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[The feed begins. Satoru carefully centers himself in the frame before sitting back. He's outside in the grass next to the lake, with the device propped up against a tree.]

I think I have the gist of things. [He read the pamphlet, which was pretty helpful as a crash course.] But there are still some things I'm confused about.

[His frustration is apparent in a brief pause that follows that admission, however.]

Asking questions won't change the situation, but...can someone explain the part about time not moving?

[Because that is relevant to his interests.]

[Kayo seems a little more unsure. She’s standing just behind Satoru and trying not to draw much attention to herself. Making any kind of announcement to a wide group of people is uncomfortable, and it’s easier to just let him take the lead, if he wants to.]

...Isn’t that impossible?

[She’s quiet, but also not very impressed by the supposed magicalness of the world around them. Life isn’t a storybook and people don’t get whisked away to worlds where time doesn’t exist. It sounds kind of stupid to believe something like that just because someone put it in a professional-looking pamphlet.]

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[...Huh. Not what he was expecting to hear.]

But with the closets, that shouldn't be a big problem.

[Not like you have to chance leaving the house unprepared only to find the weather has decided to try to kill you.]

Not really. It's just sudden.

[And sometimes it comes with strange dreams, but...surely that was just a one-time instance.]

What other weird things like that should we expect?

[If he knows ahead of time, he might be able to be ready for some of it at least. Events he understands can't really be prepared for, but there must be other things that can be.]

Events. Mirrors.

[Those are the two biggies. If they've already gotten the orientation, neither should come as a surprise.]

I read about those.

[But that doesn't mean he's satisfied with the information. He needs to know more. He's not arrogant enough to think he's going to be able to crack this place like some kind of code if he just has enough information--it's more a matter of survival. At home he might have just drifted along picking things up as he went, but this is way too out of his experience for him to think that's a good idea.]

The Mirrors...how often do we see them? Like in person.

Not often.

[September was the only time they'd had to encounter their Mirror face to face. And that...that was enough.]

If they cross over, you switch to their side.

Can I come back over or do I have to wait for them?

[Being stuck in a place where he can't help Kayo is an unnerving thought.]

Don't.

[The word is hard - harder than maybe is intentional, one of their eyes slitting open to reveal a rusted-red iris, pinning him with a look of grim certainty.]

Don't look for a way to cross.

[That sudden shift seems to startle him.]

W...why not?

Mirrors are dangerous.

[There are a lot of reasons not to cross over. The potential to die permanently. The Queen's rage toward the Mirror that might transfer to the Real. The Core, and whatever that may entail.]

[There are a lot of reasons.]

[But they start with the simplest.]

How--

[He was about to ask how they know, but decides not to. It's a stupid question--they've been here longer, obviously they've had some experience.]

They can't all be dangerous.

Not all of them, [Frisk affirms with a small nod. It's true. Not all the Mirrors are. But the ones that can prove a danger have definitely managed to do so without needing to cross over the glass.]

But most.

[Enough that it wouldn't be worth attempting to cross over at all.]

[Okay. Well, that seems straightforward enough. But there are still other questions surrounding this issue.]

How does the crossover work, anyway? [He adds quickly, before he gets another response like that earlier one from them:] Not that I'm going to try.

The Queen lets it happen on her side. Or...an event.

[There's the Rabbit Hole, but - no one needs to know about the Rabbit Hole. No one else.]

[He thinks over their conversation so far and what he read and shakes his head a little.]

Isn't it mostly them coming over here, then?

[Why did they tell him not to cross over if it only goes one way?]

[A nod.]

Mostly. You switch sides when they do.

[...but not always.]

Then why tell me not to try going over there? Or...

[That wasn't quite what they said. They said not to look for a way over.]

There's another way to do it, isn't there?

[...oops.]

[Frisk's shoulders hunch, the slit of their eye disappearing beneath their lids. Averting their gaze. Avoiding his.]

Not usually.

[He leans forward like he can get over into their range of vision again. A maneuver like that works better in person.]

But sometimes?

[They've learned, through a vast selection of experiences of every sort, that in many cases, it is not always wise to speak. In most cases, in fact. The Surface taught them the same lesson the Underground did, that Wonderland has in varying degrees. They've learned when it is safest to say nothing at all.]

[Such as now.]

[The child shrugs, and does not reply.]

[Satoru frowns. They're certainly reticent and he can't really blame them for that. He's not frustrated with them, but with the situation. But...]

You don't have to tell me, as long as you can promise not knowing won't hurt anyone.

[Not like he can enforce a promise like that. And what's he even going to do if they just refuse to promise him that at all? The adult in him is pointing those things out even as he's speaking.]

[They shake their head. They can't promise that. They can't promise much of anything - not when their promises have just gotten people hurt.]

I don't know.

Can you tell me why you won't tell me?

[If there's a decent reason, he can respect that.]

[It's too painful? It's a reminder of what they don't want to accept? Because they don't want anyone else to go the same route they attempted?]

[It's hard to say.]

I made a mistake of asking.

...Alright.

[Satoru's not sure what that means and is getting a bit tired of trying to pursue it. So he nods. He can ask around later and see if anyone else knows and is willing to tell him.]

What's your name? I'm Fujinuma Satoru.

[He opens his mouth to introduce Kayo, but stops himself. She can do that herself--she probably doesn't want him doing stuff like that for her.]