One scarcely knows if he would be of more use to us as a hostage, or set loose to be a very bad enemy leader. - Lois McMaster Bujold

I've got forward momentum. There's no virtue in it. It's just a balancing act. I don't dare stop.

“I made up a lot of instant barbarian folklore—I told ’em a Vor prides himself on self-control, that it’s not considered polite on Barrayar for a man to, you know, before his lady has. Three times. It was considered insulting to her. I stroked, I rubbed, I scratched, I recited poetry, I nuzzled and nibbled and—cripes, my fingers are cramped.” His speech was a bit slurred, too, Miles noticed. “I thought they’d never fall asleep.” Ivan paused; a slow smirk displaced the snarl on his face. “But they were smiling, when they finally did.”

He couldn’t make this go faster by pushing harder.