Cassandra/Stories

General Stories Misc

Quotes

On Sortied

Seek you a sage's sagacity, deary?

On Entering a Room

One genius sorceress at your service.

When Quest Begins

Follow me, dearies!

You've not forgotten anything, have you?

Response to Beginning of a Quest

You youngsters won't outdo me!

Oh, this old girl's still got a few tricks left in her!

When Controlling Character in Quest

My sorcery’s unparalleled, so it is.

When Receiving a Heal

Thank you, love.

It's like you took sixty years away!

When Entering a Boss' Room

Oh, we've got a feisty one here!

*sigh* Let's get this over with.

Response to Entering a Boss' Room

Oh, it's time for a whuppin' all right.

Oh, we'll finish this one up lickety-split!

Upon Getting to Low Health

I'm too old for this kind of thing...

I suppose that might have been a LITTLE reckless...

Upon Opening a Chest

Ooo, what have we here? Bread pudding and penny whistles?

Don't spend that all in one place now, hear?

Boss on Low Health

We ARE doing well today!

*giggle* Nearly finished now...

Boss Enters Break State

Give this one a good walloping!

You've left yourself wide open!

Rare Enemy Spawns

I won't let this one get away!

Some sort of mutation? How intriguing!

Upon Death

Oh, Aurelius... Forgive this silly old woman...

This is it for me, is it...?

Player Uses Damaging Skill

Well DONE, dearie.

My, but that IS a captivating skill you have there.

When Shape Shifting is Ready

My dragon's ready!

Oh, but I DO feel young again!

Shape Shifting into Dragon

Here comes the hocus pocus!

Idle During Quest

Oh, but these joints do love to bark on cloudy days...

I've got some hard candies here, dearie. Take two, they're small!

Quest Clear

I haven’t lost my touch yet, dearie!

Quest Failure

Oh, fiddlesticks! I got myself in a ditter...

Home Screen Walking

Mayhap I should go gather some materials.

Time for some magical experiments...

Staying up all night does this skin no favors...

This place is chock full of young'uns, so it is!

I will fight in his stead.

Might be time to go scribble in the ol' diary.

Home Screen Inside

This is normally my research time—but since you're here, how about a nice cup of tea, dear?

The little baby is all grown up and lord of his own castle. My, but the years DO fly by!

I'm gathering books on magic research. If you find a rare one, please do let me know.

I'm a bit picky when it comes to brewing tea. One must make sure the water has plenty of air!

My, there are SO many skilled mages here! Perhaps a tea party to swap notes is in order.

As court sorceress, I saw everything. Battle of succession, unrequited love... Oh, I saw it all!

Home Screen Portrait

Hmm? The secret of youth? Mmhmmhmmhmmhmmhmmhmm!

I might not look it, but I was a sorceress of some renown back in my day.

I served in the castle when Aurelius was a lad. Oh, but I showed him all kinds of spells!

The young fellow wouldn't know romance if it bopped him in the nose, just like his father!

Collection Portrait

What does a court sorceress do? Oh, magical research, observing mana patterns, the occasional meddling in politics...

It's rude to ask a lady's age, dear!

I held you in my arms as a baby, young man. Oh, but your cheeks were just the cutest!

Even a sorceress of my caliber was powerless to control the magic of love.

Now, young man, I've worked out an exceptional trick and baked some delicious cookies. Which will it be?

At The Halidom

This splendid castle is every bit the equal of the royal castle where I once bided my time!

Do you need a hug, young man?

The mana in this place is simply fascinating...

Adventurer Story Episodes

Episode 1

Cassandra's Tome

Please note that this story contains spoilers for chapter 5 of the main campaign and the Fractured Futures event. Hell, someone OPENED me? Ain't you a weird one! Might someone explain why this book is SPEAKING TO ME? Might YOU explain why you're runnin' your grubby paws all over my pages? Looking for a love spell, maybe? Mmm? Well, tough luck for you, sister, because I don't truck with that kind of thing. But I DO have something else interesting. Veeeery interesting! Muah ha ha ha! AAAAAAAAUUUUGGGH! Several hours earlier, at Cassandra's magical workshop... I brought you some tea, dearie. Drink it down before it goes cold. Thank you. ...Tsk! Hot! Hot hot! I don't think you need worry about this tea getting cold. So then! To what do I owe the pleasure? Surely whatever it is could have waited until my next visit to the castle, mmm? Well... Or is there some gentleman IN the castle who shouldn't overhear our chatter? Euden, perhaps? Mmm? How did you know? I'm a magical genius, dearie! Nothing escapes this watchful eye. Now then, spill your beans. You know how His Highness is, yes? Kind and cheerful... Eager to help... That's true. He's a model prince— not many boys his age are like that. But no matter how well he hides it, I know the sadness of losing his country and family must still burden him. I can't help but feel His Highness is suffering in silence. I wish to support him. Not just in battle, but emotionally as well. Because you love him. Th-that is not what I am implying at all! His Highness is my sworn liege lord— nothing more or less. If you say so, dearie. In any case, why come to me with this? I hear you once served King Aurelius as a court sorceress of sorts. And that you've known His Highness since he was a child. Which seems rather...um... You think I look too young for that, yes? Y-yes... And yet, I've rambled this old world three times as long as you, dearie. B-but that would make you... Ah ah ah! It's rude to speak of age. Let's return to the subject at hand. It sounds like you think I'll be able to advise you in this because I knew Euden as a child. But when I left the palace, he was a baby not even knee-high to a grasshopper! I don't know anything about his life once he started walking and talking and such, so I don't know how much help I'll be. I see... Sorry to disappoint, dearie. No, the fault is mine for jumping to conclusions. Oh, but I feel terrible turning you away with just a cup of tea after you schlepped all this way to see little ol' me... Say now! Are you a reader? I enjoy a good book, yes. Then I have JUST the thing! Let me lend you this. What is it? Oh, just a bit of light reading. But be sure you're alone when you open it, all right? I shall bear that in mind. Oh! I have some cookies and macarons in the pantry. We can have them with the tea. ...Heavens, is that the time? I must get back to the castle! Well, what a fine little party we whipped up here, eh? It's been a long time since I last sat down for some tea with a girl a third my age. I should do it more often! Now where did I put those hard candies...? (Urrrgh... If she keeps pushing food on me, I am like to burst open right here.) You know, I've not been part of the prince's troupe for nearly as long as you. But he's still a special person to me. All that to say, I'm happy you thought of old Cassandra for this little problem. I'm not certain I understand. Yes, well, off you go! Back to the castle before Cleo gives us both the business for you missing curfew! Yes, I suppose you're right. Good night, then. Poor child. I don't want her to experience what I did... I didn't expect her to say His Highness was special to her. What could she mean by that? Is she implying...? Ah! That book fell from the desk and gave me quite the fright! Oh, this is the one Cassandra gave me. The one I am supposed to read alone. Well, I certainly seem to be alone now. Might as well see what I'm dealing with. Oh, it's a diary. Goodness, this page was written 40 years ago! Did you just TURN MY PAGES? Muah ha ha ha! Who goes there?! Who speaks?! It's me! The book you're holdin' in those buttersmooth hands! I'm sorry. Are you a...talking book? Look at the big brain on this one! Zing! I beg your pardon?! And hell, someone OPENED me? Ain't you a weird one! Might someone explain why this book is SPEAKING TO ME? Might YOU explain why you're runnin' your grubby paws all over my pages? Looking for a love spell, maybe? Mmm? Well, tough luck for you, sister, because I don't truck with that kind of thing. But I DO have something else interesting. Veeeery interesting! Muah ha ha ha! AAAAAAAAUUUUGGGH! ...What happened? Is this a castle? It doesn't look like the Halidom. Where am I?! How did I get here?! Flustered, eh? Good! Veeeery good! Muah ha ha ha ha! You're that talking book! Yep! But I also happen to be a NICE talkin' book, which is why I'm gonna skip all the guessin' and riddles' and just tell ya that you're in the palace of Alberia. ...Oh, and it's 40 years in the past. Probably should mention that, eh? Zing! WHAAAT?!

Episode 2

World of Memories

First I encounter a talking book, and then said talking book somehow transports me 40 years into the past?! Easy, sister! Take a deep breath or three and just relaaaax. *huff* *puff* Yes, that is a bit better. Now then, who ARE you? Me? I'm Douleur—the coolest damn magic diary around! A magic...diary? Yep! See, you've been transported inside someone's diary...with the power of MAAAAAGIC! So this is the past, but only sorta. More like I gave life to the words somebody scribbled down on paper. This is somewhat difficult to believe. Muah ha ha ha! You're one'a them types that needs proof, eh? Well, in that case, feast your eyes on THIS! C-Cassandra? What's going on?! Ah! My hand passed right through her! That's 'cause she ain't real—it's actually the Cassandra from 40 years ago. NOW do you believe this is an illusion? Supposing it is true, whose diary are you, and what is your aim in bringing me here? You really need to ask that first one? C'mon, you already know! I suppose I did suspect as much. And as for the second question, I ain't tryin' to achieve a thing. I'm just a tour guide for folks that open up the diary. Nothin' more, nothin' less. ＂Day 25, Month of the Stardragon The world has Dragonyule fever!＂ Ah! I just heard a voice in my head! Those are the words written in this diary. They're bein' sent directly into your mind. Like I said...MAAAAAAAGIC! ＂This is a day when everyone sets aside their worldly cares for pleasure—with one exception.＂ Another illusion. Could that be...? Oh, you know it—that's King Aurelius! Er, the one from 40 years ago, though. Time for us to witness a little scene from our dear old Cassandra's past. Quiet on the set! Aaaand...ACTION! You look like you're going to stare a hole into those, Aurelius. Hello, Cassandra. That's quite the pile of documents and letters from the people you have there. You know it's Dragonyule, right? No one would blame you for putting paperwork aside and having a bit of fun. A holiday is no excuse to stop working for my people and country. Oh, you ARE a model king—so much so that I can't help but worry about you! Maybe your big sister should teach you some bad habits so you learn to get out and let your hair down! Hee hee! I think not. Stop treating me like a little brother. Someone has hit their rebellious teens! And I remember when you used to go on and on about how much you adored your big sister, the brilliant sorceress. That was a long time ago. But since you brought it up, I have long thought your lack of temperance to be inappropriate for a court sorceress. That fact is particularly apparent in your choice of dress, which many of my vassals have stated they find most improper. Could you not wear something else? Nope! I live the life I want to live, and that includes my ＂choice of dress.＂ Still, what a bunch of adolescents we have in court if THIS distracts them. You wouldn't be one of them, mmm? Mmmmmm? *sigh* Stop rubbing up against me— and don't even THINK about doing that to any of my vassals. You'd likely cause the poor things to faint dead away. Oh, boo! You're so boring. Enough of this foolishness. I have work to do. Oh, very well. Get to it, then. ...... ...... Er, do you think you'll get through that entire pile before the end of the day? Hmm... Because I heard about a delightful little cafe that recently opened up in town. Their Saint Lotier seafood soup is supposed to be divine. Hmm... Perhaps we could sneak down there together after you're done with...all this. You know? Just the two of us? ...... Aurelius? Hmm? Oh, sorry. I was lost in thought. What did you just say? ...Never mind. I'll leave you to your work. Honestly! That man... ＂When it comes to his people, Aurelius spares no effort. He is truly a model king.＂ That was her memory from 40 years ago. I had no idea she was so close to His Majesty. Their relationship felt more like friends than king and subject. Yeah, she'd been with him as a court sorceress since he was young. So he saw her as a kind of big sister, despite what he claimed. Although it appears she thought of him in quite a different way entirely. What makes ya think that? I suppose it's more of a feeling than anything. Woman's intuition, eh? Well, let's put those instincts of yours to the test, sister! Whatever do you mean? We're skippin' ahead a few years! Muah ha ha ha! Aaaaah!

Episode 3

Monarch and Magician

Well, we made it! Oh, and this page is from a few years after that Dragonyule. Urgh...my eyes... So this is the Halidom years later. It does seem to be in a festive mood. Well, it WAS a special occasion... Muah ha ha ha! ＂Day 18, Month of the Raindragon Today, the palace was even noisier than usual.＂ ＂Everyone's cheers of happiness grated on me, but I couldn't blame them for their joy. After all...＂ Congratulations on your marriage, Your Highness! Ah, it's a marriage celebration. Lovely! Er, but where is Cassandra? Look over there. Hard to believe someone actually agreed to marry you. Still, congrats and all that. I hope you both live long, happy lives. Thank you, Cassandra. *sigh* As for me, I never have been comfortable with crowds and...so on. I'm going to take a walk. I'll see you later. ＂Thank you,＂ he says. Bah! Still, what is he supposed to say? What did I even WANT him to say? Oh dear. She really did... ＂I always knew it was going to come to this. I'm a sorceress and he's a king—and nothing will ever change that.＂ ＂I need to cast aside these feelings if I'm to remain by his side in even some capacity.＂ Oh, you nailed it, all right. Zing! To her, Aurelius was no little brother. Yet she chose to remain by his side and serve him for many years afterward, yes? She is a strong woman indeed to set aside such feelings and do her duty. Wait, you think she's strong? Pffffft! Muaaaaah ha ha ha ha! Well, someone is amused. Sorry! Sorry. It's just that you couldn't have been more wrong if ya tried! Here, lemme prove it to you. Muah ha! We have arrived in the capital. ＂Day 7, Month of the Mistdragon.＂ ＂The palace maids can't stop gossiping about how the young twins have taken their first steps.＂ ＂I had to leave the palace to get away from their incessant chattering.＂ ＂Young twins＂? Then this was... That's right. Over a decade ago, when Euden and his sister were but infants. This is your chance to see him when he was an adowable widdle baby! I'll thank you not to tease me, book! Now then, where is Cassandra? There, in front of the gate. Whyever is she dressed like that? She was almost fifty at this point, so she's tryin' to hide all the wrinkles and crow's feet and gray hair you people get when you get old. But she looks younger NOW! Oh, you'll see why in a minute. Muah ha! Thank you for carrying my things, dearie. I'll go the rest of the way by carriage. Would you not at least wait for His Highness to return, ma'am? It will be easier for me to leave while he isn't here. If I may, ma'am, he seemed deeply sad that you are deciding to retire. He's now a father of eight children but still needs his big sister around, eh? Still, I've made up my mind. Life as a court sorceress isn't bad, but there are SO many limitations on research. I want to be able to research magic in whatever way I choose, dearie—and to do that, I need to be on my own. Do you have any message you would like me to relay to him, ma'am? Just tell him to write me occasionally. I said I was leaving to conduct whatever research I desired, but... ＂But that was a lie. I left because I needed to get away from Aurelius.＂ ＂In the end, I simply couldn't silence those annoying feelings inside of me.＂ Then she still... Zing! She couldn't get over the guy, yet chose to stay by his side anyway. Eventually, she couldn't take it anymore. What a whopper! What a zinger! What a terribly sad tale! Muaaah ha ha ha! What a cruel, unkind thing you are! The poor woman was simply— What? Devoted? Loyal? Pffft! Spare me, sister. That lady was stuck in the past and couldn't claw her way out. You want proof? Take a look at THIS! This place look familiar? This is Cassandra's magical workshop. Er, but what is she drawing there? Some manner of magical sigil? Yeah, this is four or five years ago, when she was about 60. ＂Day 13, Month of the Duskdragon. His first letter in some time finally spurred me to action.＂ ＂I knew full well he was busy with his duties in the palace, and that he may have just written about coming for a visit out of courtesy.＂ ＂But just the thought he MIGHT come was enough to spur me on to finish the spell I'd been working on.＂ Right then! Once I activate it, everything inside the sigil will be created anew. ...Er, theoretically, that is. If it fails, someone's going to find this old body festooned from the rafters like so many party favors... But that's a risk I'll take. ＂O ye who preside over the laws of the abyss! Grant the blessing of new birth to all who inhabit this sigil!＂ ...And give me the body I want. Urgh... Nnngh... Aaaaaaaaaargh! What's happening to her?! She's rebuilding her own body with the power of MAAAAAAGIC! Then the reason she appears so young in the current day... AAAAAAAAAAAAARGHH! *cough* *cough* It...worked. I look just as I did before! But... But I am still nothing but a fool. Oh, Cassandra... Hey, she's not wrong—she IS a fool. Because after going through all that suffering to become young again, it ended up being all for nothing!

Episode 4

Moving Forward

＂I don't even remember what day it is today, such is the confusion ruling my mind.＂ ＂The kingdom I served has suddenly become an empire, with him trampling the rest of the continent beneath his bootheel.＂ ＂He always cared so much for his people; what could possibly have happened to him? I need to meet him and find out.＂ Are we back at the palace now? ...No, things are too ominous for that. Oh, we're in the palace—but it belongs to the Dyrenell Empire now. And guess who's sittin' in the big chair?! It is the king-turned-emperor himself. Hello, Aurelius. It's me, Cassandra. It has been a while. ...... Stunned into silence by my youthful good looks? Ah, can't say I blame you. Still you're not the only one surprised by things changing. This palace is NOTHING like I remember. The air is stagnant. Almost...oppressive. It's like I've entered a different world. I fear I may go mad if I breathe it for too much longer. Might I open a few windows? ...... You're a smart, devoted king, Aurelius. One so dedicated to your people that you refused to take even Dragonyule off. Yet now you expect me to believe you suddenly turned into a murderer who delights in violence? No, Aurelius. People don't work that way. No one changes into a monster overnight. ...... I hear you changed after entering the Binding Ruins. What did you meet there? And what did you bring BACK? Whatever it is, it's threatening you. Where in the palace is it? There's no need to be afraid, Aurelius. Just tell me what I need to know, and I will set you free. ...... Aurelius! ...... Say something. Gaaah! What malevolent energy... Have you been taken over by something?! Aaaargh! STOP! Haaaaah! Give it up, kid. None of what you're seeing is real. I cannot stand back and watch this! Well you're gonna have to, because nothing you do can change a memory. Urgh... Au...relius... What happened to her after this? Oh, she got thrown into some dank dungeon where she lived on bread and rats for a while. Eventually, she managed to escape and make her way back to the workshop. That's when she learned that Aurelius had died while she was in the slammer. ＂I awoke from a nightmare.＂ ＂I couldn't stop thinking that if I hadn't left the palace, things might have turned out differently.＂ ＂I might have been able to stop him from going to the Binding Ruins to begin with.＂ ＂I could have gone with him. Protected him. Maybe even taken that evil in his place.＂ ＂But it was too late. Everything was too late.＂ ＂The next thing I knew, I was in one of the Binding Ruins. I must have made my way there without even thinking.＂ ＂I've no idea why. There was nothing I could actually DO there, after all.＂ ＂And yet I wandered there, day after day. Almost as if I was...looking for him.＂ ＂But he was no longer in this world. There was nothing I could do for him.＂ ＂Yet I still...＂ ＂In the end, Cassandra was consumed by regret, and spent her days walking the earth like a living corpse.＂ ...The end! It is so terribly sad. Sure, but it's also the truth. This is a diary, sister, not some sappy romance novel where you're guaranteed a happy ending. Anyway, there's one more page left. What do you wanna do? It coooould be even more depressing than all the other stuff you've seen! Muah ha! I fear to learn what is on that page... And yet, the Cassandra we know now seems much more positive than the one in this diary. If that last page holds the answer to that riddle, I want to see it. Because I could potentially face a similar future... Muah ha... MUAAAAH HA HA HA HA! You're scared, but ya STILL wanna see! All right, sister! You asked for it! Last page, comin' up! ZING! Oh, we're back in the workshop. There's Cassandra, and over there... Wait, is that Euden? It's good to see you again, young man. I came to thank you for what you did the other day. If not for your advice, Chronos would likely have... Fiddlesticks! I just gave you a nudge in the right direction. But never mind that now. Are you sure you're all right, young man? What with your father and your sister? It hurts. It hurts a lot. But so long as I have countrymen asking for my assistance, I have to hold my head up. You know it's Dragonyule, right? No one would blame you for putting paperwork aside and having a bit of fun. A holiday is no excuse to stop working for my people and country. You're so earnest—just like he was when he was younger. Although I fear you're TOO earnest. I can't help but worry that one setback may cause you to keel over and collapse. If I take a wrong turn, my friends will put me right. That's why I can keep fighting. Ah, yes. It's certainly important to have someone by your side. And the more allies you have, the better. Hmm... Yes, that's very true... ＂Today I resolved to join the prince's fight.＂ ＂The man I spent so much time with is no more. I can do nothing else for him.＂ ＂But I can still do for the son what I could not for the father.＂ ＂Perhaps this is all just an exercise to make myself feel better...but I can live with that.＂ ＂I just don't want any more regrets.＂ So that's what she meant about His Highness being special to her. But it was only luck that gave her a second chance. Not everyone gets that. So don't you go livin' a life where you hold everything back. Don't make the same mistakes she did, yeah? Remember these memories, grab life by the lapels, and shake it till it pops! I fear this sudden wave of kindness, coming as it does from you. Muaaaaah ha ha ha! Welp, storytime is over now, sister. I'll see ya around! See me around? What does—AAAAAH!

Episode 5

Living Without Regret

Here's some tea for you, dearie. Careful, now! It's hot. Noted, thank you. So what brings you here today? I came to return the book you allowed me to borrow the other day. Hmm... I see the spell I put on it has been activated. You must have given it a gander, then. If I may, just what IS Douleur? He referred to himself as a magical diary, but as soon as I finished reading the contents, he ceased to speak. Technically speaking, this is just a diary that I cast a spell on—one that shows an illusion to whoever opens it. Douleur is just a... Well, an avatar of sorts. But now the spell has been broken, so it's back to being an ordinary book. But what I saw DID happen, yes? Of course it did, dearie! What better way to while away the hours than with the story of a sorceress's wasted life? Please do not speak of yourself like that. After seeing it, I understand how you feel. I understand it most deeply. Ha! Then it was worth my lending it to you. But why DID you show it to me? I shudder to think of other people looting through my own memories. What did Douleur say when you finished reading? He told me to remember the memories and live a life without regrets. Then there's your answer, dearie! ...Still, do you know what I regret most? I never told the old fool how I felt. One can hardly be blamed for not telling a KING of their feelings for him. Oh, I know how it would have ended. But it still would have felt better to just be rejected by him directly. I probably could have stayed with him in that case, and not let it eat away at me like it has all these years. If you're not honest with your feelings, they'll keep weighing on your heart— and you'll find yourself wanting to run away from him. Now then, dearie! You first came to me for advice on how to support that prince of yours emotionally, mmm? But you need to decide how, exactly, you want to do that. Is it as a faithful knight in his service? Or is it something...more? I care about His Highness deeply. I know this to my very core. But whether my feelings are the same as those you had for King Aurelius, I cannot be certain. Oh, but you are a charmer! Well, dearie, you don't need to have that figured out right now—but you will need to eventually. Hmm... The first step on that road is to share whatever is making your face scrunch up like that. I'll fetch some snacks, then you and me can sit here and have a little jaw. Get it all off your chest! ...Goodness, is that the time? Today has really flown. Thank you for all you did for me today. I still don't have the answer I sought, but I feel much better after our talk. You won't find the answer in a day, dearie. Just keep your ears open and your heart full and it'll come to you. And whatever relationship you decide you want, I'll be just fine with it so long as you keep supporting him. I shall stay by his side to the bitter end. That's what I wanted to hear. Ta ta, dearie! Right then, Douleur! Time to get up. Ya REALLY took your time wakin' me up! I'm just a normal diary without your mana, ya know! Such cheek! That's no way to treat the woman who just woke you up. My personality is just a reflection of yours. But that Elisanne? W-O-W! She's so pure and honest it makes me wanna puke! Muaaaah ha ha ha ha! Keep that talk up and I'll use you for kindling. Well, ain't we a scary old witch! ...So how's the kid holdin' up, anyway? She's still searching for her answer, but I'm sure she'll be fine. ...Unlike me. Good to know all my hard work wasn't for nothin'. By the way, I sure got a lot of new friends while I was away, huh? You mean the books on the shelves? Yes, I'm delving into some new research. Lemme see what we got here. ＂A Study of Mana and Personalities...＂ ＂The Encyclopedia of Ritual Magic...＂ ＂Communing with the Dead...＂ The hell kinda research are you planning here, lady?! You ain't really gonna— Enough, book! Some things are much better left unspoken. You really are an idiot. You know that, right? Oh, I'll not deny it. But even now, I still can't help but want to do something. Anyway, that's enough chitter-chatter. Open up! I need one of your pages. I just woke up and you're already puttin' me to work? Whhhh-ksssssh! Please. Fine, fine. What page? The day Euden was born. Comin' right up. ＂After seeing the faces of his newborn twins, he returned to the throne room, busy as ever.＂ ＂But he must have been relieved, because while his other retainers weren't present, he drifted off to sleep on his throne.＂ ...... Heh. He looks so happy as he sleeps. Their births must have brought him no end of joy. That boy's far too kind when compared to your other children, Aurelius. But don't worry, I'll be there to ensure nothing comes along to steal his joy. So rest well...you old fool.