"Okay."

He should... unsnuggle and leave. Probably.

She kisses him on the cheek first, but she does assist with this unsnuggling endeavor! And then going out the door is easier, she'll walk him to the exit and everything.

Aaaaaaaaah she kissed him

His glee at any kind of bestowed affection is adorable, and also deeply concerning!

She goes upstairs, changes into a nightgown, then opens a window and pokes her head out. "Alexei," she says, very quietly.

And now he's inside!

...oh she looks pretty.

Yvette smiles at him, then looks away bashfully. She feels, uh, a bit more exposed than normal, but. It's fine. She closes the window, and then heads over to a nearby bookshelf.

"Do you want some books to practice reading?" she murmurs, index finger already on a book that looks promising. "I can't imagine it's very interesting to watch me sleep."

"You are the most interesting thing in the world," he says immediately.

"... Even when I'm sleeping?" she whispers, raising her eyebrows.

"...yes."

"Oh. Uh. Okay."

That's a bit creepy? Not enough to be worth turning down secret cuddles with the pretty sad vampire, but. Kind of creepy.

"Well, I'll get a couple if you change your mind, just in case," she says, retrieving a couple. Is this probably mostly for her benefit, so she can pretend he did something other than stare at her while she slept? ... Yes. Definitely.

He nods and peers at the books she picked and matches the symbols on the cover to the letters he memorised to figure out what the books are.

They’re all fiction! This says it’s a collection of fairy tales, that one’s called Pride and Prejudice, and this one is called The Keeper of the Bees.

Yvette lifts the covers and slides into bed, and then carefully scoots to the edge of her bed so he’ll have room to join her.

He moves to join her, then pauses. "Um. You'll get cold."

“… you can stay on top of the covers and drape an arm over me?” she offers, thoughtfully.

"Okay, that works."

She gives a little pleased hum.

“And you can pet my hair,” she adds, curling up on her side and getting properly comfortable.

......eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee he does that

She nestles against him and gives a little contented hum. The absurdly mismatched power dynamics and screwed up mind control complicate things, but they also simplify some other things. She has his heart and soul in her hands and he would probably die for her. He could pick her up and take her away and bite her and she’d be his in every sense of the word, and everyone would just be fine with that. So cuddling and hairpets are just kind of minuscule in comparison. She is not any more vulnerable when asleep than she is when awake. If anything, she’s safer than normal, because no one would possibly come steal her away in the night to drain of blood with a teleporting vampire, right there, wanting her alive more than anything he’s wanted in centuries.

Plus, it’s been a long day, so. Sleep comes very easy regardless.

When she wakes up, the books do show sign of having been read, not being where she left them, but he's still there, snuggling her.

Or... maybe not "still" there?

An alarm is what wakes her up. She gives a little yawn and turns it off on pure reflex, then stretches and looks at him with a sleepy sort of confusion, blinking.

".... Hi," she mumbles. "Oh." And then she smiles and reaches up to touch his cheek. "You look better with gold eyes. Thank you."

Eeeeee wait what. "Gold eyes?"

"Mmm? Oh. Diet does eye color. Gold for critters." Nestle nestle into the nice vampire does she have to get up yet she doesn't want to.

"Oh. Huh. Okay." Pause. "It tasted rancid but did work. For the thirst."

"Yay." Nuzzle nuzzle she's apparently snuggly in the morning. "Sorry 'bout the taste. But yay."

Snuggling is great.

"...I love you."