Lucy as vampire. (Leah Smith)

In the virtual class we talked a lot about Lucy and her character sexually, morally, and physically. I had not really paid too much attention to Lucy, but reading through chapter 11, her role as pseudo-vampire herself is hard to miss. The fact that in order to save her the men who love her must transfuse blood from themselves to her in a way marks her as much a vampire as Dracula, albeit one that cannot be considered the same type of aggressor. She is far from the harpy-esque female monsters within Dracula's castle. Perhaps this places her more in the role of vessel rather than vampire. I am confused however then as to why Dracula keeps her alive rather than simply sucking her dry (he is not using her for information as he was Johnathan). Is he being cautious as a newcomer to England? Or does he have another purpose with her? It seems to me that there is something special about Lucy that makes her a worthier target than some random street-walker (as there have been accounts of drunks and other easy targets in the area). Dracula certainly goes through enough trouble, with the wolf breaking the glass etc, to get to Lucy. Come to think of it, the wolf trick was not particularly discrete. There may be something to the quality of her person, being one who already walks in sleep. Perhaps Dracula is looking for a mate?