“I began to see the world the way it is, instead the way I wanted it to be.”

“I wonder: instead of retreating and hiding, instead of pining for the way it was, what if I accept the way it is? This strikes me as both the most obvious thing in the world and the most profound.”

“She had this uncanny sense of seeing things the way they were instead of the way you'd want them to be, of knowing me better than I knew myself. She could sniff out the truth even if it hurt.”

“This is the strange way of the world, that people who simply want to love are instead forced to become warriors.”

“Tried living in the real world instead of a shell, but I was bored before I even began.”

“Most people don't think past themselves. I know that. But I want Vera to see other people. To respect other people. To realize that the whole world is not here for her. I want her to see her duty to the world, not the other way around.”