"I don't know what that first word means," Ellen says, "but, um- I have a set or two of pre-War combat armor at home. I think police and infantry soldiers used to use it. One of them ought to fit you, as long as we're getting you one of the guns."

It's beginning to dawn on Ellen that people who aren't intimately familiar with her world might be getting a bad impression. She's not really sure how to counteract it at this point, though.