Reyes’ answering smile was a flash of teeth: rueful, guarded. “One helps the other. I consider it a morale booster, which is as important as anything when it comes to survival. What’s your coping mechanism, for finding out that you’re trapped in a strange world, at the whims of some unknown something?”

The whole thing was a deflection, but he couldn’t exactly (or wouldn’t) explain it to a stranger; he waved his hand vaguely. “Don’t mind me. I’m making noise for the sake of making noise. I’m not going to be shivering into withdrawal in the middle of the village green, if that’s your worry.”