“My word, it's beautiful.” It was after all, a child's painting, it was messy, different shades of colours splashed from top to bottom, however, she was a firm believer of the beauty in simplicity. And there was no better beautiful simplicity than that of a child's work of art. The girl flushed a shade of pink and smiled, “Thank you.” The girl said with a small whisper. The elder woman beamed back, the girl was no more than six, dimples, button nose, a natural childlike curiosity within those brown eyes.

“Are you enjoying today?” The woman asked, kneeling to bring herself level with the child.

She nodded.

“What's your favourite exhibit?”

“I liked the Egyptians. I thought they were pretty, and they liked cats and I cats.”

“Did you see the mummy?” She shook her head, the girl leant in closer and whispered, “I was scared.”

“If you'd like, I can come with you to look at the mummy.” The girl smiled widely and nodded in agreement. The child's barrier of hesitance slowly came down, and her shyness was soon replaced with boldness. “Are you a vampire?”

“Sebile!”

The man marched to his daughter with panicked urgency. “You don't ask questions like that, it's very rude. Forgive us, Madame de Sauveterre.”

Jennifer smiled at the pair, Sebile shared her father's eyes. But Jennifer presumed the dimples and nose were a product of the mother. “Heer Dederick, I have lived for a long time. It takes much more than someone to inquire to if I am a vampire or not to offend me, but yes, Sebile, I am indeed a vampire.”

“You said you've lived a long time, did you know any mummies?”

Dederick chocked on the air around him. Luckily for him, Jennifer de Sauveteree was leisurely in her nature, something a lot of other vampires lacked. “Maybe not that old.” Jenn gave a gentle squeeze to the cheek of the girl who turned an even brighter red, but whose smile grew wider. “Run along, there's still plenty of the museum and gallery to see. Once I've finished talking to your father, we'll take a look at the mummy together.” This satisfied the young Sebile, who smiled a farewell smile, running away to rejoin her classmates. Painting still in hand.
“Madame de Sauveterre, please, forgive my daughter, she-”

“Heer Dederick,” Jenn stopped him with a raised hand, “It's perfectly fine. You're daughter is a charming little girl. To seek to bottle her curiosity is a crime.”

The Voltaire was a communal effort of knowledge and creativity; of facts and of expression. It had been built to mirror the centres of cultural architecture of classic antiquity whilst also compartmenting the modern day. Ornate chambers and marble walkways, matched with Scandinavian modernism of pristine white-gold and the latest in technology. The Voltaire was a culmination of the past and of the future. It was the largest public lending library in the Netherlands, with 1.45 million books, not counting the large collection of manuscripts, play scripts, newspapers, music recordings, videos, databases, maps, prints and drawings. It was initially funded privatively, then with the changing nature of the new Amsterdam, it was provided government support once they discovered that a vampire was amongst the leading benefactors, then came the schools and the colleges and the universities. Dederick Van Der Sar, a relatively powerful businessman, was one of several who had invested in the project, he also sat on the board of members. He had been a man who Jennifer had grown to know well and she knew all too well that Dederick Van Der Sar, after all of these years, was still utterly terrified of her. And though Jennifer would never admit it openly, the Voltaire was hers. It was the silently acknowledge fact amongst the board of members.

Jennifer studied Dederick carefully, his eyes tracked his daughter's moments closely. Worry was etched on his face. “Madame de Sauveterre, I think I should call it a day. Sebile has been very active today and must be growing tired.”
“Heer Dederick, may I ask you a question?”
“Of course.”

“Are you afraid of me?”

He had composed himself well in reaction to the question, he took his time to answer carefully. “Of course not, Madame de Sauveterre, why would you ask such a question?”
“Dederick, I am old, and in age you grow to become wise to the people and people around you. I have known you for several years. We are business acquaintances but I have always been aware of this wall between us, so I ask again, are you afraid of me? Please, be honest.”

Once more, he had composed himself well but Jennifer had caused a crack in his often steely defence, “Madame de Sauveterre, change is a process that takes many years and fear is a very strong word.”

Jennifer smiled, revealing a small flash of her teeth. “Dederick; all I desire is a cordial relationships with all my partners within the project. If you are at all wary of me, that is fine, I understand that some people have not yet come to terms with my kind, it's understandable. If you do feel this way, please, let me know and I will do whatever is possible to make you feel comfortable in my presence. We have known each other for several years now, you should not feel the need to step around on egg shells.”

“Madame de Sauveterre, I didn't mean to offend you.”

“And you haven't – in fact, I value your honesty.” The free hand of the vampire slowly climbed up along the arm of Dederick, fingers that ran across his fine suit with slow pace as to drink up the fine texture of the material that the richest of money could afford before coming to rest back-hand on his shoulder. “Heer Dederick,” Jennifer said, meeting her gaze with his, “I am not a threat, you have nothing to fear.” It was not statement, it was an instruction. Her hand then slipped from the shoulder of Dederick; who had an expression of someone trying to search for something he had just had moments ago. “Maybe you should take Sebile back to the Egyptian exhibit, I understand that she was too scared to go look at the mummy. Maybe her father could protect her better than I?” She suggested quickly with Dederick agreeing.

“Of course, Madame de Sauveterre. Thank you for engaging with my daughter, it was very kind of you.”

“It was my utmost pleasure, and please, call me Jennifer.”

[i]I should be the very last vampire you should fear, mister Van Der Sar[/i].