The Grand Sorcerer 4 - (Sofia the First, Cedric!SI)
It's been a few episodes. I think.
I had been working hard to keep myself out of sight from a certain brunette as I had realized how much a single good lesson got the kid motivated to become my apprentice. Luckily for me, however, Sofia had enough chores with Royal Prep that she hardly had enough time to be a worrisome factor each day.
That being said, it didn't mean I was outright ignoring the plot as some 'help' was needed here and there. Sofia actually lost her Amulet once due to a Baby Griffon mistaking it for a precious thing to play with. It took a few flashy lights to lead him to the worried princess, and that solved that day's problem.
Still, I had been feeling relatively at ease as I had gotten news from my parents that they successfully got Calista out of my sister's care. At the very least, they were able to save a child when a warning was given, something that could have been prevented had they accepted my genuine concerns over Cordelia's unsavory habit to steal my stuff.
It may be a common habit for some siblings to get clothes and other silly things from each other, but Cordelia always got anything that was of anyone else and... she really didn't need. It had been enough of a jarring sight to warn my parents but they didn't listen.
It's ironic how they decided to pin that one mistake and turn me in a black sheep when their 'good daughter' was slowly being coaxed into becoming a full-blown kleptomaniac. I couldn't tell when they realized how they messed up not only her but were also somewhat responsible for almost doing the same with Calista, but I was glad they did so at a fashionable time when the girl was still too young to imprint on such a bad habit.
My sister's whining was frustrating and I had to ultimately cut off connections with her for a while as she really needed to face that reality check on her own. I couldn't be her punching bag and I refused to give her nods when her whole argument was crappy.
She needed some alone time, maybe some therapy, and definitely a degree of silence to make a full comeback.
I wouldn't be around. Not when I was too estranged from the family to give a fuck about her and my parents. Calista was an exception since she was a polite little thing and one that hardly caused me trouble whenever she visited in the past, so I hoped the very best for my little niece.
And as I was finishing writing down a letter to an old friend of mine in regard of going through a trip together 'in the names of the good old times', I frowned as I heard someone knocking at my workshop's room.
The knocking was definitely not Sofia, not with its orderly pace reminding me of just a single individual that could produce this prim and proper greeting. Sighing, I snapped my fingers and opened the door, the girl waiting on the other side slowly approaching, a small smile on her face and yet a heavy worry in her heart as she sought my advice.
"Cedric."
I leaned back from my chair and then stood up from it to give a bow to the firstborn princess of the kingdom.
"Lady Amber. I was not made aware that you would be visiting."
"It was not... something I had originally in mind to do. I need guidance. Halloween is around the corner and-"
"You want me to use magic to assist you in regard to... the outfit?"
She frowned, yet the blonde gave a nod. "Let's say that a recent decision made the creation of a costume... difficult to achieve."
...Oh, the teachers decided that the kids' outfits had to be personally made and not created by others. And since Sofia was better-versed in knitting and sewing, Amber's inferiority complex kicked in and she feels worthless on the topic.
I slowly nodded at this and gestured to her the chair beside mine. The blonde soon sat down and offered a jovial smile as-
"I will not use magic to assist you."
Her face fell immediately. "Cedric, as the Princess of Enchantia I have the right to order you to help me."
"You would... if the king was not around," I pointed out flatly, my rebuttal instantly gaining a flinch from the girl. "In fact, if I was to tell him what you just said, I am sure he would be disappointed."
"Y-You wouldn't tell him."
I rolled my eyes, thinking she was still trying to exert authority. "I will have you know that I am not-"
"P-Please don't do that, Uncle Ced."
My mouth froze in position and I glanced at Amber's eyes as I saw tears forming. I sighed, passing a hand over my face to try and rub away the perplexity at such silly matter. I admit that I wasn't that great with competitions myself as a child, but I would have never felt so compelled to 'not lose' in an outfit competition of all things.
"Amber, what's wrong?"
The girl gulped nervously, head going low as she morphed from her prim and proper princessly figure to a little child that did came to visit me for help long before Sofia did. It wasn't as frequently, but with the twins being as troublesome as they could be, it was fair to say I had to fix a few cracked windows from time to time.
"I-I thought I could do it. Sewing- Sewing is difficult."
"Just like all manual works," I remarked, nodding in agreement. "Instead of relying on heavy-lifting, it's a matter of patience and precision."
"Th-That's true and... wait, you can- can do it?" Amber asked, her eyes widening in surprise.
"Well, it is one of those hobbies I picked up after school," I answered coolly, remembering how it helped in giving me the focus some complex spells needed. "It's a little distraction and a helpful skill that can help you like anyone else. Same for cooking, preparing your bed and being aware on how to haggle for better prices."
The blonde tilted her head to the side. "Wouldn't magic do all of that with ease?"
"With a price and with ramifications. First, if I relied so heavily on magic, I would be spent so suddenly that I would hardly be ready for an emergency. Then there's the fact that there is no such a thing as a 'simple spell' to fix all problems," I explained to the little girl. "Let's try with your case: you wish for an outfit. What kind?"
"A butterfly one."
"Would you agree that the 'perfect' butterfly outfit would be for you to have true wings and have a body akin to one?"
A slow nod came from the child. "Yes."
"What happens if something breaks your wing or it harms your new body? What happens if you get hurt?"
Her lips twitched. "W-Well, magic-"
"Magic can't create a pair of wings if your body changes with the transformation. It would alter you and the substance of what makes you. Which is why bodily transformations are a dangerous business when you don't know if you can fully handle that sort of baggage."
...
I leaned back on my chair, humming thoughtfully. "How about this: I will provide you with a nice outfit but you will have to help me do it since it's a complex job and... I am not that good at it. You learn how to do basic sewing and outfit-fitting while also getting a nice costume."
Amber frowned, pondering on my proposal. "How would it look like?"
Nodding at her request, I carefully projected a mental image of who I was thinking of through my palms and the girl's eyes went wide open with glee.
"She's so pretty!"
I offered a tiny smile, and I was glad that I remembered this character on the spot. Truth be told, Castoria had a special place in my heart and her third ascension form is just majestic. It was royal enough but not to the point of being confused as 'kingly'.
Plus, a little illusion spell to change the color Amber's eyes for a few hours would make her just a perfect fit. Without hesitation the girl accepted the idea, and I ended up spending several hours teaching Amber how to patiently handle the basic steps and then assist me through the lengthy effort of getting putting all the materials I conjured together in a most acceptable thing.
From early in the morning, to late towards dinnertime- it was awkward to explain the king what we were up to, but he understood that it was something along the lines of what the school already told the parents about the outfit-making chore.
By the end of those few interesting days, Amber went on to give her costume a try and she was smiling madly at the picture-perfect results. She gave me a tight hug by my legs before being off to Royal Prep. The good news is that Amber won the competition-
"MR. CEDRIC! I WANT A CUTE OUTFIT TOO!"
The bad news is that this development renewed Sofia's infuriatingly cute efforts to be an annoying brat.
If things couldn't get any 'better', we were soon off to Merroway Cove for some royal holidays (with me tagging along as a 'special guard' due to the presence of sea monsters). And if there's something that I hate-
Is engaging in unplanned underwater battles with some monsters that should not exist in this world!
AN
Uncle Ced is there for the kids. The very moment Sofia gears up with the idea of Cedric being her new uncle... things are going to get even more weird as Calista comes along.
Still, next time will see a reminder that Cedric is not just a random OP entity, but someone with a defined set of skills after years of training, fighting and dealing with random surprises of the shadowy kind.