СHAPTER IX

Lulu had a dream where endless fields with all kinds of flowers stretched around, from which sweet scents wafted. Bees and other insects buzzed, collecting precious nectar from plants. And she was sitting next to Sophie and looking at the clear sky with her. Everything was just wonderful, but soon black clouds appeared on the horizon. A strong wind rose, which brought with it cold and anxiety. Something bad was rapidly approaching from behind the horizon. Something that looked like a blackbird with wings all over the sky began to engulf the world. Calming the unruly strands of hair with her hand, Lulu did not have time to come to her senses, as darkness engulfed almost her entire world.

Somewhere in the distance, a bright spark slipped by, momentarily dispersing the haze in different directions. The flash was replaced by rolling thunder, which rang in Lulu's ears. She tried to hug Sophie, but she disappeared somewhere. Jumping to her feet, Lulu began to call her, but her voice was interrupted by the sounds of the beginning of a thunderstorm. And the apogee of this dream was the bone-chilling rain…

"Lulu, wake up!" from somewhere far away, the wind brought fragments of words.

"Wake up, or she'll steal you!" someone warned her about the danger. "Hurry up! She's on her way… Faster!"

Lulu's eyes snapped open. Her heart was beating nervously in her chest, and beads of sweat were dripping from her forehead. Someone moved her to the bed and carefully covered her with a blanket. Sophie sat next to Lulu and tried to calm her headache.

"I feel so bad," she felt sorry for herself. — Why did I decide to kill myself with orc tincture at all.

"You got drunk on the tincture yourself, and now you're whining like..." Bonbon dropped the comparison in time because he felt Lulu's awakening.

"My familiar is lecturing me," Sophie moaned. "Ah... the wine is still out. I would like at least a drop of it to restore my strength."

"I have something that will help you!" Lulu decided to comfort her teacher.

"Lulu, are you awake?!"

Lulu decided not to mention the nightmare she had. But surely someone could get out of it for her? Lulu thought it was Sophie, but it looks like it wasn't. The teacher was now suffering from a hangover and was practically useless.

"And yet I have something for you!" her assistant smiled.

"Thank you very much, but I've already brought you so much trouble," Sophie shook her head.

"Here you go!" Lulu took a bundle out of her nightstand and gave it to her mentor, "And... this… Happy Birthday."

Sophie took the bundle with shaking hands and unwrapped it:

"Lulu, where did you get the "Moonlight Sugar"?!"

"Mrs. Krivda gave it to me for one small favor," she smiled shyly.

"Krivda?"

"She was a little surprised that you drink such wine," Lulu continued. "And after reading the composition of the wine, I realized why."

"Composition?" Sophie picked up the bottle and began to study the label carefully from the back. "There is nothing strange and unusual written here."

"That's what I thought, too," Lulu said contentedly. "But then I remembered that in the Kingdom of Black Roses the language is somewhat different and they like puzzles and riddles. If you read the main component more closely, you can see its similarity to such a word as blood."

"Who would have thought that your assistant is a walking encyclopedia and a know-it-all," Bonbon put in a word. "And I warned you, my lady, that you need to be careful with her."

"Lulu, I'll explain everything," Sophie just opened her mouth to start the story, but she was interrupted.

"You are cursed or, in simple terms, a vampire, a bloodsucker, or a ghoul," Lulu began to enumerate.

"I prefer to call myself damned," Sophie said embarrassed. "I don't really like the other names. And it doesn't matter. Know that I'm not going to drink blood from anyone here."

"And again you're lying!" Lulu's eyebrows lowered, giving her an angry look.

"It's true! I didn't bite anyone!"

"What about me?! After the demon of time showed me visions, the memory of that incident with "Elum" suddenly returned to me. Didn't I burn up with the troll then?"

"Yes," Sophie lowered her gaze down, realizing that it was her fault. "I couldn't protect you then…"

"But you bit me and shared your blood with me."

"I just couldn't help it…"

"So tell me the truth. Did you want to save me then or did you do it for another reason?"

Sophie was afraid to admit it. "Then I did it because I felt guilty before you, but now I would do it for a different reason."

"And for what reason?"

The mentor paused, but then frowned and exclaimed:

"Lulu, if you knew about everything, then why did you avoid me and then attack me?!"

"You decided to change the subject," Lulu's face showed a smile as pleased as a Cheshire cat. "I didn't know why you were doing all this! Would you tell me why you came to our Academy, what you were looking for in the abandoned wing?"

"I can't, because of my whim, you almost died once already!" Sophie raised her voice.

"It's nice to know that my life is not indifferent to you," Lulu put her hands to her chest.

"Let's leave this conversation," Sophie did not want to talk about this topic anymore. "Especially since I need to go back to my private quarters and put something on."

"All right," Lulu agreed. "By the way, why did you send me a birthday invitation in a black envelope?"

"I'm from the Kingdom of Black Roses," Sophie explained. "In our country, white is considered bad form."

"Just think, I didn't know about it!"

"I hope I didn't offend your feelings. This is the order in my country."

"So can I come to your party?"

"Krivda knows enough about me because of the wine," Sophie said sadly. "Probably, she decided to let me celebrate the New Year at the academy, and tomorrow some inquisitor will come for me. Therefore, I think we can arrange a farewell celebration, combining it with my birthday and new year."

"I think if you tell her everything, then nothing will be bad. She is a wise woman and will definitely find a way out of this situation!" Lulu was optimistic. "Besides, I can vouch for you, if, of course, you tell me everything."

"Okay, I'll think about your offer," Sophie nodded.

"Lulu, are you really human? Are you a succubus?" The familiar interjected into the conversation. "You're very good at talking people up."

"No, I'm an ordinary student of the Witch Academy," she disagreed with him.

"Exactly, they pretend to be innocent girls in the same way, and then…"

"Bonbon, you're asking for a beating again!" Sophie went to the bedside table and picked up a teddy bear.

"Nothing of the sort, my lady! I just wanted to have a heart-to-heart talk with you. Now we have a small chance to stay free and avoid a painful death at the hands of the Inquisition. This is wonderful news! We need to celebrate! Just think, we will have a New Year, your birthday, and a happy ending to this stupid story."

"That's right! We need to celebrate properly," Lulu agreed with him.

Lulu returned the borrowed robe to Sophie so that she could safely return to her chambers. And they went to celebrate together. There was still a yellow piece of paper hanging on her door with a clumsy inscription: "Sophie Mandragora", and they should have nailed a normal sign by now. Once in the cramped room, Sophie changed her clothes and stood in the center of the room.

— And then what? Lulu asked her.

— Everything is going to happen now!

Sophie cast a spell consisting of hissing sounds and called for a small cake with pieces of fruit and a couple dozen candles on the table. At the click of the mentor's fingers, the candles simultaneously burst into a scarlet flame and began to burn charmingly, and the magical light in the room went out. A mysterious atmosphere of celebration reigned. Sophie took two plates, a cup, and a glass out of the closet. After pouring wine for herself and tea for her assistant, she invited Lulu to the table.

Sitting at a small table, Lulu waited for Sophie to make a wish.

So unusual and funny, Lulu thought. — Celebrate a birthday on New Year's Eve."

A minute passed, another, and Sophie, having made her wish, blew out the candles. After that, she lit the lamp and cut the cake into several pieces. Having received her portion, Lulu began to eat it, feeling the unsurpassed taste of fruit, which the pastry chef obviously did not regret. And it so happened that she ate almost the whole cake, and Sophie didn't even have time to finish her piece. Then Lulu drained her cup of tea and smiled contentedly:

— Thanks for the treat!

— Do you always eat so fast and a lot? — Sophie was surprised by her quickness.

"I learned it at the Witch Academy, where they don't spoil food much," Lulu laughed. — And you didn't eat anything at all. Aren't you hungry? Or do the damned people not need food?

— No, not at all. We need it, but I still have to drink blood or blood substitutes to quench my thirst.

Lulu thought for a moment:

— If you want, I can share my blood so that you can quench your thirst in honor of the holiday.

— For a kiss? Sophie sighed.

"No, my blood is worth a lot more," Lulu looked at her seriously. — But I will give it away for free.

Sophie choked on her words:

— For free? Bonbon, am I really awake?

"No, my lady. You are not sleeping, and I would not refuse this offer if I were you," the toy bear sitting in his usual place immediately replied.

"Thank you, but I can't accept your gift.

"I see," Lulu said sadly. "Well, then I'll go to my room because it's already late."

Saying goodbye, she went to the door, but she managed to get to it. Sophie summoned two snakes, which caught up with the assistant and, wrapping around her body, knocked her to the floor.

"What are you doing?!" Lulu was scared.

"I completely forgot about the New Year's gift," Sophie ordered the snakes to drag Lulu to bed.

"Thank you, but I have enough cake!" she squeaked.

"At first I didn't understand your hint about blood, that it costs much more," Sophie climbed after the assistant on the bed and was over her. "I think you will be only too happy to receive such a gift from me."

It seems that Lulu realized what was going to be done to her, and immediately tried to escape. But it was all in vain, as Sophie held her tightly in her arms. From the slightly rough, but at the same time gentle touches of the mentor's hands, Lulu's strength melted before her eyes, and even magical snakes did their dirty work, squeezing her body from all sides. And when Lulu felt soft lips on her body, she stopped resisting at all.

"I love you," Sophie whispered in her ear and bit her earlobe.

"Me too," Lulu finally succumbed to the temptation.

"Then you don't mind the bite?"

"Yes"

That was the signal for Sophie. She pressed her lips to Lulu's neck and began to look for a suitable place to bite. She licked the delicate skin of her assistant at the right point and made a light bite. Very soon she was able to enjoy the delicious blood of her most beloved student in the world.

"Mom, Dad, I'm sorry," Lulu apologized mentally. "But it's so beautiful and pleasant!"

When Sophie had had enough blood, she decided to reward Lulu for such a delicious gift.

"Please, Mistress Sophie, don't tear my clothes!" Lulu squeezed out of herself with the last of her strength. "I took it from my friend."

"All right, I'll be as gentle with it as I am with you."

"Could you turn a little to the side, otherwise I can't see well from the bedside table," Bonbon's plaintive voice was heard?

"Bad bear!" Sophie covered him with Lulu's mantle.

"Hey! Who turned off the light?! I will be silent, just let me have a peek! Oh, why did I even arise! I would have sat quietly, wouldn't have touched anyone, and watched..."