During the months after Anne's death, Grell notices her absence in small moments that leave her feeling alone and disoriented. Like she'd thought there was one more stair than there was and her foot had fallen through the nothingness onto the ground.

It's strange, because Anne doesn't loom over her like a dark cloud, reminding her every second, but she turns up in little moments that throw Grell off more than any raincloud ever could.

She's there when Grell sorts her laundry and comes across items of clothing stolen from Anne. Grell ignores these items and sets them aside for the next wash, but somehow never gets around to that particular wash.

She's there when Ronald comments on her lipstick, and Grell thanks him and tells him that it's Anne's favourite shade. Then the world seems to pause and lose its colour for a moment as Grell rethinks her answer. Was. It was Anne's favourite shade.

Grell turns to tell Anne a joke, or funny story she had at work and does a double take when she realises that's she's no longer there.

Sometimes she finds herself feeling miserable during breakfast as she eats her own mediocre cooking. Her bad cooking skills don't seem as funny all of a sudden without Anne there to pick on her about it, with that half smile on her face and her eyes sparkling.

She finds herself avoiding making tea after she nearly cries when William tells her to get him a cup. She's not any good at it anyway, but her even her lacklustre ability to make tea is haunted by Angelina.

Some nights she comes home babbling excitedly as she locks the door behind her, and suddenly loses all desire to talk when she remembers why there's no answer.

Anne's death follows Grell everywhere as a sort of jarring realisation that throws her off and makes her stop for a second as she reabsorbs the reality of her absence.

It's strange.