Ira let out a low breath, and nodded. “Yeah. I don’t doubt it.”
He wasn’t going to change the subject until Staas felt ready to, though. He was willing to hear through whatever else Staas might want to say about his past, not that he was going to push the guy to talk more if he didn’t need to, of course. So he just stood quietly by as Staas started rinsing out the mugs and pouring tea for the two of them. And for once Ira didn’t ask if the other man needed a hand; he figured that having something mundane and calm to do might help steady Staas a little, and when the other man turned to hand him the steaming mug Ira was gratified to see that he did look more like himself again.
The quip caught him by surprise, though. He blinked and couldn’t hold back: “…Did that actually make it any better? The hit, I mean.”