Chapter Text
The Vampire Queen looked down at her prey and laughed at its futile efforts to escape her.
"Did you seriously think you could escape me," the vampire smirked, "with your pathetic human strength?"
The young girl shivered and tried to crawl away, only to find her back to a tree. There was nowhere left to run, and the beast would surely kill her now. She closed her eyes and tried to accept her fate.
The Vampire Queen let out a stern tsk-tsk, and lifted up the village girl's chin with a single sharp nail, to look her directly in the eyes.
"Now, now, if I wanted to kill you, I could have done so quite easily." The vampire licked her lips, "I have much better plans for you~"
The Vampire Queen leaned in closer to her, breath tickling on her quivering neck. Her prey was shivering, and whimpering in fear. Exactly what she needed from her.
Her Queen, she would soon call her.
"You will make such a wonderful thrall~"
The vampire hungrily sunk her fangs into her food's neck, moaning in satisfaction as its delicious blood hit her tongue. The girl, wide eyed, panted as she felt her essence leave her. She could feel drop, after drop. Every pulse as her heartbeat sent out her oh-so precious blood into the beast's greedy maw. It felt almost as if her thoughts were being drained out as well.
Drop by drop, she fell. Fell so, so deep. And then, she was caught.
Beat by beat, she felt her heartbeat change rhythms. And then, everything made sense.
Why was she running again? Why would she want to run from something as wonderful as Her? She understood her place now, and it was at her Queen's heel.
The other villagers were wrong: her Queen was so kind, to be able to grace someone as low as her with Her presence.
She was so fortunate to be of use to her Queen.
The former-villager had a dazed look of adoration on her face, painted by her own blood, sweat, and tears. She gasped in pleasure as her Queen roughly pulled her fangs out of her tender neck, stained by blood. A trickle of blood followed the wound, blood oozing from the vampire's maw.
She was truly a beast. And she was truly Her's.
Her Queen leaned back, groaning in delight, with blood soaked lips. She looked at Her handiwork with supreme satisfaction. Her property was well and truly broken.
She chuckled smugly, "You're properly enthralled, already, aren't you?~ So, so, easily! Not an ounce of struggle in you!"
"You wanted this, regardless of whether or not you realized it!" Her Queen arrogantly traced her pretty, distant face with a sharp nail.
"Isn't it so nice to let go of all of your worries? Debt, money, fear, and pain? All are meaningless constructs under Me." Her Queen traced a claw from her neck down, leaving tingling lines in her skin. "All you must focus on is pleasing your Queen, and in return all will be provided~"
The Vampire Queen whispered sensually in her ear, "And you have been very good, thrall~"
She used her unnaturally sharp claws to tear off her thrall's dress, leaving it in tatters. The girl yelped at Her sudden intrusion, blushing at the implication of what her Queen intended for her.
The enthralled girl shivered as the cool air hit her body, reflexively covering her chest. Her Queen would make sure her pet got its reward.
KNOCK KNOCK
Maria jolted. She was not expecting to be interrupted from her... tasteful literature? Oh, who was she kidding, it was some of the kinkiest smut out there. It had great writing though! 'Queen's Thrall' was a classic for a reason!
She totally wasn't reading it because she was obsessed with vampire erotica. Well, maybe she was. Okay, definitely. To a... maybe unhealthy degree, given how long it had been since she went outside.
It was not her fault some vampire stories made her feel envious! It was normal to want to be a hot vampire woman's thrall, obviously. Who wouldn't?
It was completely, totally normal to want to be drained of just enough blood to stay conscious by a vampire girl and have her hypnotize you and make you do her bidding—
She shook her head fiercely. Now was not the time to be getting even more worked up.
She looked at a clock, and realized it was already 4pm! It felt like she had just woken up! ...Maybe she did, actually. She wasn't sure. She hadn't had any reason to care for a while, anyways.
Maria considered ignoring the door, quickly dashing that thought in the event it was an Affini. She appreciated what they were doing... but there was no way they could fix what was wrong with her. So, she had to try to put on a facade of put-togetherness. Not that she was good at it obviously, given their presence.
She reluctantly sighed and called out, "Just a minute!" She was not looking forward to this.
The woman glanced into a mirror, and quickly looked herself over. She looked... good, for her age. Despite her reservations, the Affini really did help a lot. Their Class-Gs made her feel a lot better about her body, not that she did much other than making her look younger. She was way too embarrassed to ask for the stuff she really wanted.
And that's not even mentioning the compilers. She could get any junk food she wanted, and it would make it nutritionally complete too! Sure, she'd gained a bit of a tummy from it, but she didn't mind!
...Okay, maybe more than a bit. She had a lot of 'comfort food'.
She shook her head. Focus. Her brown hair was a bit of a mess, but it looked fine enough. She ruffled it a little in her hands. Her wolf cut was very resistant to looking bad, thanks to its inherently chaotic style. She straightened her large, circular glasses. Maria liked how they made her feel younger.
She might have a bit of a complex about her age, honestly. The Class-Gs were more of a bandage on her anxieties than a cure.
As far as the rest of her, she was just in her bra and panties, due to her 'activities'. They had been getting fairly tight, honestly. She should compile a new pair soon... assuming she doesn't end the meeting a floret. She quickly replaced her panties, and put on a proper pair of clothes: just a simple black blouse and leggings.
...She hoped the maybe-affini couldn't smell her, she realized with a blush.
Before going to the door, she quickly glanced around her hab. It was pretty clean. Thankfully she was good at that, at least. It was beaten into her to clean everything spotless, after all. It... certainly wasn't healthy, but at least her hab was clean, she supposed.
Maria reluctantly walked to her door, hoping she didn't lose Wellness Points for taking a bit, however these worked.
She took a deep breath, and opened her door. As expected, there was an affini. Wow, she forgot how tall Affini were. She (Maria assumed she, anyways) was at least three meters tall! The affini was very, very pretty. She had green, planty skin and her 'hair' was a soft red, nearing pink, in an imitation of a loose bun.
Most odd though were the clothes, as she hadn't seen many affini that wore much. She wore a comfy looking cream colored sweater, and had a pair of glasses that accentuated her face to a ridiculous degree.
And her face... She had to look away. Her eyes were like infinite pools of azure violet, and they were the most beautiful sight Maria had ever seen.
She was a goddess. Damn her lesbian heart!
Maria cleared her throat, and addressed the affini, tilting her head, "Um, hello there. You are..?"
The affini seemed glad to see her? She smiled, replying, "Hello dear, You must be Maria Andreas! I am Virola Crescentia, 2nd Bloom, she/her! May we talk, perhaps? I have some things I need to talk to you about, petal."
Virola seemed... nice, honestly. Maybe this would be okay, if she's here for what Maria expects.
Maria nodded, and let her in. Despite the affini's overwhelming size, the sheer abundance of space in her new hab meant it was no problem. She sat at her, very comfortable, kitchen table, and tapped a vine on the opposite chair to beckon her to sit.
She shuffled in her chair nervously. Virola still had that kind look on her face. She spoke up, "I assume you know why I'm here, little one?"
Maria anxiously twiddled her thumbs. Of course she did. "This is a wellness check, isn't it?" She said, nervously.
Virola nodded, confirming her fears. "That's right, dear. According to you're hab's AI, you've haven't been taking care of yourself properly for quite a while!"
She pulled out her tablet, and started scrolling through it. Maria gulped. She could see where this was going. Virola continued, "Let's see... you haven't been outside in two months. Emotional overeating. Over and under sleeping. Lack of exercise. Irregular hygiene. Obsessive cleaning."
Maria couldn't help but tear up. She was the worst, she thought, as she stifled a sob. She started when she felt a leafy hand on her face, pushing away a tear.
Virola soothed her, "Shh, shhh, it's alright dear. I'm here to help, not shame you. Its not uncommon at all for sophonts to need a bit of help. Needing help is not something to feel guilty about, I assure you, flower."
She nodded apologetically, and mumbled, rubbing her face, "'m sorry."
The pretty affini rubbed her head. "Don't be, dear. All we need to focus on, is your well-being, cutie! Speaking of which!" She pulls out an official looking sheet of paper and continues, "Since you've been having such a rough time on your own, its been decided that you definitely need a wardship of at least a month so you can get the care you need, darling!"
Maria looked down with some hesitation, and gulped. Sure, Virola seemed really nice and pretty and maybe it wouldn't be so bad being owned by her, but this was still really intimidating.
Notice of Temporary Wardship
- From the duration of July 5th, 2555, to August 5th, 2555, you, Maria Andreas, will be under the supervision of Virola Crescentia, 2nd Bloom.
- Your guardian knows best, and you are expected to obey her for the duration of the wardship.
- If deemed necessary at any time, your guardian may decide that domestication is required for you to be your best self.
- Your wardship may be extended at any time.
- You have a guarantee of your wellbeing under your guardian.
- Your guardian has the right to discipline you in any way she sees fit.
- Your guardian may add additional rules at any time.
Sign Here, Cutie!
I, Maria Andreas, acknowledge that I am adorable and deserving of love, which will be gladly be provided by my guardian.
_________________________________________
Were all affini documents so... cutesy? Obviously, the signature was just for formalities. She didn't exactly have a choice, after all. With a shaky hand, Maria signed her name on the document.
Virola looked very pleased with her. She ruffled her hair and praised her, "Good girl! I'll take good care of you, dear~"
Maria nervously glanced into Virola's satisfied expression. Her guardian for the next month. Or more accurately, her temporary owner. Temporary, if she managed to seem like she got better.
She swallowed, attempting to speak through her dry, anxious mouth. She asked Virola worriedly, "So, um, what does a wardship... involve?"
Virola put a comforting vine around her shoulders. It helped her a bit. Oddly, being close to her felt really nice. She couldn't quite place why. She answered, "Well, in general, it means that you will be living with me under supervision for a time, and your needs will be managed by me as well! Mental needs especially, given your state, dear~"
Living with her. That was... a lot to process. She certainly hadn't expected to get soft-domesticated when she woke up this morning. Actually... it was afternoon? Maybe?
...Maybe the affini had a point.
Her mind shot back to her books. She really, really hoped Virola would let her bring them. Gay vampire smut was her written comfort food, basically!
"Would it be okay if I brought some stuff, like my books? Um, Ms. Crescentia?" She wasn't quite sure how to address her. She didn't want to get in trouble with her already!
Virola chuckled at her, and answered, "Ms. Crescentia is fine, dear! And yes, of course we can bring your books! I'll pack them up for you when we go, darling. Wouldn't want a naughty cutie like you to go without her smut for too long, hmm?~"
She blushed heavily, and stuttered, "I-I um, I don't know what you're talking about!"
Her affini grinned at her teasingly. "Really? Darling, your file contains nearly everything about you. I could name what you had for breakfast a decade ago! Knowing that you like erotic literature is nothing. I could name off every single kink you have, though we'd be here all day if we did!~"
Maria's brain shut off. The affini knowing her kinks, all of them, worried her in a very Gay way. The cards of domestication were very much stacked against her, with that info. Her body caught up with her, and her face turned a bright crimson, unable to form words beyond a few pathetic stutters. Her hands rose to cover her extremely embarrassed face.
Her new guardian laughed at her ward's embarrassment. "You are so adorable, dear!~" The affini suddenly looked as if she remembered something, and pulled a circular object out of her vines. "Oh, yes! This is your collar! Purely for medical purposes, I assure you!~ It allows me to monitor your vitals, remotely apply xenodrug doses, and can automatically give you Class-E's if your pretty little head gets too stressed!~"
Her collar. Her collar. Everyone would think she was a floret when she went out. Well, she would be led on a leash, with a collar, so maybe that wasn't an unfair assessment. She shivered, not sure if it was from apprehension, or excitement.
...This wardship felt more like floret training, honestly.
Maria took a deep breath, failing to hide a blush, and hesitantly stuck her neck out for Virola. "Okay. You can... put it on, Ms. Crescentia."
Virola gave her a predatory grin. "Good girl!~ So obedient already~" Her hands reached up to her neck, and gently pulled her collar around her. Click! It was on.
It was a lot more comfortable than she expected, honestly. It was made out of some very nice material. Still, its size was a constant reminder of her place, and that gave her Feelings. This was probably why florets had collars, and it certainly wasn't for medical reasons.
Once she was done admiring inspecting her collar, she shyly spoke to her affini, "Well um, I'm ready to go I suppose, Ms. Crescentia."
Virola smiled at her. "Wonderful!~ I'll grab your things and then we'll go! It is a bit of a walk, so I'll just carry you, dear!~"
She looked confused. "You'll carry m— eep!" Her caretaker suddenly grabbed Maria in her vines, and gently put her inside her. That was not a sentence Maria had thought she would say before today.
Inside her was... warm. Cozy, oddly. In the center was a gently glowing... core? She realized she felt so relaxed and at ease next to it. This must be what made her feel so... warm, around her affini. Without realizing it, her arms wrapped around the core, eagerly snuggling into it. She could feel a gentle, rhythmic thrum emanating from the core. Virola's rhythm was so comforting, like a heartbeat in song.
Maria sighed contently against her affini's core. Every ounce of anxiety had been washed away, overwhelmed by the sheer comfort of Virola's music. Maybe this wardship wasn't so bad.
Virola sighed contently, feeling her ward snuggle up against her core. Truthfully, her hab was not far at all, and there were many options for public transit... but she needed to investigate Maria's hab. Making her cuddle her core for a bit seemed far preferable to potentially stressing the poor dear with some unexpected cocktail of xenodrugs to distract her.
This was very much a personal curiosity, but her file had holes. The kind that did not make sense given the Compact's near total command over information. Her family history? Empty. Living, dead, nothing! Even genetic relatives she didn't know about would have been found.
The only thing she could possibly reason was that another affini manually redacted parts of her file. Which was unthinkable, and she doubted Maria was even aware of this, given that the sophont inside her obviously had barely interacted with any affini before her.
Virola quite easily picked up Maria's stacks of books with a myriad of vines, placing them inside her. She let her form lose itself a little, letting her vines wander across every inch of the girl's hab. She wanted her investigation to be quick, given the ward currently getting a healthy dose of her biorhythms.
...Though given her interests, she would make a perfect pinnate for her florets.
She looked up with a start, noticing something with one of her vines, deep inside a drawer. There was not much here, so it didn't take long. It was a small picture frame, with what might be a family photo?
On the left was obviously Maria. The photo seemed to be taken years ago, but her ward paradoxically looked older. Virola felt a bit of Affini pride at the clear improvement in her ward's health, thanks to the Compact.
On the right was a woman of a similar age and complexion as Maria. She had black hair, versus her ward's brown hair. Analyzing their facial and body structures, Virola determined them to be related. Sisters maybe, she thought.
In the middle between them, were two young adult women. They had black and brown hair respectively, like their older counterparts. They looked... very similar to Maria and her relative. Uncannily so, as terrans would say. She brought her vines closer to the image, disbelieving what she was seeing. These were not their offspring! These two looked like the same sophonts from when they were younger!
Virola shook her head, and resolved to just scan the picture with her tablet and leave. This was not going to get resolved quickly, she felt, as she left her ward's hab.
It answered little, and gave her many more questions that were not in her ward's file. Who was the relative Maria was with? Who were the two younger sophonts they were with? Were they Maria's offspring? Was Maria a mother?
And by the Everbloom, why do these girls seem like... clones almost, of their older counterparts?
These were questions for later anyways, she thought, as the affini came up to her hab's door.
A shiver ran through her core, accompanied by a pleased clicking from deep inside her. She had a feeling Maria will love her adorable little florets.