Suzanne considered the question.

“I mean, if you want? It’s not like I can stop you,” she answered, but found herself turning to Mike. “Can he?” she asked the servant.

“The other houses are as yet unoccupied and may be claimed,” Mike answered.

“Are there more of you in there?” Cecil asked.

“Yes. You will find a servant in each building.”

“You sure about that? You saw what happened to me. Mike knows things about me, somehow,” Suzanne said to Cecil, with a bitter undertone. He paused before answering.

“Yeah, I know. But what’s the alternative? We’re stuck here for who knows how long, and I don’t fancy sleeping on the bus, to be honest, if there’s a luxury apartment just sitting here,” Cecil said. He started walking down the steps. “You want to come along?” he said. She nodded and followed him. Mike went back inside the house, closing the front door without a word.

They walked up the stairs to the front door of the house to the left. Cecil opened the unlocked door and they entered the hallway.

“This looks exactly the same as yours,” he remarked. Suzanne saw that he was right: as far as she could tell, the decor,  furniture and the general layout of this building was completely identical to the other one. They found the living room and found what they knew to expect; another gleaming white servant sat on the sofa. It stood up in a fluid motion, turning its blank face to Cecil. As far as Suzanne could tell it might as well have been Mike, since it lacked any distinguishing features and was exactly the same size and proportion as “her” servant.

“Welcome to your home, sir,” the servant said. Even the voice was identical to Mike’s, Suzanne noticed. 

“Hi,” Cecil replied. He seemed to pause to think for a moment, then continued. “I’m going to name you Merlin. Please change your appearance to include blue robes and a wizard’s hat. Also, change your voice to one that is deeper and more masculine,” he said. Suzanne stared as the items of clothing seemed to grow out of the new servant’s skin. A flowing, dark blue robe that looked like silk covered its body, and a pointed hat with a wide brim sat on its head. Silvery moon-and-star symbols covered the costume.

“Is this acceptable, sir?” the servant said in a noticeably deeper voice.

“Not bad!” he said.

“Merlin?” Suzanne said, acidly. Cecil grinned.

“At least I’ll be able to tell him apart from Mike, right? And I was curious if he’d actually do it.”

“He does seem a little less threatening this way, I guess,” Suzanne said.

“Is there anything else I can do for you, sir?” Merlin asked Cecil.

“I’d like to have some dinner now. Can you make me some?”

“Certainly, sir. Do you have anything in particular in mind?”

“Hm, how about roast duck in sweet and sour sauce, some rice, and salad? Serving two people please. Oh, and fresh lemonade for drinks.”

“Of course, sir. Please follow me to the kitchen,” the servant said, wandering off.

“You really want to eat what that thing is making?” Suzanne said, quietly.

“We’ll have to find out if the food here is any good at some point,” Cecil said. She found he had a point. They set off toward the kitchen.