Excerpt: The Characters of His Mind

“So, you feel better now, sir?” Rinzen asked Charles. “Better about your future?”
“Oh yes, most definitely.” Charles said back to the Sherpa. “I must say I am really thankful to have you come here so unexpectedly, even though it was a bit of a shock at the beginning. Who are you, may I ask?”
“Rinzen, the Sherpa, sir.”
Charles didn’t want the answer to be like this. He really meant to know if Rinzen was a character of his mind, or if he was a real person… Charles couldn’t quite tell. There wasn’t that air that Charles’s characters gave off, the sense where Charles knew exactly who they were and what they were.
But Charles decided not to delve into the matter anymore. “Oh, yes, thank you. I suppose it slipped my mind.”
Charles heard footsteps thumping down the hallway, “Ah, that’s most likely Mrs. Burntable, regarding the sound of her footsteps. Care to meet her?”
Rinzen looked at Charles oddly. “Who?”
“Mrs. Burntable. Can’t you hear her footsteps? They’re normally hard to miss.”
“No, I don’t hear anything…” The Sherpa admitted. “And I have no idea what you’re talking about. When I came here, you were the only one I could see through the windows. You were at your dining table, eating your supper.”
“But… Mrs. Burntable, Mr. Cricket, Mr. Dreary, and Radish were all with me… You probably just missed them.”
“No, I’m quite sure I did not.”
Mrs. Burntable’s footsteps neared the door.
“See! Here she is, at the door. You probably just missed the noises.” Charles said, facing the door.
But no one replied.
Charles looked back at where Rinzen had been standing, but no one was there. Just then, Mrs. Burntable walked through the door.
“I do believe we have some extra dessert available if you would like some, Charles.”
“…That would be very nice, thank you, Mrs. Burntable,” Charles whispered, still staring at where Rinzen had been. “Very nice indeed.”