Emily

“Two is for discipline, heedless of trial;
Three for the gleam of a jewel or a smile;
Four for fidelity, facing ahead;
Five for tradition and debts to the dead;
Six for the truth over solace in lies;
Seven for beauty that blossoms and dies;
Eight for salvation no matter the cost;
Nine for the Tomb, and for all that was lost.”
― Tamsyn Muir, Gideon the Ninth

“She asks me to kill the spider.
Instead, I get the most
peaceful weapons I can find.

I take a cup and a napkin.
I catch the spider, put it outside
and allow it to walk away.

If I am ever caught in the wrong place
at the wrong time, just being alive
and not bothering anyone,

I hope I am greeted
with the same kind
of mercy.”
― Rudy Francisco, Helium

“We are as gods to beasts of the field. We order the time of their birth and the time of their death. Between times, we have a duty.”
― Terry Pratchett, The Wee Free Men

“Poets speak of hope in ladies smiles, but give me a smirk any day, I say.”
― Lois McMaster Bujold, Paladin of Souls