St. Patrick’s Cathedral, NYC, 11/7/15.

I lifted the long wax wick, dipped it into an old flame, and
carried the fire to a fresh candle, watched the little tongue grow
orange and bright.

What a miracle, I thought. One tiny flame could make so many
other flames; one tiny flame could set afire a whole world. Why, I
had, with this simple gesture, actually increased the sum total of
light in the universe, had I not?

…«But why, Lestat?»

Because she was beautiful, because she was dying, because I
wanted to see if it would work. Because nobody wanted her and she was
there, and I picked her up and held her in my arms. Because it was
something I could accomplish, like the little candle flame in the
church making another flame and still retaining its own light – my way
of creating, my only way, don’t you see? One moment there were two of
us, and then we were three.

…«Are we close to God when we create something out of
nothing? When we pretend we are the tiny flame and we make other
flames?»

… I dipped it into an old flame, and made a new one burst
into being, hot and yellow and finally steady, giving off the sharp
perfume of burnt wax. I was about to say the words «For Gretchen,»
when I realized that it was not for her at all that I had lighted the
candle.

For Claudia, my precious beautiful Claudia? No, not for her
either, much as I loved her …

I knew the candle was for me.” – Lestat de Lioncourt, Tale of the Body Thief

So I lit a candle for a fictional character on his birthday at a real cathedral mentioned as a location in canon #NO REGRETS

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