[ Damn. ]

Nothing serious. They haven't hurt us.

[ Not yet, he thinks, and then chastises himself for thinking it. He can't do this. He can't be afraid. He can't worry, especially not when he's talking to her. Not when she might hear it in his voice. ]

We're just locked up. They don't tell us much. They push food into the cell and that's all. There are more than fifty of us.

I don't know if we're the only cell, but they've not brought anyone else in, or taken anyone out. They took all our phones.

There's a mental connection, to the Network. They told me about it on the very first day.

[ There's something that hints at amusement in his tone. It's the first time it's been colored with anything other than concentration. ]

I never thought I'd need to care if it were true. I don't know how long I can hold this, Jane. I've been trying to reach you for hours.

It’s either that, or I’m imagining you.

[ Despite this, there’s very little in the way of a stream of consciousness filtering through. Gansey has been practising control and filtering for a very long time. It makes him good at this, good at holding one line of thought and concentrating on it. In all likelihood, his earlier attempts hadn’t worked because he’d not yet got a rein around his fear.

Now he has. ]

I’ll hold for as long as I can. Jane, please, be careful. The Russians want war. They wouldn’t have made this move if they didn’t, and that’s the last thing I want you caught in. Promise me you’ll be safe. Please.

[ He doesn’t think he’ll cope if she’s not. His heart twinges at the thought that she’s searching for them, but how can she find them if they aren’t even on Earth? ]

Ronan and I will take care of each other.

[ Because it's not just him, and in fairness, it's not just them. Everyone in this room is in the exact same position. Gansey feels a responsibility to all of them. ]

You and Adam have to do the same. Promise me, please.

It's easier to talk about you. I hate to be self-pitying.

[ A pause. ]

But of course, you like me better that way! I forgot. Would you like me to complain harder?

Ah, well, if you insist.

[ This is going to be the most trivial complaint he can come up with. It's not because he doesn't trust Blue with the rest. It's just, it's much easier to deal with it when he's not directly facing it. ]

The food they're giving us is ghastly. You should see it, it's exactly like that horror show of a NASA-themed swear in. Everything is freeze dried. Horrible.

[ Not as much as that does. ]

No. I actually quite like your yogurt-fruit.

Especially when it's shared.

[ Hey, this is proving a very able distraction. She should be pleased. ]

It might be a factor. But I can't take total responsibility, since after all, you do consume a fair amount of yogurt. It would be a shame to waste the fruit at the end.

Oh, Jane. Don't be so crass! Our mouths on the same spoon. Who in the world could possibly find that thought appealing?

[ Spoilers: his mind can, as it happens, deliver sarcasm just as effectively as his mouth. ]

I think so. But that's not the word that appeals to me now.

[ God, this must look ludicrous to the people around him. They're in the situation they're in, and Gansey is smiling as if he has a secret to share. This is the effect Blue Sargent has on him, just by being herself. ]

I don't know whether to be happy I have such a spoon, or be jealous of where it can go.

One piece of cutlery has never been appreciated so much, Jane.

[ That...is as clearly as she's ever said it. ]

No, well. It's not the yogurt that interests me, either. It makes for lovely company.