With the shining silver sword hoisted above her head Sofia charged into the frenzy. She had a wand with her too but she didn't just want to rely on magic she wanted to prove she could hold her own without it. She saw around her a flurry of faces, bodies moving quickly, weapons of all sorts being used making the noise surrounding her sound strange. Then as she looked up she saw more were coming, the witches were just about to be there and they already seemed to have wands at the ready. Sofia would have perhaps preferred Lucinda to not be there but she knew she was capable and she, like Sofia, wanted to prove that. She had helped take down Vor's crystal minions, she could handle herself. Lucinda was concentrated and firm and by her family's side and with her Lily, Indigo, and Wendell had even come.
Wendell was bouncing a red smoking object in his hand with a somewhat twisted gleeful grin before throwing it down upon the large crowd. It burst as it hit the ground exploding on contact into a red powder that gave the witches the element of surprise when they attacked. It also deterred the villains for a while, it only seemed to work on them as everyone else was unaffected by all the coughing. Sofia could just make out Wendell high-fiving the three witches. Sofia smiled and using the red smoke she was able to find one of the bad guys who was disoriented and started battling with him. He could barely keep up because he couldn't see all too well but that wasn't going to hold out for long. Wendell had used a displosion sphere, it was able to only affect those who apposed you, but it didn't last long.
Sofia wasn't aware of this but it wasn't a concern to her anyways. It gave her a foot up but she would have to do the rest. Grasping the sword between two gripped fists she swung it swift and true clashing against another sword. Once the smoke thinned the enemy was able to fight back. Sofia grit her teeth and gave it all her might to keep up with him, swords clanging together in the night. From the sky rained down a barrage of arrows directly hitting the vagrants with perfect precision, such as only an elf could accomplish. One whizzed past the man she was attacking, only just barely grazing his shoulder causing him to look for the shooter which gave Sofia an opportunity to strike. She was able to use the blunt side of the blade to smack his hands causing him to drop his weapon. When he did she quickly picked it up and pointed both hers and his at him.
He seemed to just be a fighter, not a magic user which meant when faced with this situation he left quickly, most likely going to find a new weapon now that his was taken. It was too much for her to carry two different swords so when she was able she gave it to another one of her cohorts so they could use it. Now she was left with just the one and sought out a new opponent. A raging minotaur seemed to be the one who would take her on next. He was tall, he was muscular with beady ferocious eyes, large teeth and horns, and dark colored fur. Sometimes minotaurs were not so friendly and could be coerced to easily come to the dark side so it was no surprise seeing one there, rampaging like a mad elephant with his nostrils flaring. It was so much bigger and stronger than Sofia but she would not be deterred. It had a large ax and tried to attack her with it but she defended herself from the oncoming swing.
The ax weighed down upon the sword trying to overcome it but Sofia pushed it with all her might away from her face. He kept using his overpowering strength to push it down further and he was certainly a mighty being which meant inevitably he was able to take it over but Sofia slid her sword out and away, making his go to the left. It narrowly missed her face, slicing through a small layer of skin on her cheek leaving a long thin scar. She left it there bleeding on her face as she furrowed her eyebrows at the minotaur, a determination shining in her eyes. He swung the ax again but this time with more force and purpose and Wilfred jumped backwards out of the way. Each time he swung he only hit air and Sofia, using her gymnastic skills, was able to bend back to avoid it and Wilfred was able to jump quickly out of reach.
It hit the ground on the next try and because he used so much power in that swing it got stuck deep into the dirt causing him to try and pull it free. Now was her chance. She raised her blade but just when she was about to strike she felt her hair, clothes and sword being tugged on by what she could see were midnight sprites, nasty little things that were the enemy of pixie kind. Each one was solid black and whispy, like a shapely smoke cloud with eyes and a smile. They giggled with mischief as they halted her attacks but not for long as one got zapped by some sort of magic spell and went flying. Soon they were all zapped and zooming off into the distance. Sofia looked towards where the spells were coming from and saw Cedric making his way over to her with remarkable speed, having been alerted of her danger with the ring. He joined by her side, wand raised and uttered something that caused the minotaur to float in the air, he spun him fast around and around then like a catapult he sent him hurdling far away.
"Are you alright?" He asked with great concern, holding her by her shoulders.
"Yes I'm fine, thanks to you. Are the rest of the sorcerers here?"
"Yes and valiantly using every spell known to man to stop these miscreants. Sofia...you're hurt..."
She touched her cheek and realized she was still bleeding. She had been so in the moment she had not noticed it at all. Cedric did not look pleased at that in the least, he looked perturbed if anything. He procured a bandage for her magically and placed it with sincere gentleness on her cheek, wiping it off with a handkerchief from inside one of his pockets. He sighed deeply at the fact that she had gotten wounded and it could have been a lot worse. He shook off the imagery trying to worm its way into his head about if that beast swung his ax any closer. It made his stomach turn sour and his skin feel cold.
"You're out of your ever loving mind being here and taking on a minotaur too! Sofia go inside, you've fought enough."
"And leave you here by yourself? No I won't do it. Let's both stay and fight together, side by side. I still have my wand so even if my sword is taken from me I will me I have something else and you there too. With you by my side we can't lose."
"Oh...I just...I...alright but you stay close to me at all times, you understand? And for now you should dismount the wombeast. I can't keep up with it and it's probably better off away from here anyways."
"I guess you're right. Wilfred shouldn't be put in harm's way," She agreed, getting off him. She stroked his face, kissed his nose and told him to run far away and find somewhere to hide. He licked her face, nuzzled her, then bounded off. "Alright then let's go."
"Stick close to me, okay?"
Sofia nodded and the two went into battle together. Their numbers were great and vast, far more than the opposing team, and with their combined strength Sofia's team could easily overtake them. Merlin was facing off with Morgana yet again, Gourmilla, the sister of greed, was taking on a giant, she was a decently tall and large woman, Livia was fighting off a warrior of the isles, and Ira was taking on two wizards but it appeared that even two against one was a challenge. Ira was, as Merlin told them, the most powerful of the four because anger was the most powerful of all human emotion. Anger was a part of jealousy, that's why the two looked somewhat similar but anger was still intense. Anger caused the most irrational of behaviors and like a fire it incinerated everything.
Ira was furious causing her red eyes to glow and her hair to whip about her like a flame. She let out heated groans and grunts of aggravation as she attacked the assailants. Sofia and Cedric both knew that if they wanted this to be over they had to get rid of all four sisters but Merlin had one covered which meant three and Ira would be the biggest challenge. The duo headed over to where Gourmilla was, she was the closest to where they were at. They would take her down first. The soon found themselves flanking the side of the giant, ready and willing to use their wits and skills to defeat her.
Cedric was the first to make a move, ensnaring her feet and yanking hard causing her to tumble down which left her vulnerable to the giant above her who picked her up off the ground like she was no more than a small plaything to him. Her wand was left on the ground as she was carried off, leaving her without a way to fight off the giant. That was one down two to go, and one of them they knew had that dreadful snake, which explained why some of their group were lying stiff on the ground but it was just one snake and it could not bite everyone. If they stopped Hissette that would mean taking away Livia's powerful sidekick, leaving her with only her less than stellar magical powers to protect herself with. The problem was for its size it was very fast.
"Sofia do you recall the stand still spell?"
"Yes of course I do. Oh...I see!" Sofia brandished the wand and waited for the snake to show itself again and then once it did she knew what she would have to do. Hissette did make herself known eventually and tried to blitz over to its new victim but it would not be biting anyone again.
"Stopisium!" Sofia cried out, aiming her wand at the slithering fiend making it freeze right in place, mouth open and fangs bared. Livia saw her precious pet was frozen, as frozen as it made the people it bit, and saw who it was that did this to her beloved reptile.
"You!" She hissed, much like her snake, pointing a green painted nail at them. "This time you won't get away with just being locked up. I will destroy you both!"
"The only one who is going to be destroyed here is your army, Livia!" Sofia claimed, taking out her wand which Livia recognized instantly.
"You little thieves! Couldn't face me on your own without stealing something of mine?"
"We just saw the opportunity and took it, much like you took Sofia's amulet. Now then, enough is enough! For what you did and tried to do I will take care of you personally. Step aside Sofia."
Sofia did as he said. She knew he wanted to take her on by himself, the witchy woman had humiliated him, derided him and his love, and almost taken away that which he loved far more than anything in the entire world. For that and much much more he would roll up his sleeves and duke it out on his own. He wanted to end her permanently but he would not do that again and especially not in front of Sofia. No this time he would just ensnare her, like she did them. Using a spell that created shackles he was able to force her hands together so she was not able to use her wand on them because the shackles were chained to the ground.
Then he did the same with her feet, just as she had done to him and to Sofia. He thought it a fitting punishment for her. She struggled against her chains but it was no use. Unlike the normal ones she had used on them these were enchanted by magic and only the spell caster could free her and there was no way he was going to. He snatched her wand away from her just in case though. He also found on her person the missing items that had been taken from them, their actual wands, the enchatlet, and her amulet were all there and accounted for. Sofia slipped her enchantlet back on her wrist and her amulet Cedric put back around her neck with just as much reverence and love as he did when Vor was defeated.
"I'll get out of this soon enough you wretched child! And when I do you'll be sorry, you and your-"
"So sorry to interrupt but you're utterly boring me," Cedric smartly replied with a fake yawn then left her there waving goodbye casually. Sofia followed behind him, looking back to make sure she was not getting out. It appeared she was stuck there and though Sofia didn't know what spell was used she figured she was stuck there for good.
"Great job Cedric! Now all we have to do is take down Ira...well Reginald too but Ira's the last magical person we have on our list."
"It will be tough but we have more than enough help on our side in case I cannot, for whatever reason, take her down."
"I believe in you and in myself. We can do this."
He was boosted up by her encouragement and using that he felt what she said was the truth. They would be able to do this, somehow some way. They made their way through hordes of people fighting on both sides, dashing through the crowds, pushing their way through until they finally got to her. She was standing there as fierce as could be with a burning blaze in her irises and rage in her soul, taking on the two wizards in front of her with ease. She was engrossed in defending herself which seemed to work out in Sofia and Cedric's favor. If they could strike her while she was distracted then they'd have the upper hand. All they needed was one simple spell to disarm her and then from there she was finished. Without a wand most wizards are powerless and that included her. They both snuck quietly as they could around out of her vision, creeping slowly towards her one step at a time.
So far so good they had not been spotted but just as Cedric raised his wand Reginald saw them and shouted out to Ira to look out behind her. She turned with heat flaring up about herself, roaring in anger at the two who were daring to try and stop her. She saw around herself that two of her sisters were captured and one of them was close to being defeated. She was all that was left. She would make sure that these two who had persisted in trying to thwart all their wicked schemes would be the last left too. She raised her black and red tipped wand to them about to lay down a barrage of furious spells upon them but instead of Cedric and Sofia being the ones to disarm her while she was distracted with the other wizards, the others did while she was distracted with them.
Her wand went flying right out of the palm of her hand and straight into the thicket. She scrambled to try and find it amongst the rubble, tall grasses, weeds and dirt but in her searching she was leaving herself exposed. Sofia and Cedric raised their wands together and produced the same spell making it twice as potent. An iron box was lowered onto Ira with only a slot to see her eyes in. It was something she could get out of if she had her wand but she did not and this only served to infuriate her further. She let out a string of words that made Cedric cover Sofia's ears even though he himself had almost said the exact same things. Anger does make ones tongue loose and the worst phrases slip out because of it. She shook inside the cage, using all her strength to try and tip it over or open it but all she was doing was hurting herself as she tried to be a human battering ram.
All that they had to take care of was Reginald and he noticed that this was the case. He saw the biggest four components of his team, the most powerful members, all were dispatched, he saw the rest of his troops all struggling or taken down because there were well over a hundred more on Sofia's side than on his and much stronger than his own. They had Merlin for heaven's sake and the entire W.A.N.D. Not to mention a dozen or more witches, elves, and things he had never even seen before. How was he supposed to defeat all of them? It seemed there was no way and now more were coming in, the army of Enchancia and Brightland had at last joined in the fight and even if they were just humans it was still imposing humans with weapons, canons, guns even. He realized now he was going to lose and tried to run away while the going was good but no such luck on his part. Cedric yanked him by the back of his collar impeding him from going anywhere.
"Where do you think you're going, hmm?"
"Call off your troops, right now!" Sofia demanded sternly, her wand pointed right at his chest. She may be weaker in magic than any that were here and she didn't know many damaging spells but she could still hurt him. She had a sword too, there was that fact glaring him right in the eye and she had wielded it well.
"Or what?" He asked, trying to sound self-assured and slick and somewhat in control even though he clearly wasn't. It was obvious he was not at all masking his fear well as he was shivering.
"Believe me you don't want to know," Cedric aggressively explicated, digging the tip of his wand into the man's throat. "I'm not as nice as Sofia and I have a whole list of hexes I've been dying to try out. Care to be my test subject?"
"Okay okay! I'll call them off I'll call them off! Just don't do anything to me!" He spinelessly pleaded, hands clasped together, looking directly at the princess, hoping she wouldn't allow him to get harmed.
"Hmm...I don't know Cedric, what do you think?" She questioned, twirling her wand in her hand with a small smile.
He paled immediately as Cedric snickered by his ear. "You're quite wicked when you want to be dearest."
"Please...I'm sorry for what I've done, I mean it! It's just you have to understand I was raised to think that royals should stay with royals so in my eyes I saw you as nothing but a pest but you have proven otherwise! You clearly truly care for your kingdom and your people and you've fought in a battle to show that! I was mistaken! Please please don't hurt me!"
"Oh Reginald I was only kidding. Of course I'm not going to hurt you. As much as I may not like you or anyone here I don't like to harm people. It's just not how I am. I'm thankful for your apology even though I know it was only your way of trying to get out of punishment. Regardless of that, you will have to serve time in prison. I don't know for how long, it might even be for life but you knew the consequences when you started this war. I'll think about lessening your time there but it's not under my control. Now please, call them off."
"They can't hear me though, not over all this noise."
"That's where your wrong. I've just cast the volume increasing spell on you. Everything you say until I move my wand away will be as loud as if you were using a megaphone. Go on then, before I lose my patience."
Reginald shook his head yes so much it was most likely hurting his neck. He made his announcement to his entire brigade stopping the entire fight and all those involved in it. Witches were paused in the middle of flight, wizards' wands were halted right in the air, the general was stopped right before ordering his battalion. Everything was still as they all turned towards the man seeing why exactly he had called them off so quickly. They could all see it clear as day the two victors standing there, the princess and her sorcerer, who at the end of it all did everything they set out to do when they entered this battle. The cheers and applauds from all the heroes were heard across the land. They had won. After all their struggles they had finally won! It took no time at all to get every single wrong doer out of the kingdom and locked away for good. As for the four sisters, there was something special in mind for them.
They were sent to a far away remote island and there they were banished, forbidden from ever leaving but in case they thought of leaving there was a magical border surrounding the place stopping them from doing so. They were all left wandless and without their familiars, now basically mortal as could be with no way of coming back. Cedric thanked Merlin and he others for coming to their aid but he was surprised when Merlin thanked him, giving him a tight hug and telling him how courageous he was on the battlefield and that he was truly worthy of his title and the role of protecting the kingdom. Reginald was hauled off to the dungeons by the royal Enchancian guards. After all that was taken care of and everyone congratulated, thanked, and goodbyes were said, Sofia excused herself to run inside and check on her family.
They were all hunkered up deep within the recesses of the castle being guarded and protected. When she found them and they opened the door she rushed inside and leapt into their arms, having been worried about them the entire time and thinking about them too. For some reason it felt like years since she had last seen them, that's just how long she was in combat for, but it had only been hours. They all held her, James, Amber, Baileywick, everyone was there holding her tightly in one big group hug. Some of them were crying, which included Amber who was hysterically happy that her sister was safe and sound. They too had all been worried sick about her, after all how could they not be? They last saw her charging into an ongoing war that looked too big even for her. The worst thing she suffered was a cut to the cheek and some scuffs on her knees but she was no worse for wear. She received lots of kisses from her parents and her mother fretted over her, seeing some dirt on her and her bandaged cheek. She told them all about what happened there outside, every detail and they stood in utter shock as she was explaining how she got that cut.
"Whoa you took one of my swords and faced off with a minotaur?!" James questioned, more excited than upset.
"Yep. I did."
"Brilliant! I have the coolest sister...I mean sisters," He corrected seeing Amber give him a sharp glance. "You get what I meant."
She continued her story and they all listened. Her mother above all was horrified about what could have gone wrong and almost felt weak hearing what her young daughter went through. Without Cedric and all the rest of her friends she would have been lost. Suddenly Miranda was very thankful that Sofia made friends with everything that slithered, crawled, roared, or flew and went on so many journeys with her protectors. It gave her the ability to have a lot of people on her side when the time came for it. They were all exceedingly thankful to Cedric above all who had not given up and fought on with all his might. He stood there in the entrance way listening to everything and happily sighing as he saw Sofia reunite with her family. King Roland bid him come down and join them, he was family too, and soon it would be literal.
Even though it was just a bit awkward he was included in their family hug but he also felt a warmth invade his soul and he liked the way it felt. The entire family needed to have a good long sleep after all of this, especially Sofia who had done more than any princesses had ever done all on her own. She was so exhausted and she had not even realized it until she had stopped fighting. All the sudden sleep had hit her like a ton of bricks and she yawned repeatedly. Cedric more than happily carried her to her bedroom so she could finally sleep after all the hard work she had done that night. He got to her room and when he did all her animal friends were there looking concerned but also, if Cedric wasn't mistaken, they seemed to look very proud too. He placed Sofia in her bed and kissed her lips gently, whispering goodnight to her.
She stopped him from leaving and pulled him close to her. "Sleep with me here."
He couldn't deny her. He shrugged and magically changed into his sleepwear then got into her bed and snuggled close to her, smiling as he did so. He had never ever slept in a royal bedroom before but he supposed he might have to get used to this too. He thought he could if it meant being close to Sofia, all warm and bundled up together. He realized he was never going to leave her that night, he knew he would end up sleeping next to her because after that entire ordeal he couldn't leave her ever again. He clung to her tight as could be, gingerly kissing the back of her hair, telling her he loved her until he fell asleep. When he awoke it was the late afternoon and they were both still in bed with her still snoozing away.
He was certain the staff was already awake. If he knew Baileywick, and he supposed at this point he did, he would be up bright and early no matter what and get the rest up as well. It didn't matter if they were tired they needed to be working like clockwork and diligently to serve the royals. So as to why the steward or a maid hadn't awoken Sofia was beyond him. Perhaps he was just letting her sleep in, after all she did do so very much last night and it would be terribly unkind of him and impolite to awaken her but Cedric knew it wouldn't be long before he did. The princess had to eat at some point. Cedric counted his blessings though, if someone had seen him in her bed with her he'd be in deep trouble.
It was wrong for a woman to be in bed with another man in any sense before the wedding night. They had already done this, yes, but no one knew but Amber and thankfully she kept her lips sealed. He ought to poof himself out of there before anyone came in. He wanted to lay there and just look at her, watch her rest, caress her cheeks, her neck, feel her softness, breathe in that wondrous floral scent she had. Alas he might not get the pleasure until he was finally wedded to her. He reached over and grabbed his wand, preparing to vanish with a deep unsatisfied sigh, when he felt his sweet princess hold him around the waist and make a dissatisfied mumble.
"Stay," she softly beseeched. He smiled and let out a little laugh.
"Oh Sofia I wish I could, you haven't the faintest idea of how much I want to but I can't and you know exactly why. I'm sorry my sweet but I have to go."
She sighed and started to open her eyes slowly. "...Alright..."
"Don't worry, dear, when I marry you I'm not going to leave you alone. Not for one minute," He promised, kissing her sweetly.
He said his goodbyes to her, giving her one last kiss, and left soon after. Sofia wished things didn't have to be this way. She wondered if she could change the rules but if she did she'd have to tell her family what she'd done. If she did she somehow knew they'd be outraged. She couldn't have that. She'd just have to wait, that's what she said she would do and she would stick to it. Weeks vanished into nothing, the war and Sofia's victory were all anyone could talk about in the village.
Wherever she went people told her thank you for saving them all. They even decided on having a celebration of sorts for her. Yet again she was the hero of Enchancia but she remained humble and also explained she didn't do it by herself. Fall shifted into winter and love sprung out from the cold. Ruby and Jade finally got together with their prospective guys, with their parents approval, Wendell was dating Lucinda it turned out he had a crush on her too, Vivian and Desmond were now dating too, and everywhere she looked people were happy together.
That winter she and Cedric had a magical sleigh ride together with the snow falling slowly onto them and when the nights turned cold he would be with her next to his fireplace, drinking hot cocoa. Soon winter became summer and Sofia attended the coronation of Cora and Oona. Cora was now in charge of bigger matters, the queens right hand woman, and Oona was in charge of keeping the seas calm. During the spring there was a new birth, the birth of baby Calvin, Callista's new baby brother. Weeks turned into months until at last it was the most important summer for Amber, she was planning her upcoming wedding in the spring, she would be almost eighteen by the time she was wed and then her coronation would be soon after that. She had planned it just so because she wanted to check two of her biggest goals off her list.
It was insanity for her running around everywhere with Sofia and her friends making sure everything from the color of the icing to the fabric of her tablecloths to the size of the ice cubes in the glasses were in proper order. As Sofia had suggested she would have a wedding themed after the nighttime because she loved stars and it would be in the late evening that way when the after party started the fireflies would be out. She had picked out who her bridesmaids were and Sofia was the maid of honor naturally. She dragged her sister to the florists, to the bakeries, to the jewel room, but the most important thing of all was her dress. It had to be perfect and it had to be utterly utterly jaw dropping. She wanted Axel to look upon her with hearts in his eyes. It would be designer of course, fabrics imported from the finest places, and only the top dress makers would even come close to touching her.
She had eventually decided on three out of the hundreds of wedding dresses she tried on to show her friends and sister. Sofia liked them all, Hildegard picked dress one, Clio picked dress one because Hildegard did but she really liked dress two. In the end it was up to Amber not anyone else what dress she liked most. Sofia convinced her to take the best elements from each dress that she liked and combine it into one and that proved to be the best plan because once Amber received that dress of her own design she realized this was meant to be. Just like her being queen. It was tight on her, flattering her figure but flowed out at the very bottom with the world's longest train both for the dress and the veil. It was off white, more cream than anything, decorated with silvery sparkles to mimic the stars. Now it would take another three weeks for her to choose a tiara.
Once the day came for it she didn't have to choose, she wore the same crown her mother wore on her wedding day so that way even though she was no longer with them it would be like she was there in spirit, walking her down the aisle. Sofia was so happy for her sister and she looked happy too, trying in vain not to cry and ruin her stellar makeup. Vows were exchanged, kisses were had, bouquets were thrown; caught by and fought over by an overzealous Ruby and Jade. Then the party was had with a cake so massive and tall that there would be some left over for months to come. Amber looked so lovely in her after party dress, over the next year her hair had grown even longer, reaching past her hips at this point. She liked to joke that she was like Rapunzel.
Sofia had grown too over the year, Cedric noticed this very much. He had thought she couldn't get any more beautiful but he was wrong as could be. She grew more in height for one, her baby fat entirely disappeared, her lips were ever so slightly more plump, and the rest of the changes were to her body. Subtle but there for sure. He could scarcely be bothered to watch Amber go down the aisle at all, he was too busy staring at Sofia in her lovely bridesmaid attire. They had a wonderful time at the party, Sofia was even allowed to have a little bit of the wine. She didn't care for it much, white or red. She much preferred to have simple juice or water. Once the wedding was over Amber left with Axel and they didn't see them for a while. They had gone off to an exotic destination for their honeymoon. The whole time she was gone Sofia kept wistfully thinking about her own wedding.
She wasn't about to have it so soon after her sisters, she would wait, but she wasn't a big planner. She wanted it to be simplistic yet beautiful, a bit traditional but really she supposed it wasn't so important as long as it was something of her choice and all the people she loved were there. She looked upon her ring and then held it to her heart. She couldn't wait until that day until she was Sofia, well, she wasn't certain what her last name would be. She'd take his of course but she had two last names already. Sofia Winslow-Balthazar-Wrenne was a mouthful. Whatever she was going to choose she would be happy with so long as she was with him and she counted off the days until that faithful evening when they would be man and wife. Cedric dreamed of it feverishly, near nightly, the life he was going to have with her, how she would look on their wedding day, and their eventual children. He dreamt it all with a smile and awoke with one as well, knowing his dream, their dream, would someday soon come true.