Mal hopped over a crack in the ground, grinning a bit at Re-l's question. "Oh, don't worry - I hardly think we're being watched here," she said conspiratorially. "Authority hates getting its hands dirty. Or, in this case, dusty."

Still, she leaned in closer, her voice sinking to a whisper. "There," she said, "if by 'there' you mean in the glorious land of dreams." She straightened up and glanced sideways at the other woman, her voice returning to normal. "I wasn't told much about my family here." From what she had heard, they sounded unpleasant. She wondered idly if they had 'survived', if she would be expected to pretend to know them, then dismissed the thought. She'd get to that when she got to it.