Sometimes,” he says, sliding his arm across my shoulders, “people just want to be happy, even if it’s not real.

Our ability to know about ourselves and the world is what makes us human

I’m not anyone,” he says. “I’m nobody. That’s what being factionless is.

People tend to overestimate my character," I say quietly. "They think that because I'm small, or a girl, or a Stiff, I can't possibly be cruel. But they're wrong.

Al walks in, and I don't even have to ask him to help me, he just walks over and strips bedding with me. i will have to scrub the frame later. Al carries the stack of sheets to the trash and together we walk toward the training room. "Ignore him," Al says. "He's an idiot, and if you don't get angry, he'll stop eventually.

I feel acutely aware of how young I am. In a way that is good. It's productive. It makes me realise that I should be growing as a writer and a person.

Some people believe that I will go nowhere, and maybe they're right, but maybe they're not.