"Where do you keep your memories of love, past lovers?" QiRia looked at her. "In my head, of course." He looked away. "There are not so many of those, anyway," he said, voice a little quieter. "Loving becomes harder, the longer you live, and I have lived a very long time indeed." He fixed his gaze on her again. "I'm sure it varies across species - some seem to do quite well with no idea of love at all - but you soon enough come to realise that love generally comes from a need within ourselves, and that the behaviour, the... expression of love is what is most important to us, not the identity, not the personality of the one who is loved."