[ he leans forward, elbows resting on his knees, as he thinks over how to respond. he feels confident in aspects of his approach to to this world and its peculiarities, but uncertainties persist. ]

It's only a theory, but it seems to burn when something flows through us — emotions, objects, ourselves. [ and rattling them off, ] It's an opening, a portal, a transfer in progress, or something like it. Connected to us, tapping into us. I don't know.

[ he drags one hand up, carding it through his short curls. ]

We may have come through a portal to get here, but in doing so, well, we've become gateways ourselves.