“Beauty was all I’d ever cared for. It was all that ever moved me.”

“Their bony branches grew barer with each tearing wind. Their tall, leaning forms looked like a gateway to a long-abandoned world. They lived. Their roots were much deeper than mine would ever be. One day my tree would fall and die, gnawed by serpents.”

“Don’t be sorry. You could hurt me a thousand different ways and I’d love it every time.”

“Beauty was all I’d ever cared for. It was all that ever moved me.”