my face.

"Bite. Me." I hissed back.

A teasing smirk pulled at his lips. "It'd be my pleasure, princess."

I rolled my eyes. "You're disgus –"

My breath suddenly caught in my throat. His hand slid up onto my stomach, pushing me firmly against the wall. The warmth of his fingertips easily radiated through the thin fabric of my dress. It was like the dress wasn't there anymore. I'd nearly forgotten what it was like to have him touch me like that again. I couldn't help the flood of thoughts that entered my head then, reminding me of our night at Cloud Tower. The way his fingers had touched me then, how they had slipped under my shirt to explore the same skin he was caressing now. And after, deciding to go lower . . .

His breath dancing over my lips pulled me out of the memory. Flicking my gaze over him, I noticed he was practically pressed up against me. The only thing keeping us apart was his hand. Yet once my eyes traveled back to his face, my attention couldn't be torn away from how close his lips were to mine.

"Now listen," he murmured. "You have every right to be angry with me. I'm not saying that you're wrong. However, if we keep up this ridiculous game you're playing, you're never going to get what you want."

"Tell me, then." I said, distractedly. "What is it you think I want?"

The smirk that appeared on his face made my heart flutter. "To know where I was. And why I did what I did."

I felt my heart skip a beat.

No. Don't fall for it, you idiot. He's toying with you. He's not actually going to tell you. He knows that's what you want; he's taking advantage of you.

Ignoring the voice as best I could, I finally let our eyes meet. He was staring intently back at me, his grey irises darkened by the shadows.

"But, the answers you desire aren't particularly easy to explain in public." Baltor continued. "We'll need to talk somewhere much more private than your welcoming ball. There's a manor on the outskirts of Dragonswood. It's not that far from the main city. I'm sure you passed through there on your way to the palace, yes?"

I nodded.

"Good." Briefly, I saw his eyes flash with hesitation. "When you're ready, that's where I'll be."

A dark chill spread through my veins as his fingers dared to slowly travel upward towards my chest. My skin tingled, still so unused to him touching me. Fear coursed through my heart, sensing my skin tingle for an entirely different reason. I immediately grabbed his wrist to prevent him from exploring further just as a sparkle of magic caught my eye.

Baltor's gaze immediately intensified. A piece of me tried to convince myself that he hadn't seen it; that the shadows were playing tricks on me and they were making it seem like Baltor had noticed.

"Should I ask why you're using glamour magic?" Baltor asked, settling his hand on my waist. I bit my lip, hearing the edge of concern in his voice. "Or should I ask who you're using it on?"

"I should go." I whispered out, desperate to avoid the topic. "My parents will be looking for me."

"Bloom –"

"Thank you for the cuff."

I could tell he wanted to push me for more information. His fingers had protectively tightened around my waist; ready to attack whoever he thought might be trying to hurt me. But it was pointless to try and find them. He was already holding me.

This time he didn't stop me when I pulled away from him.

Originally, there was a lot of 'fucks' in Bloom's rant, but then I realized that that was way too OOC for her, unfortunately enough for me, who likes to say fuck a lot.

It's been literally like 5 months, and I deeply apologize for that. It's been kind of crazy, and I'd rather not get too into it because it's a very complicated story. But, I'm here now! And with an update! It's probably not a great update, but it's an update nonetheless! Hopefully the next one won't take too long to write, but then again, with my attention span, it probably will.

I'd also like to thank OG fic writer Zadien for helping me get back on my writing feet. I was stuck in a rut with this chapter, but she gave me some pretty good advice that finally got me inspired again! So thank you Zadien! And also a huge thank you to my best friend emberfire411 who bestowed upon me the greatest of gifts -a line that I couldn't word correctly. You're a godsend.

In the next chapter, we won't see Baltor at all. But we will get some more BFF time and bring back some good ol' memories from season 1!

This chapter mentally exhausted me to finish, so I'm going to go work on something else now. As always, if there are any grammatical errors, I do apologize. I'll try to fix them once looking at this chapter doesn't make me tired.

~Bloom