[ reading and interpreting body language is something of an art even when your conversational partner shares your species. even so, there's no mistaking the prickle peggy finds in the look rocket gives her. she hesitates -- visibly -- and she betrays a look of her own: quiet calculation, wondering where she went wrong. ]

It takes a special sort of someone, doesn't it. [ but now her tone is measured. careful. ] What are the chances that getting an armband will actually make a difference this time around?

[ because the price has to be weighed, doesn't it? the trouble versus the potential gain. events are slippery things. ]