Six
Summary: Cedric and Sofia visit the Hexley Hall library to do some research on the Elementals and Master Extorio, only to make a discovery that they weren't expecting.
Disclaimer: I own nothing but the Elementals and Master Extorio!
A/N: Hi, guys! Well, a few people said they missed seeing stories from me, and since it'll be a while before "Weakened Link" can come out (since Deth and I haven't finished our notes yet, due to many different circumstances), I figured I'd give you another 'in between' story. It's just a short and sweet little story, but I hope you like it anyway. 😊 And there's another one in the works as well… lol Though you'll find out more about that later. Until next time! 😉 (Also, this story and the other 'in between' story don't have their own Wix pages, though they are on my Season 2 list on my main site. :D)
*Story*
Cedric and Sofia were in the library at Hexley Hall, several books stacked on their selected table, many opened in front of them while they were each writing down something on pieces of parchment. It was a Saturday evening, meaning no professors or students to deal with, and Headmaster Zeldon had been gracious enough to allow them access to the library for as long as they needed (just so long as they remembered to lock up behind them, which they agreed to).
They were well aware that they had several enemies they had to handle. Those Elementals were no joke, and Captain Zhigo and his crew (minus Butterford and the unfortunately deceased Hopscotch) had just added to their troubles. Granted, the crewmen were less of a concern for them, considering they were now being held captive in a secure facility, thanks to the Conjuror's Board.
Their biggest concern was dealing with those Elementals and their leader, Master Extorio. And while they'd found very few books (or rather, passages in those books) that focused on anything remotely close to the Elementals, they had found a bit more on Master Extorio…
"'Master Extorio first became a threat in the Era of Marcello the Remarkable,'" Cedric read out loud as Sofia lowered her quill to the table and looked over at his book. "'There isn't much known about the entity's background, though much can be said about his irrefutable powers. He expunged an entire army with little more than a single word of unknown origin. However, his powers weakened significantly when he divvied out pieces of his being to accommodate the creation of beings whom he called the Elementals. Together, they destroyed numerous realms, and they sacrificed many of their own or weaker souls for unknown rituals.' Hmm, yes, Malango mentioned all of this so far… Ah, here we are. 'Each of the six Elementals were said to cause chaos, though no one has ever seen the final Elemental, and his or her identity is unknown.' Six… We've seen five, so…"
"You know," Sofia began with a roll of her eyes, "this book would have been a little bit more useful a few months ago… It's interesting how it was here the whole time, tucked away in one of the Hexley Hall bookshelves, and no one ever found it."
"Tell me about it." He read a few more sentences silently before shaking his head. "But it doesn't go into too much more detail, and I'm rather sure it's because no one knew much about any of them: Master Extorio or the Elementals…" He lowered the book to the table before leaning back in his chair, folding his arms. "We don't even know much about them, save for how powerful and dangerous they can be."
The princess shrugged. "Well, that may be, but we've managed to defeat them before."
"Temporarily." He rubbed his temple and sighed. "They've yet to be fully defeated and are still out there somewhere. And I'm a bit worried about this sixth Elemental, to be honest." He counted off on his fingers. "We've seen the fire, water, air, earth, and lightning wielders. What's left of the elements anyway?" He tapped his chin. "Or…is this one a culmination of the powers? Perhaps the…strongest entity?"
"Oh, great." She reached over and closed one of the books before turning the parchment over, picking up her quill, and starting to draw little images on the surface. "Like we haven't seen enough strong 'entities.' What's one more?"
Cedric chuckled, watching her draw a bunny and then a carrot, possibly Clover, before sighing. "We'll just have to face this final one like we have done with all the others…"
"Hmm… I just hope I'm up to it." She lowered the quill and yawned, folding her arms on the table, and resting her head on them. "I've been so tired lately… Not to mention all those fainting spells, or just periods of weakness."
He nodded, reaching out to stroke her hair and rub her back. "I know, my dear… And they seem to have gotten more frequent here recently."
She nodded once, keeping her head on her arms, and sighed. "Do you think it has anything to do with what's been going on with the Elementals? Like…maybe they're somehow taking my energy or something?"
"I'm not so sure about that, Sofia." He trailed his fingers up to her shoulder, drawing small circles there and smiling as she giggled. "I'm not entirely sure how they'd be able to do that anyway."
"Well, they are evil, so…"
He chuckled, withdrawing his hand, smiling as she groaned in mild disappointment. "Sorry, Sofia, but I need to get back to these books."
"You have two hands, Cedric…" She smiled sweetly as he rolled his eyes and picked up one of the books with his right hand while using his left to gently rub her back again. And when she saw him toss her a calm smile, she knew he was perfectly fine with her suggestion.
About an hour later, Sofia had fallen asleep at the table, and Cedric had finished pouring through as many books as he could. He knew they were leaving with not too much more valuable information than they'd started, but at least they knew to be on the lookout for a sixth Elemental. He just wished he knew what to look for…
He put up the books they'd borrowed and slid back into his seat, packing up the rest of the materials they'd brought into a briefcase. He then looked toward Sofia, seeing that she was still asleep. He didn't want to have to wake her up, but they really needed to get home. It was getting dark outside, after all… He smiled mischievously, coming up with an idea.
The sorcerer leaned down toward the princess, kissing her cheek once before trailing his lips to her ear. "Sofia," he whispered softly, tracing his fingers up and down her arm. He smiled softly as she stirred a bit, reacting to the gentle sensations. "It's time to go home, my dear." He then blew softly on the shell of her ear, chuckling as she shivered and opened her eyes, staring at him sleepily. "Sleep well?"
Sofia blushed a bit, realizing that she must have dozed off at some point. And she wasn't sure why she felt so… "Did you…?" She slowly smirked, leaning forward and resting her forehead against his. "You didn't even say 'galleon.'"
"Turns out… I didn't need to." He gestured vaguely, indicating the dark and empty library. "No reason."
She giggled before stretching a bit as she leaned back into her chair. "What time is it?"
"Probably dinnertime. We need to get back to the castle." He stood, pulling her to her feet and taking the briefcase in one hand while cradling her hand in the other. "Maybe we'll find out more about number six eventually." He began walking, guiding her along.
"Cedric?" She smiled as he stopped, and she leaned up some, pressing a kiss to his cheek, causing him to blush this time.
Cedric blinked down at her, noticing her playful grin. "Wh-What was that for?"
"Returning the favor."
He finally smiled, releasing her hand to wrap it around her waist instead, and continued leading her out of the library.
Neither of them noticed the narrowed orb-like eyes, dimly glowing in the darkness, that had been watching them the entire time.
"Number six," a voice hissed in a harsh yet mirthful tone, "at your service…"
The end