[ the smallest of smiles creeps again onto her face. ] You joke, but that was probably a part of it. They're not usually apart this long.

[ she misses nicky too, but not with the same ache. she's been away from them both for years at a time before. ]

[ there's a patch of quiet before she speaks again. there's no going home to someone the same way for andy, not without finishing what she started here. ]

I'm pretty good at disappearing anywhere. Ximilia notwithstanding.