I Was In The Black Silence Of

I Never Lie," I Said Offhand. "at Least Not To Those I Don't Love.

The Fans, The Vampire Groupies, Love The Idea Of This Androgynous, Preternatural Figure Stalking The Night, And Craving Aesthetic Pleasure Just As He Craves Blood, Wearing Only The Best Velvet Clothes, And Savoring Red Roses.

Because I Show You My Pain, I Do Not Of Necessity Love You.

…being An Atheist Required Discipline Very Like That Of Being Catholic. One Could Never Yield To The Idea Of A Supernatural Authority, No Matter How Often One Might Be Tempted. To Think That A Personal God Had Made The World Was To Yield To A Demonic And Superstitious And Destructive Belief.

A Summer Rain Had Left The Night Clean And Sparkling With Drops Of Water. I Leaned Against The End Pillar Of The Gallery, My Head Touching The Soft Tendrils Of A Jasmine Which Grew There In A Constant Battle With A Wisteria, And I Thought Of What Lay Before Me Throughout The World And Throughout Time, And Resolved To Go About It Delicately And Reverently, Learning That From Each Thing Which Would Take Me Best To Another.