A shy "assistant"

My mother led me to a large bedroom upstairs. Inside was Minh and a tan, slightly chubby girl I briefly noticed when I was being introduced earlier. She was a bit taller than Claire and probably around her age. She was wearing a blouse and a pair of denim shorts, and had black hair with pink strands. She seemed nervous, fidgeting with her fingers and staring at the floor. When she saw me though, she appeared shocked.

"Minh, you're done with her?" My mother asked.

"Yes, I didn't have to do much." Minh put a hand on the girl's shoulder, giving her a warm smile. "Melissa, here's Edward, the one you're going to serve."

"Huh?"

"I-I'm Melissa, master… P-pleased to meet you…" She muttered in a soft and shaky voice.

"What's the meaning of this, Mother?" I asked.

"Consider her as proof of my goodwill. You now have your own personal assistant, willing to do almost anything for you, even following you back to the city you live in and being worn."

"Why… Why would I need an assistant?"

"Multiple reasons, really. To have a skin you can wear for special situations, to have someone able to serve as liaison between you and other people who might want to contact you, to have a trustworthy confident, or to have someone to help you in sexual ways~" Minh explained, his expression turning more lustful as he said this last part.

Melissa and I both blushed, with her even emitting a small squeal of embarrassment.

"Melissa is a sweet girl. Shy and socially awkward, but caring and pure. And from what I know of you, I hope you'll treat her well. Aga and I believe that she is the perfect choice for you. She may be a bit chubby, but trust me, she's a delight from the inside~"

This remark made Melissa blush deeply again.

"We'll leave the two of you alone, take the time to get to know each other better. Feel free to wear her too if you want," my mother said before walking away.

Minh lingered here a bit longer, approaching me. He grabbed Elise's face and pulled it back over mine. I completely forgot that I didn't have her face on me anymore, I was too overwhelmed until now. I felt some relief washing through me as Elise's face became mine again, as if I was fully myself again...

"There, you're much better this way~" He said while caressing my cheek, making me blush slightly. "If you want to have some fun with this skin or Melissa's, don't hesitate to ask, I'm always up for it~ We could even ask Ashley to join us if you're... feeling adventurous~ I know she'd love to~" He whispered in my ear.

"H-huh?" My blush intensified as I stared at him.

I had to admit that the skin he was wearing was very attractive, making his flirt all the more effective...

"You're cute~" He added, giving me a quick kiss on the cheek. "See ya soon~"

He quickly left the room after that, leaving the two of us alone. I was still processing what happened, while Melissa just avoided my eyes, looking away.

"Are... Are you alright?" I asked after regaining my composure.

"I-I am, master..."

I sat next to her and gave her Elise's warmest smile to try to ease her nervousness. I spent almost three days as Elise, being her was so natural now, and I knew how beautiful she was when smiling.

"You don't have to call me master, just Edward or Ed is fine. I may be a skinwalker, but I promise you that I'm not going to hurt you or do anything against your will, alright?"

She slowly nodded.

"Tell me, did they... **** you to accept this in any way?"

She shook her head shyly. "N-no... I-I joined voluntarily..."

"Really? May I know why?" I asked, surprised.

After a short moment of silence, Melissa spoke quietly. "I-I had a very bad relationship with my parents... I was never good enough for them, no matter how hard I tried... At uni, I met Yumi... who kept bullying me, until Minh noticed... He helped me. He was very supportive. He gave me a place to stay and... dealt with my parents and Yumi..."

"Minh helped you? He seemed... fairly eccentric, to say the least."

She smiled slightly, relaxing a bit more. "He's... a big pervert, but he's been very kind to me."

"I see... I discovered this coven and its members less than an hour ago, I know next to nothing about what they are like or how they function."

I still wasn't sure I could trust this coven completely, but everything I've learnt today slowly made me believe that it was worth a shot to give them a chance... My mother was twisted and selfish, but still helped Kate, and probably other people too... Nikolai and Matthew seemed like fairly nice people despite being skinwalkers, and Ashley and Minh were peculiar, but didn't seem bad either. Only Aisha was worrying me a little. Her and Oliver, who I hadn't met yet. I was a bit anxious about meeting him, since he apparently was my mother's lover.

I heard the sound of the piano downstairs, indicating that Matthew most likely went back to playing it.

Melissa looked back at me and spoke, breaking me out of my thoughts. "Your main skin... is very pretty."

"A-ah, that's not my main skin... I only wore her to get closer to my mother. I'll restore her as soon as I'm done with this meeting."

I did my best to ignore the inner disappointment I felt just thinking about parting with Elise's skin. She deserved to be herself, and I had to return to Claire tomorrow anyway.

"Oh, I-I see. Was the skin underneath your... real skin?" She asked curiously.

"Yes."

"Minh told me that skinwalkers... lose their original skins after some time. That they become monstrous..."

I grit my teeth and looked down. I hated being reminded of the fact that I only had a short time left with my original life...

"I got turned recently." I said softly, gripping the hem of my skirt. "I try not to think about it too much, but losing my own identity terrifies me..."

Melissa smiled shyly. "I... believe that your appearance and name being different don't change who you are deep down... That's what I learnt here..."

"It's a big moral dilemma for me... But thanks, Melissa."

My stomach growled, reminding me that I forgot to eat earlier since I immediately rushed to the cafe to join my mother...

"W-would you like if I cooked something for you?" Melissa asked. "The kitchen here... is very well-equipped."

"Lead me there and we can cook something together." I replied with a smile.

Melissa did seem like a sweet girl, I didn't want to cause her any trouble. I wasn't sure yet how my mother or Minh would react if I were to outright refuse her services.