Every night when I fall asleep, I never dream of anything. There isn't any reason I could give you for it, not one that I'd want to accept at least. Poor sleep or some order of health problem? They don't sound right to me, not that I'm some medical professional or anything. I could never be special like that. Personally, I think god just doesn't allow me to dream. He doesn't allow me the escape from reality that dreams provide. Instead every night he whispers in my ear hymns of how dreadfully I live my life and how sorrowful my existence is. That when all of it is over, this blackness will be my only embrace. After all, when we sleep we are merely practicing death.
It was then that my consciousness returned to me in full force. Before, thoughts just drifted about in the sea of my mind as I bordered between sleep and awakeness. My thoughts regained their clarity, now being tethered to the realm of the conscious.
Normally, I'd take my time waking up in the morning, but today there was something that I just couldn't ignore.
"This... weight. So... heavy"
The weight covered nearly the entire right half of my body, and with my small one-person bed, it made it difficult to move around too much. Sluggishly, my weary eyes began to open.
Wham!
My eyes burst wide open and my soul itself felt like it was on fire! The sight in front of my eyes was simply that entrancing.
"Damn it! What the hell do people even do in a situation like this?!"
On top of my freshly awoken body was the Vampire Empress herself, Cacophony. She'd slipped under my bedsheets at night and secured a position on my right side, half of her body on the bed and the other half on top of me.
Her arm wrapped around and caressed my chest and I could feel her large breasts pressing into my arm. When I turn my head, I'm face to face with her. Truly, the term 'sleeping beauty' couldn't have been any more appropriate. When she was sleeping, her face looked majestic, her warm pink lips gracing my cheek with her warm breath.
Sadly, my admiration of her sleeping face would be cut short, though, on the bright side, I wouldn't get the opportunity to make any dumb mistakes.
Her eyes opened slowly, and for a moment she did nothing but watch me and blink. Her eyes seemed glazed over like she was in a trance. It seemed that Cacophony was the type to enjoy taking her time while waking up in the morning.
"Oh... So you're already awake?", whispered Cacophony.
Damn it that's all you have to say!
With all the grace of a swan maneuvering on a picturesque lake, Cacophony got up from the bed and stood up. It was then that I realized that she wasn't wearing the dress that she had on yesterday. Instead, she dawned on an item from my wardrobe. A large white button-up dress shirt, when she wore it, the shirt draped down to around her upper midthigh.
"Hey... What's up with the outfit?"
"Just thought that I'd try out some fashion from this era. In that book over there this is how the girl was dressed."
Book? As I looked to my side, my heart dropped for a second time that morning.
"The lewd manga I picked up from the store!"
"Eh?"
"No, actually it's nothing!"
You know what... I take back what I said I said about god. He couldn't have been so bad. After all, if I hadn't been blessed with such dark skin, I would've been as red as a tomato.
Seriously... What kind of a morning even is this? Just last night I showed Cacophony to my home. For some odd reason, my entire body felt like it was drained of all energy, so at the suggestion of Cacophony, I decided to just head to bed. I had assumed that she'd do the same, but it seems that she stayed up for some time after that.
Actually, I'm getting ahead of myself. I can't forget about that line I dropped.
'Welcome to your new home'
What is this, some kind of video game, what a horrible line! Not to mention, when did I even agree to let Cacophony stay at my house? So far, I've just been going along with everything that she wants me to do. 'Expects' might be the better word to use. Or... damn, it's pretty hard to get a read on what she's thinking. Despite how expressive her face is, it's like she only shows off what she wants too. That itself may just be an excuse on my part. If I'm going to be her 'servant' then I've gotta shape up and understand her properly. Well, for someone like me, that may be...
Interrupting my flurry of thoughts was Cacophony's voice.
"Veri? How are you feeling? Have you recovered?"
I groaned as I sat up in the bed.
"Yeah... I should be fine. For a perfect specimen like myself, nothing could ever dream of keeping me down for long. After I get some breakfast in my system I'll be right as rain."
A bit of surprise showed on Cacophony's face. "You mean... right now?"
Suddenly I was perplexed as well. "Yeah... is there something wrong?"
"Don't you have some work to attend to? If I'm not mistaken the common folk tend to do some morning work before they eat their first meal."
Common folk? The hell? She's talking like I do. I kind of feel annoyed getting my lines stolen like that. Ignoring that fact, as her servant, it was my job to set Cacophony on the right path. But really, being her 'servant', what did that even mean?
"Whatever you're thinking of probably doesn't exist anymore... At least not for most people living in this country. It's not like our mornings are totally free either though. For example, I've gotta head to school, and adults usually have to go to work."
For some reason, I felt a slight sense of pride as I explained it to her. Like a master imparting wisdom to a student.
"Then who plows the fields?"
"Wha- Huh?"
I hadn't expected a question like that. Still, I had to do my best to answer.
"Farmers. Unlike in the past, most people don't work on farms. Now people have all moved into cities. In the modern day, it's all service industry!"
"I see. Well! Why don't you show me your morning routine?"
"Alright then. When I get up I usually start the day off by taking a hot shower. Then I head downstairs eat breakfast and come back upstairs to brush my teeth. When I'm done with all that I head to school."
"Shower?"
Ah, I hadn't expected to need to explain something like that.
"It's like bathing. A different way of doing it."
"Sounds nice. I haven't gotten to clean off in five hundred years after all."
Cacophony then stretched her arms and cracked her back. Not realizing her intention, I stood up and passed her as I went toward the door.
"I'll start with breakfast for whenever you're done."
Turning around, Cacophony swiftly trapped my wrist in her powerful grasp. It was like being held captive by a gorilla.
"What're you talking about? You'll be coming with me of course."
"Wha-"
When I looked back at Cacophony, I got a better look at her compared to before. It was only now that I realized that when my gaze drifted down to her chest, I got a clear peek at the nipples hidden underneath. The cogs in my brain began turning. She's wearing stuff from my wardrobe, right? But, I don't have any female underwear. If that's the case then...
Do all vampires just not have an ounce of shame? Or is it just this one?
I looked away from Cacophony at that moment. I didn't want her to see the look that I had on my face. Especially not the pervy grin that I was trying desperately to keep down.
"Nope, no way! The legendary spirit of the North, the Black Mount, is calling to me! Yes, I can hear its voice so clearly!"
With my free hand, I grabbed the side of my head. With the rest of my body, I writhed around in fake pain.
"It's words- I hear it! It demands that I go downstairs and eat to regain my energy! I'll need my full power to face the evils of this world."
Gauging Cacophony for a reaction, I saw on her face the largest grin possible for the human body to form. She tried to keep it quiet, but I could hear her chuckling and laughing. A feeling of embarrassment welled up inside me. I was used to being laughed at, looked at weirdly, insulted, and more, but for some reason, when it came to her reaction I was embarrassed.
Finally, she released my hand from her grip.
"Fine! Let's go eat breakfast. I expect you to cook me something worthy of my elated tastebuds!"
"You know... you're talking a lot less today..."
"Guess I'm not fully awake just yet. But like you said, after a hardy breakfast, I'll be full of energy. Then, I'll talk as much as you want."
There was nothing left to say after that. We moved out of the room and to the top of the stairs, just as Cacophony was about to take the lead though, an impulse caused me to stop her.
"Wait! Stay here for a moment and let me go first."
"Oh? Sure, just call me when I can come down."
Rushing down the steps, I darted about, shutting any source of natural light coming in from the outside. I hadn't given it any thought before, but she's a vampire. It would stand to reason that she'd have a natural weakness to sunlight. It'd be a shame if she got hurt just trying to enjoy a meal. Once I was finished, I called for Cacophony to come down.
Like a child that just learned how to walk, Cacophony drifted off from one thing to the next. It was sort of worrying for me, she'd already found one of my lewd mangas, I wonder what else she'd find.
That was only my second biggest problem though. When I opened the fridge, I found it to be unceremoniously empty. The cabinet was the same. Scratching my head, I knew that there was only one thing that I could make with the ingredients that I had on hand. Would it be fitting for an empress though? That's to be seen.
"It shouldn't take too long."
Just like I said, it took no time at all. In around fifteen minutes it was all done. As I looked at the meal, I couldn't help but feel it was underwhelming.
Scrambled eggs and store-bought croissants.
"Can't be helped. This is all I had."
Smelling the aroma of the freshly cooked eggs, Cacophony found herself wandering over to the table. Then I got a shock. Cacophony seemed completely hypnotized by the smell. I don't mean to say that she liked it or that she seemed to enjoy it, she was full-on wiping drool from her chin!
She murmured, "It's done? We can start eating now, yes?"
"Ye-Yeah! Dig in."
I couldn't help it, a large smile was painted on my face. I don't think even the most stoic of people would've been able to hold back a feeling of all-encompassing happiness at a time like this.
Those were eggs seasoned with nothing but salt, pepper, and some green stuff that I thought sounded nice. Despite that, she looks so happy. So genuinely happy. You should've seen her eat the croissants, no words from any language could've described the look on her face!
Looking at the clock on the wall, I realized that I was bordering on being late for school. If I didn't get up from the table this instant to get ready, I'd be late.
...
Missing a single day isn't that big of a deal. I'm pretty sure that my class is going on the field trip or whatever today. Who cares? I'd much rather be sitting right here eating with Cacophony.
It was then that I made a vow. I didn't say it out loud, not verbally, not even in my mind. I made a vow deep in my subconscious. Even if I'm me, and even if I'm a pathetic guy that can't even dream. I want to learn more about her, and I want to understand her. Cacophony, the vampire empress. I'll be damned, you've won. I'll do my best, as your servant.
"Hey Veri? What're you looking so star-struck for? If you're not gonna eat then hand over your eggs!"
Now that I think about it, who even needs dreams? I get to live one out right here!
As I looked down at my plate, I found it to be even more empty than my fridge and cabinet.
Oh... but I do wish that this dream involved a little less egg stealing.