In the royal palace of Domino, something great would happen. For some apparent reason, a meeting had been scheduled in the throne room. There was the king and queen of Domino and parents of Bloom, who was Cherry Blossom, Oritel and Marion, seating on their thrones. With them was their older daughter, Daphne. Then the doors of the throne room opened and the other five Winx entered, accompanied by Sky, Cherry Blossom's former boyfriend when she was Bloom.
"Your Majesties" Stella said as she and the others bowed to the King and Queen of Domino. "But what is the emergency for you to call us?"
"Yes, me particularly" Sky said.
"I received a message telling me to do it so" Oritel replied.
"An order?" Aisha repeated. "From who?"
"From me" a voice answered.
They turned and then saw the Lord of Order appearing in the room and carrying a big mirror under his arm whose hand was not carrying his spear.
"Hello, everyone" he greeted, making a slight bow. "I hope you are having a wonderful day."
"But what you're doing here?" Sky asked rudely to the Lord of Order. "You're not welcome here."
"I'm sorry to contradict you, my arrogant and spoiled little prince, but this is my kingdom, like all the others who live in peace and order" the Lord of Order said. "Their rulers are merely my representatives. Right, Oritel?"
But Oritel didn't answered.
"So what are you doing here?" Aisha asked. "It must not be good."
"If you come tell me to give up on Bloom, so you can turn around and go back under the rock you came from" Sky said brusquely.
"I'll have a little talk with your daddy about the education you have received" the Lord of Order said to Sky. " That is not how a young man speaks."
That made Sky to contort his face in anger.
"Now, although it's always a pleasure to insult you, Sky, let's talk about what really brought me here, shall we?" the Lord of Order said.
He then put the mirror he carried under his arm on the ground.
"Uh, that mirror is so beautiful!" Stella exclaimed, excitedly.
"Stella, this is no time to admire mirrors" Flora said.
"Actually, I think we should really admire that mirror" Tecna said, examining the object with her computer.
"What do you mean, Tecna?" Musa asked.
"According to my computer's data, that mirror is the same one where the Lord of Order made Bloom pass through when she was banished to another reality" she said.
"Very well" the Lord of Order congratulated, while all the others looked to the mirror. "What a nice deduction. Yeah, this mirror is more than just an object of beauty admiration. It's a portal between dimensions. Specifically for the dimension for where Princess Bloom was sent to."
"So why did you bring it here?" Daphne asked. "Don't tell us you're going to bring Bloom back."
All the others looked to the Lord of Order expectants.
"Oh, you'd really like so, right, Princess?" Lord of Order noted. "But unfortunately, that is not the reason why I'm here. I guess... It's not in my hands."
"Sorry to ask, my Lord, but what do you mean?" Marion asked.
"Well, a picture is worth a thousand words" the Lord of Order says. "Isn't that what they say? And before you start talking, what I will show you is not an illusion and I've not manipulated in any way the image. It's just for the record."
And having said this, he snapped his fingers and then the mirror glass began to glow and then it began to reflect something. It was Cherry Blossom, or rather Bloom, appeared in her true form in the mirror. Happiness appeared on the face of those who were watching the mirror.
"Dad! Mum! Daphne! Girls!" she called, overjoyed. "It's so good to see you."
"Bloom!" everyone called, going to the mirror, including the king and queen who rose up from their thrones as they saw their daughter appearing in the mirror.
"Bloom , I don't believe you're here" Stella said. "Well, you're not right here, but you can see us and we can see you..."
"Stella, we get it" Musa said. "You can stop it."
"Oh, Bloom, it's so good to see you" Flora said.
"We miss you so much" Aisha said.
"It is virtually impossible to calculate the longing we have for you" Tecna said.
"I miss you too, girls" Bloom said with a tender smile.
"Bloom , my daughter, I can't believe it's you" Oritel said.
"We thought we would never see you again" Marion said.
"Me too, dad, mum" said Bloom, while she and her parents involved themselves in an embrace that was just cut by the mirrored surface that was between them.
"Little sister" said Daphne, advancing to the mirror after their parents moved away.
"Oh, Daphne, I cannot believe it's you" Bloom said as the two sisters rested their palms one over the other.
Both were sad because they could not touch each other. It made them remember when Daphne was under the effect of the Sirenix curse.
"How are you?" Daphne asked.
"Very well" Bloom said. "The Lord of Order sent me to a wonderful place. It has as the perfect balance between nature and its inhabitants that it is impossible to describe."
"I told you, didn't I?" the Lord of Order said to the ones present there.
When Daphne turned away from the mirror surface, it was time to Sky to approach Bloom.
"Hello, Bloom" he greeted her with a warm and passionate smile.
But when he started to put his hands over hers, Bloom just dropped them and stepped back, looking away from him sadly.
"Bloom, what is it?" Sky asked.
"I have to tell you something" she said. "To all of you."
"And what is it?" Sky asked.
"It has something to do with your homecoming?" Stella asked.
But Bloom couldn't speak. She could not find the right words to explain what was happening to her. The Lord of Order then saved her to do that and told everyone:
"Bloom managed to find a way to get back and is right now in front of the portal."
"But that is fantastic!" Sky said. "You just have to cross it and we can meet again. It's easy."
"Not, Sky, it's not so easy" Bloom said, making a tear drop.
"Bloom..." their friends said, worried.
"How is not it that easy?" Sky asked. "Don't tell me this bastard here in golden armor is making you take another decision."
"Look, I'm about to pass from I don't like you to I hate you" threatened the Lord of Order.
"You think that scares me, don't you?" Sky asked.
"Sky, the Lord of Order has nothing to do with this!" exclaimed Bloom. "This is me."
"What do you mean?" Sky asked.
Although Sky didn't understand the reason for that all hesitation, Daphne, knowing her sister very well, soon realized it and, of course, the other Winx also realized that.
"You don't want come back, do you?" Daphne asked.
Bloom shook her head.
"What?" Sky asked, not wanting to believe. "That cannot be true. You can't want to stay there."
"Sky, calm down" Stella asked, placing a hand on Sky's shoulder.
"Do you think I will calm down?" Sky asked, removing Stella's hand from his shoulder. "How can you be calm when Bloom is saying she does not want to return? This does not concern you?"
"Of course, yes, but..." Stella began.
"Bloom might have her own reasons" Aisha said. "We have to know what they are to realize the why."
"Princess Aisha is right, Sky" Marion said.
"Let our daughter explain her reasons" Oritel asked.
After that, Sky nodded and Bloom deep breath and said:
"Since I came to this world, I wanted to come back, but eventually I get attached to it. I rebuilt the happiness that I lost and I must say I am fully satisfied with the life I have. I don't have you with me, but I have many good friends here who helped me and I know you will always be in my heart."
Those words moved her friends smiled her fondly. But Sky interrupted, saying:
"So I want to live with you in this world. I'm willing to do that."
"No" the Lord of Order replied, before Bloom could say anything. "And I don't say this because I don't like you, but because it's impossible for you go to Equestria."
"Equestria?" Stella repeated. "That looks like a name for a world inhabited by horses instead of people or something."
"You hit the bull´s eye, Stella" the Lord of Order said, causing great dismay among those who heard it. "Yes, Equestria, is inhabited by equine beings, among other creatures. This equine beings are ponies, to be more precise. They could be: earth ponys, pegasi and unicorns. And, yes, Bloom is now a pony. You just see her like that because I want to.
"I don't care" Sky said to the Lord of Order. "I just want to know the reasons why I can't go into that a land called Equestria."
"For three simple reasons" he replied. "First, your trip would upset the balance between Order and Chaos here and I would take a long time to fix it, time I'm not willing to lose. Secondly, you're the only prince of Eraklyon, so if you were out, your kingdom won't have a prince to succeed the king. At last, and most important of all, the spell I used on Bloom can only be used once per century for an individual and only I can perform that spell in this reality. Moreover, there is the fact Bloom no longer feel for you the same as she did before."
Sky then laughed and then said:
"You say you cannot lie, but you just said the dumbest thing ever. I love Bloom and she loves me. Right, Bloom?"
But when he turned to her, he saw that Bloom avoided looking at him. Daphne and Winx already knew her to know what it meant.
"Bloom, you love me, right?" Sky asked.
She looked to him and said:
"I like you, Sky, but not in the same way as before. I'm sorry."
"No, it can't be" Sky said, shaking his head in disbelief.
"It can, Sky" Bloom said. "Here, I ended up get close to a stallion and I ended up falling in love. I had to say goodbye to him because of of my desire to want to come back, but it caused me an immense pain in my chest. Now, I realize how important he is for me."
"No, it can't be" Sky said. "What does he have that I don't?"
"Do you really want to know?" the Lord of Order asked. "I could tell you many things, but I think we would stay here the rest of the day..."
"It has nothing to do with you, Sky" Bloom said, interrupting the Lord of Order. "I just fell in love when I thought I'd never see you. But this passion became something else. It turned into true love. You are still important to me because you were my first love, but now I can't love you in the same way you do. Our love is not reciprocated, now. I'm sorry."
This left Sky devastated and he stepped back, looking away from the mirror. Bloom felt herself bad because she knew she had hurted him a lot, but she had to be completely honest with him. Then she turned to her parents and said:
"Mum, dad, I..."
"You don't have to say anything, my dear" Oritel said.
"If this is really what you want, Bloom, we will support you" Marion said. "We are your parents and we just want you to be happy."
"And if your happiness depends on that... stallion, so it's okay for us" Oritel said. "Sure, it's only okay if he does not make you suffer."
Bloom made a little laugh and then said:
"You have nothing to worry about it, Dad. He's very gentle and kind."
She then turned to Daphne and asked:
"What about you?"
"I'm of the same opinion of our parents" Daphne answered. "Just follow your heart."
"Thank you, Daphne" Bloom thanked. "And you know what, if I ever get married, I want you to be my best mare, who is how here we called to maid of honor."
"Yes, it's settled" Daphne said to laugh.
"Can it be?" Bloom asked to the Lord of Order.
"How it is for a short space of time, yes it can" he replied.
That left Bloom very happy. Then she turned to her friends.
"And you..."
" You don't need to tell us anything, Bloom" Musa said.
"Yes, we don't care where you are, as long you're happy" Flora added.
"You have our full support" Tecna said. "And that is a fact."
"Really?" Bloom asked.
"Of course" Aisha said. "As long you promise to us that we will be your bridesmaids."
"But of course" she replied. "It could not be otherwise."
"That's good, because I want to know this stallion for whom you lost your mind" said Stella. "He must be really cute."
"You bet, Stella" said Bloom, laughing.
There was a pause in which Bloom looked to Sky for a moment, but he refused to look to her.
"It's time, my dear" the Lord of Order warned to Bloom.
She then turned to everyone and said:
"Well, I have to go. I'll miss you all."
And then everyone started talking at once and making their farewells.
"Please, tell to my adoptive parents that I'm fine and I love them" she asked, before the portal close for good.
The Lord of the Order then snapped his fingers and the mirror shone again and when it stopped, it turned to be a mirror like any other.
"Well, that was interesting" he said, taking the mirror again and putting it under his arm. "But now I must warn you about one thing. Especially you, little prince. Bloom made her choice and it was the final one. She will never return to this world. I mean, she can come back, but will be briefly because she doesn't belong here anymore. And I hope you don't even try to force an entry to Equestria without my consent, because if you do it, the consequences will be... severe.
"You don't have to worry about us, my Lord" Oritel said, making a slight bow, while the others, except for Sky, did the same.
"It's not about you I'm worried about" he replied, taking a brief look at Sky who returned the look with a lot of hate. "Well, have a nice day."
And having said this, he turned his back, starting to head to the exit, but he flashed and disappeared.
In the mirror room, Twilight and the others were waiting. Then Bloom, now as Cherry, came from the mirror. The others turned to her and she told them:
"It's done."
"Are you really sure you made the right choice?" Twilight asked.
"I am" Bloom answered. "Moreover, even if I was not sure, I couldn't go back, right?"
They waved and then Pinkie went to the mirror and began to put her hoof on its surface, waiting to feel it as a bright liquid, but she only touched on the mirror's hard surface.
"Oh, bummer!"
The others gave a laughter and then Cherry realized she had to do something, immediately.
"Hurry, please , tell me when the next train to Ponyville departs?" Cherry asked hastily to her pony friends.
"Well, if you hurry, you can catch the train that brought us" Twilight replied. "You should get there by the time of sunset."
Wasting no time, Cherry began to run toward the door.
"But where are ya goin', girl?" Applejack asked.
"I'll go meet somepony I never should have said goodbye to" she replied, reaching the door.
That made everyone to smile, but of course the one smiling the widest was Applejack.
"Go fer it, girl" she said.
Cherry nodded and opened the door with her magic and fired up out there, narrowly bumping into Blue Sword who had appeared with his purple armor.
"Sorry, Blue Sword" she apologized, continuing to run.
"What's gotten into her?" he asked, entering in the room.
"Nothing, dear" Twilight replied, approaching to Blue and giving him a kiss on his cheek. "She just goes after what she almost left behind."
"What?" he asked, confused.
"Nothing, mare talk" she said laughing.
In Ponyville, the sun was setting. Big Mac was in the top of the same hill where Cherry Blossom said goodbye to him and where he had almost proposed her in marriage. He was immensely sad, looking at the horn ring he had bought for Cherry Blossom. He didn't understand the reason for her to go away right at the precise moment that things between them were going so well. Was it something he had done? However, there was nothing to do. She was gone... for good. He never went to see her.
He began to cry and then lifted the hoof that was holding the box with the ring and prepared to throw it away. If he had to forget Cherry, then he had to get rid of everything that reminded him of her.
It was then he began to hear hooves approaching and then he hastened to hide the box under the same root. He listened carefully to the sound of hooves approaching. He knew those steps. He couldn't immediately associate it to the pony who was making them, but he knew it was from a mare. He thought it could only be his sister Applejack's.
"If ya came here tah comfort me, Applejack, and tellin' me Cherry wuz very happy tah return home, ya can turn around."
He heard steps approaching him and then he felt a hoof been put up on his shoulder. Then Big Mac felt his heart accelerate. He knew that touch, that gentle and caring touch. The red stallion was astounded, thinking that only one pony had a touch like that. He looked to the hoof and saw that the coat which was covering it was not brilliant light gamboge, but very soft blue. He looked and was stunned when he saw Cherry Blossom, smilling lovingly to him.
"Cherry?" he asked, not able to believe.
"Hello, Big Mac" she greeted, sitting beside him.
"What tha..." he began.
"I couldn't do it. I could not leave you."
She then looked into Big Mac's eyes and saw that they were swollen and wet.
"Were you crying?" she asked, moving her hoof over the Big Mac's face.
"No, Ah wuzn't" he lied, averting his head from her hoof and then looking away from her.
Cherry could feel the resentful tone of Big Mac, what she could understand, given what she did.
"Look, Big Mac, you don't have to hide your emotions from me" she said. "I know I hurt you and I'm sorry for that. I did not want to do that, but I had no choice. But I think it's necessary make big mistakes to realize the truth."
"An' that truth is...?" Big Mac asked, looking at her.
"The truth is that I love you and it's with you who I want to be with" Cherry said.
"Na offense, Cherry, but that's what ya told me when we start'd our relationship.
"I know, but..."
It was then that Cherry saw that she had no alternative but to tell the truth to Big Mac. She then told him everything, from the life she had in her old world, through the sacrifice she had made and her arrival to Ponyville, the reason she was always so tough to accept her love for Big Mac and why she said goodbye to him.
"So ya had tha opportunity tah return an' come back tah see yer family and friends again an' that's why ya left me?" Big Mac asked.
"I know that what I did hurt you a lot, but try to understand my situation" Cherry asked. "I miss them so much that when I realized that the Elements of Harmony could fulfill my desire to see them, I didn't even think twice. Please, forgive me for..."
But Big Mac made her stop talking by putting his hoof over her lips. He smiled at her and then said:
"Cherry, listen me, Ah don't care where ya come from or what ya are. Ah love ya 'cause yer heart and nothing more. Ah totally understand what ya did. If it were me, Ah would also do tha same thing. And ya don't know how happy Ah am tah know that ya love me so much ya refused tah go back tah your world fer me. Cherry, ya are tha mare of mah dreams and Ah will love ya forever, even if Ah have tah fight against everythin' an' everyone."
Those words left Cherry Blossom speechless .
"Really?" she asked.
"Eeyup" he said.
And then they nuzzled each other and then embraced each other. Big Mac could not contain himself of happiness. This was the perfect opportunity. As the two were embracing, Big Mac groped to find the box with the ring. They finished the hug, smiling to each other and then Big Mac asked:
"Cherry, did ya remember that thing Ah want'd tah tell ya yesterday?"
"Yes, and I'm sorry for not letting you speak" Cherry said.
"It's okay" he replied. "What Ah want'd tah say ya wuz somethin' so much important and want'd that moment wuz perfect."
Cherry didn't know why, but now that she was not concerned for saying goodbye to Big Mac, she could feel a certain nervousness in his words. It was then that she saw him revealing a small velvet box, which left her petrified.
"Cherry, Ah love ya so much an' Ah want tah spend tha rest of mah days with ya. So..."
He opened the box, revealing the ring he had bought for her, and asked the question:
"Will ya marry me, Cherry Blossom."
Cherry was caught completely by surprise. She didn't expect a question like that one. Her heart throbbed with excitement and her stomach made more turns than ever. She looked at Big Mac who smiled with his warm and caring smile, the smile that always charmed her, and then she looked to his sweet and gentle eyes. She then smiled and said:
"Yes, Big McIntosh Apple, I'll marry you."
And using her magic, she put the ring on her horn. Big Mac, unable to contain himself, shouted as loud as he could:
"YEE-HAWW!"
He then hugged her and she did the same. Their hug was strong and full of emotion. They split up and then looked at each other and then Big Mac said:
"Ah love ya, Cherry."
"I love you too , Big Mac," she said .
And then they both gave a kiss, the most passionate of all those they already got.
The End