Lorelei sat at her desk, an ancient book in her hands. She flipped through the pages idly, her brow creased with lines of concentration. She paused when, as she flipped to a new page, a diagram was exposed. It seemed to be of the moon in various stages, but the words that surrounded it were indecipherable. She let out a breath of annoyance as she set the book down, absentmindedly pulling her long braid in front of her so she could play with it as she thought.

She didn't flinch when Death appeared in the room behind her. She didn't spare as much as a backward glance. Instead, she spoke over her shoulder. "You know I have doors, right? I know timeless entities such as yourself would hardly find them important, but when you drop by uninvited to ask for a favor it might be best to use them. At least, I’m assuming that’s why you’re here." It wasn't until Death floated before her that she snapped the book shut and stared up at the shadow. "Unless you're here for an entirely different reason. Let it be good news! I'm surrounded by anything but." The fae woman paused to think for a moment. "Or horrible news”, she smiled. “It would be unfortunate, but my untimely demise would end the streak."

Death's shadow pulsed as a skull formed in the middle of it. "I'm not here for jokes, Lorelei. Have you heard about what happened? We need to act. Now."

Lorelei stared at Death for a moment before she spoke again. "Okay... Okay... Act how? We can't straight up murder the girl. Exactly what kind of message would that send? I don’t know what happened. All I’ve heard has been whispers on the streets. I’ve heard everything, from people saying it was a planned attack to people saying it was a setup to make her kind even more hated. The only thing that stays consistent is the trace amount of magic in the area. Rumors don’t paint a solid story. We don't know what happened and none of the witnesses were left alive. It seems to me the verdict isn't so easily drawn."

Death’s form rippled in front of Lorelei. "This isn't going to end here. Nothing like this has ever happened, Lorelei. I came here because… I messed up. I thought that it could be sorted out without my interference. I did nothing while so many lives were lost. The balance that I hold dear… It hasn't existed for so long. We need to… I need to bring it back." Lorelei opened her mouth to respond, but Death continued. "We have years of hatred and bloodshed to work through. This won't be easy. I'm sorry to drag you into this, but you're the only person I know that could possibly make this work."

“You’re acting extremely odd. Even I can tell.” Lorelei stood up, clasping her hands in front of her. “I know we aren’t anywhere near being close. Life knows, we’ve only interacted when we’ve absolutely had to. I can tell, though. The desperation in your voice aside, you’ve only been in that form when you’re…”

Death quickly transformed back into her human form. “I’m not panicking.” Death snapped at Lorelei, then winced. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry. You’re- You’re right. I’ve just come back from Tanda’s place. Her shop in the city.”

Lorelei’s face lit up at the mention of the seer’s name. “Oh, how is she? I heard she was working on a secret project, but I never found the time to go check up on her.” Lorelei’s smile faded as Death just stared at her. “What happened? Is she okay?”

Death opened and closed her mouth a few times before she began talking rapidly. “I only went to her because I thought she could shed some light onto the situation at hand. You must understand, I didn’t think I would find her in such a state. When I walked in the door, she was just all over the place. I don’t believe she knew who she was half the time. She was muttering nonsense. I only… I only placed my hands upon her shoulders.” Death put a hand up to her mouth as she continued. “I only intended to help. But I... She spoke out a prophecy. A prophecy that spelled out doom if we can’t reach peace. She also told me to find… We need to find a banshee child. But after that… She… Lorelei, you must understand. I was only trying to help!” Death’s eyes teared up a moment, but she refused to let any of them fall.

Lorelei wiped at her eyes quickly and inhaled deeply before she spoke. “We’re fortunate she was able to give us the information we needed before she… Before she...” Lorelei stuttered to a stop. She coughed slightly as she wiped her eyes again, then began with a new vigor. “This young banshee she mentioned. Do you suppose she meant a specific child, or do you think anyone off the streets will do?”

Death looked down at her feet. “She said this child could see farther than her. It has to be a specific one. The child has to have some connection to the incident, but for the Death of me I can’t figure out who she could be talking about.” Death linked her hands together behind her back. “I’ve already sent a few of my reapers out to try to figure out who she is. The biggest of our worries right now is stopping her prophecy.”

Wordlessly Lorelei picked up her abandoned book and placed it back on her bookshelf. In turn, she removed a binder from one of the lower shelves and opened it in front of Death. "I've spent my entire life hoping for a better future. For years, I've categorized each and every incident between the different factions. The biggest thing that drives them apart is ignorance." A thoughtful look briefly flashed across Lorelei's face before she continued. "If we destroy that ignorance, we destroy the root of the problem. If we bring them together, physically, they should learn. With you there, anything that could go wrong... You could handle it."

"You want me to bring together people from every single faction for some sort of meet and greet? Keep in mind how volatile so many of them are, Lorelei. No, that would never work." When Death noticed Lorelei's glare, she continued. "But you're right. They need to learn. If we create a center of learning for the most problematic members of each faction... Either way, we'll have the issue solved in a matter of years."

Lorelei pointed to the map that hung behind her head. "I've been studying the layout of the various dimensions we have in existence today, trying to find a..." She hesitated for a moment. "Middle ground that we all can stand on. I think I've found something that may work. If we use that for your "Center of Learning" I think I can make it so that all creatures, no matter how small, can access it. All we need are people who want to, or, in that vampire's case, need to." Lorelei looked Death up and down briefly. "I will create the space since you obviously have no talent in creation." A small smile crossed Lorelei's lips when she added, as though it were an afterthought, "No offense," Before she continued. "And you can go and retrieve our guinea pigs. You know where to find me if you think they need a little extra persuasion."

Without another word, Death disappeared into the darkness.

Lorelei rolled her eyes as she muttered, "Good luck to you, too."