Issue 70: Ski Break

Ski Break is the seventieth issue of the Winx Club Comic Series.

Synopsis
Since the three headmasters have saved more money than they had expected and everyone's courses have been going smoothly, all of the Alfea, Cloud Tower and Red Fountain students will be going on holiday for a week! Though this would also include a certain trouble-making trio, the Winx still plan to enjoy their week off to the fullest.

Plot
One morning at Alfea, Musa runs into her dorm and tells her friends the great news! Apparently, the three headmasters of the major magical colleges of Magix have saved more money than they expected and, since all courses are going well, they have arranged a special vacation for all of their students: a wintery vacation in the mountains. The Winx rejoice at the great news; Bloom is excited that they can ski and play in the snow while Flora is still wondering if the guys will be able to come with. Musa confirms this, telling her that all students from each of the three colleges will be coming. Stella realizes that all students will be attending, which means that they will also have to deal with the witches of Cloud Tower. More specifically, they will have to deal with the Trix causing trouble for them. Bloom tries to cheer Stella up by telling her that the Trix will not be able to ruin their vacation since they will all be together. Stella starts to feel a bit better and she decides to ask Musa when the vacation will be starting, to which Musa claims that Faragonda still has to pick a date. However, Barbatea told her that they may be leaving around next Saturday. Stella suddenly starts to panic because this means she has less time to pack her things, so she rushes into her room to get started.

Saturday soon arrives and all of the Alfea Fairies are excitedly awaiting the arrival of the Specialist shuttles. Faragonda is going around the courtyard reminding each and every one of her students to make their way to their assigned seats and to make sure that they have packed all of their things. Barbatea approaches Faragonda, insisting that she is worrying too much, and Faragonda asks what Barbatea has on her head. Barbatea claims that it is a hat she made in a crochet course she took years ago and she assures Faragonda that she could give her one of the twelve other hats she has in her luggage if she needs one.

The Winx are making their way to their assigned shuttle until Bloom turns to check on Stella, who is struggling with all of her luggage. Bloom insists that she cannot take all of her luggage but Stella claims that all of the bags she has is merely half of what she packed. As Musa and Tecna joke about the ridiculous amount of Stella's luggage, Timmy comes along to direct them into the shuttle. Stella tries to board but Timmy does not let her pass because each student is supposed to carry one bag. She tries to persuade Timmy into letting her keep all of her bags but Timmy reminds her that, since a lot of them are going, there will not be enough room for all of her bags. Stella reluctantly decides to take her pink travel bag with her and asks Timmy one more time if she could at least bring a small purple tote-bag too. Timmy claims that he would probably be able to fit it in the tools compartment and advises Stella not to tell anyone as he would have to "trick" the loading system so no one would know. Stella thanks Timmy, claiming that he is almost as great as Brandon, and she runs towards the shuttle as Brandon wonders what is taking so long. Stella jumps at Brandon, excited at the chance to spend an entire week on vacation with him, and Brandon eases her into the shuttle as it is about to take off. Timmy quickly boards the ship and sends a thumbs-up Stella's way as he makes his way to the cockpit. Stella winks back at Timmy and Bloom wonders why she is so giddy. Stella claims that she is just really happy to leave as she continues to laugh to herself.

Soon enough, all of the shuttles take off and fly through a portal they had generated that takes them to the White Mountain Realm.

Everyone steps out of their shuttles and enter the White Bear Hotel, where they are greeted by the owner. As they make their way inside, the Winx come across a rather nasty surprise: the Trix. Icy comments on how their vacation has already been ruined and, as the girls pass them by, Stella makes a snide remark on how she thought witches slept in cellars. Bloom is able to pull Stella away before she and Icy end up fighting. The Trix are quickly forgotten about once the girls make it to their room.

Stella and Bloom are excited and believe that they are going to have a wonderful vacation here. Tecna hopes so as the girls begin to unpack. By the time they finish unpacking, it is already nighttime! As Bloom gets ready to take a shower, Flora urges that the girls come over to look out the window. They all gather by the windows and watch as it snows outside. Stella claims that the snow will look softer and cleaner by tomorrow morning and Bloom tells the girls that she really feels like they are on vacation now.

Meanwhile, in the Trix's room, Stormy comments on how heavy the snowfall looks and thinks that it will be colder tomorrow. Icy claims that this would be good for Stormy because she "skis like a camel," so the snow would be breaking her fall. Stormy tells Icy not to think she is better at skiing than her and Darcy settles her sisters down by telling them that they are all just as bad as each other when it comes to skiing. She proposes that they take skiing lessons tomorrow and Icy is surprised by this since they have to deal with more than enough lessons at Cloud Tower. Darcy insists that it will not be so bad if their skiing instructor is an attractive guy and tells Icy and Stormy that she came across two or three interesting guys when they first arrived. Stormy agrees with Darcy's idea, claiming that they could each snag a boyfriend, and she immediately begins to express her hatred for the Winx. She claims that she cannot stand having to watch the Winx be spoiled by their stupid Specialist boyfriends and Icy begins to get an idea. She tells her sisters that it would not be so bad having a boy serve them as skis can be heavy and they would not have to wait in line for sandwiches. She then proclaims that they should get a move on by morning, advising Darcy and Stormy to act as fascinating as real witches would.

Later that day, all of the students and teachers gather in the dining room for dinner, where Faragonda makes an announcement. She encourages everyone to enjoy themselves and wishes that all of the students have plenty of fun during the week.

Soon after the announcement, the Winx and Specialists are enjoying themselves; Timmy is surprised to see Codatorta laughing so loudly and Tecna is relieved that none of them were asked to write a report. Bloom and Sky cuddle closer together as they are excited to spend an entire week together.

Meanwhile, at the Trix's table, Icy cannot stand seeing Bloom and Sky cuddling so closely and claims that a "loved-up guy" is a really ridiculous sight. Stormy agrees and teases Icy by claiming that she would love to be in Bloom's place regardless of how ridiculous a "loved-up guy" could be. Icy snaps at Stormy, telling her to mind her own business, and Darcy notices that the buffet is now ready.

Faragonda urges everyone to applaud the waiters for getting everything ready and reminds them that they will have to get up to get their own food.

Sky offers to get food for Bloom as he makes his way up, but Bloom wants to come too. The Trix watch as the two of them eagerly take food from the buffet together. Darcy gets ready to get some food herself, but Icy does not think it is worth it to line up just for bread. She then notices that a guy behind her is about to get up for food and flirts with him until he turns around, showing that he is not as attractive as Icy thought. Since he is just about to leave, Icy lies about having a sore foot in order to get him to get food for her. Stormy then asks if the guy can get her food, too, lying about having a pain in her leg. The young man agrees to get hem food while he is in the line and walks off as Icy and Stormy laugh about him from behind his back.

The young man does not take a lot of time in line and comes back with a plate of food for both Icy and Stormy. Stormy is satisfied with what the man got for her but Icy is insulted and lashes out at him for bringing her rare steak, which she hates. The young man runs back in line to get something else and, while he is away, Icy whines to Stormy about how she just had to run into a guy who is both "ugly and stupid."

The young man comes back with a new plate of food for Icy, which she accepts this time. As she gets ready to eat, the young man tries to invite her to a party that will be held later that night, but Icy claims that she has a terrible headache. She sarcastically tells the young man that she hopes her headache will pass as she eats, but still declines his invitation. The young man accepts Icy's decision and goes back to his table with his head down. As he walks away, Icy and Stormy laugh about him. Darcy returns from the lunch line confused, but Icy insists that she will tell her what happened later. She then claims that all boys are dumb and that they will have a really fun vacation because of this.

Later that night, a party is being held, just as the young man had said. Stella and Brandon dance along with everyone else and Brandon notices that Stella is in a greater mood than normal. He insists that the vacation is doing her some good and Stella agrees, claiming that the best thing about it is getting to be near Brandon. The DJ then changes the music into slow music and urges everyone to cuddle up with someone close. Sky and Bloom hold each other close and Sky asks if Bloom is feeling okay. Bloom claims that she is fine and calls Faragonda fantastic for arranging such a wonderful vacation. Sky agrees, claiming that they are lucky to have professors like Faragonda, and Bloom comments on how magical Alfea has been to her. She then calls Sky magical as she holds his face closer to hers.

As the lovebirds hold each other close on the dance floor, the Trix are lounging on a couch in another part of the room. Stormy urges for her sisters to dance with her but Darcy claims that they needs guys to dance with at this point in the party. Icy tells the two of them to calm down and points out a group of good-looking guys just across the room from them. She claims that the girls around the group of guys do not look so great, so she urges her sisters to come with her in order to get noticed.

The three witches approach the group of guys and Icy quickly latches onto a fairly attractive redheaded boy, asking if he has anything in mind for the night. He tells her that he and his friends want to dance but are busy trying to figure out which songs to play first. Icy finds the idea to be marvelous and asks if they can play some punk rock music. One of the girls in the group gets mad at Icy's constant clinging and demands to know who she is, but Icy just tells her to calm down and play in the snow. The redheaded guy then asks if Icy likes her steaks well cooked, which catches her by surprise. She asks how he knows this and the guy reveals that his younger brother, Oscar, told him about her. Icy is shocked to learn that the "ugly and stupid" boy she was ordering around earlier is this guy's brother and Oscar's older brother tells Icy that, even though his brother is shy and kind, he is no idiot. He quickly realized that girls like Icy and her sisters like mocking people and Oscar's older brother tells the Trix to get lost, as he believes that Oscar would be too kind to say such things. Enraged, Icy changes her mind and claims that she would rather be somewhere else.

As the three of them storm off, Stormy asks Icy what they should do now. Darcy warns her sisters that word will spread quickly and no one will want to dance with them at this rate. Icy tells her sisters not to be hysterical since she could not have known that the attractive redhead was related to the "ugly" one from earlier. Darcy claims that they will end up having a terrible vacation thanks to her, but Icy insists that there are plenty of guys here. If they cannot land a guy by tonight, then they will have plenty of chances to get one by tomorrow.

The following day, the Winx and Specialists are already out on the slopes getting ready for a day of skiing. Stella urges for Brandon to ski with her but Brandon asks if she knows how to ski first. Stella insists that she is great at skiing and Brandon tells Stella to get skiing since her skis are already laid out in front of her. She puts the skis on but starts slipping around. She begs for Brandon to hold her as Brandon chuckles at how Stella is already slipping after wearing skis for less than three seconds. Flora and Aisha, on the other hand, are much more experienced and ski down the slopes with ease. Stella tries to ski after her two friends, but immediately starts having trouble again. Brandon advises her to relax her knees a bit but Stella skis off a small cliff! Brandon, Musa, Tecna and Roxy ski towards Stella to see if she hurt herself. After he manages to get the snow off of her, Brandon asks Stella how she feels. Surprisingly, Stella is not hurt and is laughing over how much fun she had. Brandon helps her back onto her feet as she tells him that she wants to try again.

On another part of the snowy mountain, the headmasters and professors are getting ready to ski, too! Palladium asks Faragonda if it would be embarrassing if he were to fall over, but Faragonda assures him that that will not happen. She then skis down the mountain as she claims that she still has the hang of the sport after all of these years. Saladin lets Griffin ski before him and she gladly accepts. As the three headmasters ski down the mountainside, Palladium asks Wizgiz if he ever thought that the three headmasters would be so skilled in skiing. Wizgiz admits to never having thought about it and claims that he does not have a good relationship with snow. He then starts complaining over how the boots and skis he was given are too big and long for him and that the snow is too soft.

Somewhere nearby, Bloom is having a hard time holding onto a cable bar. Sky tells her to relax a little but Bloom cannot get a good hold of the bar and falls into the snow. Sky urges for Bloom to let go, as she is being dragged into the snow, but Bloom wants to learn how to hold on properly and tells Sky that she will learn it.

Meanwhile, Stella slides down the mountainside on an air tube and finds it to be much more comfortable. The air tube hits a small cliff and flips over, causing Stella to fall into the snow face-first again. However, Stella is still enjoying herself rather well. Bloom and Sky ski over to the group as Bloom tells Stella that she is also on her way to learning.

On another part of the mountain, the Trix watch their fellow classmates ski past them. Icy claims that skiing looks like a bore and does not know if she would want to try it until Darcy points out that, in truth, Icy does not know how to ski. Icy then asks if Darcy knows how to ski and Darcy admits to not knowing how, but encourages her sisters to look for a skiing instructor. Icy quickly catches a glimpse of two attractive guys skiing by and calls them over. The two guys come over, asking if the Trix need help with anything, and Icy explains that she and her sisters would like to ski but are not any good at it. The black-haired guy tells the three witches not to worry and then asks if they are staying at the White Bear Hotel by any chance. Darcy confirms this and the guy tells them that five lessons are already included in the price of their room, so they can start right away if they would like to.

Meanwhile, the Winx and Specialists walk down part of the mountain as Aisha tries to get them to ski down the mountain again. Just then, Flora notices two wolves are nearby and comments on how strange it is to see wolves in such a way. Aisha notices that the wolves are rather large and hopes that they do not attack, but Roxy assures them that the wolves do not look like they are on the attack. She makes contact with both of the wolves and even hugs one as she continues. Soon enough, the two wolves run off as Roxy promises to help them out when she can. Aisha asks how it went and Roxy explains the situation to the girls. Apparently, the wolves are starving because they cannot find food due to all of the snow on the mountain, so they came down the valley in search of food. Roxy hurries to put on her skis as she tells the group that she will go warn the hotel manager in hopes that they will be able to prepare something for the wolves. Flora is confident that they will once Roxy explains everything and the group heads back to the hotel as Roxy urges them to make it before nightfall.

Back with the Trix, their ski instructors try to help the Trix up onto the cable bars. Darcy grabs a hold of one and asks what she needs to do now. Her instructor tells her that she just has to hold on as the bar will carry her to the top of the mountain. He tries to tell her that she also has to sit on the small platform attached to the bar but it tugs her away, dragging her into the snow. The instructor urges for Darcy to let go and she does so after getting a face full of snow. As payback for dragging her around, Darcy turns the bar into a snake that slithers away into the snow. Just then, the owner of the cable bars arrives and warns Darcy not to mess with his machine. He then demands that the Trix leave if they are just going to cause trouble and the ski instructors help the Trix away.

Once they are far enough away from the cable bars, Icy scolds Darcy for not being able to control her temper. Darcy tries to defend herself until one of the instructors lets the witches know that they will have to walk to the top of the mountain now that they cannot use the ski lifts. Darcy and Icy start complaining over how it would not be worth it to break their backs over such an "idiotic sport" and one of the instructors tells them to give up on learning how to ski if they do not like it, as there are other ways to have fun. The two men try to leave but Icy stops them and tries to invite them out to go dancing. However, the blonde instructor politely declines as the witches seem a bit on edge today. The two instructors leave the Trix to themselves, who start pouting about how they have just been dumped again. Icy blames Darcy for all of it, claiming that they would have gotten to hang out with the instructors more if Darcy had not caused such a scene, but Darcy claims that she had nothing to do with it and that the instructors left as soon as they realized how snobby Icy is. The two sisters start squabbling until Stormy breaks it up by proposing they go back to the hotel since it is getting colder out.

On the other hand, the Winx and Specialists are still having a wonderful time skiing down the slopes. Bloom is ecstatic with how much she has learned and Sky encourages her to stop just like how he taught her. However, Bloom cannot figure out how to stop in time and crashes into Sky. The two fall into the snow and Bloom lands on top of Sky. Both are alright and Bloom confesses to crashing into Sky on purpose. The two of them share a kiss in the snow as all of their friends laugh to themselves.

The Trix are stuck griping to themselves at the White Bear Hotel while everyone else enjoys themselves in the snow. Stormy is upset by how they are the only ones not having fun and Darcy wants to go inside because of how cold it is. Icy, however, cannot sit idly by as she still needs to release her pent-up anger on something. She refuses to sit by and take being humiliated twice and insists that she and her sisters teach everyone a lesson that will put an end to their frivolous vacation. Darcy and Stormy quickly take interest in Icy's plan and asks what she has in mind, to which the ice witch proposes that they destroy the hotel. She claims that if they manage to cause an avalanche that buries the hotel and everyone inside, no one can trace it back to them. Stormy comments on how fantastic the idea is and the three of them steal some nearby snowmobiles to put Icy's plan into action.

On the way up, the Trix come across a sign that advises people to steer clear of the mountaintop or else they could cause avalanches. Stormy asks what they should do and Icy speeds off towards the mountaintop, claiming that they are not in the right place yet. The two younger witches speed off after their eldest sister until, just as the sign warned, their snowmobiles trigger an avalanche that completely buries them.

Everyone else sees the avalanche settling down and begin to worry. Faragonda runs up to the Winx to check if they are okay and tells them that she and the other headmasters need to do a roll-call to see if anyone got caught in the avalanche. Bloom tells Faragonda that they will handle it and so she and the rest of the Winx go into their Believix to do the search for their headmistress.

As they search the snow, they notice that the avalanche just barely made it to the hotel. Aisha regroups with the girls and reports that Griffin just did a roll-call and found that the Trix have gone missing. Stella suspects that the Trix may have been behind the avalanche, only for it to backfire on them, but Bloom claims that that does not matter, as they need to be rescued just like any other person if they were caught buried under an avalanche. Soon enough, Aisha and Roxy uncover a snowmobile and Tecna finds one purple glove. Stella asks if she should melt the snow with a Solar Spell but Musa forbids the idea as it may cause a flood that will cause even more problems. Bloom worries that they may not be able to rescue the Trix in time and wishes that they had some avalanche rescue dogs to help them look. That is when Roxy gets the idea to ask the wolves she met earlier for help and she has one of the wolves sniff the glove Tecna found in hopes for picking up on the Trix's scent. The wolves run off and start digging in the snow as Roxy explains that they may have found someone. When the Winx approach the wolves, Bloom quickly notices that one of them managed to uncover Stormy and the girls rush to get them out of the snow.

Soon enough, the Winx manage to uncover the Trix and wrap them in sweaters with the Specialists' help. The three witches are still breathing but Bloom claims that their hearts are still weak. Bloom proposes that they use a Healing Convergence through their Believix Powers and, after doing so, the girls manage to stabilize the Trix, but Bloom is unsure as to how long it will last. Just then, a rescue-copter arrives and Bloom assures the girls and Specialists that their Healing Convergence should work long enough for the Trix to get to a hospital where they can rest. As the Trix are hoisted into the rescue-copter, Roxy thanks the wolves for helping them and sees them off as they return to their home in the mountains.

Later, at the hospital, Bloom exits the Trix's room and assures everyone that they are well enough for visitors, according to their doctor. Oscar enters the room and asks Icy how she is feeling after hearing about what happened. He then wishes her well, despite having been used and made fun of by her, and Icy thanks Oscar for his kind words. She also apologizes for treating him badly on behalf of her and her sisters and Stormy asks if there is anything they can do to make it up to him.

Just outside their room, Stella and Bloom are listening in. Stella cannot believe that the Trix apologized and Bloom suspects that their Believix magic may still be at work. Aisha asks the two girls if they know how long their magic will last but they do not even know themselves! Bloom even claims that it is better this way, with the Trix being nicer to everyone.

Oscar tells Icy that he and his brother have organized a party and tells her that they are invited. Icy thanks them for the invitation and one of the Trix's skiing instructors comes to wish them well. He also hopes that they will try to take up skiing again and Stormy assures him that they will be model students this time around.

And so, in the following days, everyone is enjoying themselves at yet another party. Icy is dancing with Oscar's older brother until Stormy nudges her to tell her that she thinks the Winx may have done something as she feels strange; more different than usual. Icy claims that she also has the same feeling but does not want to know the reason as she is enjoying herself at the moment. She encourages her youngest sister to enjoy the moment while it lasts as they will be back to their old Trix by the time their vacation ends.

Spells Used

 * "The time has come for hearts of nice, rid them of all that is cold and ice! A time for kindness, peace and love... Badness, evil; get the shove!" - Used by the Winx to stabilize the Trix with a Healing Convergence via their Believix Powers.

Mistakes

 * The blue paw print on Roxy's shirt goes missing in some instances.
 * Stella's dress is missing most of the designs on it, like the big green star. This causes her dress to look like a simple orange summer dress instead.
 * Bloom's slightly translucent blue gloves that she wears in her Believix form do not make an appearance in this issue.
 * In some instances, they may be replaced with long pink gloves reminiscent of her Enchantix gloves.
 * On page 10, Bloom and Stella say the exact same line right after each other.
 * On page 18, as Stella and Brandon dance with each other, Brandon's arm is orange.
 * On page 22, as the Winx and Specialists prepare to go skiing, Flora's eyes are orange instead of green.
 * On page 38, as the Winx search for any missing students, Musa is missing the long braided ponytail she usually has while in her Believix.
 * For every appearance Musa's Believix form aside from this page, her gloves are not fingerless.

Debuts

 * Oscar
 * Oscar's older brother
 * Ski Instructors

Characters

 * The Winx
 * Bloom
 * Stella
 * Musa
 * Flora
 * Tecna
 * Aisha
 * Roxy
 * Alfea Staff
 * Faragonda
 * Barbatea
 * Griselda
 * Palladium
 * Wizgiz


 * The Specialists
 * Sky
 * Brandon
 * Timmy
 * Cloud Tower Students
 * The Trix
 * Icy
 * Darcy
 * Stormy


 * Cloud Tower Staff
 * Griffin
 * Ediltrude
 * Red Fountain Staff
 * Codatorta
 * Humans
 * Oliver
 * Oliver's older brother
 * Ski Instructors

Trivia

 * Instead of being weakened by the Winx's Believix Magic, like the Wizards of the Black Circle in Season 4, the Trix become more positive and cheerful, just like the humans on Earth when they came under the effects of their Believix Magic. This could possibly be due to the Winx trying to save the Trix instead of attacking them like they did with the Wizards.