#gaul wot

[caraianellisande]

Everybody seems to have one of these so here's my interpretation of the WoT Polycule!

Some of these relationships are defnitely deeper than others but they're all there lol.

[asha-mage]

Dain, standing up: "Hi, my name is Dain Bornhold and I have a unhealthy homoerotic attachment to Perrin Aybara."

Aram, Gaul, Byar, and Slayer in unison: "Hi Dain."

[gunkreads]

I also had a whole post drafted about my thoughts on fictional romance but I think what it boils down to is that the Gaul line "I said I would come with you. I did not mean until the journey grew hard" does more for me than any romance I've ever read, EXCEPT romances that include that sentiment.

[amemoryofwot]

Man there is SO MUCH happening in the Two Rivers all at once here. The Aiel, the Whitecloaks, Fain, Lord Luc/Slayer, Faile, the Tuatha’an. I am wondering if there’s even really a point of Alanna and Verin being here too. For one, how are they gonna get all the way over from Cairhien where they were left? Much closer to just go to the Tower, no matter how loosely the show seems to play with time and distance (lol). And yeah they helped in the fight but is that as plot necessary for them as anything else? They go looking for novices, but we don’t really need the novice horde until Egwene freely offers training, and Maksim could easily die in the coup instead of from Whitecloaks

[transkholins]

DO YOU LIKE TO DANCE PERRIN AYBARA CLIP. SEVENTY-TWO HOUR AVIENDHA LOCKDOWN

[iviarellereads]

The Dragon Reborn, Chapter 34 - A Different Dance

(THIS PROJECT IS SPOILER FREE! No spoilers past the chapter you click on. Curious what I'm doing here? Read this post! For the link index and a primer on The Wheel of Time, read this one! Like what you see? Send me a Ko-Fi.)

(Wheel icon) In which, these guys just never stop, do they?

PERSPECTIVE: Perrin. The innkeeper babbles as he leads them to their rooms, but Perrin's too busy thinking whether the young woman knows what yellow eyes mean. Though, when the innkeeper mentions a man proclaiming the Dragon in Ghealdan, they all stop dead in the hall. Moiraine demands to know what he means.

Well, it's not so much that a man is declaring himself the Dragon. Rather, a man is preaching about the Dragon's coming, the one they've heard about in Tarabon or Arad Doman or some such. Any other day, the innkeeper expects the town would be talking about that Dragon, or maybe the tales of Hawkwing's army coming back... Lan glares steely death at him and he says he's only saying what people have heard, here. At any rate, the man preaching about the Dragon isn't likely to trouble them here, it's a hundred leagues away.

Lan mentions that they knew someone once who loved to make wild speeches: Masema. Moiraine says yes, and the next time she sees Masema, he'll wish someone had peeled his hide to make boots. She slams the door to her room so hard a patron in another room(1) shouts for quiet. The rest of them see to their rooms more quietly.

Loial comes into Perrin's room excited that his bed is a single piece of sung wood, it must be a thousand years old, because nobody's sung a piece so large in at least that long. Perrin's too busy thinking about the young woman and the caged Aiel to be as excited as Loial clearly hoped. He doesn't even go down for supper.

Why did she pick him to stare at? His eyes might explain it, except that not even the innkeeper had seemed to notice them, with an Ogier to stare at, and such a lady as Moiraine. They all took him for a servant, even to giving him the smallest room. So why did she stare at him?

And the Aiel in the cage. What was he supposed to do? He could have stopped the children throwing rocks, even if it's not really his business, he could have tried.

No answers came to him, so he thought it through from the beginning, over and over. After a while, he realizes it's past dark. He buckles his axe back on his waist, and heads for Moiraine's room, knocking once and entering without waiting for a response. He regrets this immediately, as she's not fully dressed,(2) but she asks coolly what he wants.

He asks her if the Hunters and the Aiel thing are Rand's ta'veren influence, but she doesn't think so. Lan is scouting out information now, and may help her with a choice. A choice? Yes, he could have gone across the river to keep walking, or he could have taken a boat down the river to Illian, to catch another for Tear, which is much faster. She could half think he’d learned to Travel, but then he’d have gone straight to Tear, so it’s just that his genes are built for long, arduous journeys. Still, the party might take the river route and try to get to Tear ahead of him.

Perrin mentions that Lan and Moiraine can sense Darkfriends sometimes, those who are well gone to the Shadow. Is there anything like that here? Moiraine says that few people ever get that far gone, why? He mentions the young woman, and Moiraine says that P is forgetting he's quite a handsome young man. He blushes and excuses himself. In the hall, he's embarrassed about walking in on her, her old enough to be his mother, at least.

He goes down to the common room, thankfully not seeing the black-haired girl, and nobody looks at him twice as he exits. There are very few people outside, and he makes his way to the cage. He feels like he's being watched, but doesn't see anyone. The Aielman doesn't smell of fear at all. Perrin listens, and sniffs the air, to be sure nobody else is around, then uses his strength to brace the rope as he lets the cage down to the paving blocks.

The Aiel watches Perrin carefully as P opens the cage door. P says he's opened it but he's not going to carry the man. The Aiel says it took three men to get him up, and Perrin alone let him down. He's strong. Why did he do this? Perrin says he doesn't like seeing people in cages.

He gets out of the cage and introduces himself as Gaul, of the Imran sept of the Shaarad Aiel, and also says he's Shae’en M’taal, a Stone Dog, and his water is Perrin's. Perrin gives his name and place of origin, and says he's a blacksmith. He apologizes for not bringing a water skin, and asks why Gaul calls him a wetlander. Gaul gestures at the river. Crossing that water, he says, nearly unmanned him, and it's everywhere in these lands.

Perrin changes direction and asks why the Aiel are here, and Gaul says they're looking for He Who Comes With The Dawn. Perrin remembers hearing that name from another one, and says he's looking in the wrong direction: He Who Comes is heading for Tear. Gaul says their prophecies do say that when the Stone of Tear falls, they will leave the Three-Fold Land, that they will be changed, and find again what was theirs and was lost. Perrin asks if Gaul is ready to leave, and he says it's too late, just as someone shouts that the "savage" is loose.(3) A dozen Whitecloaks run across the square. Gaul pulls a black scarf up over his face like a mask, asks if Perrin likes to dance, then darts straight for the Whitecloaks.

The men are surprised for just an instant, but an instant is all Gaul needs. Perrin's only got a moment to be amazed before some of the Whitecloaks are on him, too. Between the two of them, they knock out or kill all twelve. Gaul says it's time to run again, and bids Perrin farewell. Perrin wipes his bloody axe on one of the men's cloaks, and as he starts to run out of the square, he sees the girl again.

Lan met him before he reached the place where she had been standing. The Warder took in the cage sitting empty beneath the gibbet, the shadowed white mounds that caught the moonlight, and he tossed his head as if he were about to erupt. In a voice as tight and hard as a new wheel rim, he said, “Is this your work, blacksmith? The Light burn me! Is there anyone who can connect it to you?” “A girl,” Perrin said. “I think she saw. I don’t want you to hurt her, Lan!(4) Plenty of others could have seen, too. There are lighted windows all around.” The Warder grabbed Perrin’s coat sleeve and gave him a push toward the inn. “I saw a girl running, but I thought. . . . No matter. You dig the Ogier out and haul him down to the stable. After this, we need to get our horses to the docks as quickly as possible. The Light alone knows if there is a ship sailing tonight, or what I’ll have to pay to hire one if there isn’t. Don’t ask questions, blacksmith! Do it! Run!”

=====

(1) The Lord Gann mentioned in the previous chapter, one assumes. (2) How dressed do you think she is? Perrin avoids telling how much he saw. I suspect it was only her shoulders exposed, but I'm open to convincing arguments otherwise. (3) There are specific ways and contexts to use that word in that won't make me want to hurl (my book across the room) but I would prefer to do a find and replace on it for damn near any other word in most cases, like this one. (4) Perrin's a good boy, he doesn't want someone to die just for being a witness to his crime.

[wafflelovingbatgirl]

[apocalypticavolition]

Let's (re)Read The Dragon Reborn! Chapter 34: A Different Dance

As always, I shamelessly spoil anything and everything in these posts so you really shouldn't read them unless you're up for that.

We continue with the Wheel icon as Perrin's personal destiny takes shape.

He was too busy wondering if the black-haired girl knew what yellow eyes meant.

Perrin's paranoia about this is quite cute. Yes, Perrin, the gal was checking you out from across the room because of your hard-to-notice-at-that-distance eye color and not because you're a strapping young lad. Wish Mat and Rand were here, why don't you?

“There is another false Dragon, innkeeper? In Ghealdan?” The hood of her cloak still hid her face, but she sounded shaken to her toes.

Moiraine has clearly figured out through her spy network that Taim and the other guy fell almost immediately after Rand's proclamation, so the idea of another false Dragon is very scary. It would mean that Rand isn't the real deal at all.

“I only know what I hear, Master Andra. ’Tis said the fellow has a stare can pin you where you stand, and he talks all sorts of rubbish about the Dragon coming to save us, and we all have to follow, and even the beasts will fight for the Dragon. I don’t know whether they’ve arrested him yet or not. ’Tis likely; the Ghealdanin would not put up long with that kind of talk.”

It's great how the plotline of doom haunts us even in these early books. Moiraine and Lan would have done the world quite a favor if they'd just knifed Masema in his sleep.

“Only with those who displease her,” Lan said blandly. “Her bite is far worse than her bark.”

Talking blandly instead of darkly or outright growling is how you know Lan is downright jubilant.

Perrin, you will not believe it! My bed is sung wood! Why, it must be well over a thousand years old. No Treesinger has sung a piece so large in at least that long. I myself would not care to try it, and I have the talent more strongly than most, now.

I really want to know what's led to the mega-decline of the Ogier. It makes sense that between the Breaking and the Longing they can't do everything they used to, it isn't unreasonable that they can't build cities of old anymore because they're not being asked to do, just maintain them, but humanity lost its gifts because of the Taint. There's not really an Ogier equivalent, and a lot done to preserve the Ogier way of life. Did they just burn through all the real old-growth trees?

It was no use telling himself the adults would certainly have told him to go on about his business, that he was a stranger in Remen and the Aiel was none of his concern.

There we go Perrin, there's some sensible thinking. You just bitched that reality can't be the way it is because it wouldn't be just and *you* cared more than that. So whatcha gonna do?

No answers came to him, so he went back to the beginning and patiently worked through it once more, then again, and again. Still he found nothing except regret for what he had not done.

Dear lord why do I do this at work when I can't drink away the pain?

Moiraine pulled the pale blue robe that hung from her shoulders around herself. “You wish something?” she asked coolly.

Poor Moiraine, the one time Perrin comes to her of his own free will it's with so little respect that she can't help but go "Please get the fuck out while I'm changing."

“I could almost suspect he had learned to Travel,” Moiraine said with a small frown, “except that if he had, he would have gone straight to Tear. No, he has the blood of long walkers and strong runners in him. But we may take the river anyway. If I cannot catch him, I will be in Tear close behind him. Or waiting for him.”

Moiraine's a great bullshitter when she doesn't have an answer. Rand might be running off Aiel energy (you'd half-expect someone in-setting to claim they have extra leg muscles what with history always repeating itself), but he's also not stopping to sleep anywhere near as much as the main party, which buys him a lot of extra hours on net.

She could not help with Min’s viewing, not beyond telling him what he already knew, that it was important. And he did not want to tell her what Min had seen. Or that Min had seen anything, for that matter.

Ironically, if Perrin had said, "Min told me an Aielman in a cage is important to me, I'm gonna go rescue him," Moiraine probably would have sent Lan with him. Purely because of the Min aspect of things, of course; if Perrin ever had ideas of his own that weren't Pattern-approved Moiraine would instead have Lan tie him to a horse or four. I lament a lot of the lack of communication between our good guys but and I diss Perrin's intellect way more often than I thought I'd be doing but our boy is 100% not wrong not to want to trust her here, even though he also is very much wrong.

The common room was full as it could be, with every chair taken, and stools and benches brought in, and those who had nowhere to sit standing along the walls.

Lord Orban might not be a Gleeman, but he does have a very recent war story to share, so it checks out that everyone is desperate to hear more.

He felt a little ashamed; just because he did not like the man was no reason to suppose the Hunter would take his boasting that far.

Dammit Perrin, your gut is so rarely right you should go with it when it is.

He still had the feel of being watched, but he still saw nothing. He listened, and heard nothing. He smelled chimney smoke and cooking from the houses, and man-sweat and old blood from the man in the cage. There was no fear scent from him.

It's destiny watching Perrin, or maybe the shadow. Also it's funny, I think I've seen "man-sweat" a couple of times and it's an odd thing to specify since most (all?) animals don't sweat and no one would assume Gaul had "woman-sweat". Perhaps the wolfs are rubbing off on Perrin more than he wants to acknowledge.

“You are strong, wetlander.” The Aiel did not move beyond working his shoulders. “It took three men to hoist me up there. And now you bring me down. Why?”

Perrin is an exceptional guy in so many ways that he keeps forgetting about the different ways someone might think him exceptional as he tries to cover up the big ones.

I am Gaul, of the Imran sept of the Shaarad Aiel, wetlander. I am Shae’en M’taal, a Stone Dog.

Hi Gaul! Sadly we don't learn much about the Imran sept or where in the Waste it might be, though it's probably close to the Dragonwall because the Shaarad are one of the four clans that fought the Aiel War. The Stone Dogs are an odd society for the scouting going on at present though - they're really more the rear guard of the Aiel forces.

“Well, I am Perrin Aybara. Of the Two Rivers. I’m a blacksmith.”

Perrin's upset that he has servant's quarters and has no idea that he's just introduced himself to someone who considers his profession borderline sacred.

“Three days ago, I watched a girl sporting in a huge pool of water. It must have been twenty paces across. She . . . pulled herself out into it.” He made an awkward swimming gesture with one hand.

You'd think that the Aiel War and the river crossings necessary to wage it would have made the Aiel a little less frightened of water, but here we are.

“It is too late to run,” Gaul said, and a deep voice shouted, “The savage is lose!”

Perrin, why don't your super senses ever do anything useful? Gaul should not have known these guys were here before you!

For an instant they were caught by surprise, but an instant was apparently all the Aiel needed. He kicked the sword out of the grip of the first to reach him, then his stiffened hand struck like a dagger at the Whitecloak’s throat, and he slid around the soldier as he fell. The next man’s arm made a loud snap as Gaul broke it. He pushed that man under the feet of a third, and kicked a fourth in the face.

The real secret of Aiel combat is that their intense dedication to honor means that anyone else who might be fighting them has to be doing so in a dishonorable enough way to qualify as a ninja, and once you're a ninja, the law of inverse ninjitsu is as much a part of the Pattren as gravity.

Perrin had only an amazed moment himself, for not all the Whitecloaks had put their attentions on the Aiel. Barely in time, he gripped the axe haft with both hands to block a sword thrust, swung . . . and wanted to cry out as the half-moon blade tore the man’s throat.

Perrin could really do with a therapist, huh? Dude doesn't like violence even though he's really, really good at it.

Some of the men groaned; others lay silent and still. Gaul stood among them, still veiled, still empty-handed. Most of the men down were his work. Perrin wished they all were, and felt ashamed.

One wonders if ANY of the unconscious are among Perrin's victims or if it's just the dead.

Sarien and I were careless, being so long in these soft lands, and the wind was from the wrong direction, so we smelled nothing. We walked into them before we knew it. Well, Sarien is dead, and I was caged like a fool, so perhaps we paid enough.

Frankly I'm still surprised they managed to kill even one Aiel, the hunters being the losers they are. Musta been Faile's work somehow.

Perrin started to run, too, then realized he had a bloody axe in his hands.

I'm glad that Perrin is just barely smart enough to remember not to run with scissors. It's a low bar, but an important one.

“Is this your work, blacksmith? The Light burn me! Is there anyone who can connect it to you?”

Lan really thought that with Rand on the loose and Mat about as far away as possible that he wouldn't have anywhere near the level of headaches he did back in book one and Perrin just outdid every single one of Mat's shenanigans in the space of half an hour.

I saw a girl running, but I thought. . . .

No, I really wanna know what your first instinct to "girl running away from Perrin" is, Lan. But since I'll never get an answer, my headcanon is that he assumes Perrin tried to flirt with her and that was more than enough to scare her.

Next time: Faile joins the party!

[wot-tidbits]

[birgittesilverbae]

Posting a WoTCCG card a day until Amazon drops literally any WoT s2 info - Day 11: Season 2 is coming 2023, but don't expect it in early 2023. You Can Have The Only Non-Objectionable Card, As A Treat

[christophernolan]

Okay so they put Aviendha in a cage and Perrin meets her instead of Gaul???? Where’s Gaul?? He’s like my favorite Aiel??? I hope they haven’t merged or cut his character

[asha-mage]

Okay but it dawned on me that that, since we're going right to TSR next season that means Perrin will probably leave from Falme to the Two Rivers and meet Faile there (probably with her hunting rumors for the Horn or just adventure in general). Bain and Chiad will probably get to the Two Rivers by going with him (likely as a favor to Avienda). On the one hand, the idea of Bain and Chiad just kinda sliding up to Faile after meeting with her/Faile stealing Perrin's Aiel besties for herself is funny, what would be even funnier is if they choose to bring in Gaul as Faile's Aiel companion, while Bain and Chiad stuck with Perrin, leading to a reversal of their respective roles from the books.

Perrin long suffering and having to put up with Bain and Chaid discussing weather it would be better to court Gaul or take him gai'shain, while Gaul backs up Faile with his smart ass comments is something so so delightful to me.

[asongofstarkandtargaryen]

One of my favourite Perrin scenes from early books is when he frees Gaul from the cage he was imprisoned. Such a great scene.

If it’s done well in the show, Gaul x Perrin has the potential to become -almost- as popular as Aviendha x Elayne.

[barl3y-lightf00t]

I just remembered that there's a possibility Gaul will be cut from The Wheel Of Time season two and now I'm sad.

[mashithamel]

[iviarellereads]

The Dragon Reborn, Chapter 54 - Into the Stone

(THIS PROJECT IS SPOILER FREE! No spoilers past the chapter you click on. Curious what I'm doing here? Read this post! For the link index and a primer on The Wheel of Time, read this one! Like what you see? Send me a Ko-Fi.)

(Dice icon) In which Chekhov's fireworks pay off.

PERSPECTIVE: Mat, on the rooftops of Tear. He's tied up all the fireworks into a single awkward bundle on his back, and crouches next to a chimney. There's a wire-handled tin box in his hand, getting uncomfortably warm.(1)

The sides of the Stone are like cliffs, and there must be arrowslits but he can't see them from here. He sees some fool climbing the wall nevertheless, and wonders who in the Light that could be.

He shifts a little to see another spot of the wall, and feels steel at his throat. He scuffles, realizing there are multiple people, and most of them have spears and black veils. He assumes they're real thieves. He grins and says he doesn't mean to trouble them, and he won't betray them, he wants no more attention than they do. He turns and realizes that they're Aiel. They put away their weapons and ask what he's doing, they've been watching him for some time. Another voice cuts in from the shadows nearby saying he could ask the same of them. It's Juilin Sandar, the thief-catcher who's been seeing Aiel for a week or more. Mat shakes his head, wondering how many people are on the rooftops tonight.(2)

The Aiel won't answer until someone else does, and Juilin says he did something today he's not sure was right. The main Aiel introduces himself as Rhuarc, the leader of Aviendha's group from earlier this book with the wondergirls. He says they mean no harm to the city, but Juilin will not be allowed to raise the alarm. Juilin asks what they want then, and Rhuarc says simply the Stone.

Rhuarc turns back to Mat and asks again what he means. He says some friends of his are prisoners in there, and he means to get them out. Maybe they can work together to get in, if they mean to get inside, too, and they could do much worse than betting on Mat's luck.

One of the other Aiel, Gaul,(3) says it's time for something, and they melt into the shadows to go accomplish their purpose. When they're alone, Juilin asks Mat if his friends are three women. Mat asks what he knows of them. Juilin says he knows they're inside the Stone, and he knows a gate where a thief-catcher might take a prisoner, to get entrance to the cells where they'll likely be kept.

Mat sees at least a hundred Aiel go over the Stone's outer wall, and figures he might as well add to the confusion, since he worked so hard on his distraction. He walks a platform to get up to the wall, and finds a convenient arrowslit. He wedges his bundle of fireworks into the slit, trying to be sure as much of the noise and smoke will be inside as possible. He opens the tin box, which has a lit coal inside, and uses it to light the fuses which he cut all to the same length, so they should go off together.(4) He darts back along the wall.

The force of the explosion behind him knocks him to the platform, and he's sure he's used up all his luck not falling fifty feet to the ground. He looks back, and the arrowslit seems larger somehow. He thinks about running back to Juilin, but checks the arrowslit instead. It IS bigger, big enough to slip through.(5)

He doesn't make it ten paces inside before Defenders of the Stone appear, though. Then he remembers this is why he set them off in the first place. He takes out the Defenders, and Juilin is beside him, helping him, then wailing that he's attacked Defenders, they'll have his head.

Mat tells Juilin to show him to the cells already, and Juilin shakes off his panic and confusion. Mat promises himself and the girls he'll get them out or die trying.

PERSPECTIVE: Rand, paying no more attention to the alarm gongs than the roar that came before them. His unhealing wound aches, but he pays that no mind, either. He will finish it at last, here. One way or the other.(6)

PERSPECTIVE: Egwene, confused why she was dreaming about Rand again, and why Mat was all mixed into it, yelling that he was coming. She realizes where she is and screams that she will NOT be chained or collared again. Nyn and El are there, though, and she calms soon enough. And she isn't chained up or collared.

They're still shielded from the True Source. Nyn says despite that, they don't seem to care about them at all. El reminds her that Liandrin said they were bait. Egg finds the ter'angreal in her pouch, and El says they weren't even important enough to search, and Nyn asks why is Egg staring at that ring, TAR can't help them unless she can dream a way out. Egg says she might be able to. She could channel in TAR, the shielding might not stop her there. Nyn says she'll take any chance, but she must be careful.

Egg falls asleep, and finds herself unbruised, not thirsty, not aching. She reaches for the Power and embraces it, before letting it go. She moves herself to the Heart of the Stone, finding one of the BA there, the one who'd given Egg the beating that knocked her out. She shields the woman, then weaves air to bind her and hit her in retribution.

She feels a moment of shame, and ties off the weaves only half-aware of what she's doing, so that Joiya will remain shielded and bound here, and hopefully unable to wake up. Then she takes off to find a way down to the cells, to see if she can influence the waking world from the dream one.(7)

PERSPECTIVE: Perrin, who also finds himself in the Stone of Tear. He finds Faile in a room, chained up. As he frees her, she disappears. He cries out that isn't fair, he found her! Hopper says dreams can have many endings. Perrin says that just means they have to hunt again.

PERSPECTIVE: Mat, too busy fighting off Defenders to put a price on any of the expensive-looking items in the room [as is his habit]. He's facing off against a man who names himself High Lord Darlin, who blathers on a bit, until Mat gets sassy, distracting him from his attack long enough to whoop him with the quarterstaff. Mat thinks if he fights one or two more like that one, he might fall over from exhaustion. Nynaeve always did find ways to make him work.

Juilin comes over and says the High Lord doesn't look so mighty, knocked out on the floor. He doesn't look so much more than Juilin himself. Mat is startled by the sight of a man who just trotted across the corridor ahead. That could NOT have been Rand, right?(8) Before he can do anything in reaction, another High Lord emerges. Mat takes him out quickly, and tells Juilin to find the door the High Lords take down to the cells, as one definitely exists, and Juilin knows it's here somewhere.

=====

(1) There are times it's the right call to give the reader more information and let them draw their own conclusions about what's going to happen next. And there are times when the best thing you can do is be uncomfortably vague. The handle grows warm. Why would the handle be warm? To build suspense just a few minutes before we learn why. (2) You might be glad of their presence by the end of the book in [checks notes] 50 pages. (Yeah, there's not a lot of time for denouement in most of RJ's climaxes.) (3) It really is a big ol' reunion even though Mat has no way to know it. (4) Playing with fire(works) should not be attempted at home without checking your local regulations and sober adult supervision. (5) The point was to distract them HERE then go with Juilin to the OTHER entrance, but hey, if ta'veren is leading you here, ta'veren knows how to get you to survive this better than you do. (6) Yeah, about that, buddy… You haven't seen how long this series is, have you? Also, don't worry that Rand seems a touch more, uh, taint-mad than is sustainable for 11 more books. See, RJ thought the series would be over in 3 more. And he kept thinking it would be just three past whichever he was writing, for several more after this. Even in the end he thought he had one book left for his series, and Brandon Sanderson took over after RJ passed, and that one book still had to be split into three more just to wrap up what could be wrapped up. It's a whole thing, and a lot more of the series pacing makes sense when you keep it in mind. (7) At a certain point, anything's worth a shot. (8) Whyever not?