The child's smile returned, broader and brighter than ever.

"You'd ask her for me, wouldn't you? Oh please..." She twirled around him with arms swept over her head in a distinct imitation of a graceful ballerina. Her sudden excitement ended with a curtsy, which she aimed in his general direction. "I don't take up much room, I don't even need to talk all that much, so I'm sure I wouldn't bother her..." She went on, imagining wistfully a place where she wouldn't be punished for merely existing. A little quiet corner that she could call her own where she could read and dance and most importantly...

"Only if I can still meet you, mon ombre. That is what I like best."