"We have some time," Lera said, taking a guess at what might have bothered Jamie. "It seems like--like it happens randomly, usually. So try to get one ready, but..."

She rubbed the palm of her hand against her face, uncertainly.

"It probably won't happen for both at the same time and it could even be months apart," she observed. Unless the world falling apart sped everything like that up, Lera reasoned, which was possible. Why frighten Jamie with it, though? "So it's a long-term investment. It could be sooner, but it's just hard to know."

Of course, if it could be sooner, it needed to be done as soon as possible, really. That went unstated.