Apprentice To The Villain Quotes

Sometimes family isn’t a thing we are born into but a choice we make. Sometimes”—Evie smiled—“the people who love you most in your life are the ones who choose you.

She was afraid, but she knew now: fear usually meant you were standing on the edge of something new, something self-altering, something potentially good. Fear was not something she would shy away from ever again.

It had occurred to her many times over that "impossible" was merely a word people used to describe limitations they wished for you to adhere to, so you wouldn't upset the balance.

There was no emotion in his voice when he said, “Does your mind live in the gutter?” She shook her head, tapping a finger against her lips. “No, but it rents there on occasion.

She breathed, “It’s so beautiful.” Her boss had been silent beside her, but now he replied hoarsely, still gripping her hand, “Yes, it is.” And when she turned, he was looking at her.

The Villain didn’t miss light. He missed color.

I do not lack equilibrium,” she argued. “The ground merely lacks the courtesy of letting me know when it is coming closer.

He would follow her off a cliff without question. And Evie knew she was in love with him. Right then, right there.

You laughed.” “I know,” Trystan said, shaking his head, hoping to knock the building ache out of it. “You’re fucked

Because we are always expected to plaster a grin on our faces even when we don’t wish to. I used to do it so often, I stopped being able to tell when I was smiling for me or for someone else. So now, I don’t smile unless I’m one hundred percent sure it’s something I want to do, not something someone else wants me to do.

I think I am very sad. But I won’t be forever.

She’s in big trouble,” Evie said grumpily. “Go easy on her—she’s young,” The Villain said diplomatically. Evie turned toward him, planting her hands on her hips, a look of mock outrage on her face. “Aren’t you supposed to be evil?” “Encouraging children to neglect their education fits under that bracket, does it not?

I can say with the utmost assurance”—his eyes raked over her, and she stopped breathing—“when given the privilege, I have no issue performing.

Losing someone didn’t mean the end; it merely meant the beginning of the life you’d lead without them, the beginning of letting in the people you’d gain in their stead.

demonize what they cannot understand. It isn’t our job to educate them, just to live the way we’re meant to with the knowledge that being called a monster does not make you one.

This woman was unraveling him like a bloody ball of yarn.

Emotions didn’t always know right or nuance; they just knew to be hurt when someone caused pain.

But she had one powerful and far more ridiculous tool in her arsenal. Spite.

She took each moment of her life with a natural good humor, no matter how painful, no matter how tragic. She trekked on with nothing but her will. No magic to protect her. Just faith and optimism and belief in her survival.

When one spent their entire life feeling weak, it was quite thrilling to be viewed as a threat

He wished to find Sage. He wished to tell her he was sorry. He wished to be better about revealing how he felt, bit by bit. And perhaps, most importantly—he wished to have a godsforsaken tea party with her little sister, Lyssa.

Move on, her mind begged her. Nope, her heart said with a wild laugh.

It is fiction for a reason, you menace. By the gods, what if you carried out every impossible act you read about?” It was a rhetorical question, but she couldn’t resist the urge to slip into the normal ease of their cadence, like no time had passed. “Oh, I suppose that I would need to become very, um—flexible.

There is nothing written in any text, gods-created or not, that says we cannot be more than one thing. You’ve been told for a very long time that you are made for destruction, but there is nothing that says you cannot be more. You can be capable of bad and do good. You can do good things and still be bad. Nothing is set in stone, and if it helps, I’ll stand by you no matter who you choose to be.

we are always expected to plaster a grin on our faces even when we don’t wish to. I used to do it so often, I stopped being able to tell when I was smiling for me or for someone else. So now, I don’t smile unless I’m one hundred percent sure it’s something I want to do, not something someone else wants me to do.

There had to be a rule somewhere that evil overlords needed to be at least fifty, maybe sixty if they were pushing it.

An excellent time to make life-altering decisions about new hires.

Why do men take pain as well as ice takes heat?

impossible” was merely a word people used to describe limitations they wished for you to adhere to, so you wouldn’t upset the balance.

My gods, the woman was like the sun. He needed tinted glasses just to look at her.

Her sister smoothed out her skirt, feet kicking again. "I think I am very sad. But I won't be forever." Words to live by.

I suppose you think your crimes are excusable, so long as you commit them in the dark.

A tragic inheritance- seeing your mother’s flaws pop up in yourself and having the awareness to know it but no idea how to stop it.

She’d agreed to work for The Villain to escape her chaotic life, to have order. Instead, she had been handed a healer who dressed in frilly pinks, a boss’s assistant who was the human version of a cannonball, and a filthy dragon trainer who smiled so brightly at her it burned her corneas.

Oh, I’m sorry. I don’t usually talk this much.” Well, that certainly wasn’t true. In the last seven days alone, he’d heard the little liability speak more than any other human being of his acquaintance…

Of all the foolish, horrific things he'd ever accomplished, falling in love with a woman he so completely didn't deserve made the top of his list. But he did love her. It wasn't a question or eve a sudden realization. He'd known, hadn't he? It was like a tether was between them, wrapped directly around his heart, that she had the power to push and pull at her leisure. She was woven into his being; in the blink of his eyes, in the crinkle of his smile, in his rusty unused laughter, she was there. From the moment he'd met her, he thought of her like the sun. Bright and vibrant, untouchable. But he was wrong. She wasn't light; she was color. Every single one, dancing otherworldly and bright over his unworthy eyes. She was the explosion of the vivid gleams and glows of the world around him, like a constant rainbow, shining not after the rain but during. She was everything he never deserved but longed for anyways.

This was one of the most marvelous mysteries about Sage—that she so readily handed out praise but it was always so specific. Like she found her favorite part of every person she came across and then presented it to them.

It had occurred to her many times over that “impossible” was merely a word people used to describe limitations they wished for you to adhere to, so you wouldn’t upset the balance.

Brothers were a curious thing, somehow able to lighten even the heaviest of hearts.

You were always supposed to meet Evie Sage, Trystan Maverine. Just as Evie Sage is meant to be your downfall, and you her undoing.

torturing the new workers with something truly cruel—like an icebreaker activity.

Trystan had asked her how to get free, not how to ruin his fucking life

Trystan was not a reader of emotions. He could barely interpret his own, with how little he endeavored to use them.

So many things should stay in her head. Most things, in fact.

Whether their attraction was mutual or not, the boss was clearly too weighed down by professionalism to act on any lurid thoughts, and she’d just have to live with that. The way one lived with a fork through a lung.

This child in particular must have been malfunctioning. Lyssa Sage had pulled a chair up to her desk, insisting upon helping her organize, and then the little nuisance had learned of her greatest weakness. Alphabetizing.

The destiny creature is searching for any ounce of goodness worth saving," Raphael called down to her. "It will test his resolve, his soul - and judging by his screams, he will not be saved. The creature will consume him and his soul. What can you possibly do?" She shrugged against the panic trying to consume her and reached Trystan in three long strides, hovering her hand over his. She closed her fingers around destiny and its overwhelming light as she said with a sureness that was absolutely faked. "I'll give him mine.

She was often amused, trying to find delight in life where she could. It was her drive, what kept her up when she felt the urge to remain low. But that delight was frequently found while wearing her mask of humor and lightness.

You think I do not care? As if thoughts of you and your well-being don’t plague me daily. Nightly. Every second we are apart! I watched you die! I thought I’d never see you again! I have never known such darkness, and I never wish to again. If you think that makes me overbearing, so be it. But do not ever claim I do not care about you. You are wiser than that, Evie. Do not be a fucking fool.

Sometimes family isn't a thing we are born into but a choice we make. Sometimes" -Evie smiled-"the people who love ypu most in your life are the ones who choose you.

he hated him with the fire of a thousand suns, that he thought the knight a reckless ingrate who needed to be put down

Before I continue…” Gideon frowned. “May I ask: Did you murder our father?” “Gideon, that’s a horribly rude question.” “My apologies. Shall we first sit and ring for tea?

I do not lack equilibrium. The ground merely lacks the courtesy of letting me know when it's coming closer.

Gods, at this rate, there should be an incident board for her tears. It’s been zero days since Evie’s last sob.

Was there— Is there something else you needed, sir?” You.

She looked like the most beautiful nightmare he’d ever seen.

He’s The Villain, Evie.

though, because if there was one good thing that she could wrench from all the pain, it was this. It was them. And she was through not fighting for what she wanted.

they heard one last refrain from the creature, and Evie knew it would haunt her for the rest of her life. “Think of me…when you’re with the trees.

Her love was too big, and it had been given too freely to people who didn’t deserve it.

He had an apprentice. A furious, maddeningly frustrating, and disgustingly beautiful apprentice.

Warning bells rang in Evie’s head. She knew where the story was going, knew it had a tragic end. Because unlike the beauty of fairy tales, real life didn’t end in a neat and tidy bow.

The low timbre of his voice raised the fine hairs on her arms, as did the way he smiled at her. Her stomach flipped at the half curl of his lips, teasing and warm all at once. A rather lethal combination. A rather horrific one, actually. Intra-office relations are highly discouraged, Becky, remember?

it wasn’t thoughtless bravery that won the fiercest battles—it was welcoming the fear that lived inside your heart, in your mind, and harnessing it to carry your feet forward, knowing it couldn’t control you.

It is fruitless to worry for the Maverine name, Arthur. I’ve already quite readily destroyed it.” Arthur sputtered beside him. “Th-That is hardly my concern at present, son! Nor should it be yours.” Trystan lifted a brow beneath his mask and finally looked at his father. “My concern is for the poor cream puffs, actually.

Thus the Guild of Villainous Reformation has three new apprentices.” Ivan resisted the urge to groan inwardly at the Guild’s full name. He always thought it sounded like cult, more than a gathering of like-minded people.

You know as well as I, Trystan Maverine, that humans demonize what they cannot understand. It isn’t our job to educate them, just to live the way we’re meant to with the knowledge that being called a monster does not make you one.

For a split second, they were not Villain nor Assistant nor Apprentice nor Accomplice. They were Trystan and Evie, exactly as they could’ve been in a different life, with rules that were fair and lives that were without pain, without struggles for power.

As Trystan Maverine, Evil Overlord, in his large, ridiculously frilly hat, picked up the flowery teapot and poured the tea, saying with a sternness that made her heart twist all over again, “My sincerest apologies, Miss Halliway. I usually have better manners.” By the gods, she loved him.

Evie still saw fear as Becky squared her shoulders, angling the key up. She admired the woman for it, because it wasn’t thoughtless bravery that won the fiercest battles—it was welcoming the fear that lived inside your heart, in your mind, and harnessing it to carry your feet forward, knowing it couldn’t control you.

I think I am very sad. But I won't be forever.

The ground merely lacks the courtesy of letting me know when it is coming closer.

That final thread of control snapped. “Damn it!” he growled. He moved, and before Sage knew what was happening— He kissed her.

This woman could convince someone to defy the hands of time if it suited her.

Don’t wish for the boss to kiss your skin, Evie! Even if that sounds…entirely too pleasant.

But what made them both pause was the small green animal Benedict had gripped in his fist. Kingsley.

And Evie knew she was in love with him. Right then, right there.

I—I can’t do that.

Does your mind live in the gutter?” She shook her head, tapping a finger against her lips. “No, but it rents there on occasion.

He was dumbstruck in love with her.

she was sure he’d take the time to think and not do anything rash. “I’m going to kill all of you.” Never mind.

It wasn’t that her knees were weak; it was just that her body was tired of holding the weight of all the realizations.

Why should I give you a safe place, when you stole mine from me?

When you’ve been lied to so often, the truth becomes easier to discern.

When someone revealed themselves to be something worse than what you thought, you were then tasked with sorting through what good parts within them were real, if any.

Though Sage was still under the impression the inked gold band around her pinkie finger would kill her if she betrayed him, he quietly vowed to tell her the truth when he saw her again. And he would see her again. It would be a disaster, of course. The way he would take perverse delight in her face flushing with anger and her nose scrunching. How she’d yell at him, and then the flush would go all the way down her chest, dipping below her bodice, at which time, naturally, he’d be distracted by it and stop listening. She’d notice and yell at him some more. He couldn’t wait.

she had been handed a healer who dressed in frilly pinks, a boss’s assistant who was the human version of a cannonball, and a filthy dragon trainer who smiled so brightly at her it burned her corneas.

wasn’t thoughtless bravery that won the fiercest battles—it was welcoming the fear that lived inside your heart, in your mind, and harnessing it to carry your feet forward, knowing it couldn’t control you.

She scrunched her nose and resisted the urge to respond with something entirely inappropriate, like *“Boo!”* The swooning woman fainted dead away, hitting the ground with a hard plop. Oh—I did say it. Oops.

She was afraid, but she knew now: fear usually meant you were standing on the edge of something new, something self-altering, something potentially good. Fear was not something she would shy away from every again.

Ivan, task handled, lowered his hand, pausing only to pop his knuckles. He turned to face his apprentice. He cleared his throat, and took one quick glance over his shoulder where the angry giant robot stormed across the desert, before addressing Tory. “That was satisfactory.

Trystan rushed to make up an excuse, but Kingsley had awoken from his slumber in the small, gilded bed on the table beside his own. Don’t, he mouthed at the frog threateningly. But of course, he didn’t listen. Just held up a sign that read: Tornado. Edwin would serve frog legs tomorrow.

Trystan flinched away when she got close. “I’ve seen you dissolve an entire sofa with that. Are you certain it’s safe to use so close to someone’s skin?” Clare grinned, looking a bit evil herself, in the way that little sisters do. “I’m not certain at all, actually, but you’ll be a lovely test subject.

He’d never reacted this way to any woman, to any person. There must be a logical explanation. “Sage, do you have any enchantress or siren lineage in your family?” She trained an unamused look at him. “I’m not certain I want to know what prompted that question.” He pinched the bridge of his nose again. “You definitely don’t.

Because we are always expected to plaster a grin on our faces even when we don’t wish to. I used to do it so often, I stopped being able to tell when I was smiling for me or for someone else. So now, I don’t smile unless I’m one hundred percent sure it’s something I want to do, not something someone else wants me to do.” She smoothed a lock of hair away from Lyssa Sage’s face. “And you shouldn’t, either.

I’ve been cast as the villain since my first day on television, and I nurtured that persona because it worked for my Hollywood career. That was fine for a reality TV star. But people didn’t want to see a reality star in the White House—I mean, other than Trump himself. It’s time to tell my story. It’s a good one. No doubt, you’ve come here with prejudice about who you think I am. But all I’m asking is that you hear me out. Part One The Apprentice Years

A shark does not ask for permission to rule the waters. A bear does not ask for permission to rule the woods. A wolf does not ask for permission to rule the forest. A camel does not ask for permission to rule the desert. A lion does not ask for permission to rule the jungle. Trees do not ask for permission to rule woodlands. Gravel does not ask for permission to rule mountains. Light does not ask for permission to rule summer. Wind does not ask for permission to rule autumn. Snow does not ask for permission to rule winter. Water does not ask for permission to rule the sea. Plants do not ask for permission to rule rainforests. Animals do not ask for permission to rule wildernesses. Stars do not ask for permission to rule the sky. Nature does not ask for permission to rule the world. An eagle achieves more than a turkey in a lifetime. A leopard achieves more than a hyena in a lifetime. A fox achieves more than a rabbit in a lifetime. A falcon achieves more than a vulture in a lifetime. A lion achieves more than a sheep in a lifetime. A leader achieves more than a student in a lifetime. A saint achieves more than a sinner in a lifetime. A prophet achieves more than a priest in a lifetime. A master achieves more than a disciple in a lifetime. A conqueror achieves more than a warrior in a lifetime. A hero achieves more than a villain in a lifetime. A maestro achieves more than an apprentice in a lifetime. A genius achieves more than a talent in a lifetime. A star achieves more than a critic in a lifetime. A legend achieves more than a champion in a lifetime.

First he searched the cooling bodies of Aclines, his apprentice, and the bodyguard. He set a few things aside to look at later, and tossed several potentially dangerous intentioned items over the side. Then he started a search of the rooms off the upper deck cabin while Tenes found the ship’s chart box and took it out to Ziede. Sanja helped him search, and he showed her what to look for and what to be wary of. Only five of the curtained rooms off the cabin had been occupied, so the work went quickly. Aclines had left no convenient diaries explaining his plans, no letters to his masters, no documents naming Ashem and Ramad as coconspirators. But maybe that sort of thing was only done by the villains in romantic Arike novels or Enalin poetic epics. Kai checked the lavish bathing room on the service deck just below. It had basins that could be filled with water pumped up from the ship’s cistern, and Kai took the opportunity to stick his head under a tap and quickly rinse the saltwater out of his hair. The galley was small, meant only to serve the Immortal Blessed occupying the stern cabin, but it was stocked with dry staples like lentils, chickpeas, and millet, with fresh stores of dates and figs. Provisions for Arike and the other south- and eastlanders, not the kind of food the Immortal Blessed preferred.

There is nothing written in any text, gods-created or not, that says we cannot be more than one thing.

I stopped being able to tell when I was smiling for me or for someone else. So now, I don’t smile unless I’m one hundred percent sure it’s something I want to do, not something someone else wants me to do.