"We don't know who is in charge of the train," Ran replies gently, not wanting to alarm her. (Though then again, Ai is fairly unflappable in most situations, it seems.) "We don't see anyone. So there might be people . . . but most, I think, just think of the train having a mind of its own. . . . And in this place, it might actually be possible. There's a lot that's strange here -- nothing like it is at home. Things we think of as made up in books . . . here, it's real."

Somehow, given the rest of how Ai has responded, she suspects there will still be skepticism -- and can't even blame her for it, really. This place is like taking a hammer to their paradigm.