People who live their lives by proverbs waste their time doing lots of stupid things. “Getting even is the best revenge” is my motto. - George Alec Effinger

“Did you sleep well last night?” asked Glorian.
“Yes, I suppose,” said Dore, “although I was trouble by a strange dream.”
“Oh? Perhaps it was some sort of omen. Tell me of it.”
“Certainly,” said Dore. “I dreamed of a domino.”
“Just one?”
“Yes, just the one. All night. No people or sounds in the dream, just the domino. The five-three.”
“Wonderful!” cried Glorian. “The five-three is a lucky little devil. It presages victory after hardships. It confirms your inner ambition, but counsels you to avoid extremes, to temper pleasure with practicality. Advances in music, art, and drama are indicated. Rely on good manners and good taste. The five-three is a domino of hope and good news.”
“Are you making that up?” said Dore suspiciously.

She gave me a wide-eyed, innocent smile that looked as out of place on her as it would have on a desert scorpion.

Are you happy, Norman?" asked Brant.
Well, sure, I guess.
That's what I thought," she said bitterly. "Neither am I.