Disclaimer: I do not own Sofia the First in any way. This fic is only for my own entertainment and literary practice.
AN: This is an episodical fic, meaning it won't be just one large plot but snippets (and maybe occasionally a moderate-length story arc) that work toward a common topic and theme: Amber, Desmond, and friendship. Each chapter might have varying lengths. Read and review please :)
Make a Wish (Part 1)
Desmond and Amber are friends—at least, they say they are. They certainly don't hang out that much—except maybe when there's a school project and when Sofia or James (or both) is involved. Amber doesn't really invite him to hang out—although, she does "invite" him to help with things, such as when they're in the same group for a project. Desmond also doesn't just go up to Amber and ask, "Hey, Amber. Do you want to come over to play?" Yet, both still consider each other as friends. But, some do say that a good friend will stay a friend even without much contact; whether Amber and Desmond fit this is entirely up to one's opinion.
Honestly, Desmond just doesn't seem to be "good with Amber"—if that made sense. Sometimes, he feels really uncomfortable when he's with her. She can be a bit frightening to him. Not that Amber isn't nice, he actually thinks Amber is very likable, except for the times he finds her frightening. They're just very different people is what Desmond thinks; they don't even seem to have a lot in common.
There was a time, however, that he tried to be more like "regular friends" with Amber. He figured that what kind of a friend is he of he gets scared of his own friend. He occasionally thought about going beyond a "Hi" whenever they pass by each other—he didn't follow through though, Amber's regal air can be very intimidating to some people. He gave up trying to get closer over time. Their status quo worked just fine—why fix it? He figured that not all friendships are alike. They were just weird friends (or weirdly friends).
Desmond's castle has a huge library, which was why despite being labelled as a bookworm, he only ever visits Royal Prep's library a handful of times a year. Today was one of those times—there was a book he needed for a written report paper but wasn't in his family's collection.
Desmond beelined to the astronomy section, avoiding making eye contact with Ruben, the (relatively) new school librarian. Ruben was a stout little fellow. He came from a small mining village on the mountains—he was a mountain dwarf. His rugged and menacing look stems from his days in hard manual labor doing mining. but his personality couldn't be farther from his looks. He was a softy and loved books. Most of the kids in school knew this since he's been working at Royal Prep for a few months; unfortunately, he and Desmond had a rocky first meeting. Desmond had been anxious around him ever since; and, at the moment, the astronomy section being nearest the librarian's desk isn't helping Desmond.
Amber walked into the library as Desmond was skimming through the shelves finding his book.
"Back again today, eh, Princess Amber? At tha' rate yer goin' we'll be out of books for you ta read," joked Ruben.
Amber put down a stack of books on Ruben's desk. The 3, two-inch-thick books slamming against the tabletop echoed throughout the silent library. "Hello, Ruben. I'd like to return these."
Ruben took the books and started scribbling on some papers.
"Do you have anything new on the shelves?" asked Amber.
"Sorry, Princess. Only books tha's always been sittin' there," replied Ruben.
Desmond couldn't help but overhear the exchange—he didn't realize he was already staring.
"Ye got a problem, little boy?" asked Ruben sternly.
Desmond suppressed the urge to jump in surprise. He gulped, "N-no, sir!"
"Ruben! Be nice," interfered Amber, "he's a friend of mine."
Ruben looked Amber in the eyes and glared back at Desmond before going back to scribbling on the library forms. "Hurrmph."
Amber walked towards the astronomy section after getting her borrower's card back from Ruben.
"Come, Desmond," said Amber as she guided Desmond to a different set of shelves out of eyeshot from the librarian's desk.
"Wow, he really doesn't like you," commented Amber as she glided her fingers over the books on the shelves.
"I kind of figured," replied Desmond.
This was new. Aside from the fact that Amber and he getting to talk was a bit uncommon, two of them talking about something that didn't involve schoolwork, Sofia, or James, was a first.
A few seconds passed; Desmond tried filling up the silence. "You returned a lot of books. I didn't know you liked reading."
"Oh, not really. I just like reading about things I like." Amber pulled out a copy of Constellations in other Galaxies from the shelf.
"You like stars?" he asked in sincere curiosity. He hadn't pegged Amber to be the reading type. Maybe they weren't that different after all.
"Like them? I love everything about them!" she said proudly, "I once discovered a star, myself. One of the prettiest in the sky, naturally. You must see it."
"I'll see if I can," said Desmond as he began skimming the shelves.
"Looking for anything specific?" asked Amber. "I might be able to help; I've been here more times than I'd like to admit."
"Have you seen a book called Magicae Stella? Royal Prep has a copy or two but I couldn't find them."
"Hmm," Amber thought for a moment, "It does ring a bell. I believe it's somewhere...there!" said Amber as she pointed to a shelf across them.
"You know, you could have just asked Ruben."
"He and I don't really get along well," said Desmond as they were walking, "And, he's a little terrifying."
"You never did answer my question. How did he come to dislike you so much?"
"I honestly have no idea. I don't remember ever doing anything wrong to him."
"That's odd; he's usually so sweet once you get to know him," remarked Amber.
"Oh, there it is!" said Desmond as he took the book he was looking for. "Anyways, avoiding him seems to be working fine for both of us; I think I'll be sticking to that."
"You do know that you'd have to talk to him if you're going to borrow that, right?"
Truthfully, Desmond hadn't thought of it. Now that Amber had brought it up, he will have to weigh his options. He never thought that he would miss Mrs. Higgins this much. It's should be easy enough—go there; hand over the book and the borrower's card; have it processed; and finally, take the book and go home. Yep, yep. Simple. Very simple. Desmond took a deep breath and started heading for the librarian's desk.
As soon as he went past the bookshelf nearest the hall and made the turn, he caught sight of Ruben. Desmond then realized the power of eye contact—he quickly turned around and went back to where he came.
"On second thought, I'll just read it here," said Desmond as he took a seat by one of the vacant tables.
"You don't honestly think you can finish that book in one seating. I could help you borrow that."
It was a tempting offer—but not tempting enough to induce Desmond to confront the dwarf who seemed to hate him.
"That's okay. I'm a quick reader," said Desmond as he started flipping through the pages, "Besides, I could just borrow it after if don't finish."
Amber raised an eyebrow and took the only other copy of Desmond's book from the nearby shelf.
Desmond watched as she walked out of sight.
He had his work cut out for him—a thousand-ish pages to read, understand, remember, and only a handful of hours until closing time. "Okay Desmond, you can do this; 2 pages down 1108 pages to go," he encouraged himself in his thoughts.
oOo
"Page 10 already? I was only out for barely 5 minutes," remarked Amber.
Desmond took his eyes off his book. "There were a lot of pictures. I thought you already left?"
"It is getting a bit late," Amber dropped a book on the table, "Which is why you had best be going home too."
Desmond eyed the title plate on the cover, it read: Magicae Stella. He was confused—did Amber just..?
"Give it back to me in two weeks so I could return it."
"I-I, uh," he didn't know what to say.
"Come on, put that book you're holding back, and let's get going."
Desmond nodded and stowed the book in his hands back on the shelf, subsequently taking the book Amber borrowed for him.
"Let's go," said Amber in a sing-song tone.
They walked out of the library, but not without Amber saying goodbye to Ruben and ruben glaring at Desmond.
"What are you going to wish for?" asked Amber while on their way out of the school.
"Huh?"
"Wishing stars. That's what the book is about, isn't it?"
"Oh, yeah, it is," said Desmond. Magicae Stella was a book about the magic of the shooting stars that grant wishes. It was what Desmond chose to write about. "I don't really have a wish in mind—I just find them interesting and decided to make my report about them."
"Is that so?"
"Have you read this before?"
"Not entirely, no. Just scanned a few pages. Wishes made to a star becoming true are just stories made to make smaller children smile. Shooting stars are very pretty, but that's it."
"Have you tried?"
"Of course."
"How was it?"
"Technically, the wish did come true; but, then again, I usually get all of my wishes, including those not made to a star."
Desmond saw his coachman calling for him. "I have to go. Thanks again for the book, Amber." He ran off to his carriage and waved goodbye to Amber on the way.
Amber smiled and waved back, "Don't forget, two weeks!"
"What took you?" asked James.
"Oh, you know, princess things," said Amber as she settled in the carriage.
"Princess things?" questioned Sofia.
"Mm-hmm," hummed Amber, "I'm feeling very benevolent today."
"Where did that come from?" said James as he rolled his eyes.
AN: Tell me what you think. Read and review please~
