Give Me Your Riches: Chapter Three

A bell chimed merrily as the door to The Witch'n Kitch'n opened to admit Cedric and Sofia. Lucinda was in a chair behind the counter, balancing on the back two legs of her chair, a booted foot resting against the lip of the counter. She held a book in one hand and mindlessly twirled her wand in the other. The sound of the chime caused her to look up and a broad smile immediately crossed her face.

"Sofia!" The enthusiasm of the greeting gave the false implication that it had been months rather than weeks since Sofia's last visit. The book snapped shut and the front legs of the chair hit the ground, propelling Lucinda up and then around the counter to hug her dear friend. Lucinda had not changed much over the years. She was taller than Sofia with long raven hair tumbling down her back in wild waves. Her emerald green eyes belied a devious disposition, but her heart was not filled with any true malice. Lucinda had gone down her own path of helping and healing, thus breaking a centuries-long tradition of wicked witch-ing in her family. She had opened this shop, which Sofia had convinced her not to call The Bitch'n Witch'n Kitch'n, and dedicated her life to mixing healing salves and weaving Anti-Hex magic. She did all her work in exchange for anything but money. It was for this reason that her shop door never squeaked and was filled near to bursting with warm bread and sweet treats; payments she was eager to share with visitors.

Lucinda embraced Sofia and then passed her a hand-pie. "You have to try these. Mrs. Hanshaw brought them by this morning for helping their new calf with a cold. I don't know what's in them but they're amazing."

Sofia, knowing better than to protest, took a dainty bite and replied with an appreciative "Mmm" for the gooey mix of pastry and cherries. She swallowed and tucked the hand-pie away in her basket for later. "So how's your mom?"

"Disappointed in my deviation from wickedness, as usual," Lucinda replied cheerfully. "But she does still help with the more complicated spells, so I can't complain."

"And how's the shop?"

"Surprisingly quiet, as usual," Lucinda replied with the same amount of cheerfulness. She then continued under her breath. "Mostly in thanks to your sullen, surly Sorcerer over there." Cedric had given them a wide berth for their conservation, instead concentrating on investigating potion ingredients displayed in large clear jars on the opposite side of the shop. Sofia hit Lucinda's arm playfully.

"He's not my Sorcerer." Sofia replied in an equally hushed tone. "I'm his Apprentice. He's my Master."

"Oooo, even better." Lucinda wiggled her eyebrow at Sofia suggestively and Sofia sighed, trying to act dismissive towards Lucinda's suggestion while hoping she missed the tinge of red spreading across her cheeks. Cedric, still across the room, cleared his throat pointedly and Sofia snapped back to attention.

"Oh, right - do you have these ingredients?" She handed her smirking friend the list.

Lucinda's shop was well-stocked. She swiftly procured the requested items and handed them over to Sofia, who then brought them to Cedric for inspection. He judged each one, pinching the newt tails to watch their spring-back, smelling the wasp stings to assess the residual pollen deposits, and rubbing the tiniest bit of weevil paste between two fingers to check its grit. Satisfied, he nodded to Sofia who nodded to Lucinda who then wrapped the items in neat paper packages. Cedric maintained a detached distance the entire time. Sofia had never gotten a straight answer from Cedric as to why, but there was a certain level of animosity between Sorcerers and Witches. Sofia suspected it had to do with a Witch's generally unschooled, innate magical ability as opposed to the amount of work and study Sorcerers committed to find their full potential.

Loading the items into her basket, Sofia tried, and failed, to give Lucinda coins in payment. Lucinda waved her off.

"I didn't bring anything else to pay you with, Luce."

"Just come by for afternoon tea and bring your mom's biscuits. Tomorrow?"

Grudgingly defeated, Sofia nodded and then the two embraced again. Sofia left the shop with Cedric following behind her. He paused to give Lucinda the smallest bow he could manage in respect for the Witch's wares before following Sofia out. Their task in town completed, Sofia fell behind, deferring to Cedric, hoping he'd chose the longer path back to the castle.

Their return was immediately interrupted by the panicked scream of a horse. Sofia stepped farther into the road to try and see the source of the sound when she suddenly felt Cedric's arms wrap around her and pull her backwards roughly. A horse-drawn cart came flying around the bend, flinging its driver through the air to fall into the nearby bushes. The horse and cart were moving so quickly, time had barely allowed Cedric to pull Sofia out of harm's way, much less cast a spell. Cedric's arms lingered around Sofia's waist, holding her to him, as they stared at the cart. The horse continued to scream as it collided with a fruit stand and its vendor. Trapped by the collision, the horse finally stopped moving. Sofia barely had the chance to notice the surprising strength within Cedric's lithe frame as his body protectively pressed against hers before she shook herself out of the shock and broke from his arms. He didn't fight her. Scooping her skirts into her arms, Sofia started with quick steps and was running within a few paces, unphased by her flashing petticoats.

Lucinda had run out of her shop. Sofia passed her on her way to the crash.

"The driver was thrown out on the bend," she pointed, breathless, and kept on running. Sofia didn't wait to see if Lucinda started in the direction she had pointed; she knew the Witch would help.

The crash looked nearly as terrible as it had sounded. Mashed fruit and shattered wood made a sharp, colorful mess on the road. The macerated apples gave the air a pleasant scent that didn't match the scene before Sofia's eyes. The horse struggled against the harness that still connected him to the remains of the cart, causing it to rock back and forth atop the fruit vendor who cried in agony with every shift of the structure. Sofia ran to face the frightened horse. Fearlessly, she put hands on either side of his nose and spoke to the animal. She had long ago mastered the art of disguising her full-on conversations with creatures as common animal sensitivity.

"You have to stop moving now," she demanded in a firm, calm voice. "I know you're scared, but every time you move you're hurting someone under the cart that you're attached to."

"I'm what? What happened!? Untie me, untie me!" The horse had stopped bucking but his eyes stayed wild with fear.

"I'm going to untie you, but you have to promise not to run away." She stroked the horse's long nose with one hand and drew her wand with the other. "Look at me. Do you promise?"

Frightened eyes stilled and the horse gave what could only be described as an affirmative snort. A crowd had gathered, watching with morbid curiosity. Sofia ignored them, finding Cedric and locking eyes with him. She inclined her head to the cart and he nodded. Sofia exhaled and pointed her wand at the ropes connecting the horse to the cart.

"Cis Chorda." Sofia waved her wand expertly and a short red line of energy extended from it to cleanly cut the ropes. At the same time, Cedric waved his wand and lifted the busted cart and stand into the air and out of the way. It seemed as casual a motion to him as stirring sugar into tea. Not for the first time, Sofia felt a shudder run down her spine as she witnessed a small sample of her Master's effortless power. Sofia grabbed the horse's reins and passed them to a bystander before stepping over spilled apples to crouch beside the wounded man. He had been pinned by the fruit stand but didn't look as though he had been crushed. A long cut on his forehead leaked blood over a pale, pain stricken face and dark bruises were already beginning to form across his arms. The look of horror in his eyes, however, was due to the bone protruding through his shin and pant leg. Sofia settled down beside him, smiling gently and speaking in a soothing tone.

"My name is Sofia. You're going to be okay I'd like to cast a spell on you to see the extent of your injuries. Is that okay?" She didn't flinch at the blood and maintained a calm demeanor.

The man whimpered, fear in his eyes, but gave her the slightest of nods. Sofia took her wand and pressed the tip of it against the man's temple.

"Ana Medicus." A soft white light first trickled, then flowed out of Sofia's wand to rest across the entire length of the injured man. It rose several inches above his body in a perfect outline. Sofia shifted up onto her knees and thoroughly examined the outline: the bruises on his arms highlighted in orange light, the cut in yellow, and the broken bone in the shin a dark, angry red. A few other places were trivially injured, barely off-white in color. The broken bone was the only thing that required immediate attention. Focused on her analysis, she barely noticed Cedric's approach.

"The Witch says the driver will have a few days of recovery ahead of him, but he should be fine." He looked at the analysis spell Sofia had cast appreciatively, focusing on the red light. "What's next for this fellow?"

Sofia looked to the man sympathetically, smiling reassuringly. "I'm about to use some words that sound a lot scarier than they are, okay? Just rest easy, you're in the best hands possible with Master Cedric here." She looked back to Cedric and spoke with confident authority. "It's a compound fracture of the tibia. The other injuries are relatively superficial and should heal independently of magical intervention. But the fracture could use your attention now." Sofia took her wand away from its contact with the man's temple and the light-form of his figure scattered away like dandelion seeds in the wind. Her work done, she sat back on her heels and moved to pocket her wand before she was interrupted.

"What are you doing, Apprentice?" Cedric looked down at her, his face impassive.

Certain she hadn't done anything wrong, Sofia looked to her Master, confusion crowding her expression.

"You'll need your wand out to heal this gentleman."

Sofia's eyes widened, first in startlement and then disbelief. Her concern for the poor man's fear at her words and actions was lost against her incredulity at Cedric's request. No, not request - order. He was her Master and when he said for her to do something magical, it was her task to obey him. "What?!" she hissed at Cedric under her breath as she sprung to her feet. "I've never done anything like this! Fingers and-and toes! I've watched you heal at least two wounds this serious which-"

"Which is why you are ready to perform the task yourself," Cedric said, finishing her sentence for her. His tone, while not cruel, left no room for argument.

Sofia tried to swallow her rising panic. She slowly sunk back down to her knees, the reality of the task ahead weighing her down to the ground. She spared what she hoped was a reassuring smile for the sake of the injured man and tried to steady her shaking hand as she tightened her grip around her wand.

"Um...I'm going to be honest with you, sir," she squeaked out, "this is going to hurt. You might pass out from the pain. But you'll be as good as new when I'm done." There was a slight tremble in her voice, but Sofia tried to sound strong. She didn't notice Cedric had moved to stand behind her until she felt his hand on her shoulder. She relaxed at his touch, serenity settling over her. Sofia's hand stopped shaking. She took a deep breath. Her face adopted a look of practiced concentration and she pointed her wand at the protruding bone, speaking the words of the spell with clear conviction.

"Osteo Emantur."

Sofia's inner spark of magic ignited. She could feel it rushing through her, prickling across her skin. She glowed softly, though it was hard to see in the bright light of day. It was an intoxicating feeling, causing her eyes to flutter slightly before she was able to recapture her concentration. Seconds later, the prickling increased, but this time with a foreign sensation. The man had also started to glow across his entire body before all the light coalesced around his shin. Now the work began.

Healing was an exhaustive magic, even for an experienced user. It mostly drew upon the inner spark of magic within the subject of the healing. "Everyone has an inner well of magical power," Cedric lectured inside her memories. "For some, the depths are unending. For others, it is more shallow than a soup bowl. Untouched, it's the thing that sparks a person forward in the last legs of a race, what causes a parent to lift impossible weights to save their child. It's what brings those who are sick back from the brink and helps them to heal. Healing "without magical intervention" isn't truly healing without magic at all. When casting healing magic, you must draw upon your subject's well. I cannot emphasize this to you enough: regardless of how good your intention, if you try and take on the task of healing them with solely your own power, it will be twice as costly and bring their suffering onto yourself. This leaves you less capable for some period of time, depending on the depth of their well, your well, and the extent of the healing needed. Without any of their strength involved, the subject will lack all ability to heal independently once the spell is through. Permanent results require a little of you and a little of them."

Fortunately, Sofia was tending to this injury quickly enough and the man was strong enough that she was able to easily draw on his well, barely touching her own. She chanted a hushed, rhythmic song. It was enthralling, drawing the attention of every surrounding creature. The visible light pulsed to the rhythm of the song, slow and familiar like a melody absently hummed without knowing where it was first heard. The air around Sofia was palpably tense. Beads of sweat started to form on her brow as the song grew in strength but not in volume. Wisps of hair gradually shook free from her braid and hung around her head, but she paid them no mind. The only sound she could hear was the hum of her spell. Time lost meaning. Nothing existed but Sofia and this injury.

There was a loud SNAP as the bone returned to its proper place. The man screamed, a low and tortured sound, and fell unconscious. Sofia's look of single-minded focus didn't change. The heavy lifting was done, but the next would require her knowledge and delicate work. Sofia moved for the first time since beginning the spell to hover her hand above the now-smooth bone. She gently started manipulating her fingers, delicately lacing the skin and sinew back together without coming in contact with the man. It looked as though she was doing needlepoint in the air with one practiced hand. There was a misconception about magic that one lazy wave of the wand combined with a few funny words was all the effort required to change fate's design. That delusion couldn't be farther from the truth. Once repaired, the body would know how to act but every vein and nerve needed to be directed by someone who had memorized human anatomy.

A smooth shin covered in new skin and caked with dried blood peered out of ripped pants. The glowing ceased. The song stopped. Sofia sat back on her heels and wiped the back of her hand across her brow. Claps started to slowly break out around her, growing into a crescendo of applause. A woman appeared beside the man, taking Sofia's free hand and thanking her profusely, tears wetting her cheeks. Sofia gave her a polite, if slightly cursory, nod. Lucinda appeared on Sofia's other side to help her to her feet.

"That was amazing," Lucinda whispered in her ear, astonishment clear in her voice. "I had no idea you were so talented at healing, Sofia. You're incredible."

"Thank you," Sofia said mechanically, her voice heavy with fatigue. She was satisfied with her work, tired as she was, but still felt incredibly put-out for being put on the spot by Cedric. Her eyes darted around the crowd to find him so she could march up to him and give him a piece of her mind, Master or not.

Cedric stood away from the crowd, having moved away once it was clear that Sofia had matters well in-hand. He knew she didn't feel ready, but he also knew the kind of push she needed to access her own strength and power. It was a stern kind of encouragement that Cedric himself had always longed for and was determined to pass on to someone else. Sofia's innate ability to heal is what had opened him to the idea of taking her on as his Apprentice in the first place.

It was a summer day. Sofia was fifteen and in Cedric's tower trying to coax him to come to an official dinner as her guest. Wormwood suddenly flew through the window and collapsed, beaten and bloodied. It looked as though he had been attacked by a larger animal. Cedric flew to work, grabbing spellbook after spellbook, trying to find the right solution to aid his Familiar. Sofia tenderly picked Wormwood up and held him in her hands, stroking him gingerly. Cedric sensed raw and unadulterated magic and his head snapped up from his search. His eyes found Sofia glowing softly, eyes closed, unwittingly healing the bird. When she was through, Wormword, cawing quietly, timidly stretched his wings and Sofia stared down at him, slack-jawed. They both looked to her amulet first, but it hadn't activated. This power came directly from Sofia herself. If Cedric hadn't cared for her before, he was unable to deny the girl affection after that moment.

Whereupon that day Cedric had felt grateful to Sofia for her unteachable healing prowess, Cedric now felt pride and satisfaction at her healing skill. Helped up by her Witch friend, he watched Sofia search for him in the crowd. Once she found him, daggers shot from her eyes. She barreled towards him through the dispersing crowd. Once a few feet away from him, Sofia opened her mouth to speak. Before a word escaped her lips, Cedric gave Sofia a definitive, respectful bow of the head. She stopped immediately, words trapped like cotton in her mouth. That bow was very nearly the respect of an equal. Truthfully, Sofia was Cedric's superior in this school of magic, though she still required training to meet her full potential. The respect he gave her was earned and deserved. Flabbergasted, Sofia stood frozen as she watched Cedric collect her basket, hold it himself, and indicate the longer path back to the castle.

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A/N: The inconsistencies of the magic systems in StF drive me nuts. I've elected to ignore essentially every magic 'rule' in the show and input my own, at least when it comes to spell casting. I'm just using basic Latin, nothing fancy.

Updated: 6/30/17