Author's Notes: Time for some explanations of the Amulet variety.

Chapter 37: Princess Ava and the Amulet

"SOFIA!"

Purple light exploded from her Amulet and wrapped Sofia's body in an ethereal glow. The image of Samuel lunging toward her and Cedric dropping his wand faded from her sight and she was left in nothingness.

Darkness encompassed her. Was she dead?

From the penetrating dark the world appeared before Sofia's eyes. Slowly her body started to descend through the heavens toward a tiny island off the shores of Enchancia's port city. She continued to fall, ever downward straight into the celestial pool from months prior. The descent continued through the cosmic swirling silver liquid until she emerged on the battlefield of centuries past. Her body hovered in the air, and as she looked to her right the visage of the princess Ava with hands flung toward the sky came into view. She extended her gaze upward and saw Pedro's forces approaching the demon armies of Drago. She looked farther still toward the sky and saw the heavenly bodies spin across the universe. It was quite disorienting. Then, as quickly as it began the entire scene faded to black. Sofia waited. It wasn't over. A beacon of light emerged from beyond the darkness. Sofia watched as it grew stronger. It seemed to flicker, as if alive, and it's glow illuminated the empty space she was surrounded by.

She heard a voice, soft and pure, that echoed through the nothingness Sofia found herself suspended in. "You have reached the beginning and the end."

"What?"

"It is time for you to finish the cycle and begin anew."

Sofia thought about it. When she gives Ava the amulet it will remain in the past and history would repeat itself. After she was supposed to give the amulet away there would be nothing left for Sofia beyond death. Sofia looked out at the light, desperate. "Why me? Why now? Why…"

"Because you have finally grown. Each task was set before you to help you accomplish this. You no longer need my guidance, as you are capable now of guiding yourself."

Sofia was still confused, "But I had already apologized to Cedric, and you still kept cursing me. Why?"

"Your fight with Cedric was a result of the curse, Sofia, and it only continued.."

Sofia thought about the words. When had all the awful things started? A jolt of realization shot through her. During the summer solstice she was challenged by Lily, and simply walked away. "Was it the solstice?"

"Yes, that was a part, keep going Sofia, keep going…"

Sofia thought back again. When had things started to go wrong? When had they started…. Sofia remembered the first time she was taken by the amulet. "Was it the little girl I saved?"

There was no answer. Sofia kept thinking about it. "Did I give her bad advice?"

"No, but you failed to follow it yourself."

What advice had she given the little girl? Frantically she searched her memory of that brief encounter. The girl had broken her toy… she missed her father who had gone away to fight… Sofia had fixed the girls toy… Oh! The little girl had said women couldn't practice magic, and Sofia had told the girl to always be true to herself.

"I let others choose what I can and cannot do."

"Yes. You Sofia strive to please others. It is an admirable trait, but you must never deny your own self in the process. To do so demonstrates a lack of maturity. This was your last lesson, and you have now, finally, succeeded."

She had let Cedric stop her from speaking about the dreams, even though it was really important. Then the solstice challenge came up. She had let Cedric and Lily force her from the wizard's circle and Lily became Cedric's apprentice. She had been convinced that she couldn't win Cedric's love, instead running from him, and Eret had been thrust into her life. She'd let Eret come back time and again even though she hadn't wanted his affections; each occurrence had resulted in a more dramatic negative outcome. She had even let her father take her wand, her most treasured possession and immediately afterward the Enchantress destiny had come to her. Even Wormwood had pushed her around and the next day Cedric was gone and Roland was injured. Sofia looked off into the distance. "I let everyone else dictate what happened with my life. That's why I felt like everything was always spinning out of control, and when I did try to decide it was to run away from reality."

"Yes..." the melodic voice responded.

Sofia debated the events that had transpired in her mind, and what their effects would mean for the battle to come."So, it's my choice when or if I go to the Celestial pool?"

"It always was."

...

"Who are you?"

"We have met three times before, and each time you altered my destiny."

"I'm sorry but I don't remember."

"I was known as Princess Ava, the original recipient of your Amulet. You came to me as a small girl and inspired me to learn magic. I was the first woman to become a sorceress, save for you, because I followed not what society determined what my fate would be, but how I wanted to live my life. It inspired a movement, and now women can be mages alongside men. It was only after our second encounter that I suspected you were not of my time."

SHE was the little girl with a broken toy! "What happened the second time Ava?"

"You saved me from the wolves."

"WHOA." She was the girl who had been attacked.

"Yes, you saved my life then. I had left my home to find you and pursue magic, as my father and uncle forbade me from learning their craft. When you saved my life you appeared to me exactly as you had before. Many years had passed but you were still the same, as if you were immobilized in time."

Sofia was lost in thought. This girl was a part of her amulet now, somehow, and had sent her back to effect her own history. The time paradoxes were really starting to make Sofia's head spin. "I guess the amulet has made me a time traveler."

"Yes, so now you finally see. Time and distance. You have already been given the keys to unlock these."

But Ava, you lived hundreds of years ago, how is it you are speaking to me now?"

"Dear Sofia, you made me realize that my birth proceeded yours, and I knew that I must continue to wait for you, to help you as you had helped me to learn and grow. So I bound my soul to this amulet and awaited your return, knowing it would find you. I have this message for you Sofia: Only you can decide if history shall repeat."

"But Ava, what if I can't do everything I'm supposed to, what if I fail."

"What does your soul say Sofia? When you look deep within yourself, what does your inner voice tell you?"

...

...

"I can do this."

...

"Sofia, this is my last advice to you. Never let the world around you silence your inner self. You are the only one who decides what you can or cannot do, not your friends, not your family, and not the whole of society. Self-actualization is the key to unlock any door. Always carry that key."

"Thank you Ava. Wait! What do you mean your last advice! You're inside the amulet and you're coming with me to the past, which means that this will all happen again and I'll see you.. an infinite number of times."

"Forgive me, but this is my last gift to you. Thank you for sharing this small piece of your soul with us for all these centuries."

The light began to fade and Sofia's amulet lifted off her chest and hovered above her neck. It shone brilliantly and exploded into two fragments. Sofia screamed and reached out toward the pieces but couldn't seem to grasp them. One transformed into the mirror Elena had given her, the other into the ring Samuel had bestowed. Both items floated away into the nothingness.

... ... ...

Reality came flooding back in and Sofia was still falling to the ground. Samuel was still rushing toward her, Cedric was still in the process of tossing his wand and reaching out in her direction. The purple glow wrapped around Sofia streamed back into the amulet and the precious purple jewel shattered before their eyes into a million tiny shards. Its exploded remains scattered in all directions.

Sofia landed with a thud on the dirt. Instantly to her side was Samuel. He was inspecting her to make sure she was okay. Another instant passed and Cedric was at her other side. They were both speaking, and Samuels' tone was beginning to elevate. Roland had run over to where she was sprawled on the ground and stood in front of her as well, trying to prompt a response from her.

"QUIET."

Samuel went silent, and they all stared at her. Sofia shifted off her bum and onto her knees, scooping up the remains of the amulet into her hands. Without the amulet she could never finish the task. How could this have happened? How was she ever going to make everything the way it was?

Samuel started to yell something. He was assaulting Cedric in some way but in the haze Sofia wasn't able to focus on it. "ENOUGH!"

The bodies around her froze in place. Sofia snapped out of it to see a horrifying sight. Samuel had grabbed Cedric by the necktie and slammed his head into the ground.

"Let him go NOW!"

Samuel's hand released and the sorcerer in the dirt sat up. They both looked at her. The tiny flicker of confidence that had glimmered in Cedric's eyes was gone. Samuel started yelling, "Nihmzahe you could have been killed, all because of this worthless excuse-"

"That's enough Sam! Don't ever say that Cedric is worthless again!"

"B-b-but you were going to steal you away and I..I...I... Oh Merlin it WAS all my fault... Mushrooms... I'm SO sorry Sofia I-"

Roland was furious, "Indeed Cedric! I was right to have you imprisoned. That display right there was unforgivable but you, King of Duvall, were just as culpable!"

Sofia flung her hands up. "Enough. I need everyone to stop fighting and listen." Cedric looked despondent and was shaking, but quiet. Samuel looked livid, and Roland relaxed a bit. His daughter was obviously well enough to be coherent.

Sofia stared straight out toward Roland and dropped the amulet shards, flinging both her hands up. One went in Cedric's face and the other in Samuels', effectively silencing them. "Dad you don't need to worry about me. I'm fine. I just need some time to think." He was about to respond but Sofia cut him off. "No Dad, where you are needed right now is helping James."

Roland had been leaning toward her but stood up straight at the mention of the Prince's name. "Why, where is he?"

Sofia looked off into the distance toward the village, "Dad he went insane, completely lost it. The dragon was attacking and it was pure chaos but James didn't care, he was consumed with decapitating Cedric near Dunwitty."

Roland's eyes widened in horror, and he looked over at the thin sorcerer crouching in the dirt. A look of realization crossed his face, and he grimaced hard. "So James put his personal feelings before the well being of the kingdom, even in a moment like this."

There was no point in lying to protect James, the truth would come out eventually. It always did. "Yes Dad, I'm sorry but you need to go to him and make sure he's okay. I paralyzed James to keep him from killing Cedric before the hinderbeasts erupted and you need to make sure he wasn't hurt. If something's happened to him please bring him back here and I can heal him before I release the paralysis."

Roland looked uneasy leaving her here with the two sorcerers, but Sofia reassured him. "Don't worry Dad, I'm fine and I will always be fine. James is NOT fine right now, and this is my choice."

A war of decision raged inside Roland, but he finally turned toward Dunwitty, heading off to find James.

Sofia let her hands retreat from Sam and Cedric's faces. This needed addressing right now. "Please, both of you, Sam, Cedric. I care about both of you, so much, and if anything happened to either of you it would crush me. Please, PLEASE I need you both to stop fighting. We've got real enemies and I've got to figure out what just happened."

Samuel's eyes narrowed and Cedric looked like he'd been punched in the gut but she needed to focus. The amulet... She clutched at the tiny fragments again. Ava had said that this was her last gift... Oh Merlin. The amulet had absorbed the impact from the spells. It had saved her life, but now the amulet was destroyed.

"How am I going to save the past now?" It escaped as a whisper.

Samuel looked her dead in the eyes again. "We are all still here, there must be a way."

Cedric looked horribly dejected and addressed the dragon king, mumbling as he spoke. "I can't believe you. She practically died just now from our stupidity and you want to help fling her into the netherworlds."

Samuel let out a growl but Sofia shot her hand out and grabbed his shoulder. "Samuel, I want you to promise me that no matter what happens, you won't hurt Cedric." His eyes bulged out and he stared directly at her. Clearly he wasn't on board with that. She turned to Cedric, "Will you promise me that too, that you won't hurt him."

Cedric dropped his head low and nodded. She turned back to Samuel. "Please Sam, I need you to promise me this. You said you would give me what I desired today, and this is what I want from you. I want to know that, no matter what happens later today, you're not going to hurt him."

Cedric's head shot up. "No! Poseidon's pumpkins NO! It's going to be today, isn't it! ISN'T IT SOFIA! You're wearing that dress! No no NO! the Amulet's destroyed and that should be the end of it!" Sofia reached up and stoked the side of Cedric's head to try and stop the hyperventilating, which angered Sam greatly.

"Nihmzahe-"

"PROMISE ME! The next time you attack him I may not survive!"

Samuel let out a great huff. "I will promise this and nothing more."

"Great. Now give me a minute to think, both of you." Samuel and Cedric stared awkwardly at each other but Sofia was lost in thought. The last thing she saw as part of the vision was the amulet splitting into two objects. One was Elena's mirror, the other was the ring Sam had given her. How could these two things be connected? Why did Ava choose to show her those things...

'Time and distance. You have already been given the keys to unlock these.'

Elena had given Sofia the mirror. Samuel had given Sofia the ring. The mirror bridged distance... so could the ring bridge... time ... She'd asked Samuel this before, but he hadn't known the answer. Ava did. The two rings were connected, and Sofia had been given one. Samuel had the other, but he didn't always have the other. It had been handed down through generations of his family, all the way back to Drago... Oh Merlin. The rings connected Sofia to the past. As long as the rings existed, Sofia could travel there. Samuel had said Drago had made them from his dragon tears, and that must have happened after he learned to change his form. When Sofia visited Ava the first time, her Daddy, Mabrook, had already gone off to fight. It really was the beginning Sofia had traveled back to. But why did she appear to the princess, and not directly in front of Drago? ... The mirror... it traveled distance based on where was pictured in the mind. It must be able to control where in the world she was sent. Ava, through the amulet, really was orchestrating her movements, and helping her grow.

"I need the mirror, and the ring."

Sofia reached out to Samuel's hand and held it gently, rubbing her finger along his ring. He still wore it, and in all this time he'd never taken it off. A gigantic grin grew on Samuels face and Cedric looked horrified and confused. She turned toward the distraught sorcerer. "Cedric, after the battle in Rudistan what happened to Elena?"

He looked like a sick puppy, but she needed his help and released Samuel's hand to reach out toward him, lovingly touching his bangs. "Please Cedric, tell me what happened to Elena." Samuel growled loudly and Sofia stopped.

He shook his head a bit, but finally responded, "You know that princess was extremely talkative but didn't really say much. Anyway I wasn't really listening."

"Just tell me what happened Cedric, please."

"Sofia I don't see how-"

"Please."

"Alright alright. After you... well afterward Greylock managed to stick her and we brought her back here to Enchancia. She was going on and on about winning the war and I think she was a more than a little mad at you for not telling her what your plan was." Sofia smiled. She could just imagine Elena steamed, it was probably similar to when Amber really got worked up. "Anyway she was a sorceress so I was supposed to interrogate her, but it ended up she just sat in my tower yelling about the book on my desk while I... well I wasn't exactly happy with what-."

"Cedric, did she have a mirror?"

His ramblings ended and he looked at her, the wheels inside his brain turning. "Why yes, I believe she did."

"Cedric, this is REALLY important, do you know what happened to the mirror?"

He looked at her sideways, and his eyes narrowed. "Yes... but why?"

"Please tell me where the mirror is Cedric."

Cedric looked down at the shattered Amulet pieces, he was clearly happy the thing had shattered, but there was no way he could guess what she meant to do. "It's in my workshop Sofia. When you came back to heal the King she suggested I go fight the dragon using the element of surprise, and in my distraction she grabbed my wand and used that strange mirror to disappear. It's still on my potions table, unless his mother destroyed it."

Sofia smiled. No wonder Cedric had been the one to scurry up the balcony. Oh Elena... Sofia looked up toward the tower. It was still standing, so there was a chance. "Cedric, I need you to go get the mirror for me."

His eyes went wide. She was asking for him to leave her alone with Samuel. He started shaking his head but she needed the mirror, and some alone-time with Sam. Revelations about his mother needed to be shared, and they were of the earth-shattering variety. "I'm sorry Cedric, but I need to speak to Sam alone, and I need the mirror. Don't worry, I will be right here when you get back, so hurry, please." She hugged him and Sam bristled, growling heavily. Cedric was now fighting the internal war of if he should go. She looked at him, dead in the eyes. "Please Cedric, it will be okay."

He let a couple halted breaths escape and nodded. He slowly stood and walked toward the castle, looking back constantly. She watched him retreat into the castle before confronting Sam.

"You should no longer hold the other Nihmzahe, you have made promises to ME and not HIM."

Sofia was enraged. "How can you possibly think I OWE you anything at this point. Just look around at this devastation! This isn't exactly a peaceful end to the war, is it SAMUEL!"

"These Hinderbeast are NOT of Duvall Nihmzahe, I am not responsible for this destruction. I am in fact it's savior, for my followers and I have ended this conflict."

"Your mother conjured them, and she IS of Duvall, isn't she?" He froze. They sat there in silence while he processed what she was saying. "Did you hear me Samuel, your mother conjured them. She came here hell-bent on starting a war that would turn the continent dark so she could free the evil mages trapped on the other side of the world."

That remark seemed to warp Samuel's mind. He looked down, taking in the scorched earth and surveying the destruction. Finally his head sunk down. "So that is why she was here, and you were fighting her." Sofia nodded. "I've failed our bargain, and the Sacred Vow."

"I'm so sorry Samuel, but there's more."

He was already upset, but she knew this next part was going to shatter him. "Sam I'm so sorry, but the king of Friezenburg never touched her. He wasn't guilty of anything and didn't deserve to die."

Sofia stroked his chin as Samuel processed those words. His eyes went wide and he started to shake his head, "But she said, she told me, that's why she couldn't rejoin my father… that's why he had to be... to be…"

Sofia continued to stroke his chin, trying to calm him as best she could. "Samuel, there is more. She doesn't want to rejoin your father in the netherworld, in fact…" Sofia hated going on, but she had to. He needed to know the truth, the WHOLE truth. Tears started to fall out of her and she reached out to hug him, trying to provide some comfort for what she had to say.

"Samuel, your Mom, she thought your Dad was weak because he didn't want to conquer all the lands… and that she could mold you, convince you, that they should be conquered." Samuel stopped shaking. He stopped breathing entirely. He sat there, paralyzed. Sofia grew worried, "Sam, Samuel are you okay?"

He finally blinked, "No. I'm not okay. She did spend years trying to convince me to take over the world, but I wouldn't do it. I wanted you to come to me Nihmzahe. I knew you would come, and if I did what she wanted I would never find you. My father was very clear about it before he died. All I ever wanted was you and your love."

Large sobs started to escape Sofia, and her head fell onto his shoulder. "I'm so sorry Samuel but there's more. There's so much more, and it's so hard for me to tell you but I have to…" Samuel reached up and stoked Sofia's hair.

Sofia started shaking. How could she tell him this? Samuel loved his father like no other, he'd been silently mourning the man for decades, how could she tell him what his mother had done? But he needed to know the truth, the whole truth. "Samuel... she knew your dad wouldn't let her... conquer the kingdoms, so she... she...

"No Nihmzahe... you cannot be saying this.. you cannot..."

"Oh MERLIN she removed him permanently. I am SO SORRY SAMUEL. SAM..." BWAHHH...

"No. No NO. No Sofia."

"I'm so sorry Samuel. I'm so sorry. She admitted to it while we were fighting." She hugged him tighter and rubbed his back in small circular motions, the same way he had done when she was hurting in Duvall, trying to provide some measure of comfort to this poor man.

Sofia felt Sam sniffle. She pulled her face out of his shoulder to look at him. He was crying. She'd never seen Samuel cry before, but deep blue tears came out of his eyes and rolled down his pale cheeks. He spoke softly, "My father was a good man. He waited for the vision, as I did. He was so certain. He loved her, even though he knew she was evil inside. When the vision led me to you I was so… afraid… you'd be like her, but then you healed my wounds and I knew I would be blessed to have you in my life."

Sofia jolted. His wounds. OH MERLIN there was that too! She had to tell it all. Sofia reached up and wiped away his tears. She sat there, rubbing her finger gently across his cheek, her face but an inch from his. He looked at her with longing and sadness. "Samuel, she wanted to conquer the continent with a hinderbeast army, and she killed anything that stood in her way."

He was trying to compose himself, but at this he started to look around wildly, trying to piece together what she was saying.

"Do you...When we met you were being attacked... Do you know where the Hinderbeasts that attacked you on that island came from?"

Sofia bit her lip, hoping she wouldn't have to come out and say it, that he might understand her meaning. He started to blink back more tears, and covered his face with his hands, and a cry came out from behind his palms. Sofia reached up and hugged his neck, still crying herself, "I'm so sorry Samuel, you don't deserve any of this. None of it at all."

She tightened her grip on his head, pressing her forehead into his and stroking his back and hair, a desperate attempt to mitigate the pain he was feeling.

"I was the last obstacle. She wished for my death as well."

A thud was heard in the distance. Sofia shot her head up to see Cedric standing there, his arms were at his sides and he'd dropped the mirror on the ground. Pain, anguish, horror. He was standing there looking at Sofia who was in essence curled up on Samuels lap, stroking his head with her face pressed against his.

"Cedric..."