As the day idly passed by, and those at the Cherliann estate went about their duties as usual, Irene began to prepare for sighting the meteor shower later that night. She and Mikael hadn't seen much of each other since breakfast - as the two had their respective lessons to attend. But throughout her breaks between sessions of River's increasingly arduous teaching, Irene saw to it that all of her preparations for the meteor shower were set.

From morning till evening, the manor was alive with servants and workers frolicking to and fro, getting their work done during daylight hours. After dinner, things would quieten down - and eventually, everyone would slip away to rest, at the coming of night.

The meteor shower Irene found out about - wasn't entirely by coincidence. There was actually a written memory of Mikael's in her original novel, where he witnessed a beautiful shower of stars rushing across the sky, once in his childhood soon after entering the Cherliann manor. For the villain he would later become, it was the only good memory he treasured — and a deep secret he initially told to Isabella.

It was a golden opportunity for Irene to partake in this evocation — which he would remember for the rest of his life with her by his side. Instead of watching it alone like Mikael originally did, having her join in with the experience would help to improve their relationship.

And so, after doing a little research, Irene pinpointed the date of the meteor shower, with the help of Snow and Sir River. Thankfully, her tutor was an astronomical genius - on top of all other areas of illustriousness. He too, was looking forward to observing the meteors through the telescope in his tower.

After everything was prepared, Irene waited for her nanny, Joanne, to finish tucking her away into bed. She sang her a gentle lullaby as the little girl pretended to drift off to sleep, before quietly stepping out of the room and dimming the lights.

Once ensuring everything was clear, Irene glanced up at Snow, hovering over her headboard to give her the sign that the hallway was clear.

"Okay, it's empty," he nodded, tilting his beak down to face her. "The route to Mikael's room is clear."

Irene smiled in thanks, before slipping out of her covers and taking out the bag she filled with necessities, from under her bed. It was stuffed with pillows and blankets, since the rooftop was always cold, as well as some binoculars and a thermal bottle with hot chocolate inside, made by Jane and Gerald earlier that evening at her request.

Once she made sure everything was there, Irene took her bag and sneaked out of her room, swiftly making her way down toward Mikael's chamber. There were little to no people other than a few guards on patrol - but thankfully she was able to furtively creep past.

Once she reached Mikael's room, she knocked on the door. And much to her surprise, the boy actually stepped out.

Mikael rubbed his eyes and yawned lazily, his hair a mess. It seemed like he fell asleep waiting for midnight, but woke up regardless. "This had better be worth waking me up for..." He murmured, as Irene gently wrapped a blanket around the boy's shoulders. He was so fatigued he didn't even notice the gesture.

He's so cute when he's sleepy. Irene smiled, gently taking his hand to guide him upstairs. Mikael remained quiet the whole way there, his expression still one of sleepiness as the pair headed to the top floor of the manor. Irene remembered there being a window leading directly to the rooftop, so she decided to use that to get to the spot she had planned.

It wasn't long until the cold, frigid air of the early spring night latched itself to Mikael's warm body and forced him awake. His drowsiness quickly became drained away by the cold, but the blanket on his shoulders kept him sound.

The boy glanced down at the shawl around his body in realisation. When did I put this on?

As he stood on the slanted ground of the roof, Irene laid out some blankets and pillows for them to sit, and Mikael plopped himself onto the space beside her. Irene lit a small lamp - it's incandescent flame flickering like the myriads of stars overhead.

The two sat in silence, for a while. Their little bodies adjusted to the environment, while taking in the sights and sounds around them.

"Do you want some hot chocolate?" Irene asked, already pouring him a cup from the thermal cylinder. The sweet smell and faint steam tickled his face, as the blonde-haired boy glanced at the mug extended toward him.

He hesitated for a moment, wary to be taking the unfamiliar drink. But the scent wafting into his nose was so sweet, it was hard to resist. Mikael wrapped his small white hands around the cup, and felt the heat of the drink permeating into his palms.

Irene knew this was the first time Mikael was trying hot chocolate. She could tell from the way his face lit up upon taking his first sip — just how much he enjoyed it.

"...It's good..." He whispered, and though his expression was still nonchalant, his eyes sparkled. "It's like melted chocolate mixed with warm milk..."

"Well... That is literally what it's made of." Irene giggled softly, pouring herself a cup.

As she gazed up at the stars in admiration, her heart raced in anticipation, waiting for the oncoming show of light in the sky. Mikael didn't know why she was so excited about balls of gas overhead, but he couldn't deny that the night was beautiful.

As he gazed up, his deep, blue irises reflected off the tiny sparkles above. The world overheard was so large and endless he didn't know where to look. "Compared to my view of the sky in the old house, there's too much for me to see now..." He whispered, more to himself than to Irene.

Irene blinked, slightly scared to ask but she decided to follow the conversation. "...What was it like before?"

The boy remained quiet for a moment, but it didn't seem like he was ignoring her. "My window was tiny," he told her. "Probably half an arm's length, at most. So I couldn't see anything but the moon and a few stars."

Irene didn't really know how to respond, but it pained her to hear him say that so naturally. Knowing of the prison-like room he was always confined to, the unkempt bed and the cold that would filter inside.

He was just a little child, so small and thin, and yet his life was already torturous. When she wrote those things in her original novel - she never thought that her fictive words would sew together to form this reality.

I can't change what already happened, but I can change his life from now on. Was the thought that crossed her mind, as she gazed at his profile. His head tilted upwards to see the stars, but his expression remained void of emotion. He was unsmiling, disinterested and detached, but Irene knew he had reasons. She knew that all too well.

"From now on, you'll have a bigger view of the world," she went on to saying, her voice quiet but gentle. When Mikael glanced at her, he couldn't understand why the girl looked so rueful. But she smiled all the same. "You're part of the Cherlianns now. We'll always protect you and you'll have many more memories to make with us."

Mikael blinked, bemused. Although her words were comforting, it felt strange to hear that. "... Are you a masochist?" He asked, tilting his head slightly as strands of pale hair dyed silver under the starlight, fell over his eyes. "Doesn't it hurt your pride to lower yourself into getting closer to me?"

"Maybe I am a little bit. After all your rejections, I've lost my pride," she sighed, pretending to be dramatic as she lifted a hand up to her face. "To think you'd deny a girl as cute as me. I'm royally offended, Your Highness."

"W-What?!" Mikael's face flushed, and she could see his cheeks darken under the moonlight. "W-Why are you acting like that? I just said I didn't want to be friends..."

She giggled teasingly, gently reaching up to pat his head. "Haha I'm just joking. We're friends now, so my hard work paid off." The boy flinched at the gesture, but didn't oppose it. The gentle hand that pet his locks of blonde hair felt kind and warm. It was the same way Daniel would touch him.

She really does remind me of him... He thought, hugging his knees again. As he exhaled slowly, a puff of condensed air escaped his lips. The frigid air was started to seep in through the blankets, and even the hot chocolate ran out. As the children waited for the meteors for what felt like hours on end, Mikael started to grow tired again.

"Can we just go back?" He yawned, his eyes half closed as he hugged his shivering body. "It's freezing out here."

Irene frowned, gazing impatiently through her binoculars. "I'm sure they'll be here soon... Sir River even confirmed they'd show tonight."

Mikael sighed. "You know, the sun is going to rise soon," he told her, pointing ahead. "Look at the horizon, the sky is brightening. Do you really want to spend your day on no sleep?"

He wasn't wrong. Mikael seemed to be growing tired, and the two had been waiting for a long time. Hours, in fact. Although they spoke quite a bit and the boy seemed more comfortable with her now, she still didn't want him to go until he relived this memory.

It's going to be something he reminisces about for the rest of his life... Irene gazed up at the sky, which slowly shifted into opalescent colours of burnished gold and light azure.

But then — just as she was losing hope and rethinking her decision to stay out this long, a sudden flash of white light darted through the sky. She flinched, catching a glimpse of the movement.

"Mikael, look up!" She called out to him, the frown on her face quickly fading as what they had been waiting all this time for, finally came into view.

Mikael rubbed his eyes, before glancing up at the sky in the usual look of disinterest he always wore. But the moment he laid his gaze upon the shooting stars flying overhead like a flock of birds, his expression became one of wonderment.

They were like sparkling diamonds being thrown from the heavens. As though angels were skipping stones across the vast lake of a sky. Leaving trails of flickering light in their way, the sight was unlike anything he had ever seen. Their ever-glowing bodies now fleeting and whimsically passing over the earth while letting it bask in their beauty.

When Irene glanced at Mikael, she realised that the wait had been worth it. Those wide, blue eyes were fixed to the world above - but more surprisingly, the boy was smiling. As he marvelled at the meteors, she realised that he was finally wearing the expression of a child. An expression foreign to the boy who lived his life in isolation.

Mikael was a boy only nine years old. She knew that even more after seeing his youthful flair of wonder leaking through his cherubic visage. Seeing the little prince like this made Irene suddenly feel even more inclined to bring fond memories to him. I hope that from now on, he'll only remember good things.

The meteors soon disappeared after several minutes, leaving the sky in picturesque swirls of twilight colours, as the break of dawn arrived. Mikael and Irene soon decided to head back inside, but the boy was in a daze after witnessing the stars overhead.

As Mikael waited in the hallway by the window for Irene to bring the bag back down, his eyes were shimmering like crystal lakes. Her pale little legs soon poked through the window, as she slid her body through and brought the sack with her.

Mikael glanced up at her, grip tightening around the blanket on his shoulders. "D-Did you see it? The way they whooshed across the sky- l-like moving planets..." His voice was still quiet, but it leaked with exuberance.

Irene glanced at him, and she realised he was still in awe of what he had seen. She never imagined she would see this side of him before - but it was adorable. His words were fumbling, and eyes twinkling, but his body was swaying from exhaustion. After all - they did just stay up the whole night.

The usual cool, frosty and detached part of him seemed to have fallen asleep already, leaving the inner child to roam in his body. Irene couldn't help but wonder if this was the real him - or just the remains of his innocent, gentle inner child.

"I did see them! It was so cool, right?" She giggled, matching his awe. "It was like they fell from paradise!"

As Irene promptly guided Mikael back to his chamber, she held his hand on the way. The energy he spent was slowly getting to him, and she could tell he was tired the moment he fell quiet again. Irene briskly took the boy back to his room, and even tucked him back into bed.

"There, you should sleep in as much as you can," she whispered, gently covering him with the blankets. "I had a lot of fun today, so thank you for joining me, Mikael!"

But as she said this, the boy was soundly breathing with his eyes closed and face buried into his bed. Mikael had already fallen asleep, and looked like a little angel as he napped.

Irene smiled, gently stroking his hair. "You'll only have good memories from now on... I'll make sure of it."