It Takes Three
Sofia laid her head in the palm of hand as she gave her letter to Elena one last skimming that evening. "I probably shouldn't worry her too much, Clover." The youngest enchancian princess muttered in sorrow to her furry friend as she pet him. "I mean she is already queen and has more important things to do than to worry about the amulet that probably has caused her more trauma than she would care to remember."
Before the bunny could stop her from seriously considering crumbling up the piece of parchment and throwing it away a knock sounded at the door which brought the teen out of her mutterings. "Come in." The auburn haired girl called out as she sat upright on her window seat to see Amber walking in.
"Sofia, do you have a moment? Amber asked her sister as she shut the door behind her and went to sit beside her.
"Sure, Amber. I was just waiting for the tub to be brought up so I could have my bath before bed. What is it?" The girl sad as put set the letter she was compilating aside for now.
"You know that project the future rulers and the royal advisers classes were assigned to work together on? I was sort of wondering if you would like to be my partner for it. If you are not already taken."
"I would love to." Sofia said as a smile appeared for the first time that evening. "Is there a particular reason you chose me?"
"Yeah, I figured someday if I am ever sick or something you would be the best person to fill in for me. I know picking someone now is not set in stone for the future but I feel I need to think ahead right now." The future queen explained.
After having learned she was the true heir to the throne a few years back, Amber had taken on the responsibility with excitement, pride and seriousness. But now it seemed the responsibility had started to weigh in on the blonde girl more than Sofia expected.
While she was glad her sister was trying make their dad, aunt Tilly and grandmother proud by trying to show she could be a good ruler. It didn't mean she needed to to start worrying about taking on everything just yet. That day was more far off than she believed.
"We'll do the project together, Amber." Sofia said as she stopped the blonde from fiddling with her hair to clasp her hands in hers. "But I don't want you to start worrying to death about the future just yet. One day that day will come and you'll know what to do. For now, how about you just take it one day at a time."
"You're right," Amber said giving a sigh of relief then smiled. "I don't know what came over me."
Once Sofia had let go of her hands Amber looked to the paper on the side and picked it up making the girl across from her stutter. "T-That was a letter I was planning to send to Elena."
"Was?" Amber questioned as she turned the parchment over to try to look at it's contents but before she could Sofia snatched it out of her hands and gave an apologetic look which made Amber come to the conclusion that something was wrong with Sofia as well. "Why don't you send it?"
Thinking on this for a moment, Sofia thought back to the times Amber had learned about her amulet. Whether it was by stealing the necklace or discovering a passage to the secret library her reactions were both out of anger and jealousy. But now that it seemed her sister wasn't getting upset over her having all the magic, perhaps she could finally trust her sister now.
"I already told Elena about the situation with Cedric and how my amulet has turned black in my last letter. But I feel if I keep telling her everything it would probably make the problem worse. I would be taking her away from her responsibilities as queen. After being in the amulet for forty-one years, I figured she didn't need the trauma of her past to haunt her again." Sofia said as she clutched the black jewel in her hand.
"Sofia, you are so strong. You have always helped others without having a single person think of you." Amber said in amazement at the realization of her own words. "For years I thought you seemed perfect; like you didn't need anyone helping you but after you got trapped in the amulet yourself I learned you needed help sometimes too."
" Now that everyone knows about your amulet you should start letting your family help you. We may not be as knowledgeable as Cedric about your amulet but just letting us help in some way can give us the chance to show that we can be there to pick you up as well."
Both the youngest princess and the bunny blinked in amazement at the girl's words. Never in her mind did Sofia think her sister would go and say something like that. She guessed there was a first time for everything.
Once she had gotten through her shock the auburn haired princess gave a genuine smile. "You know, a long time ago someone once told me I needed to start relying on my friends and family when something was bothering me. I guess now I need to start try doing it for once in my life."
Seeing that her words had satisfied her older sister she was about to say something else but was interrupted by Violet's knock. "Excuse me, Princess Sofia. Your bath is ready to be brought in." The maid said as she and Suzette had pushed the doors wide open to let the guards bring in the tub.
"Thank you." Sofia said as she watched the servants set up her room but then turned her head to see Amber getting up.
"We'll talk more about the project in the morning. Good night, Sofia."
"Wait, Amber," Sofia called out to the other princess as she got up from her window seat. "About what you said. Thank you for reminding me of it. How about for a start you can tell Cedric that we'll be needing him to come with us tomorrow."
Seeing her confused expression she said "It's for my protection."
"I agree. That can be a start." Amber smiled. "I'll go tell him now. But let's hope you're not just saying that just to spend more time with your boyfriend." she joked while giving a smirk.
"Very funny. I shall remember that the next time you suggest Desmond come for a visit." The two-toned girl joked back as her sister left the room.
"Pardon me, my lady but what was THAT all about?" Violet asked as she walked up holding the girl's nightgown she would be getting into tonight.
Seeing the confused faces of the servants the girl realized she and Amber had gained their curiosity in their parting words. "Oh. let's just say we had a sisterly moment of encouragement."
Once they heard that the servants became strangely satisfied with the answer and got back to work.
"Sisterly encouragement?" Clover scoffed. "That last bit sounded more like a sisterly face-off." he joked shaking his head in amusement.
The next morning a sleepy Cedric sat in a chair by Sofia. Noticing that none of the three royal members were present in the dinning hall he looked to the princess beside him. "Where is everyone?"
"Mom and dad decided to get an early start to the day. And from what I heard from Baileywick, Amber is deciding what dress to wear." Sofia said as she playfully rolled her eyes at the last part of her statement then turned to Cedric, giving him a smile. "Thanks for coming with us today. I know this would mean you will be held back-"
"Think nothing of it, my dear. We made a agreement, remember? I come with you whenever you have a trip to take except for school." Cedric interrupted as as he conjured up a cup of coffee. After taking a sip he continued in his statement. "And besides I wouldn't be a good boyfriend if I didn't do everything within my power to keep you safe."
"Right." Sofia said as she recalled the conversation they had after Winifred left. "But even if it is your job to look after me maybe I can help you catch up on your work later this evening. You have been sacrificing so much for me lately..."
"Well, that's what you do when you are in a relationship. You sacrifice the time you have for the one who needs you most."
"Oh Cedric." The princess put her fork down to kiss him gently on the mouth accidently leaving sticky feeling to the two-toned man's lips.
Feeling the stickiness on his lips, Cedric couldn't help but blush at the fact that Sofia had left something on his lips once again. "My dear, it seems you like to leave something behind whenever we kiss..." Cedric said with a smirk as he picked up an extra napkin nearby to wipe off whatever he could from his mouth.
"I only did that once but if you wanted you could get your revenge on me." Sofia smirked.
"That could be arranged, my dear princess." Cedric said as he kept the smirk on his face and placed his hand under her chin.. "But I warn you reopening that evil door will cost you. "
"Oh my! Whatever will I do.?" She mocked but squeaked as Cedric magically pulled her chair closer to his making her fall onto him. Having caught her in his arms, he pulled her into his lap and tightly held her in place.
Closing her eyes, Sofia felt his lips touch hers. Before she knew it he was passionately kissing her. Returning whatever stickiness that was still on his mouth. For once in his life, he actually did get revenge on someone but not in a way his past self would have liked.
"Sorry I'm late, Sofia," Amber said as she walked into the dinning hall looking at the list of things Roland thought the girls could cover for their assignment. "I thought the first thing-WHAT THE HECK!"
Pulling apart from their kiss the couple saw Amber across the table with a horrifying look on her face. Having dropped the paper she was holding to the floor. "S-Sofia, while I know you love Cedric-"
"Relax Amber," Sofia said as she got off of Cedric. "you just caught us at a bad time. Go on on and tell us what things dad is letting us do for our homework."
"I'll tell what they are when you both are cleaned up," The blonde said sternly as she picked her paper back up and started to head outside.
Brushing off Amber's shock as though it were nothing the sorcerer turned back to his princess. "To be continued I suppose. I'll meet you outside in a few minutes."
"Same." With that they both went their separate ways to clean up before heading out.
In the carriage, the three occupants were going over the chosen jobs Roland had given the girls. With Amber sitting on one side of the coach and Cedric and Sofia sitting on the other side they listened to what the girl had to say.
"First, we are going to Dunwiddie to where the giant baby lives. He has grown bigger which means the cave he lives in is starting to crack. Cedric, we will need you to make the cave bigger and put a bigger door in place." Amber said to the sorcerer then looked towards her sister. "Sofia, you may need to come up with an idea on what we could do so we won't have to continually worry about him."
"Oh, that just brings back memories." Sofia giggled. " I wonder if the ginger bread house and the chocolate milk pond is still there."
Cedric shivered at the very memory where he accidentally shrunk his wand. "Hopefully it's gone. Even foods and drinks created by magic can go stale."
"And then after we make few stops to check on a few projects, we'll be reviewing the royal guard and giving them tips on what area in their job they could improve on." Amber finished. Folding the paper up and setting it beside her.
"Oh, I could think of a few things those pathetic guards could improve on." Cedric said as he crossed his arms and grinned.
"Cedric." Sofia warned. Nudging the sorcerer in side while also trying to hide an amused grin on her face. "Be nice."
"I'll try." The man muttered as sunk into his seat.
While Sofia was glad Cedric was able to reconnect with her family it seemed he still held a grudge over the guards that had sometimes mocked him in the past. Perhaps now the man held his grudge for a different reason. Was it because they were not able to protect her family from the magical people that always sought revenge?
Putting the the slightly amusing topic aside, Sofia saw that they had reached the giants cave.
"Okay Sofia, what do you think is the best way to fix the cave?" Amber asked once all three of them got out of the coach.
"You mean the future queen herself doesn't have an amazing idea?" Cedric asked in a unamused tone as he crossed his arms.
"Sofia is to do all of these jobs." Amber said as she began scribbling something down on her paper. "The project is centered around what person the future ruler picks as their fill in. I'm suppose to judge whether she does a good job at it or not."
"And then we both give oral reports on how we felt doing it while also telling what we both learned." Sofia added as she walked up to the cave to observe it. "Since the giant grows like we do I don't think this cave will hold him even with magic."
"So what do you suggest we do?" asked Amber.
"Well, we met some royal giants at aunt Tilly's wedding. So what if we sent a letter to the royal giants asking them if there is a couple willing to take care him and if so we could send him there."
"Sending a letter could take a few days, Sofia." Cedric reminded her. "I don't think this cave could even last that long on the growing giant."
"And what if we can't find someone to take care of him. We will still need to find a way for the cave to hold him." said Amber.
"For now, we can make the cave bigger and if we can't find someone to take him we'll have no choice but to shrink him. Cedric, please enlarge the cave. Amber write a note to dad telling him our plan."
Once Cedric had enlarged the cave and had magically sent Amber's note to Roland the three three were on their way to the village. "That was an excellent decision, my dear."
"Thanks, But I'm still uncertain though. If we have to shrink the baby will we have to take him to an orphanage?"
"Do not worry about it, Sofia. Dad will take over the decision of what happens to him." Amber reassured the girl. "Now, our next one is pretty easy. We just check on a few construction projects then finish up at home."
"That's good." Sofia said in relief as she slid down in her seat.
Noticing the tiredness in the girl's eyes Cedric wasn't sure whether she was actually tired or her energy was being drained again. Was this type of royal duties too much for her to handle? Deciding not to worry just yet he made a note to himself to watch over her closely.
Throughout the many stops they made Sofia had seemed fine as she conversed with the workers. Whatever problems that had held the work back Amber had been pleased to see her sister make good suggestions. She knew Sofia would make a good fill in one day. If she ever did stick with asking for her sister's help.
Having reached home at last the group was greeted by Constable Miles as he helped each girl out. "We are ready for you, You're Majesties. If you will follow me to the stadium we will get started."
Reaching a small tent where the servants had set up the princess's thrones. The girls sat down to watch while Cedric stood beside Sofia. "Okay Sofia, When you review the royal guard you must look at their appearance and their stance." Amber instructed the girl as the guards got into position. "They'll perform different marches for us and then we'll start judging them."
"Right." Sofia nodded as looked back towards the guards.
Once the constable had sounded his whistle the men marched to the beat of the drums. To Sofia, it was almost like watching a play being performed minus the different costumes, music and make-up.
Whenever the the guards finished one march the captain would shout certain words the others would know to perform the next set. Allowing them to split up into groups and sometimes holding polls that held the royal flag. This fascinated the princess to a degree. Maybe later down the road she would watch more.
Having finished the different performances they needed to. The girls walked up to observe each man's uniforms. From the top of their hats to the bottom their boots they looked for anything out of place, including to make sure the badges they wore on their jackets were polished.
Of course, having never done this sort of thing before, Sofia wasn't sure how to do criticism or reviews for that matter. Was pointing out something mean in this situation? What was she to say when she did find something wrong?
As she walked down the many rows of men with Amber trailing behind her, Sofia was glad to not have found anything wrong just yet. However, by the time she did spot a young man around her age with his sash on the wrong shoulder the princess stood for a moment to look at him then turned toward Amber for assistance.
"Go ahead," Amber whispered as she gave the hand motion to go on. "Say what you need to."
Looking back at the teen she was standing in front of Sofia took a calming breath and directed her order. "Excuse me s-sir, please fix your sash." After having finally given the order the princess blushed; immediately regretting on how she had given her order. Making Amber to slap her face and Cedric to turn away trying to contain his laughter; covering his mouth with one of his gloved hands.
"Y-yes, Y-Your Majesty." The teen said as he also blushed while he quickly and awkwardly tried to fix his sash making other men to snicker at the teen. Once the boy had fixed the sash the princess continued to check the rest of the men. To the girl's luck everyone else had looked fine which was a great relief.
"Everything seems to be in order, Constable Miles." Sofia said to the man once she had finished. "I don't see anything that needs to be improved. Just keep up the good work."
"Yes, Your Majesty." The man said with a bow then went to dismiss his men as the girl left with Cedric walking alongside them.
"That was embarrassing." Sofia said once they were inside the castle.
"Don't worry about it, Sofia." Amber said as she wrote done her final notes. "While you can give commands, giving a royal review is something you haven't done before. It's not like you are going to be graded on it."
"That's true. I guess I better go write that report before it's dinner time."
"And I'm going to go tell Baileywick we are back. Cedric, as thanks for helping us today you and Calista welcome to join us for dinner."
"Thank you, Princess Amber."
After Amber had left and it was just the two of them in the hallway Cedric saw that the girl was tired. "Don't push yourself too hard, my dear. I don't want you to pass out from exhaustion before dinner."
"I'll be fine. Once dinner is over I'll help you catch up on your work." She said giving him both a hug and a kiss on the cheek before heading to her room.
A/N: This took me a lot longer to finish than I had intended but's finished. Please review. And to those of you that are wondering Sofia DID send her letter to Elena. And both Amber and Sofia aced the project. The next story will be centered around the amulet.