Annabelle rested her head against her mistress' partly-bared chest, straining her hearing for the faint heartbeat she heard whenever the vampire fed. She smiled to herself when she heard the quiet, rapid pounding of Keira's heart. She knew that the pulse would quickly fade, but for now, she would revel in the low sound. She and the vampire always made love (though Keira wouldn't phrase it as such) after she fed, so Annabelle knew that the accelerated sound was thanks to her.
The human shivered a little as Keira gently ran her fingertips along the undersides of her slightly sore breasts. Keira chuckled softly, dipping her head down to place a light kiss to the younger girl's forehead. "You're still sensitive," she teased her pet in a voice low with arousal. Annabelle blushed a little.
"That's your fault," she whispered against the rapidly-cooling porcelain skin, giggling softly in the afterglow of her orgasm. She probably shouldn't have been taunting the woman, but she was too relaxed to think about that.
"Watch yourself," Keira warned half-heartedly. She was still feeling the effects of their coupling, too, so she wasn't going to bother enforcing her position just then.
"Of course, milady." Annabelle nuzzled against her mistress, and the vampire gently embraced her. She nearly purred, she was so content. So content, actually, that she didn't hear the soft gasp of flustered surprise.
Keira, though, did. Her crimson eyes snapped up at the intruder.
Anessa stared blankly at the half-dressed couple, lounging on a couch. She could feel heat rising in her face, and she knew she was blushing. Honestly, though, how was she to know that those two would be doing this kind of thing in the library? Weren't there bedrooms for that purpose? It wasn't her fault that she'd accidentally walked in on the pair; she'd come in here just about every day for the past few weeks, and hadn't ever seen them here before. She still blushed darker, though, when Keira locked gazes with her.
The vampire bit back a chuckle. With the way her youngest pet acted around her, she would have expected disgust or outrage at walking in on her having her way with Annabelle Lee. Neither emotion was present on Anessa's face, though; Keira could easily pick out surprise and embarrassment – and even a little arousal – but nothing else. Moving slowly, ensuring that she wouldn't disturb the woman resting against her breast, Keira brought a single pale finger to her lips, warning Anessa to be quiet. Then she smirked playfully, making Anessa blush even worse.
Anessa quickly spun around and hurried off, unsure of what to make of that little display.
Keira chuckled softly, provoking Annabelle Lee to inquire about it. "Nothing, little one," she assured her pet, dragging her taloned fingers through her hair. "Nothing at all."
XXX
"You are cruel to her," Anessa declared, pinning an accusatory glare on Keira.
The vampire looked up from her book, ebony eyebrows raised. "Cruel to whom?" she inquired mildly, calmly steepling her fingers. "And how so?"
"Annabelle," Anessa clarified, crossing her arms angrily. "And you know how."
The vampire's crimson eyes rolled up, thoughtfully studying the ceiling. "I'm afraid I don't know what you mean," she replied neutrally, her gaze returning to the girl before her. A quick rifle through Anessa's mind, though, and she understood. Ah. That's it. Still, she would make the girl spell it out for her own amusement.
Anessa glared at her, not entirely willing to say why. "What you did to her this morning," she finally managed, a faint blush rising in her face again. Keira's lips curled in amusement, revealing her fangs. Anessa bristled at that. She was trying to protect one of the girls who was making her stay tolerable, and Keira was laughing at her? "It's cruel to treat her like that."
"How is that cruel?" the vampire inquired amiably, cocking her head calmly. "It hurts her to be fed from, so why shouldn't I do what I can to ease that pain? Even if it includes fucking her?" She smiled when Anessa flinched at the vulgar term. Such an innocent little girl. "In any case, she enjoys it. She practically begs for me to touch her after I feed."
"Don't talk about her like that," Anessa hissed, indignant. How dare Keira make Annabelle out to be a whore? Surely she knows how Annabelle feels about her. She had to know. Even Anessa had figured it out. It was obvious.
"Why shouldn't I? She's my pet."
"She loves you!" There. She'd said it. Anessa met Keira's gaze with her own and found she was unable to look away. She wondered faintly if the woman had caught her in a thrall. She'd read that vampires could do that.
"This isn't a thrall," Keira chuckled. "Trust me, you'd know if I put you in a thrall."
"You... still didn't answer," Anessa managed after blinking and shaking her head a little. What was that, then? She kept her gaze trained on a spot just above the woman's eyes to be safe.
"Was there a question?" the vampire inquired idly, teasing a few strands of oil-black hair. Her pet frowned in annoyance and she chuckled. "You take things too seriously. Yes, I heard what you said."
"Aren't you going to say anything?"
"What would you like me to say? 'I know'? 'Thank you for bringing that to my attention'?" She raised her eyebrows pointedly. "What is there for me to say?"
Anessa was stunned, even though she'd expected as such from the sadist. But if Keira knew that her middle pet (she frowned mentally at the easy use of the word) was in love with her, why on earth would she do as she did if she didn't love? "How can you touch her like that and not care about her at all?" she whispered in disbelief.
"I did not say that I don't care for Annabelle Lee," Keira corrected, standing and brushing her silky hair behind her ears again. "But I cannot love her, no. But she seems to be content to love me despite that, so tell me," Anessa barely stifled a whimper when her mistress (there was that damned word again!) was suddenly in front of her, "why should I break her heart with trivial things like not returning her love? Surely it would be less painful for her if I allowed her unrequited love for me to exist rather than to destroy it and make her live with me regardless?" Anessa was speechless. She hadn't ever considered it quite like that. Keira offered her a gentle smile, full of amusement and what appeared to be a little regret. "No, I didn't imagine that you would consider things from my point of view. Being a good mistress is more difficult than you'd imagine."
Anessa was tempted to challenge the 'good mistress' thing, but decided against it.
Keira smirked dryly at her and the younger girl flushed slightly, trying to empty her mind so it couldn't be read again. "You'd be surprised. I am a very good mistress compared to some. I've met a few who would have no trouble breaking the heart of a pet like Annabelle Lee. Unlike them, I do my best not to injure my pets mentally," she gently dragged her fingertips up Anessa's back, making her gasp and stiffen, "or emotionally. And I only use physical injuries as means of heavy punishment, which I believe is... fair." Anessa looked up at her, faint panic in her gaze when she was pulled into Keira's grasp. Her breath quickened slightly at the feeling of her body pressed against the vampire's but she tried to calm herself down. "After all, some others beat their pets for minor things. That's not particularly fair, don't you think?"
"I – I guess not," she stammered, eyes wide. Keira chuckled softly.
"So, then, do you still think that I'm a bad mistress?" the woman teased softly, amused at the slight tremor she felt in her little pet.
"I guess not," Anessa repeated in a little squeak. The closeness was getting to her. She silently prayed that the woman would release her soon.
"I didn't think so." Her pet whimpered when Keira closed the distance, kissing her gently. Anessa trembled at the feeling of the fangs and cool lips against her own. For a few seconds, she didn't move, terrified. Then something occurred to her: Keira wasn't hurting her. The kiss was soft, tender, even a little sensual, but not rough like she'd sworn she remembered the vampire kissing her. In fact, Keira wasn't even really kissing her – just touching their lips together. She's waiting for me to respond, Anessa realized an instant before doing so, albeit shyly. She felt her mistress smile against her lips and then release her. The blonde woman stared at the floor, blushing, shock in her gaze. She'd allowed the mad woman to kiss her. Not only that, but she returned it. What's wrong with me? The vampire tilted her head up, forcing her to meet the woman's red gaze.
"Still think I'm a bad mistress?" Keira laughed softly, playing with her pet's soft, blonde hair.
"I..." Anessa hesitated, then shook her head, her eyes still locked on Keira's. "No." That was all she said, but the vampire accepted it with a slight smile and a kiss to the forehead.
A/N: ...So how was everyone's whatever-wintry-holiday-you-celebrate? -awkward cough from update lateness- ...This was kind of a fun chapter to do.