"Tepes."

The young woman snuggled further into her pillow, ignoring the childish voice yelling at her. She wanted to return to the simplicity of dreams, of a place where she could eat and relax as much as she pleased.

"Tepes!"

Wilhelmina continued disregarding the little boy and turned in the opposite direction, presenting her back to him and lodging herself into the confines of the couch cushions.

The little monster could eat a frog for how much trouble he put her through. She deserved the respite brought on by sleeping.

"Tepes, you will rise this instance or so help me!"

The lack of obedience pushed the boy over the edge and his foot flew out, sending the couch into the air and tipping it over.

The woman laid trap beneath.

"Master Dracula!" She groaned pathetically, wine-colored eyes at last opening and gazing upon the blond adolescent glaring daggers at her. "You didn't have to give me such a brutal wake-up."

Between the sharp armrests and the general weight of the couch, Wilhelmina was in pain.

"Clearly, I did! I have been trying to wake you for thirty minutes. How dare you cause me such trouble!"

The young vampire king was in an absolute huff. His hair stuck up wildly, his cheeks were flaming red, and his night clothes were ruffled beyond measure.

Were Wilhelmina some other vampire she might've found the sight cute.

"My deepest apologies for the trouble, Young Master."

She was not the typical vampire and so she found the reigning king to be an utter nuisance since the day he proclaimed her as his servant. Over the years the woman learned to smother her dislike, bending to every whim and demand of Dracula, or Delacroix the Second as he liked to address himself now.

To serve was the purpose given to her.

"Tch! I would believe that if your face wasn't locked in disinterest." Delacroix calmed down and took a seat on the other couch. "Prepare my breakfast, Tepes."

"Yes, Master Dracula." Wilhelmina tossed the couch off and re-situated it as it had been.

Their feats of strength would disturb a human, but their kind were commonly known for having an abundance of strength, among other things.

"And it is Delacroix now, Tepes. Do not refer to me as 'Dracula'." A measure of sadness overtook the young king. He covered it up quickly after catching her staring at him. "How many times must I repeat myself to you? Why was I left with a useless servant?"

She gave a low curtsy, letting her bed-tangled hair hide the irritated spark in her eyes. "I will take my leave now to prepare breakfast, 'Master Delacroix'."

"Yes, yes, hurry up. Your laziness has put me behind schedule." He waved her off impatiently to study the various news articles on the table.

Wilhelmina exited the king's room.

Normally, her sleeping in the royal bedchamber with its occupant present would have been unheard of and quite scandalous in their society, but she and the young vampire were the only residents of the decrepit castle. There was no one to cast judgement on them.

The emptiness and silence of the once luxurious fortress unnerved Delacroix, making it impossible for him to sleep the first few days they moved back in. He often woke in a terror and fled to his servant's room, dragging her back to his room and forcing her to play "mother" by rubbing his head and whispering assurances till he fell asleep.

The pattern persisted for a week straight before the king finally gave in and ordered Wilhelmina to sleep nearby on the couch. Her presence at bedtime did decrease the frequency of nightmares for Delacroix.

How pitiful their once great coven had become, reduced to a boy king and a lowly servant. The Vampire War left its mark on their species.

It was only natural for the child to latch onto her. If only the boy wouldn't be so obnoxious.

"Why me?" Wilhelmina questioned her reflection.

She brushed her midnight hair that appeared blue in certain lights, into an intricate bun that was fashionable among the noble woman. Jewelry and matching accessories that went well with the dress adorned her ears and hair.

A servant of her standing could only dream of wearing finery, but since the owners were dead and her master made no complaint, the vampire made it her mission to wear all the unused clothing and jewelry that weren't stolen.

The exceptions to that were the late queen's items that were stashed in a secret compartment in the royal rooms. Wilhelmina wouldn't dare touch those even though Delacroix showed her where they were.

"I want to sleep all day long. Sleep like a baby, that's all I want." She said in a sing-song voice, preparing an elaborate selection for breakfast.

Once done, the vampire carried the tray to her master's room and set it on an open space on the table.

Delacroix looked up from his notes and blushed lightly upon seeing Wilhelmina. "T-That is what you've c-chosen to wear for today?"

"Yes, is it to the Young Masters liking?"

"I-It is a p-pleasant ensemble."

"Thank you for allowing a 'lowly' servant as me to dress as finely as a lady." She gave him one of her practiced smiles that secretly hid vexation at her situation.

The blush deepened.

To hide his bashfulness, Delacroix gathered his research off the table and imperiously motioned for Wilhelmina to serve him. "As king I cannot have my subjects looking anything less than immaculate. Your maid outfit of old became atrocious to look at."

Her smile lost none of its faux pleasantness, widening instead at the insult.

The uniform ended up so atrocious due to the fights she got into on behalf of Delacroix's endeavors to retrieve lost heirlooms of the vampire aristocracy. With no one to patch up her clothes, the few uniforms the vampire owned were rapidly rendered unwearable.

"I shall aspire to uphold your noble image, Master Dracula."

A fleeting glare was her reward for addressing him incorrectly, but he didn't correct her again. He tucked into his meal while Wilhelmina busied herself with setting out his clothes for their nightly mission.

They were to travel to London and reclaim a pendant.

These seek-and-recover missions kept Delacroix and Wilhelmina busy. The two saw more of the world in the last two years than they had their entire lives.

Hunting down stolen vampire artifacts, finding survivors, and planning the downfall of humanity truly was time consuming work.

Wilhelmina wished she could have a simple life.

"Tepes."

A life where she could eat, sleep, and dilly-dally on her own time, beholden to no one.

"Tepes."

No spoiled child demanding she wait on him hand and foot, or sending her to foreign places, or using her as punching bag.

At times Wilhelmina had trouble deciding who was more of an inconvenience to her, master or father…

Since the man who sired her vanished, he felt like the lesser evil now. Often though she found herself cursing the lineage she bore.

Why had she survived?

"Tepes!"

The vampire tilted her head backwards. "Yes, Young Master?"

"Stop balling up my vest!"

Her hands let go of the item she'd been clenching.

"Your scatterbrainess better not have me looking foolish. When I claim Nosferatu's Saber I want to look regal… There you go again!"

Wilhelmina deflected suspicion from herself by pestering Delacroix with a series of questions.

"Are you finished eating? Shall I clean it up?" He blustered incoherently at the rapidness of her talk. "Help you dress? Your wish is my command."

She decided for him by gathering up the tray and departing in the blink of an eye. Delacroix stared, dumbfounded at the crinkled clothing laying out on his bed.

"Useless, empty-headed girl." He griped to no one.

Wilhelmina set the tray down with forced calm that amounted to a slight rattling of the silverware. Her hands began the unconscious motion of cleaning with meticulous care.

Breaking the expensive tea set was sure to draw her master's ire.

Nosferatu's Saber.

She especially did not wish to retrieve that heirloom. The very thing's name set her blood on fire.

The fangs inside her mouth ached with the need to sink into something.

"Ah… I need…to eat…"

Food would at least quench the thirst. Just as she was about to eat the portion set aside, a call of her name came before the door to the kitchens flew open.

"We're leaving." Delacroix announced, all dressed in his suit, cape, and top hat.

"But…" Wilhelmina helplessly stared at the fork hovering inches before her mouth.

The food was right there!

"Now." He deadpanned.

She began to whine. "Master Dracula…"

"Consider this punishment for rising later than me. A servant should be up well before their master."

Her low whining continued. The terrible little terror!

"Come, Tepes." The young king left in a flourish and Wilhelmina with great sadness, left her meal to obediently follow.

Cruel, minuscule brat! As if being crushed under a couch wasn't punishment enough.

"Maybe, if you do a good job and not fall asleep at any point, I'll allow you to drain the pesky humans that get in our way."

Wilhelmina perked up. "Is that a promise?"

"Indeed. Do I have your cooperation?"

"Yes, Master Dracula." She donned her coat and parasol with renewed vigor.

It had been a week since blood had graced her lips. The very thought of the red substance made Wilhelmina chew her lip in anticipation.

Delacroix smiled. If nothing else, he could appreciate his useless servant's savagery on the battlefield.

Humans begged and screamed like the worms they were when faced with the end of her blade. His burgeoning brutality was nothing compared to hers.

"We'll make them pay, every last human."

The woman hummed in mock agreement. She could care less about the killing sprees the boy promised he would unleash on the humans.

All Wilhelmina wanted was to feed herself before the night ended and the sun rose.

Realize

"Whoopsie, you missed." Wilhelmina taunted the disgruntled man kissing the pavement. She twirled away from another man trying to kill her. "You're all so slow."

"What's wrong with you idiots?! She's just a woman, catch her already!"

"We're trying to, but she's slipper!"

The vampire proceeded to dance out of the human's range when they attacked, having an internal debate over which one she wanted to make a meal out of.

They were all so meaty and gruff looking that Wilhelmina wasn't finding them appetizing. Any one of them would probably make her stomach twist.

Still…beggars couldn't be choosers.

It was either drain one of them or starve until they made it back to the castle. She refused to prolong her hunger for that long.

Vampires could cover the distance much faster than humans and her uneaten breakfast would be preferable to the blood of these degenerates...but that would take hours.

Quality or convenience?

"W-What's going on with her e-eyes?!"

"Are they red? It's because I'm hungry…so very hungry." Wilhelmina answered the frightened man.

Her decision was made on account of the hunger gnawing at her. One of them would have to suffice.

"Hungry?" No more of his question could be asked, as a sword impaled his neck.

"I can only stomach one of you. Who will it be, I wonder?" She withdrew the blade and took a hesitant lick at the blood on it, immediately spitting it out as the dead body hit the ground. "Just as I thought, disgusting! There's too much impurity in him."

Screams erupted from everywhere.

The humans that were watching the fight fled and the men guarding the auction doubled their efforts in attacking her. Instead of avoidance, Wilhelmina countered the deadly blows, taking samples of blood when she could.

The vampire's thought turned to her master inside the tent. Had he acquired the item, or would he need her to take over?

The young king's fighting was still at a basic level for vampires, but for humans he was deadly.

"Not one of you tasted good. Maybe the others had it right and maidens taste best. They all fled though…" The woman groaned as she licked her blade clean and returned it to the slot in the parasol's handle. "I'm sooooo hungry…but you all taste atrocious. It's not fair…"

She received no response as all the guards were dead and the area empty.

"Tepes, The Impaler strikes again." Wilhelmina muttered dispassionately.

Dead bodies surrounding her in an empty area had become such a consistent occurrence that she didn't recoil in dread in anymore.

"Tepes…what a stupid name."

Delacroix bounded out the building, cape flittering behind him and making him appear as a bat in flight.

"Master?"

"Let's go!" He growled and took off without a backwards glance.

She sighed. Something had upset him.

Usually he laughed and heaped praise upon her for killing their race's destroyers. Delacroix barely looked at the corpses, or her, before taking off.

They came to a stop in a forest.

How there was a forest in a city of steel eluded Wilhelmina.

"Master Dra-"

"Didn't I tell you not to call me that anymore?!" Delacroix whirled on her, fully bearing his fangs and eyes shifting to a bright crimson.

Wilhelmina stared unflinchingly, letting him calm his frantic breathing before trying again.

"Did something happen, Master Dr…Master Delacroix?" She tacked on the last part when another outburst built in the boy's eyes.

"That man!" Unfortunately, the anger returned anyway.

"A man?" The servant dared to step closer and sniff at her master's scent.

Only one human could infuriate him so. The smell of gunpowder and lemons hit her.

"Van Helsing, I'll kill him!"

The shock of the man's presence in London would have to wait. Wilhelmina held out her hand to halt the boy.

"What?!"

"Humans approach." She replied.

A group of men and a woman approached the two vampires. Delacroix gaped at the sight of them while Wilhelmina's brows rose curiously.

The men were all appealing to look at, even the blank-eyed girl with them was in a class of beauty that was unnatural. Their blood was sure to be vastly more appetizing than those brutes the vampire disposed of.

Which one was Wilhelmina to bite first?

The gentleman in red? The doctor? The red-head? Those three looked the best.

Maybe she could even be greedy and drain two of them. The woman chewed her lip and tried not to drool at the imminent fullness she would experience.

"Tepes, did you see that as well?"

"Hmm?"

"How can you not be paying attention?!" Delacroix whacked her on the arm.

"What did I miss?" The vampire paid no heed to sting of pain.

"Hey, hey, little boys shouldn't hit ladies. That's not how things work." The red-head cried out from his place on the ground.

He winced, attempting to move his arm.

"Did you kick him?" She could see the pale area of the man's arm beginning to swell red.

There would be a nasty bruise there.

"Totally brushed off?!" The man choked, face expressing his dismay.

His companions rolled their eyes.

"I did." Delacroix crossed his arm.

"He's still alive? Are you softening?" A part of Wilhelmina wished the boy would go soft on her occasionally.

"I am not! Don't get smart with me!" His hand lifted to deliver more punishment.

The servant didn't bother dodging or pleading her case. She took the beating like she did every other, with resigned annoyance.

"My, oh my. They're off in their own world, aren't they?" The eccentric-looking noble chuckled.

"Like we're not even here." The gentleman in red agreed.

"At least we aren't being attacked anymore…but someone else is suffering for it." The doctor alternated between checking on the red-head's arm and the woman being assaulted by a temperamental child.

Wilhelmina zoned out as more words were exchanged between Delacroix and the strangers. It was the scent of gunpowder and lemons that drew her attention back from the mini nap she descended into.

"Van Helsing!" Both master and servant said at the same time.

The vampire killer's glare faltered for a fraction of a second at the sight of Wilhelmina.

"Decided to fight me?" Delacroix took an offensive stance. "Or run away again?"

"I lured you away, recognize the difference, 'son of the dragon'." He fired back coldly.

"I left that name behind! I've taken on the name of my father." The young vampire snarled the next bit under his breath. "Why does no one understand that?!"

Van Helsing's penetrating glare lifted to something morose. "I see. So, do you want me to call you 'Delacroix the Second' instead, Dracula?"

"If I hear that name one more time, I'm going to lose it!" Delacroix lunged for the man responsible for the deaths of many vampires.

"Hmm, should I help him?" Wilhelmina twirled her parasol, impassive to the intense psychological and physical battle happening before her. "Maybe not…he's so riled up he might hit me in the confusion…"

Why was Van Helsing even here?

She hadn't seen the man since the stronghold fell to the humans two years ago. That day was so bloody.

Why did she survive when so many else hadn't?

"Tepes!"

A sharp pain erupted in her arm. "Owww…are you done fighting already? He's not even dead."

"I swear you try my patience! We are leaving since I don't want to bother with the weaklings coming."

A large group of humans were rushing towards the vampires.

"I understand. Those men are weak and tasteless. Not worth your time at all, Master Delacroix." Wilhelmina flattered the boy.

"Yes, yes." He blinked, surprised, but pleased.

"Might I suggest we take the train home? We could celebrate your great accomplishment in one of the dining cars." She added a dazzling smile as a final touch of persuasion.

"No, you deceitful woman." Delacroix flatly retorted.

He ran directly at the incoming mob and jumped over the gobsmacked humans.

"Running again? Why is he such a nuisance?" The vampire sighed for the umpteenth time.

Her luck was positively rotten.

"Wilhelmina."

She stopped mid-step at the call of her true name, turning to face Van Helsing after a beat.

"You're the closest thing to a guardian he has. Why are you letting him run wild?" The accusation and dripping disappointment brought out an ugly sneer from her.

"Like I've ever had any control over that kid's actions. He will do as he pleases." The vampire turned her back to the fabled Human Weapon.

Two years of absence with a betrayal hanging between them and the first thing muttered to her was a reprimand? Her heart twisted with vehement fury.

"I, the lowly servant can only follow his lead. I don't instruct his path."

Wilhelmina disappeared into the night.