Aryl heard the husky voice from the cat and guessed that it wasn’t a normal cat but a werecat. Spinning her wings to turn her body, Aryl placed one of its bird-like legs behind one of another and excuse herself elegantly. “Since your friend is here now. Please excuse me.”

Elise nodded and reached out her hand to pass the Amaryllis flower to the Sulix as a parting gift. “Goodbye, Aryl.”

“Thank you. May the forest Queen’s blessing be with you.” Aryl saw the girl waving her hand with a wide smile before leaving the place. 

By the time Austin arrived, he saw Elise looking far on the path that the Sulix took to leave with a smile and pawed her to gain her attention. “Elise, what are you doing here?” 

“Talking to a friend.” Elise replied with her clumsy little words to have Austin asking again. “Friend? Who?”

“Aryl” Elise replied but Austin couldn’t remember any of the servants with the same name and decided to let the matter aside as they were now called for a later lunch in the dining room. “Let’s go now, Maroon will nag at us again if we are late now.” Elise hurried with his words. One more thing she learned from the White’s Mansion is the fact that the Butler of the house are very stern whenever he was angry. One time Austin walked into the house with his muddy feet only to be sternly reprimanded by Maroon with his cold face. 

The day for the little human girl in White’s Mansion felt long and by the time she finished eating dinner in Ian’s absence, Mila brought a heavy book of bed tales collection for the little girl. Opening the book in front of Elise, Mila asked, “Which story will we be reading today?” 

Elise pointed at one story that had always got her hooked on. “This one? The Little Blue Cloak Of The Elf?” Although Mila asked, she knew that Elise will reply with her soft voice of yes and decided to proceed to read the tale.

Ten minutes passed and when Mila read the last sentence of the story, the little human girl had fallen off to her little imaginative wonderland. Mila smiled and brushed aside the little baby hairs sticking on Elise’s forehead to wish her “Good night” and blew out the candle to leave the room. 

“Elise!” A fading voice came through to her ears a little blurred along with a loud knocking on the windowpane that was right beside Elise’s bed. “Elise, wake up!” The gentle voice coaxed her to wake up, bringing some voices to her ears. Elise rose up from the bed and rubbed her sleepy eyes to the window and saw Aryl smiling sweetly. “Elise.” she called out her names again and was returned with a drowsy nod from Elise.

Elise gave a long hm and looked up to see Aryl hovering over the window. “Aryl?” 

Aryl saw the little girl has gone awake and broke into a childish giggle at the girl’s silly yet adorable just-woke-up attitude. “Yes, it’s me. Can you open the window for me?” Aryl pointed down on the sash lock of the window frame. 

Elise trotted down of the bed to the window and lifted the sash up to let Aryl flew inside the room. “Elise, are you free now?” The Aryl asked, but her eyes gave a sense that she didn’t want Elise to say no. Being a considerate child, Aryl nodded to Aryl and have the Sulix flew around in happiness. She flew over near to the door and glanced down at Elise’s bare feet with white lacy socks and remembered that she forgot something. 

“You should wear your shoes, let’s go somewhere now!” Elise hesitantly halted her movement looking at Aryl who was far more than delightfully ready to walk out of the room and bring her somewhere. “What are you waiting for?” Aryl flew over and stopped at her right cheek. 

“I don’t think I should go now. It’s already late and Master Ian told me not to walk at night because I could fall.” Elise replied to have the Aryl placing her both palm over the waist. 

“That would be fine, we would only walk over the garden a few minutes before walking back home. Sleeping after having enough movement would make you freshen a bit. And you don’t need to worry about not having a light.” Elise tilted her head in confusion and saw Aryl pointing her index finger to lit up a bloom of fire. “I can help you with that.”

Seeing the sparks coming of Aryl’s hand, Elise asked in worries. “Doesn’t that feel hot?” the end of her brows descended down into a slope.

Gaining an innocent question from the sweet child, Aaryl looked at her with slightly widened eyes and chuckled. “This is our power, so it isn’t hot at all. You don’t have to worry, my dear. Now would you come with me? My friends are waiting on the other side.” 

Elise couldn’t understand what the other side that Aryl mentioned, but after the push she received from the back by Aryl, the little girl wore her shoes and opened the door to peek at the silent pitch-black hall. Aryl flew over her head with dainty steps as though she was dancing at the sky, making the little girl’s fascination grew wider. 

“Follow me.” Aryl led the way and escorted her with the orange light on her hand, giving light to the places they passed on. The White’s Mansion was wide, and at night there was barely anyone still walking on the hallway, as they were afraid that something would pop out of nowhere. Ghosts are rare to see by naked eyes, but at the house where many people have lost their lives, it was normal for anyone to fear something transparent would walk on the hall between the stillness of the night. 

Aryl led her out of the house from the main entrance, but they didn’t stop till there and continued to walk to the garden where the first met. Elise looked over the branches and glanced at Aryl who were trying to push the bushes away to show a small hole in the Mansion’s wall. “Could you walk out from here?” 

Elise crawled over the small hole, wiping her dress from the dust and mud in a great consideration as it was something that she borrowed and turned her head back to ask, “Where are we going?” 

“It’s just a walk.” Aryl comforted her but didn’t replied to her question and flew over by her side again as they exited the outer gate of the Mansion. “The place we are going wouldn’t be too far from here.”

“But-” Elise glanced back at the brown wall that was covered by vines but Aryl didn’t want her to keep looking at the wall and pushed her back with her little body and coaxed. “You don’t have to worry. It’s near, it’s near! My friends are already waiting for you, we can’t have them wait for us, can’t we?” Elise felt a little pressured and in the end followed Aryl.