When I wake up, Lucien is gone. I sit up and look around with suspicion, but nothing seems to be waiting for me...yet. I take the opportunity to change back into normal underwear rather than the bathing dress. My dress is looking a little worse for wear, though. Even though the neckline is wide and deep, some blood managed to trickle onto it and stain it.
I sigh and put it back on anyway. There's nothing else I can wear right now, not unless I ask to borrow something of theirs, most likely. And I'm not willing to do that just yet.
As I expected, everyone's in the main room already. At a glance, I see that there's no food prepared, so I pass straight through to the kitchen.
It's surprisingly well-stocked. I can't believe I didn't look through here earlier. But I'm focused just on filling my empty stomach right now, so I grab and armful of fruit. But as I turn to leave, I notice something from the corner of my eye - a beautiful tea set, with four delicate teacups. One too few, but that's alright. I wouldn't want to break one.
I put some water on and wait in the kitchen while I chow down on an apple. I almost cry at its fresh, sweet flavor. It feels like years since I've eaten real food.
I choose a floral black tea from the cabinet: jasmine, my favorite. Luckily for me, I find a tea cart tucked in the pantry. I don't think I could carry a tea tray without dropping it right now.
It's surprisingly comforting to slip into service mode, quietly placing each cup before them, pouring the tea, and placing the sugar and cream within reach. It would almost seem normal if it wasn't for the four vampires watching me in silence.
Finally, I pour my own cup - well, small bowl, since I couldn't find a teacup that didn't seem as breakable as glass - and take a seat at the table.
At last, Adrian breaks the silence. "What, are you going to play servant now, little bird?"
"Isn't this what you all are used to?" I ask.
"Well, yes, but…"
"I don't mind. I just want to live like normal. Which means normal for me and normal for the rest of you," I say decisively.
"But this isn't normal in the least," says Lucien.
I crack a grin at him. "I know you want it to be chaotic, Lucien, but this situation doesn't have to be a punishment for either party."
Dante chuckles at my comment. "She's right. Still, you should know better than to think things can be normal."
I shrug. "I'll make it work, if you all will work with me. I don't ask for much."
Virgil pipes up. "Then what do you want?"
I pause as I consider it. "Well, I want to be conscious all day at the very least. And I want to be able to wander if I'm not needed."
"Wander?" asks Lucien, eyebrow raised.
"I need alone time," I answer. Virgil nods understandingly. "I'd like to have my own room, too."
Adrian giggles. "What's the point if you're never going to sleep there?"
"I still want my own space!" I argue.
"So what are you offering in return?" asks Dante, pulling out his fan and twirling it between his fingers.
I sigh. "It's not like I'm asking much. But...you can call on me at any time, any place. That's ridiculously in your favor."
"That's the baseline expectation," Virgil says, almost haughtily.
"It's a choice I'm making," I retort. "And I could choose not to."
Lucien chuckles at the last comment, but I ignore him. "Well?" I ask. "It's fair enough, isn't it? To you, at least?"
"You don't think it'll be that simple," says Lucien.
"I can try," I reply with determination.
"Alright, fine with me," he responds, shrugging.
Dabte answers as well. "I'll take your deal. We can talk about what will happen if you fail on your end when that time comes."
"It won't," I answer curtly.
Virgil looks a little sour, but he nods anyway.
When I turn to Adrian, he has a glint in his eye. "You know, little bird, if you want to act like a servant, why don't you dress the part?"
"I... don't have a change of clothes," I answer hesitantly. I don't like the look in his eyes right now.
He breaks into a grin. "Come with me, little bird. I've got something you can wear." He takes my hand and I follow.
As we walk to his room, I try to reassure myself. Adrian wears princely tailored suitcoats, crisp blouses, and narrow pants. Maybe he's planning to dress me like a butler in his clothing. Yeah, that must be it.
In the room, he guides me to the bed, and turns me around. "No peeking~" he says with a wink.
I wait a few seconds and look over my shoulder, but he catches me and turns my head back around. All I could see was that he was rummaging about in a chest - not his closet.
At last, Adrian goes "Aha! Close your eyes," and comes up behind me.
"Only if you don't start undressing me yourself," I reply.
He sighs. "Oh, why not? Alright, fine."
I hesitantly close my eyes, and he lays something across me. It feels very fluffy. I open my eyes to see…
A maid uniform. And naturally, not a sensible one. A little black dress, a little frilled apron, and a bouncy petticoat.
"Why...did you bring this?" I ask dubiously.
He shrugs. "There's always a chance to play, isn't there? Don't you want to see what else I brought?" he teases.
"No thanks," I say, standing and whirling around. "I'm going to find a room."
"Oooh, it didn't take much convincing, did it?" calls Adrian behind me.
I ignore him. The truth is that I can tell this dress is too large. If it was properly fitted, I would definitely have problems keeping everything out of sight. But this should be alright on me - and regardless, I need a change of clothes.
I finally find an unoccupied room on the far side from the men's rooms. There's no mirror, but as I thought, the skirt comes down a little over halfway down my thighs, and the petticoat actually makes me feel more protected. The layers are thick and fill in all the gaps, and will hopefully prevent any windy "accidents".
When I step out, no one is waiting for me. I don't necessarily need to go back. I told them they could call me, so that's just what they'll have to do.
I haven't seen a study yet, so I peek into various doors - most of them closets - until I at last I see a wall of books. But it's not a study. It's a library. And it's huge, two levels high. It must take up at least a third of the mansion.
I close the door quietly behind me and sigh with happiness.
Unfortunately most of the books are scholarly ones, about history, etiquette, science, magic and everything a noble vampire might need to impress their fellows. Still, books are books. I look for the illustrated section, hoping to find something interesting hidden in the shelves.
Most of the illustrated books are about anatomy, but I find one about herbs that looks interesting. It focuses specifically on flowering plants and their uses, as well as how to grow them. I haven't seen most of these plants in real life. After all, there's not many flowers that bloom at night.
I settle into a plush chair and find myself absorbed in the book, thinking about trying to grow my own herbs, when a voice startles me out of my reverie.
"I knew you'd be here," Virgil says triumphantly. He looks down at the book on my lap. "Too bad there aren't any good books in here," he adds, pulling away the flower manual. "You'd have to…" He trails off as he looks me up and down, and I remember what I'm wearing.
I feel my face grow hot and try to shake off the embarrassment. "I'd have to what?"
"Huh? Oh...." Virgil seems to have lost his train of thought, but quickly regains his composure. His eyes land on my neck and he swallows visibly.
I put my hand gingerly to my neck in response. "Do you promise you'll be careful?" I ask.
He nods, already climbing on top of me. "I could just move-" I begin, but he bites me without even answering. But again, he's too eager. "Slow - slow down," I plead, patting his back in warning.
This time, he does, nestling onto my lap. He clings to me as he drinks, obviously concentrating on drinking in measured paces. After a moment, he sighs and pulls away. He looks me in the face, his cheeks pink. "It's a lot better this way," he says with a small smile.
"Keep doing it this way, then," I answer, barely able to meet his gaze so up close.
He returns to drinking, even more slowly this time, until he stops, nestles his face against my neck, and I realize he's fallen asleep. What an awkward position to sleep in. Still, I can't move him. He may be the smallest of the four, but he's still heavy enough that I can't escape without dumping him unceremoniously onto the floor. I sigh and give in to a little nap of my own.