Author's Note: This started as a requested this story idea. I thought it was brilliant, and I'm having a lot of fun writing it. Reviews are always loved!
Cedric was cautiously measuring out the aromatic ground callamus root over his boiling cast-iron cauldron when the heavy wooden door to his tower burst open unexpectedly, careening into the wall beside it with a loud thud.
"Mr Ceee-driic!" A young female voice echoed off the stone walls of his workshop, drawing out the mispronunciation of his forename tauntingly, both of them fully aware that she was capable of speaking it properly when it suited her mood.
Jerking from the ruckus, he groaned in frustration as he watched the entire contents of the bottle dump out into the cauldron, causing the brew to explode, though he was now so accustomed to such incidents that he expertly dodged the blast. The source of his disruption bounded across the room to throw her arms around the sorcerer, her body pressed much too firmly against the back of his robed form for his comfort.
"How many times must I tell you to never sneak up on me when I'm working?" Cedric demanded, trying valiantly to wriggle free of his apprentice's iron grip so he could turn and scold the rambunctious young woman properly. One of the hands released him to reach forward, casually dipping a slender finger into the bubbling obsidian ooze threatening to overflow from the pot.
"Wha-tcha making?" She drawled languidly, her dulcet tone light and teasing. Cedric finally succeeded in escaping and spun himself around just in time to see his beautiful young apprentice's finger dip into her mouth, her lips wrapping around the digit as she sampled the botched potion. He willed himself to look away, chewing his bottom lip to suppress another groan that threatened to escape his body, this time for very different reasons. His eyes betrayed him, refusing to obey his command to rest anywhere but on Sofia's soft, plump lips. He cleared his throat in an effort to find his voice.
"Merlin's Mushrooms, girl! You know better than to taste a potion without knowing what it does!" He admonished, trying to feel anything but rapidly increasing arousal at the sight of her. It was far too late for that, though, and as she skipped across the workshop to hoist herself up onto his desk, sitting with her legs slightly farther apart than was proper and swinging her feet back and forth, he couldn't help but allow his eyes to roam her alluring figure.
Sofia had remained shorter than Cedric as she blossomed into adulthood, just the right height for him to rest his chin atop her head while holding her close, were he ever so inclined. Her bodice had filled out beautifully, ample cleavage heaving as she sat panting from the exertion of racing up the stairs to his tower. Her waist was narrow, even in her apprentice gown with no corset beneath it, and unwittingly beckoned black-gloved hands to wrap around it. His gaze moved back up. His favourite features, surprisingly enough, were above those fantastic breasts that the amulet of Avalor now tucked so neatly between. Her rose petal lips, her consistently tinted pink cheeks, the soft russet tresses that cascaded in spiralled tendrils down her back. But those eyes, those sparkling, dancing, tantalising azure jewels... He often found himself caught in their hypnotic lure, drowning in them until nothing else existed in the world except for Sofia and those eyes. Slowly, he registered the sound of her melodic voice, soft and lilting. She had a voice that would drive the very angels mad with jealousy. Just as he became aware that she was speaking to him, her tone inflected upwards, then abruptly stopped. Neptune's Nettles, I think that was a question. What should I say? He stepped closer, hoping she would believe he'd been too far to hear her properly.
"I'm sorry, could you repeat that?" He asked, coming to a stop just feet away from her. As she dutifully repeated herself, he begged his mind to concentrate on her words, and not on the fact that, while perched upon his desk, she was at the perfect height and angle to coil her legs tightly around his waist as he buried himself deep within her core. Failing spectacularly, he instead fought to suppress the involuntary shudder his treacherous body gave in response to such lascivious fantasies. "I think the explosion impacted my hearing." He lied sheepishly, his eyes flying wide in mock alarm to complete the ruse. The concern that clouded her expression confirmed that this feeble excuse had somehow worked on the sorceress-in-training.
"Oh no! Are you alright?" She questioned anxiously, her voice raised for his benefit.
"Yes, yes. I'll be fine. Now what is it you were saying?" Cedric demanded, impatient to hear what she was trying to tell him before his disobedient thoughts could wander back to forbidden fruit.
"He said yes!" Sofia exclaimed, her voice still louder than normal so his allegedly impaired ears would hear her message. Her eyes twinkled with glee as she grinned at him, anxious to finally witness his reaction. The astounded look that overtook his sharp features was everything she had hoped it would be when imagining this moment.
"I-I... He... That is to say..." Cedric floundered for want of words that could adequately describe the torrent of emotions coursing through him. The room was silent as he gathered his racing thoughts and forced himself to form a cohesive sentence. "Honestly?" He finally settled on one word to sum up his disbelief for her statement, letting it out on a breath he hadn't realised he'd been holding. Sofia's wide smile reached her eyes, and she bobbed her head wildly, the silky curls that framed her ethereal visage dancing in rhythm with the gesture.
"Yes, we won! We finally, truly won. I was asking you when you thought we should schedule it." She was telling the truth. He entertained the possibility that he was merely dreaming this visit. If this was a vision inflicted upon him by his subconscious, Cedric intended to enjoy it rather than argue with Sofia's spectre about the utter impossibility of her declaration. If this wasn't a dream, and he didn't dare to fathom the odds of that, then she was really here, her gaze eagerly imploring him to respond. How he longed to close the gap between them, drawing her into his embrace in celebration of this hoped-for yet thoroughly unexpected news.
"I'll... I'll make arrangements immediately, of course." He stammered out his promise, frowning at the way the solid stonework seemingly swayed beneath his feet. He was so focused on this strange phenomenon that he missed the way Sofia's pupils had begun to dilate. Once he sufficiently calmed his fragile nerves, he returned to his usual ornery countenance. "Come down from there so I can work, child." He was cognisant of the fact that Sofia was not, in fact, a child any longer. His senses alerted him to her flowering adulthood at every turn. He simply brandished the term to teasingly admonish her whenever she was testing his patience with her impish antics.
When the youngest princess wordlessly planted her feet on the floor and rose from her spot on his workspace, he froze in astonishment. Swivelling his head to study her, he quirked his eyebrow at his long time companion's uncharacteristic compliance. If there was any single thing the princess wasn't known for, it was following directions. This was especially true for any that came from her Master Sorcerer, as she much preferred to provoke him to the very brink of madness, only to change course abruptly, overwhelming him with angelic charm just in time to keep him from losing his sanity completely. It was a game she played expertly, having spent the last decade honing her skills. She knew exactly which nerves to strike, and precisely how much she could incite him before passing the breaking point. If Cedric was honest with himself, he would have to admit that he relished in these battles of will as much as or maybe even more so than Sofia did. And so it was that this seemingly inconsequential display of obedience from his apprentice was more than enough to set off red flags all over Cedric's mind.
"Sofia... Go and pet Wormy." He instructed, drawing the words out slowly and watching his princess apprentice intently. Her bare feet fell softly upon the cold, grey floor as she crossed the room to reach the objective of his request. Stopping in front of the sleeping raven, she gingerly reached her elegant fingers out and stroked the ebony plumage of his chest. The bird made contented noises in his sleep before rousing. Self-awareness restored, Wormwood uttered a stream of complaints at being handled like a common house cat. "Quiet, Wormy. Watch this!" Cedric demanded, holding a hand up to silence his familiar.
"Sofia, come to me." He stated firmly. She spun on her heels and smiled sweetly at him, her jewel-toned eyes clouded over, pupils blown wide.
"Of course, Cedric." She agreed, returning swiftly to stand agonisingly close to the sorcerer.
"Kiss him, Sofia." Wormwood called out, cackling wickedly as he waited to watch the chaos that would ensue when the princess obeyed him. Cedric turned bright red, and prepared himself to demand that she stop, even though he wasn't sure he could bring himself to do it. He closed his eyes to clear his mind of all doubt that he would do what he had to when it came time. Nothing happened. Forcing his eyes open again, Cedric found himself still face-to-face with a motionless Sofia.
"Well that's no fun!" Wormwood complained loudly. Cedric wondered if maybe the spell had worn off, but his apprentice certainly still looked enchanted.
"Give me the amulet, child." He uttered in his most commanding voice, though internally he was a jumble of raw nerves, terrified that this would be the task that snapped Sofia to her senses, and she wouldn't believe he had merely been testing the spell.
Slowly, she reached her hands up to meet behind her neck, fumbling only slightly with the clasp of the chain. Cedric swallowed hard in anticipation. He had long ago abandoned any desires for the amulet, that was not the cause. It was the idea of having Sofia acquiescing to his every whim that made his pulse race now. Her fingers wrapped around his hand, pulling it towards her and prying his fingers open, eager to complete her mission. Her other hand pressed the magical necklace into his covered palm, her eyes never leaving his face as she surrendered her most treasured possession to him without so much as a whisper of protest.
"I guess she only listens to me. That's a change." He laughed at the absurdity of it, relief and disappointment warring within him because she hadn't followed Wormwood's orders.
"Then you tell her to kiss you. Go ahead, I know you want to." Wormwood pressed him, well aware of the feelings his Master harboured for the grown princess.
Cedric looked Sofia over, a turbulent storm rising within him. It was so very tempting to compel Sofia to press her lips against his, to run her fingers through his two-toned hair as their tongues danced together exquisitely. The barrier of their Master and apprentice relationship irreparably broken, he may find himself unable to stop there. He could shoo the raven away, hoisting Sofia back onto his desk, and ordering her to accept him in the most intimate ways. All of his deepest, darkest, most perverse hidden fantasies were just a few short words away. His face fell as he considered the outcome. Sure he would enjoy it. Being with her would likely be the best thing that had ever happened to him. But it would be empty, meaningless, a hollow victory. Yes, he wanted Sofia's lips, her breasts, the untried paradise that was her body, but above all, he craved her heart. He could instruct her to love him, and she would likely approximate the emotion to a point where it was nearly indistinguishable from actual love, but it would never be the real thing. Besides, it wouldn't take long for him to tire of a parody of Sofia who didn't present an almost constant, nearly brattish challenge to him, nor held her overwhelming exuberance. Skirting around the waiting girl, he reached for the cabinet where he kept his book of counter magic. Dropping it onto the desk with an unceremonious thump, he licked his thumb and flipped through the weathered pages hastily, determined to find a spell that would undo the effects of Sofia's enchantment.
"Cedric... what are you doing?" Wormwood enquired suspiciously, cocking his head to the side as he watched his Master skimming through the book at a frantic pace.
"I'm releasing her." Cedric muttered, though he was quite sure his intentions were already obvious to the raven. Landing on a relevant page, he ran his fingers over the list of magical ingredients he would need to return Sofia to her usual endearingly vexatious self.
"Of all the ridiculous times to grow a conscience!" Wormwood fumed, flapping his wings in annoyance and flying away through the high, open window of the tower. Cedric ignored his familiar's exit as he read on.
"Sofia, did you replenish the agrimony stores?" He questioned more out of habit than actual expectation that she would answer.
"No, Cedric, I'm so sorry. Please forgive me." She begged him for reprieve, scrambling to her knees and groveling at his feet. Cedric's eyes flew open in shock as he backed away from the prostrated princess. His determination to end this spell was wavering quickly, and he needed to put some distance between them before he changed his mind.
"Stop that immediately. Get up, Sofia." He insisted, focusing on his spell book and not the girl taxing his resolve. She returned to her feet as told. "Follow me to your room, prepare yourself to leave the palace, and then return to me. We have to go to the charmacy to buy more agrimony." He chose his words carefully, not daring to tell Sofia what to do in the halls of the palace.
He gave in to the temptation to place his palm on the small of Sofia's back as he led her out of the tower. The door clicked shut behind them, and Cedric stopped to turn his key in the lock before returning it to the patinated gargoyle's false toe, the hiding spot only he and Sofia knew about. Then, they made their way down the stairs to the castle's lower corridors.
"Very interesting." A deep voice stated, waving a hand across his crystal ball to clear the image of the stone stairwell.
Minutes later, a thick, grey cloud of smoke cleared just outside of Cedric's tower, revealing a tall figure concealed beneath a deep blue cloak. The compartment popped open again as the mysterious sorcerer's fingers fumbled for the key. The tumbler clicked as he unlocked the door, returning the key to its home before entering Cedric's workshop.