Chapter 12: Chapter 12

Camilla tapped her claws along her desk as she pretended to work. She was supposed to be searching for any strange discrepancies in several long lists of trade records. The sentinels always tossed her their tedious work while they went out and did the true investigating. They weren’t particularly inclined to let her leave the estate. Nor did her being a woman particularly help matters. It was as though she were a helpless young girl incapable of physical work and a monstrous beast all at the same time. Ironic, if infuriating. Even as far away from the capital as she was, she couldn’t escape the Empire’s captivity.

Despite how utterly riveting the work was, she was struggling to stay focused. Instead, her eyes followed her new maid as she hung up clothes in the wardrobe. Every few seconds, Pearl would bend down, showing off a bit of her legs as she reached for another piece of clothing from the basket. It was a quite modest display, all things considered. She’d need to get the girl a more ‘proper’ outfit when she got the chance. Camilla smiled at the image of Pearl staring up at her with her wide brown eyes as she made some futile attempt to pull down a skirt that was decidedly too short. Yes, she’d definitely need to arrange something, Camilla decided as she watched the girl bend down again.

In truth, Pearl had been leaving her incredibly frustrated the past couple of days. She was doing a fine job of cleaning in addition to her other maidly duties. She’d been catching on quickly. But Camilla wasn’t particularly interested in having a normal maid to clean up after her. The maid work was just a bonus, in her mind. She could do without it, frankly. The sex was what she was interested in. To put it bluntly, Camilla needed a slutty maid, not a regular one.

It wasn't the waiting that bothered her. The frustration came from the fact that none of Camilla’s attempts to flirt were seeming to have much of any effect on the girl. At first, she’d simply thought that perhaps the maid was a bit dense. Which… was true to an extent. Pearl didn’t seem to have the most common-sense or social awareness at times. Camilla had begun to wonder if the actual job she’d offered her had gone entirely over the other girl’s head. Yet Pearl was obviously attracted to her. And when Camilla was a bit blunter, the new maid had clearly caught on to her flirting. She was pretty sure Pearl knew what she wanted and had signed up for, particularly after the brief cuddling session they’d had where she told her a bit about her past.

She watched as Pearl picked up the basket, having finished putting up clothes. The cute maid had gotten more used to maid-work over the last two days, but Camilla couldn’t forget the nervous fidgeting that Pearl was prone to. The way she’d bite her lip, looking on with an uncertain and nervous gaze as she did her best not to mess up. The girl was adorable, enough to make her swoon, which was a problem on its own.

There was no doubting her attractiveness. Pearl’s hair was fairly short, being only around shoulder length, and quite cute. She had taken to pinning it up into various somewhat-clumsy styles on top of her head for the past two days. Camilla wasn’t sure how she’d managed the current thick braid with such a short length, but somehow she had. The Marked girl wondered if Pearl had hair extensions of some kind. The pinned-up hair combined with the large bows and headbands she liked to wear only enhanced her cuteness by a mile when combined with the maid attire and her endearing personality. It made Camilla sigh in admiration. She felt she could just sit and watch the girl for ages… assuming no other cards were on the table.

There was something special about the girl, and Camilla had a few suspicions on what that was. Either way, it only made her all the more enticing, a bit of mystery added to the adorable little bundle of energy. The real problem for things progressing between them seemed to be that the maid was hesitant. Camilla didn’t know her reasons, but she could understand regardless. Out of the numerous potential causes, a major one was certainly the fact that Camilla was Marked. She just hoped the girl would eventually find the bout of bravery she needed. So far she hadn't, and Camilla had no interest in pressuring her.

She’d been hoping things between them would just progress naturally, yet Camilla had become increasingly uncertain as several days went by. What they needed was to have a proper talk about their feelings and expectations together. Pearl had done her best so far to avoid the subject the one time Camilla had attempted to bring it up. Camilla couldn’t help but feel it didn’t bode well. She wanted this to work out and was increasingly worried things were going to fall apart instead.

On top of it all, Camilla was hesitant to get emotionally close to the girl. She wouldn’t allow herself to fall for her; she couldn’t, wouldn’t put herself through that again. It made things all the more difficult for her though.

They needed to have a frank heart to heart about what each of them wanted going forward. And if things weren’t meant to be, then they’d just have to go their separate ways. It'd be a tragedy, but Camilla was sure she’d find someone else eventually.

— — —

Two days went by quickly and busily, leaving me with little time to search for a cure to my growing problem. Luckily, my horns seemed to have stopped at small nubs, at least for now. In contrast, much to my frustration, my hair had continued to become longer, making me have to pin it up to avoid suspicion. It seemed as though every passing day had me looking even cuter in the mirror near my bed. 

As Camilla had promised, I’d spent a lot of the past two days with Rosetta, who if anything had become even stricter on turning me into what she considered a competent maid. At my firm insistence, I’d managed to stop her from dressing me up more, though I still often found her eyeing me as though she were only a heartbeat away from turning me into her personal doll. As admittedly appealing being put into cuter and cuter outfits was, I couldn’t risk her finding out about me being Marked. It was too dangerous. Instead, the girl put all her effort into making me the perfect maid. As her lessons came to an end the day prior, I graduated to being Camilla’s maid ‘full-time,’ though as far as Rosetta was concerned, I was at best ‘passable.’ She seemed intent on having our lessons continue when she had the time. My butt and legs still felt sore from all the switches she’d smacked me with over the past two days.

Keeping people from finding out who I was turning out to be harder than expected. It wasn’t just Camila that I needed to fool, but the rest of the house as well. I’d found that the sentinels visited her frequently, often leaving her continually more and more tedious work for her to do. I couldn’t help but get the impression that they were trying to keep her busy more than anything, and many of them didn’t hide their contempt at her being here in the first place. They caught on to the fact that I was her new maid rather quickly, a few of them going so far as to harass me whenever they happened to find me alone. The one time one had thought to get handsy, another had thankfully been there to stop them. I couldn’t help but feel increasingly uncomfortable when I was moving about the mansion by myself now. The men I’d grown up looking up to and admiring had quickly become a group to avoid and even potentially fear. 

In addition to the issue of the sentinels was Silas. I’d run into him twice over the past few days, the first time just barely in passing, with me ducking my head and quickly leaving out his sight. I was honestly shocked at how often he seemed to be at the mansion. On our second meeting, he took a moment to stop me and introduce himself. The whole encounter was utterly bizarre, being the nicest he’d ever treated me. Luckily he seemed to have been under the impression that Camilla had brought me along with her from the capital as her maid, something I was happy to play along with. If he hadn’t been engaged with Lena, I would have wondered if he was trying to flirt with me.

Funnily enough, the only people I didn’t seem to have to worry much over was Mr. and Mrs. Dyere. Lena’s parents seemed keen to completely ignore me now more than ever before. 

Perhaps my biggest problem was the building return of lust that I couldn’t seem to escape. As the days passed, my need for release only got worse, and I couldn’t help but worry what might happen if I gave in to it. 

I woke up groggily the morning of my fifth day of being Camilla’s maid as the sun peaked out from the small window. Seeing the bright rays of light fully shining into the room, I knew I’d woken late. And worse, it meant that Camilla was still asleep as well. One thing I’d quickly learned over the past couple of days was that Camilla had erratic sleeping habits. If I didn’t wake her up, she’d likely sleep half the day away. And it was my duty as her maid to make sure she didn't.

I sighed as I rolled out of bed. Taking a moment to glance at my reflection in the mirror. Same as yesterday, as far as I could tell. The curse had mercifully slowed. Pinning up my hair to help hide my tiny soft nubs-for-horns and slipping into a clean outfit with a thick frilly headband, I made my way into the neighboring room.

As expected, Camilla laid curled up within her bed, the sheets doing a poor job of hiding her naked flesh as dark uncovered skin peaked out.

My cheeks flushed pink as I made my way toward her, taking a deep breath and reaching out a hand to jostle her awake. Simply calling out her name did nothing, I’d found.

“Lady Cami—“

I gasped as the rug below my feet slipped to the side, bringing my foot with it. I stumbled forward, falling directly toward Camilla. Instead of crashing directly into her, I spread my arms to each side of the bed, catching it with my elbows as my face almost smashed into hers. My heart stopped as our lips met, and my eyes widened, enlarging further as her own cracked opened to meet mine. I scrambled upward, and for a moment all I could think about was the empty cool air across my lips where her own had just touched.

A hand gripped tightly around my wrist. Before I could fully get to my feet, Camilla grappled me, flinging me across the bed over her as she flipped around and on top of me. The air left my lungs as I was shoved back into the bed and both of my hands were forced tightly above me, her clawed fingers pressed into my neck.

Reptilian eyes stared down at me, two smoldering red embers. With eyes stretched wide, I stared back as my breath caught, not daring to look down, as I knew all I'd see was naked skin.

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"H-hello." The words barely squeezed out of my throat.

She blinked as she seemed to realize what was going on, her eyes flicking about my form below her. For once she was the one to look embarrassed as her hand left my throat, and the other relaxed from around my wrists.

Yet she didn’t move to get up.

Her eyes narrowed. “You kissed me.”

“I — it was an accident! I slipped and fell!”

She raised an eyebrow in disbelief, and my cheeks reddened. Even to me, it sounded like a weak excuse. But it was true! I’d always been a bit clumsy, but something as ridiculous as this had to be the curse’s doing. Not that I could tell her that.

A sly smile crossed her face and she hummed. “I believe I deserve some kind of compensation, don’t you think?”

I considered it for a moment, looking off to the side before muttering, “As long as it’s something reasonable.”

“I know the perfect thing,” she whispered as she leaned slowly forward. As she came closer, I couldn't help but notice the gentle smell of a flowery blend of spices from her smooth skin. Our lips met once more, and this time my eyes closed, having somewhat expected it. For the briefest moment, I fretted over not having a clue as to what I was doing. Then the lust I’d been bottling up deep within me flooded out, going straight to my head and throughout my body, a sudden warmth filling my veins. My gentle kiss became needy as I pressed my lips more firmly up against her’s. The corners of her lips pulled up into a small smile before she upped her pace, matching my frantic, needy, and probably sloppy desire. Her tongue touched against my mouth, and almost as though it were instinct, my lips parted, inviting her inside.

The kiss went on seemingly forever, yet felt somehow far too short. She pulled away from me, and I gasped out the air in my lungs, not having realized I’d been holding it, before taking several deep breaths. The spicy scent still lingered. When I opened my eyes, I found her staring down at me, the hungry grin on her face there once more, perhaps having never left.

I wanted more; I needed more. Pinned down beneath her, staring up into her beautiful eyes, I was ready to give myself to her, to give up the charade I’d been trying so desperately to hold on to. Who cared if she found out, or if my curse progressed a little more? I still had time, didn’t I? Perhaps I could indulge my lustful desires, just this once.

Her fingers caressed my cheek, and I pressed further against them.

“I hope you enjoyed that as much as I did,” she said.

I hummed my agreement, not sure if I was able to form words at the moment.

“Unfortunately, it’s already well into the morning it seems, and I’ve got far too much to do to play in bed all day.” My erotic dreams were crushed in a single blow. She snorted and held back a chuckle. “Don’t look so crestfallen, there’ll be plenty of time in the future for us to have fun.” She leaned forward, whispering into my ear, “Consider it revenge for making me so sexually frustrated the past few days.” I was certain my face would catch fire at any moment.

She gave me one last gentle kiss before sitting up and getting off the bed. As she stood, her fingers trailed down my arm leaving a path of blazing sparks before she moved her arms up above her in a stretch, slightly blocking the view of her horns. I eyed her naked form, dark skin covered in white scales like freckles. The small lizard-like tail that was normally well-hidden stretched up into the air. She was like a dark horned-lizard that had transformed into a beauty beyond compare.

“Bring me something to drink, would you?” she requested and glanced back over to me, still laid out across her bed and blood-red in the face. By some magic unknown to me, she continued to resist the temptation to come back and ravish me. Given my own inability to resist the temptations of the Mark, I hadn’t a clue how she managed. “Otherwise feel free to take the day off. You’ve been working hard for me, and I’m not sure I’ve got much for you to do today. I’m sure you’d like to see your father?”

With a sigh, I finally sat up, my body slowly simmering back down as I accepted nothing was going to happen. If I were honest, it was for the best. “Okay, umm, thank you,” I managed to say.

Straightening my maid’s dress and apron, I took one last glance at her naked form before making my way out and toward the kitchen. My mind became quickly lost in thought. It had become blatantly apparent that Camilla was interested in me being much more than just her maid, though perhaps that was an understatement at this point. Even before this morning, however, the way her hands and fingers lingered along with the hungry looks she gave me had made her intentions clear over the last few days. If she felt any of the same things I did from the curse, I could understand why. My growing lust had been getting worse, reaching a height I hadn’t expected today, and I was beginning to realize that perhaps I didn’t have the self-control I thought I did.

As I made my way down the halls, and my mind cleared, I feared what would happen if I gave in to it again. I had no doubts that the ‘core’ inside me becoming fully formed would be bad for me. Not only would it make me more of a monster physically, something that was already in the works, but I was certain it would have some kind of mental toll as well. If things went too far, there may be no turning back. While it was true I had no clue how long it would take before the core was fully formed, I still had to be careful not to give in to my urges, something that I was now realizing was easier said than done.

Besides simply finding a cure, the best solution I’d come up with so far was to starve it. So long as I didn’t give in and masturbate or have sex, it would at the very least be slowed. It was a solid plan in theory. The question was how long I could pull it off. I had to do my best to stay strong.

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