Eloise awoke nestled into the soft mattress and pillows the way a seashell rests in warm sands, blanketed and safe from the tides that whipped her about the previous day. Stretching her legs and arms out beneath the cozy covers, she inhaled her night of dreamless slumber and exhaled the new morning. When she opened her eyes, it was to the monochrome blankets and warm walls of the manor that greeted her. Not the cool tones of where she thought she’d be when she awoke. The mere thought of those cold rooms in that house, that other world, had her closing her eyes and curling back up under the blankets. Eloise never wanted to be so cold again.

Fabric shifted, but she was lying still. There was a rustle, then a pressure on the bed. Eloise’s eyes shot open. She sat bolt upright, her heart racing as adrenaline sent her shuffling back up against the headboard. “Shit!” she shouted, eyes plastered on two children standing at the end of her bed. “Fuck- oh God, I’m-” Eloise clasped her hands over her mouth, realizing the string of curses wouldn’t cease to flood her mouth otherwise. Fingers clasped across inflamed cheeks, Eloise’s wide gaze lingered on the pair of kids staring at her. A boy with tousled brown hair was grinning wildly, dark eyes glinting at the sheer volume of swears Eloise had just unleashed. The girl, whose long blonde hair was brushed immaculately and held back out of her face by a black headband, looked utterly unamused. Eloise blinked, but they didn’t disappear. She pulled her hands from her mouth, balling her fists on either side of her face. “Why are you in my room?”

“Your room?” the boy asked.

“Her room,” the girl confirmed.

“I suppose it’s yours now.”

“If you intend to stay, that is.”

Eloise’s eyes shifted between the two as they spoke. The pair couldn’t be more than seven, but they spoke like adults. They even sounded like adults. Covering her heart with both fists, she felt it galloping inside her chest. “That’s not an answer. Why are you in here?”

The pair moved in tandem, gesturing with their outside hands to the foot of Eloise’s bed. She followed their twin hands towards their target, eyes finally snagging on the thing which had snapped her upright. There lay a white, buttoned blouse and a blue skirt, awaiting her approval.

“The first of many,” the boy said.

“If you stay,” the girl said.

Eloise inhaled sharply, letting her eyes close. She half expected them to be gone when she opened them again, but they were still there. Still staring. “Who are you?” she asked as the pair dropped their hands.

“Fran,” the boy said.

“Alice,” the girl said.

“Lutece,” they said simultaneously.

“You’re the ones who cleaned up after me last night,” Eloise thought aloud.

“And who will continue to do so,” said Fran.

“If you stay,” said Alice.

Eloise’s head tilted as her gaze narrowed on them. “Are you demons?” This gave the pair pause. They exchanged looks, Fran still grinning like an actual child. Alice looked more and more annoyed the longer Eloise watched. They shared a moment of silent communication before turning back to her.

“Yes,” Alice said.

“And no.”

“We are spirits.”

“But malevolent, we are not.”

“Not ghosts,” Alice corrected before Eloise could even ask.

“Okay. So,” Eloise raised her eyebrows, “you’ve brought me clothes. Are you going to watch me change?”

“If you’d like,” Fran said gleefully.

Alice jabbed her elbow into his side so hard Fran stumbled, proving the two’s movements weren’t entirely codependent. “We’ve brought them to you so you won’t have to greet the manor’s tailor in your nightgown.”

“His ward-”

“Apprentice.”

“-will be your guide for the day.”

Eloise stiffened. “Do I really need a-?”

“We have found all of our residents lost in the stacks of our library at least once,” Alice explained. “So yes, you will need a guide.”

“Unless you like being lost in a large house.” The mischief in Fran’s gaze didn’t sit well with Eloise. She glanced at the outfit once more, then let out a long sigh.

When she glanced back, the twins were gone.

Looking around the room, she waited for one or both of them to pop out of the corners and crevices. At any moment, they might chide her for lingering in the bed for longer than they deemed appropriate. After several minutes, Eloise accepted that she was alone again. Now that her hairs were all officially standing on end, she wouldn’t be able to go back to sleep even if she desperately wanted to. Looking to the blouse and skirt, she supposed she’d best get ready to meet her so-called guide.

It was eerie how the items fit her. The blouse clung to her curves perfectly, the skirt hugging her hips and cascading gently down her legs in a full circle. How this tailor could have gotten her measurements without ever having seen her curdled her stomach, especially given how easily spirits seemed to slip in and out of her locked room. Swallowing hard, she looked around for her slippers from last night. She found them tucked in the closet, absent of the wear and tear from her previous life. Picking them up in disbelief, she examined every inch of them. She didn’t find a single scuff, as if the shoes were brand new.

Eloise let out another long exhale. “Okay.” She dropped the shoes on the floor and toed them on. “Okay. It’s not that weird. Okay.” She started to close her eyes and stopped. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of movement behind the closet door. Slamming it shut, she stared at herself in a mirror before trying to regain control on her racing pulse. “It’s very weird. It’s very,” she inhaled, then exhaled the word, “VERY weird.” But this was her life now, as strange as it was.

She let herself out of the closet and, eventually, out of the room entirely.