„Woohoo! I love this!“

„I don’t know why you’re so ecstatic. You’re a vampire! You can fly on your own for heaven’s sake ...“

Outside of the cave Jeanne and Babylonia made their way back to the library. Jeanne offered to take Babylonia on her staff and the two flew above the drylands, making their way back to the desert.

„Why am I the one to fly anyway! I carried you on my back, barefoot, and got attacked by vampires for it!“ Jeanne complained.

„Ohhh, cut it out. All’s well that ends well, isn’t it? Though I made a mental note, that despite your largely pleasant demeanor you can be rather short-tempered.“

„And I made a note, that you are not just a klutz but outright malicious at times. Heartless! I carried you all the way because I thought you were unconscious! Not just taking a nap ... You wouldn’t have done the same for me, I bet ...“

„That’s ... not true. But I guess I left a poor first impression ...“

„Ya think!?“

„Sorry, I ... I’d like to pay you back somehow, but ... there’s only so much time left until I have to return to my people for a while ...“ Babylonia, who had her gaze fixed on Jeanne’s neck the entire time, looked at the descending moon.

„But for what it’s worth, that was the most fun I had in a while,“ she added, intending this to be her good-bye.

Jeanne however had other plans.

„Tell you what. If this world ever returns to normal. If there’s ever a place besides the library, where we can be together like this, different species just enjoying themselves together, we will meet there.“

Babylonia looked back up in surprise. In her hundreds of years, this is the first time this happened. No, that wasn’t true. It felt like the first time someone meant it.

„Will there ever be a place like that?“ she asked.

„I’d like to believe so. I met this guy not too long ago. He’s a bit lost sometimes, but he’s got his heart in the right place. And it’s infectious. I think he can be the one to make it happen. I think he can put an end to this war, or whatever you want to call it. I’m sure you’ve seen worse.“

„Well, I’m a vampire. Sometimes I think we are the scum of the world. They treat us that way at least.“

„If that were true, would you be sitting next to me right now?“ Jeanne had her staff slow down, slowly coming to a halt. They had just about reached the edge of the desert. She adjusted her position, so her legs were dangling off one side and now she faced Babylonia. Her pale face seemed to emit a faint glow in the moonlight.

„You’re ... different,“ Babylonia tried to disagree. „You’re a witch, you have this incredible life-span in common with us vampires.“

„If only you knew how many humans have told me how close I am to them,“ she retorted with a smug expression followed by realization. „Maybe I am the bridge between the people ...“

Babylonia chuckled.

„Come visit me in the city some-time,“ Jeanne then suddenly proposed. „It may take a couple decades, but we know we both got time, and I truly want you to see what people are capable of if given the right circumstances and enough time. Most of my life I’ve just been wandering around, offering my services to people, mostly aristocrats, because I didn’t know better, and now I am reveling in my freedom and beginning to truly understand what I want from my life. I think you and I are similar in that regard. So I am hoping you’ll give it a shot with me.“

After finishing her rant Jeanne realized she had heated up considerably. Despite the cool night air, she felt warm. And maybe sweaty. But she tried to ignore it for the time.

Worse yet, Babylonia started laughing.

„Oh, Jeanne, you are such a blabbermouth. And you have the audacity to call someone else’s ‚heart‘ infectious. You’ll work on that self-reflection, alright?“ She held her stomach with both hands and somehow managed not to fall off the broom. „Really, I haven’t had so much fun in a while.“

Jeanne’s entire face was red. Not because she exhausted herself, but because she was embarrassed.

„Well then, what is it you want from your life?“ Babylonia asked her, after having calmed down enough.

„...“ Jeanne held her breath.

„Don’t laugh.“

„What is it?“

„I want to open a cafe.“

„A witch and a cook. We went over this already. Suits you.“

„What about you?“

„Well ... I really like books ... but working in a cafe should work out for starters.“

„How about a book cafe?“

„The dream.“