Graceless Heart

He looks familiar." Ravenna glanced at her Pluto, the resemblance to the knight uncanny. "Your face looks like it could guard the gates of hell.

Now you’re beginning to understand,” he said approvingly. Then he paused

Being human is exhausting," Ravenna admitted. "But if you refuse to feel anything at all, you won't experience the best parts of being alive. Not love, or joy, or wonder, or the solace of knowing you are not alone." She paused, searching his face. "Feeling deeply is not a weakness. It's what gives meaning to everything else.

Pluto," Ravenna said. "Do you know who he is?" Tereza nodded once, her delicate features scrunching. "Not the hero." "Depends on who you ask," Ravenna said with a wink. "I've always thought villains are misunderstood.

Over the years, I’ve met scores of people who have come and gone from the locanda, living quiet lives, trying to make ends meet, traveling with their families, or seeking adventures on their own. I think all of these people are their own heroes, doing their best and what they can to survive in a world that isn’t fair. When the world is sometimes frightening, surviving is its own kind of art form.

Being human is exhausting, but if you refuse to feeling anything at all, you won’t ever experience the best parts of being alive. Not love, or joy, or wonder, or the solace of knowing you are not alone. Feeling deeply is not a weakness. It’s what gives meaning to everything else. That’s what it’s like to be human. To embrace the best and worst parts of life, to endure and to keep going the only way that we can.

Memories have the power to heal, they have the power to remind us of who we once were, and how far we've come, and to let us relive the time spent with loved ones. I want a memory I can carry with me for the rest of my life.

stayed with you because I couldn’t bear to leave you alone in the dark. It destroyed me to leave you at all, knowing you would die, again and again, and it would be terrible and painful. I hated that you suffered. I would have stayed below with you all night just so you didn’t have to endure the horror of it by yourself.

Why aren't you afraid of me?" "I'm terrified of you," she whispered. If she were brave enough, she would elaborate, but she fell silent. She had already revealed far too much.

She wanted more of him, to touch and taste, and to explore, like all the roads she'd never traveled and the places she'd never been. Saturnino was a map unfurling beneath her hands.

Ravenna, before I met you, I didn't believe I had a heart.

Saturnino," she called softly. The door opened a crack. "Yes? What do you need?" "You," she said, breathless.

I made my choice," Ravenna whispered. "What choice?" "You," she said. "I chose you.

I can't save you." He tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. "I know, amore mio, I know." "What are we going to do?" she asked, panic edging her voice. He straightened her, enough so that he could look into her eyes. "I have existed for nearly one hundred years, but it wasn't until I met you that I finally learned to live. I know now, how to be human." He threaded his fingers through hers. "We're alive right now, Ravenna. Be here with me.

Dio, what had she done? She'd fallen in love with a statue. with stone. A statue who had lived as a human with a Nightflame for a heart, and a doomed soul. She let out a horse, bitter laugh. The irony was not lost on her. It was horrible, shocking, cruel revelation. "Saturnino." She dropped down onto the bed. "This is madness." "I know, I know.

You are ruinous, Saturnino. But I won't let you ruin me." Ravenna lifted her chin. "We don't have a bargain, we don't have trust. We don't have anything." "That's not true. We have this." Saturnino cupped the back of her head and dragged her to him. He covered her mouth with his own.

No one is in control of their own lives. Not even me. So be free. Do what you want, when you want it, and accept who you are. You'll be a lot happier, trust me.

I'll always find you, Ravenna." Ravenna found her voice with considerable effort. He was a terror, but she would be damned before she let him see how much he scared her. "Because I'm your captive." His not-quite-human eyes slid away from her. "Because I need you." In this case, it was the same thing.

And while there's nothing you can do about your face, I'd appreciate it if you never winked at me again." He stared at her, incredulous, but the corners of his mouth tiptoed upward in an almost smile. "What's wrong with my face?" "Nothing, and that's the problem." A beat of silence followed, buzzing with unexpected tension. "There's nothing wrong with your face, either," he said softly.

You're worth everything. All that I am and more than I deserve.

But there's a part of me that believes that other people feel the same. That they'd raise their children to have hope for a better world, teach them empathy and grace, to care for trees and cats, to embrace love and life.

I can almost see it, that dream I'm dreaming, But there's a voice inside my head saying, you'll never reach it".