[ Kate had sort of just assumed there wouldn't be follow-up; usually Johanna doesn't care enough about her life to ask questions.

She lies there for a minute and debates her answer, tests out words on her tongue until she finds some her brain and whatever hold the ship has on it will allow. It doesn't seem fair to lie, even if she could. Barely fair to dodge, and she has limited options for how to do that. But telling isn't really an equal trade; Johanna's only telling her while she's telling...Johanna. ]

All sorts of things, lately. This ship is a great place to acquire new nightmares. I still wake up choking thinking my own hands are around my throat. [ She rolls her eyes at herself as soon as she's said it. It's true and it's been genuinely disturbing but right now it's so transparently an attempt to avoid telling her the actual answer to her question that it's even worse than just refusing. She sighs, and lifts a hand to scratch at her forehead. Whatever. Who cares. This shouldn't still be this hard anyway, right? ]

When I was fourteen I was attacked and raped, it was about that. [ And then she begins a countdown to Johanna earning a matching black eye. ]