(( A.N. - Just felt like writing something cute with Cedric and Sofia. =P Hope you guys enjoy it too, and please leave a comment if you do~ ))

The army of Enchancia had fallen to his might. The throne was nestled underneath his bottom, and King Roland, ohohoho, that is to say, plain old -regular- Roland, was on his hands and knees, his forehead to the carpet, begging for clemency, for all his past misdeeds.

And it was all because his dreams, his deepest, darkest ambitions had finally come true. "At last! The amulet is mine...!"

But suddenly, the room went all dark. Pitch black, actually. And the only thing he could see beyond his own hands, was Princess Sofia, with tears rolling down her pink flushed cheeks. "Cedric... Why...? I thought we were friends... I trusted you, completely... I'd never steal from you, and I never thought you'd steal from me..."

A shocking stab of pain seized at his heart, and the deepest guilt he'd ever known washed over him. "I... I..." He honestly didn't know what to say. He'd always been so preoccupied with the amulet itself, it never occurred to him what the consequences would be. He'd only ever given thought to his ridiculous, unrealistic fantasies. He expected to have to defeat gallant soldiers, maybe even exchange fisticuffs with Baileywick or the King before taunting them afterwards about their upcoming banishment - But this...?

Those blue eyes kept watering up and overflowing, tears continuing to stream down her face, until the stream became a waterfall, a deluge, rapidly filling up the room with the saltwater, making an ocean. Cedric tried to clutch onto the throne, but once the water began to rise, it sank, and he was forced to try and swim through the rolling waves.

When his head emerged, he gasped both for air, and to find that Sofia's bawling face had become like a macabre moon in the sky. Right next to it was the terribly stern-looking face of his father, who glowered at him with eyes full of hate.

"P-Please Father, help me!" He called out, trying not to fill his lungs with the salty tear-water as he did so.

But his father held no pity for him. "Why should I? Don't you know how ashamed you've made me? Stealing! Like a common thief!"

It was becoming increasingly difficult to keep his head above water as he pleaded, "I was just trying to make you proud of me-!"

Goodwin snorted in derision and looked away from him entirely. "Proud? Who would be proud of YOU? HAH! No, see if your precious amulet will help you now, thief! Thief! THIEF!"

"No! I'm not just a thief, I-!" Cedric tried to reason, but now the face of Miranda and Roland and the rest of his peers appeared in the blackened sky, chanting cruelly along with his father, "THIEF! THIEF! THIEF!"

Then, just as he looked down at the amulet in desperation, he gasped in shock to find that the pendant had grown at least ten times in size, a hundred times as heavy, and the chain had shortened around his neck like a noose - Like an anchor, dragging him down into the black waters, drowning him.

Except, not exactly... He was gasping for air that wouldn't come to him, but he couldn't feel the water anymore. It was as if he was simply choking on the darkness around him...

So he continued to gasp, and finally, a deep, painful breath filled his lungs, and light returned to his vision as his eyes shot open. He had to force himself to take several more gasps of breath into his aching chest, realizing simultaneously that although it had thankfully all just been a terrible nightmare, he actually hadn't been breathing for a while...

Still. After regaining his depleted oxygen and checking his neck he sighed an extra long breath of relief that there was no amulet around his neck, big or small. He was sitting at his desk, where he'd dozed off for a nap earlier, after all the running around he'd done, doing good deeds, and trying to get the amulet to work for him, only to end up giving it back to Sofia again instead...

Which additionally meant, that he'd done nothing to make Sofia cry after all. He wouldn't have to see her face looking like it had in that awful nightmare, or the disappointed and angry stares from everyone else...

"What on Earth are you doing with your life..." He began to chide himself, when suddenly, a pair of tiny hands cupped around his eyes, much to his shock. "Bloody-!"

"Guess who!" The voice of, obviously, Princess Sofia, quickly interrupted him before he could complete the curse word.

He rolled his eyes from behind her hands and sighed sarcastically, "A sea monster?"

"Close!" She chirped back, releasing him and taking back her hands to turn his swivel chair around to face her. "It's me! And, I got a surprise for you, Mister Cedric!"

He blinked openly. "A... Surprise? For me?" He repeated in confusion. "Why? It's not my birthday..." Not even close...

"I know it's not!" She shrugged back. "But you did so much good stuff today, I just wanted to show you how proud I am of you! So, after I got done riding your flying machine with James, I came up here to ask what you might want. You were napping at the time, but I heard you talking in your sleep, about finally getting some amulet you wanted-"

Cedric gulped and bristled up like a startled cat. "Y-Y-You did-?! You heard that...?!"

"Yeah!" She grinned back bashfully. "Don't worry Mister Cedric, I won't tell anyone your secret - And, I got the amulet for you!"

Astounded, Cedric's eyes went comically wide. "Wha-? You... You did...?" Naturally he couldn't help but seem a little skeptical at what he thought she was saying.

"Yup! I mean, it wasn't hard after all. Dad's given me dozens of them, but I only ever wear my favorite. I thought it'd be more special if I made it myself though, so..."

Reaching into her pockets, Sofia pulled out a golden chain, at the end of which was a ruby stone in the shape of a heart - A transmuted ruby, it seemed, done using that simple spell he'd taught her so long ago. "I made it using that mutatio spell you taught me!" She explained as well, standing up on her tip-toes to fasten it around his neck.

"O-Oh..." He mumbled, both in realization and relief. Of course it wasn't -that- amulet, but then, Cedric found himself surprisingly relieved that it wasn't.

It sounded slightly different to Sofia though, who reached into her pocket again, "Or, if you don't like that one, I can give you one of these other, fancier ones...?" She offered, pulling out two other pendants in each hand, a sparkling pink opal oval in one and a deep blue sapphire droplet in the other.

"No, no." Cedric quickly amended, cupping the ruby heart in his palm and looking down at it fondly. "I like this one..."

"Really?" She grinned back at him. "Are you sure?"

He scrunched up his mouth into a pinched sort of smile, his throat a bit constricted. "Yes, I'm sure... This is the best gift I've ever gotten... You know, since the last time you got me the best gift I'd ever gotten..."

But the smile on her face began to fall. "Are you... Really sure, Mr. Cedric? It's just, you look so sad... Oh! Oh no, you're crying! Did I do something to make you cry? I'm so sorry!"

He shook his head several times, reaching up to wipe away one of the tears that had suddenly fallen. "It's not your fault, Princess... It's just, I... I don't think I deserve a friend as good as you!"

In the next second, her tiny hands were upon his face again, wiping the rest of his tears from his cheeks and eyes. "Oh Mister Cedric, don't be silly... I wanted to give you this gift to show you I was proud of you, remember? You've really come a long way since the first time we met! Maybe it might not seem as far as you'd like, but I can tell, you're a much, much better you than you were before! You're on your way to being the BEST you that you can be! So don't get sad or discouraged, okay? And... Well, can I tell you something, Mister Cedric? And would you promise not to tell anyone? Especially not Jade or Ruby?"

He had averted his eyes shyly while she wiped the tears away, but then he couldn't help but look back at her in interest as she mentioned a secret. "Hmm...? Yes, of course, I promise. You can tell me anything."

Suddenly throwing her arms around his shoulders, she gave him a brief but tight squeeze, before releasing him as she confessed with a blush, "Honestly, I actually... I consider you to be my very best friend, Mister Cedric! You always help me out with my classes, and when I need help, when I'm in trouble... And we've been on so many adventures together..."

'Even more adventures than you know...' They both thought at the same time, but didn't say aloud.

She continued, "So, I just wanted you to know that! You're my best friend, and I trust you, and cherish you! I know you wouldn't have given me your flying machine if you didn't trust and cherish me too, so I really felt like I ought to say so to you... Mister Cedric, you really are a good guy!"

His nose was starting to get a bit runny from trying to hold back the tears, and he couldn't help but let out a rather loud and embarrassing snort. "You're too kind, Princess Sofia..."

She simply shrugged. "I don't think there is such as thing as being too kind! In fact, here Wormy!"

Walking over to where the raven was perched on his stand, she slipped the sapphire droplet around his feathered neck. "I couldn't help but notice you seem to like shiny things too! So you can have that one!"

Slightly weighed down by the stone, Wormwood cawed quizzically, before beginning to peck and bite at the gem inquisitively. He DID seem to be entranced by the shininess...

"Oh Princess Sofia, that's what I mean though!" Cedric sighed. "What on Earth is a bird going to do with an amulet?"

"I don't care!" She laughed back at him. "It makes him happy! And like I said, this is the only amulet I wear, and the only one I care about. That's why I was so happy that you managed to fix it for me!"

She ran back and gave him another quick hug, before rushing back to the door. "Well, I'm going to go see if Amber wants to ride with me and James one more time before dinner! Have a good night, Mister Cedric! And thank you again!"

After she disappeared behind the closed door, Cedric sighed and swiveled back around, staring pensively down at his desk, and the heart-shaped ruby that rested against his own beating heart. Though she was already gone, he responded anyways, "That's quite alright, Princess... It turns out, I got something better anyways..."

He wasn't talking about the amulet.