“Vin shook her head. "No, not me. I'm not a good person or a bad person. I'm just here to kill things." OreSeur watched her for a moment, then settled back down. "Regardless," he said, "you are not my worst master. That is, perhaps, a compliment among our people.”

“Nothing before you counts," he said. "And I can't even imagine an after." She shook her head. "Don't.""What?""Don't talk about after.""I just meant that... I want to be the last person who ever kisses you, too.... That sounds bad, like a death threat or something. What I'm trying to say is, you're it. This is it for me.”

“You know,” OreSeur muttered quietly, obviously counting on her tin to let Vin hear him, “it seems that these meetings would be more productive if someone forgot to invite those two.”Vin smiled. “They’re not that bad,” she whispered.OreSeur raised an eyebrow.“Okay,” Vin said. “They do distract us a little bit.”“I could always eat on of them, if you wish,” OreSeur said. “That might speed things up.”Vin paused.OreSeur, however had a strange little smile on his lips. “Kandra humor, Mistress. I apologize. We can be a bit grim.”Vin smiled. “They probably wouldn’t taste very good anyway. Ham’s far too stringy, and you don’t want to know the kinds of things that Breeze spends his time eating….”“I’m not sure,” OreSeur said. “One is, after all, named ‘Ham.’ As for the other…” He nodded to the cup of wine in Breeze’s hand. “He does seem quite fond of marinating himself.”

“Ever had a beer before?" Gabriel grinned. She shook her head."Then I'm glad I'm your first.""Have you ever held a boy's hand before?" She shook her head, and he laughed softly. "Then I'm glad I'm your first.""Have you ever been kissed by a boy?" She blushed deeply and shook her head."Then I'm glad I'm your first.""Have you ever fallen asleep in the arms of a boy before, Beatrice?"She shook her head."Then I'm glad I'm your first.""I haven't really danced like this before," she said wistfully."Then I'm glad I'm your first.""Has a man ever asked you to marry him before?"She shook her head, covering her mouth with her hand."Then I'm glad I'm your first.”

“He pushed up a little, raising his head to look into her eyes. After a moment, weariness settled into his features. "It's too late regardless. I'm yours now."I'm yours. The beautiful opposite of what Peter White had said to her. You're mine now, he'd crowed, as if she were a purchased treat. The difference, it seemed, between a boy and a man. Just as Jude had promised.”

“You're a bad person, Ellie," he said without a trace of irony."I'm not bad. The world is bad and I'm just trying to survive in it.”