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 53. Letting Go
As she wandered through the forest with Mickey at her side, Sophia couldn't help but reflect upon the number of forests that she had visited in her past. It was practically her natural habitat after growing up in the wooded glens of Andalasia. Despite the terror that she had experienced here, the forests surrounding Bald Mountain were probably her favorite. They had a peaceful sort of feel to them as opposed to the terror of the marshes or the Dark Forest and without countless other es ready to eat her like those of the Wild Lands. Kelsey had told her at one point that Walt Disney himself had his own little cottage established somewhere within the woods. Mickey had also apparently visited this elusive cottage as well shortly after Yen Sid had disappeared.
Mickey was always in a chipper mood, but this was the most upbeat that Sophia had ever seen him, even by his usual standards. He held the Book of Songs and was whistling happily to himself as he and Sophia strolled down the path. He couldn't wait to show his master how much they had accomplished. Sophia had to admit, in her smug way, she was ready to show off as well.
The trip back had been relatively peaceful and blessed with good winds. It seemed odd to simply travel somewhere leisurely with no worries and no one chasing after them. Once they arrived back in Europe, they made their way back to Arthur's palace where they all enjoyed a few modern luxuries. Sophia enjoyed perhaps the most soothing and relaxing bath she had ever experienced, scrubbed all of her gowns and dresses until they smelled fresh and were neatly pressed, and then slept like a baby in one of the coziest beds in the palace.
The next morning, Sophia and Mickey set off in search of Yen Sid. Neither of them were particularly sure where they would find the old man, but they figured he wouldn't be far from the forest.
"Yen Sid?" Sophia called out. "Yen Sid? Where are you at?"
"He's got to be around here somewhere," Mickey said brightly. The two of them were following a river and had already spotted a few deer drinking serenely from the water.
"Hear that?" Sophia asked. It was the sound of crunching. Sophia shoved her way through the underbrush until she caught sight of a buck munching on the grass. "Morning Yen Sid," she said.
Startled, Yen Sid looked up with a full mouth of grass. "Sophia!" he cried in surprise and Sophia suspected just a bit of panic. "Mickey! What are you doing here?!"
"Nice to see you too, Yen Sid," Sophia said drily.
"Master we did it!" Mickey cried. "We found a song."
Now Yen Sid DEFINITELY looked alarmed. His eyes widened in shock. "You… you found a song?"
"We certainly did," Sophia said confidently. "In fact, I think you'll approve of the song. It's the transformation song."
"Transformation song?" Yen Sid whispered, taking a few steps back. For a moment, Sophia was afraid that he was about to bolt.
"So we can change you back!" Mickey continued, oblivious to his master's obvious skittishness. "Let's get started." Mickey began to flip through the pages of The Book.
"Now, now, now," Yen Sid interrupted. "One step at a time." He cleared his throat. "Sophia, you have done a fantastic job and I will definitely consider rejoining The Circle. Now if you'll excuse me…" With that, Yen Sid sprinted through the grass.
Mickey stood, a heartbreaking expression of confusion on his face. "What happened?" he asked Sophia. "What did we do wrong?"
Sophia gently squeezed his shoulder. "Nothing Mickey." She glared at the direction that Yen Sid had taken off through. "Stay here. I'm going to have a private word with your master." Gripping her wand, Sophia scrambled through the underbrush. If she ran she could make out Yen Sid's fleet shape as he struggled to move through the thick trees.
"Yen Sid!" Sophia hollered after him. "You get back here right this instant or I will turn you into a cupcake."
"You're bluffing," a gruff voice retorted.
"I did it to Kelsey and I liked her a lot more than I like you," Sophia snapped. She brandished her wand, "3…2…1…"
"Alright! Alright! Calm down! Put the wand down!" Yen Sid cried.
Sophia slowly eased the wand into her apron pocket before she crossed her arms. "What is this about Yen Sid?" she demanded. "Because It's clearly not about me or Kelsey or your apprentice or anything else, and I did NOT just go risk my life for you to flake out on your end of the bargain. This is clearly about you and I deserve an explanation!"
"What you've done is truly admirable," Yen Sid said diplomatically. "I commend you for your efforts and wish you all the luck moving forwards, but I simply can't join."
"Why?" Sophia demanded flatly.
"Because I've been essentially raising Bambi since his mother died and I just can't leave him until he's fully grown." Yen Sid insisted.
Sophia raised an eyebrow. "That your boy over there?" she gestured to a nearby cliff that jutted out over the woods. Standing at its edge, a young buck stood there resplendent in the morning light. His full set of antlers were silhouetted against the sun.
"Yes, that's Bambi," Yen Sid admitted sheepishly.
"He looks pretty darn majestic up there to me," Sophia said.
"Looks can be deceiving," Yen Sid snapped.
"Does he have a mate?" Sophia asked. Yen Sid didn't respond. "Yen Sid!" Sophia cried.
"Yes, yes he does, Faline," Yen Sid admitted in irritation.
"I'd say that means he's as grown as he's likely to get, wouldn't you?" Sophia cried exasperatedly. Yen Sid made a low grumbling sound. Sophia sighed and softened her expression. "Yen Sid, I understand. It's hard to let go of your trainees."
"You wouldn't understand!"
"Most godmothers receive lifetime assignments," Sophia retorted. "I've already gone through two charges. Believe me I understand this better than anyone else in the Kingdom." Sophia took a cautious step forwards. "He was a little baby dear when you found him and in some ways you're always going to see him that way." Sophia gestured to Bambi standing in the distance, "But he's grown up. He's a big strong Prince of the Forest now."
"…And he doesn't need me at all," Yen Sid finished glumly.
"That's a good thing," Sophia said gently. "It means you did a good job. He's strong, confident and fearless now. That's the whole goal of being a mentor isn't it?"
"I suppose so," Yen Sid muttered.
Sophia gently pressed a hand to Yen Sid's shoulder. "He's not abandoning you. You'll always be in his heart, but now you need to be brave enough to let go. Besides," Sophia added. "You have another apprentice who does need you and who has been eagerly awaiting for your guidance for years now."
Yen Sid grunted. "Yes, Mickey. Poor patient lad."
"Indeed," Sophia agreed. "So what do you say? Come back with me? Help Mickey? Create something new?"
Yen Sid was silent for quite a while before he sighed. "Very well, let's go find the lad."
-888-
"Master!" Mickey's face beamed with relief as Sophia and Yen Sid slowly made their way back towards the clearing. "You came back!"
"So I did! So I did! There's no need to carry on so," Yen Sid said gruffly. He positioned himself imperiously in the clearing, struggling to ignore Sophia's smirk. "Now, I have discussed the situation with Sophia and we are in complete agreement that the best course of action would be to return me to my human form so I can join the Circle."
"Complete agreement," Sophia said, rolling her eyes.
"Wonderful! I'm so excited, Master," Mickey grinned.
"Now let's get on with it, we're burning daylight," Yen Sid snapped. "Be careful. Be sure to enunciate. Focus. I want to be back to my original form." Yen Sid added to himself. "It will be nice to eat something other than grass for a change."
"Of course, Master," Mickey said. He looked down at the page and cleared his throat and began to sing. "Everything will become clear to you, when you see things through another's eyes…"
Sophia watched with wide eyes as The Book began to glow a golden color. A golden cloud emerged from The Book and swirled around Yen Sid's deer form. They watched as the cloud completely surrounded him. The cloud began to glow brighter and more luminous for a second before the cloud dispersed. When the mist cleared, instead of a buck, a tall stern looking man with bushy gray eyebrows and a long beard dressed in royal blue robes stood there instead. Yen Sid looked down at his body and peered at his hands, flexing his fingers before he nodded his approval at his apprentice. "Excellent job, Mickey," he said. He patted his chest and arms. "Everything appears to be where it is supposed to be."
"Master!" Mickey cried. He raced towards Yen Sid and flung his arms around him in a tight hug. Yen Sid looked surprisingly touched at the gestured for a moment before he cleared his throat. "Yes, yes that's quite enough, Mickey!" He cleared his throat and turned towards Sophia. "Well, what do you think?" he asked holding out his arms.
Sophia shrugged. "Eh, I might have liked you better as a deer." Yen Sid looked shocked for a few moments before he chuckled briefly.
"Well come on then," Yen Sid said. "We still have lots to do if we're going to reunite The Circle."