Eleven years ago

Sofia looked up at Miranda excitedly. She grabbed her mother's hand and started jumping up and down.

"Are we really going to get a treat from the bakery?"

"Yes my dear." Miranda smiled back at her daughter. "I promised you one. Today is very special after all."

Sofia continued to grin as they walked into the Holt bakery. A stern old man, the baker, scowled at the visitors.

"I'm not running a charity," he growled. "Beggars like you have no place in here."

Sofia's brightness dimmed a bit and she looked back up at her mother.

"Mommy?"

Miranda gripped her young daughter's hand tightly.

"Go pick out a treat," she said before turning her attention to the baker. "Don't worry. I will pay for it."

"Fine," the baker huffed.

Sofia went up to the display and looked at the selection of sweets. She pointed to a jam tartlet.

"Ooh! That one please!"

The baker grumbled as he told Miranda the price. She nodded as she reached into her dress pocket. As she did, her stomach dropped. There was a hole in the pocket and her money was gone. She checked her other pocket to make sure she didn't place her money there by accident. It was as empty as the pocket with the hole. Only this time, there was no hole to account for the emptiness. Miranda had just lost what little money she had.

"Oh no," Miranda said softly.

The baker scowled as he realized his customer had no money.

"Little thieves! You think you can take my goods without paying? The constable will hear about this!"

Miranda took Sofia's hand and pulled her behind her.

"That won't be necessary. We'll just go."

"But Mommy!"

"Hush Sofia."

Tears pooled up in the child's eyes.

"You think you can walk away from this? You tried taking goods without paying. You will be facing the constable!"

"Baker! Cool your temper!"

The three looked in surprise towards the door as a new figure stepped in. The baker's eyes widened.

"Mayor Cyning, what a surprise," the baker said. "These lowlives tried taking goods without paying."

"Hmph. The way I see it, you didn't even give them what they came for. So your claim they are thieves is invalid. Besides, it's not their fault. I sent them for the goods and forgot to give them the money for it."

Miranda stared at the recently appointed mayor. He turned and knelt down in front of Sofia, who still had tears in her eyes.

"What did you pick out?" Roland asked the upset child.

"A tartlet. Mommy promised me one today."

"Good choice," Roland said. "Baker! A dozen tartlets if you please!"

The baker grumbled as he packaged the requested items in some plain brown paper. Roland handed over the money for the treats. Quickly, the three left the bakery. Roland held the packaged treats out to Sofia who grinned as she took them.

"You're too generous, Mayor Cyning," Miranda said. "I don't have any way to repay your kindness."

"Nonsense. That old man was out of line. It's high time he let his nephew take over running the bakery."

"Thank you," Miranda said, curtsying. "Sofia, thank the mayor for the treats."

Sofia gave a clumsy curtsy. "Thank you Mr. Mayor!"

Roland smiled at the young child. He knelt so he was at her level again.

"You're welcome, Sofia. Tell me, how old are you?"

"I'm seven years old today!" Sofia proudly proclaimed.

"Seven today? Well, you're quite the big girl now. And you're the same age as my two children."

"Really?" Sofia looked intrigued.

"Yes. In fact, would you like to meet them? I think you three would enjoy playing together."

Sofia looked up at Miranda. "Can I Mommy? Can I go play with them please? I could even share my tartlets with them."

Sofia waited expectantly, hoping very much to go.
oOo
Sofia looked around in awe at the festival. She'd never seen anything like it in Dunwittie. Vendors displayed their wares, performers awed onlookers with their skills, sounds of delight rang through the air, and delicious smells delighted Sofia's senses.

"Whoa," Sofia said. "There's nothing like this back in Cantare Valley."

Winnifred smiled at her young guest. "The festival in the fall is even grander than this. When it comes around, you should come enjoy it too."

"The biggest to do back home is Dad's harvest party. And that's only once a year."

Behind the two women, Cedric grumbled at the mention of the Dunwittie mayor. Sofia ignored it as nothing she could do would change his opinion.

"Lady Hexley!"

Winnifred looked towards the person calling her and smiled politely.

"Well, Lady Lynn, what an unexpected surprise. I thought you and Lord Lynn were going to be in the capital until summer."

"We are," the newcomer, Lady Lynn said. "But we wouldn't miss this festival."

Winnifred nodded before motioning to Cedric and Sofia.

"You remember my son, Cedric, right? And this is his lady friend, Sofia Balthazar. Cedric, Sofia, this is one of my oldest friends, Lady Lynn."

Sofia and Cedric acknowledged the introduction. Winnifred smiled, wrapped her arms around the backs of the two young adults and gave them a gentle nudge.

"Why don't you two go along without me? It may be awhile before I can enjoy a cup of tea with Lady Lynn and I want to catch up with her."

Cedric narrowed his eyes as he looked back at his mother but turned his attention to Sofia, offering her his arm. Winnifred grinned widely as she watched them disappear. Once the two were gone, the marchioness turned her attention back to her friend.

"Thank you for your help, Lady Lynn."

"So that's the young lady you believe will someday be mistress of Hexley Hall?" Lady Lynn looked in the direction that the two had disappeared in.

"Yes. They don't know it yet. And they certainly would not believe me if I told them, Sofia especially. But they can't hide it from me."

Elsewhere, Sofia and Cedric explored the packed festival. Cedric pointed out vendors that were generally favorites among the people and food stands that usually had the best delicacies to offer. Sofia found herself trying many of the activities that she came across.

As the morning wore on, she smiled more and more. Cedric watched her closely, noticing with each passing moment, she seemed to have the pure happiness of a child.

Is this what she was like before she was hurt?

Around noon, the two got some food from a vendor and sat in the shade of a tree to eat.

"I don't think I've ever had this much fun," Sofia said. "It seems like forever ago that I had such a good day."

"Hmm...Dunwittie needs to catch up."

Sofia's expression was distant. "Well, compared to about eleven years ago, Dunwittie is a great place."

Cedric raised an eyebrow. "Was it a bad place then?"

"Very bad. The economy was very poor, the streets were filled with homeless people, orphans included, the constable was a mean person who would arrest people who didn't even do anything, and the mayor was a greedy person whose selfish actions were what was destroying the village. He was a thief, stealing from the villagers in whatever way he could. It was the best thing to happen to Dunwittie when he was stripped of his power, sent to prison, and replaced by my dad. He turned the village around. But even eleven years later, Dunwittie still feels the sting of the eight years he spent wrecking the place. Apparently, there were festivals like this there. But the last one to happen was before I was born."

Cedric raised his eyebrows but resumed a neutral expression. Sofia looked out at the festivities going on around them. After a moment, her eyes widened and she jumped up. Cedric watched, surprised, as Sofia hurried over to a lonely young child who was crying.

Sofia dried the boy's tears and spoke to him. The boy tearfully responded to whatever Sofia was saying, pointing up at something on a vendor's table. Cedric stepped closer so he could hear the conversation.

"Your sister is lucky to have such a kind, caring brother like you," Sofia was saying to the boy. "Excuse me, Vendor, the toy this young man wants please."

Sofia handed the vendor the money for a doll. Once it was paid for, the vendor gave the doll to the boy. He grinned widely.

"Thank you!"

Sofia smiled back at the boy. "You're welcome. Let's say you and I go buy a basket of bread and pastries to take back home."

Cedric scratched his head as he followed Sofia and the boy from a distance. He missed something, but he wasn't sure what. He watched as Sofia paid another vendor for a basket of goods but then brought the boy to a different stand as well. Cedric noticed quickly that it was someone selling a variety of herbs. As Sofia selected some herbs and had them placed in a paper pouch together, Cedric realized they were the same herbs she had used for tea when he was sick.

"Tell your mother to steep these herbs together then give the drink to your sister. It will help her feel better quickly."

The boy grinned more. "Thank you Miss!"

He took the purchases and ran off quickly. Cedric stepped up to Sofia.

"What happened?" Cedric asked.

"The boy's sister is sick and he wanted to get her something to cheer her up," Sofia explained. "She was excited about going to the festival but since she fell ill, she couldn't go. He underestimated just how he could pay for everything. While his rock collection looked nice and was valuable to him, it wasn't going to pay for a gift. Seeing the boy wanting something but not being able to get it, it reminded me of something that happened when I was about his age."

Cedric nodded. "You tried to get something for someone?"

"Not exactly. It was my seventh birthday and Mom promised me a treat from the Holt bakery. But the pocket she put her money in had a hole in it and she lost it all. The baker hadn't even given us the treat I asked for but he said the constable would hear about how we were trying to steal from him. Dad entered the bakery and put the baker in his place and claimed he had sent us there for treats but forgot to give us the money for them. The baker couldn't argue with him so he allowed Dad to make the purchase."

Cedric looked slightly confused. "The Holt bakery? I thought Mr. Holt wasn't so...abrasive."

"Different Mr. Holt. The current baker is the nephew of the baker from eleven years ago. The late Mr. Holt passed away not all that long after that incident."

Cedric nodded in understanding. "You know, I don't care what those gossipy old vultures say, you are the kindest young lady. More ladies should try to be like you."

Sofia's cheeks flushed lightly as she took Cedric's arm once more.

"Thank you. You're a great man and friend."

Cedric smiled softly, gazing into Sofia's eyes. As they gazed at each other, it was almost as if a spell was cast and they slowly were becoming oblivious to the world around them. Slowly, Cedric tilted his head closer to Sofia's. As he did, the spell broke. Sofia took a step back and looked down. As much as the young lord didn't like it, he understood the message. And he would respect it.

oOo
That evening, Cedric stared out his bedroom window at the gardens. A small smile appeared on his face as he watched the scene before him.

A knock sounded on his door and Winnifred entered.

"Hello Mummy."

Winnifred stepped up to her son and looked at what he was watching, a knowing look crossing her face.

"She's something else, isn't she?"

Cedric looked at his mother in surprise. "What do you mean?"

"Don't give me that look, Ceddykins. I know you too well. You're very fond of a certain young lady. She's very easy to admire. I saw what she did earlier for that young boy. Someday, she's going to be a wonderful wife and mother."

Cedric's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Your conversation with Lady Lynn was planned, wasn't it?"

"My dear boy, I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Right," Cedric deadpanned before looking back out the window. "I'm going to turn in now. Good night Mummy."

Winnifred nodded. "Good night. Just think about it."

With that, Winnifred left the room, leaving her son to his thoughts.