The Ordinary Girl and the Cruel Vampire Prince

Amber's Given Her Own Room

Amber smiled at Miss Carmen as she helped support her weight. The maid seemed very friendly and Amber loved her red hair and twinkling green eyes. She was only a tiny bit taller than Amber and her maids uniform consisting of a black dress with sleeves and frilly apron only emphasized her hourglass figure. She wore practical black flats and white stockings to complete the uniform. 

"Slow and steady miss" Carmen said cheerfully, keeping a tight grip on Amber's waist. 

"I'm so sorry" Amber apologized, feeling incredibly woozy as they made their way down the hallway. 

"Nonsense, you're light as a feather." 

Amber couldn't help but notice how dark the hallway seemed with dimmed lamps situated along the walls and evenly spaced to distribute the bleak light. They made it out and Amber's eyes widened as they entered what appeared to be the main area.

"Are we in a castle" she breathed and Carmen gave her a funny look. 

"Did you not know miss?"

Amber shook her head "please call me Amber it feels strange being called Miss."

"Ok" agreed Carmen eagerly "Call me Carmen."

They smiled at each other as Carmen began to direct her to a staircase. Amber gulped in trepidation. The stairs were stone and quite tall. Lamps were once again distributed evenly leading upwards and she wondered if they were present in the entire castle. A railing had been added and she sighed in relief. She was afraid of height but the railing provided comfort that she at least didn't have to worry about falling off the edge. 

"One step at a time" Carmen encouraged and Amber slowly lifted her leg and pushed herself up the first step. Her muscles ached, but she focussed on the fact that a room, and comfortable bed awaited her. 

She was panting heavily by the time they made it to the top and begged "Please can we stop for a minute." 

Carmen was more than agreeable and steered her away from the steps so that they could stop for a moment and catch their breath. 

"Are you ok" she asked Amber, concerned at how pale she looked and how heavily she was breathing. 

Amber nodded and tried to stand up a little more. 

",Let's keep going" 

They veered into a corridor, and right at the end, stopped in front of a large wooden door. Carmen reached into a pocket and produced a key, placing it into the lock and turning it. With a loud creak the door swung open and they made their way inside. 

Amber stared in disbelief at the room. For a guest room it was really quite luxurious. The bed was massive with a lovely dark purple pullover and pillows. Across from it was a lovely fireplace and an armchair sat near it. The window was a large oval shape and a view of the forest could be seen. It was breathtaking. She sat down on the bed shakily and almost moaned at how soft it was. 

"What's that door?" She asked, noticing another wooden door. Carmen gave a smile and opened it so that she could see. Amber couldn't believe her eyes. It was a modern bathroom. The vanity was marble and a cupboard above it with a mirror was filled with all sorts of soaps and toiletries. The toilet was very basic but the beautiful marble tub drew her eye. It was huge and situated in the back corner of the bathroom. Stainless steel taps were located above it. The floor was tiled grey providing a nice contrast with the white. There was no light except for two lamps and some natural light streaming through a small square window. 

"It's beautiful" she murmured "are you sure I'm in the right room?" She asked.

Carmen gave a giggle "of course." 

Amber grinned and eyed the tub longingly. What she wouldn't give to soak in the tub and wash her hair to get rid of the dirty and grease. Carmen followed her eyes and smiled. 

"Would you like a bath?"  She asked gently.

Amber nodded then sighed. "I would but I'm not strong enough to get in and out, let alone wash myself. It will have to wait." 

"No you won't" Carmen said firmly, placing her hands on her hips. "I will help you. I'm betting it will go a long way to making you feel better. Nothing feels better than crawling into bed nice and clean and feeling fresh."

"I couldn't possibly ask you to do that" Amber protested "you've already done so much." 

Carmen smirked. "Child I am more than capable." 

Amber frowned at this. Carmen looked around the same age as her, so why was she calling her a child? She was interrupted from her musing as Carmen went into the bathroom and began filling up the tub. She grabbed a gorgeous purple towel from the cupboard underneath the vanity and placed it on the towel rail. She then scrummaged through the other cupboard and placed some bottles on the vanity. Last but not least Carmen poured something into the bath itself and turned the tap off.

"Now then" she said to Amber "Let's take those clothes off." 

Amber blushed. She was nervous about undressing in front of another person but she also really wanted to feel clean. She began to take her shirt off, then slowly took her pants and panties off, her face as red as a tomato. Carmen ignored her discomfort however and gripped her under the arm and walked her to the tub. She gripped Amber's arms tightly as she swung one leg over and the the other. As she sat down Carmen released her grip allowing her to sit completely.

The hot water felt so soothing and smelt like roses. Amber moaned as her muscles relaxed and Carmen chuckled. Amber expected her to leave but instead she grabbed a bottle from the vanity and knelt behind her. "Let's wash your hair first" she said calmly. As she went to pour some of the herbs and oil over Amber's hair however, she gave a startled gasp. 

Amber's back had long dark gashes up and down it and instantly Carmen was able to surmise that she had been whipped numerous times from something. She felt sympathy for this child who clearly had gone through something traumatic and cruel. 

"What's wrong" Amber said worriedly, then it hit her. Carmen had seen the scars on her back, the ones that would never vanish. Permanent reminders of her father's hatred towards her. She had forgotten for a brief moment and now she felt ashamed that Carmen had seen them. 

"You poor child" breathed Carmen and Amber flinched. 

"It happened a long time ago" she said her voice cracking and Carmen gave a little murmur before asking Amber to dunk her head in the water.

Relieved that nothing more was said, Amber did as asked and surged back up, her hair dripping down her back. Carmen gingerly poured the oil into Amber's hair and began to massage it in. 

"It smells like strawberries"  she said in surprise, inhaling the heavenly scent. Carmen laughed heartily. 

"We have a specific person who makes these for our hair as well as soaps and other things. She creates all different scents but this one is a favourite of mine." 

Carmen handed Amber a bar of soap that was white with pink tinges throughout. She sniffed it and inhaled the fragrance. It smelt of strawberries as well. Eagerly Amber began to clean herself, slowly but carefully, getting all the dirt off her body until she smelt of the scented soap. 

"Now it's time to get this stuff out of your hair" said Carmen practically. Amber went to dunk her head again but Carmen held out a hand to stop her. "Wait"

She rummaged through the cupboard under the vanity and brandished a silver jug at Amber in triumph. 

"This will be easier to get it out and saves you getting it in your eyes."

Carmen filled the pitcher with warm water and got Amber to top her head back. Carefully she poured the water down Amber's hair over and over again until she was satisfied it was all clean and the oil had come out. 

By this time the water in the tub had gone cold and Amber began to shiver. Carmen offered her an arm and Amber took it as she stood up. The water had turned a murky brown colour from all the dirt and Amber grimaced at it in disgust, realising just how dirty she had been. Carmen gingerly wrapped the towel around her and fetched another one for Amber's hair. 

As Amber sat down on the bed relieved, Carmen began to dry her hair with a towel. Then Amber felt a comb gingerly making its way down her long hair, getting rid of the knots. Carmen worked slowly and gently not wanting to hurt Amber's scalp. Although it took quite awhile Carmen smiled in satisfaction once she was finished. She admired Amber's long brown hair which now gleamed from all the care she had taken with it. 

Amber was beyond grateful for all of the help she had received. She had gotten over her initial embarrassment.  She felt like a new person and her hair felt so soft and silky. She expressed her gratitude to Carmen who waved it away with a grin. Then Amber glanced down at her dirty clothes and scrunched her nose up. She really didn't want to put dirty clothes back on and Carmen read her mind. "I'll take these down to be washed and fetch you some new ones" she said kindly. 

"Would you like something to eat? It"s approaching dinnertime and I can bring something up from the kitchen?"

Amber nodded her head enthusiastically and Carmen smiled at her kindly. She grabbed Amber's clothes and waved bye at the doorway.

",I'll be back in a few minutes."

After Carmen had left Amber crawled beneath the covers of her bed. Yawning loudly, she placed her head on the pillow, intending to wait for Carmen to come back before sitting back up. The day had taken a toll on her though and within moments she had passed out and was sleeping soundly.