Nita Pan > Nita's Quotes

“We must ensure that Grenadine doesn’t have any cards hidden up her sleeve.” He slapped Jeb on the back. “See what I did there? ‘Cards up her sleeve’?” He chuckled.”
― A.G. Howard, The Moth in the Mirror

“Pay attention. Driving is a privilege." "Whateves, Grandma M.”
― A.G. Howard, Unhinged

“I’m in control.
But it’s a lie, because now I’ve tasted him. His lips are salty-sweet with yesterday’s laughter … digging in the black sands beneath Wonderland’s sunshine, playing leapfrog atop mushroom caps, and resting in the shade of black satin wings.

I try to shake off the spell, but he angles his face and deepens the kiss. “Embrace me … embrace your destiny.” He breaks the barrier of my lips, touching his tongue to mine, a sensation too wickedly delicious to deny. As our tongues entwine, his lullaby purrs through my blood and bones, carrying me to the stars.

Behind closed eyes, I’m floating against a velvet sky, lungs filled with night air. On some level, I know I’m still in the middle of a fire-warmed chamber, yet my wings pantomime flight on a cool breeze. I’m dancing with Morpheus in the heavens, no longer imprisoned by gravity.
Fluttering our wings in unison, we twist and whirl a weightless waltz among stars that coil and uncoil in feathery sparks high above Wonderland’s warped and wonderful landscapes. Each time we spin, then return to each other’s arms, I laugh, because at last I’m me.

I’m a me I’ve longed to be in my innermost fantasies—spontaneous, impetuous, and seductive.”
― A.G. Howard, Splintered

“Where was the excitement in dependability? Where was the spontaneity in a predictable world? He could offer her an eternity of challenges and passion, of quiet, tender moments stolen in the depths of riotous flames and ravaging storms—tranquility amidst the chaos.
She belonged with him, wearing regal robes. He had so much to teach her about the nether realm, about the glories of manipulation and madness.”
― A.G. Howard, The Moth in the Mirror

“Alyssa, you’ve been given a chance at two lives and two loves. That is nothing short of a miracle. Cherish the gift for what it is. I shall see you soon, in Wonderland.”
― A.G. Howard, Unhinged

“He already has my nights. I won’t let him take my days, too.”
― A.G. Howard, Unhinged

“You're wrong, I want to say. I'm exactly like you. But I can't. The fact is, alcoholics have programs, steps to take so they can fit into society and function. Crazies like Alison--all they have are padded cells and blunted utensils. That's their normal.

Our normal.

”
― A.G. Howard, Splintered

“What is a lovely queen like you”—his nose wrinkles—“doing in a smelly place like this?”
― A.G. Howard, Unhinged

“He made a trade. Red's life for his loyalty. In order to be true you forever after, he had to betray you one last time”
― A.G. Howard, Unhinged

“Morpheus snatches both of my necklaces from my fingers, holding the delicate links taut enough that I can’t struggle without breaking them. “Were he to pay more attention to you instead of his precious career”—he drapes the charms over a palm and, using his gloved forefinger and thumb, positions the tiny key in place atop the heart’s keyhole—“perhaps then he would be attuned to your needs and desires.” Holding my gaze, he makes a show of how the key’s teeth aren’t the right shape for the heart’s opening. “As it stands, he’s just not the right fit.”
― A.G. Howard, Unhinged

“My tears gather around his hand, smudging his fingers with makeup.
'You didn't leave me,' I utter in disbelief. 'I thought you would leave me.'
He releases my face and looks out the opposite window while rubbing his hand on his jeans to wipe off my mascara. 'Nonsense. I stayed for the car.'
-Unhinged, pg 127”
― A. G. Howard

“We turned to find Morpheus standing there with enough rage in his black eyes to send the Devil packing for heaven.”
― A.G. Howard, Splintered

“There's a chilling grimness behind his gaze, and I let myself acknowledge what I've been denying: In his own way, Morpheus is my knight, too. He just has more muddled motivations than Jeb - not always unselfish and honorable, but vigilant. I have to give him that.
-Unhinged, pg 252”
― A. G. Howard

“Look...' I find my voice again. 'I'm sorry for scaring you by driving so crazy. I shouldn't have played on your fears like that.'
He opens his door. As it glides upward on its hinges, he sets his feet on the ground and looks over his shoulder.
'You wish to apologize?' He grins. 'Whyever for? Everyone has something that can be used against them. You set aside your innate compassionate nature and used MY weakness to get what you wanted from me. That was well played. You followed your instincts and let down your inhibitions without my even having to coach you ...'
-Unhinged, pg 129”
― A. G. Howard

“I shake my head, eyes clamped tightly. “We’re too high … it makes my stomach kick.”

He laughs and inhales a puff off the hookah then blows the smoke over me, saturating me in the comforting scent. “That’s how you know you’re alive, Alyssa. The kicks.”
― A.G. Howard, Splintered

“Jebediah was dragging Alyssa down, chaining her to the boredom and mundaneness of the human realm.
She must be set free.”
― A.G. Howard, The Moth in the Mirror

“I don't belong there."
"You do. Because of who you are. WHAT you are. One half brimming with dark curiosities and a fierce appetite for all things mad. But the other half whimsy and light - filled with courage and loyalty."
He bites his lower lip, a gesture so minute I might've imagined it.
"Nothing can break the chains you have on my heart. For you ARE Wonderland."
-Unhinged, pg 179”
― A. G. Howard

“I stare at the photo. It’s an image of a huge black-winged moth from one of Alison’s old albums. The shot is amazing, the way the wings are splayed on a flower between a slant of sun and shade, teetering between two worlds. Alison used to capture things most people wouldn’t notice—moments in time when opposites collide, then merge seamlessly together.”
― A.G. Howard, Splintered

“Tú comprendes la lógica que hay detrás de lo que no tiene lógica, Alyssa. Tu naturaleza te lleva a encontrar la tranquilidad en medio de la locura.”
― A.G. Howard, Splintered

“Frumious. Anything that inspires its own adjective is a force to be feared.”
― A G Howard, Splintered

“But now he’s taken up residence in my REM once more. He’s here every time Jeb is gone, keeping me company—even though I don’t ask him to.
Sharing that much of your subconscious with someone, you tend to learn things about him. Sometimes you even develop feelings for him, no matter how you try to fight it.”
― A.G Howard

“Smoke fills the room, gray and sylphlike, lovely in its deadly grace. It trails into the fire and forms what appear to be wings—black and magnificent. A man’s silhouette fills out the image, two arms reaching for me.
Morpheus, or a mirage?
My mind trips back to our dance across the starlit sky in Wonderland, how amazing it felt to be so free. What would it feel like to dance with him in the middle of a blazing inferno, surrounded by an endless power that breathes and grows at our will?”
― A.G. Howard, Unhinged

“Oh, to be sure. That kiss was nothing if not motivational.”
― A.G. Howard, Splintered

“I feel lost yet strangely at home, like a flea who has taken up residence on a zebra.”
― A G Howard, Splintered

“But first,” Morpheus said with a dismissive sweep of his hand, “we have to be sure what we’re up against when we raid the castle. You and Alyssa managed to take out quite a chunk of the opposition with your fancy footwork. We’re here to assess if the numbers match up with the ones Rabid reported. We must ensure that Grenadine doesn’t have any cards hidden up her sleeve.” He slapped Jeb on the back. “See what I did there? ‘Cards up her sleeve’?” He chuckled.”
― A.G. Howard, The Moth in the Mirror

“Morpheus took flight and left me alone on the ground.
'Help me!' I cried up at him. My heart pounded in my chest, making it hard to breathe.
'I can't always be there to carry you.' The jewels under his eyes were a sincere blue.
- Unhinged, pg 88”
― A. G. Howard

“I learned something about you today."
That wins his full attention. He draws me into the fathomless depths of his eyes. "What would that be?"
"Every time you try to do the right thing, you get screwed."
My observation is met with silence. He scoops up my other necklace, closing the key, heart, and ring within his fist.
I take a shallow breath, heartbeat stumbling as I try to read him.
"So it's a battle to make that choice, yeah?"
-Unhinged, pg 351-2”
― A. G. Howard

“País de las Maravillas y cotidiano. Dos conceptos que nunca deberían estar en la misma frase.”
― A.G. Howard, Splintered

“Still on my knees, I droop against Morpheus’s thighs—a solid support. The cool leather of his pants cushions my cheek. I close my eyes. Yes … I’ve been here before, held safely against him.
At first, I think I’m imagining it when he bends over to scoop me into his arms. But when the scent of licorice and warm skin surrounds me, I know it’s real.
“You left,” I accuse him, fighting to stay awake. “I was hurt … and you left me.”
“A mistake I vow on my life-magic to never make again.” Even though he’s cradling me close, his response sounds far away. But distance doesn’t matter; he gave his word. I’ll be holding him to it.”
― A.G. Howard, Splintered

“You can’t come in without an invitation.”

He leans a shoulder against Alison’s framed photo of a wheat field at harvest. “That so?” His boot heel nudges the door behind him, shutting out the storm and the scent of rain. “Last I checked, I wasn’t a vampire,” he says, his voice low.

My fists clench tighter, and I step backward onto the line of carpet that borders the edge of the living room. “You sure have a lot in common with one.”

“Because I suck?”

“More proof. You just read my mind.”
― A.G. Howard, Splintered