Chapter Text
The last episode ending on such a high note had most of the room excited for what came next.
Miranda just hoped that this time Sofia wouldn't be going on such a dangerous adventure.
The episode opened with a shot of Royal Prep and Sofia read out, "Cedric's Apprentice"
The mood immediately plummeted.
All the adults shared concerned looks, Cedric may not hurt Sofia, but taking over the kingdom was just as big a crime.
Sofia herself was intrigued, even though his goals were bad, she figured he was here for a reason and wanted to figure out what.
Cedric was just confused as to why he would take, presumably, Sofia as an apprentice.
Ruby and Jade, after their initial shock, focused more on what Royal Prep fully looked like. They got a few shots of it in the first episode, but to see the whole thing was cool.
The screen changed to the kids sitting in a classroom.
"Who are you sitting beside Amber? Wouldn't you be with Hildegard?" Sofia asked, seeing her with a princess in blue.
"That's Princess Shannon of Lorendale, she's the second daughter of the current King's younger brother. And I'm sitting with her because I'm better friends with her than I am with Hildegard. Which is why it's a shock to me why she's not here, although, by the format of these, I'm assuming it's because you become better friends with Hildegard than you do Shannon in the future," Amber explained. It had been bothering her for a while, why some people weren't brought here. She barely even talked to Maya or Vivian but she realized that maybe Sofia did.
Sofia figured that made sense, in the slumber party episode she said she invited Hildegard and Clio because they were the most popular girls at school, not because they were her best friends. But they were probably the only ones Sofia interacted with in that amount of time for so long because of the slumber party so she figured she probably stuck close to them. She really did want to get closer to Maya, Lakshmi, and Jun this time though, they were really fun and she wouldn't mind hanging out with them in the future. Along with the others of course, now she just had to figure out how to talk to Princess Leena, she was only talking to her sister.
"The reason I'm sitting with someone else is because Clio isn't in this class, her schedule has her sorcery class while I have music. I'm sitting with Lady Sveva of Luminara, the daughter of Dame Carina, she lives in a small kingdom on the north border of Corinthia, where Clio is from, and I met her through one of Clio's birthday parties," Hildegard said. (AN: She does have this class actually, I just didn't see her until later but it makes sense to me to leave it here because why wouldn't she sit next to Clio if she was there anyway.)
"We're in sorcery class?!" Sofia exclaimed. She knew they would be learning sorcery at school, but to see it happen was so much cooler than just knowing about it.
Sofia was sitting beside James and telling him how excited she was to learn magic and how cool it was. Sofia wore a yellow dress with a lily print on the skirt. The skirt was tiered with four layers with lace ruffle at the end of each layer. The waist was cinched with a baby blue ribbon and the top was a sleeveless style with lace as the neckline and sleeve. Over top, she wore a short shawl that reached her elbows and tied at the front with a ribbon. She was wearing baby blue flats and had a blue ribbon in her open hair. James said it was if you got the spells right.
"What happens if you get the spells wrong?" Jade asked.
"Well, let's just say you better hope someone doesn't get turned into a frog, like Sofia did on her first day of school," James said. He, and most of the royals in the room, remembered just how hard it was to do even the tiniest bit of magic without messing up.
Fauna greeted the class and went on to say that they were going to learn one of her favourite spells, turning a rock into a ruby,
"But how is that physically possible?" Ruby asked.
"What do you mean sweetie?" Fauna asked.
"How are you doing that? Are you swapping a rock with a ruby in a mine somewhere? Or are you swapping out the material in the minerals of the rock and replacing them with what needs to be there for a ruby to be made? Or are you just destroying the rock and making a ruby appear out of nothing? Or are you just changing how the rock looks but it's still genetically a rock that only physically looks like a ruby?"
Everyone looked at her in stunned silence.
Ruby looked down and blushed, "I really like rubies."
"I wonder why," Jade joked.
"We've never done this in class before so we haven't been taught it yet. How are we doing that?" Amber wondered out loud.
Cedric was the one to pipe up and explain, "The second one is the closest. You're not swapping anything out, you're altering the genetic makeup of the rock. Because of all the rewriting you do to its genetic sequence, it naturally turns into something else with a little bit of help from the magic. I'm assuming in class they also get graded on how pretty it ends up but that's just a skill you have to practice with in order to cut and style it the way it looks the best."
The kids all nodded at the explanation, despite what they'd seen of him before, they were also still children who thought the explanation was interesting.
Fauna nodded as well, she couldn't have explained it better if she tried.
Fauna demonstrated how to hold the wand and how to flick it and said the words, "Mutato rubio!' In front of their eyes, the rock started shaking before transforming into a ruby.
The kids gasped in shock at the same time as the class on screen.
Sofia's smile was bigger than the sun, she was so excited to actually do magic!
The kids started practicing and Sofia flipped to the right page of her book. She read the instructions out loud before attempting to do the spell. She said it very fast but the rock turned into an apple.
Sofia looked at the screen in confusion, "Why did it do that?"
"Oh dear, I suppose I should've had private lessons with you before adding you to the normal classes. Magic takes a bit getting used to, you're a smart girl so I'm sure you'll pick it up in no time, but I should have had you practice easier spells beforehand," Fauna said in an apologetic tone.
Sofia pouted but nodded, she guessed it was only fair that she wouldn't be as good as the other students.
"It's okay Sofia, you'll get it in no time," Lakshmi said.
Sofia tried again but this time got a potato.
"I think you're saying the incantation a little weirdly, maybe try a bit slower," Lakshmi pointed out.
Sofia took in all the advice she was getting, hopefully she'd be prepared next time.
Sofia looked over to Princess Shannon and saw she was turning a rock into a ruby perfectly, dropping it into the pile of rubies she already had on her desk. She looked down at her own desk in despair.
"Don't compare yourself to Shannon Sofia, she has the highest grades in sorcery class, she always has. Lorendale as a kingdom is more magic oriented so it's only natural that her abilities are better than ours," Amber encouraged.
Sofia smiled and said, "Thanks, Amber."
Miranda and Roland shared smiles, the two girls were friendly but now they seemed like they were starting to become friends.
Fauna told them they could practice more later but now it was time to learn three new spells. She also said they would have a test on them by the end of the week. Sofia worriedly asked James if there was a test and he said there was always a test while playing with rocks.
"How do these classes work? If you teach all the spells today then what do you do the rest of the week?" Miranda asked. She felt a little lacking in terms of knowing how the school worked, all the other royals, including Roland, had gone to royal prep and she felt left behind not knowing how it worked. She tried not to let it show though, she knew that being married to Roland meant that she would always be watched by people and the slightest crack in her appearance would get her thrown to the wolves.
"Well, the next day is usually a practice day, assuming this is Monday, and the next three spells will similarly be some rocks to different gems that they learn the incantation for today. The two days before the test we delve into the theory of how we made the ruby, and whatever else they learn. Some of it is how Cedric explained the process of turning a rock into a ruby, and since this class seems to be on the topic of turning one thing into another, we'll dive into how that works. Sometimes we incorporate these into lessons in other classes as well. I have no doubt that we'll be covering genetic sequences and mutations in science classes at the same time and this might be used as an example," Fauna explained.
The village girls looked at each other in shock.
"I think I'll stick to making things move with magnets," Jade whispered to Ruby, who giggled and nodded.
At the castle, Sofia complained that she couldn't get it right. Clover just told her to keep trying but this time it turned into a tomato.
"Now that I can live with," Clover said to Mia and Robin.
"Of course, you can," Robin said with an eye roll.
Clover grabbed the tomato and said it was a nice trick before biting into the tomato. Sofia said it was supposed to turn into a ruby but Clover thought the tomato was better and kept eating.
"How am I accidentally turning it into different thing?" Sofia muttered. Magic was fascinating to her, she wanted to learn exactly how and why things happened, but she knew that she'd have to wait.
Sofia said there was all this sorcery to learn in two days and wondered what she would do. Clover asked why she didn't ask a sorcerer for help.
That's when it dawned on them, Sofia was probably going to try and get Cedric's help.
Obviously, Sofia thought of Cedric and thanked Clover before running off.
Cedric groaned into his hands, he really hated when the kids came to him for magic help. The twins had only done it a few times but it annoyed him to no end to deal with children who didn't know how to do magic.
Sofia knocked on Cedric's door just as something on the other side of the door exploded.
A few people flinched at the sudden explosion, they weren't expecting that.
Roland couldn't help but briefly look at Cedric in worry, despite his current feelings for the man, he still grew up with him.
The door opened and Cedric briefly asked, "Yes, yes what is it?" Sofia greeted him and Cedric corrected her way of saying his name.
Miranda sighed, "Sofia, how do you keep mispronouncing his name when people around you say it correctly over and over again?"
"What do you mean? I'm calling him Mr. Cedric," Sofia said the wrong way.
The people around her just smiled and continued watching.
Miranda stifled a laugh, she knew that Sofia probably just pronounced his name wrong when looking at the list they had of names to memorize. She probably didn't realize the first time but just kept calling him that out of embarrassment, but by this point she knew Sofia was just doing it for fun.
Cedric said it was good to see her amulet before correcting himself and saying it was good to see her and let her in.
"I get the feeling that Mr. Cedric is going to be one of those fun villains that says they're gonna do something but never accomplish it. That's how it goes in books," Clio said to Vivian.
"But if he's not the real villain, I wonder who is," Vivian said back.
The two didn't realize they were being overheard by everyone in the room.
It did get everyone wondering though, Cedric hadn't been depicted as evil, but a very exaggerated version of it. If someone worse was going to come then who would it be?
Sofia said hi to Wormwood and started telling Cedric about her sorcery class and said she was hoping that since he was such a great sorcerer, he could help her learn a few spells.
Miranda smiled, Sofia was very sweet but she could be so manipulative when she tried.
Cedric said he was a Royal Sorcerer, not a school teacher, Sofia said she knew but talked about how grateful she would be because she had a test coming up. Cedric said he had more important things to do and complained that he could never find anything in this mess while gesturing to his room.
"You know, before all this, I was actually about to set Cedric up with a new room. I didn't get very far with the planning but every time I walk into that workshop I can't help but think it's too small," Roland told Miranda.
"And you've never done this before? Hasn't Cedric been living there since he was a kid?" Miranda asked.
"Well, yes, but the family of the Royal Sorcerer get separate chambers until they're old enough to take over," he explained. "And no family has wanted to stay here with Cedric ever since the incident."
"What incident?" Miranda asked with a confused look on her face.
Roland looked at her and hesitated before saying, "It's nothing, just something that happened many years ago."
Sofia volunteered to help clean his workshop in return for magic lessons. Cedric said it would be like an apprentice but Sofia didn't know what that was, Cedric said it was a special helper.
"What is an apprentice?" Sofia asked. She wasn't the only one, tons of the kids looked around in confusion, and only a handful knew what an apprentice was.
"An apprentice is someone who works under someone skilled to learn that skill if they're interested in doing that type of work in the future. In this case, Sofia will be apprenticing under Cedric to learn his skill because you want to learn more for your sorcery class," Flora explained.
"You should remember that for the future children, when you choose which schools you want to go to after Royal Prep you'll most likely be sent to apprentice under people already doing whatever job you want to do. I know for a lot of you that's ruling a kingdom and you're already getting those lessons, but for the rest of you, it'll be something you need to think seriously about," Fauna warned. Kids often made choices that they ended up regretting, and while it was possible to transfer to a different school during the first year or two, if they hesitated too long they wouldn't be able to go back.
Cedric said it meant she would go to his workshop every day and assist him with his spells and potions and tidy up the place. In return, he'd teach her all the magic she needed for her test before conjuring her a purple hat.
Miranda sighed, "I can't say I'm happy about the circumstance this is happening in but it's a good thing that Sofia is trying to catch up in school."
Roland nodded, although now that the fairies mentioned it he hoped that Sofia would get a few private lessons before.
Sofia instantly agreed to be his apprentice and Cedric told her they could start tomorrow before ushering her out of the room. Immediately he turned to Wormwood and told him this was what he was waiting for, he would brew an invisibility potion to turn himself invisible and swipe her amulet while she cleaned up the workshop without anyone noticing.
Cedric frowned, he felt like there was a major discrepancy in this plan. "How would I not look like the obvious culprit if her amulet went missing while she was in my workshop? This plan cannot possibly work."
The adults also looked confused, this plan had glaring holes in it. Good for them because the amulet was safe, but it seemed Cedric knew how stupid this was so why wasn't that clicking for him on the screen?
He said he would use its power to take over the Kingdom and be the first sorcerer to be king, "King Cedric the First". He looked at the portrait of his parents and said if only they could see him now.
Cedric scowled, his parents never fully believed in him since what happened in Cordelia, even before that they always seemed to prefer his sister. No matter how much he might try he always came in second to her and he was the one who became the royal sorcerer.
Roland also remembered his parents, both were great sorcerers in their own right. He knew that Cedric had a strained relationship with his parents, it was one of the things they had in common and a reason that they became such fast friends as kids. He also understood the desire to still want their affection, he just wished that he could help Cedric move on if not anything else.
"We can Cedric," a voice called from the portrait.
A few of the kids screamed in shock.
"Our castle is being haunted!" James yelled.
Why do you think we gave you this portrait?" the voice continued. Then the portrait started glowing and swirled before a ball of light appeared before Cedric and dropped to the ground. "For my birthday?" Cedric questioned.
"How is he so unfazed by that?" Amber asked she was clutching her fan like a lifeline. The portrait suddenly coming to life was kind of terrifying.
"Are those really your parents? Do they just live in that picture?" Sofia asked, every new bit of magic was more interesting than the last.
"No child, that picture is enchanted, my parents have one of me in their home at Mystic Meadows. You can see what's happening on the other side whenever you want and your forms will be projected through the paintings if you so wish. I have no want for that but my parents do drop in quite often," Cedric explained.
Roland and Baileywick exchanged looks of shock, they had no idea that Cedric's parents were doing that. If anything, it was unannounced guests at the palace for who knew how long. They didn't say anything though, his parents used to be the primary sorcerers before him and they most likely wouldn't do anything terrible to the palace.
Goodwyn, Cedric's father, said it was so they could keep an eye on him, said a sorcerer's place was by his king's side, not on his throne.
Roland raised an eyebrow, he didn't necessarily like Goodwyn, but he hoped that the man would be able to convince Cedric to not try anything.
Cedric just scoffed, of course now would be when his father gives advice, any other time he popped in was just to nag.
Cedric complained that nothing he did was ever good enough for his father.
Roland and Tilly shared an uncomfortable glance, their father wasn't a bad person, he was just a lot to live up to and often cold to them. He accomplished so much for Enchancia that whenever they did anything they were proud of, they were just reminded that it wasn't as good as he'd done. He left a long shadow behind that made it hard to feel like they were enough.
Hugo looked down at his feet on instinct. He knew his father loved him theoretically, but he also tried so hard just to get compared to Axel or to not get acknowledged at all. If his father was proud of him, he didn't know and didn't think he'd ever know.
Hildegard's hand froze mid-fan wave before she slowly continued as if nothing was wrong. She understood not being good enough when she was always compared to her sister. She loved her sister, Astrid was her biggest role model, but she was so perfect at everything and no matter how hard she tried she was not, her parents reminded her of that every day.
Winnifred, Cedric's mom told Goodwyn to leave Cedric alone but Goodwyn said he didn't know why Winifred kept encouraging him. He disappeared back into the painting while Winnifred told Cedric to get that amulet and make her proud, disappearing after him. Cedric told Wormwood that they'd show them, his father, and especially King Roland.
Roland reared back in shock, he didn't think that Cedric had any big problems with him but looks like he was wrong. He was confused though, he didn't know why Cedric had a problem all of a sudden, he thought that they were on pretty good terms with being friends when they were younger.
Miranda also looked at him in worry, she didn't know enough about Cedric and Roland's relationship to have an opinion but she hoped she learned more because she didn't want the kids to be subject to any of the anger Cedric seemed to have for Roland.
~They have always told me
Since I was a lad
That I'm the worst sorcerer the Kingdom's ever had~
Cedric looked away from the screen, he didn't want to hear himself sing, especially about something like this.
Roland cringed, he didn't think he'd ever said that to Cedric directly but he was ashamed when he realized he'd certainly thought it. He'd heard other people gossip about it and never stopped people from badmouthing Cedric. He was starting to realize why Cedric might hold a grudge now.
Baileywick frowned, he'd definitely heard rumours from people that Cedric wasn't a good sorcerer, he always tried to stop those when he could but there wasn't much he could do against an entire palace of staff. He did feel that people were too quick to judge though, Cedric was never sent on missions that sorcerers were usually sent on and as a result no one really had any idea how powerful his magic was.
~Whenever things go wrong
King Roland simply stands and claims
It must be Cedric
That's to blame~
"I don't blame Cedric for everything," Roland muttered under his breath. He truly didn't think his relationship with Cedric was that bad, he still looked back at their childhood with fondness.
Baileywick however, had an outsider's point of view. He'd been in the palace for a long time, and it was easy to see things that people might not see themselves. He realized that sometimes King Roland did unconsciously blame Cedric for certain things, he didn't know why that was, but it happened often enough.
~Any time I try to cast a little spell
No one thinks it turns out very well~
Cedric scoffed, and that was the start of it wasn't it, Cordelia and her stupid hair. He still didn't know what happened, he didn't do anything wrong to the potion yet he still got blamed for it every time his sister came to the palace. It was unbearable, during those visits, everyone, including the King, would act like he would mess up even the most simple spells when he knew he was one of the better sorcerers around.
~But that won't last for long
It's time for me to make my claim
Soon everyone will know my name
All I need to do is swipe that amulet~
Sofia frowned as she remembered that the amulet was what he was going after. She hoped that they would be able to convince Mr. Cedric not to steal her amulet before they got out of here.
~Then I will know them who I am You bet
Once I have the jewel
I can use its power
To take the king's crown
It'll be my finest hour
They can tell me I'm no good~
All the adults in the room shared glances, he did seem no good. They were mostly concerned for Sofia's safety though, even if the kids didn't seem to think he was that big of a threat, they didn't know the lengths he would go to in order to get the amulet and that was terrifying.
The fairies, however, exchanged knowing looks, they had a feeling about which direction this would go and they knew that it would turn out alright in the end.
~And call me second rate~
Helen and Miranda were confused at that line. Cedric, just being a sorcerer, was an extremely well-respected individual among the people of Enchancia. Their kingdom didn't have many magic users, so those who could use it well were often looked up to among the villagers at least. They'd never heard anyone call the royal sorcerer second-rate.
Amber did know he called that though, she didn't think James knew about it but being among noble women who gossiped it was hard not to know. Cedric didn't attend many events besides official celebrations in the palace, so when he showed up, the women would gossip to no end during the next few events after. She knew all about what happened with Lady Cordelia's the Conjuror's hair. She didn't believe that Cedric would make that mistake now, and neither did any of the noble women really, but she knew that most of the men were still careful around his magic.
~But soon they'll see I'm meant to be
King Cedric the Great~
Roland's expression soured, he didn't know what to think anymore. On one hand, he still felt some sense of childhood camaraderie towards Cedric, but on the other, he was planning to take over the kingdom.
Baileywick thought this could be solved if Cedric was just allowed to act like a proper royal sorcerer but he figured the King would realize on his own. He himself struggled with a feeling of inferiority to other butlers he felt were doing more important jobs than him, he thought perhaps Cedric was in a similar situation.
~When I'm the king
Everyone will bow~
"I never thought I'd have to fight Cedric for the throne," James joked to his Zandar who laughed with him. He was the only other guy here who was inheriting the throne of his kingdom, the rest all had older siblings who would take over. James was kind of worried though, he liked Cedric, but he didn't think that he would actually take over the kingdom, he knew that if Cedric tried something he'd never speak to him again.
And only do the things King Cedric will allow
Every spell I cast will always go as planned
And those who used to tease me will be at my command.
Miranda realized at that line that Cedric didn't really want to be King he wanted to be acknowledged as a great sorcerer. She personally thought he was already acknowledged as one but maybe not by the people who knew him. Hopefully, he would top trying to take over the kingdom on his own but she was already coming up with ideas to get him past the mental block of caring what people from his past thought of him. Maybe she'd try and talk with him later.
~One trick will show them all
Cedric isn't second-rate
We kiss the ring of our new king
King Cedric
King Cedric the Great~
There was a knock on his door that made him lose concentration on his magic. Baileywick opened the door and told him that all the noise was disturbing the king's supper.
Miranda side-eyed her husband hard, he at least had the decency to look down in shame. He wasn't happy with Cedric's plotting and still wanted him punished, but he saw now why Cedric blamed things on him.
Amber rolled her eyes before scoffing, "Please, I'm pretty sure James makes more noise than that at the table during supper."
James gave her an offended look before turning pensive and shrugging, "That's fair."
Cedric just looked away, and they had the gall to act like they respected him. The king shouldn't even be able to hear him from the supper hall unless he purposely at in the west wing of the castle.
Beileywick also grimaced, he knew Cedric wasn't always treated with the most respect but he truly didn't think it was that bad until he heard himself.
~He can tell me I'm no good
And call me second-rate
But soon they'll see
I'm meant to be
King Cedric the Great~
The next day, Sofia walked up to Cedric's door in sparkly purple robes.
Sofia gasped in shock, she was wearing actual sorcerer's robes! She was so excited to go to school so she could start wearing those robes for real.
Just as she was about to knock, Cedric opened the door, letting her in. "Welcome, my young apprentice, " he said. Sofia told him she was ready to start her first lesson, he assured her they would get to it right after he finished his invisibility potion and told her to tidy up in the meantime.
Most of the room held their breaths. This was it, either he would steal the amulet and get thrown into prison as soon as they left, or he'd not and they'd figure out what to do with him later.
Sofia agreed and started sweeping while Cedric finished up the potion. He finished but the potion started bubbling and shot up to the roof, exploding in confetti.
The kids smiled, that would be the perfect party popper at a birthday!
The adults slowly let out breaths of relief, whatever pushed the potion back was a good thing.
"He's not second rate but seems like he's still not up to his father's level yet," Roland said quietly.
Cedric heard him anyway, he scoffed and angrily muttered, "You try making it then if you think it's so easy."
Cedric looked disappointed but Sofia just looked at the confetti with happiness and asked if he was done with his potion yet. He said he'd finish it later and Sofia asked him to show her how to turn a rock into a ruby, telling him that it was a big part of her sorcery test.
Cedric wondered when the last time he helped the kids with a spell was, at least 5 years ago he supposed. He hoped that Sofia would catch on quickly, once you started casting spells it came easier to you every time you did it.
He decided it was simple enough and flipped to the page on the spell. "When it comes to magic, my father always said, 'Slow and steady does the trick'," Cedric told her. He grabbed a rock and went through the steps, telling her to read the spell carefully, slowly say the magic words, and wave her wand with confidence, while showing her the correct hand motion.
"You know, I was half expecting him to just not teach her properly," Miranda told Helen. Helen nodded, neither of them thought that he'd be carefully teaching her like this, maybe rush through the lesson until he had a chance to steal the amulet again, but not teach.
James and Amber also remembered their own few lessons with Cedric, he was a pretty good teacher when he wasn't telling them off for knocking something over that they weren't meant to be touching.
Sofia tried again, and this time it turned into a ruby. She told Cedric he was a really good teacher and Cedric looked at her in shock, not quite believing her.
"Yeah dude, you are, I couldn't levitate anything before you taught me how and in a few days I was levitating giant boulders," James said.
"Is that why you got so much better in magic classes so fast? That's so not fair, I want a sorcerer who teaches me stuff. Our palace's royal sorcerer barely comes out of his tower," Khalid said. He looked at his sisters in jealousy, they were naturally good at magic so he was always left catching up to them, a private teacher would help.
Maya and Leena shared a smile, although they knew that anything that when it came to languages or history they were way behind Khalid.
Baileywick walked into the room and questioned the two over what they were doing. Sofia said they were learning magic, and Baileywick joked, "How wonderful. You'll have to teach Cedric some when you're done."
Cedric gave Baileywick a deadpan look. He knew that Baileywick was only joking, it was the reason why he was one of the only people he could tolerate. He always knew when Baileywick was being serious or not.
A few of the kids' jaws dropped in shock, that was disrespect to a new level.
"I think I would die from humiliation if I ever said that to someone," Jun said.
"Yeah, Mom and Dad would ground us for so long," Jin added.
"I don't think it would even occur to Father to ground us, he basically says the same stuff about Cedric every day," Amber told James, who only nodded.
Hearing his kids say that had Roland reeling, he'd like to think that he would be upset with his kids talking to someone the way Baileywick just did, but even he knew that it just probably wouldn't happen. He was starting to realize why Cedric built up so much resentment for him now.
Cedric said that was very funny and asked what he wanted. Baileywick told him King Roland needed him right away and Cedric gulped and nervously followed.
Cedric sighed, another moment of getting nervous in front of King Roland, no matter how hard he tried he always got too nervous to do spells properly.
Vivian looked at Cedric with sympathy, she knew exactly what his look meant. No matter how hard she tried she'd always get too nervous to do things and end up jumbling up her words.
When they reached the courtyard, Miranda asked Sofia how apprenticing was going. Sofia said it was great and that Cedric was really helping her learn her spells. Roland called Cedric over and told him that they had an important visitor coming to stay with them, King Magnus.
Roland rolled his eyes, King Magnus was one of the other monarchs that he disliked the most, he was such a show-off and cared more about being better than everyone than anything else.
Roland said he was always bragging about how great his kingdom was so he wanted the castle to look its very best. He asked if Cedric could transform the gargoyles into something more inviting. Cedric stuttered through saying he could turn them into golden horses.
Cedric chewed his lip in worry, the spell was very similar to a spell that turned stone into live flying horses, he hoped that he didn't stumble over the words and say the wrong one.
Cedric asked Sofia for his wand and performed a spell that turned the gargoyles into live flying ponies.
Roland raised an unimpressed eyebrow before catching himself and thinking about why it went wrong. Luckily, Fauna answered that question for him.
"That was very close dear, but nerves often make people mispronounce 'equuisium', you just needed to emphasize the 's' more," Fauna said while smiling at Cedric. She'd never met Cedric outside of official functions at Enchancia, she and the rest of the fairies lived on the island Royal Prep was built on so they had no reason to go outside for many occasions other than formal events.
Roland told Cedric he was supposed to transform the gargoyles not bring them to life. Cedric stuttered over an apology and said he'd try again and get it right.
Roland frowned, he never realized how nervous Cedric was around him. They might not be that close anymore, but he didn't know any reason why Cedric would be so nervous.
Roland told him not to bother and started to walk away with Miranda following. Cedric tried to get him to listen but Roland said, "Not every royal sorcerer can be as gifted as your father. We'll just clean up the rest of the castle and hope Magnus doesn't look up."
Cedric flinched, of course when the littlest thing went wrong he would instantly be compared to his father. No matter how hard he tried, it was always, 'Cedric maybe you should just sit back and call your father' or 'Cedric work harder, you're nowhere near your father'.
He wasn't the only one, Roland cringed at the wording, it was almost the exact same words that his advisors used to say to him when he was first crowned King. He just recently stopped getting compared to his oh-so-wonderful father. It was the one thing he and Cedric bonded over as boys, he never realized that he was the type of person who would compare someone the same way he had been so often.
Miranda told Sofia to not be late for dinner as they left, Sofia looked at Cedric sadly as the scene came to a close.
Miranda frowned, she'd been hoping she'd say something but she didn't. She decided she would make sure of it more often in the future, one mistake wasn't reason enough to not let Cedric just try again.
Back in the tower, Sofia was sweeping again as Cedric sat at his desk. Sofia said she was sorry that his spell didn't work and ran to a new spot when Cedric pointed it out. She asked if his father was a royal sorcerer too and he asked her if she hadn't heard of Goodwyn the Great, the greatest royal sorcerer who ever waved a wand, and saved her granddad's life 9 and a half times.
Ruby and Sofia both looked a little confused, they hadn't heard of Goodwyn the Great before coming in here. Jade did know though, her older cousins often talked about royal gossip, and Goodwyn the Great moving his retirement from a cushy room in the castle to Mystic Meadows was apparently big news when it happened.
The rest of the kids knew who he was through history lessons and most of them remembered being in awe when they read about his accomplishments.
Sofia told him that she was sure he was as good as his father was.
Cedric laughs. The first time anyone's ever told him that before.
Cedric said that he hasn't saved anyone's life, not once, not even half. Sofia wasn't paying attention to where she was sweeping and knocked a vial off a table.
The room suddenly got hit with worry. Hopefully, it wasn't a dangerous potion.
The potion spilled on her foot and Sofia said she felt funny before transforming into a purple lizard.
The adults all gasped in shock and worry while most of the kids laughed.
The fairies were just glad that Cedric was there, he could get her changed back safely, if an inexperienced sorcerer like any of the kids tried it would most likely leave her heavily impaired.
"Princess Sofia! Cedric called out in worry before rushing to her and telling her to hold still while changing her back into a human.
The kids looked at the scene in awe, any complex magic that they couldn't do was cool for them.
The adults were just relieved that she was safe.
Roland looked at Cedric in shock, he didn't think that Cedric would care enough about Saofia to be worried about her.
Cedric caught the look and sneered in his direction, "What, do you think so low of me that you believe that I don't care when a child is in danger in front of me? I want respect, not the ability to hurt people whenever I want."
Roland looked away, clearly not expecting that answer. He did sit less tensely though, as did most of the adults in the room. They didn't know how far Cedric would go to get his hands on the amulet, but it looked like he was unwilling to hurt children so it had them relaxing.
Sofia thanked him and gave him a hug but he brushed it off and said it was an easy spell that he learned the first week of sorcery school.
Sofia's jaw dropped, so Mr. Cedric was learning how to transform people into animals and back in his first week of school, and she could barely figure out a non-animate rock and gem.
She wasn't the only one, most of the kids in the room couldn't fathom how you could turn someone into an animal and back because that just wasn't possible at the level they were going.
The fairies did though, sorcery school went at a much faster pace with magic than royal prep did, even for those lessons, however, one week was still incredibly impressive.
Sofia told him he was so good at magic and asked why he couldn't turn the gargoyles into golden horses.
Roland took a minute to think about it as well, he remembered that turning living things into others was much harder magic than simply transforming inanimate objects. Even turning the gargoyles into a living flying horse would've been a more difficult spell than turning them into golden horses. The only answer was that Cedric was nervous around him and he didn't know why he was.
Cedric said he didn't know, Every time I get around King Roland, I get a bit, well..." Sofia asked what he admitted he got nervous.
Roland just gave Cedric a confused look, he figured that was the case but he didn't know why. It's not like he was threatening to fire Cedric.
Sofia realized why he got nervous and said, "He probably gets nervous because you never believe in him. I used to get nervous and mess up when mom first let me help her make shoes even though I knew what to do. Mom apologized though and started believing in me, I didn't mess up as often after that."
Miranda smiled at her daughter, Sofia was so smart for her age, and probably correct. She did wonder why Roland didn't believe in Cedric though.
Roland was shocked, he didn't know that he was making Cedric mess up like that. He remembered when they were younger he would always think Cedric's magic was the coolest thing ever, but ever since the incident with his sister, he stopped. He realized that Cedric making a mistake once coloured his perception of all his later magic with the thought that it might mess up as well.
Sofia said she'd find a way to show her dad that Cedric was a great sorcerer. Cedric asked why she'd do that and Sofia said it was because he was her friend before leaving for dinner.
Cedric thought back to the last time he had a friend. Aside from Wormwood, the last person to be his friend had been Roland. "I have a sad life," he muttered.
At the dinner table, King Magnus was bragging about every little thing in his kingdom while Roland absentmindedly agreed with him. When he said that his royal sorcerer put on a great display of magic, Sofia brought but Cedric and said he was the best.
Cedric cringed. He didn't think there was any way this could end well. The King would want some kind of demonstration and he didn't think he'd be able to perform.
Sofia smiled though, even though she was still a bit worried about Mr. Cedric stealing her amulet, she would never give up the chance to see magic.
Magnus asked if she was talking about Goodwyn the Great's son. Roland said she was but also tried to say that Cedric wasn't as talented. Sofia disagreed and said that they should have him put on a show for everyone.
Roland sighed in disappointment. Now, if Cedric didn't live up to King Magnus's standards, he would never stop bringing it up.
Cedric himself also facepalmed. There was no way he would be able to pull off an entire magic show.
Roland tried to protest but Magnus liked the idea and decided that it should be the night after tomorrow. Sofia said she couldn't wait to tell Cedric and the scene changed to Cedric learning about the show. "Isn't that great?" Sofia asked. "It is. King Roland has never asked me to put on a royal sorcerer show before, and certainly not for a visiting king," Cedric said.
Roland stopped to think about the last time a sorcery show was put on. He realized that the last time he remembered a show ever happening was back when Goodwyn the Great was still the royal sorcerer. Perhaps he should host more, some other kingdoms had shows yearly.
Cedric nervously realized that he had to perform for two kings.
"So it's not a case of being bad at magic, it's more so just performance anxiety," Clio said.
"I understand that," Vivian whispered. Clio grabbed her hand to comfort her, maybe later on during a break, she would help Vivian talk more to the others. She liked her, she was hoping that they'd become closer friends eventually.
Sofia told him that the show was on the day of her test so they should help each other. A montage of the two helping each other played out. Sofia was able to turn rocks into gems, and Cedric made Clover fly.
Clover cringed, he didn't want to be used as a pet during this sorcery show.
Sofia looked over at the animals. They'd just been over on the side this entire time and she felt bad that weren't bonding yet considering they became so close in the future. "Would you guys like to come sit by us?" she asked.
Clover shared a look with Mia and Robin before shrugging and going over to Sofia's couch.
Sofia smiled brightly, she was so excited to have animal friends. She looked over when she saw Minimus still over on the side. "Don't you want to come as well?" Sofia asked.
"I'd like to Princess. But I think I'd take up too much space," Minimus nervously explained.
"That's not true, you can come sit here between the couches," Sofia said, pointing to the space right beside her.
He agreed and slowly made his way to relax by the couches.
"So... what's up?" Clover asked Minimus, who just gave him a nervous look and said, "Not much?"
Cedric was still trying to make the invisibility potion but it wasn't working. After the montage, Sofia cleaned a smudge of Cedric's spell book and looked at the potion instructions in confusion. Cedric walked in and told Sofia to go finish studying because her test was the next day.
Fauna nodded in approval, it seemed like Cedric had been helping her not only test the spells but also helping her with the theory. She did not doubt that Sofia would catch up in no time.
Sofia told him she cleaned a smudge off his spell book and it looked like there were two extra ingredients to put in the invisibility potion.
Cedric groaned, of course, his spell only failed because he had the instructions wrong. That sounded exactly like something that would happen to him. Maybe he should invest in a new spell book.
Sofia told him goodnight and said she'd see him at his show. Cedric realized that's why the potion wasn't working and quickly added the missing ingredients. He tested it on a small statue, and of course, it turned invisible.
Everyone gasped in shock. Invisibility was a hard potion to do, they were warned when first starting classes to not try something that could be so volatile, but Cedric completed the potion so easily.
"I thought that warthog whiskers combined with moat moss could explode if you didn't add the right amount?" Khalid asked.
"It can, I guess Mr. Cedric just really knows his stuff," Jin said.
"Are those types of spell books available for everyone?" Jade asked.
"Of course not. If they were, any kid would try to make potions or try spells way above their grade level. Only certified sorcerers or magic users can buy higher-level books. And even then, that one looks inherited, those tend to have more spells that the family have found or spells that aren't available for the public to use," Merryweather explained.
Cedric had to admit, that even if he wasn't the most fond of his father, he'd left him behind a book full of good spells. Even though he kept the family wand to himself. One was better than nothing he supposed. At least Cordelia didn't get the spell book, he had the job to actually need it.
Cedric was shocked over having completed the potion and started celebrating. He talked about finally swiping the amulet and taking over the kingdom before stopping in front of a table with gems on it. Sofia had formed them into the shape of a heart.
The adults cooed over how cute that was while Sofia nervously looked at her hands. She really liked Mr. Cedric, she didn't want him to steal her amulet and get in trouble. She hoped that she'd somehow be able to convince him not to and be friends with him.
Cedric looked at the heart with conflicting emotions, he couldn't believe that someone would care enough for him to do that. Calista maybe but she was his niece, she had to like him. He still wanted to find a way for everyone to respect him, but maybe he would leave the amulet with Sofia, he could always find some other way. Besides, she didn't even have the amulet yet, he had plenty of time to search for other solutions before it was given to her.
Cedric wondered, "She made this for me?" Completely shocked, that someone would do that for him. Goodwyn's voice echoed, telling him to look at the lovely gift Sofia left him before he appeared on Cedric's arm in a small form.
The kids looked at him in shock.
"He can do that?!" Maya asked.
"Well, it's just a form of projection, once you get the hang of it you can choose how big or small you want to appear easily," Cedric said.
The kids looked at the fairies expectantly.
"We won't be learning self-projection until we get to the magical painting unit. And even then it's the only type of projection that we'll be teaching you," Flora said.
The kids looked a bit put out but magic paintings were what the older kids were always saying they had the most fun in so they were looking forward to it.
Hildegard tried to contain her smile, magical paintings were Astrid's best grade. She had done so well in that unit that Hildegard hoped she would do just as well.
Goodwyn told Cedric to think about how sad Sofia would be if he stole her amulet and asked how he could do that to his new friend. Winifred told Cedric not to listen to him, she told him to make this his final trick at the show tomorrow. Use the potion to make himself invisible and take over the kingdom. Cedric waved them both off and said he could make up his own mind.
Sofia and the rest of the room looked up at Cedric.
He faltered at the sight of the entire room looking at him before clearing his throat and crossing his arms. "I'll have an answer once this episode is over," he murmured, deflecting the question. He didn't know whether to agree yet, he had no clue how else he could gain the respect of the people around him. They'd already seemed to have decided that he was a bad sorcerer, he didn't know if they would be willing to just drop that belief.
The rest of the room let out disappointed sighs, maybe he would be willing to reconsider at the end of the episode.
Roland realized that he didn't actually have any reason to punish Cedric yet, so far he'd only daydreamed about taking over the kingdom, not tried anything. He exhaled once he realized that Cedric not having seen the amulet in person meant he hadn't committed any crimes yet. Perhaps he would agree to not try anything while in this room, finding a new sorcerer was a difficult job. And besides, as mad as he was at Cedric, he didn't actually want to have to throw him in prison, he was a part of the castle whether he liked it or not.
His parents stopped their projection and appeared in the room in their normal forms. Goodwyn told him to do the right thing while Winifred told him to do the wrong thing before they waved goodbye.
"That doesn't look like good parenting," Maya said while giving Winifred a judgemental look. Leena nodded in agreement, their parents would never encourage the wrong thing. They got in so much trouble the one time the three of them decided to play a prank. To be fair, it was a massive prank, but still, it wasn't as bad as trying to take over a kingdom,
The parents in the room had to agree with her, Winifred didn't seem like she was all that concerned with the possible consequences of Cedric's actions.
Cedric rolled his eyes and left. The next day, an overhead shot of Royal Prep opened the scene.
"What the heck? I knew this school was big, but that is so big!!" Ruby said. She hadn't realized how much space Royal Prep actually took up.
"Well, we do have many more students than the school at Dunwiddie Village. Children from all over the world come to Royal Prep, not just the local children," Flora explained.
Ruby nodded, she knew that, but it was still a shock whenever she saw it, whether it was the school or amount of students in the hallways. Their class never had more than 15 kids in it, that was just the amount of kids her age in the village and there weren't any more. She supposed it made sense though, there also looked to be more classrooms and she already knew that they had more classes.
Helen looked at the school in disappointment. As a mother, she wanted her daughter to have the best things in life, including the best education. She always knew that it just wasn't possible in a village like Dunwiddie with a family background like hers, and she thought she'd come to terms with that. But seeing this made it difficult, she still wished Ruby had a better life than her, Ruby was smart, she could make something more out of her life than being a Buttercup leader. She held her daughter in a side hug and hoped that Ruby would grow up to be happy and healthy if nothing else.
Fauna went around placing a rock, a lime, and a shoe on the desks of the students.
"Woah, I thought Clio wasn't in this class?" Sofia asked when she saw Clio and some other students who weren't there before, sitting in the class.
"We do the written portions of our tests in our classes but the practical portion combined with both classes. Miss Fauna likes the written part to be separated so she can mark them separately but she says it's easier to monitor everyone when they're together. If something goes wrong, like James and Zandar messing up a spell and making colours explode, it'll happen at the same time so it's easier to clean up altogether," Amber explained while side-eyeing the two boys.
"Hey! That was one time!" James shouted.
"It wasn't even that big of an explosion!" Zandar defended at the same time.
The rest of the kids who were there when it happened laughed, both of them still got the rest of the spells right so they passed, but they got in so much trouble because the teachers thought they did it on purpose. Even now, no one knows if they did it on purpose or not.
Fauna said they had to do all the transformation spells they learned over the week. Sofia remembered Cedric's words and slowly focused on the spell. She was able to turn the rock into a ruby in one try.
"I did it!" Sofia excitedly cheered.
The kids started cheering her on as well, Ruby and Jade giving her quick hugs.
"Good job Sofia!" Maya said, giving her a high five.
Vivian even smiled and congratulated her. She hadn't talked very much to Sofia yet, probably sticking closer to Clio because Clio was quieter like her, so Sofia counted that as a win.
Amber and James even gave her cheers which had her feeling ecstatic.
"You have to show us magic sometime in the future!" Ruby excitedly said.
"I will!" Sofia agreed.
She moved onto the lime and was just as easily able to turn it into an emerald. Finally, she turned to the wooden shoe and turned it into a crystal shoe as well. She excitedly said she was able to do it and pass the test.
Miranda patted Sofia on the head, seems like moving her to this new school was a good option. Not only did it have so many new classes for Sofia to learn, but it also seemed like she enjoyed going.
"Congratulations Princess Sofia, you worked hard," Robin said to Sofia from her spot on the armrest.
"Thank you!" Sofia said to the bird.
"Good job, but I hope you know I'm expecting you to keep making those tomatoes," Clover joked.
Sofia laughed, "Don't worry Clover, I'm sure I can do that for you."
When the kids came back from school, Sofia ran to Miranda to show her the gold star on her sorcery test. The twins went to sit down as well and Sofia went around telling them it was because of Mr. Cedric.
Sofia looked at everyone on screen in confusion and asked, "Why is James sitting on my throne? And why is Amber sitting on Mom's throne when her own throne is empty?"
"Because mom is on my throne for some reason," James said.
Miranda looked at James in awe, he was really adjusting to his new family so fast. She would've been grateful if the twins accepted her even as a stepmother but he was already calling her mom when he's only met her a few times.
"It's fine, it doesn't really matter anyway," Amber said, they sat on each other's thrones all the time.
Trumpets started playing and Magnus came into the throne room, asking when they'd be seeing Cedric. Sofia told him they'd be seeing him right now before bowing to him and leaving. She came back with Cedric's bag dressed in her sorcery clothes and wished Cedric good luck. He opened his bag and it opened up to reveal many potions.
Desmond looked at the bag with awe and envy, he wanted something like that. He was always pretty good at potions, they were like chemistry to him. He couldn't wait to start their potions unit in classes if it meant he'd get to deal with potions that looked like that.
Sofia recognized the lizard potion and moved it into the bag so it wasn't in the way. Cedric told Wormwood that he was going through with the plan.
The entire room was gloomy again, but they held hope that either Cedric would choose not to do it, or fail.
He said for his final trick he'd pour the invisibility potion on himself and swipe Sofia's amulet. Baileywick announced Cedric as the Royal Sorcerer of Enchancia and as the son of the beloved Goodwyn the Great, settling on the title of Cedric the Sorcerer.
Cedric sighed, his father was Goodwyn the Great, his mother Winifred the Wise, even Cordelia was Cordelia the Conjuror, and he was the sorcerer. He knew if he was given the opportunity, he'd be able to make something of himself, but no one ever gave him the chance.
Cedric started his speech and said that they were about to witness such an amazing display of sorcery, that his last trick, the potion, would change the kingdom forever.
"Well, even if he doesn't get his hands on the amulet, he'll still be changing the kingdom with the invisibility potion, I don't believe Goodwyn the Great ever made an invisibility potion in his time," Fauna said.
"Yes, he was notorious for his spellwork, he never focused much on potions," Merryweather recalled.
Cedric's chest puffed with pride, his potions were his proudest accomplishments, he was always better at potions than spellwork, the opposite of the rest of his family it's why he wasn't acknowledged often by his father even though his potions were always top tier. He still didn't know why such a simple potion didn't work when he was younger, but he knew that his potions if anything, were great.
Roland said this was going to be a disaster but Miranda tried to convince him that it would be fine.
Roland cringed, he saw it now, why Cedric didn't think people respected him. He knew that Cedric was great at potions, making potions for them was a large part of his job, but he didn't believe in even those. He supposed he would apologize to Cedric at some point.
"But, first things first," Cedric quickly did a spell that made Clover appear on a stool.
"Oh, this can't be good," Clover said, his mood dropping.
Robin and Mia just laughed at him.
Magnus leaned over and said his sorcerer made an entire zoo appear once. Cedric said he'd probably never seen a rabbit fly though, and made Clover float. But its ears turned into helicopter wings and he flew away spinning and bouncing along the floor. Sofia muttered an "oh no." and Roland tried to cover his face.
Cedric started sweating, he hoped he wouldn't make a fool of himself.
Cedric tried to fix it but Clover kept bouncing along the ground.
Clover groaned, of course, he was the one they chose for this. He gave Robin and Mia exasperated looks when they just kept laughing but it only made them laugh harder.
"Maybe he should just try to pull Clover out of a hat," James said to Amber with a worried expression.
Magnus said that didn't look like a flying rabbit. "Same old Cedric," Roland said, "Can he do anything right?"
The kids looked at Roland in shock.
Roland looked at himself in shock. "I am so sorry Cedric, I hope you know I don't mean that," Roland sheepishly apologized.
Cedric looked at him in disbelief but nodded, Roland looked so astonished with himself that he didn't think that he realized what he was actually saying.
Cedric looked like he was getting more and more nervous and Sofia got worried. "Mr. Cedric looks too nervous. If only he was doing a trick he knew really well," Sofia said.
Cedric gave Sofia a grateful look. She was trying to help him when no one else ever did, it made him feel a bit better about what he was witnessing.
Sofia had an idea when she thought of a trick he learned in magic school.
"Is she doing what I think she's doing?" Jade asked.
"I think she is," Ruby said with a worried look on her face.
It slowly dawned on most of the room what Sofia was planning and they all looked at her in worry. Getting transformed once on accident was one thing, doing it to herself was another.
Sofia reached into the bag and pulled out a potion. She faked stumbling and dropped some of the potion on herself. "Sofia spilled a potion on herself," James yelled while getting out of his throne in worry. Sofia turned into the lizard and her entire family called out to her in worry.
Sofia tried to stop herself from smiling as she watched the screen. Even though the rest of the room knew she had done it on purpose and that Cedric could fix it, it was still scary to see her turned into a lizard.
Cedric instantly got over his nerves and changed Sofia back into herself. Miranda ran over to hug her while Roland ran over to Cedric and said, "That was magnificent! You saved Sofia's life."
Cedric looked at the screen in shock. He didn't think Roland had been so open with his emotions in front of him since they were kids. It was a change, but maybe it was a good change. Perhaps he didn't need to steal the amulet after all.
Roland nodded along with himself, he felt the same way when he watched Cedric do it the first time. Cedric might not be as great as his father, but he was starting to realize that he was a great sorcerer even now.
Roland thanked Cedric while Cedric was caught in wonder over the words that he saved someone's life. Roland turned to Magnus and asked if he had seen that before introducing Cedric as the greatest in the land.
Cedric smiled and nodded, he'd made up his mind, if King Roland respected him, then the rest of the palace would agree with him. Maybe he could get respect this way.
Cedric asked Sofia what happened but she just brushed it off as being clumsy. Cedric realized she did it on purpose and she admitted that it was the one trick she knew he could do no matter how nervous he was.
"Well, that's because it's not a trick. If someone is in trouble like that in front of me I won't just freeze to help them because I'm nervous," Cedric justified.
"Exactly," Sofia said. She knew he was a good person if he was willing to help people, just a little hurt. She was seeing that now, and hopefully becoming friends with him as well.
Sofia said it worked, everyone finally saw how great he was. Roland said that they should see that last trick he was talking about.
Everyone held their breaths, this was the moment that Cedric either chose to steal the amulet and be their enemy, or not to and be a part of their group.
Cedric agreed and Sofia brought the potion to the stool where he introduced it as an invisibility potion. He went on to say it was a trick he'd been planning for many years while staring at Sofia's amulet. His parents' voices echo in his head while Sofia smiles at him. He grabbed the invisibility potion and introduced it, "Behold my invisibility potion, which I will demonstrate on..." He paused and looked back at Sofia before saying, "My trusty rabbit."
Everyone exhaled in relief, thankful that he chose to do the right thing in the end.
Clover was the one person who groaned in disappointment, "You people couldn't choose anyone else as a test subject?"
Clover tried to wiggle out of Sofia's arms as she brought him to the stool, protesting that no one told him about the potion. Cedric dropped the potion on Clover, and sure enough, he disappeared. Magnus had to admit that his sorcerer had never made a potion like that before and everyone clapped.
Cedric beamed when he saw even the staff along the sides clapping and smiling, he needed to have more sorcery shows more often. Or just display his magic more in general, no one believed that he could do magic well until they saw it, so he decided to ask for more sorcerer missions in the future.
Back in Cedric's tower, Cedric was gushing about the performance, he asked Sofia if she saw the looks on their faces. Sofia smiled before handing Cedric a piece of parchment. He asked what it was and Sofia explained she got a gold star today and thought he should get one too.
Miranda smiled at Sofia before pulling her daughter in for a hug, "I don't know how you got so kind Sofia. I'm so proud of the girl you're growing up to be."
Sofia smiled and hugged her mom back.
She thanked him for all his help and said it was fun being her apprentice. She took her hat off and gave it to him before wishing him good night and leaving. Cedric smiled and wished her good night back without correcting her pronunciation of his name for the first time. Wormwood on the other hand was upset. Cedric said they could always take over the kingdom tomorrow.
Everyone smiled as the episode ended on a good note before turning to Cedric.
"So, have you decided yet Mr. Cedric," Sofia asked with a smile.
Cedric awkwardly looked around the room and said, "I suppose I could find other ways to get respect from the kingdom."
The kids cheered, they were still young, they weren't ready to see someone try to take over the kingdom yet.
As everyone devolved into chatter, relaxing from the episode closing, Roland and Baileywick came up to Cedric.
"Cedric, I'll be honest and say I still don't trust you to keep your word, I know that you wouldn't hurt anyone so I respect you for that. And I apologize, I never realized how much prejudice I held against you. I'll try to be more careful with my words in the future. I know that it was mostly me who ended up ruining the friendship that we had in the past and I regret that. I don't expect you to forgive me but I hope you know that I do think you're a great sorcerer, we've relied on your potions for years."
Cedric looked at him in shock but nodded, "I'll think about your apology. And for what it's worth, I don't think I actually thought about what I'd do after taking over the kingdom. If I can get respect from the kingdom then I'll be happy."
Roland nodded and walked back to Miranda, they'd probably need time to trust each other but they both knew they'd get there eventually.
Baileywick stiffly nodded at Cedric, "Cedric, I hope you know that I never meant any harm to you. I apologize if I've ever made you feel like I don't think you're a good sorcerer."
Cedric shook his head in denial, "You're fine Baileywick, as annoying as you are, I know you don't mean anything."
Baileywick just smiled in relief and patted Cedric's shoulder before going off to find some tea or water.
"Wait, did that line at the end mean that Cedric's gonna keep trying to steal the amulet?" Jun asked.
That had everyone coming to a stop, they were so relieved over the ending being happy that they barely registered Cedric saying he could try again tomorrow.
Solar looked over the room from her spot on the side and said, "Yes, he is. Though I'm gonna be honest, I don't think he tries as hard to go after the amulet after this. It's mostly just comical, Cedric will attempt but not really put too much effort into it. I'm warning you though, he does eventually get his hands on the amulet at one point, he doesn't end up using it to take over the kingdom, he stops trying to after that, but he does have it at one point."
Everyone nodded. The adults were still wary of Cedric and would be keeping an eye on him, but they believed him when he said he could get respect in other ways. He seemed happy when people knew he wasn't a bad sorcerer and if they acknowledged it, his grudge would most likely start to fade."
The room relaxed as they got ready for the next episode, agreeing to take a small break after the next one. Hopefully, the next episode will be calmer than this one was.