Karie stared at the red liquid that held such stark contrast to the silver of the spoon. The battle was still waging inside as to whether or not she would drink it.<i><span class="fixed-color" style="color:#00b3b3">Our body needs it, we've lost so much weight. He might touch us if you just.... drink it. </span></i>Her mind was self sabotaging her and she tasted the bitter flavor of self-betrayal. Her teeth bit the inside of her  lip, to the point she almost caused herself to bleed. The departure of his sire had not been enough to pull her from choosing in her temptation. Later, she would recall the order to bring her to a festival. Right now, her focus was on...<br/><br/>Galos started to speak and his voice pulled half of her attention towards his words. He gave her choice, or said he did which only made matters worse. Everything seemed to be a test with him! She never knew what option would be best while striving to maintain some semblance of who she was. Even those lines had started to grey. The coppery flavor finally reached her taste buds. Her teeth had cut through the soft flesh of her gums. They released her lip instantly as her eyes almost moved out of focus. She could not conclude one way or the other if she were going to be punished for her performance over lunch. He said one thing, but she had experienced the harsh retaliation of not reading into what he did not say.<br/><br/><span class="fixed-color" style="color:#00b3b3">"Thank you, Galos,"</span>her lips formed and her voice lifted to him. He had given her a reward and she knew better than to toss a reward away, especially when he finally wished to give her his blood. Karie wished it had come from his finger again. She ached to be touched by anyone other than servants or the doctors. He hadn't so much as bothered while sleeping either. It made her feel so lonely. The spoon seemed to make her feel worse.<br/><br/>Karie swallowed hard, reigning in the tears pooling into her eyes before her lips parted again and she shoved the spoon into her mouth. Her tongue lashed out to wipe the tool clean before setting it back down onto the table. His blood met the small cut in her mouth and the effect was instant. Her pupils dilated and her face flushed while her breathing turned deep, heated. Such a small amount and yet it still gave her so much. She made sure there was none left in her mouth before rising.<br/><br/><span class="fixed-color" style="color:#00b3b3">"Why the garden?"</span>she asked, walking towards him in a daze. Her motions had turned more graceful with more motion of hips and arms shifting slowly around herself. The stained napkin with her blood on it, long fallen and forgotten. Karie wouldn't know that it would later be retrieved and her blood extracted for future use. All she knew was she did not want to go out there. Those plants... she shivered in fear at the very thought of them, yet her steps carried her to his side. Karie wasn't certain if it was the fear of their grip or the way her body began demanding for a particular need.