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“Almost every time somebody gives me a present, it ends up making me sad.”
― J.D. Salinger, The Catcher in the Rye

“Silver nitrate and water in a super soaker," he told her. "My own invention. Ought to be good at twenty feet, kind of like wasp spray."
Oh. "You get me the nicest things."
"Anybody can get jewelry. Posers”
― Rachel Caine, Fade Out

“Sleep did not honor me with it’s presence.”
― Alysha Speer, Sharden

“Professor Dumbledore. Can I ask you something?"

"Obviously, you've just done so," Dumbledore smiled. "You may ask me one more thing, however."

"What do you see when you look in the mirror?"

"I? I see myself holding a pair of thick, woolen socks." Harry stared.

"One can never have enough socks," said Dumbledore. "Another Christmas has come and gone and I didn't get a single pair. People will insist on giving me books."

It was only when he was back in bed that it struck Harry that Dumbledore might not have been quite truthful. But then, he thought, as he shoved Scabbers off his pillow, it had been quite a personal question.”
― J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

“You have no idea about presents or what they mean. The last
present you gave me was a stick.�
“You wanted a weapon.�
“It was a stick.�
“It had a bow on it.�
“It was a stick.�
“I thought you liked the stick. You laughed.”
― Derek Landy, Kingdom of the Wicked

“When confronted with a birthday in a week I will remember that a book can be a really good present, too.”
― Stephanie Pearl-McPhee, At Knit's End

“There was a tiny box left on the table by the window- a box the Mor lifted, squinted and the name tag, and said, "Az, this one's for you."
The shadowsinger's brows lifted, but his scarred hand extended to take the present.
Elain turned from where she'd been speaking to Nesta. "Oh, that's from me."
Azriel's face didn't so much as shift at the words. Not even a smile as he opened the present and revealed-
"I had Madja make it for me," Elain explained. Azreil's brows narrowed at the mention of the family's preferred healer. "It's a powder to mix in with any drink."
Silence.
Elain bit her lip and then smiled sheepishly. "It's for the headaches everyone always gives you. Since you rub your temples so often."
Silence again.
Then Azriel tipped his head back and laughted.”
― Sarah J. Maas, A Court of Frost and Starlight

“My love for Christmas Eve goes way back to those big gatherings at my grandparentsâ€� house, the focus on Santa Claus and childhood joy. As the years unfolded, I've moved to and visited different cities during the holidays, so my celebration of Christmas Eve took on multiple denominational tones and the focus became the Christ child.”
― Larada Horner-Miller, Hair on Fire: A Heartwarming & Humorous Christmas Memoir

“I got my dad a great father's Day present. He called to say: 'Ach. Zis present is so good I now think it vas almost vorth having children.”
― Johann Hari

“I got nervous at bulls and eagles,
Trying to figure what shape Zeus might take for sex
When it could be your turn next. But now I don't care any longer,
I've come to my senses, your profile leaves me cold.
Why am I different? you ask. I'll tell you. Because you keep nagging
For presents. That's what turns me off.”
― Ovid, The Erotic Poems

“A Christmas without a book for a present is a disappointment.”
― Margareta Magnusson, The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning

“We all have something to give, in different gracious forms.”
― Lailah Gifty Akita

“How hard it was for me
to find you the perfect gift.
I had looked everywhere
and considered every idea
until I had an epiphany
and felt as wise as the magi.
For my gift would be simple.
For my gift would be honest.
How hard it was for me
to wrap myself neatly
and feign sobriety.
Yet,
how easy it was for you
to pull the ribbon and uncover me.
Exposing my fears.
Exposing my desires.
How hard it was for me
to gift myself to you.
Yet,
how easy it was for you
to make me undone.”
― Kamand Kojouri

“If there's anything romcoms have taught us about spontaneous gifting, it's that the big expensive presents are often a sign of guilt. But not the small, sort of rubbish presents. It seems to me that a cheap bag of crisps says a whole lot more than a gold necklace. It says 'You occupy such a vast space in my mind, I think of you so constantly, that my day-to-day life throws up constant reminders of you.' That person is, subconsciously or not, considered in everything you do and everywhere you go. Even in somewhere as mundane as the supermarket snack aisle.”
― Ali Pantony, Almost Adults

“It wasn't that Elain was cruel. She wasn't like Nesta, who had been born with a sneer on her face. Elain sometimes just... didn't grasp things. It wasn't meanness that kept her from offering to help; it simply never occurred to her that she might be capable of getting her hands dirty. I'd never been able to decide whether she actually didn't understand that we were truly poor or if she just refused to accept it. It still hadn't stopped me buying her seeds for the flower garden she tended in the milder months, whenever I could afford it.

And it hadn't stopped her from buying me three small tins of paint- red, yellow, and blue- during that same summer I'd had enough to buy the ash arrow. It was the only gift she'd ever given me, and out house still bore the marks of it, even if the paint was now fading and chipped: little vines and flowers along the windows and thresholds and edges of things, tiny curls of flame on the stones bordering the hearth. And spare minute I'd had that bountiful summer, I used to bedeck out house in colour, sometimes hiding clever decorations inside drawers, behind the threadbare curtains, underneath the chairs and table.

We hadn't had a summer that easy since.”
― Sarah J. Maas, A Court of Thorns and Roses

“Those we love tie our hearts in knots but we'll never stop giving them the ribbons of our presence.”
― Curtis Tyrone Jones

“Remember, the best presents anyone can give, is being there for their loved ones.”
― James Hauenstein

“Christmas is not as much about opening our presents as opening our hearts.”
― J.L.W. Brooks

“Presents are made for the pleasure of the one who gives them, not for the merits of those who receive them," said my father. "Besides, it can't be returned. Open it,”
― Carlos Ruiz Zafón, The Shadow of the Wind

“Carefully, he twisted the clasp, securing it to my wrist before brushing his thumb across my knuckles.

“Do you like it?�

Did I like it?

No.

I loved it.

Loved it so much I couldn’t utter a word. I could only stare at it, even if my vision swam and I’d suddenly suffered an allergic reaction that made my eyes leak.

I wasn’t crying.

I was simply expelling excess saltwater. From my eyes. Which some people might’ve thought were tears.

But they weren’t.

I. Was not. Crying.

“H´Ç±ô±ô²â?â€�

“Yes,� I croaked, my voice sounding like a squeaky hinge. “It’s beautiful. I’m not crying.�

“I didn’t say you were.� I could hear the amusement in Kye’s voice, even if I couldn’t look away from the damn bracelet on my wrist.

“You were thinking it.�

“It does look like you’re crying.�

“I’m not. It’s water retention in reverse.�

Kye and my family chuckled before he said, “I don’t think it works that way.�

“It does,� I insisted, swallowing repeatedly and sniffling. “I’m sure of it.�

I’m a mess.

A complete and utter mess.”
― Poppy Rhys, While You Were Creeping

“More?'

Rhys waved a lazy hand, pure Illyrian arrogance. 'Did you think a sketchbook would suffice for my High Lady?”
― Sarah J. Maas, A Court of Frost and Starlight

“A gift ‘fromâ€� the heart is far different than a gift ‘ofâ€� the heart. For despite the size of the gift, if I have not given my heart I have given someone something that is in fact nothing.”
― Craig D. Lounsbrough

“.... chasing presents for the near future celebration, looking through what society has to offer and impose.”
― Alain Bremond-Torrent, running is flying intermittently

“The nakedness of the presents on the floor was a sad premonition of their naked future, after the brief, false glory of being wrapped.”
― Jonathan Franzen, Crossroads

“Presents make me feel awkward, whether I am the giver or the receiver, unless they are the right ones, which is rare.”
― Édouard Levé, Autoportrait

“True Christmas is about presence, not presents.”
― Maxime Lagacé

“You could honestly get Cassian a new knife and he'd kiss you for it. But Az would probably prefer no presents at all, just to avoid the attention while opening it.”
― Sarah J. Maas, A Court of Wings and Ruin

“What did you get Feyre?'

I slid my hands into my pockets. 'This and that.'

'So, nothing.'

I dragged a hand through my hair. 'Nothing. Any ideas?”
― Sarah J. Maas, A Court of Frost and Starlight

“Nesta gave you this?'

Technically, Nesta had informed him, the House had given it to her. But she'd asked the House for these items, intending them to be brought here. 'She said it's a gift.'

Emerie picked up a brass tin, pried open the top, and inhaled. The smoky, velvety scent of tea leaves floated out. 'Oh, this is good stuff.' She lifted a glass vial of finely ground powder. When she twisted the lid off, a nutty, spicy scent filled the shop. 'Cumin.' Her sigh was like a lover's. She moved to another and another, six glass containers in total. 'Turmeric, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, and...' She peered at the label. 'Black pepper.'

Cassian laid the last container on the table, a large marble box that weighed at least two pounds. Emerie yanked off the lid and let out a laugh. 'Salt.' She pinched the flaky crystal between her fingers. 'A lot of salt.'

Her eyes shone as a rare smile flitted across her face. It made her look younger, wiped away the weight and scars of all those years with her father. 'Please tell her I say thank you.'

He cleared his throat, remembering the speech Nesta had drilled into him. 'Nesta says you can thank her by showing up to training tomorrow morning.'

Emerie's smile wavered. 'I told her the other day: I have no means to attend.'

'She thought you'd say that. If you want to come, send word, and one of us will bring you.' It'd have to be Rhys, but he doubted his brother would object. 'If you can't stay the full time, that's fine. Come for an hour, before your shop opens.'

Emerie's fingers fell away from the spices and tea. 'It's not the right time.'

Cassian knew better than to push. 'If you ever change your mind, let us know.' He turned from the counter, aiming for the door.

He knew Nesta had given the gift in part to tempt Emerie to join, but also from the kindness of her heart. He'd asked why she was sending these items, and she'd said, 'Emerie needs spices and good tea.' It had stunned him, just as it had stunned him earlier to hear her admit that she liked Gwyn.

Nesta around Gwyn was a wholly different creature than who she was with the court. They didn't tease or laugh with each other, but an easiness lay between them that he'd never witnessed, even when Nesta was with Elain. She'd always been Elain's guardian, or Feyre's sister, or Cauldron-Made.

With Gwyn... he wondered whether Nesta liked the girl because with her, she was simply Nesta. Perhaps she felt that way around Emerie, too.

Had she gone into Velaris, night after night, not only to distract and numb herself, but to be around people who didn't know the weight of all she carried?”
― Sarah J. Maas, A ​Court of Silver Flames

“The lights on the Christmas tree were still on. Dave got dressed in their glow. He loved this. The secret quiet of Christmas Eve. All the little coloured lights. All the boxes and bags spilling across the living room.
It wasn't the presents that were important; it was the impulse behind them. The spirit they represented. The spirit of giving.”
― Stuart McLean, Christmas at the Vinyl Cafe