Full Moon Quest
Summary: The siblings of Enchancia team up with their favorite sorcerer and steward to win a Halloween contest.
Disclaimer: I don't own Sofia the First OR Halloween. ;)
A/N: Well, I'll admit… I'm not a huge fan of Halloween. BUT I do love Día de los Muertos! Still, I felt it would be fun to write this story. Hope you enjoy!
"I feel ridiculous," Cedric complained as he poked at a purple and orange hat that sat atop his head. Worse yet for him was the little white puffy ball that dangled near his cheek, annoying him to no end. "Why must I wear this?"
Amber grinned, feeling rather pleased with her costume suggestion. "Because you and Baileywick match," she summarized while gesturing toward the steward.
Baileywick sighed. He had on a blue and green hat with a yellow puffy ball. "So your idea for our so-called 'costume' is for Cedric and me to be, what, fraternal twins?"
Cedric scoffed. "Please, if anything, you're my grandfather."
Sofia giggled at her mentor's joke before gently patting Baileywick on the arm. "He didn't mean that, Baileywick."
"Oh, I quite agree, Princess Sofia," the steward replied with a humored chuckle. "There's no way Cedric and I could be related. One, I'm far more sophisticated, and two, I'm not a descendant of Pinocchio."
Cedric growled and wielded his wand, pointing it at the older man. "Say that again, Sir Sweeps-A-Lot."
James laughed, stepping between the two adults and holding his hands out. "Guys! We need to focus here. If we're going to win this contest, we have to put our differences aside and work together."
Cedric raised an eyebrow at the prince as he lowered his wand. "I see Princess Sofia has been rubbing off on you as well."
"Not as much as she's rubbed off on you, Cedric," Amber remarked with a grin, folding her arms and watching the sorcerer shrug and appear shy all of a sudden.
The contest in question required the group to find three simple things and return them to Roland and Miranda before the other groups. Naturally, with Sofia's knack for solving riddles, she'd been appointed the leader. The others offered assistance when needed.
The quintet stood near the castle steps as Miranda held up her hand to silence the gathered crowd.
"Thank you all for coming," the queen of Enchancia said with a smile. "As you can imagine, we've been looking forward to this Full Moon Quest contest for quite some time. Previously indicated was the rules for the groups: no more than five to a group, and anyone from ages three and up may participate. However, keep in mind that these riddles are a bit tricky and will require some team effort, so make sure you're working together. Also, this will take time. Luckily, we have a full moon tonight to guide your path. The first group to return with all three items will be the winners and will receive something very special. Ready?"
The shouts of affirmation indicated that they were, indeed, ready.
Miranda nodded and held up several envelopes. "The first clue is in this envelope. Each group will send someone to retrieve it. Once you find your first clue, the second and third envelopes won't be far behind. Come and get them!"
Sofia nodded to James, who hurried over to their mother and excitedly took one of the envelopes. She smiled when he handed it to her, and she carefully tore the top part of it open, extracting the letter.
One, two, three
There are many more of me
Blooming in the spring
Sprouting higher in this thing
"Something tells me King Roland wrote the riddles this year," Baileywick remarked, chuckling a bit at the poem.
Sofia grinned at him before pondering. "Well, with words like 'blooming' and 'sprouting,' I can only think of one place."
James nodded happily. "Yep! The supply closet!"
Amber eyed him pointedly. "Oh, really, James?" She smirked. "Tell you what. You go ahead and retrieve that second envelope then. We'll wait for you."
"Okay!" He rushed off into the castle, confusing Miranda and Roland as he passed them.
Cedric glanced at the others. "…So the garden, then?"
"Yep," Sofia clarified as the remaining quartet entered the castle garden.
They looked around for a few minutes before Baileywick caught sight of an envelope nestled in some of the flowers. He picked it up, blew off the excess dirt, and handed it to Sofia.
She smiled. "Nice job, Baileywick!" She opened the second envelope and pulled out the letter.
It once was dark and forbidden
Inside creatures kept well hidden
Yet now the ceiling glows like stars
Where, oh, where do you think you are?
Sofia smiled brightly. "I know where we need to go now!" She grabbed Amber's hand and tugged her along quickly.
"Ah! Sofia, slow down! My dress wasn't made for running!"
Cedric rolled his eyes as he muttered to Baileywick, "What a shock."
Baileywick chuckled. "I wouldn't be talking, Cedric. I've seen you trying to run in that robe."
The sorcerer growled. "Oh, who asked you?"
James panted as he caught up to his group, obviously empty handed. "It wasn't in there!"
Cedric raised an eyebrow at the boy. "Do tell…"
Sofia smiled. "It was in the garden, James."
The boy gaped at his twin, who seemed to get some sort of happiness out of his dilemma. "You sent me there on purpose?"
"Oh, come on, James. 'Blooming' and 'sprouting' are key words, and your first guess is 'supply closet?'"
He shrugged. "I thought I heard 'broom' or something… Anyway, where are we going now?"
"The cave," Sofia answered excitedly. She glanced to her left and saw another group consisting of Hildegard, Clio, Zoey, Jun, and Jin heading their way. "Looks like we've got company."
Hildegard unlatched her fan, holding it before her face as she smirked. "Interesting meeting you five here. And my, what a strange group."
James grinned at her. "Who's the leader in your group, Hildegard?"
"I am."
"Now that's strange." He yelped when she tried to swipe at him with the fan, and he hid behind Amber. "Temper, Hildy!"
"What clue are you guys on?" Sofia asked curiously as she hid the second clue behind her back.
"Oh, well, we got a bit distracted," Clio admitted.
"In what way?" Baileywick wondered curiously.
"That's not important," Hildegard interrupted, fanning herself. "Come along, everyone. We have a second clue to find." She smiled challengingly at her friends. "After all, it's still a competition. And I intend to win." She led the other four away.
"Somehow I think she's gotten worse," James mentioned before sliding next to Amber instead of hiding behind her.
"Look who's talking," the older twin challenged. "You're regressing a bit, brother, hiding behind me for safety." She giggled. "Did you really think she was going to hurt you?"
"Uh, have you ever been hit with her fan? I have! And yes, it hurts!"
Sofia giggled. "Come on, you guys. It's getting kind of dark." She walked forward, past other groups who were searching various other areas and apparently retrieving clues they'd not yet come across. She blinked. "Maybe other groups got different clues…?"
Cedric yawned. "Wouldn't that be an unfair advantage in some ways?"
Baileywick shrugged. "I guess it depends on the factors of the search. Maybe they did alternatives with similar outcomes."
James whined and held his head. "Stop using such scholarly words on the weekend. Seriously…"
A few minutes later, the group arrived at the trolls' cave. Sofia eased inside, Cedric's wand illuminating the darkness of the first part of the cave. The quintet relaxed and stared in awe at the shimmering of the cave crystals that provided them quite a nice source of light.
"Sofia?"
The youngest member turned and smiled when she saw another friend of hers. "Gnarlie!" She giggled as he approached her, giving her a hug. "How are you?"
"Wonderful, now that Grotta doesn't have me singing karaoke all night."
Cedric blinked at the mentioning of the formerly annoying fliegel. "Come again?"
Gnarlie shook his head. "It's a long story. What brings you all here, and so late at night?"
Amber stepped forward, admiring the crystals on the ceiling. "This really is beautiful…" She glanced at the young troll. "And we're looking for a clue, like an envelope that may have been left here?"
"Oh, the one Queen Miranda dropped off a few hours ago? Come on! I know where it is." He led them down the cave a bit until he lifted the coveted envelope from behind one of the stacks of diamonds Teeny had found earlier. "Here you go." He passed it over to his closest friend.
Sofia smiled and accepted the clue. She opened it and read it aloud.
It's grander than diamonds
Worth more than gold
More beautiful than rubies
And never gets old
When you figure this out
Rely on each one
Because only together
Can you get this task done
If you have the right answer
Then return to the queen
Explain your decision
And you'll get something
WONDERFUL
"Again, I'm entirely convinced King Roland wrote these rhymes this year," Baileywick joked.
"Hang on a minute," the blonde girl urged as she glanced at the original resting place of the envelope. "Is that a stack of diamonds?"
"Yeah," Gnarlie responded with a shrug. "Grotta thought they were hideous and had them tossed out of her section of the cave. She's such a picky interior decorator."
Sofia giggled as Amber gaped at him. "I think Amber would appreciate one, Gnarlie."
"Um, Amber would appreciate more than that," the older girl suggested with an incredulous laugh.
Gnarlie grinned and scooped up a few of the diamonds, pressing them into Amber's hands. "Take them, Princess Amber. We have no use for them."
Amber's face lit up. "Forget the 'something wonderful' Mom and Dad have in mind. I think Wassailia just came early for me!" She squealed in excitement and thanked Gnarlie happily.
"Just what she needs," James complained, "more jewels to brag about."
"I seem to recall another young blonde with a cannon collation," Baileywick corrected with a pointed look.
"Collection?" Cedric asked in surprise. "Oh, Merlin, I hope you know what you're doing, Prince James."
"Of course I do! Dad said as long as I don't blow up another tree—"
"Another tree?" The sorcerer was growing slightly pale as the boy kept babbling on. He glanced down at Sofia. "For all intents and purposes, let's hope your sister is the one who ascends to the throne at this rate."
She giggled and took his hand, leading him and the others out of the cave. "Bye, Gnarlie! I'll come see you again later this week!"
"Bye, Sofia! I'll tell Teeny and Grotta you guys stopped by."
"We never did determine what the riddle meant," Baileywick reminded them as they left the cave.
"That's easy," Amber answered as she held her small hoard of diamonds. "Worth more than gold, grander than diamonds, more beautiful than rubies? Well, clearly, it's talking about something a bit more profound."
Sofia lit up. "Like us! Like family and friendship. Amber, you're a genius!"
She grinned. "I know! And now I'm a genius with a diamond collection."
So they hurried back to the castle steps, only to see that another group was already there.
James pouted. "Aw, man! Khalid's group beat us."
"Maybe they got the answer wrong," Cedric suggested as they neared the others.
Miranda smiled as Khalid whispered something to her, and she nodded in agreement. "Looks like we have a winner! Prince Khalid and his team have won the Full Moon Quest challenge. Everyone had the same final riddle, and the answer of course is 'friendship.' Good job, everyone."
Roland handed each winner a basket of Halloween goodies and a small trophy. He grinned as his children, steward, and royal sorcerer approached. "Didn't quite make it back in time, huh?"
"No," Amber sighed as she looked down. "I guess we can't win everything."
"Oh, but it looks like you did win something," Miranda explained as she knelt before the girl. "I don't recall us handing out diamonds as a prize, Amber."
"Oh, these? Sofia's troll friend gave these to me."
"Hmm, what a nice gesture." She smiled at the others. "Similar to the kindness shown by two very hard working castle dwellers I know who volunteered to chaperone our children on a quest. For that, as a thank you, I believe you two have earned a few days off."
Cedric brightened considerably. "Oh, thank you, Your Majesty."
Baileywick seemed less certain. "Are you sure that's a good idea, Queen Miranda?"
"Oh, please. I've watched you enough to know how the castle should be run for a few days. I'll handle it. You both deserve a break, especially you, Baileywick."
He nodded hesitantly. "If you say so…" He removed the hat from his head and smiled.
"What are you going to do on your day off, Mr. Cedric?" Sofia asked curiously, smiling up at her mentor as he also finally removed the goofy hat he'd been wearing.
"I was thinking I may pay Mummy and Father a visit." He shrugged.
"Can we go?" James asked excitedly as he jumped into the conversation.
"Absolutely n—" He paused, realizing the king and queen were watching him closely. He smiled nervously as his eye twitched once. "N-ice idea, Prince James," he strained, chuckling. "I'm sure my parents would enjoy the company of such…endearing children."
Roland smiled proudly. "Why, yes, they would!" He nodded in satisfaction as the five continued on and the contest dispersed, leaving him standing next to his wife. "What a great idea, Miranda. It went off without a hitch."
"And it looks like that final clue really stuck with them," she mused as she watched the three Enchancian children giggling and joking around with the sorcerer and steward as they returned to the castle.
"Indeed. You may not always win the contest, but as long as you work together…" He smiled and wrapped an arm around Miranda, pulling her closer. "…You really do win."
"Oh, Rollie." She smiled and kissed his cheek before following him into the castle for the evening.
The end
A/N: Yeah, I didn't let the main group win. Life isn't always about winning, of course. It's about the journey and the friendship. :D Yes, it sounds corny and sugary-sweet, but I'm in one of those 'aw' moods, so there's that. Lol. Hope you liked it. I'm on page five of the third chapter of "Obscure," and it's getting interesting. ;) It's going to be much longer, of course. Hopefully it'll be finished soon. We'll see! ~AquaTurquoise