"Sofia, have you gotten the chance to speak with Fairy Melody yet?" Magic class had just let out before she was swarmed by Amber, Hildegard, and Clio in a circle of colorful dresses and glittering jewels. The young Princess shook her head.

"Not yet. Vivian and I were just about to go see her, would you like to join us?"

"No we saw her during our morning Recess." Amber was quick to decline and it left a sinking feeling in the pit of Sofia's stomach.

"Oh?"

"Yes, you see, we found her a little…." Amber twirled her fain in a circular motion as she sought out the right word.

"Off." Clio finished helpfully.

"She's not mean or anything…" Hildegard added, reading the look on Sofia's face. "She's just…" Another pause as a word escaped the trio.

"Sh… she's no Brittany." For Amber to stammer like that- this must have been quite the encounter. Sofia bit her lower lip looking off to the side as she considered her options. Either Amber was too quick to judge- which was possible, or there was something else (possibly something nefarious) happening behind the scenes. It would not be the first time something foul slithered through Royal Prep's halls, but the first option seemed infinitely more likely.

"Well I'm supposed to meet with Vivian so we can go talk to her…" She looked back to her sister. Amber nodded, fluttering her fan in an absentminded gesture.

"Good, tell me what you think of her." The golden haired Princess dictated the order in an offhanded way. "Because you seem to be a good judge of character. You were right about Sascha and about Vivian… you're… just good at this sort of thing." It seemed a little difficult for Amber to admit Sofia's talents when they outweighed her own. But the compliment left the dark haired Princess absolutely glowing.

Even such a small display of trust and confidence from her sister was enough to make Sofia's nervous smile change into a real one.

"I'll let you know!" Sofia was excited now. "I've just got to find Vivian!"

"Great! Thanks Sofia." Amber smiled back at her before gesturing with her fan to Hildegard and Clio. "Let's go grab lunch before the Princes eat everything." In a flurry of glittering fabrics, the Princesses took their leave.

Now all Sofia needed to do was find Vivian, luckily it was not too hard to do. The more withdrawn Princess had gone to put her things back in the art room, so after lunch she could return to her painting in peace. Sofia found her almost instantly.

"Are you ready to go meet Fairy Melody?" Sofia grinned, bouncing gleefully on her heels at the idea. "I think she's still down in the boutique, if we hurry we can still catch her!" The boutique was the name given to the large room where many of the extra gowns and suits for more formal occasions were kept, as well as things like: derby uniforms, competition-grade fans, cheering uniforms, ballet slippers, and the lost and found. It was also where the Fairies practiced that transformation magic; hair, clothes, make-up anything that might have been required of a Prince or Princess on a short notice. It was really a useful place to visit no matter the occasion.

"You think she'll be okay with us stopping in? I mean, it's her first day we don't want to overwhelm her…" Vivian was an introvert, and thusly thought of things Sofia sometimes overlooked. Overwhelmed? Well that could be a possibility.

"We can always just try to visit, and if she seems nervous we can just try later."

"Sounds like a plan."

The two Princesses headed down the hall, into the ballroom and through the back exit into the bright pink and white room that glittered with magical residue called "pixie dust". Though sadly it did not allow the Princesses or Princes to fly, it did give the area an enchanting ambiance, one that was sure to relax even the most stressed of royals.

"Perhaps we should have gone with a different color for you…" Fauna's voice was coming from the other end, behind the walls of dresses and suits. "Maybe something darker like a green-"

"Or blue!" Merriweather interjected.

"Or a darker red…." Flora noted. "It's your workroom now, you could even paint it black."

"What?" from the sound of Fairy Melody's voice the other three had caught her in the middle of something. "Oh. I like all of those colors. Black and Pink are my favorites. So it's fine. I mean yeah black's really elegant so it's my favorite- but pink's my favorite too. They're both favorite. I actually like all the colors." The way she spoke was a little strange, awkward pauses and stilted delivery made it sound like Melody was unsure of her own words even as she was saying them.

"You're sure…?" It sounded like Miss Fauna.

"Yeah. I mean- it's fine. Everything is… fine." There was an unnatural silence filled only with rustling sounds before Melody added. "Is this about what you read on my school file? Because I can explain…" she trailed off.

"We'll admit some of the things we read were a little strange-" Flora began.

"Well yeah but what was I supposed to do with four tons of noodles when all I had was this itty-bitty butter knife and my wand w-"Sofia found herself rather disappointed to hear Melody cut off again as the story actually sounded rather interesting.

"No your actions regarding the "Noodle Incident" as it was put, were perfectly understandable once we read the whole story." Flora chuckled as she assured the younger fairy. "You don't need to be so nervous here… you're not graded anymore, your previous marks don't matter. Fairy Godmother says you are a good enough fairy for this job, and we trust her. We trust you."

"Thank you…" the relief was audible even from Sofia and Vivian's spot behind the gowns. "I'll do my best."

"That's all we ask of you, Melody dear." Merriweather's voice was gentle, consoling.

"Actually it-" Melody began to speak again.

"James! Zandar! Hugo! No racing in the halls! Sorry Melody we have to tend to the lunch rush." There voices were followed by a flurry of wings and a dejected sigh from the younger fairy as she pushed the gowns aside and found herself almost tripping over the brunette Princess in the purple gown who had been lingering just on the other side.

"Ah!" She stumbled back to avoid falling on the Princess. "Princesses… you startled me…" she looked from one to the other, behind the thick black frames of the glasses they could see her eyes were a bright green, encircling a burst of gold around the pupil. Sofia had always thought Fairies had the most beautiful eyes, this was just another color that added proof to her theory. "How… long have you been… you know… standing… right… there…"

"Sorry we didn't mean to eavesdrop!" Sofia quickly realized how it could be interpreted. "We just wanted to introduce ourselves!"

"You didn't answer my question… never mind." She shook herself walking between the two to the other side of the room unpacking some old books. "Hello Princesses." She plopped the books on one of the counters before turning back to them and tucking her knees in a seamless curtsy. "It is an honor to be working with you here at Royal Prep."

Sofia curtsied back, showing the utmost respect as she did so, back straight, chin tucked- the way Amber had taught her. "Hello Fairy Melody, I'm Princess Sofia."

"I-I'm Princess Vivian." Sofia was pleased to see her friend mimic the curtsy with earnest.

"Nice to meet you both." The fairy nodded to them. "Did you need something? If you do I'm afraid it'll need to wait until I've found my wand…" She turned back to all the unpacked boxes she had stored all along the walls.

"Is it missing?" Vivian sounded worried.

"What? Oh. No. Not missing. I accidentally packed it and I forgot which box it's in…"

"Oh!" Sofia perked up. "We can help you look! It's our lunch break so we're not missing any classes!" She was always excited to help, and this way, she would be able to get to know Fairy Melody a bit better too!

"R-really? But won't you guys miss lunch…?"

"If we start looking now we may find it before lunch ends!" Sofia, ever the optimist, walked up to the box closest to her and opened it. Vivian followed her lead. "I found a bunch of fabrics!" Sofia called as she rummaged through swatches of beautiful silks in every color imaginable. She was a little sad Amber had not decided to come, she would have loved this part.

"Do you have a bird?" Vivian spoke up, curiously. Sofia looked over to see her holding a beautiful onyx colored bird cage complete with golden leafing.

"Oh, yes. She's probably hiding right now. She doesn't like unpacking." Melody replied as she sat with the Princesses on the floor, surrounded by old looking scrolls that she was shaking out to see if her wand has slid between the yellowed pages.

"What's her name? What type of bird is she?" Vivian seemed truly interested, to the point where she shocked herself with her own questions. "I mean… if it's okay to ask…"

"It's fine, you must like animals."

"I do… I have a dragon at home."

"I know that feeling- oh- wait. Like an actual dragon?"

"Yeah… her name is Crackle, she's just a baby now, though."

"She sounds cute, I'd love to see her. Do you have any pets, Princess Sofia?" The brunette Princess was thoroughly enjoying hearing her friend so talkative, and learning about a potential new friend at the same time. She was almost surprised to be asked.

"I have a rabbit named Clover, he's a Blue Ribbon Bunny!"

"Awww I love rabbits…" the fairy smiled, it was nice to hear her talk with out the awkward pauses and strange inflections. She seemed comfortable with just the two Princesses. "My bird is Mal." She paused for a moment. "She's… a… dove." For a moment the awkwardness returned.

"Oh how pretty! I'd love to meet her." Sofia would love to talk to the dove, maybe ask her about why her fairy was so uncomfortable in even the simplest of conversations. Plus, Mia and Robin could have a new flying friend!

Vivian switched to a new box. Sofia searched the fabrics one more time and switched as well. The next box had a bunch of old books in it, a lot of texts on sewing throughout the ages; it seemed a lot of study went into being a Fairy Godmother. She looked through them but still found nothing, so she went to the next box. She grinned as she opened it.

"Fairy Melody! You like music!?" She pulled a golden, small, Celtic harp from the box.

"Oh, yes." She looked over from behind an increasingly large pile of books. "I have a full sized one in the back. Music is a way to channel magic. Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo wasn't just a song, it's an incantation." That was interesting, perhaps it was a tip to relay to Mr. Cedric when she got home. Though, the image of him singing a song while spell casting made her giggle.

"I like to sing! And Vivian plays the mandolin like a pro! We should play together sometime!"

"That does sound fun…"

"I think I found it!" Vivian called suddenly. She lifted a silver and pink wand out from a box of various types of chainmail that was most likely for the Princes.

"My wand!" Fairy Melody leapt to her feet. "Thank you girls so much!" She took it from Vivian, waving it in the air, causing a burst of glittering silvery dust to burst in a small firework pattern in the air. "I would have been looking all day for this… Thank you both how can I-" she cut off as something hit the dresses from the other side. "On that note time to go!"

"Wait what was-"

"Probably just Mal, but this was great. We should talk again. Later. Cool? Cool." She waved her wand and Vivian and Sofia found themselves pulled to their feet and pushed toward the door by some sort of unseen wind.

"But w-" Sofia wanted to help more.

"Lunch is going to be over soon. So run along! She scooted them out into the hallway and quickly closed the door behind the two.

"Did we upset her…?" Vivian looked worried.

"I hope not…" The princesses looked over as the door opened again and the black haired fairy poked her head out.

"One more thing." A wave of her wand and two cupcakes appeared floating between the two. Golden cake, pink frosting, red gemstone-like sprinkles. "Thanks for the help." She smiled before pulled her head back inside and the girls heard it lock with a 'click.'


Author's note: Thank you all so very much for all of your kind comments! I am very excited to continue the story. And to answer your question, MickiStarlight, you did read correctly! I am a seasonal employee at Walt Disney World!

I really hope you all enjoy the second chapter, sorry it is so long.