Sofia hummed a cheerful tune a few mornings later as she walked down to breakfast. She turned a corner and nearly took out Baileywick, who was carrying some fresh linens to the guest rooms.

"Whoops. Sorry Baileywick. Finishing up the guest rooms before the family arrives today?"

"Yes I am. And may I say Miss Sofia, it is so good to see you smiling again. What has brought this about?"

"It's Wassailia. And the family is coming to visit. What's there not to be happy about?"

Baileywick nodded. "If you say so, Miss Sofia. I'll let you get on your way to breakfast."

"Thanks Baileywick. Good luck with the final preparations."

Sofia continued on her way, a mischievous smile appearing on her face. If one were paying close attention to her, they would notice that underneath her dress, she was wearing her riding pants and boots. As soon as breakfast was over, she was trading the dress she was wearing for the rest of her riding outfit. She wouldn't have a whole lot of time, especially since it was the day before Wassailia and family was arriving around lunchtime. But it would be enough time.

Sofia entered the dining room. There, Amber was talking animatedly about the delightful trip to the dressmaker she had taken with Hildegard the day before. Sofia smiled. She expected nothing less of her sister.

"Oh Sofia, there you are," Amber said. "I was just telling Mom and Dad about the fun I had with Hildegard yesterday. It's too bad you didn't want to come."

Sofia smiled. "Maybe next time. How have preparations for the arrival of the family been coming along?"

"Very good," Miranda said. "I believe Baileywick is seeing to the final touches."

Sofia nodded. "That's great. I can't wait to see Aunt Tilly and Uncle Bartleby and Grand Mum again. It's been a long time since their last visit."

Miranda smiled at her daughter's enthusiasm. It had been too long since the teenager was so full of light. Miranda just couldn't help but wonder what had changed recently.

After breakfast, Sofia excused herself. James and Amber left the dining room too but Miranda stayed there, grabbing Roland's hand to keep him from going somewhere.

"What is it Miranda?" Roland's eyes showed his concern.

"Has Sofia seemed different lately?"

"You've seen it too?"

Miranda nodded. "Her moods have been more unpredictable. One moment, she's smiling. The next, she's returning home from a ride panicked and staying in her room for a couple days. Then she's starting to smile again. What could be going on?"

Roland shrugged. "I don't know. Come to think of it though, it didn't really start until right after the harvest party fiasco."

"I think you're right. She did seem somewhat different after that night. Not to mention all the mysterious rides she's been going on. Did you notice she was wearing her riding boots this morning? She's planning to go somewhere."

"I saw it too."

"So what do we do then?"

Roland took Miranda's hand in his. "She's a smart young lady with a good head on her shoulders, much like her mother. Maybe she isn't ready to talk to us or even Amber right now. But when she is, we need to be supportive and listen."

Miranda nodded. "Okay."

Roland smiled. "And maybe we'll keep a closer eye on her until she's ready to come to us."

Miranda smiled. "Maybe. Now come on Rollie. We have family arriving soon. Let's make sure everything is on track for that."

The two left the dining room.

oOo

Sofia smiled as she placed Minimus in the small stable that was attached to a lonely cabin. From it's stall, Cedric's horse snorted. Sofia smiled and patted its nuzzle.

"You're quite the beauty. Where did Cedric find you?"

The dark steed simply snorted. Sofia smiled before leaving the stable and going to the front of the cabin. Smiling, she knocked on the door.

After a few minutes, the door remained unanswered. Sofia looked around. The snow from the night before was undisturbed except by Sofia's footprints. And the stable was occupied by Cedric's horse so Sofia didn't think he had gone anywhere.

Sofia knocked again. Once again, there was no answer. After waiting a bit, the young lady just entered the cabin.

As she did, the first thing she noticed was how cold the cabin was. A quick look towards the fireplace revealed it was not lit. Sofia scratched her head. That was rather unusual. Even if it was very small, there was always a fire burning.

As she stepped further inside, Sofia noticed that one of the chairs at the table was tipped over. She shuddered. Something was wrong. And a closer look at the table revealed that the dishes she and Cedric had used a few evenings ago were still sitting exactly where they had been left. Since it had been getting late, Cedric had said he'd take care of them in the morning.

So why are they still sitting there?

A sense of dread started pouring over Sofia. She was almost ready to bolt out of the cabin when she heard something that sounded like coughing. She listened closely. After a moment, she realized she was right, someone was coughing.

Horribly so.

Sofia stepped over to the bedroom door, listening. After waiting for a moment, she knocked on the door.

"Cedric, are you okay?"

The coughing stopped for a moment. From the other side of the door, Cedric said something but it was not understood. After a moment, Sofia opened the bedroom door.

Cedric was laying in bed, covered in multiple blankets. Sofia glanced towards the small fireplace in the room, noting that it too was out.

Poor guy.

"You look terrible."

"Thanks," Cedric wheezed before coughing again.

When the coughing subsided, Sofia felt Cedric's forehead.

"You're burning up. I should go get the doctor."

Cedric shook his head. "Don't.

Sofia looked at him in surprise. "What? Why not?"

"It's personal."

Cedric started hacking again. Sofia sighed.

"Fine, but a cold cabin is not suitable for recovering."

Sofia quickly went to find supplies to start the fireplace back up. Within moments, the fire was going and the room started to warm up again. After the fire was started, Sofia left the room and went into the tiny corner of the cabin that served as the kitchen.

It took her longer than she would have liked to find what she needed but soon, she had a kettle of tea boiling and a pot boiling with some vegetables in it for broth. Soon the tea and broth were ready and Sofia placed them on a tray with a couple of mugs.

She went back into the bedroom where Cedric was still coughing up a storm. Sofia set the tray down on the little table by the bed.

"Can you sit up Cedric? You need to drink something."

Cedric nodded. As he did, the covers fell down enough to reveal that he wasn't wearing a shirt. Sofia blushed furiously but said nothing about it.

"The tea is one my family's head cook will make when someone in the household gets sick," Sofia said quickly. "Works like a charm every single time."

Cedric smirked weakly. "You, Little Girl, are blushing."

"Scoundrel!" Sofia exclaimed. "Now drink up."

Sofia handed Cedric a mug of tea. Cedric took the tea, still smirking.

"How long have you been sick?" Sofia asked.

"Since two days ago."

"I'm sorry. Being sick is no fun. Especially during the holidays. I was hoping I'd convince you to come to Cantata Hall so you wouldn't be lonely. But I guess that won't happen."

"Not likely."

"That's too bad. Drink up and then you need to get some sleep."

Cedric nodded and continued to drink the tea. As he did, Sofia went back to the kitchen to retrieve some water. She brought it back to the bedroom and set it down by the tea and broth.

Cedric had set the mug down and was laying back down. Sofia gave the blankets a gentle tug to cover Cedric over again, trying to ignore the way her heart raced when her fingers brushed his bare skin.

"Try to get some sleep. I'll try to get away and come check on you again."

Cedric nodded weakly, his eyelids heavy with fatigue. As he fell asleep, Sofia added a few more logs to the fireplace.

She glanced at her friend once more.

"Sleep well Scoundrel."