Cupcake Logic

Summary: While visiting Amber for a school project interview, Rapunzel offers some sound advice to Cedric.

Disclaimer: I don't own Sofia the First, Tangled (Rapunzel), or cupcakes… I wish I owned a cupcake right now. Lol

A/N: …I have no idea why this popped into my head. I saw a picture of Rapunzel and was like, "Hey! I'm going to have her give Cedric advice!" Yeah…that's how my mind works. Haha.

"Ooh, I'm just so excited you actually agreed to let me interview you!" Amber gushed as she led Rapunzel into the dining room so they could get away from the hustle and bustle of the rest of the castle. No one was eating for another few hours anyway, so they'd have the area to themselves. They sat down at the dining table as Amber began extracting necessary items from her book bag.

"Hey, no problem," the other blonde girl responded with a smile. "You sounded pretty desperate from your letter, so I figured I'd better hurry up and get here before this thing is due." She tilted her head. "When is it due?"

Amber grinned sheepishly. "Tomorrow…"

"Tomorrow?" At this, the older princess shrugged. "I can't say much. So you're indecisive. I had a full-blown inner conflict—well, outer conflict is more like it, if you ask my husband—about whether I should venture into the real world or stay locked in my comfy tower like I had my whole life." She winked. "But I'm sure that's one of the questions for your interview, right?"

"Um, yeah, something like that…" She blinked when she felt a tap on her shoulder and turned to see Sofia and Cedric had walked over toward them. "Oh, Sofia? Cedric? What are you two doing here?"

Sofia smiled brightly. "We just got back from Mystic Meadows. Mr. Cedric's mom made us some Fly Cakes."

"Fly Cakes?" Rapunzel asked in confusion.

Amber nodded. "Right—oh, Rapunzel, you know my sister Sofia, right?"

"Of course. I remember our previous encounters." She winked secretively and smiled. "How is everything now?"

"A lot better," the younger princess responded. She smiled and gestured toward her friend. "And this is Mr. Cedric. I don't think you two met properly last time. He's our sorcerer and my mentor in learning magic and spells."

"Wow," Rapunzel enthused with a grin. "Magic? You're teaching her magic? That's awesome!"

Cedric laughed nervously, not used to such enthusiasm from a royal. "Well, thank you, Princess Rapunzel…"

"I actually know a bit about magic myself," she acknowledged, twirling some of her loose hair around her fingers. "My hair has magical healing powers—well, it did… Hmm, I guess it still kind of does, since it finally grew back to a longer length. But really the healing property is actually within myself, so there's that." She smiled self-consciously as the other three blinked at her. "Am I rambling again?"

"Just a tad," Amber joked lightly, making the other princess laugh.

"Well, we'd best be off, Princess Sofia," Cedric announced to his apprentice. "We have a lot of work to do, and if I'm going to be ready for this dreadful performance I'm supposed to give tomorrow night, we'd better hurry."

"You perform too?" Rapunzel asked in curiosity.

Amber groaned. "Oh, please, Rapunzel… Don't get him started. Cedric is actually decent with his magical tricks and everything, but it's not without a lot of issues and mishaps."

Cedric sighed as Sofia patted his arm gently in encouragement. "Yes, well, I'm making headway for the most part, Princess Amber. But I'll be honest: I still have some amendments to make to my spells and potions. It's not as easy as it looks."

"He's right," Sofia vouched with a smile. "I should know—I've been studying with him for two years, and I still make lots of mistakes."

Rapunzel just smiled as the auburn-haired princess gave her a Fly Cake, which she placed on the table in front of her. "But mistakes make you better in the end, when you really think about it. I mean, really, perfect is boring."

"Maybe," Cedric agreed with a slight shrug, "but in some cases, perfection is job security. I'm surprised King Roland hasn't fired me yet with all the mistakes I've made and trouble I've caused."

The oldest princess in the room smirked. "Is he perfect? Does he get everything right on the first try? Do things always go the way he wants them to go?"

"Well…no, but…he's the king."

"And?" She shrugged. "Look, the way I see it, you seem to be good at what you do, if Sofia is anything to go by. You've got to start believing in yourself more and not putting so much stress on yourself. Trust me—it'll be detrimental to you in the end." She picked up the Fly Cake and unwrapped the little treat before gesturing toward it. "Think about it this way, Cedric. You're this cupcake."

Amber snorted before breaking into laughter as Sofia just smiled, despite Cedric shooting both of them a look.

"No, no, hear me out." Rapunzel grinned. "Cedric, you're like a cupcake. You've got layers, just like this does. There's the outer fluffiness that the king expects to see, and the truth underneath—the cake. The cake is the good part. If the cake isn't good, then the icing doesn't matter."

Growing impatient with the analogies, Cedric sighed. "What exactly are you saying, Princess Rapunzel?"

She rolled her eyes. "If you don't believe in yourself and who you are on the inside, then the outside will always just be a façade. Then, no matter how good you want to be, you'll never quite achieve it if you don't believe you're that good." She smiled and gestured toward her Fly Cake. "That, my friend, is called…cupcake logic."

He smirked. "You made that up."

"Did not," she insisted as she shoved the confection into her mouth, a very un-princess-like thing to do, which made her more relatable to many of the kids she encountered.

Cedric chuckled and nodded. "Well, thank you, Princess Rapunzel. I appreciate your insight. Perhaps one day more people will think like you and Sofia do." He looked down toward the youngest princess. "Ready for our lesson?"

"I'm always ready," she said excitedly before waving to the other two as they left.

Amber blinked as she held her quill pen in her hand. "Rapunzel?"

"Hmm?" She turned back to the other blonde with a content smile.

"You've, um…" She laughed. "You've got green icing all over your face.

The princess of Corona laughed and wiped at the icing, only smearing into her face more and making Amber laugh even harder. "Did I get it?"

Amber shook her head. "This is going to be an interesting interview…"

The end! :)

A/N: I imagine interviewing Rapunzel would be rather fun. She's a bit of a head case, but once she relaxes, she's pretty awesome. And there you have it: cupcake logic. Who knew? Lol. And I can see her and Cedric becoming friends in the future. Hmm, who knows? I may bring her back again soon. :) Have a good day! Enjoy the last two days of the year, and look for a New Year's Eve story tomorrow! ~AquaTurquoise