Melody
Summary: When he overhears Amber humming a song her mother used to sing to her, Cedric decides to surprise the princess with an early Wassailia gift.
Disclaimer: I don't own the show. I only own the song, which I wrote and performed just to hear the melody…pun intended. 😊
A/N: The song in here was written specifically for this story. It's on my Wix page under the "Videos" tab if you're interested in hearing how it's supposed to sound. Again, like with my last story-created song, Cedric's accent/vocal range will be far different from mine, so yeah. Haha. Hope you enjoy the meaning behind the song and the story!
*Story*
Her voice was unmistakable. No one in the castle—no, no one in the kingdom—sounded like her. Cedric followed the melodic sound of the humming, smiling thoughtfully as the familiar tune wafted through the air. It had been years since he'd heard that song, and the last time, it was sung by an entirely different person: his dear friend, Roland's first wife.
Cedric paused at the doorway to one of the common rooms, warmed and well-lit by the roaring fire in the corner. And there, sitting at the piano though not playing it, was the oldest princess of Enchancia. Her eyes were closed, and her head was resting against her arms, but she was still humming rather clearly and, he had to admit, very nicely. One thing Amber had clearly inherited from her mother (aside from her looks) was her voice. It was almost scary to Cedric how much they sounded alike…even at the girl's age. Then again, The Queen had always called Amber her own 'little twin,' and now he could definitely tell she had been onto something.
Smiling softly, Cedric walked over and very subtly sat next to the girl, who was completely oblivious to his presence. "The last time I heard that song," he began gently, startling Amber out of her reverie, "I didn't know if I could handle it."
"Cedric," Amber gasped, holding a hand to her heart. "You scared me." She blinked when she recalled what he'd just said. "What do you mean by that?"
He glanced down at his hands, his fingers playing with the fingerless gloves. "It was a few days before…you know." He cleared his throat as she nodded. "Your mother had asked me to stay behind to talk to her, but you'd come along saying you'd had a nightmare. She rocked you back to sleep and sang that song to you, and… Princess Amber, I felt all the love she had for you and your brother come out in that one song…"
Amber smiled and fought off impending tears.
"It's like she was trying to infuse all the love and hope she had for you two into that one song."
"I…" She sighed. "It's horrible, Cedric, because I remember the sound of the song, but…I don't remember any of the words."
He stared at her in surprise. "You don't?" He frowned as she shook her head. "Perhaps you've unintentionally blocked the words out… I'm not sure, but we need to fix that." He lifted the lid to the piano, surprising the princess.
"What do you mean?" She gaped at him in realization. "You remember the song?"
"Better than I realized, admittedly." He picked around on the keys for a few moments before he finally settled on a key he was comfortable with. He gave the blonde a smile. "Are you ready?"
She bit her lip before nodding.
"Consider this an early Wassailia gift, I suppose…" He laughed softly as she giggled. His fingers spanned the keys in a fluid introduction to the tune Amber still remembered from her childhood. And then he sang the words she'd long since forgotten. "Soft and slow, I hear the wind blowing. I don't know where I am going. Yet I can feel a change deep inside of me…" Ironic the meaning behind the words, he thought, as he continued. "It's going to tell me who I'm meant to be. It's my melody."
Amber's mouth hung open. He remembered it! He really did! And even better, the words were starting to form in her mind again as she listened to him.
"I've waited so long to know just where my path may go." He flourished the keys. "I've wanted so much to see the one I long to be." He glanced down toward Amber, who'd been mouthing the words. She was remembering them. "Sing with me," he told her, garnering a smile as they sang the next part together.
"So soft and slow, I still hear the wind blowing. But now I know where I am going. And I still feel the changes; they're coming over me. I already know just who I'm meant to be; this is my melody."
"My melody," Cedric sang once more, finishing the song. "My melody."
"I remembered it!" Amber cheered. "You remembered it! Cedric, we remembered Mommy's lullaby!" She hugged him excitedly, startling him. "You are the best sorcerer ever! Sofia was right!"
Cedric laughed in surprise before hesitantly returning her enthusiastic hug. "I'm…glad to see you enjoyed it, Princess Amber. I can actually pen some sheet music for you, and you can have someone play it for you if you'd like."
"No," she told him with a shake of her head. "No, no one else but you can know how to play Mommy's song. It's the way she'd want it."
He smiled fondly before nodding. "As you wish." Now that was a true honor…
Amber stood from the piano bench and smiled at the sorcerer. "Thank you, Cedric. That's the best gift I'm going to get this year, just so you know." She giggled as he looked rather flattered at the mention. "Good night." She then turned and left the room, feeling happier now.
Cedric chuckled to himself before glancing back at the piano. "Hmm…" He flexed his fingers once before playing the melody again, the tune washing over him and carrying him back to yesteryear.
The end