Sophia's Story

A Disney crossover by talking2myself

DISCLAIMER: I do not own any recognizable Disney characters. All original characters are my own creations.

CHAPTER 9. Rosamund

"Oh sure! Doli will take the girl to Rosamund. It's not like he's been trapped in a jar for days. He couldn't possibly have other plans. Oh no. He LIVES for ridiculous convoluted errands."

Sophia rolled her eyes. Doli had been muttering to himself in self pity for the past half hour. She cleared her throat. "So… what's wrong with Rosamund?"

Doli seemed startled out of his thoughts. He turned and glared at her. "Who said anything was wrong with her?"

"You did," Sophia said pointedly. "You called her a harpy."

"Hmmph," Doli said abashedly, looking around anxiously as though he were afraid she would materialize out of thin air. "She's… eh… not the easiest person to get along with. She's pushy, opinionated, has a real mean streak…" Doli paused and looked Sophia up and down. "You know, maybe you will get along with her."

Sophia snorted. "You could just give me directions and head back to the fair court. You won't get in trouble."

"Ha! Says you," Doli said. "Nope. If I don't get you to Rosamund I'll never hear the end of it. I'm already in hot water over the whole whirlpool thing," Doli muttered to himself. "Not exactly in a hurry to get back and explain that."

"Well, thank you," Sophia said grudgingly. "I don't think I ever did say that."

"Hmmph," Doli said with equal reluctance. "You're welcome… though it was a huge inconvenience."

"So was rescuing you from Narissa," Sophia pointed out.

"Touche," Doli muttered. "I suppose I should thank you for that as well."

"You're welcome," Sophia said. For a long moment, the two of them continued in awkward silence. "I suppose it's a good thing you're leading me," Sophia admitted at last. "I'm not sure if I would have been able to make my way through this fog." The fog had begun to thicken the further and further they got from the Fair Folk court.

"Hmm," Doli seemed to realize the fog for the first time. "Have you eh… noticed anything different? Other than the fog?"

"Different?" Sophia asked.

"Yeah, about the environment," Doli said nervously. He was peering around the fog, suddenly suspicious.

Sophia raised an eyebrow. "It's a bit darker though I suppose that's to be expected. It must be near nightfall."

"Not that. Anything else?"

Sophia looked around. "There's fewer trees." She pointed out. The forests had gotten thinner. She looked down at her feet. Her worn leather shoes were coated in mud and oddly soaked. "The ground has gotten a bit marshier…"

"Uh oh," Doli froze in midair.

"What?" Sophia demanded.

"We must be further north than I thought," Doli said thoughtfully. "I think we might have strayed into Morva."

"Morva!" Sophia shrieked. Sophia had grown up hearing horror stories about the Marshes of Morva. The marshes were a mysterious expanse of swampland that divided Andalasia from the dark forests. Everyone knew it was a place where strange things happened. Her grandmother used to use it to scare her and Giselle into obeying her. If you two don't go to bed right this instant the witches of Morva will come and turn you into frogs.

"Shh!" Doli hissed. "Be quiet! If we keep quiet and keep moving then maybe they won't notice we're here…"

"Okay," she said anxiously.

Sophia kept watching, suddenly acutely aware of every squishing sound her feet made as she walked. At that moment, Sophia heard something soft in the distance. She froze and listened carefully until she heard it again. It was giggling. "Doli…" she said nervously.

"Rats! They found us!" Doli cried. "Hide girlie!" Doli vanished before her eyes.

"Doli!" Sophia cried in alarm.

Doli was gone. Searching frantically, Sophia raced through the swamps The laughter had gotten louder. She could recognize three different voices. In a panic, Sophia lifted her skirts and tore off in a panic. Sophia picked up her pace ran near blindly through the mists until a face emerged from the fog. An ugly woman wearing a hooded cloak and a scarf wrapped around her neck appeared laughing wickedly in front of her. Sophia screamed and fell backwards, landing in the mud with a squish.

"Well well well, what do we have here?" she laughed.

"An intruder!" a second voice boomed. An imposing figure appeared besides the cloaked figure. They two of them appeared similar enough to be sisters with red hair and beady eyes. This second figure was a few feet taller and wore a headband. "How dare you intrude into our territory!" she roared.

"I… I'm sorry…" Sophia stammered.

"Silence!" the second figure cried. "You shall be transformed into a frog and eaten for your crimes."

"Oh goody!" the first figure cried clapping her hands. "Dibs on the first bite!"

Sophia scrambled backwards on her elbows. She heard a strange poofing sound and bumped into a third figure behind her. Sophia glanced up in a panic and let out a yelp. The third figure was rounder and wore a necklace made of white stones around her neck. She had a kinder expression, but she was clearly the third sister in this group. "Oh do we have to Orddu?" the third woman asked. "This one is so pretty!"

"Pipe down Orwen!" the first figure snapped. "And get out of the way! I'm going to transform her."

"Hey! You don't get to talk to me like that, Orgoch! " the third woman, Orwen apparently, pouted indignantly.

"Oh are you going to stop me?" Orgoch retorted.

"You bet I will!" Orwen cried, rolling up her sleeves. Sophia flung her hands up over her head and curled up in a protective ball as the two woman raised their hands and lightning crackled from the fingers. The women moved quickly as the lighting bolts flew over her head.

"Orgoch! Orwen! Enough!" the second woman and apparent leader snapped.

Orgoch and Orwen looked up at her chastened. "Sorry Orddu," the murmured in unison.

"Now," Orddu returned her attention to Sophia. She raised her hand and Sophia felt herself lift off the ground. She felt like a puppet with no control over her limbs no matter how hard she tried to flail and race. Orddu glared at her as she hung suspended in the air helplessly. The witch gave her a cruel smile. "Any last words?"

"Doli!" Sophia shrieked. "Help!"

Suddenly, a pink light lit up the swamp and a new figure stepped forwards. It was a tall statuesque woman with flowing blonde hair and glowing pink eyes. "What do you think you're doing?" the newcomer demanded.

Orddu glared at the woman. "This doesn't concern you, Rosamund."

Sophia's eyes widened. So this was Rosamund?

"Oh I think it does," Rosamund snapped. "We talked about this, didn't we…?" she paused thoughtfully and scowled. "Oh blast! What was her name again?" She asked turning to one side. There was a poof of glitter and Doli reappeared.

"The loud one is Orddu," Doli said. "The fat one is Orwen and the ugly one is Orgoch."

"HEY!" all three of the witches scowled and glared at Doli.

"Ah yes, that's right," she said. "Now then." She returned her strange pink gaze to Orddu. "We talked about this. We can't have you turning every intruder into frogs. You're throwing off the ecosystem of the marshes."

"I don't think you'll have to worry about that," Orddu scowled. "We plan on eating this one right away."

Rosamund glared at her. "Are you disobeying my orders?"

"So what if I am?" Orddu demanded, puffing up her chest defiantly. "What do you think you're going to do…"

Rosamund stared at her steadily and snapped her fingers.

CRACK!

The noise sounded like a crack of thunder and the ground practically shook beneath her feet. Orddu instantly transformed before her eyes. A fat bullfrog sat where Orddu had previously stood.

"Orddu!" Orwen wailed kneeling on the ground and gathering the frog up into her hands.

"What did you do to her you lousy…?" Orgoch scowled.

"You want to join her?" Rosamund snapped. Orgoch clamped her jaw shut and Orwen went almost as pale as her necklace. "I thought so," Rosamund said with a self-satisfied smile. "Now, that spell will wear off in a few hours and I want you long gone by then. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes ma'am," the two witches said nodding enthusiastically before vanishing in a puff of smoke. Rosamund rubbed her temples wearily.

"Foolish upstart witches," she muttered under her breath.

Sophia was still hanging suspended in the air. "You save me!" Sophia breathed in relief.

Rosamund glared at her. "And you!" she snapped. She advanced towards Sophia aggressively. "You must have a high opinion of yourself thinking you can simply show up and make demands of my time." Sophia stared at Rosamund in terror, convinced that she was going to be the next frog. "Well, speak up." She scolded.

"I'm sorry!" Sophia babbled. "Thank you for saving me. I didn't mean to bother you. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Please don't turn me into a frog!"

Rosamund rolled her eyes. "Oh for pity's sake stop sniveling. I don't have a taste for frogs and I've wasted enough time trying to restore the ecosystem after the last frog spree. Well, I'm a busy woman. What is it you want?"

"I… I… I am…" Sophia stammered.

Rosamund groaned. "I'm never going to get a straight answer out of you while you're hanging there am I?" Rosamund snapped her fingers. The crack wasn't as loud this time, but as soon as she did Sophia dropped from the air and landed in the mud with a splat.

Doli flew to her side. "Are you okay girlie?"

"Yes," Sophia said finding her voice. "Yes, I'm fine Doli."

"Well, what is it?" Rosamund demanded without preamble. "Dolly here says you want something. Let's hear it."

"Doli," Doli corrected irritably. Rosamund glared at him and Doli dove behind Sophia's skirts.

"Well, you see," Sophia said as she wobbily got to her feet. "My name is Sophia and I wanted to ask you if you could be my fairy godmother."

For the first time since meeting, Rosamund seemed genuinely surprised. She stared at Sophia for you a few moments before shaking her head. "It doesn't work that way, honey."

"Please you don't understand," Sophia cried stepping forwards. "My sister has vanished. She must be in trouble. I need you to help her. If you're my fairy godmother, you can use your magic to help save her."

"Listen, Sonya," Rosamund said in exasperation. "Even if I wanted to help you, it doesn't work this way. Godmothers are drawn to the people who desperately need them in order to escape their circumstances. If you or your sister don't have one, it's likely that you don't need one."

"It's Sophia," Sophia corrected. "And that can't be right, she's probably in terrible danger right now."

Rosamund looked aghast. She stretched out her arms to encompass the entire swamp and everything surrounding them. "Sarah. We live in a world that is governed by awesome and mystical powers that even the wisest among us cannot fully comprehend." She held that pose reverently for a few moments before putting her hands on her hips. "And you think you know better than them?"

"It's Sophia," Sophia repeated meekly.

"Right," Rosamund sighed. "Besides, I already have a godchild. I was actually on my way to him when Doli told me that the witches were acting out. Well, anyway I'm sorry I can't help you."

"Maybe…" Sophia hazarded. "Maybe there's a good reason why we don't have godmothers…"

"Good girl," Rosamund said with a patronizing smile. "Now on your way. The witches should leave you alone long enough to get out of Morva. They should be spooked for a few hours."

"I shouldn't have to bother you for help with magic," Sophia said.

Rosamund nodded. "A practical girl." She turned her back on Sophia and was beginning to retreat into the mists.

"Because you can just teach me how to use magic and I can go rescue Giselle myself," Sophia blurted.

Rosamund froze in her tracks before whirling on her. "WHAT?"

"Careful girlie," Doli cautioned her behind her back.

Sophia swallowed hard. "Can you teach me how to be a godmother? So I can become one and go save my sister?"

Rosamund turned around in annoyance. "Magic is not like making a cake. It takes a lifetime to master. Heck, it takes years just to get the basics down."

"I'm willing to work hard and you're clearly the best godmother out there so maybe it won't take as long?" Rosamund pursed her lips thoughtfully, the barest smirk of smile appeared at the flattery. Sophia took a timid step forwards. "I've survived a troll attack, a queen blasting magic at me, a whirlpool and three witches to get here. Do you think that maybe the awesome and mystical powers that I'm too dumb to understand brought me here so you could teach me magic?"

Rosamund stared at her searchingly for what seemed like an eternity. "Do you have any natural magical abilities?"

Sophia blanched. "Um…. No. I don't." She frowned. "Is that a deal breaker?"

"Not necessarily," Rosamund said steepling her fingers. "Well, Sondra, you have intrigued me. I'm going to help you."

"Really?!" Sophia brightened, completing ignoring the fact that Rosamund had gotten her name wrong again. "Thank you! Thank you so much! You won't regret it!"

"Yes, yes pipe down," Rosamund said dismissively. "You don't have magic of your own so we're going to have to seek a higher power." She turned to Doli. "I can take it from here, Roli. Send King Eidileg my regards."

Doli gave her a small bow. "Will do."

"Come along, Samantha," Rosamund said. "I have more than enough to do and not nearly enough time."

"Yes ma'am," Sophia said. She turned to Doli. "Thank you Doli! Goodbye!"

"Good luck girlie," Doli said with a wave. "You're going to need it." With that, Doli vanished into thin air and was gone.