Kate

“I must tell you, my dear fox,” says the Leszy, “that you deserve someone far better than me. And yet—” His fingers brush the tip of her ear, linger there. “And yet, and yet and yet, I am a selfish creature, and I do not want to let you go.”
― A.B. Poranek, Where the Dark Stands Still

“I am sorry,' he said. 'It is chivalry---no, that isn't true. Actually, it's my mother. If I swore before a lady, she would scold me, so now I must apologize instinctively. The apology is part of the curse. If I stub my toe, I say damnationsorry!”
― T. Kingfisher, Thornhedge

“Writing is the closest thing we have to real magic. Writing is creating something out of nothing, is opening doors to others lands. Writing gives you power to shape your own world when the real one hurts too much.”
― Leigh Bardugo, The Familiar

“And the two of you know Lore how?”
Bastian didn’t falter at all beneath Val’s shrewd eye. “We’ve been helping her in the Citadel,” he said, skirting close to the truth without revealing it. Then, with a wry smile, “Us outsiders have to stick together, my lady.”
“Don’t my lady me.” Val’s eyes swung from Bastian to Lore, calculating. “If Lore trusts you, so will I. But something easily given is easily taken away, and if you put so much as a toe out of line, I will cut it off.”
“We wouldn’t dream of it,” Bastian replied. “All appendages will stay exactly where you want them.”
― Hannah F. Whitten, The Foxglove King