Chapter Text
"Sharon. It's time to wake up, Pinky." Belle whispered while tapping Sharon's shoulder. Sharon opened her eyes to see her mom standing over her bed.
"Good morning, Pinky. It's a big day today." Belle continued to whisper.
Sharon sat up in her bed and responded "It's my birthday! I'm thirteen today!"
"That's right! Today is your day, Pinky. I've had Edith make you some pancakes just the way you like them, with fresh strawberries and whipped cream. Why don't you eat in your pajamas and get the day off to a fun start?" Belle suggested. Sharon happily agreed, running down the extensive stairs to the dining room whilst Belle trailed behind. She hastily took her seat beside her other mom, her mama, who was looking at some type of chart intently like she did every morning. And evening. And basically anytime Sharon saw her.
"What're those charts about, mama?"
"Budgetary matters." Dil replied without even looking up.
"What to do with the budget?"
"You'll get to know more about budgets when you get your own faction of the Idyll."
Just as Dil finished that sentence, Edith entered the kitchen and sat down the pancakes before Sharon, along with some applejuice.
"Happy birthday Ms. Stanton." Edith whispered before she sat down next to Belle.
"Sharon, after you're you're done eating, we have a present waiting for you in the living room. And Paige, would you come in here and take these papers to my office?"
Sharon's eyes lit up. She watched Paige, her mama's assistant, come in and retrieve the papers and disappear upstairs.
"We have so much more planned for you today too. I can't believe our precious Pinky is a teenager today!" Belle said, tearing up.
"Belle, would you stop calling her that nickname? She's not a baby anymore." Dil commented. Belle just rolled her eyes in response.
When Sharon finished her pancakes and juice, Edith came and got her dirty dishes and washed them immediately. Edith was so quiet that Sharon had barely noticed she had been in the room the whole time.
"Sharon, go to your room and get dressed properly and brush your hair. We'll be taking pictures of you with your present and I won't have you looking unkempt."
"Dil, please. It's her day."
"At least make her brush her hair."
"Go on, Pinky." Belle said, leading her our of the dining room.
Sharon walked up to her room and sat down at her vanity. Her hair did look something awful. But she hated how her mama made her feel for it. No matter what her hair was poofy with frizz. Brushing it only helped smooth out the silhouette. Nonetheless Sharon ran a brush through her hair and went back downstairs to the dining room.
"Are you ready, Pinky?" Belle asked. Sharon nodded excitedly. Belle covered Sharon's eyes with her hands and Dil took Sharon's right hand and led her to the living room. Her moms sat her down on the sofa and told her she could look now. Sharon opened her eyes to see...another girl her age?
Dil walked over to the girl. "Sharon, this is Sophie. She was attending one of our boarding schools, but now she'll be studying online from now on. She's your new personal assistant. She'll help you with anything you need."
Belle quickly added "And we know how much you need a playmate and a friend! So we made sure to hire one the same age as you!" Belle gave Sophie a pat on her back, prompting her to get up and walk to Sharon.
"Ms. Stanton, it is my pleasure to assist you." Sophie stated.
Sharon looked at the girl. She had short strawberry blonde hair, pale blue eyes, and she was wearing blue flats and a pink puffed sleeve dress that went down to her knees.
"We've even graciously provided her with a wardrobe entirely of your favorite color." Dil added.
Sharon didn't know what to think. Sure, she'd grown up around Paige, Edith, and Rebecca, but this had her feeling...uncomfy. Dil was acting like she now owned this girl. She'd always longed for a friend, what with being homeschooled her whole life and rarely leaving this mansion let alone the Idyll. Still, this was odd. Did this girl even want to be here? And why couldn't she keep her old clothes?
"Where are her quarters?" Sharon asked Dil, visibly worried.
"A small room is scheduled to be added to yours, but for now we have a trundle arriving today for your bed." Dil answered.
"Oh, and Paige, get over here and take a few pictures." Dil added. Paige rushed over with some expensive camera and took pictures as Dil instructed the different poses for Sharon and Sophie to get into for the pictures.
"Oh, and for another surprise, you're visiting grandma today!" Belle told Sharon.
"Why don't you have Sophie help you pick out an outfit for her first task?" Dil suggested immediately. Sharon nodded and walked up to her room, Sophie following closely behind.
"Where is your closet, Ms. Stanton?" Sophie asked once they got to Sharon's room.
"Over there." Sharon pointed. Sophie walked into the closet and brought out a pink thermal shirt and some blue overalls.
"Does this please you, Ms. Stanton? And where do you keep your shoes?"
"I don't want to wear any shoes."
"But your mothers wouldn't be pleased with you walking outside in the snow with no shoes."
"It's not that far of a walk. It's just down that hallway, and then a short bridge to grandma's mansion."
"But you could slip fall off that bridge since it isn't merely a walkway on the ground. Your moms gave me a tour of the premises last night while you were sleeping."
Sharon sighed. "Fine. Sophie, can you get me my pink snow boots from my closet? They're on the top shelf."
"At once!"
Sophie and Sharon walked to Whitney's mansion. Sophie rang the doorbell. A voice from a speaker asked "Who is it?"
"It's Starlight!" Sharon responded into the speaker, smiling with glee, pushing her face closer to the speaker.
"Starlight! Why I haven't seen you in ages. Come on in!"
The doors slid open and Sharon slipped her boots off near the door.
"Sophie, aren't your feet cold? You aren't wearing a coat or leggings or anything. Don't you even want to take off your shoes?"
"My comfort doesn't matter, Ms. Stanton. Shall I put your shoes in front of the fireplace?"
"Sure. But c'mon, I wanna show you to grandma!"
They walked through the maze of hallways that was Whitney's mansion to her sitting room. Sharon ran in and found her grandma sitting at her desk, as per usual.
"My little starlight! Come here and give grandma a hug!" Sharon and Whitney shared a brief sincere hug.
"Oh, and who might this be?" Whitney asked, gesturing to Sophie.
"She's my new assistant! Mommy and mama got her for me today."
"Oh, well isn't she just darling?" Whitney commented.
"How about you show her to the kitchen, starlight? I've found a wonderful birthday cake recipe, and she can help Rebecca prepare it for you."
Sharon's face lit up with joy before she nodded and ran off with Sophie.
"This is grandma's kitchen. There's Rebecca, she'll show you what to do." Sharon told Sophie before running off to Whitney.
Sophie took in Rebecca's odd appearance. First, she had a huge scar over her left eye. She had dark circles under her eyes as well, suggesting she doesn't get much sleep. Sophie figured she'd be spending a decent amount of company with Rebecca, so she decided to get off to a good start.
"Hello, Rebecca. I'm Sophie, Sharon's new assistant. How do you do?"
"I do only what Ms. Stanton asks of me."
"Well...alright. I guess we should get started on this cake?"
"That would certainly make both of our masters happy."
Rebecca ended up doing most of the work, while Sophie merely held things or threw away eggshells and other trash. Everytime Sophie tried to help, Rebecca just ignored her. Rebecca seemed...not all there. She seemed to blink less frequently, and often stared straight ahead into space. After Rebecca put the cake in the oven, she began loading the dishwasher. Then she told Sophie she needed to return to her quarters and to frost the cake and deliver it for her. Sophie sat and stared into the oven until the timer went off, then she frosted it with pink frosting. She then lifted the cake tray and carried it, trying to remember the route to Whitney's sitting room. She found it after a few minutes of confusion among the plain white walls and presented it to Sharon and Whitney. Whitney glanced at the cake for a moment while Sharon starred at it in awe. Whitney's eyes settled on Sophie for a second, which sent shivers up her spine.
"Sophie, where is Rebecca?"
"She returned to her quarters after loading the dishwasher."
"Good, good. Now Sophie, cut the cake for us, would you?"
"I forgot a knife, Ms. Stanton." Sophie replied, looking away from Whitney's judgmental glare. Her first day on the job and Sophie had already messed up.
"Then you'll just have to go and fetch one, won't you?" Whitney remarked with an eerie smile.
"At once, Ms. Stanton." Sophie complied, starting off towards the kitchen once more. The route was getting easier to remember. Once she was back, she set down the forks and plates she brought in addition to her knife and began to cut the cake and place it on the plates. She watched Sharon and Whitney feast on cake for a bit, when out of nowhere Sharon offered Sophie a slice.
"A-am I allowed?"
"Yeah!" Sharon answered excitedly, but Whitney shot the both of them a disapproving glare when Sharon's back was turned. It faded quickly once Sharon turned back around. Sophie ate the cake in silence while Whitney and Sharon continued to chat.
"What else are we eating tonight, grandma?"
"Nothing. Just this tasty birthday cake."
"Wow! My moms would've never let my have cake for dinner! Especially not mama!"
"Why I'd do anything to keep my little starlight happy! But it's getting late. Perhaps Sophie should escort you to your room?"
"What about the rest of the cake?"
"Sophie can take it to the kitchen and put it in the fridge. That way you can eat as much as you want when you next visit. Doesn't that sound lovely?"
Sharon nodded and then asked when she would next see Whitney.
"Whenever you want, starlight. Goodbye and sleep well!" Whitney said, waving goodbye as Sophie and Sharon left her sitting room. Sophie dropped off the dirty dishes and leftover cake in the kitchen on the way to the door. It was a lot to carry and Sophie was thankful she didn't drop anything. Then she led Sharon back to her room. Sharon changed into warm flannel pajamas and Sophie was provided with a thin nightgown. The trundle had already been set up, thankfully. Sharon settled into her canopy bed with expensive quilts and linens and Sophie laid on her bare mattress in the trundle. The both of them went to bed feeling weird and a little off.