Prologue

Sofia was not the type of girl to organize grand, elaborate displays of affection. She wasn't easily swept away by romanticism either. She preferred heartfelt words to loud proclamations of love for everyone to hear. Even at eighteen, she was held onto the simplicity she loved as a child. However, she was starting to question that.

Amber was always one for theatrics and grand gestures, and she was the one all the boys liked. Sofia had admirers, to be sure, but Amber had more, and could probably get any man she wanted. That's not to say that Sofia was jealous, because she wasn't, it just made her rethink her subtler approach to things, because the one man she wanted to notice her, didn't. Sofia believed he saw her as little more than the small child he'd helped learn magic ten years ago when she was only eight years old.

As Valentine's Day grew near, she worried more and more about how to show him how she felt. Sofia thought about using one of Amber's approaches, but she didn't want to be too flashy or overly cheesy. And yet, it had to catch his attention, and it had to be perfect, for nothing less would do.

She currently sat on a table that had been pushed against the wall in his workshop—for which he endlessly scolded her, but was the precise reason why she did it—and swung her legs back and forth like a child. She thought for the moment that perhaps the reason why he still saw her as a child was because of such things, and instantly stopped and sat up straighter.

Cedric's workshop hadn't changed much over the years—there were still empty beakers and vials lying all over the place. Books were randomly shoved into empty spaces on shelves and there was a pile of cauldrons stacked against the wall. The place was usually messy, but every once in a while Sofia would come in and clean up, just as an excuse to see Cedric.

Today, however, he was barely paying attention to her antics, concentrating instead on the potion he was brewing. A cauldron rested on a table in the middle of the room, and Cedric stood over it, sprinkling some powder into the bubbling liquid. While her mission in being there was to try and find out the perfect Valentine's Day gift for him, she found teasing him far more entertaining.

"Whatcha doing now, Cee-dric?" she asked, and received just the reaction she had been hoping for when he let out an annoyed huff and frowned. She learned years ago that she had been pronouncing his name wrong, but lately she'd started calling him by it again, just to get a reaction out of him.

"Cedric! It's pronounced Said-Rick! How many times do I have to tell you?"

She smirked and shook her head. "How do you know?"

He sent her a confused look. "How do I know what?"

"That it's pronounced that way?"

He sent her a glare. "Because that's how everyone's been pronouncing it my whole life!"

"Well, maybe they've been pronouncing it wrong all this time and I'm the first one to pronounce it right!" she said, holding in a laugh.

"I—I…" he stuttered, clearly trying to form a reply, but after a couple of moments he furrowed his eyebrows and scowled. "It's Cedric!"

Sofia let out a giggle at the fact that he had no good counter argument or comeback. "Nope, it's Cee-dric!"

"Cedric!" he snapped, stomping his foot like a child.

"Cee-dric!"

"Cedric!"

"Cee-dric!"

"Cedric!"

"Cedric!" she said quickly.

"Cee-dric!" he replied without thinking, and realized his mistake a second too late.

Sofia laughed, clapping her hands in delight. "I told you!"

He let out a frustrated cry and pointed to the door. "Go away! I have work to do and you're distracting me!"

"I'm sorry. I'll stop now." Sofia knew the joke ended there because she didn't want to be kicked out. She still had to find out what to get Cedric for Valentine's Day. He sent her a glare before returning to his work, but didn't say anything more about her leaving, which she took as a good sign.

After a couple minutes of silence she decided to subtly bring up the subject. "Cedric?"

"What?" he asked, irritation still biting at his voice.

"Have you ever wanted something you thought you could never have?" she asked. If she could get him to reveal one of his deepest desires, maybe she could get it for him. It was worth a shot, anyway.

Sofia could tell by the way his hands stalled in their work that she was on to something. "Yes, once."

"Well…" she prodded. He turned to face her and crossed his arms.

"Well, when I was much younger, I wanted to be a King." She certainly couldn't get him that.

"I think every little boy has dreamed of being a King," she said, and it earned her a smile.

"Yes, of course. However, things have changed. I mean, there are times when I wish I could be a King…but they quickly pass. I don't really want it anymore."

Sofia knew continuing on this subject would be getting off topic, but decided to pursue the questions she had burning in the back of her mind anyway. "What changed your mind?"

"Not what, but whom." Sofia raised an eyebrow, and apparently that's all that was needed for him to continue. He took in a breath before placing both hands on the table in front of him and leaning forward slightly. "I knew that if I tried to…pursue my dream, I would only end up hurting someone very dear to me."

"Pursue? How can you pursue something like that?" Sofia's face still held confusion. "Unless, a person is born into it…or marries into a royal family…" She gave him a gentle smile. "Did you plan on marrying a princess?"

"Nothing like that."

"I'm afraid I don't understand."

His grin faded and was replaced with a serious expression. "There are some things better left in the past, Princess."

She decided to take his word for it…for now. "So is there anything you really want these days that you don't have?"

"Not really," he answered as he resumed work on his potion. He suddenly paused and looked up at her. "Well…I would like for you to leave, I have a lot of work to do."

She grinned. "It looks like you won't be getting that anytime soon."

He let out a sigh. "Valentine's Day is in six days and I still have a list of chores the King gave me."

She pursed her lips, and finally hopped down from the table. "All right. See you later, Cee-dric!" she called out as she walked through the door.

"It's Cedric!" she heard him snap before she closed the door. She giggled into her hand before skipping down the tower steps.

Well, back to square one. She still didn't know what to get him, and she only had a few more days to decide. When Sofia reached the ground floor, she caught sight of the double doors leading into the Royal Library. Maybe they had a book on Valentine's Day ideas. It was worth a try, at least. She turned and walked through the doors.

As she strolled through the expansive room she noticed Amber sitting up on the second floor in a chair. She was slouching in her seat with a book in her hands. Sofia climbed the chairs and realized Amber must have been really engrossed in the book, because she didn't notice Sofia at all until she tapped her on the shoulder. Amber jumped slightly and sent Sofia a frown, immediately straightening her posture.

"It's rude to sneak up on people, you know," Amber said, managing to make Sofia feel like she was looking down at her, even though she was sitting.

"I didn't sneak up on you," Sofia said before taking a seat on the couch opposite Amber. "What are you reading?" Amber turned the book so Sofia could see the title. Pleasure Garden, it read in fancy, golden letters. "Well, that sounds…pleasurable."

Amber smiled as her gaze returned to the book. "It is. Now can you leave? I'm trying to read."

"Oh, I just came up here to find a book to give me ideas," Sofia said as she stood. Amber suddenly glanced up from her book, her curiosity stirred.

"Ideas for what?"

"Valentine's Day."

Amber waved a dismissive hand. "Oh, I have the maids make my cards, then I sign them all the day before. Saves me loads of time."

"I've already finished all my Valentine's Day cards…except one."

"Whose?"

Sofia immediately felt her cheeks heat up at the thought of him, and dropped her head as a smile stretched across her face. "Someone special."

When she looked back at Amber she saw her eyes light up—probably at the thought of Sofia having a secret crush. She dog-eared a page before closing the book and placing it on the small table in front of her. With one swift movement she side-stepped the table and plopped down on the couch, patting the seat next to her. Sofia took a seat and turned to face Amber. "Who is it?"

"It's a secret," Sofia replied. While she wasn't ashamed of Cedric, she knew that more likely than not, Amber wouldn't understand why on earth she had fallen for the bumbling Royal Sorcerer. Besides, Amber wasn't the best at keeping secrets, and she didn't want the whole castle to know she liked Cedric and have him find out through the grapevine.

"Come on, I can keep a secret. You shouldn't keep things from your older sister. Maybe I can help."

"I won't tell you who it is, but I would appreciate some help."

Amber drew her lips into a fine line, clearly annoyed Sofia wasn't giving in, but still curious. "All right. What do you need help with?"

"The man I like…well, he doesn't really want anything. I want to give him something special, but I don't know what." Sofia paused. "I don't think he even knows I like him. I think he still sees me as a little girl. Maybe I should just make a card telling him how I feel about him."

Amber shook her head and held up a hand. "Wait, you're just going to give him a card telling him that you like him?"

Sofia blinked. "Yes."

Amber was aghast. "You can't do that!"

"Why not?"

"Because if he doesn't know you like him then that changes everything! You're supposed to catch his attention first, then let him confess his love for you. There was never a quicker way to ruin love than for a woman to confess it to a man, it only scares them away. You have to get him to fall for you first."

Sofia bit down on her lip. That made sense…somewhat, but… "Valentine's Day is only six days away. How am I supposed to get him to fall in love with me and confess it in six days?"

A grin lit up Amber's face like she had just been challenged and decided to accept. "Don't worry, Sofia, I know everything there is to know about love."

"How?"

Amber reached forward and held up her book as if it was the answer to world hunger. "Romance novels, of course! I've read them all. Everything there is to know about love is in those pages. Follow my advice, and you'll have this mystery man falling for you in no time."

"Amber, I don't think that's such a great idea. Real life isn't like a book."

Amber scoffed. "Of course it is! Haven't you ever heard the story of the poor village girl who fell in love with a prince and became a princess? That's just like what happened to you."

"Except it was my mom who fell in love with the King, and we weren't poor. We had a shoe business."

"It's close enough!" Amber said, waving a dismissive hand again. "Trust me, Sofia. I'm the love expert here."

"Well…" Sofia thought about it for a minute, and realized she didn't have any better ideas. Amber might be able to help her, so she decided to give it a shot. "All right. What do I have to do?"

"Just sit here. I'll go get the book and show you what you should do first."

Sofia gave a nod as Amber stood and walked down the stairs to the first floor. Her eyes traveled over to the book Amber had been reading, scanning over it curiously. Amber said the answer to all her Valentine's Day problems was inside romance novels. She picked up the book and opened it to the page Amber had marked, then began to read.

'Eloisa mimicked her lover, pulling the chemise over her head to reveal two small white mountains, with perfectly formed tulips at the top of each one. Jack lowered his mouth to the budding flowers and—'

Sofia stopped reading and raised one eyebrow in questioning. Wait, what was happening? One minute the girl was removing her chemise, and the next the man was leaning down to eat a flower—realization suddenly dawned on Sofia. She let out a small yelp of both horror and shock as the book fell from her hands and onto the floor. That was not the kind of book a princess should be reading! Leaping to her feet, she hurried down the stairs after her sister.

"Amber, I don't think this is such a good idea!" she said when she finally found her sister.

"Why?" Amber asked as she lifted up onto her toes to grab a book from a high shelf.

"Because I don't want Ce—" Sofia immediately cut her sentence short, and started over. "I don't want my crush to…" She glanced around before leaning forward and whispering, "to eat my tulips!" She could feel her face burn just remembering what was written in the book.

"What?" Amber face twisted with confusion, but a second later realization replaced it. "Oh, you read the page I marked?" When Sofia gave a nod, she laughed. "Don't worry, I won't make you do anything like that. Stuff like that stays in the books…at least until your wedding night."

Sofia glanced down at the floor in embarrassment while Amber flipped through the book. When she heard Amber snap her fingers she looked up. She turned the book around so Sofia could see it and pointed to a picture. A woman wearing a very revealing dress was being held in the arms of dark-haired man wearing a loose white shirt that revealed his muscles.

"You want me to…wear a dress like that?" Sofia guessed, slightly horrified. "Amber, I don't think that's really appropriate—"

"No, Sofia," she interrupted, rolling her eyes, then continued in a tone like she was trying to explain arithmetic to a small child. "In the books, the woman always trips and fall, and the hero always catches her, like right here. Then, as they stare into each other's eyes, they fall in love. All you have to do is walk towards your mystery man, trip, and then let him catch you. Then stare into his eyes and he'll fall right in love."

"But what if he doesn't catch me?"

Amber waved away her idea as if it was absurd. "Oh don't be silly, a man will always catch a woman when she falls. That's just how it is."

Sofia looked nervous, so Amber leaned over and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Don't worry. If you follow my advice, you'll have him singing you poetry and declaring his unrequited love for you by Valentine's Day."

Sofia thought about Cedric doing either of those things, and almost burst out laughing at the thought. She wasn't sure about the aforementioned acts, but if Amber said it would make him fall in love with her, then she was willing to try it. After all, what could possibly go wrong?

First off, I'd like to thank my amazing Beta-reader, FlynnieG for reading over my story and giving me suggestions to make it better.

Hope you all enjoyed the prologue! There will be about twenty to twenty-two chapters in all and this will be a light-hearted romantic comedy with a lot of slapstick and parodies of famous romantic clichés, so go ahead and subscribe if that's the kind of story you're looking for. Let me know what you think so far. :)