History TearJerker / TheFifthElephant

--->[[spoiler: "Not ''them''! The...ones in Ankh-Morpork! Wearing make-up and dresses and...and abominable things!" Dee pointed a finger at Cheery. "''Ha'ak!'' How can you even ''look'' at it! You let ''her''," and Vimes had seldom heard a word sprayed with so much venom, "''her'' flaunt herself, ''here''! And it's happening everywhere because people have not been firm, not obeyed, have let the old ways slide! Everywhere there are reports. They're eating away at everything dwarfish with their...their soft clothes and paint and beastly ways. How can you be King and allow this? Everywhere they are doing it and you do nothing! Why should they be allowed to do this?" Now Dee was sobbing. [[YouAreWhatYouHate "I can't!]]"]]

** It's even more sad for Gaspode if you remember that [[spoiler: he'd thought that he and ''Laddie'' were going to die under a pile of rubble together in ''Discworld/MovingPictures'', until the trolls dug them up. This time, there's no miraculous reprieve coming for his fallen fellow-canine, because Holy Wood rules about last-minute rescues have no effect this time. More reason for the Wonder Dog to think it's not supposed to end that way.]]

** It's even more sad for Gaspode if you remember that [[spoiler: he'd thought that he and ''Laddie'' were going to die under a pile of rubble together in ''Moving Pictures'', until the trolls dug them up. This time, there's no miraculous reprieve coming for his fallen fellow-canine, because Holy Wood rules about last-minute rescues have no effect this time. More reason for the Wonder Dog to think it's not supposed to end that way.]]

--->[[spoiler: "Not ''them''! The...ones in Ankh-Morpork! Wearing make-up and dresses and...and abominable things!" Dee pointed a finger at Cheery. "''Ha'ak!'' How can you even ''look'' at it! You let ''her''," and Vimes had seldom heard a word sprayed with so much venom, "''her'' flaunt herself, ''here''! And it's happening everywhere because people have not been firm, not obeyed, have let the old ways slide! Everywhere there are reports. They're eating away at everything dwarfish with their...their soft clothes and paint and beastly ways. How can you be King and allow this? Everywhere they are doing it and you do nothing! Why should they be allowed to do this?" Now Dee was sobbing. [[YouAreWhatYouHate "When I can't!]]"]]

* All of Angua's fears, doubts, and insecurities over the previous three books get summarized in a single word: "Promise?"

--->[[spoiler: "Not ''them''! The...ones in Ankh-Morpork! Wearing make-up and dresses and...and abominable things!" Dee pointed a finger at Cheery. "''Ha'ak!'' How can you even ''look'' at it! You let ''her''," and Vimes had seldom heard a word sprayed with so much venom, "''her'' flaunt herself, ''here''! And it's happening everywhere because people have not been firm, not obeyed, have let the old ways slide! Everywhere there are reports. They're eating away at everything dwarfish with their...their soft clothes and paint and beastly ways. How can you be King and allow this? Everywhere they are doing it and you do nothing! Why should they be allowed to do this?" Now Dee was sobbing. [[YouAreWhatYouHate "I can't!]]"]]

** This bit had me bawling, [[spoiler:since I'd loved Gavin's character. He was a kind of a NobleSavage for me; when Carrot tries to play fetch with him, he shatters the stick out of disdain for the 'humanization' of wolves, but then he [[HeroicSacrifice sacrifices himself]] to save Carrot. However, Gaspode's absolutely heartbreaking line followed by his pitiful howl being gradually picked up by the rest of the pack takes the cake]].

** Sybil crying always gets me. My lower lip always gets particularly wobbly when I think about the fact that Sybil [[spoiler: is newly pregnant, very anxious to tell her extremely distracted husband and not sure how he's going to react. Not to mention, she's fresh out of a situation in which she saw her husband toss down his only weapon, then unexpectedly shoot the hostage-taker in the neck mere inches away from her, then a mad dash for safety in the dark on an unsafe road.]] What's more, she actually ''apologizes'' to Vimes for getting weepy after all she's been through. She feels as though she has ''let him down'' by crying. No wonder poor Vimes nearly dies of shame when he realizes.

--->[[spoiler: "Not ''them''! The...ones in Ankh-Morpork! Wearing make-up and dresses and...and abominable things!" Dee pointed a finger at Cheery. "''Ha'ak!'' How can you even ''look'' at it! You let ''her''," and Vimes had seldom heard a word sprayed with so much venom, "''her'' flaunt herself, ''here''! And it's happening everywhere because people have not been firm, not obeyed, have let the old ways slide! Everywhere there are reports. They're eating away at everything dwarfish with their...their soft clothes and paint and beastly ways. How can you be King and allow this? Everywhere they are doing it and you do nothing! Why should they be allowed to do this?" Now Dee was sobbing. [[YouAreWhatYouHate "I can't!]] And I work so...so hard!"]]

** It's even more sad for Gaspode if you remember that [[spoiler: he'd thought that he and ''Laddie'' were going to die under a pile of rubble together in ''Moving Pictures'', until the trolls dug them up. This time, there's no miraculous reprieve coming for his fallen fellow-canine, because Holy Wood rules about last-minute rescues are no longer applicable. More reason for him to think it's not supposed to end that way.]]

** It's even more sad for Gaspode if you remember that [[spoiler: he'd thought that he and ''Laddie'' were going to die under a pile of rubble together in ''Moving Pictures'', until the trolls dug them up. This time, there's no miraculous reprieve coming for his fallen fellow-canine, because Holy Wood rules about last-minute rescues are no longer applicable.]]

--->[[spoiler: "Not ''them''! The...ones in Ankh-Morpork! Wearing make-up and dresses and...and abominable things!" Dee pointed a finger at Cheery. "''Ha'ak!'' How can you even ''look'' at it! You let ''her''," and Vimes had seldom heard a word sprayed with so much venom, "''her'' flaunt herself, ''here''! And it's happening everywhere because people have not been firm, not obeyed, have let the old ways slide! Everywhere there are reports. They're eating away at everything dwarfish with their...their soft clothes and paint and beastly ways. How can you be King and allow this? Everywhere they are doing it and you do nothing! Why should they be allowed to do this?" Now Dee was sobbing. [[YouAreWhatYouHate "I can't!"]] And I work so...so hard!"]]
* When, after Lady Sybil is [[spoiler: briefly taken hostage and then freed]] and everyone's safe again, Vimes is the last one to realize that she's very quietly crying - and, even then, can't do much about it because he's "designed by nature to be one of those men absolutely incapable of kissing his wife in public." And then later, when he comes to save her after she's been [[spoiler: taken away by werewolves]] and sees her coming down the stairs in their castle and just sort of stands there for a minute thinking about how much he loves her. And then, later, when he's the only one laughing at the dumb jokes she's making while they're trapped and seem like they're about to die. Basically, their whole relationship in this book is one big TearJerker - especially since we know the toll that his job has taken on it in other books.

* All of Angua's fears, doubts, and insecurities over the previous three books get summarized in a single, heart-wrenching word: "Promise?"

** Sybil crying always gets me. My lower lip always gets particularly wobbly when I think about the fact that Sybil [[spoiler: is newly pregnant, very anxious to tell her extremely distracted husband and not sure how he's going to react. Not to mention, she's fresh out of a situation in which she saw her husband toss down his only weapon, then unexpectedly shoot the hostage-taker in the neck mere inches away from her, then a mad dash for safety in the dark on an unsafe road.]] What's more, she actually ''apologizes'' to Vimes for getting weepy after all she's been through. She feels as though she has ''let him down'' by crying. No wonder poor Vimes nearly dies of shame when he realizes.

--->[[spoiler: "Not ''them''! The...ones in Ankh-Morpork! Wearing make-up and dresses and...and abominable things!" Dee pointed a finger at Cheery. "''Ha'ak!'' How can you even ''look'' at it! You let ''her''," and Vimes had seldom heard a word sprayed with so much venom, "''her'' flaunt herself, ''here''! And it's happening everywhere because people have not been firm, not obeyed, have let the old ways slide! Everywhere there are reports. They're eating away at everything dwarfish with their...their soft clothes and paint and beastly ways. How can you be King and allow this? Everywhere they are doing it and you do nothing! Why should they be allowed to do this?" Now Dee was sobbing. [[YouAreWhatYouHate "''I'' can't!'']] And I work so...so hard!"]]

--->[[spoiler: "Not ''them''! The...ones in Ankh-Morpork! Wearing make-up and dresses and...and abominable things!" Dee pointed a finger at Cheery. "''Ha'ak!'' How can you even ''look'' at it! You let ''her''," and Vimes had seldom heard a word sprayed with so much venom, "''her'' flaunt herself, ''here''! And it's happening everywhere because people have not been firm, not obeyed, have let the old ways slide! Everywhere there are reports. They're eating away at everything dwarfish with their...their soft clothes and paint and beastly ways. How can you be King and allow this? Everywhere they are doing it and you do nothing! Why should they be allowed to do this?" Now Dee was sobbing. [[YouAreWhatYouHate "I can't!'']]"]]