When Kate arrived back at the library, Apollyon was sitting in the conference room with Mochi.

“Oh, hello Polly.”

“Good evening, Kate. I hope you don’t mind that I intruded on your workspace.”

“Not at all!”

“Good. I assume you sought out Jolene?”

“I did. It was… interesting. I don’t mean to be rude and poke into your mind, but there is a thought you’re practically screaming out.”

“I did not want to voice it, it would have been rude.”

“But it is something I have been thinking about a lot. You said I was ready to be head librarian. Do you still believe that?”

Apollyon nodded. “I do. Your decision regarding the cat room, the way you dealt with RICA and the cult, and actual love for books make you the most well suited of us to be head librarian.”

“I am so young compared to all of you. You have so much more experience, even with this library.”

“Our experience has always been at your disposal. Do you understand why Azazel was offered the position of high inquisitor?”

“I was told that she brought a new perspective and that her knowledge of humans of this time made her well suited for the job. It apparently had nothing to do with her powers.”

Apollyon smiled. “Does it ‘click’ now, as humans say?”

“It does… sort of. I won’t be a leader, I don’t want to be one and I don’t think that is what you want from me either. Just someone to coordinate decisions, to be the tie breaker when things are unclear, and someone allowed to make a snap decision when needed without having to consult anyone, right?”

“You only carry the responsibilities you choose.”

Kate took a deep breath, shook her head and chuckled. “Let’s not disappoint our cult then. They believe me to be The Librarian.”

“And that is who you shall be.”

“Hm. I just want to put these words into the world to let it sink in. I am the head librarian.”

“I am proud of you. So very proud. And I look forward to the reactions of the others tomorrow.”

“I do too. I wonder if this was the moment Jolene mentioned earlier.”

“I ask you to elaborate.”

Kate shrugged. “She said there was a moment awaiting me here and that it would be important. I suppose this was it.”

“That makes sense.”

“Yea.”

Mochi meowed at Kate.

Kate chuckled and reached over to pet the large cat. “Yes, I can’t forget you. Thank you for your confidence in me.”

Apollyon raised an eyebrow. “She caught on to the fact that you can read her mind?”

“She seems to have known that before we met. She was always quite talkative with her mind, directing thoughts at me in a way.”

“Fascinating. I wonder if our other cats will learn that from her eventually.”

“I am quite sure they will and Mochi here is happy to teach them.”

“We definitely need that cat room quite soon then.”

“You have talked to Joro about that, right?”

Apollyon nodded. “She is drafting up plans within the week. She will also come in to prepare the new office for our desk within the next few days.”

“So, we are making good progress, awesome. Want to grab a little late dinner?”

“Of course.”

 

Dinner with Apollyon was always comforting. No matter what happened over the past years, cooking together was a piece of normality. It was also a good time for difficult questions.

Apollyon put her fork aside to reach for her drink. After taking a sip, she spoke. “You once told me that certain human tendencies annoy you.”

“They still do. Polly… do you like humans? Like, in general.”

“That is a hard question. To be truthful, I do not. I know that most of my problems with humans stem from their mortality, but some of them have shown that humans can overcome those troubles.”

“Like I did.”

“In a way. You have always felt more demon than human. Their tendency for impatience, thoughtlessness, and utter ignorance was never something you showed. But I don’t hate them. I pity humans. You seem to have wanted to talk about that for a while?”

Kate nodded. “The past months were filled with humans doing stuff. I don’t like it when humans do stuff. Sometimes, but rarely, I enjoy it when I do things with the humans. Like travelling with Evelyn or having a little fun with the HEMA people. But for every one of those things, there is a city councillor poking their nose where it doesn’t belong, or a cult pops up, or family members become annoying. But the opposite is also true. Even when I had to deal with Walter, you met Euphemia and had a good time. Weston showing up and getting himself removed caused us to consider adding and changing parts of the library and that led to the new office and cat room. And then today happened. Patrick seems like a well-intentioned guy, but he really fucked up. I don’t know what to think anymore. I seem to bounce back and forth between hating and tolerating humans.”

“I do not have your answer. I remember you once told me that humans mentally focus on menial negativity making them exhausting to be around for Nightmares. I suppose that exacerbates the impact of their bad actions. I would understand if you wanted to take more time in the Hell side of this place.”

“I just might. And you are right, it is likely just my mind reading that ruins most humans for me.” Kate sighed.

“Humans are annoying, it is not purely your abilities. Honestly, it makes me sad that you drift further away from humanity. There is much your human past has to offer you. But at the same time, I am glad that you feel at home with us, with me, in Hell.”

“It is where I belong. Not just in Hell, but with you.”

“I appreciate the romantic sentiment.”

Kate blushed gently. “You make me feel safe and that makes everything more bearable. I wanted to ask, was it okay that I called you General earlier? I hope I didn’t overstep any boundaries there.”

“It was fine. In the moment, playing along, I appreciated it. I hope calling you mistress was fine as well?”

“As long as it doesn’t become a regular thing.” Kate chuckled. “But yes, that was fine and fun.”

“Good. I just want to tell you again that I think you handled this well.”

“Thank you. From you, that means a lot. Let’s just hope we handle everything else well.”

“Everything else?”

“You know, my master’s thesis next semester, finding and freeing Lilith, turning Evelyn, all that stuff.”

“I am optimistic.”

"That optimism is deeply appreciated. Do you know any other demons with any human degrees in stuff? I remember Nirrti being quite excited that I would be the first to strive for an academic title.”

“I don’t think there are any. Azazel was turned before she could begin any higher human education and the Atlanteans we turned didn’t come from a society where such titles would be available. Their education system worked differently. You won’t be the first demon who underwent a more advanced education by humans, but you will be the first who earned an associated degree.”

“That would be so amazingly fitting, wouldn’t it? The head librarian with a human doctorate in literature. I should pursue the demonic equivalent as well. Is there even one?”

“Yes, there is. You could be a High Mistress of the Word.”

“Okay, you made that one up to just call me mistress again.”

Apollyon laughed. “I did not. Nirrti is a High Mistress of Death and the End, having earned two titles in different fields. Joro is a High Mistress of Creation.”

“Why did no one tell me that before? I knew they all were highly educated and capable, but I never know how highly. Outside of Nirrti. Leading an entire research team sort of implies things.”

“Your title does not matter much, only your actions do. Joro could be entirely self-taught and still be the incredible architect she is today.”

“It’s still awesome to have proven yourself like that. So, High Mistress is like a doctorate, right?”

“Yes. There is one degree above that, Supreme Mistress, but those are equivalent to earning a Noble Prize among humans. Nirrti declined that title.”

“Would it have been for causing immortality?”

“For the research she did into the exact mechanics of it, yes.”

“You got me motivated here. I definitely want to be a High Mistress of the Word one day. But first, the human version, which I can only get if the master’s thesis goes well.”

“As I said, I am optimistic.”