I only own my dreams... sort of...

A Note of Encouragement

"Sir, you must drink the potion."

"No."

"But if you don't you will likely die from your injuries."

"I don't care... I don't want… to be without her."

The two doctors exchanged horrified looks before looking back at the patient.

"Please… leave me alone."

They both sighed and shuffled out of the room, closing the door behind them.

Cedric knew he was being incredibly absurd. He was lying in a bed in the castle's medical wing. The doctors had told him he had sustained severe injuries, including broken ribs and a badly broken leg, from when a dangerous potion had exploded in his workshop causing part of the tower to collapse. He had been found buried under some rubble, his body wrapped protectively around Sofia, who had been helping him at the time of the explosion. They were both unconscious.

Cedric had woken up about an hour ago, with bandages wrapped around various parts of his body. He had immediately looked around for Sofia, but she didn't seem to be with him. Had she survived? Or was she gone? The thought of his princess being gone forever was too much for the broken sorcerer to bear. The doctors had been in and out of the room trying to convince him to drink a healing potion, but he stubbornly refused

So here he was, lying in the bed with blankets covering him. His breathing was labored, due to his broken ribs, and his leg throbbed painfully. But he just couldn't bring himself to care. None of that pain could compare to the feeling of loss in his heart. The doctors hadn't mentioned Sofia, and he just couldn't bring himself to ask if she was all right. He turned his head on the pillow so he could face the wall and started to weep silently, a few tears falling onto the pillow. If Sofia wasn't with him, then he didn't think he could live without her…

He didn't hear the door of his room open. He didn't know that a nurse was in the room until someone touched his shoulder and asked in a kind voice, "Are you Cedric?"

"Yes," he murmured, not turning to look at her. He hoped she would leave him be.

"I have a note for you." She held out a piece of parchment, but when he didn't respond, she sighed. "I was instructed to read it to you if you didn't take it." She cleared her throat and read the note. "My dear Cedric. I know this is hard for you, but everything is going to be okay. Please let the doctors help you, and I promise I will be there when you wake up. I love you. Sofia."

Cedric finally turned to face her. He held out his hand, and the nurse passed him the note. Yes, the parchment was real, and the writing was indeed Sofia's. She was alive. He clutched the precious note to his heart, relief and joy washing over him. His princess was alive. Why hadn't he just asked about her instead of just assuming she was dead just because she wasn't in the room with him? A sharp pain cut through his thoughts and he winced, realizing just how badly injured he really was. He looked up at the nurse. "Very well. T–Tell them I'll take the potion."

"Yes, sir." She hurried from the room.

A minute later, one of the doctors was back. As he handed the sorcerer a small cup he said, "This won't heal you right away, but it will start the healing process. You'll sleep for a few hours, and when you wake up you should feel less pain."

Cedric nodded and sipped the sweet liquid. A few minutes later, he was asleep.

…

When Cedric began to regain consciousness, he was aware of two things. One was that his ribs and leg no longer hurt quite so badly. In fact, they felt numb. This was probably an effect of the healing potion. The other thing he was aware of was that two warm hands were holding one of his. His eyes fluttered open as he turned his head. There, sitting in a wheelchair beside the bed was Sofia. He could see a few scrapes on her arms, and her bangs just barely hid a bandage on her forehead, but, to him, she was the most beautiful person he had ever seen.

"S–Sofia…" He tried to sit up, but in his weakened state all he could do was turn slightly on the mattress and hold one arm out to her.

Despite the bandage around her ankle, Sofia was able to crawl onto the bed. She lay beside him and carefully wrapped him in a hug.

"Oh, Sofia," he murmured as he pulled her close and clung to her, unable to keep tears from rolling down his cheeks. "I thought I'd lost you forever."

She smiled softly, touching her forehead to his. "Thank you for saving my life, Cedric."

Soon they both fell asleep in each other's arms.

A/N: First, thanks for reading my 10th StF story. So this story came from a dream I had a few nights ago. I apologize if it doesn't make sense. I also apologize for any OOCness. I tried.