8-Year Old Sofia, Many Years Ago
"Mr. Ceeedric!"
The man in question stiffened, rolling his eyes heavenward as he looked over his shoulder at the bright-eyed, inquisitive girl now standing behind him. She was smiling, her face glowing with excitement. What was it now? She had the nerve to visit his workshop almost daily, evading his failed attempts to take her amulet, —seemingly purposefully so—, and her constant, cheerful countenance did nothing to brighten his sour mood. The princess' naiveté and persistence irritated him, most likely because, in the end, she always convinced him to go along with whatever silly plan she had in mind.
"It's Cedric. What do you want?" he replied nonchalantly, half-listening to her response as he carefully put two drops of an elixir into the mix that he was brewing.
"Well, our school is doing a botany project, and I was wondering if you could help me. Maybe? We have to go out into the gardens and pick the correct herbs that correspond with the labels. I'm not sure if I'm getting it right, though, and since you're such an expert on potion-making, it'd really help me a lot," Sofia replied coyly, completely unaware of Cedric's annoyance.
"Princess Sofia, I have better things to do than help a silly little princess with her school projects," Cedric replied, his narrowed, half-lidded eyes flicking over to hers. She watched him walk to-and-from his desk to the large pot where he was brewing his potion, suddenly curious.
"What are you doing?"
"Oh, just making a potion for Wormy. He hasn't been feeling very well lately," Cedric replied. Sofia's eyes widened when she realized this. She glanced over at Wormy's perch, noting his absence. Ah, so that's why he hadn't snarked at her when she'd entered. She was wondering about that.
"Aww, poor guy. What happened?"
"I'm not so sure. He just refuses to eat or come back downstairs," Cedric muttered absentmindedly.
"Why don't you take him out with you into the gardens? Birds are animals, after all. Maybe some fresh air will help," Sofia offered, and Cedric stopped, processing this.
"Yes, I suppose so, though Wormy doesn't like going out much. I'll finish this potion for him first."
She smiled, then, her eyes twinkling in amusement.
"It's a deal, then? The gardens?"
Oh, Merlin's mushrooms.
Cedric glowered at her as her eyes lighted up in triumph.
"Do I have a choice?"
Cedric's sunken eyes squinted in the sunlight. After much coaxing on his part, he had finally convinced Wormy to join him. The stubborn raven seemed to be doing much better now than before, though he had remained perched on his master's shoulder the whole time. It was irritating that Sofia had the ability to manipulate him so easily, while the sorcerer failed when he attempted to use the same tactics on her to get her to hand over the amulet.
How annoying.
He brushed off the leaves that had settled on his robe, clearly unamused. Today had been perfectly fine before the princess had forced him to go out in the stuffy, thick weather. The heat was sweltering.
Sofia was thinking of quite different things.
She reveled in the brilliant, iridescent flowers that vibrantly flourished in colors she had never seen before, though her favorites were the white ones. She didn't mind the heat at all, especially since her dress was, thankfully, short-sleeved. The sun-tinted leaves extended high above her, sending scattered shadows across her face, and then a wind, oh, a glorious, sweet wind, came rushing by. Spring had finally come after a long, cold winter, and she was enamored with it. She turned to see Cedric adjusting his robe uncomfortably.
"Mr. Ceedric, aren't you hot? You should take off your bow. I don't want you to get a rash," Sofia said, mildly concerned for her sorcerer.
"It's Cedric. And no, I'm fine, princess. Let's get this over with," Cedric replied, though his face was flushed by the heat.
"I'm sorry, I don't want to be the reason for you to get sick, too! Here, let me help you take off your bow," Sofia insisted, and Cedric sighed, kneeling down before her on one knee. It was a peculiar position, almost as if he was proposing to the child, a concept so foreign to him that it repulsed him. It was even more peculiar how light and efficient her little fingers were. He was overcome with a surge of gratefulness once the bow was untied. His throat felt much less constricted, and he relished the kiss of cool air against his neck as the sweat evaporated off of his skin.
"Thank you, Princess Sofia," he said, and Sofia beamed up at him.
"You're welcome, Mr. Ceedric," she replied shyly, and Cedric rolled his eyes again, irritated once more.
"It's Cedric."
They continued onwards, Sofia listing off the herbs that her school had assigned to her, and Cedric pointing them out, with quite ease, to her. It was...almost pleasurable, though he didn't dare admit that. Wormwood seemed to be doing much better, as well. He even flew off of his master's shoulder to take a look around the gardens, at which Cedric shook his head in bewilderment. Quite odd things were happening today.
"Annnd, that's it! Thank you so much, Mr. Ceedric!" Sofia announced, checking off the final herb on the list. She grinned widely at him, her hand gripping the tangle of herbs that they had just collected. In response, Cedric smiled softly down at her, his eyes bright with good humor. He didn't bother to correct her this time. Her smiles were infuriatingly contagious, especially since they seemed so genuine in comparison to the small, forced ones that everyone else directed at him.
"I didn't have a choice, did I?"
Author's Note: As you've most likely noticed, this work of fanfiction is "In-Progress" and will consist of many sweet, short stories of Cedric and Sofia. I'll be posting the next short story of this sometime soon. Thank you for reading!
