Vanessa stared out the sliding glass doors of ker kitchen, one hand wrapped around a mug of still-slightly-too-hot tea. She was lost in a daze of non-thought, her unfocused eyes snared by the light of the newly-risen moon just past sunset.

Vanessa felt a hand fold over her wrist. "V. You know you've been doing that a lot since the haspital, right?"

Slowly, and with obvious effort, Vanessa turned her eyes to her best friend's sardonically smiling face. Vanessa blinked a few times, coming back to herself.

"Youve been talking to me, haven't you?" Vanessa said. "Aside from the 'Earth to V' bit."

Miranda simply nodded, her smiling creeping further into her left cheek.

Vanessa sighed.