The sight of it made Kit briefly uncomfortable. But neither wizardry nor friendship was exclusively about comfort. He took the lemon fizz out, popped the can s top, and took a long swig.Neets he said silently.

Yeah, she said in his mind.

There wasn t much enthusiasm there, but there hadn t been much enthusiasm in her about anything for some weeks. At least it wasn t as bad for her now as it had been right after her mother s funeral. But clearly Kit wondered whether the bitter pain she d been in then was, in its way, healthier than her current gray, dull tone of mind, like an overcast that showed no signs of lifting. Then he immediately felt guilty for even being tempted to play psychiatrist. She had a right to grieve at whatever speed was right for her.

Busy today

Not really.

Kit waited. Normally Nita would now come forth with at least some explanation of what  not really  involved. But she wasn t anything like normal right now, and no explanation came just that sense of weariness, the same tiredwhy-bother feeling that kept rearing up at the back of Kit s mind. Whether he was catching it directly from her via their private channels of communication, or whether it was something of his own, he wasn t sure. It wasn t as ifhe didn t miss Nita s mother, too.

I finished fixing the TV, Kit said, determined to keep the conversation going, no matter how uncomfortable it made him. Someone around here had to try to keep at least the appearance of normalcy going.Now I m bored again  and I want to stay that way for a while.Wanna go to the moon 

There was a pause.No , Nita said.Thanks. I just don t feel up to it today . And there it was, the sudden hot feeling of eyes filling with tears, without warning; and Nita frowning, clenching her eyes shut, rather helplessly, unable to stop it, determined to stop it.You go ahead. Thanks, though .