Author's note: Kind of a lighthearted chapter, because I felt like they needed a break.
Sofia was already laying in his bed with her back to the door when he walked into the room.
"Goodnight, little one." He said, pulling the covers over her and turning to retreat to his workshop.
"You're not coming to bed?" She asked, not bothering to turn around, but alerted by the sound of his departing footsteps.
"I have more work to do." He told her evenly, although he really didn't have anything so pressing that it couldn't wait until tomorrow.
"It's the middle of the night!" She protested. Cedric was determined not to get into bed with Sofia this time, supposing he'd eventually fall asleep in his armchair, or just stay up all night. It wasn't like he'd been sleeping lately, anyways. If he didn't give in, maybe she'd stop asking to stay overnight.
"I'll be back as soon as I'm finished." He lied, heading for the door again.
"Okay, good luck." She called after him. He thought it was a strange thing to say, but was glad she wasn't trying to stop him from leaving anymore.
"Sofia!" He shouted about ten minutes later, racing back down the stairs and barging into the bedroom. The princess was doing her best to stay perfectly still, pretending to be asleep, but he could hear the sound of her poorly stifled giggles.
"Where is it?" He demanded, advancing a couple of steps towards his bed. More giggling, even less successfully hidden this time. If at any point he believed her innocent of wrongdoing, that idea was gone now.
"I'm not playing, child. Where is it?" He repeated the question, emphasizing each word as he did. Sofia couldn't resist any longer. She glanced over her shoulder to study her friend in the low light of the room.
"Where is what?" She asked, her voice a playful tease, and her eyes wide in feigned innocence. When he glared back at her, she bit her lip to keep from erupting into another fit of laughter.
"Don't be cheeky, you know very well what I mean. Now give it back!" He insisted, taking another step in her direction.
"I have no idea what you're talking about." She continued to play innocent, though she couldn't hide her amusement very well. Another step from Cedric further closed the gap.
"My wand, Sofia! Give me my wand." He reached out his hand, but she had no intention of ending the game just yet.
"I don't have it." She protested. He briefly considered that maybe she hid it somewhere, but he already tore through his workshop looking for it. Besides, she'd been seated at his table the whole time they were upstairs. He was at the edge of the bed now, his hand still reaching out.
"Sofia, give me the wand, or I'm going to..." He faltered, his mind fumbling to come up with a threat that might convince the mischievous girl to do as he said.
"You're going to what, Mr Cee-dric?" She challenged, drawing his name out for added effect, her eyes dancing with merriment. He narrowed his own dark gaze, doing his best to look menacing. He was still trying to think of a good way to finish his statement.
"Give me the wand, or I'm going to take it from you myself." He growled the only thing that came to mind, internally grimacing at how lame the statement sounded. Her expression changed to one he didn't quite recognize, but he didn't get a chance to try and decipher it.
"Try it." She challenged. Cedric didn't know what he was thinking. He wasn't even sure he was thinking. Suddenly, he was on the bed, doing his best to wrestle the girl and retrieve his wand from her.
Sofia was petite, but also athletic, and she gave him a run for his money. A few times she even managed to knock him onto his back, surprising the older man with her strength. Throughout the whole encounter, she was squealing and laughing with glee, clearly enjoying their sparring match. Ultimately, though, his size advantage won out, and he found himself straddling the princess, her wrists pinned to the bed on either side of her head, her hips held down by the weight of his body, both of them panting hard from the exertion.
"Where is it?" He growled again, willing himself to focus on the task at hand instead of getting caught up in the fact that Sofia was underneath him in his bed, her chest heaving as she sucked in deep breaths, her eyes staring up at him half-lidded. They'd done this before, when she was a child and he would tickle her until she collapsed, chasing away the hint of saddness that sometimes tainted her features in quiet moments, but she had grown so much since then, and Cedric was painfully aware of the differences. His gaze trailed back down to the lips that had been on his mind all night, soft, pink, and just slightly parted. He was convinced that more perfect lips had never existed.
His attention was torn away from her mouth to her hand as she stretched slender fingers up under his pillow, slowly producing his wand as they returned to view. He released her wrist to grab it away from her before she had a chance to change her mind.
Flashing him a wicked grin, she stretched her arm all the way out, forcing him to lean forward to reach for it, which brought their bodies closer together. Just as he grazed the wand with his fingertips, she deftly switched it to her pinned hand. He tried to grab it away, but her grasp was firm and strong.
Maintaining his grip on the end of the wand, he lowered his face until he was staring her directly in the eyes, his long, pointed nose nearly making contact with hers.
"Game's over, Sofia. Let go." He commanded her sternly. She shook her head, sticking her tongue out at him.
"Make me." She answered, her voice heavy with playful defiance. All rational thought leaving him, he lowered his lips to claim hers, moving gently against her mouth at first. Sofia raised her free hand and tangled her fingers through the black hair at the back of his head, and Cedric deepened the kiss, giving into the aching need that washed over him.
He pulled back far enough to gently nip at her bottom lip, coaxing her into opening her mouth so his tongue could snake inside, touching against hers gingerly at first, but he grew bolder when she used the hand wrapped in his hair to pull him impossibly closer.
He felt her grip loosen on the wand, but now he was the one unwilling to end this game. He allowed his tongue to explore Sofia's mouth, memorizing the taste and feel of their kiss, and delighting in the little moans and squeaks that escaped the princess. Knowing he would have to come up for air soon, he took the opportunity to grab his wand from her slackened fingers, using the advantage of his longer limbs to hold it up out of her reach as he forced himself to pull away from her mouth.
"I win." He announced, doing his best to look as triumphant as his words sounded, and pulling himself off of the girl. He climbed out of bed and marched out of the room without looking back to see her reaction.
He made it all the way up to the workshop before he slumped down onto the floor, holding his head in his hands. What the blazing hell have I done?
Author's Note: In case anyone is wondering how Sofia got the wand, she grabbed it when his back was turned to her at the end of last chapter. That's why she was in such a hurry to get to his room once he said yes. Knowing her friend as well as she does, I suppose she caught onto his hesitance and took it as insurance, thinking if he couldn't find it he would just give up and come to bed.