Keep Holding On – Avril Lavigne
Weeks turned into months and soon autumn was upon them with a crisp breeze blowing through the afternoon sun. The leaves were turning into warm shades of burnt orange and red, falling to the ground. Cedric had recently begun to argue with Sofia about returning to school and also entering the main part of the castle again. She adamantly refused both. Though they had done well learning to live together this still remained an area of contention between them. Sofia wanted to be homeschooled by a tutor while Cedric felt she needed to return to things as they were before and not hide away from society and her old friends. No matter what he bribed Sofia with she never gave in.
One morning after another argument Cedric retreated to his office above in the castle while Sofia went to the gardens to vent to Clover. Lately he didn't need Baileywick's help as often with regular business. However, Baileywick was still always around up to his usual butler duties making sure everything was running smoothly and orderly.
In the gardens Sofia met up with Clover, Mia, and Robin. They could tell immediately that something was wrong. She plunked down on the ground as tears began to pour down her face. Clover ran over to her as the birds landed on her shoulders all worried about their friend. "I just don't know what to do." She began to explain to her worried friends. "Cedric wants me to return to royal prep but I don't feel ready. I never want to return there. There are too many memories of Amber and James. I'm afraid everyone will ask questions and treat me differently. And it will be so strange and lonely without them."
"Oh Sofia. It will be tough at first. But you have to work through that initial difficult part. And I'm sure everyone will treat you differently. Everyone will probably feel awkward and not know how to treat you. Feeling worried they may say the wrong thing to upset you. It just takes time. But don't you miss your old friends?" Clover asked.
"Yes, I do miss them. But I'm so scared of what it will be like to go back." She said, sniffling.
"We'll all be here for you." Robin and Mia told her. After talking to her friends she felt a little better. They decided to go play in the garden and pick some flowers followed by a picnic, Clovers favorite activity.
That evening during dinner Sofia brought up her decision to Cedric.
"I've given it a lot of thought and I've decided to try to return to royal prep." She said looking down at her plate, not looking at his face. At first he didn't respond, he just watched her waiting to see what was going on inside her mind.
"You say you have decided but your face says otherwise, Sofia. Tell me, what's going on inside your head."
"I'm just worried and scared. But I will give it a try."
"You're very brave, you've already made it so far and through so much, you can make it through this." He reassured her.
"I hope so…" She sighed.
One week later, Sofia was awake and supposed to be getting ready for school. A tear rolled down her cheek. She wiped it away and walked out of her bedroom, grabbing her bag on the way out. Cedric was in the kitchen drinking tea. She walked in there and took a deep breath. With a trembling voice she stated, "Mm-maybe I should… umm… say goodbye to Baileywick before I-I leave…?" She shrugged, looking down at her feet. Cedric dropped his tea cup shattering it, realizing what she was saying.
"Are you sure, Sofia? It won't be too much in one day for you?" He asked, standing up and walking to her.
She looked up into his eyes, "I figured I might as well go all out." He could see her trembling in fear and pulled her in for a hug to comfort her.
"It'll be okay Sofia. You're being so brave. This is how you work through it." Cedric told her, holding her hand. "Are you ready?" He asked. She nodded and they transported above into the castle, he decided to go to his office first rather than one of the main rooms, figuring it's an easier room to start with for her. Luckily for them Baileywick happened to be in there.
When Baileywick saw Sofia he jumped in astonishment. "Sofia?" He yelped. "Good morning, princess! I'm so glad to see you before you leave for school." He told her giving her a warm hug.
"I just wanted to tell you goodbye before I leave." She said nervously looking around.
"Thank you, Princess Sofia." Baileywick said, touched by her thoughtfulness.
Cedric turned to Sofia and asked, "Would you like to walk out to the carriage or would you rather we transport?"
"Transport. I think this is enough for one day. Maybe just a little each day." Sofia suggested, taking Cedric's hand. "Goodbye, Baileywick, I'll see you later."
Once outside, Cedric helped Sofia into the flying coach and assured her the day would be okay, "Everything will be alright Sofia, remember we are connected through the amulet. If you need me at all I will know. The first day will be the hardest. After today it will always be a little easier." He told her. "I'll see you when you get home."
When she arrived at school, Sofia immediately noticed all eyes were on her. People were leaning in and whispering to each other. Sofia held her books tighter to her chest and just continued to walk up the steps with her head down. As she walked into her first class and sat down she could hear the whispers and felt left out. Nobody sat next to her. Her old friends ignored her. All of her teachers treated her as if she were fragile glass and would break easily. They looked at her with pity and spoke to her as if she were a toddler. By time lunch rolled around she felt as if she would go crazy.
There was a tap on her shoulder and she turned around to see a new Princess she didn't recognize standing behind her. "Hi, I'm new this year and thought I'd introduce myself. I'm Princess Gabriella. I noticed you sitting by yourself and thought I'd come join you."
Sofia felt herself relax a little and gave her a warm smile. "Thank you Princess Gabriella, I'm Princess Sofia." She responded.
Suddenly the other girl went pale and said, "Oh my, I'm so sorry, I had no idea. Um, oh, I'm very sorry for your loss Princess Sofia." She mumbled and then walked away awkwardly.
Feeling the tears building up, Sofia couldn't take it anymore. She stood up and ran out of the room, through the hall and out the door. She ran down the steps and through the grass leading towards the wooded forest. She just continued to run as tears began to pour down her face. After a while she stopped running when she was out of breath and her side hurt. At that moment she remembered she had her wand. She pulled it out and used a spell to transport herself far away.
Meanwhile, Cedric was attending to castle business with Baileywick when he felt a tug and warmth from the amulet. He stood up suddenly and said, "Sofia!" And he disappeared in an instant leaving a bewildered and worried Baileywick standing alone.
Cedric slowly approached Sofia from behind who was perched on the edge of a mountain top sobbing her heart out. Sofia heard his footsteps and turned around. "How did you find me?" She asked.
"The amulet." He said as he sat next to her, pulling her close. "What happened, sweetheart?" He asked.
"Everything." She said as she wept into his clothing, getting it wet with her tears. He decided to just give her a moment before asking again. She'd talk when she was ready. A few minutes later she wiped her tears away and told him, "I can't go back to that school, Cedric. I tried, I did. They all treated me as if I have the plague."
Eventually she reiterated the story of how her day had gone and Cedric offered her a few suggestions on how she could have done things differently such as approached people herself or just told everyone she was okay and not to be afraid to talk to her.
"I tried to make you proud today Cedric. I went into the castle and I attended school. But I failed. I didn't make it through the whole day. I'm sorry." She told him, hanging her head.
"Sofia, you couldn't be farther from the truth. I'm so very proud of you. You're the bravest girl I know. You've overcome so much and you keep on going." He reassured her.
"You're just saying that to make me feel better." She said as she looked out into the mountains beyond.
"No, I'm not. I don't lie to you. I've never lied to you." As he said that he realized there was one thing he hadn't been completely honest about and that was about being able to transform into a dragon.
"Do you mean that, Cedric? You've never lied about anything, ever since we've begun living together?" She asked, looking him in the eye as if daring him to lie to her.
He stood up and pulled Sofia up with him, "It's time I told you the truth about something, Sofia. Once I tell you this there will be no secrets or lies between us. Okay? The amulet gave me a power I haven't told you about. Though I think you already have some idea about it, you don't have proof. Well here is your proof. Stay here for a moment and don't be afraid." He told her and began to back away from her. He closed his eyes in concentration and then suddenly he began to transform into a large beautiful purple dragon. The one from her dreams, Sofia realized as she gasped covering her mouth.
Tentatively, she took a step forward and then another until she was just in front of him. She reached a hand out as she smiled and touched his scales on his skin. "You really are the dragon from my dreams. I knew it! I could see it in your eyes. You have the same eyes." Sofia said.
As she moved around his dragon form Sofia would direct him to open his wings for her to examine and he would do as asked. She was fascinated by him. Some parts were dark purple while others were light lavender. Finally, Sofia was facing him again and asked shyly with a big smile, "So, do I get to go for a ride?"
Cedric chuckled causing steam to come out of his giant nostrils, he nodded his head and lowered his body. "You do realize I can talk to you with this ring on right?" Sofia asked him as she climbed on his back. He simply nodded but didn't speak. She would ask him about it later.
She hung on as he leaped off the side of the mountain and they were soaring through the air. Her stomach plunged and she was filled with glee. The wind whipped through her hair and she squealed in delight and happiness. Sofia pointed in a direction towards a river in a valley below and they went flying through the trees to the river. They flew just above the water so she could see the fish below. Eventually they moved on, and Cedric rose above the mountain tops. Breathing in the fresh air Sofia hadn't felt so free and content in a long time. They soared all around in the warm afternoon sun for a long time in the secluded mountains until finally Cedric landed on top of a cliff.
Lowering himself down, Sofia climbed off and was jumping up and down filled with elation "That was the most exciting thing ever! We need to do that again, Cedric!" She said as she leaned in to try and hug his huge, dragon neck. "It was so amazing to fly through the air like that." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath of fresh mountain air, enjoying the feeling of the sun warming her skin. A moment later when she opened her eyes again, Cedric was standing there in his human form in front of her. She smiled at him and jumped into his arms for a big hug, tackling him to the ground causing him to laugh.
"You're getting too big for these kinds of hugs Sofia. I can't quite catch you anymore." He said, trying to catch his breath.
"Are you calling me fat?" Sofia asked, jokingly.
With wide eyes, Cedric began to backtrack, "What? No! NO!"
"Relax, I was kidding." She said as she got up and went to admire the view from the side of the cliff.
"Be careful Sofia." Cedric warned.
"Why, I already know you'd save me." Sofia said with a smile looking at him, putting one foot over the edge as if she were going to jump.
"Don't you dare… you're giving me a heart attack. Step away from the ledge." Cedric said stepping closer to her slowly.
"Maybe we should test how fast your reflexes are?" She asked mischievously. "Fine, not today. But I will another day. Ye be warned." Sofia giggled as she walked away from the cliff and past him.
Later that evening, sitting in front of the fire in the reading room Sofia asked Cedric, "How come you wouldn't speak to me while you were a dragon? You know with this ring on I can talk to you."
"I know, it just seemed weird that I was not in human form and that you'd need that to speak to me so I just chose not to speak at all. If I truly needed to speak I would have." He explained to her.
"I see. I never did thank you by the way for coming to me this afternoon and helping me. So… thank you Cedric."
"You're welcome Sofia. Now we know the ring and amulet work, too. It let me know you were in distress and it led me straight to you."
"I should get ready for bed, I have to get up early for school in the morning. Maybe we could have breakfast with Baileywick tomorrow in the castle?" Sofia suggested. "And then after school we could go for another ride up in the mountains?" She asked excitedly.
"I suppose that's a good exchange. You go to school and have breakfast in the castle and I'll take you for another ride. But we can't go for rides every single day." He told her.
"Okay, deal!" She said as she stood up. Sofia gave him a kiss on the cheek and called out, "Good night" as she went off to go to bed.