Starlight Enclave Quotes

“Yes, and that they were not Lolthians, that their society was neither cruel nor unjust. Quite the opposite, for if what Freewindle told me in his rambling tales of these drow is true, we have come upon a society that is egalitarian and moral, a place where you survive because you can rely on others and where they survive because they know they can rely on you. Do you now understand what such a promise means to me, who had to survive Menzoberranzan?”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“A bedraggled and thoroughly frustrated Catti-brie entered her chambers much later to find her husband dancing with their little girl. Or maybe they were training.
Drizzt did a broad jump. Brie hopped, both feet off the ground. She touched down lightly and sprang again, and a third time, which put her up beside her father. “You,” Drizzt said. Brie laughed.
She jumped up as high as she could and turned in midair. She got about a quarter of the way around before she ran out of air beneath her, thumping down and holding her balance. Drizzt leaped up gracefully and spun about, a full spin, landing and dropping into a squat that put his face right before that of his giggling daughter.
“You!” she said.
Up sprang Drizzt, executing a backflip that landed him on his feet, but only momentarily, as he plopped down on his butt before Brie with a surprised look on his face.
Brie laughed and went up as if to jump, but didn’t leave the ground at all, and instead just fell back to a sitting position facing her father. The two broke out in laughter.
“Boom!” said Drizzt.
“Boo boo!” said Brie.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“Drizzt wasn’t sure of his convictions on this matter, but what he was certain of was that he would not be guided against his conscience by a supposed goddess, any goddess. Once, he too had followed Mielikki, but he had always thought of her, of all the gods, as manifestations of that which was in the hearts of their respective followers—they were just names given to conscience—or if more, no matter, for following them meant following that which you believed to be true, not the words relayed. Or in this case, not even the words directly conveyed.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“Drizzt had come to believe that these goblinkin races were not evil by nature, as the drow were not, but were bent to such acts and practices by the influence of powerful godlike forces, as were so many of the races of Toril. But no, Mielikki had denied such a theory to Catti-brie. His wife knew that drow were not evil creatures by nature, of course. She had married Drizzt, after all, and he knew with confidence that she loved him with all of her heart and soul. So how could she hold such a prejudice? No, that idea was impossible.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“Watching the spiritual journeys of all these others, including my own wife, is a powerful reminder to me to ever hold tolerance for those who come to different conclusions than I, and to humble myself in my conclusions.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“Just like the kurit, they wanted to hear her tales more than tell their own, and at first, it was quite uncomfortable for Catti-brie. She thought of her arguments with Drizzt, and felt rather awkward now with this clear evidence of orcs who were worthy of her respect and friendship. That epiphany led her to quiet and uncomfortable musing that followed her to sleep—questions about her goddess, about the actions of her life, about her perception of reality itself.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“He is drow,” Zak answered before Jarlaxle, who was now floating back down. “As are you—you cannot levitate?” The surrounding aevendrow stared at him as if they had no idea what he was talking about. “Now, this is an interesting turn,” Jarlaxle said, setting down beside them. “So it was the Faerzress all along, the barrier to the lower planes, which gave us this inner magic.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“A combination of helpless resignation and sheer numbness from the daily assaults and atrocities is a deadly mix to the emotions of any drow. But these days, a sparkle in Kimmuriel’s eye. Now he comes to ride with me, to speak with me, to hope with me. That is the key to his awakening: he dares to hope.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“Perte miye Zaknafein!” the orc cried, and all of the Boscaille soldiers similarly stopped and shouted, in the next refrain. And then, “Perte miye Zaknafein,” the fifty thousand Callidaeans chanted in unison and harmony. On and on it went, louder and louder with each refrain, and the Merry Dancer lights above seemed to sway and dart with every syllable. Fifty thousand voices lifted in the chant. Fifty thousand aevendrow, kurit, Ulutiuns, and arktos oroks jabbed their fingers to point at Zaknafein, this stranger they did not know, this poor fellow who had stumbled upon their land and seemed to be in the last hours of his life. “Perte miye Zaknafein!”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“For two millennia, the aevendrow have lived here beside the blessing of the hot River Callidae. We remember the strife of the times before that, the wandering, the hopelessness, the grief. This day, this war of cazzcalci reminds us that our peace is earned by vigilance and by sacrifice, and that we must all be ever ready to do whatever is asked of us to preserve that which we have built. There is no aevendrow, kurit, orok, or Ulutiun of Callidae who would not die to save the city, or even to save another borough. When Qadeej breathed upon Cattisola, more people of the other four boroughs died trying to save the Cattisolans than Cattisolans themselves! For that, we are all proud, and we are all one.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“They play hard, and drink harder,” said Entreri, who was nursing a tremendous headache. “They dance, they love, and they sing with abandon.”
“And they drink,” Jarlaxle repeated with a knowing grin. Entreri groaned and held his head. “You enjoyed your time with Vessi?” Catti-brie said with a laugh. “Too much so. But yes. He took me to a place he called De’lirr. I did not know that drow could sweat so much.” The other two looked at him curiously. “It was half a dance, half a fight to see who could stay on the floor the longest. Few left alone.”
“Including Entreri?” The man just shrugged and even seemed to blush a bit, which caught Catti-brie off guard.
“They are alive,” Entreri went on. “Maybe more alive than any people I have known. They play harder than many fight.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“It seems that we’ve stumbled upon an enclave of drow who collectively favor Jarlaxle’s flamboyant style.” “They are pale shadows of Jarlaxle,” Jarlaxle assured her with a grin. “Maybe that’s why Artemis Entreri is uncomfortable,” Zak remarked.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“Trust her, he reminded himself. Trust in her. Catti-brie was among the most resourceful and powerful individuals he had ever known. And she was with Jarlaxle, who befriended dragons and toyed with kings.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“Yes,” said Kimmuriel. “I have lived for centuries, hiding away in the hive mind or in a library, trying to make sense of that which, ultimately, I cannot, for these destinations can only be answered when the road is finally traveled. But now I believe that I have come to the limit of my potential understanding of this unknowable matter until that final journey.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“But Brother Afafrenfere was ready and willing to transcend the physical world. He believed that his partner in life, his lover and best friend—the monk brother named Parbid who had given him true meaning and direction—was waiting for him in a shared existence on that higher plane. Drizzt hoped that was true, both for Afafrenfere and for himself, and for all those others he loved. He wanted there to be more.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“But I do know that there was power in that web. Great power to remove curses. For Thibbledorf Pwent is very much alive, and the vampire that was Pwent is no more. I have never before heard of a cure for vampirism, nor had any of Bruenor’s clerics, nor the wizards of Longsaddle. But Pwent is cured.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“Drizzt chuckled, but felt a pang within that honest laughter. This was the childhood he had never experienced, the carefree creation of giggles that too few got to enjoy. He wished he had played this game with Zaknafein, though he couldn’t even imagine the possibility of any such playfulness with his mother, Malice. Such a waste of life itself, he thought, given what he knew now, what Kimmuriel had helped the priestess Yvonnel and Matron Mother Quenthel Baenre reveal of the hopeful beginnings of Menzoberranzan before it had descended into its current, joyless reality. Before the way of Lolth, where the tension and excitement of chaos swirled away the pleasures of simplicity and love.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“He watched Brie splashing in a small side pool while he filled his waterskins. He marveled at the simple joy in her eyes. He wanted to keep that joy of life itself there forever. More than anything, he wanted his daughter to grow up strong and clever and full of confidence, and full even more with happiness. He never wanted her to lose her delight at the simplest things: the sun-dappled earth, the splash of water over stones, the sounds of the forest about her, the shapes of the clouds. “What’s my name?” he called to her. “Drizzy daddy!” she enthusiastically called back.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“We all have within us a level of tumult, a vibration in our hearts, our minds, our very souls, which we are most comfortable with as “normal.” Like a pebble dropped into still water, that tumult is a result of drama, of conflict in mind or body or both. This sense of normalcy is taught very young, and refined as we become fully reasoning beings. The curse lies in not understanding it. In its most extreme circumstances, I have seen it in myself, or in King Bruenor, surely, when we both grew uneasy, itchy even, as we created about us an environment of peace and comfort. “Ah, to the road!” was our common call to action, even when action wasn’t needed. Because the vibrations, the inner conflict, was needed for us to feel normal.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“A belief in redemption is the most important spice in hoping to cook a better tomorrow,” Drizzt told her.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“She laughed aloud. “Yes!” she admitted. “I miss the road. I miss the adventure. I miss the danger. Does that make sense? Does that make me a terrible parent?” “Haven’t we had this conversation the other way?” Drizzt said, laughing, too.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“Even that, he now understood, was for a perfectly selfish reason, he finally admitted to himself, as with his freeing the prisoners from Captain Arrongo’s hold. It felt good. It felt really good. A reward greater than baubles and magical toys. “You’ve cursed me, Drizzt Do’Urden,” Jarlaxle said when he came out of Ship Kurth onto the streets of Closeguard Island, heading for the Hosttower of the Arcane and a meeting he had arranged with Kimmuriel and Gromph. “And I love you all the more for it.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“His treasure, don’t you see?” said Entreri. “They, we two, Bregan D’aerthe, Luskan itself—we are all Jarlaxle’s treasure. He’s like a dragon, but he hoards people and power instead of gold and gems.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“We’re never to see peace—none of us—until we come to recognize that a child of a culture that is not our own is as precious as one who is. And I don’t know if that will ever be possible. No peace, not for humans or dwarves or halflings or drow or elves.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“Consider this part of your journey a growing experience,” Jarlaxle explained. “You don’t have your son’s scimitars anymore. Do you think I would allow my second—”
“Kimmuriel is your second.”
“He’s the other half of my first. In my part of Bregan D’aerthe, in my, shall we say, personal journeys, you are my partner.”
“You called me your second. Now I’m your partner? And does Artemis Entreri know of this new arrangement?”
“We’ve a fight coming. Are you going to argue about everything?”
“Titles matter.”
“What would you prefer?”
“Your better,” Zak said, and he pulled the eyepatch from his head and tossed it back to Jarlaxle.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“He has Penelope Harpell,” she reminded him. “Penelope?” Jarlaxle said and snickered. “She’s likely at the Ivy Mansion and is not about to be jealous in any case, I assure you.” “And if she’s not, and is in Gauntlgrym?” “She’d probably join you, if you had the mind for it,” Jarlaxle said with a great laugh. “And even if not in that way, we all would do well to spend more time with Penelope Harpell. Aye, but we’d all learn a lot from her, particularly in how to enjoy life more.” He paused, noting her expression, and added, “Yes, even Jarlaxle!”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“Drizzt had to pause on that. “I told you what was in my heart, and the name I had given it was Mielikki.” “Because she was the embodiment of your ethical beliefs,” Catti-brie replied. “Yes.” “But she is a living goddess, and so when she speaks in communion, are not those declarations commandments you must follow?” “No.” It actually surprised Drizzt how quickly the answer left his mouth, and the conviction behind the response. “I don’t know that I can call her a goddess, or the divine beings of Toril gods at all,” he said, speaking as much to clarify the thoughts in his own mind as in explanation”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“Jarlaxle shrugged. “I come from Menzoberranzan. I know the influences an overpowering demon—or demonic bent of a magical item—can hold over people. Over otherwise good people. It is the story of my city, after all, of my kin.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“I have lived a lifetime of unacceptance because of my heritage, or worse, of feigned acceptance by those who wish to prove something of themselves to the world by accepting one of my heritage.” Jarlaxle shook his head and gave a self-deprecating smile. Rarely was he so careless as to say those quiet thoughts out loud.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave

“Jarlaxle considered that for a while, a smile growing as he heard in his mind the shaky voice of an old elf describing a city of drow. Not Menzoberranzan, not Chad Nasad, not in the Underdark at all. And one not devoted to the Demon Queen of Spiders.”
― R.A. Salvatore, Starlight Enclave