Adventures in Magic
Disclaimer: I do not own Sofia the First or any of the characters/locations affiliated with it. The original characters introduced in various chapters belong to me.
A/N: I know a lot of you are concerned for Sofia. You'll find out what's going on with her in a few chapters. Meanwhile, it's time to see some characters that rarely show up in my stories. 😉 Also, this chapter is filled with pure fluff! You have been warned. *eyes MarionetteJ2X* :D Oh, this chapter is relatively short compared to the others, but it's mostly fluff and silly stuff. :D Enjoy it while you can, though, because like I said... It's going to start getting a little more serious soon! ;)
Chapter 10
Fairy Funny
Summary: After visiting with Dante and his family, Cedric and Sofia get lost on the way to their next location and stop to camp for the evening. They're in for quite a surprise when three familiar fairies show up to lend a helping hand.
The next few days were great for the friends. Time spent with the Namilean family was precious time. It meant getting to see how much Dante had improved as a sorcerer (which was a lot), and it also meant getting to know Princess Seraphina better. But even more importantly, it meant fawning over Isadora while she was still so little. Or, as Cedric liked to call her…
"She's such a tiny little poppet, isn't she?"
Sofia glanced toward her mentor, confused. "A puppet?"
He chuckled as the baby lay on her blanket on the plush carpet of Princess Seraphina's and Dante's bedroom, her curious purple eyes scanning her surroundings. "Poppet. It's a term of endearment, usually used for girls. My Grammy used to call Cordelia that when we were little."
The Enchancian princess giggled softly. "I think it's the first time I've ever heard it." She then smiled gently as she caught his eye. "Or the first time I've seen you so enamored by a baby."
He blushed mildly as the others in the room laughed. "Forgive me for finding an infant adorable. When you think about it, she's truly at the perfect age: she's not old enough to argue or use sarcasm, but she can still smile and melt peoples' hearts. That's talent."
Sofia gave him a prying look. "Why do I feel like that was a dig at me?"
He chuckled and playfully nudged her as she leaned against him. "I'm only kidding, Sofia."
She smiled toward him. "I know."
"So, are you two planning on heading out in the morning?" Dante asked as he picked up the babbling baby, gently patting her back as she rested her head on his shoulder.
"Yes," Cedric answered as Sofia yawned. "As much as we've enjoyed being able to spend time with you and your family, we have a schedule to keep."
"We should make plans to get together again sometime," the older princess suggested. "Maybe next year, when Issy is a little older?" She grinned. "I'd actually love for you guys to come to her first birthday party."
"When is her birthday?" Sofia wondered, having missed that detail.
"April 2nd, like my mom," Dante beamed. He glanced toward Cedric and smiled. "Would you like to hold her, Mr. Cedric? You're the only one who hasn't so far."
"Oh, no, Dante," he insisted, waving his hands. "I'm not overly familiar with babies."
"Are you kidding?" Sofia laughed. "Babies love you, Mr. Cedric! When we went to the marketplace a few months ago, that little baby with her mom stared at you the whole time. When you turned to leave, she started crying." She giggled as she glanced back at the Namilean couple. "He had to conjure her a doll so that she'd stop crying. It was so cute!"
"You say 'cute.' I say, 'bewildering and slightly frightening.'" He sighed as he caught sight of the tiny infant princess eyeing him quietly. "Oh, very well… This one time."
Dante chuckled and moved toward him, carefully easing his daughter into his friend's arms. He noted the nervous look on Cedric's face and grinned. "She doesn't bite, Mr. Cedric. …Not yet anyway. No teeth."
Cedric gave the other sorcerer a pointed look, causing the girls to laugh. "Oh, that's comforting, Dante."
Princess Seraphina smiled as her daughter cooed happily and reached up, patting Cedric's face. "I think it's safe to say that she likes you, Mr. Cedric."
He smiled and nodded, placing his hand over the tiny hand against his cheek. "I suppose so." He watched as the little girl curled her fingers around his index finger. "Find my finger interesting, do you, little one?"
Sofia grinned toward the other two. "And he says he's not good with babies."
Isadora yawned once before drifting off to sleep, still holding onto Cedric's finger like it was her security blanket.
"I think it's safe to say that she adores you," Princess Seraphina informed the sorcerer, giggling.
Cedric sighed, a calm smile finding its way to his face. "It would seem so, Princess Seraphina…"
The next morning, Cedric and Sofia bid farewell to Namile and its inhabitants before heading off yet again. The next several days would encompass trips to some of the lesser-known kingdoms: Birchnacht, Hindsoore, Laindstrohm, and Valdorno.
"I don't think we even studied those at Royal Prep," Sofia told her friend as they were in the AutoCoach.
"That's likely the case," Cedric affirmed. "These kingdoms aren't as well known. In fact, had they not been on the list, I honestly would have completely forgotten about them."
"Which one are we going to first?"
"Laindstrohm."
The teen frowned as she looked over the list. "And you know where you're going, right?"
"Certainly." He smiled proudly. "If my calculations are correct, we should be there in forty-five minutes."
Forty-five minutes passed, and there was no sight of the kingdom in question. Another thirty minutes passed, and still no kingdom. Below were several acres of land with fully-grown trees and rushing rivers and streams, yet no kingdom was to be found.
"Are you sure we're going the right way?" Sofia asked again, turning the map every direction she could think of to attempt to make sense of it.
Cedric groaned as he leaned back against the coach seat. "I think we're lost, actually."
"Lost?!" She gasped. "Mr. Cedric, we're in the middle of nowhere, it's getting late, and we don't know where we are?"
He sighed. "It would seem that way." Seeing her perplexed expression, he smiled to try to ease her nerves. "Look, it's fine. Let's just land somewhere down there and make camp for the evening. We can continue on our way tomorrow once I've gotten my bearings."
She nodded, feeling a little better that they weren't going to continue onward, possibly getting even more lost. "Okay."
They soon touched down on the bank along a huge river, where they spied a deer with her fawn drinking peacefully. The mountains in the distance painted a beautiful scenic view of browns, purples, and greens reflecting in the sun. There were numerous plants, particularly berry bushes and trees, growing near the rushing river. All in all, it was a wonderful sight to behold.
"All we're missing is a Native princess trying to decide which course to take when the river comes to a fork," Sofia joked, though she noted the look of confusion on her mentor's face and giggled. "Never mind. Are we going to set up camp here, or…?"
"See, I had an idea." He gestured between a few trees. "I could actually conjure us some hammocks, and we could use those for sleeping this evening." He smiled as she gasped in excitement. "And if you could gather some kindling, you know the fire spell. We could also get a fire going."
"Mr. Cedric, you're a genius!" She laughed as he brushed his fingers against his robe in a proud manner.
"Well, I don't like to brag…"
"That's the biggest lie I've ever heard."
The two friends were startled by a rather familiar voice nearing them. Turning, they saw a few acquaintances they never fathomed they'd see in the middle of nowhere.
"Ms. Merryweather?" Sofia gasped, laughing in disbelief. "Ms. Fauna? Ms. Flora? What are you doing here?"
"I take it you two don't know where you are," Flora chuckled.
"What was your first clue?" Cedric asked, still sourly glaring toward Merryweather, his unofficial arch-fairy-foe. Of the three fairies, he got along with her the least, sometimes even less than Miss Nettle. She just knew how to push his buttons, and unfortunately, she used it to her advantage sometimes.
"You're in Peri Vadisi," Fauna responded with her usual chipper yet airy voice. "It's Turkish for 'Fairy Valley.'" She giggled as she gestured around. "We gather here with many other fairies throughout the Ever Realm annually, and we enjoy our meetings together."
"Did Miss Nettle come?" Sofia asked curiously.
"Good heavens, no," Merryweather scoffed. "Reformed or not, she's too much of a showoff with her Nettle Drops and her loud mouth. Not to mention the Honeycomb Incident last year." She shuddered as the two Enchancians blinked at her. "Don't ask."
"I don't know," the princess countered with a soft smile. "She's actually pretty nice now, and she's really fun to be around if you give her a chance."
"And how have you been since we last saw you, Sofia?" Flora asked kindly, steering the conversation away from the hot topic of the once-malicious fairy. "How is Ever Realm Academy treating you?"
"It's been great. It's hard work, but I like that. I do miss Royal Prep sometimes though." She grinned as the three fairies nodded. "Mr. Cedric and I have been working a lot together, too. He and I are actually traveling this summer to different kingdoms; he's a Magical Ambassador for Enchancia, and I'm helping him out on the trip."
"She's done more than just help," Cedric argued lightly. "She's the one establishing long-lasting relationships with kingdoms. Networking is her forte. Me, I'm just doing the magical aspect of it all."
"It sounds like it's taken a team effort though," Fauna acknowledged, giggling. "You two always did work well together. I'm glad to see that hasn't changed."
"Yeah," Sofia giggled, smiling toward her mentor, who returned the gesture. "Oh! Maybe you can help us. We're camping here for the night since it's gotten late, but we need to get to a kingdom and got lost somehow. Do you know which direction we need to go to get to Laindstrohm?"
Merryweather rolled her eyes. "Yeah, you're definitely nowhere near it. It's about three hours in that direction." She turned and pointed south.
Cedric laughed nervously as Sofia sighed. "Oops." He shrugged. "I guess I got my directions mixed up then… I suppose we'll just start fresh in the morning."
Sofia beamed toward the fairies. "Would you like to camp out with us tonight, since we're already here? It would be awesome to catch up with you!"
Flora smiled at the invitation. "We'd love that! Right, ladies?"
"Do we have to?" Merryweather grumbled, eyeing Cedric pointedly, before Fauna gently elbowed her. "I mean, we'd be delighted."
Cedric smirked. "I'm sure you would."
"Then it's settled!" Sofia laughed. "I have so much to tell you all."
Fauna smiled as she clasped her hands. "Can't wait to hear it, dear."
With that said, they commenced their evening of camping together.
To be continued…
