( It's so romantic that Louis can hardly believe it's happening to him and not someone more deserving — and of course Lestat would admonish him for even thinking such a thing, and oh, how Louis loves him for that now. Not even the too-bright fluorescent lights or the distant, droning music on the store speakers can spoil the moment. )

Good. I hope you will. I truly do. You know the way I am, and all the things that drove you mad about me before, and none of that has really changed... but I want you here with me, to pull me out of the shadows when I linger too long in the darkness. And when the hour comes for you to wander in that darkness for a while, I want to walk beside you, and help you find your way along those paths I know too well.

( Louis tugs their joined hands gently downward, just far enough that he can lean in and kiss Lestat properly, soft and sweet and lingering, the hand in his hair holding him close. He draws back slowly, letting the moment stretch between them, committing every last atom of it to his perfect eternal memory. )

It's wonderful just to want things again.