[Eowyn Skywalker]

Willow smiled at Mira, who had awoken. The late nights had been catching up to them, she thought with a yawn, happy to have something to take her mind off of the painful memories that she had forced herself to recall when speaking with Lily. Lily was sipping on her tea, and they had been talking quietly, about really nothing much, just enough to keep her mind off of the past. "I'm sorry, Mira," Willow said, with an appology in her voice. "Did we wake you?"

"Oh no," Mira answered, going to get herself some tea, fitting for them, as the day was chilly. Listening, Willow became aware that the rain had paused, with a break in the clouds, seemingly. It would be good to see the sun again, perhaps, if it stayed with the pause in the cloudburst. And besides, Willow had noticed that the rain seemed to rather bother Lily, though Willow didn't mind it, even though it had been raining when her parents had died...

Willow shook her head hard, getting the sudden thoughts from her mind. Fear and shadows and darkness... they always seemed to jump up to haunt her at the worst moments, causing her to act different, and startle anyone who could ever be a friend...

In fact, she was rather startled to find that she had slept peacefully that last night, with the fair taste of sunlight on her face wakening her, and not the old nightmares, and fears. They were all too often, she thought, stiffling a cough with her hand, and feeling up the pretense that nothing was wrong.

"Well, Lily, Willow, what were you two talking about while Ferran and I took our little nap?" asked Mira, smiling, and sipping her tea.

"We weren't really talkng about anything," Willow answered. "How was your nap?"

She regretted the words the moment that they had came out of her mouth, the mere stupidity of them hitting her hard. Willow sighed, and rested her head in her hands. "I'm sorry, Mira," she said softly. "I guess I'm just not thinking today."

Oh well, at least the rain had stopped for the time. Outside, there was a silence, and that bothered Willow nearly as much as the steady rainfall.