In The Kingdom Of Hope [Concluded]

To say Fearful was caught off gaurd by the surprise attack was an understatement. The magic thread slammed her into the ground with a sickening crack, followed by a scream as the shock spell arced into her body. Fearful struggled to her hooves, one wing bent completely out of shape, and her left foreleg was clearly injured as she refused to put weight on it. "What... Luna... you... betrayed me?" She asked softly, limping towards the mare. "Why...?"

She scanned Luna's face for any sign of reasoning, noticing the sand still on her face. She yelped as she put too much pressure of her hoof, before limping over to Sugary. "Market... I need your help... you need to get rid of the sand om Luna's face... I think..."

Sugary could only ponder as Summer was vague at best, while glancing sideways with a cocked brow at Summer herself with her take on dealing with traps. "I'm rooting for Sir Blade, but perhaps now would be an awful time to remind her about her... poor encounter... with the entity that drained her earlier..." He'd briefly clear his throat, and give his best wishes. "Ahem... Yes, you're right... But let's not forget precautions at least. 'Keep eyes in the back of your head' and all that."

And no sooner did he make his statement that a sudden hard blow heard behind him made him look towards an injured Fearful, and an angry looking Luna. At first there was much confusion, but it soon became apparent that the blow dealt to the vampire was far too harsh to be just a bitter quarreling of former lovers, especially after Fearful spoke. Something clicked in his mind as he saw Luna's face, and he immediately consulted with the voice in his head while goosebumps ran over his body. "Phantom! The Luna we faced together...! Is this the same case!?" He lit up his horn and charged as fast as he could as soon as the shock therapy began, and tried to send a concentrated stream of water right at Luna to cool her off while absorbing and dispersing as much of the electricity as he could upwards with it were it a stream of energy like in his personal alternate reality. "Halt!! She is not the enemy!!"

Blade sure didn't know what was going on at this moment. He had first Fearful drink one of the Princess' blood and his body tensed for a moment, having just now turned to look at the sight. Of course it didn't take long for him to realize it was consensual and turn his attention back towards the small construct he had created. He just barely got the marble to flow into the sand pile or where ever the sand was going to, when the gender swapped vampony was about to do something. Then, he or well she was taken off the sand by Princess Luna, who didn't get more sand on her. He rubbed his hoof over his face as he continued to have the construct move around, hoping not feel the void that Sugary had mentioned. Luckily, he had missed the fact that Mittere had forgotten his name and the fact that Sugary probably handled the sand issue for the time being. Yet, the urgency in his voice made Blade question the Princess briefly and give her more attention in order to help spot whatever worried Sugary.

“I knew she was of ill temper, but this is quite the development," Mittere scoffed with with some amusement. No matter what anypony else would say to her, she found it amusing. It wasn't anything against Fearful, she couldn't figure out that pony properly enough to form an opinion. She was not very likely to see him again very often, especially now he was deprived of one of the things that made her interested in him. It was a shame for the world to lose a stallion. "Man up," she told the limping mare, who was meant to be so sure of her abilities."Though you have already done the opposite, haven't you?" It was a cruel joke maybe, but she could walk it off. Walk it off! Mittere was on fire right now. Feeling so good made her feel that she could take Luna on pretty easily if Sugary failed to reach an understanding with her.

“You’re overreacting, it’s not like that. I merely saw what she was doing and I knew I had to stop her from..." Luna began to step backwards, an embarrassed reddened flush to her face. She'd done something wrong, she knew that, and an apology probably wouldn't cut it. “It is not something I meant…” caught up in her embarrassment, was unable to respond in defence as Sugary harshly doused her with water, as though hurting Fearful was not enough. After a moment of shock and pain, as well as getting very wet, she cast a barrier to protect herself from further water, and anything else that would threaten. Sugary's little fiction was just that, and was not reflective of the reality of things.

Celestia was displeased with how quick ponies were turning toward Luna. If anypony was going to have to do anything it should be her. Haste in her actions was not a point she flaunted as a strength however. “Halt, Market,” she ordered. “Neither is she until you can prove otherwise. This could be a trap to turn us against one another.”

Blade saw some success, or at least little failure as he tried to map out below the surface. The sand did not react and cause some catastrophic trap to set off or any such thing. The sand went deeper but did bottom out. There was no hard evidence of this, but from how the marble hit something and then was destroyed it was safe to assume there was something hard at the bottom. Maybe some monster ready to jump out like the guard expected, or just solid rock as though they were somewhere normal.

Blade had to admit that he had felt sorry for the Princess since she had made a mistake though albeit a rather odd mistake. Mittere's comment was unfunny in his opinion and decided to use a constructive way to tell here that. He focused a small amount of magic into his hoof, making a small letter looking object and slide it over to Mittere. Once it was in front of her, it would burst open to show a trophy with the words "Worst Joke Ever Told" written on it. He'd have it fade away with a small grin on his face and was sure that Sugary would calm down about the matter. His smile faded when the marble construct was destroyed.

"Alright, there is a bottom." He muttered to himself and glanced over at the vampony and then to Luna that was hopefully still in her barrier. "Okay, I found a bottom to the sand pit, but the marble I sent was destroyed when it hit the ground. So, anypony want to head down there or find another way?"

Sugary was far too focused on Luna's and Fearful's states to really pay mind to Summer's rather tasteless comment, keeping a bit more water floating around him just in case as he then turned his ears over to Celestia, but not looking away from the rest. His tone wasn't a harsh one, but he wasn't about to drop his guard. "You think it's a trap when I douse your sister but not when she attacks Fearful outright!? If you want me to believe you, then look after both of them closely yourself!" Something still felt wrong in the room to him, but he had no better clues yet, and Summer had not answered him. He worried he relied too much on her, but at the same time, she was the only one to be there with him when the other voice showed up in the form of the false Luna. He also hoped he did the right thing by splashing Luna herself, even if hard, to ensure there was no more sand on her if that was the problem. Blade would not have his support just yet.

"Luna," Fearful smiled up her. "Please, tell me what you meant to do. I'm not angry at you, just concerned..." she stopped herself from grimacing as the invasive tendrils of the Armour of the Night forced her bones back into alignment. "Why did you have to stop me... what threat does the sand pose beyond concealing our enemies?"

"Miterre, my friend, I would appreciate it if you would not make any more terrible puns at my expense. The next one will cost you a limb," Fearful's smile had not faded, but when directed at Miterre, it would become twistes and warped.

"Sugary, I asked you to douse the mare, not insult her. And I understand that you are angry, but I am not in such a condition that I will not recover from it." She smiled gently and turned to face the sand. "I do not think exploration will yield much at the moment sadly..."

Mittere found no amusement in how Blade expressed his opinion. She just gave him a glare - the same glare he was becoming very good at getting out of her - and left it at that. She didn't ask for his opinion, and he was meant to be making progress with things anyway. Once Fearful expressed her disapproval, gave a haughty snort. "When you leave yourself so exposed, it becomes something close to a duty for me. And do not think I have forgotten all the times you have laughed at me. If you cannot take such a small jest, I know not how you live," she coughed. "I am sorry. I just realised that you do not." Mittere felt punstoppable at present, and wanted to carry on and finish things swiftly so she could write a poem while everything was so free flowing.

"I think this is all suspect," Celestia answered Sugary. "There is wisdom in you caution Sugary, but, if we start not trusting a pony, no matter which of us it is, then that is letting the force trying to drive us apart succeed, correct? We're better together, and they likely know that full well from all that’s happened so far." Her words still did not stop her from looking to Luna in the hopes of an explanation that was weighty and valid, though she held her doubts. The sand was the only real explanation she could come to, but that theory was odd and she didn’t want to come to that conclusion.

"It was not my own will,” Luna answered, still keeping a barrier around herself in case anypony else thought it would be funny  It was like a sneeze. I didn’t want to stop you, but it just happened.” She pawed at her face, trying to remove the sand that no amount of water seemed to. She winced as she touched it and gave a slight cry of pain as she tried to scratch it off. It seemed to be adhered rather firmly to her, and this agitated the princess greatly. “I am sorry Fearful, it is likely for the best that I keep myself busy to avoid any more hiccups like that. Now, may we please focus on finding the path ahead?"

"Leaving oneself exposed is your specialty I believe Miterre, sorry that I imposed upon your territory. It shall not happen again, I can promise you that," Fearful smirked, before turning to Luna. "Hold still my dear, I believe that sand is influencing you... may I try something in order to remove it from you?" She asked, flapping her good wing to climb to the same height as her.

Sugary could only nod at Celestia, and trust Fearful and her to deal with Luna somehow from here on out. Instead, his focus would go to Summer and the sand itself along with Blade and the troops. He began by casting Summer a disapproving stare. "Madam, there's a time and a place for jokes, and now is as tasteless a time and place as can be. Has the sand gotten to you too, or do you actually intend to help with this problem? Because you sure look like you got the energy for it." He looked and sounded quite bemused. He was willing to be her mate once things settled down, but he'd never relinquish the free will to call her out on her misgivings. He was also, of course, concerned something really was wrong. He remembered her so far as carrying herself with more dignity, and her recent jests were anything but dignifying.

Blade was ignored due to whatever was happening with Luna and because Mittere suddenly wanted to be a comedian. Of course, he could make a tomato construct and toss it at her, but he had to investigate as he got some more time. So, with the simple task of creating five more marbles and moving them into the sand and hoped to get them to move through the sand just as easily. If he had to force them through or just let them travel down the sand, he would still have the small constructs start to come together as a single orb in order to make a stronger one. Then, he would have to wait for it to be destroyed or touched before thinking of doing anything else.

"I do not wish you to touch me," Luna said, pulling away more. "The chances of something dangerous happening are high. I don't want to attack anypony again," she paused to note some of the tension in the air before giving a sigh. She lowered the protection she had cast, ending her self imposed confinement. “Just please be careful, nothing to sudden or powerful," she warned, seeing the need to get her problem treated, but still not wishing it to be the cause of any more inconvenience or pain to Fearful, or the cause of her getting any more damp.

Mittere glowered at Fearful’s back once he had turned, having thoughts about how unfortunate for him it would be to get attacked again so soon. That wouldn’t help the situation much. It still took a look from Celestia to make her drop the idea, though it really only made it more appealing. "I am fine," she said, giving a sweet smile to Sugary that was far from genuine. She ignored the rest of what he said, blah blah immaturity blah blah. She wanted nothing to do with it. Her jokes were fine, it was not as there was anything serious danger, not with the oh-so-perfect Celestia and her entourage  anyway. She didn't even know why she was here. "I do not see any cause for alarm if she has already apologised. If a bit of sand causes everypony so much panic, my grandson can take care of it. He needs the experience."

Mittere turned away from all of the commotion about Luna, having little else to contribute there. “I am going to help this somewhat adept guard, he appears to be the only other one interested in us making progress. Now then," she said to Blade. She still remembered his his name, but chose not not to speak it. "Explain to me how this magic scouts ahead, and what it tells you. Somepony important is listening this time." Mittere watched the sand, not knowing what was happening underneath. The magic once again had an easy enough time penetrating the sand. They all went about their separate ways with no interruptions, easily coming together and facing no resistance. As the more powerful construct reached the point the weaker one had dissipated before it managed to continue, but only for a few moments more. There was certainly something below that had been squashed, was retreating or whatever else.

"... If you say so, Madam..." Sugary looked to Summer after she spoke, but he simply was not convinced she was as she claimed. Rather than follow her, he opted to help out with her claim as he moved over to Diurnae, warily looking at her and Blade, and the sand while keeping an alert glow on his horn. When he was close enough, he'd whisper to her great grandson. "Diurnae... Forgive me if you can, but is Summer really that much of a grudge holder? I know Fearful hasn't been entirely kind to her, but this is too much... Is something really wrong with her, or am I just paranoid? And can you actually do something about the sand? I'll help in any way I can f it means getting things back to normal."

Fearful's snout twitched, but she nodded at Luna's words and smiled gently. "I promise nothing too sudden, or powerful," she hugged Luna and nuzzled her mane. "I will make sure nothing bad happens."

Pulling back from the hug, she leaned in and began to examine the sand, giving it some very gentle prods with her hoof to see just how tightly it was attached to the mare's face, before tapping her own chin and nodding. "Right, first things first, I'm going to cast a little painkiller spell, ok?"

Blade raised a brow as he noticed Mittere approach him and it surprised him that she had. He didn't care for the fact that she carried herself in such a way and found it insulting that she did so with the Princesses' around. " He shrugged, not finding a reason why not to explain it to the alicorn and kill some time as he waited. "They are simple things and only tell me through touch and anything outside of that, I have nothing. They are just small marbles of energy that move through the sand and down to whatever is at the bottom." He said while the orbs came together and only lasted a few moments longer than they had for a few moments before. He sighed and his light faded out. "And each time they reach the bottom, they are destroyed. So, there is something down there, but as to what is a mystery for now." His gaze shifted to Sugary and Mittere's grandson, still iffy about the stallion. He had left some questions in Blade's mind and never gave him the answers that he wanted. Yet, at least he could see another display of power from somepony else.

"I see, so you cannot scout ahead in any more detail then? I am sure there is some way I can help you get more from them. I am doing precious little else with my time here after all," Mittere said to the guard. He was pretty accommodating to her requests, she'd expected a guard to be more uptight, but then she knew he was far from professional. Maybe less professionalism was better, he was good at what he was good at, not what he had been taught to do. Still, he was young, the system could get to him yet.

Diurnae left the comfort of his thoughts and perked his head up as Sugary whispered at him. He seemed to have jumped slightly in surprise.
"I don't know many ponies that go out of their way to annoy her. I do know what happens if feelings aren't properly addressed, but it'd be an assumption to say that. There's this good trick to finding out though. All it'll take is a whisper in the ear. Talking to people'll get you through a lot." He strode over to Mittere, seeming to be in a pretty good mood. It was good to help. Once he reached Mittere, he began to speak into her ear, being careful to not let Blade hear. This sparked an exchange of whispers between the two.

"Oh," Diurnae said loudly so Sugary could hear once he'd finished speaking with his dear grandmother, also accidently shouting in her ear.  "And about the sand. Of course I can. I took a look at that super old spell, remember? It was pretty weak, honestly, but good inspiration. Once you combine that with an understanding of how spells interact and propagate in a direction dissimilar to how view time then...Well, I actually didn't use any of that, but I used that it to create-"

"Diurnae, once you get passionate I can count with my hooves the people in the world that can follow. I assure you none of them are in this room," Mittere said. "Suffice to say Sugary, that if there is some kind of enchantment or charm at work, he can rid us of it."

"Yeah, that sand'll just become that gritty stuff at the beach. That gets into your mane when you..."

Luna was slightly surprised by Fearful's hug, especially so soon after her accident. She smiled a little, though that faded once she started to feel her face getting poked, but she understood the purpose of it. "I am grateful for you concern, but if I may offer some advice? Do not waste time, Fearful. If you have a plan please go forth with it. There is being gentle and there is being needlessly coddling.  You are no nurse, nor I a child, so let us do this as quickly and cleanly as possible," she wasn't trying to be mean, but the possibility of another accident was still there, especially if Diurnae made any sudden moves now. Celestia was in tune with this and walked forward to place a bracing hoof to hold him back while she glanced at Mittere disapprovingly, but didn't say anything. They really were waiting on Fearful to do as she had said.

"This is a curious enchantment... I cannot tell it is acting as a conduit or actually contains the spell itself... to bind such a spell, a compulsion likebthat to sand though..." Fearful murmured to herself before pausing and smiling at Luna. "Patience Lulu, I understand your wish to hurry, but I am hardly dawdling."

Her ear twitched and she glanced at Diurnae with curiosity. "A dispel cpuld be useful, but not in this situation. I am rather wary that the enemy may have placed a countermeasure upon the sand in case of such an attempt."

She returned her attention to Luna and stroked her clear cheek gently. "I am going to try something, and it is going to be painful, but it is quite safe, I promise."

Raising a hoof, the armour incasing it reformed itself into a thin blade. Singing a soft lullaby, she pulled a great deal of power from her reserves, ensuring that her next movements would be faster than the eye could follow. In the next few milliseconds, using her own steady hoof and vampiric eyesight, Fearful would cut off the thin layer of skin and fur that directly connected Luna to the sand. Once done, she would hold the skin in a telekinetic grip before incinerating.

"There... now, to seal the wound..." leaning forward, she licked Luna's fresh wound, healing it as best she could.

Sugary remained in the spot he was in, though he took Diurnae's words to heart as he moved to Summer's side. Seeing her act as when she and her grandson spoke in the cafeteria of Kephri, he thought that Celestia was on the mark about trust. "... I still think she's got an awful attitude, but... I shouldn't be condemning her either. This is not a good time for anyone."

Since it looked like Celestia was comfortable near Summer, and Blade and Diurnae were there as well while Fearful tended to Luna in another corner, he opted to keep to his corner with the other assortment of guards while following Diurnae's words. "But regardless of the nature of the spell, if there's a path we can take for it to proceed for it's intended purpose, then what are we hesitating for? Do you need us to make a sturdy interlinking coat around the sand for your spell to propagate, or can you handle the output-versus-upkeep ratio required to get this going yourself? I was intending to remain here to suppress anything aggressive trying to come out, but I can just as easily give it my all for your idea." Despite his rugged looks and muscle, he was still a Unicorn at heart. Making use of magic in practice and theory growing up never lacked its appeal as he studied it in his own experiences.

Blade didn't see a reason why he should withhold information due to it being towards the safety of all. He was about to question Mittere about how she could help him search though that's when her grandson came. Their whispering annoyed him for the simple fact that they didn't trust them for what was about to happen. Also, if Blade could have read minds then he would have told Sugary that Mittere was always like this, but he couldn't and opted to be silent as Diurane gave a vague description of his plan. "If we need cover fr the sand then I can easily provide it." He said as his horn lite up again and was ready to make a dome around them if he had to.

Luna felt pain but she had called for Fearful to not waste time. Though it was over fast, she felt a great and painful sting as her flesh was cut, though with a greater than surgical speed and precision. Even as the wound left was healed, it still stung from its exposure to air. “I hope you feel accomplished, Fearful," she said coldly. "You have just deprived the world of great beauty for some time." She touched the healed area, feeling the new patch on her face barren of fur. She’d miss those hairs while they were gone.

Diurnae smiled at Sugary, though it was the kind of smile that seemed to better fit a relative of his that was many years greater in age. He wasn't just some farm boy who wanted to see more of the world like Sugary and his sort. He may have had years of experience, but he had a strict and Immortal grandmother, a resource that few could boast of.

"I think I'll be fine. There's no lattice, so I have to work with a continuous random variable in order to manage..." Diurnae stopped himself again. "I'm going to first need some metal first though.” With some flourish he presented the metal that they had stolen, Sugary and Mittere did at the least, the others had their own engagements. “You didn't think she had you fetch that stuff to see you sweat and wear yourself out, did you?" He took a glance at the pony he was talking about and had a brief moment of doubt about what he said. He soon began to play with the stuff, though he'd already done plenty to flatten it out earlier. "With a little bit of magical cold rolling and the right spell I can metabolize the metal, including some of its special properties, think about how our friend metabolizes powerful blood. A contributing factor to its rarity.”

Feeling he’d spoken enough, Diurnae coated the small piece of metal in a strange spell before placing it into his mouth, sticking his tongue out in protest against the favour. He clutched at his chest as it went down. "Water please, somepony," he asked as he began with his spell. It seemed visually unceremonious, but it could undeniably be felt by all the magical sensitive ponies as a soft soothing feeling in the air, the type of smile inducing refreshment from some forms of helping magics. He lowered his head so his horn touched at the sand, a contact spell was far better for getting intimate with things. His magic kept him safe from harm as it began to diffuse throughout the sand. He maintained this spread of his own magic through the sand for a time, then poked his horn deeper as a check. He lifted his head back up and smiled. “That should do it. Now if you really want to help you can get digging. Some of us need to stay fresh in case of any more obstacles.”

Mittere looked to the ground and began to paw quietly at the sand beneath her. Though her idle kicks at the sand were not a conscious effort to help clear the sand, even if it did look she was trying to be of some help. She looked over to the area where Fearful had been playing nurse. Luna had not been too fortunate. It was cathartic to watch, but she also felt slightly bad. She hadn't actually done anything worthy of her ire today apart from siding with her sister, but that was not a surprise. She came to the conclusion that she might be alright, but only in the sense of a distant colleague.

Since Diurnae claimed to have it all under control, Sugary had to try and remain composed as Summer's relative took a rather archaic method in making use of a relic to augment his magic while on the alert for any suspicious activity.

Once it was all over, he remained on stand-by, but when it all seemed clear for the time being, he slowly made his way over to the other side, talking to some of the guards along the way. "If dig we must, we could make a long line and steadily drag the sand out of the way continuously rather than have a single magic user strain themselves moving it all out of the way and become a weakened link. Economy of energy and all that."

Ready and hopeful his idea would be used, he took a brief moment to speak with Summer specifically up close. "... Madam? Are you sure you're feeling alright? If there's something bothering you, I really wanna hear it. And please don't just say 'I'm fine'..."

Fearful snorted and kissed her cheek. "There's the Luna I remember. And I did warn you about the pain... I tried to make the cut as brief as possible." Rolling her eyes, she landed and smiled up at the mare. "Oh hush. Your fur will grow back in no time at all."

She watched Diurnae cast his spell and sniffed the air in distaste as it moved through the air and into the sand. She turned to Sugary and nodded, smiling a little. "Since I am too drained, and though I loathe to admit it, Mr Market is correct. Blade, I take it you can organise the troops? I do not think they would recognise my authority."

Blade gave out a controlled sigh as he realized that Diurane was just going to sit there and watch, again. The stallion had almost done nothing during the entire trip and get he was talking about staying "fresh". Blade just wanted to hit him though his mood improved a bit at Fearful's words, helping his passively injured pride. So, with a few quick orders, the Guard went to work. They dug into the ground without much trouble with the earth ponies getting the most up out of the mixture of the three races. Blade also helped in the digging process, not having found a reason not to help them dig.

Mittere seemed surprised when Sugary approached, seeming to think that there was something wrong with her, which was a silly notion. "Nothing I would wish to speak of here," Mittere said. “I have wasted enough time as of the present as is, it would be unseemly to compound to that. Your sentiments are noted but misplaced, please focus your attention on my person rather than my mind. If you do not preserve one, you will be unable to enjoy them both once we are through with things here.” She kicked sand over the shallow trench she had dug with her hoof, burying the mindset that had caused her to dig it. “If that is all Mr Market then I suggest you aid in the tasks at hand. You would have much greater impact than myself on things.” She half-smiled to him. “I am fine.”  

Summer gave a slight gasp, urging for Sugary’s attention. “Focus your efforts on the opening. Get everypony to do it. There is danger. Maybe. There is no better chokepoint to exploit.” She was certainly more distressed than her real counterpart had ever been seen, whatever information she had access to troubling her. If only she could be less vague...

“Your concept of no time is skewed by your years Fearful. Some of us maintain busy lives where a week is akin to a century.” Luna ignored the kiss and the playfulness from Fearful. She was annoyed mostly at herself. “Now, Fearful,” she began to say, the calling have a slightly sharp edge to it in order to draw her attention. “I do hope you have enough energy to be of use when the time comes. I hope you do not wish to be just an observer unlike others in our group.” she shook her head disapprovingly, though mentioned names. She did not remain by her side whilst awaiting a response and began to move forward to help with the digging. The mare burrowed at the sand rather furiously, as if trying to exact some revenge on it.  

The digging was slow, but still went rather quickly thanks to the number of ponies helping. Celestia watched on anxiously as more sand was cast aside. Had they been better prepared, had she been better prepared they could have brought provisions with them, and tools for this type of thing. She should have been able to make the connection behind a world eating beast and a love of the earth. She would see, though the guards would have the best view as their efforts began to be rewarded. The depth of several ponies down was the force that Blade’s probing magic had encountered, a shielding spell shrouding the way ahead deeper below, now cackling like a faulty transformer.

Diurnae’s plan of staying fresh was cut unfortunately short by this new obstacle. Knowing it would slow things down while everypony spoke about what to do, he simply stole the choice away from everypony in the room. Seeking permission was a waste of time was what he got told. Preparing his spell as his made his way through the guards, he was more than ready by the time he reached the front. As he cast the sounds began to die down, he was almost done.

With the real Summer claiming to be as sane as he could generally make her out to be, and the ghostly being with her form and tone suddenly warning him of danger, Sugary perked up and hurried over to where Diurnae was once he got a word in with Summer. "Another threat from down there? No rest for the dutiful. Madam, stay alert, your double warns of trouble!"

Making his way past the guards in a rush, he too warned them as best as he could. "Everyone watch for an opening in that barrier, there might be more danger coming right away! And Diurnae, make sure you duck when you're done!" There were many assumptions to be sure, but best to rally those around him fast and warn Diurnae about getting out of the way of a possible crossfire as he lit his own horn, ready to tackle down his possible future son-in-law if need be...