One week later

Hundreds of invitations were stacked neatly on top of her desk, in which each needed a checking if the name correspondingly matched the guest list. After that all that's left for her to do is to send them out and wait patiently for their responses. Ces could not believe she would be staying up all day in her study which she hasn't used in years. Even with her butler's assisting efforts, she also did not expect hosting a coming-of-age party would be too tiresome. If only she could hire a professional to plan these things, but her family insisted on her to attend to her personal matters without outside help, the traditional way. It was a private social gathering after all.

Elios was standing at the corner of the room, looking like a fine statue for display, a polished trophy as long as he was silent. Compared to her other servants who only talked when spoken to, he proved to be quite chatty at certain times of the day, just how Ces liked it. At least when it comes to getting things done, he was efficient and compliant.

How long can he keep up with that act? Ces wondered, not forgetting the fact he has attempted to escape and miserably failed thanks to the Foundation's guard dogs. Elios seemed different from the battered man whom she met a week ago, he must have adapted well to his master's outstanding presence as his shoulders were less tense. Perhaps, he felt at ease seeing how Ces managed her household smoothly, no dirty businesses and no broken laws, and not to mention the salary was not a joke. He was expecting an underground brothel or human trafficking coming from a powerful vampire family. Aside from her overbearing attitude, it was as if she did not possess an extreme sadistic side to her, which was notable among purebred vampires.

These thoughts were freely swimming inside her head. Ces could not concentrate any longer. Elios was charming rather, the way his subtle glances reached her from his lowered head. This cannot escape the corner of Ces' eyes.

Ces decided to take a break. She pushed herself away from the table, sending her rolling chair into a light spin.

"Elios, have my supper ready. I'm starving." She walked past him who was gorgeously dressed in his tailored black uniform. With that breath-taking face, Ces could not wait to flaunt him in front of her relatives. That was the only thing she was looking forward to in the family reunion, to see the jealous and yearning faces of her lustful cousins.

"Right after you, Master." He bowed.

"If you think you can charm your way to freedom, you can't possibly think I'd fall for that." Ces said coldly without meeeting his eyes. A mere half-blood's radiance, a seduction and initmidation factor, is less effective especially for a well-maintained vampire like her. She has standards, she would say. His beauty was nothing compared to a purebred vampire's true radiance.

"You think I'm charming?" He smiled lavishly. "I'm flattered, Master. I heard it worked for some. Trying won't hurt anyone."

Ces applauded him for his boldness. "Just like how you hurt yourself trying to escape the Foundation's dogs? That was really successful." She scoffed.

Embarassed, Elios cleared his throat. "I'm aware of our lifetime situation. I will not joke about such matter."

The blue-carpeted hallway that led to the dining room was pinned with oil portraits of their ancestors. The eerie feeling was similar to walking down the aisle of a haunted art gallery with faces of dead and old vampires staring down as if they are ready to leave their frames.

Just before they turned left, a gigantic portrait of the Buandiller family came vividly into the view. They have these disturbing expressions painted on their faces, like a family caught in the middle of a scandal, struggling to keep their reputation untarnished. The two parents had conspicuous red eyes gleaming under the artificial moonlight. They looked awfully young. And behind them stood their four beautiful children: Lucas, Ian, Frederick, and Cecilia in their respective birth order. Oddly enough, it seemed like Cecilia was the only one who had keen blue eyes and the rest had inherited blinding crimsons from their parents.

"Handsome, aren't they?" Ces must have caught Elios staring too long. "I have three older brothers, yet the house was filled with the stench of women."

"Will they ever be home?" Elios asked.

"They moved out a long time ago and left me here all alone. Mother and father are both retired in their own mansion. This is my house now. As for my brothers, they're all busy running the company that they don't pay a visit to their poor little sister anymore. Lucas and Freddie are married, you see, and Ian is doing business in a foreign land but he's coming home for my party next week. What about you? Do you have any siblings?"

Elios was surprised with the question. "None. I'm an only child."

"If you're wondering why I asked, I didn't open your background report. I wanted to get to know you by myself." Ces said. "It's lonely in the house and the silence is deafening. If I read everything about you then there will be nothing to talk about."

"Don't you talk to the other servants?" So far, he had never ran into any of them outside the servants' chambers. It must have been lonely for Ces if this was her everyday's scenario.

"There's nothing to gain from talking to them anyway. They get replaced every week." She laughed. "And with a mansion this big, sometimes they even wind up dead."

Elios stopped in his tracks.

"Relax, I was joking. We don't do that here."

------------------------

They reached the dining room; its interior was set with a long ornate table patterened in golden lines. It was spacious enough to hold ten people. Since it was morning, Ces has preferred all the curtains to be drawn closed without a single beam of light escaping into the room and the thick oakwood walls prevented any sunny warmth from seeping further. It didn't matter since they could see well in the dark with their night vision built-in corneas.

A row of decorative drawers filled the empty spaces of the room and sitting on top of it were a variety of fake red roses, contained in humble oriental vases, made out of scented material. Elios had accidentally tended to it earlier, mistaking it for real live plants due to the artificially-recreated rosy scent that came along with it. However he chose not to inform his master of this tiny blunder. It was not worth mentioning or so he thought. Because of Ces' mild obsession over the order of things, it took one glance for her to realize her beloved roses have been tampered with.

"By any chance, did you touch my roses?" Ces remembered the previous arrangement very well, which rose was facing north and south. Before she carefully reaarranged it to its original position, she lifted a piece and brought it to her nose. She inhaled its fragrance deeply.

"Yes, master. It was a careless mistake." Elios replied softly.

"Please keep your hands off them as you can see they're fake. They don't need anything." Ces occupied her usual seat at the middle. Her father, the head of the household, usually sat on this chair back in their younger days. She propped an elbow on the table and rested a cheek against her hand, waiting for Elios to serve her meal.

"May I ask why the fake roses? If you love their smell so much, you should take care of real ones instead." Elios said as he grabbed a long-stemmed wine glass from the intricate cabinets and poked his wrist using a knife, creating a clean cut. He squeezed the skin that surrounded the wound and poured blood onto the empty glass like an unlimited blood dispenser.

"I want to but I can't." She paused and then asked solemnly. "Is it strange to have fake roses?"

Elios shook his head and bandaged his wound. It was poorly done. He couldn't even do that decently. "Not at all. I think real ones are prettier. They smell better too."

"Says someone who couldn't tell the difference."

"Best served warm." He properly set the half-filled glass in front of her.

Ces commended. "You're getting the hang of this." She pinched the stem of the glass with her fingers and swirled it around to have a nicer blend. "Turn around. A lady's having her meal." In his one week stay, Ces still hasn't allowed Elios to see her drinking habits. She was always adamant on covering her mouth when the time arises. It just made Elios more curious. One day, he swore, he will see whatever she's hiding. Or could it be that her fangs are irregular and hideous?

She tipped the glass to her mouth, her fangs grazing the rim, and savored it to the last drop. It was sweet the moment it touched her lips. The taste was fresh and excellent unlike the packed blood reserves she previously relied on for sustenance. Those had left a bitter aftertaste caused by the added preservatives. She would rather die than fall back to that standard of living. No wonder her brothers left her all their remaining blood supply the instant they were of legal age.

Wiping her mouth with an embroidered napkin, she made sure her incisors have fully retracted. "You look funny standing over there with your back turned. You can look now. Have a seat and drink tea with me."

Elios went to rummage inside the kitchen and returned with a tray of hot tea. Judging from its scent, he had prepared earl grey tea enhanced with a pulverized blood capsule to make its aroma more pleasing. The temptation of blood was too little for her fangs to react; drinking tea with him must be bearable.

He sat across her. "Master, I don't mind if you drink from me directly. If you're worried about my rights..."

Ces' blue eyes widened. "Are you one of those freaks who find pleasure from being fed on?"

"Ah, no." Elios replied. "I just thought you would prefer it that way."

She felt relieved. "Believe me, you wouldn't want a taste of my venom." This butler, what a bold suggestion. The Foundation has probably gone ridiculous extents to heighten their pain tolerance. Joaquin did mention there was a new grooming curriculum added. "Have you ever had your fill from a human?" Out of curiosity, Ces asked.

"No humans would really offer up themselves to half-bloods like me. Besides, that's illegal. I was told the reason why we retained the taste of human blood is based on our diet, which is human food and elk blood every now and then."

"That's exactly true."

"What is it like? To drink directly?" Elios sipped from his cup of tea.

Ces recalled the last time she drunk from a live human. It must have been ages ago when the laws were not as strict, a time where vampires could freely snatch a passerby and drink to their heart's content, only to abandon their dead bodies in dark alleys. Oh, what fun times.

"Ecstatic, like having sex." She said flatly.

Surprised, Elios nearly burnt his tongue and coughed on his tea. "I'm sorry?"

Ces laughed, her eyes were tinkling with amusement. "To see you get all flustered, you're such a boy."

"Master, just stating facts I think I'm physically older than you." He nervously wrapped his hand around his cup.

"How old are you then?"

"Twenty-four." Elios said proudly.

"A baby!" Ces exclaimed. "A fetus, even."

"Correct me if I'm wrong, according to the Foundation, vampires stop aging the moment their bodies reach 21. Technically, I am older than you."

"No need to be such a nerd. But yes, that's partly true. We can tweak our appearances however we like but I look best in my early twenties so I decided to keep this form." She grinned. "Not a fan of younger women? I could change into my older self if that would improve your productivity."

"That's not it." Her butler tried to keep a straight face but she could see him getting flustered underneath his pale complexion.

"Younger then?" Ces said while teasingly inhabiting a much more younger form, to her ten year old body. She was having too much fun that she forgot the dress she wore came a bit loose, almost revealing her pre-developed chest. Pre-developed or not, a vampire's best asset is their poreless and ageless skin.

Elios rose from his seat and stood behind her. He removed his coat and placed it around his oblivious and half-naked master. "You're fine the way you were." Ces could feel the warmth of his hand on her shoulder, passing through his thin gloves.

She pulled the coat closer to her body and transformed back to her preferred age. Ces looked up at him and met his concerned gaze, his amber eyes intently staring down at her soft delicate features. It was funny how she was given an angelic face yet attached to it a pair of eyes so cruel and cold.

"Oh? You look pretty from this angle too." She noticed. Elios' thick eyelashes could not hide his peeking brown eyes. It was almost as if looking into day break, feeling its humane warmth. "You must have had plenty of women to accompany you and your sleepless nights. It's such a pity to have robbed that opportunity from you. Say, how many women have you slept with? How about ex-girlfriends?"

He remained silent.

"No need to answer if you're uncomfortable." Ces smiled and handed him his coat. "That's enough chitchat for today. I have to get back to work. Rest well, Elios, you have to replenish the blood you lost."

-----------

I don't mind if you drink from me directly. It was a tempting offer indeed. Like a broken record, his words were on replay inside Ces' head. From all the humans and half-bloods Ces had enthusiastically preyed on, not a single one of them walked out alive. Those were her glorious days. In fact, some of the vampire-centric laws the Empress created revolved around the youngest member of the Buandiller family's personal feeding issues. It was also a secret only known to family, a few close friends and the Empress herself. Once Ces began, she found it difficult to stop. The victims' fear pheromones played a huge factor, an irresistible scent driving her to a frenzied state of mind. In case an accident like that happens, her brothers are nowhere near to save her from such irreversible acts. It used to be easier when they were around. She could feed on whoever and they would stop her from overdoing it.

But that fearless boy Elios was willing. Maybe the outcome will be different?

Leaning against her chair comfortably, Ces read the guest list over and over again, ticking off the undesirable names that her clueless mother came up with. There were familiar names of vampires whom she had not contacted in fifty years.

"Ris Cray. Timothy Cray. The crazy family. Their last name suits them right." She mumbled. At the bottom of the paper, there was a note beside an asterisk written in bold letters: please do not take out business partners.

It was already nearing noon. As a nocturnal creature, her eyes were getting heavier each passing second. That satisfactory meal was the end of her productivity. In addition to that, she was getting dizzy from her little stunt. Ces knew fully well she shouldn't have showed off her age-manipulating powers out of entertainment purposes, just because a half-blood is incapable of doing that. It drained a large portion of her energy. Essentially, half-bloods age physically slower and they are unable to alter their outer skin.

Uncle Joaquin is actually a half-blood, the white streaks peeking from his dark hair are early signs of aging. He was formerly her Aunt's butler until they fell in love and their relationship developed into something more irreplaceable, marrying each other in the process. That was a rare case, almost unacceptable and looked down upon in their hierarchical society.

Ces wanted to show Elios the height difference between their powers, making her switch twice in a day, one to go younger and the other to resume back to her original form. It was unbelievably petty of her to do so. Now the consequences of her actions are dwelling upon her.

"A five-minute nap wouldn't hurt." Ces convinced herself and immediately knew that was a lie the moment she closed her eyes and was swallowed by a dangerous thing called sleep.

When Ces awoke from her deep slumber, she was greeted with the comforts of her warm-colored duvet. Judging the absence of light from the outside, the sun must have already set beyond the horizons.

"So much for a five-minute nap." She groggily rubbed her eyes, still feeling attached to her seemingly infinite sleep. Slowly, she pulled her legs and sat up only to surprisingly see herself clothed in a fresh set of cotton pajamas.

"I absolutely did not undress you all the way." Elios' voice shook her sensitive ears.

"How long have you been standing there?" Ces was startled. How come she did not detect his presence beforehand? She must have unconsciously lowered her guard that he managed to blend well among the furniture. Even in her sleep, she could passively monitor her surroundings.

"Just now. I was supposed to wake you up after preparing a bath for you."

"I thought you were watching me sleep like a creep." Her head still throbbed and her throat was terribly itching.

"Is that how low you think of me, Master? You were passed out in your study. I tried to wake you up but you wouldn't budge so I carried you here."

"I'm thirsty." Ces struggled to stand up. "I'm very thirsty." She repeated and slumped over his chest. Elios caught her and held her cold hand. He smelled good; his natural scent was close to musky vanilla. It was hypnotizing to have a whiff of that first thing in the early evening.

"What are you doing, Master?"

Ces tugged at his collar and clumsily released a fragment of her radiance into the atmosphere to subdue her object of fascination. His neck looked very tempting, his veins protruding from her perspective, as if it was begging to be drank upon.

"May I?" She tiptoed in an attempt to gain a comfortable position with his mountain of a height. Ces covered his eyes and opened her mouth, her fangs baring. Still no fear, huh? It was less enticing to pounce on a fearless prey. This young man was beyond cognitive understanding. "Just kidding." Ces breathed out on his neck and retreated. "You're not even trembling in fear. Where's the excitement in that?"

"Why would I be afraid of you?" He said in a sweet tone.

"You have every reason to be." Ces frowned at him. Her ego as a vampire was hurt. "You prepared my bath, you said?"

"I'll fetch Miss Anne to assist you. I'll be waiting outside." Elios was headed towards the door.

Ces stopped him. "Where are you going? Come and wash me. It's your job as my butler."

He had a dumbfounded look on his face. "Did I hear that right?"

"Now is not the time to have perverse thoughts." Ces went ahead and dropped her clothes to the ground, revealing her bare ivory back and ample round bottoms. She dipped inside the warm bubbly bath. Ces turned her back against him and faced the wall with careful movements, as though not to reveal her chest in front of the her butler's lingering eyes.

She arched her back against the corner of the bath, letting her long silky fair hair overflow. "You know this is the first time I had a male servant tend to my bathing needs."

Elios smoothly slipped off his gloves and applied a consistent amount of shampoo on her hair. He tucked the fine strands and massaged her scalp skillfully.

"Have you ever worked in a salon before?" Ces asked.

"Yes, master. I've done part-time at a friend's for two months. "

"No wonder you're so good with your hands. Ladies must love you over there." She reckoned. "Come to think of it. It's been a week and you're still calling me master. I never even once said to address me like that. You can call me Ces within the household but I am requiring you to use such formalities in public."

"I understand, Ces." Elios was quick to adjust, as if he longed to call her in that manner even before her instruction. "You might be surprised to find your desk empty. As for the invitations, I sent them all out. They will be emailing me their RSVPs and I'll notify you the headcount. The venue has been reserved under your name as well."

"Thank you." She was pleased to hear that. "Be sure to go to my tailor for your formal attire within the week. You must look presentable before my guests. You're representing me in a way."

"Will do." Detaching the shower head he rinsed her hair, now flat and dampened, and began to wash her back. Ces leaned forward so that it would be easier for him and held her knees close to her chest.

"Your hands are big and your touch, gentle, compared to Anne's coarse fingers." Ces said casually. She made circles on the surface of the soapy water. His hands were warm and tingling as he moved across her smooth skin. "This is pretty convenient, no? It takes forever for Anne to wash my back."

"Ces, you shouldn't talk to me like that. You underestimate me. I'm a man with my own urges too."

She laughed. "I can send you flying to the room next door with just a flick of my finger if you do anything funny. Besides, don't you think it's a good idea to have this kind of arrangement everyday?"

"I don't think that's necessary," Elios stammered.

Ces turned to look at his face and his reaction was priceless. She felt a soft tug at her heart. "Elios," She sounded very annoyed. "leave me be. I'll finish by myself. Wait inside your chambers and I'll call you when I need you."

"Alright." He took his gloves with him and left.

"He really is a boy." Ces sank in her tub. It was so entertaining. "Maybe, it's not wise to push him through his limits."