Chapter 4: Serving the Young Miss

"My name is David Lee Williams." David responded after a moment's hesitation. It was surprising to him that he almost forgot it. Well forgot isn't the right word, it's more like he felt weird saying it. It had been so long since he had any need for it that it felt alien. Since he has arrived here, he has been treated like an animal, a slave, a prisoner, but never once like a person. So, her asking him for his name was odd.

Maria pauses for a moment "Williams?" she thought to herself. This young man is a noble? Of course, she had no way of knowing that in the world David came from, everyone had a family name and often a middle name as well. To her such things were reserved for nobility or notable bloodlines such as the House of Prim which, while not noble, was famed for its legendary blacksmith techniques and thus was granted a family name as an exception. So, it was possible that this young man had a similar situation to them, but still for him to possess not just a family name but a middle name as well was quite odd. 

"So, you hail from House Williams do you?" Maria asked quizzically.

"House Williams?" David thought to himself, that is a strange way of phrasing it. By the terminology she is using it is technically correct to some degree. But his mother had kept her maiden name when she married his father so technically on his birth certificate his last name is Williams-Penn, but he always found that exhausting to write down so he just short handed it to his father's family name. 

"I..." David pauses as he thought this over. "Suppose that is true." David said still monotone as always but with a hint of uncertainty trailing off at the end of his words. 

Maria was quite surprised by his response; it not only did not answer any of her previous questions but added more. She was quite perplexed by his uncertain response. But at the very least she has his name. 

"Well David Lee Williams, I hope to get along with you!" Maria said with a smile and another small curtsy. 

David was unsure of "noble" etiquette, up till now it hadn't mattered, he was just a cleaner, his job was to sweep, mop, or dust. He never had to interact with anyone high ranking, but now that he clearly needs to react in a certain way, he is unsure of what to do. He decides that his best bet would be a small bow as generally curtsies and bows go together. 

Maria saw David bow sloppily, but rather than being annoyed she thought it was rather cute. To her it looked as though a young child was imitating his father to appear more grown up. Clearly David was no noble where he came from, if he was his etiquette teacher should be hung for failing him so bad. Maria stifled a small laugh behind her hand and then turned to David again with a more serious expression. 

"Right then, are you ready to get to work?" 

The rest of the week David spent at Maria's side, generally his job was to help her sort through documents and organize letters, on occasion she would send him out to get her refreshments like tea or small snacks. She had considered having him take a more active role in her lifestyle such as helping her dress, bathe, and other things, but found herself quite bashful while thinking about it. Her compromise was to allow him to brush her hair but found out very quickly that he was rather terrible at it, and thus quickly removed him from that job. On the other hand, by the end of the first week, Maria had noticed that David had an incredibly sharp mind. Not only was he an excellent help in sorting files that would have taken her hours to do herself, but he also seemed to have a high-level understanding of mathematics. 

She found this out by accident when she saw him staring over her shoulder at some house finances that she was working on. Out of curiosity, but mostly to tease him for staring over her shoulder for so long, she asked him if he saw anything that was wrong. To her surprise however, he immediately pointed out two mistakes on the finance sheet that she had overlooked. After checking through the numbers herself again, she noticed that he was indeed correct. After that David's job evolved into a sort of back-up accountant, he would look over Maria's work after she finished to check for any errors. It even went beyond finances, she found him to be so helpful that she would often have him check other things such as personal letters, agricultural updates, development orders, and basically anything else she felt she would benefit from having someone double check her work in. 

For David this week was essential in the first step of his plan, gaining knowledge. He was giving quite a considerable time as "off hours" when he wasn't by Maria's side. During this time, he would walk the entire interior of the manor to see where every exit let out to, checking distances, patrol routes, servant routines, and the like. He had noticed that apparently, there were no humans in this manor except for him. From the guards to the servants everyone was a vampire, even the man who tended to the stables was a vampire. David wasn't sure if this was some sort of statement about their culture that only vampires worked in the mansion, but it didn't matter to him much, all it meant was that it was going to be that much harder to escape. With their enhanced strength and senses, it would be that much easier for them to catch him. He knew about the enhanced strength firsthand, as for the enhanced senses, he found multiple references to such in books he read. Furthermore he had, on three occasions, been given a task by Maria to get her some tea and snacks, and on each occasion even before he had fully entered the room, she was able to correctly guess what kind of tea he had prepared based on the smell alone.

When he wasn't scoping the place out, he spent his time reading about this world and the vampires. He had yet to find a good map of the country he was in and of the surrounding area; he would have settled for a map of the entire estate, but he had no such luck. Assumedly the maps were all kept in restricted areas only accessible to the manor lord and those he allowed. Luckily though, he had free access to the library and despite the disdainful gazes he got whenever he went in there, he found he had access to quite a wealth of information. 

Working with Maria was not at all bad, the work itself was none too tedious, and even from time to time he found himself lost in his job. There also happened to be an unexpected boon. By pure chance while working with Maria one day he happened to glance over her shoulder and see some incorrect calculations, he had originally decided to not say anything, but she happened to notice him looking and asked if he was able to help. After pointing out her errors she began giving him more documents to look through with the same purpose. The benefit of this was that he now had access to documents that contained information he would otherwise not be allowed to see. Development notes let him know which of the surrounding areas he could best hide out in when he makes his escape. Finance records let him know just how many people were working in this manor based on the sets of armor, food intake, and other factors, and the personal letters Maria gave him to read showed the interpersonal connections that were made. Maria seemed to have made a friend in the crown princess of the Empire, they would talk to each other through letters quite frequently judging by the way they spoke to each other. Overall it was very fruitful. 

He couldn't shake the feeling though that he was being used, no, he knew he was being used. But every once in a while, he would catch himself feeling pleasant, while working with Maria, and seeing her turn back to look at him with her smile lightened his heart a little. But he realized full well that this was not real affection, it was nothing more than Stockholm Syndrome. He had been abused till now so the first slaver who treats him better, he is naturally going to be more attached too. It was a struggle, but he kept this in his mind as he continued to work with her. 

At the end of the first week, David decided it was time to begin the second part of his plan, he needed to get in shape, his body was still feeling the after effects of his former lifestyle and he still suffered from a disconnect between his body and his brain, but if he was ever going to escape this place he needed to have the strength to do so. So, on top of his normal studying and working with Maria, he also began a strict regimen of rigorous exercise every day with a few days of rest thrown in, so he doesn't overwork himself. 

And like that more than 3 months went by. David had kept up his studies and his workouts, by now he had a fairly good understanding of the challenges that lay before him, but luckily for him this world was very much similar to his with the exception to the technological gap, such that once he was out, he would have no problem adapting to life in this new world. After that he could work on his own to try to find a way home. 

These 3 months for Maria had been splendid, not only had David managed to fit into the role wonderfully, but he had taken up interests outside of working with her. She could even see his eyes much more full of life now, his once monotone, lifeless responses were gone and now replaced by answers that showed emotion, still he was rather reserved, but he was coming around bit by bit. It filled her with a huge sense of relief and joy to see him recover so much since he was let out of the cells. As for the hobbies, she rarely inquired as to what he did when he wasn't with her as not to pry, but she was aware he had a keen interest in learning and had caught him several times reading in the library a variety of different books. It had made his conversations with her slightly more well-rounded. Where he once was confused by the mention of proper names and places, he now has a firm grasp on much of the Empire's politics and noble houses, even if he seemed to not understand the importance of said things. 

Furthermore, his exercise had bore fruit, he now had a noticeable six pack, and he was overall significantly more toned. She couldn't help but notice that it made him look significantly more attractive. Even when he hands her off documents or is placing down her tea, even the slightest movement causes him to flex a muscle showing off his well-built body. She didn't even realize that she cared too much about these things either, perhaps it was because his veins would often show through his muscles and remind her of his sweet blood, or maybe it was something else, either way she didn't mind the change. Speaking of his blood, it took some time but eventually the taste returned to the sweet ambrosia that it was when she first met him. It was hard, but she had been quite good at not overdoing herself, and David has not once passed out since she learned control. Overall the situation with David recently has been perfect and she could not be happier.

For David, the past 3 months have been rather peaceful, if not for the plans he was putting in motion, he would say that he was otherwise living a decent life. Maria was a good conversationalist despite the fact he kept his conversation to a minimum, she was charming, creative, intelligent, and quite talented. She also showed a near insatiable thirst for learning, she would often look over designs for "new" devices that were circulating the Empire such as toys, tool, weapons, and more. On more than one occasion he was tempted to tell her about the technology of home, of the cell phones, the airplanes, the cars, and even of spaceships. But every time he managed to hold himself back. The more knowledge he gave her the less likely he could make an escape later, even if it wouldn't make a difference, he felt like he shouldn't need to owe her anything, so he kept it to himself.

Even the "delay" of his body was better, his body barely dragged behind him when he needed it to do something, his sense of taste, touch, and smell were all back and could once again enjoy proper meals. The feeling of the teeth puncturing his neck he could once again feel, but so too was the feeling of euphoria that came with it. Still though, in order to keep up his facade of obedient slave, he did his best to limit the expressions he showed on his face when Maria would drink his blood.

The time was coming close to when David felt that he would be ready to leave. Then, one day, he asked Maria a question that surprised even him. 

"Why do you need to drink my blood?" It shocked him, of course he had always been insatiably curious about it. Why did it have to be him? What's wrong with other people's blood? But he never had the courage to ask it, no, it was more like he couldn't ask it, he was afraid of the answer she would give.

"Why do I need to drink your blood huh?" Maria said somberly as she put down the papers she was working on. "To put it simply, it's because otherwise I will die." Maria said, looking down at the floor. 

"You will die?" David responded once again, surprising himself as he knew that he should have just let the matter drop. But it was confusing, to his knowledge no other human has entered this manor in the entire time he has been here. There also is no signs of mass blood consumption among the servants in the manor, nor do they seem to ravenously follow after him for his blood. He did, on accident, stumble upon one instance where a young noble lord visiting the manor was drinking the blood of a servant girl. But even that didn't seem to be for hunger but instead to fulfill some sexual desire perhaps? David didn't stick around long enough to find out, so lucky no one knows he saw anything. But the very fact that Maria said that she will die is an odd statement.

Maria looks to David and speaks with a hint of sadness in her voice. 

"When I was a child, I was diagnosed with a rare disease that has infected my blood. It is said that anyone who gets this disease dies before they reach the age of 19. The only way to stave off this disease is to intake blood, but for some reason all other blood tastes like ash in my mouth." She pauses to touch her lips." "Even if I did try to drink that blood it didn't seem to help me anyway. Then one day a Mage from the capital came to visit and told us that if we completed a very specific ritual, I would get the blood I need to extend my life." She stops again and looks David in the eyes.

"I am now 18, I don't have much more time until my disease would kill me. So, we went through with the ritual and the end result was, you." She said as she stood up and got closer to David. "The truth is without you I," she pauses. "Would die. You can understand how much I value you." A tear streaks down her face as she finishes. 

"I think I'm good for the day, you can return to your room now." She said as she turned around to hide her face. David nodded and grabbed a small dish with a used butter knife from the table. The least he can do on his way out is clear her workspace of clutter. He then slowly walks towards the door and opens it. 

"And thank you for listening." She said as David stood in the doorway. Before he left and shut the door David muttered to himself.

"Thank you for telling me." Then he shut the door behind him.

That was harder on her than she thought, she didn't realize that telling David the whole truth would hurt her heart this bad, but she had said it and now that she had told him she feels better. This also was a good chance for her to reflect. Since David had arrived she had been following her father's lead and looked at David, a human, summoned by the ritual, as something lesser. That's why the highest position she could give him in her mind was to make him a "pet." But after spending so much time with him for the past few months she no longer felt that way. She saw firsthand that he was not some dullard like the humans who work in the farms her father brought her too, he was as much an intellectual as her, perhaps even more so. He was a hard worker, talented, and despite his emotionless facade as much of an emotional creature as she was. 

"I think it's time to stop calling him my pet." She said to herself aloud. Though she had not called him her pet in a long time, it was something that she kept to herself. But with this recent acknowledgement she could no longer think of him as a lesser being. No, he was no longer a pet, he was a friend. And with that thought, and a smile on her face, she sat back down at her desk and resumed work.

David had just left the room a moment ago and his mind was already in turmoil. 

"She needs me to live?" If you had told him that when he first arrived, he wouldn't have batted an eye, he would have said "Of course she needs my blood to live, she's a vampire!" But he knew better now, vampires in this world do not need blood to live, but instead to them blood is like an aphrodisiac or a delicacy, something to be enjoyed and savored but not a necessity. However, hearing her words has him thoroughly confused. 

"If she needs my blood to live, then that means she will die if I leave right?" David thought as he continued to walk down the hall to the kitchen to drop off the dish. As he's walking, he noticed that there are dark gray clouds in the sky. It occurs to him that it will probably rain soon, but it is the last thought on his mind right now. 

After all his months of planning and preparation, studying, watching the patrol routes of the guards, laying low until the perfect moment to break out. Despite all that, his heart had been slowly chipped away by Maria's smile. Everyday working with her, the only thing that would allow him to keep working easy was hearing her talk to him, seeing her laugh, her excitement, her joy, seeing her miffed, and all her other various emotions. 

"It is just Stockholm Syndrome." He would tell himself over and over and over. He knew his feelings weren't real, he knew they were nothing more than a way for him to feel safe in a hostile environment, but it didn't change the fact that he felt them, and it's been eating at him every day for the past 3 months. To make matters worse he now has on his conscience that if he were to leave, she would likely die when she reaches the age of 19. 

Everything these last months had been good to him, the food was good, his bed was good, the books were good, of course Maria's been great. Even the stares of malice he gets from the other servants have died down a little, they no longer openly show hostility. Overall his time has been nice. So, should he call off his plan? It's not like he did anything to jeopardize his life here yet so if he were to call it off there would be no one who would suspect anything. After all, how could he live with the guilt of leaving knowing that he could be dooming her to die. Even just the thought of it put a lump in his stomach. He stopped in the hall for a moment while he thought this through, going back and forth on the same points over and over, should he value his freedom and escape? Or should he enjoy the life he has now and continue living for Maria. This lasted for quite a while before he gave in and admitted 

"Alright, I give up, I'll stay here." He said to himself with a sigh. And with his decision made he resumes walking until a familiar voice is heard from the room he is passing. He can clearly hear the man in the cloak from when he first arrived say. 

"So, how did the subservience spell work?"