All Aboard

Summary: Chrysta sends Sofia on an Undercover Protector Mission to investigate strange magical occurrences at a boarding school, and her mentor and siblings get pulled along for the ride.

Disclaimer: I only own the characters featured at the boarding school.

A/N: And now, we're off to boarding school! :D Two of the names (specifically Cedric's and Ambers) that I've chosen for their undercover personalities are two of my favorite names. 😉 Anyway, the Undercover Protector who shows up in this chapter is from my story "Never Enough," and will also be a major character in my story "Adventures in Magic." Enjoy!

Chapter List:

1: Protective Instincts

2: Intervention

3: Parental Agreement

4: Boarding Abroad

5: Magic Words

6: Claire Lois XIV

7: Hidden in Plain Sight

8: Down with the Dame

9: Safe and Sound

*Story*

Chapter 4: Boarding Abroad

The next morning, the quartet met outside near a spare flying coach (sans horse), which Cedric had already enchanted. He placed their bags inside the coach before helping each of the royal children inside.

"So, where is our destination?" Cedric asked as he tapped his wand against his hand.

Sofia passed some information to him. "We're going to Le Calcaire Boarding School in France."

"I've heard that's a rather prestigious magical school," the sorcerer responded as he looked over everything Sofia had written down. "All right, I'll get our course set."

After getting the enchanted flying coach on the path toward the boarding school, Sofia finally decided it was time to divulge the undercover names to the others.

"Okay, here are the names." She glanced up at Amber. "Your name is Desiree."

Amber grinned and flipped her hair playfully. "It even sounds mysterious, but it also sounds so classy. Perfect!" She laughed as her brother rolled his eyes.

"James, your undercover name is Stefan."

"I met a kid named Stefan once," the boy remarked. "He liked frogs and smelled like cheese." He snickered. "He was actually a pretty cool guy."

Sofia shook her head before turning to Cedric. "Mr. Cedric, your undercover name is Tobias."

"Tobias…" He pondered the name. "It sounds like the name of an esteemed leader."

"And what exactly would you be leading?" Amber teased. "An army of enchanted flying coaches?"

"You say that like it's a bad thing, Princess Amber," the sorcerer retorted with a chuckle. He looked toward his apprentice. "And what is your name going to be?"

"I'll be Kalina." She gestured among the group. "According to the files, none of us are 'related.' Instead, we're chosen transfer students who applied for a scholarship to the school and received it."

"And how did you manage that?" Cedric asked curiously.

Sofia grinned sheepishly. "We all have our secrets, Mr. Cedric."

He eyed her curiously before shrugging. "Hmm."

The journey took roughly three hours to complete before the group found themselves in France. From the windows, they admired the beauty of the landscapes and the grand buildings.

"I think I see the school," Sofia pointed out before turning to Cedric. "Go ahead and drink your youth potion."

He nodded and withdrew the potion from his robe. "Just so you are all aware, this potion lasts three days, and I didn't have any extra. So, I'm rather hoping that this mission of yours won't take that long."

The princess smiled uncertainly as he put the bottle to his lips and began drinking. "You and me both…"

After a few seconds, Cedric transformed into Little Cedric, who seemed a bit dazed.

"Wow," Cedric murmured, shaking his head. "I don't think I'll be drinking anymore youth potions for a while after this."

"Why?" James wondered. "What happened?"

"I got a little disoriented. But I'll be all right." He placed the empty bottle into his bag before pouting. "My feet no longer touch the floor."

Sofia giggled, playfully nudging him. "Welcome to my world."

Upon arrival, Cedric cast a spell to hide the horseless coach in a nearby wooded area. Afterward, the four friends entered the rather intimidating-looking school, which was surrounded by tall oaks and shrouded in ivory. There were statues of various famous wizards and warlocks from centuries past. Even one of Merlin stood front and center at the entrance.

"We need to sign in with the headmistress," Sofia informed them as she looked over her information from Chrysta. "Lady Lacroix."

"Weird name," James commented with a distracted tone as he continued looking around at all the statues.

"She's French, dear brother," Amber remarked before grabbing his collar and turning him around in the direction that the others were now walking. "Pay attention and don't get lost."

"Yes, Desiree," he teased, snickering.

The headmistress's office was every bit as daunting as the outside of the building. It was large, pale blue, and had every wall covered with bookcases. In the center of the room was a huge wooden desk with various items atop it, each organized and neat. And at the desk sat a woman with her red hair tied into a bun, spectacles framing her face and covering her sea green eyes, and an immaculate black business suit, showing that she was, in fact, the woman in charge.

"May I help you?" the woman asked in her heavy French accent as the children were ushered in by another woman, who shut the door behind them.

"Um, hi," Sofia began as she realized that the others had no intention of speaking. "Are you Lady Lacroix?"

The redhead smiled patiently and gestured toward the nameplate on her desk. "Indeed. How may I help you, children?"

"We're here from that scholarship program—the four of us were chosen to attend the school. I'm Kalina, and these three are Desiree, Stefan, and Tobias."

"Oh, of course! Our scholarship winners." She stood up and walked over to them, smiling gently as she knelt to their level. "Le Calcaire is fortunate to have the best and the brightest, and no doubt you are. I'm glad such young, brilliant minds are willing to learn our curriculum and its ties to the world of magic."

"Magic," James whispered to his twin. "Knowing my luck, I'll end up turning us into toads."

Amber cringed at the thought before nudging him to get him to hush, which he did.

"Well, then," Lady Lacroix began as she stood, "let me show you to your rooms. Being so late in the year, I consider the four of you extremely lucky. We have two remaining rooms directly across from each other. The girls will be in 117, and the boys will be in 118." She handed each of them a key to their designated room assignments. "Breakfast is at 6:00 AM each morning in the food hall, which is in the center of the school. Just follow the signs. You will all share the same schedule, which will be in your rooms awaiting you. Also, as the day is at an end already, you will begin your classes tomorrow."

"That's good," Amber sighed, "because that journey was tiring."

Lady Lacroix laughed warmly before guiding them from her office and to the student hallway, stopping at the crossway to their rooms. "Now, before I leave you, I'll explain a few rules and expectations we have here. First, curfew is 8:30, and there is a room check at 9:00. If you're not in at your designated time, you will be dismissed from the school. We are also a no-tolerance school, so any unsightly displays or demonstrations of violence will not be tolerated. You are expected to attend all classes and complete all work. Any other rules you will find in your packets inside, which also contain your course texts. Any questions?"

James's hand shot up.

The red-haired woman blinked. "Yes?"

"What time do we eat tonight?" He grinned sheepishly as his stomach suddenly growled, causing him to blush. "I'm, uh… Kind of hungry."

"Ugh, Stefan," Amber groaned, emphasizing his fake name. Her brother was so embarrassing sometimes.

Lady Lacroix just smiled kindly. "Supper will begin at 5:30 PM. Lunch is served daily at 11:45 AM. Any other questions?" Seeing the children shaking their heads, she nodded. "Welcome to Le Calcaire. I hope you enjoy." With that, she turned and left.

The quartet decided to investigate their rooms, which were minimalistic to say the least. Two twin beds per room with a shared nightstand between them were the highlight of the rooms. Each had a large window with dark green curtains and two desks designed for study purposes. The color scheme was rather neutral: beige and gray. Any hope of individuality was immediately out the window.

"Congratulations, Sofia," Amber remarked sarcastically. "You've landed us in the most boring undercover mission bedrooms possible."

Sofia gave her sister a playful grin. "I aim to disappoint." She turned as the boys entered. "Is the room you guys are sharing the same as ours?"

"Of course not," Cedric scoffed. "In our room, we have yellow pillowcases." He grinned.

"We're gonna unpack and take a nap," James informed the girls. "What are you guys going to do?"

"I think I'll do the same," Amber admitted with a yawn.

Sofia nodded. "Eventually, I'll get around to it. I want to look over this information first."

A while later, while the other three were sleeping, Sofia decided to do some investigating. Chrysta had told her that an Undercover Protector was at the school, and she had every intention of finding that person.

The hallways were pretty ordinary as well, just like the student rooms. She had to wonder if it was done on purpose. However, there were at least lines of portraits to view in the halls.

At one point, she was caught off guard by a hushed whisper from one of the dark corridors.

"Princess Sofia!"

Chills ran down the girl's spine. Aside from her siblings and Cedric, no one here knew her real name. "W-Who's there?" A magically-enhanced light from a wand illuminated the corridor, and Sofia breathed a sigh of relief as she instantly recognized the person. "Dexter, you scared me!"

Dexter, a part-time Undercover Protector for Mystic Isles, had helped her out once before, when discovering the disturbance in Rudistan and the link to Mayezeiya. Now, it appeared he was doing much the same. He smiled, his brown eyes reflecting against the light. He looked the same: dark hair swept back into a half-ponytail, a star-themed uniform, and a kind demeanor. "I was wondering when you would arrive."

"My friend, my siblings, and I left Enchancia this morning," she explained. "They insisted on coming with me, and trust me, I had to dodge a lot of questions so that they wouldn't discover my secret as a Protector. That's…kind of hard, to be honest."

He shrugged. "I can imagine. Plus, being a princess on top of that… I'm honestly surprised you've been able to keep at it as long as you have without the royal guard discovering."

"Yeah… I have my ways." She suddenly became a bit more serious as she approached him. "So, what do I need to know?"

"I have these for you." He handed her a folder full of documents before proceeding his explanation. "There have been reports of students at this school either losing energy or losing all of their magic permanently. That's the worst part, really, is the magic loss. Whoever is responsible is also apparently draining magic from every item possible: wands, pendants, enchanted paintings—you name it. As for the kids, many of them, after being drained, are seen walking around like lifeless, empty vessels…which, let me tell you, is rather scary."

Sofia clutched the documents to herself, listening intently.

"The administration either hasn't noticed or may not even care."

"Really?" She blinked. "Lady Lacroix seemed nice enough. Maybe she's just unaware."

"Yeah, maybe." He tapped the documents. "Your job is to get to the bottom of this: who's doing this, and why?"

"Right…"

"Sofia!"

She turned, hearing her sister's voice. She sighed as she saw Amber waving at her from the other end of the long hallway. Turning back to Dexter, she smiled apologetically. "Sorry, got to go. My sister tends to get a little impatient if she's kept waiting."

He chuckled. "I get it. Good luck and stay safe." With that, he vanished.

Sofia hurried back to Amber, who looked perplexed. "What's wrong, Amber?"

"Nothing. You just seemed to disappear on me." She glanced at her sister's arms, which encased the important documents. "So… Are you going to tell me what's really going on?"

She nodded. "It's exactly what I told you guys. But the Protectors sent me to see if I can solve this problem; you guys just happen to be here as well this time."

"I see…"

"Please don't tell James or Mr. Cedric," Sofia requested, sighing.

"I can understand not telling James," Amber began with a roll of her eyes, "but I'm surprised you haven't mentioned any of this to Cedric yet. It doesn't seem like something you would keep from him. You two are very close, after all."

"I know, and that's why I want to keep it a secret for now." She frowned. "I'm not ready. I want to keep him safe, and not just because it's my role as a Protector—because he's my friend and I care about him, and if anything happened to him…"

The blonde girl smiled softly before reaching over and placing a hand on her shoulder. "I know. You're always keeping him safe, even last year with all that mess that happened. I won't say anything to him, or to James."

Sofia smiled and nodded. "Thanks, Amber."

Together, they headed back to their rooms, neither one noticing that they were being watched.

To be continued…