Sally Quotes

“You're so hypno-something, could you be the devil, could you be an angel, your touch is something good, feels like
going floating, leave my body glowing."

"Katy Perry? She's singing Katy Perry in the hospital bathroom. Just when you think you've seen it all," Sally mumbled. She knocked on the door again. Still no answer, so she started banging. Then she was banging and hollering, "JEN! OPEN THE FREAKING DOOR!" Wouldn't you know, she just sang louder. Why am I not surprised, she thought.”
― Quinn Loftis, Blood Rites

“There’s only one thing I know— have always known— that I wanted out of life. And it’s you.”
― Cookie O'Gorman, Adorkable

“How can it surprise any of you that loves could break the curse? You, whose very genetic makeup forces you to love so deeply that you can't even survive without your mate? It's no coincidence that the saying is 'love conquers all'. It's a tale as old as time.”
― Quinn Loftis, Out of the Dark

“I will say one thing about those males, there is never a dull moment." Peri suddenly appeared causing everyone to jump.
"Bloody hell," Jen barked.
"Couldn't you send out some sort of signal that you're about to appear out of thin air?" Lilly asked.
"What do you expect me to do...fart just before I appear so the smell alerts you?" Peri took a seat next to Alina and crossed her legs, appearing regal despite her crude words.
"Why do you say we would be alerted by the smell, rather than the sound?" Sally asked.
Peri smiled. "I think you humans call them silent but deadly.”
― Quinn Loftis, Sacrifice of Love

“You and I can accomplish anything when we work together, Sally. You're soft where I'm hard. You're quiet when I am loud. We fill each other's gaps, don't you see?”
― Megan Shepherd, Hour of the Pumpkin Queen

“The bog bubbled and splashed in her face as she maneuvered, forcing her to swallow a good mouthful of liquid, which turned out to taste like a sugary egg dusted with cinnamon.
Well, if this doesn't work, at least my ending will be sweet, she thought wryly.”
― Mari Mancusi, Sally's Lament

“You not only solved its riddle but proved your mettle by how far you were willing to go to save your people. Magic rewards mettle, you know.”
― Megan Shepherd, Hour of the Pumpkin Queen

“You showed Scorch the meaning of sacrifice. The meaning of a hero. It is not always swords and shields. Some sacrifices are quiet, yet mighty.”
― Megan Shepherd, Hour of the Pumpkin Queen

“The darkest night was always a special time for me as a child, when the stars were at their brightest. It would warm my heart to spend that time with you."
A tear pools in my mother's glassy eye. "We would enjoy that very much, as you are our star."
We embrace again, a loving tangle of yarn and stuffing and laughter.”
― Megan Shepherd, Hour of the Pumpkin Queen

“She leaned toward the door, breathing in deeply, rejoicing in the moldy scent of death and decay that lingered on the other side. Ah, home, she thought as she dove headfirst into the abyss.
After tumbling through blackness, she arrived just like before, this time plopping down in a nice thick pile of fallen leaves. She laughed in delight as she rolled in the pile for a moment, enjoying the feeling of fall tickling her cloth skin.”
― Mari Mancusi, Sally's Lament

“Oh, it is good to be home," he declared. And Sally agreed with him. There was so much she loved about Christmas Town. But Halloween Town was pretty great, too. And it was okay, she decided, to like both for what they were. If she learned anything from this adventure, it was that one thing didn't have to define you. You got to define yourself--- in any manner you saw fit.”
― Mari Mancusi, Sally's Lament

“After stepping out of bed, she got dressed, slipping on her new patchwork dress and enjoying the feel of the soft cotton against her cloth skin. She'd sewed it together out of fabric she'd found in the dumpster--- the remnants of old and discarded costumes--- and was pretty proud of how it had come out. Christmas clothing was cute and all, but Abigail had been right--- it was extremely itchy. Not to mention a little boring. No dress should be limited to just one pattern or color, she thought with a smile. Which was why her new shop's name was so perfect: Patterns and Potions by Sally.”
― Mari Mancusi, Sally's Lament

“Sally!" My parents' stitched faces beam at us as they throw their downy arms around me. They both wear silk pajamas with midnight-blue robes that surround me like cottony clouds. My heart leaps like a baby lamb. Their candle-wax smell grips me in a familiar embrace, and I feel like a daydreamy little girl again.”
― Megan Shepherd, Hour of the Pumpkin Queen

“I can't help feeling a connection with Luna beyond just our being rag dolls. Both of us quiet. Bookish. Daydreamy. But whereas I grew up as friendless as a lone daisy in a graveyard, Luna has every chance to blossom.
Besides, I tell myself, I'm not some lost stray cat hiding in the shadows anymore. Dr. Finkelstein was wrong. I am a queen, and I'm exactly where I belong-- with my family and Jack, who completes me in ways I didn't even know possible.”
― Megan Shepherd, Hour of the Pumpkin Queen

“I'm honored that my parents trust me enough to take on their jobs when they retire, so how can I refuse? I am originally from Dream Town. This was my bed. This was my home.
I can't just ignore my duty.
But in a way, the scenes captured in these watercolor paintings feel like someone else's life. Halloween Town is the only home I've ever truly known. Whether or not I belonged there, I grew to adore it. The black cat's chorus of midnight wails. The silver glow of the full moon. The scent of fire-roasted pumpkin soup on an autumn breeze. I used to sit at my barred window in Dr. Finkelstein's house and watch the townspeople like they were characters in my own macabre little dollhouse: the Mayor wheeling around in his hearse. The trio of musicians playing a morose melody. The corpse family bringing in the pumpkin harvest with their lumbering gaits and rattling chains. They all became such dear characters to me, even if half of them never knew my name.
And so, when I married Jack and became the Pumpkin Queen, it meant everything that they embraced me. There were bumps along the road, of course, but now I'm traipsing around that macabre little dollhouse village with them all. Dancing. Delivering potions. Making queenly proclamations. Even now, it brings tears to my eyes. I want to hold on to this beautiful feeling of belonging for all eternity.”
― Megan Shepherd, Hour of the Pumpkin Queen

“In a way, I'm grateful for having grown up in Halloween Town, because it forged me into a mighty queen. Jack's heart would burst with pride to see me standing up to a dragon with fire in my eyes and a tailor's sword in hand, defending someone smaller than me.”
― Megan Shepherd, Hour of the Pumpkin Queen

“Despite nearly drowning and narrowly avoiding a mermaid's song, I'm intrigued by this new world. I'm curious how their ruler determines what makes a hero and what makes a villain. It can't be as simple as which side of town a character lives on, if they have horns or halos or use swords or spells. There might have been a time when I thought good and evil were clear-cut, but that all changed when Jack set out to save Christmas and ended up ruining it instead. He became the villain instead of the hero he yearned to be.
And what about me? I live in a world of monsters who, by most reckonings, would be considered villains. Yet that's the last way I think about gentle Behemoth, sweet little Zero, friendly Undersea Gal. Do they think of me as a hero simply because I come from a land of sweet dreams? Of course not. If they look at me with any admiration, it's because of my efforts as queen, not the crown alone.”
― Megan Shepherd, Hour of the Pumpkin Queen

“After all, heroes aren't born from the light. They emerge from the depths of fears, blazing a brave trail. Labels falter, crumble, and fall away as easily as autumn leaves.”
― Megan Shepherd, Hour of the Pumpkin Queen

“Crisp autumn leaves whip our faces, but then, we break free from the canopy. Nothing but vast sky surrounds us above and all around. Below, Fable Town stretches as far as my eyes can see. Adjusting his satchel strap around his chest, Scorch straightens out his flight path to run parallel to the ground. We skim the clouds over dwarfs' cottages and fairy rings of red-capped mushrooms. Scorch crests a hill, and the impenetrable canopy of trees that makes up Villain Village stretches beneath us. In the distance, the spire of a crumbling, dark castle rises over a tangled, thorny thicket.
A salty breeze ruffles my eyelashes, and before I know it, Scorch plunges down a cliff and flies us over the Fabled Sea. I spot the deep blue water where we fell. The half-submersed shipwreck. The beach where we collapsed in tearful, soggy joy. We fly over a rocky promontory where the mermaid warbles her siren song up at us, but the wind blows away her words before she can ensnare us.”
― Megan Shepherd, Hour of the Pumpkin Queen

“I am the Pumpkin Queen of Halloween Town. There is nothing-- nothing-- more frightening than me."
I channel a lifetime lived among monsters. More Halloweens than I can count. Most of all, I channel Jack's advice about being scary.
Play with light and shadow, Jack said. I move toward Scorch's tail fire so its wavering shadows make my eyes look huge. Use your surroundings. I step into the wind, which lifts my hair like writhing silken snakes. Understand why you scare.
And I do-- for so long, I thought scares were simply about tricks and treats, but now I understand that the frightening faces we show to the world can do more than merely delight.
I am queen of a nightmare land-- and I must save it.
For the finishing touch, I let out a haunted wail, like a mournful black cat in the night.”
― Megan Shepherd, Hour of the Pumpkin Queen

“I've asked myself so many times where my heart felt at home, and the answer is like the walls of that mismatched cottage: I feel at home in my childhood bedroom with shooting-star sheets and my parents reading me stories. I feel at home cozied in bed with Jack, beneath the jack-o'-lantern quilt I sewed for us. I even feel at home-- in my darkest corners-- in my creaky old bedroom in Dr. Finkelstein's house.
Belonging isn't about walls and a roof. It's a feeling. I felt an inkling of that when I was flying on Scorch, so careless and free. Up among the clouds, I never had to choose, and I don't now, either.
I can be all of these places, all of these people, and still simply be Sally.”
― Megan Shepherd, Hour of the Pumpkin Queen

“You might be surprised to see how frightening your wife can be."
For dramatic effect, I step back so the breeze blowing down the alleyway catches my hair, sending it into writhing snakelike locks. I stretch the seams on my cheeks into a ghoulish, haunting grimace, and let out the moan that sent a dragon quaking down to his paws.
Jack staggers three steps backward, startled and entranced, his jaw open so far it practically unhinges. When he finally finds his words, he exclaims, "My beautiful bride! I didn't think I could love you more, yet here you go tying my heart in knots. Talented, kind, and frightening?" He throws his arms around my waist and plants a kiss on the tip of my nose. "How did I get so lucky?”
― Megan Shepherd, Hour of the Pumpkin Queen

“Now, I feel as if I’ve lived lifetimes since I was that timid girl marrying Jack atop Spiral Hill. I’ve traveled to wondrously new realms: towns where the rivers flow with melted chocolate and forests with sly foxes offering pie. I’ve even seen the ocean in all its beautiful, terrifying vastness.
And I’ve been tested.”
― Megan Shepherd, Shadow over the Pumpkin Queen

“My chest feels pulled taut. I wasn't made for this. I was stitched together in Dream Town— a place of lullabies and lavender, not midnight forests and sharp-toothed snarls. I was never meant to carry the weight of an entire town on my patchwork shoulders.
But none of that matters now, does it?
Stitch by stitch, I'll remake myself into whatever this town needs me to be.”
― Megan Shepherd, Shadow Over the Pumpkin Queen

“Once upon a time, a rag doll girl was locked in a scientist’s tower…
The story I tell myself is an old one, as familiar to me as my painted nails. It begins with a girl stolen away from where she belonged, raised among monsters, who fell in love with the Pumpkin King. His love mended her broken soul, piece by jagged piece until she was someone new— someone stronger than before.
I tell myself that story, I think, because I need to believe it’s true.
But love? Love isn’t always gentle in real life. It’s more than butterfly kisses and pumpkin pancakes. Sometimes, love is sharp-edged and terrifying, standing on the edge of a thousand-foot fall. I think about that night I nearly lost Jack, deep in the depths of Oogie Boogie’s lair, the sounds of their confrontation echoing in my cloth ears. I remember how my hands shook. How helpless I felt, bound and trapped. That fear could have paralyzed me. Instead, it stoked my determination. Made me strong enough to endure.
Not because I was fearless— because I was afraid. Just like I was on our adventure to Fable Town, Time Town, and Tooth Town. I can use this fear again to make me strong.”
― Megan Shepherd, Shadow over the Pumpkin Queen

“I feel the weight of the impossible tasks settling on my shoulders, pressing me down, but I refuse to break. Rag dolls weren’t made to shatter, after all. We aren’t bone china, easily broken— I was made to be tossed, thrown, cuddled, played with. I was made to be loved. And love doesn’t come without tatters and tears.”
― Megan Shepherd, Shadow over the Pumpkin Queen

“We’ve managed not only to create a star— a real, stable star— but to catch it in my cauldron. The wonder of it dances in my chest like fireflies in a jar.
The laboratory clock dings. It’s eight o’clock.
Moonrise.
I don't know how long I kneel on the laboratory floor, marveling at how such a harsh place has now been transformed by beautiful, warm starlight. At once, I’m a little girl again, so lonely that she tried to make her own star to wish upon. To have a family again. My parents. Dr. Finkelstein’s first children.
Now, here it is.
My own wishing star.
My guiding light.
My way back to Jack.”
― Megan Shepherd, Shadow over the Pumpkin Queen

“Your parents told me about the impossible tasks— I told them nothing was impossible for my beautiful wife. And sure enough, here you are, like a fairy tale knight.”
― Megan Shepherd, Shadow over the Pumpkin Queen

“A needle?" Dorian drawls with the hint of a smirk. "Are you going to darn me, Rag Queen?"
I focus on his sunken eyes, my sword lifted high as Jack taught me in our sparring sessions. "We don't need to fight, Dorian. Don't make me leave you in need of stitches.”
― Megan Shepherd, Shadow over the Pumpkin Queen

“Jack’s voice is soft as moonlight, deep as the darkest cavern. He tips up my chin, getting black paint all over the both of us, but I couldn’t possibly care less. “You know, with you in this costume, you might be in danger of making me fall in love with you all over again.”
Our lips come together, slow and sweet, like we’ve captured the spark of a star between us. His hands cradle my face. For a moment, the wind in the trees and the owls overhead fall quiet— it’s just us and our love knitted over time.”
― Megan Shepherd, Shadow over the Pumpkin Queen