[Three syllables this time. OA nods, as much to herself as to him, and mulls those syllables over. A wall. Cautiously bare. A surface at which one might throw anything, and it might for a moment stick, but only for a moment before he washes it clean again.

It's not new. Very little feels as though it is anymore. She huffs a voiceless, rueful laugh and looks away.]

Echoes.

[It's a statement to herself, to... something, someone. Ripples across time, space, dimensions uncountable and unknowable.

She isn't sure she knows what to do this time.

What's the worst that can happen? He walks away? He rages? He kills you? How frightening are those things, really?]

Sorry, just -- you remind me of someone I know.

[Another little huff; she shakes her head.]

I'm not gonna bite you either.

[The humour lingers just a moment longer before draining away, leaving her looking harried and weary in its wake.]

Look, I'm-- I could use something to think about that isn't... all of this. Is there anything I can do to help?