Laurence looked between the two of them, feeling more hopelessly out of his depth than he had ever been before. What they were saying was unthinkable. If it had not been for Julie's dream the very notion might never have crossed his mind at all.

"What you are proposing is--" He cleared his throat as he searched for words, painfully aware of the flush spreading over his face. "It simply is not done." The words felt weak and hollow even to him.