The Author's Will

15 | Little Sprout

　　 The next day, Irene found herself waking up to the morning light pouring into her room, as well as Joanne, who was gently shaking her awake. "Rise and shine, Milady! Your mother has called you for breakfast this morning!"

Irene's heavy lids forced themselves to open, but it was still difficult to wake up. Groggily, the girl yawned and rubbed her eyes, before opening them again.

It was then, that she realised Joanne wasn't the only one who she was waking up to. Perched on her headboard, was the large white bird she had befriended the previous night. As Irene realised Snow was still in the room, she got up with a start, afraid that Joanne had discovered the bird.

"H-Hold on! I can explain!" Irene frantically blabbered, clutching onto her nanny in a frenzy, while glancing at the bird. "He's not a harmful animal!"

Joanne blinked, completely baffled. "Hm? My lady, what are you talking about?" She asked, tilting her head.

Her confusion left Irene even more bemused. The little girl turned from her maid, to the bird, to the maid. She then pointed at Snow and gulped. "You mean, you can't see him? The bird."

Joanne stared at the bed frame in confusion. In her eyes, there was no such thing. "Whatever do you mean, Miss? There's nothing there," she chuckled, before coming to a realisation. "Ah, did you perhaps dream of a bird? I'm afraid this is reality."

Irene blinked, her eyes widening in confusion. It was then she came to the realisation that Joanne was unable to see the majestic white phoenix, who tried to contain his laughter. "I-I see. I must have been dreaming."

Irene blinked again, as she turned her head to look at the door. As Snow perched onto her shoulder, he peered into her face. "Did you forget? I'm a spirit," he told her. "I'm invisible to others, but I can show myself if I want."

Irene nodded at what the bird was telling her, before she looked back at Joanne, who was preparing the girl's clothes for the day, while humming to herself. While the woman was distracted, Irene decided to go into the bathroom to wash her face and brush her teeth.

"Is there a way for me to communicate with you in front of others?" Irene quietly asked Snow, who was still on her shoulder. It was then that she noticed the phoenix's body was smaller than before.

"Just talk to me in your head, I'll be able to hear you talking to me even if you think the words." He told her, as Irene proceeded to do her morning routine.

The girl tried to focus her thoughts on Snow, who was gazing around the bathroom in wonderment. "Can you hear me now?" She asked him in her mind, to which he nodded his little head.

"Yeah, see? It's easy."

After Irene had gotten herself ready for the day, Joanne took her down to the dining room for her breakfast. As they strolled through the hallway, decorated with endless portraits and paintings, Snow marvelled at the luxuries around her house.

This was a good opportunity to show him around, since he would be here often. But at the same time, Irene had a more important task for him.

"Snow," she called out to him, in her mind. "You're going to be meeting a few important people in my family today. They are people I'll probably ask you to watch over from time to time, so make sure you remember their faces."