Get up, Shahrzad al-Khayzuran. You kneel before no one. Least of all me.

You are not weak. You are not indecisive. You are strong. Fierce. Capable beyond measure.

She was a dangerous, dangerous girl. A plague. A Mountain of Adamant who tore the iron from ships, sinking them to their watery graves without a second thought. With a mere smile and a wrinkle of her nose.

Love is a force unto itself, sayyidi. For love, people consider the unthinkable...and often achieve the impossible. I would not sneer at its power.

I believe the stars align so souls can find one another. Whether they are meant to be souls in love or souls in life remains to be seen.

From the stars, to the stars.

When she wound her fingers in his hair to draw her body against his, he stilled for breath, and she knew, as he knew, that they were lost. Lost forever. In this kiss. This kiss that would change everything.

I know love is fragile. And loving someone like you is near impossible. Like holding something shattered through a raging sandstorm. If you want her to love you, shelter her from that storm…And make certain that storm isn’t you.

I understand how difficult it is, putting your heart in someone else’s hands. But, if you don’t, how will you ever truly know a person?