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Adeline was standing in front of one of the larger windows in the library, looking out upon the lake that was behind the estate. The land seemed to stretch for miles and not so much as a manmade structure could be seen, aside from the white fence that bordered the edge of the woods nearby. Drake had a weird way of keeping his slaves, or so Adeline thought. There were no chains, no bindings, and the fence that did surround the estate was more for decoration that keeping anyone in or out of the property; for anyone could simply slip through the white wooden boards.

As she stood there she could smell the faintest scent of smoke. It was a soft smell, more like wood than that harsh bitter smell of tabaco. "You can go if you wish," a deep voice rumbled softly behind Adeline causing her to jump and quickly turn around. She found Sir Drake standing there, staring not at her, but out the window she had just been staring out of moments ago. "I won't chase you, nobody will stop you," he said as he turned his eyes to her. She had never been this close to the Master and from here she could finally see his eyes. They were a deep blue, soft yet strong... and sad? There was something else there as well, something deep that she could not place it, but it something in the back of her mind told her to avoid it. "Why would you just let us leave?" she finally asked. "Why would I stop you? Here you are as close to free as you ever will be in our day and age. No chains, no guards, no fences. But if you go out there, back into that world, you will be caught. Thrown right back into the slave system that is loved so much by society." He turned and started walking away. "Once you leave, you are no longer my responsibility, and as such I will not rescue you if you get caught." Adeline stood there a moment, unsure how to respond to that.

~~~

Hours turned to day, days into weeks, and weeks into months as Adeline learned the ways of being a servant. It wasn't an unpleasant experience to say the least. Three square meals a day, time at night to be to herself and access to a library where she was currently learning to read under Sasha's guide. In fact, Sasha seemed to be taking on all of Adeline's teachings. During the day she would learn to be a proper servant, making tea, cooking the Master's meals, taking care of guests, and at night she would learn to read, write, and basic math. As to whether Drake liked his servants well educated or if she was getting special treatment, Adeline could not say, but she enjoyed it.

The twins on the other hand were often found ether outside working the gardens or doing other household chores. Oliver had shown himself to be quite educated and had a natural knack at cooking. He had taken it upon himself to cook the servant's meals after the head chef of the estate had left for the evening. Though Oliver was no professional cook, Adeline could not complain for it was much tastier than anything else she had eaten before. After making sure the staff was fed, he would often spend the rest of his nights in the library, curled up with a cup of hot tea and reading some fantasy book well into the night.

Andrew, on the other hand, was often found in the gym working out, not that Adeline could complain about the outcome. He was not as well educated as his brother, but he was by no means dumb and often found interesting solutions to problems around the estate. He also seemed to be a natural leader, keeping staff in line when Sasha was not around and making sure work got done, more out of fear of being yelled at by her than wanting to work.

~~~

As time went on, Adeline noticed that two days before every new moon Drake would disappear downstairs, where no servants other than Sasha were allowed to go. He would not return till another two days after seeming completely worn out and would rest another day after just to regain his strength. None of the staff seemed to know what he did down there for that week, except for Sasha and she would not speak of it, often changing the subject or just avoiding questions all together.

When Drake was not hidden away in his private lair, he would travel on business of some kind. Again, nobody knew exactly what he did, but most of the servants believed he was a trader of some kind, some even thought that he sold drugs. How else would he have the money for this kind of estate?

One day however, Sasha stopped Adeline in her work and asked her to get dressed for dinner. "Dinner?" asked Adeline with a hint of confusion. Dinner for her wasn't for another two hours, long after the master and any of his possible guests had been fed. "Yes, dinner. You will be dining with Master Darastrix tonight. He has requested you join him in his personal dining room," she said with a smile. "Now, come along, we need to find you something nice to wear."

It wasn't long till Sasha had the slightly confused and worried leopard in her room, fitted with a nice black dress, trimmed in silver. It was slim, showing off Adeline's curves very nicely. "There," said Sasha with another smile as she looked the leopard over. Adeline was nervous, she had never dinned with Drake before, in fact she had only once been in his personal dining room and that was when he had a guest over from china who had a thing for exotic animals. Keeping him in a good mood had been key to seal the deal with the china man. However, this time was different. She wouldn't be the servant, but the diner. "Relax," said Sasha as they walked down the hall to the dining room. "He won't bite, he just wants to talk." "About what?" asked Adeline. "Not my place to say. You'll find out when we get there."

Adeline was lead into a decent sized room, lined with candles that flickered happily upon their stands and large red drapes that filtered out the now setting sun, giving the room a slight red glow. Adeline was seated at the table and told to wait. It was a stained wood table, probably made out of oak, and large enough to fit four people but set for two. She waited patiently, listening to the soft crackle of burning wood in the fireplace behind her. It seemed like ages before Drake finally entered, dressed in a simple pair of black dress pants and a deep blue dress shirt. It wasn't as fancy as his usual clothing and Adeline assumed this was the closest to comfort wear her master ever had. "Oh, I wasn't expecting you to be here yet," he said with a hint of surprise as he seated himself across from Adeline. "Forgive me, if I had known I would have been here sooner." Sasha walked up and began pouring wine for the two of them. In fact, she was the only servant in the room, so aside from her they were alone. Drake looked around the room for a moment. "Sasha..." he said, almost displeased. This elected a simple 'hm?' from her as she continued setting up their meal. "I said a comfortable atmosphere, not romantic." "I find it comfortable," she replied with a slight smirk as she headed out the servants door to get their supper. Drake only sighed a little as he turned his attention back to Adeline. "She's a sneaky one... Anyway, shall we eat?" Adeline only nodded in reply, unable to think of anything to say.

They ate in quiet for the most part, bringing up little small talk here and there, but it wasn't till dessert came that Drake finally spoke up his true reason for bringing her here. "You see," he began "I need a replacement." He took a bite from what appeared to be cheesecake with a red berry sauce drizzled on top. Adeline remained quiet for a moment, to see if he would continue his thought, but seeing no answer in sight, finally spoke. "A replacement for what?" "For Sasha," he replied as he placed his fork down and put his full attention back onto Adeline. This made her feel uncomfortable. Something about his eyes put her off, made her feel uneasy. They were the eyes of a kind and just man, but there was a dark side that screamed evil. She wanted to stare into them and look away at the same time, unable to figure out which response was best. "You see," he continued, "her contract will be expiring soon and I need someone to take her place. She has chosen you for your ability to see what should not exist." Adeline's breath caught in her chest for a moment. 'How did he know?' Sasha added to the conversation, answering Adeline's unasked question. "He knows because I can read your mind." The leopard sat there and just blinked, not sure how to take this in. "I know this is a tad overwhelming, but let me explain. You and I have the ability to read the electrical signals from other's minds. This ability often goes without notice by those who have it, but like me, your brain has rewired itself to actually use this. For me, it rewired to my language center of the brain, allowing me to 'hear' other's thoughts. For you, however, it was linked to the vision center. This is why you see that 'light,' as you describe it, that reflects people's state of mind. You've simply taken those signals and turned them into something useable." This information was a bit much; yes Adeline had to admit they were right on the money with the lights, but to think there were others with the same ability was a bit much. "This is why Sir Darastrix chose you. You have a gift he is in need of when my contract ends."

She just sat there in silence for the longest time before speaking up again, this time trying to change subjects as to not confuse herself more. "What contract?" "It is a freedom contract," replied Drake. "The contract states that for X number of years you will be my personal servant. You will go where I go, stay by my side, and do what I say without question. You will also be trained to focus your ability and allow me to use it as I see fit. In return you will be given full access to the house, the ability to travel with me when I leave for business and assist me in my endeavors. When the contract is up you will be given a home of your own, funds of your own to last you a year till you can find a steady job to support yourself and freedom to do whatever you want with the rest of your life."

Job? Freedom? These were not things people like her could have, let alone be given. Those who were not human were nothing but slaves, pets, inferior creatures to be enslaved and owned. If you were caught on the street without proof of ownership you were taken to a pound like any other wild animal. "But.... How?" she finally asked. "It is actually quite simple. I will make you what you are not," replied Drake as he sipped what was left of his wine. "Human."

~~~

'HUMAN!? How the hell does he expect to do that!?' Adeline was lost in her own thoughts in her room, pacing back and forth at what she had just heard. 'I knew he was a bit off, but crazy? Come on, what does he expect to do, shave me bald and pretend that I'm one of them? Humans can be stupid, but even they aren't 'that' stupid.

She sighed heavily as she attempted to calm herself. With her thoughts still scrambling a bit, Adeline decided it was best to just end the night and walked into the bathroom. She started the shower in hopes of drowning out her own thoughts with the sound of the water hitting the tiled flooring. She undressed, allowing the water to warm up before stepping under the stream. 'And Sasha as well... She was in on it!' The warm water embraced her in comforting arms as she stood there, allowing it to trickle down her curves, though her fur, washing away the day.

She stood there for what felt like an eternity, not truly paying attention to time as she allowed her thoughts to simply swim around, attempting to let them sort themselves out. Suddenly, Adeline jumped as she heard her bedroom door click closed and the sound of claws clicking softly on her wooden floor. She poked her head out of the shower for only a moment to try to see who was there, but saw no one though the bathroom doorway. "Hello?" "It's just me," said Sasha as she placed clean clothing into the drawers. Adeline sighed again softly, letting out the breath she hadn't realized she had been holding. "Don't scare me like that!" Adeline hissed a bit as she turned off the shower and grabbed a towel. "Sorry, it wasn't my intention to scare you. I brought you some clothing for tomorrow. Master Drake wishes to start your training." "Training?" asked Adeline as she started drying herself off. "Yes, even if you have not accepted to go under contract, Drake wishes to train you in your ability." "Why?" "Because you may be of use on the grounds with it? I don't know, he did not explain it to me. He just said to get you ready for tomorrow." Adeline growled softly to herself as she sat down on the bed, wrapped in a now damp towel. She was no stranger to nudity, but after the recent events felt the need to cover herself. "So? Ask it already," said Sasha as she sat down on the bed next to Adeline. "Ask what?" "Anything, everything? I can see your struggling with this." "Oh yeah... mind reader. Why don't you just pluck it from my mind?" Sasha shook her head, "It doesn't work like that. You aren't focused enough on one question to for me to simply pick out something. Besides it's not like I choose to listen in on what you're thinking. It's more like if you were talking to yourself. I can hear it though I may not mean to listen in on your thoughts, it happens... Anyway, ask." Adeline sat there quietly for a moment. "Come on, I won't hide anything." "Ok... My first question is, how... How does he do it?" "Do what?" "Make you human?" "I don't have a clue. I've only seen it happen one time before, and that was when I took over the contract for the previous servant. I don't know how the process works, but I know it takes time to recharge and once it's recharged the contract ends." "And how long does that take?" "Depends on the servant, but usually eighty years," said Sasha with a slight grin. Adeline froze for a moment. "Eighty what!?" "Years," Sasha repeated. She had expected such a response for it had been hers when she entered the contract. Adeline could not believe what she was being told, but then again she had just found out moments ago that she wasn't the only one with the ability to touch other people's minds, how should this be any different? Besides, Adeline did not look a day over twenty, mind you the leopard wasn't the best at judging the wolf's age, but even she could tell Sasha wasn't by any means 'old.' "But... I'll be over a hundred by then! I'll most likely be dead by then! How can a freedom contract be any good if your dead of old age by then!?" Adeline continued rambling the impossibility of such a thing for a few more moments before turning to Sasha with one single question. "How?" "I was beginning to wonder when you'd ask that," Sasha replied. "When you enter the contract he gives you a medication of some kind that slows your biological clock. Don't ask me how it works because I could never wrap my head around the whole chemical process, but it does work as you can see. I've only aged physically about..." Sasha looked down at herself for a moment, "five years? It's hard to say."

Adeline shook her head a bit. "I know," started Sasha, "this is allot to take in at once, but he chose you because you are special and he believes you're worth it." They both sat there in silence for a moment before Sasha finally stood up. "Get some rest. I'll come get you in the morning." With that she turned and left the leopard alone in her room, sitting idly with her thoughts.