This too is waved off. Semantics. "You'd say 'your friend', wouldn't you? Human and friend are both nouns. I chose him for other reasons but it worked out regardless. You give the rest of humanity the benefit of the doubt, and assume the best of them, why not him as well? In another time, he went after you every time that I know of when you disappeared. Maybe in this time, you should pursue him instead." In the distance, on the edge of the horizon amidst the tumble of bare stones and weathered ground, might be the beginnings of an outline of town.

It's a long way away yet. But something is there.

Knives hadn't manifested his abilities that young. It took time and some level of physical maturity. He'd always leaned towards the metallic. Had he been in a bulb, what would he have been used for? "I'm not giving away all my embarrassing secrets. You'll have to guess, if you don't know already."

He doesn't think of alternate realities, that was even more ridiculous a notion than time travel was, therefore there must be an excuse, a reason, for all discrepencies.