Chapter 2 : Meeting Misty

I entered the dining room, sitting down at a long wooden table with a black cloth over it that shined like obsidian. Above the table hung a crystal chandelier, glimmering like diamonds at a low setting, likely so as to not disturb the vampires here. The scent of fresh gourmet steak hit my senses, causing my stomach to rumble.

Running my tongue over my lips, I looked up as one of the vampires who passed me by.

She had dark skin and curly hair that spilled down her back, dressed in tight leathers with a few spikes here and there, fairly punkish like the vampire I had just been taken by.

Her crimson eyes fell upon me as she flashed a fully-fanged smile my way. There was genuine kindness in that expression, and despite my reason for being here, I smiled back. I dipped my head, some strands of my blonde hair falling into my face.

"Good evening." I said softly. The vampire woman's smile widened as she glanced toward my neck. Doubtlessly, she saw a bit there, and her smile morphed into a playful frown.

"Hello there, dear. You must be the human I've heard so much about, Lorelei. Welcome to our abode. My name is Misty. Already having some fun, I see?" A blush flooded my cheeks at her remark, causing her to giggle in response. "How lovely. Take it easy at first. You'll be able to indulge often, but sometimes it can be overwhelming."

Nodding, I rubbed the back of my neck with my hand. She made a good point for sure.

At the ding of a timer, she looked toward the direction of the kitchen. "Hungry?"

I nodded, and with my silent response she turned and walked away. I was told I'd be served food, something I wasn't quite used to. Like at a restaurant, then? At home, I cooked all the time or ordered takeout, so this treatment was going to be a bit unusual.

I was about to consider asking someone about this when Misty returned with a plate full of food that made my mouth water. A cut of steak sat between some butternut squash and green beans. The vegetables were expertly spiced, something I could tell just by scent.

She placed the plate, along with a glass of water, in front of me and took a seat at the table, giving me a lazy smile. "Enjoy. It smells delicious even to me."

She watched as I took my knife and cut into the meat. The steak was cooked to perfection - I saw a very small amount of red and a decent amount of pink, indicating it was medium rare. The juices leaked out onto the plate as if the meat was leaking. Hopefully not an allegory for my situation.

I dove in right away, humming with satisfaction at just how delicious this meal was. The savory pieces of steak were warm in my mouth, not too hot, and tender enough to chew easily. The squash had just the right amount of sweetness mixed with saltiness. Finally, the green beans were clearly cooked in garlic, a taste that made my tongue sing.

Halfway through my meal, I looked up toward Misty, who was taking a sip of blood from a glass, no doubt.

"You must be so thrilled to be here," Misty observed, looking around the gothic luxury kitchen. "It's difficult to get in, so many people would love to be pleasured by the likes of us. Granted, some are also against the notion. But it's harmless!"

I considered asking if 'harmless' was true given the vanishing, but held my tongue. It was too early to be so forward with gathering information.

Rather, I nodded, the bit of enthusiasm I added into my voice not necessarily a lie. "I am already having so much fun. I just wanted a break before I settled down and focused on working. My career path will be very demanding."

"Oh? What is that?" Misty asked with genuine interest, her eyes sparkling a bit.

A curl fell into her face that she brushed away quickly. Her eyes swept over me entirely, as if studying a rich dessert or display piece; either way, something to consume through either body or mind.

Beneath the kindness in her smile, I couldn't help but feel somewhat off put, but for the life of me, I couldn't figure out why. Perhaps it was my nerves.

"Radiology. I've completed my schooling for it and am now using this time to rest and have fun before I go all in," I said, causing her smile to widen.

She nodded, taking another sip of her blood and letting out a sigh.

"What an honorable career. Helping people with your skill in anatomy and identifying problems in those images, along with handling the equipment, of course. Yes, I would imagine you'll be busy after this. Well! Hopefully, we can treat you like royalty for the year you're here. And, of course, I look forward to seeing how good of a little pet you'll be for us," she purred.

My cheeks tinged red as she stood up, dipped her head, and left the kitchen.

Despite feeling a coil of worry in my stomach, that interaction had been quite pleasant. I just got here and the vampires were being kind even if I was considered their 'pet' for a year. I wasn't sure the appeal this had with such a wide variety of people, and perhaps someone more into it deserved it more than me, but I was on a mission.

Pleasure and those who wanted it aside, my goals were a bit more dangerous than someone surface-level looking for fun. Granted, I hoped my discoveries here led to people wanting the pleasure to be much safer.

Safety. I winced, taking a bite of my steak and thinking about Lucy. All she wanted was to have one year to rest before going all-in on her career, too. Truth be told, I had wanted to get started with mine right away, up until she vanished.

This whole lottery system was always something I felt wary of, and now I was in the pit of vipers, so to speak. She thought it would be innocent fun, and then at the end of the year, she vanished.

People fed me the bullshit that she ran off with a vampire or something. Sometimes the luxury was too fabulous to leave. Sure, we apparently kept all of the extravagant gifts showered on us from the vampires, but that didn't matter, they said.

People enjoyed the ethereal, celebrity-status humanoids to leave this life. Problem was, Lucy wasn't like that. I knew for a fact she had been looking forward to making a difference in her career as a veterinarian.

My sister would not have run off with any fanged folk, and even if she fell in love here, she would figure out a way to keep both love and career. She would not sacrifice her career for the other.

I could be fed excuses by people trying to get me off of this worry all I wanted, I wasn't budging on it.

After taking another bite of my food, I looked around the dining room again, noting every little detail. There was a cabinet there for fine china, pieces decorated with old medieval symbols and such. Landscape paintings were hung around here, mostly of the tundra, some with arctic foxes or polar bears within them. The atmosphere was warm and calming, though now that I had my mind on my mission, I was distracted.

My being here was luck, perhaps. Or, was it? I furrowed my brow at the thought that perhaps someone pulled strings for me. So many people got in, but me, as well, shortly after my sister's vanishing from the same endeavors? Hm. I didn't dwell on this for too long, though.

I finished up my meal and put my plate aside, resting my elbows on the table and my chin in my hands.

A few vampires passed into the dining room, eyeing my neck and spotting the bite on it. Disappointed gleams met their eyes, as no doubt, they wanted to feed. The one-bite per day rule was at least overseen well.

Vampires could bite more than once, theoretically, but anything more than three times for long drinks per day would be dangerous. Speaking of which, I reached down into my pocket and pulled out some powder, needing to remind myself to upkeep my health here.

Sprinkling it into my water, I waited until the substance dissolved before drinking it. Sweet citrus hit my tongue as I took a few gulps, letting out a sigh of satisfaction. A feeling like electricity rushed through my veins, a different sort of satisfying pleasure from sex

My cells were now right to work replicating much faster than they would be if I hadn't taken that medicine. I needed to drill the protocol into my head because if I forgot, I could put myself at risk. That'd been in the contract, and the vampires would at least remind me often, so they said.

Without this medicine, I would deal with anemia and eventual total blood loss incredibly quickly even with the once-a-day bite rule. This stuff would work to restore what I lost to the typical amount my body needed. Apparently, it was powder created by an alchemist, so there was some sort of magical component to it.

Magic was a whole new world for me, something I hadn't had a chance to explore when the paranormal world came into the limelight.

You'd think most humans would jump at the chance to learn, and initially, I did. It, after all, wasn't restricted. However, like a career path, it required years of training to master, usually a decade. With my busy life and career-driven mind, it wasn't something I could just take up as a hobby and succeed.

Soon, a vampire entered the kitchen and approached me, dipping her head. She wasn't someone I'd met yet but rather grabbed my empty plate, then gave a sideways glance to the water.

"You've taken the restoration medication, right miss?" she asked, causing me to nod.

Well, at least they were not wrong about being reminded here. I finished up the final sips of my water and smiled at her.

"Thank you," I said kindly, and she grinned, flashing her fangs and nodding.

Soon, she left the room, leaving me sitting there for a moment. I closed my eyes and yawned, exhaustion now settling in. Being taken by that vampire was wonderful, but I needed to keep my mind on the mission.

Lucy needed me, and I was going to find out what happened to her.

'She could be dead,' I thought to myself, wincing. She better not be.

I'd learn necromancy, raise her myself, and kill her again if she was! My attempt at reassuring myself with humor died quickly, however, as I felt anxiety settle in my stomach like I'd eaten something far too heavy.

Dead or not, because of this, she would want me to find out what happened and help prevent it from being the fate of another person.