Work Text:
He was sure to impress all of the Royal guests coming next week with this demonstration! Roland was hosting some kind of outdoor event and Cedric found this to be the perfect chance to test a new potion he had been working on. He could just see the looks on their faces and he puffed out his chest in pride.
As long as he survived testing it.
He snuck off of castle property and stopped beside a river. It was better to be safe than sorry. He brought a bucket with him, leaving it in the water for now. Hopefully he would not need to use it and if he did it would be for something insignificant.
He upended a bottle over his head, the liquid inside falling over his hair and face. He looked down at himself as the liquid rapidly dried and watched as a faint coppery shimmer spread all over his body. “Fully coats,” he murmured in approval. He clapped his hands, bouncing a little in place before he set to work on the second part of his test.
Cedric drew the family wand from the inside of his robe. He moved it in a slow pattern in front of himself and he quickly reached out, catching the staff that had materialized in front of him. He looked around himself, making sure that the dry straw he had scattered around was still in place. He nodded in approval and he shouted out another spell, flames bursting from the staff and catching the straw on fire.
***
Roland found that going out for a walk by himself made him feel better when things became too much. He especially liked walking along the river, tracing its path. It gave him something else to focus on.
Things were becoming easier and harder in equal measure. He had new castle staff, his family was happy, and for the most part there were no extreme threats to the kingdom. Even Avalor had regained their rightful queen, sealing the two kingdoms’ alliance with each other. His sister promised that Sofia would be safe as a Protector and he watched as his daughter grew into the queen she was meant to be and his son into a proud knight who would protect his family.
However… Roland‘s new staff included a sorcerer who was supposed to be dead and a disgraced royal steward. There would be a day when he would have to host Rudistan’s king and he still didn’t know what to do to keep them safe. Slickwell Magnus had no power over; the man’s actions had been against an Enchancian after all. Magnus had no say over who Roland employed in his castle.
Greylock...Greylock was another story. The former royal sorcerer had committed treason; assaulting a Royal and stealing their throne with forbidden magicks. This was not something he could simply tell Magnus he had no business worrying about. Greylock was technically a condemned criminal and Magnus could demand to have the original sentence finished and be well within his rights.
“Maybe I could just send him away for a week?” Roland murmured to himself. He sighed, already knowing that this wouldn’t work. Several Royal guests had noticed and remarked on the new glasswork around the castle and “Mr. Demi” gladly shared his work with them. Roland was just glad no one had looked too closely under the glassmaker’s hat so far.
The glassmaker’s absence would be noticed if he sent him away or tried to hide him. Even now several Royals spoke highly of “Mr. Demi” and his work, telling friends and relatives about his talent with glass. Him being gone for a week would be very suspicious. Roland needed to think of some other way to deal with Magnus.
Roland looked up when he heard an odd sound up ahead. He frowned and continued to walk closer, the smell of wood burning catching his notice.
A forest fire? Roland moved faster, ready to try and put out a fire before it destroyed the surrounding trees. What he found instead was his royal sorcerer engulfed in flames, swinging a staff around in desperation.
“Cedric!” Roland looked around desperately and he found the bucket in the water. He grabbed it and swung at Cedric, splashing him with the river water before quickly scooping up more to do it again. “Cedric, stop, drop, and roll!” he shouted.
“Neptune’s Nettles! Stop! You’re going to drown me!”
He stopped in confusion at the sorcerer’s outcry. Cedric stood glaring at him, drenched in river water. The king huffed, throwing the bucket down. “I just saved your life!” he said.
“I wasn’t in danger,” Cedric sighed.
“You were engulfed in flames and flailing around!”
“...I was dancing.”
“Dancing?”
Cedric huffed, wringing out his sleeves before shaking the water out of his shoes. He undid his ribbon and squeezed as much water out of it as he could. “I was testing out something I wanted to do for your guests,” he said. “I invented a potion that makes one invulnerable to fire. I intended on casting a large fire around myself and dancing to show off its effectiveness as the flames burned up a staff I was holding.”
“...oh.”
He rolled his eyes but smiled at the king, shaking his head. “It is nice to know you would react in such a way if you believed I was in danger,” he said. He shivered, hugging himself as a chill ran down his back.
Roland took off his coat, placing it around Cedric’s shoulders. “Let’s head back before you catch a cold.”
“And if I did, who would be responsible for that?”
“I thought you were dying!” Roland cried.
Cedric laughed, smiling at Roland. “Thank you, sire. Perhaps next time you will take a moment or two to look around first before reacting?”
“If I see you in danger I cannot say I won’t immediately try to do something to help you. You’re my friend, Cedric.”
“Thank you, your majesty,” the sorcerer softly said, pulling Roland’s coat tighter around himself for warmth.