"I'd like that," Daine says aloud, adding a silent, It'll be very nice to meet you properly, to the mice. They're People enough that she figures they should be able to hear her.

Remembering what Alex said before about not being able to fib, she says, "You've picked a fair strange day to show up, I'm afraid. The rift acts up sometimes - messes with the folk it's brought through - and it's really been misbehaving today. But the fits usually only last a few days at the longest, so you'll be back to normal soon enough." Her smile starts sympathetic, then turns rueful. "There's actually two of me right now. That's a first." But if Andrew can get through such an experience, so can she.