The Heart Of A Vampire

chapter 11: the library

"That doesn't negate the fact that you cannot even perform a basic skill," he responded.

"You sound like my dad. And you look old enough to be him."

Vlad paused, his brow furrowing. "Really? Are you truly bringing up my age now? You're so mature."

"More mature than you'll ever be."

"I am not a fan of this incessant and immature squabbling. We are not children. Let us speak as the adults that we are," he responded coldly.

Evangeline rolled her eyes. "There isn't much to talk about now, is there?" She said bitterly

"Have you forgotten about the matter at hand? It seems like a pressing issue- one that should be discussed," Vlad said, vaguely gesturing to the cottage in front of them.

"Yes. The cottage is flooding with water. Certainly news to me. I had no idea."

Vlad sighed. "The snarkier you get, the less inclined I feel to help you."

"Help me? How so?" Evangeline asked, her curiosity clearly having been piqued, her brow furrowing slightly.

Vlad paused, but not for long- he quickly came up with a suggestion. "Perhaps my library contains a spell that can be used to create stone blocks for you," he murmured thoughtfully.

"Magic. Wow."

"You think I'm joking, don't you?"

"And you think I'm nine."

"So when you see me as 'old,' it's perfectly fine, however when I consider you to be young, there's suddenly a issue?"

Evangeline sighed. "I'll entertain the idea. Magic. You are a vampire, I suppose. It wouldn't be too far off for you to also be able to perform spells."

"Would you like to accompany me to the library?" Vlad asked "Perhaps you can pick out a few books to look at while I search for a spell. I have quite the assortment of literature. I'm sure that even one such as yourself can appreciate that."

"Someone such as myself? And I'm the immature one," she huffed. "But fine. I'll come. It couldn't hurt to take a look, I suppose."

Vlad smirked and held out his arm for her to take, as any polite gentleman would, and naturally she took it, as she had been trained to by her nanny- "When a man offers you his arm, you curtsy and take it!"- she could hear her voice now.

The pair began walking towards his castle and soon arrived. Vlad pushed the doors open, revealing the same beautiful main hall that Evangeline had seen earlier that week when she came to eat breakfast at the castle.

There was a slightly awkward silence as Vlad led her throughout the castle, down the many staircases and through the winding hallways, past hundreds of beautiful portraits lining the walls.

Soon enough, they found themselves standing at the doors to the library. Vlad performed some sort of movement with his hand, and suddenly the doors flew open, causing Evangeline's eyes to widen in alarm and confusion, though she quickly disguised it.

He placed one of his hands on her back and gently pushed her into the library, and suddenly it was almost as though she had completely forgotten what Vlad had done.

The library was beautiful, with hundreds of tall book cases that stretched as far as the eye could see. Rich wooden tables littered the room, covered in scrolls and books and notebooks. Above them was a chandelier, and torches lined the walls, along with maps and diagrams of all sorts of things- the human body, animals, and so much more. To her left was a full suit of armor, and throughout the library were several Greek sculptures, the walls painted with beautiful scenery that reminded her of renaissance-esque cathedral paintings. A few pedestals with ancient tomes on them could be seen as well.

"My god," Evangeline whispered breathlessly, bringing a hand to her mouth at the sight.

"I trust you mean that in a good way, yes?" Vlad murmured as he stepped in front of her, walking ahead and approaching one of aforementioned book shelves.

"I- I was not expecting this-" Evangeline sputtered. "How long has it taken you to gather all these things? Those sculptures- they look genuine, and there are hundreds- no- thousands of books, hundreds of thousands really, and did you paint the ceiling yourself? Did you draw those diagrams lining the walls? What's so important about the books on the pedestals?"

"One question at a time," Vlad said softly with a chuckle, raking his fingers through his long black hair.